Classroom Life Research Articles

SYSTEM OF DEVELOPING SELF-LEARNING SKILLS

Learning to learn, one of the eight competences that EU has defined, comprises the disposition and ability to organize and regulate one’s own learning, both individually and in groups. Learning to learn includes the ability to manage one’s time effectively, to solve problems, to acquire, process, evaluate and assimilate new knowledge, and to apply new knowledge and skills in a variety of contexts — at home, at work, in education and in training. In more general terms, learning-to- learn contributes strongly to managing one’s own career path. Although ‘learning to learn’ should be an important part of daily life in secondary schools and classrooms, it turns out to be a very difficult goal to achieve. For most schools and for most teachers it is not even clear how ‘learning to learn’ should be operationalized and implemented.

The classroom experiences of pupils with special educational needs in mainstream primary schools—1976 to 2012. What do data from systematic observation studies reveal about pupils’ educational experiences over time?

This paper presents results of an analysis of primary‐aged pupils’ educational experiences over a 35 year period. Data drawn from a set of large‐scale systematic observation studies, conducted in the UK between 1976 and 2012, are used to describe pupils’ average classroom experiences at six points in time over this period. These data are then used as markers for comparing the experiences of a subset of pupils—those with special educational needs (SEN)—over the same period. Results for the average pupil show an increase over time in the proportion of time spent interacting with teachers and peers. In contrast, relative to these non‐SEN pupils, those with SEN have experienced a more moderate increase in the proportion of time spent interacting with the teacher, and almost no change in the amount of time spent interacting with peers and in whole class teaching contexts. The increase in the number of teaching assistants in mainstream primary settings, employed and deployed to assist the learning and inclusion of pupils with SEN, is identified as a key observable influence on the difference between the classroom experiences of pupils with and without SEN over time. This paper additionally defends the use of systematic observation methods, and concludes that the broad, but stable, measures of activity and behaviour, plus the rigorous approach to data collection it provides, are necessary for painting objective, descriptive and retrospective pictures of classroom life that can elude other research techniques.

“Let It Go”: Exploring the Image of the Child as a Producer, Consumer, and Inventor

iPads are increasingly being put in the hands of children in schools and educational contexts, yet there continues to be larger questions about how they fit into the fabric of daily classroom life and what new stories will emerge (de Certeau, 1984, 1984/2000). In this article, we feature vignettes of data from a 2-year government-funded research project on how children make meaning with iPads across 5 early years' classrooms. Understanding the complexities of literacy learning requires an ‘in situ’ examination. Through our ethnographic approach, we have been able to get closer to an ‘insider account’ of the sociocultural knowledge of early learners and their teachers, as well as a holistic description and interpretation of the phenomenon of being and becoming literate (Le Compte & Preissle, 1993).

An Attempt to Empower Teachers in Education: An Epistemological Look

A teacher, as a cultural broker and the inheritor, critic and interpreter of culture, can be used to orient discussion and action in a particular direction. The knowledge that teachers need to have is more complicated than just knowing and using facts. The paper, incompatible with positivistic epistemological movement, holds that the complexity of classroom dynamics cannot be achieved simply by transmitting knowledge. Teacher education is an attempt to equip prospective teachers with the knowledge, behaviors, attitudes, and skills that they require to perform their tasks more effectively. Thus, training teachers obviously involves equipping them with various objects of culture and different types of knowledge essential to their cultural training. The present study, in disfavor with the simplicity orientation in positivism, holds that the reality in the classroom life is so complicated that we cannot achieve it by setting up clinical experimental designs.

Representing Dewey’s Constructs of Continuity and Interaction Within Classrooms

As a philosopher, Dewey relied on others to represent and realize the practical implications of his ideas for classroom life. While many educators have ably done so, the empirically grounded markers and measures that Dewey saw as necessary for strengthening progressive practice and communicating with the broader field remain underdeveloped. Here, I review Dewey’s naturalistic view of intelligence and his call for progressive forms of educational assessment as background for my consideration of how one might employ classroom discourse analysis in order to represent characteristic features of Dewey’s two central dimensions of educative experiences—continuity and interaction—in practical terms.

“Your Lunch Pail Is Silly!” Children’s and Teachers’ Views on Teasing

What is childhood like today? Is it a world fraught with endless joy, fun, and games, or are children experiencing a much different reality? A child’s social interactions can be a source of great enjoyment and are essential to early development. Conversely, young children routinely experience tension, ambiguity, and conflict as they navigate the complexities of these early social relationships. An ambiguous behavior such as teasing can be challenging for children to negotiate and understand. These often subtle jabs can be vague and involve conflicting meanings and interpretations. How children negotiate the complexities within teasing and the impact on teachers and classroom life is not readily known. This qualitative study explored the perceptions of young children and teachers of teasing within a framework of their “real-world” experiences. The article highlights the findings in relation to how children’s and teachers’ “storied” perceptions of teasing may be positioned and juxtaposed so that a deeper understanding of how teasing is practiced in schools can be realized.

Understanding the development of Chinese EFL learners’ email literacy through Exploratory Practice

While many empirical studies demonstrate the effects of instruction on enhancing second language (L2) learners’ pragmatic competence (Rose, 2005), few have attempted to gain an understanding of the quality of classroom life in addition to instructional efficacy. Drawing on the framework of Exploratory Practice (Allwright, 2005), the present study examines how intermediate-level Taiwanese students of English enrolled in an advanced writing class developed greater pragmatic awareness in email literacy. Instruction was divided into four distinct stages: Setting the context, Modelling, Joint construction and Independent construction. The outcomes, gleaned through questionnaires, class discussions, student presentations, and pre- and post-instruction emails, provide striking evidence of greater pragmatic awareness and positive attitudes towards instruction on email literacy, and pinpoint aspects of email literacy which may require more instructional attention. Overall, this Exploratory Practice offers interesting insights into how instruction on pragmatics in everyday life (email literacy) can contribute to the quality of classroom life for English language students and their teacher.

Analysing language classrooms through classroom interaction

This research study focuses on teacher-student and student-student interaction, which are considered very important aspects of classroom life. There has been a growth of interest in the analysis of teacher language and interaction in language classrooms and many (e.g. Ellis, 1994; Tsui, 2001) believe that classroom interaction is one of the major variables affecting SLA in formal settings. This study aims to give some insight into classroom interaction and how this interaction shapes L2 learning and teaching in Turkey and England. Systematic classroom observation along with the field notes taken to record observations is the main research method in this study used to describe and examine interaction patterns and to measure learner production in secondary classes in Turkey and England. The participants are foreign language teachers and non-native speaking students. Over a month, more than 50 lessons were observed in the secondary schools in both Turkey and England at two levels (13-14 and 14-15 year age group). In Turkey, English classes were observed whereas in England, the observation was conducted in German and French classes. English is taught as a foreign language in Turkey; German and French are also taught as a foreign language in England. The findings of this research study are expected to provide a better understanding of instructional practices and procedures in L2 classrooms. The results of this research study, however, should be seen as suggestive rather than conclusive since they are derived from a relatively small sample.

Attending to Highly Sensitive Children in the Classroom

Through the storied experiences of a Highly Sensitive Child (HSC), the author creates a picture of what High Sensitivity is and how it impacts children in the classroom. Discussion focuses on attending to the needs of highly sensitive children, specifically addressing friendship, environment, discipline, stimulation, and reciprocal learning relationships. The author makes visible why it is important to create a classroom life that meets the needs of highly sensitive children and theorizes that, in doing so, the bar for attending to the wellness of all children will be raised. This article begins a conversation about highly sensitive children in the classroom, something not currently being addressed in educational literature.

Keeping Our Difficult Kids in School: The Impact of the Use of the ‘Boxall Profile’ on the Transition and Integration of Behaviourally - Disordered Students in Primary Schools.

This paper discusses the Boxall Profile as an assessment and intervention framework designedto support disadvantaged children in mainstream schools. The Boxall Profile was developed in the 1970s in the United Kingdom by Marjorie Boxall to identify children who had come into school unprepared to meet the demands of classroom life and needed support in a nurture group. The nurture group provided the emotional/social support the children needed to prepare them for mainstream classes. The Boxall Profile shows how the processes of early child development play a central role in a child’s ability to learn and succeed at school. It helps teachers in mainstream school to understand the emotional problems that lie behind difficult behaviour. A case study example demonstrates how the Boxall Profile provides evidence of deficit in social and emotional competence when attachment has been disrupted and a child has experienced trauma, neglect or abuse.

The Power of Why: Connecting Curriculum to Students' Lives

Student disengagement can be a major impediment to effective student learning. When parents and educators cannot provide adequate reasoning to explain the value of what is taught at home and in school, students can lose their motivation to learn and be engaged in classroom activities. In this article, the authors explain the importance of teacher reflection and identification of students' stances and thought processes in making robust decisions around classroom life. Reflecting on or reasoning about the lessons taught, and the questions asked or left out of the curriculum, can help students engage with the curriculum and thus improve their achievement. The authors use examples to show how authentic reasoning may address students' need to understand and appreciate the worth of the curriculum and the concerns of the larger community.

Revisiting Reflection: Utilizing Third Spaces in Teacher Education

Much has been written about the importance of reflective practice. What is missing is reflective work on the part of teacher educators to address the mismatch between university-based methods courses and the realities of classroom life. With examples from a third grade mathematics classroom as well as a university-based mathematics methods course, this article explores ways educators can employ third space theory as a way to engage in purposeful reflection into their teaching practices.

Classroom Life

Classroom Life

MARÍA ZAMBRANO: UNA NUEVA FENOMENOLOGÍA ACERCA DE LA EDUCACIÓN

Este artículo busca poner de manifiesto el pensamiento de María Zambrano en relación con la educación, para ello apelaremos a algunos de sus manuscritos: El Aula, La vida de las aulas, el espejo de las aulas y entre el ver y el escuchar, dado que los elementos allí tratados respecto al aula, la atención y los sentidos, actualmente cobran total vigencia, máxime si se considera que los avances tecnológicos proponen hoy al respecto una nueva re-significación, asunto que a su vez conlleva nuevos desafíos para la comunidad académica, no obstante el llamado de la filósofa es que el docente, independientemente de los recursos que medien el proceso de enseñanza aprendizaje, procure mantener el sentido de humanidad que debe sustentar la acción educativa, en tiempos donde la deshumanización coloniza más terreno.

Hidden Curriculum Effects on University Students’ Achievement

Phillip Jackson (1968) is generally acknowledged as the originator of the term hidden curriculum in his book Life in Classrooms. Through observations of public grade school classrooms, Jackson identified features of classroom life that were inherent in the social relations of schooling. He observed that there were values, dispositions, and social and behavioral expectations that brought rewards in school for students and that learning what was expected along these lines was a feature of the hidden curriculum .from this acknwoledgement this study was done by the sampling size of 97 university students who were studied in Educational psychology .The results of the questionnaire were analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistics .The student-teacher relations and academic achievement, between the organizational structure of the university, the university and the social climate of their appearance and positively related to academic achievement and that there are significant .But there were no significant relationship between academic achievement and physical structure of the class.

Instructors’ Debate over Error Feedback on Chinese International Students’ Academic Writings in a U.S. University

As the number of Chinese international students studying in the U.S. has grown dramatically in recent years, there has been increasing attention to how English Composition instructors approach these students’ writings. Using a dialogue format representing “narratives of classroom life” (Nelson, 2011a), this paper demonstrates two polemic views held by teachers and researchers: one view sees students’ language use as problematic as it differs from the expected standards required for academic success in the U.S., while the other calls for more tolerance of the students’ linguistic and cultural diversity and accordingly, more strategic ways to give “error feedback.” By opening up the debate, the paper explores possibilities for teachers in the U.S. and around the world to help their students address the gap between academic expectations, and what they are currently capable of.

Unfolding the assessment process in a whole class mathematics setting

Assessment activities in the class are an important aspect of classroom practice, while there is much debate with respect to the formative vs. summative assessment routines and the outcomes that each of them provides for students' learning. As classroom assessment does not occur in seclusion of other aspects of classroom life, the process is seen as rather complex. In this study we wished to explore how assessment serves the function of supporting students' learning and whether this evidence is used to adapt teacher's practices in meeting different learning needs in the mathematics classroom. The authors observed assessment practices of an experienced math teacher in a grammar school in Belgrade. Teacher's assessment practices were observed during a three week period. The analysis has shown the teacher to hold a somewhat complex perception of assessment, yet the perception is largely detached from teaching, which is in line with the previously reported results. However, the elements of formative assessment do emerge, thus contributing to the assessment being in service of learning. In spite of this, a narrow set of practices are visible when observing how the teacher keeps track of students' progress. A mismatch is visible between students' and teacher's perceptions of the assessment as a whole and some of the practices exercised in the process. The teacher struggled to verbalize some aspects of own assessment practices, especially those related to more formative aspects.

Nurture and Change: The Establishment of a Dynamic and Responsive Teacher Education Classroom

The concept and the activities of nurturing are vital to the teacher education classroom. It is essential that student teachers have the ability to understand their own students' connection to learning and thus to the need those students have for a particular and indispensable form of sustenance. Nurturing unites identity and subject matter with the hearts and minds of students and teachers in the weaving of classroom life. Nurture is part of emotions. Emotions influence student behaviour. The action of nurture strengthens identity, understanding and knowledge in a solid path that brings together hopes and possibilities for learning and performing in the world. Educators who assist their students in feeling good about learning through classroom successes, friendships and celebrations are doing the very things their students' brains crave.

Exploring classroom life through cogenerative dialogues

In response to Shady’s reflection on his experience as a teacher-researcher in which he explored different cogen structures, we consider fluid participant configurations using cogens as a research method to provide insights into classroom life. Our cogens illuminated the role of symbolic, cultural and social capital in student–teacher alignments that changed across different classroom situations. In Shady’s study, as well as our own, respectful student–teacher relationships that involved the teacher and students first establishing common social capital, enabled the teacher to “be in with” the students, and vice versa. We raise questions about how the structure of cogens might affect the nature of the dialogue that is cogenerated.

Putting the Heart Back into Writing: Nurturing Voice in Middle School Students

The authors share five areas of inquiry that emerged as the result of a voluntary weekly before-school writing program.If you pay me a million dollars for me to stop writing, it would never work.- Carrie, 11-year-old middle school studentFor many middle grades students, writing facilitates a search for meaning; writing can foster self-expression and self-discovery and can help students cope with economic and family issues that are out of their control. Susannah [pseudonym] captures the voice of a middle school student perfectly in her short story:Zodiac grabbed an apple. There's not much to tell. Okay, you wanna hear? Fine. am now best friends with a slut with a rock for a brain. My science teacher is a hippie. My history teacher is a hard-ass army freak. My math teacher is a rainbow Madonna. My social studies teacher is a freakin' Calvin Klein model. My Spanish teacher is a hopeless romantic. My wellness teacher is a douche bag with 7 sons AND a divorce. And my language arts teacher is an air-head rag city ghetto girl. Zodiac cried loudly, I have a crush on my new friend's BOYFRIEND! Zodiac got out five pages of homework Mrs. Brown had assigned her. Zodiac wiped away her tears. Now leave me alone. Ryuzaki nodded.In our experience working with a team of adolescents, we witnessed young authors using writing as a vehicle to explore their innermost thoughts, their struggles with identity, relationships, cancer, love, religion, and fears. Their voices rang true as they wrote by choice, within the loosely structured setting of a before-school writing team.Many researchers have reported the adolescent years mark declining motivation for some students to write (Anderman & Maehr, 1994; Eccles, Wigfield, & Schiefele, 1998; Romano, 2007). Much of the research reveals that adolescents do write for their own authentic purposes, but this usually happens outside school (Yost & Vogel, 2012). Our experience as before-school writing team instructors contradicts these claims. At a high-poverty school with troubling test scores, students clamored for the opportunity and space to write. Our students responded enthusiastically to school writing time that nurtured their search for meaning. They wanted a quiet, safe venue to write, with support, about topics of their own choosing.Faced with expectations of increasingly higher academic standards and accountability, along with extreme budget cuts, school districts have narrowed their focus to raise student scores on statewide literacy and math tests. Teachers nationwide are increasingly pressured to use class time for test preparation in core subjects linked to high-stakes tests. Writing is not always considered a core subject (Applebee & Langer, 2006; Dillon, 2006; The National Commission on Writing for America's Families, Schools and Colleges, 2006). A key stance in the philosophy of The National Commission on Writing (2006) is that effective writing instruction is time-consuming for students and teachers, and students are not spending enough time writing at school. If writing is addressed in the classroom, it is often in preparation for the statewide writing assessment, not for its benefits to the whole child-nurturing curiosity, exploration, integrative thinking, and problem-solving. Applebee and Langer (2006) noted how state and district writing assessments limit the scope of a broad writing curriculum in favor of coaching students on how to respond to narrow prompts or questions in limited genres. With a focus on high-stakes test performance come more restricted tasks, often centered around structural concerns and a correctness mindset, not focused on inquiry or synthesis of a student's classroom life with life beyond the classroom.Even in classes where teachers make time for writing instruction, Applebee and Langer (2006) found, Students seem not to be given assignments requiring writing of any significant length or complexity (p. …