ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Improving Junior High School Students' Mathematical Analogical Ability Using Discovery Learning Method
Author: Maarif, Samsul
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Teaching Methods,Mathematics Instruction,Junior High School Students,Discovery Learning,Mathematics Skills,Mathematical Logic,Comparative Analysis,Experimental Groups,Control Groups,Questionnaires,Observation,Interviews,Grade 7,Pretests Posttests,Scores,Statistical Analysis

The aim of this study was to identify the influence of discovery learning method towards the mathematical analogical ability of junior high school's students. This is a research using factorial design 2x2 with ANOVA-Two ways. The population of this research included the entire students of SMPN 13 Jakarta (State Junior High School 13 of Jakarta) taken by using cluster random sampling with two samples for each class. In this research, there were two learning groups; one with discovery learning method and the other one with expository. Class VII.6 was used as the experiment group, while Class VII.8 was used as the control group. Each group consisted of 36 students who were divided into three ability scales, namely high, medium, and low. The research data were gained from test, questionnaire, observation, and interview. The result shows that: (1) the improvement of the students' mathematical analogical ability using discovery learning method is considered better than the expository group; (2) There is significant improvement of the students' mathematical analogical ability based on higher, medium, and lower groups.
Teaching Vocabulary to Turkish Young Learners in Semantically Related and Semantically Unrelated Sets by Using Digital Storytelling
Author: Aitkuzhinova-Arslan, Ainur
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Vocabulary Development,Reading Instruction,Semantics,Story Telling,Video Technology,Multimedia Materials,Multimedia Instruction,Sequential Learning,Grade 6,Scores,Statistical Analysis,Pretests Posttests,Reading Tests

Teaching vocabulary is a comprehensive process in foreign language learning requiring specific techniques of appropriate instruction and accurate strategy. The present study was conducted to examine the effects of teaching vocabulary to Turkish young learners in a semantic clustering way through digital storytelling. To investigate this aim, six video stories were chosen and studied in sequence. The research was carried out with 25 sixth graders during 6 weeks. Totally 6 stories were presented by teacher: three of them were taught in semantically related and three of them were taught in semantically unrelated sets. SPSS 20 package program was used to analyze all collected data. Learners developed their vocabulary at the end of both processes but with different ratio. Participants scored better at semantically unrelated vocabulary teaching process than semantically related vocabulary teaching process.
Students' Attitudes towards Learning English Grammar: A Study of Scale Development
Author: Akay, Emel
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Student Attitudes,English (Second Language),Grammar,Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Foreign Countries,Language Proficiency,Gender Differences,Age Differences,Positive Attitudes,College Students,Majors (Students),Factor Analysis,Nonparametric Statistics,Statistical Analysis,Construct Validity,Correlation

Learning a language means not only studying four skills of proficiency, but also understanding the system of rules underlying. In this respect, learners' attitudes towards grammar are also of vital importance. The main objective of this descriptive study is to determine English language learners' attitudes towards grammar and to analyze these attitudes in the framework of several variables (gender, age, faculty, time spent on learning English, and proficiency level). The data were collected from 293 students who have English language education in preparatory school of Anadolu University in six different proficiency levels (beginner, elementary, pre-intermediate, intermediate, upper-intermediate, pre-faculty) during 2014-2015 spring semester. The scale designed by the researchers to investigate the attitudes of learners towards learning grammar was determined as a reliable and valid tool including two factors. The analyses revealed that gender, age, time spent on learning English, and proficiency level variables did not create significant differences in the attitudes (p&gt;0.05). The only variable which created significant difference in the attitudes of learners was the faculties of students, and this was observed in the &quot;Positive Attitude and Contribution&quot; factor of the scale (p&lt;0.05). The results of the study indicated that students in faculties like Science, Humanities, Education, and Engineering have more positive attitudes towards learning grammar than Economics, Business Administration, and Communication faculty students.
Investigating Foreign Language Learning Anxiety: A Case of Saudi Undergraduate EFL Learners
Author: Al-Khasawneh, Fadi Maher
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Second Language Learning,Anxiety,College Students,English (Second Language),Statistical Analysis,Language Skills,Communication Skills,Likert Scales,Measures (Individuals),Communication (Thought Transfer),Questionnaires

This study investigates the level and sources of foreign language learning anxiety experienced by Saudi students studying at King Khalid University (KKU). It also aims to examine the differences between the level of language anxiety and the students' study level. For this purpose, 97 English majored students from different levels were purposively chosen to participate in this study. The research instrument used in this study was Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scales (FLCAS) developed by Horwitz, Horwitz, &amp; Cope (1986). The collected data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 17.0. The results obtained from this study revealed a moderate level of anxiety as reported by the students. The students experienced different sources of language anxiety such as communication apprehension, anxiety of English classes, fear of negative evaluation, and test anxiety. Also, no statistically significant differences were found between the students' level of anxiety and their level of study. The results of this study suggest that the classroom atmosphere should be motivating and encouraging. Teachers are recommended to deal with anxiety-provoking situations carefully as they are the most involved part in this process.
Edulabs for the Integration of Technologies in Basic Education--Monitoring the AGIRE Project
Author: Pombo, Lúcia
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Technology Integration,Partnerships in Education,Consortia,School Business Relationship,Technological Advancement,Teaching Methods,Program Implementation,Technology Uses in Education,Blended Learning,Distance Education,Synchronous Communication,Data Collection,Questionnaires,Computer Literacy,Media Literacy,Educational Technology,Cooperative Learning,Information Technology,Laptop Computers,Classroom Techniques,Teacher Surveys,Classroom Observation Techniques,Web Sites,Handheld Devices,Instructional Materials,Foreign Countries,Elementary School Students,Middle School Students

The AGIRE project is a partnership between the University of Aveiro, a consortium comprising 26 companies related to teaching and learning, and one School Grouping, with the financial support of QREN. The project is embedded into the Edulab concept (school laboratories with technological equipment, as tablets, laptops, whiteboards, and educational materials such as eBooks and learning platforms) to promote the adoption of innovative teaching practices. The project stems from identified contextual needs and aims to monitor the project implementation within an interventional perspective, concerning educational innovation with the use of digital technologies. The goal is to promote teachers' and students' digital literacy, by developing Teacher Training Courses (TTC) and taking advantage from the school technology environment on a pedagogical level. After attending a short-term (15 hours) technological TTC, a 64-hour TTC involving 13 teachers of Basic Education during the current school year is being conducted. The TTC, developed in a blended learning environment, follows the flipped classroom methodology comprising autonomous tasks for consulting multimedia resources at a distance and face-to-face sessions for discussion, reflection and collaborative work. This fits into a design-based methodology (Parker, 2011), allowing the analysis of the intervention outcomes and its successively refinement towards a solution, following the phases: i) Analyze the problem; ii) Design and develop potential solutions; iii) Implement and evaluate; and iv) Reflect and report. A set of data collection instruments developed under this project allowed its monitoring, as well as the redefinition of the TTC and its previewed activities. For example, the questionnaire on the trainee teachers' digital literacy, the grid to monitor the strategies implemented in classrooms, as well as the autonomous work tasks allowed each teacher to position its practice at the level of technology integration and to raise his/her expectations towards the educational technologies.
The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics
Author: Akkus, Murat
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Mathematics Education,Common Core State Standards,Educational Quality,Equal Education,Barriers,Mathematics Curriculum,Mathematics Teachers,At Risk Students,Disabilities,Surveys

The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) was published in 2010 and includes a complete collection of standards that are published and reviewed as a &quot;common core&quot; in which math skills have been extensively adopted. The recommendations provided have been entirely or partially adapted by more than 47 states of the US. Authorities have committed and incredible amount of time, money and resources in creating these new standards and additional effort will be required to implement these standards The new math standards address two established issues in US education, the ordinary quality of mathematics learning and equal opportunity in U.S. schools. It is a fact that deprived students are most likely to have inexperienced or under qualified teachers, and children from impoverished families are much less likely to have the same kind of supports or enrichment opportunities than their more fortunate peers. It is important for the authorities to produce and adapt material for the development of children in such a way that it can clearly address the content and practice of math for the CCSSM and this material should be able to give learning and teaching methods which are in line with CCSSM. It is concluded from this research that there are challenges that have emerged for implementation of CCSSM in which basic challenges include issues of quality, equality, challenges for math teachers, and teaching CCSSM to disabled students.
Designing a Competence-Based Syllabus for Turkish Speaking Learners of English in Terms of Accessibility to Universal Grammar
Author: Seker, Emrullah
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Course Descriptions,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Grammar,Second Language Instruction,Language Universals,Turkish,Transfer of Training,Textbooks,Phrase Structure,Foreign Countries,Content Analysis

This study focuses on designing an English grammar syllabus for Turkish speaking English learners, which is based on the assumption that learning English grammar will be simpler and easier for Turkish speaking learners if it is introduced in a way by which they can achieve accessibility to Universal Grammar. In this study, I analyze almost all traditional grammar modules presented in a reliable ELT reference course book referring to parameters set between Turkish and English languages, try to determine how much of these modules are accessible through first language competence, and finally transfer the results into developing a foreign language learning syllabus, accordingly suggesting a hierarchy of learning for Turkish speaking English learners. The traditional grammar modules are initially categorized as to their phrasal structures and then corresponding sample Turkish and English structures are analyzed in terms of parametric variations. Finally, a competence-based English grammar syllabus designed as to parametric variations and language particular grammatical properties is suggested. This study aims to provide Turkish speaking learners of English with an easy access to learning English grammar through their Turkish grammatical competence, getting rid of unnecessary grammatical instructions and following a natural order of derivations in foreign language grammar presentation practices and syllabus design.
&quot;With Percentages the 100 Is Always in the Denominator&quot;: From the Field to Pre-Service Teachers
Author: Cincinatus, Ronit Bassan
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Mathematics,Mathematics Education,Mathematics Instruction,Mathematical Concepts,Preservice Teachers,Mathematics Teachers,Mathematics Curriculum,Problem Solving,Grade 8,Teaching Methods,Intuition,Misconceptions,Numbers,Teacher Attitudes,Word Problems (Mathematics),Fractions,Questionnaires

The ubiquity of the subject of percentages in our everyday life demands that math teachers and pre-service math teachers demonstrate a profound knowledge and thorough understanding of the concept of percentages. This work, which originated from one specific lesson in an 8th grade math class, studies the conceptual understanding and problem-solving strategies of 17 pre-service math teachers. We exhibit and analyze the pre-service teachers' misconceptions and their inefficient or false problem-solving strategies. We identify two main misconceptions. The first we name &quot;In percentage problem is 100 always the denominator?&quot; and the second &quot;One can handle percentage problems using the same techniques as in numerical problems&quot; (or Over-transferring of numerical problems). We hypothesize reasons and explanations for these misconceptions. The frequent use of percentages in everyday life and in sciences demands a sound knowledge of the subject. This paper aims to describe a process that began with a mathematics lesson in an 8th grade. As an outcome of attending the lesson and the discussions that followed, we investigated 17 pre-service mathematics teachers' conceptual understanding and problem solving strategies associated with percentages. The research sample is not random. These are 17 pre-service teachers that we met in the course of our work with them. Because of the small size of the sample, no statistical analyses were performed beyond calculating the frequency of the events.
Traditional Craft or Technology Education: Development of Students' Technical Abilities in Finnish Comprehensive School
Author: Autio, Ossi
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Technology Education,Educational Trends,Trend Analysis,Delivery Systems,Intermode Differences,Technological Literacy,Handicrafts,Educational Practices,Creativity,Textbooks,Affective Measures,Psychomotor Skills,Questionnaires,Grade 5,Grade 6,Grade 7,Skill Development,Foreign Countries

Changes in the economy, nature, production and society together with increasing scientific and technological knowledge make demands of transforming school teaching in the field of technology education. The aim of the article is briefly to explore the integration between science, technology and traditional craft education by analyzing the current trends in Finnish technology education. Additionally, the research tried to explore, in a preliminary way, whether or not a curriculum which retains the traditional textile and technical crafts, or new technology education, would enhance technical abilities better? The data of the empirical part suggest that there was a difference between students' who received education based on the traditional craft or technology education curriculum. The difference was mainly seen in technological knowledge and in attitudes towards technology. Hence, still much of the learning is focused on production skills, and approaches that are now dominant in craft education do not prepare students to meet the challenges of modern technology and working life.
Using Eye-Tracking to Measure Lexical Inferences and Its Effects on Reading Rate during EFL Reading
Author: Dolgunsöz, Emrah
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Eye Movements,English (Second Language),Reading Skills,Vocabulary,Reading Rate,Inferences,Reading Fluency,Pretests Posttests,Knowledge Level,Foreign Countries,English Curriculum,Language Tests,Second Language Learning

Inferring unknown word meanings by using contextual clues is a common strategy employed by EFL learners during reading. This study aims to (a) investigate the effect of familiarity on lexical inferences in EFL reading; (b) examine inference efficiency among EFL readers with different levels of vocabulary knowledge and reading proficiency; and (c) use eye-tracking to reveal the effect of lexical inferences on EFL reading rate. According to the eye movement data acquired from 72 EFL learners, accurate inferences and learning gains were driven by vocabulary knowledge and reading proficiency. Moreover, while correct inference rate and learning gains were significant; employing this strategy had a degenerative effect on EFL reading rate. Second pass time and I-WPM were also found to be consistent with previous studies.
Teacher Trainers as Action Researchers: Scrutinizing the Reasons for Student Failure
Author: Gürsoy, Emel
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Preservice Teachers,Trainees,Student Teacher Attitudes,Academic Failure,Attribution Theory,Locus of Control,Academic Achievement,Goal Orientation,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Questionnaires,Action Research,Reflective Teaching,Semi Structured Interviews,Study Skills,Critical Thinking,Cognitive Ability,Attendance,Success,Scores,Teacher Qualifications,Methods Courses,Learning Activities,Data Collection,Data Analysis,Prior Learning,Student Evaluation

This action research aims to identify the teacher trainees' attributions for their failure, their locus of control and their achievement goals as a result of high failure rate in &quot;Teaching English to Young Learners&quot; course at a large state university in Turkey. For this purpose, qualitative and quantitative data were gathered via an attribution questionnaire, locus of control (LOC) scale, and interviews. The 35-item attribution questionnaire was developed by the researchers and consisted of four parts investigating student, instructor, course, and exam related reasons. The student related reasons had also four sub categories such as study skills, critical thinking ability, in-class performance/attendance and group work performance/attendance. The questionnaire also had an open-ended part with the same categories. The overall reliability of the questionnaire was found to be 0.80 and 0.77, 0.78, 0.70, 0.81 for respective sub-groups. The participants were also given a LOC scale and finally 21 successful and 21 unsuccessful students were interviewed. The results revealed that, having the highest mean score, student-related reasons were identified to be the major reason for the participants' failure from the course. Moreover, the participants' had internal locus of control and they mostly carried performance goals for achievement. In addition, it was found out that 40% of trainees did not have a desire to be a teacher after graduation. The results have implications for teacher trainers facing similar problems in Turkish context and governmental institutions in terms of teacher qualifications and teacher trainee selection in education faculties.
Advantages and Limitations of Usage of Open Educational Resources in Small Countries
Author: Krelja Kurelovic, Elena
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Open Source Technology,Educational Resources,Instructional Materials,Relevance (Education),Teaching Assistants,College Faculty,Teacher Attitudes,Likert Scales,Academic Rank (Professional),Tenure,Correlation,Hypothesis Testing,Access to Information,Barriers,Foreign Countries

Educational resources in the competitive world of higher education were often considered as key intellectual property, so access to those resources was restricted to privileged groups of students and professors, which is unacceptable in today's networked society. Today, an increasing number of institutions and individuals share such digital resources via the Internet free of any legal, financial or technical barriers. Open Educational Resources (OER) are the right way which enables free and accessible education to everyone and access to knowledge as public good. OER cherish the culture of participation, collaboration and sharing and with an open access to scientific information it brings a notable contribution in knowledge society development. The implementation of OER has certain limitations, in particular for small countries which use a non-English language, have limited resources and support to customize and create OER, their educational practice is founded on traditional teaching methods with occasional use of digital contents and ICT. The awareness raising and positive attitudes about OER are the first important step towards its acceptance. The empirical part of this paper is analysing attitudes toward OER among the scholars at few smaller public faculties in Croatia and their practice of sharing knowledge and teaching materials.
A Sociolinguistic and Sociocultural Approach to Attitudinal Dispositions of Graduated Students toward the Business Japanese Language
Author: Özsen, Tolga
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Sociocultural Patterns,Japanese,Business Communication,Intercultural Communication,Verbal Communication,Nonverbal Communication,Sociolinguistics,Second Language Learning,Grammar,Pragmatics,Electronic Mail,Telecommunications,Native Speakers,Second Language Instruction,Graduates,Ambiguity (Semantics),Teaching Methods,Work Environment,Language Usage,College Students,Language Attitudes,Foreign Countries,Questionnaires

Effective usage of nonverbal and verbal communication in Japanese such as gestures, mimics, silence and employing grammatical or lexical honorifics plays a significant role in determining the success of foreign language learners in obtaining their intended employment. This study examines the second language (L2) learning of politeness and social interaction in professional life within sociocultural and sociolinguistic competence in situ among those L2 learners of Japanese who took the sociolinguistics competence courses and those who did not. The main purpose of this study is to exhibit the importance of employing Sociolinguistic Competence courses to the Japanese Language Education Curriculum in order to have students understand cross-cultural and sociocultural phenomena. In the Sociolinguistic Competence courses graduates do not only learn the theoretical sociocultural background of Japanese society and language. In addition, they familiarize themselves with various practical topics such as social manners, those pertaining to e-mail, the telephone, name cards (&quot;meishi&quot;), and even the seating orders used in Japanese business. The current study analyzed 80 participants who are graduated and are working with native Japanese speakers in their professional lives. Based on the study findings, implications for teaching sociolinguistic and nonverbal/verbal communication tools were explored.