The Role of Informal Support Networks in Teaching the Nature of Science

This study reports the participation of 13 secondary science teachers in informal support networks and how that participation was associated with their nature of science (NOS) teaching practices 2 to 5 years after having graduated from the same science teacher education program. The nine teachers who participated in informal support networks taught the NOS at high/medium levels, while the four non-participating teachers taught the NOS at low levels. The nine high/medium NOS implementation teachers credited the informal support networks for maintaining/heightening their sense of responsibility for teaching NOS and for helping them navigate institutional constraints that impede effective NOS instruction. Several high/medium NOS instruction implementers initially struggled to autonomously frame and resolve the complexities experienced in schools and thus drew from the support networks to engage in more sophisticated forms of teacher decision-making. In contrast, the NOS pedagogical decisions of the four teachers not participating in support networks were governed primarily by the expectations and constraints experienced in their schools. Implications of this study include the need for reconsidering the structure of teacher mentorship programs to ensure they do not promote archaic science teaching practices that are at odds with reform efforts in science education.

     

Exploring the dimensionality of morphological knowledge for adolescent readers

This study examined the dimensionality of morphological knowledge. The performance of 371 seventh‐ and eighth‐graders on seven morphological knowledge tasks was investigated using confirmatory factor analysis. Results suggested that morphological knowledge was best fit by a bifactor model with a general factor of morphological knowledge and seven specific factors, representing tasks that tap different facets of morphological knowledge. Next, structural equation modelling was used to explore links to literacy outcomes. Results indicated the general factor and the specific factor of morphological meaning processing showed significant positive associations with reading comprehension and vocabulary. Also, the specific factor of generating morphologically related words showed significant positive associations with vocabulary, while specific factors of morphological word reading and spelling processing showed small negative relationships to reading comprehension and vocabulary. Findings highlight the complexity of morphological knowledge and suggest the importance of being cognizant of the nature of morphology when designing and interpreting studies.     

Teacher adaptation to flexible learning environments

Learning Environments Research - Teaching practices respond to the prompts, resources and inherent potential of a school’s physical, social and cultural landscape. This study involved how...     

Conditions for young infants' perception of object trajectories

When an object moves behind an occluder and re-emerges, 4-month-old infants perceive trajectory continuity only when the occluder is narrow, raising the question of whether time or distance out of sight is the important constraining variable. One hundred and forty 4-month-olds were tested in five experiments aimed to disambiguate time and distance out of sight. Manipulating the object's visible speed had no effect on infants' responses, but reducing occlusion time by increasing object speed while occluded induced perception of trajectory continuity. In contrast, slowing the ball while it was behind a narrow or intermediate screen did not modify performance. It is concluded that 4-month-olds perceive trajectory continuity when time or distance out of sight is short.     

The influence of study of a second language on improvement in spelling

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which study of Latin might influence high school students' improvement in spelling. Skilled and less skilled spellers who chose to study Latin or other second languages in ninth-grade were given a standardized and an experimental spelling test, which allowed for a comparison of their spelling of words of Latin and Greek origin, both in the fall of their ninth-grade and the spring of their eleventh-grade year. While skilled spellers generally made greater progress than less skilled spellers, the students of Latin did not outperform students of other second languages either on the standardized spelling test or specifically on words of Latin origin. Analysis of errors on the experimental test indicated that certain words of Latin origin were misspelled as frequently by eleventh as by ninth graders; these may have affected the lower rate of improvement on words of Latin origin, in contrast to the words of Greek origin. The results suggest particular ways in which the relationship of spelling proficiency and study of language might be investigated further.     

Contact,culture and context: evidence from mixed faith schools in Northern Ireland and Israel

This paper compares the concept of mixed faith/cultural education in Northern Ireland and Israel. It is primarily concerned with the processes that these ‘integrated’ schools adopt in their quest to improve relations between divided ethnic groups. Drawing on qualitative data collected in two mixed religion primary schools in each jurisdiction the paper shows that the schools' existing cultural norms act as important mediating influences on the way that inter‐group relationships are constructed. The paper concludes that attention needs to be paid to both the policy context and the culture if contact initiatives are to be successful.     

Teachers’ experiences of a single‐sex initiative in a co‐education school

Argued to ‘raise boys’ grades’ and ‘boost boys’ academic achievement’, single‐sex classes in coeducation schools is one strategy among a plethora aimed at raising standards. This paper explores the experiences of teachers in one coeducation post‐primary school that sought to raise academic performance, particularly among boys, and to improve classroom behaviour by introducing single‐sex classes. Funded by a local Education and Library Board the evaluation took place almost four years after the strategy was introduced and in a climate of increasing teacher concern with the effectiveness of the strategy. The methods involved a questionnaire survey to all teachers in the school and one‐to‐one and small group interviews with teachers responsible for teaching single‐sex classes. Contrary to its stated aims, the majority of teachers believe that, since the introduction of single‐sex classes, academic performance and classroom behaviour have deteriorated. Findings are discussed in terms of teachers’ perceptions of the strategy and the importance organizational and contextual factors have on shaping teachers’ attitudes to new initiatives.