scholarly journals Teachers’ Pedagogical Competence in Dealing with Teaching Aids in Tanzania: A Case of a Few Finalist Pre-service Science-teachers

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Noel Mark Makwinya
Keyword(s):  
Student Teachers ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Science Teacher Education ◽  
Service Science ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Teaching Aids ◽  
Pedagogical Competence ◽  
Study Participants

The value of teaching aids in the process of teaching sciences cannot be overstated. The capacity of finalist university pre-service science teachers to incorporate teaching aids into their science classrooms to open up the potential of bringing about the critical features of an intended object into realisation is evaluated in this study. Observations and document reviews were used as data collecting techniques in this descriptive study, and they were used to investigate only 25 student-teachers during their final teaching practice placement. Evidence suggested that the study participants’ ability to select or design teaching aids was low as most of the materials they employed had didactic, structural, and technical concerns. Importantly, the study participants demonstrated significant difficulties in unpacking instructional materials during the science lessons. The study recommended various measures for policy and practice regarding both science teacher-education and science teaching process.

scholarly journals A critical look at the portfolio as a tool for teacher cognition at pre-gradual level: perceptions of students

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 71-85
Author(s):  
Zuzana Straková
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
School Context ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Lesson Plans ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Teaching Aids ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Specific Duty

Abstract Trainees in teacher training programmes experience a variety of courses focusing on helping them to master the basic skills as future language teachers. The most important issue in the entire training is the appropriate balance between the input they receive from the trainer and the hands-on experience in which they learn through experience. One of the best hands-on activities during teacher training is indisputably teaching practice, i.e. real experience of trainees in the school context. Teaching practice offers to trainees first experience with teaching English lessons with holding responsibility for planning, carrying out the lessons as well as learning from this experience, maintaining a good rapport with students and many other aspects. Since trainees work in the external setting without the presence of their Methodology course trainers, it is often a custom to ask trainees to keep a portfolio with lesson plans or material they used during teaching as well as some reflections on the first teaching experience, so that the trainers could create a picture of how their trainees succeeded “out there”. Such a portfolio serves as a useful tool not only for the trainee since the portfolio offers a record of how they managed to carry out specific duty at a specific time; portfolio of this type can provide the trainer with a plastic picture of how trainee managed to apply what they had learned in their Methodology courses. There are many elements which can be included in the teaching practice portfolio such as lesson plans, reflections, various case studies, textbook evaluations, sample teaching aids prepared by the trainee, etc. However, the biggest benefit that portfolio provides the trainee with is the reflection itself – thinking about how successfully something has been mastered and thinking about how things could be done better. EPOSTL (European Portfolio for Student Teachers of Languages) where trainees focus on self-evaluation of their own teaching skills is one of the tools that can help to focus the trainee on specific skill the teacher needs to master. This article tries to answer the question whether trainees are aware of the beneficial effects of such reflection, whether they perceive a tool like the EPOSTL as something that can help them to develop or they consider it rather a duty to be carried out as a part of training. Based on the experience with a group of trainees who used EPOSTL during their teaching practice this case study analyses possible strengths and weaknesses of including such a complex material as EPOSTL in pre-service teacher training.

scholarly journals Comparison of "Learning," "Teaching," and "Teacher" Metaphors of Pre-Service and In-Service Science Teachers

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Evrim Ural ◽  
◽  
Muhammed Pekbalcı ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Science Teaching ◽  
Research Design ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Service Science ◽  
The Other ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Government Schools ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
Academic Year

The study aims to examine science teachers' and pre-service science teachers' metaphors about learning, teaching, and teacher concepts and compare their metaphors. The study is designed according to phenomenology research design. The study participants consisted of 62 in-service science teachers working in government schools and 45 pre-service science teachers attending a government university’s science teaching department. The data was collected during the 2017-2018 academic year. The participants were requested to fill in the blanks of three statements: "Learning is like…..; because …….", "Teaching is like…..; because…….", "Teacher is like….; because……". The results displayed that teachers and pre-service teachers generally have different meaning categories. While teachers expressed the concept of “teacher,” they took their own experiences and professional lives into consideration since they are actively working as teachers. On the other hand, pre-service teachers expressed their own teachers and their behaviors while defining the concept of “teacher.” Similarly, when we take a look at the results related to the concept of “student,” while teachers started off with the children they taught, pre-service teachers talked about their own experiences since they are students.

scholarly journals Dynamics of Difficulties Experienced by Prospective Teachers of Psychology During Teaching Practice

Pedagogika ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 125 (1) ◽  
pp. 122-131
Author(s):  
Albina Saikauskienė ◽  
Tomas Lazdauskas
Keyword(s):  
Classroom Management ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Prospective Teachers ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Active Response ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Quantitative Data Analysis ◽  
Pedagogical Competence ◽  
First Contact

In the opinion of authors involved in studies on teacher education, teaching practice is an essential period of professional development (Hormenu et al., 2014; Hussain et al., 2013; Kirbulut & Bektas, 2011) and personality transformation (Schoeman & Mabunda, 2012) that enables student teachers to develop their professional and classroom identity as well as strengthening knowledge of theory and practice (Lakateb, 2016; Morales Cortés, 2016). Therefore, an analysis of the experience gained during each practice, as well as its dynamics, is undoubtedly useful in developing an active response to the difficulties faced by the student teachers and in adjusting the training process in a way that convinces them they are sufficiently prepared to overcome these difficulties. This study is an analysis of the difficulties faced by prospective teachers of psychology during their teaching practice and the dynamics of such difficulties. We have analysed the reflections of two teaching practices of the previous two years undergone by the same student teachers (n = 34). In the study, we applied qualitative and quantitative data analysis methods. The analysis of the results shows that during the practice students usually doubt their skills and competences in confronting difficulties in classroom management such as first contact with pupils, attention management, involvement in activities, response to misbehaviour, maintenance of discipline etcetera. The quantitative analysis of the confronted difficulties shows that the proportion of the experienced difficulties does not change from one practice to another (McNemar test χ2 < 3.84). More than half (56 %) of students pointed out the same difficulties faced during the first and the second practice. Although some student teachers assess their pedagogical competence as improved, it remains unclear why a meaningful reduction of the difficulties reported after the first practice does not take place in the second practice. The results suggest more research is needed into the dynamics of difficulties experienced by student teachers and into planning new ways to develop professional competences.

scholarly journals Comparison of "Learning," "Teaching," and "Teacher" Metaphors of Pre-Service and In-Service Science Teachers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evrim Ural ◽  
Muhammed Pekbalcı
Keyword(s):  
Science Teaching ◽  
Research Design ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Service Science ◽  
The Other ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Government Schools ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
Academic Year

The study aims to examine science teachers' and pre-service science teachers' metaphors about learning, teaching, and teacher concepts and compare their metaphors. The study is designed according to phenomenology research design. The study participants consisted of 62 in-service science teachers working in government schools and 45 pre-service science teachers attending a government university’s science teaching department. The data was collected during the 2017-2018 academic year. The participants were requested to fill in the blanks of three statements: "Learning is like…..; because …….", "Teaching is like…..; because…….", "Teacher is like….; because……". The results displayed that teachers and pre-service teachers generally have different meaning categories. While teachers expressed the concept of “teacher,” they took their own experiences and professional lives into consideration since they are actively working as teachers. On the other hand, pre-service teachers expressed their own teachers and their behaviors while defining the concept of “teacher.” Similarly, when we take a look at the results related to the concept of “student,” while teachers started off with the children they taught, pre-service teachers talked about their own experiences since they are students.

Argumentation to foster pre-service science teachers’ knowledge, competency, and attitude on the domains of chemical literacy of acids and bases

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 288-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Cigdemoglu ◽  
H. O. Arslan ◽  
A. Cam
Keyword(s):  
Science Teachers ◽  
Scientific Literacy ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Service Science ◽  
Science Classrooms ◽  
Paired Sample ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Acids And Bases ◽  
Study Participants

Argumentative practices have the potential to contribute to scientific literacy. However, these practices are not widely incorporated in science classrooms and so their effect on the domains of literacy is still not revealed. Therefore, this study proposes to reveal the effect of argumentation on the three domains of chemical literacy related to the concepts of acids and bases. The study participants comprised 29 freshman pre-service science teachers’ enrolled in a General Chemistry-II course. Argumentation practices were implemented over six weeks. Open-ended contextual chemical literacy items were developed to assess the differences in the chemical literacy domains and the items were administered before and right after the intervention. The responses to the chemical literacy items were scored with a rubric and three scores were calculated: knowledge, competency, and attitudes. Paired samplet-tests were used to compare the mean scores. All the intervention sessions were video recorded, and three of them were analyzed according to three criteria: the presence of arguments, the frequency of arguments, and the levels of the arguments. The findings revealed that the argumentation practices contributed to the pre-service teachers’ chemical literacy skills, mostly to their knowledge and competencies when compared to their attitudes. Moreover, distinct differences in the quality of argumentation levels were observed over the six weeks.

scholarly journals Building Community in Triads Involved in Science Teacher Education: An Innovative Professional Development Model

2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Todd Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Science Teacher ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Professional Growth ◽  
Mixed Methods Research ◽  
Science Teacher Education ◽  
Pilot Project ◽  
National Standards ◽  
Service Science ◽  
The Impact

This article describes a pre-service and in-service science teacher joint professional development pilot project. It is intended to strengthen the community and facilitate professional growth for triad members involved in the professional development of pre-service science teachers. Through a summer workshop and follow-up monthly meetings, this project connected the clinical experiences of the pre-service teachers with the joint professional development of both the pre- and in-service teachers. A mixed-methods research design was used to investigate the impact of this project. Results indicated that this model was successful in aligning with characteristics of effective professional development derived from national standards documents and professional development literature. Additionally, through engaging pre- and in-service teachers in the co-creation of modules, which were subsequently enacted in classrooms, collaborative positioning occurred whereby the pre- and in-service teachers were found more equally sharing and co-negotiating responsibilities in the classroom. This article describes the need for this project and provides an in-depth description of each component of the project enacted, as well as additional findings supportive of its effectiveness.

scholarly journals THE EFFECT OF CONCEPTUAL CHANGE TEXTS ENRICHED WITH METACONCEPTUAL PROCESSES ON PRE-SERVICE SCIENCE TEACHERS’ CONCEPTUAL UNDERSTANDING OF HEAT AND TEMPERATURE

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 693-705
Author(s):  
Nejla Yürük ◽  
Pınar Eroğlu
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Change ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Conceptual Understanding ◽  
Elementary Science ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Science Teacher Education ◽  
Service Science ◽  
Conceptual Change Text ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Conceptual Change Texts

The purpose of this research was to compare the effect of conceptual change texts enriched with metaconceptual processes with the effect of refutational and expository texts on pre-service science teachers’ conceptual understanding of heat and temperature. The durability of the effect of the texts on pre-service science teachers’ conceptual understanding was also examined. A pre-test- post-test experimental research design was employed. One hundred and five pre-service teachers who were enrolled in an Elementary Science Teacher Education Program of a public university located in Turkey participated in this research. They were randomly assigned to three treatment groups each of which read a different type of texts. Heat and Temperature Concept Test (HTCT) was administered as a pre-test, post-test and delayed test to assess the participants’ conceptual understanding of heat and temperature concepts. The results show that the conceptual understanding of pre-service teachers who read conceptual change text enriched with metaconceptual processes was significantly better than that of the other groups and this significantly positive effect did not diminish eight weeks after reading the texts. Key words: conceptual change text, metaconceptual processes, heat and temperature, pre-service science teachers.

scholarly journals Experiences of Cooperating Teachers on Teaching Practice Supervision in Eswatini, Swaziland

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 138-149
Author(s):  
Alfred Tsikati ◽  
Khomb’sile Dlamini
Keyword(s):  
Student Teachers ◽  
Agricultural Education ◽  
Cooperating Teachers ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Face Validity ◽  
Head Teachers ◽  
Practice Teaching ◽  
The University

Cooperating teachers (CTs) are key participants in ensuring a valuable experience for the student teacher (ST) during teaching practice. Surprisingly, their voices largely remain absent in the extant literature. Thus, the purpose of the study was to investigate the experiences of CTs during teaching practice supervision in Eswatini. A descriptive research design using a census of 46 CTs for student teachers (STs) who did teaching practice in the 2015/16 academic year of the University of Eswatini in the Department of Agricultural Education was used. A self-administered questionnaire was used for collecting data. A five-point numerical scale and six-point Likert-type rating scale were used to measure the variables. Three lecturers from the Department of Agricultural Education and Extension and two agriculture teachers established content and face validity for the questionnaire. Inter-item reliability from a pilot study was .78. Findings of the study revealed that CTs were supported by the University through the supervisors and Teaching Practice Handbook. The CTs noted that establishing rapport with the STs was essential and head teachers needed to visit the STs in the respective classes they teach. STs were good in developing, organizing and using instructional materials but had challenges in disciplining learners. The study recommended that CTs should be provided with trainings and incentives so that they can effectively discharge their duties during teaching practice.  Keywords: cooperating teachers; in-service teachers; student teachers; teaching practice; teaching practicum

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