20th Anniversary Eurocampus 50 Years Franco-German Cooperation

Successful Educational Similarities in our Cultural Diversity:

a community student exchange action focusing on the Philippine K-12 educational

initiative 

(a presentation of schools by students)

Why this? Why now? K-12

Best educational practices (what works)

Solution focused approach (questioning)

Community schools (local vs private/international)

Interaction and contact between and within schools

Vision Networking with schools in our community

Closer pedagogical work with local schools (supporting those schools with German language electives ie PNHS)

Supporting schools that are supported by our greater European Community (DAAD partners)

Exposing students to different venues of education

Creating global solidarity by discovering common successes

Looking at national education through a German/French cultural lense

AbstractAs the Republic of the Philippines begins the mammoth task of moving to a K-12 educational set-up, an exchange of information and experiences between international and local community schools became practical. With overall goals of discovering best educational practices in each school, following the solution-focused questioning approach, the possibility of building on each others successes with the advantage of our various cultural perspectives (French-German-Filipino) produced a richness of data not often seen. With 42 student and teacher researchers from three local and two private international schools in Parañaque, Metro Manila, gathering data through observation and interviews, discovered themes ranged from the concrete (“modernized facilities”) to the abstract and fanciful (“metro-cozy”). Twenty best educational practices, spread throughout the five schools summarized this wealth of information such as: differentiation, facility and technological accommodation, school pride, flexibility, and global perspective. Conclusions include the effectiveness of the solutions focused questioning approach in addressing educational practices, as well as the practicality of mutual educational support between local and international schools. Implications for the K-12 initiative as well as for EIS’s own school development goals are yet to be explored. More advanced qualitative analysis is necessary for further recommendations and conclusions.

School Prep and Interaction

Week 1 EFM/GESM Visits Local Schools  

November 6 Orientation of Students to Methodology and Expectations of the Study (EIS)

November 13 Meet and Greet at PNHS

November 19 Orientation of Students to Methodology and Expectations of the Study (Local)

November 20 SunValley 8-2:30 pm

November 21 Moonwalk 8-2:30pm

November 22 PNHS 8-2:30pm

Week 2 Local Schools Visit EFM/GESM  

November 27 Moonwalk: EFM/GESM

November 28 SunValley: EFM/GESM

November 29 PNHS: EFM/GESM

  case to case follow-up dates TBA)

December 6 Preliminary Results Due Date

January 14, 2013 Final Results Due Date

March 7, 2013 Presentation of Results Date

Table 1. Due Dates and Visitation Schedules

Instrument and Data Collection

Best

Educational

Practices

(Lombardi et al, 2003)

Target Method

Facilities Guided Tour of Campus/PO

Classroom Participant Observation

Methodology Participant Observation

Homework Focus Group

Extracurricular (MAPE. TLE, VE) Guided tour/Participant Observation

Student government Interview with Student Council

Administration Expert Interview

Curriculum Interview (Faculty)

Discipline Interview (Students, Faculty)

Faculty Interview

Culture (nationalism?) Interview

Religion Interview

School Culture Interview

K-12 Initiative Interview

Table 2. Best Educational Practices Matrix

…instrument and data collection

Participant Observation (DESCRIBE)

Semi-Structured Interview

Facilities: Describe what you have observed on the school tour: Rate each on a scale of 1-5, and make comments on your rating:Cleanliness (general)Space: Upkeep:

Interview:What is working well? On a scale of 1-10, where would you rate this? What makes it a _______?What could you do to make it one point better?

Classroom 1______

Interview:What is working well? On a scale of 1-10, where would you rate this? What makes it a _______?What could you do to make it one point better?

Methodology 1Describe what you have observed: Rate each on a scale of 1-5, and make comments on your rating:Technology:

Interview:What is working well? On a scale of 1-10, where would you rate this? What makes it a _______?What could you do to make it one point better?

Homework 1: Describe your homework. Rate on a scale of 1-5, and make comments.

Overall:What is working well? On a scale of 1-10, where would you rate this? What makes it a _______?

What could you do to make it one point better?Extracurricular (MAPE. TLE, VE) Interview:

What is working well? On a scale of 1-10, where would you rate this? What makes it a _______?What could you do to make it one point better?

Student government Interview:What is working well? On a scale of 1-10, where would you rate this? What makes it a _______?What could you do to make it one point better?

Table 3. Sample from Instrument

Data Analysis

•  Data is tabulated by each group. All responses are entered into a group spreadsheet. Each school group reviews their data and identifies common themes. These common themes are then looked at across schools, narrowing down to the top 20 similar best educational practices in our community.

ResultsFree to feel space Modernized facilities Non-academic

activeness Beautification and Sanitation

Good learning climate Study habits

Healthy environment Good accommodation for students

Striving

Advantages for learning Project Focused School Pride

Learning adjustments Study tools Socio-Emotional Support

Effective teaching strategy

Cooperative learning School Governance (Administration Participation of teachers)

Medium of instruction Visual learning Learning at home

Manageable class size Culture of discipline Child-friendly organization

Hands-on learning Open mindedness Academic Competitions

Study area World of technology Oral Presentations

Class interaction Modernized way of teaching

“Metro-Cozy”

Coping Strategies Orderliness Flexibility

Learning adaptation Independence Facility convenience

Beneficial reviewers Physical Enhancement Sporty learning

Constructive tasks Multi-tasking activities  

Outdoor learning Homework orientation  

Table 4. Best Educational Practices in Community Schools

…results

EIS Local Small Class size Discipline

Modern Facilities and Technology Culture of Success through Academic Competitions 

Differentiation Religious and Cultural Presence

Home-like Community Educational Outreach

Exchange of Ideas Dedicated Faculty

Approachable Friendly

Respect and Tolerance of Differences School Pride

Global Perspective Global Perspective 

Socio-Emotional Support Project-Focused

Flexibility School Governance (School Administration)

Table 5: Top 20 Best Educational Practices According to Public/International Private Schools

…results

On the side of the private international school (EIS), it has served the value-added outcomes of:

networking with schools in our community

exposing students to different venues of education

giving feedback on national education through a Franco-German cultural lense.

Global solidarity continues to be felt as we continue to discover our common successes.

Conclusion• we got what we wanted!

(cooperative educational research study explored best educational practices present in a culturally diverse setting

• we supported Lombardi et al (2003) by discovering and describing the best educational practices currently being used in all five schools, it is clear that the recognition and continuation of these can go far in supporting the K-12 transition presently facing the Philippines.

• Focusing on the positives can work! (solution focused questioning)

Selected References:  Corcoran, J., & Stephenson, M. (2000). The effectiveness of solution-

focused therapy with child behavior problems: A preliminary report. Families in Society, 81(5), 468-475Cruz, I. (2010, September 30) K +12 Part 1. Philippine Star. Retrieved

from http://www.isaganicruz.net/page8.php?post=29)Lincoln, YS. & Guba, EG. (1985). Naturalistic Inquiry. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.Lombardi, Judy; David Kretschmer,; Nancy Burstein,. "Moving toward

collaborative practices in education."Academic Exchange Quarterly. Rapid Intellect Group, Inc. 2003. Retrieved March 06, 2013 from HighBeam Researchhttp://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-114168086.html 

20th Anniversary Eurocampus 50 Years Franco-German Cooperation

Successful Educational Similarities in our Cultural Diversity:

a community student exchange action focusing on the Philippine K-12 educational initiative

 (a presentation of schools by students)