Primary School Level Research Articles

Madesa or books! Using a Coverage Comprehension Model to Assess University Students’ Ability to Comprehend Reference Books

Studies on reading in a foreign language report that meaningful reading comprehension is determined by an individual's vocabulary size. A conclusion from these studies is that a vocabulary threshold of 8000–9000 words is compulsory for the reader to comprehend 98% of running words in academic texts and consequently achieve optimal comprehension of the materials. A threshold of 4,000–5,000 words can only assist readers to understand 95% of running words, which guarantees minimal comprehension. This study examines the relationship between the vocabulary size of undergraduate university students and the vocabulary coverage of reference books sampled from among those listed in their course outlines. This corpus-based and descriptive study used the Vocabulary Level Test (VLT) to assess the vocabulary size of 774 participants and a vocab profiler to analyze the vocabulary coverage of the nine sampled reference books. The results showed that, on average, the participants’ vocabulary size would enable them to comprehend 95% of the running words in most of the books in the sample, but that size would not help them to understand 98% of the running words in any of the sampled books. These results suggest that, on average, no student in the sample could have optimal comprehension of the sampled reference books. Therefore, our study calls for the need to introduce serious reading programmes at the primary and secondary school levels so as to promote students' vocabulary size and reading comprehension ability.

The Influence of Digital and Technology Equipment in Learning Activities on Students' Written Skills

This research aims to observe how students develop their written narrative skills. This research uses survey instruments and questionnaires as data collection methods. Statistical methods are used in data analysis. One hundred students were involved in this research, except those who only wrote less than seven texts from the research sample. The study results show that students experience significant development in their linguistic expression in written communication situations. Their ability to produce texts becomes richer at the linguistic level, with increased lexical diversity in nominal and verbal areas. They also showed a better ability to use sentence-connecting devices. However, there are differences between students who use their mother tongue and those who use their second language in terms of lexis and syntax. Students who use their mother tongue tend to use less and less varied lexis than their second language. In addition, students also showed higher linguistic uncertainty, especially in terms of case inflection and syntax. Nevertheless, there are no significant differences between the two language groups regarding the global structure of the texts. The results of this study provide important insights for language education at the primary school level, showing that students who use their mother tongue have sufficient ability to carry out narrative tasks in a manner comparable to students who use a second language of the same age. However, it should be noted that the development of language skills in students who use their mother tongue may take longer and require special attention in language learning.

UNDERLYING SCHOOL DROPOUTS ISSUES IN SARAWAK

Students who leave school without completing formal education still remain an issue in Malaysia. This study is based on the research tracing the journey of school dropouts in Sarawak, Malaysia and the focus of this paper is identify the issues behind it. A cross-sectional survey was used to complete the data collection process among 120 school dropouts selected through purposive sampling. The obtained data were analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), described in frequency and cross-tabulated. The study discloses that most of the school dropouts come from the suburban areas (69.2%) compared to urban areas (30.8%). More males (54.2%) than females (45.8%) dropped out of school and most dropped out at secondary (77.5%) compared to primary (22.5%) school level. Interestingly, the number of students who dropped out from the academic schools (96.7%) is higher than those from the technical school (3.3%). More females than males got married at the schooling age of 18 years old and below. What is thought-provoking on these findings are issues underlying the school dropouts such as the lack of opportunity and social inequality, quality of education, inadequate facilities and infrastructures to facilitate students to continue and complete their education. These issues should be taken into seriously. It is not just the economic concerns of poverty and unemployment but there is also a need to include structural and social concerns such as inequality and violation of children’s right. The underlying background of those who are still in school need to be addressed and studied by all the stakeholders involved and they should be sensitive to their backgrounds in order to identify relevant measures to prevent those who are at risk from further dropping out of school.

The school that moves towards inclusive learning encounters

This article presents the conceptions of pedagogical practices, from the framework of the DUA, developed by the teachers of the Simón Bolívar educational institution, in Samaniego (Nariño). It is qualitative research, with a hermeneutic method, which allows to recognize meanings from the interpretation. It was carried out with the participation of 10 teachers from the primary and high school levels, from the IE Simón Bolívar, in Samaniego (Nariño). The information was collected virtually, complying with the biosafety regulations adopted during the confinement associated with Covid-19. The interview, the semi-structured survey, and the review of learning guides (managed in the educational institution from the home school modality) were used. Among the results, it can be highlighted that teachers develop and promote pedagogical practices from the DUA framework. However, these are developed as unarticulated activities, making this an unintended process. Finally, we reflect on the school we want, rethinking, transforming and articulating the teaching-learning process from diversity, towards education for all. One of the conclusions leads to working towards the comprehensive development of students, which requires teachers committed to constant training, which allows them to keep up with the evolution of societies. Moving towards spaces that promote education for all requires intentional, thoughtful and conscious pedagogical practices. Articulating the UDL framework to these practices is a strategy that allows work in the classroom to be enhanced.

"TONGUE TWISTERS AS A TOOL FOR TEACHING ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION AT THE PRIMARY SCHOOL"

This study investigates the use of tongue twisters as a tool for teaching English pronunciation at the primary school level. The purpose of the study is to determine whether the use of tongue twisters in language instruction leads to improvements in English pronunciation. The study uses a quasi-experimental design, with an experimental group and a control group, to compare pre-and post-test scores of students' pronunciation. Data was collected through surveys, interviews, and observations of language instruction. Statistical analysis and content analysis were used to analyze the data. Results show that the experimental group, which used tongue twisters in language instruction, had significantly higher post-test scores than the control group, which did not use tongue twisters. Teacher and student feedback also indicated that the use of tongue twisters was effective in improving pronunciation. Implications for language instruction and the use of tongue twisters as a teaching tool are discussed, along with recommendations for future research. Overall, the findings suggest that tongue twisters are an effective tool for teaching English pronunciation at the primary school level.

Digital game-based learning in mathematics education at primary school level: A systematic literature review

In recent decades, digital game-based learning (DGBL) has become a trend among scholars and practitioners in many parts of the world. Therefore, there were some systematic literature reviews in the past few years conducted to identify the trends of DGBL research with diverse subjects and educational levels, however, there is a lack of review that focuses only on mathematics education at primary school levels. This study seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of DGBL research within the context of elementary mathematics learning. Using PRISMA (2020) flow diagram, this study identified 45 articles related to the topic during the period of 2006-2023. Papers were coded and analyzed by years, regions, elementary mathematics topics, research issues, outcomes, research approaches, research design, data collection tools, game genres, and gameplay mode. The results from this systematic review identified the trends in DGBL research related to elementary mathematics learning, highlighted gaps in existing literature, provided insights, and oriented future studies on the topic. The findings of the research reveal a pronounced interest among scholars in the content topics of elementary mathematics, highlighting the research issues that attract attention, the methodologies employed in studies, and the types of games and gaming modes frequently utilized for elementary school children. The article discusses the trends of DGBL within elementary mathematics education, offering in-depth analyses and identifying research gaps that could guide future directions.

COVID-19 vaccination uptake in children with epilepsy and vaccine hesitancy among their parents: a survey.

This study explored the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination coverage among children with epilepsy (CwE), factors affecting vaccination coverage, and the effect of COVID-19 vaccines on epilepsy after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. A questionnaire was administered to CwE and their parents at the Pediatric Neurology Clinic of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University between December 12, 2022, and February 28, 2023. Data were analyzed using the t-tests, chi-square tests, and logistic regression. The analysis included 250 CwE who responded to the survey; of these, 152 (60.8%) had been vaccinated against COVID-19. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in parents whose CwE were not vaccinated was mostly due to concerns of vaccine-related exacerbation of seizures and of vaccine-related adverse reactions (44.30% and 41.90% of the respondents, respectively). Univariate analysis showed that vaccination and number of doses of vaccine did not affect seizure incidence within 1 month of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Logistic regression analysis showed that CwE below primary school age, and those taking two or more antiseizure medication (ASMs) were less likely to be vaccinated (p = 0.007). Conclusion: The primary reasons for vaccine hesitancy among parents of unvaccinated CwE were concerns regarding seizure exacerbation and adverse reactions following COVID-19 vaccination. CwE who were below primary school age and those who took two or more ASMs were less likely to be vaccinated. Addressing parents' concerns is necessary to build their confidence in COVID-19 vaccines and ensure that CwE are vaccinated. What is Known: • People with epilepsy have a higher risk of severe and fatal COVID-19 than those without epilepsy but, despite this, COVID-19 vaccination coverage is considerably lower in people with epilepsy than in people without epilepsy. What is New: •In unvaccinated children with epilepsy, the foremost reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among parents were concerns about seizure exacerbation and vaccine-related adverse reactions. •Vaccination and number of doses of vaccine did not exacerbate seizures in children with epilepsy, those below primary school level and those taking two or more antiseizure medications were less likely to be vaccinated.

Investigation of waste characteristics and recycling behaviour at educational institutes

In this study, the waste generation at the educational institutes chosen from four different levels (kindergartens, primary, secondary and high schools) in Istanbul was measured on-site and the contents of the waste thrown into the recycling bins were determined to specify capture rates. Separation and weighing processes were performed at 16 spots in high schools, 12 spots in secondary schools, 7 spots in primary schools and 7 spots in kindergartens. A survey was conducted to determine the students’ awareness of recycling in these schools. It was revealed that the wastes produced from educational institutes are organics (36.4 %), paper (24 %), plastics (14.4 %), glass (8.1 %), metals (4.8 %) and miscellaneous (12.3 %). The survey results indicate that 93 % of the participants think recycling is important, 71 % of them throw their waste into suitable waste bins and 59 % of them know the location of the recycling bins. At the primary school level, a very high rate of paper waste (92.3 %) was reported in plastic bins while plastic waste collected in these bins remained only 5.7 %. It was also seen that glass waste captured in glass bins and metal waste in metal bins remain very low rates (20.9 % and 29.2 %, respectively) at the secondary school level. At the high school level, it was determined that the most commonly captured wastes in glass, plastics and paper bins are glass (47.5 %), plastic (43.2 %) and paper (32.5 %), respectively. Correlation analyses indicated a high positive correlation (p < 0.05) between particular types of waste.

A CRITICAL INCIDENT ANALYSIS OF PARENT-SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS' CONFLICTS IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Examining the disputes that arise between parents, teachers, and students is the goal of this study. The study, which was carried out at the primary school level, where parent-child interaction is high, employed the critical incident analysis method. The typical sampling method was used to select participants for the study, and school principals were required to have at least 5 years of managerial experience. As a part of this research, interviews were conducted with 10 elementary school principals working in the Tuzla district of Istanbul. A semi-structured form, prepared by the researchers in consultation with experts, was used as a data collection tool. As a result of the interviews, themes were identified relating to "reasons of conflict," "conflict resolution methods," "end of conflict," and "impact and change of conflict." Effective communication, active listening, valuing others, seeking support, and displaying a firm stance were identified as conflict resolution methods. The conflicts affected school principals emotionally and influenced them to behave more professionally. The study's conclusions include that school principals should receive training in communication skills, have their legal standing reinforced, and become more professional. Given the critical importance of managing conflicts in educational settings, recommendations for researchers are offered.

TEACHER TECH-CREATIVITY FOSTERING BEHAVIOUR AS DETERMINANT OF PRIMARY SCHOOL MATHEMATICS TEACHER CLASSROOM PRACTICES

This research investigated teacher technological-creative fostering behaviour as determinant of teacher classroom practices in private primary schools in the Makurdi Local Government Area, Benue State, Nigeria. This study adopted the correlational research design. The population was all teachers in private primary schools in Makurdi. A sample of 70 mathematics teachers was drawn from 50 private primary schools. Two researcher-structured instruments were used for data collection, namely; the Mathematics Teacher Tech-Creativity Inventory (MTTI) and the Mathematics Teacher Classroom Practice Inventory (MTCPI). Correlation, scatterplots, and histograms were used to answer research questions, while analysis of variance was used to test the hypotheses at .05 level of significance. The following were the findings: the top three technological tools among others which mathematics teachers at the primary school level use most often to facilitate their teaching practices are, first interactive whiteboard, second, the calculator and third, internet surfing. Teacher tech-creativity fostering behaviour has a significant impact on teacher clarity, teacher classroom discussions, teacher feedback, teacher formative assessment and, teacher-teacher collaboration as teacher classroom practices. It was recommended that teachers of mathematics consider utilizing technology creatively during lessons as a catalyst to advance classroom teaching practices of teacher classroom clarity, class discussions, teacher feedback, formative assessment, and teacher-teacher collaboration.

Applıcatıon Desıgns to Measure the Mathematıcal Reasonıng Skılls of Teacher Candidates

Mathematical reasoning can be defined as the ability of individuals to approach situations they encounter from a mathematical perspective, to investigate the cause and effect, to make sense of the situation, and to make reasoning that will help reach a logical conclusion by using mathematical concepts and symbols. The purpose of the research is to evaluate the mathematical application designs of primary school teacher candidates studying at Khoja Akhmet Yassawi International Kazakh-Turkish University in order to measure the mathematical reasoning skills of primary school students. For this purpose, at the primary school level, teacher candidates will be asked to (a) identify and use appropriate reasoning, (b) recognize and use mathematical knowledge / patterns / structures / general properties, (c) recognize different representations of the same data, (d) predict, (e) Developing logical arguments regarding the solution, (f) Deciding on the correctness of the solution/result, (g) Making generalizations, and (h) Solving non-routine problems. In this respect, the research was designed in the case study pattern, one of the qualitative research methods. The study group of the research includes a total of 16 teacher candidates representing different grade levels. Typical case sampling method was used to select the teacher candidates in the study group. Pre-service teachers were asked to develop application designs in which they could evaluate the mathematical reasoning sub-dimensions mentioned above. In the research, the theoretical framework was scanned, and an application was carried out to 16 teacher candidates and at the end of the application, the teacher candidates were able to design questions for all their reasoning skills. When the questions they prepared were evaluated, it was seen that the question objectives met some of those stated in the literature.

Implementasi Kebijakan Sistem Zonasi Pada Tingkat Sekolah Dasar Negeri Dalam Pemerataan Pendidikan di Kota Surabaya

The zoning system policy is a government program to achieve equitable education and to remove the public paradigm of superior schools and that all schools are superior. The purpose of this research is to analyze the implementation of the zoning system policy at the public primary school level and the factors that affect its implementation. In this research, the method used is a qualitative method with a descriptive approach. Based on the results of research on the zoning system policy at the public primary school level, the implementation of PPDB with zoning pathways in Surabaya public primary schools is in accordance with Permendikbud Number 1 of 2021. Viewed from the Edward III theory, this zoning system policy has been implemented well because of the public's understanding and the responsiveness of the parties involved in overcoming obstacles. However, there are still some people who still do not understand this zoning system policy due to uneven socialization.

Association Between Physical Fitness, Body Fat, BMI, and Physical Activity Level with Learning Outcomes in Elementary School Students

The main problem in achieving learning outcomes in physical subjects at the primary school level is very complex. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between physical fitness, body fat, BMI, and physical activity levels with physical education learning outcome in elementary school students. A cross-sectional study was conducted to answer the research questions. This study involved 27 students (Aged 10.820.79) from elementary schools in Malang City, Indonesia. Instruments to determine physical fitness include endurance (PACER Test), flexibility (V sit and reach), and strength (sit-ups and squat thrust), the Indonesian Physical Fitness Test was used to determine body fat and Body Mass Index (BMI), and Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) was used to determine physical activity levels. The research result showed that physical fitness, body fat, BMI, and physical activity level were closely related to learning outcomes (R of 0.821), but only physical fitness influences physical fitness (Sig. &amp;lt; 0.05), while body fat, BMI, and physical activity level had no effect. In conclusion, students with good physical fitness tend to get good learning outcomes, so the physical education curriculum must accommodate physical activities that can increase the physical fitness level of students. Future research on academic success factors needs to be investigated, especially schools need to promote movement-based activities to support academic success.

Analysis of the Readability of Package Inserts for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Medications Used in Turkey

Abstract: A written text's readability level has a direct bearing on how well it is understood. There are precise formulas that may be used to test readability objectively. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the readability of the ADHD medication package inserts that are presently in use in Turkey. 23 medication package inserts for ADHD in total were categorized based on their types. The Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (https://www.titck.gov.tr/kubkt) provided the most updated package leaflets for the medications in these categories. The Ateşman and Bezirci-Yılmaz readability formulae, which are relevant to Turkish texts, were used to assess package inserts. The Ateşman reading score was calculated to be 72.2 (7-8th grade) on average. The Bezirci-Yılmaz formula has a reading level equivalent to grades 7-8, which corresponds to the primary school level. Based on the 2022 TUIK data in Turkey, it was found that the reading level was suitable for the average education level, except for the SNRI group (high school level). Given the aforementioned information, we maintain the viewpoint that pharmaceutical package inserts for psychiatric medications ought to ideally contain content written at the level of a primary school (7-8th grade).

Teaching religious stories in lower primary school: a Norwegian case study of 8-year-old students’ perception of the Moses narratives

ABSTRACT This study investigates the instruction of religious stories of Judaism at the primary school level in a Norwegian educational setting, with a focus on the perceptions of 8-year-old students regarding narratives about Moses. By integrating classroom observations and student interviews, it examines the teacher’s pedagogical approach in instruction and how this influences students’ perceptions. In addition, it explores student’s ability to engage and express themselves independently in encounter with the stories. Theoretical perspectives of philosophy of language, particularly Bakhtin and Taylor, are employed to analyse students’ expressions and perceptions. The findings are situated within the broader context of international research on teaching religious stories in elementary education. International literature highlights the pedagogical benefits of using stories to engage students in critical thinking and foster an understanding of religious narratives. The article aims to contribute to a nuanced understanding of how the youngest students navigate and interpret religious instructional material as well as their comprehension of the reasons for learning about Moses. Overall, this study contributes to a comprehension on how the youngest students engage with religious narratives and sheds light on teacher’s pedagogical approaches in RE instruction at the lower primary level.

Textbook Sets Through the Perspective of the Orientation of the Intended Chemistry Curriculum for Primary and Secondary Schools

Textbooks have a central role in chemistry education and represent the intended chemistry curriculum at the national level. This paper focuses on analysing the intended chemistry curriculum as represented by the visual representations and the activities for students in the textbook sets in relation to the topics of the Slovenian National Chemistry Curriculum both at the primary and secondary school levels. The analysis involved all textbook sets approved by the national representatives for the 2021/2022 school year. The results revealed that in most of the curriculum topics in the analysed Slovenian chemistry textbook sets, the curriculum orientation structure of the discipline prevails and the everyday life orientation is present for both primary and secondary schools. To improve the relevance of the textbook sets for students, the currently rare presence of history of chemistry, environmental orientation, and technology and industry orientation and the lack of the use of socio-scientific orientation should be overcome. It would be valuable if further studies in textbook sets would also address the intended chemistry curriculum from a more holistic perspective.

Edukasi Penanganan Kasus Bullying Pada Mahasiswa Peserta Kampus Mengajar KM 7

Bullying in the world of education is no longer something new, especially at the primary and secondary school levels, both physically and psychologically, which results in the emergence of trauma by victims of bullying. The aim of this Community Service (PKM) activity is to educate junior high school (SMP) students at SMPN 5 Sungai Raya about bullying and efforts to avoid bullying as well as efforts to restore trauma to victims of bullying. The activity was carried out using an offline lecture method accompanied by illustrations of techniques for reporting bullying in the school environment. The activity was attended by 50 students, school teachers and students who received placements as campus teaching ambassadors (KM 7) at the school. Activity evaluation is carried out by giving questionnaires to participants regarding the educational material presented, which is filled out before and after the activity. The evaluation results showed an increase in participants' comprehension abilities from an average of 60% to 90%.

IMPLEMENTATION OF UNIVERSAL LEARNING DESIGN PRINCIPLES BY MAINSTREAM TEACHER IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG) has stressed the aspect of inclusive education. In Malaysia, the implementation of the Inclusive Education Program has been implemented, which is the placement of students with special educational needs (SEN) together with typical students in the classroom based on the experience of other countries. It is seen as more effective for SEN to obtain effective social interaction in life. To ensure that this inclusive education can be achieved, a universal learning design (UDL) has been developed. UDL is a framework for improving and optimizing teaching and learning for all individuals based on scientific insights into how humans learn. Therefore, the objective of this study is to identify the level of implementation of universal learning design (UDL) of mainstream teachers in the Inclusive Education Program (IEP) in primary schools in Kota Tinggi, Johor. The sample is a total of 82 mainstream teachers who teach the Inclusive Education Program at the primary school level. The census sampling method was used. The questionnaire that was constructed was adapted from the UDL Framework Scale 2023 and Borang Penskoran Evidens SKPM Gelombang 2 2016 with Cronbach's Alpha coefficient value a = 0.943 was used to collect data. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 29 software was applied to analyze the data obtained. Descriptive analysis found the level of implementation of the 3 principles of UDL in IEP by mainstream teachers at a high level.

Interactions between Design Innovation and Educational Change in Non-Western Schools

In Western countries, school systems have employed modern school building designs as symbols for progressive and innovative educational change. Yet, how does this design symbolism change teaching and learning? To address this, we examine the challenges and complexities of innovative school design by drawing on case studies of preschool and primary-level schools from non-Western cultural contexts. A conceptual framework that links social, organisational, cultural, and material elements is used to analyse two new schools in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Uruguay that used modern school designs as a basis for changes to local pedagogical approaches. Our findings suggest that school building design is not able, by itself, to drive educational changes; and that there are inherent challenges involved in its alignment with localities in terms of staff cultures, student dynamics, and school organisation. Special focus is given to the design of the new school facilities, and the voice of educators in this process. The conclusion points out the need for an adaptive alignment between non-Western educational conventions and introduced education and design concepts.

Problem Solving Strategies in Mathematics of Students in the of Primary Level: Basis for Strategic Study Guide

Mathematical problem solving ability refers to the thinking ability and problem solving ability that students show in solving math-ematical problems, which is a very important ability in mathematics learning. However, because traditional mathematics teaching focuses on teaching basic concepts and algorithms and neglects the cultivation of students problem-solving skills, many students are unable to begin to apply what they have learned to real-life problems. The Chinese government attaches great importance to the cultivation of students math-ematical ability in the educational reform for students. As China s society continues to develop and progress, we are paying more and more attention to how students use their knowledge to solve problems and how students can improve their problem-solving skills at the primary and secondary school levels.