Instructional Time Research Articles

Teachers and pupils’ perspectives on Teaching and Learning of Geography in selected schools of Luapula and Lusaka provinces of Zambia: Benefits, Challenges and Prospects

Geography education in schools plays a critical role in providing pupils with a comprehensive understanding of the world around them. Using descriptive research design, which involved qualitative data collection and analysis, this study explored pupils and teachers’ perspectives on benefits, challenges and prospects of learning and teaching geography in schools. The study used homogenous purposive sampling to select schools and participants for the study. A total of 4 schools were sampled. 8 geography teachers were sampled purposefully. More so, 16 pupils who studied geography were sampled purposefully. The selection criteria included schools with a diverse range of pupil populations and geography teachers with varying levels of experience. Data was collected using in-depth interviews (teachers) and Focus Group Discussion (FGD) for pupils. The qualitative data collected from the in-depth interviews and FGD were analyzed using thematic analysis to identify patterns and themes in the data. The study reviewed that geography promotes the development of critical thinking skills, global awareness, and a sense of environmental responsibility. However, teaching and learning geography in schools could also present significant challenges, such as limited instructional time and materials, inadequate resources, and a lack of teachers, among others. Despite these challenges, the study reviewed that there were many promising prospects for geography education, including improved digital literacy, increased interdisciplinary learning, and enhanced global citizenship.

A Bibliometric Analysis of Instructional Technological Leadership Research Using VOSviewer

This study aims to analyze the development of research on technology-related instructional leadership. The research method used is bibliometric analysis. The articles used in this study were sourced from the Google Schooler database with the help of the Publication of Perish from 2015-2022; 498 papers were found. Data analysis using the VOSviewer application. The results showed that the number of publications decreased yearly, where the most occurred in 2015, namely 102 publications. The results of the density visualization analysis shown in yellow circles indicate the themes most frequently used in recent research, namely instructional technology, technology integration, instructional leadership practice, school leader, transformational leadership, covid, time and student. Meanwhile, based on network visualization, the topic of instructional leadership has a relationship with the term development, effect, effectiveness, instructional leader, instructional leadership, instructional leadership practice, leader, leadership, model, principal, research, school, school leader, school leadership, school principal and transformational leadership. These results illustrate that technology-based instructional leadership can be developed by referring to instructional technology, technology integration, as a term rarely used based on visualization overlay.

Recess time: Help or hindrance to the social-emotional development of young children?

ABSTRACT Recess is an important and unique component of the school day, and yet there is a relative paucity of research on its impact on young children. Moreover, recesses are often perceived negatively by educators because they can detract from academic instructional time and, depending on the kind of play and interactions between students, may also be times of social conflict and, in some cases, exclusion and bullying. This article examines several facets of recess and its importance: it outlines what students do at recess and the social processes that take place, as well as challenges specific to recess time, and its impact on social-emotional learning. It then reviews what constitutes a high-quality recess and synthesizes scholarship on the effectiveness of recess interventions around the world. The article evaluates whether recess is ultimately a help or a hindrance to young children’s social-emotional development, and concludes with both policy and practice recommendations for educators.

BLEMS OF STUDENTS THROUGH THE EYES OF EXPERIENCED ELEMENTARY TEACHERS: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY

Behavioral problems of students are now challenging issue for all ranked school teachers in the classroom worldwide. Nature of the behavioral problems of students varies country to country, culture to culture, gender to gender and even grade to grade level. This research study explores the coping strategies that experienced elementary teachers used to deal with behavioral problems of the students in the classrooms. Research study being qualitative in nature specifically conducted through transcendental phenomenological methodology. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews from purposefully selected 10 experienced elementary teachers within the one district of province Punjab Pakistan and analyzed using qualitative method. It was recommended based on the finding of the study that traditional and conventional coping strategies to deal behavioral problems of students would be substituted with preventive and supportive coping strategies as these are much desired and effective toward securing students’ learning and teachers’ instructional time in the classroom. Keywords: Behavioral problems of students, coping strategies, experienced elementary teachers.

Effects of implementation support on children's reading outcomes following an online early reading programme: A cluster‐randomised controlled trial

AbstractWell‐designed computer or app‐based instruction has a number of potential benefits (eg increasing accessibility and feasibility of high‐quality instruction, reducing time and resources required for training expert delivery, saving instructional time). However, variation in implementation can still affect outcomes when using educational technology. Research generally suggests that without follow‐up support after training, implementation of educational interventions is often poor and outcomes reduced. However, the extent to which this is the case when the core element of an intervention is computer or app‐delivered is not yet clear. This study investigated the effects of providing ongoing implementation support for Headsprout Early Reading (HER, an early reading programme accessible via a computer or an app), to determine whether such support leads to better outcomes. Twenty‐two primary schools (269 learners) participated in a cluster‐randomised controlled trial. Eleven schools received initial training followed by ongoing support across the school year, whereas the other 11 schools received initial training and technical support only. Pre‐ and post‐measures of reading skills were conducted using the York Assessment of Reading for Comprehension. We found no effect of implementation support on outcomes, and no effect of implementation support on delivery of the core element of HER. However, there were some effects of implementation support on the implementation of other HER elements relating to the responsiveness of educators to learners' learning within HER. These findings have implications for providing access to high quality online instruction in early reading skills at scale, with minimal training. More broadly, the current study suggests that well‐designed computer or app‐based instruction can yield positive outcomes with minimal implementation support and training. However, further research is required to ensure the interplay between learners' app‐based learning and teacher intervention functions as intended to provide additional support for those who need it. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Well‐designed computer or app‐based instruction has a number of potential benefits (eg increasing accessibility and feasibility of high‐quality instruction, reducing time and resources required for training expert delivery, saving instructional time). Implementation can still affect outcomes when using educational technology, and without follow‐up support after training, implementation of educational interventions is often poor and outcomes reduced. The extent to which this is the case when the core element of an intervention is computer or app‐delivered is not yet clear. What this paper adds We found that providing implementation support for teachers and teaching assistants delivering Headsprout Early Reading (HER; an early reading programme accessible via a computer or an app) did not affect the reading outcomes of learners. We also found the implementation support did not affect delivery of the core, app‐delivered element of the programme. However, there were notable differences in implementation of other aspects of the programme, particularly in relation to the role of the teacher or educational practitioner in managing the interplay between the app‐based learning and teacher intervention for learners who require further support. Implications for practice and policy These findings have implications for providing access to high quality instruction in early reading skills at scale, with minimal training. More broadly, the current study suggests that well‐designed computer or app‐based instruction can yield positive outcomes with minimal implementation support and training. However, the findings of this study identify some potential risk of an over‐reliance on technology to facilitate the learning of all learners accessing the programme. Further research is required to ensure the interplay between learners' app‐based learning and teacher intervention functions as intended to provide additional support for those who need it.

"Changing our teaching": first grade reading instruction and before and during COVID-19.

By April 2020 public schools throughout the country closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On the brink of these turbulent times, we concluded a larger survey study describing first grade literacy instruction in February 2020. Having documented a year of pre-pandemic literacy instruction, we then reached out to the same participants to report on their experiences teaching first grade during the 2020-2021 academic year impacted by COVID-19. In this exploratory study we surveyed first grade teachers (n = 36) to better understand the context, the amount of time allocated, and the materials and resources used by teachers for and during literacy instruction and how these variables differed before and during the COVID 19 pandemic. Our data indicated teachers had increased responsibility as they had reduced access to collaborative planning (t35 = - 2.092, p = .004, d = - 0.507), and the support of paraprofessionals (t35 = - 2.256, p = .030, d = 0.457). This increase in responsibility was amplified by the challenges of virtual and hybrid instruction, and the changes in instructional formats experienced by teachers. Concurrently, students experienced less instructional time (Z35 = - 3.704, p < .001, r = - 0.437), particularly in the areas of writing, vocabulary, and fluency. The consequences of these tumultuous experiences for teachers and students are likely to be long-lasting and complex to reconcile.

Emergent Online Teaching Effect on International Graduate Students’ Academic Performance in Japan during COVID-19

International graduate students reluctantly partook in the distance learning with the closure of national borders with the outbreak of COVID-19. Different instructional modes (in-person, online, and hybrid) and timing of the online learning exposure would play a role in international students’ academic achievement considering the expectations and motivations to learn abroad. Based on 267 course-based panel data, for the same courses, online-mode teaching yielded worse Grade Point Averages (GPAs) and less of a sense of class community compared to the in-person mode. Similarly, students who started the program after COVID-19 (i.e., Class of 2022) performed worse than those who changed their mode of study during their study due to COVID-19 (i.e., Class of 2021). The more frequent interactions with schoolmates and professors partially mediated this detrimental effect of international online learning. Online learning, on average, decreases the GPA by 0.2 standard deviations (p&lt;0.05). However, this effect became insignificant in the model with the frequency of interacting with classmates or professors that raise the GPA by 0.686 and 0.216 standard deviations (p,0.05), respectively. As the study sheds light on the predicament of emergent distance learning, the study addresses some cautious notes on designing effective and sustainable international education in the post-pandemic era.

A Synthesis of the Effects of the Color Wheel System on Classroom Behaviors

Teachers spend a significant amount of time redirecting students, addressing problem behaviors, and transitioning the class, leading to less instructional time. The Color Wheel System (CWS) is a classroom behavioral management intervention that uses clear, specific rules for different activities. It can be implemented in a variety of classrooms and modified to meet the needs of the teacher (e.g. additional rule sets, reinforcements, using animals instead of colors to differentiate between rule sets). This literature synthesis and meta-analysis evaluated the overall effectiveness of the CWS. Thirteen studies using single-case design methodologies within 12 articles with a total of 261 participants were included in the analysis. Results indicated an overall moderate treatment effect, Tau-U = 0.88 (CI = [0.78, 1.35]) on student behaviors with individual study effects ranging from 0.61 to 1.00. There were no variables that significantly moderated the effects of the CWS on student behavior. Discussion focuses on implications for researchers and educators.

Drawing skills at the beginning of higher education: Teachers’ perspectives, expectations, and realities

For more than two decades, educational policies in Portugal have primarily focused on improving student outcomes, reducing school absenteeism, and preventing school abandonment. Another factor has been the overemphasis on literacy and numeracy, which has resulted in an unbalanced weighting of these school subjects on instructional time. As a result, instruction time for non-essential classes, such as music and visual arts, was reduced. What effect do these policies have on the drawing abilities and visual literacy of those who pursue visual arts studies in higher education? To date, there has been a plethora of studies on drawing in its didactic, neurological, and physiological components, with findings that strengthen and support the idea that drawing plays a central role in the development of conceptual thinking and abductive reasoning. These findings are significant when advocating for drawing as a learning tool in S.T.E.M., but also, for drawing to play a different role in education overall. To determine whether these policies impact the competencies, skills, and visual literacy of those who pursue visual arts studies, we surveyed higher education teachers regarding their perceptions of student drawing skills as they begin college degrees ranging from fine arts to design. Some survey findings point to weak areas, particularly in perspective drawing and preparatory drawings and sketches. The teachers suggested that the causes were mostly political. These findings should be investigated further, specifically through follow-up interviews and a survey of first-and second-year students enrolled in the courses taught at the educational institutions under analysis.

What Makes Study Abroad Transformative? Comparing Linguistic and Cultural Contacts and Learning Outcomes in Virtual vs In-Person Contexts

To what extent can the transformative power and language learning affordances provided by the study abroad experience be virtualized? The large-scale shift away from on-site study abroad to online learning in 2020-2021, caused by the COVID pandemic, has made it possible to compare data for in-person immersion learning versus digitally mediated forms of direct instruction and second language (L2) community engagement of otherwise similarly prepared L2 learner cohorts. The present study compares measured proficiency outcomes, as well as other performance-based data of late-adolescent and young adult U.S. participants in a group of federally sponsored overseas intensive immersion study programs for Arabic, Chinese, and Russian operating abroad for the period 2017-2019 and as virtual programs in 2020-2021 (in-person N=1388 and virtual N=770). Program data for early-stage learners, mid-level learners, and advanced learners are analyzed separately by target language, initial proficiency levels, and program durations. As a result of the COVID pandemic, all programs shifted from in-person format to virtual instruction, provided by the existing overseas partner faculties, who adapted core curricula, group instruction, direct enrollment courses and tutorials for use in both synchronous and asynchronous forms of online instruction. Similarly, organization of homestay visits, internship programs and cultural programming was also shifted to virtual format. Given the importance of language contact and L2 interactions, this study provides comparisons of both aggregate and activity-specific L2 time-on-task levels for both cohorts, documenting comparable levels of instructional time available within the two formats (18 hours/week), but less than half the available hours to the virtual student for informal L2 contact and community engagement activities. Comparisons of the speaking proficiency outcomes by language and training levels revealed a relatively consistent gap in mean gain levels across languages, with participants in the virtual groups attaining on average one proficiency sub-level lower in speaking gains than their respective face-to-face counterparts. Comparisons of reading, listening, and writing outcomes, however, showed smaller differences, sometimes none at all. Intercultural Development Index (IDI) and other data related to participants’ cultural competencies, including cultural referencing, self-presentation (Identity Competence), socio-pragmatic strategy selection, lexical and collocational choices, and other markers were observed generally to fall short of the standards set in previous years by students enrolled in the in-person versions of the same programs. Finally, the study takes note of curricular and technological interventions introduced during the COVID period which have been recommended for adoption in the new cycle of in-person programs in 2022-2023 and beyond.

Examining pre‐service elementary educators' perceptions of teaching science when integrated with poetry

AbstractResearch has revealed that a small percentage of weekly instructional time in the elementary grades is dedicated to teaching science. Additionally, elementary educators receive limited preparation to teach science concepts compared to math or literacy skills. Therefore, this study examined if utilizing poetry to teach science concepts had a significant influence on elementary pre‐service teachers' (PSTs) self‐efficacy (SE) and expected outcomes (EOs) toward teaching science. Instructors in elementary literacy and science teaching methods courses collaborated to model strategies that integrated poetry within a science unit and mentored the PSTs in creating poems. Following the three‐week integrative unit, analyses of the survey responses revealed significant increases in the PSTs' EOs resulting from their science teaching when integrating poetry. 92% of the PSTs believed poetry would help them integrate more science instruction and in greater depth. Moderate positive correlations were found between PSTs' SE toward teaching science and gains in: (a) perceived knowledge of science concepts, (b) belief that poetry would help integrate more science instruction, and (c) belief that integrating poetry would help students learn science concepts better. This study provides implications for informing teacher preparation programs, professional development experiences, and integrated curricula efforts to expand science instruction in elementary curricula.

Flow Processing Optimization with Accelerated Flow Actions on High Speed Programmable Data Plane

With the development of network technology, next-generation networks must satisfy many new requirements for network functions and performance. The processing of overlong packet fields is one of the requirements and is also the basis for ID-based routing and content lookup, and packet field addition/deletion mechanisms. The current SDN switches do not provide good support for the processing of overlong fields. In this paper, we propose a series of optimization mechanisms for protocol-oblivious instructions, in which we address the problem of insufficient support for overlong data in existing SDN switches by extending the bit width of instructions and accelerating them using SIMD instruction sets. We also provide an intermediate representation of the protocol-oblivious instruction set to improve the efficiency of storing and reading instruction blocks, and further reduce the execution time of instruction blocks by preprocessing them. The experiments show that our approach improves the performance of overlong data processing by 56%. For instructions involving packet field addition and deletion, the improvement in performance reaches 455%. In normal forwarding scenarios, our solution reduces the packet forwarding latency by around 30%.

The Application of Lean Construction Concept in Multi-Storey Building Construction Project

Every construction project cannot be separated from various obstacles or failures. For this reason, it is necessary to improve planning using the lean construction method. The problem in this research is how to apply lean construction concepts, what factors can cause waste, and whether there are significant differences between the perceptions of contractors, supervisory consultants, and owners on the factors that cause waste to occur in fire station building construction. The purpose of this study was to analyze the application of lean construction and analyze the factors that cause waste and the differences between the perceptions of contractors, supervisory consultants, and owners. This study employs both quantitative and qualitative methods. Based on the analysis of observations made, the application of lean construction that was reviewed has started to be implemented, and there are some that have not been implemented properly, such as checking for safety, increasing visualization, and first run studies, so that it can cause waste. Descriptive analysis shows that only a small part of the waste factor with data interpretation intervals is found, namely waiting time for instructions. The results of one-way ANOVA analysis showed that there is no significant difference between the perceptions of contractors, supervisory consultants, and owners of the factors that cause waste.

Web-Based Obstetrical Ultrasound Curriculum Tested by Medical Students in Spain: A Pilot Study

Background: Medical education continues to face challenges particularly with the increased need for high quality accessible curricula delivered in a time effective manner. The purpose of the study was to assess feasibility and student learning with a web-based training program in ultrasound for limited obstetrics and gynecology. Methods: We created a six-module E-learning program (5 didactic modules and 1 biometry module) that contains quizzes and interactive labs, designed to complement an in-class lecture. Medical students were evaluated with a pre- and post-test. A web-based ultrasound curriculum was delivered to 27 fourth and fifth year Spanish medical students with English fluency at a university in Spain during a maternal-fetal medicine elective course from September 16–23, 2019. Results: Twenty-six students were able to demonstrate pre- and post-test score improvement following the web-based ultrasound education (median test score 160 pre vs. 290 post). A web-based ultrasound curriculum can be effective at increasing students’ knowledge of ultrasound material, while saving in person instructional time for other materials. Students enrolled in this course demonstrated exemplary dedication to learning on their own time outside of the classroom. This opportunity freed up lecture time to cover other material. Conclusions: Web-based ultrasound curriculum provides a valid model in adapting remote education for medical training.

The Impact of Transition Intervention in High School on Pathways Through College

Objective: In 2009, the Kentucky General Assembly found unacceptable and costly the ongoing high numbers of high school students requiring remediation once they enter higher education. The state passed legislation to better align secondary and college education, establishing a diagnostic cycle that would become its Targeted Interventions (TI) program. Using 11 years of panel data, this study tracked college progression of seven cohorts of students in order to estimate the impacts of this program. Method: Using student-level administrative data from the state of Kentucky that tracks students from high school through college, a difference-in-regression-discontinuity design was used to compare how students just below college readiness benchmarks fared relative to those just above once TI was implemented. Results: The TI program significantly increased the likelihood that students took at least 15 credits during their first term, a key predictive measure for college completion. However, these early effects did not translate into detectable impacts on the likelihood of earning enough credits to graduate from college or likelihood of transfers from a 2-year to a 4-year college. One possible explanation for this pattern is that TI appears to have crowded out other core courses in high school, especially in math, without increasing total instructional time. Findings suggest that the standards used by high schools to judge student progress toward college readiness may be consistent with the skills needed to place out of developmental courses, but not sufficient to better prepare students for college-level instruction. Contributions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to explore how TI shapes longer term college outcomes. The transition curriculum, while helping students avoid the need for college developmental courses, did not help a measurable share of students develop necessary skills to progress through college relative to what they would have otherwise taken. A possible explanation for these findings is that high school-to-college transition interventions that do not increase total instruction time do not sufficiently move the needle on the college preparedness among high school graduates. For states concerned with the number of students entering college deemed not college ready, it appears that high school-to-college transition interventions that supplant instead of supplement regular high school curriculum have a limited scope for impact on long-run college success.

Cognitive Flexibility + Phonics Intervention Effects on Reading Gains

This is the second in series of studies designed to test direct and conditional effects of embedded cognitive practice in phonics instruction. Students identified in winter of kindergarten with minimal alphabet knowledge were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: explicit phonics (Plain) (n = 28) or explicit phonics with embedded cognitive flexibility practice (Flex) (n = 29). The core of both conditions was an explicit structured literacy approach: the Flex condition was differentiated by brief cognitive flexibility practice switching letter or word dimensions. Instruction was delivered individually over a six-week period. In spite of Covid-19 impacts, both treatment groups exhibited significant gains on reading outcomes. However, there were no significant differences between the conditions on growth in decoding, encoding, or cognitive flexibility. Future research should consider the timing and design of instruction to determine how cognitive abilities, as well as alphabet knowledge, contribute to acquisition of early reading skills.

Exploring the practices and contextual factors in teaching writing skills in EFL classrooms: a case study

This study explored four experienced teachers’ practices and challenges in teaching writing in English as a foreign language (EFL) in a secondary school in Ethiopia. While a single secondary school was selected based on a convenient sampling technique, four EFL teachers were selected using a purposive sampling technique. The data were collected using classroom observations, stimulated recall interviews, and course document analysis and were analyzed thematically. The findings of the study revealed that the teachers employed a product-oriented approach with a focus on rhetorical features and patterns about different types of texts. Large class sizes, lack of students’ language proficiency, lack of teachers’ pedagogical competence in teaching writing, and insufficiency of instructional time to develop drafts were found to impede teachers’ classroom practices in the study context. Based on the findings, it was recommended that teachers should assist students to do their writing outside the classroom ahead of each writing lesson so that they can use the lesson time for productive learning tasks. Besides, the Ministry of Education should spread systems to offer on-job training regarding up-to-date and innovative ways of teaching writing skills.

You Can't Have It All: Faculty and Student Priorities in the Online Classroom

While potential teaching activities in the online classroom are unlimited, an instructor’s teaching time is not. As such, it is essential that online instructors prioritize limited time to instructional strategies that have the greatest impact on student learning. A survey of 413 faculty and 2386 students examined faculty and student perceptions about instructional components or strategies that have greatest impact on student learning in the online classroom. Findings revealed significant differences in faculty and student perceptions with faculty giving the highest value ratings to non-instructor generated content and students prioritizing text-based instructional content (regardless of source). Overall, faculty tended to place more value on instructional components compared to students. Students rated faculty interaction and feedback as the most valuable component of their online learning experience. Findings explore how institutions can utilize teaching supplements to support faculty’s desire to provide content so that instructional time can focus on interaction and feedback.

Mobile Empowerment: Enhancing Education and Connectivity for College Students

Mobile phone usage among college students aged 18 and above, offers various benefits. Firstly, mobile phones provide convenient communication tools, allowing students to stay connected with peers, family, and faculty. Additionally, access to vast information through the internet aids research and learning beyond the classroom. Educational apps and resources enhance learning experiences and foster creativity. However, several issues accompany mobile phone use. Distraction from notifications, social media, and addictive nature can hinder academic performance. Excessive screen time may negatively impact physical and mental health, leading to sedentary lifestyles and mental health concerns. Misuse can result in cyberbullying, exposure to inappropriate content, and privacy risks. To address these concerns, establishing guidelines and educating students on responsible usage is crucial. Implementing policies that regulate usage during instructional time helps minimize distractions and promote focused learning environments.

MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY OF SCHOOL HEADS: BASIS FOR EFFECTIVE AND IMPROVED SCHOOL LEADERSHIP

The increasing responsibilities of the school heads as school leaders led to the analysis of management competency of school heads perceived by the public elementary grade teachers of Lucena West District. The study revealed that the school heads’ management competencies are evident in terms of instructional skills, personnel skills, and financial skills as perceived by the schoolteachers. Findings showed that there is no significant difference in the perceived level of management competency between male and female teacher-respondents in personnel skills, except in instructional skills in terms of visibility and career motivation. There is also a significant difference between the perception of male and female respondents about the management competency in financial skills in terms of audit or financial control. There is no significant difference in the perceived level of management competency between male and female school heads, except in instructional skills in terms of instructional time as perceived by the school heads. There is a positive and significant relationship between the independent variable, perceived management competency and the dependent variable, school leadership in all the dimensions based on the perception of the teacherrespondents. Therefore, the school heads in the division may utilize the findings of the study in developing an employee enhancement program based on all the indicators considered. In addition, due to the limited number of school heads needed for accurate analyses of the relationships of the factors under management competency and school leadership, more samples for the school heads as respondents should be considered in future research.