Opening up the black box: Teacher competence,instructional quality,and students’ learning progress

Existing research indicates inconsistent or at best weak predictive effects of teacher knowledge on student achievement. Data from Germany were used to examine the relation between teachers' content and pedagogical content knowledge, their perception, interpretation, and decision-making skills, the instructional quality implemented in class, and students' learning progression in mathematics. Rather than direct effects of teacher knowledge on students, we hypothesized an effect chain with multiple mediation processes while controlling for school type and student background. Multi-level modeling with 3496 students from 154 classrooms revealed a mediating role of teachers' skills and their instructional quality for the relation between teacher knowledge and students' learning progress. Effect sizes were medium to strong, and the model explained a large amount of variance. No direct effects of teachers’ knowledge on student progress were found. We discuss our findings with respect to the teacher-competence-as-a-continuum model and with respect to future research.     

Relationship of Online Teacher Professional Development to Seventh-Grade Teachers' and Students' Knowledge and Practices in English Language Arts

Online professional development (OPD) has potential to improve teacher quality by improving teachers' knowledge and instructional practices. These changes, in turn, have potential to improve student achievement. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of scientific research on the effects of OPD on teachers and, more importantly, on students. This article presents the results of a randomized controlled trial exploring the effects of a series of three learning-community model OPD workshops on teachers' content knowledge, teachers' instructional practices, students' content knowledge, and students' practices in the context of seventh-grade English language arts. There were statistically significant effects on teachers' vocabulary and overall English language arts content knowledge and on vocabulary and writing practices. The effect sizes of these changes ranged from small to medium. There were statistically significant effects on students' reading comprehension practices.     

Teacher communication behavior and its association with students' cognitive and attitudinal outcomes in science in Taiwan

In the study described in this article a questionnaire was employed that can be used to assess students' and teachers' perceptions of science teachers' interpersonal communication behaviors in their classroom learning environments. The Teacher Communication Behavior Questionnaire (TCBQ) has five scales: Challenging, Encouragement and Praise, Non‐Verbal Support, Understanding and Friendly, and Controlling. The TCBQ was used with a large sample of secondary science students in Taiwan, which provided additional validation data for the TCBQ for use in Taiwan and cross‐validation data for its use in English‐speaking countries. Girls perceived their teachers as more understanding and friendly than did boys, and teachers in biological science classrooms exhibited more favorable behavior toward their students than did those in physical science classrooms. Differences were also noted between the perceptions of the students and their teachers. Positive relationships were found between students' perceptions of their teachers' communication behaviors and their attitudes toward science. Students' cognitive achievement scores were higher when students perceived their teacher as using more challenging questions, as giving more nonverbal support, and as being more understanding and friendly. The development of both teacher and student versions of the TCBQ enhances the possibility of the use of the instrument by teachers. © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 39: 63–78, 2002     

The influence of data on teachers' judgments of students' early reading and math skills

Teachers' judgments of student achievement are a crucial aspect of instruction and intervention. Previous research examining teachers' judgments has primarily focused on oral reading fluency and results are mixed with respect to how accurate teachers are. The purpose of the current study was to examine the accuracy of kindergarten and first‐grade teachers' judgments of students' instructional level in early reading and early math and, using a pre‐post quasi‐experimental design, determine the extent to which the use of data altered teachers' judgments. Teachers were least accurate when rating students whose skills were in the frustrational range and they tended to overestimate students' skills. The use of data did not improve accuracy overall, but there were slight (albeit not significant) changes at the frustrational and instructional levels. Results suggest that teachers' low accuracy, when compared with screening data, combined with overestimation, may result in students who most need intervention being missed.     

Engineering teachers' pedagogical content knowledge

The aim of the study was to discover the essential characteristics of engineering teachers' pedagogical content knowledge by studying teachers' conceptions of their students' ideas of moment. To compare the conceptions maintained by teachers with those of their students, the most common difficulties experienced by first-year engineering students in understanding the moments of forces were looked at. The data on students' conceptions were collected by means of a questionnaire. In addition, four experienced teachers were given the same questionnaire as the students and then were asked to write what they expected the students' answers to be. The students' answers and the teachers' conceptions of their students' potential answers were compared. It was found that although the teachers originally appeared to be familiar with their students' conceptions, they were rather astonished by the general pattern of the students' thinking. It is planned that the information gathered about the teachers' pedagogical content knowledge will eventually be used to improve engineering teacher training.     

What students think when teachers get upset: Fundamental attribution error and student‐generated reasons for teacher anger

Using a sample of college students (N = 301), this study examined students' attributions about and explanations for teachers' expressions of anger in the classroom. These displays of anger were evaluated based on the extent to which they were aggressive (e.g., Distributive or Passive) or assertive (e.g., Integrative). Consistent with the fundamental attribution error, students assigned internal attributions to teachers who used Distributive Aggression (e.g., yell and scream) and Passive‐Aggression (e.g., show anger with cold looks) to a greater extent than teachers who were Assertive (i.e., calmly discuss the problem with the students). When students were asked to identify why they thought their teacher was angry, the overwhelming majority of reasons involved student‐related problems. In fact, the most frequently cited reason was Student Misbehaviors followed by Lack of Student Effort. Surprisingly, students acknowledge that something they did triggered the teacher's display of anger; however, consistent with fundamental attribution error, students still attributed the teacher's expression of anger to internal causes. The implications of these findings for negative emotional expressions in the instructional context in particular and for teacher‐student relationships in general are discussed.     

Teachers' learning to facilitate high‐level student thinking: Impact of a video‐based professional development

Attaining the vision for science teaching and learning emphasized in the Framework for K‐12 Science Education and the next generation science standards (NGSS) will require major shifts in teaching practices in many science classrooms. As NGSS‐inspired cognitively demanding tasks begin to appear in more and more science classrooms, facilitating students' engagement in high‐level thinking as they work on these tasks will become an increasingly important instructional challenge to address. This study reports findings from a video‐based professional development effort (i.e., professional development [PD] that use video‐clips of instruction as the main artifact of practice to support teacher learning) to support teachers' learning to select cognitively demanding tasks and to support students' learning during the enactment of these tasks in ways that are aligned with the NGSS vision. Particularly, we focused on the NGSS's charge to get students to make sense of and deeply think about scientific ideas as students try to explain phenomena. Analyses of teachers' pre‐ and post‐PD instruction indicate that PD‐participants began to adopt instructional practices associated with facilitating these kinds of student thinking in their own classrooms. The study has implications for the design of video‐based professional development for science teachers who are learning to facilitate the NGSS vision in science classrooms.     

Learning to argue: A study of four schools and their attempt to develop the use of argumentation as a common instructional practice and its impact on students

This article reports the outcomes of a project in which teachers' sought to develop their ability to use instructional practices associated with argumentation in the teaching of science—in particular, the use of more dialogic approach based on small group work and the consideration of ideas, evidence, and argument. The project worked with four secondary school science departments over 2 years with the aim of developing a more dialogic approach to the teaching of science as a common instructional practice within the school. To achieve this goal, two lead teachers in each school worked to improve the use of argumentation as an instructional practice by embedding activities in the school science curriculum and to develop their colleague's expertise across the curriculum for 11‐ to 16‐year‐old students. This research sought to identify: (a) whether such an approach using minimal support and professional development could lead to measurable difference in student outcomes, and (b) what changes in teachers' practice were achieved (reported elsewhere). To assess the effects on student learning and engagement, data were collected of students' conceptual understanding, reasoning, and attitudes toward science from both the experimental schools and a comparison sample using a set of standard instruments. Results show that few significant changes were found in students compared to the comparison sample. In this article, we report the findings and discuss what we argue are salient implications for teacher professional development and teacher learning. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 50:315–347, 2013     

Reification of instructional materials as part of the process of developing problem‐based practices in mathematics education

This teacher development study closely examined a teacher's practice for the purpose of understanding how she selected and implemented instructional materials, and correspondingly how these processes changed as she developed her problem‐based practice throughout a school year. Data sources included over 20 hours of planning and analysis meetings with the teacher and 27 video‐taped lessons with discussions before and after each lesson. Through qualitative analysis we examined the data for: students' cognitive demand for curricular materials the teacher selected and implemented; teacher's beliefs and practices for students' engagement in mathematical thinking; and teacher's and students' communication about mathematics during instruction. We found that the teacher shifted her views and use of instructional materials as she changed her practice towards more problem‐based approaches. The teacher moved from closely following her traditional, district‐adopted textbook to selecting problem‐based tasks from outside resources to build a curriculum. Simultaneously, she changed her practice to focus more on students' engagement in mathematical thinking and their communication about mathematics as part of learning. During this shift in practice, the teacher began to reify instructional materials, viewing them as instruments of her practice to meet students' needs. The process of shifting her views was gradual over the school year and involved substantial analysis and reflection on practice from the teacher. Implications include that teachers and teacher educators may need to devote more attention and support for teachers to use instructional materials to support instruction, rather than materials to prescribe instruction. This use of instructional materials may be an important part of transforming practice overall.     

Teaching nature of science through inquiry: Results of a 3‐year professional development program

This study assessed the influence of a 3‐year professional development program on elementary teachers' views of nature of science (NOS), instructional practice to promote students' appropriate NOS views, and the influence of participants' instruction on elementary student NOS views. Using the VNOS‐B and associated interviews the researchers tracked the changes in NOS views of teacher participants throughout the professional development program. The teachers participated in explicit–reflective activities, embedded in a program that emphasized scientific inquiry and inquiry‐based instruction, to help them improve their own elementary students' views of NOS. Elementary students were interviewed using the VNOS‐D to track changes in their NOS views, using classroom observations to note teacher influences on student ideas. Analysis of the VNOS‐B and VNOS‐D showed that teachers and most grades of elementary students showed positive changes in their views of NOS. The teachers also improved in their science pedagogy, as evidenced by analysis of their teaching. Implications for teacher professional development programs are made. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 653–680, 2007     

Courseware development with animated pedagogical agents in learning system to improve learning motivation

The addition of animated pedagogical agents (APAs) in computer-assisted learning (CAL) systems could successfully enhance students' learning motivation and engagement in learning activities. Conventionally, the APA incorporated multimedia materials are constructed through the cooperation of teachers and software programmers. However, the thinking and technical gap between two roles, a concept/content provider (teacher) and an implementer (software programmer), may lead to the concept distortion and loss in the final teaching material implementations. This often results in preventing a teacher from preparing his or her own APA-based multimedia learning systems. This study aims to develop a courseware to facilitate the CAL through the combination of the two roles into a single one and then teachers can use it freely by themselves. The courseware can help teachers to develop appropriate multimedia instructional materials incorporating APAs, which attracts students' attention and enhances their interest in learning. Furthermore, in this study two separate trial experiments were conducted to measure the teachers' satisfaction with the courseware and students' learning motivation after using APA-based multimedia learning systems. The results show that the participating teachers were satisfied with the courseware and would like to apply it in their instruction. Moreover, the participating students were strongly motivated by the customized APA-based multimedia learning systems. Therefore, the proposed courseware could give teachers a good opportunity to add pedagogical value to the curriculum, so that students' learning interest and motivation could be enhanced.     

The importance of teachers' emotions and instructional behavior for their students' emotions – An experience sampling analysis

The present study focuses on the relationship between teachers' emotions, their instructional behavior, and students' emotions in class. 149 students (55% female, M age = 15.63 years) rated their teachers' emotions (joy, anger, anxiety) and instructional behavior, as well as their own emotions in an experience-sampling study across an average of 15 lessons in four different subject domains. Intraindividual, multilevel regression analyses revealed that perceived teachers' emotions and instructional behavior significantly predicted students' emotions. Results suggest that teachers' emotions are as important for students' emotions as teachers' instructional behavior. Theoretical implications for crossover theory and practical recommendations for teachers are discussed.     

The accuracy of teacher reports in the identification of middle school students with depressive symptomatology

This investigation examined the ability of teachers to identify depressive characteristics among middle school students. Participants were 356 students and 52 teachers. Teachers' perceptions of students' depressive characteristics were obtained via Likert ratings and nominations of students the teachers judged to be depressed. The depressive status of students was evaluated with a multiple‐gating procedure using the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale (Reynolds, 1987) as an initial measure and the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children, Edition IV as a final measure. A correlation of .22 (p < .001) was obtained between teachers' ratings of student depression and students' self‐reported depressed moods. Further analyses examined teachers' ability to identify high‐depression students, as well as the impact of teacher and student variables on teachers' ability to discern students' depressed moods. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 41: 379–389, 2004.     

Elementary teachers' epistemological and ontological understanding of teaching for conceptual learning

The purpose of this study was to examine the ways in which elementary teachers applied their understanding of conceptual learning and teaching to their instructional practices as they became knowledgeable about conceptual change pedagogy. Teachers' various ways to interpret and utilize students' prior ideas were analyzed in both epistemological and ontological dimensions of learning. A total of 14 in‐service elementary teachers conducted an 8‐week‐long inquiry into students' conceptual learning as a professional development course project. Major data sources included the teachers' reports on their students' prior ideas, lesson plans with justifications, student performance artifacts, video‐recorded teaching episodes, and final reports on their analyses of student learning. The findings demonstrated three epistemologically distinct ways the teachers interpreted and utilized students' prior ideas. These supported Kinchin's epistemological categories of perspectives on teaching including positivist, misconceptions, and systems views. On the basis of Chi's and Thagard's theories of conceptual change, the teachers' ontological understanding of conceptual learning was differentiated in two ways. Some teachers taught a unit to change the ontological nature of student ideas, whereas the others taught a unit within the same ontological categories of student ideas. The findings about teachers' various ways of utilizing students' prior ideas in their instructional practices suggested a number of topics to be addressed in science teacher education such as methods of utilizing students' cognitive resources, strategies for purposeful use of counter‐evidence, and understanding of ontological demands of learning. Future research questions were suggested. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 1292–1317, 2007     

Progress in International Reading Literacy Study 2006 (PIRLS): pedagogical correlates of fourth‐grade students in Hong Kong

Reading literacy of fourth‐grade students in Hong Kong showed a remarkable improvement from 2001 to 2006 as shown by international PIRLS studies. This study identified various aspects of the teacher factor contributing to the significant improvement among students. A total of 4,712 students and 144 teachers from 144 schools were randomly selected using probability proportional‐to‐size technique to receive the Reading Assessment Test and complete the Teacher's Questionnaire, respectively. A number of items pertaining to teachers' instructional strategies and activities, opportunities for students to read various types of materials, practices on assessment, and professional preparation and perception, were found to be significantly correlated with the outcome of students' reading literacy. Stepwise regression procedure revealed four significant predictors for students' overall reading achievement. The most powerful predictor was the use of materials from other subjects as reading resources. Suggestions to improve quality of teaching of reading and further studies are made.     

Instructional practices in secondary science: How teachers achieve local and standards-based success

This article reports on analyses of the instructional practices of six middle- and high-school science teachers in the United States who participated in a research-practice partnership that aims to support reform science education goals at scale. All six teachers were well qualified, experienced, and locally successful—respected by students, parents, colleagues, and administrators—but they differed in their success in supporting students' three-dimensional learning. Our goal is to understand how the teachers' instructional practices contributed to their similarities in achieving local success and to differences in enabling students' learning, and to consider the implications of these findings for research-practice partnerships. Data sources included classroom videos supplemented by interviews with teachers and focus students and examples of student work. We also compared students' learning gains by teacher using pre–post assessments that elicited three-dimensional performances. Analyses of classroom videos showed how all six teachers achieved local success—they led effectively managed classrooms, covered the curriculum by teaching almost all unit activities, and assessed students' work in fair and efficient ways. There were important differences, however, in how teachers engaged students in science practices. Teachers in classrooms where students achieved lower learning gains followed a pattern of practice we describe as activity-based teaching, in which students completed investigations and hands-on activities with few opportunities for sensemaking discussions or three-dimensional science performances. Teachers whose students achieved higher learning gains combined the social stability characteristic of local classroom success with more demanding instructional practices associated with scientific sensemaking and cognitive apprenticeship. We conclude with a discussion of implications for research-practice partnerships, highlighting how partnerships need to support all teachers in achieving both local and standards-based success.     

Teachers' framing of argumentation goals: Working together to develop individual versus communal understanding

For students to meaningfully engage in science practices, substantive changes need to occur to deeply entrenched instructional approaches, particularly those related to classroom discourse. Because teachers are critical in establishing how students are permitted to interact in the classroom, it is imperative to examine their role in fostering learning environments in which students carry out science practices. This study explores how teachers describe, or frame, expectations for classroom discussions pertaining to the science practice of argumentation. Specifically, we use the theoretical lens of a participation framework to examine how teachers emphasize particular actions and goals for their students' argumentation. Multiple-case study methodology was used to explore the relationship between two middle school teachers' framing for argumentation, and their students' engagement in an argumentation discussion. Findings revealed that, through talk moves and physical actions, both teachers emphasized the importance of students driving the argumentation and interacting with peers, resulting in students engaging in various types of dialogic interactions. However, variation in the two teachers' language highlighted different purposes for students to do so. One teacher explained that through these interactions, students could learn from peers, which could result in each individual student revising their original argument. The other teacher articulated that by working with peers and sharing ideas, classroom members would develop a communal understanding. These distinct goals aligned with different patterns in students' argumentation discussion, particularly in relation to students building on each other's ideas, which occurred more frequently in the classroom focused on communal understanding. The findings suggest the need to continue supporting teachers in developing and using rich instructional strategies to help students with dialogic interactions related to argumentation. This work also sheds light on the importance of how teachers frame the goals for student engagement in this science practice.     

Error management behavior in classrooms: Teachers' responses to student mistakes

Only a few studies have focused on how teachers deal with mistakes in actual classroom settings. Teachers' error management behavior was analyzed based on data obtained from direct (Study 1) and videotaped systematic observation (Study 2), and students' self-reports. In Study 3 associations between students' and teachers' attitudes towards mistakes and their impact on students' domain specific emotions were investigated. Together, the presented studies contribute to the understanding of the interplay between teachers' everyday instructional routines surrounding mistakes and students' beliefs about (learning from) errors. The findings also emphasize the relevance of how students perceive their teachers' attitudes towards mistakes.     

Curriculum innovation in Turkish primary education

This paper describes how Turkish teachers of English in state primary education approach the implementation of a Communicative‐Oriented Curriculum innovation and factors that impact on teachers' classroom practices. Using multidimensional research procedures, including a questionnaire, observations and teacher interviews, a picture has been developed of teachers' instructional practices and factors influencing their classroom practices. The findings revealed a gap between curriculum objectives and teachers' implementation of the innovation. Factors that were identified as having a significant impact on teachers' classroom application of the communicative teaching include teachers' understanding of the curriculum innovation, their previous training, insufficient instructional support, limited instructional time, large class size and lack of resources. It is suggested that a greater level of support in the form of in‐service training and resource provision be given to teachers to ensure more effective implementation of the curriculum initiative.     

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.