“Big Deals” and Squeaky Wheels: Taking Stock of Your Stats

This article describes a half-day pre-conference focused on the ins and outs of assessing “Big Deals.” The presenters gave an overview of issues related to “Big Deals,” and engaged the attendees in discussions about their own experiences with the topic. They then detailed the process of assessing “Big Deals” at their institution, including their methods for evaluating usage statistics. Attendees were provided with sample Excel spreadsheets for hands-on exercises to practice applying the methods described.     

Visions about future: a new scale assessing optimism,pessimism, and hope in adolescents

This article reports the development and psychometric properties of visions about future (VAF), an instrument assessing hope, optimism, and pessimism. Three different studies involving Italian adolescents were conducted. With the first study 22 items were developed and the factor structure was verified. The second study, involving a second sample of adolescents, confirmed the instrument’s multidimensional structure and evaluated the convergent validity of VAF with self-report measures of hope, optimism, and pessimism. Moreover, it showed that VAF correlated with life satisfaction and career adaptability. The third study involved a third sample of adolescents and verified the measurement invariance across gender.     

Körperbild und Körperzufriedenheit im Leistungssport

The controversy surrounding the role of competitive sports in the development of eating disorders has increased in recent decades. There are inconsistent findings in the literature concerning the relationship between eating disorders and competitive sports, especially aesthetic sports. The aim of this study was therefore to assess eating disorder-related psychopathology in a sample of competitive figure skaters (FS) representative for competitive aesthetic sports. Special attention is paid to the investigation of body image and body satisfaction. Patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) and a healthy control group (CG) served as comparison groups. None of the FS met the complete diagnostic criteria for an eating disorder. Furthermore no significant differences were observed between the FS and the CG regarding body image and body satisfaction. However, a significant difference was detected compared to the AN patients. Our results underline the necessity for a differentiated analysis and careful diagnostics of sport-specific aspects when considering eating disorder-related psychopathology in competitive sports.     

Relationship with instructor and other variables influencing student evaluations of instruction

This study examined some of the factors which influence college students’ evaluations of their instructors. Data were collected from 557 students enrolled in a basic speech communication course. Overall, a student's relationship with the instructor was the best predictor of the student's evaluation of the instructor. This study lends partial support to the idea that students evaluate male and female instructors differently. The variables examined in this study were better predictors of student evaluation of female than male instructors.     

Critical moments in the process of educational change: understanding the dynamics of change among teacher educators

This study examines the complex process of change among teacher educators who have chosen to improve their practice in a professional development community. Storyline methodology was used to reveal the dynamic process which teacher educators undergo when they consider adopting innovative pedagogy. Findings reveal critical moments in professional development which are characterised by evaluation of feedback from colleagues and students. Professional growth results not only from interaction and negotiation of meaning within the community but also from the effects of messages received from outside the communal context. A two factor model taking into account implementation and feedback is used to show the dynamic process of evaluation and negotiation in teacher educators’ professional development trajectory. This study deepens understanding of transition towards change within learning communities, while providing insight into the development of teacher educators as a distinct professional group.     

Realisation of strategic leadership in leadership teams' work as experienced by the leadership team members of basic education schools

This article introduces a quantitative research into how the leadership team members of 49 basic education schools in the city of Vantaa, Finland, experienced the realisation of strategic leadership in their leadership teams' work. The data were collected by a survey of 24 statements, rated on a five-point Likert scale, and analysed with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The only variant explaining the differences in experiencing the realisation of strategic leadership in the leadership teams' work statistically, almost significantly, was the leadership team membership.     

AGE‐RELATED DIFFERENCES IN ACADEMIC BURNOUT OF KOREAN ADOLESCENTS

Korean adolescents experience considerable stress because of an educational system that focuses primarily on college entrance examinations, pressure for academic achievement, and a competitive atmosphere in school. The main purpose of this study was to explore age differences in the construct of Korean adolescents’ academic burnout. Once assumptions of configural, factor loading, and intercept invariance were satisfied, we compared means of latent variables (four components of academic burnout in the present study). Results of the latent mean analysis showed that all four subscales (exhaustion, antipathy, cynicism, and inefficacy) of academic burnout increased gradually as age increased. Moving from elementary to middle and middle to high school appears to be stressful for students. Implications for school professionals and recommendations for future research are discussed.     

Auto-Ethnography: Creating an Original Performance With High School English Language Learners

Arts-based teaching techniques using physicality help English Language Learners to develop self-awareness. A strong familial and social identity empowers self-expression.