Spaces of influence: A framework for analysis of an individual’s contribution within communities of practice

Within our lives there are spaces of influence or opportunities in which the impact of an ‘influential other’ enables learning in ways that might not otherwise occur. This paper focusses on learning in terms of the learning of others, and in particular the professional impact of John Bowden. Building on the work of Vygotsky (1978 Vygotsky, L. S. 1978. Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.  [Google Scholar]), and Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976 Wood, D., Bruner, J. and Ross, G. 1976. The role of tutoring in problem solving. Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 17(1): 89–100.  [Google Scholar]), the notion of supported learning is revisited and extended. A range of actual stories involving Bowden as key influence are presented through which the term: spaces of influence is developed. The stories flow from varied contexts including those pertaining to research students, communities of practice around methodological positions steeped in qualitative methods, phenomenography, and a scholarly review network. Five spaces within a metaspace of influence‐action, explicit discourse, learning, practice development and trust are developed through the analysis of the stories. The paper pays tribute to the significant work of John Bowden, through the telling of embedded stories, the interweaving of theory such as Bowden and Marton’s (1998 Bowden, J. and Marton, F. 1998. The university of learning: Beyond quality and competence in higher education, London: Kogan Page.  [Google Scholar]) theory of learning for an unknown future, and through the development of the notion of spaces of influence that emerged from reflection here on Bowden’s contribution within communities of practice.     

Exploring variations in teachers' work,lives and their effects on pupils: key findings and implications from a longitudinal mixed‐method study

This article outlines the research design of a large‐scale, longitudinal research study in England intended to describe and explore variations in teachers' work, lives and their effects on pupils' educational outcomes. The study, funded by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) and incorporated into the Teaching and Learning Research Programme (TLRP) as an ‘Associate Project’, used an innovative mixed‐methods research design to create case studies of 300 teachers in Years 2, 6 and 9. The research was conducted over three consecutive academic years and collected a wide range of data through interviews, questionnaire surveys of teachers' and pupils' views and assessment data on pupils' attainments in English and mathematics. The text summarises the main findings from the research in relation to four interconnected themes of the study: Professional Life Phases; Professional Identity; Relative Effectiveness; and Resilience and Commitment. The influence of school context, in terms of level of social disadvantage of pupil intake, is also investigated. Key findings and their implications for policy and practice are highlighted.     

A Partisan Evaluation‐‐John Elliott on school effectiveness

This paper is a response to ‘School effectiveness research and its critics; alternative visions of schooling’ by John Elliott (Cambridge Journal of Education, 1996, 26, pp. 199‐223). It is argued that Elliott knows little of the knowledge base, misinterprets what he knows and fails to support his criticisms with evidence. It is concluded that educational advance and improvement can be furthered by school effectiveness research.     

Engaging New Faculty in the Scholarship of Teaching

This article describes how scholarly teaching projects were conceived, implemented, and evaluated by junior faculty from a variety of disciplines at a medium-sized midwestern university. The authors explore: considerations in designing scholarly teaching projects, methods used to evaluate teaching effectiveness, and outcomes of the teaching projects. Finally, two of the teaching projects illustrate how junior faculty with diverse courses, class sizes, and teaching concerns approached the task of improving their teaching.     

Health information: an evaluation of the use of touch screen kiosks in two hospitals

An exit questionnaire survey of 150 hospital users of a touch screen health information kiosk was undertaken. It was compiled by Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS to evaluate kiosk use and was reanalysed by researchers at City University to determine whether the information obtained went anyway to meeting patients’ information needs. The study established two effective outcome variables on kiosk use: whether the information found answered the users’ questions and if users intended, after using the kiosk, to find more information elsewhere. Two‐thirds of respondents said that the information found had answered their question, whilst 16% said that after using the kiosk they still had further questions and intended to talk to a health professional to obtain this information. The variables found to have an impact on the information outcome included: gender, navigational ease, object of search, and ease of reading and understanding the information.     

Learning from curriculum materials: Scaffolds for new teachers?

This article explores how beginning teachers use and learn from curriculum materials. As part of a longitudinal study of beginning English teachers who teach in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, the researchers tracked teachers’ responses to and use of materials over time, and how these materials shaped their classroom practice. The authors found that the teachers spent an enormous amount of time searching out curriculum materials for their classes and that the curriculum materials they encountered did, indeed, powerfully shape their ideas about teaching language arts as well as their classroom practice. Based on their findings, the authors propose a trajectory for the teachers’ use of the curriculum materials. New teachers begin by sticking close to the materials they have at hand. Then, over time, as they learn more about both students and curriculum, they adapt and adjust their use of the materials. The authors argue that new and aspiring teachers need opportunities to analyze and critique curriculum materials, beginning during teacher education and continuing in the company of their more experienced colleagues.     

Constructive Copying: Exploring the Vocabulary

Increasingly, concerns are being expressed about the negative effects of digital copying in both industry and higher education. A project was formulated to investigate the use of paper‐based drawing methods for copying from visual source material in varied and structured ways and, thereby, to mitigate the adverse effects of design student dependency on screen‐based copying. A Copying Vocabulary Matrix was formulated based on findings accrued through a practice‐based enquiry where methods of copying were explored and a terminology of copying identified by the authors. A Constructive Copying Workshop was then devised for integration into an existing printed textile design course. Students were asked to respond to the words in the matrix through copying from the same visual source and were limited to pencils and paper. They were also encouraged to keep a reflective journal to record their thoughts as they worked. Their views were monitored during and after the workshop, and the drawings produced were then reviewed and analysed. It was found that a wide variety of images were produced based on either experimentation or strategic rationale by the students and that their visual literacy, analytical skills and understanding of textile design were enhanced, leading to the conclusion that similar teaching interventions into the design drawing curricula could benefit the student learning experience.     

‘But no one in my family has been to University’ Aiming Higher: School students’ attitudes to Higher Education

In this paper, we present findings from the second stage of a three year longitudinal study involving 3,570 students aged 13–18 in a London Borough looking at the impact of Widening Participation (WP) on the attitudes of students. We outline findings from a previous stage and then focus specifically on two cohorts of Year 10 students (aged 14–15) in two consecutive years. The students completed the specially designed Attitudes to Higher Education Questionnaire (AHEQ) and provided information on WP activities in which they had participated. Data on the students’ academic attainment and social backgrounds were also included. There were significant sex and cohort differences and interactions which were found to be related to WP activities specifically aimed at increasing the participation of socially disadvantaged students in higher education. The implications of findings are discussed in relation to theories of social identity and self concept and the implementation of strategies to increase participation in Higher Education.     

Early identification of special educational needs and the definition of 'at risk': The Early Years Transition and Special Educational Needs (EYTSEN) Project

Education in the early years is a key element in the Government's current strategy. Recently, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) funded a major study of Effective Provision of Pre-School Education (EPPE). The Early Years Transition and Special Educational Needs (EYTSEN) Project developed from the EPPE research and was also funded by the DfES. The authors of this article, Brenda Taggart, Pam Sammons, Rebecca Smees, Kathy Sylva, Edward Melhuish, Iram Siraj-Blatchford, Karen Elliott and Ingrid Lunt, all worked on the EYTSEN Project, based at the Institute of Education, University of London. In this article, they provide a summary of the findings from the EYTSEN Project, reviewing the impact of pre-school provision on children said to be 'at risk' of developing special educational needs. They suggest that pre-school experience has a positive impact on cognitive attainment and social or behavioural development and that integrated centres (where education and care are fully combined) and nursery schools have the most positive influence among the different f o rms of pre-school provision. This paper also discusses the identification of special educational needs; quality in pre-school centres; parents' perspectives; and future developments. The article closes with a call for improved training for practitioners working in early years settings.