28,065 research outputs found
Trialing project-based learning in a new EAP ESP course: A collaborative reflective practice of three college English teachers
Currently in many Chinese universities, the traditional College English course is facing the risk of being âmarginalizedâ, replaced or even removed, and many hours previously allocated to the course are now being taken by EAP or ESP. At X University in northern China, a curriculum reform as such is taking place, as a result of which a new course has been created called âxue keâ English. Despite the fact that âxue keâ means subject literally, the course designer has made it clear that subject content is not the target, nor is the course the same as EAP or ESP. This curriculum initiative, while possibly having been justified with a rationale of some kind (e.g. to meet with changing social and/or academic needs of students and/or institutions), this is posing a great challenge for, as well as considerable pressure on, a number of College English teachers who have taught this single course for almost their entire teaching career. In such a context, three teachers formed a peer support group in Semester One this year, to work collaboratively co-tackling the challenge, and they chose Project-Based Learning (PBL) for the new course. This presentation will report on the implementation of this project, including the overall designing, operational procedure, and the teachersâ reflections.
Based on discussion, pre-agreement was reached on the purpose and manner of collaboration as offering peer support for more effective teaching and learning and fulfilling and pleasant professional development. A WeChat group was set up as the chief platform for messaging, idea-sharing, and resource-exchanging. Physical meetings were supplementary, with sound agenda but flexible time, and venues. Mosoteach cloud class (lan mo yun ban ke) was established as a tool for virtual learning, employed both in and after class. Discussions were held at the beginning of the semester which determined only brief outlines for PBL implementation and allowed space for everyone to autonomously explore in their own way. Constant further discussions followed, which generated a great deal of opportunities for peer learning and lesson plan modifications. A reflective journal, in a greater or lesser detailed manner, was also kept by each teacher to record the journey of the collaboration. At the end of the semester, it was commonly recognized that, although challenges existed, the collaboration was overall a success and they were all willing to continue with it and endeavor to refine it to be a more professional and productive approach
Seizing the Moment: Realizing the Promise of Student-Centered Learning
This brief outlines policy recommendations for supporting student-centered learning at the local, state, and federal level
IMPLEMENTING GROUP PRESENTATION USING POWERPOINT ( GPPPt ) TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTSâ SPEAKING COMPETENCE ( A Classroom Action Research at the Tenth Grade ( X-C ) , the Second Semester Students of SMA Negeri 1 Ngawi in 2009/2010 Academic Year )
Implementing Group Presentation Using
PowerPoint
(
GPPPt
)
to Improve the Studentsâ Speaking Competence
(
A
Classroom Action Research at the Tenth Grade
(
X-C
)
, the Second Semester
Students of SMA Negeri 1 Ngawi in 2009/2010 Academic Year
)
. A Thesis: English
Education Department, Graduate School, Sebelas Maret University, 2010.
The objectives of this research are to:
(
1
)
identify whether or not and to
what extent the use of âGPPPtâ is able to improve the studentsâ speaking
competence; and
(
2
)
describe the situations when GPPPt is being applied in the
speaking class. In this research, the problem refers to the learning English,
especially their speaking competence which is still low.
The research methodology applied in this research is action research
with two cycles in which each cycle starts from planning, acting, observing, and
reflecting. The data collected are the qualitative data and the quantitative data.
The qualitative data are collected from observation, interview, questionnaire, and
document. The quantitative data are collected from the pre test in pre research and
the post test in Cycle 1 and Cycle 2. The qualitative data are analyzed by Constant
Comparative Method and the quantitative data are analyzed by descriptive
statistics.
The implementation of GPPPt has succeeded in improving and enhancing
the studentsâ English speaking competence. It could be seen from these indicators:
1
)
it is able to:
(
a
)
help the students to express their mind and ideas quickly;
(
b
)
help the students make sentence
(
s
)
fluently;
(
c
)
improve the studentsâ
pronunciation to be relatively accepted;
(
d
)
influence the students to use correct
grammar to make sentence
(
s
)
; and
(
e
)
increase the studentsâ achievement in
speaking evaluation; and 2
)
it enables to:
(
a
)
reduce the studentsâ temptation to
have a chat with their desk mates;
(
b
)
respond the teacherâs questions actively;
(
c
)
influence the students to avoid doing non academic activities; and
(
d
)
motivate the
students to use either their dictionaries or grammar books in English class.
Besides, from the collected data, the students had obtained better score
from Cycle 1 to Cycle 2. For instance, the mean of pre test score of the pre
research was 66.76, while the mean of the post test score in Cycle 1 was 74.00 and
that of Cycle 2 was 77.64.
That the implementation of GPPPt has succeeded in improving and
enhancing the studentsâ English speaking competence, I would like to propose
some suggestions for the English teachers, especially those who teach in senior
high school to:
(
1
)
apply GPPPt to conduct the teaching learning process in the
speaking class;
(
2
)
improve their acquisition of knowledge about GPPPt; and
(
3
)
provide more chance for the students to practice their English orally through
GPPPt
Transformational Leadership: Building an Effective Culture to Manage Organisational Knowledge
This paper reviews the current literature of management to indicate how transformational leaders contribute to organisational knowledge by building an effective culture. The paper is based on a review of leadership theories, organisational knowledge, organisational culture and the integration of concepts from the knowledge-based view of the firm. This review also indicates that to develop organisational knowledge transformational leaders act as change agents who influence organisational culture which can in turn mediate the relationship between transformational leadership and organisational knowledge
Effects of Business Embedded & Traditional Training Models on Motivation
Service industry is now focusing more and more on providing valuable training opportunities to its employees in order to improve the quality of its services and benchmarking them as its competitive advantage. This research has attempted to understand the effects of the Business Embedded Training Model and the Traditional Training Model on employeesâ job motivation. A sample of 80 organizations and 1000 respondents was taken and Group t-Test and Log Linear Logit techniques were used to evaluate that which training model is preferred over the other by the service industry and which training model has more positive effects on employeesâ job motivation. The study revealed that Business Embedded Training Model has more positive effects on employeesâ motivation than the Traditional Training Model.Training, Motivation, Performance, Employee Satisfaction
The role of tacit knowledge in the construction industry: towards a definition
The construction industry is perceived as one of the knowledge-based value creating sectors of
the economy; however, it faces many challenges, especially in terms of performance, due to its
intrinsic nature. Different knowledge-based solutions have been proposed in the past to
overcome this problem. However, the process-based solutions, enhancing personalisation
strategies and interactions between construction workers to generate and share tacit knowledge,
would be much more relevant to overcome KM problems in construction organisations. As the
initial step towards the management of tacit knowledge, this paper examines the nature and
importance of tacit knowledge in the construction industry. Based on research findings a
definition for tacit knowledge is synthesised to: understanding, capabilities, skills and the
experiences of individuals; often expressed in human actions in the form of thoughts, points of
view, evaluation and advice; generated and acquired through past experiences, individuals, and
repositories; utilised for the benefit of individual and organisational development
âA productive and happy collaborationâ: maximising impact through project design
This case study describes a highly collaborative project created to develop an online self-assessment tool that offers students the opportunity to plan their preparedness to enter the work place named the Preparation for Placement Assessment Tool. The aim of the project was to develop an artefact that aidsall students to think about and prepare for placements, and more broadly to be work-ready. It also aims to help disabled students to identify and manage their individual needs. Working in collaboration with students is offered as an effective strategy for improving project outcomes and managing the tensions for academics of balancing research, teaching, learning and scholarly activities.This paper discusses the project background, design and delivery, which includes the engagement of a diverse mix of students, and the practice research methodologies used. Discussion focuses on the projectâs impact, particularly on the students involved. Four key factors: student power, methodology, the use of funding and slow burn are identified as significant for success
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