An Exploratory Study of International Students Studying and Living in a Regional Area

The aim of this research is to explore the similarity and differences international students encounter while studying and living in a regional area of Australia as compared to their Asian homeland. This study builds on both academic and lifestyle issues previously identified in research and explores the international students' experiences on their academic adjustments while living in a regional area. The findings of this investigation identified three themes: education, finance, and culture. The analysis identified that students experience some level of difficulty at an initial stage but were positively accustomed to the local settings after a period of time. Finally, the findings in this paper are valuable to educational institutions, especially those of regional areas seeking to understand how international students behave and act when studying and living in a regional area. Additionally, this paper will also give prospective students an overall understanding of what to expect when they choose to study in a regional area in Australia.     

Monitoring Educational Quality through Performance Indicators for School Practice

This article discusses the management of quality in education systems. Indicator systems are discussed in the section that follows and the relationship between indicators, development and accountability is addressed in the context of the strategic management of improvement in school systems. A system of indicators developed to monitor the effectiveness of practice is then discussed. The final sections of the paper discuss these indicators in serving a dual purpose of school development and quality management. These indicators were developed to continuously monitor and review the quality of the education provided for students. Information from the monitoring of the effectiveness of school practice and functioning is discussed in the final section.     

Understanding Differences in Academic Effectiveness: Practitioners’ Views∗

As part of a large‐scale study of the ability of 94 secondary schools to promote academic achievement, case studies of six outlier schools were conducted and headteachers (principals) and their deputies were questioned about the processes of effectiveness. The analysis of their responses ‐ grouped by the performance of their school (measured by value added analyses of three years of public examination results) as effective, ineffective or mixed ‐ reveals considerable support for previously cited characteristics of effective schooling. Despite the limitations imposed by a reliance on the use of retrospective accounts, the study takes forward the field of school effectiveness in its search for generalisable findings and coherent theory.

     

Capacities and Behaviour of Quality Classroom Teachers

This study focussed on the capacities and behaviours of quality teachers. Four key capacities were identified as being characteristic amongst the five quality teachers who were observed in action which were then related to their behaviour. Prominent amongst the findings was the conclusion that these teachers had high cognitive ability which allowed them to develop critical powers of observation, reflection and analysis; they had strong philosophies of education; they had developed a bicultural approach, and possessed a strong sense of humour and a well developed social conscience. Above all else they cared about the learning outcomes of their children. Their approach was child‐centred and they encouraged students to set goals, to review progress, to challenge, and to solve problems. The article concludes with a discussion of its relationship to, and differences with, the parent CERI/OECD study of which it was part.     

A Comment on Gray,Jesson, Goldstein,Hedger, and Rasbash

ABSTRACT

The instructional leadership role of the principal has received much attention in the literature. The present study draws upon emerging research and explores the basis for predicting school academic achievement from the instructional leadership behavior of principals. A model of instructional leadership was examined to determine its predictive power in correctly identifying high‐ and low‐achieving elementary and high schools in two distinct cultural contexts. A total of 265 teachers and principals from California and the Marshall Islands participated in the study. The results indicate that school academic achievement can be predicted from a knowledge of principal instructional leadership behaviors. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.     

The Impact of School Development Plans in Primary Schools∗

In the U.K., in common with a growing number of countries, school development planning has been embraced with enthusiasm by practitioners and policy makers. Both groups have responded to the potential benefits of an improvement process which can integrate educational, financial and human resource needs and set and monitor the achievement of measurable goals. This paper describes the outcomes of a thirty‐two month research project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council which studied the impact of development planning in nine primary schools. It draws out the implications for practitioners and policy makers and explores some methodological issues arising from the study. The paper concludes by identifying further research priorities.

     

Peer ethnicity and achievement: a meta-analysis into the compositional effect

This study reports a meta-analysis on the effects of ethnic minority share in school on achievement test scores. Best evidence from the studies that have appeared thus far on this topic shows that these compositional effects appear small in general, but may be larger when the ethnic minority group is African Americans in the USA than when the minority group consists of immigrants. A high share of students from an ethnic minority group seems to affect the achievement of students belonging to the same ethnic group more than the achievement of students belonging to the ethnic majority or to other ethnic minority groups. Effects of the share of immigrants on test scores of ethnic majority students even seem to be close to zero. Several robustness checks confirm our results. The review concludes with a discussion of implications for research and policy practice.     

Assessing Students' Understandings of Biological Models and their Use in Science to Evaluate a Theoretical Framework

Research in the field of students’ understandings of models and their use in science describes different frameworks concerning these understandings. Currently, there is no conjoint framework that combines these structures and so far, no investigation has focused on whether it reflects students' understandings sufficiently (empirical evaluation). Therefore, the purpose of this article is to present the results of an empirical evaluation of a conjoint theoretical framework. The theoretical framework integrates relevant research findings and comprises five aspects which are subdivided into three levels each: nature of models, multiple models, purpose of models, testing, and changing models. The study was conducted with a sample of 1,177 seventh to tenth graders (aged 11–19 years) using open-ended items. The data were analysed by identifying students' understandings of models (nature of models and multiple models) and their use in science (purpose of models, testing, and changing models), and comparing as well as assigning them to the content of the theoretical framework. A comprehensive category system of students' understandings was thus developed. Regarding the empirical evaluation, the students' understandings of the nature and the purpose of models were sufficiently described by the theoretical framework. Concerning the understandings of multiple, testing, and changing models, additional initial understandings (only one model possible, no testing of models, and no change of models) need to be considered. This conjoint and now empirically tested framework for students' understandings can provide a common basis for future science education research. Furthermore, evidence-based indications can be provided for teachers and their instructional practice.