School Survey Data Research Articles

Health and wellbeing of young migrants: an analysis of school survey data in South East England

Health and wellbeing of young migrants: an analysis of school survey data in South East England

Exploring the multidimensional constructs of transformative school–community collaboration from a critical paradigm

AbstractSchool–community collaboration has become an important approach to enhancing the quality of services to meet the multifaceted needs of students. However, there is little understanding of how to create and maintain successful school–community collaboration. Drawing on a critical paradigm, this study developed a comprehensive framework for transformative school–community collaboration (TSCC) and developed a valid scale to assess the major dimensions of TSCC. Using school survey data, an exploratory factor analysis identified four multidimensional constructs: (a) critical member capacity representing members' organizing, interpersonal, and critical analysis skills, (b) equal relations with respect to joint membership, interaction, and outcome distribution, (c) democratic network governance measuring the basic elements of democracy in decision‐making, and (d) empowering coordination reflecting a responsive, flexible, and supportive coordination system. This study also showed that low‐income and urban schools reported significantly lower levels of equal relations and empowering coordination. The developed scale can be used as an evaluation tool that monitors and evaluates school–community collaboration ensuring equal, democratic, and empowering structures and processes. Furthermore, the results of this study suggest practice implications and future research agendas to create and maintain successful school–community collaboration.

Incentives and teacher effort

AbstractFew would contest that teachers are a very important determinant of how much students learn in school, and how to improve teacher performance has been the focus of lively policy debate in both rich and poor countries. This paper examines how teacher incentives, both pecuniary and non‐pecuniary, correlate with teacher effort. Using school survey data from Lao PDR, we estimate measures of teacher effort, including the number of hours that teachers spend preparing for classes and teacher provision of private tutoring outside of class hours, which are not the typical measures used in previous research. Estimation results fit well under the standard labour supply framework and indicate that greater teacher effort is associated with non‐pecuniary incentives such as more teacher autonomy over teaching materials and monitoring as measured by the existence of an active parent–teacher association and the ability of school principals to dismiss teachers. Methodologically, this paper provides a detailed derivation of a simultaneous OLS‐probit model with school random effects that can jointly estimate teacher work hours and tutoring provision.

The link between teacher-assigned grades and classroom socioeconomic composition: The role of classroom behavior, motivation, and teacher characteristics

Teacher judgments in terms of grades, proficiency assessments, and recommending placement in ability groups can have important consequences for a child’s future educational path. Whether or not students’ sociodemographic background characteristics are systematically related to teacher judgments has been a controversial topic of discussion. Using data from the TIMSS-Transition Study (N = 3285 fourth graders) administered across 13 German federal states in the 2006–2007 school year and survey data from parents and teachers, we investigated whether or not the average classroom socioeconomic status is reflected in teacher judgments and also examined possible underlying processes. We also probed the role of teachers’ own socioeconomic backgrounds (at the age of 16) in their later susceptibility to differentially judge students from different socioeconomic backgrounds and in differentially composed classrooms. Multilevel regression analyses revealed that, after controlling for differences in achievement (as indicated by standardized tests), teachers’ judgments were associated with the classrooms’ socioeconomic composition, and this finding could not be attributed to the average levels of motivation or behavior in the classroom. Teachers were similarly likely to exhibit such differential judgments regardless of their own socioeconomic background. These findings are discussed in the context of their implications for educational policy.

Energy drink consumption and substance use risk in middle school students.

ObjectivesEnergy drink (ED) sales have increased greatly in recent years and ED is now a common topic in health behavior research. Most studies work with samples of college students and/or young adults and to a lesser degree with high school students. Research is lacking on ED consumption in younger users. The purpose of this study was to fill this gap and assess the prevalence of ED consumption in a sample of middle school students as well to analyze the relationships between ED use and illicit and licit drug use in girls and boys of this age.MethodWe use cross-sectional school-survey data from 6–8th grade students in three US mid-Atlantic schools conducted in September to November 2014 (N = 1152, response rate: 82.4%).ResultsApproximately 20% of participants had consumed ED and 10% had smoked cigarettes. Almost 14% had used alcohol at least once in their lifetime and 5.5% marijuana. Boys were more likely than girls to have used ED but no gender difference was observed in the prevalence of illicit substances. However, ED use was positively related to smoking and alcohol use among both genders, but also to several forms of illicit drug use among girls.ConclusionED consuming girls are particularly prone to also use illicit substances. This is the first survey-type study which reports a positive relationship between ED consumption with both licit and illicit drug use in middle school-aged girls and boys.

Comprehending the Macro Through the Lens of the Micro

The South African Grade 4 learners had the lowest achievement mean of all participating education systems for the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2006. Further investigation was required to explore the potential reasons for the low performance. Although traditionally, secondary analyses of the data for international comparative studies of learner achievement have involved quantitative procedures, the mixed methods research design used for this study with emphasis placed on the qualitative phase was a unique departure from this methodological status quo. The aim was to explore schooling conditions and teaching practices for Grade 4 learners’ reading literacy development across the range of South African education contexts. In the first phase of the research, teacher and school survey data linked to a nationally representative learner sample ( n = 14,299) for the PIRLS 2006 were used for description of Grade 4 teachers’ instruction practices and schooling conditions. This description took place on the basis of the reclassification of the teacher and school survey data according to class language profiles and average class performance as aligned to each of the achievement benchmarks of the PIRLS 2006 and further benchmarks created to describe the performance levels of the majority of South African learners. Thereafter, in the second phase, seven qualitative school and teacher case studies from each reclassification subsample were purposively selected to add illuminatory depth to the study. The sampling strategy allowed for scrutiny of cases with high PIRLS achievement profiles against cases with poor achievement profiles, and the comparisons afforded a far greater understanding of the problem. This article reflects on the methodological rationales, processes, and outcomes associated with this methodological choice.

Commentary on Mounteney et al. (2016): What drug monitoring systems need in 2015.

Keywords: Epidemiology; Europe; illicit drug monitoring; new psychoactive substances; trends; prevalence; harms

Licit and Illicit Substance Use by Adolescent E-Cigarette Users Compared with Conventional Cigarette Smokers, Dual Users, and Nonusers

PurposeCompare the lifetime prevalence of eight forms of substance use (alcohol, drunkenness, oral tobacco, snuff, sleeping pills/tranquilizers, sniffed glue, marijuana, and amphetamine) among adolescent e-cigarette (EC) users, conventional cigarette (CC) smokers, dual users, and nonusers. MethodsWe analyzed population-level school-survey data collected from 10th-grade students (aged 15–16 years) in February 2015 in Iceland (N = 3,477; response rate, 84.4%). ResultsSmoking rates were similar for both sexes. Around 17% had used ECs and almost 8% had used ECs and not combustible tobacco, 5%–6% had smoked CCs but not ECs, around 9% were dual users. EC-only users were significantly more likely than nonusers to have used the eight substances investigated in the study but were less likely to have used these substances than CC smokers and dual users. ConclusionThe four groups assessed in this study appear to form a sequential risk gradient to the use of other substances.

Urinary schistosomiasis among schoolchildren in Yemen

Schistosomiasis is one of the most important public health problems in Yemen. The prevalence of urinary schistosomiasis varies considerably across different parts of Yemen and was estimated to be 10% among schoolchildren in Sana'a. Praziquantel (PZQ) is highly effective against all five major human species of schistosomes. The aim of the present work was to estimate the prevalence of urinary schistosomiasis, describe the risk factors associated with its endemicity, and implement and assess a chemotherapeutic intervention using PZQ in a village in Yemen. The sample included 696 schoolchildren from a village in Abyan Governorate. During the baseline school survey, personal, sociodemographic, and environmental data, and data on practices in relation to water contact were collected from each study participant using a predesigned structured questionnaire. Urine samples from each participant were examined for macrohematuria and the presence of Schistosoma haematobium eggs. The chemotherapeutic intervention was assessed 3 and 6 months after the treatment and certain indicators were calculated. The prevalence of S. haematobium was 18.1%. The main significant risk factors were male sex; proximity of houses to water ponds; and using pond water for swimming, agricultural activities, and for bathing in houses. PZQ treatment reduced the prevalence of infection and decreased the prevalence of high-intensity infection. Survival analysis showed that the probability of residual infection also dropped after the treatment intervention. Male sex and using pond water for various activities were the main significant risk factors associated with urinary schistosomiasis. PZQ is still a cornerstone drug in reducing or eliminating morbidity associated with schistosomiasis infection. Health education programs tailored for the community are required for the control and prevention of urinary schistosomiasis. To address schoolchildren, school curricula should include lessons about urinary schistosomiasis.

Peer effects and measurement error: The impact of sampling variation in school survey data (evidence from PISA)

Investigation of peer effects on achievement with sample survey data on schools may mean that only a random sample of the population of peers is observed for each individual. This generates measurement error in peer variables similar in form to the textbook case of errors-in-variables, resulting in the estimated peer group effects in an OLS regression model being biased towards zero. We investigate the problem using survey data for England from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) linked to administrative microdata recording information for each PISA sample member's entire year cohort. We calculate a peer group measure based on these complete data and compare its use with a variable based on peers in just the PISA sample. We also use a Monte Carlo experiment to show how the extent of the attenuation bias rises as peer sample size falls. On average, the estimated peer effect is biased downwards by about one third when drawing a sample of peers of the size implied by the PISA survey design.

Get the Most From a Job Offer

Get the Most From a Job Offer

The Power of Protection: A Population-based Comparison of Native and Non-Native Youth Suicide Attempters

This study provides actionable information about intervening with American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth to prevent suicide. Statewide school survey data were used to model the impact of risk and protective factors on self-reported suicide attempts (both AI/AN and non-AI/AN). The cumulative risk and protective model worked similarly for both groups. AI/AN youth had a higher threshold of risk before making a suicide attempt. Protective factors buffered the impact of risk, particularly for the higher risk youth.

Asian Student Depression in American High Schools

There are inconsistent findings about depression in Asians. This study examined risk factors for depression in Asian and Caucasian adolescents. Stratified bivariate secondary analyses of risk indicators and depressed mood were performed in this cross-sectional study of high school survey data (9th to 12th grades) from 2,542 students (198 Asian). Asians had a higher prevalence of depressed symptoms, but similar risk factors as Caucasians. Smoking and injury at work were major risk factors for depressed mood among Asians. Asian-specific risk factors for depression were being foreign-born and having a work-related injury. Asian and Caucasian teens have similar risk factors for depressed mood, though being foreign born and having a work-related injury are risk factors specific to Asian youth, possibly related to social-economic status. Providers of care in school, such as school nurses, can be important primary screeners of depression for Asian students in particular.

Disordered Eating and Unhealthy Weight Loss Practices: Which Adolescents Are at Highest Risk?

Early diagnosis of unhealthy weight loss practices (UWLP) among adolescents improves treatment outcomes. Analysis of population-based school survey data in Oregon demonstrated that the 11.6% reporting UWLP were more likely to perceive themselves as overweight, depressed, and to have abused substances. Targeted screening of adolescents can help identify those with UWLP.

Behavioral problems and the occurrence of tobacco, cannabis, and coca paste smoking in Chile: Evidence based on multivariate response models for school survey data

Background In this study we estimate suspected links between youthful behavioral problems and smoking of tobacco, cannabis, and coca paste. Methods In the Republic of Chile, school-attending youths were sampled from all 13 regions of the country, with sample size of 46,907 youths from 8th to 12th grades. A Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) approach to multiple logistic regression was used to address three interdependent response variables, tobacco smoking, cannabis smoking, and coca paste smoking, and to estimate associations. Results Drug-specific adjusted slope estimates indicate that youths at the highest levels of behavioral problems are an estimated 1.1 times more likely to have started smoking tobacco, an estimated 1.6 times more likely to have started cannabis smoking, and an estimated 2.0 times more likely to have started coca paste smoking, as compared to youths at the lowest level of behavioral problems ( p < 0.001). Conclusion In Chile, there is an association linking behavioral problems with onsets of smoking tobacco and cannabis, as well as coca paste; strength of association is modestly greater for coca paste smoking.

Racial and Ethnic Representation in Gifted Programs

The Elementary and Secondary School Survey data and Civil Rights Data Collection of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) were analyzed to describe the issue of overrepresentation of gifted Asian American students in gifted education programs in the United States. Nationally, Asian and Whites have been overrepresented in gifted education since 1978, whereas, students from other ethnic backgrounds, such as those from American Indian or Alaska Native, Hispanic, and African American groups, have been underrepresented with gradual increases in this underrepresentation since 1994. When the data were disaggregated by state for the period from 2002 to 2006, each racial and ethnic group displayed varied ranges of representation. Those varied distributions can be attributed to each state's unique demographic profile, varied definitions of giftedness, identification procedures, and identification policies. By focusing on Asian American students, this study addressed some difficulties that gifted Asian American students may face concerning the image of model minority and through the acculturation processes as immigrants or descendents of immigrants. Furthermore, this study suggests a need for disaggregated data collection and more research concerning gifted Asian American students from various ethnic Asian groups. Putting the Research to Use: Findings from this study highlight the need for carefully collected data in the field of gifted education concerning race and ethnicity of students in programs and provide the reader with a picture of both underrepresentation and overrepresentation of students by state and ethnic group. Attention needs to be paid to sub-groups within categories of race and ethnicity to understand representation. By considering the issue of Asian Americans and their overrepresentation, this research has raised awareness about factors, such as identification processes, acculturation, and academic motivation that might promote recognition of giftedness among some ethnic groups. Finally, this research offers readers with a new, multiple-year, current, analysis of the representation in gifted programs nationally and by state for racial/ethnic groups, an area of continued concern to those in the field of gifted education.

Sexual behavior and drinking style among teenagers: a population-based study in Finland

In this large-scale study, we examined the relationship between an adolescent's sexual behavior and drinking style. Three aspects of sexual risk-taking were included: early activity, unprotected sexual intercourse and having sex with multiple partners. A distinction was made between different drinking styles, i.e. alcohol drinking and drunkenness-related drinking. Cross-sectional school survey data from the School Health Promotion Study was collected in Finland in 2002-2003. The national sample consisted of adolescents from the eighth and ninth grades (n = 100,790). The mean ages were 14.8 and 15.8 years. Using logistic regression analysis, we investigated the association between sexual behavior and drinking style among teenagers. The likelihood of engaging in sexual intercourse increased with the frequency of alcohol use. In particular, frequent drunkenness-related drinking increased the probability that the teenager had experienced sexual intercourse. The likelihood of engaging in unprotected sex and/or having multiple sexual partners was many-fold for adolescents drinking frequently until they were in a state of drunkenness. Particularly for girls, weekly drunkenness-related drinking was associated with multiple partners. The vast majority of sexually experienced under-aged adolescents drink alcohol, many of them until they are drunk. Thus, it could be effective to combine both alcohol education and sex education, including contraceptive counseling, in early adolescence.

The Effectiveness of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program in Public Middle Schools: A Controlled Trial

Purpose To examine the effectiveness of a widely disseminated bullying prevention program. Methods A nonrandomized controlled trial with 10 public middle schools (7 intervention and 3 control) was conducted. Student-reported relational (e.g., spreading rumors, social exclusion) and physical victimization, and whether the program improved student attitudes and perceptions toward bullying were assessed pre- and post-implementation using available school survey data. Results Regression analyses controlling for baseline prevalence and school characteristics showed no overall effect on student victimization. However, when stratified by ethnicity/race, reports of relational and physical victimization decreased by 28% (RR = .72, 95% CI: .53–.98) and 37% (RR = .63, 95% CI: .42–.97), respectively, among white students relative to those in comparison schools. No similar effect was found for students of other races/ethnicities; there were no differences by gender or by grade. Students in intervention schools were more likely to perceive other students as actively intervening in bullying incidents, and 6th graders were more likely to feel sorry and want to help victims. Conclusions The program had some mixed positive effects varying by gender, ethnicity/race, and grade but no overall effect. Schools implementing the program, especially with a heterogeneous student body, should monitor outcomes and pay particular attention to the impact of culture, race and family influences on student behavior. Future studies of large-scale bullying prevention programs in the community must be rigorously evaluated to ensure they are effective.

A new approach for modelling circulation in secondary schools

Even though there have been many reports of circulation routes that are overcrowded and difficult to manage in secondary schools, there are still very few quantitative means used within the design industry for assessing circulation provisions. Arguably, school circulation design remains based on a combination of architect/stakeholder experience and minimum width/area recommendations contained within guidance documents. To make advances in this area, this paper proposes a valuable new modelling approach for school circulation using a combination of school survey data and computational modelling. The approach is successfully applied to predicting peak flow rates and congestion levels within an existing secondary school and is also shown to be a practical method for application on new-build projects.

The effect of class size on student achievement: evidence from Bangladesh

This study examines the effect of class size on student achievement in Bangladesh using national secondary school survey data. A Ministry of Education rule regarding allocation of teachers to secondary grades is exploited to construct an instrument for class size. This rule causes a discontinuity between grade enrolment and class size thereby generating exogenous variation in the latter. It is found that OLS and IV estimates of class size effects have perverse signs: both yield a positive coefficient on the class size variable. The results suggest that reduction in class size in secondary grades is not efficient in a developing country like Bangladesh. Last, as by-product, some evidence is found suggesting that greater competition among schools improve student achievement.