Long-term effects of primary schools on educational positions of students 2 and 4 years after the start of secondary education

Although the importance of primary schools in the long term is of interest in educational effectiveness research, few studies have examined the long-term effects of schools over the past decades. In the present study, long-term effects of primary schools on the educational positions of students 2 and 4 years after starting secondary education are investigated. Moreover, it is examined which school factors play a role in this process. We specifically investigated whether effective primary schools make a difference in the long term. This study uses data from the longitudinal SiBO project, which followed 6,000 pupils in primary education in Flanders, Belgium, and has follow-up data during secondary education. Two-level models and cross-classified multilevel models show that primary schools have long-term effects on the educational positions of students in secondary education.     

Losing All Interest in School: Social Participation as a Predictor of the Intention to Leave Upper Secondary School Early

Early school leaving in upper secondary education is a serious problem for both students and society. Several reviews have shown that there is no simple cause of early school leaving, but it seems to relate to demographic variables, social factors, academic achievement, and school factors. In this study, data from 2,045 students aged 16 from upper secondary schools in Norway were analyzed using a hierarchical regression model. Their intention to leave school was the dependent variable. Our analyses found that teacher support and loneliness in the school context were strong predictors of such intension. The effects of peer acceptance and friendship were minimal.     

Effects of Art Education in Secondary Schools on Cultural Participation in Later Life

This paper reports on the effects of art education in secondary schools on the cultural participation of Dutch students 10–20 years after leaving school. We draw our conclusion from a sample survey among 1034 students from 31 schools, half of whom took art as a subject of examination. Art examination subjects were more often chosen by students who were already active in the arts, come from culturally active families, and who more often chose languages and other humanities in their examination package. However, in spite of their affiliation with art prior to choosing an examination package, training in the arts during secondary school was found to add to their participation in cultural activities ten to twenty years later. The effects are restricted to the same art discipline as the art lessons attended, and apply to both receptive [enjoying art of artists] and productive [producing art] cultural participation.     

The short‐term and the long‐term effect of primary schools and classes on mathematics and language achievement scores

A considerable body of previous research has demonstrated that differences between schools and classes have an impact on students' learning and acquisition of skills. It is not yet clear, however, whether the effects persist in the longer term. The present study examines the effect of primary schools and classes on language and mathematics achievement over a period of two years after leaving primary education. Considerable short‐term effects of the primary school and class on achievement levels at the end of primary education were found. Multilevel models with a cross‐classified structure were constructed to estimate the long‐term effects. Differences between secondary schools and classes turned out to be much more important for achievement in secondary education than the long‐term effects of primary schools and classes, which were small and died out fast.     

Participation in extracurricular activities and student achievement: evidence from German all-day schools

The major aim of educational effectiveness research is to examine and explain school, class, and teacher differences with respect to relevant educational criteria. Until now, in the large majority of studies, language and mathematics scores were used as a criterion. In the present study, the educational track students choose at the start of secondary education (at the age of 12) and their success in the chosen curriculum are examined in relation to primary school and classes (Grades 1 to 6). Two-level models show that students had higher aims in secondary education if they had attended primary Catholic schools and/or primary schools with high average curriculum advice. The latter schools were also highly effective with respect to achievement, and their students had a high socioeconomic status and background. Multilevel models with a cross-classified structure showed no direct long-term effects of primary schools and classes.     

A New Study on Educational Effectiveness in Secondary Schools in Flanders: An Introduction

As an introduction to the articles of Opdenakker, Van Damme, De Fraine, Van Landeghem, and Onghena (2002) and Van Landeghem, Van Damme, Opdenakker, De Fraine, and Onghena (2002) in this issue, we give some background information on a new study on educational effectiveness in secondary schools, and on the variables measured in that study that are relevant to the 2 articles mentioned. We conclude with some information on the system of secondary education in Flanders.     

Working‐class parents' views of secondary education

Parents of upper‐secondary students in public schools in New South Wales, Australia, gave accounts of their experience of education and their wider thinking about educational issues. Working‐class families are bearers of educational histories which are often difficult or truncated, leaving parents with little familiarity with upper‐secondary or post‐school pathways. General views of education are strongly positive, sometimes diffuse and sometimes articulated, and are by no means narrowly instrumental. A mixture of criticism and praise for teachers responds to current family experiences with schools, parents' views often following the outlines of teachers' own perceptions. A fund of working‐class support for public education has thus survived recent educational upheavals; at the same time, working‐class families very much depend on the service and guidance provided by the schools.     

Working at a different level? Curriculum differentiation in Irish lower secondary education

Abstract

Young people in Irish schools are required to choose whether to sit secondary exam subjects at higher or ordinary level. This paper draws on a mixed methods longitudinal study of students in 12 case-study schools to trace the factors influencing take-up of higher level subjects within lower secondary education. School organisation and process are found to shape the extent to which young people actually have a ‘choice’. Streaming practices, which are more prevalent in schools serving socio-economically disadvantaged communities, constrain the degree of choice young people have over their subject levels, with those in lower stream classes usually allocated to ordinary level. Even where schools have mixed ability base classes, schools influence access to higher level subjects. In the middle-class and socially mixed schools, teachers are more likely to expect and encourage all students to take higher level. In contrast, in working-class schools there are sharp declines in the proportion taking higher level subjects as they approach the national exam taken at the end of lower secondary education. Early decisions about not pursuing higher level are found to have long-term consequences. The findings contribute to our understanding of how curriculum differentiation reinforces social class differences in educational pathways.     

新时期提高中职学校思政教学要点分析

中职院校以培养技术型人才为主,注重学生某项技能的学习,对学生的基本文化知识和个人素养要求较低。思政教育工作关系到中职学生的发展,是人才培养和全民素质提高的关节环节。随着中国社会的发展,传统的中职院校人才培养模式已经不能适应社会的发展。思政教育是其他教育教学的基础,中职学校深入开展思政教育,应该以培养学生高尚道德品质为目标,同时应该注意与其他学科的结合,保证学生全面发展。文章主要对中职学校学生思政教学进行简要分析,希望对中职院校的思政教育起到积极作用。     

The impact of grade inflation on higher education enrolment and earnings

This study examines the consequences of grade inflation at the upper secondary education level on enrolment in higher education and earnings for Sweden. Although grade inflation is unfair and may imply inefficient allocation of human resources, current knowledge of grade inflation effects on individual outcomes is scarce. One explanation is probably the challenge of measuring and estimating causal grade inflation effects. We find that grade inflation at the school level affects earnings mainly through choice of university and the chosen field of education, rather than through enrolment per se, because attending universities of higher quality and pursuing high-paying fields of education have a substantial impact on earnings. On the other hand, high-skilled students attending upper secondary schools without grade inflation and, unexpectedly, low-skilled women attending “lenient” schools are harmed by this. This causes extensive unfairness and, plausibly, detrimental welfare effects.     

Soziale Disparit?ten und die ?ffnung des Sekundarschulsystems

Efforts to break the link between the school type attended and the qualification awarded are seen an important step in the modernization of Germany??s tracked secondary school system. However, it remains disputed whether these efforts have reduced social disparities or in fact increased them. This study examined the transition from lower secondary education in academic- and intermediate-track schools to upper secondary education in general and vocational gymnasium schools in the state of Baden-Württemberg. When indicators of parental social background and school-leaving qualifications were controlled, the opening of upper secondary education was found to be associated with a decrease in the social selectivity of upper secondary education for intermediate-track students. At the same time, for those intermediate-track students who were entitled to enter upper secondary education, social background had predictive effects on the transition decision; however, the overall size of these effects was low.     

‘Man enough to do it’? Girls and non‐traditional subjects in lower secondary education

This article examines the processes influencing the choice of non‐traditional subjects by girls in lower secondary education in the Republic of Ireland. In particular, we focus on the traditionally ‘male’ craft technological subjects, namely Materials Technology (Wood), Metalwork and Technical Graphics. Analyses are based on detailed case studies of 12 secondary schools, placing them in the context of national patterns of subject take‐up. Strong gender differentiation persists in the take‐up of these technological subjects. Commonalities are evident across schools in the way in which the subjects are constructed as ‘male’. However, some students, both female and male, actively contest these labels, and school policy and practice regarding subject provision and choice can make a difference to take‐up patterns. It is argued that the persistent gendering of subjects has implications for the skills acquired by students, their engagement in education, and the education, training and career opportunities open to them on leaving school.     

School district size and student educational attainment: evidence from Denmark

This paper analyses the effects of the size of school districts on educational attainment of students after compulsory school in Denmark. Using administrative microdata for individual students and their parents, logit models for the probability of obtaining different levels of education are estimated where the explanatory variables include district size, per student expenditure, and a wide range of controls for family background and district socioeconomic characteristics. It is found that attending schools in districts with a population of less than 15,000 (corresponding to less than 1800 students in public primary and lower secondary schools) has negative effects on educational attainment later in life: The probability of completing a secondary education (upper secondary school or vocational education) or a further or higher education is reduced by approximately 3 percentage points compared to having attended primary and lower secondary school in a district with more than 15,000 inhabitants.     

Value added based on educational positions in Dutch secondary education

Estimating added value as an indicator of school effectiveness in the context of educational accountability often occurs using test or examination scores of students. This study investigates the possibilities for using scores of educational positions as an alternative indicator. A number of advantages of a value added indicator based on educational positions of students can be formulated, such as: (a) the societal significance of educational position as output measure; (b) the fact that a single indicator can be estimated for an entire school in a differentiated educational system, where not all schools provide education in all tracks; and (c) the expectation that value added based on educational positions leads to other incentives for schools than value added based on test scores. Empirical analysis of Dutch cohort data (VOCL'99) for secondary education showed considerable differences in effectiveness between schools in the positions of students. Furthermore, differential school effects were found for both socio‐economic status and prior achievement. The phenomena of differential school effects for socio‐economic status and prior achievement are linked to differences between schools in the kind of tracks in which the schools provide schooling.     

技校生自卑心理超常量研究

技校生中具有自卑心理的学生与同龄的中等教育和高等教育学校学生相比较,比例明显超过常量。其超常量的比率应该说与该部分学生所处的学校教育环境是有直接关系。可充分认识这一起常量的特殊群体所造成的负面影响,在技工教育阶段从学校、教师和学生自身三个层面上入手,通过学校教育可及时矫正学生的自卑心理。     

学校投入与家庭投入哪个更重要?--回应由《科尔曼报告》引起的关于学校与家庭作用之争

自《科尔曼报告》公布至今已经过去了半个世纪,但对于学生学业成绩来说,学校投入与家庭投入哪个更重要的问题在国内外学术界依然没有达成共识。本文利用我国东部和中部5省16个城市中小学校大规模测评数据,采用广义教育生产函数方法,运用两水平线性模型,分析了学校投入和家庭投入要素对教育产出(以学生学业成绩为代理变量)的影响效应。同时,采用Shapley值和Owen值分解技术,识别出对学校教育产出有较大影响的投入要素,得出以下4个方面结论:第一,除生师比之外,办学条件和教师质量等学校投入要素对教育产出结果有显著的正效应。第二,父母参与、父母教育期望等家庭投入要素对教育产出结果有显著的正效应。第三,对于小学平均学业成绩而言,来自家庭的相关投入更重要;对于初中平均学业成绩而言,则是来自学校的相关投入更为重要。第四,相比学校办学条件,教师质量对中小学校平均学业成绩变异的贡献度更大;而且,相比小学,教师质量对初中学校平均学业成绩变异的贡献度更大。基于实证研究结论,提出提高我国中小学教育生产效率的5点建议:一是调整义务教育资源配置结构,优先保障初中阶段学校教育投入;二是改善义务教育阶段教师的工资待遇和工作环境,以吸引更多高素质人才投入义务教育事业;三是通过校外教师专业发展培训、校本教研合作等途径切实提高教师队伍的教学策略水平,尤其要重视提高初中教师的教学策略水平;四是政府和相关部门应尽快出台有关家庭教育的制度规范,强化父母在家庭教育中的主体责任,督促父母积极参与子女教育生产过程;五是学校和社区应广泛开展家庭教育讲座和家庭教育实践培训活动,引导家长树立正确的家庭教育观,掌握科学的养育子女的方法,以提高学校教育和家庭教育联合生产的效率。     

The experience of school in Scotland, 1970s to 1990s

Reforms to secondary schooling in the 20th century are most commonly discussed in relation to structures—the extension of secondary education to all students in the first half of the century, and the ending of selection into different kinds of school after the 1960s. Yet reformers also sought to give students a more satisfactory experience of school. Understanding statistically the changing experience which students had of secondary school following the reforms of the 1960s requires a lengthy time series of survey data collected contemporaneously and the capacity to link that information to evidence on attainment and on demographic factors such as sex and socio-economic status. Data from a unique series of such surveys in Scotland is used to investigate whether secondary schools became more humane in this period, whether students were more engaged with their schooling, and whether they thought that schools prepared them for life after they left. The conclusions are that the long-term aspirations of reformers to make schooling more satisfactory for students were broadly achieved. There were indeed improvements of experience and sentiment of these kinds, and they extended to students at all levels of attainment, to both sexes, and to all levels of socio-economic status.     

The short- and long-term effects of secondary schools upon students’ academic success and development

This paper presents the results of a study investigating the short- and long-term effects of secondary schools upon student academic success and development. A questionnaire was administered to a randomly selected sample of 15% of Cypriot students who graduated in June 2004 and June 2005 from secondary schools. A good response rate (i.e., 66%) was obtained. For each criterion of measuring school effects, separate multilevel analysis was conducted. The results provide evidence for statistically significant school effects on students’ success at the university entrance exams and on their academic success and development. Suggestions for further research are provided, and policy implications are finally drawn.     

Word Frequency as a Factor in Learning to Read and Spell

ABSTRACT

The authors investigated the effects of an intervention developed to enhance student motivation in the first years of secondary education. The intervention, based on future time perspective (FTP) theory, has been found to be effective in prevocational secondary education (T. T. D. Peetsma &; I. Van der Veen, 2008, 2009). The authors extend the previous studies by focusing on all levels of secondary education and investigating the effects of the intervention over a longer period. In addition, they investigated the feasibility of teachers performing the intervention. A total of 766 students completed questionnaires 5 times during the first 2 years in secondary education, measuring FTP, goal orientation, and self-regulated learning. The authors randomly selected 65 students for the interventions. The results showed positive effects of the intervention on self-regulated learning and performance-approach in all levels of secondary education. Interventions performed by trained teachers were equally effective as those performed by the researchers.     

美育对中职学校发展的影响研究

中职学校是培养专业技术人才的基地,加强美育不仅对学生的发展有重要作用,同时对学校的未来发展也有重要影响。文章主要分析中职学校美育的现状,探讨美育对中职学校发展的影响,指出要开展多种形式的美育活动,创设优美的校园环境,提高学生对美的认识,发挥校园文化的作用。