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Vol.15 No.10
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VOLUME 15 NUMBER 10 September 2016
Table of Contents
Self-Evident, Excessive or Opposed: Student Teachers Associations with Gender Equality .................................... 1
Maria Hedlin
Designing, Building and using Interactive eTextbooks according to the Organization of Discovery Learning Acts
in Vietnam ............................................................................................................................................................................. 38
Thai-Lai Dao, Ngoc-Giang Nguyen and Trung Tran
School Leadership and English Language Teachers Approaches in Teaching English Language: The Case of
Selected Schools in Sidama Zone, Southern Ethiopia ...................................................................................................... 62
Eshetu Mandefro, Mebratu Mulatu, Tesfaye Abebe and Yohannes Yona
Defining Teacher Effectiveness in Secondary Education: The Perceptions of Greek Students .................................. 73
Konstantina Koutrouba
Teaching and Learning Strategies Adopted to Support Students Who are Blind in Botswana ................................ 92
Joseph Habulezi
On-Demand Lecturers in a Medication Calculation Course in the Bachelors Degree in Nursing Program: A
Quantitative Study .............................................................................................................................................................. 104
Kristin Hjorthaug Urstad, Bjrg Frysland Oftedal and Brynjar Foss
Efficacy of Music Therapy and Bibliotherapy as Interventions in the Treatment of Children With EBD: A
Literature Review ............................................................................................................................................................... 113
Raol J. Taft, Jannah L. Hotchkiss and Daesik Lee
Quality of Academic Resources and Students Satisfaction in Public Universities in Kenya ................................... 130
Augustine M. Kara, Edward K. Tanui and Jeremiah M. Kalai
The Understanding of Contemporary Vocal Pedagogy and the Teaching Methods of Internationally Acclaimed
Vocal Coaches...................................................................................................................................................................... 147
Dr. Trish Rooney
Understanding the Developing Persuasive Writing Practices of an Adolescent Emergent Bilingual through
Systemic Functional Linguistics: A Case Study .............................................................................................................. 163
Dr. Joshua M. Schulze
Relationship between the Principal's Leadership Style and Teacher Motivation ...................................................... 180
Wasserman, Ben-eli, Yehoshua, Gal
1
Maria Hedlin
Linnaeus University
Kalmar, Sweden
Introduction
In the present paper, I examine a group of student teachers pre-understandings
that can be linked to gender equality. This is done through a discursive analysis
of student teachers associations with the term gender equality. Many countries
have gender equality policies in education. In European Union policy teachers
are given the task of challenging gender stereotypes and traditional gender roles
(Eurodice 2010). This means in turn that student teachers need to be prepared
for this job, something that has not always worked so well. As Frnberg (2010)
points out, it requires a lot of knowledge and skills to challenge established
practices and mindset (cf. Bondestam 2010). Researchers have highlighted
shortcomings in how gender and gender equality issues have been addressed in
teacher education (Hedlin & berg 2012; Lahelma 2014). The right competence
to address the issues has not always been available (Malmgren & Weiner 2001;
Skelton 2007; Younger 2007). Younger and Warrington (2008) talk about a
gender invisible within teacher training in the UK. Also, gender and teacher
education have long been an under researched field (Skelton 2007). This might
be due both to notions concerning gender being unreflected and to a widespread
belief that gender inequality no longer is a problem. Peace (2003), for instance,
describes British students as associating gender inequality with past times. And
Brodie (2008) argues that gender politics of the 20th century have been displaced
and marginalized in contemporary Canadian politics. Instead, we are all equal
now is a stance. In British, Canadian as well as in Australian contexts, the
individual is focused on in a way that implies that gender no longer is an issue
(Walkerdine 2003; Ringrose 2007; Brodie 2008; Romack 2011). This is in line with
a belief that women and men no longer meet gender-specific expectations.
McRobbie (2010) refers to this as the claim of post-feminism. Nevertheless,
student teachers at their placement schools have to deal with gendered
expectations. According to Braun (2011), not being prepared for this may lead to
the decision to drop out of the training. Thus there is reason to give gender
issues more attention in teacher education.
When it comes to gender equality, the Nordic countries are often described as
prominent in the field. Brunila and Edstrm (2013) even call gender equality a
clear Nordic trademark (p. 309). However, the Nordic teacher trainings have
been criticized in a similar manner as in other countries. Regarding the Finnish
teacher education, a reluctance to address gender issues has been reported.
According to Lahelma (2011), this is partly due to the view that gender issues are
no longer relevant. There is a claim that gender patterns virtually no longer exist
in Finnish society; gender equality is already achieved. Parallel with this view is
a widespread belief that the gender patterns that still can be observed depend on
biological differences that neither can nor should be challenged. Studies from
Iceland show similar results. Gudbjrnsdottir (2012; 2014) found shortcomings
concerning Icelandic teacher educators and the student teachers basic
knowledge needed to challenge prevailing gender stereotypes and incorrect
notions of unchangeable gender differences. Sweden was early to formulate a
gender equality policy in the curriculum for its nine-year compulsory schools
[for children aged 7-16]; this was done in the late 1960s. Yet, Swedish teacher
education has, as well, been criticized for flaws when it comes to preparing
prospective teachers in their task. The training has been criticized for not
connecting to the knowledge and research in this area. Issues relating to gender
and gender equality too often have been discussed in an everyday talk
manner (Havung 2006; Erixon Arreman & Weiner 2007).
This study
The overall aim of this study is to obtain basic data that can be of help to
educators during teacher education when addressing gender equality issues.
Not unlike Laclau and Mouffe, Bakhtin (1999) also describes language as a place
where there are ongoing social conflicts. He talks about the dynamic diversity of
voices that language carries. The past, present and future, as well as various
ideological groups, are represented in language. According to Bakhtin, the
statements that are made are filled with dialogic overtones. This means that every
statement, every opinion, is connected with previous statements. The words that
the speaker uses when expressing something, are not just the speakers own
words. They are also the words of others, in the sense that they hold echoes and
In Sweden gender equality was established as a political field in the 1970s, and
by now it is something that all Swedes have to relate to. It also means that
anyone who discusses gender equality issues engages in a discussion that has
been going on for some decades (Florin & Nilsson, 1999; Kjellberg 2013).
The students were doing their second semester in teacher education, training to
be primary school teachers. They had not had any courses addressing gender
equality in their education. However, as gender equality is an often used
concept as well as a recurring issue in Swedish societal discussions (Kjellberg
2013), the students were expected to be familiar with the concept. In the
questionnaire, the students were given the task of freely writing down the
associations that gender equality raises. It should be emphasized that it is the
discourses that can be interpreted in the students answers that are in focus. The
analysis focusing on the discourses means that the students, their backgrounds
and motives, are not within the focus of this study.
By reading the material repeatedly and searching for both similarities and
differences in the students answers, three discourses were interpreted
(Jrgensen & Phillips 2000). They were the discourse of the fair gender equality, the
discourse of the exaggerated gender equality and the discourse of the opposed gender
equality.
exaggerated gender equality are salient in the material. The discourse of the
opposed gender equality takes a less prominent place in the data.
The quotes connect to the official Swedish definition formulated in the 1980s:
that gender equality means that women and men have equal rights,
responsibilities and opportunities to have a job that provides economic
independence, to care for their children and their home, and to participate in
political and social activities. A fourth area that was added in the 2000s is about
gender-related violence. The objective is to stop mens violence against women
(Gustafsson & Kolam 2008). Of the four areas, work, family life, social life and
gender-related violence, two areas are found frequently when the arguments are
more concrete. The two areas are work and family life.
Whether it really is true that women and men have different conditions in the
job market may also be doubted:
In the quote above, the student maintains hearing certain things in discussions.
The wording suggests that the student does not participate actively in these
arguments, but even those who do not participate have to relate to significant
discussions. Bakhtin (1999) talks of dialogic overtones, meaning that utterances
are products of dialogues with others. In this case, what is said in the discussions
is doubted; nevertheless, the student mentions it and relates to it.
If it really were the case that no chores were called womens tasks and mens
work, this remark would be superfluous. This statement may rather be
interpreted as a way of relating to an unwanted division of chores by gender.
The above discourse of the fair gender equality, in which gender equality is
regarded as something that is, or should be, uncontroversial, is contrasted by a
different description, in which gender equality is associated with excesses and
absurdities. This discourse will be discussed below.
No one should get benefits because they happen to have one gender
or the other. [...] Further, my opinion is that the concept of gender
equality for many is associated with feminists. Many feminists think
that women should improve their situation in society for their own
benefit, instead of achieving gender equality.
The quote above suggests that the word feminist has a particularly negative
charge, which has been discussed by researchers (McRobbie 2010; Kolam 2014).
A student claims that there is a kind of feminism that seeks to offend men. By
highlighting this aggressive feminism and then rejecting it, the students own
attitude appears to be reasonable even though it is not described. The students
own vision is contrasted to ninja feminism, the desire to oppress men. Another
student talks about some who are even more belligerent:
Yet another student maintains that women in a calculating way may refer to
discrimination in order to get advantages: Gender equality issues may lead to
misuse and fighting; women may take the opportunity to claim that there is
some gender inequality just because they were discriminated against in the
past. Here gender discrimination is described as a historical phenomenon,
something that is no longer relevant. An image of Swedish society as gender
equal is thus put forward (cf. McRobbie 2010). Women who improperly refer to
gender discrimination are met, however, by resistance as described in the quote.
Their behaviour leads to disputes.
It is not only the talk and the wish for gender equality that is described as
something that has gone too far; gender equality itself has gone too far. In one
answer, it is suggested that those who are in favour of gender equality maintain
that everyone should think the same. That those approving of gender equality
have unreasonable expectations is thus expressed. In addition, it is argued that
everything is about gender equality: The word itself has become tedious;
everything is supposed to be about gender equality, but it cannot be. People in
our world are too different to think the same.
A student expresses a wording that clearly shows that the hen-word symbolizes
an unwelcome attempt to challenge the gender patterns that the schools gender
equality policy in fact targets. The student seems to fear that the hen-word will
lead to women and men being abolished as categories, that they will be replaced
by a single gender, the hen-gender. The student writes: There should be two
different sexes. Women are women; men are men. There is no such thing as hen.
In an answer from a student, it is stated that our differences should be
accepted; this in turn is associated with girls not being allowed to wear dresses.
According to the student behind the wording, there is a demand for gender
neutrality, which means that girls dresses are not accepted:
Even within this discourse, work and family are recurring areas of commentary,
as presented below.
When women are the subject of gender quotas at various workplaces [it is]
because there is a majority of men.
One student associates womens work with part-time work, a matter that has
been much discussed in Sweden in recent years. For Swedish mothers, it is
common to work part-time (Nyberg, 2013). The major disadvantages part-time
work brings in the form of low sickness benefits, low pensions and so on, have
been given considerable media attention. In the debate, part-time work has been
described as a trap for women (Lomberg 2012). The students associations may
be interpreted as a reaction and a response to this discussion (cf. Bakhtin 1999).
The student writes that gender equality is associated with: Women who choose
to work less are getting attacked because they do not work, and use their new
freedom to the maximum.
When bringing up a woman having to change two car tyres, the student
describes a division of tasks that seems rather caricatured, even ridiculous, and
then rejects it. In that way ones own posture appears as reasonable even though
it is not very specifically expressed.
A third discourse, which has a marginal space but can be seen in the material, is
the discourse of the opposed gender equality. This discourse will be discussed
below.
In a similar vein, another student describes how feminists are met with
negativity: I work at a womens shelter and I am a feminist. I am often told that
feminists just want power, when in fact it is gender equality we strive for. [...] As
a feminist, I often get unfair criticism, which I think is due to ignorance and
fear.
Asking for a gender-equal society is not really asking too much, but
if you are a woman and you say such things, automatically you need
to have a wide supply of arguments to defend yourself and your
opinions. I believe that gender equality issues are the largest and
most emotionally charged issues we have today, and that is why it is
so demanding to discuss them.
Conclusion
Three different discourses have been interpreted based on a study of gender
equality as a floating signifier. The three discourses can be understood as
competing ways of describing the surrounding world. Laclau and Mouffe (2001)
speak of discursive struggles where different ways of describing the world are in
conflict. The discursive struggles in this material are both about the degree of
equality in society and whether gender equality should be associated with
consensus or conflict. By highlighting the discourses and their different
assumptions, they may be subject to critical examination.
The second assumption which is in the centre of the discursive struggle, whether
the issue of gender equality should be associated with consensus or conflict,
cannot as easily be examined with the help of statistics. It can, however, be
discussed and related to research in the area. Within the discourse of the fair
gender equality, gender equality appears as a relatively uncomplicated objective.
To a large extent, gender equality seems a conflict-free issue. A conflict
dimension is, however, clear in both the discourse about the exaggerated gender
equality and the discourse of the opposed gender equality. Within the discourse
of the exaggerated gender equality, feminism is connected to women with
excessive demands and aggression towards men (cf. Wahl et al. 2008; Kolam
2014; Kimmel 2010). This may be surprising given that feminism in Sweden can
be associated with political measures and policies for which there is a broad
consensus among the political parties. Since a number of party leaders in 2004
declared that they were feminists, the parties feminist claims are recurringly
highlighted in the political debate. Leading politicians, both men and women,
call themselves feminists, and most of the parties in the Swedish parliament
represent themselves as feminists (Asker, 2004; Alnevall 2009). In addition,
almost half the population (47%) in Sweden state that they are feminists (TT
2014). Despite this broad backing for feminism, paradoxically negative
associations recur among the students. In this way, the discourse is obviously
also in conflict with the discourse of the fair gender equality (cf. Bakhtin 1999).
Within the discourse of the exaggerated gender equality, feminists are described
as women who do not represent the right kind of femininity norms. Feminists
are described as extremists, aggressive and selfish, with their own benefits in
focus. Based on Bakhtins (1999) discussion of how contemporary debates hold
ideas and notions from the past, this discourse may be interpreted as being
based on traditional femininity norms saying that women should stand back for
the benefit of others. Historically, women and femininity have been connected to
a self-sacrificing ideal; women would primarily put others needs first (Johnson
et al. 2005). Women who differ from this ideal too clearly can still expect to be
punished socially; they risk being seen as unfeminine and self-centred (Skeggs
1997; Jackson & Tinkler 2007).
Quite strong exaggerations are being used in the discourse on the exaggerated
gender equality. Everything is about gender equality, as one student maintains.
In this study, the aim was to obtain data that could be helpful for teacher
educators planning their teaching about gender equality policy. To be able to
challenge our students everyday assumptions and beliefs the importance of
making formative assessments in education has been emphasized (Evans 2013).
This study can be considered as a formative assessment of the knowledge
concerning gender equality and gender issues within a group of Swedish
student teachers. To discuss the different understandings and discourses with
the students may be one way to show them the complexity of the issue.
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Introduction
The teacher is one of the most important catalysts in providing high quality of
education. Much research has verified that student achievement is strongly
influenced by teachers background in content areas and by classroom practices,
both of which are related to teachers professional development (Missett,
Brunner, Callahan, Moon, Azano, 2014 & Hair, Black, Babin, Anderson, 2010 &
Field, 2013). Gifted education is no exception. Teachers of gifted students must
know how to provide enriched and/or advanced academic content to a diverse
population of students possessed of unique academic and socio-affective needs.
Professional knowledge
Professional content knowledge has been investigated and evaluated as both
comprehension and interpretation of contextualized and complex teaching
(Berman, Schultz, & Weber, 2012 & Bianco, Harris, Garrison-Wade, Leech, 2011
& Loughran, 2002). The conceptualization of application of content knowledge is
addressed in research to focus on a specific kind of knowledge. It describes
teachers application of content knowledge of specific situations and the
functional quandaries they face in carrying out purposeful action in those
settings. Professional content functional knowledge guides a teachers actions in
application (Jones, Miron, Kelaher-Young, 2012). This knowledge is gradually
built from personal and practical experience; is not readily articulated by the
teacher; and is used in complex ways during the processes of planning for and
executing teaching activities in addition to understanding the decisions that
were made earlier. It consists of factual or declarative knowledge, as well as
strategic or procedural knowledge and beliefs, including norms and values.
Specific school context plays an important role in developing functional and
realistic knowledge. (Castro, 2010 & Lynn, 2002)
experiences; those who have experience in the classroom will have different
needs from pre-service teachers, who have conceptual knowledge but not
experiential practical knowledge. Most of those participating in professional
development experiences in gifted education are classroom teachers, although a
lesser number of in-service educators with some experience teaching the gifted
are also involved in professional development experiences in gifted education.
Regardless of background, in-service teachers already have already internalized
individual beliefs and some practical knowledge about gifted education; even
those teachers in the general education classroom likely have experience
working with gifted students.
Finally, the beliefs and professional knowledge among teachers of the gifted will
vary widely, depending on their level of experience in the general education
classroom, or their absence of any teaching experience before an assignment in
gifted education. Their conceptualization of teaching will differ based both on
their disciplinary preparation and the grade levels for which they are licensed.
Importantly, educators assigned to work with gifted students often must adapt
to variable professional assignments, from coordinator for gifted programs to
teacher of the gifted in programmatic settings that can change from year to year;
these flexible professional assignments require an equally flexible approach to
internalizing practical knowledge. The development of professional knowledge
among teachers of the gifted will require divergent paths. In order to better
understand teachers of the gifted, it is critical to gain greater understanding of
the efforts made by individual teachers as they pursue their development of
practical knowledge in their unique situations.
This case study elaborates on the practicum experiences of two teachers assigned
to positions in gifted education in their respective districts. Both teachers were
new to their assignments to gifted education, and although both participated in
similar professional development experiences, each demonstrated a unique path
in the development of professional knowledge. Through an examination of the
teachers experiences, this study explores the factors affecting the development
of professional knowledge in gifted education.
Phase I
A.Readings : A. 1.Reading
Gifted child Reflections: For each
educator/parent of a reading.
gifted child/gifted child
advocate A. 2.Development of
Practicum Goal/s
10 hours of Reading
B. Readings: B. 1. Reading
Selected readings on Reflections: On Selected
Practicum Goals/s based readings provided for
on individual learning practicum goal/s based
Input to need. on individual learning Output
Teachers need. of
of Gifted 5 hours of Goal based Teachers
Learners selected readings of Gifted
C. Observing: C.1. Maintaining a Learners
In a class where gifted journal log documenting
students are being taught 15 hours of observing in
in a content area the a gifted students class.
teacher is not licensed to
teach. C.2. A final project is
developed which
15 hours of observing addresses the practicum
goal/s
15 hours of project
development
Phase II
This research study is a case study of two teachers new to gifted education. Both
participated in a 16-week practicum experience; the practicum was the capstone
of a 12-semester-hour endorsement program in gifted education, completed after
both teachers had been assigned to work with gifted students. The research
focuses on the ways in which the teachers needs combine with their practicum
Teachers are required to observe gifted students or work directly with gifted
students at the level for which they are not licensed (certified) to teach. In other
words, elementary teachers need to observe or work in secondary settings and
secondary teachers need to focus on the elementary school. This requirement
was established by a Midwestern State, since the endorsement in gifted
education is a K-12 endorsement, allowing teachers who are likely certified at
one level or the other to work with gifted children of any age. The requirement
is productive, as well, because it serves to broaden the educational experience
Camie has been a full-time classroom teacher for 17 years. When she began her
practicum experience, she was teaching speech, debate, contemporary literature,
drama, and sophomore literature. She had the opportunity to teach the Talented
and Gifted (TAG) 10th-grade English class, serve as the TAG sponsor for various
activities, and coordinate two classes allowing TAG students to complete
independent projects. Through that experience, she became interested in earning
her endorsement in gifted education. She had an opportunity to teach Letters
about Literature TAG elementary students in two different elementary schools
as a practicum experience.
districts. They range from new plans for units of study to well-articulated gifted
programs for districts; from letters to parents detailing a programs
identification policy to PowerPoint presentations for staff in-services; from
bibliographies for a new bibliotherapy curriculum to the framework to help
gifted learners imagine and enact service learning in their communities; from
articles articulating the concerns about gifted boys and their choices to withdraw
from gifted programs to plans for panels of successful women to interact with
adolescent gifted girls about dreams for the future.
This study investigated the ways in which these four themes evolved during the
practicum experience by focusing on two practicum participants. Both of the
educators are new to the field of gifted education, and both expressed great
enthusiasm about their new roles in education. As well, both were dedicated to
their professional development through practicum, but they illustrated very
different paths in the development of practical knowledge. Their responses to
practicum components have permitted an exploration of the relationships
among their unique interests or concerns in gifted education, their unfolding
Results
Nicole is a full-time teacher of the gifted in an Extended Learning Program
(ELP) in two elementary buildings.
Nicole needed to articulate new an appropriate lesson plans in order to meet the
needs of her gifted students. She believed it was essential for her to understand
the scope and sequence of the general education curriculum for first through
fifth grades in order to prepare relevant enrichment and extensions. In addition,
she tried to incorporate into her lessons the criteria for differentiation strategies
described in the professional literature. All of this was challenging for Nicole.
With no prior experience in the general education classroom, she felt a lack of
confidence both in knowledge and practice.
not diminish completely during the practicum experience, and her interests or
concerns in gifted education emphasized her specific role. An insightful
educator, Nicole understood that As I continue to reflect, I realize this job is
challenging for me because there is no set structure. I thrive off clear set goals
and structure. Its not gifted education. Its not about the right answer its
about pushing through the frustration and doing your best. In essence, Nicole
was slowly but successfully developing practical knowledge through trial and
error and reflection. Her greatest difficulty with differentiation strategies was
determining how to adjust lessons to meet everyones needs. Noting, I am still
very uneasy about identifying/integrating the strategies... I feel like its all
product differentiation, no content or process. At times, she felt that her lessons
were too fragmented, and she recognized the difficulty she had in incorporating
differentiation strategies into content. Enacting differentiation was at a level of
superficial rather than practical knowledge to her. Nicole expressed satisfaction,
though, with an experience that exemplified her evolving understanding. She
recognized that her practice was no longer superficial, but knowledge
successfully utilized in the classroom.
As Nicole reflected on her efforts to meet the needs of her gifted learners, she
became increasingly able to recognize what differentiation looks like in the
classroom, and she was able to articulate what had been only conceptual
understanding about differentiation, making it practical. She internalized
differentiation as a component of her repertoire of practical knowledge. Through
trial-and-error and reflection, she was gaining confidence in her knowledge and
in her practice. The increasing confidence served as a catalyst to develop new
practical knowledge: My depth of thinking about delivery has increased.
Throughout the past two years, I have picked up on different pieces, so I feel
confident in my overall knowledge of talented and giftedbut now I am ready
to take it to the next level-to keep questioning/modifying ideas to fit the needs
of my students.
Because Nicole was certified as an elementary school teacher, she was required
to complete at least one credit hour of practicum at the secondary level.
Although the requirement is a logical one, since the Talented and Gifted
Endorsement permits the recipient to work with children from kindergarten
through the senior year, in this case, Nicole was required to focus much of her
time and attention on issues at the secondary level, even while she was
preoccupied with classroom differentiation for her elementary students.
Reading recommended articles about differentiation allowed Andrea to reflect
Through her experiences at the secondary level, Nicole learned a great deal
about programming provided for gifted students in her districts high school, as
well as the characteristics of secondary gifted students. She participated in high
school counsellors meetings, and she learned about the high school online
Advanced Placement (AP) and honours classes available in her district; she
checked the progress of AP students as they independently worked online,
providing support for their efforts. She served as a mentor for AP students,
counselling them about time management issues, and she commented that its
amazing how different kids can be one-on-one as opposed to with their peers.
Some students discussed concerns or problems they would like to work on.
Finally, Nicole supervised a secondary class dedicated to inviting guest speakers
to make presentations to the students. Her secondary practicum experience did
not directly address her most pressing concerns and interests in gifted
education, nor did it develop her teaching practice. Her experience, however,
did make it possible for her to work directly with the high school gifted
coordinator and assist with secondary gifted programming.
a result, she had limited time to prepare for her instructional role with gifted
students, especially since she was still mastering content knowledge as well as
differentiated teaching strategies.
Nicole was assigned to work with her gifted students for only one hour each
week. She knew that understanding academic and social- emotional needs were
critical in terms of providing the best opportunities for gifted students;
understanding individual needs as well as evaluating students learning,
however, requires time. Nicole questioned, Is meeting with these students for
about one hour per week truly affecting them and enhancing their education?
Where and when does the true learning occur? What is a realistic expectation for
this job?
Nicole felt isolated in her role and in her school. It had taken two years for her
to feel comfortable with the general education teachers in her district. When she
visited colleagues classrooms to demonstrate whole-group differentiation, she
believed that the general education teachers would be enthusiastic to learn about
ideas or resources available to meet the needs of students requiring more
challenge. For the most part, however, the classroom teachers remained aloof
from Nicoles lessons, using the time to complete their own work. Actually she
wanted more team approach and to talk about strategies with regular teachers.
While Nicole hoped to plan lessons with the teachers whose classrooms she
would be visiting, it was difficult to find either the time or colleagues invested in
the process. Nicole planned the lessons, alone, especially after her mentor in the
field of gifted education moved away after Nicoles first year in the district.
Even her mentor had not been able to bring the concept of differentiation to life
for her; Nicole wanted to go beyond theory to observe what differentiation
looked like in the elementary classroom. She believed that observations of best
practices would appreciably enhance her practical knowledge of differentiation.
Without these options, though, and with an expectation that she would provide
general education teachers with ideas for classroom differentiation, Nicole had
to rely on trial and error, as well as reflection on her own practice, to develop her
understanding.
During practicum, Nicole did find that talking to others about my learning and
experience is the best strategy for me. In summary, Nicole was developing her
practical knowledge about differentiation largely by herself, without guidance
or support from other general education teachers or a mentor in the field of
gifted education. The sense of isolation made her feel that authentic professional
development was difficult.
I believe one of the most powerful practices in gifted is student choice. This
semester I have found myself reflecting on the following questions Does this
connect to their personal experiences and interests? Are they excited about the
topic? How can I make connections?...I am re-evaluating how to make the
groups more flexible and directed toward different needs that arise-not just
academically but affectively as well.
She recognized that reflection was critical, noting Part of my job is continually
reflecting on my teaching and trying to find ways of improving. I think Ive
Camie
She had the opportunity to teach the Talented and Gifted (TAG) 10th-grade
English class, serve as the TAG sponsor for various activities, and coordinate
two classes allowing TAG students to complete independent projects. Through
that experience, she became interested in earning her endorsement in gifted
education. She had an opportunity to teach Letters about Literature TAG
elementary students in two different elementary schools as a practicum
experience.
a) Earlier career in gifted education, but enthusiasm and growth stage over survival
She was a beginning teacher in gifted education, but she was in a growth stage
over survival. According to Lynn opinion about career cycle of teachers (2002),
Teachers who are in growth stage have reached a high level of competence in
their jobs but continue to progress as professionals. They love their jobs, look
forward to going to school and to interacting with their students, and are
constantly seeking new ways to enrich their teaching. July became teaching
Letters about Literature for the first time, but she did not feel much difficulty in
lesson plan and teaching TAG elementary students. And she enjoyed this
challenge.
She believed she was doing differentiation in her high school class and her
confidence in teaching strategies can be showed from following comment.
In summary, she was teaching new subject (Letters about Literature) different
students (elementary students). But she could find resource and modify them for
her lesson and apply her differentiation strategy to new subject easily.
b) View of gifted education was widening over her own teaching practice. Deepen and
widen understanding gifted education in reality.
Even if she has confidence in her teaching practices, she had some difficulties in
understanding TAG students learning style in elementary school. Through
teaching elementary students, she realized that learning style and knowledge
background between elementary students and high school students were
different and she needed to organize her lesson more and pre-assessment.
The kids at the elementary school want to learn. They want to be heard. They
want to try new things. Ive learned that elementary students need more time
to have experiences. I need to remind myself that the prior knowledge may not
be there.
Another problem to her was the relationship among parents. She realized some
elementary students parents intervened in their childrens work and gave TAG
teachers pressure to working with students. Before then she just teaching and
coaching high school students. This opportunity gave her a chance to consider
about the identity and role of teacher of the gifted. She started to think about
many issues in gifted education, the relationship of Teacher and TAG parent, the
problem of Underachiever and unmotivated TAG students in high school
students. System problem, for example, supporting TAG teacher, Justification of
gifted education, and time allowed for TAG teacher to teach gifted students.
I think some parents have the wrong impression about TAG teachers. I think
some think we sit around all day and just wait for work to come our way.
Parents seem to be more involved. Shortage of money, ELP teachers are
always asking for donations such as pencils, books, etc. ELP teacher seem to
spend quite a bit of money out of their won packets at conferences to use things
in their classroom It amazes me how some have a pull-out program where
they only meet with the child once a week Justification of their job
As a result, this experience gave her an opportunity to reflect on her practice and
students in high school, to broaden understanding about gifted education and
catalyst to develop her practice.
Julys practicum experience teaching elementary TAG students did not resulted
in just broadening understanding gifted education and developing her practical
knowledge of new subject. It was a catalyst to reframe her practice in high
school and a motive to develop practical knowledge from different views.
I really had fun with letters of literature. It was new to me and I just wanted to
find out everything associated with it. I think, as teachers, sometimes we can get
stale in teaching the same course after a while. This made me spice up some of
my other classes
She had passion in her professional development. She graduated with language
arts/English, theatre, psychology, speech, and sociology. She had masters in
secondary education and another in mass media communications. And she
became interested in getting certificated in the gifted during teaching TAG
independent projects. She believed that the more she knew about teaching, the
more effective she could be in the classroom.
She also believed that all teachers should take classes in differentiation and/or
collaboration. She thought differentiation would work for many learners and
collaboration within the departments would help the student progress from one
class to another. In addition, she believed that teachers would benefit by having
professional growth in their subject areas. That means she did not think about
just teaching gifted students but also considered diverse learners including
gifted and talented students.
She used differentiation strategies during her regular high school classroom for
making students learn better, understanding students learning style and
awakening students desire to learn in her classes and commented the following
in the journal:
It just allowed the kids to shine in their talented area It is harder to grade,
harder to plan, but it makes the learning for the students better. It also reinforced
in me the idea of the under-achiever. To not rule him or her out, but to awaken
their desire to learn in my class.
These strong beliefs about education and passion made her pursue developing
her practical knowledge and make efforts to develop it and enjoy challenge.
c) Students reaction and TAG teachers support gave her confidence in her lesson and
practice.
The Author talked about her love of books and what made her pursue writing.
She gave a brief explanation of her current book and talked about how she
brings characters to life with experiences that she hopes her readers can relate to.
I have never witnessed such dramatics in such young students. Some
students obviously are catered to at home.
Over all, she wanted that the time she and her students was productive. So, she
worked hard to prepare for each lesson. And students reaction was a big motive
to gain her confidence in her practice and efforts. She was satisfied with her
lesson and practice.
When a lesson went well- the kids grasp the concept that I was trying to teach
them- made me my heart sing. I worked with the kids mainly after school. We
met 9 weeks and I had no absences. I think the commitment of the kids really
affected me.
d) Not an observer or an assistant but teacher who had authority during practicum
experience.
At first time, she was allowed to observe and co-teach with ELP elementary
teachers. But after a while, ELP teachers started to support her opinion and
allow freedom to teach their students.
I was supposed to observe the first 30 minutes, I noticed this week that the
ELP teacher at W school includes me in everything and co-teaches the first 30
minutes and then assists me the last 30 minutes, the TAG teacher and I played
devil advocate with 13 students. We made them defend their answers I think
the teacher is starting to rely on me for the entire hour.
Discussion
A metasynthesis of the in-service professional development was conducted
using Dunst, Bruder, & Hamby, (2015) research as applicable on Niocle and
Camies responses at various levels of the research study. Nicole and Camie
were both in earlier career in gifted education and believed differentiation
should be realized in classroom. But their development phases of teaching gifted
students are different. Nicoles concern was mostly about expectation of her role
and lesson plan and teaching strategies. Jung, McCormick, & Gross, (2012)
indicates that novice teachers use specific lesson objectives to form structured
lesson plans that they did not adapt to meet student needs during teaching. Her
concerns focused on her lesson plan for differentiation and meeting some
standard about it. On reflection on her practice, she always felt some frustration
from gap between her lesson plan and her practice in class. Jung, McCormick, &
Gross, (2012) research about novice and experienced teachers showed that
novice, student teacher or beginning teachers enter classroom with images of
themselves as teachers that have been derived in part from their own
experiences as learners. And initial focus of novice teachers was inward. This
means many novice teachers teaching practices were affected by their learning
experience in school. Nicole wanted to teach gifted students using
differentiation, but the method she has experienced and learned about
differentiation was only through books or materials. She did not have
experienced even observing how differentiation is realized in a classroom. So,
she had to learn to teach even without previous learning experience about
Unlike Nicole, Camie was in another phase. She began to teach a new subject at
a different level to students for the first time. But, she did not feel difficulties in
lesson planning for this new subject. This new subject was not totally different
from her English class. She thought differentiation was very important and
taught using differentiation in her high school. Even if she had difficulties in
teaching gifted students for lack of knowledge of the learning style of gifted
elementary students at first, she became gaining confidence in teaching them.
Her concerns are not inward but outward. Lisas most concern was encouraging
all teachers take classes in differentiation and collaboration. Her most struggles
through her practicum experience are about parent or regular teachers
perception about gifted education, or justification of gifted education. She
realized the status of gifted education in reality. We can say that Nicole was in a
new turning phase which was beyond her practice to start to think about gifted
education from systematically view and support gifted students everyday lives.
she could do effective in the classroom. This was a motive for learning
something new and she enjoyed new challenge. During practicum experience,
she made new trials. Through reflection on her practice, she became to be aware
of students learning style in her classroom. Especially, reflection on students
reaction on her teaching practice became a strong motive to pursue her
development.
Steffie and Wolfe, (2001) suggested life-cycle model for career teachers. They
assumed that teachers will continue to grow and develop throughout their
professional life time and they can engage in transformational processes
including critical reflection on practice, redefinition of assumptions and beliefs,
and enhanced self-worth. Jones et al, insisted that the critical factor that enables
teachers to propel themselves through the career life is the reflection-renewal-
growth cycle. Andrea and Lisa both reflected their practice and themselves
continuously. They evaluated their beliefs and themselves as a gifted educator
and found their weakness and new learning from them. Those were stimulus for
them to make efforts to improve their practical knowledge and resulted in their
development as a teacher.
Meanwhile, isolation was barrier to development of these teachers practical
knowledge. As to Castro (2010), one of most important contextual factor may be
the personal relationship that develops between a novice and his or her
cooperating teacher. Baudson & Preckel (2013) elicited four ways of professional
learning, reading in order to collect new knowledge and information or data,
Doing as well as experimenting, reflection, collaboration. Baudson and Preckel
insisted that collaboration is the most important to professional development as
it not only provides necessary support for learning but also provides teacher
with feedback and bring about new ideas and challenge.
In case of Nicole, she wanted to develop her practice continuously and want to
share her experience with other teachers. She felt talking to others about her
learning and experiences were the best strategy for her development through
practicum course. She wanted evaluation tools for teachers themselves. But in
her school, she did not have collaborator who help her development of teaching
practice or develop lesson plan cooperatively. Meanwhile, she was in a situation
which provides regular teacher resources ideas for differentiation. This means
although she wanted better practice, no one could support and give her
feedback for her development.
Many beginning teachers feel isolation, too. But their role or job is not threatened
by other colleagues and parents in their school. Meanwhile, teachers of gifted
students have to justify their job to regular teachers or parents or even
administrator who do not understand the needs of gifted education even in their
school. It took some years for Nicole to feel comfortable with other regular
teachers at her school and earn admission of ideas/resources for gifted students
needs from them. She had a mentor for first two years. But her mentor might not
support her much about what she wanted to learn to teach, because she still
wanted to observe the class using differentiation in elementary level even after
mentoring leaving. Only the way she develop her practical knowledge about
differentiation was doing by herself in her class. So, contrary to her hope of
collaborating, this situation prohibited her professional development.
Isolation feeling was the same to Camie. Even if she was most supported about
lesson plan and her practice by gifted teachers in elementary school, she
sometimes felt some difficulties in collaborating with them in class, especially,
about understanding students and sharing task.
Conclusion
Practical knowledge is challenge for beginning teachers. Berman, Schultz, &
Weber, (2012) argue that new teachers have two jobs- they have to teach and
they have to learn to teach. No matter how good a pre-service program maybe,
there are some things that can only be learned on the job. As Nicole said There
can only be so much guidance provided and then you need to jump in and start
learning on your own, it is very hard for teachers to obtain practical
knowledge through only direction and materials without their practices and
reflection on them. But teachers need guide for effective practitioner. We could
not expect only teachers passion about their job for their development. As
mentioned above, previous experience, practicum experience, and reflection
play an important role in these two teachers development. So we need to
organize teachers of gifted learners practicum experience to reflect on their
practice and establish collaboration among beginning and experienced teachers
of the gifted to support their development.
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Trung Tran
The Committee for Ethnic Minorities,
80 Phan Dinh Phung, Ha Noi, Vietnam
1. Introduction
Teacher needs to prove the activity, the independency, the creativity and needs
to be against the passivity of students in order to innovate teaching and learning.
There are many different methods in order to prove the activity, the self-learning
competence of learners. One of the usual methods is discovery learning.
However, the traditional discovery learning has a very large weak point.
Discovery learning is restricted because it desires a lot of efforts of teacher.
Teacher spends a lot of time for writing lesson according to discovery learning.
The traditional discovery learning cannot simulate the processes, phenomena of
nature, social and human. The record of document and traces of acts of students
is usually cumbersome in traditional discovery learning. Especially, the
environment of interaction with students, friends and other objects is restricted
in the traditional space of classroom. Applying ICT & media in teaching and
learning is one of the best choices in order to remedy these restrictions. Basing
on the needs of learning of students, ICT and media make learning flexible.
Students are active and they choose effective learning methods suitable with
their competence. ICT and media make students themselves independent and
2. Content research
2.1. Discovery learning
Discovery learning is attributed by Dewey, Piaget and Vygotsky.
(wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructivism)
After these psychologists, there are some people who continue to develop point
of views of these psychologists. Joolingen said that: Discovery learning is a type
of learning where learners construct their own knowledge by experimenting
with a domain, and inferring rules from the results of these experiments. They
actually construct their knowledge by themselves. Because of these constructive
activities, they will understand the domain at a higher level
(edutechwiki.unige.ch)
Borthick & Jones supposed that: In discovery learning, students learn to
recognize a problem, search for relevant information, develop the solution of
problem. (edutechwiki.unige.ch)
Discovery learning is an approach to instruction through which students interact
with their environment-by exploring and manipulating objects, wrestling with
questions and controversies, or performing experiments. Discovery learning
makes students remember concepts long and students discover on their own.
Discovery learning is most successful when students have basic knowledge and
experiences. (edutechwiki.unige.ch)
Weak points:
- To make student confusing if he has not basic knowledge.
- To create misconceptions ("knowing less after instruction")
(Kristenlockwood13.tripod.com)
In traditional classroom (do not use ICT and media), the organization of
discovery learning also gets some restrictions as follows:
- Discovery learning in traditional classroom only adapts to a small number of
students, students who live in different places do not interact together. The
interaction of discovery learning in traditional classroom is restricted.
- If there are a large number of students in traditional discovery learning then
there are not enough educational experts for helping these students
immediately. If students choose incorrect choices then they do not get
instructions immediately.
- There must be teacher then traditional discovery learning just happens.
Students discover according to the acts and requires of teacher.
Using ICT and media will help traditional discovery learning to prove strong
points and to minimize weak points. We concentrate on the researching,
designing and using e-textbooks (A concretization of ICT and media) according
to discovery orientation in learning mathematics of students.
learners to look up and find information fast. E-textbooks now allow users to
connect and update more information from websites that their addresses are
given by e-textbooks. (violet.vn)
According to the research of given e-textbooks as well as designed and built a
concrete e-textbook at the address: http://e-edvietnam.edu.vn, our opinions are
as follows:
E-textbooks are the software of textbooks ensuring the requests of paper
textbooks, however, e-textbooks can exist independently and their content cover
whole program. E-textbooks must have electronic features, interactive features
and feedback.
(i) Electronic features are as follows: E-textbooks can act on the Internet or
without the Internet. We can see the contents of e-textbooks on personal
computers (PCs, laptops), e-readers (Kindle, Nook, Sony, Reader, etc.), tablet
computers (Multiform: iPad, Android Tablets (Galaxy Tab, Kindle Fire, etc.),
Surface; Specialized: Kno, Class-book) or smart-phones. E-textbooks can
integrate many kinds of the advanced and modern technology of informatics
and media in order to serve information transmitting, learning, and studying
best.
(ii) Interactive feature and feedback are as follows: e-textbooks ensure the
converse relations, have dialogues or have impacts between e-textbooks and
users. For example, when a student choose a wrong option on computer then he
intermediately gets a message from e-textbooks on what his errors, knowledge
and skills are and the instruction of next learning act for him in aiding discovery
learning.
- The hyperlinks and hypertexts. Hyperlinks connect between the interfaces of users
and the knowledge based system of e-textbook. These hyperlinks include the
created orientations, feedback and instructions to help users find, access, interact
and activate the functions of e-textbook and data that need to use and exploit.
Hyperlinks allow users to note text paragraphs, emphasize focused knowledge.
- The interactive and communicative environment. It will be a created space for users
to approach data, display desired information and get feedback when users
interact with e-textbook. The interactive and communicative environment of e-
textbook is often designed under a software or a website.
- Teacher gives home tasks to students (in the previous lesson in class)
- Student learns with e-textbook by himself
- Students learn in class (after students have learned the lesson in the e-textbook)
- Teacher gives home tasks to students (in the next learning period)
4.1.1. Teacher gives home tasks to students (in the previous lesson in
class)
Teacher gives home tasks to students in the previous lesson in class; Students
access the given website and do according to the requests of teacher at home. If
students do not understand and have any questions then students note them on
paper and ask teacher in the next lesson in class, teacher will explain and answer
these questions.
Concretely, students received home tasks according discovery learning on the e-
textbook in the previous lesson.
The example is illustrated by teaching and learning the lesson The reflectional
symmetry on e-textbook. The previous lesson in class is The translation and
transformations, teacher gives home tasks to students before finishing the
lesson: You learn the relectional symmetry, the symmetric axis of a figure, read
illustrated examples and do the ramified problem of 3. The reflectional
symmetry on e-textbook by yourselves. After you finish learning the
reflectional symmetry with the help of e-textbook, you will fill in the following
notes:
- What is the reflectional symmetry?
- Do you give an example on the axis of a figure in the real life?
Students write their answers on the notes and submit them to teacher in the next
lesson in class.
Student fills in the squares marked by * and fills in his password according to
the requests e-textbook:
Student sends the address of his username to teacher by email; teacher saves the
username in the account of e-textbook. After teacher saves the username, teacher
will follow the traces of acts of student on e-textbook.
The way of doing with e-textbook:
- When students read a question of a certain page of e-textbook, they themselves
answer it before clicking on the next page in order to receive its answer (if yes),
after that students compare with their choices.
- Students need to install the supplemental software such as Adobe Flash, Java
script in order to do with e-textbook
After students read the instructions of e-textbook, students will carry out the
self-learning of transformations in the plane according to discovery learning on
e-textbook:
- Students click on the function E-notebook Vietnamese advanced geometric text
book 11th Chapter 1 3. The reflectional symmetry A. Theory 1. Definition
of the reflectional symmetry page 1 then the screen of e-textbook displays two
sliding doors as follows:
Students observe the sliding door and answer the question of e-textbook:
- When students observe the two entrance doors of a supermarket on the screen,
all of good, rather good, average and bad students answer the question of e-
textbook correctly.
- Students click on the next page 2 to see the answer of the question:
(Two points M, M' are symmetric with respect to the midline of entrance door.)
- Students will continue to discover the reflectional symmetry when they click
on the page 3, read and answer the example 2 of e-textbook.
Example 2
Given a pine tree. Observe the axis of this pine tree.
We call the left pine tree being the figure ( H ). Let ( H ' ) be the figure symmetric
to the axis (Click on the right arrow of the figure (in the next page)). With each of
points M on ( H ) , observe point M ' symmetric to point M with respect to a.
When M moves on ( H ), give remarks on the positional points M' . See the
figure and answer of the question at the next page.
- When students observe the pine tree on the screen, all of good, rather good,
average and bad students answer the question correctly: Point M is symmetric
to point M ' with respect to the axis of the pine tree.
- Students click on the next page 4 then e-textbook displays the following figure:
After click on the right arrow then the figure will move to become the pine tree:
Students interact with the table of choices of the page 4 of e-textbook in order to
confirm the answer for e-textbook:
When students interact with the table of choices, all of good, rather good and
average students choose the correct answer A.
Bad students still do not master knowledge through the visual symbols, so they
choose the answer that is not A. E-textbook automatically gives the
announcement and feedback on the incorrect choice of bad students as follows:
When students click on the page 5, they will continue to discover the reflectional
symmetry, read and answer the question of the below figure of e-textbook:
Two given lines a and d satisfying that they intersect at A . With each of points
M on d , draw point M' symmetric to the point M with respect to a . When M
moves on d , give remarks on the positional points M' .
Students continue to click on the page 8 in order to see the remarks and answer:
(Remarks: M' moves on d through A such that d' and d take a as a bisector
line of a pair of vertically opposite angles formed by d' and d .)
Students will continue to discover the reflectional symmetry when they click on
the next page 9, read and answer the below question of e-textbook:
Example 3
Given line a and circle ( O ). With each of points M on ( O ), draw point M'
symmetric to point M with respect to a . When M moves on ( O ), give remarks
on the positional points M' .
Students continue to click on the page 12 to see the remarks and answer:
(Remarks: M ' moves on the circle (O ') equal to the circle (O ) )
Students click on the pages 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 of E-notebook Vietnamese advanced
geometric text book 11th Chapter 1 3. The reflectional symmetry A.
Theory 1. Definition of the reflectional symmetry in order to see the remarks and
definition of reflectional symmetry:
Observing all of the above figures, we see that they have a common detail: Given
a line a , with each of points M , we only definite a point M' symmetric to point
M with respect to a .
From this, we have the definition of reflectional symmetry as follows:
The symmetry with axis a , called Sa , is a transformation that maps each of points M
onto point M' as follow : If M a then M' M ; if M a then M' is symmetric to
the point M with respect to a . Line a is called the axis of symmetry or symmetric axis.
4.1.3. Students learn in class (after students have learned the lesson in
the e-textbook)
Teacher asks students to answer the given questions at the previous lesson. All
of students discuss these questions, teacher answer these ones of students. There
are a lot of different methods in order to organize the acts in class. Teacher can
organize the common learning acts for all of students or for groups or each of
individuals.
The acts of teacher in class are:
- To stabilize the class.
- Act 1: Receive the replies of students, answer students questions and organize
the common acts for class by the questions of checking students knowledge fast.
- Act 2: Organize the acts for groups of students.
- Act 3: Send private notes to students.
- Act 4: Assert the main knowledge that needs to be learned.
- Act 5: Teacher give home tasks to students (in the next learning period)
(The type of discovery learning in class is the guided one.)
4.1.4. Teacher gives home tasks to students (in the next learning period)
Teacher gives the same home tasks to students (in the next learning period) as
the home tasks to students (in the previous learning period). Concretely, teacher
gives home tasks to students in the next learning period in class; students do the
exercises of textbook, find out more different solutions and generalized
problems. Students access the address given by teacher at home and do
according to teachers requests. When students learn with e-textbook by
themselves, students do not understand or have any questions, then students
will ask teacher in the next learning period, teacher will explain and answer the
questions.
Teacher gives home tasks to students; students consolidate knowledge, do
problems of developing thought. Students learn the next learning period on e-
textbook by themselves.
The illustrated example that teacher gives home task to students (at the next
learning period of lesson the reflectional symmetry (period 2) is as follows
- Homework: Exercises 7, 8 (page 13 E-textbook).
- Teacher consolidates, broadens knowledge and gives the advanced and
development problems of creative thought to students. For example, these are
the problems of reflectional symmetry having many solutions, similar and
generalized problems of the origin one.
- Teacher gives home tasks to students on the remaining lesson of the
8.85 0
Very necessary
Necessary
35.4 Not necessary yet
55.75
Not necessary
We also delivered survey forms to 253 students of senior high schools in Hanoi
city, Viet Nam in order to test the application of interactive e-textbook in
learning mathematics. The result is as below:
Chart 2. The ideas of students on using e-textbook
200
180
160
140 Frequently
120
100 Sometime
80
60 Never
40
20
0
Like teachers Like teachers Like to explore Like to use e-
to use e- to use divided e-textbook rough
textbook in branch themselves notebook
teaching module
concept,
theorem,
solving
problem
according to
Chart 2 shows that students very like teachers to use e-textbook in learning
concepts, theorems as well as properties according to discovery learning.
Students are interested in techer using the feature of divided learning as well as
discover e-textbook by themselves. Students very like rough e-notebook in doing
with plane geometric objects.
Quoc Hung also likes to ask teacher about difficult problems like Vuong An in
class. For example, when Quoc Hung learns lesson The refectional symmetry, he
asks teacher the following difficult problem Given circle ( A; R1 ) and point B
lying on the same side of line d. Find point C on ( A) , point M on line d such that
MC MB is the shortest.
Quoc Hung is fluent and active in group acts, common acts in class. Quoc Hung
finishes the learning notes of rather good and good students quite fast. The time
that he finishes the learning notes is only longer than Vuong An.
(3) Le Van Tien Dzung
At the first period The beginning of transformations and the translations and
transformations, The time that Tien Dzung finishes the self-learning is longer
than Quoc Hung and Vuong An about 4 minutes. At the next periods such as
The translations and transformations (period 2), The reflectional symmetry
(period 3, period 4), Tien Dzung finishes the self-learning quite fast. The self-
learning ability of Dzung is average.
For the ramified problem (problem 1 of lesson The beginning of
transformations), Tien Dzung chooses an incorrect choice. The chart of the
learning process of ramified problem (problem 1) on e-textbook of Tien Dzung is
as follows:
At the next periods, Tien Dzung do ramified problems for a long time but he
does not choose any incorrect choice. For example, the problem 2 of The
reflectional symmetry:
Given a triangle ABC ( ABC is inscribed in a circle with center O ). B , C are fixed
while A moves on the circle. Use the reflectional symmetry to prove that the orthocenter
H of triangle ABC lies on a fixed circle
then Tien Dzung chooses all of correct choices. The chart of the learning process
of Tien Dzung on e-textbook is as follows:
Tien Dzung does not ask teacher about knowledge concerned with his self-
learning in class. Teacher must give more exercises to consolidate his
knowledge.
Tien Dzung is fluent and active in learning with simple problems but he is
passive in learning with advanced problems in class. Tien Dzung also finishes
private notes of teacher well.
(3) Tran Tri Ngoc
At the first period The beginning of transformations and the translations and
transformations, Tri Ngoc does not master the self-learning knowledge. When he
learn by himself, he does not know to communicate with his friends and teacher
in order to get their help. Tri Ngoc chooses incorrect choices and need
instructions. The chart of the learning process of ramified problem (problem 1)
on e-textbook of Tri Ngoc is as follows:
At the next period The translations and transformations (period 2), Tri Ngoc can
communicate with his friends about lesson. Tri Ngoc also chooses incorrect
choices however the time of his incorrect choices is shorter than before. The
chart of the learning process of ramified problem (problem 2) of Tri Ngoc on e-
textbook is as follows:
At the next periods The reflectional symmetry (period 3, period 4), Tri Ngoc
chooses all of correct choices of ramified problems however the time of his
correct choices is quite long. Tri Ngoc is better through every period. The chart
of the learning process of ramified problem (problem 2) on e-textbook of Tri
Ngoc is as follows:
Tri Ngoc does not ask teacher about knowledge concerned with his self-learning
in class. Teacher must give more exercises to consolidate his knowledge.
In class, Tri Ngoc is passive in two fist periods. At the two next periods, Tri
Ngoc is also active in solving simple exercises however the time of doing
exercises is quite long. Tri Ngoc also finishes private notes of teacher well.
- Quantitative assessment:
We follow the learning of 04 students by e-textbook, from the traces of the
students on e-textbook, we realize that, students usually enter their login to
learn knowledge, do exercises and tests, the following results of 04 students in a
month are as follows:
TT Full name Score 1 Score 2 Score 3 Score 4
1 Vng An 7.5 8.5 8.5 9.0
2 Quoc Hung 7.0 7.5 7.5 8.0
3 Tien Dzung 6.0 7.0 7.5 7.5
4 Tri Ngoc 4.5 5.0 5.0 6.0
Observing the scores of 04 students, we realize that they are better on the
activeness, self-awareness and creation.
Thus, the experimental results show that e-textbook helps student to learn
mathematics and to improve their active and creative abilities.
6. Conclusion
Interactive e-textbooks have many strong points such as to help students to discover
knowledge conveniently; to transmit images, sound, MP3, MP4 files. E-textbooks
allow us to educate an infinite number of students. Students can interact together by
e-textbooks easily. E-textbooks will create an advantageous environment when
users do with geometric objects.
References
Doan, Q., Van, N. C., Pham, K., B., Ta, M. (2016), Advanced geometry 11th, The Vietnam
Educational Publishing House.
Joi, L. M., Camille, D., D., Krista, G., (2011), e-learning, online learning, and distance learning
environments : Are they the same? Internet and Higher Education, Vol. 14, 129-135.
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Artificial Intelligence in Education, Vol 10, 385-397
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meeting the new school curriculums demand, Ministry of Education and Training of
Vietnam.
Mogens, N. (2003), Mathematical competencies and the learning of mathematics: The
danish KOM project. In Gagatsis, A., & Papastarvridis, S. (eds.), 3rd
Mediterranean Conference on Mathematical Education (pp. 115 124). Athens,
Greece: Hellenic Mathematical Society and Cyprus Mathematical Society.
Nguyen, T., D. (2014), The research of the lessons of teacher concentrated on the mathematical
discovery of students in teaching and learning mathematics at upper secondary school.
A Dissertation for the Degree of Doctor of Education, Hanoi National University
of Education (Dissertation written in Vietnamese).
Nguyen, V., H. (2007). Applying guided discovery teaching in the process of teaching
mathematics at upper secondary school. Journal of Vietnamese Educational Science,
28-29.
Nguyen, M., H., Khu, Q., A., Nguyen, H., T. (2016), Basic geometric exercises 11th, The
Vietnam Educational Publishing House.
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software, Journal of Vietnamese Education, number 280 (2/2012), p.5153.
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Nguyen, T., Q., S. (2006), The instructions of performing the standard of knowledge
and skills of mathematical subject 11th, The Vietnam Educational Publishing House.
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mathematical textbooks of some countries, the proposal of applications to write
Vietnamese mathematical textbook adapting to the requires of secondary school
educational program after 2015, The report of the summarization of the science and
technology topic of the Vietnam Institute of Educational Sciences, Hanoi.
Roger, S. (1989), The elaboration of school textbooks methodological guide, Division of
Educational Sciences, Contents and Methods of Education UNESCO.
Tran, T. (2011), Applying ICT to teaching and learning mathematics at secondary school, The
Vietnam Educational Publishing House.
Tran V., H., Nguyen, M., H., Khu, Q., A., Nguyen, H., T., Phan, V., V. (2016), Basic
geometry 11th, The Vietnam Educational Publishing House.
Van, N., C., Pham, K. B., Ta, M. (2016), Advanced geometric exercises 11th, The Vietnam
Educational Publishing House.
Edutechwiki.unige.ch. Retrieved from
http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Discovery_learning
En.wikipedia.org. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-book.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructivism_(philosophy_of_education)
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Introduction
academic world (VCE, 2015). One of the major areas of interventions made to
improve the quality of education in Ethiopia has been to provide English
language; skill based training for EFL and other subject teachers, and set school-
based English mentors who will assist all teachers that use English as a tool for
classroom teaching and learning (MoE, 2010). The initiative also aims at
strengthening English Language Quality Improvement Program (ELQIP) all
over the country, through continued improvement of quality teaching and
learning (MoE, 2010). But, the concern is that the mamagment of the training and
the extent of classroom application havent been studied well. In line with this,
Eshetu (2016)stated that the school level management of English language
instruction is not uniform across the schools.
The Annual Report of SNNPR Education Bureau (2013) also indicated that only
12.9% of the students from Sidama zone and 20.5% from Hawassa city scored
50% and above for English subject, and the performance of grade 8 students in
the Regional examination and grade 10 students in the National examination
was below average. According to the same report, the degree of failure of
students was extremely high in English, Mathematics and Science subjects.
Although these studies show the poor achievement of students in English and
other subjects, the root causes of the problem and the approaches used by
teachers and school leaders in teaching English language are not clearly known.
The present study was therefore conducted to assess the strategies and methods
used by English language teachers and school leaders in teaching the English
language.
The purpose of this study was to assess the strategies and approaches used in
the teaching of English in selected primary and secondary schools in Sidama
administrative zone of Southern Ethiopia, and to identify the major pedagogical
and organizational problems that affect students performance in the English
language.
Research Design
The method used in the study was descriptive survey because the study was
directed towards people, their opinions, attitude and behaviors. According to
Best and Khan (2006), descriptive research attempts to describe scientifically a
situation, problem, phenomenon, service or program, or provides information or
describes attitudes towards an issue. This method was therefore selected
because the nature of the problems needs wider description and detailed
analysis of existing phenomenon.
Data for the study were collected through questionnaires, interviews and
document analysis. The data collected through questionnaire were used for the
quantitative analysis, while those collected through interviews and document
analysis were used to describe the findings.
The Questionnaire
To achieve the objectives of the study, a quantitative methodology involving a
close-ended questionnaire was used as the measuring instrument. The
questionnaire was used to obtain quantitative information from teachers and
students on issues related to English language teaching. A total of 307
questionnaires were distributed to students (257) and teachers (50) drawn from
the eleven primary and secondary schools. In order to have fair representation
of gender, the respondents (students and teachers) were grouped into males and
females, and then a random sample was taken from each group based on their
proportions. All of the questionnaires were appropriately filled and returned.
The Interviews
Document analysis
The researchers also analyzed different documents such as students profiles,
mark lists, students academic records (rosters), and records of regional and
national certificate examination results in order to cross-check the findings with
the existing facts on the ground.
The five point Likert scale questionnaire items were analyzed in terms of their
mean range. The mean scores from 0.01 to 2.99 indicated a negative response
and disagreement of the respondents on the statements forwarded to them; the
mean value 3.00 indicates a neutral response of respondents, and the mean value
3.01-5.00 indicates a positive response and agreement of respondents on the
issue raised in the items (Johns, 2010). The qualitative data collected through
interviews and document analysis were analyzed textually by grouping the
information thematically from the responses of the respondents.
Respondents views
The results on Leadership strategies show that the school leaderships do not
properly implement the approaches and strategies that are believed to improve
English language proficiency of students.
The respondents were asked to rate their schools in terms of the provision of
supplementary materials to students to help them to improve their English
language proficiency. Accordingly, the mean scores rated by both students and
teachers were 2.24 and 2.17, respectively (Table 2) indicating poor performance
in provision of supplementary resources that help improve English language
proficiency of students. The value of sign.2 tailed test in both groups confirms
that there were no variations between the teachers and students responses as
the values is less than 0.05 in both groups. Moreover, from the interviews
conducted with the school principals and English language teachers, it was
found out that the provision of supplementary materials to students was
inadequate.
1. Adequacy of supplementary
materials to students to help
them improve English language 2.24 1.28 .000 2.17 1.30 0.00
skill.
2. Suitability of the classrooms to
implement student centered 2.20 0.98 .000 2.02 1.36 0.00
teaching approach.
3. Allocation of adequate financial
resources to support ELIC. 1.72 1.10 .000 1.84 0.73 0.00
4. Provision of different training
programs for teachers inthe 1.84 0.93 .000 1.74 1.07 0.00
areas of teaching methods.
The respondents were asked to point out whether the English language teachers
are well equipped with the required skills of English language. The average
mean score given by students was 3.28 while that of teachers was 3.11. The
average mean score of both groups indicate that the English language teachers
are moderately equipped with the required skills of English language, but not
sufficient.
In response to the question of whether the English language teachers use other
languages such as the mother tongue, or the working language (Amharic) when
teaching English in the classroom, the average score by students and teachers
were 4.12 and 3.76 respectively. This result showed wider use of mother tongue
and Amharic by teachers when teaching in the class. Furthermore, interviews
conducted with English language teachers disclosed that they widely use other
languages, claiming that the students do not understand what the teacher
teaches. Obviously, the use of other languages by English language teachers to
compensate for poor understanding of subjects by the students, further
contributes towards deterioration of English language skills. In line with this,
Sambo (2015) underscores the dominance of mother tongue in English classroom
contributed more to the poor performance of students in English language.
The respondents were asked to rate their English language teachers' in terms of
their performances to motivate the students to apply task based interactive
activities in classroom. The average mean score of both groups of respondents
was 2.10 and 2.31 for students and teachers respectively (Table 3). Both groups
of respondents confirmed that English language teachers do not influence and
motivate their students to apply task-based interactive activities in the
classroom. Similarly, the interviews conducted with school principals indicated
that English language teachers do not adequately motivate their students to
perform and apply any task-based interactive activities in the classroom, such as
English language clubs, or social media of the school, to motivate the students to
improve their English language skills. This agrees with the result of Belamo
(2015) which confirmed that students are not provided with interactive activities
though the text book encourages doing so.
Conclusions
English is the medium of instruction in secondary and tertiary education
systems in Ethiopia, and it is a vital key to understand all other subjects taught
in English. However, recent studies indicate that the proficiency of students in
the English language in generally low. This study was, therefore, conducted to
assess the ways in which English language teaching is handled in Primary and
Secondary schools in Sidama administrative zone in Southern Ethiopia. In
particular, the study attempted to evaluate the methods applied and the
resources used in English language teaching.
As regards to the teaching methods used in teaching English, the study revealed
that, a) English language teachers in the schools do not generally apply student-
centered teaching methods, b) English language teachers do not motivate their
students to apply task based interactive activities in the classroom, c) The
majority of English language teachers use other languages (mother tongue
and/or Amharic) when teaching English, and they hardly communicate to each
other in English, and d) English language teachers were not reflective
practitioners, and as professional teachers, they do not influence their students
to improve their English language proficiency
Regarding the resources and facilities used in the teaching of English, the study
revealed that: a) there were no well-organized school-based English language
mentors, b) the supplementary materials like audio and visual aids provided by
the schools were not satisfactory, c) English language improvement clubs (ELIC)
are either non-functional or poorly performing, d) the schools never provided
training opportunities for teachers on English language teaching methods, and
e) the school management did not encourage communicative approach of
English language teaching strategies in the schools.
References
Alemu, B. (2016). School Based Activities to Improve the Teaching and Learning of English (
MA Thesis from Addis Ababa University). Addis Ababa: AAU press.
Best, J.W., & Kahn, J.V. ( 2006). Research in Education. Prentice Hall of India. New Delhi.
Carlo, M. (2012).Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. TESOL Journal,
6(2),112-119.
Belamo, U. (2015). The Practice of Students Interaction in English Language Lesson.
IJSSHE 2(6): 39-44
Eshetu, M. (2016). Challenges in Teaching English in Ethiopia (MA TEFL Thesis from AAU).
Adiss Ababa: Unpublished MA Thesis.
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language-teaching-learning.html
Johns, R. (2010). SQB Methods Fact Sheet: Likert Items and Scales. Massay: PT press L.td.
Khader, K. T., & Mohammad, S. (2010). Reasons behind non-English major University
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derKhader.pdf
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A.A:GT press
Ministry of Education (MOE) (2008). General Education Quality Improvement Package.
Addis Ababa: GT press
Murray, D. E., & Christison, M. A. (2010). What English Language Teachers Need to Know:
Understanding Learning. Taylor & Francis.
Simbo, K. (2015). The Status of English in Ethiopia. Journal of Education: 12 (4): 67-69.
Ronald, C., & David, N. (2001).The Cambridge guide to teaching English to speakers of other
languages. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Susanna, A. (2007). The weak language learner: a study of ways of taking weak language
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VCE (2015). English Language. Melbourne: Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
Authority
Konstantina Koutrouba
Harokopio University
Athens, Greece
Introduction
Teacher effectiveness has been reported to be closely linked, firstly, to a teachers
professional background and qualifications, secondly, to local/national
community values, expectations and material resources and infrastructure at the
teachers disposal, and, thirdly, to learning processes developed within school
settings and carried out through constructive interactions between teacher-to-
student, teacher-to-parent, teacher-to-teacher, student-to-student (Garrett &
Steinberg, 2015; Goe, Bell, & Little 2008; Kyriakides, Demetriou, &
Charalambous, 2006; Ross et al., 2003). Such factors, features and interactions
are likely to lead to high academic, affective, and social/attitudinal
achievements not only by students but also by teachers which can be
standardised, measured, and evaluated through a variety of modern
scientifically designed assessment procedures (Heneman et al., 2006; Junker et
al., 2006; Murphy, 2016; Rivkin, Hanushek, & Kain, 2005; Schleicher, 2016).
Although numerous aspects of effective teaching have been recorded and
examined after a huge amount of research conducted over the last few decades,
the majority of the researchers seem to agree that effective teachers are mainly
expected to (i) help all students meet not only social and educational
requirements and commitments but also a students personal expectations and
aspirations (ii) diversify teaching/learning process through the utilisation of a
Methodology
The present research took place in 2014-2015 with the contribution of 10
undergraduate University students who, being provided with systematic
relevant information and having the permission of the Ministry of Education
and Religious Affairs of Greece, assisted students from 30 secondary education
schools throughout Greece ((located in equal number in urban/semi-urban and
in rural/peripheral areas, where the teacher-to-student and teacher-to- school
ratios represent the national ratios of 1:8.5 and 21.1:1 respectively, OECD, 2011)
in understanding and filling in a questionnaire with 43 close-ended questions. In
this way, 1,000 questionnaires were distributed (and 879 of them were finally
returned and used for the present study response rate: 87.9 per cent) in order
to ensure that, in this research, as many students as possible had experienced
teachers of different professional profiles and teachers who had been involved in
a large number of possible different educational situations in which students
could be expected to realize, define and indicate effectiveness more easily.
Of the 43 questions 3 examined students personal profile (gender, class
attended-age, nationality), while 40 five-point Likert-type special questions (that
can be seen in table 1) referred to students perceptions about teacher
effectiveness. To maximize the respondents awareness and internal consistency
in answers during questionnaire completion, specific questions were not
arranged on the basis of their relation with the ones preceding or following
them. Nevertheless, question relevance was a criterion for question grouping.
Given the fact that the international literature could not provide the
researcher with an instrument which would allow her to examine all variables
necessary for the present research, the questionnaire was self-administered,
while, for its synthesis, valuable findings of Arnon and Reichel (2007), Cohen,
Brody, and Sapon-Shevin (2004), Davis (2013), Devine, Fahie, and McGillicuddy
(2013), Greany and Rodd (2003), Hakel, Koenig, and Elliott (2008), Kyriakides,
Demetriou, and Charalmbous (2006), Matsumura and Pascal (2003), and Pozo-
Muoz, Rebolloso-Pacheco, and Fernndez-Ramrez (2000) were used.
Predictive Analytics Software Statistics 21 was used for the elaboration of
the research data, the statistical and the factor analysis, which used Principal
Component Analysis with the method of Varimax rotation extraction to identify
the factors that affect the participants perceptions about teacher effectiveness. s
Analysis of results
Participants profile
In the present research, the majority of the participants (52.8%) were girls, while
the rest of the students (47.2%) were boys. A percentage of 50.4% of the
respondents were Junior High School students (13-15 years old), while the rest
48.6% were Upper High School students (16-18 years old). Finally, a percentage
of 11.9% of the participants were of nationality other than Greek.
Special questions
Table 1 presents students responses to the questions about their views on
teachers tactics, traits and behaviours that are related to teaching effectiveness
in the classroom. Variables 1-3 portray a teacher who is considered much to
very much to be effective when s/he, firstly, has a profound knowledge of the
subject s/he teaches, secondly, provides students with detailed information on
Curriculum objectives and clarifies the expected outcomes, the learning
procedures and tasks, and, thirdly, ensures student knowledge scaffolding and
assimilation by checking prior knowledge before providing new information.
Moreover, for the majority of the participants an effective teacher much to very
much ensures comprehensibility by using simple and intelligible language
during the lesson, and adapts lesson requirements to the average students
understanding ability to prevent misunderstanding and unresponsiveness
(variables 4 and 5). Students also reported that an effective teacher much to
very much simplifies obscure notions, reducing, thus, learning effort by
providing examples and paradigms (variable 6). In addition, s/he makes many
revisions and breaks down long units into smaller ones, obviously to help
students assimilate extensive content; s/he could be probably described as
methodical, systematic, and focused on the quality of the students learning
(variable 7). Moreover, an effective teacher uses various visual aids and IT to
stimulate student interest, and modernises knowledge acquisition by providing
students with supplementary updated learning material (e.g. s/he
teaches/informs students about things shown on TV, found on the internet,
about the news, about books and newspapers, about political, economical, social,
ecological issues circulating in the local community or in the world) (variables 8
and 9).
The majority of the respondents, also, described as effective a teacher who
much to very much provides enough time for the students to answer, who
moderately to much does not hesitate to deviate from Curriculum and
schoolbooks to meet student learning needs and interests, while much to very
much utilises opportunities to teach students out of the classroom (e.g. in the
library/the lab, in the museum, in places of work, in schoolyard, during
excursions etc.) (variables 10-12).
In addition, for the respondents, an effective teacher much to very much
has to ensure solidarity/cohesion and a caring environment by providing
students who present learning difficulties with individualized learning
material/ support and by asking them simpler questions (variable 13). S/he also
much to very much has to encourage low-achievers and diffident students,
but moderately to much has to develop student cooperativeness, openness
and friendliness by encouraging group work, and, in some cases, to utilise peer
Not at all
I would describe a teacher as effective as
Slightly
Moder-
Much
long as s/he:
much
Very
ately
1. Knows perfectly what s/he teaches, 1.3 4.1 8.9 26.4 59.3
looks confident about what s/he knows
2. Tells us before the lesson why we are 3.1 14.2 28.7 36.7 17.3
doing it, what s/he expects me to learn
and to do, and how to do it
3. Checks before the lesson what I already 0.9 3.2 14.8 36.2 44.9
know and urges me during teaching to
remember things I have already learnt
4. I can understand him/her when s/he 1.7 3.4 16 39.9 39
speaks, I know the words s/he uses
5. I think that all students learn, s/he 2.7 10.8 27 36.7 22.8
repeats, explains and urges everybody
to participate
6. S/he gives many examples, explains 0.9 1.9 8.4 24.5 64.3
difficult words, underlines sentences,
writes text using bullets
7. S/he makes many revisions and divides 2 8.6 22.6 38.9 27.9
long units into smaller ones
8. Uses 3.6 6.1 17.3 35.1 37.9
pictures/graphs/maps/films/power
point/computers
9. Teaches us about things shown on TV, 3.1 9.3 25.6 37.8 24.2
found on the internet, about the news,
about books and newspapers, about
things happening in the town or in the
world
10. Gives me time to answer at ease, s/he 1.4 6.4 18.8 35.3 38.1
regularly tells me to take my time
11. When we are very interested in 6 14.4 32.1 30 17.5
something, s/he leaves the books aside
12. Teaches me everywhere, in many 4.2 5.5 16 32.9 41.4
occasions, even out of the classroom (in
the library/the lab, in the museum, in
places of work, in schoolyard, during
excursions etc.)
13. Makes easier questions to weak 3.5 5.3 19.1 35 37.1
students, teaches them in the break
time, gives them easier work to do
14. Regularly congratulates weak and shy 1.4 3.9 12.1 30.3 52.3
students
15. Lets us work in groups 7.1 16.3 27.8 30.8 18
16. Sometimes s/he puts a good student to 13.5 15.1 27.5 27.3 16.6
help a weak one
17. When we have a problem, s/he stops 1.7 3.8 11.4 32.6 50.5
the lesson to discuss it and s/he wont
go on before we solve it
18. Listens carefully to our proposals when 1.5 3.2 11.5 35.7 48.1
we have a problem
19. When we get distracted, s/he starts 50.5 21.8 15 7.4 5.3
lecturing
20. Helps me at school do/prepare my 1.5 4.4 19.3 40.3 34.5
homework, helps me when something
is difficult
21. Doesnt only tell me what marks Ive 6 6.4 12.6 26.7 48.3
got in exams, but also if I try enough, if
I improve, if I behave well
22. Explains to me my mistakes, what to do 8.1 8.5 19.6 33.7 30.1
the next time to improve, what my
strong points are
23. Lets us find our own mistakes, mark 9.8 20.7 32 25.8 11.7
and grade our own works and
performance, check our own behaviour
24. First tells me the positive things I have 2.8 5 14 33.3 44.9
done, and then the negative ones
25. Is friendly and smiling when s/he talk 2.6 3.8 15.8 31.6 46.2
to me
26. Is kind, sincere, simple, looks at me in 6.8 11 22 30.3 29.9
my eyes
27. Often gives me a friendly thump on the 7.5 13.7 24.9 23.7 30.4
back, pat on the cheek, handshake etc.
28. Sometimes s/he says Well, I didnt 1.6 4.2 13.5 42.3 38.4
know that or Sorry, thats my fault
29. Is humorous but becomes strict when 1.9 2.3 12.6 36.5 46.7
someone doesnt behave well
30. I think s/he easily places him/herself in 3.1 4.7 13.8 28.9 49.5
my shoes
31. Calls me with my first name, tells me 4.2 5.3 17.3 31.4 41.8
often its OK-dont worry
32. Tells me often go on, dont be afraid, 1.6 3.7 15 31.3 48.4
Ill help you
33. Is never tired of explaining again and 1 3.2 9.2 31.2 55.4
again, especially to kids who dont
understand something or are shy
34. Respects our views and objections 1 5.2 15.6 33.9 44.3
35. Would never tell a secret Ive told 1.1 2.4 8.2 28.6 59.7
him/her; I would confide a secret or a
personal issue to him/her
36. Lets us judge him and his/her lesson 5 5.8 17 34.6 37.6
without getting angry
37. Tries to help all students learn, not only 4 6 11.9 19.9 58.2
the good ones
38. Is just and fair when imposing 2.2 4.4 13.1 32.2 48.1
punishments
39. Calls me out of the classroom to discuss 3.9 6.9 16.7 30.3 42.2
privately something I have done or said,
or something I must do
40. Wont do what s/he tells us not to do 4.7 4.8 10.5 18.3 61.7
(play with mobile phone, chew gum,
come late in the classroom)
Factor analysis
Thirty two of the earlier-mentioned variables were selected, related in level
of significance = 1% to the perceptions of the 879 secondary education students
about effective teaching. The thirty two variables were as follows:
I would describe a teacher as effective as long as s/he:
(1) Knows perfectly what s/he teaches, looks confident about what s/he
knows
(2) Tells us before the lesson why we are doing it, what s/he expects me
to learn and to do, and how to do it
(3) Checks before the lesson what I already know and urges me during
teaching to remember things I have already learnt
(4) I can understand him/her when s/he speaks, I know the words s/he
uses
(5) I think that all students learn, s/he repeats, explains and urges
everybody to participate
(6) S/he gives many examples, explains difficult words, underlines
sentences, writes text using bullets
(7) Uses pictures/graphs/maps/films/power point/computers
(8) Teaches us about things shown on TV, found on the internet, about
the news, about books and newspapers, about things happening in
the town or in the world
(9) Gives me time to answer at ease, s/he regularly tells me to take my
time
(10) When we are very interested in something, s/he leaves the books
aside
(11) Teaches me everywhere, in many occasions, even out of the
classroom (in the library/the lab, in the museum, in places of work,
in schoolyard, during excursions etc.)
(12) Makes easier questions to weak students, teaches them in the break
time, gives them easier work to do
(13) Regularly congratulates weak and shy students
(14) Lets us work in groups
(15) When we have a problem, s/he stops the lesson to discuss it and
s/he wont go on before we solve it
(16) Listens carefully to our proposals when we have a problem
We applied factor analysis (Howitt & Cramer, 2014) to these variables in order to
determine the factors that influence students beliefs about effective teaching,
given the fact that this technique for data analysis is acceptable and adequate, as
verified firstly by the value 0.916 of the KMO measure for sampling adequacy
and secondly by Bartletts test of sphericity (table 2) which revealed high
statistical significance of the statistic 2 (zero p-value).
df 496
Sig. 0.000
Since performance of PCA from the first eight components, which had
eigenvalues greater than 1, explained 55.774% of the total variance, PCA was
used with Varimax rotation extraction method in eight components (table 3).
Scree plot (Figure 1) shows where the most variance was explained.
Variables Component
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Communalities
2015; Borich, 2016), seem to believe than only teachers who possess profound
knowledge of their discipline should be described as effective. However,
professional traits implied in factor 1 focus not only on teacher expertise as
regards content-knowledge but also on a teachers ability to link newly-provided
knowledge to prior cognitive background of the student, evidently in order to
bridge the teaching/learning gaps which segregated or piecemeal provision of
knowledge often results in (Lutz, Guthrie, & Davis, 2006). Students, also, report
that they feel more confident when their teachers help them build such
consolidated cognitive structures, probably because, as international reports
show (Rice, 2003; Rivkin, Hanushek, & Kain, 2005), these structures are
considered by the students to be more easily accessible and manageable. Student
demand for more simplified knowledge, adapted to their personal learning
ability, is also demonstrated through factor 7. Effective teachers are expected, as
Ross and colleagues (2003) and Slavin (2014) have already shown, to provide
their students firstly with information about what they have to do, and how and
why they have to do it, and secondly with individualized assistance in order to
accomplish tasks assigned to them (Matsumura & Pascal, 2003). It is rather
evident that, as factor 8 implies and Mayer and Alexander (2011) and Smylie and
Wenzel (2006) have also reported, students feel more secure and willing to be
assessed by a teacher who has consciously and actively been involved in their
personal, individualized struggle for learning, and who has provided them with
ample feedback information and support for improvement. However, a teachers
ability to individualize knowledge and support, as already shown by Sharan
(2010) and Van Gog and Paas (2008), is highly dependent on room for
manoeuvre provided by official Curricula; factor 6 jointly to factor 5 portray a
teacher who, according to Greek students and their international counterparts
(Garrett & Steinberg, 2015; Goe, Bell, & Little, 2008; Gottlieb, 2015; Greany &
Rodd, 2003), is effective when s/he is able (i) to adapt Curricula demands and
restrictions to his/her students interests, needs, and abilities, and (ii) to update
learning material and learning procedures through the use of varied teaching
strategies. However, variables 11 and 15 of table 1 and relevant participants
responses show that the majority of Greek students are moderately and much
but not very much sure that effective teachers should stray from official
Curricula guidelines or implement group work as an alternative teaching
strategy a finding also reported by Greek and international researchers
(Alahiotis & Karatzia, 2006; Berry, 2004; Ifanti, 2007; Koulaidis et al., 2006). To
explain this hesitation of a significant percentage of the respondents, one should
take into account that for Greek students, parents, and teachers as well,
secondary education traditionally constitutes a stage of the students preparation
for advancement in tertiary education (Koutrouba, 2012; OECD, 2013). For the
average Greek, university studies are highly considered firstly to facilitate
professional development and survival in an extremely challenging job market,
and secondly to avert a return of young people to rural economics restrictions of
the past. As a result, a bureaucratic educational system, as expressed through
inflexible over-demanding Curricula, has provided in the course of time
students with more opportunities for broader content-knowledge and fewer
opportunities for integrated attainment of social or affective objectives in
education (Georgiadis, 2007; Koustourakis, 2007; OECD, 2011). In addition,
many students and teachers as well have been reported to believe that frontal
whole-class teaching, though not pleasant as variable 19 in table 1 implies,
produces higher academic achievements in shorter periods of time than
cooperative procedures or alternative teaching strategies can do (Opdenakker &
Van Damme, 2006; Rice, 2003; Sharan, 2010). The combination of student social
advancement expectations with teachers efforts to disseminate rapidly large
quantities of knowledge seem to undermine constructive adaptations to the
Curriculum, individualized or cooperative learning, and, finally student and
teacher perceptions about what real education should be. Therefore, if a shift in
educational values and practices should occur, as Cairns, Lawton, and Gardner
(2001) have already noticed, education policy-planners should reduce content
overload and a subsequent fast pace, in order to facilitate smooth content
assimilation and effective knowledge consolidation, as Opdenakker and Van
Damme (2006) and Perry, Donohue, and Weinstein (2007) have confirmed. In
addition, they should give teachers a free hand to implement cooperative
learning in their classroom, so as to enhance teaching routines and turn
traditional learning into a lively experiential procedure (Traianou, 2009). As a
result, teachers would also be able to provide their students with more
individualized assistance, facilitating, thus, more fair and meaningful
assessment, as Ross and colleagues (2003), Sharan (2010), and Teddlie and
colleagues (2006) have shown.
Furthermore, as regards teacher behavioural attitudes during
interpersonal communication, factors 2 and 4 provide the picture of an effective
teacher who respects the students special features and sensitivities and displays
empathy and friendliness (Rice, 2003; Slavin, 2014). As already mentioned in
factor 8, these two features seem to be attributed to a teacher who actively
supports and participates in the efforts of the student. Moreover, according to
factor 3, effective teachers are expected to be good-listeners and trustworthy as
well. It is rather understandable that teenage students learn better when
friendliness is present in every learning procedure (Hamre & Pianta, 2005;
Noyes, 2005; Schacter, Thum, & Zifkin, 2006). Of course, it is a teachers duty to
define the limits of friendly relationships with the students, in order to help
them feel accepted, encouraged and safe (Hargreaves, 2000; Harjunen, 2011).
Curricula-planners should, however, promote learning procedures that facilitate
the construction of relations where respectfulness coexists with friendliness. The
organization of well-defined collaborative learning activities, cultural events,
and schools experiential connections with social environments, could be rather
easily introduced in real school life through more innovative flexible Curricula
which serve equally cognitive, affective, and social objectives (OECD, 2013; Rice,
2003). Finally, teachers training in adolescent psychology would provide them
with the professional skills required for meaningful, effective teaching (Rice,
2003; Rivkin, Hanushek, & Kain, 2005; Smylie & Wenzel, 2006; Tucker &
Stronge, 2005).
The present study shows that, according to the students, effective teaching
may sound unrealistically ideal when examined on a theoretical basis. On the
other hand, students clearly know what they expect from their teachers because
they have already seen it happening (Sharan, 2015). It may not be sure that one
teacher could be ever likely to have all the expected positive attributes, but, at
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Introduction
Blindness is strictly defined as the state of being totally sightless in both eyes
although the word is commonly used to signify visual impairment, or low
vision, meaning that even with eyeglasses, contact lenses, medicine or surgery, a
person does not see well(Dalh, 2016). Kirk, Gallagher, Coleman and Anastasiow
(2015) define visual impairment as any form of visual loss which may include
very moderate or complete loss of vision. It also means the absence of capacity to
see after correction, which may result in reduced performance in most aspects of
life. The impairment has a lot of implications that range from increased
dependence, isolation from the social mainstream, reduced benefits and
opportunities available and increased time of completion of assigned tasks
(Thurston, 2010, Thurston, Thurston & McLeod, 2010).
place in Geneva. One hundred and fifteen (115) countries resolved to advance
guidelines on the provision of educational support intended for students from
diverse backgrounds, including those with blindness, to promote equal, fair and
equitable educational opportunities for all in public schools. The Botswana
Government considered it appropriate the ratification of some of the
international conventions related to inclusion because it views Inclusive
Education as a means of improving the quality of education for all children
(Habulezi & Phasha, 2012). Quality education is not just the rote learning of
subjects in an inflexible curriculum, good quality education is concerned with
the education of the whole individual in terms of developing understanding,
interests, self-knowledge, emotions, personality and making accommodations,
to mention but a few. The process encompasses, among others, expanding the
application of access to include access to the curriculum and to the wider
educational processes.
In its quest for excellence in education, the Government of Botswana set seven
pillars to be achieved. Botswana aims to be an educated, informed,
compassionate, just, caring and prosperous nation (Government of Botswana,
1997, 2013). To achieve this, Abosi (2000) states that the Government of
Botswana assigned stakeholders distinctive tasks to perform. To this effect, a
desk has been set up under the Office of the President to preside over, among
other issues related to disabilities, inclusive education matters. Further, the
Ministry of Education and Skills Development (2006) guides that for special
education teachers who also have a teaching subject, consideration should be
made to reduce their teaching loads in order to allow them time to assist other
subject teachers as well as to give support to students with special needs.
Brawand and Johnson (2016) advise that stakeholders involved in the education
of students who are blind need to collaborate in order for the students to fully
benefit from all instructions in the classrooms. The foregoing practices are
expected to yield the desired results and provide equal and equitable education
opportunities for all. The study on teaching and learning strategies adopted at
the school that caters for students with vision impairment aimed to explore the
teaching and learning strategies the school employs to meet the needs of the
nation and the students in particular.
Methodology
Since the purpose of the study is to describe and examine the teaching and
learning strategies the school adopts to support students with vision
impairment, a qualitative design was adopted. The design was used because of
its responsivity to native sites, environments, and participants needs. The
design also helps in the identification of circumstantial and setting factors as
they relate to the phenomenon under study. In addition, the design engages a
variety of approaches mainly to prevent inconsistencies (Yin, 2009, Mouton,
2005). The setting for the design is, among others, an actual classroom or school
ideal for the study (McMillan & Schumacher, 2014). The target population in the
study was the school community and its stakeholders. The table below shows
the participants in the study.
Resource Centre staff, Rehabilitation and Development Trust staff and staff from
the library for people with visual impairment. On the other hand chain-referral
sampling was used on past students because those best able to access members
of hidden populations are their own peers (Keltner, 2016). Data was collected on
a member who in turn provided information on where to find another one. In
contrast, self-selected sampling, in which a participant offers to take part in the
study because of their interest and familiarity with the subject, was used on the
learning support worker and the members of the senior management team.
Triangulation was employed in the collection of data through the use of
documents, interviews and observation. This was done to ensure rigour,
relevance and to corroborate the data.
Observations were done at the school for one academic term from the beginning
to the end of the school term. I observed, as a participant observer, how the
school prepares for the students, receives the students at the beginning of the
term until the school closed. There were 16 observations lasting between 1 to 2
teaching periods (40 to 80 minutes) in all that were done observing how the
school teaching and learning take place in a real setting.
Some traits of concern were not openly witnessed during observations, for
example, participants views, attitudes and understanding of instructional
strategies for students who are blind. In view of that, interviews enabled the
gathering of such form of data. Unobtrusive, favourable and appropriate places
for the meetings were identified. Open-ended interviews which lasted 20
minutes each on average were either audio or videotaped with participants
permission. Documented sources offer rich secondary information (De Vos et al,
2011). The significance of these sources for present-day studies should not be
undervalued. Significantly, the document study was utilised for being cheap,
non-reactivity and unreachable participants in the case of past students who
were difficult to find. Therefore, policy documents, non-personal and mass
media were utilised in this study.
Data was qualitatively analysed with the help of Rubin and Rubins (2005)
approach which states that Data analysis begins while the interview is still
under way. This preliminary analysis tells you how to redesign your questions
to focus in on central themes as you continue interviewing. Careful steps
were taken to abide by ethical issues. Permission was obtained from the school,
relevant bodies, learners and parents.
Results
Molefi Senior Secondary School employs varied and valuable instructional
strategies in teaching students who are blind under the circumstances and
prevailing conditions. A summary of the instructional strategies used are
presented further down as obtained through the data gathering tools used. In
interviews with management committee members and the senior teacher special
education, it emerged that the school makes sure students with vision
impairment are assessed to know how best to support each one of them. The
senior teacher was recorded saying:
First and foremost, we make sure we have student profiles and then carry out
routine informal functional vision assessment that includes assessment on
learning media, access technology, Orientation and Mobility. This is followed by
medical assessment at Deborah Retief Memorial Hospital or eye clinic in Gaborone
then we take these reports to the Central Resource Centre for Special Education for
specialised educational assessment to help prepare an individualised education
program for each student.
Correspondence among the documents analysed showed that the school is well
networked with stakeholders like the Department of Evaluation and Curriculum
Development. In the process of curricular development, the Department of
Evaluation and Curriculum Development works with specialist special
education teachers to accommodate issues related to students with special
educational needs. The proposed syllabi are further sent to schools for more
consultation. Special education specialist teachers consult subject specialist
teachers and make suggestions that are sent back to the Department of
Evaluation and Curriculum Development for consideration and possible
integration.
The changes that these special education teachers make or suggest water down the
standards and make us, you know, change our objectives in a way. Someone can
just say, modify this question, our students cannot draw or it is too congested,
this is not necessary to answer the question, remove it,. Besides, special
education department delays everything, . we cannot write this paper this
afternoon because the paper is not yet brailled for students from special
education They do some good work for students at our expense.
One interviewee lamented that he was always bothered to come and describe
the pictures in the sources for History because the special education personnel
insisted that the subject teacher was better placed to do that and knows the
appropriate terminology for each source. He complained that sometimes he felt
the descriptions were advantaging the special education students. Adaptations
were also observed in which learning media was adapted to braille, large print
or recorded.
The Department of Special Support Services through the special education wing
organises workshops for special education teachers to share knowledge on how
to modify and adapt teaching and learning materials for students who have
vision impairments. Further, the special education personnel informed the
researcher that the special education department in the school inducts new
teachers on the teaching and learning methodology for students who have vision
impairment. To augment the efforts above, a schedule on the notice board
carried names of specialist special education teachers and the departments they
were attached to for the purposes of consultations and advice.
To be in concordance with the final examination standards, the senior teacher for
special education informed the researcher that the school works hand in hand
with Botswana Examinations Council to make sure the modifications at the
school and those done at Botswana Examinations Council are of the same
quality and standards more so that final Form 5 examinations are brailled in the
United Kingdom.
When students with vision impairment are admitted to the school, they are
strategically allocated classes basing on their junior secondary school
performance and the students subject preference as one interviewee stated:
We guide students in choosing classes with the help of their results from junior
secondary school leaving examinations. We particularly consider how they
performed in Mathematics and Science. After the stream is decided, we, in a way,
consider the students subject preference in the optional subjects.
Classes students who have special education needs are allocated to have the
number of students reduced. While in classrooms, students sit in positions they
are comfortable with depending on their impairments or preferences.
You know we are at pains sometimes to explain to authorities why over time is
paid to special education members of staff. In the afternoon, they request that their
students read from the special education department for ease access. But they still
want to work with students after hours say in Orientation and Mobility because it
is too hot to work during normal working hours and that students would be doing
the other academic work.
Yes, we have Orientation and Mobility sessions both during afternoon study and
after hours when it is cool because it is very hot to practice between 1300 hours
and 1630 hours. Besides, certain techniques have to be demonstrated in areas
which are quiet and have few people distracting the clients. We also have to be
flexible because the subject is a life skill and it is not examinable. So students shun
it and give priority to examinable subjects. When they suggest weekend or evening
it is fine.
Room 1 is used by braille users, the students study room is used by low vision
students using large print and these students do not use braille. On the other side
we have a student in each room with a scribe or amanuensis. The students in those
rooms do not know braille, for the student in the office, the examination is recorded
while for another student in the guidance and counselling room an amanuensis
reads the questions for the student, writes down the responses and the second
person records the proceedings with a digital voice recorder at the same time.
When students with vision impairments were writing assessment items, they
were given extra time depending on the prescription the low vision assessment
officer at the Central Resource Centre for Special Education made. Generally, the
records showed that the majority of the students had 25% extra time of the
papers time. Other students had 30% extra time of the time for the paper. One
student was observed taking rest breaks due to fatigue and perpetual head arch.
Time taken to rest was being recorded and adjustments made accordingly.
The special education senior teacher revealed that although the school has a
shortage of learning support staff like braillists, an arrangement is put in place to
make sure students work is brailled in advance and transcription is done within
the set time frame. There was, however, notable shortage of brailled and
recorded books as well as production materials like zytex paper. To compensate
for the shortage of text books, one student reported that:
We sometimes go to the library for people living with vision impairment where we
borrow recorded and brailled books. When we have no transport, the library
personnel bring the books for us.
The school, though, can still improve its operations through the involvement of
the surrounding community and the parents of the students with vision
impairment more. Students do not live in isolation and some of the things learnt
are not taught but observed and learnt in various spheres of life including in the
communities. Besides, community members have different professions and
talents that can be of help in the education of the students. Parents especially,
know a lot about their children and their input is invaluable. If continuity of
some of the teaching and learning programs is expected at home, parents must
be brought on board (Malekpour, Aghababaei, Hadi, 2014, Hebel, 2014).
awareness to bring on board some stakeholders who are of the view that
modifications made to make the curricula accessible by all water down the
standards.
In the initial stages the school scrutinises the students who are blind when they
arrive in the school, guides them in choosing subjects and classes. It further
conducts informal and formal educational assessments including the medical
one. This is a necessary procedure, because the appropriateness of the learning
support is heavily dependent on the educational recommendations in the
assessment report (Bell, Ewell & Mino, 2013). The assessment, in fact, is of
paramount importance because it benefits the students.
During lessons, in classes with reduced number, students with blindness sit in
preferred positions to enable them utilise their residual sight or listen with less
distraction nearer to teachers. This also assists students who are either myopic or
hyperopic. To accommodate the extra time awarded to students with special
educational needs and to reduce on disturbances, the students with blindness
write assessment items in separate rooms, braille users, large print users and
those who are amanuensed; all in different rooms.
The practice observed agrees with the views of Piljl and Van den Bos (2001) and
Eloff and Kgwete (2005) who classify the characteristics of the exercise as
additional features of the practice that are most important in eliminating the
obstacles to the participation and learning of children with vision impairment. It
is also important to take cognisance of the staff professional development the
school and the wing spearheading special education organise for special
education teachers. These help in advancing teachers knowledge and
instructional strategies for students with special educational needs. Such a
gesture would also be helpful to the larger community who are also important
stakeholders.
and safely. This is made possible by paying the teachers incentives for the extra
mile they take to equip the students with the noble and all important life skills
among others. Instead of leaving it to the teacher in-charge of Orientation and
Mobility to decide on when to conduct the sessions for life skills, it may be more
helpful to time table the subject like any other.
References
Abosi, O.C. (2000). Trends and issues in special education in Botswana. The Journal of
Special Education, 34(1): 46-53.
Bell, C., E., Ewell, J., E. & Mino, N., M. (2013). National reading media assessment for
youths with visual impairments: Research report. Journal of Blindness Innovation
and Research. 3 (2). Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5241/2F3-37
Bailey, C., A. (2007). A guide to qualitative field research. Thousand Oak: Pine Forge.
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(2002).
Curriculum blue print: The ten year basic education programme. Gaborone: Government
Printers Brawand, A. & Johnson, N. (2016). Effective methods for delivering
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De Vos, A., S. Strydom, H., Fouch, C., B., Delport, C., S., L. (2011). Research at
grass roots - for the social sciences and human service professions. Pretoria: Van Schaik
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Introduction
The traditional lecture on campus is the most frequently used pedagogical tool
in higher education. This might be explained by its benefits, such as its potential
to convey complex information to large student groups, to set topics in
appropriate contexts and to provoke and engage the students (Brown &
Mangoue, 2001; Exley & Dennick, 2011). However, an increasing focus on digital
learning has welcomed a wide range of new learning tools and provided the
traditional lecture with new possibilities, such as the on-demand lecture. An on-
demand lecture is a recorded lecture or sets of lectures that can be created in an
educational setting with an audience or in a studio. Viewers are able to access
remotely the lecture in real time or later on. Most often, on-demand lectures are
used in addition to traditional on-campus lectures (Karnad, 2013).
Examining students user log data for on-demand lectures could provide
valuable information to help educators develop digital programs with optimal
pedagogical outcomes. Hence, the aim of this study is to identify nursing
students use of on-demand lectures in a medication calculation course by
exploring the students user logs.
Methods
Design and sample
The current study has a descriptive, quantitative design. All students in their
first semester of pursuing a bachelors degree in nursing at a Norwegian
university were invited to participate in the study. Of the 172 students enrolled
in the medication calculation course, 72 agreed to participate. Of these, 48
students used the on-demand lectures and were included in the study. All data
were collected from the Mediasite server log.
Results
The results show that the students did not see all lectures in their full length.
Each lecture was watched for an average of 5 minutes and 18 seconds (average
time of lectures was 7 minutes and 30 seconds). Figure 1 shows the duration of
each lecture and the average time the students watched.
Figure 1. Duration of lectures and average time each lecture was watched.
Further, the results reveal a variation in the choice of lectures. The largest
number of students who watched the same lecture was 29, and the smallest
number was two (Figure 2). By calculating the average number of students
watching the same lecture, we found that 15 students (31%) watched the same
lecture (Figure 2). The average number of total views per lecture was 24.6,
ranging from 2 to 53. The lectures about fraction and percent (lecture 1), time
(lecture 4) and dilution, part one (lecture 11), were watched by the most
students, whereas the lectures about double-checking calculations (lecture 14,
parts 13) were watched the least (Figure 2).
108
35
Number
30 of students
25
20
15
10
5
0
The average time students spent watching on-demand lectures was 1 hour and 3
minutes over 2.8 days. When excluding students who logged in once only, we
found that 27 students (56%) used the on-demand lectures more thoroughly
(more than once). This group was characterized as active users. This active user
group of students spent, on average, 1 hour and 38 minutes on the lectures
spread over 4.1 days.
Discussion
The aim of this study was to identify the students use of on-demand lectures in
the context of a medication calculation course for nursing students. To be able to
develop educational programs with optimal pedagogical outcomes, it is essential
to understand how this e-learning tool is implemented in students processes of
learning. Previous research within this area is scarce and has mainly focused on
students overall opinions of on-demand lectures (Williams & Fardon, 2007;
Gosper et al., 2008; Gorissen et al., 2012 Phillips et al., 2010; Cooner, 2010).
Additional insight can be gained by examining the actual use as recorded in
students logs.
An important observation in this study is the students diverse use of the on-
demand lectures. The results showed a significant variation in choice of lectures,
wherein an average of 15 out of 48 students watched the same lecture (31%). The
largest number of students watching the same lecture was 29 (60%). However,
these 29 watched the first lesson, which also contained introductory material.
The diverse use may indicate that students selected medication calculation
topics based on their individual needs. The perception of what appears difficult
will vary among students, and in live lectures for large student groups, the
possibility of meeting individual needs is limited.
Our findings indicate that one benefit of on-demand lectures is that students can
choose topics based on their needs and thereby tailor their study efforts to fit
their strengths and weaknesses. For many reasons, increased focus on tailoring
in teaching will benefit students. Health research has shown that tailored
education programs provide successful outcomes, including increased
information recall, perceived relevance of teaching material and change of
behaviour (Noar et al., 2007; van der Meulen et al., 2008; Rimer et al., 1999). Also,
in a recent study of students in higher education, the use of computer-tailored
student support was associated with better grades in physics (Huberth et al.,
2015).
We found that students did not see all of the lessons in their full lengths, but
watched parts of them. Average watching time for each lesson was 2 minutes
and 18 seconds less than the full length of the lecture (the average length of
lectures was 7 minutes and 30 seconds). This suggests that students search for
specific materials in parts of the lecture. Previous research into students use of
on-demand lectures reveals that students consider watching full-length lectures
as time-consuming; therefore, they adopt a more strategic learning approach
focusing on the concepts they experience as difficult (van Zanten et al., 2012).
The ability to search for and review only relevant parts and the ability to repeat
difficult material is an important benefit of on-demand lectures (Gorissen et al.,
2012). For the medication calculation course explored in this study, where case-
based exercises and calculations are an important part of student self-studies,
this flexibility is clearly a benefit.
recorded lectures to be less engaging and easy to put off (Schreiber et al.,
2010). Instead of using on-demand lectures as a replacement for live lectures,
students view the two as complementary; preferring a blended format consisting
of on-demand lectures, live lectures and course materials (Yeung et al, 2016,
Karnad, 2013).
Limitations
This study aimed to identify students use of on-demand lectures in the context
of a medication calculation course for student nurses. Many student nurses
struggle with math calculation and problem-solving skills, and failure rates are
especially high for this topic (McMullan et al., 2010, Jukes & Gilchrist, 2006;
Brown, 2002; Keers et al., 2013). This might impact the use of the on-demand
lectures, as students might spend much effort on this course. Future research
should include on-demand lectures on different topics in nursing education and
include a larger sample of students. Further, including qualitative data in the
form of interviews with students could provide more depth to our results.
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https://www.jld.edu.au/article/view/243
Daesik Lee
Gyeongin National University of Education
Incheon, Korea
Introduction
It is well recognized in the literature that students who present challenging
behaviours are more susceptible to social and academic failure at school
(McIntosh & Goodman, 2016; Orpinas, Raczynski, Peters, Colman, & Bandalos,
2015). For various reasons, traditional behaviour management and teaching
strategies have proven to be inadequate in ameliorating academic and
therapy and bibliotherapy and discuss relevant literature. The review is further
organized under three broad sections: results, discussion, and implications for
research and practice. The broad sections results and discussion include three
subsections: (a) participants and settings, (b) treatment format and focus, and (c)
treatment outcome, with music therapy data followed by bibliotherapy data
included in each subsection. The review closes with a discussion of limitation of
existing research and suggests directions for future research.
specific numbers of each were not given. In the study by Rickson and Watkins
(2003), the ages of the 15 students ranged from 1115. Nine were ethnic Maoris
and nine participants were New Zealand European. In the study by Bittman et
al. (2009), 52 students whose age ranged from 12-18 were participants. The
participants consisted of 11 females and 22 male subjects. Participants were
African American, Asian, Caucasian, and Puerto Rican, but specific numbers of
each were not reported. In the study by Hallam and Price, ten students aged
nine to ten years old participated. Two females and eight males were included in
the study. The participants ethnicities were not reported. The 25 participants in
Edisons (1989) study were between 11 and 16 years old. Genders and ethnicities
were not reported.
Five studies occurred in a school setting. Two of these studies (Eidson,
1989; Montello & Coons, 1998) were conducted in self-contained classrooms in
public schools. Another was conducted in the United States in an alternative
school setting for students with ED (Haines, 1989). The study by Rickson and
Watkins (2003) was conducted in a residential school in New Zealand. Children
in the study by Hallam and Price (1998) attended a day school for children with
emotional behavioural concerns. The study by Bittman et al. (2009) took place in
a childrens home for adolescents that served as a residential juvenile treatment
program.
Participants in one study had been diagnosed as ED, LD, and ADD
(Montello & Coons, 1998). All participants in another study were identified as
ED (Haines, 1989). The third study included participants with ADHD, ODD,
and/or CD (Rickson & Watkins, 2003). Participants in the fourth study had
numerous mental health disorders, including CD and ADHD (Bittman et al.,
2009). Numbers of participants specifically identified with a condition were not
given. Participants in two studies (Eidson, 1989; Hallam & Price, 1998) had no
specified diagnoses, but they were identified as emotionally and behaviourally
troubled (Hallam & Price) or emotionally handicapped (Eidson).
Calculating an average effect size from the music therapy studies with
significant effects was not possible due to either the lack of information on the
number of participants or because of a one-group design.
Treatment Outcomes
Two studies targeting aggression (Montello & Coons, 1998; Rickson &
Watkins, 2003) reported the only significant effect size was an increase in
aggression in the treatment group. No other significant effect sizes were
reported. Both studies reported an increase in positive behaviours from results
obtained from teacher and student selfreports but these increases were not
significant. Haines (1989) reported a significant change in selfesteem in both
treatment and control groups. Bittman et al. (2009) reported statistically
significant positive changes in all dependent variables which ranged from school
performance to self-evaluation.
Hallam and Price (1998) reported a significant improvement in
mathematics performance during sessions when background music was played.
Participant behaviour generally improved in sessions with music, but these
findings were not statistically significant. Eidson (1989) reports that scores for
behaviours stabilized over time in the experimental groups, but in the control
group these scores continued to fluctuate. He also noted the most regularity in
in Israel including Jewish, Arab, and Druz. In another study, age was reported
instead of grades (Shechtman & Nachshol, 1997). One hundred and seventeen
males ages 13-16 years old participated. Shechtmans study (1998) reported both
age and grade. The 10 participants were 8-year-old boys in fourth grade.
Participant ages in Shechtmans study (2006), ranged from 8-16 years old. Thirty
of the participants were Arab and 31 of the participants were Jewish. Generally,
racial and socioeconomic breakdowns were not reported in the studies.
Bibliotherapy participants had learning disabilities, were emotionally
handicapped (Lenkowsky et al., 1987); ED, BD, or socially maladjusted
(Shechtman & Nachshol, 1996); or aggressive or highly aggressive
(Shechtman, 1998; Shechtman & Ben-David, 1999; Shechtman, 2006) but
numbers of subjects specifically identified with a condition were not given. Only
one study was conducted in the United States (Lenkowsky et al., 1987) and was
carried out in an alternative school that only served students in special
education. Participants in this study were identified by their school systems.
Two studies in Israel (Shechtman, 1998; Shechtman & Nachshol, 1996) took place
in alternative education settings, and two studies in Israel (Shechtman & Ben-
David, 1999; Shechtman, 2006) took place in a public education setting.
Participants in Israel were identified by the government and referred to an
alternate placement or by home room teachers if the participants were in a
public education setting.
Bibliotherapy Interventions
Lenkowsky et al. (1987) focused on selfconcept as the independent variable and
compared bibliotherapy and literature as treatments. Participants were split into
four groups. Group 1 and 2 both read the same books of general interest during
three periods weekly. Group 2 participants engaged in a dialogue session each
week where students talked about "feelings, emotional experiences, and school
related problems" (Lenkowsky et al., p. 486). Participant in Groups 3, and 4
were the initial and second bibliotherapy groups and both read identical
literature. Group 3 met three time weekly and read literature focused on
problems the students might encounter on a regular basis. There was no weekly
discussion session for Group 3. Group 4 participants engaged in a discussion
meeting weekly.
Shechtman and Nachshol (1996) focused on aggression, adjusting
behaviour, and belief system sustaining aggression as the dependent variables.
Students were split in three groups and each received treatment 15 weekly one
hour sessions. The control group received an intervention mandatory in Israel
but without focus on aggression. The other two groups were from two different
schools and received bibliotherapy treatment during these sessions that focused
on aggression.
Shechtman (1998) focused on aggression as the dependent variable. Five
students were the control group counterparts of the other five students who
received bibliotherapy. This singlesubject design study consisted of 10 weekly
45minute affective bibliotherapy sessions. Shechtman and Ben-David (1999)
also focused on aggression as the dependent variable. Participants were split
into 15 small groups and 15 students did not receive treatment because they
were wait-listed. Affective bibliotherapy was administered to the groups during
Treatment Outcomes
Lenkowsky et al. (1987) reported a significant difference between both treatment
conditions and the nontreatment conditions. Each bibliotherapy treatment
group, Group 3 and Group 4, exhibited significant increases in selfconcept.
Nontreatment conditions, Group 1 and Group 2, reported no changes.
Studies targeting aggression (Shechtman & Nachshol, 1996; Shechtman,
1998; Shechtman & Ben-David, 1999; Shechtman, 2006) all reported a reduction
in aggression in some capacity. Shechtman and Nachshol (1996) reported no
significant differences between treatment and control groups in any targeted
variable in the first year but in the second year of the study investigators
reported a significant increase in the control group on beliefs maintaining
aggression. No other significant changes were noted on other behavioural
variables. Shechtman (1998) reported reduced aggression in treatment groups
and a non-significant increase in constructive group behaviours. Data from the
study by Shechtman and Ben-David (1999) indicated (a) reduced aggression in
treatment groups, (b) the individual format showed less aggression over time
but the difference was not significant, and (c) therapists in group conditions
used more directives and exhibited a lower level of selfdisclosure than
therapists in individual therapy sessions. There were no changes noted in
control groups of any study. Shechtman (2006) reported an increase in empathy
and reduction in aggression for both ICB and IC treatment groups, but the gains
for ICB were greater than the gains for IC. Effect sizes from the studies reported
significant effects of bibliotherapy ranged from 0.15 to 1.84, resulting in about an
average effect size 0.964.
Shechtman Aggression, 102 students 15 small Group and 10 weekly 45- Reduced aggression
& Ben- outcome (gender not groups and individual minute in treatment groups
David difference in specified) in 1st 15 individual therapy led sessions and therapists used
(1999) formats, through 9th grade students with by 30 more directives and
and no treatment graduate exhibited a lower
difference in counselling level of self-disclosure
processes in special
highly education
aggressive students
cases (no
label
specified)
Shechtman Empathy 61 male students Group 1: ICB Individual 10 45-minute Significant
(2006) and ages 8-16 years old Group 2: IC therapy led sessions over improvement in
aggression from 24 Group 3: no by 4months empathy and
in classrooms in treatment randomly therapist satisfaction
aggressive Israel. Arabs n=30, assigned for the ICB group.
cases (no Jews n=31 counselling Slightly less resistance
label students and more
specified) matched insightfulness in the
by ICB group than in the
ethnicity. IC group.
Notes. LD = Learning Disability; ED = Emotional Disturbance; BD = Behavioural Disorder,
ICB=adjunctive bibliotherapy, IC=counselling with no literature
Discussion
The review generated five findings. First, data suggested that the main focus of
the studies was aggressive behaviour. Second, participants were predominantly
adolescent males. Third, student placements were seldom in general education
settings. Fourth, group formats were used in music therapy studies, and group
clinical bibliotherapy was most frequently used in bibliotherapy studies. Finally,
there was little evidence to support the claim that music therapy was effective as
an intervention tool for addressing challenging behaviours of this student
population, while bibliotherapy studies indicated that these interventions may
be more effective.
Most data indicated that music therapy did not produce significant
changes in student behaviours and would not be an effective method of
intervention to address the needs of students with challenging behaviours. In
fact, two studies reported an increase in aggressive behaviours (Rickson and
Watkins, 2003; Montello & Coons, 1998). The only study that reported notable,
positive effects of music therapy was the study by Bittman et al. (2009). Results
also indicated bibliotherapy might reduce aggressive behaviours and have a
positive impact on group behaviours of students with behavioural concerns
when used as a facilitative agent to promote changes in student behaviours.
At least 66% of the students participating in studies reviewed in this
paper were male adolescents. It is commonly accepted that males make up a
higher percentage of students diagnosed with behaviour problems (Friend, 2013;
Wagner, Kutash, Duchnowski, Epstein & Sumi, 2005), but it appears that such a
high percentage might indicate female students were either overlooked, not
diagnosed as having behaviour problems, or were not nominated as aggressive
students by teachers. Since gender was not specified for 127 of the participants
this percentage of maletofemale adolescents must be taken with caution. Only
one study included participants in first through fourth grade.
The main focus of three music therapy studies was student aggression
(Bittman et al., 2009; Montello & Coons, 1998; Rickson & Watkins, 2003). Results
question the efficacy of music therapy as an effective intervention tool when
used with students with EBD. Montello and Coons investigated the effects of
active versus passive music participation. They hypothesized students in the
treatment group (active participation) would exhibit a decrease in aggressive
behaviours. The authors stated that the only significant findings were from
Group A (active followed by passive) which exhibited increasing hostility in the
first half of the study. Group B exhibited an improvement in aggression,
motivation, and attention in the second half of the study (passive followed by
active). It is unclear what may have produced the effect, active vs. passive
therapy, order of therapy presentation, etc. Montello and Coons concluded that
the data did not indicate that active music therapy reduced aggression of the
participants of this study. This finding is inconsistent with the results of
Bittmans (2009) study, which indicated a substantial decrease in aggressive
behaviour, among many other variables, after exposure to the intervention.
Rickson and Watson (2003) also examined the effects of music therapy on
aggressive behaviours. The treatment group exhibited increased aggressive
behaviours while in the of music therapy period and not during the non
treatment phase. The treatment group subjects all had ADHD, despite
randomization during assignment to groups, and the authors suggested that this
might have impacted the results. Montello and Coons (1998) also found that
boys with ADHD presented more disruptive behaviours during music therapy.
This finding suggests that boys with ADHD might become over stimulated
during music therapy or in a less structured setting. These findings conflict with
Cripes (1986) study on the effect of rock music as an adjunctive supportive
therapy for students with ADD. Data indicated rock music therapy did not
negatively impact aggression, attention, or motivation of students with ADD
and during periods of listening to rock music levels of motor activities
decreased.
Three music therapy studies reviewed (Eidson, 1989; Haines, 1989;
Hallam & Price, 1998) focused on the behavioural and emotional improvement
of students and not on aggression as a specific dependent variable. Haines (1989)
examined the result of music therapy on selfesteem of students with ED and
found active music therapy had no significant effect on the selfesteem of
students with emotional disturbance. Hallam and Price found that passive music
therapy significantly improved students behaviour and mathematics
performance for all participants receiving this intervention. Similarly, Eidson
(1989) found behavioural stability and improvement in targeted behaviours for
groups receiving music therapy. However, it was difficult to determine whether
the changes in behaviour described in the study were a result of the music
therapy intervention of if they were a result of the token economy and
reinforcement system implemented as part of the intervention.
Four studies explored the effect of bibliotherapy on aggression of
students with behavioural problems (Shechtman, 1998; Shechtman & Ben-David,
1999; Shechtman & Nachshol, 1996; Shechtman, 2006). Results indicated that
bibliotherapy might be an effective intervention tool for addressing behavioural
concerns and selfesteem of students with emotional behaviour problems.
Shechtman (2006) reported that individual bibliotherapy resulted in greater
empathy and less resistance in the experimental group than the control group.
However, Shechtman and Nachshol (1996) conducted a twoyear longitudinal
study which produced conflicting results. Results from the first year showed no
significant differences between experimental and control groups in gains in any
targeted behaviour areas. Results from the second year indicated significant
differences between groups in attitudes towards aggression and aggressive
behaviour. The data from the control group indicated significant increases in
validation of beliefs maintaining aggression. There was no difference
demonstrated in the experimental group. Shechtman and Nachshol (1996) stated
this might indicate the intervention was only able to stop endorsement of this
belief system, not eliminate it. Lenkowsky et al. (1987) examined the effect of
bibliotherapy on the selfconstruction of students with emotional disabilities.
This study had two bibliotherapy treatment groups, one utilizing a discussion
group and one without a discussion group. Both treatment groups showed
significant positive changes in selfesteem when compared to equivalent control
groups, but there were no differences between treatment groups. Investigators
concluded the presence of a discussion group was not a factor impacting the
outcome of the study and that bibliotherapy appeared to be the causative agent
promoting change.
music therapy. They claimed that boys with ADHD might become over
stimulated during music therapy in a less structured setting. Differences
between groups and differences between individuals in groups may have acted
as proximal causes which impacted targeted study outcomes. Rickson and
Watkins suggest conducting studies which utilize larger numbers of subjects.
These studies should incorporate procedures that match multiple treatment
streams and multiple outcome measures with specifically targeted goals. Again,
it is possible that proximal variables impacted study outcomes.
Haines (1989) found factors that may have accounted for a lack of
differences between the two groups could be sample size, attrition of
participants during the study, length of treatment period, test of instrument,
outside variables, numerous interruptions during therapy sessions, and overall
design of the study. Students with brain injury and students with emotional
disturbance constitute two different disability categories under IDEA, but in
Haines study, no distinction is made between these two populations and
targeted behaviours for students with emotional disturbance and those with
brain injury were the same.
Bibliotherapy studies appeared to be better designed. Several key factors
mentioned by investigators that needed to be considered were small sample size,
population demographics, and impact of the therapist on the outcomes of a
group. Any of these variables can affect reliability and generalizability of
findings.
Conclusion
Special educators are responsible for ensuring that best practices are
implemented with their students who have special needs. Only interventions
that have a solid base of valid empirical research studies to demonstrate that
they are, in fact, best practices should be used with this disability population.
Research has demonstrated that there are proven and sound interventions that
can be used to address the needs of children with challenging behaviours.
Opportunities to Respond (Sutherland & Wehby, 2001), behavioural momentum
(Cooper, Herron, & Heward, 2013), proximity control, use of positive
reinforcement, principles of applied behavioural analysis, school-wide positive
behaviour intervention and supports (SWPBIS), the use of functional
behavioural analysis to determine the function of behaviours, and the use of
qualified applied behavioural analysts (Alberto & Troutman, 2013; Yell,
Meadows, Drasgow, & Shriner, 2013) are just a few of the interventions and tools
proven successful and available for educators who work with children with
challenging behaviours. Unfortunately, there is also a long list of unproven
interventions that have been adopted by special educators (Mostert & Crockett,
1999).
The findings of previous reviews (King & Schwabenlender, 1994; Lee,
2015; Yeaw, 2001) support the findings of this review. Two reviews investigated
the efficacy of music therapy in the treatment of children with developmental
disabilities (Lee, 2015) and psychiatric and developmental difficulties (Yeaw,
2001). Data from both studies indicated that music therapy research was
burdened with methodological issues which weakened findings of the studies.
Both Lee and Yeaw both found that the reviewed studies were limited by their
research designs and findings were compromised by small sample size, lack of
control groups, and lack of reliable assessment and measurement tools. These
researchers concluded that results from the studies in their reviews should be
interpreted with caution. Twentyone years ago, King and Schwabenlender
(1994) investigated the use of supportive therapies for individuals at risk for or
identified with EBD. They concluded that even though supportive therapies
were heuristically rich and offered teachers new strategies to use for addressing
the needs of children with behavioural issues, the studies did not "consistently
adhere to strict and rigorous scientific methodological efficacy" (p. 2). Results
from the current literature review also found that there were methodological
and design concerns in both music therapy and bibliotherapy and suggest a lack
of enough empirical data to support a conclusion that bibliotherapy or music
therapy had a significant, positive impact on target behaviours exhibited by
students with or at risk for EBD. Today, Bradt (2016) emphasizes the importance
of systemic reviews in research.
History has shown that educators in the United States often implement
programs of instruction that have a paucity of empirical research to demonstrate
their efficacy and value to our student population (Stahl, McKenna, & Pagnucco,
1994). It is perplexing that such interventions persist and appear regularly
(Mostert, 1994; Mostert & Crockett, 1999-2000). Music therapy and bibliotherapy
have been in use in the United States since the 1930s and some have suggested
their use as interventions for addressing problems presented by students with
emotional behavior problems. A finding of this review is there is a marked
paucity of evidence to support that assumption. Empirical evidence is limited
at best. Further research needs to be conducted on bibliotherapy and music
therapy to establish if they are, in fact, viable approaches for addressing
problems exhibited by students with behavioural concerns.
Perhaps, as Mostert and Crockett (1999) suggested, as special educators,
we need to remember our history of adopting less than empirically sound
practices. Professionals in teacher preparation programs must demonstrate
"three critical components of informed practice: what has worked, what has not,
and the ability to tell the difference" (p. 142). The authors of this review agree
with Mostert and Crockett that the use of some practices in the treatment of
children with behavioural issues should be employed with caution and an
understanding that these practices are by no means "best practices". Educators
should not assume that these supportive therapy interventions will result in
significant behavioural changes for these student populations until further
research is conducted.
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Jeremiah M. Kalai
University of Nairobi
Nairobi, Kenya
1. Introduction
Public universities play a key role in training human resources favourable to
attainment of the United Nations Millenium Development Goals (World Bank,
2010a). However, diminishing public funding and increasing students
enrolments resulting to rapid expansion threaten the capacity of universities to
fulfill this core mandate (Altbach, Reisberg & Rumbley, 2009). Confronted by
these constraints, there have been concerns that the universities are not likely to
deliver a fulfilling university experience that facilitates the development of a
high calibre graduate (UNESCO, 2014). Indeed, universities are hard pressed by
Over the last two decades, public universities in Kenya have expanded rapidly
without adequate financing from the Government (Republic of Kenya [ROK],
2007). Students enrolment in the universities increased from 139,470 students in
2010/11 academic year to 276,349 students in the 2013/14 academic year (ROK,
2014). This translates to 98.1 percent growth in enrolment over a period of three
years. According to Kinyanjui (2007), rapid increase in students enrolment has
resulted to widespread perception from stakeholders that the average quality of
public university educational service has declined. Increasing enrolment has
been associated with pressure on available teaching and learning resources
(ROK, 2006). There have been concerns that the available infrastructure in the
universities cannot adequately support students and teachers in achieving their
academic goals (Ndirangu & Udoto, 2011). The situation may be more
aggravated in the recently established public universities which were upgraded
from middle level colleges without requisite infrastructure to support university
teaching (Wanzala, 2013).
2. Conceptual framework
In analyzing the relationship between quality of academic resources and
students satisfaction in the universities, it was important to conceptualize the
linkage in terms of the independent and dependent variable chain. The
conceptual framework shown in Figure 1 demonstrates that the independent
variable, which is quality of academic resources, is a multidimensional construct
of the dimensions of quality teaching facilities, quality library services, and
access to ICT resources.
Students satisfaction
- Pleasurable feelings for
being associated with a
Quality academic university
Provision
resources - Willingness to come back
of quality
- Teaching facilities to the university and
academic
- Library services pursue an academic
resources
- Access to ICT programme
- Recommending to
prospective students
- Perceived value for fees
paid to a university
Figure 1: Relationship between quality of academic resources and students
satisfaction
The independent variable for the study is students satisfaction. It was
conceptualized as the composite mean score of students feelings of pleasure and
contentment for being associated with a university, future intentions to enrol in
their universities for other academic programmes, recommending prospective
students to pursue degree programmes in their university through positive
word of mouth communication, and perceived value for fees paid to a
university. Teaching facilities, library service, and access to ICT resources relate
to students satisfaction. Similarly, overall students rating of quality of academic
resources influences students satisfaction. The extent to which quality of
academic resources affects students satisfaction depends on the commitment of
the universities to ensure that the resources are sufficient and effective.
3. Methodology
The study used cross sectional design. According to Bryman and Bell (2007),
cross-sectional design entails the collection of data from a random sample
representing some given population at a given time in order to detect patterns of
association between the variables of study. Henn, Weinstein and Foard (2009)
explain that the key strength of cross sectional design is the collection of data at
the same point in time hence mitigating the possibility of external time-related
events and variables confounding on the findings. Cross sectional design was
selected for the study because it enabled the researchers collect data at a single
point in time hence minimizing time related events that were likely to impact on
quality of academic resources and students satisfaction in the universities. The
design also enabled the researcher determine the relationship between quality of
academic resources and students satisfaction in the universities. Eight
universities representing 36 percent of the accessible public universities
participated in the study. Data were collected from 1062 third and fourth year
undergraduate students using a questionnaire. Quality of academic resources
was measured using 16 items while students satisfaction was measured using
six items placed on a five point Likert and Likert type scale.
To ensure validity of the questionnaire, the study used face and content validity
which was achieved through expert review. Piloting was done in one of the
public universities in order to determine the Cronbach's Alpha coefficient of
reliability for the subscales and the entire questionnaire. The pilot university was
exempted from the main study. The sample size for the pilot study was 110 third
and fourth year undergraduate students as per Mulusa (1990) who recommends
that piloting should involve at least 10 percent of the sample size for the main
study. The pilot study revealed that the overall Cronbach's Alpha coefficient for
entire scale (22 items) was .887. The reliability indices for the different subscales
were; quality of academic resources (.852) and students satisfaction (.883). The
reliability indices for the entire scale and subscales were above the .700 threshold
recommended by Pallant (2005). The questionnaire was therefore considered
reliable and used in the actual study. Data from the main study were analyzed
using descriptive statistics, factor analysis and regression analysis. Interpretation
of the data was done with reference to the research objectives and the results are
presented in the following sections.
Table 1: KMO and Bartlett's Test for the Scale on Quality of Academic
Resources
KMO measure of sampling adequacy .832
Bartlett's Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square 5970.790
df 120
Sig. .000
The analysis found that KMO measure of sampling adequacy for the scale on
quality of academic resource is .832 and was considered adequate because it
indicated that enough items grouped into distinct factors of quality of academic
resources (Leech, Barret & Morgan, 2005). The Bartlett's test results of the scale
items show Chi-Square value = 5970.790 which is statistically significant at
p<.05. According to Field (2009), a significant Bartlett's test infers that the
variables in the scale on quality of academic resources had a high correlation as
to provide a reasonable basis for factor extraction. Varimax orthogonal rotation
was applied in extracting the indicators of quality of academic resources. The
study settled for varimax orthogonal rotation because it reduces the complexities
of factors by maximizing variance of loadings on each factor and therefore
generating a simple structure as conveyed by Field (2009). According to Leech,
Barret and Morgan (2005), a factor should have an Eigen value greater than one
for it to be considered useful.
Component four (4) had two items. These items were interpreted as availability
of textbooks in the universities libraries. After determining the factors that
constitute quality of academic resources in public universities in Kenya, the
study proceeded to check the internal reliability of each of the components in the
scale. The study found that all the components had Cronbachs alpha above .700
threshold recommended by Pallant (2005). The analysis therefore revealed that
quality of academic resources in the universities could be defined using four
teaching, learning and research activities and the results are presented in the
following section.
Majority 680 (64.0%) of the students disagreed that the universities had adequate
teaching laboratory facilities implying that students pursuing disciplines
requiring practicals had inadequate exposure to the enriching laboratory
learning experiences. According to Reid and Shah (2006), teaching laboratories
provides students and instructors with an opportunity to illustrate ideas and
concepts, and to expose theoretical ideas to empirical testing. Hofstein and
Lunetta (2003) also stress that laboratories provide students with an opportunity
to handle equipment and chemicals, and to acquire and develop general skills
such as team work, time management, and problem solving.
The results revealed that majority 724 (68.1%) of the students were not satisfied
with the adequacy of computers for ICT lessons practicals. The study results
imply that the universities were not adequately equipped with ICT
infrastructure to facilitate practical orientation of students towards ICT skills
possibly because on inadequate funding for ICT resources. The finding concurs
with Tarus, Gichoya and Muumbo (2015) who found that inadequate ICT
infrastructure was one of the key barriers to teaching of ICT skills in public
universities in Kenya. On the quality of the library service environment, the
study results indicated that students had above average ratings (M = 3.26, SD =
0.87). The results suggest that most of the public universities had a library
service environment that could support students private study and research
needs. Majority 587 (55.3%) of the students agreed that library staff were
friendly and helpful. Most 573 (53.9%) of the students also concurred that the
staff provided prompt service to students. This is in line with Tiemensma (2009)
who observed that approachable, helpful, and responsive library staff is a key
ingredient towards performance excellence in provision of library services.
Despite the positive ratings of the quality of the library service environment,
majority 572 (53.9%) of the students indicated that the libraries did not have
enough chairs and tables. The results imply that most of the universities did not
have a library facility whose size could accommodate the existing students
Factor Item SD D NS A SA
Quality of The university has 293 434 65 239 31
teaching adequate lecture rooms and 27.6% 40.9 6.1 22.5% 2.9%
facilities halls %
Lecture halls and rooms 273 350 66 299 74
have enough chairs of 25.7% 33.0 6.2% 28.2% 7.0%
acceptable quality %
Lecture halls and rooms 272 350 73 304 63
have enough sitting space 25.6% 33.0 6.9% 28.6% 5.9%
for students %
The university has 240 440 124 221 37
adequate teaching 22.6% 41.4 11.7% 20.8% 3.5%
laboratory facilities %
The university has 320 404 106 197 35
adequate computers for 30.1% 38.0 10.0% 18.5% 3.3%
ICT lessons practicals %
Overall mean rating of quality of teaching facilities, M = 2.43, SD, 0.93
Quality of The library provides a 96 113 54 582 217
Library conducive environment for 9.0% 10.6% 5.1% 54.8% 20.4%
Service study
Environment The library has comfortable 111 177 99 502 173
chairs and tables 10.5% 16.7% 9.3% 47.3% 16.3%
When i visit the library, I 243 329 107 304 79
always find a seat and a 22.9% 31.0% 10.1% 28.6% 7.4%
table to study from
The library has convenient 125 147 83 513 194
opening and closing hours 11.8% 13.8% 7.8% 48.3% 18.3%
Library staff are friendly 150 203 122 466 121
and helpful 14.1% 19.1% 11.5% 43.9% 11.4%
Library staff provide 142 214 133 477 96
prompt services to students 13.4% 20.2% 12.5% 44.9% 9.0%
Overall mean rating of quality of library service environment, M = 3.26, SD = 0.87
Availability The library is stocked with 361 346 120 188 47
of text books latest and authoritative 34.0% 32.6% 11.3% 17.7% 4.4%
in the library textbooks
The library has textbooks 223 357 89 323 70
that lecturers recommend 21.0% 33.6% 8.4% 30.4% 6.6%
for my course
Overall mean rating of rating of availability of textbooks, M = 2.47, SD = 1.13
Availability The university provides 114 131 47 659 111
of internet internet facilities for 10.7% 12.3% 4.4% 62.1% 10.5%
services students
Students can access 92 143 49 635 143
university internet on their 8.7% 13.5% 4.6% 59.8% 13.5%
phones and laptops
Library facilitates access to 149 199 111 493 110
internet resources 14.0% 18.7% 10.5% 46.4% 10.4%
Overall mean rating of availability of internet services, M = 3.42, SD = 0.96
This was contrary to CUE (2014) requirement that universities should provide
adequate library facility for students. CUE also requires that the facility should
have adequate and appropriate furniture that guarantees privacy and comfort
for each individual reader who seeks to use the library resources (CUE, 2014).
Data on the provision of textbooks in the libraries revealed that students mean
rating was below average (M = 2.47, SD = 1.13) as summarized in Table 3. The
results suggest that most of the public universities in Kenya did not have
adequate number of latest and authoritative textbooks in circulation, including
those that were recommended by the lecturers. This was likely to affect the
standards, quality and relevance of university education as students did not
have adequate textbooks to consult from. The finding on inadequate library
resources concurs with Mwiria, Ngethe, Ngome, Ouma-odero, Wawire and
Wesonga (2007) who argue that the acquisition of library resources is the worst
victim of neglect in universities in Kenya.
Data on the availability of internet resources revealed that students had above
average ratings (M = 3.42, SD = 0.96). Majority 770 (72.6%) of the students
agreed that the universities provided internet facilities for the students. A high
proportion 778 (73.3%) of the students also agreed that the universities internet
facility was accessible on their phones and laptops. The findings suggest that
public universities in Kenya recognized the role played by internet services in
higher education resulting to widescale uptake and facilitating access of the
services to students. According to Bett (2014), availability and access to ICTs
such as internet services is the basic minimum for any institution to apply ICTs
in education. Indeed, it is a strategic option towards preparing students for
effective participation in the global knowledge economy (Poda, Murry & Miller,
2006). Provision of internet services, as found in the current study, has a high
potential in improving the students academic and social encounters leading to a
fulfilling university experience (Adesoji, 2012).
Further, most 603 (56.8%) of the students reported that the universities
facilitated access to internet resources. The results suggest that the universities
had subscribed to online resources to complement the textbooks available in the
libraries. Amunga (2011) attest that a variety of online resources are available to
public universities in Kenya through open access online platforms, institutional
subscription to established online academic resource providers and through
efforts of local and international collaborations and networks. According to
Rotich and Munge (2007), availability of online resources, though not the
panacea for the teaching and learning resource scarcity, has a huge potential of
complementing the available teaching and learning resources hence improving
the quality of university experience among the undergraduate students.
Model Summary
Std. Error of the
Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Estimate
1 .482 .232 .229 .91007
ANOVA
Sum of
Model Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
1 Regression 264.278 4 66.069 79.773 .000
Residual 875.430 1057 .828
Total 1139.708 1061
Coefficients
Unstandardized Standardized
Coefficients Coefficients
Model B Std. Error Beta t Sig.
1 (Constant) 1.187 .128 9.249 .000
Quality of teaching facilities .186 .034 .167 5.564 .000
Availability of textbooks .188 .029 .205 6.522 .000
Quality of library service .298 .039 .249 7.636 .000
environment
Availability of internet .002 .033 .002 .065 .948
services
Dependent Variable: Students satisfaction
The results summarized in Table 5 reveal that the R-value of the multiple linear
regression model is .482 with an adjusted R2 of .229. Quality of academic
resources therefore accounted for 22.9% of the variations in students satisfaction
in the universities. To assess the statistical significance of the model, it was
necessary to examine the ANOVA results. The results provide an F test for the
Data summarized in Table 5 further show that there is a positive and direct
relationship between availability of textbooks and students satisfaction in the
universities ( = .205, p = 0.000). The finding implies that the availability of a
variety of authoritative textbooks that supports students learning and research
needs is a prerequisite for a fulfilling university experience. The finding concurs
with Tuan (2012) study in universities in Vietnam which found that academic
resources such as sufficient textbooks and references were important
determinants of students satisfaction. The quality of library service environment
also had a direct and significant relationship with students satisfaction in the
universities ( = .249, p = 0.000). The finding implies that an increase in the
quality of library service environment was likely to results to a proportionate
increase in mean students satisfaction in the universities. Students are more
likely to be satisfied in universities providing libraries with adequate and
comfortable seats. In addition, the library should be accessible to the students
and the library staff should have customer focus. The finding concurs with Tuan
(2012) study in universities in Vietnam which found that academic resources
such as modern library facilities, sufficient textbooks and references were the
5. Conclusion
The conclusion of the study is that quality of teaching facilities, quality of library
service environment, availability of text books in the library, and availability of
internet services are reliable indicators of quality of academic resources in public
universities in Kenya. The study concludes that the universities did not have
adequate teaching facilities, the library service environment was constrained by
library facilities that did not match students enrollment, and inadequate
textbooks to support teaching and learning. These constraints had the potential
to affect the quality of academic programmes and students satisfaction
negatively. The study also concludes that there is a significant and direct
relationship between quality of teaching facilities, availability of textbooks in the
library and quality of library service environment and student satisfaction in the
universities. An improvement in the level of provision of these dimensions was
likely to result to a proportionate increase in students satisfaction in the
universities. Availability of internet services had a direct but insignificant
relationship with students satisfaction implying that students were contented
with the provision of internet services in the universities.
6. Recommendations
The following recommendations are made from the results and conclusions of
the study:
i. The Commission for University Education (CUE) should enforce
University Standards for Accreditation and Operations. It was evident
that majority of the universities were operating without conforming to
the stipulated minimum requirements in terms of quality and size of
lecture facilities, laboratories, libraries, and ICT services as to guarantee
students satisfaction.
ii. The Ministry of Education should also ensure that the universities
budgets are fully funded. Quality university education cannot be
guaranteed in an environment where universities are struggling to
finance critical aspects such as teaching and learning facilities, ICT
services, and quality library service.
iii. The role of Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service
should be strengthened. The Placement Board should work closely with
CUE in controlling admission in public universities to commensurate the
declared enrollment capacities of the universities.
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such as country, rock, jazz, blues and gospel (Riggs, 2008, p. 82).
While traditional training has been shown to benefit classical virtuosos, musical
theatre performers, jazz and other singers, new techniques are needed to
physically support the broader sound vocabulary used in contemporary musical
styles (Deva, n.d, para 7).
Although more and more teachers have CCM vocal training, the
pedagogy for teaching CCM is still in its early days. The probability for
uninformed or generic teaching is high. Chandler (2014, p. 36) supports this
view when she states the specifics are distinctive and non-generic, requiring
specialised knowledge, training and competence on behalf of those teaching it.
For further discussion see Chandler, K. (2014) Teaching Popular Music
Styles, in Harrison, S & O Bryan, J. (eds) Teaching Singing in the 21stCentury.
The role of a CCM singer has developed in response to the specific style of music,
which s/he is required to sing and involves telling a story through song,
engaging an audience and evoking their feelings. When we sing, a lot of the
believability that naturally comes with speech is lost. the challenge for a singer
is to bridge the gap between the believable realm of speaking and the more
artificial world of the song (Love, 1999, p. 155). Love argues that Frank Sinatra
was the master of the art of making singing believable: with every note, you feel
the emotion. When he hurts, you hurt. When hes happy, you cant help but
smile. thats the goal, whether youre a rocker or a folk singer-songwriter
(Love, 1999, p. 155). For Love, the goal is to sing as if you were speaking. Gerald
Seminatores (2010) paper Teaching poetry through song: A modest proposal,
outlines how to speak, analyse and paraphrase song lyrics where he advocates
that singers practice speaking the text before they sing it in a performance.
Seminatores aim is to teach students not only how to sing notes and phrases,
but also to speak words and ideas in songs as if they were the students own
(Seminatore 2010, p. 515). Understanding the meaning of a song and developing
an emotional connection with the lyrics being sung is very important.
Conveying that meaning to an audience is an important skill for every CCM
singer to develop. Wormhoudt (2001) suggests that audiences love when an
artist connects with a song and expresses emotions. It is this shared
communication which engages us on a number of different levels that is the
foundation of an interpretive artists skill (p. 72).
The need to make an emotional connection with the audience can influence
vocal tone, and quality. Historically, vocal teaching has supported the
development of emotional awareness and generally achieved good results
(Morris, 2012, p. 2). However, because of a lack of scientific understanding,
singing pedagogies have relied on the use of imagery and on the sensations felt
by singers and teachers (Morris, 2012, Chapman, 2006). Some authors have
argued that the imagery used in teaching singing is based on myths that have
been passed down from generation to generation (Chapman, 2006; Michael,
2010). Chapman argues that if imagery is applied skilfully, and if it is consistent
Research Questions
Methodological Perspective
Methods/Design
Phenomenological Interviews/Interview Structure
Research Design
I decided that the most appropriate method for addressing the research
questions was to undertake semi-structured interviews with experts in the field.
As part of the interviews I decided to introduce two short video recordings to
stimulate participants thinking about their teaching. One was of a sixteen- year
old male student, the other a thirteen-year old female student. Each performed a
verse and the chorus of a song. These pupils were chosen as they had particular
vocal and stylistic issues that needed improvement. These videos were used to
prompt discussion and stimulate interviewees responses (Roth, 2009). I invited
each tutor to treat the recordings as if they were in a master class situation
whereby they commented on the performances and explained how they would
set out to help the students improve their vocal skills and knowledge. The aim of
the video recordings was to witness how the experts addressed vocal problems,
identified common exercises and techniques that they used and how they
changed their methodology depending on the needs of a student and also
provided a basis for reflection on practice and continuing professional
development (Jewitt, 2012).
Issues relating to generalisability, reliability and validity and ethical issues were
also addressed.
Sample
I chose ten participants to take part in this research, as this was deemed
sufficient to obtain in depth knowledge of their life experiences as musicians and
teachers and to discuss their teaching methodologies. The intention was to
involve participants with different backgrounds, some who were vocal coaches
on TV shows such as American Idol, X-Factor, and The Voice, celebrity vocal
coaches, authors, artists, vocal education researchers, and teachers.
After analysing the data, three overarching themes emerged. These themes were
Teaching, Learning, Style and Technique. Each of these themes has a range of
sub-themes.
Figure 6.1 synthesises the findings from the interviews and the videos and refers
to the number of times each theme was mentioned by participants.
Key findings
All of the expert teachers agreed that it was important to tailor teaching to the
individual needs of the student. The participants believed that people learn in
different ways and that the type of teaching approach that might work for one
student may not suit another.
There was much disagreement between the interviewees about how to teach
breathing in relation to singing CCM.
Six of the participants suggested that imitation was one the biggest problems
that CCM singers faced as some of the sounds they hear on recordings are
impossible to create with the human voice and also because copying
discouraged them to develop their own voice.
The participants believed that the differences between classical and CCM
singing included vowel shapes, style, flexibility, larynx position, vocal technique
and vocal qualities.
The expert teachers did not agree as to whether it was appropriate to use
imagery in teaching or whether explanations should be based on scientific
evidence.
All of the participants had classical training. Their experiences had affected their
teaching practices. Despite this there was disagreement about the extent to
which classical training was useful for singing CCM.
There was almost unanimous agreement that to teach CCM, teachers needed to
have experience as performers.
There were differences in the extent to which the participants were familiar with
the different methods and approaches to teaching singing such as The Estill
Method, Speech Level Singing, Accent method and so on.
All but one participant agreed that it was important for teachers to continue
their education.
Most participants indicated how important it was to listen to and be exposed to
as much music as possible.
Focus in practice was felt to be important by some participants. Its subjective
nature was stressed by others.
Five participants emphasised the importance of being physically fit as a singer.
Three participants reported using resources as a teaching aid.
The following sections relate the findings to the research questions and the
existing literature.
The specific research sub-questions to be addressed were:
To what extent is the teaching of internationally acclaimed vocal tutors of
CCM affected by their own experiences of being taught?
To what extent, do internationally acclaimed vocal coaches have similar
approaches to the teaching of CCM?
What are the perceived differences between classical and CCM
technique?
To what extent, do internationally acclaimed vocal coaches tailor
teaching methods for each individual student?
It was argued that students need to be aware that copying can be a very useful
exercise, as great singers are extremely accomplished and have various voice
qualities and sounds that can and should be replicated and experimented with.
This can lead to a greater understanding of how certain voice qualities are
produced. If students copy a range of great singers and recording artists, they
will acquire a wide set of skills and musical vocabulary. This will provide them
with a huge range of vocal colours that can be used to create their own
individual style. Kempfer (2014) supports this suggesting that it is important to
understand your own voice and how the voice works in general rather than
trying to create someone elses sound and that singers should create their own
sound with similar colours (Kempfer, 2014, p. 34).
There was strong belief from those who discussed the importance of
expression and emotion that when a singer really had an emotional connection
with a song, the audience would feel that connection. Expression and emotion
are vital tools for singers to develop. Connecting with an audience requires
communication skills and for the singer to feel a relationship with the song.
Understanding the meaning of a song is important but can be difficult for
younger singers to express, as their life experiences are limited. To overcome
this, CCM teachers should be equipped with interesting emotion evoking
exercises to help young singers to develop the ability to emotionally engage with
the repertoire. The importance of expression and emotion has been stressed by
many authors (Bathori, 1957; Love, 1999; Wormhoudt, 2001; Seminatore, 2010).
Participants also believed that it was important that performers were in good
physical shape. If dance routines are required or lengthy performances or
rehearsals are expected, being fit and healthy will benefit a singer.
Some of the differences between classical and CCM technique reported by the
participants included vowel shapes, style, larynx position, vocal technique and
voice qualities, movement, breathing, improvising, ad libbing and expression
and emotion. The participants clearly indicated that classical singing requires a
very different skill set to CCM. As CCM is closer to the way we speak,
maintaining an ah position for example, for an entire song is inappropriate.
Speech reflects what we are feeling and changes depending on what we are
saying, this is the same as when we sing. The emotion and story of a song
should be reflected in the singing voice and the inherent voice qualities and
intensity level associated with it. The conceptualisation of voice quality is less
fixated in CCM than in classical music. In classical music singers voices are
categorised and repertoire matched to their voice and learned as part of building
up a personal repertoire. CCM singers select songs to learn for a range of
reasons. They are sometimes expected to mimic the sounds of recording artists
and be familiar with songs currently in the charts. They could be in a tribute act,
a soul band, a gospel group, or a pop band or other group and knowing the
relevant repertoire and understanding stylistic differences is important. Singers
may select songs because they believe that they suit their voice, they have an
emotional connection with the song, they like it, it is a challenge, it is fun and
enjoyable to sing, or their favourite singer sang it. The songs usually tell stories
that people can relate to.
CCM singers are required to move with the music and sometimes dance
or groove with the music. This of course depends on the style of the music and
the type of performance setting or gig. As the literature revealed classical singers
may only be required to move or dance when singing an operatic role.
As previously noted, there is a necessity for breathing in relation to CCM to be
addressed in research and the literature. The findings from the research reflected
those in the literature showing widely different views about the role of
breathing for singing and how it should be taught. In particular, further research
on breathing techniques when belting are needed.
A basic understanding of improvisation would be very useful for all
singers of CCM as outlined by Chandler (2014) and LoVetri (2011). They discuss
how gospel, soul and R&B singers frequently use very heavily ornamented
melismatic lines for expression. CCM singers are expected to improvise riffs and
ad lib and jazz singers are expected to engage an audience and hold a musical
conversation with other instrumentalists through improvisation. Learning how
to improvise and ad lib also greatly aids the process of creating an individual
style.
In general, CCM and classical singing require very different training.
To what extent are teaching methods tailored for each individual student?
The participants agreed that it was very important to tailor teaching to each
individual student. They argue that as every student tended to present different
problems it was the role of the teacher to diagnose what areas needed work. This
means that teachers require a great deal of knowledge about the voice and the
types of strategies that could be adopted to address students problems.
Approaching every lesson in the same way was seen as unproductive because of
the variability in individual voices, personalities and aspirations. Teachers
should establish what students want to achieve and support them in achieving
their aims. For example, some students may simply like to sing, while others
will want a career in singing and performing and some might like to become
teachers. Teaching methods should be tailored accordingly and teachers need to
develop a range of approaches and adopt them flexibly.
What opportunities are there for the professional development of vocal tutors
of CCM and to what extent do they take advantage of these?
The research showed that, overall the participants agreed that it was important
to continue their professional development. The nature of what they felt to be
useful varied. While some indicated that it was important to know about specific
methods, such methods were not universally adopted. No one educational
approach to teaching CCM in singing was seen to be dominant.
The findings suggested that having performing experience was extremely
important in teaching individuals to sing CCM, although there were examples of
excellent teachers who were not performers. However, this seemed to be the
exception. As teachers need to be able to prepare students for performing, and
educate them as to how to use their voices efficiently so that they are prepared
for a career in singing, having experience of performing is important. The
participants felt that lack of personal performing experience might limit the
extent to which the teacher could do this. Teachers should also be able to
demonstrate. This requires them to have vocal fitness. Professional CCM singers
can be required to perform anywhere from three to six hours, which would
require them to be vocally fit and healthy.
This research generated some very specific lessons for vocal pedagogy, which
can now be added to the existing body of knowledge to help improve existing
practices. It has shown that:
there are differences between teaching singing in the classical and CCM
styles;
teachers should impress upon students that imitating the sound of their
favourite singer can be unproductive and they should develop their own
distinctive sound;
teachers should encourage and support students;
teachers should be aware that they may not have the skills to provide
solutions to all of their students challenges and that there may be times
when they need to seek advice from other teachers or refer students to
others.
Conclusion
media, internet and globalisation, all styles of music have become widely known
and easily available. Providing education in one style ie. Western classical
singing is not sufficient. As the research shows clear differences between
classical and CCM style it seems unlikely that a traditional classical pedagogy
will provide singers with the understanding and skill set required for CCM
performance styles.
In addition to the use of registers, vocal qualities and articulation, the
abdominal support needed for CCM is different from that of classical singing
and will also change depending on the CCM style being sung. The relevance of
traditional classical technique(s) in view of these clear differences becomes very
questionable. Bartlett (2014, p.32) states that some authors continue to plainly
and strenuously challenge the view that traditional classical training is sufficient
for singing success in any style or genre.
Hence, there is an urgent need for teachers to re train and keep
themselves up to date with advances in voice science and also to develop
stylistic awareness. There are influences from so many cultures that vocal
training needs creativity. The more experience teachers have with different
styles of singing and different vocal methods or approaches, the more they will
have to offer students.
There are now many opportunities for teachers to explore and develop
their skill set and knowledge base. Online scientific journals cover a vast array of
topics including classical singing, pop/rock, music theatre, vocal distortion,
acoustics physiology and so on. Organizations such as The New York Singing
Teachers Association (NYSTA) offer online courses that are available to teachers
from all over the globe (Meyer & Edwards, 2014 p.442). Other organizations
have a strong web presence and provide journals, webinars, master classes, and
conferences where researchers, teachers and medical professionals can share
their knowledge to improve the standard of vocal training. These include the
National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), the Voice Foundation, the
American Academy of Teachers of Singing (AATS), The National Centre for
Voice and Speech (NCVS), International Congress of Voice Teachers (ICVT),
Physiology and Acoustics of Singing (PAS), Pan-European Voice Conferences
(PEVOC), American Speech Language Hearing Association (AHSA) and Voice
and Speech Trainers Association (VASTA).
Moving forward, a new and more comprehensive vocal pedagogy is called for,
and as demonstrated by this research, for the training of CCM.
The aim of this research was to raise the awareness of CCM vocal education in
Ireland and to explore how its quality might be improved. As Principal and
Vocal Tutor at a CCM School, the experience and knowledge that I have gained
was of huge benefit to the students in this institution. The research has provided
me with in depth insights into the practices and teaching methods of expert
vocal tutors, which have inevitably improved my practice, which will in turn be
handed down to my students. The expertise that I have gained from this
research project through the interaction with the expert vocal tutors and the
engagement with the literature has been invaluable. It has increased my
awareness, knowledge and skill set primarily as a teacher, but also as a
Studying the vocal education literature, reading journals and blogs and
following various Facebook accounts has become much more than research but
a true passion, which I am confident will always continue.
It is important that the needs of aspiring CCM singers are met and high
standards of teaching are developed and maintained. Education is ultimately
concerned with the improvement of practice. Music educators are always
searching for successful teaching approaches from which to learn and on which
to model. My aim is that this study may contribute to the development and re-
evaluation of the teaching and learning of contemporary singing in Ireland and
provide a strong and comprehensive vocal methodology.
References
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Introduction
Students in US middle schools (years 6-8) are expected to construct cohesive,
persuasive arguments using academic language. Employing the expected
academic language and discourse structure of persuasive arguments can be a
daunting task for emergent bilingual English language learners (ELLs) as they
simultaneously learn to negotiate meaning from social as well as academic
language (Gibbons, 2015; OHalloran, 2014). Although research indicates that
ELLs may take upwards of seven years to develop academic language
proficiency (Collier, 1989), the current instructional context, influenced by the
expectations of the Common Core and the standards-based educational reform
movement prevalent in US public schools, does not afford ELLs seven years to
develop a command of academic writing practices equivalent to that of a native
What can systemic functional linguistics (SFL) tell teachers about the
academic writing practices of ELLs?
Context
The study was born from a necessity many teachers encounter in their
classrooms. My students needed to learn how to use academic language
effectively to read and write in academic contexts and wanted to do so in an
engaging manner that promoted their investment in learning. As a teacher
providing supplemental English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction to 6-8th
grade ELLs, I was tasked with supporting the academic literacy development of
ten Caribbean-born Spanish speakers. The task was made complicated because
the instructional materials the large, urban school district provided failed to
promote student investment in learning English. The textbook consisted of a
series of decontextualized grammar exercises coupled with Mexican-centric
reading passages about such topics as the historical contribution of the Aztecs
and making tamales, topics which did not resonate with my Caribbean-born
students. On the other hand, my students frequently expressed an interest in the
musical genre of reggaeton 1 and shared critiques of artists and their latest songs.
Therefore, I had what I would describe as a pedagogical epiphany through
which I determined that exploring reggaeton would potentially promote my
students investment in learning to write persuasive arguments as it would
allow my students to assume the role of content experts apprenticing me into the
world of reggaeton, while I apprenticed them into the world of persuasive
academic writing in English.
1
Reggaeton is genre of music with Latin and Caribbean roots.
Mi nina bonita
I like This artist
Because the songs are romantic does are chino and nacho. I recommend because
is very beautiful And romantic And they can arrive far away with this music
because is very nice and cute. Is better than the rest because no serve and I dont
like.
Figure 1. Lauras First Draft of Argumentative Text
Most noticeably, her text was short because it did not include significant detail
that would inform the reader about her artist or the genre of his music. While
there were some cohesive devices evident at the sentence level (because,
and), it generally lacked sufficient use of linguistic devices that contributed to
a cohesive and coherent text. Furthermore, although she made a recognizable
attempt to convey a positive evaluation of the artist throughout her paragraph,
her writing lacks adequate demonstration of the control of the lexical and
grammatical resources to convey her positive judgement and evaluation of the
artist and his work.
categories of processes composing the transitivity system are divided into those
that represent internal and external experience (the material and mental
processes) and those that function to classify and identify (relational processes).
Within the context of writing a persuasive music review, authors are expected to
draw on appraisal resources to express attitude through opinions of various
artists and their music. Persuasive writers call on appraisal resources to clarify
their attitudes towards a subject or to construct a voice of authority. The three
clauses below exemplify the varying appraisal resources as they may appear in
the context of the persuasive argument students were expected to construct for
this assignment.
From an SFL view, the register variables described above play an important part
in the construction of genre. According to SFL theorists, registers combine to
form genres which enact socially recognizable meanings and accomplish tasks
within a culture. Martin, Christie and Rothery (1987) define genre as a staged,
goal-oriented social process with structural forms that cultures use in certain
contexts to achieve various purposes (pg. 59). A genre is said to consist of
stages because it usually advances sequentially through these stages to
accomplish its purpose. Certain clause level elements like processes,
participants, and circumstances tend serve as linguistic signposts through the
stages (Eggins, 2004). While a text advances through its stages or schematic
structures (Martin & Rose, 2008, p. 9), the linguistic, syntactical and textual
features associated with the genre work to accomplish a texts goal; thus, making
genres goal oriented. Genres are said to realize a social process because they
are recognized as purposeful by participants who are members of the culture.
The social processes typically associated with academic writing in school
contexts involve: describing, narrating, synthesizing, analyzing, defining,
explaining, evaluating, and persuading (Knapp & Watkins, 2005; Rose & Martin,
2012). The corresponding genres used to accomplish these social processes
include: recounts, narratives, explanations, informational reports, and
arguments.
The next stage of the teaching and learning cycle called for me to conduct a
modeled writing exercise. During the course of my modeled writing, I employed
instructional strategies such as think aloud to make my composition strategies
visible and to build my students metalinguistic awareness related to the
organizational and linguistic choices I employed to construct persuasive text.
The modeled writing was a complex instructional practice involving frequent
recasting of my written text. The entire modeled writing activity took
approximately 25 minutes and gave me space to make visible the language
choices writers contemplate when constructing persuasive texts. Following the
modeled writing, I displayed the teacher-constructed text as an exemplar to the
whole group and guided students through an analysis of the stages and
linguistic features of persuasive texts. I invited students to read the text aloud
with me. As we read the text aloud, we stopped to define new lexical items and
discuss how particular word choices contributed to the purpose of persuading
readers to download the work of the chosen artist. As we analyzed the text, I
had students chart processes, participants and circumstances in their notebooks.
Next, students worked collaboratively in dyads to identify the stages of the text.
They had 10 minutes to use their notes and the exemplar texts we had analyzed,
to identify each stage of the persuasive argument.
The last step in teaching and learning cycle calls for students to construct texts
independently. Although I was not taking a central role at this point of
instruction, I did continue to provide instructional support. Namely, I
distributed a graphic organizer to assist in organizing their drafts. I also
encouraged students to use resources such as the modeled texts and word-lists
that they kept in their notebooks, the jointly constructed text which was
displayed prominently in the classroom, a bilingual dictionary, and perhaps
most importantly, each other. I wanted them to identify as language learners
who not only had command of the topic of reggaeton, but also had developed
significant content knowledge regarding how to construct an effective
persuasive text. After they were finished writing, they conferenced with me
individually. During the writing conferences, students edited, conducted
organizational revisions, and consulted the graphic organizer to evaluate their
work. Following the individual conference, they created their final draft.
Laura was a 13-year-old from the Dominican Republic who had recently
enrolled in the 8th grade. According to her school records, her parents, and my
observations, she was fully literate in Spanish. She had entered the United States
within the last year and was identified as a beginning-level ELL.
typically proposes a course of action for readers to follow. In her first text, Laura
omitted the recommendation stage. However, following SFL-based pedagogy,
she includes a clear recommendation for action. She states that she wants
readers to listen to his music and download it and supports this call for action
by appealing to the sensibilities of her readers by using appraisal resources to
describe the music as emotional and interesting. As Laura concludes her
final text, she includes a clear summary statement that, through skillful use of
participant repetition, re-orients her readers to the artist under discussion
(Drake), the type of music he sings (Hip Hop) and his most famous song
(Forever). Additionally, she repeats her call for action (download his most
famous song now) and reiterates her evaluation of the social relevance of the
song:
It is Forever and also his famous song because it talks about important things.
Findings Related to Changes in Control of Register
Analysis of the register of Lauras final text reveals substantial enhancement in
her control of the linguistic resources necessary to construct persuasive music
reviews appropriate for school contexts. Examining elements of the field of
discourse highlights this development. Most notably, her second text
demonstrates an increased number of music-themed processes and participants.
For example, in her initial text she writes about the artists and songs in very
general ways and never actually names the artist she is discussing. In contrast, in
her final text she specifically names the artist, describes the music as the genre
of hip hop and evaluates the interesting lyrics of his song, Forever.
Additionally, she demonstrates greater expertise in using processes related to
the field of music discourse. For instance, in the following clause she uses three
processes related to persuasive music reviews:
I recommend that you listen to his music and download it.
This particular clause indicates positive changes in Lauras persuasive writing
practices in two specific ways. First, her choice of the mental process
recommend functions as a linguistic signpost signaling to readers that a
specific call to action will follow. Second, the expected, specific actions follow in
the second half of the clause, as she instructs her readers to listen and
download Drakes latest recording. The material process download
represents a particularly interesting process choice that appears frequently in the
context of electronic music transfers, the way music is obtained by the current
generation of music fans. Notably, download is a process that appears twice in
the model texts which exemplifies a lexical appropriation directly from the
model text constructed in class. Also worth noting are two circumstances
appearing in the first paragraph. Both circumstances function to broaden the
depth of the field by providing the reader with personal background
information about the artist. The temporal circumstance on October 24, 1986
pinpoints when Drake was born and the circumstance of location, in Toronto
Canada, specifies where he was born.
Analysis of the tenor of Laura second text also reveals increased control of the
linguistic resources necessary to construct a relationship with her readers that
ultimately allows her to persuade readers more effectively. Perhaps most
effectively, she more readily draws on appraisal elements to express her
judgment and evaluation of her artist and his music. The clauses below
highlights several examples of this increased control:
I recommend his music because its emotional and interesting.
I recommend Drake because his songs are popular and soulful.
Laura evaluates the lyrics of Drakes songs using lexical choices that have
positive appraisal values such as interesting and categorizes the songs as
popular and soulful and the music as emotional and interesting. She
also expresses her judgment of Drake as person by describing him as an up-
and-coming and a good artist, using the attributive relational process is to
connect the participant Drake to the positive characteristics she attributes to
him. She also extends her appreciation of the lyrics of the song as she evaluates
them as being important separating them perhaps from other lyrics of other
artists, these of which deems as having social relevance.
basketball.
By picking up the Theme lyrics from the first clause and then elaborating in
detail why the lyrics are interesting in her subsequent clause she demonstrates
increased control in her ability to advance key concepts and supporting claims in
her text.
Discussion
The analysis presented above indicates that SFL-pedagogy had a significant
impact on bringing Laura, a beginning-level ELL, closer to the intended goal of
writing effective persuasive texts by providing instructional support to
demonstrate the connection between form and purpose, but also by
strengthening her ability to include academic persuasive language at the clause
level. The study shows that through explicit teaching focusing on the stages and
linguistic features of persuasive writing, emergent bilingual students may
potentially learn to construct detailed and coherent arguments. From the
perspective of a teacher and teacher educator, the study also highlights how SFL
analysis can pinpoint what our students can do with language and provides a
way for us to potentially track that development and design instruction to
enhance persuasive writing development. For instance, from my analysis, I was
able to identify the next steps in instruction. I noted that Laura would require
continued and focused instructional support in learning how to build on the
ideas she introduced within the clause and connect and expand those ideas
cohesively and coherently throughout the text. That meant that I needed to
highlight examples of cohesive elements that appeared in reading and provide
direct instruction through language-focused in-class language instruction.
One instructional practice I could implement to support her control of cohesive
elements is the presentation of a mini-lessons focused on teaching students how
to create nominalizations and use those nominalizations effectively to bundle
ideas that can extend throughout a text and thereby develop textual coherence
and cohesion. At the clause level, Laura may also need continued support to
enhance her control of lexical- grammatical resources, such as the use of the past
participle, in order to help her share her ideas without as many indications of
non-native English writing. However, as good writers and writing instructors
know, writing is a recursive event with opportunities to revise and develop
ones writing.
Conclusion
This study shows how emergent bilingual students can benefit from SFL-based
pedagogy in ways that help them develop greater control of persuasive
language through instruction that focuses on academic writing both at the genre
structure and clause level. Case studies in language teaching and learning
remain inherently limited in their applicability to broader contexts because,
however in-depth the analysis of the case may be, it is by definition limited to
one learners experience. To adequately prove that SFL pedagogy was the
defining factor contributing to the changes in Lauras writing practices examined
in this article is impossible. As a teacher researcher, I recognize that in order to
make creditable claims related to the language development of my learners, a
larger data set encompassing numerous texts composed over a longer period
would be much more informative. Yet, what I sought to accomplish in this paper
was to show how teachers and the teacher educators who prepare them can use
SFL as tool to examine their ELLs existing and changing writing practices. The
paper also sought to provide a detailed explanation of how SFL pedagogy is
implemented in ESL instructional contexts, given that academic language
instruction, particularly in the content areas, has become an essential ingredient
in effective teaching practice. However, given that teachers have long practiced
process-based approaches to writing instruction, having an explicit analysis of
SFL pedagogy can serve as guide and example of the ways teachers can bring
attention to language and potentially support ELLS in increasing their control of
grammatical and lexical resources through culturally-relevant SFL based
pedagogy.
References
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Collier, V.P. (1989). How long? A synthesis of research on academic achievement in
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Derewianka, B. (1990). Exploring how texts work. Sydney: Primary English Teaching
Association.
Eggins, S. (2004). An introduction to systemic functional linguistics: London: Pinter.
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persuasion. Language Arts 84 (5), 419-430.
Gibbons, P. (2015). Scaffolding language, scaffolding learning. Portsmouth: Heinemann.
Halliday, M.A.K. & Matthiessen, C. (2014). Hallidays Introduction to functional grammar.
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Knapp & Watkins, (2010). Genre, text, and grammar: technologies for assessing writing.
London: Orient Blackswan Publishing.
Martin, J.R., Christie, F. & Rothery, J. (1987). Social processes in education: a reply to
Sawyer and Watson (and others). In I. Reid (Ed.) The place of genre in learning:
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Communication, 31, 304-331.
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pedagogy in the Sydney school, South Yorkshire, UK: Equinox.
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functional linguistics: Connecting theory and practice in teacher education.
Catesol Journal, 27, 109-130.
Introduction
School is one of the social, political and economic centers of our lives. Within
this framework, the principal constitutes one of the major links in the
educational system in general and in the school in particular. The principal
oversees many fields in the school and is responsible for a wide range of duties.
The research literature found that the principal and his style of leadership has
great influence on the various processes in the school ( Shabbat, 1996; Kula &
Globman, 1994; Hau et al., 2016). The patterns of leadership in its entirety is
called "Management Style". The personal style of the principal which is
influenced first and foremost by his personal values and mental perception,
although, this style is influenced by his principles and the norms by which he
prefers to work. Also, the principal's personality and leadership style is reflected
in his performance as a principal in the system (Oplakta, 2007). Researchers
point to the various models of leadership styles adopted by principals. This
Teacher's Motivation
What motivates the teachers in their work? Various researchers in the
educational department tried to trace the process of motivation of teachers and
educators. Therefore, a definition is needed as to what constitutes motivation for
teachers. The researchers (Gibson, Ivancevich & Donnelly, 1988) define
motivation, as the force that causes an individual to act in a certain manner or to
be oriented towards it. To Herzberg (1967) motivation would be enhanced when
opportunities were provided for subordinates to demonstrate their capabilities
and when they are recognized for their accomplishments.
Many researchers tried to trace the process of motivation of teachers, from the
studies that confronted Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs theory (Trusty &
Sergiovanni, 1966) it appears that teachers do not reach self-actualization from
their work. Acker (1989) believes that the motivating factor for teachers is
essentially the feeling of self-realization, expertise, respect, a mission for future
generations and the desire for advancement, and not salaries and benefits. It was
also found that higher wages and extrinsic benefits are not enough to preserve
their energy and strength for the long term in the workplace.
Rosenblat and Robin's (2000) study showed that there is a correlation between
job security and their commitment to the school. In their study they show that
teachers reported a low level of job security and connected it their low salary,
while those teachers who reported a high level of job security connected it to
achievement and their self-actualization. According to this study it appears that
the more the teacher receives a free hand, responsibility, multi-tasks, and self-
actualization, the more committed he will be to the school, will feel more job
security and as a result his motivation will be strengthened to use his talents for
the school.
According to Adams (1965) who defined the concept of "fairness" as a situation
in which the relationship between input and output of its employee is equal to
that of other workers with whom it has a direct or indirect relationship. Adams
(1965) claims that there is no doubt that financial reward is also a motivation for
teachers, but it is a secondary one compared to their primary idealistic one.
Therefore dealing only with teacher's salaries will not raise their motivation in
the workplace.
Other essential factors that serve as a motivating force for teachers are
psychological benefits such as: appreciation of their work, freedom in carrying
out their work, meaningful and diverse projects, partnership in decision making,
receiving positive feedback, obtaining resources to carry out the work,
teamwork, delegation of authority and support from the administration, fair
treatment and a reasonable work load, opportunities for advancement and
continuous learning.
Oplatka (2010) adds that according to various studies, it appears that job tenure
and a good salary are not listed as one of the main factors that motivate teachers.
On the contrary, what motivates teachers is improvement of self-esteem,
expertise, respect, and a feeling of accomplishment in their work. Asor (2001)
believes that motivation comes from two main factors: Intensity and autonomy.
The amount of effort the teacher is willing to devote to realizing the goal
(Intensity of investment) and freedom of choice and identification with the goal
(autonomy of investment). In order for the teacher's motivation to be high, there
is a need for them to identify strongly with the goals of the education ministry
and the school administration and there must be full partnership and freedom of
choice in the decision making process of the educational goals.
Navon and Schapiro (1989) point out that teachers aspire to fulfill a broader role
in the educational system than in the past, from a desire to control and oversee
the activities of adults, which gives them intrinsic satisfaction beyond the
external benefits they receive like wage increases or less hours of frontal
teaching. These benefits result in satisfaction from their work and a feeling of
belonging to the school, even when the teachers do not receive social prestige
from the general public.
In relation to motivational factors Oplatka (2006) found that a sense of mission,
family atmosphere in the teacher's room and the principal's sensitivity to the
teachers' needs contribute to a higher motivation amongst the teachers in the
school. Kocaba and Karakse, (2005) emphasize: The most important factor for
the motivation of teachers is the school administration, the participation of
teachers in decision making, the sharing of authority and responsibility,
compensation and rewards can motivate them.
Method
The study was conducted in the State of Israel. The study included a
questionnaire of teacher's attitude towards management style and motivation.
The questionnaire was given to 137 teachers who teach in elementary and
secondary schools. 35% of the teachers had between 1 and 10 years tenure, 6.3%
had 11-20 years tenure, and 1.6% had 21-30 years tenure. The study was
conducted in the year 2014.
Research Tools
The study was conducted using the quantitative method. A questionnaire was
prepared with two subjects. The management style variable included 16
questions on the scale of 1 - 5. The questions related to the style of management
of the principal where 1 indicated a centralized style of management and 5
indicated a decentralized style. The motivational variable included 23 questions
on a scale of 1 6. The questions related to the motivation of the teacher for his
work where 1 indicated a teacher with low motivation and 6 was a teacher with
high motivation.
Results
Below are means and standard deviations of the two variables: motivation and
management style.
Table No. 1: Means and Standard Deviations for Each Statement in the
Management Variable. Averages are displayed in descending order. N=137
5 = very characteristic, 1 = very uncharacteristic
Mean S.D
` 4.13 0.94
The principal appoints teachers for special tasks 3.87 1.03
The principal makes time to listen to the teachers 3.72 1.03
The principal discusses issues that were suggested by the 3.65 1.09
teachers
The principal creates a comfortable atmosphere for the 3.59 1.10
staff
The principal checks the distribution of grades the 3.57 1.27
teachers give in the different classes
The principal encourages the teachers to participate in 3.55 1.06
deciding school policies
The principal waits for the teaching staff's approval before 3.21 1.16
acting on important issues
Teacher conferences are organized according to a strict 2.81 1.39
agenda
The principal acts without consulting the teaching staff 2.53 1.08
The principal rules with an iron hand 2.51 1.26
The principal does not explain his actions 2.36 1.16
Teacher's conferences are devoted mainly to the 2.36 1.16
principal's report
The principal is a "lone wolf" 2.29 1.53
The principal does not want to listen to opinions that 2.25 1.06
differ from his opinion
The principal does not encourage innovation 2.09 1.16
The comment that received the highest average was "The principal is an
educational role model" (Average 4.13, deviation 0.94).
Table No. 2: Means and Standard Deviations for Each Statement in the
Motivation Variable. Averages are displayed in descending order. N=137
6 = Agree strongly, 1 = Disagree strongly
Mean S.D
The work constitutes a positive challenge for me 5.10 0.93
I participate in the school's social activities 4.98 1.07
I initiate personal conversations with my students 4.98 1.05
Most of the time I arrive at school in a happy mood 4.98 1.07
I am willing to devote extra effort in my work 4.95 0.89
I learn professional courses in my field 4.93 1.03
I use my creative ability in my place of work 4.93 1.03
I update the parents about their children's achievements and 4.87 1.16
behavior on my own initiative.
It's important to me to promote a student even at the expense 4.83 0.96
of my personal time.
I'm willing to take upon myself responsibility for important 4.81 1.09
projects
I take care to diversify my teaching methods 4.80 0.93
I devote my free time to advancing my school tasks 4.78 1.11
I feel that my work as a teacher is very enjoyable 4.77 1.08
I give myself tasks that are hard but achievable 4.59 1.26
I devote a lot of time in preparing my lessons 4.57 1.06
I initiate activities with the professional and supervisory staff 4.55 1.06
If I had to do it all over again I would still choose the 4.51 1.44
teaching profession
I organize social activities for my pupils 4.47 1.25
I aspire to fulfill additional tasks in the system 4.47 1.25
I feel that teaching is burning me out 3.02 1.54
I feel that as a teacher I am not advancing enough in my life 2.76 1.51
I feel that my expectations of teaching are not being fulfilled 2.69 1.32
If I had a different profession I could use my skills better 2.60 1.43
From Table No. 3 we can see that the averages are high and range between 4.45-
4.83 (on a scale of 1-6) and the deviation standard was similar (0.68, 0.85, and
0.97).
`
Table No. 4: Pearson Correlations between the Variables of Motivation and
Management Style
The teacher's The teacher's The teacher's
willingness to perception of initiatives related
actively devote the teaching to teaching
himself profession as
positive
Management Style -0.042 -0.316** -0.020
The teacher's 0.136 1 0.214**
perception of the
teaching profession as
positive
The teacher's 0.472** 0.214** 1
initiatives related to
teaching
Discussion
The statement that received the highest average in the management variable was
"The principal is an educational role model" (Average 4.13, deviation 0.94). The
teachers feel to a great extent the educational role model of the principal and this
can be explained according to Oplotka (2007) who claims that the personal style
of the principal is reflected in his role as a school principal who is influenced
first and foremost by his personal values and mental perception.
The statement that received the highest average in the teacher's work motivation
variable was "The work constitutes a positive challenge for me" (Average 5.10,
deviation 0.93). This finding matches Acker (1989) statement who claims that the
motivating factors for teachers in their work is a feeling of self-realization and
not salary or benefits.
A negative correlation was found between the management style and the
teacher's perception of the teaching profession, thus the more decentralized the
management style the higher the teacher's positive perception rises (rp= -0.316,
p<0.01).
Studies have shown, that teacher participation and encouraging involvement in
the school constitutes a means for developing the school as a whole and to the
improvement of teaching. According to White (1992) the lowering of
supervisory pressure and delegation of authority to teachers improves their
teaching, prevents good teachers from leaving and strengthens the cooperation
of the teachers with the administration and work colleagues. There are
testimonies that in these kind of conditions the teachers report high motivation,
satisfaction, and loyalty to the school and are open to new initiatives Shedd and
Bacharach (1991) in Edi and Hen (1997).
Johnson (1990) in Edi and Hen (1997) emphasizes the great importance of the
school workplace and its influence on the teacher's method of working. Long
hours, a lot of administrative paper work, large and heterogeneous classes, tight
working hours etc. make it difficult for the teacher and affects his motivation at
Conclusion
The management style of the principal of the school has an impact on the
teachers in their work in general and the teacher's perception of the teaching
profession in particular. Studies have shown that a positive and significant
relationship between the principal and his teachers influence the teacher's
fulfillment and his attitudes (Price, 2012; Huang et al., 2013).
In addition, the results of the studies indicate that a teacher who is willing to
actively devote himself and a teacher who perceives the profession of teaching
as positive, will be a teacher with educational initiatives in the school. The study
conducted by Fairman and Mackenzie (2015) also shows that teachers who
perceive themselves as leaders and teachers who know themselves and their
abilities, these will be the teachers that will improve and devote themselves to
their work in the school.
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