Means Of Student Learning Research Articles

O terrário como temática no ensino de ciências na educação do campo

As aulas práticas contribuem para uma aprendizagem significativa dentro do Ensino de Ciências. Estas aulas além de se tornarem atividades diferenciadas do ensino tradicional, contribuem para inovar o processo de ensino-aprendizagem na Educação Básica. Este trabalho foi desenvolvido na Escola Estadual Senador Filinto Muller, distrito de Irenópolis, município de Juscimeira/ MT, sendo considerada uma escola do campo com aproximadamente 120 discentes. Desta maneira, o referido trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar se a construção de terrários pode ser indicada como prática de ensino que propicia a aprendizagem significativa dos discentes no Ensino de Ciências. O terrário foi estruturado e montado com a participação dos discentes e professores. Com os resultados, verificou-se que a confecção de terrários pode ser um instrumento para tornar o ensino de Ciências mais criativo, dinâmico, possibilitando aos discentes a capacidade de observação, análise e de construção dos seus próprios conhecimentos científicos sobre as vidas existentes em um ecossistema. Outro resultado identificado foi a motivação e a participação efetiva dos discentes nas aulas práticas. No contexto de uma escola do campo, a relação entre o ensino de Ciências e a realidade a qual a escola está inserida possibilitou a vivência e a aprendizagem significativa.

MATEMÁTICA SEM NÚMEROS: UMA INTRODUÇÃO AO ESTUDO DA LÓGICA

http://dx.doi.org/10.5902/2179460X14634This paper presents a proposal for teaching Logic for the first year of high school. Considering the diversity of students, this study was developed through a sequence of activities to address the weaknesses of interpretation, reasoning and logical reasoning from a false idea that mathematics works only with numbers and accounts. The proposal is to make the activities more meaningful and comprehensive learning for students in which the teacher's role is that of a facilitator and the student constructor of knowledge. Students are invited to take action, seek and express their opinion by giving meaning to their learning, and teachers are suggested to reflect on their experience in the classroom, encouraging and stimulating the search for diversified activities. We conclude by presenting what skills and competencies that will be developed and how they can assist in the development of new mathematical content.

The associations of teacher professional characteristics, school environmental factors, and state testing policy on social studies educators’ instructional authority

Knowledge of pedagogy and social studies content influences a teacher׳s decision making and helps teachers conduct sound instructional practices despite the influence of high-stakes testing policies. Using national data from the Survey of the Status of Social Studies (S4), this study examined the associations of teachers׳ professional characteristics, school environmental factors, and state testing policy on self-reported levels of authority that secondary level social studies teachers (grades 6–12) hold over key classroom tasks. Through hierarchical multiple regression analysis, key findings from this study indicated that greater minority enrollments are associated with lower levels of instructional authority. Teachers who worked in states where a state-mandated social studies test was administered reported less freedom to choose what to teach and how to teach than those in non-testing states. Also, this study showed that in-field status, the type of licensure, and years of teaching experience are important factors in exercising social studies teachers׳ instructional authority (e.g., their ability to balance effectively the demands of state-mandated reforms with teaching for meaningful student learning). This study recommends that schools with high minority enrollments, especially if these districts exist in a high stakes testing environment, should invest in teachers with high-quality social studies preparation.

Teaching Social Justice Research to Undergraduate Students in Puerto Rico: Using Personal Experiences to Inform Research

This article explores the process of teaching undergraduate students to conduct social justice research. We were interested in understanding how to develop a social justice perspective among students while training them in conventional research methods. The following questions guided our research activities. How can the principles of social justice inform undergraduate research projects? What pedagogical strategies prepare students to conduct social justice-based research? What are the challenges and opportunities in teaching social justice research? We documented the lessons and activities during the field school and collected students’ comments in journals, extensive observations, focus groups, and interviews to understand the influence of social justice on the students’ approach to research. We identify three lessons in teaching social justice. First, teaching social justice requires that students develop meaningful relationships with the community understudy. Second, gender dynamics can prohibit or promote meaningful student engagement and learning. Third, it is important to consider how to integrate, rather than “add on,” social justice activities and discussions into research lessons.

O recurso à modelação no ensino das ciências: um estudo com modelos geológicos

Tendo como base as temáticas de geologia do currículo da disciplina de Biologia e Geologia do 11º ano (amplitude de idades dos 15-17 anos), desenvolveu-se um estudo de investigação recorrendo-se à Aprendizagem Baseada na Resolução de Problemas (ABRP), utilizando-se a modelação como estratégia didática. Pretendendo-se investigar se a modelação potenciava aprendizagens significativas nos alunos, implementou-se um programa de intervenção recorrendo-se a modelos geológicos durante cinco semanas (24 horas letivas). A investigação realizada, apoiada nos moldes de uma Investigação e Desenvolvimento (I&D), recorreu à triangulação metodológica suportada em várias técnicas e diversos instrumentos de recolha de dados. A modelação permitiu envolver os alunos numa crescente formulação de explicações e de hipóteses e numa maior procura de explicações para responder às questões-problema. Os dados recolhidos permitiram, ainda, concluir quanto ao acréscimo da recolha de evidências num aperfeiçoamento da autonomia e numa melhoria dos resultados escolares.

Active Learning: Qualitative Inquiries Into Vocabulary Instruction in Chinese L2 Classrooms

AbstractActive learning emerged as a new approach to learning in the 1980s. The core concept of active learning involves engaging students not only in actively exploring knowledge but also in reflecting on their own learning process in order to become more effective learners. Because the nonalphabetic nature of the Chinese writing system makes learning to read and write Chinese characters extremely time‐consuming for native English speakers, this qualitative study was intended to identify instructional strategies, methods, and activities for promoting active learning among beginning learners of Chinese as a second language and to investigate students' perceptions of the identified strategies, methods, and activities with regard to their effectiveness in engaging students in meaningful learning.

Assessment and Accountability to Support Meaningful Learning

This paper presents an overview of New Hampshire’s efforts to implement a pilot accountability system designed to support deeper learning for students and powerful organization change for schools and districts. The accountability pilot, referred to as Performance Assessment of Competency Education or PACE, is grounded in a competency- based educational approach designed to ensure that students have meaningful opportunities to achieve critical knowledge and skills. These opportunities are judged by the outcomes students achieve and not by inputs such as seat time. Therefore, students must achieve these competencies before moving on to the next major learning targets and/or graduating from high school. High quality performance assessments play a crucial role in the PACE system because of the need to have assessments that measure the depths of student understanding of these complex learning targets. Performance assessments are used as both summative and interim measures in the PACE system as a way to document student learning of the competencies and to support remediation or extension interventions. The paper describes the system of assessments being implemented as part of the PACE pilot as well as providing a discussion of the technical quality issues the state is working to address as part of this accountability pilot. For example, being able to produce valid and comparable annual determinations for all students each year is a considerable technical challenge as well as documenting the degree to which all students are held to the same threshold expectations (equity). The paper concludes by relating the PACE initiative to the push for deeper and more meaningful learning for students.

Concept Mapping in Education and Semantic Knowledge Representation: An Illustrative Survey

Abstract Concept Maps are graphic representations of topics, ideas, and their relationships. They allow users to group information in related modules so that the connections between the modules become more readily apparent. Among the potential uses of concept mapping for the improvement of learning and teaching in classrooms, the powerful technique of concept mapping could improve education in four different categories: (1) as a planned learning strategy, (2) as an instructional strategy, (3) as a strategy for planning curriculum, and (4) as a means of assessing students understanding of science concepts. Concept Maps are essential to increase meaningful learning in students and for representing the knowledge, experience of individuals and teams in education, science, medical and management course. In this paper we have made exhaustive survey to bind up various research works carried on concept maps in the above mentioned disciplines and have simplified the things for beginners to carry out research on concept mapping.

Lexical access, knowledge transfer and meaningful learning of scientific terminology via an etymological approach

This study aims to illustrate whether or not students of a second-year introductory Zoology course who were taught their course terminology using an etymological approach would show improved learning on a number of metrics of student performance. Undergraduate students of any academic discipline are challenged by the learning of its specialized language, especially in the terminology rich fields of scientific study. A common approach among students towards learning the terminology is via rote memorization, often with little success. Studies in language learning have shown that learning scaffolds that involve a morphological breakdown of new words into their morpheme units allows for improved lexical access, as well as greater knowledge retention and transfer abilities to other words in the same morpheme families. The scientific lexicon is mostly made up of root morphemes and is auto-descriptive, therefore, by using an etymological approach while learning new scientific terminology, there are two advantages over rote techniques: firstly to have a learning scaffold that may allow students to integrate unfamiliar terminology into their personal lexical repertoires and secondly, to have the ability to infer meaning of the terms’ properties with respect to their scientific contexts. These contributions may constitute a more meaningful student learning experience than factual intake and regurgitation and also they are allowing for metacognitive processing and conceptual linkage to the structure and/or function properties of terminology in their specialized scientific disciplines. This study adds to the growing body of teacher-led instructional learning resources for specialized vocabulary components of effective specialized scientific language learning at the University undergraduate level

Perspectives of an international education initiative in children's palliative care.

Education is viewed as central to improving future palliative care for children and families across all countries. International education initiatives will ensure practitioners are aware of global health issues and can provide culturally sensitive care. Creative and innovative means of meeting such directives are required to achieve meaningful student learning. This paper focuses on one innovation, a children's palliative care workshop using case studies as a teaching method, with nursing students from the USA and nursing and midwifery students from the UK. Key learning points arising from student evaluation were recorded under three main themes, these were: differences across countries, similarities across countries, and making learning fun and memorable. Findings indicated that this joint learning activity was viewed positively by all students and has enabled them to learn with and from each other, potentially impacting on their future practice.

Instruments measuring meaningful learning in undergraduate healthcare students: a systematic review protocol.

To establish the psychometric properties of instruments to measure learning outcomes in healthcare students. Meaningful learning is an active process that promotes a wider and deeper understanding of concepts. It is the result of an interaction between new and previous knowledge. Meaningful learning produces a long-term change in knowledge and skills, which is underpinned by willingness to learn and experience and it is exclusively built by the learner. Systematic psychometric review protocol developed from Cochrane Effective Practice and Organization of Care guidance. Searches of MEDLINE, CINAHL, SCOPUS, ERIC, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, Psychology & Behavioral Sciences Collection Database between 1990-2013. Selected studies will be evaluated with the Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health status Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) checklist. Funding for the review was confirmed on January 2011 by the Centre of Excellence for Nursing Scholarship in Rome. The systematic review will produce a synthesis of the data related to the instruments that measure learning outcomes. These data will help us decide which tools to use and identify the state of knowledge in this field. Measuring learning outcomes is very important for the large amount of human and financial resources employed in educating and training health professionals and this requires reliable and valid instruments.

Temporally Contiguous Pencast Instruction Promotes Meaningful Learning for Dental and Dental Hygiene Students in Physiology

Smartpens allow for the creation of computerized "pencasts" that combine voice narration with handwritten notes and illustrations. The purpose of this study was to test the effects of voluntary participation in extracurricular instruction with a pencast on student learning. Dental and dental hygiene students were given instruction in a complex physiological topic using lecture and static slides. An Internet link to a pencast that covered the complex topic in a more temporally contiguous fashion was also provided for voluntary review. The students were given a multiple-choice exam that consisted of retention and transfer test questions. Sixty-nine percent of the students who did not watch the pencast and 89 percent of the students who watched the pencast answered the retention test question correctly (p=0.08). Fifty-four percent of the students who did not watch the pencast and 90 percent of the students who watched the pencast answered the transfer test question correctly (p=0.005). This finding indicates that students who watched the pencast performed better on a transfer test, a measurement of meaningful learning, than students who received only the narrated instruction with static images. This supports the hypothesis that temporally contiguous instruction promotes more meaningful learning than lecture accompanied only by static slide images.

Functions in context. A rich experience in modeling and interactive simulation

This paper presents results of the application of a pedagogical strategy, under the research project "Validation of an interactive resource for undergraduate learning functions". The strategy was implemented during the second half of 2012 freshmen in Business Administration from the Universidad Colegio Mayor de Cundinamarca. The study investigates, in a first phase, the contribution of a pedagogical strategy that part of a real-world situation, and is supported by means of computer modeling and simulation in which GeoGebra software was used to build interactive working models. The purpose of the strategy is to strengthen students in meaningful learning of the concepts related to linear functions, affine, quadratic and applications and, in turn, make visible the relationship between mathematics and reality, as well as enhance the math skills development and student interest in the study of this science.

Didáctica pertinente en educación superior: un ejercicio desde la teoría de la complejidad en la profesión de trabajo social

The requirements of our globalized world and the advancement of the teaching science show didactics as a fundamental category defined as the scientific discipline with principles, laws, theoretical and methodological frameworks, creatively modeling the pedagogical intervention in the academic environment. The implementation of the research Teaching focused on the development of superior thinking and meaningful learning in students of first semester of Social Work Program, set the goal: Qualify the personal life and student projects from the acknowledgement of potentials of the subjects, for the development of competences meaningful to life. This is a research experience that has been developed since 2009 at Simon Bolivar University in the District of Barranquilla. The didactics was based on the development of superior thinking cognitive-process-centered, for the processing of information, creativity, readings of the reality of contexts, expounded/voiced subjectivities of life projects of students, the incorporation of TIC, in order to approach a humanizing and contextualized pedagogical practice. The critical theory was used in this research as a part of its epistemological basis for understanding and building a new academic scenario. The methodology used is the action with techniques such as mind mapping, dialogues, and stories of life, field works, and contents analysis, among others. The data analysis was guided by the hermeneutics as a possibility for the understanding and interpretation of the events that occurred in the classroom.

The Use of Contextual Problems to Support Mathematical Learning

This paper examines the use of contextual problems to support mathematical learning based on current classroom practice. The use contextual problems offers some potentials to engage and motivate students in learning mathematics but it also presents some challenges for students in classrooms. Examples of the use of contextual problems from several primary classrooms in Indonesia will be discussed. Contextual problems do not lend themselves to a meaningful learning for students. Teachers need to engage students in interpreting the context in order to explore key mathematical ideas. It is critical to establish explicit links between the context and  the mathematics ideas to support students' progression in their mathematical thinking. Keyword: Contestual Problems, Context, Mathematical Learning  DOI : http://dx.doi.org/10.22342/jme.4.2.413.151-159

Finding the Balance Between Process and Product through Perceptual Lesson Planning

Background/ContextLesson planning is one of the most common activities required of teachers; however, since the late 1970s and early 1980s, it has not been a major focus of study, either conceptually or empirically. Although there are recent articles on the topic, much of the current work is specific to examining a particular teaching method or subject area. This essay not only examines the lesson planning process, a neglected area of study, but also puts forward a perceptual or arts-based approach to lesson planning that has not been attended to since Elliot Eisner's essays on objectives.Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of StudyThe purposes of this conceptual paper are is to provide theoretical grounding for perceptual lesson planning; to analytically examine the two current, dominant approaches to creating lesson plans; and to put forward ideas that undergird a fresh approach to creating and analyzing lesson planning.Research DesignThis study consists of a major literature review and a related conceptual argument. We also present qualitative data (a lesson plan with attendant interview material) and preliminary findings from an ongoing study.Analytic FrameworkWe use an original analytic framework to discuss the two dominant approaches to lesson planning, the behaviorist and constructivist modes, and to compare them to the perceptual mode. Our analytical categories consist of the following: intentions, process, product, and outcomes. By intentions we mean the aims, goals, or objectives of the lesson plan. The process refers to how the lesson plan is created and what that experience is like for the teacher. Product refers to the actual lessons that result from the planning. Outcomes refer to both the anticipated results of the lesson as well as the general kinds of student outcomes desired in the mode of lesson planning.Conclusions/RecommendationsPerceptual lesson planning may be characterized as engaging teachers’ and students senses and creativity; as an artistic endeavor that is joyful in and of itself; as consisting of various stylized products; and leading toward meaningful learning for students and teachers in an environment open to elements of surprise and innovation. Lesson planning may be functional and meaningful to teachers and subsequently their students. Lesson planning could be something teachers enjoy, learn from, and appreciate. Thus, we note that focusing on the process of lesson planning is an important part of education that warrants much more attention.

A cross-cultural comparative study of teacher effectiveness: Analyses of award-winning teachers in the United States and China

The purpose of this study was to develop a richer understanding of teacher effectiveness through cross-cultural analyses of the practices and beliefs of selected China and US teachers who have received national awards for their teaching. This study was based upon a phenomenological design that used semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and artifacts for data generation/collection. Sixteen China teachers and 16 US teachers participated in this study. This study revealed similarities and differences between US teachers and China teachers in their patterns of instructional practices and professional thinking. The major similarities found between them were (a) using a variety of instructional activities which spanned across different cognitive levels, (b) being opportunistic planners to maximize meaningful student learning, (c) having high student engagement, (d) presenting effective classroom management skills, and (e) maintaining a learning environment that was conducive to optimal learning. Primary differences between US and China teachers’ classrooms included the types of instructional activities used and their beliefs and practices in the areas of (a) instructional planning, (b) differentiation, (c) assessment, (d) classroom management, (e) relationships with students and parents, and (f) professional development.

A Case Study in Direct and Indirect Assessments of Student Learning Outcomes: Is There One Best Method?

As best of breed universities continue to search for more meaningful and effective direct student learning assessment outcome measurements in the United States, this paper examines the background, goals, objectives, and methods principally being utilized in the search for and operation of the ‘best fit’ direct assessment method of student learning outcomes. Numerous leading approaches are addressed in this paper and are accompanied by the results of these diverse approaches as experienced by one large business school. No one method was found to ‘perfectly’ meet all goals and objectives (‘the perfect solution’), but two approaches did deliver more insight relative to the measurement of student learning outcomes than the others. These latter approaches are examined in some detail and each is accompanied by the rubric that supports meaningful assessment of core learning objectives, abilities, and outcomes.

Media Review: Facing the Music: Shaping Music from a Global Perspective

Schippers, Huib. Facing the Music: Shaping Music from a Global Perspective. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. xx + 220 pp. Index, softcover. ISBN 978-0-1953-7976-1, $24.95. Facing the Music: Shaping Music from a Global Perspective provides historical details and contemporary views of cultural diversity in music education from the perspective of Huib Schippers--an experienced musician, educator, performer, researcher, critic, and policy maker. A wide variety of musical and educational experiences are brought to life through descriptive narratives and case studies woven into the exploration, critique, and analysis of the dynamic nature of teaching and learning music. The author skillfully guides readers in an exploration of the varied connotations of terminology such as tradition, authenticity, and context; methods for approaching cultural diversity in education; and meanings of the relationships between teacher, learner, and learning environment. The culminating result of Schippers's work is his Twelve-Continuum Transmission Framework (TCTF), a model that can be used to describe, predict, and/or prescribe music transmission processes in music classrooms, community settings, higher education institutions, and the fields of ethnomusicology, musicology, and music research. Schippers organizes the book into seven chapters. In chapter 1, he cleverly frames the discussion topics in the remainder of the text through descriptive narratives of twelve consequential experiences that influenced the author's thinking regarding teaching, learning, and creating music. These engaging narratives range from realizations stemming from twenty years of sitar study in India and California to insights gained through shorter observation periods of teaching diverse musical practices. In chapter 2, Schippers provides a conceptual history of world music, describing various meanings in terms of unfamiliar/exotic music of primitive people, and music related to geographical position or time period. He goes on to discuss the perceived use or status of ethnic music as defined through nonmusical qualities of the makers/owners, musical interactions between cultures, and the philosophical concept of music as universal language. He introduces the first continua of his TCTF, a framework intended to clarify approaches to cultural diversity, from monocultural (where a dominant culture serves as the singular frame of reference) to transcultural (where open and deep exchanges occur between cultural groups treated equally). The chapter concludes with descriptions of current thought and research on music within the music education and ethnomusicology fields. In chapter 3, Schippers addresses issues surrounding the myth of authentic traditions in He notes that because most musics are transmitted in contexts far from their original conception, music educators have a responsibility to carefully consider issues of tradition and authenticity as they find ways to create meaningful student learning experiences. He guides the reader to consider five principal approaches to recontextualization and presents three more continua to his model to examine approaches to tradition, authenticity, and context. Individuals highly interested in music transmission may find chapters 4 and 5 valuable. Shippers discusses the technical, social, cognitive, and institutional dimensions of teaching and learning music. …

When the biology, pedagogy and teaching standards come together

Every day, scientific knowledge is growing exponentially and either researcher, nor students have the ability to keep up with literature. On the other hand, new generations of students have different views of information access from that of their older professors and no longer need to depend on professors to obtain information. However, sometimes they are unable to relate this new information to existing knowledge or to transfer it to solve novel problems. It is a challenge for medical educators to search for new pedagogical models that promote in their students the development of strong cognitive processes that allow them to select, integrate, and transfer the new learning and, therefore, to reach meaningful learning. Meaningful learning occurs when the learner interprets, relates, and incorporates new information with existing knowledge and applies the new information to solve novel problems. Meaningful learning, then, involves building multiple representations (mental models) of knowledge. In medicine, meaningful learning implies that knowledge acquired by the students makes sense in their future medical practice and allows them to solve different problems In biology, meaningful learning means that the students are able to apply what they know about biology to novel situations, they are able to predict and explain the responses of a biological system if it is disturbed and sometimes to solve quantitative problems (calculate something). This is easier in the clinical setting than during basic science instruction. During the latter, students receive a great amount of information, some of which does not have direct medical application. Thus, many students in the first semester use rote memorization to acquire a large amount of information that they will forget after the exams. In this study, we addressed the following research question: does the concept mapping methodology, articulated with the mediated learning experience, increase meaningful learning in students attending to the cardiovascular module of a biology course?