Classroom Experience Research Articles

Developing notions of place in an undergraduate elementary social studies methods course

PurposePlace-based, social studies teaching and learning has the potential to foster engaged citizens connected and committed to improving their communities. This study explored the research question, “In what ways do classroom and field-based experiences prepare teacher candidates (TCs) to make connections between place-based education and elementary social studies education?”Design/methodology/approachThis qualitative case study examined how elementary TCs learned about, researched, curated and created place-based social studies educational resources related to community sites. Data collection included TCs’ Pre- and Post-Course Reflections as well as Self-Evaluations, which were analyzed using an inductive approach and multiple rounds of concept coding. Several themes emerged through data analysis.FindingsThe authors organized their findings around three themes: connections (i.e. place becomes personal), immersion (i.e. learning about place to learning in place) and bridge building (i.e. local as classroom). The classroom and field-based experiences in the elementary social studies methods course informed the ways in which TCs learned about and connected to the concept of place, experienced place in a specific place (i.e. downtown Statesboro, Georgia), and reflected upon the myriad ways that they could utilize place in their future elementary social studies classrooms.Originality/valueTCs (as well as in-service teachers and teacher educators) must become more informed, connected and committed to places within their local communities in order to consider them as resources for elementary social studies teaching and learning.

A Case Study of Biology Teaching Practices in Croatian Primary Schools

Abstract The aim of this case study is to present the most frequent teaching methods used by biology teachers in the Republic of Croatia, based on the observations made during biology class and the teachers’ statements. The study included six distinguished primary school biology teachers, along with their seventh-grade classes. The data comprised an interview with each teacher and twelve class observations. The results show that biology education in the Croatian educational system is mostly traditional, whereby students mostly practice listening to the teacher (34%) and answering the questions (18%). In summary, the majority of teaching consists of teachers presenting the content materials and asking questions or engaging students in specific individual or group activities. The present study has determined a lack of student questions and class discussions. Additionally, the nature of teachers’ questions does not encourage students to think and provide extensive answers. For this reason, the study suggests that teachers encourage students to ask questions and organize teaching activities in ways which will contribute to more class activity and deep learning of students. Despite some acknowledged limitations, the results of this study can contribute to a better understanding of the teachers’ experiences in authentic science classrooms, in specific contexts.

Cultivation of Character for Ethical Leadership: The Department of Leadership Education at Culver Academies

Since 1894, Culver Academies has aimed to develop leaders of character. Rooted in the military academy and boarding school traditions, Culver has centered leadership development around central virtues and values. In 1986, recognizing the need to provide integrated, successive leadership learning experiences for students across 4 years, Culver instituted a standalone academic Department of Leadership Education. The Department of Leadership Education, housed in the Schrage Leadership Center, is unique among secondary boarding schools in offering four successive academic leadership education classroom experiences alongside Student Life curricula. Each year’s curriculum is centered in a transformational leadership framework, utilizing evidence-based tools to guide students’ leadership and character growth at each level. Ultimately, students’ growth is assessed by faculty (and students themselves) according to core leadership and character competencies developed by the Academies. Continual improvement of the department is ensured through a comprehensive triennial review process. The aim of this article is to illustrate a successful, iterative character and leadership education experience in a 4-year secondary school context.

Investigating the role of self-selected STEM projects in fostering student autonomy and self-directed learning

Research in STEM education has focussed on integrated STEM projects that combine knowledge and skills across science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. These integrated STEM projects are typically designed by teachers or researchers addressing a limited range of topics that do not always cater well to the diversity of interest among children and adolescents. By contrast, self-selected projects where students have more choices and autonomy in selecting their own projects are relatively rare. Consequently, there is a gap in the literature on students’ learning experiences when they choose and develop their own STEM projects. This study aims to examine the classroom experience and enactment of a high school STEM course designed for Grade 9 and 10 students (14 to 16 years old) to carry out a project of their choice aligned with the theme of sustainability. A case study methodology was used to investigate eight students’ lived experiences in making connections to STEM. The study reveals the nature of students’ self-directed learning experiences as they chose their own topics of exploration and subsequently developed their respective STEM-related projects. It also illuminates the alignments and tensions between STEM integration and various aspects of students’ self-directed learning, including intrinsic motivation, open-ended tasks, goal setting, design thinking, collaboration with external partners, curriculum constraint, and time management. The implications of the study encompass student autonomy and agency, the significance of authentic problems and themes in STEM education, and the role of curriculum in facilitating self-selected projects.

KESIAPAN GURU SENI BUDAYA DALAM PELATIHAN ONLINE DI ERA INDUSTRI 4.0.

Industrial era 4.0. implies major changes in all aspects of life, especially in the field of education. Although web-based learning has been a major issue since the early of 21st century, digital skills are still emerging as a constraint. The global pandemic has abruptly pushed online training as an answer to sustainability within education. This study explores the readiness of teachers in online training in the new adaptation era. The research subjects were 187 art and culture teachers of junior, senior, and vocational high schools attended online training conducted by BBPPMPV Seni dan Budaya. The result of the study demonstrates significant achievement of teachers’ scores in the test. However, some conditions were recognized as teachers’ limitation during the online training, namely the access to the internet, the availability of tools and materials of skills practice, and their mastery of Google Classroom as learning management system. Teachers’ self-motivated action to join the online training and the increase of their post-test scores reveal their readiness for attending the online training. On the other hand, online training is not just an issue to learn something by the means of internet, but it is also critical to reflect on how to bring classroom experiences into the online platform by utilizing LMS features which support learning process itself

Student-to-Teacher Victimization and Its Negative Impact on Teaching Approaches: Applying Propensity Score Matching.

The negative impact of student-to-teacher victimization on teachers' perceptions of the work environment and their well-being is supported by growing empirical literature. For instance, violence in the classroom can have a negative impact on teachers themselves and hinder teachers from playing crucial roles in students' classroom experiences, resulting in adverse effects on student performance. However, the research field is limited in understanding the adverse effects on teachers' perceptions more directly related to student learning, such as teacher neglect. To fill the gap in the literature, the current study analyzes data from a nationwide sample of 1,054 middle and high school teachers in South Korea where teachers are generally treated with high regard and social status, often exerting a strong influence and authority over students in both an educational and parental way. Specifically, we conduct propensity score matching to investigate potential influences that student-to-teacher victimization can have on the following three outcome variables: teacher neglect, commitment, and pride. Results of mean comparisons after accounting for other confounding factors show that when compared with nonvictims, victims of student-to-teacher victimization are more likely to neglect their students; these victims also tend to exhibit less pride as teachers. Yet, the results also showed no significant statistical difference in teacher commitment. The current findings highlight the importance of developing programs to prevent and intervene in students' aggressive behaviors toward teachers. Particularly, administrators are recommended to consider providing training for teachers, specific to understanding student-to-teacher victimization in order to promote a more positive school environment and better student-to-teacher relationships in classrooms, including improving teachers' job performance.

Applying the Pressure: Exploring How Instructor Strictness Impacts Students’ Individual Classroom Experiences

ABSTARCT Students tend to think negatively of strict (i.e., inflexible) instructors. However, strictness as an instructional variable is not theoretically positioned as positive or negative; its impact likely varies depending on the person. To investigate this idea, the current study thematically analyzed narratives from 457 students about their interactions with strict instructors. Three themes were identified from a clustering of 8 sub-themes reflecting a wide range of outcomes in the wake of perceived strict behavior: (1) Mindset and Motivation, (2) Affective Responses, and (3) Relational Distance. Although strictness is generally viewed as an undesirable instructor behavior, its actual influence appeared to be mixed. Moreover, responses highlighted how perceptions of strictness may have an indirect impact on students’ actual learning.

“I feel like a pack a day smoker”: Teacher and student voices from noisy classrooms

Concerns about the effects of poor classroom acoustics on student learning (particularly on students who are deaf or hard of hearing) have been expressed since the 1950s, yet research continues to indicate that poor classroom acoustics are both common, and related to poorer student outcomes in academic achievement, attention, behavior, and most recently, mental health. Teachers are not immune to the detrimental effects of noise; for them, research indicates a higher incidence of voice problems, absenteeism and job stress. However, little is reported about what teachers and students themselves have to say about their experiences attempting to learn under adverse listening conditions, and what changes for them when acoustical conditions improve. Their voices are largely missing from the research literature but they illuminate the problem in ways that quantitative data does not always capture. This presentation by an educational audiologist with over 35 years of experience in classrooms will provide an overview of the research on learning under adverse listening conditions, with a focus on representing teacher and student voices through qualitative research and anecdotal reports. The title is a quote from a teacher describing her voice problems and fatigue after a day of teaching.

Inferring ventilation rates with quantified uncertainty in operational rooms using point measurements of carbon dioxide: Classrooms as a case study

We present a robust integral method to estimate the daily mean per-person ventilation rate Q¯pp based on carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration measurements in operational spaces, and limited other data. The method makes no assumptions regarding the ventilation provision throughout the day, nor requires the room to be in a steady state, nor the air within to be well-mixed. We demonstrate that several integral parameters remain reliably close to a value of unity, despite large variations in room conditions. Evaluating the likely distributions of integral parameters provides a method to quantify the uncertainty bounds and therefore assess the reliability of these ventilation estimates. Taking school classrooms as a case study, estimates of Q¯pp based on measured CO2 are shown to exhibit uncertainty bounds (of 95% confidence intervals) of approximately ±24% if no other data than the classroom timetable is available. Deploying four CO2 sensors within a classroom is expected to halve the uncertainty bounds to around ±12%. Moreover, the framework presented herein evidences that when the same classroom experiences similar usage on two different days, the relative per-person ventilation rate achieved during these two days can be simply determined by the ratio of their integral excess CO2 concentrations. These significant findings offer great scope to facilitate more reliable ventilation estimates, particularly from large-scale data sets of CO2 measured in operational spaces, to better inform assessments of indoor air quality.

The voice of a group of teachers in full-service schools in South Africa.

Full-service schools (FSSs) were introduced into the South African school system as part of the movement towards inclusive education. The authors of this article embarked on a study to obtain the opinions and feelings of a group of teachers about FSSs and inclusive education. Thus, the 'voice' of these teachers could be heard. The research followed a qualitative approach using group discussions and classroom observations. Triangulation was used to verify information. The data revealed that the teacher participants had definite opinions and feelings about inclusive education in FSSs and their classroom experiences also came to light. The themes arising from the research are the teachers' opinions about teaching in FSSs, support from the school and the school management, discipline in the schools, teaching methods, language issues, religion and parent involvement. It is clear that the specific needs of teachers whose schools were transformed into FSSs will have to be attended to. The teachers are the ones who have to apply inclusive education in their classrooms, and it is essential that teachers' teaching and personal needs in full-service classrooms are addressed. The article contributes to a better understanding of the teachers' important role in FSSs and the problems experienced by the teachers. This aligns with the ethos of inclusive education and human rights included in the scope of the journal.

Exploring secondary school learners' perceptions of the effectiveness of SOLEs pedagogy in physical sciences as a component of STEM

The exploratory case study design investigated learners’ perceptions of the effectiveness of self-organized learning environments (SOLEs) pedagogy in physical sciences. Fifteen Grade 11 learners were selected using a purposive sampling method and underwent SOLEs pedagogy instruction for four weeks before they were interviewed through focus group interviews (FGIs). Data were analyzed thematically using the coding method, which was conducted on a sentence-by-sentence basis. The results indicated that learners have a positive perception towards SOLEs pedagogy, because they believe that SOLEs pedagogy enables them to link their classroom experiences with their real-life experiences; it provides them (learners) with an opportunity to simulate practical experiments in the physical sciences; it provides them with multiple channels for receiving information; it enables them to learn collaboratively and limits their reliance on the teacher. Consequently, this study’s findings justify the implementation of SOLEs pedagogy in science education at the secondary school level.

Assessing the impact of digital education transformation on high school education

The purpose of this study is to comprehensively evaluate the impact of digital education transformation on high school education, including three dimensions of teacher competence, classroom teaching and school management. Through qualitative and quantitative research methods, this paper analyzes how digital technology changes the teaching experience of high school classrooms, explores the key factors affecting the success of digital education transformation, and the impact of digital education transformation on student participation, achievement and school management efficiency. The results show that digital education transformation has significant advantages in improving teaching efficiency and student engagement, but it also faces challenges in resource allocation, teacher training and technical support. In response to the challenges, this paper puts forward corresponding countermeasures and suggestions to provide theoretical and practical guidance for the transformation of digital education in senior high schools.

Ijtihad in the RE classroom

ABSTRACT This article examines the place of ijtihad in the British Religious Education curriculum. It argues that the concept should be taught to high school students earlier than A-Level. Knowledge of ijtihad enables students to understand diversity of thought and legal interpretation in Islam, and why different conclusions can be reached from the same or similar corpus of Islamic sources. Ijtihad has always played an important role in the consolidation and evolution of Islamic legal thinking. Yet despite increased research about the value of a hermeneutical approach in the RE classroom in recent years, ijtihad is rarely taught in UK schools. The article presents real life classroom experience and tweaks to the established RE syllabi which have been implemented in schools where the majority of students identify as Muslims. Its principal author (Zameer Hussain) is a religious studies teacher who brings his own expertise in teaching to this debate in order to evidence how a hermeneutical approach to the study of Islam at all levels will benefit students’ understanding of Islam and help them to understand the importance of legal pluralism within and between Islamic traditions.

Developing Intercultural Competence via Virtual Exchange Programs: The Case of Moroccan University Students

This article presents the results of a study conducted at the School of Law and Economics of Casablanca. The study explores the effect of intercultural interventions in developing the learners’ intercultural competence. Two groups of informants representing two different master programs participated in this study. While the control group (29) attended only a traditional classroom course on Intercultural Awareness in Business, the treatment group (37) took the same class and also participated in a virtual exchange program that counted for 15% of their final grades. The study used the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS) to investigate the developmental patterns of the learners’ intercultural competence following the two intercultural interventions. The study sought to investigate how virtual exchange programs affected participants' intercultural competence and sensitivity in comparison to those who had a traditional classroom experience. The results exhibited significantly elevated levels of intercultural sensitivity in the treatment group compared to the control group, indicating that the treatment group exhibited markedly significant levels. The findings provide support for the recommendation to implement virtual exchange programs as a practical method to improve employability skills and global awareness among university students. Consequently, these findings substantiate the recommendation to incorporate virtual exchange programs as an efficacious approach for enhancing employability skills and fostering global awareness within formal academic settings, particularly among university students.

In the Teachers’ Lounge: Creating a Community Space for Psychoanalytic Teachers

ABSTRACT The author describes how a teaching forum was started at his local institute, with the goal of helping to support and sustain faculty in their work as psychoanalytic teachers. Psychoanalytic teachers receive little training or mentorship, and there are few opportunities to discuss their classroom experiences, despite the challenges of shifting from the dyadic experience of the therapist’s office to the group dynamics of the classroom. The author discusses various challenges for psychoanalytic teachers in making that transition, while also considering how our awareness of the frame, the risks of idealization and transference can aid us as teachers. An example of a forum meeting about the use of assigned readings demonstrates how a focus on the process of reading can be a more effective form of teaching foundational psychoanalytic concepts than simply teaching content or concepts from papers.

Elementary teachers as collaborators: developing educative support materials for citizen science projects

ABSTRACT Science education is an important component of a full education beginning in primary grades. In recent decades, research has identified young learners’ rich knowledge of the natural world and their potential to connect with sophisticated science ideas. Elementary teachers face many challenges to implementing reform-based science instruction in their classrooms. Some teachers may choose to enhance their students’ science experiences by introducing them to citizen science (CS) projects. Unfortunately, few CS projects offer substantial guidance for teachers seeking to implement the projects for instructional purposes, placing a heavy burdenon teachers. To address these burdens, our research team collaborated with Teacher Advisory Group (TAG teachers) during the development and revision of educative support materials for two CS projects. We present data about how the TAG teachers informed our CS support materials’ revisions, how they implemented the two CS projects with and without educative support materials, and how they perceived their students’ classroom and outdoor experiences with the CS projects. These data demonstrate the importance of including teachers’ voices and experiences in reform efforts, particularly when trying to incorporate instructional elements that teachers may perceive as deviations from what they are expected to teach.

Reimagining Teacher Preparation: Digital Literacy in the Post-Pandemic Era

The advent of COVID-19 exposed significant flaws in the capacity of educational institutions to deliver quality instruction to their students in a crisis. The rapid instigation of advanced digital technologies to facilitate remote learning by universities and colleges provided a pedagogical bridge to cover the time and space restrictions forced on the normal face-to-face classroom experience. Unfortunately, as the impact of the pandemic has waned, educational institutions drew down their investments in the digital technology infrastructure, hardware, and software that were indispensable to sustaining student learning over the two years the pandemic interrupted normal educational schedules. However, it is argued that it would be extremely prudent to expand rather than contract these resources. Research indicates that many teachers struggled with technologies in remote teaching during COVID-19. This raises the question of how teacher education programs can adequately provide future teachers with essential digital literacy skills to teach in diverse technology-enriched learning environments. The proposed frameworks aim to reshape the curriculum in teacher education programs to cultivate and develop preservice teachers’ digital literacy skills.

Effects of simulation-based flipped classroom in developing head and neck examination skills in dental students.

To evaluate the effectiveness of a simulation-based flipped classroom in developing dental students' head and neck examination skills. Second-year dental students (n=118) participated in a simulation-based flipped classroom experience. A pre-class recorded lecture and video were posted online one week before the simulation date. In class, students completed a pre-quiz assessing pre-class coursework understanding of head and neck examination content. Then, students attended a question-and-answer session before the patient simulation. A formative assessment of head and neck examination simulation on a patient in the clinic was completed. Lastly, students completed an in-class post-quiz assessing understanding of head and neck examination content after the simulation, classroom simulation discussion, and open-response survey. Student post-quiz scores were significantly higher than pre-quiz scores, with an average improvement of 4.8 ± 7.2 percentage points. There was no difference between male and female improvement in scores. Student survey responses indicated that students liked combining simulation and flipped classroom methodology, flexibility with their schedules, learning at their pace, and opportunities for a deeper level of learning. Students reported wanting more practice sessions for their technical skills and more accessibility to faculty. According to this study's results, students had significantly higher post-quiz scores than pre-quiz scores and reported positive perceptions of this combined teaching technique. A simulation-based flipped classroom might be an effective teaching approach for developing head and neck examination skills that can be applied at other dental facilities with potentially similar results.

Challenges and supports for secondary science and mathematics teacher retention

AbstractMore research related to effective ways to support and retain teachers in the teaching profession is necessary as the need for science and mathematics teachers continues to grow. Understanding how teachers perceive challenges and experience support early in their career can contribute to building environments which foster teacher retention. This mixed‐method study explored the influences on the self‐efficacy and career satisfaction of a group of 21 early‐career (2–6 years of classroom experience) secondary science and mathematics teachers who participated in a traditional university preparation program and scholarship program to prepare them for teaching in high‐need school districts. Using data from an efficacy survey and semistructured interviews, this study measured changes in teacher efficacy and described teacher leadership experiences, perceived teaching challenges, and valued supports. Results found no change in teachers' self‐efficacy scores although mean outcome expectancy scores decreased. Teachers' identification as a teacher leader was correlated with science or mathematics teaching self‐efficacy. Qualitative coding of the interviews revealed ways in which assessments, workload, school structures and polices, administration, students, and teacher community either contributed to teachers reported difficulties or supported them as early‐career teachers. The discussion offers suggestions for ways to increase secondary science and mathematics teachers' job satisfaction.

A multilingualism-as-resource approach in a graduate-level English-medium instruction (EMI) program at a Korean university

ABSTRACT The trend of internationalisation of education has resulted in the wider implementation of English Medium Instruction (EMI) programmes in education, especially at the tertiary level. While some of these programmes adopted strict English-dominant policies, others embraced flexible bilingual or multilingual policies to ensure students’ learning and wellbeing. This study explored international graduate students’ learning and languaging experiences in an EMI graduate classroom with flexible multilingual policies in a Korean university. Data included field notes, students’ work and language samples, and focus group interviews with students. Using thematic analysis of qualitative data, the authors reported that students’ experiences with multilingualism as a resource approach were mostly productive since it created third spaces for the participants to deploy their multilingual resources to construct, promote and demonstrate learning in their class reports. Participants also reported increased compassion for each other through collaborative learning and enhanced understanding of both home and new languages during their studies in the graduate programme that was mediated through multiple languages. This study offered implications for EMI practitioners, higher education institutions, and policymakers regarding language planning, language policy, and language support in EMI contexts.