Anxiety-Related Disorders in Primary-Junior Grades (K-3): Teacher Perceptions and Knowledge

This study used a descriptive case study design to analyze teachers’ experiences of anxiety-related conditions and emotions in the primary-junior grades (K-3). The study sought to examine (a) educators’ perceptions of anxiety conditions and how such interpretations influence their teaching practice; (b) teachers’ knowledge of the diagnostic processes, symptomology, and emotions related to anxiety disorders; (c) primary teachers’ knowledge of and experience with emotional regulation strategies and therapeutic approaches for anxiety; and (d) additional strategies and knowledge that should be available to help students. The study adopted Bronfenbrenner’s (1986) Ecological Model to frame participants’ experiences and perspectives, as well as the impact of several factors (e.g., school, home) and individuals (e.g. teachers, parents, students) on students’ anxiety and the participants’ perspectives. Through in-person interviews, participants shared their experiences with and knowledge about students in their teaching practice who had experienced anxiety-related conditions and emotions. Four major themes emerged from the data: symptoms and situational contexts; knowledge of strategies and interventions; understanding and perspectives of students; anxious emotional responses; and challenges. The study contributes to the literature by providing the real-life perspectives and experiences of primary-junior teachers (K-3) related to students experiencing anxiety. The study provides further information for educators, administrators, and research regarding any additional support and knowledge that should be implemented to further assist educators and students in regards to anxiety.

Le développement d’une séquence d’enseignement/apprentissage basée sur l’histoire de la numération pour des élèves du troisième cycle du primaire

Notre contexte pratique — nous enseignons à des élèves doués de cinquième année suivant le programme international — a grandement influencé la présente recherche. En effet, le Programme primaire international (Organisation du Baccalauréat International, 2007) propose un enseignement par thèmes transdisciplinaires, dont un s’intitulant Où nous nous situons dans l’espace et le temps. Aussi, nos élèves sont tenus de suivre le Programme de formation de l’école québécoise (MÉLS Ministère de l'Éducation du Loisir et du Sport, 2001) avec le développement, notamment, de la compétence Résoudre une situation-problème et l’introduction d’une nouveauté : les repères culturels. Après une revue de la littérature, l’histoire des mathématiques nous semble tout indiquée. Toutefois, il existe peu de ressources pédagogiques pour les enseignants du primaire. Nous proposons donc d’en créer, nous appuyant sur l’approche constructiviste, approche prônée par nos deux programmes d’études (OBI et MÉLS). Nous relevons donc les avantages à intégrer l’histoire des mathématiques pour les élèves (intérêt et motivation accrus, changement dans leur façon de percevoir les mathématiques et amélioration de leurs apprentissages et de leur compréhension des mathématiques). Nous soulignons également les difficultés à introduire une approche historique à l’enseignement des mathématiques et proposons diverses façons de le faire. Puis, les concepts mathématiques à l’étude, à savoir l’arithmétique, et la numération, sont définis et nous voyons leur importance dans le programme de mathématiques du primaire. Nous décrivons ensuite les six systèmes de numération retenus (sumérien, égyptien, babylonien, chinois, romain et maya) ainsi que notre système actuel : le système indo-arabe. Enfin, nous abordons les difficultés que certaines pratiques des enseignants ou des manuels scolaires posent aux élèves en numération. Nous situons ensuite notre étude au sein de la recherche en sciences de l’éducation en nous attardant à la recherche appliquée ou dite pédagogique et plus particulièrement aux apports des recherches menées par des praticiens (un rapprochement entre la recherche et la pratique, une amélioration de l’enseignement et/ou de l’apprentissage, une réflexion de l’intérieur sur la pratique enseignante et une meilleure connaissance du milieu). Aussi, nous exposons les risques de biais qu’il est possible de rencontrer dans une recherche pédagogique, et ce, pour mieux les éviter. Nous enchaînons avec une description de nos outils de collecte de données et rappelons les exigences de la rigueur scientifique. Ce n’est qu’ensuite que nous décrivons notre séquence d’enseignement/apprentissage en détaillant chacune des activités. Ces activités consistent notamment à découvrir comment différents systèmes de numération fonctionnent (à l’aide de feuilles de travail et de notations anciennes), puis comment ces mêmes peuples effectuaient leurs additions et leurs soustractions et finalement, comment ils effectuaient les multiplications et les divisions. Enfin, nous analysons nos données à partir de notre journal de bord quotidien bonifié par les enregistrements vidéo, les affiches des élèves, les réponses aux tests de compréhension et au questionnaire d’appréciation. Notre étude nous amène à conclure à la pertinence de cette séquence pour notre milieu : l’intérêt et la motivation suscités, la perception des mathématiques et les apprentissages réalisés. Nous revenons également sur le constructivisme et une dimension non prévue : le développement de la communication mathématique.

Interacciones de género estudiante-profesor, deserción y rendimiento académico en Colombia

En este trabajo se estima el efecto del género del profesor sobre la deserción y el rendimiento educativo de los estudiantes en Colombia durante el periodo 2009-2012. La estrategia empírica se fundamenta en un modelo de regresión lineal que establece la relación entre la proporción de profesoras interactuada con el género del estudiante. Los resultados sugieren que existe un sesgo de selección debido a que las profesoras aumentan la probabilidad de que las niñas finalicen la educación media, lo que implica que la composición de habilidades entre hombres y mujeres no es la misma. Luego de corregir este sesgo de selección, se encuentra un resultado significativo en el género del profesor. Un aumento de una desviación estándar en la proporción de profesoras incrementa en 0.01 desviaciones estándar el puntaje de los niños en la prueba de matemáticas y el puntaje de las niñas en la prueba de lenguaje. Este trabajo utiliza información proveniente de la prueba Saber 11, la Resolución 166 y el concurso docente.

Inclusive approaches to teaching and learning mathematics

This chapter explores the role of mentors in supporting pre-service teachers to include all children in mathematics teaching, no matter what their individual needs.

Realities and perceptions for English teachers of Polish children

This chapter examines the responses of English primary school teachers to Polish children arriving in the south of England since 2006. Schools in England have a changing pupil demographic which reflects changing patterns of trans-European migration since the accession of new member states to the EU in 2004 and 2007. There is evidence that this shift is one experienced not just in inner-city schools most commonly associated with minority ethnic populations, but in a wide range of schools in rural and smaller town settings in a number of counties across the country. In adjusting to new identities and new languages in their classrooms, teachers in areas not previously associated with national or ethnic differences are required to respond pedagogically and pastorally in new ways. Their beliefs are compared with the views of migration held by Polish teachers’ from one Polish town affected by migration. Interview data are analysed in order to explore differences in perception towards Polish migrant families and their children. Discussion centres on English teachers’ very positive responses to Polish children, and of how the teacher-friendly behaviour of Polish families may support the construction of stereotypes that are not necessarily a reflection of reality as experienced by the children.

Linguistic capital and the linguistic field for teachers unaccustomed to linguistic difference

Teachers in classrooms throughout England are facing a shifting demographic in their pupil intake. Where once the teaching of children whose first language was not English was considered an inner-city teachers’ role, more recent migration patterns have challenged this preconception (Andrews, 2009). In England in particular, this change sits against an historical backdrop of centralised control of the curriculum for English. This article explores how primary school teachers responded to the arrival of Polish children in county settings following EU accession in 2004. Interviews with a small sample of teachers in schools that had previously been mainly monolingual were coded using Bourdieu’s Logic of Practice. Analysis revealed a complex mix of experienced that appeared to rest on assumed pedagogical norms and professionally assimilated external pressures. Discussion centres on the author’s interpretation of teachers’ ownership of linguistic capital and its relationship to linguistic field.

Turning a Bourdieuian lens on English teaching in primary schools: linguistic field, linguistic habitus and linguistic capital

The research project used to frame discussion in this chapter was a doctoral study of the experiences of English primary school teachers teaching pupils whose home language was not English in their previously monolingual classrooms. They taught in a region in the south of England which experienced a significant rise in the population of non-native English speakers following Eastern European member states’ accession to the EU in 2004 and 2007. The study focussed principally on the teachers’ responses to their newly arrived Polish children because Polish families were arriving in far greater numbers than those from other countries. The research aims focussed on exploring and analysing the pedagogical experiences of teachers managing the acquisition of English language for their Polish children. Critical engagement with their experiences and the ways in which they did or did not adapt their pedagogy for teaching English was channelled through Bourdieuian constructs of linguistic field, capital and habitus. The following sections explore my reasons for adopting Bourdieu’s work as a theoretical lens, the practicalities and challenges of incorporating Bourdieu’s tools for thinking in data analysis, and the subsequent impact on my research activity.

Matematikläxans fördelar och nackdelar : En intervjustudie av lärares syn på matematikläxor i grundskolans tidigare år

Syftet med denna studie är att få kunskap om lärares syn på matematikläxor i grundskolans tidigare år. Förhoppningen var att få förståelse för lärares syfte med matematikläxor och vilka förmågor eleverna förväntas utveckla med matematikläxors hjälp samt att jämföra vilka för- och nackdelar matematikläxan har. För att undersöka detta har sju intervjuer gjorts med lärare från olika skolor och olika årskurser från 1-6. Samtliga lärare som intervjuats undervisar i matematik. Lärares erfarenheter av läxornas betydelse för matematikundervisningen är ett viktigt område att få kunskap om. De lärare som deltog i intervjuerna uttryckte olika synpunkter på matematikläxan. Något lärarna var överens om var att läxa är en skoluppgift som eleven tar med hem efter skolans slut och arbetar med hemma. Lärarna uttryckte samstämmigt att eleverna inte utvecklar några förmågor med matematikläxans hjälp utan förmågorna utvecklar eleverna i skolan med hjälp av lärarna. Det framgick att samtliga lärare upplevde att matematikläxan var tidskrävande och för att matematikläxan ska nå syftet på bästa möjliga sätt behövs mer tid. Att läxan kopplas till undervisning och uppföljning är centralt för att syftet med matematikläxan ska uppnås enligt de intervjuade lärarna. Av resultaten framgår att några lärare är negativt inställda till matematikläxor för att uppföljning och koppling till undervisningen inte finns med och därför förlorar matematikläxan sitt syfte. Föräldrarnas förutsättningar är väldigt olika som exempelvis att de har svårigheter med det svenska språket eller inte är engagerade i barnets skolgång. Andra lärare är positivt inställda till matematikläxor för att färdighetsträningen och repetitionen är viktig och tiden som behövs för det inte räcker till i skolan.

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.

Aprendizagem de conceitos geométricos pelo futuro professor das séries iniciais do Ensino Fundamental e as novas tecnologias

Com o movimento da Matemática Moderna, a partir de 1950, o ensino da matemática passou a enfatizar o simbolismo e a exigir dos alunos grandes abstrações, distanciando a matemática da vida real. O que se percebe é que o aluno formado por este currículo aprendeu muito pouco de geometria e não consegue perceber a relação deste conteúdo com sua realidade. Por outro lado, o professor que não conhece geometria não consegue perceber a beleza e a importância que a mesma possui para a formação do cidadão. A geometria estimula a criança a observar, perceber semelhanças, diferenças e a identificar regularidades. O objetivo deste trabalho é identificar o nível de conhecimento dos alunos do Centro Específico de Formação e Aperfeiçoamento ao Magistério (CEFAM), futuros professores da 1ª a 4ª séries do Ensino Fundamental do Estado de São Paulo, quanto aos conceitos de ponto, reta, plano, ângulos, polígonos e circunferências e também verificar as contribuições do computador para a construção de conceitos geométricos. Para atingir esses objetivos, foi desenvolvida uma pesquisa com 30 alunos do CEFAM de Presidente Prudente-SP, na qual, com base no diagnóstico das dificuldades de aprendizagem, organizaram e desenvolveram-se os momentos de formação, que utilizaram o computador como ferramenta de aprendizagem e projetos de trabalho tendo como aporte teórico a abordagem construcionista. O futuro professor que não dominar a geometria e não perceber sua relação com a natureza não conseguirá contribuir para o desenvolvimento do pensamento geométrico da criança. Esse pensamento é que permite a criança observar, compreender, descrever e representar, de forma organizada, o mundo em que vive.

Projeto Rived: um estudo de caso de uma equipe de matemática

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Uso de calculadoras em aulas de matemática: o que os professores pensam

Pós-graduação em Educação Matemática - IGCE

As concepções de professores de Matemática de 5ª série do ensino fundamental sobre sua prática e os resultados do SARESP 2005

Pós-graduação em Educação - FCT

Sobre a formação de professores das séries iniciais na região de São José do Rio Preto-SP na ocasião dos Centros Específicos de Formação e Aperfeiçoamento para o Magistério (CEFAM)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Introdução a álgebra no ensino fundamental: o “X” da questão

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)