Supporting Reform-Oriented Secondary Science Teaching Through the Use of a Framework to Analyze Construction of Scientific Explanations

The Next-Generation Science Standards (NGSS) call for a different approach to learning science. They promote three-dimensional (3D) learning that blends disciplinary core ideas, crosscutting concepts and scientific practices. In this study, we examined explanations constructed by secondary science teacher candidates (TCs) as a scientific practice outlined in the NGSS necessary for supporting students’ learning of science in this 3D way. We examined TCs’ ability to give explanations that include explicit statements of underlying reasons for natural phenomena, as opposed to simply describing patterns or laws. In their methods courses, TCs were taught to organize explanations into a what/how/why framework, where what refers to what happens in specific cases (data or observations); how refers to how things usually happen and is equivalent to patterns or laws; and why refers to causal explanations or models. We examined TCs’ ability to do this spontaneously and in a resource-rich environment as a first step in gauging their preparedness for NGSS-aligned teaching. We found that (1) the ability of TCs to articulate complete and accurate causal scientific explanations for phenomena exists along a continuum; (2) TCs in our sample whose explanations fell on the upper end of this continuum were more likely to provide complete and accurate explanations even in the absence of support from explicit standards; and (3) teacher candidate’s ability to construct complete and accurate explanations did not correlate with cross-course performance or academic major. The implications of these findings for the preparation of teachers for NGSS-based science instruction are discussed.     

The Role and Value of Technical Communicators: Technical Communicators and Subject Matter Experts Weigh In

This qualitative study compares how technical communicators (TCs) and subject matter experts (SMEs) characterize the role and value of the TC. Seven TCs and eight SMEs participated in an investigation of the similarities and differences between the perceptions of these two groups. Key findings are that SMEs perceive of TCs as investigators, educators, and relationship builders; TCs talk about themselves in terms of investigators, interpreters, and audience advocates; and TCs are often uncomfortable discussing their value.     

Identification of Threshold Concepts for Biochemistry

Threshold concepts (TCs) are concepts that, when mastered, represent a transformed understanding of a discipline without which the learner cannot progress. We have undertaken a process involving more than 75 faculty members and 50 undergraduate students to identify a working list of TCs for biochemistry. The process of identifying TCs for biochemistry was modeled on extensive work related to TCs across a range of disciplines and included faculty workshops and student interviews. Using an iterative process, we prioritized five concepts on which to focus future development of instructional materials. Broadly defined, the concepts are steady state, biochemical pathway dynamics and regulation, the physical basis of interactions, thermodynamics of macromolecular structure formation, and free energy. The working list presented here is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather is meant to identify a subset of TCs for biochemistry for which instructional and assessment tools for undergraduate biochemistry will be developed.     

Multicultural Children’s Literature as a Context for Teaching Mathematics for Cultural Relevance in Urban Schools

This article reports on a teacher-research study that used multicultural texts as a context for teaching mathematics for cultural relevance during an elementary mathematics methods course. The results of the study reveal that 28 % (5 out of 18) of the teacher candidates (TCs) chose books that were culturally contextual or culturally amenable. However, 89 % (16 out of 18) of the TCs chose texts that were mathematically robust or mathematically peripheral. Four focal TCs were selected to examine how they used the texts with children to teach mathematics concepts. Math lessons fostered academic success, cultural competence, and critical consciousness. Overall, the results of the study are mixed. We conclude that some TCs’ choice of texts may reflect indifference, passive resistance, low self-efficacy, school culture, and mixed messages from the teacher–researcher. Additional studies that include follow-up interviews and classroom observations are needed to determine the factors that influence TCs’ selections of multicultural texts and their implementation of culturally relevant pedagogy with students.     

论跨国公司对国际体系的影响

冷战后国际体系主要呈现两个显著特征:其一,体系内以美国为首的西方势力大为扩展;其二,全球化的进程日益加快。跨国公司自20世纪60年代以来的迅猛发展,对国际体系造成越来越大的影响。这些影响是通过对以上国际体系的两个特征从而对国际体系施加影响的。跨国公司不是改变国际体系的力量,而是成为塑造国际体系的基本动力之一。跨国公司通过跨国经营活动,加速了资本主义体系在全球的扩展。     

Successful learning: balancing self-regulation with instructional planning

Many recent studies have stressed the importance of teacher candidates’ (TCs) self-regulated learning (SRL) skills for successful learning. Because of the promising consequences of SRL for academic performance, teacher educators (TEs) are encouraged to increase TCs’ SRL opportunities in educational programs. Because of the difficulty and complexity for TEs to successfully guide TCs towards SRL, the present study contributes to the discussion how to best facilitate TEs in finding a balance between student- and teacher-control. For this purpose, a conceptual model is presented. The model draws upon literature related to the perspective of the learner, the teacher and the learning task. Besides the context of teacher education, the model is beneficial for higher education as well as teaching and teacher professionalization. It will help instructors provide a more balanced approach between teacher- and student-controlled learning, and support students develop essential SRL skills.     

Teacher Candidates' Perspectives on the Value of a Site-Based Methods Course

Abstract

In the field of teacher education, the disconnect between university-based coursework and practical field experiences has long been a concern. To make teacher preparation coursework more meaningful, some programs partner with P-12 schools to offer site-based courses. Although situated learning for novices in practice-based professions makes sense, more research is needed to determine if, how, and why site-based courses in particular may be beneficial for teacher candidates’ (TCs) learning. In this study, we used surveys and interviews with TCs, who had taken the same site-based literacy methods course, to identify which aspects of the course they found most facilitative of connections between the course content and the field. Our findings suggest working with children in classrooms, course instructors’ involvement at the school, and opportunities to discuss and reflect upon their experiences immediately after they had been in the field were the primary features of a site-based course TCs found valuable.     

Building the role of ICT coordinators in primary schools: A typology based on task prioritisation

Although the school ICT coordinator’s role has been institutionally defined by the Andalusian Education Administration (Spain), individual factors may be key in the emerging role-building process. Multidimensional scaling (MDS) of the priority given by coordinators to their different functions and a subsequent cluster analysis of the MDS solution were used to identify role orientations among ICT coordinators in primary schools of Andalucía (Spain). Three orientation clusters were identified: “support of ICT use in the classroom” (67.1%), “promote ICT use in the classroom” (17.8%) and “planning and maintenance of ICT equipment in the school” (15.1%). The interest in separating technical and pedagogical duties into two profiles and the perceived organisational support from the Teachers Centres (TCs) differed in the three role orientation types. Finally, strategies are suggested to reduce role ambiguity and role conflict in ICT coordinators. A clearer definition of the role would improve their leadership in ICT implementation in schools.     

Truth commissions,education, and positive peace: an analysis of truth commission final reports (1980–2015)

ABSTRACT

Transitional justice and education both occupy increasingly prominent space on the international peacebuilding agenda, though less is known about the ways they might reinforce one another to contribute towards peace. This paper presents a cross-national analysis of truth commission (TC) reports spanning 1980–2015, exploring the range of educational work taken on by one of the most prominent forms of transitional justice. We find that TC engagement with education is increasing over time and that TCs are incorporating the task of ‘telling the truth about education’ into their work. However, when TCs engage with education, they tend to recommend forwards looking reforms, for instance decontextualised human rights and peace education. We argue that this limits the contribution that TCs might make towards positive peace by failing to use their backwards looking, truth telling work to insist on transformation in the educational sector.     

Threshold concepts and the troublesome transition from GCSE to A-level: exploring students’ experiences in secondary school biology

Abstract

This paper draws on doctoral research exploring the lived experiences of secondary school students during their first year of A-level study, through the theoretical lens of the Threshold Concept Framework. A longitudinal design frame based on Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis is employed, thus providing an original use of this methodology in education research to address the paucity of inquiry exploring the difficulties experienced by students as they transition from the General Certificate in Secondary Education (GCSE) to A-level. In this context, I argue that students’ encounters with threshold concepts (TCs) are significant for them, posing a degree of cognitive and affective challenge which serves to exacerbate the difficulty of transition already caused by increased workload and pressure. The findings offer insights into students’ struggles adjusting to shifting identity and membership of communities further intensified by the integrative, discursive and transformative nature of TC acquisition. The longitudinal research design also surfaces positive aspects of growing awareness of the integrative power of TCs. Recommendations are made for further research involving students, teachers and academics to explore TCs in a range of other subjects and settings in secondary schools in the context of recent and significant changes to GCSE and A-level curricula.     

Developing Social Skills Training and Literacy Instruction Pedagogy Through Service Learning: An Integrated Model of Teacher Preparation

This mixed methods study reports on the perspectives of 143 preservice early childhood educators (ECE) and 208 elementary teacher candidates (TC) on teaching children with developmental disabilities and delays (DDD) in inclusive classrooms. A questionnaire was administered which included items on demographic characteristics, experience, knowledge, and feelings of competence when collaborating with colleagues and meeting the needs of students with DDD. Included was the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale short form (Tschannen-Moran &; Woolfolk Hoy, 2001). Qualitative data were collected through open-ended questions about successes and challenges in including children with DDD. Whenever applicable, items asked respondents to respond based on their most recent practicum in a child care or school setting. Similar findings were reported by both preservice ECE and elementary teacher candidates. TCs reported significantly greater experience, knowledge, and sense of efficacy in their teaching compared to ECEs, but no differences in feelings of competence. Analyses of open-ended questions about successes and challenges experienced by ECEs and TCs yielded similar themes related to differentiating teaching, enhancing participation for children, and collaborating, with TCs also expressing concerns about differentiating curriculum. Implications for early childhood and elementary teacher preparation programs are discussed.     

Teachers' and Students' Preferences for Mathematics Interventions: Implications for Teacher Acceptability in Consultation

Teacher and student acceptability of academic interventions is an important factor for school- based consultants to consider in determining the use and effectiveness of academic interventions. This study compared the acceptability of 3 theoretically distinct mathematics interventions: a cognitive, a behavioral, and a traditional intervention. The study lasted 8 weeks. A total of 18 teacher-candidates (TCs) and 55 fourth grade students were exposed to 1 of 3 mathematical interventions and were asked to rate the acceptability of each intervention. Results showed that both TCs and students rated the interventions as equally acceptable. These findings, though useful to both school-based consultants and trainers, are in contrast with previous findings suggesting that teachers prefer cognitive and cooperative interventions over behavioral interventions (de Mesquita & Zollman, 1995).     

Linking research and practice through teacher communities: a place where formal and practical knowledge meet?

This study characterises the links between research and practice across 12 projects concerned with the collaborative design of lesson plans by teacher communities (TCs). Analyses focused on sources of knowledge used to inform lesson design, participants’ roles and knowledge generated by the teacher community. Three patterns emerged pertaining to the sources of knowledge informing lesson plans: design guided by formal and practical knowledge, by classroom-data and practical knowledge or by a combination of all three. Findings further suggest that the emphasis given to the use of formal knowledge over classroom-data or vice versa restrains the full accomplishment of research and practice links. Across the projects studied, university researchers contributed to linking research and practice by directly or indirectly supporting community activities. Surprisingly, the role of teachers in the generation and dissemination of formal knowledge was limited. Further research should explore the effects of collaboration within TCs on researchers and policy-makers.     

Teaching circles: a way forward for part-time teachers in higher education?

Part-time teachers represent a growing challenge to universities' quality assurance and developmental processes. This paper describes an attempt to meet this challenge through the adoption of 'teaching circles' (TCs) in four contrasting case-study schools. Analysis of outcomes enables identification of the variables affecting the apparent success of TCs as a strategy, some of which are associated with the particularities of context. Underlying these particularities, however, the general question of how participants come to feel 'ownership' of change initiatives emerges as a central issue. Three inter-related processes are shown to be involved: leadership, attribution of causation and social integration. The paper concludes that this analysis has implications beyond the TC project and provides both key practical pointers and, potentially, a useful analytical tool for researchers studying programmes of organizational change.     

Meeting in the circle: examining identity,attitudes, and pedagogy in the context of an early childhood teacher education program in the United States

As a team of teacher educators at a university in the United States, we engage in participatory action research to reflect on how reflective tools which we design engage teacher candidates (TCs) in their reflecting on teaching. In this paper, we describe how we invite TCs to write in-class reflections, respond to self-assessment probes, and practice problem-solving processes. We critically analyze our approaches and identify further intentional approaches to promote university students’ understandings of (1) links between the self and working with children and families and (2) connections between attitudes and pedagogy towards social justice and inclusion. We conclude that we must continue to explore how the teaching practices we use affect students’ understandings of social justice in education. Doing so demands our focus on examining attitudes through self-reflection among and between faculty and university students so that identity, relationships, attitudes, inclusion, and social justice are prioritized as pillars of curriculum in early childhood education at all levels of schooling.     

Critically Conscious or Dangerously Dysconscious?: An Analysis of Teacher Candidates' Concerns in Urban Schools

Drawing on a teacher concerns framework, alongside notions of critical consciousness, this article examines the extent to which teacher candidates' (TCs') concerns are related in any way to the critical scholarship they have engaged with throughout their teacher education coursework. Utilizing teacher candidates' written dilemmas of practice during student teaching as the primary data source, the authors utilize consensual qualitative research for data analysis and share results within and across concern categories as related to notions of critical consciousness and dysconsciousness (King, 1991). Results indicate that TCs' posted self concerns lacked a critical inward journey; that TCs were more likely to be critically conscious regarding their own positionality in schools, yet overwhelmingly dysconscious when talking about students and families; and that large percentages of dysconscious task concerns seem related to TCs' lack of critically conscious posts about self. The authors suggest the importance of more focused mentorship and assignments aimed at asking questions designed to promote critically conscious ways of being in classrooms, and similarly suggest the importance of considering notions of critical consciousness in concerns-based studies moving forward. The authors end with a note of caution on the movement toward “core practices” in teacher preparation and instead suggest the importance of programming that focuses on uncovering and eradicating dysconsciousness among TCs working with historically marginalized youth.     

意象：中国古典诗歌的审美理想

本文将意象界定为中国古典诗歌(艺术)的基本审美概念,并以此为核心探讨了意向的历史演变、生成过程、分类情况和审美特色,分析了中国古典艺术特别是古典诗歌的一些特点。     

Interactions between defining,explaining and classifying: the case of increasing and decreasing sequences

This paper describes a study in which we investigated relationships between defining mathematical concepts — increasing and decreasing infinite sequences — explaining their meanings and classifying consistently with formal definitions. We explored the effect of defining, explaining or studying a definition on subsequent classification, and the effect of classifying on subsequent explaining and defining. We report that (1) student-generated definitions and explanations were highly variable in content and quality; (2) explicitly considering the meaning of the concept facilitated subsequent classification, and giving a personal definition or explanation had a greater effect than studying a given definition; (3) classifying before defining or explaining resulted in significantly poorer definitions and explanations. We discuss the implications of these results for the teaching of abstract pure mathematics, relating our discussion to existing work on the concept image/concept definition distinction and on working with examples.     

Building the mobile hub: mobile literacies and the construction of a complex academic text

This paper contributes a definition of mobile literacy. This is worthwhile because although mobile, internet‐enabled devices are increasingly prevalent in many people's lives, mobile literacy appears to be under‐theorised and lacking definition. After giving an overview of the scale and nature of mobile device use, the paper develops the definition through building on an existing body of work which seeks to define literacies, digital literacies and mobile learning. The definition takes account of the mobility of technology, of learners, and of learning. A systematic multimodal analysis of a complex undergraduate text, in the form of a conference‐style poster, is then undertaken in order to exemplify the definition offered. The analysis attends to both the semiotic resources exploited by the text's author and the wider context the text is created within. Interview data complements that constructed through analysis of the text itself. Combining these two data sources reveals the ideational, interpersonal and textual/organisational meanings communicated by the text, and how mobility is a contextual factor which is fundamental to the literacy practices employed by the author to convey these meanings.     

Creativity in Art: The feasibility of assessing current conceptions in the school context

The article reviews different views of creativity, building on the work of Czikszentmihaly. It offers a definition of creativity in terms of trait/process/product. The issue of how creativity might be assessed is explored using this definition and some illustrative examples are provided. The article concludes that creativity can and should be assessed but that this must be with an appropriate methodology. Such assessment is important not only for assessing students' work but also for evaluating curriculum content, in order to promote curriculum development in the teaching of creativity.