Developing reading comprehension through collaborative learning

The present study explores the development and promotion of reading comprehension in primary school students, in the context of the implementation of an educational programme called ‘Learning Together’ (LT). The programme, which centred on collaborative learning activities, was designed to promote oral and written communication in primary school Mexican children. Analyses revealed that children who participated in the LT programme, in comparison with students in a control condition, produced higher‐quality written summaries of texts they had read, both when working in teams and when working individually. This suggests that the LT participants appropriated and transferred the text comprehension strategies promoted, so that they could apply these strategies effectively not only in collaborative contexts but also independently, that is, in a self‐regulated and autonomous fashion. The theoretical and practical implications of the work are discussed in relation to understanding and promoting oracy and literacy processes in primary school students.     

Review and Analysis of the EU Teacher-related Policies and Activities

This article aims at raising awareness of the key role the EU already plays in matters of teacher policy. It takes stock of European teacher policy related documents and activities, such as relevant strategies, presidency priorities, Council Conclusions, Commission working documents, the activities of thematic working groups, of networks, of data gathering and research, and the available supports of the Lifelong Learning Programme and of the European Social Fund. Based on this, the article provides a clear picture of the labour market need-driven, pragmatic context of teacher policies and also the main shared European teacher policy concepts, such as teacher competence profiles, the continuum of professional development and the support of teacher educators. These fundamental concepts were shared, developed and fine tuned in the process of Member States peer learning, a crucial and highly effective method of cooperation, which is also presented in the article. The article concludes by identifying both sides of the two-way interaction process of Europeanisation taking place between Member States and the EU in teacher policy development.     

Critical Issues in Teaching a Multicultural Counseling Course

A Multicultural Counseling course (MCC) brings unique challenges and rewards to both instructors and students. Given its unique challenges, the process of teaching a MCC is as important as, or even more important than, the content. Drawing from extant literature and the authors’ experiences, this paper discusses such topics as what to teach, how to teach, classroom dynamics, instructors’ issues, and students’ issues to provide a concise, practical, and comprehensive framework for teaching such difficult but essential courses.     

Children’s Models about Colours in Nahuatl-Speaking Communities

This paper presents the development and structure of indigenous children’s ideas about mixing colours as well as their ideas about each colour, derived from their traditions. The children were interviewed both at school and outside it, and an educational proposal was implemented. Ideas expressed in the school context were analysed using the partial possible model, which states that the inferences and explanations used to describe a subject consist of constricting ideas, rules of correspondence, and a set of phenomenological inferences about processes. After identifying these components in the children’s ideas, we developed models to describe their conceptions about mixing colours. We employed a different approach to analyse children’s ideas related to their cultural context. The results showed that children change from a conception that focuses on colours as entities that do not change and as properties of objects (model 1) to the idea that colour represents a quality of substances or objects that can be modified by mixing colours (model 2). Cultural context analysis showed that stories are independent from one another and that they are not connected to colour mixing processes, only to the actions of colour on people. We concluded that students generate independent constructions between school and cultural knowledge.     

Fostering Good Governance at School Level in Honduras: The Role of Transparency Bulletin Boards

Corruption is at the core of weak governance. In the education sector, corruption is a threat to the quality of and access to education. Although the diagnosis is straightforward, effective reforms are more difficult to implement. The principles of good governance (transparency, participation, accountability, and integrity) provide us guidance, but innovative ways need to be found to fill these principles with life and create dynamics of change. We present a simple, efficient experience of introducing transparency and fostering participation and therefore accountability at the school level in Honduras. The transparency bulletin boards (murales de transparencia) are a homegrown response to the call for improving governance in a challenging environment.     

Are teachers’ approaches to teaching responsive to individual student variation? A two-level structural equation modeling

In the framework of teacher’s approaches to teaching, this study investigates the relationship between student-related variables (i.e., study time, class absence, domain knowledge, and homework completion), students’ approaches to learning, and teachers’ approaches to teaching using structural equation modeling (SEM) with two independent data samples. The participants were 61 biology teachers and their corresponding 1,518 high school students (12th grade). The first sample was used to fit the model, and the second sample was used to analyze the consistency of the data derived from the first sample. Using a two-level SEM analysis, we established whether the effects found at the individual level varied significantly at class level. The students’ approaches to learning were related to the teachers’ approaches to teaching as a function of the hypotheses established in the model, although the effect size was smaller than expected. However, approximately 48 % of the variance of the surface approach and 46 % of the deep approach sat at class level. At the individual level, the results of this study suggest that students’ approaches to learning significantly explain their teachers’ approaches to teaching and, thus, constitute important contextual variables. At the class level, the way students learn appears to be closely associated with class-related variables. Our data stresses the importance of promoting educational opportunities (e.g., school-based courses) for teachers to reflect upon the teaching methodologies used in class.     

Cross-cultural dimensions of applied,critical, and transformational leadership: women principals advancing social justice and educational equity

This study, based on the qualitatively rendered experiences and perceptions of educational leaders from historically underserved backgrounds in the US, argues that identity impacts leadership practice. To make this point, researchers build upon an emergent theoretical framework for applied critical leadership from the theories and traditions of transformational leadership, personal leadership, critical pedagogy, and critical race theory. With regard to methodology, a two-subject case study was validated by adding three additional participants for points of verification to the findings and discussion. Interview, field notes, and relevant documents were analyzed using phenomenology and constant comparative methods. Major findings indicate participants’ practice reveal characteristics of cross-cultural applied, critical, and transformational leadership. These scholarly findings are significant because they can inform mainstream leadership practices contributing to educational equity, authentic multiculturalism, improved intercultural relations, innovation, increased academic achievement, and sustainable educational change.     

Report on a Boston University Conference December 7–8, 2012 on How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary US Science Teaching?

This is an editorial report on the outcomes of an international conference sponsored by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) (REESE-1205273) to the School of Education at Boston University and the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University for a conference titled: How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary US Science Teaching? The presentations of the conference speakers and the reports of the working groups are reviewed. Multiple themes emerged for K-16 education from the perspective of the history and philosophy of science. Key ones were that: students need to understand that central to science is argumentation, criticism, and analysis; students should be educated to appreciate science as part of our culture; students should be educated to be science literate; what is meant by the nature of science as discussed in much of the science education literature must be broadened to accommodate a science literacy that includes preparation for socioscientific issues; teaching for science literacy requires the development of new assessment tools; and, it is difficult to change what science teachers do in their classrooms. The principal conclusions drawn by the editors are that: to prepare students to be citizens in a participatory democracy, science education must be embedded in a liberal arts education; science teachers alone cannot be expected to prepare students to be scientifically literate; and, to educate students for scientific literacy will require a new curriculum that is coordinated across the humanities, history/social studies, and science classrooms.     

Exploring the nexus between community cultural wealth and the academic and social experiences of Latino male achievers at two predominantly White research universities

Latino males are grossly underrepresented at four-year postsecondary institutions in the United States. This phenomenological study seeks to address this emergent educational crisis by focusing on the experiences of two Latino male achievers at predominantly White research universities. Community Cultural Wealth is used to explore how Latino male collegians with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) above 3.75 employed linguistic, resistant, and navigational capital to enhance their academic and social experiences during college. The reports offered by participants in this study are intended to advance knowledge regarding the experiences of Latino male collegians as well as to enhance research, policies, and practices that increase the educational attainment of Latina/o students within higher education.