MICROTEACHING

A teacher makes use of number of methods and techniques to bring about effective learning. The techniques include, motivating the students, explaining, questioning, writing on the blackboard, using teaching aids and so on. The teacher could also make use of nonverbal behaviours such as smiling, nodding and gesturing. These groups of activities are called skills. A teaching skill is a group of teaching acts/behaviours intended to facilitate pupils’ learning directly or indirectly. If the teacher trainees are conscious and aware of teaching skills, they will be able to concentrate on each of these skills and gain masterly over the skill. Microteaching introduces the teacher trainee to a wide range of teaching skills and allows the teacher trainee to practice each skill one at a time until he or she becomes proficient in the skill. Later on, the teacher trainee will be able to link many such skills to achieve the desirable outcome.

 

Definitions:

Microteaching has been defined in many ways likes:

Ø Microteaching as a scaled down teaching encounter in class size and class time – Allen D.W. (1966)

Ø  Microteaching as a system of controlled practice, that makes it possible to concentrate on specific teaching behavior and to practice teaching under controlled conditions. – Allen Eve (1968)

Ø The most important point in microteaching is that teaching is practiced in terms of definable, observable, measurable and controllable teaching skills. – Passi B.K.

From the above stated definitions a more comprehensive definition of microteaching can be stated as follows. Microteaching is a teacher training technique where the complexities of the normal classroom teaching are reduced by:

·       Practicing one teaching skill at a time

·        Limiting the content to a single concept

·       Reducing the class size to 5 to 7 and

·       Reducing the duration of the lesson to 5 to 7 minutes.

 

Planning:

          This step involves selection of the skill to be practiced, awareness of the components of the skill, selection of a suitable concept and the writing of a micro lesson plan.

Teaching :

          The trainee teaches the lesson in the microteaching setting. NCERT has suggested the following setting for micro teaching.

          Time                      -        6 Minutes

          Number of students  -       5 to 10; peer group

          Supervisor               -        Teacher educator and/or one or two peers

          The lesson is being observed by the teacher supervisor and / or peers or videotaped or audio taped.

Feedback: 
          The observers analyze the performance and discuss it with the teacher trainee on the basis of their rating using the appraisal guide. The feedback should focus on specific behavior related to the model of the teaching skill. The supervisor can reinforce effective behavior and draw attention to other behavior modifications necessary for mastering the skill.

Replan:

          In the light of the feedback received from the supervisor and peer observers the teacher trainee replans his/her micro lesson by writing another micro lesson plan or modifying the existing one.

Reteach:

          The teacher trainee reteaches the revised lesson to another, but comparable group of students. The supervisor checks to see whether there is any improvement in skill attainment.

Refeedback:

          The supervisor assesses the lesson once again and provides the feedback to the trainee. This process repeats till the teacher trainee acquires the required level of competency.

 

Use of Microteaching:

Microteaching technique enhances the effectiveness of the teacher training programmes in the following ways.

Ø Microteaching helps in reducing the complexities of the normal classroom teaching. This helps the teacher trainees gain more confidence in real teaching.

Ø Microteaching creates among the teacher-trainees an awareness of the various skills of which teaching is composed of.

Ø  Microteaching helps in systematic and objective analysis of the pattern of classroom communication through specific observation schedule.

Ø Microteaching simulates the classroom scene and gives the teacher trainee an experience of real teaching.

Ø Feedback enables the teacher-trainees to consciously concentrate on specific behaviour modification.

Ø  As microteaching focuses on the modification of behavior and improvement of interaction process involved in teaching learning process, the teacher trainees can handle classes more effectively in real teaching.

Ø  In microteaching the complex task of teaching is looked upon as a set of simpler skills comprising specific classroom behaviour. This helps the teacher trainees in better understanding of the meaning and concept of the term ‘teaching’.

Ø Objectives can be defined more easily and more reliable measures of change in teacher behavior can be thought of using behaviorally defined skills.

 

Scientific Theory

 

Scientific Theory

A scientific theory is a structure or systematic scheme conceived by the human imagination, to explain regularities in empirical data.

A "scientific theory" differs from a “scientific fact” or a “scientific law” in that a theory attempts to explain "why" or "how": a “fact” is a simple, basic observation, whereas a “law” is a statement (often a mathematical equation) about a relationship between facts. For example, Newton’s Law of Gravity is a mathematical equation that can be used to predict the attraction between bodies, but it is not a “theory” to explain how gravity works. stephen jay Gould wrote that "...facts and theories are different things, not rungs in a hierarchy of increasing certainty. Facts are the world's data. Theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts.

Theories are explanations of a natural or social behavior, event, or phenomenon. More formally, a scientific theory is a system of constructs (concepts) and propositions (relationships between those constructs) that collectively presents a logical, systematic, and coherent explanation of a phenomenon of interest within some assumptions and boundary conditions (Bacharach 1989). 

A theory may be characterized as a postulational system (a set of premises) from which empirical laws are deducible as theorems. Thus, it can have an abstract logical form, with axioms, formation rules, and rules for drawing deductions from the axioms as well as definitions for empirically interpreting its symbols. In practice, however, theories are seldom Correspondence principle, philosophical guideline for the selection of new theories in physical science, requiring that they explain all the phenomena for which a preceding theory was valid. Formulated in 1923 by the Danish physicist Niels Bohr, this principle is a distillation of the thought that had led him in the development of his atomic theory, an early form of quantum mechanics. structured so carefully.

 

Components of Scientific theory

(1) careful observation or experiments,

(2) reports of regularities, and

(3) systematic explanatory schemes (theories).

The statements of regularities, if accurate, may be taken as empirical laws expressing continuing relationships among the objects or characteristics observed. Thus, when empirical laws are able to satisfy curiosity by uncovering an orderliness in the behaviour of objects or events, the scientist may advance a systematic scheme, or scientific theory, to provide an accepted explanation of why these laws obtain.

Importance of scientific theory:

There are many benefits to using theories in research.

I.                 Theories provide the underlying logic of the occurrence of natural or social phenomenon by explaining what are the key drivers and key outcomes of the target phenomenon and why, and what underlying processes are responsible driving that phenomenon.

II.             They aid in sense-making by helping us synthesize prior empirical findings within a theoretical framework and reconcile contradictory findings by discovering contingent factors influencing the relationship between two constructs in different studies.

III.           Theories provide guidance for future research by helping identify constructs and relationships that are worthy of further research.

IV.          Theories can contribute to cumulative knowledge building by bridging gaps between other theories and by causing existing theories to be re-evaluated in a new light.

Limitations

However, theories can also have their own share of limitations. As simplified explanations of reality, theories may not always provide adequate explanations of the phenomenon of interest based on a limited set of constructs and relationships. Theories are designed to be simple and parsimonious explanations, while reality may be significantly more complex. Furthermore, theories may impose blinders or limit researchers’ “range of vision,” causing them to miss out on important concepts that are not defined by the theory.

 

Characteristics:

• Testable: Theories can be supported through a series of scientific research projects or experiments. Sometimes a theory is proven to be wrong through evidence: this is called rejecting a theory. However, a theory can never be proven to be absolutely true because it is an interpretation. There is always the possibility that a different interpretation will someday be found to be more correct.
• Replicable: In other words, theories must also be able to be repeated by others. This means that enough information and data must be available in the theory so that others can test the theory and get similar results.
• Stable: Another characteristic of theories is that they must be stable. This means that when others test the theory, they get the same results - so a theory is valid as long as there is no evidence to dispute it.
• Simple: A theory should be simple. When we say a scientific theory must be simple, we don't mean that the concept must be basic. We mean that only useful, relevant information should be presented in the theory.
• Consistent: A theory should agree with other theories, meaning that no principles in one theory should contradict another already accepted theory. However, some differences may be evident because the new theory may provide additional evidence.

Application: 

The scientific method is critical to the development of scientific theories, which explain empirical (experiential) laws in a scientifically rational manner. In a typical application of the scientific method, a researcher develops a hypothesis, tests it through various means, and then modifies the hypothesis on the basis of the outcome of the tests and experiments. The modified hypothesis is then retested, further modified, and tested again, until it becomes consistent with observed phenomena and testing outcomes. In this way, hypotheses serve as tools by which scientists gather data. From that data and the many different scientific investigations undertaken to explore hypotheses, scientists are able to develop broad general explanations, or scientific theories.

Interdisciplinary Approach to educational researc

 

Interdisciplinary Approach to educational research

Interdisciplinary refers to the combination of two or more academic disciplines into one.

Today, we have so many social problems that their solution is not possible in one discipline, therefore, the interaction between different disciplines is needed to solve this problem. This interaction between two or more disciplines is called an interdisciplinary approach. Through an interdisciplinary approach, students can make connections between disciplines in education and see the correlations which improve overall learning. The students also receive a more relevant, timely, less fragmented and enriching learning experience.

Education is a process of human development as well as an independent field of study or discipline. Most of the content of education is the result of an interdisciplinary approach. Some fundamental questions related to education can be best answered by other disciplines.

The question, why to teach, can be answered by a philosopher. Philosophy deals with the reality of life as well ideals of life. The importance of philosophy is evident from the fact that in research the highest degree given is PhD (Doctorate of Philosophy). In it, the researcher uses his thinking skills and finds out the truth in the end by using different methods and concepts. Philosophy verifies the findings and criticizes the results of research. Thus, Philosophy is the mother of all sciences.

The question- how to teach, is related to the practical side of education. The psychology and pedagogy can answer this question and provide methods and techniques of teaching. Psychology is an important part of the research. It helps in finding the results of research using measurement and statistics of psychology.

The question of what to teach is related to the content of education and it can be answered by the combined study of philosophy and sociology.

An Interdisciplinary Approach two or more disciplines are used to solve any educational problem- for example- educational philosophy, educational psychology, and educational sociology, etc. The interdisciplinary approach combines the expertise of two or more disciplines to jointly address an area of common concern. It improves the results of research; increases the mental efficiency of students; minimizes subjectivity and departmental bias; supports and gives new opportunities for further research; helps to think critically and helps in connecting ideas.

Impact of globalization and Privatization in Education

 

Impact of globalization and Privatization in Education

The term "globalization" means integration of economies and societies through cross country flows of information, ideas, technologies, goods, services, capital, finance and people. It considers the recent reforms of teacher education in India and the extent to which they reflect a response to global economic pressures.

Globalization is an opportunity for those who are aware of the benefits due to their vigilance and inquisitiveness, which have proper access to the information.

Impact of globalization

Because of the commercialization, Educational sector has been more commonly

1.    The free-market philosophy has already entered the educational sphere in a big way. Commercialization of education is the order of the day. Commercial institutions offering specialized education have come up everywhere. In view of globalization, many corporate universities, both foreign and Indian, are encroaching upon our government institutions. Once these institutions turn “self-financing‟, their prices would be benchmarked against their global counterparts, which would be affordable to the same top layer of the society. As the job markets become acutely narrow, the polarization between the elite and nonelite would be clearly discernible. Meanwhile, various kinds of price barriers would be imposed to prevent the entry of the non-elite like the downtrodden and poor communities. Further, Corporatisation has transformed the education sector into an enterprise for profits. 

 

Large Industrial Organizations like Tata‟s, Reliance, Essars or the Associations like

2.    CII, FICCI & other Indian Institute start the initiatives to start Institutes of Excellence throughout India with collaborations from Institutes like Harvard School of Business, MIT in USA & London School of Economics. There are certain advantages in Recruiting Overseas Students like students will get international exposure and they will develop skills such as talking to industry, making presentations and dealing with senior managers.

3.    Many of the best students go abroad. Globalization has made

education an extraordinary business opportunity with a great impact on

employment. In the current scenario, Universities from different parts of the world want to join hands with Indian Universities and be a part of India's lucrative economic strength.

4.    The children of the poor and socially disadvantaged have been denied English medium school education. The rapid growth of the software development and electronic communications industries is one of the few achievements of Indian industry in post-independence India. Further, because of strong hold of the English language in corporate circles, the divide between rural and urban is almost complete.

 

 

Privatization:

The term privatization of Education refers to many different educational programs and policies. It is a process which can be defined as the transfer of activities, assets and responsibility from Government, Public Institutions and organizations to private individual and agencies.

Governments in transition and emerging economies should not fear the potential negative effects of privatization on employment; instead, they should recognize its positive impacts on employment and productivity. Moreover, privatization promotes exports, which in turn generates a virtuous cycle between employment, productivity, and exports. To maximize its benefits, privatization should be associated with restrictions on how involved managers can be in the ownership of privatized firms and institutional reforms should be implemented that promote trade openness, financial freedom, and anti-corruption

 

Impact of   Privatization:

Positive Impact:

 

1.    Quality of Education: In spite of the government pouring in resources for the cause of universalization of elementary education, it is a well-known fact that the quality of education or the perception of it, offered by government schools does not match that of private schools. Hence, the craze for private schools and the consequent increase in their number.

2.    Changing Social Needs: We know that our economy presently demands educated and skilled manpower. The numbers graduating from government institutions is nowhere near the numbers required. Also, with globalization, economies of the world are getting interlinked and hence, people with professional education are in demand abroad too. Such growing need of manpower could not be met by the public sector alone and this led to the need for private participation.

 

 

Negative Impact:

 

1.    Investment in Education Leading to High Returns: From a healthy growth of private institutions, mushrooming of certain types of private institutions is being witnessed. Earlier the motive to provide education was only philanthropic but now it is linked to profiteering. It is well known that investments made in educational institutions are rewarded with high returns. This is true not only in India, but all over the world and business in education involves trillions of dollars, For instance, it is a common knowledge that teacher-training institutions are being established in huge numbers by private players.

 

2.    Commercialization of Education: In many of these institutions’ teachers are compensated inadequately, hired and fired at will, those without proper qualifications are recruited and money is extorted from the students on various pretexts. Education is thus old and the students become the customers. In the recent past, provision for providing teacher education through the correspondence mode was especially misused and the process was akin to selling degrees.

Rational numbers & Properties.

 

Rational numbers

Rational numbers are represented in the form of a/b where a and b are integers and  b ≠ 0. It is also a type of real number. Any fraction with non-zero denominators is a rational number. Hence, we can say that ‘0’ is also a rational number, as we can represent it in many forms such as 0/1, 0/2, 0/3, etc. But, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, etc. are not rational, since they give us infinite values.

How to identify rational numbers?

The set of rational numerals:

1.     Include positive, negative numbers, and zero

2.     Can be expressed as a fraction

Examples of  Rational Numbers: 

a	b	a/b
10	2	10/2 =5/1
1	1000	1/1000
10	50	10/50 = 1/5

Types  of  Rational Numbers

A number is rational if we can write it as a fraction, where both denominator and numerator are integers and denominator is a non-zero number.

The below diagram helps us to understand more about the number sets.

• Real numbers (R) include all the rational numbers (Q).
• Real numbers include the integers (Z).
• Integers involve natural numbers(N).
• Every whole number is a rational number because every whole number can be expressed as a fraction.

 

 

Standard Form of Rational Numbers

The standard form of a rational number can be defined if it’s no common factors aside from one between the dividend and divisor and therefore the divisor is positive.

For example, 12/36 is a rational number. But it can be simplified as 1/3; common factors between the divisor and dividend is only one. So we can say that rational number     ⅓ is in standard form.

Positive and Negative Rational Numbers

Positive Rational Numbers	Negative Rational Numbers
If both the numerator and denominator are of the same signs.	If numerator and denominator are of opposite signs.
All are greater than 0	All are less than 0
Example: 12/17, 9/11 and 3/5 are positive rational numbers	Example: -2/17, 9/-11 and -1/5 are negative rational numbers

Arithmetic Operations on Rational Numbers

Arithmetic operations are the basic operations we perform on integers. Let us discuss here how we can perform these operations on rational numbers, say p/q and s/t.

Addition: When we add p/q and s/t, we need to make the denominator the same. Hence, we get (pt+qs)/qt.

Example: 1/2 + 3/4 = (2+3)/4 = 5/4

Subtraction: Similarly, if we subtract p/q and s/t, then also, we need to make the denominator same, first, and then do the subtraction.

Example: 1/2 – 3/4 = (2-3)/4 = -1/4

Multiplication: In case of multiplication, while multiplying two rational numbers, the numerator and denominators of the rational numbers are multiplied, respectively. If p/q is multiplied by s/t, then we get (p×s)/(q×t).

Example: 1/2 × 3/4 = (1×3)/(2×4) = 3/8

Division: If p/q is divided by s/t, then it is represented as:
(p/q)÷(s/t) = pt/ qs

Example: 1/2 ÷ 3/4 = (1×4)/(2×3) = 4/6 = 2/3

Properties of Rational Numbers

·        The results are always a rational number if we multiply, add or subtract any two rational numbers.

·        A rational number remains the same if we divide or multiply both numerator and denominator with the same factor.

·        If we add zero to a rational number then we will get the same number itself.

Rational Numbers and  Irrational Numbers

There is a difference between rational and Irrational Numbers. A fraction with non-zero denominators is called a rational number. The number ½ is a rational number because it is read as integer 1 divided by the integer 2. All the numbers that are not rational are called irrational. Rational numbers   can be either positive, negative or zero. While specifying a negative rational number, the negative sign is either in front or with the numerator of the number, which is the standard mathematical notation. For example, we denote negative of 5/2 as -5/2.

An irrational number cannot be written as a simple fraction but can be represented with a decimal. It has endless non-repeating digits after the decimal point. Some of the common irrational numbers are:

Pi (π) = 3.142857…

Euler’s Number (e) = 2.7182818284590452…….

√2 = 1.414213…

Solved Examples

Example  1:

Identify each of the following as irrational or rational: ¾ ,  90/12007,  12 and √5.

Solution:

Since a rational number is the one that can be expressed as a ratio. This indicates that it can be expressed as a fraction wherein both denominator and numerator are whole numbers.

• ¾ is a rational number as it can be expressed as a fraction. 3/4 = 0.75
• Fraction 90/12007 is rational.
• 12, also be written as 12/1. Again a rational number.
• Value of  √5 = 2.2360679775…….. It is a non-terminating value and hence cannot be written as a fraction. It is an irrational number.

Example 2:  

Identify whether mixed fraction, 1 ¹/₂ is a rational number.

Solution: 

The Simplest form of 1¹/₂  is 3/2

Numerator = 3, which is an integer

Denominator = 2, is an integer and not equal to zero.

So, yes, 3/2 is a rational number.

Example 3:

Determine whether the given numbers are rational or irrational.

(a) 1.75  (b) 0.01   (c) 0.5  (d) 0.09   (e) √3

Solution:

a ,b, c and d are rational numbers and e is irrational numbers

The given numbers are in decimal format. To find whether the given number is decimal or not, we have to convert it into the fraction form (i.e., a/b)

If the denominator of the fraction is not equal to zero, then the number is rational, or else, it is irrational.

 

 

 

 

 

Real life context for teaching rational numbers.

1.     Mohan hikes for 2.5 miles and stops for lunch. Then he hikes for 1.5 more miles. How many miles did he hike altogether?

 

 

 

 

 

Solution : 

Step 1 : 

Use positive numbers to represent the distance Mohan  hiked. 

Step 2 : 

Find 2.5 + 1.5.

Let us use the real number line to add 2.5 and 1.5.

Step 3 : 

Start at 2.5.

2.     The temperature on an outdoor thermometer on Monday was 5.5 °C. The temperature on Thursday was 7.25 degrees less than the temperature on Monday. What was the temperature on Thursday ?

Answer : 

Step 1 : 

Find 5.5 - 7.25.

Step 2 :

Start at 5.5.

Step 3 :

Move |7.25| = 7.25 units to the left, because we are subtracting a positive number

 

3.     The science teacher is filling her new fish aquarium. The aquarium holds 40 gallons. If she fills the aquarium 4/5 of the way full, how many gallons will she need?

Solution :

If 4/5 of the aquarium is filled, then 1/5 th of the aquarium to be filled to make it full. Because 5 - 4  =  1.

To find number of gallons, we have to multiply 40 by 1/5. 

Step 1 : Multiply 40 by 1/5

40 x 1/5     

Step 2 : Simplify

8 x 1/1

Step 3 : Multiply 

8 x 1  =  8    

4.     Cooper's bird feeder holds 9/10 of a cup of birdseed. Cooper is filling the bird feeder with a scoop that holds 3/10 of a cup. How many scoops of birdseed will Cooper put into the feeder?

Solution : 

Step 1 : 

To get answer for the above question, divide the total amount of birdseed by the size of each scoop.

That is, we have to find the value of (9/10) / (3/10).

Step 2 : 

Determine the sign of the quotient.

The quotient will be positive, because the signs of both numerator (9/10) and denominator (3/10) are same. 

Step 3 : 

Write the complex fraction as division :

(9/10) / (3/10)  =  (9/10) ÷ (3/10)

Step 4 : 

Rewrite the above division as multiplication by taking the reciprocal of the second fraction. 

(9/10) ÷ (3/10)  =  (9/10) x (10/3)

Step 5 : 

Simplify

(9/10) x (10/3)  =  (3/1) x (1/1)= 3

So, Cooper will put 3 scoops of birdseed into the feeder.

Note:  A gallon : It is a  unit of liquid or dry capacity equal to eight pints or 4. 55 litres.