The effectiveness of direct -instruction and student -centered teaching methods on students' functional understanding of plagiarism

In an attempt to improve students' functional understanding of plagiarism a variety of approaches were tried within the context of a more comprehensive information literacy program. Sessions were taught as a one hour "module" inside a required communications skills class at a small private university. Approaches taken included control sessions (a straightforward PowerPoint presentation of the material), direct instruction sessions (featuring mostly direct lecture but with some seatwork as well), and student-centered sessions (utilizing role playing and group exercises). Students were taught basic content and definitions regarding plagiarism, what circumstances or instances constitute plagiarism, where to go for help in avoiding plagiarism, and what constitutes appropriate paraphrasing and citation. Pre-test and post-test scores determined students' functional understanding primarily by their ability to recognize properly and improperly paraphrased text, content understanding by their combined total score on a multiple choice quiz, and their attitude and conceptual understanding by their ability to recognize circumstances which would constitute plagiarism. While students improved across all methods the study was unable to identify one that performed significantly better than the others. The results supported the need for more education with regard to plagiarism and suggested a need for perhaps more time on task and/or a mixed approach towards conveying the content.

La visión de la Historia por los adolescentes: revisión del estado de la cuestión en EEUU y el Reino Unido

El presente artículo tiene como objetivo acercar los estudios realizados en el Reino Unido y los Estados Unidos sobre la visión que los alumnos presentan de la historia como disciplina de conocimientos y como materia escolar. Partiendo de un recorrido por las principales investigaciones llevadas a cabo, se procede a dibujar los grandes ejes que vertebran el ámbito de las percepciones del alumnado. Una vez aclaradas las conclusiones a las que se llega en cada caso, se proponen alternativas didácticas en las actividades de enseñanza y aprendizaje que ayuden a los alumnos a una mayor y mejor comprensión del pasado y de la tarea del historiador. Palabras clave. Didáctica, comprensión, historia, historiador, investigación educativa.

El conflicto armado en el aula de secundaria. Dos experiencias.

El artículo presenta dos experiencias realizadas en el aula de Secundaria que trataron el tema del conflicto armado contemporáneo desde un punto de vista crítico y con un enfoque empático.

La evaluación de corrección objetiva como instrumento de mejora en el aprendizaje de la història en bachillerato.

En este artículo se describe la investigación realizada por el grupo DHIGECS de la Universidad de Barcelona durante los años 2002, 2003 y 2004 . Esta línea de investigación se ha propuesto y se propone estudiar las relaciones entre la frecuencia de las pruebas de evaluación objetiva, consideradas fundamentalmente como actividades de aprendizaje, y los resultados obtenidos en la materia de Historia en el Bachillerato. Han participado en este trabajo 19 profesores y se ha trabajado con una muestra de 800 alumnos. Este artículo sigue en la línea iniciada en 1997 centrada en el aprendizaje de la historia en primer curso de ESO. Se presenta la problemática objeto de estudio, la metodología utilizada, el proceso de investigación seguido y se exponen algunos de los resultados obtenidos.

La evaluación de la Historia en el Bachillerato

En el presente artículo se informa acerca de una investigación sobre la evaluación de la disciplina de Historia en el bachillerato desde una óptica selectiva realizado en Catalunya entre enero de 1999 y mayo de 2000. Fue encargado por el Consell Interuniversitari de Catalunya preocupado, entre otros asuntos, por establecer una medida justa en la transición de los estudios secundarios a los universitarios. Sus autores pretendieron verificar la hipótesis según la cual las pruebas de corrección objetiva, por lo que se refiere a la media, medían igual que la prueba de ensayo abierto. Siendo así que, por definición, en este tipo de pruebas la subjetividad del corrector no es en absoluto significativa, se propusieron éstas como más equitativas e idóneas para las evaluaciones discriminativas de tipo selectivo propias de las pruebas de acceso a la universidad. Otros objetivos de la investigación consistían en analizar la fiabilidad interna de dichas pruebas así como la problemática de su aplicación y, finalmente, sistematizar un proceso de trabajo en equipo para la elaboración de preguntas definiendo para ello un modelo de organización. En el artículo se presenta, pues, el marco teórico aplicado a la disciplina de Historia, el modelo y fundamento del cuadro de especificaciones, el proceso del diseño de la prueba ¿que no tenía en esta disciplina precedente alguno que no fuera de carácter memorístico o factual¿ su aplicación a la muestra de alumnado y, en último lugar, el análisis e interpretación de sus resultados. En las conclusiones se muestra la verificación de la hipótesis y se realizan diversas consideraciones sobre la virtualidad didáctica de este tipo de evaluación en el aprendizaje de la Historia.

El patrimoni i la didàctica de la història. Un estudi de cas: els jardins del Laberint d'Horta.

Este artículo se inicia con la presentación de la moderna concepción científica de la enseñanza/ aprendizaje de la historia que considera que la mejor manera de enseñar esta disciplina social es reproduciendo el método que utiliza el historiador en la construcción de la historia. Se da a conocer una experiencia docente de integración de la didáctica del patrimonio en el curriculum de la formación de maestros. Siguiendo la idea ya señalada por otros especialistas, se defiende la necesidad de utilizar el patrimonio como un elemento del entorno que, en tanto que proyecta el pasado en el presente, se convierte en una fuente primaria de primer orden que favorece una enseñanza/aprendizaje de la historia y del método del historiador, de forma inducida, realista y por descubrimiento dirigido, mediante el análisis de las fuentes documentales de carácter muy diverso que encierra el propio elemento patrimonial estudiado. Al mismo tiempo, desde una perspectiva constructivista del aprendizaje manifiesta la necesidad de la previa investigación que sobre dicho elemento patrimonial debe realizar el profesor universitario de didáctica de las Ciencias Sociales para llevar a cabo y definitivamente normalizar este tipo de docencia innovadora.

Llegir críticament textos d'història

La història és una disciplina científica que opera en base a evidències del passat. Tot allò que s'ha produït en un altre temps (objectes, construccions, paisatges, conductes, costums) és susceptible de ser analitzat i interpretat de manera crítica per l'historiador. Qualsevol tipus de text confegit en un altre temps o a partir d'informacions d'un temps anterior, també esdevé, per definició, una evidència històrica, ja sigui una recepta de farmàcia, una novel·la, un informe tècnic o un llibre d'història. En aquest sentit, gairebé tots els textos són d'història. L'historiador no analitza el text de la mateixa manera que ho poden fer des d'altres disciplines; un text té interès en tant que subministra informació, i el mètode de treball de l'historiador és el que permet assolir-la. Els alumnes de primària i secundària s'han de formar en continguts factuals, conceptuals i en mètode. L'anàlisi d'un document amb la metodologia d l'historiador és una bona praxi per formar individus amb capacitat crítica.

Trajetórias de vida : lembranças, caminhos e constituições dos saberes docentes de professores de Educação Física = Paths and trajectories of life : memories, paths and establishment of teaching knowledge of Physical Education Professors

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física

A shift from passive teaching at medical conferences to more interactive methods improves physician learning

Conferences that deliver interactive sessions designed to enhance physician participation, such as role play, small discussion groups, workshops, hands-on training, problem- or case-based learning and individualised training sessions, are effective for physician education.

Towards a History didactics definition

This paper aims to define history didactics along the lines of the current German literature, which conceives it to be closer to history than to education. Associated to the word Geschichtsdidaktik, this definition is opposed to the concepts of history didactics as the art of teaching - Lehrkunst - history or as a collection of methods used both in the teaching of history and in the teaching of other school subjects - Unterrichtsmethoden. In opposition to these two definitions, this paper discusses German, French and Brazilian literatures to propose a conception of history didactics as a subarea of history, once it does not encompass only history teaching, but all history elaborations without a scientific form - nicht- wissenschaftsformigen Geschichtsverarbeitungen.

The teaching of History meets its past: memories of teaching staff during the civil-military dictatorship

The civil-military dictatorship, which took power in 1964, influenced the daily activities of schools and teachers. Many transformations occurred during this period, including the new legislation enacted under Law 5692/71 and changes which occurred due to the vigilance which teachers felt when working. The memories analyzed here of teachers from public schools in Sao Paulo show different perceptions of this surveillance, involving various forms of acceptance or resistance. The purpose of this article is to show that although there was no direct repression of schools, unlike in the universities, teachers at the elementary school also felt constrained and this can be seen in their educational practices and teaching concepts.

Children’s Literature and English Teaching – Swedish Teachers’ Methods and Attitudes

This study investigates how primary school teachers of grades F-3 pupils in a number of sample schools in Sweden use children’s literature and other methods to enhance their teaching of English. The study explores the attitudes of these teachers’ to using English children’s literature as a teaching tool to promote language development in their pupils, focusing on vocabulary. An empirical questionnaire study was carried out including a total of twenty-three respondents from seven schools in a Stockholm suburb. The respondents are all working teachers with experience of teaching English to young learners, particularly in grades F-3. This study contributes with new knowledge about the often-recommended use of children’s literature as a method for teaching English to young learners, connecting international research with empirical data from the Swedish context. While the results suggest that the majority of the respondents are positive to using children’s literature in their teaching and regularly do so, many of them feel that it is somewhat difficult to find relevant materials to plan, implement and evaluate lessons within the allocated time-frame. Based on these results, further research about how to create more effective ways of using children’s literature as a method for English vocabulary teaching in Swedish schools is recommended.

The history of technology in education. A comparative study and forecast

Area, launched in 1999 with the Bologna Declaration, has bestowed such a magnitude and unprecedented agility to the transformation process undertaken by European universities. However, the change has been more profound and drastic with regards to the use of new technologies both inside and outside the classroom. This article focuses on the study and analysis of the technology’s history within the university education and its impact on teachers, students and teaching methods. All the elements that have been significant and innovative throughout the history inside the teaching process have been analyzed, from the use of blackboard and chalk during lectures, the use of slide projectors and transparent slides, to the use of electronic whiteboards and Internet nowadays. The study is complemented with two types of surveys that have been performed among teachers and students during the school years 1999 - 2011 in the School of Civil Engineering at the Polytechnic University of Madrid. The pros and cons of each of the techniques and methodologies used in the learning process over the last decades are described, unfolding how they have affected the teacher, who has evolved from writing on a whiteboard to project onto a screen, the student, who has evolved from taking handwritten notes to download information or search the Internet, and the educational process, that has evolved from the lecture to acollaborative learning and project-based learning. It is unknown how the process of learning will evolve in the future, but we do know the consequences that some of the multimedia technologies are having on teachers, students and the learning process. It is our goal as teachers to keep ourselves up to date, in order to offer the student adequate technical content, while providing proper motivation through the use of new technologies. The study provides a forecast in the evolution of multimedia within the classroom and the renewal of the education process, which in our view, will set the basis for future learning process within the context of this new interactive era.

Delivery Of A Urology Online Course Using Moodle Versus Didactic Lectures Methods.

To subjectively and objectively compare an accessible interactive electronic library using Moodle with lectures for urology teaching of medical students. Forty consecutive fourth-year medical students and one urology teacher were exposed to two teaching methods (4 weeks each) in the form of problem-based learning: - lectures and - student-centered group discussion based on Moodle (modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment) full time online delivered (24/7) with video surgeries, electronic urology cases and additional basic principles of the disease process. All 40 students completed the study. While 30% were moderately dissatisfied with their current knowledge base, online learning course delivery using Moodle was considered superior to the lectures by 86% of the students. The study found the following observations: (1) the increment in learning grades ranged from 7.0 to 9.7 for students in the online Moodle course compared to 4.0-9.6 to didactic lectures; (2) the self-reported student involvement in the online course was characterized as large by over 60%; (3) the teacher-student interaction was described as very frequent (50%) and moderately frequent (50%); and (4) more inquiries and requisitions by students as well as peer assisting were observed from the students using the Moodle platform. The Moodle platform is feasible and effective, enthusing medical students to learn, improving immersion in the urology clinical rotation and encouraging the spontaneous peer assisted learning. Future studies should expand objective evaluations of knowledge acquisition and retention.