ERIC Number: EJ1020179
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013
Pages: 14
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1045-1064
EISSN: N/A
Physical Learning Environment and its Suitability to the Objectives of Technology Education
Soobik, Mart
Journal of Technology Education, v25 n1 p20-33 Fall 2013
The present article focuses on Technology Education teachers' opinions on the physical learning environment of Technology Education. The study compares and analyses the changes in the physical learning environment of Technology Education. Two questionnaire surveys (Study I and Study II) were carried out among teachers of Technology Education in Estonian general education schools. In Study I, which was carried out in 2004, 157 teachers participated (women "N" = 8). In Study II, which was conducted in 2011, 109 teachers participated (women "N" = 6). The statistical data processing software SPSS 18.0 was used to process the survey data; descriptive statistics and t-tests were applied. The questionnaire is based on a survey used by Aki Rasinen, from "In Search of Curriculum Elements for Finnish General Education Schools" (2000), which was translated into Estonian with certain modifications added. The results revealed that the change toward higher satisfaction was the most apparent in the case of several characteristics. The study shows that during the observed period, the physical learning environment of Technology Education improved slightly in Estonia. Modern study aids are increasingly used in schools, including computer-run workbenches and corresponding programs, etc. However, modernising and developing the physical environment of Technology Education should be an ongoing objective, and means should be found to improve the physical environment of Technology Education in order to teach students using modern technology.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Technology Education, Educational Environment, Physical Environment, Teacher Attitudes, National Curriculum, Satisfaction, Learning Activities, Experiential Learning, Comparative Analysis, Teacher Surveys
Journal of Technology Education. Web site: http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JTE
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Estonia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A