by Dang Van Hai, Nguyen Thi Huong, Pham Van Son, Ho Thi Thuy Le and Le Thuc Anh
Original Research
The article has analyzed the importance and identified appropriate contents, methods and forms of occupational education for students at secondary schools. From there, survey the current situation of occupational educLation for students in middle schools in the North Central region of Vietnam and draw out solutions such as recommendations to improve the quality of vocational education for junior high school students in the North Central region, Vietnam such as: Do well in communication education to raise awareness for administrators, teachers, parents, students and the community about vocational education for students; Diversify the contents, methods and forms of occupational education for students; Strengthening facilities and equipment for occupational education activities; Improve the efficiency of consulting and career orientation activities in the locality; Supplement and complete the policy on occupational education for secondary school students; Increasing investment of resources for occupational education activities; Diversify types of vocational training to promote vocational education, and stream students after secondary school.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2021, 9(9), 600-606. DOI: 10.12691/education-9-9-6
Pub. Date: September 28, 2021
by Rosemary Naana Kumi-Manu
Original Research
This study investigated the use of concept cartoons to diagnose and remedy pupils’ misconceptions in selected science concepts. The sample comprised 37 Junior High School (JHS) pupils and one science teacher in Abelemkpe Junior High School in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Completed worksheets of pupils on concept cartoons of selected science topics were discussed and analyzed to find out their misconceptions about the concepts under study. Results revealed that pupils had a host of misconceptions on the concepts. During class and group discussions, the pupils had the opportunity to compare their original ideas with the ones in the cartoons. They also listened to their peers’ explanations about the correct science concepts and built on their initial conceptual framework. These enabled the pupils to correct their misconceptions in an interactive environment through concept-cartoon based instruction. The results showed that concept cartoons could be used to determine pupils’ misconceptions of selected science topics to enable appropriate interventions to be designed to address them when possible. Concept cartoon is therefore recommended to be used by JHS teachers to teach science effectively.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2021, 9(9), 587-599. DOI: 10.12691/education-9-9-5
Pub. Date: September 24, 2021
by Sande Erunao Muwanguzi, Yuda Taddeo Kaahwa and Nicholas Itaaga
Review Article
Following today’s global volatile Covid-19 pandemic era, especially for the education sector in general and education institutions in particular, governments and other related stakeholders are already heavily embarking on innovating various digital platforms that can embrace distance learning for the millions of children that were sent home as well as survival mechanisms for privately remunerated teachers, whose salaries were heavily affected. In Uganda however, configuration of adequate advocacies aimed at averting the pervasive financial starvation among privately contracted teachers has been overshadowed. This literature review-based paper first reviewed the existing global pandemic pedagogies, before it surveyed the pandemic pedagogies implemented in Uganda, in view of assessing how these pedagogies have informed a pedagogically and economically feasible alternative long distance learning during the Covid-19 era. Lastly, the study discussed the feasibility of teacher generated pamphlets as a domesticated and thus redeeming pandemic pedagogy. The study found out that, since majority of the adopted Pandemic pedagogies globally or even in Uganda, are digital platforms that involve use of digital tools, they were not only found to be facing serious hiccups related to accessibility, connectivity and usability, apparently due to the pervasive digital divide in many developed and developing countries, but did not also address teachers’ financial starvation. The study therefore concluded that teacher generated Pamphlets can be feasible in overcoming such hiccups, and can support teachers financially during the pandemic closure of schools.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2021, 9(9), 580-586. DOI: 10.12691/education-9-9-4
Pub. Date: September 22, 2021
by John Mary Vianney Mitana, Jean Mary Wendo and Monica Fontana Abad
Original Research
It is not just a learning crisis but a teacher crisis! While Sub-Saharan Countries in general and, Uganda in particular, are grappling with poor learning outcomes at all levels, the ability of teachers and school leaders to respond to the learners’ needs to raise learning outcomes remains a major challenge. Teacher quality plays a central role if Sub-Sahara African countries are to accelerate early grade learning and raise retention in the subsequent grades. The purpose of this study was to explore how a collaborative self-study can be used to galvanise teachers and school leaders’ capacity to improve their practice through action research supervision. This study describes how a collaborative self-study was used in the supervision of action research using a mentorship process. We provide a retrospective account of our reflections on the actions and experience with our students (teacher trainees) during our research supervision. We present a collaborative self-study as a study method with a discursive power of generating research knowledge and improving our practice and that of the teacher trainees. In this self-study, we focused on our work with a sample of 13 (7 female, 6 male) teacher trainees. This research indicates that while self-study is faced with challenges of unfair competition from traditional research methods, it can be helpful in contextualising teacher education.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2021, 9(9), 571-579. DOI: 10.12691/education-9-9-3
Pub. Date: September 22, 2021
by Swandi Wiranata Sinurat, E. Elvis Napitupulu and Mulyono
Original Research
This study aims to determine: (1) Analyzing the effect size of the Problem-based Learning model on students' mathematical problem solving abilities; (2) To find out the meta-analysis of the effect of the problem-based learning model on students' mathematical problem solving abilities. Researchers meta-analyze journals about the effect of problem-based learning model on mathematical problem solving abilities with quantitative descriptive methods. The results showed that: (1) Of the 14 studies that met the criteria for a meta-analysis of the problem-based learning model in improving the mathematical problem solving ability of junior high school students, the highest effect size was 0.92; (2) The results of the meta-analysis of learning models on mathematical problem solving abilities are included in the large category with rRE = 0.53.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2021, 9(9), 566-570. DOI: 10.12691/education-9-9-2
Pub. Date: September 10, 2021
by John Mary Vianney Mitana, Gyaviira Musoke Genza and Anthony Mugagga Muwagga
Original Research
This article’s point of departure is the normative position that nurturing the ethical behaviour of teacher trainees requires something beyond masterly of a professional code of ethics. Although a codified professional code of conduct, as a form of deontological ethics, might be helpful in ushering teacher trainees into the teaching profession by explaining expected norms of behaviour, it is associated with certain critical weaknesses. This article argues for the complementarity of virtue ethics, which emphasises the interrelatedness of agents and commitment to the professional code of conduct and other institutionalised social values. Related teacher education management implications are highlighted.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2021, 9(9), 559-565. DOI: 10.12691/education-9-9-1
Pub. Date: September 03, 2021