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There are perceived economic and security concerns related to immigration and refugees among the population in many countries and the media sometimes convey an image of immigration and refugees as a social problem. It is therefore necessary to analyse that influence, especially in those who will have a direct relationship with the displaced, such as teachers. This study searched to determine the extent to which the frequency of use of different media influence attitudes towards refugees in 205 pre-service teachers, and to test whether attitudes related to cognitive factors influence affective attitudes towards refugees. A questionnaire has been used to measure the attitudes towards refugees in four dimensions: affective, economic labour, social, and immigration policy. The statistics used were descriptive analysis, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and analysis of simple and multiple linear regressions. The results suggest that cognitive factors such as attitudes towards economic labour, social, and immigration policy predict affective attitudes towards refugees. Regarding the use of media as a source of information about the refugee situation, the study indicates a clear influence of the media on attitudes in pre-service teachers, with more positive attitudes among those who did not use or made little use of the media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pre-service teachers need to develop strong self-beliefs about their ability to promote student learning. This study employed a quantitative descriptive approach with a survey method to examine pre-service primary school teachers' self-efficacy for teaching social studies and differences based on high school educational background and teaching experience. The participants were 60 undergraduate students in an Elementary School Teacher Education Program. The research instrument was a combination of selfcomposed statements and statements adapted from the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale and the Social Studies Teacher Self-Efficacy Scale. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, and an independent sample t-test. The findings indicated that preservice primary school teachers have a high level of self-efficacy, especially in the social studies learning dimension. It was found that a high school educational background made a significant difference in self-efficacy in teaching social studies in inquiry learning. However, there was no statistically significant difference in self-efficacy based on teaching experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the most necessary skills of the 21st century for problem solving, critical thinking should be taught and included in the curriculum of those schools in which inclusivity towards all their students is a priority. From this perspective, this study presents the educational implications for the teaching and evaluation of this skill. In addition, teachers' perceptions regarding the teaching methods used, evaluation techniques and limitations that they encounter at the moment of enhancing the critical thinking of their students are analysed. A descriptive-comprehensive research with a qualitative approach was adopted, with data collected from interviews with 10 primary education teachers in the Spanish educational system. The analysis suggests that, although there is some knowledge on the part of teachers about critical thinking skills, most of them are not able to respond to this learning need. They highlight the technique of joint discussion and interactions between teams as among the effective tools for fostering critical thinking skills. Notably, these teachers have referred to the existence of certain relationships between critical thinking and equitable and quality education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several recent studies in mathematics education have argued that, for reforms to be implemented effectively, teachers need to have appropriate support through high-quality professional development programs. Most programs, however, typically prepared by policymakers, focus on how to prepare teachers to use the intended curriculum. In this paper, taking a level-oriented approach, I examine in-service primary teachers' perspectives on school mathematics at the macro-level of the state and policies; the meso-level of the school and the wider community, and the micro-level of the classroom. Drawing on data from semi-structured interviews with 22 experienced teachers in Republic of Cyprus schools, I discuss the importance of examining teachers' perspectives on school mathematics before designing and implementing professional development programs that address curricula reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]