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2014
Vol. 37. No. 3
© Copyright by Wydawnictwo Adam Marszałek
Toruń 2014
ISSN 1732-6729
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Drukarnia nr 1, ul. Lubicka 46, 87-100 Toruń, tel. 56 659 98 96
CONTENTS
Stanisław Juszczyk
Editor’s Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
GENERAL DIDACTICS
Ana María Ortiz Colón, Jairo Pontes de Oliveira,
Juan Manuel Trujillo Torres
Implementation of the M@IVES Website in Postgraduate Education . . . . . 19
Ivo Machar, Jan Činčera,Olga Vránová, Vilém Pechanec, Helena Kiliánová,
Jitka Málková
Innovation in Biology and Environmental Education Didactics
in Pre-Graduate Training of Secondary Biology Teachers in the
Context of Current Changes in the Education System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Zoran Kalinic, Slavko Arsovski, Zora Arsovski, Vladimir Rankovic
The Effectiveness and Students’ Perception of an Adaptive Mobile
Learning System based on Personalized Content and Mobile Web . . . . . . . 43
Moon Hyoung-jin, Nam Jong-ho, Kim Yong-deog
New Measures for the Improvement of History Education
for Chinese Students in South Korea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Enrique Sánchez Acosta, Juan José Escribano Otero, Gabriela Christie Toletti
Peer Review Experiences for MOOC. Development and Testing of
a Peer Review System for a Massive Online Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Yun Eun Kyeong
Teaching Arabic to Korean Students Using Films . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
SOCIAL PEDAGOGY
Shwu Ming Wu, Cheng Hong Yang, Wan Chen Hsu
Validation of School Core Competence Scale for Undergraduates:
Empirical Findings of Taiwan Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
4
Contents
Anna Młynarczuk-Sokołowska
Intercultural Non-formal Education Issues on the Agenda of Polish
Non-governmental Organizations – a research report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Vincent Charles, Tatiana Gherman
Factors influencing students’ choice of a B-school . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Eva Machů, Hana Červinková
Social Intelligence of Gifted Pupils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Dalliane Vanessa Pires Andrade, Jamerson Viegas Queiroz,
Fernanda Cristina Barbosa Pereira Queiroz, Gustavo Henrique Silva de Souza,
Nilton Cesar Lima, Jamil Ramsi Farkat Diógenes
The Importance of Total Quality Management Systems for Managers
of Brazilian Universities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Mariola Chomczyńska-Rubacha
Psychosocial and Organizational Aspects of Didactic Achievement:
Sex, School-type, and Self-esteem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Bing-Yuh Lu, Jin-Shin Lai, Ming-Chia Lin
An Experience of the Evergreen Elder University in Taiwan:
Perspectives On The Mobile Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
PEDEUTOLOGY
Katja Depolli Steiner
Teachers’ Pedagogical Beliefs as Predictors of Teacher Burnout . . . . . . . . . 177
E. Martínez-Figueira, M. Raposo-Rivas
Mentoring Student Training: What do mentors do? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Ahmet Tekbıyık
Science Teachers’ Expectatitons from Parents: To What Degree Do
Parents Think They Satisfy Such Expectations? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Maja Matrić, Katja Košir
Perceived Autonomy Levels among Elementary School Students and
Their Teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Šárka Portešová, Marie Budíková, Dana Juhová
Myths about Gifted Learners from the Perspective of Teachers . . . . . . . . . 229
Contents
5
Beata Pituła, Agnieszka Wilczyńska
Teacher as an Authority? Supporting the Student’s Sense of Belonging
to the School Community as a Condition for Their Development and
the Teacher’s Success in Educating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
CHOSEN ASPECTS OF PSYCHOLOGY
Lada Kaliská
First Results from Verification of Psychometric Properties of
D. Lennick’s and F. Kiel’s MCI Questionnaire for Measuring Moral
Intelligence in Slovak Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Liliana Ciascai, Lavinia Haiduc
Thinking Metacognitively: Metacognitive Skills and Science
Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Lenka Kollerová, Pavlína Janošová, Pavel Říčan
Moral Disengagement from Bullying: The Effects of Gender and
Classroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Simona Prosen, Helena Smrtnik Vitulić
Strategies of emotion regulation in students – future human relations
professionals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Rode Danuta, Bolek Magdalena, Cugowski Mikołaj
Individual and Educational Risk Factors for Violence Perpetration.
Prophylactic Aspects of Pedagogization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
CONTRIBUTORS
Arsovski Slavko
(Prof., PhD.)
Faculty of Engineering, University of
Kragujevac, Sestre Janjic 6, 34000
Kragujevac, Serbia
e-mail: [email protected]
Arsovski Zora (Prof., Faculty of Engineering, University of
PhD.)
Kragujevac, Sestre Janjic 6, 34000
Kragujevac, Serbia
Bing-Yuh Lu (PhD.)
Department of Electronic Engineering,
Tungnan Universtity 152, Sec. 3, Bai-Sheng
Road, Sheng-Keng Dist. New Taipei City,
Taiwan, (ROC)
e-mail: franklinlu888@
hotmail.com
Bolek Magdalena
(MA)
Institute of Psychology, University of Silesia, e-mail: magdalena.bolek@us.
Katowice, Poland
edu.pl
Budíková Marie
(PhD.)
Department of Mathematics and Statistics,
Faculty of Science, Masaryk University,
Kotlářská 2, Brno, Czech Republic
Červinková Hana
(Bc.)
Department of Pedagogical Sciences,
Faculty of Humanities, Tomas Bata
University in Zlín, Czech Republic
Cheng Hong Yang
(Prof.)
National Kaohsiung University of Applied
Sciences, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
e-mail: [email protected].
edu.tw
Chomczyńska-Rubacha Mariola
(Prof. PhD. Dr Sc)
Faculty of Educational Sciences, Nicolaus
Copernicus University, Gagarina Street No
9, 87-100 Toruń, Poland
Ciascai Liliana
(Prof.)
Associate Professor, Department of
Psychology and Educational Science,
Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca,
Romania
e-mail: liliana.ciascai@mail.
ubbcluj.ro
Činčera Jan
Faculty of Education, Technical University
of Liberec, Voroněžská 1329/13, 460 01
Liberec, Czech Republic
Cugowski Mikołaj
(MA)
Institute of Psychology, University of Silesia, e-mail: mikolaj.cugowski@us.
Katowice, Poland
edu.pl
Depolli Steiner Katja University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts,
(PhD.)
Ljubljana, Slovenia, Department of
Psychology, Aškerčeva 2, 1000 Ljubljana,
SI-Slovenia
e-mail: budikova@math.
muni.cz
website: http://www.math.
muni.cz/~budikova
e-mail: katja.depolli-steiner@
ff.uni-lj.si
8
Contributors
Escribano Otero Juan Division of Languages, Mathematics, and
José (PhD.)
Sciences – Tidewater Community College,
Spain
e-mail: juanjose.escribano@
uem.es
Eun-Kyeong Yun
(PhD.)
Department of Arabic, Hankuk University
of Foreign Studies, 270 Imun-Dong,
Dongdaemun-Gu Seoul 130-791, Korea
Farkat Diógenes
Jamil Ramsi
(M.Sc)
Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, e-mail: [email protected]
Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
Gherman Tatiana
School of Business and Economics,
Loughborough University, Leicestershire
LE11 3TU, UK
e-mail: tatiana.gherman@
gmail.com
Haiduc Lavinia (MA) Department of Psychology and Educational e-mail: lavinia_haiduc@
Science, Babes-Bolyai University, Clujyahoo.com
Napoca, Romania
Hyoung-jin: Moon
(PhD.)
Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, 81,
Oedae-ro, Mohyeon-myeon, Cheoingu,Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do, 449-791, Korea
Janošová Pavlína
(PhD. Dr. hab.)
Institute of Psychology, Academy of
Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague,
Czech Republic
cas.cz
website: http://www.psu.cas.
cz/people-contacts/index.
html
Jin-Shin Lai
(Prof.)
Department of Rehabilitation, National
e- mail: [email protected]
Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan,
ROC 7, Chung Shan S. Rd. (Zhongshan S.
Rd.), Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City 10002,
Taiwan (ROC)
Jong-ho: Nam
(PhD.)
Oedae-ro, Mohyeon-myeon,
Cheoin-gu,Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do,
449–791, Korea
Juhová Dana
Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk
e-mail: dana.juhova@mail.
University, Joštova 10, Brno, Czech Republic muni.cz
Kalinic Zoran
(PhD.)
Faculty of Economics, University of
Kragujevac, Djure Pucara 3, 34000
Kragujevac, Serbia
Kaliská Lada
(PhD. PaedDr)
Department of Psychology, Faculty of
Education, Matej Bel University, Ružová 13,
Banská Bystrica 974 11
Kiliánová Helena
Faculty of Education, Palacky University,
tř. 17. listopadu 1192/12 771 40 Olomouc,
Czech Republic
e-mail: helena.kilianova@
upol.cz
Contributors
9
Kollerová Lenka
(PhD., PhDr.)
Czech Republic, Hybernská 8, Prague 1,
110 00, Czech Republic
Košir Katja (PhD.)
Faculty of Education, University of Maribor,
Koroška cesta 160, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia
Lima Nilton Cesar
(PhD.)
Federal University of Uberlândia, Brazil
e-mail: [email protected],
website: http://www.facic.
ufu.br/
Machar Ivo
Žižkovo nám. 5, 771 40 Olomouc,
Czech Republic,
Machů Eva
(PhD., MA)
Department of School Pedagogy, Faculty of
Humanities, Tomas Bata University in Zlín,
Czech Republic
Málková Jitka
Faculty of Science, University of Hradec
Králové, Jana Koziny 1237,
500 03 Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
Martínez-Figueira E. Faculty of Education and Sport Sciences,
(PhD.)
University of Vigo, Campus A Xunqueira
s/n 36005 – Pontevedra, Spain
cas.cz
Matrić Maja
Faculty of Education, University of Maribor,
Koroška cesta 160, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia
Ming-Chia Lin
(MBA)
Center of General Education, Catholic St.
e- mail: [email protected]
Mary’s Junior College of Medicine, Nursing,
and Management, Yi-Lan, Taiwan (ROC)
100, Ln. 265, Sec. 2, Sanxing Rd., Sanxing
Township, Yilan County 266, Taiwan (ROC)
MłynarczukSokołowska Anna
(MA)
University of Białystok, Faculty of Pedagogy e-mail: annamlynarczuk@
and Psychology, Chair of Intercultural
tlen.pl
Education
Ortiz Colón Ana
María (Pro.f)
Vicerrectora de la Universidad de Jaén.
Campus Las Lagunillas, 23071, Jaén, España website: http://www4.ujaen.
es/~aortiz/index.html
Pechanec Vilém
Faculty of Science, Palacky University,
tř. 17. listopadu 1192/12, 771 46 Olomouc,
Czech Republic
Pereira Queiroz
Fernanda Cristina
Barbosa (PhD.)
Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, e-mail: fernandacbpereira@
gmail.com
website: www.ufrn.br
Pires Andrade
Dalliane Vanessa
(M.Sc)
Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, e-mail: dallianevanessa@
yahoo.com.br
e-mail: vilem.pechanec@
upol.cz
10
Contributors
Pituła Beata
(PhD. Hab)
Silesian University, Faculty of Pedagogy and e-mail: [email protected]
Psychology, Department of General
Didactics and Pedeutology,
ul. Grażyńskiego 53, 40-126 Katowice,
Poland, tel.: +48 605 601 065
Pontes de Oliveira,
Jairo (Prof.)
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência
e Tecnologia do Maranhão, Avenida Getúlio website: http://www.ifma.
Vargas, 04 Monte Castelo,
edu.br
São Luís-Maranhão – Brasil
CEP: 65030-005
Portešová Šárka
(PhD., doc.)
Institute for Research on Children, Youth
and Family, Faculty of Social Studies,
Masaryk University, Joštova 10, Brno,
Czech Republic
Raposo-Rivas M.
(PhD.)
Faculty of Education Sciences, University of e-mail: [email protected]
Vigo, Campus As Lagoas s/n 32004 –
Ourense, Spain
Říčan Pavel
(CSc. Prof. PhD.)
Czech Republic
Rode Danuta
(PhD. Hab.)
Institute of Psychology, University of Silesia, e-mail: [email protected]
Katowice, Poland
Sánchez Acosta
Enrique
(PhD.)
Department of Information Technology,
Automation, and Communications,
European University, Spain
Shwu Ming Wu
(Prof.)
National Kaohsiung University of Applied
Sciences, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
edu.tw
Silva de Souza
Gustavo Henrique
(M.Sc)
Researcher at Federal University of Alagoas, e-mail: souza.g.h.s@hotmail.
Brazil
com.br
website: www.ufal.br
Simona Prosen
(PhD.)
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of
Education, Kardeljeva ploščad 16, 1000
Ljubljana, Slovenia
e-mail: simona.prosen@pef.
uni-lj.si
Smrtnik Vitulić
Helena
(PhD.)
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of
Education, Kardeljeva ploščad 16, 1000
Ljubljana, Slovenia
e-mail: helena.smrtnik@pef.
uni-lj.si
Tekbiyik Ahmet
(PhD.)
Department of Elementary Science
Education, Recep Tayyip Erdogan
University, Faculty of Education, Cayeli –
Rize, Turkey, Tel.: +90 0 464 5328454 / 2302,
Fax: +90 0 464 5328612,
e-mail: ahmet.tekbiyik@
erdogan.edu.tr
[email protected]
website: http://akademisyen.
erdogan.edu.tr/akademisyen.
php?uyeid=p9y0b3g0e2o4r3a
3u3n6d0f5
website: http://www.
nadanedeti.cz
cas.cz
website: http://www.psu.cas.
cz/people-contacts/index.
html
Contributors
11
Toletti Gabriela
Christie (PhD.)
Foreign Languages and Literatures
Department – Old Dominion University,
Spain
Trujillo Torres, Juan
Manuel (Prof.)
Universidad de Granada, Campus de
Cartuja s/n. 18071, Granada, España
Website: www.jttorres.es
Viegas Queiroz
Jamerson (PhD.)
Adjuntc Professor at Federal University of e-mail: viegasqueiroz@
Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Norte, gmail.com,
Brazil
Charles Vincent
CENTRUM Católica Graduate Business
School, PUCP, Lima, Peru, Calle Daniel
Alomía Robles 125-129, Los Álamos de
Monterrico, Santiago de Surco, Lima 33,
Peru
Vránová Olga
Žižkovo nám. 5, 771 40 Olomouc,
Czech Republic
Wan Chen Hsu
(PhD.)
Center for Teaching & Learning
Development, National Kaohsiung
University of Applied Sciences, Kaohsiung,
Taiwan
Wilczyńska
Agnieszka (PhD.)
Institute of Psychology, University of Silesia,
ul. Grażyńskiego 53, 40-126 Katowice,
Poland
Yong-deog: Kim
(Prof., PhD.)
Oedae-ro, Mohyeon-myeon,
Cheoin-gu,Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do,
449-791, Korea,
e-mail: kimwielki@hanmail.
net
Stanisław Juszczyk
Editor’s Preface
The third number of The New Educational Review in 2014 is the thirty-seventh
issue of our journal since the start of its foundation in 2003. In this issue there are
mainly papers from: Brazil, the Czech Republic, Peru, Poland, Romania, Serbia,
the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, and Turkey, because
our journal is open for presentation of scientific papers from all over the world.
In the present issue the Editors’ Board have proposed the following subject
sessions: General Didactics, Social Pedagogy, Pedeutology, and Chosen Aspects
of Psychology.
In the subject session “General Didactics” we publish six articles. The article
by Ana Maria Ortiz Colón and her co-workers describes implementation of the
M@IVES website in postgraduate education of students in Brazil. Ivo Machar
and his co-workers analyse the results of a survey conducted among graduates of
Master’s courses in Teacher Education in Biology to determine their opinions on
the importance of biology and environmental education didactics during their
pre-graduate studies. The study by Ahmet Tekbıyık aims to determine teachers’
expectations from parents for effective science teaching and reveal parents’ beliefs
on how much they satisfy such expectations. The paper by Zoran Kalinic and his
co-workers presents the implementation and evaluation of the effectiveness and
students’ attitudes toward an adaptive mobile learning system based on personalized content and mobile web. The objective of the research by Hyoung-jin Moon,
Jong-ho Nam and Yong-deog Kim is to find a more effective method for the teaching of history to Chinese students studying in South Korea universities. The paper
by Enrique Sánchez Acosta and his co-workers discusses the results obtained by
the most commonly used massive online course platforms, detailing their features
and limitations, as well as the experience in the implementation and use of a peer
review system for a course of more than 7300 students. The research described by
Eun-Kyeong Yun aims to study the application of using films in teaching the Arabic
language to Korean students.
14
Stanisław Juszczyk
The subject session “Social Pedagogy” consists of seven articles. The study by
Shwu Ming Wu and his co-workers aims to validate the 25-items School Core
Competence Scale of the National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences in
Taiwan. The purpose of the article by Anna Młynarczuk-Sokołowska is to present
the results of the research on the issue discussed in the educational initiatives
undertaken by Polish non-governmental organizations. The research described
by Vincent Charles and Tatiana Gherman is a primary initiative in the Peruvian
literature for understanding the factors which influence undergraduate students’
choice of a B-school offering a Master’s Degree in Business Administration. The
article by Eva Machů and Hana Červinková describes research whose aim was
to find differences between the social intelligence structure of gifted children
and children with no diagnosed giftedness. The purpose of the paper by Dalliane
Vanessa Pires Andrade and her co-workers is to analyse, from the perspective of the
manager, the importance of the use of tools and concepts of quality management
in the Brazilian federal universities. The results of empirical studies presented by
Mariola Chomczyńska-Rubacha concern the relation between academic achievement and sex, type of school, and self-esteem, as well as self-esteem and sex, school
level, and academic achievement. Bing-Yuh Lu, Jin-Shin Lai and Ming-Chia Lin
describe the compared results of empirical research on senior persons in the UK
and in Taiwan who used the advanced mobile technologies to get the conveniences
of the elder’s living.
In the subject session “Pedeutology” we publish six articles. The study described
by Katja Depoli Stainer examines the relationship between teachers’ pedagogical
beliefs and their experience of burnout. In their paper, E. Martinez-Figueira and
M. Paposo-Rivas look into the role of mentors in student training given it is of
paramount importance and at times both unknown and undefined. In order to
estimate perceived autonomy levels in the classroom, Maja Matrić and Katja Košir
decided to compare teachers’ perceptions with students’ ones, gaining a more
accurate idea of the autonomy levels present in the classroom. The aim of the
paper presented by Šárka Portešova and her co-workers is to find out whether
Czech and Slovak teachers are affected by myths about gifted learners. Beata Pituła
and Agnieszka Wilczyńska show the importance of the teacher’s authority in the
modern school.
In the subject session “Chosen Aspects of Psychology” we publish five articles.
Lada Kaliská describes the theoretical and empirical studies that verify the new
construct of moral intelligence. The study presented by Liliana Ciascai and
Lavinia Haiduc aims to identify the relations between metacognitive skills and
science performance. Lenka Kollerová and her co-workers examine the effects of
Editor’s Preface
15
gender and classroom membership on moral disengagement cognitive justifications of detrimental conduct. In their article, Simona Prosen and Helena Smrtnik Vitulić describe selected emotion regulation strategies in students of primary
education in Slovenian schools. Danuta Rode and her co-workers explain the
issue of risk factors for high aggression of women taking action of a violent
nature.
We hope that this edition, like previous ones, will encourage new readers not
only from the Central European countries to participate in an open international
discussion. On behalf of the Editors’ Board I would like to invite representatives
of different pedagogical sub-disciplines and related sciences to publish their texts
in The New Educational Review, according to the formal requirements placed on
our website: www.educationalrev.us.edu.pl – Guide for Authors.
General
Didactics
Ana María Ortiz Colón,
Jairo Pontes de Oliveira,
Juan Manuel Trujillo Torres
Spain & Brazil
Implementation of the M@IVES Website
in Postgraduate Education
Abstract
M@IVES research addresses the trajectory of Brazilian graduate students and
their attitude to the development of educational technology through a pretestposttest quasi-experimental process with experimental and control groups. It
has included the design methodology of research since the establishment of the
problem posed by the institutions of graduate work in guidance to course work.
It analyzes data gathered in the field of research and in light of Brazilian reality.
It enhances the development of a new teaching methodology, supported by educational technology – M@ IVES – for research specialization courses Education
Area offered in the city of São Luís. It demonstrates, by building Site M@IVES
and study developed, the limits and educational opportunities offered by the new
methodology presented.
Keywords: postgraduate studies, educational technology, teaching methodology,
multimedia
Introduction
Over the last few years Brazilian universities have been facing a sharp growth of
mass education. This phenomenon has negatively influenced specialization courses
and has caused a significant increase in the number of students per counselor. In
order to find a response to the problem outside the political arena, a solution was
suggested from the area of pedagogy, with the use of new teaching methodology
and supported by virtual technologies.
20
Ana María Ortiz Colón, Jairo Pontes de Oliveira, Juan Manuel Trujillo Torres
The purpose of the investigation was analysis of the Methodology of Postgraduate Education supported by Educational Technology in order to solve problems
that arise during the orientation stage of final course projects in Brazil. The investigation is centered around three main areas, where different plans of action are
considered (Amador y Dorado, 2006) to address the objective: the area of scientific
investigation methodology, the area of web design in the framework of educational
technology and finally, the area of the educational process – learning through
virtual models (Ballesteros et al., 2010). In this paper we present the most relevant
conclusions of the research conducted on two groups (experimental and control)
and a pretest-posttest, with the new methodology in postgraduate education
utilized with one of the groups.
In terms of the area of methodology in scientific investigation, numerous
studies can be found (Rusavin, 1990; Baptista, Fernández y Hernández, 2003)
showing a tendency towards quantitative investigation – methodology, hypothesis,
variables, tables, graphs and epistemological models of investigation. Recently,
however, new models of a more qualitative nature have been observed, as in the
case of the studies by Fazenda (2002).
An adaptation of the model proposed by Area (2005) was decided upon during the creation of M@IVES in reference to the construction and use of websites
in university teaching. Building on line of multimedia work, a website has been
worked upon, with important advances made, particularly related to the graphical
layout in sequential forms of icons and the adaptation of the website to Brazilian
reality (Nó, 2005).
For Area (2005), various means of information technology represent the combination of what is referred to as new technologies, which are characterized by
developing, using and combining indistinctly any modality of symbolic codification of information. The most salient point of the study is the historical recovery of
the project of Gros (1987), in reference to the evolution of computer programs, the
procedures of learning and the design of software and its application in education
(Area, 2005).
On the other hand, it is important to note that the large investment made in
universities to train professors in the field of technology in educational practice
has not managed to fill in large gaps in training among professors. In general,
training continues to be deficient, and not just in the handling of technology or
devices, but more fundamentally in their didactic or educational use (Ballesteros
et al., 2010).
The main innovations in postgraduate education that the internet makes possible are related to the possibility of allowing students who for any reason can-
Implementation of the M@IVES Website in Postgraduate Education
21
not attend classes in person to enroll in academic studies. The instruction gains
dynamism since the knowledge is constructed from different sources, selected and
mediated by students and teachers. A temporal discontinuity is allowed among the
individuals involved in the process of teaching and learning through the internet;
the physical limits of the university are extrapolated, favoring both internationalization and study promoted and mediated by the internet, giving students more
autonomy (Area, 2005).
In regard to the teaching-learning process through virtual models, the most
significant advances in this area come from the perspective of the teacher, in
its application in courses of the investigative component of the curriculum in
a postgraduate degree in education (Salinas, 2008). This allows courses such as
Methodology of Scientific Investigation, Introduction to Pedagogical Investigation, Investigative Methods and Skills and Workshops I and II to focus on the
development of the Final Course Project (TCC).
As designed, the website will allow for the development of activities that assess
student autonomy, establish resources banks, make it possible to resolve doubts
in real time, or not in real time, break the traditional models of education that
are constrained by the geographical space of the university, allow virtual interaction (chat, forums, email, etc.) bringing us closer to face-to-face models of virtual
education (Casas y Stojanovic, 2013).
In reference to the construction of the M@IVES website, the proposal that was
developed is similar to the extensive work of important authors in similar fields:
Proença (1990), Area (2002), Cano (2001), Salinas (2005) y Ortiz (2011). Thus,
the M@IVES is grouped with the programs of Computer-Assisted Education and,
more precisely, the programs of demonstration (Cano, 2001), given its character of
education personalized to the real needs of each pupil in the developmental phase
of the TCC and, in some cases, those of simulation.
The theoretical basis that supports M@IVES is, in the perspective of the levels
established by Area (2005), between level III of blended courses and level IV of
Virtual Education. The nature of M@IVES is that of training with pedagogical
simulations, didactic materials, review activities, teaching programs and other
elements.
The activities of Project M@IVES address the concepts of Amador and Dorado
(2006) in terms of the evaluation phases of the diagnosis of training needs, the
concept of the technological model to develop the psycho-pedagogical guidelines
that support the creation of the M@IVES website, the analysis of both the viability
and social impact, the supervision of the design process and the production and
evaluation of the technological model.
22
From the approaches described and analysis of problems experienced in
departments of postgraduate studies in education in Institutions of Higher Education (IES), the following research problem was settled upon: Does educational
technology improve the orientation phase of Final Course Projects (TCC) in the
postgraduate courses in the field of education?
Based on the aspects that were analyzed, the general aim of our study consisted of designing and applying a new methodology of instruction supported
by educational technology for the TCC stage of postgraduate courses. Along
these lines, the specific aims are: (1) to analyze the theoretical basis of the postgraduate courses of study supported by virtual models in Brazil; (2) to design
the M@IVES website on the methodology of higher education; (3) to implement
the new methodology of education with the M@IVES website at the Instituto
de Enseñanza Superior Franciscano (IESF). To reach the general aim, we suggest a hypothesis that postgraduate students exposed to the educational actions
supported by the M@IVES website present better epistemological foundation in
the production of Final Course Projects (TCC) than those within the traditional
system.
Research Methodology
Procedure
The investigation can be characterized, on the one hand, as a document study
and on the other hand as a semi-experimental pretest-posttest with experimental
and control groups. The study consists of the comparison of two methods of
postgraduate education: the traditional methodology and the new methodology
supported by educational technology.
A multivariate study has been outlined, which establishes two independent
variables (systemization of the set of operations of monographic orientation (x),
technological – educational web applications (y)) and four dependent variables
(command of creation of the theoretical foundations (a), command of the
methods and skills of scientific investigation (b), command of the standards
of the development of the TCC (c), speed in completing the TCC (d)). Once
the variables were defined in their conceptual definition, working definition,
markers and scale, the presentation of a codebook and its matrix was necessary
in order to show the principal theoretical and/or practical elements of every
variable, as a guide to the data collection tools used with the subjects of the
investigation.
23
Sampling
The taxonomy of Gresller (2003) was chosen for the definition of the sampling,
selecting a random-probability sampling type among professors, students and
alumni of the Institutos de Educación Superior (IES), which offers postgraduate
courses in Ciudad de San Luis (Brazil). The size of the sample was defined in
accordance with the formula proposed by Labes (1998) for the phase of diagnosis,
the invited Institutions were: FAMA, IESF, FSF, UNICEUMA, FACAM – MA,
UFMA and UEMA, with the resulting sample consisting of 66 teachers, 196
students and 284 alumni, with a margin of reliability of 95%, out of a total study
population of 79 teachers, 382 students and 973 alumni.
The sampling of the students in the semi-experimental study in the Instituto de
Educación Superior Franciscano (IESF), in the phase of application of the methodology of education, answered to intentional and not probabilistic selection, due
fundamentally to the accessibility of the group composed by 42 students, divided
into two subgroups, the experimental and control group, the students signed up in
a voluntary way, according to their knowledge of information technology, so two
subgroups of 21 students were formed.
Instruments
A diagnosis questionnaire of the data collection tools was applied to the selected
sample in order to analyze the principal difficulties of the teachers in the work
of TCC’s orientation. In the case of the students and alumni the purpose was
to detect the control of methods and necessary skills to elaborate the TCC. The
questionnaire is composed of 12 items in order to determine its reliability and
validity by means of the coefficient of Cronbach’s internal consistency (. 90) and
reliability (. 93) across the test retest.
A Likert-type scale was developed to apply to the control and experimental
groups of the IESF at different moments of the research: a) Pre-test, b) a test before
the experiment c) a test during the experiment (even with the control group) and
d) a post-experimental test) and to the specialized teachers of the Methodology
of the Investigation groups. The scale is composed of 22 items with the validity
obtained by Cronbach’s coefficient (.89) and the reliability of the test-retest of 0.92.
The fundamental aim of the scale was to check the independent variable (y) of the
technological-educational website applied.
For document analysis, an information sheet of document observation
composed of 22 items was developed, which was designed to identify existing
24
foundations as to gather information that had already been disseminated as the
normalization of monographic work, the development of ongoing projects and
investigations, the methodology of the scientific work, didactics of higher education and multimedia technology.
Research Results
Firstly, the testing of the variables and the hypothesis are presented, collecting the values of each variable yielded by the research tools and then each of
the items that these tools contain. This allows for a contrast with the proposed
hypothesis to be seen. Next, we present the results obtained in the development
of the epistemological foundations related to the investigation, the construction
of the M@IVES website, and finish with the new teaching methodology based on
the M@IVES website and the results obtained in the pretest-posttest performed
on the experimental and control groups at the IESF.
Table 1. Values for tabulation and calculation of reliability variable (a).
(Prepared by authors)
Item
Correct answer
Incorrect answer
Concept FT
Value 1
Value 0
Function FT
Value 1
Value 0
Relevance FT
Value 1
Value 0
Item 4
Use of classics
Item 5
Update of the theoretical Foundation
Item 6
Coherence of the FT
Item 7
Use of non-specialized dictionaries
Item 8
Inappropriate sources
Item 9
< 2 Classics
From 2 to 4
Classics
> 4 Classics
20
10
20
50% (Equal to or less than
5 years)
50% (more than 5 years)
10
20
Coherent + 70%
Coherent – 70%
10
20
Less than or equal to 1
More than 1
10
20
Less than 2
More than or equal to 2
20
10
More than 8 references
Equal to or less than 8
references
25
Item
Correct answer
Incorrect answer
10
20
Excessive reference to theory
Item 10
Excessive use of citations
More than 50%
(text)
Between 50%
and 20% (text)
Less than 20%
(text)
10
20
10
The following table gives detailed responses given by the students in the control
group (1 to 3) and the analysis of finished TCCs (4-10) relative to variable “a.”
The analysis of the behavior of the variable as well as the relationship between
the results of the experimental group and the control group are shown, with an
observed improvement of over 80% in the experimental group, which shows that
the variable is true.
Table 2. Model for variable testing, Theoretical and Practical dimension (a).
Items
Group
Average percentage of
correct answers
Result
1 to 10
Experimental group
91
True variable
1 to 10
Control group
68
False variable
Conditions
= or > 80% True variable
< 80% False variable
Next, a transposition of the average value achieved by the experimental group
and the control group was conducted. This can be observed in the following table,
according to the predetermined condition that variable “b” be considered a correct
answer on obtaining a value over 80%.
Table 3. Test of Theoretical and Practical dimension of variable (b).
Items
Group
correct answers
Result
1 to 20
Experimental group
86.4
True variable
1 to 20
Control group
58.8
Condition
26
Additionally, a transposition of the average value achieved by the experimental
group and by the control group was performed. In the following table, based on
the predetermined condition, variable “c” was confirmed as true, as the median
percentages obtained by the experimental group was averaged at over 80%.
Table 4. Test of the variable theoretical and practical dimension (c).
(Own elaboration)
Items
Group
correct answers
Result
1 to 20
Experimental group
86
True variable
1 to 20
Control group
67
Condition
Subsequently, we contrasted variable “d,” as shown in the following table, observing changes in the variable in relation to the experimental and control groups.
These changes allow for the statement that the Final Course Projects of the experimental group, which were completed in less time, were superior to those of the
control group. Therefore the variable is true.
Table 5. Contrast of the variable (d). (Prepared by authors)
Group
Average time
Average mark of TCC
Result
Experimental
262
9.0
Superior
295
8.4
Inferior
Table 6. Synthesis of the results of the tests of variables. (Prepared by authors)
Variables
Experimental
G.
Control
G.
x
94.5
69.2
Exp. G > Control G. (+) result
No difference
Internal contrast teachers and students (+) result
(Scale from 0 to 1000)
y
810
Result
a
91
68
b
86.4
58.8
c
86
67
d
262
295
Exp. G< Control G. (+) result
27
Following the application of M@IVES, the median of the answers from the
experimental group was 89.4, with a standard deviation of 11.82, and from the
control group 65.8, with a standard deviation of 14.21. Comparing both groups
by means of an ANOVA analysis, there were statistically significant differences
(p<0.0001).
In the study, we wanted to find out if statistically significant differences between
the object of the study groups really exist at the moments of the pretest and the
posttest. In the first place, Leve’s Test was realized to analyze the possible existence of differences in the variance of the experimental and control groups. In the
pretest of the experimental group, p = 0.057 and in the control group, p = 0.595, in
both cases p > 0.01. In the posttest of the experimental group, p = 0.268 and of the
control group, p = 0.105, also p> 0.01, for which there are no significant differences
in the homogeneity of the variance. In this way, both the control group and the
experimental group can be considered homogeneous.
The test for the independent variable X, of a practical and theoretical character,
was designed in order to obtain the perceptions of the students about the teaching
methodology applied in the experimental and control groups in relation to the
instruction and workshops on the Final Course Project in the didactics of higher
education course at the IESF.
Regarding variable Y, the test was not given to the control group, as the students
were not exposed to instruction through the M@IVES website. In terms of the
students of the experimental group, the test can be considered satisfactory.
Additionally, the tests performed with dependent variables a, b, c and d were
positive, confirming the suggested hypothesis in this study.
It should also be emphasized that the description of the methods of study, the
presentation of the reliability of the sample based on a defined population, as well
as the test related to the reliability and validity of the data collection methods, with
rigorous control of the common sources of mistakes in the experimentation, all
contribute in a significant way to the results of this study.
As for the study of the methodology of education applied, we kept to the
methodology that would be applied in the experiment in terms of instruction
and workshops related to the investigation of the postgraduate course in
didactics of higher education at the IESF, with the main objective of improving
the quality of orientation in the TCC. The following courses of action stand out:
a) development of new plans and programs for fields of study, b) adaptation of
the curriculum from a multidisciplinary point of view, c) specification of the
methods and skills to be applied, with special value placed on practical research,
d) presentation of the final design of the teaching methodology, from diagnosis,
28
in reference to the aims, content, skills, capabilities, references, timelines and
other elements.
All the variables obtained results of over 80%, much higher than the results
obtained by the control group and quite significant in relation to the information collected in the diagnostic study. The improvements shown in the study
of the variables and the experiences of the students exposed to epistemological
educational activities based on the website demonstrate a better epistemological
foundation in the development of the TCC.
Conclusions
In conclusion, we can affirm that the students exposed to the epistemological
and educational actions, in the form of Systemization of the set of operations of
monographic orientation – (variable x), supported by the technological-educational
M@IVES website – (variable Y), demonstrate a better epistemological foundation
in the development of the TCC, with this premise being demonstrated by control
of the construction of the theoretical foundations (variable a); control of the
methods and skills of scientific investigation (variable b); control of the procedure
for the development of the TCC (variable c); and the speed in completing the TCC
(variable d).
In sum, the study presents the following significant advances: from the theoretical point of view its principal contribution resides in presenting a plan of action for
postgraduate education aimed at the orientation and development of a TCC in the
specialized courses. From the methodological point of view, the study represents
an advancement in the conception of an innovative methodology of teaching and
learning by means of educational technology.
In reference to the tools of the M@IVES website, the forum and the chat, they
suppose a differential for the methodology of education, considering its potentials
of exchange of experiences, orientations and training for every work of conclusions of developed course.
The study tries to open the way for another more general study that involves
other Brazilian Institutions and that confirms the findings exposed with a methodology and a web support relied on the educational Technology similar to the
exposed ones. It is considered necessary to continue research, going into detail
about each of the components of the M@IVES website, adapting it to the new
legislation both at the European level and international level.
29
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Ivo Machar, Jan Činčera,
Olga Vránová, Vilém Pechanec,
Helena Kiliánová, Jitka Málková
Czech Republic
Innovation in Biology
and Environmental Education Didactics
in Pre-Graduate Training of Secondary Biology Teachers
in the Context of Current Changes
in the Education System
Abstract
The authors conducted a survey among graduates of Master’s courses in Teacher
Education in Biology to determine their opinions on the importance of biology and
environmental education didactics during their pre-graduate studies. Results of
the survey indicated some existing deficiencies in pre-graduate teaching of biology
and environmental education didactics and raised suggestions for innovation. The
survey of 119 respondents was conducted in 2009. Most respondents considered
the benefit of their pre-graduate Teacher Education in Biology degree sufficient for
their own knowledge in biology, while considering the benefit of a pre-graduate
course for their own pedagogic and didactic competencies a small one. The survey
proved that most graduates of Teacher Education in Biology studies ranked the
subject of biology didactics among the key modules of their pre-graduate degree
course and identified several strengths and weaknesses in the teaching of biology
didactics. The respondents who were professionally involved in Environmental
Education viewed the absence of special didactics of environmental education
and limited time allocation for teaching practice as shortcomings of their pregraduate course structure. Based on this research, two educational projects were
designed, allowing for the implementation of innovated didactics of biology and
environmental education together with specialized teaching practice for biology
teacher education students in collaboration with several Czech universities and
participating foreign lecturers.
Ivo Machar, Jan Činčera, Olga Vránová, Vilém Pechanec, et al.
32
Keywords: didactics of biology and environmental education, innovation, biology teachers.
Introduction
Subject-matter didactics plays an integral part in the curriculum of teacher
education (Shulman 1987), as the level of didactic knowledge of the curriculum
content and methods of its interpretation to students significantly determine
the quality of a given teacher. Didactics of biology has seen, among other things,
a growing emphasis on the importance of research-oriented teaching of biology
and ecology (Činčera 2007).
In addition to their didactic knowledge of curriculum content, the effectiveness
and quality of the teacher’s work is conditioned by their teaching skills which
reflect didactics to a significant degree (Kyriacou 1996). Teachers should learn
the basics of their teaching skills during their pre-graduate studies. It is therefore
requisite to continually look for teaching practice innovation throughout the pregraduate training of future teachers.
The authors, motivated by their efforts to look for optimum means of innovation in the didactics of biology and environmental education, conducted a survey
among graduates of Teacher Education in Biology to determine their opinions on
the importance of biology and environmental education didactics during their
pre-graduate studies. The aim of the paper is to present results of this research and
their application in project innovation of didactics of biology and environmental
education at Palacky University in Olomouc. The paper also discusses feedback
received from the participants in this project innovation in the context of current
changes in the education system.
Methods
Research on the target group of graduates of Master’s courses in Teacher Education in Biology at Palacky University Olomouc was conducted in 2009 in the form
of a questionnaire survey (Chráska 2007). The primary aim of the research was
to evaluate the benefit of pre-graduate didactics of biology and environmental
education (EE) for teaching practice from the perspective of Master’s degree
graduates who work as secondary biology teachers teaching the 11 – 15 age range,
33
exceptionally also as biology teachers teaching the 16 – 19 age range, or working
as lecturers of Environmental Education (hereinafter EE).
A questionnaire with closed-ended questions was applied in the research
(Gnitecki 1993). The questionnaire was divided into two parts: (1) Basic information about the respondent, (2) Evaluation of the content and benefit of the
completed courses of biology and EE didactics during the pre-graduate Teacher
Education in Biology studies with respect to its significance for the current teaching practice of the respondent. The respondents were given the option to add
their own commentary to the closed-ended questions used in the questionnaire.
The questionnaire response rate was 64%. A total of 119 respondents took part in
the survey; all of them graduated from Teacher Education in Biology at Palacky
University Olomouc between 1999 and 2008.
To determine the degree of reliability of the questionnaire data, comparison
of data obtained from two equal samples, formed from the basic sample as a representative selection, was conducted. The rate of agreement between respondent
responses in both randomly generated samples was expressed using Cohen’s coefficient (Mareš 1983):
κ=
p p − p0
1 − p0
(1)
where κ is the Cohen coefficient, pp is the observed agreement and po is the
expected agreement. The test of statistical significance of the calculated coefficient
κ was calculated by a standardized normal variable using a criterion according to
the following formula:
u=
κ
p0
n.(1 − p p )
(2)
where u is the value of the standardized normal variable and the remaining symbols correspond to those in formula (1).
The analyzed survey results were used to design a project of innovation in didactics of biology and environmental education under the Operational Programme
Education for Competitiveness (OPEC) called “Environmental Education in Practice” (Machar 2011). Preparation of new study subjects (referred to as “courses” in
project terminology) drew on the accentuating activating teaching methods and
enhancing research-oriented instruction of biology in teaching practice.
34
At the end of every project course the course was evaluated by its participants –
pre-graduate students of Teacher Education in Biology – in the form of evaluation
questionnaires with closed-ended questions. The output of these evaluations served
as inspiration for the design of a follow-up project “Partnership for Enhancing
Communication in Nature Conservation (KONEV)” under OPEC. This project
facilitated the enhancement of pre-graduate courses in both Teacher Education
in Biology and Biological Sciences, specifically by including wider application of
subject-matter didactics in students’ teaching practice with potential employers.
Results
Determination of reliability of the survey results proved to be satisfactory, as the
calculated value of the Cohen coefficient for the survey results obtained was 0.811
and as such may be considered satisfactory with respect to the agreement between
randomly selected respondents. This finding therefore meets the requirement for
reliability of the research methods applied. The value of standardized normal
variable 6.01 upon significance level 0.01was higher than the critical value (2.58)
for the two-tailed test, it may be therefore noted that the calculated coefficient
reveals a statistically significant agreement between respondent responses in the
conducted survey.
Out of the set of 119 Teacher Education in Biology graduates who studied
during the monitored period 1999 – 2008 (Figure 1), most (72%) work in education at present. 69 persons (80%) work as biology teachers at lower secondary
schools, 5 persons (6%) work as EE coordinators and 12 persons (14%) work as
EE lecturers in non-profit educational organizations. A relatively low number of
the respondents (12%) are out of work at present, yet had had a minimum of
three years of teaching practice prior to completing the questionnaire. A smaller
part of the respondents (16%) work outside the field of their degree, mostly in
jobs requiring a university degree as a basic qualification. This group of persons
has had no teaching practice since graduating and as such their responses in the
questionnaire section relevant to the evaluation of benefits of pre-graduate courses
for teaching practice were not included in the research.
The benefits of pre-graduate Teacher Education in Biology courses for knowledge competency in biology are considered sufficient by the majority of the
respondents (78%). In their comments on this question, the respondents (34%)
stated that the knowledge of biological terminology obtained during pre-graduate
studies is significantly more extensive than the knowledge applicable in teaching
35
Absolute number of respondents
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Year of graduation from pre-graduate studies
Figure 1. Structure of the studied respondent sample based on the questionnaire response rate and
the graduation date in Teacher Education in Biology
practice at lower secondary schools. The most obvious weakness of their knowledge competency in biology, as the respondents see it, is the fact they have virtually
no opportunity to follow the latest trends in biological subjects. The following
reasons are considered key ones: a) lack of time in the working hours of lower
secondary school teachers, b) insufficient funds at lower secondary schools limiting the possibility of journal subscription.
The evaluation of the benefits which pre-graduate studies brought to the
respondents’ teaching and didactic competencies was altogether different
(Figure 2). Only 4.2% of the respondents stated that pre-graduate studies in
Teacher Education in Biology provided them with all the necessary teaching and
didactic competencies for the profession of a biology teacher or EE lecturer. Most
respondents considered the benefit of pre-graduate studies for their own teaching
and didactic competencies as limited (73.2%) or virtually non-existent (22.6% of
the respondents), requiring additional self-study.
Respondent evaluation of the importance of Didactics of Biology module in
pre-graduate courses was relatively unambiguous: most respondents (77.3%)
considered Didactics of Biology to be one of the key modules of their university
programme in Teacher Education in Biology. In their comments on this question,
Opinions of graduates in Teacher Education in Biology on the
shortcomings of Didactics of Biology in their pre-graduate studies
36
Absence of EEARC issues in the teaching
practice undertaken
27
Insufficient time allocated to observations
and teaching practice
6
Lack of opportunities to test how didactic theory
actually works in teaching practice.
30
Absence of courses on the methodology
of school project design
15
Limited attention paid to the didactics
of project-based learning
19
Absence of courses on internet info database
operation
6
Absence of subject-matter didactics
of EEARC
15
Insufficient time allocated to Didactics
of Biology
17
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Account of respondents
Figure 2. Analysis of shortcomings of the Didactics of Biology module in pre-graduate studies
in Teacher Education in Biology as viewed by the graduates
the respondents (34%) considered the Environmental Education and Science
Experiment Practice modules highly contributing. All the three modules listed
above are didactics-oriented. Four respondents gave identical comments, saying
that knowledge of manuals for laboratory science exercises gained in the Science
Experiment Practice module together with the knowledge of basic principles of
textbook evaluation provided by Didactics of Biology were greatly contributing to
their teaching practice. The remaining comments contained a wide range of the
respondents’ opinions about lecturers of individual modules. These opinions were
probably laden with subjective memories of unique personal experiences of individual respondents and as such were not subject to evaluation. Comments focusing on content deficiencies of the Didactics of Biology module provided valuable
information (Figure 2). A total of 17% respondents more or less agreed in their
37
responses that Didactics of Biology received insufficient time allocation in their
pre-graduate course and that they would like this module to “be more in-depth
oriented”. Virtually all the respondents who are professionally involved in EE
would have welcomed special subject-matter didactics focusing on environmental
education during their studies. In their comments, the respondents also pointed
out that little attention was paid to educational projects, including the methodology of preparing school educational projects, seeing this as a shortcoming of
Didactics of Biology. In their comments regarding the importance of Didactics of
Biology, the respondents mentioned the teaching practice undertaken, where
didactics of biology was reflected. They considered the limited time allocated to
teaching practice in their pre-graduate course to be a shortcoming of the teaching
practice structure, saying that they would consider teaching practice more focused
on immediate application of biology didactics greatly beneficial. Application of the
research results in the project innovation of subject-matter didactics of biology
and environmental education in biology teaching is shown in Figure 3.
Results
of questionnaire
survey
Identified
shortcomings
of Didactics
of Biology
Identified
deficiencies
in knowledge
of biology
Identified
teaching practice
shortcomings
Innovation
in the ENVIRUP
project
New courses
(Didactics of Forest
Pedagogy, etc.)
New textbooks
New courses
(Modern Trends
in Biology, etc.)
New courses
(Preparation
for Practice, etc.)
Evaluation
of innovated
courses
Innovation
in the follow-up
KONEV project
Involvement
of foreign experts
in education
Prolongation of
well-established
courses
Extending
internships
Figure 3. Application of survey results in the project innovation in subject-matter didactics of
biology and environmental education in the Teacher Education in Biology at Palacky University
Olomouc
38
The deficiencies in pre-graduate modules of biology didactics identified by the
research resulted in the introduction of four new subject-matter didactics courses
for students of Teaching Education in Biology: Didactics of Forest Pedagogy, The
introduction of Didactics of EEARC, Didactics of Care for the Environment and
Didactics of Nature Conservation.
Deficiencies in the biology teachers’ expert knowledge of new trends in biological sciences, as identified in our survey, inspired the publication of new study
materials and introduction of new courses: Modern Trends in Biology, Environmental Ethics and Global Learning and Development Education.
The respondents’ additional comments on the closed-ended questions of the
survey yielded interesting suggestions regarding teaching practice in pre-graduate
courses. Informed by them, a set of several modules was prepared under the
project innovation, significantly extending the practical competencies of pregraduate students towards enhancing their future employability. The Preparation
for Practice module is a set of seminars led by experts from nature conservation
institutions and non-governmental organizations focusing on EE. This course is
popular with pre-graduate students. It is followed by the course EE in Practice,
which includes a long-term internship (4 weeks) with potential future employers
at EE centres. The second follow-up course EE and Forest Pedagogy Practice is
a two-week group workshop for pre-graduate students of Teacher Education in
Biology. It offers them the chance to become acquainted with the basic principles
of forest pedagogy under the tuition of forest pedagogy lecturers.
Evaluation of student feedback on the innovated didactic modules informed
the design of the follow-up KONEV project. This project, whose primary focus
is to establish a collaboration network of six Czech universities with professional
practice, extends pre-graduate courses in both Teacher Education in Biology
and Biological Sciences, specifically by including new possibilities of subjectmatter didactics application in students’ teaching and professional practice. They
are given the opportunity to take long-term individual or team internships in
renowned nature conservation institutions which are actively involved in EE and
collaborate primarily with lower secondary schools. These internships focusing on
environmental education are mostly taken in national parks.
Discussion
The ongoing changes in education are naturally also reflected in subject-matter
didactics through curriculum changes (Walterová 1994). In relation to the trans-
39
formation of the education system, conceptual and content changes affect biology
education significantly as well. The pedagogical and psychological constructivist
and psycho-genetic principle must act as the cornerstone of biology education,
bearing in mind that far from all scientific biology findings may be applied in
the lower secondary biology curriculum (Švecová 2001). Owing to this, modelbased teaching will be increasingly applied in science education, demonstrating
biological knowledge on specific, didactically suitable selected examples while
applying activating teaching methods (Grecmanová, Urbanovská 2007). Future
teachers, however, need to learn how to use activating teaching methods in their
pre-graduate courses (Oravcová 2004). With the onset of a new millennium, learning and education cannot be properly implemented at schools without paying
attention to their environmental aspects (Orr 2004). The results of the presented
survey indicate that some biology teachers lack knowledge competencies in environmental education didactics. Didactics of environmental education stresses the
importance of the educational role of story-telling, play and project-based education (Eilam, Trop 2011). Some researchers (Gallová, Švecová 1996) indicate that
biology is the key subject in environmental education. The results of our survey
revealed that pre-graduate students of Teacher Education in Biology are aware
of their knowledge deficiencies with respect to the latest trends in the field. With
this in mind, our project innovations deliberately focused on introducing new
modules and study materials which present students with the latest findings in the
modern biological applications in education and the corresponding subject-matter
didactics (Papáček 2006).
Nevertheless, the issue of the significance and position of biology within
environmental education remains a subject of discussion. The evolution of
environmental education abroad followed approaches which aspired to pass on
the knowledge about nature, education in nature or education towards nature
protection (Disinger 2005). Starting with the 1970s, however, we have been able to
witness the trend of a gradual shift of environmental education focus “away from
nature” “towards society”.
Environmental education traditionally understands ecological knowledge as
one of its “target levels”, whereby the target attainment of this level should be to
“provide learners with sufficient ecological knowledge to permit them to make
ecologically sound decisions with respect to environmental issues” (Hungerford,
Volk 1990). The existing definition of horizontal issues in framework education
programmes stresses the importance of ecological knowledge. Future development of the field in the Czech Republic will probably take place in the context of
a nation-wide discussion about the curriculum reform.
40
The accelerating process of globalization faces new challenges in conceptualizing biology education, which the didactics of global learning and education is
trying to reflect (Carvalho 2008). Our project innovation in didactics of biology
and environmental education echoes this process by introducing a new course
called “Global Learning”, for which new study support was prepared (Máchal et
al. 2012).
The conducted survey on the opinions of Teacher Education in Biology graduates helped to support the respondents’ professional self-reflection, which is an
integral skill of the teaching profession (Urbanovská 2004). The participants in the
research presented in this paper positively valued the importance of knowledge
of didactics of science laboratory work. The project innovation which followed
the research endeavoured to follow the modern trend of shifting the traditional
concept of science laboratory work towards research-oriented learning (Papáček
2010).
It is probable that without the possibility of financial support from OPEC
projects the implementation of the relatively costly innovation in subject-matter
didactics would not have been possible. The same may be generally said about
all innovations in university education which primarily focus on enhancing the
employability of university graduates (Ryška et al. 2012). Educational projects
similar to those presented in this paper are being implemented at other universities
as well. Yet, the real effectiveness of such projects has been very rarely evaluated
in expert publications (Koucký et al. 2008). The required sustainability of OPEC
projects after the termination of their funding will lead to a gradual downturn in
individual project activities. In this context, the importance of lifelong learning
should be stressed, as it may support the sustainable maintenance of teachers’
didactic competencies.
Conclusions
The current development of biological sciences steers towards gradual integration, which is reflected in the trend favouring modular teaching in the didactics of
biological subjects. Increasing demand for new attractive forms of biology learning
at lower secondary schools (research-oriented learning, cross-curricular projects)
together with accentuated horizontal application of environmental education
increases the demand for didactic skills in teachers. The results of the presented
research revealed that lower secondary biology teachers and EE lecturers view
didactics-oriented disciplines as key ones in their field. The presented project
41
innovation in subject-matter didactics was implemented by a multi-disciplinary
team driven by their effort to enhance the teaching competencies of future natural
science and environmental education teachers. The authors would appreciate it
if the results of their work contributed to the discussion about subject-matter
didactics of biological disciplines.
Acknowledgements
The paper was supported by the grant No. CZ.1.07/2.4.00/17.0073 at Palacky University
Olomouc.
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Zoran Kalinic, Slavko Arsovski,
Zora Arsovski, Vladimir Rankovic
Serbia
The Effectiveness and Students’ Perception
of an Adaptive Mobile Learning System based
on Personalized Content and Mobile Web
Abstract
As the whole world is going mobile, application of mobile devices in education, also known as m-learning, is becoming one of the most popular areas of
educational research. This paper presents the implementation and evaluation
of the effectiveness and students’ attitudes toward an adaptive mobile learning
system based on personalized content and mobile web. Personalization of learning
materials is based on the Felder-Silverman learning style model and the features
of the accessing mobile device were identified using the device library. The results
of the study confirm students’ positive attitudes toward mobile learning and the
developed adaptive m-learning system. They also prove the effectiveness of the
system and m-learning as an additional educational tool in terms of increasing
students’ knowledge and scores.
Keywords: personalized mobile learning, device adaptation, mobile web, content
adaptation.
Introduction
M-learning is usually defined as a form of e-learning which can take place
anywhere, anytime, using mobile devices such as mobile phones and PDA devices
(Quin, 2000; Kadirere, 2009). Mobile learning has come to people’s attention because
mobile devices are portable, ubiquitous, accessible, and used by many people (Keskin
and Metcalf, 2011). Lower cost, transportability, and flexibility are the advantages of
44
m-learning over the traditional and more expensive computer lab set-up e-learning
(Zurita and Nussbaum, 2004; Nedugandi and Raman, 2012).
The need for adaptation and profiling of the content for mobile use has been
widely recognized among researchers (Yang et al., 2004; Kinshuk et al., 2009;
Franklin, 2011; Nedugandi and Raman, 2012). By adapting course presentations
to individuals, students can learn more in less time because the materials comply
with their preferences (Paredes and Rodriguez, 2002). In addition to a great variety
of mobile devices, learners have different preferences, motivations, abilities, and
knowledge, therefore different learner profiles (learning styles and knowledge
levels) should be considered in designing personalized learning assistance.
An adaptive mobile learning system based on personalized content and mobile
web is presented in this paper. Personalization of the learning content is based on
students’ learning styles and the identified features of the accessing mobile device.
A study on the effectiveness of the m-learning system and students’ attitudes
toward mobile learning has also been done.
The remainder of the paper is organized as follows: Section 2 gives literature
review of similar studies. In Section 3, a design of an adaptive mobile learning
system and the implementation of the learning experiment are presented. Section 4
discusses the results of the study on the effectiveness and students’ attitudes toward
the tested m-learning system and m-learning in general. In the final section, conclusions, limitations of the study, and further research directions are presented.
Literature review
Adaptation and personalization of the learning content in an e-learning environment is usually performed in accordance with students’ learning styles and
preferences. However, due to limitations of the mobile devices in the m-learning
environment, it is usually necessary to perform content adaptation based on the
features of the accessing mobile device.
Learning styles have been recognized as being an important human factor
affecting students’ learning performance (Kinshuk and Lin, 2004; Filippidis and
Tsoukalas, 2009; Hwang et al., 2012; Dorca et al., 2013). In the literature, different learning style models can be found (Paredes and Rodriguez, 2002), but the
dominant and widely accepted one is the Felder-Silverman model (Felder and
Silverman, 1998).
Huang et al. (2012) proposed an adaptive m-learning system, which exploited
Bayesian networks (for the identification of individual learning styles based on
45
the Felder-Silverman model) and content adaptation technologies to support both
learner and device adaptation, which allows each learner to construct a personalized and adaptive learning environment. Using the Felder-Silverman learning
style model, Park and Chungbuk (2005) described the design and development of
a mobile learning management system adaptive to students’ learning styles. Carver
et al. (1999) developed an adaptive learning system based on the sensing/intuitive,
visual/verbal, and sequential/global dimensions of the Felder–Silverman learning style theory. Filippidis and Tsoukalas (2009) developed a web-based adaptive
educational system based on the sequential–global dimension of the Felder–Silverman model, which provided different versions of images to present the same
content with different levels of details. The Felder-Silverman learning style model
in m-learning was also used by Kinshuk and Lin (2004), Huang and Hsieh (2008)
and Nagella and Govindarajulu (2008).
Dynamic adaptation in real-time generates the desired content based on the
specifications of heterogeneous devices. The major advantages of the dynamic
adaptation approach include great flexibility in the support of different learning
devices and avoidance of inconsistent contents that almost certainly appear in
multiple versions made for different devices (Huang et al., 2012).
Zhao et al. (2008) presented a personalized adaptive content system based on
the learner’s experience, mobile device profiles, and characteristics derived from
the device repository, and concluded that the context-aware adaptive mobile learning system could increase learning efficiency and interest. Similar results were
presented by Jung, Park and Chung (2006). Yang (2012) reported positive attitudes
of students of English toward m-learning. Al-Fahad (2009) investigated students’
attitudes and perceptions of the effectiveness of m-learning among students in
Saudi Arabia and discovered that m-learning was widely embraced by the student
community and that m-learning activities enabled students’ better involvement in
the learning process. The students in this study changed from passive to engaged
learners, who were intellectually, emotionally, behaviorally involved in their learning tasks.
The study
Design of adaptive mobile learning system
Although native mobile applications developed for specific mobile platforms
(such as Android or iPhone) are quite popular and offer the best-in-class user
experience, it is not easy to port them to other mobile platforms (Fling, 2009).
46
On the other hand, almost all modern mobile phones have built-in mobile web
browsers and mobile websites and applications are easy to create, maintain, and
publish (Fling, 2009). Since the mobile web appears as the most scalable way to
develop and support multiple platforms (Nedugandi and Raman, 2012), it was
chosen as the platform for the development of the system, which was done at the
University of Kragujevac, Serbia.
The learning materials were structured in courses, modules, and lessons. The
lesson model allowed for the adaptation of the lesson structure in accordance
with the adaptation rules derived from the student learning style, which was determined using the Felder-Silverman model. According to the characteristics of each
dimension and category (Felder and Silverman, 1998), the adaptation rules were
defined and implemented in the system, so each student could get a personally
tailored lesson based on his/her learning style. The lesson contained either mainly
visual or mainly verbal materials, gave examples first and then theory, or vice versa,
started from easier to harder examples or opposite, gave summary at the beginning
or at the end of the lesson, etc.
The system also incorporated content adaptation in accordance with the
mobile device characteristics. Mobile devices come in a variety of forms and with
completely different main characteristics (operational system, screen size, support to multimedia formats, etc.), hence it is almost impossible to create a single
mobile web solution suitable for them all (Fling, 2009; Firtman, 2010). The full
dynamic server-side content adaptation starts with the device detection and is
followed by adaptation of the content based on the identified characteristics
and adopted adaptation rules (Fling, 2009). To identify the important features of
a mobile device, it is common to use some of the device libraries (Zhao et al.,
2008; Firtman, 2010), and in this system, one of the most famous device libraries,
WURFL (WURFL, 2011), was implemented. The content was adapted in accordance with identified characteristics and the adaptation rules. For example, all the
pictures were dynamically resized to fit the screen size and resolution, only supported multimedia files were presented in order to avoid the download of unsupported formats, the hyperlink font size was changed depending on whether the
device has a touch screen or not, etc. The two-step adaptation process is shown in
Figure 1.
In addition to lessons, students were able to access self-assessment tests. All
student activities (lesson readings, self-assessment tests and learning style tests
taken) were monitored and saved in the system database as user logs. More
details on the system development and implementation can be found in Kalinic
(2011).
47
Figure 1. Two-step content adaptation process
Implementation of the learning experiment
The study population was composed of the first-year undergraduate students
taking the course in Information Technology at the University of Kragujevac,
Serbia. Originally, 63 students joined the study voluntarily, but only 41 of them
actually took part in it. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the system, a control group of 41 students who did not use the system was formed. In this way,
it was possible to evaluate the mobile learning as an additional learning tool by
comparing the results of the experimental and control groups.
Having registered to the system, the students had one month to use the
m-learning system to prepare for the second exam test. Inside the university
building, the students had free Wi-Fi access, while in other locations they usually
used mobile networks for data transfer. The learning material was the same as the
off-line learning material and it consisted of two modules: Computer Networks
and the Internet. It included texts, images, audio (lesson readings), and video materials (PowerPoint presentations with narration, converted into videos), in formats
typically supported by mobile devices. Self-assessment tests for each lesson were
also available to the students to help them monitor their progress.
When the learning experiment ended, a satisfaction survey was performed
using a questionnaire with 5-point Likert scale questions, numerical assessments
of the system, and open questions on user attitudes. The objective of this survey
48
was to evaluate the students’ perceptions of the m-learning system and m-learning
in general, and to provide some information about their experiences during the
experiment. All the participants filled in the questionnaire at the end of the experiment.
Research Results
The data collected in this study include two test scores of the students from both
groups and the satisfaction questionnaire results of the students from the experimental group. In order to determine whether the two groups are comparable, first
the results of test 1, which both groups did under the same conditions, using only
traditional learning methods, were analyzed. The results of test 1 are presented in
Table 1.
Table 1. T-test results of test 1
Experimental group (n = 41)
Control group (n = 41)
Test
Mean
SD
Mean
SD
No. 1
14.98
3.36
15.07
2.65
p
t
0.8842
–0.1461
The t test results (t = –0.1461, p>>.05) show that there was no significant difference between these two groups, so it can be assumed that the groups comprise
similar students and therefore can be compared.
Test 2 was taken after the learning period. The scores of the experimental and
the control groups were then analyzed again using the t-test in order to determine whether there were significant differences between them, which would
suggest that the use of the developed m-learning system improved the test
scores. Since the learning materials were organized in two modules, the scores
were calculated independently for each of them and the results of the analysis
are shown in Table 2.
Table 2. T-test results for test 2
Experimental group (n = 41)
Test
No. 2
* p < .05
Control group (n = 41)
Mean
SD
p
t
Module
Mean
SD
Module 1
5.49
1.58
4.63
1.93
0.0158* 2.1875
Module 2
5.56
2.35
4.61
2.38
0.0359* 1.1843
49
The t-tests produced statistically significant results (p<.05), indicating that there
was a considerable difference in the scores of the two groups. The improvement
in the mean score was +18.4% for Module 1 and +20.6% for Module 2, which
confirms the effectiveness of the proposed m-learning system and is compliant
with the findings of Jung, Park and Chung (2006). Since both groups attended the
same lectures and had the same tests, the only difference being that the experimental group used the m-learning system while the control group did not, it may be
concluded that personalized m-learning can be effectively used to support other
forms of learning.
Analysis of the students’ activity showed that most of them used the system
at least once a day (29%) or a few times a week (56%), while the length of the
session was usually 5-15 minutes (58% of the students), which is compliant with
the general recommendations for m-learning design (Trifonova, 2006). Most of
the students used news (76%), texts with images (98%), and self-assessment tests
(83%). Due to relatively large files, no free Wi-Fi signal available outside of the
university building and slow and expensive data transfer via a mobile network
in developing countries, the use of audio (only 15% of the students) and video
materials (17% of the students) was limited.
After the second test had been taken, a survey on the students’ satisfaction was
carried out using a questionnaire designed to measure he students’ attitudes and
perceptions of the effectiveness of mobile learning. It consisted of seven questions
evaluated based on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly
agree), and the results are shown in Table 3.
Table 3. The students’ attitudes toward m-learning and the tested system
Statement
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Mean
SD
The m-learning system can be a good supplement to traditional learning.
4.85
0.42
The system enables access to learning materials anytime, anywhere.
5.00
0.00
The m-learning system helped me to easier prepare myself for the test.
4.02
0.99
It would be nice if I could use the same system for other courses.
4.71
0.64
The m-learning system was easy to use.
4.88
0.33
I did not have any problems with the connection.
4.73
0.63
All materials were clear and precise.
4.93
0.26
The expressed positive attitudes toward mobile learning are in compliance
with the findings of Al-Fahad (2009), Huang et al. (2012) and Yang (2012). The
students also evaluated the quality of the materials presented in the two modules,
50
functionality of the system (menus, navigation, etc.) and general impression of
the system, and the marks (all ranging from 4.63 to 4.68) showed that they were
very satisfied with the tested m-learning system. The Cronbach alpha value of .814
indicates a good reliability of the questionnaire.
The questionnaire contained two open questions concerning the students’
positive experiences and the problems they encountered during the learning
experiment. As the main advantages of the system, they stressed the opportunity
to access the learning materials anytime, anywhere (e.g. “I could learn on the
bus without a book or a bunch of papers”), the easiness of use, the possibility
of learning during short breaks (e.g. “I used it even during TV commercials”),
the fast way to get notifications, etc. Only a few of the students said that they
had experienced some problems with the system. The complaints were mostly
related to the unavailability of WLAN signal, temporary problems in connections,
problems in accessing audio and video materials, etc.
Conclusions
The presented paper investigates the effectiveness and students’ perceptions of
the adaptive mobile learning system based on personalized content and mobile
web. The adaptation mechanism of the system presented in this study was based
on adaptation rules derived from the Felder-Silverman learning style model and
technical specifications of the mobile devices used to access the system. The study
results confirm that personalized m-learning may increase the test scores of the
students who use it as an additional form of learning. The analysis of the students’
perceptions reveals their positive attitudes toward m-learning in general and their
willingness to accept the introduction of m-learning to their education system.
The findings of this study are consistent with the findings of Al-Fahad (2009),Yang
(2012) and Huang et al. (2012).
The study was limited to only a group of students taking an undergraduate
course. Although the proposed personalized m-learning system has shown significant effectiveness in learning performance improvement, more experiments are
needed to extend the findings of this study to other study programs and courses.
The students’ learning styles were determined using the Index of Learning Styles.
Further improvement would be achieved by the introduction of an adaptive
learner model, which would enable dynamic determination (or at least adaptation) of learning styles based on learners’ behavior during the learning process
and based on the learning results (Kinshuk et al., 2009; Huang et al., 2012). In
51
addition, in order to provide a more effective learning environment, additional
factors related to personalization (e.g. prior knowledge, learning context, online
learning behavior, etc.) need to be taken into account.
Further improvements of the m-learning system may include introduction
of location-based services and SCORM standards for organization and transfer
of learning materials. In the near future, better mobile devices (primarily smart
phones and tablets) and cheaper and faster data transfer via Wi-Fi will enable the
use of more interactive and multimedia learning materials. In addition, a deeper
analysis of students’ perceptions of specific details of m-learning may be performed.
Acknowledgement
The research presented in this paper was supported by the Ministry of Education, Science
and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia, Grant III-44010, Title: Intelligent Systems for Software Product Development and Business Support based on Models.
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Moon Hyoung-jin, Nam Jong-ho,
Kim Yong-deog
Korea
New Measures for the Improvement
of History Education for Chinese Students
in South Korea*
Abstract
The objective of this research was to find a more effective method for the teaching of history to Chinese students studying in South Korean universities. Questionnaire surveys and interviews were conducted to investigate those students’
level of knowledge and perceptions of Korean history. Then, in history classes, four
teaching methods (comparative-historical, audiovisual, history and language, and
rote memorization) were applied over two weeks. Before the treatment, Chinese
students said that they liked the audiovisual teaching method the most, but after
taking the classes, they preferred the teaching method comparing Korean and
Chinese histories. Besides the finding that the comparative method was the most
popular, the responses also showed that it was the most effective one in teaching
history to Chinese students.
Keywords: Chinese students, history knowledge, history teaching methods,
Korean history
Introduction
The number of Chinese students of university age studying in South Korea has
been rapidly increasing in recent years. Only 33,650 Chinese students were study* This paper was supported by the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Research Fund
of 2014.
55
ing in Korea in 2007, but this number had increased to 55,025 by 2009 and 60,935
by 2011 (Korean Educational Development Institute, 2012). These increases can be
attributed to the hallyu or “Korean cultural wave” and to the popularity of K-pop
(Korean pop music) in China. As of 2013, Chinese students accounted for 72.5%
of the total number of foreign students studying in Korea (Ministry of Justice,
Republic of Korea, 2012).
Chinese students studying in Korea can expect that they will need some basic
contextual knowledge of a social-scientific kind when learning the Korean language and that background knowledge about Korean history in particular will
help them communicate better with the Koreans and understand both Korean
society and the Korean language. Despite this need, Korean history education
has not been offered systematically to these students. As a result, some 80% of
Chinese students in one study expressed the opinion that Korean history was not
interesting (Moon, 2013). They thought that Korean history textbooks were very
subjective, meaning that history education tended to be offered from the Korean
perspective only, failing to consider the viewpoints of adjacent countries. Due to
such perceptions, Chinese students may devalue and lose interest in learning about
Korean culture as a whole, and their learning may be less effective as a result. For
these reasons, it is urgent that Korean history education for Chinese (and other
foreign) students be improved.
Therefore, this study aims to identify the teaching method that most effectively increases these students’ learning in Korean history by reducing conflicts
between their prior knowledge acquired from their history lessons and cultural
background in their own country and Korean history as taught in South Korea.
According to previous studies (Moon, 2011), Chinese students tend to experience
cultural conflicts in internalizing knowledge about Korea. This can be attributed to
a discrepancy between the students’ prior knowledge and the education that they
receive in Korea. Given these points, what kind of teaching method will be best
able to offer a balanced form of history education for these students and contribute
to reducing such conflicts? This study was conducted to determine this, and to find
effective approaches to Korean history education for Chinese students.
Several studies have been conducted on this topic in relation to various education areas and methods. They have mainly focused on methods of teaching
Korean as a second language (Oh & Gyo, 2011) and the cultural and audiovisual
educational methods (Lee, 2004). A few studies have been conducted in the context of history education (Moon, 2011; 2012), but this area of investigation is still
at the beginning stage. Despite some insights garnered by previous studies, they
share the limitation that they have not presented analytical data showing what
56
Moon Hyoung-jin, Nam Jong-ho,Kim Yong-deog
kind of educational method was the most effective. To resolve this limitation, the
presented study was conducted with the goal of identifying the most effective
educational method for Chinese students of Korean history based on the analysis
of data collected from an actual educational setting.
Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were used in this study. Four
teaching methods were implemented in different classroom settings to determine
which was the most effective for Chinese students in each of the four years of
undergraduate study in Korean universities.
Methodology
Data was gathered on two different occasions using two approaches: (1) a questionnaire survey and a qualitative investigation were conducted over one month,
November 2013; and (2) after this primary investigation, lectures were offered to
students using four teaching methods (comparative-historical, audiovisual, history
and language, and rote memorization) over two weeks during December 2013. The
goal was to identify any change in students’ preferred teaching methods.
The rationale for this approach was to overcome the limitations of survey
research alone. In other words, this study assumes that students’ preferred educational method as found by the analysis of survey results is more likely based on
their past experiences, and therefore it is difficult to assert that such a teaching
method is the most effective. Accordingly, after implementing four teaching methods over two weeks, this study asked students once again which teaching method
they preferred the most.
A total of 200 Chinese students studying in universities in Seoul were selected
for this study. To investigate the students’ preferences regarding teaching methods,
50 students were selected from each academic year (first, second, third, and fourth).
However, 20 subjects who did not answer all the items in the questionnaire or
those who chose the same alternative consistently were excluded from the analysis,
and so, ultimately, data obtained from 180 students were analyzed.
In the quantitative investigation, nine items were used to get a sense of the
students’ knowledge of Korean history in general, the effectiveness of the Korean
history education they had experienced, and their preferred teaching methods.
For the qualitative investigation, six items assessed the students’ opinions on these
matters, yielding four preferred teaching methods. Each of these was used to teach
the students over two weeks, after which the students’ preferred teaching method
was again investigated.
57
Analysis: Chinese students’ knowledge of Korean history
Given the preponderance of Chinese students in Korean universities, how
Korean history education should be offered to these students is a pressing question, but before optimum methods can be identified, a picture of Chinese students’
general perceptions and knowledge of Korean history are needed. We investigated
them through a survey.
Table 1. Chinese students’ general perceptions of Korean history ( n=180)
①
Very
Much
②
Somewhat
③
Not
Much
④
Little
1. Korea was subordinate to China in ancient times.
58%
32%
10%
–
2. China influenced Korea in ancient times.
56%
38%
6%
–
Korea and China were closely related to each other
3.
historically.
60%
32%
8%
–
4. Your level of knowledge about Korean history is high.
8%
10%
65%
17%
There is a discrepancy between education in Korea and
5.
China in teaching the same historical facts.
38%
43%
19%
–
32%
45%
20%
3%
3%
17%
55%
25%
Question
6.
There is a discrepancy between Korean and Chinese
history textbooks in describing the same historical facts.
7. How much do you enjoy Korean history classes?
Table 1 shows that Chinese students tend to look at Korean history from the
perspective of Chinese history (Kim & Jeong, 2004; Yu, 2005). Nearly 90% of the
respondents thought that China had influenced Korea greatly in ancient times
(94%) and that Korea and China had been closely related historically (92%). Some
90% of the respondents thought Korea had been subordinate to China in ancient
times, and thus perceived the relationship between Korea and China as hierarchical rather than equal. This perception is attributable to the Chinese worldview,
which asserts that China is in the center of East Asia and that the surrounding
countries are influenced by it (Oh, 2001; Park, 2003).
In terms of the perceptions of Korean history education, the respondents
thought that there was a discrepancy between Korean and Chinese history textbooks (77%) and teachers (81%) describing the same historical facts. They experienced mental conflict accepting Korean history due to this perceived discrepancy
(National History Compilation Committee, 2007; Renmin Educational Publisher
History Office, 2004). As a result, the number of students who thought Korean
history classes were not interesting (80%) was higher than the number of those
58
who thought they were interesting (20%). These are possible reasons for the low
understanding of Korean history (demonstrated below).
To investigate the students’ understanding of Korean history in depth, 48 students were selected for individual interviews. They were asked to express their
opinions about Question 6 and the reasons for their opinions.
Table 2. Interviews on Korean history in general ( n=48).
Question
Correct
Answer
Incorrect
Answer
1.
How long a history does Korea have?
15%
85%
2.
How long did each Korean dynasty last on average?
30%
70%
3.
What was Korea’s original religion?
30%
70%
4.
What was the name of the war between Korea and the
Qing Dynasty?
58%
42%
5.
What was the March 1st Independence Movement?
53%
47%
6.
What was the Anti-American Pro–North Korean War?
65%
35%
As seen in Table 2, the Chinese students’ knowledge about Korean history was
found to be very low. In Question 1, the proportion of the students who answered
correctly by replying “5,000 years” was only 15%, while the proportion of students who answered incorrectly by replying “4,000 years” or “3,000 years” was
85%. Similar trends were found in Question 2: only 30% of the students correctly
answered “500 years,” while 70% answered incorrectly, choosing “300 years.” This
may be because the longest-lasting Chinese dynasty was around 300 years; the
respondents may have applied their Chinese preconceptions to Korean history.
Last, in Question 3, the proportion of the students who correctly answered “shamanism” (30%) was lower than the proportion of those who incorrectly answered
“Confucianism” (34%) or “Buddhism” (32%), hinting again that their Sinocentrism
had skewed their perspective on Korean history (Sim, 1997; Lee, 2005).
These findings show that the Chinese students in Korea tend to understand
Korean history based on their prior knowledge acquired in China and they lack
understanding of or exposure to the Korean perspective on Chinese history (Shin,
2005). However, the remaining answers indicate that the students did demonstrate
a reasonably high understanding of the aspects of Korean history covered in detail
in Chinese history textbooks. For instance, in Question 4, 58% of the students
knew the name of the war between the Korean Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910) and
the Chinese (strictly speaking, Manchu) Qing Dynasty (1636–1912). In Questions
5 and 6, respectively, regarding the March 1st Independence Movement (against
59
the Japanese occupation of Korea) and the Korean War, more than half of the
respondents also gave correct answers. The term “Anti-American Pro-North
Korean War,” which is used in Chinese history textbooks to reflect that China
helped North Korea in its fight against the United States, again reflects a Chinese
perspective.
Next, quantitative and qualitative investigations were conducted to explore
more effective teaching methods for the Chinese students of Korean history. Table
3 shows the results of this investigation on four such methods: a comparativehistorical teaching method (CHTM), an audiovisual teaching method (AVTM);
a history and language teaching method (HLTM); and a rote memorization teaching
method (RMTM).
Table 3. Which teaching method was most effective for you? (n=180).
Category
%
CHTM
30%
AVTM
38%
HLTM
27%
RMTM
5%
As seen in Table 3, the respondents preferred the AVTM (38%) and the CHTM
(30%) and did not prefer the RMTM. In other words, the students understood
Korean history and culture through the lens of their prior knowledge acquired in
China; also, they liked vivid audiovisual materials (Moon, 2013). Table 4 shows the
respondents’ preferences regarding the teaching methods broken down by year.
Table 4. Which teaching method did you like most? ( n=180).
Category
First-Year
Students
Second-Year
Students
Third-Year Students
Fourth-Year
Students
CHTM
19%
32%
33%
35%
AVTM
34%
43%
38%
33%
HLTM
37%
17%
25%
27%
RMTM
10%
8%
4%
4%
The first-year students liked the HLTM most, possibly because this teaching
method helped improve their communication ability, whereas the second- and
third-year students preferred the AVTM, which perhaps stimulated their interest
in Korean history. These contrasting results are likely attributable to the fact that
the second- and third-year students were relatively confident in communicating in
60
Korean and thus preferred a teaching method that incorporated language education as well. In contrast, the fourth-year students preferred the CHTM, which can
highlight similarities and dissimilarities in views of history and history education
between countries, perhaps reflecting a desire to accommodate Korean attitudes
and reducing cultural conflicts between the two countries.
Results: The most effective teaching method
To determine which of the four teaching methods was most effective and to
investigate changes in the Chinese students’ preferences for the methods after
exposure to them, each method was used in a single two-hour class for the students of each academic year. For example, for the CHTM, a lecture was offered on
each of the following four topics: (1) the Imjinweran or Japanese invasion of Korea
in 1592, as described in Korean and Chinese history textbooks (Choi & Moon,
2006); (2) the Donhak movement, a literary movement against European disciplines in East Asia; (3) the March 1st Independence Movement; and (4) the Korean
War. For the AVTM, videos were presented on (1) Gyeongbokgung (a palace of
the Joseon) and Zǐjìnchéng (a palace of the Qing); (2) a war between Goguryeo
(a dynasty in the northern part of the Korean Peninsula) and the Sui Dynasty
(in China); (3) the Opium War and Byeongin Yangyo (the French invasion of
Joseon in 1864); and (4) the Byeongja-Horan War (the Qing invasion of Joseon in
1626) and Crown Prince Sohyun (Joseon’s prince, who was taken hostage to the
Qing capital, Beijing). After the videos were viewed, their learning effects were
evaluated. For the HLTM, the areas of politics (specifically, political structures),
economy (land systems), society (changes in social classes), and culture (initiation
ceremonies) were selected. Finally, for the RMTM, the ancient dynasties of Korea
were divided into four periods: the Three Kingdoms Period (57 BCE–918 CE), the
Goryeo Period (918–1392 CE), the Joseon Period (1392–1910), and the Japanese
Occupation Period (during which Japan occupied Joseon/Korea, 1910–1945), and
the characteristics of each dynasty and the life of the people within them were
described. Thus, for a total of 32 hours over two weeks, four teaching methods
were used in teaching Korean history. Afterwards, the students were asked which
method was most effective.
61
Table 5. Which teaching method was most effective for you? ( n=180).
%
Category
Before the Study
After the Study
CHTM
30%
41%
AVTM
38%
30%
HLTM
27%
26%
RMTM
5%
3%
What is interesting here is that the students’ opinions on which teaching method
was most effective changed as a result of the treatment. Beforehand, the students
had chosen the AVTM as the most effective method (38%) for understanding
Korean history, while afterwards they chose the CHTM as most effective (41%)
and the AVTM as second most effective (30%).
Table 6. Which teaching method did you like most? (n=180).
Category
CHTM
First-Year
Students
Second-Year
Students
Third-Year
Students
Fourth-Year
Students
b
a
b
a
b
a
b
a
19%
30%
32%
45%
33%
42%
35%
46%
AVTM
34%
23%
43%
30%
38%
34%
33%
32%
HLTM
37%
42%
17%
22%
25%
20%
27%
19%
RMTM
10%
5%
8%
3%
4%
4%
4%
3%
Note: b = before the study, a = after the study
A similar change to that found in the students’ views of the most effective
teaching method was also found in their preference regarding the teaching
methods. Among the first-year students, the HLTM was preferred (42%), as
before the study. However, the initial second choice, AVTM, was reduced from
34% to 23%, whereas the CHTM increased from 19% to 30%, i.e., 11%, bringing
it into second place and constituting a larger increase than that for the HLTM
(5%). Both the second- and third-year students saw bigger changes: before the
treatment, they liked the AVTM most (second-year students: 43%; third-year
students: 38%). Afterward, they preferred the CHTM (second-year students:
45%; third-year students: 42%). Thus, while the AVTM appears to stimulate
these students’ interest to some degree, the CHTM seems most effective in helping them understand both Korean and Chinese history. The fourth-year students
also preferred the CHTM on the posttest, with a rise of 11% to 46% from 35%
before the study.
62
Thus, the results of this study show that the comparative teaching method,
which compares the histories of two countries from both countries’ perspectives,
was found to be most effective in helping the students understand the history of
neighboring countries, with which they may have had conflicts in the past, and
thereby it seems to raise hope for reducing cultural conflicts between countries.
According to the qualitative investigation, the Chinese students tended to
express an adverse reaction to the Korean history teaching method that emphasizes the superiority of Korean history, as their prior knowledge acquired in China
had led them to different beliefs. However, after being taught with the use of the
CHTM, they became aware of discrepancies in the versions of Korean history
taught in Korea and in China, and as a result their understanding of Korean history was enhanced. These positive outcomes may have contributed to reducing
mental conflict regarding class material among the respondents and facilitated
their acquisition of the knowledge of Korean history. To find out more about the
effects of the CHTM, this study therefore asked the students why they preferred
this method.
Table 7. Why do you like the comparative teaching method most? ( n=180).
Category
%
The method helps me see discrepancies
21%
The method can reduce cultural conflicts
35%
The method helps me see history objectively
38%
The method broadens my viewpoint
6%
Table 7 shows that the respondents thought that the CHTM helped them understand history more objectively rather than seeing it from a subjective perspective
that reflected national ideology; in this way, it expanded their viewpoint to accommodate the perspectives of other countries. In summary, the comparative teaching method seems to have led to positive outcomes for these Chinese students’
understanding of Korean history.
Conclusions
This study was conducted to identify more effective teaching methods for
improving Chinese students’ knowledge of Korean history, after a survey investigating the respondents’ knowledge of Korean history (and showing gaps in it)
and their preferred teaching methods. After the students (of all academic years)
63
had had two weeks of lectures using each of the four teaching methods, an investigation was conducted to find out (on the basis of pre- and post-data) which
teaching method the students preferred and which they felt was the most effective
in helping them understand Korean history.
The results showed that the AVTM (for second- and third-year students), the
HLTM (first-year students), and the CHTM (fourth-year students) were initially
preferred. However, after two weeks, the second- and fourth-year groups preferred
the CHTM; the first-year students also showed an increased preference for the
CHTM, although the HLTM remained their favorite. This seems to indicate that
the CHTM was most effective in helping these Chinese students to understand
Korean history and accommodate the Korean viewpoint. As discussed above,
history textbooks tend to describe a country’s own history from a self-centered
perspective, and history education also tends to emphasize the superiority of
“native” history. These approaches may lead to the delivery of conflicting information from the perspective of foreign students. This phenomenon can be observed
more often in countries that have or have had antagonistic relationships. Thus,
the results of this study also imply that discretion should be used when teaching Korean history to non-Korean students, particularly from the countries in
the same cultural sphere as Korea, which may have their own long-established
perspectives on historical events.
In ancient times, China and Korea sometimes had a cooperative relationship
and sometimes a relationship of conflict, even war. As a result, each country’s ways
of recording and telling this history have come to emphasize its own superiority,
which may hamper students from the other country (or third countries) from
accommodating the history at issue. According to this study, the CHTM holds
the most promise out of several teaching methods in helping Chinese students
accommodate the Korean view on history.
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Enrique Sánchez Acosta,
Juan José Escribano Otero,
Gabriela Christie Toletti
Spain
Peer Review Experiences for MOOC.
Development and Testing of a Peer Review System
for a Massive Online Course
Abstract
Although at first MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses) did not use peer
reviews, this kind of assessment has increasingly demonstrated the benefits that it
can contribute to this type of course by improving the learning process, increasing
decisions making abilities, and developing several other academic skills. Other
MOOC assessment instruments do not provide students with these opportunities.
This paper discusses the results obtained by the most commonly used massive
online course platforms, detailing their features and limitations, as well as the
experience in the implementation and use of a peer review system for a course of
more than 7300 students. This study also comments on how evaluation rubrics are
created, along with the final results, and the impact of the inclusion of this type of
evaluation in MOOC.
Keywords: MOOC, evaluation, peer, automatism, massive
It is first necessary to define and frame the concept of peer review, currently
used by most scientific journals in the context of massive online courses. The
evaluation system of scientific work by community members called peer review
or referee system is a process that begins when a scientist submits an article to
a magazine editor with the intent of it being published. Then selected specialists
(referees) evaluate the quality of the work and determine if the product of research
has potential for the stated purpose, or if some additional work has to be done
before publication. (Mestaza and Cuevas, 2002)
Peer Review Experiences for MOOC
67
However, in massive online courses such types of assessment have been distorted. It can be seen from the above definition given by Cuevas and Mestaza, how
the word “specialist” is specified; however, in online courses students themselves
are often the ones who try to evaluate their peers. To demonstrate that these evaluations are equally valid as if they were conducted by a specialist, current MOOC
supported platforms are based on the large number of evaluations of an exercise
that these students can perform to determine a more accurate rating. Thus, virtually all platforms support these types of assessment, and they all allow for increasing the number of times some work is evaluated to a number superior to two.
It is difficult to frame peer reviews within the assessment instruments used in
MOOC, therefore in order to better define the peer evaluation process, a division
of assessment instruments into three basic types is proposed:
Automation based tools
These tools or assessment instruments are based on automatic programs that
analyze the responses with tools that implement a default correction algorithm.
With these tools, reliability of correction is pursued so that the same answer will
receive the same evaluation every time it is subjected to automation. There are
different types of instruments that can fit in this category, but the key feature is
that they do not require human intervention, making them particularly suitable to
be used in MOOC. Examples might be: multiple choice tests, automatic evaluation
of problem sets, programming tasks, surveys and questionnaires, attitudes rating
scales, written exams, troubleshooting, comparison charts, and images. In free
writing responses, semantic analyzers can be used with or without dictionaries
and thesauruses.
MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) is conducting research (for their
Edx platform) on various Text Analysis Systems or AEG (Automated Essay Grading) (Markoff, 2013) to allow for essays and written tests to be also automatically
evaluated.
This approach, of course, also has plenty of detractors like those grouped within
HumanReaders.org. This group has already gathered more than 4,000 signatures
of professionals from different universities around the world. They are carrying
out a call to all schools and universities to stop using automatic correction tools
for written work, especially in the case of written exams or tests that are critical for student graduation. Their main argument is that computers cannot read
and cannot measure the essential elements of written communication such as:
68
accuracy, reasoning, matching evidence, common sense, ethical stance, deciding if
an argument is compelling, organization of concepts, clarity, and accuracy, among
other things. (“Human Readers,” 2013)
However, there are several of these types of systems currently on the market and
we should not forget that machines are much more consistent and can evaluate
a larger number of items in a shorter period of time (Ezeiza, A, 2013). Currently,
these systems combine algorithmic methods of grammatical analysis with sematic
analysis, and holistic methods based on word searches. For example, the Summary
Street System (Steinhart, 2000) compares summaries with the original text, or the
Computer Learner Corpora (Granger, Hung, and Petch-Tyson, 2002) compiles
a database of students’ texts to compare and analyze other written work. The e-rater
(Attali and Burstein, 2006) combines statistical analysis and natural language
processing to contrast the results with its database; it examines grammar issues,
discourse markers, and lexical content using about 100 indicators. The results
are supposed to have a success rate between 84% and 94% compared to human
evaluators. This system is driven by ETS (Educational Testing Service) to develop
the Criterion program. ETS uses this system in well-known TOEFL tests (Test of
English as a Foreign Language), matching machine with human evaluator only for
some specific tests, which saves a significant amount of money (Knoch, 2009).
Tools based on authority
These are the tools which involve a professional or a person skilled in the field.
They are very difficult to implement in a MOOC, mainly due to the large number
of students enrolled in the course, so this type of evaluation would require an
enormous amount of time from a professor or professors. However, sometimes
these corrections are delegated to dynamic adjunct instructors who energize
and support students. The problem of evaluation criteria disparity appears
when a large group of professors is in charge of correcting instead of just one
professor, this could make the same response receive very different evaluations
depending on the faculty member evaluating and even depending on when the
faculty member performs the evaluation. To alleviate this problem, it is possible to
apply very sophisticated evaluation rubrics that determine more objective corrections, parameters, and descriptors. But in the end, human beings evaluate largely
based on intuition. Some authors argue that evaluators’ previous experience and
knowledge are more valuable and relevant than any descriptor or rubric. Therefore,
rather than spending hours and studies to build reliable and valid rubrics, they
69
believe that it is more profitable to spend that money and effort on preparing
people who can evaluate tests, reach a degree of agreement, and handle scales
(Ezeiza, A, 2013). Some assessment activities that require evaluation tools based
on authority are: seminars, workshops, practice exams, interviews, debates, and
co-evaluation of activities in cMOOC. Tools based on social interaction
Undoubtedly, the communication potential of social networks is still largely
undiscovered and should be studied more in depth (Guerrero, 2010). Currently,
this potential is being introduced in the education system, maximizing the opportunities offered by social networks not only in terms of MOOC, but also as a support tool for traditional classes. Some instruments that fit in this system of social
interaction are: anecdotal evidence, portfolios, collaborative Wiki, gamification or
motivation based on collaborative games, surveys and questionnaires, chats and
forums, projects, workshops, tasks, exercises, activities, and generated knowledge
or collaborative learning in cMOOC and xMOOC.
Based on this data, peer review based tools could be placed between social
interaction tools and authority-based tools. However, given that a key part of
authority-based tools is that the evaluator should be skilled in the subject matter, it
would be more accurate to say that peer review systems constitute MOOC assessment tools based on social interaction. Students are peers and therefore cannot be
considered authority. Furthermore, in the experience that will be detailed in this
study, many of the students commented on the forum about the difficulty involved
in evaluating work about something they were learning.
Need for the study
The MOOC high dropout rate makes it necessary to study how to keep those
students throughout the course and ensure their learning. But the question that
comes into play is whether it is better to decrease the dropout rate or to improve
the quality of learning, a question asked by most of the institutions that venture
into online teaching. The current abandonment rate of MOOC is hovering around
95%, but this may also be due to the “curiosity” that these online courses are generating. Many students register because they want to know what MOOC is and
current statistics do not show this data. It would be interesting to include in the
70
records a checkbox to indicate if the student just wants to try or audit the course.
This could improve statistics, at least at these early stages in which MOOCs are
giving rise to so many expectations (Acosta, 2013).
Hypothesis
This experiment was performed to determine whether the use of the peer assessment tool is useful or not to reduce the high dropout rate currently experienced
in massive online courses.
Methodology
In order to find a valid answer to the question in the hypothesis, a peer review
task was included in a MOOC about videogames with more than 7300 students.
Thanks to this broad and diverse sample of students (cf., Figures 1, 2, 3 and 4) the
possible extension of these results to other massive online courses can be ratified.
The experiment was conducted on a platform where many other Spanish
massive courses exist, some with tasks in pairs and others not. Studies on other
platforms (Jordan, 2013) show that most MOOC feature self-assessment (usually
relegated to a single type of assessment tool, such as multiple choice tests) and/or
peer reviews.
• 24 - MCQ (Multiple Choice Questions) and evaluation by peers
• 114 - MCQ (Multiple Choice Questions) only
• 10 – Evaluation by peers only
• 7 – Other
The course was divided into 6 modules with a series of about 10 lessons for
each module accompanied by a video for each lesson. The peer review task was
introduced in the second module and even though it was mentioned in the initial
plan of study or syllabus, several students had not noticed it and therefore they
were taken by surprise, which emphasized a decline in the performance of these
tasks during the first weeks of the course.
Students were warned that completion and grading would be held during the
next two weeks following the beginning of a module and they had to assess at
least a student to be graded within the platform. Yet, there were many completion
problems because they thought they would have to complete the evaluation until
the end of the course.
71
One of the main comments made by the students in the community of the
course concerned how to evaluate peers. Perhaps the assessment rubric was not
entirely precise and many options were left to interpretation. It is very important
for the rubric to be as specific as possible so that students are able to effectively
evaluate their peers.
During week 6 course statistics were recorded to see the evolution of the activity
over time and a final survey was conducted. Over 1200 students answered the
survey.
Results
Having seen the methodology used in the experiment and that the sample was
large enough to refute its reliability, the next step was to detail the most relevant
statistical data of the experiment in terms of the peer evaluation tool that was
being studied.
First, it seems relevant to compare the completion of the modules among each
other, because, as stated above, only one peer review technique was introduced in
Module 2. This may give an idea of the difference between this type of assessment
and others used in the course, such as multiple-choice questions (cf., Table 1).
It can be observed graphically (cf., Figure 5) how that type of evaluation causes
a slight deviation in the completion of the module. Still, it is much more interesting to look closely at this tool within Module 2, because if all modules are mixed,
it is possible that other lessons that do not contain peer reviews may mask the
statistics of this assessment instrument.
During the last week of the course, substantial differences could be observed
between the rest of the lessons and the one which contains the peer review (cf.,
Table 2), although perhaps more detail can be observed in Figure 6.
From this data, one can already draw interesting conclusions regarding this
type of assessment tool in relation to the completion rate of MOOC. Throughout the various stages at which the students had been completing the studied
activities, there had been a significant decrease in the completion of peer evaluation activities. Upon completion, this course granted two types of certificates
supported by the platform and by the university offering the course. One
of them was the certificate of participation, granted to all the students who
exceeded 75% of the course, while the other certificate of achievement was given
to those who completed 100% of all the activities. Therefore, all those who were
unable to complete the peer review task on time were left out of this certificate
72
of achievement, decreasing by far what would have happened if this type of
evaluation had not been included. It should be noted that this certificate had cost
40 euros. These fees could fund course costs; therefore a decline could greatly
affect the financing of MOOC. With all these results one can get an idea of what
students are willing to do in order to complete a massive online course, however
at the end of this experiment a survey was sent with different questions about
the course and some were highly significant (cf., Figure 7 and 8), these questions
were answered by over 1200 students.
Conclusions
From the data obtained in the above study, one can respond negatively to the
hypothesis of this experiment. That is to say, the use of peer reviews adversely
affects the completion rate of MOOC. This does not mean that learning is of
a higher or lower quality, but rather that if the objective is only to increase the
completion rate, it is best to avoid these types of assessment instruments.
This experiment also served to improve some course implementation guidelines
that are currently being considered for the next version of the course that will
begin shortly. For example, peer review activities should be maintained throughout the course as a way to accept and include students who get more interested in
the course during subsequent weeks. Many students began at weeks 3 and 4 and
therefore had basically no choice to perform the peer review task. Furthermore,
platforms should improve this type of assessment instruments. Many of them are
not taking into account that some students were not assessed because on some
occasions the students who were supposed to conduct the review did not do it.
When that happens the task should be given immediately to another student until
the work is assessed. It should not happen that students who perform a task are
not assessed.
Another point to consider is that the assessment rubric should be very accurate;
many students relied on their intuition to assess rather than using the rubric. Many
tasks were not properly evaluated because the students were not skilled in the
subject matter. The student should take the role of a “robot” that does not know
anything and needs to receive all the guidelines necessary to perform a proper
assessment. It must be assumed that the student is learning and therefore does not
know much. Better than a rubric, the student could receive a small algorithm to be
followed step by step to allow careful evaluation of the content, indicating, e.g., what
73
constitutes minimum content, in how many parts content should be divided, what
to do if any of the main parts are missing, and what score to assign to each section.
References
Attali, Y., & Burstein, J. (2006). Automated essay scoring with e-rater® V. 2. The
Journal of Technology, Learning and Assessment, 4(3).
Cuevas, R.F., & Mestaza, M. (2002). La evaluación científica y el sistema de revisión
por pares. CSI Boletín, 46.
Ezeiza, A. (2013). ¡Horror! ¡Me evalúa un Robot! Boletín SCOPEO No 85. Retrieved
from http://scopeo.usal.es/horror-me-evalua-un-robot/
Granger, S., Hung, J., & Petch-Tyson, S. (2002). Computer learner corpora, second
language acquisition, and foreign language teaching (Vol. 6). John Benjamins.
Guerrero, C.S. (2010). Aprendizaje cooperativo e interacción asincrónica textual
en contextos educativos virtuales. Pixel-Bit: Revista de Medios Y Educación, (36),
53–67.
Human Readers. (2013). Retrieved November 6, 2013, from http://humanreaders.
org/petition/index.php
Jordan, K. (2013). Synthesising MOOC completion rates. MoocMoocher. Retrieved
July 24, 2013, from http://moocmoocher.wordpress.com/2013/02/13/synthesising-mooc-completion-rates/
Knoch, U. (2009). Diagnostic writing assessment: The development and validation
of a rating scale (Vol. 17). Peter Lang.
Sánchez Acosta, E. (2013). MOOC: Resultados reales. Elearningeuropa.info.
Retrieved from http://elearningeuropa.info/en/article/MOOC:-Resultadosreales
Steinhart, D. (2000). Summary street: An LSA based intelligent tutoring system for
writing and revising summaries. Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation, University
of Colorado.
74
Tables
Table 1. Completion Statistics by Module
Design, Organization and Evaluation: Evaluation of videogames and gamification. There were 7,386 registered users
5689 people started the course and 807 completed it
Number of
students who
started
Number of
students who
finished
Mo 0. Presentation of the course
4826
4825
Mo 1. History and development of videogames
5373
4211
Mo 2. Designing a videogame
4004
1349
Module
Mo 3. Roles within the industry
2782
2365
Mo 4. Funding and distribution: The long road
2254
1996
Mo 5. Game review and evaluation. Game as art
1929
1671
Mo 6. Gamification and current trends
1521
1249
Table 2. Module 2 lesson statistics
Activity
Started Approved
Average
Grade
Topic 1: A reasonable doubt
3873
3870
100
Questionnaire: A reasonable doubt
3848
3776
99.683
Topic 2: What is NOT game design?
3833
3831
100
Questionnaire: What is NOT game design?
3773
3728
99.706
Topic 3: Establishing forms
3771
3769
100
Questionnaire: Establishing forms
3705
3662
99.836
Topic 4: What can we do with all this?
3674
3673
100
Questionnaire: What can we do with all this?
3624
3583
99.833
Topic 5: Generating decision making
3602
3599
100
Questionnaire: How to generate decision making
3565
3525
99.887
Topic 6: Let’s talk about design with a theoretician: Keith Burgun
3562
3561
100
Topic 7: Levels; the other side of design
3456
3456
100
Questionnaire: Levels; the other side of design
3421
3380
99.941
Topic 8: Miyamoto-San’s Master class
3425
3424
100
Questionnaire: Miyamoto-San’s Master class
3384
3348
99.91
75
Activity
Started Approved
Average
Grade
Interview with Raúl Rubio
3378
3376
Interview with Lucas González
3209
3208
100
Peer2Peer Activity
1406
1360
86.186
Additional Documentation
2950
2947
100
Figures
Profile: Professor/
University researcher
8%
Profile: I still have
not started my
University studies
13%
Profile:
Administration staff
and University
services
1%
Profile: University
student
40%
my University studies
38%
Figure 1. Profile of students to whom the peer review was directed
100
76
0% 0%
5%
3%
25–34
18%
39%
18–24
35–44
45–54
0–17
55–64
65–+
35%
Figure 2. Age of students to whom the peer review was directed
2%
3%
1%
3%
6%
Spain
Colombia
8%
Mexico
Peru
Venezuela
8%
Argentina
Ecuador
69%
Others
Figure 3. Nationality of students to whom the peer review was directed
77
Women
18%
Men
82%
Figure 4. Gender of students to whom the peer review was directed.
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
1
2
3
How many started
4
5
How many finished
Figure 5. Module completion comparison
6
7
78
4500
4000
3500
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
Started 3873 3848 3833 3773 3771 3705 3674 3624 3602 3565 3562 3456 3421 3425 3384 3378 3209 1406 2950
Finished 3870 3776 3831 3728 3769 3662 3673 3583 3599 3525 3561 3456 3380 3424 3348 3376 3208 1360 2947
Figure 6. Peer assessment comparison within the module
Summary or essay
6%
Multiple choice
Matching
Short answer
True/False
67%
4%
9%
15%
Figure 7. Survey results regarding types of exercises.
79
38%
Massive course with little professor
interaction (38%)
62%
Limited course with direct professor
interaction (62%)
Figure 8. Which types of online course do students prefer?
Yun Eun Kyeong
Korea
Teaching Arabic to Korean Students Using Films*
Abstract
This research aims to study the application of using films in teaching the Arabic
language to Korean students. Recently, level based classes and developing communication skills are becoming important goals in foriegn language education. The
most effective way to develop the student’s communication skills is to expose them
to real life situations and related resources. Films are replicas of real life situations
and thus are effective especially in teaching spoken language. This research implies
the following things to Arabic education. First, it is best to provide realistic data
to students to improve their communication skills. Selecting films that contain
conversations and expressions that are used every day, while avoiding violence or
contents of too much slang, will allow students to continuously remain interested
and focused. Second, a program that connects films to CD-ROM for textbooks
needs to be created. Additionally, there is a need to increase the understanding
of spoken language through various study programs for Korean teachers. Finally,
using interesting films to motivate students will have positive effects and will allow
them to approach Arabic through understanding of the language rather than pure
memorization.
Keywords: Arabic language, teaching method, films, communicative skills
Introduction
With the rapid globalization of society in Korea, an easier flow of foreign
cultures has led to an increase in the importance of foreign language education.
* This paper was supported by the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Research Fund.
Teaching Arabic to Korean Students Using Films
81
Furthermore, the Korean Ministry of Education has recently revised the 7t Education Curriculum in the effort to increase the communication skills of learners
based on language education. However, the field of Arabic education has been slow
to adapt to these changes, and to this day, the main methods of education have
been based on grammar-translation and audio-lingual methods.
The primary purpose of language is to communicate. When a person communicates, they do not speak as if reading a book. Rather, they would speak in
a tone varying according to the situation and the listener. However, this process
does not come naturally for someone who is learning a foreign language, and it
requires continuous practice and training. From this, we can see that learning
spoken language is an important aspect of communication skills and that the
contemporary education system, which is focused more on grammar, has limits
in providing solutions to problems concerning communication. Learning written
language is also an important part; however, the main problem arises when there
is no balance between teaching written and spoken language. Therefore, creating
a teacher-student model and continuously studying for even a short amount of
time a day may partially solve the problem of communication skills. Porter and
Roberts (1981) said that in order to increase communication skills, it is best to
expose the learner to real life situations. However, it is not easy to expose students
to such environments. Although films may not expose one to such environments
in real life, they provide a replica of real life situations and can be an effective
tool in teaching foreign languages. Furthermore, watching films can be a fun way
to learn, which makes students interested and focused, and this will positively
influence their learning of foreign languages.
This research aims to study the application of films in teaching foreign languages in Arabic education. Recently, level based classes and developing communication skills are becoming important goals of foreign language education.
However, classes related to spoken language are not being offered. Therefore,
Korean students are unable to speak even the basic sentences, despite the long
term of foreign language education. The most effective way to develop the student’s communication skills is to expose them to real life situations and related
resources. Films are replicas of real life situations and thus are effective especially
in teaching spoken language. Therefore, the goal of this research is to provide
teaching methods focused on utilizing films in a multimedia education environment to teach the Arabic language to Korean students and develop their communication skills.
82
Yun Eun Kyeong
Theoretical background
Films are widely used as teaching material, because they include everyday
conversations that occur between native speakers and these conversations give
us a sense of the environment. Furthermore, with the advancement in computer
technology, media, and DVDs, it has become easier to use films in the field. Therefore, through films, students can understand the society and culture of the country
through first-hand experience and develop their communication skills with the
understanding of the environment they can be in.
Geddes and White (1978) stated that if the realistic data contain everyday conversations or expressions, then the conversations can be categorized into 2 types.
The first type is ‘unmodified’ conversation, which occurs in everyday life. The
second type is ‘simulated’ conversation, which is used for education purposes and
has a high chance of occurring in daily life. Porter and Roberts (1981) stated that
in order to expose the learner to real-life conversations, it is crucial to use credible
data to help students avoid the imbalance between spoken language and listening
skills. It is also hard to expect students to exercise the types of conversation they
have never been exposed to before. Both types of conversation which Geddes
and White mentioned are included in films, therefore selecting the right films is
important and it will be an excellent resource for the conversation education.
Kim Hyun Sook (2004) pointed out that for a more desirable method of language education films have the following characteristics.
• First, films not only allow students to be exposed to a variety of views and
characteristics of different situations, but they make them adapt.
• Second, similar situations appear in different films, so watching films allows
for the accumulation of language and information.
• Third, there is a consistent progression of development in culture, and
watching films will help students to keep up with the change.
• Fourth, they help students build mobile communication skills, as mobile
communication is being increasingly used in business settings as it transcends space and time.
• Fifth, speed control allows students to watch again the scenes that might
have been missed.
• Sixth, composition in a chronological time frame helps students to understand the full situations.
• Seventh, accumulating new information is made easier.
• Eighth, images act as a strong emotional stimulant providing realism and
liveliness.
83
With such characteristics, Butler-Pascoe and Wiburg (2003) presented specific
examples of teaching and learning. For instance, with the students learning English, we can start by showing the first scene of the movie, ‘The River Runs through
It’. The teacher can show a scene to the students and ask them to predict what
will happen next. In the first scene, where the children ride a boat on the top of
the waterfall, the teacher can turn the sound off and ask one group of students,
who have already seen the scene, to guess what the characters were saying. Then,
the teacher can ask another group of students, who have only previously heard
the sound without any images, to guess what is going on. The students who have
watched the scene will give better responses compared to the students who have
only heard the sound. This can explain the positive effects of using images in
language learning. Additionally, Bumpass (1963) said that if the linguistic level of
students hinders them to absorb a large amount of language information, it would
be more effective to choose a film with the story that can easily be understood
just by looking at the images. Therefore, the selection of films must be made in
accordance with students’ level of advancement.
Advantages and disadvantages of using films as teaching material
Advantages
Using films for educational purposes has the following advantages:
• The characters that appear in films use realistic language.
• The stimulating effects provide students with motivation to stay focused.
• Images allow for maximizing the effects of learning.
• Other, non-verbal, forms of communication can be learned (gesture, culture, etc.)
• Understanding the film itself can help with understanding the culture.
• Sharing similar experiences will help students to learn the proper language
used in those situations.
Disadvantages
Using films for educational purposes can have the following disadvantages:
• There is a high possibility that students will focus on the fun aspect of
watching the movie, and not the learning one.
• The film director’s subjective thinking may influence students.
• A long preparation time is required to provide effective teaching.
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Yun Eun Kyeong
Methods to overcome disadvantages
To overcome the limits of films used as a teaching tool, the teacher must pick
a film in advance and consider the student’s language skills, culture, and connections between the learning processes. To prevent students from becoming
distracted, teachers must insist on their active participation. After watching a film,
in order to reinforce the contents of the film, students should summarize the story
of the film or it can be watched again.
It is crucial to assess whether students have acquired linguistic, grammatical, or
cultural information. Based on these, the teacher can coordinate the quantity and
contents to assess the students’ achievement.
For effective teaching, the teacher should edit and process the resources which
will allow students to acquire language information in a less passive manner. An
example could be selecting several scenes which will draw students’ attention, in
order for the students to understand and to actively participate. Furthermore, to
overcome the problems that arise from listening skills and difficult contents, the
script can be provided to prevent lack of understanding and distraction.
Films as reflection of reality
There is no doubt that a film will provide motivation and allow students to
acquire information on language, society, and culture. Also, considering that films
are created for the understanding of culture and its members, the cultural ‘reality’
cannot be questioned.
However, as all fiction carries a subjective view of reality, films may or may not
support realism. Furthermore, films are not created for the purpose of education,
thus preparation is required to use selective material for educational purposes.
During the preparation stage, a discussion is needed in order to select the right
film to use, and the main purpose would be to aid students with speaking and acting in a proper manner. Additionally, it needs to be considered whether students
can relate the story with their surroundings.
In foreign language teaching, the realism of a film refers to whether it can be
used for education or not. Here, the expressions and understanding through the
film is more important than grammar and structure.
85
Using films in teaching Arabic
To be considered in advance
Regarding Arabic learning, a course titled ‘Screen Arabic’ may be created and
films can be used as reference data. However, we must always remember the following two things in using the variety of methods:
• Films have independent characteristics (imagery and sound collaboration,
characters, scenery, etc.)
• If films can be used for educational purposes, it is because people enjoy
watching them. (Baddock, 1996)
Films draw attention through their linguistic information, storyline, subject,
culture, and social aspects. In any case, our decisions regarding the use of films in
class must be in coordination with our goals, and they must be appropriate to the
students and set within our time frame.
Written Arabic & Spoken Arabic
The languages used in films also differ by their genre. In other words, the lines
used in comedy and drama will not be the same. Different nuances will exist,
and moreover, the relationship between spoken and written language must be
considered. Spoken language differs depending on its formality. However, the
conversations in films use spoken language and we can find a complex relationship
of spoken and written language within them. In reference to Gregory and Carroll’s
(1979) language varieties and their social contexts, we can see the following:
(a) Text which imitates spoken language as if it has never been transcribed
(b) Text with both spoken language characteristics and written language characteristics
(c) Text not written for dictation purposes, such as diaries or letters
(d) Text written to be read in grammatical form (letter dictation)
(e) Text written to be read (Interview or discussion transcription)
(a) and (b) are the most common types of conversation that occur in films.
Scripts such as (e) suffice the conditions of (a), and scripts such as (d) are close to
(b) but without fully removing the grammatical nuances. (c) and (d) are not that
hard to find in films, but on the other hand, (e) is a result of transcribed media.
In conclusion, whilst preparing a film to be used as teaching material, planning
and studying of the various linguistic situations needs to be considered.
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Yun Eun Kyeong
Using subtitles
Using subtitles is always a question arising in class. Without subtitles, it would
be difficult to understand a film. It would also lead students to concentrate more
on the images of the film and make conclusions through imagination. However, it
will allow for noticing of the characteristics of languages, which would have been
easily dismissed if subtitles were present.
Watching films with subtitles might interfere with the understanding of the
spoken language, because students will focus on the grammatical structure. However, for scenes which are difficult to understand, subtitles could be useful and the
teacher can ask the students what they have understood. If Korean subtitles were
shown to students, they will naturally compare them with the spoken language and
it will thus increase their interest in the language. However, this could be both an
advantage and a disadvantage.
In exceptional cases, films with original language subtitles can be used. Using
transcribed spoken language in class allows students to understand the expressions and linguistic styles more easily. However, the effort of understanding must
precede this.
Example of using films in Arabic teaching
Arabic film title applied language study model
A model based on the previous theory has been created, which can be used
in actual lectures. Figure 1 is based on Lee Choong Hyun’s (2005) CALL lecture
model, and it was modified for this purpose. Lee Choong Hyun (2005) stated that
multimedia alone cannot be used as lecture data or as a replacement of teachers,
and thus it emphasizes the importance of teaching methods.
First, before watching a film, students need to prepare by revising the previous
material and getting used to certain expressions.
The students will watch a part of the film, acquire information, and practice
pronunciation, which will improve their communication skills. Video study is
more effective if it is done repetitively and if audio and video can be separately
presented to students without subtitles. Individual study and partner/group study
can be used appropriately, and for intensive and revision studying, expressions can
be learned through related web-sites. At this point, students must be encouraged
and all questions must be answered.
Finally, in order to organize what they have learned after watching the film,
students can conduct role plays and simulations to apply it to real life situations.
87
Student
Pre-film
watching
Film
watching
Teacher
Suggest topic, brainstorming etc
Expressions and keyword studying
Film
watching
Video
study
Acuire
information
Individual
study
Pronunciation
practice
Partner/Croup
form
Post-film
watching
Role play, simulation, debate,
evaluation, assignment
Figure 1. Arabic film title applied language study model.
Through this activity, the students can store the information they have added
through the film to their existing knowledge. Teachers will need to prepare related
web-sites beforehand and conduct the class smoothly.
Guide plan for Arabic lessons using the film ‘Paradise Now’
Based on Figure 1, a guide plan example is shown in Table 1 below.
Table 1. Guide plan for Arabic lessons using the film ‘Paradise Now’.
Purpose of
study
– Familiarize with communication skills through spoken language used in film.
– Increase listening skills through authentic data
– Based on listening, improve the 4 language skills through post activities.
Preparation
Hardware: PC, Projection TV, internet installation
Software: Power point, ‘Paradise Now’, linguistic learning machine
Stage
Learning content
Time/tool
Pre–film
watching
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
15 minutes/
Power point,
Projection TV
Attendance check
Unit introduction and proposal of lesson aim
Propose lesson aim
Brainstorming: personal experiences related to topic
Learn expressions and idioms: related to topic
Introduce activities
Propose specific instructions and contents through PPT
Yun Eun Kyeong
88
Film
watching
Listening to conversation (group or individual study)
Film
watching
– Watching video without audio: guess overall story
– Listen to audio without video: confirm whether guesses
were correct
– Watch video with audio: Understand general and specific
conversation contents
– Check for any misunderstanding
Film
watching
Acquiring information (individual study)
Film
watching
– Acquire information related to video: leave blanks for useful expressions and fill them out after watching
– Propose subtitles: After acquiring information, propose
English and Korean subtitles simultaneously
Film
watching
Pronunciation practice (Whole study –> Group study)
Film
watching
– Explanation of pronunciation: Explaining pronunciation of
words in focus
– Listening to pronunciation: Repetitively hearing pronunciation from video
– Pronunciation practice: Record and listen to their pronunciation and practice
Film
watching
Intensive and supplementary study (Individual study)
Film
watching
– Using the internet: Using various listening web–sites and
listening to appropriate texts according to each student’s
level
15 minutes/
PC
Post film
watching
– Role play and simulation: Apply script from film or modify
to one’s situation, and conduct role play or simulation
– Internet activity: Search for topic–related data on the internet and use for reading or writing
– Evaluation: evaluate personal study
15 minutes/
PC,
Projection
TV
15 minutes/
Projection
TV
15 minutes/
PC
15 minutes/
PC Recording
wizard
Recommended films for each level
a) Beginner – ‘Kingdom of Heaven’
This movie triggers interest and is helpful for basic
conversation. It is Ridley Scott’s 2005 debut film, which
was directed in the US as a standard Hollywood blockbuster. But due to the appearance of Salah Al-Din, an
Arab hero, basic Arabic is used. For beginner students,
it is easy to learn basic phrases.
89
b) Intermediate – ‘Paradise Now’
This is a cheerful approach to serious reality, based on
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The story is about two
Palestinian suicide bombers, depicting a very serious
matter. It shows that suicide bombers are not different
from ordinary young men.
c) Advanced – ‘The Band’s Visit’
It is a collaboration of English audio and Arabic subtitles. This film is about an Egyptian band inviting Israel
to perform, and it shows what they encounter during
their travel. Failing to reach their destination, they
spend a night at a residence with people of different
cultures and languages. The members use English in
order to communicate. This is an interesting film for the students who
understand both English and Arabic.
Conclusions
A film depicts the culture of a country, and as it is made with the use of its
native language, it allows for effective learning of culture and language. Another
strong advantage of using films in foreign language teaching is that you are able
to learn spoken language without having to go to a given country. Therefore, it is
necessary for us to prepare to use Arabic films efficiently to teach Arabic. Also,
through such methods, while overcoming the disadvantages, more research needs
to be conducted.
This research implies the following things to Arabic teaching. First, it is best to
provide realistic data to students to improve their communication skills. Selecting the films that contain conversations and expressions that are used every day,
while avoiding violence or contents of too much slang, will allow students to continuously remain interested and focused. Second, a program that connects films
to CD-ROM for textbooks needs to be created. This will save time for teachers to
prepare and edit films, and it will improve the communication skills of students.
Additionally, there is a need to increase the understanding of spoken language
through various study programs for Korean teachers. Finally, using interesting films to motivate students will have positive effects and will allow them to
approach Arabic through understanding of the language rather than pure memo-
90
Yun Eun Kyeong
rization. Especially students can effectively enhance personal studying through
multimedia and the internet to practice listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
Furthermore, a systematic teaching method is important; detailed models can be
applied to the field of teaching, and continuous research needs to be conducted
in the future.
References
Abd Alfataah Albajjah (2007). Ta‘ liim talaamidh mahaaraat qiraa’iayyah (Teaching reading skill to the students), Cairo: Daar fikr.
Bae, Doobon (2006). A Curriculum of foreign language Education, Seoul: Hankukmoonhwa sa.
Brown, H.D. (2001). Teaching by principles, New York: Longman, Inc.
Brumfit, C.J. & Johnson, K. (1979). The communicative approach to language teaching, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Bumpass, F.L. (1963). Teaching young students English as a foreign language, New
York: American Book Company.
Butler-Pascoe, M.E. & Wiburg, K.M. (2003). Technology and teaching English
language learners, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.
Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the theory of syntax, MIT: MIT Press.
Fakhr Aldiin Qabaawah (1999). Maharaat lughawiyyah wa ‘uruubat
lisaan(Linguistic skills and Arabization of the tongue), Beirut: Daar fikr mu’aasir.
Geddes, M. & White, H. (1978). The use of semi-scripted simulated authentic
speech in listening comprehension, Audiovisual Language Journal. 16(3),
137 – 145.
Hasan Shahaatah (1993). Ta‘liim lughah ‘arabiyyah bayna nazariyyah wa tatbiiq
(Teaching Arabic, theory and application), Beirut: Daar misriyyah lubnaaniyyah.
Hymes, D. (1972). On Communitive Competence. In J.B. Pride & J. Holmes (Eds.),
Sociolinguistics, London: Harmondsworth Penguin.
Jack C. Richards (2008). Curriculum Development in Language Teaching, Cambridg: Cambridg Press.
Kim, Hyun Sook (2004). A study of teaching English listening skill using movies,
M.A. thesis, Hankuk Univ. of Foreign Studies. Seoul.
Larsen-Freeman, Diane (2011). Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching,
Oxford: Oxford University Press.
91
Lee, C.H. (1998). The use of computers in foreign language teaching and learning
effectively: Rethinking key issues, Journal of The Applied Linguistics Association
of Korea, 14(1), 87 – 115.
Lee, C.H. (1999). Why use or not use computers? Multimedia-Assisted Language
Learning, 2(2), 9 – 46.
Muhammad Bu Najmah (2005). Tadriis lughah ‘arabiyyah linaatiqiin bighayriha
(Teaching Arabic to the non-native speakers), Rabat: Jaami‘at ’Akhawayn.
Porter, D. & Roberts, J. (1981). Authentic Listening activities, ELT Journal, 36 (1),
37 – 47.
Rushdi Ta’iimah (1998). Manaahij tadriis lughah ‘arabiyyah bita‘liim lassasi (Curriculum of teaching Arabic for the elementary level), Cairo: Daar fikr ‘arabi.
Taha ‘Ali Husayn Dalimi (2003). Taraa’iq ‘amaliyyah fi tadriis lughah ‘arabiyyah
(Practical methods of teaching Arabic), Cairo: Daar shuruuq linashr wa tawzii‘.
Social
Pedagogy
Shwu Ming Wu, Cheng Hong Yang,
Wan Chen Hsu
Taiwan
Validation of School Core Competence Scale
for Undergraduates: Empirical Findings of Taiwan Case
Abstract
This study aimed to validate the 25-item School Core Competence Scale
(SCCS) of the National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences. Item analysis
and exploratory factor analysis were utilized with 368 undergraduates and confirmatory factor analysis with another 384 undergraduates. The SCSS had eight
subscales, including Communication and Expression, International Perspective,
Humanity, Civics and Morals, Professional Knowledge and Skills, Integrative
Learning, Passion and Anti-stress, and Self-discipline. Results indicated that the
SCCS is a valid and reliable instrument among undergraduates. Particularly,
women scored higher on Communication and Expression, Civics and Morals,
Self-discipline as well as the total scale.
Keywords: School Core Competence Scale, validation studies, Taiwanese
undergraduates.
Introduction
The term “core competence” is common in education literature as well as in economics and management (Holmes and Hooper, 2000). Core competence is defined
by a set of learning outcomes (skills, competences, or qualifications) that each student
should acquire during, and demonstrate at the end of, their period of studying at
a higher education institution. Furthermore, when applied to education as a whole,
core competence refers to facilitating the empowerment of people through learning
how to acquire information (i.e., data), turning it into knowledge and skills (i.e.,
96
Shwu Ming Wu, Cheng Hong Yang,Wan Chen Hsu
useful, assessed, applied, ordered, and structured information), and applying such
knowledge and skills to solve unique problems (Hu and Lin, 2011; Stewart, 1999).
Thus, higher education should equip students with the core competences necessary
to successfully compete in the job market and excel in their careers.
However, according to a report from the Directorate General of Budget,
Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) of Executive Yuan (2013), 37.34% of all
unemployed citizens in Taiwan hold a Bachelor’s degree. This represents the highest proportion of the unemployed population in Taiwan. Clearly, there is cause
for concern over the function of higher education. In recent years, the Higher
Education Evaluation and Accreditation Council of Taiwan have emphasized core
competence acquisition as an important tool for evaluating school effectiveness
(Higher Education Evaluation and Accreditation Council of Taiwan, 2010).
The Ministry of Education (of the Republic of China [ROC]) (2009) enacted
the University Teaching Excellence Project in order to move all institutions toward
a student-centered environment, to promote student learning as the primary goal,
and to nurture the development of core competences. In order for the project
to succeed and according to school vision, it is essential to properly define the
indicators of core competences.
Core competence indicators constitute a method for testing and understanding
students’ learning outcomes. Learning outcomes represent what a learner knows,
understands, and is able to do after completion of learning. In order to develop
core competences, educational institutions should focus on developing relationships with their students rather than supplying a single course curriculum. By
providing the “best total experience,” institutions can develop solutions that suit
the future learning needs of each student (Holmes and Hooper, 2000). Through
the explicit promotion of learning outcomes, many schools have begun to develop
instruments for measuring core competences in Taiwan.
The Ministry of Education has been conducting the Teaching Excellence
program since 2005. The Teaching Excellence program is a competitive program
that aims to ensure that universities adhere to the guidelines of the Ministry of
Education. It states that each university should seek to improve its own education
program in accordance with the stringent standards of the Ministry of Education,
by focusing on students’ core competences and then improving the university education program as a whole. Each project planning application process spans four
years. Following approval from the Ministry, the university is awarded with excellence in university teaching grant. The National Kaohsiung University of Applied
Sciences (KUAS) has received subsidies for nine consecutive years from 2006 to
2014 and ranked first among the technology universities of Southern Taiwan.
97
Validation of School Core Competence Scale for Undergraduates
In recent years, promoting student learning outcomes has become an important
policy at KUAS. To date, KUAS has developed appropriate validation measurements. According to the criteria of the Taiwan Training Quality System (TTQS),
KUAS would be suitable for creating a measure of student learning outcomes,
which made it a natural choice for the development of our School Core Competence Scale (SCCS). The TTQS for vocational education and training includes
five factors (plan, design, do, review, and outcome) for implementing initiatives
to enhance learning outcomes (Bureau of Employment and Vocational Training,
Council of Labor Affairs, 2007).
The authors used the five steps outlined above as the foundation of student
learning outcome assessment. In this study, the authors reviewed background literature to develop the SCCS, and then conducted a survey using the SCCS to
confirm its validity and reliability. Figure 1 shows the specific research process,
represented by the dashed line section to the right.
Education plays a significant role in ensuring that students acquire the key competences necessary to enable them to flexibly adapt to such changes. At present,
however, a consensus school level student core competence framework in Taiwan
needs to be clearly defined (Chanyang, 2011). In 2010, the European Centre for
the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP) explored the development
of a competence-based learning outcome assessment method during vocational
Vision
Plan
Goal
Measure of School
Core Competence
Outcome
Develop School
Core Competence
Scale
Teaching Strategy
Review
Need for
Curriculum
M aterialIdentified
Design
Evaluation
Survey and
Feedback
Curriculum
Design
Curriculum
Implementation
Do
Figure 1. Framework for Developing the School Core Competence Scale.
98
education and training courses. As the vocational education system considers
the effectiveness of learning when determining curriculum reform considerations, learning strategies developed from this perspective would not only assist
in strengthening general school education and links to the labor market, but also
would contribute to the school’s goals of achieving student-centered teaching
(European Commission, 2010).
In Europe, the origin and development of outcome statements is clear. As part
of the 2010 Education and Training Program, the EU has also developed a set of
key competences, working through expert groups representing the member states
(European Commission, 2004). The descriptors used for the eight key competences
are based on three categories, namely, knowledge, skills, and attitudes. Thus, competences were defined herein as a combination of the context of the KUAS school
vision with the acquisition of necessary skills, knowledge, and attitudes. The EU
has, for many years, developed key competence indicators for diverse student
learning assessments. The presented study referred to and drew upon the competences from CEDEFOP (2009) and the EU (2004) to develop a number of dimensions of core competences for undergraduates at KUAS (cf., Table 1). Core
Table 1. Dimensions of school core competence.
CEDEFOP
(2009)
Instrumental
competence
EU(2004)/European
key competencies
1. Learning how to learn
2. Mathematical literacy and
basic competencies in science
and technology
KUAS
school vision
Dimensions
of SCCS, KUAS
Professional
knowledge
1. Professional knowledge and skills
2. Integrative learning
Macro-level
perspective
1. Communication
and expression
2. International perspective
Work ethic
Humanity
Civics and morals
Healthy personality
Passion and anti-stress
Self-discipline
3. Digital competence
4. Communication in mother
tongue
5. Communication in a foreign
language
Interpersonal
competence
Cultural expression
Interpersonal and civic
competencies
Systemic
competence
Entrepreneurship
CEDEFOP = European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training; KUAS = National
Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences; SCCS = School Core Competence Scale
99
competences are multi-dimensional in nature. The purpose of this study was to
utilize the KUAS school vision and the CEDEFOP (2009) and EU (2004) frameworks to develop the SCCS. In short, the main purpose of this study was to construct, test, and verify the SCCS developed at KUAS and then to evaluate the core
competences of undergraduates.
Methods
Generating Items for the SCCS
With consideration to the study purpose, all the items of the scale should reflect
the latent variable that the scale aims to address. The student learning assessment
committee at KUAS generated scale items. The authors reviewed a number of
relevant reports (e.g., CEDEFOP, 2009; EU, 2004). In addition, three databases
(ERIC, ProQuest, and Web of Knowledge) were searched to locate appropriate
articles for review using the key word “core competence.” Only peer-reviewed
articles written in English were included. Following the school core competences
desired at KUAS, the student learning assessment committee selected 25 items
to serve as SCCS content during the item generation stage. Items were rated on
a 9-point Likert-type scale, ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (9).
Students were asked to select the response that most accurately described their
self-concept. Most items were generated with a positive tone and started with
“I can…” (cf., Table 2).
Table 2. Items of the School Core Competence Scale.
No. Item
1.
I can communicate with others and effectively understand others’ thoughts.
2.
I can speak/write Chinese or English, as well as other languages.
3.
I can interact with others in harmony.
4.
I can understand international issues and trends.
5.
I can pay attention to environmental protection and the development of mankind.
6.
I can respect disadvantaged groups and multicultural differences.
7.
I can sustain attention or participation in arts and cultural activities.
8.
I can realize the value of self-progress and stimulate motivation.
9.
I can have the spirit to serve others, care for society, and help others.
10.
I can uphold integrity and have the courage to promote good and combat evil.
100
No. Item
11.
I can be cautious in distinguishing between right and wrong and always abide by ethical
legal norms.
12.
I can have a benevolent and courageous spirit and join with others to do good things, such
as help the weak.
13.
I can actively seek general knowledge, professional knowledge, and skills.
14.
I can use technological knowledge and seek innovation.
15.
I can collect, analyze, and integrate information in order to deal with professional issues.
16.
I can dare to put forward my own unique insights and innovative solutions to solve
problems.
17.
I can think diversely and ask questions humbly.
18.
I like to read extracurricular books to broaden my view.
19.
I can continue to learn and cultivate lifelong learning habits.
20.
I can perceive and make use of resources to control my emotions.
21.
I can face my problems and frustration and participate in healthy leisure activities.
22.
I can motivate others and myself and face external challenges optimistically.
23.
I can plan everything in detail and complete the tasks as directed by my organization.
24.
I can be self-reliant and properly plan to carry out independent-study or life plans.
25.
I can work actively and responsibly.
Sample and Data Analysis
In this study, random cluster sampling was used to select two group samples
from 7,515 undergraduates between January and June 2013. In study 1, data from
the first sample (N = 368) were analyzed using item analysis and exploratory factor
analysis (EFA). In study 2, data from the second sample (N = 1384) were analyzed
with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using AMOS 6.0 in order to determine
an optimum measurement model. The undergraduates were all from KUAS, and
came from various academic backgrounds spanning 18 departments and four
colleges. The second sample was composed of 839 male undergraduates and 545
female undergraduates. A t-test was conducted to understand the effect of gender
on school core competence.
Results
Study 1: Item Analysis and Exploratory Factor Analysis
For item analysis, the data were separated into two independent groups according to their scores for each item. The participants who had scored above 27%
101
formed a high-scoring group, while those who had scored under 27% formed
a low-scoring group. A t-test was conducted to investigate the difference between
the numbers of items in the high- and low-scoring groups. If p <.05, discrimination power was observed, and thus the item had to be kept. Ultimately, t-values
ranged from 19.88 to 31.73 (p <.001); thus, all items were kept. The mean interitem correlation of the SCCS was 0.77, with values ranging from 0.65 to 0.81. To
understand the internal consistency of the scale items more comprehensively, an
inter-item correlation matrix was computed. The value for each item was positive,
indicating that the items were measuring the same underlying characteristic. The
corrected item-total correlation values for all the items shown in the item-total
statistics were significantly greater than 0.30, indicating that all of the items were
adequate and appeared to measure the same latent construct (Pallant, 2010).
The Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) measure of sampling adequacy index was
found to be 0.97, well above the recommended value of 0.6 (Kaiser, 1974). Bartlett’s
test of sphericity yielded a highly significant result (p <.001), suggesting the factor ability of the correlation matrix (Pallant, 2010). Taken together, these results
indicate that a factor analysis could be performed (Tabachnick and Fidell, 2007).
Items were retained only when they exceeded +0.40 or were less than –0.40 for relevant factors, and they were less than the absolute value of ±0.40 for non-relevant
factors. Furthermore, the authors excluded items with factor loadings of less than
0.7, or if one item had factor loadings greater than 0.7 on two or more factors. The
factor loadings for each item and the common validity coefficients were above
0.4, demonstrating that the scale had excellent structure validity. The final scale
contained eight factors and the cumulative explained variance was approximately
82.29%. Table 3 shows the reliability of the SCCS. Before undertaking any further
measures, reliability was estimated with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient; the SCCS
demonstrated a strong alpha value of 0.97. This indicates a high level of internal
consistency, well above the acceptable threshold of 0.70 (Gable and Wolf, 1993).
Table 3. Factor names and internal consistency reliabilities.
Factor
Items Definition
Cronbach’s
alpha
Communication
and expression
3
Skills in English or other languages to interact with
others.
.81
International
perspective
3
Skills that demonstrate people’s attention to international issues and cultural diversity.
.83
Humanity
3
Skills that demonstrate people’s respect for the value
of life and concern for others.
.85
102
Factor
Items Definition
Cronbach’s
alpha
Civics and morals
3
Skills regarding civic and moral literacy; i.e., skills
enabling people to be good citizens.
.92
Professional
knowledge and skills
3
Skills demonstrating the knowledge and ability to
function professionally.
.92
Integrative learning
4
Skills in learning new knowledge, understanding
technology by oneself, and gathering information.
.88
Passion and
anti-stress
3
Skills in using resources and methods to manage
emotions, stress, and promote physical and mental
health.
.89
Self-discipline
3
Skills in self-management and organizing personal
matters.
SCCS
25
.91
.97
Study 2: Confirmatory Factor Analysis and T-test
The 25-item test was administered to a second sample of students in order to
validate the factor structure. First, the authors calculated the fit indices, which
showed a chi-squared value of 1693.45 (p <.05). In general, the larger the sample
size, the more likely a model will fail the chi-squared goodness-of-fit test (Barrett,
2007). Thus, it referred to other fit indicators as the following: goodness-of-fit
index (GFI),.91; confirmatory fit index (CFI),.95; normed fit index (NFI),.95;
relative fit index (RFI),.94; incremental fit index (IFI),.95; parsimonious normed fit index (PNFI),.78; critical N (CN),.233; and root mean square error of
approximation (RMSEA), 0.07. All regression weights had statistically significant
critical ratios (α =.05) and correlations greater than.67 were statistically significant (α =.05). The recommended values for each fit index are GIF ≥.90, CFI ≥.90,
NFI ≥.90, RFI ≥.90, IFI ≥. 90, PNFI ≥.60, CN value ≥.200, and RMSEA ≤.05
(Bagozzi and Yi, 1988).
Among the eight factors, undergraduates scored highest on “Civics and Morals”
followed by “Passion and Anti-stress.” “International Perspective” scored the lowest.
These results implied that these undergraduates had a strong conception of civic
responsibilities and had strong moral sense. The lower scores for “International
Perspective” suggest that some undergraduates might have difficulty attending to
international issues and maintaining awareness of cultural diversity. Then, in the
comparison between genders of the eight factor scores, the authors noted significant associations between males and females in “Communication and Expression,”
“Civics and Morals,” “Self-discipline,” and the total scale scores (cf., Table 4).
103
Table 4. Means, standard deviations, and t-test
for the School Core Competence Scale.
Factor
Total
Mean
Male
SD
Mean
Female
SD
Mean
t-value
SD
Communication and expression
6.16
1.33
6.09
1.36
6.28
1.26
–2.63**
International perspective
6.08
1.38
6.07
1.38
6.08
1.36
–.11
Humanity
6.15
1.41
6.11
1.42
6.24
1.43
–1.75
Civics and morals
6.53
1.38
6.42
1.39
6.69
1.35
–3.55***
Professional knowledge and skills 6.30
1.40
6.26
1.42
6.38
1.35
–1.53
Integrative learning
6.32
1.35
6.30
1.36
6.39
1.32
–1.27
Passion and anti-stress
6.45
1.39
6.42
1.40
6.54
1.37
–1.54
Self-discipline
6.28
1.41
6.23
1.40
6.41
1.41
–2.29*
Total scale
6.29
1.19
6.24
1.19
6.38
1.17
–2.10*
*p <.05; ** p <.01; *** p <.001; N = 1384.
Discussion
The aim of this study was to construct, test, and verify the SCCS among undergraduates at KUAS. The reliability values for each competence perspective ranged
between.81 and.92, and the cumulative total explained variance was 82.29%. Thus,
it is evident that the SCCS for KUAS has excellent reliability and validity. This
study revealed eight perspectives and 25 key questions in total. In terms of the
CFA, Barrett (2007) has argued that even statistically non-significant overall chisquared values can indicate good fit. The GFI is an absolute fit index and provides
a measure of the amount of variance/covariance in the sample matrix that is
predicted by the model implied variance/covariance matrix (Teo and Khine, 2009).
The GFI value should approximate 1 to demonstrate the best fit of the model.
Browne and Cudeck (1993) demonstrated that models had reasonable fit when
RMSEA was between.05 and.08. CFI represents incremental fit indices and tests
the proportionate improvement in fit by comparing the target model to a baseline
model with no correlations among observed variables. CFI values approximating
0.95 indicate good fit (Bagozzi and Yi, 1988). In this study, the measurement model
results showed an adequate fit to the data. Furthermore, gender differences existed
in “Communication and Expression,” “Civics and Morals,” “Self-discipline,” and the
total scale scores. It is possible that, in order to align with higher social expectations, females can better understand and express emotions (Wang and Lo, 2008).
104
However, further studies must be conducted to explore the gender differences in
“Civics and Morals,” “Self-discipline,” and the total scale.
Conclusion
The SCCS showed high validity and reliability, indicating that it would be useful
as a reference tool for other schools employing similar initiatives. As only KUAS
undergraduates were tested, it is unknown whether the findings could be generalized to other samples. To increase external validity, studies with different samples
should be conducted. Core competences, to be effective, must shift through
continuous organizational learning. In this study, female undergraduates showed
higher scores on some dimensions of the SCCS. The implication for universities is to provide some strategies for enhancing the core competences of male
undergraduates.
Acknowledgments
This paper was supported by the Ministry of Education, R.O.C., under the grant Teaching
Excellence Project for KUAS, during 2013 to 2014.
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Poland
Intercultural Non-formal Education Issues
on the Agenda of Polish Non-governmental
Organizations – a research report
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to present the results of the research on the issues
discussed in the educational initiatives undertaken by Polish non-governmental
organizations. The results of the scientific explorations presented in the paper are
the outcome of the PhD research project Intercultural Non-formal Education in
Poland on the Example of Non-governmental organizations activity.
The project included surveying 65 leaders of different non-governmental
organizations from three cities with different cultural make-ups, i.e. Bialystok,
Poznan and Warsaw. The study was conducted in 2010 – 2012 according to the
eclectic research approach, which allowed gathering quantitative and qualitative
data. Based on the analysis of the empirical material, the author of the article presents: the issues tackled in the initiatives carried out by Polish non-governmental
organizations, the structure of their implementation and the types of activities
undertaken (in view of the issues analysed). An outline of the research problems
precedes the discussion on the research results.
Keywords: non-governmental organizations, cultural diversity, intercultural
non-formal education
Introduction
Due to the systemic transformation in Poland and the consequent application of
the rule of social personalism – a characteristic of any democratic country, accord-
107
ing to which establishing space for communities ideologically, professionally or
regionally close to the human being is a priority- non-governmental organizations are becoming an increasingly important “social actor” (Lewenstein, Palska,
2004, 80). Therefore, they form the basis for a civil society. For over twenty years
in democratic Poland, people from various foundations and associations have
engaged in different types of initiatives such as educational, charity or cultural
initiatives. They have sought social change and many times performed significant
tasks that should have been the responsibility of governmental and municipal
organizations.
Non-governmental organizations are also important agents, in many cases leading ones, as to the implementation of intercultural non-formal education. Thus,
they meet the needs stemming from the socio-cultural diversity of local, Polish,
European or global environments. We are witnessing dynamic transitions in this
realm of education. Intercultural non-formal education is expanding the range of
issues it is concerned with, which results from the ongoing cultural diversification
of the country. Projects and programmes dealing with the issues about cultural,
social, economic or biological types of otherness of the Aliens/Others, the close
and distant ones, are conducted.
In this article, I will present the results of the study on the contents of the initiatives undertaken by Polish non-governmental organisations. The study is one of
the elements of the PhD research project Intercultural Non-formal Education in
Poland on the Example of Non-governmental organizations activity1.
The Characteristic of the Research Problem
To different extents, the role of non-governmental organisations has been the
subject of numerous social studies in Poland. However, the case of non-governmental organisations as implementers of intercultural non-formal education has
not been discussed yet.
In designing my research I followed the assumption that the cultural diversification of Polish society has been a dynamic process. The process was brought
about by the transitions in the final decade of the 20t century, i.e. the systemic
transformation, recognition of the rights of minorities, Polish accession to the
European Union and the Council of Europe and, consequently, opening the
1
This research project has been funded by the National Science Centre (contract no 4193/B/
H03/2011/40).
108
borders for immigrants from different countries. I made an assumption that the
coexistence of numerous culturally different groups may be an advantage but it
may well turn into a source of overt or covert conflicts. It is intercultural education above all that shapes intercultural relations. Therefore, it is an educational
priority to prepare society for living in a multicultural environment, not only
with the indigenous minorities who have lived in Poland for years, but also with
foreigners who leave their homelands for various reasons. Hence, it is essential
to develop intercultural non-formal education, i.e. a planned process of intercultural competence acquisition, taking place outside formal and obligatory education programmes, and, due to its character, enabling learning through experience
and active participation.2
In my study, I focused on the cyclical activities3 in the field of intercultural
non-formal education conducted in 2008 – 2010. The activities were to foster
sensitivity to otherness, teach to tolerate and accept it, as well as to develop the
ability to establish positive relations with the Alien/Other in the cultural, economic and biological domains. They dealt with the issue of cultural differences on
local, regional, national and transnational levels: starting with local communities
and concluding with the cultures of remote societies. The analysed projects and
programmes helped individuals shape their cultural identities, taking into consideration indigenous values of their families, parish communities and the like.
The activities were conducted in cooperation between educational institutions
on local, regional, national and transnational levels.4 In this article, I attempt to
answer one of the numerous research questions posed in my PhD research project:
What are the intercultural non-formal education issues5 implemented by Polish
non-governmental organisations?
In 2010 – 20126, the research was conducted among the promoters of intercultural non-formal education from deliberately selected types of non-governmental
2
The definition is the result of the analysis of Polish and English literature on the subject,
e.g. the assumptions of the lifelong education concept, central to modern thinking about education, as well as features of non-formal education, the essence of culture (treated as a natural
space for educational activities), and the idea of intercultural education.
3
These were the programs and projects implemented in different organizational forms such
as educational workshops, training, international exchanges, study visits.
4
The subject of my research also included the assessment of the initiatives by the participants. In this article, I only present the core methodological assumption for the problem in
question.
5
The term ‘issue’ is understood as the knowledge transmitted, acquired and created during
educational activity.
6
The research started in the other half of 2010, and was completed in February 2012.
109
organizations – foundations and associations7 – in three cities with different
cultural make-ups, i.e. Bialystok, Poznan and Warsaw. The study mostly included
institutions whose statutory activity presupposed the implementation of intercultural education and encompassed topics such as education and upbringing,
arts and culture, integration and social mobilization, and human rights. In the
choice of a target group, random purposeful sampling was employed. The direct
involvement in the initiatives as an initiator, as a coordinator or as a coach was the
main criterion for the purposeful selection of the study sample.
In the research, the eclectic approach was adopted, which allowed for gathering quantitative and qualitative data. A diagnostic survey was the core research
method. The techniques used included a two-part interview, a document content
analysis, overt and covert participant observation, and non-participant observation. In the first part of the interview, a structured close-ended interview was
employed and quantitative data about the actions taken by non-governmental
organisations in the realm of intercultural non-formal education was aggregated.
The other part of the interview contained open-ended questions, which complemented the information gathered through the close-ended interview.
In the course of the research, 65 interviews were carried out. 115 documents
about the target initiatives were collected: paper and electronic versions of the
programmes and projects, information folders, information retrieved from the
Internet. 20 observations of the initiatives from Bialystok, Poznan and Warsaw
were completed. The research findings are presented in this article for descriptive
purposes, and to a lesser degree for the purpose of a statistical and quantitative
inference.
Intercultural Non-formal Education Issues Introduced by Polish
Non-governmental Organizations
All the leaders engaged in the Polish third sector declared that the idea of
cultural otherness was included in the contents of the initiatives the leaders
implemented. It entailed discussing the issues about having and expressing the
minority identity by groups and individuals and the differences connected with it.
87% of the declarations confirmed working on the issues concerning social other7
The choice of the leaders of Polish foundations and associations as my study sample
resulted from the fact that they accounted for the majority of non-governmental entities, and
thus formed its core.
110
ness resulting from one’s nationality or ethnicity and the social status it involves.
45% of the topics discussed were about biological otherness based on sex, age, eye,
hair and skin colours, or physical/intellectual (dis)abilities. 75% of the declarations
indicated that the topic of economic otherness, manifested by economic status and
its consequences, was put forward. 35% of the interviewed leaders confirmed that
their organizations introduced in the initiatives the issue of political otherness, i.e.
the preferred worldview, ideology, doctrine.
As to the issues related to cultural and social otherness, 65% of the interviewed
activists claimed that the implemented activities related to selected elements of
the culture and identity of immigrants, e.g. the Africans, Vietnamese, Hindus,
Chinese, and Japanese. This group of interviewees was mainly from Warsaw, which
points to the fact that the above-mentioned issues were not popular in Bialystok or
Poznan. 50% of the interviewed leaders declared that the intercultural non-formal
education initiatives they carried out included issues relating to the cultures of
selected indigenous national minorities, e.g. Belorussian, Lithuanian, or Ukrainian
minorities. 40% of the interviewees confirmed dealing with the cultures of ethnic
minorities, mainly the culture of the Romani and Tartars. It is noteworthy that
most activists from non-governmental organizations in Bialystok declared that
they were concerned with the cultures of national and ethnic minorities, which
may have stemmed from the genuinely multicultural character of the city. 35% of
the interviewed leaders said that they embraced the problem of refugee culture
and the status of a forced migrant. This group mainly comprised people from
Bialystok and Warsaw. The contents of the initiatives referred to the situation and
culture of Chechen people. In 32% of the cases, the initiatives dealt with faiths
and religions, e.g. Islam, Eastern Orthodox Christianity, Protestantism, Buddhism,
and Hinduism. 10% of the answers gave evidence for the interest in the specificity
of foreign languages (Spanish, Arabic, Georgian, and Romani) and the artificial
Esperanto language. The interest in the issue of attitudes towards otherness,
including discrimination mechanisms and prevention, was declared by 48% of
the interviewees. 22% of the NGO activists said that the initiatives carried out by
their organisations included the issues about intercultural education methodology
and counteracting discrimination.
The statements of the interviewed leaders, the content analysis of the initiatives
and the observation of the initiatives indicate that the issues relating to other cultures, religions and faiths as well as the identities connected with them, together
with the issues about foreign languages and attitudes towards otherness constituted
the thematic core of the initiatives conducted and determined their character. The
issues concerning biological, economic or political otherness played a supporting
111
role. They served for a more in-depth explanation of discussed problems. For
instance, the organizers of the teacher training Vietnamese Children and Young
People in the Polish Education System – a part of the project Five Flavours Cinema
organized by the Arteria Foundation – discussed the issue of cultural identity of
Vietnamese immigrants, paying attention to their anthropological features and
socio-economic standing as a supplementary analysis. The question of economic,
biological and psychological aspects of otherness was an important element of
initiatives devoted to refugees (mainly from Chechnya, but also from Afghanistan,
Pakistan or Nigeria). It was also one of the core issues in the preparations for
participation in international voluntary service programmes (EVS, missionary
voluntary service).
The analysis of the empirical data has shown that although leaders declared
that they had covered numerous topics about cultural otherness or the otherness
of faith and religion, not all the topics underwent an in-depth examination. As the
surveyed NGO leaders pointed out, some of the issues were only hinted at, which
was due to time restrictions or the character of the initiatives. The situation was
slightly different in the case of initiatives on attitudes that involved presenting
participants with the mechanisms of discrimination and ways of counteracting
discrimination. These initiatives dealt with the issues about attitudes towards
otherness in the first place. The subject of biological, economic or cultural differences constituted the background for discussion. As to the international activities
(international exchange programmes, international volunteer service, or work
camps), beside the issues purposefully undertaken in the initiatives, spontaneously evolving topics about participants’ religious or cultural affiliations created
an essential background for discussion.
Types of Initiatives
Based on the empirical data, the issues prevailing in particular initiatives, and
in relation to the Holistic Concept of Intercultural Education of J. Nikitorowicz
(Nikitorowicz, 2005, 200 – 232), which in a comprehensive manner determines
the thematic areas in the field of intercultural education, the following types of
initiatives on the agenda of Polish non-governmental organisations can be distinguished:
112
Initiatives concerning the identity and cultural heritage of minority groups
This includes activities that focus on the issues relating to the symbolic and
material heritage of national, ethnic, religious or language minority groups
(including immigrants and refugees). The activities help to develop, in Poland and
abroad, the minority identity and all the competence required for participation
in the life of a particular national, ethnic, religious and language community.
They also serve to create a ground for an intercultural encounter, which increases
sensitivity towards the otherness of the majority group. The examples of this type
of initiatives are: The Multicultural Club (The Society of Friends of the Maharaja
Jam Sahib Digvijay Sinhji Public High School); “The Stories of the Terek Valley”
(Cultural Practitioners’ Association); integration and educational activities for the
Romani community (The Bahtale Roma Foundation)
Initiatives connected with the culture of the close Alien / Other
This group of initiatives deals with the issues concerning the culture and cultural
heritage of the close Alien/Other, i.e. a member of a particular community (local,
of a city, region or of Poland). The above-mentioned initiatives are mostly aimed
at selected elements of culture, identity, faith and religion of indigenous minorities,
who have lived in different regions of Poland for years. The initiatives concentrate
on selected elements of the dominant culture and encompass the local, regional,
national and international execution planes. Examples of the initiatives are: The
Meet Your Neighbour Project (The Poland-Ukraine Socio-Cultural Association);
The Chronicles of Podlasie Region (The Ab-ba Association for Children and Young
People Learning Belorussian); Multicultural Warsaw (The ProHumanum Association for the Development of Civic Society).
Initiatives focusing on the culture and position of the distant Alien/
Other
This group of initiatives includes activities whose contents relate to the culture
of the distant Alien/Other, who is a citizen of another country, continent, or an
immigrant or a refugee with entirely diverse cultural affiliation. The activities show
similarities and differences between the culture of the distant Alien/Other and the
local, regional or national cultures. Examples of initiatives falling within this group
are: activities introducing the culture and position of African people (The Hear
Africa Foundation) workshops on cultural diversity for children (The Foundation
of Intercultural Education); Hindu song classes (The House of Lotus Foundation).
113
Initiatives relating to the cultures of the close and
distant Aliens/Others
This group of initiatives focuses on the close and distant Aliens/Others. This
set of activities involves implementation of issues relating to different cultures,
religions, faiths and the like. The implementation follows the pattern from close to
distant otherness, but it also happens at random. Projects that belong to this group
of initiatives are Mobile School Intercultural Workshop Part II (The Culture House
Foundation); The Living Library of the Greater Poland (The Institute for Research
and Development of Social Initiative); the Programme for the Development of
Sensitivity Toward Otherness The Adventures of the Other (The Foundation of
Education and Creativity, The University of Bialystok Foundation).
Initiatives concerning the attitudes towards the distant and close Aliens/
Others
This set comprises the initiatives that deal with the problem of discrimination
against the distant and close Aliens/Others and ways of counteracting it. The
initiatives focus on the mechanisms of stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination.
They also discuss the consequences of any discriminatory acts and the ways of
counteracting discrimination. The issues about cultural, religious, biological or
economic types of otherness are the plane for consideration. Examples of this
type of initiatives are: anti-discrimination workshops for school children (The
9/12 Association for Dialogue); Hominem Quaro – a quest for a human (The StopKlatka Association of Culture Practitioners); and anti-discrimination workshops
organized by The Konsola Women Association.
Initiatives on Jewish history and culture and Polish-Jewish relations
This group of initiatives focuses on the subject of the Polish-Jewish past and
heritage, the Holocaust, Jewish culture and cultural ties resulting from the process
of cultural interpenetration. They discuss the issue of Polish-Israeli relations and
the character of the State of Israel. This set of initiatives includes projects such
as Restoring Matzeva (The Association of Creative Initiatives “Ę”); The School of
Dialogue (The Forum for Dialogue among Nations); International Summer Camp
(the Poland-Israel Centre for Civic Education).
Initiatives focusing on the cultural affiliations of the participants
This is a set of activities discussing the elements of cultures of the people
who participate in the initiatives. The main purpose of this kind of initiatives is
mutual understanding and integration. Discussing the cultural affiliation of the
114
participants usually happens in the case of international initiatives (exchange
programmes, work camps, volunteer work programmes). Initiatives include
the following projects: Let’s meet in the kitchen (the Aeege European Forum of
Students); the Polish-German encounters (the Polish-German Society for Social
Education); We love eating (the Foundation for Freedom).
Initiatives focusing on the role of language in communication and
promotion of other cultures
In this group of initiatives, the role of language in the process of intercultural
communication and learning about other cultures is the centre of attention.
Language is considered to be an intercultural communication tool and facilitator
in the process of gaining knowledge of other cultures, nations as well as Polish
history and culture. The activities are concerned with a particular language, a language family (e.g. Romance languages, or Slavonic languages), or the artificial
Esperanto language. Example projects that belong to this group of initiatives are
Femina Republic (The Sfera Foundation for Languages and Culture); European
Voluntary Service (The Bialystok Society for Esperanto Speakers); educational
activities carried out by The En-senco Socio-cultural Society of Ludwik Zamenhof.
Initiatives on interculturality and multiculturalism and the methodology
of working with particular groups
This group of activities focuses on the culture, religion and position of the close
and/or distant Aliens/Others, as well as intercultural education methodology. Its
contents pertain to selected elements of the cultural canon/canons of minority
groups, minorities’ religions, methods of designing education activities, ways of
addressing otherness, etc. Projects that can serve as examples of this type of initiatives are Refugee Culture: cultural differences and ways of addressing them (The
Foundation of Culture and Creativity); The Workshop of an Aspiring Teacher (The
Institute for Research and Development of Social Initiative).
Based on the research results analysis, it may be concluded that the contents of
the intercultural non-formal education initiatives follow the holistic understanding of the concept of intercultural education. The activities undertaken dealt with
many topics ranging from the cultures and problems of the close Aliens/Others
to the issues of the distant Aliens/Others. The choice of the issues discussed in
the initiatives was determined by the cultural character of a particular city. The
initiatives focused on the cultures and problems existing in the given area but were
not limited to these subjects only. The thematically widest range of initiatives e.g.
initiatives focusing on the cultures of national and ethnic minorities, immigrants,
115
refugees, or other religions was developed by Warsaw non-governmental organizations that operate in the so-called Polish “multikulti” centre. Bialystok NGOs
explored the topics about minority groups living in the city. They sometimes
showed their interest in the issues concerning refugees, less often in the issues
about immigrants or the distant Aliens/Others. The topics discussed in the Poznan
initiatives were diverse, and structurally they resembled a mosaic. Therefore, it is
difficult to discern the dominant ones. NGOs in all the cities included in their
initiatives the issues about discrimination, its consequences, and ways of counteracting it. The situation was similar in the case of initiatives treating language
as an intercultural communication tool that helps to learn about other cultures.
Moreover, it was also the case with the international initiatives that facilitated
the encounter with otherness and promotion of one’s own culture. The initiatives
concerning Jewish culture, Polish-Jewish and Polish-Israeli relations were mainly
introduced in Bialystok and Warsaw. All the issues enclosed in the initiatives of
Polish non-governmental organisations gave the opportunity to develop multifaceted identity of the initiatives participants.
Conclusion
In Poland, intercultural non-formal education has been developing dynamically since the 1990s. Thanks to the social activeness of citizens themselves, a wide
range of initiatives has been developed in the field of intercultural education. The
character of intercultural education that assumes learning through experience and
active participation, allows for the implementation of tasks on a number of topics,
which in turn facilitates the intercultural dialogue. As the results of my research
indicate, Polish non-governmental organisations introduced thematically diverse
initiatives that alluded to the needs relating to the intercultural education on local,
regional, national and transnational levels. The initiatives dealt with the issues
about the Aliens/Others who live in the local community, Poland, Europe or the
world as well as with the issues about attitudes towards otherness. In the course of
the implementation of non-governmental initiatives the topic of non-ethnically
conditioned types of otherness, i.e. biological, social or economic ones was raised.
Although it was of supplementary character, it allowed for a more detailed analysis
of the subject in question. The issues explored by Polish non-governmental organisations constituted a factor enabling the development of intercultural competence
and readiness for encounter with the close and/or distant Aliens/Others.
116
References
Dietz G., (2009), Multiculturalism, interculturality and diversity in education. An
anthropological approach, Münster, New York, München, Berlin: Waxman.
Grzybowski P.P. (2009), Edukacja europejska – od wielokulturowości ku międzykulturowości. Koncepcje edukacji wielokulturowej i międzykulturowej w kontekście
europejskim ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem środowiska frankofońskiego, Kraków,
Oficyna Wydawnicza Impuls.
Lewenstein B., Palska H. (2004), Organizacje pozarządowe na scenie publicznej
okresu transformacji: dynamika rozwojowa i relacje z władzą – analiza badań
jakościowych, In: P. Gliński, B. Lewenstein, A. Siciński (eds.) Samoregulacja
społeczeństwa polskiego III sektor i wspólnoty lokalne w jednoczącej się Europie,
Warszawa: Wyd. IFiS PAN, p. 80.
Lewowicki T. (2000), W poszukiwaniu modelu edukacji międzykulturowej, In:
T. Lewowicki, E. Ogrodzka-Mazur, A. Szczurek-Boruta, Katowice (eds.) Edukacja
międzykulturowa w Polsce i na świecie, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego.
Nikitorowicz J. (2005), Kreowanie tożsamości dziecka. Wyzwania edukacji
międzykulturowej, Gdańskie Wydawnictwo Psychologiczne: Gdańsk 2005,
pp. 200 – 232.
Rogers A. (2004), Non-formal education. Flexible schooling or participatory education? Hong Kong: Comparative Education Research Centre, The University of
Hong Kong.
Vincent Charles*,
Tatiana Gherman
Peru
Factors influencing students’ choice
of a B-school
Abstract
The presented study is a primary initiative in the Peruvian literature for understanding the factors which influence undergraduate students´ choice of a B-school
offering a Master´s Degree in Business Administration. A self-administered
questionnaire and focus group discussions were used in order to collect data from
700 respondents, with a usable response rate of 92%. Analysis of the data was
carried on through exploratory factor analysis. The seven revealed factors which
accounted for 63.2082% of the total variance were: Corporate Social Responsibility, Essentials of an MBA Program, Quality Yardsticks, Entrepreneurship, Location,
MBA Technical Specifications, and Physical Facilities. Entrepreneurship education
should be addressed primarily, as entrepreneurship is vital for economic growth
in Peru. In order to raise their value proposition, B-schools are expected to take
true initiatives in the CSR area and promote entrepreneurship education in their
curricula, through both business-skills training and practical support given by the
B-school.
Keywords: business schools, business studies, curricula, emerging markets,
factor analysis, higher education
* Corresponding Author
118
Vincent Charles, Tatiana Gherman
Introduction
The Master´s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) is nowadays one of
the most popular, desired, and valuable post-graduate degrees available worldwide. It is believed that an MBA degree provides its holders an added advantage
to get promoted to upper management positions, as well as a premium salary
in industry. As Sharkey and Beeman (2008) assessed, the MBA market will only
tend to become a hypercompetitive market, given its connectedness to business. Despite various achievements, the evolution of the education system in
Peru is relatively insufficient to meet the social needs of society. Moreover, little
attention has been paid to education, and the authors of this study identified
limited published research, in general, with regard to this topic. In the light of
this situation, it is obvious that in order to improve the management education,
it is necessary to understand the needs of the student and his decision-making
process. B-schools have to dedicate themselves to finding out what the student
is really looking for and hoping to accomplish as an MBA graduate and business
professional, and to design MBA programs that emphasize just how they will
meet those expectations.
Literature Review
Choosing a particular MBA program from so many options available on the
market is definitely not an easy task. Some studies (Galotti, 1999; Simpson, 2001)
indicated subjective elements as major criteria for undergraduates in choosing
an MBA program in a particular B-school, such as: perception of self, individual
interests, values and abilities, parental influence, and the student´s gender role
identification, among other things. Kurst (1984) found placement office statistics,
accreditation, supporting facilities, faculty make-up, and student/faculty ratio;
Miller (1988) found accreditation, teaching methods, program duration, fields of
specialization, school ranking, and cost; Powers (1988) found academic quality,
quality and reputation of the faculty, and placement opportunities; Parker, C

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