Do teachers make all their students play the same learning games? A comparative study of learning games in biology and English as a second language

This article, based upon the field of comparative didactics, seeks to contribute to the identification of generic and specific features in the teaching and learning process. More particularly, its aim was to examine, through the study of two different school subjects: biology and English as a second language, how passive didactic differentiation can develop and account for the gap in progress growing between more-able and less-able students. For our analysis, we adopt a didactic viewpoint basing our study on what is going on in the class when the teacher and her students interact and use notions borrowed from the Joint Action Theory in Didactics. At the end of the article, we mainly argue that more teacher training focused on ‘objects of learning’ and ‘knowledge-in-use’ is necessary if we want teachers to be able to produce didactic milieus adapted to students with mixed abilities and, more generally, if we want to increase epistemic access.     

Compatibility and Complementarity of Classroom Ecology and Didactique Research Perspectives in Physical Education

ABSTRACT

A large diversity of theoretical frameworks exists in the physical education literature. This article focuses on two of those frameworks to examine their compatibility and their complementarity. The classroom ecology paradigm concentrates on the balance between three task systems, two vectors, and programs of actions proposed by the physical education teacher and negotiated by students. The didactique research program studies the teaching and learning processes using the concepts of didactic contract and didactic milieu that focus on how the knowledge content emerges within teacher and students’ joint action. The article underlines the complementarity and the compatibility of the two frameworks when analyzing teaching and learning in physical education. It argues that the gray areas left by the classroom ecology paradigm could be filled with the insights of the didactique research program. A concise example of how the two frameworks have already been utilized is presented.     

Changing practice in Malaysian primary schools: learning from student teachers’ reports of using action,reflection and modelling (ARM)

Curricular and pedagogical reforms are complex inter-linked processes such that curricular reform can only be enacted through teachers teaching differently. This article reports the perspective of emergent Malaysian primary teachers who were expected to implement a Government reform that promoted active learning. The 120 student teachers were members of a single cohort completing a new B.Ed. degree programme in Primary Mathematics designed by teacher educators from Malaysia and the UK. They were taught to use a tripartite pedagogical framework involving action or active learning, supported in practice through reflection and modelling. Drawing on findings from surveys carried out with the student teachers at the end of their first and final placements this article examines evidence for the premise that the student teachers were teaching differently; illustrates how they reported using active learning strategies; and identifies factors that enabled and constrained pedagogic change in the primary classroom. The students’ accounts of using action, reflection and modelling are critiqued in order to learn about changing learning and teaching practice and to contribute to understanding teacher education and early teacher development. The students’ reports suggest diversity of understanding that emphasises the need to challenge assumptions when working internationally and within national and local cultures.     

Didactic Restrictions on the Teacher’s Practice: The Case of Limits of Functions in Spanish High Schools

The Anthropological Theory of Didactics describes mathematical activity in terms of mathematical organisations or praxeologies and considers the teacher as the director of the didactic process the students carry out, a process that is structured along six dimensions or didactic moments. This paper begins with an outline of this epistemological and didactic model, which appears as a useful tool for the analysis of mathematical and teaching practices. It is used to identify the main characteristics of the mathematical organisation around the limits of functions as it is proposed to be taught at high school level. The observation of an empirical didactic process will finally show how the internal dynamics of the didactic process is affected by certain mathematical and didactic constraints that significantly determine the teacher’s practice and ultimately the mathematical organisation actually taught.     

Curricular Reform,Constantly Changing Values and Consequences for Teacher Education

In many European countries revised notions of learning and the dynamic nature of knowledge have brought about changes in teaching in primary education. The new views of learning, together with profound social changes, have similarly created pressures for curricular reform. This paper examines the repercussions of extensive curricular reform for teacher education, especially with respect to what can be done to develop teachers’ didactic skills and capabilities for curricular planning. The latter calls for profound skills and a sensitivity in following the changes taking place in society, and also the ability to discuss the values towards which the concrete goals of the teaching should be directed. In order to convey such skills successfully, teacher education itself should clarify its position on its didactics and its philosophy. Didactics should not be simply a matter of communicating facts, but rather the emphasis in this respect should be shifted towards philosophical content, leading to the skills of independent thinking.     

Studying--the Realistic Bridge Between Instruction and Learning. An Attempt to a Conceptual Whole of the Teaching-Studying- Learning Process

Examining learning is a wide and open topic. If we pay attention to learning as achieving some aims and goals defined before, we need a broader and more precise context, an instructional process. This consists of interaction between a teacher and the students. It is based on particular relationships between the teacher, the student and the content that is studied in the instructional process. The human relationship between the teacher and the students is a pedagogical relation and it is regulated by the pedagogical context. Fundamental to learning is, however, how the student meets the content to be learnt, the didactic relation. This relation is invisible by nature. To organise this relation belongs to the expertise of the teacher. The student learning is supposed to take place in the didactic relation of the instructional process.     

Higher education journals as didactic frameworks

During the last 20 years, we have witnessed a growing interest in research in teaching, learning and educational development in higher education (HE). The result is that ‘Higher Education Didactics’ has established itself as a research field in its own right. This article explores Higher Education Didactics as a framework for academics’ professional reflection on teaching and learning, by mapping the didactic topics in all contributions in four journals in the period 2008–2015. Two of the journals are based in Scandinavia, where the European tradition of didactics (Didaktik) has been highly influential, while the others stem from the Anglo-Saxon curriculum tradition. The mapping shows that all journals are strongly occupied with teaching methods, especially methods grounded in theories of active and social learning. In contrast, didactic categories such as goal, content and assessment are rare topics. Students as participants and learners are a frequent topic in especially one journal, but receive little attention in the other journals. Also, educational technologies receive a varying degree of attention across the journals. Based on the mapping, this article discusses Higher Education Didactics as a framework for professional reflection in HE. It concludes that a broader range of research topics would be desirable and asks for future collaboration on the currently uncharted topics.     

Learning of Chemical Equilibrium through Modelling‐based Teaching

This paper presents and discusses students’ learning process of chemical equilibrium from a modelling‐based approach developed from the use of the ‘Model of Modelling’ diagram. The investigation was conducted in a regular classroom (students 14–15 years old) and aimed at discussing how modelling‐based teaching can contribute to students learning about the main qualitative aspects concerning chemical equilibrium. The data (collected from the written material produced by the students and the video‐recording of the classes) were organised in case studies for each group of students. The discussion supports the conclusion that elements from the ‘Model of Modelling’ diagram, as well as methodological aspects related to the teacher’s action, influenced the students’ learning process.     

Workplace learning within teacher education: the role of job characteristics and goal orientation

Within teacher education, it is widely recognised that internships play a major role in preparing prospective teachers. The current research examines if the learning activities students’ undertake in the workplace can be explained by students’ goal orientation and their perceptions of the workplace. In addition, it will be investigated whether this model is predictive for students’ academic achievement. Participants in this study were 464 bachelor students enrolled in teacher education. The results from the structural equation modelling show that students’ learning goal orientation is an important predictor for students’ learning activities and academic achievement. Students with a higher learning goal orientation demonstrate a more active approach towards their learning. Regarding the context, some positive relations between work-related variables such as job demands and job control on the one hand and students’ learning activities on the other hand were identified, but their relationship was more limited than expected.     

Leveraging the Social Aspect of Educational Games

With games captivating the minds of many children in the United States, educators may be interested in trying to introduce games into their classrooms. This article offers educators insights into how to understand and incorporate games that are inherently social, promoting effective discourse in their classrooms. Although educational games and more generally educational technology are largely seen as being designed for individuals, tools exist that are designed for group play that can spark both peer-group and intergenerational play and discussion. Games that promote conversation and cooperation allow children to develop social skills, build community, and practice various modes of mentorship. Knowing about both the history and the research concerning how social games can be used helps educators critically analyze the effective use of games in the classroom and augment students learning of difficult concepts.     

REJOINDER

In this paper, we explore the influence of the teacher on the language games being played in a Grade 3 mathematics classroom. The kinds of listening strategies used by the teacher seemed to have an impact on the kind of language game being played as a small group of students engaged in a problem‐solving activity. Understanding classroom conversation from a language‐games perspective is used to explore the kinds of sense‐making, student engagement, and new understandings evolving through classroom discourse. Language games may also be important for encouraging students to extend and transform their understandings. We describe how learning to ‘teach etcetera’ as a way of helping students ‘see‐as’ and move beyond narrowly defined predetermined content may entail playing more open‐ended language games and learning how to ‘listen’.     

Connecting initial teacher education and continuing professional learning through action research and action learning

This paper reflects our commitments as teacher educators to develop the skills, knowledge and interests amongst ‘nearly qualified teachers’ to establish action learning as an integral part of their professional practice. We outline the development of an undergraduate unit that is endeavouring to achieve this at Edith Cowan University, Western Australia. Key principles and characteristics of action research and action learning are used as a framework for critical reflection on the unit. Attempting to provide learning experiences that adhere to these principles within the context of initial teacher education courses is identified as a challenging process. Planned developments in which we seek to enhance the extent to which teacher education can be seen to embrace and promote action research and action learning are discussed.     

交互式数字故事在历史教育游戏设计中的应用

历史教育游戏和交互式数字故事是两种重要的学习历史知识的技术型学习工具,将二者融合,会取得最优化的效果.一方面,历史教育游戏可有效吸引学生的注意力和激发学生的学习动机;另一方面,交互式数字故事能为学生提供交互性和适应性的环境,从而使学生有机会选择不同的故事情节并控制“历史”的发展.     

Case-Based Instruction in Early Childhood Teacher Preparation: Does It Work?

Case analysis is often used in early childhood teacher education as a constructivist method for developing students' professional skills and knowledge. Although case-based instruction is popular, the professional literature contains little empirical evidence that it effectively helps students develop professional knowledge. Indeed, some empirical evidence suggests case-based instruction may negatively impact learning, especially for students with limited existing knowledge about children's development. This study compared the child development content knowledge gains of two classes of undergraduate preservice early childhood teachers: those taught child development with case-based instruction and those taught the same content with traditional didactic instruction. The study also sought to determine if students' level of prior knowledge interacted with the type of instruction they received. Results indicated that students with strong prior knowledge out-performed classmates regardless of instructional method (i.e., case-based or didactic instruction). Students at all levels of prior knowledge had similar knowledge gains across both case-based and didactic instruction, but data trends suggest students with the least prior knowledge gained the most knowledge with case-based instruction.     

互惠式教师学习社群:内涵、意义及建构策略

教师作为教育者,首先应是一名学习者,教师彼此就是最好的学习对象。目前教师之间的合作交流已大大加强,然而大多却是流于形式并未达到真正专业沟通、心灵碰撞、共同进步的目的。文章在对互惠式教师学习社群内涵的阐述上,分析了互惠式教师学习社群对教师专业发展、学生全面发展及学校"双赢"发展的作用,进而从加强教师认同感、校长参与社群建构、社群文化建设及激励机制建立的角度探讨了建构策略,以达到教师合作互惠的目的。     

贝里的合作学习观及其启示

和许多教育工作者一样，贝里认为学生间的互动分为竞争型、个体型、合作型三种类型，所不同的是贝里非常重视合作型互动在教学中的作用。贝里总结出了许多便于教师和学生操作的合作学习方法。他的合作学习给我们基础教育改革带来了一些启示，如通过合作学习可以转变师生观念、学生的学习方式、师生评价方式。     

Investigating the relationships between informal learning and player involvement in digital games

In the last few years, digital games have become increasingly popular with both ‘hardcore’ and ‘casual’ audiences. At the same time, it has been argued that games can be powerful learning environments, since they are seen to encourage active and critical learning through participation in affinity groups and semiotic domains but there is a need for further empirical evidence to explore how this participation occurs and how prevalent it actually is. In addition the effectiveness of games within education indicates mixed results, though it has been suggested that this may indicate that learning through immersive worlds involves a more complex understanding of learning, one that is not so easy to tie to specified learning outcomes. It would seem the area would benefit from research that seeks to develop our understanding of how player involvement and learning come together in this context. This paper presents the preliminary results of a survey carried out in order to explore these issues. The initial findings suggest that how a player identifies as a gamer relates to what they think they gain from their gaming experiences with respect to learning.     

家校合作视角下小学班主任工作的分析

如今,家校合作是小学班主任工作特别强调的问题,家长的协作决定着班主任工作能否顺畅进行,学生学习任务能否高质量完成。所以,小学班主任工作需要有效渗透家校合作理念,创新工作理念,并相应开辟多元化的交流合作路径与家长共同合作,提升班主任的工作质量。     

构建教学相长的语文教育氛围

构建教学相长的语文教育氛围,就是要体现师生间在认识、情感、意志等方面的交往互动,使师生间民主、平等、积极合作,让师生致力于精神完善和个性自由,成为感性与理性和谐统一的人,成为个性充分而自由发展的人,使学生达到学习力与人格力的融通,为实现人的全面发展奠定坚实的基础.     

Analysis of a physics teacher's pedagogical ‘micro-actions’ that support 17-year-olds’ learning of free body diagrams via a modelling approach

Great teaching is characterised by the specific actions a teacher takes in the classroom to bring about learning. In the context of model-based teaching (MBT), teachers’ difficulty in working with students’ models that are not scientifically consistent is troubling. To address this problem, the aim of this study is to identify the pedagogical micro-actions to support the development of scientific models and modelling skills during the evaluation and modification stages of MBT. Taking the perspective of pedagogical content knowing (PCKg), it identifies these micro-actions as an in-situ, dynamic transformation of knowledges of content, pedagogy, student and environment context. Through a case study approach, a lesson conducted by an experienced high-school physics teacher was examined. Audio and video recordings of the lesson contributed to the data sources. Taking a grounded approach in the analysis, eight pedagogical micro-actions enacted by the teacher were identified, namely ‘clarification’, ‘evaluation’, ‘explanation’, ‘modification’, ‘exploration’, ‘referencing conventions’, ‘focusing’ and ‘meta-representing’. These micro-actions support students’ learning related to the conceptual, cognitive, discursive and epistemological aspects of modelling. From the micro-actions, we identify the aspects of knowledges of PCKg that teachers need in order to competently select and enact these micro-actions. The in-situ and dynamic transformation of these knowledges implies that professional development should also be situated in the context in which these micro-actions are meaningful.