How do the different study profiles of first-year students predict their study success,study progress and the completion of degrees?

The relationship between study success and the nature of 550 first-year law students’ study processes was investigated using a modified version of the Approaches to Learning and Studying Inventory. The students were classified into four study profiles according to their approaches to learning, indicating the nature of their study processes. In addition, the students were divided into six study success groups on the basis of their earned study credits and grade point average. The results showed that both approaches to learning and study success in the first study year predicted graduation time and the completion of the degree. Thus, it is important that faculties actively use measures, such as the inventory used in the present study, to promote first-year students’ awareness of their study practices and support the progress of their studies. Individual students need tailored guidance in transitioning to university studies and identifying the demands of the study programme.     

A qualitative investigation of student engagement in a flipped classroom

The flipped classroom is gaining acceptance in higher education as an alternative to more traditional methods of teaching. In the current study, twelve students in a Norwegian higher education institution were in-depth interviewed about their learning experiences in a two-semester long mathematics course. The first semester was taught using flipped classroom and the second semester using lectures, where both teaching modes contained a substantial amount of active learning. Overall, students report a more positive learning experience and higher engagement in the flipped classroom. The analysis revealed seven categories that the students highlight as especially conducive to their learning; commitment to peers, being recognized, feeling safe, instructor relationship, physical learning environment, learning with peers and using videos to learn new content. The results indicate that the affective dimension of student engagement is particularly prominent when students reflect upon learning in the flipped classroom.     

Reactive attachment disorder in maltreated toddlers

OBJECTIVE: To determine if Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) can be reliably identified in maltreated toddlers in foster care, if the two types of RAD are independent, and to estimate the prevalence of RAD in these maltreated toddlers. METHODS: Clinicians treating 94 maltreated toddlers in foster care were interviewed regarding signs of attachment disorder at intake in an intervention program. RESULTS: Using categorical and continuous measures, both types of RAD can be reliably identified in maltreated toddlers. Both continuous scores and categorical diagnoses indicated that a substantial minority of maltreated young children do exhibit signs of attachment disorders sufficient to meet criteria in DSM-IV and ICD-10. The two types were moderately convergent and at times co-occurred in the same child. Prevalence of RAD in this high-risk sample was 38-40%. Indiscriminate/disinhibited RAD was identified in children with and without an attachment figure. Within this maltreated group, toddlers whose mothers had a history of psychiatric disturbance were more likely to be diagnosed with attachment disorders. CONCLUSIONS: RAD may be reliably identified in maltreated toddlers. Emotionally withdrawn/inhibited and indiscriminate/disinhibited types of RAD are not entirely independent.     

‘It was,perhaps, the most important one’ students’ perceptions of national tests in terms of test-taking motivation

The aim of this study was to examine ninth-grade students’ perception of a Swedish national test in science (high-stakes for the students) and a field trial (low-stakes for the students), in terms of test-taking motivation. The study is based on semi-structured interviews with 12 students. Overall, the students had a positive perception of the national test; they were motivated to do their best, believed they did well and found the test important and good. Several students were nervous before the test and some during the test whereas others felt okay, or even enjoyed taking the national test. The students talked about less effort and test anxiety in the field trial and perceived the test as less important compared to the national test. The interviews provided a rich understanding of the different aspects of test-taking motivation as described by the expectancy-value theory. Furthermore, they indicated how the test administration could be adjusted so as to achieve higher test validity.     

Chafing borderlands: obstacles for science teaching and learning in preschool teacher education

Cultural Studies of Science Education - This study examines preservice preschool teachers’ university science education experience. The empirical data are from a research and intervention...     

How Useful are Computerised Screening Systems for Predicting Subsequent Learning Difficulties in Young Children? An Exploration of the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Cognitive Profiling System (CoPS 1)

The Cognitive Profiling System (CoPS 1) is a psychometric assessment/screening system presented in the form of computer games to children in their early school years in order to predict the probability of later learning difficulties of both a general and specific nature (Singleton, Horne, & Thomas, 1999 Singleton, C. H., Horne, J. and Thomas, K. 1999. Computerised baseline assessment of literacy. Journal of Research in Reading, 22(1): 67–80.  [Google Scholar]). Although some evidence is available as to the predictive validity of the resulting cognitive profile, as yet few independent studies have been carried out to investigate the system’s strengths and weaknesses.

The present study describes a small‐scale longitude investigation of how well scores on the CoPS 1 of 66 children in two urban primary schools in the west of England predicted their success or failure on the Key Stage 1 Standard Assessment Tasks (SATs) in literacy and mathematics. Significant correlations were found between the two measures, but these differed markedly from those found in previous research. In‐depth case studies were subsequently carried out on five children selected from this cohort at Year 4, when they were 9 years old. Despite providing some valuable information, the results raised questions about the predictive validity of CoPS 1 when applied to specific individual children. Caution is therefore urged in the application of such computerised techniques as ‘stand alone’ predictors of learning difficulties.     

Teachers’ and school leaders’ perceptions of commercialisation in Australian public schools

This paper explores teachers’ and school leaders’ perceptions of commercialisation in Australian public schools, reporting on findings from an open-ended survey question from an exploratory study that sought to investigate teacher and school leader perceptions and experiences of commercialisation. Commercialisation, for the purposes of this paper, is understood as the creation, marketing and sale of education goods and services to schools by for-profit providers and often includes (but is not limited to) the provision of curriculum content, assessment services, data infrastructures, digital learning, remedial instruction, professional development and school administration support. Our account highlights that commercialisation is prevalent in the day-to-day practice of Australian public schools. The perceptions of teachers and leaders suggest that commercialisation is complex, with both affordances and challenges. Respondents acknowledged that aspects of commercialisation are necessary for successfully running schools and classrooms in the 21st century, but also noted that there is a fine line beyond which these seemingly innocuous services become perilous. Concerns focused on how particular services are leading to the deprofessionalisation of teachers as they have less autonomy over what to teach and how to teach it. Moreover, teachers and school leaders reported being perturbed by the idea that commercial providers and services might work to replace teachers in the future. Drawing on these data we argue that growing commercialisation in Australian public schools clearly requires an ethical debate that schools, education professionals, policy makers and interested publics are yet to have.     

Environmentally active people: the role of autonomy,relatedness, competence and self-determined motivation

To identify pathways to lower environmental impacts, this research examined the motivation and antecedents of motivation (autonomy, relatedness, competence), of environmentally active people. Previous research suggests that people with more self-determined motivation for pro-environmental behavior (PEB) should carry out more PEBs, and have lower environmental impacts, than people whose motivation is more externally regulated. Path analysis in Sample 1 (N = 261) confirmed that self-determined motivation was positively related to both easy and difficult PEB. The more participants judged that their needs for autonomy and relatedness were met in relation to performing PEB, the more self-determined their motivation. Higher perceived relatedness was also directly related to reporting more engagement in difficult PEB. Perceived competence was not related to self-determined motivation or PEB. The pattern of results was largely supported when re-tested with a sample (N = 320) who completed a ‘carbon footprint’ measure of environmental impact as well as the questionnaire completed by Sample 1. In this sample, autonomy, relatedness, and competence were related to self-determined motivation. The research is the first to our knowledge to examine and find a relationship between higher self-determined motivation and lower self-reported environmental impact. These findings point to new approaches to increasing PEB.     

Drama education: A touch of the creative mind and communicative-expressive ability of elementary school children in Hong Kong

This paper presents a field experiment examining the effect of drama education on the psychological development of grades 1 and 4 students. The drama curriculum was delivered after school for one day each week for 16 weeks. Students in the experimental group attended drama education classes, whereas students in the control group took part in the other unstructured extra-curricular activities. Pre- and post-tests of creativity, and story-telling test were given to the students. With respect to creativity, the experimental group was found to score significantly higher than the control group. Significant grade differences were also found, with grade 4 students scoring higher on the measure of drawing but lower on divergent thinking than grade 1 students. No sex difference was found. These findings have important implications for the educational curriculum which are discussed.