ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
An Investigation of Ordering Test Items Differently Depending on Their Difficulty Level by Differential Item Functioning
Author: Balta, Ebru
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Test Items,Sequential Approach,Difficulty Level,Mathematics Tests,Achievement Tests,Foreign Countries,Probability,Performance Factors,Vocational High Schools,Universities,Test Bias

Purpose: Position effects may influence examinees' test performances in several ways and trigger other psychometric issues, such as Differential Item Functioning (DIF) .This study aims to supply test forms in which items in the test are ordered differently, depending on their difficulty level (from easy to difficult or difficult to easy), to determine whether the items in the test form result in DIF and whether a consistency exists between the methods for detecting DIF. Research Methods: Methods of Mantel Haenszel (MH) and Logistic Regression (LR) have been taken into consideration to identify whether the items in the tests involve DIF. The data of the work includes the answers of 300 students in the focal group and the reference group, who sat for three mathematics achievement tests. The data obtained from the tests have been statistically analyzed by using the R-3.2.0. software program. Findings: Results of this study can be summarized with the following findings: &quot;ordering the items differently, depending on their difficulty level, affects the probability of individuals in various groups answering the items correctly; also, LR and MH methods produce different results with respect to the items with DIF, which they have identified similar in terms of magnitude order in the amount of DIF. Implications for Research and Practice: In further test-developing studies, in order to identify if DIF emerges when giving the test form which has a different ordering of items, with regard to subjects and cognitive difficulty levels.
New Barriers to Technology Integration
Author: Sahin Izmirli,Ozden
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,Technology Integration,Barriers,Public Schools,Books,Reading,Secondary School Teachers,Electronic Publishing,Foreign Countries,Teacher Attitudes

Purpose of the Study: Although there are many reasons to use technology in the classroom (to enhance student achievement, motivation, and process productivity; diversity offers teachers new alternatives for instruction and supports self-learning), various barriers hinder technology integration. Technology integration in the education field is a multidimensional process, and its success depends on many variables. Therefore, it is necessary to reexamine the barriers under several changing conditions (the improvement of infrastructure possibilities, professional development activities, etc.). This study discusses the problems related to the integration of a newly introduced web system with educational activities, &quot;Tracking and Evaluation System for Book Reading Activities&quot; (KITaS), that would be included in a public school system, in addition to the integration of teachers in the course of promoting and implementing it in Kirklareli. In the process of implementing KITaS, the aim was to determine the barriers present, which were based on teachers' considerations of barriers regarding the integration process. The profiles of the changing barriers in the literature were compared. Research Method: In this qualitative research conducted during the 2015-2016 school term, data were collected through observations, interviews, and open-ended question forms. The research participants were seven teachers from a government secondary school in Kirklareli. Results: The primary findings of this research are as follows: (A) there is a need to accept that there are always some barriers to technology integration; (B) it is believed that the administrative unit of an institution where teachers work decides whether to engage in the process of technology integration, and (C) there is not a need to integrate technology in test-centered approaches, which focus on students' success on exams. Implications for Research and Practice: Within the scope of this research, the barriers similar to those in the literature are established, in addition to an additional barrier that does not directly correspond to those in the literature. Depending on the changing conditions, it seems that new barriers to technology integration (believing that the top unit of an institution at which teachers work decides whether to engage in the process of technology integration, and accepting that there are several barriers to technology integration at all times) emerge and other barriers (lack of technology resources) are found to decrease.
The Relationship among Metacognitive Awareness, Self-Efficacy toward the Teaching Profession and the Problem-Solving Skills of Teacher Candidates
Author: Bars, Mehmet
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Correlation,Metacognition,Self Efficacy,Problem Solving,Preservice Teachers,Teacher Education,Foreign Countries,Skill Development,Predictor Variables,Teaching (Occupation),Student Attitudes,Student Participation,Classroom Techniques,Educational Strategies

Purpose: This research is conducted for the purpose of examining the perceptions of teacher candidates regarding their metacognitive awareness, self-efficacy for the teaching profession and problem-solving skills. Method: The research has been conducted using a correlational research design. The sample group of the study comprised 1,475 teacher candidates randomly selected from the participants in a pedagogical formation program and senior students of Ziya Gokalp Faculty of Education in the spring semester of the academic year 2014-2015. In the research, a personal information form, a metacognitive awareness inventory, a teacher self-efficacy scale and a problem-solving inventory were used as the data collection tools. Findings: It was found that the metacognitive awareness of teacher candidates is a significant predictor of their self-efficacy perception regarding the teaching profession. It was concluded that the metacognitive awareness of teacher candidates has significantly predicted their perception levels regarding their problem-solving skills. It was further determined that the perceptions of teacher candidates regarding their problem-solving skills have significantly predicted their perception levels regarding the teaching profession. Implications for Research and Practice: The result of the research affirms the following suggestions. First, activities developing metacognitive awareness should be included in teacher training programs so that the metacognitive awareness of teacher candidates can be developed further. In this way, they will be able to comprehend the importance of metacognitive awareness. Second, instructors should use methods and techniques that will improve the metacognitive awareness of teacher candidates in their courses.
Critical Thinking Disposition of Music Teachers
Author: Kilic, Ilgim
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Thinking Skills,Music Teachers,Preservice Teachers,Age Differences,Gender Differences,High Schools,Institutional Characteristics,Television Viewing,Parent Attitudes,Reading Habits,Books,Newspapers,Foreign Countries,Critical Thinking,Correlation,Self Efficacy,Student Motivation,Teacher Education Programs,Parenting Styles,Teacher Characteristics

Purpose: This study aims to assess the critical thinking dispositions of music teacher candidates using variables such as age, gender, secondary school type, daily TV viewing frequency, parental attitudes, and frequency of book and newspaper reading. Research Methods: To obtain a general review of the research subject, the researchers developed a survey. The sample was 131 students in the Department Fine Arts, Faculty of Education in Fatih, Karadeniz Technical University, during the 2013-2014 education period. The researchers used the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CCTDI-T) to determine the study group's critical thinking disposition. Findings: The critical thinking disposition of the study group varied considerably based on book and newspaper reading frequency. Integrative orientations towards EFL learning were observed. Students' motivation had a greater influence on language learning. The overall mean score for students' self-efficacy was found to be at the moderate level (M = 3.88). Furthermore, female students' self-efficacy scores were significantly higher than those of the male students. Lastly, a positive correlation was found between students' motivational orientations and self-efficacy beliefs. Implications for Research and Practice: Critical-thinking-oriented courses and seminars should be provided for music teacher candidates to help develop their critical thinking capabilities. Learning-teaching activities should be provided to create a teaching environment based on critical thinking. Various socio-cultural activities should be provided for teacher candidates to develop their critical thinking capabilities.
Investigating Relationships between Undergraduate Students&apos; Flow Experience, Academic Procrastination Behavior, and Calculus Course Achievement
Author: Alp, Aysenur
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Correlation,Study Habits,Calculus,Mathematics Instruction,Mathematics Achievement,Prerequisites,Course Descriptions,Student Attitudes,Prediction,Teaching Methods,Student Interests,Undergraduate Students,Foreign Countries,Measures (Individuals)

Purpose: Calculus is generally offered as a freshman year course and is a prerequisite for some advanced STEM-related courses in some undergraduate programs. However, some students experience difficulties in Calculus courses, leading to lower levels of achievement. Thus, there is a need to examine the factors which may be related to students' achievement in Calculus courses. According to relevant literature, procrastination can diminish students' achievement. Additionally, flow emerges as an important factor that may be related to students' achievement and procrastination, but these relationships have not been studied in the context of Calculus courses. The purpose of this study was twofold. Firstly, undergraduate students' academic procrastination was examined in relation to dimensions of flow experiences in a Calculus-I course. Secondly, undergraduate students' academic achievement in Calculus-I course was explored in relation to their academic procrastination and dimensions of flow experiences. Research Methods: A total of 117 undergraduate students (54% female and 46% male, M[subscript age]=23.00) from various departments participated in an online survey. Findings: Multiple regression analysis showed that among flow-experience dimensions, &quot;concentration on the task at hand&quot; was negatively related to procrastination. In addition, two-step hierarchical regression analysis indicated that procrastination negatively predicted achievement in the first step. However, in the second step, only the &quot;challenge-skills balance&quot; dimension of flow positively predicted achievement. Implications for Research and Practice: In Calculus courses, if students are given tasks that foster their focus, their procrastination behavior can be diminished. In addition, if they are given tasks that are appropriate to their level and skills, their academic achievement can be predictably higher. In this context, real-life applications should relate to students' own interests and skills. Therefore, their academic achievement can be higher.
Science Teacher Candidates&apos; Epistemological Beliefs and Critical Thinking Disposition
Author: Unlu, Zeynep Koyunlu
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Science Teachers,Preservice Teachers,Beliefs,Epistemology,Critical Thinking,Personality Traits,Gender Differences,Measures (Individuals),Instructional Program Divisions,Majors (Students),Foreign Countries,Thinking Skills

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to determine the effect of gender and class level on science teacher candidates' epistemological beliefs and critical thinking disposition, as well as examine the relationship between these two dependent variables. Research Methods: This study was designed as a descriptive survey. Participants were 447 students majoring in science education. The data for the epistemological beliefs was collected with the Scale of Epistemological Beliefs (SEB); data for critical thinking disposition was collected with the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CCTDI). The data was evaluated in SPSS with a Mann Whitney U, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, and two variable correlation. Findings: The study found that female students had more developed epistemological beliefs than their male counterparts. Students' SEB and CCTDI scores also exhibit a moderate positive correlation. The students' epistemological beliefs and critical thinking dispositions did not vary regularly by class level. Implications for Research and Practice: Applications developing male students' epistemological beliefs and critical thinking skills can be done so as to reduce the negative effects of gender on the learning-teaching process. Additionally, activities should be included in applied courses (such as lab and student presentations) in the science teaching program to develop such skills in students.
Case Study of Science and Social Studies Teachers Co-Teaching Socioscientific Issues-Based Instruction
Author: Karahan, Engin
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Science Teachers,Social Studies,Team Teaching,Science and Society,Teacher Collaboration,Environmental Education,Ethics,Student Projects,Controversial Issues (Course Content),Teaching Experience,High School Teachers,Natural Resources,Water,Suburban Schools,Local Issues,Interdisciplinary Approach

Purpose: Science education literature has indicated that teachers do not always feel comfortable teaching socioscientific issues (SSI) that are infused with several social domains. In order to address this problem in teaching SSI, this study is designed to understand and describe the experiences of a science teacher and a social studies teacher, who collaboratively designed and taught an SSI-based environmental ethics class. Research Methods: The purpose of this descriptive case study was to portray how a science and a social studies teacher co-design and co-teach an environmental ethics class. The data collection instruments were interviews, observations, and reflective journals. Thematic analysis of the data was made via a qualitative data analysis software. Findings: The findings indicated that both participants criticized the science curriculum for not being able to address every dimension of SSI. Therefore, they structured their environmental ethics class based on the &quot;triple bottom idea&quot; in order to look at those issues from social, economic, and environmental points of view. One of the highlights of their environmental ethics class was the opportunity given to the students to work on projects they felt passionate about. The participants described their role in the environmental ethics class as a consultant, which was different from traditional settings. Therefore, they no longer provided the content, but rather consulted with their students to explore their vested interests. Implications for Research and Practice: Giving students power to choose their own project topics, the teachers aimed at enhancing the motivation of students in taking pro-environmental actions, as well as developing their own perspective about controversial SSI. Considering the community involvement of the students, this missing piece of students' community involvement and agency in most educational settings was strongly present in the environmental ethics class.
Response to Aka: Supplementing Extensive Reading with Bi- &amp; Multi-Modal Input
Author: Stephens, Meredith
Date: 2019-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,High School Students,Foreign Countries,Comparative Analysis,Reading Achievement,Teaching Methods,Reading Programs,Grammar,Reading Skills,Vocabulary Development,Reading Comprehension,Intonation,Linguistic Input,Pragmatics,English (Second Language)

Aka (2019) conducted an year-long large-scale study demonstrating that Japanese high school students who undertook extensive reading performed better than a control group who undertook grammatical instruction. Those showing the greatest gains were those of lower and intermediate proficiency. The students' achievement was measured in terms of language knowledge and reading ability. The purpose of the study was to investigate whether reading skills would improve through extensive reading, rather than listening skills. According to Aka (2019), one advantage of extensive reading is that it presents a vastly greater amount of vocabulary than that is found in Japanese school textbooks. The extent of input is clearly important, but so is the quality. This paper argues that the mono-modal input mode of extensive reading programs neglects critical features for reading comprehension, such as intonation, which could be provided with bi-modal input. [This is a response to the article &quot;Reading Performance of Japanese High School Learners Following a One-Year Extensive Reading Program&quot; (EJ1212809).]
Pre-Service Science Teachers&apos; Awareness of Technological Terms
Author: Can, Sendil
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preservice Teacher Education,Preservice Teachers,Science Education,Science Teachers,Technological Literacy,Vocabulary,Gender Differences,Instructional Program Divisions,Family Income,Foreign Countries

Purpose: To accomplish the goals of science education, it is essential that science teachers have technological literacy. Thus, we need to determine the awareness of pre-service science teachers expected to possess a basic working knowledge of technological terms. The aim of this study was to examine the candidates' awareness level of technological terms and to examine the effect of gender, grade level and family income on this awareness. Research Methods: The sample of the current study comprises 212 students. The collected quantitative data were analyzed by using frequencies, percentages and Chi square test. In the study, the second part of the Questionnaire of Technological Terms Awareness and Knowledge Level was used to collect data. Findings: Results of the study revealed that pre-service science teachers having a medium level awareness of technological terms are generally familiar with popular technological terms. Both gender and grade level were found to have a significant influence on the students' technological terms awareness. On the other hand, the family income level was found to have no significant effect on the students' awareness levels of technological terms. Implications for Research and Practice: It was found in this study that the pre-service science teachers' technological terms awareness level is medium. It can be suggested that more space should be allocated for technology-related concepts, applications and terms in the curriculums of science teacher training programs.
Response to the Critiques of the Aka (2019) Article, &quot;Reading Performance of Japanese High School Learners Following a One-Year Extensive Reading Program&quot;
Author: Aka, Natsuki
Date: 2019-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Reading Programs,Program Effectiveness,High School Students,Foreign Countries,Reading Skills,Knowledge Level,Grammar,Reading Instruction,Reading Comprehension,Listening,Teaching Methods

The constructive feedback on the author's article has helped him to expand his knowledge on the topic. He would like to clarify here that the purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of extensive reading on the development of Japanese high school learners' linguistic knowledge and reading abilities. The findings revealed that the experimental group, who received a year of extensive reading, scored higher on the linguistic knowledge and reading sections of a post-test than the control group, who received grammar instruction instead. The study was conducted because previous studies on this topic have had some experimental limitations, as many studies have neglected the use of control groups, and few longitudinal studies have been conducted with high school learners. Overcoming these limitations would help to reveal the real effects of extensive reading; this possibility encouraged him to begin conducting further research on this important topic. He agrees that bi- and multiple-modal input might have enhanced learners' linguistic knowledge and reading comprehension skills more because many studies on bi-modal input have shown the positive effect of augmenting learners' vocabulary knowledge (Brown, Waring, &amp; Donkaewbua, 2008; Teng, 2016; Webb &amp; Chang, 2012), reading rate and comprehension (Chang &amp; Millet, 2015), listening comprehension (Chang, 2009), and so on. [This comment is a response to &quot;Response to Aka: Supplementing Extensive Reading with Bi- &amp; Multi-Modal Input&quot; (EJ1232433).]
The Effectiveness of a CLIL Basketball Lesson: A Case Study of Japanese Junior High School CLIL
Author: Ito, Yukiko
Date: 2019-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: English (Second Language),Junior High School Students,Physical Education,Team Sports,Teaching Methods,Course Content,Case Studies,Tests,Teacher Attitudes,Pretests Posttests,Teacher Effectiveness,Second Language Learning,Language of Instruction,Interdisciplinary Approach,Skill Development,21st Century Skills,Self Efficacy,Foreign Countries,Teacher Student Relationship,Student Attitudes,Form Classes (Languages),Word Frequency

This article outlines a junior high school physical education class which teaches basketball in English using the CLIL framework as a case study. The purpose of the article is to consider how and what students learned from the class through students' class results, basketball skills test, post lesson questionnaire and pre and post lesson teacher interviews. It examines how the teacher's attitude toward CLIL changes from pre and post lesson interviews. Through this CLIL class led not by English teachers but by a physical education teacher the qualities and abilities necessary for competent CLIL teaching are considered. Regarding students, this CLIL lesson was conducted for the acquisition of physical basketball skills, English expressions and situational English ability. It also aimed to teach 21st-century skills defined by global education. The lesson resulted in students being able to understand both the English target structures and the basketball terms and strategies taught. In addition, students not only learned the content of the lesson, but also co-operated well with the teacher and worked well in teams which made the lesson successful. Before the lesson, the teacher felt that the CLIL lesson would be difficult for the students. However, the lesson was well received and had a great effect on the students and the teacher herself gained confidence. The experience they gained will lead to skills that will help them succeed in a global society in the future.