E-assessment: challenges to the legitimacy of VET practitioners and auditors

This research examines what practitioners in vocational education and training (VET) organisations and external auditors judge to be the key issues in the current and future use of e-assessment. Applying the framework of legitimacy theory, the study examined the tensions around the use and growth of e-assessment in training organisations, and challenges to both training bodies and auditors around their legitimacy to operate. Forty-eight interviews, 10 focus groups and 2 industry workshops were completed with practitioners and auditors who had in-depth experience in e-assessment and audit practices. Results revealed tensions between training providers and auditors around the current validity, authenticity and security of e-assessment. However, there was also strong agreement between the groups about the practical steps for resolving these tensions between auditors and VET institutions.     

Educational reform in Britain: Beyond the National Curriculum

The essay begins with an account of why Britain introduced a National Curriculum for English and Welsh schools in 1988 in place of its previously more autonomous system. It goes on to analyse the content and aims of the National Curriculum and includes a comparison with Stalin's curriculum for schools in the USSR. An alternative to the National Curriculum is sketched out, centring around the aim of promoting personal autonomy for all. In the last part of the paper recent British experience of greater centralization and vocational orientation of the curriculum is contrasted with recent moves by the USSR State Committee on Education towards the democratization and humanization of the Soviet school system.

---

Zusammenfassung Die Abhandlung beginnt mit einem Bericht, warum Großbritannien 1988 anstelle seines bis dahin eher autonomen Systems einen nationalen Lehrplan für englische und walisische Schulen einführte. Anschließend analysiert der Verfasser Inhalt und Ziele des nationalen Lehrplans und zieht einen Vergleich zwischen diesem und Stalins Lehrplan für Schulen in der UdSSR. Er umreißt eine Alternative zum nationalen Lehrplan, die im wesentlichen die Förderung der persönlichen Autonomie für alle zum Ziel hat. Im letzten Teil des Artikels werden die jüngsten britischen Erfahrungen einer größeren Zentralisierung und einer beruflichen Orientierung des Curriculums den kürzlich unternommenen Schritten des staatlichen sowjetischen Komitees für Bildung in Richtung Demokratisierung und Humanisierung des sowjetischen Schulwesens gegenübergestellt.

---

Résumé Le présent article commence par un exposé sur les raisons qui ont poussé la Grande Bretagne à introduire un curriculum national dans les écoles anglaises et galloises, qui a remplacé en 1988 le système plus autonome jusqu'alors en vigueur. On donne ensuite une analyse du contenu et des objectifs de ce programme d'études national qui est comparé à celui établi par Staline pour les écoles soviétiques. On esquisse une solution alternative à ce curriculum national, qui est centrée sur la promotion de l'autonomie personnelle pour tous. Dans la dernière partie de cet article, on compare les expériences faites récemment en Angleterre en matière de plus grande centralisation et de formation professionnelle du curriculum avec les changements introduits depuis peu par le Comité d'Etat de l'Education de l'URSS en vue de la démocratisation et de l'humanisation du système éducatif soviétique.

     

The teacher efficacy for inclusive practices (TEIP) scale: dimensionality and factor structure

The Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices (TEIP) scale is designed to measure teacher‐self efficacy to teach in inclusive classrooms. The original study identified three scale factors: efficacy in using inclusive instruction (EII), efficacy in collaboration (EC), and efficacy in managing behavior (EMB) (Sharma et al., 2012). The purpose of our study was to examine the TEIP scale for dimensionality and to cross‐validate its factor structure for pre‐service teachers in the context of early childhood education. A bifactor model fit to the data revealed that the TEIP scale is essentially unidimensional, that is, there is one dominant latent factor and the originally found three scale factors (EII, EC, and EMB) represent specific aspects of the general factor of teacher self‐efficacy to teach in inclusive classrooms. Along with providing validation evidence, these findings have important implications for the scoring on the TEIP scale using classical test analysis or unidimensional item response theory models.     

Towards an ethic of cultural responsiveness in researching Māori and Tongan children’s learning in everyday settings

ABSTRACT

To inform a larger research programme on informal teaching and learning in everyday settings in Aotearoa New Zealand, two parallel pilot studies were conducted to determine an appropriate method for capturing the everyday learning of culturally and socio-economically diverse children. The studies took place during the six-week holiday break between school years. In one, three Māori children participated, in the other three Tongan children. This paper discusses the unanticipated issues that arose as a result of the ‘ethic of cultural responsiveness’ that the research team developed during the course of the research. These included: the insights made visible by culturally informed interpretation of unremarkable everyday activities; the effects on family dynamics of the research; and responsibilities to participants. It is argued that for Māori and Tongan children culture and family are central to everyday learning and therefore the research process and interpretation of data must be culturally informed.     

Developing Successful Readers: Building Early Comprehension Skills through Television Viewing and Listening

Developing the ability to read is a complex process involving a variety of skills, including both basic language skills and language comprehension skills. Although a balanced reading program would include the development of basic language and comprehension skills, comprehension has often been overlooked in early reading instruction. In this article, we examine recent research findings on how comprehension skills develop in young children and discuss the implications of those findings for comprehension assessment and interventions.     

Group treatments for women sexually abused as children: a review of the literature and recommendations for future outcome research

OBJECTIVE: Adults with a history of sexual abuse often suffer many long-term consequences. It is important that therapists be able to provide effective treatment to address the host of issues that are presented in therapy by adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse (CSA). In order to provide the best possible treatment, therapists should know which treatments are most effective. METHOD: This paper provides a critique of the outcome research of 13 studies (six uncontrolled and seven controlled) on the treatment of adults who suffered childhood sexual abuse and discusses specific methodological strategies that can enhance the quality of such research in the future. RESULTS: Although many of the studies contain methodological limitations, the results generally indicate that group treatment helps reduce symptomatology in the short-term and at follow-up. CONCLUSION: Although outcome research has not been published on specific individual or conjoint treatment approaches for adult survivors of CSA, several outcome studies have found group treatment to be effective in the recovery of female CSA survivors.     

Children's inference generation across different media

In the present study, we investigated the degree to which children's inference generation ability generalises across different media and predicts narrative comprehension over and above basic language skills and vocabulary. To address both aims, we followed two cohorts of children aged 4 and 6 as they turned 6 and 8 years old, respectively. At each time point we assessed their inference and narrative comprehension skills using aural, televised and written stories. We also assessed their basic language skills and vocabulary. The findings demonstrated that children's inference generation skills were highly inter‐related across different media for both cohorts and at both time points. Also, children's inference generation had a significant contribution to children's narrative comprehension over and above basic language skills, vocabulary and media factors. The current set of findings has important theoretical and practical implications for early diagnosis and intervention in young children's high‐order comprehension skills.     

An eco-behavioral analysis of children's engagement in urban public school preschool classrooms

The primary aim of this study was to identify particular group configurations and teacher behaviors that co-occurred with children's active engagement in public school early childhood classrooms for 4-year-olds. Children (N = 138, 52% boys) were observed using a time sampling method in 12 classrooms in 12 urban schools serving students from predominantly lower-income, minority families. Children were involved in whole group settings for 52% of observations. The most common teacher behavior in any setting was providing direction/instruction. Logistic regression analyses indicated that, during academic activities, children were more likely to be actively engaged when involved in a peer group and when teachers were providing affirmations or were monitoring, and least likely to be actively engaged in a whole group and when teachers were providing directions. During play activities, children were more likely to be actively engaged when they were alone and least likely to be engaged in a whole group and in a child–teacher setting.