Examining the implementation of technology-based blended algebra I curriculum at scale

Studies on blended education pay little attention to implementation, thus limiting the understanding of how such programs contribute to student math learning. This article examines the implementation of a widely used blended algebra curriculum and the relationship between implementation and student outcomes. The study was conducted in 74 middle schools and 73 high schools in 51 school districts located in seven states. The study included both treatment and control schools. The blended-curriculum combines inquiry-based teaching and learning with technology (math software). The study found that teachers implemented the blended curriculum with low fidelity. Teachers had most difficulty allocating the recommended amount of time for the math lab and content. The study also found that the blended-curriculum teachers in the second year reverted to more traditional approach to instruction and spent less time on inquiry based instruction than in the first year, although they continued to use this approach at a higher level than teachers in the control schools. The study findings suggest that teacher adjustment of instruction in the second year, specifically balancing the amount of traditional instruction with inquiry instruction, in combination to the use of the math software contributed to the performance of the program.     

“Did you do your homework?” Mathematics teachers’ homework follow‐up practices at middle school level

Teachers’ homework follow‐up practices, the in‐class strategies teachers use to monitor their students’ homework assignments, have an impact on their students’ homework behaviors and academic achievement. The current study explored the perspectives of middle school mathematics teachers on the three domains of homework follow‐up: the practices used in class, the purposes of each practice, and the aspects that may influence this process. Data were collected from two data sources (i.e., focus groups and classroom observations) and were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings showed that teachers monitored homework either using a single strategy or a combination of strategies (e.g., checking homework completion and providing individual feedback) linked to a specific purpose (e.g., promote students’ involvement). The teachers also reported that they were under certain constraints when they delivered homework follow‐up practices (e.g., pressure to follow the curriculum), so their practices’ effectiveness sometimes can be compromised. Implications for practice are discussed.     

A Review of Keller Principles with Reference to Mathematics Courses in Australasia

This paper considers some treatments and adaptations of Keller's first principles and advocates a mastery requirement for all university courses which are prerequisites for further study. A summary of Keller or PSI Mathematics courses in universities in Australia and New Zealand is given.
With reference to the general aim (of mathematical education at universities) of 'problem-solving', there are limitations to the application of a mastery principle which requires an explicit statement of objectives. However, the principle of mastery does offer guidelines for the university teacher, which may be used with conventional timetabled, lecture-paced teaching methods. A two-tier structure of assessment is described which incorporates levels of mastery (tier I) and of problem-solving (tier II).     

Listening: The key to early childhood music

Developmentally appropriate music education is often unintentionally neglected in many preschool, kindergarten, and primary grade programs. Some early childhood teachers may fail to take advantage of opportunities to support children's musical development because they are insecure with their own musical abilities. Other teachers devote relatively little time to music activities because they are unable to locate good quality, age appropriate music tapes, books, and records. This neglect is particularly acute in kindergarten and primary grades, where the current emphasis on basic skills instruction forced on classroom teachers relegates the music curriculum to about thirty minutes of instruction a week from a specialist music teacher. This short dose of music study, removed from the context of classroom and group activities, is not enough to give children an understanding and appreciation of music in their lives. Early childhood teachers themselves must take a more active role in teaching music if children are to develop knowledge, skills, and positive attitudes about music.Kathryn Woodson Barr is a Graduate Assistant at the Barbara K. Lipman Early Childhood School and Research Institute. Memphis State University. John M. Johnston is an Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Memphis State University.     

Conflict and Friendship Relations in Middle Childhood: Behavior in a Closed-Field Situation

Disagreements between school-aged children were examined as a function of friendship status. 66 same-sex dyads were selected, including equal numbers of "best friends" and nonfriends, who were then observed while playing a board game (a closed-field situation). Conflicts occurred more frequently among friends than among nonfriends and lasted longer. Friends did not talk more during their conflicts than nonfriends, but assertions were used selectively according to friendship and sex: With friends, girls used assertions accompanied by rationales more frequently than boys whereas boys used assertions without rationales more frequently than girls. These sex differences were not evident during conflicts between nonfriends. Results are discussed in relation to the social constraints intrinsic to closed-field competitive conditions as these apply to friendship relations in middle childhood.     

Every word problem has a solution-The social rationality of mathematical modeling in schools

The focus of this paper is on sense-making and the use of real-world knowledge in mathematical modeling in schools. Arguments are put forward that classroom word problem solving is more—and also less—than the analysis of subject-matter structures. Students easily “solve” stereotyped, even unsolvable, problems without any regard to the constraints of factual reality. Mathematics learning in schools is inseparable not only from the materials employed, but from the macro- and microcultural web of practices within the social context of schooling. It represents, beyond the insightful activity of ideal problem solving, a type of socio-cognitive skill.The two experiments reported replicate and extend a study by Verschaffel, De Corte, and Lasure (1994). In the first experiment, a list of standard problems that could be solved by straightforward use of arithmetic operations, and a parallel list of problems which were problematic with respect to realistic mathematical modeling, were administered to fourth and fifth graders. In the second experiment, a similar list of problematic problems was presented to seventh graders under three socio-contextual conditions varying in the degree to which the pupils were told or signaled that the problems were more difficult to solve than it seemed at first or that they even could be unsolvable. The result of both studies was that most pupils “solved” a significant part of the unsolvable problems without evincing “realistic reactions”. This overall finding is discussed with respect to three issues:

• 1. 

  (i) the quality of word problems employed in mathematics education,

• 2. 

  (ii) the culture of teaching and learning, and

• 3. 

  (iii) the more general issue of social rationality in school mathematics problem solving.

     

Issues in development of the test battery for Australian sign language morphology and syntax

In this article, we outline the initial stages in development of an assessment instrument for Australian Sign Language and explore issues involved in the development of such a test. We first briefly describe the instruments currently available for assessing grammatical skills in Australian Sign Language and discuss the need for a more objective measure. We then describe our adaptation of an existing American Sign Language test, the Test Battery for American Sign Language Morphology and Syntax. Finally, this article presents some of the data collected from a group of deaf native signers. These data are used to demonstrate the range of variability in key grammatical features of Australian Sign Language and to raise methodological issues associated with signed language test design.