Exploring Values Muslim Teacher Trainees attach to Teaching as a Professional career at the International Islamic University Malaysia

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the underlying values Muslim Teacher Trainees attached to Teaching as a professional Career at the International Islamic University Malaysia. The purpose of this study was three fold; to explore reasons why Muslim teacher trainees chose Teaching as their career, to find out what Muslim teacher trainees understood by Teaching as a profession and to understand the underlying elements of their perceived self-esteem to be effective Muslim teachers. This was a case study that applied a qualitative research approach. It involved two informants who were IIUM undergraduate students, offering Bachelor of Education (Teaching English as a Second Language). The research instrument used was interviewing and the voices of the informants were transcribed and coded into repeating ideas and themes.

From the onset, the Muslim teacher trainees showed great interest in teaching career.

The most salient and overriding finding was that they attached the value of the notion of “change’’ to teaching profession. According to them, teaching career is about affection to interact with the learners in order to help them change their behaviors and attitudes towards learning. They chose teaching career as early as primary level and their teacher role models influenced them greatly. The English language was one of the major factors that influenced their decision. The study discovered that the MTT preferred English language as a subject because they wanted to study it and teach it in high school. In relation to English, the research found that the MTT wanted to correct the misconception of some Muslims that English is a language of non Muslims and therefore, Muslims should never dare study it. In their own perspectives, they defined teaching profession as an act of changing the behavior of students. The study discovered that the values they attached to an effective teacher were that he/she must be patient, a master of content, students’ safe haven, students’ comforter and responsible. They attached the values of a good Muslim teacher as one who should be orderly, and systematic as well as ethical. The study found that the MTT preferred to establish a school of Islamic morals with manageable subjects. It was discovered that the MTT attached the value of the relationship between the teacher and his/her students as that of a surrogate-parent relationship. They characterized a teacher as a parent, friendly, motivating, understating and guiding. The MTT described themselves as teachers with self responsibility and willpower to teach. They perceived their strengths majorly as endurance and the quest to learn something new and their weaknesses as lack of teaching experience, poor time management and inaudibility in a crowded classroom. The findings showed that the MTT anticipated the challenges of handling naughty students and naughty parents whom they said use confrontational means to solve school related problems. They revealed that in some incidences, teachers had been hospitalized because of students’ and parents’ undisciplined code of conduct in some schools. The study revealed that the MTT attached to the teaching career the value of knowledge advancement because a teacher and a student in the teaching learning environment both contribute to knowledge. They believed that teaching profession is the backbone of all academic fields.

The study made some recommendations some of which were; teaching of English Language at the INSTED should put a great more emphasis on the importance and benefits of teaching English as a language. The Academic staff at INSTED should maintain the Islamic code of conduct and observance of Islamic ethics at all times because the teacher is a mentor whose demeanor reflects the students’ future characters. The concept of teaching profession should be expounded further because some undergraduate teacher trainees seem not to understand it properly. The curricular for teacher preparation programmes at the INSTED should not be congested to enable teacher trainees comprehend them better. Islamic values at IIUM should be maintained and emphasized both in letter and spirit. School practice with micro-teaching at the INSTED should be over emphasized as an integral part of teacher preparation programme.

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Instructional Design Models; ASSURE, Dick & Cary and Gagne & Briggs

Similarities and Differences between Instructional Design Models: Comparison between Dick & Cary, ASSURE Model, and Gagne & Briggs.

Definition of Instructional Design Model

Instructional design can be described in many ways. Commonwealth of Learning, Use and Integration of Media in Open and Distance Learning (1999) described it in terms of stages that facilitate learning; 1- Identify the purposes of learning vis-a-vis learning objectives. 2-

 Develop the learning experiences to achieve learning objectives. 3- Evaluate whether the learning experiences effectively achieved its objectives. 4- Improve the learning experiences where necessary.

Briggs et al (1991) summarized instructional design as systematically applying a set of principles to achieve effective, efficient, and relevant instruction. Dick et al (2001) described it as a systematic approach for the design, development, implementation and evaluation of instruction

Below is a brief look at the three models;

The ASSURE Model

This model was developed by Heinich, R, Molenda, M. Russell, J. and Smaldino in 2001. Their six letters -acronym model is ASSURE that is A:  Analyze learners characteristics. S: State objectives. S: Select methods of instruction, media or design materials. U: Utilize media and materials. R: Require learner response. E: Evaluate and revise.

During Analysis, the instructor looks at the learners’ characteristics and entry competencies if any. The objectives Selected include activities and the instructor sets conditions of degree of acceptable performance. In Selection of materials, the instructor chooses the most appropriate methods and materials and where necessary new materials can be designed. In Utilizing the media and the materials the instructor prepares learners and starts instruction. During the ‘Require learner response’ the instructor allows them to practice and then he gives feedback. Finally, in Evaluation, the instructor assesses students learning whether or not there was any effective impact and assesses the instruction if there were any loopholes.

However, Shariffudin (2007) held the view that ASSURES Model phases may not entirely rely on the lecture notes or textbooks. The instructor may, where necessary, out- source relevant materials and technologies before or during the instruction.

 The Dick and Carey Model

This instructional design was developed by Dick & Cary in 1996. The quick noticeable difference between ASSURE Model and Dick & Cary Model is that the former looks simpler whereas the later is rather more complex because of many phases involved.

Together we can save our Environment and by all means

 A call to all Mankind  Saving Environment is the responsibility of all  Mankind from office, industries, at home, as individuals, groups or any form of organization. We are all accountable to Allah, the Perfect Designer of His planet.     Save the environment slides

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Instilling Reading Culture in Children

Instilling reading culture in childrenA child's growth is a process. Parents and teachers play significant functions to influence the child's growth and development. Each child is endowed with particular talents that need to be developed. One of the ways of developing the child's innate talents is to provide him with beneficial and  comprehensive education.By the age of schooling, the parents are obliged to instill the Reading Culture into the child by creating favorable reading environment at home. Such parental function is a formidable foundation upon which teachers at schools build and exploit the prior emerging talents. Eventually, such a child, learns to read on his/her own, the practice of which may turn him/her into a future reputable Researcher and a Self-Propelled Academic.Therefore the following slides have been prepared to demonstrate the need for instilling the Reading Culture;1- School and Home Responsibility.2- Reading Culture starts at home.3-Peer reading time at at home4- Peer reading time at school  5- Home teaching.6- Children's books, Newspapers, Novels, Scriptures eg the Holy Qur'an.7- Online CDs, Online DVDs, Library CDs, Library DVDs, Games, Stories.8- Popular Islamic Lyrics, Poems, Stories, Reading TV News & Sports and Other Academic Materials.9 End 

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Engagement theory Conceptual framework

The Engagement Theory

 

The Engagement theory was developed by Kearsley, G and Shneiderman, B in 1999 in the USA. The principle concept of this theory is that students gain effective learning when they are assigned a meaningful learning activity through peer interaction. The theory shares the same characteristics with constructivist and situated learning theories because they all directly involve students in the learning process through peer interface. The engagement theory enhances students’ cognitive thinking which results into problem-solving, logical reasoning and decision-making.  As result, and with the continued involvement in the peer learning nature, students become intrinsically motivated (Bunker & Vardi 2001).

The theory has three components; Relate, Create and Donate. In the event that students are given a task, the Relate component emphasizes collaborative team work. During the peer interaction, they gain social skills such as good planning, management, communication, patience, tolerance, self-respect and self-discovery. The Create component encourages students to focus their ideas on a single project that has been initiated by them (Barrows & Tamblyn, 1980). They own the idea and vision of the project and feel they should be associated with the successful outcome of it. Here, student’s idea toward the project is highly respected and given due consideration. The Donate component describes the worthwhile expectations of the students with the results of the project. At this point, students feel they should make a contribution to some people outside the classroom, for example a school or mosque or community or their institution. So, they design their project to attract the targeted client by focusing on authentic aspects that are relevant to that group of clients. Such project can be; developing software or creating a movie for learning purposes or a community based problem-solving project (Jacoby et al,1996).

The engagement theory according to its proponents, works well with technology integrated learning where learners are aided by tools like e-mail, telephone conference, use of fax communications and social entertainment sites like facebook and twitter. These tools can enhance learning when students meet difficulties in the learning process, for example during distance education.

The implication of the engagement theory is that with collaboration, sharing of ideas and authentic learning focus, students develop intrinsic motivation created by; individual satisfaction, mastery of knowledge, creativity, enjoying learning with great interest, persistence in learning despite the difficulties involved and individual effort to make a contribution (Alavi (1994).

My research theory

CIPP Evaluation Model

The Model was developed by Daniel L. Stufflebeam, a Professor at the Western University of Michigan, USA. The CIPP is an acronym of four main evaluations; Context, Input, Process and Product. Stufflebeam started the model in 1966 in stages. During this period, the USA was using traditional methods of evaluation like experimental designs, standardized tests and site visits (Potter, 1994 as cited in Burrows, 1995). The CIPP Model was developed to provide government institutions with information that would assist them in decision-making and accountability needs Madaus, Stufflebeam, & Amp; Scriven, 1983).

The first stage that was started in 1966 emphasized process and product evaluations. He introduced aspects of context and input to complete the four acronym model in 1967.

The description of the model is that; Context evaluation  explains goal-setting, Input evaluation  highlights needs assessment, Process evaluation clarifies planning, implementation and suggestions of alternative strategies. In the third stage that was effected in 1971, Stufflebeam introduced  four guiding principles that accompany any form of evaluation;  impact, effectiveness, sustainability and transportability. In 1972, he added the two concepts of evaluation; formative and summative evaluations into  the model which marked the fourth stage. The fifth and the current stage was proposed  in 2002 where he suggested that Product evaluation should reflect the components found in the third stage.

  

This Model works in all academic disciplines; Education, Economics; Engineering, Medicine, Law, and others. The  Stufflebeam’s CIPP model of evaluation is one of the best theories used in evaluating  educational academic programmes effectively and decisively. It focuses on programme improvement with the purpose of making informed decisions towards an educational programme after evaluation. It guides to evaluate the effectiveness of a programme in an institution of learning, be it a school, college or university. The Context evaluation sets the curriculum’s goals and programme’s objective to achieve, the Input evaluation focuses on application of various strategies and methods to help achieve the goals, the Process evaluation focuses on assessment of implementation and the Product evaluation looks at the outcome achievement of the programme. Then, the decision must be made by the stakeholders, whether to proceed or modify or suspend or terminate the programme (Burrows, 1995).

Learning Theories

The are three  popular learning theories that are applied in classroom teaching & learning environment. They are;

1- Constructivism.

2- Behaviorism.

3- Cognitivism.

These theories guide the instructor to impart knowledge and skills to the learner using different instructional means. The following is the brief description of the three learning theories;

1- Behaviorism theory;

The renown proponent of this theory was Edward Thorndike who tested it on animals. It was later developed more by B.F Skinner (Newby et al, 2006) who associated learning with the behavior of the learner under the influence of external environmental factors. The subsequent scholars were the likes of Pavlov and Bloom. In this theory, the learner acquires knowledge and skills from the environment which stimulates his or her behavior in order to respond to the consequences which reinforce the desired behavior.

Technology integrated learning is one of the teaching instructions that can be enhanced by the behaviorist theory.  The instruction becomes effective when the instructor, for instance, introduces a topic or question or task that prompts the learner's immediate response. The learning process of the behaviorist theory helps the learner to get feedback for his or her responses which enhances repeated frequencies as reinforcements.

In order to achieve the intended instructional objectives, the following are some of the instructional materials that can facilitate learning; audio, video, audio-visual, texts, pictures and simulations Roblyer (2003).

The theory suggests that learning is more effective through observation of the learner's behavior, providing motivational incentives to the learner, providing regular feedback and enhancing drill and practice activities.

2- Cognitivism theory

This theory was developed through cognitive development psychology associated with Gardner, H in 1950s and was later described by Jean Piaget in regard to child developmental stages; sensorimotor stage 0-2 years, pre-operational stage of 2-7 years, concrete operations stage of 7-11 years and formal operations stage from 11 years and above (Roblyer, 2003). The advent of this this theory came as a response to the behaviorist theory which focuses only on the learner's behavior influenced by antecedents from the environment to produce stimulus-response behavior the process of which does not consider other aspects of the learner's instincts.The proponents of this theory introduced mental  processing that enhances the learner's abilities that occur internally, within the mind of the learner (Newby et al 2006).

Technology integration in teaching and learning uses the technological advancement of computers to enhance learning using information processing. As behaviorist define learning as change of individual's behavior as influenced from interaction with environment, cognitivists through information processing, define it as change in the acquired knowledge and skills that are stored in the learner's innate memory.The functions of the stored knowledge in the learner's memory are the major focus in the educational integrated learning.The learning functions are based on the learner's ability to master the three most fundamental aspects; attention (receiving the information), encoding (interpreting the concepts in memorable forms) and retrieval (reproducing the acquired information). The role of the instructor here, is to help the learner to achieve abilities through; introducing new information, relate the information to the learner's previous experience and guide him or her to store the information for later retrieval. By the use of computer, the instructor can use say; textual or pictorial visuals, video, audio, tables and charts.

3-Constructivism theory

This theory according to the body of literature, is described as a combination of different learning approaches that include discovery learning and situated learning. Some scholars associate this theory with John Dewey (1987) who linked education with continuous reconstruction of experiences. Dewey's ideas were later developed by other scholars including Vygotsky, Bruner and Pieaget.

In comparison with the behaviorists and cognitivist theories, constructivist theory focuses on the learner's own ability to generate knowledge through the process of reflecting on his or her prior experiences. Therefore, effective learning occurs when the learner interacts with three aspects; learner's prior knowledge of experience, the given task or problem to be solved and the availability of favorable social environment. The theory describes also the concept of collaboration in two ways; the learner interacting with the peers and the role of the instructor to guide the learner (Newby et al 2006).

In the technology integrated learning, the learner gets introduced to technology materials that assist in problem solving. These can include; interaction of the learners from far distance by say use of teleconferencing for academic discussions, electronic massaging, SMS texting, classroom interaction with the help of the instructor, use of internet, creation of projects through hypermedia software and creation of simulations. All this is to encourage the learner to discover his or her own learning.

On the other hand, there are other theories that emerged from constructivist theory; action theory and social constructivism developed by Vygotsky (1978) and  situated learning theory developed by Lave & Wenger (1980s).