Junior College Archives - Page 3 of 7

Index

Goh Chor Boon

Junior College

The “Black Rain” – A Re-assessment on the Dropping of “Little Boy” and “Fat Man” on Japan

Author/s:

Goh Chor Boon (National Institute of Education, Singapore) Keywords History Junior College Secondary School History In 1965, Masuji Ibuse, a native son of Hiroshima, published his Black Rain (Kuroi Ame).[i] The novel is masterful reconstruction of death from radiation sickness based on the diary of a Hiroshima survivor plus interviews with some 50 hibakusha or victims of the atomic holocaust. Ibuse’s […]

Goh Chor Boon (National Institute of Education, Singapore)

Keywords
History
Junior College
Secondary School
History

In 1965, Masuji Ibuse, a native son of Hiroshima, published his Black Rain (Kuroi Ame).[i] The novel is masterful reconstruction of death from radiation sickness based on the diary of a Hiroshima survivor plus interviews with some 50 hibakusha or victims of the atomic holocaust. Ibuse’s sensitivity to the complex web of emotions in a traditional community torn asunder by this historical event has made Black Rain one of the most acclaimed treatments of the Hiroshima story.

This article aims to demonstrate how “assessment” issues go beyond testing of historical understanding, meeting examination requirements, teaching strategies and other pedagogical concerns, to include wider implications of how historical knowledge is reviewed and re-assessed by historians and history educators. It was motivated by a recent discussion I had with two upper secondary history teachers who have been teaching for five to seven years. Both do not teach beyond the dropping of “Little Boy” on Hiroshima and “Fat Man” on Nagasaki to indicate their end of their teaching on the Pacific War in August 1945. When asked why is there no discussion on the aftermath of the dropping of the atomic bombs, one teacher replied that it is not in the syllabus, while another admitted that she has no knowledge of the topic to generate discussion with the pupils.[ii] In short, pupils’ historical knowledge on the end of the Pacific War literally ended with the dropping of “Little Boy” and “Fat Man”. They are not able to judge and evaluate America’s decision to drop the bombs and to appreciate the impact of the decision.

If we are passionate about teaching History, and to impart the craft of the historian to our pupils, we have to give pupils a more holistic understanding (or “Total History”) of the events in history and their relevance to our lives today. We need to allow our pupils to appreciate – and to interpret – the wider implications of development of events in the past and present. This implies that to promote historical understanding and meaningful assessment for learning, we need to anchor decisions on ‘what’ and ‘how’ to assess to the clarity of purpose, that is, the ‘why’. Pupils would then be able to appreciate concepts of Change and Continuity, Cause and Consequence (or Causation), Similarity and Difference, and Historical Empathy. It is also important to note that, if the teacher has his/her biased interpretation of a historical event, such as the war in the Pacific, it is likely to be reflected in his/her narration of events. The sources selected could also reinforce the teacher’s biased interpretation. We all know that History is one subject that provides opportunities for the teacher to influence the perceptions of pupils towards the historical past, especially controversial, turning-points events.

One of the stated learning outcomes related to the end of the War is to “empathise with people who have lived through trying times under extreme conditions” (Division, 2012: 29). The “people” referred to were those living in Singapore or broadly human beings whose lives were devastated by war. We know that History is one of the best subjects in the curriculum to develop empathy in the young. Historical empathy involves the ability to look at people, events and issues in the past as the people in the past would have looked at them. This means that our pupils will be expected to comment on history from the point of view of someone who was living at that period of time under discussion. To understand what happened in the past they must learn to set aside their own ideas and background and picture themselves in the past. The pupils need to think about feelings, motives, attitudes, beliefs and opinions of the people living in a specific place and time in history. To do this, they have to use their imagination. History as narratives deals with basic and powerful emotions familiar even to younger children (Egan, 1979; Levstik and Barton, 2008). Understanding history is more than just equipping pupils with knowledge. We need to make them see the significance of events, to develop insights into the social and moral values that led to the unfolding of events within the particular historical circumstances.

Assessing Historical Discussion

Author/s:

Keith C. Barton

Barton, Keith C. (Indiana University) Keywords History Junior College Secondary School pedagogy Discussion can be a valuable element of history classrooms, and assessing participation can provide an important means of improving students’ engagement in this valuable form of communication. Doing so requires that teachers identify the specific skills of historical discussion that they want students to […]

Barton, Keith C. (Indiana University)

Keywords
History
Junior College
Secondary School
pedagogy

Discussion can be a valuable element of history classrooms, and assessing participation can provide an important means of improving students’ engagement in this valuable form of communication. Doing so requires that teachers identify the specific skills of historical discussion that they want students to master; teach those skills systematically; and develop practical procedures for collecting information on students’ participation. This article suggests guidelines for teachers to consider in preparing for each of these tasks.

For most history teachers (and others in the humanities), classroom discussion is an inherently appealing practice. After all, professional historians discuss their work with each other—and with the public—all the time, so introducing students to this part of the discipline seems an authentic way to move beyond the traditional tests and essays found in most history classrooms. In addition, it seems self-evident that discussion can increase students’ engagement, sharpen their intellects, develop their verbal skills, and model how to take part in civil discourse with those whose ideas differ from their own. Notably, an important predictor of students’ commitment to democratic values is the extent to which they have experienced an “open” classroom climate in school (reviewed in Knowles & McCafferty-Wright, 2015), and one of the characteristics of such classrooms is that they encourage students to engage in a relatively free exchange of ideas through discussion of social and political issues (which often overlap with history). With all these reasons in its favor, most history teachers these days look for opportunities to regularly engage students in classroom discussion.

Assessing those discussions, however, is another matter. Many teachers hesitate to formally evaluate students’ participation in discussion, for a number of related reasons (Hess, 2002). First, some teachers feel—not without reason—that holding students accountable for the quality of their discussion may inhibit participation. Students may be so afraid of making a mistake, that is, and so they minimize their engagement for fear of losing credit. Conversely, teachers may worry that students will be so focused on getting a good grade that it will render discussion inauthentic: Students may simply follow scoring guidelines without regard to their true thoughts on the topic, or without concern for the inherent benefits of sustained intellectual discourse. And finally, teachers may despair at the possibility of creating an assessment measure that adequately captures the nature of historical discussion. They may feel less qualified to evaluate a discussion than the more familiar format of an essay, for example, or they may feel that forms of discussion are so diverse—even idiosyncratic—that there is no way to create a common rubric that would apply to each discussion and each student.

These are valid concerns, and teachers must grapple with them. Nonetheless, there are good arguments that the value of assessing classroom discussion outweighs such challenges. Perhaps the most important is that we should assess students on those things we consider important. With presentations and written work, we do not assess students on their memory of historical trivia, but on their ability to construct a well-reasoned argument and communicate it clearly; we therefore send a clear signal that reasoning and communication is more important than remembering trivia. If we truly believe that historical discussion is important, then we should signal that through our assessment practices (Hess, 2002). Otherwise, students may come to regard discussion as a distraction from the “true” historical work of writing—a perspective that is already reinforced by the essay-focused nature of external examinations.

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Assessment for Learning in History: Maximizing Error Analysis to bridge students’ learning gaps in answering Source-Based Case Study Questions

Author/s:

Ong Daphne Rachel

Ong Daphne Rachel (Broadrick Secondary School (Singapore)) Keywords History Junior College Secondary School Approaches to teaching history Assessment Introduction Source-Based Case Study (SBCS) is a compulsory part of the formal history assessment in Singapore. It falls under Assessment Objective 3 which requires students to “interpret and evaluate source material” (MOE, 2013). Since this is an important […]

Ong Daphne Rachel (Broadrick Secondary School (Singapore))

Keywords
History
Junior College
Secondary School
Approaches to teaching history
Assessment

Introduction
Source-Based Case Study (SBCS) is a compulsory part of the formal history assessment in Singapore. It falls under Assessment Objective 3 which requires students to “interpret and evaluate source material” (MOE, 2013). Since this is an important component in the current assessment framework, history teachers spend a significant amount of time helping students to master the requisite source-work skills. In addition, they would frequently be engaged in the task of setting and marking SBCS assignments. Some of these teachers would strive to give feedback to help students know where they stand and how they can improve. They would normally include comments and some may write copious amount of feedback. While these teachers held good intentions when writing feedback, for example, to help students improve their performance, anecdotal evidence suggests that students were likely to skim over written feedback and instead concentrate mainly on the marks and grades awarded. This action on the part of the students, however, negates the purpose of Formative Assessment (FA) “as one that is specifically meant to provide feedback on performance to improve and accelerate learning” (Sadler, 1998, p. 77).

Another issue hindering student improvement in answering SBCS questions is their over-reliance on the teacher, especially in going through detailed explanations for each question after the marking process, and then for students to merely address the corrections by copying given answers. This situation can be described as “learning is being taught” (Watkins, 2003) where the traditional roles of the teacher as the provider of all knowledge and that of the student as the absorber of passed down knowledge play out in the context mentioned above. While doing corrections may suggest that students have comprehended their mistakes, anecdotal evidence again suggests the ineffectiveness of this approach as the recurrence of the same mistake being made by students appears very high. One reason is because most students – without being consciously aware – are just copying the model answers without ever thinking about the question again. While some students may independently re-look and try to make sense of these answers before tests and examinations, a large number of them can experience “rumination”, a state in which students get stuck on their mistakes and wander around them without learning how to find a solution (Panadero & Alonso-Tapia, 2014). Moreover, the copying of model answers erroneously reinforce the idea that the teacher’s answer is the only logical or correct one while discarding the possibility of other acceptable answers (which the students are not exposed to).

This article aims to share how designing a comprehensive error analysis lesson package, which was implemented at Broadrick Secondary School (BSS), can serve as a means for thinking about a student-centered approach to bridge their learning gaps in answering SBCS questions. Teachers can leverage the opportunity of maximizing error analysis methods into an Assessment for Learning (AfL) design by using marking codes, feedback, questioning, gradual release of responsibility, differentiated instruction and self-reflection to engage students in their learning.

AfL as A Way to Learn
AfL or FA “is an active and intentional learning process that partners the teacher and students to continuously and systematically gather evidence of learning with the express goal of improving student achievement” (Moss & Brookhart, 2009, p. 6).

Error analysis becomes a form of AfL when feedback, questioning, collaboration and differentiated sense-making are established into a model of learning. This type of learning follows a socio-cultural model of learning and can be considered as co-constructivist as learning takes place through interacting with others in meaningful contexts and through problem-solving activities (Watkins, 2003).

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Using Weighted Hinge Questions (WHQs) to Assess Students’ Causal Understanding

Author/s:

Bradley Soh Chun Ying

Bradley Soh Chun Ying (National Institute of Education) Sim Guo Chen (National Institute of Education) Keywords History Junior College Secondary School Approaches to teaching history Introduction Assessment in Singapore’s history classrooms has long reflected our teachers’ enduring focus on preparing students to meet examination requirements. The most common assessment practices revolve around assessing students’ proficiency in handling […]

Bradley Soh Chun Ying (National Institute of Education)
Sim Guo Chen (National Institute of Education)

Keywords
History
Junior College
Secondary School
Approaches to teaching history

Introduction
Assessment in Singapore’s history classrooms has long reflected our teachers’ enduring focus on preparing students to meet examination requirements. The most common assessment practices revolve around assessing students’ proficiency in handling source-based case study questions and in using writing frames to answer essay questions asked in national examinations. Furthermore, many of these assessment tasks are typically assigned at the end of each topic or theme in the syllabus. There are, however, significant drawbacks to this assessment approach. First, this approach frequently offers delayed quantitative and qualitative descriptions of learner performance, thus preventing teachers from tracking their students’ learning during the instructional process and adjusting their pedagogical strategies accordingly to address students’ learning needs. Closing learning gaps only after analyzing students’ responses to these assessment tasks would likely require teachers to allocate a significant amount of time to revisit the topic, which may not always be possible within limited curriculum time. Second, such assessment tasks are oftentimes tedious to mark, and the resultant feedback may not accurately identify areas for improvement, especially with regard to the student’s apparent overlapping weaknesses. For instance, an inadequate Structured Essay Question (SEQ) response may be the result of several entrenched weaknesses, such as a lack of familiarity with the historical context, an inability to see relevance between content knowledge and the question requirements, or a specific linguistic difficulty in expressing relevant ideas. When faced with necessary and urgent feedback on numerous aspects of their responses, many history students (especially lower progress ones) are likely to be overwhelmed and demoralized.

To be sure, these assessment challenges are not unique to Singapore: Wineburg (2018) noted that in America, “assessment was history education’s weakest link”, as it “suffered from a poverty of imagination” (pp. 131-132). Any serious considerations towards improving assessment in Singapore’s history classrooms must begin with certain core beliefs we hold regarding assessment as encapsulated in the Singapore Curriculum Philosophy (SCP). The SCP states that assessment designed with “clarity of purpose” is “integral to the learning process” – that is, teachers must first decide “what” and “how” to assess and then use appropriate assessment tools that gather timely, relevant and specific information to “address learning gaps and improve teaching practices” (Ministry of Education, Singapore, 2017). Applying these guiding principles to the enactment of Singapore’s history syllabus and the associated teaching actions, we believe that assessment practices should offer students the opportunity to receive useful and targeted feedback that would help them build better understandings in history. In addressing potential learning gaps and the expectations of what students should have learnt at the respective age levels, it is imperative for teachers to consider developing students’ thinking in history and to assess their ability to make sense of historical knowledge.

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A Dialogic Teaching Approach: Talk Moves to Deepen Students’ Understanding in the Geography Classroom

Author/s:

Lim Yi Xuan Debi

Lim Yi Xuan Debi (National Institute of Education) Keywords Geography Junior College Secondary School dialogic teaching talk moves interaction pattern Abstract In most Singapore classrooms, lessons are typically characterised by the traditional Initiation-Response-Feedback (IRF) instructional sequence. Such an approach limits students’ ability to engage in meaningful classroom discussions and is contrary to achieving 21st Century skills. This […]

Lim Yi Xuan Debi (National Institute of Education)

Keywords
Geography
Junior College
Secondary School
dialogic teaching
talk moves
interaction pattern

Abstract
In most Singapore classrooms, lessons are typically characterised by the traditional Initiation-Response-Feedback (IRF) instructional sequence. Such an approach limits students’ ability to engage in meaningful classroom discussions and is contrary to achieving 21^st Century skills. This paper analyses the power of dialogic talk in the classroom to engage students in more critical thinking and learning. This paper examines how the quality of dialogue and learning outcomes in the classroom will be influenced when students are conferred more authority in the classroom and positioned as significant figures of knowledge construction. This topic of study is significant as the foundation of Singapore geography is underpinned by an inquiry approach, where knowledge construction is anchored upon asking key and guiding questions.

Introduction
Leading researchers of classroom talk (Barnes, 2008; Mercer, 2008; Alexander, 2006 & Baktin, 1981) have noted that in most classrooms, lessons are typically characterised by the ritualised exchange of Initiation-Response-Feedback (IRF) instructional sequence. The nature of such an approach breeds over-reliance on the teacher for the ‘model’ answer (ibid). Recent research has shown that students have limited opportunities to engage in rich classroom conversations, which is contrary to achieving the 21st Century skills vital for the development of Singapore’s workforce to think independently, critically and creatively (ibid).

Dialogic teaching is a powerful approach in harnessing the power of talk to stimulate thinking and enhance students’ learning (Scott, Mortimer & Aguiar, 2006). Through the study of talk moves, one will better understand how to engage students to think critically, optimally bouncing off ideas in the classroom. This study is highly relevant to the Desired Outcomes of Education (DOE) in Singapore to develop students to become a confident person, a self-directed learner, an active contributor and a concerned citizen (MOE, 2004).

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The Role of Geographical Investigations In Developing Students’ Cognitive Thinking

Author/s:

Lim En Qi

Lim En Qi (National Institute of Education ) Keywords Geography Junior College Secondary School Geographical Inquiry Fieldwork Cognitive Thinking Abstract In Singapore, there has been a shift in education towards more inquiry-based learning to equip students with skills for the future. Geographical Investigations (GI) have been introduced as a form of geographical inquiry where students participate […]

Lim En Qi (National Institute of Education )

Keywords
Geography
Junior College
Secondary School
Geographical Inquiry
Fieldwork
Cognitive Thinking

Abstract
In Singapore, there has been a shift in education towards more inquiry-based learning to equip students with skills for the future. Geographical Investigations (GI) have been introduced as a form of geographical inquiry where students participate actively in knowledge construction through fieldwork. Fieldwork deepens students’ understanding of content and aids in students’ affective, social, and cognitive development. However, there is limited local research on the value of Geography fieldwork in influencing students’ cognitive thinking. This paper, therefore, examines the role of GI in developing Secondary students’ cognitive thinking in Geography. Using a case-study approach, Secondary 2 students in one secondary school were interviewed before and after their GI on the topic of Transport. Data was analysed using an adapted model of Bloom’s Taxonomy. All students showed an improvement in higher-order cognitive skills after GI, specifically in the development of higher-order cognitive thinking skills and deeper thinking at particular cognitive levels.

Introduction
Fieldwork is an essential part of Geography. Defined as supervised learning that encourages first-hand experiences outside the classroom (Lonergan & Anderson, 1988), fieldwork can be categorized into various types depending on the degree of teacher and student involvement: This ranges from traditional teacher-led field trips to more student-centred inquiry-based field projects and self-discovery (Kent, Gilbertson & Hunt, 1997). Among these, student-centred activities and inquiry-driven fieldwork have been recognised as most effective in facilitating deep learning where students play a more active role in making sense of knowledge (Kent et al., 1997; Oost, De Vries & Van der Schee, 2011). Recently, there has been an increased emphasis on inquiry-based learning for education in Singapore. The Ministry of Education (MOE) has highlighted geographical inquiry as the recommended pedagogical approach for Geography education (Curriculum Planning and Development Division [CPDD], 2014). In line with this change, Geographical Investigations (GI) was introduced to develop students’ 21st Century Competencies, cultivating them to become confident, self-directed learners through inquiry-driven fieldwork (CPDD, 2014).

Fieldwork provides students with an avenue to better understand subject content by bridging the gaps between theoretical ideas learnt in class with real-life experiences (Chew, 2008; Das, 2014). It aids in students’ affective (Boyle et al., 2007), personal and social development which concomitantly supports cognitive development (Foskett, 1999; Oost et al., 2011). Nevertheless, most studies adopt a generic stance to analysing fieldwork, neglecting how the nature of fieldwork influences students’ learning and development. Empirical studies on how fieldwork contributes to cognitive development are still limited with regard to Geography, and even more so for school Geography in Singapore.

Considering the shift towards more inquiry-based learning and how fieldwork is a defining feature of Geography, there is a need to contemplate how active, inquiry-driven fieldwork develops students’ thinking. Thus, this study examines the role of GI in developing secondary students’ cognitive abilities. More specifically, it focuses on the effects of a Transport GI on Secondary 2 students’ thinking. It aims to compare students’ cognitive abilities before and after undergoing a Transport GI.

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Incorporating Mediated Learning Experience in Geography Lessons

Author/s:

Esther Wong Ting Wei

Wong Ting Wei, Esther (National Institute of Education ) Keywords Geography Junior College Secondary School Mediated Learning Experience Geography Inquiry-Based Learning Approach Cognitive Affective Mediation Abstract With the recent emphasis on 21st century competencies, inquiry-based learning has been touted as the recommended pedagogy as it attempts to move away from didactic teaching. However, an analysis of the […]

Wong Ting Wei, Esther (National Institute of Education )

Keywords
Geography
Junior College
Secondary School
Mediated Learning Experience
Geography
Inquiry-Based Learning Approach
Cognitive
Affective
Mediation

Abstract
With the recent emphasis on 21^st century competencies, inquiry-based learning has been touted as the recommended pedagogy as it attempts to move away from didactic teaching. However, an analysis of the current geography syllabus revealed three possible areas of improvement: (1) lack of intentional mediation of cognitive functions (2) lack of continuous mediation and (3) lack of emphasis on enhancing students’ dispositions in learning. From research, inquiry-based learning could be complemented by MLE, a theory developed by Feuerstein which refers to the quality interaction between the mediator and learner. Therefore, the purpose of this research paper is to explore how principles of MLE may be applied to address the aforementioned areas of improvement to enhance students’ learning in the geography classroom. Subsequently, a broad conceptualization of how MLE may be utilized to underpin the inquiry-based learning approach will be provided.

Inquiry-Based Learning as A Teaching Pedagogy
Over the years, revisions have been made to Singapore’s education system to better equip students with 21^st century competencies to help them succeed in a rapidly changing world (Deng, Gopinathan, & Lee, 2013). One major reform in the education system is the introduction of Thinking Schools, Learning Nation (TSLN) in 1997 which is a vision that “describes a nation of thinking and committed citizens capable of meeting the challenges of the… 21^st century” (Chang, 2012). In alignment with this vision to develop in students 21^st century competencies, the humanities syllabuses adopted inquiry-based learning as the recommended teaching pedagogy (Afandi, 2013).

Geographical inquiry is a question-driven approach in which inquiry questions are asked (either by the teacher or students themselves) and students would subsequently find out the answers to those questions by embarking on an investigation (Roberts, 2013). According to Roberts (2013), the learning of geography through an inquiry approach gives students the opportunity to cultivate thinking skills such as reasoning, classifying information and analyzing data (refer to Figure 1). These skills could either be specific to geography or classified as general thinking skills which could also be applied to other subjects. Broadly, these thinking skills could also be thought of as cognitive functions. Cognitive functions are defined as “process variables that are themselves compounds of native ability, attitudes, work habits, learning history, motives and strategies” (Seng & Tan, 2008). Thus, in essence, cognitive functions refer to a broad spectrum of cognitive capabilities, representing different domains of thinking. Therefore, when teachers utilize the inquiry-based approach to teach geography, they are seeking to develop and enhance students’ cognitive functioning such that students could be equipped with the desired thinking skills.

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Sampling in Geographical Fieldwork Using GIS Techniques

Author/s:

Heidi Tan Sheng Ting

Tan Sheng Ting, Heidi (National Institute of Education ) Keywords Geography Junior College Secondary School Fieldwork GIS Remote Sensing Sampling Geography Education Abstract Sampling is a fundamental and essential component in geographical fieldwork. Sampling is the process of gathering data from purposefully selected sites, such that the data collected best represents the general phenomenon being studied. […]

Tan Sheng Ting, Heidi (National Institute of Education )

Keywords
Geography
Junior College
Secondary School
Fieldwork
GIS
Remote Sensing Sampling
Geography Education

Abstract
Sampling is a fundamental and essential component in geographical fieldwork. Sampling is the process of gathering data from purposefully selected sites, such that the data collected best represents the general phenomenon being studied. In geography education, teachers often have to look for suitable sites for students to conduct fieldwork, for example, which location to conduct interviews. However, many teachers are afraid to venture out into unchartered territories where the potential site for fieldwork is unfamiliar. This paper seeks to illustatre the use of GIS techniques to determine the suitability of an unfamiliar site for sampling in geographical fieldwork through coastal research done on a coastline along Cha-am, Thailand.

Unfamiliar territories
The research conducted was about the impact of coastal erosion on Cha-am’s beach and Cha-am south beach and the shops along the coast. The research was conceptualised in Singapore, hence making it a challenge to visit the research site beforehand. In addition, there was no prior secondary research about coastal erosion and coastal retreat along Cha-am’s coastline. To overcome this challenge, GoogleEarth and GIS remote sensing techniques were utilitised to determine the suitability of various sites for research on coastal erosion.

Utilising GoogleEarth Satellite Imagery
Firstly, GoogleEarth was used to get an overview of possible sites along Cha-am’s coastline. Through GoogleEarth, the coastline was analysed using satellite images from various time scales through the time slider feature in GoogleEarth. The satellite images revealed that there was indeed coastal retreat along Cha-am coast over the years. Hence, by comparing the coastline in the different time scales, two sites along Cha-am’s coastline were identified – one at Cha-am beach as a ‘low erosion site’ and the other at Cha-am south beach as a ‘high erosion site’ (Figure 1).

The ‘low erosion site’ was identified for having the least significant coastal retreat compared to the rest of the coastline. In addition, the ‘low erosion site’ had the largest stretch of beach, which is a key coastal depositional landform (Figures 2a, 2b and 2c).

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Developing a Writing Framework to Guide Students’ Writing in Geography

Author/s:

Jamilah Sukimi

Jamilah Sukimi (Meridian Secondary School (Singapore) ) Samantha Lim (Presbyterian High School (Singapore)) Sarifah Tamsir (Pasir Ris Secondary School (Singapore)) Tan Say Pin (New Town Secondary School (Singapore)) Wong Yi Jun (Riverside Secondary School (Singapore)) Keywords Geography Junior College Secondary School Geographical concepts Critical Thinking Geographical Writing Abstract This paper examines the effectiveness of using a Writing Framework to guide […]

Keywords
Geography
Junior College
Secondary School
Geographical concepts
Critical Thinking
Geographical Writing

Abstract
This paper examines the effectiveness of using a Writing Framework to guide students to write geographically for a level descriptor question. The Writing Framework combines aspects of Paul’s EOT (Wheel of Reasoning) with Neighbour’s Core Questions to guide students’ writing. The Writing Framework provides structure in extended writing, but more importantly encourages students to consider the importance of two geographical concepts, ‘Place’ and ‘Space’, in their essay writing.

The study involved 18 Secondary 5 Normal (Academic) students. The majority of the students found the Writing Framework useful and showed an improvement in test scores. The results and student feedback highlighted the potential of the Writing Framework to help students in writing geographically.

Introduction
The concepts of ‘space’ and ‘place’ are key to understanding geographical thinking. Lambert (Lambert, 2012, 3) defined ‘Place’ as a specific part of the Earth’s surface that has been named and given meaning by people, although its meanings may differ. Places range in size from the home and locality to a major world region. They can be natural (shaped by the environment) or built (constructed by human beings). On the other hand, ‘Space’ has its own purpose or use and is characterised by location (where something is located on the Earth’s surface), spatial distribution (pattern resulting from the arrangement of phenomena on the Earth’s surface) and spatial organisation (how phenomena are arranged on the Earth’s surface, and why). These key concepts provide valuable insights into the nature of Geography because of their breadth of application to the content studied and the extent to which they are linked to other significant ideas within the subject (Bennett, 2010, p. 38). They help to anchor the subject by giving it a greater coherence, and the students’ reference to these concepts in their answers would enhance the quality of geographical thinking in their essay.

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Guiding Students in Writing Data Response Answers Using Bloom’s Taxonomy for Critical Thinking

Author/s:

Ong Ka Min

Ong Ka Min (Yuan Ching Secondary School (Singapore) ) Arulushamaheswary D/O Anbalagan (Yuan Ching Secondary School (Singapore)) Keywords Geography Junior College Secondary School Student Learning Abstract This study focuses on improving students’ ability to respond to data response questions with two or more variables – in particular, students’ ability to describe and compare the data given in […]

Ong Ka Min (Yuan Ching Secondary School (Singapore) )
Arulushamaheswary D/O Anbalagan (Yuan Ching Secondary School (Singapore))

Keywords
Geography
Junior College
Secondary School
Student Learning

Abstract
This study focuses on improving students’ ability to respond to data response questions with two or more variables – in particular, students’ ability to describe and compare the data given in data response questions. Based on Bloom’s Taxonomy, a step-by-step guide was crafted on how to approach these type of questions. The methodology used was quantitative data derived from pre- and post-tests, and a qualitative analysis of the post-test scripts. For this research, we picked Secondary 5 Normal (Academic) students who showed difficulty in coping with data response questions that have two or more variables. We found that the guide was useful in scaffolding writing answers for the students. However, while students were able to apply the lower stages of the guide, they were not able to spiral their critical thinking skills to higher levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Introduction
The Desired Outcomes of Education (DOE) serve as a guide to teachers in crafting their teaching goals. The development of the attributes stated under the DOE are believed to be key in ensuring that our students are able to thrive in the challenging climate of the 21^st Century. One of the ways in which the DOE can be achieved through Geography is through the development of students’ perspectives on Geographical issues by analysing data and information to critically arrive at reasoned conclusions. As such, part of the learning outcomes of the Upper Secondary Geography curriculum (CPDD, 2013) is the development of the following skills:

Extract relevant information from geographical data
Interpret and recognize patterns in geographical data and deduce relationships
Analyse, evaluate and synthesize geographical data to make informed and sound decisions.

As the types of geographical data that students have to work with vary, we felt that providing a structured thinking process would help to scaffold students’ writing, and help them to answer data response questions better.

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HSSE Online

Index

Goh Chor Boon

Authors List

Authors List

The “Black Rain” – A Re-assessment on the Dropping of “Little Boy” and “Fat Man” on Japan

Assessing Historical Discussion

Assessment for Learning in History: Maximizing Error Analysis to bridge students’ learning gaps in answering Source-Based Case Study Questions

Using Weighted Hinge Questions (WHQs) to Assess Students’ Causal Understanding

A Dialogic Teaching Approach: Talk Moves to Deepen Students’ Understanding in the Geography Classroom

The Role of Geographical Investigations In Developing Students’ Cognitive Thinking

Incorporating Mediated Learning Experience in Geography Lessons

Sampling in Geographical Fieldwork Using GIS Techniques

Developing a Writing Framework to Guide Students’ Writing in Geography

Guiding Students in Writing Data Response Answers Using Bloom’s Taxonomy for Critical Thinking

HSSE Online

HSSE Online