Ruffling the calm of the ocean floor: merging practice,policy and research in assessment in Scotland

The formative Assessment for Learning proposals outlined by Black and Wiliam (e.g. Black et al., 2002 Black P Harrison C Lee C Marshall B Wiliam D 2002 Working inside the black box: assessment for learning in the classroom (London, King's College)  [Google Scholar]) have been well publicised. Since 2002, in its Assessment is for Learning programme, the Scottish Executive Education Department (SEED) has been exploring ways of bringing research, policy and practice in assessment into closer alignment using research on both assessment and transformational change. This paper focuses on one project within Assessment Is for Learning, in which pilot primary and secondary schools across Scotland were encouraged to develop formative assessment approaches in classrooms. They were supported in this by researchers, curriculum developers and local and national policy‐makers. The paper examines the rationale and methods behind the enactment of formative assessment in these schools. It draws upon evidence provided by the interim and final reports of participating schools to draw conclusions about areas of success within the project and potential barriers to the project's future in its evolution from pilot to national programme.     

Free‐choice environmental education: understanding where children learn outside of school

Free‐choice learning and, derivatively, free‐choice environmental learning emerges as a powerful vehicle for supporting diversity in learning styles (Falk & Dierking, 2002 Falk J Dierking L (2002) Lessons without limit: how free choice learning is transforming education New York NY Altamira Press  [Google Scholar]). In this article, I argue that free‐choice environmental learning holds great potential for enabling us to understand what is at stake in environmental learning and thus help us build a sustainable future. I examine the different informal learning contexts for children, home (family and play), museums, zoos, nature parks and wilderness, among many others, and offer an explanation for how learning occurs in these settings, and how such domains or sectors can contribute to free‐choice environmental learning. This article also examines the nature of environmental learning in free choice settings to establish a connection with stages of childhood development. In the final section of this article, I draw on these examples to discuss research issues that emerge within various free‐choice settings.     

A mixed methods comparison of teachers' lunar modeling lesson implementation and student learning outcomes

The authors compare three teachers' adaptations and implementation of a lunar modeling lesson to explain marked differences in student learning outcomes on a spatial-scientific lunar assessment. They used a modified version of the Practices of Science Observation Protocol (P-SOP; Forbes, Biggers, &; Zangori, 2013 Forbes C., Biggers, M., &; Zangori, L. (2013). Investigating essential characteristics of scientific practices in elementary science learning environments: The practices of science observation protocol (P-SOP). School Science and Mathematics, 113, 180–190.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) to identify ways in which features of inquiry were emphasized in each classroom. Additionally, classroom communities of practice were categorized as task-based or practice-based (Riel &; Polin, 2004 Riel, M. &; Polin, L. (2004). Learning communities: Common ground and critical differences in designing technical support. In S. Barab, R. Kling, &; J. Gray (Eds.), Designing for virtual communities in the service of learning (pp. 16–52). Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). The authors found that student learning outcomes were related to the fidelity with which the teachers implemented the lesson. Teachers with higher P-SOP scores fostered more of a practice-based learning community than task-based one, which also paralleled greater student learning gains. Although the students' scores did not differ by teacher on the preassessment, they did differ significantly on the postassessment, indicating that the curricular choices and learning communities developed by the teachers impacted what students were able to learn.     

Interactive or inactive? a consideration of the nature of interaction in whole class teaching

Recent learning theories and the suggested importance of ‘interactive’ approaches in national initiatives, (NLS, NNS) led to an ESRC‐funded action research project involving the University of Exeter and teachers in three schools—‘Using Talk to Activate Learners’ Knowledge' (TALK). This investigated how ‘interactive’ whole class teaching was and whether teacher‐pupil interactions permitted recoding of information and understanding. The findings corroborate those from Galton (1999 Galton M Hargreaves L Comber C Wall D Pell T (1999a) Inside the primary classroom—20 years on (London, Routledge) [Crossref] [Google Scholar]a, 1999 Galton, M, Hargreaves, L, Comber, C, Wall, D and Pell, T. (1999b). Changes in patterns of teacher interaction in primary classrooms: 1976–1996. British Educational Research Journal, 25(1): 23–37. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]b), Mroz (2000 Mroz, M, Smith, F and Hardman, F. (2000). The discourse of the Literacy Hour. Cambridge Journal of Education, 30(3): 379–390. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]) and English (2002 English, E, Hargreaves, L and Hislam, J. (2002). Pedagogical dilemmas in the National Literacy Strategy: primary teachers' perceptions, reflections and classroom behaviour. Cambridge Journal of Education, 32(1): 9–26. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]): that teacher‐led questioning and explanation still dominate, as do teachers' objectives. Interaction as participation was differentially experienced by higher and lower abilities, boys and girls, with few opportunities for pupil initiation or extended response. The study, however, provides a model for more fully analysing the varying forms and functions of teachers' questions and statements which may lead to a greater clarity in recognising ways to provide more effective discourse for learning.     

Informing Design Research: Learning From Teachers' Designs of Social Infrastructure

The design research methodology as it has currently developed centers on the creation of existence proofs, an important first step. What is needed then are the next steps of expanding the methodology to address the design problems of practical implementation prior to the steps involved in scaling up these designs. This article contributes to such an expansion through developing a systematic approach to learning from teachers' enactments of educational models. Design research focused on practical implementations by teachers can create knowledge regarding critical change processes, thus helping to create a theory of trajectories of change, or “implementation paths” (Bielaczyc & Collins, 2006a Bielaczyc, K. and Collins, A. 2006a. Implementation paths: Supporting the trajectory teachers traverse in implementing technology-based learning environments in classroom practice. Journal of Educational Technology, 46(2): 8–14.  [Google Scholar] Collins, Joseph, & Bielaczyc, 2004 Collins, A., Joseph, D. and Bielaczyc, K. 2004. Design research: Theoretical and methodological issues. Journal of the Learning Sciences, 13: 15–42. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Here I propose using the Social Infrastructure Framework (Bielaczyc, 2006 Bielaczyc, K. 2006. Designing social infrastructure: Critical issues in creating learning environments with technology. Journal of the Learning Sciences, 15: 301–329. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) to analyze the design of classroom social structures by developers and teachers in order to better understand their implications for constructing implementation paths. The analytic technique is exemplified through a case study involving a particular team of teachers who worked over the course of several years to adopt a knowledge-building communities approach (Bereiter, 2002 Bereiter, C. 2002. Education and mind in the knowledge age, Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]; Scardamalia, 2002 Scardamalia, M. 2002. “Collective cognitive responsibility for the advancement of knowledge”. In Liberal education in the knowledge society, Edited by: Smith, B. 67–98. Chicago, IL: Open Court.  [Google Scholar]; Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1991 Scardamalia, M. and Bereiter, C. 1991. Higher levels of agency for children in knowledge building: A challenge for the design of new knowledge media. Journal of the Learning Sciences, 1: 37–68. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar] 1994). The results are used to discuss implications for the methodology of design research.     

Self‐determined blended learning: a case study of blended learning design

Higher education has been actively encouraged to find more effective and flexible delivery models to provide all students with access to quality learning experiences yet also meet institutional imperatives for efficiency and accountability. Blended learning, commonly defined as an integration of traditional face‐to‐face and online approaches to instruction (Garrison & Kanuka, 2004 Garrison, D.R. and Kanuka, H. 2004. Blended learning: Uncovering its transformative potential in higher education. Internet and Higher Education, 7(2): 95–105.  [Google Scholar]; Graham, 2006 Graham, C.R. 2006. “Blended learning systems: Definition, current trends and future directions”. In Handbook of blended learning: Global perspectives, local designs, Edited by: Bonk, C.J. and Graham, C.R. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer.  [Google Scholar]; Macdonald, 2008 Macdonald, J. 2008. Blended learning and online tutoring , (2nd ed.), Hampshire, UK: Gower.  [Google Scholar]), is now proposed as one solution that addresses both student learning and higher education organisational needs. Successful blended learning, however, is more than a simple integration of information and communication technologies with face‐to‐face approaches. This paper proposes, describes and evaluates a pedagogical approach to blended learning focused on learners and learning. First, we interrogate the literature related to blended learning to show how various constructions of blended learning may be driven by teacher‐centric or learner‐centric conceptions. Next, planning a learner‐centric blended learning design for a core unit in a first year higher education course is described. The design is then evaluated using a mixed methodology in which the students’ voices illuminate their experiences of blended learning unit design with regards to engagement, learning and self‐determination.     

Mathematics Achievement in the Netherlands and Appropriateness of the TIMSS Mathematics Test

Evaluators are frequently asked to assess the effectiveness of school programs implemented to improve academic achievement. School connectedness has been shown to be directly related to academic achievement (McNeely, Nonnemaker, &; Blum, 2002 McNeely, C. A., Nonnemaker, J. M. and Blum, R. W. 2002. Promoting school connectedness: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Journal of School Health, 72: 138–146. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and is therefore of interest to evaluators. The construct of school connectedness has been shown to consist of 3 elements: connectedness to adults in schools, connectedness to peers, and connectedness to the school (Karcher &; Lee, 2002 Karcher, M. J. and Lee, Y. 2002. Connectedness among Taiwanese middle school students: A validation study of the Hemingway Measure of Adolescent Connectedness. Asia Pacific Education Review, 3: 92–114. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). This paper reports the psychometric properties and factor analyses findings from a School Connectedness Scale (SCS) given to adolescents in 2 very different high schools in the Northeast, one a large urban school and one a medium-sized suburban school. The results indicate that the SCS is highly reliable with a stable factor structure across diverse populations. The broad applications of use for the instrument are discussed.     

Beliefs and Practices of In-Service Preschool Teachers in Inclusive Settings: Implications for Personnel Preparation

This study examined the beliefs of in-service teachers working in inclusive classrooms regarding developmentally appropriate practices and how those beliefs affected their attitudes toward, knowledge of, and comfort levels regarding working with children with disabilities. A mixed-method approach was utilized and data were collected through the use of three survey instruments: Teacher Belief Scale and Instructional Activities Scale (Hart et al., 1990 Hart, C., Burts, D., Charlesworth, P., Fleege, P., Ickes, M. and Durland, M. 1990. The teachers Questionnaire: Preschool version, Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University, School of Human Ecology.  [Google Scholar]) and the In-service Teacher Self-Report Survey (Mitchell, 2002 Mitchell, L. C. 2002. Blending practices in regular education: A mixed method design study on course practicum and training experiences in relation to preservice teacher attitudes and knowledge about inclusion. Dissertation Abstracts International, 5: A63 (UMI No. 726467131). [Google Scholar]). Data were also collected through open-ended questions to assess Teachers' perceived level of preparation for the inclusive classroom. This study also examined whether education or experience levels had an influence on Teachers' perceptions regarding inclusive practices. Results of the study indicate that there is not a significant relationship between in-service Teachers' beliefs regarding developmentally appropriate practices and their attitudes toward, knowledge of, and comfort levels regarding inclusion. Additionally, results indicate that the Teachers' levels of education or experience do not necessarily indicate that they are prepared to meet the needs of the inclusive classroom environment. Implications regarding the preparation of and ongoing training needs of teachers are discussed.     

Working within and against neoliberal accreditation agendas: opportunities for Professional Experience

Over the past decade in Australia, a neo‐liberal political climate has delivered to universities and schools increasing expectations concerning accountability and conformity within professional standards frameworks. This has contributed to growing pressure around Professional Experience programs within teacher education. In light of such accountability agendas, this paper analyses impacts arising from the emergence of institutions such as the New South Wales Institute of Teachers. In response to an insistent discourse of ‘partnerships’, it draws on the work of Lave and Wegner (1991 Lave, J. and Wegner, E. 1991. Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Crossref] [Google Scholar]), as well as Engeström (1999 Engeström, Y. 1999. “Activity Theory and individual and social transformation.”. In Perspectives on Activity Theory, Edited by: Engeström, Y, Miettinen, R and Punamäki, R.‐L. 19–38. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Crossref] [Google Scholar]), to pose a reconceptualised model of Professional Experience based on the concept of Activity Systems. An approach to partnerships that structures Professional Experience in schools around the notion of ‘communities of learning’ is presented. By shifting power relations and roles around Professional Experience, it is claimed a co‐learning environment that more effectively and concurrently attends to the professional learning needs of student teachers, as well as those of practising teachers, can be developed.     

Gifted High-School Students' Perspectives on the Development of Perfectionism

Through the use of in-depth interviews, this study investigated how gifted high-school students scoring high on at least one measure of perfectionism (self-oriented, socially prescribed, or other-oriented) perceived their perfectionism as developing. Findings suggested support for three family history models outlined by Flett, Hewitt, Oliver, and Macdonald (2002 Flett, G., Hewitt, P., Oliver, J. and Macdonald, S. 2002. “Perfectionism in children and their parents: A developmental analysis”. In Perfectionism: Theory, research, and treatment, Edited by: Flett, G. and Flett, P. 89–132. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). Lack of challenge in their early academic experiences was also indicated as an influence. Findings are discussed within the context of the current literature on perfectionism in gifted students, and avenues for future research are suggested.     

Web‐based learning environments: developing a framework for evaluation

With the widespread use of web‐based learning environments in the tertiary sector it is important to establish the usability of such environments for the target audience and their effectiveness in terms of meeting the educational objectives. However, a search of the literature has shown a scarcity of systematic evaluative studies of web‐based learning environments. Furthermore, the literature did not reveal a consistent starting position on appropriate methodologies with which to carry out such evaluations. This paper presents a general methodology for evaluating complex systems that is particularly appropriate for web‐based learning systems. Using what is called a trailing methodology (Finne et al., 1995 Finne, H, Levin, M and Nilssen, T. (1995). Trailing research: a model for useful program evaluation. Evaluation, 1(1): 11–31. [Crossref] [Google Scholar]), an evaluation was carried out of a web site that was used with student industrial experience projects. A key element in this evaluation was that the process was adaptive and collaborative; another was that it involved a team with expertise in evaluation, knowledge of the functional aspects of the web site and the educational purpose of the site. The evaluation process pointed to the importance of a flexible approach that utilizes the skills of the key stakeholders.     

Literacy Teachers Engage in Service-Learning via Community Organization Involvement

Service-learning provides community service as well as authentic, curriculum-driven learning experiences (Furco &; Root, 2010 Furco, A. and Root, S. 2010. Research demonstrates the value of service-learning. Kappan, 91(5): 16–23. [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and has been an effective component of teacher education courses (García, Arias, Murri, &; Surna, 2010 García, E., Arias, M. B., Murri, N. J. H. and Serna, C. 2010. Developing responsive teachers: A challenge for a demographic reality. Journal of Teacher Education, 61: 132–142. doi:10.1177/002248710934787[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Mitton-Kukner, Nelson, &; Descrochers, 2010 Mitton-Kukner, J., Nelson, C. and Desrochers, C. 2010. Narrative inquiry in service-learning contexts: Possibilities for learning about diversity in teacher education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26: 1162–1169. doi:10.1016/j.tate.2010.01.001[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Spencer, Cox-Petersen, &; Crawford, 2005 Spencer, B. H., Cox-Petersen, A. M. and Crawford, T. 2005. Assessing the impact of service-learning on preservice teachers in an after-school program. Teacher Education Quarterly, 32(4): 119–135.  [Google Scholar]). With these authentic experiences, teachers construct conceptions of literacy learning as broader than classroom teaching and learning. This study investigates how 54 preservice elementary teachers (hereafter called teachers) learned about literacy development and cultural responsivity by engaging in a service-learning experience.     

Teachers and testing: an investigation into teachers’ perceptions of formative assessment

Research conducted within the past decade contributes much to an understanding of the role and potential value of formative assessment in learning. As an Advisory Teacher within a local authority, the researcher was interested to find out how teachers actually perceive formative assessment. This study therefore set out to investigate the range and nature of such perceptions and whether any relationships exist between them and independent variables such as school phase and length of teacher experience. The sample was drawn from teachers working in 24 lower and middle schools within one local authority and the research was conducted in two phases. This paper will focus on Phase 1, during which data was drawn from a questionnaire survey which elicited both quantitative and qualitative responses from 67 teachers. Analysis of this data revealed a range of perceptions about formative assessment among teachers. In particular, they acknowledged the value of formative assessment in promoting learning. However, these findings suggest that perhaps teachers were less confident than they claimed to be in putting actual strategies in place, supporting the findings of Black, Harrison, Lee, Marshall, and Wiliam (2002 Black, P., Harrison, C., Lee, C., Marshall, B. and Wiliam, D. 2002. Working inside the black box: Assessment for learning in the classroom, London: Department of Education and Professional Studies, King’s College.  [Google Scholar]). Statistical analysis revealed some significant relationships between some of these perceptions and both school phase and length of teacher experience. Both theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed and recommendations made for future policy and practice.     

Critical elements for the science teacher to adopt a student‐centered approach: the case of a teacher in transition

Much research has been done and reform is suggested relating to teachers’ implementation of student‐oriented learning environments, yet research on the role, beliefs, pedagogy, and knowledge of teachers simultaneously in classroom environments has been minimal (Kyle, 1994 Kyle, W.C. 1994. School reform and the reform of teacher education: Can we orchestrate harmony?. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 31: 785–786. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar], Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 31, 785–786). This case study reports on a teacher’s perceptions, epistemology, and understandings of student‐oriented learning environments during a large project in which teachers from Grades 7 to 11 implemented an interactive‐constructivist approach in place of a traditional teacher‐oriented approach. In‐depth analysis of data revealed that the participant teacher’s perspective of a student‐centered science learning environment concerned the following: understanding of students’ prior knowledge, the importance and challenges of questioning, the teacher’s conceptual understanding of topics and unit preparation before and during the implementation, and the teacher’s motivation and problems in moving toward such an environment. There was consistency between the emerging themes and the crucial components of Simon’s Mathematics Teaching Cycle model, such as the teacher’s conceptual and pedagogical knowledge, hypothetical learning trajectory, and the teacher’s beliefs and teaching practice as argued by Haney, Czerniak, and Lumpe (1996 Haney, J., Czerniak, C. and Lumpe, A. 1996. Teacher beliefs and intentions regarding the implementation of science education reform strands. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 33(9): 971–993.  [Google Scholar], Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 33(9), 971–993) and van Driel, Beijaard, and Verloop (2001 van Driel, J.H., Beijaard, D. and Verloop, N. 2001. Professional development and reform in science education: The role of teachers’ practical knowledge. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 38(2): 137–158. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 38(2), 137–158). Further, findings of this study would help teacher education and reform planners to conduct more comprehensive studies on teachers’ perceptions about inquiry‐based teaching over the course of several years of inservice and preservice programs.     

List of Guest Reviewers—Volume 15

This study compared the affordances of 4 multimedia learning environments for specific learning processes. The environments covered the same domain but used different instructional approaches: (a) hypermedia learning, (b) observational learning, (c) self-explanation-based learning, and (d) inquiry learning. Although they all promote an active attitude, they differ in the specific learning processes they intend to foster. In earlier research (Eysink et al., 2009 Eysink, T. H. S., de Jong, T., Berthold, K., Kolloffel, B., Opfermann, M. and Wouters, P. 2009. Learner performance in multimedia learning arrangements: An analysis across instructional approaches. American Educational Research Journal, 46: 1107–1149. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), we found that learners involved in self-explanation-based or inquiry learning had the highest learning outcomes. In these approaches learners were required to generate (parts of) the subject matter, from which we concluded that they presumably stimulated learners to elaborate. Therefore, in the present study we expected that learners involved in self-explanation-based or inquiry learning would engage in more learning processes connected to elaboration than would learners involved in hypermedia or observational learning. Forty participants worked through the learning environments while thinking aloud; their protocols were coded using a generic learning processes scheme. Results showed that self-explanation-based learning and inquiry learning led to greater engagement in learning processes in general and more elaborative processes in particular. The results suggest that elaboration is indeed the key process explaining differences in learning across different instructional approaches within multimedia learning environments.     

The positioning of adult learners: appropriating learner experience on the continuum of empowerment to emancipation

This article offers a critical analysis of discourses and power structures and the ways they operate in two instructors’ adult education and ESOL classrooms. The instructors defined learner experience in specific ways and subsequently used those definitions and drew on their learners’ experiences to define their curricula and pedagogy. They conceptualized learner experiences in ways that potentially empowered or emancipated learners from existing power structures. The data presented are part of a two‐year study of different lifelong learning and adult education contexts in the north‐eastern and mid‐western USA. Data sources included survey, interview, artifact collection, and observation methods. Data analysis was guided by a sociocultural theory of literacy development (The New London Group 1996 New London Group. 1996. A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Designing social futures. Harvard Educational Review, 66: 60–92. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], Gee 1996 Gee, J. 1996. Social Linguistics and Literacies: Ideology in discourses , (2nd edn), London: Falmer.  [Google Scholar], 2003 Gee, J. 2003. What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy, New York: Macmillan. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar], Barton and Hamilton 1998 Barton, D. and Hamilton, M. 1998. Local Literacies: Reading and writing in one community, London: Routledge. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]), Holland et al.'s (1998 Holland, D., Lachicotte, W. Jr., Skinner, D. and Cain, C. 1998. Identity and Agency in Cultural Worlds, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.  [Google Scholar]) theories of figured worlds and identity development, Bakhtin’s (1963 Bakhtin, M. M. 1963. Problems of Dostoevsky’s Poetics, Edited by: Emerson, C. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. 1994 [Google Scholar], 1975 Bakhtin, M. M. 1975. The Dialogic Imagination, Edited by: Emerson, C. and Holquist, M. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press. 1998 [Google Scholar], 1979 Bakhtin, M. M. 1979. Speech Genres and Other Late Essays, Edited by: Mcgee, V. W. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press. 1994 [Google Scholar], 1986 Bakhtin, M. M. 1986. Toward a Philosophy of the Act, Edited by: Liapunov, V. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press. 1993 [Google Scholar]) theory of dialogism, and Foucault’s (1963 Foucault, M. 1963. The Birth of the Clinic: An archaeology of medical perception, Edited by: Sheridan‐Smith, A. New York: Vintage. 1975[Crossref] , [Google Scholar], 1980 Foucault, M. 1980. Power/Knowledge: Selected interviews & other writings, 1972–1977, Edited by: Gordon, C., Marshall, L., Mepham, J. and Soper, K. New York: Pantheon. 1980 [Google Scholar]) conceptualization of power. One instructor offered her learners a chance to empower themselves, that is, to find gratification by learning to appropriate mainstream ways of acting, thinking, believing, and using text. The discourse that promotes such instructional efforts is predominant in lifelong learning and adult education. In this discourse, referred to at the outset as one of coherence, learner experience, as a resource for language and literacy development, is essentialized as dispositional, meaning that correct or proper attitudes and beliefs are necessary for empowerment. The other instructor practised a reverse discourse, or what Gee (1996 Gee, J. 1996. Social Linguistics and Literacies: Ideology in discourses , (2nd edn), London: Falmer.  [Google Scholar]) referred to as a liberatory literacy. She positioned learners to critique the Discourses they encountered, including those they participated in, as movement toward emancipation, toward communicative competence or a critical stance in the world. In effect, learners reversed the panoptic framework and turned the gaze back upon existing power structures. In this case, learner experience was valued for the experiential positioning it offered learners.     

The social dynamics of changing practice

In this paper we develop a socio‐dynamic account for the impact of continuing professional development (CPD) on practice. The model we propose for changing practice challenges the essentially individualised explanation of practical learning offered by a number of writers and researchers in the field of CPD such as Joyce and Showers (1988 Joyce B Showers J (1988) Student achievement through staff development (London, Longman)  [Google Scholar]), Eraut (1994 Eraut M (1994) Developing professional knowledge and competence (London, Falmer Press)  [Google Scholar]), and Schön (1983 Schön DA (1983) The reflective practitioner: how professionals think in action (London, Temple Books)  [Google Scholar]). It also offers a basis for exploring the micro‐political realities of changing practice and the links between individual and group learning that are largely absent in the socio‐cultural accounts of organisational and situated learning (Senge, 1990 Senge P (1990) The fifth discipline: the art and practice of the learning organisation (New York, Doubleday Currency)  [Google Scholar]; Lave & Wenger, 1991 Lave J Wenger E (1991) Situated learning: legitimate peripheral participation (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press) [Crossref] [Google Scholar]; Weick, 1995 Weick K (1995) Sensemaking in organisations (Thousand Oaks, Sage Publications)  [Google Scholar]). It proposes a model that allows for tracking the influence of discourses in relation to teacher re‐professionalism from the level of policy to the point of enactment in the school and re‐examines the connections between individual and group learning to arrive at a dynamic framework for understanding changing practice.     

Predicting Faculty Integration of Faith and Learning

Concern regarding the secularization of Christian higher education has prompted researchers to investigate the extent that faith and learning is integrated at a faculty level and what factors might predict faculty integration (Lyon, Beaty, Parker, &; Mencken, 2005 Lyon, L., Beaty, M., Parker, J., &; Mencken, C. (2005). Faculty attitudes on integrating faith and learning at religious colleges and universities: A research note. Sociology of Religion, 66, 61–69.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). This research attempted to replicate Lyon et al.’s (2005 Lyon, L., Beaty, M., Parker, J., &; Mencken, C. (2005). Faculty attitudes on integrating faith and learning at religious colleges and universities: A research note. Sociology of Religion, 66, 61–69.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) logistic regression model predicting faculty integration of faith using survey responses gathered as part of Phase II of the Council for Christian Colleges &; Universities (CCCU) Denominational Study (Rine, Glanzer, &; Davignon, 2013 Davignon, P., Glanzer, P., &; Rine, P. J. (2013). Assessing the denominational identity of American evangelical colleges and universities: Part III. The student experience. Christian Higher Education, 12, 315–330. doi:10.1080/15363759.2013.825127[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]). Respondents included 2,074 faculty from 55 institutions. The first model used in this study suggested that the most powerful predictors of faculty integration are full-time employment status, earning a degree from an institution that shares the same denominational affiliation, and a match between the faculty member's religious denominational affiliation and the institutional affiliation. A second logistic regression model added faculty academic specialization as a predictor of integration to investigate if that model was a better fit. Results suggested that religion and philosophy instructors are the most likely to integrate faith into their teaching, and professors specializing in computer science, math, and engineering were the least likely. As faculty are considered the primary influence on the integration of faith and learning, existing faculty and institutional administrators concerned with maintaining faith in the classroom may want to consider the contributing factors discussed.     

Environmental Problems,Causes, and Solutions: An Open Question

In a national evaluation of environmental literacy in Israel, (Negev, Sagy, Garb, Salzberg, & Tal, 2008 Negev, M., Sagy, G., Garb, Y., Salzberg, A. and Tal, A. 2008. Evaluating the environmental literacy of Israeli elementary and high school students. Journal of Environmental Education, 39(2): 3–20. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), the authors included both multiple choice questions and open questions. In this article the authors describe the qualitative analysis of the answers to an open question regarding a local environmental problem. Most participants specified solid waste, open spaces, or air pollution as the main issues. The perceived solutions were generally at the governmental level, including planning, infrastructure, legislation, and enforcement. The authors describe relations in these responses between the problems, their causes and solutions, and between the quality of these answers and the general environmental literacy of the participants. The authors end with a discussion of the special contributions and potential of open-ended questions for environmental education research.     

Portfolio Assessment and Quality Teaching

Our article focuses on using portfolio assessment to craft quality teaching. Extant research literature on portfolio assessment suggests that the primary purpose of assessment is to serve learning, and portfolio assessments facilitate the process of making linkages among assessment, curriculum, and student learning (Asp, 2000 Asp, E. (2000). Assessment in education: Where have we been? Where are we headed? In R. S. Brandt (Ed.), Education in a new era (pp. 123–157), Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. [Google Scholar]; Bergeron, Wermuth, & Hammar, 1997 Bergeron, B. S., Wermuth, S., & Hammar, R. C. (1997). Initiating portfolios through share learning: Three perspectives. Reading Teacher, 50, 552–562.[Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Cohen & Wiener, 2003 Cohen, J. H., & Wiener, R. B. (2003). Literacy portfolios: Improving assessments, teaching, and learning (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. [Google Scholar]; Neill & Mitchell, 1995 Neill, M., & Mitchell, R. (July, 1995). National forum on assessment: Principles and indicators for student assessment systems (Final draft). National Forum on Assessment. [Google Scholar]; O'Malley & Pierce, 1996 O'Malley, J. M., & Pierce, L. V. (1996). Authentic assessment for English language learners: Practical approaches for teachers. Reading, MA: Addison Wesley. [Google Scholar]; Smith & Ylvisaker, 1993 Smith, M. A., & Ylvisaker, M. (1993). Teachers' voices: Portfolios in the classroom. Berkeley, CA: National Writing Project. [Google Scholar]; Yancey, 1996 Yancey, K. B. (1996). Dialogue, interplay, and discovery: Mapping the role and the rhetoric of reflection in portfolio assessment. In R. C. Calfee & P. Perfumo (Eds.), Writing portfolios in the classroom (pp. 83–101). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. [Google Scholar]). Because a learning portfolio is a collection of student work samples over time, it provides teachers with opportunities to understand the process of student learning. This is especially important in the current educational context where teachers are expected to teach all students, including English language learners, to develop high-level thinking and content knowledge aligned with Common Core State Standards. To support teachers to provide quality teaching that meets Common Core State Standards for diverse English language learners, we begin our article with 3 important reasons for using portfolio assessment. We then describe procedures for implementing portfolio assessment in individual classrooms.