Social scholarship revisited: Changing scholarly practices in the age of social media

This conceptual exploration revisits a key question from earlier work (Greenhow & Gleason, 2014): What is scholarship reconsidered in the age of social media? Social scholarship is a framework that expanded Boyers’ (1990) conceptualization of scholarship to consider how social media affect discovery and research, teaching and learning, integration, and application. This paper critically reflects on how social scholarship continues to evolve in light of changing understandings in the field of educational technology and the role social media play in the academy. We provide recent examples of social scholarship such as altmetrics, interdisciplinary projects, crowdsourced educational technology syllabi and reconsideration of the needs of research participants. Moreover, we share concrete examples of how scholars might enact social scholarship, with what benefits and challenges, and surface new concerns regarding openness, equity, access, literacy, privacy and ethical considerations. Our paper concludes with recommendations for preparing scholars to enact social scholarship while mitigating the challenges it poses.     

From immersion to establishment. The challenges facing new school heads and the role of ‘New Visions’ in resolving them

New heads taking up their appointments in English schools in recent years have had supportive programmes to help them, both prior to headship and on taking up the role. This study examines the experience of heads new to their role in primary and secondary schools over the period 2002–2004. All were participants in the National College for School Leadership ‘New Visions’ programme for new heads. The study analyses the early experiences of these heads, following the framework offered by O'Mahony and Matthews, and considers what influence the New Visions programme had on the way they addressed issues and problems encountered in their role.     

Science teacher characteristics by teacher behavior and by student outcome: A meta-analysis of research

A meta-analysis was conducted of studies which addressed characteristics (gender, course-work, IQ, etc.) as the independent factor, and: (1) their teaching behavior in the classroom (questioning behavior, teaching orientation, etc.); and (2) student outcome characteristics (achievement, attitude toward science, etc.) as the two dependent factors. The population under study was science classes, ranging from kindergarten through twelfth grade, located in the United States, and the teachers of these classes. The studies integrated were reported in dissertations, journal articles, and other forms. Relationship data obtained from the studies were converted to Pearson product moment correlations. In general, quite low relationships were found between teacher background characteristics and (1) their touching behavior in the classroom and (2) student outcome characteristics. Summary tables showing the relationships are presented along with discussion of the strongest relationships.     

Development of Arithmetical Competencies in Chinese and American Children: Influence of Age, Language, and Schooling

The arithmetical competencies of more than 200 Chinese or American kindergarten, first-, second-, or third-grade children were assessed toward the beginning and toward the end of the U.S. school year. All children were administered a paper-and-pencil test of addition skills, a digit span measure, and an addition strategy assessment. The addition strategy assessment provided information on the types of strategies the children used to solve simple addition problems as well as information on the speed and accuracy of their strategy use. Information on the number of math instruction periods across times of measurement was also obtained for each of the first-, second-, and third-grade children. The pattern of arithmetical development across the academic year and across the Chinese and American children suggests that a mix of cultural and maturational factors influence the emergence of early arithmetical competencies and that the Chinese advantage in early mathematical development is related to a combination of language- and school-related factors.     

Student Surveys for School Teacher Evaluation

Students reports have the potential to add much useful information about school teacher quality. However, much research has centered on post secondary settings and many questions remain about the use of pupil surveys for K–12 teachers. The Davis County School District (Utah) uses pupil surveys as one teacher-chosen data source for teacher evaluation. The surveys of 9,765 students were analyzed for patterns of response. Item analysis suggests that pupils responded with reliability and validity. Some individual items are more defensible than others for conceptual and empirical reasons.     

Mother–Child Interaction: Links Between Mother and Child Frontal Electroencephalograph Asymmetry and Negative Behavior

It is well accepted that parent–child interactions are bidirectional by nature, yet not much is known about the psychophysiological activity underlying these interactions. This study examined, during a parent–child interaction, how a child's negativity statistically predicted maternal frontal electroencephalograph (EEG) asymmetry and how a mother's negativity statistically predicted child frontal EEG asymmetry. Thirty‐four mother–child dyads participated in the study. Maternal and child behaviors and physiology were measured during a puzzle task. Results indicated that mothers whose children exhibited more challenging behaviors during the dyadic interaction displayed more right (relative to left) asymmetry, as did children whose mothers were high in negativity during the interaction. These findings suggest that mothers and children react to each other's signals not only behaviorally but also physiologically.     

Thinking critically about learning analytics,student outcomes,and equity of attainment

Abstract

This is the introduction to the special edition on learning analytics.     

Navigating the complexity of disability support in tertiary education: perspectives of students and disability service staff

Access to education is a right for all students. This right is typically realised through the provision of disability support and reasonable adjustments to enable tertiary students with disabilities to participate on an equal footing with their peers. This paper presents perspectives of disability service staff and students about implementing and using reasonable adjustments. Data were collected at 2 tertiary institutions in Australia through interviews with 25 students with disabilities and 7 disability service staff. Data were thematically analysed. The complexity of and variability in the processes of negotiating and implementing disability support were identified as an overarching theme in the data. These processes involved engaging multiple parties. The task of negotiating reasonable adjustments is used to illustrate some of the complexities inherent in supporting students with disabilities. These findings challenge existing assumptions that support is easily accessible and simply provided. They highlight the complexity of using reasonable adjustments, and the tendency for this to be seen as a student responsibility. Finally, the findings imply that disability services need to reorient from a focus on care and concern towards a rights orientation and foster students’ skills in self-advocacy to better enable them to negotiate without disadvantage.