@article {1703, title = {THE ESSENCE OF MIND STRATEGY IN THE RELATIONSHIP WITH NATURE: HUMAN-NATURE-WISDOM UNITY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {82}, year = {2024}, month = {February/2024}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {4-6}, abstract = {A systematic approach requires combining the knowledge of related subjects (e.g., natural sciences) into a whole and making conditions for the learners to research, draw conclusions, process abundant and diverse information, improve and change, complete their knowledge, i.e., eliminate common/traditional subject barriers, refuse narrow empiricism. The field of science education is wide, complex and diverse. It is not only the transmission of natural science knowledge but also ecological, environmental, antidrug, sexual, antinicotine education, healthy lifestyle training, etc. Today{\textquoteright}s society is dealing with very relevant issues of nature protection, nature conservation, ecology, environmental protection, and other problems. All this requires a new approach from all of us, the efforts of various field specialists, eliminating all separating barriers. Global problems are a common concern for all of us. This is just because not a single problem is isolated from another, most of them are intertwined, fully determined, united in their nature. Therefore, knowing (clarifying) connections is complicated and hardly achievable. Their solution is possible only when they are comprehensively analysed by closely linking them together. }, keywords = {environmental protection, natural sciences, relationship with nature, systems thinking}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/24.82.04}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1708676346.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1698, title = {ANTECEDENTS OF THE PERCEIVED USEFULNESS OF AN ONLINE LEARNING PLATFORM DURING THE PANDEMIC}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {December/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {861-868}, abstract = {The pandemic has posed a number of challenges to university studies. The whole study process, the conditions, the context, the conditions for student mobility, the technical possibilities, and finally the quality of the studies have changed. During the pandemic period, a number of studies have been carried out on how higher education is organised in the context of a pandemic, but there is still a lack of analysis on how students perceive the usefulness of distance learning. A quantitative study was carried out with a contingent of 132 prospective preschool and primary education teachers, and students in the field of social sciences at three Lithuanian universities. The aim was to explore possible antecedents of the perceived usefulness of an online learning platform during the pandemic. The sample consisted of 24 first-year, 52 second-year, 28 third-year and 28 fourth-year students. The data obtained during the study were processed and analysed using SPSS software. In addition, structural Equation Modelling (SEM) with Lisrel 9.3 for Windows has been used to test the model. Three factors were extracted. All constructs have a very good convergent and discriminant validity. These factors are important for analyzing the effectiveness of distance learning in general. It was found that the most important contributor to the perceived usefulness is the ease of access. It was also found that content adaptation has a positive influence on the perceived usefulness. }, keywords = {distance education, perceived usefulness, quantitative research, university students}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.861}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1702996295.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Costin Pribeanu} } @article {1647, title = {DIGITAL CITIZEN PARTICIPATION OF COLLEGE STUDENTS: REALITY AND OPTIMIZATION PATH}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {April/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {244-257}, abstract = {Digital citizenship participation refers to the utilization of digital technology by individuals or groups for the purpose of engaging in networked participatory behaviors. It involves four interconnected elements: individual, policy, political, and social participation. This study surveyed 446 college students from a private university in China and conducted interviews to explore their digital citizenship participation. It is found that college students{\textquoteright} digital citizen participation is characterized by "strong individual interest-driven participation", "weak political concern", and "good digital citizen literacy". In order to improve college students{\textquoteright} participation as digital citizens, it is crucial to cultivate digital literacy by applying the core competency framework of digital citizenship as a guiding principle. To create a sustainable path for students{\textquoteright} participation, a four-pronged approach is proposed involving multi-stakeholders, namely society, government, schools, and teachers. }, keywords = {college students, digital citizenship participation, multi-stakeholders, optimization path, participation characteristics}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.244}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1683097670.pdf}, author = {Haili Lu and Kefeng Fu and Xiaolin Liu and Wanshan Hu} } @article {1683, title = {DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP IN GEORGIA{\textquoteright}S TEACHERS, STUDENTS AND PARENTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {October/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {667-686}, abstract = {The Council of Europe{\textquoteright}s (CoE) model on Digital Citizenship Education (DCE) has at its basis the {\textquoteleft}Competencies of Democratic Culture{\textquoteright} model, which considers being an active and responsible citizen and implies the development of a set of lifelong competencies both online and offline at various levels, as well. Taking the {\textquoteleft}Competencies of Democratic Culture{\textquoteright} the CoE experts elaborated on the DCE domains, which are the appropriate way to develop democratic culture competences in the digital environment. Georgia, as a member country, signed the agreement on DCE to be applied at the K-12 curriculum level and joined the DCE project of the CoE in July 2020. Thus, as an educational concept, DCE is relatively new to the education system of Georgia. The aim of the study was to describe the current situation concerning DCE in Georgia, namely on awareness of the concept and its foundations, as well as identifying self-reported DCE competences by teachers, students and parents, in the light of the Ribble{\textquoteright}s and the CoE{\textquoteright}s models. Data was collected in five schools in 2020. The issue was studied using the quantitative method, an online survey, 1954 respondents were involved in the research. It was demonstrated that most of the respondents had a lack of awareness about information-communication technologies. It can be concluded that communication among school teachers, students and parents about the issues of digital security has not started yet. The correlation between the geographic location of a school and teachers{\textquoteright} digital competences is not confirmed. }, keywords = {digital citizenship education, digital competences, digital domains, digital school culture, exploratory sequential design}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.667}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1699124594.pdf}, author = {Sofiko Lobzhanidze and Giorgi Urchukhishvili and Marika Sikharulidze} } @article {1664, title = {EDUCATION FROM THE SYSTEMIC POINT OF VIEW: THE CONTEXT OF (NON) - CONSTANT TRANSFORMATIONS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {August/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {422-430}, abstract = {It is generally undeniable that education is a complicated and complex system. Moreover, it is an integrated and integral system of teaching and learning at different levels and in different contexts. In the public academic educational discourse, the need to search for modern teaching and learning methods is constantly expressed so that educational institutions can better respond to the changing educational needs of learners and society. However, there is no unequivocal answer to what is {\textquotedblleft}modern{\textquotedblright}. Complex knowledge of education systems (and education as a system) guarantees effective educational changes in them. If we are talking about scientific knowledge of educational phenomena, it cannot be otherwise. Based on this point of view, most educational phenomena and processes can be called systems. }, keywords = {complex system, educational systems, effective educational changes, systemic approach}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.422 }, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1691443609.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1682, title = {EDUCATIONAL PRACTITIONERS{\textquoteright} ATTITUDES TOWARDS CHANGE: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPLEMENTING THE MODEL {\textquotedblleft}SCHOOL AS A LEARNING ORGANISATION{\textquotedblright} IN GENERAL EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS IN LATVIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {October/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {647-666}, abstract = {In contemporary society, constant dynamic change presents a challenge that should be perceived as a determinant factor leading to progress. The aim of this study was to explore the extent to which educational practitioners in general education institutions in Latvia are prepared for change. Additionally, the study seeks to identify the main enabling factors and obstacles in implementing the {\textquotedblleft}School as a Learning Organisation{\textquotedblright} (SLO) model in general education in Latvia. That was achieved through quantitative data analysis from various perspectives, such as comparing data based on the type and size of educational institutions, as well as the positions and seniority of employees. Research data were collected using a web-based survey designed and maintained through QuestionPro. The final analytic sample comprised 671 respondents from 62 general education institutions in Latvia. The research results revealed that educational practitioners in Latvia, including leading, teaching, and supporting staff from general education institutions, are open to changes, new practices, and innovations. However, there were exceptions influenced by the educational practitioners{\textquoteright} seniority and position, institution size, and type. These factors could both positively and negatively predict employees{\textquoteright} attitudes towards change. A positive attitude towards change among teaching staff is a crucial element for the successful implementation of educational reforms in Latvia, such as the adoption of the SLO model. To foster a positive organizational culture, school leaders must provide supportive and transformative leadership, which is crucial for employees{\textquoteright} positive attitude towards change.}, keywords = {attitude towards change, general education, influencing factors, innovations in education, school as a learning organisation}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.647 }, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1698379331.pdf}, author = {Agnese Lastovska and Svetlana Surikova and Gunta Silina-Jasjukevi{\v c}a and Inese Lusena-Ezera} } @article {1679, title = {FACILITATING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF PRESCHOOLS: A SYSTEM THINKING TRAINING PROJECT IN TAIWAN}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {October/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {598-611}, abstract = {This study aims to assist preschools in achieving sustainable development by providing system thinking training for teachers and administrators. By promoting system thinking and PDCA, training helps preschool staff and teachers construct their knowledge and culture for organizational growth and effective operation. The research procedure encompasses stages of preparation, knowledge diffusion, knowledge adaptation, and establishing support networks. A total of 744 training participants engage in case studies, discussions, and self-evaluation activities to enhance their understanding and application of the PDCA framework. Quantitative and qualitative methods are used to collect the research participants{\textquoteright} perceptions and intentions on this training. Research data is collected using 5-point Likert questionnaires, supplemented with open-ended questions to gather participants{\textquoteright} perceptions and suggestions. In addition, qualitative data is obtained through onsite observation, focus groups, and individual interviews. The research results indicate that participants in the training program positively perceive the training activities. Also, those with administrative roles and from non-profit preschools exhibit higher interest and motivation for training, reflecting the need for sustainability knowledge in changing environments.}, keywords = {early childhood education, PDCA, preschool teacher, sustainable development, system thinking}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.598}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1698379127.pdf}, author = {Cheng, C.-C. and Huang, K.-H. and Yi-Kai Lin} } @article {1666, title = {PEDAGOGICAL DOCTORAL STUDENTS IN CHINA UNDER PRESSURE: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF CSSCI JOURNALS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {August/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {449-461}, abstract = {The prerequisite for doctoral students in Chinese universities to obtain their degrees was to publish a certain number of papers in designated journals, which is the main pressure on doctoral students in China. This study focused on the publication pressure of doctoral students in pedagogy in China under the policy of breaking the {\textquoteleft}five only{\textquoteright}, which aims to diversify the evaluation criteria for academic quality and reduce the reliance on paper publications. The study analyzed the data of 36 pedagogical CSSCI journals from 2016 to 2020, and examined the trends and patterns of publishing pedagogy articles in these journals. The study also explored the factors that influence the publication pressure of doctoral students in pedagogy, such as the admission system, the expansion of doctoral enrollment, and the recruitment system for young teachers. The results show that Chinese pedagogy CSSCI journals are declining in number and are dominated by well-known scholars and institutions. Doctoral students in pedagogy face a more severe academic situation than university teachers, as they have to publish papers to graduate and compete for limited journal space. They also face the pressure of publication under the application-appraisal system and the system of {\textquotedblleft}promote or leave{\textquotedblright}. The study suggests that colleges and universities need to break through the quantitative evaluation system of doctoral students{\textquoteright} academic achievements and pay more attention to the training system and academic culture that promote their physical and mental health and academic development.}, keywords = {breaking the {\textquoteleft}five only{\textquoteright}, CSSCI journals, data statistics, pedagogical doctoral students in China, publication pressure}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.449}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1691443806.pdf}, author = {Ming Guan and Xiaodong Fan and Jiao Li} } @article {1616, title = {PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT SYSTEM FOCUSED ON STRENGTHENING TEACHERS{\textquoteright} COLLABORATION: THE CASE OF GEORGIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {February/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {66-89}, abstract = {Studies confirm that professional development at the school base through the teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration is the most result-oriented outcome among the alternative ways of teachers{\textquoteright} professional development. One of the declared goals of the centralized system of teachers{\textquoteright} professional development and performance assessment operating in Georgia is to facilitate teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration. However, the contribution of the mentioned system in strengthening the teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration has not been studied so far. The purpose of the present research was to study the impact of the centralized system of teachers{\textquoteright} professional development and performance assessment on teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration at general educational institutions. The issue was studied using the qualitative methods - focus group, interview, and content analysis of documents. Eight schools were selected for the study. Two focus groups were conducted with teachers and one interview was recorded with a school leader at each school. Furthermore, Interviews with ten experts in the field were recorded. It was demonstrated that the centralized system of professional development and assessment focused on developmental assessment helps to strengthen the teachers{\textquoteright} professional relations. Activities closely related to the teacher{\textquoteright}s work, the correct attitude of the school leaders, teachers{\textquoteright} involvement in making decisions, the existence of preset goals, working schedule and space are important for collaborative relations. Existence of unified mechanisms for professional development, mistrust among colleagues, changes being constantly introduced to the education system, shortage of time were revealed as hindering factors for teacher collaboration. }, keywords = {qualitative research, school-based teachers{\textquoteright} professional development, teachers{\textquoteright} assessment, teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.66}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1677582892.pdf}, author = {Marika Kirvalidze and Sofiko Lobzhanidze} } @article {1689, title = {SYSTEM AS A WHOLE AND EDUCATION AS A SYSTEM: RELEVANT THOUGHTS AND CONSIDERATIONS }, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {81}, year = {2023}, month = {December/2023}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {723-728}, abstract = {It is obvious that the World is the largest and most complex system. It is obvious that the essence of the World cannot be known without analysing it as a system. System (gr. system - connected, composed of parts) {\textendash} a collection of elements components) that are interconnected by certain connections; this forms a whole in one form or another. The whole can be understood quite differently (various contexts), but basically, three important moments can be distinguished: a system as a certain whole (a certain organised and interacting set of components, performing a certain function (s) and having a purpose (s)), a system as philosophy (simply all things in the world are connected), a system as technology (technological system or systems act as certain entities). Of course, the goal here is not to discuss deep methodological issues of systematics (systemology).}, keywords = {complex system, methodological issues, self-related elements, whole knowledge}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/23.81.723}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2023/457-1702995627.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1531, title = {EXPLORING ATOMS AND MOLECULES IN THE CLASSROOM: IS IT POSSIBLE?}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {80}, year = {2022}, month = {February/2022}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {If you are a chemistry teacher, chances are you have already felt like doing an activity where students could manipulate and explore atoms or molecules in the classroom. Yes, that is right, touching, moving, uniting atoms to form molecules in a classroom, forming the most diverse substances that exist in the world, or at least observing these particles (atoms or molecules) under the microscope, as well as their constituents such as electrons and protons. But, is this possible? It is known that none of this is possible, but it would be desirable if it were, because in this way, students could better understand many phenomena of their daily lives, such as, for example, the burning of coal with the release of gases that, at a submicro level, involves the rearrangement of atoms for the occurrence of such a chemical reaction. Considering this, how to explore the particles in the classroom, which are inaccessible to the human senses, in a way that the student can understand, having an explanation of what is happening macroscopically, that is, of what he or she is observing (seeing) or even feeling, since in this case heat is released. How could we try to explain the natural world, what we experience in our daily lives?}, keywords = {natural world, representational levels, theoretical developments}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/22.80.05}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2022/457-1645650348.pdf}, author = {Locatelli, S. W.} } @article {1580, title = {A FEW POINTS ABOUT AXIOMATICS OF EDUCATION }, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {80}, year = {2022}, month = {October/2022}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {624-629}, abstract = {Postulates and axioms have been used as a means of knowledge since ancient times. The well-known ancient Greek thinkers Aristotle, Plato, Euclid, and others used this cognitive tool. As an example, we all know {\textendash} Euclid{\textquoteright}s postulates. Although mathematicians consider him the pioneer of mathematics, one of the most famous mathematicians, nevertheless, it is more appropriate to consider Euclid as a Greek philosopher, who presented the most important postulates and axioms in his book "Elements". The prevailing opinion is that in essence it is exactly enough to prove all mathematical statements. Even though that the most perfect axiomatics is classical Euclidian geometry, there is an alternative here, i.e., modern non-Euclidean geometry. }, keywords = {classical Euclidian geometry, educational statements, empirical confirmation, mathematical statements}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/22.80.624 }, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2022/457-1667682412.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1537, title = {INTEGRATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION (EE) IN TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS: TOWARD SUSTAINABLE CURRICULUM GREENING }, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {80}, year = {2022}, month = {February/2022}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {119-143}, abstract = {Environmental education (EE) is vital in addressing global environmental problems. Educational institutions are integrating EE into their curricula, but studies indicated the need for its intensification. This mixed method study assessed the integration of EE in Teacher Education Programs (TEPs) in Region III, Philippines. Respondents were 10 program deans,10 chairs, 171 teachers, and 344 students. Data were gathered using validated questionnaires. Findings revealed that the New Teacher Education Curriculum (NTEC) integrated EE in program outcomes and performance indicators; in mandated courses -Physical Education (PE) and National Service Training Program (NSTP); and in Science Technology and Society (STS), a General Education (GE) course. Likewise, teachers integrated EE in their lessons and in community extension programs. Seminars/webinars included environmental care and promoted environmental awareness in social media. As to support for EE integration, administrative, physical facilities and financial support were provided. On student outcomes, positive findings were shown on attitude towards environment care, but application of knowledge and skills needs improvement. Students{\textquoteright} knowledge was significantly correlated to attitude (Pearson{\textquoteright}s r value is.593 and p value <.05) as well as skills acquisition and attitude (Pearson{\textquoteright}s r value is .647 and p value <.05). Teachers{\textquoteright} challenges in the EE integration included inadequate environmental knowledge and lack of time to lead students in environmental action. The study concludes that EE is integrated into the TEPs but the outcomes on the learners{\textquoteright} knowledge and skills acquisition still need strengthening. Also, EE should be integrated in professional education courses, not only in GE and mandated courses. }, keywords = {assessment, integration of environmental education, mixed method, sustainable curriculum greening, teacher education programs}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/22.80.119}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2022/457-1645650851.pdf}, author = {Corpuz, A. M. and San Andres, T. C. and Julieta M. Lagasca} } @article {1597, title = {SYSTEMOLOGY OF EDUCATION: SOME THOUGHTS ON THE CONCEPT AND DEVELOPMENT}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {80}, year = {2022}, month = {December/2022}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {744-749}, abstract = {Systemology of education is the field of general systemology. On the other hand, systemology of education can reasonably be considered a structural part of contemporary education. There are many different arguments to substantiate such a position. For example, during the last two decades, educational (pedagogical) terminology has changed extremely rapidly. Education science has become more diverse than ever. Such branches as cooperation pedagogy, nonviolence pedagogy, pedagogy of the oppressed, peace pedagogy, success pedagogy, career pedagogy, theatre pedagogy and many others have appeared in educational scientific literature, not to mention the level of education. On the one hand, we do not deny the existence of these branches, on the other hand, the question arises about the scientific system in education in general (Lamanauskas, 2012). It is obvious that the development of education is characterised by two opposite trends {\textendash} differentiation and integration. In such an abundance of currents, branches, directions, etc., it is not only easy to get lost, but it is even easier to lose the ability to identify mutual relations and define the place of each of them in the common stem of education science.}, keywords = {career pedagogy, educational (pedagogical) terminology, peace pedagogy, success pedagogy, systemology of education, theatre pedagogy}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/22.80.744 }, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2022/457-1672600435.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1585, title = {TOWARDS THE DIFFERENT: A CASE STUDY OF A SYRIAN ASYLUM SEEKER IN CROATIAN SCHOOL CONTEXT }, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {80}, year = {2022}, month = {October/2022}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {708-723}, abstract = {Migrations and migrants have been in the focus of interest and activities of many governments, organizations, and institutions, both worldwide and in Croatia. According to international policies, children who seek or are under international protection have the right to education. To access the education system of the Republic of Croatia more easily, they are given the opportunity to attend Croatian language preparatory or remedial classes. The research aim was to determine the needs and challenges posed by the inclusion of a Syrian asylum seeker in a Croatian primary school. The qualitative approach was applied. The case study presents a ten-year-old Syrian girl, attending a primary school in Zagreb. The data were gathered with the use of semi-structured interviews with the girl{\textquoteright}s sister, teachers in the primary school, and her classmates. In order to gain a deeper insight into the girl{\textquoteright}s functioning in the school context, notes made by teachers during observation of the girl{\textquoteright}s performance in the course of the educational process were gathered and analysed. Guidelines and recommendations were developed that could have a positive impact on quality inclusion of children refugees and asylum seekers in the Croatian education system. }, keywords = {children asylum seekers, educational process, qualitative research}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/22.80.708}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2022/457-1667682935.pdf}, author = {Irena Klasni{\'c} and Marina {\DJ}uranovi{\'c} and Marina Lucin} } @article {1435, title = {A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF COHESIVE SPEECH RESEARCH OF PRESCHOOLERS FROM 1970 TO 2020}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {79}, year = {2021}, month = {August/2021}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {611-625}, abstract = {Cohesive speech has commonly become regarded as one of the essential aspects of language development, especially for pre-schoolers. This study aimed to shed light on the cohesive speech of pre-schoolers (CSP) knowledge base. Three hundred ninety-five publications close related cohesive speech research of 5-6-year-old children were collected from the Scopus database. By using the bibliometric approach, the results showed the growth rate of publications over time from 1970 to 2020. In this period, the top five countries, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Brazil and France, have published over 60\% of total documents. Besides, four main interests of authors in this field were discovered: {\textquotedblleft}language development{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}speech pathology outcomes{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}speech therapy{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}language intervention{\textquotedblright}. Among these themes, {\textquotedblleft}speech pathology outcomes{\textquotedblright} was the most relevant one. Another finding, in recent years, scholars focused on aspects of autism spectrum disorder of pre-schoolers. More importantly, the achievements of this discipline have considerably made positive contributions to various fields both in terms of theory and practice, especially in language and linguistics, speech and hearing, psychology, and medicine. Overall, these studies highlight the need for many other studies, particularly relevant to pre-schooling when new generations should be better prepared to be happy in school by their future cognitive developments.}, keywords = {language development, language intervention, speech pathology outcomes, speech therapy}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/21.79.611}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1628687277.pdf}, author = {Ly Thi Bac La and Nga Thi Thu Nguyen and Anh Thi Thuy Truong and Thu-Giang Tran and The-Thang Nguyen} } @article {1409, title = {CORRELATES OF SCIENCE CLASSROOM TEACHING WITH SOUTHEAST ASIAN AND EAST ASIAN EIGHTH GRADERS{\textquoteright} SCIENCE ACHIEVEMENT IN TIMSS 2015 }, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {79}, year = {2021}, month = {June/2021}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {425-450}, abstract = {Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is an international comparative study that has been implemented by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) since 1995. This proposed study is aimed to identify the correlations of science classroom teachings with eighth graders{\textquoteright} science achievement in TIMSS among Southeast Asian and East Asian countries. The freely downloadable secondary data were analyzed using IEA{\textquoteright}s International Database (IDB) Analyzer (version 4.0) for TIMSS, a plug-in for SPSS. TIMSS uses an imputation methodology, involving plausible values, to report student performance. This study found that countries with higher average science achievement allocated higher percentage of educational hours for science teaching, students were taught the TIMSS science topics, students attended schools with science laboratories and have assistance available when conducting experiments, computer availability during science lessons, with science teachings were not limited by student needs, and less frequency of student absences. Based on the research findings, policy recommendations were made to the Malaysian Ministry of Education to boost Malaysian eighth graders{\textquoteright} science performance in the forthcoming TIMSS assessments. }, keywords = {classroom teachings, comparative study, science achievement, TIMSS}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/21.79.425}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1623676864.pdf}, author = {Yoon Fah Lay and Khar Thoe Ng} } @article {1363, title = {DRAWINGS TO LEARN SCIENCE: SOME REFLECTIONS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {79}, year = {2021}, month = {April/2021}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {192-193}, abstract = {Teacher needs to reinvent himself or herself all the time, proposing activities in the classroom that enable students to build and reconstruct knowledge. Particularly in science, this knowledge is mediated through scientific models, often inaccessible to students{\textquoteright} understanding. For the comprehension of a chemical reaction, for example, the student is invited to imagine how the interactions between the particles would be, the atomic rearrangement, totally abstract thought and based on models, often expressed by visualizations, that need to be constantly constructed and reviewed by students. However, how to revise these abstract concepts? What strategies could be used? The answer to these questions is complex, but we would like to propose a reflection on the use of drawings, as a possibility, among so many existing ones.}, keywords = {metacognition, metavisual activity, pandemic isolation, self-regulation}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/21.79.192}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1617434387.pdf}, author = {Locatelli, S. W.} } @article {1432, title = {ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS OF CIVIL ENGINEERS IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIETY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {79}, year = {2021}, month = {August/2021}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {568-584}, abstract = {In the context of the man-made burden on the natural environment, the issues of developing civil engineering students{\textquoteright} environmental awareness are important and particularly relevant to low environmental security countries, which include Ukraine. The authors emphasize the need for broad implementation of the Concept of Sustainable Development in professional training of civil engineering students, determine the level of their environmental awareness, compare the levels of formation of environmental awareness components, and pursue to identify effective ways to environmentalize engineering training. The study involved the students of Donbas National Academy of Civil Engineering and Architecture. The authors selected the semi-structured questionnaire method combining rating, Likert and importance scales, alternative and unstructured questions, as well as elements of the Azapagic and the Naturafil techniques. The results did not prove the formation level of the civil engineering students{\textquoteright} environmental awareness to be unsatisfactory. It was also found that the civil engineering students have steady environmental beliefs and are willing to comply with environmental norms in their activities. This fact brought the authors to the conclusion that the current practice of higher technical education in Ukraine takes account of sustainable development. The level of the civil engineering students{\textquoteright} environmental knowledge was also determined as sufficient, while their environmental activity and environmental management skills were seen as low. According to the authors, the use of integrated and practice-oriented approaches to teaching professional subjects and the introduction of environmental topics into general education subjects will contribute to strengthened environmentalization of professional training of civil engineers.}, keywords = {civil engineer, environmental awareness, higher school, sustainable development, technical education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/21.79.568}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1628686998.pdf}, author = {Inna Khyzhniak and Vasyl Kravets and Larysa Lysak and Vita Hryhorieva} } @article {1348, title = {PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS{\textquoteright} OPINIONS TOWARDS MUSICALLY GIFTED STUDENTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {79}, year = {2021}, month = {February/2021}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {133-161}, abstract = {Primary school teachers have an important role in the early identification and further development of a child{\textquoteright}s musical giftedness. The research was aimed to examine the opinions of primary school classroom teachers (N = 1130) employed in Croatian primary schools regarding conceptualization of musical giftedness and its impact on identification of musically gifted students. Furthermore, their opinions about the support of parents, professional team and collective as well as competencies for recognizing and further development of the child{\textquoteright}s musical giftedness were investigated. Although most respondents assess their competencies in identifying musical giftedness, most of the surveyed teachers, especially younger ones, are willing to be additionally trained in this area. They stated that the existing curriculum should be expanded and enriched and stressed the need for more support from the expert assistants (psychologists and pedagogues). In addition to the teachers{\textquoteright} age, their title (teacher, teacher mentor and teacher advisor) also proved to be a significant factor in the identification and development of a child{\textquoteright}s musical giftedness. Findings of research have implications for theory and practice of primary school teacher{\textquoteright}s music education and education for work with gifted children both during their higher education and lifelong learning. }, keywords = {musical giftedness, musically gifted students, primary school teachers, Republic of Croatia}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/21.79.133}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1612722374.pdf}, author = {Vesna Svalina and Ba{\v c}lija Su{\v s}i{\'c}, B. and Goran Lapat} } @article {1428, title = {REFLECTING UPON FAKE NEWS IN TODAY{\textquoteright}S POST-TRUTH ERA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {79}, year = {2021}, month = {August/2021}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {513-515}, abstract = {We are living in an era, in which people are constantly asking themselves: how can anyone believe this news that is clearly false? Reflecting on this, a brief reflection on some factors that can influence people to take this kind of news into account is brought here, as well as presenting an example of Fake Science that circulated on social networks in 2020 in Brazil, during the pandemic context. First, it can be considered that a significant objective in Science Education is making students scientifically literate, prepared for appropriate decision-making. Chassot (2003, p. 19) considers scientific literacy as {\textquotedblleft}the set of knowledge that would make it easier for men and women to read the world in which they live{\textquotedblright}. Leung (2020) adds that, nowadays, it is very important to recognize the veracity of information, differentiating it from fake news, which also encompasses the concept of scientific literacy, which brings us to the statement by Gomes et al. (2020) on media literacy, so that citizens can connect more to facts and less to emotions in understanding the news. }, keywords = {Fake Science, reflective view, social networks}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/21.79.513}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1628686646.pdf}, author = {Locatelli, S. W.} } @article {1340, title = {WRITING A SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE: FOCUSED DISCUSSION AND RATIONAL CONCLUSIONS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {79}, year = {2021}, month = {February/2021}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {4-12}, abstract = {Writing a scientific article does not end with a description of the summarized results. Conclusions and implications remain a crucial part of the article. The previous papers portrayed the most important aspects of the title, summary (Lamanauskas, 2019a), accurate introduction (Lamanauskas, 2019b) and research methodology (Lamanauskas, 2020a) of the article and discussed the features of the presented results (Lamanauskas, 2020b). Discussion is also accepted as an equally important structural part of the scientific article (particularly in the case of describing an experimental / empirical study). Thus, this section summarizes the results of the conducted study. However, this piece of writing is not intended to provide all possible options for discussion and drawing conclusions due to the fact that the specificity of article preparation varies in each field of science. In addition, it depends on the requirements set by scientific / research journals (or other publications) and publishing policy. Therefore, this editorial more concentrates on the general aspects of preparing the above mentioned parts of the article.}, keywords = {publishing policy, scientific article, scientific writing}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/21.79.04}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1612638492.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1357, title = {AFFECTIVE FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO SOUTHEAST ASIAN AND EAST ASIAN EIGHTH GRADERS{\textquoteright} SCIENCE ACHIEVEMENT IN TIMSS 2015}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {December/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {1107-1125}, abstract = {Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is an international comparative study that has been implemented by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) since 1995. This proposed study is aimed to identify the affective factors contributing to eighth graders{\textquoteright} science achievement in TIMSS among Southeast Asian and East Asian countries. The freely-downloadable secondary data were analyzed using IEA{\textquoteright}s International Database (IDB) Analyzer (version 4.0) for TIMSS, a plug-in for SPSS. TIMSS uses an imputation methodology, involving plausible values, to report student performance. This study found that students{\textquoteright} views on engaging teaching in science (BSBGESL) were negatively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students{\textquoteright} science achievement in Thailand, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, and Hong Kong SAR. Students Like Learning Science (BSBGSLS) were positively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students{\textquoteright} science achievement in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong SAR, and Chinese Taipei. Students Confident in Science (BSBGSCS) were positively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students{\textquoteright} science achievement in Korea, Japan, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Thailand, and Singapore. Students Value Science (BSBGSVS) was positively and significantly contributed to eighth-grade students{\textquoteright} science achievement in Japan, Korea, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, Singapore, and Malaysia. Based on the research findings, policy recommendations were made to the Malaysian Ministry of Education to boost Malaysian eighth graders{\textquoteright} science performance in the forthcoming TIMSS studies. }, keywords = {affective factors, comparative study, science achievement, TIMSS}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.1107}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2021/457-1612880930.pdf}, author = {Yoon Fah Lay and Murugan Rajoo} } @article {1301, title = {AGGRESSIVE SCHOOL COMMUNITIES: TRANSFORMATION OF COEXISTENCE THROUGH ARTIVIST EDUCATION METHODS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {August/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {553-575}, abstract = {The coexistence allows the adaptation of the aggressors and assaulted in school communities through artistic interaction techniques. Due to its transformational value, artivist education allows students to be involved in raising awareness of their environment as well as themselves. For this reason, the interest of the research was to determine the benefits of artivism in school coexistence. Three studies based on sustainability, school exchange and meaning analysis were carried out in 80 fifth and sixth grade primary students. Measurement scales and the log of experiences were used, from whose data it was obtained that there was greater sustainability of direct and democratic coexistence from the fourth month of experimentation with activities based on artivist education (Experiment 1), as well as effects on school exchange with greater emphasis on the democratic component (Experiment 2). The conclusions of the research invited to deduce that artivist education allowed coexistence to be made more sustainable through the strategies that subjects adopted from their peers, in turn, direct interaction allowed to propose a formative process of adaptation between assaulted and aggressors. As a contribution, the research highlights the adoption of new forms of student interaction with power groups to the extent of how and how they establish acceptability behaviors in the shared context. }, keywords = {Artivism, artivist education, democratic coexistence, direct coexistence, school communities}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.553}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1596902536.pdf}, author = {Holguin-Alvarez, J. and Ledesma-Perez, F. and Monta{\~n}ez-Huancaya, A. and Cruz-Montero, J.} } @article {1289, title = {THE EFFECTS OF INDEXING PROMPTS ON PROBLEM-SOLVING IN CASE LIBRARY LEARNING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {June/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {394-409}, abstract = {Researchers have suggested that case library learning is an effective instructional method that promotes argumentation skills for ill-structured problem-solving. However, little research has examined scaffolding strategies to implement effective case library learning. The aim of this research was to examine the effects of indexing prompts as scaffolds on argumentation skills during problem-solving in case library learning. A quasi-experimental design was employed for the research. A total of 111 first-year students in a university across three sections in a career development course participated in the experiment. Participants were provided with three different indexing prompts: explanation-based indexing prompts (focused on self-explaining anomalies of individual cases), difference-based indexing prompts (focused on self-explaining similarities and differences between cases), and no prompts (allowing spontaneous self-explanations when studying cases). Learners{\textquoteright} argumentation essays comprising initial arguments, counterarguments, and rebuttals were collected. The results found that learners who were prompted to generate mental indices outperformed the learners in the control group when constructing argumentation. More specifically, explanation-based indices were beneficial in making counterarguments and rebuttals, and difference-based indices were helpful when making rebuttals. These findings suggest that indexing cases based on both exploration of the anomalies of each case and comparisons between cases improves argumentation by facilitating case retention, retrieval, and reuse. }, keywords = {argumentation skills, case library learning, case-based reasoning, indexing prompts}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.394}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2537300}, author = {Jongchan Park and Jinju Lee and Dongsik Kim} } @article {1277, title = {INDONESIAN STUDENTS{\textquoteright} ANXIETY TO WRITE IN ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE ACROSS GENDER AND EDUCATIONAL LEVELS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {April/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {249-262}, abstract = {This survey explored the level and types of anxiety expressed by Indonesia students in writing in English as a foreign language anxiety across gender and educational levels. To this end, 221 foreign language (FL) students from three levels of educations, i.e. lower-secondary school, upper-secondary school and university, were surveyed on voluntary basis where they were asked to complete 22 items of a Second Language Writing Anxiety Inventory (SLWAI) questionnaire. Two statistical analyses, Rasch Analysis and ANOVA, were performed to examine the quantitative data. The findings showed that all students experienced writing anxiety in FL learning, many experiencing a moderate level of anxiety. Furthermore, students{\textquoteright} writing anxiety was not influenced by gender and educational levels. Indeed, students across all education levels reported experiencing somatic anxiety, avoidance behaviour and cognitive anxiety, with avoidance behaviour being the most common form of anxiety. In conclusion, it is recommended that helping students to develop a positive perception of their FL writing is crucial in addition to helping them develop their writing skills.}, keywords = {foreign language (FL) learning, foreign language anxiety (FLA), Rasch model, writing anxiety}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.249}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1587022688.pdf}, author = {Herri Mulyono and Anggi Rizky Liestyana and Silih Warni and Gunawan Suryoputro and Sri Kusuma Ningsih} } @article {1311, title = {OBJECTIVE STRUCTURED CLINICAL EXAMINATION (OSCE) AS A RELIABLE EVALUATION STRATEGY: EVIDENCE FROM A BRAZILIAN MEDICAL SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {October/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {674-687}, abstract = {The new curriculum of medical schools has brought the need to develop a professional committed to ethics, capable of understanding the role of social factors, the insertion of the individual into the family and their role in promoting health. These skills and the use of new methodologies in teaching-learning process have demonstrated that the traditional performance assessment methods are limited in holistically evaluating the student. This study analyzed the correlation among different methods for evaluating competencies in medical internship students and Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). A cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study was performed among 5th year medical students at Pediatric, Surgery, Medical Clinic, Family and Community Medicine and Gynecology and Obstetrics. Grades of each student obtained through different evaluations (theoretical test, conceptual evaluation and test skills) at the end of each rotation were correlated with the individual results from OSCE. In regard to correlations with the OSCE score values, it was found a weak to moderate positive and statistically significant relationship with the global cognitive score (r= .22, p< .001), global abilities score (r= .26, p< .001) and with the global behavioral score (r= .38, p< .001). The students{\textquoteright} performance in the various assessments of performance evaluated here was positively correlated to their performance on OSCE. Furthermore, the organization of an OSCE-type assessment prepared in multiple, committed and competent hands may serve as a unique assessment and, in fact, assess the development of clinical skills for future doctors.}, keywords = {educational measurements, higher education, medical education, objective structured clinical examination}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.674}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1600951390.pdf}, author = {Luciana Castellani and Luiz Fernando Quintanilha and Maria Belen Arriaga and Lourdes Lima, M. and Bruno Bezerril Andrade} } @article {1271, title = {SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE PREPARATION: METHODOLOGY DESCRIPTION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {April/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {136-146}, abstract = {Scientific (academic) writing is continuous activity of every scientist (researcher), and therefore needs to be regularly advanced. Thus, it should be wrong to assume that writing proficiency is achieved once and for all. The skills of academic writing are essential for the independent acquisition of scientific knowledge and for disseminating the acquired information, i.e. sharing knowledge with others. On these grounds, it is worth remembering that a fully completed research paper, the clear results of the conducted research and specific and valid conclusions act as prerequisites for writing a good scientific article etc. Another trivial but important point is that writing an article (or other research paper) is barely a study itself, but only the presentation, dissemination and publicity of the findings. Consequently, even properly carried out research (exploration, examination etc.) and the obtained significant results may fail to be appropriately presented, and the importance of the produced results may simply {\textquoteleft}disappear{\textquoteright} in a poor description.}, keywords = {analytical reading, scientific (academic) writing, scientific community}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.136}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1587022083.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1306, title = {THE STATUS OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES IN VIETNAM: A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS FROM CLARIVATE WEB OF SCIENCE DATABASE BETWEEN 1991 AND 2018}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {August/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {644-662}, abstract = {Since 2013, Vietnam has implemented a plan to reform the whole education sector. However, there is little understanding on the status of educational research in Vietnam, which may lay the foundation for such plan. Thus, this research aims to analyze the whole picture of educational research from Vietnam, as seen from the Clarivate Web of Science (WOS) database: 215 publications were recorded, ranging from 1991 to 2018. These 215 publications were further analyzed from five perspectives: 1) number of publications by year; 2) research fields and levels of education; 3) top institutions with the highest number of publications; 4) international collaboration; and 5) quality. Some of the most notable results are: 1) the educational sciences in Vietnam have been still under-developed until recently; 2) among different research topics research among educational sciences, some (e.g., Vocational Education and Training or Early Childhood Education) seemed to be overlooked whereas others (e.g., Higher Education and Teaching and Learning) seemed to receive more attention from educational scholars; 3) all the most major education {\textendash} specialized universities did not appear among the top five institutions with highest number of publications; 4) Australia, Thailand, the USA, New Zealand and China were the countries with the highest number of co-publications with Vietnamese researchers; and 5) The majority of publications belonged to low-ranked journals. Implications would be withdrawn for Vietnamese policymakers, education leaders, educational researchers and teachers in order to adjust their policies and/or action plans; thus, enhancing the performance and impacts of educational research in the future.}, keywords = {academic database, bibliometrics analysis, Clarivate WOS, educational sciences, international publishing, Vietnam}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.644}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1596902896.pdf}, author = {Quan-Hoang Vuong and Minh-Trang Do and Thi-Van-Anh Pham and Thi-An Do and Phuong-Thuc Doan and Anh-Duc Hoang and Thu-Hang Ta and Quynh-Anh Le and Hiep-Hung Pham} } @article {1317, title = {TEACHERS{\textquoteright} AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING OF STUDENTS{\textquoteright} CONTENT KNOWLEDGE OF GEOMETRIC SHAPES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {October/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {777-798}, abstract = {Few research studies have been conducted in a primary school in early mathematical education about the teaching of geometry. This research aims to contribute with knowledge of how teachers{\textquoteright} awareness and understanding of necessary conditions to enhance students{\textquoteright} abilities to discern two- and three-dimensional shapes develop. In this research, qualitative methods were used to analyse data from a lesson study in grade 4 in the subject of mathematics. Data were primarily collected through audio-recorded conversations with teachers before and after the lesson, and the results of students{\textquoteright} pre- and post-test. The results of this research showed increased awareness of using collaboration opportunities to apply professional classroom instructions and activities to enhance students{\textquoteright} knowledge of two- and three-dimensional shapes. This research elucidates how the practice-based professional development approach emphasised the teachers{\textquoteright} teaching targets for understanding students{\textquoteright} content knowledge of geometric shapes. Additionally, the result highlighted teachers{\textquoteright} awareness and understanding of the challenges students face in learning about three-dimensional shapes from two-dimensional representations. Future research should develop a more iterative and revised research lesson design to develop more powerful content knowledge and classroom activity in this topic area. }, keywords = {early mathematics education, geometric shapes, lesson study, practice-based professional development}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.777}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1600951875.pdf}, author = {Balli Lelinge and Christina Svensson} } @article {1299, title = {TOWARD A MODEL OF UNIVERSITY-REGIONAL SURROUNDINGS COLLABORATION IN MEXICO, AND SURELY LATIN AMERICA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {August/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {516-532}, abstract = {This study aimed to examine the institutional and organizational characteristics of Mexican state public universities{\textquoteright} outreach with the surrounding area, by identifying and comparing best practices to design a new model for collaboration with the environment. The central question was: {\textquotedblleft}What are the regulatory foundations for the planning and educational philosophies that underpin the outreach approaches of public universities in Mexico?{\textquotedblright} In methodological terms, this research was of a qualitative nature, and used institutional documents as its main data. It was a documentary review of regulations, planning documents, educational models, and organizational structure of the nine universities considered. Qualitative evidence was collected through deductive content analysis, on the basis of preconceived theoretical and conceptual precepts that guide the search for and analysis of documentary information. One key finding was that the regulations of the institutions examined did acknowledge the importance of strengthening ties between the university and the regional surroundings but were ambiguous in their definition of collaborative activities. In most universities, outreach was seen as a support for teaching and research, and its importance was not acknowledged. This is why it is necessary for universities to make promoting economic and social development a substantive function, to be reflected in specific regulations for outreach. Similarly, greater visibility is needed in organizational structures to position outreach within universities{\textquoteright} roles and activities. }, keywords = {collaboration, deductive content analysis, documentary review, regional impact}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.516}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1596902393.pdf}, author = {Rodolfo Garc{\'\i}a Galv{\'a}n and Juan Carlos Rodr{\'\i}guez Mac{\'\i}as and Alicia Alel{\'\i} Chaparro Caso L{\'o}pez} } @article {1314, title = {USEFULNESS OF MOBILE TEACHING AND LEARNING AS PERCEIVED BY ROMANIAN AND LITHUANIAN SCIENCE TEACHERS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, month = {October/2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {719-733}, abstract = {With the explosion of mobile technologies, mobile teaching and learning became an important educational challenge. Since both teachers and students are increasingly using mobile devices in their everyday life, the question is why so little progress has been made in this direction. Clearly, the initiative of introducing mobile technology in class should come from teachers. Existing research shows a large diversity of factors that are influencing their perception as regards the usefulness and opportunity of mobile teaching and learning. This research aims to understand the extent to which the expectancy of increased students{\textquoteright} motivation and better understanding are influencing the perception of mobile teaching usefulness. A structural model has been developed and tested on two samples of science education teachers, one from Romania and the other from Lithuania. The results show that the expectancy of a better understanding of lessons by students has an important effect on the teachers{\textquoteright} perception of mobile teaching and learning.}, keywords = {educational usefulness, learning motivation, mobile learning, mobile teaching, pilot research}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.719}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1600951632.pdf}, author = {Gabriel Gorghiu and Costin Pribeanu and Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta Slekiene} } @article {1296, title = {WRITING A SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE: DESCRIBING RESULTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {78}, year = {2020}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {472-485}, abstract = {The presentation of research results is definitely an important part of any scientific article. On the one hand, the findings of the conducted research should be explained in as much detail as possible, whereas on the other, the obtained results must be clear, understandable and relevant. The previous editorials analysed the elements of a scientific article such as the title and summary (Lamanauskas, 2019a), introduction (Lamanauskas, 2019b) and the description of methodology (Lamanauskas, 2020). This editorial briefly discusses the optimal presentation of research results treated as one of the most interesting stages in preparing a scientific article and requires effort, intensive work and creativity. Alternatively, both methodology and research results (empirical research in particular) are considered the most important parts of a manuscript (Fox \& Jennings, 2014). As expected, many important points related to the description of research results are given in APA 7th. ed. (2019), and therefore are not intended to be discussed in detail. Although APA standards are widespread, other criteria are also admitted by scientific community and focus in this editorial is more oriented on the practical subjects of academic writing and the most common mistakes.}, keywords = {research results, reviewer-author communication, scientific writing, visualizing results}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/20.78.472}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2020/457-1596902185.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1256, title = {MULTIVOCAL DIDACTIC MODELLING: COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH REGARDING TEACHING AND CO-ASSESSMENT IN SWEDISH PRESCHOOLS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {77}, year = {2019}, month = {December/2019}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {806-834}, abstract = {In Swedish preschools teachers seem to struggle with the concept of {\textquotedblleft}teaching{\textquotedblright} in their day-to-day practices. A three-year collaborative research project involving preschool teachers, managers and researchers therefore aimed to describe and further develop knowledge about what could characterize teaching and co-assessment based on scientific grounds and proven experience. The research was carried out in between 93 and 137 preschools/or preschool departments in ten municipalities in Sweden between 2016 and 2017. The method was based on a praxiographic approach where preschool teachers tested four different theory-informed teaching arrangements. The material consisted of about 895 co-plans, 740 co-evaluations and 110 hours of video. Analysis was based on a didactic premise and can be methodologically described in terms of abductive analysis. The analysis was merged and tested in a communicable entity through the {\textquotedblleft}multivocal didactic modelling{\textquotedblright} concept. The results indicated that teaching is modelled through co-assessment. Multivocal traces related to didactic questions and didactic levels emerge from theory-informed teaching arrangements. The research stands to make a highly significant contribution to knowledge development concerning teaching and co-assessment in preschool. Theory-informed teaching arrangements, with integrated didactic models, have been tried and shown to support teachers in conducting teaching that is based on scientific grounds and proven experience. The concept {\textquotedblleft}multivocal didactic modelling{\textquotedblright} paves the way for alternative (meta)theoretical trajectories for critical reflection and for more cohesive and finely tuned teaching. In conclusion, the contribution to the development of knowledge can be described in terms of theory-informed practical development and practically grounded conceptual development.}, keywords = {co-assessment, didactic models, multivocal didactic modelling, preschool education, Swedish preschools, teaching arrangements}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/19.77.806}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2019/457-1575642882.pdf}, author = {Vallberg Roth, A. C. and Ylva Holmberg and Camilla L{\"o}f and Catrin Stensson} } @article {1253, title = {PRINCIPALS{\textquoteright} ROLE IN MANAGING TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THROUGH A TRAINING NEEDS ANALYSIS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {77}, year = {2019}, month = {December/2019}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {758-773}, abstract = {Despite South Africa{\textquoteright}s high spending in education compared to other sub-Saharan countries, its education system is often criticized as ineffective as evidenced by poor student outcomes in both national and international assessments. This educational inefficiency is often linked to poor teacher quality, particularly in mathematics and science where some teachers are considered to have content knowledge below the level at which they are teaching. The researchers interviewed five primary school principals in KwaZulu-Natal on the training needs analysis methods they used to identify the training needs of foundation phase teachers. They all reported that they only used the Integrated Quality Management System template provided by the Department of Basic Education. However, they did not use it optimally due to a lack of comprehensive knowledge of how it should be implemented. In order to address this, it is recommended that principals should receive thorough training on the implementation of the Integrated Quality Management System, and that training needs analysis should be conducted on a quarterly basis rather than once a year.}, keywords = {integrated quality management system, interpretive paradigm, professional development, training needs analysis}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/19.77.758}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2019/457-1575642686.pdf}, author = {Millicent Ngema and Mapheleba Lekhetho} } @article {1247, title = {SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE PREPARATION: A COMPREHENSIVE INTRODUCTION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {77}, year = {2019}, month = {December/2019}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {688-694}, abstract = {Writing and publishing scientific articles (research, review, position etc. articles) are referred to as responsible academic activities. Any scientist/researcher is somehow involved in scientific writing. Thus, this is a technique assisting the researcher with demonstrating individual performance. Most of the main scientific/research journals are published in English, and therefore scientific information is made internationally available by a wide audience and actually becomes accessible to every scientist and/or researcher. On the other hand, a valid point is that scientific/research journals are published in different national languages. Nevertheless, it should be noted that science policy has recently become one-dimensional and resulting in a blind orientation towards support for scientific/research journals published in English. As noted by Poviliunas and Ramanauskas (2008), national languages face a legitimate risk of becoming domesticated and to one degree or another being excluded from scientific, cultural, education and public areas of life. However, this is material for another discussion.}, keywords = {academic publishing, comprehensive introduction, scientific writing}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/19.77.688}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2019/457-1575642232.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1225, title = {SCIENTIFIC ARTICLE PREPARATION: TITLE, ABSTRACT AND KEYWORDS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {77}, year = {2019}, month = {August/2019}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {456-462}, abstract = {Scientific article writing is undoubtedly an inseparable part of academic activity. Every researcher/scientist, in one way or another, has to declare scientific research activity results, i.e., to publish in scientific press. If this is not done, it is considered that a scientific work is not finished regardless of the size of the research/experiments carried out and so on. Such information has to be completely understandable not only in the academic environment but also in society. Publications in the international and independent science journals acknowledged in the academic community show the real value of the scientist and his works. This does not mean in any way that the other level publications are not necessary (Lamanauskas, 2013). Every publication has its auditorium, purpose, aims and so on. Regardless of the type of publication broadly speaking, it has to be appropriately prepared. }, keywords = {academic activity, academic environment, academic literacy, scientific writing}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/19.77.456}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2019/457-1566969025.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1145, title = {CO-REGULATION PROCESSES WITHIN INTERACTIVE DYNAMICS: INSIGHTS FROM SECOND GRADERS{\textquoteright} COOPERATIVE WRITING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {August/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {425-436}, abstract = {This research aims at analyzing the features of interactive dynamics in second graders{\textquoteright} peer interactions (age 7-8) during cooperative writing in classroom settings. Focused on in-depth qualitative analyses of videotaped data, four pupil pairs{\textquoteright} interactions have been examined in light of three dimensions: social, cooperative and cognitive. Within two main types of dynamics (favoring vs. not favoring learning), conjectures have been drawn about co-regulation processes in peer learning. While negative dynamics have shown to be detrimental for the cognitive processing of the task, thus needing teacher contextual regulation, positive dynamics have revealed three forms of teamwork, labelled self-reliant, autonomous and dependent. The results show that young learners, even when engaged in positive dynamics, are not always able to co-regulate peer learning. These findings call for teacher{\textquoteright}s careful observation in order to scaffold learners{\textquoteright} cognitive processing.}, keywords = {collaborative writing, cooperative learning, interactive dynamics, learning processes, qualitative analysis}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.425}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1533495354.pdf}, author = {Katia Lehraus and G{\'e}ry Marcoux} } @article {1149, title = {DETERMINANTS OF LATENT PROFILES IN HIGHER-ORDER THINKING SKILLS OF KOREAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {August/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {483-498}, abstract = {Past research on higher-order thinking (HOT) was mainly conducted on the bases of educational context in U.S. or western countries. This research aimed to see what kinds of HOT styles actually appear in universtiy students in South Korea. The use of HOT skills were explored in Korean universtiy students and the factors influencing the classification were examined. 1,138 Korean university students were called to respond to Lee{\textquoteright}s (2016) Higher-Order-Thinking-Scale for Korean University Students (HOTUS). Then, a latent profile analysis and the multinomial logistic analysis were conducted. The latent profile analysis revealed that the use of HOT skills could be classified into four classes (i.e., a lower-order thinking class, a creative-argumentative class, an analytical-caring class, and a higher-order thinking class). Gender, year, and instructional approach were the determinants of latent profile types. However, there were no differences when measured by academic fields. Students with lower years were likely to fall under lower-order thinking class. The probability that men was classified as a caring class was statistically significantly lower than that of women. Students who received lecturer-centered learning were more likely to fall under the analytical and caring class.}, keywords = {higher-order thinking skill, latent profile analysis, multinomial logistic analysis}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.483}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1533495613.pdf}, author = {Soo Eun Chae and Mi-Suk Lee} } @article {1161, title = {EDUCATIONAL POTENTIAL OF ONLINE SOCIAL NETWORKS: GENDER AND CROSS-COUNTRY ANALYSIS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {October/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {620-632}, abstract = {The social media technologies are blurring the boundaries between formal and informal/non-formal learning and provide new educational opportunities. Recent work shows that online social networks provide various kinds of educational support, such as social learning, informal/non-formal education, information, interaction, and collaboration. The aim of this research was to analyze the gender and cross-country differences in the perception of the educational opportunities provided by Facebook. The educational opportunities have been specified as a global factor that manifests along four dimensions: information, collaboration, personal development, and professional development. The model has been tested on two samples of university students, one from Romania and the other from Lithuania. An analysis of invariance has been carried on that shows that the educational opportunities model is invariant across groups. The results showed that female students have a higher perception of the educational opportunities provided by Facebook.}, keywords = {cross-country differences, educational opportunities, gender differences, invariance analysis, online social networks}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.620}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1540320007.pdf}, author = {Gabriel Gorghiu and Dragos Daniel Iordache and Costin Pribeanu and Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1174, title = {RECOGNITION OF INDICATORS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COGNITIVE DIMENSIONS IN TERTIARY EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {December/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {762-778}, abstract = {The aim of the research was to find out what factors influence the development of cognitive dimensions in college students. The following factors were considered: field of study, academic achievement in a selected economic subject and abstract visual intellectual level. The reason for doing this research was to increase the quality of teaching economic subjects across bachelor study fields in the conditions of a practically oriented College of Polytechnics, Jihlava in the Czech Republic. Two fields of study were selected - the economic field - Finance and Management (N = 52 students) and the technical field - Applied Computer Science (N = 30 students). Study plans of both fields included the subject Corporate Economy in the first term of studies. Methodological research was based on the theory of problem-based learning. It was built on a test method that was used to gain data to identify the context of variables with the development of cognitive dimensions in the context of an internationally recognized framework for evaluating the success - the Bloom{\textquoteright}s Taxonomy. Two tests were used to collect the data: (a) a test measuring the abstract visual intellectual level; (b) a non-standardized test to measure students{\textquoteright} achievement in the six cognitive dimensions of the Bloom{\textquoteright}s Taxonomy. The initial knowledge of students was comparable. The data were analyzed by factor analysis, followed by the Spearman and Pearson correlation coefficients. Cognitive dimensions could be grouped into two factors. Factor 1 - Application-Evaluation Dimension that was explained by the dimensions of Knowledge, Application, Evaluation; Factor 2 - Analytical Dimension that was explained by the dimensions of Comprehension, Analysis, Synthesis. The results showed that an individual did not have to be competent in the whole complexity of the Bloom{\textquoteright}s Taxonomy. The development of cognitive dimensions correlated with the field of study, the economic field was correlated with factor 2 and the technical field with factor 1. The development of cognitive dimensions did not correlate with the abstract-visual intellectual level. Factor 2 weakly negatively correlated with academic achievement in the subject Corporate Economy. This means that students who were successful in developing lower-order cognitive dimensions had a weak analytical orientation in the economic area, and vice versa. The results brought by the research will help improve teaching of economic subjects across the two disciplines, especially with regard to the innovation of learning and teaching strategies with a positive impact on the desired cognitive development of students.}, keywords = {cognitive dimensions, logical reasoning, Problem-Based Learning, tertiary education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.762}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1544951884.pdf}, author = {Kate{\v r}ina Berkov{\'a} and Jana Bor{\r u}vkov{\'a} and Lenka L{\'\i}zalov{\'a}} } @article {1106, title = {SCIENTISTS{\textquoteright} PERCEPTIONS ON THE NATURE OF NANOSCIENCE AND ITS PUBLIC COMMUNICATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {February/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {43-57}, abstract = {Some level of understanding of and about nanoscience and nanotechnology (NST) has been suggested as being relevant in up-to-date scientific literacy for all. Research scientists working in these fields are central in current efforts to inform and engage the public in NST. Earlier research has shown that scientists can contribute to authentic science learning, but communication always entails roles that affect the choice of content. This study investigated NST researchers{\textquoteright} views on the nature of their research and their preferences in NST communication. Eight experienced professors working in various fields of NST were interviewed. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews focused on the scientists{\textquoteright} views on 1) the nature of their research, and 2) aspects of NST that should be communicated to the public. Qualitative content analysis of the interviews revealed that the themes the interviewees highlighted when describing their research (interdisciplinarity, size scale, methods, objects, nature of NST in general) were somewhat different from the ones they considered as important for communication to the public (applications and products, risks and benefits, visualizations). The results problematize the simplistic notion that exposure to real scientists would unquestionably enhance the authenticity of science learning. This study gives insight for research and development of science communication, especially scientists{\textquoteright} role and training in it.}, keywords = {authenticity, nanoscience, nature of science, science communication, scientist interviews}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.43}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1519988052.pdf}, author = {Antti Laherto and Frederike Tirre and Ilka Parchmann and Lorenz Kampschulte and Stefan Schwarzer} } @article {1102, title = {TEACHER HEALTH LITERACY: WHY DOES IT MATTER?}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {February/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {4-6}, abstract = {It is obvious, that education is one of the main social factors having influence on health. Health education is most effective at school, because it reaches a man at his most receptive period of life - childhood and adolescence. A demand to live a healthy life is formed not only by family, but also by school. Teachers{\textquoteright} role in health education process is very significant, therefore, their health literacy and health competence are the main components realising health education at school. During the studies at university pre-service teachers in one way or another develop health competence, however hopefully not enough attention is paid to this, and study process poorly contributes to health literacy improvement, health competence formation. }, keywords = {health competence, health education, health literacy}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.04}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1519987761.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1154, title = {TEACHERS MOTIVATION TOWARDS ASSESSMENT OF THEIR PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {August/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {561-574}, abstract = {A relevant field of research in teacher{\textquoteright}s professional competence assessment is taking the factor of motivation into account, as this enables teachers to differentiate between, i. e. to be aware of the significance of the individual professional competences and their development through their assessment. This research supports the understanding of how important motivation is in the process of the (continual) development of a teacher{\textquoteright}s professional competence, taking his/her perception of the importance of competences in the educational process into account. The emphasis of the current research lays on the perception of the assessment by the selected number of primary and secondary school teachers. The following is the range of teacher{\textquoteright}s motivation perception: 1) motivating, 2) discouraging, 3) unnecessary, and 4) unfair in the process of life-long development of their professional competences. The research aim is to find out the differences in the individual motivational degrees in mutual assessment (motivating, discouraging, unnecessary, unfair, and other) relating to professional competences and find out the differences between the perception of the importance of the respective professional competences in the motivational category. Seven hundred thirty respondents - primary and secondary school teachers from Slovakia {\textendash} participated in the research. The results showed the difference between the perception of the importance of professional competences among teachers who consider assessment to be motivating, discouraging, unnecessary, or unfair concept. Motivation towards assessment supports student-oriented competences, educational process and self-development of the teacher. }, keywords = {educational process, teacher competences assessment, teachers{\textquoteright} motivation, teachers{\textquoteright} professional competences}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.561}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1533495930.pdf}, author = {Eva Stranovsk{\'a} and M{\'a}ria Lalinsk{\'a} and Ivana Bobo{\v n}ov{\'a}} } @article {1129, title = {USING STUDENTS{\textquoteright} VOICE TOWARDS QUALITY IMPROVEMENT OF ANGOLAN SECONDARY PHYSIC CLASSES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {76}, year = {2018}, month = {June/2018}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {289-298}, abstract = {Educational research points to similar learning experiences across different countries, in particular that physical science tends to be an unpopular discipline among students from secondary school. The use of students{\textquoteright} voice to adapt curriculum and implement innovative teaching practice has been gaining relevance towards the effort of potentiating positive and meaningful learning experiences. The present research discusses the voice of 1139 Angolan students from one public school attending the first cycle of secondary education (7th to 9th grade) considering their physics classes. Students{\textquoteright} voice was accessed through the application of a questionnaire which included open and closed questions, some in the format of statements requiring students to indicate their individual opinion. Descriptive statistics to ten specific aspects of their physics classes points to a global scenario of transmissive teaching and a lack of laboratorial and technological resources. Moreover, laboratorial work, suggested in national curriculum to cover topics in Physics, and students{\textquoteright} involvement in assessment seems to decrease from 7th to 9th grade. Identified patterns revealed to be statistically significant. Based on these results three specific recommendations for educational stakeholders are presented. The consideration of students{\textquoteright} voice in curriculum and school management is particularly innovative, not only but also for Angolan contexts and particularly relevant considering that the Angolan curriculum reform is presently under evaluation. Finally, educational researchers around the world may find relevant insights for their own educational challenges taking into account the milestones associated to the fourth goal of the Sustainable Development Goals, which is focused in assuring a quality education for all. }, keywords = {Angola, physics classes, quality education, secondary education, students{\textquoteright} voice}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/18.76.289}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1529089411.pdf}, author = {Maria da Gra{\c c}a Breganha and Betina da Silva Lopes and Nilza Costa} } @article {1094, title = {CAREER IN THE LIGHT OF EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT AND CAREER MANAGEMENT SKILLS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {75}, year = {2017}, month = {December/2017}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {568-580}, abstract = {The career usually refers to individuals{\textquoteright} working life, education and training and to life in general. The studies and reports evaluating the relations between these components mainly justify the power of educational attainment level in gaining employment or higher socio-economic status. In contrast to Bourdieu{\textquoteright}s concept of cultural capital providing the theoretical background of these reports and studies, the concept of career management paradigm shift, elaborated by Jarvis, justifies the power of career management skills over the educational attainment level in gaining employment or higher socio-economic status. Such approach towards the evaluation of someone{\textquoteright}s career entirely overlooks the individuals{\textquoteright} notion of what would be relevant for their working life, education and training or life in general. Secondly, neither the concept of career relevance from the individuals{\textquoteright} point of view nor the career management skills were included when the relation between different career components was evaluated. The survey addressing these two problems was based on quantitative empirical methodology, conducted in 2016 in Slovenia. The non-random sample of 150 men and 468 women, born between 1940 and 1998, was collected through an online questionnaire. Four different variables were set: career relevance, career management skills, social, cultural and economic capital. The indicators of career relevance were built upon various definitions of career. Career management skills were conceptualised according to Law{\textquoteright}s and Krumboltz{\textquoteright}s theoretical discourse of social learning and career learning. Their forms of capital were conceptualised according to the Bourdieu{\textquoteright}s conception of social, cultural and economic capital which is in direct relation to the OECD concept of socio-economic status. Bivariate analysis proved a statistically significant correlation between career relevance from individuals{\textquoteright} perspective and career management skills, educational attainment level, social, cultural and economic capital. However, the multivariate linear regression model confirms that only career management skills and economic capital, as independent variables, influence the dependent variable career relevance from individual{\textquoteright}s perspective. One-way ANOVA proved that employed and unemployed differ statistically significant in the level of career management skills, career relevance, social and economic capital. In this respect, the results imply more systemic approach to career management skills learning in formal education. }, keywords = {career guidance, career management skills, career relevance, policy making, socio{\textendash}economic status}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/17.75.568 }, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1513710549.pdf}, author = {Miha Lov{\v s}in} } @article {1046, title = {COLLABORATIVE LEARNING: USE OF THE JIGSAW TECHNIQUE IN MAPPING CONCEPTS OF PHYSICS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {75}, year = {2017}, month = {February/2017}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {92-101}, abstract = {The aim of the present research was to compare two methodological tools with two groups of pre-university secondary education students (17-18 years old). The experimental group worked constructing concept maps using the jigsaw technique (experimental teaching approach, ETA) on the topic of radioactivity in five sessions of their physics course. The control group worked on the same subject in a traditional teaching method (lecture-based teaching approach, LTA). The research design was quasi-experimental, with 28 students of a school in Extremadura (Spain). The results of a pre-test and a post-test were compared for the two groups. The working hypotheses were: (a) students who work collaboratively in constructing concept maps using the jigsaw technique perform better in learning the topic of radioactivity; and (b) this method fosters a positive attitude of the students towards how the topic is taught. With respect to Hypothesis (a), the results appeared to show an improvement in learning in the experimental group, although without reaching statistical significance. Neither were there any statistically significant differences between the post-test results of the two groups. With respect to Hypothesis (b), most of the experimental group students found the method to be very encouraging; despite the insecurity they felt with something new that they were not used to. The experimental group{\textquoteright}s pre-test and post-test results were strongly correlated (r=0.707), so that the ETA can be regarded as fairly effective since the students learnt more meaningfully and with less effort.}, keywords = {collaborative learning, concept map, jigsaw technique, physics education, teaching radioactivity}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/17.75.92}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1232395}, author = {Luis Manuel Tobaja M{\'a}rquez and Julia Gil Llin{\'a}s and Francisco Solano Mac{\'\i}as} } @article {1052, title = {THE EFFECT OF LEARNING MODELS ON BIOLOGY CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS OF MULTIETHNIC STUDENTS AT SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLS IN INDONESIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {75}, year = {2017}, month = {April/2017}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {136-143}, abstract = {Teachers play an important role in the world of education, including in the process of planning the learning activities. A meaningful learning will be able to provide a good effect on students{\textquoteright} thinking ability. One of the students{\textquoteright} thinking skills that can be empowered is the critical thinking. Critical thinking skills can help a person to face the challenges of a globalized world. This research aimed at revealing the effect of PBL learning model on the critical thinking skills of multiethnic students. The design of this research was quasi experimental in non-equivalent pretest-posttest control group design. This research was conducted on multiethnic students of class XI Science in July-December 2016, in Samarinda, Indonesia. The results of the data analysis showed that learning model had an effect on students{\textquoteright} critical thinking skills. PBL model had a mean score of students{\textquoteright} critical thinking skill 73.81\% higher than that of the conventional learning. Ethnics had an effect on students{\textquoteright} critical thinking skills. The mean score of students{\textquoteright} critical thinking skills of Javanese was 11.94\% higher than that of the Kutai ethnic, and 13.17\% higher than that of the Banjar ethnic. }, keywords = {critical thinking skills, learning model, multiethnic students, problem based learning}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/17.75.136}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1237084}, author = {Didimus Tanah Boleng and Sonya V.T Lumowa and Evie Palenewen and Aloysius Duran Corebima} } @article {1063, title = {LESS TRADITION FOR MORE PROFESSION: AN ATTEMPT WITH THESIS PROJECTS IN PRACTICAL DEVELOPMENT}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {75}, year = {2017}, month = {June/2017}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {252-262}, abstract = {This research scrutinises the question whether an education profile with development-oriented thesis projects in teacher education programs can provide an increased professional relevance without losing scientific quality. The methodology used in the survey can be defined as a participatory approach in which field work, document studies and interviews form the basis for data collection. The suggested activities that students used were development-oriented methods. Before the project{\textquoteright}s implementation, instructional texts and supplementary examination criteria were written with a view to guaranteeing scientific excellence, with the main aim of improving professional relevance. The results show that the course tutor initially had some trouble communicating disposition and structure, which meant that some of the students at first had doubts. Despite this, the summary assessment is that the development-oriented approach implemented with scientific quality enhanced the students{\textquoteleft} readiness for future professions.}, keywords = {action research, education, teacher training, thesis projects}, isbn = {E-ISSN 2538-7111}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/17.75.252}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1498501062.pdf}, author = {Peter Karlsudd and Marianne Dahl and Berit Will{\'e}n Lundgren} } @article {1073, title = {SOCIAL INFLUENCE AND DEPENDENCE IN THE FACEBOOK USE BY ROMANIAN AND LITHUANIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {75}, year = {2017}, month = {August/2017}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {354-365}, abstract = {The time spent on Facebook by university students is continuously increasing. This fact is raising many questions as regards the relation between the social networking websites and the university. The educators are challenged to understand the factors that are driving the adoption of social networking websites, the characteristics of the daily use as well as the positive and negative effects on the university work. The social influence has been recognized as one of the factors that are driving the adoption of information systems. On another hand, the excessive use may lead to addiction. The first objective of this research is to explore the correlation between the social influence and the Facebook dependence. A model with these latent variables has been specified and tested on two samples of university students, the first from Romania and the second from Lithuania. The second objective of the research is to comparatively discuss the measures in each country. A multi-group confirmatory factor analysis has been carried on to test the configural and metric invariance. The comparison of means shows that university students reporting higher social influence have a higher risk of Facebook dependence. The comparative analysis revealed that for both variables, the mean values are higher for the Romanian sample.}, keywords = {e-learning process, Facebook dependence, invariance analysis, social influence}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/17.75.354}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2017/457-1503750787.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Dragos Daniel Iordache and Costin Pribeanu} } @article {1055, title = {STUDENTS{\textquoteright} NEED FOR, AWARENESS, PERCEPTION AND USE OF GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING SERVICES IN FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE, ABEOKUTA, NIGERIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {75}, year = {2017}, month = {April/2017}, pages = {Continuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {170-181}, abstract = {This research investigated students{\textquoteright} needs, awareness, perception and use of Guidance and Counselling Services (G\&CS) in Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB). Simple random sampling technique was used to sample 283 respondents across the ten (10) colleges in the institution. Data were collected with the aid of questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentages, and mean. The questionnaire was subjected to a pilot study that revealed psychometric properties of Cronbach{\textquoteright}s Apha 0.86. Result revealed that 91.1\% of the respondents were aware of G\&CS and 74.6\% of the respondents currently using the services indicated that it was very helpful. The rating of the counselling needs of the respondents revealed that academic issues with a mean of 3.62 ranked first, and exam pressure management had a mean of 3.51 ranked second. Furthermore, the rating of the perception of students on the quality and effectiveness of G\&CS indicated that organized orientation services for fresh students ranked first (mean = 2.55), while effective counselling on personal, social, academic and vocational challenges ranked second (mean = 2.49). The study concluded that the G\&CS needs of the students across the colleges differ due to the dissimilarities in their disciplines across the University. The G\&CS was assisting students to attain competencies needed to overcome academic, career and personal concerns. The fresher{\textquoteright}s orientation service received the highest perception (mean = 2.55) among respondents on the quality and effectiveness of G\&CS in the institution.}, keywords = {guidance and counselling, student awareness, student needs, student perception}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/17.75.170}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1237098}, author = {Abolanle O. Lasode and Olanrewaju O. Lawal and Modester C. Ofodile} } @article {1030, title = {THE EFFECT OF TEACHER INSTRUCTIONS ON PRESERVICE TEACHER{\textquoteright}S DEVELOPMENT OF PEDAGOGICAL CONTENT KNOWLEDGE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {73}, year = {2016}, month = {October/2016}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {45-61}, abstract = {Trying to understand the knowledge base for teaching, the Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) was proposed as the main teacher{\textquoteright}s knowledge. It amalgamates the specific knowledge and it is the difference between a teacher and a specialist. It can be both personal, deriving from practice, and canonical, which is cultural accumulation of what makes a good teacher. To acquire the last, preservice teachers (PSTE) take university classes, where theoretically their apprenticeship could be facilitated by the university teacher. Thus, it is important to understand how the university teacher best exerts his influence on PSTEs. In this paper, we show the impact of the university teacher{\textquoteright}s interventions in the development of PCK based on analysis of a course taught to chemistry PSTE. The research was conducted in a qualitative approach, in a case study strategy. The classes from a chemistry teacher{\textquoteright}s course from a federal university in S{\~a}o Paulo, Brazil were recorded for four months, to follow the development of the PCK. Qualitative forms of assessing the PCK, as CoRe, were used, and the tasks given by the teacher were collected to support the analysis. Our results show that the students{\textquoteright} knowledge integration responds to teacher interventions, particularly when those were customised to each individual. When the intervention was made by means of written exercises the influence on PSTE was lower than orally and when made by peers even lower or null. Being so, teacher{\textquoteright}s interventions could be considered an INUS condition for the development of PCK in those students.}, keywords = {knowledge integration, pedagogical content knowledge, pre-service teacher, teacher formation}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/16.73.45}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1224698}, author = {Brunno Carvalho Gastaldo and Paula Homem-de-Mello and S{\'e}rgio Henrique Leal} } @article {1031, title = {ON THE FACEBOOK DEPENDENCE AND ITS NEGATIVE EFFECTS ON UNIVERSITY STUDENTS{\textquoteright} WORK: A MULTI-GROUP ANALYSIS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {73}, year = {2016}, month = {October/2016}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {62-74}, abstract = {The explosion of social networking websites in general, and Facebook in particular, impacts the educational context both positively and negatively. Too much time spent on Facebook leads to negative effects on the university work of students. The objectives of this research are to measure and analyse the relationship between the Facebook dependence and the negative consequences of the excessive use of Facebook on the university work of students. In this respect, a conceptual model has been tested that has two inter-correlated latent variables: the withdrawal syndrome, measuring the Facebook dependence and the negative consequences onto the university work. The analysis of results has been done onto three groups featuring the user{\textquoteright}s profile according to the network size (number of Facebook friends) of students. The findings show that the larger the Facebook network, the higher the frequency and duration of Facebook use. The analysis of measurement invariance shows that the model exhibits factorial, metric, and scalar invariance on the three user profiles. The comparison between groups shows that students having larger networks and spending more time on Facebook have a higher level of dependence and their university work is more affected.}, keywords = {e-learning process, educational value, formative measurement models, motivation to learn}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/16.73.62}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1224699}, author = {Gabriel Gorghiu and Costin Pribeanu and Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {1037, title = {IMPACT EVALUATION OF TWO MASTER COURSES ATTENDED BY TEACHERS: AN EXPLORATORY RESEARCH IN ANGOLA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {74}, year = {2016}, month = {December/2016}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {49-60}, abstract = {The present research aims to evaluate the impact of two master courses offered by one public higher education institution in Angola on the professional development of Angolan teachers and also on the broader educational community. The two courses were attended by 393 teachers. The data of 45 answered questionnaires and six verbatim transcripts of individual semi-structured interviews were analysed. According to the teachers perspective the courses contributed to teachers{\textquoteright} personal growth and changes of practices, as well as improved students{\textquoteright} learning (micro context of impact). Although to a lesser extent, impact on broader contexts was also identified, indicating that changes occurred also within other teachers and elements of the surrounding school community (meso context of impact) as well as the community of educational research (macro context of impact). The results in discussion are of relevance for further investment on post graduation courses (master level) for teachers offered by higher education institutions. Outlined recommendations could potentially contribute to impact enhancement (and understanding) of academic post-graduation courses{\textquoteright} attended by in-service teachers, particularly those integrated in recent higher education systems of post conflict countries, such as the Republic of Angola. }, keywords = {Angola, impact evaluation, master courses, post-graduation, teacher education, teachers{\textquoteright} professional development}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/16.74.49}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1227394}, author = {Betina Silva Lopes and Nilza Costa and Bernardo Filipe Matias} } @article {1003, title = {PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENT TEACHERS{\textasciiacute} CLASSROOM TALK DURING INQUIRY-BASED BIOLOGY LESSONS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {69}, year = {2016}, month = {February/2016}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {37-56}, abstract = {In schools, classroom talk is often dominated by teachers{\textasciiacute} lecturing or asking closed questions followed by teachers{\textquoteright} evaluative feedback. When the teacher presents ideas to students or uses the question-response feedback, the talk is considered as authoritative talk. On the other side, during dialogic talk, the teacher reacts to students{\textasciiacute} views and responses. The important role of the teachers in promoting dialogic classroom talk has been demonstrated in many previous studies. However, little is known about how student teachers use different talk forms, especially in inquiry-based biology lessons which is the focus of this research. The primary school student teachers{\textquoteright} lessons {\textendash} a total of 14 lessons of five student teachers {\textendash} were videotaped and audiotaped. The data were analysed using theory-based content analysis. The results show that the primary school student teachers used more authoritative classroom talk than dialogical classroom talk in their inquiry-based lessons. Mainly, non-interactive authoritative talk form was used by all student teachers, and interactive dialogic talk form was used least. Authoritative talk was used in all stages of the inquiry-based lesson. Dialogic talk was used more during introduction and examination stages. The findings suggest that in teacher education, student teachers need scaffold in talking with pupils when carrying out inquiry-based teaching.}, keywords = {authoritative talk, dialogic talk, inquiry-based lesson, primary school, teacher education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/16.69.37}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1199765}, author = {Matti Hiltunen and Sirpa K{\"a}rkk{\"a}inen and Tuula Keinonen and Markus H{\"a}hki{\"o}niemi and Sami Lehesvuori and Pirjo Tikkanen} } @article {1018, title = {TEACHER-EDUCATOR VERSUS TEACHER-LEADER}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {72}, year = {2016}, month = {August/2016}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {4-5}, abstract = {Recently, in Lithuanian educational discourse there has been a lot of discussion about leadership. This has become so popular phenomenon that quite often one even does not go deep into the most important parameters of this phenomenon. Leadership phenomenon is not a very new thing, having started to be investigated more exhaustively as far back as the second half of the 20th century, however, over the last decade a lot of attention has been devoted to this in Lithuania. One can reasonably assert, that this is even a matter of fashion. During the aforementioned period, various questions such as teacher leadership, leadership development in schools (as if everyone has to be only a leader), leadership influence on organisation management and other have been investigated in one way or another. On the other hand, quite a lot of attention has been devoted to school managers, having in mind that they should not be just managers, but real managers {\textendash} leaders. There is no intention to discuss various leadership concepts or to give any recipes how to turn teachers and managers to leaders. Moreover, there exists a vast diversity of concepts. It is obvious, that poor, ineffective and unsuitable management affects the teachers and the teaching learning process itself. It is logical, that this aspect has to be evaluated, and only people suitably prepared and ready for this should become managers of educational institutions. On the other hand, it wouldn{\textquoteright}t be fair to identify managers and management with leadership.}, keywords = {educational discourse, leadership phenomenon, teacher education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/16.72.04}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=1221614}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {975, title = {A CANADIAN TEACHER{\textquoteright}S PERCEIVED AUTONOMY AND SELF-CONFIDENCE IN THE MIDST OF AN EDUCATIONAL REFORM}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {66}, year = {2015}, month = {August/2015}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {42-53}, abstract = {Autonomy is essential for teachers{\textquoteright} commitment, satisfaction and retention. However, teacher autonomy is consistently being reduced in the current era of reforms and the sharing of global policies. In this narrative case study, the account of one Canadian teacher (Nora) was examined in relation to how an educational reform influenced her work life in terms of her perceived autonomy and self-confidence. The relation between teacher autonomy and self-confidence was addressed, and the ramifications prompted by the fluctuations in both constructs. The findings suggest that the relationship between Nora{\textquoteright}s perceptions of teacher{\textquoteright}s professional autonomy and her self-confidence is complex. Nora{\textquoteright}s self-confidence was strongly related to her perceived autonomy and the reduction of autonomy triggered significant downward spiralling, leading to isolation. Some discussion on the possible ways to help teachers break this downward spiralling is provided. Finally, this research broadens the collection of stories by teachers on challenges introduced by educational reform and gives voice to teachers suffering in isolation.}, keywords = {educational reform, narrative inquiry, perceived self-confidence, Teacher autonomy, teacher isolation}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/15.66.42}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1441442110.pdf}, author = {Audrey Paradis and Sonja Lutovac and Raimo Kaasila} } @article {984, title = {GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE PERCEPTION OF PRESENCE OF, AND SEARCH FOR, CALLING DURING MEDICAL SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {67}, year = {2015}, month = {October/2015}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {52-60}, abstract = {This study focused on the manner in which a sense of calling - presence and search - is perceived by first- and final-year male and female medical students. Differences in level of calling between first-year students and last-year students were predicted, more so for women than for men due to gender bias and family-work integration challenges. A total of 192 medical first and sixth (last) year students at the five Israeli medical schools filled-out a short self-report measure of calling and recorded demographic factors. Discriminate function analysis resulted in one significant discriminate function weighted positively on presence of calling and negatively on search for calling. Group centroids indicate that male medical students perceived presence of calling and search for calling as two poles of a bipolar continuum, whereas first-year students had a distinct feeling of the presence of calling coupled with a low need to search for calling and final-year students had a low feeling of presence of calling coupled with a distinct need to search for calling. In contrast, female medical students - both first-year and final-year - perceived presence and search as two independent dimensions that can coexist. Understanding these differences may be important in helping medical educators find gender-specific ways to maintain and enhance feelings of calling among tomorrow{\textquoteright}s male and female physicians. }, keywords = {Medical Students, presence of calling, search for calling}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/15.67.52}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1449572340.pdf}, author = {Hadassah Littman-Ovadia and Aryeh Lazar and Tamar Ovadia} } @article {973, title = {THE IMPACT OF A PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM ON IN-SERVICE TEACHERS{\textquoteright} TPACK: A STUDY FROM ESTONIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {66}, year = {2015}, month = {August/2015}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {18-28}, abstract = {Recently there has been a considerable interest in the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework for effective technology integration (Koehler et al., 2013). Researchers have been measuring how effective their professional development efforts have been for the development of teachers{\textquoteright} TPACK (Graham et al., 2009; Guzey \& Roehrig, 2009). So far research is based only on short-term courses, so longitudinal studies are needed to examine the TPACK development of teachers across time (Hoffer \& Grandgenett, 2012; Koh \& Sing, 2011). A two-year in-service training program of educational technology (60 ECTS), based on the TPACK framework, was developed at Tallinn University Haapsalu College to support in-service teachers to effectively embed ICT into their classroom teaching. The first group of teachers (n=20) enrolled in the program in January 2014. This paper reports some preliminary findings of a longitudinal action research, the main aim of which is to evaluate the impact of the in-service training program of educational technology on teachers{\textquoteright} TPACK. The key questions for this research were: how do teachers{\textquoteright} perceptions of their TPACK levels change after participating in the training program for a year; which of the seven knowledge domains of the TPACK framework develop more than others; what is the impact of different knowledge domains on teachers{\textquoteright} TPACK perceptions. The TPACK questionnaire developed by Schmidt et al. (2009) was used to measure in-service teachers{\textquoteright} self-assessments of their TPACK during the first meeting of the training program and at the end of the first academic year. The research results revealed increase in all the domains of the TPACK framework. There was significant development of the teachers{\textquoteright} TK and TPACK, but only limited growth in CK and PK. Strong positive correlations were found between TCK, TPK and TPACK in the post-course survey.}, keywords = {ICT, in-service teachers, professional development, TPACK}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/15.66.18}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1441441936.pdf}, author = {Piret Lehiste} } @article {945, title = {PEACE PEDAGOGY OR/AND EDUCATION FOR PEACE: SOME ACTUALITIES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {63}, year = {2015}, month = {February/2015}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {4-6}, abstract = {It seems, that education questions and problems are analysed rather intensively. Educational researches of various sizes and on various subjects are constantly carried out - both at national, regional and international levels. There wouldn{\textquoteright}t probably be a country on this planet, in which such theme researches in one way or another wouldn{\textquoteright}t be carried out. Education is not only interdisciplinary, but a very diverse sphere. Where the man is in action, education is inevitable. If one could have a look at the publications of the education field, one could see that diversity is enormous. Leaders are brought up, career preparation is going on, creativity is encouraged, modern media and ICT are taught to be used, so - called 21st century skills are sought to be educated and so on. To tell the truth, hardly anyone could tell what these 21st century skills are, because hardly anyone could bring oneself to tell what skills will be necessary, let{\textquoteright}s say, in 2050. However, education is such a sphere, that very often various insights, opinions, positions etc. are spread. }, keywords = {continual process, education for peace, education process, peace pedagogy}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/15.63.04}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1430136706.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {910, title = {DEVELOPING A TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMME TO PROMOTE SCIENTIFIC LITERACY IMPROVING A POSITIVE ATTITUDE ABOUT SCIENCE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {60}, year = {2014}, month = {July/2014}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {134-155}, abstract = {Usually elementary teacher education has pitfalls in developing important dimensions of scientific literacy (SL) through science teaching. So, to refine some Teacher Education Program (TEP) characteristics is important to potentiate their positive attitudes towards links amongst science technology and society themes (STS) so that they may improve their students{\textquoteright} SL. This study aims at identifying characteristics of a TEP that promote teachers{\textquoteright} key attitudes about STS and develop dimensions of teaching practice transferral to teachers{\textquoteright} practices to foster their students{\textquoteright} SL. It reports a longitudinal case study (3 years) to refine characteristics of a TEP, answering the questions: a) what features should a TEP have, to improve consistently positive attitudes of teachers about STS?, (b) which gains in teachers{\textquoteright} attitudes towards the STS were obtained from the implementation of TEP? The TEP incorporated, progressively, findings based on literature and other characteristics resulting from improvements, namely: (a) exploring contexts and using materials and equipment from daily routine; (b) developing epistemic practices related with experimental work in open challenge activities; (c) transferable teacher mediation traits. The TEP, with the referred characteristics, allowed teacher to develop important attitudes about: scientific inquiry, willingness to engage in issues related to science and science as a social enterprise.}, keywords = {scientific literacy, teacher education, teachers STS attitudes}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/14.60.134}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1421876900.pdf}, author = {J. Alexandre Pinto and J. Bernardino Lopes and Ant{\'o}nio Alberto Silva and Carla A. Santos} } @article {885, title = {THE ROLE OF PARENTAL INFLUENCES ON THE ECONOMIC SOCIALIZATION OF CHILDREN}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {58}, year = {2014}, month = {March/2014}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {99-107}, abstract = {Knowledge and understanding of basic economic concepts is crucial for the future orientation of children in a world of economy and influences taken in this sphere behaviors. Therefore, the aim of formal and informal economic education is to prepare young people to make independent and smart decisions regarding his or her financial resources. Nowadays, children earlier and earlier begin activity on the market, thus the economic knowledge role increases. Article presents two studies analyzing the relation between parents behaviors and children economic knowledge, understanding of market mechanisms and their decisions regarding money. Study 1 focused on parents informal education activities in the sphere of economics. The research covered a group of 100 respondents (50 pairs {\textendash} parent and a child) and used questionnaires (separately for children and parents) on parents activity in the sphere of economic socialization. As a second part of the study children solved the Basic Economic Test (Walstad \& Robson, 1990) designed to measure the level of economic knowledge among school-aged children. The study 2 analyzed the relations between parents activity connected with economic socialization and children economic knowledge as well as behaviors related to saving, borrowing, lending and repayment of one{\textquoteright}s debt. In this study a group of 52 children took part and filled in a questionnaire on their economic knowledge and behaviors as well as their parents activities concerning economic socialization. Study 1 showed a positive correlation between parents informal education activity in the field of economics and the economic knowledge level of children. Study 2 showed higher levels of economic knowledge and more frequent attempts to earn money among children who receive pocket money. Results of both studies showed that the level of economic knowledge among children whose parents give them pocket money, explain economic issues and talk with children about planning household budget is significantly higher that among children who are not animated by parents. Moreover, parents activity in this field plays a vital role in shaping children{\textquoteright}s first economic activities. }, keywords = {economic education, economic knowledge, pocket money}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/14.58.99}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1420361444.pdf}, author = {Sabina Ko{\l}odziej and Katarzyna Lato and Magdalena Szyma{\'n}ska} } @article {931, title = {SCHOOL PRINCIPALS{\textquoteright} LEADERSHIP STYLE AND TEACHERS{\textquoteright} SUBJECTIVE WELL-BEING AT SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {62}, year = {2014}, month = {December/2014}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {40-50}, abstract = {There is a widely recognized concern over the poor reputation of the teaching profession and lack of attractiveness of the school as a workplace. The aim of this study is to ascertain to what extent the leadership style of the school principal is related to the set of variables describing different aspects of teachers{\textquoteright} wellbeing at the school - teachers{\textquoteright} burnout, job insecurity, teachers{\textquoteright} emotional and cognitive identification with the school and turnover intentions. 305 teachers working in 12 public schools in Estonia were surveyed. Results indicate that the more transformational leadership style prevails over transactional leadership style, the stronger affective and cognitive identification with their school teachers perceive, while the level of teachers{\textquoteright} job insecurity and burnout is lower and they consider the likelihood of leaving their school smaller. Thus, the school principals{\textquoteright} leadership style can be considered as a factor shaping the teachers{\textquoteright} wellbeing at school as well as their emotional attachment to the school as a workplace. }, keywords = {burnout, Job insecurity, Organizational identification, Turnover Intentions}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/14.62.40}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1423570521.pdf}, author = {Mati Heidmets and Kadi Liik} } @article {927, title = {SCIENCE AND MATH TEACHERS{\textquoteright} COLLABORATION: HOW TO DEVELOP IT SEEKING PUPIL{\textquoteright}S SUCCESS AT SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {62}, year = {2014}, month = {December/2014}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {The importance of science and technology is obviously increasing. Such spheres as biotechnology, environmental security, biochemistry, synthetic biology, neurobiology and other have been strongly affected and even changed by science and technology progress. And that affect is growing. It is paradoxical, but over the last decade a decreased youth interest in science and technologies has been observed in many world countries. Speaking about science and math teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration, several important questions arise: {\textbullet} How to develop teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration seeking pupil{\textquoteright}s success at school? {\textbullet} How to plan and project collaboration process? {\textbullet} How to successfully collaborate seeking the pupils{\textquoteright} progress? {\textbullet} How to organise collaborative nets seeking teachers{\textquoteright} work and pupils{\textquoteright} educational success? {\textbullet} How to rally collaborating teachers? Science and math teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration in the educational process would strengthen not only professional teachers{\textquoteright} competence, but would develop collaboration abilities, which are very important seeking much more qualitative pupils{\textquoteright} science and technology education. It would be worth promoting more exhaustive educational research studies on this question and on the basis of them to prepare practical recommendations.}, keywords = {education practice, good educational experience, science and math teachers{\textquoteright} collaboration, science and technology education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/14.62.05}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1423570289.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {932, title = {SPECIAL NEEDS EDUCATION PERSPECTIVES IN THE PRACTICE OF LEISURE-TIME CENTRES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {62}, year = {2014}, month = {December/2014}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {51-61}, abstract = {This study carried out at Linnaeus University in the spring of 2012 where students in a special needs education module problematised the teacher{\textquoteright}s mission with the focus on being able to face differences among children in a pedagogical activity. The aim of the study was to make visible how the teaching and learning of values and attitudes can be promoted in educational practice, as well as to examine student views on including values for leisure-time centre work as stated in the target documents. In the study the students were required to observe activities primarily from the perspective of special needs education concepts referred to as categorical and relational. The results of the observations point to a number of concrete professional pedagogical actions that can be linked to a relational special pedagogy approach.}, keywords = {leisure-time centres, leisure-time pedagogue students, normative method}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/14.62.51}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2015/457-1423570565.pdf}, author = {Berit Will{\'e}n Lundgren and Peter Karlsudd} } @article {833, title = {INCREASING INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE AND TOLERANCE IN MULTICULTURAL SCHOOLS: A TRAINING PROGRAM AND ITS EFFECTIVENESS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {54}, year = {2013}, month = {June/2013}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {39-52}, abstract = {This study reports the implementation of a Training of Intercultural Competence and Tolerance (TICT) for upper-secondary school students and the empirical evaluation of its effectiveness. The TICT program was developed to counteract increasing interethnic conflicts in the North Caucasus Federal District of Russia. It is based on the theoretical and empirical framework of social psychology and cross-cultural psychology. The training effectiveness was assessed by conducting pre- and post-surveys among the training participants. The results indicate that TICT contributes to the development of a positive ethnic identity and the formation of a civic identity among the participating youth. It also increases their optimism regarding the future of interethnic relations in Russia and the subjective level of intercultural competence of majority group youth towards minority cultures. Thus, the evaluation of the training effectiveness of the TICT has shown that the aims of the training have been achieved to a large extent and that the Training of Intercultural Competence and Tolerance can be effectively used to prevent interethnic conflicts and promote interethnic relations in multicultural schools. Suggestions for the practical implementation of the TICT as well as for future research on the training{\textquoteright}s effectiveness are discussed.}, keywords = {intercultural competence, tolerance, training}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.54.39}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1420054089.pdf}, author = {Nadezhda M. Lebedeva and Elena Makarova and Alexander Tatarko} } @article {849, title = {INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES, EDUCATION QUALITY AND CHALLENGES FOR FUTURE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {56}, year = {2013}, month = {November/2013}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {The role of ICT in education on the whole and particularly in science education is a very important topic. The growth is characteristic not only at university level but also at other levels of the education system. It is accepted that ICT makes the process of teaching/learning more effective and beneficial whereas the education system starts functioning faster. The implementation of new technologies in the educational process raises new possibilities for both teacher and learner, enhances education quality and makes the educational process more versatile (Lamanauskas, {\v S}lekiene, Raguliene, 2010). The opinion, that prevails in Lithuania is, that part of the problems related to ICT are determined by technical resources, computer literacy, lack of methodics and methodology, wrong attitude to the usage of technologies in general. Speaking about teachers (they are central part of education process), it is important to form an understanding, that ICT is not a thing in itself, i.e., it is necessary to use, because the others do this and do somewhere else and finally, that it is fashionable. ICT, first of all, is a didactic support seeking better education results. Not only nowadays, but in future as well, ICT have to be attractive for the learners, comfortable to use for the teachers and specially made for teaching/learning purposes. Selection process problem, in didactic respect, will get more acute, because market (producers{\textquoteright}) pressure on education system will, undoubtedly, increase. Profit seeking in any way and by any means has overshadowed the purposefulness of ICT usage in education field, so far. So, is ICT in reality a bridge to future and higher education quality? Thus, the discussed field remains problematic. New, exhaustive, empiric research studies are necessary. }, keywords = {education quality, ICT in education, psychological consequences, technology progress}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.56.05 }, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1420055359.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {507, title = {PROFICIENCY INCREASE BY COLLABORATION WITHIN THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY PROCESS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {52}, year = {2013}, month = {March/2013}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {48-59}, abstract = {In the fields of science and education transnational cooperation has become particularly relevant for developing of contemporary conceptions in education and science. As the first step in such cooperation has been the Bologna process, started on June 19, 1999, when 29 Ministers of European countries signed the Bologna Declaration. The Bologna Declaration promotes education and cooperation being the fundamentals of a peaceful and a democratic society. The European dimension is characterized by student mobility and cooperation between educational institutions in European study programmes. The significance of communication and foreign language acquisition skills is gradually increasing (Bologna Declaration, 1999). A strategic goal for the European Union is to develop the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world capable of sustainable economic growth with a wider variety and better jobs and greater social cohesion. All citizens of European Union countries require foreign language skills, because these skills provide citizens with the opportunity to make use of the free movement to work or to study at one of the EU member states and as such they stimulate the development of a European labour market. As an EU member state, Latvia participates in this process. Improvements should be achieved in teacher education by implementing innovations in the study process.}, keywords = {assessment, didactic modules}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.52.48}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1419412629.pdf}, author = {Diana Liepa and Inta Ratniece} } @article {508, title = {THE RESEARCH AND STUDY PATHS IN THE SECONDARY SCHOOL: THE CASE OF THE POLYNOMIAL FUNCTIONS OF THE SECOND DEGREE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {52}, year = {2013}, month = {March/2013}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {60-71}, abstract = {This analysis introduces the pedagogy of research and questioning the world within the Math classrooms at secondary schools in Argentina by using Research and Study Paths (RSP). The RSP have been proposed by Chevallard in the Anthropologic Theory of Didactic (ATD) to face the mechanistic model of teaching mathematics in secondary school (Chevallard, 2004). The RSP has been previously conceived as part of this research and could enable to cover the syllabus of the three last years of the secondary level (students aged 14 to 18 years old). The RSP has been carried out in courses intentionally selected by the researcher. Two implementations have been performed once a year during three years; with 163 students participating in the whole research. The results of introducing RSP into the classroom, the characteristics of the Mathematical Organization (MO) and the advantages and disadvantages of teaching mathematics based on the pedagogy of research and questioning the world are described in the present work.}, keywords = {polynomial functions of second degree, research and study paths, secondary school}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.52.60}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1419412673.pdf}, author = {Viviana Carolina Llanos and Mar{\'\i}a Rita Otero} } @article {864, title = {SCIENCE PARADIGM AND PUBLISHING ADEQUACY: WHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO READ IN SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {57}, year = {2013}, month = {December/2013}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {A few days ago I had an interesting discussion with my master student who recently had entered our university after his graduation as a bachelor from an Arab university. As usual, I gave him few questions for analysis through reviewing scientific Journals and monographs. It was the easiest way to check what his grades in Diploma are worth of and skills in working on a thesis. In all the cases the first chapter of a thesis is to comprise a scientific analysis of the focal problem and therefore it resembles be an introduction to experimental research, in our case in the field of applied Biochemistry. After years of being a university professor I{\textquoteright}m rather sceptical about students{\textquoteright} ability to offer at the first attempt a proper scientific review that would meet all the requirements (strangely enough, it{\textquoteright}s a matter of consideration for some proposals for a scientific Journal). Still I{\textquoteright}m an acting professor, appointed as the supervisor for the foreign student and should teach him skills of a scientist. It is just a normal practice. I am used to teach and like to do it, and accept the idea the first attempt barely gets you the final result; anyway, I am there to help to overcome the difficulties (which is an approach in Science education that gives students good experience to enable them to work further on more independently. I am used to correct and edit, to teach and explain, to discuss findings and help to do work in a proper way. That{\textquoteright}s just all right, that{\textquoteright}s the process of learning. But in that case, I was absolutely disappointed. }, keywords = {academic writing, scientific reviewing, theoretical education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.57.05}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1420056443.pdf}, author = {Todar Lakhvich} } @article {869, title = {SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITES FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {57}, year = {2013}, month = {December/2013}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {61-78}, abstract = {The use of social networking websites is becoming increasingly popular. While there are many reasons for this, the rapid spread of ICT is one of the most determining factors. New technologies provide various possibilities for education and in relation to social networking websites it is worth emphasizing their diverse possibilities. The functionality of social networking websites is increasing, and this, in its own way, opens many possibilities for the consumers, a factor encouraging the usage of social networking sites. This research relates to the usage of social networking websites. The purpose of the research is to ascertain how university students from a range of European countries (Lithuania, Romania, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Turkey) use social networking websites; how they value them; what opinion they have about various social networking websites; what they know about them. A questionnaire, Social Networks, with 16 questions was used in the research. The breakdown of the questions is as follows: 3 questions were allotted to establishing the characteristics of the respondents and 5 open ended type questions were to possible advantages and disadvantages of SNW. The 6th question was assigned to evaluate the frequency of social networking website usage. A list of 23 main networking websites was presented. The 8th question was to evaluate the functions of social networking websites (e.g., communication, advertisement, friend search, information exchange and so on). In addition, the questionnaire also presented 26 various type statements about social networking websites and respondents were asked to evaluate these by applying the interval Likert scale (from {\textquotedblleft}Completely agree{\textquotedblright} to {\textquotedblleft}Completely disagree{\textquotedblright}). The original questionnaire was translated into the national languages by the local researchers involved in the study. This education research was carried out in 2012-2013, recognizing that it is especially important to understand the essential motives of using social networking websites, to analyze their probable advantages and disadvantages, to make some comparisons among students from the different countries. The findings illustrated that the respondents knew a lot of social networking websites, with the most frequently visited and most popular being: You Tube, Facebook and Google+. The most important functions put forward by the university students were: communication, learning and exchanging information, texting. Gender differences were noted in the case of valuing social networking websites. The university students pointed out the following SN website advantages: (a) the possibility to communicate with many people at one time, (b) to get in touch with the people seen long ago also with the friends and relatives living abroad, (c) the possibility to find proper information and share it, etc. The respondents also noted that SN website had disadvantages. They indicated: lack of information publicity, a lack of privacy, insecurity in presented data, possible lies, deceptions, etc. }, keywords = {comparative analysis, ICT, social networking websites, university students}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.57.61}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1420056732.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta {\v S}lekiene and Loreta Raguliene and Dragos Iordache and Costin Pribeanu and Martin Bilek and Bulent Cavas and Tatyana Mazurok} } @article {829, title = {SOME SKETCHES ON SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {54}, year = {2013}, month = {June/2013}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {It is obvious, that usage of social networking websites is constantly growing. In Lithuania, a rapid growth of usage has been observed in recent years, taking into account local (national) social networking websites as well. Facebook.com is one among 10 mostly visited networks in Lithuania. Lithuanian consumers are not an exception {\textendash} not a small part of them also use several social networking websites. Both in the world and in Lithuania, business takes an active interest in social networking websites. An evident tendency is the expansion of SNW possibilities in business environment. If earlier it was thought that usage of SNW is a waste of time, in the latter years business finds more and more reasons why social networking websites ought to be used. This is marketing, service and product advertisement, new client search, cooperation development and so on. The other thing {\textendash} the amount and the flow of information will certainly not decrease and therefore information usage and management in general, will remain urgent (Lamanauskas, 2012a). Thus, can social networks effectively perform educational functions? Can they become a proper professional development instrument? We can formulate a lot of questions. The phenomenon of social networking websites is new and complicated, rapidly changing. However, not only the question of the use is problematic. Academic community, being inert, hardly accept any innovations. Researchers should focus not only on the students {\textquoteright}interest in and ability to use the Social Networking Websites, but also lecturers{\textquoteright} attitude to the new opportunities. Therefore, exhaustive empirical researches are necessary, seeking to maximally use the SNW providing possibilities for educational purposes.}, keywords = {educational space, social networking websites, university students}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.54.05}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1420053828.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {840, title = {STUDY OF SOCIAL NETWORKS{\textquoteright} DYNAMICS BY SIMULATION WITHIN THE NODEXL-EXCEL ENVIRONMENT}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {54}, year = {2013}, month = {June/2013}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {125-137}, abstract = {The present study is an analysis of the learning activity, which constitutes simulation of networks and studying their functioning and dynamics. The study is based on using network-like learning environments. Such environments allow building computer models of the network graphs. According to the suggested approach, the students construct dynamic computer models of the networks{\textquoteright} graphs, thus implementing various algorithms of such networks{\textquoteright} dynamics. The suggested tool for building the models is the software environment comprising network analysis software NodeXL and a standard spreadsheet Excel. The proposed approach enables the students to visualize the network{\textquoteright}s dynamics. The paper presents specific examples of network models and various algorithms of the network{\textquoteright}s dynamics, which were developed based on the proposed approach.}, keywords = {learning environments, modelling, social networks}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.54.125}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1420054539.pdf}, author = {Ilya Levin and Mark Korenblit and Vadim Talis} } @article {826, title = {USING SENSES AND SENSORS IN THE ENVIRONMENT TO DEVELOP ABSTRACT THINKING {\textendash} A THEORETICAL AND INSTRUMENTAL FRAMEWORK}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {53}, year = {2013}, month = {April/2013}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {99-119}, abstract = {The authors of this paper present a framework developed in a project that explores the use of senses and sensors in environmental education, to develop children{\textquoteright}s abstract thinking. The research started with a brief formulation of a framework that was used to guide the cross-analysis of six case studies, in order to explore its usefulness. This analysis showed that it was possible to teachers to support the development of children{\textquoteright}s abstract thinking by facilitating the use of senses and sensors in inquiry activities; and by scaffolding complex tasks, using concreteness fading, and bridging representations, with different levels of abstraction. The analysis also showed that the assessment of the development of abstract thinking can be based on the analysis of children{\textquoteright}s epistemic practices, like observing, describing, interpreting, and creating multiple representations. Furthermore, the cross-analysis showed that sensorial information was used as a concrete basis to abstraction. After that, an improved framework is presented, showing how senses and sensors may be used in authentic activities to develop abstract thinking: (a) making it possible to observe the unobservable (for human senses), (b) scaffolding the understanding of patterns resulting from the influence of independent in dependent variables, (c) facilitating epistemic practices.}, keywords = {abstract thinking, environmental education, sensors}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/13.53.99}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1419413776.pdf}, author = {Maria Jo{\~a}o Silva and Joaquim Bernardino Lopes and Ant{\'o}nio Alberto Silva} } @article {787, title = {CONSTRUCTING NATIONAL RANKING METHODOLOGY: DILEMMAS, CHOICES, AND DECISIONS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {48}, year = {2012}, month = {November/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {62-80}, abstract = {The Russian universities as well as universities from other countries increasingly compete not only at the national level, but globally. This trend is reflected in growing interest to universities rankings. Despite criticism, rankings outcomes are in demand and influence universities{\textquoteright} positioning in the global higher education area. In Russia several rankings have been recently established, striving to satisfy needs of various stakeholders. However, all these approaches are single dimensional rankings that use a composite indicator and weight coefficients. The article presents a rationale and draft methodology of a multidimensional ranking system in Russia. The authors advocate relevancy of the chosen approach as it allows them to reflect complexity and diversity of the Russian Higher Education system. Drawing on the project outcomes, the authors focus on the national multidimensional ranking methodology concept, choice of indicators, the approbation outcomes, dilemmas and decisions.}, keywords = {higher education institutions, tertiary education institutions, university ranking}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.48.62}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1415392444.pdf}, author = {Marina Larionova and Olga Perfilieva and Irina Lazutina and Anastasia Lopatina and Vitaly Nagornov and Lubov Zavarykina} } @article {687, title = {A CONSTRUCTIVIST APPROACH TO INTEGRATED SCIENCE EDUCATION: TEACHING PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS TO DO SCIENCE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {41}, year = {2012}, month = {April/2012}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-9}, abstract = {Learner-centered approaches to teaching and schooling require supportive policies for preparing effective educators. Moving from constructivist philosophy, psychology and epistemology to the characterization of constructivist teaching and learning environments presents a challenge. Constructivist philosophy does not dictate how one should teach; however, it does make it incumbent upon the teacher to deal with each learner as an individual, to value diversity of perspective, and to recognize that the learner{\textquoteright}s behavior is a direct reflection of his / her life experiences. Bandura (1977, 1986, 1995, 1997), Fullan (1993), and other self-efficacy researchers have concluded that the catalyst for educational reform is the individual teacher and that a teacher{\textquoteright}s behaviors, values, beliefs, and ambition to act may be enhanced or suppressed during student teaching. The competence of natural sciences teachers should be perceived as a system every component of which is fundamental. Natural science literacy is a core that is basically acquired in comprehensive school (natural science education as a component of general education). An appropriate natural science qualification and the level of competence are obtained in higher school. A decisive moment is a permanent improvement of competence during practical activities of the teacher.}, keywords = {constructivist approach, integrated teaching, pre-service science teachers, school teachers}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.41.05}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1409839749.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {709, title = {DIFFICULTIES OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS IN THE ORGANIC CHEMISTRY LABORATORY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {42}, year = {2012}, month = {May/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {74-81}, abstract = {Experimental work supposes a unique opportunity to learn procedural contents. However, the conditions and constraints to learn procedures have not been sufficiently discussed or investigated in a laboratory environment. Students{\textquoteleft} difficulties in organic chemistry laboratory at university are described and explained. A case study (n=15 undergraduate students) was performed. The study was carried out in an actual laboratory class, using different ways for data gathering: 1) A comparison between declarative knowledge of students about experimental work and observations of procedures in class. 2) An evaluation of the effect of laboratory work on the knowledge of students related with the assembly of the apparatus. This research suggests that students{\textquoteright} difficulties in performing experimental work are deeply related to a deficient interrelationship between conceptual and methodological frameworks. }, keywords = {experimental work, learning difficulties, organic chemistry laboratory, procedural contents}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.42.74 }, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1410006387.pdf}, author = {Maria Gabriela Lorenzo and Ana Maria Reverdito and Mercedes Blanco and Alejandra Salerno} } @article {811, title = {DIGITAL TEACHING AND LEARNING CONTENT IN NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION: A CASE STUDY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {50}, year = {2012}, month = {December/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {46-55}, abstract = {Teaching/learning technologies in comprehensive schools are rapidly changing. Increasing amount of information, growing pupils{\textquoteright} learning load raises the need to search for new, more effective teaching/learning methods. For a long time it has been thought, that it is an object of classical pedagogy and further research works are not urgent. However, in the process of rapid development of ICT, traditional pedagogy conception also inevitably changes. So-called {\textquotedblleft}classical pedagogy{\textquotedblright} shifts to {\textquotedblleft}online pedagogy{\textquotedblright}. An adjacent educational trend - a "shift from teaching to learning" is also related with this shift. New computer aids for increasing lesson content interactivity are being created in Lithuanian context. In the cooperation of a publishing house, teachers and scientists, a computer aid for the 5th-6th formers{\textquoteleft} biology lessons, was created. Therefore, a complex pedagogical evaluation research was carried out between January and April, 2011. 20 teachers participated in the digital content testing, who totally gave 577 lessons. In the lessons a) an interactive board (IL) was used, and a lesson content was prepared by Power Point (PPT) slide show or Active Inspire (AcIns) programme; b) projector (S), and a lesson content - by PPT or AcIns. The results, obtained on the basis of qualitative analysis, are presented in this article. It is thought, that the results of this research would contribute to implementation of computer technologies in other countries as well. Research results show, that digital teaching/learning content together with arranged lesson scenarios for the realization of the latter is undoubtedly, an innovative phenomenon in the educational practice. It is necessary to assess the context of the country, to accomplish representative evaluations in the population of Lithuanian students and teachers.}, keywords = {digital content, qualitative analysis, teaching and learning}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.50.46}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1419345741.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta {\v S}lekiene and Renata Bilbokaite and Loreta Raguliene} } @article {725, title = {ESTABLISHING A COOPERATIVE WRITING GROUP AMONG TEACHER EDUCATORS: POSSIBILITIES AND CHALLENGES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {43}, year = {2012}, month = {June/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {119-130}, abstract = {Getting published has become important in academia and also among teacher educators. The purpose of this paper is to investigate potential benefits and challenges when establishing an academic writing group among Finnish teacher educators. The three authors of this paper applied an autoethnographic approach to study the starting points of the writing group. In the group, mentoring and social support were used to share experiences and knowledge about academic writing. Relationships and contributions from all participants were emphasised. Each member was considered equal to the other members. The study demonstrated that writing for international academic audiences was challenging; it was deemed to be both emotionally and intellectually demanding. Many participants described the experiences of tension when allocating time for teaching and writing. Membership in the group provided possibilities for social comparison. The members encouraged self-improvement and allowed other group members to become reflective mirrors. The participants considered their membership in the writing group positively and indicated that it had contributed to their academic writing. On the basis of the project, it is recommended to establish continuing writing groups to promote academic writing and publishing as a central part of teacher educators{\textquoteright} profession.}, keywords = {academic writing, cooperative research, researcher{\textquoteright}s career, social comparison}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.43.119}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1410007502.pdf}, author = {Tuija A. Turunen and Raimo Kaasila and Anneli Lauriala} } @article {675, title = {FLEXIBLE EXAMINATION AS A PATHWAY TO LEARNING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {40}, year = {2012}, month = {March/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {26-34}, abstract = {Previous research in the field of educational development has highlighted the importance of examination in the learning process. In most educational contexts tests and grades are the most important influences on the students{\textquoteright} learning strategies. A well planned examination strategy is seen as contributing to better learning. A test of flexible examination forms was carried out in the Linnaeus University{\textquoteright}s teacher training program in Sweden. During a course in special needs education, 119 teacher trainees were given the opportunity to choose examination method at the start of the course. They were able to choose between four different examination methods and were in addition allowed to propose their own examination method. After the students had been examined they completed an evaluation on their newly acquired and previous examination experience and with the key question being which form of examination was most beneficial to the learning process. The results show that even if the students saw examination as an opportunity for learning and appreciated the option of freely choosing examination method, they did not choose the examination form according to its benefit for the learning process. On the contrary they chose the examination form that they expected to be the easiest path towards high grades.}, keywords = {assessment system, flexible examination, learning process}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.40.26}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408531891.pdf}, author = {Peter Diedrichs and Berit Willen Lundgren and Peter Karlsudd} } @article {711, title = {HOW DO TEACHERS OF PHYSICAL SCIENCES WITH DIFFERENT PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCES USE VISUAL REPRESENTATIONS WITH EPISTEMIC FUNCTIONS IN THE CLASSROOM}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {42}, year = {2012}, month = {May/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {97-114}, abstract = {This study aims to clarify the role of visual representations (VR) on the promotion and development of students{\textquoteright} epistemic practices (EP) in the physical sciences (PS) classroom. The use of VR is crucial for supporting and developing students{\textquoteright} EP (student work in inquiry context). Research questions: (a) how do teachers trigger the use of VR by students in the classroom? (b) What functions can be attributed to VR in PS classrooms? (c) What is the impact of VR on students{\textquoteright} EP? In all questions the dependence on the context and teacher experience will be analyzed. This is a multicase study with five PS teachers, with different teaching experience, from Portuguese basic schools (students aged 13-15 years). Multimodal narratives were used (a description of what happens in the classroom, using several types of data collected). Using open coding analysis, categories were found and then cluster analysis was used to find patterns. Main findings: (a) teacher{\textquoteright}s efforts are the triggers for the use of VR by students, especially the task proposal; (b) VR can be used as an illustration (does not increase students{\textquoteright} EP) or as epistemic mediator (increases students{\textquoteright} EP); (c) all these aspects are dependent on teacher experience. }, keywords = {students{\textquoteright} epistemic practices, teacher mediation, visual representations}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.42.97}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1410006477.pdf}, author = {Elisa Saraiva and J. Bernardino Lopes and Carla A. Santos and J. Paulo Cravino} } @article {698, title = {THE IMPACT OF PRISONER{\textquoteright}S EMOTIONAL RESPONSIVENESS ON EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {41}, year = {2012}, month = {April/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {112-122}, abstract = {This paper reviews the evidence on the impact of the inmate emotional responsiveness on educational outcomes. There are two main reasons why researchers in this field believe in prison education that may reduce a future criminal activity. The first reason involves the impact of the increased cognitive skills and changes in behaviour but the second reason acclaims that participants can learn how to live a crime-free life by participating in education courses. The research aim is to explore the impact of the prisoners{\textquoteright} emotional responsiveness to learning during the learning process at Ilguciema prison. In the research the authors analyse theoretical sources and research data. The research includes the analysis of pedagogical, psycho-pedagogical literature as well as Acts of Legislation. The results were analyzed on the basis of the data from the questionnaires, observation and reflection as well. The results were analysed on the basis of the examination of the interplay of data by means of the quantitative mathematical statistical program SPSS 17.0 (Statistical Package for Social Sciences). In the research pedagogical pre-conditions that foster the inmate emotional responsiveness have been defined. It is concluded that the inmate emotional satisfaction created by steady developmental and educative sessions may provoke emotional responsiveness as well as would diminish the inmate personality degradation; also, the psychological atmosphere would improve in prison cells and the ties with life in freedom/ outside the prison walls would be strengthened as well.}, keywords = {emotional responsiveness, prisoners{\textquoteright} education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.41.112}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1409840387.pdf}, author = {Maruta Sile and Diana Liepa} } @article {707, title = {IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LEARNING BY INCREASING THE STUDENTS{\textquoteright} READING SKILLS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {42}, year = {2012}, month = {May/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {50-62}, abstract = {Recently, the quality of students learning in many European schools has decreased. Various studies and evaluations of the Albanian education system have revealed that Albanian schools have low quality indicators. The reasons for this phenomenon are related to different educational and social factors. One of the factors that has significantly contributed to the low results of the Albanian students is the low quality of reading, which in turn has a direct impact on learning outcomes. This study aims at reflecting the state of reading and its related issues as well as the use of current techniques and strategies which aim to enhance critical thinking through reading and writing. In order to highlight some of the factors that can significantly affect the quality of reading for female / male students in rural and urban areas, around 300 students from 18 schools in 6 regions of the country were examined. Findings and recommendations are presented for the use of new strategies and techniques related to reading and improving the quality of student learning by improving the quality of the reading.}, keywords = {critical thinking, quality of learning, strategies}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.42.50}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1410006235.pdf}, author = {Aljula Jubani and Irena Ndoci Lama and Mimoza Gjokutaj} } @article {806, title = {INFORMATION \& COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY PENETRATION INTO EDUCATION: SOME THOUGHTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {50}, year = {2012}, month = {December/2012}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {Over the last decade the spread of information communication technologies has been growing very rapidly both in quantitative and qualitative meaning. Not only new, innovative technologies, but also various people communication forms based on these technologies have appeared. Here, it is spoken about so-called social networking websites. Their rapid development raises certain anxiousness as well. Education, as one of society life spheres, can{\textquoteright}t stay apart. The penetration of technologies in education is very great. The number of computers and computer technologies is expanding not only in educational offices, but also in the environment of every of us: homes, working places and so on. The youth is a very receptive group of society in this respect, seeking to try the newest technologies as quickly as possible. Technological educators were not the centre of attention, are not and don{\textquoteright}t have to be. The centre of attention is a man and his universal education {\textendash} preparation to be a Man.}, keywords = {educational needs, ICT, penetration of technologies}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.50.05}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1419345484.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {708, title = {LEGAL FRAMEWORK FOR HIGHER EDUCATION QUALITY STATE STANDARDS. A CASE OF ALBANIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {42}, year = {2012}, month = {May/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {63-73}, abstract = {Albania{\textquoteright}s higher education development is very dynamic. Higher education in Albania is being characterized by a massive expansion process and by competition between both the public and private education sectors. The number of higher education institutions has grown fivefold during the last eight years. There are currently thirteen (13) public and forty six (46) private institutions. This article is aimed at the research of analysing the legal framework for higher education quality state standards. This analysis will address three important issues: 1. What is the legal framework for higher education quality state standards? 2. How is the quality assured in higher education institutions? 3. To what extent are Albanian quality standards compared to the European ones? This study is based on an analysis of the domestic and European legislation, interviews with fifteen (15) key persons that are divided into three groups: officials of the Ministry of Education and Science/Public Agency for the Accreditation of Higher Education, officials of the public Higher Education Institution, and officials of private Higher Education in Albania including reports and policy documents. The conclusions of this research article will help in understanding the role of the higher education quality state standards and will contribute to the improvement of the quality legal framework in the country.}, keywords = {higher education, legal framework, quality standards}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.42.63}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1410006344.pdf}, author = {Juliana Latifi} } @article {738, title = {MAJOR TRENDS OF EDUCATIONAL PROCESS IN SCHOOL OF POSTINDUSTRIAL SOCIETY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {44}, year = {2012}, month = {July/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {101-112}, abstract = {The present paper is a theoretical study of the educational system in the coming postindustrial society. The authors propose a conceptual model of that modern educational system. The model represents the approaching new school as a culturological space defined by three planes corresponding to three new phenomena closely related to the modern information technologies. These phenomena affecting the new school are: a) Social Media as a new way of forming social consciousness; b) Personal Identity Online as a new way of forming personality, and c) Data Intensive Science as a new scientific and methodological paradigm. It is shown that each of these phenomena is a result of evolution in three fields: knowledge acquiring, learning process, and science methodology. Development of the educational system/process is considered to benefit from а conflict between two tendencies: socialization and individualization. The paper also discusses digital curation as a novel educational activity which can be born in the new school based on a combined contribution of the above three phenomena. No doubt that education in the social media, within the abundance of various content, and with stimulating the students{\textquoteright} personal identity online - such education should drastically change roles of both the teacher and the students in the new school.}, keywords = {educational system, methodological paradigm, postindustrial society}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.44.101}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1413727023.pdf}, author = {Ilya Levin} } @article {734, title = {MOBILE TECHNOLOGY USED IN AN ADVENTUROUS OUTDOOR LEARNING ACTIVITY: A CASE STUDY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {44}, year = {2012}, month = {July/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {64-71}, abstract = {Digital devices like smart phones, tablets, PDAs and GPS navigators provide teachers in primary and secondary schools with new and attractive chances to teach in a constructivist/constructionist way. The research was aimed at designing an engaging outdoor learning activity based on collaboration and active using of mobile technology. The suggested learning activity was inspired by a real-world treasure hunting game called Geocaching and was realized with 2 groups of pupils aged 10-14. Children used a GPS-enabled PDA to navigate from their current location to another. They encountered various types of problems while collecting hints needed to calculate the final location of a hidden container. Even collaboration between competing teams was necessary in order to succeed. The case study gives an example of a well-designed constructivist/constructionist learning activity with special focus on informatics education but can be easily adapted for using in any other school subject or some after-school context as well. The adventurous and competitive nature of the learning activity resulted in high intrinsic motivation to learn, so the educational objectives could be reached effectively. Reported findings are grounded in observations made during the learning activity as well as the interviews with participants.}, keywords = {informatics education, mobile technology}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.44.64}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1413726797.pdf}, author = {Viera Palm{\'a}rov{\'a} and Gabriela Lov{\'a}szov{\'a}} } @article {732, title = {THE RELATION BETWEEN COMPETITION AND HIGHER EDUCATION. LEGAL FRAMEWORK OF AN ALBANIAN CASE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {44}, year = {2012}, month = {July/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {43-52}, abstract = {At present, Albania faces a reality in which education as a public interest is provided by both public as well as private institutions. The liberalisation of access in higher education has resulted in public and/or private institutions which provide the same service {\textendash} education, compete with each other in trying to attract the same customer {\textendash} the student. Competition is considered as a key instrument that has produced a diversity/variety of higher education institutions and with more choices to the student. This research is aimed at analysing the relation existing between competition and higher education as well as its impact on higher education in Albania. In this analysis we have addressed four important issues: 1. Liberalisation of higher education and the impact of competition 2. Competition law in education 3. The mechanism of free competition - the market of students 4. Using competition to promote reform in higher education This study is based on the interpretation of the domestic legislation, analysis of policy documents and articles, as well as interviews with 10 key persons and 20 students. This research helps understanding the role competition plays in the higher education sector, which has resulted in a tangible reform being undertaken by the public and private HEI themselves. This reform is based on the adaptation of competition rules with the purpose of achieving provision of a qualitative service {\textendash} standards based education.}, keywords = {competition law, higher education, quality}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.44.43}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1413726658.pdf}, author = {Juliana Latifi} } @article {693, title = {THE RELEVANCE OF EVOCATION AND REFLECTION CARDS IN THE LEARNING PROCESS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {41}, year = {2012}, month = {April/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {61-74}, abstract = {When starting school, most students have a desire to learn and are motivated to participate actively in the learning process. Lack of interest is what undermines learning. Research on children{\textquoteright}s well-being in the European Union (EU), conducted at York University in 2006, indicated that Estonia stands out among 25 EU countries with the lowest level of students who enjoy school and have a feeling of well-being. However, the results of 2006 and 2009 PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) research indicate that Estonian students do have good subject knowledge and study skills. The Estonian Human Development Report 2009 states that 70\% of Estonian students consider their study load too heavy, 67\% feel fatigue and 33\% do not want to go to school at all. The report indicates that schools do not pay enough attention to personality development, analysis and discussion (Eesti Koost{\"o}{\"o} Kogu, 2010). Based on the results of the above-mentioned research, it can be said that Estonian students have good subject knowledge, but learning offers them neither pleasure nor interest (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD], 2007; Puksand, Lepmann \& Henno, 2010). The key question for this research was how learner-centered goal setting and reflection support the learners{\textasciiacute} skills to set their own goals for the learning process and to analyze it. Learners are interested in the learning process in case they understand the goals, are actively involved, and take responsibility for their actions. Learners should experience success and get immediate feedback on their activities. Ninety-six different evocation and reflection cards were tested by 24 Estonian teachers in the spring of 2011. The purpose of testing was to clarify how effective the usage of evocation and reflection cards is in supporting students in setting goals and analysing their activities. The quantitative research method (in the form of a questionnaire) was used in order to discover teachers{\textquoteleft} personal opinions, attitudes and approach to the cards and make conclusions about the relevance of the cards in supporting students{\textquoteleft} involvement in the evocation and reflection phase of learning.}, keywords = {evocation, learning motivation}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.41.61}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1409840188.pdf}, author = {Sirje Piht and Piret Lehiste and Rea Raus and Mariliis Lazarev} } @article {691, title = {SCHOOL CREATIVE LESSONS FROM 13-14 YEAR OLD PUPILS{\textquoteright} PERSPECTIVE AND ITS RELEVANCE TO TEACHERS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {41}, year = {2012}, month = {April/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {42-51}, abstract = {The focus of this article is to analyse what associations are related with school{\textquoteright}s creative lessons (music, art, craft, physical education) and how should teachers interpret those associations. In addition there is a comparison across all creative lessons about the feeling which is felt by pupils before entering the lesson (response alternatives: {\textquotedblleft}I{\textquoteright}m looking forward to this lesson, I{\textquoteright}m happy to go there{\textquotedblright}; {\textquotedblleft}It{\textquoteright}s like any other lesson, nothing special{\textquotedblright}; {\textquotedblleft}I{\textquoteright}m anxious, I feel frustrated about going there{\textquotedblright}). The sample (N = 227) consisted of seventh form pupils of seven upper secondary schools of Tallinn (the largest city of Estonia with 420,000 inhabitants) aged 13{\textendash}14 (47\% of them were boys, N = 107, and 53\% girls, N = 120). Pupils{\textquoteright} associations formed six thematic categories describing the most prevalent themes: (1) Teacher, (2) Activities, (3) Emotions, (4) Objects, (5) Classroom environment, and (6) Schoolwork load. Results show that music lesson stands out from other creative lessons both with negative associations and more negative entering feeling. That outcome is discussed from the music teacher{\textquoteright}s point of view {\textendash} how it could be interpreted and what it reflects from current educational situation.}, keywords = {adolescents, associations, creative lessons}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.41.42}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1409839954.pdf}, author = {Marit M{\~o}istlik and Lilian Liiv{\"a}{\"a}r and Eha R{\"u}{\"u}tel} } @article {788, title = {SELF-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA OF TEACHER{\textquoteright}S WELL-BEING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {48}, year = {2012}, month = {November/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {81-90}, abstract = {Our dynamic life brings changes not only into our daily life, but in thinking and the way to work and to learn as well. We have to be faster and more flexible in order to develop our professional, social and civic competencies. Education helps to develop the attitudes, skills and knowledge necessary to make informed decisions for the benefit of themselves and others, now and in the future, and to act upon these decisions. That is why teachers have to find the best ways in acquiring professional competencies and in developing their individual qualities. The teacher{\textquoteright}s role in the educational process has always been vital. Especial significance is being attached to the teacher{\textquoteright}s personality and professional growth, the teacher{\textquoteright}s satisfaction with the life in general and their abilities{\textquoteright} conformity to the demands of the profession. The teacher{\textquoteright}s satisfaction serves as a motivation factor in order to advance the educator{\textquoteright}s professional competence (high mastery). The teacher{\textquoteright}s as a professional{\textquoteright}s advancement is closely connected with his personality development. The human{\textquoteright}s personality in general influences positively the professional adaptation, promotes professional creativity, safeguards from professional obsoleteness. The teacher{\textquoteright}s personality maintains the professional expertise, promotes professional competences{\textquoteright} advancement. There are relationships between aspects of teacher{\textquoteright}s well-being and student{\textquoteright}s learning, job performance or other aspects of teaching effectiveness. The teacher{\textquoteright}s well-being influences the effectiveness of student{\textquoteright}s learning.}, keywords = {compensation, professional development, satisfaction with work}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.48.81}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1415392488.pdf}, author = {Diana Liepa and Aija Dudkina and Maruta Sile} } @article {657, title = {SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITES: NEW EDUCATIONAL SPACE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {39}, year = {2012}, month = {February/2012}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {Over the latter decade the spread of information communication technologies was going on in various directions. Technological possibilities grew up very significantly (Lamanauskas, 2011). Especially rapid was the development of the internet and technologies related with it. A lot of internet service providers occurred in the market, their number still continues to grow. Thus, today a consumer can create his profile on the internet, can make friends, communicate in the interest groups and so on. It can be stated, that every human being in his own way contributes to the internet and at the same time to ICT development, in general. It is obvious, that together with technological problems arise social internet problems as well. Social networking websites (SNW) are closely related with economical, psychological, educational, valeological and other aspects. Thus, can social networks carry out effectively educational function? Can they become a proper professional development instrument? We can formulate a lot of questions. The phenomenon of social networking websites is new and complicated, rapidly changing.}, keywords = {education science, information communication technologies, social networking websites}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.39.05}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408437002.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {681, title = {TEACHING, LEARNING, AND KNOWLEDGE BUILDING: THE CASE OF THE REMOTE NETWORKED SCHOOL INITIATIVE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {40}, year = {2012}, month = {March/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {96-113}, abstract = {The Remote Networked School (RNS)/{\guillemotleft} {\'E}cole {\'e}loign{\'e}e en r{\'e}seau {\guillemotright} is an initiative that aims at implementing an innovation with Internet-based technologies in support of teaching and learning as well as knowledge building in small rural schools. The first eight years of the RNS are examined applying Engestr{\"o}m{\textquoteright}s activity theory framework, and more specifically the concept of expansive learning wherein we document the 7 stages. Tensions and contradictions are identified to provide an {\textquotedblleft}inside{\textquotedblright} understanding of what matters when new technologies designed to support co-teaching and co-learning within and between classrooms are introduced. Two activity systems or more shared the same object such that students would engage actively in collaborative online discourse for solving authentic problems. To this end the trajectory of the RNS initiative had to overcome contradictions. As a result an expansive learning cycle was documented.}, keywords = {activity theory, expansive learning, remote networked school}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.40.96}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408532174.pdf}, author = {Th{\'e}r{\`e}se Laferri{\`e}re and Sylvie Barma and Fernand Gervais and Christine Hamel and St{\'e}phane Allaire and Alain Breuleux} } @article {743, title = {USAGE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITES: LITHUANIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS{\textquoteright} POSITION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {45}, year = {2012}, month = {July/2012}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {27-39}, abstract = {Over the latter decade a rapid development of information communication technologies has been going on in various directions. Technological possibilities have increased very significantly (Lamanauskas, 2011). The development of internet and technologies related with it has been extremely fast. A lot of internet service providers have appeared in the market, their number still continues to grow. The internet connection methods are changing - from the ordinary usage of phone line modems (dial - up) to broadband internet technology (DSL) and cable TV internet nets. It can be asserted, that over the mentioned period Web 1.0 internet (static, used for getting information) has been changed to Web 2.0 internet (social). The internet diaries, social portals, technologies allowing live communication on the internet (Internet Relay Chat, IRC), talk programme Windows Live Messenger (MSN), ICQ forums and other have occurred and are spreading. With the appearance of {\textquotedblleft}Skype{\textquotedblright}, the internet telephony has acquired a qualitatively new characteristic and practically has become a daily routine. Thus, today a consumer can create his profile on the internet, can make friends, communicate in the interest groups and so on. It can be stated, that every human being contributes in his own way to the internet and at the same time to ICT development, in general. It is obvious, that together with technological problems also arise social internet problems. Social networking websites are closely related with economical, psychological, educational, paleological and other aspects. There is a shortage of researches grounding socio-educational social network aspects. It is important to know not only how much time the consumers spend surfing the net, but how much of this time is allotted for communicating in social networking websites, which of them are the most popular and why, how the respondents evaluate social networking website functions, what in general they know about them, what advantages, disadvantages and threats they discern. Finally, it is important to find out whether the usage of social networking websites improves information {\textendash} communication abilities in some way.}, keywords = {social networking websites, university students}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.45.27}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1413727373.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta {\v S}lekiene and Loreta Raguliene} } @article {702, title = {VISUALISATION-ASSISTED TEACHING: CAN VIRTUAL GIVE RISE TO REAL KNOWLEDGE?}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {42}, year = {2012}, month = {May/2012}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {There are two main different ways of reasoning (Harnad, 1987). For most people it{\textquoteright}s natural to do their reasoning on the semantic level. Graphic tools have always played an important part in this reasoning style. When using a formal and abstract language and exact rules governing the creation and transformation of statements in this language, one reveals the ability to work on the syntactic level. And this can be postulated as a quite different way of reasoning, which is based almost exclusively by the logicians. The use of graphic forms in this case is also possible, though it requires more time and technological complexity. For exact sciences, primarily mathematics based, the use of computers can raise the efficiency of the method. Still for Sciences, e.g. Chemistry, even before the informational revolution the special interconversion tools between empirical knowledge and different types of reasoning had been developed, the latter originates from the very core of Science knowledge. Based on the experiment (the initial stage was almost completely empirical) the Science gained the new paradigm which rather formal by nature and fundamental in methodological meaning. Interconversion between empiric and theoretical moieties seems to be the core point of the consideration.}, keywords = {real knowledge, science education, visualization-based educational techniques}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/12.42.05}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1410005969.pdf}, author = {Todar Lakhvich} } @article {941, title = {THE CHARACTERISTIC FREQUENCY BANDS ANALYSIS OF BRAIN WAVE DURING LEARNING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {31}, year = {2011}, month = {July/2011}, pages = {Discontinuous}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {56-72}, abstract = {The traditional E-learning often offers the online examination to assess the learning effect of a student after completion of the online learning. Basically, this traditional learning assessment mechanism is a passive and negative assessment mechanism, which cannot provide an real-time learning warning mechanism for teachers or students to find out problems as early as possible (including such learning conditions as {\textquotedblleft}absence of mind{\textquotedblright} resulting from poor learning stage or physical or psychological factor), and the post-assessment mechanism also cannot assess the learning effectiveness provided by the online learning system. This research paper attempts to acquire the electroencephalogram to analyze the characteristic frequency band of the brainwave related to learning and formulate the learning energy index (LEI) for the learner at the time when the learner is reasoning logically via the brain-wave detector based on the cognitive neuroscience. With the established LEI, the physical and psychological conditions of an online leaner can be provided instantly for teachers for assessment. Given that the learning system is integrated into the brainwave analytic sensing component, the system not only can provide learners an instant learning warming mechanism, but also help teachers and learning partners to further understand the causes of learning disorder of learners, and can also provide relevant learning members with timely care and encouragement. This research will discuss and analyze such subjects as the electroencephalogram difference between the traditional print textbooks and the multi-medium textbooks, whether the development of exercise habit will be help to learning by means of a view of cognitive neuroscience except for the analysis of characteristic frequency band of the brainwave represented at the time when learners adopt diverse learning methods.}, keywords = {Cognitive neuroscience, Electroencephalogram, learning energy index}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.31.56}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1406540264.pdf}, author = {Fu-Chien Kao and Wei-De Li and Han-Chieh Hsien and Chih-Hung Wang} } @article {538, title = {THE CHILD FRIENDLY SCHOOL: AN IDEA VERSUS REALITY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {29}, year = {2011}, month = {May/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {82-88}, abstract = {The purpose of this research was to question the concept of a {\textquoteleft}child friendly{\textquoteright} school, which sounds democratic, but is an unclear term. The problem is that with 45-minute lessons and 30 pupils in the classroom (as is often the case in Estonian schools), it is not possible to focus on each child. In 2005, a new basic school was opened in the countryside in the middle of Estonia {\textendash} for only 24 students (some of them were children with learning and/or behavioural difficulties). The method of research was educational ethnography. Result: the strict rules sometimes seem bad, but life is safer with them. It was interesting to recognize the importance of routines from ordinary ({\textquoteleft}old fashion{\textquoteright}) schools. Children with learning and/or behavioural difficulties need even more discipline than others, because this can be one part of the therapy. Education for sustainable development must not always be {\textquoteleft}child friendly{\textquoteright}.}, keywords = {general education, learning and behavioural difficulties, rules}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1405178748.pdf}, author = {Mare Leino} } @article {572, title = {CURRENT ISSUES OF TEACHER TRAINING IN ALBANIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {32}, year = {2011}, month = {July/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {47-57}, abstract = {World society, technologies and sciences are changing very quickly. The school, as an educational institution is facing great challenges of the century. The school needs to change many components like curricula, teaching, strategies, learning techniques. By using a series of strategies, contemporary teaching needs to strengthen the learning environment and offer different models, in order to design proper curricula for all subjects, fields of study and levels. Based on some official data, empirical surveys, questionnaires, as well as data from the students{\textquoteright} results, there have been identified some problems in our school, concerning traditional and contemporary teaching and learning. The focus of the research is: teaching principles applied in school curricula in Albania such as student {\textendash} centered teaching and future oriented one through the paradigms of interactive teaching and passing from traditional to contemporary teaching methods. This principles aim at developing students{\textquoteright} critical thinking and learning skills to educate students as lifelong learners. These principles and solutions are necessary to be known and to be applied in everyday process of teaching and learning, in order to improve their quality.}, keywords = {diversity of teaching modes, interactive teaching, student skills}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.32.47 }, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1406541470.pdf}, author = {Irena Lama and Artur Sula and Mimoza Gjokutaj} } @article {639, title = {DIGITAL TEACHING AND LEARNING CONTENT IN NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION: EDUCATIONAL USEFULNESS EVALUATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {37}, year = {2011}, month = {December/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {70-82}, abstract = {In recent years teaching and learning problems acquire qualitatively new characteristics. It has been thought for a long time that it is an object of classical pedagogy and further research works are not urgent. However, in the process of rapid development of ICT, traditional pedagogy conception also inevitably changes. So-called {\textquotedblleft}classical pedagogy{\textquotedblright} shifts to {\textquotedblleft}online pedagogy{\textquotedblright}. An adjacent educational trend - a "shift from teaching to learning" is also related with this shift. Thus, on the one hand, ICT is changing very rapidly, new technologies (not necessarily in a proper educational sense) are penetrating into educational practice. On the other hand, under a great influence of ICT, interrelation mechanisms between teachers and pupils change, also, change educational activities and their characteristics. Thus, a need rises to inevitably observe the current situation, to analyse it and to present adequate educational decisions. Therefore, a complex pedagogical evaluation research was carried out between January and April, 2011. 20 teachers participated in the digital content testing, who totally gave 577 lessons. In the lessons a) an interactive board (IL) was used, and a lesson content was prepared by Power Point (PPT) slide show or Active Inspire (AcIns) programme; b) projector (S), and a lesson content - by PPT or AcIns. It can be basically asserted, that digital teaching/learning content is a perspective way searching to improve education process.}, keywords = {digital content, factor analysis, pedagogical evaluation}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.37.70}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408435877.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta {\v S}lekiene and Loreta Raguliene and Renata Bilbokaite} } @article {618, title = {EFFECT OF TRACK POSITION ON STUDENTS{\textquoteright} ATTITUDE TOWARDS SCIENCE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {35}, year = {2011}, month = {November/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {138-148}, abstract = {Attitude towards science (ATS) is major concern in science education due to its positive correlation with students{\textquoteright} science achievement. However, previous studies showed that students{\textquoteright} ATS is decreasing in many countries. Although many attempts have been taken to solve this problem, little consideration has been given to the effect of track position and students{\textquoteright} ATS. While cognitive aspect plays major role in tracking, affective aspect such as ATS is overlooked. It might be one of the factors that contributing to the decrease of students{\textquoteright} ATS. Accordingly, this paper aimed to investigate the effect of tracking on students{\textquoteright} ATS. A total of 450 science stream students and 299 arts stream students were involved in this study. The findings showed that among science stream students, 21 students (4.67\%) prefer arts stream rather than science stream. Their ATS level is statistically significant lower than science stream students who prefer science stream and the effect size is large (Cohen{\textquoteright}s d = 1.1028). Meanwhile, among arts stream students, 47 students (15.7\%) prefer science stream rather than arts stream. Although their ATS level is higher than arts stream students who prefer arts stream, the difference is not statistically significant, with negative and small effect size (Cohen{\textquoteright}s d = -.2271). The findings of this study would bear significant implication to enhance awareness of public and educators about the important of ATS in tracking. Moreover, this study would provides useful information for stakeholders in determining students{\textquoteright} stream.}, keywords = {attitude towards science, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=968812}, author = {Chin Sook Fui and Lim Hooi Lian} } @article {556, title = {THE EVALUATION STRATEGIES OF INTEGRATED SCIENCE TEACHING AND LEARNING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {31}, year = {2011}, month = {July/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {In educational literature we can find different definitions on evaluation. Evaluation is the pay-off of description {\textendash} it is the synthesis of descriptive information and criterial information according to very strict and difficult rules (Scriven, 1975). Evaluation can be characterised as the process by which people make judgements about value and worth; evaluation is the process by which people make value judgements about things (Oliver, 2000). It is obvious that evaluation is a delicate and sensitive task. On the other hand, it is not a simple and obvious process. Usually evaluation has its formal and informal sides. The main questions are: {\textbullet} what is to be evaluated? {\textbullet} when and why evaluate? {\textbullet} how to evaluate? {\textbullet} whether the process of evaluation is fair and objective? For an evaluation of process of science teaching and learning there are different strategy and ways. The main questions are: what is to be evaluated? when and why evaluate? how to evaluate? It is clear that for science teaching success one of the most important resources is feedback from students (Lamanauskas, Vilkoniene, 2008). Teachers can evaluate a whole science course, analyse students{\textquoteright} learning needs, and investigate students{\textquoteright} experiences of teaching. Evaluation should be correlated both with the purposes and to specific educational situations. Also it is very important to strengthen teachers{\textquoteleft} and students{\textquoteleft} motivation when evaluating. There are multiple methods for collecting data on science teaching effectiveness. Also it is clear that a key to effective teaching evaluation is to collect data from multiple sources (triangulation).}, keywords = {evaluation, models of evaluation, science teaching}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.31.05}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1406539867.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {530, title = {FOSTERING RESPECT FOR LIFE IN PRIMARY SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {29}, year = {2011}, month = {May/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {The respect for life educational process is extremely important for primary school. Psychologists assert that exactly the early school age strongly requires fostering the feelings of love, sensitiveness and help as the period is important for the mastering and establishing certain standards of behaviour. This is the key for the explanation of the different aspects of the teenager{\textquoteleft}s behaviour in nature. If the teenager ravages nature, it means that parents, teachers and other educators have not paid enough attention to that age range when a certain standard of behaviour developed on the basis of some habit (Dzenuskaite, 1975). The empiric observations, statistic data and other sources of information confirm that we are experiencing a general decline of moral culture that comes along with increased human immorality, expressed by aggressiveness, cruelty, violence, roughness. These humiliating forms of disrespect are extremely characteristic for the present generation, even for teenagers. It could not be denied that fostering respect for life becomes an overall and highly relevant task for our society. An important point is to set out the conditions for the child to correlate with nature and on that basis to foster moral and aesthetic feelings in the junior school age. Presumably nobody could deny that fostering respect for life becomes a universally accepted and relevant objective of our society. It could responsibly be contended that society must reconsider its principles of the correlation with nature. }, keywords = {primary school, respect for life, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1405178268.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {483, title = {GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION: OUTCOMES, TRENDS AND CHALLENGES ABOUT GEOGRAPHY DIDACTICS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {27}, year = {2011}, month = {March/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {75-81}, abstract = {This article makes a description of geography didactics, its outcomes, trends and challenges in our society and contemporary territories. Our aim is to make a contribution to education, teachers and all those who are interested in this area by providing some relevant elements for the renewal process of teaching geography at school. With this intention, the article presents work and progress in research on teaching geography; work that is reflected in: meetings of researchers, book production, systematization of educational experiences, higher education programs, development of meetings and events. Activities that one way or another contributes to the reflection of geographical education, but especially to think of other possibilities to understand the geographical space and therefore their education at different school levels. The intention is to build an academic community to promote and propose alternatives in geographical education, but also geography of the subjects and citizens in harmony with what Milton Santos said in 1995 for the new generation of geographers, students and citizens.}, keywords = {didactics, teaching and learning geography}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2593980}, author = {Nubia Moreno Lache} } @article {614, title = {THE GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION REGISTER AS SUPPORT IN UNDERSTANDING CONCEPTS OF CALCULUS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {35}, year = {2011}, month = {November/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {97-103}, abstract = {Students taking a calculus course for the very first time have generally had an intuitive approach to infinity, which has likely had to do with {\textquotedblleft}real life{\textquotedblright} events, such as the infinite nature of the Universe. The students have not usually reflected upon any of the mathematics aspects of infinity and to a certain extent this hampers their understanding within a mathematical context. When learning about the concept of limit (essential in order to adequately build calculus concepts) knowledge of infinite processes is required. Moreover if the task of teaching calculus is restricted to its algebraic aspects without paying attention to the use of non-algebraic representations, it is very difficult for students to arrive at a deep understanding of calculus. It is even difficult to conceive of a student being able to comprehend calculus without having first developed visual skills tied in to building calculus concepts, for example.}, keywords = {graphical representation register, visualization}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=968806}, author = {Ledesma-Perez, F.} } @article {645, title = {HUMANISATION OF NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION AS A PROBLEM}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {38}, year = {2011}, month = {December/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {The present humankind has to solve a number of serious problems. Under the threat of the ecology catastrophe, concern for physical and spiritual health care is felt. All our relations with nature turn out to be problematic. The establishment of a harmonious correlation between nature and society becomes an important task. We cannot exclusively rely on knowledge and mind in any activity as these are not overall dimensions. Enforcement of humanism, democracy and being a good citizen - these are common everyday issues in our schools today. The goal of the education reform is to make a school the place for creating a personality and not only the place to pump with knowledge. Yet human being perceives aesthetical, ethical or other values only when exceptionally subtly minded. The perception of nature as a value is primarily delimited the material interests. Aesthetical values are versatile and serve everyone. Perceiving and cherishing ethical values and moreover, following them is a more difficult task. A human educational process is a marvellous one as it is able to point out the subtle features of human mind and soul. From this standpoint, natural sciences teaching at school are very auspicious. In this case, the humanization of natural science education can be understood as an undivided action of the basic education principles in the training process. }, keywords = {humanistic philosophy, humanization of the educational process, natural science education, perception of nature}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.38.5}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=971782}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {630, title = {IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LEARNING THROUGH THE QUESTIONS OF TEXTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {36}, year = {2011}, month = {December/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {106-115}, abstract = {Didactic concept on the questioning is a process which is closely linked to student learning, provides interactivity during the process of teaching, enables deeper levels of learning, creates infinite space for the development of critical thinking and many other mental and psychological processes. The dimensions of questioning lie on many levels: the level of the text, the level of student relations and student teachers relations during student group work and other educational activities. The object of this study is the questioning process that relates to the inclusion of respondents used as pedagogical devices within the content of each lesson topic. For the purpose of this study two groups of texts were taken inconsideration: texts of social sciences and natural sciences used in the Albanian school in order to see how questioning represents different levels of the taxonomy of learning and the types of questions designed according to different dimensions. In line with this observation the level of student learning was reviewed. This study gives some research findings based on the above analyses aiming at helping the authors of textbooks and teachers with writing and asking questions which enhance critical thinking and learning. }, keywords = {quality of learning, questioning, students{\textquoteright} questions}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.36.106}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408435301.pdf}, author = {Artur Sula and Irena Ndoci Lama and Mimoza Gjokutaj} } @article {548, title = {KNOWLEDGE GENERATION IN EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH: CASE OF SOUTH AFRICA UNIVERSITIES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {30}, year = {2011}, month = {May/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {47-60}, abstract = {The objective of this study was to investigate forms of knowledge generation in educational research in South Africa in the periods 1995-1999 \& 2000-2004. The study was a quantitative by approach. Data from the universities in Gauteng region (South Africa) was extracted from 2340 bound theses database. The results revealed that there are twelve sectors (forms) that have been identified for knowledge generation in educational research.}, keywords = {educational research, knowledge generation, postgraduate research}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.30.47}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1405179843.pdf}, author = {Liile L. Lekena and Anass Bayaga} } @article {591, title = {THE {\textquotedblright}McDONALD{\textquoteleft}S-IZATION{\textquotedblleft} OF EDUCATION: SEARCH FOR FAST RESULTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {34}, year = {2011}, month = {October/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {The pace of life forces us in getting everything quickly and preferably for free, i.e. the faster {\textendash} the better. No matter that fast food from McDonald{\textquoteright}s simply kills the human organism. The crucial point is that the action itself is fast and cheap. However, I see no sense in discussing the topic of junk food. A better idea is the transformation of the above introduced term into the field of education and debates on {\textquotedblleft}appetite{\textquotedblright} for learning rather than for fast food. Thus, what are the shown indications? First, it should be noticed that when considering the phenomenon of {\textquotedblleft}fast{\textquotedblright} training, education fails to retain its purpose, and therefore the systems of comprehensive and higher education appear to be just a blur (Lamanauskas, 2011). Thus, the international community accepts the idea that more or less the current society is not ready for challenges posed by the 21st century. The activity of being awarded {\textquotedblleft}a rapid{\textquotedblright} diploma guarantees neither individual nor social progress. The universities supporting the concept of producing similar certificates take a position of self-defeating institutions. Hence, education is not a game, and universities are not {\textquotedblleft}the playgrounds full of toys{\textquotedblright}. However, an impression that the number of such {\textquotedblleft}playgrounds{\textquotedblright} increases along with a growth in the amount of {\textquotedblleft}players{\textquotedblright} is formed. We can be taught by others; however, education is our personal business. Finally, an educated person who is acclaimed to be a self-determined, independent and strong-minded man the qualities of whose must be inherited by the nation as a whole is our primary goal. }, keywords = {educated person, education system, international competition, university education}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.34.05}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1406611709.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {565, title = {MODERN TOOLS FOR POPULARIZATION AND MOTIVATION STUDENTS IN PHYSICS TEACHING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {31}, year = {2011}, month = {July/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {112-118}, abstract = {The project {\textquotedblleft}Modern ICT tools in science and economic disciplines and their presentation{\textquotedblright} (ICTEDUCA) takes place in the period between June 2009 and June 2012. The project was aimed at improving the quality of the study programmes of the physics teacher training by means of using information and communication technologies (ICT) in physics teaching and show relations between subjects. Some surveys in the Czech Republic show that physics is negatively evaluated by students in primary and secondary schools. In this article it is described some possibilities how to popularize in physics and science education using modern tools. The first part this article describes a searching interdisciplinary relation, which has an assignment to show connections between physics phenomena and human body. In the second part is introduced a voting system, through the teachers improve students in their lessons. The last part of the article attend to remote control experiments, which students, experimenters, teachers or any users can control all our experiments from its personal computer through the Internet from the website http://www.ictphysics.upol.cz/remotelab/.}, keywords = {interdisciplinary relations, physics teaching, remote experiment}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.31.112}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1406541007.pdf}, author = {Marie Voln{\'a} and Franti{\v s}ek L{\'a}tal and Veronika Kainzov{\'a} and Jan {\v R}{\'\i}ha} } @article {532, title = {MYTHS IN THE ACADEME {\textendash} PRE-ENROLLMENT PROFILES AND ACADEMIC EDUCATION AS KEY TO POST-GRADUATION EMPLOYMENT AND SATISFACTION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {29}, year = {2011}, month = {May/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {22-34}, abstract = {Academic education is considered a key to gaining employment and satisfaction. This scientific research attempts to explain the association between the demographic and pre-enrollment profiles of graduates of one academic institution, and their retrospectively reported satisfaction with their academic studies, and with their career. The study, based on a case study of the Ariel University Center of Samaria, Israel, integrates Holland{\textquoteright}s classic congruence theory and Seligman{\textquoteright}s innovative theory of positive psychology, specifically the hypothesis concerning everyday deployment of individual character strengths. Findings of the study demonstrate that deployment of character strengths was a significant predictor of graduates{\textquoteright} work satisfaction. The interesting finding in this exploratory study is the failure of graduates{\textquoteright} pre-enrollment admission profiles to distinguish among graduates based on their post-graduate employment status or job satisfaction. This finding is especially interesting and scientifically significant in the context of the accepted myth in the academe, according to which admission profiles are key predictors of future success. }, keywords = {academic access, higher education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1405178393.pdf}, author = {Nitza Davidovitch and Hadassah Littman-Ovadia and Dan Soen} } @article {627, title = {PATTERNS OF DIDACTIC DECISIONS MADE BY TEACHERS IN PHYSICAL SCIENCES CLASSROOMS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {36}, year = {2011}, month = {December/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {76-89}, abstract = {The purpose of this study is to highlight didactic decisions of teachers in Physical Sciences classrooms. The framework used is teacher mediation of students{\textquoteright} learning. Research questions: (a) what aspects of teaching trigger didactics? (b) What are the relationships between the didactic decisions of teachers and their triggers? Are the responses to these questions dependent on teacher or teaching level? This study reports on a multi-case study of five teachers from three teaching levels (basic, secondary and higher education). Multimodal narratives (a description of what happens in the classroom, using several types of data collected inside and outside the classroom) were used to analyse the didactic decisions of teachers and to determine what causes them to take a particular decision in the classroom. It searches for categories using open code analysis, and then use cluster analysis to find patterns. Four patterns of decisions were found, transversing teacher and teaching levels, and relate them to their triggers. It is found that each teacher and each teaching level has a singular profile for decision-making (a particular combination of patterns of decision-making, what draws the teacher{\textquoteright}s attention, and the specific decisions taken).}, keywords = {classroom, didactic decisions, physical sciences}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.36.76}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408435159.pdf}, author = {Carla A. Santos and J. Bernardino Lopes and J. Paulo Cravino} } @article {622, title = {PROBLEMS SOLVING USING DIFFERENT REGISTERS OF REPRESENTATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {36}, year = {2011}, month = {December/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {17-27}, abstract = {In this paper are showed on the results of research whose aim was to document and analyze the manner in which students relate different representations when solving problems. A total of 20 students took part in the study, students attending their first year of university studies. In order to design the problem, the underlying information in each representation was deemed to be the starting point of different inferences and of different cognitive processes. The findings obtained make it possible to assert that the underlying information in each representation is not visible to all students and that a problem can foster handling of different representations, the making and verifying of various conjectures and the transfer of knowledge acquired in previous courses.}, keywords = {representations, solving problem, verifying conjectures}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.36.17}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408434901.pdf}, author = {Ledesma-Perez, F.} } @article {524, title = {ON REDUCING THE DETRIMENTAL INFORMATION FLOOD IN THE USE OF INTERNET}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {28}, year = {2011}, month = {April/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {84-95}, abstract = {Among many positive aspects of the development of the Internet in the last decades, one may also find some damaging ones. This paper centers on the information flood, which any user must face whenever she/he approaches the Internet. The amount of information in the network is hastily increasing and it does not seem to have limits. New studies show that the amount of information in the Internet reaches a value near one zettabyte. Zettabyte is a unit of information equal to 10^21 bytes. Any searching in Internet is, ever increasing, an immersion in a sea of information that may bring high discomfort to the users, caused, especially, by the inability to process all the data read. This research analyses the issue of information flood and proposes a solution to be implemented as an interface between users and the Internet. The creation of this new tool takes into account the requirements from the psychological standpoint and the implementation issues from the telecommunication point of view. The cooperation between psychology and ICT (Information and Computer Technologies) seems crucial to improve the well-being of people in a as technical a society as the current one.}, keywords = {information overload, information selection, use of Internet}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=939901}, author = {Jordi Mongay Batalla and Maria Ledzi{\'n}ska} } @article {640, title = {REMOTE TEACHING LABORATORIES IN PHYSICS LESSONS - ATTITUDES OF STUDENTS AND TEACHERS TO THE REMOTELY CONTROLLED EXPERIMENTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {37}, year = {2011}, month = {December/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {83-89}, abstract = {This article describes five remotely controlled experiments, which were created at the Department of Experimental Physics in Olomouc (Volt-ampere characteristics of six different light sources, Determination of gravity from the period of oscillation of the mathematical pendulum, Study of water flow in the system of closed tubes, Weather station at Palacky University in Olomouc and Monitoring of radioactive background in Olomouc). These experiments are accessible from the web address http://ictphysics.upol.cz/remotelab. The paper describes a new approach to creating remotely controlled experiments using Web Services from the company National Instrumnets. The paper also deals with questionnaire survey, which examined attitudes of students and teachers to the remotely controlled experiments. This questionnaire survey was attended by 74 students of Physics from Faculty of Science in Olomouc and 48 teachers of Physics from secondary schools. This paper outlines our current research and reflection of remotely controlled experiments and it describes the educational point of view of the remotely controlled system.}, keywords = {ICT, Internet, remotely controlled experiment}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.37.83}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408435928.pdf}, author = {Franti{\v s}ek L{\'a}tal} } @article {544, title = {THE SCIENCE EDUCATION TOOLS AND WAYS OF PRODUCING THEM IN THE COOPERATION PROCESS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {30}, year = {2011}, month = {May/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {The content of natural science education gives a chance to the dynamics and structure of the educational process. However, the adaptation of natural science knowledge system depends on both the teacher (choosing and applying teaching methods and forms, etc.) and the pupil (the methods of learning, motivation, general abilities). The diversity of teaching and learning content, forms and methods, activities are typical of natural science education. All that makes the educational process effective: develop intellectual knowledge and skills, set out conditions for intense pupils{\textquoteright} activities, shape thinking, foster aesthetic feelings, etc. There are different strategies and methods for teaching science. Also there are many different ways in which science teachers can effectively teach students. The problem consists in that how to choose the most effective methods and strategy in each concrete situation. It is obvious, that the information itself is known as the content; how that content is shared in a classroom is dependent on the teaching methods. For example, lecture is a way of providing students with basic knowledge. On the other hand it is well known that lecture has the least impact on students as well as the lowest level of student involvement. It is not so good from point of view of constructivistic teaching. The one of the main points of constructivistic approach is to increase the level of impact and involvement for students. It is clear that reflective inquiry has the highest level of student involvement. On the other hand, reflective inquiry offers opportunities for students to use knowledge in a productive and meaningful way. It is important to notice that teachers should recognize from their practice that inquiry-oriented approach brings deeper understanding, better results of students and their higher motivation and interest to study science (Nezvalova, 2011). Different methods can be effectively used in science teaching: lecture, reading information, audio-visual presentation, demonstration, observation, field trips, interviewing, brainstorming, small group discussions, experimenting, problem-solving activities etc. }, keywords = {educational process, science education, science knowledge}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.30.05}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1405179519.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {539, title = {SELF ASSESSMENT CRITERIA OF INTEGRATED FOREIGN LANGUAGE ACQUISITION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {29}, year = {2011}, month = {May/2011}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {89-101}, abstract = {Tendencies in the labour market are indicative of the fact that foreign language mastery and its professional usage are indispensable, which manifests itself in different levels of particular language skills (listening, reading, taking part in conversations, monologue, and writing). Aim of the study - to provide criteria, levels and indicators of the self-assessment of foreign language proficiency. In the study, the author analyses theoretical sources and research data. Using statistical methods the results were analyzed on the basis of the examination of the interplay of data by means of the quantitative statistical program SPSS 17, 0 (Statistical package for Social Sciences). In the present research a personalized approach to the assessment of language proficiency level has been adopted. The language proficiency level of each language learner is assessed separately without the juxtaposition of different language learners. To broaden students{\textquoteright} experience the self-assessment criteria of language learners{\textquoteright} language proficiency established pursuant to the language proficiency levels of European Framework of Reference can be applied. It can be concluded that majority of language learners admit the necessity to perfect the level of language because they encounter difficulties to use oral and written communication in their professional field. }, keywords = {higher education, integrated foreign language acquisition, self assessment}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1405178794.pdf}, author = {Diana Liepa} } @article {620, title = {SOME ASPECTS OF NATURAL SCIENCE LITERACY AND COMPETENCE OF PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {36}, year = {2011}, month = {December/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-9}, abstract = {Natural science competence of primary school teachers is one of the constituent parts of general professional competence. It is obvious that the students, would-be teachers (future teachers) of primary school, should receive considerably high education in the field of natural science education in the process of studies. Working primary school teachers should also develop their professional competence. One of the most significant types of competence is supposed to be the one of primary natural science. The other types of competence (pedagogic, professional, objective, social, methodic, business, etc.) seem to be also consequential. However, the process of studies, as a rule, devotes much attention to the pedagogic-psychologic issues. The primary school teachers teach all subjects, and therefore their training is complex, specific and requires a carefully considered strategy. Primary school teacher training experience in Lithuania allows to state that natural science competence is minimum developed as it is not given enough attention. Similar problems can be noticed in other countries. A holistic concept (Holism is an attitude that requires to perceive a phenomenon as a particular single wholeness that is not equal to the total amount of its constituents; it is the evolution theory declaring that the unknowable wholeness of the world determines its creative evolution) of natural phenomena is supposed to be highly important to primary natural science competence of the teacher. Finally, it is important to stress that natural science teaching in primary school be powerful and purposeful. It is obligatory to avoid the marginalization of natural science education (teaching and learning) at the primary school level. Natural science education in primary schools, by contrast, must be consistent and efficient, because it is the basis for deeper study of the natural sciences in secondary and higher education.}, keywords = {holistic concept, primary school, primary school teachers, scientific literacy}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.36.05}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1408434804.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {568, title = {SOME FEATURES ABOUT THE ISSUE OF FALSIFIED EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {32}, year = {2011}, month = {July/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {The phenomenon of falsification is becoming more and more interesting and relevant. This phenomenon is related to all educational areas. Such important areas as quality of education, management and funding of education, recognition of qualifications etc. are often susceptible to falsification. Recently, careful attention is paid to the questions of education quality. The systems of quality management are created, services are certified etc. However, along the process of modernization the degradation of education is taking place. Falsification hints are accepted as evidences of degrading education. At present, the problem occurs due to actual insufficient data on the conception of the degradation of education and the actuality of the latter phenomenon in the Lithuanian education system. From the teachers{\textquoteright} point of view, the conception of falsification can be expressed through distortions in national education policy and bureaucracy. The main factors determining the falsified education are corruption in Government institutions, opaque competition between educational establishments, falsified documentation and ineffective teachers and executives{\textquoteright} attestation. The main factors determining the insufficient quality of education are the wrong use of money, inconsistent educational curricula, complexity of educational content, ineffective evaluation system and too many students at school and in the classroom etc. (Lamanauskas, Aleknaite, 2008). Obviously, the problem field of falsified education is rather wide. So, there is the need for open and thorough debate on this issue. Openness and transparency are two crucial keys in this problem solving. Thus, while proceeding with changes in education, publicity and discussions involving the whole society in this process are necessary. On the other hand, education structures are not flexible enough and fail to conform to fragmental changes. Coherent motivated reorganization based on scientific research is needed. }, keywords = {education quality, falsified education, transparency}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.32.05}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1406541275.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {580, title = {TEN THESES ON MODERN NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {33}, year = {2011}, month = {August/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {Despite of the fact that natural science education questions are constantly discussed, it is necessary to give much more real attention to this area. It is obvious that the spectrum of the topics of natural science education is too wide and one short article should not manage to cover all burning questions. The author has not raised a task to {\quotedblbase}exhaustively discuss{\textquotedblleft} the problems of natural science education. The author held the view that it is important to draw attention to some key moments. The mentioned ten thesis correlate with natural science literacy in one way or another. It is clear that poor attention is paid to natural science education till now. Public natural science literacy is low. In the 21st century, every person encounters pressing problems of environment pollution, nature devastation, health, etc. New socio-ecologic issues become pronounced (for example, air ionization in the room determined by computers). 21st century is the one of technologies, genetics and information. We will be made to live a different life. The present situation is stressful, for example, overwork with computers, TV and other technologies determine a headache, sight problems, claustrophobia, etc. The man has a majestic and powerful mind but often is full of evil spirit. He has a wish and possibility of making. However, he successfully destroys the creation. The scientists have expressed a serious concern over nature. Therefore, natural science education is not the only subject of discussions today. It is more frequently examined in a very broad context which is natural science {\textendash} technological {\textendash} noosspheric education. The professionals of natural science education accept personal responsibility for the creation and extension of natural science education which is supposed to be a primary duty and obligation. Consequently, training of the comprehensive school teachers of natural sciences and the permanent development of natural science competence are very important features from this point of view. School cannot effectively work without the teachers and education managers of suitable qualification. Generally speaking, natural science education is an integral part of general education and educatedness. }, keywords = {natural science education, natural science literacy}, issn = {1822-7864}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.33225/pec/11.33.05}, url = {https://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1406575826.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {516, title = {TRADITIONAL AND CONSTRUCTIVE NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION PARALLELS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {28}, year = {2011}, month = {April/2011}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {In recent years attention to natural science education is not decreasing. In various information sources we can find a constantly expressed position that natural science {\textendash} technological literacy of young generation is not only insufficient but also very often inadequate to the time requirements. We can claim with confidence, that the whole last decade (2000-2010) in one way or another was devoted to the discussion of the mentioned problem in various aspects. What is really important today and especially in perspective? Thus, we can claim, that constructivist approach teaching natural science subjects is not the only one that is true. It is necessary to search for clear complex, mixed approaches based on systemic thinking and activity. From this point of view, applying of different strategies in teaching activity is an important and desirable thing. However, only good wishes aren{\textquoteright}t enough for this. Broadly speaking, a suitable educational environment is necessary; secure working conditions have to be created for teachers and so on. After all, every educational situation is unique. Teacher{\textquoteright}s professional skills become a cornerstone and integrating element of the whole educational process.}, keywords = {constructivist education approach, natural science education, teaching activity}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=939893}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {409, title = {APPLICATION OF THE DIFFERENT DEVELOPMENT INDEXES IN THE RESEARCH OF SCIENCE DIDACTICS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {22}, year = {2010}, month = {June/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {33-44}, abstract = {In the last few decades the analysis of data, obtained from different science and technology education related international surveys, has produced some new viewpoints such as the diversity of cultures, the trends of globalization, different theories such as postmodernism, self-determination. Within those researches different reference factors have been investigated to obtain results, possible to explain different phenomena observed in the society. In our research some indexes such as Human Development Index (HDI) and Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI) normally used in sociological research have been used with the aim to find correlations with the international ROSE (The Relevance of Science Education) project data. The items in the ROSE questionnaire are measuring students{\textquoteright} general interest in science and technology and their interest in different content and contexts of science and technology as well as students{\textquoteright} science and technology related experiences. Based on our analysis, there were relatively high correlation between the mean values of different national ROSE variables and responding HDI index. }, keywords = {gross domestic product, science didactics}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1400515203.pdf}, author = {Janis Gedrovics and Jari Lavonen and Jekabs Raipulis} } @article {356, title = {BEAUTYLITY OF CHEMISTRY VISUALIZATION: WHETHER USEFUL CAN BE AESTHETIC}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {19}, year = {2010}, month = {March/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {46-54}, abstract = {The analysis of aesthetic potential of Chemistry visualization is carried out, taking in account philosophical, didactic, psychological and socio-cultural aspects. The issue is discussed in terms of the concurrent existence of two different subsystems referred both to Beauty and Utility which can be found in presentations of chemistry knowledge. To be aesthetic means the need to be accepted as attractive one, and thus Chemistry ought to change its paradigm to form new attitude to Chemistry knowledge. The concept can be regarded as for valuable acquisition (and thus very useful!) to learning process. To be useful means the need to be accepted as utile. The latter have been the main intention for the last centuries which turned the Chemistry into generator of the most unexpendable resources for industrial development. And it looks very attractive when people gained the highest plane of intelligence to admire the Beauty both natural and man-made objects. Finally both Beauty and Utility potentials derived from Chemistry visualization can be effectively elaborated within the integrated Philosophical Concept of Beautility. Theoretical study based on profound concepts from Science and Chemistry philosophy as well on few empiric researches carried out by author in the field of Chemistry Didactics.}, keywords = {chemistry education, visualization}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399917218.pdf}, author = {Todar Lakhvich} } @article {367, title = {DISAGREEMENTS AND PARADOXES OF EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {20}, year = {2010}, month = {April/2010}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-9}, abstract = {Why the 21st century scholars start raising their voices while facing troubles and difficulties in the field of education. To identify the situation, it is worth having a closer look at the present schooling system. Post-modern life and education more and more frequently are coming into force. Superficiality becomes a common phenomenon. Only available regularly used and easily with no effort achieved attractive things are greatly appreciated. What is more, only minimal efforts are taken to gain a broader educational background. Quite a few countries display similar tendencies. On the other hand, education is frequently treated as a product or a kind of service. The laws of the wild market fail to get round this area of life. The chosen life style (including education) rather than the meaning of life and education itself often play a crucial role.� There is no need to be an expert perfectly knowing matters of education to find out not everything works in the system of education. Also, it seems to be clear that the evaluation of those working in the {\textquoteleft}fields{\textquoteright} of education cannot be rejected. I suppose the latter are not the majority as more and more frequently {\textquoteleft}strangers{\textquoteright} gain access to the education system. Discussions with the representatives of other countries have revealed that those currently studying educational subjects at universities usually fail to understand what the school is and what role they are going to play in this institution. The most important point is studying and receiving a diploma. Modern education encounters a large number of different problems the answers to which can be hardly found.� Disagreement between an objective need for a continuous improvement on educational content (is there anyone who will dare to say it is needless) and a traditional pedagogical requirement for ensuring the stability of educational content is another field of the initiated discussion. A try at improving things is closely related with the extensive development of education, for example, more and more alternative course books and information sources for learners are prepared which disintegrates the content of education. Disagreement between the increased abstractness of education influenced by growing theoretical knowledge and the necessity of improving practical learners{\textquoteright} training should be mentioned. An opinion that the process of learner/student training is too much theoretically supported can be frequently heard. In this case, a huge number of reasons could be suggested. Life and education with no problems is a hardly acceptable idea. However, a wish to stay at a distance in order not to face the existing problems is one of most awful disasters presently seen in the education system. It might be money can solve all problems as according to Marx, {\textquoteleft}They have by no means merely one mode of affirmation, but rather that the distinct character of their existence, of their life, is constituted by the distinct mode of their affirmation. In what manner the object exists for them, is the characteristic mode of their gratification. Wherever the sensuous affirmation is the direct annulment of the object in its independent form (as in eating, drinking, working up of the object, etc.), this is the affirmation of the object... By possessing the property of buying everything, by possessing the property of appropriating all objects, money is thus the object of eminent possession. The universality of its property is the omnipotence of its being. It is therefore regarded as an omnipotent being. Money is the procurer between man{\textquoteright}s need and the object, between his life and his means of life...{\textquoteright} (The Power of Money, Marx, 1844) I strongly reject this idea. The problems of education cannot be solved only on financial grounds. Everyone figures out that vast and broad knowledge as well as full understanding are required to overcome the encountered problem. Education is not a stable system made of insecure and poorly defined components. To find it more reliable, it must contain excess supply, i.e. guided by the principle of redundancy. More investments in education are necessary so that to expect at least minimal results and it makes no account that this idea passes over the presently prevailing liberal economic logics. }, keywords = {educational process, schooling system, system of education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1400133907.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {418, title = {THE DOCTRINE OF DEGRADED EDUCATION: BETWEEN MYTHS AND REALITY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {23}, year = {2010}, month = {July/2010}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {The title of the article does not promise a positive attitude towards education. The reader can feel impressed that the only purpose of the author is the criticism of education with no positive points. However, this is a wrong position as any vivid detail can be clearly noticed. On the other hand, both positive and negative sides need to be considered and in this case, improvement and modernization are not the only ways. A steady increase in welfare is a myth, thus there is no need to discuss which area of life looks is described. When mentioning progress in education and modernization, we must face the other side of the road full of phenomena of degraded education which is not new in Lithuania. The last decade has generated discussions on this issue at different levels, although this is unfashionable and finally useless from different points of view. The most pressing problem is that the concept of degraded education has not been accepted as reality up to now. Therefore, the above introduced points should be plausibly argued.� None of us are Alpha and Omega and thus cannot claim to any ultimate truth and wisdom. Some empathically say that education should solely operate on market conditions (liberal approach), whereas others argue that education should remain the exclusive property state (conservative approach). Both {\textquoteleft}camps{\textquoteright} fail to find a consensus. It seems to be unlikely that education can be developed on the basis of market mechanisms. In this case, education cannot respond to the great expectations of a certain nation, particularly a small one. On the other hand, education cannot be {\textquoteleft}simply dropped{\textquoteright} in the shell of conservatism. How to find the right balance? In any case, we cannot stay away and allow the devils {\textquoteleft}drowned{\textquoteright} positive things. We need to carry on discussing the faced problems. Though the battle between good and evil has been taking place for ages, today, the balance is clearly violated. Famous French philosopher Jean Antoine Condorcet declared that {\textquoteleft}there are two key causes of social turbulence {\textendash} state / existence inequality band educational inequality{\textquoteright}. Thus, save our careful, responsible and public character. }, keywords = {criticism of education, degraded education, education falsification}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594588}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {456, title = {DOING PRE-SCHOOL: KNOWLEDGE UTILIZATION AND DISCURSIVE PATTERNS DURING PRE-SCHOOL PLANNING MEETINGS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {25}, year = {2010}, month = {November/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {77-86}, abstract = {The aim of this research is to study knowledge utilization and discursive patterns during pre-school planning meetings fronstage. The study is designed as a qualitative case study based on tape recordings of five planning meetings and three video documented activities. Three pre-school teachers and three researchers participated. In the analysis, Foucault{\textquoteright}s work on discursive practices is used as theoretical framework. The study highlights knowledge used and cited in the local negotiations. The conclusions are that the knowledge used is based on both professional knowledge related to children{\textquoteright}s learning and development, and local knowledge of children and their abilities, conditions and personalities. The professional knowledge appears as rather implicit and it is primarily the local knowledge of children and their individual needs and circumstances that is most clearly expressed. Dominant discursive patterns are formulated as the staff make themselves responsible for making the pre-school activity not school-like for the maturing child. On the front stage arena the teachers{\textquoteright} tasks primarily appears as a desire to maintain the pre-school content in accordance with pre-school ideology that also controls how they see the children{\textquoteright}s learning in pre-school in another perspective than student learning in a school context. }, keywords = {knowledge utilization, planning meetings, pre-school work}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=924384}, author = {Agneta Ljung-Dj{\"a}rf and Charlotte Tullgren} } @article {464, title = {ECOLOGIZATION OF THE WORLD OUTLOOK AS THE KEY PURPOSE OF EDUCATIONAL PRACTICE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {26}, year = {2010}, month = {November/2010}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {It is obvious that the educational model to the XXI century is oriented at goals of Sustainable Development. This topic is becoming very trendy and urgent in and outside Lithuania. Recent correlation with nature carries a problematic character. D.Birnbacher proposes that {\textquotedblleft}bearing in mind the increased people{\textquoteright}s possibilities to influence the future of humankind and other conscious beings, responsibility for the future generations{\textellipsis} is an incontrovertible duty{\textquotedblright} (Birnbacher, 1980). None of the environment protection laws could tackle problems of ecology as a huge part of a contemporary society produces a primitive ecologic culture and very often is completely illiterate. Therefore, the tasks of primary ecology education are to foster ecologic pupils{\textquoteright} culture and raise their ecologic consciousness because the past and present life offers a great number of lessons in ecology including ecology catastrophes, anthropogenesis impact on nature (20th century), etc. Moral responsibility for natural (environment) preservation is relevant as never before today. Hence, the ecologization of the world outlook of society is also crucial. The achievements of natural sciences are striking today. The Universe, stars, planets, substances and their structure (mega and micro world) are the objects of research. On the one part, everything is brilliant but on the other part, the man and created technologies behave cruelly and remorsefully towards both nature and human being. The inward world is getting poor, the needs of consumerism have grown into compulsion of spoliation (a pragmatic correlation with nature). The youth{\textquoteleft}s behaviour changes. They frequently kill and torture animals, act aggressively and sadistically. We simply cannot live and think that apres moi le deluge. We must save the Earth which is our unique shelter for the future generations. Thus, we have to foster respect for everything around us since early childhood. Generally speaking, the ecologization of the world outlook is the key purpose of educational practice today. And finally {\textendash} the ecologization of all education demands more attention in the 21st century. }, keywords = {ecologic consciousness, ecologization of the world outlook, environment protection}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594254}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {387, title = {ECOLOGY EDUCATION AS AN INTEGRAL COMPONENT OF PRIMARY NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION: SOME RELEVANT ISSUES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {21}, year = {2010}, month = {June/2010}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-11}, abstract = {A contemporary environment solves highly relevant issues of environmental protection, natural usage, ecology, etc. In order to overcome all serious obstacles, it all requires our new approach and efforts of the experts{\textquoteright} of different fields. The global matters are our general concern. This is ipso facto because none of the problems is isolated. Most of them are mixed, versatilely determined and originally undivided. Thus, the process of the correlation awareness is rather complex and hardly achievable. The decision is possible only if the points are thoroughly examined in a close correlation. On the other side, the mentioned issues cannot be the only scientists{\textquoteright} concern. This is a business of the whole society and school as {\textquotedblleft}the scale of human activity started reaching the elemental natural processes. The ideal of partnership between nature and human being changed when the latter has become the lord of nature in reality... The ecology era is considered to have been started because neither science nor practice can dispose of ecology problems. The bearing between human being and biosphere is a relevant question for both sides: to be or not to be?{\textquotedblright} (Minkevi{\v c}ius, 1987). These arguments have to comprehensively be discussed by secondary school pupils. Natural science education, obviously, must solidify the ecology world outlook. Prof. J.Vaitkevi{\v c}ius thinks that one-sided, wrong way of natural science education, the insufficient perception of the phenomenon of nature and human being anticipates the social cataclysms of humankind. Therefore, {\textquotedblleft}the goal of nature comprehension is the development of children{\textquoteright}s abilities to aware a natural world and to communicate with it{\textquotedblright} (The General curricula, 1997). On the other side, it seems to be not enough. A wider point of view would have been helpful. The knowledge of ecology allows us to partially foresee the outcomes of our actions (Pleijelis, 1994). The formulation of a complex concept is acclaimed to be important, i.e. when nature is understood as a cultural value and a tangible property.� Ecology education is a permanent process, thus it has to coherently take place in all forms of comprehensive school. Every age range is useful for ecology education. Therefore, we cannot think that if something has been lost in primary school, we will have a chance improve. Full attention should be turned to primary school pupils as they receive propaedeutic, systemized and integral knowledge about nature which is the basis for the adaptation of information and attitudes (for example, environment protection) as well as for humanistic, aesthetic and cognitive motivation. Knowledge (information) about ecology could effectively be implemented only if suitable material facilities of training existed. Primary ecology education is a coexisting part of an immediate interest in nature, fauna and flora care, inhabited locality protection, responsibility for the results of human activity in nature. The sampling, adaptation and implementation of the content of ecology education using particular means (material facilities) are the foremost stages of integration. It could be justly maintained that ecology is an integral component of primary natural science education. The major result of ecology education is individual ecology education that includes cognitive (systemic knowledge), valuable (understanding of values, the models of behaviour in nature etc., a concept of respect to nature), and practice (practical environment protection work, participation in various actions, etc.) fields.� Most of the teachers are looking for the so called non-traditional methods as they consider that the existing patterns are very traditional, and therefore are little effective. Basically, it is a wrong attitude because the essence is not the methods or forms that are used. The most important points are the focus, priorities, directions (objective, value, normative, etc.), objectives, tasks and content that we choose. A frequent search for the assumed {\textquotedblleft}innovations{\textquotedblright} is not effective and even useless in the whole educational process. In this case, the teacher{\textquoteright}s attitude and competence in the ecology education field is a fundamental feature. Last of all, fragmentary ecology education is also useless and poorly effective. Ecology education should be coherent and fragmentary in primary school. Individual planning of ecology education for the whole four-year period, the teacher{\textquoteright}s disposition to broaden experience and raise qualification in the field, community and parents{\textquoteright} involvement into the activity of ecology education helps to reach the objective. Yasvin and Deriabo (1996) seem to be right that a particular system of ecology education rather than the experts of environment protection will overcome the ecology crisis in our planet. In a broad sense, it must be noticed that the previous ecology-environment protection education is extremely important. On the contrary, the opponents uphold the idea that ecology education is hardly possible in the preschool and primary school period. In fact, an early school age is supposed to be a positive feature of ecology education. Therefore, we cannot refuse the period of individual ontogenesis as it is relevant for effective ecology education. }, keywords = {ecology culture, ecology education, environmental protection}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1400135375.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {428, title = {EXPERIENCE OF THE FOURTH-YEAR UNDERGRADUATES IN USING INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES (ICT)}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {23}, year = {2010}, month = {July/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {124-136}, abstract = {It is accepted that ICT makes the process of teaching/learning more effective and beneficial whereas the education system starts functioning faster. The development of ICT and the process of globalization determine alteration in the education system as well as in the whole society. The implementation of new technologies in the educational process raises new possibilities for both teacher and learner, enhances education quality and makes the educational process more versatile. A crucial point is that employing ICT must be highly efficient in the process of training would-be teachers of sciences. The students graduated from comprehensive or upper secondary (gymnasium) schools have a broad knowledge of mastering ICT the major part of which are PCs, palmtop computers, mobile phones, different kinds of audio, video and digital players etc. In this case, we encounter a problem of how to properly develop the acquired abilities in the further process of studying. Thus, the object of our research is the ability of the fourth-year undergraduates to use information and communication technologies. The aim of research is to gain information concerning the fourth-year students{\textquoteright} opinion on the application of ICT in the process of studies. The research A Student and Information and Communication Technologies was conducted in January {\textendash} March, 2010. Research sample consisted of 322 respondents who were 4th year university students. To analyze research data, the measures of descriptive statistics (absolute and relative frequencies, popularity/usefulness/necessity indexes) have been applied. The surveyed fourth-year undergraduates have almost unlimited possibilities of using a computer, mobile phone, the Internet and an electronic data storage device - USB flash drive. The students almost daily use the basic functions of the mobile phone (writing SMS, calling). However, calling to other people using a mobile phone and sending SMS are a more frequent occupation of females as male students are tend to search for information on the Internet and send and receive e-mails. Considering all aspects of using information and communication technologies among the surveyed fourth-year students that graduated from city or regional schools, no statistically significant deviation has been noticed. }, keywords = {fourth-year undergraduates, process of studies survey}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594598}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta {\v S}lekiene and Loreta Raguliene} } @article {475, title = {INFLUENCE OF PSYCHO-PEDAGOGICAL SUPPORT ON LEARNING EFFICIENCY AND EDUCATION OF STUDENTS AT TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {26}, year = {2010}, month = {November/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {132-141}, abstract = {In the given work the problem of training and education of students at higher technological schools in the context of the personal formation of a future expert {\textendash} technologist under the influence of psycho-pedagogical support (PPS) is investigated. The basic criteria confirming the efficiency of PPS helped us to choose the following indicators of cognitive and personal development: thinking, intelligence, impulsiveness and morals. The primary PPS goals of training and education of students at higher technological school were: application of pedagogical diagnosis; use of various methods of education; consideration of merits and abilities of students; formation of a positive self-appraisal; training of the self-stimulation positive behavior technique. To solve the highlighted problems the following methods have been applied: the organization and holding of conversations and seminars on self-education within the limits of the developing at the university system of students{\textquoteright} moral education; holding some lectures on psychology and pedagogics for strengthening the liberal-moral component of vocational training; the socio-psychological training directed on the formation of communicative skills, the development of abilities to come into contact with associates, helping to remove the internal barriers, disturbing the effective interaction but promoting the consciousness of personal qualities; the self-reports of students stimulating internal activity and work of consciousness. The efficiency of PPS influence on training and education of students at the higher technological school is confirmed by the fact that students have increased their analyticity of thinking, have raised their IQ level while impulsiveness has decreased and the indicator of good manners has improved. The presented PPS model is a part of the innovative system of psycho-pedagogical support of vocational training of students at higher school that we have been developing throughout a number of years. }, keywords = {analyticity of thinking, intellectual development, psycho-pedagogical support}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594313}, author = {Olga Logashenko and Tatyana Shaposhnikova} } @article {449, title = {INTEGRATED SCIENCE EDUCATION IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CONSTRUCTIVISM THEORY: SOME IMPORTANT ISSUES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {25}, year = {2010}, month = {November/2010}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-9}, abstract = {It is obvious that many scientists nowadays speak about constructivistic approach in education. This topic is becoming very trendy. Is it correct to focus our attention only to the study of this topic? This is a really complicated issue. There are quite a large variety of opinions, as well as controversial. First of all it is obligatory to perceive the idea of integrated science education in the context of constructivism as a theory of learning. Secondly, it is important to understand and name the specificities of integrated science education implemented following the principles of constructivistic teaching/learning. Thirdly, it is necessary to be able to predict the possibilities of integrating the content of different subjects of science related to the specificities of students at different age stage as well as to material and human resources (Lamanauskas, Vilkoniene, 2008). Generally speaking previous studies implied that the development of a constructivist-learning environment could contribute positively to changing student attitudes toward science learning (Oh, Yager, 2004). However, we can not make an one-sided evaluation. Who can deny that the traditional teaching and learning is wrong? }, keywords = {constructivistic approach, context of constructivism, integrated teaching}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=924376}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {405, title = {INTERNATIONAL PROJECTS {\quotedblbase}ARISE{\textquotedblleft} AND {\quotedblbase}IQST{\textquotedblleft} FOR IMPROVING QUALITY OF SCIENCE TEACHING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {22}, year = {2010}, month = {June/2010}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {An international cooperation is undoubtedly an important issue. Science is science and it has an international character. Moreover, such cooperation is crucially important for scientists from former Soviet Union countries, because they had no possibility to communicate with colleagues from abroad or such cooperation was strongly limited. It is obvious if we want to obtain the necessary scientific information about different things, to enlarge technological possibilities of societies and so on, generally speaking, to make our world more safe and better, international cooperation among scientists is essential. Only all together we will be able to meet a broad range of global challenges today and tommorow. It is obvious that all projects are different. For example, large-scale scientific projects are very different to standard scale projects, which can be characterised mainly in four aspects: budget, human resources, time scale, productivity. The projects usually comprises experts from different areas of science and education. Another argument is that the globalization is becoming an international trend making countries open their doors, integrate and participate further in international co-operation activities. Generally speaking, we should recognize the importance of projects to education success. Projects generally are doing something new, innovative and this is very important. }, keywords = {augmented reality, natural science education, teacher training}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1400514560.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {440, title = {LITHUANIAN AND ESTONIAN STUDENTS{\textquoteright} ATTITUDE TOWARDS SCIENCE TEACHING/LEARNING METHODS: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {24}, year = {2010}, month = {October/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {66-74}, abstract = {A number of the latest investigations specify the necessity of improving science education at all levels of the education system. A decreasing interest in sciences is one of the most acute problems of present education. The purpose of this research is to analyse how students evaluate the current situation on using different teaching/learning methods and means in the process of science education. Research was carried out in Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia (Lamanauskas, Vilkonis, 2008). This article presents more exhaustive research results, which were obtained after carrying out comparative analysis between the respondents of two countries {\textendash} Lithuania and Estonia. It is very important to compare the evaluation, attitudes of the students belonging to the same region country, because earlier carried out researches show that in spite of common natural science education tendencies, rather significant differences exist between countries. It is believable, that they are predetermined by various educational approaches, teachers{\textquoteright} competence and other different reasons. }, keywords = {learning process, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594537}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Renata Bilbokaite and Irina Zhikina and Inna Portjanskaya} } @article {357, title = {LITHUANIAN AND LATVIAN STUDENTS{\textquoteright} ATTITUDE TOWARDS SCIENCE TEACHING/LEARNING METHODS: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {19}, year = {2010}, month = {March/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {55-62}, abstract = {A number of the latest investigations specify the necessity of improving science education at all levels of the education system. A decreasing interest in sciences is one of the most acute problems of present education. The purpose of this research is to analyse how students evaluate the current situation on using different teaching/learning methods and means in the process of science education. Research was carried out in Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia (Lamanauskas, Vilkonis, 2008). This article presents more exhaustive research results, which were obtained after carrying out comparative analysis between the respondents of two countries {\textendash} Lithuania and Latvia. It is very important to compare the evaluation, attitudes of the students belonging to the same region country, because earlier carried out researches show that in spite of common natural science education tendencies, rather significant differences exist between countries. It is believable, that they are predetermined by various educational approaches, teachers{\textquoteright} competence and other different reasons. }, keywords = {learning process, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399917272.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Renata Bilbokaite and Janis Gedrovics} } @article {412, title = {LITHUANIAN STUDENTS{\textquoteleft} EXPERIENCES WITH TECHNOLOGY: SOME IMPORTANT ISSUES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {22}, year = {2010}, month = {June/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {64-75}, abstract = {The role of ICT in education in whole and particularly in science education is very important topic. It is worth emphasizing that in recent years, a general degree of integrating ICT in the process of teaching has increased in Lithuania as well as in other countries. It is accepted that ICT makes the process of teaching/learning more effective and beneficial whereas the education system starts functioning faster. The development of ICT and the process of globalization determine alteration in the education system as well as in the whole society. The implementation of new technologies in the educational process raises new possibilities for both teacher and learner, enhances education quality and makes the educational process more versatile. The research {\textquoteright}Student and Computer-Based Technologies{\textquoteright} was conducted in January {\textendash} March, 2010. Research sample consisted of 663 respondents who were 1st year university students (freshmen). To analyze research data, the measures of descriptive statistics (absolute and relative frequencies, popularity/usefulness/necessity indexes) have been applied. It has been stated, that respondents have practically unlimited opportunities to use mobile phone, computer, internet and e-data mini storage device - USB stick. Relatively new and rather expensive digital technologies are barely used. The most useful information communication technology for the first year students while studying is compute. }, keywords = {first year students, information communication technologies}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1400515635.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta {\v S}lekiene and Loreta Raguliene} } @article {441, title = {METAVISUALIZATION: AN IMPORTANT SKILL IN THE LEARNING CHEMISTRY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {24}, year = {2010}, month = {October/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {75-83}, abstract = {This paper is a theoretical discussion about three important concepts related with chemistry learning. The terms visualization, metacognition and metavisualization were reviewed in the literature, in regard to aspects of definition and importance as constructors of knowledge in science education, especially in chemistry. There is a stead growing body of research that recognizes the importance of being metacognitive in the learning process. Also, given the frequent use of visualization in chemistry instruction we began to encounter studies that suggest that metacognition in respect with visualization exits and it{\textquoteright}s referred to as {\textquotedblleft}metavisualization{\textquotedblright}. Particularly, this term has been perceived as a metavisual skill, where the student will monitor and regulate specifically their internal representations, helping him to build concepts in science. Many definitions have been found about these terms, however there seems to be a uniformity to consider its importance in the learning process of students, which allows us to conclude that there is still a great demand for research in this area to clarify many aspects regarding these cognitive and metacognitive processes.}, keywords = {chemistry instruction, metacognition, metavisualization}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594538}, author = {Solange W. Locatelli and Celeste Ferreira and Agnaldo Arroio} } @article {360, title = {ONLINE COURSE INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN FROM THE PROFESSORS{\textquoteright} PEDAGOGIC KNOWLEDGE AND TECHNOLOGICAL SKILLS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {19}, year = {2010}, month = {March/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {84-93}, abstract = {The educational design of seven on-line courses was analyzed with the aim to relate the professors{\textquoteright} pedagogic knowledge and technological abilities with the course design. The courses already imparted where analyzed in the LMS where they were designed (Virtual U, Moodle and Virtual UABC). Assessments were carried out to evaluate the quality of the designs, also semi structured interviews and questionnaires were done to determine the professors{\textquoteright} knowledge and perceived abilities. The professors were selected looking to cover all the possible combinations among high (T) and low (t) technological abilities and high (P) and low (p) pedagogic knowledge. Seven courses were selected; two with professors who had high technological abilities and high pedagogical knowledge (TP); two with professors with high technological abilities and low pedagogical knowledge (Tp); two with professors with low technological abilities and high pedagogical knowledge (tP); and finally one with low technological abilities and low pedagogical knowledge (tp). The analysis showed no relationship between the coherence and structure of the course design with the professors{\textquoteright} technological abilities and pedagogical knowledge. Analysis of the interviews suggests that the most important element for a coherent and well structured educational course design is the professor{\textquoteright}s interpersonal relationships and the informal fellowship communications with experience in on-line education.}, keywords = {pedagogical knowledge, technological skills}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399917485.pdf}, author = {Lewis McAnally-Salas and Gilles Lavigne and Carolina Armijo de Vega} } @article {350, title = {THE PECULARITIES OF THE EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES OF PRIMARY NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {19}, year = {2010}, month = {March/2010}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {The extracurricular activities of natural science education (EANSE) is one of the most significant fields of natural science education. The field hides inside numerous opportunities of choice. Whatever advanced natural science education is {\textendash} it omits the functions and do not provide the opportunities that could be offered by the EANSE. Teaching is not and cannot be limited only by classes at any stage of the educational system. Pupils gain new experience in the extracurricular activities that is very important to broadening of creativity and other properties relevant to modern life. The usage of the latest information technologies, communication and cooperation, group work, the change of ideas and a critical approach towards social reality are the greatest abilities of human being in a new century. School has to devote an exceptional attitude towards its development. Hence, the system of extracurricular activities should exhaustively be used as this is a place where schoolchildren can acquire knowledge and experience that cannot be obtained at school, i.e. different methods can be applied and the attitude that they are the users of nature as well as responsible for its evolution and protection can be fostered. It should be remembered that an affective value-based aspect is very important to the correlation with nature. It includes a need to feel concern about the environment, to communicate with nature and to feel being an integral part of it (Makarskaite, 1995).� The extracurricular activities of natural science education can be defined as a part of permanent education that should guarantee the complete development of pupils{\textquoteright} physical, psychical and emotional power. It is an excellent opportunity for pupils to improve their natural science education with a help of different coteries, arranged camps, actions, projects, etc. Thus, obviously, the extracurricular activities of natural science education in primary school are an influential field of pupils{\textquoteright} training that is extremely useful to fostering affective value-based relations with nature, to cherishing love for nature and respect for life. In general, the majority of children of this age realize the importance and significance of activities related to nature and this is the main point of the extracurricular activities of natural science education training. Also, there are a variety of ways to create extracurricular activities in science education area at a primary school. In every moment teachers should be ready to implement extracurricular activities in real school life. }, keywords = {educational system, extracurricular activities, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399916909.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {462, title = {PROBLEMS OF STUDY AND STIMULATION OF STUDENTS-PSYCHOLOGISTS{\textquoteright} CREATIVE POTENTIAL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {25}, year = {2010}, month = {November/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {151-161}, abstract = {In the given work the problem of the vocational training of a psychologist, a teacher of psychology at the psychological faculty at the Institute of Economics and Management in Medicine and Social Sphere (Krasnodar) is investigated. The complexity of the given problem consists in the fact that a young expert being a teacher of psychology must be equally prepared both to the vocational psychological and the vocational pedagogical activity. The basic emphasis is made on the development of the creative personal potential of students which promotes efficiency of the future advisory, scientific and pedagogical activity of an expert. The longitudinal experimental psychological research of the professionally significant characteristics of students-psychologists and future teachers of psychology has been made. The indicators of dynamics of the creative personal potential of students from the 2nd to the 4th course at higher school have been studied. The innovative pedagogical technology of psycho-pedagogical support (PPS) of scientific practical activities (SPA) at the stage of introductory educational and pedagogical practice developed at the chair of psychology and pedagogics have been used as the influence tool. It is revealed and statistically confirmed that indicators for developing the creative potential level in the course of the professional formation of a student-psychologist at a stage of higher school education have positive dynamics connected with some features of psycho-pedagogical support of the training process.}, keywords = {creative potential, the personality of a psychologist, vocational formation}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://journals.indexcopernicus.com/abstract.php?icid=924391}, author = {Olga Logashenko and Lyudmila Lomakina} } @article {415, title = {PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PEDAGOGICAL PROBLEMS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION FOR ADULTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {22}, year = {2010}, month = {June/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {99-108}, abstract = {Our main focus is to highlight the most important challenges in distance education aimed at adults: specific psychological challenges coming from adult development, the problems of quality and evaluation, and the effect particular distance education forms and their content (interactivity, salience, and multimedia additions) have on adult learning. In the opening section, theoretical grounds for how adults learn, treat learning, how they function in informational stress and in the role of a pupil are presented. This is than followed by the discussion of pedagogical aspects (motivation, self esteem etc) of results evaluation and didactical difficulties of planning high quality distance learning. Finally, a review of research results into how different types of material content affects adults{\textquoteright} perception and comprehension and how retention and transfer and influenced in effect. In the summary, we move on to discuss how b-learning (blended) and c-learning (complementary) could be employed in order to facilitate adult distance learning and propose research fields to explore in this area.}, keywords = {adult development, adult education, educational psychology}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1400515828.pdf}, author = {S{\l}awomir Postek and Maria Ledzi{\'n}ska and Jakub Czarkowski} } @article {429, title = {THE ROLE OF METACOGNITION IN C-LEARNING CURRICULUM}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {23}, year = {2010}, month = {July/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {137-145}, abstract = {The article provides the Reader with an extensive review of literature, both theoretical and empirical, concerning c-learning and it{\textquoteright}s possible content. Initially, the origins on c-learnign idea are reviewed, from the point of looking at the evolution of various forums of distance education over the Internet. Empirical results that led psychologists and pedagogues to consider c-learning as the answer to a majority of problems of traditional e-learning are presented, followed by a description of what c-learning currently is and what its main challenges are. Than, one of those challenges {\textendash} c-learning curriculum {\textendash} is considered and the path that led educational psychologists from treating instilling knowledge as the main aim of a teacher to treating training metaknowledge and metacognitive abilities as such is presented. Following that, the origins of the concept of metacognitive skills, the structure of those skills and their relation to cognitive functioning are discussed. Finally, the place metacognition should take in c-learning, and possibly all types of modern education paradigms (even traditional school), is considered, and the view presented is supported by a review of works from all fields involved in virtual schooling attempts: technology of education, educational and cognitive psychology and pedagogy. }, keywords = {c-learning, metacognition, modern school curriculum}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594599}, author = {Maria Ledzi{\'n}ska and S{\l}awomir Postek} } @article {396, title = {SCHOOL AND FAMILY COOPERATION MODELS FOR REDUCING SOCIAL PROBLEMS AT BOARDING SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {21}, year = {2010}, month = {June/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {96-108}, abstract = {The task of this report is to analyze the opportunities of cooperation between school and family by considering several models of cooperation. The work specificity is connected with circumstances, created by the economic crisis and the specificity of boarding school in work with social risk group{\textquoteright}s pupils and their parents. The research is carried out within the framework of Doctoral Thesis {\quotedblbase}Holistic approach during process of socialization of social risk group pupils{\textquotedblright}. The report analyses the legislation of the Republic of Latvia, being related to social problems, child{\textquoteright}s rights and parents{\textquoteright} duties, and offers triangular model SCHOOL - NGO - FAMILY, which is pointed towards direct cooperation between school, NGO and family.}, keywords = {boarding school, social exclusion, triangle model of cooperation}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1400135899.pdf}, author = {Velta Lubkina and Inese Patapova} } @article {466, title = {A STUDY ON HOW THE USE OF ICT IN TRAVELLING PERIODS INFLUENCES ROMANI STUDENTS{\textquoteright} ATTITUDES TOWARDS SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {26}, year = {2010}, month = {November/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {19-29}, abstract = {In 1998 Norway ratified the Council of Europe{\textquoteright}s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, and in1999 the Romanies and four other minorities obtained the status of a national minority group The Romanies have lived in Norway for hundreds of years. But the assimilation policy was hard and lasted for more than hundred years with the aim to assimilate and eradicate differences from what was perceived as the "Norwegian". The school has been an important part in this assimilation policy. Although we can see a different political climate marked by multiculturalism, acceptance of diversity and greater understanding of minority groups today, the culture and history of the national minorities has been, and still remains absent from school. And still many students of Romani families drop out of school without any exams when they are 13-14 years old. In this article a developmental project with the aim to make a better school situation for Romani students is examined concerning an attempt using ICT in the travelling periods. The use of laptops have made changes in the relational and communication patterns connected to an intercultural understanding, but many pupils still drop out of school before ending the compulsory school.}, keywords = {adapted learning, ICT as communication tool, intercultural education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594279}, author = {Anne Bonnevie Lund} } @article {358, title = {TEACHING CHROMATOGRAPHY IN SECONDARY SCHOOL - AN INVESTIGATION CONCERNING GRADE, CONTEXT, CONTENT, EXPERIMENTS AND MEDIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {19}, year = {2010}, month = {March/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {63-69}, abstract = {This investigation focuses on how one of the best established and most efficient methods for the separation of substances {\textendash} chromatography {\textendash} is taught in secondary school. A questionnaire-based study with teachers (N=76) was used to get a first glance at the situation in schools. The results show that various chromatographic techniques (PC, TLC, GC, HPLC) are taught in secondary school using different context settings. All teachers use paperchromatography as a students{\textquoteleft} experiment analyzing e.g. colour pens in 7th grade. A far less amount of teachers cover more complex techniques such as gas chromatography e.g. in 12th grade. A detailed insight was attained by analyzing 37 chemistry lessons of 18 classes in 7th grade. It could be shown that a broad variety of experiments, remarkable differences in the use of scientific concepts to explain how chromatography works and in the application of media occure.}, keywords = {adsorption, chromatography}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399917392.pdf}, author = {Julia Lorke and Katrin Sommer} } @article {422, title = {VIRTUAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT AS A SUBJECT OF CURRENT RESEARCH PROJECTS AT UNIVERSITY OF HRADEC KR{\'A}LOV{\'E}}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {23}, year = {2010}, month = {July/2010}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {41-50}, abstract = {The paper deals with research activities run at the University of Hradec Kralove, Faculty of Education and Faculty of Informatics and Management, Czech Republic, which relate to information and communication technologies implemented in the process of instruction in various subjects. Particularly the role of a virtual learning environment (VLE) is mentioned and discussed, and information about core current projects is provided. The project work is understood to be a tool of VLE reflection, which is considered both from generally accepted points of view, and some new approaches are also introduced.� Current orientation of university education, which is changing under the influence of latest technology development and new key competences, can be researched from various, different points of view. Education supported by ICT has been spreading because of growing popularity of digital technologies in general. Another reason is it enables easier and more complex realization of the instructional process, offers choice of place, time and pace for studying, allows an individual approach to students preferring various learning styles. These are the key values important for the effectiveness of the process. Material and technical requirements having been satisfied, strong attention must be paid to didactic aspects of the instructional process. To contribute to this process is the main objective of these projects. }, keywords = {project work, virtual learning environment}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {https://journals.indexcopernicus.com/search/article?articleId=2594592}, author = {Martin B{\'\i}lek and Ivana {\v S}imonov{\'a} and Jan La{\v s}ek} } @article {224, title = {ASSURING EDUCATIONAL CONTINUITY ON MACRO SYSTEM LEVEL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {12}, year = {2009}, month = {May/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {22-29}, abstract = {This publication will address a problem topical for international educational system: assuuring educational continuity in segmented educational system. Functioning of mutualy united educational stages is a significant factor for implementing the aims of lifelong education. Educational transition period is consequential for segmented educational system and leaves sustainable influence on educational process of the child. This phase is a particular challenge for children with special needs, and it is not possible to overcome transition without external help. One of the most important aspects of educational transition is preparing children and fostering their adaptation for learning in primary school. According to ecosystemic approach, this development depends from interaction of children{\textquoteright}s parents and microsystems of preschool and primary school. In Latvian educational macrosystem there are no approaches elaborated that would assure interaction possibilities of above mentioned microsystems. There are no traditions of cooperation also on macrosystemic level. To overcome these problems and to implement transition periods qualitatively, schools need to increase their capacity. }, keywords = {continuity of value system and learning process, life long education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1393266765.pdf}, author = {Dina Bethere and Anita Lidaka} } @article {297, title = {THE COMMON GOAL OF ALL EDUCATORS: HOW TO IMPROVE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {16}, year = {2009}, month = {November/2009}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {Science education is an integral phenomenon that can be grasped as a whole science. Science education plays a very important role in broadening pupils{\textquoteleft} world outlook. The science classes always discuss real, concrete things and phenomena, which are a part of pupils{\textquoteleft} reality and even every day life. It is very important that natural sciences should help learners to formulate a clear concept of natural history based on the latest knowledge of the world strongly emphasizing the character of the correlation between nature and society, civilization and culture. The world is multidimensional, and therefore we must strive to acknowledge it. This is a winning goal of contemporary science education (Lamanauskas, 2003). Science education is playing a crucial role in both developed and developing countries. Quality-based natural science education is necessary for every human living in a modern world. Different investigations show that natural sciences have lost their previous attractiveness in the developed countries. On the contrary, the young generation of the developing countries most frequently has a positive interest in natural sciences. On the other hand, in most of the cases, natural science education in comprehensive school is not popular, inexactly corresponds to the curricula and has no relevance to the learners{\textquoteright} needs. The introduced situation is determined by several common and uncommon factors. The process of natural science education in comprehensive school is one of those not adequate for the present day and achievements in sciences. Such inadequacy first of all, has relation with competence of teachers of natural sciences. Insufficient competence is frequently determined by the inappropriate process of studies in universities training prospective teachers of natural sciences. Another main point is connected with the whole public, not only with young people, but also with adults. Public natural science education (sophistication) is a burning question. Apparently, natural science education is crucial for training the present young generation. In this case, there is no difference whether a young person will be engaged in natural sciences in the future. The increase of interest of those not involved in sciences or having a previously formed negative attitude towards the subjects is a more complicated problem to be solved. This is concern and obligation of the whole scientific pedagogical society working in the field of natural science education. Generally speaking, all spheres of science education are important in our modern, technologically oriented society. It is impossible to discuss all pressing questions of science education here. However, I can notice that some trends raise a lot of doubts. For example, the great majority of works are linked to motivation, interests, attitudes and so on. We can{\textquoteright}t assert that this is not important. In fact, this is the sphere of psychology. How difficult it were to find out the reasons for low interest to science and technologies, the fallen prestige of sciences in comprehensive schools, still they are not essential things from the educational point of view. All the more, inquiry based researches give only a panoramic view of the situation, i.e. have a stated character. It is completely not clear or almost not clear what causes such a situation. The main goal of educators is to change, develop teaching-learning process using educational devices. Some last researches revealed that pupils understand the meaning of sciences and technologies to society in general, but they are not satisfied with school science. The main question till now is why? It is obvious, that we come in touch with deeper didactic problems here, for example, the content of teaching, teaching-learning methods, teacher and pupils relations, scientific research activity (the latter is a very important part of the whole science education process), at last, teaching-learning process management in general. If we concentrate only on psychological parameters (interests, motives, demands, attitudes and so on), essential didactic parameters remain outside. In other words, the essential question {\textendash} effective pedagogization of the whole science and technological education process hasn{\textquoteright}t been solved yet (it considerably deviated towards psychologization and sociologization). Researches of a stated character are not sufficient to reach this. In recent years not only in Lithuania but also in academic societies of other countries, it has generally become a norm to carry out different stated (diagnostic) researches. Very rarely researchers try their ideas and theories in practice. Simply there are no possibilities for this. Then, researchers go along the road treaded by sociologists and psychologists i.e., give questionnaires, tests to pupils, students, pedagogues, only strengthening existing educational practice by this (Bitinas, 2006). Thus, there is one more open question how to rationally change existing educational practice in the direction of development. How to achieve that educational researches were much more effective in the practical applicability of their results? As an example we can mention international ROSE (The Relevance of Science Education) research (http://www.ils.uio.no/english/rose/). Countries having participated in the research carried out exhaustive analysis of the results. Different attitude, interest, motive and other differences and similarities in the population of the 15- year old students were discovered. Without any doubt, it is important. However, these results don{\textquoteright}t have direct influence on educational practice and on the changes of this practice, of course. On the contrary, quite often- different changes occur rather spontaneously. Another important thing is the role of ICT in education in general and particularly in science education. It is worth emphasizing, that in recent years, a general degree of integrating ICT in the process of teaching has increased in Lithuania as well as in other countries. The growth is characteristic not only at university level but also at other levels of the education system. It is accepted that ICT makes the process of teaching/learning more effective and beneficial whereas the education system starts functioning faster. The development of ICT and the process of globalization determine alteration in the education system as well as in the whole society. The implementation of new technologies in the educational process raises new possibilities for both teacher and learner, enhances education quality and makes the educational process more versatile. Therefore, *. We should devote all our efforts to stimulating youth interest in science and technologies and to reinforcing scientific-technological education at all levels. Although hardly anyone suspects that technologies are having a growing impact on our daily life, however, they still remain alienated from the major part of society members and policy makers and what is more, frequently stand outside the door of the education system. Hence, opening the door is the obligation of all of us. We should discuss and try to solve all key problems really using the ICT in everyday school activities.This is not an easy task. ICT is not as panacea for solving all educational problems. As I have already mentioned, modern ICT definitely play a crucial role in developing the teaching/learning processes at all stages and improving the quality of education. Educational advantages of ICT raise no doubts. One of the most important requirements for applying ICT and innovative techniques of teaching is a qualified teacher able to professionally use technologies in practice. A modern teacher must know how to employ ICT and adapt them in order to achieve specific goals of teaching. Today we can observe paradoxical situation. In the majority of cases, students{\textquoteleft} computer literacy remains higher than that of their teachers. Nevertheless, teachers{\textquoteleft} computer literacy becomes an essential professional work condition. ICT application in teaching/learning process shouldn{\textquoteright}t be an end in itself. The essential thing is how to achieve that ICT application increased teaching effectiveness, enriched the work of teachers and pupils. Another important thing follows, that it is not enough to use only computers. It is understandable that the majority of modern ICT in one way or another are related to computers. However, not analyzing ICT classification nuances we can notice that ICT variety is necessary to guarantee teaching effectiveness. Not for one country the question arises how to find financial recourses to guarantee such variety. It is obvious, that not the quantity but the variety of technologies is this crucial factor. For example, in the schools of Great Britain active boards are almost in every classroom. {\textquotedblleft}Active boards{\textquotedblright} are with the software different for primary and secondary schools; {\textquotedblleft}Smart boards{\textquotedblright} are spread more in the classes and schools of junior and disabled pupils. It is obvious, that constant pedagogues{\textquoteright} interest in the newest ICT is necessary, on the one hand and formation of suitable conditions in schools, on the other hand. It is without doubt, that teacher{\textquoteright}s pedagogic competence, his ability and interest to use ICT are closely related. The situation in Lithuania comparing with other European countries is not exceptional. For example, in 2006/2007 only 49\% of teachers were using ICT for teaching their subject. In 2008/2009 their part increased up to 67\% (Masaitis, 2009). On the other hand, we have different students at school. Their capabilities are so different. This means that modern teaching and learning combines different approaches. It is called {\textquotedblleft}blended learning{\textquotedblright}. Generally speaking, it should be carefully considered because of possible negative outcomes of applying these technologies. Thus, the question of the negative impact of ICT is gaining more weight. It seems no answers are required. On the other hand, we are still suffering from shortage of information on different aspects having negative impact. When the answer is clear, we start feeling lack of required abilities and knowledge of how to reduce the negative impact of ICT or how to eliminate or at least minimize it. Another important issue is what the real impact of modernization on society in terms of ICT implementation is. Finally, some words about international cooperation. It is undoubtedly an important issue. I cannot imagine nowadays scientific research or scientific activity in general without international cooperation. Science is science and it has international character. Moreover, such cooperation is crucially important for scientists from former Soviet Union countries, because they had no possibility to communicate with colleagues from abroad or such cooperation was strongly limited. Another argument is that science education today is the most dynamic part of the science of education (Toshev, 2008). It is obvious, if we want to obtain the necessary scientific information about different things, to enlarge technological possibilities of societies and so on, generally speaking, to make our world more safe and better, international cooperation among scientists is essential. Only all together we will be able to meet a broad range of global challenges today and tomorrow. }, keywords = {ICT in education, innovative techniques, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1396706407.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {306, title = {COMPUTER-BASED TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PROCESS OF TEACHING/LEARNING SCIENCES IN COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL: SOCIO-EDUCATIONAL ASPECTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {16}, year = {2009}, month = {November/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {66-73}, abstract = {The role of ICT in education in whole and particularly in science education is very important topic. It is worth emphasizing that in recent years, a general degree of integrating ICT in the process of teaching has increased in Lithuania as well as in other countries. The growth is characteristic not only at university level but also at other levels of the education system. It is accepted that ICT makes the process of teaching/learning more effective and beneficial whereas the education system starts functioning faster. The development of ICT and the process of globalization determine alteration in the education system as well as in the whole society. The implementation of new technologies in the educational process raises new possibilities for both teacher and learner, enhances education quality and makes the educational process more versatile. On the other hand it is necessary to devote all our efforts to monitor the process of using ICT in general schools. It is necessary to conduct regularly researches of different scale for better understanding of a situation of use ICT in the teaching /learning process. Pilot research Student and Computer-Based Technologies was conducted in October {\textendash} November, 2009. To collect the required data, an anonymous questionnaire was prepared. Research sample consisted of 211 respondents who were 1st year university students (freshmen). In the majority of cases, the students learn to use computer independently, whereas next comes help provided by friends and family members. It has been established that computer-based technologies are very rarely used during the lessons of other subjects. The respondents think that using computer-based technologies in the classroom during the lessons of sciences has the highest impact on cognitive abilities (knowledge acquisition, self-sufficient studies etc.).}, keywords = {computer-based technologies, general schools, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1396707347.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Violeta {\v S}lekiene and Loreta Raguliene} } @article {332, title = {THE COOPERATION OF SCIENCE TEACHERS: SOME RELEVANT ISSUES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {18}, year = {2009}, month = {December/2009}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-7}, abstract = {Nowadays a large discussion is open on the teaching/learning quality issue. It is clear that {\textquotedblleft}learning is a process of construction in which the students themselves have to be the primary actors{\textquotedblright} (von Glasersfeld, 1995). By nowadays the view of the learner has changed from that of a passive recipient of knowledge to that of an active constructor of knowledge. It must be taken into account that {\textquotedblleft}learning is a process of knowledge construction, not of knowledge recording or absorption{\textquotedblright} and {\textquotedblleft}learning is knowledge-dependent; people use current knowledge to construct new knowledge{\textquotedblright} (Anthony, 1996). Having in mind this it is important to promote the active cooperation of science teachers in teaching process. Collaboration and cooperation (there are some important differences between these two terms and we prefer to use the second one) of science teachers are very important components of process of teaching and learning. It is a first step to the constructive, integrated process of teaching. Without adequate cooperation it is not possible to reach the appropriate level of integration, except for internal integration of teaching subjects at a lesson. But in that case a degree of integration is not high enough. Cooperation of science teachers is possibly at all stages of educational process. For example, such cooperation is very effective by preparation of joint teaching/learning programs (curriculum) and concrete plans of activity. Cooperation depends on many factors, for example, the psychological microclimate in collective, motivation of teachers to work better, motivations of pupils and their interest to natural sciences in general. We need teachers to go beyond traditional school science with its emphasis on {\textquotedblleft}key{\textquotedblright} concepts (Eisenhart, Finkel, \& Marion, 1996) and focus also on the processes of learning and thinking about learning (Watters, James, Ginns, Ian, 2000).� Finally, I want to point out that cooperation (collaboration) among science teachers undoubtedly raises efficiency of teaching/learning process. It is a first step to the constructive, integrated process of science teaching. Without adequate cooperation it is not possible to reach the appropriate level of integration, except for internal integration of teaching subjects at a lesson. Teachers{\textquoteleft} cooperation (collaboration) in schools breaks the isolation of the classrooms. Cooperation is an important vehicle through which teachers can plan and carry out an array of services for students. One of the most promising benefits of teachers{\textquoteleft} cooperation is the increased opportunity it gives teachers to interact with one another regarding different teaching and learning issues. Specifically, teachers who cooperate are more likely to discuss with their colleagues areas of the curriculum they have difficulty teaching. The some more statements on cooperation among science teachers can be mentioned: cooperation has a direct impact on students; cooperation is becoming an essential ingredient in successful schools; cooperation is based on belief in the value of shared decision making, trust, and respect among participants; teachers cooperate only when they share a goal; teachers must make a personal choice to work cooperatively; cooperation is voluntary, not administratively mandated; each teacher participating in a cooperative effort contributes some type of resource; cooperation can only occur when it is associated with some program or activity that is based on the shared goals of the individuals involved etc. Cooperation with colleagues is helpful way for improvement of professional knowledge of science teachers. So, the need for cooperation is evident in the science education arena in both formal and non-formal situations. }, keywords = {cooperation, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399915559.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {221, title = {FROM QUALITY MANAGEMENT TO MANAGING QUALITY: SYSTEMIC APPROACH}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {12}, year = {2009}, month = {May/2009}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {There have been more and more discussions going on in recent years about the quality of service provided in different level and different type of educational institutions. It is not one educational institution that characterizes quality as the most important priority of the activity. However, one thing is to characterize and declare and another is to actually strive for this quality. In other words, the priorities of educational institutions can be quite different however, it is inevitably obligatory to try to survive in the market. Quality system is one of the mechanisms helping the institution to organize and fulfill the activity so that to ensure its effective work under competitive conditions. Moreover, no institution should wait for its prestige to start diminishing on the contrary it has to do its best to guarantee successful functioning in the future. Thus, the head of every educational institution today has to care about how effectively its institution functions, what are possible ways and methods of its activity improvement. It is not enough to have practical experience and intuition to do this. Theoretical knowledge is necessary here. It is worth mentioning such a relatively new science field as Qualitology; (квалитология-Russian) which by its nature is triple. The essential parts of it are: quality theory, quality evaluation theory (kvalimetrija) and quality management theory. On the other hand, the analysis of quality management problems is impossible without systemology, management, innovation and theoretical and practical achievements in other spheres. Eventually, the most major are international quality standards ISO 9000:2000. Everything is joined here into a closely related system. Several aspects of education quality having been discussed obviously tell us about the importance of systemic attitude. Every educational institution, first of all, has to be able to solve problems itself, look for ways out from certain situations. And this is much more complicated than in business world. In business sphere a defective product made is simply eliminated from the system and doesn{\textquoteright}t get to (shouldn{\textquoteright}t get to) consumer. In education sphere it is more complicated. It is very difficult to eliminate damage, it is almost impossible. The more, that the emphasis is transferred from external quality control system into internal in other words, institution has to be able to coordinate occurring quality management questions by inner efforts. In general, it can be asserted that any attempt to improve quality means that quality system exists no matter that it is not certified. It is very difficult to implement quality management systems in educational institutions. As it is known, education systems are rather conservative and tend to resist the implementing of innovations. Most frequently they have {\textquotedblleft}we know everything{\textquotedblright} attitude. Quality management system means, first of all, that processes which are carried out in certain educational institution are managed and forecasted. I would think that duty of any head of educational institution is to seek that quality conception would become a need and virtue of every institution employee. This is a constant work. Constant efforts are necessary for this. Quality management is not a single action. This is a systemic task for the implementation of which a long term, methodical and systematic work is necessary not only for achievement of a certain quality level but for its maintenance and constant improvement. }, keywords = {managing quality, quality conception, quality management}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1393266606.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {286, title = {HIGHER EDUCATION POLICIES FOR THE XXI CENTURY : THE FUTURE OF EMERGING COUNTRIES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {15}, year = {2009}, month = {November/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {90-98}, abstract = {Brazilian universities, like the educational system in a great deal of Latin American countries, are experiencing a significant process of transition. They are facing several challenges posed by new education policy settings, mainly in higher education, on the one hand and by social and economic changes on the other. The modern university, as a more recent phenomenon linked to science, also appeared. Born in medieval Europe, transformed in modernity, and expanded worldwide, modern university today seeks a new face capable of accounting for globalization without losing its identity and its ethos of generating, difffusing and guarding knowledge, of the place where this very knowledge may be overcome. Our discussion will be based on theoreticians such as Freire (1996), Bobbio(1987), Carnoy(1997 ) to show that it is necessary to analyze these issues from many points of view. Studies and research about the Brazilian educational agenda developed by local policy makers, consultants and advisers reveal a process in which international institutions and the process of Bologna play a central role. Procedural method is the comparative one, since we are comparing the European reality with that of emerging countries, especially Brazil, in relation to overcoming borders in higher Education. We also analyse the relationship between knowledge production and professional formation.}, keywords = {globalization, research}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1395386932.pdf}, author = {Martha Abrah{\~a}o Saad Lucchesi} } @article {202, title = {THE IMPORTANCE OF STRENGTHENING OF NATURAL SCIENCE EDUCATION IN A PRIMARY SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {11}, year = {2009}, month = {May/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {To one who understands at least something about education it is obvious that science education in primary school is very important. Every person{\textquoteright}s education fundament is formed here. It is understandable that children before school already have certain knowledge about nature. Pre-school children have to know about animal, plant life, should have knowledge about objects and phenomena of inanimate nature, perceive the essence and meaning of care works. Research works show that pre-school children{\textquoteright}s knowledge about nature is not sufficiently exact and exhaustive. We should especially focus on enriching and making the knowledge about animal and plant acclimatization more accurate among 5-7 year old children (U{\v s}eckiene, 2000). On the other hand, it is stated (applying modified Kern test) that in the group of 5-7 year old children cognizing nature and its phenomena an average level of thinking functions and intellect predominates which directly depends on child{\textquoteright}s mental maturity level and not on child{\textquoteright}s sex and age (Plytnykiene, 2002). It is very important for this knowledge to be deepened and broadened in primary school, i.e., in the 1st -4th forms. In this case, natural science preparation quality largely depends on the teacher, on his competence in natural science. Since 1992 a new subject {\textquotedblleft}The world science{\textquotedblright} has been introduced in primary school which can be interpreted as one of the components of natural science education. Currently in Lithuanian primary school science education fundamentals are integrated into the world cognition course. Biology, physics, chemistry, technological, ecological problems make the part of this natural science program. The main nature cognition purpose is to educate children{\textquoteright}s ability understand the world of nature and communicate with it. So, integration of natural science fundamentals on the one hand and social and natural science components on the other hand will further remain a very meaningful sphere of educational process in primary school. It is obvious, in order to understand the peculiarities of natural science education working with junior pupils exhaustive researches are necessary and natural science education in primary school has to be modeled, corrected and developed on their basis (Lamanauskas, 2005). Only high-quality natural science education acquired in primary school can guarantee proper continuation of natural science education in basic and secondary school. }, keywords = {primary school, science education, teaching program}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392407950.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {336, title = {INNOVATIVE TEACHING STRATEGIES ON THE DIACHRONIC VIEW OF GREEK AS MOTHER TONGUE: FROM ANCIENT TO MODERN GREEK LANGUAGE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {18}, year = {2009}, month = {December/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {51-59}, abstract = {In this chapter we present the implementation of new technologies in mother tongue learning and teaching based on the principles of cooperative learning. The data quoted come from an educational project named {\textquoteleft}Nereides{\textquoteright}, which involved the creation of educational software in support of mother tongue teaching in both obligatory and non-obligatory Greek secondary education, and thus addressed schoolchildren aged from 12 to 18 years. Aiming at the optimization of the learning and teaching procedure, the educational tool presented here has sought to combine elements from mother tongue didactics and the use of new technologies in education. At first, educational scenarios were designed based on cooperative learning and teaching of mother tongue in combination with new technologies. This tool was then tested, first, and implemented, after, in the framework of an empirical research, in the school year 2007-2008 in certain Athens schools. The results of this empirical research were encouraging for the research team: pupils responded positively to the learning software, working groups were effective and Greek language teachers highlighted the participation even.}, keywords = {cooperative learning, modern Greek, mother tongue}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399915777.pdf}, author = {Maria Zoe Fountopoulou and Stiliani Naki and Ioannis Trifiatis and Maria Loumou} } @article {241, title = {INTEGRATED SCIENCE TEACHING BY APPLYING DIDACTIC DIFFERENTIATION: SOME ACTUAL CIRCUMSTANCES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {13}, year = {2009}, month = {June/2009}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-12}, abstract = {The discussion about integration cannot dispense with antithesis (differentiation) which is also of high importance. The default of it is a fairly serious lack of comprehensive school. Both processes have to follow each other as this is the most plausible way of human understanding and knowledge improvement (Vaitkevi{\v c}ius, 1979). A public knowledge is always wider than personal information. Ipso facto human cognition and public experience are not differentiated. Teaching constricted by undivided educational drafts and curricula frequently ignored personal schoolchildren{\textquoteright}s qualities. Pupils unable to satisfactorily adopt teaching material are overloaded while others state that such load is insufficient. This is why a general background of a number of learners recedes and the motivation of all pupils decreases. Research indicates that genetically all people differ. Genetic inequality most frequently determines the child{\textquoteright}s abilities. Natural differences are highlighted by a different situation of upbringing and an environment.� Teaching material is imparted insomuch that all learners should be offered suitable opportunities to develop skills during the class. The objective can be reached by maximum solidification of the child{\textquoteright}s self-sufficiency and his/her personal free choice to learn what, how and how much s/he wants. Raising distinctive claims to all pupils, information should be given expediently and definitely. All schoolchildren should achieve at least minimum level (should get satisfactory evaluation) and all willing, engaged and skilful pupils could reach much more. The system of evaluation is not important (a five point, ten point etc. system). One purpose is clear {\textendash} it also should be differentiated. Hence, it is clear that integrated teaching seeks the highest level of knowledge and differentiated teaching points out to every schoolchild. It is obvious, that the main aim of differentiated teaching is to create grounds for the childs structural type of thinking, to form possibilities for a learner to master knowledge according to the degree of abilities (individualized teaching) while teaching separate subjects (subject teaching). The application of differentiated teaching seeks to develop powers of learners. Differentiation can be comprehended and defined in the following two ways: first, as a result of spliting a particular whole into segments, levels etc. or, second, as the formation of new qualitative connections between the separate components of the system due to processes of integration. In the latter case the system acquires a new quality {\textendash} it becomes more complex. Finally, I want to underline that differentiated teaching (or personalized, individual etc. teaching and learning) is a key component of future teaching/learning process. }, keywords = {differentiated teaching, schooling system, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1393665879.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {312, title = {LEARNERS{\textquoteright} INTERACTION WITH NATURE: SOME EDUCATIONAL ISSUES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {17}, year = {2009}, month = {November/2009}, chapter = {5-9}, abstract = {Theoretic and empiric research conducted by a number of scientists has indicated that a well-grounded content of teaching and a purposefully planed process of natural science education create opportunities for pupils to better understand an environment, to perceive themselves as active members of the ever-changing world and to take responsibility for the future of our planet. Though there have been plenty of local ecology crises throughout the history of mankind, today we can clearly face a new global ecology crisis approaching. It requires a new organization of the evolutionary process of the world that is the basis for the renovation of the correlation among Human Being, Nature and Society.� The necessity of creating a new morality and ethics under new conditions was raised in the past century. It should have been based on qualitatively new relations between Human Being and Nature. Hence, it could be affirmed that natural science education is a very auspicious field of individual self-expression. On the other hand, investigations have revealed that the problem of natural science education exists. Frequently the pupils{\textquoteright} knowledge about nature is shallow, insufficient and ineffective at different age range. Moreover, the reaction of behaviour to the same stimulus highly differ (a child can be aggressive, sadistic, pragmatic, practical, cognitive, aesthetic, ethic and indifferent) even in an equivalent situation (for example, children have noticed a creeping beetle on the path). The following propositions could be specified: {\textbullet} effective natural science education does not require conformable psychological substantiation; {\textbullet} the interaction with nature varies and remains specific within the various periods of life; {\textbullet} the mission of the teacher is to wisely manage an evolutionary process of the {\textquotedblleft}real{\textquotedblright} interaction with nature/particularly in primary school; {\textbullet} an important task of the education system is the framing of the world concept on the basis of the contemporary natural science world view (natural science concept of the world). The holistic concept of natural phenomena is a solid core of all levels and stages of the education system. {\textbullet} all levels of natural science education system (the aspects of teaching content and practical activities) have to guarantee the continuity of formulation the concept of animate and inanimate nature as the whole system; {\textbullet} individual responsibility of the young generation for the future of our planet is the essential (prior) task of natural science education; {\textbullet} there is a lack of research intended for the interaction with nature in different periods of ontogenesis in Lithuania.� Finally, I want to point out some actual moments. A child faces nature very early, and therefore s/he needs to acknowledge it. We should help children to know it, to make them engaged in the environment they live, to approve their close interaction with natural phenomena and to explain the complexity of natural objects from earliest childhood. After all, it is not enough to say {\quotedblbase}I love nature{\textquotedblleft}. S/he has to admire, feel and confess it. The better a man perceives nature, the stronger becomes his/her correlation with the environment. The man turns into individuality. A human personality cannot progress if isolated from an animate environment. This cohesion should be fostered on the basis of peace from the early days.}, keywords = {correlation with nature, interaction with nature, natural science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399913983.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {261, title = {THE MODERN EDUCATION AND THE SAFETY OF HEALTH OF STUDENTS IN CONTEXT OF PSYCHOLOGY-PEDAGOGICAL ACCOMPANIMENT OF THE PROFESSIONAL TRAINING AT HIGHER SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {13}, year = {2009}, month = {June/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {183-191}, abstract = {In the paper a problem of the pedagogical support of students{\textquoteright} health maintenance during the period of their professional training at higher school is studied. On the stage of the educational-introductory practice an innovative pedagogical technique of psychological-pedagogical accompaniment (PPA) of the scientific-practical activity (SPA) was elaborated to ascertain the influence of this technique on the characteristics of mental-physiological health of students. The main elements of PPA and SPA are: normative-legal, psycho-diagnostic, methodological, organizational, psychosomatic maintenance and phased monitoring. The psychosomatic maintenance is to influence the psychological health, personal and physical health of a student. In our research the strengthening and maintenance of health means: {\textbullet} for psychological health {\textendash} the development of a creative way of thinking, attention, memory and volitional sphere; the growth of emotional resistance; {\textbullet} for social health {\textendash} the formation of social adaptation; the development of responsibility, empathy, active position in life; the correction of self-concept and self-control; the focus on self-development; {\textbullet} for physical health {\textendash} the teaching of self-control methods for the state of adaptive potential of the cardiovascular system; the prevention of neuropsychic disorders. The elaboration of psycho-pedagogical bases for maintaining and strengthening of health and the application of PPA and SPA is aimed at maintaining and strengthening of health due to reducing the state of neuropsychic tension, the stimulation of the professional interest and the satisfaction of students{\textquoteright} needs to acquire knowledge in the atmosphere of psychological comfort. }, keywords = {educational technologies, psychology-pedagogical accompaniment, scientific-practical activity}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1393666738.pdf}, author = {Olga Logashenko and Lyudmila Lomakina} } @article {248, title = {MYTHS, ID EST FALSE KNOWLEDGE ON ABLE PUPILS AND ITS EDUCATIONAL CONSEQUENCES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {13}, year = {2009}, month = {June/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {54-65}, abstract = {The issue of giftedness occupies a prominent place in psychology and is developed in the context of various theoretical strands, among which the differential, developmental, and cognitive studies are dominant. An application of major statements, in turn, is the domain of educational psychology and related disciplines, especially pedagogy. A discussion about giftedness is also conducted by teachers and parents, solving various educational and didactic problems in their daily lives. The key assumption of this article is a statement that a common understanding of giftedness is full a myths and beliefs constructed as inconsistent with the current state of knowledge. Some of them are indicated in this essay, drawing attention to the adverse effects of their presence in the mind and behaviour of adults.}, keywords = {able pupils, popular and academic knowledge, regulative function of knowledge}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1393666279.pdf}, author = {Maria Ledzi{\'n}ska} } @article {213, title = {PEDAGOGICAL EVALUATION OF PROTOTYPE 3 OF THE AR LEARNING PLATFORM BASED ON THE RESULTS ACHIEVED DURING THE THIRD ARISE SUMMER SCHOOL}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {11}, year = {2009}, month = {May/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {86-103}, abstract = {Augmented Reality teaching /learning platform is an innovative technology aimed at implementing links between the real and virtual world. The technology developed by the ARiSE project focuses on offering conditions for customers not only to observe a combined view (real and virtual) but also to directly interact with the real world (real objects). It is likely that the approach learning by doing is more effectively realized in the educational process. Creating teaching/learning modules and constructing didactical scenarios of practicing the modules is one of the main conditions to use the above mentioned innovative technology in the educational practice. The primary purpose of the international research project ARiSE (Augmented Reality in School Environments) was to test pedagogical effectiveness of introducing augmented reality (AR) into the comprehensive school and creating remote collaboration between classes around the AR display systems. In the given article the results of the pedagogical evaluation of the prototype 3 of the AR learning platform are presented. The students agree that Prototype 3 of the AR platform is a new and useful tool that could be successfully applied for learning purposes in the educational process.}, keywords = {augmented reality, educational process, pedagogical evaluation}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392408707.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Renata Bilbokaite} } @article {278, title = {QUALITY OF EDUCATION: FASHION OR NECESSITY?!}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {15}, year = {2009}, month = {November/2009}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {One of the quality theory models, undoubtedly, is quality management. At the end of the 20th century and at the beginning of the 21st this model becomes perhaps the most fashionable in management theory. We can say straight away that what can be fashionable it is not always right and reasonable. Is it in reality so? It is hard to pretend to exhaustive analysis in this article however, it is purposeful to pay attention to some things. Another argument {\textendash} history knows plenty of examples when different theories wouldn{\textquoteright}t grow from {\textquotedblleft}infancy{\textquotedblright} stage, wouldn{\textquoteright}t pass on to a practice level, at best they would remain only a mass of pompous slogans. Speaking about quality, such attitude, undoubtedly, has its own positions. Alternative approach has positions as well which claims that quality management ideology and philosophy is not only a common short-term campaign, but a serious universal movement.� Different processes are taking place in every educational organization. In some of them, there are more of them, in others less. In some places, they are complicated (e.g. in higher schools), in other places, they can be simpler (e.g. non-formal educational institutions). However, in all places they are relevant and have to be carried out qualitatively, in other words, to satisfy fixed requirements. Some of the processes are important because service (future production) quality depends directly on them, the others don{\textquoteright}t have direct influence on service/future production. It is obvious, that all these processes, both basic and secondary are equally important and only acting closely with each other they can guarantee success of organization activity (systematic approach). Thus, there is no doubt, that implementation of quality management systems in educational organizations is very urgent. One can ask why it is urgent? First of all, it is because that general quality management philosophy is more and more developing and becoming more acceptable. Quite often one can hear the opponents claiming that ISO standards don{\textquoteright}t suit for educational organizations. It is true, that ISO standards are rather universal; therefore, it is not easy to adapt them in the education sphere. On the other hand, such programmed universality gives more action freedom, forms conditions to assess specific character of every concrete organization. Quality management system forms conditions to control not separate, broken up processes or activities, but see them as a whole entirety. Undoubtedly, this is very important seeking to guarantee vital capacity of concrete organization. The second obvious truth is that quality in education sphere is getting worse, competition gets stronger and this in its turn makes organizations search for ways and strategies of making their activities more effective. The third thing is that today in Lithuania and not only in Lithuania, job and education markets do not match. A gap is rather big. Thus, it is not enough to teach, we must know clearly what we teach, how we teach and who for we teach. Undoubtedly, quality management system implementation is a serious instrument to virtually improve the activity of all educational organizations.}, keywords = {educational organization, quality management, quality standards}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1395386501.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {322, title = {REMOTELY CONTROLLED EXPERIMENT: COMPARISON OF VOLT-AMPERE CHARACTERISTICS BETWEEN INCANDESCENT AND ENERGY SAVING LIGHT BULB}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {17}, year = {2009}, month = {November/2009}, type = {Original Article}, chapter = {119-124}, abstract = {The paper deals with the remotely controlled physical experiment which is located at the Department of Experimental Physics at Palacky University in Olomouc. A remote experiment is a real experiment with real laboratory instruments and equipment that can be controlled by a teacher or a student or any user from their computer through the Internet. The article presents our first remote experiment (comparison of volt-ampere characteristics between incandescent light bulb and energy saving light bulb with using AC) which is available free on-line on the website http://www.ictphysics.upol.cz/remotelab/. This paper outlines our current research and reflection of remotely controlled experiments and it describes the educational point of view of the remotely controlled system.}, keywords = {remote experiment, remotely controlled experiment}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399914853.pdf}, author = {Franti{\v s}ek L{\'a}tal and Jan {\v R}{\'\i}ha} } @article {184, title = {SOME IDEAS ABOUT SPECIFICITY AND METHODS OF FOSTERING VALUE-BASED RELATIONS WITH NATURE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {10}, year = {2009}, month = {January/2009}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {The interpretation of the concept {\textquoteleft}value{\textquoteright} is extremely varied and brings a historic background. Values are fostered since childhood through the process of sharing and analysing individual experience based on certain concepts such as goodness, beauty, love, etc. Rules and standards are also important for value development. All people tend to seek values and their cognition ({\textquotedblleft}When Values Change{\textquotedblright}, 1999). {\textquoteleft}The Dictionary of Psychology{\textquoteright} explains that value attitudes as if determine all human works, the main patterns of behaviour, different actions or even a single act (The Dictionary of Psychology, 1993). The issues of moral values are highly relevant as they are closely related with the human upbringing, fostering of his value attitudes (The Sketches of Ethics, 1984). Secondly, modern education is in a state of global crisis partially because of the absence of a value-based design of its strategic functions (Sankar, 2004). The development of value-based attitudes is a complex process. In general, morality or moral is the most conservative aspect of inner culture, it changes slowly and gradually. However, children and teenagers have less preconceived ideas and habits than adults. Therefore, their relation with the world is in the making, they are more flexible and susceptible to outward influences (Gurevi{\v c}iute, Galkute, etc. 1997). J.Piaget is sure that the middle childhood (the age of 6-11 years old) is the most suitable period to foster moral issues. L. Kohlberg referring to various research points out three stages in the evolution of morality. The second stage includes children aged from 10 to 13 and is called the self-decided moral agency. The third stage represents the moral agency using all individual moral standards. This kind of morality develops or fails to develop in the period of adolescence (Kliminskiene, 1999). The tutors who attempt to develop respect for nature in the values of their pupils should know and utilize the mentioned peculiarities of the age boundaries. Primary school shares a great responsibility in this process while pupils are curious, sensitive to nature, influenced by the processes of the outward world at this age range (Atutiene, 1999). Love for nature, the importance of its protection should be instilled since childhood. Experience acquired in the family is further developed at school where value-based attitudes are continually established, a strong individual opinion about the surrounding nature is developed. These considerations presented by Kliminskiene and Kliminskas (1998), Vaitkevi{\v c}ius (2000), {\v S}apokiene (1998), Gajauskaite (1990), etc. have become extremely important having assessed the data of recent research. The survey of parents conducted by Milteniene and Mockevi{\v c}iene indicates that only 36\% of the applicants indicates that they taught their children to love nature, involved children into practical tasks: to perceive the world of nature, to take care about animals, 44\% of the parents admitted that they paid little attention to the above mentioned factors or agreed they did not pay any attention as they supposed their child would gain this knowledge at school. 20\% of the parents stated it was not the main goal of their family. Most of the researchers agree that very often the media ignore the development of positive value-based attitudes and impose many things without any value-based orientation. Hence, in respect of nature, school is mainly responsible for the fostering the value attitudes of the pupils (Milteniene, Mockevi{\v c}iene, 1998). Since 1998, active enthusiasts have launched a project {\textquotedblleft}The Animate World and Me{\textquotedblright} which involves the city pupils who have pets (Bobrova, 2000). L.Bobrova states that the curriculum of this project developing children{\textquoteright}s care for their animals is one of the most effective pedagogic and psychologic methods that builds up mental, emotional and physical well-being of schoolchildren, enriches their free time trying to reach harmony with nature (p.10). Research carried out in Russia revealed that actually half of the primary school essays reflect a pragmatic relation with nature, {\textquoteleft}Nature is our greatest treasure{\textquoteright}, {\textquoteleft}Forests must be protected because pencils and rulers are made of wood{\textquoteright}, {\textquoteleft}Dogs are important because they guard houses{\textquoteright}, etc. Such pragmatism of the primary schoolchildren is nothing but a result of the pragmatic content of comprehensive educational school. Children simply repeat the clich{\'e}s mentioned by their teachers (Jasvin, 2000). Most probably, a similar situation can be found in Lithuanian schools (though not enough research have been carried out). In conclusion, it can be said that contemporary school is not yet ready to perceive and instil the shallowness of consumerism (Uktveris, 1997). Having reviewed the positions of various authors on the issue of the development of value-based attitudes in respect of nature in comprehensive schools, the following conclusion can be made in diagram form: Value-based attitudes and relations }, keywords = {moral values, science education, value-based knowledge}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392315008.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {341, title = {STUDENTS LEARNING ENGLISH AS SECOND LANGUAGE: AN AP-PLIED LINGUISTICS LEARNING STUDY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {18}, year = {2009}, month = {December/2009}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {86-96}, abstract = {This study involved students from a teacher training programme and classroom teachers during in-service training. These students and teachers were introduced to variation theory and carried out a learn-ing study on English as a Second Language (ESL) that incorporated five research lessons taught in paral-lel, rather than in a cycle. The participants in the study were five classes from grade level five to upper secondary school, five university students, and two researchers. The aim was to put learning study to test in describing in what ways students (from fifth graders to upper secondary school students) discerned the letter s at the end of a word, and secondly what kind of knowledge about this learning object they were able to develop during instruction. When an s appears as a terminal letter in English, it can be inter-preted in at least five different ways: contraction, plural, third person singular, genitive or possessive pronoun. It can also be the final letter of a monomorphemic word (bass) or suffix (-ness). Our study dem-onstrated how learning study was used to describe how students of different ages interpret the suffix s. A pattern emerged indicating the way knowledge of a phenomenon develops as a consequence of teaching. This pattern was analysed in terms of the structure of the students{\textquoteright} native language. The outcome showed how students tried to comprehend a second language by means of the structure of the first. A good exam-ple is the pronoun your (dependent possessive form) and yours (independent possessive form). As there is no variation in Swedish between dependent and independent possessives, students associate the two forms with the differences between d- and t- gender. This distinction is made in Swedish (din/ditt) but not in modern English. }, keywords = {learning study, teacher training programme, variation theory}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1399916048.pdf}, author = {Mona Holmqvist and Gunilla Lindgren} } @article {105, title = {EDUCATION FORTUNES AND FAILURES: BETWEEN TENDENCIES AND CONTINGENCIES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {6}, year = {2008}, month = {May/2008}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {Dear Readers, It seems to be a paradox that frequently initiated political decisions in the field of education influence the expected alterations as well as a number of negative factors. Recently, the quality of education has been devoted meticulous attention. There is no doubt it is a pressing matter at all levels of the education system. Every stage is specific and encodes the fortunes and failures of the following stage. The one, who obviously failed to succeed at the very beginning, can experience arising problems in the future. First of all, in this particular case I refer to lack of certain education and therefore, probably no one can be blamed as the education system is often found guilty about the situation. The education of the post soviet countries encountered a variety of fortunes and failures. On the one hand, the reforms of the education system were an inevitable and necessary process. A worse point is that in certain cases, they became sustained, ongoing and not preserving the established order, and thus caused discontent at a varying degree. For example, applying the so called modern ICT in the education system was not always a clever idea as only later it was perceived that the technologies themselves brought no success. Skills at purposefully using them, abilities to effectively apply the required equipment in practice etc. are necessary. The rejection of the identical programmes of general education in a number of post soviet countries including Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia can be accepted as success. Up to 1990, all Baltic States used the same course books as in the former Soviet Union. After gaining the independence, an underlying update of teaching content at all levels of the education system started. First original (not translated from the Russian language) course books appeared. In a few years time, first course books written by the European authors were published. However, didactically, these were not particularly suitable for Lithuanian students. For example, for more than ten years, the Latvian students of comprehensive school have been provided the possibility of choosing a learning curriculum. Although at previous times, they had a chance of selecting teaching subjects, still the latter principle did not satisfy expectations. A number of disagreements on bringing profiled teaching in practice occurred in the year 2000 (Lamanauskas, 2000b). The prospects and reality of the former education reforms taking place in Lithuania were openly discussed (2000a). It was expected that the then chosen model would ensure the individual possibilities of free choice. However, it can be stated that to a larger extent the implementation of the model in Lithuania did not succeed. After making the major transformations the initial model was withdrawn. It is clear that not all students are equally good at all subjects taught at school. Although the idea of profiling was brilliant, however, the chosen strategy for implementing things in practice had not been properly checked considering the prevailing conditions in Lithuania. Another important aspect is that this seems to be one of the ways to deny the core of comprehensive schooling. Though rather selective education systems exist in a number of European countries (for example, in Germany), too early specialization contradicts the conception of general education as the one graduating secondary school, must receive thorough education. Certainly, an opponent should state that presently, almost there is no country that should not provide a child with the possibility of choosing at least a part of educational content. Even supposing it is true, who can ensure it is a careful, well-balanced etc. choice. Since 2007, controversially evaluated profiled education in the Lithuanian establishments of comprehensive education has been changed to a less elaborated system that allows the learners to individually decide on 40\% of the subjects they want to be taught. Following a new requirement, a basic school graduate first of all, must choose not the profile but at least nine subjects from the basic school curriculum and almost the same number of the optional subjects. Another failure is that up to now, no equally qualitative education has been guaranteed for students neither in Lithuania, nor in Latvia. Despite the fact, that conditionally the above mentioned countries are quite small, the level of social isolation varies to a large degree in the city site and the rural area. In the majority of cases, financial support for education institutions depends on municipalities as these promote the latter establishments and are responsible for providing the required resources which definitely worsens the quality of education in general. Secondary schools were transformed into the institutions of basic education whereas the former basic schools were either closed or reorganized into the establishments of primary education in the larger part of rural areas in Lithuania. Such situation cannot be explained referring to demographic arguments, for example a decreasing number of learners, which on the contrary, facilitates higher quality education, as having the same financial resources, the number of students remains reduced and therefore more attention can be devoted to teacher training etc. Modern technologies and a smaller amount of students in the classroom create conditions for every learner to work out an individual plan of education that helps with introducing a personal style and pace of studying. In this case, the larger part of countries supports the idea of individualized teaching. Strong competition, general instructions on enrolling in the Lithuanian institutions of higher education and students experiencing pressure of their parents ignoring natural children{\textquoteright}s abilities to learn have a negative impact on education. To organize the process of total enrolment, all universities in Lithuania have formed an association. A number of young people break studying due to the wrong choice of a subject. For the last few years, the regulations have specified that up to 20 positions pointing out the chosen curricula of studies can be included in the application form. It is an opened lottery. The results of random enrolment are dramatic. Statistics shows that students{\textquoteright} options frequently do not correspond neither to their interests nor individual possibilities. The annual average of people eliminated from higher and vocational schools makes more than 20 000. For example, in the school year 2003/2004, 378 in 10 000 citizens of Lithuania were studying in universities. Under statistics provided by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Lithuania, more than 70\% the same year secondary school graduates are still studying in the institutions of higher education (44\% - in universities and 238\% - in colleges) http://www.smm.lt/. Thus, on the one hand, the number of students constantly increases, on the other hand {\textendash} the required financial support cannot be guaranteed, and therefore the quality of studies remains reduced. The Rector of Vilnius University suggests that if a number of students having no motivation enter the university and study no matter what they get, logically they fail to qualitatively study (Juodka, 2007). Another evident failure of education policy is that the number of managers having a doubtful qualification is increasing while that of qualified workers is decreasing in all three Baltic States. The problem of teachers{\textquoteright} social status can be accepted as a serious failure in some post soviet countries. Though education in Latvia and Lithuania is considered to be a priority field, nevertheless teachers{\textquoteright} remunerations remain really poor. Such situation does not attract qualified teachers to work at school. They must work longer hours and sometimes increase work load twice which prevents them from raising qualification, training courses and professional advancement. For the last few years, the trade unions of the above discussed countries have been fighting for their rights so that they would be honestly paid for the work they did. Periodically performed protest actions and strikes do not help with achieving main political decisions. A positive point is that all three Baltic States are closely collaborating in the fields of policy and education. The latest statistics and research have disclosed that the achievements of Estonian students surpassed those of Lithuanian and Latvian learners. The Latvian students of upper secondary school (forms from 10 to 12) were provided with new equipment necessary for laboratory experiments in sciences which is a very complimentary decision. During the last 15 years, an interest in natural sciences has remarkably decreased, is negatively evaluated by the majority of people and certainly will have a damaging impact in the future. A relevant task that should be undertaken by the Lithuanian Government is to arrange school network and properly supply schools with necessary equipment. However, a matter of concern is frequently and motivelessly closed schools having a small number of learners. The decrease of schoolchildren is not the major argument about the closure of school. In the majority of cases, the schools located in the rural area are the only focal points of education and culture. Therefore, the space of education in the Baltic States can be more or less treated in a similar way. It is likely that a close collaboration in the fields of education and policy will be central issues in the future. The Ministers of Education and Science of the Baltic States regularly discuss achievements in education in each of the countries. The problems of education fortunes and failures have been briefly discussed. Even such a subtle point of view should encourage researchers to more critically analyze the phenomena of fortune and failure in education. Quite a few failures were obviously programmed in the past and retrospectively can be accepted as a tendency. A number of things are being programmed nowadays as this is the way to programme the future of our society. Is it a tendency, contingency or both? Sinergetically, contingency can be accepted as creative constructive antecedent. With reference to education, it has a positive shade because of the power pushing forward the tendencies stimulating the growth of education planning and efficiency. The present and future education policy is definitely related to globalization and rapid changes taking place in society which is a real information revolution connected with the use of information communication technologies. It is clear that the countries that intended to change the education system and thus society itself had approved purposes. Some goals were achieved whereas a part of those were not attained. There is no excuse for a strong wish to intercept experience of the Western countries as the latter situation prevented from solving local problems. Therefore, a pertinent question whether we have our own science and education policy and a future project or only blindly follow things occurring in the West and enthusiastically take them over arises. An objective to change things and be changed is welcomed. It can be emphatically affirmed that education is able to change society. However, are the politicians competent enough to change education itself and create the required conditions for changes in education? The increase of reforms at different level is determined by gaining certain freedoms. Nevertheless, the main problem remains the same {\textendash} how to combine the previously launched various projects on the reforms of education into the wholeness in order to achieve better implementation of the projects through coordinating them and how to succeed in getting the best results. Losses and failures have never been ageless as they can be treated as general systemic regularities. It is the time to take control over, predict and learn from the failures of education. In the end, a controversial question asked by A. Bloom Will future learning be in tablet form? can be repeated. }, keywords = {education system, general education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392232594.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {152, title = {EDUCATIONAL POLICY IN TERMS OF THE CONCEPT OF MODERN LIBERAL EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {8}, year = {2008}, month = {October/2008}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {At the outset of the 21st century, education evidently faces a number of challenges and transformations (frequently baseless) at all stages including national and international level. Such situation is primarily determined by political, economical and cultural changes in society life. New complex problems are encountered at the crossroads of global and local tendencies. On July 4th 2003, under the resolution No IX-1700 put forward by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, National Education Strategy 2003 {\textendash} 2012 was approved. The document states that {\quotedblbase}education should be developing having in the forefront all new challengies and possibilities for a society... (Regulations of National Education Strategy, 2008). What kind of assistance should be given to the members of society? This is the key issue that needs to be clearly defined as we are living in a consumer-centred world based on consumerism and pragmatic morality. In general, modern Western Civilization is a capitalistic and global society mainly focused on consumerism. What is more, the attitude that this is the only universal and approved system is formed. Too many economy factors make impact on the pattern of life and thus on Lithuanian education. Economic logic determines education policy in Lithuania as well as in a number of countries. Education seems to be a sort of service that can be clearly noticed in the sector of higher education. Almost no ordinary life at university has been left {\textendash} life is more focused on providing services, attracting customers, making money etc. It seems to be that the idea of university has been carefully hidden underground and waiting for more promising future. The students have become customers offering money for universities. Therefore, even a more pragmatic outcome is elaborated as the establishments of higher education are expecting everyone having enough money to pay for studies. Individual ability to study is undeserving and stays out of the way. Universities may vary from providing poor quality services to those very positively valuated by the customers. However, I suppose that slight marking exists which once removed pushes a university towards the nowhere (only a name and signboard of an institution remain visible). More and more university degrees are obtained in Europe and North America as well as in the rich countries of Saudi Arabia, China and Japan. It comes with career opportunities and tells about our imaginary success. Nevertheless, it is only an external aspect including mobility, changes, variety etc. However, such paradigm of global education and production/consumerism contains prior evaluation. The market value of those unable to satisfy the established criteria significantly decreases and thus leads to uncertainty whether they can be appraised in general. In this case, winners and losers are formed in the system {\textquoteleft}prosumer {\textendash} consumer{\textquoteright}. The only question is about the quantity of those and whether the assumed winners are as they have to be. Certainly, it comes true. Still, even the most socialized capitalism (Scandinavian) fails to escape from the ideology of consumerism. The young generation encounters the tendencies of society{\textquoteright}s growth (or regression?), follows daily life and appropriately develops individual world outlook. It is true that comprehensive school cannot aimlessly foster the values that should be cherished as a part of a schooling mission. The principles and values cherished or encouraged by school environment most frequently appear at a standstill in Lithuania. The world is different outside school walls. The youth experiences severe difficulties in such discrepancy and avoids trusting in school. They clearly distinguish between things declared at school and underlying reality. Axiomatic truth declares that the mission of education is fully accomplished when its evolution goes beyond a general development of society. However, to achieve the purpose, the Government must pay real rather than declarative attention to the education system. Supporting the ideas of modern education, knowledgeable society, the development of information technologies etc. is not enough to fulfil the task. Any state finds insufficient upraising education as a national priority because valuable and regular assistance is required. Nonetheless, the youth in Lithuania is observing other type of {\textquoteleft}concern{\textquoteright}. The teachers of comprehensive and the lecturers of higher schools are forced to go on strikes to show they are worth getting more attention than they are presently given. Recently, Lithuania and other countries of Central and Eastern Europe very frequently run into a number of problems addressed to the system of higher education. The decrease of the quality of studies, corruption, insufficient financial support, the inadequacy in reality and university mission etc. are the issues in progress. Everyone knows that in order to survive and compete in a knowledgeable society, all countries, especially small ones, must learn how to create, accumulate and manage intellectual property. Knowledge is the only resource to be accumulated when using it. It is extremely important for small countries having insufficient natural resources. Yet in 1999, the rectors of 14 higher education institutions in Lithuania declared that on the 20th of December of the running year, a preventive action Higher Schools against Destructing Education would be performed and that no academic work would be done that day. It seemed to be a matter of great concern. If higher schools are made to go on a strike, obviously, serious problems may occur. Although almost a decade has gone, still the situation remains the same. The sector of higher education in Lithuania is waiting for going out again. A few weeks ago, mainly the same requirements for the Government were presented i.e. the salary of the teaching staff and operating-household personnel should grow 20 percent in 2009. Particular attention is devoted to improve the present situation and achieve that the Government should adequately support the students and allocate necessary finances for studying. Currently, considering different types of methodology, the Government totally spends only 48 percent of the sum of money required for studies. Another concern is the salary of staff as due to low compensation for work, universities may encounter difficulties in recruiting appropriately-qualified staff at all levels. In higher education sector some negative tendencies recently are observed. Many experts of higher education underline that the Western universities get attributes of the original enterprises (clients, services etc.). In the centre of attention the finance, servines, and {\quotedblbase}the goods{\textquotedblleft}, instead of formation / preparation of well-educated young people. The main mission of any university is positive influence on society development. Despite that the tendency of the estrangement of universities from the traditional value orientations is strengthened. Similar tendencies can be noticed in Lithuania. The universities that have been accepted as the temples of knowledge have become the tools of the powerful market. A.Samalavi{\v c}ius (2003) notices that one-sided orientation is very dangerous when a university becomes an institution of trade and highly specific vocational activity. Hence, following such logic, universities turn into the market and university education becomes a simple item. A customer always feels right in such higher education market. It seems to be clear that customers have different needs and possibilities to be accepted. Consequently, the curricula of university studies will be designed following the concerns of the companies that may appear as the potential employers of students. Bearing in mind that the post- soviet youth is not selective enough, it is likely that one will try to get the required diploma rather than necessary education. After all, in one way or another, the above introduced process is in progress. Besides, the problem is more than pressing. An evident satisfaction of students and businessmen{\textquoteright} needs translate the university not into the force forming society but into a usual market agent playing an invaluable beforehand defined role. Fundamental knowledge is not treated as a marketable product in such political-economical conjuncture. A narrow point of view creates an impression of disengagement. Universities take a flexible position on the market needs. Nevertheless, it seems to be an illusion. Even the satisfaction of the speedily varying market needs shows understanding that in order to effectively design the curricula of studies, a broad theoretical background, for example prognostic, is necessary. Universities carefully observe market fluctuations, and thus become doomed to failure. An interesting point is that depending on the number of students per thousand citizens Lithuania falls into the category of the EU member states having the largest number of students, however, considering the average allocation received by a single student of a higher school, we are lagging far behind other European countries. Thus, the system though has limited resources, {\textquoteleft}produces{\textquoteright} a number of graduates. The number of received graduation certificates cannot be an index showing the level of education. Bright students and those having high motivation and ready for further studying choose the universities in Western countries. The process of the so called {\textquoteleft}brain drain{\textquoteright} is taking place. Different onetime actions are arranged to provide improvements on the situation (for example, Design and Implementation of Brain Drain Programme). Therefore, can we accept the present situation as an outcome of democratic education? Taking into account that democratic education is mediocrity-oriented mass education, the situation should not be a matter of great concern as this is a sort of education for the majority. So, the question is if {\textquoteleft}liberal education{\textquoteright} vs. {\textquoteleft}democratic education{\textquoteright} should be the only real way of overcoming the problem? {\textquoteleft}Liberal education{\textquoteright} is evidently not {\textquoteleft}democratic education{\textquoteright}. Simple life-based logic confirms that if having one thing, you loose another. Are the contracting parties facing the problems of higher education ready to choose another option? Are universities determined enough to form national policy and at least minimally participate in the process of arranging it or on the contrary, they will start receding from policy and stay {\textquoteleft}shut in{\textquoteright} becoming the blind executers of the beforehand adopted ideology? Several countries of Central and Eastern Europe have already dealt with the above introduced situation? An interesting example is that in 2004, the Chinese Government organized a conference and invited 30 leaders of the most prestigious universities worldwide including the representatives of Harvard and Oxford. The final outcome of all discussions was that China preferred fundamental education as the foremost one at national level. Shortly after restoring State Independence, a conception of education at national level was formulated. It is a paradox, however, that in the above mentioned conception, we can hardly find such concepts as liberalism and conservativism. A major objective was to design a concept aimed at national traditions and the needs and interests of a modern society. The core of the conception is an effort to combine the conservative and liberal tendencies of education. Such steps as the renewal of gymnasia, the revival of teaching religion, awakening confession schools, look back at national culture and history etc. are the vital elements of the conservative tradition. On the other hand, a private sector of education, the right to choose educational institutions, competition among educational establishments, the growth of market relations etc. are the apparent elements of liberal policy. Within the period of almost 18 years of regained independency, the Lithuanian Government has changed from the extreme left to the extreme right wing. It can be treated as an objective stage of development in the post-soviet countries. A valid point is that the political forces of both sides have mainly failed to make corrections to the already formulated and implemented concept of education. A number of political decisions in the field of education have been reached in light of the business concerns of narrow political groups rather than taking into account clear value-based political attitudes. This type of behaviour is characteristic of the whole region of Central and Eastern Europe and is frequently narrowly accepted by western countries. I suppose that too liberal (which means cosmopolitan) attitude to education has a destructive character when fostering national traditions and values inherent to small countries. On the other hand, the liberal education system of Great Britain could serve as a good example. This is a tradition of British education. However, it does prevent neither from corruption nor from the fictive organization of studies or receiving diplomas and in general, from plenty of problems encountered by the system of education. As far as you know, education policy was decentralized in the Soviet Union. Some countries have strict regulations issued but a few of those follow very liberal traditions. Both positions, after Aristotle, can be considered as extremities. Education in a modern world has turned into a huge market which means that relations here are not always based on values and common decency. The problems facing the illegal producers of the certificates of higher education, the counterfeiters of scientific degrees, illegal studies and establishments of {\textquoteleft}higher education{\textquoteright} have become burning issues in a number of countries. The powerful market demands not only for knowledge and real qualification but also for {\textquoteleft}paper-based{\textquoteright} pseudo-education. Thus, the conception of real education and background is being obviously devolved. Liberal commercialized education in Lithuania is not the exact way to be followed. The approach of cosmopolitism, disorganization and denationalization cannot be acceptable to Lithuanian people as it may cause national decline. In this case, I do not support a position that liberal education acts either as absolute evil or absolute good as much depends on the context and various circumstances. Proper (elite) education apparently brings neither honour nor conscience etc. for a person. Excellent education can be available for dishonest and corrupt people. Therefore, such education can be used for deceiving society on a broader scale. In this instance, the importance of national-value-based substructure in the whole framework of human education can be clearly noticed. Unfortunately, following only the liberal concept of education cannot act as the basis for forming such substructure. Only the citizen of Lithuania having emotional spiritual culture-focused relation with national and human historical experience uncloses new sources of property power for freedom and creatively develops informative and financial (economical) relations with all people (Srebalius, 2002). Finally, manipulating the concept of {\textquoteleft}citizenship{\textquoteright} is very modern nowadays. However, the situation when citizen, citizenship, civil society, civil nation or civil education based schooling do not reflect even the smallest part of Lithuanian nation can only get to homo sovieticus times and nowhere else (Nainys, 2008). It is expected that Lithuania as well as the other countries of Central and Eastern Europe will find the most appropriate way to develop education and nation prosperity. It is worth making a question whether eudaimon{\'\i}a by Aristotle is somehow reflected in the current education policy? I dare to say it is not. Will we come back to the Aristotle{\textquoteright}s Golden Mean formulated in the {\textquoteleft}Ethics{\textquoteright} the essence of which the balance between excess and shortage? The question is still open and every idea about this issue will be accepted to be appreciated. }, keywords = {education system, educational policy, liberal education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392284010.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {87, title = {EFFECTIVE ICT IMPLEMENTATION AS A PRECONDITION FOR DEVELOPING GENERAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century}, volume = {5}, year = {2008}, month = {April/2008}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {In the 21st century, the questions discussing background quality became crucial issues having a reflection in the international documents (the Barcelona Declaration, 2002, Lisbon Strategy Implementation Programme, EUROSCENE 2003 etc.) which draw up the guidelines for future education and decisive actions. The documents focus on the relevance of developing teaching methodology and technologies. Shortage of close attention prevents from the process of creating a competent public knowledgeable society (Strategy for Education for Sustainable Development, 2005) that is constructive and highly capable of building democracy in continuously changeable present and future life. Daily growing signs and impact of globalization show that individual steps require greater coordination in the international context. Formally, all the above mentioned subjects are highly relevant to us and closely relate to the dimensions of the Education for Democratic Citizenship in Europe (Education for Democratic Citizenship, 2001-2004). Modern ICT definitely play a crucial role in developing the teaching/learning processes at all stages and improving the quality of education. Actively involved information/knowledge-based society offers new opportunities to effectively satisfy students{\textquoteright} needs for teaching/learning. In addition to this, no new teaching/learning environments can be created without ICT. Technological progress and rapid development inevitably touches education sector. The breakthrough in education can be clearly noticed in the majority of European countries. Educational advantages of ICT raise no doubts. The use of ICT substantially helps with introducing educational material in a more modern and vivid way. Applying ICT in the teaching/learning process does not object to the basic didactical principles such as visualization, systemization, links between theory and practice, knowledge consolidation, encouragement of student participation in different activities, individualization and differentiation of teaching etc. Recently, Lithuanian teachers have been deeply involved in the Microsoft PowerPoint program which is very useful for preparing lessons as well as for other educational activities. The teachers suppose that such lessons are much more purposeful, interesting and increases motivation for learning. It can be clearly stated that when using the above introduced program, the teachers of different subjects have already made suggestions on different topics which open wide possibilities of integrating various themes, presenting information contained in a few chapters, increasing visualization of teaching etc. The teachers notice that shortage of time is one of the major drawbacks. In order to put forward qualitative suggestions, enough time and appropriate computer literacy skills are required. Gained experience and prepared teaching/learning material are the subjects worth being emphasized. Legal requirements of copyright certainly must be satisfied. A series of recent expert surveys in Lithuania disclosed that some teachers including Lithuanian Association of Physics Teachers (LFMA, 2008) and Lithuanian Association of Geography Teachers (LGMA, 2008) found useful a possibility of using special databases where necessary didactic material should be accumulated (Lamanauskas, Vilkonis, 2006). However, at the moment, Lithuanian Associations of Chemistry and Biology Teachers are not very actively involved whereas Lithuanian Association of Informatics Teachers (LInMA, 2008) is working very effectively. The website of the latter association is particularly useful as it presents different information that embraces conference texts, methodical information, discussion notes, reviews etc. Apart from the above mentioned program that focuses on making presentations, Lithuanian teachers widely and effectively use such general purpose software as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel etc. It is worth noticing that Microsoft Excel has a number of qualities, and therefore everyone learning to use a computer can find this software helpful. Microsoft Paint is rather frequently applied in educational practice due to its quality to produce computer graphics. Another virtue of ICT which is saving teacher{\textquoteright}s time must be emphasized. Using a computer is convenient as it helps with presenting and organizing different sorts of data whereas the Internet greatly assists in finding necessary information. Collaboration between teachers and students{\textquoteright} parents is an important process of schooling. E-mail helps teachers with contacting learners{\textquoteright} parents as well as the learners themselves. Lately, e-calendars are being widely implemented in Lithuanian schools which offer learners{\textquoteright} parents possibilities of becoming acquainted with schoolchildren{\textquoteright}s achievements. The process of applying the Intranet in such educational institutions as comprehensive and vocational schools is slowly progressing. However, even in this case, a rapid development is taking place. The implementation of the Intranet occurs with increasing rapidity. The Intranet presents report forms, annual and long-term educational curricula and other required documents and references which facilitate manipulating information. Another apparent quality of applying ICT is inter-cultural collaboration. Lithuanian comprehensive and vocational schools are active in joining international projects and programmes. In case of rejecting ICT, such collaboration should be barely accepted. The employment of ICT can help with organizing audiovisual conferences and expanding other methods of collaboration. For example, a number of Lithuanian comprehensive schools have been participating into the international project ENO-Environment Online (ENO-Environment Online, 2008). School life is extensively attacked by virtual teaching and learning environments allowing easily and flexibly organize the processes of teaching and learning. The virtual teaching/learning environment Moodle (http://moodle.org/) is one of the most popular systems. Suchlike environment offers a lot of different teaching and learning activities. Moreover, teachers can introduce teaching/learning material using a simple text, references to different websites on the Internet or hypertexts created on individual basis. Other virtual learning environments including Web CT, ATUTOR, First Class etc. are also being used. It should be mentioned that the establishments of higher education were the institutions that first started implementing and using the above introduced environments. Nevertheless, at the moment, comprehensive and vocational schools are trying{\textquoteleft} not to lag behind their colleagues from universities. In recent years, in order to adapt vocational training for the needs of labour market and to encourage collaboration between employers and institutions of vocational education, the system of Lithuanian vocational education has been improved. The use of the European Union funds designated for vocational training helps with a rapid implementation of ICT. However, ICT implementation covers more than creation and development of virtual learning environments. Practising only a virtual environment is not the most efficient way. For example, taking into account teaching natural sciences, it is worth reminding that sciences are based on experimentation. Therefore, the process of science education requires a practical-experimental approach in real teaching/learning environment. In this case, a burning question how to combine modern ICT and the above mentioned approach arises. One of the methods is implementing teaching/learning technologies of augmented reality. At the moment, five countries of the European Union are participating in the international project ARiSE based on the innovations in the field of ICT. (http://www.arise-project.org). A group of Lithuanian scientists from Science Education Research Centre of the University of Siauliai are involved in the project. The ARiSE project will develop the AR platform and associated pedagogical scenarios of use, enabling teachers to promote new teaching practices for teaching scientific and cultural content in primary and secondary schools. The ARiSE project is carried on in a consortium of seven partners: Fraunhofer IAIS (Germany) {\textendash} coordinator, Siauliai University (Lithuania), AccrossLimited (Malta) /until 30/06/2007, replaced by University of Brighton (UK), ICI Bucure{\c s}ti (Romania), Czech Technical University in Prague (Czech Republic), Siauliai City Juventa School (Lithuania) and Rabanus-Maurus Gymnasium Mainz (Germany). The first consumers{\textquoteright} impression about the AR teaching/learning platform is positive. The product is evaluated as highly useful. The AR learning platform creates conditions for a better understanding, and therefore is acceptable for younger learners encountering difficulties with perceiving abstract, invisible processes. The AR learning platform increases students{\textquoteright} motivation for learning. The possibility of learning by doing, touching a real object with hands, monitoring and changing the place of the object has been positively evaluated. The learners{\textquoteright} ability not only to monitor but also to control certain processes has been perfectly evaluated (Lamanauskas, Pribeanu, Vilkonis, Balog, Iordache, Klangauskas, 2007). One of the most important requirements for applying ICT and innovative techniques of teaching is a qualified teacher able to professionally use technologies in practice. A modern teacher must know how to employ ICT and adapt them in order to achieve specific goals of teaching. If previous teachers were more focused on technical aspects of applying ICT, recently, educational aspects of employing ICT have gained more weight. Likewise in the majority of countries in Central and Eastern Europe, shortage of young teachers can be noticed in Lithuania. An effective use of modern ICT is difficult for aged teachers. Although they can increase their qualifications in teacher training institutions at different level, still, similar activities do not compensate substantial gaps in the field they are dealing with. An interesting point is that in the majority of cases, students{\textquoteright} computer literacy remains higher than that of their teachers. Nevertheless, teachers{\textquoteright} computer literacy becomes an essential professional work condition. The use of ICT in education offers many new possibilities but the necessary ones are only the latest knowledge and skills of teachers (Bilek, Zemanova, Turcani, 2007). It is likely that these fields of discussion will be paid closer attention. Apart from effective implementation of ICT, it should be carefully considered possible negative outcomes of applying these technologies. For example, the premises equipped with a larger number of work stations must agree with certain hygiene standards established individually by every country. However, the standards themselves do not vary. A relevant fact is that in case of a larger number of computers in the classroom, a person might work in a strong electromagnetic field which negatively affects organism. A learner must sit in a comfortable work station that fulfils all possible hygiene requirements. The latter conditions are frequently ignored in schools due to various reasons. Electromagnetic radiation emitted by computers first of all, affect eyes, central nervous, reproduction and heart and vascular systems. It is extremely dangerous for younger learners. If a child spends too much time at a computer, one can start suffering from reduced eyesight sharpness. Though the rays sent out from computer do not cause any particular diseases, however, the human organism is definitely affected. Besides the above introduced valeologic and ergonomic problems, other disorders such as psychological dependence might occur. One of the Lithuanian websites discloses information that the findings of psychological research carried out by the scientists from the U.K. show concern that children under ten years old have nothing to do at computer! Even educational games might have a negative impact on younger children as in that case, maturity is decelerated, interest in child-focused games and communication with peers are decreased, attention is disturbed and imagination is poorly developed (Child Addiction to Computer / Vaiku priklausomybe nuo kompiuterio, 2007). A short review reveals that in one or another case, ICT may cause negative outcomes. First of all, it might be users{\textquoteright} health problems. The researchers underline that widespread using ICT has caused necessity to rise up questions about protection of students{\textquoteleft} health and other categories being taught, for example ergonomical problems (Jarinovskis, 1997, Gedrovics, Lamanauskas, 2006). Thus, the question of the negative impact of ICT is gaining more weight. It seems no answers are required. On the other hand, we are still suffering from shortage of information on different aspects having negative impact. When the answer is clear, we start feeling lack of required abilities and knowledge of how to reduce the negative impact of ICT or how to eliminate or at least to minimize it. Another important issue is what the real impact of modernization on society in terms of ICT implementation is. We are expecting that the coming years will bring us together to solve the above discussed problems and find positive decisions. }, keywords = {general education, modern ICT, quality of education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392223337.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {148, title = {THE EFFICIENCY OF THE PSYCHOLOGY-PEDAGOGICAL ACCOMPANIMENT OF THE SCIENTIFIC-PRACTICAL ACTIVITY OF STUDENTS-PSYCHOLOGISTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {7}, year = {2008}, month = {June/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {180-191}, abstract = {The presented work is the logical continuation of the research carrying the title {\textquotedblleft}The Motivation and Methodological Aspects of Psycho-Pedagogical Accompaniment of the Scientific-Practical Activity of Students-Psychologists{\textquotedblright} published in the scientific collection {\textquotedblleft}Problems of Education in the 21st Century{\textquotedblright}, Volume 2, 2007, {\textquotedblleft}Variety of Education in Central and Eastern Europe{\textquotedblright}. In addition to the two earlier presented stages of the psycho-pedagogical research (the diagnostic and forming) the results of the third stage devoted to the efficiency identification of the presented system of the scientific and practical activity of students have been analyzed. In our opinion the efficiency of the continuous system that is an integral component part for the training of qualified specialists and that was defined through the notion {\textquotedblleft}scientific and practical activity{\textquotedblright} is expressed in: 1) the development of the specialist{\textquoteright}s ability successfully project and discover earlier unknown ways to solve coming problems; 2) the ability to work out in the teaching process some evaluating mechanisms for the cognitive activity that include the modeling and comprehension of problem situations, the forming of aims, the planning and the evaluation of activities, the making of hypothesis and analogies; 3) the support in discovering of the research potential of a future specialist; 4) the development of the personal position in the educational and research activity; 5) the stimulation of the {\textquotedblleft}breaking{\textquotedblright} the limits of the curriculum, deliberate self-determination 6) the orientation of the educational process of a student to the individual research activity otherwise it is impossible to create the educational environment where a new type specialist {\textendash} teacher-researcher ready for the innovative activity, the participation in the reforming test {\textendash} research work by using individual creative approach as one of the productive interactive forms of teachers and students. The efficiency is proved by: {\textbullet} the increase in the quantity of students aimed at the pedagogical activity and having the formed general educational and pedagogical abilities; {\textbullet} the meaning growth of the educational and familiarization practice in students{\textquoteright} minds; {\textbullet} the increase of the creative activity; {\textbullet} the readiness for using the results of the educational and familiarization practice on the subsequent stages of the professional training. }, keywords = {creative activity, psychology-pedagogical accompaniment, research potential, scientific-practical activity}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392235691.pdf}, author = {Olga Logashenko and Tatyana Shaposhnikova and Lyudmila Lomakina} } @article {72, title = {FROM TEACHING TO LEARNING: A NEW PARADIGM IN MODERN EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {4}, year = {2008}, month = {February/2008}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {The 4th edition of publication {\textquotedblleft}Problems of Education in the 21st Century{\textquotedblright} is in front of you. The main idea of this publication, not without reason, is paradigm change in modern education. We can safely claim that the role of education in the global world is, undoubtedly, the biggest comparing with the other spheres of social life. Education dimensions have grown up greatly in almost all countries. Informal education sector has increased immensely. The most modern ICT are being implemented into education system. Perhaps we will not find any scientific conference in which the questions of ICT application in education process were not discussed. However, it is obvious that education systems in most countries experience various difficulties. It is clearly seen in Central and Eastern European countries, in which the second decade in turn education system reforms of different level and amount are taking place. So called {\textquotedblleft}Instruction Paradigm / Teaching Paradigm{\textquotedblright} has been dominating for a long time in education. In recent years the accents are being transferred to learning, to motivation of self learning. It has been realized, that it is impossible to teach if the person doesn{\textquoteright}t want to or is not able to do this himself. At present the opinion occurs that it is impossible to teach another person, it is possible only to help him to learn. From this as if directly follows the statement that the responsibility falls on the student first of all, what, how and how much he/she will learn. However, didactically it is a totally wrong approach, especially when it is applied to junior forms of comprehensive schools. The systematization, deepening, formation of general concepts can{\textquoteright}t be left for the student himself, because frequently it happens that students master the new things which are related to the old ones without their interrelations, without any system (Vaitkevi{\v c}ius, 1968). Ability to systematize information is one of the most important. As J.O{\textquoteleft}Connor and Mc.Dermott (2006) notice, there is a very remarkable tendency in many spheres nowadays, to solve everything {\quotedblbase}in parts{\textquotedblleft}, i.e. to analyse different phenomena and situations only in separate aspects. From this point of view, transferring education aspects only into learning is not fully grounded. Each learning personality is very different, therefore different approaches should inevitably be applied in teaching process. On the other hand, education quality in many aspects is getting worse. We can{\textquoteleft}t claim that education quality is getting worse because of former mentioned paradigm change. Lithuania as a post soviet country has a many year experience when education, especially secondary, was unified. However, it is necessary to emphasize that education at that time was also better supervised. We can{\textquoteleft}t say that there is no supervision nowadays. It really is. But, everlasting reforms, sometimes even opposing to each other, don{\textquoteleft}t make Lithuanian education more effective. As professor G. Merkys noticed, the therapy of shock continues in Lithuania. We not only have to think about this but, of course, solve the problems arising in reality. Speaking about Lithuania, it is obvious, that now it is very important for our state what decisions and steps, what ideas and actions in the sphere of education we will suggest and implement. 2006 PIRLS research shows that the ability to read and understand fiction and informative texts of our country 4-th formers has declined very much. 2006 PISA research states that natural science, maths literacy and general reading abilities of our 15 year-older are by statistics significantly lower than OECD countries{\textquoteleft} average result. Though Lithuania is not at the end of country list and it seems that the results are not so bad but the matter is worth of concern. The results of the research highlighted one of the most sore points of education that the preparation of our students for practical life is still poor, the main attention being further concentrated on theoretical education. Theory without practice is not the goal of today{\textquoteleft}s teaching. We can discern here another meaning of the mentioned paradigm improvement {\textendash} from knowledge towards the development of abilities. In the ability development process the learner himself has to take part most actively. The mission of education system is to form suitable conditions for that purpose and give all round help. Other countries like Latvia, Estonia, Czechia, Poland and other have serious problems in education sector as well. Obviously, every country has its own traditions and context. Besides, education is a part of culture. In this case we are speaking not only about national cultures but also about common European culture. We are speaking about common European education standards. The question arises how to match national and European aims. Any school has a challenge to create the future of the state. Education reforms have been going on for more than ten years in several countries with the purpose to achieve higher education progress and to implement the latest innovations. However, attitude to changes and innovations is not the value on its own. Changes have to be conciliated with the basic human and nation values. Modernization is a very necessary and inevitable thing, however it doesn{\textquoteleft}t have to dwarf the vision of the school mission. Among permanent reforms direction and vision of the whole education purpose shouldn{\textquoteleft}t be lost. This applies not only to Lithuania but to all European countries. I would like to go back once again to our mentioned paradigm change. The implementation of innovations into education doesn{\textquoteleft}t have to overshadow the good side of education experience. Not everything that is modern is sensible. For example, Lithuania as well as the other countries of central Europe has a many year tradition when the priority was given to strong knowledge and to education basis in general. Lithuania hasn{\textquoteleft}t lost this tradition completely and that is good. The main goals of education are: to help to form knowledge system of a learning person and give him basic social communication skills. Knowledge is not everything in person{\textquoteleft}s life. Not only knowledge makes the man. However, we have to agree, that without its powerful movement in history, mankind wouldn{\textquoteleft}t be as it is. The progress of humanity in many ways is conditioned by the development of knowledge, its expansion and so on. Thanks to it the greatest changes have taken place. School doesn{\textquoteleft}t have the right to doom children and youth to ignorance. It is not difficult to foresee necessary changes theoretically, to discuss about paradigm changes on a methodological level, but it is much more difficult to put these ideas into practice because of various both subjective and objective reasons. It is necessary to really perceive the mission of education and other questions of education, to analyze them from different perspectives, taking into consideration different theoretical and practical approaches. Education is not a one-day matter. The rule {\textquoteright}Education is in the hands of those who have power{\textquoteright} doesn{\textquoteleft}t suit here. To develop education is almost to be ready that everything what is moral in your mind will inevitably be overcome by immorality of real world (Butvilas, 2006). Education in the socioeconomical and cultural context is multiform. Therefore, we can{\textquoteleft}t one-sidedly accept a statement that moving from teaching to learning is a new paradigm indeed. Its newness is limited by time, amount, content and application aspects. This edition contains different articles. I hope that the articles included in this publication will interest the readers by their problematics, content, methodology of research and its methods, will encourage their systematic and critical thought, will make them active in scientific discussions. }, keywords = {education system, modern education, paradigm change}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392222415.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {59, title = {HIGH-QUALITY EDUCATION AS KEY FACTOR FOR SUCCESS IN A KNOWLEDGE-BASED SOCIETY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {3}, year = {2008}, month = {January/2008}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {This is the third edition of a new scientific collection Problems of Education in the 21st Century. The articles included in the publication discuss the issues of modern education. It is a great responsibility for writing such an editorial, because it should correspond to the ideas and conclusions expressed by the authors and highlight them from some other points of view of potential readers. On the other hand, it is very important to express the view of editorial board, try to discern certain research trends of modern education and its spheres. The purpose of this publication is unique, that is, try not only to convey, but also synthesize educational experience of East and West. This is a complex and ambitious task, but necessary, trying to perceive similarities as well as differences and also expectable development perspectives. The advance of IT has never been as rapid as nowadays. The influence of globalization on ICT expansion is incontestable. However, it is a tremendous challenge to education. The implementation of technologies in education does not mean that they will have only positive influence. For that purpose consistent educational, ergonomic, valeological and other research is necessary, constantly giving information not only to users, but also to ICT producers. We can assert that in Lithuania, as well as in other Central and East European countries, observation of ICT application in education is still carried out episodically. As it was already mentioned, the process of ICT development is so rapid and so socially important that monitoring technologies, having earlier been created in other countries (especially West European), eventually occur to be not full and not compatible with ever changing realities. Thus, as a matter of fact, it is impossible to prepare standard, constant methodology. In Lisbon strategy 2000, it was foreseen to seek that Europe would become the most competitive knowledge-based economics in the world. No doubt, to achieve this aim, ICT influence really should be great. Such international organizations as IEA (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement), UNESCO, OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) organized fairly comprehensive research in the application of ICT in educational system. Organizations such as: IOSTE (International organization for Science and Technology Education), ICASE (International Council of Association for Science Education) and other so called professional different sphere scientist organizations are interested in the above {\textendash}mentioned problems. The application of ICT in comprehensive schools as well as in higher educational establishments is, undoubtedly, a positive thing. According to I. Ma{\v z}uliene (2002), the usage of ICT makes the pedagogues change their settled style of work, raise qualification, develop skills and plan differently their and children{\textquoteright}s activities. On the other hand, the aims of creating information society change inner and outer surroundings of schools, therefore information processes and technologies acquire greater and greater significance in modern educational organizations. In addition, interesting research was carried out by specialists from Information Institute in Germany (Munich University). (Woessmann, 2005). The research showed that computers can harm the learning process. It is claimed, that the number of computers at school and the time spent at the computer at home don{\textquoteright}t confirm the fact that children learn much more by using IT. The importance of IT in the process of learning is not denied, however, it is stated that those who are using IT at home and at school moderately, besides, the time of its usage is limited, achieve better results than those who spend too much time at the computer. However, not only in comprehensive schools some or the other of the ICT application problems arise. One of the biggest problems the majority of universities face is passing from ICT integration and e-learning in the project level onto strategic level when all technologies are implemented all over the institution. The research shows that in EU universities general level of ICT integration into teaching process has increased over the last few years. Nevertheless, application of ICT is still perceived as the usage of computer in traditional pedagogy and didactics. Not many universities use ICT equipment according to principles of innovative didactics and pedagogy. The same can also be said about Lithuanian universities. Speaking about general education sector it is necessary to acknowledge that application of ICT depends not only on teacher{\textquoteright}s qualification and his preparation to use ICT in the teaching and learning process. The essential questions are as follows: how much does the school administration support the implementation and usage of ICT at school?; What ICT infrastructure (equipment, software, Internet connection and so on) is available at school?; What services connected with ICT do exist for the staff improvement and support?; How much do the schools apply the aims and the way of work emphasizing independent learning, and so on. Thus, it is obvious that vast, comprehensive, detailed research in the appliance of ICT in education process is necessary. In the Software \& Information Industry Association report of the year 2000 it is stated that so far more than 3500 research studies of ICT application in education process have been carried out, the majority of which are devoted to analysis of infrastructure and computer literacy situation. However, statistics of the latest research studies doesn{\textquoteright}t allow to discern some ICT application aspects. Not only strict statistic data analysis is necessary discussing specific questions of ICT application in education, but also a deeper qualitative approach to this phenomenon in order to perceive present situation, its advantages and disadvantages and also further perspective not only on Lithuanian but also on EU scale. As a matter of fact, harmonious ICT integration into the teaching process is placed in the centre of all European country strategies, in this way trying to significantly improve teaching and learning in order to correspond to children{\textquoteright}s demands. The secondary becomes earlier dominated task of computer equipment supply and teaching about technologies. (Simonson, Thomson, 1990; Plomp, 1996; Sendova, 1994). ICT service development in different education spheres prevails in the European Union and other country strategic directions. . A very special attention is devoted to natural sciences and to technological children and youth education. About the concern in this sphere tells one of the newest prepared documents (Science Education Now{\textellipsis}, 2007). Constantly going down natural science and technological literacy of our society is noticed in many countries (Lamanauskas, 2003). Opposite and significant tendencies in this sphere were discovered by ROSE research. (http://www.ils.uio.no/english/rose/). In this publication the reader will find urgent articles on this subject. Up-to-date ICT application in natural sciences and technological education is developed most rapidly. It is obvious that the implementation of new technologies in the educational process raises new possibilities for both teacher and learner, enhances education quality and makes the educational process itself more versatile. However, education quality still remains insufficient as the content of education and studies is poorly oriented towards developing the new abilities and competencies necessary for people living in an open public society and market conditions. The economy based on information becomes a priority in the European countries. It should be noticed that the reality of an open public society and market conditions is not and cannot be ideal and that qualitative education has to help people not only to accept this reality but also to critically evaluate and advance it. In this case, the most important point is that human must preserve his/her identity, self-sufficiency and to strive for a purport of life. Any action such as the improvement of the education system or implementation of new technologies must be carefully studied and firmly fixed. All possible outcomes, results and impact not only on a further but also on individual development of a young personality must be evaluated (Lamanauskas, Vilkonis, Klangauskas, 2007). Thus, on behalf of the editorial board I would like to thank all this volume article authors for their contribution to the development of educational research studies, their ambition to get acquainted with very complicated education, teaching and learning phenomena, ability to develop interdisciplinary, methodological thinking and action. Only such thinking and action approach has decisive significance towards education quality. }, keywords = {educational process, knowledge-based economics}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392221736.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {96, title = {THE IMPORTANCE OF COGNITIVE SELECTIVENESS IN THE AGE OF INFORMATION FLOOD}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {5}, year = {2008}, month = {April/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {80-86}, abstract = {Civilization changes resulting from technological development are the causes of modifications of life conditions. The effects of technological development are perceived as ambivalent as well as positive, and negative. Psychologists are interested mainly in the latter ones, especially in the phenomenon of overproduction of information, sometimes called information overflow or information flood. This social phenomenon requires from contemporary people the ability of selecting data, their intentional choice, in line with the specificity of the realized cognitive tasks. The competences required to perform this task properly are called metacognition. They involve knowledge of cognitive functioning, i. e. higher-level skills including planning, monitoring, control and regulation of the cognitive activity. The development of metacognition seems to be a major challenge for contemporary education. }, keywords = {information flood, metacognition}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392223930.pdf}, author = {Maria Ledzi{\'n}ska and Ewa Czerniawska} } @article {114, title = {INSTRUCTION BUILT ON LEARNERS{\textquoteright} PREVIOUS KNOWLEDGE BY USING THE VARIATION THEORY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {6}, year = {2008}, month = {May/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {86-95}, abstract = {This chapter discusses teaching based upon pupils{\textquoteright} previous knowledge. As the world becomes more and more globalised, it is harder and harder for a teacher to form a picture of the pupils{\textquoteright} knowledge when planning instruction. However, without this information about pupils, it is impossible to know if the created learning situations are conducive to learning or if the pupils had already acquired knowledge about the learning object before the learning situation. In this study pupils{\textquoteright} previous knowledge is investigated in relation to how English as a Second Language is learnt when pupils have different mother tongues. In a phenomenographic study we found that pupils with three different mother tongues, when placed in the same learning situation, made errors which could be traced back to the structure of their mother tongue. This observation led to a learning study, in which variation theory was the theoretical point of departure, and in which three different research lessons with three different groups of pupils were carried out. The learning object was dependent possessives, and the pupils{\textquoteright} mother tongue was Swedish. As there is no differentiation between independent and dependent possessives in Swedish, the pupils could not discern the difference between these two forms. As Swedish has a differentiation between t- and n-gender, the puils wrongly assumed that the difference between my and mine was not connected to dependent and independent possessives but to gender. The results of our study show how teachers who are familiar with the pupils{\textquoteright} previous knowledge (mother tongue) can become aware of what mistakes they might make as ESL learners; this knowledge has a profound effect on instruction. In this way, teachers can also predict and plan what information is needed to develop learning situations which provide maximum opportunity to learn. They also understand what kinds of critical aspects are necessary to enable pupils to discern. As a result, teachers are more effective, which is reflected in better pupil results in the classroom. }, keywords = {contrastive linguistic, phenomenography, variation theory}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392233451.pdf}, author = {Mona Holmqvist and Gunilla Lindgren and Jane Mattisson and Teresa Svarvell} } @article {175, title = {MEDIATION OF STUDENT LEARNING: DIMENSIONS AND EVIDENCES IN SCIENCE TEACHING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {9}, year = {2008}, month = {November/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {42-52}, abstract = {Our study intends to focus the teacher mediation of student learning in sciences{\textquoteright} classrooms in new theoretical and empirical perspectives. The science teacher action, in a research perspective, has been considered as sum of several aspects. Our research problem is how to consider, in a scientific way, the mediation of student learning in science classroom by facing the teaching activity as a whole. We present a theoretical framework to analyse the teacher mediation. We also developed an innovative methodological instrument to obtain data relevant to analyse the teacher mediation. Our instrument is a multimodal account of what happens inside the classroom or what particular context conditions some teacher decisions. We provide preliminary results from two particular science teachers to evidence the usefulness of this framework, in particular the dimensions of analyse and the richness of the instrument to collect data from multiple sources.}, keywords = {science teacher, teacher mediation, teaching activity}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392298120.pdf}, author = {J. Bernardino Lopes and J. Paulo Cravino and Maria Branco and Elisa Saraiva and Ant{\'o}nio Silva} } @article {84, title = {METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS OF PSYCHOLOGO-PEDAGOGICAL STUDY ON THE CORRELATION BETWEEN PERSONALITY TRAITS AND ORIENTATIONS FOR THE LIFE SENSE SEARCHING FOR FUTURE TEACHERS OF PSYCHOLOGY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {4}, year = {2008}, month = {February/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {96-110}, abstract = {In post-industrial society the paradigm of education has changed towards the personal orienta-tion and humanization. The turning of the higher education in Russia to the two-level system has empha-sized the understanding of importance of education got by personality means of self-realization in life and making a personal career. The psihologo-pedagogical study of the correlation between individual peculiarities, sex differ-ences and self-consciousness at student{\textquoteright}s age is actual due to the necessity in the process of professional training to take into account some reorientations of consciousness from the space of personal experiences and self-cognition in the system of interrelations to the search and identification of one{\textquoteright}s place in life, self-determination as a member of society. The Proposed methodology of the study includes: a) the methodological base- of the theory of the action, personality-oriented and value-oriented approaches, the concept of personality-professional development of students, the theory of the tendency to sense and logoterapy of V.FRANKL, the theory of the interpersonal relations; b) the stages of the study- preliminary, certifying, comparative, interpretational, practice-oriented; c) the methods of the study- observation, interview, testing, statistical processing of results, quali-tative analysis of experimental data; d) the methodic of the study- modified by us "Test orientations for the life sense searching (OLSS)", the questionnaire of social-psychological adaptation (SPA). Methodological approaches applied in this study have the practical meaning for foregrounding and predictive of personal of social adaptation and for the realization of the principles of individual ap-proach to the professional progress of future teachers of Psychology.}, keywords = {orientations for the life sense searching, personal traits, social adaptation}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392223008.pdf}, author = {Olga Logashenko and Lyudmila Lomakina} } @article {160, title = {THE MOTIVATIONAL STRATEGIES USED BY HEADTEACHERS IN ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN VIHIGA DISTRICT, KENYA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {8}, year = {2008}, month = {October/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {79-89}, abstract = {One of the roles of a headteacher is to promote students{\textquoteright} academic performance. The purpose of this study was to investigate the motivational strategies used by secondary school headteachers in academic achievement in Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations in Vihiga district in Western province. The study was occasioned by continued poor performance by most secondary schools in Vihiga district. Literature revealed that the headteacher provides professional leadership for quality and improved standards of learning. The population of the study comprised 84 headteachers and 1,280 teachers. Saturated sampling technique was used to select a sample from the high and average performing schools, while stratified random sampling technique was used to select a sample from the low performing schools. The sample comprised a total of 44 headteachers and 352 teachers from 7 high performing schools, 17 average performing schools and 20 low performing schools. Data were collected by use of questionnaires, in-depth interviews and document analysis guide instruments. A pilot study was conducted in two secondary schools which were not in the sample to test the reliability of the instruments. Data were analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The findings show that headteachers in Vihiga district, Kenya, use strategies such as: rewards, guiding, and counseling to motivate teachers. It is recommended that headteachers enhance teacher motivation in order to achieve good academic results.}, keywords = {head teacher, high performing schools, school size}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392284498.pdf}, author = {Musungu Lydiah Lynet and Achoka Judith and Serah Kasandi and Nasongo Wamocha} } @article {65, title = {PEDAGOGICAL EVALUATION OF THE PLATFORM BASED ON AUGMENTED REALITY TECHNOLOGY: A POSITION OF THE EXPERTS PROVIDING ASSISTANCE WITH TEACHING/LEARNING}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {3}, year = {2008}, month = {January/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {56-78}, abstract = {The primary purpose of the progressing international scientific project ARiSE {\textendash} is to test pedagogical effectiveness introducing augmented reality (AR) into the classroom and creating remote collaboration between classes around the AR display systems. ARiSE will develop an AR platform and associated pedagogical use cases, enabling teachers to promote, with a moderate effort, new teaching practices for teaching scientific and cultural content in primary and secondary school. The aim of the project is to offer to the group of students the possibility of {\textquoteleft}playing{\textquoteright} with virtual objects and thereby to perform learning by doing instead of learning by reading. The research was carried out at Siauliai University in Lithuania. 38 respondents - experts assisting students with special educational needs in teaching/learning (psychologists, speech therapy experts, special pedagogues and the specialists from the education department) took part in this research. The focus groups were formed requiring indiscretion i.e. the group members were not allowed to make any specific impact on one another (in terms of work place, competence and social status). Thus, 6 groups of respondents were set up. }, keywords = {augmented reality, focus group, pedagogical evaluation}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392222031.pdf}, author = {Margarita Vilkoniene and Vincentas Lamanauskas and Rytis Vilkonis} } @article {128, title = {QUALITY OF HIGHER EDUCATION: IDEALS AND REALITY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {7}, year = {2008}, month = {June/2008}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {The recently discussed issues of education quality are devoted full attention. The systems of quality control are developed, services are certified etc. All EU countries point to education quality as one of the most important political priorities. Despite the fact it is an excellent idea, the questions of how to ensure adequate education and how to achieve equally ranked education certification in all countries of the European Union arise. From the perspective of Lithuania, it is essential that university education gained at national level should be internationally accepted. Therefore, different legal and political documents approved by Lithuanian authorities in one way or another emphasize that ensuring quality education is a priority field. Yet in the last decades of the past century, the universities worldwide closely focused not only on the quality of studies but also on the other services provided by modern universities. Every country of the European Union owns certain structures concentrating on the above introduced problems. For example, Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education was established in Great Britain in 1997. The Netherlands has two organizations - Association of Universities and Association of Universities of Professional Education. Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council looks at the situation in Finland etc. In this case, Lithuania is not an exception as since 1995, this field has been maintained by the Centre Quality Assessment in Higher Education (CQAHE). This organization implements the external quality assurance policy in research and higher education in Lithuania and contributes to the development of human resources by creation of enabling conditions for free movement of persons (http://www.skvc.lt/en/?id=0). In regard to university life, it can be firmly stated that the problems of studying quality are given scrupulous attention. An apparent focus entirely on ensuring the quality of studies can be noticed in Lithuania. The classical principle of unity of science and studies cannot be considered as a suitable solution. The quality of studies and the process of studying are integrated and therefore determinine one another (Lamanauskas, 2007). Finally, the world practice shows that the concepts of quality management are developed in at least four major fields including the processes of studies and scientific research, administration, designing curricula of studies and teacher training. The central point is the understanding that quality cannot be bought in the market and is not something beyond institution boundaries. Everything will be determined by awareness that quality in a broad sense is conditioned by the quality of management (administration). Only professional management leads to qualified processes (institution work) whereas the latter ensure high-quality service. Otherwise, we can face a situation frequently encountered in the system of Lithuanian higher eduction. For example, after regaining independence, Lithuania suffered from lack of managers and lawyers, and thus national universities started implementation of the required curricula of studies. Presently, all universities in Lithuania train would-be managers. However, the problem is that the quantity of professionally prepared experts in the field is decreasing while at the same time, a total number of professional managers is increasing. Similar problems can be observed in a number of Europen countries. As the understanding of quality may vary, a general agreement on the issue discussing quality is very important at least inside the institution. Quality is differently treated by academic staff, students, employers, social partners of institution, authorities and society in general. No special investigation is necessary in order to find out that the position of Lithuanian society on the quality of higher education and studies is not favourable enough. During the last decade, a number of young and gifted Lithuanian people have entered the universities and started working in the neighbouring countries. The process has been given a sound name Brain Drain. A free people{\textquoteright}s movement in the open world should be a natural process. However, the careless government{\textquoteright}s position on the analogous situations in some countries seems to be a surprise. When the situation becomes really complicated, the programmes aimed at {\textquoteleft}recovering losses{\textquoteright} are created. Nevertheless, similar measures can hardly be sufficient for making a substantial impact. Thus, the Overseas Lithuanians{\textquoteright} Support Centre is responsible for running the project Design and Implementation of Brain Drain Programme the purpose of which is creating a programme for Lithuanian people studying and working in the foreign scientific centres. The programme encourages Lithuanian citizens moving back and implements a competitive financial mechanism that will be applied for arranging scientists{\textquoteright} visits to Lithuania. A serious problem is that up to now, no official statistics on the degree of graduent students, scientists and other researchers{\textquoteright} emigration from Lithuania has been prepared. Moreover, there is lack of information on national scientific research and available vacancies in the institutions of science and education. Frequent discussions under a negative shade lead to appropriate society{\textquoteright}s reaction. It seems, not much is required in order the quality of higher education should become more outstanding and satisfy not only personal needs but also the requirements imposed by a certain country. However, increased financial support (which is a very important factor) cannot change the existing situation. Education is a complex system having different levels, sub-systems etc. that closely correlate and determine one another. It should be stated that training of secondary comprehensive school graduates is still not sufficient enough. Though, at a later stage, a number of students enter the institutions of higher education. After all, the learners having a certain level of knowledge, abilities and values are treated as the main staff for universities. Logically, if graduates{\textquoteright} education is not good enough, a university fails to train high quality specialists. Meanwhile, worlwide practice shows that universities own high potential that is not always appropriatelly used. Statistics indicates that only 21\% of the EU citizens capable for work are graduates from universities, whereas the latter indexes in the US and Canada are 38\% and 43 \% respectively. The communiqu{\'e} of the European Commission declears that {\textquoteleft}Europe needs modernised universities. The main question is how to increase our universities{\textquoteright} contribution to the Lisbon Agenda for more growth, and more and better jobs{\textquoteright} (Education and Training..., 2006). The document examines the quality of higher education provided by the European universities. During the recent decade, due to reduced complexity, the programmes of social rather than natural sciences and technologies have been the most popular subjects studied. On the one hand, it is a common position, on the other{\textendash} due to various reasons, the young generation in Lithuania and other countries of Central and Eastern Europe is not sufficiently focused on choosing sciences as subjects to be studied as in this case, in order to ensure the development and quality of programmes, apart from declarations, real financial and intellectual resources are required. Natural and technological sciences are primarily devoted to the development of manufacturing and technologies. Analogical sciences must be competetive under the circumstances of rapid globalization in the economical and informational space worldwide. However, only universities cannot improve the situation as a general clear national policy is required. It is worth pointing to the international ROSE research which disclosed that the youth{\textquoteright} interest in sciences and technologies was markedly decreased in the so called developed countries (ROSE, 2008). Certainly, teaching sciences and technologies in comprehensive schools should be enforced. High quality higher education is a solid basis of individual and public intellectual property. Finally, the mission of higher education is to offer competitive priority to its receivers now and in the future. Not everything can be controlled by the existing market as higher education first of all, is an individual property. Therefore, it is not necessarily must be related to the labour market. Higher education is essential to a person him/herself (for young people in particular) in order to consider a personal model of life, to form a unique world outlook and to grow up as a personality and citizen. In this particular case, university implicitly orientating towards the needs suggested by the market, is not suitable for such mission. To save the idea of university worldwide, the latter aspect is exceptionally meaningful. Higher education cannot be treated as a purchase sold in the market. Higher education policy becomes a key point. In any case, the quality of higher education cannot be independent neither from science and studying policy of a certain country nor from a policy of a particular university. University autonomy and administration and implementation of science policy at national level are two closely integrated components having a direct impact on higher education. The European Union has established high and ambitious standards. One of those is a steady increase of Europeans{\textquoteright} education. Thus, Lithuania must be ready to meet this challenge. The number of educated people cannot enlarged. The quality of higher education is an integrated part of standard of living and citizens{\textquoteright} welfare. }, keywords = {education quality, higher education policy, quality of studies}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392234536.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {107, title = {REASONS BEHIND THE FINNISH SUCCESS IN SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS IN PISA TESTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {6}, year = {2008}, month = {May/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {18-26}, abstract = {Finnish teacher educators with the research background joined in a common enterprise to gather information from the Finnish education system and used practices in teaching science and mathematics to explain the Finnish students{\textquoteright} success in the international PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) assessment. The items dealt with were the following: the Finnish school system and teacher education, learning environments, gender issues, influential factors outside the school, and teaching science and mathematics at the comprehensive school. From the articles by 40 authors the book {\textquotedblleft}How Finns Learn Mathematics and Science?{\textquotedblright} was produced. The explanations for Finnish success based on the authors{\textquoteright} conceptions can be classified into three groups: Teacher and teacher education, school and curriculum, and the national developmental projects. Most probably a true explanation will be a combination of several factors as no single clear explanation was found, although research-based teacher education seems to be a rather influencing factor.}, keywords = {explanations for Finnish success, PISA program, teacher education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392232848.pdf}, author = {Maija Ahtee and Jari Lavonen and Erkki Pehkonen} } @article {119, title = {THE ROLE OF EDUCATION SYSTEM IN KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {6}, year = {2008}, month = {May/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {136-144}, abstract = {Our investigation is in connection with knowledge management, but we would like to present another aspect of this field. We have investigated the general willingness of knowledge transfer among children and students. The philosophy of our research was that we did not investigate the processes of knowledge transfer among the walls of a company, however, we looked for the basic issue of knowledge management: whether young people are ready to share their knowledge or not. When we were conducting our research, we were looking for the answers of two questions: on the one hand we wanted to know how cultural factors can influence the effectiveness of knowledge transfer, on the other hand we looked for the impact of age, i.e. how one{\textquoteright}s age changes helpfulness in the respect of knowledge transfer. So we wanted to know what the role of education system was in this process. We investigated the influence of cultural elements and education systems through two nearby countries: Hungary and Slovakia. We created two samples which included 600-600 people in each country to investigate the difference of cultural environment in the field of knowledge transfer. Our another assumption was that not only the cultural items, but the age can influence knowledge transfer essentially. We could prove the influence of education system with this hypothesis as well. }, keywords = {helpfulness, knowledge transfer, teamwork}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392233773.pdf}, author = {Vendel L{\H o}re and Andrea Bencsik} } @article {176, title = {SCIENCE BY AND FOR EVERYONE: A NEW APPROACH FOR BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN SECONDARY SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {9}, year = {2008}, month = {November/2008}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {53-58}, abstract = {Science by and for everyone Programme provides varied activities through the Centre for Research and Support of Scientific Education (CIAEC). The improvement of both the sciences teaching and learning at different educational levels, attempting on the scientific literacy of the whole educational community is aimed. CET Programme (stands for the Spanish name Ciencia Entre Todos) proposes answers to issues of special significance to secondary school as well as first-year college students. It also addresses the training of teachers, and the advising for the resolution of specific problems in specific contexts. We take in account that it is necessary to establish and consolidate a transforming relationship between the University and society at large through a communicative, educational and scientific program that defends equal access to knowledge and an education for everyone, and contributes to a sustainable development of the region. Different activities related to teaching, research and extension, are linked. We promote training in service for teachers, new practical activities, self-evaluation, and collaborative work. Particularly, we established a team under a network way. The network is useful for thinking, analyzing and evaluating our own problems, in order to explore new answers for those problems.}, keywords = {articulation university-school, multilevel integration model, teachers training}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392298178.pdf}, author = {Maria Lorenzo} } @article {170, title = {SOME IDEAS ABOUT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGICAL EDUCATION ACTUALITIES AND PERSPECTIVES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {9}, year = {2008}, month = {November/2008}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-8}, abstract = {Science Education (hereafter-SE) actuality in the world is not only not decreasing but on the contrary, it is constantly increasing. As you know, very interesting and contradictory results were received in 2004 having carried out international comparative ROSE research. Once again I{\textquoteright}d like to encourage all who are interested in science education actualities and problems to get familiar with already mentioned research. This is also important for the reason that Lithuania didn{\textquoteright}t take part in this research, therefore we can approximately judge about our position according to the results shown by the pupils of neighboring Latvia. However, these results are not enjoyable because 15 year old pupils{\textquoteright} preferences with respect to science disciplines in many aspects are negative. This is a common tendency of so called developed countries. You can find detailed information about this research on http://www.ils.uio.no/english/rose/. There are lots of publications and other interesting material related to research and its perspectives. It is foreseen to carry out a similar research once again this year and to compare the results of 2004 and 2008. It is difficult to predict how the situation will have changed. However, it is obvious that in the last decades the results of pupils{\textquoteright} tests in most developed countries are not getting better despite big investments and constant efforts to improve the quality of education. The conception of science education changes, much higher requirements are set for the youth science literacy. In the change of science education understanding the necessity arises to prepare new teaching devices, both traditional devices and the devices which are realized by the help of modern ICT. All this undoubtedly has direct influence on the quality of education. Quality imperative is especially emphasized in the report of UNESCO EFA, 2005. Those who are bringing up youth generation have to be interested in this. National Lithuanian native language, mathematics, science and social education research of the 4th and 8th form pupils was carried out in 2007. It was found that pupils succeed better in completion of the tasks requiring knowledge presentation. The hardest appear the tasks requiring application of practical abilities. The research also showed that there was not sufficient pupils{\textquoteright} research planning and task completion experience, the abilities of conclusion formulation, measurement device indicator reading, using of various sources of information. Pupils lack deep understanding of phenomena, processes and concepts, application of theoretical knowledge and its relation to practice (Bigeliene, Uginciene, 2008). These results are not surprising, in fact, because in the education process not much attention is given to the formation of practical research abilities. This situation is caused by different reasons, e.g. poor material equipment of science subject rooms (laboratories, appliances, chemicals for doing experiments and so on.) too little time (lessons) is allotted to science subjects, inadequate teachers competence and so on. By making social education significant and sometimes unreasonably integrating the latter with science education the second component remained impoverished. Such pseudo- integration didn{\textquoteright}t give any positive results as well as unreasonable profiling of teaching in the higher comprehensive school forms. The possibilities of informal education are also quite often used not for the benefit of science education. Here we can mention neighboring Latvians who became seriously concerned about the situation of science education. Science education modernization project on strengthening the material basis of science education has been going on for several years (the leader dr.Dace Namsone). At the moment the project is being carried out in more than 50 pilot schools therefore we hope that the other schools will share the accumulated experience too. On the international level concern was given to science education textbooks. With the initiative of international science and technological education organization IOSTE an International meeting on {\textquotedblleft}Critical Analysis of School Science Textbook{\textquotedblright} was organized in Tunisia, in February, 2007. It was emphasized that every country has a great variety of textbooks from totally traditional textbooks and their appliance to modern approaches. For example, African countries and Malta usually use old British and French textbooks. Only recently new original textbooks started to be prepared (Clement, 2008). Despite the variety in every respect (e.g. the quality of textbooks, supply, their usage and so on) it is stated that science education should be more common, similar because science knowledge is universal and every country is seeking to strengthen so called knowledge society. Scientists from more than 35 countries participated in the above mentioned meeting. A very important attention was paid to such topics given in the textbooks as Sex Education, Health Education, Human Genetics, Human Brain, Ecology and Environmental Education and other. During this seminar the scientists returned to still existing and becoming urgent {\textendash}the problem that in our textbooks you can still find quite a lot of subject mistakes and old conceptions which are incompatible with modern science education achievements. Without any doubt, we should give much more attention to this problem in Lithuania than we did up to now. Teacher qualification question remains urgent. The majority of the researches both national and international in one way or another reveal direct link between children{\textquoteright}s achievements and teachers{\textquoteright} competence. Teaching is not a simple thing. On the contrary, the complexity of teaching points out the necessity for deeper research into the relations between the different elements that constitutes teacher knowledge, and how these are developed and integrated during teacher education (Nilsson, 2008). In this context the suggestion of Lithuanian Education leaders to justify Education law amendments allowing the students of higher schools to work in schools is totally not understandable. This is perhaps J. A. Komenskis times (Lamanauskas, 2008a). According to statistics, there is a lack of science teachers in Lithuanian schools. So called {\textquotedblleft}retrained{\textquotedblright} pedagogues don{\textquoteright}t solve the problem. Nevertheless, not a small part of teachers still work without proper qualifications. Therefore, more attention should be paid to teacher training problems. The science teacher training is a very important part for the future quality of science education (Nezvalova, 2007). Not without reason, in recent years a lot of international projects on science teacher training, analysis on competence issues are being carried out. One of them is international project IQST (Improving Quality of Science Teacher Training in European Cooperation). The project results you can find on http://www.iqst.upol.cz. One of the purposes of the project is to analyze science teacher training practice in some European countries and to prepare possible teacher training development mechanisms on the basis of constructivism theory. The question of using the newest information communication technologies remains problematic. We can{\textquoteright}t assert that teachers don{\textquoteright}t use ICT in the teaching process, however, their usage remains inadequate, e.g. inefficiently are used opportunities from the internet in science education (Lamanauskas, Vilkonis, 2006). On the other hand, particularly innovative technologies, such as augmented reality technologies for learning penetrate into schools. Since 2006 international project {\textquotedblleft}ARiSE{\textquotedblright} has been carried out to reveal the possibilities of augmented reality technology application in education process. You can read about this on http://www.arise-project.org or on Siauliai University Science Education research centre website http://www.gutc.su.lt/ariselt.htm. Application of ICT in science education is inseparable from teaching and learning visualization, implementation of knowledge, perception problems. This sphere should be analyzed in detail, broadening the basis of empiric research. Technologies should not alienate from human being and reality. We should devote all our efforts to stimulating youth interest in science and technologies and reinforcing scientific {\textendash}technological education at all levels. Although hardly anyone suspects that technologies are having a growing impact on our daily life, however, they are still remain alienated from the major par of society members and policy makers and what is more, frequently stand outside the door of the education system. Hence, opening the door is the obligation of all of us (Lamanauskas, 2008b). All mentioned problematic questions are in one way or another related to scientific-research pupils{\textquoteright} activity in comprehensive school. We can safely assert that especially in primary school practically not an appropriate attention is paid to formation of scientific-research abilities. It is obvious, that modern teaching process is not favorable orientating pupils for scientist (researcher) career. It is very important to analyze in detail which factors disturb/encourage to train pupils{\textquoteright} interest in scientific-research activity. Finally, teacher{\textquoteright}s competence and also personal interest are very important while forming and developing pupils{\textquoteright} scientific research abilities in teaching- learning process. From the managerial point of view, incentive program is necessary for such teachers. The formation of scientific research activity abilities in comprehensive school is undoubtedly, a very important sphere still awaiting of particular attention. Current teaching and learning process has basically changed looking from the paradigmatic point of view. Teaching subjects become the means of realization of learners{\textquoteright} demands and interests. Scientific research activity is not an entertainment but a very responsible, thorough work requiring great self- independence. During this activity children{\textquoteright}s analytic thinking becomes stronger, information search and usage abilities are being developed, they can learn to analyze the accumulated material, make presentations, prepare research reports and so on. It is important to make more pupils interested in this activity. This shouldn{\textquoteright}t be the privilege of gifted pupils only. However, talking about the developing of scientific research activity at school, several essential questions arise: {\textbullet} Is it possible to teach every child to perform research activity? {\textbullet} What to do if a pupil wants to take up scientific research activity but school can{\textquoteright}t provide elementary conditions for this purpose (for example, there is no equipment, no competent leader and so on.)? {\textbullet} How to integrate effectively scientific research elements into teaching content? Scientific research activity in comprehensive school is undoubtedly a meaningful, integral sphere, however, for developing such kind of activity in Lithuanian comprehensive schools not an adequate attention was paid up to now. Comprehensive school teachers seeking to form scientific research abilities and to develop such activity in the training process face various difficulties: lack of administration support, lack of pupils{\textquoteright} motivation, shortage of material and financial resources, etc. factors disturbing pupils{\textquoteright} interest in scientific research activity in the teaching process are: a) lack of teachers{\textquoteright} motivation, b) pupils{\textquoteright} orientation to choose an easier, less effort demanding way, c) poor material basis of schools, d) lack of methodology how to organize pupils{\textquoteright} scientific research work, e) insufficient teachers{\textquoteright} preparation for scientific research work. essential encouraging factors in the pupils{\textquoteright} interest in scientific research activity are such: a) teacher{\textquoteright}s personality and activity, b) pupils{\textquoteright} curiosity, their wish to develop knowledge, to show themselves, c) pupil{\textquoteright}s abilities, d) different teaching subjects{\textquoteright} pupils scientific conferences, seminars and other similar arrangements, e) trips, excursions to scientific establishments, meetings with scientists (Lamanauskas, Augiene, 2008). Recently in Gothenburg (Sweden) one week course took place for PhD students in science education sphere (Goteborg University, November 16th {\textendash}November 21st, 2008).The subject of the course was {\textquotedblleft}The Role of Theory in Science Education{\textquotedblright}. The focus of the course was on the role of theory in developing doctoral theses in the context of science education. The event took place according to a common project of Baltic and Scandinavian countries {\textquotedblleft}NordForsk{\textquotedblright}. During the course the students presented their researches, shared experiences, listened to interesting lectures, such as: {\textquotedblleft}Theoretical perspectives on science learning: an overview{\textquotedblright} (P. Scott), {\textquotedblleft}Science learning in a socio-cultural perspective{\textquotedblright} (R.Saljo), {\textquotedblleft}Theory: who needs it?{\textquotedblright}(J. Donnelly), {\textquotedblleft}Appeal to reason, appeal of reason: fostering argument in science education (S. Erduran) etc. Students{\textquoteright} presented works were interesting as well. Their subjects are various indeed, e.g. {\textquotedblleft}Personalized learning for the most able learners in science{\textquotedblright} (B.Knutsen, Norway), {\textquotedblleft}A design-based research on motivation: learning materials with science inquiry{\textquotedblright} (A.Loukomies, Finland), {\textquotedblleft}The development of science achievement motivation in Iceland: longitudinal quantitative study based on social cognitive theory{\textquotedblright} (K.K.Stefansson, Island), {\textquotedblleft}Establishing learning demands about biological evolution-exploring the constituents , actors and communicative processes{\textquotedblright}(C.Olander, Sweden), {\textquotedblleft}Science education outdoors-effects and attitudes{\textquotedblright}(E.Fagerstam, Sweden) etc. In general, the importance of such courses can be evaluated as a positive contribution into training of young generation of scientists and as an obvious contribution into science education development. However, after analyzing at least minimally the works of doctorates becomes evident that the latter are ready to choose a rather pragmatic and simple way. I mean, such spheres of researches are chosen which are popular at the moment. The great majority of the works are linked to motivation, interests, attitudes and so on. We can{\textquoteright}t assert that this is not important. In fact, this is the sphere of psychology. However difficult it were to find out the reasons for low interest to science and technologies, the fallen prestige of sciences in comprehensive schools, nevertheless, they are not essential things from the educational point of view. All the more, inquiry based researches give only a panoramic view of the situation, i.e. have a stated character. It is completely not clear or almost not clear what causes such a situation. The main goal of educators is to change, develop teaching-learning process using educational devices. Already mentioned ROSE research revealed that pupils understand the meaning of sciences and technologies to society in general, but they are not satisfied with school science. It is obvious, that we come in touch with deeper didactic problems here, for example, the content of teaching, teaching-learning methods, teacher and pupils relations, scientific research activity (the latter is a very important part of the whole science education process), at last, teaching-learning process management in general. If we concentrate only on psychological parameters (interests, motives, demands, attitudes and so on), essential didactic parameters remain outside. In other words, the essential question {\textendash} effective pedagogization of the whole science and technological education process hasn{\textquoteright}t been solved yet (it considerably deviated towards psychologization and sociologization. Such conclusion can be made from the experience acquired during the course in Gothenburg. The actualities of science education discussed in this article make one take up research, analytic, expert job. There are no drawn limits for the development of science education. More serious theorists and practitioners efforts are simply necessary. There is a hope that this issue remains one of the main science education efficiency catalysts not only in Lithuania but also in the international arena. }, keywords = {science education, science education textbooks, scientific-research pupils{\textquoteright} activity, social education research}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392297814.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {37, title = {APPLYING OF THE COMPONENT ANALYSES IN COMBINATION WITH NONPARAMETRIC CRITERIA FOR STATISTICAL PROCESSING OF THE RESULTS OF EMPIRICAL RESEARCH}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {2}, year = {2007}, month = {September/2007}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {7-14}, abstract = {The main objective of the present study is the statistical processing of the results of the examination how effective was the integration of the introductory block into the module structure of physical and colloidal chemistry course. To get reliable results of the level of mathematical material mastering the control test which consists of the fundamental elements of the mathematical processing the results of chemical ex-periments was carried out. The students of pharmaceutical department from Kuban State Medical Uni-versity as well as the students of four departments of two other universities and one academy took part in this experiment. The outcome variable was completeness of student{\textquoteright}s answers. The results of the research were treated by component analyses. Nonparametric criteria were used for statistical estimation. The number of tested students in a single group were from 27 up to 60. The statistical results processing of empirical research proves the efficiency of introduction of mathematical block into module structure of the physical and colloidal chemistry course.}, keywords = {nonparametric criteria, physical and colloidal chemistry}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392219699.pdf}, author = {Olga Balachevskaya and Nikolay Sheldeshov and Таtyana Litvinova} } @article {36, title = {EDUCATION DIVERSITY AS AN INDICATOR OF SOCIETY POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {2}, year = {2007}, month = {September/2007}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {In the present age, education plays a crucial role. Globalization, challenges of the knowledgeable society and the breakthrough of technological development are the main factors stimulating the diversification of education systems in a number of countries. Society and education become more variable. On the other hand, education may have a significant impact on society i.e. to provoke and promote its alterations. Recently, a strong need for new competencies has shown up. Preparations for changes, modern information management, skills in general science management and strategic planning, the need for permanent learning etc. are accepted as extremely important competencies. New tasks are allocated for all types and levels of schools concentrating on comprehensive school the basic mission of which is to train a personality having a broad academic knowledge, capable of lifelong learning, able to find his/her own place in life and be an active member of the community. First of all, new education goals require rearranging the educational process and content. After restoring the independence in 1990, different alterations have been taking place in the Lithuanian education system. This period has faced plenty of changes in schools and the whole system of education e.g. school decentralization and management, reformation of schooling net and structure, new methods of financing, a changed system of Secondary Education Examination, new methods regulating the entrance to higher schools, new educational content and standards, the systems of teachers and executives{\textquoteright} attestation etc. The educational establishments have seen endless possibilities of cooperation with foreign partners. Joining various international scientific, collaboration, mobility etc. projects opens up excellent opportunities to increase competencies of all education system participants. It can be affirmed that a similar situation can be met in the majority of countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The fundamental reforms of the educational system have been introduced in Latvia, Estonia, Poland and other countries of this region. The free market conditions, globalization of production, rapid changes in technologies, market liberalization and building an information-based society create a highly competitive environment in all countries and make an immediate impact on employee qualification requirements and work methods. Training a qualified expert focused on the needs of the work market and aimed at developing practical skills can be accepted as one of the priorities of the education system. Ensuring high quality education has become a burning problem. Qualified education embraces not only internal business of the educational establishments; it is also a concern of the whole environment. To be satisfied with quality assurance, the society and social partners are actively involved. Quality management in education is admitted as a priority. To be certain about the society members{\textquoteright} education that corresponds to the time requirements, the representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations, enterprises, traditional religious communities, mass media as well as education experts, politicians, employers and other concerned people need to be summoned. Everyone must feel responsibility for the young generation and the future of the country. A similar form of collaboration is extremely important and most frequently produces positive results. M.Lang states that collaboration in educational reform assumes an atmosphere of professional autonomy realized through discourse, decentralization, and professional self-improvement in communities of practice. This implies a participatory process in a common information space that is different from the traditional view in a bureaucratic or expert hierarchy. It has to be discussed and justified in a social context of some sort of commons with shared meaning, values and rules (Lang, 2007). However, it seems likely that progress in education is impossible without degradation which is an antipodal phenomenon. Along progress in education and its modernization, the degradation processes take place. Educational literature calls it The Doctrine of the Degraded Education. Despite all the efforts taken, the level of education is kept down in some countries. The number of preschool education institutions has gone down; the children{\textquoteright}s state of health and the quality of knowledge have considerably decreased. The prestige of higher schools is under damage. Unfortunately, the scopes of education financing cannot ensure qualified education. The phenomenon of falsified education frequently emerges. The factors determining the latter happening are under discussion. The expert inquiry carried out in Lithuania in 2006, revealed such unfavourable circumstances of falsified education as a negative public attitude to school, lack of competencies of the executives dealing with education policy, bureaucracy, exaltation of learners{\textquoteright} rights etc. (Lamanauskas, Aleknaite, 2007). An inescapable fact remains that an individual market of education exists. An axiom that the market easily accepts {\textquoteleft}high{\textquoteright} mastership is known. Another truth is also notorious {\textendash} teachers (apart from rare exceptions) broke checking their personal educational activity and science (do the latter fields conform to one another). The process of broadening personal theoretical knowledge is very slow. What role does an uncompetitive teacher/lecturer play nowadays? Who is responsible if a teacher/lecturer fails to properly express him/herself under the circumstances of competition in the education market? Why a part of the universities are chosen by a large number of students whereas the other higher schools feel shortage of learners? There are plenty of questions to be fully answered. Society and the education market gain greater diversity. More and more educational establishments appear in order to offer a wide spectrum of education services. A net of informal education institutions is actively progressing not only in Lithuania but also in other countries of the above mentioned region. The education {\textquoteleft}field{\textquoteright} is supported with the new theories that help with expansion of a modern education panorama (Lamanauskas, 2004). Obviously, such variety can be confusing, moreover, the barely accepted objects most frequently do not succeed in becoming the treasure of the educational society. The acknowledgement and investigation of the systemic education reality grow into a burning issue. Nevertheless, variant education is admitted as an index measuring how a certain political unity is focused on different educational needs and possibilities of society and its groups. A few produced ideas will serve as a pretext for everyone interested in discussing the problems of education and thinking of the present education situation. Notwithstanding, this issue of serial publication includes articles dealing with different topics and formats i.e. from works displaying empirical research on methodology (Olga V. Balachevskaya etc.) to those debating the questions of youth intelligence and self-determination (Tatyana V. Masharova, Elena L. Syrtsova). This is a purposeful objective. The geopolitical situation in Lithuania has performed a role of a bridge between East and West. During the recent seventeen years, the one-way direction has predominated and been targeted on the West traditions in Lithuania. It is clear that education encountered a similar situation. The state of education in the region of Eastern Europe has been poorly discussed. Different international conferences held in Russia and Belarus disclose the need of exchanging information, experience, problems etc. The pedagogical traditions of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine considerably differ from those cherished in the West. The fact that only a small number of scientists working in the field of pedagogy in these countries publish their works in English proves that the real problems of communicating with one another exist. Life under similar conditions limits the possibilities of acknowledging the educational theory and practice in these countries. It is believed that this volume of scientific articles will assist in solving the above introduced problems in one or another way and thus will have a positive impact on education development. We are expecting that this issue will be equally useful for the readers and writers of Eastern as well as of Western countries. }, keywords = {education diversity, education market, globalization}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392219627.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {58, title = {THE MOTIVATION AND METHODOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF PSYCHOLOGO-PEDAGOGICAL ACCOMPANIMENT OF SCIENTIFIC-PRACTICAL ACTIVITY OF STUDENTS-PSYCHOLOGISTS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {2}, year = {2007}, month = {September/2007}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {166-174}, abstract = {In the concepts of the national educational policy to Russian Federation mined priority directions of the development and the modernization of the system of education for 2004-2010 years have been determined. Special Emphasis is put on the creation of the conditions for professional training improvement of the trained, and on the formation not only skills and abilities, but also on the creative in use. Problems faced by psychologists are constantly becoming more complicated, that1s why the problem of the shaping for students-psychologists of the creative approach to the decision of research and practical problems is very topical. The Optima decision of this problem is the creation of the unceasing system of psychologo-pedagogical accompaniment of the scientific-practical activity (SPA) of student. Psychologo-pedagogical accompaniment of SPA provides: a) at the starting-up stage: the creation of scientific-methodical base, planning of organizational actions, the making of psycho-pedagogical diagnostics level of the qualification of student; b) at the stage SPA the improvement and personalization of psycho-pedagogical knowledge, skills and abilities; c) at the stage of analysis: the diagnostics of the results of psycho-pedagogical accompaniment, comprehension and comparison of the changes of the substantial base, the statistical processing of the received data; d) at the final stage: the generalization and the efficiency estimation of the offered psycho-pedagogical accompaniment SPA, the development of recommendations for students and teaching staff of Krasnodar Institute of Economics and Management in Medical and Social sphere. Psychologo-pedagogical accompaniment of SPA of students-psychologists, provides the availability of normative-legal, psycho-diagnostic; scientific-methodical, organizational, information-computer provision, as well as phased checking of knowledge. The realization of our designed system of psychologo-pedagogical accompaniment of educational-introductory practice of student-psychologists have shown its influence upon the process of the shaping of the professional, creating readiness for the future professional activity. }, keywords = {personal-oriented professional training, psychologo-pedagogical accompaniment, scientific-practical activity}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392220874.pdf}, author = {Tatyana Shaposhnikova and Olga Logashenko} } @article {57, title = {PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIALLY GIFTED TEENAGERS BY MEANS SOCIO-PSYCHOLOGICAL EXPERIMENT}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {2}, year = {2007}, month = {September/2007}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {161-165}, abstract = {The paper deals with the problem of elaborating psychological means of personal development of socially gifted teenagers (youth leaders) in changing social milieu nowadays. Teenage leadership is supposed to be learnt and formed within the framework of specially organized social environment {\textendash} social oasis. The process of social oasis design based upon social learning and working out adequate social technologies makes it possible to improve gifted teenagers motivation. Combination of social cognition and social action makes it possible to perform social renovation of youth personality and reach higher level of small groups{\textquoteright} social maturity. The tools to design social oasis suggested by paper{\textquoteright}s authors are: forming of mental culture of youth groups; inclusion of educational specialist into joint action with alumnus; engaging all participa-tors into highly organized commonality; introduction of democratic organizational procedures in small groups; aggregative spatial organization of joint actions; social, mental and objective enrichment of activities; strengthening of intellectual, emotional and behavioral component joint activities in small groups.}, keywords = {social learning, social oasis, socio-psychological experiment}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392220814.pdf}, author = {Aleksey Chernyshov and Sergei Sarychev and Jury Lobkov} } @article {50, title = {PROFESSIONAL SELF-DETERMINATION OF THE MODERN TEENAGER AS A PROBLEM OF EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {2}, year = {2007}, month = {September/2007}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {101-110}, abstract = {The Modern society presents high requirements to abilities of each member to realize searching for new sense of professional activity and vital activity as a whole i.e. to constitute himself in History, Culture, life, profession. The significant role in realization of these requirements belongs to education and its quality. Changes in political and economic situation, mass unemployment at the beginning of the 90-s have brought to the disintegration of professional guidance in Russia. The system of education has declined the responsibility for professional self-determination of graduates and their training of the professions. New technologies in the Russian professional guidance have revealed the contradictions between multiple methodical works, books, educational methodical seminars in main professional-guiding centers of the country, internet-sites, new efficient methods of professional psychodiagnosis and consultancy, active game professional-guiding methods, which in complex create the modern system of the professional guidance for youth, on the one hand, and the lack of publications, devoted to the professional self-determination of teenagers at school and the correspondence between the choice of a profession and individual particularities, as well as the unsolved problem connected with the quality of education and the adequate professional choice, on the other hand. Above mentioned facts explain the urgency of our study, by the main point of which is the problem of the correspondence of personal particularities to the professional choice. The performed study of individual, characteristic and other personal particularities (organizational and communicational aptitudes and abilities, temperament, self assessment, professional interests, aggressiveness, hostility etc.) of teenager at secondary school {\textnumero} 3 in Cossack village Novotitarovskaya of the Krasnodar region has allowed to reveal the interrelation and correspondence of their individual particularities to the chosen professional sphere of activity. We have prepared some practical recommendations taking into account the correspondence of the professional interests and the individual particularities of teenagers in work of teachers and school psychologists professional-guiding objectives and social adaptation, as well as on the increasing quality of education. }, keywords = {personality of a teenager, professional interests, professional self-determination}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392220439.pdf}, author = {Lyudmila Lomakina and Olga Logashenko} } @article {17, title = {SCIENCE EDUCATION AS A CORE COMPONENT OF EDUCATEDNESS}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {1}, year = {2007}, month = {August/2007}, type = {Editorial}, chapter = {5-6}, abstract = {This is the first edition of a new scientific compilation Problems of Education in the 21st Century. The articles included in the publication discuss the issues of modern education. Professor A.Broks clearly defines that {\textquoteleft}scientific and technical literacy for all and high quality science and technologies education for a coming new generation of specialists is the main task for the corresponding development of general as well as professional modern science and technologies education (Broks, 2007){\textquoteright}. The latter statement can be an argument that teaching science faces problems in the majority of countries. The investigations reveal that in comparison with other subjects, those of science (particularly chemistry) are the most complex and boring ones in comprehensive school. There are plenty of different scientific research on recent science and technology education carried out across Europe. We need to know the diversity and findings of the conducted investigations in order to more carefully coordinate further research. According to Eurobarometer opinion polls, the EU instrument for the analysis of public opinion, in comparison with the older generation, the younger Europeans generally have a positive attitude towards science and technology. However, less and less students are interested in scientific studies and careers. The fundamental question is addressed to stimulating young people interest in science studies and science in particular. We can state, that crucial to any learning is motivation and interest {\textendash} perhaps the most valuable thing a science teacher can do is to demonstrate enthusiasm for learning science (Goodwin, 2006). We are clearly targeted at primary and secondary school learners as well as at those studying in colleges and universities. Obviously, more attention in the field of natural science education should be devoted to the preschool age children on the one hand, and to the adults, on the other. The result to which we are expediently aspiring is development of a real and rather strong interest in science. We must intensify the efforts to make natural science education more effective at all levels of education. Due to a huge amount of specific information, natural sciences are very hard to be properly mastered. Another important argument for improving science education is awareness that scientific knowledge in modern societies is one of the key elements of economic and social success. In this context, modern science education must be accepted as a bridge between scientific research and society. The above mentioned statements are underpinning for our new scientific edition Problems of Education in the 21st Century. In general, European countries have totally different schooling practice and apply a number of specificities in the field of science education. It seems logical to accumulate this experience in order to show links between Western and Eastern traditions in the field of modern science education. Volume 1 Science Education in the Changing Society is dedicated to the problems encountered by science education. We hope that the next volume will cover more topics. I believe that this edition will have a high (theoretical and practical) impact on the development and advancement of public natural science and technological education not only in the region of Central and Eastern Europe but also in a number of other countries worldwide. As we all are full of interesting and useful ideas and experience I{\textquoteright}d like to invite you to share your knowledge on the pages of this new scientific compilation. I am expecting to see all scientists and teachers including those from Eastern European community to be both - readers and writers. }, keywords = {educatedness, science education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392217250.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {42, title = {SOME FEATURES OF INITIAL SCIENCE TEACHER TRAINING IN LITHUANIA}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {2}, year = {2007}, month = {September/2007}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {45-53}, abstract = {After gaining the independence, well-grounded, qualitatively new and intensive changes took place in the education system of Lithuania. The issues of science education became even more burning and though more complex. One of the directives requires solving the problems of science education on the grounds of a general culture rather than separately as the questions should be treated as a part of culture. A teacher of sciences must fully master different training technologies and have a thorough preparation for teaching sciences. Obviously, science pedagogical education undergoes serious changes. The majority of the recent international studies face an alarming situation in the field of science education. A critical situation has been encountered by the ROSE project (Sj{\o}berg, 2004). It is obvious, that preparation of the qualified science teachers is actual and difficult task.� In conclusion, we can maintain that: {\textbullet} After restoring independence, the new teacher training curricula using experience of Western countries and considering national needs were developed. {\textbullet} The teachers of natural sciences mainly have to meet new social, pedagogic and subjective requirements. They are treated not only as providers imparting knowledge and facts but also as those helping the learner with choosing the required information on an individual basis. The changes in society and the process of teaching show that higher schools must take into account these facts while training would-be teachers. {\textbullet} The training curricula of teachers of natural sciences are designed on the basis of the regulations of the field of studies and standards of teacher training and are aimed at training teachers able to teach a few subjects of natural sciences. {\textbullet} The curricula focused on preparing teachers able to teach natural sciences integrated into other subjects taught are designed. {\textbullet} The curricula of natural sciences include education management, an introductory course on Educology, didactics and hodegetics that are involved into the process of competence development; however, it is not enough to gain general competence in pedagogical practice. {\textbullet} The training curricula of teachers of natural sciences encounter a problem pointing to the recession of the parallel teacher training model. In this case, the prospects of professional studies that proceed receiving a bachelor{\textquoteright}s degree are confirmed by the new curricula of professional studies scheduling a general core section of the subjects developing pedagogical competence and didactical subjects of different fields of science that will be applied for the purposes of improving didactical competence of a certain subject.{\textquoteleft} {\textbullet} Lack of specific methodology, examples of good practice and recommendations for solving the problem of integrated education can be noticed in Lithuania. {\textbullet} No detailed systemic recommendations and methodical and organizational tools of how to integrate modern Information Communication Technologies (ICT) into the processes of teaching/learning natural sciences are created. {\textbullet} The teachers of natural sciences are not experienced enough in the field of general competence in modern ICT and suffer from shortage of methodical experience of how to effectively apply ICT in the educational process. The teachers should gain relevant experience in the seminars in methodology, training courses and accepted pedagogical practice at school using the latest Lithuanian versions of natural science training aids based on ICT. }, keywords = {educatedness, science education, teacher training}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392220022.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas} } @article {26, title = {TRAINING FOR CHEMISTRY OF THE STUDENTS OF MEDICAL AND BIOLOGOCAL CLASSES IN PROFILE EDUCATION}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {1}, year = {2007}, month = {August/2007}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {73-79}, abstract = {The problem of training for chemistry of the students of medical and biological class under con-ditions of profile education is raised. The authors propose program educational and methodical complex, which was introduced into educational process at the pre-academic educational center attached to Kuban State Medical University. The authors also proved the need to bring in the compensative approach under conditions of deficient preprofile training.}, keywords = {medical and biological classes, profile education}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392218308.pdf}, author = {Таtyana Litvinova and Margarita Solovyova and Elena Melnikova} } @article {25, title = {THE USAGE OF THE INTERNET IN TEACHING PHYSICS IN LITHUANIA: THE ANALYSIS OF A SITUATION AND PERSPECTIVES}, journal = {Problems of Education in the 21st Century }, volume = {1}, year = {2007}, month = {August/2007}, type = {Original article}, chapter = {63-72}, abstract = {A vision of a modern world can be hardly conveyed without Information and Communication Technology (ICT) recently having a powerful impact on all areas of life. The application of the latest ICT in the educational process raises new possibilities for both a teacher and a learner, enhances the quality of provided education and makes the educational process more adjustable. Effective source of the information nowadays is the Internet. It has to be stated that the Internet possibilities in the teaching process are insufficiently used. On the other hand, in principal there are no reliable studies, which would reveal the actual situation in this field. Therefore, the object of our study is the usage of the Internet for teaching physics. The main aim of the study is to analyse the situation of the usage of the Internet for teaching physics and highlight the hindering/encouraging factors of its usage in the teaching process. The study employed expert inquiry. The type of expert inquiry {\textendash} {\textquotedblleft}Delphi study{\textquotedblright}, containing several experts{\textquoteright} inquiries (stages). Research has shown, that the Internet in teaching physics is not used in due volume. The majority of problems are connected with material (including information) resources (lack of websites, computers, etc.) and the competence (methodical, information, etc.) teachers of physics.}, keywords = {science education, teaching physics}, issn = {1822-7864}, url = {http://oaji.net/articles/2014/457-1392218228.pdf}, author = {Vincentas Lamanauskas and Rytis Vilkonis} }