German Secondary School Research Articles

Structuring experiments in biology lessons through teacher feedback

ABSTRACTStructure in the form of feedback has been shown to be highly relevant to students learning. Offering feedback, stating clear expectations and instructions, might enhance students’ perceived competence. The context chosen for this study were experiments studying bird flight in biology lessons. Students experimented in a scientific discovery learning environment as they offer plenty of opportunities for them to seek feedback while using hypothetical-deductive reasoning to work on their experiments. The aim of this study was to investigate the motivational effects of informative tutoring feedback compared to basic feedback. 165 students (50% female, 12.02 ± 0.68 years old) from the sixth and seventh grades of medium and high track German secondary schools took part in the study. In a pretest–posttest design, we tested the effects of basic or informative tutoring feedback on intrinsic motivation, flow experience, and knowledge acquisition. Motivation was assessed using an adapted version of the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (IMI). For teacher behaviour providing informative tutoring feedback we found beneficial effects on intrinsic motivation and flow. Overall, the pre- and posttest showed that the students acquired knowledge through the course of the lessons.

Relevance of parental cultural capital for adolescents’ physical exercise and sport activity

The aim of the present study was to develop and investigate a theory-based model of the direct and indirect relationships between socio-cultural factors and adolescents’ physical exercise and sport activity (PESA). This survey involved 966 adolescents (Mage = 14.80, SD = 0.75; n = 524 female). The participants were recruited from Grade 9 classes from German secondary schools. Multilevel path analysis was used to investigate direct and indirect effects between variables. The path model indicates that the supposed direct relationship between parental educational level and adolescents’ PESA which is commonly suggested and reported in several studies was completely mediated by parental PESA, parental occupational prestige, and adolescents’ social resources.

Flipped classroom in secondary school physics education

This quasi-experimental pre/post-study with control group examines the effect of the flipped classroom method applied to basic physics courses at two German secondary schools (N = 150) in a three-month treatment. The focus of the study is the performance in a content knowledge test and the related non-cognitive attitudes as interest in the subject physics, motivation to do physics and the physics related self-concept. First results indicate that flipped classroom has a positive effect on the learning gain as well as on motivation and self-concept. Further analysis will look into parameters that moderate the effect of flipped classroom.

Science Teachers’ Instructional Practices in Malaysian and German Secondary Schools

Advancement of science and technology in many areas has made progress on human lives more developed than the ancient time. A strong science education would be able to equip our younger generation with the skills needed to ensure them for securing a better job in future. Thus, this study is to compare the science teachers’ instructional practices in Malaysian and German secondary schools. A total of sixteen science teachers were involved where eight of them were from the German secondary schools and another eight of them were from Malaysian secondary schools. This study was done by conducting classroom observations and semi-structure interviews. The data collected were then analyzed qualitatively based on Dancy and Hendersons’ framework of instructional practices. In conclusion, Malaysian and German science teachers have similar source of knowledge, definition of students’ success, learning modes, type of motivation and problem-solving skills where they show differences in the interactivity of the classroom, instructional decisions, assessment, content and instructional design. There are also ten good instructional practices found in this study which can be adapted in both nations to improve their science education.

Self-Esteem as a Potential Mediator of the Association Between Social Integration, Mental Well-Being, and Physical Well-Being.

Previous research points to a significant impact of social integration and self-esteem on well-being. The present study examined whether self-esteem constitutes one pathway from social integration in the classroom to mental and physical well-being of students and accordingly serves as a mediator. Therefore, 163 students (mean age: 12.98 years, age range: 9-17 years, 57.9% male) of three German secondary schools were examined regarding their experience of social integration, self-esteem, and mental as well as physical well-being. Results revealed that self-esteem mediated the effect of social integration on mental and physical well-being. This finding elucidates one pathway from social integration to well-being and points to the importance of improving both self-esteem and social integration for the promotion of well-being among adolescents.

Who is fighting with whom? How ethnic origin shapes friendship, dislike, and physical violence relations in German secondary schools

This study examines the role of ethnic background for friendship, dislike, and violence networks in secondary school. We analyze data on multiple networks from a large-scale study of more than 2500 seventh-graders in Germany. In addition to ethnic homophily in friendship networks, our results reveal a tendency among students to dislike ethnic outgroup members (ethnic heterophobia). However, students are more likely to engage in violence towards same-ethnic peers than outgroup members. This is partly due to the greater prevalence of violence among students who are close in the friendship network and students who spend time together outside of school. Moreover, schools marked by stronger ethnic homophily in friendships tend to display higher levels of ethnic heterophobia but exhibit higher levels of intra-ethnic rather than inter-ethnic violence.Keywords: Ethnic homophily; Violence; School networks; Multiplex networks; Exponential random graph models; Bullying

Tropical Medicine in an Age of High Global Mobility - Schistosomiasis in a School Class after Travel to Rwanda

Schistosomiasis is one of the most common parasitic diseases worldwide. If left untreated, intestinal (Schistosoma mansoni, S. japonicum, S. mekongi) and urogenital (S. haematobium) chronic disease manifestations occur depending on the parasite load. The early phase however is characterized by fever and an immune-complex-mediated illness. Long-distance travel to tropical regions is on the rise, academic partnerships and humanitarian missions take even young people to developing countries. 12 students from a German secondary school had fresh water exposure during a 14-day school trip to Rwanda in Lake Kivu in the west of the country. After returning to Germany, one of the students fell ill with acute schistosomiasis (Katayama syndrome), which led to examination of the other students. WBC, differential blood count, serology for schistosomal antibodies and ova detection in urine and stool were performed on first presentation and 6 and 12 months after therapy. Positive antibody results indicated infection in all students, eosinophilia was found in 9 patients, ova of S. mansoni were detected in 3 cases. At presentation in our outpatient department 11 of the 12 students were asymptomatic. All patients received therapy with praziquantel. Tropical diseases will further increase due to high global mobility. For their prevention and diagnosis physicians need to be sensitized beyond subject specific units. We describe an outbreak of schistosomiasis in a school class to sensitize physicians outside endemic areas. Since the disease is often asymptomatic a high number of unrecognized infections and illnesses can be assumed. When suspecting or treating schistosomiasis, a specialized center should always be consulted.

Longitudinal relations among self-concept, intrinsic value, and attainment value across secondary school years in three academic domains.

This study expanded on research on temporal relations among motivation constructs as stated by expectancy-value theory, which has so far neglected the differentiation of value facets, the examination of long time spans with multiple measurement waves, and domain-specific patterns of findings. We examined the longitudinal relations among academic self-concept, intrinsic value, and attainment value in the three domains of math, German, and English across 5 annual measurement waves covering Grades 5 to 9 with German secondary school students (N = 2,116). The analyses based on cross-lagged panel models. In math and English, former academic self-concept was positively related to later intrinsic value and attainment value. In German, former intrinsic value and attainment value were positively related to later academic self-concept. The cross-lagged relations among value constructs varied according to the domain, hinting at the domain specificity of findings. The relations among academic self-concept, intrinsic value, and attainment value in the 3 domains did not change in size across students’ secondary school years. In addition, the pattern of all relations remained stable when controlling for students’ domain-specific achievement measured by school grades in the respective domains. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)

“A border is a Ban” - Students’ Conceptual Understanding and Experiences of Europe’s Borders and Boundaries

In this paper, we examine the conceptual understanding and experiences that students in German secondary schools have of boundaries. For our research we conducted qualitative interviews and surveys (interviews n=20; surveys n=21) with children (aged 14-17) born both in Germany and with refugee backgrounds. We asked for the children’s conceptual understanding of the emergence and function of boundaries and their personal encounters with them. We studied the results of these interviews using qualitative content analysis to learn more about the conceptual understanding and experiences of students. Our findings on the emergence of borders show that students have limited understanding of boundaries and differing spatial concepts that exist for them. We also observed interesting distinctions between personal experiences of borders. The results may provide a base for further research and development in terms of conceptual-change-based methods for geography education on the topics of territories, borders and boundaries.

Does frontal brain activity mediate the effect of depression prevention in adolescents? A pilot study

We investigated whether (a) depression prevention was associated with depressive symptoms and medial-frontal alpha asymmetry in adolescents; (b) alpha asymmetry mediated the association between participation in a prevention program and depressive symptoms; and (c) gender affects these associations. In our randomised control group study, we compared a universal prevention program (n = 40 adolescents, 14 females) with a non-intervention control condition (n = 39 adolescents, 20 females) in German secondary school students (mean age: 13.53 years, SD = 0.53). We collected data at baseline, post-intervention, 6-month, and 12-month follow-up using the Self-Rating Questionnaire for Depressive Disorders (SBB-DES) and resting medial-frontal alpha activity on F3 and F4. We found that girls benefitted from participating in the prevention program in regards to their depressive symptoms at 12-month follow-up but not alpha asymmetry. In boys, participation in the prevention program was associated with their alpha asymmetry at 6-month follow-up but not their depressive symptoms. Alpha asymmetry did not mediate the effects of the prevention program on depressive symptoms in either gender. Although participation in the prevention program was associated with both depressive symptoms and alpha asymmetry, those associations seem independent from each other. Possible explanations for this result pattern are discussed.

Longitudinal couplings between interest and conceptual understanding in secondary school chemistry: an activity-based perspective

ABSTRACTThis paper presents the findings of a three-year longitudinal study (Grades 9–11; N = 756 students in German secondary schools; mean starting age = 14.7 years) that explores the development of and the interplay between upper-secondary students’ individual interest and conceptual understanding in chemistry. Students’ individual interest was assessed in seven dimensions of school science activities (realistic, investigative, artistic, social, conventional, and networking) according to Dierks et al.'s RIASEC+N model. The data was collected annually using paper-and-pencil questionnaires. In order to analyse the longitudinal relation between students’ academic interest and conceptual understanding, Eccles et al.'s Expectancy-Value Theoretical Model of Achievement Choices (EEVT) was utilised and seven bivariate cross-lagged models were performed to investigate the assumed reciprocal relations between both constructs. Regarding the developmental progression of individual interest and conceptual knowledge, latent growth curve models indicate a small decrease in all of the seven dimensions of students’ interest in school science activities and concomitant a moderate growth of students’ conceptual understanding. Moreover, structural equation modelling suggests weak reciprocal relations between students’ conceptual understanding and their interest in investigative, social and networking school science activities, respectively. Furthermore, students’ interest in enterprising activities predicted their subsequent conceptual understanding. No systematic pattern of cross-lagged effects between the three remaining interest dimensions and conceptual understanding were found. The results indicate that school science activities, which provide the potential for cognitively activating learning opportunities, could enhance the relation between students’ interest and conceptual understanding. Implications for teaching practice and further research are discussed.

Participatory Action Research in University Chemistry Teacher Training

The Participatory Action Research (PAR) model developed by Eilks and Ralle is very well known in science education. Over the years, many teaching and learning materials have been developed and implemented in German secondary schools using this method. The success of the model encouraged us to adapt it to the university level in order to develop university chemistry education courses. However, to do this, we encountered and conquered some challenges. The present paper is based on an advanced model of Participatory Action Research for developing university chemistry teacher training. For an advanced model, the focus is strongly on the extended development team, which contains people who were not part of the original team. The role of the students also changes. The ideas we used to further develop the model and implement it in practice will be described and discussed below.

The significance of dealing with mistakes for student achievement and motivation: results of doubly latent multilevel analyses

From a constructivist perspective on learning, mistakes are seen as natural elements of learning processes. A supportive and constructive way of dealing with student mistakes has shown to affect students’ individual motivation and learning performances in a favorable way. In classroom settings, however, making mistakes is not just a personal but also a social event. Dealing with mistakes should therefore be considered as both student-level and classroom-level characteristic. This study investigates three aspects of dealing with mistakes and their relevance for students’ achievement and motivation in English as a foreign language by analyzing the aspects at student and classroom level. The aspects are (a) teacher attitude toward mistakes, (b) teacher response to student mistakes, and (c) students’ perception of mistakes as useful for learning. Analyzing data of 5266 students from 427 classes in German secondary schools, the results demonstrate that at student level, all three aspects of dealing with mistakes affect students’ individual achievement as well as motivation in English language class. At classroom level, none of the aspects affect student average achievement. Two aspects affect student average motivation at the classroom level, namely (a) teacher attitude toward mistakes and (c) students’ shared perception of the usefulness of mistakes for learning. Our results show that students’ individual and shared perception of dealing with mistakes affect students’ motivational and cognitive learning outcomes in different ways. Furthermore, our findings underline the relevance of teachers’ attitudes as well as students’ perceptions concerning mistakes for student learning and motivation in English as a foreign language class.

EvoSketch: Simple simulations for learning random and probabilistic processes in evolution, and effects of instructional support on learners\u2019 conceptual knowledge

BackgroundStudents’ knowledge of scientific principles of evolution is often inadequate, despite its recognized importance for understanding biology. Moreover, difficulties associated with underlying abstract concepts such as randomness and probability can hinder successful learning of evolutionary concepts. Studies show that visualizations, particularly simulations together with appropriate instructional support, facilitate the learning of abstract concepts. Therefore, we have developed interactive, web-based simulation software called EvoSketch in efforts to help learners grasp the nature and importance of random and probabilistic processes in evolutionary contexts. We applied EvoSketch in an intervention study comparing four self-directed study conditions: learning with EvoSketch (1) alone, (2) combined with interpretative support, (3) combined with reflective support, and (4) using texts about randomness and probability instead of EvoSketch. All conditions received no support from any instructors. Knowledge about evolution as well as randomness and probability in the context of evolution, time-on-task, and perceived cognitive load were measured. A sample of 269 German secondary school students (Mage = 15.6 years, SD = 0.6 years) participated in the study.ResultsLearners using EvoSketch without additional support obtained higher follow-up test scores regarding their knowledge of randomness and probability than those using the text-based approach. However, use of the simulations together with given instructional support (interpretative or reflective) did not increase students’ performance, relative to the text-based approach. In addition, no significant between-intervention differences were found concerning the knowledge of evolution, while significant differences between the groups were detected concerning students’ perceived cognitive load and time-on-task.ConclusionsFrom our findings, we conclude that EvoSketch seems to have a very small positive effect on students’ understanding of randomness and probability. Contrary to our expectations, additional self-directed instructional support did not improve students’ understanding, probably because it was not necessary to understand EvoSketch simulations. When using EvoSketch in the classroom, we recommend increasing the intervention timeframe to several sessions and a variety of evolutionary examples for which EvoSketch serves as an underlying framework.

Health Promoting Schools (HPS) and the impact of inclusion: The StiEL-project

Background: The overall goal of the project ‘StiEL’ is to contribute to the professional development of teachers and other educational staff working at German secondary schools. The aim is to develop an evidence-based training concept for the inclusion of students with diverse abilities. The project is organized as a collaborative research effort of three partnering institutions and funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research from 2018-2021. Methods: To support the on-going transition towards inclusive school practices, a multi-stage approach is envisaged. The first phase aims at a scoping review of existing literature and programmes on inclusion. The overview is supplemented by interviews with school staff members. Training modules are developed in the second project phase. The third phase of StiEL puts the newly developed training program into practice. The knowledge and skills acquired by the participants through the training as well as the teaching and management of inclusive classrooms after the training are evaluated through longitudinal and ethnographic approaches. The final project phase creates a best practice manual and makes the modules available via open access databases. Results: The presentation will focus on the first phase and try to explore the health-related consequences of the transition towards an inclusive school system in Germany for different participants. We will present preliminary results of expert interviews as well as some results from the literature screening. Due to our findings the current practice on German schools towards the road to inclusion is very stressful for all participants. We will explore recommendations for health promoting schools under conditions of inclusion. Conclusions: In terms of health-related consequences for all participants, the road to inclusion is very ambitious but also very stressful. Regarding the development of an inclusive school system, we need to focus much more on health and health promotion.

Between-School Ability Tracking and Ethnic Segregation in Secondary Schooling

Abstract Between-school ability tracking—the assignment of students to different school types based on their prior achievement—is usually associated with increased ethnic segregation across schools. This article argues that stronger between-school ability tracking is not only associated with stronger ethnic sorting into school types, thus increasing segregation. At the same time, it hampers majority flight, majority members’ avoidance of exposure to minority members, thus decreasing segregation. To identify the two-fold effect of tracking the article exploits a unique feature of the German secondary school system: regional variation in the strength of between-school ability tracking. Analyses rely on administrative data entailing geocoded information on all secondary schools in Germany in 2008/2009. Results corroborate expectations of a two-fold effect: there is indication that between-school ability tracking increases segregation via more sorting into tracks while at the same time decreasing it via less school sorting within each track and via less spatial sorting. This suggests that school reforms changing tracked school systems into more comprehensive school systems may have a weaker desegregating impact than expected.

Pixar films, popular culture, and language teaching: The potential of animated films for Teaching English as a Foreign Language

This article aims at taking a look at a genre that is popular with both children and adults, yet mostly neglected in curricula: animated films. As a study conducted in a German secondary school demonstrated, the potential of this genre for Teaching English as a Foreign Language lies mostly in its strong visual language as well as its connection to the daily lives of the students. After briefly discussing why animated films by Pixar can be considered as a genre and how this genre (re-)presents popular culture, the theoretical basis for the integration of the films into Teaching English as a Foreign Language will be laid out. The topics addressed by Pixar animated films will then be described. Also, a task typology and some actual tasks that can be used when addressing the topic in the English as a Foreign Language classroom will be introduced. Finally, one task that was actually used during the empirical study, and how the students responded to it, will be brought into focus. The main example will be the film Up (2009) but other films from the Pixar œuvre will occasionally be referenced to illustrate certain points.

The internal/external frame of reference (I/E) model: Extension to five school subjects and invariance across German secondary school ability tracks

The internal/external frame of reference (I/E) model assumes the interplay of social and dimensional comparisons in the formation of domain-specific academic self-concepts. The present study tests the generalizability of the I/E model assumptions across students from different ability tracks. While the findings from previous studies implied the similar use of social comparisons with students from different ability tracks, evidence has been missing so far whether students from different ability tracks apply dimensional comparisons to the same extent. Students from lower ability tracks are said to be confronted with negative stereotypes and felt deprivation which might enforce or weaken the use of dimensional comparisons. For the analyses, students from the academic track (N = 702) and the vocational track (N = 528) of German secondary schools were included as these two groups represent two extreme groups of ability tracks which might thus maximize the power of detecting differences in the use of social and dimensional comparisons. Both the original I/E model only including math and verbal achievement and self-concepts measures and an I/E model extended to five school subjects (math, German, English, physics, and biology) were examined. The results indicated invariance across school tracks for both the original I/E model and the extended I/E model when controlling for students' gender, socioeconomic status, and cognitive ability.

Combining material- and community-based implementation strategies for scaling up: the case of supporting low-achieving middle school students

In order to better facilitate scaling up of classroom innovations, two complementary strategies have often been discussed. The community-based strategy emphasizes the necessity for professional learning communities and their embedding in institutional settings. The material-based strategy starts from well-designed teaching materials, which are considered catalysts for bringing teaching approaches to many classrooms. The implementation project reported on in this study systematically combines both strategies and takes a third strategy into account: the systemic strategy of addressing higher levels of the school system, such as the school and district levels. The goal of the project is to help teachers to better support low-achieving students at the beginning of German secondary schools (grades 5 and 6). The results of the accompanying research in a quasi-experimental study, reported in this article, show that a combination of strategies can be effective: the participating low-achieving students had higher learning gains than a control group did. The deeper analysis provides insights into the complexities of the interplay of community aspects, institutional backgrounds, and the power of substantial teaching materials.

Effects of Teachers’ Professional Knowledge and Their Use of Three-Dimensional Physical Models in Biology Lessons on Students’ Achievement

Using three-dimensional physical models elaborately in their learning, students can develop high-level understanding of models and modeling in science, thereby attaining higher achievement. However, there are in the literature few indications of how teachers should use three-dimensional physical models in instruction and whether teachers’ professional knowledge is a prerequisite for teaching with elaborate use of models. Therefore, our study used a mixed-methods approach to analyze the effects of biology teachers’ domain-specific pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and content knowledge (CK) on students’ achievement mediated by elaborate model use (ELMO). Our quantitative sample comprised 36 German secondary school teachers whose lessons on the topic of neurobiology were videotaped twice (N = 72 lessons). Teachers completed professional knowledge tests on their PCK and CK. Students’ achievement was measured using pre- and post-knowledge tests. Our qualitative analysis involved five selected teachers according to aspects of ELMO. The results of our study indicated that teachers’ PCK and CK had no direct effect on students’ achievement. However, teachers’ PCK had a significant indirect and positive effect on students’ achievement mediated by ELMO. The findings of our study can provide teachers and researchers examples of how to implement biology instruction with elaborate use of three-dimensional physical models.