Creativity and artistic enjoyment are frequently discussed as important aims within arts education, yet limited attention has been paid to how everyday classroom communication shapes students' lived experience of artistic work. This study examines how contrasting communicative framings of the same artistic task influence pupils' reported aesthetic and creative experience in lower secondary education. Using a small-scale exploratory quasi-experimental design, two intact lower secondary classes (students aged 12-13; N = 60) completed the same art activity under two different communicative framing conditions. Data were collected through a brief post-activity questionnaire combining Likert-type items and open-ended responses. While both conditions supported positive engagement, consistent differences emerged in experiential orientation. Under normative mediation, students more frequently described deliberation and task completion, whereas under open mediation they more often articulated freedom, inspiration and expressive identification. The findings suggest that teacher language does not determine enjoyment but modulates how artistic activity is inhabited. By foregrounding communicative mediation as a professional dimension of teaching practice, the study offers empirical support for integrating reflective attention to classroom discourse into teacher education.
Cooperative learning is an effective instructional strategy in science education, yet many teachers underuse it due to management challenges and doubts about its effectiveness. This study investigated how cooperative microteaching practices (CoMP) influence pre-service science teachers' (PSTs) understanding of cooperative learning and beliefs about using cooperative learning in science teaching. Using a quasi-experimental non-equivalent control group design with 64 senior PSTs in a science teaching methods course, both groups designed and delivered inquiry-based microteaching, but only the experimental group incorporated CL strategies. We measured self-efficacy beliefs with the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument and examined beliefs and understanding of cooperative learning using the Cooperative Learning in Science Education Questionnaire. While no significant group differences emerged for general science teaching self-efficacy, the results indicate more positive implementation-oriented beliefs among PSTs in the cooperative microteaching group compared to the control group, particularly regarding expectancy of success and confidence in classroom management within cooperative settings. CoMP students also demonstrated more sophisticated conceptualizations of cooperative learning. These findings underscore the value of integrating cooperative learning into pre-service education to promote instructional confidence and collaborative pedagogical practices.
This study examines Bhutanese pre-service teachers' perceived level of ICT competency, as defined by the TPACK framework, to understand their readiness to integrate technology into their teaching practices. Thus, this study collected data from 354 pre-service teachers in Bhutan using a survey that assessed individual factors, TPACK knowledge domains, and TPACK practice domains. The findings reveal that while Bhutanese pre-service teachers possess moderate confidence in their overall TPACK knowledge and practice, their Technological Knowledge (TK) remains notably lower than their content and pedagogical knowledge. Analyses further show that academic year and prior ICT course experience are positively associated with TPACK knowledge and practice, whereas gender differences are not significant. These results highlight the need for teacher education programs in Bhutan to strengthen basic technological skills and to provide more systematic, practice-based opportunities for designing and implementing technology-enhanced lessons, thereby realizing national ICT-in-education policy goals in classroom practice.
