Problems of Education in the 21st Century

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Authors: Editorial Board

Cover page, PEC, Vol. 79, No. 1, 2021

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Authors: Vincentas Lamanauskas

Writing a scientific article does not end with a description of the summarized results. Conclusions and implications remain a crucial part of the article. The previous papers portrayed the most important aspects of the title, summary (Lamanauskas, 2019a), accurate introduction (Lamanauskas, 2019b) and research methodology (Lamanauskas, 2020a) of the article and discussed the features of the presented results (Lamanauskas, 2020b). Discussion is also accepted as an equally important structural part of the scientific article (particularly in the case of describing an experimental / empirical study). Thus, this section summarizes the results of the conducted study. However, this piece of writing is not intended to provide all possible options for discussion and drawing conclusions due to the fact that the specificity of article preparation varies in each field of science. In addition, it depends on the requirements set by scientific / research journals (or other publications) and publishing policy. Therefore, this editorial more concentrates on the general aspects of preparing the above mentioned parts of the article.

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Authors: Bisera Jevtić, Danijela Milošević

Today, the media represent one of the main factors in the upbringing and education of adolescents due to the growing representation, availability of diverse content and more frequent use. In adolescence, the media have a special significance, because they greatly influence the preferences, attitudes, emotions, behavior, value orientations and the formation of adolescents' identities. Starting from such an attitude, the preferences of upper-secondary school students for monitoring media content and their perceptions of value orientations that are promoted through the media were examined through the aim of the research. The media habits of adolescents and their perceptions of the value system in the media were determined through the survey technique. The study included 433 students from the Republic of Serbia. The results showed that there are significant differences in the preferences of adolescents in the choice of media content in relation to gender and type of school. A positive correlation was found in the monitoring of certain television content and values in the media, as well as in relation to musical affinities and values that are promoted through music videos. The results of research point out potential proposals for improving the media culture of adolescents and reducing the negative effects of the media. It is recognized as a potential solution in the development of media literacy of adolescents, i.e., the affirmation of their critical opinion about the messages and values that are promoted through the media.

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Authors: İlker Kösterelioğlu

This research aimed to present the effect of the activities conducted within the context of the 2023 Education Vision Document on the perceived teacher image by determining teachers’ perceptions in regards to the teacher image existing in today’s society. The qualitative research was conducted with the phenomenology design. The research group was composed of teachers (n=57) who completed a non-thesis master’s degree program in the field of Classroom Teaching at Amasya University, Institute of Social Sciences during 2016-2018 academic years. The research data were obtained from teachers’ written statements provided for the open-ended questions in the question form developed by the researcher. Content analysis method was used in the analysis of the collected data. While the participating teachers generally emphasized the sanctity of the teaching profession in their answers, they also stated that the perceived image of the teaching profession in today’s society was basically negative. The variables affecting the perception of the teaching profession in society were classified under the following themes: sociological changes, local practices, employee rights, policy makers, media, parents, students, teachers, teacher training and qualification of prospective teachers. Teachers’ suggestions to contribute to the image of the teaching profession were gathered under the themes of teacher motivation, teacher training, employee rights, media, innovative practices and training support for teachers. In the context of the obtained data, it can be argued that some of the actions have been put forward so far in regards to 2023 Education Vision Document, and the practices expected to be implemented in the near future will positively contribute to the perceived image of the teaching profession in society.

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Authors: Robert Kananga Mukuna, Peter J. O. Aloka

The phenomenon of teenage motherhood is a major concern worldwide. The teenage mothers endure many challenges that could affect their academic goals and successes if there is insufficient support. However, some teenage mothers manage to develop certain forms of flexibility to manage these adversities. This study explored the teenage mothers' resiliency in overcoming adversities in pregnancy and early motherhood at a rural high school in South Africa. Within the Interpretative Phenomenological qualitative paradigm, an exploratory case study research design was adopted. 10 participants (N=10) were selected from a rural high school district using a purposive sampling technique. The study employed semi-structured interviews to collect data. The findings demonstrated that teenage mothers were resilient to continuing and completing their schooling by adopting self-motivation and school and family support. This study suggested that the South African Department of Education should develop a training programme for teenage mothers on psychosocial adjustment mechanisms to help them cope with their situations.

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Authors: Vesna Svalina, Blaženka Bačlija Sušić, Goran Lapat

Primary school teachers have an important role in the early identification and further development of a child's musical giftedness. The research was aimed to examine the opinions of primary school classroom teachers (N = 1130) employed in Croatian primary schools regarding conceptualization of musical giftedness and its impact on identification of musically gifted students. Furthermore, their opinions about the support of parents, professional team and collective as well as competencies for recognizing and further development of the child’s musical giftedness were investigated. Although most respondents assess their competencies in identifying musical giftedness, most of the surveyed teachers, especially younger ones, are willing to be additionally trained in this area. They stated that the existing curriculum should be expanded and enriched and stressed the need for more support from the expert assistants (psychologists and pedagogues). In addition to the teachers' age, their title (teacher, teacher mentor and teacher advisor) also proved to be a significant factor in the identification and development of a child's musical giftedness. Findings of research have implications for theory and practice of primary school teacher’s music education and education for work with gifted children both during their higher education and lifelong learning.

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Authors: Editorial Board

End page, Vol. 79, No. 1, 2021