How do teaching quality and pedagogical practice enhance vocational student engagement? A mixed-method classroom observation approach

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate vocational teaching behaviours in facilitating pedagogical practice concerning students' classroom engagement.Design/methodology/approachA mixed-method approach with quantitative classroom observations and qualitative field notes was conducted at two higher vocational institutions in Guangdong province, south of China. Sixty lesson observations were rated combining with supplementary field notes from 20 teacher participants analysed through a comparative coding process.FindingsMeans of dimensions of teaching behaviours and student engagement were calculated based on taking the averages of the means of items theoretically associated with each dimension. Through thematic analysis of observational notes, vocational instructions and students' engagement in vocational learning environment were more diversified in terms of vocational teaching practice, which manifested that vocational teaching behaviours focused more on adjusting students' practical learning.Research limitationsThe limitation is shown that the quantitative sample is small, yet affords greater depth of data for further discussion.Originality/valueThis study develops its setting and orientation by applying the classroom observation instrument into the Chinese high vocational context and offers more in-depth insights and exploration of the characteristics of teaching practice in vocational classrooms.

I Want to Teach Sustainable Development in My English Classroom: A Case Study of Incorporating Sustainable Development Goals in English Teaching

“…During the classroom observation, the researcher took the advice from scholars [53,76] to adopt both a wide and narrow perspectives to examine how the English teachers' teaching goals were attained. While adopting a wide perspective, the researcher focussed on the overall situation, whereby the lesson design, teaching quality, the richness of teaching contents, student engagement in activities, teacher-student relationship and the relationship between the teacher and student behaviours alongside the physical environment were scrutinised [76][77][78]. While adopting a narrow perspective, the researcher focussed on a single person or activity.…”

“…For instance, while the researcher was focussing on the teachers, their enthusiasm for engaging their students in meaningful activities, clarity in delivery and body gestures were carefully watched. While focussing on students, the researcher paid attention to whether they understood the relevant concepts, acquired the relevant skills such as reading, speaking, critical thinking, expressed their thoughts clearly in an organised manner and reflected their learning [76][77][78]. Field notes were taken during the classroom observations, whereby the researcher noted down the physical maps of the settings, keywords of the teacherstudent and student-student conversations and other relevant background information to describe the behaviours of teachers and students during the classroom observations so as to gain additional evidence of students' responses and their learning outcomes [68,75,76].…”

The impact of perceived value on engagement: the role of teacher behavior

“…The study provides nascent theoretical insights to the limited research on perceived value for AE in higher education online learning context. Higher education policymakers are better informed of the proactive steps to increase any possible positive effects of perceived value (Zhao and Ko, 2020). Still, since TB did not fully mediate the perceived value–engagement association as underpinned by the social motivational theory, it can be inferred that the anticipated relatedness is not facilitated yet fully by teachers and so a long-term observation of the model variables is necessary.…”

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“…It is not surprising that students who have had negative past experiences with education appreciate and rely on a structured academic experience to fully engage with their learning (Hellmundt & Baker, 2017). Furthermore, previous research indicated that clear instructions are strongly related to increased student engagement (Ko et al, 2017;Maulana & Helms-Lorenz, 2017;Zhao & Ko, 2020). This was consistent with the findings of this study, as all participants reported that the well-organized structure of their program was a necessary aspect in their reintroduction to an education setting.…”