PSYC20038 Positive Psychology Assignment Sample

Assignment Brief

Assessment - Critical Review and Future Research Recommendations

Task Description

In this final assessment, you will source and critically evaluate two published empirical research articles, and develop a future research question based on your critical evaluation of these articles.
The two articles critically evaluated will be your choice, but must be:

a) Peer-reviewed primary source journal articles (i.e., articles reporting new research findings from an original empirical study conducted by the authors - not a review article). The articles must be published in reputable journals.

b) Relevant to one specific area of interest in the positive psychology/ wellbeing/resilience domain, but this must be a different area of focus than the choice in Assessment 1. You will source two journal articles each reporting an empirical study relevant to the chosen area of interest, ensuring that you have not previously critiqued these journal articles in this unit or other units in this course.

Please note: Assessment 3 must be completed individually., i.e., alone. It is an independent assessment piece and you cannot work with other students/people to complete it.

Your ‘critical review and future research recommendations’ assessment piece will include consideration of the following:

1) What is the predominant area of interest for the researcher/s, and why is the area considered important? (This will become the basis for the introduction.)

2) What are the main research questions in each article?

3) Compare and contrast the methodologies used by the researchers in each article (how were their samples, research methods, procedures, measures similar and different to each other?)

4) What are the key findings in each of the research publications, and do they appear to be justified? (Are the conclusions drawn justified based on the evidence gained in the study?)

5) What are the strengths and limitations of each of the chosen research publications? (This critical appraisal should be more than a repetition of the limitations that the article authors report themselves)

6) A critical evaluation of the suggestions made by the researcher(s) for future research (i.e., critique the appropriateness of the suggestions for future research that were made by the study authors, and whether other suggestions could be warranted)

7) Identification of an important ‘gap’ in the research literature (based on the 2 chosen publications) that you propose could be further explored in research, and a justification for why this proposed future research would be worthwhile (e.g., Why is this future research important?

The maximum word count for this assessment task is 2000 words (+/- 10%).

Assessment Criteria for assignment help

Using a marking rubric, your Assessment 3 submission will be assessed on:

• Identification of the predominant research area of interest in the empirical studies, and their research questions

• Quality of comparing and contrasting of the research methodologies used in the studies

• Ability to summarize, interpret, and critique the reported research findings in the studies

• Quality and comprehensiveness of the identification of the strengths, weaknesses, and future research directions

• Critical analysis of key gaps/areas for further research based on the chosen articles

• Rationale as to why the identified gap would be of benefit to address in future research

• Development of a meaningful research question using the principles of the PICO/PEO (Population, Intervention/Exposure, Comparison, and Outcomes) style framework

• Clarity, conciseness and quality of written communication and critical thinking in the assessment piece, and adherence to the word-limit

• Correct use of APA referencing style for in-text citations and the reference list.

Tips on how to critically evaluate research articles are available in Weeks 8-9 Moodle Workbook, and under the Assessment section of the Moodle page.

Assessment criteria and marking rubric for this assessment are shown on the following page.

Due date: Week 12, Tuesday 5 October 2021, 5:00pm AEST (QLD time).
Submission of Assessment 3 will be comprised of the following parts:

a) A word.doc containing your written work. The first page of the word.doc must be a title page containing your name and student number. (The APA style website contains an example you can follow)

b) The pdf files of the two chosen empirical research journal articles that you critically reviewed for Assessment 3.

Solution

 Introduction

In this both researches Mahsud et al. (2010) and Sosik et al. (2019), these both papers are still focused on to identify the leader's empathy and their ethical values. On a similar note the relation related behaviour and the good leadership behaviours based on several variables that are directly related with leader-member exchange quality are also included in this two research paper. It is true that both the papers essays and leaders' empathy and ethical values as well as relation oriented behaviour but this paper does not include how the variables are directly related in the LMX situation. It has been identified that the relationship and testing the proposed and described variables are also resulting in the leaders’ relation oriented behaviour. From this it can be stated that the relationship between leaders' empathy basically mediates the ethical relationship and leadership.

It is true that there are several recommendations present based on future research to verify and extend all the results that have been provided by the findings. Also it is recognised that these findings are providing the primary support that triggered in the mechanism forgetting the positive outcomes and also so the research conducted on the officers who have a high level of self-control and also have honesty in them. It also has been identified that the implication and future theory development as well as research and practice are also important topics to understand the interpersonal relationship and their potential influences on the business. These studies are also providing gaps that particularly help to answer the research questions based on strong ethical leadership and the leaders having antecedent characters.

Research questions

In the first research paper, Mahsud et al. (2010) explore the leader's behaviour is directly related to the quality and also how the leader's empathy is having a direct relation with the use of relation-oriented behaviour. On the other hand, in this research by Sosik et al. (2019), mainly focused on identifying all the gaps and the questions asked whether the strong leadership is directly associated with leader’s antecedent character and what are the strength and leader outcomes for the leaders having high and low levels of self-control. On a similar note, the researcher also tested how the ethical leadership meditates different leadership relations and the models also explicate how the leader's nature of character are directly related with ethical relationship and impacts the leadership outcomes (Asif et al. 2019).

Research hypothesis of the articles

This following hypothesis is stated by Mahsud et al. (2010);

H1: The LMX quality is directly related with leader’s behavior focused on relation orientation

H2: Relation oriented behavior is positively influence the use of leader’s empathy

H3: The leaders’ empathy based on LMX providing the effect on leader’s relation orientation

H4: Leaders who have good ethical values using more behavior directly related with relation oriented

H5: It has been identified that the ethical leadership mediates the leader relation oriented behavior directly based on LMX These following hypotheses are stated by Sosik et al. (2019);

H6: Ethical leadership are mainly mediating the relationship between the honesty of leader and the positive outcome of leadership as well as psychological flourishing and the leaders in role performance

H7: Ethical leadership mainly maintains the leadership and also measures the leaders out came directly based on psychological processing and there in role performance

H8: It has been identified that there is a positive relationship present between the leader’s honesty and the leaders ethical values and these things are impacting the leader’s self-control

There are a total of 9 hypotheses present in the paper written by Sosik et al (2019), from those 9 hypotheses a total of three hypotheses has been selected as this hypothesis are clearly stating the ethical leadership and the relationship between leader’s honesty and outcomes. Note from the paper it has been identified that ethical leadership mediates the relationship between their sympathy and leaders’ outcomes. It also has been identified that these hypotheses have their own psychological and in role performances and also it concludes that leadership is much stronger when leaders have a high self-control. These things are directly related to the studies provided and that is why these three hypotheses have been selected.

Methodology

Table 1: Methodology comparison

Key findings

The key findings for this research Mahsud et al. (2010), were leaders’ relationship-oriented behaviour can mediate the relationship between the leader empathy on the leader-member exchange quality and also partially mitigate the link between the ethical leadership. In the research findings, also recommended for future research is that it helps to verify and extend the results has been provided. As suggested by Ko et al. (2018), after getting the results from the regression analysis and SEM pet analysis, it has been identified that there is several evidence are present on the leaders and empathy and ethical leadership values as well as relation oriented behaviour as well as the antecedents of the LMX. On the other hand, this leadership behaviour is directly influenced by the leaders' perception and attribution regarding loyalty and dependability.

On the other hand, the key findings from Sosik et al. (2019) were consistent with the theoretical consideration that helps to determine all the moral courage in the organizations. It is also related with higher level of psychological flourishing and that role of performance providing. There are several exceptions that have indirect effect on the enrolment (Qing et al. 2020). On a similar note, these findings also provide a deep insight into motivational mechanism that is directly elevated by adapting the different actions to help the empathy.
Strengths and limitations

In this research, Mahsud et al. (2010), there are several limitations present in this study as the study is based on exactly the same data and the result pattern also supports the interpretation based on causal relationship. It also has been identified that the casualty cannot be determined by conducting any survey and also using the same respondents can help to support the same interpretation. In this study the leader's empathy can be mentioned as they are single subordinate perspective has been used but the leader sympathy rating also generates evaluation of the leader but the alternative of the leaders waiting are also subject to bias. In the hierarchical multiple regression analysis, the partial mediation model was also provided that showed the step of LMX that has been reduced to the leader's empathy and in the ethical leadership (Benevene et al. 2018).

Sosik et al (2019), there are several strains and limitations that have been present in this study and also a gap in ethical leadership has been provided by examining the honesty and empathy as well as moral courage is to the ethical leadership. On the other hand, the leaders outcomes and improved performance as well as psychological furnishing that provides the limitation of the study and future research is must to consider the character strengths from the leaders and subordinate perspective that may be limiting the leaders self-awareness and character strengths. On a similar note the limitations are mainly concerning the ethical leadership rating and it is not subordinates for each leader. On the other hand, the single subordinate ratings are types of descriptive results that are mainly followed by leader subordinate dyad. It is possible for leaders to have a list of subordinates to evaluate the ethical leadership in the most favorable way.

Future research evaluation

For the first research, Mahsud et al. (2010), it has been identified that future research can be conducted on ethical leadership that includes the others. It will also be very useful to ask the leaders about their values and check their agreement as well ratings.

For this research onSosik et al. (2019), in future research, it is very much important to assess the leadership character strengths from the leader's perspective and also subordinate perspective. The self-awareness of leaders and their character strengths also needs to be measured, and the limitations concerning the ratings of ethical leadership must be included in future research (Kock et al., 2019). For the future research 50 leaders from the different IT companies will be select as a target population to understand the leader’s character strengths. The exposure variables will include in the future research are leaders’ empathy and LMX and on a similar note the outcome variables will be relation behaviour and this will help to understand the leaders character strengths.

Research gap

The literature is based on character and ethical leadership and there are several gaps that have been identified but still remain unaddressed. It has been identified that most of the theories consist of social learning and social exchange having two theoretical frameworks that mainly explain ethical leadership and also helps to promote the subordinates to provide proper benefits to organization. It also has been identified that through the ethical role modelling the organizational benefits can be increased that also incorporate the feelings of fairness and trust. It is true that the conceptualization of the different ethical leadership are mainly results of exclusive emphasis and this evaluation of effectiveness of any particular leader and also called for additional research to identify the effects of ethical leadership on attitude and performance of the leaders. Prove that on different conditions the ethical leadership stays limited and they are becoming emerging topics that are perceived as ethical conviction. However, it is true that leaders' personal resources are coping up with stress by reducing self-control and it also has been identified that the ethical leadership boundary conditions are also based on different theories but still these theories are not tested. It is true that a gap of research is present to identify the leaders will be in a stressful nature especially in the context where ethical compliances are involved and change management and extreme dangerous missions are also included.

The gaps are present in this study Mahsud et al. (2010), as all the data was taken from a similar source, and the pattern stated in this research supports the interpretation of casual relationship whether it doesn't have the proper determination from the service study on which the data has been taken from the different respondents at the same time.

Future research question

These two research papers have population-based studies that show the leadership effects and orientation-related behaviours. It also demonstrates the leadership character strengths and leadership outcomes. The sample size will be the 100 employees from the different organisations. The future research questions are famed by using the PICO framework. In this future research questions also the research gasp is included.

1. How the leaders can effectively get the inside about career aspiration and job attitude?

2. How to fill the surveys and who will be the next subordinates of the leaders?

3. How the leaders can understand the talents and potential of their employees?

4. How much confidence the potential leaders have in their employee to complete the whole work?

5. Are the leaders being agree to extroverts to help the company during the difficulties?

6. What is the potential relationship with the leaders to their subordinates?

7. Whether the strong ethical leadership associated with leader and dissidence character strength or not?

8. How to test ethical leadership mediates and the relationship?

9. Why the military contacts are dangerous and extreme for the business and how they are promoting the professionalism?

10. How office leaders are promoting professionalism and ethical leadership as well as implementing honesty in social cognition?

11. How do the outcome variables such as relation behaviour help to understand the leader character strengths?

12. How to verify the research results on leader member exchange qualities and testing the proposed model?
Conclusion

This paper has explored the leader's sympathy and ethical values as well as relation related behaviour for good leadership and also examined how these variables are directly related to leader-member exchange quality by critically comparing the articles by Mahsudet al. (2010) and Sosik et al. (2019). Thus, it can be concluded that the impact and ethical values as well as relation-oriented behaviour is very much important for the leaders that can be useful to develop and reward the leaders. Therefore, the organisation can select the leaders who have good character strengths and also have psychological well-being. Future research based on the considered articles can be considered to identify impact of leadership skills on job related outcomes of subordinates.

References

Asif, M., Qing, M., Hwang, J., & Shi, H. (2019). Ethical leadership, affective commitment, work engagement, and creativity: Testing a multiple mediation approach. Sustainability, 11(16), 4489.doi:10.3390/su11164489

Benevene, P., Dal Corso, L., De Carlo, A., Falco, A., Carluccio, F., &Vecina, M. L. (2018). Ethical leadership as antecedent of job satisfaction, affective organizational commitment and intention to stay among volunteers of non-profit organizations. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 2069.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02069

Ko, C., Ma, J., Bartnik, R., Haney, M. H., & Kang, M. (2018). Ethical leadership: An integrative review and future research agenda. Ethics &Behaviour, 28(2), 104-132.DOI:10.1080/10508422.2017.1318069

Kock, N., Mayfield, M., Mayfield, J., Sexton, S., & De La Garza, L. M. (2019). Empathetic leadership: How leader emotional support and understanding influences follower performance. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 26(2), 217-236.https://doi.org/10.1177/1548051818806

Mahsud, R., Yak, G., & Prussia, G. (2010). Leader empathy, ethical leadership, and relations?oriented behaviors as antecedents of leader?member exchange quality. Journal of Managerial Psychology.DOI 10.1108/02683941011056932

Qing, M., Asif, M., Hussain, A., & Jamaal, A. (2020). Exploring the impact of ethical leadership on job satisfaction and organizational commitment in public sector organizations: The mediating role of psychological empowerment. Review of Managerial Science, 14(6), 1405-1432.DOI: 10.1007/s11846-019-00340-9

Sosik, J. J., Chun, J. U., Ete, Z., Arenas, F. J., & Scherer, J. A. (2019). Self-control puts character into action: Examining how leader character strengths and ethical leadership relate to leader outcomes. Journal of Business Ethics, 160(3), 765-781.doi.org/10.1007/s10551-018-3908-0
 

GDECE103 Language and Literacy Assignment Sample

Need Report for Assignment Help:

Write a report that evaluates contemporary play-based language and literacy theories and practices for use in the home, the community and in early learning education environments and reflect culturally appropriate practice. How can teachers, families, and professionals in other fields, work together to promote the literacy growth and development of diverse young language learners in inclusive settings?

Criteria

• Discuss contemporary theoretical perspectives on early years language and literacy
development (i.e. particularly focus on cognitive developmental, social interactionist). Refer to relevant literature.

• Discuss how can these theories inform the practices in home, community and early childhood settings. Based on these theories, how can family members and educators support children’s language and literacy development? Refer to relevant literature.

• Discuss how can educators and parents can support language development of children from
diverse cultural backgrounds? Please provide 2 strategies about supporting children’s language and literacy development in home and early childhood settings

• Academic English expression and referencing – APA style.

• Minimum 5-7 references.

Solution

Early childhood development

The stage of early childhood development is crucial for promoting the overall growth in young children, marking a significant time period of learning and literacy achievement and equality among all. The need for establishing a strong base in the early childhood days is often realized by the education providers as well as parents, the two elements who are in constant touch with the children. The theoretical frameworks established by conventional philanthropists and psychologists have been undergoing transformation, thus imbibing innovative and new views to early childhood language and literacy development (Powell & Smith, 2017). The need for regular involvement in various language development activities and experiences for better futuristic output is also evident in the various theoretical frameworks. Starting from the very onset of early childhood and not waiting until the child matures have been observed to implement better development of language and literacy, both written as well as oral skills (McLachlan, Fleer & Edwards, 2018).

Contemporary theoretical perspectives on early years language and literacy

The contemporary childhood practices and their perspectives regarding inculcation of languages, literacy, and cognition along with social behavior have undergone a wave of change through the years.

Cognitive Theory

Highlighting the cognitive-developmental perspective as proposed by Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget, who has extensively studied early childhood and implied on various developmental stages, the learning of language development is also inevitable. Piaget had thrown light on the interdependence of cognitive development and language development, both functioning amicably and developing through activities (Bormanaki & Khoshhal, 2017). Children take an active role in learning from the surrounding environment and make observations about the world. As children start interacting with the world outside and around them, the more they learn and develop various language skills and literacy. Unlike what traditional Maturist theories showcased regarding the appropriate age of language and literacy development in children as six and a half years, the contemporary theories reflect the opposite. In the middle of the 20th century, the language and literacy theories received a boost of reconceptualization, proposing that children are born with the ability to read and write (emergent literacy theory). Piaget marked the era with his modern views and proposed that children use their maturational abilities to develop and progress upon their language and literacy since early years (McLeod, 2018). Hence, it is advisable for the teachers, education providers as well as parents to offer more environmental experiences for the children to grow upon. The contemporary theorists inflict importance upon the reading readiness in the early stages of children.

Social Development Theory

Along with cognitive development, the contemporary theoretical perspectives include the involvement of the social development theory based on Vygotsky’s proposals. The main element behind this theory is the concept of how early children interact with their social environment and culture, which affects their development and mental abilities. The regular social interaction of the children with the intangible surrounding and the tangible people influences their development regarding language and literacy as well. The various forms of knowledge which are generated within the socio-cultural backdrop have a big contribution to play in early childhood learning and development (Farida & Rasyid, 2019). This concept is also entwined with the social context of play language which includes early childhood activities like playing, coloring, reading, drawing, and others. The play language involves the activity which instigates mental and physical activity with spontaneous, creative, and joyful output (Daubert, Ramani & Rubin, 2018). The contemporary theories imply the use of various literacy-related plays, shared story reading, along with other activities, enhancing early childhood progress.

Role of Play in language and literacy

The modern theories regarding language and literacy have been functioning as a helpful framework for reading instructions and related activities. The recent emergent theory has combated the concept of maturity and reading readiness in children with which they are born with. Play is a natural process of activity that children do not acquire but rather have inside them from birth and early infancy stages, which can be used as an influential tool to develop emotional, social, cognitive, physical, and cultural skills (Quinn, Donnelly & Kidd, 2018). The early stages in childhood witness the children playing with objects which leads to higher problem-solving abilities and a positive attitude towards life and the world. Creative thinking, cognitive development, and exploration can be adopted by children in their early childhood days through the medium of contemporary practices and theories of play-learning. Both Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s ideologies were similar in the platform of literacy and language development within the children during their infancy and early childhood days. The ambiance and surroundings instigate the children to form concepts and assumptions, be it either real or virtual, along with expressing their thoughts and emotions.

It is often observed that the children who lack the ability to use inter-communicative language and have a poor literacy base, often make use of physical movements and objects to express themselves. Hence, the concept of adopting a vital language skill along with literacy abilities will help children to grow into fully developed human beings, having competence and all-rounder abilities or skills. Successful reading and literacy can be derived in the later stages of development if the base of the language development is strongly instilled within the young minds (Hà, 2020). On the other hand, children having a lack of language skills or delayed literacy often face risk in the social gathering and communicative spheres along with poorly developed cognitive, empathetic, physical, and emotional stringent.

Theories helping in-home or community practices for children’s development

The various contemporary preaches and theories discussed earlier have been guiding the development of children within the family or home literacy movement as well. The home environment is equally important to the educational or academic environment, both influencing the growth and uprising of the children. Sensitivity is imbibed within the family environment, educating parents and other family members to be aware of the language skills and development of the children (Piasta et al., 2017). Teaching and implementing various literacy activities and abilities within the children becomes an agenda of the family members, teachers, school staff as well as the community as a whole. The peer and community, irrespective of their knowledge of the various theories proposed by popular psychologists and theorists in the pre-modern and post-modern era, automatically tend to undertake activities for the betterment of the children and their development. The social environment which the adults try to create and recreate in the presence of children has its links with the social development theories.

The education providers understand the importance of experience and witnessing incidents to gain skills, hence the classroom or school environment is built likewise. The involvement of various literacy and language activities is observed which bear resemblance with play language, including writing, drawing, playing, story reading, drama, singing, and dance. The idea of language acquisition is proved accurate when the heterogenous mix of children is observed in a class (McLachlan Fleer, & Edwards, 2018). Each child has a different background and is hence a byproduct of various environmental confluence. The concept of babies being born with language skills is supported by the fact that children tend to differentiate between their mother’s language from the rest of the family members. They can also discriminate between various sounds and phonemes which are included in every kind of language. The cultural environment of the family and classroom also shapes the language development of the children. Before a child gets admitted to the school, it is wholly the influence of the family and house that molds the literacy skill of the child, thus we see a variety of differentiation within a class, with one child varying from the other.

Support of family members and educators by using contemporary theories

Social pragmatism has a pivotal role in influencing language and literacy development in children. As literate citizens of the country and wanting a better future for the upcoming generation, it is essential to support and provide encouragement to the children during their early learning days. The parents, members of the families as well as educators in various educational institutes can take up the responsibility of helping the children to develop their language and skills (Sainain et al., 2020). The parent involvement in the various non-academic, as well as academic activities of the children, can prompt a heightened increase in the acquisition of literacy and language development within the young minds of the early school children. Several studies have also observed that there is an intimate connection between the various literary resources in the home backdrop which has been helping in the development of language acquisition and children’s reading skills. The parents and educators equally play a vital role in inspiring and pushing up the level of language and literacy skills.

The teachers are encouraged to adopt various practices which will bring transformation in the developmental stages of the children based on the conventional theories and frameworks. Deriving an elaborate idea about the individual child’s cultural and family background will keep the teachers informed about the various aspects involved in their individual development (Piasta et al., 2020). It is the duty of the teacher to comprehend the abilities of the child according to their own pace of development and develop upon that. Enhancing the partnership and mutual understandability between the home and the school is crucial for the betterment as well. Children who do not possess any formal education or belong to the lower rungs of society are like a blank canvas that the teachers need to fill up. Taking remedial classes and providing extra help has always led to better results for such children without much background. The teachers, as well as the parents, can also include certain exercises in the daily activities of the children to infuse more language abilities (Piasta et al., 2020). Helping children to read aloud, irrespective of the themes and faults made, making use of literacy-based prop boxes and role-plays, having extensive conversations on various topics with the children, playing with poems and rhymes, making them read signals and labels, introducing vocabulary and various words, and providing modification and prompting helps when stuck are few ways in which help can be provided.

Providing support by Parents and educators in diverse backgrounds and two strategies

Often classrooms and schools witness the presence of a heterogeneous mixture of students or learners belonging to various diverse backgrounds and families. Culturally diverse backgrounds are often seen in our community as a society as well, due to the increase in globalization and intercultural communication (Witty, 2021). There is a rise in the admission of bilingual students in various schools, where English can be used as the common language for regular communication and interaction. To promote the ability of interaction and language skill development in the children who often belong to various backgrounds and not just to English language backdrop, the parents and teachers can indulge the children in adult conversation, communication, child-caregiver and various mediums of imparting education. In the modern era of technology, making use of various learning applications, translation apps, and YouTube platforms has been empowering children to learn various languages and linguistics skills on their own without much supervision.

The strategies which can be used by the family members as well as teachers to develop the language and literacy skills within preschool children are of various types. Since visual and interactive methods tend to have a long-lasting impact on the young minds of children, the strategy of interactive storytelling classes and reading exercises will help the children to ton up their skills (Saracho, 2017). Children belonging to various backgrounds can be given the same medium of instruction that is English, for sustained uniformity within the classroom environment. At home, the parents can conduct the same exercise in the second or bilingual medium, thus helping the child to develop a bi-linguistic approach to life. Another activity of playing games of ‘recognizing letters and alphabet at the very tender age will help in the cognitive development of the children, thus enhancing the future social interaction.

References

Bormanaki, H. B., & Khoshhal, Y. (2017). The Role of Equilibration in Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development and Its Implication for Receptive Skills: A Theoretical Study. Journal of Language Teaching & Research, 8(5). From: https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/266996457.pdf

Daubert, E. N., Ramani, G. B., & Rubin, K. H. (2018). Play-based learning and social development. Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development. From: https://www.ceril.net/index.php/articulos?id=849

Farida, N., & Rasyid, H. (2019, April). The effectiveness of project-based learning approach to social development of early childhood. In International Conference on Special and Inclusive Education (ICSIE 2018) (pp. 369-372). Atlantis Press. From: https://www.atlantis-press.com/article/55917585.pdf

Hà, T. A. (2020). Pretend Play and Early Language Development—Relationships and Impacts: A Comprehensive Literature Review. Journal of Education, 0022057420966761. From: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0022057420966761

McLachlan, C., Fleer, M., & Edwards, S. (2018). Early childhood curriculum: Planning, assessment and implementation. Cambridge University Press. From: http://digilib.stiem.ac.id:8080/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/362/Claire%20McLachlan%2C%20Marilyn%20Fleer%2C%20Susan%20Edwards-Early%20Childhood%20Curriculum_%20Planning%2C%20Assessment%2C%20and%20Implementation-Cambridge%20University%20Press%20%282010%29.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

McLeod, S. (2018). Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. Simply Psychology, 1-9. From: https://www.fwsolutions.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/cognitive-development-theory.pdf

Piasta, S. B., Farley, K. S., Mauck, S. A., Soto Ramirez, P., Schachter, R. E., O'Connell, A. A., ... & Weber-Mayrer, M. (2020). At-scale, state-sponsored language and literacy professional development: Impacts on early childhood classroom practices and children’s outcomes. Journal of Educational Psychology, 112(2), 329. From: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED597343.pdf

Piasta, S. B., Justice, L. M., O'Connell, A. A., Mauck, S. A., Weber-Mayrer, M., Schachter, R. E., ... & Spear, C. F. (2017). Effectiveness of large-scale, state-sponsored language and literacy professional development on early childhood educator outcomes. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 10(2), 354-378. From: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1210&context=famconfacpub

Piasta, S. B., Park, S., Farley, K. S., Justice, L. M., & O'Connell, A. A. (2020). Early childhood educators' knowledge about language and literacy: Associations with practice and children's learning. Dyslexia, 26(2), 137-152. From: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED593434.pdf

Powell, S., & Smith, K. (Eds.). (2017). An introduction to early childhood studies. Sage. From: https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=WDI9DwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT49&dq=early+childhood+development+theories&ots=pn0DRy3E0z&sig=ui0KfNacFsOTEkEPGzm2J2GJEV0

Quinn, S., Donnelly, S., & Kidd, E. (2018). The relationship between symbolic play and language acquisition: a meta-analytic review. Developmental review, 49, 121-135. From : https://pure.mpg.de/rest/items/item_2602612_9/component/file_3001229/content

Sainain, N. S. N. M., Omar, R., Ismail, H., Mamat, N., & Abdullah, R. (2020). Parental knowledge and development of languages and literacy, communication and socializations in the early childhood education. Master of Education in Sultan Idris Education University. From: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Hazhari-Ismail-3/publication/341579315_Parental_Knowledge_And_Development_Of_Languages_And_Literacy_Communication_And_Socializations_In_The_Early_Childhood_Education/links/5fd4e0e5299bf14088042e3a/Parental-Knowledge-And-Development-Of-Languages-And-Literacy-Communication-And-Socializations-In-The-Early-Childhood-Education.pdf

Saracho, O. N. (2017). Literacy and language: new developments in research, theory, and practice. Early Child Development and Care, 187(3-4), 299-304. From: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03004430.2017.1282235

Witty, E. A. (2021). EDUC 2134 Language and Literacy in Early Childhood. From: https://repository.yu.edu/handle/20.500.12202/7628

EDUC8731 Motivation, Cognition and Metacognition Assignment Sample

Assignment — Cognition & Metacognition
Weighting: 50%
Length: 2000 words

Part A: Learners are cognitive

Applying theory to practice

(1) Very briefly outline your sequence of instruction, then,
(2) Explain in detail how the steps in the sequence address different stages of information processing.

Be very brief in section (1) and give most attention to section (2)

Part B: Learners are meta-cognitive

Please stay within the word limit in your assignment response.

• Aim of assessment

- Explain key constructs in cognition and metacognition
- Analyse how cognition and metacognition affect learning and problem solving
- Relate an instance of student learning to extant theories about cognition and/or metacognition
- Contribute to informed debate about teaching and learning
- Demonstrate high standards of academic literacy

Solution

Part A: Learners are cognitive

Sequence of Instruction

The sequence of instruction for assignment help can help students in gaining a brief overview of the topic at first alongside learning objectives of the lesson (Wyer Jr & Srull, 2014). This instructional sequence for teaching the topic of “Marketing Mix” to students will consist of the following:

• Watching any video of marketing mix over video to acquire an idea on the topic,
• Whole-class discussion amongst students about the information they have gained,
• Reading the chapter 2 from pages 45 to 50 of the book: Kotler, P. and Keller, K.L., 2016. A framework for marketing management. Boston, MA: Pearson.
• Trying to answer the questions at the end of the chapter
• Discussing the answers in class by forming groups of four

Stages of Information Processing

Information processing refers to the idea of humans actively processing information that they receive through their senses (Wyer Jr & Srull, 2014). Here, the student after taking in the information, stores it as the sensory storage, thereby moving from short-term to working memory. This information is either forgotten or transferred to the long-term memory after that. There are various stages of information processing in students or humans, namely, attending, encoding, storing and retrieving (Lachman, et al., 2015). Thus, students go through these four stages while processing any information received in class.

Attending is the first stage of information processing. Here, the students are expected to listen and pay close attention to the instructions being provided in the class. Such active listening is essential for preparing themselves to receive the information or instruction that the teacher has given (Eggenberger, 2021). Here, the students pay attention to the things that they are supposed to do, such as, watching videos, reading, engaging in discussions and completing the questions and answers. In this regard, the teacher can verbally inform the students about the activities that are supposed to be done in the class for covering the required chapter. On the other hand, the teacher can also present the instructional sequence in a visual format by showing it in a PowerPoint slide (Mathew & Alidmat, 2013). Visual instruction sequence and planning can be more effective here as it tends to capture the attention of individuals more easily as compared to verbal instruction. Thus, this is the first stage of providing instruction and students attending to them.

The second stage of information process is encoding where the recipient tries to comprehend the information or message that has been shared. This step is not possible without the accomplishment of the previous step of paying attention or placing importance on the information. In this regard, the students make sense of what they are supposed to do based on the instructions provided (Klahr & Wallace, 2022). They focus on comprehending the instructions of watching video, reading chapters, discussion and answering the questions. In this stage, they also try to clear their confusions regarding the instructions or tasks that they are required to perform. Here, the teacher provides support and help to the students for enabling them to better understand their responsibilities during the class and about their homework. Students can ask questions to the teacher for clearing their confusions and further analysing the instructions that have been shared with them (Capps & Crawford, 2013). Thus, active cooperation from the teacher is of utmost importance at this stage.

Storing is the third stage in the information processing where the information or message enters the memory bank of the individuals that is called upon at some other time. Here, the information can either enter the short-term or long-term memory of the humans (Norris, 2017). The information can also be forgotten but if not, then it moves to the long-term memory. The teacher passes the instruction to the students based on the sequence mentioned in the above section. Students are required to act based on such instructions. In this step, they undergo the process of retaining such information after receiving and understanding the same. This is the consecutive step to encoding the information (Wyer Jr & Srull, 2014). Here, students who are able to encode the information effectively can retain the instructions in their memory, which them passes to their long-term memory. However, if they are unable to decode the instructions, then the information passes to the short-term memory and ultimately gets forgotten. In this stage, the students will prepare themselves for following the instructions of watching a marketing mix video and reading the chapter from the book. They focus on gaining insights on the particular topic that they are supposed to learn. Thus, this determines their ability to follow the instruction by storing it in their memory for gaining knowledge from the videos and books.

The last stage involves retrieving the information received to conscious awareness. This retrieval is essential for using the acquired information. In this stage, the students use the information by retrieving it at two different times. They retrieve the information about the instructions provided in class and accordingly, start watching the tutorial video on marketing mix and further reading this chapter on the mentioned book. Without attending, encoding and storing the information in long-term memory, this step cannot be completed (Bruning, et al., 2010). Furthermore, the students are also gaining insights and information about the marketing mix topic by reading the specific chapter and watching a video. These insights are retained again in the memory after comprehending them to be used for answering the questions at the end of the chapter. Moreover, information retrieval is also performed by the students when they engage in classroom discussions conducted on the topic of marketing mix.

Part B: Learners are meta-cognitive

Metacognitive Activity

Metacognition involves thinking about things associated with a person’s awareness alongside the ability of evaluating and organizing own thinking (Anwari, et al., 2015). Individual metacognitive activity has often been developed through effective social interaction where the discussion or conversation acts as the main tool for supporting such activity. Here, a reciprocal relationship and involvement of two or more members is required for solving problems together through the social interaction (Anwari, et al., 2015). In this regard, the three fundamental elements involved in the metacognitive activity of problem solving are awareness, regulation and evaluation. Thus, these elements help in developing problem solving strategies for responding to problems through metacognition. Furthermore, metacognitive strategies are different sequential processes used for controlling cognitive activities for achieving a cognitive goal (Ghasempour, et al., 2013). These processes are capable of regulating and supervising learning of the students or individuals through cognitive activities of planning, monitoring and checking outcomes. It has been opined that metacognitive strategies are required to be taught despite such knowledge being instinctively obtained from parent, classmates, relatives or others (Ghasempour, et al., 2013). Thus, learning about metacognitive strategies help in enabling students to monitor their own learning and further improve self-perceptions and motivation.

Ways to Enhance Students’ Metacognitive Activity

There are various ways for enhancing metacognitive activities of students that help in building their metacognitive skills including knowledge, practice, experience and intelligence. In this regard, STEM education is one of the most influential approaches for motivating students to become self-regulated learners (Anwari, et al., 2015). This education helps to engage students in metacognitive activities. This implementation of STEM education in the classroom can provide student with opportunities of comprehending the importance of integrating different disciplines and applications. It involves designing solutions for different real-world issues and problems, thereby improving metacognitive skills of the students (Anwari, et al., 2015). Here, STEM education activities can be undertaken consisting of scientific processes and engineering design. Alongside thus, concept map, taking notes and discussion, complex learning of unfamiliar problems and issues and scaffold instruction are some of the activities involved in STEM education that can help in improving metacognitive skills (Anwari, et al., 2015). Thus, this innovative approach of complex learning can help in enhancing metacognitive activities amongst students.

Furthermore, metacognitive reading strategy can also be undertaken for the students. This reading comprehension strategy can be beneficial in generating a positive effect on the students’ learning of a second language. Learners can also acquire the required skills for effectively communicating in English (Muhid, et al., 2020). Here, metacognitive strategies also facilitate this reading comprehension, thereby promoting performance and enhancing the understanding of an individual’s reading comprehension. Thus, systematic instruction about this metacognitive activity can help the students in improving their skills. Besides, problem solving activities can help in enhancing metacognition amongst students. It focuses on the three elements of awareness, regulation and evaluation for improving metacognitive skills in students (Intan, et al., 2016). This problem solving is associated with metacognitive activities that include complex, unpredictable, difficult and new tasks requiring effective skills of the individuals.

Metacognitive activity can also be enhanced with the help of metacognitive monitoring. It indicates the process of checking cognitive activities of the students (Avhustiuk, et al., 2018). Such checking also involves ascertaining how the results can help in generating solutions for various cognitive tasks that typically include doing tests, recalling answers and reading texts. This monitoring students to evaluate their own knowledge, knowledge of conditions influencing their learning process and knowledge of cognitive strategies. It also helps in reviewing explicit judgments of individuals about themselves that facilitate development of their learning processes (Avhustiuk, et al., 2018). This activity can be undertaken in the process of reading texts or in the process of words and statements learning. Thus, the complexity of tasks involved help in enhancing metacognitive abilities of the students engaging in these activities.

Metacognitive activity can be enhanced with the help of problem solving or test in the learning activity. It records the progress of a students’ learning having different academic abilities. Along with this, inquiry-based learning can also be helpful by undertaking a constructivism approach. Here, the idea and knowledge are developed by the students themselves instead of coming immediately from the teacher (Rahmat & Chanunan, 2018). This helps in improving metacognitive abilities of the students by enhancing their learning process. Thus, this learning process involves identifying, promoting and instructing the role of metacognition amongst the students.

Metacognition scaffolding is another wat for supporting metacognitive activities and facilitating problem solving processes in the classrooms. Students receiving metacognitive question prompts are expected to perform better in problem solving processes (An & Cao, 2014). This is because they display the ability of representing problems, generating solutions, providing justifications and monitoring and evaluating their own learning process. Metacognitive scaffolds further help students in developing problem solving plans and further monitor and evaluate their own progress. This is because these are effective in improving metacognitive processes of students that include planning, monitoring and evaluation (An & Cao, 2014). They also help in students’ knowledge construction and content learning alongside other metacognitive processes. In this regard, collaborative learning can further contribute towards facilitating metacognitive interaction between students (Molenaar, et al., 2014). This interaction of sharing existing knowledge and appreciating each other’s contributions without disagreement and with demands of justification help in enhancing the metacognitive activities as well. Thus, these are some of the ways that can help in enhancing metacognitive activities in students.

Improving Metacognitive Awareness

Metacognition enables students in taking charge of their own learning, thereby becoming more aware about how they learn, evaluating their learning needs, developing strategies for meeting these needs and implementing such strategies (Bahri & Corebima, 2015). The awareness of thinking and learning process through planning, monitoring and evaluation of what is learnt can help in improving metacognition awareness. Metacognitive awareness can be improved by asking students to reflect on their knowledge and things they care about in the learning process (Jaleel, 2016). This helps in developing their awareness about themselves alongside providing valuable feedback to improving metacognitive activities. Reflecting on the learning methods and performance in the classrooms and academic achievements can also improve metacognitive awareness. Besides, posing thoughtful questions to students by enabling them to use different strategies can also help in improving their awareness about academic tasks and own learning processes (Ellis, et al., 2014). Thus, this knowledge can further contribute towards increased metacognitive awareness of the students. 

References

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