The International Project for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) was formed in the 1950s (Postlethwaite, 1967). Since that time, the IEA has conducted many studies in the area of mathematics, such as the First International Mathematics Study (FIMS) in 1964, the Second International Mathematics Study (SIMS) in 1980-1982, and a series of studies beginning with the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) which has been conducted every 4 years since 1995. According to Stigler et al. (1999), in the FIMS and the SIMS, U.S. students achieved low scores in comparison with students in other countries (p. 1). The TIMSS 1995 “Videotape Classroom Study” was therefore a complement to the earlier studies conducted to learn “more about the instructional and cultural processes that are associated with achievement” (Stigler et al., 1999, p. 1). The TIMSS Videotape Classroom Study is known today as the TIMSS Video Study. From the findings of the TIMSS 1995 Video Study, Stigler and Hiebert (1999) likened teaching to “mountain ranges poking above the surface of the water,” whereby they implied that we might see the mountaintops, but we do not see the hidden parts underneath these mountain ranges (pp. 73-78). By watching the videotaped lessons from Germany, Japan, and the United States again and again, they discovered that “the systems of teaching within each country look similar from lesson to lesson. At least, there are certain recurring features [or patterns] that typify many of the lessons within a country and distinguish the lessons among countries” (pp. 77-78). They also discovered that “teaching is a cultural activity,” so the systems of teaching “must be understood in relation to the cultural beliefs and assumptions that surround them” (pp. 85, 88). From this viewpoint, one of the purposes of this dissertation was to study some cultural aspects of mathematics teaching and relate the results to mathematics teaching and learning in Vietnam. Another research purpose was to carry out a video study in Vietnam to find out the characteristics of Vietnamese mathematics teaching and compare these characteristics with those of other countries. In particular, this dissertation carried out the following research tasks: - Studying the characteristics of teaching and learning in different cultures and relating the results to mathematics teaching and learning in Vietnam - Introducing the TIMSS, the TIMSS Video Study and the advantages of using video study in investigating mathematics teaching and learning - Carrying out the video study in Vietnam to identify the image, scripts and patterns, and the lesson signature of eighth-grade mathematics teaching in Vietnam - Comparing some aspects of mathematics teaching in Vietnam and other countries and identifying the similarities and differences across countries - Studying the demands and challenges of innovating mathematics teaching methods in Vietnam – lessons from the video studies Hopefully, this dissertation will be a useful reference material for pre-service teachers at education universities to understand the nature of teaching and develop their teaching career. / Das International Project for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) wurde in den 1950er Jahren gegründet. Seitdem führte das IEA viele Studien in Bereich mathematischer Bildung durch, insbesondere die First International Mathematics Study (FIMS) im Jahre 1964, die Second International Mathematics Study (SIMS) in den Jahren 1980–1982 und eine Reihe von Studien, die mit der Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) begann und seit 1995 alle vier Jahre durchgeführt wird. Nach Stigler et al. (1999) erreichten US-amerikanische Studenten bei FIMS und SIMS niedrigere Ergebnisse als Schüler anderer Länder (S. 1). Daher wurde TIMSS 1995 erweitert um eine ‘Videotape Classroom Study’ mit dem Ziel, „mehr über die unterrichtlichen und kulturellen Prozesse, die mit Leistung zusammenhängen“, zu erfahren (S. 1; Übersetzung vom engl. Original). Von den Ergebnissen der TIMMS 1995 Video Study ausgehend verglichen Stigler und Hiebert (1999) Unterricht mit „Gebirgszügen, die die Wasseroberfläche durchstoßen“, womit sie ausdrücken sollten, was die Bergspitzen sichtbar, große Teile des Gebirges aber unter dem Wasser verborgen sind (S. 73–78; Übersetzung vom engl. Original). Durch die wiederholte Analyse videographierter Unterrichtsstunden aus Deutschland, Japan und den USA entdeckten sie, dass „die Arten des Unterrichts innerhalb jedes Landes von Stunde zu Stunde ähnlich sind. Zumindest gibt es bestimmte wiederkehrende Aspekte [oder Skripte], welche für viele Stunden eines Landes typisch sind und die Stunden gegenüber anderen Ländern abgrenzen“ (S. 77f.). Sie entdeckten außerdem, dass Unterricht eine „kulturelle Aktivität“ ist, Unterrichtsarten also „verstanden werden müssen in Relation zu den kulturellen Überzeugungen und Annahmen, die sie umgeben“ (S. 85, 88). Hierauf aufbauend war es ein Ziel der Dissertation, kulturelle Aspekte des Mathematikunterricht zu untersuchen und die Ergebnisse mit Mathematikunterricht in Vietnam zu vergleichen. Ein weiteres Ziel war die Erhebung der Charakteristika vietnamesischen Mathematikunterricht durch eine Videostudie in Vietnam und der anschließende Vergleich dieser Charakteristika mit denen anderer Länder. Im Einzelnen befasste sich diese Dissertation mit den folgenden Forschungszielen: - Untersuchung der Charakteristika von Lehren und Lernen in unterschiedlichen Kulturen und vorläufiger Vergleich der Resultate mit dem Lehren und Lernen von Mathematik in Vietnam - Einführung der TIMSS und der TIMSS Video Study und der methodologischen Vorteile von Videostudien für die Untersuchung von Mathematikunterricht in Vietnam - Durchführung der Videostudie in Vietnam, um Unterrichtsskripte des Mathematikunterrichts in 8. Klassen in Vietnam zu identifizieren - Vergleich ausgewählter Aspekte des Mathematikunterrichts in Vietnam mit denen anderer Länder auf der Grundlage der Videostudie in Vietnam und Diskussion von Ähnlichkeiten und Unterschieden zwischen Ländern - Untersuchung der Herausforderungen für eine Innovation der Unterrichtsmethoden im Mathematikunterricht Vietnams Diese Dissertation entstand in der Hoffnung, dass sie eine nützliche Referenz für Lehramtsstudenten zum Verständnis der Natur des Unterrichts und zur Entwicklung der eigenen Lehrerpersönlichkeit darstellen möge.

The thesis is focused on four levels of the Inquiry-Based Science Education (IBSE). The first chapter describes IBSE in detail and also highlights the studies focused on the efficiency of IBSE. Pendulum and hydrostatic pressure experiments worksheets were created on the four levels of IBSE. A questionnaire reflecting some aspects of students' personalities were created and students were split into groups according to their answers. Another questionnaire about experiments and understanding of the physical phenomena was created. The central theme of this thesis focuses on the students' activities while they were working on the created worksheets. First year students from high school experimented following the created worksheets and they were recorded on the video during their work. We used codes to describe and differentiate the activities in the videos and we studied their distribution afterwards. From the recordings we then obtained information about the students' activities during experimentation at different levels of IBSE.

Title: Physics demonstrations for upper secondary school students - video study Author: Bc. Alexandr Nikitin Department: Department of Physics Education Supervisor: RNDr. Marie Snětinová, Ph.D., Department of Physics Education Abstract: Experiment is a key element not only for physics as science, but also for physics education. Even though attention has been lately focused more on students' hands-on experiments, demonstration experiments still play an important role in today's education. Department of Physics Education (Charles University, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics) has been performing physics demonstrations for upper secondary school students for more than 30 years. Seven different topics are currently offered by the Department. A survey conducted on a population of est. 5,100 students showed that the perception of these topics by students varies quite significantly, especially considering their intrinsic motivation and subjectively perceived value and usefulness of a given topic. The questions at hand are whether parameters that influence students' perception in negative or positive way do exist and how they are related to the choice of the experiments themselves or the lecturer's work with the audience. Aim of this thesis is to present a video study conducted on video recordings of all seven...

The theme and scope of submitted thesis is "Activating methods and forms in teaching of natural sciences" then followed with regard to the author's certification in chemistry and biology. The thesis is solved in conformity with requirements of the Framework Educational Programme, especially the change of the teaching style in schools. The thesis is written down with respect of a natural continuation of previous work of the author - diploma thesis dealt with project teaching and rigorous thesis was focused on cooperative activities. With regard to the objectives of submitted work the design of the research project is divided into two component parts: a questionnaire survey and a video study.