EXAMINING CONGRUENCE WITHIN SCHOOL–FAMILY PARTNERSHIPS: DEFINITION,IMPORTANCE, AND CURRENT MEASUREMENT APPROACHES

The purpose of this article is to explore the construct of congruence, particularly with regard to school–family collaboration and partnerships. An in‐depth review of the empirical and theoretical literature supporting a shift in focus from encouraging family involvement to creating effective school–family partnerships is presented, followed by an investigation into the construct of congruence and the methodological challenges it presents. The authors define congruence, discuss its role in creating and maintaining effective school–family partnerships, and critically review common approaches to measuring congruence and similar constructs. The implications for researchers and practitioners are discussed.     

When policy instruments combine to promote coherence: an analysis of Connecticut’s policies related to teacher quality

This paper explicates the elements of several policy instruments used in Connecticut, the political conditions under which they were chosen, and their intended targets and expected effects on teacher quality and student learning. The purpose of the paper is to explain how the Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) and the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) were able to implement and sustain a set of integrated policies related to teaching and learning over a 20‐year period from 1985 to 2005. We argue that this occurred for three primary reasons. First, the state legislature combined changes in teacher certification requirements in the 1980s with significant increases in teacher salaries in order to build strong political support among teachers and teacher union leaders for the new requirements. Second, in the 1980s and 1990s, CGA and CSDE repeatedly combined policy instruments in ways that involved multiple stakeholders and strong elements of capacity‐building, thereby increasing their likelihood of success. Third, several policies enacted in Connecticut in the 1990s were directly connected to and strongly reinforced each other.     

Communicator style and social style: Similarities and differences between the sexes

Currently there is much interest in the research literature concerning sex differences for communicator style. This study investigated differences between males' and females' self‐perceptions on Norton's (1983) Communicator Style Construct and on the Social Style Profile (Buchholz, Lash brook & Wenberg, 1976). Forty‐three males and 42 females completed these measures as volunteers in a classroom setting. The results indicated that males' and females' self‐report responses do not differ significantly across these measures. An exploratory cluster analysis of communicator style provided a heuristic for future research.     

Social Competence and Oral Language Development for Young Children of Latino Immigrants

Research Findings: In this study we analyze how parent and teacher ratings of young Latino children’s social competencies in rural California are associated with children’s oral language development. We find (a) that there is considerable incongruence between parent and teacher ratings of child social competence, (b) that both parent and teacher ratings account for meaningful variation in children’s oral language development, and (c) that incongruence between parent and teacher ratings is associated with oral language above and beyond the effects of parent and teacher ratings alone. Practice or Policy: Young Latino children’s social competencies contribute to their oral language development. These competencies represent an important, though to date underutilized, asset for building stronger academic/language functioning. Part of the paradoxical development of Latino children (i.e., strong social though weak academic/language competence) could be attributable to cultural differences that underlie teacher and parent perceptions of social competence. Teachers of young Latino children should (a) be aware of the cultural nature of social competence and (b) explore culturally responsive ways of interacting in classrooms to build stronger oral language functioning.     

The Impact of an Ongoing Professional Development Program on Prekindergarten Teachers' Mathematics Practices

Mathematics is a natural part of daily life for young children as they explore and investigate the world around them. To build on these experiences, and to begin establishing a mathematical foundation, early childhood educators must not only be knowledgeable about mathematical concepts, they must also be aware of the most developmentally appropriate ways in which to teach these concepts to young children. After participation in an ongoing professional development program, specifically targeting teachers of prekindergarten children in public school, Preschool Programs for Children with Disabilities (PPCD), Head Start, and child care settings, teachers reported positive changes in math practices. Specifically, teachers reported a stronger alignment to national mathematics standards and increased awareness pertaining to developmentally appropriate mathematics practices as they apply to early childhood classrooms. Teachers reported a shift towards more hands-on activities and a shift away from the use of worksheets in their prekindergarten classrooms. Implications from this study suggest that ongoing professional development that is designed to meet the specific needs of early childhood educators can have a positive impact on reported mathematics content knowledge and instructional practices.     

Supporting Parents in Early Literacy through Libraries (SPELL): An Evaluation of a Multi-Site Library Project

ABSTRACT

The Supporting Parents in Early Literacy through Libraries (SPELL) project was initiated to evaluate the effectiveness of early literacy programs in libraries. Eight Colorado libraries developed and implemented year-long early literacy programs targeting parents of children ages zero to three. Pre- and post-surveys were conducted to determine the effect of these programs on the early literacy habits of participating parents. The survey results indicated that after participating in the SPELL prototype programs, respondents reported increased knowledge of and engagement in early literacy activities.     

Technology Leadership Perceptions of Utah Elementary School Principals

Abstract

The rapidly expanding use of technology in education requires principals to be prepared as technology leaders; however, many are not currently prepared for this role. It is crucial that principals are prepared in order to lead schools in successful technology integration and support. The primary purpose of this quantitative study was to determine the perceived level of technology leadership preparation of Utah elementary principals using the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Standards for Administrators. The data for this study was collected from 129 Utah elementary school principals and the survey used the ISTE Standards for Administrators as the framework, and findings provide evidence that Utah elementary school principals are not adequately prepared to lead as technology leaders. (Keywords: technology leadership, principal, ISTE Standards for Administrators).     

Privatising educational leadership through technology in the Trumpian era

This article focuses on the changes that the election of Donald Trump enables in education policy domestically and in education discourse internationally. I argue that Trump’s own charismatic leadership style is a distraction from the privatisation that it is facilitating through Betsy DeVos, Trump’s appointment as US Education Secretary. I draw on two contemporary examples of technology-enabled privatisation in education – cyber charters and predictive analytics using big data – to argue that in the Trumpian era, educational leadership may be shifting from corporatised forms, where professionals understood as ‘school leaders’ fulfil corporate objectives through corporatised means. Instead, Trumpian-era privatised educational leadership retreats fully behind the technology boardroom door, where it renders superfluous lead professionals in education institutions, and where its objectives are to generate profit through re-conceptualising learners as data providers. This analysis highlights the need for new tools and methods to describe and explain what is happening, and to help develop understandings of what educational leadership in this new landscape might be, do or achieve.     

Theorising systemic change: learning from the academisation project in England

The research reported in this article contributes new understandings of systemic change by studying the form of system redesign known in England as academisation. The data illuminate tensions within the neoliberal policy complex that are surfaced in a single secondary school. Although several studies have described academy conversions retrospectively, there has been little research that both analyses the complex month-by-month realities of decision-making and investigates the changing views of policy actors. Drawing on data from documents, observations and interviews, we argue for academisation to be understood, not as a policy or a complex of policies, but as system redesign. Academisation is not simply a legal process: a school can be academised without officially becoming an academy. The new knowledge from this research speaks to a global audience, because the political, economic and cultural processes on which it reports are under scrutiny in other systems with experiments in school autonomy as a form of publicly funded but ‘independent’ schooling.