Paradigms and Pedagogy: revisiting D’Arcy’s critique of the teaching and the assessment of writing

This paper draws on research funded by the Bedford Charity (Harpur Trust) in which the narrative writing of reluctant writers in 10 Lower Schools (pupils aged 5–9) was levelled using, firstly, the Assessment of Pupil Progress (APP) criteria used in English primary and secondary schools and, secondly, criteria devised by the researcher. The latter were specifically designed for the assessment of narrative writing, whereas the APP criteria are generic. Findings resonate with the contrasting paradigms critiqued in D’Arcy’s paper on the teaching and assessment of writing (D’Arcy 1999). Evidence suggests that levels assigned to individual texts can vary between one assessment criteria and another. In many cases, pupils achieved higher levels against criteria designed to evaluate creativity and the ability to tell a story. Appropriate assessment criteria are critical not only to summative evaluations but also to the planning of future teaching and learning. However, it is suggested that the dominant assessment paradigm and concomitant approaches to the pedagogy of writing in England have been influenced by discourses over which teachers have had little control. However, the future for the teaching and assessment of writing necessitates a paradigmatic shift. A retrospective of D’Arcy’s paper may provide teachers and academics with the impetus for change.     

Producing assessment truths: a Foucauldian analysis of teachers’ reorganisation of levels in English primary schools

This article considers a recent policy initiative in assessment in English primary schools (ages 5–11?years) in which curriculum ‘levels’ used by teachers to judge pupils’ attainment were suddenly removed. Previous work has largely focused on assessment of pupils, but we examine assessment as an activity through which teachers reproduce their professional standing. Using data from a small-scale study we investigate how teachers responded to these changes and what this tells us about the way in which the economy, and politics, of assessment practices operate at school level. Using Foucault as a theoretical framework, we make visible how this system was reorganised by teachers through the construction of new regimes of truth. Implications include evidence of a potentially damaging changing relationship between teachers and pupils, the key role of technology and the deleterious effect of neoliberalism on teachers’ and pupils’ relationships with both the process and subject matter of learning.     

小学作文多元化评价策略浅探

新课程标准对作文评价提出更高要求,探索多元化作文评价策略已成为当前作文教学的热点。要激发学生写作热情,提高作文教学效果,教师在评价上应从这样几方面入手:及时评价学生的习作,努力做到面批;作文略批少改,注重分层评价;尝试学生互改互评,拓宽途径;作文评语多元化,激发学生热情。     

‘Role stretch’: assessing the blurring of teaching and non‐teaching in the classroom assistant role in Scotland

With the increasing number of teaching and classroom assistants across the UK there is now much debate about what their role should be. In particular concerns have arisen about the extent to which they overstep the boundary from supporting teaching and learning into teaching pupils. This study assesses this issue within Scotland. It draws on a national survey of 2000 head teachers, teachers and classroom assistants and interviews with directors of education in nearly half of all Scottish local authorities. Findings from the research suggest a small number of classroom assistants in Scotland are overstepping the boundary into teaching. The paper concludes with an explanation as to why this is happening taking into account aspects such as local authority policy, school size and the individual characteristics of the classroom assistants.     

中小学新手教师入职初期教学困扰的调查分析

新手教师通常处于转变阶段,这个阶段是教师生涯中的一个重要部分。通常会面临不同的工作困扰,其中＂教学问题＂是新手教师最大的工作困扰。通过问卷法、访谈法对中小学新手教师进行调查,发现新手教师入职初期教学困扰依次表现在教学实施、发展他人、课堂管理、教学评价、教学设计及基本技能6个方面。为此,需要在大学阶段通过采取增加实践性课程设置、转变在职培训观念、创新培训模式、推行导师制及加强新手教师自我发展主动性等措施,对上述问题加以解决。     

Curriculum Continuity and Transfer from Primary to Secondary School: the case of history

The transfer of children from primary school to secondary school has long been seen as a problematic area. The National Curriculum was depicted as offering a solution to some of the transfer problems by providing for curriculum continuity across the primary-secondary divide. This paper reports the results of a study of curriculum continuity in one subject, history, now that a National Curriculum has been in place for several years. It reports that teachers continue to see problems with the transfer and that secondary school teachers still incline to a ‘fresh start’ approach to year 7 pupils. There is also some evidence of a lack of curriculum consistency within the secondary schools involved in the research, there are differences between primary and secondary schools in the range of teaching and learning methods employed, there is some decline in pupils’ ratings of their experience of secondary education across year 7 and there are signs of some gender differences in these ratings. The conclusion is that there is a case for saying that the new arrangements have not alleviated the problems associated with the transfer.     

ICT in European schools: emerging issues from the ValNet project

ABSTRACT

Investigations of aspects of differentiation in primary and secondary schools showed that even teachers believed to be ‘good differentiators' have difficulties in allocating tasks to pupils which are appropriate to their attainment levels. Teachers identified a number of key needs to be met if they were to improve differentiation, in particular the need for detailed, manageable, accessible information on pupils' attainments. Among the needs of learners identified by pupils was a need for more information on their learning goals, problems and the means of their solution. A partnership model of assessment is described which has been developed by teachers to meet the needs of both teachers and pupils.     

Inclusive pedagogy in action: getting it right for every child

A key assumption underpinning formative assessment strategies is that individual pupils must be fully involved in the process. While such engagement and attention on the individual is important, studies suggest that teachers do not always readily engage with formative assessment as a reciprocal process which involves pupils. Additionally, a focus on individual differences between pupils can be problematic if the work that is set for some is differentiated to such an extent that they are not able to participate in classroom activities with others. Inclusive pedagogy is an approach to teaching and learning that attends to individual differences between pupils but avoids the marginalisation that can occur when pedagogical responses are designed only with individual needs in mind. Using participant observation and video footage from three classrooms that captured ‘learning moments’ identified by teachers and pupils, this study documents how the professional craft knowledge of teachers develops as they learn to use what their pupils have to say about learning in the context of whole class teaching. By concentrating on the findings from one site, this paper shows how teachers can use what they learn from listening to pupils’ self-assessments of their learning in ways that meet the standard of inclusive pedagogy.     

To click or not to click: Effectiveness of rating classroom behaviors on academic achievement with tablets

Due to the time constraint and lack of concise contextualized classroom behavior indicators, current typical primary school classroom behavior management practices are ad-hoc and lack historical data support. To circumvent these problems, we designed a tablet-based classroom behavior management system (CBMS) for a primary school setting. The CBMS aids teachers in establishing concise and consistent behavioral expectations based on teaching experience and expertise, thus allowing them to conveniently provide timely feedback on pupils’ performance and log ratings on a daily basis. We conducted a 1.5 years field study in a primary school Chinese course in East China, in which 124 pupils in the first grade and four Chinese teachers participated. The analysis of recorded data indicates that teachers’ daily behavioral ratings are positively correlated with their pupils’ academic achievements. The behavior rating strategy and indicators in CBMS can act as a substitute in promoting pupil's academic achievements. Our proposed system shows the feasibility and potential of handheld computer-based assessment strategy in implementing cost-effective classroom organization practices for low grade-level primary school pupils.     

‘I like it instead of maths’: how pupils with moderate learning difficulties in Scottish primary special schools intuitively solved mathematical word problems

This study by Lio Moscardini of the University of Strathclyde shows how a group of 24 children in three Scottish primary schools for pupils with moderate learning difficulties responded to word problems following their teachers' introduction to the principles of Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI). CGI is a professional development programme in mathematics instruction based on constructivist principles developed at the University of Wisconsin‐Madison. The study found that the sample group of pupils were able to develop their understanding of mathematical concepts through actively engaging in word problems without prior explicit instruction and with minimal teacher adjustments. The pupils' conceptual understandings demonstrated by their solution strategies within CGI activities were generally not consistent with classroom records of assessment. The results were encouraging in illustrating the capacity of the sample group of pupils with moderate learning difficulties to reveal their mathematical thinking and considers the importance of this insight for instructional decision making.     

‘Students get bogged down’: how religious Israeli elementary teachers view problems and solutions in Bible teaching

Bible teachers in contemporary society confront serious problems related to the nature of the biblical text and the socio-cultural context of their teaching. This study, based on semi-structured interviews, examines the problems that five expert religious Israeli elementary school teachers encounter in their teaching and the solutions they employ. Our findings show two major domains of pedagogic issues: unfamiliar biblical linguistics and problematic content. Teachers reported student difficulties in understanding biblical Hebrew. Problematic content includes irrelevant topics, emotionally laden material, and age inappropriate issues. Linguistic solutions relied on reading comprehension techniques and use of features specific to Bible reading such as diacritical marks. Regarding content issues, teachers were motivated by faith in the sanctity of the text to find effective solutions. These include selectivity, reinterpretation using homiletic tools, a holistic understanding and contextualising the narrative. Though teachers felt ill-prepared by their pre-service training in dealing with these challenges, they demonstrated resilience in their solution-oriented pedagogy. These findings suggest attention to mentoring and professional development, and to the creation of a community of practice to support teachers’ dealing with the ongoing challenges in their teaching.     

Pre-service teachers' conceptions and beliefs about the role of real-world knowledge in mathematical modelling of school word problems

Recent research has documented that many pupils show a strong tendency to exclude real-world knowledge from their solutions of school arithmetic word problems. In the present study, a test consisting of 14 word problems—half of which were problematic from a realistic point of view—was administered to a large group of students from three different teacher training institutes in Flanders. For each word problem, the student-teachers were first asked to solve the problem themselves, and afterwards to evaluate four different answers given by pupils. The results revealed a strong tendency among student-teachers to exclude real-world knowledge from their own spontaneous solutions of school word problems as well as from their appreciations of the pupils' answers.     

Gender ‘matters’ in the primary classroom: Pupils' and teachers' perspectives

A recent project involving Year 3 (seven–eight year‐old) pupils and their teachers revealed that ‘gender matters’ differently to boys and girls, and teachers. The study sought to elicit whether pupils and their teachers felt the gender of a teacher mattered to their experiences of schooling. Pupils were concerned about how effective teachers were in carrying out their professional functions and a teacher's gender was subsumed within this. For these pupils, ‘gender mattered’ in terms of the construction of their own gender identities. In contrast, teachers were aware of and attentive to the gender of pupils in managing and organising classroom interactions. The variety of differing views expressed and positions adopted towards the place of gender in teacher–pupil interactions demonstrates the complexity of developing ‘one size fits all’ approaches to tackling gender equity in the classroom.     

Revolution,evolution or a Trojan horse? Piloting assessment for learning in some Scottish primary schools

This article analyses some of the findings of an evaluation of Project One of the ‘Assessment is for Learning’ Development Programme in 16 Scottish primary schools and two junior high schools in which teachers developed formative assessment strategies aimed at improving teaching and learning. Drawing on data from pupils, teachers and parents, the use of such strategies is examined. The study provides some evidence that the use of formative assessment led to pupils taking more responsibility for their learning, contributing to improved motivation, confidence and classroom achievement, especially for lower attainers. Employing such strategies also developed teachers' conceptual understanding of formative assessment, moving some from a teacher‐centred pedagogy to one which placed pupils and their learning needs at the heart of teaching. The article concludes by discussing the implications of the project for teachers' professional development and the constraints faced by teachers in sustaining and embedding such practices.     

Developing a Holistic Assessment Stance in Student Teachers

Over the last 10 years far-reaching changes have been introduced to the education system of England and Wales. In particular, the curriculum in state schools has been prescribed through the introduction of a National Curriculum. Associated with the National Curriculum is an assessment system involving teachers undertaking the on-going assessment of pupils, as well as externally set national tests, the results of which are published. These changes have had a profound effect on the training needs of in-service teachers and on the content and structure of training courses for pre-service teachers. The assessment system linked to the National Curriculum is extremely complex. There are huge demands on the time available for pre-service teacher training. This means that teacher educators struggle to find valid ways to train students to develop good assessment practices that will enhance students' teaching and the learning achieved by their pupils. This paper reports on the attempts of one group of course tutors to develop a means of achieving this goal.     

参与式教学实施环节中常见的偏差与解决对策——来自参与式教师培训效果的调查

参与式教学的成功运用,取决于教师对教学实施环节的正确把握。对于我省参与式教学的实施中存在的环境与道具使用过于僵化、教条,小组工作不讲求实效,教学目的不明确,课堂教学中游戏泛滥,参与方法使用过于频繁,由于教师学术素养低而导致的教学总结、引导不够,教学质量不能保证等问题,依次提出解决对策。     

Teachers of Newcomer Immigrants in Provincial Schools in Sweden: A Quest for Culturally Responsive Teaching in the Era of Homogenization

This study focuses on teachers of new arrival migrant pupils in a provincial school district in mid-Sweden. The paper draws from qualitative interviews with these teachers and extracts from lessons of as well as written reflections of these lessons. The study explores the teachers’ perspectives and pedagogical responses to newcomer migrants in their classrooms. The pedagogical practices are analyzed for culturally responsive teaching, referring to the extent to which the lessons build on the personal and cultural strengths of the pupils, their linguistic capabilities, as well as their prior knowledge and experiences. The findings demonstrate attempts at building on the pupils’ cultural and linguistic experiences, which compares well with some hallmarks of culturally responsive pedagogy. However, as pressures to teach for tests increase, the teachers face the dilemma on how to create spaces for culturally responsive teaching in school contexts that face powerful ideologies of cultural and linguistic homogenization.     

>Influence of the Social Context of the School on the Teacher's Pedagogic Practice

The paper is part of a broader study which investigates the relation between differential patterns of achievement in the sciences at the secondary school level and social class, and in which a relation was found between the high level of conceptual demand of modern science courses and the underachievement of the working‐class pupils. This relation is mediated by a number of sociological factors, the teacher being one of them. This study describes the assessment we made of teachers’ pedagogic practice and its influence on pupils’ achievement. The evidence obtained shows that teachers differ greatly in the level of conceptual demand they make of their pupils and in their ability to enable pupils to attain that level. Both of these competencies of the teacher are strongly related to the social context of the school where he/she teaches.     

Distance teaching in small rural primary schools: a participatory action research project

ABSTRACT

The aim of the study is to identify and examine the distance teaching practices of four teachers in three small, rural primary schools in Finland – small in the sense that the schools consists of between 20–50 pupils and between 3–12 teachers. The schools have experienced a decline in pupil numbers, thus, they are not able to employ teachers full-time. The participating teachers imagined distance education as one solution to extend the classroom and faculty. Practice architectures is used as a theoretical and analytical framework to answer the question ‘What cultural, material, and social discourses constitute the development of the practice around distance education in small, rural primary schools?’ The data consists of interviews with and video blogs by the teachers recorded during 2016–2017. The implications are that cultural-discursive, material-economic, and social-political arrangements surrounding distance education are intertwined in small schools. Architectural arrangements enabled flexible solutions when developing distance education. The same arrangements proved to be material and cultural constraints as the teachers had many responsibilities in their everyday practice and support from the faculty was sometimes lacking. The teachers felt constrained by the technology and communicating with pupils at a distance meant they had to develop new teaching strategies.     

Tensions experienced by teachers and their views of support for pupils with autism spectrum disorders in mainstream schools

The number of pupils with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) who receive their education in mainstream schools in the UK has increased considerably over the last 10 years. Despite this increase, teachers and other support staff face a number of challenges in order to ensure that these inclusive arrangements bring maximum benefits to the children themselves, their parents and the school community as a whole. In this study we explore some of the tensions that teachers in mainstream schools may experience, many of which reflect the unique problems that the inclusion of pupils with ASD can present. In addition, we explore how these tensions may shape their views of support arrangements for those pupils. We observed 17 pupils with ASD ranging from 7 to 16 years, all of whom were placed in a regular class in one of eight mainstream schools on a full‐time basis, and carried out interviews with their teachers, teaching assistants (TAs) and special educational needs coordinator. Findings suggest that tensions reported by school staff are inherently shaped by the ASD‐related manifestations, particularly those pertaining to their difficulties in social and emotional understanding. These tensions determine the quality of the transactions and interactions between the teachers and the pupils with ASD. Based on these tensions, teachers form their views of the type of support that is needed for those pupils. Evidence from the data suggests that, in order for these tensions to be kept at manageable proportions, teachers rely heavily on the TA, whose role in working closely with the pupil is perceived as being indispensable. Building on the study’s findings, we suggest a generic conceptualization for the successful inclusion of pupils with ASD, which is grounded in the systems theory perspective of the relationship between the teachers and these children.