Innovare Journal of Education

Anti-Bullying Strategy towards Parents: A Comparative Analysis between Principals of Experimental and Non-Experimental Primary Schools in Greece

Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

School bullying is a type of bullying that occurs in an educational setting. In the present study, we examine the differences in strategy towards parents followed by principals of public experimental and non-experimental primary schools in Greece in their effort to deal with bullying regarding issues related to the proper treatment of the phenomenon. A sample of 11 school principals was the focus of this research. In particular, the population examined were the principals of the three public experimental primary schools of the prefecture of Thessaloniki and eight randomly selected principals of non-experimental public primary schools of the same prefecture. In the prefecture of Thessaloniki, the problem of bullying seems to exist and concern to a great extent the principals of primary education who constitute the sample of this research and pursue their strategy to find appropriate solutions for its immediate and effective coping. At the same time, these principals follow, to a significant degree, common practices in dealing with the phenomenon in their effort to reduce it or even eliminate it, revealing however significant shortcomings on their part.

Relationship between Cognitive Failure and Internet Addiction of Higher Secondary Students of Purulia District of West Bengal: A Study

ASHALATA MAHATO, PRASANTA GAYEN, RAMESH CHANDRA MAHATO — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

In the 21st-century internet, addiction has become a common phenomenon among students. Internet addiction is sometimes referred to as internet addiction disorder, pathological internet usage, internet reliance, problematic internet use, overuse and compulsive internet use. And cognitive failure is outlined as the probable consequence of a general failure of the cognitive and control system. The present study has aimed to determine the relationship between cognitive failure and internet addiction of higher secondary students of the Purulia district of West Bengal. For the present study, the researchers have used descriptive survey-type research. The data for the present study has been collected from seventy-eight (78) class XI students from randomly selected two schools in the Purulia district of West Bengal, India, using a simple random sampling technique. The researchers have used appropriate descriptive statistics like mean, standard deviation, correlation and inferential statistics like the Shapiro-Wilk test for normality test, ‘t-test and Mann-Whitney U test for data analysis. The result revealed a significant relationship between cognitive failure and internet addiction among higher secondary Purulia district of West Bengal students. However, no significant difference has been observed in cognitive failure and internet addiction regarding gender, location and stream.

Development of English in Marathi Speaking Children Attending English Medium Schools (Senior Kindergarten and Grade I)

Merin Jose Kottapurathu, Aarti Waknis — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

An increasing number of Marathi-speaking children attend English medium schools in Maharashtra, India. The developmental trend of English in these children is not studied according to the researcher’s best knowledge. Studying this development is essential to understand the development of children with developmental disabilities. Hence, the study aimed to understand the development of English in Marathi-speaking children attending English medium schools in senior kindergarten and Grade I (5 to 7 years of age). Forty Marathi-speaking children attending English medium schools (Senior Kindergarten and Grade I) were included. ‘Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals Preschool 2nd Edition (CELF)’ was used to assess children's language skills, and ‘Development of Emergent Literacy- Questionnaire’ was administered to study the relation between home literacy environment and language skills in English. A gender difference was present for Senior Kindergarten children but not for the children studying in Grade I. More than 65% of children had scores below the age equivalent scores across the subtests. A moderate positive correlation was found between all the subtests of CELF and the score on the emergent literacy questionnaire. In conclusion, there is an effect of gender on English language skills in kindergarten which is not present in Grade I. The competency in English in Marathi-speaking children appears to be low and moderately related to literacy exposure at home.

Appraising the Roles of Head Teachers in Maintenance of Classroom Physical Facilities in Osun State Primary Schools, Nigeria

Busuyi Francis Olowo — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

Head teachers’ roles are indispensable in managing and maintaining classroom physical facilities. Maintenance of available classroom physical facilities is very significant in every school. This paper examined the roles of head teachers in maintaining classroom physical facilities in Osun State primary schools. The study adopted a descriptive research design. The study population consisted of all 9,870 teachers in Osun State primary schools. The sample comprised 385 teachers who were selected using simple random sampling techniques. Appraising the roles of Head Teachers’ Maintenance of Classroom Facilities Questionnaire (AHMCFQ) was the instrument used for data collection. Data were analyzed descriptively. The results showed that the present condition of the classrooms environment was conducive for pupils to learn (M = 3.23), the aesthetic of the classrooms environment encouraged the pupils to come to school (M = 3.13), each of the pupils has confortable chair and table in their various classes ( M = 3.18) and the classrooms were located in an area that saved from dangers (M = 3.30). The findings equally showed that the head teachers in Osun State primary schools ensured that the classrooms’ surroundings were neat and clean daily (M = 3.61 through assigning teachers to supervise the cleanliness of the classrooms in their section (M = 3.43)), inspected the classrooms facilities daily to ascertain their condition (M = 3.39) maintained classrooms surroundings by planting flowers and trees to provide shades (M = 2.87) and replaced worn out classrooms facilities using internally generated revenue (M = 2.70). However, the study further regarded financial constraints (M = 2.83) and misuse of the facilities by pupils (M = 2.52) as challenges encountered by head teachers in maintaining available physical facilities in Osun State primary schools. The study concluded that the head teachers significantly contributed to improving the present condition of classroom physical facilities. The findings implicate that the head teachers should accept the maintenance of classroom physical facilities as their responsibility and they should devise skills to make it in good shape to use.

Awareness and Use of Open Educational Resources and its Benefits to University Students

Kasumu Rebecca Oluwayimika, Uduak Idoghor — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

The study is descriptive survey research designed to investigate awareness and use of Open Educational Resources (OER) and its benefits to university students. The study area is Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria. The study population was 424 postgraduate students in the Faculty of Education, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education. A sample of 178 students was involved in the study. A simple random sampling technique was applied in the selection process. The instrument used for the study to collect data from respondents is a structured questionnaire titled awareness and use of open educational resources and its benefits to university students (AUEORBU) with 40-item questions. The designed instrument by the researcher was given to experts in the field of educational technology. The instrument reliability determined by test-re-test was applied and the responses were correlated to obtain the reliability coefficient of .67. mean was the statistical tool used for the study. The study found that students can access open educational resources anywhere in the world, at any time and open educational resources provide an excellent way for alumni to stay connected to the institution and continue with a program of lifelong. Based on the conclusion, the researchers recommended that students and stakeholders participate fully in open educational resources to stay connected to their institutions.

A Qualitative Investigation of the Academic, Social and Emotional Needs of Graduate Students Post COVID-19: Recommendations for Graduate Faculty

Carianne Bernadowski — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

This paper examines graduate students’ academic and emotional needs as they returned to campus after the abrupt shutdown of universities due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Because graduate students are unique in their mindset, learning, and needs, examining how they perceived their needs when they returned to graduate school was imperative. Based on focus groups and semi-structured interview data, three themes emerged: obstacles to balancing home, work and school, graduate students’ needs are diverse, and social and emotional needs should be at the heart of graduate studies. These findings suggest strategies to integrate more culturally relevant and social and emotional approaches to graduate teaching.

Backward Design: An Approach to the Professional Development of School Leaders

Wong Shiat Lu — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

Influential leaders are one of the essential elements to achieving the goals of school transformation. Optimizing the ability of school leaders requires opportunities to practice what they have learned from the training module of the School Transformation Program 2025 (TS25). Since the results of the school’s achievements can convince the community to support and cooperate with the school, the researcher adopted an approach known as the backward design as a model for the professional development of school leaders. First, however, the researcher needs to examine the feasibility and appropriateness of this approach. Therefore, the researcher conducted a School Leaders Perception Study (SLPS) through a questionnaire to survey 225 leaders’ perceptions of 82 Kota Kinabalu district schools about implementing the TS25 program in Malaysia. This survey was administered through a google form to gauge school leaders’ acceptance level of TS25 program implementation. It also aims to identify the need for self-development among school leaders, which they usually implement through best practice sharing. In addition, the researcher also studied the willingness of school leaders to implement TS25 partnerships targeted at the community through the questionnaire. After determining the reliability of the SLPS questionnaire, the results of descriptive analysis showed that Kota Kinabalu district school leaders strongly agreed with school transformation implemented according to the school context. Most of them also agree that partnership implementation is a valuable learning opportunity in professional development. The findings also indicate that targeted TS25 partnerships with the community should begin from the results of existing school achievements. Therefore, the researcher suggests a backward design approach as an innovative approach for school leaders’ professional development.

Scaffolding Epistemological Access in the Context of Forbidden Discourses: A Case Study of a Grade 4 Natural Science Class in a Namibian School

Beata Set, John Nyambe, Kelvin Katukula — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

Qualitative in orientation and using the case study methodology, the research drew upon Margaret Archer’s theory of agency to examine how, at the point of confluence of culture, structure and agency, the teacher’s agency was enabled or constrained in attaining the agential project of scaffolding epistemological access in a Grade 4 Natural Science classroom. The study found that when positioned into a face-to-face relationship, or a direct relationship, with the structural, cultural, and agential causal powers, the teacher’s agential project of scaffolding epistemological access in a Grade 4 Natural Science classroom was constrained than enabled. The teacher was placed into a pedagogical dilemma where on the one hand, structural causal powers (e.g., the curriculum, syllabus, school authorities) demanded the teaching of topics on human sexual reproduction and human excretory systems. At the same time, causal cultural powers exerted by cultural properties, which include values, norms, and taboos, render conversation with young children over sexual reproduction matters and human excretory system forbidden discourses. The study concluded that cultural factors are among the myriad factors that potentially lead to poor performance in Natural Science by Namibian learners and African learners in general. The study recommends that in teacher education programs, it is essential to interrogate the school curriculum regarding its sensitivity and responsiveness to the cultural contexts of both teachers and learners. Similarly, such programs should investigate developing appropriate agential powers of aspiring teachers to resist or circumvent causal cultural powers that obstruct or hinder meaningful science learning.

The Design and Use of Questionnaires in Educational Research: A New (Student) Researcher Guide

Andrew G D Holmes — Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 +0530

Final-year undergraduate and master’s students often collect data for a research project through a questionnaire. However, novice researchers may have little or no experience designing and using questionnaires and struggle with both designing and operationalizing one. This paper explores and explains, from a theoretical and practical perspective, how a novice researcher may go about the process. Its intended target audience is final-year undergraduate and postgraduate students undertaking a research project, such as a dissertation. Its purpose is to provide the necessary fundamental knowledge for learners to develop their research questionnaires for qualitative data collection.