The Role of Reform Curricular Materials in an Internship: The Case of Alice and Gregory

This report describes a case study of asecondary school mathematics internship wheremost of the elements of the internship ecologywere aligned with calls by the National Councilof Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM] for reform.Much research has been done on the lack ofimpact of teacher education programs on teacherclassroom behavior. Often this results fromdissonance between the philosophy and goals ofuniversity teacher education programs and thoseof schools. The case documented here offers aninstance of alignment between the universityprogram and the school internship site. Thefindings showed that within this supportiveatmosphere the reform curricular materialsbeing used in the classroom had a strong andlargely positive influence on the character ofthe internship experience, and on the intern'slearning. The form and content of the materials– Core-Plus Mathematics Project'sContemporary Mathematics in Context –supported reform-oriented development for theintern by providing particular foci to theplanning discussions between the intern and thementor. These areas of focus were: (a) themathematics content itself, (b) conceptualunderstanding as a main goal for instruction,and (c) the use of questioning as the bestmeans of guiding students to thatunderstanding. The findings highlight theimportance of developing reform-supportiveenvironments for intern teaching placements.     

Equating Error and Statistical Bias in Small Sample Linear Equating

A resampling study was conducted to compare the statistical bias and standard errors of nonequivalent-groups linear test equating in small samples of examinees. Sample sizes of 15, 25, 50, and 100 were examined. One thousand samples of each size were drawn with replacement from each of 5 archival data files from teacher subject area tests. For each test, data files from 2 parallel forms were used. Results suggest trivial levels of equating bias even with small samples, but substantial increases in standard errors as sample size decreases. Results were interpreted in terms of applications to testing situations in which small numbers of examinees are available.     

The Right “Fit”: Exploring Science Teacher Candidates’ Approaches to Natural Selection Within a Clinical Simulation

Teachers and students struggle with the complexities surrounding the evolution of species and the process of natural selection. This article examines how science teacher candidates (STCs) engage in a clinical simulation that foregrounds two common challenges associated with natural selection—students’ understanding of “survival of the fittest” and the variation of species over time. We outline the medical education pedagogy of clinical simulations and its recent diffusion to teacher education. Then, we outline the study that situates each STC in a one-to-one interaction with a standardized student who is struggling to accurately interpret natural selection concepts. In simulation with the standardized student, each STC is challenged to recognize content misconceptions and respond with appropriate instructional strategies and accurate explanations. Findings and implications center on the STCs’ instructional practices in the simulation and the use of clinical learning environments to foster science teacher learning.     

Illustrating the Dangers of Hunting the Process Mean

This article describes two simple ways to illustrate the important concept in statistical process control known as “hunting”. The two simulations use dice and Minitab respectively.     

Relative Effects of a Comprehensive Versus Reduced Training for Head Start Teachers Who Serve Spanish-Speaking English Learners

With increased demand for improved early childhood education services, it is important to better understand the essential professional development resources that have the greatest impact on both teacher and child outcomes. This study compared the effectiveness of two teacher-training models in bilingual Migrant and Seasonal Head Start and Head Start classrooms. Both conditions included the use of a technology-based student progress-monitoring tool. The progress monitoring provided detailed feedback on students’ progress 15 across the academic year and helped organize instructional groupings. The comprehensive treatment condition included biweekly professional development sessions, in-class mentoring, and provision of classroom materials, whereas the treatment-control condition included only the provision of a limited set of classroom materials. Across multiple sites in Texas, 49 pretest and posttest teacher observations and bilingual child assessments were collected on a subsample of students (n = 387). Research Findings: Improvements in teaching behaviors were observed in both experimental conditions; no significant differences were observed between teachers across conditions. Three measures of child language and literacy growth differed significantly, favoring the comprehensive treatment model, but most outcomes did not differ significantly between groups. Practice or Policy: Implications of these mixed findings and future research directions are discussed.     

The relative effects of pre- and postattention directing devices on learning from a “walk-through” museum exhibit

Twenty-eight seventh and eighth grade students were randomly assigned to two treatments and a control as they entered the Florida State Museum. All subjects were given set induction materials saying in effect: (1) Treatment-Study the wall panel which is part of the cave exhibit and describes the many biologic relationships and organisms in the cave at the cave entrance. Continue into the cave and study the habitat. When you exit the cave you will be given a test to see how much you learned; (2) Treatment II-Enter the cave and study that habitat. When you exit at the other end, study the wall panel which is part of the cave exit and describes the many biologic relationships and organisms in the cave. After studying this panel you will be given a test to see how much you learned; (3) Control-You will take a walk through exhibits depicting a variety of Florida Habitats and later see a film on the Habitats of Florida that are represented in the museum. Then you will be given a test to determine how much you know about one type of habitat. Both treatments and the control spent equivalent time at their tasks and were confronted with either the cave exhibit as described or the equivalent control experiences. A 25 item criterion test was designed to measure the acquisition of conceptual and factual knowledge and specific attentional factors relative to both the cave and the instructional panel. A Kr-20 indicated that this instrument had a reliability coefficient of 0.80. It was anticipated that the panel, used as an attention directing and controlling device prior to entering the cave (Treatment I) or upon exiting the cave (Treatment II), would function as a forward-shaping or backward review prompting adjunct, hence both should be significantly more effective than the control. This was confirmed (df 2,28; F 8.09) p < 0.01. It was also expected that the forward shaping panel would be more effective than the backward review panel in the tradition of inserted questions in prose research. Although the differences were in this direction, they were not significant (p≤ 0.10).     

Pre-service teachers in mathematics: Struggling with the Standards

The purpose of this paper is to describe a two-year investigation of pre-service teachers in mathematics. Of particular interest is the degree to which the NCTM (1989) Curriculum and evaluation standards for school mathematics, the NCTM (1991) Professional standards for teaching mathematics, and other reform agendas impact pre-service teachers' thinking and practices. The beliefs, perceptions, philosophies, and classroom actions of four cohorts of student teachers (n = 44) were examined throughout this 2year study. Of particular interest were the pressure student teachers felt to implement the Standards in their teaching, their perceptions of their own teaching with respect to the Standards, the content of their lessons, and the impact of cooperating teachers on the development of the student teachers. Data was collected through a variety of sources, organized and analyzed in the spirit of ethnographic work. Data was generated through classroom observations, pre- and post-lesson conferences, lesson plans, seminar sessions, survey questionnaires, and informal conversations. A minimum of four classroom observations were made for each participant. Analysis of the data revealed general agreement among the student teachers in their regard for the Standards. Although they appeared to affirm the goals, content and recommendations contained therein, they almost uniformly suggest that they lack the tools to implement the Standards appropriately in the classroom. The consistency in the types and content of lessons observed appeared to validate this concern. An overwhelming majority of the lessons observed bore little or no resemblance to the values so highly espoused by the student teachers. Student teachers perceived notable pressure from the education program to include the Standards in their teaching practices, while feeling little pressure from cooperating teachers. They also point to cooperating teachers as the most significant influence on their teaching.     

Associations Between Classroom Environment and Academic Efficacy

Research was conducted on associations between classroom psychosocial environment and academic efficacy. A sample of 1055 mathematics students from Australian secondary schools responded to an instrument that assessed ten dimensions of mathematics classroom environment (viz. Student Cohesiveness, Teacher Support, Investigation, Task Orientation, Cooperation, Equity, Involvement, Personal Relevance, Shared Control, Student Negotiation). These scales were from two existing instruments, namely, What Is Happening In This Classroom? (WIHIC) and the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES). A seven-item scale assessed students' academic efficacy at mathematics-related tasks. Simple and multiple correlation analyses revealed statistically significant correlations between these classroom environment dimensions and academic efficacy. Results showed that classroom environment relates positively with academic efficacy. A commonality analysis showed that the three scales from the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey scales did not contribute greatly to explaining variance in academic efficacy beyond that attributed to the seven scales in the What Is Happening In This Classroom? questionnaire.