Instructional Time Research Articles

Making Every Minute Count: Identifying Instructional Opportunities for IEP Goals During Community-Based Work Experiences

Transition-age students with extensive support needs often participate in community-based work experiences (CBWEs) in preparation for competitive, integrated employment. CBWEs help students gain exposure to different careers, acquire employment skills, and generalize skills learned at school to community settings. Despite their benefits, CBWEs have been known to create scheduling conflicts and decrease school-based instructional time for special educators who must address student goals in academic and functional skill areas. Identifying authentic opportunities to address Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals during students’ CBWEs is one solution that can assist special educators who are faced with such challenges. An existing tool, commonly known as an IEP Matrix, may be particularly useful in helping teachers navigate this process. In this article, we describe how to develop an IEP matrix and assess the feasibility of instruction on IEP goals within CBWEs. We also provide recommendations to consider when identifying and evaluating instructional opportunities.

Teaching Mathematics in Kindergarten: How Does Instruction Differ by Classroom Ability?

Background/Context: Kindergarten mathematics instruction is critical for students’ future academic success. The nature and quality of this instruction may vary depending on classroom characteristics. However, little empirical work has examined how mathematics instruction in kindergarten might differ based on classroom performance levels. Purpose, Objective, Research Question, or Focus of Study: This study focuses on whether kindergarten teachers’ mathematics instructional practices differ based on reported performance levels of students in the classroom. In particular, we focused on whether mathematics instructional time, as well as the extent to which teachers use traditional versus ambitious mathematics practices, differed based on teaching a higher proportion of children performing below grade level. Research Design: This study used a nationally representative dataset of approximately 2,900 kindergarten teachers from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010–11. With these data, the study utilized a model that compared teachers to each other within the same school (i.e., school fixed effects). Conclusions or Recommendations: This study found that mathematics instructional time did not differ based on the proportion of children reported to be below grade level in the classroom. However, how teachers taught mathematics differed: teachers who reported having a greater percentage of students performing below grade level used ambitious practices less frequently. These findings were not moderated by measures of teacher background or teachers’ reported expectations of their students.

Hastening slowly on classroom-based conversational skills teaching: A commentary on Abbot-Smith et al., 2023

The focus of classroom instructional time continues to be debated among educators, policy makers, academics and health professionals such as speech-language therapists. In this commentary, we emphasise the importance of reserving precious instructional time for developing children’s biologically secondary skills such as reading, writing and spelling. We argue that maintaining a focus on these core curriculum areas is critical. We advise against committing Tier 1 classroom time to conversational skills at the current time, due to the paucity of research evidence to support this. We propose an alternative model for including conversational skills in classroom practice, through the application of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, and in particular, Response to Intervention.

Speeding lectures to make time for retrieval practice: Can we improve the efficiency of interpolated testing?

Testing is increasingly recognized as an important tool in learning. One form of testing often used in lectures, particularly recorded lectures, is interpolated testing wherein tests are interspersed throughout the lecture. Like testing in general, interpolated testing appears to benefit performance on content tests among other outcome variables (e.g., mind wandering). While beneficial, adding testing also increases instructional time. In the present investigation, we examine one strategy to mitigate the costs of this increase in instructional time in the context of recorded lectures. Specifically, we examine the interaction between increasing the playback speed of a recorded lecture and adding interpolated tests. Results demonstrate that the conjoint effects of these two interventions are largely additive. That is, the benefit of testing was as robust in a normal speed lecture and a lecture that was sped up 1.5×. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Five Priorities to Help Learners in the Online Classroom

To maximize online student learning, instructors should prioritize their time towards instructional strategies that students deem most impactful, such as providing individualized, one-to-one feedback; adopting a holistic feedback approach; engaging in asynchronous discussion forums; curating relevant content resources; and presenting instructional content in efficient, versatile formats. As research reveals, learners value instructor feedback and engagement in online discussions above all else, thereby guiding where educators should focus their limited instructional time.

Two Stories to Tell: Different Student Outcome Measures Correlate with Different Instructor Adaptations to COVID-19

The coronavirus pandemic severely disrupted college students’ learning experiences. A growing body of research is attempting to examine the impact of faculty efforts to support students during this difficult time. However, different outcomes measures might lead to varying inferences about the impact of instructors’ adaptations to their pedagogy. We explore this potential for varying inferences through a mixed-methods study of 11 courses taught at a Hispanic-Serving Institution in the United States in Spring 2020. First, using qualitative analytical methods, we identify five types of instructional adaptations made by faculty. Second, we use quantitative methods to uncover associations between these instructional adaptations and a variety of course outcome measures. While all of these instructional adaptations were perceived as beneficial by students, only one--ensuring access to instructor time--was significantly correlated with students’ reported motivational and personal gains from their coursework. However, only a different adaptation—ensuring access to class resources—was significantly correlated with reduced equity gaps measured through course grades. We discuss the implications of these findings for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.

Teacher Professional Learning in Religious and Moral Education: Conditions Affecting its Effectiveness at St. Ambrose College of Education in Ghana

Like specialized teachers in any field of education, teachers of Religious and Moral Education (RME) require exclusive quality skills, expertise and strategies to provide effective delivery of lessons in the field. At St. Ambrose College of Education in the Dormaa East District in the Bono Region of Ghana, Teacher Professional Learning (TPL) is given greater attention. Nonetheless, TPL has been insufficient for improving teaching and learning in RME as expected. The study attempted to investigate the insufficiency of the TPL model for instructional delivery in RME and seeks to offer suitable suggestions and recommendations. Data for the study was collected from the four (4) RME teachers in the college using interviews and the researchers’ observations. The results indicated that some conditions in St. Ambrose College of Education are responsible for the insufficient TPL outcomes in RME. These include a lack of innovative teaching approaches exclusive to the field, the college leadership’s belief in the use of a confessional approach in teaching RME, the inadequacy of instructional time in the field, and the communication gap between teachers. To address these, it was suggested that enactment strategies used by RME teachers should be content-focused, based on active learning, collaboration, modeling, and coaching by experts. The study adds to the literature on the course structure in the course structure of Ghanaian Educational system. Keywords: Teacher Professional Learning, Religious and Moral Education, Effective Teaching, Education, Teaching, Learning

A phenomenological study on East and Southeast Asian dental educators: perceived importance, challenges, and strategies in teaching dental materials science

BackgroundEffective teaching of dental materials science is crucial for dental students to develop a comprehensive understanding of materials used in clinical practice. However, literature on educators’ views on teaching this subject is still scarce. This qualitative study aimed to explore the lived experiences of dental educators in teaching dental materials science subjects, thereby addressing potential gaps and enhancing teaching practices.MethodsThirteen dental educators from East and Southeast Asian countries (Malaysia, China, Indonesia, Thailand, South Korea, and Japan) participated in the present study. The present study adopted a transcendental phenomenological approach. One-to-one semi-structured online interviews were conducted. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis was employed to identify patterns in the educators’ experiences.ResultsThree themes emerged from the present study. First, perceptions of the importance of dental materials science, highlighting its relevance in clinical practice, patient care, and lifelong learning. Second, the challenges faced in teaching dental materials science include limited instructional time, complex content, and insufficient resources. Third, specific strategies, such as applying interactive teaching methods, integrating clinical scenarios, and promoting critical thinking skills have been suggested to enhance teaching and learning.ConclusionUnderstanding dental educators’ experiences can improve dental materials science education, curriculum development, teaching methods, and faculty training programmes, ultimately enhancing the knowledge and skills of dental students in this field.

Overcoming adversity: exploring the key predictors of academic resilience in science

ABSTRACT Resilient students attain high levels of academic achievement despite the presence of chronic socioeconomic disadvantage. Identifying factors that promote resilience in the domain of science is crucial to making equitable and high-quality science education accessible for all students. Rooted in the opportunity-propensity framework, this study examined the relative importance of opportunity, propensity, and antecedent factors in understanding academic resilience. The data came from 3377 Grade 8 students in Hong Kong. Among them, 844 students who are in the bottom 25% of SES were selected. Machine learning analyses indicated that ten variables best predicted academic resilience. These variables, in order of predictive power, were: confidence in science, home resources, liking for learning science, valuing of science, instructional clarity, instructional time, content exposure to biology topics, sense of school belonging, school emphasis on academic success, and content exposure to physical science. Mean-level comparisons corroborated the machine learning findings showing that resilient students scored higher on these variables than non-resilient students. This study demonstrates the complexity of academic resilience in science by showing the relative importance of multiple predictors. The findings of the current study could provide policymakers and practitioners with information to identify the most promising intervention targets to promote academic resilience.

Effect of Instructional Leadership on Student Academic Achievement in Science Subjects at Secondary School Level

The purpose of this study was to measure the effect of instructional leadership on students’ academic achievement in science subjects (Physics, Chemistry, and Biology) at secondary level. Instructional leadership includes the leadership capacity of an individual such as head teacher to provide instructional resources, maximize instructional time for teachers, and maximize instruction related activities to improve student achievement. The population of the study included all science teachers and their students of grade 10 in public high schools in Baluchistan. Instructional Leadership Questionnaire (ILQ) was adopted after getting consent from the authors. Pilot-testing was conducted to ensure the reliability of the questionnaire. Later on, using the multistage sampling technique, 2797 students and 388 teachers were selected from 6 districts (Quetta, Pishin, Sibi, Lasbela, Killa Abdullah, and Chaman) of Balochistan. Instructional Leadership Questionnaire was found to be highly reliable. (α=.84). The achievement scores of the 2797 students in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology were collected from their respective schools. Moderate positive relationship of instructional leadership and students’ achievement in Physics, Chemistry, and biology were found. Multiple regression analysis showed that Instructional leadership predicted 46% of variance in Physics achievement, 38% in Chemistry, and 49 % in Biology achievement. The study recommended implementing instructional leadership practices in schools to increase students’ achievement in science subjects.

Modular Home-Based Instruction in Mathematics for Primary Grades During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Experiences of Parent-Teachers

The key purpose of this research is to explore the experiences of the parent-teachers on teaching Mathematics of Grade 1 and 2 learners who undergone modular distance learning in Magallanes, Sorsogon. The descriptive qualitative research design was used to describe the experiences of parent-teachers in teaching Math with the use of modules; identify the strategies used to teach and manage learning; and determine the support provided by the school in teaching Math. Validated questionnaire and semi-structured interview were utilized to gather data from five parent-teachers who were in early adulthood, college graduate, employed, and spending at least thirty minutes in teaching their child. With the use of deductive approach of thematic analysis, the experiences of the parent teachers were categorized into learning environment and child’s motivation and attitude towards learning, instructional time and resources, content of the learning modules and being an effective teacher. As to the strategies used, the parent-teachers considered the child’s readiness for learning, classroom setup at home, use of instructional materials and techniques, and review of the previous lesson and reteaching. It was also found out that a teacher’s home visit and evaluation of student’s learning and conduct of meeting with the teacher were the support received by the parent-teachers. The findings of this study may serve as basis for providing a comprehensive and inclusive education policies and as inputs on formulating strategic interventions on the implementation of modular distance learning.

Maintaining High Quality Dosimetry Education in Radiation Oncology Medical Residency Amid and Post-COVID-19 Pandemic: A Reimagined Training Rotation

Maintaining High Quality Dosimetry Education in Radiation Oncology Medical Residency Amid and Post-COVID-19 Pandemic: A Reimagined Training Rotation

Understanding and practice of active learning among upper primary school science and mathematics teachers

Active learning methods have established significance in the teaching-learning of science and mathematics. This study investigated the understanding, beliefs, self-efficacy, practices, and challenges of active learning among upper primary school (grades 7 and 8) science and mathematics teachers in Ethiopia. Data were collected from 155 teachers drawn from nine schools of Addis Ababa, Amhara, and the Southern Regional States using validated questionnaires and observation. Descriptive analysis was employed to make meaning of the collected data. The result showed that teachers lack to have an appropriate understanding of active learning. But they have shown fairly consistent positive belief and self-efficacy about the outcomes of active learning if they use them in their classes. Teachers believed that they implement active learning to a higher extent. The result further indicated that teachers differ in their understanding, practices, and efficacy of active learning across their gender and educational levels. High teaching load, large class size, lack of teachers' motivation, shorter instructional time, the subject they teach, absence of guidelines for active learning methods at school, and lack of appropriate knowledge and skill of active learning methods were the common challenges reported by teachers. The findings of this study imply that there is a need to enhance teachers’ understanding of active learning and to provide continuous support to them to use active learning even in challenging situations.

How Administration Stakes and Settings Affect Student Behavior and Performance on a Biology Concept Assessment.

Biology instructors use concept assessments in their courses to gauge student understanding of important disciplinary ideas. Instructors can choose to administer concept assessments based on participation (i.e., lower stakes) or the correctness of responses (i.e., higher stakes), and students can complete the assessment in an in-class or out-of-class setting. Different administration conditions may affect how students engage with and perform on concept assessments, thus influencing how instructors should interpret the resulting scores. Building on a validity framework, we collected data from 1578 undergraduate students over 5 years under five different administration conditions. We did not find significant differences in scores between lower-stakes in-class, higher-stakes in-class, and lower-stakes out-of-class conditions, indicating a degree of equivalence among these three options. We found that students were likely to spend more time and have higher scores in the higher-stakes out-of-class condition. However, we suggest that instructors cautiously interpret scores from this condition, as it may be associated with an increased use of external resources. Taken together, we highlight the lower-stakes out-of-class condition as a widely applicable option that produces outcomes similar to in-class conditions, while respecting the common desire to preserve classroom instructional time.

Experiential Learning in an Online Setting: How Entrepreneurship Education Changed During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In March 2020, when the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic, more than 90% of the world’s student population went through an unprecedented and sudden transition to distance learning. Although this was a challenging time for instructors across all disciplines, entrepreneurship educators faced the unique dilemma of preserving the experiential nature of entrepreneurship education in the online environment. We look at how entrepreneurship educators addressed experiential learning through online education during the pandemic and some of the solutions adopted given the experiential, hands-on nature of entrepreneurship education. We review the first wave of literature on the topic, and we offer the results of a recent survey of entrepreneurship educators who are members of the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE). In doing this, we have added to a growing literature on the shift of entrepreneurial education to an online setting.

AN EXAMINATION OF TEACHERS’ RATIONALES FOR CHANGING A PHYSICAL EDUCATION INTERVENTION

New school-based curricular interventions are fundamental in meeting the diverse needs of today’s students and improving student outcomes. In terms of curricular interventions, teachers are the primary implementation agents; therefore, the fidelity of such interventions depends on teacher adoption and delivery. To understand and meet such fidelity challenges, this qualitative research study examined the contextual components and implementation mechanisms contributing to the variation in teachers’ perspectives and methods of implementing the Science of Healthful Living curriculum; a research-based intervention designed to increase middle school students’ fitness-based knowledge through physically active lessons. The results of this study suggested a multitude of preexisting contextual factors, such as lack of instructional time, space, and equipment, influence teachers’ fidelity to the intended curriculum. These factors, however, may or may not negatively influence the intended scope of the curriculum and should be considered when making judgments about teacher fidelity. In conclusion, intervention researchers should consider the nature of the contextual factors and whether they negatively impact the intervention when designing and revising school-based interventions.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/soc/0003/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Towards Identifying a Dosage Effect for Improving Fundamental Motor Skills of Preschool Children with a Mastery Motivational Climate Intervention.

Previous mastery motivational climate (MMC) movement interventions have enhanced fundamental motor skill (FMS) competence across diverse groups of preschool-age children. Yet, an adequate intervention length has not been established. Our purposes in this study were to (i) compare FMS competence in preschool children across two doses of MMC interventions, and (ii) describe changes in children's FMS 'mastery' across doses. We used secondary data analysis from a larger MMC intervention study in which 32 children (Mage = 4.4) received FMS testing (TGMD-3) at the mid-point of intervention and at post-intervention. A two-way mixed ANOVA with Group as the independent variable and FMS competence across three Time points as the repeated measure was significant for both Group and Time main effects for locomotor and ball skill competences separately. There was a statistically significant interaction between Group and Time on locomotor (p = .02) and ball skills (p < .001). Both groups showed significant improvements in their locomotor skills at each time point, but the intervention group improved faster than the comparison group. For ball skills, only the MMC group significantly improved by mid-intervention, and the comparison group showed significant improvements from pre-to post-intervention only. Children in this study were most likely to show mastery in running first, followed by sliding at mid-intervention. Few children mastered skipping, galloping, and hopping across the study. For ball skills, overhand and underhand throwing were more likely to be mastered, and few children mastered one and two-hand striking across the study. Collectively, these findings suggest that duration of instructional minutes may not be the most effective proxy for identifying a dose-response relationship of MMC intervention. Moreover, focusing on the patterns of skill mastery can help inform researchers and practitioners as to how to allocate instructional time during MMC interventions to optimize FMS competence for young children.

Are two naïve and distributed heads better than one? Factors influencing the performance of teams in a challenging real-time task.

Collective decisions in dynamic tasks can be influenced by multiple factors, including the operational conditions, quality and quantity of communication, and individual differences. These factors may influence whether two heads perform better than one. This study examined the "two heads are better than one" effect (2HBT1) in distributed two-person driver-navigator teams with asymmetrical roles performing a challenging simulated driving task. We also examined the influence of communication quality and quantity on team performance under different operational conditions. In addition to traditional measures of communication volume (duration and speaking turns), patterns of communication quality (optimality of timing and accuracy of instructions) were captured. Participants completed a simulated driving task under two operational conditions (normal and fog) either as individual drivers (N = 134; 87 females, mean age = 19.80, SD = 3.35) or two-person teams (driver and navigator; N = 80; 109 females, mean age = 19.70, SD = 4.69). The normal condition was characterized by high visibility for both driver and navigator. The fog condition was characterized by reduced visibility for the driver but not for the navigator. Participants were also measured on a range of cognitive and personality constructs. Teams had fewer collisions than individuals during normal conditions but not during fog conditions when teams had an informational advantage over individuals. Furthermore, teams drove slower than individuals during fog conditions but not during normal conditions. Communication that was poorly timed and/or inaccurate was a positive predictor of accuracy (i.e., collisions) during the normal condition and communication that was well timed and accurate was a negative predictor of speed during the fog condition. Our novel measure of communication quality (i.e., content of communication) was a stronger predictor of accuracy, but volume of communication was a stronger predictor of time (i.e., speed). Results indicate when team performance thrives and succumbs compared with individual performance and informs theory about the 2HBT1 effect and team communication.

The effect of ICT on schools’ efficiency: Empirical evidence on 23 European countries

In the last two decades, ICT use in schools grew exponentially. In this paper, the relationship between ICT and school’s efficiency and the mechanisms through which ICT can enhance schools’ productivity are investigated, using PISA 2018 data for about 5400 schools. Empirically, we analyze school’s efficiency in producing ICT-mediated instructional time as well as final educational output, by implementing a network Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model. The analysis is complemented by a conditional DEA to account for the presence of possible external drivers of schools’ efficiency. Results show that the average schools’ efficiency in using ICT is relatively low, and that it is mainly driven by the ability of translating ICT-mediated instructional time into learning, rather than by the amount of ICT and human resources. This evidence is consistent across countries. By investigating the role of ICT in schools’ efficiency the paper provides insights to guide the transition of digital technology into learning.

A new phenomenon of Learner-on-Educator-Violence: A case of two secondary schools in Umlazi Township, Durban

This study aims to understand how learner-on-educator violence affects teacher efficacy in schools, particularly in light of recent outbreaks of teacher killings in schools. The study sample was two schools, and the participants were two Life orientation teachers, two chairpersons of the school’s safety and security committee, and security guards. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and observation journals. The study's findings indicated that teachers experienced varied levels of violence, ranging from loss of instructional time; to personal, physical, psychological, and teacher killings. Furthermore, the study found that learner-on-educator violence has become unmanageable.