ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Voicing Others' Voices: Spotlighting the Researcher as Narrator
Author: O'Sullivan, Dan
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Qualitative Research,Educational Researchers,Narration,Professional Identity,Beginning Teachers,Elementary School Teachers,Experimenter Characteristics,Foreign Countries

As qualitative research undertakings are not independent of the researcher, the &quot;indissoluble interrelationship between interpreter and interpretation&quot; (Thomas &amp; James, 2006, p. 782) renders it necessary for researchers to understand that their text is a representation, a version of the truth that is the product of writerly choices, and that it is discursive. Endlessly creative, artistic and political, as there is no single interpretative truth, the interpretative process facilitates the refashioning of representations, the remaking of choices and the probing of discourses. As a consequence of the particularity of any researcher's account, issues pertaining to researcher identity and authorial stance always remain central to research endeavours (Kamler &amp; Thomson, 2006, p. 68; Denzin &amp; Lincoln 2011, pp. 14-15). Therefore, researchers are encouraged to be reflexive about their analyses and research accounts (Elliott, 2005, p. 152), as reflexivity helps spotlight the role of the researcher as narrator. In turn, spotlighting the researcher as narrator foregrounds a range of complex issues about voice, representation and interpretive authority (Chase, 2005, p. 657; Genishi &amp; Glupczynski, 2006, p. 671; Eisenhart, 2006). In essence, therefore, this paper is reflective of the challenges of &quot;doing&quot; qualitative research in educational settings. Its particular focus-the shaping of beginning primary teachers' identities, in Ireland, throughout the course of their initial year of occupational experience, post-graduation-endeavours to highlight issues pertaining to the researcher as narrator (O'Sullivan, 2014).
Student Voice: An Emerging Discourse in Irish Education Policy
Author: Fleming, Domnall
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Policy,Student Attitudes,Educational Practices,Educational Change,Student Government,Definitions,Educational Theories,Student Motivation,Postmodernism,Discourse Analysis,Institutional Evaluation,Foreign Countries

In positioning student voice within the Irish education policy discourse it is imperative that this emergent and complex concept is explored and theorized in the context of its definition and motivation. Student voice can then be positioned and critiqued as it emerged within Irish education policy primarily following Ireland's ratification of the United Nations Charter on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1992. Initially emerging in policy from a rights-based and democratic citizenship perspective, the student council became the principal construct for student voice in Irish post-primary schools. While central to the policy discourse, the student council construct has become tokenistic and redundant in practice. School evaluation policy, both external and internal, became a further catalyst for student voice in Ireland. Both processes further challenge and contest the motivation for student voice and point to the concept as an instrument for school improvement and performativity that lacks any centrality for a person-centered, rights-based, dialogic and consultative student voice within an inclusive classroom and school culture.
Animating Preservice Teachers' Noticing
Author: de Araujo, Zandra
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preservice Teacher Education,Mathematics Teachers,Mathematics Instruction,Teaching Methods,Animation,Technology Uses in Education,Educational Technology,Preservice Teachers,Teacher Competencies,Elementary School Mathematics,Video Technology,Reflection,Documentation,Computer Software,Coding

The incorporation of animation in mathematics teacher education courses is one method for transforming practices and promoting practice-based education. Animation can be used as an approximation of practice that engages preservice teachers (PSTs) in creating classroom scenes in which they select characters, regulate movement, and construct conversations to generate playable animations (Grossman et al., 2009). We focus on the role of animation as a practice-based expression to denote who, what, and how PSTs professionally notice within a mathematics lesson (Jacobs, Lamb, &amp; Philipp, 2010). The animation provides a mechanism for analysis that transfers PSTs' concepts of teaching to a perceptible reality (Lowe &amp; Schnotz, 2008). We examined the affordances and constraints of using animations as a means of supporting PSTs' development of noticing.
Mathematics Curriculum in Ireland: The Influence of PISA on the Development of Project Maths
Author: Kirwan, Liz
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Mathematics Curriculum,Secondary School Mathematics,International Assessment,Educational Policy,Government Role,Educational Change,Curriculum Development,Mathematics Education,Course Descriptions,Policy Formation,Numeracy,Mathematics Skills,Problem Solving

This article interrogates the extent to which the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) through its Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) influenced the development of Project Maths, a new second-level mathematics education policy in Ireland. It argues that the Irish government, in its revision of mathematics education policy, was strongly influenced by PISA and that concern with the country's &quot;average&quot; placement in the international assessment was instrumental in defining the direction of the revision. It traces the genetic imprint of PISA on the development of curriculum policy, the new mathematics syllabus, its content and assessment. It argues that Project Maths sets out to follow closely the PISA conceptual framework. However, the analysis finds that Project Maths is not a mini-PISA but that the programme is comprised of two distinct approaches, on the one hand retaining the abstract, symbolic mathematics of sections of the pre-existing curriculum, while on the other emphasizing a PISA-like approach to pedagogy and to real-life problem solving.
The Challenges of Distributing Leadership in Irish Post-Primary Schools
Author: O'Donovan, Margaret
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Participative Decision Making,Transformational Leadership,Barriers,Semi Structured Interviews,Principals,Assistant Principals,Case Studies,Teacher Surveys,Administrator Surveys,Administrator Attitudes,Leadership Styles,Teacher Attitudes,Educational Practices

This study explores the challenges and opportunities in relation to developing distributed leadership practice in Irish post-primary schools. It considers school leadership within the context of contemporary distributed leadership theory. Associated concepts such as distributed cognition and activity theory are used to frame the study. The study is situated in a space which acknowledges the current complex reality in our schools, where school leadership is characterised by increased workload and an ever-expanding role-definition. Drawing on the empirical findings from semi-structured interviews conducted with principals, deputy principals, post of responsibility holders and teachers in three case-study schools, the study probes: (1) how school leaders (re)construct a form of leadership suited to the needs of the current reality, by exploring their leadership and management styles; (2) how the internal conditions are created in which distributed leadership can function; (3) the challenges posed by distributed leadership and how they might be overcome. The findings clarify that school leadership is a construct beyond the scope of the principal alone. While there is widespread support for a distributed model of leadership, the concept does not explicitly form part of the discourse in the case-study schools. This poses challenges for school leaders and policy-makers to put mechanisms in place to re-culture schools, to develop teacher-leadership capacity and to reflect on the future direction of leadership in Irish post-primary schools.
Deconstructing &quot;Good Practice&quot; Teaching Videos: An Analysis of Pre-Service Teachers' Reflections
Author: Ineson, Gwen
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Video Technology,Mathematics Instruction,Faculty Development,Criticism,Preservice Teacher Education,Mathematics Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,National Curriculum,Foreign Countries,Workshops,Grounded Theory,Student Attitudes,Reflection,Teacher Educators,Teacher Role,Elementary School Teachers,Educational Policy,Educational Change

Video clips of mathematics lessons are used extensively in pre-service teacher education and continuing professional development activities. Given course time constraints, an opportunity to critique these videos is not always possible. Because of this, and because pre-service teachers make extensive use of material found during internet searches, much of it purporting to exemplify &quot;good&quot; practice, we were interested to know what sense they make of such material. By encouraging pre-service teachers to reflect and comment on the practices being promoted in this way, we wanted to hear what they focused on, their initial views of the teaching and learning shown in the video, and how their views were formed and affected by engaging in discussion. Findings indicate that pre-service teachers' responses to the material were dominated by their beliefs about mathematics and that engaging in discussion enabled them to appreciate the interpretations of others.
Seeing the Wood from the Trees: A Critical Policy Analysis of Intersections between Social Class Inequality and Education in Twenty-First Century Ireland
Author: Cahill, Kevin
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Policy Analysis,Educational Policy,Social Class,Equal Education,Correlation,Educational Legislation,Social Differences,Educational Opportunities,Educational Experience,Outcomes of Education,Neoliberalism,Educational Philosophy,Commercialization,Socioeconomic Status,Low Income,Foreign Countries

This paper is a critical policy analysis of intersections between social class inequality and education policy in Ireland. The focus is upon contemporary policy and legislation such as The Irish Constitution and equality legislation; social inclusion policies such as the DEIS scheme; literacy and numeracy policy documents; as well as current government policy statements on education. It utilises Stephen Ball's policy analysis tools of &quot;policy as text,&quot; &quot;policy as discourse&quot; and &quot;policy effects&quot; to examine the social, cultural and political constructs of policy and legislation influencing social class inequality in education in Ireland (Ball, 1993). The focus is upon the refusal to name social class as a significant issue despite the weight of evidence showing the key influence class position and access to economic and cultural resources has on one's educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes. The approach taken here is discursive in the sense that the documents are the data and the findings are infused with detailed theoretical discussion of contemporary issues around inequality in education in Ireland. The analysis finds that the absence of social class in official policy and legislative discourses is indicative of a growing neoliberalisation of education policy in Ireland where increased foci on international comparisons and a consumer-driven philosophy of educational provision militate against equality for students from lower socio-economic groups.
The Arts in and out of School: Educational Policy, Provision and Practice in Ireland Today
Author: Long, Siobhán Dowling
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Art Education,Educational Policy,Literacy,Numeracy,Foreign Countries,Educational History,Educational Research,Lifelong Learning,Elementary School Students,Cultural Background,Networks,Educational Planning,Strategic Planning

The debate relating to the place and value of the arts in Irish Education is one that has dominated educational policy, provision, and practice down through the history of Irish educational policy from the late nineteenth century to the present day. Indeed, interest in this topic has been re-ignited with the recent publication of two educational policy documents, one based on the arts-in-education in and out of school &quot;The Arts in Education Charter&quot; (2013), and the other on the development of children and young people's literacy and numeracy &quot;Literacy and Numeracy For Learning and Life: The National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020&quot; (2011). Despite the Irish Government's commitments to promote the arts in and out of school, this paper draws attention to the lack of any real investment in the &quot;Arts in Education Charter&quot; by the Irish Government, and the neglect of policymakers to include references to national and international educational research on the value of the arts for enhancing children's life-long learning. Noting the pressures on primary teachers to allocate more time to the &quot;Literacy and Numeracy Strategy,&quot; it highlights the potential threat of this initiative to the primary school arts education programme. Finally, it draws attention to the notable absence of an arts education programme for the majority of senior post-primary pupils who leave school without any in-depth knowledge and appreciation of their rich cultural heritage. This is an area of grave concern, and one that has received very little, if any, attention to date.
Early Childhood Education in Ireland: Change and Challenge
Author: Murphy, Rosaleen
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Early Childhood Education,Educational Quality,Child Care,Preschool Teachers,School Community Relationship,Family School Relationship,Educational Change

Early childhood care and education in Ireland has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years, as a result of public concern about standards in some early years services. Services for children before they enter primary school are largely the responsibility of the department of health, while children in the formal school system are the responsibility of the department of education. This split is reflected in the pay, working conditions and qualifications of those working in each sector. Primary education is state funded; pre-school care and education has been seen as the responsibility of parents, and is among the most expensive in Europe. Investment in early years services is low and has been focused on expanding the number of places. There is now more co-ordination at government level and improved standards and frameworks for quality in early education (Síolta) and for early learning (Aistear) have been put in place. However, expanding services without paying equal attention to quality will not bring the desired benefits either to individual children or to society. Regulation and enforcement are important but are only one element of quality, and more attention needs to be paid to developing the early years workforce and improving their working conditions.
Developing Culturally Responsive Teaching through Professional Noticing within Teacher Educator Modelling
Author: Averill, Robin
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Culturally Relevant Education,Teaching Methods,Teacher Educators,Cultural Awareness,Guidelines,Ethnic Groups,Pacific Islanders,Mathematics Instruction,Modeling (Psychology),Video Technology,Equal Education,Access to Education,Preservice Teachers,Preservice Teacher Education,Indigenous Populations,Foreign Countries,Decision Making,Coaching (Performance),Pedagogical Content Knowledge

Much evidence exists that culturally responsive and equitable teaching practices are challenging to develop. Evidence exists that in-the-moment coaching of &quot;rehearsals&quot; of practice can help foster mathematics teaching strategies, but how such coaching can assist the development of culturally responsive practice is less clear. Drawn from a larger study into rehearsals of practice, this article illustrates how teacher educator modelling of instructional activities with in-the-moment coaching can provide opportunities for professional noticing of culturally responsive teaching practices. Such opportunities were identified across seven videos of rehearsals of practice in which teacher educator pairs modelled and coached mathematics teaching. Examples are discussed in relation to facilitation of professional noticing and two aspects of a framework of &quot;cultural competencies&quot; for teachers of indigenous Maori learners. Implications include enhanced equity of access to mathematics learning through pre-service teachers being able to notice, discuss, and use culturally responsive teaching practices.
Practice-Based Inservice Teacher Education: Generating Local Theory about the Pedagogy of Group Work
Author: Higgins, Joanna
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Teaching Methods,Inservice Teacher Education,Cooperative Learning,Group Activities,Pacific Islanders,Grouping (Instructional Purposes),Experiential Learning,Educational Environment,Culturally Relevant Education,Mathematics Instruction,Elementary School Mathematics

Developing local theories about what best works for Maori students is of critical importance to Aotearoa New Zealand. This discussion paper focuses on grouping as arranging for learning, by examining multiple ways in which grouping as pedagogy appears in practice settings and associated literature. We take the stance of interpretive bricoleurs to generate understandings of group work in light of a new moment in New Zealand's pedagogical history, that of practice-based teacher education. We explore three examples of local theory cogenerated in English-medium education settings with predominantly Maori learners. We identify the emergence of an expanded set of practices that illuminate multiple internal contradictions within government, school-based, and practice-based discourses about group work as arranging for learning.
Quality Teaching Rounds in Mathematics Teacher Education
Author: Prieto, Elena
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Quality,Mathematics Teachers,Mixed Methods Research,Surveys,Student Evaluation,Teaching Methods,Preservice Teacher Education,Mathematics Education,Reflective Teaching,Task Analysis,Student Attitudes,Masters Programs,Graduate Students,Undergraduate Students,Global Approach,Educational Policy,Communities of Practice,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Models,Likert Scales,Scoring Rubrics,Academic Discourse,Literacy,Lesson Plans,Foreign Countries

The purpose of the study reported in this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of an implementation of teaching rounds as a practice-based approach to pre-service teacher education in mathematics. The teaching rounds implemented in the study utilised the NSW Quality Teaching model pedagogical framework as a tool for learning about and reflecting on teaching practices. The evaluation was conducted through a mixed methods approach using a combination of surveys and analysis of student assessment tasks. The major findings of the study are that pre-service teachers found practice-based experience and the subsequent reflections using teaching rounds very valuable compared to other learning experiences. We also found that pre-service teachers undertaking a Masters teaching degree were significantly more insightful about planning for and reflecting about teaching practice than those undertaking an undergraduate degree. We believe these two facts have implications not only at our institution but also at a global level for policy makers in other institutions providing pre-service education.
Learning to Teach within Practice-Based Methods Courses
Author: Kazemi, Elham
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teaching Methods,Methods Courses,Elementary School Teachers,Teacher Education,Preservice Teachers,Instructional Design,Learning Processes,Course Descriptions,Mathematics Instruction,Video Technology,Student Teaching,Student Attitudes,Autobiographies,Case Studies,Computer Software,Coding,Learning Experience,Teacher Student Relationship

Supporting prospective teachers to enact high quality instruction requires transforming their methods preparation. This study follows three teachers through a practice-based elementary methods course. Weekly class sessions took place in an elementary school. The setting afforded opportunities for prospective teachers to engage in cycles of investigation and enactment. The course was focused on learning teaching practices through planning, rehearsing, enacting and reflecting on routine instructional activities that travel back and forth between field-based methods course and field placements. All three teachers grew in their capacity to lead goal-directed lessons by eliciting and responding to students' thinking. Our analysis connects the teachers' learning to the intentional design of the methods course.
Investigating Predictive Role of 2x2 Achievement Goal Orientations on Learning Strategies with Structural Equation Modeling
Author: Soltaninejad, Mehraneh
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Goal Orientation,Learning Strategies,Structural Equation Models,Investigations,Predictive Validity,High School Students,Correlation,Predictive Measurement,Academic Achievement,Likert Scales,Foreign Countries,Statistical Analysis,Factor Analysis

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between achievement goal orientations and Learning Strategies. The sample of study consists of 350 public high school students (135 males and 215 females, mean age: 17 ± 0.65) from two high schools in Kerman province of Iran selected by random multistage cluster sampling method. In this study, The Achievement Goal Orientations Scale (Elliot &amp; McGregor, 2001) and Learning Strategies Scale (Kember, Biggs, &amp; Leung, 2004) were used. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test the hypotheses. In correlation analysis, mastery goals predicted positive deep strategy and performance goals predicted positive surface strategy in a positive way. The model demonstrated fit (?[superscript 2]/df = 1.99, GFI = 0.97, AGFI = 0.97, CFI = 0.93, NFI = 0.93, RFI = 0.93, and RMSEA = 0.05). According to the results, achievement goal orientations (exception of the path from performance-approach to deep strategy) were significant determinants of learning strategies. Results were discussed in the light of literature.