bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Assessing Habits of Mind: Teaching to the Test at Central Park East Secondary School
Authors: Duckor Brent , Perlstein Daniel 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context Educational researchers and policymakers have often lamented the failure of teachers to implement what they consider to be technically sound assessment procedures. In recent years, the belief that teachers are unwilling or unable to implement appropriate assessment procedures has contributed to the rapid expansion of high stakes, standardized testing in schools. Supporters of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) have contrasted teachers’ assessment practices with standardized testing, arguing that teacher-created classroom assessments lack the technical characteristics required to produce trustworthy measures of student learning or compare large populations of students. Research Question/Focus of Study Through a case study of New York City's Central Park East Secondary School (CPESS), in the years when it served as a model for progressive American school reform, Duckor and Perlstein demonstrate the usefulness of an alternative to reliance on the technical characteristics of standardized tests for constructing and judging assessments: teachers’ self-conscious and reasoned articulation of their approaches to learning and assessment. Research Design In order to determine CPESS teachers’ assessment practices and the process through which they were developed, Duckor and Perlstein conducted semi-structured oral history interviews with a sample of CPESS teachers. They triangulated teachers’ recollections through a content analysis of course assignments, rubrics, grading reports, and other artifacts of assessment at CPESS. The sources of this data included published accounts of CPESS and primary sources provided by teachers or uncovered in archival research. Conclusions/Recommendations Duckor and Perlstein conclude that when teachers are given opportunities for genuine, shared reflection on teaching and learning and classroom practices are tied to this understanding, fidelity to what they call the logic of assessment offers a more promising framework for the improvement of schooling than current forms of high-stakes, standardized accountability. Thus, instead of expecting teachers to rely on data from standardized assessments or replicate features of standardized testing in their own assessment practices, researchers, policymakers and teacher educators should promote fidelity to the broader logic of assessment.
What is a Culture of Evidence? How do you Get One? and … Should you Want One?
Authors: Peck Charles A. , Mcdonald Morva A. 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context Contemporary state and national policy rhetoric reflects increased press for “evidence-based” decision making within programs of teacher education, including admonitions that programs develop a “culture of evidence” in making decisions regarding policy and practice. Recent case study reports suggest that evidence-based decision making in teacher education involves far more than access to data—including a complex interplay of motivational, technical, and organizational factors. Purpose In this paper we use a framework derived from Cultural Historical Activity Theory to describe changes in organizational practice within two teacher education programs as they began to use new sources of outcome data to make decisions about program design, curriculum and instruction. Research Design We use a retrospective case study approach, drawing on interviews, observations and documents collected in two university programs undergoing evidence-based renewal. Conclusions We argue for the value of a CHAT perspective as a tool for clarifying linkages between the highly abstract and rhetorically charged concept of a “culture of evidence” and concrete organizational practices in teacher education. We conclude that the meaning of a “culture of evidence” depends in large measure on the motivations underlying its development.
The Challenge and Promise of Complexity Theory for Teacher Education Research
Authors: Cochran-Smith Marilyn , Ell Fiona , Ludlow Larry , Grudnoff Lexie , Aitken Graeme 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context In many countries, there are multiple studies intended to improve initial teacher education. These have generally focused on pieces of teacher education rather than wholes, and have used an underlying linear logic. It may be, however, that what is needed are new research questions and theoretical frameworks that account for wholes, not just parts, and take complex, rather than reductionist perspectives. Purpose This article examines the challenges and the promises of complexity theory as a framework for teacher education research. One purpose is to elaborate the basic tenets of complexity theory, summarize its previous uses, and identify key challenges. A second purpose is to propose a new research platform that combines complexity theory with critical realism (CT-CR) and prompts a new set of empirical questions and research methods. Research Design Drawing on scholarship from sociology and education, the underlying design—or logic—of this analytic essay is this: explanation of the basic tenets of complexity theory applied to teacher education, assessment of previous research informed by complexity theory, response to the major epistemological and methodological challenges involved in using complexity theory as a research framework, and proposal of a new set of questions and methods. Findings/Results Complexity theory is appealing to teacher education researchers who want to avoid simplistic and reductionist perspectives. However, most previous complexity research has not addressed the critiques: the proclivity of complexity theory for retrospective description; the assertion that, given its rejection of linear causality, complexity theory cannot provide causal explanations with implications for practice; and the charge that complexity-informed research cannot deal with the values and power inequalities inherent in the normative enterprise of education. Integrating complexity theory with critical realism provides a way to address these fundamental challenges. Building on this new platform, the essay proposes a new set of empirical questions about initial teacher education along with several innovative research methods to address those questions. Conclusions/Recommendations This essay concludes that the combination of complexity theory and critical realism offers a unique platform for teacher education research, which has theoretical consistency, methodological integrity, and practical significance. The essay recommends that its proposed new empirical questions and methods may have the capacity to show us where to look and what processes to trace as teacher candidates learn to enact practice that enhances the learning of all students, including those not well-served by the current system.
Cuban Teacher Perspectives on Race and Racism: The Pedagogy of Home–School Relations
Authors: Kempf Arlo 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context Cuba's education system has been the focus of academic study by researchers on and off the island who frequently cite the comparative success of Cuban students on measures such as the UNESCO math and language assessments. Few studies, however, consider the significance of race within Cuban education generally or the home–school relationship in particular. Indeed, there has been no empirical work made available on these topics for nearly a decade. Significant sociopolitical changes are underway in Cuba, with implications for the role of the state in the cultural life of the nation. Education is a key transmission point between the state and its people, with teachers as frontline cultural workers. Purpose This article examines the way Cuban teachers address racism in their professional practice, with a specific focus on teacher home visits to address racism with parents/guardians. The author analyzes the relationship between Cuban teachers and the families of students they teach (an under-researched form of teacher practice in an under-researched context). Little is known about teachers reaching and teaching parents directly about issues such as racism. Further, there is limited research on the ways in which understanding of citizenship and professional responsibility impact teachers’ work and pedagogy in their interactions with parents. Setting Havana, Cuba. Participants All interviewees were teachers from downtown Havana. Twenty-two male and 23 female teachers participated. Fifteen of the teachers were Mestizo (of mixed race), one was Chinese-Cuban, 21 were Afro-Cuban, and eight were White. Survey participants were drawn from across Havana's 15 boroughs. Among respondents, 67.4% were female and 32.6% were male. As far as race, 57.8% identified as Mestizo, 18.9% identified as Afro-Cuban, 22% identified as White, and 1.3% identified as Chinese. Research Design This is a mixed-method study using qualitative interviews (N=45 participants), and a quantitative survey (N=150 respondents). Conclusions/Recommendations Teachers regularly enter the homes of parents in an effort to promote diversity and to counter perceived racism among parents/guardians. The fact that teachers have the authority and sense of entitlement to do so points to possibilities for a significant retooling of the ecology systems framework. Many teachers undertake this work with parents/guardians just as they would when addressing student academic performance. This race-work is supported by state-generated social capital that, in Cuba, embeds conceptions of race within a larger public context, as opposed to treating race as a private matter to be subjectively and privately understood. As quasi-curriculum, antiracism is something everyone is expected to learn. This suggests that a careful consideration of the way concepts of nation, citizenship, and professional responsibility inform teacher preparation and practice in Cuba may deepen our understanding of teachers’ race-work in North American contexts.
Standardized Writing Opportunities: A Case Study of Writing Instruction in Inclusive Classrooms
Authors: Bray Laura E. , Mrachko Alicia A. , Lemons Christopher J. 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context For an increasing percentage of students with disabilities, writing instruction is taking place in general education classrooms. The practice of instructing students with disabilities in general education classrooms is commonly referred to as inclusion. For elementary and middle school English teachers, inclusion requires that they teach students with varying instructional needs how to write. While numerous studies have examined writing instruction and interventions for students with disabilities, little research has closely examined the phenomenon and implications of providing writing instruction in inclusive classrooms. Focus of Study In this study, we examined the writing opportunities provided to students in four eighth-grade English classrooms at a full inclusion middle school. Research Design We employed a qualitative case study design to collect multiple sources of data, including writing tasks, grading requirements, prewriting activities, lesson plans, writing task information sheets, and interviews with teachers. Our analysis sought to triangulate findings from these multiple data sources to examine the types and quality of writing instruction provided in these inclusive English classrooms, along with the factors that influenced this instruction. Findings The findings from this study indicate the writing opportunities provided to students were of poor quality and were influenced by state standards and high-stakes accountability assessments. Furthermore, students with disabilities were provided with nearly the same writing opportunities as their nondisabled peers, with little differentiation, modifica-tion, or accommodation. The study also exposed organizational features and accountability policy pressures that promoted the instructional practice of standardization. Conclusions/Recommendations Our findings suggest that including students with disabilities into a general education English classroom does not necessarily lead to high-quality writing opportunities for those students. Current accountability policy emphasizes the standardization of learning goals and outcomes, with little focus on the actual types and quality of instruction provided to students. We argue that for students with disabilities, focusing solely on teaching grade-level learning standards and improving high-stakes accountability assessments is not the solution for improving instructional opportunities and outcomes. Our findings also revealed that, under certain conditions, standardization of instruction is a potential unintended consequence of inclusive education.
When It Comes to the Mathematics Experiences of Black Pre-Service Teachers… Race Matters
Authors: Mcgee Ebony O. 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context There is a growing body of research that conceptualizes mathematics learning and participation as racialized experiences; that is, learning experiences structured in part by the negative and unjust race relations that are present in U.S. society. However, the role racialized experiences play in the lives of Black elementary education pre-service students from urban contexts, as both students and future teachers of mathematics, is under theorized. Theoretical Framework Using critical race theory's racial micro-aggressions and the development of a mathematics identity, the author explores the mathematics experiences of 13 Black advanced undergraduate students who are elementary education majors. The participants’ narratives reflect their experiences as both students of mathematics and future teachers. Research Design A qualitative phenomenological research design was used to explore the prior and current mathematical experiences of the study participants and their future trajectories as teachers of mathematics. Reponses were coded to reveal themes of racialization and the development of the participants’ mathematics identities. Results The participants’ narratives cited Black male fathers and close male relatives as their first mathematics teachers, the presence of culturally affirming at-home mathematics activities, and detailed aspirations to teach mathematics fearlessly to their own children and future students. Their more recent experiences included academic struggles in mathematics, often stemming from racial stereotyping and non-affirming college mathematics teachers. Their voices suggest that, within the context of learning mathematics, they have generated self-constructions that include racism as part of their shared African American experience in mathematics schooling that have implications for their teaching of mathematics. Conclusion/Recommendations Recommendations include the provision of professional development that targets gaps in mathematics that are the result of inadequate and discriminatory learning opportunities, and culturally sensitive professional development for mathematics college faculty, with differentiated training for mathematics faculty not born in the U.S. In light of the high proportion of Black teachers working in urban schools who face a host of difficulties, this research also supports the continued development of combatting racial micro-aggressions in mathematics education as a decisive tactic to improve the retention of Black elementary education teachers.
Historical Perspectives on Diverse Asian American Communities: Immigration, Incorporation, and Education
Authors: Paik Susan J. , Kula Stacy M. , Saito L. Erika , Rahman Zaynah , Witenstein Matthew A. 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context Asian Americans have recently been reported as the largest incoming immigrant population and the fastest growing racial group. Diverse in culture, tradition, language, and history, they have unique immigrant stories both before and after the Immigration Act in 1965. Historians, sociologists, educators, and other experts inform us that immigrant arrival into a new country has long-standing effects for any cultural group, but there is limited research that collectively and systematically examines historical immigrant experiences, particularly for diverse Asian American populations. Purpose The purpose of this analytic study is to provide a survey of the historical context experienced by diverse Asian American groups and to link these variations to their current educational outcomes. Based on an adapted model of incorporation, the article analyzes the historical experiences into a taxonomy to understand past and present trends. The research question under consideration is: “How do historical experiences of diverse Asian American immigrant populations link to their current educational outcomes?” Research Design The study design employed a historical analysis based on a taxonomy, which helps classify and systematically organize information to understand patterns and themes. To apply the adapted model across the subgroups of East Asian, South Asian, and Southeast Asian major groups, the authors gathered, reviewed, and systematically organized over 100 sources (e.g., literature review, census data, websites, other historical information, etc.). Findings/Results The findings illustrate the diversity that exists within and between Asian American groups in terms of their immigration, incorporation, and educational experiences. The modes of incorporation, as well as additional barriers and opportunities, varied across all Asian American communities. There is further need to disaggregate data as some groups experienced more barriers than opportunities and continue to struggle in the United States. Conclusions/Recommendations Historical contexts can help inform educators, policy makers, and researchers on ways to support Asian American students and their families. In understanding upward mobility, the nature of co-ethnic communities also played a role for the success of some groups. This study challenges the model minority stereotype by discussing the diversity that exists within and between Asian American groups and reveals how key stakeholders can work together to support positive opportunity structures and partnerships.
The OECD as Pivot of the Emerging Global Educational Accountability Regime: How Accountable are the Accountants?
Authors: Meyer Heinz-Dieter 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context PISA has catapulted the OECD—an organization whose mission is the global growth of market economies—to a central role in international education policy making, rivaling and sometimes outdoing the various national governments in influence. While claiming scientific evidence as the basis for the accountability regime it promotes, the policy frameworks and principles it has adopted over the past two decades are rooted in ideas about the superiority of market mechanisms that are contested in many member nations. Yet, while exerting strong influence on national educational practices in pursuit of a narrow and contested policy agenda, it is not easily influenced through established democratic processes. Purpose In this paper, I discuss key OECD ideological and policy shifts that form the background for PISA. Secondly, I focus on the OECD's governance mechanisms and the obstacles it presents to public scrutiny. Research Design Drawing on recent scholarship on the power of transnational policy networks to influence national policy through the soft power of epistemic communities, this paper analyzes policy documents and relevant research from OECD and PISA to identify ideological commitments and configurations of power that form the backdrop for PISA. Conclusion I propose that in a world of global policy making, the influence of organizations like the OECD highlights deficits in the constitution of the global democratic public sphere that would foster the accountability of these organizations.
From the Assessment OF Education to the Assessment for Education: Policy and Futures
Authors: Baker Eva L. , Gordon Edmund W. 
Published: November 2021

Context Educational reform in the United States has had a growing dependence on accountability achieved through large-scale assessment. Despite discussion and advocacy for assessment purposes that would assist learning, provide help to teachers’ instructional plans and execution, and give a broader perspective of the depth and breadth of learning, the general focus still remains on accountability, now elaborated with sanctions for schools and personnel. Focus of Study To generate scholarly discussion, options for practice, and grounded predictions about testing in the next decades, the Gordon Commission on the Future of Assessment in Education. Participants Convened over a two-year period and with 30 people on the steering committee, the commissioners included well-known scholars grounded in psychometrics, assessment design, technology, learning, instruction, language, subject matter, and teaching in discussion. Commissioners, additional authors, and reviewers were largely drawn from universities, private profit, and nonprofit institutions. Professor Edmund W. Gordon was the Chair of the Commission. Design A knowledge acquisition and synthesis study, the product design relied on papers authored by expert scholars describing their understanding of productive student testing in their own domains. The commission funded papers on a wide variety of topics. This paper focuses on two of the major topics of the reports, the emphasis on shifting assessment to help rather than simply to mark progress and how future contexts, including technological change, may impinge on testing options. Conclusions The paper calls for a transformation of assessment purpose and use, from annual, time-controlled accountability assessments to more continuous assessments used in the course of a learners’ acquisition of understanding, motivation for learning, collaboration, and deep application of knowledge in problem solving, communication, and authentic settings. Assessments should emphasize helping students of varying backgrounds and goals as well as their teachers. The role of technology as an assessment design, administration, and reporting toolset is described, in the context of changing knowledge expectations and a global competitive environment.
Postmodern Test Theory
Authors: Mislevy Robert J. 
Published: November 2021

Background/Context This article explains the idea of a neopragmatic postmodernist test theory and offers some thoughts about what changing notions concerning the nature of and meanings assigned to knowledge imply for educational assessment, present and future. Purpose Advances in the learning sciences—particularly situative and sociocognitive stances—call into question the adequacy of the trait and behaviorist psychological perspectives under which educational measurement evolved. This article argues nevertheless that its models and methods, appropriately reconceived and extended as necessary, can be useful in assessment framed in a contemporary view of learning. Research Design This is an analytic essay. Conclusions/Recommendations The model-based reasoning that characterizes test theory is useful not because it measures extant traits defined and evidenced in the same way for all students, but because it helps us organize our thinking, marshal and interpret evidence, and communicate our inferences and their grounding to others. A skeptical attitude about models in assessment makes our uses of them more flexible, more powerful, and, ultimately, more effective at meeting and fulfilling the aims of education than they would be if we believed that they accurately captured the totality of the phenomenon. Our understandings of students’ learning and programs’ effects are enriched by multiple perspectives and diverse sources of evidence, some new or previously neglected but others with familiar (albeit reconceived) forms.