Racism,Masculine Peer‐group Relations and the Schooling of African/ Caribbean Infant Boys

The past decade has witnessed the publication of a growing number of important ethnographic studies investigating the schooling experiences of Black students. Their focus has largely been upon student‐teacher relations during the students’ last few years of compulsory education. What they have highlighted is the complexity of racism and the varied nature of Black students’ experiences of schooling. By drawing upon data from a year‐long ethnographic study of an inner‐city, multi‐ethnic primary school, this paper aims to compliment these studies in two ways. Firstly the paper will broaden the focus to examine how student peer‐group relations play an integral role, within the context of student—teacher relations, in shaping many Black students’ schooling experiences. By focussing on African/ Caribbean infant boys, it will be shown how student—teacher relations on the one hand, and peer‐group relations on the other, form a continuous feed‐back loop; the products of each tending to exacerbate and inflate the other. Secondly, by concentrating on infant children, the paper will assess the extent to which these resultant social processes and practices are also evident for Black pupils at the beginning of their school careers—at the ages of five and six.     

We Talk About It,But Do They Get It?

This article reports on the last of a series of iterative research studies involving students with learning disabilities in reform mathematics classrooms at the intermediate grade levels. This study reports the findings from a larger, year‐long case study that focused on ways to include students with learning disabilities and other students who are at risk for special education services in classwide discussions of problem solving. The data reported in this article detail the changes in teacher and student discourse over a nine‐week period in one classroom. Sources of data for this study included videotapes, audiotapes, and informal interviews with the teacher, a paraprofessional, and students. A quantitative analysis of the results indicates clear patterns of change in teacher and student discourse. Nonetheless, intentional efforts to include target students in the whole‐class discussions yielded instructional dilemmas that are underdescribed in the mathematics reform literature. Findings from this study have implications for special educators interested in mathematical problem solving, as well as math reformers who value the role of classroom discourse in daily instruction.     

Estimating peer effects in Swedish high school using school,teacher, and student fixed effects

In this paper I use a rich dataset in order to observe each student in different subjects and courses over time. Unlike most peer studies, I identify the peers and the teachers that each student has had in every classroom. This enables me to handle the simultaneity and selection problems, which are inherent in estimating peer effects in the educational production function. I use a value-added approach with lagged peer achievement to avoid simultaneity and extensive fixed effects to rule out selection. To be specific, it is within-student across-subject variation with additional controls for time-invariant teacher characteristics that is exploited. Moreover, I identify students that are attending classes in which they have no peers from previous education which otherwise might bias the result. I find positive peer effects for the average student but also that there is a non-linear dimension. Lower-achieving students benefit more from an increase in both mean peer achievement and the spread in peer achievement within the classroom than their higher-achieving peers.     

Seeking transparency: the production of an inclusive classroom community

The successful participation of students with disabilities in a general education classroom is generally presumed to be contingent on the creation of classroom communities that can nurture the qualities of equity and care and where different forms of diversity are valued. However, there has been less scholarship that documents the production of such communities. This paper reports on an ethnographic study that was conducted in an urban first-grade classroom which included several students with disabilities, including one student with significant multiple disabilities. Situated within the disability studies in education tradition, the study adopts a sociocultural perspective to understand the expressed commitment of the teachers within this classroom to transparency. The paper describes the sites of tensions and possibilities that emanated from the confluence of such commitment with other teacher priorities for students. Data from this study showed that overall transparency in the classroom was weakened by proceduralised notions of caring that left teacher practice highly susceptible to the influence of norms. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of this for the project of developing inclusive classrooms.     

Sources of stress for Greek students with intellectual disabilities attending mainstream schools

Students with intellectual disabilities often experience school‐related stress. As a result, they are confronted with many difficulties in their daily school life. The goal of this study was to assess situations of school life that students attending Greek mainstream settings are likely to experience as stressful. Twenty students with mild intellectual disabilities were interviewed about their feelings and thoughts regarding possible stressful situations in school. Qualitative analysis of the interviews' data was conducted. As a result, five main sources of school‐related stress were mentioned: school achievement and classroom participation; peer interactions; student behaviour and risk of injury; parents' expectations; and teacher acceptance. The findings suggest that children with intellectual disabilities experience school‐related stress mainly to a normal degree. Concerning the stress factors that emerged as crucial, a basic conclusion can be drawn: mainstream schools should be changed into inclusive communities where student differences are fully respected, and wherein all children, with and without disabilities, are supported according to their individual abilities, potentials and needs.     

Images of teacher, students, and the classroom held by preservice and in-service educators of students who are deaf or hard of hearing

A sample of 163 preservice and in-service teachers of deaf and hard-of-hearing students was surveyed on perceptions of the roles of teacher, students, and the classroom. The participants' perceptions were examined utilizing the Survey of Practical Knowledge (SPK) designed and developed by the researcher for the study. The SPK asked the participants to respond to different "images" of teachers, students, and classrooms. Through factor analysis, the following images were generated: the teacher as artisan, the teacher as custodian, the student as subordinate, the student as peer, the classroom as arena, and the classroom as refuge. Beginning education students, graduating education students, novice teachers, and experienced teachers were assessed on their endorsement of those images. Beginning education students tended to view students more as peers than members of the other three groups. In-service teachers were more consistent and flexible in their images than preservice teachers were. Deaf and hard-of-hearing teachers viewed students more as subordinates than did hearing teachers. The dominant view among the study participants conceptualized the teacher as artisan, the students as subordinates, and the classroom as a refuge.     

The role of goal orientations and goal structures in explaining classroom social and affective characteristics

Examining motivational variables may prove to be particularly fruitful towards our understanding of classroom processes, student behaviors and school outcomes. The present study examined the role of personal and contextual goals (goals and goal structures) towards explaining social relationships (peer, teacher–student and home–school). 1493 fifth and sixth grade primary school students (10 to 12 years of age) from different areas of Greece formed a representative sample. Questionnaires were administered assessing students' goal orientations, goal structures and classroom relationships. The data were analyzed using latent variable modeling. Mastery goal structures had significant effects on positive school relationships such as student relations, teacher–student relations, peer inclusion, and peer conflict (the latter two reversely coded). Performance goal structures exerted negative or null effects on the same processes, demonstrating their negative propensities. In addition, the effects of mastery goal structures were partially mediated by the effects of personal mastery goals with regard to teacher–student relations with the former exerting both direct and indirect effects. On the contrary, the negative effects of performance goal structures were not buffered by the presence of high levels of personal performance goals. The findings have significant implications for educational practice in terms of the importance of classroom contexts as predictors of classroom relatedness specifically where mastery goals are concerned.     

Critical moments in negotiating authority: grading,accountability, and teacher education

Understanding teacher educators’ reasoning about critical moments in negotiating authority can inform efforts to foster democratic teacher education practices and prepare future teachers to teach democratically. We know very little, however, about critical moments in negotiating authority, particularly in teacher educators’ practices. The purpose of this study was to examine, using self-study methodology, a teacher educator’s assumptions and perspectives about purposefully and explicitly negotiating authority through grading and accountability processes in an undergraduate teacher education course. From a critical pedagogical lens – concerning the intersection of classroom power relations, democratic citizenship, and student growth – the findings suggest that seeking legitimacy through consensual acceptance, responding to students’ expressed interests, and constructing knowledge through continual questioning present potential frameworks for constructing purposeful pedagogical partnerships consistent with democratic aims in teacher education.     

Coherence in professional education: does it foster dedication and identification?

This article examines the impact of professional education on students' dedication to and identification with a profession. The premise is that professional education is not only about knowledge acquisition and reasoning but also about attitudes and aspirations. In fostering dedication and identification, students' experiences of relevance seem to be important. The concept of coherence seen as an expression of relevance is introduced and measured by four kinds of interactions: Theory–practice interaction, teacher–student interaction, peer interaction and supervisor–student interaction. Analysis indicates that coherence, particularly as theory–practice interaction, peer interaction and supervisor–student interaction, has a significant impact on dedication to and identification with a profession. Longitudinal survey data – collected from students in colleges for teaching, nursing and social work – are analysed.     

Sympathiebeziehungen unter Peers im Klassenzimmer: Wie gut wissen Lehrpersonen Bescheid?

Are teachers aware of how well each of their students is embedded in the sympathy-based peer network of the classroom? In this research, we asked students of 39 classes (N = 821) from different types of schools and grades to nominate the three peers they liked most within their class. At the same time, the 39 classroom teachers were asked to reproduce the nominations they thought every single student would undertake. Using the Jaccard coefficient, we compared the similarity of the social networks that emerged from students’ and the respective teacher’s nominations. Results showed that on average, teachers identified 30.1% of the peer nominations correctly. Elementary school teachers were better attuned to their students’ sympathy relations than secondary school teachers. Teachers’ accuracy in identifying peer relations was predicted by the extent to which they intentionally observed peer interactions in the classroom and by their beliefs whether teachers are accountable for the quality of peer relationships in the classroom. Future studies should further investigate whether students profit in their social and academic development from their teacher being highly accurate in the perception of the classroom’s sympathy peer network.     

Social IEP Objectives, Teacher Talk, and Peer Interaction in Inclusive and Segregated Preschool Settings

The purpose of this study was to examine: (a) the role of teacher talk in promoting peer interaction, (b) the adequacy of social IEP objectives to reflect children’s social functioning and guide provision of teacher talk, and (c) differences in children’s peer interaction and teacher talk in inclusive and segregated settings. Thirty children with disabilities and their teachers participated. Overall, we observed low rates of teacher talk thought to support peer interaction; however, when teachers verbally facilitated peer interaction, children were observed interacting more frequently with peers. Children’s social IEPs accurately reflected their current level of social functioning. However, the social IEPs appeared to fail to influence teacher intervention. Finally, children with disabilities in inclusive settings interacted with peers more than children in segregated settings, even though there was no significant difference in amount of teacher talk in the two settings.     

Just add hours? An assessment of pre-service teachers’ perception of the value of professional experience in attaining teacher competencies

This study compared pre-service teachers’ perceptions of their professional competencies at two campuses of a large regional teacher education university, where one campus provided students 22% more hours of professional placement in schools and related educational settings. Students who had experienced more hours in schools and such settings were more positive about their, ability to apply their knowledge of students and how they learn, classroom management, professional knowledge and practice, and community engagement; however, when students felt well supported during professional experience, such differences diminished. Additional hours were not associated with pre-service teachers’ perceptions of their ability to apply subject content and teaching; plan, assess and report; and effective student communication. Researchers argued that this pointed to the crucial role of good classroom mentors in teacher professional experience but also the value of students’ tertiary teacher education in preparing them for classroom teaching.     

The creative use of companion values in environmental education and education for sustainable development: exploring the educative moment

Our paper addresses the emergence and evolution of values in educational settings. It builds upon and extends earlier work on companion meanings to develop a theory of the creative use of companion values and meanings in education. The recognition of companion values in educational practices highlight epistemological, ethical, and aesthetic transactions that occur in ways we characterize as ‘other than modern.’ Introducing the idea of educative moments allows us to identify situations where value spheres interpenetrate and interrogate each other in the meaning-making of students and teachers. These moments occur when students suddenly experience companion meanings and values such that teacher and student must deliberate together rather than the teacher dictating some dominating epistemological, ethical, or aesthetic value. This way, it is possible to accommodate critical and creative reflection in education where new values can emerge or evolve. We illustrate the theory by empirical examples from classroom conversations.     

EFFECTS OF TEACHER–STUDENT RELATIONSHIPS ON PEER HARASSMENT: A MULTILEVEL STUDY

Peer harassment is a major social problem affecting children and adolescents internationally. Much research has focused on student‐to‐student harassment from either an individual or a multilevel perspective. There is a paucity of multilevel research on students’ relationships with the classroom teacher. The purpose of this study was to use a socioecological perspective to examine the relationships between individual student‐level characteristics, problematic teacher–student relationships, and student‐reported peer harassment. A total of 1,864 children (50.7% female) aged 8 to 13 years (M = 9.82, SD = 1.24), nested in 27 schools (58.2% public) in Spain, participated in the study. Ninety‐four homeroom teachers reported on teacher–student relationships, and students completed self‐report measures related to peer harassment and teacher–student relationships. Multilevel models showed that relationships between students and teachers exerted a varying degree of influence on classroom levels of peer harassment. Specifically, student‐reported teacher support was associated with diminished student‐reported peer victimization, whereas direct and indirect student‐reported teacher‐to‐student aggression was associated with increased peer victimization. Additionally, student‐reported student‐to‐teacher aggression and teacher‐to‐student aggression were associated with increased student‐reported peer aggression. Teacher‐reported variables at the classroom level, however, contributed little to student‐reported outcomes. Results are discussed in the context of future research on relationships between teachers and students.     

When theory meets practice: What student teachers learn from guided reflection on their own classroom discourse

Drawing on extant theorizing and research on reflective teaching, this paper discusses the impact of an innovative methods course designed around the activity of student teachers’ reflections on their own classroom discourse, for their understandings of the connections between theory and practice. Situated in the context of foreign language pre-service teacher education in Israel, and focusing on one aspect of a larger research study on the connections that student teachers make between theory and practice, this paper presents three exemplary cases of student teachers’ learning. The connections exhibited by these three student teachers between theory (principles of pedagogy) and practice (the classroom discourse patterns that characterized their teaching) were interpreted as: (1) understanding how practice fits theory; (2) connecting theory and practice to generate grounded theories of practice; and (3) developing practical theories. We discuss these findings as related to the idiosyncratic character of students teachers’ learning and to activities in teacher education that enhance reflection on the meeting between theory and practice.     

Students’ classroom experience in foreign-faculty and local-faculty classes in public and private universities in Taiwan

This study investigates university students’ perceptions of classroom experience in foreign-faculty and local-faculty classes and their relations to the type of institution in which they studied. The sample included 714 undergraduate students from 14 universities in Taiwan. The instrument consisted of seven dimensions: peer supportiveness, peer pressure, teacher supportiveness, teacher approachability, study preparedness, class participation, and learning comprehensiveness. The results indicate that students in both types of universities are reluctant to participate, feel pressure, and experience difficulty comprehending course content in the foreign teacher’s class. However, they feel that foreign teachers are more supportive and approachable than local teachers, especially in private universities. Compared with local-faculty classes, private university students prepare more and obtain more peer support in foreign-faculty classes. They also participate more and feel more peer support; however, they comprehend less course content than their public university counterparts in foreign-faculty classes. Detailed discussions regarding the university classroom experience of Taiwanese students in local-faculty classes and foreign-faculty classes are provided.     

“How Come Nobody Told Me?” Fostering Self‐Realization Through a High School English Curriculum

Through collaboratively designed qualitative inquiry, we investigated the responses of high school students with learning disabilities to a teacher’s intervention intended to promote self‐realization, a fundamental component of self‐determination. Activities were embedded within the general English curriculum and delivered in a special education classroom over the course of an academic year. Several themes emerged from analysis of student interviews, student responses to writing prompts and surveys, a teacher journal, and student portfolio pieces. Silence and misconceptions were prevalent in student experiences. However, through the intervention students acquired information that helped them make sense of their school experiences, redefine themselves in positive ways, and take small steps toward greater self‐advocacy within their current school setting. The mediating influence of positive adult voices and concerns about social stigma were evident in students’ responses, which prompted us to question teachers’ and families’ responsibilities for engaging young people in dialogue about special education and disability.     

To Challenge or Not To Challenge: The Mentor's Dilemma

This paper focuses upon open and distance learning initial teacher education in both primary and secondary sectors and explores the ways in which mentors challenge PGCE students in their professional thinking and classroom practice. It draws upon ethnographic research on mentors and student teachers during one presentation of the course. The data are based on observations of mentors working with students on final student placement, conversations with specialist subject mentor trainers as well as questionnaire and other source material. An analysis of how mentors articulate their knowledge base; the dialogue between mentor and student and the challenge of moving from novice to expert for the student teacher are all considered. Our conclusions have implications for all ITT and will also be a source of valuable practical help for student teachers and mentors.