School Practitioners Research Articles

Green career education and guidance through the perceptions and experiences of career practitioners in English secondary schools.

The transition to a low carbon economy, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and nature restoration are expected to lead to a transformation of economic sectors. This will require a growth in green skills, a receptiveness to green roles and an understanding of the potential greening of all sectors. Plant suggests that green career education and guidance could provide the bridge between the emerging greener labour market and career development in schools. This article presents inductive qualitative research, using semi-structured interviews and reflexive thematic analysis (RTA) to explore the perceptions of career practitioners in English secondary schools revealing a broad spectrum of understanding and approach. A nascent green career education and guidance framework has emerged from a synthesis of existing literature and the research findings.

Examining the Impact of PBIS Experience on MTSS Implementation in Secondary Schools: A Mixed Methods Study

This sequential explanatory mixed methods study with a complementarity rationale examined the differential experiences of MTSS implementation in three Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS)-implementing and three non-implementing secondary schools in the Midwestern United States. Using a survey and follow-up interviews with a sample of 25 secondary school leadership team (SLT) members, this study sought to understand (1) their beliefs and attitudes toward MTSS prior to implementation and (2) unique barriers and facilitators to MTSS implementation in secondary education following initial MTSS implementation. Overall, the results of this study indicated that generally, SLT members had positive beliefs and attitudes toward MTSS prior to implementation which were maintained a year later at follow-up. Additionally, several differential barriers and facilitators to implementation emerged between PBIS and non-PBIS schools, though shared barriers and facilitators were also evident. Lastly, experience with PBIS differentially impacted the experiences of SLT members from PBIS and non-PBIS schools. Implications for secondary school practitioners, schools, and local educational agencies are discussed.

The construct of attitude in mathematics education research: current trends and new research challenges from a systematic literature review

AbstractThe crucial role of attitude towards mathematics in the processes of teaching and learning mathematics is now recognized by both school practitioners and researchers in the field. However, “attitude” is a construct borrowed by disciplines other than mathematics education, and it is still conceptualized in various ways within the broad body of research about the role of affect in the teaching and learning of mathematics. In this context, developing a systematic literature review is particularly significant to characterise the recent trends—through the critical description of studies, foci, and approaches—and to guide future research by highlighting new possible research challenges in light of the current state of the art. Adhering to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, this paper describes the systematic literature analysis of 180 papers published between the beginning of 2016 and the end of 2023, sourced from the Web of Science and Elsevier’s Scopus databases. The review confirms the worldwide interest and production about attitude towards mathematics, highlighting new remarkable findings and interests, such as the critical discussion about the translation of validated scales, as well as the persistence of some typical critical issues related to the “quantitative domain” in methodologies and to the widespread absence of precise definitions for attitude or of appropriate theoretical frameworks.

Exploring Distributed Leadership in Special Schools (DLSS): Implications for Practice and Policy

ABSTRACT This research aims to understand distributed leadership (DL) in special school settings. It differs from existing studies that have been focused on mainstream school settings. Unlike prior research primarily focused on mainstream schools, this study explores these leadership structures within the unique environment of special schools. Consequently, it provides new insights into the implementation and effects of DL in this distinct educational context. The research is based on mixed methods research of convergent parallel design involving semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, examination of school policies, and focus group session. Special schools in the United Kingdom were used as case studies. Among other findings, the research found that common knowledge and experience were shared by practitioners in special schools. In addition, contrary to existing studies indicating that workload and pressure are key issues that are detrimental in mainstream schools, the findings of this research did not identify similar concerns. Furthermore, it found that special schools have higher numbers of Teaching Assistants (TA) with a certain degree of independence in their roles when compared to experiences reported in mainstream schools in existing literature. An implication of these findings for the management of special schools is the identification of a ready, competent and flexible workforce capable of delivering its objectives.

‘Rutting stags’ and ‘sly foxes’: Gender positioning boys and girls through social, emotional and behavioural work on the school playground

AbstractIn recent years, there has been an increased focus on the development of children's social, emotional and behavioural skills in schools, via a swathe of classroom‐based schemes and more general, relational and emotional approaches to pedagogy. With a now established but growing evidence base focusing upon the outcomes of such social, emotional and behavioural work for schools and children, calls have been made for research that makes a gender critical analysis of such work. This article is grounded in a conceptual framework that positions gender as socially constructed and performative and draws on qualitative data gathered in a series of focus group and individual interviews with primary school practitioners. The findings demonstrate how gender binary beliefs influence perceptions of the behaviours displayed by boys and girls in play‐based situations as well as the social, emotional and behavioural work carried out by staff in response. The implications of these findings, in terms of the positioning of, and responses to the social, emotional and behavioural difficulties presented by boys and girls on the schoolyard are discussed and suggestions for future practice are made.

Unveiling the longitudinal reciprocal relationship between burnout and engagement among adolescent athletes in sport schools.

Burnout and engagement are pivotal for adolescents' well-being and have received extensive attention in the educational literature. However, less is known about how these factors develop and interact within and between school and sport when adolescent athletes follow dual (school and sport) careers. The aim of this study was to examine the reciprocal relationship between engagement and burnout in school and sport through a cross-lagged analysis of longitudinal associations. A sample of 165 Finnish adolescent athletes (aged 14.5 years, 48.9% girls) enrolled in lower secondary sport schools (i.e., junior high schools) participated in a survey in spring 2019 (i.e., in Grade 8) and 1 year later, in spring 2020 (i.e., in Grade 9). Engagement and burnout had significant autoregressive relationships within school and sport. Furthermore, low levels of sport engagement in Grade 8 predicted sport burnout in Grade 9, and low levels of school burnout in Grade 8 predicted school engagement in Grade 9. Regarding cross-domain effects, high levels of school engagement in Grade 8 predicted low levels of sport engagement in Grade 9. The study shows that school and sport are distinct domains with unique associations between engagement and burnout in each domain. It also shows that adolescent athletes may maintain high school engagement by reducing their sport engagement. These findings highlight the need for sport school practitioners to develop intervention programs to address adolescents' school and sport needs and to support their holistic well-being.

An Examination on the Planning and Practice of Bilingual Education in Primary and Secondary Schools in Taiwan

Over the past few years, several reforms in language education have been outlined to implement the full-scale bilingualization of the education system in Taiwan. Among the 3392 public primary and secondary schools, nearly one-third of them have been implementing bilingual education in certain subjects. The vast majority of these schools have adopted Immersion, CLIL, or EMI as models for bilingual education. It has been argued that these exotic models cannot be “transplanted” to the education context of Taiwan, and he proposes the FERTILE model. Adopting this model as the theoretical framework, this qualitative study aims to examine how school practitioners plan and practice bilingual education in Taiwan. Data were collected through the document analysis of the progress reports from thirty-five primary and secondary schools and three focus group discussions (FGDs) with nine subject teachers. The findings show that the participants made considerable efforts to construct a bilingual environment and have an identical understanding about the strategies for bilingual instruction that emphasize subject knowledge and students’ comprehension. However, the participants experienced a diverse ecology of bilingual teacher learning communities and received differential support from the principals. Qualified and stable teaching manpower was identified as the key to sustain bilingual education. Implications to different education stakeholders are also discussed.

Gender differences in Chinese Adolescents’ school refusal: A network analysis to test the contribution of individual, family, and school factors

To better guide school practitioners in identifying and intervening with instances of school refusal, this study employs network analysis to investigate the core manifestations among adolescents of different genders and explores the impact of various ecological factors on these characteristics. In this study, 910 middle school students in China (Mage ± SDage = 13.55 ± 1.06, 48.13 % boys) were recruited to complete a paper-and-pencil survey on school refusal and its related factors. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) method was used to examine the network characteristics of school refusal and the potential influence of ecological factors on the core characteristics of school refusal. Results revealed that: (1) the core features of Chinese students’ school refusal were “I consider studying a burden”, “I often try to find ways to avoid studying”, and “Studying often makes me feel inwardly tense and anxious”, demonstrating gender consistency; and (2) there were significant gender differences in the underlying ecological factors that influence the core characteristics of Chinese students’ school refusal. Specifically, boys’ school refusal is more related to their parental academic involvement and teacher expectations. The higher the parents’ academic involvement and teacher expectations, the lower the boys’ school refusal. Girls’ school refusal is more related to personal educational values ​​(the value of academic success and the future utility of education). The more girls identify with the value of education, the lower their school refusal. This study utilized network analysis to reveal unique gender differences in school refusal among Chinese adolescents. It also explored the complex interrelationships between individual, familial, and school factors and school refusal, demonstrating how these factors contribute differently in boys and girls. These findings indicated potential theoretical directions for future interventions for school refusal among Chinese students of different genders.

‘No trees around, but we paint some on our walls’: cultivating the ‘green’ image within schoolscapes in India

ABSTRACT Compared to various market, state, and civil society sectors, schools’ experiences of urban ‘greening’ in India remain curiously under-researched, despite the fact that schoolscapes are emerging as both awareness-raising agents for and fantastical visions of ‘green’ living. The paper seeks to address this lacuna in schoolscape scholarship by examining the experiences of four government schools in suburban Mumbai. Drawing on oral testimonies of teachers, and field observations, the paper elucidates a contrast between the ‘green’ vision, and the ground realities of school practitioners. While the official logic of ‘greening’ might have been predicated on the need to establish harmony between human well-being and planetary health, the actual performance of ‘greening’ schoolscapes brings into play dynamic and multifarious imaginings of school-nature relation arising from signifiers which do not fully reflect urban realities and school life in particular, but still engender a desire for those imaginings.

Improvisation and strategy: lessons learned from supporting young digital makers in a fully online makerspace club for collaborative game design

PurposeThe rapid emergency remote teaching has moved informal learning programs online including makerspaces, which has created an opportunity for harnessing the benefits of virtual makerspaces. This study reports on findings from three club designers and facilitators’ reflections on a fully virtual maker club offered in the summer of 2023. This paper aims to inform practitioners of the potential challenges and strategies to resolve various issues.Design/methodology/approachReflective video journaling was conducted by facilitators. Videos were transcribed and analyzed for observations, learning events, challenges and strategies.FindingsFindings present strategies adopted to address problems during implementation and a checklist for practitioners. The problems are associated with the learning environments, technology tools and student participation. The authors adopted in-the-moment and short-term strategies to tackle the problems and long-term strategies that bear implications for future virtual makerspaces.Practical implicationsThis paper can provide direct guidance to practitioners in schools, libraries, museums, etc., who plan to offer informal collaborative learning for children online. It prepares practitioners for the potential challenges and equip them with concrete strategies and questions.Social implicationsFully virtual makerspaces have the potential to reach a wider range of audience.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to report the reflective findings on a fully virtual makerspace club that comprehensively covers challenges and strategies before, during and after the club, which has direct implications for future offerings of such programs.

Tootling: current research and future considerations for school practitioners

Tootling is an interdependent group contingency designed as an intervention to be implemented in classrooms in order to meet students’ vast behavioral and academic needs by increasing academically engaged behavior, decreasing disruptive behavior, and subsequently leading to increases in student academic achievement. Tootling supports a positive classroom climate by providing teachers with an opportunity to use classroom management strategies to address inappropriate student behavior. This article reviewed the available literature on tootling studies in order to determine gaps for future research. Next steps for school psychologists involving tootling research is discussed including future lines of tootling research and the importance of tootling for school-based practitioners. More research is necessitated to understand more about tootling and its implications for school psychologists.

A Path Toward Racial Justice in Education: Anti-Racist Policy Decision Making in School Districts

The U.S. education system has been a critical site in the nation’s ongoing fight for racial equity. Yet, despite many attempts to promote equity within and across schools, efforts fall short in a system designed to uphold norms rooted in whiteness and white supremacy. We need anti-racist educational leaders who can identify and push back at the racial bias embedded in educational policies. Through a research-practice partnership with a Midwestern high school, we sought to understand how an anti-racist policy decision-making protocol can be used to redress inequitable policies to be racially just. The anti-racist policy decision-making protocol promotes social justice by empowering school practitioners to become policy agents. Implications from our findings point to the need for school practitioners to be critically introspective and identify and directly address the politics of whiteness that can ensue when working in partnership to do anti-racist policy change.

Crossing boundaries: Beginner teachers transitioning from university graduates to full legitimate participants in the teaching profession

This paper stems from a broader study that foregrounded an existing mentoring programme against the backdrop of low teacher retention in the South African schooling system. It works from the premise that beginner teachers are exiting the teaching profession within the first three to five years of teaching. This research suggests that one way of addressing low teacher retention is through a formal mentoring programme that will assist in the transition from university graduates into school practitioners. Data was produced through semi-structured individual and group interviews with a principal, two mentors, and two mentees. Theoretically, we drew on the work of Lave & Wenger (1991) whose constructs of Community of Practice (CoP) and Legitimate Peripheral Participation (LPP) were used as analytical tools to frame this study conceptually. The data revealed that beginner teachers come into the profession with marked inadequacies stemming from their initial training at universities which meant that they were insufficiently prepared for the realities of schooling. Furthermore, the data reveals multiple and overlapping CoPs in operation, pointing to viewing mentoring as multidimensional and not only in dyadic terms as a relationship between a mentor and mentee as it has traditionally been viewed.

Penerapan Pendidikan Karakter Melalui Pembelajaran Seni Musik

Students who are intelligent and have good character start from the educational process carried out at school. Character education is very important to shape the personality of students so that they have good character in their lives. Character education is integrated in all subjects, especially in music art subjects. Students are expected to have a strong character through music art learning media. The problem in this study is how to implement character education through music art learning. The purpose of this study is to describe the implementation of character education through music art learning. The benefits of this research consist of theoretical and practical benefits, especially for art education practitioners in schools. This study uses qualitative research methods. The research objective is on the implementation of character education in music art learning. The data collection technique was carried out using observation techniques, interviews and documentation studies. The data validity technique uses data triangulation. The data analysis technique uses qualitative data analysis. The result of this study is that the instillation of the values of Cultural Education and Character of the Nation developed in the learning process of music art is not carried out separately, but these values are incorporated into the learning steps. In practice, the steps to learn music arts based on national character education are contained in certain slogans embraced by the school. The suggestion in this study is that teachers or those responsible for the selection process of regional songs and national songs in music ensemble learning should pay attention to the selection of songs so that they are easier to understand and the cultivation of character education can be achieved properly.

Analisis Pengembangan Model Supervisi Pendidikan Di Pondok Pesantren Darel Azhar Rangkasbitung

The Darel Azhar Rangkasbitung Islamic Boarding School as an Islamic educational institution has a central role in shaping the character and knowledge of the students. This research aims to analyze the development of the educational supervision model implemented at the Darel Azhar Rangkasbitung Islamic Boarding School. Using qualitative research methods and a descriptive study approach, this research describes the supervision model being implemented, evaluates the effectiveness of the model, and identifies challenges and development strategies being implemented. The research results show that the Darel Azhar Rangkasbitung Islamic Boarding School implements a supervision model that focuses on aspects of Islamic education, character and science. Evaluation of the effectiveness of the supervision model identified advantages in improving the quality of education, but also highlighted several weaknesses that need attention. Challenges in developing supervision models involve limited resources and contextual factors. However, this Islamic boarding school has implemented various strategies to increase the effectiveness of its supervision model with the Direct and Continue supervision model.. The implications of the results of this research provide contributions for managers and practitioners in Islamic boarding schools as well as parties interested in developing Islamic education supervision models

How Whiteness Fuels Anti-Blackness: Black Leaders’ Experiences in an Urban High School

This article explores whiteness and how it manifests itself in an urban, Midwestern high school. This examination is done through counter-storytelling to unpack how Black women leaders navigate whiteness while simultaneously experiencing anti-Blackness within and outside a research-practice partnership. These counter-stories came from a larger research project on how school practitioners work towards anti-racism using an anti-racist policy decision-making protocol. Much research centers on the experiences of Black students in PK-12 education settings; however, there is an underwhelming amount of research that analyzes how anti-Black racism or anti-Blackness exists in educational leadership. Our findings reveal that Black women leaders negotiate whiteness through various strategies, encounter moments of anti-Blackness and witness it occurring among Black students within the school. Implications of this study illuminate the importance of counter-narratives in uncovering details otherwise unseen, as well as describe the ways counter-narratives moved the work within the research-practice partnerships forward.

Does Environmental Education Curriculum Affect Student’s Environmental Culture in Islamic Boarding School

Purpose: The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of an environmental education curriculum on shaping the environmental culture among students in Islamic boarding schools. Recognizing the importance of environmental awareness and stewardship, particularly within educational settings, this research seeks to assess the effectiveness of an environmental education intervention in fostering a culture of environmental responsibility and sustainability among students. Methods: The research methodology employed is an experimental approach involving 107 participants from three Islamic boarding schools located in Surabaya, Indonesia. The environmental education intervention consists of two stages: the delivery of educational materials and practical implementation in everyday life, spanning across 14 sessions. Data analysis is conducted using the product moment correlation test, with a significance level set at 0.05, to examine the relationship between the environmental education curriculum and the development of environmental culture among students. Results and Discussion: The study findings reveal that the environmental education curriculum significantly influences the development of environmental culture among students in Islamic boarding schools. Additionally, the analysis indicates correlations between knowledge, attitude, and behavior related to environmental management, as well as between cooperation, responsibility, and environmental care. These findings underscore the interconnectedness of various components within the framework of environmental education and highlight the importance of fostering a holistic approach to environmental awareness and action among students. Implications of the Research: The results of this study have significant implications for educational policymakers, curriculum developers, and practitioners in Islamic boarding schools and beyond. By demonstrating the positive impact of environmental education on shaping environmental culture, the research advocates for the integration of comprehensive environmental education curricula into the academic framework of Islamic boarding schools. Furthermore, the findings underscore the importance of promoting active engagement and practical application of environmental principles to foster sustainable environmental practices among students. Originality/Value: This study contributes to the growing body of literature on environmental education by focusing specifically on its impact within the context of Islamic boarding schools. By empirically assessing the effectiveness of an environmental education intervention and identifying correlations between knowledge, attitude, behavior, cooperation, responsibility, and environmental care, the research offers valuable insights into the mechanisms through which environmental education can promote a culture of environmental stewardship among students. The findings provide a basis for informed decision-making and curriculum development aimed at enhancing environmental awareness and action within educational settings.

A Content Analysis of Professional Accreditation Requirements of Maltreatment Training for School Practitioners

A Content Analysis of Professional Accreditation Requirements of Maltreatment Training for School Practitioners

Embracing complexity: rethinking education inspection in England

ABSTRACT This theoretical paper provides valuable insights into the ongoing debates on OfSTED’s fitness for purpose and effectiveness. It critically examines the current education inspection system in England through the lens of complexity theory. The paper begins with a review of significant changes in the system from 2019 to the present, explaining that education inspection, as a complex system, is characterised by path-dependence, self-organisation, co-evolution, emergence, interdependence and adaptability. This is followed by a comprehensive discussion concerning the underlying power dynamics contributing to the gradual lock-in of the inspection system over the past three decades. Furthermore, it evaluates whether the system has reached a tipping point, potentially transitioning towards a new era. The complexity theory equips change agents, policymakers, policy implementers and school practitioners with a useful theoretical framework to navigate the landscape of educational inspection and facilitate meaningful changes. For change agents to embrace complexity thinking when envisioning a new inspection system, this paper presents several recommendations: surveying the evolving landscape and collecting new evidence, benchmarking against other inspection systems, balancing the power dynamic between OfSTED and schools and paying switching costs while incentivising change adopters.

Perceptions of Occupational Therapy Practitioners as Leaders within the New York State Education System

ABSTRACT In most states, occupational therapy practitioners are restricted from advancing to formal school leadership positions. The absence of pathways to leadership may limit the ability to fulfill AOTA’s Vision 2025 and Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). This study investigates how limited opportunities for career advancement affect school practice trends. We explore the perceptions of school practitioners in New York State concerning leadership, advocacy, and state policies. Seven hundred and fourteen current and former occupational therapy practitioners in New York schools completed a researcher-developed online survey. Notably, almost all respondents (94.7%) agreed that practitioners should be able to pursue educational administrative coursework. Most (94.6%) agreed that practitioners in New York should advocate for policies that would allow them to pursue such coursework. Many respondents reported that they would consider pursuing the coursework if available. This research emphasizes the misalignment between federal and state policies. Federal policy (ESSA) and Vision 2025 encourage greater involvement for occupational therapy practitioners, but state policy restricts their advancement. The findings demonstrate the pressing need for reform and the creation of pathways that enable occupational therapy practitioners to assume formal leadership positions in school settings, thus enhancing their contribution to the school community.