21.Japanese solutions to the equity and efficiency dilemma? Secondary schools, inequity and the arrival of ‘universal’ higher education
Author: Kariya, T.
Source: Oxford Review of Education, 2011, 37(2): 241-266
Abstract: Any moves towards substantive equality in education must negotiate the contradictions between equality and efficiency. Equality of education comes about through both the widening of opportunity and the maintenance of educational quality, but in the context of limited resources, educational policy rarely serves both ends simultaneously. Regardless of imperatives involved in making particular policy choices, if the resulting outcomes are either too visible or the system is deemed to be too rigid, social inequality emerges as an intractable, highly salient issue. The critical questions for research thus become: How do various approaches to negotiating this central tension differ? How does the choice of strategies produce different results across different education systems? To explore these questions, this paper examines the function and outcomes of educational differentiation in Japan, both at the secondary and tertiary levels, in relation to social inequality. Given that Japan entered an era of ‘universal’ access to higher education ahead of other high-income countries, it presents an ideal case to reflect on policy choices currently being considered or implemented elsewhere. Through cross-sectional analyses of three cohorts of Japanese graduates, it reveals that social equality in accessing elite secondary and higher education institutions deteriorates as privatisation of education advances. It concludes that hierarchical structure of secondary and higher education institutions, when coupled with policies advancing privatisation and universalisation, result in negative or inconsequential effects on social equality.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
22. Boundary Crossing and Boundary Objects
Author: Akkerman, S. F.; Bakker, A.
Source: Review of Educational Research, 2011, 81(2): 132-169
Abstract: Diversity and mobility in education and work present a paramount challenge that needs better conceptualization in educational theory. This challenge has been addressed by educational scholars with the notion of boundaries, particularly by the concepts of boundary crossing and boundary objects. Although studies on boundary crossing and boundary objects emphasize that boundaries carry learning potential, it is not explicated in what way they do so. By reviewing this literature, this article offers an understanding of boundaries as dialogical phenomena. The review of the literature reveals four potential learning mechanisms that can take place at boundaries: identification, coordination, reflection, and transformation. These mechanisms show various ways in which sociocultural differences and resulting discontinuities in action and interaction can come to function as resources for development of intersecting identities and practices.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
23. Social-Psychological Interventions in Education
Author: Yeager, D. S.; Walton, G. M.
Source: Review of Educational Research, 2011, 81(2): 267-301
Abstract: Recent randomized experiments have found that seemingly “small” social-psychological interventions in education—that is, brief exercises that target students’ thoughts, feelings, and beliefs in and about school—can lead to large gains in student achievement and sharply reduce achievement gaps even months and years later. These interventions do not teach students academic content but instead target students’ psychology, such as their beliefs that they have the potential to improve their intelligence or that they belong and are valued in school. When social-psychological interventions have lasting effects, it can seem surprising and even “magical,” leading people either to think of them as quick fixes to complicated problems or to consider them unworthy of serious consideration. The present article discourages both responses. It reviews the theoretical basis of several prominent social-psychological interventions and emphasizes that they have lasting effects because they target students’ subjective experiences in school, because they use persuasive yet stealthy methods for conveying psychological ideas, and because they tap into recursive processes present in educational environments. By understanding psychological interventions as powerful but context-dependent tools, educational researchers will be better equipped to take them to scale. This review concludes by discussing challenges to scaling psychological interventions and how these challenges may be overcome.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
24. The Impact of Induction and Mentoring Programs for Beginning Teachers
Author: Ingersoll, R. M.; Strong, M.
Source: Review of Educational Research, 2011, 81(2): 201-233
Abstract:This review critically examines 15 empirical studies, conducted since the mid-1980s, on the effects of support, guidance, and orientation programs—collectively known as induction—for beginning teachers. Most of the studies reviewed provide empirical support for the claim that support and assistance for beginning teachers have a positive impact on three sets of outcomes: teacher commitment and retention, teacher classroom instructional practices, and student achievement. Of the studies on commitment and retention, most showed that beginning teachers who participated in induction showed positive impacts. For classroom instructional practices, the majority of studies reviewed showed that beginning teachers who participated in some kind of induction performed better at various aspects of teaching, such as keeping students on task, using effective student questioning practices, adjusting classroom activities to meet students’ interests, maintaining a positive classroom atmosphere, and demonstrating successful classroom management. For student achievement, almost all of the studies showed that students of beginning teachers who participated in induction had higher scores, or gains, on academic achievement tests. There were, however, exceptions to this overall pattern—in particular a large randomized controlled trial of induction in a sample of large, urban, low-income schools—which found some significant positive effects on student achievement but no effects on either teacher retention or teachers’ classroom practices. The review closes by attempting to reconcile these contradictory findings and by identifying gaps in the research base and relevant questions that have not been addressed and warrant further research.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
25. A Self-Regulated Learning Perspective on Middle Grades Classroom Assessment
Author: Davis, D. S.; Neitzel, C.
Source: The Journal of Educational Research, 2011, 104(3): 202-215
Abstract: The authors used self-regulated learning (SRL) as a lens for examining teachers' conceptions of assessment and their classroom assessment practices. Fifteen upper-elementary and middle school teachers participated in semistructured interviews designed to uncover their beliefs about the forms and functions of classroom assessment. Observational data were collected in the teachers' classrooms. The findings show that while teachers have complex understandings of classroom assessment, their assessment environments are not optimal for supporting students' development of SRL habits. Teachers tend to see themselves as the initiators and controllers of assessment opportunities, prioritize attainment of content information, and value written assessment products over practices that generate intangible data. The authors describe these trends as consequences of the competing audiences teachers have to satisfy with their assessment practices.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
26. Should Students Be Allowed to Miss?
Author: Paredes, R. D.; Ugarte, G. A.
Source: The Journal of Educational Research, 2011, 104(3): 194-201
Abstract: Many educational policymakers consider attendance as a tool to induce learning. Researchers also agree that attendance has a positive effect on learning; however, there are few empirical studies that measure the nature and significance of that effect. The authors analyzed the effect of class attendance on academic performance and evaluated the existence and importance of a minimum attendance requirement. Using student data from a sample of public primary schools in Chile, and considering for endogeneity and sample selection bias, they found two important results. First, attendance had a relevant and statistically significant effect on educational performance. Second, the existence of a threshold was identified, but educational performance did not continue to decrease after a certain number of absences, which seems to contradict policies that have a minimum attendance requirement.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
27. Applied Curriculum-Based Measurement as a Predictor of High-Stakes Assessment: Implications for Researchers and Teachers
Author: Nese, J. F. T.; Park, B. J.; Alonzo, J. (...)
Source: The Elementary School Journal, 2011, 111(4): 608-624
Abstract: As part of a Response to Intervention (RTI) model, curriculum-based measurement (CBM) is an evidence-based assessment system that uses screening and formative assessments to help guide instruction. The two primary purposes of this study are to examine the relations between the easyCBM benchmark measures and a statewide large-scale assessment and to establish the optimal cut scores for the CBM measures. The easyCBM benchmark measures are used in 13 states through an online assessment system designed for use in an RTI context. Utility of the assessment system is examined through evidence related to predictive and systemic validity evidence. Included are a regression and a receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis of the relation between the benchmark assessments and a statewide large-scale reading test using a sample of approximately 3,600 students in grades 4 and 5. Results indicate strong concurrent validity and show the vocabulary measure as a robust predictor across grades.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
28. Singapore's response to the global war for talent:Politics and education
Author: Ng, P. T.
Source: International Journal of Educational Development, 2011,
31(3):262-268
Abstract:This paper describes and analyses how Singapore engages in the global war for talent. The paper discusses how Singapore demonstrates a Foucauldian perspective of [`]governmentality' in trying to mould citizens into a way of thinking that is geared suitably to an engagement in a global talent war. It first examines the social, political and economic thinking of the government in responding to the talent war. It then analyses more deeply the initiatives in the education system to support the national strategy in competing globally for talent. It also discusses the challenges ahead for Singapore in this talent war.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
29. Social exclusion and inequality in higher education in China: A capability perspective
Author: Wang, L.
Source: International Journal of Educational Development, 2011,31(3): 277-286
Abstract: Following calls for further research in education inequality beyond input and output measures, especially with a qualitative approach, and building on the implications of capability deprivation on equality ([Unterhalter, 2003a] and [Unterhalter, 2003b]), we extend the findings of (Sen, 1979), (Sen, 1990), (Sen, 1992) and (Sen, 2000) capability approach to higher education (HE). This article employs social exclusion theory as the analytical framework to examine educational inequalities in China posed by the HE admission system in Post-Mao era. This paper is driven by certain key motivations and makes a significant contribution to the extant literature. Firstly, the paper seeks to outline a usable definition of social exclusion in the context of HE enrolment. Following this, (Sen, 1979), (Sen, 1990), (Sen, 1992) and (Sen, 2000) capability approach is adopted for the first time as a theoretical construct to examine the situation facing HE in China. Sen's approach facilitates an appraisal of the process of exclusion in HE enrolment. The importance of the capability approach is that it allows one to recognize different needs and choices confronting different social groups by distinguishing between different types of social exclusion in this area. Finally, this information is used to evaluate responses which are available to the existing issues within the current Chinese HE enrolment mechanism i.e. that the mechanism is fundamentally flawed and risks reducing, rather than enhancing, capability by excluding certain groups of students from fair competition in terms of access.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
30. The Complexities of College for All
Author: Rosenbaum, J. E.
Source: Sociology of Education, 2011, 84(2): 113-117
Abstract: When 89% of high school graduates plan BA degrees, and low-achieving seniors who plan degrees have 80% failure rates, raising already high plans may be a poor strategy for improving college success. Using data on 7th-10th grade students, Domina et al. argue that higher plans are associated with success and suggest that my study of high school seniors is wrong. While their findings may indicate that MA plans are beneficial (although 7th-10th graders who know about MA degrees may be unusual), their research does not speak to my findings about seniors, whose plans are already very high. Contrary to Domina et al., I contend that effort may be reduced by poor articulation and information (not by high plans). I am pessimistic about poor articulation, not a “college for all ethos.” I have shown that many seniors have high plans but poor information, and this leads to predictable failures in college. Further raising those plans may improve 7th-10th grade efforts, but will not improve seniors’ college success.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
31. Focus, Fiddle, and Friends
Author: Frank, K. A.; Zhao, Y.; Penuel, W. R. (...)
Source: Sociology of Education, 2011, 84(2): 137-156
Abstract: Although knowledge has been linked to productivity within and between organizations, little is known about how knowledge flows into schools and then diffuses from teacher to teacher within schools. Here, the authors hypothesize that the value of different sources of knowledge depends on a teacher’s current level of implementation. The authors test their theory using longitudinal network data from 470 teachers in 13 schools. From models of change (i.e., first differences) in teachers’ use of computers over a one-year period, the authors infer that the more a teacher at the lowest initial levels of implementing an innovation is exposed to professional development focused on student learning, the more she increases her level of implementation (focus); the more a teacher at an intermediate initial level of implementation has opportunities to experiment and explore, the more she sustains her level of implementation (fiddle); and the more a teacher at a high initial level of implementation accesses the knowledge of others, the more she increases her level of implementation (friends). Concerning the potential for selection bias, the authors quantify how large the impacts (Frank 2000) of confounding variables must be to invalidate their inferences. In the discussion, the authors emphasize the changing nature of knowledge through the diffusion process.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
地址：上海市中山北路3663号
邮箱：ecnuici@163.com
电话：021-32526084
