Proofs through Exploration in Dynamic Geometry Environments

The recent development of powerful new technologies such as dynamic geometry software (DGS) with drag capability has made possible the continuous variation of geometric configurations and allows one to quickly and easily investigate whether particular conjectures are true or not. Because of the inductive nature of the DGS, the experimental-theoretical gap that exists in the acquisition and justification of geometrical knowledge becomes an important pedagogical concern. In this article we discuss the implications of the development of this new software for the teaching of proof and making proof meaningful to students. We describe how three prospective primary school teachers explored problems in geometry and how their constructions and conjectures led them see proofs in DGS. Constantinos Christou: Author for correspondence.     

Cypriot and Greek Primary Teachers’ Conceptions about Mathematical Assessment∗

The purpose of this study, which is part of a larger research program, was to investigate teachers’ conceptions about assessment. A mailed questionnaire sent to 5th and 6th grade teachers in Cyprus and Greece produced a rather optimistic picture about the investigated issues. However, some semi‐structured interviews, which followed, showed that teachers in both countries seemed to have a rather vague understanding of relevant key concepts.     

Factors that Influence Students to Become Teachers

The purpose of this study was to identify and compare the factors that had influenced students at the Pennsylvania State University and at the University of Cyprus to major in elementary education. A questionnaire was completed by 157 students from PSU and by 176 students from the UC. The factors that were identified were variety of benefits, internal motives, status of the profession, interpersonal influence and academic ability. The factor “internal motives” was the strongest factor that influenced students from the PSU to major in elementary education. The factors which were highly influential for the students of the University of Cyprus to enter the same major, were the “variety of benefits” and the “status of the profession”.     

Item Review and the Rearrangement Procedure: Its process and its results

Permitting item review is to the benefit of the examinees who typically increase their test scores with item review. However, testing companies do not prefer item review since it does not follow the logic on which adaptive tests are based, and since it is prone to cheating strategies. Consequently, item review is not permitted in many adaptive tests. This study attempts to provide a solution that would allow examinees to revise their answers, without jeopardizing the quality and efficiency of the test. The purpose of this study is to test the efficiency of a “rearrangement procedure” that rearranges and skips certain items in order to better estimate the examinees' abilities, without allowing them to cheat on the test. This was examined through a simulation study. The results show that the rearrangement procedure is effective in reducing the standard error of the Bayesian ability estimates and in increasing the reliability of the same estimates.     

Effects of Background and School Factors on the Mathematics Achievement

Using a structural equation model, this research study investigated the mathematics achievement of 8th grade students in Cyprus enrolled in the year 1994–1995. The model contained 2 exogenous constructs – the educational background of the family and the reinforcement from mother, friends and the individual himself; and 5 endogenous constructs – socioeconomic status (SES), and student attitudes toward mathematics, teaching, school climate, and beliefs related to success in mathematics. The study demonstrated that although attitudes, teaching, and beliefs had direct effect on mathematics outcomes, they were not statistically significant. It was also found that family educational background directly affected SES, attitudes toward mathematics, school climate and beliefs related to success in mathematics. Reinforcement exerted a direct effect on attitudes, teaching and beliefs regarding success. There was also evidence that SES directly affects school climate and that teaching directly affects attitudes toward mathematics.     

The structure of pre-adolescents’ perceptions of their teacher’s interpersonal behaviours and their relation to pre-adolescents’ learning outcomes

Previous studies have offered indications that the way pre-adolescents (fifth and sixth graders) structure their perceptions of their teacher’s interaction in terms of Agency and Communion differs from adolescents. The purpose of this study was to delineate previous findings by thoroughly examining the structure of pre-adolescents’ perceptions of their teacher’s interpersonal behaviour, and by investigating the extent to which this structure relates to pre-adolescents’ learning outcomes. A mixed methods research design was implemented including a qualitative instrument adaptation procedure followed by a quantitative large-scale administration. Participants for the latter were a random sample of 504 pre-adolescents (from 10 to 13 years old) and 36 teachers. Results showed that participants placed significantly more emphasis on their teachers’ Communion behavioural dimension and this emphasis was illustrated on the association of perceived teacher interaction and students’ learning outcomes. Implications for theory, research and practice are discussed.     

Modeling teacher empowerment: The role of job satisfaction

Empowerment is defined and measured in terms of teachers' power to participate in decision-making about teaching and learning conditions. Job satisfaction refers to the level of teacher satisfaction by matters related to these conditions: student achievement, decision-making ability, self-growth, and so on. This research considers the relationship between job satisfaction and teacher empowerment, which includes dimensions of job satisfaction that contribute to teacher empowerment. In particular, it examines the levels of teacher satisfaction in four dimensions (professional growth, decision-making, promotion, and status) and their contribution to the sense of teacher empowerment among Cypriot teachers. The results support the importance of job satisfaction in the construction of teacher empowerment. Specifically, (1) teachers' level of job satisfaction varies depending on the dimension of school life that is focused; (2) teachers' job satisfaction is related to teacher empowerment.     

The Effect of Attitudes on Science Achievement: A Study Conducted Among High School Pupils in Cyprus

The purpose of this study was to examine how pupils' attitudes towards science and their beliefs about themselves affect their achievements in science, and vice versa. Cyprus provided an interesting location for the study, being a developing nation that has adopted educational ideas from a variety of countries, including the US, UK and Greece. The results of this study demonstrated the differential effects that science achievement and science attitudes can have on each other, depending on the characteristics of the educational systems of the country. The findings indicate various directions for future research.