School support and teacher motivation to implement project-based learning

The present study investigated how school support was related to teachers' motivation and willingness to persist in project-based learning. The participants were 182 Hong Kong teachers who completed a questionnaire about their school's support and their motivation to implement project-based learning. The results of structural equation modeling indicated that when teachers perceived their schools as being stronger in collegiality and more supportive of teacher competence and autonomy, they had higher motivation in project-based learning and stronger willingness to persist in this educational innovation. Perceived school support predicted teachers' attitude for future persistence both directly and indirectly through its influence on teacher motivation. The results suggest that social-contextual factors are important for teacher motivation in the implementation of educational innovations.     

A Field-Based Testing Protocol for Assessing Gross Motor Skills in Preschool Children: The CHAMPS Motor Skills Protocol (CMSP)

The purpose of the study was to develop a valid and reliable tool for use in assessing motor skills in preschool children in field based settings. The development of the CHAMPS (Children's Activity and Movement in Preschool Study) Motor Skills Protocol (CMSP) included evidence of its reliability and validity for use in field-based environments as part of large epidemiological studies. Following pilot work, 297 children (3-5 years old) from 22 preschools were tested using the final version of the CMSP and the TGMD-2. Reliability of the CMSP and interobserver reliability were determined using intraclass correlation procedures (ICC; ANOVA). Concurrent validity was assessed using Pearson correlation coefficients to compare the CMSP to the original Test of Gross Motor Development (2(nd) Edition) (TGMD-2). Results indicated that test reliability, interobserver reliability and validity coefficients were all high, generally above R/r = 0.90. Significant age differences were found. Outcomes indicate that the CMSP is an appropriate tool for assessing motor development of 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children in field-based settings that are consistent with large-scale trials.     

Narrowing the gap between research and practice in sight word reading instruction

This paper describes a program designed to bridge the gap between educational research and practice. Researchers disseminated findings and gathered additional field data on teaching sight words to learning disabled children, while practitioners were given the opportunity to apply these findings in their own teaching. Learning disabilities teachers (N = 37) were divided into three experimental groups and given training and materials for a one-week teaching procedure to be used with children in their classes. Instructional packets differed in the number of sight words presented at one time (5 + 5 vs. 10) and the use of reduced response competition. Results showed that overall posttest performance did not differ among the groups; however, children taught using reduced response competition required fewer trials to reach criterion on each word. Questionnaire results indicated that teachers benefited from the program. Future attempts such as this should be made to combine research and teacher-training efforts.     

Evaluating Emotional Literacy in Schools: The Development of the School Emotional Environment for Learning Survey

This paper describes the development of the School Emotional Environment for Learning Survey, an instrument for evaluating the perceived level of emotional literacy of the school as an organization. It elicits student and staff perceptions of their affective experience of being a part of the school community. It was designed to look at the extent to which a school enables members of its community to interact in a manner that builds an understanding of their own and others' emotions, which can then be used to shape their actions. Emotional literacy is seen here as a potential in everyone that is contingent on the interaction between a person and their social context, rather than a capacity that is either present or absent in the individual.
Qualitative data were collected from an ethnographic case study of two schools using closed- and open-ended questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, focus groups, a draw-and-write exercise and participant observation. The data were used to generate grounded theory and to build a theoretical framework for organizational emotional literacy. This theoretical framework is described as the CORE framework, addressing the domains of communication, relationships, organization and emotional experience. These domains are then characterized by particular qualities and values that are described in the 'matrix of emotional literacy'. This framework and matrix were then used to develop a questionnaire, which was trialed as a tool to audit the level of emotional literacy in both primary and secondary schools.     

Using students’ drawings to elicit general and special educators’ perceptions of co-teaching

This paper describes the findings of a study of general and special educators’ perceptions of co-teaching in elementary and middle school classrooms. A total of 85 students, 20 general education, and 11 special education teachers participated in this investigation in which student drawings were used as both data and as tools to spark teacher reflection. Students’ pictorial depictions of co-teaching were analyzed for apparent features and traits. Co-teachers’ reactions to the drawings were springboards for reflective conversations around modifications they felt needed to take place to improve co-teaching. Findings suggest that proactive role distribution, support structures, and trust building are critical factors in strengthening co-teaching. Implications for practice are discussed.