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Action research is a process that can ensure a continuous improvement in quality of education as it involves a continuous reflective process on the part of teachers, principals and school administrators to systematically investigate on-the-hand problems in their classrooms and schools and find out solutions to those problems.

The problems are understood in the context here they arise and solutions are found from within the available resources. The process is never a onetime intervention. Success in finding solutions of one problem gives way to identify the next problem and finding solution to it. Action research can serve many purposes to diagnose the problem, to experiment about the utility of a particular solution to a problem, or to develop a school wide programme for improvement in one or more aspects of teaching-learning process.
            For the purpose of the present study, the investigator’s target group is standard VI students of Chennai Middle School, NS Garden, Mylapore who find difficult in understanding the concept Landforms and its terminology. They do not have clear knowledge about different types of landforms.

In spite of all these problems faced by the standard VI students in landforms concept, the investigator thought that quality improvement at this stage will be helpful for the students.  In order to get rid of the above said problem, it was decided to give planned interventions using virtual activities.

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

Table 1: Distribution of the Pre test and Post test scores of the sample taken in Chennai Middle School, Mylapore-Standard VI

 

The pre-test mean 33.0 and the post test mean is 86.6.  Hence, the score gained due to exposure to the practices is 53.6. The pre-test and post test achievement score analysis reveals that the interventions adopted by the investigator in this action research had brought appropriate learning strategy to solve the problems of the concept. It is evident from the date analysis that the students of standard VI from Chennai Middle School, NS Garden, Mylapore who were taken as the target group for the study had solved the problem in their understanding level of the concept “Landforms”. As the investigator had pre planned, the interventions had gradually yielded the expected outcomes among the target group. Hence the investigator had decided to end the action research and not to proceed further to the next spiral. All the students who underwent the treatment gained more knowledge in the concept of “Landforms”
Net Gains for the Students
The beneficiaries of the action research are standard VI students of Chennai Middle School, NS Garden, Mylapore. They have solved the problems in their understanding level of the concept “Landforms”

• They have learnt the difference between Oceans and Seas.
• They have acquired more knowledge about the Landforms.
• Moreover students get involved in the classroom learning process.
• Classroom activities became child centered and had provided fun and joy to the students.
• They have learnt about the Classification of landforms.
• They have learnt about the different orders of Landforms.
• Through various activities, they gained the knowledge of Landforms and its terms.
• Their confidence level was increased.

 

Net Gains for the Teachers

• The teacher came to know the importance of virtual activities
• The teacher had developed self confidence in providing learner centered activities to the students.
• The teacher was motivated to use images and video clips in enriching the concept.

Net Gains for the School
The net gains of this action research to the school is that it has contributed much to the quality of upper primary education.

CONCLUSION

The study entitled “Understanding the hard Geographical terminology with reference to the landforms through effective images and videos for sixth standard students” was carried out for the sample of twenty- five students of standard VI of Chennai Middle School, NS Garden, Mylapore. In the beginning of action research, the investigator found that the students found difficult in understanding the concept of Landforms. They could not differentiate between Mountains and Plateaus. They got ambiguity in understanding the different Landforms.
Through Images and videos the investigator explained the concept Landforms. The investigator prepared virtual activities, PPT, Models, Map and Globe to solve the problems in their understanding level of the students. The investigator prepared various reinforcement activities to improve their skills. This attempt proved that the action research is highly useful for the students of Standard VI of Chennai Middle School, NS Garden, Mylapore, Chennai District.

REFERENCES

https://bera-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/ doi/abs/10.1111/bjet.12947
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10382046.2013.846700
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Moses-Ackah-Anlimachie/publication/33222 2151_Understanding_the_Causes_of_Students%27_weak_Performance_in_Geography_at_the_WASSCE_and_the_Implications_for_School_Practices_A_Case_of_Two_Senior_High_Schools_in_a_Rural_District_of_Ghana/links/5ca6f7aaa6fdcca26dfee823/Understanding-the-Causes-of-Students-weak-Performance-in-Geography-at-the-WASSCE-and-the-Implications-for-School-Practices-A-Case-of-Two-Senior-High-Schools-in-a-Rural-District-of-Ghana.pdf