Young people’s views about their involvement in decision‐making

This paper reports on research conducted over a two‐year period in a large Educational Psychology Service (EPS) in England. Researchers were keen to ascertain the views of young people and EPS members about young people being directly involved in educational decision‐making and how their genuine involvement in such decision‐making might be best achieved. Focus groups were employed as a means of gathering data which were analysed using Content Analysis. Young people and EPS members ultimately identified “culture”, “attitudes”, “environment”, and “systems” as being the most important factors in ensuring the genuine involvement of young people in decision‐making.     

Reciprocal and Transmission Models of Teaching in E2L with Young Learners

An activity‐oriented approach to learning has frequently been advocated for teaching young learners. Hardly any studies have considered how this approach affects second language learning. Through a longitudinal study, a methods experiment was conducted with 156 5‐year‐old children from one large Maltese school. The effects of a reciprocal model (exemplified through an activity‐oriented approach) were compared with a transmission model of teaching (exemplified through a skills‐oriented approach) on the learning of English as a second language when introduced to young children. Multiple analyses of variance were used to analyse the effects of sex, age, teacher training and occasions of testing on five developing language skills: receptive vocabulary (assessed using British Picture Vocabulary Scales); receptive language (sentence comprehension test); reading accuracy and comprehension (Macmillan's Individual Reading Analysis); recall of information; sentence length (The Bus Story) and accuracy of word‐reading (The Keywords Reading List). The pattern of results obtained is discussed along with implications for classroom practices.     

Picture Book Biographies for Young Children: A Way to Teach Multiple Perspectives

In today’s global age, it is important for young students to develop multiple perspectives. Some of the standards that today’s teachers are required to adhere to include an understanding of different cultures. The National Council for the Social Studies, for example, indicates that teachers should provide instruction that complies with various thematic standards which include teaching about global connections and cultural diversity. To encourage young students to develop multiple perspectives, teachers need to pay attention not only to how they teach, but also to what they teach. Educators can guide students to develop cross-cultural understanding at an early age by using well-written picture book biographies which represent people from diverse backgrounds. This article explains what multiple perspectives are and offers resources and strategies for educators that will help young students develop an understanding of the frames of reference that different groups of people hold. It also emphasizes the importance of developing multiple viewpoints at a young age.     

An early reader two decades later: a follow‐up case study on the Metacognitive reading strategies of ‘Jan’

This is a follow‐up study regarding one of the early readers whose metacognitive reading strategies were explored in my 1991 qualitative case study research, published in Reading, 29 (2), 30–33. Unique factors in the original study involve the inclusion of young children as informants related to self, task and text. Six‐year‐old ‘Jan’ is now almost 26, and a semi‐structured interview method was used to examine effects the previous study may have had on her development as well as her current preferences regarding reading strategies, comparing her profile to that of her past reading self. In addition, the contemporary qualitative study explores conclusions regarding the reading process that might assist educators in the teaching of reading as well as facilitate further research with young children. Results of this follow‐up study support involving young children as informants regarding their literacy events and imply the need for further research regarding adult readers, related to further understandings of the reading process and best educational practice.     

Gender and attitudes to work and family roles: the views of young people at the millennium

The last century, in particular the latter half, saw radical shifts in the roles and expectations of women in society. This article investigates the views of 14‐ to 16‐year‐olds in the year 2000 on work and family roles, exploring both their general views on gender roles and their own personal aspirations for the future. In general the young people believed that it was equally important for males and females to get good qualifications at school, to have worthwhile careers and that childcare should be a joint responsibility. They also believed that males and females could do any job they wanted to these days. Their views were tempered, however, by the inequalities that they saw around them in the workplace and in their own families. While young people’s attitudes may have changed, they are still choosing fairly gender‐typical subjects at school and aspiring to different types of occupation. The article concludes that while great strides have been made in changing attitudes towards gender equality, there is still a long way to go before equal opportunities are really achieved.     

Common Core State Standards and Adaptive Teaching

This article examines the issues of how Common Core State Standards (CCSS) will impact adaptive teaching. It focuses on 2 of the major differences between conventional standards and CCSS: the increased complexity of text and the addition of disciplinary literacy standards to reading instruction. The article argues that adaptive teaching under CCSS requires adaptations of teachers, as well as adaptation to student responses. These phenomena are particularly critical when using texts of higher complexity and when teaching reading in different disciplines.     

A nine‐country survey of youth in Europe: selected findings and issues

A nine‐country survey of the life orientations, values and institutional trust of 8948 young people at the upper end of the secondary school age range was set up at the University of Würzburg in the year 2000. Key findings demonstrate that these young people value personal autonomy and are orientated to success in their professional lives and that they especially trust human rights and environmental groups. Religion is associated positively with humanitarianism and in some countries negatively with modernity. These findings provide an indication of the typical life stances of future opinion‐formers and illustrate methodological issues thrown up by international research.     

Teaching our Traveller children to read: an action research project

In both Ireland and the UK, Traveller children reportedly suffer the lowest rates of educational attainment of any group. This study aimed to promote evidence‐based practice in the teaching of reading to Traveller children and thereby to raise their levels of achievement. This involved teachers delivering an evidence‐based intervention over a specified time frame (three months) and collecting pre‐ and post‐intervention data. The project involved 11 teachers in ten settings. There were seven primary and two secondary schools and one Youthreach project involved in the study. Participants were in the age range 6–17 years. Research findings indicated that participants made very significant gains in reading, and their rates of progress compared well with best international standards. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

USING CHILDREN'S WORK TO REFLECT ON TEACHING: ONE EARLY CHILDHOOD STUDENT TEACHER'S REFLECTIONS

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine the engagement of preservice teachers in the kind of authentic experiences that provided the modeling needed to make high‐quality instruction in mathematics a reality for young children. Inasmuch as these preservice teachers had not yet received any formal methods classes in mathematics, the authors theorized that classroom teachers whose practices and dispositions were congruent with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics standards and the State of South Carolina Mathematics Standards could model effective teaching instruction for young children using the project approach. These same teachers could then provide mentoring and encouragement to preservice teachers as they became involved in this high‐quality program for 4‐year olds, deepening the knowledge base of the preservice teachers regarding developmentally appropriate ways to teach numeracy to 4‐year olds. © 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.     

Prizing children's science information books: the text,reading and the reader

The Royal Society Young People's Book Prize is awarded annually in the United Kingdom for the best science information book, and the winning book is chosen by panels of young people. This article discusses the findings of a study of the responses to the books and to their judging experience of young people who participated on panels in the 2011 Royal Society Young People's Book Prize. Interviews were conducted with 46 young people, aged from 8 to 14 years, from across the United Kingdom. The nature of contemporary non‐fiction books is discussed, specifically science information books. The impact of their design and format on reading is explored, as is the social nature of reading, which was a consequence of the judging panel context. The young people had opinions on the age range for which each book was most suitable, but they generally did so in such a way as to include themselves. It was found that their judging responsibilities contributed to these young people displaying a positive reading identity and sense of self‐efficacy.     

Raising Literacy Attainments in the Early Years: the impact of instructional psychology

The National Literacy Strategy (DfEE, 1998) aims to raise literacy standards by 2002. The expectation is that 80% of Year 6 children will achieve Level 4 or above within the National Curriculum. This is seen to represent ‘zero tolerance of failure’. However, another interpretation of ‘zero tolerance of failure’ is that all children, including the 20% who are predicted to experience difficulties, will reach ageand skill‐appropriate targets in reading. This is the goal adopted for the Early Reading Research (ERR) reported in this article.

The aims of the ERR are to investigate: (i) whether overall reading standards can be improved and (ii) the extent to which reading difficulties can be prevented. Despite all the recent research into phonological awareness and its relationship to reading, there has been very little research into how phonological skills are taught within a broader literacy framework to enable children both to increase their attainments and to prevent the occurrence of problems in learning to read. The ERR is a 2‐year study following a sample of 433 children as they progress from reception into Year 1.

This article reviews recent psychological research on teaching reading, discusses the significance of instructional psychology and reports on the first year of the research when children were in six experimental reception classes implementing the ERR reading framework or six comparison schools following their usual approaches for teaching reading. The experimental group made considerably greater gains in reading on all but one of the assessment measures taken and demonstrated that the incidence of reading difficulties can be reduced quite dramatically, while at the same time raising the attainments of higher achieving pupils.     

汉字教学的两个基本问题

近年来,汉字教学研究取得了较大的成绩,尤其是汉字识字法的研究成果非常丰富。但对汉字教学的基本问题重视不够。主要存在汉字教学内容不够全面,各阶段、各种类型的汉字教学缺乏统一的指导性标准,各阶段学习缺乏科学性。文章提出应编制汉字学习标准,将汉字学习贯穿在教育的各个阶段,使不同的人达到相应的要求。     

How Student‐teachers Approach the Teaching of Reading: At the Interface Between Personal History,Theory and Practice

This article charts the progress of one cohort of student‐teachers (variously known as beginning teachers and pre‐service teachers) training to teach English in London secondary schools during 2008–9. The research focuses specifically on the experiences which facilitate their development as confident and creative teachers and assessors of reading at Key Stage 3 (11–14 years). Findings indicate that it is the interaction – and tensions – between their personal reading histories, engagement in theory, and practice within the social environment of the classroom which shape their burgeoning identities as teachers of literature and reading. This year‐long study demonstrates that for some a growing confidence has enabled them to look beyond approaches advocated by statutory curriculum frameworks to develop their own view of innovative practice in the teaching of reading.     

Does one size fit all? The induction experience of beginning science teachers from different teacher‐preparation programs

The number of induction programs available to teachers is increasing rapidly, and by necessity these programs are designed to meet the needs of all teachers regardless of their preparation and academic background. This study examines the impact of a science‐focused induction program on secondary science teachers from different preparation programs. The 16 teachers were first‐year secondary science teachers who graduated the previous year from one of four different teacher‐preparation programs. All teachers were monitored during their first year of teaching, as they participated in the induction program, to understand their teaching beliefs, instructional practices, and experiences in the classroom. The analysis of data revealed that the preservice training of a science teacher influenced the type of support the teacher derived from the science‐focused induction program. Teachers from a preservice program with an extended student‐teaching experience and two science methods courses held beliefs aligned with student‐centered practices and implemented more reform‐based lessons than did other teachers during the year. This study reinforces the importance of induction programs for teachers and suggests that there is a need for specialized support programs for beginning science teachers. The study also provides specific suggestions for improving the preparation of secondary science teachers. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 43: 963–985, 2006     

Literacy components model for at‐risk young adults enrolled in career and technical education

Little is known about literacy skills of an important adult population: educationally and economically disadvantaged young adults. This exploratory study used principal components analysis of 33 measures of reading subskills, spelling, maths, memory and other cognitive processes among 335 at‐risk 16‐ to 24‐year‐olds enrolled in a career and technical education programme. The analysis yielded a five‐component model explaining 69% of the variance in the data. Most of this variance was attributed to two components: element and word skills (including spelling) and language comprehension (including vocabulary). Using these components, models predicting two performance criterion measures yielded different results. A model using all five components predicted 51% of functional reading measured by the Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System. A three‐component model with element and word skills, language comprehension and processing speed predicted 55% of variance in reading comprehension measured by the Test of Adult Basic Education. Implications of these findings for further research are discussed.     

Motivating and improving attitudes to reading in the final years of primary schooling in five New Zealand schools

Teachers are influential in motivating and improving attitudes towards reading. This article reports on an investigation of eight teachers of 10‐ to 12‐year‐old students from five New Zealand schools and the strategies they used to improve attitudes to reading. Each school had been identified as implementing effective reading programmes by a panel of literacy experts and supported by standardised tests demonstrating overall improvements in reading achievement. A reading culture developed by using sophisticated picture books and novels for discussion and debate along with ready access to age‐related, high‐interest appropriate books in the classroom and school library. Teachers worked with children on a whole class, group and individually and demonstrated explicit teaching using texts that engage the reader. The research suggests that children need support by their teachers to negotiate them away from potential points of discouragement in learning to read. Also, teachers need to be aware that reading may not be considered ‘cool’ at this time of early adolescence and initiate strategies to make reading fun.     

The relationship between first‐year achievement and the pedagogical‐didactical fit between secondary school and university

Central in this study is the degree to which the pedagogical‐didactical approach in undergraduate programmes aligns with the pedagogical‐didactical approach in secondary schools, and how this is related to first‐year achievement. Approaches to teaching at secondary schools and in first‐year university programmes were examined by interviewing school management, school teachers and university lecturers. The teaching approaches found within the schools were contrasted against the academic teaching approaches, resulting in four types of fit. With multiple regression analysis the relationships between these four types of fit, gender, prior achievement and first‐year achievement were examined. The results showed that prior performance is positively related to first‐year achievement, as well as a fit characterised by more student‐centred teaching in the first year compared to the approach to teaching at secondary school.