secondary education

Thai students’ writing in English is a chronic problem documented in the literature of English Language Teaching (ELT) in Thailand. However, little research has been conducted on how Thai teachers and students perceive the importance of English-writing and what difficulties and expectations/suggestions they have in teaching and learning this skill at upper-secondary schools (U-SS). This study, therefore, plans to fill this gap by employing two sets of surveys and semi-structured interviews with 114 teachers and 170 students from 30 different U-SS in the Northeastern part of Thailand and two provincial supervisors of Foreign-Language-Education Divisions (Pro-Sup). Besides their various stated personal and contextual problems in terms of time constraint, insufficient resources and poorly-motivated and mixed-ability students, national test structures and the presence of untrained English teachers, the participants acknowledged the importance of English-writing and expected to have this skill taught at all school levels. These findings suggest that to improve the teaching and learning practices of this skill at U-SS in Thailand and other countries with similar contexts, relevant support and necessary reforms from teachers, school leaders and national-test and policymakers are needed.

The situation generated by the pandemic has caused irreversible changes in society and the educational world, manifesting a necessary change in methodology in the teaching and learning process. The purpose of this study, which is part of a doctoral thesis investigation, was to analyze the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and the digital competences of teachers in the Foreign Language classroom, before and during the state of alarm provoked by the pandemic Covid-19, based on sociodemographic factors. A non-experimental, ex post facto, descriptive study was carried out using a single measuring instrument. The final sample consisted of 117 foreign language teachers from bilingual schools of Primary and Secondary Education in Andalusia (Spain), both public and semi-private. The results indicate that teachers improved their digital skills as a result of the increased frequency of ICT use during the pandemic, and men under 30 years of age felt more motivated to use and incorporate new technologies in their classes. Even so, teachers continue to express the need for greater training opportunities in the use of ICTs for both educators and students, which will pose new challenges in the acquisition and development of digital competencies and from which new needs will emerge.

Purpose: Media literacy plays an important role in teaching and learning curriculum. Therefore, the purpose of the present research was to design and validate the media literacy education model in secondary school. Methodology: This was an applied study in terms of purpose and qualitative in terms of implementation method. The study population for designing the media literacy education model was the specialized council of the thinking and media literacy book department of the country (n=18 people) who were selected by census sampling method. Also, the study population for the validation of the media literacy education model was professors and researchers in the field of communication, Education Department experts and experienced teachers in the field of media literacy, 20 of whom were selected as a sample using the purposeful sampling method. The data collection tool was in-depth interviews in the model design section and calculation the agreement rate in the model validation section. Data analysis was carried out by coding method in MAXQDA ver.10. Findings: The results showed that the model of media literacy education in secondary school consisted of 40 components in 7 categories of media message creation techniques, media unknowns, audience studies, media and lifestyle, media consumption regime, harm of media literacy education and opportunity of media literacy. Also, the model of media literacy education in secondary school had an acceptable validity after calculating content validity ratio (CVR) (0.88) and content validity index (CVI) (0.91) based on the opinion of professors and researchers in the field of communication, Education Department experts and experienced teachers in the field of media literacy. Conclusion: Based on the results of the current research, it seems necessary to plan for the inclusion of media literacy education in secondary school curriculum through the identified components and categories.

Purpose: School revitalization plays an important role in students' academic performance. Therefore, the purpose of the present research was to present an integrated curriculum model in order to revitalize elementary schools. Methodology: The present study was applied in terms of purpose and descriptive survey in terms of methodology. The research population included the professors, experts of the Education Department of Tehran province, and the sample size was determined 289 people using the Cochran formula. Participants were selected using stratified random sampling method according to their job position. The data collection tool included a researcher-made questionnaire of an integrated curriculum aimed at revitalizing elementary schools, whose content validity was confirmed by the opinion of experts and its reliability was obtained 0.83using Cronbach's alpha method. Data analysis was carried out using exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling methods in SPSS and AMOS software. Findings: The results showed that the integrated curriculum model for revitalizing elementary schools consisted of 68 design items, i.e. goal (8 items) content (9 items), content organization (5 items), characteristics of learning activities (5 items), learning activity strategy (5 items), and evaluation (8 items), of which only the factor loading of 40 items was higher than 0.40. Also, the integrated curriculum model for revitalizing elementary schools had a good fit and the integrated curriculum for revitalizing elementary schools had a significant effect on all six components of goal, content, content organization, characteristics of learning activities, strategies of learning activities and evaluation (P<0.05). Conclusion: According to the results of this research, an effective step can be taken to revitalize elementary schools through the items of each of the six components of the integrated curriculum, including the goal, content, content organization, characteristics of learning activities, strategies of learning activities and evaluation.

This paper investigates the intricacies of crafting historical narratives within secondary school textbooks in Afghanistan throughout the past century. Employing critical discourse analysis, the study scrutinizes five compelling examples illuminating the complex interplay between historiography, political ideologies, and artistic subjectivity in shaping students’ conception of national identity. The first case centers on the invention of fictional historical figures like Amir Kror that link Afghan lineage to powerful dynasties, but lack scholarly rigor and threaten social cohesion. Second, the analysis explores identity distortions woven into textbook images that portray figures like Genghis Khan with distinctly Afghan features, blurring historical accuracy. Third, it highlights methodological limitations and potential regional biases that cloud academic debates on the origins of dynasties like the Kartids. Fourth, the construction of demographic averages regarding ethnicity and religion without empirical basis raises concerns about perpetuating damaging stereotypes. Finally, the ubiquitous name “Afghanistan” itself reveals imbalanced emphases on particular eras, shaping modern conceptions of nationhood. Collectively, these five examples underscore the need for responsible scholarship and factual precision in history education to foster authentic engagement with Afghanistan’s rich and diverse heritage. As the curriculum shapes students’ notions of identity and selfhood, commitment to academic accountability and balanced historiography becomes essential to nurturing inclusive discourse and national cohesion.