Models Of Educational Routes In Elementary School For Migrants’ Children

Abstract

The actuality of this research is determined by the fact of increased migration to the Russian territory and beyond its borders. Nowadays, in pedagogics the issues of effectiveness in teaching migrant children became very important. Demands of society initiate making of such educational model that would support the development of every person to the maximum of his/her intellectual and psychological potential. In modern Russian elementary school, in general, there are used educational technologies intended for children who belong to single cultural environment. Since this point there are needed adaptive technologies in teaching migrant children. This problem determines elaboration and realization of special education routes in elementary school for effective teaching of migrant children. Purpose of research: elaboration of educational routes in elementary school for migrant children. Teachers and learners of Kazan schools (Tatarstan, Russia) participated in this research. The materials of this study can be useful for elementary school teachers and migrant parents of elementary school children.

Keywords: Migrant childrenelementary schoolindividual educational routes

Introduction

Massive arrival of migrants to Russia from neighboring countries of former USSR republics made a noticeable impact on the population census in 2010. The most numerous nationalities are Ukrainians, Armenians, Kazakhs, Azerbaijanis, Belarusians, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Georgians, Moldovans, Kirghiz. The increase of migration processes in territory of Russian Federation demands bringing in of changes into work of educational institutions. Children from African countries are very few in Russian schools, but natives from former republics of USSR can be seen almost in every class. In connection to this there arose a necessity for the development of special pedagogy that would help teach migrant children through creating educational materials, innovative and practical technologies necessary for pedagogical support of migrant pupils.

According to Federal act “On education” of the Russian Federation, the education system has to provide: “…self-determination of individual, make conditions for one’s realization, help to form human qualities and form citizens who are integrated into the modern society and oriented towards the development of this society”. Also the article 50, paragraph 1 of this act talks about the individualization of education: “…learners of all education institutions have right to get education in accordance with state educational standards, to learn within limits of these standards in compliance with individual educational plans, …teaching of citizens in compliance with individual teaching plans is regulated by charter of education institute”

Humanization, differentiation and democratization, at the modern stage, made school system more flexible, variative and open. So, there arose necessity to make individual education route for migrants’ children. On the base of operatively regulated self-evaluation and active strive; to develop one’s own knowledge and skills, this education route helps every child to enrich knowledge when projecting one’s own learning activity with the purpose to work out methods and techniques of independent work in various forms of learning-cognitive activity. Also, from teachers, there is needed diagnostics/correction made on the base of analyzing the educational product of migrant child. Meanwhile it is very important, so that every migrant child would have one’s own personally oriented purpose on projecting individual education route that would encourage one’s personal educational growth.

In pedagogics, orientation on personality is not new and it has different denominations: personally oriented teaching (Yakimanskaya, 1985), pedagogy of collaboration (Soloveychik,1987), humane pedagogics (Amonashvily, 2000), humanistic pedagogy (Glasser,1972; Maslow,1968; Rogers,1961) and others, free education (Dewey,1961) and others.

Problem Statement

It is considered that the process of education individualization is the process of educational interrelation oriented on interests, activity and initiative of learner.

“…Development of general education foresees individualization, orientation on practical skills, on fundamental abilities and broadening the range of additional education…” (“Modern model of education oriented on solving tasks in innovational development of economics”-2020).

On the foreground of modern education there stands the significance of school child personality and it becomes important to adapt education process to peculiarities of personal development. The conception of Russian education modernization declares: “The most important challenges of education are formation of spirituality and culture, initiative, independence, tolerance and ability to self-education and self-development, successful socialization and active adaptation in labor market”. This main purpose is concretized at every level of the education system, in Conception it is specified: “…educational and tutoring process has to be subdued to purpose of forming child’s personality, competence (communicative, intellectual…)…”.

The author of lesson books Dorofeev (1999), points out that “the main purpose of school education is the reorientation of teaching methodic system to priority of development function in teaching with regard to its educative and informative function, transference of accents from increasing the amount of information to forming skills in using information”.

Realization in practice of this statement means that reasoned accent transference from theoretical knowledge to practical skills will more effectively solve problem of forming migrant child personality, one’s moral and intellectual potentiality, preparing socially active human.

Research Questions

Since the end of 90s, in Russian pedagogics there goes on development of a new field in pedagogy science -migration pedagogics. First, it was formulated in Russian science school by Bondarevskaya (Babenko, Gukalenko, Suhorukova and others) (Bondarevskaya, 2000). In elaboration of this knowledge field, researchers rely on works of Russian pedagogues Lunacharsky (1977), Krupskaya (1936), Makarenko (1986), Suhomlinsky (1981) and others who substantiate the importance of pedagogical support in development of personality. Special interest is represented in works about modern migration problems which differ by many-sided views and wide range of studied objects. So, social and pedagogical aspect about the Russian in neighboring countries is studied by Lebedeva (2011) influence of migration processes is studied by Kostin (1994); issue of forced migrants social adaptation is studied by Soldartoba (2002). Mainly, attention of scientists is concentrated on historic, demographic and structural peculiarities of migration, but now there are only a few works about migrant children education, about their adaptation, psychological and pedagogical support and protection. Therefore theory and practice of migrant children pedagogical support are the actual problems in modern field of education.

Purpose of the Study

During research there were solved following tasks: 1) Studied works on individualized teaching of migrant children; 2) Found out main directions on developing models of educational routes for migrant children, for elementary school pupils; 3) Developed approximate models of elementary school educational routes for migrants’ children.

Research Methods

In process of research there were used complex of various mutually complementary methods: theoretical –analysis of works by pedagogues and psychologists on the problem of research; analysis of methodic and training literature; empirical –surveys, tests, interviews, analysis of results.

In this research, there took part migrant children at the age of 7-8 years and elementary school teachers from educational institutes of Kazan city, Tatarstan Republic. There participated 74 pupils from elementary classes.

Research was carried out in three stages:

On the first stage there was watching after teaching process of migrant children learning at the 1 grade; there were done survey and taken interview of elementary class teachers; there were studied teaching methodic complete sets for the 1 grade pupils; there were studied work programs made by elementary class teachers on curricular and extracurricular teaching of children including migrants’ children.

On the second stage there were developed elementary school educational route models for migrant’s children learning at school of Kazan city, Tatarstan Republic. In research, there took part pupils of the 1 grade (74 pupils).

On the third stage there were summarized and systemized obtained data, carried out research theme approbation in authors’ publications and presentations at scientific conferences.

As important moment in this research, there became elementary school teachers’ survey. The survey had 8 questions that would help to reveal favorability of school educational environment in class for migrants’ children and show what difficulties they had in learning. Survey content description: 1.-There was required to give characteristic of the class, number of pupils, describe peculiarities of the class. 2.-Teachers of the 1 grades were required to choose correct in relation to themselves statement: “I make lessons according to certain pattern, and consider it very productive”, “I prefer to include modern methods and unusual forms into teaching process”. 3.-There was required to answer the question “Do you use at your lessons individual approach to children, how often?” choosing the answer “I use it at every lesson”, “I use it periodically”, “No, I don’t use it”. 4.-It is required to answer the question “Are the migrants’ children of your class captivated by learning at school? Do they want additional lessons?” it was needed to answer “yes” or “no” and if necessary to add more information. 5.-It was required to write if migrants’ children went to institutions of additional education (hobby groups, workshop sections, clubs, centers of additional education,). 6.-There was required to define if migrants’ children ability to learn influenced educational achievement of the class, and was required to describe teachers’ observations. 7.-This question was intended to define if the teacher suggested migrants’ children individual home tasks. If it was so, then did they do that willingly and in time. 8.-This question was intended on revealing deficiencies in educational system in process of migrants’ children teaching. There was offered to share with ideas about increasing effectiveness when teaching migrants’ children.

There were carried out tests in a form of games for the 1 grade children and also for migrants’ children. Data obtained from game were included into tests after analysis of teachers’ surveys because there were defined two directions, linguistic and social-cultural, in a work with migrants’ children.

The research was carried out on the base of elementary classes of Kazan city schools, Tatarstan Republic. In the experiment there took part 74 pupils of elementary classes.

In order to find out in the 1 grade pupil emotional relation to people of other nationality, there was carried out test-game “Choose a friend for a game” (adapted methodic of Nikolaeva, Povedenok) (Fedorova, 2013). When playing the game there were used didactic materials (dolls dressed in various national costumes). The research was carried out individually. It was offered for a child to choose 1 doll from a set. According to every choice there were asked questions: A doll in what national costume did you choose? What do you like in people of this nationality? What do you think, do children of this nationality like to play? Would you like to play with them? What would you like to ask the child of this nationality? How would you regard to this child if he or she comes to your place? Would you like to become friends with this child?

For defining the degree of showing by children, including migrants’ children, emotional component (interest to other nation, interest to organize cooperative activity with children of other nationalities) there was used point system: 1 point -child refuses to communicate and interact with children of other nationalities, does not have interest towards children of other nationalities; 2 points –interest to children of other nationalities is based on general relation to one’s coevals; child doesn’t take interest in life of other children but more interested in games and toys of other nationality children; shows interest to get acquainted with children of other nationality, wants to interact with them; 3 points-interest and intention to communicate and play with children of other nationalities is expressed more clearly, takes interest in more detailed knowledge not only about games and holidays but history, culture, language and other peculiarities of other nationalities children.

There were defined 3 levels of showing by children emotional component of ethno-tolerance: Low level –child is oriented only on external peculiarities of other nationalities people, paying attention at the fact that they are not like him or her, and especially by this fact is explained the lack of interest, or negative attitude to other people. Average level –child has only partial knowledge about national and cultural peculiarities of people got from one’s life experience: relation to children of other nationality changes under influence of circumstances, personal wishes and needs. Higher level –child shows good relation to adults and children of other nationalities, tries to make friendly contacts.

During diagnostic research children showed average level of emotional component expression (interest to other nation, intention to cooperate with children of other nationality). Practically, children do not know peculiarities of other nations, but they are in friendly attitude to communicate with children of other nationality.

When choosing dolls, children did not accentuate their attention on national costumes but simply took the doll they liked. In choosing these dolls priority was given to beautiful face and decoration accessories. Some of the children said that they wouldn’t invite them anywhere, but would play with those who behave well.

In this research migrant children showed the same level of ethno-tolerance emotional component (average) as the rest of children. Therefore there was decided to include social-cultural direction into individual education route of the 1 grade children.

On the base of teachers’ survey analysis there was revealed that some of the migrants’ children needed additional help to master the language. For revealing of speech skills formation in the 1 grade children including migrants’ children there was done test-game “Story cubes”. It is a set of 9 cubes, on the each side of every cube there was unusual picture. So, in this game there were 54 pictures and more than 10 million combinations. The research was done individually. When playing with a child, there should be made mutual agreement about what was this story, who was the leading hero, there should be chosen genre of the story fantasy, detective, funny story or something else. It is preferable to create story by turns, when one cube is set by researcher, another cube is set by child. So, the researcher acts as moderator who directs and corrects storyline in needed way. If a child tells the story during 30 seconds than one has high level, if a child needs about 30-50 seconds than one has average level, if there is needed more than 1 minute time to create a story this means low level of child’s language skills.

There were revealed 3 levels of language skills formation in the 1 grade children. Low level: pupil doesn’t speak well the Russian language, makes the story with difficulties, makes mistakes. Pupil doesn’t know the meaning of many words, has difficulties in describing the picture on the cube, doesn’t make grammatically correct sentences. Average level: pupil can conduct elementary dialogue, tries to create a story looking at pictures on the cubes. If pupil doesn’t know some word asks to replace it by synonym, tries to understand the storyline. Generally, pupil correctly pronounces the words and correctly places the stress in words and in syntagmas.

Higher level: practically there is no accent in Russian speech. Pupil speaks Russian very well, easily can compose stories, answer the question and communicate with people. The test showed that all migrants’ children had low level formation of language skills. This confirmed the assumption that in the educational route for migrants’ children there has to be included linguistic direction. But there are also Russian speaking children, who showed average level of speech skills. Consequently for these children, there is also needed language module in individual education route.

Thus, the research done among 7-8 year old pupils and migrant children showed that the ideas of individualized teaching needed for successful projecting of individual education routes for migrants’ children and Russian speaking children are the same in basic structural components. Model of educational route in Russian schools includes 3 blocks: 1-block is obligatory for every children, it includes: mathematics, the Russian language, literary reading, nature, technology, graphic art, music, physical culture; 2-block is obligatory in five directions (sport and health, moral and spiritual, social, intellectual, cultural), but the extracurricular lesson can be chosen; 3-block works according to demands of learners and their parents, it includes additional education that can be realized on commercial terms. Additional education is carried out in various directions: sporting, musical, artistic, linguistic, volunteering, engineering and other.

According to results of the research, children who took part in diagnosing have to be included into social-cultural and linguistic direction of individual education route with selected adequate teaching programs of the 2 and 3 blocks.

Findings

Individual educational route –it is a personal way followed by every pupil during one’s process of development. Migrant child lives school life in accordance with one’s individual education route which is arranged in cooperation with all participants of education process: children, pedagogues, tutors and parents.

Didactic material, used by teacher for performing individual work with migrant child in class conditions, has to differ: by complexity of material; by character of used operations; by necessity to activate sensory channels; by creativity of offered tasks; by combination of various psychological processes needed for successful fulfilment of given task. In research process, there was revealed structure of migrant child education route that had three blocks. There was worked out possible educational route for migrant child. There were made two approximate education routes for migrants’ child in linguistic and social-cultural direction. Also there were worked out route lists for teacher, portfolio of achievements for children, needed for control and correction in teaching process of migrant children.

After analysis of various points of view on problem of migrants’ children teaching, it can be agreed that the culture of migrants develops only on the verge of cultures, in dialogue with other cultures. Culture –it is always the image of partner in other cultural environment ( Absalyamova & Gorbacheva, 1997).

When considering educational environment of institutions and trying to see what resources school have for creating education route of migrant child, at some extend it can be definitely agreed by characterization of individual educational route given by Vorobyeva (1999). This route is adequate to personally oriented educational process and at the same time it is not identical because it has some particularities: it is especially elaborated for certain learner as one’s individual educational program; at the phase of individual education route development the learner stands as: 1) selection subject of differentiated education, proposed by educational organization; 2) “non-formal customer”, who “shows” (at the initial diagnostic) for pedagogue projecting educational program –individual route, one’s own educational demands, cognitive and other individual peculiarities. At the stage of realization learner stands as subject that receives education. In this case personally oriented education process is realized as individual education route in condition of using functional options of pedagogical support.

Studying and support of individual education trajectory is the main value of personally oriented school, where all children are equal in potentiality but differ in abilities (Yakimanskaya) [1].

On peculiarities of individual education route there influence great amount of external and internal factors. As the internal factors there take place peculiarities of cognitive sphere, interests, motives and demands, emotional and physical state of learner. To the external factors can be related any (even instantaneous) influences from surrounding people: behavior of pedagogue and classmates, situation in the classroom, particularities in situation of option itself and so on (Arngold, 2017).

According to Ryndak (2003), the individual education route -it is the concepts of a learner in relation to one’s own movement in education, concepts formed and arranged with the help of pedagogues, concepts that are ready to realized in pedagogical technologies and in educational activity of the learner, so it is the product of collaborative work done by pedagogue and learner.

In order to provide optimal individual trajectory for development of migrants’ children, there are needed to reveal psychophysiological and sociological peculiarities of every migrant child when one starts the school; to work out and use didactic material that help to reveal cognitive selectiveness in fulfilling educational program, its stability at different stages of teaching; to define and approbate demands in preparing and giving lesson, providing the choice when needed to find the ways of working with tasks that vary in type, view and form; to provide the choice in organizing cooperation at the lesson (individual work, work in a group, in pair, frontal work); to work out technology of studying the personality of migrant child, using as the main method pedagogical observation at the lesson that is done by teacher as immediate organizer of education process. This research does not have such purposes, but in the course of work there outlined new methodic issues, that are needed to work over in future researches.

Conclusion

Individual educational route is a definite sequence in getting the content of education selected for a certain pupil at a particular stage of learning (the pace of mastering new knowledge, life circumstances of a migrant child, etc. are taken into account).

At present there is no universal formula in making individual education route in Russian schools. Individual education route reflects process of changing in development and teaching migrant child. With the help of this route there goes timely correction of pedagogical processes. Federal state education standard of general elementary education describes demands to structure of main education program of general elementary education. The obligatory (invariant) part of main education program takes 80%, variative part takes 20% of program.

Content structure of education route model is based on choice of teaching blocks included into education route: 1. There is fixed obligatory block, it supposes lessons that are in invariant part of education. 2. The block is defined according to choice of pupil, and it is in obligatory part intended for fulfillment in individual education route. 3. There is chosen facultative block.

So, here are possible models of education routes in elementary school for migrant children:

I-Obligatory blocks (teaching method complex) –school subjects.

II-Blocks for choosing by learner (extracurricular activity) -10 lessons every week. Directions: sport and health; moral and spiritual; social; intellectual; cultural.

III-Facultative blocks (additional education). Hobby groups, workshop sections, centers, educational platforms, distant education. Directions: linguistic, social and cultural.

Models of educational routes for migrants’ children are designed to resolve contradiction between process of teaching a migrant child with education programs of general elementary education and real possibilities and cognitive demands of a migrant child.

Acknowledgements

The work is performed according to the Russian Government Program of Competitive Growth of Kazan Federal University.

References

  1. Absalyamova, A.G., Gorbacheva, U.C. (1997). Ethics of children international communication in poly-cultural group. Ufa: Tvorchestvo, 220.
  2. Amonashvily, Sh.A. (2000). School of life. Moscow, Publishing House of Amonoshvily, 141.
  3. Arngold, I.V. (2017). Mathematics 1-4 grades. Volgograd, Uchitel, 86.
  4. Bondarevskaya, E.V. (2000). Theory and practice of person oriented education. Rostov on Don, Bulat, 351.
  5. Dewey, J. (1961). Experience in nature. New York, Liberal Art Press, 360.
  6. Dorofeev, G.V. (1999). Mathematics for everyone. Moscow, Ajax, 390.
  7. Fedorova, S.N. (2013). Diagnostic assistance in ethno-cultural personality development of pre-school children. Yoshkar-Ola: Marisky institute of education, 84.
  8. Glasser, W. (1972). The identity society. New York: Harper&Row, 265.
  9. Kostin, R.A. (1994). Social and political problems of modern international relations in Russian Federation. Saint Petersburg: Piter, 196.
  10. Krupskaya, H.K. (1936). New low about mothers and children. Moscow: Sovetskoe zakonodatelstvo, 32.
  11. Lebedeva, N.M. (2011). Ethnic and cross-cultural psychology. Moscow: Max press, 423.
  12. Lunacharsky, A.V. (1977). About communistic education. Kiev: Shkola, 144.
  13. Makarenko, A.C. (1986). Pedagogical poem. Moscow: Raduga, 406.
  14. Maslow, A.H. (1968). Toward a psychology of being. New York, Litton education publishing, 240.
  15. Rogers, C.R. (1961). On becoming a person: A Therapists View of Psychotherapy, Boston, 480.
  16. Ryndak, G.V. (2003). About the issue on projecting individual education route as a medium when forming personal achievements of senior school learner. Omsk: Vestnik, Volume 7, 44.
  17. Soldartoba, G.U. (2002). Psychological help to migrants: trauma, change of culture, crisis of identity. Moscow: Smysl, 479.
  18. Soloveychik, S.L. (1987). Pedagogy for everyone. Moscow: Detskaya Literatura. 365.
  19. Suhomlinsky, V.A. (1981). A hundred advices to teacher. Erevan: Luys. 174.
  20. Vorobyeva, S.V. (1999). Theoretical base of educational program differentiation. Saint Petersburg: Piter, 460.
  21. Yakimanskaya, I.S. (1985). Knowledge and thinking of school children. Moscow: Znanie Journal of Pedagogy and Psychology, Volume 9, 96.

Copyright information

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

About this article

Publication Date

31 August 2017

eBook ISBN

978-1-80296-028-0

Publisher

Future Academy

Volume

29

Print ISBN (optional)

-

Edition Number

1st Edition

Pages

1-960

Subjects

Teacher, teacher training, teaching skills, teaching techniques

Cite this article as:

Sabirova, E. G. (2017). Models Of Educational Routes In Elementary School For Migrants’ Children. In R. Valeeva (Ed.), Teacher Education - IFTE 2017, vol 29. European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (pp. 718-726). Future Academy. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2017.08.02.82