Regaining focus in Irish Junior Cycle Science: potential new directions for curriculum and assessment on Nature of Science

The Irish national discourse on curriculum and assessment reform at the Junior Cycle level has been fraught with controversy in the past two years. The introduction of the new curriculum and assessment framework in 2012 by the then Minister of Education, Ruairi Quinn has led to significant media coverage and teacher union response. In this paper, we argue that in the midst of the reaction toward the particular assessment elements of the framework, the focus has been lost on key revisions made in the draft science curriculum and assessment specification released in September 2014. A central aspect of the draft document released for consultation includes the introduction of a ‘Nature of Science’ (NOS) theme intended to be an overarching feature of all science teaching and learning. We examine the coverage of NOS in the draft document and analyze it relative to a model of NOS developed in our recent book. Our analysis illustrates that the draft science curriculum and assessment specification for Junior Cycle incorporates contemporary research and aligns the Irish curriculum with most features of NOS, although some aspects need further development including the articulation of a nuanced model of NOS. We highlight some future directions for curriculum and assessment development for a comprehensive, coherent and holistic coverage of NOS in Junior Cycle Science in Ireland.     

Teaching mathematics after hours

The quantum of instruction time allocated to curriculum subjects such as mathematics facilitates greater exposure to knowledge and skill development, leading to higher levels of achievement. There are a number of manifestations of time to consider when investigating the quantum of time in mathematics education. The OECD have investigated the time allocated to mathematics by schools internationally, while also reporting on the prevalence of private tuition and time spent on homework. However, to date, no attention has been afforded to the provision of ‘hidden curriculum time’ for mathematics. This study seeks to advance the work of the OECD and describes a case study that sought to ascertain if teachers in Ireland provide additional mathematics lessons outside of school hours. The authors examined how prevalent this practice is, how many additional minutes some students receive as a result of this practice and ascertained teachers’ reasons for providing/not providing these additional mathematics classes. The results from this case study show that the majority of teachers at Senior Cycle provide these classes while a large proportion of Junior Cycle teachers also do. In extreme cases, these additional classes expose students to an additional 88.3 h of mathematics over the two-year Senior Cycle programme.     

Curriculum differentiation for handwriting and occupational therapy/teacher partnership: collaboration or conflict?

This article examines the differences in learning support provision for English and mathematics in Irish primary schools. Questionnaires were completed by 172 learning support teachers in Irish primary schools, as part of a national assessment of English and mathematics. Few respondents (3%) provide learning support for mathematics only, over one-third (36%) provide support for English only, and the remainder provided support for both subjects. Despite the implied equivalence of English and mathematics in the Learning Support Guidelines for teachers in Ireland, considerable differences were noted for English and mathematics in terms of caseloads, in-career development, practices and attitudes. Findings provide an indication of provision prior to the introduction of a new ‘general allocation model’ of support announced by the Irish Department of Education and Science.     

A ‘Multimodal Ecology of Text’ in Advanced Level English Language examinations? The incorporation of graphology and ‘embodied’ facsimile texts in unit test papers and their assessment since 2001

In this paper we compare the representation of texts in a sample of Advanced Level English Language examination papers set over the past decade in order to explore the changes in ‘what constitutes English and its assessment’. Prior to the year 2000, texts used in most A Level Language examination papers were usually typeset in a word processed format stripped of original font, layout, accompanying images, and colour, and devoid of the material marks of the texts' ‘history’ and materiality. From 2001, the texts for AQA B examination papers¹ have been reproduced in facsimile form to include the original graphology used. This shift in production in the materiality of embodiment has led to a corresponding shift in assessment in the codes of recognition of what constitutes English text, and what counts as English response. The sample of texts that we discuss present an ‘ecology of text’ and an ‘ecology of texts and literacy practices’ on a ‘continuum of multimodality’: from the heavily edited, word processed, linguistically circumscribed texts of the 1990s examination papers, through to the more visually‐dependent texts of 2004 with their manner of writing, typographic detail, colour, and sometimes even complete with creases and stains. Taking a multimodal approach to these texts, we discuss the implications of this change for what is being required of students analysing texts for examination assessment and more broadly for the subject ‘English’ ‐ ‘what English is’. We also consider how this shift problematizes the English work of students, teachers, examiners, and the institutions in which these agents operate.     

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.     

Large-scale implementation of formative assessment practices in an examination-oriented culture

Singapore’s education system has often been characterised as exam-oriented. This paper describes efforts (‘windmills’) made by the Government to constructively respond to the ‘winds of change’ in the education system. A committee called the Primary Education Review and Implementation (PERI) Committee was appointed to study and recommend the priorities, programmes and resources needed to revise primary education in Singapore. The Committee recommended that a balanced school-based assessment system that provides constructive feedback, enabling more meaningful learning in support of both academic and non-academic aspects of a pupil’s development, be carried out under the label of ‘Holistic Assessment’. This paper is an attempt at surfacing the challenges (‘walls’) in implementing ‘Holistic Assessment’ on a large scale, highlighting in particular, the tensions perceived by stakeholders concerning the interaction between formative assessment and accountability systems. It documents how stakeholders, namely teachers and parents, perceive and typify the concept of ‘Holistic Assessment’. The findings provide insights into the consequent realities of a nationwide shift in assessment purpose and discourse on teachers and parents.     

Policy versus ground reality: secondary English language assessment system in Bangladesh

Any policy reform in education is highly effective when it is planned and implemented ‘holistically’ and yet, it is the most challenging way forward. Many countries in Asia have reformed their English language policies and syllabi in the last two decades due to the increasing value of the language worldwide. Motivated by a ‘communicative approach’ to English language teaching, Bangladesh was one of the countries that launched such a reform in the 1990s. However, this reform has been criticised for imposing the changes on teachers without preparing them sufficiently. More importantly, there is limited evidence as to how much the secondary English language assessment system is aligned with the changes introduced in the curriculum. In order to explore this gap, a medium-scale study was conducted in 38 secondary schools in Bangladesh, following a mixed methods approach. The findings highlighted a ‘mismatch’ between the intended English language learning outcomes and current assessment practices, including the resulting challenges faced by the teachers. This paper argues that language education reform is likely to fail if the assessment system is not aligned with the curriculum.     

Engagement with empires: Irish Catholic female religious teachers in colonial South Australia 1868–1901

This paper addresses the roles of Irish Catholic female religious institutes for teachers in the context of the recent debates about education and empire. Nineteenth century colonial South Australia provides an opportunity to examine such institutes, for example the Irish Dominicans from Cabra Dublin, the Irish Mercy Institute from Baggot Street, Dublin, and to a much lesser extent, the English Dominicans from Stone in England. The discussion canvasses the notion of the role of these religious teachers within three empires: the British Empire, the Irish church acting as a ‘Second Empire’, and within a third empire, the ‘Woman's Empire’. Key aspects in examining the flow or transference of education by these Sisters in a colonial setting, lie in their own histories, their spiritual focus, the schools they established for their students, and the curriculum they adopted in the social and geographic environments in which they found themselves.     

English as a symbol of internationalization in higher education: a case study of Vietnam

Vietnam universities have experienced remarkable changes brought about by their internationalization policies. The switch to English as a medium of instruction (EMI) for some academic programs was one of these critical changes. Literature has reported numerous issues related to EMI, including inadequate language proficiency of teaching staff. This paper looks at a qualitative research study on how a government university from Vietnam employs different strategies to enhance teachers’ English proficiency. The study reveals that the introduction of new supporting systems, assessment bodies, recruitment criteria and institutional strategies on training, monitoring and motivation have created cultural change within the teacher community. This cultural change, which includes elements such as self-directed learning, peer learning, professionalism, and ‘open-to-change’ attitudes, has been perceived by both leaders and teachers to be conducive to teachers’ language learning. The findings presented in this paper seek to contribute to the formulation or adjustment of policies related to educational reforms, such as curriculum reform, teacher recruitment and teacher professional development in non-English-speaking countries.     

Assessment in French primary schools

ABSTRACT

Despite its current high regard in parts of the English educational community, education in France has been as much the subject of public and political concern in recent years as it has in many other countries. One manifestation of this concern was the Loi Jospin of 1989, the aim of which was to continue to encourage the growth of diversity among schools as a response to local needs. Associated with this goal was that of making teachers more willing and able to respond to the increasingly diverse needs of their pupils. By so doing, it was hoped to raise the overall level of student success within the system. This paper looks at one aspect of teachers’ practice and the impact of current reforms on it–that of assessment. Having briefly described the provisions of the Jospin Law, it discusses how these are affecting teachers’ attitudes and practice, using data from the ESRC‐funded ‘Systems, Teachers and Educational Policy’ (STEP) project (ESRC Award No.: R 000 23 4673). Some tentative conclusions about the scale of change and the significance of French primary teachers’ attitudes to assessment are offered.     

Teaching and Assessing Writing: an Australian Perspective

This article examines issues of writing instruction and assessment as they relate to an approach to English language education that has been developed in Australia. The approach, put forward by proponents of genre theory, is underpinned by the argument that it is essential for all teachers, and especially English teachers, to have a ‘metalanguage’ about language education. The expectation is that such a metalanguage makes it possible for teachers and students to develop shared understandings of how written and spoken language works in their various forms. The related argument is that the teacher represents an authoritative (as distinct from authoritarian) language user in the classroom and is responsible for teaching the linguistic characteristics of texts as well as the relationship between texts and the cultural and social contexts in which they are produced and received. In this article I examine the ‘genre’ position and consider its relevance to the business of teaching, learning and assessing in the English classroom.     

Reading Between the Lines of Reader Response: Constructing ‘the Other’ through the Aesthetic Stance

In this article, the author challenges English teachers of literature to examine applications of reader response theory in teaching reading which posit that readers approach a text from two stances: ‘aesthetic’ (emotional) or ‘efferent’ (literal). The essay presents a case study of pre‐service English teachers and adolescents’ web‐based discussions about a work of young adult fiction based on a transgendered character. The study highlights how the pre‐service teachers’ framing of questions about the book provoked the adolescents to adopt an aesthetic stance with the text that effectively ‘othered’ transgenderism, leaving potential opportunities for critical reflection and analysis of gender and sexuality unexamined.     

Formative assessment of writing in English as a foreign language

Recognizing the importance of formative assessment, this mixed-methods study investigates how four teachers and 100 students respond to the new emphasis on formative assessment in English as a foreign language (EFL) writing classes in Norway. While previous studies have examined formative assessment in oral classroom interactions and focused on either studying students or teachers, little research has been conducted on formative assessment of writing where both students and teachers are studied. As such, this study provides new insight. The findings mostly indicate that contradictions are prevalent amongst teachers’ and students’ perceptions of formative assessment of writing. The contradictions revolve around feedback, grades, text revision, self-assessment, and student involvement. The identified contradictions suggest the need for developing a mutual understanding of formative assessment in order to make it useful and meaningful.     

Teacher feedback to student oral presentations in EFL classrooms: a case study

Whilst much research has been conducted on teacher feedback in various teaching and learning contexts, little is known about how teachers give feedback on student oral presentations to enhance students’ oral communicative skills in second-language (L2) education. Drawing on data from semi-structured interviews, this case study investigated the methods used by an experienced Chinese teacher of English as a Foreign Language to provide feedback on student oral presentation tasks. Data analysis revealed that the teacher gave oral comments mainly on pronunciation, content and logical thinking, and focused on PowerPoint design in his written commentary. The analysis also revealed that the teacher used the specific pattern of ‘praise-criticism-suggestion’ to comment on the students’ oral presentations. Relevant pedagogical implications for L2 teacher feedback practices and teacher-education programmes are discussed in the paper.     

What I ‘Know’: Literary Studies and the Teaching of English

This essay unfolds through a series of juxtapositions, involving storytelling and writing of a more analytical nature. In thinking about what I ‘know’ as an English teacher, my aim has been to present my ideas in a form that might do justice to the contradictions and complexities of my professional life, including my continuing efforts to negotiate a pathway between the rich particularities of the educational settings in which I have worked and my knowledge and values as an English teacher. My primary focus is on how my literary education has shaped and been shaped by my work as an English teacher vis-à-vis a devaluing of teachers’ disciplinary knowledge that has occurred through standards-based reforms. I attempt to make the standpoint from which I am writing an object of scrutiny, thus producing an account of what I ‘know’ that arises out of my work as an English teacher and returns to it as a necessary dimension of a politically committed praxis.     

Internationalising practices and representations of the ‘other’ in second-level elite schools in Ireland

While Irish elite schools have adopted some internationalising practices, international students are often erased from their ‘public faces’. Based on interviews and analysis of schools' websites, this paper argues that Brooks and Waters' [2014. “The Hidden Internationalism of Elite English Schools.” Sociology, advance online publication April 2] argument that elite schools hide their internationalism to preserve an explicit national identity for strategic purposes largely applies to the Irish case. In addition, it explores how features characteristic of Irish elite educational settings can help understand ambiguous attitudes to the international ‘other’, who is not only hidden but also at times ‘Irish-ised’ as these schools cultivate cultural identities defined primarily along ethno-national lines.     

The Status of Literature: English teaching and the condition of literature teaching in schools

Although the curriculum subject of English is continually reviewed and revised in all English speaking countries, the status of literature is rarely questioned: i.e. that it is of high cultural value and all students should be taught about it. The concerns of any review, in any country, are typically about what counts as literature, especially in terms of national heritage, and then how much of the curriculum it should occupy. This paper reports on three inter‐related pieces of research that examine the views of in‐service and pre‐service English teachers about their experiences of teaching literature and their perceptions of its ‘status’ and significance, both at official level and in the classroom; it draws attention to how England compares with some other English‐speaking countries and to the need to learn from the negative outcomes of political policy in England. The findings suggest that the nature of engagement with literature for teachers and their students has been distorted by official rhetorics and assessment regimes and that English teachers are deeply concerned to reverse this pattern.     

Finding the common ground: Teachers' and employers' representations of English in an assessment context

There has been a long‐standing debate about how ‘English’ can be defined. Educational policy changes have typically been driven by differing representations of the subject, and have ranged from broad ‘aesthetic’ definitions to more narrow ‘functional’ views. The present study aims to analyse areas of consensus and contention in stakeholders' discourse regarding English. A questionnaire‐based survey and focus groups were used to explore how teachers and employers viewed English as a subject. Their views were conceptualised into three themes: the importance of functional English; English as atomistic versus holistic study; and English as critical thought. These themes are discussed in relation to historical definitions of ‘English’, and their implications for the future reform of English qualifications.     

Too much freedom and autonomy in the enactment of assessment? Assessment in physical education in Ireland

This paper sets out to outline current discussions in Ireland around teachers being responsible for assessing their own students’ work, and the subsequent impact such a perspective is having (or not) on the delivery and assessment of physical education in Ireland. Our intention is to contribute to assessment considerations, while acknowledging the nuances of the Irish education context, and the positioning of physical education within such nuances. This discussion is particularly timely given the very recent endorsement for the introduction of the new Leaving Certificate Physical Education as a full optional subject. We begin by discussing more specifically assessment in Irish primary and post-primary schools, drawing attention to the limited Irish assessment-related research being conducted in both contexts. We then explore assessment developments related to Irish primary physical education and post-primary physical education and compare the extent to which such developments are limited in comparison to international assessment interests and practices in physical education. We conclude with suggestions related to studying (pre-service) teachers’ and students’ exposure to assessment in order to understand how we could alter the balance of assessment purposes and uses in Irish schools.     

Turning experiences into critical reflections: examples from Taiwanese in-service teachers

The aims of this paper are twofold: to investigate how Taiwanese teachers of English as a Foreign Language turned experiences into critical reflections via journal writings and to describe how they gauged critical reflections as teaching inquiry. The participants were 12 Taiwanese in-service teachers enrolled in an elective course entitled ‘Doing Teacher Research in English Instruction’, meeting three hours a week for 17 weeks. Two types of data, journal entries and semi-structured oral interviews, were collected. Three levels of critical reflection – transitions, transformations, and problematics – were generated for further discussion. The results indicate that critical reflection as teaching inquiry helped the teachers deal with situations of uncertainty, instability, and value conflict in multiple contexts. Critical reflections enhanced teachers' understanding and brought about changes in their awareness of instructional effectiveness and teaching beliefs in their practice. For a variety of reasons, these teachers perceived critical reflections as teaching inquiry with positive and/or negative positions.