The aim of this study was to explore English teachers’ teaching techniques perceived as important when teaching English as a third language (L3) to minority adult students in secondary schools. Using a quantitative research approach, 95 teachers from two districts in the Viken county of Norway completed a 15-item questionnaire titled. Perceived Strategies for English Teaching Scale and an open-ended question about ways of teaching vocabulary for effective English teaching to support students learning in their classrooms. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and t-tests were used to analyse the data. The results showed that teaching vocabulary, reading, and grammar, among others, were strategies considered as important in teaching English. Reflecting on teachers challenging roles in teaching English as L3 to minority adult learners with varied English knowledge a collaborative teaching strategy was found to be very useful. The respondents also identified certain ways of teaching vocabulary to support students learning. Implication for further research is discussed. Keywords: Norway, English teaching, minority students, teaching strategies
{"title":"Teaching English as a Third Language to Minority Adult Learners in Norwegian Secondary Schools","authors":"Mohammed Awal Alhassan","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-5","url":null,"abstract":"The aim of this study was to explore English teachers’ teaching techniques perceived as important when teaching English as a third language (L3) to minority adult students in secondary schools. Using a quantitative research approach, 95 teachers from two districts in the Viken county of Norway completed a 15-item questionnaire titled. Perceived Strategies for English Teaching Scale and an open-ended question about ways of teaching vocabulary for effective English teaching to support students learning in their classrooms. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and t-tests were used to analyse the data. The results showed that teaching vocabulary, reading, and grammar, among others, were strategies considered as important in teaching English. Reflecting on teachers challenging roles in teaching English as L3 to minority adult learners with varied English knowledge a collaborative teaching strategy was found to be very useful. The respondents also identified certain ways of teaching vocabulary to support students learning. Implication for further research is discussed. Keywords: Norway, English teaching, minority students, teaching strategies","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49066356","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This study aims to analyse the evolutionary context of the introduction of technology in Portuguese schools, from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, and to identify the digital competences of Portuguese teachers at different educational levels. The analysis, qualitative and quantitative in nature, allowed us to conclude that technologies had a slow diffusion in Portuguese schools, because of the scarcity of resources and residual investment in teacher training, giving the use of technology in school a more irregular and playful character rather than truly integrated in pedagogical practices to promote the quality of learning. Although in recent years there has been still some conservatism in the use of technology, very focused on its instrumental use, there have been more practices with pedagogical intent and more focused on the active participation of students, also noting the growing importance of teacher training in this field of digital technologies, with the aim of making teachers more competent and fluent in the pedagogical use of digital. Furthermore, the study focused on the teachers' perception of their digital competences in three dimensions: the teachers' professional and pedagogical competences and the students' competences from the DigCompEdu framework and the self-assessment questionnaire of digital competences built from the same framework - DigCompEdu Check-In. The analysis of the answers obtained in this questionnaire (collected from the participation of 434 teachers of Basic and Secondary Education and 118 of Higher Education) showed that teachers need to increase their levels of digital proficiency through specific training, since they present, globally, a moderate level of digital proficiency - level B1 -Integrators- being the areas 4 - Evaluation - and 6 - Digital empowerment of students, the ones that present the greatest weaknesses. Keywords: history of education, educational technologies, Portugal, teachers' digital competences, teachers' training
{"title":"Technologies and Digital Competences in Portuguese Education: History of its Integration in Pedagogical Practices since the Beginning of the 20th Century","authors":"Sara Dias-Trindade, J. Moreira","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-1","url":null,"abstract":"This study aims to analyse the evolutionary context of the introduction of technology in Portuguese schools, from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, and to identify the digital competences of Portuguese teachers at different educational levels. The analysis, qualitative and quantitative in nature, allowed us to conclude that technologies had a slow diffusion in Portuguese schools, because of the scarcity of resources and residual investment in teacher training, giving the use of technology in school a more irregular and playful character rather than truly integrated in pedagogical practices to promote the quality of learning. Although in recent years there has been still some conservatism in the use of technology, very focused on its instrumental use, there have been more practices with pedagogical intent and more focused on the active participation of students, also noting the growing importance of teacher training in this field of digital technologies, with the aim of making teachers more competent and fluent in the pedagogical use of digital. Furthermore, the study focused on the teachers' perception of their digital competences in three dimensions: the teachers' professional and pedagogical competences and the students' competences from the DigCompEdu framework and the self-assessment questionnaire of digital competences built from the same framework - DigCompEdu Check-In. The analysis of the answers obtained in this questionnaire (collected from the participation of 434 teachers of Basic and Secondary Education and 118 of Higher Education) showed that teachers need to increase their levels of digital proficiency through specific training, since they present, globally, a moderate level of digital proficiency - level B1 -Integrators- being the areas 4 - Evaluation - and 6 - Digital empowerment of students, the ones that present the greatest weaknesses. Keywords: history of education, educational technologies, Portugal, teachers' digital competences, teachers' training","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45020096","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The purpose of this research is to explore the influence of high school gifted and talented (GT) programs on students’ self-concept from the students’ perspectives in the UAE. A qualitative, exploratory, interview-based study was employed to answer the following question: How gifted and talented programs influence students’ self-concept? Data were collected using semi-structured interviews. Ten GT students from grades 8-12 were interviewed from three different GT programs in UAE schools. Analysis revealed that students exhibited positive self-concept in three dimensions: general, academic, and social. The GT programs in the UAE seem to influence students’ self-concept positively by nurturing their strengths, valuing their efforts, developing their skills, and emphasizing their future roles in the community. Keywords: self-concept, BFLPE, acceleration, enrichment, gifted and talented
{"title":"The Influence of Gifted and Talented Programs on Students’ Self-concept","authors":"Ghina Kalaji, N. Alborno","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-8","url":null,"abstract":"The purpose of this research is to explore the influence of high school gifted and talented (GT) programs on students’ self-concept from the students’ perspectives in the UAE. A qualitative, exploratory, interview-based study was employed to answer the following question: How gifted and talented programs influence students’ self-concept? Data were collected using semi-structured interviews. Ten GT students from grades 8-12 were interviewed from three different GT programs in UAE schools. Analysis revealed that students exhibited positive self-concept in three dimensions: general, academic, and social. The GT programs in the UAE seem to influence students’ self-concept positively by nurturing their strengths, valuing their efforts, developing their skills, and emphasizing their future roles in the community. Keywords: self-concept, BFLPE, acceleration, enrichment, gifted and talented","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47620981","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
We have to admit that drama activities can give a variety of benefits for English foreign language learners of all ages in Indonesia. This article describes how a collaborative drama project could enhance twenty-seven undergraduate students in the sixth semester of the English education study program of a small private college in Cimahi, West Java, Indonesia. Drama, which could be considered a literary exposure for the participants, is one subject being taught as intra-curricular activities for 3 credit hours per semester, where they took the subject for the whole semester. The final assignment for this subject is a collaborative drama project in the English language. The article summarises the benefits of using collaborative drama activities to enhance the participants’ English language skills and offers recommendations for the implementation of similar projects for other language instructors. Further, the challenges of organizing collaborative English language drama projects at the college will be outlined. As the final elucidation of this article, the participants’ experiences during the collaborative drama project were analysed briefly through an interview as feedback on the research. Their self-perceived learning through collaborative drama is also highlighted. Keywords: collaborative drama project, English language learning, undergraduate students
{"title":"Enhancing English Language Skills through a Collaborative Drama Project","authors":"R. Mardiani, Merina Hanifah","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-6","url":null,"abstract":"We have to admit that drama activities can give a variety of benefits for English foreign language learners of all ages in Indonesia. This article describes how a collaborative drama project could enhance twenty-seven undergraduate students in the sixth semester of the English education study program of a small private college in Cimahi, West Java, Indonesia. Drama, which could be considered a literary exposure for the participants, is one subject being taught as intra-curricular activities for 3 credit hours per semester, where they took the subject for the whole semester. The final assignment for this subject is a collaborative drama project in the English language. The article summarises the benefits of using collaborative drama activities to enhance the participants’ English language skills and offers recommendations for the implementation of similar projects for other language instructors. Further, the challenges of organizing collaborative English language drama projects at the college will be outlined. As the final elucidation of this article, the participants’ experiences during the collaborative drama project were analysed briefly through an interview as feedback on the research. Their self-perceived learning through collaborative drama is also highlighted. Keywords: collaborative drama project, English language learning, undergraduate students","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49024740","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The purpose of this study was to investigate how caring student-teacher relationships facilitate positive student behavior. Additionally, it examined the effect of student behavior when building positive student-teacher relationships. Previous research by the authors determined that when teachers build relationships with children it is one of the most effective strategies to impact student learning. A secondary implication identified by the participants and their administrators in that study was that building relationships can create a positive classroom environment resulting in fewer discipline disruptions. This current study was conducted to measure the relationships between school children, in grades K-8 in the USA, and their teachers using a standardized instrument before and after a two-week implementation of a positive behavioral intervention and supports strategy to determine if there are any significant differences. The participants involved in this study are comprised of classroom teachers in their first year of teaching, and experienced classroom teachers (5+ years). Keywords: teacher preparation, teacher-student relationships, positive behavior support interventions
{"title":"Teacher-Student Relationships: Impact of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports","authors":"René Martinez, Mervyn J. Wighting","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-2","url":null,"abstract":"The purpose of this study was to investigate how caring student-teacher relationships facilitate positive student behavior. Additionally, it examined the effect of student behavior when building positive student-teacher relationships. Previous research by the authors determined that when teachers build relationships with children it is one of the most effective strategies to impact student learning. A secondary implication identified by the participants and their administrators in that study was that building relationships can create a positive classroom environment resulting in fewer discipline disruptions. This current study was conducted to measure the relationships between school children, in grades K-8 in the USA, and their teachers using a standardized instrument before and after a two-week implementation of a positive behavioral intervention and supports strategy to determine if there are any significant differences. The participants involved in this study are comprised of classroom teachers in their first year of teaching, and experienced classroom teachers (5+ years). Keywords: teacher preparation, teacher-student relationships, positive behavior support interventions","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45419505","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
One of the most important elements of English language is the writing skill. It is a competence which human beings are not born with; on the contrary, it is learnt with practice and experience. In this respect, the focus must be on the hard work of English instructors, who deal painstakingly with the four skills, emphasizing writing, by means of comments, advice, explanations etc. In Albanian Educational system, foreign languages are given a considerable space. In high school students study up to two foreign languages. In ‘Aleksandër Moisiu’ University, apart from the courses that are related to the students’ profile of study, a specific importance is given to English Language as well, which helps to enhance their English Language competences. This leads us to believe that students’ progress in English is satisfactory; however, this is not always the case with all the skills. Even though students are very good at listening and speaking, when it comes to writing, many of them have serious problems, which are noticed while analyzing their written work. In this respect, this study aims to explore and analyze students’ errors through the procedure of error analysis. More specifically, a sample of 100 short essays of our freshmen students from different branches of study have been analyzed with this purpose in mind. This article analyses the types of errors and their frequency of occurrence in English language writing. Based on the research analysis, it was concluded that the mechanical errors, verb tense errors, preposition errors and to some degree article errors, resulted to be more problematic than the other categories. The importance of identifying and analyzing errors is to give English lecturers feedback on the effectiveness of their teaching techniques, information on what is to be reviewed and further notice on what parts of the syllabus need modification. Making errors is an essential part of learning and English teachers should view them from the perspective of improving their teaching approaches and techniques. Keywords: error, error analysis, grammatical mistakes, language learning
{"title":"An Analysis of English Writing Errors of Freshmen Students’ Essays: The Case of ‘Aleksandër Moisiu’ University","authors":"Miranda Enesi, Anisa Trifoni","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-7","url":null,"abstract":"One of the most important elements of English language is the writing skill. It is a competence which human beings are not born with; on the contrary, it is learnt with practice and experience. In this respect, the focus must be on the hard work of English instructors, who deal painstakingly with the four skills, emphasizing writing, by means of comments, advice, explanations etc. In Albanian Educational system, foreign languages are given a considerable space. In high school students study up to two foreign languages. In ‘Aleksandër Moisiu’ University, apart from the courses that are related to the students’ profile of study, a specific importance is given to English Language as well, which helps to enhance their English Language competences. This leads us to believe that students’ progress in English is satisfactory; however, this is not always the case with all the skills. Even though students are very good at listening and speaking, when it comes to writing, many of them have serious problems, which are noticed while analyzing their written work. In this respect, this study aims to explore and analyze students’ errors through the procedure of error analysis. More specifically, a sample of 100 short essays of our freshmen students from different branches of study have been analyzed with this purpose in mind. This article analyses the types of errors and their frequency of occurrence in English language writing. Based on the research analysis, it was concluded that the mechanical errors, verb tense errors, preposition errors and to some degree article errors, resulted to be more problematic than the other categories. The importance of identifying and analyzing errors is to give English lecturers feedback on the effectiveness of their teaching techniques, information on what is to be reviewed and further notice on what parts of the syllabus need modification. Making errors is an essential part of learning and English teachers should view them from the perspective of improving their teaching approaches and techniques. Keywords: error, error analysis, grammatical mistakes, language learning","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44415696","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The United Arab Emirates hires many teachers from abroad to work in both the private and public school systems. Recruiting foreign teachers can be exceedingly costly, especially when one considers the financial investment associate with air fare, health insurance, housing, transportation, and a competitive salary, along with the substantial processing time involved in issuing work visas, professional and intercultural training. One way organizations may be able to save on additional expenditures is to retain the teachers who have been hired and are already settled in the country. Naturally, a substantial part of the decision for the teacher to remain working and living in the UAE lies with the expatriate teacher. This exploratory, case study employed a qualitative approach in which descriptive data was collected from six in-depth, semi-structured interviews exploring job satisfaction as one, of what may be other, indicators associated with of length-of-stay among expatriate teachers in the UAE. These descriptive data were analyzed using an interpretive analysis, which culminated with three selective codes: (1) Leadership and community are key to expatriate teacher’s job satisfaction; (2) School leaders’ engagement in improving behavior management would improve satisfaction; and (3) Positive work-life balance may influence expatriate teachers’ length of stay in the UAE. Taken collectively, this data may assist decision-makers, school leaders, and policy-makers on how to foster environments that promote retention among expatriate teachers in the UAE. Keywords: expatriate teachers, UAE, job satisfaction, work-life balance, school leadership
{"title":"Three Keys to Retaining Talented Teachers in the UAE: Leadership, Community, and Work-Life Balance – A Phenomenological Case Study in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah","authors":"Troy N. Herrera, Alexandria Proff","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-4","url":null,"abstract":"The United Arab Emirates hires many teachers from abroad to work in both the private and public school systems. Recruiting foreign teachers can be exceedingly costly, especially when one considers the financial investment associate with air fare, health insurance, housing, transportation, and a competitive salary, along with the substantial processing time involved in issuing work visas, professional and intercultural training. One way organizations may be able to save on additional expenditures is to retain the teachers who have been hired and are already settled in the country. Naturally, a substantial part of the decision for the teacher to remain working and living in the UAE lies with the expatriate teacher. This exploratory, case study employed a qualitative approach in which descriptive data was collected from six in-depth, semi-structured interviews exploring job satisfaction as one, of what may be other, indicators associated with of length-of-stay among expatriate teachers in the UAE. These descriptive data were analyzed using an interpretive analysis, which culminated with three selective codes: (1) Leadership and community are key to expatriate teacher’s job satisfaction; (2) School leaders’ engagement in improving behavior management would improve satisfaction; and (3) Positive work-life balance may influence expatriate teachers’ length of stay in the UAE. Taken collectively, this data may assist decision-makers, school leaders, and policy-makers on how to foster environments that promote retention among expatriate teachers in the UAE. Keywords: expatriate teachers, UAE, job satisfaction, work-life balance, school leadership","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43603594","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The study examined the effect of birth order differences on adjustment among first year undergraduate students in one selected university in Kenya. A cross-sectional survey research design was adopted. The sample size comprised 213 first year students selected using both stratified and simple random sampling techniques. The adjustment questionnaire was used to collect data. The inferential statistics such as Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Tukey’s post hoc tests were used to analyze data. The ANOVA results indicate a significant effect, [F (5, 207)=8.279, p=0.000], of order of birth of first year students on their level of overall adjustment. The Tukey’s HSD Post Hoc test results indicate that 1st born students presented a significantly higher overall adjustment compared to the rest. The study recommends that staff at university counseling centers should develop specific orientation programmes to enhance the adjustment of first year students who occupy later orders of births in their families apart from first born students. Keywords: birth order, overall adjustment, first year, undergraduate students, university
{"title":"Birth Order Differences and Overall Adjustment among First Year Undergraduate Students in One Selected University","authors":"Peter JO Aloka","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-9","url":null,"abstract":"The study examined the effect of birth order differences on adjustment among first year undergraduate students in one selected university in Kenya. A cross-sectional survey research design was adopted. The sample size comprised 213 first year students selected using both stratified and simple random sampling techniques. The adjustment questionnaire was used to collect data. The inferential statistics such as Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Tukey’s post hoc tests were used to analyze data. The ANOVA results indicate a significant effect, [F (5, 207)=8.279, p=0.000], of order of birth of first year students on their level of overall adjustment. The Tukey’s HSD Post Hoc test results indicate that 1st born students presented a significantly higher overall adjustment compared to the rest. The study recommends that staff at university counseling centers should develop specific orientation programmes to enhance the adjustment of first year students who occupy later orders of births in their families apart from first born students. Keywords: birth order, overall adjustment, first year, undergraduate students, university","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47235306","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Communication in teaching and learning space has never been the same following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis of COVID-19 has brought about the urgency for most higher education institutions to adopt e-learning. This response was to save the academic year. Hence, this study explores how e-learning has aided African universities to engage their students in teaching and learning. A quantitative research method was adopted for the collection of data. The survey was made up of 400 questionnaires which were randomly administered to the second-and third-year students in the selected South African university. The findings of the study show that e-learning trends before COVID-19 were unappreciated and unaccepted. Meanwhile, following the outbreak of the coronavirus, e-learning has become one of the most sort-out phenomena. However, several factors such as unawareness, lack of funding, and poor internet connectivity, amongst others have always hindered the use of e-learning platforms. Hence, the study recommends amongst others that adequate awareness be made to educate both lecturers and students on the importance and the continuous use of e-learning. Also, funding should be made available for institutions of learning to enable them to adapt to e-learning. The gains achieved must be maintained and continue post-COVID-19. Keywords: African universities, COVID-19, Coronavirus, e-learning
{"title":"The Use of E-learning During COVID-19 Pandemic Era","authors":"Mofoluwake Oluwadamilola Uleanya, Gedala Mulliah Naidoo","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-10","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-10","url":null,"abstract":"Communication in teaching and learning space has never been the same following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis of COVID-19 has brought about the urgency for most higher education institutions to adopt e-learning. This response was to save the academic year. Hence, this study explores how e-learning has aided African universities to engage their students in teaching and learning. A quantitative research method was adopted for the collection of data. The survey was made up of 400 questionnaires which were randomly administered to the second-and third-year students in the selected South African university. The findings of the study show that e-learning trends before COVID-19 were unappreciated and unaccepted. Meanwhile, following the outbreak of the coronavirus, e-learning has become one of the most sort-out phenomena. However, several factors such as unawareness, lack of funding, and poor internet connectivity, amongst others have always hindered the use of e-learning platforms. Hence, the study recommends amongst others that adequate awareness be made to educate both lecturers and students on the importance and the continuous use of e-learning. Also, funding should be made available for institutions of learning to enable them to adapt to e-learning. The gains achieved must be maintained and continue post-COVID-19. Keywords: African universities, COVID-19, Coronavirus, e-learning","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48281753","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lesson plan templates are a frequent requirement in schools around the world. School administrators often choose a standard lesson plan style and require the consistent layout for all teachers of all grade levels and across all disciplines. Lesson planning, when done well, should be a guide for both teachers and administrators of the educational concept the students need to learn, how the teacher will teach the concept, and how student learning will be evaluated. Lesson planning is a time-consuming task for the teacher and a requirement and expectation by which administration oversees instructional practices in schools. This research study sought to obtain, evaluate, and analyze the perspectives of administrators and teachers from both the United Arab Emirates and the United States on the perceived usefulness of lesson planning templates in the planning process. A quantitative method employing a close-ended survey was used to obtain data. An exploratory factor analysis was applied to determine perspective of teachers on the value and utility of completing templates for instructional planning purposes, and an independent variable T-test was applied to examine similarities and differences in perspectives based on time in the field. The impact of the study could shape future views on the practice, benefits, training, use, and research of lesson planning templates. Keywords: novice teacher, experienced teacher, lesson planning templates, administrative requirement, teacher planning
{"title":"Teacher Planning Templates: Helpful Tool or Waste of Time? A Comparative Analysis of the Perceptions of Novice and Experienced Teachers in the UAE and USA","authors":"Rebecca Renee Herrera, Sharon Kay Waller","doi":"10.30958/aje.10-3-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30958/aje.10-3-3","url":null,"abstract":"Lesson plan templates are a frequent requirement in schools around the world. School administrators often choose a standard lesson plan style and require the consistent layout for all teachers of all grade levels and across all disciplines. Lesson planning, when done well, should be a guide for both teachers and administrators of the educational concept the students need to learn, how the teacher will teach the concept, and how student learning will be evaluated. Lesson planning is a time-consuming task for the teacher and a requirement and expectation by which administration oversees instructional practices in schools. This research study sought to obtain, evaluate, and analyze the perspectives of administrators and teachers from both the United Arab Emirates and the United States on the perceived usefulness of lesson planning templates in the planning process. A quantitative method employing a close-ended survey was used to obtain data. An exploratory factor analysis was applied to determine perspective of teachers on the value and utility of completing templates for instructional planning purposes, and an independent variable T-test was applied to examine similarities and differences in perspectives based on time in the field. The impact of the study could shape future views on the practice, benefits, training, use, and research of lesson planning templates. Keywords: novice teacher, experienced teacher, lesson planning templates, administrative requirement, teacher planning","PeriodicalId":36453,"journal":{"name":"Athens Journal of Education","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45042957","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}