Making science special for pupils with learning difficulties

In this article Susan Gebbels and Stewart M. Evans from Newcastle University and Lynne A. Murphy who is a practising school teacher in north‐east England discuss how they worked collaboratively on a programme of science education with a group of 16 Key Stage 3 pupils with moderate learning difficulties. The project lasted for one academic year and was part of Creative Partnerships, the Government's flagship creative learning programme. The authors describe some of the challenges faced by teachers to cater for the needs of all pupils within an inclusive school setting. The programme of science education focused on local marine and coastal environments with a special emphasis on fieldwork, enquiry‐based learning and cross‐curricular approaches to learning. The project was evaluated through the use of questionnaires, pupil interviews and informal discussions with teaching staff. Evaluations of the programme were positive. Pupils were more motivated to learn about science, had a sense of pride in their achievements and claimed that participation in the project helped them in forming friendships. The class published and distributed an information booklet on the coast to other schools and the general public.     

Talking and Teaching Through a Positional Lens: Recognizing what and who we privilege in our practice

This article describes a year‐long professional development project that brought together a group of high school English teachers around multicultural literature they would be teaching to their students. The teachers all taught together in a culturally and economically diverse high school context in the USA. One objective of the project was to enable the teacher participants to explore their discourse patterns around the literature to discern their own subject positions with regard to one another and to the texts studied. In addition, the teachers together analyzed their own classroom discourse to determine how those subject positions carried over into their teaching, how they essentially taught who they were. Discussions of multicultural literature and teachers’ talk around that literature, accompanied by close interrogation of classroom practice, enabled the teachers to discern what (and who) they privileged in their teaching practice. These realizations led one of the two teachers highlighted to readily change her pedagogy and curriculum to better support the learning and empowerment of all students.     

Learning mathematics—letting the pupils have their say

Pupil voice is an emerging force for change and improvement in many UK schools, but what is not fully understood is how best to access pupil voice within the specific context of secondary mathematics departments. This paper presents a research project designed to use pupils as co-researchers in increasing knowledge about how to improve learning in mathematics. Pupils within the school were selected and trained as “Ambassadors” to understand and disseminate innovative ways of learning mathematics into their school environment and to act to allow the voice of all the pupils in their year group to be heard. The project was intended both to raise the pupils’ awareness of how learning mathematics could be different and to enable them to voice their newly informed opinions about how best they learned mathematics. The pupils’ current feelings about the way that they were taught mathematics were explored, but the focus of the project was on enabling the pupils to make informed decisions about how they felt their learning could be improved. The pupils’ awareness of different ways of learning mathematics was raised by introducing them to alternative teaching approaches. The data generated were initially analysed by the pupils themselves in order to inform their teachers about their views and subsequently constant comparison analysis resulted in the outcomes reported here. The outcomes indicate that the students could have an important role in enabling schools to develop their teaching and improve their pupils’ mathematical learning when that voice is both informed and authorised.     

‘I – from dreams to reality’: A Case Study of Developing Youngsters’ Self‐Efficacy and Social Skills through an Arts Educational Project in Schools

This is a case study of a one‐year arts educational project ‘I – from dreams to reality’ in which artists worked at school with teachers and learning at the school was planned through arts‐based, co‐operative teamwork during one extra school year of 10th grade students in Finnish basic education. The theme of the year was ‘I’, and so the project was designed to highlight everyone's own way of thinking and expressing art. The research task was to determine whether long‐term holistic arts pedagogy and artist co‐operation at school have any significant connection to students’ self‐efficacy and social skills. Data has been collected through students’ self‐evaluations before and after the school year. Altogether 40 students from 10th grade participated in this case study. Half of the pupils participated in an arts educational project called ‘I – from dreams to reality’ and half formed the control group. Artists worked with the test group weekly during a period of one school year (altogether nine months). Students’ self‐evaluations concerning their self‐efficacy and social behaviour were collected by e‐questionnaire. The measures used were Likert‐based evaluation scores of pupils’ self‐assessment of their self‐efficacy and social behaviour in everyday situations at school. According to the results, artist–teacher co‐operation and learning through the arts can be worthwhile experiences to develop students’ self‐efficacy and social skills.     

Gender ‘matters’ in the primary classroom: Pupils' and teachers' perspectives

A recent project involving Year 3 (seven–eight year‐old) pupils and their teachers revealed that ‘gender matters’ differently to boys and girls, and teachers. The study sought to elicit whether pupils and their teachers felt the gender of a teacher mattered to their experiences of schooling. Pupils were concerned about how effective teachers were in carrying out their professional functions and a teacher's gender was subsumed within this. For these pupils, ‘gender mattered’ in terms of the construction of their own gender identities. In contrast, teachers were aware of and attentive to the gender of pupils in managing and organising classroom interactions. The variety of differing views expressed and positions adopted towards the place of gender in teacher–pupil interactions demonstrates the complexity of developing ‘one size fits all’ approaches to tackling gender equity in the classroom.     

Children participating as researchers in primary schools: what’s in it for the teachers?

Whilst within universities, research on rather than with children/pupils is a well-established methodology, this paper reports on teachers’ responses to a schools and university-based partnership project, ‘Pupils as Research Partners in Primary (PARPP), which works to co-create pupil-led research opportunities for pupils in research projects informed by pupils’ experiences in primary schools. A previous paper, French and Hobbs, [(2017). “‘So How Well Did It Really Go’? Working with Primary School Pupils as Project Evaluators: A Case Study.” TEAN Journal 9 (1): 56–65] reported on how one PARPP project had a beneficial effect on pupils and their school environment. For this paper the project team interviewed a number of teachers whose pupils in the partner schools were involved in the pilot study phase of the project. Specifically, the teachers were interviewed to ascertain if the involvement of pupils, as lead researchers in projects exploring various aspects of the school environment, had impacted on their perceptions of pupil-led research. Findings suggest that the experiences of teachers in schools where PARPP projects had taken place had led them to re-evaluate the practicality and desirability of encouraging pupils to actively to research their school environments.     

ADHD and academic attainment: Is there an advantage in impulsivity?

Pupils diagnosed with ADHD and pupils with ADHD symptoms tend to do less well at school than their symptom-free peers. This has been found to be particularly true for predominantly inattentive pupils. This paper aimed to establish the relative importance of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity to the academic progress of young children. A large dataset which held children's reading and maths attainment at the end of their first year at school, as well as teachers' ratings of ADHD-related behaviours based on the DSM-IV criteria was analysed. Inattention was strongly linked to under-attainment whilst impulsivity was positively related to attainment for similar levels of inattention. The item “Blurts out answers” on the teachers' rating scale was particularly important. When impulsivity acted as an overt sign of cognitive engagement it seemed to have a positive function. This raises questions about the inclusion of the “blurting out” item in the ADHD DSM criteria.     

A Science Link with Tulse Hill

Pupils from Elm Court School for delicate children have been learning general science at a nearby London comprehensive school, Paddy Rayner, head of the secondary department, Elm Court, reports on a successful project.     

‘We have our own religion’: a pupil perspective on minority religion and ethics instruction in Finland

The Finnish system of religious education offers instruction in the pupil’s own religion or in ethics throughout comprehensive school. By taking the pupil’s background as a basis for instruction, this system aims at promoting equality and integration with respect to religion and one’s worldview. However, there has been little knowledge about how the system of instruction is experienced by pupils themselves and how it affects pupil’s identities at school. This study illuminates through a participant observation study in grades 1–6 how pupils in five minority instruction groups experience their classes and perceive themselves in relation to other pupils in school. The study shows how working in small groups represents an important element in pupils’ experiences. Pupils generally experienced participation in instruction as positive and fun, but age integration, organisation of schedules and classrooms were also important concerns. Even if pupils were content about having their own instruction group, feelings of otherness and a negative sense of difference in relation to the majority of pupils were found particularly among pupils of religion.     

Evaluation of Broward County Alliance of Quality Schools Project

This article examines the evaluation of the Alliance of Quality Schools project, a 5-year project focusing on at-risk students in Broward County, Florida. The purpose of the evaluation was to determine the effect that the project had on selected academic and behavioral student indicators after its 5th year of implementation. This article focuses only on the findings related to the effect that the project has had on reading performance. Findings related to mathematics performance and student behavior can be found by reviewing the 5th-year evaluation report (Ligas, 1999). The project's mission, based on the philosophy that all children can learn, is to help the greatest number of at-risk students achieve at their highest performance level. In addition to a strong emphasis on Direct Instruction (DI), the Alliance of Quality Schools (AQS) initiative utilizes Accelerated Reader and Computer Assisted Instruction. The project has been evaluated yearly, from the 1994-1995 school year to the 1998-1999 school year. Fifth-year evaluation findings related to student achievement indicated that the effect of the project on academic achievement for elementary and middle school students enrolled at the Alliance schools has varied by grade level and year. The highest increases in student performance occurred at the 4th-grade level for reading and at the 5th-grade level for mathematics. These increases seem to be closely aligned to the grade levels targeted for school accountability by the state of Florida.     

Positioning the school in the landscape: exploring Black history with a regional Australian primary school

This paper deals with a project establishing an Indigenous Australian artists-in-residence program at a regional Australian primary school to foreground its Black History. Primary school students worked with Indigenous Australian story tellers, artists, dancers and musicians to explore ways in which they could examine print and non-print texts for a critical appreciation of ways in which their school has been positioned in the physical landscape on the land, and in the historical landscape, where Indigenous Australian roles and contributions have continued to be marginalised. From such critical engagement, the children have created non-print texts of their own: tangible, durable artefacts of acknowledgment of their own school's Black History. Constructed as texts which may be read by all who enter the school, the artefacts produced are visual texts that have formed part of a continuing critical engagement with creators of Indigenous Australian texts, and interpretation by the children of the texts that they have engaged as part of this project.     

Pupils’ perceptions of grades: a narrative analysis of stories about getting graded for the first time

The starting point for this article is changes in the Swedish assessment system which stated that pupils are to receive grade reports in school year 6 (12–13 years old) during the academic year 2012–2013. Since the 1970s, compulsory school pupils have received their first grade reports in grade 7 and/or 8. The issue here is to present pupils’ narratives about the possible future significance of grade reports in school year 6. Pupils were interviewed about their experiences of getting their first grade reports, and a narrative analysis was conducted. More specifically, we investigated pupils’ conceptions of themselves as pupils and of their future possibilities, as described in their stories of getting their first grade report. The findings show that pupils perceive grades in year 6 differently, showing both adaption and resistance to the new grading discourse. Our conclusion concerns pupils’ learning and well-being when national assessment policies are changed.     

Students’ Self Assessment of Academic Attainment: accuracy and stability from 7 to 16 years and influence of domain and social comparison group 1

Pupils’ appraisals of their own ability have been found to be important in their school progress. This paper examines the accuracy and stability of academic self assessments from 7 to 16 years, and the effect of two factors on developments over time: domain/school subject (mathematics or reading/English) and social comparison group (general to children of the same age or specific to own class). Results come from a major longitudinal study of pupils in London schools. An overall lowering in self assessments from 7 to 16 years was accompanied from 11 years by greater accuracy. But systematic differences were found between domains; overall ability ratings were higher in reading/English, and there was more stability in ratings from 11 to 16 years. There was a marked drop in self assessments from the general to the own class social comparison group. But again there were domain differences: there was a greater drop at 11 and 16 years in reading/English.

     

LENGTH OF SCHOOLING AND ITS EFFECT ON PERFORMANCE IN THE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Friendship patterns in an urban girls’ secondary comprehensive school with nearly 30 per cent immigrant pupils were studied by a sociometric technique. Pupils were found to choose their friends most frequently from their own ethnic groups, but this was more marked in the lower streams and older age groups than in the upper streams and younger age groups. In the upper streams and the sixth form some preference was found, but immigrant pupils tended to be well integrated with British girls in complex friendship groups.     

At the Crossroads: The Impact of New Irish Science Curricula on First Year Post-Primary Students

In Ireland, new science curricula were introduced at primary and early post-primary levels in 2003, in an effort to reverse declining interest and enrolment in science. This paper reports on a national study that explored first year post-primary students’ experiences of and attitudes towards school science under these new curricula. Data were gathered from 366 pupils using survey and case study approaches. Findings revealed broadly positive attitudes towards post-primary school science, especially the experimental work that is at the heart of the new curriculum. However, it would appear that students were not conducting open-ended investigations or using information and communications technology [ICT] to any great extent; moreover, there was some evidence of traditional teaching methods being utilised. Pupils were highly critical of previous primary school science experiences, reporting a lack of ‘hands-on’ activities, didactic methodologies and, for a significant minority, a paucity of any memorable primary science at all. Improvements in curricular implementation are proposed.     

Learning about domestic violence: young people's responses to a Healthy Relationships programme

This paper reports on an evaluation of a drama‐based Healthy Relationships programme on domestic violence delivered on a pilot basis to Year 8 pupils. The programme included a play delivered by a local theatre‐in‐education company followed by a series of weekly workshops. Eighty‐five pupils in a secondary school located in an area with high rates of social exclusion participated in the programme and the evaluation. Pupils completed questionnaires immediately before and after the programme and one year after the programme had finished. Thirteen pupils also took part in gendered discussion groups, which considered their views and opinions concerning the play and the workshops. The evaluation indicated that the programme was successful in enhancing pupils' understandings of domestic violence up to one year after delivery. Pupils responded well to the use of drama as a medium for learning, and some young people were able to demonstrate that they had developed positive ideas about healthy relationships. However, there was evidence of uncertainly for some young people with regard to the gendered nature of domestic violence following the programme. The discussion highlights this issue and identifies additional recommendations for both future research and future programmes.     

The Inclusion of Children with ASD: Using the Theory of Planned Behaviour as a Theoretical Framework to Explore Peer Attitudes

This study used the Theory of Planned Behaviour to explore the attitudes, behavioural intentions and behaviour of 318 mainstream primary school children in an urban East London borough towards peers with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Pupils were presented with a vignette about a hypothetical peer with ASD then completed self-report questionnaires and peer socio-metric measures. The results showed that children’s attitudes, the social pressure they felt from others and the amount of control they felt they had over their own behaviour, significantly predicted their behavioural intentions to befriend a peer with ASD. The strongest association was between perceived behavioural control and behavioural intentions. A significant association was also found between children’s behavioural intentions and actual behaviour towards an included peer. Support was therefore found for the use of the Theory of Planned Behaviour as a valuable tool by which to explore the social inclusion of children with ASD.     

泰州市小学三、四年级学生口腔健康调查

目的 旨在了解泰州市小学生口腔疾患的患病情况。方法 对泰州市小学三、四年级学生进行口腔健康调查。结果 患龋率为53．1％，高于全国总的平均患龋率，龋均亦高于全国平均值，女生低于男生，错Huo患病率为51．0％，处于全国较高水平。结论 泰州市小学生必须加强口腔保健意识，改善饮食结构。     

Using Laptop Computers to Improve the Performance of Minority Students: A Pilot Project

A school system and a university joined forces to improve the science and mathematics environment for local minority students with a program that utilized computer technology. The initiative involved individual students from all of the high schools in the Winston–Salem/Forsyth County (North Carolina) School System. In this initiative, Wake Forest University operated a two-week Summer Science and Math Experience for minority students. During the two weeks, students worked intensively with computers and, at the end of the summer program, a laptop computer was loaned to each student for personal use during the of school year. Through interviews and questionnaires, students overwhelmingly endorsed their involvement in the computer-oriented project, both the summer and academic year phases. They especially liked having access to the Internet (provided by the project), being able to use e-mail and chat rooms, and utilizing the information retrieval potential. Parents and teachers surveyed also praised the project, feeling that their students learned more as a result of being involved in project activity.     

Antecedents affecting science achievement scores in classrooms in Trinidad and Tobago

This paper initially notes the role of scientific education in a developing country and the need to enhance scientific education among the school population. Enhancement of science education for all pupils is dependent on the distribution of schools, quality of schools and pupil participation in any country. To understand how science education is advanced in a developing country it is also important to know who is currently succeeding in science education in schools and to understand how this success is distributed amongst the school population. Thus, this paper questions whether school-based science achievement may be predetermined by antecedent factors or whether there is an equal opportunity of success amongst all pupil participants. A review of the literature has found that many antecedent factors affect school and science achievement, and these factors may be more important than within-school processes thought to enhance science education. The antecedent factors refer to: social/home background; age, religion and sex of the pupil; school class level and size; type of school attended and its locality.This study assesses how antecedent factors affect science performance in a representative sample of pupils in primary and secondary schools throughout Trinidad and Tobago. The representative sample totalled 1998 children, aged 6–10 years. Pupils were selected from a geographic transect of Trinidad and Tobago, which fulfilled demographic criteria. Once pupils were selected, biographic data were obtained for each child. Science achievement was measured by an end-of-term science examination designed for each class by the class teacher and graded on a 100% scale (within each class). Within class pupil scores were ‘standardized’ for comparisons between classes, schools, etc. Results from the analyses are summarized as: science achievement scores decrease as pupils increase in age. Girls perform consistently better than boys, with a slight variation in the sex by religion by school level interaction. Pupils in private schools score higher than pupils in similar levels of state schools. Pupils from a middle class background perform better than pupils from a working class background. Differences in performance relate to the religion of the child, with Muslim pupils scoring higher than Hindu or Christian pupils. Pupils in single-sex schools perform at higher levels than pupils in co-educational schools, and this is true for girls-only and boys-only schools. At the secondary school level the type of school attended is related to science achievement performance with pupils in prestige (usually church controlled) schools performing better than pupils in the comprehensive (state controlled) schools.The results support, develop and refine the previous literature on school and science achievement. Unusually, girls are at the forefront of science achievement in both primary and secondary schools. Also, traditional prejudices of social class, school status and location are confirmed within the school system in Trinidad and Tobago. A number of directions for future research and classroom action studies are indicated which focus on the existence of these inequalities.