It’s something that I feel like writing,instead of writing because I’m being told to: elementary boys’ experiences writing and performing poetry

Poetry is one of the most feared and least understood literary genres in our public schools. Boys, in particular, are frequently perceived to be resistant to poetry instruction; a view that often stems from a limited vision of what poetry is and a misread of masculinity. Nevertheless, the study of poetry provides many benefits in the journey to becoming a competent and expressive writer. In this study, the writing practices of 20 fourth- and fifth-grade boys in a low socioeconomic US urban school were investigated as they engaged in the writing and performance of poetry across a 4-week poetic genre study. Audio-recordings of interview responses, video-recordings of poetry performances, drafts of participants’ original poems, and other relevant classroom artifacts were analysed using interpretive analytic methods to identify themes in and across data sources. Analyses revealed that it was possible to create an environment in which these elementary-aged boys were willing (and sometimes even eager) to engage with poetry. This engagement with and enjoyment of poetry appeared to originate from several sources. First, through the freedom and choice afforded by poetry, participants were able to give voice to those experiences, thoughts, and feelings that were important to them. Second, through the use of mentor texts and role models of visiting poets, participants appropriated and transformed the voices around them to create poems which arguably incorporated some sophisticated language and literary devices. Third, through poetry performance, participants found a space in which their voices could be heard and valued.     

Student teachers’ emotional teaching experiences in relation to different teaching methods

The role of emotional experiences in teacher training is acknowledged, but the role of emotions during first experiences of classroom teaching has not been examined in large samples. This study examines the teaching methods used by student teachers in early teaching practice and the relationship between these methods and emotions experienced. We modified the Academic Emotions Questionnaire for the assessment of emotions and used an abridged version of the Instructional Approaches Questionnaire for the assessment of teaching methods. The results indicate that good preparation and a willingness to use constructivist pupil-oriented methods reduce student teachers’ negative experiences and promote learning about teaching.     

Teacher Education Programmes and Their Contribution to Student Teacher Efficacy in Classroom Management and Pupil Engagement

This study focuses on how different educational programmes contribute to student teachers efficacy for classroom management and their abilities to provide learning opportunities and good classroom outcomes. Data were gathered from 491 student teachers attending different teacher education programmes in Norway and analysed via structural equation modelling. The results revealed the following: (1) problem behaviour in the classroom has a negative effect on student teacher efficacy, (2) students' perceptions of the integration of pedagogic knowledge and practice supports students' efficacy beliefs, (3) support from supervisors contributes positively to student teachers' efficacy beliefs, and (4) student teachers in university college programmes for primary school teaching report higher teacher efficacy than students in university programmes for secondary school teaching.     

中国语境下的教师反馈与英语学习者的写作

在外语教学和学习中,动机的研究一直是一个焦点,具体来讲学生对写作的态度是否会影响学生的写作水平也成为了研究者的另一个关注点。作为英语写作教学中的重要因素,教师反馈将会对学生的动机产生影响,但在之前的研究中多集中在两者其中之一对学生成就的影响。本文作者将对国内对教师反馈研究作一个简短的文献综述,并基于相关理论对如何给出有效的教师反馈提出建议。     

美国数学顾问专家组总结报告简介及思考

新近发表的美国数学顾问专家组总结报告基于大量的严谨教育研究成果,概括了数学课程、学习过程、教师和教师教育、教学实践、教学资料、教学评估以及研究政策和机制等方面的重要发现,特别强调了代数学习的重要性。总结报告将对美国的数学教育发展产生积极影响,值得我们加以研究和借鉴。     

英语学习动机与自我认同变化——-对五所高校跟踪研究的结构方程模型分析

本文是大学生英语学习动机与自我认同跟踪项目的一部分, 考察动机类型与自我认同变化的关系。研究材料是同一问卷在四年中五次施测获得的定量数据, 对象为北京五所高校1300 余名学生。结构方程模型检验发现, 英语学习动机类型与自我认同变化相互影响, 前者对后者的影响更大。随着时间的推移, 动机对自我认同的影响具有下降趋势, 而认同对动机的影响先降后升。此外, 学习成绩动机与情境动机、出国动机与削减性认同变化始终显著相关。     

School Finance in Iowa

Abstract

This study examined the effect of pupil reading miscues and achievement levels on the prompting decisions of their tutors. Tutors were randomly assigned to high, medium, and low level readers. Subsequent analyses of tutor prompts revealed that the poorer readers received disproportionately more prompts than the better readers. Furthermore, teachers differentially responded to pupil errors on the basis of each miscue’s semantic acceptability. These results suggest that teachers were actively engaged in the process of decision making, and that pupil traits affected teacher behavior and teacher prompting decisions.     

Impact of teachers’ beliefs on mathematics education

ABSTRACT

The objective of the current study was to analyse the impact of teachers’ personal theory and beliefs (PTB) towards Mathematics teaching. A total of 183 respondents were involved in this study, using the stratified random sampling method with Cronbach's alpha of 0.87. Due to the objective of the research and the hypothesis, it was positioned within the positivist paradigm following a survey design, concentrating on Bachelor of Education and Postgraduate Certificate Education students, with a quantitative approach. The instrument of data collection was a structured questionnaire schedule. All selected respondents (using a questionnaire) were students of University of Fort Hare, enrolled in either the Bachelor of Education (BEd) or Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) programme. Using analysis of variance (ANOVA), the results revealed that there was no significant effect of age and race on learning of Mathematics amongst BEds and PGCEs candidates.     

Associations of newly qualified teachers’ beliefs with classroom management practices and approaches to instruction over one school year

We focus on assessing whether newly qualified teachers’ professional outcome expectations and their beliefs about students’ intellectual potential are associated with teachers’ self-reported classroom management and instructional practices. One hundred and eighteen novice teachers participating in the induction year programme were studied during their first years as full-time teachers. Results attest to a salient association between teachers’ more optimistic views of the malleability of students’ intellectual potential and teachers’ confidence in themselves as positive change agents in student outcomes. Also, teachers’ belief-set in the beginning of their career was shown to be associated with significant differences in the level of using instructional practices promoting mastery goal orientation in the classroom as well as offering students emotional support during the learning process. In the light of the significant belief–behaviour links demonstrated, more explicit attention to the sophistication of teachers’ ability beliefs in teacher education programmes is recommended.