Exploring high school students' and teachers' preferences toward the constructivist Internet‐based learning environments in Taiwan

This paper explores high school students' and teachers' preferences towards constructivist Internet‐based learning environments. The study proposes a framework, including two dimensions and five aspects, to illustrate the features of the Internet‐based learning environments. Based upon this framework, the Constructivist Internet‐based learning environment survey improvement (CILESI) was developed, which includes the scales of ease of use, multiple sources, student negotiation, reflective thinking, critical judgement and epistemological awareness. Questionnaire responses gathered from 630 high school students in Taiwan suggested that the CILESI showed adequate reliability in assessing students' preferences. Male students placed more emphasis on the student negotiation, critical judgement and epistemological awareness enhanced by the Internet‐based learning environments than female students did. In addition, the teachers of the sampled students (n?=?78) were also surveyed by CILESI. The teachers tended to express stronger preferences on the ease of use of the Internet‐based learning environments than did their students. However, students, when compared with their teachers, seemed to express more preferences towards the features of student negotiation, reflective thinking, critical judgement and epistemological awareness of Internet‐based learning environments.     

Stopping to thinks school‐based and higher education‐based primary student teachers' reflections on their learning

This paper examines trainees' perceptions of the impact, on secondary mathematics trainees, of collaborative school‐based work involving small groups of trainees, a university tutor and a class teacher. The findings suggest that trainees' become better able to plan and deliver a coherent yet diverse sequence of lessons, that their awareness of children's learning styles and misconceptions was raised and that preconceived notions about teaching and learning were challenged and mediated. A few trainees found the experience unhelpful and threatening. The role of the tutor was found to influence trainees' responses to the program and, to an extent, moderate the effects of variations in teacher involvement. Some implications are discussed.     

Breaking the routine: voluntary inter‐school transition and women teachers' self‐renewal

Teachers' career transitions and their positive as well as negative outcomes were left relatively untouched in the literature and research on education. In an effort to fill in gaps in knowledge, this paper reports the findings of a life story study that explored inter‐school transitions during the career cycle of mid‐career women teachers in Israel. The study aimed at understanding the process of voluntary IST and its association with the teachers' self‐renewal, as well as to unearth contextual and biographical determinants that facilitate this kind of connection in their career cycle. Based on life story interviews with eight primary and secondary teachers, the study provides insight into a positive consequence of the inter‐school transition among mid‐life teachers. In subsequence to the transition, the teachers reported having a sense of greater self‐esteem/image, feeling energy replenishing and enthusiasm and increasing inclination to launch changes and innovations, all of which are elements of the professional's self‐renewal process. Practical implications are suggested.     

Swiss student‐teachers' views of social pedagogy

In recent years a number of policy and practice initiatives concerning pastoral care in schools in England have led to schools increasingly being expected to take a leading role in addressing a widening range of concerns regarding the welfare, care and education of children, and in working more closely with parents and other professional agencies in addressing these. This has included a consideration of the notion of ‘social pedagogy’ as widely practiced in mainland Europe. This paper explores the views of student‐teachers in Switzerland, a country where social pedagogy is well developed, regarding the role of the school in addressing pupil problems. The findings indicate that these Swiss student‐teachers felt schools should take the lead role primarily in areas regarding poor academic progress, bullying, general misbehaviour and disaffection, and less so in areas of a more personal nature for pupils where schools may be less accountable. The findings provide some pointers concerning how Swiss student‐teachers would benefit from greater attention being given to considering such pastoral care issues in their training course.     

Finnish children’s views on the ideal school and learning environment

This grounded-theory study involved how Finnish children describe their ideal school and learning environment and considers how their notions should be valued in the development of schools to better respond to the challenges of the future. The school children, aged 10–12 years, participated in the study by writing a story about a school in which they would be happy to study. Ninety-three children’s stories were coded and analysed, and a model of the ideal school and learning environment based on their ideas was developed. This model school, called a Broadening and Empowering Learning Environment, is designed to contribute to children’s physical, educational, cultural and socio-emotional well-being, offers opportunities for fantasy and innovation, and employs creative and sports-based learning methods, among others, in both formal and informal settings. The study showed that children, as educational stakeholders, are well aware of the potential of modern schools and of the different aspects that would enhance their ability to learn and their satisfaction with schooling.     

Identifying and promoting self‐regulated learning in higher education: roles and responsibilities of student tutors

This article reports on a case study of learning and academic achievement in engineering education. Two sets of oral exams were used as a source of information in relation to students’ learning and needs in the learning situation. Through ensuing interviews, patterns of learning strategies were discerned. Academically successful students utilised self‐monitoring skills, such as self‐evaluation and comprehension monitoring, while these skills were used only to a minor extent by those less successful. Promoting self‐regulated learning could be one way to improve student learning. The research literature, however, suggests that merely teaching self‐monitoring skills does not necessarily make a difference. This study therefore focuses on roles of tutors in identifying and promoting self‐regulated learning.     

The learning environment in clicker classrooms: student processes of learning and involvement in large university‐level courses using student response systems

To explore what social and educational infrastructure is needed to support classroom use of student response systems (Roschelle et al., 2004 Roschelle, J., Penuel, W. R. and Abrahamson, L. 2004. “The networked classroom”. In Educational Leadership 6150–54.  [Google Scholar]), this study investigated the ways in which student characteristics and course design choices were related to students’ assessments of the contribution of clicker use to their learning and involvement in the classroom. Survey responses of over 1500 undergraduates enrolled in seven large enrollment ‘clicker courses’ offered by three university departments are analyzed. A number of factors contribute to students’ positive perception of clickers: a desire to be involved and engaged, a view that traditional lecture styles are not best, valuing of feedback, class standing, previous experience with lecture courses, anticipated course performance, and amount of clicker use in the classroom. These results underscore the importance of considering social and communication elements of the classroom when adopting student response technology.     

Students' self‐regulation and teachers' influences in science: interplay between ethnicity and gender

The purpose of this study is to explore students' self‐regulation and teachers' influence in science and to examine interplay between ethnicity and gender. Analysis of data from seven Oslo schools (1112 sampled students in the first year of high school) shows that the ethnic minority students reported using learning strategies in science more intensively than ethnic majority students and they had a stronger motivation to learn science. Ethnic majority students are defined here as students who were born in Norway and have at least one parent born in Norway. The study also shows that minority students generally evaluate their science teacher's influence on their learning more positively than the majority. The strongest interplay effects between gender and ethnicity are found in students' perceptions of the relevance of science, as well as their degree of negative responses to the pressure to learn science.     

Students’ views of environments for learning from the primary to the secondary school

Research on transfer has alerted us to the anxieties that students experience as they move from a smaller school to a bigger school, and how the sudden differences in space, size, and their own position within a large organization can affect their identities as learners. Drawing on interviews with students in their first year in secondary school, this chapter examines the differences that students see as important in moving from the primary school to the secondary school. Three topics are discussed: freedom of movement, seating, and classroom display.     

Adopting a “satisficing” model for school performance in students' views of learning

In many countries it has been noticeable how students’ use of information technology (IT) in education is often sporadic and inconsistent; at odds with the esteemed status that IT is afforded in educational rhetoric and policy. The traditional approach to the uneven take-up of IT in education has been to concentrate on the deficiency of the student in not using computers. In this way students’ avoidance of IT use is often framed in terms of a psychological inability or deficiency to react with computers. However, this article attempts to look beyond this traditional ‘discourse of deficiency’ and explore the myriad factors influencing students’ decisions not to use computers during their education. On the basis of data gathered from focus group interviews with 96 UK students, three main constructs underlying students’ rejection of educational computing are identified. The article discusses how educational computing can be ‘re-constructed’ in the light of these factors. Résumé Dans de nombreux pays, on a remarqué combien l’usage que font les étudiants des technologies de l’information (IT) en éducation est souvent sporadique et inconsistant, très loin du statut des IT généralement attribu? dans le discours rhétorique et politique sur l’éducation. L’approche traditionnelle de la difficulté a été? focalisée sur les déficiences de l’étudiant qui n’utilise pas l’ordinateur. Dans ce sens, le fait que l’étudiant cherche à éviter l’usage des IT est souvent formul? en termes d’inaptitude psychologique ou de déficience dans les réactions face à l’ordinateur. Cette étude cherche à voir plus loin que ce discours traditionnel de déficience de l’étudiant et explore la myriade de facteurs qui influencent les décisions de l’étudiant de ne pas utiliser l’ordinateur pour étudier. Sur la base de données recueillies lors d’interviews touchant 96 étudiants de Grande-Bretagne, trois types de rejets sous-jacents de l’informatique éducationnelle ont été identifiés. Le document discute la manière dont celle-ci peut être ‘re-construite’ à la lumière de ces facteurs.     

Beginning and experienced secondary school teachers' self- and student schema in positive and problematic teacher–student relationships

The quality of teacher–student relationships is important for teachers' well-being in schools. In this interview study we investigated which cognitions comprise secondary school teachers' self- and student schema in positive and problematic teacher–student relationships. Frequency analyses of these cognitions showed that especially student schema differed in teachers' talk of positive and problematic relationships. When combining cognitions of the self- and student schema, a HOMALS analysis revealed two types of positive and two types of problematic relationships. Differences between novices and experienced teachers were apparent for positive relationships. These findings raise questions about teachers' attributions for the quality of teacher–student relationships.     

Relationships and learning: a review and investigation of narrative coherence in looked‐after children in primary school

This review and investigation draws on principles from attachment theory regarding the importance of early relationships and their impact on the coherence and organisation of psychological functions. Comparisons are made between the narrative coherence scores of an experimental group of 17 looked‐after children with problematic relationship histories in mainstream school and a matched control group of 17 of their peers. There were significant differences between the groups in the coherence of children's narratives, denial and avoidance in story play themes and in their use of intentionality. The paper considers the theory and discusses the results in terms of the implications for teaching, learning and intervention.     

Co‐operation in the Countryside: small primary school clusters

This paper examines the role and significance of co‐operation (clustering) between small primary schools in rural areas across England and Wales. By increasing the range of resources available and enlarging staff and pupil peer groups, clustering can counter many of the challenges that confront curriculum delivery in small schools. However, effective inter‐school liaison can be impeded by fears surrounding the loss of individual school autonomy and logistical barriers caused by the nature of rural localities. Just as significantly, reductions in local authority support for cluster schemes combined with increased incentives to compete for pupils may be curtailing useful co‐operation. Findings from a sample of small‐school headteachers suggest, however, that despite recognition of these detrimental pressures, clustering is likely to remain central to a wider set of local coping strategies which are making a significant contribution to the viability of rural education provision.     

Predicting students' ratings of the importance of strategies to facilitate self‐directed distance learning in Taiwan

Distance students' ratings of the importance of strategies to facilitate self‐directed learning were evaluated. Students from an open university in Taiwan (449 current and 140 inactive) participated in this study. Current students scored significantly higher than inactive students on internal motivation, insight about self, and self‐directed learning readiness. A combination of high internal and external motivation and high self‐directed learning readiness predicted ratings of the importance of five sets of strategies for helping students become self‐directed learners. The study provides information to help distance learning professionals enhance the effectiveness of self‐directed learning and reduce the number of students who become inactive.     

Developing teachers' professional expertise through collaboration in an innovative ICT‐based learning environment

Recent research emphasizes the context‐specific nature of professional knowledge and expertise, implying that developing novel practices in authentic environments is a prerequisite for teachers' professional development. The aim of this study was to find out how teachers develop their practical knowledge and expertise through shared planning and to evaluate an innovative learning project carried out in an ICT‐based environment. Two secondary school teachers of history participated in this study. The data were gathered using a multi‐methodological approach (video recordings, interviews and questionnaires). The results are described in terms of the teachers' shared experiences and their increased awareness of their own scaffolding practices. Discussion is focused on the role of boundary crossing in teachers' negotiation of new meanings.

La recherche récente souligne le caractère contextualisé de la connaissance et de la compétence professionnelles. De ce fait un environnement authentique est exigé pour rendre possible le progrès des pratiques nouvelles et ainsi le développement professionnel de l'enseignant. L'objet de cette étude est de définir les moyens par lesquels les enseignants développent une connaissance et une compétence pratiques à travers une préparation et une évaluation partagées pendant un projet d'apprentissage innovant réalisé dans un environnement basé sur les technologies de l'information et de la communication. Deux enseignants d'histoire d'un collège ont participé à cette recherche. Les données ont été recueillies selon une approche faisant intervenir plusieurs méthodes (enregistrements de vidéo, interviews, questionnaires). Les résultats sont décrits dans l'optique des expériences partagées des enseignants et de leur prise de conscience progressive de leurs propres pratiques fondamentales de tous les jours. La discussion est concentrée sur le rôle de pluridisciplinarité dans la négociation de sens nouveaux par les enseignants.

Los estudios recientes subrayan la naturaleza específica al contexto del conocimiento y de la pericia profesional. Esto implica que el desarrollo de nuevas prácticas en entornos auténticos es un prerrequisito para el desarrollo profesional de los profesores. La meta de este trabajo es de descubrir como los profesores desarrollan su conocimiento y pericia profesional através del planeamiento y de la evaluación de un proyecto innovativo efectuado en un entorno de aprendizaje ICT. Dos profesores de escuela secundaria con historia laboral participaron en este estudio. La información fue recogida utilizando métodos múltiples (grabaciones en video, entrevistas, cuestionarios). Los resultados están descritos en términos de las experiencias compartidas de los profesores y el incremento del conocimiento de sus propias prácticas de andamiaje. La discusión se enfoca en la cuestión del papel del cruce de límites en la negociación de nuevos significados de la enseñanza.

In der gegenwärtigen Forschung wird die kontextspezifische Natur des Fachwissens und der beruflichen Expertise betont. Dies impliziert, dass die Entwicklung von neuen Verfahrensweisen in authentischen Umgebungen eine Voraussetzung für die berufliche Weiterbildung von Lehrern darstellt. Das Ziel des vorliegenden Artikels besteht darin, herauszuarbeiten, wie Lehrer ihr unterrichtspraktisches Wissen und ihre Berufsexpertise durch solche kooperativen Planungs‐ und Evaluationsvorgänge erweitern können, die in einer IKT‐basierten Umgebung ausgeführt werden. Zwei Geschichtslehrer der Sekundarstufe I (secondary school) haben sich an dieser Untersuchung beteiligt. Die Datenerhebungen basieren auf einer methodisch vielfältigen Anlage: Video‐Aufzeichnungen, Interviews und Fragebögen. Die Ergebnisse werden in bezug auf die Erfahrungen der Lehrer, sowie deren gesteigerte Wahrnehmung der jeweils eigenen zugrundeliegenden Lehrverfahren beschrieben. Die Diskussion fokussiert auf einen Aspekt, der die Rolle der Grenzüberschreitung im Zusammenhang mit unterrichtlichen Verhandlungen über neue Bedeutungen betrifft.     

Teachers’ views about pupil diversity in the primary school classroom

The present study explores Greek primary school teachers’ perceptions and views on pupil diversity in the classroom environment. A large-scale survey was carried out in order to examine teachers’ perceptions about pupil diversity and to identify personal and/or educational characteristics that can influence or predict these perceptions. The outcomes of the study reveal that Greek primary school teachers view diversity as a challenge more than as a barrier in teaching and learning, they can recognise at a high level the key elements of differentiated instruction as part of managing pupil diversity in their class and hold a negative-to-neutral stance on traditional curriculum implementation practices. The most influential factors and predictors of these perceptions and views are also presented and discussed.     

Student‐teachers' perspectives on positive and negative social processes in school

In recent years, the Standards for Qualified Teacher Status in England have placed new emphasis on student‐teachers' ability to become integrated into the ‘corporate life of the school’ and to work with other professionals. Little research, however, has been carried out into how student‐teachers perceive the social processes and interactions that are central to such integration during their initial teacher education school placements. This study aims to shed light on these perceptions. The data, gathered from 23 student‐teachers through interviews and reflective writing, illustrate the extent to which the participants perceived such social processes as supporting or obstructing their development as teachers. Signals of inclusion, the degree of match or mismatch in students' and school colleagues' role expectations, and the social awareness of both school and student‐teacher emerged as crucial factors in this respect. The student‐teachers' accounts show their social interactions with school staff to be meaningful in developing their ‘teacher self’ and to be profoundly emotionally charged. The implications for mentor and student‐teacher role preparation are discussed in this article.