Tertiary Students' Perceptions of their Learning Environments: A New Procedure and Some Outcomes

The use of student perceptions in improving teaching and learning is briefly reviewed along with an analysis of potential limitations of procedures commonly used to gather those perceptions. An alternative procedure, the Perceptions of Learning Environments Questionnaire (PLEQ), is suggested in an attempt to overcome the limitations. 1249 students from ten schools in five faculties at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane. Australia were given the opportunity, using the semi‐structured but open‐ended format of the PLEQ, to write about events that they felt helped or hindered their learning ('statements')‐ In each case, they were also asked to indicate why ('reasons'). The data were classified into 55 categories of ‘statements’ and 47 categories of ‘reasons’ where each category had a positive and negative dimension. Analysis of the students' views indicate that, for them, effective teaching is relevant, experiential and interactive while ineffective teaching lacks structure, is inappropriately paced, lacks variety and occurs in a classroom that lacks discipline. The implications of these views are examined in terms of contemporary approaches to teaching and learning.     

The Great God of the Future: the Views of Current and Future English Teachers on the Place of IT in Literacy

Based on a small but representative study it appears that, in contrast to the past and to some current perceptions, the majority of student teachers and about half of serving teachers of English now welcome information technology (IT) in English and see it as central to the literacy of all pupils. Some current teachers of English remain ambivalent about IT but the general trend is toward a broader definition of literacy in English that gives significant, if not yet equal, value to electronic text alongside the printed word.     

Overcoming barriers to using precision teaching with a web-based programme

Precision Teaching (PT) is an evidence-based intervention, which research indicates is frequently not implemented following training, with few teachers using it in schools after training events. The web-based programme in this research focuses on word-level reading skills and targets blending and segmenting skills rather than whole word reading. This research, undertaken with 10 schools, explored whether a web-based PT programme would provide favourable implementation rates, and support the fidelity of the programme delivery. The study also measured the impact of the PT programme on word decoding and sight word reading using the Test of Word Reading Efficiency. Results suggest favourable implementation rates with 7 of the 10 schools implementing the programme. Full impact data for 34 children suggest that the programme has a positive impact on decoding (effect size 0.7) and sight word reading skills (effect size 0.6). A timed assessment provides evidence that fluency improved as well as accuracy. Gains were sustained at two-month follow-up.     

The effectiveness of classroom-based instructional assessments for progress monitoring purposes in Texas Reading First schools

The purpose of this article was twofold. First, the assessment materials from four core reading programs were informally reviewed for their adherence to Texas Reading First progress monitoring guidelines for kindergarten and the beginning of Grade 1. Conclusions support existing concerns regarding the variability in the quality and quantity of assessment materials within and across programs as well as concerns about whether the materials lend themselves to progress monitoring purposes at 2-week intervals for students who are struggling readers. Second, recommendations are made for the development of progress monitoring tools that are concise, easy for teachers to use, and that provide clear guidelines regarding the use of progress monitoring data to drive instruction. Accordingly the recent development of a progress monitoring tool that parallels the Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI), which is an assessment tool used in approximately 95% of Texas Reading First schools was discussed.