Teacher or Examiner? The Tensions between Formative and Summative Assessment in the Case of Science Coursework

The aim of the reported study was to explore how science teachers made sense of their roles and responsibilities in teaching and assessing science coursework. The focus was on the teacher assessment, the feedback that teachers gave to students and, how they perceived their role when they taught and assessed students’ science coursework reports. The research methodology included observation of science lessons, collection of marked students’ reports and two interviews with each of the nine participant teachers. Two cases of teachers are considered as representative of the participant teachers and their perceptions and practices are compared and contrasted. Teachers either adopted the role of the examiner or combined the role of the teacher with that of examiner. They distinguished marking of science theory exercises from marking of coursework and, teaching theory from teaching investigations, on the basis that the grade they assigned to coursework contributed to the total grade for external exams. A key conclusion is that teaching and assessment of science coursework need to re-focus on learning. The study calls for changes in public policy for summative assessment to place more reliance on teachers’ assessments and secondly, for changes in school practices in formative assessment for teachers to support students to learn in the case of science coursework.     

The mediating role of socio-motivational support in the association between individual school self-concept and achievement motivation amongst adolescent students

It is now well known that adolescence is frequently marked by a decline in students' achievement motivation, which in turn is often associated with a decline in individual school self-concept. Less is known about the mediating role of socio-motivational support in the association between individual school self-concept and achievement motivation. The current study examined the interplay of individual school self-concept, socio-motivational support and achievement motivation in a large sample of seventh and eighth grade students (N?=?1,088; M _Age?=?13.7) in secondary schools in Brandenburg, Germany. Structural equation modeling was used to test the associations between individual school self-concept, socio-motivational support, and achievement motivation. The results showed that the teacher–student relationship as well as “teachers as positive motivators” mediated the association between individual school self-concept and achievement motivation. In contrast, neither “peers as positive motivators” nor the student–student relationship mediated this association. These results support the notion that maintaining a positive teacher–student relationship as well as encouraging teachers in the role of positive motivators could be an effective starting point for prevention and intervention programs aimed at offsetting the decline in individual school self-concept and achievement motivation during adolescence.     

Arts‐Based Educational Research in Museums: ‘Art for Learning Art’, an A/r/tographic Mediation

This article discusses forms of arts‐based mediation in museums that use creation as the primary tool in the learning process. We present four mediation experiences based on the arts‐based teaching methodologies promoted by the project ‘Art for Learning Art’. These experiences have been developed in four museums: the Centre Pompidou Málaga, the State Russian Museum in Málaga and the Espai d'Art Contemponeo [Center of contemporary art] in Castellón in Spain and the Modern Art Murilo Mendes Museum of Minas Gerais in Brazil. Four experiences in three cities of two countries that work in a methodology which involves participative and collaborative visitor connections with the works exhibited using arts‐based strategies. In all cases, the artistic works of the exhibitions are the conceptual basis for mediation proposals that are offered to the public in order to encourage participation. We link the aesthetic experience as the origin of the mediation process in two fundamental aspects: creation and appreciation. In the act of creative appreciation, most art education objectives are met. The actions and processes are directed by collaborative and contemporary creation strategies around two axes: museum educator‐artists in training and visitors‐artists as learners. In the four experiences that we present here, this confluence takes place. The four events have been adapted to the conditions of the place, public and art exhibitions, contributing new approaches to the model that has been promoted from the University of Granada since 2013.     

Collaboration at the Troy University Libraries

With relatively new staff in all the Troy University campus libraries technical services departments, it was critical to collaborate on policies and procedures for consistency. Developing an online manual housed on a wiki that could be used and contributed to by staff on all three campuses was essential to this goal. Multi-campus meetings and online discussions are additional methods we use to promote collaboration. This article will include a literature review of collaboration and wikis along with methods the Troy University Libraries Technical Services departments are using to establish communication across the campuses.     

Modification of a School Programme in the Deutsches Museum to Enhance Students’ Attitudes and Understanding

The study examines the nature, conditions, and outcomes of student learning from an organised guided tour in the Deutsches Museum in Munich. The instructional methods that best support students’ cognitive and affective learning as well as how students’ motivational and emotional states influence their achievement were investigated. A sample of 96 secondary school students took part in two different versions of a guided tour on an energy topic. The tours varied in the degree of support of students’ active involvement, group work, and the variety of general activities offered during the tour. The data collected indicate that both tour versions led to an increase in student understanding of the visit topic to nearly the same extent. However, the version stimulating students’ active participation, group work, and including a larger variety of activities aroused more positive attitudes. Students of the modified school programme showed higher interest and intrinsic motivation, felt more competent, and were less bored after the guided tour. In addition, the results suggest that students’ visit‐related emotional states predict the degree of their post‐visit topic understanding, even when demographics and prior knowledge are taken into consideration.     

Gender Effects in Assessment of Economic Knowledge and Understanding: Differences Among Undergraduate Business and Economics Students in Germany,Japan, and the United States

Gender effects in large-scale assessments have become an increasingly important research area within and across countries. Yet few studies have linked differences in assessment results of male and female students in higher education to construct-relevant features of the target construct. This paper examines gender effects on students’ economic content knowledge with a focus on construct-relevant explanations. Moreover, we compare gender effects cross-nationally between Germany, Japan, and the United States. To assess economic content knowledge of higher education students, we used translated, adapted, and validated versions of the Test of Understanding in College Economics (TUCE, 4th ed.), an instrument that is commonly used internationally. We found gender effects on test scores in all three countries; effects were larger in Germany and the United States than in Japan. Gender effects were generally more pronounced on the numeracy subscale than on the literacy subscale, that is, male students had a greater edge over female students when items required calculations. In our conclusion, we discuss how numeracy and literacy items may tap different abilities.