Enigmas in School Science: students’ conceptions for scientifically associated words

Master's students were involved in the design, and later the administration, of a questionnaire for 500 junior secondary students in Botswana and Lesotho, to buildup a picture of student perceptions of science and technology. Responses to mainly open‐ended questions were categorised according to key phrases mentioned by the students. There was some confusion over the differences between science and technology, but they were overwhelmingly perceived as subjects appropriate to both sexes. Science and technology were seen in broad socio‐economic terms, enabling people to cope in the modern world, gain employment in both the formal and informal sectors, and contribute towards national development. Although science and technology were judged to have enhanced the quality of life, they had introduced conflicts into traditional beliefs and cultures, in part as a result of increasing female emancipation. The attitudes of the students towards the two subjects, and to the impact they have had on everyday life, were congruent with the philosophical aims of the science and technology syllabuses of both countries and with global initiatives such as Project 2000 +.     

‘Not quite right’: helping students to make better arguments

This paper looks at the need for a better understanding of the impediments to critical thinking in relation to graduate student work. The paper argues that a distinction is needed between two vectors that influence student writing: (1) the word-level–sentence-level vector; and (2) the grammar–inferencing vector. It is suggested that much of the work being done to assist students is only done on the first vector. This paper suggests a combination of explicit use of deductive syllogistic inferences and computer-aided argument mapping is needed. A methodology is suggested for tackling assignments that require students to ‘make an argument’. It is argued that what lecturers understand tacitly, now needs to be made a focus of deliberate educational practices.     

Graduate students’ conceptions of university teaching and learning: formation for change

The paper introduces a framework concerning conceptions of teaching and learning of advanced graduate students and the trajectory of change in their conceptions following a formal course on course design and teaching. Students were enrolled in six sections of this graduate course, two offered in a 6-week format and 4 in a 13-week format. The courses were taught by three different instructors. Data were obtained from 88 doctoral students before and after the course using four questions pertaining to the meaning of effective teaching, effective learning, role of the teacher, and role of the learner. Using an open coding procedure, four conceptions were identified. These were transmitting knowledge, preparing context/managing instruction, promoting course learning, and promoting life-long learning. The generalized linear model procedure was used to conduct within and between group pre and post course comparisons. Overall, there was a significant change in response frequency ratios in all four categories across all courses, indicating a decrease in the responses in the first two categories and an increase in the frequency of responses in the last two categories. No significant differences were attributed to course type or instructor.     

‘The students do not know why they are here’: education decision-making for Syrian refugees

This case study, conducted collaboratively between education scholars and education practitioners, describes and analyses the ways in which Syrian refugee teachers and an NGO are developing and implementing non-formal education (NFE) programming in three refugee settlements in Lebanon. Utilising the INEE Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies, we analyse teachers’ and programme administrators’ decision-making processes regarding curriculum, language of instruction, and pedagogy as well as how and why these decisions are made in the absence of a guiding framework or policy for NFE. We also consider the ways in which the nation-state writ large still helps to influence these decisions in the ‘global era’.     

Improving mathematics education in colombian schools: ‘Mathematics for all’

This paper concentrates on the suitability of the current mathematics curriculum in Colombia, and establishes priorities for change and development. It starts with an analysis of the current situation, and draws on literature from the international mathematics education community to propose ways of improving mathematics teaching by taking into account the needs of the learner as the basis for curriculum planning and development.     

Teachers’ professional development for differentiated instruction in mixed-ability classrooms: investigating the impact of a development program on teachers’ professional learning and on students’ achievement

The present article reports the results of a study performed to investigate and examine the characteristics of a teachers’ professional development program (Teachers’ Professional Development Program for Differentiated Instruction [PDD]) specially designed to support teachers in the design and application of differentiated instruction. Considering the characteristics of high-quality professional development programs (i.e. active learning, collective participation, closely related to the curriculum and the existing teaching realities, sufficient duration and continuance), the PDD aimed to facilitate change in both attitudes and practices of the participants. The study provides evidence of the success of the program, both in terms of teacher professional development and student achievement, and discusses the elements that made this program successful.     

Re-situation challenges for international students ‘becoming’ researchers

This paper presents data generated during a semester-long programme to support international students from countries in Melanesia and Asia embarking on masters research in education in a New Zealand university. All were scholarship recipients. The researcher-and facilitator-of the programme, was interested in documenting and understanding the nature of the students’ experience as they planned and wrote research proposals. The process of developing a research proposal, as one of the early stages of ‘becoming’ a researcher, highlighted a number of challenges for the six case study students. The challenges are viewed from a transition or ‘resituation’ perspective (Eraut in Stud Contin Educ 26(2): 247–74, 2004, 2008) rather than an adjustment one. A resituation perspective assumes that students brought with them “personal expertise, practical wisdom and tacit knowledge” (Eraut 2008, p. 42) which needed to be reconciled with what was demanded of them by different aspects of the research planning process. The resituation challenges experienced by the students included situating a perceived problem or issue in the research literature; reconciling personal research goals with the limitations of one’s own agency as a researcher; integrating new learning with research goals; and reconciling the new role or identity as a researcher with the previous role as colleague or community member. The paper presents a case for providing a context for postgraduate students in which explicit recognition of what they bring to the research task, and acknowledgement of the resituation challenges can take place.     

‘Being responsible’: students’ perspectives on trust,risk and work-based learning

Taking on responsibilities associated with a professional role is an important aspect of experiential learning for undergraduate students on work-based placements. However, responsibility is a complex concept that is connected to issues of trust and risk in the placement context. This paper presents students’ perspectives that illustrate that being given and taking responsibility can be empowering; conversely, being denied responsibility is disempowering. Through an exploration of the students’ experiences, the relationship between responsibility, opportunity, risk and trust is explored. The paper points to a strong indication that the extent to which students are allowed responsibility in the workplace appears to have a fundamental impact on their perceptions of personal efficacy and professional development.     

‘Let Them Eat Caviar’: Alternative pathways for university students attending to ‘unfinished business’

This paper reports on a study into the educational experiences of a group of students who are accessing tertiary education through alternative entry programmes. There were three purposes for the study. The first was to identify why the students either did not finish school or go to university after school. The second was to explore the students' stated reasons for returning to university later in their lives. The third was to share the students' secondchance experiences in their first semester as university students. The study drew on theoretical ideas surrounding how students who reject school, or who have been rejected by school, may come to view education as unfinished business in their lives. Reconnection with education coincides with wider processes of individuals defining and redefining educational identities.     

Introducing teachers to new semiotic tools for writing instruction and writing assessment: consequences for students’ writing proficiency

This article reports consequences for student writing quality based on a long-term professional learning project. Project teachers, representing all school subjects in grades 3–7, were presented with a writing construct, ‘Wheel of Writing’, and norms of expectation for writing proficiency. Participating teachers used the writing construct and norms as a basis for writing instruction and writing assessment. The project was conducted in 24 schools across Norway. 3088 students from 20 project schools participated. Two hundred and thirty three students from 4 schools were used as a comparison group. The investigation showed that students in primary school improved their writing quality significantly. Students in lower secondary school did not. However, there was substantial variation in writing quality effects between schools, classes, and individual students. For instance at a number of schools, project students from lower secondary school improved their writing quality significantly. The article discusses potential explanations of the effects.     

‘Hot’, ‘Cold’ and ‘Warm’ supports: towards theorising where refugee students go for assistance at university

This paper contributes a rich picture of how students from refugee backgrounds navigate their way into and through undergraduate studies in a regional Australian university, paying particular attention to their access to and use of different forms of support. We draw on the conceptualisation of ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ knowledge, offered by Ball and Vincent (1998. “‘I Heard it on the Grapevine’: ‘Hot’ Knowledge and School Choice.” British Journal of Sociology of Education 19 (3): 377–400), and the addition of ‘warm’ knowledge offered by Slack et al. (2014. “‘Hot’, ‘Cold’ and ‘Warm’ Information and Higher Education Decision Making.” British Journal of Sociology of Education 35 (2): 204–223), to develop an understanding of how students from refugee backgrounds make choices about how they locate, select and access support for their studies. The findings of this paper suggest that students from refugee backgrounds do not view the ‘cold’ (unfamiliar-formal) institutional support on offer as ‘for them’; instead they expressed a preference for the ‘warm’ (familiar-formal) support offered via ‘trusted’ people who act as literacy/sociocultural brokers or ‘hot’ (familiar-informal) support of their grapevine of other students (past and present) or experienced community members.     

Teachers’ reflection on PISA items and why they are so hard for students in Serbia

The study explores how teachers perceive and go about students’ thinking in connection to particular mathematical content and how they frame the notion of applied mathematics in their own classrooms. Teachers’ narratives are built around two released PISA 2012 mathematics items, the ‘Drip rate’ and ‘Climbing Mount Fuji’ (will be referred to as the Fuji item). Teachers show concordance as to the reasons that could make either of the items difficult for students and are able to provide more examples justifying their reasoning for the ‘Fuji’ item. Suggestions linked to making the items more familiar to the students mostly relate to de-contextualization of the items’ content towards a more formal mathematical record. The teachers agree that students need only basic mathematical knowledge, at a level learned during elementary school, in order to solve these problems. Yet, at the same time, many teachers have difficulty clearly verbalising which procedures students are expected to follow to be able to solve the tasks. Disagreement among the teachers is noticeable when labelling the most difficult part(s) of each of the selected items. Mathematics teachers show openness for learning on how to create math problems we examined in this study, but question the purpose and meaning in incorporating more such problems in their own teaching.     

Pre-service teachers’ perceptions of effective inquiry instruction: are effective instruction and effective inquiry instruction essentially the same?

This multiple case study examined pre-service teachers perceptions of effective post-secondary instruction. Pre-service teachers were asked to write essays describing an effective teacher of their choice. Twenty-one essays were randomly selected. Data analysis involved open coding of each essay, content analysis of each essay using Anderson and Burns’ (Research in classrooms: The study of teachers, teaching, and instruction (1st ed.). Oxford, England; New York: Pergamon Press, 1989) empirically derived dimensions of instruction, and effect size analysis of student and teacher roles. Instructional components were identified that differentiate between effective inquiry instruction and effective instruction. Effective inquiry instruction was associated with more and different teacher and student roles, more activities as part of instruction, and more student small group discussion than was effective instruction.     

‘Me and maths’: towards a definition of attitude grounded on students’ narratives

The attitude construct is widely used by teachers and researchers in mathematics education. Often, however, teachers’ diagnosis of ‘negative attitude’ is a causal attribution of students’ failure, perceived as global and uncontrollable, rather than an accurate interpretation of students’ behaviour, capable of steering future action. In order to make this diagnosis useful for dealing with students’ difficulties in mathematics, it is necessary to clarify the construct attitude from a theoretical viewpoint, while keeping in touch with the practice that motivates its use. With this aim, we investigated how students tell their own relationship with mathematics, proposing the essay “Me and maths” to more than 1,600 students (1st to 13th grade). A multidimensional characterisation of a student’s attitude towards mathematics emerges from this study. This characterisation and the study of the evolution of attitude have many important consequences for teachers’ practice and education. For example, the study shows how the relationship with mathematics is rarely told as stable, even by older students: this result suggests that it is never too late to change students’ attitude towards mathematics.     

University students’ conceptions of the good teacher: A Hong Kong perspective

One way that universities assess teaching effectiveness is by eliciting student feedback. However, what standards do students themselves use to judge whether a lecturer is a ‘good’ teacher? As part of a study carried out at a Hong Kong university, students were interviewed about their first-year learning experience and asked what they felt constituted ‘good’ and “bad’ teaching. Unlike when asked to complete teacher effectiveness surveys, no criteria or characteristics were given. Responses focused primarily on teaching skills that supported student learning and encouraged critical thinking, particularly the teacher’s ability to give clear explanations supported by relevant, practical examples.     

Data-based differentiated instruction: The impact of standardized assessment and aligned teaching material on students’ reading comprehension

The paper analyzes the efficacy of a data-based differentiated instruction (DBDI) intervention in addressing growing achievement-related heterogeneity in school. The intervention consisted of a reading strategy training conducted by teachers, in which 27 secondary-school classes (n_students = 656) participated. The propensity-matched control group consisted of another 27 classes (n_students = 558). Linear mixed models showed that students of the intervention classes had no greater gain in reading competence on average compared to students of the control classes. However, the groups differed regarding the learning gain at different achievement levels. In the control group, the gain was greatest for the low achievers and lowest for the high achievers. This imbalance was not found in the intervention group, where the learning gain was similar for students of each achievement level. This shows that DBDI is a tool for addressing achievement-related heterogeneity which empowers teachers to cater to the differences between students.     

‘Not necessarily a bad thing …’: a study of online plagiarism amongst undergraduate students

Whilst the copying, falsification and plagiarism of essays and assignments has long been a prevalent form of academic misconduct amongst undergraduate students, the increasing use of the internet in higher education has raised concern over enhanced levels of online plagiarism and new types of ‘cyber‐cheating’. Based on a self‐report study of 1222 undergraduate students, this paper explores the nature and patterning of online plagiarism amongst students in UK higher educational institutions. The data find around three‐fifths of students self‐reporting at least a moderate level of internet‐based plagiarism during the past 12 months, with significant differences in terms of gender, educational background and—most notably—subject discipline. Students’ online plagiarism was also found to correlate strongly with their self‐reported levels of offline plagiarism. The data therefore highlight the need to contextualize online plagiarism in relation to the wider ‘life‐world’ of the contemporary university student and, in particular, the role of the internet in their everyday non‐academic lives. The paper concludes by discussing how university authorities may go about addressing internet‐based plagiarism in the contemporary university setting.     

‘I treat all students as equal’: further and higher education teachers' responses to diversity

Diversity, understood in a multiplicity of ways, has been a focus of attention in education in recent years. As in many other countries, recent post‐school education policies in Aotearoa/New Zealand have emphasised previously under‐represented ethnic groups, such as Māori and Pasifika. The intention has been to widen participation in further and higher education (FHE) as a means to improve the country's economic performance in a global market. However, the same policies imply a deficit discourse – where diversity is perceived as a problem or deficit to be ‘fixed’. As part of a larger study into FHE student retention, 137 teachers were surveyed to identify what they did to cater for the learning of these ‘diverse’ students. The responses varied. For example, some insisted that, to be fair, all students had to be treated the same; others described teaching/learning approaches they used to ensure students succeeded. Five positions were identified in the data: universal, universal/group, group, group/individual, and individual. These positions are discussed and linked to Banks's cultural‐pluralist and assimilationist ideologies. It is argued that FHE teachers could draw on strategies from each of the three main positions to enhance student learning.