The Self‐evaluation of Teachers: a Strategy for the Improvement of Teaching at Higher Education Level

Teaching assessment at higher education level is required in order to improve the quality of teaching in universities. As both teaching staff and students are equally involved in the teaching/learning process, the views of both must be taken into account when determining the quality of teaching. Basically, a self‐evaluation process has two aspects. On the one hand, there is the source of information, the teacher in this particular case. He or she has the opportunity to reflect upon the actual teaching situation by evoking his or her own point of view in regard to his or her vision of reality even if it might be judged as a complementary view as opposed to other views. On the other hand, the objective of the process might be one either of providing a means of checking (process evaluation) or of improving (result evaluation). A detailed analysis of the two characteristics will enable us to appreciate properly their inter‐connectedness. This analysis, as well as the prior experience of the authors in the domain of teaching assessment within their university, enables them to present a model of self‐evaluation applicable to the context in which they are working.     

The Self‐esteem of Pre‐service Physics Education Students

The self‐esteem as physics teachers of students taking pre‐service physics teacher education courses was investigated before and after the courses. It was found that students who dropped out from the courses had lower self‐esteem than either the students who satisfactorily completed them or similarly qualified students who did not take the courses. There was some evidence that learning pedagogical theory enhances self‐esteem if it takes place after practical teaching experience but has the opposite effect when taught first, in the absence of any practical teaching experience.     

An evaluation of a pre‐training assistant educational psychologist programme

Two cohorts of psychology graduates with Graduate Basis for Registration (GBR) with the British Psychological Society (BPS), and a range of relevant work experience (teaching, youth and social work) were employed by the Kent Educational Psychology Service (EPS) over a two‐year period as assistant educational psychologists (Assistant EPs). This paper presents information about the role and effectiveness of this pre‐training Assistant EP programme. The role of the Assistant EP was identified as including: individual and group level casework, projects, applied research, and delivering training, under the direct supervision of EPs. All Assistant EP work was evaluated using a range of measures. Outcomes showed that intervention targets (as agreed using the Target Monitoring and Review form) were consistently met or exceeded. Key stakeholders perceived Assistant EPs to be a valuable and flexible resource and Assistant EPs felt that the role prepared them well for applying for professional training courses. The paper concludes with a brief discussion around the future role of pre‐training Assistant EPs.     

Voluntary Self‐Control: Education reform as a governmental strategy

This paper takes the vigorous political debate unleashed in Germany by the results of the PISA study as a stimulus to take a closer look at the strategic aims and effects of the current education reforms, of which the PISA study is only one example. It shows that the reform measures underpin a powerful process of normalisation. In this context, the PISA study, along with other reform measures, can be seen as a ‘power stabiliser’. The paper indicates how techniques of political domination are linked with ‘technologies of the self’ and how the ‘discourse of self organization’ can be seen as the core of a governmental strategy to assimilate education more thoroughly than ever before into a network of disciplinary procedures and ‘voluntary self‐control’.     

Research in the Department of Education at the State University of Utrecht‡

This study concerns students’ ideas about the superposition of electric fields. Two paper‐and‐pencil questionnaires were given to university students to investigate possible obstacles to a correct use of this principle.

The results confirm an expected difficulty about Gauss's theorem, i.e., the idea that only ‘internal’ charges create a field on a given closed surface. Another more surprising finding is that students are reluctant to admit that a field can penetrate into, or go out of, an insulator, particularly because ‘charges cannot move’.

These first findings are discussed in connection with common features of students’ reasoning about mechanics and about multivariable problems. Some directions of future research are proposed.     

Small Group Work in Accounting Education: an evaluation of a programme for first‐year students

One important skill many students develop during their secondary schooling is the ability to work in groups, using the group both as a resource and a support system. At the tertiary level, where the traditional lecture/tutorial format is the main means for course delivery, these skills are not generally afforded formal recognition and often remain under‐utilised. Group work programmes in higher education that have been reported generally describe situations where group work is integrated into tutorials and lectures. This article explores the potential of group work schemes which operate outside the regular timetable. It describes a programme of small collaborative working groups which was offered to students in a first‐year accounting degree course and evaluates the programme's effectiveness in assisting students with their studies, and with their overall integration into university culture. The results, practical considerations for any academics wishing to duplicate the scheme, as well as areas for further research are discussed.     

Education the way ahead? An evaluation of a pilot course on scenario writing

Scenario writing is a method to promote creative thinking and a proactive approach to dealing with the future. ATEE's Research and Development Centre Curricula in Teacher Education has adapted this method for use in teacher education. A Comenius funded course on Scenario writing was run over five days with teachers, teacher–educators, and persons in training management from several European countries. The paper reports the results of the summative evaluation which proves the course was very successful. In addition, on the basis of the formative evaluation indications, a detailed analysis makes clear which cognitive, motivational, and social problems are fundamental to courses like this and how these difficulties are to be dealt with.

Écrire des scénarios est une méthode qui promeut la réflexion créative et en même temps c'est une approche proactive au traitement de l'avenir. Dans le cadre des Curricula de Formation des Enseignants du Centre de Recherche et de Développement de l'ATEE (Association pour la Formation des Enseignants en Europe), la méthode d'écrire des scénarios a été adaptée pour l'utilisation dans la formation des professeurs. Dans un stage de cinq jours, financé par Comenius, des professeurs, des instructeurs de professeurs et ceux engagés dans l'organisation des programmes de formation ont été introduits à la méthode d'écrire des scénarios. Les participants provenaient de différents pays européens. Cet essai traite des résultats de l'évaluation finale qui ont démontré que un stage a été un grand succès. De plus, une analyse détaillée du stage est présentée qui—en considérant des résultats de l'évaluation formative—démontre les problèmes cognitifs, sociaux ainsi que les problèmes de motivation qui sont généralement liés à un cours de ce genre et qui donne des suggestions pour résoudre ces difficultés.

Die Szenario–Technik fördert kreatives Denken und regt zu einem offensiven Umgang mit der Zukunft an. Im Rahmen des Research and Development Centre Curricula in Teacher Education der ATEE wurde diese Methode für die Anwendung in der Lehrerausbildung angepaßt. In einem von Comenius finanzierten Lehrgang, der sich über fünf Tage erstreckte, wurden Lehrer, Lehrerausbilder und in der Ausbildungsorganisation Tätige in die Szenario–Technik eingeführt. Die Teilnehmer kamen aus verschiedenen europäischen Ländern. Dieser Beitrag berichtet von den Ergebnissen der summativen Evaluation, in der sich der Kurs als sehr erfolgreich erwies. Darüber hinaus wird eine detaillierte Kursanalyse vorgelegt, die unter Berücksichtigung von Befunden aus der formativen Evaluation aufzeigt, welche kognitiven, motivationalen und sozialen Probleme grundsätzlich mit einem Lehrgang dieser Art verbunden sind und wie sie zu bewältigen sind.

La escritura de escenario es um método para promover el pensamiento creativo y un enfoque proactivo para enfrentar el futuro. El Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo Curricula en Educación Pedadógica de la ATEE ha adaptado este método para usarlo en la educación pedagógica. Un curso financiado por Comenius sobre escritura de escenario se impartió por cinco días con profesores, pedagogos, y personas en el entrenamiento de administradores de varios países europeos. El reporte informa que los resultados de la evaluación sumativa que demuestran que el curso fue muy exitoso. Además, sobre la base de las indicaciones de la evaluación sumativa, un análisis detallado deja claro que los problemas cognitivos, motivacionales y sociales son fundamentales a cursos como éste y cómo abordar estas dificultades.     

Self‐assessment in a technology‐supported environment: the case of grade 9 geography

We investigated the impact of self‐assessment training on student achievement and on computer self‐efficacy in a technology‐supported learning environment (grade 9 students using Global Information Systems software). We found that self‐assessment had a positive effect on student achievement, accounting for 25% of the variance across three measures. The treatment effect was as large for females as for males and for those with low initial self‐efficacy as it was for those with higher scores. In addition, self‐efficacy increased more in the control than in the treatment group. We interpreted the self‐efficacy results to be a positive outcome of the treatment: teachers may have used self‐assessment training to depress the inflated self‐perceptions of some teenagers.     

A Self‐Teaching Guide to the Management of Equipment and Material Used in Education in Developing Countries

Abstract

This article covers the background which led to the production of the self‐teaching guide to the management of educational resources soon to be published by Unesco. It gives the structure of the publication, and the text of the Preface and Introduction which serve to explain the guide.

Further information on the guide can be obtained from the ICEM Secretariat, c/o CNDP, 29 rue d'Ulm, 75230 Paris, Cedex 05, France     

Moral Weakness,Moral Education and Self‐deception

Abstract

Despite the apparent advantages of incorporating logographic symbols in procedures intended to teach children with severe learning difficulties to recognise words, such procedures have never proved successful. Their failure has been attributed to a blocking effect that is induced by the additional cues. The blocking effect account predicts that any method that involves introducing additional stimulus cues will be inefficient for teaching word recognition, compared with a word alone method. A new technique was devised in an attempt to surmount this problem. The basis of the technique draws on a range of research areas. Children who had no reading skills and had previously failed to gain any sight vocabulary were taught to recognise 12 words. An experiment compared a word alone method with two variants of the new technique. Both versions were more successful than the word alone method at teaching the children to recognise the words. The findings refute the view that any procedure that incorporates additional cues will necessarily be ineffective. For students who have hitherto made no progress at all in learning to recognise words, the new technique offers an effective instructional procedure.     

Qualitative Research in Distance Education: An Analysis of Journal Literature 2005–2012

This review study examines the current research literature in distance education for the years 2005 to 2012. The author found 382 research articles published during that time in four prominent peer-reviewed research journals. The articles were classified and coded as quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods. Further analysis found another category of articles in which qualitative data were obtained but results were reported as quantitative. The analysis shows that the publication of purely qualitative research occurs least often in The American Journal of Distance Education than in the other journals. The analysis also shows that, on average, prominent journals are publishing less qualitative research now than they were 2005. This study shows the need for further research and analysis of the methodologies currently utilized in distance education.     

Engaging MSW Students in Faculty Research: Students’ Perspectives of Involvement in a Program Evaluation

Engaging social work students in research is challenging, in part, because of the way research is taught in the classroom and the need for learners to effectively develop connections between the “abstract world” of research concepts with the “real world” of professional experiences. This article describes the experiences of graduate social work students involved in a process and outcome evaluation of a community-based program. Analysis of student learning outcomes and the team-based model used to engage students in the evaluation are provided to put forth a paradigm of teaching social work research through direct, supervised, and collaborative engagement.     

The Feeling of Thinking in Professional Self‐study

Studying one's own professional work is no straightforward matter and adopting the reflective mode is not simply a cerebral activity. As we study our teaching, we are studying the images we hold of ourselves as teachers. Where these established self‐images are challenged, questioned and perhaps threatened in the learning process we may experience feelings of instability, anxiety, negativity, even depression. This is especially so if the ‘self we come to see in self‐study is not the “self we think we are, or the ‘self we would like to be. Thinking about our work In self‐evaluation can thus be a highly charged emotional experience, one from which we may be tempted to retreat, thus endangering further learning. If, on the other hand, we have the support of caring, sensitive and interested critical friends to help us through these potentially dangerous processes of self‐evaluation, we are more likely to remain open to further learning and professional development. The company we keep and the circumstances under which we enter into self‐study may have a significant effect, for better or worse, on our professional learning. These issues are illustrated by the experience of two award‐seeking teacher action researchers who used video in their classrooms to aid their self‐study. The paper argues for greater attention to be given to the nature of the learning climate in which self‐study, self‐evaluation and developmental self‐appraisal take place. If the learning climate is not ‘right’, self‐study may become self‐defeating.     

Towards Student Self‐Direction in a First‐Year Undergraduate Physics Course

Summaries

English

This article describes a new physics course, developed for non‐science majors, which is largely based on student self‐direction. Problems of developing and implementing the course in the context of a more normal undergraduate study programme are identified and student reactions to the physics course are reviewed. Finally, some recommendations are made concerning the development and adoption of courses involving student self‐direction.