The Uses Of The Principles Of Primary School

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

INTERNATIONAL DEGREE PROGRAMME

A. STUDENT/S TO COMPLETE

Module Name:

PROFESSIONAL STUDY

Module Code:

4FHE1052

Student Name:

RAJA NUR NABILA BT RAJA ABDUL HALIM

Student ID Number:

PLLPIP2011/117/KIC

Lecturer Name:

MR. SADASSEEVAN LETCHUMANAN

Tutor Group:

A5 – SAMAD SAID

Assignment No./Name:

The Uses Of The Principles Of Primary School Integrated Curriculum (KBSR) To Enable A Teacher To Develop Children As Learners.

Due Date:

19 APRIL 2013

Date Submitted:

19 APRIL 2013

Word Count:

2990 WORDS

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THE USES OF THE PRINCIPLES OF PRIMARY SCHOOL INTEGRATED CURRICULUM (KBSR) TO ENABLE A TEACHER TO DEVELOP CHILDREN AS LEARNERS

Education system has been standardized in both primary and secondary level whereby a national curriculum is used in all schools. The national language that being used by all the Malaysia’s citizens which is Bahasa Malaysia also being used as the official language of instruction in both primary and secondary school. Primary School Integrated Curriculum (KBSR) was implemented in 305 primary schools throughout the country. Among the most important objectives to be achieved KBSR formation is the first, students can master and appreciate the Bahasa Malaysia as the national language. Those who are weak will be recovery or repeat studies. In addition, it also focuses on the development of the individual as a whole which includes the physical, emotional, spiritual, intellectual and social (JERIS). Therefore, there are 4 principles of KBSR which are Integrated Approach, Holistic Development of the Individual, Life-long Learning and One Education for All.

The first principle of KBSR is Integrated Approach. It is an approach in which knowledge, skills and values are being combined to integrate the physical, emotional, spiritual and intellectual aspects. The integrated concepts occur through four ways which are skills cohesion, infusion, integration of two elements and element-across-the-curriculum. Firstly, skills cohesion is divided into two which are in one subject and between subjects. For the in one subject, for instance, there are four main skills for languages which are speaking, listening, reading and teaching. In a learning session, only two skills are emphasized, for example, listening and speaking; or listening and writing. For the between subjects, for instance, dancing is used for the teaching on Physical Education to make learning becomes more fun and interactive. Secondly, infusion in various knowledge areas and across subjects. For example, teachers used singing method to teach multiplication table in Mathematic to make it easier and interesting for them. Next, infusion moral values in subjects have contributed a lot in development of student’s attitude. For example, teachers emphasize on importance of teamwork and toleration among each other during work on group work. Thirdly, integration of two elements divided into three which are curriculum and co-curriculum, knowledge and practice and previous experiences with new experiences. Lastly, the last way is element across the curriculum, for instance, language across the curriculum, environment across the curriculum, science across the curriculum and thinking skills across the curriculum. Therefore, an integrated approach associated with the interaction between teachers and students in learning.

Next, the second principle of KBSR is Holistic Development of the Individual. An individual cannot simply develop its potential in isolation. The individual needs to relate the potential within by combining other potentials together. For example, when a student learns a new subject such as mathematics, the students will slowly get to know about the subject and from there onwards, the student will develop cognitive skills and thinking skills. The student will be able to think and calculate by using the brain and also writing out the steps to get the solution. This is how holistic development is developed. Furthermore, the student not only need these potentials but requires as well physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual needs in order to fulfill the basic needs of an individual. All subjects play an important role in meeting the needs of physical, emotional, spiritual and intellectual. Potential of individuals cannot be developed in isolation. This means that each potential correlate with other potential.

In addition, the third principle is Life-long Learning. Education viewed as an on-going effort where there are no limits throughout the life. In general the school has two roles, the first of imparting knowledge and skills that build knowledge and skills to face the situation in life. Secondly, cultivate the reading culture of fostering students to seek knowledge and to contribute to the body of knowledge. It requires knowledge and knows the habit of looking for knowledge. Teachers need to cultivate a culture of knowledge and reciting. As we all know, school is the first formal institutions where basic skills and knowledge take place in relation to KBSR for the pupil’s acquisition of necessary skills and knowledge to enable the pupils to face daily life challenges. At the same time, the school must be responsible in nurturing the interest of the pupils in pursuing knowledge and showing the attitude that they love knowledge. For achieving this, teachers play an important role in educating the pupils especially inculcating and nurturing the knowledge and reading cultures in the pupils. As for example, when teachers and pupils in an environment of learning process, teacher must make sure that pupil are engaging with them and able to receive all the input given by the teachers. Rather than that, the teacher should also identify the slow learners so that another way of teaching will be needed to help out the pupils. In order to solve the problem, the teacher must identify whether the pupil is a visual, kinesthetic, or auditory learner by running some tests so that it will be able to sort them out.

The last principle of KBSR is One Education for All. All pupils at the same school level follow the same curriculum regardless of the stream; the only difference is the medium. The pupils will get the same schooling level using the same curriculum regardless of the school type and the difference in medium of instruction. There are three main learning areas in KBSR which are communication, man and his environment, and individual self-development. Besides that, the three areas can be divided into six components namely basic skills, co-curriculum, living skills, spiritually, arts and health, and values and attitudes. These are all the main components that the pupils will learn when they are sent to school. They will develop their knowledge and gain new experiences throughout their learning process. The reason why Malaysia have difference medium of instructions is because Malaysia is a multi-racial country and we have many different races of schools such as Malay, Chinese, and Tamil. All primary schools across Malaysia will have same curriculum and subjects.

The 21st century student is a student who is able to think out of the box and advanced with the development of technology. Thus, with the above principles, we can produce 21st century learners who are critical thinkers, media literate and independence. The first characteristic of 21st century learners is critical thinker. Think critically is a required skill for a 21st century learner as it brings many advantages to learner’s life which it would develop a range of questions to build up the new understanding. Besides that, the learner will also accumulate all the information gathered to differentiate between misconceptions ideas, main and supporting ideas and conflict ideas. At the same time, the learner can enhance self-esteem by being independence in selecting the choices from the diverse information. Furthermore, the learner will demonstrate emotional resilience in information searching to gain a broad perspective. The responsibilities carried by 21st century learners are to follow ethical and legal guidelines in gathering. It is also to contribute the information to the exchange of ideas within the learning community. As a learner, self-assessment strategies are essential in the development of one self. In order to achieve these, we can use the strategies such as analyze the feedback from our teachers or peers to guide own inquiry process and seek for the help from those who are better than us.

The second characteristic of 21st century learner is media literate. It is important in making decision, apply the knowledge that we get to new situations and to form new knowledge. The skills gained are as such by applying critical thinking skills to information and knowledge in order to construct new understandings and create new knowledge. Besides, the learner may use strategies to draw conclusions from information to apply knowledge towards respective areas. Then, the learner can demonstrate by adapting information strategies to each specific resources and at the same time seek for other additional ones when clear conclusions cannot be drawn. For example, today’s world is on our fingertip and everyone knows how to use the technology. They have been exposed to the advance technology like how to surf into the internet since they were young. This shows how intelligent they are and if they face difficulties they will automatically turn to the internet to look for answers. As for this, the learner must carry the responsibility in connecting understanding to the real world and use valid information conclusions to make ethical decisions.

The third characteristic that can build up the 21st century learner is independent. The learner must pursue personal and aesthetic growth to become more matured. They must be independence and not to be dependent on others for guidance. The learner should read, view, and listen for pleasure and not just because for the sake of doing these things. As to improve the personal growth, one must to be open minded to receive and exchange the ideas through academic or personal experiences. The responsibility is to seek opportunities in pursuing personal and aesthetic growth at the same time to practice safe and ethical behavior in personal electronic communication and interaction. Based on these three characteristics, we can produce 21st century learners according to the all four principles of KBSR.

In order to achieve the goals to be 21st century learners according to the principles of KBSR, these must be supported by using appropriate teaching methods and learning theories by teachers. Teachers play a vital role in modeling pupils to become 21st century learners. Teachers become a role model to the pupils in their learning process. A role model is a person who sets good examples by saying and doing the right thing. As children start at a young age, they will tend to imitate behavior of others and apply in it in their daily life. Therefore, the teacher must be ideal by giving a good impression to them so that they will lead an honest upright life. The teacher also must to have a good personality as the external appearance of one-self has a psychological effect upon the students. Through appearance, students will respect and obey the teacher at all times. Besides, teaching can be done in a few learning theories which are Social Learning Theory, Behaviourist Theory and Constructivist Theory. The first learning theory is Social Learning Theory by Albert Bandura. The social learning theory emphasizes that learners, especially children, imitate or copy from what they seeing by imitating and observing others, the mass media and the environment. Learners tend to imitate things that they enjoyed without think the consequences. Learners learned by observing behavior of people around them and the outcomes of those behaviors. Many behaviors can be learned through modeling. As for example, students watch a demonstration by the teacher of the experimental procedure to be carried out. will feel enjoyed during the activities and they tend to put more effort on behaviour and activities that they considered to be successful in achieving.

The second learning theory is Behaviorist Theory. This theory is known by the flow behavior sect that emphasizes learning specific skills in particular physical skills. According to Pavlov (1962), all stimuli evoke responses and learning occurs when there is a relationship between stimulus and response. Learning that occurs because of the association between the two stimuli was named conditioning. Skinner's theory also emphasizes positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement was designed to increase the probability of non-recurrence of a fund behavior to stop. Positive reinforcement is to establish positive behavior with positive feedback. For example, praise for the students who gave the correct answer. Negative reinforcement is given to unpleasant consequences of an individual or unpleasant conclusion, the theory focuses on behavior behaviorists who want to be seen, measured and evaluated. This behavior can be shaped by the environment and the reinforcement given. As for example in Mathematic class, teacher gives questions on addition and subtraction. Teacher engaged with pupils by asking them to solve the questions. When they are able to answer the questions correctly, give them praises and if they are not, pressured them keep asking them the same questions until they can solve it.

The third learning theory that is related to all the principles of KBSR is Constructivist Theory by Ernst von Glasersfeld. According to Glaserfeld (1968), constructivism can be defined as constructing humans’ knowledge and meaning from their learning experiences. Learners build upon their prior knowledge, are active participants in their learning, and through processes of accommodation and assimilation, individuals construct new knowledge from their experiences. He also stated that knowledge is not passively received either through the senses or by way of communication, but it is actively built up by the cognizing subject. The advantages of Constructivism are pupils are the active participants in the learning process and understand how they learn and thereby increase meta-cognitive skills. The teacher is a facilitator and the learners remain active throughout the learning process. Learning is meaningful to students because they are building on what they know. Constructivism has 5 E’s steps which are engage, explore, explain, elaborate and evaluate. For example in Science’s class, teacher asked the pupils to conduct an experiment on evaporation. The first one is Engage. Pupils are engaged in the lesson by asking questions and making predictions. Then, the next step is Explore. Pupils make an illustration of demonstration and discuss with peers how evaporation took place. The third step is Explain. Pupils will explain the process of evaporation in their science notebooks. The forth step is elaborate. For example, pupils will make a list of 5 other places they see evaporation take place in the real world. Lastly, the last step is Evaluate. The teacher will informally assess students by asking questions and checking for a clear explanation of the evaporation process in their science notebooks.

As a good teacher, we must use different learning styles to teach the pupils with different learning styles because the ability of the pupils is not the same. It can be done by determining the dominant learning style by running a simple test to identify the type of the learners. There are 3 learning styles which are Visual, Auditory and Kinesthetic or also known as the VAK learning styles. Learners use all the three modalities to gain new experiences and information. According to the VAK theorists, we need to present information using all three styles. This allows all learners the opportunity to become involved, no matter what their preferred style may be. The first one is visual learners. Visual learning style involves our sense of sight to observe things, for instance, pictures, handouts, diagrams, demonstrations and flashcards. The auditory learning style involves the sense of hearing to receive information, while kinesthetic learning involves physical experience, for instance, touching, doing, feeling, holding and practical hands-on experiences. Teachers must know how to recognize different styles of learners to enable the learning process become smoothly.

Visual learners have two sub-channels which are linguistic and spatial. Learners who are visual-linguistic mostly learned through written language, such as reading and writing tasks because they tend to remember what has been written down, even if they do not read it more than once. For example in a learning session, pupils who are visual learners mostly jot down notes when teacher are teaching in front of the class. Learners who are visual-spatial usually have difficulty with the written language and do better with charts, demonstrations, videos, and other visual materials. They easily visualize faces and places by using their imagination and seldom get lost in new surroundings. The teaching methods for visual learner are give lots of visual directions, give demonstrations, use matching games or flashcards and have them to look for words, letters, pictures in papers and magazine. Moreover, auditory learners often talk to themselves. They also may move their lips and read out loud. They may have difficulty with reading and writing tasks. They often do better talking to a colleague or a tape recorder and hearing what was said. The teaching methods that are suitable for auditory learners are teach him to talk through tasks, allow him to spell out loud, let him say syllables out loud and play lots of rhyming and blending games. While kinesthetic learners do best while touching and moving. It also two sub-channels which are kinesthetic (movement) and tactile (touch). They tend to lose concentration if there is little or no external stimulation or movement. When listening to lectures they may want to take notes for the sake of moving their hands. When reading, they like to scan the material first, and then focus in on the details (get the big picture first). They typically use color high lighters and take notes by drawing pictures, diagrams, or doodling. The teaching methods that are appropriated for auditory learners are use movement exploration, have children clap or tap out numbers, syllables, walk patterns of words and do lot of things with eyes shut 3D letters.

In conclusion, in the book the Cabinet Committee Report (1979), the curriculum is defined as all program operated by a school or an educational institution to achieve its goals. In the context of education in Malaysia, the curriculum is a plan that covers all the knowledge, skills, values ​​and norms, cultural elements and beliefs of Malaysian society. Role in the Malaysian education curriculum is to develop the potential of students intellectually, physically, spiritually and socially in a balanced and comprehensive, building characteristics that can lead towards national unity and produces highly skilled and trained people for the country. Hence, school, parents and society plays an important role to ensure bright future of the country by producing excellent students physically and mentally to develop pupils’ personalities and to participate actively in matters relating to education according to the National Philosophy of Education (NPE). Therefore school and teachers play the important role in applying these values ​​to students to achieve the objectives of NPE and the realization of KBSR to produce 21st century learners.