Improving social skills is essential to prevent individual-oriented propensity and its resultant social problems which are worried over in modern society. Besides, as an only child is increasing in number from the social problem of low birthrate, it h...
Improving social skills is essential to prevent individual-oriented propensity and its resultant social problems which are worried over in modern society. Besides, as an only child is increasing in number from the social problem of low birthrate, it has become important to evaluate their social skills and guide them to fit their characteristics in order to support all children in modern society including them to act their role as able talents in future society and as happy and healthy members of society.
In this context, recently project classes are spreading fast centering on innovation schools in an effort to reconstruct the curriculum. Since social studies are suited for project classes due to content features, it is needed to investigate what effect the project class of elementary-grade social studies has on social skills through interactions among learners. On the subject of the 4th-graders of elementary school this study set the following study questions to look into whether the project class of social studies has positive effect on the children’s social skills.
First, does project class of elementary-grade social studies have positive effect on children’s social skills?
Second, does project class of elementary-grade social studies have positive effect on the lower factors of children’s social skills?
To investigate whether project class of elementary-grade social studies has on children’s social skills, this study applied project class on 29 4th graders (Class A) of U Elementary located in G city and conducted pretest in comparison with the 4th graders of ordinary class (Class B) on September 21, 2015. Then, from September 21 to November 12, ‘Live economy project’ class was conducted 2-3 sessions a week, a total of 30 sessions for 8 weeks.
To see into the effect of project class of elementary-grade social studies between experimental and control groups, the pretest and posttest of social skills were conducted with the following conclusions.
First, group with project class of elementary-grade social studies showed a more significant effect on social skill test compared to the control group of ordinary lecture class.
Second, project class of elementary-grade social studies showed a significant difference in autonomy, a lower factor of social skills, compared to the control group of ordinary lecture class.
Third, project class of elementary-grade social studies showed a significant difference in cooperation, a lower factor of social skills. compared to the control group of ordinary lecture class.
Fourth, results of pre-post difference for experimental and control group on sociability, a lower factor of social skills, showed that there was no significant difference between project class group for elementary-grade social studies and ordinary lecture class group.
This study shows that project class of elementary-grade social studies has positive effect on elementary school students’ social skills and suggests that, at school scene, project class be conducted in expansion through reconstructing the curriculum. Especially, being without significant difference in sociability skill, a lower factor of social skills, may be due to lack of time needed for increasing sociability or lack of factors to increase proper sociability in children’s developmental stages. This suggests a need to devise and apply project class by supplementing these matters and conduct a comparative research by extending the period.