scholarly journals The Relationship between Secondary School Students’ Epistemological Beliefs and Critical Reading Levels

Author(s):  
Serkan Aslan ◽  
Nil Didem Şimşek

This study attempts to depict the secondary school eighth grade students’ epistemological beliefs and their critical reading in terms of several variables and to examine the relationship between them. Descriptive and relational survey models were used within the scope of the study. The population of the study consisted of the secondary school eighth grade students studying in Istanbul. The participants were selected by convenience sampling method. The study deployed personal information form, scientific epistemological belief and critical reading scales. Descriptive statistics, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and correlation analysis were used during data analysis. The study results concluded that the eighth grade students’ epistemological beliefs and their critical reading levels were at a moderate level. While no significant difference was identified across the students’ epistemological beliefs in terms of their gender, academic achievement, socio-economic level and book reading, a significant difference was noted across their critical reading levels in terms of gender, academic achievement and book reading, but that was not the case for their socio-economic level. The results of the research have useful implications for teachers. While teachers develop students’ epistemological beliefs in the teaching environment, they will also develop their critical reading skills.

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 109
Author(s):  
Cengiz Erdik

The purpose of the present research is to determine the correlation between attitude and anxiety of seventh and eighth grade students toward mathematics course and behaviors of mathematics teachers to support and exhibit learner autonomy toward mathematics course. The population of the research was consisted of 1.563 students and 35 mathematics teachers from 22 schools. Research data was collected by means of Learner Autonomy Support Scale and Mathematics Course Attitude and Anxiety Scale. Conclusively, it was revealed that eighth grade students were more anxious, their anxiety levels and attitudes differed according to their success levels, and that they did not exhibit statistically significant difference according to their genders and teachers’ genders. It was determined that there is no statistically significant correlation between level of teachers’ support for learner autonomy and students’ anxiety and attitude levels toward mathematics course.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 57-66
Author(s):  
Şengül Atasoy ◽  
Osman Küçük

The aim of the present study was to develop the epistemological beliefs of eighth grade students through writing-to-learn (WTL) activities. A one-group pretest-posttest quasi-experimental research design was utilized in the study. The sample group consisted of a total of 18 eighth grade students, attending a secondary school in the rural part of Trabzon in Turkey. To improve the epistemological beliefs of students, WTL activities were developed and utilized in the "Matter and its Structure" unit of the science subject. Each WTL activity focused on one dimension of epistemology, such as source of knowledge, organization of knowledge, certainty of knowledge, speed of learning, and learning control. The WTL activities in the study were conducted throughout a total of 24 lessons. Semi-structured interviews were employed to collect data. Beliefs regarding each dimension of epistemology were identified to be at the level of absolutist, multiplist or evaluatist by means of the "Epistemological Belief Levels Rubric". The findings of the study revealed that the WTL activities increased students’ levels of the epistemological beliefs. Hence, students’ epistemological beliefs can be developed further by dwelling more on the history of science unit within the subject of science by raising students’ awareness.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 269
Author(s):  
Yoga Pratama

The objectives of this study were to find out whether or not there was significant improvement in writing and speaking achievements of the eighth grade students of SMPN1 Jarai after they were taught by using Sociogram, to find out whether or not there was significant improvement in each aspect of writing and speaking achievements of the eighth grade students of SMPN1 Jarai after they were taught by using Sociogram, to find out whether or not there was significant difference in writing and speaking achievements between the eighth grade students of SMP 1 Jarai who were taught by using Sociogram and those who were not, and to find out the perception of the eighth grade students of SMPN 1 Jarai after they were taught by using Socoiogram. In this paper, an experimental research method with pre and post test control group design was used with 70 students as the sample divided into two groups, experimental and control group. However, only the students of the experimental group were taught by using Sociogram. The obtained data were analyzed by using t-test. The students were given questionnaire to know their perceptions. The result showed that there was a significant difference in both students? writing and speaking achievements after they were tought by using Sociogram. Furthermore, it was found that there was a significant difference in students? writing and speaking achievement between the experimental and control groups. In conclusion, Sociogram improves the students? writing and speaking achievements.


Author(s):  
Zhuang Hong ◽  
Lingzhong Xu ◽  
Jinling Zhou ◽  
Long Sun ◽  
Jiajia Li ◽  
...  

(1) Background: Older people are more vulnerable and likely to have falls and the consequences of these falls place a heavy burden on individuals, families and society. Many factors directly or indirectly affect the prevalence of falls. The aims of this study were to understand the prevalence and risk factors of falls among the elderly in Shandong, China; the relationship between economic level and falls was also preliminary explored. (2) Methods: Using a multi-stage stratified sampling method, 7070 elderly people aged 60 and over were selected in Shandong Province, China. General characteristics and a self-rated economic status were collected through face to face interviews. Chi-square tests, rank sum tests and two logistic regression models were performed as the main statistical methods. (3) Results: 8.59% of participants reported that they had experienced at least one fall in the past half year. There was a significant difference in experienced falls regarding gender, residence, marital status, educational level, smoking, drinking, hypertension, diabetes, coronary disease, and self-reported hearing. The worse the self-rated economic status, the higher the risk of falling, (poor and worried about livelihood, OR = 3.60, 95%; CI = 1.76–7.35). (4) Conclusions: Women, hypertension, diabetes and self-reported hearing loss were identified as the risk factors of falls in the elderly. The difference of economic level affects the falls of the elderly in rural and urban areas. More fall prevention measures should be provided for the elderly in poverty.


2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-28
Author(s):  
Carlos de Aldama ◽  
Juan-Ignacio Pozo

For some years now, the scientific community has been studying how videogames foster acquisition of mental representations of the world around us. Research to date suggests that the efficiency of videogames as learning tools largely depends on the instructional design in which they are included. This article provides empirical evidence related to the use of the videogame Angry Birds and how it can modify students’ conceptions regarding object motion. We selected a sample of 110 16- to 17-year-old students in postcompulsory secondary school. Both quantitative and qualitative data are provided. Our results show that (a) merely playing Angry Birds does not produce significant learning, (b) learning occurs when Angry Birds is guided by epistemic goals. Students who used the videogame in this way were able to recognize more variables, provide better explanations, and understand more fully the relationship between angle and distance, (c) naïf belief regarding the effect of mass on falling objects (“mass-speed belief”) remained unchanged after using Angry Birds guided either pragmatic or epistemic goals, and (d) there was no significant difference between students who worked collaboratively in pairs and those who worked individually. In the light of these results, we discuss potential implications for the future.


2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 367
Author(s):  
Nurul Ariffa Anggiasari ◽  
Muh Asrori ◽  
Teguh Sarosa

<p>Mastering reading comprehension is a must for language learners. Without mastering reading comprehension students aren’t able to grasp the message on their written form of learning material. Yet, reading comprehension oftenly considered to be difficult by students. This may caused by teacher’s method of teaching that doesn’t effective. This article compare between the use of Cooperative Learning method model Teams-Games-Tournaments (TGT) and Direct Instructional Method (DI) to teach studentsz reading comprehension. Here describe there is significant difference in reading comprehension achievement between the students taught using TGT and those taught using DI of the eighth grade students of one state junior high school in Grogol, and whether TGT is more effective than DI to teach reading comprehension. The method used in this study is experimental method (comparative study). The population of the research is all the eighth grade students. The sample was taken by using cluster random sampling. Two groups of student were taken, VIII-B as experimental group and VIII-C as control group. The instrument to collect data is test. The data were analyzed using t-test formula. The computation showed that t-observation (t<sub>o</sub>) is 3.32 consulting t-table <sub>(78,</sub> <sub>0.05)</sub> = 1.96, therefore the t<sub>o</sub> is higher than t<sub>t</sub>. It is concluded that there’s significant difference between experimental and control group. Besides, the mean of the group of students taught using TGT is 62.62, while that of those taught using DI is 59.46, meaning that TGT gives better achievement than DI. Thus, TGT is more effective than DI to teach reading comprehension.</p>


Author(s):  
Nor Millah Hayati

This thesis is purposed at proving the effectiveness of cartoon videos in teaching speaking to the Eighth Grade Students of SMPN 2 Rantau Kalimantan Selatan in academic year of 2013/2014, and showing that there is a significant difference in speaking ability between the students who were taught by using cartoon videos and those who were taught by using conventional method. This study is an experimental research. The population of this study was the eighth grade students of SMPN 2 Rantau Kalimantan Selatan in academic year of 2013/2014 which consisted of seven classes. The total number of population was 158. There were two classes taken as the sample, Class VIII B serving as control class were taught by using conventional method, while class VIII F as the experimental class were taught by using cartoon videos. Class VIII B consisted of 22 students and class VIII F consisted of 22 students. Both classes were given the pre-test at the beginning and the post-test at the end after the treatment. The data were collected by using speaking test. The data were analyzed by using t-test computation, descriptive analysis, and inferential analysis. The research findings show that there is a significant difference in students’ speaking ability between the experimental group taught by using cartoon videos and those who were taught by using conventional method. The result of the pre-test shows that both groups are poor, while the post-test result shows that the experiment group is better than the control one. The mean score of the experimental class in pre-test was 42.50 and that of control class was 42.73. The mean score in post-test of the experimental class was 75.68 and that of the control class was 57.50. It can be seen that the mean score of the experimental class was higher than that of control class in post-test. Furthermore, based on the hypothesis testing, it could be seen that the value of -t obtained (-5.245) < - t table (-2.018), at the significant level 5%. This implied that there is a significant difference of students’ speaking ability between the students who were taught by using cartoon videos and those who were taught by using conventional method.


2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 203-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Murat Tezer ◽  
Celalettin Özden ◽  
Mucahit Elci

In this study, the relationship between academic achievement and attitudes towards “technology and design lesson” of the middle school, eighth grade students’  gender, family income level, parent education level attitudes towards technology and design lesson have been investigated, and examined the relationship between attitudes and academic achievement. Eighth-grade total of 98 students selected from 3 middle schools by simple random sampling method has been identified at research in North Cyprus. The data collection tool used in this study was the ‘technology and design course attitude scale’. Descriptive survey model was used in the research. The data were analyzed using independent sample t-test, Anova, correlation, frequency and percentage calculations. At the end of the research; no significant difference found between attitudes towards technology and design lesson according to students’ gender, family income, parent education levels. Also no significant relationship found between students’ academic achievements in “technology and design course” and “attitudes toward the technology and design course”.   Keywords: Technology and design, academic achievement, attitude towards lesson, students


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