Informal Educational Settings Research Articles

Prolegomeni allo studio dei parlanti ereditari di sardo

When a minority language holds a subordinate position and is neglected or abandoned in family communication, some speakers acquire it imperfectly, resulting in limited proficiency; these individuals are known as heritage speakers. However, some heritage speakers later develop an attachment to their ancestral language and choose to study it in formal or informal educational settings, becoming heritage learners. This study focuses on heritage learners of Sardinian, a Romance language spoken in Sardinia. Today, most Sardinian residents under fifty primarily speak Italian, but there is a growing interest in Sardinian language courses aimed at reconnecting community members with their linguistic heritage. This research examines the grammatical and lexical competence of a sample of these heritage learners, particularly focusing on areas identified in the literature as vulnerable to erosion and interference from Italian. Specifically, it will demonstrate that in instances of grammatical or lexical divergence between Sardinian and Italian, heritage learners tend to accept both idiomatic Sardinian forms and Italian-influenced forms, indicating significant interference in their proficiency of the minority language. This study aims to help language teachers develop targeted interventions to enhance the competence of heritage learners, differentiating from curricula designed for second language learners of Sardinian when necessary.

Affordances of Technology for Sustainability-Oriented K–12 Informal Engineering Education

The need for sustainability-oriented K–12 engineering education that expands beyond the classroom and the increased accessibility of educational technologies create an opportunity for examining the affordances of educational technologies in low-stakes informal engineering education settings. In this paper, we share our experiences of using novel technologies to develop sustainability-oriented mental models in K–12 informal engineering education. Through the use of technologies including Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), Minecraft video games, Tinkercad (browser-based application for computer-aided design (CAD)), and physical computing, we have designed and tested approaches to introduce students to engineering design and engineering habits of mind with an overarching theme of developing sustainability-oriented mental models among K–12 youth in informal engineering education spaces. In this paper, we share our approaches, and lessons learned, and outline directions for future research.

Current State, Challenges, and Opportunities of the School-Based Sexual and Reproductive Health Education in Indonesia: A Systematic Literature Review

Sexual and reproductive health education for adolescents remains crucial for Indonesia as it is home for more than 44 million teenagers as of 2022, in its way to anticipate demographic bonus in 2030. Government Regulation no. 61 of 2014 concerning Reproductive Health mandates sexual and reproductive health education in formal and informal education settings. By using a systematic literature review (SLR) method, this study assesses the current state of school-based sexual and reproductive health education in Indonesia. Findings reveal that the delivery of sexual and reproductive health education in Indonesian schools is fragmented, spread across various subjects such as Biology, Sports, Religious, Civic and Moral education classes, as well as extracurricular activities. Key stakeholders, including families, teachers, peers, and school principals, play crucial roles in shaping adolescents' understanding of reproductive health. However, challenges such as cultural taboos, easy access to potentially misleading online information, and inadequate teacher training hinder effective education. In addition, Comprehensive Sexual Education (CSE) has been suggested by WHO to be implemented and integrated in the core curriculum, with programs like SETARA pilot project showing promise in improving adolescent knowledge and attitudes towards reproductive health. However, the success of such programs requires cooperation from various stakeholders and a shift in societal norms regarding adolescent sexuality.

Space for all: a multinational study on the status of astronomy education

ABSTRACT Existing research in astronomy education is largely centred on undergraduates. We conducted this qualitative study to explore examples of astronomy education internationally, providing context to the quantitative study by Salimpour et al. (2021). Our methods included an online survey (N = 68) and 10 interviews with select participants to discover the methods of learning and teaching astronomy in K12. We used thematic analysis to contrast international astronomy education efforts in formal and informal education settings. Interview participants provided examples of programmes that disrupt representation gaps in astronomy fields and promote STEM connections amongst historically underserved populations. The present study will inform future studies and collaborations between educators, astronomers, and informal spaces, and provide examples of astronomy integrations in coursework and community. This, along with the ongoing work of Salimpour and Fitzgerald, can provide multinational curricular and pedagogical examples of leveraging astronomy as a ‘gateway science’ and inform interdisciplinary/transdisciplinary approaches to teaching science.

Suggestopedia: A Method for Teaching and Learning in Informal Educational Settings

This paper aims to investigate the implementation of Suggestopedia by a teacher in an English institution, following Lozanov's four main stages of activities: presentation, concert, elaboration, and practice. The data were obtained through observation focusing on teacher activities during the implementation and observed effectiveness of the Suggestiopedia method in the language learning session. The positive outcomes of using Suggestopedia in language learning sessions suggest promising prospects for future applications in educational settings. It is essential to recognize the transformative impact it can have on language learning when implemented thoughtfully and inclusively. By addressing the diverse needs and preferences of language learners, and integrating a balanced approach that combines diverse learning modalities, meaningful language applications, and comprehensive language practice and assessment, educators can maximize the effectiveness of this approach.

Supporting Inclusion in Informal Education Settings for Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Scoping Review

Supporting Inclusion in Informal Education Settings for Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Scoping Review

Perceptions of Inclusion in an Informal Education Setting

Perceptions of Inclusion in an Informal Education Setting

Understanding Inclusivity in Online Learning from a Socio-material Lens

The global pandemic in 2020 has led to a recent rise of digital technologies in higher education internationally, which seems to make learning less restricted in terms of time and space (Oztok, 2019) and enhance inclusion and engagement in learning. However, it is necessary to distinguish the presence and interaction in online learning from true connectedness and inclusivity. Networked learning, as a concept being constantly explored by a small group of researchers since the 1990s and attracting increasing current attention, is built around the different kinds of connections between students and instructors, as well as human and non-humans (NLEC, 2021). This paper emphasizes the need to be aware of the dimension of connection constructed through the assemblage of humans, materials and discourses. Adopting a socio-material perspective, the assumed high accessibility of online learning and the neo-liberal discourse of a ‘good learner’ are challenged and care is proposed as an approach to improve inclusivity in online learning in higher education. This paper is drawn from the data of a comparative research study that explores the online learning experience of undergraduate students in one case study university in China and the UK respectively. The research consisted of qualitative interviews with students and academics in the case discipline Sociology. The findings suggest a mismatch between students’ and teachers’ perception of what makes effective engagement. Although the teachers recognise certain difficulties in online courses, such as technical issues for organizing small group discussions, arguably the implied neo-liberal message is that hard-working ‘good’ students will always participate, regardless of where or how they learn. However, interviews with students in both contexts show that the specific surroundings in formal and informal educational settings, the interaction and support from peers, and the way their status is recognised in the community concomitantly mediate their experience, in addition to their abilities or motivation. This research contributes by highlighting the potential of emergent forms of networked learning in terms of unveiling the issues of established discourses including neoliberalism. It provides suggestions for future practices by proposing the role of care, supported by the findings, in tackling disengagement and exclusion, and pivoting students around supportive learning. Further, it adopts a socio-material perspective that fills a gap created by the dominance of human-centred research, generating reflections on the use of online materials in higher education.

Learning online and teaching face to face: Exploring the planned and enacted conception of teaching of preservice teachers on school placement

This research delved into the experiences of a group of preservice teachers (PSTs) who were taught online and participated in teaching in person as part of their school placement. The study analysed the planning and reflection documents of 101 PSTs, as well as evaluations from their instructors, using a thematic and document analysis. The findings showed that PSTs exhibited strong planning abilities, and a solid understanding of teaching skills. However, these PSTs struggled in managing the classroom and individualising instruction. It is proposed that future teachers' learning occurred through an ongoing process of construction and refinement across formal and informal educational settings, although the transfer of learning remains inconclusive.

Hip Hop, Social Reproduction, and the Possible Selves of Young Black Men

Twenty-seven years ago, the documentary Hoop Dreams solidified a theory—that the world of athletics was one of the few places where adolescent Black males could find success. By the late 1990s, researchers were framing athletics as the next direction in the Civil Rights Movement. In this article, I argue that the historical framing of Black boys in athletics—as a way up, a way out—is similar to the contemporary framing of Black boys in Hip Hop Based Education (HHBE). Using an ethnographic case example of the Homeboys, a group of adolescent Black males experiencing homelessness, I maintain that HHBE, without critical implementation and reflection, limits the possible selves of Black boys in socially reproductive ways. Unlike Hoop Dreams, which historically created an incentive to stay invested in formal educational settings, HHBE offers little “possible selves” development for young Black men. This research asserts that if HHBE, and the myriad ways Hip Hop is taken up in formal and informal educational settings is not dually paired with the critical process of institutional actors envisioning all the possible selves that black boys can become, then it becomes another hegemonic socially reproductive tool wielded by educators.

Enhancing disaster prevention learning through human-centered design: Students’ learning cognition and enjoyment in informal educational settings

This study employs the human-centered design strategy to design disaster prevention education activities, aiming to explore the changes in students' learning cognition and enjoyment before and after participating in these activities. The National Science and Technology Museum, located in southern Taiwan. Its primary objectives encompass the collection of scientific and technological artifacts, the presentation of scientific and technological themes, the advancement of scientific and technological education, and the provision of opportunities for public leisure and lifelong learning. The research focused on 170 elementary school students from grades G3 to G6 who participated in the disaster prevention education of soil and water conservation activity at the National Science and Technology Museum. Pre- and post-tests were conducted to assess disaster prevention learning cognition, and surveys and interviews were used to gauge the joy experienced during disaster prevention learning. The research findings indicate that after participating in disaster prevention education activities, students showed significant improvement in disaster prevention learning cognition. The primary sources of learning enjoyment were closely observing cultural relics and actively engaging with teaching aids. The human-centered design plan can complement the school's disaster prevention education curriculum and address issues such as low student interest, a sense of distance, and a lack of deep impression regarding disaster prevention.

Celebrando Herencia: A Latino Educator’s Reflection on a Science Museum’s “Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month Celebration Day”

ABSTRACT Promoting science education to all continues to be a key focus for many individuals and organizations. Informal science education settings such as museums have been shown to have a positive influence on student attitudes and interests toward science. Unfortunately, many underrepresented groups do not frequent museums as frequently as other majority groups. Hispanic and Latino-identifying individuals are an example of a group of interest, as their national population growth is not reflected in museum visitor statistics. This paper explores how the Museum of Science in Boston, Massachusetts attempts to engage the Latino community through a Hispanic Heritage Month event. This is explored through the lens of the author, after attending the event. These reflections will capture a “lived experience” that can potentially be used as consideration when planning future events that target the Latino community.

Geographies of supplementary education: Private tuition, classed and racialised parenting cultures, and the neoliberal educational playing field

AbstractThis paper makes two contributions to knowledge. First, it broadens geographies of education's focal reach by concentrating attention on the consumption of supplementary education. Supplementary education markets are booming as parents seek to ensure their children have the qualifications required to succeed in knowledge economies. The paper elucidates how consumption of such commercially provided tuition—which is delivered outside of school boundaries but designed to improve performance in school—is shaped by place‐specific, classed and racialised parenting cultures. This shines an important light on shadow education market mechanics that have hitherto been hidden from geographical view, and foregrounds the significant role parenting cultures play in shaping children's educational experiences. Future research in geographies of education must attend to these parenting cultures, as interactions between the home and diverse formal, informal, alternative and supplementary education settings play an increasingly crucial role in confronting and reproducing educational inequality. Second, the paper advances the conceptual contribution of geographies of education to interdisciplinary debates about parents and education. It demonstrates that multi‐scalar geographical research makes a unique contribution to interdisciplinary theorisations of home–school links, including those utilising Bourdieu's notion of cultural reproduction, and Lareau's model of concerted cultivation. Specifically, multi‐scalar analysis demonstrates that: (i) place‐sensitive research is vital as it contextualises parenting cultures, reattaching analyses of parental habitus and capital to the field, highlighting how intersecting global, national and local processes shape parents' educational practices; (ii) previously overlooked racial differences in concerted cultivation must be analysed without being naturalised, by exploring how racialised dispositions towards education are shaped in/across place, and reproduced through global/local racialised social capital; and (iii) inter‐class differences that have dominated parenting debates remain important, but attention to inter‐class similarity and intra‐class variation, as it emerges through intersections with race and in place, is equally vital.

Harnessing Prairie Survey and Restoration Through Applied Learning: Insights From Research Done in Missouri Western State University’s John Rushin Teaching and Research Prairie

Prairie ecosystems, once expansive across North America, have faced significant degradation and fragmentation due to expanding agricultural development (World Wildlife Fund, 2023). Efforts to survey and restore prairies offer a unique opportunity for applied learning in environmental education. This paper explores the potential of prairie survey and restoration projects to enhance students' applied learning experiences and develop practical skills in ecological research, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable land management. Drawing upon interdisciplinary perspectives from ecology, education, and community engagement, and utilizing flora survey of the John Rushin Teaching and Research Prairie at Missouri Western State University as a model for applied learning, this paper examines the educational benefits of prairie survey and restoration and provides recommendations for integrating these activities into formal and informal educational settings. By engaging students in hands-on activities, we aim to enhance understanding, foster environmental stewardship, and contribute to effective prairie restoration.

Digital music and critical music literacy

ABSTRACT The Society of Music Analysis report indicated that digital music often sits uncomfortably within a curriculum where the main focus is on the non-digital. This article takes as its starting point a broad definition of digital music as both a type of music and a way that music is represented. It will examine how digital music has altered the music landscape within informal and formal educational settings, and it will explore conflicting notions of music literacy while suggesting that traditional arguments about the value of notation fluency in the digital age may be misdirected. Ultimately, it will propose a definition of ‘critical music literacy’ in which Western standard music notation is not the crucial consideration, with implications for the design of music curricula and for progression.

보건계열 대학생의 학과 간 연계교육(IPE) 프로그램 적용 효과 연구

Objective : The purpose of this study is to validate the effectiveness of an Interprofessional Education (IPE) program developed and implemented within an informal educational setting among health science students. This will be achieved by setting up an experimental group and a control group among the students, comparing and analyzing them to assess the program's impact. The aim is to utilize these findings as evidence supporting the necessity and significance of integrating such programs into formal curricula. Methods : The homogeneity of the two groups in terms of the general characteristics of the subjects was assessed using the χ2-test and presented in terms of frequencies and percentages. To compare the differences in effectiveness between the experimental and control groups, means, standard deviations, and t-tests were employed. The validation of research hypotheses was conducted using t-tests. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS 25.0 software. Results : This study is a non-equivalent post-test research paper that validates the effects of an Interprofessional Education (IPE) program by comparing an experimental group, consisting of
 students from three departments in the health science field who participated in the IPE, with a control group who did not. The results of the program's effectiveness verification supported Teamwork Roles and Responsibilities, Experts Biases. However, Patient-centeredness, Diversity and Ethics, Community-centeredness, and Experts Communication were rejected. Conclusion : Students from three departments in the health science field developed an Interprofessional Education (IPE) intervention program, aiming to provide an understanding of theoretical and practical education courses in other departments and offer experiential opportunities in each department. Critical thinking processes among professionals and communication are necessary for problem-solving among participants. Future research requires the development of suitable measurement tools for interprofessional aspects among health science students and intervention research for program development.

A research instrument to monitor people's competence to sustain insect biodiversity: the Self-Perceived Action Competence for Insect Conservation scale (SPACIC)

ABSTRACT The loss of insect biodiversity is a major global sustainability issue that is highly relevant to science education. Science education can support and develop learners’ competence to take actions to sustain insect biodiversity and empower learners to deal actively with this sustainability issue. However, we currently lack an instrument to assess these aspects of individual competence. This paper aims to fill this gap by introducing the Self-Perceived Action Competence for Insect Conservation scale (SPACIC). This scale allows for investigating learners’ action competence by focusing on self-perceived knowledge, confidence, and willingness to take insect conservation actions. The scale is grounded in theory and face-validated by external experts. The piloting with 180 secondary school students showed a good quality of the instrument in terms of reliability and validity, as the reliability analyses and confirmatory factor analysis show. The SPACIC scale is applicable to various formal and informal educational settings. Applying the scale can yield information about the effects of educational approaches and inform learners, educators, and researchers about changes in self-perceived competence. In this way, the SPACIC scale can contribute to the evaluation and design of educational approaches and eventually boost learners’ development into becoming active environmental citizens.

Exploring the integrative nature of STEAM through material objects

ABSTRACT STEAM has gained traction across informal and formal educational settings, but the connections between STEAM disciplines are not always obvious to youth. We argue that an explicit focus on how art and STEM overlap in the world, and how these overlaps connect personally to learner’s interests and concerns, is a way to support the development of STEAM-related identities. We developed a “STEAM objects” pedagogical activity aimed at explicitly surfacing the ways that art and STEM are intertwined in everyday objects, as well as the ways that STEAM is connected to learners’ own lives. We piloted the activity with educators, asking what they took up from the experience. Our results show how the educators made connections to land, historicity, their professions, function, aesthetics, and agency of materials during the activity. The STEAM objects served as boundary objects that illustrated the integrative nature of art and STEM in the world, as well as bridging important aspects of their lives and STEAM. We discuss the importance of recognizing and leveraging the multiplicities of meaning and ways of knowing, as well as implications for the classroom.

The Concept of Forming Shaleh Children According to Islamic Education

Children, viewed as a divine trust from Allah SWT, are entrusted to parents from the moment they grace the world. This bequeathed responsibility mandates parents to meticulously nurture and educate their progeny, directing them towards the cultivation of utility and noble character. Born in a state of fitrah, children's trajectories, whether towards virtue or peril, hinge significantly upon the guidance provided by parents. This responsibility extends beyond mere guidance; parents are entrusted with the monumental task of instilling piety in their children—a duty often underestimated by a substantial number of parents, despite explicit guidance in the Al-Qur'an and Hadith regarding the pivotal role of righteous offspring. This research, titled Concept of Forming Pious (Shaleh) Children According to Education, delves into this critical matter with precision. The research objectives encompass a nuanced understanding of the principles underpinning the cultivation of piety in children through education, exploration of methodologies employed in educating pious children, and identification of strategic efforts to foster piety from an educational standpoint. Employing a descriptive research methodology, the study undertakes a comprehensive examination of current issues through a thorough library research approach. The findings of this research underscore the imperative of cultivating pious children with the aim of nurturing individuals of noble character, thereby contributing to peace and tranquility in both temporal and spiritual realms. The practice of educating children in piety is characterized by its enduring nature, persisting beyond the corporeal realm, as the prayers of pious children become a poignant means of salvation for parents from the fires of hell upon their demise. The conceptualization of forming a pious child according to education involves the developmental nurturing of their soul, even within the confines of the womb, with the overarching goal of achieving virtuous outcomes. Efforts to foster pious children, from an educational perspective, entail the deliberate incorporation of moral education in both formal and informal educational settings. The methodologies employed in shaping pious children through education encompass exemplariness, adherence to cultural norms, the provision of advice, focused attention, and judicious application of appropriate disciplinary measures. In consideration of these insights, this research anticipates active parental engagement in cultivating their children's moral compass, fostering the nuanced development of pious offspring. Encouraging community participation in shaping the moral character of children towards piety is deemed essential. Furthermore, the sustained and active involvement of educators in schools, dedicated to imparting moral values, is paramount for the realization of a society characterized by pious children.

PEDAGOGICAL ISSUES OF TRANSLANGUAGING PRACTICE IN INDONESIA: THE VOICE OF FOUR EFL TEACHERS

In Indonesia, many pedagogical stakeholders may not be familiar with translanguaging practices in EFL education. Indonesian EFL teachers may unconsciously have practised translanguaging in their classrooms, but they may not be aware that they have practised the activity. To explore the perspectives and beliefs about translanguaging, this study involves four Indonesian EFL teachers from four different geographical areas in Indonesia. Two of them teach EFL in formal education, while the other two in informal education settings. The data was collected by conducting an in-depth interview with each of them. Based on their perspectives, this study reveals four main pedagogical issues in translanguaging practice. They are (1) confusion of the concept, (2) institutional policy, (3) cognitive and social gains, and (4) complication. These four issues indicate that while theoretically translanguaging is said to potentially encourage learning, it still creates some controversies about whether or not it can lead success to in EFL learning. This study suggests that the implementation of translanguaging practice in the Indonesian context should depend on typical situations in every EFL classroom. Teachers should consider, among others, learners’ diverse backgrounds and also their existing linguistic repertoire, including their L1 knowledge. In making EFL learning meaningful, learners’ needs should be a priority.