An Investigation into the Relationship Between Teacher Motivation and Pupil Motivation

This article reports the findings of a small scale investigation in the form of a blind study carried out in four schools in the north east of England. It concerns the relationship between teacher motivation ( n = 4) and pupil motivation ( n = 66) during pupils' participation in design and technology project work at Key Stage 4. It was recognised that the sample of teachers was too small to be considered representative of motivated and demotivated design and technology teachers in general terms. However, the information gathered provided a more informed picture of the possible link between pupil motivation and teacher motivation. It also supplied an indication of some of the differences that exist between the approaches to teaching adopted by motivated and demotivated teachers of design and technology project work.     

Impact of Literacy Interventions on Reading Skills in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Meta-Analysis

Reading skills are foundational for daily lives, academic achievement, and careers. In this study, we systematically reviewed literacy interventions in low- and middle-income countries, and estimated their effects on children's reading skills using a meta-analytic approach. A total of 67 studies (N = 213,464) from 32 countries found in various databases (e.g., PsycINFO, ERIC) and sources (e.g., United States Agency for International Development) met our inclusion criteria. The results revealed an overall effect of .30 across various literacy outcomes. Effects varied for different outcomes, such that largest effects were found in emergent literacy skills (e.g., .40) and the smallest effects in reading comprehension (.25) and oral language skills (.20). Effects also varied as a function of other features such as teacher training support.     

Editorial

Ohne Zusammenfassung

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Editorial

     

The Developing Bilingual Brain: What Parents and Teachers Should Know and Do

The field of neuroscience is now providing research findings about how the bilingual brain functions that can be used to promote richer and more successful dual-language development. This article summarizes recent research, then provides practical applications for parents and teachers of emergent bilinguals. Key understandings about how the brain processes first and subsequent languages are translated into ways to enrich instruction and family-based language and literacy experiences.     

From Rhymes to Resistance: Hip-Hop as a Critical Lens in Promoting Socially Just Teaching

If an educator is to take a critical stance, teach students to do the same, and design lessons that engage students in thoughtful discussions and actions surrounding issues of social justice, then discussions of politics, race, culture, economics and systems of power are crucial to this work, and, the use of hip-hop is a worthwhile endeavour. In this article, three educators from very diverse backgrounds who have experiences at elementary and college levels, consider the ways in which hip-hop music and culture speaks to the lived experiences of students and has the potential to lend a voice to the seemingly voiceless while also meeting the demands imposed by mandated standards. Within the framework of critical pedagogy/critical consciousness, we discuss hip-hop pedagogy as a channel for capitalising on students’ lived experiences.     

A tool for capacity building: teacher professional learning about teaching writing

This paper reports on qualitative research from an Australian, K-6, faith-based school about teachers’ experience of a job-embedded professional learning initiative (the Whole-School Benchmarking of Writing, WSBoW) that was designed to improve teachers’ capacity to apply data-driven decision-making to achieve improvements in student learning. Teacher interviews provided the data about experiences and influences on teching practice. The findings demonstrated that the professional learning initiative provided teachers with a supportive pedagogical tool for focusing their teaching practices on improving student learning. A research based evaluative framework was used as a heuristic to analyse the change initiative. This study used the framework and employed a social constructivist and sociocultural epistemology that recognised the importance of leadership and school context in the development of a culture focused on collaborative communities of practice and data-driven teacher decision-making. The study has significance for leaders, schools and systems that engage teachers in professional capacity building.     

Visualizing the Silent Dialogue About Race: Diversity Outreach in an Academic Library

Purpose

This paper aims to describe the implementation and analyze the outcomes of The Race Card Project initiative at large public university's main library. Through this program, candid submissions from the public were used to promote multicultural learning and inclusivity, as well as to build campus relationships with curricular and co-curricular units engaged in diversity work on campus.

An ELITE service model: Creating and implementing a peer-to-peer library tech support team

Academic libraries are providing technical support and assistance to their patrons using models such as the information commons, learning commons, and designated service points. Applying a constructivist, experiential approach, one small liberal arts college created a team of students to provide peer-to-peer tech support in response to an influx of new technology resources and equipment available for checkout. This team has provided much-needed services to the campus and an important professional development opportunity for its members. This experience offers a useful example for implementing in-house technical support in libraries at similar institutions.