It is a matter of common knowledge that " discussion learninng" as a teaching method is vital for desirable and effective study. Therefore, it deserves special emphasis on its actual application to the school education. Accordingly, the aim of this r...
It is a matter of common knowledge that " discussion learninng" as a teaching method is vital for desirable and effective study. Therefore, it deserves special emphasis on its actual application to the school education. Accordingly, the aim of this research is to examine its appropriate application or not in secondary schools.
34 teachers were selected from 7 secondary schools in Seoul and Gyungi province. After pre-interview, they were posed a questionnaire for 2 weeks.
Results are as belows;
First, the great part of the subject say that it is necessary to put "this method" to practical use for students better study. However, they are pointing out they dont have enough time to prepare for the class and develop materials to apply this method considering their routine workload.
Second, this research also describes that teachers are giving explanatory & unilateral lectures or have a short "question & answer period" during class instead of using this method for their classes. They dont think that students are prepared well to manage to lead " the class using the discussion method" because they have a difficulty to express their own ideas logically or pertinently. And teachers also say that they experienced students were reluctant to be spontaneous disputants.
Third, even though a teacher tries to apply this method for his or her class, its frequency is limited to once or twice a semester. Teachers say that they cannot but intervene in the middle of the class on occasion because students are not able to lead the class to the right purpose without teachers advice or assistance.
Forth, 23.5% only of the subject answers that they are applying this method. Therefore, this research shows there are many problems to be solved that "this method" can give full play at schools.
Finally, this research also inform us that teachers are not well informed for applying " the discussion method" to their classes and even they are unlikely to share their knowledge or material one another. It shows that teachers, themselves are not active for putting "the discussion method" to practical use even if they agree that it is necessary and important to apply this method to the class for high-quality science education.