How students conceptualize grade‐based acceleration in inclusive settings

Despite extensive research supporting educational acceleration for students with high academic ability, some psychologists, counselors, and educators express concerns about accelerative interventions. Such concerns often hinge on uncertainty about social acceptance, even in inclusive education settings. Research on acceleration has consistently shown benefits for students with high ability; however, there is a lack of research about grade‐based acceleration in inclusive schools. This study engaged two groups of students in group concept mapping processes to examine how they conceptualized beliefs about grade‐based acceleration in inclusive schools. First, 26 students in inclusive classes generated beliefs about grade‐based acceleration. Then they, and a group of 14 students with high ability, structured the data by sorting and rating a synthesized list of the generated beliefs. We analyzed the sorted data using multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis. The resultant cluster maps revealed some differences and some similarities in the ways that the two groups of students conceptualized beliefs about educational acceleration. Practical implications are discussed.     

The Effect of Teachers’ Evaluative Feedback on Chinese Students’ Perception of Ability: a cultural and situational analysis

The research explored the effect of teachers’ evaluative feedback on students’ perception of ability. The subjects were 758 Chinese students from elementary schools, high schools, and a university in Hong Kong. Subjects rated ability and effort of two hypothetical students who achieved identical results (success or failure) in a mathematics test but received different feedback (praise, blame, or neutral feedback) from the teacher. They also rated the teacher's perception of their own and their friends’ ability and effort in a similar situation after a real mathematics test. The results of this study support previous findings which indicate that ability perception is influenced by cultural and contextual variables. Contrary to the findings with Western students, ability and effort were positively correlated. The importance of effort among the Chinese students appears to mitigate the effects of teachers’ feedback on students’ ability. Age‐related differences were also observed. The results are discussed in terms of sociocultural background of the subjects.     

The Operation of Bureaus of Educational Research–With Particular Reference to Wisconsin

ABSTRACT

Advanced mathematics and science coursetaking is critical in building the foundation for students to advance through the STEM pathway—from high school to college to career. To invigorate students’ persistence in STEM fields, high schools have been introducing applied STEM courses into the curriculum as a way to reinforce concepts learned in traditional mathematics and science classes and to motivate students’ interests in a long-term pursuit of these areas. The author examines the role of taking applied STEM courses early in high school on taking advanced mathematics and science courses later in high school. The results suggest a positive link between early applied STEM coursetaking and later advanced mathematics and science coursetaking—one that is delineated by specific type of applied STEM course and by individual-level demographic characteristics. The findings of this study thus support policymakers and practitioners’ efforts to expand the STEM curriculum beyond traditional subjects. Continuing to do so may be one way to expand the number of students persisting in STEM.     

A follow-up assessment of a second-grade problem-centered mathematics project

Five second-grade classes in two schools participated in a project that was generally compatible with a constructivist theory of knowing. At the end of the school year, the students in these classes and their peers in six non-project classes in the same schools were assigned to ten textbook-based third-grade classes on the basis of reading scores. The two groups of students were compared at the end of the third-grade year on a standardized achievement test and on instruments designed to assess their conceptual development in arithmetic, their personal goals in mathematics, and their beliefs about reasons for success in mathematics. The levels of computation performance on familiar textbook tasks were comparable, but former project students had attained more advanced levels of conceptual understanding. In addition, they held stronger beliefs about the importance of working hard and being interested in mathematics, and about understanding and collaborating. Further, they attributed less importance to conforming to the solution methods of others.     

The consequences of “school improvement”: Examining the association between two standardized assessments measuring school improvement and student science achievement

For more than half a century concerns about the ability of American students to compete in a global workplace focused policymakers' attention on improving school performance generally, and student achievement in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) specifically. In its most recent form—No Child Left Behind—there is evidence this focus led to a repurposing of instructional time to dedicate more attention to tested subjects. While this meant a narrowing of the curriculum to focus on English and mathematics at the elementary level, the effects on high school curricula have been less clear and generally absent from the research literature. In this study, we sought to explore the relationship between school improvement efforts and student achievement in science and thus explore the intersection of school reform and STEM policies. We used school‐level data on state standardized test scores in English and math to identify schools as either improving or declining over three consecutive years. We then compared the science achievement of students from these schools as measured by the ACT Science exams. Our findings from three consecutive cohorts, including thousands of high school students who attended 12th grade in 2008, 2009, and 2010 indicate that students attending improving schools identified by state administered standardized tests generally performed no better on a widely administered college entrance exam with tests in science, math and English. In 2010, students from schools identified as improving in English scored nearly one‐half of a point lower than their peers from declining schools on both the ACT Science and Math exams. We discuss various interpretations and implications of these results and suggest areas for future research. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 49: 804–830, 2012     

Participation in extracurricular activities and student achievement: evidence from German all-day schools

The major aim of educational effectiveness research is to examine and explain school, class, and teacher differences with respect to relevant educational criteria. Until now, in the large majority of studies, language and mathematics scores were used as a criterion. In the present study, the educational track students choose at the start of secondary education (at the age of 12) and their success in the chosen curriculum are examined in relation to primary school and classes (Grades 1 to 6). Two-level models show that students had higher aims in secondary education if they had attended primary Catholic schools and/or primary schools with high average curriculum advice. The latter schools were also highly effective with respect to achievement, and their students had a high socioeconomic status and background. Multilevel models with a cross-classified structure showed no direct long-term effects of primary schools and classes.     

Grouping for inequity

The inequity of streaming as a method of organising classes was established by research conducted in the 1960s and 1970s. While the practice produces small advantages for limited groups of students, it hinders the academic and social advancement of the majority. Although streaming has declined, new forms of achievement grouping have emerged, with the intention of being more equitable. Recent research in the UK suggests, however, that these grouping methods have similar equity issues to streaming. Drawing on research in Australian primary schools, this article examines the practice of regrouping primary students in some schools into separate classes according to achievement levels for literacy and mathematics lessons. Results from a mixed method study collated through interviews with principals and teachers, student surveys, state-wide academic test results and classroom observations are examined in relation to equity. The findings suggest that the regrouping practice is no more equitable than streaming, albeit more politically palatable.     

Assessing and Validating Effects of a Data‐Based Decision‐Making Intervention on Student Growth for Mathematics and Spelling

Data‐based decision making (DBDM) is presumed to improve student performance in elementary schools in all subjects. The majority of studies in which DBDM effects have been evaluated have focused on mathematics. A hierarchical multiple single‐subject design was used to measure effects of a 2‐year training, in which entire school teams learned how to implement and sustain DBDM, in 39 elementary schools. In a multilevel modeling approach, student achievement in mathematics and spelling was analyzed to broaden our understanding of the effects of DBDM interventions. Student achievement data covering the period from August 2010 to July 2014 were retrieved from schools’ student monitoring systems. Student performance on standardized tests was scored on a vertical ability scale per subject for Grades 1 to 6. To investigate intervention effects, linear mixed effect analysis was conducted. Findings revealed a positive intervention effect for both mathematics and spelling. Furthermore, low‐SES students and low‐SES schools benefitted most from the intervention for mathematics.     

“数学等于机会”：美国中小学数学教育公平问题探析

随着美国公众认识到个体的数学学习与数学能力在其发展中的重要意义,"数学等于机会"等理念获得广泛认同,数学教育中的公平问题也愈加受到关注。在美国中小学,不同族裔、家庭背景、城乡区域的学生在数学学习水平上存在着明显差距。导致差距的原因错综复杂,可以从教育资源配置、家庭背景、文化观念等方面予以阐释。     

Cognitive ability and the instructional efficacy of collaborative concept mapping

Data were gathered from 248 secondary students (14 years old, 56% female) who learned about the circulatory system in 77 self-selected collaborative groups. The learning outcomes of biology students who summarised by collaborative concept mapping were compared with those of students who summarised by collaborative writing. Learning groups randomly assigned to construct concept maps instead of conventional summaries generated more relations in the summary task and their members obtained higher individual scores on a post-test. The concept mapping strategy was found to be advantageous only for students whose cognitive ability was below the median for the sample and who were placed in groups with other students having low cognitive ability.     

‘Changing the context’: Tackling discrimination at school and in society

In this paper we propose a social psychological framework for studying the role of schools in promoting positive intercultural relations. We draw on data from schools in England where addressing issues of cultural diversity is a key aim of educational practice. We focus specifically on the role of social context in educational activities that tackle discrimination. We consider the socio-political context, local community context, and immediate school context from a social representations theory perspective. Using data from interviews with staff and focus groups with students in schools from three very different localities, we show that the socio-political context may limit schools’ ability to promote positive intercultural relations but also that it is possible for schools to promote broader change from the bottom-up, acting as agents of change at a societal level, i.e. in terms of changing the local and broader societal contexts in which they are located.     

Students’ test performance n PIRLS,attitude to reading,and reading self‐concept across three ability groups: Data from Hong Kong

Abstract

This study uses data collected from children in Hong Kong for the PIRLS international reading survey of 2001. A total of 4867 students aged 9 to 10 years from 147 primary schools were assessed. The aim of the study is to investigate the observed differences in comprehension skills displayed in the test results from students at three ability levels. Affective factors (attitudes and reading self‐concept) are also compared for the three groups. Results indicate that the lower‐ability students performed very poorly in all four processes of comprehension — even at the most basic level of retrieval of facts. This weakness at the lower level greatly impaired the students’ ability to operate at higher levels of comprehension involving inference, prediction, integration of ideas and critical evaluation. The weakest readers had extreme difficulty with test items requiring an extended written response. Even on simple multiple‐choice items their performance was inferior to the average and higher‐ability groups. Data from the supplementary questionnaires indicates that across all ability groups the children's attitude toward reading is correlated positively with reading achievement. However, data collected on the students’ reading self‐concept produced anomalous results that cast some doubt on the feasibility of using self‐evaluation and self‐report questionnaires with this age and cultural group. Practical implications from the findings are discussed.     

Effects of Training in the Use of Social and Cognitive Strategies: An Intervention Study in Secondary Mathematics in Co‐Operative Groups

ABSTRACT

This article reports on an intervention study into the effects of a training in the use of social and cognitive strategies on the learning outcomes of students in secondary mathematics education. Special attention is given to differential effects for high‐ and low‐achieving students. The focus on differential effects is derived from studies into learning in small co‐operative groups, and from the results of meta‐analyses into the effects of training in learning strategies. From these studies it can be concluded that in general such programs contribute to learning. However, it seems that low‐achieving students are unable to benefit from interventions of the kind investigated (i.e., co‐operative learning and training in learning strategies). The main question is whether it is possible to design an instructional program from which all students benefit, and from which the low‐achieving students profit more than their counterparts in the control‐program. In the present study three instructional programs for co‐operative learning were compared: (i) an experimental program with special instruction in the use of social strategies; (ii) an experimental program with special instruction in the use of cognitive strategies; and (iii) a control program without training in either cognitive or social strategies. The programs were identical with respect to mathematical content and general instructional settings (a combination of whole‐class instruction, working in co‐operative groups and individual work). The experiment addressed the following research question: what are the general and differential effects of a training in the use of social and cognitive strategies on the results of learning in secondary mathematics? The research was conducted in two schools for secondary education in a total of 21 classes, involving a total of 511 students. The design was a pretest‐posttest control group design, using two experimental groups and one control group. The data were analysed from a multi‐level perspective. The outcomes of the investigation clearly show the effects of the intervention. Teaching cognitive and social strategies has the expected, positive effects. In addition to this main effect, a compensatory effect for the low‐achieving students was found. The low‐achieving students in the experimental conditions outperformed their counterparts in the control group.

     

Science achievement of english language learners in urban elementary schools: Results of a first‐year professional development intervention

This study is part of a 5‐year professional development intervention aimed at improving science and literacy achievement of English language learners (or ELL students) in urban elementary schools within an environment increasingly driven by high‐stakes testing and accountability. Specifically, the study examined science achievement at the end of the first‐year implementation of the professional development intervention that consisted of curriculum units and teacher workshops. The study involved 1,134 third‐grade students at seven treatment schools and 966 third‐grade students at eight comparison schools. The results led to three main findings. First, treatment students displayed a statistically significant increase in science achievement. Second, there was no statistically significant difference in achievement gains between students at English to Speakers of Other Language (ESOL) levels 1 to 4 and students who had exited from ESOL or never been in ESOL. Similarly, there was no significant difference in achievement gains between students who had been retained on the basis of statewide reading test scores and students who had never been retained. Third, treatment students showed a higher score on a statewide mathematics test, particularly on the measurement strand emphasized in the intervention, than comparison students. The results indicate that through our professional development intervention, ELL students and others in the intervention learned to think and reason scientifically while also performing well on high‐stakes testing. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 45: 31–52, 2008     

Culture and ideology in mathematics teacher noticing

This paper responds to the burgeoning literature on mathematics teacher noticing, arguing that its cognitive orientation misses the cultural and ideological dimensions of what and how teachers notice. The author highlights Goodwin’s concept of professional vision as a way of bringing analyses of culture and power into studies of teacher noticing. The case of a high school algebra teacher who learned to notice the mathematical strengths of students from marginalized groups is used to illustrate how this might be done. The teacher’s noticing involved not only cognitive processes like attending to, interpreting, and deciding how to respond to students’ thinking, but also managing dominant ideologies that position students—especially students from non-dominant communities—as mathematically deficient rather than as sense-makers whose ideas should form the basis for further learning. The paper advances the field’s capacity for understanding the challenges that teachers face as they attempt to notice in ways that are ambitious as well as equitable.     

Multidimensional and Hierarchical Assessment of School Motivation: Cross‐cultural validation

This study examines the multidimensional and hierarchical structure of achievement goal orientation measured by the Inventory of School Motivation. The instrument consists of eight different scales with 43 survey items (ranging from three to seven items each). Each scale reflects one of eight specific dimensions: task, effort, competition, social power, affiliation, social concern, praise, and token. The study also examines the ability of these eight first‐order factors to define four general second‐order factors—mastery, performance, social factors, and extrinsic factors—as well as one third‐order factor, general motivation. Participants came from seven different cultural groups in high schools in Australia (n = 4,787), Hong Kong (n = 697), the United States (n = 2,660), and Africa (n = 819). Nested confirmatory factor analyses support a multidimensional, hierarchical school motivation construct. The model was invariant across cultural groups. The findings provide a strong theoretical structure and tool for further school motivation research.     

Examining the implementation of the mathematics strand of the Key Stage 3 Strategy: What are the bases of evaluation?

This article presents findings from a comparative case study examining the implementation of the mathematics strand of the Key Stage 3 Strategy in two contrasting schools—one using setting and whole‐class teaching, the other incorporating mixed‐ability grouping and individualised learning. A number of ‘outcomes’ of implementation are considered, including teachers' and students' experiences, changes in pedagogic practice and students' attainment. Whilst both schools achieved highly in relation to similar schools, higher attainment gains between Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 in the school using setting/whole‐class teaching were associated with increasing student disaffection and dependence on teachers. In contrast, the attainment gains at the school using individualised learning were associated with increasing enthusiasm and independence. The mixed picture of outcomes and their complex interconnections suggest that evaluations of implementation resting on attainment‐based outcomes are problematic in terms of longer‐term aims of increasing the proportions of students choosing to study mathematics and developing the skills of independent learning.     

Classroom climate and science-related attitudes of junior high school students in Taiwan

Differences in classroom climate and science related attitudes were investigated among junior high school science classes and students in Taiwan. The sample consisted of 1,269 students enrolled in 40 science classes distributed equally among ten junior high schools, five metropolitan and five rural. Classes were further classified according to sex (21 boys and 19 girls classes) and ability (19 high and 21 low ability classes). Using the Learning Environment Inventory (Anderson, Walberg, & Fraser, 1982) to measure climate, science classes in metropolitan schools, more than rural, were found to be characterized by Speed, Friction, Favoritism, Difficulty, Cliqueness, and Competitiveness. No differences were found in the classroom climates of classes in which students were grouped according to sex or ability. Using the Test of Science-Related Attitudes (Fraser, 1981), students in science classes in metropolitan schools, in contrast to rural, expressed more positive attitudes toward the Social Implications of Science, Adoption of Scientific Attitudes, and Attitude to Scientific Inquiry. Boys more than girls recorded high scores on Leisure Interest in Science and Career Interest in Science. High ability students were found to have higher scores on Attitude to Scientific Inquiry than did low ability students. When examining the relationship between the 15 subscale scores of the LEI and the seven subscale scores of the TOSRA for the 40 classes, only 9 out of 105 correlations proved to be significant. Most differences in climate, attitude, and their interactions were attributed to school location rather than to student characteristics.     

Classroom Learning Environment of City and Kibbutz Biology Classrooms in Israel

Summaries

English

The Learning Environment Inventory (LEI), adapted to conditions in Israeli schools and factor analysed on an Israeli sample, was administered to 572 students in 10th‐grade biology classes. Fourteen classes were in urban schools, six in Kibbutz district schools. All classes used the same BSCS (yellow version) curriculum. Seven out of the nine scales of the LEI Israeli version yielded significantly different scores for urban and Kibbutz samples indicating a more positive social learning climate in the Kibbutz than in the city. Differences were most marked on scales assessing cohesiveness, favouritism and cliquishness. Results were interpreted to indicate that social climate in classrooms is influenced by school‐wide policies regarding relationships in school, and not only by within‐class factors such as curriculum and teaching method.     

Predicting Freshman Grade‐Point Average from Test Scores: Effects of Variation Within and Between High Schools

Most studies predicting college performance from high‐school grade point average (HSGPA) and college admissions test scores use single‐level regression models that conflate relationships within and between high schools. Because grading standards vary among high schools, these relationships are likely to differ within and between schools. We used two‐level regression models to predict freshman grade point average from HSGPA and scores on both college admissions and state tests. When HSGPA and scores are considered together, HSGPA predicts more strongly within high schools than between, as expected in the light of variations in grading standards. In contrast, test scores, particularly mathematics scores, predict more strongly between schools than within. Within‐school variation in mathematics scores has no net predictive value, but between‐school variation is substantially predictive. Whereas other studies have shown that adding test scores to HSGPA yields only a minor improvement in aggregate prediction, our findings suggest that a potentially more important effect of admissions tests is statistical moderation, that is, partially offsetting differences in grading standards across high schools.