scholarly journals Implementing English-medium instruction

2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-153
Author(s):  
Kari Sahan

Abstract As part of the trend toward internationalization of higher education, governments and universities have introduced policies to encourage the expansion of English-medium instruction (EMI). However, top-down policies do not necessarily translate to teaching and learning practices. This article provides a case study examining the implementation of undergraduate EMI engineering programs at a state university in Turkey to explore the gaps that exist between national- and institutional-level EMI policies and classroom-level practices. Data were collected through policy documents, classroom observations, semi-structured interviews with teachers, and focus group discussions with students. The findings suggest that the implementation of EMI varies across classrooms, even within the same university department. Despite policies that envision one-language-at-a-time instruction, the EMI lecturers in this study varied in terms of language preference and teaching practice in their EMI lectures. Implications are discussed with respect to policy planning, teacher training, and the expansion of EMI across university contexts.

Author(s):  
Evelyn Aguirre ◽  
Solomon Faller

The usefulness of teachers’ mentoring program cannot be underestimated. Some universities and colleges in the Philippines have been implementing this kind of program with different approaches, content, and scope. The extent of mentoring programs to improve teaching careers has been studied here and abroad. Results remain inconclusive. This case study with a phenomenological peg has explored the lived experiences of neophyte teachers through semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Their experiences in the first years of teaching were characterized by uncertainties, anxieties, struggles, and difficulties emanating from their lack of expertise on various aspects related to teaching practice, lack of knowledge about the culture and context of the university in which they were teaching, and lack of knowledge about the learners. With these specific inadequacies identified and the novice teachers’ implicit desire to be mentored, cues for a viable neophyte teacher’s mentoring program are drawn in the context of a teacher-training university.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Mary Ann Meri Arthur Marshall

<p>The impetus and reason for this study has been a desire to discover and capture the 'spark' that causes Māori children specifically, to have a love of reading, to be enthusiastic about reading and, in turn to be confident and competent beginning readers. Research in Maori education often focuses on problems of student underachievement. This study by contrast has aimed to highlight aspects of positive practice by recording the learning behaviours of a group of Maori children across two low decile primary schools, who are not only engaged in the beginning approach to reading but who are clearly motivated by and enjoying the process. This study explores the reasons why Māori children are engaged and motivated beginning readers and aims to see if it is possible to capture any of these attributes in order to support other Māori learners in becoming successful readers. The value of this research is in its potential to contribute to frameworks or initiatives that support Māori children achieving well, in this case, in the area of literacy. This study is a qualitative research under the tradition of a case study inquiry and is embedded within a Kaupapa Māori paradigm. A total of 17 participants (two literacy advisers, two teachers, six children and seven parents) were interviewed using flexibly structured interviews. The interviews were transcribed and analysed through themes that came from the data itself. Common themes from each participant group allowed for analysis in relation to the key research questions: What is the spark that causes Māori children to have a 'love of reading? What does this spark look like? What sparks Māori children into enjoying reading? And what are the factors and influences that contribute to reading engagement and motivation for Māori children? Classroom observations and video filming were also methods of data gathering in order to gain full and deep contexts of descriptive data of the children and teachers in their natural everyday classroom environment. The six children observed in this study were strongly engaged in classroom reading contexts and motivated to read. Both teachers and parents had a firm but relaxed approach to the reading experience. Strong and supportive home-school relationships with open communication were evident. Māori tikanga (practice) was incorporated naturally into planning. Teacher planning and practice was in line with best evidence for effective literacy practice. The practice of the two Pakeha teachers was in many ways consonant with Maori pedagogical approaches and this gave support to the children as Māori learners. The observations and interviews showed beginning readers who were comfortable and relaxed in their learning. They were making clear progress in reading, and approaching national norms in achievement. The 'spark' that leads children to be highly motivated readers, concentrating on reading tasks and clearly loving the process of learning to read is an intangible quality, hard to jmeasure in practice. But high levels of concentration, enjoyment of reading, and a desire to learn can be observed and recorded. All these things were seen in this study. It is possible to nurture and grow the enthusiasm, engagement and motivation that these children have if teachers demonstrate open hearts and minds in wanting to know their learners. The 'spark' or motivation in this study was also nurtured through the interconnected relationships the children had with their teachers and families and the effective teaching and learning practices displayed by the teachers. Using te reo (language) and tikanga Māori as a 'normal' part of daily practice contributed to the holistic wellbeing of the Māori children in this study, alongside strong home-school relationships. The combination of good teaching practice, good relationships and a firm but relaxed approach provides a model in action for success in supporting Maori children's beginning reading.</p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ljerka Jukic Matic

Various curriculum resources emerged in the last decades, but the textbook still remains the most used teaching and learning resource in mathematics classrooms. In this paper, we use a case study to analyze teaching practice of one math teacher. The aim of the study is to examine how math teacher interacts with the textbook and teacher guide, especially when teacher offloads on those resources, adapts them or improvises in the classroom. The study was conducted using lessons observations and semi-structured interviews. The results showed that teacher does not favour particular type of resource mobilization. Her interaction with resources can be characterized as a dynamic interplay, where type of resource mobilization exchange between the lessons and within a lesson as well. Moreover, teacher’s mobilization of textbook and teacher guide depends on teacher’s goals and assessment of the most pedagogically beneficial instruction for students.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Mary Ann Meri Arthur Marshall

<p>The impetus and reason for this study has been a desire to discover and capture the 'spark' that causes Māori children specifically, to have a love of reading, to be enthusiastic about reading and, in turn to be confident and competent beginning readers. Research in Maori education often focuses on problems of student underachievement. This study by contrast has aimed to highlight aspects of positive practice by recording the learning behaviours of a group of Maori children across two low decile primary schools, who are not only engaged in the beginning approach to reading but who are clearly motivated by and enjoying the process. This study explores the reasons why Māori children are engaged and motivated beginning readers and aims to see if it is possible to capture any of these attributes in order to support other Māori learners in becoming successful readers. The value of this research is in its potential to contribute to frameworks or initiatives that support Māori children achieving well, in this case, in the area of literacy. This study is a qualitative research under the tradition of a case study inquiry and is embedded within a Kaupapa Māori paradigm. A total of 17 participants (two literacy advisers, two teachers, six children and seven parents) were interviewed using flexibly structured interviews. The interviews were transcribed and analysed through themes that came from the data itself. Common themes from each participant group allowed for analysis in relation to the key research questions: What is the spark that causes Māori children to have a 'love of reading? What does this spark look like? What sparks Māori children into enjoying reading? And what are the factors and influences that contribute to reading engagement and motivation for Māori children? Classroom observations and video filming were also methods of data gathering in order to gain full and deep contexts of descriptive data of the children and teachers in their natural everyday classroom environment. The six children observed in this study were strongly engaged in classroom reading contexts and motivated to read. Both teachers and parents had a firm but relaxed approach to the reading experience. Strong and supportive home-school relationships with open communication were evident. Māori tikanga (practice) was incorporated naturally into planning. Teacher planning and practice was in line with best evidence for effective literacy practice. The practice of the two Pakeha teachers was in many ways consonant with Maori pedagogical approaches and this gave support to the children as Māori learners. The observations and interviews showed beginning readers who were comfortable and relaxed in their learning. They were making clear progress in reading, and approaching national norms in achievement. The 'spark' that leads children to be highly motivated readers, concentrating on reading tasks and clearly loving the process of learning to read is an intangible quality, hard to jmeasure in practice. But high levels of concentration, enjoyment of reading, and a desire to learn can be observed and recorded. All these things were seen in this study. It is possible to nurture and grow the enthusiasm, engagement and motivation that these children have if teachers demonstrate open hearts and minds in wanting to know their learners. The 'spark' or motivation in this study was also nurtured through the interconnected relationships the children had with their teachers and families and the effective teaching and learning practices displayed by the teachers. Using te reo (language) and tikanga Māori as a 'normal' part of daily practice contributed to the holistic wellbeing of the Māori children in this study, alongside strong home-school relationships. The combination of good teaching practice, good relationships and a firm but relaxed approach provides a model in action for success in supporting Maori children's beginning reading.</p>


2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 73-89
Author(s):  
Margarita Kefalaki ◽  
◽  
Michael Nevradakis ◽  
Qing Li ◽  
◽  
...  

COVID-19 has greatly impacted all aspects of our everyday lives. A global pandemic of this magnitude, even as we now emerge from strict measures such as lockdowns and await the potential for a ‘new tomorrow’ with the arrival of vaccines, will certainly have long-lasting consequences. We will have to adapt and learn to live in a different way. Accordingly, teaching and learning have also been greatly impacted. Changes to academic curricula have had tremendous cross-cultural effects on higher education students. This study will investigate, by way of focus groups comprised of students studying at Greek universities during the pandemic, the cross-cultural effects that this ‘global experience’ has had on higher education, and particularly on students in Greek universities. The data collection tools are interviews and observations gathered from focus groups.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 987
Author(s):  
Devi Merina Tuz Sa’diyah ◽  
Ahmad Ahmad ◽  
Nilna Sa’adayah

<p>The focus of this research is to describe the strategy of adversity quotient for the management of the Community Learning Activity Center (PKBM) to develop innovations in turning barriers into opportunities for non-formal education programs. Qualitative research with this type of case study was carried out at PKBM Mentari, using structured interviews as the primary data collection method, in order to obtain primary data and document matrix methods to obtain secondary data. the data were analyzed using interactive techniques belonging to Miles and Huberman with the stages of data reduction, data presentation and conclusion drawing. The results of this study are the adversity quotient strategy that generally implemented by PKBM is very good, this can be seen from the indicators including: 1) Organizing learning activities flexibly in terms of time, so that it does not interfere with the daily activities of the community; 2) Provide learning at affordable costs so as not to burden the community in participating in learning; 3) Making the community the main partner in the continuation of teaching and learning activities at PKBM and 4) Building synergies with local village officials. The relatively short research time is the main limitation in compiling this study, so that it only maximizes the statements of the main informants. </p><p><strong> </strong></p>


Author(s):  
Gabriella Alves Ferreira ◽  
Maria Núbia Barbosa Bonfim

Este estudo enfoca a relação professor/aluno e tem por principal objetivo analisar como se constrói essa relação no cotidiano da sala de aula do Curso de Licenciatura em Letras de uma Universi-dade Federal do Nordeste brasileiro. Insere-se no projeto de pesquisa intitulado “Projeto de Cooperação Acadêmica: Disciplinas da Licenciatura voltadas para o Ensino de Língua Portuguesa”, parceria entre as instituições Universidade Federal do Maranhão - UFMA, Universidade de São Paulo - USP e Universida-de Estadual do Rio Grande do Norte - UERN, tendo a UFMA como proponente e contando com o apoio financeiro da CAPES/Procad – NF – 2008. A referida relação pode ultrapassar a sala de aula e tornar-se um ponto relevante no desenvolvimento do ensino-aprendizagem. O processo metodológico englobou o estudo do referencial teórico, a partir dos estudos realizados por Freire (1996), Gadotti (1999), Zuin (2008), Bonfim (2007;2010;2012), dentre outros. Para realizá-lo, levantamos algumas indagações que se-riam analisadas pela pesquisa: Como a relação professor/aluno afeta o processo ensino-aprendizagem? E com quais consequências? No desenvolvimento metodológico, realizamos observação participante, elaboramos e aplicamos entrevistas semiestruturadas com alunos e professores do 8º período do Curso de Letras no turno matutino 2012.2, assim como fizemos levantamento de perfil junto aos alunos para melhor conhecimento individual dos sujeitos. Para sistematização dos dados, utilizamos a técnica de Aná-lise de Conteúdo proposta por Franco (2005). Esperamos com este trabalho mostrar o quanto a relação professor/aluno ajuda a compreender algumas tessituras no processo ensino-aprendizagem e o quanto esse entendimento se torna importante para a solução de conflitos.Palavras-chave: Relação professor/aluno. Licenciatura. Cotidiano.TEACHER/STUDENT: WHAT RELATION IS THIS?ABSTRACT: This study focuses on the teacher/student relationship and its main objective is to analyze how this relationship is built in daily classroom of the Letters Course at the Federal University in Northeast Brazil. Is part of the research project entitled “Project Academic Cooperation: Disciplines of the Degree ai-med for Teaching Portuguese Language”, partnership between institutions Federal University of Maranhão - UFMA, University of São Paulo - USP and State University of Rio Grande do Norte - UERN, having UFMA as proposer and with the financial support of CAPES/Procad - NF - 2008. That relationship can overcome the classroom and become an important point in the development of teaching and learning. The methodo-logical process involved the study of the theoretical framework, based on studies by Freire (1996), Gadotti (1999), Zuin (2008), Bonfim (2007, 2010, 2012) among others. To accomplish it, we raise some questions that would be covered by the survey: As a teacher/student relationship affects the process of teaching and learning? And with what consequences? Methodological development, we conducted participant observa-tion, elaborated and applied semi-structured interviews with students and teachers from 8th period course on literature in 2012.2 morning shift, as did raising profile with students to better knowledge of individual subjects. To systematize the data, we used the technique of content analysis proposed by Franco (2005).We expect this work to show how the relationship teacher/student help understand some tessitura in the teaching- learning process and how this understanding becomes important for conflict resolution.KEYWORDS: Teacher/student relationship. Teaching. Daily.PROFESOR/ESTUDIANTE: ¿QUÉ RELACIÓN ES ÉSTA?RESUMEN: Este estudio se centra en la relación profesor/alumno y su principal objetivo es analizar cómo es construida esta relación en el curso de Licenciatura en Letras de la Universidade Federal do Mara-nhão. Este trabajo hace parte del proyecto de investigación intitulado “Projeto de Cooperação Acadêmica: Disciplinas da Licenciatura voltadas para o Ensino de Língua Portuguesa”, en colaboración con la Univer-sidade Federal do Maranhão - UFMA, Universidade de São Paulo – USP, y la Universidade Estadual de Rio Grande do Norte - UERN , teniendo UFMA como proponente, y con el apoyo financiero de la CAPES / Procad - NF - 2008. La referida relación puede ir más allá del salón de clases, llegando a ser un punto importante en el desarrollo de la enseñanza y del aprendizaje. El proceso metodológico está basado en los estudios realizados por Freire (1996), Gadotti (1999), Zuin (2008), Bonfim (2007, 2010, 2012), entre otros. Para lograrlo, planteamos algunas preguntas analizadas por la referida investigación: ¿Cómo la relación profesor /alumno afecta el proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje? ¿Y con qué consecuencias? En el desarrollo metodológico, realizamos una observación participante, donde construimos y aplicamos entrevistas semi-estructuradas con los estudiantes y profesores del octavo período del curso de Letras en 2012.2, en el turno de la mañana; además, hicimos un levantamiento que permitió un mejor conocimiento de los sujetos individuales. Para sistematizar los datos, utilizamos la técnica de Análisis de Contenido propuesto por Franco (2005). Esperamos con este trabajo mostrar cómo la relación profesor/alumno ayu-da a entender algunos tesituras en el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje y cómo este conocimiento se convierte importante para la resolución de conflictos.PALABRAS CLAVE: Relación profesor/alumno. Licenciatura. Cotidiano.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. p1
Author(s):  
Martha Hakaya ◽  
Nchindo Richardson Mbukusa ◽  
Earle Sinvula Mudabeti

Total management of overcrowded classrooms have across-the-board effects for English as a Second Language teaching and learning environments as in any subject. Greater attainment and achievements in schools depend on the choices made with regard to teacher-learner ratios that consider of classroom management. Recruitment of learners and teachers should ensure that classrooms are enabled to meet the demands of professional teaching challenges, amongst other, inidvidualised teaching and learning. The aim of the research was to explore the challenges and related matters in managing English as a Second Language overcrowded classrooms. A qualitative approach, steered by a case study design, purposively guided the study. It was deemed fit in order to understand the phenomena with deeper understanding of beliefs and situated lived experiences. Semi-structured interviews and nonparticipant observations were used as methods to generate data for analysis. The research exposed that copious problems were experienced by teachers and leaners who were subjected to overcrowded classrooms. Amongst many, noise and unruly behaviour, poor time management and teaching approaches result in such classes. Guiding principles regarding sound teacher-learner ratios should be put in place by policymakers and schools in order to support both teachers and learners for the success of teaching and learning.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (42) ◽  
pp. 155-167
Author(s):  
Faizahani Ab Rahman ◽  
Nurul Afrahah Hussin ◽  
Sutha Sugumaran

This paper looks at the perceptions of MRSM (Majlis Amanah Rakyat or also known as People’s Trust Council) English teachers on their current professional development and their expectations on in-service training. As teachers, they are often expected to act as a source of motivation to their students apart from being accountable in providing instructions, knowledge, and skills in their respective academic subjects. However, very often, teachers are not provided with sufficient and appropriate training that would prepare them to be the kind of teacher that they are required and expected to be. This prompts this study that determines whether the in-service training provided is sufficient and aptly to help the teachers produce academically excellent students. This case study used a qualitative approach with purposive sampling of seven English teachers at Maktab Rendah Sains MARA, Beseri in Perlis with teaching experiences between 10 to 30 years. Semi-structured interviews and focus group methods were used to answer the research question which dwells on the MRSM English teachers’ expectations of professional development teacher training of their students’ achievement. The findings of the study revealed that teachers expect to have more professional development in terms of pedagogy, proficiency level, technology integration, and stress management. They also believe that improvement in professional development can positively affect their students’ achievement as teaching and learning processes can be done more effectively. It is therefore recommended that MARA should highlight its current in-service training and development policy to be consistent with the needs of teachers.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. p11
Author(s):  
Gloria Nyame

Leadership training for educational leaders in the academia has been considered paramount to empower them both for leadership and management skills, knowledge and experience necessary to bring about quality in teaching and learning. Majority of the academic leaders are appointed without any preparation for the role and tend to struggle on the role in order to be effective. Most studies carried out on academic leaders in Africa focus mainly on challenges, roles and theories of leadership. This study explores the journeys involved in the preparations of academics who become Head of Departments in a selected university in Ghana in order to enable them play their roles effectively. The case study approach was used to study the journeys involved in the preparations of 16 academic HoDs in a selected university in Ghana, focusing on how they accessed their roles, their understanding about the roles, preparations they have had on the roles and the preparations they would have wished for the roles. It sought to describe, understand and interpret the learning journeys of academic HoDs regarding how they became HoDs and preparations they received to be effective in their roles. Interviews and documentary evidence were employed. Semi structured interviews were conducted with sixteen university head of departments. Using thematic analysis, the study revealed among others that most newly appointed academic HoDs were not given formal training before they began to play their roles, Again, the findings revealed different degrees of preparations which were mainly informal and were not directly linked to the roles of the HoDs, which were consistent with the literature that majority of academic HoDs did not receive preparations for their roles and tended to use their experiences to play their roles. Based on these findings, recommendations are that there should be a formal training on the HoD’s duties and their implementations for all newly appointed HoDs to enrich them with the necessary skills and knowledge to make them effective and efficient. There is the need to conduct needs assessment from the HoDs to inform their preparation or training and development of HoDs manual to serve as a reference guide to the HoDs. It is hoped that the findings will contribute to effective preparations of the academic HoDs. The research may also lead to the production of HoD’s manuals. More importantly, it may inform policies to identify areas for effective preparations of the academic HoDs.


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