Problems of Education in the 21st Century

7-23

Authors: Boris Aberšek , Mateja Ploj Virtič

In any technological development, we must always take into account very important set of equations: Better vocational training = more skilled workers = better production = more competitive production = greater employability = reduce unemployment and its effects. The equations clearly show that any technological development requires adequate preparation i.e. education of human resources for this development. Slovenia wishes to base its own development and prosperity mainly on knowledge. Therefore, the change and modification of education system became an imperative. Consequently, the following article deals with the demand: Slovenia has to fulfil in this process of transformation. From the experiences of recent years, it seems clear that the existing education system in Slovenia, as a whole, is perceived as an ailing system that fails to meet the needs of a major portion of the society it serves. Every aspect of the educational process and system must be studied and reconsidered in light of new and different societal expectations. And for these purposes, we would like to use all positive experiences from different systems in the world.

34-43

Authors: Bojan Hvala

Nowadays, we are facing a large number of varied educational projects which aim to direct and modernize mathematics education. Many institutions (from university bodies and institutes to individual secondary and elementary schools, networks of schools and private enterprises) make an appearance on the project market and contribute their ideas. Such quantity can cause confusion among teachers. Encouraged by the article, a mathematician’s lament, by Paul Lockhard, we present some simple principles for classroom work that, in our opinion, would enhance the efficiency of mathematics classes in the long term. Thus we try to help mathematics teachers build a strategy for a fruitful approach to the ideas, recommendations and advertisements on the educational market. Showing the respect towards the quality mathematics teachers and avoiding discouraging and confusing them are some of the leading ideas that we should pursue in our attempt to improve mathematics education. At the end, we also offer some recommendations about the teacher training system.

56-64

Authors: Ivan Gerlič

Last decade’s technological development in the field of information technology has boosted the range of varieties of its use in the distance education and given new dimensions to this type of education. Distance-learning nowadays is practised by several theory’s, each differing from the other in its formal access, in the analyse of its teaching and learning materials, in its ways and range of counselling and the range of its communication with the participants, as well as in its didactic concept of preparing and forming learning materials, etc. Distance education is important criterion for new communication trends in education. Therefore it shall be covered more thoroughly in this work.

70-76

Authors: Amand Papotnik

By planning and selecting the contents of subject technology we must take into account also the contents from environmental education. Combining the different contents are compose from the process of planning, analyzing and/or evaluating achieved result. In the frame of the selected educational strategy (for example Project task) the students must acquire and strengthen the theoretical and practical knowledge, develop skills and working habits. Only if we take into account this, they will be able to transfer this theoretical and practical technological knowledge to solve the ecological problems. This is the teaching and learning in the narrow sense, which we can classified as acquiring new, knowledge, tasks and skills necessary/for solving the problems. Learning in the wide sense means preserving knowledge and recalling it back, the knowledge that is connected with technical, technological, organizational and ecological problems.

84-93

Authors: Mateja Psunder

Different authors stress that traditional culture is still the most common culture in schools. This culture prefers high educational goals, high expectations and productivity. Under such circumstances, there is no room for cooperation and helping each other. On the contrary, these stimulate competitiveness that causes tension between the participants. One of the fundamental aims of today's and future education is also to stimulate cooperation that provides each individual with the strength to come to known him or herself and to behave in accordance with his or her tradition and beliefs, while at the same time staying open to other and different people. This can be achieved only in a culture of good relationships that includes the values of tolerance, solidarity, critical thinking and independence. Research has shown that collaborative culture also has many other benefits over traditional culture reflecting itself in the well-being and effectiveness of teachers and students and also in the development of the institution as a whole. Nowadays, it is impossible to imagine effective schools without cooperation at all school levels. Since school culture is a relatively stable phenomenon, it takes a long time to change and such a change cannot be achieved with external orders. The most important initial step towards changing school culture is that all school staff realise its importance, influence and extent in creating an effective school. This can be a starting point and encouragement to think about the existing school climate, make plans for the future and find ways to change it.

109-115

Authors: Darinka Sikosek

This study is focused on the curricular innovations of methodological subjects for acquiring of teachers competences at undergraduate education where students as prospective chemistry teachers serve as a goal group. The redesign of seminar as an essencial curricular form is based on consistent consideration of topical didactic principles. Research into the optimal performance of seminar work focuses particularly on their organisation, methodology and evaluation. These three model parameters serve to implement student seminar activities in accordance with Bologna teachers competences. Using the descriptive empirical method for students self-evaluation of seminar work defined in methodological subject module of three subjects (Didactics of Chemistry, Experiments and Natural Activities-Mentroship) some eforts in bettering the competence mastery over.

123-134

Authors: Andrej Šorgo, Andreja Špernjak

Interest in Biology among secondary school students in Slovenia is dropping from year to year. 1,046 secondary school students were surveyed about their preferred number of group mates in the laboratory, their attitudes towards and positive and negative views of laboratory work in Biology. From the students’ perspective, the preferred way of teaching biology would be a mixture of interesting lectures and laboratory activities where they would have the opportunity to find solutions to the problems on their own through work in small groups. This is in direct opposition to prevailing teaching practice, where lectures are the dominant way of teaching. To overcome the loss of interest in Biology among students, action is needed immediately. Bridging the gap between students’ perspectives on and opinions about good teaching practice and actual teaching practice should follow three tracks: the first one involves changes to the syllabus in such a way that less is more; the second one requires rewriting of manuals and textbooks, and the third is a change in the teaching practice of individual teachers. If for the first two teachers can find the excuse that this is outside their sphere of competence, there can be no excuse for avoiding immediate changes in teaching techniques.

144-158

Authors: Mateja Ploj Virtič

The operation of a modern university and its competitiveness on the knowledge market are becoming increasingly dependent on the implementation and use of information and communication technology (ICT) in its educational processes. The University of Maribor is entering the process of changes bringing new dimensions to teaching and learning. The present article presents a research that included students/student teachers of technical education at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics of the University of Maribor and the Faculty of Education of the University of Ljubljana and design and technology teachers. This research was conducted with the aim to study four fundamental issues important for the implementation of ICT in the educational process on the entire vertical of technical education. These are the available computer equipment, beliefs of students/student teachers of technical education and design and technology teachers about the circumstances regarding the use of the computer and individual forms of e-learning in the educational process, their experiences with using the computer in the educational process and their opinion about the applicability of portals as social environments. One of our main findings was that the viewpoints of both students/student teachers of technical education and design and technology teachers regarding the use of the computer in class were positive. Both confirmed that in technical education different forms of e-learning were appropriate. A high percentage of teachers who regularly use educational portals indicate a great interest for the online social environment. The final finding that students/student teachers of technical education and design and technology teachers support the use of the computer for educational purposes importantly influenced further activities related to the implementation of e-learning into the study process and the preparation of an educational portal.