University of Cumbria Open Access Journals
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A Critical Reflection on How Sensory Stories Facilitate High Quality Teaching and Learning for Children with Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities (PMLD)
Get PDFThis practitioner research paper is an investigation into the use of Sensory Stories in a class with children with PMLD and whether it constitutes as \u27High Quality Teaching and Learning\u27 with this cohort. The results suggest that the use of Sensory stories did indeed help students to reach their targets. This success may be partially or greatly due to the use of \u27intensive interaction\u27 in conjunction with the sensory stories and signposts further research into the two
A Student Feedback Form that Adds Real Value
Get PDFDuring the last decade, universities have endeavoured to continually improve the level of student satisfaction and learning experience. Student evaluative feedback is therefore critical to measure and track progress, and questionnaires are the principal means of collecting this data. In the UK, although the National Student Survey is used to solicit students’ opinions on the quality of their degree programmes, various types of Student Feedback Forms (SFFs) – or similarly named questionnaires – are employed at the local institutional level. There is no clear consensus on the value of such SFFs as a tool to bring significant improvement to the student learning experience. However, this study proposes that the often low impact and inconclusive results from the use of SFFs are largely due to inadequacies in the design, and implementation process of these questionnaires. Using a specific course that I teach as a case study, I show how a carefully designed SFF that was refined via a piloting exercise, led to clear, actionable outcomes. The SFF had high value in confirming what was working well and identifying areas for improvement. This case study may be used as a guide to improve the future design and implementation of SFFs for other types of courses and teaching programmes
‘Why am I having to do this?’: The nature and purpose of concurrent courses in Scottish primary teacher education
Get PDFIn his Report of a Review of Teacher Education in Scotland (2010), Donaldson presents the idea of the ‘twenty-first century teacher’. Central to this is the requirement for an ‘extended professionalism’ in which emphasis is placed on the development of the student teacher’s academic and intellectual qualities. This article aims to analyse the role of concurrent courses (i.e. university courses taken by education students outside of core education subjects) in the development of this extended professionalism. It does so by comparing it with the ‘graduate attributes’ agenda adopted by many universities, and by outlining two dimensions and three possible models of the relationship between concurrent courses and the purposes of teacher education. It is argued that one of these models best fits the word and spirit of the Donaldson Report, but that further research is required to establish how different models of concurrency have been, or might be, received by students and staff on Scottish primary education degrees
Journal Club: A mechanism for bringing evidenced based practice into school?
Get PDFSupporting the teacher to consider the value of using evidence based practice, and the contribution to this of the school-based Journal Club, this paper provides an account of an examination of teacher perceptions within one case study school. The examination, undertaken in partial fulfilment of the requirements of a Masters in Education degree, revealed there to be a gap between conceptual understanding and teaching practice, and that that gap was argued to be the consequence of the circumstances in which the teacher found themselves operating. Identified influences included the pressure of work, particularly the issue of the availability of time; but the extent to which the teacher had previously had involvement with research activities was also noted. Highlighted is the risk that a Journal Club can be perceived as little more than a \u27talking shop\u27; specifically that there is a fear that the potential a Journal Club has to support the individual to adopt an evidence based approach to their teaching may not be revealed and that the presence of that fear has an inhibiting influence on engagement
Teachers’ Voice Problems: Exploring a Possible Solution
Get PDFA mixed methods or multi-strategy research project considered the vocal demands on teachers in UK classrooms and their ongoing requirement for help. The study was in two parts, the first being a survey through questionnaires and interviews to ascertain the extent of voice problems among teachers and those training to become teachers. The second part collected other first-hand evidence through a detailed exploration with student teachers. It drew on the writings of an actor of the nineteenth/twentieth century, F.M. Alexander, who remedied his own voice problems by considering how they were part of his total approach to activity and what he called his ‘psychophysical use’. Considering the potential of this approach is important given the lack of voice training available to many teachers. The exploratory comparison of voice was conducted in a biomechanical laboratory where it was possible to replicate general vocal demand, to make detailed measures of voice quality, and to collect considerable quantitative data. An outline of the results is given. The research aims to contribute towards knowledge of the teacher’s voice and to inform provision for teachers in the UK and beyond. It demonstrates that further research is warranted and what form such research could usefully take
An investigation into whether there exists a relationship between a child’s drop-out levels from physical activity and their academic achievement
Get PDFThe overriding aim of this investigation was to determine whether or not a correlation exists between a child’s drop-out level from physical activities and their academic attainment. The sample population consisted of 114 Primary 6 pupils, 57 females and 57 males, aged 9 to 10 years. These individuals attend five schools across Northern Ireland, from a variety of social backgrounds in both rural and urban settings. For the purposes of collecting information pertaining to the chosen sample pupils, each individual completed a questionnaire detailing their current levels of participation in and their dropout rates from sporting/physical activities, including the type of activity in which they partake. Academic attainment was measured using standardised scores for the Progress in English (PIE) test. Stanine bands were used to group the standardised scores into three categories consisting of low, middle and high ability. Once the data was gathered, the results were added to a database using Microsoft Excel and presented in a variety of graphs to allow ease of comparison and analysis. The study revealed that there was little correlation between the pupils’ drop-out rates from physical activity and academic attainment. The study did however reveal that although drop-out rate may not produce a correlation, the current levels of participation do have a positive relationship with academic attainment
A Critical Study of Motivation and Social Constructivism in the Modern Foreign Languages Classroom
Get PDFThis literature review explores the many ways in which a social constructivist model of learning and teaching may enhance students’ motivation to learn a second language (L2). Socio-psychological perspectives and research methodologies are considered, alongside the integrative/instrumental orientations of motivation and the social constructivist nature of L2 learning
Separation and Divorce in the Primary School: A critical consideration of the nature, incidence and impact on children, and possible school responses, both proactive and reactive
Get PDFMany primary school children have to deal with parental separation and divorce. Though some argue it’s a private family matter, the contact that teachers have with pupils places them in an ideal position to provide support through this difficult time. This article proposes proactive and reactive strategies that schools can employ to prepare children with the resilience to cope with and overcome these traumatic events
How can I develop an ‘Expandable Intelligence’ using Lucas and Claxton’s ‘Expansive Talking Framework’ in maths?
Get PDFThis paper is a personal reflection of a student teacher’s decisions and actions towards trying to support pupils in developing the belief that their intelligence is expandable through effort and strategy. Using action research in their last year of teacher training I researched my influence over 30, aged 7-8, pupils’ attitudes towards maths learning over 8 weeks. Using Lucas and Claxton’s (2010) Talking Toolkit framework, which claims to support the development of ‘Expandable Intelligence’, to promote a growth mindset. This was done over a period of 8 weeks. In a reflexive turn it was identified that the Talking toolkit framework tool could not be used in isolation, other strategies and approaches were adopted. This research illustrates a reflection on pupils’ responses and my analysis against four habits of mind, chosen from Claxton (2002) Building Learning Power that supports the belief that intelligence is expandable. This research provides an example of a constant reflective log of my findings. The key finding from this research was that attitudes have the potential to be developed in the short term and expandable intelligence is a state of mind that transcends experiences and cannot be seen in just mathematics. This paper concludes with implications for future practice.
Teachers’ perspectives on the effectiveness of ‘Mantle of the Expert’ as a teaching strategy in the Early Years Foundation Stage
Get PDFThis is a paper focusing on the effectiveness of Mantle of the Expert within the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be looking into the teachers’ perceptions of Mantle of the Expert, what teaching strategies are used to implement Mantle of the Expert and whether it addresses all seven areas of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. An interpretivist approach was implemented and semi-structured interviews and observations were used to collect the data from a single educational setting. Participants were obtained through purposive and convenience sampling, as they were required to be Early Years Foundation Stage teachers practicing Mantle of the Expert, although data was only obtained from the teachers who were available on the day of the research. The findings show that teachers positively perceive Mantle of the Expert, where children develop academically and personally. However, Mantle of the Expert is not without its limitations, as it can be challenging to understand its concepts and to plan for. Overall, it would be advised that more schools should undertake a Mantle of the Expert teaching approach. However, with limited research available it may be deemed as risky due its different ways of meeting the curriculum.