Perceptions Of Secondary School Teachers Research Articles

Students’ Perception of Secondary School Teachers’ Assessment with Specific Reference to the Subject of English

Using research investigating the effect of teacher assessment practices in secondary schooling in Croatia on student perceptions of fairness, this paper1 points out participating students’ perception of fairness of assessment, focusing on teacher assessment in three secondary school subjects, but particularly in the subject of English. The research overall included enquiry into the fairness of teacher assessment practices in three secondary school subjects. The implemented research was both of a quantitative and qualitative nature. The research design was intended to be both empirical, measuring students’ perception, and quasi-ethnographic, seeking to interpret these perceptions through understanding the context. Student questionnaires, involving a total of 330 students, teacher interviews, involving a total of 12 teachers, and analysis of teachers’ assessment documents were used to collect data that were then analysed within case studies. Each case study, totalling six in number, represented a teacher with two classes of students studying one of the chosen three subjects. Classes of secondary school students from two high schools studying the subjects of Biology, Croatian or English as a foreign language formed the sample groups. These students were asked to complete a questionnaire based on Likert response type items founded on the Student Perception of Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ) and open-ended questions based on a questionnaire developed at the Centre for Schooling and Learning Technologies (CSaLT). The SPAQ items were measured by five scales. The teachers of these students were interviewed and also provided documents that illustrate how they assessed students in these three subjects. The investigation uncovered variations in responses to teachers and subjects and differences in student response between classes of the same teacher which are possibly indicative, among other elements, of the role of teacher personality factors. This investigation revealed that from the three secondary school subjects researched, students’ perception of the secondary school subject of English achieved the most positive rating among the sample of students involved in the research.

Secondary school teachers’ perceptions of adolescent social anxiety and learning and development in the classroom

Social anxiety has been linked with adverse consequences for adolescents in education, including low self‐efficacy, poor academic attainment and difficulties with social functioning. However, studies have not considered the phenomenon from an educator’s point of view. We set out to explore the perceptions of secondary school teachers concerning socially anxious adolescents and the implications of social anxiety for their learning and development. Seven secondary school teachers in the north west of England took part in semi‐structured interviews focused on their lived experiences of supporting socially anxious adolescents. The findings suggest that educators perceive social anxiety to have the potential to be persistent and debilitating, impeding learning and development. The findings also demonstrate that teachers are aware of social anxiety and supportive strategies, but face difficulties in disentangling different anxious behaviours and providing differentiation. Conclusions indicate that recurring professional development and teacher training surrounding anxieties and comorbid behaviour may alleviate negative consequences for learning and development.

Perception of Secondary School Teachers on Sources of Stress and Coping Strategies: A Case of Ludewa District, Tanzania

The study aimed at identifying perceived sources of stress and coping strategies among secondary school teachers in Ludewa District. The study was guided by Transactional or Cognitive Theory of Psychological Stress and Coping. It employed the quantitative approach through descriptive statistics in terms of frequencies and percentages. Through simple random sampling, eight out of 22 schools were selected to participate in the study. From the eight schools, 100 teachers were selected through simple random sampling but the response rate was 74. Therefore, 74 teachers participated to fill the questionnaire. The first category of perceived stressors is for those which were very highly rated: delay in promotion, poor working condition, low salary for work, worried from student performance, overwork and lack of time to spend with family. The second category is for those which were highly rated: poor administrations, lack of social services, loans from different organizations, benefit from work and students’ misbehavior. Lowly rated source of stress was attending duties on weekends while very lowly rated sources were little acknowledgment from superior and trouble with colleagues. The study gives a number of recommendations; these include that the government should employ more teachers to reduce teachers’ overwork which is cited as one of stressors. Heads of schools should involve all teachers in decision making and treat them equally. School under investigation should employ mentoring and counseling techniques which will motivate teachers to share their economic and social problems in order to curb unnecessary stresses. Finally, teachers should employ such stress management strategies as joining in social clubs, attending physical exercises like sports and games and seeking support from either co- workers or supervisors in order to curb stressful challenges.

Exploring the Perceptions of Secondary School Teachers about Critical Pedagogy at Secondary School Level

Critical teaching combines learning with reflective thinking. It allows students to understand the relationship between ideas, encourages questioning and challenges all forms of injustice and social disorientation. One principle of critical pedagogy is problem-solving education, which is an alternative to the banking model education in which the teacher is active, and the student is inactive in the learning process. Teachers in critical pedagogy are concerned about society and allow students to think critically and act within society. The present study examines critical teaching (CP) methods at the secondary school level. The aim of this study was to explore the perception of secondary school teachers about critical pedagogy, to examine the practices of critical pedagogy adopted by secondary school teachers. In the present study, mixed methods were adopted, which included both quantitative and qualitative methods. The design of this study was descriptive and survey type. The population for this study consisted of teachers from all public sector secondary schools (male) working in Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and teaching English, Urdu, Pakistan studies, and Islamic studies subjects. There are a total of 380 secondary level schools for both boys in Hazara Division (KP), where 6408 teachers are working. Four out of eight districts (50%) were selected as a sample of study. Further, researcher used cluster sampling technique. Questionnaire was used as research tool. Then, according to the suggestions and recommendations of experts and based on evidence of piloting, necessary changes were made in the instrument. The reliability of this study was determined by Cronbach Alpha. The researcher visited personally to sample institutions to collect data. Quantitative data obtained from teacher’s questionnaires were compiled and tabulated. Percentages and mean scores were calculated to obtain results from quantitative data, and it was analysed and interpreted with the help of descriptive statistics, chi square (c2).

Secondary School Teachers' Effective School Perception: The Role of School Culture and Teacher Empowerment

This study investigates the extent to which school culture and teacher empowerment dimensions predict the effective school perceptions of secondary school teachers. The sample of the study includes 363 teachers [120 male (33.1%), 243 (66.9 %) female] from 24 secondary schools in four central districts (Mezitli, Yenişehir, Toroslar, Akdeniz) in Mersin. The data of the study was collected via the Personal Information Form, School Culture Inventory, the School Effectiveness Index, and the School Participant Empowerment Scale. The data was analysed through stepwise regression analysis statistical method. The alpha value of 0.01 was established as a level of significance. The results revealed that professional development which is a dimension of school culture is the most important predictive variable, and it was followed by collegial support, collegial leadership, unity of purpose, self-efficacy, decision making and teacher collaboration. Together, these seven significant predictors explained 59.1% of the variance in the teacher perception of school effectiveness. Moreover, learning partnership dimension of school culture and status, impact, autonomy and professional growth dimensions of school participant empowerment were not statistically significant in explaining the school effectiveness. According to the results of this study, school culture has stronger relations with school effectiveness than the teacher empowerment has. This may mean that a school should have a culture that values professional development of its teachers, collegiality, collaborative leadership and teamwork in order to be effective.

Perceptions of secondary school teachers towards school expulsion of pregnant adolescents at Igunga District, Tanzania-a qualitative study.

Background:In Tanzania, adolescent pregnancy results in a denial of the girl's fundamental right to education. School expulsion of pregnant adolescents is a common practice exercised by teachers in this country for decades. This study aimed to explore the perceptions and feelings of secondary school teachers towards this practice.Methods:The study used a qualitative approach comprising focus groups and individual semistructured interviews with a purposive sample of sixteen teachers and nine headmasters (n = 25) from nine secondary schools of the rural Igunga district, in Tabora region, Tanzania. Data was collected in March to June 2017 and submitted to thematic analysis.Results:Though most participants were not satisfied with the practice, their role on the expulsion of pregnant students was perceived as mandatory by law and regulations. Main argument in favor was its deterrent effect, yet the review of schools’ registries did not sustain that perception. Stigma and fear of contamination added a relevant contribution to its implementation. Conflicting feelings among teachers were also disclosed.Conclusion:This study was of most value to understand current perceptions and feelings of those who exercise the practice of banning pregnant adolescents from school in Tanzania, while having identified some of the cultural and social believes acting as influential factors in its pervasiveness. International and national human rights organizations should increase their efforts and campaigns in order to strength social awareness of the benefit of females’ education to society as a whole and of adopting policies and practices in support of their equal right to education.

Challenges of school going adolescents: Perception of Secondary School Teachers in Lunglei

Challenges of school going adolescents: Perception of Secondary School Teachers in Lunglei

ICT Professional Development Workshops and Classroom Implementation Challenges: Perceptions of Secondary School Teachers in Trinidad and Tobago

The Ministry of Education (MoE) of The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago has recently embarked on another teacher training program to equip secondary school teachers with the necessary competencies for ICT infusion in their physical classrooms. This study aims to investigate the impact and usefulness of that program, and challenges that the teachers have been facing in its implementation. Thirteen interviews (eight one-on-one and five focused group) were conducted from forty trained teachers. The findings showed that almost all the teachers were quite content and even ecstatic about the workshops and were willing to use the acquired knowledge and skills. Those who were able to use the knowledge and skills attained in the workshops reported improved students’ interest, classroom interaction, and academic performance. However, many expressed disappointments due to the multiple obstacles at their schools which prevented them from fully and effectively using the knowledge and skills from the workshops. They specifically reported insufficient number of computers, poor and inapt ICT environment and most importantly, unreliable internet access and connectivity. This study identifies three important elements in the successful implementation of any ICT in education program: willingness (mainly of administrators, teachers and students), training (especially for the teachers) and infrastructure (physical, hardware and software). Although, there was an overwhelming willingness from the teachers (even excitement) and adequate training, issues with infrastructure appear to be preventing the policy from yielding desired results. In order to ensure that the current policy brings the desired results, the MoE must not only provide effective professional development training for teachers, but also furnish schools with the necessary ICT resources and infrastructure. Only then, the MoE may revolutionize the education system through ICT.
 Keywords: ICT in education, professional development, teacher training, 21st century skills, Trinidad

Perception of secondary school teachers regarding the effectiveness of interactive smart-board technology

Like other countries, also in Pakistan, the interactive smart board technology is the innovation of 21st century and is being used in several schools as an advanced teaching tool. The focus of study was examined the attitudes of teacher and students towards the ways using Smart-boards in teaching and learning environment. All the teachers of public schools in Punjab who using the Smart-board were the population of the study. Data were collected from 100 trained teachers of District Toba Tek Singh through questionnaire and analyzed in the form frequency, percentage, mean, mode, standard deviation t-test and Chi-square test through Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23. The results revealed from the study perceived that Interactive Smart-boards was found most effective tool in the teaching and learning process. The utilization of Interactive Smart-board perceived more helpful to present the contents in easier way, increase motivation level of students, reduce the workload, utilization of time more efficiently and make the classroom more planned and organized. The study recommend that to make effective smart-board technology need proper training program in all public schools.

Peace Education: Perceptions of Secondary School Teachers of Province Punjab, Pakistan

Peace Education: Perceptions of Secondary School Teachers of Province Punjab, Pakistan

Perception of teachers on readers’ theatre and reading comprehension: Prospects for curriculum planning

Reading has always been a challenging task especially for struggling learners of English as a second language (ESL). Readers' theatre has been used as a class instruction approach to enable learners to become innovative and active participants in the reading class. During class instruction, teachers use multiple strategies such as modeling reading accuracy, main idea instruction, group reading, adapting scripts, and discussion. Using a qualitative approach, this study aimed at investigating the perception of secondary school teachers on the impact of readers' theatre for improvement of reading comprehension of learners of ESL. Data was collected using interviews from eight teachers of English in secondary schools in Kisumu County, Kenya, and lessons were also observed. Purposive sampling was used to select the teachers. The findings were reported verbatim in accordance with the themes of the study. The findings revealed that readers' theatre class activities enabled learners to be involved actively in-class reading tasks which resulted in enhanced reading comprehension. Furthermore, learners built confidence in reading due to group reading. The findings of this study will assist teachers to plan appropriate class activities that scaffold reading comprehension and build confidence among learners. The study suggests further studies on implementing readers' theatre on writing skills.

Caring Behavior of Teachers: Investigating the Perceptions of Secondary School Teachers and Students in Lahore

This study is designed to investigate perceptions of teachers and students about caring behavior of teachers. The purpose of the study is to gain better understanding about factors that play a role in the development of teachers’ caring behavior and teacher-student caring relationship. A scale employed by King and Chan (2011) has been adopted for this purpose. The revised scale consists of four main factors (Sense of Respect and Trust, Interpersonal Relationships, Academic Support, and Classroom Management), and twenty two items. Data were collected from 403 grade 9 students and 156 secondary school teachers who belonged to seven public secondary schools in Lahore. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analysis. The study revealed that both the teachers and students gave great importance to the teachers’ caring behavior. They agreed to the top two factors i.e. Sense of Respect and Trust, and Classroom Management. The opinions differed about the priority of the other two i.e. Interpersonal Relationships and Academic Support. When it came to individual items, the differences were more prominent as four out of top five items were different. There were no statistically significant differences based on teachers’ gender and education level, but their experience made a difference with less experienced teachers showing more inclination towards caring behavior. The study recommends the teachers to develop a culture of respect and care in the classroom by showing respect to the students, developing a culture of greetings, calling them with their proper names, appreciating good behavior, and involving them in decision making.
 Keywords: caring behavior, teacher behavior, classroom environment, teacher-student relationships

Teachers’ Perceptions Regarding Factors Affecting Concept Based Learning at Government Schools in Nowshera, Pakistan

Education plays a pivotal role in the development of a country. Here the author did focus on the best teaching methodologies and skills that is concept based teaching so that the student learn conceptually. There should be critical thinking and problem solving skills developed in the students. The main objective of the research study is to explore the perceptions of secondary school teachers regarding factors affecting concept based learning at government secondary schools in district Nowshera. The population of the study is all secondary school teachers at government high schools in district Nowshera. The sample size was 105 secondary school teachers. The primary data was collected through questionnaire. The questionnaire was personally distributed among the teachers and got excellent response from them. The major findings showed the effectiveness of concept based learning and major factors that affecting concept based learning. In light of the said findings, certain major recommendations were made in order to achieve the maximum benefits of the study as secondary school teachers may be encouraged and motivated towards concept based learning techniques. Government school teachers may be given more skills and techniques of teaching and learning through effective in-service training and refresher courses. This study however, successfully plays a very important role in highlighting of the effectiveness of concept based learning and the factors that affecting concept based learning at government secondary schools for boys in district Nowshera. There may be core skills incorporated in the curriculum so that the students may be equipped with the twenty first century skills i.e critical thinking and problem solving, communication and collaboration, creativity and imagination, citizenship, digital literacy and students’ leadership.

기초조형교육의 창의적 재량활동 수업교재 적용 연구 - 중등교원의 인식을 중심으로 -

본 연구는 학생들의 창의력을 보다 효과적으로 증 진하고자 창의적재량활동 수업교재에 기초조형교육 을 적용하는 방안을 마련하고자 하였다. 이에 현직 중등교원을 대상으로 온라인 설문조사(n=117)를 실시하였다. 연구결과 첫째, 중등교원은 기초조형교 육이 창의적재량활동 수업교재에 적용될 경우, 학생 들의 창의성 발달에 가장 효과가 높을 것으로 인식 하고 있었다. 둘째, 중등교원은 수업교재개발에 있어 학생들의 흥미정도를 고려하는 것이 가장 중요하다 고 인식하고 있었다. 셋째, 중등교원의 기초조형교육 창의적재량활동 수업교재 만족도에는 창의성발달, 사회성 발달, 미적감수성 증진이 유의한 영향을 미 치는 것으로 나타나, 학생들의 창의성과 사회성 미 적감수성을 충분히 고려한 수업교재의 개발을 시사 했다. 넷째, 중등교원은 기초조형교육 창의적재량활 동 수업교재에 있어 학생들의 흥미정도의 고려와 다양한 미술적 요소반영 고려가 이들의 수업교재에 대 한 만족도 형성에 유의한 요인임이 밝혀져 향후 기 초조형교육 적용 창의적재량활동 수업교재 개발 시 학생들의 흥미정도와 다양한 미술적 요소들을 반영 하는 것이 필요하다는 사실을 도출하였다. 창의성이 중요해지고 있는 오늘날 본 연구는 더욱 효과적인 창의적재량활동 운영에 있어 기초조형교육의 수업교 재 적용 및 활용방안에 관해, 일선교사를 중심으로 실증적 연구결과를 제시하였다는 의의를 지닌다.

Perception of Secondary School Teachers Regarding Emergency Education in Pakistan

Perception of Secondary School Teachers Regarding Emergency Education in Pakistan

Immigrant Pupils and Intercultural Teaching Competencies

Over recent years, the existence of foreign pupils in Spain has generated new multicultural spaces in classrooms and an education system, which must provide equality and fairness to all pupils. In Andalusia, the number of foreign pupils registered for the academic year 2015–2016 was 89.893. In this sense, the aim is to know the perceptions of secondary school teachers in Andalusia regarding what additional competencies teachers of immigrant pupils should have. Thus, we use a descriptive research model, where the approach for the collection and analysis of data is mixed, that is, qualitative (in-depth interviews) and quantitative (questionnaires) techniques are used. To validate the content, the “Expert Judgement” technique was used, using a process of selection, named “K coefficient.” The results show that these teachers have a high level of awareness and strong attitudinal skills. However, they are clearly limited in terms of knowledge, which leads to a greater lack of abilities and skills.

EDUCACIÓN A DISTANCIA EN ESCUELAS PÚBLICAS SECUNDARIAS: PERCEPCIÓN DE LOS DOCENTES

Com o objetivo de apreender as compreensões dos professores do ensino médio acerca da Reforma do Ensino Médio com ênfase nos desafios e possibilidades da Educação a Distância (EaD), foi desenvolvida pesquisa qualitativa, do tipo estudo de caso, com quatro professores, de duas escolas públicas do município de Maranguape-CE, região metropolitana de Fortaleza, mediante entrevista semiestruturada, submetida à análise de conteúdo. Constatou-se que os docentes possuíam visão restrita sobre a referida reforma e que, na percepção dos professores, as escolas e os alunos da rede pública não estavam preparados para uma EaD, seja pela precarização da infraestrutura tecnológica (computador e internet) das escolas, ou pelo perfil do aluno presencial que, diferentemente do desejado para o estudo à distância, mostra-se desorganizado e desmotivado para um estudo autônomo. Conclui-se que, para os participantes do estudo, o Ensino Médio em formato de EaD será prejudicial tanto para aluno quanto para professor, pois os primeiros não contam com as condições necessárias para gerir a própria aprendizagem, e os segundos terão asua função docente desprestigiada.

Professional Development through Massive Open Online Courses: Awareness and Perception of Secondary School Teachers in Kerala

Professional Development through Massive Open Online Courses: Awareness and Perception of Secondary School Teachers in Kerala

Teachers’ Perception of Factors Affecting Integration of Information and Communication Technology for Instructional Purposes in Secondary Schools in Kenya

This research determined the perception of secondary school teachers on the effect of teacher-related factors on the integration of information and communication technology (ICT) for instructional purposes. The study was conducted in 40 secondary schools of the North Rift Valley region of Kenya that had computers. Likert-type scale for each technology acceptance variable (Computer self-efficacy, teacher efficacy, attitude towards computer, Social influence, and Constructivist beliefs) was developed/ adopted for the study. These scales were established to have adequate reliability through a pilot study. Usable data from 400 respondents was collected and used to test the hypotheses. T-test, ANOVA and Fisher’s LSD post hoc analyses were conducted on the data collected using SPSS version 20.0. The results show that voluntariness and computer experience were the two main variables that determined teachers’ perception of factors affecting the integration of Information and Communication Technology for instructional purposes. On the other hand, subject specialization, gender and teaching experience had marginal or no significant influence on teachers’ perception of factors affecting the integration of Information and Communication Technology for instructional purposes. Therefore, it should be understood that a number of factors interact to produce a significant effect on ICT integration in pedagogy.

Knowledge and Perception of Secondary School Teachers on Global Warming in Ibadan Oyo State, Nigeria

This study examines the Knowledge level of teachers in Ibadan on global warming, the factors influence it and how they perceived it. Questionnaire was used as the main instrument for data collection. It was designed to elicit information on the basis of research questions set for this study. A total number of 450 teachers were used as the sample size. Descriptive statistics such as simple percentages and frequency counts were used in the analysis of the research data collected. The study revealed that teachers have knowledge on global warming and aware of its threat to human existence. It was observed that the source of their knowledge on global warming by teachers include the media and attendance at conferences and workshops. As a result of the above findings, it was recommended that efforts should be made to make relevant and up-to-date information on global warming available to the teachers. Emphasis should be made to make the teachers participate in programmes that address adaptation policies on global warming.