scholarly journals Middle school students’ conceptual understanding of earthquakes

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 ◽  
pp. 01024
Author(s):  
Döne Toprak-Dereli ◽  
Funda Savaşcı-Açıkalın
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Conceptual Understanding ◽  
Test Scores ◽  
Alternative Conceptions ◽  
Eighth Grade ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
School Students ◽  
Low Level ◽  
Grade Levels

The purpose of the study was to investigate middle school students’ conceptual understandings of earthquakes. Data were collected by using Understanding Earthquakes Test [1] and semi-structured interviews. Participants were a total of 1024 middle school students from the fifth to the eighth grade studying at ten different schools in Istanbul. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirty six students selected based on their test scores for three levels of understanding as high, middle, and low level. Findings of the current study indicated that students have lack conceptual understanding of earthquakes with many alternative conceptions. Students mostly from all grade levels seemed to have more scientific understanding in terms of protecting ways from earthquakes damage rather than explaining what earthquakes are and how earthquakes happen.

Developing Number Sense on the Number Line

2001 ◽  
Vol 6 (8) ◽  
pp. 448-451
Author(s):  
Jennifer M. Bay
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Young Children ◽  
Conceptual Understanding ◽  
Rational Numbers ◽  
Number Line ◽  
School Students ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Learning Mathematics ◽  
And Algebra

One of the most important lessons that I have learned as a teacher is that seemingly boring problems on paper can come alive if I can find a way to lift them off the page. This transformation took place when the number line in my classroom became a brightly colored rope that stretched the length of the room, held by a student at each end. I first saw this idea as an approach to help young children order numbers from 1 to 10, then adapted it for middle school students. The scope of the activity eventually expanded to include explorations of large numbers, rational numbers, and algebra. As I saw improvement in students' conceptual understanding and their enjoyment of the life-sized number line, I used it more often in my classroom. I also found that the activities with the number line involved communication, reasoning, and justification— important processes in learning mathematics (NCTM 1989, 2000).

Take Time for Action: Perimeter or Area? Which Measure Is It?

1999 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-23
Author(s):  
Michaele F. Chappell ◽  
Denisse R. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Conceptual Understanding ◽  
Physical Environment ◽  
Mathematics Curriculum ◽  
School Students ◽  
The Past ◽  
Fundamental Understanding ◽  
K 12

During the past twenty years, documents have recommended that the mathematics curriculum include measurement for all grades, K–12 (NCTM 1980, 1989). Indeed, students interact daily with measurement in their physical environment, for example, by finding the distance from home to school, their height and weight, and wall space for posters. Adolescents bring to the classroom varied conceptions of measurement, which may be in the form of basic applications or general formulas. All too often, a fundamental understanding of these ideas is sacrificed while students learn general formulas. This situation is particularly true for attributes of perimeter and area. To what extent do middle school students possess a conceptual understanding of these measurement concepts?

Class Clowns: A Study of Middle School Students

1978 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 391-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Bowman Damico ◽  
William W Purkey
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Teacher Ratings ◽  
Eighth Grade ◽  
School Students ◽  
Attitude Measures ◽  
School Attitude ◽  
Peer Nominations

From a sample of 3,500 eighth-grade pupils, 96 class clowns were identified by peer nominations on a sociometric form. These pupils were compared to a randomly selected sample of 237 nonclown classmates on the bases of teacher ratings and student self-esteem and school-attitude measures. Clowns were found to be predominantly males. Clowns were seen by their teachers to be higher than nonclowns in Asserting, Unruliness, Attention Seeking, Leadership, and Cheerfulness, and to be lower in Accomplishing. Clowns report lower attitudes toward teacher and principal than do nonclowns and see themselves as leaders and as being vocal in expressing ideas and opinions in front of their classmates.

scholarly journals The Hidden Shadow of Coronavirus on Education in Developing Countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zuheir N Khlaif ◽  
Soheil Salha ◽  
Shahid Fareed ◽  
Hadi Rashed
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Online Classes ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
School Students ◽  
Digital Ethics ◽  
Timely Feedback ◽  
Digital Gap ◽  
Teachers And Parents

The aim of this paper is to investigate the challenges associated with emergency remote teaching in the developing countries of Palestine, Libya, and Afghanistan, as reported by middle-school students, their parents, and teachers. These countries have been struggling with an unstable and violent situation for decades. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 60 participants from the three countries and 60 online classes were observed. Findings revealed that COVID-19 widened the digital gap among students and families, which created challenges in terms of online class attendance. In addition, violation of students’ and parents’ digital privacy emerged as another key challenge to emergency remote teaching. However, teacher presence and timely feedback in synchronous online sessions strengthened students’ engagement within the emergency remote teaching environment. Overall, emergency remote teaching during the COVID-19 crisis deepened inequities across students and infringed upon the digital ethics of students, teachers, and parents.

scholarly journals Preservice Social Studies Teachers’ Views on Middle School Students’ Levels of Historical Literacy

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 158
Author(s):  
Samet Çiçek ◽  
Osman Akhan
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Social Studies ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Social Studies Teachers ◽  
School Students ◽  
Low Level ◽  
Historical Series ◽  
Historical Literacy

This research aimed to present reasons and solutions that soon-to-graduate preservice social studies teachers expressed in relation to middle school students’ low level of historical literacy as reported in the literature. To this end, we used a basic qualitative research design. The sample consisted of 30 soon-to-graduate preservice teachers (17 women and 13 men) who were studying social studies teaching at the faculty of education of a state university in the 2019-2020 academic year and already served their teaching internship. The data were collected using the semi-structured “Interview form” developed by Keçe (2013). The data were analysed using descriptive analysis. According to the analysis results, the preservice social studies teachers stated that middle school students’ low level of historical literacy was generally due to the methods and techniques used by teachers in teaching historical topics, students’ lack of interest in historical topics, and the lack of parental encouragement. The preservice teachers also highlighted that students should be encouraged to use social media tools properly and the content of historical series, films, documentaries, and television shows should be adjusted to students.

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