Vassilis Tsafos, Ph.D., is a Professor of Pedagogical Theory and Curriculum in the Preschool Teacher Education Department, University of Athens, Greece. He has worked in Secondary Schools in Greece as a teacher and in the Pedagogical Institute of Greece as a Deputy Councillor. He is a CARN member. His research and writing is particularly informed by educational action research, narrative inquiry, curriculum studies, teacher development, pre- and in-service teacher education.
The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History... more The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History that was produced within the framework of the Project for the Education of the Muslim Minority in Thrace (PEM) in the Junior High Schools of Thrace. The experimental investigation of PEM materials, based on the reports of the 10 teachers involved and the various scenarios they produced, showed that the alternative approach to school history, which was proposed by the PEM material, gradually: (a) empowered students by building their interest with significant learning outcomes and (b) contributed to the professional development of teachers, enhancing their exploratory and critical attitudes, while making them more inventive and creative.
Σύμφωνα με τη Eurostat (2014) περισσότερο από το ένα τρίτο (1/3) του ελληνικού πληθυσμού βρίσκετα... more Σύμφωνα με τη Eurostat (2014) περισσότερο από το ένα τρίτο (1/3) του ελληνικού πληθυσμού βρίσκεται κάτω από το όριο της φτώχειας. Η παρούσα έρευνα υλοποιήθηκε στο πλαίσιο των δράσεων του προγράμματος TOCSIN (βλ. www.tocsin.uth.gr) με την υποστήριξη του Χρηματοδοτικού Μηχανισμού του ΕΟΧ (ΓΓΕΤ – ΧΜ ΕΟΧ), με στόχο τη μελέτη των απόψεων και των αναπαραστάσεων των εκπαιδευτικών σχετικά με τις συνέπειες της ολοένα αυξανόμενης οικονομικής κρίσης σε ευάλωτους πληθυσμούς της πρώιμης σχολικής και προσχολικής ηλικίας. Στην έρευνα συμμετείχαν 316 διευθυντές και προϊστάμενοι δημοτικών και νηπιαγωγείων, κυρίως από τους Νομούς Αττικής, Θεσσαλονίκης και Μαγνησίας, οι οποίοι συμπλήρωσαν ηλεκτρονικά ένα ερωτηματολόγιο ειδικά κατασκευασμένο για τους σκοπούς της έρευνας. Τα στοιχεία της έρευνας αφορούν συνολικά σε 20.155 μαθητές, 5.688 της προσχολικής εκπαίδευσης και 15.070 των τριών πρώτων τάξεων του δημοτικού. Η έρευνα έδειξε ότι αυτό που επλήγη περισσότερο είναι η συμμετοχή των παιδιών σε σχολικές δ...
The main aim of this paper is to illustrate the process through which curriculum development util... more The main aim of this paper is to illustrate the process through which curriculum development utilizing critical action research can contribute in the democratization in education. So it focuses on the potential of the interaction between teachers and students through developing cooperative and participatory practices in the context of conducting action research. All the specific examples presented in this paper are derived from the Greek educational system which is fully-controlled and highly-centralised. This choice makes the argument presented in the paper stronger: even in our times when in most western countries the neo-liberal policies in education are dominant and impose homogenisation, centralisation, austere accountability, and the disempowerment of teachers, there is still room for freedom, where teachers and students can interact, reflect and judge in the classroom, where the real curriculum can be developed. And –as we try to show in the paper- critical action research ca...
The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History... more The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History that was produced within the framework of the Project for the Education of the Muslim Minority in Thrace (PEM) in the Junior High Schools of Thrace. The experimental investigation of PEM materials, based on the reports of the 10 teachers involved and the various scenarios they produced, showed that the alternative approach to school history, which was proposed by the PEM material, gradually: (a) empowered students by building their interest with significant learning outcomes and (b) contributed to the professional development of teachers, enhancing their exploratory and critical attitudes, while making them more inventive and creative.
In this article, we try to present the scientific tendencies on the students’ role in designing a... more In this article, we try to present the scientific tendencies on the students’ role in designing and developing the curriculum in order to highlight the contribution of this process in the improvement of the educational practice. The article is divided into three parts. At the first part, the introduction, we give the student picture according to the interdisciplinary field of sciences of education and the subsequent role of the student in the educational process. The second part presents the alternatives perspectives and trends that emerged (students as researchers, critical pedagogy), that is the gradual path to the stage where the students realise their voice and demand their presence. The article concludes with a quote of the criticism that is mainly based in the postmodern approach and focuses on the ways student voice is created, displayed and legitimised.
The aim of the paper is to demonstrate how deconstructing a narrative in educational action resea... more The aim of the paper is to demonstrate how deconstructing a narrative in educational action research, under certain conditions, can contribute to recognising the participants' identities and shed more light on their subjec-tivities, revealing their interpretations and representations, and thus providing them with rich feedback for reflection. To achieve its aim, the paper includes two basic parts: the relevant theoretical framework of combining the two research approaches (action research and narrative in-quiry) is presented in the first part. In the second part an action research project undertaken by a group of school headmasters is presented, in or-der to discuss the proposed procedure, its prospects and limitations. Final-ly, the contrast between the transformative expectations concerning par-ticipants’ identities and the less optimistic results on their reflective prac-tice is presented and interpreted in the discussion.
The basic aim of this paper is to specify in what extent the current L1 curricula of compulsory e... more The basic aim of this paper is to specify in what extent the current L1 curricula of compulsory education in Greece incorporate students' subjectivities (their lived experiences, views, beliefs, their interpretation of the world) fostering agency or opt for the reproduction of the ...
The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History... more The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History that was produced within the framework of the Project for the Education of the Muslim Minority in Thrace (PEM) in the Junior High Schools of Thrace. The experimental investigation of PEM materials, based on the reports of the 10 teachers involved and the various scenarios they produced, showed that the alternative approach to school history, which was proposed by the PEM material, gradually: (a) empowered students by building their interest with significant learning outcomes and (b) contributed to the professional development of teachers, enhancing their exploratory and critical attitudes, while making them more inventive and creative.
Σύμφωνα με τη Eurostat (2014) περισσότερο από το ένα τρίτο (1/3) του ελληνικού πληθυσμού βρίσκετα... more Σύμφωνα με τη Eurostat (2014) περισσότερο από το ένα τρίτο (1/3) του ελληνικού πληθυσμού βρίσκεται κάτω από το όριο της φτώχειας. Η παρούσα έρευνα υλοποιήθηκε στο πλαίσιο των δράσεων του προγράμματος TOCSIN (βλ. www.tocsin.uth.gr) με την υποστήριξη του Χρηματοδοτικού Μηχανισμού του ΕΟΧ (ΓΓΕΤ – ΧΜ ΕΟΧ), με στόχο τη μελέτη των απόψεων και των αναπαραστάσεων των εκπαιδευτικών σχετικά με τις συνέπειες της ολοένα αυξανόμενης οικονομικής κρίσης σε ευάλωτους πληθυσμούς της πρώιμης σχολικής και προσχολικής ηλικίας. Στην έρευνα συμμετείχαν 316 διευθυντές και προϊστάμενοι δημοτικών και νηπιαγωγείων, κυρίως από τους Νομούς Αττικής, Θεσσαλονίκης και Μαγνησίας, οι οποίοι συμπλήρωσαν ηλεκτρονικά ένα ερωτηματολόγιο ειδικά κατασκευασμένο για τους σκοπούς της έρευνας. Τα στοιχεία της έρευνας αφορούν συνολικά σε 20.155 μαθητές, 5.688 της προσχολικής εκπαίδευσης και 15.070 των τριών πρώτων τάξεων του δημοτικού. Η έρευνα έδειξε ότι αυτό που επλήγη περισσότερο είναι η συμμετοχή των παιδιών σε σχολικές δ...
The main aim of this paper is to illustrate the process through which curriculum development util... more The main aim of this paper is to illustrate the process through which curriculum development utilizing critical action research can contribute in the democratization in education. So it focuses on the potential of the interaction between teachers and students through developing cooperative and participatory practices in the context of conducting action research. All the specific examples presented in this paper are derived from the Greek educational system which is fully-controlled and highly-centralised. This choice makes the argument presented in the paper stronger: even in our times when in most western countries the neo-liberal policies in education are dominant and impose homogenisation, centralisation, austere accountability, and the disempowerment of teachers, there is still room for freedom, where teachers and students can interact, reflect and judge in the classroom, where the real curriculum can be developed. And –as we try to show in the paper- critical action research ca...
The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History... more The pilot application in the history lesson sought to experimentally test the material of History that was produced within the framework of the Project for the Education of the Muslim Minority in Thrace (PEM) in the Junior High Schools of Thrace. The experimental investigation of PEM materials, based on the reports of the 10 teachers involved and the various scenarios they produced, showed that the alternative approach to school history, which was proposed by the PEM material, gradually: (a) empowered students by building their interest with significant learning outcomes and (b) contributed to the professional development of teachers, enhancing their exploratory and critical attitudes, while making them more inventive and creative.
In this article, we try to present the scientific tendencies on the students’ role in designing a... more In this article, we try to present the scientific tendencies on the students’ role in designing and developing the curriculum in order to highlight the contribution of this process in the improvement of the educational practice. The article is divided into three parts. At the first part, the introduction, we give the student picture according to the interdisciplinary field of sciences of education and the subsequent role of the student in the educational process. The second part presents the alternatives perspectives and trends that emerged (students as researchers, critical pedagogy), that is the gradual path to the stage where the students realise their voice and demand their presence. The article concludes with a quote of the criticism that is mainly based in the postmodern approach and focuses on the ways student voice is created, displayed and legitimised.
The aim of the paper is to demonstrate how deconstructing a narrative in educational action resea... more The aim of the paper is to demonstrate how deconstructing a narrative in educational action research, under certain conditions, can contribute to recognising the participants' identities and shed more light on their subjec-tivities, revealing their interpretations and representations, and thus providing them with rich feedback for reflection. To achieve its aim, the paper includes two basic parts: the relevant theoretical framework of combining the two research approaches (action research and narrative in-quiry) is presented in the first part. In the second part an action research project undertaken by a group of school headmasters is presented, in or-der to discuss the proposed procedure, its prospects and limitations. Final-ly, the contrast between the transformative expectations concerning par-ticipants’ identities and the less optimistic results on their reflective prac-tice is presented and interpreted in the discussion.
The basic aim of this paper is to specify in what extent the current L1 curricula of compulsory e... more The basic aim of this paper is to specify in what extent the current L1 curricula of compulsory education in Greece incorporate students' subjectivities (their lived experiences, views, beliefs, their interpretation of the world) fostering agency or opt for the reproduction of the ...
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