Teaching and assessing writing skills at university level: a comparison of practices in French and Colombian universities

Background: The analysis of teachers’ conceptions about writing at university level allows the study of teaching practices associated with academic writing. At the same time, it is important to consider the context (disciplines, culture, institution, pedagogical organisation, etc.) where these practices take place.

Purpose: The present article explores the teachers’ conceptions about teaching and assessing writing skills at university level from two academic programmes of psychology: one in France and one in Colombia, through two questions: (a) the writing skills that teachers expect their students to acquire from attending their courses, and (b) the criteria used by the teachers to assess the written performance of their students. The main purpose is to analyse the teaching and evaluation practices that teachers describe in their discourse, taking into account the discipline and some similarities and differences between cultural contexts.

Sample: Ten university psychology teachers, five French and five Colombian, participated voluntarily in the study. The teachers were a heterogeneous group in terms of their ages and number of years of work experience. They taught a range of courses or subjects in the area of psychology.

Design and methods: The research was conducted using a qualitative method. The university teachers’ conceptions were collected during semi-structured interviews. A content analysis of the interviews, using an inductive approach, was undertaken.

Results: The analysis of the discourse indicates that the teachers focus their teaching practices on some specificities of the academic writing, and that they mainly assess different types of students’ knowledge. Additionally, a gap was observed between teaching and assessment practices, which concerns the cognitive dimensions of writing and the rules of academic discourse. This gap seems more evident in French teachers’ discourses. Colombian teachers described, in the main, teaching practices focused on the norms of academic writing.

Conclusions: These findings suggest that some similarities between the teachers’ conceptions are associated with the discipline. Specific differences could be explained by culturally distinct pedagogical practices related to the manner of teaching at university level.     

高中英语教师写作教学信念与实践的个案研究

本研究采用历时质性个案研究方法,对北京某重点高中两位英语教师进行了为期一年的跟踪调查。通过分析访谈、课堂观察等多种数据,本研究发现两名教师都认为英语写作教学应以培养学生的批判性思维和语言综合能力为目的,且与其他技能的培养相融合。她们采用体裁式写作教学方法,将写作教学嵌入日常英语教学活动,关注学生学习写作的过程。本研究发现表明高中英语教师在日常教学中可以突破应试束缚,切实培养学生的写作能力。     

Changes in teachers’ beliefs after a professional development project for teaching writing: two Chinese cases

A plethora of research has found that teachers’ beliefs directly influence their classroom practices and teaching outcomes. While numerous studies in second/foreign language writing have examined the effectiveness of different innovative approaches on students’ learning to write, there is a paucity of research on writing teachers’ beliefs about these approaches and how their beliefs change in the process of their professional development. Such a lacuna becomes prominent in English as a Foreign Language contexts, especially in China, where there are numerous calls for changing the nature of classroom practices from product-focused to process- and student-centred instruction. In order to fill this gap, this brief article reports on a case study regarding changes in two Chinese English teachers’ beliefs after attending a professional development project for teaching writing. A key research question guides this study: What changes, if any, did the two teachers experience in their teaching beliefs during the project? Two writing teachers were voluntarily recruited for a case study. Findings show that the professional development project for teaching writing broadened the teachers’ understanding of different writing theories, provided a clear model of how to integrate these new approaches into regular writing courses, changed their instructional focus and shifted their perception of teachers’ roles in teaching practice.     

A large-scale implementation of predictive learning analytics in higher education: the teachers’ role and perspective

By collecting longitudinal learner and learning data from a range of resources, predictive learning analytics (PLA) are used to identify learners who may not complete a course, typically described as being at risk. Mixed effects are observed as to how teachers perceive, use, and interpret PLA data, necessitating further research in this direction. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether providing teachers in a distance learning higher education institution with PLA data predicts students’ performance and empowers teachers to identify and assist students at risk. Using principles of Technology Acceptance and Academic Resistance models, a university-wide, multi-methods study with 59 teachers, nine courses, and 1325 students revealed that teachers can positively affect students’ performance when engaged with PLA. Follow-up semi-structured interviews illuminated teachers’ actual uses of the predictive data and revealed its impact on teaching practices and intervention strategies to support students at risk.

     

河南省普通高校本科体育教育专业学生术科水平现状调查研究

采用问卷调查法、访谈法等对河南省20所开设体育教育专业的普通高校进行调查研究,结果表明,当前河南省体育教育专业学生的术科水平不高.专业性不强,专业教学的场馆器材设备不完善、教师技术等级与运动经历不深、教师教学态度不积极、专业课程设置比例不当、课程设置比例不完善、学生的自身因素、用人单位要求过高等都对学生的术科水平的高低有一定的影响,针对这些影响学生术科水平发展的因素提出了一些建议,为河南省高校办好体育教育专业提供一定的理论参考.     

高职生物类课程科研促进教学的探索--以细胞生物学和医学遗传学为例

以细胞生物学和医学遗传学为例,将教师的科研范例、查新前沿适当引入教学,带领学生利用课余时间参与教师的科研课题,激发学生主动学习的热情,培养其科研思维与创新意识,促进高职生物类课程教学质量提升。     

Relations between students’ perceptions of the teaching-learning environment and teachers’ approaches to teaching: a qualitative study

ABSTRACT

In recent decades, a constructivist view of learning has triggered a change in teaching-learning environments (TLEs). Teacher-centred TLEs have been replaced by student-centred ones where the teachers’ approaches to teaching are more learning- than content-focused. Previous research exploring the relationship between student-centred TLEs and the quality of learning has shown contradictory results. Previous studies also indicate that various elements of TLEs may influence students’ learning. This study explored course-level types of elements, enhancing or hindering, related to TLEs, which the course students described. The TLEs of the courses varied because the teachers adopted different types of approaches to teaching. The data for this study were collected through semi-structured interviews with undergraduate students (N = 33) from three compulsory courses. The interviews were designed so that students could describe their perceptions of the course as well as their learning experiences and processes. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The results revealed that when the teacher employed a consonant learning-focused approach to teaching, the students perceived almost all elements of the TLE as enhancing. When the teacher’s approach to teaching was identified as dissonant, the students perceived several elements of the TLE as hindering. This study revealed that inclusion of student-activating teaching-learning activities is important when designing TLEs, but that it is also crucial to design elements which guide and structure students’ learning.

Abbreviation: TLE: teaching-learning environment     

College students’ perception of e-feedback: a grounded theory perspective

The increasing prominence of technology has given rise to new ways for writing teachers to give feedback electronically. Specifically, this article focuses on electronic written feedback (e-feedback) given to a group of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) community college students. Although previous studies have investigated the effectiveness of different computer-mediated feedback practices (e.g. video feedback, audio feedback, multimodal feedback), there is a dearth of research which examines the effectiveness of e-feedback and lower-ability students’ perception of e-feedback in ESL post-compulsory writing classrooms which adopt a process writing approach. The present study, which aims to shed light on this research gap and inform ESL writing teachers’ feedback practices, investigates how feedback is given and attended to online by 93 students of an international community college in Hong Kong. Adopting grounded theory as the methodology and a tripartite definition of written feedback as the conceptual framework, the present study reports students’ perception of e-feedback on Google Docs from two sources: students’ written reflections and semi-structured, focus group interviews. Implications related to e-feedback practices are discussed.     

Students’ motivation and teachers’ teaching practices towards the use of blogs for writing of online journals

This research paper explores students’ motivation and teachers’ teaching practices towards the writing of compositions in the conventional paper-based (paper and pencil) and the online blogs mode. Six classes of Grade 5 (224 students) and four English teachers in an elementary-level future school in Singapore were involved in this study. A total of four written assignments were given to the students – two conventional paper and pencil and two online blog-written assignments. No significant difference was found in students’ scores on these assignments. However, the submission rate for the conventional paper-based assignments was 93.8% as compared to 75% for the online blogs entries. Although both students and teachers in this study are savvy information communication technology users who have been exposed to one-to-one computing since Grade 1, the use of blogs for journal writing was not natural to both parties. Teachers found that it was more cumbersome to grade and give comments on students’ online blog posts via the online platform and likewise, students also faced issues with the submission of their online writing assignments. Some students quoted that they preferred writing via conventional paper and pencil mode, experienced network connection and technical issues, had poor time management, experienced forgetfulness and distraction from the computers and the Internet for not submitting their online writing assignments. This study also once again highlighted the importance of the teacher, as one out of the four teachers managed to get all her students to submit their writing assignments. The in-depth analysis of the interviews with the teachers and students, students’ perception survey, students’ performance in their writing tasks (both online and paper-based) and submission rates had revealed useful insights and considerations on the use of blogs to engage students in writing.     

彰显生命的高度——新教育实验理论及教师成长之道

生命课程作为新教育实验的基础课程,着眼于培养学生“真善美”的品格,进而提升其生命高度。新教育实验尊重个体的生命成长,以学生为中心,设置个性化课程,以“十大行动”为途径和主要内容,强调共同体及其愿景的价值,致力于使师生“过一种幸福完整的教育生活”。新教育实验将教师成长作为逻辑起点,构建“职业认同+专业发展”的教师成长模式,引导教师在增强职业认同的基础上,通过专业阅读、专业写作和专业交往,促进自身的成长与发展。     

Utilizing Community Cultural Wealth to Learn with Diverse Language Communities

Abstract

How to prepare teachers to work with culturally and linguistically diverse students and families is an important aspect of teacher education as classrooms continue to diversify. Community-based approaches to teaching offer promising strategies for addressing this need. This article offers one example of an English as a Second Language literacy methods course that built preservice teachers’ understanding of and experiences with diverse language communities. Tara Yosso’s Community Cultural Wealth (CCW) framework provided a theoretical lens for the course and guided the preservice teachers’ teaching and reflections. The preservice teachers engaged in various activities that included literacy teaching, visiting places in their students’ communities, learning their students’ language, and creating narrative videos with the students and their families. The findings from this course show how the CCW framework can be a constructive method for identifying community assets when combined with a variety of activities for preservice teachers to engage with students and their families.     

高中生对英语写作反馈的倾向性研究

做好写作反馈是提高高中生英语写作能力的一个重要途径。根据文献中有关写作教学和写作反馈的内容,从师生两方面进行了问卷调查和访谈,旨在探讨英语书面表达教学中教师和学生对写作反馈的态度和倾向;提出写作反馈需形式多样,反馈评价重点要明确、具体,引导到位。     

“新工科”视角下的“课程思政”实践——面向理工科专业本科生的主题式通识写作课设计

在"新工科"视角下,通识课程和专业课程是理工科高等教育课程体系的两大要素。同时,在推动课程思政建设的背景下,写作类课程作为通识课程的重要组成部分,承担了提升学生写作能力、认知水平,涵养学生人文素养和家国情怀,提升学生伦理道德水平和塑造学生科学精神等多种功能。在"新工科"视角下,以"工程师"为主题的通识写作课探索了借助通识写作课实现隐性课程思政的方式,展现了基于建构主义教学模式设计面向理工类本科生的通识写作课教学方法与成效,并为未来相关课程的设计提供了借鉴。     

Impact of Course and Fieldwork on Multicultural Beliefs and Attitudes

This study investigated preservice teachers’ beliefs and attitudes about teaching culturally and linguistically diverse students when progressing through specially designed courses. Data were collected using the Teacher Multicultural Attitude Survey and semi-structured interviews. Analyses indicated that preservice teachers who received more multicultural preparation held more positive attitudes and based their attitudes more on academic preparation than on personal experiences. Preservice teachers who completed the multicultural course and English for speakers of other languages field placement had a more in-depth understanding of how to help culturally and linguistically diverse students.     

科学课教师胜任特征与工作绩效关系研究

从科学课程标准出发,通过对科学课程标准的解析和团体焦点访谈及其结果分析,构建科学知识、探究能力、科学态度三维度科学课教师工作绩效模型。通过科学课教师胜任特征对学生学习效果作用机理的分析和调查,实证研究科学课教师胜任特征与工作绩效的关系。结果表明,科学课教师的五维度胜任特征对科学课教师工作绩效具有正向关系,但胜任特征对绩效不同维度的影响存在差异。培养能够胜任的科学课教师,建议深化培养目标,实施适性教育;优化课程设置,加强实践设计;创新教学模式,注重主体参与;重构评测体系,深化形成性评测。     

创设情境教学法在应用文教学中的应用

应用写作能力是高职高专学生必须掌握的实践技能之一,《应用文写作》课程教学应本着由浅入深、循序渐进的教学原则,理论联系实际,加强基础性写作训练,增强学生的学习兴趣,并以学生为主体、采用创设情境进行引导的教学方法,以提高教学效果。     

Do we need more male primary teachers? Tensions and contradictions in the perspectives of male and female trainees

Primary teaching Initial Teacher Training courses across the UK have been under pressure from central government, Ofsted and the media to recruit more male students to their courses with the aim of increasing the proportion of males in the primary teaching workforce. This is because increasing the number of male role models in primary schools has been mooted as the solution to boys’ underachievement, especially in reading and writing. There is, however, little evidence showing any correlation between boys’ educational outcomes and the number of male primary teachers in schools. The purpose of the project reported in this paper was to ascertain the beliefs of the future primary school workforce about this focus on the need for male role models in schools. A mixed-methods approach was employed: 120 male and female primary trainees were surveyed and a further 48 took part in group interviews, all of whom were based in an Initial Teacher Training department in a university in North West England. Results indicated that although aspiring teachers felt that males and females could make equally good role models for children their personal value systems perpetuated the myth that boys need male role models to achieve better educational outcomes.     

Teaching writing to middle school students in Portugal and in Brazil: an exploratory study

Learning how to write is a challenging process, typically developed in schools. Teachers’ practices in teaching writing, however, have been under researched. The aim of this study was to survey a sample of teachers from Portugal (n = 96) and Brazil (n = 99) about their practices for and perceptions about writing instruction. Teachers reported on time devoted to student writing and the teaching of writing, on their practices to promote students’ self-regulated writing, adaptations for less skilled writers, and their perceptions about writing and the teaching of writing. Findings from this survey raised concerns about the quality of writing instruction in both countries. Teachers reported little time devoted for writing and the teaching of writing in their classes. The majority of the teachers rarely used practices to promote students’ self-regulated writing or applied explicit teaching methods for writing instruction. Both Portuguese and Brazilian teachers perceived writing as a shared responsibility. Brazilian teachers, however, agreed with this perception more strongly. Portuguese teachers’ perception of the importance of writing for students’ academic and professional success was higher than the perceptions held by Brazilian teachers. A positive correlation was found between teachers’ preparation to teach writing and their practices to promote students’ self-regulated writing. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

Using chipendale in the classroom

One of the most common complaints among criminal justice educators is that students have very poor writing and research skills. In particular, educators cite that students’ papers are poorly organized, are replete with grammar and spelling errors, are missing key elements in their discussions, and are often plagiarized. Despite the need for research and writing classes, very few social science faculty members teach writing‐intensive courses because of the amount of time such a course requires. Accordingly, this paper presents a model criminal justice writing class that outlines specific teaching methods to overcome the most common problems found in criminal justice writing and research.