European Secondary School Research Articles

Towards a Quantum Technology PCK for Teachers

For many years quantum physics has been introduced in European secondary schools. However, quantum physics, and even more quantum technology, is not sufficiently part of present physics teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK). For this reason, the QTEdu pilot project ‘Quantum Technology PCK for teachers’ put together the expertise of several educational researchers in order to i) pre-research the Pedagogical Content Knowledge teachers need to teach Quantum Mechanics (QM) and Quantum Technology (QT) and ii) develop a PCK Map of practical use for teachers and teacher educators. The consortium performed pilots at the local level of existing teaching resources. The partners applied qualitative research methods such as interviews and observations in order to collect illustrations for the activities included in the developed PCK map.

Within-School Achievement Sorting in Comprehensive and Tracked Systems

Why do inequalities in schooling persist, even in relatively egalitarian school systems? This article examines within school sorting as an explanation. We use classroom data on friendship networks in 480 European secondary schools and contrast comprehensive (England, Sweden) and tracked systems (Germany, Netherlands). Our question is to what extent comprehensive systems reduce achievement sorting at the level of (a) schools, (b) classrooms, and (c) friendships. Between-school variance in achievement is lower in comprehensive systems. However, this is counterbalanced by greater sorting within schools, between classrooms, and, especially, in friendship networks. Still, comprehensive schools create more equal environments for two reasons. First, the difference in between school sorting is larger than the difference in within school sorting. Second, within school sorting is less strongly related to social background characteristics. These findings help explain both why comprehensive schools produce more equal outcomes and how substantial inequality can nevertheless persist.

Comparing students’ knowledge of the apparent motion of the Sun and stars across four European countries

In the context of the European Erasmus+ project Teaching ASTronomy at the Educational level (TASTE), we investigated to what extent secondary school students of four participating countries (Belgium, Germany, Greece and Italy) have insight in the Apparent Motion of the Sun and Stars. The systematic design of the AMoSS test instrument allowed us to detect differences in understanding of the apparent motion of the Sun and stars. We administered the test with 12 multiple choice questions to 13-17 years old students of 5 European secondary schools (N=348) during a science lesson in school. We also asked them to explain their choices. We found similar results in the four countries: most students only demonstrate a rudimentary understanding of the apparent motion of the Sun and stars for different times during the day, different times during the year and different locations of the observer on Earth. Moreover, we see a clear distinction between the responses to the Sun-related and the star-related questions. In general, the questions about the Sun are answered more correctly than the questions about the stars. By using one classification system for the four countries we were able to compare written explanations in different languages. In combination with a latent class analysis, we identified different mental models that students use to answer questions about the apparent motion of the Sun and stars.

The importance of raising defensive awareness among children and young people with the involvement of the Polish Armed Forces

The raising of defensive awareness among children and young people is one of the fundamental roles in the process of creating a defence system, and thus the national security of the Republic of Poland. It should start at the stage of upbringing in the family home and then evolve with the help of educational facilities and their accompanying institutions, among which the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland should be mentioned in particular. It is important to note that care for the creation of a reliable security system rests not only with an institution such as the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland and other uniformed services, but also with every citizen of the Polish state – in accordance with the law in force. Proper development of defensive awareness would not be possible if it were not for close cooperation between the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland and the education sector. This is evidenced by the results of a pilot study, presented in the follow-ing article, conducted in the form of a questionnaire among eighth-grade students of the Henryk Sienkiewicz Primary School in Siedlce, as well as students of two third-grade classes with the military profile, at the European Secondary School of Uniformed Services in Wrocław. Their main objective was to show the degree of defence awareness formation among children and young people, using specific methods and institutions that have a direct impact on this process. As it was shown – as a result of the research analysis – a group of respondents, regardless of the knowledge they already have, want to continue to deepen it. This means that specific projects need to be created which in cooperation with many pro-defence organisations have a direct impact on shaping the security of the Polish state through working with its youngest citizens

Changing misconceptions of abilities: The impact of a brief mindset refutation text intervention

AbstractThe current study investigated whether a brief refutation text intervention could change college students’ misconceptions about the malleability of their intelligence and abilities. Students from a 2‐year college and a 4‐year university in a large urban city in the Northeastern United States participated in experimental and control conditions. A repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance demonstrated a significant overall model with a medium effect size (ηp2 = 0.11) for increased growth mindset and decreased fixed mindset for students in the experimental condition. A follow‐up χ2 analysis for a dichotomous variable of fixed/growth mindset demonstrated a 3% increase from pre‐ to posttest (from 229 students to 236) of students believing in growth mindset. The results demonstrate that a refutation text intervention is effective in promoting growth mindset in undergraduate college students during a brief mindset intervention. This study extends research from a European secondary school context to a US college context.

Social network-based cohorting to reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in secondary schools: A simulation study in classrooms of four European countries.

BackgroundOperating schools safely under pandemic conditions is a widespread policy goal. We analyse the effectiveness of classroom cohorting, i.e., the decomposition of classrooms into smaller isolated units, in inhibiting the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in European secondary schools and compare different cohorting strategies.MethodsUsing real-world network data on 12,291 adolescents collected in classrooms in England, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden in 2010/2011, we apply agent-based simulations to compare the effect of forming cohorts randomly to network-based cohorting. Network-based cohorting attempts to allocate out-of-school contacts to the same cohort to prevent cross-cohort infection more effectively. We consider explicitly minimizing out-of-school cross-cohort contacts, approximating this information-heavy optimization strategy by chained nominations of contacts, and dividing classrooms by gender. We also compare the effect of instructing cohorts in-person every second week to daily but separate in-person instruction of both cohorts.FindingsWe find that cohorting reduces the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in classrooms. Relative to random cohorting, network-based strategies further reduce infections and quarantines when transmission dynamics are strong. In particular, network-based cohorting inhibits superspreading in classrooms. Cohorting that explicitly minimizes cross-cohort contacts is most effective, but approximation based on chained nominations and classroom division by gender also outperform random cohorting. Every-second-week instruction in-person contains outbreaks more effectively than daily in-person instruction of both cohorts.InterpretationCohorting of school classes can curb SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks in the school context. Factoring in out-of-school contacts can achieve a more effective separation of cohorts. Network-based cohorting reduces the risk of outbreaks in schools and can prevent superspreading events.FundingNone.

Girls\u2019 perceptions of boys with violent attitudes and behaviours, and of sexual attraction

Violence against women is a reality that is still present in Europe and a serious public health threat worldwide. Fortunately, investment is being made to raise awarness at the national and EU levels and among diverse publics. However, more research is needed in order to better explain its underlying factors, and thus identify effective actions that could contribute to preventing young girls and women from becoming victims. Drawing on a theoretical approach to the preventive socialization of gender violence, in this study we report data from the quasi-experimental research project ‘Free Teen Desire’ (Marie Sklodowska-Curie Grant, 2015–2016, No 659299). Through a survey conducted on 100 female adolescents (aged 13–16) in different European secondary schools (in England, Spain, Cyprus and Finland), we analysed their pattern of attraction for both ‘hooking up’ and stable relationships towards boys with either violent attitudes and behaviour or boys with non-violent behaviour, what would be linked to gender violence victimization at a later stage in their lives. Our findings suggest that in the different European secondary schools studied, a similar pattern of attraction is recognized by female participants: although non-violent boys are highly preferred to those with a violent profile, we observed that boys with violent attitudes and behaviours are mostly preferred for hooking up, and boys with non-violent traits are mostly preferred for stable relationships. In addition to the novelty of providing quantitative data on these links (non-violent/stable relationships; violent/hook-ups) in the case of adolescents, the findings regarding the pattern of attraction towards boys with violent traits for sporadic relationships are in line with previous extensive qualitative research. This body of research marks the existence of a coercive dominant discourse that associates attraction with violence and influences the socialization processes of many girls during their sexual-affective relationships’ awakening, which has been shown to constitute a risk factor for gender violence victimization.

Problem-based Educational Environments: A Case Study in e-Commerce and Business Planning

Introduction. The purpose of the present study was to explore the educational and cognitive aspects of an innovative approach to Internet use within an interdisciplinary, integrated framework for activities set up to enable students to acquire knowledge informally. These activities had the potential to provide real-world results through a model that was easily applicable in current educational practice.Method. Adopting a constructivist, “learning by doing” approach, a network of five European secondary schools and educational and technological research institutes developed a web-enabled application for teaching various topics related to the e-commerce of agricultural products (AGROweb). This generated a business microcosm in the different schools, allowing students to have contacts with producers, win orders via the Internet and deal with payment and shipping issues. This marketplace was supplemented with a flexible virtual environment where students and teachers could continuously discuss and exchange ideas, and familiarize themselves with the new interactive tools.Results. The AGROweb project forced students to tackle the problems of the real business world (i.e., establishing contacts with producers, winning orders via the Internet, handling shipping-related issues and payment requirements). For the students, working on the project gave them a desire to broaden their knowledge of computing at various levels, namely web design, animation, software development, databases, and so on. During the project, teaching and learning were no longer perceived of as opposites, but instead as complementary activities.Conclusion. Technology-based learning environments like AGROweb provide opportunities for acquiring both declarative and procedural knowledge. Similarly, their multidisiplinarity helps learners to develop general strategies and to transfer these strategies from one specific context to another. However, a very careful assessment is needed whenever changes and new learning strategies are involved, in order to measure the impact of these changes from a psychological and educational point of view and define the formal directions to follow.

Gender and self-employment: the role of mini-companies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate to what degree participation in mini-companies impact young women and men with regard to the perceived desirability and perceived feasibility of self-employment. The Company Programme (CP) is the largest mini-company scheme in European secondary school. Design/methodology/approach – The data derived from a survey conducted in Norway with 1,160 students in upper secondary school (17-18 years of age). The quasi-experimental research design enabled a comparison of compulsory CP-participants with non-participation and control for several competing factors. Findings – The investigation demonstrated that CP positively influenced the perceived feasibility of self-employment for both young men and young women, and CP also increased the perceived desirability of self-employment among young women. Research limitations/implications – It could be that the impact of CP varies according to time spent on the CP or position in the mini-company. The study does not measure whether CP-participants actually create a business. Practical implications – Central to explaining the stronger impact on young women is a particular concern with female entrepreneurship in CP. The majority of CEOs in mini-companies are young women, and all women that manage mini-companies can participate in the coaching programme “Girls and Leadership”. Social implications – CP-participation could boost the chance of individuals attempting to start a business at a later point in their lives. In the longer run, CP could contribute to reducing the gender gap in self-employment. Originality/value – Investigating some of the impacts of CP in a gender perspective, this paper adds a fresh viewpoint to the state of knowledge about entrepreneurship education in secondary schools.

The impact of paper-based, computer-based and mobile-based self-assessment on students' science motivation and achievement

The present study focuses on the implementation of a self - assessment procedure in a Physics class, extended during a seven weeks period in a European secondary level school. The researchers used three modes of assessment based on paper and pencil, computer-web and mobile devices respectively. The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of each mode of assessment on students' motivation and achievement. Analysis of pre- and post-motivation tests revealed a more positive motivational orientation of students towards computers and mobile devices as assessment delivery mediums. Also, student evaluation implemented after the phase of the experimental procedure showed a significant increase in learning achievement for low-achieving students who participated in the mobile-based and computer-based assessment. The positive effects of computers and mobile devices on students' learning motivation suggest that they can be used as a promising alternative to paper and pencil assessment procedures.

Stereotype threat and the cognitive performance of adolescent immigrants: The role of cultural identity strength

In many world regions students with certain immigrant backgrounds underperform in educational settings. Theory and research suggest that this achievement gap could be partially explained by stereotype threat. Stereotype threat is a detrimental psychological state that inhibits individuals who belong to a negatively stereotyped group at times of learning and performance. The aim of this work was to examine both the influence of students' residence culture identity strength and ethnic identity strength on their cognitive performance under threat. Two experimental studies, conducted in European secondary schools, are reported. Experiment 1 (N = 132) showed that in a situation of explicit stereotype threat, high identification of immigrants with their residence culture predicted better cognitive performance, independently of ethnic identity strength. Residence culture identity strength was unrelated to cognitive performance in a control condition or a more implicit threat condition. Experiment 2 (N = 152) included an experimental manipulation of residence culture identity strength. The results show that highlighting similarities with the residence culture (vs. highlighting differences) positively influences immigrant students' performance under threat. This research connects the stereotype threat framework with acculturation research, and points at ways to increase the educational achievement of immigrant students.

ГЕНДЕРНИЙ ПІДХІД У МОНІТОРИНГОВИХ ДОСЛІДЖЕННЯХ ІК-КОМПЕТЕНТНОСТІ УЧНІВ В ОСВІТНІЙ ПРАКТИЦІ КРАЇН ЄВРОПИ

У статті проаналізовано гендерний підхід у моніторингових дослідженнях інформаційно-комунікаційної компетентності (ІК-компетентності) учнів загальноосвітніх навчальних закладів у країнах Європи на сучасному етапі. Висвітлено результати досвіду таких міжнародних організацій як ООН, ЮНЕСКО, ЮНІСЕФ, Міжнародної асоціації оцінювання навчальних досягнень (The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement - IEA), Організації Економічного Спiвробiтництва та Розвитку ОЕСР (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development – ОEСD) щодо моніторингових досліджень ІК-компетентності учнів. Визначено особливості, загальні тенденції та перспективні шляхи розвитку.

Open Learning Approach with Remote Experiments: OLAREX Project

The projectâ??s primary target groups are the European secondary schools. More specifically: secondary school and university teachers, students and managers of schools, museum employees and their visitors, and other STEM education providers. The main goal of the OLAREX project is to offer the providers of formal and non-formal education an efficient way to improve their e-didactic and digital competences. For this purpose a training program is created with using ICT-based learning materials, remote laboratories, and e-learning methodologies

Teaching optics with an intra-curricular kit designed for inquiry-based learning

In order to increase scientific literacy and the knowledge of science and technology ofEurope’s citizens, the European Commission suggests a more student-centredimplementation of natural sciences in education systems. Inquiry-based learning (IBL) isnot only an accepted method to promote students’ interest and motivation, it also helpsstudents learn the scientific method and fosters their research skills. However, IBL is rarelyused in European classrooms. The main reason is that due to the strict curricula teachersdo not have the time for preparation and they do not feel well equipped and trained in theuse of IBL methods in class. The Photonics Explorer programme addresses these problemson the European level. Within the programme, a pan-European collaboration of professors,teachers and photonics experts have developed the Photonics Explorer kit for theteaching of optics and light-related topics in physics across various Europeansecondary school curricula. It is designed for intra-curricular use and contains speciallydesigned, hands-on experimental components, worksheets based on guided IBLand multimedia material. Additionally, the kit provides a teacher guide with asuggested lesson outline and sufficient background information for each topic.

Design, implementation and validation of a Europe-wide pedagogical framework for e-Learning

Within the context of a Europe-wide project UNITE, a number of European partners set out to design, implement and validate a pedagogical framework (PF) for e- and m-Learning in secondary schools. The process of formulating and testing the PF was an evolutionary one that reflected the experiences and skills of the various European partners and secondary schools involved in the project. The framework involved pedagogies which underpin the teaching of subject matter in a number of European secondary schools as well as the ways in which learning is delivered and assessed. The PF represents an essential part of the e-Learning system conceptualization and development and offers sound concepts for the development of learning scenarios in order to enhance the learning experience of students in secondary schools. A five-component framework which, by means of its constituents, drives and guides the creation of e-Learning scenarios was designed and tested. It is composed of the pedagogical framework context, pedagogical approaches, assessment techniques, teacher education and national specifics and current pedagogical practices implemented in national curricula. A series of learning scenarios were created to test the PF in classrooms. A detailed exemplar of a scenario in practice is offered. An evaluation of the scenarios based on [Reeves, T. C., 1994. Evaluating what really matters in computer-based education. In M. Wild, D. Kirkpatrick (Eds.), Computer education: new perspectives (pp. 219–246). Perth, Australia: MASTEC] pedagogical dimensions revealed that UNITE is based on constructivist and cognitive foundations. With increased experience of the system the teachers’ implementation of the pedagogical framework developed into increased mastery in the school context. Teachers from the second validation phase became more confident in their application of the framework principles and evaluated more positively the outcomes. This helped them to become more aware of the opportunities offered by the framework in their secondary school teaching. In order to bring this about the supports for change were put into place at the levels of pedagogical design, administrative support and the provision of the required resources and appropriate continuing professional development. The project has sought to create this support structure to ensure maximal benefits of the system for teaching and learning. Such a pedagogical support PF has offered scope for both collaborative and autonomous learning which have brought about value-added teaching and learning effects in the Europe-wide network of schools.

Toegepaste vergelijkende godsdienstwetenschap in het voortgezet onderwijs: Contouren van een cursus ter versterking van sociale cohesie en burgerschap Applied Comparative Religious Studies in Secondary Education. Outline of a Course Aiming at Social Cohesion and Civic Education

The author argues that there are at present three good reasons to introduce education about religions and philosophies of life as a compulsory subject in all European secondary schools: (1) the growing complexity of religions and life philosophies in European societies; (2) the weakening role of traditional religious institutions in the transmission of religious knowledge to the next generations; (3) the growing number of social conflicts thought to be related to religious issues. In the view of the author, the educational programme should consist of three parts, with specific application of each of these parts to the religious history of the Netherlands. Part 1 would have to deal with the historical separation between State and Religion and the origin of the prevailing constitutional principles concerning religions and philosophies of life. Part 2 would deal with the origin of the Netherlands as a Protestant State and with the the social and political emancipation of Catholicism and Judaism in the history of the Netherlands. Part 3 would focus on the history of philosophies of life and religions in the Netherlands after the Second World War, and especially with Islam. At the end of his article, the author criticizes the lack of knowledge and understanding of Islam, prevailing in important Dutch text books used at secondary schools.

Secondary level esa education demonstrations per soyuz mission

The objective of these education demonstrations was to explain and record basic scientific phenomena common to the European secondary school curriculum, in weightless conditions on board the International Space Station (ISS). Video taken during the Cervantes, Delta and Eneide Missions of the results, have been incorporated into a series of ESA educational DVD lessons for distribution to secondary schools within ESA Member States, respectively entitled: Project Zero Gravity, Mission 1: Newton in Space, Mission 2: Body Space, and Mission 3: Space Matters.

Breathing new life into the biology classroom.

An increasing number of exciting experiments for teaching biology is becoming available, but teacher training and institutional reform are also needed to integrate them into curricula

Selected research published in Spain 1999–2002

In this first of a series of country-specific reviews of published research, my aim has been to highlight current lines of research in Spain which are either new in themselves or have taken their starting-point from existing international research agendas. In the preparation for this review more than one hundred papers were reviewed from over forty journals, conference proceedings, and books edited during the period 1999–2002. Inevitably, however, a ‘selection’ of recent research is just that. Demands of space are, of course, paramount but – in the light of the sheer volume of work published in Spain over the period – some kind of personal criterion inevitably needed to be used for the inclusion or otherwise of a paper. I have decided primarily to highlight experimental or quasi-experimental research which, though it might be based on, or targeted at, a local population or context, also has considerable interest for the wider readership of Language Teaching. Such a decision is not meant to imply a personal preference for such research over other kinds; rather I wished on this occasion to highlight what I perceive as a recent increase in interest in Spain in such studies. Many national university PhD programmes now include the production of an original piece of experimental research as an obligatory requirement of the course, and much of the research cited below has its origins therein. Conversely, this has meant that other, equally valid and commendable, published work has had to be omitted or mentioned only in passing. Amongst these are the numerous on-going reports on locally-initiated and government-funded research projects which are currently operating in many higher-education establishments, as well as teaching and learning materials production carried out with European Union (EU) initiatives. For example, current and recent LINGUA and COMENIUS projects in which there has been considerable Spanish representation include PINOCCHIO (the production of Italian language and culture materials for use in mainstream secondary education – University of Seville), SUBJECT PROJECTS (the production of plurilingual didactic tools for use in European secondary schools – University of the Basque Country), ARTEMIS (the creation of an advanced communicative course for L2 Greek–University Complutense of Madrid), and LEARNER AUTONOMY (an inventory of training needs and current practices for the teaching of learner autonomy in foreign language (FL) teacher training–University of Granada).

Environmental perception of French and some Western European secondary school students

This paper describes, by focusing on factor analytic structures, pupils’ reactions towards the utilisation and preservation of nature. A previously hypothesised model based on these two domains (comprised of 5 primary factors) was shown to be valid for four different Western European pupil samples: CH, D, DK, IRL. The empirical basis of this present paper comprises a survey of about 900 French pupils of both genders aged between 11 and 16 years from rural areas who responded to a paper-and-pencil questionnaire. Data from the remaining European samples added some 4000 respondents based on the same objective test each. The purpose of the present study was five-fold: Firstly, to test and confirm the hypothesised primary and secondary factor structure for the combined data set. Secondly, to apply the methods of linear structural relationship analysis to test the existence of two higher-order factors (the domains: “Preservation” and “Utilisation”). Thirdly, to investigate any age or gender effect in the primary factors. Fourthly, to provide an age-adjusted empirical instrument for evaluation purposes of educational programmes featuring conservation and environmental protection. Finally, to compare the means within-region factor scores in anticipation of substantial between-region differences. These differences followed a rather consistent pattern supporting the interpretation that “utilising” nature is negatively correlated with positive environmental reactions.