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Analysis of the Pišek competition results through the understanding of programming concepts, task formats and programming environment difficulties
Full text linkThe aim of this master thesis is to analyze the task characteristics that influence students' performance in solving tasks in the Pišek environment. To this end, we analyzed student performance in the third ACM School Pišek competition using machine learning methods.
In the theoretical part of the master's thesis, we presented the development of students' computational thinking skills in programming. We have described the advantages of programming and listed the computational, psychological and pedagogical skills that students develop while learning programming. We have presented the features of block-based visual programming environments and compared them with those of text-based programming environments. We listed and described programming concepts because knowledge of these concepts is critical to analyzing the data we collected. Programming concepts are basic building blocks that are linked together in various ways to create a program. Examples of programming concepts are: Sequence, Loop, Condition, Variable. We have described the competition tasks using programming concepts based on the expected solutions. For this purpose, we have previously designed a set of concepts suitable for describing the tasks of the third Pišek Experimental Competition, based on the set of programming concepts developed by the Pišek Competition Committee. Below, we looked at programming code at a higher taxonomic level and found basic examples of programming patterns for iterations. Programming patterns are software solutions to recurring algorithmic problems.
To describe the current state of programming education in Slovenia, we examined the inclusion of programming content in Slovenian curricula and in the K-12 framework for computer science education, which forms the basis of most established and accepted computer science curricula. We focused on the importance of competitions and described the programming competitions currently held in Slovenia. We have described in more detail the block-based Pišek Programming Competition, which aims to stimulate students' interest in programming and develop their programming skills, and to close the gap in the number of participants between the Bebras Competition in Computational Thinking and the RTK Competition in Programing. Using specific examples of the competition tasks, we described the basic features of the tasks, namely programming concepts, task representations, complexity of the programming environment, and required approaches to solving programming problems. In the empirical part, we tested the influence of the first three features on students' performance in the competition.
In the empirical part, we evaluated which tasks students solved best and worst by calculating a difficulty index and a discriminability index for each competition group, and which tasks discriminated best between students' performances. We then created machine learning models, Random Forests, for each competition group. In the predictive models, we used student performance as the outcome variable. As independent predictor variables, we used the derived concept variables indicating the presence of the selected concept in the successfully solved tasks, the opsini covariates on the task formats, and the difficulty of the programming environment. The task formats are: Moving a Figure on a Grid, Performing Tasks, Turtle Graphics, and Input-Output Tasks. Factors that increase the difficulty are the limited number of blocks and the use of tests in the solutions. In evaluating the importance of the predictor variables in the predictive models, we found that the task formats and difficulty factors have a similar influence on student performance in the third Pišek competition. In analyzing the influence of mastery of programming concepts, we found that two tasks whose solutions contain identical concepts can be of different difficulty.
In future work, we will investigate the influence of expected programming patterns on predicting student performance in the Pišek competition
A text-free picture book as a means of promoting speech-language development in the preschool child
Full text linkIn my dissertation I studied speech-language development in the preschool period. I focused on using a text-free picture book as a means of promoting speech-language development.
In the theoretical part, I defined language and speech and the factors and milestones of speech development. I described how we promote speech and language development and presented the development of storytelling of preschool children. I explained what a picture book is, writing the characteristics of literary works. I presented a text-free picture book in more detail and described the importance of use, criteria for choosing a quality picture book and gave some examples of text-free picture book.
In the empirical part, I presented the results of a research in which I found out how a text-free picture book helps the educator to promote speech and language development in preschool children. With a questionnaire filled out by 50 educators currently working in the second age group in one of the public kindergartens in Slovenia, I found that all participants use a text-free picture book and that they believe that a text-free picture book is a means of stimulating speech -language development. In addition, they use the text-free picture book to develop children's abilities and skills in other areas as well
Balancing schoolwork and sport for triad 1 and 2 pupils
Full text linkThe topic of my master's thesis was the coordination of school and sport activities for students in 1 st and 2 nd triad. Nowadays, many children spend their free time in leisure activities that are organised outside the regular, compulsory education at school. Research objectives are to find out what kind of attitude students have towards work and trainings, how much time they have left to fulfil their school commitments, whether they are encouraged to do school work by their coaches on the one hand, and what kind of demands their coaches make on them in terms of sport on the other hand. The aim of the survey is also to find out what the students' own expectations of success in sport are. In the theoretical part, I have defined the importance of children's involvement in sport, the importance of sport for children's development, as well as the theoretical frameworks of today's postmodern society. In writing the theoretical framework I have drawn on Slovenian and foreign literature. In the empirical part, I present the results of interviews I conducted with student athletes in 1 st and 2 nd triad. For the purpose of the research I conducted semi-structured interviews. Each interview was conducted individually with each student. The results showed that the students do not experience any strain and have satisfactory support for their school work at school and in their home environment. They are successfully performing and achieving the demands of both school and sport. They receive structured trainings appropriate to their developmental level. The research certainly has room for improvement. Nevertheless, I believe that it is relevant to our times and certainly interesting to extend
Use of the Teddy Talk screening test to determine the speech and language development of children between 4 and 5 years of age
Full text linkLanguage and speech development is an indicator of a child's development (Grilc, 2014). Children develop very quickly, and developmental scales indicate when most children reach speech and language milestones in their mother tongue. In addition, the child is expected to have reached milestones for a specific age group as he or she progresses into the next age group (Asha, b. d.). Receptive and expressive language is used in the context of speech and language developmental scales. In speech therapy, a combination of different approaches is used to assess speech and language, combining the analysis of spontaneous speech, the use of standardized scales and the assessment of parents and/or educators of children. In the assessment of speech and language screening, tests are also used, which are designed to obtain a quick assessment of many children's speech and language development and are therefore especially used in preschool. When choosing the appropriate screening test, we need to consider different variables, such as the language areas that are in the test and the time required to evaluate the test results. The screening test should cover receptive and expressive language tasks and be time-efficient, so it usually takes 5 to 10 minutes to complete.
Speech therapy is still being developed in Slovenia, so the range of diagnostic aids, including screening tests, is inadequate. In my master's thesis, I presented the Teddy Talk screening test. On a sample of sixteen children between the ages of four and five years, I determined whether the test provides representative data on a child's speech and language development. For the purpose of my master's thesis, I designed a questionnaire for parents, which provided information on parents' education, parents' mother tongue, gender of the child and the language that parents speak with their child. Furthermore, I looked for parallels of the child's score on the screening test. This master's thesis aimed to determine whether a foreign language test can be adapted to the Slovene-speaking environment with little change and thus expand the range of diagnostic aids in Slovene speech therapy
Preschool teachers' recognition of gender stereotypes in children's playing and learning
Full text linkIn my thesis paper I researched the recognition of gender stereotypes in children’s play and learning by kindergarten teachers. Gender stereotypes are certain preconceptions about what it means to be a boy or a girl. They refer to a person’s appearance, opinions, psychological characteristics, occupation, as well as interests, and originate from social context. The main goal of the paper was to research and check whether kindergarten teachers are aware of the importance of gender equality in their communication, educational work, reactions to a children’s emotional responses and in kindergarten children’s play. In the empirical part of my paper, I designed a questionnaire based on the findings of both foreign as well as domestic scholarly works on the topic and tried to find out to what degree kindergarten teachers were aware of the existence of gender stereotypes in children’s play, learning and behaviour. I was also interested in finding out which advantages do kindergarten teachers see in ensuring gender equality among children in their play, learning and behaviour. I wanted to determine which personal beliefs regarding gender stereotypes were being held by kindergarten teachers and how these beliefs differed based on their job position. I explored how often kindergarten teachers offered gender non-stereotypical toys to children of different genders in their group and in what other ways they tried to eliminate or decrease the amount of gender stereotyping in the play, learning and behaviour of children. 61 kindergarten teachers and 51 assistant kindergarten teachers from kindergartens all over Slovenia were included in the study. Based on the given results I concluded that gender stereotypes were still present in Slovenian kindergartens and that most teachers were aware of them, but they did not always fully recognise them. They try to do away with gender stereotypes through various methods. However, passive methods of doing so are still the predominant ones, despite the fact that ideally kindergarten teachers should try to reduce or get rid of gender stereotyping in an active way
Tailored sport education for a student with a long-term illness (case study)
Full text linkPupils with long-term illnesses, like all children, are included in all educational subjects. This also applies to the subject Sport. The aim of the master's was to identify the most common problems that a pupil with a specific long-term illness faces in the subject Sport. We wanted to know what kind of adjustments they need fort hem to be able to perform all the content withouth major difficulties and how physically effective they are compared to peers with normative development. The study, which was based on a case study, included a pupil who attended the first grade of the Adjusted Educational Programme with a lower educational standard in the 2021/2022 school year. As part of the study, the student was observed unstructured for 40 hours in sports lessons. We discovered that in most content written in the Curriculum for a tailored educational programme with a lower educational standard, the pupil faced difficulties and needs additional adaptations. We also determined that his movement efficiency was below average compared to their peers with normative development
Attitudes towards people with disabilities in selected areas of the former Yugoslavia
Full text linkIn the past, people had a negative and intolerant attitude towards people with special needs.
This affected their lives and made it impossible for them to integrate into the surroundings. The
main purpose of the master's thesis was to investigate the influence of various socio -
demographic characteristics on the formation of attitudes towards people with special needs in
the selected areas of former Yugoslavia. In the theoretical part, we first defined the term
Yugoslavia with the help of literature. The sample on which our researched part is based
consists of the population coming from different parts of the former Yugoslavia. According to
the legislative basis of the selected countries of the former Yugoslavia, we defined special
needs in the theoretical part and described each of the groups in detail. In the following, we
described the transition from the medical model to the social one and defined the concept of
integration and inclusion. In the following, we touched on the upbringing and education of
children with special needs. Finally, we explained the concept of attitudes.
The empirical part was based on a descriptive and causal-non-experimental method of
pedagogical research. The research was conducted on a sample of different professional
profiles in the selected areas of former Yugoslavia, namely Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro. The survey involved 296 people who answered closed-ended
questions submitted in the form of a survey. The socio-demographic characteristic of “place of
residence” is added to the hypothesis. We studied the influence of different socio-demographic
characteristics on the formation of attitudes towards people with special needs according to
gender, age, level of education, place and place of residence.
The results showed that the respondents who come from certain areas of the former Yugoslavia
have a positive attitude towards people with special needs. In the research work, we did not
find statistically significant differences between participants in terms of age and country of
residence. Statistically significant differences were found in the following socio-demographic
characteristics, namely between gender and place of residence. Men showed greater agreement
with the views than women. Statistically significant differences also emerged regarding
personal experience. People with less experience were more likely to agree. Respondents
pointed out that they least agree with statements such as: "I avoid eye contact with a person
with special needs" and "People with special needs are incompetent and useless members of
society." Findings: "People with special needs have the same needs for love, acceptance, work
and learning as people without them", "Society has a duty to adapt the environment to people
with special needs (accessibility, mobility, adaptation…)" and "Volunteering and participation
in humanitarian actions contributes to greater awareness and understanding of people with
special needs” are the statements with which the respondents most agreed
The role of textbooks in teaching and learning processes
Full text linkThe theme of this issue of the CEPS Journal is the role of textbooks in
teaching and learning processes. Nowadays, a range of learning resources are
used to support students in their learning process, among which textbooks are
the most notable. Textbooks play an important role in almost every school system
in the world, representing a useful resource for both teachers as course
designers and students acquiring knowledge. However, the use of commercially
published textbooks and other teaching and learning resources has advantages
and disadvantages, and it is this aspect that we initially wanted to explore in this
focus issue. We aimed to investigate the advantages and disadvantages of using
a textbook, as well as ways of adapting textbooks that provide teachers with an
opportunity to personalise teaching material and enable students to be more
actively involved in the learning process
Interview with Richard E. Mayer about multimedia materials and textbooks
Full text linkThis interview is part of the focus issue entitled “The Role of Textbooks
in Teaching and Learning Processes”, which aims to investigate the advantages
and disadvantages of using a textbook, as well as ways of adapting textbooks
that provide teachers with an opportunity to personalise teaching material and
enable students to be more actively involved in the learning process. The interview
was conducted online (exchanging emails back and forth between Ljubljana,
Slovenia and Santa Barbara, California, USA) in February 2021
Preschool teacher's perspective on the planning and implementation of science activities in the preschool years
Full text linkThe pre-school years represent the period when children use basic knowledge and skills to answer their own everyday questions. It is a period during which children try to understand primary concepts related to science. It is therefore important to introduce them to science at an early age in a way that is appropriate to them. The educator's work plays a very important role in children's science-related academic life in the future. From this point of view, we should be aware of the importance of science education and of supporting children in this direction by planning and implementing appropriate activities. In my thesis, entitled The educator's perspective on planning and implementing science activities in pre-school, I focused on researching the existing science practice in Slovenian kindergartens. In the theoretical part I defined what is natural science and further focused on natural science in pre-school and natural science in the national document for kindergartens. As educators are an important link in children's lives, I also presented the role of the educator, with a special focus on one of their tasks, asking question. In doing so, I further explained the different types of productive questions that educators should aim to use in their work. At the end of the theoretical part, I also devoted a few words to activity planning, presenting science procedures, working methods and forms of work. The second part of the thesis is an empirical part, in which I used research to gain insight into the current state of planning and implementation of science activities in Slovenian kindergartens. I found that science in pre-school is still somewhat relegated to the background, but that educators are aware of its importance for children's lives and are striving to improve the quality of their work. They still stick to more traditional methods of working and ways of teaching science to children, but there is already a shift towards more modern ways in the choice of teaching formats. More than half of the educators are more likely to use biological content, but progress is also being made here, with a fairly high proportion choosing to use all science content equally. There are still some barriers to planning and implementing science activities, but with the right approaches and commitment, educators can overcome them. However, I also found that the years of experience of the teachers and the location of the kindergarten in which they work do not have a significant impact on the planning and implementation of science activities