議題融入資優教育教學設計的職前師資培育實踐與成效

Praxis and effect of implementing issue-based instructional design in preservice gifted education teacher preparation

議題融入課程是我國教育改革重要發展趨勢，資優教育也視議題融入為課程與教學調整方式，透過職前師資培育可提升師資生將議題融入資優教育教學的專業知能，但國內開設相關師培課程的運作方式、實施成效尚待檢視。本教學實踐研究旨在「議題融入資優教育教學設計」師資培育課程中，引導師資生設計思辨素養導向議題融入資優教學，評估學習成效，並提出研究者之反思與建議。研究資料蒐集包含教學者省思札記，19位師資生學習歷程文件、教學表現自評，輔以期末深度訪談及現場教師回饋，採量化與質性多元資料交叉比對分析。本研究採「設計本位學習」模式組織一學期16周的師培課程，作為師資生議題融入資優教學設計的鷹架，引導師資生探究議題、規劃課程、實施教學，增進實務轉化動能。學習成效方面，師資生在議題融入資優教育課程規劃、教學實施上皆有成長。研究者和現場教師合作，引導師資生採社會重建取向課程觀，開啟議題融入資優教育的實務探究意識，師資生在有感真知、概念辨析、永續延展之間，嘗試從學科知識內容導向，移轉為以學習者主體，規劃思辨素養導向議題融入資優課程，並運用批判思考教學，開展多元觀點的思辨空間。本研究從實務意識、課程規劃、教學轉化，引導師資生成為思辨設計師，並基於教學實踐反思，提出未來教學與研究之建議。

Rationale and Purpose: Integrating issues into curriculum guidelines and classroom settings is a major trend in curriculum reform in Taiwan; notably, such integration is a key method for modifying gifted education curriculum and instruction. Issue-based gifted education is based on the“curriculum as social reconstruction”approach. This approach adopts the critical pedagogy perspective, regarding educational institutions as intermediaries for social change. Referring to the 12-Year Basic Education competency-based instruction, issue-based gifted education oriented toward social reconstruction guides learners to identify and explore issues through autonomous action, engage in communicative interaction to reflect on issues, and propose viewpoints or actions as responses to create diverse opportunities for social participation (Ministry of Education, 2014). Therefore, enhancing the professional learning of preservice teachers in the area of issue-based gifted education is crucial. However, the literature is limited with respect to the praxis and effect of implementing issue-based instructional design in preservice gifted education teacher preparation in Taiwan. The present teaching praxis research was conducted to produce findings that could guide preservice teachers in exploring critical competency-based and issue-based gifted education through a teacher preparation course titled Issue-Based Gifted Education Instructional Design. Three questions guided this research: 1. What is the praxis for implementing issue-based instructional design in preservice gifted education teacher preparation? 2. What is the learning effect of implementing issue-based instructional design in preservice gifted education teacher preparation? 3. What are some key reflections and recommendations related to implementing issue-based instructional design in preservice gifted education teacher preparation? Methods: In the present teaching praxis research, the action research method—which emphasizes practical problems, action practice, and critical reflection—was employed. To meet the practical needs of teacher preparation, preservice teachers were guided to design critical competency-based instruction for a gifted education curriculum. Specifically, the teaching praxis research and learning effects of 19 preservice teachers were documented and evaluated. The research team comprised the instructor of the teacher education course, a research assistant, and a group of junior high school teachers who had extensive experience in issue-based education and experience in designing school-based gifted education curricula. The structure of the single-semester, 16-week Issue-Based Gifted Education Instructional Design teacher preparation course was based on the concept of design-based learning (Nelson, 2022). Data were collected through reflection notes, learning documents, interviews with preservice teachers, and self-evaluations related to teaching. Qualitative and quantitative data analyses were conducted. To ensure the trustworthiness of this study, its research instruments were tested for dialectical, critical and reflective validity. Findings: In the present teacher preparation course, both the instructor and the preservice teachers underwent a process of reflection, dialogue, understanding, awareness, and self-criticism, culminating in the development of an ability termed“embracing consciousness.”This experience not only helped the preservice teachers to perceive the integration of thinking skills into gifted education instruction but also enabled them to develop professionally at the conscious, directional, and design-oriented levels. The findings revealed that implementing design-based learning as a teacher preparation framework provided an appropriate learning scaffold that can meet the needs of preservice teachers with respect to issue exploration, curriculum planning, and teaching practice. The preservice teachers in this study acquired a practical understanding of curriculum design through their instructional design work. In addition, they explored personally relevant issues by designing short activities for high school students, learned to encourage critical thinking in students through microteaching, and investigated concept-based curriculum planning through the design of 8–10-week lesson plans. Subsequently, the preservice teachers worked in groups to design four lesson plans, each focusing on one of four themes (i.e., animal welfare, information design, safe evaluation, or eco-balance). Regarding learning effects, the preservice teachers developed their abilities in both curriculum planning and teaching practice. In terms of curriculum planning, the preservice teachers gradually shifted their focus from conveying knowledge to creating opportunities for critical thinking and encouraging students to develop diverse perspectives and personal opinions. The preservice teachers appeared to think dialectically between accumulating knowledge and analyzing concepts for guiding issue exploration. They attempted to identify entry points of curriculum planning for learner subjectivity. Ultimately, the preservice teachers came to largely understand that issue exploration is a continuous thinking process where the pursuit of learning outcomes is not a one-way endpoint but rather an ongoing and sustained process of knowledge transfer and knowledge extension. In terms of teaching practice, the self-evaluation results obtained using the Observation Scale for Issue-Based Teaching at the beginning and end of the course revealed that the preservice teachers had improved in all dimensions of critical competency-based and issue-based gifted education instruction, as detailed as follows (presented in descending order of score): generating communication and interaction (0.5), working toward clearer understanding (0.32), cultivating thinking dispositions (0.31), consideration of student subjectivity (0.27), establishing a solid foundation (0.26), and forming reasonable inferences (0.19). Conclusions: The preservice teachers in this study developed plans for issue-based gifted education, considering elements such as learning context, guidance, and learning outcomes. They learned to design issue-based critical learning experiences that considered learner subjectivity regarding perceptive understanding, concept discernment, and sustainable knowledge extension. In addition, their curriculum planning focus shifted from subject knowledge to learner subjectivity. Critical thinking became the instructional foundation for encouraging issue-based higher order thinking. Finally, they learned how to guide students to think critically by seeking clarity, establishing foundations, making references, and engaging in interactions. Essentially, the preservice teachers seemed to become designers of criticality through praxis consciousness, curriculum design, and instructional transformation. Implementations/Recommendations: On the basis of the present findings, suggestions for further investigations are proposed as follows. First, although the main objective of the present teacher preparation course was to closely simulate an actual teaching and learning environment, the preservice teachers were not given opportunities to apply what they had learned in a practical setting (e.g., a high school classroom). Thus, such practical application remains a challenge that the teacher educator must overcome in the future. Second, a design framework for critical competencies in issue-based gifted education instruction was developed on the basis of the present findings. This framework emphasizes learner subjectivity with respect to creating spaces for thinking about issues, forming personal opinions through discussion and dialogue, and promoting exploration and thinking. Under this framework, learners oscillate between expanding their knowledge and constructing prototypes, conducting conceptual analyses of issues, and proposing practical actions in response to issues. These activities enable learners to improve their ability to think about issues and initiate new inquiry cycles, thereby transforming them into investigators who can think about issues sustainably. Gifted education practitioners could apply and further examine this framework. Finally, a key area for future exploration is how critical thinking can be applied to guide preservice teachers in implementing problem-proposing methods and addressing diverse differences in students’higher order thinking abilities. Accordingly, preservice teachers must learn, while considering the diversity of gifted students, to cultivate the spontaneous curiosity required for issue exploration and the epistemological curiosity necessary for communicating with others and shaping subjectivity.