Critical analysis
The research was taken up in Paro college of Education by one of the
lecturers in his teaching program and it was conducted B. Ed. His name is
Kezang Sherab. His research
topic or title was Strategies for encouraging behavioral and cognitive
engagement of pre-service student-teachers in Bhutan: an action research case
study. This study was designed to look at student engagement
in relationship to his teaching practices. He particularly wanted to
investigate students’ cognitive engagement in the classroom and the second
aspect of behavioral engagement (involvement of students in learning and
academic tasks) and see whether he could make any improvement. He has pointed
out, Research by Fredricks, Blumenfeld, and Paris (2004) indicates that there
is a positive relationship between student engagement in the classroom and
academic outcome.so he wants to see is this true in the Bhutanese teacher
education context? What kinds of strategies do we use and could I use to engage
students in learning? Does he promote two-way conversations with my
student-teachers? Does he know his student-teachers well and show his care
about their learning? These were some of the concerns that inspired this
inquiry into his teaching practices.
The researchers has been a teachers and also lecturers for more than decades
and he felt that pre-service students teachers of the education college need to
grow cognitively and at the same time need to develop good behavioral. Since
the growth of the children has directly linked to the teachers. Since most of the teachers used the teacher
centre teaching whereby students are not really learning in the schools.
Students are considering as recipient of the knowledge and teachers domination
class which it is not really a good teaching method. More over the talk of
quality of education being down the line has been a talk for the country, so he
felt that we need to nurture and brought up the student teachers of the colleges
thus he was conducting research on the same topic.
The researcher’s has beautifully mentioned the background of the country
including the location, language, developmental philosophy of the country and
also where the action research was taken place. Moreover he has mentioned what
is mean by each component of the research and I felt it is very important for
new learners about research like me.in his reconnaissance he has described
about the situation analysis, he felt as teacher and lectures the teaching
learning process is need to change. Where the teaching is teacher dominated and
students learns what teachers teach, they does not have room to ask questions
say oppose teachers views. If teachers teach wrongly also they will say yes sir
and madam.so really it was teachers centered and everything is in the hand of
the teachers and students just listen to teachers and learn in that ways. The
researchers has also covered the literature review part which he kept it as
theoretical framework, he at one point presented the students teachers need to
grow in different ways. He has mentioned in his literature review the words of
“Fredricks, Blumenfeld, and Paris (2004) provide a comprehensive
discussion of student engagement under three broad components: behavioral
engagement, emotional engagement and cognitive engagement.” So he did very well
in literature review which is good part for the success of the good research.
Research question
His research question was: ‘How can he improve the behavioral and
cognitive engagement of Bachelor of Primary Education pre-service
student-teachers in hi curriculum studies classes?’
When it comes to spiral cycle he has creatively planed how to carry out
the research. He has chosen a class which he has taught the year before just
for his convenient and he felt he will get good and authentic response because
they know each other very well.
It was in the year 2008 academic year at the Paro College of Education he
has begun by gathering the baseline data, employing a questionnaire
specifically designed for this study. The questionnaire sought to understand
the trend of student engagement with a focus on behavioral and cognitive
engagement in this class commencing in the second week of August 2008. The
questionnaire consisted of items based on five study-specific themes identified
with the help of the literature:
Rating statements were followed
by four open-ended questions that asked students to discuss in more detail the
areas I needed to improve. Altogether 25 student-teachers out of 29 in the
class responded (11 male and 11 female, with three participants not identifying
their gender). The questionnaire was piloted with another group to whom he
taught the same module before collecting the baseline data. He has maintained
detailed diaries of observations regarding his teaching reflection and analyzed
the baseline data that provided insights into the existing situation
reinforcing his concerns. After having carefully analyzed the situation, he
designed plans for improvement
By the second week of September, he has implemented alternative
strategies for behavioral and cognitive engagement until the beginning of
November. The impacts of these alternative strategies were monitored through
lesson observations and interviews by the critical friend. He has used of the
colleagues who has sound knowledge of the action research as his critical
friend who has observed the lessons and provided critical comments based on the
observation form specifically designed for this study. He has also maintained a
research diary to record his observations and thoughts for the entire research
duration. Towards mid-November 2008, he has gathered intervention data using
the same questionnaire (only the title of the questionnaire and instructions
were changed) in which 24 of the 29 student-teachers responded (11 male and 12
female, with one not identifying his/her gender). For qualitative data, he has
provided semi-structured interview questions to the critical friend, who
interviewed four student-teachers (two male and two female) that were randomly
selected. To see whether there was improvement of student engagement in his
teaching, he compared the baseline data with the post-intervention data. Whereas open-ended comments in the
questionnaire, interview and observation data were analyzed in order to
determine patterns and themes.
After collection of data he found out that if the teachings are taken
like before then the product of learners will be same and tradition method of
teaching will be following. He has also pointed out that especially in primary
classes the teaching is purely teacher dominated where students has no say,
meaning purely recipient of the knowledge.
So after reading his research article for several times, I found out he
has creatively used almost all the components of the research, however I felt
it would have been much more better if he has mention about his competence in
research though it was indirectly given in the process of research. He has
beautifully panned and used different tools that are both qualitative and
quantitative. Indeed I have not found anything about research ethics though he
has taken the research with his students and he might have precisely explained
this entire ethic to his participants. I felt it is very important to have
research ethics very important because participants deserved respect and need
to aware of what he is doing.
Finally the researchers
who was then currently the dean of the college has done good research in
pertinent to Bhutanese education and I really felt it will help all the
teachers of the future and present. I would like to recommend my friends
teachers to read his research, applied in teaching and have action research
conducted like him, which will ultimately bring progress for the Bhutanese
education systems. We need to teach the way children learn and not the way we
have been learn and taught, moreover these days’ students are very creative and
they can learn in their own way just teachers need to be guide and
facilitators. We must never underestimate our children, they have their own way
of learning and we need to provide them with time and they will come up with
good learning.so lets change for our bright future for every one and be the
change
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