Examination and learning: an activity‐theoretical analysis of the relationship between assessment and educational practice

The backwash effect of assessment on learning is widely acknowledged. This article discusses the impact of assessment on learning in a wider sense, by focusing on how assessment drives not only student learning, but also the teaching practices, the designing of educational programmes and the production of learning material. The focus is on how assessment affects education at a system level and the article conceptualizes the backwash effect of assessment on learning from a systemic perspective. Activity theory, as developed by Engeström (1987 Engeström Y (1987) Learning by expanding. An activity‐theoretical approach to developmental research (Helsinki, Orienta‐Konsultit Oy)  [Google Scholar]), is used as a framework to conceptualize this systemic affect of assessment. The empirical basis for the analysis is an ethnographic study of the compulsory preparatory course in philosophy, logics and philosophy of science at the University of Oslo.     

The relationship between critical thinking skills and in‐class questioning behaviours of English language teaching students

It is important that trainee teachers in the faculties of education should develop their critical thinking skills so that they can meet the expectations and needs of their profession. This study aimed at investigating the relationship between critical thinking skills and in‐class questioning behaviours of English Language Teaching (ELT) students at the Faculty of Education at Mugla University. The authors attempted to find out answers to the following questions: ‘What kinds of questions do students in lower and higher critical thinking groups ask?’ and ‘Is there a difference between the questions of students with higher and lower critical thinking scores?’ Three data collection instruments were used: Ennis‐Weir Critical Thinking Essay Test; a reading passage; and a structured interview. The findings obtained suggest that the questions asked by the students of the higher critical thinking score group are not questions that clarify unclear points, but questions asked out of curiosity, to remove the uncertainties, and to lead people to think profoundly. Moreover, these students ask questions to find alternatives, to think the reverse and to head for new ideas. The students in the higher score group experienced thinking processes more intensively than the lower score group.     

Differences between the relationship of L1 learners’ performance in integrated writing with both independent listening and independent reading cognitive skills

In recent decades, integrated language competence has been highlighted in the language curricula taught in schools and institutions, and the relationship between test-takers’ performance on integrated tasks and comprehension sources has been much studied. The current study employed the frameworks of reading and listening comprehension processes to examine the difference between the effects of reading competence and listening competence on integrated writing performance. A total of 152 Secondary 5 students from five local schools in Hong Kong responded to three tasks, including an independent listening task, an independent reading task and an integrated writing task. The reading cognitive skills contributed more towards the performance of the integrated writing task than the listening cognitive skills did. Furthermore, the interaction between the relationships of reading and listening to the integrated writing performance was significant. Three subskills each for both listening and reading that belong to higher-order thinking skills—Elaborating, Evaluating and Creating—had significant correlation with integrated writing performance. Implications for the teaching of integrated writing were also discussed.     

On Meaningful Measurement: Issues of Reliability and Validity from a Humanistic Constructivist Information‐Processing Perspective

ABSTRACT

In the past decade, there has been interest in the assessment of cognitive and affective processes and products for the purposes of meaningful learning. Meaningful measurement (MM) has been proposed which is in accordance with a humanistic constructivist information‐processing perspective. Students’ responses to the assessment tasks are now evaluated according to an item response measurement model, together with a hypothesized model detailing the progressive forms of knowing/competence under examination. There is a possibility of incorporating student errors and alternative frameworks into these evaluation procedures. Meaningful measurement leads us to examine the composite concepts of “ability” and “difficulty”. Under the rubric of meaningful measurement, validity assessment (i.e. internal and external components of construct validity) is essentially the same as an inquiry into the meanings afforded by the measurements. Concepts of reliability, expressed as a group statistics which is applied in the same way to all the examinees in the sample, have to be obviated when the precision of the trait estimates stemming from the item response measurement models can be determined at each trait level. Reliability, measured in terms of standard errors of estimates needs to be within acceptable limits when internal validity is to be secured. Further evidence of validity may be provided by in‐depth analyses of how “epistemic subjects” of different levels of competence and proficiency engage in different types of assessment tasks, where affective and metacognitive behaviours may be examined as well. These ways of undertaking MM can be codified by proposing a three‐level conceptualization of MM. It is within the rubric of this conceptualization and the MM enquiry paradigm that validity and reliability of test measures are discussed in this paper.     

Pessimism of the intellect,optimism of the will? Troubling the relationship between career guidance and social justice

Career guidance claims a lineage to ‘modernity’, where individuals carve dignified lives for themselves, irrespective of social origin. Here, ‘social justice’ has particular connotations, relating to the meritocratic redistribution of resources in ways that reward ability and effort. This article explores alternative conceptions of social justice, taking seriously the fundamental insight that if individuals make history, they do so in circumstances not of their own making. Drawing on recent theories of social justice, an effort is made to ‘trouble’ mainstream notions of career guidance, and to imagine how it can be of the greatest benefit to the least advantaged.     

Developing creativity and promoting social harmony: the relationship between government,school and parents' perceptions of children's creativity in Macao‐SAR in China

The promotion of creativity in young children has been included in the agenda of the educational authorities in mainland China since 2001. Since then, attempts to implement this policy have appeared in different forms. The educational bureaux take measures by publishing documents and guidelines on the subject. While some kindergartens endeavour to restructure their programmes in order to accommodate the development of creativity, most practitioners are not yet ready to embrace this idea. Based on an ethnographic study, this article argues that there are gaps amongst the government's, practitioners' and parents' views of creativity and means to foster such ability in young children. It also highlights the fact that the observed phenomenon might be explained in terms of the social hierarchy that has been thriving in Chinese culture for centuries. Finally, it suggests that a reciprocal relationship amongst the three parties is yet to be built in order to form a strong support for the development of children's creativity in this southern Chinese city.     

Validation of the elementary social behaviour assessment: teacher ratings of students’ social skills adapted to Norwegian,grades 1–6

This study investigated the psychometric properties of the Elementary Social Behaviour Assessment (ESBA), a teacher-report measure of students’ social skills and academic engagement adapted for use in Norwegian schools. At two times, 8 weeks apart, 151 teachers rated 793 students in Grades 1–6 on the ESBA and the Social Skills Rating System Teacher’s form (SSRS-T). Exploratory factor analysis with the first assessment suggested one or possibly two factors. Confirmatory factor analysis with the second assessment confirmed the one- or two-factor models but did not offer strong evidence for one over the other. The ESBA demonstrated good to excellent reliability. Strong concurrent and predictive correlations with the SSRS-T established criterion validity. The school and teacher levels explained only a limited amount of the total variance in ESBA scores, suggesting that teachers rate students quite similarly. The Norwegian-adapted ESBA paralleled the reliability and validity evidence from US samples.     

Education and the social order: re‐visioning the legacy of Brian Simon

The movement for the higher education of women in Ireland in the nineteenth century has traditionally been viewed as a Protestant initiative. Scholarship suggests that the Irish campaign developed along the same lines as the English movement, gaining from and growing out of the English advances. Leading Protestant schools for girls have been viewed as the driving force behind the concessions afforded Irish women. This paper challenges this assumption, suggesting that contemporaneous developments in Ireland were driven not by neighbouring reforms but by denominational tensions. The role played by the Catholic teaching orders during the nineteenth century cannot be overlooked. Although initially conservative in their approach to educational provision for girls, the Catholic teaching orders – the Dominican, Loreto and Ursuline orders in particular – were key players and stakeholders in women’s higher education in the latter half of the nineteenth century. This paper explores the objectives of the pioneers of Protestant and Catholic female education, examining the relative influence of the Church of Ireland and the Catholic Church. It explores the possibility that the movement for the higher education of Irish women found its impetus not in gender equality, but in denominational rivalry.     

Schools' fulfilment of sex and relationship education documentation: three school‐based case studies

This article presents a critical evaluation of school policies, programmes of work and practices in three state secondary schools in one district in one local authority in England. They are evaluated regarding Sex and Relationship Education (SRE) documentation, statutory and non‐statutory from 1900 to the most recent SRE guidance introduced in July 2000 by the Department for Education and Employment. The article concludes that historically and contemporarily SRE documentation has mainly been inadequate and that in the three case studies legislative requirements concerning SRE policy and practice are predominantly not met. This is particularly the case regarding the most recent SRE guidance. Young people's access to information was institutionally limited and partial. Within the three case studies there was a failure to equip children and young people with an appropriate knowledge and understanding of sexuality, which reflects their lives and the realities of a diverse society.     

Improving the academic outcomes of undergraduate ESL students: the case for discipline‐based academic skills programs

This article examines the impact of an adjunct English language tutorial program on the academic performance of first‐year Architecture students. With increasing numbers of international students enrolling in Australian universities, language and academic skills programs have shifted from generic to more discipline‐specific models; however, there has been little research on the effects of these programs on ESL students' academic performance. This study uses a mixed‐method approach to evaluate the effectiveness of an English as a second language (ESL) intervention program. Findings indicate that students value a highly discipline‐specific approach to language and academic skills support and that regular participation in a content‐based ESL program can lead to positive learning outcomes for students. Preliminary findings also suggest that there are positive longer‐term benefits on students' academic outcomes. The authors suggest the need for longitudinal studies on the impact of discipline‐based programs for ESL students.     

Attitudes and expectations: do attitudes towards education mediate the relationship between social networks and parental expectations?

Previous international research has shown that educational goals are fundamental for explaining differences in the educational attainment between individuals. For a better understanding of educational inequality, it is therefore crucial to know more about the mechanisms leading to different expectations. Our paper contributes to this field of research by empirically testing how social networks affect educational expectations of mothers for their children. Furthermore, we try to disentangle the underlying mechanisms by investigating which role resources and attitudes within social networks play in influencing educational expectations. We use quantitative data gathered in three federal states in Germany. The key results indicate that network composition not only has an effect on educational expectations but also on general attitudes towards education. Both attitudes towards education and embedded resources seem to mediate the effect of social ties on educational expectations.     

Observations and student perceptions of the quality of preservice teachers’ teaching behaviour: construct representation and predictive quality

Observations and student perceptions are recognised as important tools for examining teaching behaviour, but little is known about whether both perspectives share similar construct representations and how both perspectives link with student academic outcomes. The present study compared the construct representation of preservice teachers’ teaching behaviour as perceived by trained teacher observers and students. It also examined the predictive power of both measures of teaching behaviour for student academic engagement. The theoretical framework of teaching behaviour used in this study is based on evidence-based research derived from empirical teacher effectiveness research. The study was part of a national project that included 2164 students and 108 teachers in The Netherlands. Results suggest that, although observations and student perceptions of teaching behaviour shared similar theoretical considerations, the construct representations seemed to differ to some extent. Furthermore, although both perspectives are significant predictors of student academic engagement, student perceptions appeared to be more predictive of their perceived academic engagement than observations. Implications for research on learning environments and teacher education are discussed.     

What is the relationship between social constructivism and Piagetian constructivism? An analysis of the characteristics of the ideas within both theories

For twenty years, social constructivism has been a paradigm in science teaching and not an easy bedfellow for piagetian constructivism, even though both have had the same thing in mind… a study of the learner. For this reason we attempt to find connections and bridges between them so that both may be enriched, to the benefit of science teaching.     

Multirater congruence on the social skills rating system: mother,father, and teacher assessments of urban head start children’s social competencies

This study examined the relationships between parent and teacher and between mother and father SSRS reports of 134 urban Head Start children to assess the cross-informant capacity of the SSRS. The findings documented an insignificant relationship between parent and teacher SSRS ratings of children’s social competence. The results revealed significant congruence between SSRS ratings of mothers and fathers. Mothers and fathers who reported higher levels of sharing childcare responsibilities evidenced higher levels of agreement on SSRS ratings of children. This study discusses the importance of Head Start staff, parent, and research partnerships for developing scales that have the capacity to foster home-school communications about children.     

Classroom Implementation of Context‐based Chemistry Education by Teachers: The relation between experiences of teachers and the design of materials

Worldwide, a tendency is visible in which upper secondary science curricula are innovated in the direction of context‐based education. Crucial to these innovations is the way teachers interact with newly developed teaching materials and implement them in classroom practice. The focus of our research is to identify characteristics of the interaction between innovative context‐based materials and teachers that hinder or facilitate classroom implementation as intended by the designers. Four cases of classroom implementation by four experienced teachers with different degrees of experiences in context‐based education, all implementing ‘Chemie im Kontext’ (CHiK) teaching materials, were carried out using a previously developed framework for analysis. It was found that a crucial aspect of CHiK, that of taking students' questions and using them as an orientation as the ‘focal event’ for the following lessons, was difficult to implement. The employed contexts are too general and broad to be effectively applicable as a setting in which activities such as students developing their own ideas and exploring them logically take place. Therefore, it is recommended that extensive teacher professionalization is required on this aspect to show teachers its value and to increase their repertoire of necessary teaching activities.     

Predicting Computer Literacy: how do the technological experiences of schoolchildren predict their computer‐based problem‐solving skills?

ABSTRACT

What is the effect of a technologically rich out‐of‐school environment upon the use of information technology in the classroom? This question was approached by observing the relationships between the exposure to home electronic technologies and classroom disposition and performance. Secondary school children (11–12 years old) were interviewed to determine their declarative knowledge of computers and computer use, the richness of their technological environment and their declared interest in working with computers. They then performed a computer‐based language task that required them to enter missing letters from a piece of text This task required linguistic problem‐solving skills as well as keyboard agility and yielded a number of performance scores. Successful performance correlated with declared out‐of‐school computer use. The richness of the technological environment also correlated positively with declared computer use. Out‐of‐school experience did not predict attitudes to classroom information technology and there were no gender effects in attitude or performance.     

Community‐based early intervention for children with behavioural,emotional and social problems: evaluation of the Scallywags Scheme

Scallywags is a community‐based, early intervention programme for young children (aged 3–7) with behavioural, emotional and social problems, which integrates work in the home and school with a parenting curriculum and direct work with children. A pre‐post intervention study across multi‐sites of 340 participants is reported. Using standardised measures, the study found statistically significant reductions in problems at home and school experienced by children who completed the programme, and in parental stress levels. Participation was found to be high and the project acceptable to parents, many of whom would be described as hard to reach. The rigorous evaluation of this real‐life service and its positive outcomes highlight the potential of such programmes to tackle the needs of these children and families, and help prevent longer‐term problems associated with early onset behavioural problems, including social exclusion, antisocial behaviour and educational failure.     

Industriousness and development of the school‐system in the eighteenth century: the experience of Norwegian cities

This article discusses how the Norwegian urban school system was developed during the eighteenth century. In the cities, there were laws for Latin as well as Danish schools. During the eighteenth century, schools for poor children were established, while towards the end of the century the importance of the school system in relation to the economic functioning of society was discussed. A broader range of schools was developed in most cities, meant for children of different social origins and social prospects, and different for boys and girls. The article argues that the school system was used to make the population more industrious during a period when trade capitalism made the social division in society sharper and different forms of organisation of labour were attempted. The attention on children’s education was turned from consideration of the children’s spiritual future to their preparation for a working life that served economic ends.     

Privatization and sponsorship: the re‐agenting of the school system in England 1

In this article I use the concept of ‘re‐agenting’ to explore and explain the role of non‐state agencies, principally private companies and business entrepreneurs, as key instruments in the government’s transformation of the school system in England. Their role takes both for‐profit and not‐for‐profit forms. The outsourcing to private companies of the implementation of government education policies and the delivery of educational services to schools and local authorities has created a profitable market. Equally significant is the growing involvement of the private sector in schools through the sponsorship of specialist schools and Academies on a non‐profit basis.