KONSEP SETTING DAN STRATEGI PENGELOLAAN RUANG BERMAIN DALAM PENGEMBANGAN KREATIVITAS ANAK USIA DINI

Penelitian ini untuk mengetahui: 1) konsep setting ruang bermain yang dapat menunjang kreativitas anak; 2) penataan ruang bermain yang dapat menunjang kreativitas anak yang sesuai dengan perkembangannya; 3) pengelolaan elemen fsik ruang bermain dalam mengembangkan kreativitas anak; 4) pola seting ruang bermain (indoor) yang dilakukan di dua tempat penitipan anak (TPA) besar di Yogyakarta. Jenis penelitian ini adalah penelitian lapangan (field research) bersifat deskriptif kualitatif non statistik dengan menggunakan studi kasus (case study). Data diperoleh melalui observasi, dokumentasi, dan wawancara kemudian dianalisis dengan analisis tringulasi Moleong, yakni tringulasi sumber, tringulasi dengan metode, dan tringulasi dengan teori. Penelitian ini dilakukan di dua tempat peneitipan anak (TPA) besar yang ada di Yogyakarta yaitu Taman Pengasuhan Anak (TPA) Beringharjo dan Lembaga Pendidikan Islam Terpadu Untuk Anak Usia Dini Tiara Candra. Hasil penelitian ini menemukan bahwa: 1) konsep setting ruang bermain yang pada setiap lembaga yaitu menggunakan konsep home schooling dengan beyound centre and circle times (BCCT). 2) penataan ruang bermain dengan menggunakan sistem pembelajaran berdasarkan BCCT dan sudut ruang bermain yang disesuaikan dengan peralatan  dan sesuai dengan masa perkembangannya. 3) pengelolaan elemen fisik ruang bermain seperti pemilihan warna dan furniture disesuaikan dengan kebutuhan anak serta tidak mengandung bahan yang berbahaya. 4) pola setting ruang bermain ditata sesuai dengan konsep ruang bermain seperti yang telah diprogramkan. Kata kunci: Ruang Bermain, Anak Usia Dini, Kreativitas

Matching/Mismatching of Teaching and Learning Styles and its Effects on Students Academic Achievement at Tertiary Level

In the recent past various researches have been conducted regarding the concept of matching/mismatching of teaching and learning styles; and its role in teaching learning process. Some of these researches emphasize that matching of teaching and learning styles in institutional academic programs help in improving students‘ academic performance and developing their interest and motivation towards learning. However some researchers oppose any such role and argue that there is no solid empirical evidence to conform to this idea of teaching learning styles.The researcher, therefore, decided to examine the relation of teaching learning styles with students‘ academic performance by conducting this causal-comparative research to put forth some further evidences across Pakistani culture. The overall purpose of the study was to explore the effect of matching/mismatching of teaching and learning styles on students‘ academic achievement in higher education. The study was causal- comparative in nature to study the cause and effect relationship between matching/mismatching of teaching learning styles and students‘ academic achievement. The sample for this study consisted of 120 teachers and 240 students of BS-4 year program in four disciplines (Physics, Chemistry, Botany and Mathematics) from six public sector universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Felder-Solomon Index of Learning Style (FSILS) was used for the identification of learning styles of students while Teaching Style Instrument developed by Letele et al. (2011) was used to identify teachers‘ teaching styles. These styles of students and teachers were then analyzed to see if they matched or mismatched. In order to see the effect of matching/mismatching on students‘ academic achievement, the final score of the students in the subjects taught by the teachers participating in the study was considered. The collected data was then tabulated and organized across various tables. Data analysis was made with the help of SPSS (Statistical Package for Social sciences). For comparing means, t-test for independent samples was used. The results showed that Visual learning style was the most favorite learning style followed by Balanced and Sensing learning style. Teaching style analysis showed that Visual teaching style was the most favorite style followed by Abstract and Sequential teaching styles. Group statistics indicated 42.75% matched cases and 57.25% mismatched cases. T-test for independent samples revealed a significant difference (p=.000) between the mean scores of matched group and mismatched group of students; and it was concluded that the students with matched learning styles performed significantly better than students with mismatched learning styles. In light of the findings, recommendations were advanced for teachers, students, educationists, researchers and policy makers.