Browsing by Author "Abdullah, Nor Zaiham Midawati"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    A challenge made easy : contributing factors for successful multigrade teaching in a small school
    (2020-09-01) Shareefa, Mariyam; Moosa, Visal; Zin, Rohani Mat; Abdullah, Nor Zaiham Midawati; Jawawi, Rosmawijah
    The purpose of this case study is to investigate the factors that contributed to the success of multigrade teaching in a small school in Maldives. Data were collected using semistructured one-to-one interviews, observation of classroom teaching, and field notes. The interview was conducted with the principal of the school and four teachers who taught in multigrade classes while classroom teaching of three of the teachers were observed. Content analysis of the data revealed four major factors that contributed to successful multigrade teaching; leadership, professional development, structural support, and parent awareness. These factors could be considered to enable multigrade teaching in schools.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Differentiated instruction : definition and challenging factors perceived by teachers
    (Atlantis Press, 2019-12) Shareefa, Mariyam; Zin, Rohani Hj Awg Mat ; Abdullah, Nor Zaiham Midawati; Jawawi, Rosmawijah
    Differentiated Instruction (DI) is a teaching strategy teachers adopt to attend to student diversity in inclusive classrooms. The aim of this paper is to explore teachers’ definition of DI while identifying the challenges experienced in implementing DI strategies. Data for the study were collected from both mainstream teachers and Special Education Needs (SEN) teachers selected from 30 Maldivian schools in which inclusive education is practiced. A total of 368 mainstream teachers and 32 SEN teachers were surveyed with an open-ended questionnaire, and a semi-structured interview was conducted for 8 teachers purposively selected from survey participants. To analyse the data of both the survey and interviews, the open coding strategy (Rossman & Rallis, 2011) was used. Findings revealed that definition of DI can be explained by associating three major facets:(1) use of different strategies (2) addressing student diversity, and (3) advancement of student learning. Six major categories pertaining to challenges were also identified:(1) time,(2) resources,(3) knowledge,(4) class size,(5) support, and (6) workload. These findings are discussed in depth, and implications for practice are suggested.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Mainstream and special education teachers' implementation of differentiated instruction
    (2019) Shareefa, Mariyam; Jawawi, Rosmawijah; Abdullah, Nor Zaiham Midawati; Matzin, Rohani
    This study examines the difference between mainstream teachers and Special Education Needs (SEN) teachers’ implementation of Differentiated Instruction (DI) in Maldivian schools. A total of 64 teachers (32 mainstream teachers and 32 SEN teachers) were randomly selected, and data were collected using survey (N= 64) and classroom observation (N= 8). Independent sample t-test was adopted to analyse survey data, while mean scores of the rating scale were used to analyse observation checklist. Findings revealed that there is no significant difference between the two groups of teachers’ implementations. Both mainstream teachers and SEN teachers adopt DI at a very low level. Hence, findings suggest that despite the special training, and the importance of DI to SEN students, SEN teachers did not implement DI at any higher level than mainstream teachers. Therefore, a review of training programs conducted for both mainstream teachers and SEN teachers are found necessary.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Teachers’ perceptions on differentiated instruction : do experience, qualification and challenges matter?
    (2019) Shareefa, Mariyam; Moosa, Visal; Zin, Rohani Mat; Abdullah, Nor Zaiham Midawati; Jawawi, Rosmawijah
    This mixed-method study examines data gathered from 101 elementary teachers to investigate their perceptions about Differentiated Instruction (DI) based on qualification and experience. The study also explores the challenges of implementing DI. A survey questionnaire with both Likert-type and open-ended questions was utilised to collect data. The results indicated that teachers had a high perception on DI, while no statistically significant difference in teachers’ perceptions based on their experience and qualification was identified. Additionally, lack of resources, time, support, knowledge, and class size were identified as barriers for DI implementation.