Institutional Barriers to Innovation: Lessons From a Digital Intervention for Underrepresented Students Applying to College

Abstract

This article draws upon two conceptual frameworks—institutional culture in education and innovation studies—to contextualize findings from a digital intervention for underrepresented students applying to college. The qualitative data that inform this study's findings include 88 open-response surveys with school teachers, as well as campus observations from 52 participating high schools in the U.S. state of California. Through such a conceptual framework, this article highlights four institutional barriers that can inhibit widespread adoption of a promising innovation: (a) the challenge of tapping into participants’ intrinsic motivation; (b) forging opportunities for collaboration and communication between different stakeholders; (c) finding adequate time to schedule and implement an innovation; and (d) a dearth of support for digital resources.     

ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tools Retrospective version (ICAST-R): Delphi study and field testing in seven countries

ObjectivesTo gain consensus among an ethnically and linguistically diverse group of international child protection experts on the structure and content of a new survey tool for retrospective measurement of child abuse, and to determine the performance of the instrument through an international field trial with young adults.MethodsThe questionnaire was developed through focus group discussions with international experts, and then subjected to a Delphi study in two waves to determine the perceived importance and translatability of items. The resultant questionnaire was translated into six languages and field tested in seven countries with convenient samples of young adults aged 18–26 years (N = 842).ResultsChild maltreatment experts from 28 countries provided input to questionnaire development. Satisfactory agreement on draft item inclusion and exclusion and the translatability of items was gained. The tool includes 15 primary questions about potentially abusive physical, sexual and emotional events, with follow-up questions about perpetrator characteristics, frequency of acts and periods in childhood when the recalled abuse occurred. The field test revealed lifetime prevalence per item usually exceeded 10% (11/15 items; range 2.1–49.5%). Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) was moderate to high for each of three item sub-sets (between .61 and .82) and the rates of missing data were low (less than 1.5% for 14 of 15 items). The great majority of respondents nominated either peer and/or adult perpetrators (between 82.3% and 98.2% depending upon the item), and among these, child/adolescent peers and non-family adults (including teachers for emotional and physical acts) were nominated often.ConclusionsThe ICAST-R is based on consensus from international experts, translates clearly and has satisfactory properties for adoption as a survey tool to estimate prevalence and describe perpetrators and other contextual aspects of child abuse.Practice implicationsThis tool can be utilized in a broad range of cultures and languages and may contribute to improved research practice. Although the core items are limited to just 15 acts of maltreatment, if these behaviorally specific questions are adopted as key indicators and incorporated into comprehensive local, national or regional surveys, eventually there should be greater comparability in survey estimates.     

Epidemiological pattern of bullying using a multi-assessment approach: Results from the Bullying and Youth Mental Health Naples Study (BYMHNS)

BackgroundBullying is a widespread phenomenon that has captured attention from mental health researchers. Several studies have assessed bullying prevalence with some methodological concerns.ObjectivesPreliminary, we analyzed the psychometric properties of two bullying scales for victimization (the multidimensional peer victimization scale – MPVS) and for perpetration (the bully subscale of the Illinois bully scale – IBS-B); then, we estimated bullying prevalence; finally, we evaluated the effect of gender and classroom on the phenomenon.Participants and setting2959 students from the metropolitan city of Naples constituted the sample.MethodsData collection was obtained using a multi-assessment approach that included both single-item questions and intensity scales in order to compare the two methods.ResultsThe two scales resulted valid and showed good reliability. The MPVS displayed a 1-factor second order model. The IBS-B had a mono-factorial structure. Both showed full invariance for gender and classroom. Prevalence of victimization was 37% whereas that for perpetration was 21%. As expected we obtained several bullying prevalence results depending on the specificity of questions and in particular repetitiveness of episodes. There was a good correspondence between results of single-item questions and multi-item scales. Finally results demonstrated several differences for gender and classroom attended.ConclusionIn this epidemiological study the multi-assessment approach identified different but complementary features of bullying phenomena. The use of the two measurement approaches allowed us to obtain more precise and exhaustive information on bullying prevalence and compare it with previous findings.     

Similarities and Differences in Teachers' Practical Knowledge About Teaching Reading Comprehension

Abstract

The similarities and differences in language teachers' practical knowledge about teaching reading comprehension to 16- to 18-year-old students were explored. A questionnaire was developed that consisted of closed-format questions derived from a qualitative in-depth study on teachers' practical knowledge about teaching reading comprehension. The results indicate that part of teachers' practical knowledge was shared knowledge and that 4 scales of (unshared) practical knowledge could be distinguished. On the basis of those scales, 4 clusters of teachers were identified, each representing a specific focus of teachers' practical knowledge.     

Reading literacy in Compulsory Secondary Education: an exploration of the difficulties in the use of information to answer questions / La competencia lectora en la Educación Secundaria Obligatoria: descripción y dificultades del uso de información para responder preguntas

Abstract

This paper is a review of studies about processes and secondary school students’ difficulties with these processes when they use information to answer questions. The PISA program uses this kind of task-oriented reading situation to evaluate reading literacy, which is also a common reading situation in educational settings. Four key strategies are identified to successfully perform this kind of task: decide how to read the information, comprehend the task, decide when to search for information in order to solve the task, and self-regulate that search process. Moreover, this paper provides accurate information about the students’ difficulties in becoming skilled readers when they use information to answer questions. This information might help teachers and educational counselors in the design of interventions to improve reading literacy in schools.     

Facilitators and Barriers to the Implementation of EMOTION: An Indicated Intervention for Young Schoolchildren

ABSTRACT

Research on implementation of school-based transdiagnostic interventions, conducted by personnel from the municipal services is limited. We investigated facilitators and barriers regarding implementation of EMOTION, an intervention targeting symptoms of anxiety and depression in children 8–12 years. Trained health- and childcare professionals completed one questionnaire before (N?=?63) and a separate questionnaire after running an EMOTION group (N?=?66). Twelve of the group leaders were interviewed to provide additional information regarding implementation. Results indicated that factors such as a perceived need for the intervention and positive attitudes from the group leaders facilitated implementation. Hindering factors were related to time constraints, workload, unsupportive leaders, and lack of cooperation from the schools. Allocating resources to implementation specifically could promote future use of the program.     

Identification of Greek beekeepers' educational needs,a case study

Abstract

This study was conducted to identify the Greek beekeepers' educational needs. A questionnaire was mailed to 1000 beekeepers selected at random from a list of subscribers to a beekeeping journal published monthly. The questionnaire consisted of 16 items related to course instruction and other questions regarding their demographic characteristics.

For data analysis three statistical techniques were used: (i) factor analysis, (ii) Kruskal-Wallis test and (iii) Mann-Whitney U test. From the factor analysis, the 16 items related to course instruction were grouped into four factors indicating beekeepers' preference on those topics. Using demographic characteristics, beekeepers' preference to educational needs was identified.

It is necessary to provide a quality education for adult beekeepers which must be flexible enough to meet the needs of farmers and which is also supported by the local community. The findings aided authors in recommending procedures for the organisation of future seminars meaningful for the Greek beekeepers.     

Learning about the educational uses of the internet by producing an educational web site in an interdisciplinary and virtual team

ABSTRACT

In this paper we describe the use of an interactive software package designed to raise issues and questions about the role of information technology within the primary classroom and to highlight the partnership aspects inherent within a teacher tutor/mentor approach to the supervision of school placements. Data were collected from a variety of people concerned in the exercise: teacher tutors, university liaison tutors and student teachers. These data concerned not only the efficacy of the materials themselves, but also the effect or impact of the exercise upon the school placement experience. A number of issues emerged from our exploration into this exercise revealing attitudes towards information technology in education. These concerned ownership of learning and questions of expertise, access to partnership and co‐professionality, staff and student attitudes towards information technology and towards partnership and implications for the future. Our data suggest that learning becomes powerful when the learner takes ownership. Information technology can enable the shift towards creator and is a powerful means of achieving that.     

International student migration: a comparison of UK and Indian students’ motivations for studying abroad

ABSTRACT

This paper breaks new ground in its comparative analysis of two international student migration (ISM) streams, one from the Global South to the Global North (India to developed Anglophone countries), and the other within the Global North (UK to North America, Europe and Australia). These two ISM movements reflect different positionalities within the global system of international student movements, and hence necessitate a critical perspective on the assumptions behind such a comparison, which questions the dominance of ‘knowledge’ about ISM that derives from ‘the West’ as a theoretical template. Two methods are employed to collect data: an online questionnaire survey of UK and Indian students who are, or have recently been, studying abroad; and in-depth interviews to UK and Indian international students. Motivations for studying abroad are remarkably similar in the questionnaire results; more subtle differences emerge from the interviews.     

How can simulation help with learning project work skills? Experiences from higher education in Finland

ABSTRACT

Background: Effective project management and project work skills are important requirements in higher education and many other work place settings. Simulation-based learning, with its use of simulated scenarios and environments, may be a helpful way of supporting skill development. However, much more needs to be understood about the possibilities and challenges that can be involved in the application of this method of learning and teaching, from the perspectives of the learners.

Purpose: This exploratory qualitative study sought to describe university lecturers’ experiences and views of simulation as a method of learning and teaching project skills. The simulation method was tested in Finland, in the context of the national Research and Development Expert Coaching Programme, which was developed for the staff of the Universities of Applied Sciences.

Research methods: Data were collected via a questionnaire with two open questions, to which total of 12 multi-professional participants, all lecturers from Universities of Applied Sciences, were asked to respond in essay form. The data was analysed using inductive content analysis.

Results: Overall, our analysis suggests that participants felt that simulation-based learning was suitable for learning project work. According to the participants, the method helped them learn concrete project work skills, identify and manage challenging situations and promote dialogical sharing between professionals.

Conclusion: The results indicate that simulation can be used to promote project work competence of both new and more experienced project workers in various fields. It is suggested that the method is suitable for both initial and continuing education.     

Can coders abstract child maltreatment variables from child welfare administrative data and case narratives for public health surveillance in Canada?

BackgroundPublic health surveillance is essential to inform programs that aim to eradicate child maltreatment (CM) and to provide services to children and families. However, collection of CM data imposes a burden on child welfare workers (CWWs). This study assesses the feasibility of hiring coders to abstract the required information from administrative records and case narratives.MethodsBased on a convenience sample of child welfare data from Manitoba, Canada, two coders abstracted information on 181 alleged CM cases. The coders completed a short web-based questionnaire for each case to identify which of five types of CM had been investigated, level of substantiation for each type, and risk of future CM. The CWWs responsible for each case completed the same questionnaire. Percentages of the occurrence of CM by the three sources were compared. The validity of the coders’ classifications was assessed by calculating sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values, against the CWWs’ classifications as the “gold standard.” Cohen’s kappa was also calculated.ResultsThe coders’ classifications of physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect generally matched those of CWWs; for exposure to intimate partner violence, agreement was weak for one coder. Coding of emotional maltreatment and risk investigations could not be evaluated.ConclusionResults were promising. Abstraction was not time-consuming. Differences between coders and CWWs can be largely explained by the administrative data system, child welfare practice, and legislation. Further investigation is required to determine if additional training could improve coders’ classifications of CM.     

Scale Considerations in Using Vague Quantifiers

The responses to many survey questions are often made in terms of vague quantifiers such as very often or occasionally. However, we know little about the scale characteristics of such quantifiying terms. This paper reviews the literature on the use of frequency expressions as questionnaire anchor points. Data are presented which suggest that the popularly used five-point response category set of always, often, occasionally, seldom, and never is not intervally scaled. Utilizing data obtained through ratio estimation, an approximately equal interval measurement scale is developed for a five-point response category set.     

Harcum Freshmen Evaluate Their Preparation for College

Abstract

The scope of high school preparation for college includes many dimensions of student coping behavior. After completing one semenster of college, 272 Harcum Junior College freshmen replied anonymously to a questionnaire. They were asked to identify those areas in which they believed they needed help before entering college to cope more effectively with the real dimensions of college living and study. The questionnaire instrument explored three broad areas: educational information, psychosocial information, and vocational information. Strength of need was indicated by frequency of mention and degree-level of assessed need. Among the 5 strongest needs expressed (of a total of 19), 4 fall into the educational information category: the strongest need was for reading skills; studying for an exam was second; preparing a bibliography was fourth; math skills and concepts was fifth. The third—improving my motivation—is very closely related, for a reasonable inference is that the motivation relates to studying, learning, and matters “educational.” The extent to which the results of the questionnaire may be generalized beyond Harcum is best answered by replication of the questionnaire inquiry among other samples of freshmen.     

Assessing the effectiveness of the NICHD investigative interview Protocol when interviewing French-speaking alleged victims of child sexual abuse in Quebec

ObjectivesThe study was designed to assess the effectiveness of the flexibly structured NICHD Investigative Interview Protocol for child sexual abuse (CSA) investigative interviews by police officers and mental health workers in Quebec. The NICHD Protocol was designed to operationalize “best practice” guidelines and to help forensic interviewers use open-ended prompts to facilitate free recall by alleged victims.MethodA total of 83 interviews with 3- to 13-year-old alleged victims were matched with 83 interviews conducted by the same interviewers before they were trained to use the Protocol. Interviews were matched with respect to the children's ages, children–perpetrator relationships, and the types and frequency of abuse. Coders categorized each of the prompts used to elicit information about the abuse and tabulated the numbers of new forensically relevant details provided in each response.ResultsInterviewers used three times as many open-ended prompts in Protocol interviews than in non-Protocol interviews, whereas use of all other types of questions was halved, and the total number of questions asked decreased by 25%. Protocol-guided interviews yielded more details than comparison interviews. The mean number of details per prompt increased from 3 to 5 details when the Protocol was used. Even with young children, interviewers using the Protocol employed more invitations to elicit forensically relevant details.ConclusionsFrench-speaking investigators using the NICHD Protocol used open-ended prompts rather than focused questions when interviewing alleged victims. In addition, these interviewers needed fewer questions to get relevant information when using the Protocol.Practical implicationsA French version of the NICHD Protocol is now available to police officers and social workers who investigate the alleged sexual abuse of young children in French-speaking countries. This French version allowed trained interviewers to increase the use of invitations and reduce the use of more focused and risky questions. When the number of questions was controlled, more central details and more details in total were obtained in Protocol interviews, because the average prompt elicited more detailed answers in Protocol interviews. However, learning to use the NICHD Protocol required extended training and continued feedback sessions to maintain the high quality of interviewing.     

Post‐Experience Business Education

Summary

This paper provides a comparative analysis of data arising from three recent surveys of equal opportunity practice in relation to race, gender and disability. The surveys gathered information from a range of university departments and included questions about departmental structures and organisation as well as curriculum development. Instances of good practice are described, and some implications explored for the further development of equal opportunities in higher education.     

The school cluster system as an innovation: Perceptions of Zimbabwean teachers and school heads

Abstract

School clusters, that is, the grouping of schools within the same geographical location, for economic, pedagogic, administrative and political purposes (Bray, 1987), have arisen as one possible solution to developing countries’ battles to achieve both quantitative and qualitative advances in their education systems within the framework of financial austerity. However, there remain questions regarding how those tasked to implement this innovation perceive it. Through a multi-site case study of five schools using a questionnaire and interviews with teachers and school heads, findings suggest that both macro and micro problems prevented the cluster from achieving its capacity building goals. Key threats included the nature of the cluster model adopted, the centralisation tendency of the education system, the dual ownership of schools, resistance to change and the under-utilisation of resources.     

An empirical study on gender differences in the perception of support during transition to university

Research has highlighted the importance of members of staff knowing their students and one way of achieving that is to ask them to predict students' responses to questions about the teaching process. To this end, student responses to open-ended questionnaires were content analysed to produce a questionnaire about factors that contribute to productive seminars and lectures. A total of 148 psychology students ranked the factors in order of importance and 13 members of academic staff predicted student responses. Results indicated that, despite some differences, members of staff were reasonably accurate in their predictions of student responses. It was also seen that student views were relatively consistent across student levels. The importance of the findings in relation to teaching practice are discussed.     

Three approaches to measuring children's perceptions about technology

Abstract

This paper reports the development and use of three instruments which comprise a comprehensive technique for describing children's perceptions about technology. The instruments are a questionnaire for upper primary school children, a quiz using pictures instead of written items for lower primary school children and, for both age‐groups, a combined writing/drawing activity which complements the questionnaire or quiz. The instruments are designed to cater for children from a range of age levels, provide information helpful to teachers about children's perceptions of technology, and be suitable for use in research. The instruments were trialled in a total of 28 classes in Western Australian schools and construct validity established by examining the pattern of responses between pairs of instruments completed by the same children. The teachers stated that participating in the processes of developing and administering the instruments was useful and gave them valuable information about children's views of technology.