Clipboards and cups of tea: two women’s narrative constructions of professional identity in Sure Start outreach work

Using stories from two employees in the UK Sure Start initiative, this paper offers insight into the complexity of developing a professional identity within a newly established, nebulous role of ‘outreach worker’. Such a role is highly diverse in terms of its duties and the people with whom it engages. As such, it poses challenges for individuals occupying the position, in terms of both populating their professional existence with meaning and locating the evaluative frameworks that provide this existence with a sense of value. Interviews were used to collect data on participants’ experience of working in the new post, their prior background and imagined futures. The study considers the relationship between biography, context and the way in which individuals story their professional selves. It attempts to utilise narrative theory to illuminate the dynamics within which these outreach workers exist, and methodologies they draw upon in order to inhabit their role meaningfully.     

What happens when high‐stakes testing stops? Teachers' perceptions of the impact of compulsory national testing in science of 11‐year‐olds in England and its abolition in Wales

The research aims to articulate the experiences and opinions of Year 6 (Y6) teachers, primary headteachers and primary science coordinators as a contribution to the debate about the effect of statutory national testing in England and its abolition in Wales. A multi‐faceted approach of quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis was used in England and Wales including a telephone survey of 600 respondents and eight focus group interviews involving a total of 74 participants. The findings of this research provide insights into the strategies adopted by Y6 teachers in England in ensuring pupils gain the highest possible scores in high‐stakes national tests, used as the basis of published Schools and Colleges Assessment and Attainment Tables at Key Stage 2 (KS2). Test preparation is perceived by teachers to narrow the curriculum, and for science in particular, as the inclusion of only those aspects of science likely to be included in paper and pencil tests is said to have reduced many aspects of investigatory science in Y6. Year 6 teachers in Wales reported working to develop effective teacher assessment strategies, supported by the continued use of optional test materials, to inform summative judgements about pupils' levels of attainment in science at KS2. Practical science activities, including investigations, were reported as becoming an important feature of science lessons in Y6 in Wales. Although it is too soon to make predictions about the longer‐term effects of the abolition of national testing on Y6 teachers and the teaching of science in Wales, early indications suggest increased opportunities for investigative science in Y6.     

13‐year‐olds’ perception of bullying: definitions,reasons for victimisation and experience of adults’ response

This study formed the second wave of a longitudinal research project examining bullying from the students’ perspective. A sample of 877 Swedish 13‐year‐olds filled out a questionnaire regarding the definition of bullying, reasons for why some students are bullied and the experience of adults’ response to bullying. In their definitions, girls were more likely than boys to include the victims’ experience of bullying, whereas boys were more likely than girls to mention bullying as an imbalance of power and a set of repeated actions. Assigning responsibility for the bullying to the bully was more common among girls and bullied adolescents than among boys and non‐bullied adolescents. Furthermore, among bullied adolescents, 23% had not told anyone about the bullying and 35% had not received any help.     

Creating cooperative classrooms: effects of a two‐year staff development program

In this study, the implementation effects of a staff development program on cooperative learning (CL) for Dutch elementary school teachers were studied. A pre‐test–post‐test non‐equivalent control group design was used to investigate program effects on the instructional behaviours of teachers. Based on observations of teacher behaviour during cooperative lessons, a statistically significant treatment effect was found for the following instructional behaviours: structuring positive interdependence, individual accountability, social skills and evaluation of the group process. Training effects were also found for the combination of CL with the model of direct instruction and the activation of prior knowledge of social skills. Moreover, teachers in the experimental group scored statistically significantly higher than the teachers in the control group on the activation of prior academic knowledge.     

Gender,popularity and notions of in/authenticity amongst 12‐year‐old to 13‐year‐old school girls

This paper draws on data from a research project investigating gendered identities and interactions of high‐achieving students in Year Eight in England (12–13 years old), particularly in relation to students’ ‘popularity’ amongst their peers. As part of this study 71 students were interviewed from nine different schools in urban, rural and small town locations. From an analysis of participants’ conceptions of the characteristics of ‘popular’ and ‘unpopular’ students, this paper looks in depth at notions of in/authenticity and how it is perceived and judged in relation to the self and others. In particular, the paper focuses on the genderedness of such discourses of in/authenticity as constructed by these students, and relates such concerns to theorizations of ‘impossible’ femininity.     

Teachers’ reflections of cooperative learning (CL): a two‐year follow‐up

Although teachers often report that they subscribe to cooperative learning (CL) to help students attain social and academic goals, research indicates that they often have difficulties implementing and sustaining their commitment. The purpose of this study is to report on the reflections of seven middle‐year teachers who had embedded CL in their social science curriculum for the past two years to investigate their responses to this pedagogical practice, and to gauge their perceptions of how students with behavioural and learning needs responded to it. Data from the interviews indicated that all teachers believed that their lessons were more interesting, the children learned more, they felt more confident, and they often learnt to work more closely with their colleagues. However, all teachers did note that CL needed to be well planned, students needed to be prepared to work in groups, and teachers’ expectations needed to be explicitly stated if the benefits attributed to CL were to be realised.     

Peer and self‐assessment in the first year of university

This paper reviews the literature about peer and self‐assessment in university courses from the point of view of their use, and the suitability of their use, in the first year of university study. The paper is divided into three parts. The first part argues that although first‐year students are involved in many of the studies that report on the use of peer and self‐assessment in higher education, the proportion of these studies that do so is somewhat less than in other year levels. In addition, relatively little of this work directly and explicitly discusses the suitability of peer and self‐assessment for students and courses at this year level. The second part of the paper provides an introductory exploration of the relationship between peer and self‐assessment, and specific features of first‐year assessment, learning and teaching. Three issues relating directly to the suitability of peer and self‐assessment in the first year are explored. In the third part, the paper briefly discusses the desirability of implementing peer and self‐assessment, in general, before seeking to extend this specifically to the first year. The paper concludes by recommending that greater use can and should be made of peer and self‐assessment in the first year of university study.     

Cultural dimensions of decisions about educational participation among 14‐ to 19‐year‐olds: the parts that Tomlinson doesn't reach

The continued increase in levels of educational participation and patterns of attainment among young people from less advantaged social backgrounds suggests that class cultures can no longer be seen as providing significant barriers to educational progression. Indeed, it can be argued that this increase in educational participation has been facilitated by a processes of cultural convergence in which the benefits derived from qualifications are more or less universally acknowledged. At the same time, it is clear that some young people are put in positions at school that effectively promote processes of cultural resistance as survival strategies.

This paper provides an overview of some of the ways in which class cultures impact on patterns of educational participation. It draws on three recent studies in an attempt to differentiate barriers to educational progress that can be tackled through school reforms from those that originate or are constantly reinforced in the community. In the light of these observations of the cultural dimensions of the educational decisions of 14‐ to 19‐year‐olds, a brief assessment is made of the likely impact of the Tomlinson proposals.     

Are two years better than one year? A propensity score analysis of the impact of Head Start program duration on children's school performance in kindergarten

Using data from a nationally representative sample, this study examined Head Start children's school outcome differences by the end of Kindergarten between children who attended Head Start program for two years and the ones who attended for one year. Propensity scores were used to match children who experienced different durations of the program on a series of demographic characteristics in order to achieve a precise estimation of the effects of program duration. The results showed that in comparison to a demographically comparable group of children who attended the Head Start program for one year, the children who experienced two years of intervention services had statistically significantly higher performance on all six academic and social outcome measures by the end of Kindergarten, which included PPVT, Woodcock–Johnson Reading Skills, Woodcock–Johnson Math Reasoning Skills, teacher-reported composite academic skills, preschool learning behaviors, and social skills. Policy and practice implications are discussed.     

Concept formation in environmental education: 14‐year olds’ work on the intensified greenhouse effect and the depletion of the ozone layer

A case study is presented describing the work of three pupils in the upper level of compulsory school. The pupils were learning about the intensified greenhouse effect and the depletion of the ozone layer. In their work, the need for certain domain‐specific knowledge becomes apparent; for example, understanding such concepts as photosynthesis, radiation and catalyst. The results show that the pupils experienced difficulty in distinguishing between the different meanings attached to individual concepts in their theoretical and practical contexts. They are often unable to identify the meaning relevant to the specific environmental problem that they are working on. The pupils’ difficulties are seen here as a problem of differentiation between concepts denoted by the same term as well as between different aspects of the same concept, a view that is then related to the question of appropriate conditions for conceptual change.     

Primary teachers’ changing attitudes and cognition during a two‐year science in‐service programme and their effect on pupils

Changes in 70 teachers’ confidence, attitudes and science understanding were tested before and after a major in‐service programme. Attitudes were assessed using a 49‐item Likert‐scale test that probed attitudes to practical science teaching and in‐service training. Multi‐choice and open‐ended questions measured understanding of electricity; melting, dissolving and evaporation; forces; and investigations. Data on pupils’ attitudes and cognition were also collected. After in‐service, teachers’ confidence about science teaching had improved significantly. The majority, but not all, had developed satisfactory levels of understanding and more positive attitudes. Four broad types of response were identified: high attainers who improved attitudes and confidence; teachers with limited science knowledge who found the course difficult but made improvements; unaffected professionals who were already working well and for whom the course had little effect; and disaffected teachers who showed low levels of confidence and competence throughout. Pupil cognition and attitudinal differences related to these types were also found.     

Predictors of foster parents’ stress and associations to sensitivity in the first year after placement

In Germany, almost 70 000 children are living in foster families (Statistisches Bundesamt, 2016). Many foster children show mental health problems as they were exposed to an accumulation of risk factors. Hence, foster parents are often faced with challenging parenting situations. The current study focuses on the predictors of foster parents’ stress and examines longitudinally whether parenting stress is associated with foster parents’ sensitivity. The sample consisted of 55 children (aged from 1 to 6 years) and their foster caregivers. Foster parents’ sensitivity was observed during home visits. Caregiver reports were used to assess parenting stress (Parenting Stress Index) as well as foster children’s externalizing behavior problems (Child Behavior Checklist). For main caregivers’ stress at the beginning of placement, regression analyses revealed both, foster children’s externalizing problems as well as partners’ stress as predictive. For main caregivers’ stress one year after, only initial parenting stress and partners’ stress were predictive. Foster parents’ sensitivity was correlated with their parenting stress one year after placement. Regression analyses revealed no longitudinal effects of initial parenting stress on overall sensitivity. However, supportive presence was predicted by initial supportive presence and by the interaction between parenting stress and children’s externalizing problems at placement. The findings highlight the role of the partner in experiencing parenting stress when taking care of a foster child. Furthermore, they emphasize that foster parents who care for children with behavior problems need adequate support that can buffer initial parenting stress and thereby promote sensitive caregiving.     

Boys Outperforming Girls: an 8‐year cross‐sectional study of attainment and self‐esteem in Year 6

This 8‐year cross‐sectional study measured the self‐esteem, reading and mathematical attainments of eight cohorts of Year 6 children. A total of 1488 children (737 boys, 751 girls) in five randomly selected primary schools within one Local Education Authority (LEA) comprised the sample to which the Lawseq questionnaire (Lawrence, 1982), Mathematics 11 (NFER, 1985) and the Primary Reading Test Level 2 (France, 1981) were administered. Differences in attainment related to gender were found in mathematics, but not in reading, with boys significantly outperforming girls (at the 5% level). The percentage of boys who scored significantly above the mean in mathematics and significantly below the mean in reading contrasted with the girls’ more compressed scores in the middle range. The national test data for Cohorts 7 and 8 followed the national pattern with girls outperforming boys. Boys had significantly higher self‐esteem than the girls (at the 0.1% level). Correlation coefficients between Lawseq and mathematics and reading mean scores for boys and girls were all significant at the 0.1% level. The findings are discussed in relation to the current debate concerning the low performance of boys.