Catholic Schools Research Articles

Through the Eye of a Needle: Understanding the Identities of LGBTQ+ Teachers Within Catholic Institutions in the Philippines

ABSTRACT The pervasive Catholic culture permeates through the social fabric of the Philippines and exerts unique pressures on Filipinos. This study highlighted the unique experiences of Filipino LGBTQ+ educators of private Catholic schools. Using the grounded theory approach, seven participants who identified as LGBTQ+ and taught in private Catholic schools in the Philippines for a minimum of one year were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews with the participants illustrated that these LGBTQ+ educators had to contend with negotiating their identities while carefully navigating through their work environment. This yielded three key themes: (1) Recognizing the political dimension of private schools, (2) Threading the Needle, and (3) Obtaining and Optimizing Safe Spaces. As a result, the Constricting Contexts Model was proposed to better understand and contextualize such factors and emphasize the role that environments and expectations play into the identities of marginalized groups such as the LGBTQ+ community.

Flirting with the fascination and fear of black boys: racial phobias and policing interracial dating in a private catholic high school

Black men and boys have been constructed as libidinous threats to white womanhood and white racial purity since the sixteenth century. In the wake of the landmark Brown decision, white citizens fused the Black male rapist trope with segregation theology to create private segregation academies to minimize Black-white contact. These schools remain more segregated than traditional public schools. The participants in this study were recruited to a private Catholic high school where the entire Black population was made up of Black boys who played a sport and whose interracial relationships with white girls triggered resistance. Drawing from qualitative data, the purpose of this paper is to highlight five Black boys’ experiences with phallic-based Negrophobia in a predominantly white and private Catholic high school. Findings reveal that participants realized they were transgressing institutional boundaries to preserve a racial order, and their transgressions were constantly policed and monitored.

When Anti-CRT Becomes Anti-Care: Navigating Curricular Controversies Amid Voucher-Induced Changes to a Private Religious School Landscape

As access to private religious education expands through vouchers, public discourse has positioned these schools as politically neutral spaces. Teachers who seek to ethically care for students are thus placed in a predicament. In this article, we present the fictive case study of a middle school teacher in a suburban Catholic school that has accepted vouchers and consequently undergone significant demographic and political shifts. When the teacher makes a curricular decision that responds in caring and critical ways to their students, they face a wave of parental opinions that call their instruction and ethical aims into question.

Work Climate and Students’ Academic Achievement in Catholic Secondary Schools in Ogun State, Nigeria

This research investigated work climate and students’ academic achievement in Catholic secondary schools in Ogun State. Two research questions guided the investigation. It employed a correlational survey method adopting ex-post-facto design. The participants included thirty-six principals and vice-principals working in all the Catholic secondary schools in Ogun State. The sample for the study consists of the total population, principals and vice principals in Catholic secondary schools in Ogun State. Census sampling method was utilized for the research. Questionnaire and checklist were self-developed by the researcher. The checklist titled “Students’ Academic Achievement Checklist” (SAAC), was utilized to gather data on students’ academic achievement using the promotional results of 2021, 2022 and 2023. The checklist was evaluated from A1 to F9, with D7 to F9 denoting failure and A1 to C6 showing a pass rating while questionnaire titled “Work Climate and Academic Achievement” Questionnaire, (WCAA)” was used by the researcher to gather information from the respondents. Mean scores and standard deviation, were employed to answer research questions. The finding in the study identified substantial connection between school environment and academic achievement of learners in Catholic secondary education in Lagos State. Moreover, a favourable relationship between conducive environments and higher academic achievement was established. The study highlights the interaction between school environment, retention of teachers and academic attainment of students, emphasizing their benefit in the context of Catholic secondary schools in Ogun State. Arising from this research, it was suggested among others that Catholic schools in Ogun State should strive to boost a positive school environment for both tutors and learners. Schools should apply various ways to retain effective, hardworking and experienced teachers. In addition, schools should continuously assess the standard of academic achievement, school environment, and human resource management practices.

How adolescents lose control over social networks: A process-based approach to problematic social network use

Social networks (SNs) are immensely popular, especially among teenagers, yet our understanding of problematic SNs remains limited. Understanding motivations and patterns of use is crucial given the current prevalence of problematic SNs use. Perarles et al. (2020) distinguish two behavioral control modes: Model-Free Control, where actions are characterized by actions driven by immediate gratification without reflective consideration for long-term consequences, and Model-Based Control, enabling planned and goal-directed actions. Both control modes can lead to problematic social network use. This study aims to delve into problematic SNs use and the underlying motives behind adolescents' participation in SNs, drawing upon the theoretical proposal by Perales et al. (2020). We conducted four focus groups with adolescents aged 13–17 (50 % female; Mage = 14.5, SD = 1.75), comprising two public school and two Catholic private school groups. Thematic analysis using Atlas.ti software revealed three themes. The first uncovers characteristics of problematic SNs use, including withdrawal, increased usage time, impaired control, behavioral salience and attentional capture and cognitive hijacking. The second spotlights motives, emphasizing emotional regulation, finding out what is going on, and social interaction. The third theme explores consequences such as compromised academic performance and physical harm. In conclusion, addressing both motives and problematic behaviors present a more effective approach to confronting SNs use challenges and fostering healthier online experiences for adolescents.

THE INTEGRATED APPROACH IN ESL AND EFL CONTEXTS: THE PRACTICE IN GHANA AND GUINEA-CONAKRY

<p>A key concept of the English language syllabus for both Ghana and Guinea-Conakry is the <em>integrated</em> <em>approach</em> (as opposed to the <em>segregated-skills</em> approach) to the teaching of language skills. Like the <em>communicative language teaching</em> method, the <em>integrated approach</em> exposes English language learners to authentic language and challenges them to interact naturally in the language. The designers of English language curriculum in Ghana and Guinea-Conakry believe that the <em>receptive</em> (listening and reading) and <em>productive</em> (speaking and writing) skills are interrelated and hence complementary, and they must not be taught separately. Teaching language skills separately in a language learning setting has been defined as the <em>traditional approach</em> to teaching a second or a foreign language. Teachers of English in Ghana and Guinea-Conakry are expected to move away from the <em>traditional approach</em> to the<em> integrated</em> <em>approach </em>to language teaching. This paper aims to find out whether teachers of English in Ghana and Guinea-Conakry are familiar with the <em>Integrated Language Teaching </em>method and are being employed in the ESL and EFL classrooms in Ghana and Guinea-Conakry respectively. <em>A classroom observation</em> and <em>a semi-structured interview</em> were conducted with 24 English language teachers from 4 junior high schools and 8 senior high schools in Ghana and 5 teachers of English from Saint-André Catholic School, Guinea-Conakry. The findings showed that there was a disparity between the curriculum developers’ expectations and classroom practice in Ghana and that the selection of teaching methodology was highly influenced by the thought that the students had to sit for high-stakes tests but not that they had to attain communicative competence. However, in Guinea-Conakry, teachers used the<em> Integrated Language Teaching </em>method because <em>speaking</em> is tested.</p><p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/lit/0758/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Factors of school choice in parents’ views: Why do parents choose the Piarist schools in Hungary?

This empirical study focuses on the factors of school parents’ school choice whose children just started to attend one of the Piarist (Catholic) Schools in Hungary. 270 parents completed an online questionnaire where the groups of questions concerned several facets of their beliefs and values. The results show how parental expectations and beliefs are organized, and how they related to the values manifested in the ‘Piarist spirit’. Both the transfer of religious values and secularized goals are very important for parents. Parents’ educational level and the type of settlement they live in have almost negligible role in explaining differences in answer patterns.

Unveiling leadership priorities: a comparative study of principal time use across high school types

PurposeAs responsibilities of high school principals continue to expand, their workweeks become longer, and their attention is stretched in multiple directions. How principals from various school types use their time is influenced by their organizational structures and external policies. To gain deeper insights into the workload, priorities and constraints faced by high school principals, this study examines principal time use (PTU) patterns across different school types, including traditional public schools (TPSs), charter schools, Catholic schools and non-Catholic private schools.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on the national representative data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 in the USA, this study examines and compares PTU in various leadership tasks across different school types, controlling for school and principal characteristics.FindingsAmong various high school types, principals in TPS had the longest workweeks. However, the extended workweek did not necessarily result in significantly more hours or a larger proportion of their time dedicated to instructional leadership. Instead, TPS principals allocated more time to administrative tasks and student affairs than principals in other school types.Originality/valueBy examining PTU of different school types, this study adds new evidence on the influence of contextual factors on leadership behavior. It also offers policy implications to enhance principals’ capacities, alleviate their workload and to prioritize time use in different leadership domains.

Efektivitas Penerapan Teknik Self Management Melalui Konseling Kelompok Untuk Mereduksi Prokrastinasi Akademik Siswa

The effectiveness of applying self-management techniques through group counseling to reduce academic procrastination in students of class Xl IPS Sint Carolus Catholic High School for the 2023/2024 academic year?. The aim of this research is to determine the effectiveness of applying self-management techniques through group counseling to reduce academic procrastination in class XI IPS students at Sint Carolus Catholic High School for the 2023/2024 academic year.The method used in this research is quantitative descriptive with pre-experimental design (one group pretest-posttest design). The instruments used in this research were the academic procrastination questionnaire as a data collection instrument and intervention guidelines as a treatment instrument. The data analysis technique uses the t test formula. The results of the analysis show that the t_count value is 23.543, while the value at the 5% significance level is 2.776, so the . This shows that self-management techniques through group counseling are effective in reducing academic procrastination in class XI IPS students at Sint Carolus Catholic High School for the 2023/2024 academic year. Based on the results of this research, the researcher provides suggestions to: 1.) School principals are expected to increase cooperation with guidance and counseling teachers to facilitate group counseling activities through self-management techniques in reducing academic procrastination in students. 2.) Guidance and Counseling Teachers, to be able to provide group counseling services using self-management techniques to reduce academic procrastination in

American Catholic Schools in the Twentieth Century: Encounters with Public Education Policies, Practices, and Reforms. By Ann Marie Ryan. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2022. xiv + 180 pp. $70.00 cloth; $30.00 paper.

American Catholic Schools in the Twentieth Century: Encounters with Public Education Policies, Practices, and Reforms. By Ann Marie Ryan. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2022. xiv + 180 pp. $70.00 cloth; $30.00 paper.

A personal development framework on core values for catholic school teachers

This study identified the basic education Catholic School teachers’ personal lived and desired core values as well as the challenges faced in living out those core values and how they faced those challenges. It probed how teachers envision their school community if core values are lived out and recognized the school programs, activities, and support needed to enhance their core values. Phenomenological research was conducted that applied Appreciative Inquiry and validated online interviews were utilized for data gathering which was participated by twenty-five (25) teachers and five (5) principals from five Catholic schools in Metro Manila. The results showed that the most lived core values are being Maka-Diyos (Love of God), Makatao (Love of Others), Makakalikasan (Love of Creation), Makabansa (Love of Country), and Mahusay (Excellence). In living out these core values, they experienced challenges, particularly in managing their human nature, conflicting values with others, as well as time, energy, and resource management. If core values are fully lived out, the teachers envision their school to be a happy community with a healthy work culture in attaining its vision, mission, and goals for the transformation of society. To enhance core values, the teachers recommended spiritual formation, mental health programs, ongoing formation, community building, community extension, staffing, succession, coaching, mentoring, recognition programs, environmental, and nationalism, with emphasis on proper planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. Based on these data, the 4-B Personal Development Framework on Core Values for Catholic School Teachers was designed which highlights the importance of Being, Becoming, Building, and Balancing in enhancing the teachers’ core values.

The State of Organizational Learning in Catholic Schools of Karachi

This study endeavours to delve into the repercussions of organizational learning on the knowledge performance of educators within the Catholic schools of Karachi, Pakistan. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design, enlisting the participation of 282 teachers, situated within the secondary schools under the jurisdiction of the Catholic Board of Education in Karachi. The data collection tool employed in this study was the Dimensions of the Learning School Questionnaire (DLSQ). To analyse the collected data, the research harnessed the statistical prowess of the Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 and Smart PLS 4. The findings of the investigation elucidate the existence of a notably positive and statistically significant relationship between individual-level learning and the knowledge performance of teachers. Similarly, this correlation extends to school-level and global-level learning, both exhibiting a significant association with knowledge performance within Catholic schools in Karachi. However, it is noteworthy that team-level learning failed to demonstrate any significant impact on the knowledge performance of these schools. The findings of the study will serve as a foundation for the Catholic School Board as well as the teachers to revamp their policies for the future.

Challenges and Opportunities Surrounding Catholic Education

Abstract Catholic education faces a number of serious challenges including cultural and political disrespect for, and hostility towards religion in general and Catholicism in particular, and lack of knowledge of, and commitment to, Catholic beliefs and values among Catholic educational administrators, school managers, teachers, and other staff, as well as the diminishing percentage of even nominally Catholic staff. I set these matters within the context of broader challenges surrounding Catholic education, deriving from three cultural movements: the reformation, the emergence of liberalism, and the scientific revolution, which undermined the synthesis of scripture, theology, and speculative and practical philosophy achieved in the high middle-ages. I propose in response a creative critique showing that what is of authentic value in modernity can be accommodated within the traditional synthesis. I also connect that tradition with strands of eastern philosophy suggesting that the movement of people, ideas, and traditions from Eastern cultures into historically Western societies provides an opportunity for further synthesis of a wisdom-based approach to education.

Supporting young children’s metaphorical engagement through a Symbol Literacy Approach

This paper reports on an investigation into the potential effects of the Symbol Literacy Approach (SLA) on the metaphorical reasoning of 25 five-year-old children attending a Maltese Catholic School. This was implemented via six pedagogical activities comprising the ‘St. Michael Project’, which sought to prompt the children’s symbolic engagement with the Judeo-Christian myth concerning the triumph of Archangel Michael against Lucifer. In the final activity, the children’s observation, role-play and conversation were prompted in relation to a 17th-century Flemish painting depicting St. Michael, after which the children were invited to draw pictures of anything the activity had made them think about. The research data comprised video recordings of conversations held with the children during the drawing process as well as photographs of the finalised pictures. Thematic analysis subsequently revealed that the SLA had supported most of the children to engage in metaphorical reasoning, while illuminating various facets of this pivotal cognitive process.

Examining school sector and mission in a landscape of parental choice

Researchers have considered how school choice policies affect student achievement, but less inquiry explores how the organization of schools may change in the presence of choice. This descriptive and exploratory paper analyzes a state representative sample of school mission statements at two time points: before the enactment of choice policies in Indiana, namely the Indiana Choice Scholarship Program, and again six years into the policy. Using structural topic modeling, this paper examines whether and how school mission statements topics have changed over this period. Descriptive findings suggest mission statement topics differ significantly between sectors but show few changes over time. The most striking shift is that Catholic and other private religious schools appear to be clarifying the religious aspects of their mission in the presence of robust choice policies.

Psychopedagogy and literacy in hospital settings: a review study

The purpose of this paper is to study the work of the hospital psychopedagogue, and to see if this work is relevant to the field of education and to our society. The aim was to propose, by means of a review study, a reflexive analysis by consulting works, research and academic articles, and with the collaboration of various authors and scholars who research the work of the psychopedagogue in hospital environments in the institutional dimension by providing support to teachers in Hospital Classes and in the clinical dimension by offering preventive or interventional support to hospitalized children in the literacy phase who are away from so-called conventional schools. This is theoretically based, among others, on Blaszko and Portilho (2021), Favoretto (2023) and PÉREZ SOLÍS (2011). The results obtained from this study and through the perception of the authors visited indicated that the work of the psychopedagogue in hospital environments with the teachers of the Hospital Classes is positive and relevant, as well as with the children who are in the process of acquiring writing and reading and because they are in the hospitalization phase cannot attend the so-called conventional school, ratifying its relevance for education and for our society.

Ustawowa rola kościelnych osób prawnych w zakresie prowadzenia placówek edukacyjnoopiekuńczych

Aim: The aim of this article is to determine the importance of cooperation between the state and the Catholic Church in the context of implementing educational activities for the child. Methods: The work adopts methods of dogmatic and legal analysis, subject literature, and case law. Including a comparative method in the field of intra-church and national regulations. Results: It is the duty and right of the Catholic Church to cooperate with the state for the good of the individual and society. Due to the period of development, the child requires special help from third parties, especially parents. However, the Catholic Church has the opportunity to help parents in the upbringing of minors, which must be done with respect for the opinion of legal representatives. Conclusion: The Catholic Church and the state must cooperate with each other in educational activities - and the decision-making power of statutory representatives cannot be omitted in these relations. Originality: The topic of church-state relations touches on a number of important elements of social life. National and church regulations in certain areas must be interconnected. Such relationships make it necessary to constantly implement appropriate business standards, which is particularly important for minors. Therefore, this topic is a recurring discussion. Keyword: principle of cooperation, state-church relations, the welfare of the child, raising a child; parents' rights; freedom of conscience and religion; Catholic schools

Urban Teen Perspectives on Gun Violence: a Mixed Methods Study.

We aimed to explore perspectives of teenagers on their exposure to gun violence (GV), their knowledge and attitudes towards firearm injury prevention (FIP) efforts, and how to counsel them about FIP. Teens from two single-sex Bronx Catholic high schools participated in videoconferencing focus groups. Participants completed an online survey collecting demographic information and Likert-scale scoring of attitudes towards GV. Quantitative data was analyzed with descriptive statistics. Focus group discussions were recorded and transcribed. Using Dedoose, two investigators independently coded data and achieved consensus using content analysis. Six focus groups (3 from each school, n = 28 participants) were held from October-November 2020. A total of 27 participants completed the survey. Eighty-one percent of respondents agreed "Doctors should talk to teens about gun safety." During focus groups, participants reported personal, community, and entertainment media exposure to GV. GV elicited many emotions, including fear and frustration. Teens identified factors contributing to GV that should be addressed, including poverty, racism, and mental illness. Most had not received prior FIP education and desired more information from trusted adults. They preferred discussions over written materials and information given over time. Teens were open to doctors counseling on FIP during healthcare visits and suggested including screening questions on surveys, conversations during healthcare maintenance visits, and classroom talks by physicians. Bronx teens are exposed to and distressed by community GV. They desired more FIP education, including physician counseling during healthcare visits. Next steps are to create and test FIP guidance for adolescents.

General educators’ perceptions of struggling learners in an inaugural project-based learning Capstone

ABSTRACT Following participation in an inaugural year-end project-based learning (PBL) ‘Capstone’, teachers in a Catholic middle school were interviewed as a focus group for their reflections on the performance of learners whom they perceived to ‘struggle’ during the academic year. A thematic analysis was conducted to extract categories and themes. Findings indicate the teachers believed PBL substantially benefited the learners, although their cognitive and academic skills were perceived as barriers to successfully meeting PBL learning expectations. Nonetheless, the PBL format was considered to have enhanced the students’ participation, motivation, senses of accomplishment, and ownership of their work. Implications for implementing PBL as a means to create inclusive and appropriate learning environments for all are discussed, as well as how teachers can scaffold ‘struggling’ learners.

Analisis Model Tarikan Pergerakan Sekolah Di Kota Palangka Raya

The school zone is a land use that can create the trip attraction. The purpose of this study is to model the trip attraction and to analysis the factors that most influence attraction to the Catholic school area in Palangka Raya. The study was conducted at four schools in one zone. Primary data, i.e. the number of vehicles entering the school premises, was obtained through direct observation in the target schools. Secondary data was obtained through documentation and interviews with the operators of the schools. The collected data was analysed using the linear regression statistical method assisted by SPSS software version 25. All variables involved, i.e. number of students, number of teachers, number of school benches, class capacity and class area, are strongly correlated with the variable 'traffic volume'. From the linear regression analysis, the number of students is the independent variable that is highly correlated and significantly influence the trip attraction, as shown by the value of r=0.99 and R2 = 0.998. The model of physical activity attractiveness in this study is Y = -10.686 + 0.934X1. The results of this study contribute to education field especially in transportation, as they support the theory that the number of students significantly influences the trip attraction in school land use