School bullying and students’ sense of safety in school: the moderating role of school climate

European Journal of Psychology of Education - One of the negative consequences of bullying in schools is its adverse effect on students’ sense of safety. Previous studies yielded mixed...     

The Religious Roots of Ernest L. Boyer's Educational Vision: A Theology of Public Pietism

The educational theories and policies promoted by Ernest L. Boyer (1928–1995), who served as chancellor of the SUNY system, U.S. Commissioner (Secretary) of Education, and president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, were significantly influenced by his affiliations with the Brethren in Christ Church and the Society of Friends (Quakers) even though he rarely spoke about his faith publicly. Drawing on Anabaptist, pietistic, and apophatic (silence-oriented) theological traditions, Boyer's public career demonstrated a service-focused convictional theology that could be termed “public pietism.” Boyer's educational philosophy focused on human connectedness and called for all citizens to be active participants in improving their communities by living out nonsectarian “consensus virtues.” While Boyer was a strong proponent of the separation of church and state, his public service was imbued with deeply held Christian values.     

Moving beyond the teacher-centred/learner-centred dichotomy: implementing a structured model of active learning in the Maldives

In efforts to improve the quality of education, the disparity between policy and practice in implementing learner-centred pedagogy has been well-documented. Acknowledging these challenges, this study investigated active learning reform using design-based research, an interventionist methodology in the Maldives. The intervention specifically sought to address the policy-practice gap through the development of a structured model of active learning, drawing on recommendations in the literature and moving beyond the simple dichotomy of teacher-centred versus learned-centred pedagogy. Teachers’ enactment of the model was studied within a Maldivian island school. The data identified enabling conditions in teachers’ use of the intervention: the pedagogical model needs to be clearly and simply articulated; promote a staggered approach to reform; and reflect and respect local priorities. These were converted into design principles – an outcome of design-based research intended to inform the work of others enacting similar reforms.     

Impact of Childhood Sexual Abuse on College Student Development: A Seven‐Vectors Perspective

The application of theory in this article expanded on Chickering and Reisser's ( 1993 ) 7‐vectors framework by considering the effects of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) on the normal experience of student development in higher education. The article includes an overview of the prevalence and effects of CSA and a case study of a college student survivor of CSA.     

Gendered Relationships on Television: Portrayals of Same-Sex and Heterosexual Couples

Although intimate heterosexual couples often exhibit power imbalances in gender role behaviors, with one partner more dominant and the other more submissive, it is unclear whether the same is true for homosexual relationships. Anecdotal evidence, however, suggests that television portrays both heterosexual and homosexual couples as gendered. This content analysis of intimate relationships on television examined whether heterosexual and homosexual couples are portrayed as gendered, finding evidence of gendering for both homosexual couples and heterosexual couples. Possible implications of these gendered portrayals for viewers' perceptions and behaviors include cultivation of negative stereotypes and modeling of gender-typed behaviors.     

Synthesizing Pedagogies and Engaging Students: Creating Blended eLearning Strategies for Library Research and Writing Instruction

Twenty-first century students need consideration, ideas, and face-to-face work to enable their success in acquiring new information. Twenty-first century skills are generally described as core competencies such as collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem solving. Collaborative work between the classroom instructor and the librarian builds digital reference and research materials to follow a scaffolded research project specifically from start to finish. This article identifies reference opportunities and the importance of online and face-to-face student support. Instead of a linear approach to information literacy, this article demonstrates a chunked eLearning in-context performance support style.     

Teachers’ self-concept and valuing of learning: relations with teaching approaches and beliefs about students

One’s self-concept and value perceptions can significantly influence one’s behaviours and beliefs. Australian teachers from urban and rural areas of the state of New South Wales were asked to respond to survey items on two predictors (teacher self-concept, valuing of learning) and three outcomes. Confirmatory factor analysis established the five latent factors. Structural equation modelling found significant paths from teacher self-concept to both student-centred and teacher-centred approaches but not beliefs about student ability. The positive path from valuing of learning to student-centred teaching was statistically significant but the path to teacher-centred teaching was not. The significant path from valuing of learning to beliefs about student ability was negative indicating that teachers who value student learning were less likely to believe in ability constraints. Therefore, teacher preparation programmes should enhance self-concept simultaneously with teaching skills and values and facilitate an advocacy for students’ learning.     

Project-based learning for middle school students monitoring standby power: replication of impact on stem knowledge and dispositions

Educational technology research and development - Middle school students participating in energy-monitoring activities guided by their teachers during 2009–2011 gained...     

MULTIMEDIA PEDAGOGY AND MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION FOR THE NEW MILLENNIUM

New technologies provide tools to reconstruct education as we begin a new millennium. In particular, multimedia technologies, like CD‐ROMs and Web sites, produce new resources and material for expanding education. In examining the Shoah Project—which documents the experiences of survivors of the Holocaust—we demonstrate how it provides important tools for historical and religious education, as well as making the reality of the Holocaust vivid and compelling in the contemporary moment. In this context we discuss how multimedia can provide an important supplement to multicultural education, bringing the experiences of marginal and oppressed groups to the mainstream. Yet we also argue that effective multimedia education requires historical contextualization, the skills of media literacy, and engaging pedagogical presentation in the classroom to make it effective as a supplement to traditional classroom and print‐based education. We show how educational technologies, such as those produced by the Shoah Foundation and the UCLA Film and Television Archives, can help reconstruct education for the twenty‐first century.     

Exploring the educational aspirations–expectations gap in eighth grade students: implications for educational interventions and school reform

Over the past three decades, more and more students are expressing a desire to attend college, yet for many members of disenfranchised groups, this goal is often not attained. While many factors contribute to these disparities, research has shown that students begin adjusting their expectations (what they think they can achieve) for the future in relation to their idealised aspirations (what they would like to achieve). The current study explores this gap among 207 eighth grade students from two urban middle schools. Using the School Attitude Assessment Survey-Revised, three factors were found to predict expectations which matched student aspirations. These factors were academic motivation and self-regulating behaviours, academic self-perception and attitudes towards teachers. Implications for educational interventions and school reform are discussed.