Validity extension of the Course-Faculty Instrument (CFI)

The Course-Faculty Instrument (CFI) demonstrates similar measurement properties with student populations at four diverse institutions. These students agree about the nature and extent to which course and instructor attributes relate to their learning. The results suggest that: (1) a perceived learning criterion may have general relevance to students, and (2) validity extension research is an economically feasible alternative to full-scale instrument development and validation efforts. Since validity extension is practical and facilitates cross-institutional comparisons, it appears to be a more viable strategy for researching and instituting student evaluation systems than is suggested by its current usage.     

Presenting Complex Teacher Evaluation Data: Advantages of Dossier Organization Techniques Over Portfolios

The development of extensive and authentic teacher evaluation raises questions about how best to organize and present the increased amount and variety of assessment materials. Portfolios have been suggested for teacher evaluation because they are well suited to capture the complexities of teaching. However, portfolios 1) are difficult to judge, 2) are difficult to archive, 3) lack key information, 4) miss excellent teachers with simple materials, 5) rarely plan for audiences, 6) distort when required, and 7) bring conflicts of interest. Teacher dossiers are compressed collections of objective data which are easier to judge, demonstrably reliable, and cost-effective.     

A prototype grammar kit in PROLOG

This article presents a prototype of a computerized grammar kit written in PROLOG and implemented on a LISP machine. The kit consists of tools and examples intended to be used by children interested in exploring language. A grammar written in PROLOG using this tool kit can be used not only to parse, but also to generate, sentences. A serious shortcoming of PROLOG for children is that when a program misbehaves one must understand its complex operational semantics. A major tool in the grammar kit to alleviate this problem is a dynamic graphical tracer which uses a backtracking turtle. This allows the user to see a parse tree as it is being built and, as a side-effect, gives a better understanding of PROLOG's chronological backtracking.The research reported herein was supported by the Swedish Board for Technical Development (STU) and Atari Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts.     

Teachers’ Ability to Identify Children at Early Risk for Reading Difficulties in Grade 1

The aim of the study was to investigate what kinds of assessment practices classroom teachers and special educational needs (SEN) teachers use in assessing first grade students' pre-reading skills (letter knowledge and phonological skills). Further, we investigated to what extent teachers were able to identify difficulties in pre-reading skills of the children with the lowest achievement scores. The accuracy of teacher ratings of students' pre-reading skills was studied by comparing teacher ratings to actual test scores. The data from two Finnish longitudinal studies were used: JLD sample (class teachers, n = 91; SEN teachers, n = 51; 200 students) and First Steps sample (class teachers, n = 136; SEN teachers, n = 34; 598 students). Results showed first, that most classroom teachers used qualitative assessment and SEN teachers also relied on tests. Secondly, although teacher ratings correlated with the test scores, closer investigation of sensitivity and specificity of the teacher ratings revealed that a number of children in need of extra support for their early reading development according to test scores remained unidentified. Moreover, there were some students identified by the teacher to have difficulties despite test scores not confirming that. The findings underline the importance for developing more specific and reliable assessment tools for teachers to use for pedagogical purposes, and respectively, the need to pay more attention to early identification of reading difficulties in teacher training program curricula.     

Catalysing Changes in Research on Learning Environments: Regional Editor's Introduction

Learning Environments Research -     

Student and Teacher Perspectives in Computer-Mediated Learning Environments in Teacher Education

Rapid advances in technology, particularly with the Internet, have led to the availability of numerous tools to support teaching and learning. This study involved the use of an Internet application, Connecting Communities of Learners (CCL), in courses for prospective teachers. Unlike earlier studies involving the use of the CCL, the context of this study related to full-time graduate students who used the CCL to augment weekly face-to-face instruction. An interpretive study was undertaken to ascertain student and teacher perceptions of the learning environments associated with the use of the CCL. Through the use of the CCL, students were able to be autonomous in regard to their own learning, co-participate with their peers and the instructor, and establish and maintain a community of learners in which participants could interact with others as co-teachers and co-learners. The CCL was perceived as a useful tool for building learning environments in which all participants can contribute written texts as evidence of what is known and as objects from which others can learn. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Replacing lectures with multimedia CBL: Student attitudes and reactions

The lectures for two modules which together comprise an introductory course on textiles and textile manufacturing comprising some 70 hours of lectures were replaced by computer-based multimedia learning material requiring a similar amount of study time. In a student project the reactions and attitudes of students to taking the computer-based course were elicited through two questionnaires. The results of the student project indicated that the data was worthy of further study, in particular, the responses to the second questionnaire. In this paper these data are analysed in detail. The attitudes and reactions of the students are linked to features of the material and its use, and to possible more general attitudes of the students. Consideration is given to the study behaviour of the students and ways in which the courseware might be improved are proposed.     

Part-Time Faculty in Colleges and Universities: Trends and Challenges in a Turbulent Environment

The fastest-growing group in postsecondary education is part-time faculty. The authors examine why the number of part-time faculty has increased so rapidly and then discuss some of the problems that part-timers face. Part-timers are increasing in academe, and administrators need to treat and evaluate them effectively and fairly. The authors recommend mentoring, job security, compensation, and self-worth as ways to improve performance.