浅论数学教学语言的艺术特点

本文对数学教学语言的艺术特点进行了探索,阐述了:1.数学教学语言应具有生动性;2.数学教学语言应具有情感性;3.数学教学语言应形象直观;4.数学教学应风趣与幽默。     

A school-based intervention on elementary students’ school engagement

Prior research has reported signs of low engagement in the early stages of schooling. The present study assessed the effectiveness of a school-based intervention that promotes cognitive, emotional, and behavioral engagement in elementary school children through a story tool. The study followed a cluster-randomized design with 259 fourth graders nested in 12 classes; the classes, not the individuals, were randomly assigned to an intervention or control group. Both groups were assessed in four waves in two measures for each engagement dimension. Data were analyzed with a multilevel approach. Findings show that the intervention enhanced students’ cognitive, emotional, and behavioral engagement. Still, there is a delay before the intervention program exhibits a beneficial effect.Moreover, gender discrepancies were found. Before the intervention, girls showed higher cognitive and emotional engagement, but boys exhibited higher emotional engagement after the intervention. In addition, current results indicate that the program benefited the boys more than the girls. Finally, there was no evidence that the engagement outcomes differed depending on the parent’s educational level. Findings provide valuable information for future research and educational practice.     

The vice and virtue of conflict in boards: A longitudinal study into the effect of conflicts and cohesion on the task performance of supervisory school boards in the Netherlands

The increased diversity and autonomy of schools calls for a more professional approach to school governance. In response, attention has been directed to the structure of school boards in the Netherlands. However, previous research indicates that the effectiveness of governance is not so much about structure as it is about behaviour. Conflict, in particular, appears to be an important underexposed factor in the effective behaviour of school boards. In a longitudinal research design, a survey using Likert-scale items was distributed in 2016 and 2017 to executive directors of schools in the Netherlands to gauge their assessment of conflicts within the supervisory school board. Hierarchical regression analyses and moderator analyses were used to test the hypotheses. An increase in task-related conflicts were found to have a clear positive effect on the task performance of supervisory boards. An increase in numbers of relational conflicts had a negative effect on the control task performance, while an increase in process-related conflicts had a negative effect on the advisory task performance. The cohesion within a supervisory board proved to be an important moderator of the effect of task-related conflicts and relationship conflicts on the control task performance. The results from this research underline the need for a multidimensional conceptualisation of conflict in supervisory boards. The need for further research on the interaction between cohesion and conflicts is underscored. Boards should make room for substantive debate and even for the inevitable friction and irritation that is sometimes inherent in being effective in managing schools.     

But good strategy instructors are constructivists!

The general nature of constructivist educators' views of teaching are overviewed first, followed by analysis of good strategy instruction in constructivist terms. That good strategy instruction is scaffolded teaching is particularly emphasized. Scaffolded teacher-student interactions necessitate that students experience unique instruction that stimulates a great deal of student construction of to-be-acquired competencies. The only important difference between good strategy teaching and teaching recommended by constructivist educators is in the explicitness of instruction, with relatively greater teacher input about what is to be learned during good strategy instruction.     

公立中小学教师“临聘制”困境及应对策略

我国公立中小学教师临聘制存在自我履约机制困境、缺乏第三方依赖和缺少纵向一体化等问题。基于经济学中的不完全契约理论,笔者提出应对之策在于发挥“教师是基础、学校是保障”的自我履约机制;健全“完善法律设计,规范聘任程序”的第三方实施机制;实施“政府营造环境,学校规范执行”的纵向一体化机制,从而保证公立中小学临聘制教师有效管理与培养。     

District officials’ perspectives regarding factors that impede the attainment of quality basic education in a province in South Africa

The provision of quality basic education is essential as it can ensure that all learners have an equal opportunity to succeed in life. This paper discusses district officials’ perspectives regarding some factors that impede the achievement of quality basic education in schools under their jurisdiction. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted with district officials in eight districts in one province of South Africa. Data analysis followed the iterative approach. Findings reveal that district officials viewed the state of education in their districts and circuit as unsatisfactory due to: low teacher morale, schools’ lack of confidence in their districts and the perceived neglect of the General Education and Training Band. It is argued that improved teacher working conditions, use of better service delivery model by the districts and education department, and full prioritisation of the GET Band are needed in these districts. In conclusion, to achieve social justice in education, corrective measures should be premised upon the understanding of the social and contextual issues as these represent the crippling factors in the province.     

Between ethos and practice: are Ireland’s new multi-denominational primary schools equal and inclusive?

This article explores the ethos of multi-denominational primary schools in the context of increasing cultural and religious diversity in the Republic of Ireland. In particular, it investigates how the official ethos is played out in day-to-day school interactions. The mixed-methods study draws on data collected from 11 community national schools focussing on the perspectives of principals, teachers and pupils. The data indicates while schools’ formal ethos sets out guiding principles and standards, a closer look reveals the specific identity of each individual school within the broader formal framework. The article presents a new perspective on school ethos research by exploring the extent to which it guides the promotion of diversity and tolerance in a multi-faith context. While the study is carried out in Ireland, it is also of interest to other jurisdictions where schools are faced with increasing religious diversity among their student population.     

Local language a medium of instruction: challenges and way forward

The paper reports on a participatory action research study conducted in six rural primary schools in Uganda in 2013 to establish why children taught in the local language had difficulties in reading and writing. Findings through interviews, focus group discussions, reviews of exercise books and lesson observations indicated that though it was easier for pupils to learn the concepts in the local language; challenges ranging from poor translation, inadequate teachers’ language proficiency, lack of instructional materials, high pupils’ enrolment, lack of administrative support and teacher-centred approach of teaching, affected pupils’ learning to read and write. Participants recommended adopting the child-centred pedagogy, incorporating instructional materials, conducting continuous assessment and recording pupils’ competencies attained in reading and writing. Teachers need to engage more in Participatory action research in order to reflect on their practices and pupils’ learning, and collaboratively decide what works best and what needs improvement in their classrooms.     

A response to strategies and tactics through participatory action research in a developmental mathematics course

This paper explores the value of participatory action research in a community college developmental mathematics course. The authors used the framework of critical mathematics education in order to understand the critical conversations of students about their learning experiences, and also to help the instructor of the course develop the curriculum that attended to student experiences. The authors also draw on Michel de Certeau’s ideas about strategies and tactics to understand how students responded to their past learning experiences. Data results from the study show that students can gain a better understanding of their own learning and subsequently develop deeper content knowledge when they are more involved in the teaching and learning process. Lastly, the authors conclude that as adult learners grow in their understanding of the learning processes and of the content being presented, participatory action research can play an important role in the entire development of thinking and intellectual engagement.     

How schools train principals to use new teacher evaluation systems: A comparative case study of charter school and traditional public school principals

Over the past decade U.S. policymakers, practitioners, and researchers have sought to examine if changing teacher evaluation policies and systems have resulted in changes in identifying quality teachers and/or increased student achievement. This research generally shows most states have experienced little change in how teachers are rated. Researchers are now exploring why, in many cases, teacher evaluation reforms have failed to produce the desired systematic changes of better identifying quality teachers and better distinguishing teacher performance. Embedded within this line of inquiry is how principals (and other evaluators) are trained to use new teacher evaluation systems. This comparative case study observed six principals (three charter school principals and three traditional public school principals) in the U.S. state of Michigan as they learned and enacted a new teacher evaluation system. Additionally, all principals were interviewed three times throughout the school year, in an effort to examine how their initial teacher evaluation training impacted their evaluation of teachers. The research questions that guided this work were: (1) how are principals initially trained when their school adopts a new teacher evaluation system?; (2) in what ways does the training received by charter school principals compare to that of traditional public school principals?; and (3) how does initial training impact how principals evaluate teachers? Results indicate principals are trained to navigate the logistics of new teacher evaluation systems, but are not trained to evaluate teacher performance. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.