Transformational practice: critical teacher research in pre-service teacher education

This article traces the experiences of three pre-service teachers as they engaged in teacher research as part of their teacher education program and considers how teacher research might disrupt dominant paradigms that aim to de-contextualize teaching and offer one-size-fits-all solutions to address inequities. In particular, the article examines: the role of the teacher’s personal and academic history in the design of their teacher research projects; how their research worked to disrupt and complicate classroom cultures and practices; and the ways in which the pre-service teachers interpreted their research in light of new contexts during their first year of teaching. This work has critical implications in an era when teacher education programs are under attack, including: the value of drawing on pre-service teachers' lived experiences as an entry point into inquiry; creating highly localized inquiries; and positioning novice teachers as knowledgeable practitioners who are able to share research with colleagues.     

Conceptualizing a basis for understanding: What differences do differences make?

The purpose of our commentary is to offer ways of understanding the differences in theoretical positions and of exploring what difference the differences make. To conceptualize a basis for understanding the theoretical transformation currently taking place in the field of educational psychology, we bring two constructs from the philosophy of science to bear. We suggest that one way to understand the differences is to consider the expressive potential of the research programs. In so doing, we suggest that the research programs be seen as intellectual ecologies created by members within these traditions. We argue that to understand the emic point of view of a tradition, one must become initiated into the discourse within that community and understand the historical development of the ideas within that intellectual ecology.     

A Review of “Education,Indigenous Knowledges,and Development in the Global South: Contesting Knowledges for a Sustainable Future”

ABSTRACT

This study focused on designing a flood-risk education program to enhance 15-year-old students’ flood-risk perception. In the flood-risk education program, learning processes were modeled in such a way that the arousal of moderate levels of fear should prompt experiential and analytical information processing. In this way, understanding of flood risk in the surroundings should prompt students’ threat and coping appraisal. To accomplish this, the program consisted of a variety of student-directed parts, such as serious games and flood simulations. The design of the program was based on theoretical understandings from learning theory, information processing, and risk communication. Furthermore, empirical findings about students’ risk perceptions were incorporated. The design process was guided by the principles of Educational Design Research and had an iterative character.     

Classroom teacher effectiveness research: a conceptual critique

Teacher effectiveness research now informs the rationale of much Australian education policy aimed at redressing student under‐achievement. The approach draws a ‘straight line’ between teacher practice and student outcomes, ‘controlling’ for and ultimately dismissive of other possible influences. The paper calls into question this conception of teaching–learning relations, particularly the extent to which teaching practice can be reasonably quantified and improvements in students' academic achievement can be solely attributed to and/or sole responsibility placed on the pedagogic strategies employed by teachers. Drawing on the theoretical resources of Foucault and Bourdieu, the paper argues further that teacher effectiveness research is flawed in both means and ends. It concludes that in its ranking of student and teacher performance, such research actually works against the purposes of education; specifically, authentic teaching and learning.     

The effects of Reading Recovery on children’s literacy progress and special educational needs status: a three-year follow-up study

Reading Recovery (RR) is an intensive one-to-one reading intervention programme designed for five- to six-year-old children who are the lowest literacy achievers after one year of formal tuition. RR has been shown to have impressive effects in the short-term, particularly on those measures tailored to, and designed for, the programme. However, less is known about the programme’s long-term effectiveness. The present study followed up at the end of Year 4: 120 comparison children, 73 children who had received RR three years earlier, and 48 children in RR schools who had not received RR. We found that the children who had received RR achieved an average National Curriculum (NC) level of 3b in reading which indicates being on track for Level 4 at the end of Key Stage 2. The comparison children were on average at Level 2a in reading, significantly lower than the RR. RR children were also significantly less likely than comparison children to be identified as having a special educational need at the end of Year 3. These findings indicate that effects of the RR programme are still apparent three years post-intervention.     

Reviews

BEYOND FORMULA: AMERICAN FILM GENRES. By Stanley J. Solomon. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1976; pp. x + 310. $5.95.

AN ORIENTATION TO NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION. By Thomas W. Benson and Kenneth D. Frandsen. Chicago: Science Research Associates, 1976; pp. 38. Paper $1.60.

UNMASKING THE FACE. By Paul Ekman and Wallace V. Friesen. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice‐Hall, 1975; pp. 212. $4.25.

BEYOND CULTURE. By Edward T. Hall. Long Island City, New York: Doubleday‐Anchor, 1976; pp. 256. $7.95.

LOUDER THAN WORDS, By Mele Koneya and Alton Barbour. Columbus, Ohio: Merrill Publishing, 1976; pp. 80. $2.95.     

Books

Curiosity and Enlightenment: Collectors and Collections from the Sixteenth to the Nineteenth Century , Arthur MacGregor     

Young Children's Reasoning About the Effects of Emotional and Physiological States on Academic Performance

This study assessed young children's understanding of the effects of emotional and physiological states on cognitive performance. Five, 6-, 7-year-olds, and adults ( N = 96) predicted and explained how children experiencing a variety of physiological and emotional states would perform on academic tasks. Scenarios included: (a) negative and positive emotions, (b) negative and positive physiological states, and (c) control conditions. All age groups understood the impairing effects of negative emotions and physiological states. Only 7-year-olds, however, showed adult-like reasoning about the potential enhancing effects of positive internal states and routinely cited cognitive mechanisms to explain how internal states affect performance. These results shed light on theory-of-mind development and also have significance for children's everyday school success.