Approaches to learning,evaluations of teaching,and preferences for contrasting academic environments

Previous research has demonstrated that the academic environments provided by departments in higher education have direct effects on students' approaches to studying. But other studies have indicated that these effects are mediated by the students' own perceptions of those environments. Here two studies are reported which explore the relationships between approaches to learning, or study orientations, and perceptions of the academic environment. Those perceptions are measured in two distinct ways, one which minimises the effects of differential perceptions, and one which highlights them. Factor analyses of the responses of three groups of students taking engineering and psychology are used to clarify the nature of the relationships between study orientations and perceptions of the academic environment. It is found, as in earlier studies, that there are relationships which associate deep approaches with perceptions of relevance, and surface approaches with a heavy workload. But here it is also shown that students with contrasting study orientations are likely to define effective teaching in ways which reflect those orientations. Implications both for the design of feedback questionnaires and for the improvement of teaching and learning in higher education are discussed.     

Is There a Role for Executive Functions in the Development of Mathematics Ability?

ABSTRACT— This article examines the role of working memory, attention shifting, and inhibitory control executive cognitive functions in the development of mathematics knowledge and ability in children. It suggests that an examination of the executive cognitive demand of mathematical thinking can complement procedural and conceptual knowledge-based approaches to understanding the ways in which children become proficient in mathematics. Task analysis indicates that executive cognitive functions likely operate in concert with procedural and conceptual knowledge and in some instances might act as a unique influence on mathematics problem-solving ability. It is concluded that consideration of the executive cognitive demand of mathematics can contribute to research on best practices in mathematics education.     

Photography

Pamela Jeffcott Parry's Photography Index: A Guide to Reproductions (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1979–$25.00)

Hilary Evans' The Art of Picture Research: A Guide to Current Practice, Procedure, Techniques and Resources (Newton Abbot, Y.K.; and North Pomfret, Vt.: David & Charles, 1979—$28.00)

Melissa Milar, ed. 1980 Photographer's Market: Where to Sell Your Photographs (Cincinnati, Ohio: Writer's Digest Rooks, 1979—$12.95)

Photographis '79 (New York: Hastings House, 1979–$49.50)

John Sander's Photography Year Book 1979 (New York: Fountain Press/Hastings House, 1979—$24.95)

Harold E. Edgerton and James R. Killian, Jr.'s Moments of Vision: The Stroboscopic Revolution in Photography (Cambridge, Ma.: MIT Press, 1979—$20.00)

Deborah Turbeville's Wallflower (New York: Congreve Publishing Co, 1978—$27.50)

Robert L. Kerns' Photojournalism: Photography with a Purpose (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1980—$14.95)

Focalguide to Slides by Graham Saxby (New York: Focal/Hastings House, 1979- 46.95, Paper)

Focalguide to Close-Ups by Sidney F. Ray (1978--$6.95, paper)     

Retrospective on educational testing and assessment in the 20th century

Over the last 100 years, the ever-increasing demand for testing as a measure of educational reform has created a very profitable market for the US testing industry. We follow the growth of this market since the 1900s in two different, but related, ways. First, we discuss some of the technical developments that have encouraged the use of standardized testing in general and contributed to the growth of the commercial testing industry. Second, we attempt to quantify the expansion of the testing marketplace during the 20th century by tracking several indirect indices of growth over time. We conclude that although technical innovations may have contributed to the growth of the US testing marketplace, they do not necessarily lead to better tests or better outcomes for those who use them. There is a need to more carefully monitor the effects of these tests on teaching and learning in general, particularly when the tests are used in high-stakes contexts.     

‘How are we going to do it?’ An exploration of the barriers to access to higher education amongst young people from disadvantaged communities

The number of young people progressing to higher education (HE) in Ireland has grown significantly over the last three decades but inequality of access and participation remain a major policy challenge. This article sets out to explore the factors which impact on levels of participation in HE by young people from lower socio-economic backgrounds, based on interviews and focus groups with 70 secondary school students and 25 parents in three case-study locations. In line with previous research, we found that financial considerations continue to have an important influence on decisions about whether to go on to higher education. The findings in relation to young people’s aspirations and orientations to HE present a more complex picture. While the majority of students aspired to go on to HE, this was countered by a lack of confidence in relation to certain aspects of college life, both social and academic.     

Under the microscope: A study of schools in special measures and a comparison with general characteristics of primary school improvement

This paper considers the process of being in special measures and looks at the experiences that teachers in five primary schools encountered. It also endeavours to establish links with generally accepted characteristics of school improvement as identified in previous research on sustained primary school improvement and school improvement in general.     

Patterns of response to an approaches to studying inventory across contrasting groups and contexts

The development of the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) is reported, which incorporates a revised version of the Approaches to Studying Inventory. This questionnaire was completed by three separate samples; 1284 mainly first-year students from six British universities, 466 first-year students from a Scottish technological university; and 219 students from a ‘historically disadvantaged” South African university. Analyses of these data were designed to explore the patterns of response found in sub-groups which varied in terms of their levels of attainment and contexts. Maximum likelihood analysis of the largest sample confirmed the expected three factors of deep, surface apathetic, and strategic approaches to studying, and almost identical patterns were also found in the other two samples, and in students having contrasting levels of attainment. There were, however, some interesting minor differences in the South African sample. K-means relocation cluster analysis was then carried out on the largest sample and produced clusters with generally coherent patterns of response. However, one persistent low attainment cluster showed unexpected, dissonant patterns of response, combining moderately high scores on the sub-scales of both deep and surface apathetic approaches, associated with low scores on the strategic approach.     

Getting to the heart of it: understanding mentoring relationship quality from the perspective of program supervisors

ABSTRACT

Mentoring relationship quality has frequently been associated with improved effectiveness of mentoring interventions for youth. As youth mentoring research has largely been undertaken in community-based, one-to-one mentoring programs in the United States, there have been recent calls to investigate mentoring relationships in specific contexts. Accordingly, this research examines relationship quality within nine mentor-mentee dyads involved in a New Zealand school-based mentoring program that combines one-to-one and group mentoring. This research identifies key features of and perceived influences on mentoring relationship quality using qualitative interviews with program staff and mentor portfolios. The results indicate that high quality relationships were formed during the program, and were primarily facilitated by mentors who demonstrated attunement, critical self-reflection, self-efficacy, and a holistic view of their mentee. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.