Academic achievement varies according to the perception of learning environments (LE). The current study aimed to investigate how the perception of LE differs according to level of academic achievement. 1,106 Thai undergraduate students replied to a survey. Analyzing the data with One-way analysis of variance differences were found in perception of the LE in terms of task orientation and instructor feedback. Average-achieving students perceived task orientation higher than high and low-achieving students. High-achieving students perceived instructor feedback the most. This study provides insights into each type of LE applied in the classroom and suggests how individual academic achievers can be suitably enhanced.

Organization of Learning Environment in Foreign Montessori Schools

The article presents the look into Montessori schools whose aim is to provide care, development, upbringing and teaching of children from 8 weeks to 18 years old in correspondence with Maria Montessori’s theory and philosophy of education. In modern pedagogical literature there is no single distinct classification of Montessori schools though in Western European countries and the USA Montessori educational establishments are distinguished by the curriculum they use and the age of children studying there. Thus, there has been made an attempt to generalize and summarize their distinctive features and make up an age-curriculum Motnessori schools classification which includes: 1) infant schools, whose curriculum focuses on the holistic development of children from 8 weeks to 18 months old, 2) toddler schools aiming at sensory development of 18 to 36-month-old kids and their acquisition of practical life, language, Math and writing readiness skills, 3) primary schools for 3-to-6- year-olds with the curriculum in correspondence with all areas of formal curriculum, 4) elementary schools (6–11 y.o.) with multi-age school curriculum which contributes to social dynamics and facilitates pupils favorable inclusion in collective learning peculiar of this age group, develops their academic interest and curiosity and based on intellectual exercises supports their easy and natural transition to abstract thinking, 5) middle schools whose curriculum is specially composed to develop 11–14 years old children academically, socially and emotionally. More detailed attention is paid to the creation of learning environment in the early childhood and primary educational establishments. It is stated that the main aim of the created learning environment is to sustain and strengthen the child’s feeling of independence and form their motivation to seek knowledge. Having analyzed the work of modern foreign Montessori schools, it’s for the first time that three kinds of the learning environment have been distinguished among them school area developmental learning environment, in-school and classroom learning environments. As it has been found out, learning environment in modern Montessori schools is based on the initial rules of formation the “prepared” environment by Maria Montessori. It can be conditionally divided into zones which correspond with the chapters of curriculum for each age group taking into account children sensory development stage. These zones include a practical life zone, a zone of sensory development, a speech learning zone, a Math zone and a cosmic or culture zone. In each of them learning materials are easy to reach and ordered from the simplest to more complex so that the children could pick up the ones which satisfy their current needs.

The research aims to obtain empirical evidence of the reliability, dimensionality, and validity of instruments of higher-order thinking learning environment inventory (HOTLEI). Data was collected using quantitative methods with the Rasch model analysis. The numbers sample is 1361 students from 15 junior high schools in DKI Jakarta, West Java, and Banten. The research concluded that the measurement reliability was at a good level and excellent in extensive trials. The HOTLEI fulfils unidimensionality adequacy based on raw variance explained of 31.6% and 42.3%, and eigenvalues less than 3.0. A mount of 32 valid items is categorised as productive for HOTLEI measurement.

Why do children like school? Friendly contemporary school – results of own research

In the discussion about the modern school, as an institution and a building, there are many social actors, often with different positions. More and more often, though still rarely, the students’ voice is allowed. Their perspective, as many studies show, can be extremely different from that of adults. The aim of my research was to recognize and understand the primary school students’ perspective in terms of their experience of the broadly understood school space and to describe the material and nonmaterial conditions of spaces in which children feel good and like to learn. I conducted my research in 2021 and 2022, shortly after the pandemic and the remote learning. I conducted the research in an interdisciplinary, qualitative approach among 12 students functioning in four different educational systems and environments: home education, private urban schools, public urban schools and public rural schools. The results of my research indicate that children need variety in the school space to feel comfortable and learn effectively. Respondents’ statements revealed several key factors important in places of learning: sense of security, free learning, completeness of the place, possibility to ask questions, consideration of home conditions and setting specific boundaries for the place of formal learning.