Aspects of the Reliability and Validity of School Inspection Judgements of Teaching Quality

This paper presents the results of the first study of aspects of the reliability and validity of judgements of teaching quality made by independent inspectors in the classrooms of primary and secondary schools in England. The study shows, in particular, that two trained inspectors, independently observing the same lesson, are likely to identify the same strengths and weaknesses in the teaching and to arrive at similar conclusions about its overall quality. The strengths and weaknesses identified reflect appropriate application of the evaluation criteria specified by the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), and the better the teaching is judged to be, the more the strengths outweigh the weaknesses. The agreement between inspectors reported here is comparable with that found by the Dutch Inspectorate in similar studies. Résumé Cet article présente les résultats d’une première étude anglaise sur la fiabilité et la validité des jugements émis sur la qualité de l’enseignement par des inspecteurs indépendants dans des classes d’école primaire et secondaire en Angleterre. Cette étude montre notamment que deux inspecteurs, formés à cette tâche, qui observent de façon indépendante la même leçon, vont probablement identifier les mêmes points forts et faibles de l’enseignement et parviendront à des conclusions semblables sur sa qualité d’ensemble. Les points forts et faibles qui sont identifiés reflètent l’application appropriée des critères d’évaluation définis par le Bureau pour les standards de l’enseignement (OFSTED). Plus l’enseignement est considéré comme bon, plus les points forts l’emportent sur les faibles. Le degré d’accord entre les inspecteurs décrit ici est comparable à celui qui a été mis en évidence dans des études du même type par des inspecteurs néerlandais. (Traduction: Liliane Jeanneret Clerc, IRDP, Neuchâtel / Suisse)     

A Qualitative Study of Juvenile Offenders,Student Engagement,and Interpersonal Relationships: Implications for Research Directions and Preventionist Approaches

Background factors that correlate with juvenile delinquency are consistent across the interdisciplinary literature base. Yet, information about the process of how risks relate to outcomes, especially within school settings, is limited. Researchers used qualitative methods to examine school and interpersonal experiences from the perspective of juvenile offenders and their families. Sixteen families were recruited from juvenile probation facilities in 2 different geographic regions. Consensual Qualitative Research methods yielded consistent themes, including the central role of advocacy to obtain appropriate school services, the importance of flexibility in discipline policies, classroom experiences that shaped outcomes, and the importance of nonjudgmental social support for the adolescents and their parents. The findings and recommendations for school consultants are presented from a preventionist standpoint, and self-determination theory is discussed in relation to future juvenile delinquency research.     

Detecting Violations of Factorial Invariance Using Data-Based Specification Searches: A Monte Carlo Study

In testing factorial invariance, researchers have often used a reference variable strategy in which the factor loading for a variable (i.e., reference variable) is fixed to 1 for identification. This commonly used method can be misleading if the chosen reference variable is actually a noninvariant item. This simulation study suggests an alternative method for testing factorial invariance and evaluates the performance of the method in specification searches based on the modification index. The results of the study showed that the proposed specification searches performed well when the number of noninvariant variables was relatively small and this performance improved as sample size increased and the size of group differences increased. When the number of noninvariant variables was relatively large, however, the method rarely succeeded in detecting the noninvariant items in the specification searches. Implications of the findings are discussed along with the limitations of the study.     

‘Where do babies come from?’ Barriers to early sexuality communication between parents and young children

‘Where do babies come from?’ ‘Why do boys have willies?’ ‘What does gay mean?’ Probably all parents have faced such ‘innocent’ questions from young children, and many have found them challenging to answer. Access to sexuality education at an early age is frequently considered controversial; however, there are strong indications that early and open communication can impact positively in terms of sexual safety and outcomes. Using focus group discussions with parents of 3–7 year olds in the UK, this study explores some of the challenges parents report in dealing with early sexual socialisation as well as the reasons they cite for restricting young children's sexual awareness and access to knowledge. Thematic analysis reveals a number of barriers to communication: the need to protect childhood ‘innocence’, suitable timing and age appropriateness of explanations, personal discomfort, and fear of criticism and judgement.     

Using Electronic Mail in Initial Teacher Education to Develop European Awareness

ABSTRACT

The development of European awareness in teacher training is a particularly difficult task in one year Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) courses in the United Kingdom because of the short length of the course and the need to ensure that students are well prepared for handling the national curriculum. This paper describes how students on such a course at the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland were able to experience a European dimension through an electronic mail link with high school pupils in Norway. The scheme, which was offered on a pilot basis to students taking history as a major or a minor option, also.gave the group a focus for work on two of the cross‐curricular themes in the Northern Ireland common curriculum, namely Information Technology and Education for Mutual Understanding. The pilot suggests that the scheme has provided a valuable experience of real contact with Europe in a way that is cost effective and manageable within the time constraints imposed by an intensive one year teacher training programme.     

Music and Recording

Roger D. Kinkle's The Complete Encyclopedia of Popular Music and Jazz: 1900-1950 (New Rochelle, N.Y.: Arlington House, 1974—$75.00 for set of four volumes)

Clive Davis and James Willwerth, Clive: Inside Inside the Record Business (New York: Morrow, 1974—$8.95)

Studies in Jazz Discography I (Institute of Jazz Studies University Extension Division, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J.—$3.25, paper)

Walter E. Hurst and William Storm Hale's Your Introduction to Music/Record Copyright, Contracts and other Business and Law (Seven Arts Press, Inc., 6605 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, Calif. 90028—$10.00/5.00)     

古典儒家与道家修身之共同基础

本文重新清理了有关古典儒家与道家之间关系上的一些混淆,以为实际的情况是:在儒家和老庄学说之间尚存在着一种未被揭示的共通性,并较之二者的差异性更为根本与重要。通过借助于“逻辑秩序”与“美学秩序”相区分的方法,可以有效地考察与阐明孔子与老庄修身论范式中蕴合的共同性,从而进一步将两家之间的差异性析离出来。     

揭秘丰田Prius汽油／电力混合动力车

由于丰田Prius汽油／电力混合动力车辆有着跑车的外观、类似航空设备的仪表板显示和无噪声平稳启动，那么一点也不奇怪，该车是同类车型中销售得最快的车辆。