What is the Role of Teacher Fostering Learners' Beliefs on the Learning Social Studies? : The Case Study of a Teacher and the Former Students at a Junior High School

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  • 子どもたちの社会科学習観形成のために教師は何ができるか : ある中学校教師とその卒業生の事例からの探索的研究
  • コドモ タチ ノ シャカイカ ガクシュウカン ケイセイ ノ タメニ キョウシ ワ ナニガ デキルカ : アル チュウガッコウ キョウシ ト ソノ ソツギョウセイ ノ ジレイ カラノ タンサクテキ ケンキュウ
  • 子どもたちの社会科学習観形成のために教師は何かできるか : ある中学校教師とその卒業生の事例からの探索的研究
  • コドモ タチ ノ シャカイカ ガクシュウカン ケイセイ ノ タメニ キョウシ ワ ナニ カ デキル カ : アル チュウガッコウ キョウシ ト ソノ ソツギョウセイ ノ ジレイ カラ ノ タンサクテキ ケンキュウ

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Abstract

This case study focuses on "Learners' Beliefs" when students learn social studies. Few researchers have examined the "meaning of learning" including beliefs (Evans, 1989, 1990; Murai, 1996; Sanaga, 2012). Thus, we have no clear picture of the relationship between teaching and the process of building learners' beliefs. This article, therefore, addresses three questions: (1) What beliefs about social studies did students develops during a school year? (2) How did teaching affect the students' beliefs? (3) How should teachers implement lessons and curriculum to effectively foster learners' beliefs? Authors analyzed data from the following sources: (a) quantitative analysis of questionnaires administered to students in a class from April to March of the following year (c.f. Minamiura, et al., 2011), (b) qualitative analysis of interviews with the teacher about his teaching, and (c) a group interview with five students after graduation. Findings from the group interview suggest that one element of students' belief formation is the routine activities during which the teacher expressed the meaning of his beliefs on social studies education. A second element is the teacher's restating the purposes of learning social studies. The third is changing school circumstances. From this case, we can infer that to build learners' beliefs effectively, teachers must provide certain elements in the class. First, the teacher focused on his beliefs on the purpose of social studies at not only the unit or lesson level but also the overall importance of social studies' to routine activities or interactions. The teacher structured such lessons at the curriculum level both inductively and deductively. Further, the teacher related social studies to the school reformation as a central concept. It is important to relate the learning of meaning from the subject level to the school level. Results of this case study suggest that social studies research must focus not only on the unit level but also on related curriculum level and practical level issues.

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