Why are teacher recommendations at the transition from primary to secondary education socially biased? A mixed-methods research

The consequences of educational differentiation have been at the centre of research in sociology of education during the past decades. Processes of educational allocation have, however, received much less attention. Despite the fact that research has shown that teacher recommendations in France and Germany are partly determined by pupils’ social background, studies that inquire into the causes of this social bias seem to be virtually inexistent. This study aims to examine whether teacher recommendations at the transition from primary to secondary education in Flanders (northern, Dutch-speaking part of Belgium) are also socially biased, and if so what causes these differentials in advice, using a mixed-methods design. We found the advice given by primary school teachers to be partly determined by pupils’ social background. Analysis of the qualitative data suggests that teachers tend to evaluate pupils from low socio-economic status backgrounds less positively, due to their emphasis on specific pupil characteristics.     

Being Fair: Teachers’ Interpretations of Principles for Standards-Based Grading

Knowing that grades can have long-term consequences for students, teachers voice concern about being fair in the grading process. However, their interpretations of fairness are varied and sometimes contradictory. This study looked at how teachers in one standards-based educational system determined secondary students’ grades, focusing specifically on the extent to which they followed a specific set of principles for grading. The results support previous research, and suggest that a better understanding of essential principles is needed for grades to accurately reflect students’ achievement.     

Critical alignment in inquiry-based practice in developing mathematics teaching

This paper reports a case study from a mathematics teaching developmental research project. The theoretical foundation for the research comprises communities of inquiry and critical alignment, with which the developmental methodology has a particular synergy. This synergy is the main focus of the paper. The paper elaborates theoretical and methodological antecedents of the project and traces these through a case study of developments in the practices of one upper secondary school team and a group of university didacticians (mathematics teacher educators and researchers) during the first year of the project. The case study reveals that critical alignment and inquiry (necessarily) bring uncertainty and risk, and foster tensions within the teachers’ practice and between the practices of teachers and didacticians. In exposing these uncertainties, risks and tensions, the paper points to their value for the learning and knowledge gained by participants.     

From the editor's desk

This article examines the underrepresentation of African American and Hispanic students in gifted education, proposing that social inequality, deficit thinking, and microaggressions contribute to the inequitable segregated programs. Underrepresentation trends are presented, along with methods for calculating underrepresentation and inequity. Underrepresentation is placed under the larger umbrella of achievement gaps and inequities in school settings with attention to de jure segregation. I argue that underrepresentation is beyond statistical chance and is a function of attitudes and beliefs grounded in deficit paradigms among those with power or social capital. Denying access to gifted education based on race is counterproductive and illegal and is discussed with Brown v. Board of Education as the legal background and a recent court case in gifted education (McFadden v. Board of Education for Illinois School District U-46). Recommendations for desegregating gifted education are provided.     

School choice in England: evidence from national administrative data

We study school choice in England using a new dataset containing the choices of all parents seeking a school place in state secondary schools. We provide new empirical evidence to inform how the school choice market functions, including the number of choices made, whether the nearest school is the first choice and the probability of an offer from the first choice school. These indicators show that school choice is actively used by many households in England. We use the rich data available to describe how choices vary by pupil, school and neighbourhood characteristics and how school choice is used differently by different groups and in different parts of the country. For the first time, we are able to present national data on how the school choices made by parents vary according to pupils’ ethnic group and across urban and rural areas. We show, contrary to some existing literature that has relied on smaller and less representative samples of parents and pupils, that school choices do not vary significantly by social background. We show that parents pro-actively use the choice system and present new evidence on the extent to which the current school admissions criteria that prioritise distance penalise poorer families.     

Insightful Learning of Life's Lessons with Older Adult Guests in the Classroom

An intergenerational initiative was developed and implemented to enhance gerontology in the first course of the practice sequence. Seventeen students met with older adults (ages 82–98) in the classroom and at an assisted living facility. The evaluation of this older adult infusion project was conducted through two questionnaires and by the review of reflection papers completed as a course assignment. Pre-post statistical analyses as well as qualitative analysis evidenced an increase in knowledge of the older adults' lives as well as a professional interest in aging. As a result of this experience, several of the students volunteered at the facility, interviewed residents, and requested gerontological placements.     

Helping the Gifted Escape Metaphorical Entrapment

Linguists and philosophers have revealed the powerful shaping influences of metaphor on thought. Metaphorical frameworks have inspired and confined theories of mind, research paradigms, and even conceptions of morality in the larger sociopolitical environment. This paper explores these strong metaphorical influences on thought and action with special attention to sociopolitical and moral dimensions. It reveals profound metaphorical effects on the functioning of minds as well as ideological, liberal and conservative conceptions of aspirations, self-fulfillment, success, and morality. The analysis suggests the need for more attention to metaphorical analysis and the development of moral imagination in the education of the gifted.     

ADULTHOOD AND REMINISCENCE: A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY

Although reminiscence is a behavior common to all ages, research to date has been conducted only with older adults. This study sought to explore the phenomenon with adults of various ages with the anticipation that comparative information would lead to a better conceptualization of the behavior and its functions. It was hypothesized that there would be no difference in what adults reminisced about, why they reminisced, or how they reminisced with respect to age, sex, education, or socioeconomic status. A sample of 309 adults ranging in age from 18 to 90 were asked to complete a survey exploring various aspects of reminiscence. Analysis of variance and chi‐square were used to assess differences in reminiscent behavior across age, sex, education, and social class. There were no systematic differences with regard to education or social class. On several dimensions sex emerged as a more important variable than age, suggesting that age may not be as important a consideration in simple reminiscence as has been previously assumed.     

全球化背景下高等教育公私属性的思考

用萨缪尔森的产品概念来界定高等教育产品的公私属性,并以此来分析高等教育的全球性、浮现的世界市场和全球公共产品,那么以是否国有来界定高等教育产品的属性就行不通了.若从社会特性来区分产品的公私属性,那么全球的高等教育产品只能分为非排他性和非竞争性两类.由于公共产品往往在市场上生产不足,所以,充分认识高等教育私有产品在世界市场上的内在属性有现实意义.