Classroom Level Research Articles

A dual analysis study of classroom interactions in Japan and South Africa

The demands of raising education at a classroom level to international standards require a nuanced analytical lens involving multiple perspectives to contribute to the best practices. Most classroom research adopts a singular perspective, usually from researchers who are familiar with the nuances of the classroom context under study. In other words, published studies involving classroom observations are often analyzed by insiders who already have the insight to understand the situated dynamics of the classroom interactions they analyze. While this is an important analytical orientation, this stance may overlook important insights about teaching and learning that outsiders’ perspectives may be able to identify. The study employed a qualitative approach. Which was guided by the dialogic interactive theory. The methodological approach in Japan was face-to-face semi-structured interviews while in the South African context, virtual data generation methods were employed to interview teachers on the classroom interactions with students. The study population was English students, while in South Africa it was health course teachers who taught students from various health professions. A total of eight teachers were purposively recruited in South Africa with one student participant in Japan. Findings revealed similarities and differences in dialogic interactions and the interpretation of such interactions. Participants from both contexts had deliberate silence and reluctance to speak which was interpreted differently by the teachers, and lack of reciprocal and purposive engagements by students. Based on the dialogic interactive theory, it can be concluded that the aspirations to achieve an inclusive quality of education can best be achieved when teachers are transparent about the expected interactions for all the tenets of the dialogic theory to be achieved. It is therefore recommended that broader conversations about the analysis of situated dynamics of classroom interaction be encouraged to yield critical insights for education towards the attainment of inclusive quality education.

An Exploration of Teacher Leadership: Are Future Teachers Ready to Lead?

The teaching profession has become increasingly complex in the last decades. The changing role of teachers has called for a new paradigm of the teaching profession that recognises the potential of teachers to lead for supporting school development and change. The influence teachers have on the school community and their commitment to school change are at the core of teacher leadership definitions. Preparing future teachers to act as leaders in their schools can support the overall efforts for school improvement. Hence, the purpose of this study is to explore pre-service teacher leadership development. The study utilised a qualitative methodology to address: (i) pre-service teachers’ understanding of teacher leadership, (ii) the role of initial teacher education in shaping the understanding of teacher leadership, and (iii) the contribution of initial teacher education to pre-service teachers’ readiness for exercising leadership roles for school improvement. The study was conducted with pre-service teachers in the leading initial teacher education institution in Kosovo. A total of 42 pre-service teachers from all years of the Primary Teacher Education programme participated in four group interviews with the aim of discussing in depth the core elements of teacher leadership in order to better grasp the pre-service teachers’ understanding of this concept as well as their readiness to exercise leadership roles. A model devised by Snoek et al. (2019) was used as an analytical framework to determine the development of teacher leadership in initial teacher education. The study reveals that there is no consensus on the definition of teacher leadership. The findings show that the understanding of teacher leadership is based on a contextually drawn vision of what it means to be a teacher, resulting in a narrow view of leadership with regard to individual and classroom levels. The study concludes that initial teacher education has a critical role in contributing to shifting the conceptualisation of teacher leadership beyond the isolated views of individual and formal leadership. The findings have imperative implications for providing good models of initial teacher education that support the preparation and readiness of future teacher leaders to tackle the ever-increasing complexities of the teaching profession.

Investigation of acoustic comfort, productivity, and engagement in naturally ventilated university classrooms: Role of background noise and students’ noise sensitivity

Optimal classroom acoustics enhance students' engagement and learning efficiency. In warm-humid climate, ceiling fans are used at different speeds to enhance thermal comfort in naturally ventilated classrooms. Although ceiling fans enhance thermal comfort, using fans at higher speeds significantly increases Background Noise (BGN), interfering with acoustic comfort. To achieve an optimal acoustic environment, it is important to understand the effect of BGN on acoustic comfort. Hence, focusing on ceiling fan noise in classrooms, this study investigates the effect of acoustic environment and students' noise sensitivity on acoustic comfort, productivity, and engagement. A four-month-long field study was conducted in 11 naturally ventilated classrooms, obtaining 828 responses. Sound pressure levels in active classrooms were measured to calculate BGN and Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Reverberation time (RT) was measured both in students' presence and absence. Acoustic comfort conditions, productivity, and engagement of students at every seat were obtained through questionnaire survey. BGN levels and RT ranged from 58.2 to 65.3 dBA and 0.7–2.1 s, respectively. A positive correlation was found between acoustic comfort and engagement level and productivity. Regression analysis showed that students with high noise sensitivity reported acoustic discomfort when the BGN exceeded 62.4 dBA, RT was above 1.7 s and SNR was below 3.7 dBA. Chi-square test involving the acceptability vote indicated that students were more likely to accept the BGN ≤61 dBA, RT ≤ 0.7 s, and SNR ≥6.5 dBA. This study establishes the relation of BGN, RT, and SNR with acoustic comfort in naturally ventilated classrooms, offering insights for classroom acoustic environment enhancement.

The effect of post-COVID-19 ventilation measures on indoor air quality in primary schools.

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has made people acutely aware of the importance of indoor air quality (IAQ) and building ventilation systems, particularly in densely occupied places like offices and schools. As a result, governments and other public entities are increasingly investing in the installation, maintenance, and upgrades of ventilation systems in public buildings. However, little is known about the effect of building ventilation systems on actual IAQ and its impact on occupant behavior. This paper exploits exogenous closing and opening events of schools during the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with policy measures focusing on maximizing ventilation rates inside classrooms, to assess the effectiveness of building ventilation systems in primary schools. We use a unique sensor network implemented before the COVID-19 pandemic, consisting of measurement devices installed in 252 classrooms across 27 Dutch primary schools, continuously monitoring IAQ indicators such as CO2 levels and fine particle concentrations. Using high-frequency data from 2018 to 2022 school years, we compare the IAQ differences between natural and mechanical ventilation through a fixed-effect identification strategy. Our results show that mechanically ventilated classrooms perform better with respect to CO2 and fine particle levels. However, the post-COVID-19 ventilation measures implemented after school reopening had stronger effects on naturally ventilated (NV) classrooms, suggesting behavioral changes at the classroom level. We also investigate the longer term effects of these post-COVID-19 ventilation measures and show some evidence of decay in effectiveness, as well as a strong seasonal effect, particularly in NV classrooms, which seems the result of a trade-off between ventilation and thermal comfort.

Associations between students’ reading performance and literacy instruction in first grade: a cross-lagged study

This cross-lagged study examined the classroom-level associations between the reading performance of first-grade students (N = 537) and observed literacy instruction activities in classrooms (N = 30) in the autumn and spring terms. The multilevel analyses indicated that lower average word reading skills in the classrooms (i.e., there were more students who were learning to read) in the autumn were associated with higher amount of activities supporting consolidation of reading and spelling skills in the spring. In contrast, higher average word reading skills in the classrooms in the autumn were associated with higher amount of independent meaning-focused activities in the spring. Higher extent of whole-group meaning-focused activities in the autumn was positively associated with reading comprehension at classroom level in the spring, whereas independent phonological recoding practice in the autumn was negatively associated with reading comprehension in the spring. The study provides novel understanding of the associations between students’ reading performance and literacy instruction especially showing how students’ reading skills at classroom level may inform instruction in the classroom. This information may guide teachers to adapt their instruction at classroom level but also to identify the students needing differentiation. The results also acknowledge the affordances and limitations students’ skills may set for the instruction.

Science education in the Anthropocene: the aesthetics of climate change education in an epoch of uncertainty

We have a responsibility as science educators to work with young people to enact education that enables collective rebalancing of relationships between humans and more-than-humans that are disturbed by human-induced climate change. However, to date, climate change education has not been prioritized in school science at a policy, curricula, classroom and community level, due to an aesthetic which does not sufficiently value climate science or recognize the social impacts of science as part of the discipline. We argue in this conceptual research paper from a pragmatist perspective that an aesthetic shift is required to include science as part of climate change education as a transdisciplinary endeavor that focuses on addressing socio-ecological challenges through student agency and community action. We explore the synergy between science education aesthetics and climate change aesthetics as we advocate for a transformative aesthetics of climate change education. We do so through a process of reflection on and conceptualization of our stories of climate change education in Australia. We propose that such an aesthetic (how we ought to value) should not be considered in isolation but rather that it forms the basis for the ethics (how we ought to conduct ourselves) and logic (how we ought to think) of young people being with us in a community of inquiry in the Anthropocene. We argue that we (teachers and students) ought to conduct ourselves in loving ways toward human and more-than-human kin that necessitates that we think as a community of inquiry to address the challenges of the Anthropocene. In doing so we suggest that we can realize a radical pragmatist meliorism for climate change education that is underpinned by the three normative sciences, the most foundational of which is aesthetics.

Conversations reflecting boundary-objects-related details of a teacher’s local practices with spreadsheet algebra programs on variables

The ways teachers converse about their work in relation to information and communications technologies (ICTs) are worth studying. We analyse how a teacher converses about her local practices in relation to two spreadsheet algebra programs (SAPs) on variables. During the conversations we noticed that the teacher keeps different policy documents – boundary objects – firmly in view, in relation to the design of the two other boundary objects, namely the two SAPs. The policy documents provide details on the operative curricula which entail the intended, implemented and examined curricula. Of these curricula, the teacher regarded the examined curriculum and associated examinations as most important. Also, she conversed about how she intends to align the design features of the two SAPs with particular policy documents, especially in the context of the South African high-stakes National Senior Certificate examinations and the attendant examination pressure. Our results confirm current professional development (PD) literature suggestions that emphasise fostering coherence, for example between policy boundary objects details and what university-based PD providers do when they interact with school teachers.Contribution: The results provide guidelines for university-based PD providers to integrate SAPs or other ICTs related to algebra and variables by keeping teachers’ local practices in view. These providers should note that different policy-related boundary objects shape the ways teachers understand and converse about their local practices, namely their work at the classroom level.

Using intensive longitudinal methods to quantify the sources of variability for situational engagement in science learning environments

BackgroundSituational engagement in science is often described as context-sensitive and varying over time due to the impact of situational factors. But this type of engagement is often studied using data that are collected and analyzed in ways that do not readily permit an understanding of the situational nature of engagement. The purpose of this study is to understand—and quantify—the sources of variability for learners’ situational engagement in science, to better set the stage for future work that measures situational factors and accounts for these factors in models.ResultsWe examined how learners' situational cognitive, behavioral, and affective engagement varies at the situational, individual learner, and classroom levels in three science learning environments (classrooms and an out-of-school program). Through the analysis of 12,244 self-reports of engagement collected using intensive longitudinal methods from 1173 youths, we found that the greatest source of variation in situational engagement was attributable to individual learners, with less being attributable to—in order—situational and classroom sources. Cognitive engagement varied relatively more between individuals, and affective engagement varied more between situations.ConclusionsGiven the observed variability of situational engagement across learners and contexts, it is vital for studies targeting dynamic psychological and social constructs in science learning settings to appropriately account for situational fluctuations when collecting and analyzing data.

Effects of Cognitively Guided Instruction on Senior Secondary School Students’ Attitude towards Physics

In an effort to achieve educational goals and improve students' enthusiasm for Physics, it is important to take into account the prior experiences that students bring with them to the classroom. Teachers' exploration of these prior experiences is crucial when implementing the constructivist approach to classroom instruction, as it helps in achieving the desired objectives. Consequently, this research aimed to investigate how the application of cognitively guided instruction influences the attitudes of senior secondary school students towards Physics. The study employed a pretest-posttest control group quasi-experimental design and utilized multilevel linear models for data analysis, considering the hierarchical structure of the data with participants nested at both classroom and school levels. Students’ Attitude to Physics Questionnaire was used to collect data during the study. The study's findings revealed a significant positive impact of cognitively guided instructional strategy (CGIS) on students' attitudes towards Physics, and a significant difference in the post-attitude mean scores of students in the CGIS and the conventional teacher-centred instructional groups. Thus, cognitively guided instruction holds substantial promise as an effective pedagogical strategy for teaching Physics. In conclusion, this research underscores the importance of contextualizing instruction, as it actively engages students in the learning process and significantly enhances their attitudes towards the subject of Physics. The instructional structure which CGIS provides enables the validation of students’ knowledge-creation ability.

Collaboration Between Teachers and Learning Advisors to Improve Learner Outcomes

Qualitative research conducted at Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology investigated how kaiako (teachers) have been interacting with learning advisors (LA) and how they would like to engage with them to capitalise on their specialist skills to improve student outcomes. The research consisted of semi-structured interviews with 15 teachers from six campuses in the region, from a variety of teaching contexts including on-campus, online/distance, and mixed-mode learning. Teachers in a wide variety of subject areas were chosen to ascertain if there are different needs in any of those areas. The teachers were interviewed either in person or using Teams Meet software. Voice or video recordings were made and used for analysis and discussion. The results were tabulated and discussed by a panel of LA to find important implications of the study. The research determined that the experiences of teachers with LA are widely varied across the institute depending on factors such as geography, teaching styles, course duration, teacher and academic leader introductions to services, and other factors. All interviewees saw the value of LA but many were uncertain about how to engage with them and collaborate effectively at a classroom level. Where engagement exists at a classroom level, teachers are most satisfied with LA outcomes. The research indicates that closer collaboration can be achieved by increasing LA involvement in the classroom environment, particularly in areas identified as high needs. Critical to this collaboration is teachers’ facilitating contact with LA in the classroom. This collaboration will help identify student needs to enable timely interventions.

Heritage culture and national identity trajectories: Relations to classroom cultural diversity climate and socioemotional adjustment for adolescents of immigrant descent

Adolescents’ heritage culture and national identities are potential developmental assets for socioemotional adjustment. The school context can support the development of such identities. Therefore, the aims of our study are to (1) identify patterns of heritage and national identity trajectories across mid-adolescence, (2) test whether they are predicted by classroom cultural diversity climate, and (3) test whether they are linked to socioemotional adjustment. Adolescents of immigrant descent in Germany (N = 431, 50.3% female, Mage = 12.36 at T1) filled out surveys at the beginning (T1) and end of 7th grade (T2), and end of 8th grade (T3). Using latent growth mixture models, three trajectories were identified, which had stable, moderate national identities but varied in heritage identity: “high decreasing heritage identity”, “moderate stable identities”, and “low increasing heritage identity”. At the classroom level (but not individual level) diversity climate at T1 predicted a “moderate stable identities” trajectory, compared to a “low increasing heritage identity” trajectory. Further, adolescents in the “moderate stable identities” trajectory reported higher life satisfaction at T3 compared to those in the “low increasing heritage identity” trajectory. Overall, the findings suggest heterogeneity in identity trajectories with implications for socioemotional adjustment.

Understanding the association between moral disengagement and ethnic victimization: roles of bystanders in class

ABSTRACT The current study examined whether bystander behaviours in class were associated with being perpetrators of ethnic victimization and whether they moderated the association between disengagement from morality and perpetrating ethnic-based victimization. The sample included 1065 adolescents residing in Sweden (M age = 13.12, SD=.42; 55% males) from the first wave of a three-year longitudinal study. Students completed self-report measures. The results showed that adolescents with high levels of moral disengagement had greater likelihood of engagement in ethnic victimization. At the classroom level, lower levels of defending intentions and higher levels of reinforcing behaviours were related to higher likelihood of engagement in ethnic victimization. None of the cross-level interactions between moral disengagement and classroom-level bystander behaviours were statistically significant. Together, these findings suggest that intervention programmes designed to reduce bias-based hostile behaviours in schools may focus on promoting defending behaviours in class. However, the findings also highlight that targeting social context (or at least bystanders in class) might not be sufficient by itself to intervene with morally disengaged adolescents’ involvement in ethnic victimization. Intervention efforts may also benefit from including specific components targeting moral disengagement mechanisms.

Exploring postcolonial relationships within policy transfer: the case of learner-centred pedagogy in Ghana

ABSTRACT Framed by Homi Bhabha’s concepts of hybridity and the third space of enunciation, this study explores postcolonial relationships conceivably enacted through policy borrowing processes of learner-centred pedagogy (LCP) in Ghana. Nine Ghanaian and nine foreign stakeholders were interviewed. Conscious of the power imbalance implicit in traditional aid, the case project attempted to challenge the asymmetrical power relationships by allocating policy leadership and responsibility to Ghanaian stakeholders. However, the third space of enunciation created within the project did not seem to lead to a hybridisation of pedagogical ideas: while it was the Ghanaians themselves who promoted LCP within the project, the conceptual basis of the reform was dependent on knowledge and experiences which they gained in the West. This article concludes that the postcolonial turn through hybridisation of indigenous and Western pedagogies was not observed, although hybridity may happen in the process of actualising LCP at school and classroom levels.

Prestige norms of moral disengagement, prejudice, and ethnic bullying: a study among Italian early adolescents

ABSTRACT This study aimed to explore the association between prestige norms of moral disengagement and ethnic bullying among Italian early adolescents. Prestige norms of moral disengagement were also examined as possible moderator of the association between individual prejudice and ethnic bullying. Participants were 742 sixth to eighth graders attending multiethnic schools in Italy (49.7% girls), all of Italian heritage, who answered peer and self-report measures. In multilevel models, individual levels of moral disengagement were associated with ethnic bullying, and prestige norms of moral disengagement (classroom level) moderated (cross-level interaction) the association between xenophobic prejudice and ethnic bullying was significant only for high levels of prestige norms. Results highlight the importance of individual prejudices in ethnic bullying and suggest that the processes of socialization of cognitive distortions within peer groups are complex, providing useful insights for interventions.

Lead exposure and student outcomes: A study of Flint schools.

This paper estimates the impacts of cumulative lead exposure on the short-run discipline and academic achievement of elementary school students. An exogenous, heterogeneous shock of lead-in-water levels within classrooms at Flint Community Schools provides the treatment variation used to focus on the understudied, short-run effects of lead on older children. At the mean level of classroom lead exposure disciplinary actions increased by 8 actions per grade within each school, and the share of students proficient in both math and reading declined. These results may help explain observed disparities in both behavior and academic achievement for underprivileged groups.

Evaluation of radon‐induced radiation risk in indoor environments

AbstractIn general people spend most of their time in enclosed environments, therefore, they are exposed to indoor radon and its progeny. The paper discusses the variables influencing indoor radon levels. It assesses the correlation between indoor radon levels with temperature, humidity, and pressure, as well as seasonal variables. Radon activity concentrations were measured in Ege University's laboratories and Classroom using a digital radon gas detector. After statistical analysis, the results were compared to committee‐permissible limit levels (ICRP, WHO, and EU). It was found that the average radon activity concentrations were below the recommended 300 Bq m–3 limit value (EU), ranging from 58.4 to 216.0 Bq m–3. This study emphasized the significance of measuring and assessing the indoor radon levels in laboratories and classrooms in particular, in order to safeguard the students and faculty members from radon‐related health issues.

ANALYSIS OF ISLAMIC RELIGIOUS EDUCATION LEARNING MANAGEMENT AND ITS IMPACT ON TEACHING METHODS IN BAN BANGPU YARING PATTANI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, THAILAND

The objective of this study is to analyze Islamic religious education learning management at Ban Bangpu Yaring Pattani Public Elementary School in Thailand. Utilizing a qualitative descriptive study and a case study approach, this research focuses on the perspectives of the school principal, teachers, and students. Data were procured via interviews, observations, and document analyses, which were subsequently interpreted qualitatively using the Huberman and Miles model. Our findings show that the Islamic religious education curriculum management at Ban Bangpu Yaring Pattani Public Elementary School undergoes several stages: (1) The planning of the curriculum begins with an emphasis on the Islamic curriculum at the basic education unit level, a SWOT analysis, the establishment of a curriculum development team for Islamic religious education, curriculum development, revision based on feedback, approval by the local Department or Office of Basic Education, followed by implementation. (2) The implementation of the Islamic religious education learning lacks innovation due to a majority of the teachers being senior staff. Their limited skills in utilizing new technology result in a reliance on traditional learning management models. As a consequence, the learning process fails to fully engage students and teachers struggle to keep pace with modern teaching styles. Notwithstanding, the teachers excel in dedicating ample attention to the students. (3) The evaluation of student learning outcomes has been conducted by teachers to determine the students' mastery of basic competencies in elementary school. The assessment of student learning occurs at the end of each basic competency using predefined indicators based on the minimum competency criteria value, conducted in four stages: classroom, school, regional, and national levels. This study underscores the need for more innovative approaches in Islamic religious education and training in new teaching methods for senior teachers to better engage students and match up with the dynamics of the modern world.

Measuring the classroom level of the Dynamic Model of Educational Effectiveness through teacher self-report: development and validation of a new instrument

In the Dynamic Model of Educational Effectiveness, classroom-level effectiveness factors are assessed through observations or aggregated students’ ratings. The current study is aimed at developing and validating a complementary teacher self-report instrument of effective practices at classroom level (the DMEE-Class-T). The new instrument showed concurrent validity with the CSS-T. Dimensionality of both instruments was examined using the bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) framework, testing for alternative factorial representations of the data collected in a large-scale study conducted in all Luxembourgish elementary schools. For both instruments, the bifactor-ESEM and ESEM models showed excellent fitting indices and parameters, but the ESEM solution was retained as the best model for parsimony purpose. These results suggest that the eight types of practices assessed through the DMEE-Class-T could be considered as distinct facets of effective teaching practices while taking items cross-loadings into account. Implications for research and teachers’ professional development are discussed.

Using the Gini coefficient for assessing heterogeneity within classes and schools

This study demonstrates that the Gini coefficient works as a dispersion measure for gauging educational heterogeneity in and between classrooms and schools. The method for this is to compare Gini coefficients for empirical data from various areas such as gender proportions in upper secondary school programmes and dispersion in achievement within classroom and between schools. The main results are that the Gini coefficient works for gauging heterogeneity on different statistical measurement scales and different sample sizes. An example of small sample is the nominal categories of upper secondary school study programmes, for which the Gini coefficient gauges differences in gender proportions while this sample size should be too small for several other measures of inequality and dispersion. An example of large sample of quotient scale data is two neighbour schools that mainly enrol different achievement strata from the same student cohort. Here the Gini coefficient displays the two schools’ student heterogeneity to be different. An example of moderate size sample is to explore how the teaching group heterogeneity, gauged as Gini coefficient on achievements, re-distributes from within to between classes as the same students proceed from cohesive compulsory school to the students’ individual choice of upper secondary school programmes. Since the Gini coefficient can gauge heterogeneity on small samples, a suggestion for further research is to use it for exploring the relation between strategies for classroom orchestration and levels of classroom heterogeneity, for example between teaching groups at different achievement strata.

Bridging gaps: a systematic literature review of brokerage in educational change

Bridging gaps between educational stakeholders at the classroom, school, and system levels is essential to achieve sustainable change in primary and secondary education. However, transferring knowledge or building capacity within this network of loosely coupled stakeholders is demanding. The brokerage concept holds promise for studying these complex patterns of interaction, as it refers to how specific actors (brokers) link loosely coupled or disconnected individuals (brokering). However, different research traditions, in terms of theoretical frameworks and methodological approaches, and various stakeholders examined in their role as bridge builders make understanding the role of brokers, brokering, and brokerage in changing educational practice challenging. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to provide an overview of the current literature on these concepts in educational change research. In a systematic literature review based on 42 studies, we analyzed each study’s theoretical assumptions, methodological approach, scope in terms of stakeholders involved, and empirical findings. First, the literature review revealed that research on educational change refers to four different theoretical frameworks when focusing on brokers, brokering, or brokerage. Second, our results indicate that predominantly qualitative approaches have been applied. Third, using content network graphs, we identified teachers and principals as among the most frequently analyzed brokers. Fourth, four relevant aspects of the empirical findings are presented: brokers’ personal characteristics, conditions that enable brokering, successful brokering strategies, and outcomes of brokerage. Finally, we outline a future research agenda based on the empirical evidence base and shortcomings.