What is the Relationship Between Teacher Quality and Student Achievement? An Exploratory Study

The major purpose of the study was to examine what constitutes effective teaching as defined by measured increases in student learning with a focus on the instructional behaviors and practices. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analyses and hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) were used to identify teacher effectiveness levels while controlling for student-level and class/school-level variables. Actual achievement of 1936 third grade students in 85 classrooms on the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) Assessment results in English, Mathematics, Social Studies, and Science were compared to expected achievement resulting in an indicator of teacher effectiveness. Based on student learning gains, teachers were divided into quartiles. The statistical modeling approach facilitated comparisons of outcomes that were free of influences of identified extraneous variables. A double blind design was selected for in-depth cross-case studies with teachers from the highest quartile representing highly effective teachers (N?=?5) and the lowest quartile the less effective teachers (N?=?6). The observation team assessed the third grade teachers (N?=?11) based 20 categories within four domains: instruction, student assessment, classroom management, and personal qualities. Key findings indicate that effective teachers scored higher across the four domains. Additionally, effective teachers tended to ask a greater number of higher level (e.g., analysis) questions and had fewer incidences of off-task behavior than ineffective teachers. The exploratory study identified instructional behaviors and practices of teachers that result in higher student learning gains.     

Outcomes of Home-Support Consultation on the Maintenance of Bicycle-Riding Skills for Youth With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Bicycle riding is a functional motor skill that increases physical activity opportunities, social interaction, and independence. However, bicycle riding is difficult for youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to learn. This study examined the effectiveness of home-support consultation (HSC) on increasing the maintenance of independent bicycle riding following initial skill acquisition. Fifty-one youth with a confirmed ASD diagnosis learned to ride a two-wheeled bicycle during a training camp. Twenty-nine riders enrolled in a HSC intervention to promote distributed practice of the learned skill. The control cohort (N = 22) was exempt from the HSC intervention. One year following initial skill acquisition, 62.07% of the HSC cohort compared to 36.36% of the control cohort still reportedly displayed the skill. Within the HSC cohort, riders who reported at least 8 weeks of practice following acquisition on average maintained the skill. Implications of home consultation are discussed.     

Improving the student learning experience through dialogic feed-forward assessment

Abstract

Assessment feedback from teachers gains consistently low satisfaction scores in national surveys of student satisfaction, with concern surrounding its timeliness, quality and effectiveness. Equally, there has been heightened interest in the responsibility of learners in engaging with feedback and how student assessment literacy might be increased. We present results from a five-year longitudinal mixed methods enquiry, thematically analysing semi-structured interviews and focus groups with undergraduate students who have experienced dialogic feed-forward on a course in a British university. We use inferential statistics to compare performance pre and post-assessment intervention. The assessment consisted of submitting a draft coursework essay, which was discussed and evaluated face-to-face with the course teacher before a self-reflective piece was written about the assessment process and a final essay was submitted for summative grading. We evidence that this process asserted a positive influence on the student learning experience in a number of inter-related cognitive and affective ways, impacting positively upon learning behaviour, supporting student achievement and raising student satisfaction with feedback. We advocate a cyclic and iterative approach to dialogic feed-forward, which facilitates learners’ longitudinal development. Programme teams should offer systematic opportunities across curricula for students to understand the rationale for and develop feedback literacy.     

Improving reflective practice: a documentation rubric for mentoring preservice and in-service teachers

ABSTRACT

Professionals in the field of early childhood are encouraged to demonstrate reflective perspectives of their work supported by pedagogical documentation. The purpose of this article is to introduce a rubric developed for preservice and inservice teachers to improve documentation and reflection. The rubric’s four dimensions: visible learning, powerful story, emotional impact, and visual impact range from novice to expert level. The rubric is not meant to create prescribed documentation or to be used as an evaluation or assessment. Instead, it is a tool to sharpen critical focus for reflection and to challenge teachers to examine and improve their documentation. We include a review of the Reggio Emilia approach to pedagogical documentation and reflective process, an explanatory account of how the rubric was developed, and reflections from implementing the rubric with preservice teachers. We also offer reflective questions and examples to aid in improving documentation and reflection. Recommendations for practice include use as a tool for selfreflection and guided collaborative reflection in small groups.     

Personal strengths and perceived teacher support as predictors of Singapore students’ academic risk status

Abstract

This study explored the relative salience of students’ personal strengths and teacher support in predicting academic risk status. The participants were Secondary One (S1, Grade Seven) students from Singapore who scored below the cohort’s mean score in a national test administered at the end of primary education, and were identified as low risk (n = 309) or high risk (n = 396), based on their S1 achievement score in the English Language subject. Logistic regression analysis was conducted with academic risk status as criterion variable and the following potential predictors: students’ background variables (i.e. socio-economic status, cognitive ability and initial achievement), personal strengths, teacher–student relatedness, and teacher autonomy and competence support. After controlling for the effects of the students’ background variables, teacher trust emerged as the strongest (negative) and most stable predictor of high-risk status; teacher alienation and teacher–student communication were found as significant positive predictors of students’ placement in the high-risk group.     

Dialogic feedback as divergent assessment for learning: an ecological approach to teacher professional development

Neoliberal policy objectives perpetuate an audit culture at both school and system levels. The associated focus on performativity and accountability can result in reductive and procedural interpretations of classroom assessment for learning (AfL) practices. Set in a New Zealand AfL professional development context, this research takes an ecological view of teacher learning as a ground-up approach to improving practice. As a framework, this paper brings together an intersubjective conception of professional learning that positions teachers as co-leaders, principles inherent in ‘the spirit of AfL’, and the notion of ‘intelligent accountability’ to illustrate evidence-informed teacher agency. It applies divergent and dialogic AfL practices to professional learning that can enable teachers to connect with issues that are most relevant to their practice. Dialogic feedback practices of this nature position teachers as capable, reflexive and resourceful practitioners and decision-makers.     

Self-reported disciplinary practices among women in the child welfare system: association with domestic violence victimization

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between physical domestic violence victimization (both recent and more than a year in past measured by self-report) and self-reported disciplinary practices among female parents/caregivers in a national sample of families referred to child welfare. METHODS: Cross-sectional survey of more than 3,000 female caregivers in the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being (NSCAW) study, a nationally representative sample of children and their families referred to child welfare agencies for investigation of abuse and neglect. Women reported physical domestic violence victimization and their disciplinary practices for their child on different versions of the Conflict Tactics Scales. RESULTS: Four hundred and forty-three women reported prior year domestic violence, 1,161 reported domestic violence but not in the past 12 months, and 2,025 reported no domestic violence exposure. Any prior domestic violence exposure was associated with higher rates of self-reported psychological aggression, physical aggression and neglectful disciplinary behaviors as compared to those with no domestic violence victimization in bivariate comparisons. After controlling for child behavior, demographic factors, and maternal characteristics, those with remote and recent domestic violence victimization employed more self-reported psychological aggression, while only caregivers with recent DV reported more physical aggression or neglectful behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: In a national child welfare sample, self-reported aggressive and neglectful parenting behaviors were common. In this sample, domestic violence victimization is associated with more self-reported aggressive and neglectful disciplinary behaviors among female caregivers. The mechanism for these associations is not clear. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Rates of aggressive and neglectful disciplinary practices are especially high among female parents/caregivers exposed to domestic violence. Child welfare agencies should plan routine and structured assessments for domestic violence among parents/caregivers and implement parenting interventions to reduce harmful disciplinary practices for those families identified.