Turinys / Contents

COVER

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Cover page, Vol. 7, No. 3, 2015, SPVK/EPMQ

CONTENTS

Abstract

Contents, Vol. 7, No. 3, 2015, SPVK/EPMQ

DIDN’T DO YOUR HOMEWORK? SHAME ON YOU!

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On the 4th of June, 2015 Lithuania was officially invited to start the process of joining the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development – OECD. Together with an invitation, homework tasks were handed. One of those tasks is to improve education quality in comprehensive schools. From the start of the reform, education matters were of little concern to politicians. Therefore, the relationship was not found between education policy formers and those acting in it, though education reform in Lithuania from the very start of independence had an internationally acknowledged conception, which was evaluated by OECD experts as one of the most prominent strategic documents in East and Middle Europe. For a long time, education problems almost exceptionally were solved only by education workers themselves and thanks to the efforts of education office employees. According to people, having acquired secondary and higher education, Lithuania is among the first in Europe, but the low primary and general education results make one doubt about the quality of our country secondary and higher education. Part of pupils, having not acquired general skills, is an indicator of education system, which can be very important, evaluating Lithuanian preparation for joining EBPO. Education, having come into an independent Lithuania life reconstruction, as one of the most matured and ready for changes society life spheres (Juknys, 2008), the question – to improve primary and general school pupils’ learning results, raised at the beginning of the reform, - did not solve.

UNIVERSITY STUDENT PROFESSIONAL CAREER: UNDERSTANDING STRUCTURE

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University study period in a certain sense is a successive step to future career heights. In this respect, it is very important for the students to evaluate the appearing possibilities as early as possible, to purposefully get ready for professional activity after the graduation of university studies. On the other hand, the individual career understanding of every student is likely to be different. Career understanding is constantly changing and this change is conditioned by various factors. Career understanding experiences constant change. Nowadays, career is understood not as resolute climbing of the career ladder. Objectively valued work achievements such as high position, scientific and pedagogic degrees, qualification level showing diplomas, certificates become of little value, if a person does not feel satisfied with his life and activity. Career is considered a phenomenon, for which, first of all, the responsibility must take the individual himself. Today, it is not enough to match the individual to his performed job or profession, to orientate him or direct in one or another known beforehand direction. It is necessary for the individual to know himself, and to take action in constructing his unique career, consciously choosing what is most acceptable, suitable for him. The individual, creating his unique career model, can lay emphasis on and regard as important one or the other factors in his career model and have an individual his career phenomenon understanding. Career understanding can also be conditioned by the social processes going on, their importance perception and possible influence on successful career. The environment investigation helps to look more deeply into labour market, into the spheres or organisations where someone wants to work or employ himself. Evaluating this aspect family influence can also be important, the influence of friends, economic, community influence and so on. Therefore, social context significance evaluation can have influence on a career as a phenomenon perception. Thus, the object of the research is the first course university student career understanding. The aim of the research is to analyse career understanding structure. 265 first course students from three Lithuanian universities participated in the research. 38 statement factorial analysis about career understanding was carried out. In fact, career understanding can be defined by 6 main factors: career as a professional achievement (SI=0.80; SD=0.16, career as personal improvement (SI=0.78; SD=0.16), career as self-realisation (SI=0.76; SD=0.15), career as social relations (SI=0.67; SD=0.22), career as leadership (SI=0.65; SD=0.17) and career as social status (SI=0.60; SD=0.20). Students, studying in social and humanitarian science programmes, usually understand career as professional achievement (experience accumulation, rise, progress, going forward, well-performed work, possibility to become one of the best experts in one’s own sphere). A great number of students understand career as personal improvement (inner potential realisation, individual improvement in successfully chosen activity sphere, lifelong lasting teaching and working path, creative aim satisfaction, professional self-expression, goal attainment and ambition satisfaction). A little smaller part of the students understand career as self-realisation (finding a job, which is pleasant to do, work as a calling, improvement in the direction of a chosen activity). Part of the students understand career as social relations, which are made meaningful by social relation development, man’s cultural and moral maturity, strong bonds with community, nation. A small part of students understand career as leadership (power and responsibility growth, free activity choice, managing the group of people). The smallest part of students emphasize social status in career understanding. For the boys, social activity is more important. Therefore, they more often than girls understand career as personal improvement, as self-realisation, as social relations.

THE IMPLEMENTATION OF COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING (CLT) IN AN EFL CONTEXT: A CASE STUDY OF LEARNERS’ ATTITUDES AND PERCEPTIONS

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This research study investigates the place of communicative language teaching in one of the capital Balkan cities in Sarajevo, in Bosnia by exploring attitudes and perceptions of Bosnian EFL students. A questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data from the target EFL learner groups. The findings of the survey revealed that Bosnian learners have positive views and attitudes toward communicative language teaching. According to Hymes (1972), the goal of language teaching is to improve the communicative competence of learners. That is why, educators should focus on the communication skills of learners rather than their grammar-based knowledge and being able to communicate effectively in the target language is the most important of all skills. However, some external factors, like exam system, high number of students in the classes, can be barriers to implement CLT effectively in different EFL contexts and they force teachers to use traditional methods in language teaching but this presumption is lower or almost unlikely in private education institutions thanks to the amenities. Supporting the view above, the results of survey also reported that EFL learners have favourable beliefs for the use of CLT in their classrooms and they believe that as a foreign language English learning is very important in their country and for their future careers.

AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHN SWELLER

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Emeritus Professor John Sweller is presently a professor of Education at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. After receiving the Bachelor’s degree in 1969 at the University of Adelaide, he completed a PhD degree at the same university in 1972.The name of John Sweller is associated with the cognitive load theory, an instructional theory based on our knowledge of human cognitive architecture. The theory is a contributor to both research and debate on issues associated with human cognition, its links to evolution by natural selection, and the instructional design consequences that follow.

END

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End page, Vol. 7, No. 3, 2015, SPVK/EPMQ