Cross-Contextual Variability in Parents' and School Tutors' Conflict Resolution Styles and Positive Development

ABSTRACT

The authors examined how the variability in adult conflict resolution styles in family and school contexts was related to adolescents’ positive development. Cluster analysis classified 440 fathers, 440 mothers, and 125 tutors into 4 clusters, based on self-reports of their conflict resolution styles. Adolescents exposed to Cluster 1 (inconsistency and withdrawal) reported lower self-control than those exposed to Cluster 2 (inconsistency and dominance), who reported more ability to deal with stress, effective task performance, and positive self-concept and self-esteem, indicating that dominance at the school only was related to positive results. Lower perceived stress, positive self-concept and self-esteem, empathy, and social connectedness were reported by those adolescents exposed to Cluster 3 (consistency in negotiation), whereas those exposed to Cluster 4 (consistency in dominance) exhibited the worst profile in all the measures. In conclusion, the cross-contextual variability in conflict resolution styles was associated with different opportunities for positive development in adolescence.     

Separating genuine cases of reading disability from reading deficits caused by predominantly inattentive ADHD behavior

Conventional methods of differentiating reading disability (RD) caused by deficits in decoding skills or comprehension from poor reading performance caused by inconsistent attention associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have produced equivocal results. This study presents a model of differential diagnosis of attentional problems and RD that differs from these conventional approaches. The new diagnostic procedure uses intraindividual differences seen in the performance of at-risk learners on tasks related to reading that vary in their sensitivity to the sustained attention required for successful performance. The hypothesis is that children with inconsistent attention would perform more poorly on tests that require sustained attention, such as listening comprehension, than on tests that are more tolerant of inattention, such as reading comprehension. Such differences would not be seen in the test scores of children who have only RD, because their performance is determined more by the difficulty level of the reading tests than by the degree of sensitivity of the task to attention. The validity of this new model was evaluated by determining the capability of the differences seen in the scores of tests that differ in their sensitivity to sustained attention to predict the degree of inconsistency in sustained attention as measured by a continuous performance test. The data obtained from 39 children who are at risk for RD suggest that this is a viable model.     

Effect of pupil factor on mathematics achievement in cambodian urban primary school

It is generally observed in the literature of school effectiveness research that there are two broadly categorized factors influencing pupil achievement. However, the results of the studies based on empirically collected data vary from country to country and from time to time. Premised on this inconsistency of results and gaps in knowledge of this field in Cambodian education, this study was conducted in order to examine the effect of pupil factor on their mathematics achievement. The data were collected from pupils by means of questionnaires and a mathematics test. After controlling such factors as pupils’ poverty during the research design, the results of the step wise regression analysis showed that pupils’ interest in mathematics was a significantly positive contributor to their performance. Pupils’ absence frequency, gender, grade repetition and preschool attendance had significantly negative effects on their mathematics outcome.     

A Two-Step Latent Profile Method for Identifying Invalid Respondents in Self-Reported Survey Data

Insincere respondents can have an adverse impact on the validity of substantive inferences arising from self-administered questionnaires (SAQs). The current study introduces a new method for identifying potentially invalid respondents from their atypical response patterns. The two-step procedure involves generating a response inconsistency (RI) score for each participant and scale on the SAQ and subjecting the resulting scores to latent profile analysis to identify classes of atypical RI respondent profiles. The procedure can be implemented post–data collection and is illustrated through a survey of school climate that was administered to N = 52,102 high school students. Results of this screening procedure revealed high levels of specificity and expected levels of concordance when contrasted with the results of traditionally used methods of screening items and response time. Contrasts between valid and invalid respondents revealed similar patterns across the three screening procedures when compared across external measures of academics and risk behaviors.     

A Measure for Pupils’ Inconsistency of Response to a Self-Report Instrument of Attitudes toward School

A scale was developed to measure pupils’ inconsistency in replying to a self-report questionnaire regarding attitudes toward school (Israeli Quality of School Life Scale–IQSL). The effect of inconsistency on the scale’s validity was examined empirically at both class and individual levels. A student was scored for an inconsistent answer whenever a response to a pair of items was contradictory. Eight such pairs were identified on the IQSL by independent judges. Subjects were over 6,000 pupils from 245 classes in approximately 70 randomly selected elementary, junior, and senior high schools in Israel. Results indicated that inconsistency could lower the internal consistency of the IQSL subscales. Direction of inconsistency differences between pupils in advantaged and disadvantaged schools and at various grade levels led to the conclusion that inconsistent behavior in answering the self-report measure is more a result of unwillingness to cooperate than an inability to cooperate.     

Relationship between private schooling and achievement: Results from rural and urban India

This paper contributes to the important but small body of research on the role of private schools in Indian education. It uses a household dataset from India with a rich set of household covariates and student performance data on reading, writing, and mathematics. For both rural and urban India the results from regression analyses indicate that private school students perform better on tests controlling for covariates. In both contexts, however, the private school benefit becomes largely, statistically, insignificant after conducting multivariate analysis on data balanced using the propensity score matching technique. The paper also makes an initial attempt to identify ‘low-fee’ private schools; within the regression framework it finds that children in such schools may perform no better than their public school counterparts. The data and methods used in this paper are not without limitations; however these analyses call into question the claim that private school effect may be unequivocally positive and highlights the potential heterogeneity in private school performance in the Indian context.     

Student Authoritarianism and Teacher Authoritarianism as Factors in the Determination of Student Performance and Attitudes

Recent investigations designed to elucidate the teacher behaviors which are facilitative of positive student attitudes and increased student performance have presented inconsistent results. It is hypothesized that the inconsistency between studies may be due to an interaction between teacher characteristics and student characteristics in the determination of the dependent variables involved. To test this hypothesis, teachers and students in a West Coast high school were administered a revised version of the California F-Scale (a measure of authoritarianism). High- and Low-F groups of both teachers and students were selected, and students’ grades and attitudes toward their teachers were observed. It was found that High-F students exposed to Low-F teachers showed particularly low attitudes toward their teachers and particularly low grades. Data for other combinations of student and teacher characteristics were essentially equivalent.     

Do schools affect girls’ and boys’ reading performance differently? A multilevel study on the gendered effects of school resources and school practices

Few studies on male–female inequalities in education have elaborated on whether school characteristics affect girls’ and boys’ educational performance differently. This study investigated how school resources, being schools’ socioeconomic composition, proportion of girls, and proportion of highly educated teachers, and school practices, being schools’ application of well-rounded assessment methods, influenced girls’ and boys’ reading performance differently. We hypothesised that positive effects of school resources would be greater for boys than for girls, and that more frequent use of well-rounded assessment methods would be associated with increased girls’ and decreased boys’ reading performance. Using advanced multilevel analyses of 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) data, we found that boys profited more than girls from having a large proportion of girls in school. Contrary to our expectations, girls gained more than boys from a school’s advantaged socioeconomic composition. These gendered effects of school resources were not explained by differences in school learning climate.     

Validation of an assessment centre process for the selection of school leaders in Chile

This study seeks to develop and validate an Assessment Centre (AC) tool for the evaluation and selection of school leaders, focusing on the identification of competencies that influence teaching and learning outcomes. International research supports the creation of Assessment Centres to select candidates for these roles, due to their superior predictive capacity over traditional methods. In this research, a model composed of four face-to-face instruments (an interview to assess competencies, a human resources exercise, a class observation exercise, and a strategic analysis exercise) was designed and validated which simulated the key tasks of a school principal. To establish the desired performance outcomes, three competencies and 15 indicators were selected, based on international and local standards. The analysis of performance results was obtained from a sample of 164 participants made up of teachers, school leaders and principals. The results suggest positive evidence for construct validity, concurrent criteria validity, and reliability between evaluators. Moreover, the data obtained from a sub-sample of principals, with three or more years of experience in their role, allowed for the association of their AC scores with the results of their school organisations, as measured by the National System for the Measurement of Educational Quality in the years 2013 and 2016.     

Morningness/eveningness and school performance among Spanish adolescents: Further evidence

Adolescents shift their time of day preferences from morning to evening during puberty when school schedule becomes earlier. Given that a better performance is obtained when individuals are tested at times that are in synchrony with their chronotype, and optimal sleep duration is positively associated with academic performance, evening-types may obtain worse school performance because of both morning school schedule and a decrease of total sleep time. A group of 1133 adolescents (aged 12–16) participated in this study. School performance was evaluated using subjective level of achievement and self-reported grades measures. Controlling for total sleep time, more evening oriented young adolescents (12–14 years) performed significantly worse in school achievement. Girls among 15–16 years performed significantly better than boys. These results have important implications for intervention and prevention programs during school years.     

Gender Differences,Family and Psychological Factors Affecting School Performance in Greek Secondary School Students

High rates of school failure have been reported for secondary school students, with boys presenting more schooling difficulties. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between school performance and family and psychological factors. A sample of 1315 male and female secondary school students was recruited from 54 classes randomly selected out of a total of 534 classes in the Greek region of East Macedonia and Thrace. School performance was measured dichotomously according to the final school results (pass or fail). Family and sociodemographic data were collected and psychological problems were measured using the Youth Self Report (YSR). Male gender, low socioeconomic status, low parental education and parental separation were all positively associated with school failure. Those who failed scored higher on the YSR problem scales than those who passed, and boys were more affected by adverse circumstances than girls. The results indicate that students, especially boys, with psychological problems and those coming from families of low socioeconomic and educational status are at high risk of school failure.     

Measurement Error or Meaningful Change? The Consistency of School Achievement in Two School-Based Performance Award Programs

When measures such as student achievement scores are used to hold schools accountable, and in particular to identify some schools as eligible for rewards or sanctions, the reliability or dependability of these measures become an important issues. High levels of random measurement error reduce the dependability with which schools are classified as meeting or not meeting accountability goals, which in turn puts the fairness of school-based performance award programs based on these measures in doubt, and may reduce the motivational value of the rewards or sanctions provided. This paper describes the temporal consistency of school classification observed in the Kentucky, and secondarily, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg, North Carolina, school-based performance award programs. Using information obtained from the Kentucky Department of Education, the degree to which the observed temporal inconsistency of classification in Kentucky could be due to measurement error is evaluated. The paper concludes with a discussion of other potential reasons for the observed temporal inconsistency of school classifications.     

Leading educational improvement in Trinidad and Tobago

School leaders in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) now have the important responsibility of initiating and implementing school improvement. This raises the question of their leadership capacity and the competencies that are required for school leaders to fulfil this new role. This article focuses on school leadership in T&T. The study presented in this article utilised a qualitative interpretive research design employing a range of data collection methods, including questionnaires and interviews. The results of the study confirm a need for developing a new type of school leader who is: better trained, more research oriented, more of a risk taker and autonomous.     

Relational Aggression and Academic Performance in Elementary School

To investigate the relationship between relational aggression and school performance, this study examined the relative and combined associations among relational aggression, overt aggression, and victimization and children's academic performance. Additionally this study examined the relative associations among relational and overt aggression and verbal and performance IQ. Participants in this study were a subset of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development. The study included 1,067 children (50% male) assessed during fourth and fifth grade. Results indicated that for girls, relational aggression was negatively associated with school performance, while statistically controlling for both victimization and overt aggression. For boys, overt aggression was negatively related with school performance. Additional results indicated that for both girls and boys, victimization was negatively associated with school performance.     

A Critical Discussion of Deep and Surface Processing: What It Means, How It Is Measured, the Role of Context, and Model Specification

The prevailing assumption by some that deep processing promotes stronger learning outcomes while surface processing promotes weaker learning outcomes has been called into question by the inconsistency and ambiguity of results in investigations of the relation between levels of processing and performance. The purpose of this literature review is to examine four areas that may be contributing to the inconsistency and ambiguity of these research results: conceptualization, operationalization, situational factors, and model specification of deep and surface processing. A PsycINFO database search was conducted, and 221 studies were identified for a comprehensive data table. Analysis of these data revealed trends that suggested conceptualization and operationalization of deep and surface processing differed depending on the theoretical frame utilized in each study. Additionally, the choice of theoretical frame also seemed to impact what situational factors may or may not have been present as well as how the model of levels of processing and performance was specified. Results from studies that met certain criteria demonstrated that levels of processing and performance are related, and further, these relations may be moderated by other factors. Implications for future research are discussed that focus on these four areas.     

Teachers' Instructional Use of Summative Student Assessment Data

This study examines the extent to which classroom teachers self-report using summative assessment data in formative ways to shape instruction. A Web-based survey was administered to elementary, middle, and high school teachers in a large, suburban school district in central Virginia. Teachers reported administering a variety of summative assessments with varying frequency, and analyzing data at the aggregate level, most often using central tendency statistics. Useful methods for disaggregating data by content standards or student subgroups were not as frequently reported. Regardless of the methods of data analysis, a majority of teachers reported using assessment results to evaluate their instructional practice and make adjustments to support student learning. The results suggest, however, that teachers engaged in a cursory analysis of student performance fairly regularly but conduct more in-depth analyses less often. The study raises questions about how teachers can effectively use summative data for instructional purposes.     

大数据视域下的中小学校绩效评价路径优化

中小学校绩效评价是推动中小学校教育质量和办学品质提升的重要手段。不少地区在设计并实施中小学校绩效评价方案中形成了一些经验与特色,但还存在绩效评价参与方单一、重结果、轻过程、量化数据薄弱、评价方式不够高效、专业人才匮乏等问题。将大数据技术运用于中小学校绩效评价。从评价指标体系设计、数据采集、数据分析、结果应用四个方面构建基于大数据的中小学校绩效评价体系,为中小学校绩效评价的进一步优化提供了建议。     

Helping social workers address the educational needs of foster children

OBJECTIVE: The main aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Education Initiative, an intervention program in one of the largest urban counties in the US seeking to increase the responsiveness of social workers to the educational needs of foster children. METHOD: A pre-post test control group design was used. Data from case files and social workers were examined at the start of the project and 18 months later to determine changes in social workers' (a) knowledge and practices regarding school programs and services and (b) maintenance of educational records for children on their caseloads. RESULTS: Data were analyzed from approximately 300 case files and over 200 questionnaires completed by social workers. Findings indicated that social workers who received training and had access to an education liaison (1) increased their knowledge about the school system and (2) were more likely to gather current educational data and comment on schooling needs in the case files. On questionnaires measuring knowledge and practices, supervisory social workers showed no gains while case workers increased their levels of knowledge and involvement. CONCLUSIONS: Evaluative data from both sources support the effectiveness of this collaborative model between the school and child welfare agency for addressing the educational needs of foster youth. Social workers in the pilot offices knew more and focused more on the school experience of youth on their caseloads than workers in the control offices. They reported more educational information in the case files and solicited current progress reports from the schools. Discrepancies between worker and school reported performance data raise questions as to whether social workers by themselves are the most effective advocates for foster children.     

School Mobility and Achievement for Children Placed and Not Placed in Out-of-home Care

ABSTRACT

The aim was to investigate the effects of school mobility on achievement in compulsory school in Sweden for children in out-of-home care (OHC) and not in OHC (NOHC). Register data on background variables from four birth cohorts in the cohort-sequential longitudinal project ETF was relied upon, along with student performance on a test of cognitive ability, and school grades according to the leaving certificate. Yearly data concerning school mobility also was available. Results showed that relocation was associated with lower grades for both the OHC and the NOHC groups. The mean effect of one school relocation was 5 percentiles lower grades, but the effect of relocation was twice as large at the end of compulsory school. Given a higher frequency of relocation for children in OHC, they were more negatively affected. School mobility thus is one of several factors which contribute to the poor school achievement of children in OHC.     

EXAMINATION OF A ONE‐TRIAL BRIEF EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS TO IDENTIFY READING FLUENCY INTERVENTIONS

This study sought to evaluate whether a one‐trial brief experimental analysis (OTBEA) would reliably and validly identify effective treatments to improve oral reading fluency for 6 elementary school students referred for reading problems. An OTBEA was conducted with each participant to assess the effects of skill‐ and performance‐based treatment components. Following the OTBEA, an extended analysis was conducted using an alternating treatments design to experimentally assess whether predictions generated by the OTBEA would be accurate across sessions, time, and stimulus materials. OTBEA results suggested that 3 participants required a treatment package containing both performance‐based and skill‐based instructional components and that the other 3 participants might only need performance‐based interventions. Results indicate that predictions were accurate for those participants requiring both types of intervention components, but that predictions for the remaining participants met with mixed results in the extended analysis. Results are discussed in terms of further refining brief experimental analysis methods to make them more efficient for educators while ensuring valid results.