Maladaptive behavior in relation to the basic psychological needs of students in secondary education

Much research has been done into the relationship between students’ motivation to learn and their basic psychological needs as defined by the self-determination theory (autonomy, competence, relatedness). However, few studies have explored how these psychological needs relate to different types of maladaptive behavior in the classroom. To prevent or remedy such behavior, more insight into its relationships is required. The present study attempted to determine the relationship between maladaptive behavior of secondary school students (grades 8 and 9) and the degree to which both teachers and peers address their needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Results show significant, negative correlations between maladaptive student behavior in the classroom and the extent to which students’ basic psychological needs are met by teachers and fellow students. Both teachers and fellow students play a role in students’ maladaptive behavior toward school and withdrawn behavior. When it comes to unfriendly behavior, the perceived support of teachers appears to be particularly relevant, while the role of peers is an important factor in delinquent behavior.

     

Does training matter? A meta-analysis and review of caregiver training studies

A review of studies published between 1980 and 2005 shows a significant positive effect of specialized training on the competency of caregivers in childcare (d = 0.45, S.E. = 0.10). Experimental results from the meta-analysis were significantly smaller for settings with no fixed curriculum content, delivery of the training at multiple sites and large-scale programs. Results were also smaller when tests were used that did not align closely with the content of the training. Furthermore, experimental results were smaller for the skills domain, compared to the knowledge and attitude domain. A subset of experiments with both caregiver and child data also showed a positive effect, supporting the causal link between caregiver training, caregiver competencies and child behavior in childcare, although this effect was not significant due to the small number of studies (d = 0.55, S.E. = 0.30). Based on these findings, we advocate the inclusion of instruction related to teacher–child interaction in the curriculum of vocational training for caregivers.     

Towards an ‘international forum for teacher educator development’: an agenda for research and action*

The outcomes of an international collaborative project are presented, involving experienced teacher educators and researchers from eight different countries, who engaged in a series of structured discussions on the professional development of teacher educators. We start with an overview of the needs in practice and policy, as well as the research interests, making structured opportunities for teacher educator development necessary. As a first outcome, we present a model to conceptualise teacher educator development, grounded in a study of the international literature and the systematic critical discussion of its findings by the participants in the project. The model facilitates international (research) collaboration, mapping and guiding initiatives in policy and practice by providing both an overview of the complexities of teacher educator development and a language to discuss them. The second –structural- outcome is the establishment of InFo-TED – the International Forum for Teacher Educator Development.     

Overcitation and overrepresentation of review papers in the most cited papers

Review papers tend to be cited more frequently than regular research articles. This fact, together with the continuous increase of the share of reviews in scientific literature, can have important consequences for the measurement of individuals’ research output, usually based on citation analysis. However, studies evaluating the differences in citations of review papers compared to original research articles are almost non-existing in the literature. This paper presents a thorough analysis of the overcitation and overrepresentation of review papers in the most cited papers of the 35 largest subject categories in Science Citation Index-Expanded. Results indicate the average citations received by reviews depends largely on the research area considered, varying from 1.34 to 6.74 times the citations received by original research articles (average value is 2.95). Correlated with this overcitation, there is an important overrepresentation of reviews in the most cited papers, this overrepresentation being greater when the most highly cited papers are considered, i.e. 0.05% and 0.1% most cited papers, where the share of reviews have increased from 16 to 18% in 1990 to around 40% in 2010. Interestingly, the overcitation and overrepresentation in the most cited papers is more important in the areas with the lowest shares of reviews in total publications.     

Multiple Representations in Computational Thinking Tasks: A Clinical Study of Second-Grade Students

Journal of Science Education and Technology - Computational thinking requires high cognitive load as students work to manage multiple tasks in their problem-solving environment. Through research in...     

Using Robotics and Game Design to Enhance Children’s Self-Efficacy,STEM Attitudes,and Computational Thinking Skills

Journal of Science Education and Technology - This paper describes the findings of a pilot study that used robotics and game design to develop middle school students’ computational thinking...     

The Effect of Schools and Classes on Mathematics Achievement

In this article, the effects of secondary schools, teachers, and classes on mathematics achievement are explored. The results of multilevel analyses indicate important recruitment differences between schools and classes within schools. After controlling for this, the group composition at the class level remained very important for the explanation of differences in mathematics achievement. Also the learning climate in the class, which correlates positively with group composition, explained an additional part of the variance. The effect of other educational process variables disappeared when group composition variables were entered into the model. At the school level, the proportion of girls was positively related to mathematics achievements. Indications of differential effectiveness of classes and schools and of heteroscedasticity related to SES, average class SES, average class SES, sex, and learning climate were found.     

A New Study on Educational Effectiveness in Secondary Schools in Flanders: An Introduction

As an introduction to the articles of Opdenakker, Van Damme, De Fraine, Van Landeghem, and Onghena (2002) and Van Landeghem, Van Damme, Opdenakker, De Fraine, and Onghena (2002) in this issue, we give some background information on a new study on educational effectiveness in secondary schools, and on the variables measured in that study that are relevant to the 2 articles mentioned. We conclude with some information on the system of secondary education in Flanders.     

Usages Éducatifs des Technologies de L'information et de la Communication: Quelles Compétences pour les Enseignants?

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to present, some results of recent research into the competence of teachers in the field of educational use of information and communication technology in France.     

Missing pages? A study of textbooks for Dutch early childhood teacher education

A content analysis of the textbooks used in the Dutch early childhood teacher education shows clear inconsistencies with the intended curriculum. Neither the content standards found in the professional profile for teachers nor the content standards from the educational profile of their training courses are adequately covered in the books. Whilst they pay considerable attention to the teacher's educational duties, other tasks outside the primary work process are either dealt with in much less detail or ignored altogether, including the need for strategic planning, for reflection and evaluation, for the development of educational policy, and for co-operation and liaison with colleagues from other disciplines.