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Exploring the relationship between General Maths Anxiety, Maths Teaching Anxiety and teachers' beliefs about maths teaching and learning
No full textThe main aim of maths education to date is to develop the knowledge and skills that are needed later in life for either professional or personal reasons (Kaskens et al. 2020). Maths skills are mentioned in the recommendations by the European Parliament and the council of the European Union as being one of the key competences of lifelong learning (Szyczgiel 2020). However, Maths Anxiety has been observed globally and higher levels have been reported among Irish students (Santos 2022). As Maths Anxiety (MA) can have potential long term negative impacts affecting students’ performance and career choices it is crucial that it is addressed for both the benefit of society and individuals (Santos 2022). However MA research in primary school is surprisingly limited and inconsistent (Hill et al. 2016).
This study aimed to explore whether or not there is a relationship between General Maths Anxiety (GMA), Maths Teaching Anxiety (MTA) and teachers’ beliefs about maths teaching and learning from the perspective of Irish primary school teachers. A quantitative study in the form of a survey was adopted in order to gain an insight into whether or not Irish primary school teachers’ levels of GMA and MTA are influencing their beliefs about maths teaching and learning. 56 primary school teachers from 4 schools in Ireland took part in the study. Descriptive analysis was used to provide valuable insights and highlight influential trends in the data set. The findings revealed that both teachers with High Maths Anxiety (HMA) and Low Maths Anxiety (LMA) had moderate/low levels of transmission which highlights that although some teachers may be quite traditional in their approach to the teaching of maths they are also open to adapting and trying out some constructivist teaching methodologies in the aim of supporting and engaging their pupils with the maths curriculum. The findings also revealed that both teachers with HMA and LMA presented with Low or Moderate Fixed Instructional Plan beliefs which revealed that although some teachers may have traditional beliefs when it comes to the teaching of the maths curriculum this is only having a moderate effect on their fixed instructional plan.
This study could be used to help people gain an insight into the relationship between GMA, MTA and teachers’ beliefs about maths teaching and learning as well as how this might be negatively/positively influencing classroom practices and classroom culture. This research could also be used as a tool in further research in the vast area of Maths Anxiety.N
Primary school teacher’s experiences of Clare education centre’s STEM CPD model
No full textScience, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education has become increasingly popular over the past decade. A change in the proposed future workforce requirements has led governments worldwide to put focus and attention on increasing the level and quality of STEM Education in education systems. Providing effective Continuous Professional Development for teachers is a method of increasing teacher capacity to deliver high-quality STEM Education.
This study explores the experiences, views and beliefs of Primary School Teachers who completed one such STEM Education CPD Model in Clare Education Centre. The CPD Model uses distinctive phases. The first phase focuses on science content and knowledge. The CPD participants attend workshops in the Education Centre with the facilitator. Following the workshops, the participants take the content back to their schools to try out in their own classrooms. They also receive in school support visits from the facilitator. The final stage in this phase is the exploration and collaboration between teachers in the Education Centre, in which they review their experiences of trialling the lessons/content in their classrooms. Phase 2 follows the same process but the focus shifts from a focus on science content to a focus on STEM content. Finally, phase 3 involves a peer-teach process in which teachers adapt, create, and trial a STEM lesson in their own classrooms. They then report back to CPD colleagues on their experience of implementing STEM lessons. They also receive in school visits from the facilitator during this phase of the CPD program.
This research study gathered data through survey and interview to explore and record these experiences with the intention of recording findings and making recommendations for future CPD development.N
To what extent are school leaders equipped to adapt and lead the future impact of AI in teaching and learning?
No full textThis study investigates the extent to which school leaders are equipped to adapt and lead the future impact of artificial intelligence (AI) in teaching and learning. By combining both qualitative and quantitative methods and adopting a pragmatic approach, this research explores the readiness of educational leaders in the face of advancing AI technology and its potential to transform education.
The study’s conceptual framework is grounded in the Diffusion of Innovation Theory (Rogers 2003), which was adapted to illustrate the complexity associated with adopting and implementing AI in schools. This study employed a mixed methods research approach, encompassing qualitative interviews with experts in AI and education as well as quantitative surveys targeted primarily at school leaders, particularly principals.
The research findings revealed that familiarity with AI varied among school leaders, with the majority indicating only basic awareness. It was evidenced that participants were cautious but open to AI based on the potential benefits it offered but scepticism and apprehension concerning data privacy and equity of access persist. The results indicate the pivotal role of communication channels and also highlight the necessity for professional development opportunities to equip school leaders with the knowledge and skills that are necessary to implement AI in an effective manner. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers, leaders and practitioners seeking to cultivate an environment conducive to utilising AI’s transformative ability in education.N
STEM education in Ireland - investigating primary school teachers' perceptions of the barriers to successful STEM education in the Irish primary classroom
No full textSTEM Education is a relatively new phenomenon in Irish primary schools. Gone are the days
of teaching maths or science as stand-alone subjects independent of each other. Instead, the
meta-discipline STEM Education encourages teachers to merge as many of the STEM
(Science, technology, engineering and maths) disciplines into one lesson or series of lessons
engaging the children and teaching concepts and skills in context to the world around them.
STEM lessons have an engaging stimulus and focus on developing twenty-first century skills
in children.
This explanatory mixed methods study was based on the pragmatic paradigm and data was
collected in two ways; firstly using an online survey and secondly through a semi-structured
interview.
The findings of the study indicate that teachers are aware of STEM Education, but are lacking
the confidence and pedagogical knowledge of how to teach it. Teachers identified multiple
barriers impeding their ability or desire to teach STEM. These included; lack of knowledge,
lack of CPD, lack of a concrete STEM curriculum, a lack of resources and a lack of funding.
The pressure placed on teachers by standardised tests and also the rigid culture present in
primary schools were also identified. Participants identified multiple ways to overcome these
barriers including; mandatory professional development, developing a collaborative culture in
schools, resourcing STEM in schools through a STEM budget, introducing a STEM curriculum
and reducing the focus placed on standardised tests.N
Limerick City's coat of arms: a visual review
Get PDFAs part of the Culture Night Limerick, 20th of September, 2024The presentation hopes to provide an approach to understanding the Limerick City Coat of Arms and its evolution. It does not provide an exhaustive list of the Coat of Arms, hoping that the presentation will provoke interest in the history of Limerick, its symbols and its beauty.N
An investigation into policy implementation on smartphone usage in a post-primary school in Ireland
No full textpurpose of this research was to investigate the impact of a newly implemented smartphone management policy in a post-primary school in the Southwest of Ireland. The policy sought to afford students the opportunity to use their smartphone in the class while shielding them from their misuse. The impact of the policy is interpreted through the experiences of the key stakeholders of the school, namely the students, teachers, senior management and parents. Particular focus was given to the student voice as a stakeholder of the school. With debate growing internationally about the merits of smartphones in schools, this study illustrates a balanced approach taken by a post-primary school towards smartphone management.
This was a mixed methods study under the constructivist paradigm that combined quantitative and qualitative data to give a representative illustration of the stakeholder’s experiences with the implemented policy and to determine its impact. Surveys, interviews and focus groups acted as effective data collection tools. Thematic analysis was used to illustrate the experiences of all stakeholders from the collected data.
Key themes emerged from the data that pointed to a lack of enforcement from teachers and management as a significant barrier to the policy being wholly successful. The data shed light on the worrying smartphone habits of post-primary school students, demonstrating that notifications from social media applications on smartphones are a distraction to teaching and learning.
Issues of smartphone addiction are clearly evidenced in the research findings. The research illustrates that the implemented policy works at a junior level however, more must be done at senior level. This study demonstrates that school leaders and policymakers nationally can harness the student voice and the voices of all key stakeholders to reflect on implemented policies and to assess what needs to be done to ensure that the aims of an implemented policy are achieved.N
Does the introduction of a social-emotional intervention support the development of students' emotional awareness in senior classes in Irish primary schools?
No full textBackground: Emotional awareness (EA) refers to the ability to identify, name and understand one’s own emotions and the emotions of others. EA is becoming increasingly recognised as an indicator of wellbeing and a critical component of effective leadership.
Aims: This study aimed to investigate if the introduction of a social-emotional intervention supported the development of students’ EA in a senior classroom in an Irish primary school context. In addition, as a teacher-researcher in this study, I aimed to improve my own teaching practice in relation to social-emotional learning and, in turn, develop an increased sense of leadership within my practice.
Method: This study was rooted in pragmatic theory and adopted a mixed-methods, action research approach. This study employed a convenience sampling technique to seek recruitment from twenty-seven sixth-class students (Mean age=12.08). Quantitative data was collected using a student survey, which included an ‘Emotional Awareness Questionnaire’ (EAQ). The EAQ assesses six facets of EA and is a reliable indicator of individuals’ EA abilities, including children. Qualitative data was collected using a teacher reflective diary. The social-emotional intervention involved conducting regular emotion check-ins and the teaching of EA lessons over a four-week period.
Results: Following engagement with the social-emotional intervention, students’ EA improved in all six sub-scales of the EAQ. Thus, the findings provide substantial evidence that the social-emotional intervention employed in this study had a positive impact on the development of students’ EA. The development of emotional vocabulary and the creation of a supportive classroom environment supported the development of students’ EA. Teacher modelling of EA also contributed to the success of the intervention. The small sample size and limited timeframe were identified as limitations in this study.
Conclusion: Overall, the value of developing students’ EA in a primary school context was exemplified through this study, in particular in relation to supporting student wellbeing. The development of EA is also relevant to teachers given that this important skill contributes to effective leadership within a classroom and wider school context.N
The experiences of pupils with special educational needs in Irish-medium schools: listening to pupil voice
No full textThis research explores the experiences of pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN) in Irish Medium Schools (IMS) within the Republic of Ireland (RoI) through the pupil voice. In IMS, apart from English as a curricular subject, all teaching and learning is through Irish, i.e., the pupils’ second language (L2), with the majority language of the community being English. Pupils are provided with full immersion for two years before the English curriculum is introduced. The appropriateness of ‘full immersion’, for pupils with SEN, has been under debate for many years, both nationally and internationally (Kay-Raining Bird, et al., 2012; Nic Aindriú et al. 2020). Therefore, the focus of the study is to investigate the experiences of the key stakeholders in this process, the pupils. Little research, both nationally and internationally, has been conducted on pupils with SEN, as voiced by the pupils themselves, particularly those attending IMS. Therefore, this research will add to the limited research in the field. Listening to the pupil voice may inform practice and policy.
A constructivist paradigm informed the mixed method (MM) approach to the study. Data were gathered using a universal design for learning (UDL) approach, adopting methods such as PhotoVoice, Draw and Tell and Focus Group Interviews, to ensure that all pupils were supported throughout the interviews. Lundy’s Model of Participation (2007) was used as a framework to guide the process. Participants were asked about their experiences while learning through their L2, the benefits and the challenges they encountered. Nine pupils participated in the study and had a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) and Dyslexia. These pupils were specifically chosen as language and communication can be a particular challenge. Therefore, their insights, while learning through the medium of Irish as their second language (L2), was of interest. The data collected was analysed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006), which informed the second phase of data collection. A teacher questionnaire was then devised and administered among teachers to ground data gathered from the pupils and to gain an insight as to how teachers can ensure pupils have a positive experience while attending IMS.
Findings from this research suggest that pupils with SEN have a positive experience while attending IMS, however, challenges were also identified. Therefore, it is imperative that teachers can identify needs, address needs and review progress for all pupils attending IMS. Data from teachers reveal many challenges while meeting the needs of pupils with SEN due to a lack of appropriate assessments, teaching and learning resources, which has implications for initial teacher education (ITE) and teacher professional learning (TPL).
Overall, significant findings emerged from the research which will contribute to the limited research available to inform future policy, practice and provision regarding pupils with SEN in IMS, nationally and internationally.N
Iniúchadh ar eolas teanga mhúinteoirí tumoideachais i mbunscoileanna lán-Ghaeilge, lasmuigh den Ghaeltacht
No full textRinne an taighde seo iniúchadh ar thuairimí agus ar thuiscintí múinteoirí tumoideachais
bunscoile lasmuigh den Ghaeltacht ar an eolas teanga atá acu sa Ghaeilge. Tá bearnaí
suntasacha aitheanta san inniúlacht teanga a bhíonn ag múinteoirí tumoideachais go náisiúnta
agus go hidirnáisiúnta agus léirítear go mbíonn tionchar diúltach aige seo ar an múineadh
agus ar fhoghlaim na ndaltaí. Tá fachtóirí difriúla a bhaineann leis na dúshláin le hinniúlacht
teanga an mhúinteora, lena n-áirítear an easpa tacaíochta ó choláistí oiliúna agus an roinn
oideachais agus forbairt ghairmiúil leanúnach. Féachadh sa staidéar seo ar na gnéithe teanga
is mó a chuireann bac ar mhúinteoirí agus ar an gcaoi a dtéann sé seo i bhfeidhm ar a
gcleachtas laethúil go hoideolaíoch.
Úsáideadh taighde feidhmeach le hiniúchadh a dhéanamh ar na ceisteanna taighde agus bhí
modhanna measctha neadaithe in úsáid. Roghnaigh an taighdeoir ceithre mhodh chun an teolas
a bhailiú- ceistneoir, triail, dialann athmhachnamh agus grúpa fócais. Líon deichniúr
isteach an gceistneoir agus as an deichniúr sin ghlac triúir páirt sa taighde. Bhí taithí
múinteoireacht idir dhá bhliain agus aon bhliain déag ag na rannpháirtithe agus rinne an triúir
acu iarchéim sa Oideachais.
Cuireadh triail ghramadaí ar na rannpháirtithe agus eagraíodh trí cheardlann ina dhiaidh sin
bunaithe ar na torthaí. Úsáideadh an múnla CAPA (Comhthéacsú, Feasacht, Cleachtas agus
Neamhspleáchas) chun idirghabháil a dhéanamh agus torthaí na hidirghabhála a anailísiú.
Coimeádadh dialanna machnaimh le linn na hidirghabhála chun taifead a dhéanamh de na
hathruithe a tháinig ar chleachtas agus ar fheasacht teanga na múinteoirí.
Léirigh na torthaí go raibh feabhas suntasach ar inniúlacht teanga na múinteoirí a ghlac páirt
san idirghabháil agus gur tháinig ardú ar a muinín a bhí acu ag baint úsáid as an nGaeilge mar
xi
sprioctheanga teagaisc sa seomra ranga. Tugann an staidéar seo léargas nua ar na bealaí is
fearr chun tacú le múinteoirí tumoideachais chun a scileanna teanga a fheabhsú agus na
dúshláin teanga a aithint agus a shainiú. Anuas ar sin, léirítear an tábhacht a bhaineann leis an
mhúnla CAPA a úsáid chun feabhas a chur ar cháilíocht an oideachais lán-Ghaeilge. Tá sé
soiléir go bhfuil gá le forbairt ghairmiúil leanúnach agus tacaíocht chuimsitheach a sholáthar
do mhúinteoirí chun an caighdeán is airde a bhaint amach i dtumoideachas. Tugann an
taighde seo moltaí praiticiúla maidir le cur chuige ar féidir le hoideachasóirí agus lucht déanta
beartas a chur i bhfeidhm chun dul i ngleic leis na dúshláin a aithníodh.N
Lights, camera, action!: using reader's theatre as an instructional strategy to develop children's fluency and motivation towards reading
No full textThe research has identified that there are many benefits of integrating drama with literacy
instruction (Stewig 1974; Bidwell 1990; Rose et al. 2000; Krueger and Ranalli 2003; Stinson
2015). There is ample evidence of reader’s theatre being used in the United States and Asia in
primary school settings (Rinehart 1999; Young and Rasinski 2009; Johnson 2011; Forney
2013; Black 2016; Marshall 2017; Young and Rasinski 2018). However, research had yet to
be conducted on the impact of reader’s theatre on primary school children in an Irish context.
Therefore, it was necessary to identify if drama strategies used to develop student’s reading
fluency and motivation had the same positive effects in an Irish setting.
The aim of this mixed methods study was to support twenty-seven second class students in
developing their reading fluency and motivation by implementing a reader’s theatre
intervention during team teaching, small group instruction. The intention of the research was
to facilitate the students in developing their reading fluency and motivation to read.
The research was conducted over a period of six weeks. Quantitative data was collected pre
and post intervention. The MASI-R Oral Reading Fluency Measure evaluated student’s reading
fluency and results were compared post intervention. Qualitative data was collected pre and
post intervention in the form of questionnaires and focus group discussions. Throughout the
intervention prosody rubrics were used during observations and a reflective diary was also kept
by the researcher. Both quantitative and qualitative data identified a significant increase in
student’s reading fluency and motivation to read.
Overall, the results correspond to previous studies on reader’s theatre. Therefore, it can be said
that reader’s theatre has a positive effect on student’s reading fluency and motivation to read
in the Irish education system.N