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European Journal of Applied Sciences – Vol. 10, No. 2

Publication Date: April 25, 2022

DOI:10.14738/aivp.102.12199. Brew, B. (2022). Perceived Effects of Tutors’ Pedagogical skills on Academic Performance of Pre-service Deaf Teachers at the

Presbyterian College of Education, Akropong Akuapem. European Journal of Applied Sciences, 10(2). 499-508.

Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom

Perceived Effects of Tutors’ Pedagogical skills on Academic

Performance of Pre-service Deaf Teachers at the Presbyterian

College of Education, Akropong Akuapem

Bright Brew (MPhil)

Presbyterian College of Education, Akropong Akuapem, Ghana

Department of Educational Studies

ABSTRACT

This study explored the perceived effect of tutors’ pedagogical skills on the

academic performance of pre-service Deaf teachers at the Presbyterian College of

Education, Akropong Akuapem. The research design used was phenomenology

where eight pre-service Deaf teachers were purposively sampled for the study. Data

was collected by using face-to-face semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis

was employed to analyse the data. The results of the study showed that tutors’ way

of presentation makes it difficult for pre-service teachers who are deaf at the

Presbyterian College of Education, Akropong Akuapem to understand what is

taught. Again, it was found out that most tutors in the College could not use the Sign

Language effectively; therefore, they were not able to effectively communicate with

pre-service teachers who are deaf. Furthermore, it was revealed that pre-service

teachers who are deaf preferred practically oriented and demonstration lessons to

the theoretical style of learning to understand concepts taught. The paper

concludes that some tutors’ way of teaching negatively affect the academic

performance of pre-service Deaf teachers at the Presbyterian College of Education.

Keywords: Pedagogy, Pre-Service teacher, Universal Design for Learning (UDL),

Continuous Professional Development (CPD).

INTRODUCTION

The United Nation Convention on the Rights of the Child (2006) revealed that it is always

domineering that the voices of consumers of academic programmes be heard by the service

providers and all other stakeholders to improve the support services provided to the

consumers. Teaching methods comprise the principles and techniques used by teachers to

enhance learner’s learning and are predetermined partly on the subject matter to be taught and

partly by the nature of the learner. For a particular teaching method to be appropriate and

efficient, it must satisfy the learning style of the learner. Some learners are visual learners,

auditory and kinesthetic by nature. Teaching methods must consider not only the nature of the

subject matter but also how learners learn (Westwood, 2008). Accordingly, in designing

teaching approaches for pre-service teachers who are deaf, tutors must consider the opinions

of the learners. The teaching methods must be adapted to suit the learning needs and style of

the learner. For example, in academic disciplines such as adapted Physical Education,

Differentiated Teaching and Assessment the teaching methods, resources, approaches and the

environment are adapted to meet the needs of the learners.

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European Journal of Applied Sciences (EJAS) Vol. 10, Issue 2, April-2022

Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom

Pre-service teachers who are deaf have peculiar needs when compared to other groups of

learners with special needs. In Ghana, for instance, learners who are deaf access academic

information mainly through the Ghanaian Sign Language (GSL) across all levels of education.

However, Kalabula (2007) affirmed that most teachers and for that matter tutors who teach

learners who are deaf have little or no training in education for the deaf. This implies that

learners who are deaf struggle to go through academic work under the tutelage of such tutors.

Tutors’ inability to use sign language effectively might affect their teaching especially, when

teaching the Deaf. In the preparation of pre-service teachers who are deaf, there is always the

need for frequent classroom support services if they are to realize their academic potential.

Academic support that could enhance the understanding of pre-service teachers who are deaf

in relation to instructions in the classroom includes sign language interpreting services, note- taking services, and accessibility to internet facilities (Roe, 2008). O’Brien (1998) argues that

learners who are deaf must have complete access to all academic facilities to enhance their

learning outcomes.

Although Agomoh and Kanu (2011), Hauser et al. (2008), and Marschark et al. (2013) advised

teachers to be literate in sign language to be able to assist students who are deaf, it may still not

be enough to effectively educate students who are deaf, and teachers have to go beyond being

literate in sign language. Marschark, Sapere, Convertino, and Seewagen (2005) recognized that

even with interpreting and note-taking services provided for students who are deaf at the

tertiary level, they still receive less information from lectures and tutorials than their hearing

peers. This assertion is confirmed by Marschark et al. (2005) when they conducted a study on

deaf students’ experiences on sign language interpreting services at Rochester Institute of

Technology in the United States of America. Their study found out that participants that were

students who are deaf did not acquire as much information from lectures as their hearing peers,

even with experienced interpreters who were familiar with the students.

Evidence in the literature confirms that much is not known about the experiences and

challenges learners who are deaf at the Colleges of Education in Ghana. For instance, Oppong

and Fobi (2016) conducted a study about the gender differences in mathematics achievement

of learners who are deaf at the basic level, and another study by Oppong et al. (2018) focused

on the academic experiences of students who are deaf in a public university in Ghana. Other

studies elsewhere reported negative findings concerning academic experiences of learners who

are deaf who find themselves in the same learning environment as their hearing peers (Bell,

2013; Magongwa, 2008; Mantey, 2011). It is against this backdrop that this study is conducted

to explore how tutors’ methods of teaching affect the academic performance of pre-service

teachers who are deaf at the Presbyterian College of Education, Akropong Akuapem.

METHODOLOGY

Study Design

The study employed qualitative-phenomenological design. Phenomenological design was

chosen because the researcher sought to explore lived experiences of pre-service teachers who

are deaf as they are taught by tutors who are not deaf themselves. Due to the characteristics

design, it provides detail information on the lived experiences of the research participants (Gall

et al., 2007). According to Ary, Jacobs, Sorensen, and Razavieh (2010), phenomenological

studies are meant to explore participants’ perspectives and experiences of a phenomenon. The

view of Ary et al. was supported by Creswell (2012), that the primary purpose of