Student Learning Archives

Index

Lin Yunqing

Student Learning

Where Literacy Meets Geography: Using Talk Moves to Engage Students in Geographical Data

Author/s:

Lin Yunqing (National Institute of Education (Singapore) Keywords Geography Junior College Secondary School pedagogy Student Learning Introduction The theoretical foundation of this study is social constructivism which believes that knowledge is produced and constructed in a social setting. This socialcultural perspective emphasises that literacy is shaped by social practices (Moje, 1996) and serves the purpose of […]

Lin Yunqing (National Institute of Education (Singapore)

Keywords
Geography
Junior College
Secondary School
pedagogy
Student Learning

Introduction

The theoretical foundation of this study is social constructivism which believes that knowledge is produced and constructed in a social setting. This socialcultural perspective emphasises that literacy is shaped by social practices (Moje, 1996) and serves the purpose of knowledge construction in a discipline (Moje, 2008). It builds students’ understanding of the acceptable form of “socialisation into how members of a community talk, write, and participate in knowledge construction” (Quinn, Lee, & Valdés, 2012, p. 49). Like other disciplines, the geography epistemic community has its own ways of seeing and understanding the world (Roberts, 2013) which are different from “everyday thinking” (Lambert, 2017, p. 20).

The demands of each discipline determine the literacy skills that students need to address the domain-specific problems of the discipline in question (Brozo, Moorman, Meyer, & Stewart, 2013). From a geo-literacy perspective, the implementation of a literacy approach in geography should then serve the needs of geographical learning by taking into account the characteristics of knowledge formation and interaction in that discipline (Burke & Welsch, 2018). Therefore, the social construction of geographical knowledge requires students to be “geographically literate” in order to effectively comprehend geographical information, engage in reasoning, communicate their ideas and make informed decisions (Dolan, 2019). Geography teachers draw upon a rich range of data representations to bring the geographical concepts to life in their teaching (Lambert & Balderstone, 2010) and guide students in studying physical and socio-cultural phenomena, and interactions between people and their environments. These data representations include graphs, maps, photos, sketches, table of figures and texts (CPDD, 2013). Therefore, to help students become “geographically literate” entails equipping them with skills to make sense of and critique geographical data presented in multimodal formats (Roberts, 2014). Such data analytical skills are also required in Singapore’s Geography curriculum (CPDD, 2013):

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

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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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Using an International Videoconference in Problem-Based Inquiry Projects: The Role of Public Voice, Audience, and Positionality

Author/s:

J. Spencer Clark

J. Spencer Clark (Kansas State University) Keywords Social Studies Junior College Secondary School Teaching Practice Student Learning Contexts Abstract This article discusses and reflects upon a problem-based inquiry project that culminated in an international videoconference between multiethnic and multi-faith secondary students from Macedonia and the United States. The videoconference provided an opportunity for students to share […]

J. Spencer Clark (Kansas State University)

Keywords
Social Studies
Junior College
Secondary School
Teaching Practice
Student Learning
Contexts

Abstract
This article discusses and reflects upon a problem-based inquiry project that culminated in an international videoconference between multiethnic and multi-faith secondary students from Macedonia and the United States. The videoconference provided an opportunity for students to share their action plans, which proposed methods of addressing local problems or issues students had identified through their inquiry. This article focuses on three ways students engaged with the project and videoconference: inquiry, audience, and public voice. These aspects of the project illustrate how the students’ positionality on their chosen problem/issue shifted as they developed skills and knowledge through their inquiry. The article concludes with a discussion of implications for future problem-based inquiry projects in secondary schools.

Introduction
Many educators and schools are concerned with preparing students for civic engagement in their communities (Bischoff, 2016). Digital media and technology have only increased opportunities for schools to enhance their students’ civic engagement locally, nationally, and globally (Levine, 2008). In this article, I will discuss and reflect upon a project that aimed to civically engage high school students both locally and globally by addressing local issues. My discussion will focus on an international videoconference between multiethnic and multi-faith students from The Republic of Macedonia and the state of Utah, in the United States (U.S.). The videoconference served as the culminating event for semester-long, problem-based inquiry projects that were developed by students in both countries. The videoconference provided an opportunity for students to share action plans they created to address the local problems identified through their inquiry. The problem-based inquiry projects allowed students to examine their positionality and develop public voice related to local issues, while the videoconference provided an audience (Levine, 2008) for the students to engage their positionality and public voice, receive comparative perspectives, and corroborate new knowledge gained from their projects.

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HSSE Online

Index

Lin Yunqing

Authors List

Authors List

Where Literacy Meets Geography: Using Talk Moves to Engage Students in Geographical Data

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

Using an International Videoconference in Problem-Based Inquiry Projects: The Role of Public Voice, Audience, and Positionality

HSSE Online

HSSE Online