Journal of Advances in Education Research

8

Authors: David Palmer

There is a need to clarify the nature of motivation because, in spite of much research on motivation, there are still widely divergent views about exactly what motivation is. For example, motivation can be viewed as either a short-term state or as a long-term predisposition. The purpose of the present paper is to critically compare these two conceptualizations with reference to the research literature and recent definitions. It was found that motivation should not be viewed as a long-term predisposition, or a collection of beliefs. Instead, it is argued that motivation should be viewed as a short-term state of mind that can be influenced by one’s long-term predispositions.

10

Authors: Laura M.D. Smucker, John W. McCarthy, Joann P. Benigno, Jamie B. Boster

There is a lack of interventions to understand and change attitudes of school-age children toward peers with severe speech and physical disabilities. The effect of reading a first-person narrative on the attitudes of 66 fifth-grade children toward individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) was investigated using a quasi-experimental design. Children were randomly assigned to either an experimental narrative condition (n = 37) or a control non-fiction, nondisability condition (n = 29). Children’s prior experience with individuals with disabilities and their biological sex had significant effects, with girls and those with previous experience having more positive attitudes than boys and those with no previous experience. Pre/post differences highlighted the potentially reactive nature of attitude testing. Reading the narrative did not lead to significant differences between groups in mean attitudes, but qualitative analyses revealed that the narrative led to a more comprehensive view of people with severe communication challenges and highlighting the misconceptions that many school-age children might have toward individuals with severe communication challenges.

11

Authors: Anna Han, Kyungbin Kwon

The study introduces a case study of a system managing the extracurricular activities (ECA) of students at the university level. A survey asking how students perceived the ECA system was administered and 2591 students participated. Results revealed that 1) 85% of the students were aware of the ECA system and showed moderate attitudes towards the system; 2) students perceiving the ECA system as helpful and easy to use expressed that activities discovered through the ECA system were beneficial to their curriculum learning and participation in ECA, and, in turn, to their career development and college life overall.

7

Authors: Ericka Landry, John R. Slate

This quantitative study was conducted to determine the degree to which participation in and completion of orientation programs or courses were related to student achievement as a function of gender and ethnicity (i.e., Black, White, and Hispanic) measured by the Community College Survey of Student Engagement. Using archival data, over 77,000 community college students were surveyed. Findings were that participation in the orientation programs and courses were statistically significantly related to student GPAs, for Black students and for White students, but not for Hispanic male students. These findings may provide higher education institutions, policymakers, and legislators with empirical data to assist with decision-making regarding support services for this group of students.

11

Authors: Elena Papachristopoulou, Pandelis Kiprianos, Michael Christodoulou

This article aims to investigate school dropout before the completion of compulsory education. The material consisted of the life stories of 26 adult learners at the Second Chance Schools (SCS), which were analysed using the biographical method. Interviews were also held with 4 teachers at the SCS. The questions were organised around five axes: childhood pathways, reasons for dropping out of school, consequences of this decision in their life, reasons for re-entering education and additional biographical designs. Four thematic fields emerged, based on which school dropout is articulated narratively and given meaning as a life choice: a) early involvement with the job market or the creation of a family, b) family life as a “problematic situation”, c) emigration and d) learning difficulties.

8

Authors: Stathis Stivaktakis, Eva Krevetzakis

The primary purpose of this paper is to highlight the crucial importance of integrating art with science. To do so the paper provides a justification of the inclusion of the arts in the science curriculum, by drawing extensively on both theoretical and empirical work. Thus the paper discusses both the epistemological rationale and the pedagogical rationale behind the integration of art and science. It then provides concrete examples as teaching/learning possibilities with regard to the teaching and learning of science through the arts. The paper makes it quite clear that the inclusion of the arts in the science curriculum can be justified on both epistemological and pedagogical grounds and not simply because the inclusion of the arts makes science learning interesting.

10

Authors: Nicola Dunham

The aim of this paper is to explore theoretical frameworks that align with critical pedagogy to inform critical analysis of issues within early childhood education (ECE). This paper is particularly aimed at early childhood student teachers engaging in analysis of discourse and policy associated with ECE in Aotearoa New Zealand, but may hold relevance to other fields and disciplines. The paper begins by defining the concept of critical pedagogy and a theoretical framework, and then proceeds to outline examples of theoretical frameworks relevant to critical pedagogy and ECE. Attention is given to key concepts associated with Freire, Foucault, Bourdieu, and kaupapa Māori. Banking education is the central theme within the framework of Freire; mapping discourse for Foucault, social order and forms of capital for Bourdieu and finally the concepts of ako, poutama and tuakana/teina associated with kaupapa Māori. The paper concludes by highlighting the value of using a theoretical framework informed by critical pedagogy to probe the social landscape for points of inclusion, exclusion and marginalisation. It is concluded that without such a theoretical framework the analysis of educational policy and discourse is likely to verge on a mere stating of current positions, rather than challenging and seeking to reposition issues in support of social justice: a restating as it were.

13

Authors: Mei-Shiu Chiu, Jan DeWaters

This study aims to develop the Energy-Issue Attitude Questionnaire (EIAQ). The EIAQ focuses on student responses to energy issues in society and includes ten constructs, organized pairwise with tension: energy-saving vs. carbon-reducing knowledge, having vs. being lifestyles, questioning vs. conforming to authorities, technology vs. nature approaches, and future vs. present goals. The EIAQ was validated with a criterion questionnaire on energy literacy, including knowledge, affect and behavior. Research participants were 4,689 Taiwanese secondary students. The results show that the EIAQ has desirable construct validity and reliability. Significant differences occur between the two attitudes in each pair. Energy attitudes have medium correlations with energy affect and behavior but low correlations with energy knowledge. The results of structural equation modeling show that energy behavior is directly predicted by 'being' lifestyles and conformity to authorities, and indirectly predicted by energy-saving knowledge, mediated by energy affect.

7

Authors: Rich Ballinger, John R. Slate

In this study, the 1-year persistence rates of four ethnic/racial groups (i.e., White, Black, Hispanic, and Asian) were analyzed as a function of institutional status (i.e., stayed or transferred) at Texas 4-year universities. Data were retrieved from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Interactive Accountability system for the thirty-eight, 4-year Texas public universities for the 2014 academic year. For all ethnic/racial groups, statistically significant differences were present in the 1- year persistence rates by institutional status. Effect sizes were very large. Regardless of race/ethnicity, students who transferred to another 4-year institution were statistically significantly less likely to persist than their peers who remained at the same 4-year institution. The 1-year persistence rates were 44%, 34%, 31%, and 27% higher for Hispanic, White, Asian, and Black students, respectively, who stayed at the same institution than for Hispanic, White, Asian, and Black students who transferred to a different institution. Based upon these results, implications for policy and for practice for 4-year universities are provided, along with suggestions for future research.

12

Authors: Hadyn B. Call, J. Spencer Clark

This article analyzes one aspect of the hidden curriculum perpetuated throughout public education—transnational families lacking institutional knowledge. This is an effort to combat unwanted ignorance by both the dominant culture and those who are attempting to assimilate. It is an effort to prevent injustices that are currently being addressed after the fact rather than as a preventative measure. In essence, we seek to provide a concrete solution to the hidden curriculum of institutional knowledge by proposing that it becomes a part of the community curriculum—a term we are introducing as a way to make explicit the overlooked, and the underutilized normative cultural knowledge. This article also discusses possible directions for future research and how scholars can make the hidden curriculum known by making it explicit in the community curriculum.

12

Authors: Hazel Owen, Rick Whalley

A shared ‘learning journey’ can open up multiple pathways, with each individual's journey shaped by their beliefs, values and prior experiences. There is a growing interest in Professional Learning and Development (PLD) that offers multiple ways to participate, apply and collaborate, in part by using the affordances of technology. Virtual and face-to-face professional learning provision, in particular mentoring, have differences. This paper extrapolates and applies the findings of two studies, drawing on the experiences of students in the Virtual Learning Network Primary study, and those of adult learners in the Virtual Professional Learning and Development programme. The authors identified four key stages that they then encapsulated in the virtual mentoring CASE (Contextual, Administration, Scaffolding, Empowering) Model. The model is situated within a mediated agency framework, which helps illustrate the complexity of contexts that influence the design of a PLD provision, and which can be used in a variety of situations.

14

Authors: Leehu Zysberg, Ditza Maskit

Teachers’ professional development and its correlates is a subject yet to be properly explored and conceptualized. We tested the potential associations between teachers’ professional development stage, emotional experiences at work and burnout. We adopted a view of professional development as ‘frame of mind’, shaping perception, emotional reactions, thoughts and function, rather than mere level of skills and knowledge. We hypothesized that teachers’ developmental stages will differentiate their emotional reactions at work and their burnout level. Sample of 133 school teachers representing a broad range of tenure at work reported their self-perceived professional development stage, emotional experiences at work and experience of burnout. Results showed significant differences in positive and negative emotions between the developmental stages, as well as differences in burnout levels. Results are linking emotional experiences and performance among teachers throughout the career span. An integrative framework emerging from our data is presented and further research is called for.

8

Authors: Martha L. Escalante, John R. Slate

In this study, the degree to which differences were present in reading for Grade 3 students; in reading and writing for Grade 4 students; and in reading and science for Grade 5 students between charter and traditional elementary public schools in Texas was determined. Participants in this study were Grades 3, 4, and 5 students who took the 2015 State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness Reading, Writing, and Science tests. Grade 3, 4, and 5 students who were enrolled in traditional public schools had statistically significantly higher reading, mathematics, writing, and science scores than did students enrolled in charter schools. Implications of these results are provided.

8

Authors: Moritz Muessig, Jasmina Sterz, Maria-Christina Stefanescu, Bernd Bender, Sebastian H. Hoefer, Miriam Ruesseler

Feedback is an essential part of the learning process during undergraduate medical training especially in acquiring practical skills. This study investigates the impact of video feedback on the acquisition of sterile working competencies as an example of a complex practical skill. Fourthyear medical students enrolled in the mandatory skills training completed a 210-minute training unit of ‚wound care’. Oral feedback was received directly after the practical procedure. In the study group, the performance was video-taped and reviewed directly thereafter. Afterwards, students completed a 5-minute OSCE. One to three month later, students were re-assessed as part of their regular practical skills assessment. A total of 107 students were included in the study. There were no significant differences between the two study groups at both point in times. In the present setting and skill, video feedback seems to have no impact on skills’ acquisition.

12

Authors: Kai Horsthemke

Inclusion in education and upbringing is understood as belonging, as the opposite of exclusion. How do people with cognitive and physical impairments learn, and how do they acquire knowledge? Access to schools and other institutions of learning is not the same as access to knowledge. In addition, opportunities for learning and the imparting and grasping of knowledge differ from person to person. Nobody can be included everywhere or demand unqualified access. It would be desirable but it is not always possible to be able to determine where and how one is to be included. In cases of limited autonomy there has to be a kind of selection and control of knowledge. This means the young and the cognitively impaired do not have unconstrained access to knowledge. Educators and parents are responsible for selecting and controlling knowledge for the young and the cognitively impaired. How this can be done justly? How ought one to deal with the knowledge claims and the epistemic and cognitive abilities of those with relevant deficiencies? Under what circumstances can one speak of knowledge here? And what would be the basis for inclusion within a knowledge community?