Student Agency Development inside the Japanese Gray Zone (original) (raw)
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International Journal of Research in Engineering and Technology
This research is a practical study on assessment for learning that encourages independence of students in Japanese high schools implementing a biological science curriculum practices focusing in biodiversity. In order for a student to be a proactive learner, it is necessary to improve the students' self-regulation abilities. First, design classes based on the three feedback questions have practiced in the instructional process: "Where are we going?" "Where are we?" and "How will we get there?" [1]. Tablet devices were used as formative assessment tools for learning activities. This made it possible to provide students with short-term feedback from learning activities, and to observe evidence of a link with the improvement of the capacities for activeness, collaboration, and self-regulation. Furthermore, It is also effective for teachers from the aggregate results collected from the tablet devices, the learning needs of the class as a whole as well as those of individual students and groups were visualized, and it became possible to plot the integration of instruction and assessment. Finally, It has attempted to visualize the Formative assessment by teachers and students on the learning process through a unit. To achieve this, the Developing and Evaluating Measures of Formative Assessment Practices (DEMFAP) framework was adopted [2]. By visualizing formative assessment, teacher's guidance on teaching and student's learning was improved qualitatively. According to the post-research questionnaire, it seems clear that many students have improved the competency in the form of independence and cooperativeness. This paper discusses the detailed outcomes of this research.
Using Classroom Assessment to Improve Pedagogy - the Japanese Experience
Education and New Developments 2019, 2019
Educational practice itself is in a state of great transition as many nations seek to adapt teaching and Learning activities in an effort to revitalize students' motivation and performance. One such measure, termed 'formative assessment', is a classroom assessment practice that is becoming the heart of the educational framework. This practice promotes continuous learning and assessment dialogue among students and their teachers, creating and sustaining their collective learning identity as respectful and successful group members. Research 'knows' that social engagement has profound psychological effects. It is, therefore, of particular interest to discuss how the interactive instructional methods that characterize 'formative assessment' interplay with the high level of collective action required of Japanese people. This is given a rich socio-cultural context by chaotic aftermath of the catastrophic 9.1 earthquake, named for its magnitude as the Great East...
Human agency and educational research: A new problem in activity theory
Actio: An International Journal of Human Activity Theory, No. 1, 19-39, 2007
In this paper, I address the reconceptualization of human agency that can shift to an analysis of both distributed and multiple agency in networked learning activities. As human activity becomes increasingly dialogical, boundary-crossing, networked, hybrid, and weekly bounded forms of work and organizations, the new generation of activity theory invites us to focus educational research efforts on the evocative and supportive new forms of agency to design and implement new patterns and forms of collaborative relationships of multiple activity systems. After a conceptual overview, this paper will analyze findings from a case study on an inter-institutional, collaborative after-school learning activity for children called New School promoted by the Center for Human Activity Theory at Kansai University in Osaka. In conclusion, this paper will propose that evoking and supporting new distributed and multiple forms of critical design agency for networked educational work and organizations among different actors involved in and affected by educational practices must offer a lifeline to educational research as an intervention to break away from something old (e.g., institutional boundaries of traditional school learning isolated from society) and move toward something else (e.g., advanced networks of learning across boundaries). Such agency might include the will and courage to create school innovations so that schools can become collaborative change agents.
Constructing student agency: The nexus between classroom activities and engagement
International journal of education and practice, 2024
Student agency refers to the quality of students' self-reflective and intentional actions and interactions concerning their activities and engagements both inside and outside the classroom. The engagements and activities help to increase the level of personal agency. This study mainly aims to determine the nexus between constructing student agency and engagements and activities in higher education English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms. This study adopted a sequential explanatory mixed method design. To collect quantitative data, a survey was conducted with a set of fivepoint Likert scale questionnaires among 107 students studying at bachelor's level in Dhading district, Nepal. The students represent different years of the bachelor's level. Semi-structured interviews were conducted among three teachers teaching at the same level to collect qualitative data. The findings of the study hold important insights for higher education teachers, emphasizing the significance of incorporating agency into classroom activities and fostering engagement. Additionally, this study contributes to the development of agency when students have opportunities to be selective in actions, engagements and interactions in classrooms. To effectively address this issue, the researcher strongly advocates highlighting the importance of classroom engagement and activities as essential components in enhancing student agency in EFL classrooms and beyond. Contribution/Originality: The article's focus contributes to the field of higher education by providing a succinct insight into fostering student agency through involving students in intentional actions and interactions with engagements within and beyond the classroom. 1. INTRODUCTION Recognizing student agency is vital as it enables students to have command over their learning, promoting autonomy, meaningful engagement, and improved educational achievements (Heilala, Jääskelä, Saarela, & Kärkkäinen, 2024). In the present context, the ongoing progress in educational methods has prompted shifts in the responsibilities of teachers to foster agency in the classroom. Multiple factors contribute to shaping agency within the learning environment. The practical implementation of agency involves collaboration between students and teachers, comprising activities both within the classroom and in broader social contexts. Thus, agency is not separated from action, rather it is co-constructed with the teachers and the peers (Lave & Wenger, 1991) in classroom and societal contexts. Additionally, teachers need to engage students in differe nt agency-boosting activities and engagements.
There can be no doubt that education in the 21st-century is a dynamic and stimulating area. Students and teachers are now engaging in dialogues of unprecedented complexity in response to changing times, changing needs, changing social groupings and no nation is exempt, including Japan. The 21st-century global economy is a ‘knowledge economy’ driven by knowledge and skills that contribute to an accelerated pace of technical and scientific advance, as well as rapid obsolescence. Educational practice itself is therefore in a state of high transition as many nations have placed a classroom assessment practice known as ‘formative assessment’ at the heart of their policy framework. The essential ingredient of formative assessment may be summarized as continuous learning and assessment dialogue between students and their teachers, and with their peers as partners in a learning community. The purpose of this article is to investigate how formative assessments ‘play out’ around the world, and locate Japanese perspectives on classroom learning and assessment in an international context. The purpose of this article is to investigate how classroom assessments are embedded into the instructional process around the world, and locate Japanese perspectives on classroom learning and assessment in an international context. In doing so the paper discusses the issues which impact the development of a “Japanese Assessment for Learning Network” (JAfLN); a non-profit organisation that connects people across Japan who are interested in the use of assessment for learning and the development of related policies and research in education.
Blended Language Learning: Evidence-Based Trends and Applications [eBook], 2021
One of the major challenges in the field of teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in high schools in Japan is that English classrooms tend to lack learning activities to develop higher-order thinking due to the test-oriented practices. The purpose of this action research was to explore an extracurricular blended language learning (BLL) program that was created as an intervention to develop the higher-order thinking of EFL learners at a public high school in Japan, drawing on the construct of mediation from sociocultural theory (SCT) and using the Interaction Analysis Model (IAM) for the transcript analysis. In this BLL program, the participants engaged in online synchronous and asynchronous activities with English as a medium of instruction and communication while being supported by face-to-face sessions conducted in Japanese. The focus of this study was on the asynchronous forums. Data were collected through three methods: asynchronous forums to obtain written texts from participants, pre-and post-surveys, and the researchers’ observations. The results show that participants found collaborative constructivist learning meaningful and exhibited higher-order thinking development to varying degrees. However, there are some implications that learner-learner interaction was not sufficiently activated. In the conclusion section, this research presents suggestions for educators and policymakers to make use of affordances that both the online and face-to-face components in BLL systems provide to support K-12 students in developing higher-order thinking through constructivist learning.
2015
There is no doubt that education in the 21 st-century is a dynamic and stimulating area. Students and teachers are now engaging in dialogues of unprecedented complexity in response to changing times, needs, and social groupings, and no nation is exempt from this process. The 21 st century global economy is knowledge-based, as it is driven by information and skills that contribute to an accelerated pace of technical and scientific advancements, as well as rapid obsolescence. Educational practice itself is therefore in a state of great transition as many nations are modifying their teaching and learning activities in an effort to promote performance. One such measure, termed formative assessment, is a classroom assessment practice that is becoming the heart of the educational framework. This practice promotes continuous learning and assessment dialogue between students and their teachers, along with their peers in a learning community. article explores how classroom assessments are embedded into the instructional process around the world and details Japanese perspectives on classroom learning and assessment in an international context. In doing so, the impact of the development of the Japanese Assessment for Learning Network (JAfLN) is discussed. The JAfLN would become a non-profit organization that connects Japanese people who are interested in the use of assessment for learning and the development of related policies and research in education.