| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立中正大學 === 教育研究所 === 92 === ABSTRACT
This study intends to explore the current situation English curriculum instruction in elementary school, the problems encountered and the problem-solving methods. The target group of this study includes: English teacher of Class A, grade 5 of the Chu-Fa Elementary School(足發國民小學); and students of Class A, grade 5 of the Chu-Fa Elementary School. This study, based on a quantitative analysis research methods, selected a country-side elementary school and underwent a series of personal interviews, non-participation observation, and literature analysis as a means to collect data for further data collation, induction, and a final data analysis.
The major issues that this study means to discuss are as follow:
1. The philosophy behind curriculum design of target teacher;
2. Teacher’s perception curriculum on classroom level;
3. The instructional procedures of target teacher;
4. Experience curriculum on the classroom level;
5. Influential factors of curriculum implementation;
6. Problem-solving of curriculum instruction.
The study indicates the following facts:
1. The philosophy behind curriculum design of target teacher are:
1.1 To respect every individual learner, allowing great independent learning;
1.2 To comply to the characteristics of the community, and seize the opportunity
with a positive attitude;
1.3 To emphasis on the differences of individual students, and meet the students’ need;
1.4 To establish communication with parents, and build rational consensus;
1.5 To focus on procedural performance, problem-solving and innovational
instruction;
1.6 To focus on the interaction between teachers and students, and among peers, to motivate participation level.
2. Teacher’s perception curriculum on classroom level includes curriculum syllabus, textbook, and teacher’s manual etc. The content of the above mentioned formal programs contains the ideal and object of curriculum reform as well as embedded personal belief, personal value etc.,
3. The instructional procedures of target teacher is: the instructional procedures
adopted by Mr. Kuo is something between a perspective of adaptation and a perspective of building in which the textbook is the main but not the whole part of the formal program.
The instructional strategy of Mr. Kuo is:
3.1 To emphasis on the “interaction between teacher and student” and “interaction among peers” which means the teacher teaches with all effort to lead every individual student, and the student responds with a serious learning attitude.
3.2 To communicate with a mutually familiar “classroom language” and encourage English speaking among peers.
3.3 To inspire learning motivation and interest by using principle of categorization covering each individual among class.
3.4 To create a whole class participation by caring each individual.
3.5 To emphasize on the performance of team work by holding group contest.
3.6 To focus on students’ ability of critical thinking, and problem-solving.
4. Experience curriculum on the classroom level is based on the formal program of grade 5 English as its main part, while the student may learn some potential program not covered by the formal program.
5. Influential factors of curriculum implementation comprises of :
5.1 Aspect concerning teaching material
5.1.1 The difficulty of textbook affects student’s learning motivation;
5.2 Aspect concerning the teacher
5.2.1 The teacher’s lacking ability in ballad and folk song teaching;
5.2.2 Increased additional work load to the target teacher;
5.3 Aspect concerning the student
5.3.1 Great difference existing among students;
5.3.2 Lack of concentration and classroom order;
5.3.3 Passive learning attitude, no ambition and goal-setting;
5.3.4 Frequent delay in handing in homework;
5.4 Aspect concerning instruction
5.4.1 Insufficient instruction time causes difficulty in maintaining student’s basic capability;
5.4.2 Diversified but not practical teaching methods;
5.5 Aspect concerning education administration
5.5.1 School administration affect operational program and practical teaching;
5.5.2 The resources and facility provided by administration is insufficient;
5.5.3 The administration lacks in linking instruction among various subjects;
5.6 Aspect concerning parents
5.6.1 Very few opportunity for contacting and communicating with parents;
5.6.2 Insufficient recognition from parents’ side;
5.6.3 Parents resort to sending their children to cram school without any concern over the cause of problem;
5.7 Aspect concerning evaluation
5.7.1 Striking difference among peers makes standard setting difficult.
6. Problem-solving of curriculum instruction:
6.1 To encourage the teacher to participate in on-the-job training, advanced study and seminar held by training institution, education authority or publishers.
6.2 To cut down teaching hours of the target teachers.
6.3 To make adjustment to instruction schedule.
6.4 To increase instruction hours.
6.5 To cultivate teaching interest.
6.6 To make it perfect by listening more and speaking more.
6.7 To mutually agree on a “classroom language”.
6.8 To acquire a flexible teaching methods by self-enriching study.
6.9 To encourage parents to buy outside classroom reading materials to assist student in their learning.
6.10 To focus on learning in a natural situation, implement individualized instruction.
6.11 To focus on the practical learning process, encourage participation,
reinforce the feedback mechanism.
6.12 To insist on not giving up any student, adopt remedy in time.
6.13 To emphasize on the individual difference, provide with in time instruction and remedy means.
6.14 To adopt a various evaluation method, an oral test should be included along side with the regular written test. In addition, the classroom attitude and participation level should be evaluated. The student’s total average grade shall be based on classroom attitude, participation level and assignment.
In conclusion, the following concrete suggestions on curriculum implementation
and future study are made based on the findings of this study:
1. To perform a two years’ period of long-term observation
The one and a half years’ period of observation adopted by this study proved to be insufficient in data collection. Thus, I suggest a two semester years’ period for a complete observation of grade 5 English instruction process.
2. To adopt a research method combining quality & quantity analysis method for extensive data collection
This study, based on a quantitative analysis research method, which can only provide with the current instruction situation of target teacher and no perspective view of the whole situation was provided. Thus, the future study shall further expand to the target school and combine a survey analysis in order to gain a comprehensive understanding and subsequently a full view of the situation besides an in-depth understanding acquired from the on-going study.
3. To reinforce study of student’s experience curriculum
Several difficulties were encountered during data collection interviews of the experience curriculum because of the limited free time students had in school. This study involved different students on each interview. The willingness of the student interviewed had to be put into consideration. Thus the data collected upon each interview was fragmented. My suggestion is to conduct a long-term study focusing on a single individual student in order to gather a complete data over a long period of time.
4. To perform a further study on English education of various grades
Since the main focus of this study was on the observation of grade 5 English education, and a new program of starting English education from grade 3 will be initiated in 2005, a different content and style of students’ activities will naturally be resulted from their different learning stages. Thus, English education of grade 3 may present a different design and style of activity. The target teacher involved in this study has not been through any formal English teacher training. There may be some difference of teaching model and activity style between the target teacher and a formally trained English teacher. I therefore suggest the future study researcher further the study by targeting on formally trained English teachers and various grades of students.
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