A case study examining the implementation of higher order thinking skills in a Tesl teacher education programme in a public university

This study aimed to examine the implementation of higher order thinking skills (HOTS) in a TESL teacher education programme in a public university. This case study was conducted to determine the HOTS among third-year TESL student-teachers in a public university. HOTS in this study were based on the...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Logeswari Arumugam M. Pillay
Format: thesis
Language:eng
Published: 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ir.upsi.edu.my/detailsg.php?det=6805
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Summary:This study aimed to examine the implementation of higher order thinking skills (HOTS) in a TESL teacher education programme in a public university. This case study was conducted to determine the HOTS among third-year TESL student-teachers in a public university. HOTS in this study were based on the Revised Blooms Taxonomy. Fourteen lessons of the semester 5 TESL programme involving a TESL teacher educator and twenty-seven student-teachers were observed and analysed inductively for emerging issues and categories. Research instruments consisted of an interview protocol and a classroom observation checklist. Interview sessions with the teacher educator and the seven student-teachers were conducted besides classroom observations on the 27 student-teachers for one semester. Qualitative data collected were analysed using the Atlas.ti software. The emerging themes from the interview showed that HOTS were integrated into the classroom via teaching and learning process, resources, and feedbac. Findings also revealed that instructional strategies, questioning and inquiry techniques, graphic organizers and the application of flipped classrooms are crucial to the process of implementing HOTS in a TESL classroom. Observation data showed that the usage of relevant resources, critical discussions, dialogi interactions and constructive feedback were pertinent in nurturing HOTS for the student-teachers. In conclusion, the main findings show that the key attributes that influence the successful implementation of HOTS in the TESL classroom include positive and highly interactive environment, deep inquiry and questioning, impactful learning resources and process, and meaningful feedback. The main implication of the study is that a new set of pedagogical guidelines for TESL teacher education could be designed based on the empirical data of the study.