Analysis of author affiliation across four school psychology journals from 2000 to 2008: Where is the practitioner research?

Articles published between 2000 and 2008 in four major school psychology journals—School Psychology Review, Journal of School Psychology, Psychology in the Schools, and School Psychology Quarterly—were classified based on type (empirical or narrative) and on the primary and secondary authors' affiliations. Results showed that more than 90% of the primary and secondary authors were university affiliated with little difference across article type. Although more than 85% of school psychologists are practitioners, these results suggest that their contributions to these school psychology journals are limited because they account for less than 10% of the authors of articles. Discussion focuses on practitioners' involvement in the research base that is intended to inform their professional behaviors. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Students’ perceptions of teachers’ interpersonal behaviour across four different school subjects: control is good but affiliation is better

Many researchers have pointed out that teachers’ interpersonal behaviour relates to students’ positive attitudes towards schooling. However, only few studies have examined whether students’ perceptions of their teachers’ interpersonal behaviour relates to students’ subject-related attitudes across different school subjects. In this study, it was investigated to what extent the interpersonal behaviours of secondary school teachers are perceived differently by the students as a function of the school subject being taught and whether such perceptions coincide with students’ attitudes towards the subject matter, after controlling for students’ achievement. To address these research questions, 2305 adolescent students (47.1% males; M_age = 17.85; SD = 1.09) from grades 9 to 11 and their teachers (N = 42; 38.1% males; mean years of teaching = 14.2; SD = 1.25) from one urban high school in Turkey were surveyed. The students completed the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction and attitude questions. Multilevel data analysis showed that Control related to positive attitudes among students in classes grouped under the science, and literature and language domains, but not in classes grouped under the arts and sports domain. Perceived Affiliation, on the other hand, was positively associated with all the four subject domains (science, social sciences, literature and language, and arts and sports). These results show the importance of taking a multidisciplinary perspective in in-service training programmes for secondary school science teachers as they emphasise the differential roles that control as an interpersonal behavioural style may play on students’ attitudes in certain subject matters.     

The clouded crystal ball: Is there a school psychology in our future?

An overview of contradictory forces and pulls acting upon school psychology today, a commentary on economic and legislative impact upon the profession, and a discussion of issues such as definition of client, mainstreaming, the individual educational program, due process, and the least restrictive environment as they may affect future professional roles.     

Is there still a need for gifted education? An examination of current research

What recent research has been conducted about gifted and talented students and their learning experiences in school? As we complete the first decade of the new century we are entering a time when much attention is focused on remediation and test preparation; it only seems appropriate to reflect upon what has been learned about gifted education during the last few decades and consider the compelling evidence that may or may not support special services for gifted and talented. Consensus on which research themes and studies should be included in this type of examination would difficult to reach, but we have identified six important themes that are discussed in the article. This review of research strongly suggests that the need for gifted education programs remains critical during the current time period in American education when our nation's creative productivity is being challenged by European and Asian nations.     

An overview of web-based school collaboration: a history of success or failure?

The notion of school collaboration has become widely recognised as an effective means of fostering cultural links and supporting communication between geographically separated schools. As shall be acknowledged in this paper, school collaboration follows on from a long history of collaborative initiatives across the past 50 years. However, the introduction of digital technologies and the internet in the 1990s has raised new challenges and created new opportunities for ‘telecollaboration’ whilst the growth of social media over the past five years is seen to have transformed the ways in which online collaboration is experienced by most end users. Based on a review of the existing body of literature, this paper offers a critical overview of current models of web-based collaborative programmes – attempting to map out the complex nature of school collaboration and consider the actors and factors that can shape successful implementation into educational practices.     

The politics of historical discourse analysis: a qualitative research method?

This article deals with the ways in which historical discourse analysis is at once different from and similar to research described as qualitative or quantitative. It discusses the consequences of applying the standards of such methods to historical discourse analysis. It is pointed out that although the merit of research using historical discourse analysis must not be judged by the standards of qualitative methods alone, it can be easier to admit the influence of the discourse on methodology. Therefore, the article considers whether and how the ideas of validity, reliability, sample, and transferability can be used to explain the merit of study using historical discourse analysis. The author also discusses the basic concepts and principles of historical discourse analysis, and he describes step-by-step a particular way of conducting historical discourse analysis.     

Are psychology students getting worse at math?: Trends in the math skills of psychology statistics students across 21 years

Statistics is an important subject in psychology and social science education. However, inadequate mathematical skills can pose a barrier to learning statistics. Some educators have suggested that students’ math skills are declining. The present research examined trends in the math skills of psychology undergraduates across 21 years. Students (n = 3735) who were enrolled in an introductory psychology statistics course from 1990 to 2011 completed a pencil-and-paper math skills test. Over the 21-year period, there was a 9% decline in math skills scores and a 28% increase in the number of attempts required to pass the test. Consistent with national trends, SAT Math scores also increased by 7%; however, the pencil-and-paper math skills test was nearly twice as predictive of course performance as was the SAT. Results suggest that important math abilities have declined. Implications for statistical education in the social sciences are discussed.     

An abbreviated form of the WISC-R: Is it valid?

The completed WISC-Rs of 76 white urban children (6–0 to 15–9) were rescored utilizing the Satz and Mogel criteria for an abbreviated intelligence measure. Extremely high correlations for IQs (.96 – .98) and subtests (.66 – .95) were found. However, when mean differences between complete WISC-R and the shortened form were examined, significant differences between administrations were found. Furthermore, one-third of the subjects showed changes in intelligence classification levels when the abbreviated form was used. Thus, two of the three criteria previously suggested for a valid abbreviated intelligence test of: (a) a significantly high correlation between administration forms; (b) nonsignificant t-tests between the abbreviated and standard form mean IQ; and (c) low percentage of IQ classification change with the administration of the short form, were not met. It was concluded, however, that the abbreviated WISC-R may be appropriate when intelligence is a question relative to candidacy for therapy or as a noncritical, general indication of intelligence when IQ classification is not important and/or assessment time is limited.     

The role of research ethics committees: Friend or foe in educational research? An exploratory study

Ethics committees have an important role to play in ensuring ethical standards (e.g. BERA, ESRC, RCUK recommendations) are met by educational researchers. Balancing obligations to participants, society, institutions and the researchers themselves is not, however, easy. Researchers often experience the ethics committee as unsympathetic to their research endeavour, whilst ethics committees find some research approaches do not make ethical implications sufficiently explicit. This potential for misunderstanding is evident in the literature, but studies investigating how participants perceive this relationship are missing. This research comprises a novel empirical study which explores researcher perceptions of research ethics committees. Fifty-five participants in higher education departments of education responded to an online survey. Open and closed-ended questions were used to collect data on roles, methodological stance, experiences of the research ethics committee, perceived tensions and examples of good practice. The results indicated that contemporary educational researchers regard research ethics committees as friends when researcher and reviewer are transparently engaged in a shared endeavour. When this shared endeavour breaks down, for a variety of reasons—including apparently unreasonable demands or mutual misunderstanding—the research ethics committees can become foes. The difference between foe and friend lies in the quality of communication, clear systems and a culture of respectful mutual learning. The contributions of this study have practical implications for the ways that education researchers and research ethics committees relate to one another within university settings, both to alleviate areas of tension and to arrive at a shared understanding which will enable best ethical research practice.     

Do psychology researchers tell it like it is? A microgenetic analysis of research strategies and self-report accuracy along a continuum of expertise

Acquiring research skills is considered to be a highly challenging aspect of developing expertise in the social sciences. Because instruction and mentoring in these skills are typically grounded in the self-report of researchers, difficulties in learning the material may be due to the content and accuracy of these explanations. Using a mixed-method, microgenetic design, this study examines the explanations of problem-solving processes by researchers along a continuum of expertise during simulated experiment design and subsequent data analysis. Findings indicate that participants’ self-explanations are largely inaccurate. Further, frequency of inaccurate statements is positively associated with the frequency of abstract cognitive processes, such as mental modeling and situation assessment. Implications of these findings for instruction and future research directions are discussed.     

Researching the psychology of cognitive style and learning style: Is there really a future?

The field of individual differences in cognitive and learning style has been constantly criticized for conceptual confusion, contested definitions, poor measurement and lack of validity. This study reports the findings from a global e-survey of 94 style researchers who were asked to comment on the state of the field and their own understanding of the phenomenon being studied, including areas of criticism. Our findings highlight considerable agreement over the value and future direction of style research. However, while there is also strong awareness of criticisms and concerns over terminology and measurement, there appears to be little resolve to address them.     

Why start a higher degree by research? An exploratory factor analysis of motivations to undertake doctoral studies

Despite the increasing numbers of candidates embarking on higher degrees by research (HDRs, e.g., PhD, professional doctorate, practice-based doctorate), we still have limited knowledge about why they are choosing this path. What are the factors that motivate students to embark on research degrees? Given that many of those who succeed in completing their doctorates will not go into academic positions, the motivations for choosing to undertake a research degree may not match the experience or outcomes (and hence, perhaps, contribute to incompletion rates). This article investigates the motivations of students in all faculties embarking on HDRs at an Australian university. A survey of 405 students was subjected to a factor analysis. Five factors emerged: family and friends, intrinsic motivation, lecturer influence, research experience, and career progression.     

Creating and translating knowledge about teaching and learning in collaborative school–university research partnerships: an analysis of what is exchanged across the partnerships,by whom and how

Whilst there is a growing body of literature on practitioner research and the role of collaborations and partnerships that include universities in that process, there are relatively few studies examining the role of the university in any depth. We reflect on 12 years of working in school–university collaborative research partnerships through an analysis of the exchanges between teachers and academics as documented by interviews, case studies and project reports. We draw upon a sample of 90 teachers in 51 schools covering all phases of compulsory schooling. Focusing on the exchanges between the university and partnership schools, we extend the idea of radical collegiality to encompass teacher to academic dialogue in the process of mutual transformation. We contribute to the development of greater conceptual clarity regarding school–university research partnerships and their potential to contribute to the creation and translation of knowledge about teaching and learning. The interplay of the project as the context, the role of enquiry and the development and use of tools by the participants is outlined and a model for understanding the dynamics of school–university partnerships proposed. We suggest that the project as a space‐ and time‐limited context inclusive of partner institutions may have the scope to reconcile the tension between an impetus for exclusive bonding and the flexibility of bridging across structures in social networks. We conclude that the model of the exchanges between partners is fruitful in unravelling the relationship between theory and practice in the pursuit of knowledge about teaching and learning.     

Does choice matter for school choice? An instrumental variables analysis of the effect of choice on parental satisfaction in charter schools

I employ ordered probit regression and a new instrumental variable to compare the Fall 2015 parental satisfaction survey results of open-enrollment charters to district-conversion charters. Choice status in Arkansas charter schools is largely beneficial to parental satisfaction. Specifically, parents with children in open-enrollment charters had between a 17-percentage point and 32-percentage point higher likelihood of grading their current school as an A or responding as Highly Satisfied in six of nine quality categories. I find no evidence that parents rate the quality of schools similar to the analysts at the Arkansas Department of Education or that satisfaction differs in oversubscribed schools.     

The role of scientific terminology in research and teaching: Is something important missing?

The recent discussion between Lewis and Linn (Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 33, 335–337, 1996) and Pushkin (Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 33, 223–224, 1996) concerning the definitions of terms relating to heat raises the broader issue of the nature of scientific terms and their role in instruction. We illustrate that in just two significant examples (heat and electricity) it is easy to illustrate from the literature that there is not agreement as to the meaning of the terms among scientists and that between texts, even within texts, terms are used in such inconsistent ways that there is no logical way to sort out the meanings of the terms. Hence, if “standard interpretations of scientific knowledge to be taught” do not actually exist, then how can the teaching of standard interpretations of scientific knowledge be established as a goal to be accomplished? © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 34: 655–660, 1997.     

Is expertise a necessary precondition for creativity?: A case of four novice learning group facilitators

Many North American theorists conceptualize expertise as preceding creativity. The rationale is, that in order to be truly creative, one must master a field so remarkable contributions can be made. Therefore, in order to be truly creative one must be an expert in a structured and codified domain. This inquiry attempted to examine the relationship between expert thinking skills and creativity in an ill-defined domain, embedded in the community of practice of group facilitation whose goal was to support learning. Using an instrumental case study approach to explore a unique system embedded in a naturalistic context, the case was comprised of a team of four female novice group facilitators, functioning as teaching assistants for learning task groups of university students. Various sources were drawn upon in order to map this group as a coherent knowing system. Debriefing sessions and interviews were transcribed and coded using a category string method in order to retain a holistic sensibility to the analysis. The codes revealed that the system displayed characteristics of shared expertise and social creativity. The overall pattern of creative response closely followed those of expertise. The codes for expertise generally preceded those instances of creativity, suggesting that creativity does need to rely on expert thinking skills. However, this inquiry suggests expanding the notion of expertise, in that it need not be situated in a single person, but can emerge from a system of shared expertise.     

What’s on the syllabus? An analysis of assessment criteria in first year courses across US and Spanish universities

Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability - This study examined differences in the assessment criteria used by the USA and Spanish university instructors to assign course grades. The US...