Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean

This article examines the conceptual framework of social studies as held by a sample of primary school teachers, as well as their perceptions and classroom practices. A modified Social Studies Perception Scale (SSPS) was employed with a sample of 98 primary school teachers in seven islands of the Eastern Caribbean. Using percentages, means, and t-tests, it was found that: 1) while the majority of the teachers indicated a clear preference for the reflective inquiry approach to the teaching of social studies, their actual classroom practices appear to be at odds with their perceptions of the subject; 2) while younger teachers are initially reflective in their approach and practice, over time they increasingly become didactic knowledge transmitters; and 3) male teachers are far more likely to exhibit a reflective approach and practices than female teachers. The t-tests also revealed some significant differences between male and female teachers, and between younger and older teachers. These findings may have implications both for the selection of social studies teachers and for teacher preparation programmes in the Caribbean

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Griffith, Anthony D.
Format: Article biblioteca
Language:English
Published: School of Education, UWI, St. Augustine 2003
Subjects:Primary school teachers, Social studies, Teaching techniques, Eastern Caribbean,
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/2139/6629
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spelling oai:oai:uwispace.sta.uwi.edu:2139:2139-66292011-03-03T21:39:59Z Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean Griffith, Anthony D. Primary school teachers Social studies Teaching techniques Eastern Caribbean This article examines the conceptual framework of social studies as held by a sample of primary school teachers, as well as their perceptions and classroom practices. A modified Social Studies Perception Scale (SSPS) was employed with a sample of 98 primary school teachers in seven islands of the Eastern Caribbean. Using percentages, means, and t-tests, it was found that: 1) while the majority of the teachers indicated a clear preference for the reflective inquiry approach to the teaching of social studies, their actual classroom practices appear to be at odds with their perceptions of the subject; 2) while younger teachers are initially reflective in their approach and practice, over time they increasingly become didactic knowledge transmitters; and 3) male teachers are far more likely to exhibit a reflective approach and practices than female teachers. The t-tests also revealed some significant differences between male and female teachers, and between younger and older teachers. These findings may have implications both for the selection of social studies teachers and for teacher preparation programmes in the Caribbean 2010-04-15T20:51:20Z 2010-04-15T20:51:20Z 2003 Article Griffith, A. D. (2003). Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean. Caribbean Curriculum, 10, 85-108 1017-5636 http://hdl.handle.net/2139/6629 en application/pdf School of Education, UWI, St. Augustine
institution UWI TT
collection DSpace
country Trinidad y Tobago
countrycode TT
component Bibliográfico
access En linea
databasecode dig-uwi-tt
tag biblioteca
region Caribe
libraryname UWI library system TT
language English
topic Primary school teachers
Social studies
Teaching techniques
Eastern Caribbean
Primary school teachers
Social studies
Teaching techniques
Eastern Caribbean
spellingShingle Primary school teachers
Social studies
Teaching techniques
Eastern Caribbean
Primary school teachers
Social studies
Teaching techniques
Eastern Caribbean
Griffith, Anthony D.
Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean
description This article examines the conceptual framework of social studies as held by a sample of primary school teachers, as well as their perceptions and classroom practices. A modified Social Studies Perception Scale (SSPS) was employed with a sample of 98 primary school teachers in seven islands of the Eastern Caribbean. Using percentages, means, and t-tests, it was found that: 1) while the majority of the teachers indicated a clear preference for the reflective inquiry approach to the teaching of social studies, their actual classroom practices appear to be at odds with their perceptions of the subject; 2) while younger teachers are initially reflective in their approach and practice, over time they increasingly become didactic knowledge transmitters; and 3) male teachers are far more likely to exhibit a reflective approach and practices than female teachers. The t-tests also revealed some significant differences between male and female teachers, and between younger and older teachers. These findings may have implications both for the selection of social studies teachers and for teacher preparation programmes in the Caribbean
format Article
topic_facet Primary school teachers
Social studies
Teaching techniques
Eastern Caribbean
author Griffith, Anthony D.
author_facet Griffith, Anthony D.
author_sort Griffith, Anthony D.
title Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean
title_short Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean
title_full Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean
title_fullStr Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean
title_full_unstemmed Examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the Eastern Caribbean
title_sort examining the conceptual framework, perceptions, and practices of teachers in the eastern caribbean
publisher School of Education, UWI, St. Augustine
publishDate 2003
url http://hdl.handle.net/2139/6629
work_keys_str_mv AT griffithanthonyd examiningtheconceptualframeworkperceptionsandpracticesofteachersintheeasterncaribbean
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