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Research topics in:
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Education |
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Christensen, Sundey, "MATEMATICAS: El Sistema de Educación y la Enseñanza en el Liceo de San Carlos, Ciudad Quesada, Costa Rica." Adv. Jeanina Umaña. Carleton College. 1991. 55pp. This paper describes the educational system for mathematics in the seventh grade of the Liceo San Carlos in Ciudad Quesada, San Carlos, Costa Rica. This study includes the classroom management and methodology of the teachers and a questionaire dealing with the perceptions of the students with reagards to their classes. Coventry, Angela, "Good Morning Teacher! English as a foreign language in public elementary schools: Practical or political?" Adv. Jeanina Umaña. Colorado College. 1995. 58 pp. During the months of March and April of 1995, I studied the implementation of English in the Sámara community. In 1993, the Costa Rican government under the direction of President José María Figueres declared that all public schools should begin providing bilingual instruction in Spanish and English. As a second pilot project in 1995, English was introduced as an additional subject in the curriculum of first, second and third grades of selected rural schools throughout the country. Sámara being the location of two of those schools selected, my study was done in order to determine the community's initial reactions to the new program, as well as the community's expectations for the future of the children receiving English. I worked as an assistant teacher alternating between Torito and Sámara schools to observe the actual teaching situation, and completed questionnaires during informal interviews with the parents of children receiving English. This paper includes the results of these inquiries, as well as further personal insights into the politics involved in the new Program of Foreign Languages. Jackson, Pebbles, "Siquirres: A Case Study of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies- How Obvious are They?" Adv. Jeanina Umaña. Monmouth. 1990. 29pp. Teachers' expectations were researched at the Colegio Técnico Profesional Agropecuario de Siquirres, Costa Rica. The purpose of the project was to find out how obvious teachers' expectations are to outside observers and students, and if the expectations are reflected in individual and group scores. Individual studies were carried out in two seventh grade classes and group studies were carried out in two eighth grade classes. In the individual study the answer to the question of the visibility of teachers' expectations to the researcher and students was inconclusive. In the group study it was found that the teacher interaction with the groups was reflected in the grades and it was visible to both outside observers and the students. Larkin, Allison, "A Private Education Provides a Better Learning Environment than a Public Education in Urban Costa Rica: Proving a Hypothesis." Adv. Patricia Jiménez and Nancy Paddleford. Coe College. 1993. 50pp. The differences in learning environments at the primary school level were researched in San José, Costa Rica. The purpose of the project was to support the hypothesis that a private education provides a better learning environment than a public education in urban Costa Rica. Research was carried out in four primary schools, two private and two public in second through sixth grade. Investigation was conducted in the form of observation of classes, English instruction, interviews, surveys and literature research. In the end, it was concluded that the hypothesis is too general. The learning environment depends entirely on each specific school and what it has to offer. The public and private schools investigated have their advantages and disadvantages, and all students, parents and personnel involved have individual opinions concerning what is best. |
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Perron-Burdick, A., “Scarlet Macaw (Ara Macao) environmental education in the elementary schools of Quebrada de Ganado, Tárcoles, and Bijagual in the Central Pacific Coastal Region of Costa Rica.” Adv. Christopher S. Vaughan. The Colorado College. 2000. 10pp. An environmental education course on Scarlet Macaw (Ara macao) conservation was given to the 5th and 6th graders of Quebrada de Ganado, Tárcoles, and Bijagual. The education course consisted of three classroom lessons and two field trips. The students were given a 10 question questionare before and after the course to assess knowledge gained. There was a difference found in the number of right answers before and after the course. Before the course, Tárcoles and Quebrada de Ganado students knew more about Scarlet Macaw conservation than student from Bijagual. This could be due to Tárcoles and Quebrada de Ganado students having more direct contact with Scarlet Macaws and environmental education material. However, after the course Bijagual students consistently had a greater number of correct answers than those students from either Quebrada de Ganado or Tárcoles. This could be due to the small sample size and students’ attitudes in class. Shierholz, Heidi, "Assessing Attitudes Towards Mathematics in Costa Rica: Elementary-Aged Girls and Boys in Palmares, Alajuela." Adv. Jeanina Umaña. Grinnell. 1993. 28pp. During March and April of 1993, I studied the attitudes that elementary-aged students have towards mathematics in Palmares, Alajuela, Costa Rica. This research provides some insight into the general problem Costa Rica faces today of it's students not liking math and not doing well on national standardized math exams. Using classroom observation, written surveys and oral interviews with students, and oral interviews with parents of students and teachers, I was able to assess general attitudes towards math and propose some possible sources for these attitudes. Thompson, Kristie, "The Costa Rica Bilingual Education Plan in Three Public Puntarenas Schools." Adv. Rossina Bolaños Castro. Macalester College. 1997. 40pp. Costa Rican President, Jose Maria Figueres Olsen, wanted to use education as a means to help close the gap between the social classes in Costa Rica. In May of 1994, the Minister of Public Education, Dr. Eduardo Doryan, thought of implementing foreign language programs in the elementary schools in response to the request. By June of 1994, a pilot project with the foreign language program was implemented in 28 elementary schools, mostly in tourist areas of all seven provinces in the country. Because the first pilot project was a success, 252 schools were included for the second part in 1995, and this time more socioeconomic and ecological sectors of Costa Rica were included. Now in 1997, bilingual education programs have been implemented in a total of 578 elementary schools in Costa Rica. I spent the months of March and April, 1997, in 3 of these schools in the Puntarenas province. Here, I researched how the program was working for the schools with the different resources each school had. To do this, I observed the teachers and students during English instruction in the classrooms, and through questionnaires, interviewed the teachers and students for more information regarding attitudes, teachers' experiences and teaching strategies. All three of the schools have had the English program for at least two years, and I have studied the first cycle of the plan which includes the first, second, and third grades. Yasukawa, Steven, "Aviaunaves: Can Creating Stories Improve the Writing of Costa Rican Students?" Advisor: Dra. Zayra Méndez. Knox College. 2005. 79pp. This project attempts to discover whether students can improve their writing ability through instruction using creative writing techniques over a two-month span. Two fourth grade classes in a public school provided the data in the form of a pre-test and post-test. Seven different writing areas required of both Costa Rica and the United States governments served as analysis for the tests. The experimental methodology included reading prize-winning children's literature and performing creative writing activities, and the control instruction consisted of nonlanguage-related activities. The improvement by the experimental group surpassed that of the control group, but not significantly. |
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