Abstract:

The aim of this study is to investigate how teaching time management in the Greek Language sessions can influence teachers’ choice of various instructional methods (with the ultimate goal of covering the curriculum) and what impact this has to the active involvement of students in the learning process. The theoretical framework of the present study is based on the theory of constructivism and the Dynamic Model of Educational Effectiveness (DMEE).

The way that teachers manage their available teaching time, is a factor that influences and determines the effectiveness of teaching. The time of engagement with a learning task, the degree to which learning objectives are met, the rate of covering the curriculum, the instructional approaches to present content and process knowledge, the variety of teaching resources that will attract students’ attention, can be regarded as principles of effective teaching in the classroom learning environment. The analyzation of the concept of the teaching time has led to the result that the way teachers manage their available teaching time includes some basic elements which contribute to the low level of student participation in the learning process.

The active participation of students in the learning process can be affected by the teacher decisions to incorporate learning challenges for the students, to facilitate learning through the use of new technologies and to apply further student-centred approaches. Teacher transition from applying teacher-centred to the student-centered instructional approaches can be achieved through the proper use of the various instructional methods (group work, interactive teaching, multisensory activities, differentiated instruction, etc.) and teaching means (i.e., worksheets, audiovisual materials, new technologies), which subsequently can be pedagogical tools for the teachers to motivate students and to contribute to their learning self-regulation. Then the teacher role shifts from the transmitter to the facilitator of knowledge.

The methodology used in this study is qualitative and the research tool used is the non-participant classroom observation. Participants were twelve school teachers teaching in the 4th, 5th and 6th grades in four primary schools (three in each school) in the wider region of Thessaloniki. The duration of the observations lasted between six to eight teaching hours for each class.

The results show that teachers, due to limited teaching time and in order to cover the content knowledge as specified in the national curriculum by the end of the school year, are reluctant to use multiple instructional methods and means of teaching, so they choose to use exclusively the text book and thus do not support students to actively participate in the learning process. The necessity of this research lies in the fact that research linking the management of the teaching time to the Greek Language instruction is scarce. The results have important implications for educational policy decisions where student active participation should be thoroughly planned within the provided teaching time and follow the DMEE in order to make maximum use of the teaching time in the Greek Language instruction.

Keywords:

Teaching time management, Greek Language, student participation, instructional methods.