A Study of the Impact of Transformative Professional Development on Hispanic Student Performance on State Mandated Assessments of Science in Elementary School

This paper reports the findings of a study of the impact of the transformative professional development (TPD) model on student achievement on state-mandated assessments of science in elementary school. Two schools (one intervention and one control) participated in the case study where teachers from one school received the TPD intervention across a 2-year period while teachers at the other school received no program and continued business as usual. The TPD program includes a focus on the core conceptual framework for effective professional development (Desimone in Educ Res 38:181–199, 2009) as well as an emphasis on culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) and other effective science instructional strategies. Findings revealed that participation in TPD had a significant impact on student achievement for Burns Elementary with the percentage of proficient students growing from 25 % at baseline to 67 % at the end of the 2-year program, while the comparison school did not experience similar growth. Implications for future research and implementation of professional development programs to meet the needs of teachers in the realm of CRP in science are discussed.     

The Difficulty of Teacher Dispositions: Considering Professional Dispositions for Preservice English Teachers

This article explores the place of teacher dispositions in English teacher preparation by contextualizing the issue of dispositions in English teacher preparation. This allows consideration for the importance of developing professional dispositions during English teacher preparation by recognizing that various stakeholders (teacher educators, university supervisors, mentor teachers, and preservice teachers) in teacher education often understand dispositions differently. The authors reflect and offer suggestions on how professional dispositions might be more effectively addressed in an English teacher education program through richer interactions among all stakeholders.     

‘I would just like to run away and hide,but I won't!’ Exploring Attitudes and Perceptions on Child Protection Issues with Early Years Teacher Trainees on the Threshold of Their Careers

Abstract

This research sets out to examine the perceptions and attitudes of a cohort of early years specialist teacher trainees with regard to child protection issues as they prepare to enter the teaching profession. The trainees were at the end of a three‐year Primary Initial Teacher Training Course in the north of England. We had set out within the course to present a paradigm to the trainees of the newly qualified early years teacher as not only an effective agent in preventing child abuse but also the ‘advocates for the structural changes in society which would aim to eradicate child abuse’ (David, 1993, p. 84). We were particularly concerned with exploring whether our course had gone beyond the mechanistic and legal framework of the Standards [1] [1] The Standards referred to throughout this article are the Standards for the Award of Qualified Teacher Status—Annex A of Department of Education and Employment Circular 4/98 (DfEE, 1998). to produce reflective and effective early years practitioners able both to discuss their feelings and perceptions of child protection issues and to articulate their concerns (Braun & Schonveld, 1994, p. 92). The research found that the trainees feel anxious both about making decisions on issues concerning child abuse and working with members of families who could be abusers. Furthermore, they were extremely anxious concerning the whole area of inter‐agency working in the early years. Nevertheless they have developed strong and sophisticated levels of thinking in this area and are universal in their willingness to become advocates for the young child with regard to child protection issues. They hold firmly onto their ideological aspirations of the young child as the centre of the classroom and are willing to encompass the role of the teacher/social worker.

     

The development and assessment of an online microscopic anatomy laboratory course

Increasing enrollment in post‐secondary institutions across North America, along with an increase in popularity of and demand for distance education is pressuring institutions to offer a greater number and variety of courses online. A fully online laboratory course in microscopic anatomy (histology) which can be taught simultaneously with a face‐to‐face (F2F) version of the same course has been developed. This full year course was offered in the Fall/Winter (FW) terms in both F2F and online formats. To ensure that the online course was of the same quality as the F2F format, a number of performance indicators were evaluated. The same course, offered exclusively online during the summer with a compressed time frame, was also evaluated. Senior undergraduate students self‐selected which version of the course they would enroll in. Course assessment outcomes were compared while incoming grades were used as a predictor for course performance. There were no significant differences between the incoming grades for the F2F FW and Online FW courses; similarly, there were no significant differences between outcomes for these formats. There were significant differences between the incoming grades of the F2F FW and Summer Online students. However, there were no significant differences among any of the outcomes for any of the formats offered. Incoming grades were strong, significant predictors of course performance for both formats. These results indicate that an online laboratory course in microscopic anatomy is an effective format for delivering histology course content, therefore giving students greater options for course selections. Anat Sci Educ 6: 246–256. © 2013 American Association of Anatomists.     

Outcome Assessment of Mentorship Program

This paper reports results of a survey that studied the outcomes of a mentorship program. Students enrolled in a core course for the MA and certificate in gerontology programs were required to select either a long-term care service, a program in aging, or an agency providing services for senior adults, where they could spend a day interacting with a mentor. A wide range of sites were available and students could select one site for 8 hours or two sites for 4 hours each. The researchers were interested in assessing both the opinions of the students who participated and of the mentors themselves about this educational experience. A survey that had a series of open-ended and close-ended questions was administered to all graduate students who participated as well as to the mentors at their various sites. This paper discusses the implications of this program as a model for other gerontology programs. It delineates mentor and student suggestions about the strengths and weaknesses of the current set-up of the mentorship program. Suggestions are made for further study of this pedagogical tool.     

On Determining Three Dimensional Regions of Significance

How educational goals are conceptualized as a construct has implications for developing and evaluating educational programs and activities. The author used EQS 3.0 to test the factorial validity of 4 models of conceptualization of educational goals by conducting confirmatory factor analysis on empirical data collected from 1,134 education faculty members. The 4-factor model espoused by Goodlad fit the data best, and the participants wanted academic, vocational, personal, and social goals to be in relative harmony. Implications for educational theory, practice, and research are discussed.     

Differing Map Construction and Text Organization and Their Effects on Retention

On the basis of Kulhavy's (R. W. Kulhavy, J. B. Lee, & L. C. Caterino, 1985) conjoint retention model of text learning with organized spatial displays, the authors conducted 2 experiments to analyze the effects of different types of maps and a considerate text (i.e., a text that follows the scanning pattern of the map) or an inconsiderate text. In the 1st study, 158 participants viewed an intact or a segmented map and a considerate or a randomized text. Those participants who viewed the intact map and read the considerate text recalled significantly more information than those who viewed the intact map and read the randomized text. In the 2nd study, 179 participants viewed a flat map, a 1-point perspective map, or a 2-point perspective map, and a considerate text formulated on the basis of the predicted scanning pattern of the map. Those participants who viewed the flat map recalled significantly more information than those who viewed the perspective maps.     

The Value of Performance in Physical Education Teacher Education

It is widely accepted that doping in sports is, by definition, cheating. If we allow that cheating is advantage-seeking behavior utilized by one party in an agreement-defined activity that disallows that behavior, then taking drugs when others do not is cheating. The focus of this definition is on the intentions and purpose of the actor, which is primarily about advantage seeking. This article will argue that the effect of anabolic steroid addiction on the volition of the actor caeteris paribus invalidates the adequacy of cheating to describe this behavior.     

SCHOOL AND READING

The purpose of this column is to keep religious educators abreast of the relevant significant research m the general field, of psychology. Its implications for methods and materials in religious education are clear. Religious educators may well take advantage of every new finding in scientific research.

Each abstract or group is preceded by an evaluation and interpretative comment, which aims to guide the reader in understanding the research reported.

All of these abstracts are from PSYCHOLOGICAL ABSTRACTS, and used by permission of that periodical. The abstract number is Volume 32, Number 1, February 1958.     

THE CHRISTIAN AND THE UNIVERSITY

“Life begins with fear of the unknown and, if it has been thoughtfully lived, ends with acknowledgment and self‐restraint.” K. Lange

“Why is it that God does not allow an organization to remain pure for more than one generation?” William Booth