Social desirability,non‐response bias and reliability in a long self‐report measure: illustrations from the MMPI‐2 administered to Brunei student teachers

The survey investigated the problems of social desirability (SD), non‐response bias (NRB) and reliability in the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – Revised (MMPI‐2) self‐report inventory administered to Brunei student teachers. Bruneians scored higher on all the validity scales than the normative US sample, thereby threatening the internal validity of the study. Of the three validity scales that assess various forms of SD, only the F scale was reliable and its mean score was in the clinical range. In addition, seven of the ten clinical scales had poor reliability. Although Brunei males scored much higher on the K scale than females, both mean scores were below the critical region. Protocols for two respondents with many missing values indicated that the study’s external validity was vulnerable to NRB effects. Altogether SD, NRB and low reliability had potential to undermine and depress the overall validity of the MMPI‐2 and caution the value of using it ‘as is’ in Brunei.     

Biography and social structure in the socialization of student teachers: a re‐examination of the pupil control ideologies of student teachers

This study examined the effects of the student teaching experience on the pupil control ideologies of student teachers and attempted to assess the relative contributions of biography and social structure in determining student teacher attitudes toward pupil control. The subjects were forty elementary student teachers from one midwestern university. The results indicated that student teachers did not become more custodial in their views toward pupil control by the end of the experience. Furthermore, cooperating teachers exerted little influence on student teacher pupil control ideologies once the effects of biography were removed. It was concluded that biography does play an important part in the socialization of student teachers and that future research on student teaching should consider the effects of biography and social structure together within an interactive model of socialization. Finally, the limitations of focusing exclusively on student teacher ideologies are discussed and the concept of perspectives is offered as a potentially heuristic tool for overcoming these limitations.     

The use of transparency in the ‘Interactive examination’ for student teachers

If the aim of education is for all students to learn and improve, then the expectations must be transparent to the students. In this study, three aspects of transparency are investigated in relation to an examination methodology for student teachers: self‐assessment criteria, a scoring rubric, and exemplars. The examinations studied were carried out in 2004, 2005, and 2006 respectively, all with a cohort of first year student teachers (n = 170, 154, and 138). There was a large difference in scores between the 2004 and 2005 cohorts (d = 3.21), when changes in the examination were implemented. The comparison between 2005 and 2006, when no changes were made, does not show a corresponding difference (d = .27). These results suggest that, by making the assessment more transparent, students’ performances could be greatly improved.     

The relation between reported awareness of non‐verbal communication and rated effectiveness in probationer and student teachers

Forty probationer teachers were interviewed and questionnaires given to ninety‐two student teachers. They were asked how they could tell if a lesson was going well; what they would do if it was not; what they did to get attention at the start of a lesson; and whether their training had helped them in these respects. The responses were scored for mentions of non‐verbal communication. The teachers were also rated for effectiveness. Probationer teachers mentioned non‐verbal communication more often than student teachers. ‘Effective’ probationers mentioned non‐verbal communication more often than ‘ineffective’ ones, especially the more subtle cues of gaze and posture. There were no corresponding differences among the student teachers.     

The EHE‐EMSAT Project: the development of awareness of electronic mail among student teachers

ABSTRACT

This paper reports the results of a one‐year project designed to develop the awareness of 291 student teachers in the area of electronic mail (e‐mail). The project was successful in increasing the active use of e‐mail and the general awareness of students: the number of active users rose from 17 to 33%, and the number of those able to explain e‐mail to a colleague rose from 12 to 45%. Case study material is presented to illustrate the conditions under which the development of e‐mail flourished with one particular group of modern languages student teachers. Conclusions are drawn concerning the utility of the cascade model of curriculum development in extending electronic communication.     

The teaching efficacy beliefs of pre‐service teachers in the USA and Turkey

The purpose of this study was to compare pre‐service elementary teachers' sense of mathematics teaching efficacy beliefs in a Turkish university and in a major American university located in the Midwest. The data for this study were collected by means of the Mathematics Teaching Efficacy Beliefs Instrument. In the Turkish sample there were 141 pre‐service elementary teachers, and in the American sample there were 104 pre‐service elementary teachers. Results from the study indicate that pre‐service teachers in Turkey tend to have a stronger belief that teaching can influence student learning when compared with pre‐service teachers in the United States. However, a similar difference was not observed for personal mathematics teaching efficacy.     

The Use of the Internet in Science Teaching: A longitudinal study of developments in use by student‐teachers in England

This paper reports on a longitudinal study of developments in use of the Internet by science student‐teachers on Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) courses in five higher education institution–school partnerships in England. These are 1‐year, full‐time, teacher training courses for graduate scientists. The aim of the research was to examine changes in attitudes to, and use of, the Internet to support science teaching and the perceived challenges and barriers to practice in schools, against a background of high national expectations reflected in the qualification standards of the teacher education courses. The research has involved nearly 600 student‐teachers, representing between 7% and 8% of those training on PGCE science courses in England, and has employed mixed methods, with questionnaires serving as the main basis for analysing trends, and focus groups and case studies used to gain deeper insight to the particular issues identified. The process has been an iterative one, with the outcomes of each year’s research being used to inform further research and course developments in the institutions involved. The findings indicate that attitudes and confidence in use of the Internet have improved over the period, with evidence of increased application directly in the classroom. However, in addition to some of the generic technological issues that may hinder developments in the use of Information and Communication Technology in schools, there are continuing concerns relating to limited pedagogical guidance and availability of good role models. The implications of this for developments in science teacher education programmes are discussed.     

Kay‐Shuttleworth and the training of teachers for pauper schools

Abstract

Radical constructivism has had a major influence on present‐day education, especially in the teaching of science and mathematics. The article provides an epistemological profile of constructivism and considers its strengths and weaknesses from the standpoint of its educational implications. It is argued that there are two central problems with constructivism: anti‐realism and individualism which, in turn, lead to difficulties associated with idealism and relativism which, together, prove fatal for the theory.     

Raising the language awareness of pre‐service English teachers in an EFL context

This study investigates the challenges that non‐native pre‐service English teachers (Haluk, Gaye, Selin, Öznur and Serkan) experience in their target language use when they do their practicum in actual language classrooms. This study found that the common difficulties the student teachers encounter related to certain grammatical structures, explaining unknown words to students, modifying language according to students’ level, and authenticity of the classroom language. During this study, the target language awareness training session was offered by the university supervisor in order to improve the student teachers’ target language use in the classroom. The training sessions included classroom observations, feedback sessions, semi‐structured interviews, retrospective protocols and discussion meetings with the student teachers. The findings indicated that the language awareness training had a positive impact on the target language use of the pre‐service English teachers. Furthermore, this study discusses the curriculum and the requirements of the language teacher education programme in an EFL setting and makes suggestions for the professional development of non‐native pre‐service language teachers.     

Teaching English to speakers of other languages teachers’ views on the relationship between research and practice

This paper reports on a study investigating teachers’ views and beliefs about the relationship between second language (L2) research and practice. Although a gap has been frequently reported between the two, there is little empirical data to show what teachers’ views on this relationship are or how these views and beliefs influence their use of research. A total of 60 teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) teachers in England responded to a questionnaire which sought both qualitative and quantitative data.?Results of the data analysis suggest that although their views on research and its usefulness are positive, teachers are mainly sceptical about the practicality and relevance of L2 research. More importantly, they expect research to originate from rather than end in classrooms and maintain that the prime responsibility of bringing research and practice together is to be shared by teacher training programmes and educational policies of the institutions they work in. Our analysis of the data further implies that there are differences between teachers’ epistemological assumptions and the more established notions of research.     

The use of case-based learning in the development of student teachers’ levels of moral reasoning

The important role of the teacher in developing morally sensitive individuals is widely acknowledged. This paper examines the integration of context-specific moral development interventions within a four-year undergraduate teacher education programme in Ireland. The intervention strategy employed a case-based pedagogical approach where participants (n = 123) explored and discussed classroom scenarios to prepare them for a six-week school-based placement. Using the Defining Issues Test, results indicate statistically significant increases in levels of moral reasoning post intervention, suggesting that the use of a layered case-based pedagogical strategy provides students with alternative perspectives on their classroom practices and challenges their lay theories.     

English teachers of deaf and hard‐of‐hearing students in French schools: needs,barriers and strategies

This paper deals with English teachers who work with deaf and hard‐of‐hearing (D/HH) students. In France deaf students are required to attend foreign language classes – mostly English classes. The purpose is not to teach them British sign language (BSL) or American sign language (ASL), but written and/or spoken English. Indeed, sign languages are distinct from spoken languages and differ from country to country: there is no universal sign language. English teachers of the deaf are mostly hearing people. They work either in mainstream or special schools. Most of them have no specific qualifications. In this context, they are faced with the tremendous challenge of how to adjust their teaching to their students’ impairment and at the same time develop the latter's knowledge and skills in English. In order to analyse teaching practices in English classes, questionnaires, interviews and in‐class observations in several special and mainstream schools were conducted. Findings show that different teaching strategies are used in order to make English lessons accessible to D/HH students: teachers have to adapt their teaching language and also use written and visual supports to accommodate D/HH students. Obviously teacher training needs to be improved.     

Implicit theories of creativity: a comparison of student‐teachers in Hong Kong and Singapore

This study attempts to uncover the beliefs regarding various aspects of creativity among trainee‐teachers in Hong Kong and Singapore. Trainee‐teachers from Hong Kong (N = 188) and Singapore (N = 127) completed a questionnaire on beliefs about creativity. The 30‐item questionnaire covering 15 aspects of beliefs regarding creativity was presented to the respondents as a set of six‐point Likert scales. Through factor analysis, creativity was found to have five dimensions: (1) physiology, (2) generality, (3) culture, (4) individuality and (5) youth. Hong Kong respondents were found to hold more rigid views of creativity than their Singaporean counterparts. In particular, Hong Kong respondents believed more strongly that creativity is dependent on birth order, effort, health, logical thinking and youth and that there is a critical period beyond which creativity may not develop.     

The influence of teachers’ interests,personalities and life experiences in intercultural languages teaching

This paper reports on a study that investigated teachers’ perceptions about the significance of intercultural understanding (IU) in the modern foreign languages (MFL) curriculum. The research was conducted in the wake of a National Curriculum revision in 2007 in England that for the first time listed ‘IU’ as one of the four key concepts underpinning the study of languages in the Programme of Study. In contrast to other writers who frequently explain MFL teachers’ attention to intercultural learning as a consequence of their (lack of) knowledge about intercultural languages theory or pedagogy, or as the result of contextual factors, our findings suggest that the significance attached to IU seems to be profoundly affected by the interests, personalities and life experiences of individuals. This finding emerged from a qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews conducted with 18 teachers in 13 secondary schools in the North-West of England between May 2008 and June 2009. We illustrate our point by mapping the narratives of four teachers, conveyed through pen-portraits, with an adapted version of Kelchtermans’s personal interpretive framework, and thus draw on narrative inquiry as our research approach. We claim that our hitherto relatively unnoticed finding, i.e. the central influence of the teacher as an individual on intercultural language teaching, has important implications for MFL teacher education. We suggest that the stories of the four teachers could be used as a professional development tool to identify motivators and inhibitors in developing IU that may resonate with practitioners’ own beliefs and practice, and that parallel to this, our adapted Kelchtermans’s framework may be used as a blank template to scaffold self analysis. Whilst this article considers teacher development in intercultural languages education, it also seeks to make a contribution to the literature on the usefulness of teacher narrative as a professional development tool.     

What students think when teachers get upset: Fundamental attribution error and student‐generated reasons for teacher anger

Using a sample of college students (N = 301), this study examined students' attributions about and explanations for teachers' expressions of anger in the classroom. These displays of anger were evaluated based on the extent to which they were aggressive (e.g., Distributive or Passive) or assertive (e.g., Integrative). Consistent with the fundamental attribution error, students assigned internal attributions to teachers who used Distributive Aggression (e.g., yell and scream) and Passive‐Aggression (e.g., show anger with cold looks) to a greater extent than teachers who were Assertive (i.e., calmly discuss the problem with the students). When students were asked to identify why they thought their teacher was angry, the overwhelming majority of reasons involved student‐related problems. In fact, the most frequently cited reason was Student Misbehaviors followed by Lack of Student Effort. Surprisingly, students acknowledge that something they did triggered the teacher's display of anger; however, consistent with fundamental attribution error, students still attributed the teacher's expression of anger to internal causes. The implications of these findings for negative emotional expressions in the instructional context in particular and for teacher‐student relationships in general are discussed.     

Post‐welfarism and the reconstruction of teachers’ work in the UK

A key rationale for the UK education reforms of the 1980s and 1990s was a desire on the part of agents within the state to control more directly the work of teachers. In a variety of ways, the reforms were designed to contribute to a reconstruction of the work of teaching. The first part of this paper considers the roots of this intended reconstruction. The second part explores the impact of the reforms on the culture of teachers’ work, focusing on three kinds of consequences ‐ emotional, social and pedagogical. The paper draws on loosely‐structured interviews with secondary school teachers, carried out as part of a study of the culture and values of schooling in the light of the shift from wel‐farist to post‐welfarist policies in education.     

The Reasons for Different Results of Acquiring English and Chinese in China——One case of a Korean student

This article mainly presents the phenomenon of results of acquiring different language in China as a Korean student.Obviously,the acquiring of Chinese is much easier in China.Moreover,it puts forward reasons of different languages’effects,which are attitude,motivation between Chinese and English.     

Joining the goblins: fictional narratives and the development of student‐teachers’ reflection on practice in the further education sector

This paper explores ways in which student‐teachers in the Lifelong Learning sector are able to draw on fictionalised accounts of their own teaching practice experiences in order to gain a clearer understanding of their models and expectations of professionalism, and of how they, as individuals, locate their current position within the profession as a community of practice. It argues that the translation of experience into fiction – in this case specifically in the form of fairy tales – can be usefully applied in order to enhance and encourage reflection on practice as part of an action research cycle. Drawing on the evidence gathered, the paper goes on to suggest that student teachers’ main preoccupation at this stage of their development is not so much with meeting ‘standards’ of professionalism as with questions of behaviours and practices that will lead to a sense of belonging and acceptance; and with the need to transform their status, in relation to the profession, from that of outsider to insider.     

The Advantages and the Application of the CAI Courseware in English Teaching

By the end of last century,the computer has been more and more widely used in our delay life.Computer has come to pervade every aspect of our lives--including education.This article talks about the advantages of the Computer-Assisting Instruction courseware(CAI courseware)during the college English teaching.It can be used to optimize the English teaching model,teachers' teaching and students' study during the class.It also talks about the methods of using CAI courseware in college English teaching:teachers should know students' condition and use the CAI courseware ingeniously and timely.When the teachers design the CAI courseware,they should select the materials suitably.Furthermore,it predicts that the CAI courseware will have good prospects in the college English teaching.     

Challenges to the counsellor in a changing world — The impact of environmental changes in universities on the concepts of student counselling

This article will first consider in a systematic way how student counselling is related to change. In doing so it will refer to the development of student counselling in Germany. Formulating the thesis that student counsellors find themselves symptomatically confronted with changes which hint at deeper challenges than those they have known before, it will then explore new dimensions of change in universities and show how they may be linked with impulses and answers given by counselling and psychotherapy. Finally it will take a look at the professionalization of student counselling in the light of those changes.Bergische Universität — Gesamthochschule Wuppertal