Innovative Practices in D.El.Ed Student Teachers with Reference to Learning Outcomes of Social Science: A Way to Improving the Questioning Skill

Abstract

Constructivist class rooms are structured in such a way that learners get deeply involved in learning experiences, meaning making actions, imagination, hypothesising, and drawing inference. The teacher needs to recognise how pupils use their own experiences, prior knowledge and perception. So far as some topics like; ‘‘Our Environment, Atmosphere’’etc. were selected for classroom transaction and student teachers were involved in preparing questions. According to the constructivist approach, the student teachers were able to prepare questions in groups and individually on the social science topics. In order to conduct a study on developing the questioning skills on social science in class VII, the researcher formulated the following objectives. These are; (a) to examine the present status of the student teachers in preparing the questions on the social science topics, (b) To develop the competencies of questioning skill through strategic intervention with reference to LOs of Social science. (c) To evaluate the competency of student teachers in preparing variety of questions after orientation. (d) to assess the achievement of students in social science. The tools like pre-test and post- test questions and model question papers were prepared by the researcher and administered for the collection of data. The sample was purposively selected and consisted of 50 numbers of student teachers of Govt. ETEI, Bagudi, Balasore for the study. After two weeks of intervention a post test was conducted and it was found that only 65% student teachers could make high order questions, which was only 30% in the beginning. 80% of the student teachers could prepare worksheet based on the social science concepts. All together so many questions like probing questions, exploratory questions, thought answer type questions, multiple choice questions, one-word answer type questions were developed during the workshop. They were of high order and low order. This strategy is useful for the slow learner and the high achievers. Other schools can also use these strategies.

Keywords: questioning skill, intervention, constructivist pedagogy, student teachers

DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/12-23-04

Publication date: December 31^st 2022