Education Core Curriculum Research Articles

Textbook Series and English O-NET: Alignments of Prepared Knowledge and Secondary School Final Year Assessment

The preparation for English language teaching materials in Thai secondary schools rely primarily on the use of western-published textbooks. Reasons are given by teachers that the books have assured the accuracy of the language (Ulla, 2019), and they provide proper models of language use (Tomlinson, 2008; Ulla, 2019). By using these textbooks, one of the ultimate goals for every school is to prepare students for the Ordinary National Educational Test (O-NET) in the final year of their secondary education (Grade 12). It is therefore interesting to examine whether or not the textbook series equip students with the knowledge and skills of language which align with the secondary school final year assessment. The preliminary investigation of this study (Sritrakarn, 2021) found that the English O-NET test items designed during the years 2016-2019 were partially aligned with the learning domains of the basic education core curriculum. This present study examined further the alignments of the O-NET tests and the school’s equipped knowledge through textbook series. Taking the lens of Systemic Functional Linguistic (SFL) genre-based approach, the texts and discourses used in the textbook series of one school were compared with those found in the O-NET test items. This paper discusses the findings and the implications of how to prepare the sources of input knowledge for the national assessment.

A Comparative Study of Thai and Indonesia High School History Curriculum

This article compares educational systems and high school historical curriculum between Thai and Indonesian. The method used in this article is a qualitative descriptive method. The data referred to in this article are from the Thai Basic Education Core Curriculum 2008 and the Indonesian Curriculum 2013. Thailand and Indonesia have the same education system. As for high school history subjects, there are similarities and differences. Both countries emphasize this subject, with all students required to study history. The difference is the content of Indonesian history subject is much more than Thai. The time allotted for studying Thai history is much less than Indonesian history.

Radiation and Cancer Biology Educators of Radiation Oncology Residents and the Courses They Teach1.

The purpose of this study was to characterize today's radiation and cancer biology educators of radiation oncology residents, and the biology courses they teach. An e-mail list of 133 presumptive resident biology educators was compiled, and they were invited to participate in a 46-item survey. Survey questions were designed to collect information about the educational and academic backgrounds of the educators, how they self-identify, characteristics of the courses they teach, the value that they assign to their teaching activities, their level of satisfaction with their courses and how they see these courses being taught in the future. Findings of this survey were compared and contrasted with prior surveys of biology educators (conducted 12 and 20 years ago, respectively), and with more recent surveys of radiation oncology residents and radiation oncology residency program directors conducted in 2018 and 2019. A total of 67 survey responses were received. Biology educators range in age, academic rank and years of teaching experience from junior (18%) to quite senior (45%). Only about 40% self-identify as radiation biologists, biophysicists or chemists, compared to 56% in 2001. The majority of the others consist of cancer biologists (15%), radiation oncologists (15%) and radiation oncology physician-scientists (16%). Educators prioritize their resident teaching as important or very important. Biology courses are widely variable in contact hours between programs and have not changed significantly over the past 20 years. About 75% of the courses are team-taught, including 15% involving multiple training programs. An average biology course consists of about 42% foundational ("classical") radiobiology, 28% clinical radiobiology and 28% cancer biology. While biology educators and radiation oncology program directors are highly satisfied with their biology courses, approximately a third of residents report being not very, or not at all, satisfied. That fewer biology educators are radiobiologists by training and their courses have remained quite variable in length and content over long periods point to the need for a consensus core curriculum for resident education in radiation and cancer biology. Both current educators and program directors also support making online teaching resources available, diversifying course instructors and consolidating biology teaching across multiple training programs.

The 3rd ESTRO-EFOMP core curriculum for medical physics experts in radiotherapy

PurposeTo update the 2011 ESTRO-EFOMP core curriculum (CC) for education and training of medical physics experts (MPE)s working in radiotherapy (RT), in line with recent EU guidelines, and to provide a framework for European countries to develop their own curriculum. Material and methodsSince September 2019, 27 European MPEs representing ESTRO, EFOMP and National Societies, with expertise covering all subfields of RT physics, have revised the CC for recent advances in RT. The ESTRO and EFOMP Education Councils, all European National Societies and international stakeholders have been involved in the revision process. ResultsA 4-year training period has been proposed, with a total of 240 ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System).Training entrance levels have been defined ensuring the necessary physics and mathematics background. The concept of competency-based education has been reinforced by introducing the CanMEDS role framework. The updated CC includes (ablative) stereotactic-, MR-guided- and adaptive RT, particle therapy, advanced automation, complex quantitative data analysis (big data/artificial intelligence), use of biological images, and personalized treatments. Due to the continuously increasing RT complexity, more emphasis has been given to quality management. Clear requirements for a research project ensure a proper preparation of MPE residents for their central role in science and innovation in RT. ConclusionThis updated, 3rd edition of the CC provides an MPE training framework for safe and effective practice of modern RT, while acknowledging the significant efforts needed in some countries to reach this level. The CC can contribute to further harmonization of MPE training in Europe.

Integrated understandings of pharmacology, pathophysiology and pharmacotherapeutics ～ For functional linkage to practical and clinical pharmacy

Pharmacology is a core field of drug information not only for pharmacists but also for other medical professionals in pharmacotherapy. Needless to say, for pharmacy students, pharmacology education is also a key pharmaceutical curriculum. In the revised model core curriculum for pharmacy education, pharmacology is categorized into the same section as pathophysiology and pharmacotherapeutics, and was constructed with common concepts in the recent revised model core curriculum for school of medicine and dentistry. In this symposium, to guide pharmacy students to pharmacy practical training beyond the pharmacology education, I am going to provide topics on the importance of pharmacology and relationship with other subjects, based on "the revised model core curriculum for pharmacy education", through the pharmacy education from basic biomedical sciences (biochemistry､physiology, anatomy and so on) to clinical pharmacy (pharmacology, pathophysiology and pharmacotherapeutics).

Anatomi Müfredatının “Mezuniyet Öncesi Tıp Eğitimi Ulusal Çekirdek Eğitim Programı-2014” İle Uyum Çalışması: Anatomi-ÇEP 1. Sürüm

Aim: The National Medical Core Curriculum Program has been developed since 2001 to help keep the level of education in medical schools above high standards. The education in basic medical sciences should be adapted to the latest version of the national undergraduate medical education core curriculum, published in 2020. This study, which was planned on the basis of the need for adaptation of the curriculum in basic medical sciences to the national core education program in the field of medical education, was carried out with the decision of the Board of the Turkish Society of Anatomy and Clinical Anatomy with the aim of adaptation the anatomy course contents applied in medical faculties to the National Core Curriculum for Undergraduate Medical Education - 2014.Methods: The planning of the study was based on the "systematic anatomy education approach", which is commonly used in anatomy education. The prepared report was named as Anatomi-ÇEP 1st version, and a work plan was made to keep the new versions up-to-date through this report. Workshops were held with the participation of the faculty members of the anatomy department in the creation of the adaptation lists. Consensus questionnaires participated by faculty members who teach anatomy were used in the acceptance of the adaptation lists.Results: Two workshops were held in the process. In these workshops, the relationships between anatomy subjects and "Core Diseases and Clinical Problems" in "Undergraduate Medical Education National Core Education Program- 2014" were determined. Since the "Core Diseases and Clinical Problems" list was in alphabetical order, the lists were re-created in a systematic order according to the anatomy course contents. The lists were presented to the opinions of faculty members working in the Anatomy Departments twice and a consensus decision was made. In "Anatomy-ÇEP 1st Edition", basic diseases in "UÇEP2014" have been adapted to the basic topics in anatomy education, but they have not been associated with symptoms and conditions and basic medical practices. Conclusions: With this article, it was aimed to share what was done in "Anatomy-ÇEP 1st Edition" with academicians, and to provide data for studies to be carried out to adapt the changes brought by "UÇEP-2020" to "Anatomy-ÇEP" with the feedback to be received.

COVID 19 Online Learning Experience as Starting Point for Media Competence Development

The article discusses the necessity to develop media competence among students and teachers alike. The necessity has been repeatedly reported in the general education curricula and core curriculum for teaching of religion in Catholic Church in Poland. The author researched teachers and catechists during the COVID-19 period and the results demonstrated that teaching the media competence has been overlooked or done on a negligible level only. To verify the results the author conducted qualitative studies, after defining what media education is, analysing actual general education curriculum and religion course curriculum, as well as the day to-day digital lifestyle of students themselves.

Using of Game-based learning via Facebook Live to Enhance Distance Learning in the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic

The use of current and emerging platforms in education is becoming an intriguing topic among educators and educational institutions. Using live-stream media like Facebook lives can provide a more intimate level of engagement with audiences. Besides, the use of games in education plays a vital role in engaging students by encouraging a hands-on approach. This study aimed to investigate implementing a game-like via Facebook live feature as a supportive science learning tool. This study examined how Thai secondary school teachers and students performed and interacted with five live-streaming activities. In each live-stream activity, the participants needed to answer ten questions in the scheduled time. The resource used for posing questions is secondary school science materials related to the Thai Basic Education Core Curriculum's learning standard. The participants were required to join the live-stream video as well as answer ten questions in real-time. All participants were provided materials uploaded on the Facebook wall two days before the live-streaming day. The result of this study showed that the number of participants who scored more than the given criteria had steadily increased, suggesting that the Facebook live feature is a useful tool for learner engagement. It indicates that the Facebook live feature increases students' motivation and attention since it can enhance visual skills, improve students' interaction and collaboration abilities with their peers.

English Teachers’ Understanding of Thailand Basic Education Core Curriculum

This qualitative study aimed at exploring English teachers’ understanding of the Basic Education Core Curriculum in Thailand and to investigate the contributing factors. The selected research with triangulation design was used to analyze the data, which was obtained from 66 English teachers. The drawings and questionnaire data showed that most teachers possessed ‘impeding understanding’, which may interfere with the development of a localized school curriculum. No clear trend was found in the present study on how teachers’ professional experiences, teachers’ qualifications, professional development activities, and involvement in curriculum development may contribute to teachers’ comprehension, as suggested in previous studies. The findings on teachers’ lack of understanding of the Core Curriculum after ten years of its implementation indicate the pressing needs to carefully design the implementation of the new national curriculum the Ministry of Education is developing. Effective communication processes and continual in-service professional development activities are recommended. Further investigation on how to effectively provide in-service professional development activities in Thai schools to promote teachers’ understanding of a new educational policy will be needed.

Koulun monet kielet: lähtökohtia, kehityskulkuja ja tulevaisuuden näkymiä

This article introduces the AFinLA-e thematic issue on plurilingualism in the school. Lately, multilingualism has been a buzzword in both sociolinguistic research and applied linguistics. Through the reform of national core curriculum for basic education, multilingualism, alongside language awareness, has also become an inextricable part of public educational discussions and the normative framework of basic education. There remain, however, questions about how all these changes translate into linguistically responsive classroom pedagogy and practices that support achieving learning goals, the process of language socialization, and pupils’ plurilingual identities. Our aim is to give a brief general introduction into the flourishing field of multilingualism research, its developments, approaches and trajectories, and describe the contributions that the articles in this issue make into the growing body of work in the Finnish context. We also identify three future trajectories for research on plurilingualism in the school.

Nie od razu Paryż zbudowano… Trójwymiarowe puzzle i klocki architektoniczne jako uniwersalne narzędzie wspierające proces wychowania estetycznego

This article proposes the use of knowledge of space studies in the school educational practice. It allows for implementation of obligatory content and skills indicated in the core curriculum for general education. Shaping the spatial imagination and aesthetic sensitivity is accompanied by the development of both social and manual skills, while the construction of miniature buildings by students is a convenient starting point for a discussion on social and cultural changes.

Development of a psychosocial oncology core curriculum for multidisciplinary education and training: Initial content validation using the modified Delphi Method.

Despite its four decade history, the multidisciplinary specialty of psychosocial oncology (PSO) has no official consensus on core content. In 2014, the American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS) Board charged the APOS Professional Education Committee with outlining curricular content needed for core competence. Content validation was completed using a four-phase modified Delphi Method. During Phase I, a Professional Education Committee subgroup proposed domains and items, which were rated by the APOS Fellows and Board via online survey. During Phase II, Fellows completed a second, revised survey. Phase III incorporated early career members. Developmental and diversity items were integrated into each domain. In Phase IV, a larger group of subject matter experts were surveyed, with feedback incorporated. Validation across phases involved average rating thresholds, intraclass correlations, and final percent agreement. The Delphi Method supported 12 content domains: Cancer Basics, Psychosocial Oncology, Professional Development, Ethics, Emotional/Psychological Concerns, Sexuality and Relationship Concerns, Spiritual/Religious Concerns, Healthcare Communication and Decision Making, Social/Practical Problems, Caregiver Concerns, Cognitive Concerns, Physical Symptoms and Psychosocial Assessment/Treatment. High levels of agreement were achieved across domains (86%-100%) and items, with no significant rating differences by discipline. This proposed core content can enhance and standardize education and training in PSO including APOS' Virtual Psychosocial Oncology Core Curriculum, focused on broadly expanding the PSO workforce, particularly in underserved areas. Next steps include development of core competencies and establishment of online training modules based on this content validation.

Analysing thai curriculum indicators on the basis of pisa competencies in science and mathematics

A great challenge of Thai students becoming quality global citizens considerably depends on an ability of education to provide sufficient knowledge, skills, and attributes, especially, in science and mathematics, to acquire competencies necessary for their lives in 21st century. Unfortunately, Thai students’ competencies in science and mathematics assessed by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) still fall behind other students in several countries. This study analysed Thai Basic Education Core Curriculum indicators based on their relevancy to PISA key competencies in science and mathematics, and the key competencies that the core curriculum focuses on were found. Unfortunately, neither those focused competencies in science nor mathematics resulted in any predominant PISA results. This obviously illustrates that only a well-constructed curriculum cannot ensure quality of student learning, but the core curriculum is also required to be well-understood by teachers, who are responsible for delivering a quality learning to their students. It is anticipated that this study could provide a better understanding for Thai teachers that there is still plenty of rooms for improvement in student learning so that Thai students are well-prepared to confront challenges of the future awaits.

DO PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS LIKE MATHEMATICS?

Importance of mathematics as a school subject is evident in a fact that it is a constituent part of core curriculum for basic education in all education systems in the world. First few years of education are of crucial importance to the formation of attitudes towards mathematics. Attitudes are important because they navigate our actions and by doing so, influence our reality and our future as well. Research on attitudes towards mathematics has considerably increased over the past few years, since the importance of mathematics is getting continuously more accentuated. In the context of schools and education, it is emphasized how positive attitude towards mathematics influences students’ relationship with school-work, studying, confidence and behaviour. The aim of the study was to determine primary school students’ attitudes towards mathematics. One hundred and seventy-one students from 3rd to 8th grade from III Primary School Varaždin, Croatia participated in the research. The data were analyzed with t-test and one-way ANOVA for independent samples. The research has shown that there is no statistically significant gender difference in attitudes towards mathematics; however, age difference was confirmed. It was also found that younger students in primary education had a more positive attitude towards mathematics than older students. Practical implications of acquired results could be in providing additional support to 5th and 6th grade students when the change from positive to negative attitude happens.

Learning everyday technologies through playful experimenting and cooperative making in pre-primary education

The Finnish National Core Curriculum for pre-primary education (FNBE, 2014) emphasizes the promotion of children’s interests in science and technology, as well as in creative designing and making. The integrative STEAM approach is seen as promising for fostering students’ creative competencies starting from early education stages. In pre-primary education, the STEAM framework has received little research interest; the empirical evidence of its implementation is especially limited. The objective of this present study is to explore pre-primary students’ designing and making processes involving both traditional and digital craft elements, and how their learning of everyday technologies can be supported. The data consists of video recorded sessions, where pre-primary students (n=19, aged 5–6 years) were creating felted “Power Creatures” with soft circuits. The results indicate that with adult and peer student cooperation, pre-primary students are able to create original creatures and use digital elements as a part of their craft product. Playing is endorsed as a learning method to support pre-primary education in both tangible and abstract elements of technology

The Dissemination of Thai Drama’s MADANABADHA of King Vajiravudh

This paper has an objective to study the drama of His Majesty King Vajiravudh in the subject of MADANABADHA which publicly appeared in the Basic Education Core Curriculum and performance in schools. The scope of the study emphasized on teaching management, drama staging on the MADANABADHA and royal writings that appeared in the Basic Education Core Curriculum. The results show that the drama of MADANABADHA is a teaching and learning tool for teachers to disseminate information, knowledge, news, ideas, practices through demonstration, viewing of performances and practices for students to learn democracy, see rights and equality in finding woman's partners to be assertive, good leadership and a good follower. It is to develop one's own skill for both body and mind, intelligence, knowledge and morality with ethics and culture of living and to be able to live happily with others consistent with strategy of the National Education Management Plan and the development of learner’s quality to have competency and desirable characteristics. In addition, the royal writing “MADANABADHA” is regarded by the club literature as a well-written book proposed as the selective literature according to the announcement of Ministry of Education which contains contemporary contents. By using rose as a symbol that most people understand in the meaning of love, it represents the right and equality of women that is an important part of the development of Thailand towards becoming a concrete democracy. It plays an important role in the royal drama “MADANABADHA” in King Vajiravudh to be appeared in the basic education system and became popular in educational institutions from the past to present.

Lists of potential diagnoses that final-year medical students need to consider: a modified Delphi study

BackgroundContrastive learning is known to be effective in teaching medical students how to generate diagnostic hypotheses in clinical reasoning. However, there is no international consensus on lists of diagnostic considerations across different medical disciplines regarding the common signs and symptoms that should be learned as part of the undergraduate medical curriculum. In Japan, the national model core curriculum for undergraduate medical education was revised in 2016, and lists of potential diagnoses for 37 common signs, symptoms, and pathophysiology were introduced into the curriculum. This study aimed to validate the list of items based on expert consensus.MethodsThe authors used a modified Delphi method to develop consensus among a panel of 23 expert physician-teachers in clinical reasoning from across Japan. The panel evaluated the items on a 5-point Likert scale, based on whether a disease should be hypothesized by final-year medical students considering given signs, symptoms, or pathophysiology. They also added other diseases that should be hypothesized. A positive consensus was defined as both a 75% rate of panel agreement and a mean of 4 or higher with a standard deviation of less than 1 on the 5-point scale. The study was conducted between September 2017 and March 2018.ResultsThis modified Delphi study identified 275 basic and 67 essential other than basic items corresponding to the potential diagnoses for 37 common signs, symptoms, and pathophysiology that Japanese medical students should master before graduation.ConclusionsThe lists developed in the study can be useful for teaching and learning how to generate initial hypotheses by encouraging students’ contrastive learning. Although they were focused on the Japanese educational context, the lists and process of validation are generalizable to other countries for building national consensus on the content of medical education curricula.

A behavioural & social sciences core curriculum for Egyptian undergraduate medical education at the Armed Forces College of Medicine.

Introduction: Medical practice is a highly emotionally and behaviorally demanding occupation. Thus, the design of teaching and learning programs in medical colleges need to be modified to adapt such need. Behavioral and social sciences must be implemented to develop competent medical health care workers. Educational programs in Egyptian medical schools are undergoing a gradual shift toward integration, student-centeredness, and early clinical exposure. The Psychiatry Department & Medical Education Department at the Armed Forces College of Medicine in Egypt in collaboration with the Medical Education Department at Michigan state university; developed behavioral & Social science curriculum by adopting ADDIE’s basic five-step model, which includes Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation processes. The identified curriculum has been split into three divisions: social topics related to behavioral medicine, basic psychology, and clinical medicine related to behavioral science. Twenty-six topics were included in these three divisions and were distributed in the seven selected core competencies. The working team expects to include more sociocultural and anthropology topics in the curriculum in the future. Additionally, it is hoped that more time will be allocated for this module, so it would be more possible to include other teaching & assessment methods for developing global understanding of disorders, and practical skills for behavior modification, as well as, encourage students to consider actual treatment strategies in clinical case scenarios. It is also hoped that students could get the chance for early exposure to hospital-based cases. This will motivate the students by allowing them to come into contact with various real-life settings. Context: Medical practice is a highly emotionally and behaviorally demanding occupation. Thus, the design of teaching and learning programs in medical colleges need to be modified to adapt such need. Behavioral and social sciences must be implemented to develop competent medical health care workers. Educational programs in Egyptian medical schools are undergoing a gradual shift toward integration, student-centeredness, and early clinical exposure

Towards an updated ESTRO-EFOMP core curriculum for education and training of medical physics experts in radiotherapy - A survey of current education and training practice in Europe.

ESTRO-EFOMP intend to update the core curriculum (CC) for education and training of medical physicists in radiotherapy in line with the European Commission (EC) guidelines on Medical Physics Experts (MPE), the CanMEDS methodology and recent developments in radiotherapy. As input, a survey of the current structure of radiotherapy MPE national training schemes (NTS) in Europe was carried out. A 35-question survey was sent to all European medical physics national societies (NS) with a focus on existence of an NTS, its format and duration, required entry-level education, and financial support for trainees. Twenty-six of 36 NS responded. Twenty had an NTS. Minimum required pre-training education varied from BSc in physics or related sciences (5/2) to MSc in medical physics, physics or related sciences (6/5/2) with 50-210 ECTS in fundamental physics and mathematics. The training period varied from 1 to 5years (median 3years with 50% dedicated to radiotherapy). The ratio of time spent on university lectures versus hospital training was most commonly 25%/75%. In 14 of 20 countries with an NTS, a research project was mandatory. Residents were paid in 17 of 20 countries. The recognition was mostly obtained by examination. Medical physics is recognised as a healthcare profession in 19 of 26 countries. The NTS entrance level, duration and curriculum showed significant variations. This survey serves to inform the design of the updated CC to define a realistic minimum training level for safe and effective practice aiming at further harmonization in line with EC guidelines.

A touchstone of Finnish curriculum thought and core curriculum for basic education: Reviewing the current situation and imagining the future

Pandemics, like other global challenges, are unquestionably curricular issues. They are curriculum issues not only because of the disrupting consequences of Covid-19 and the economic and social crisis alike but also because people have, through their own activities, contributed to global catastrophes and perpetuated injustices. This article attempts to answer the question: How does Finnish curricular thought, including the role of the teacher and the core curriculum for basic education, respond to the various global crises? While reviewing the current situation, the article also imagines a post–Covid-19 curriculum. Reactivating what is still powerful in Bildung/Didaktik and emphasizing the importance of education’s ethical dimension and the teacher’s role as a curriculum theorist offer the means for dealing with the theme. In addition, understanding the structure of the National Core Curriculum document, the political dimension of the Finnish curriculum’s design process, and the educative possibilities in subjects and multidisciplinary modules, the teacher is capable of creating opportunities for educational experiences that are (ethically) significant for students, proactively and in terms of crises.