Listening: To Thine Own Self Be True

This collaborative self-study examines the impact of taking a listening stance in the collegial relationships and practices of three early-career teacher educators within a small, private liberal arts institution. We consider the consequences of a listening stance on students' experiences of our practices and their education program. In addition, we explore how our individual histories influence our practices, our efforts to model listening, and our collegial relationships. Data sources include our journaling and in-class observations, feedback gathered from students on anonymous questionnaires and through focus-group discussions, and regular conversations with colleagues. Our findings illuminate the paradoxical nature of modeling a listening stance with pre-service teachers as listening to a multiplicity of voices challenged our ability to remain true to self in the midst of others' expressed needs and imperatives.     

The relation between feedback perceptions and the supervisor–student relationship in master's thesis projects

Research supervision can be investigated from social–emotional and cognitive perspectives, but most studies include only one perspective. This study aims to understand the interplay between a social–emotional (supervisor–student relationship) and cognitive (feedback) perspective on the outcomes of master's thesis supervision in specific, by investigating student perceptions of both perspectives. Questionnaire data (N?=?1016) were collected and analysed using regression analyses. For student satisfaction (SS) and students' perceived supervisor contribution to learning (PSCL), affiliation by far is most important, followed by control for SS and feedback-forward for PSCL. Also, interaction effects between feedback and interpersonal perceptions were found, indicating that the role of feedback perceptions is most important in situations in which no optimal supervisor–student relationship could be established. Findings imply the importance for master's thesis supervisors of creating friendly and helping relationships with students and if this is problematic, extra care should be taken with giving feedback.     

Group supervision in graduate education: a process of supervision skill development and text improvement

This paper is an investigation of group supervision of the Master of Education thesis at the University of Bergen, Norway. Four recorded group supervision sessions are analysed. The group participants are five students and three supervisors. The sessions are analysed from a qualitative, phenomenological perspective. The results show that group supervision enables the development of supervision skills, has an impact on the students' writing process and facilitates the students' enculturation into the particular discipline. The article refers briefly to contextual elements that influence the above processes and makes claims about the function group supervision can serve in higher education.     

Adaptive research supervision: exploring expert thesis supervisors' practical knowledge

Several researchers have suggested the importance of being responsive to students' needs in research supervision. Adapting support strategies to students' needs in light of the goals of a task is referred to as adaptivity. In the present study, the practice of adaptivity is explored by interviewing expert thesis supervisors about diagnosing student characteristics in order to determine students' needs and concurrent adaptive support strategies. The findings suggest that next to competence, supervisors also diagnose elements of students' determination and context. With respect to support strategies, it is suggested that supervisors adapt to student needs in terms of explicating standards, quality or consequences, division of responsibilities, providing more/less critical feedback and sympathising. The complexity of the relationship between diagnosing student characteristics and adapting support strategies is illustrated and needs further study.     

Evaluating students' science notebooks as an assessment tool

The idea of using science notebooks as a classroom assessment tool is not new. There is general agreement that science notebooks allow teachers to assess students' conceptual and procedural understanding and to provide the feedback students need for improving their performance. In this study we examined the use of science notebooks as an unobtrusive assessment tool that can also be used by individuals outside the classroom (for example, school district personnel), and as a means for obtaining information about students' learning and their opportunities to learn. More specifically, in this study students' science notebooks were used as a source of data about the (a) implementation of a curriculum's intended activities, (b) students' performance, and (c) quality of teachers' feedback. Our results indicated that: (1) Students' science notebooks can be reliably scored. Unit implementation, student performance, and teacher feedback scores were highly consistent across raters and units. (2) High and positive correlations with other performance assessment scores indicated that the student performance score can be considered as an achievement indicator. And (3) low performance scores across the two units revealed that students' communication skills and understanding were far away from the maximum score and did not improve over the course of instruction during the school year. This result may be due, in part, to the fact that no teacher feedback was found in any of the students' notebooks across the six classrooms studied. This may reflect some characteristics of the teachers' assessment practices that may require further professional development.     

How do doctoral students experience supervision?

Supervision has been shown to have a high impact on doctoral students' development. However, little is known about how students perceive not only negative but also positive doctoral experiences, as well as their strategies for dealing with perceived problematic situations. The aim of this study is to analyse and relate doctoral students' significant supervision experiences to the strategies they use to cope with these experiences when they perceive them as challenging or negative. A total of 1173 doctoral students from different research-intensive Spanish universities responded to four open-ended questions about their most significant experiences in their doctoral journey, associated feelings and strategies to deal with them. We identified a total of 223 experiences related to supervision that were distributed into five categories: 1) central prerequisites for supervision, 2) supervisor choice, 3) supervision of the research process, 4) coaching and 5) project management. The results showed three distinct ways, as reported by the students, of handling the perceived negative supervision experiences: 1) no strategy, 2) local strategy and 3) regulatory strategy. The results suggest that analysing both positive and negative experiences may better capture variability in students' supervision experiences. A relation between experiences with supervision and students' satisfaction was also detected.     

The effect of anticipated achievement feedback on students' semantic processing as indicated by the N400 cloze effect

The present study examined the effects of anticipated achievement feedback on students' semantic processing on the neural level, using event-related brain potentials (ERPs). Participants (N = 79) anticipated either self-referential or normative achievement feedback regarding an announced upcoming test. Additionally, their performance expectations (low vs. no expectations) were orthogonally manipulated. Subsequently, students' on-line semantic processing was assessed by measuring the N400 cloze effect, a component in the EEG signal of which the amplitude is associated with semantic processing. Within the low performance-expectation condition, no effect of anticipated feedback on semantic processing was found. Within the no-performance-expectation condition, participants anticipating self-referential feedback showed a more widely distributed N400 cloze effect than participants anticipating normative feedback. The results confirmed the hypothesis that the mere expectation of a particular type of feedback can affect students' semantic processes.     

The impact of interactive engagement methods on students' academic achievement

Interactive engagement (IE) is a process that promotes students' conceptual understanding through activities, combined with immediate feedback from peers and/or instructors. The present study investigates the impact of IE on students' academic performance, using the comprehensive model of educational effectiveness. Engineering students (n?=?158), randomly divided into three groups (self-assessment, collaborative learning, and control) provided the study data on questionnaires as well as with their test scores. Analyses of covariance reveal significant differences across groups, along with significant interaction effects. These findings have notable implications for improving students' academic achievement.     

Does Augmented Visual Feedback from Novel,Multicolored, Three-Dimensional-Printed Teeth Affect Dental Students' Acquisition of Manual Skills?

Although three-dimensional (3D) printing technology is increasingly used in dental education, its application regarding the provision of online visual augmented feedback has not been tested. Thus, this study aimed to: (1) develop two generations of multicolored 3D-printed teeth that provide visual augmented feedback for students conducting the cavity preparation process, (2) assess students' clinical performance after training on the 3D models, and (3) acquire student feedback. For the first-generation model, augmented feedback was obtained from five 3D-printed teeth models for five cavity preparation procedures. Each model comprised three layers printed in green, yellow, and red indicating whether preparation was acceptable, limited, or unacceptable, respectively. The study used a crossover design in which the experimental group trained on five multicolored models and 10 standard plastic teeth, and the control group trained on 15 standard plastic teeth. Students gave positive feedback of the methodology but complained about the printed material's hardness. Therefore, a second-generation model was developed: the model's occlusal plane was replaced with a harder printed acrylic material, and the experiment was repeated. During training, instructors provided external terminal feedback only for performance on standard plastic teeth. Manual grades for cavity preparations on standard plastic teeth were compared. No significant differences were found between the control and experimental groups in both generations' models. However, less instructor time was needed, and similar clinical results were obtained after training with both generations. Thus, multicolored 3D-printed teeth models promote self-learning during the process of acquiring manual skills and reduce student dependency on instructors.     

Teacher Praise and Feedback and Students' Perceptions of the Classroom Environment

The relationships between teacher praise and feedback, and students' perceptions of the classroom environment were investigated in six rural elementary schools (n = 747). The Teacher Feedback Scale and My Classroom Scale were developed as part of this study and used to collect the data. Structural equation modelling was used to test a hypothesised model. The results indicated that negative teacher feedback and effort feedback were both related to students' relationships with their teachers, while ability feedback was associated with perceptions of the classroom environment. Praise was not related to classroom environment or teacher-student relationships. Significant age and gender differences were found. Additionally, differences were found between students who were satisfied with their classroom and those who were dissatisfied. Satisfied students received more general praise, general ability feedback, effort feedback and less negative teacher feedback when compared to dissatisfied students.     

Rethinking the introduction of particle theory: A substance‐based framework

In response to extensive research exposing students' poor understanding of the particle theory of matter, this article argues that the conceptual framework within which the theory is introduced could be a limiting factor. The standard school particle model is characterized as operating within a “solids, liquids, and gases” framework. Drawing on an analysis of scientific ideas on matter and research into students' understanding, issues arising from the framework are identified which could contribute towards students' well known difficulties. The analysis leads to the proposal for a particle model based within the framework of the concept of a substance. Results from two exploratory studies using the substance‐based particle model with children (ages 9–10) in two contrasting elementary schools in England are then reported. After a short teaching intervention with a class in each school, individual interviews were held with a sample of 12 students from each class. Data were collected on students' understanding of substances coexisting in different room temperature states and phenomena involving changes of state and mixing. The results gave useful feedback on the specification of the model and its teaching. Overall the students' engagement with the particle ideas was encouraging and suggests a larger scale testing of the substance‐based model is merited. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 47:130–150, 2010     

Using a Field Trip Inventory to Determine If Listening to Elementary School Students' Conversations,While on a Zoo Field Trip,Enhances Preservice Teachers' Abilities to Plan Zoo Field Trips

This study investigated whether listening to spontaneous conversations of elementary students and their teachers/chaperones, while they were visiting a zoo, affected preservice elementary teachers' conceptions about planning a field trip to the zoo. One hundred five preservice elementary teachers designed field trips prior to and after listening to students' conversations during a field trip to the zoo. In order to analyze the preservice teachers' field trip designs, we conducted a review of the literature on field trips to develop the field trip inventory (FTI). The FTI focussed on three major components of field trips: cognitive, procedural, and social. Cognitive components were subdivided into pre-visit, during-visit, and post-visit activities and problem-solving. Procedural components included information about the informal science education facility (the zoo) and the zoo staff and included advanced organizers. Social components on student groups, fun, control during the zoo visit, and control of student learning. The results of the investigation showed that (a) the dominant topic in conversations among elementary school groups at the zoo was management, (b) procedural components were mentioned least often, (c) preservice teachers described during-visit activities more often than any other characteristic central to field trip design, (d) seven of the nine characteristics listed in the FTI were noted more frequently in the preservice teachers' field trip designs after they listened to students' conversations at the zoo, and (e) preservice teachers thought that students were not learning and that planning was important.     

Predicting self-efficacy in test preparation: Gender,value, anxiety,test performance,and strategies

Considerable evidence indicates that self-efficacy, task value, anxiety, and the use of language learning strategies are related. However, there is currently an insufficient understanding about their relations in high-stakes testing contexts. The author aimed to investigate how well social factors, test value, anxiety, test performance, and learning strategies predict high school students' self-efficacy in preparing for the English listening test as part of the University Entrance Examination in Taiwan. This research involved a large-scale questionnaire survey and a collection of students' English test scores. The participants were 636 students in Grade 12 of high school in Taiwan. A quantitative analysis of the questionnaire was conducted via hierarchical regression analysis. The results show that students' recent English test performance and test anxiety were two strong predictors of self-efficacy in preparing for the high-stakes test. In addition, resource management and metacognitive listening strategies had better predictive power over prior English level and test value.     

Development of PCK for novice and experienced university physics instructors: a case study

The current study assessed and compared university students' perceptions' of a novice and an experienced physics instructor's Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK). Two college physics instructors and 116 students voluntarily participated in this study. The research model comprised three workshops, mid-term and final evaluations and instructor interviews. The results showed that each instructor's PCK performance in four categories was slightly improved, though the difference was not statistically significant and only the category of Instructional Representation and Strategies (IRS) was found to be statistically different by students' evaluations of their instructor's PCK. The experienced instructor emphasized life examples and experiments, whereas, the novice instructor emphasized explanations and quizzes. Furthermore, the PCK questionnaire provided university instructors with adequate information so the instructors could receive students' feedback as available sources to reflect on their teaching to improve their quality of teaching. Research implications of this study are provided along with suggestions for future research.     

Distributed Problem-Based Learning in Social Economy--Key Issues in Students' Mastery of a Structured Method for Education

This paper describes students' use of distributed problem-based learning (dPBL) in university courses in social economy. A sociocultural framework is used to analyze the actions of students, focusing their mastery of dPBL. The main data material consists of messages written in an asynchronous conferencing system. Results from the study suggest that when students engage in dPBL they take responsibility for their learning by creating necessary artifacts. Students gradually establish mutual agreement among the group members using a highly conversational approach. Establishing function on a group level is crucial for mastery of dPBL. When students comment on other students' work they exchange feedback in a collegial manner. Commenting on each other's comments promotes community building in a way that fosters reciprocity as well as engagement.     

Written feedback in mathematics: Mediated by students' perception,moderated by goal orientation

Although feedback is a popular topic in educational research, the question of how and on what conditions feedback in mathematics affects learning seldom has been addressed. In this study, we investigated: (1) whether process-oriented feedback in mathematics leads to greater interest and higher achievement development compared to social-comparative feedback; (2) whether students' perception of feedback with regard to usefulness and competence support mediates these effects; and (3) whether the impact of feedback is moderated by students' mastery approach goal orientation. To answer these research questions, 146 ninth-grade intermediate school students in Germany were randomly assigned to both feedback conditions. Results of path analyses revealed (1) no significant total feedback effects on interest and achievement development, but (2) indirect effects on the development of interest via perceived competence support and usefulness, and on achievement development via perceived usefulness, as well as (3) a moderation effect of mastery approach goal orientation on the impact of feedback on perceived usefulness.     

The influence of web‐based chemistry learning on students' perceptions,attitudes, and achievements

The goal of this study was to investigate whether integrating a website into chemistry teaching influences 10th‐grade students' perceptions of the classroom learning environment, their attitudes regarding the relevance of chemistry, and their understanding of the concept of chemical bonding. Two groups participated in this study: an experimental group and a comparison group. The main study was conducted during the academic year 2005. The teachers in the experimental group were asked to implement four relevant activities from the website that was developed, all dealing with the concept of chemical bonding. Quantitative tools of the study included: A Chemistry Classroom Web‐Based Learning Environment Inventory to assess students' perceptions regarding the relevance of chemistry to their life and attitude towards chemistry studies, a feedback questionnaire that examined the students' response after performing the website activities, and an achievement test that assessed their knowledge and understanding of the concept of chemical bonding. We found that the experimental group outperformed the comparison group significantly in most of the research categories. This led us to conclude that the web‐based learning environment has potential to enhance the comprehension of chemistry concepts, students' attitudes and interests and to increase students' awareness regarding the relevant aspects of chemistry to daily life.     

The Determinants of Students' Perceived Learning Outcomes and Satisfaction in University Online Education: An Empirical Investigation*

In this study, structural equation modeling is applied to examine the determinants of students' satisfaction and their perceived learning outcomes in the context of university online courses. Independent variables included in the study are course structure, instructor feedback, self‐motivation, learning style, interaction, and instructor facilitation as potential determinants of online learning. A total of 397 valid unduplicated responses from students who have completed at least one online course at a university in the Midwest were used to examine the structural model. The results indicated that all of the antecedent variables significantly affect students' satisfaction. Of the six antecedent variables hypothesized to affect the perceived learning outcomes, only instructor feedback and learning style are significant. The structural model results also reveal that user satisfaction is a significant predictor of learning outcomes. The findings suggest online education can be a superior mode of instruction if it is targeted to learners with specific learning styles (visual and read/write learning styles) and with timely, meaningful instructor feedback of various types.     

Tutor feedback on draft essays: developing students’ academic writing and subject knowledge

Providing feedback on draft essays is an accepted means of enacting a social-constructivist approach to assessment, aligning with current views on the value of formative feedback and assessment for learning (AFL). However, the use of this process as a means of improving not only content but also students' academic writing skills has not been widely studied, despite a widespread perception that there is scope for intervention at university level. This article explores the developmental potential of a drafting/tutor feedback/redrafting process on a first-year undergraduate course for trainee English language teachers at a UK university. The aims of this small-scale, largely qualitative study were to ascertain students' perceptions of the process and to determine the extent to which the process could contribute to the development of students' academic writing. Data are derived from first and second draft essay marks and questionnaires administered to 32 students. Findings suggest that feedback on drafts is acted on and can contribute to improved work when it is timely and detailed and when it raises students' metacognitive awareness, as was the case in this project. Also noteworthy, however, are the students' perceptions that redrafting is cognitively challenging and time-consuming. Comments from a less academically confident student with regard to the quantity of feedback and its detrimental impact are of particular concern. Questions are raised regarding the use of tutor reformulation, the sustainability of AFL and the provision of feedback to – and its interpretation by – weaker students. Finally, some key indicators for improved future practice are presented.