Journal of Educational Practice and Research

An Action Research on Food and Farming Education Curriculum Development in a Rural Elementary School

Yi-Lin Kang & Wei-Chi Chang

Rural agricultural demographics and farming structure has shown fierce changes in the modernizing society over the past years. The young generation in rural areas has distanced from the land and their families’ farmer identity. Countries worldwide has revamped their “food & farming curriculum” to include cooking lessons and school gardens at the elementary school stage to strengthen children’s connection with food, environment and the community. This study developed a framework of “food & farming curriculum” through action research to establish farm-to-table experience for elementary students. The framework includes “farming experience activities”, “cooking lessons” and “knowledge of food and farming lessons.” The curriculum was carried out for fifth and sixth grade students for three semesters in a rural elementary school in Miaoli County, from 2011 to 2012. The study found that this curriculum brings positive changes to pupils and helps in regaining their passion to learning. The curriculum is suitable to be applied especially in rural schools because of the accessibility of land, agricultural knowledges and community support. The study proposed five suggestions to teachers who are interested in food and farming education, including hands-on and flexibility teaching; using the local human resources; applications of unused space in the school; looking for like-minded teachers to form a teaching team; and combining environmental education with school-based curriculum.

Factors Influencing Junior High School Students’ English Language Achievement in Taiwan:A Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological System Approach

Hsin-Yi Kung & Ching-Yi Lee

This study aimed to construct a social profile of Taiwanese students’ English language achievement by employing Bronfenbrenner’s perspectives. Data were collected on a sample of 709 ninth graders in central Taiwan via survey questionnaires and were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results indicated that, first, a Taiwanese Students´ English Language Achievement model was constructed by parental involvement, teachers’ beliefs/attitudes, parent–teacher interaction, and mass media/the Internet. Second, mass media/the Internet significantly predicted parental involvement and teachers’ beliefs/attitudes; parental involvement and teachers’ beliefs/attitudes significantly predicted students’ English language achievement; the correlation between parental involvement and teachers’ beliefs/attitudes was significant. Third, the completely mediating effects of parental involvement and teachers’ beliefs/attitudes in predicting students’ English language achievement from mass media/the Internet were supported, and the effect of teachers’ beliefs/attitudes tended to be stronger than parental involvement. These findings were in line with Bronfenbrenner’s theory and demonstrate that the influence of the mass media/the Internet (exosystem) in students’ English language achievement conveyed the degree of parental involvement (microsystem), teachers’ beliefs/attitudes (microsystem), and the interaction between parents and teachers (mesosystem), especially within the context of the socio-cultural atmosphere in Taiwan (macrosystem). Implications and suggestions were discussed and provided to enhance students’ English language learning.

Vocational School Students’ Vocational Identity and Their Views on the Functions of School

Cheng-Yen Shih & Chia-Ling Chiang

This study aims to explore the students’ viewpoints on the functions of vocational schools, as well as the connection between their vocational identity and their opinions on the functions of schools. After understanding the students’ views of the practical support their schools have provided, the curricula and learning goals of vocational schools were reexamined. Ten in-service vocational school students, between the ages of 18-22, were invited to participate in this study. Each student was interviewed individually by the researchers for approximately 60 minutes and they were asked to use mind maps to express their viewpoints. The results showed that students regarded the vocational school as a means to obtain diplomas and professional licenses, a place to get to know friends, and a place to escape from the pressures of reality. Students with higher vocational commitment tended to care about their careers more deeply. In order to obtain a degree or professional licenses, a higher salary, and greater self-affirmation, these students actively engaged in learning. Students with lower vocational commitment tended to be in the stage of career exploration as they kept searching for career goals. They were confused by their current jobs and with the school curriculum; however, when an identified career role model or a hopeful vision was demonstrated to them, some students with lower vocational commitment would be stimulated to gain a positive career motivation and expressed the flexibility to have a career/life change.

Content Analysis of Online Undergraduate Student-Generated Questions and the Development of Its Creativity Indicators

Fu-Yun Yu & Chia-Ling Su

In light of current research gaps in online student-generated questions (SGQ) (as most studies on the content types, forms, and performance criteria of SGQ are done in math, adopting a structured format, using a paper-and-pencil form, and paying less attention to affective aspects), the purposes of this study are: first, to analyze the content, forms, and techniques of online SGQ via content analysis; second, to develop the creative indicators for online SGQ and establish the validity of the devised indicators. For the first purpose, 792 questions generated by 54 student teachers during online SGQ activities were subjected to content analysis. For the second purpose, another group of 40 student teachers completed a consensus questionnaire, and the data were analyzed via repeated measures, followed by post-hoc comparisons. Four major findings were obtained: 1) with regard to the contents of online SGQ, connections to personal daily life and future personal goals were frequently observed; 2) most participants took advantage of the formatting, color, and graphics features afforded in computer technologies during online SGQ to suit multiple purposes; 3) participants exhibited versatile skills during SGQ; 4) questions with different levels of creativity differed significantly in terms of novelty and interestingness indicators, supporting the validity of the devised indicators. Yet, no significant differences were found in the usefulness indicator, supporting the claim that novelty and interestingness do not necessarily compromise the perceived usefulness of the generated item. Based on the findings, suggestions for SGQ, creative teaching, and future research are provided.

A Comparative Study on the Relationship Between Learning Motivations and Outcomes of College Students in Taiwan and Shenzhen Region of Mainland China:Learning Modes as Mediators

Sophia Shi-Huei Ho & Yao-Ping Peng

Previous studies in the relationship of learning motivation and outcome were mostly conducted on research samples in Asia from the perspective of oriental culture; however, under the same cultural background, different social systems might lead to different teaching and learning outcomes. Therefore, this study examines the learning motivation patterns of Taiwan and Mainland China college students from the perspectives on psychological motivation, and investigates the relationship between learning modes and learning outcomes. Adopting judgmental sampling, a total of 651 valid questionnaires were collected from cross-strait business college sophomore, junior, and senior students. The measurement scales were developed by Li et al. (2007), Nasir et al. (2009), Philip et al. (2008), Pike et al. (2011), White et al. (2008), and all measures were 5-point Likert-type scales. The path relationship of the two groups was examined through structural equation modeling (SEM) using AMOS. The results showed that exploitative learning was perceived as more effective by the college students in Taiwan as compared to those in Mainland China. In terms of academic identity, the contrary is the case. However, in path analysis, Taiwanese students were superior to Chinese students in regard to the positive influence of role identity on exploitative and explorative learning and the positive influence of exploitative learning on cognitive and non-cognitive gains.

An Exploration of Derrida’s Philosophy of Deconstruction and Its Implications for Education

Ruyu Hung

This paper aims to discuss the post-structural philosopher Jacques Derrida’s philosophy of deconstruction and its implications for education. There are four main notions to be investigated: deconstruction, différance, trace and supplement. By interrogating the four notions, the author reveals four implications for education. They are as follows: 1) The deconstruction of the textual structure is to deconstruct the traditions of thought. 2) Reading the Classics in different ways is helpful to increase educational meanings. 3) Imagination about education should go beyond the conventional way of learning by means of “listening, speaking, reading and writing”. 4) Playfulness is able to replenish austerity in theorizing ways of life. The author, then, uses three examples concerning gender body politics, library and information science, and the Paul de Man event to explore the dynamics and limits of the deconstruction as a strategy of analyzing the discourse. At the end, the author concludes that the most profound significance of deconstruction lies in continuous self-questioning and self-challenging rather than serving as a tool of straightforward appropriation and application to reality affairs. Otherwise, the notion of deconstruction could lose its dynamical criticality.

Distance Student and Academic Integrity in American Colleges: Challenges and Strategies

Kenzen Chen

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the academic integrity of distance student at higher education institutions in the United States. The advancement of technology challenges university practices in the prevention of online academic misconducts such as financial aid fraud and online cheating. The author reviewed related research literature, governmental publications, regulatory and compliance information, and the state-of-art of new technologies that may address such concerns. Authentication and proctoring service providers within eighteen higher education institutions were interviewed to capture up-to-date practices. This article concludes the importance of positive academic culture even if new technological solutions are in place to deal with these misconducts. Finally, insightful suggestions are provided for colleges in Taiwan that are offering MOOCs.