Risk of Early Onset Substance Use among Students with and without Mild Academic Disabilities: Results of a Discrete‐Time Survival Analysis

This study investigated the age of onset of substance use among 536 students with mild academic disabilities and 906 students without academic disabilities, and the extent to which emotional, conduct, and hyperactivity problems explain the differences between these two groups. Using discrete‐time survival analysis, the results of this study showed that students with a mild academic disability were not at higher risk for the onset of daily smoking, and were at a significantly lower risk for the onset of weekly alcohol use and cannabis use. Though students with a mild academic disability displayed higher scores on conduct, emotional, and hyperactivity problems compared with their counterparts without an academic disability, this was not reflected in an increased risk for early onset substance use.     

A Cross-Cultural Study of the Self-Confidence of Counselors-in-Training

In this era of globalization, cross-cultural comparison studies could help counselor training programs enhance educational opportunities that are informative, supportive, and culturally responsive to students. Counselors-in-training in both the United States and South Korea were sampled in this study assessing self-esteem (individual and collective) and counselor activity self-efficacy (CA self-efficacy). Results indicated that American students endorsed higher levels of collective self-esteem and CA self-efficacy compared to Korean students. Age was positively correlated with CA self-efficacy in both the American and Korean samples. Additionally, the variable of supervision hours and internship experience was positively correlated with CA self-efficacy for American students, but showed no relationship with CA self-efficacy for Korea students. Implications for understanding the cultural differences of counseling-trainees’ self-confidence and the need for conducting cross-cultural comparison studies to provide insights about the training and development of trainees in cross-cultural settings are discussed.     

Diffraction and response-able reading of texts: the relational ontologies of Barad and Deleuze

In this paper, we use a diffractive reading developed by feminist philosopher and quantum physicist Karen Barad, as part of a response-able methodology, in order to consider the claim made by Serge Hein in his paper ‘The New Materialism in Qualitative Inquiry: How Compatible Are the Philosophies of Barad and Deleuze?’ (2016) that the philosophies of Barad and Deleuze and Guattari are incommensurable. Our point of departure is from a stance which is quite different from that of Hein’s – we propose that it is indeed productive to put the work of Barad into conversation with that of Deleuze. As an alternative to critique used by Hein to engage with the work of Barad and Deleuze, we consider how a response-able and diffractive reading of notions of critique could provide a more affirmative and productive way of reading academic texts, including those by Barad and Deleuze.     

Intensity and content of private tutoring lessons during German secondary schooling: effects on students’ grades and test achievement

Private supplementary tutoring is a widespread phenomenon. However, evidence that private tutoring has positive effects on academic achievement or about the specific conditions of successful private tutoring is rare. Adapting Carroll’s (1963) model for school learning to private tutoring, we expected to find positive effects of tutoring duration, tutoring intensity, and students’ motivation to attend private tutoring. In a sample of eighth-grade students in German secondary schools (N = 8510, 18.6% currently being tutored), we conducted regression analyses with multiple covariates and did not find a positive main effect of private tutoring attendance in any of the school subjects examined. Moreover, within the subsamples of tutored students, we were not able to identify positive effects of tutoring duration, tutoring intensity, tutoring content (such as a focus on homework completion, test preparation, or study behavior), or students’ motivation to attend private tutoring. Given these disillusioning findings, we primarily derive suggestions for future research.

     

Unpacking the issues: Researching the shortage of school principals in two states in Australia

An investigation into the declining supply of principals in two states in Australia revealed that a mosaic of issues surrounds the overall trend towards fewer applications for vacant positions. Looking beyond systemic factors influencing this trend — factors such as the increasing workload of principals — this study discovered why some schools are more affected by a shortage of applicants than others. We found that one of four categories of deterrents was generally involved with declining numbers of applications: location, the size of school, the presence of an incumbent, or difficulties arising from local educational politics. We found, furthermore, that smaller numbers of applicants for vacant positions do not necessarily indicate a decline in interest in school leadership: interest in the principalship remains relatively high but principal aspirants have become increasingly strategic in their applications. Whilst drawing attention, in this paper, to the research finding that numerical interpretations of principal supply have serious limitations, we are keen to acknowledge, briefly, the research data that refers to (a) social and generational changes (b) demographic information, (c) teacher resistance to the modern principalship and how these data explain declining numbers. We also include information about recent changes that go counter to the trend.     

Under-threes’ mathematical learning – teachers’ perspectives

This project highlights preschool teachers’ views of toddlers’ learning in mathematics. The Swedish national curriculum covers even the youngest children who are 1–3?years old. Interesting questions are thus: what should mathematics be for this age group and how should preschool teachers work with maths to achieve the curriculum objectives? Data were collected through interviews with six preschool teachers working in four different preschools. The data show that the teachers emphasize the body as very important for the learning process, which means that for these children, it is not a matter of simply talking about mathematical concepts, but experiencing them bodily. The teachers also report that they now pay more attention than previously to what material the children use and how they interact with it. They are more aware of how they organize and offer the various materials in the preschool and how this influences the way children use them and, consequently, their learning processes.