bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Teacher Im/Material: Challenging the New Pedagogies of Instructional Design
Authors: Mcwilliam Erica , Taylor Peter G.
Published: June 2007

The authors critique the increasingly technologized teaching and learning environment of higher education. They argue that fresh pedagogical understandings are needed to inform thinking about instructional design. While the imperative to use communication technologies to increase learner access is laudable, the question of "access to what?" should also be addressed in all of its complexity. Disparate terrains of new literature about teaching and learning, technology and corporeality can bring fresh perspectives to bear on the nature of pedagogical work. However, such literatures are rarely brought together. In this article, the authors work across aspects of learning theory, critical theory, and poststructuralism to explore the question, "access to what?" In so doing, they raise important questions about the embodied nature of teaching and learning and the potential of both "embodied" and "disembodied" teaching to produce and counter marginalization. The argument is that all decisions about the appropriateness of particular pedagogical practices must engage with such questions.
Rejoinder: in the United States of America, in Both Our Souls and Our Sciences, We Are Avoiding White Racism
Authors: Scheurich James Joseph , Young Michelle D.
Published: June 2007

[T]he time has passed when the so-called race question can be relegated to secondary or tertiary theoretical significance. In fact, to take seriously the multi-leveled oppression of peoples of color is to raise fundamental questions regarding the very conditions for the possibility of the modern West, the diverse forms and styles of European rationality and the character of the prevailing modern secular mythologies of nationalism, professionalism, scientism, consumerism and sexual hedonism that guide everyday practices around the world. ( West, 1993 , p. 251)
Discretion in the Translation of Research to Policy: A Case From Beginning Reading
Authors: TAYLOR BARBARA M. , ANDERSON RICHARD C. , AU KATHRYN H. , RAPHAEL TAFFY E.
Published: June 2007

Today, when information spreads like wild fire through the media and across the Web, we argue that the standards for reporting and interpreting educational research should be raised. The need for a higher standard is urgent in fields such as beginning reading, in which public interest is intense, because findings can quickly become distorted or misinterpreted and enshrined through misinformed policy decisions. Researchers investigating beginning reading should exercise extra caution to delimit findings from their own studies. They should take special pains to show how studies contribute to a larger picture of literacy development which policymakers and educational leaders, in turn, need to consider. We examine one recent, and uncommonly influential, reading methods study as an example of research that has been overly promoted by the media and misused by some policymakers and educational leaders to support a simple solution to the complex problem of raising the literacy of young children in high-poverty neighborhoods.
Modern Art in the Old South: The Role of the Arts in Fisk University’s Campus Curriculum
Authors: Gasman Marybeth , Epstein Edward
Published: June 2007

Charles S. Johnson, the first Black president of Fisk, encouraged integration both in the racial sense and through the inclusion of a broader range of experiences within the college curriculum. This article examines Johnson’s understanding of art as a tool for advancement, developed during his years as a promoter of African-American art and literature during the Harlem Renaissance. It explores the ways in which Fisk’s art collection and cultural programs were used, and their intended effect on students and campus life. In particular, the article demonstrates the unique role of these programs in building a sense of identity among students and expanding the worldview of people of varying races and ethnicities.
Dewey and Vygotsky Viewed Through the Rearview Mirror—and Dimly at That
Authors: Prawat Richard S.
Published: June 2007

In an article comparing John Dewey and Lev Vygotsky, Glassman (2001, pp. 3–14) emphasized the profound differences that he believes separate the two great theorists, a view that is challenged in this response. The author argues that the intellectual agendas pursued by the two scholars grew and changed in very similar ways in the course of each individual’s work. Also refuted in this response are stereotypic ideas about Dewey and Vygotsky such as the notion that the former put process ahead of product in education or that the latter downplayed the role of student diversity in learning
Ideology and Reform in Teacher Education in England: Some Reflections on Cochran-Smith and Fries
Authors: Furlong John
Published: June 2007

This article presents an international perspective on Cochran-Smith and Fries’ (2001) recent analysis of the ways in which two competing ideologies are currently being employed in the United States in support of teacher education reform. In England over the last 15 years, teacher education has been fundamentally reformed and the arguments of both the “deregulators” and the “professionalizers” have been important in that process. Despite surface similarities, there remain important differences between the United States and England in how these two ideologies have been advanced and in the constituencies that have supported them. Teacher educators in England have been excluded from much of the public debate and the government has taken on the arguments of the professionalizers. What a comparison between these two countries demonstrates are the complexities involved in the globalization of ideologies.
The Discourse of Reform in Teacher Education: Extending the Dialogue
Authors: Cochran-Smith Marilyn , Fries Mary Kim
Published: June 2007

In response to Fenstermacher’s and Furlong’s commentaries, Cochran-Smith and Fries suggest three additional points to extend the dialogue about the reform of teacher education. They discuss the potential value of debates that marshal evidence for a particular policy position, the importance of open discussion about the ideologies that underlie different positions, and necessary cautions about the increasing role of the federal government in educational policy and practice.
Measuring the Content of Instruction: Uses in Research and Practice
Authors: Porter Andrew C.
Published: June 2007

This article describes tools for measuring the content of instruction, the content of instructional materials, and the alignment between these. Illustrative findings about the use of these tools are reported, and possible additional uses, both for research and practice, are discussed. The validity of data produced through use of these tools is found to be quite good. An agenda for future work is sketched—both for improvement of the quality and versatility of the tools and for use of the tools in research and practice.
The Uses of Practitioner Research and Status Issues in Educational Research: Reply to Gary Anderson
Authors: Metz Mary Haywood , Page Reba N.
Published: June 2007

In calling for practitioner research, Anderson highlights a number of important issues but, as Metz and Page demonstrate in their response, the questions he raises have few straightforward or unequivocal answers. Metz and Page agree that because efforts to study and improve educational practice too often impose abstract findings on schools and teachers, much may be gained from the development of a literature based in practice. They argue, however, that everything included under the umbrella of practitioner research should not be called research. They predict that calling for teachers to engage in activities labeled as research on a broad scale may produce as many unanticipated problems as it does benefits.
Comment: “Science” Rejects Postmodernism
Authors: Pierre Elizabeth Adams St
Published: June 2007

The National Research Council report Scientific Research in Educationclaims to present an inclusive view of science as it responds to federal government attempts to legislate educational research. This author argues, however, that the report in fact narrowly defines scienceas positivism and methodologyas quantitative. These definitions are made possible by the outright rejection of postmodernism and the rejection by omission of other theories including queer, feminist, race, postcolonial, critical, and poststructural theories. The chief issue in this report is, in fact, not “science” but the larger issue of epistemology, from which methodologies like conventional science emerge. After using postmodern analyses to illustrate the danger of the report’s normalizing and totalizing discourse, this author urges researchers to be on guard against those who would reject diverse epistemologies and methodologies in educational research
Theme Issue: The Role of Design in Educational Research
Authors: Kelly Anthony E.
Published: June 2007

Inspired by the seminal work of Ann Brown, Allan Collins, Roy Pea, and Jan Hawkins, a growing number of researchers have begun to adopt the metaphors and methods of the design and engineering fields. This special issue highlights the work of some of these active researchers and provides a number of commentaries on it.
How Design Experiments Can Inform a Rethinking of Transfer andViceVersa
Authors: Lobato Joanne
Published: June 2007

Limitations with current approaches to the investigation of the transfer of learning in design experiments constrain the type of information that is available to researchers as they make design decisions. This article addresses these limitations by presenting a reconceptualization of transfer, called actor-oriented transfer, which emerged from design experiment work. The merits of this alternative model are considered in terms of the information it provides to design experimenters.
Clinical Design Sciences: A View From Sister Design Efforts
Authors: Zaritsky Raul , Kelly Anthony E. , Flowers Woodie , Rogers Everett , O’Neill Patrick
Published: June 2007

In this article the authors argue that the social sciences are clinical-like endeavors, and the sophisticated way that sister fields discover and validate their results may inform research practice in education. The authors provide a brief introduction to three sister fields: engineering product design, research on the diffusion of innovations, and management analysis of institutional change.
“Every Shut Eye Ain’t Sleep”: Studying How People Live Culturally
Authors: Lee Carol D. , Spencer Margaret Beale , Harpalani Vinay
Published: June 2007

We call for the integration of cultural socialization and identity processes in learning as a goal of educational research. Our aim is to improve educational outcomes for racial and ethnic minority youth and for youth facing persistent intergenerational poverty. This requires that educational researchers understand the cultural niches in which young people develop. We illustrate this claim through the lenses of the Cultural Modeling Framework and the Phenomenological Variant of Ecological Systems Theory, using African-American youth as our case model. We demonstrate both the application of the framework and the theory in an educational intervention and posit implications for requirements to carry out such research.
What Is an “Expert Student?”
Authors: Sternberg Robert J.
Published: June 2007

This article suggests that conventional methods of teaching may, at best, create pseudo-experts—students whose expertise, to the extent they have it, does not mirror the expertise needed for real-world thinking inside or outside of the academic disciplines schools normally teach. It is suggested that teaching for “successful intelligence” may help in the creation of future experts. It is further suggested that we may wish to start teaching students to think wisely, not just well.
Cognitive Ability and Non-Ability Trait Determinants of Expertise
Authors: Ackerman Phillip L.
Published: June 2007

Traditional approaches to understanding individual differences determinants of domain-specific expertise have focused on individual trait components, such as ability or topic interest. In contrast, trait complex approaches consider whether combinations of cognitive, affective, and conative traits are particularly facilitative or impeding of the development of domain knowledge. This article reviews an investment theory and empirical research concerning a relatively small set of trait complexes that appear to be instrumental correlates of both individual and group differences in expertise across several academic domains. Implications for academic counseling and instructional interventions are discussed.
Improving Educational Research:Toward a More Useful, More Influential, and Better-Funded Enterprise
Authors: Burkhardt Hugh , Schoenfeld Alan H.
Published: June 2007

Educational research is not very influential, useful, or well funded. This article explores why and suggests ways that the situation could be improved. Our focus is on the processes that link the development of good ideas and insights, the development of tools and structures for implementation, and the enabling of robust implementation in realistic practice. We suggest that educational research and development should be restructured so as to be more useful to practitioners and to policymakers, allowing the latter to make better-informed, less-speculative decisions that will improve practice more reliably.
The Dilemmas, Challenges, and Duality of an African-American Educational Historian
Authors: Alridge Derrick P.
Published: June 2007

This article examines the dilemmas and challenges of objectivity, presentism, and voice and agency I have encountered as an African-American historian of education whose research focuses on the education of Black people. A perplexing problem has been how to conduct good and “respectable” research while identifying with the African-American community I am researching. Drawing on personal research experiences and the selected work of historians and education researchers, I discuss how I have dealt with these methodological queries in my research. Despite dealing with the challenges and dilemmas of objectivity, presentism, and voice and agency in my research, I argue that the “double-consciousness” I face as an African-American scholar within the academy may be transcended by using solid and innovative conceptual and methodological approaches. The article concludes with a reiteration of emergent themes for conducting good research.
Collective Efficacy Beliefs:Theoretical Developments, Empirical Evidence, and Future Directions
Authors: Goddard Roger D. , Hoy Wayne K. , Hoy Anita Woolfolk
Published: June 2007

This analysis synthesizes existing research to discuss how teachers’ practice and student learning are affected by perceptions of collective efficacy. Social cognitive theory is employed to explain that the choices teachers make—the ways in which they exercise personal agency—are strongly influenced by collective efficacy beliefs. Although empirically related, teacher and collective efficacy perceptions are theoretically distinct constructs, each having unique effects on educational decisions and student achievement. Our purpose is to advance awareness about perceived collective efficacy and develop a conceptual model to explain the formation and influence of perceived collective efficacy in schools. We also examine the relevance of efficacy beliefs to teachers’ professional work and outline future research possibilities.
Researching English Language and Literacy Development in Schools
Authors: Hawkins Margaret R.
Published: June 2007

There is a curious disjuncture in the current discourse(s) on the schooling of immigrant and minority students. The official discourse, as has been communicated through the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 rhetoric and the concomitant focus on standards and assessment, says that minority children, especially English language learners (ELLs) must gain “standard” English language skills in an unreasonably short time frame, while achieving on par with native English speaking students in academic content areas. Policy decisions at federal, state, and local levels are being made without input from educational researchers and professionals who have expertise in these areas. However, even within educational circles there is heated debate about how best to educate ELLs, and what “best practices” and “best programs” look like.
Disciplining the Discipline: Anthropology and the Pursuit of Quality Education
Authors: González Norma
Published: June 2007

Disciplinary knowledge in anthropology occupies a unique position in relation to quality education: anthropology in education and the anthropology of education. This essay differentiates between anthropology as a field, as a repository of content and disciplinary knowledge (anthropology in education), and anthropology as a tool, as a theoretical and heuristic device that allows us to study students, schooling, learning, and teaching (the anthropology of education). Drawing on Bakhtin’s formulation of centrifugal and centripetal forces, the author argues that anthropology has both enabled and limited possibilities for quality education. A retrospective look at the construct of culture is emblematic of this process. The author claims that the disciplining of anthropological boundaries has often resulted in disengagement of anthropology as a field from issues of practice. Furthermore, the argument is made that an engaged anthropology must confront the implications of its theories, especially as they are applied in the crucible of education and schools.
Ways of Thinking About Educational Quality
Authors: Burbules Nicholas C
Published: June 2007

This essay examines critically the conceptual and normative underpinnings of various views about educational quality, emphasizing the centrality of different assumptions about educational aims. Two distinctions play a key role in the first part of the paper: that between transcendent justifications of educational aims, versus socio-cultural reproduction justifications—and that between what I call “strong teleological” and “weaker teleological” views of educational aims themselves. Most contemporary views of educational aims can be situated within these cross-cutting frameworks. I then move on to criticisms of the idea of educational aims, and suggest that while they may appear to be anti-teleological, they actually express their own implicit teleologies. But they do indicate some problems with teleological models of educational aims, which I explore at further length. I conclude with a proposal about a different way of thinking about teleology, and argue for the importance of an educational aim that includes the capacity to reflect upon and question the aims and purposes of education itself.
On the Interconnected Nature of Interpreting Vygotsky: Rejoinder to Gredler and Shields Does No One Read Vygotsky’s Words 2004
Authors: Glassman Michael , Wang Ye , Education doctoral student in the College of
Published: June 2007

In response to the critique of Gredler and Shields (2004) of Glassman’s article Dewey and Vygotsky: Society, Experience, and Inquiry in Educational Practice 2001 we suggest that interpretation of theory is dynamic and based very much on the use of that theory as an instrument. Gredler and Shields argue that Glassman misinterprets Vygotsky because Glassman did not read his words (carefully enough). We, in response, suggest that Gredler and Shields own interpretations of Vygotsky’s words are based very much on their own predispositions about how developmental theory should be understood, and how to use Vygotsky’s ideas to achieve specific research goals. Change the research goals and you might change the meaning of Vygotsky’s words. We offer alternative interpretations of Vygotsky’s words based on a different perspective of human development and research goals.
Doctoral Preparation of Scientifically Based Education Researchers
Authors: Eisenhart Margaret , DeHaan Robert L.
Published: June 2007

Finding improved ways to train education researchers has taken on new urgency as federal legislation such as the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 call for “scientifically based research in education.” The authors of this article suggest an approach to socializing doctoral students to a common “culture of science” (a set of norms for scientific inquiry) and preparing them for interdisciplinary studies that span the natural and social sciences. Drawing on developments in the fields of neuroscience, sociology of natural science, and the learning sciences, the authors argue for an approach to doctoral training that is consistent with a broad definition of scientifically based research.
Feeling Better: A Comparison of Medical Research and Education Research
Authors: Riehl Carolyn
Published: June 2007

The education research community sometimes invokes medical research as a model to which education ought to aspire. This article reviews some recent themes and developments in the medical field to provide a more informed basis for comparison. The use of randomized clinical trials in medical research, the role of evidence in medical practice, and the rhetorical strategies for conveying research information in medical journals are discussed. A notable observation is that physicians often participate in clinical research and—in that work, as well as in their routine professional practice—function as knowledge workers. Educators also engage in knowledge work, but their practice is not always regarded in that way. The comparisons between medical research and education research suggest that the two fields face many similar challenges.
The Cultural Work of Learning Disabilities
Authors: McDermott Ray , Goldman Shelley , Varenne Hervé
Published: June 2007

Culturally and educationally, the United States specializes in the production of kinds of persons described first by ethnic, racial, and linguistic lines and second by supposed mental abilities. Overlaps between the two systems of classification are frequent, systematically haphazard, and often deleterious. An examination of classrooms around the country shows shifting currents of concern and tension that invite the attribution of labels for mental and/or minority-group status. This article introduces a language for a cultural analysis—a language of people interpreting the interpretations of others—and pursues an example from a classroom where both the good sense and the dangers of categories for learning-disabled and minority-group status are on display.
Reconsidering the Compatibility Thesis and Eclecticism: Five Proposed Guidelines for Method Use
Authors: Yanchar Stephen C. , Williams David D.
Published: June 2007

This essay examines calls for methodological eclecticism based on the “compatibility thesis,” arguing that they fail to take seriously the assumptions of method and, in so doing, fail to provide a methodological perspective that adequately incorporates the centrally important task of critically examining the theoretical background of methods and conceptual frameworks for research. The authors offer an alternative view of method use and a set of guidelines that emphasize the importance of contextual sensitivity, creativity, conceptual awareness, coherence, and critical reflection in research and evaluation practices.
Learning Anytime, Anywhere: Advanced Distributed Learning and the Changing Face of Education
Authors: Fletcher J. D. , Tobias Sigmund , Wisher Robert A.
Published: June 2007

The Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) initiative was undertaken to make education, training, and lifelong learning accessible at any time, anywhere. It has developed specifications and techniques that are being adopted globally by governments, businesses, and schools. Although ADL currently focuses on government and business applications, it has significant implications for the classroom structures, processes, and activities of K–16 education. The authors describe the ADL initiative and its implications for K–16 education and call for increased attention from educators and education researchers to the opportunities and challenges represented by anytime, anywhere, distributed learning.
Multi-Age Classes and High Ability Students
Authors: Lloyd Linley
Published: June 2007

This article reviews research on multi-age classroom organization as an option for high ability students. Studies of both cognitive and affective factors in multi-age contexts have consistently shown positive, sometimes significant, effect sizes. Studies of different types of ability grouping have shown that arrangements most likely to have positive and significant results are those where the curriculum is differentiated. Teachers of multi-age classes may be more likely to see their students as diverse than as similar and to provide developmentally appropriate (that is, differentiated) curricula. Multi-age classes are discussed as an alternative to self-contained classes and pullout programs for high ability children.
Incidental Word Learning While Reading: A Meta-Analysis
Authors: Swanborn M.S.L. , de Glopper K.
Published: June 2007

A meta.analysis of 20 experiments examining incidental word learning during normal reading shows that students learn around 15% of the unknown words they encounter. A test of homogeneity indicates that study outcomes diverge, although their heterogeneity is relatively small (19%). An exploratory multi-level analysis of the variability in the results suggests that several factors affect the probability of learning an unknown word while reading: pretest sensitization, students' grade level, students' level of reading ability, the sensitivity of assessment methods to partial word knowledge, and the amount of text surrounding the target words. A model that contains students' grade level and assessment methods' sensitivity to partial word knowledge predicts 66% of the systematic variance in the effect sizes. Implications for research and instruction are discussed.
Spinsters, Bachelors, and Other Gender Transgressors in School Employment, 1850-1990
Authors: Blount Jackie M.
Published: June 2007

Over the past two centuries, school employment in the United States generally has been divided into gender-identified roles. In spite of this stark division, however, many men and women have transgressed their" acceptable gendered places in schoolwork. At times, these gender transgressors––including male teachers of young children, women superintendents, spinsters, and more recently, gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender educators––have faced severe sanctions as individuals, institutions. and the broader society have labored to maintain strict gender boundaries around them. This article offers art historical analysis of how year of homosexuality emerged among educators and the public, and further how homophobia has perpetuated rigid gender-identified roles in school employment.
The Potential Impact of Large-Scale Voucher Programs
Authors: McEwan Patrick J.
Published: June 2007

This review assesses the potential impact of large-scale voucher programs, drawing on empirical literature in economics, education, and sociology. The discussion is guided by three research questions, grounded within an economic framework. First, are private schools more efficient than public schools? Second, does the increasingly competitive schooling market promoted by vouchers cause public schools to become more efficient? And third, do vouchers result in increased student sorting across public and private schools–perhaps increasing segregation by socioeconomic status–and what does sorting portend for student outcomes? For some questions, there is a paucity of credible evidence. For others, evidence from non-voucher systems is used inappropriately to forecast the impact of vouchers. The review concludes that empirical evidence is not sufficiently compelling to justify, either strong advocacy or opposition to large-scale voucher programs.
Is Student Achievement Immutable? Evidence From International Studies on Schooling and Student Achievement
Authors: Suter Larry E.
Published: June 2007

International comparative studies of student achievement that have been conducted since 1965 have influenced education policy and research issues in the United States. This article reviews the contribution of recent international studies to an understanding of the role of content in curriculum and thus the way in which schools have an impact on student learning. Studies conducted of U.S. schools during the 1960s by James Coleman and his associates and schools of other countries by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement concluded that student performance was determined more by family background than by school characteristics. However, Coleman himself later recanted that finding in a reanalysis of international studies. Recent international studies of student assessment have demonstrated that between-countries differences in how the science and mathematics curriculum is presented may account for differences in student performance. This finding has had an effect on national policy by supporting efforts to reform the content of subject matter introduced in schools.
Negative Effects of Reward on Intrinsic Motivation—A Limited Phenomenon: Comment on Deci, Koestner, and Ryan (2001)
Authors: Cameron Judy
Published: June 2007

A major concern in educational settings is that the use of rewards and incentives may destroy students’ intrinsic motivation to perform activities. In collaboration with other researchers, the author conducted a meta-analysis of the literature that showed that negative effects of reward were limited and easily avoidable (Cameron & Pierce, 1994; Eisenberger & Cameron, 1996 ). Deci, Koestner, and Ryan (2001) suggest that our work was seriously flawed; they present a summary of their meta-analysis on the topic (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 1999a) and claim that rewards do substantially undermine intrinsic interest. In this comment, it is argued that there is no inherent negative property of reward. By organizing studies according to cognitive evaluation theory, Deci et al. (1999a) collapsed across distinct reward procedures and were able to obtain pervasive negative effects. When studies are organized according to the actual procedures used, however, negative effects are limited to a specific set of circumstances.
Framing Constructivism in Practice as the Negotiation of Dilemmas: An Analysis of the Conceptual, Pedagogical, Cultural, and Political Challenges Facing Teachers
Authors: Windschitl Mark
Published: June 2007

Classroom teachers are finding the implementation of constructivist instruction far more difficult than the reform community acknowledges. This article presents a theoretical analysis of constructivism in practice by building a framework of dilemmas that explicates the conceptual, pedagogical, cultural, and political planes of the constructivist teaching experience. In this context, “constructivism in practice” is a concept situated in the ambiguities, tensions, and compromises that arise among stakeholders in the educational enterprise as constructivism is used as a basis for teaching. In addition to providing a unique theoretical perspective for researchers, the framework is a heuristic for teachers, providing critical questions that allow them to interrogate their own beliefs, question institutional routines, and understand more deeply the forces that influence their classroom practice
What Do We Know About Teacher Leadership? Findings From Two Decades of Scholarship
Authors: York-Barr Jennifer , Duke Karen
Published: June 2007

The concept and practice of teacher leadership have gained momentum in the past two decades. Teachers are assuming more leadership functions at both instructional and organizational levels of practice. Empirical literature reveals numerous small-scale, qualitative studies that describe dimensions of teacher leadership practice, teacher leader characteristics, and conditions that promote and challenge teacher leadership. Less is known about how teacher leadership develops and about its effects. In addition, the construct of teacher leadership is not well defined, conceptually or operationally. Future research focused on the differentiated paths by which teachers influence organizational capacity, professionalism, instructional improvement, and student learning has the potential to advance the practice of teacher leadership. A conceptual framework is offered to guide such inquiry.
A Meta-Analytic Perspective on Sex Equity in the Classroom
Authors: Jones Susanne M. , Dindia Kathryn
Published: June 2007

This meta-analysis examines patterns of sex differences in teacher-initiated teacher–student interactions. While extensive research has examined factors that influence student evaluations of effective and ineffective teachers, this study examines whether teacher-initiated interactions with students, such as praising or blaming, vary as a function of student sex. After a careful examination of 127 empirical studies, 32 studies were retained for the meta-analysis. The studies were coded for positive, negative, and total interactions. The results suggest that teachers initiate more overall interactions and more negative interactions, but not more positive interactions, with male students than with female students.
Models of Innovative Knowledge Communities and Three Metaphors of Learning
Authors: Paavola Sami , Lipponen Lasse , Hakkarainen Kai
Published: June 2007

The authors analyze and compare three models of innovative knowledge communities: Nonaka and Takeuchi’s model of knowledge-creation, Engeström’s model of expansive learning, and Bereiter’s model of knowledge building. Despite basic differences, these models have pertinent features in common: Most fundamentally, they emphasize dynamic processes for transforming prevailing knowledge and practices. Beyond characterizing learning as knowledge acquisition (the acquisition metaphor) and as participation in a social community (the participation metaphor), the authors of this article distinguish a third aspect: learning (and intelligent activity in general) as knowledge creation (the knowledge-creation metaphor). This approach focuses on investigating mediated processes of knowledge creation that have become especially important in a knowledge society.
Student Employment and Higher Education: Empiricism and Contradiction
Authors: Riggert Steven C. , Boyle Mike , Petrosko Joseph M. , Ash Daniel , Rude-Parkins Carolyn
Published: June 2007

College student employment has been increasing steadily for at least four decades. At present, approximately 80% of all college students are employed while completing their undergraduate education. Even among students under the age of 24 at 4-year colleges, more than 50% are employed during the school year. Although some general trends are suggested by empirical research completed to date, studies that evaluate student employment and higher education are at times inconsistent and even contradictory. Despite the high prevalence of student employment, no theoretical models have been developed to explain the relationship between employment and student outcomes. This article briefly reviews the student employment–higher education empirical literature. Possible reasons for inconsistencies are suggested, including challenges posed by methodological issues and the absence of theoretical conceptualization. Some concluding suggestions are offered for addressing these empirical challenges.
More Than Words? Delving Into the Substantive Meaning(s) of “Social Justice” in Education
Authors: North Connie E.
Published: June 2007

At the dawning of the 21st century, the term “social justice” is appearing in numerous public texts and discourses throughout the field of education. However, and as Gewirtz argued in 1998, the conceptual underpinnings of this catchphrase frequently remain tacit or underexplored. This article elaborates Gewirtz’s earlier “mapping” of social justice theories by examining the tensions that emerge when various conceptualizations of social justice collide and, in turn, their implications for the field of education. By presenting a model of the complex, fraught interactions among diverse claims about social justice, the author seeks to promote continued dialogue and reflexivity on the purposes and possibilities of education for social justice.
Reform and Teaching: Exploring Patterns of Practice in the Context of National and State Mathematics Reforms
Authors: Spillane James P. , Zeuli John S.
Published: June 2007

This article investigates teachers' mathematics practice in the context of recent national and state efforts to reform mathematics education. The authors develop a conceptual frame for examining reformers' proposals for mathematics education in classroom teaching in terms of the intersection of classroom tasks and discourse patterns with principled and procedural mathematical knowledge. Applying this framework to examine mathematics instruction in 25 classrooms, classrooms where teachers reported practices consistent with the reforms as well as familiarity and agreement with either national or state mathematics standards, the authors identify distinctly different patterns of practice in response to the reforms. Based on this analysis, the authors identify some dimensions of practice that appear more responsive to reform than others. In light of their analysis, the authors consider issues for policy analysis, policy research, and the design of policy.
Measuring Instructional Practice: Can Policymakers Trust Survey Data?
Authors: Mayer Daniel P.
Published: June 2007

Policymakers' new interest in reforming teaching has created a demand for accurate data on instructional practice. Most such data come from teacher surveys, although the accuracy of these surveys in assessing practice is virtually unknown. This exploratory study examines the reliability and validity of using a survey to gauge the percentage of time that algebra teachers use practices that are consistent with professional standards for teaching mathematics. A 13-item composite measuring the frequency with which teachers use these practices had a test-retest reliability of .69 based on two waves of survey data collected four months apart, In addition, there was a .85 correlation between a composite based on survey data and a parallel composite based on classroom observations. Both sets of results suggest that the composite is quite reliable, and the second set of results suggests that it has some validity: This composite fails, however, to capture the quality with which teachers engage in reform practices. In addition, the results indicate that teachers do not reliably report how much time they spend using one practice or another. This suggests that the trend of presenting individual indicators, rather than composite indicators, in state and national reports may be misguided. More research should be done to improve the reliability and validity of both.
Special Education and School Achievement: An Exploratory Analysis With a Central-City Sample
Authors: Reynolds Arthur J. , Wolfe Barbara
Published: June 2007

Is placement in special education during the elementary grades associated with higher school performance? To shed light on this question, we investigated the relationship between participation in special education programs during Grades 1–6 and school achievement among 1,234 low-income children participating in the Chicago Longitudinal Study. About 15% of the study sample received special education services (half in learning disabilities and half in other disabilities), 22% were retained in grade, and 50% changed schools more than once over the elementary grades. Controlling for school achievement prior to placement in special education, as well as for family background school experiences, and school attributes, children receiving special education services had lower reading and math achievement scores than other children, especially during Grades 4–6. Children with learning disabilities benefited less from special education services than did children with other disabilities. Grade retention and school mobility during the primary grades were associated with significantly lower reading and math achievement above and beyond prior achievement and other factors. Continued scrutiny of special education services and retention practices, at least as they currently exist in large cities, may benefit children with learning difficulties.
Unraveling the Complexity of the Increase in College Grades From the Mid-1980s to the Mid-1990s
Authors: Kuh George D. , Hu Shouping
Published: June 2007

To determine the factors contributing to the widely reported increase in average undergraduate grades, data were analyzed from students from two different time periods: 22, 792 students in the mid-1980s and 29,464 in the mid-1990s. After controlling for student background characteristics and institutional characteristics, it appears that undergraduate grades increased across different types of institutions and major fields, but the increases were not of the same magnitude or due to the same factors. Evidence of grade inflation was found only at research universities and selective liberal arts colleges, while grade deflation occurred at general liberal arts colleges and comprehensive colleges and universities and in the humanities and social sciences. Also contributing to the increase in grades were changes in student characteristics and subtle adjustments in grading reward structures at all institutional types and for all major field clusters. In general, grading reward structures favored White students, female students, and upper-division students. Equally important, students 'academic effort was rewarded consistently across time at all institutions and major fields, with students who invested more time and effort in their studies reporting higher grades.
The Effectiveness and Efficiency of Private Schools in Chile's Voucher System
Authors: McEwan Patrick J. , Carnoy Martin
Published: June 2007

This paper assesses the relative effectiveness and efficiency of private and public schools in Chile, where the military government implemented a national voucher plan in 1980. Non-religious voucher schools (accounting for two-thirds of primary enrollments in all private voucher schools) are marginally less effective than public schools in producing academic achievement in the fourth grade; at best, they are similarly effective. Catholic voucher schools are somewhat more effective than public schools. Nevertheless, non-religious schools are more efficient, by virtue of producing academic achievement at a lower cost. The difference is probably attributable to lower teacher wages and constraints on public school resource allocation. The relative efficiency of public and Catholic schools is similar. We tentatively conclude that the case for shifting public resources to privately run schools is mixed (although a comprehensive evaluation would require evidence not provided by this research).
Does Teacher Certification Matter? Evaluating the Evidence
Authors: Darling-Hammond Linda , Berry Barnett , Amy Thoreson
Published: June 2007

The authors respond to Dan Goldhaber and Dominic Brewer’s article in the Summer 2000 issue of Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis that claimed from an analysis of NELS teacher and student data that teacher certification has little bearing on student achievement. Goldhaber and Brewer found strong and consistent evidence that, as compared with students whose teachers are uncertified, students achieve at higher levels in mathematics when they have teachers who hold standard certification in mathematics. (The same was true to a somewhat lesser extent in science.) However, they emphasized their finding that, "Contrary to conventional wisdom, mathematics and science [students] who have teachers with emergency credentials do no worse than students whose teachers have standard teaching credentials " and suggested that certification be abandoned. This article critiques the methodological grounding for this finding and presents additional data on the characteristics of the small sub-sample of teachers in NELS data base who held temporary and emergency credentials. It finds that most of these teachers have qualifications resembling those of teachers with standard certification, and that those who have more education training appear to do better in producing student achievement. It also reviews the literature on teacher education and certification as the basis for evaluating Goldhaber and Brewer’s claim that states should eliminate certification requirements and proposes additional research that would illuminate how teacher education and certification operate-and could better operate-to enable teachers to succeed in their work.
Standards-Based Reform in Practice: Evidence on State Policy and Classroom Instruction from the NAEP State Assessments
Authors: Swanson Christopher B. , Stevenson David Lee
Published: June 2007

The movement for higher standards in American education has attracted considerable public and scholarly attention during the past decade. Largely due to significant methodological challenges, however, there has been limited empirical investigation of the structure and operation of this movement on a nationwide scale. This paper develops an empirical strategy for studying broad-based educational change employing quantitative methods and an extensive database consisting of state policy indicators and data on schools and classrooms from a large number of states participating in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) State Assessments in Mathematics. Two main elements of standards-based reform are examined: (a) correspondence between the structure of the national standards movement and patterns of state-level policy activism, and (b) linkages between state policy and classroom instructional practices. The results of a Rasch measurement analysis indicate that patterns of state policy activity closely resemble standards-based reform, as it is known as a national movement. Multilevel statistical modeling using data from a large longitudinal panel of schools further shows that state activism has a significant independent effect on teachers’ use of classroom practices consistent with a standards-based model of mathematics education. While of a modest size, this state policy effect remains robust after taking into consideration other conditions at the classroom, school, and state levels, including the prior use of standards-based instruction for schools and states. Evidence also suggests that these policy effects on instruction may operate by promoting greater teacher receptivity to reform, particularly through relevant professional development experiences.
Stability of School-Building Accountability Scores and Gains
Authors: Linn Robert L. , Haug Carolyn
Published: June 2007

A number of states have school-building accountability systems that rely on comparisons of achievement from one year to the next. Improvement of the performance of schools is judged by changes in the achievement of successive groups of students. Year-to-year changes in scores for successive groups of students have a great deal of volatility. The uncertainty in the scores is the result of measurement and sampling error and nonpersistent factors that affect scores in one year but not the next. The level of uncertainty was investigated using fourth grade reading results for schools in Colorado for four years of administration of the Colorado Student Assessment Program. It was found that the year-to-year changes are quite unstable, resulting in a near zero correlation of the school gains from years one to two with those from years three to four. Some suggestions for minimizing volatility in change indices for schools are provided.