The protective role of teacher–student relationships against peer victimization and psychosocial distress

This study examined whether teacher–student relationships protect against peer victimization and its negative psychosocial effects (i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress). Additionally, the influence of teacher–student relationships, peer relationships, and students’ perceptions of school order and discipline was investigated as these variables were expected to be negatively related to the former. Data were collected from high school‐aged adolescents (N = 539; 51% female) in the U.S. Southwest. Study results indicate that teacher–student relationships buffered against experiencing psychosocial distress associated with peer victimization. Although positive teacher–student relationships, peer relationships, and students’ perceptions of school order and discipline all were negatively associated with peer victimization and psychosocial distress, teacher–student relationships were robustly related to peer victimization and psychosocial distress over the influence of the previous variables. In other words, as a key study finding, teacher–student relationships may reduce the impact of peer victimization by mitigating its negative psychosocial effects in a robust yet relatively unexplored way. Therefore, although more research is needed, fostering positive teacher–student relationships might be an effective way to reduce peer victimization as well as its negative effects.     

Gender peer effects in university: Evidence from a randomized experiment

Recent studies for primary and secondary education find positive effects of the share of females in the classroom on achievement of males and females. This study examines whether these results can be extrapolated to higher education. We conduct an experiment in which the shares of females in workgroups for first year students in economics and business are manipulated and students are randomly assigned to these groups. Males tend to postpone, but not abandon, their dropout decision when surrounded by more females and perform worse on courses with high math content. There is also a modest reduction in absenteeism early in the year. Overall, however, we find no substantial gender peer effects on achievement. This in spite of the fact that according to students’ perceptions, both their own, and their peers’ behavior are influenced by the share of females.     

The relations between the student–teacher trust relationship and school success in the case of Korean middle schools

This study examined relations between the student–teacher trust relationship and school success, including school adjustment, academic motivation and performance. Data were collected from 318 7th‐grade Korean middle school students (170 males, 148 females). All intercorrelations were positively correlated and correlation coefficients were statistically significant (p < 0.01). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis revealed that the student–teacher trust relationship uniquely contributed to students’ performance through school adjustment and academic motivation. This discussion examines theoretical, empirical and practical implications of the trust relationship as a key predictor of adolescents’ school adjustment, academic motivation and performance.     

Explaining effects and side effects of school inspections: a path analysis

There are large differences between schools with regard to how they are affected by a school inspection. This study provides quantitative evidence about the extent to which perceived effects and side effects of an inspection are related to the inspection’s judgement on the school, to features of the inspection, and to school features. This study draws on quantitative data collected from 2,202 teachers in Flemish primary and secondary schools that had recently been inspected. Using path analysis, it investigates the existence and strength of relationships between the perceived effects and side effects of inspection, on the one hand, and the perceived inspection quality, the perceived school’s policy-making capacities, and the inspection judgement, on the other hand. The analysis reveals that most effects and several side effects are predominantly explained by the perceived inspection quality. Emotional side effects during inspection are best predicted by the school’s policy-making capacities.     

In the eye of the beholder: The relationship between perceived peer language skills,provided peer feedback and peer grading in secondary education

Students involved in peer assessment have interpersonal relationships, partly consisting of reciprocal perceptions. In the domain of argumentative writing, little is known about the way peer assessment is affected by the assessor’s perception of the assessee’s language skills. Dutch 10th grade students (N = 176, age = 15–16) provided feedback and grades on two texts, being under the illusion that the texts had been written by two classmates whom the assessors perceived as a peer with either stronger or weaker language skills than their own (within-subjects design). In reality, students assessed similar texts, created by the researchers. Assessors did not provide different feedback to the two types of assessees. Simultaneously, they provided higher grades to peers perceived to have stronger language skills than their own than to peers perceived to have weaker language skills than their own. Future research should capture assessors’ rationale behind the composition of feedback and grades.     

The effects of classroom and school environments on student engagement: the case of high school students in Abu Dhabi public schools

Drawing on data from a merged data set from a student survey and a parent survey that were conducted in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in 2013, this article uses a multilevel framework to investigate the effects of individual characteristics and the classroom and school environments on high school students’ school engagement in a modernising education system that is different from Western ones. The results of the three-level model revealed that while students’ attributes remained strong predictors of their school engagement, the social and organisational environment of classrooms and school also greatly shaped the extent to which students emotionally and cognitively engaged with their school and learning. This study provided evidence to support the interactive nature of the impact of multilevel environments on student engagement. The policy and research implications were also discussed in the empirical context of Abu Dhabi.     

Can social integration in schools be mandated: Evidence from the Right to Education Act in India

Although Affirmative Action policies have been enforced in many countries, their consequences are highly understudied, especially in the context of developing economies. Section 12(1)(c) of the Right to Education (RTE) Act enforced in 2009 is the first attempt to introduce affirmative action in primary schools in India. The act requires all private schools to reserve at least twenty five percent seats for children from economically weaker sections. To understand the effect of the act on i) social integration and ii) academic outcomes, we asked 1500 children (grades one to three) from four schools to answer friendship surveys and short tests in Mathematics and English. The schools in our sample vary considerably in constitution and were intentionally chosen to understand the impact of the act in different school settings. The friendship surveys show strong homophily i.e. non-RTE students cite other non-RTE students as friends, while RTE students chose to be friends primarily with other RTE students. Trends in test scores reveal that students admitted under the RTE quota score significantly lower than non-RTE students. However, RTE students who have a higher share of non-RTE friends have better test scores, suggesting that affirmative action may have a positive influence on learning outcomes for RTE children. Further we note that commitment from the school authorities and systematic monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the act will go a long way in bringing out some of the benefits that this act was designed to achieve. Our findings have important policy implications with respect to ensuring proper implementation of the Section12(1)(c) of the RTE act in schools across the country.     

The impact of peer achievement and peer heterogeneity on own achievement growth: Evidence from school transitions

This paper estimates ability peer effects on achievement growth in reading and math. It exploits variation in peer characteristics generated at the transition from primary to secondary school in a sample of Berlin fifth-graders. As will be discussed in detail, this variation is exogenous in large parts. Results are similar for both achievement measures: pupils benefit from abler peers, but high-achievers do so to a smaller extent. The variance in peer skills has no impact on achievement growth – the corresponding estimates are negative, but insignificant.     

Learning on the go: voices of highly mobile urban students

Highly mobile students experience schools and learning in different ways than their more stable peers. Repeated transfers result in discontinuity of instruction and relationships with teachers and peers. Interviews with transient urban students in grades 9–12 reveal the issues they face upon their arrival and afterward. Mobile students give insight into perceptions of teacher practice, peer-group induction, receptivity to classroom instruction, and classroom and administrative practices. Findings include fear, loneliness, embarrassment, and anxiety in new settings or when faced with another school change. While students expressed achievement concerns, peer social and emotional concerns were primary immediately following enrollment in a new school. Students found themselves unable to focus on academic studies until they could secure a peer group with which to interact. Implications for high-mobility schools include the need for structures providing transitional services and community-building environments to counteract the negative academic and developmental effects of frequent mobility.     

Heterogeneous effects of comprehensive vs. single-track academic schools: Evidence from admission lotteries

We use admission lotteries to study how enrollment in a single-track academic school instead of a comprehensive school affects achievement of students in Amsterdam. The two types of schools score differently on measures of school quality and enrollment in a single-track school instead of a comprehensive school implies exposure to better and richer peers. Yet, school resources and the school curriculum are very similar. Different groups of students are differentially affected by this treatment. Girls from lower-income neighborhoods benefit whereas boys from these neighborhoods are harmed. For students from higher-income neighborhoods, it does not matter which type of school they attend.     

The costs of failure: Negative externalities in high school course repetition

Failure in US high school courses is common, but little is known about its effects. This paper investigates the extent to which course repeaters in high school mathematics courses exert negative externalities on their course-mates. Using individual and school-specific course fixed effects to control for ability and course selection, it shows that increasing the share of repeaters in a given course results in a moderate, significant increase in the probability of course failure for first-time course-takers. Results suggest that the negative effect is only evident when the share of repeaters reaches a threshold of five to ten percent of the total number of course-takers. The possibility that grading to a curve generates the effect cannot be ruled out, but is not fully supported in the data. Evidence is also presented that course repetition externalities may be distinct from low-ability peer effects.     

Student primary teachers and their experience of religious education in schools

This article is based on research into the way student primary teachers experience religious education when they train in schools. The research findings suggest that the experience and quality of training in many schools is not adequate and that this experience undermines student confidence in relation to religious education. The author argues that despite the increased reliance on school as an arena for the training of teachers, in the case of religious education many student teachers do not have the opportunities to observe or teach religious education even where the school or student is keen to do so.     

The association of school environment to student teachers' satisfaction and teaching commitment

A supportive school environment is crucial to the enhancement of student teaching experiences. This study assesses student teachers' perceptions of secondary school environments, and then relates the perceptions to their satisfaction with school experiences and teaching commitment. The results show that considerable disparities between student teachers' perceptions of actual and preferred school environments and suggest certain directions for improvement. Student teachers' perceptions about their school environments, especially in the areas of professional interest and staff freedom, were positively associated with their satisfaction. Several school environmental aspects influenced the total years they planned to teach and their intention to teach at the placement schools.     

An analysis of associations between residential and school mobility and educational outcomes in South African urban children: The Birth to Twenty cohort

Using data from Birth to Twenty, a cohort of South African urban children, the current paper investigates the relationships between residential and school mobility and a set of educational outcomes. The findings provide some evidence of a positive association between changes in residence and numeracy and literacy scores, and school mobility was found to be associated with grade repetition, however, no relationship was observed between changes in school and competency in numeracy and literacy. The South African study provides a counter example to trends observed in higher-income countries, while highlighting that associations are likely to be context specific.     

The impact of school policy and stakeholders' actions on student learning: A longitudinal study

This paper proposes a theoretical framework on how school policy can promote student learning. School policy is considered to have an indirect effect on student achievement by changing school stakeholders' actions toward improving the School Learning Environment (SLE) and teaching practice. A reciprocal relationship between school policy and stakeholders' actions is also considered. A longitudinal study was conducted to test the framework's main assumptions. A stratified sample of 64 primary schools was selected and students' achievement in Mathematics at the beginning of Grade 4 and at the end of the next three consecutive school years was measured, alongside the school policy and teachers' actions with regards to issues associated with teaching and the SLE. The results of multilevel structural equation modelling analyses supported the main assumptions of the framework. Implications for the development of school policy are drawn and suggestions for further research are provided.     

Towards a model for research on the effects of school organizational health factors on primary school performance in Trinidad & Tobago

This article presents a model for research on the effects of school organizational heath factors on primary school academic achievement in Trinidad and Tobago. The model can be applicable for evaluating schools in other developing countries. As proposed, the model hypothesizes relationships between external factors (exogenous variables), school-level factors (endogenous variables), and school outcomes (student achievement and positive school climate). The endogenous variables are sub-scales of school organizational health. They include principal leadership, psycho-social environment, school–home–community relationships, teacher characteristics, curriculum quality, and school culture. These subscales are partially influenced by the Organizational Health Inventory OHI (Hoy and Feldman, 1987) and by school health indices set forth by the World Health Organization (1996). It is hoped that this school organizational health model can provide a conceptual tool for formulating a more comprehensive measure of healthy schools.     

Comparing opportunity to learn and student achievement gains in southern African primary schools: A new approach

A popular explanation for low student achievement in many developing countries’ primary schools is that students have relatively little opportunity to learn (OTL) the skills needed for academic success. However logical this explanation may be, surprisingly little empirical evidence has been presented to support it. In this paper we address this gap by estimating the effect of OTL on students’ academic performance using rich data we gathered on the teaching process in a large number of South African and Botswana Grade 6 classrooms. We use an innovative classroom fixed effects approach to estimate the impact of OTL on students’ mathematics achievement gains. We found statistically significant but very different results for our South Africa and Botswana samples. The discussion of those results in the context of differences in the two school systems gives us insights into the importance and limits of OTL as an explainer of student learning in low achievement schools.     

Schools, school quality and achievement growth: Evidence from the Philippines

A broad literature seeks to assess the importance of schools, proxies for school quality, and family background on children's achievement growth using the education production function. Using rich data from the Philippines, we introduce and estimate a model that imposes little structure on the relationship between intake achievement and follow-up achievement and evaluate school performance based on this estimated relationship. Our methods nest typical value-added specifications that use test score gains as the outcome variable and models assuming linearity in the relationship between intake and follow-up scores. We find evidence against the use of value-added models for our data and show that such models give very different assessments of school performance in the Philippines. Using a variety of tests we find that schools matter in the production of student achievement, though variation in performance across schools only explains about 4.4–5.3% of the total (conditional) variation in follow-up achievement. Schools providing basic facilities—in particular schools providing electricity—are found to perform much better in the production of achievement growth.