Science Teachers’ Perceptions: Similarities and Differences in the U.S., England,Singapore and Japan     

Toh Kok Aun  Ho Boon Tiong  Wan Yoke Kum  Diana Ang 《Asia Pacific Journal of Education》2004,24(1):1-11

The prospect of using internationally generated comparative data, augmented with practice patterns, to provide useful information from which countries can learn from each other, is gaining acceptance from the increasing popularity of such an approach (Stigler and Hiebert, 1999). Using the survey data from TIMSS we examine the beliefs of teachers in the U.S., England, Singapore and Japan, and find little national variation in many teachers’ perceptions of core practices in science teaching, indicating that science teachers the world over share the same common core practices. However, there is one key difference among their practices, which signals a departure in the way teachers in Japan and Singapore operate vis‐à‐vis those in the U.S. and England. This key difference is attributed to cultural differences in the U.S. and England, when compared to Japan and Singapore.  相似文献   

School Science Achievement in Japan and Singapore: A Tale of Two Cities     

Toh Kok Aun  Joseph P. Riley II  Lourdusamy Atputhasamy  R. Subramaniam 《Educational Research for Policy and Practice》2006,5(1):1-13

This paper compares and contrasts school science achievement between two top scoring nations, Japan and Singapore, on the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) assessments. The first part of the study is devoted to examining cross-national comparisons on selected background questions administered in the TIMSS survey, while the second part examines selected educational attributes and practices that might help explain their consistently high achievement in science. Attention to TIMSS data has chiefly focused on the achievement gap between US and other nations. This report moves beyond US deficit comparisons to examine results and programs of high achieving nations to better inform efforts to close the gaps.  相似文献   

Robust H∞ control of spacecraft rendezvous on elliptical orbit     

Xiangyu Gao  Kok Lay Teo  Guang-Ren Duan 《Journal of The Franklin Institute》2012,349(8):2515-2529

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Middle school students' achievement in laboratory investigations: Explicit versus tacit knowledge     

Kok-Aun Toh  Brian E. Woolnough 《科学教学研究杂志》1993,30(5):445-457

This study examined the relative importance of middle school students' explicit knowledge and tacit knowledge in carrying out open-ended laboratory investigations. The results indicate that the students provided with explicit knowledge through instruction performed significantly better in overall achievement in such investigations than those using only tacit knowledge. However, the performance over the duration of the study (7 weeks) of those students provided with explicit knowledge improved for some integrated process skills, while for other skills, the explicit knowledge gave no significant advantage over those provided with tacit knowledge. These findings have important implications on what teachers should emphasize when teaching open-ended laboratory investigations.  相似文献   

Politics of complexity: Conceptualizing agency,power and powering in the transitional dynamics of complex adaptive systems     

Kristiaan P.W. Kok  Anne M.C. Loeber  John Grin 《Research Policy》2021,50(3):104183

This paper seeks to bridge the gap between socio-material and complex adaptive systems approaches in conceptualizing the politics of transformation. Our contribution in particular is a further clarification of the relational nature of power, and the role of non-humans in transitional dynamics of complex adaptive systems. We explore and operationalize the role of non-humans and relationality in (1) agency and (2) power, and the implications thereof for processes of (3) powering, through which power relations shape resource distributions and associated macro-scale dynamics. We consider agency as an embedded and temporal capacity for reorientation. This also entails attributing agency to entangled networks of humans and non-humans. Such a capacitive conception of agency follows from our understanding that agents and structures consist of comparable ontological building blocks, both being (networks of) components in complex adaptive systems. Power we understand as a productive and relational phenomenon that emerges from interactions between components and that structures their agency. We argue that such a ‘force-field’ understanding of power enables the observation of different types of power relations. Finally, we consider six different mechanisms through which power relations can result in a (re)distribution of resources and with that, contribute to self-reproducing or transformative systemic dynamics. With this conceptualization, we hope to advance the debate on the different facets of the politics of transformation, and to help further urgently needed transitions towards a more sustainable future.  相似文献   

EDUCATING GIFTED PUPILS IN REGULAR SCHOOLS: INTRACLASS DIFFERENTIATION     

W. van Dijk  W. A. M. Kok  G. T. M. Poorthuis 《High Ability Studies》1991,2(1):35-42

After introducing a differentiation model for the benefit of gifted pupils in regular schools, this article discusses some important findings of the research project “High giftedness in education”, carried out at the ISOR, the Educational Research Department at the University of Utrecht. Data from survey research indicate what special provision has been made for gifted pupils in secondary schools in the Netherlands. Further data summarize experiences with the differentiation model at two different types of secondary school. Finally, some adaptations of the differentiation model are outlined.  相似文献   

Scaling up of Continual Professional Development for Mathematics Problem Solving in Singapore Schools     

Leong  Yew Hoong  Toh  Tin Lam  Tay  Eng Guan  Quek  Khiok Seng  Toh  Pee Choon  Jaguthsing  Dindyal 《International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education》2021,19(6):1291-1310

The more ambitious an educational innovation, the greater the challenge in scaling up. In this paper, we focus on the scaling up of an ambitious pedagogical practice—mathematics problem solving as a regular feature in the classroom. We adopt a long-term approach to continual professional development (CPD) that began with intensive work with one school before we broadened the programme to four other schools which span the spectrum of schools in Singapore. To evaluate this overall design, we examine the current state of each school’s capacity in sustaining mathematics problem-solving instruction. In particular, we study and report findings on these areas: the readiness of teachers, the instructional materials and supporting structures. Based on the findings, we reflect on our CPD strategies and our theory of action which guided the CPD programme.

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Online activities of urban Malaysian adolescents: report of a pilot study     

Kok Eng Tan  Melissa Ng Lee Yen Abdullah  Kim Guan Saw 《Literacy》2012,46(1):33-39

The literacy practices of many communities today show new ways of meaning making in the contemporary, technological and digital culture. A number of Malaysian adolescents belong to this culture. This pilot study reports the preliminary findings of a larger study aimed at describing the online activities of Malaysian adolescents. Fifty‐four participants from an urban secondary school in Penang took part in this study. One finding showed that the percentages of language use on the Internet were: 80.6 per cent in English, 10.6 per cent in Bahasa Malaysia and 8.8 per cent in Chinese. In addition, the study also revealed some common websites that these adolescents frequented. The findings point to the need to investigate the extent of these online literacy practices beyond school among the adolescent population in Malaysia and to look into the implications for ESL education.  相似文献   

Science Practicals in Schools: Are We Assessing Correctly?     

Toh Kok Aun  Chia Teck Chee 《Asia Pacific Journal of Education》1987,8(1):76-79

Traditional practical examinations serve the purpose of ensuring that a candidate has some grounding in practical work. Regretably, however, they fall short in the promotion of process skills. A study done at the Institute of Education shows little relationship between tests which highlight these skills and the traditional practical tests. In today's context where emphasis should be placed on process rather than product, the continued dependence on traditional practical examinations does not seem to be in keeping with current curricula changes.  相似文献   

Leading sustainable pedagogical reform with technology for student-centred learning: A complexity perspective     

Yancy Toh 《Journal of Educational Change》2016,17(2):145-169

The literature on school improvement is littered with sombre reports of how ICT-mediated innovations have failed to create impact on teaching and learning. Even when evidence-based successes are palpable, they are sporadic and rarely sustainable. Against the backdrop of the litany of such studies, this paper reports the case of a primary school in Singapore that has a decade-long experience in integrating, growing and sustaining ICT-mediated innovations. By distilling the influences underpinning its integration, the article aims to make a contribution to the theorisation of educational leadership situated in the context of technology-mediated reform for student-centred learning. Using a complexity lens, this paper looks at how school leaders, together with other autonomous actors in its ecological system, foster the favourable conditions for sustainable technology-mediated pedagogical reform. Data of the study are drawn from interviews, observations of lessons, fieldtrips and professional development meetings as well as document analysis. Based on the findings, a complexity-informed model for technology-mediated reform is devised and its implications discussed. They include the need to cultivate the following within and across the subsystems of the school: (a) ecological awareness; (b) collective reflexivity on practices and implementations; (c) creating alignment; and (d) capacity to forge ecological coherence.  相似文献