Perceptions of Women and Men Leaders Following 360‐Degree Feedback Evaluations

In this study, researchers used a customized 360‐degree method to examine the frequency with which 1,546 men and 721 women leaders perceived themselves and were perceived by colleagues as using 10 relational and 10 task‐oriented leadership behaviors, as addressed in the Management‐Leadership Practices Inventory (MLPI). As hypothesized, men and women leaders, as well as their supervisors, employees, and peers, perceived women leaders to employ nine of the 10 relational leadership behaviors significantly more frequently than men leaders. Additionally, the employees' perceptions of their women leaders' use of task‐oriented behaviors were significantly higher when compared to similar assessments from the employees of men leaders. However, the leaders as well as their supervisors and peers perceived men and women leaders' use of task‐oriented behaviors as approximately equal. Broader implications of these findings are discussed.     

A National Science Fair: Exhibiting support for the knowledge economy

Student‐directed, open‐ended scientific investigations and invention projects may serve to deepen and broaden students’ scientific and technological literacy, and, in so doing, enable them to succeed in democracies greatly affected by processes and products of science and technology. Science fairs, events at which student‐led projects are evaluated and celebrated, could contribute to such positive personal and social outcomes. Qualitative data drawn from a national science fair over succeeding years indicate (after analyses of largely qualitative data, using constant comparative methods) that, apart from positive outcomes regarding science literacy, there may be some significant issues about the fair that warrant critical review. It is apparent from these studies that there are issues of access, image, and recruitment associated with the fair. Qualification for participation in the fair appears to favour students from advantaged, resource‐rich backgrounds. Although these students do benefit in a number of ways from the fair experience, it is apparent that science fairs also greatly benefit sponsors—who can, in a sense, use science fairs for promotional and recruitment purposes. These findings and claims raised, for us, some important questions possibly having implications for science education, and for society more generally.     

A comparison of workshop training versus intensive,experiential training for improving behavior support skills in early educators

Effective behavior support is an important component of high-quality and nurturing early childhood classroom settings. At present, there are few studies that investigate the best way to train and support teachers in these strategies. The present study compared two different training approaches: (1) a workshop that included a one-day classroom-based training that introduced effective preventative and behavior support strategies followed by school year behavioral consultation support; or (2) an intensive condition that included the one-day workshop plus four days of experiential learning and practice in a preschool classroom followed by school year behavioral consultation support. Eighty-eight teachers/aides were randomly assigned to one of the two training conditions, and training occurred in August before the commencement of the school year. Results indicated that on observations of effective behavioral management and instructional learning formats, teachers in the intensive condition were improved proximally, with effects waning over time. For measures of teacher use of praise, the intensive group maintained the improved rate throughout the school year relative to the workshop group. Rates of commands and observations of classroom productivity were not different between groups. Teachers were satisfied with both approaches to training.     

Assessing Middle School Students’ Knowledge of Conduct and Consequences and Their Behaviors Regarding the Use of Social Networking Sites

Cyberbullying and threats of Internet predators, not to mention the enduring consequences of postings, may lead to dangerous, unspeakable consequences. Cyberbullying and threats of Internet predators through social networking sites and instant messaging programs are initiating numerous problems for parents, school administrators, and law enforcement on a national level (McKenna 2007 McKenna, P. 2007. The rise of cyberbullying. New Scientist, 195(2613): 26–27.  [Google Scholar], 60). A 34 item survey was developed to assess Knowledge of appropriate behavior on social networking sites (alpha = .84), Bullying Behavior (alpha = .72), and Internet Use (alpha = .78) of social networking sites for N = 588 grade 7–8 students from an urban and a suburban school. Implications for educators and parents regarding Cyberbullying and Internet Predators are discussed.     

Becoming a community of researchers1

Poststructural action research highlights the ambiguity and uncertainty for those involved in research with other individuals. This article chronicles how such an action research group with seven young women, 15 – 18 years of age, used personal writing as a basis for exploring identity, and how the researcher and the teacher had to acknowledge and critique their own feminist agendas within such a setting. Relying on reciprocity and dialectical theory-building, the group evolved into a collective of women where new opportunities were created for all the participants.     

Teaching beliefs and practice,institutional context,and the uptake of Web-based technology

This research examines the relationship between teaching beliefs and practice, institutional constraints, and the uptake of Web-based technology for teaching in higher education. Semistructured interviews were conducted with six teachers at a New Zealand tertiary institution. Using inductive analysis and cultural historical activity theory, themes in technology use were identified, as well as areas of tension and conflict in the teaching system. Four overarching influences were identified as mediating teachers’ use of Web-based technology in teaching: teaching beliefs, experience and practice; perceptions of technology; technology as a teaching and learning tool; and institutional priorities and division of labor. Teaching practices were affected to varying degrees by institutional strategic priorities, workload constraints, and the learning management system provided.     

Estadios morales y moralización. El enfoque cognitivo-evolutivo

RESUMEN

Se hace una descripción teórica de los seis estadios del desarrollo moral agrupados en tres niveles: nivel preconvencional (estadios 1 y 2), nivel convencional (estadios 3 y 4) y el nivel postconvencional (estadios 5 y 6). Estos tres niveles de juicio moral corresponden a tres niveles de perspectiva social: perspectiva individual-concreta, perspectiva de-miembro-de-la-sociedad y perspectiva anterior-a-la-sociedad. En cada uno de los estadios se pueden encontrar cuatro orientaciones morales que definen cuatro tipos de estrategias de decisión: orden normativo, consecuencia utilitaria, justicia y equidad, y el yo ideal. El autor propone desarrollar un sistema de clasificación más estructural, tipificando los tipos de contenidos utilizados en cada estadio, que denomina clasificación de los tópicos. Finalmente expone una teoría cognitivo-evolutiva de la moralización para explicar esta descripción del desarrollo moral y la contrasta con otros enfoques.     

A validation study of the Teacher Collaboration Assessment Survey

Although teacher collaboration is a school improvement imperative, it persists as an under-empiricized construct that has proven difficult to establish and assess with certainty. In this article, the authors present a validation study of the Teacher Collaboration Assessment Survey (TCAS). The TCAS operationalizes and measures 4 key domains of teacher collaboration: dialogue, decision making, action, and evaluation, and has been used to examine the quality of teacher teaming in district-wide comprehensive school reform efforts in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. Five sources of validity evidence recommended by Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing (AERA, APA, & NCME, 1999 American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education (1999). Standards for educational and psychological testing. Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association. [Google Scholar]) are explicated, which establish a strong argument in support of the instruments' validity. The authors discuss how educational leaders and researchers can use the TCAS for leveraging teacher collaboration for instructional innovation and student achievement, and to systematically examine teacher teaming and its relationship to other educational outcomes.