School Success Research Articles

Teachers’ prosociality and well-being at work: The mediating role of teacher engagement in family–school partnerships

Past research provided strong evidence that positive family–school partnerships were not only beneficial for students’ school success, but they also helped to promote parental involvement in schooling. However, relatively little is known about teachers’ reasons for becoming engaged in family–school partnerships and the benefits of their engagement. In fact, the role of teachers in family–school partnerships requires prosocial actions (e.g., helping, sharing, feeling empathy). As guided by self-determination theory, previous studies suggest that prosocial-oriented persons tend to take prosocial actions and these actions tend to promote a social connection, thereby promoting well-being. To the best of our knowledge, this assumption has not been applied to research on family–school partnerships yet. The aim of this study was to examine whether teachers’ prosociality would be associated with their well-being at work (i.e., job satisfaction, work-related self-esteem) and whether this connection would be mediated by teacher engagement in family–school partnerships. Using the framework of the Vodafone Foundation Germany, we focused on two important aspects of teacher engagement: effective communication and educational cooperation. A total of 190 teachers (72% females; mean age: 44.78 years) participated in an online-survey. In line with SDT, teachers’ prosociality was associated with greater well-being at work even after controlling for teachers’ background (age, gender, experience, school track). As expected, this connection was partially mediated by teacher engagement in family–school partnerships. The results and implications of the present study are discussed.

Pedagogy Designing With Augmented Reality: a Paradigm Shift in Educational Approaches

With Augmented Reality (AR) emerging as a revolutionary tool that reshapes conventional learning paradigms, the fusion of technology and education has given rise to creative educational approaches. This essay offers a thorough examination of augmented reality's place in education, highlighting its potential to improve pedagogy, engage students, and fundamentally alter the educational landscape. The essay starts by defining augmented reality as a link between the real and virtual worlds that provides an immersive and interactive learning experience. It explores the many uses of augmented reality, including anatomy classes with 3D interactive models and historical reenactments that take pupils back in time. These case studies show how augmented reality encourages participation, improves comprehension, and contextualizes learning materials. The fundamental ideas that underpin successful AR-enhanced schooling are presented in this study. It places a strong emphasis on scaffolding learning experiences, interaction, contextual relevance, and alignment with learning objectives. The difficulties of deploying AR are also discussed, giving educators ideas for a successful integration. These difficulties include technology infrastructure, educator training, content quality, and economic considerations. The research focuses on the potential of augmented reality to foster active learning. The relationship between augmented reality (AR) and active learning is examined, emphasizing the ways in which AR supports collaborative activities, problem-solving, and individualized learning paths. By imagining the role that augmented reality (AR) will play in future education, including personalized learning, virtual field excursions, mixed reality collaboration, and AI-driven adaptive learning, the essay demonstrates the revolutionary power of AR. The ethical challenges surrounding AR in the classroom are also covered, with a focus on the importance of addressing data protection, digital literacy, and responsible technology use. In order to prepare students for the challenges of a connected world while nurturing a lifetime love of learning, the study finishes by presenting augmented reality as a cornerstone of educational design. In essence, this article offers a thorough analysis of Augmented Reality's effects on education, highlighting its potential to transform pedagogy, improve learning opportunities, and influence the direction of education in the future. Educators are given a comprehensive grasp of how to use augmented reality to build immersive, successful learning environments by looking at case studies, design principles, difficulties, and future prospects

Written Retelling Strategy in Improving Reading Skill among ESL Students in Malaysia

Skills of reading and comprehending in English are crucial for academic success in schools. Pupils with low reading ability skill may result in obtaining low grades and poor test scores. Traditionally pupils are taught to lift specific information as a reading strategy to answer comprehension questions, comparatively, this study uses retelling strategy to evaluate pupils’ understanding. Past research indicated that retelling strategy enhances accuracy and greater comprehension. Thus, far study that investigates effectiveness of this strategy remains scarce in Malaysian English as Second Language (ESL) primary schools. As reading skill starts to develop in early stage of schooling, it is deemed necessary to conduct this study among primary level pupils. The present study specifically analyzes the effects of written retelling strategy on pupils’ understanding of story structure among year three primary school pupils in Malaysian ESL classroom. A quasiexperimental research design with pretest and posttest was adopted to carry out the study. Pretest and posttest questions consisting of structural comprehension questions and written retelling were used to measure the effects of written retelling strategy on the pupils’ achievement in reading comprehension and their understanding of the story structure. A pretest was conducted before teaching and learning took place. This was followed by a posttest. An independent t-test was used to obtain the mean values and standard deviations. The results obtained in this study conclude the written retelling strategy had notably improved the pupils’ reading skill as they are able to retain information from the story and make better predictions. Subsequently, it increased their abilities in answering the comprehension questions. The results also indicate that written retelling could be a prospective reading strategy along with other strategies for primary ESL learners in Malaysia and similar context.

What We Know about Successful School Leadership from Australian Cases and an Open Systems Model of School Leadership

In three devolved Australian school systems, for over 20 years, Australian researchers have been interested in understanding how successful school leaders lead schools that have a broad range of student and school outcomes that are above expectations. This paper draws upon findings from five Tasmanian, 18 Victorian, and one Northern Territory multiple-perspective case studies of successful primary, secondary, and special school principals. All cases are part of the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP) and follow the methodologies of the ISSPP. At each school, data collected included interviews with the principal, senior teachers, teachers, students, parents, and school council members and document analysis. In addition, nine cases included observation of school activities, and two cases included a teacher survey. The cases reveal a complicated pattern of leadership activities by the principal and other school leaders that includes setting school directions, building positive cultures, developing supportive organisational structures, enhancing personal, professional, organisational, and community capacity, and developing networks, collaborations, partnerships, and stakeholder engagement. These areas of leadership action interact with school, staff, family, and broader contextual factors to develop outstanding teaching and learning that results in a wide array of positive student and school outcomes. Student outcomes include academic, extra-curricular, co-curricular, personal, and social areas. School outcomes include reputation, learning environment, resource allocation, community empowerment, and teacher quality areas. Successful school leadership is shown to be a complex endeavour, led by the principal but involving many and able to be sustained successfully over many years, leading to important and diverse student and school outcomes.

It isn’t sloppy language: exploring the discourse of Village English

Abstract In Alaska, as elsewhere in the United States, standardized American English is privileged over both local varieties of English and Indigenous languages. This privileged position is maintained, in part, through a deficit model of language acquisition and a model of school success which locates the source of underachievement among K-12 students within the child rather than within the broader sociopolitical context of school and schooling. Using a critical participatory action research approach, this article examines a single graduate course for K-12 teachers intended to address ideologies of linguistic deficit and demonstrate that the varieties of English spoken by adults and children in Southwest Alaska are systematic and rule-governed. Data are analyzed in terms of trajectories of learning, focusing on three distinct points within this trajectory: Pre-course questionnaire, Mid-point questionnaire and post-course artifacts (e.g., final projects for the master’s degree). Through the lens of discourse analysis (Gee, James Paul. 2010. An introduction to discourse analysis: Theory and method, 3rd edn. New York, NY: Routledge), we illustrate and discuss the tensions inherent in shifting discourse models as the teachers contend with course content that challenges broadly accepted explanations for school underachievement.

The Issue of Equity Taking Research on Partnership Program Development to Scale in Practice

Looking to the future, a very challenging topic in the U. S. and in other nations is the “scaleability” of research-based (or evidence-based) results of partnership programs and practices. After more than three decades of studies by countless researchers that confirm the importance of school, family, and community partnerships for student success in school, it is imperative to translate research to good policy and useful practice so that more schools—indeed all schools— organize effective programs to engage parents, other family members, and community partners in ways that support student success in school. There are opportunities in each nation to attain this imperative and there are challenges that limit progress. What have we learned about both opportunities and challenges to press forward so that schools develop and sustain goal-linked partnership programs to increase student achievement, good behavior, postsecondary planning, and other indicators of success? This question is at the heart of the equity issues discussed at ERNAPE-Lisboa.

Disability And Home-School Relations In Cyprus: Hope And Deception

Based on the view that parental participation in the educational process enhances learning, school success and children prosperity, we conducted a preliminary exploratory research, so as to examine the current home-school relations in Cyprus regarding parents with disabled children. Data was collected from semi-structured interviews with six parents of disabled children. The interviewees revealed some gloomy aspects regarding the implementation of the special education law in Cyprus. In particular, the six parents reported that disabled children in Cyprus are often considered incapable of learning and unable to approach the prevalent normality. Such views seem to reflect the prevalence of prejudice and negative stereotypes, which often define home-school relations and teachers’ expectations from disabled children in Cyprus. Secondly, the six parents discussed some segregation education practices, related to unequal power relations, which seem to hinder inclusion. In particular the parents referred to occasional verdicts against the parents’ wishes, which, according to them, were harmful for their disabled children. Thirdly, the interviewees described their feelings regarding home-school relations. In general, the six parents confirmed that ineffective communication, teachers’ attitudes towards disability and problematic home-school relations debar partnership working and result in the exclusion of disabled children.

Pupils' Attitudes toward Inclusive Education.

The presented research is a study of the attitudes of adolescents toward individuals with disabilities and a description of the level of knowledge about this issue among a selected group of adolescents. The study is focused on the school social environment, specifically on pupils without disabilities and their attitudes toward pupils with disabilities, which is one of the factors influencing their school success. The target group was 1806 pupils between the ages of 11 and 16 from the entire Czech Republic, approached by random selection. The research tool for the quantitative approach was a questionnaire developed by the authors of this article. The questionnaire section with open questions served for the qualitative part of the research. The results show that 70% of the respondents have basic knowledge about people with disabilities. Furthermore, it was shown that these adolescents have an overall positive attitude toward people with disabilities. This attitude is statistically significantly better among the girls than the boys, and the girls are also more open to discussing individuals with disabilities. At the same time, even if attitudes are positive, they still depend on the type of disability. The greatest uncertainty or discomfort is manifested when interacting with individuals with intellectual disabilities.

43rd JACT Latin Summer School – 2023 Director's Report

AbstractThis is a review of the activities and successes of the 43rd residential JACT Latin Summer School, run in July 2023. Specifically, it covers our typical teaching arrangement, lectures, trips and events and acknowledges the generosity of our sponsors.

Towards a successful free senior high school policy in Ghana: the role of non-profit organisations

This paper seeks to understand the significant challenges of Ghana’s free senior high school (SHS) policy and the roles that non-profit organisations play in addressing them. Findings reveal non-profit interventions such as establishing new school buildings, providing teacher training, addressing inequality issues, equipping graduates with employable skills and evaluating the policy. Such public–non-profit partnerships can help the government achieve its vision of free SHS education for all young Ghanaians.

EARLY CARE / INTERVENTION: START OF SOCIAL AND EDUCATIONAL INCLUSION IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC

In the first few years of life, young children obtain social and emotional skills, such as controlling emotions, sharing with others and following instructions. These skills lay the foundation for developing literacy, numeracy and other cognitive abilities that are vital for success in school and life. All this highlights the importance of early care within the frame of social model for children with disabilities. This article provides theoretical information about the concept of the social model of early care in the Czech Republic. It aims to expand the theoretical base of these issues and justify the topicality and importance of early care in its extensive reference field. Besides, it intends to emphasize its practical impact.Methodologically, at the theoretical level, the design of this article is based on the analysis and comparison of scholarly literature, legislative documents, methodological materials, and other relevant written sources.

Leadership in Islamic Boarding Schools

Leadership in Islamic boarding schools is very important because the life or death and development of an Islamic boarding school will be seen in the pattern and leadership style of a kyai. Leadership authority in Islamic boarding schools rests with a kyai. Therefore, it is very natural and normal for the role of kyai to be highly respected in the growth of Islamic boarding schools. In order to be an inspiration and role model, it is necessary to form a dynamic learning community pattern. The problem formulations include: 1) what is meant by leadership in Islamic boarding schools. 2) what leadership styles exist in Islamic boarding schools. 3) What roles are applied to a kyai. This research uses a literature analysis method obtained from several literatures. From the research results, the success or failure of an Islamic boarding school depends on the leadership style applied by the kyai themselves. Leadership factors are still determining factors in effectiveness and efficiency. Apart from that, the vision and mission also have influences and interrelated elements. The elements used as a reference are those that are adapted to Islamic law, including: 1) ethics that are in accordance with the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad. 2) objective leaders, 3) leaders who have high credibility, 4) responsive leaders

Continuous and Placement Assessment Results as a Predictor of Student Achievement in Primary Schools

The purpose of this study was to explore the performance of out-of-school children in speed school and accelerated learning programs as a basis for success in primary schools. This research field has received very little attention. The continuous assessment and placement test results of students at risk were not used much in the literature, which this study aims to fill. The total number of students involved in the study was 624. The study used the continuous assessment average scores and placement test scores as predictor variables. The results show that the relationship between placement test and 1st-semester score in grade four was significant, r (196) = .501, p < .001. For the Accelerated Learning Program, the placement test and 1st-semester score in grade three were significant, r (111) = .413, p<.001. As a tool to forecast primary school students' future achievement, the teacher-made continuous assessment appears to be less useful than placement tests for children who come through speed school. Students from speed school backgrounds performed better than students from formal schools; students from accelerated learning program backgrounds performed almost similarly to students from formal schools except in environmental science. The study indicated that in grade four of formal primary school, continuous assessment was found to be poorly linked with student knowledge and skills. However, the results show that both comparisons found placement examinations to be a reliable indicator of children's achievement in primary schools. It can be concluded that students who joined grades three and four of formal school through speed school and an accelerated learning program are capable of achieving minimum learning competence in the subsequent educational outcomes in elementary grades.

Communication Harmonization Strategy between Al-Fikh Orchard Management with Construction Branch in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Success in establishing and maintaining harmonious communication in an educational institution will have an impact on the school's success in realizing its vision and mission. The differences in distance, mindset, and perception of each coach will of course give rise to new problems. However, it doesn't have to be a problem because these differences actually strengthen the determination to continue to advance Tadika al-Fikh Orchard. Researchers want to dig deeper into the communication harmonization strategy established by Al-Fikh Orchard Management with its Cawangan in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. So that the development of Tadika Al-Fikh Orchard is progressing rapidly as it is now. The founder certainly knows more about the vision and mission of the Al-Fikh Orchard. He is a person who really understands the goals to be achieved, the strategies for achieving them, the management of the process, the colleagues needed to support and help realize the educational mission promoted by Al-fikh Orchard. This research uses a qualitative approach, with a case study type of research conducted at Tadika Al-Fikh Orchard Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Data collection techniques were carried out by means of observation, interviews and documentation. The data analysis technique used is Spradley domain analysis. The data validity test technique uses the triangulation method. To test the effectiveness analysis, use the in-depth interview method to explore the information needed in this research. The results of the analysis are presented in qualitative descriptive terms. The results of the research found that the founder certainly cannot move alone in advancing Tadika, at least she really needs support from his husband as a good support system to realize his mission. The management must also prepare a program that can be implemented by the target branch. Apart from that, strong leadership and focus on the goals to be achieved are also strengths in dealing with the various characters of the team being built.

Early Prediction for Graduation of Private High School Students with Machine Learning Approach

Graduation rates indicate school success. Predicting student graduation helps schools identify students in danger of dropping out and intervene early to enhance academic performance. It can also assist policymakers create graduation and dropout prevention initiatives. However, based on a literature search, predicting student graduation rates from admission test scores is difficult. School grades are a better predictor of timely tertiary graduation than acceptance test scores because college success requires cognitive abilities and self-regulation competencies, which are better indexed by school grades. Self-efficacy, school academic culture, and future expectations can also affect student graduation rates. Finally, the selective admissions modality needs to be refined. This study aims to (1) predict private high school graduation with eight algorithms: Random tree, Naïve Bayes Multinomial, Support Vector Machine (SVM), Random forest (RF), K-Nearest Neighbor, Ada Boost, Multilayer perceptron, Logistic regression, and (2) compare the performance of the eight algorithms. According to research, the Random tree, Naïve Bayes Multinomial, Random forest (RF), and Ada boost algorithms all perform at 99.49% for the first aim. For the second objective, the Random Tree approach outperforms other algorithms in Accuracy (99.49%), Precision (100%), F-Measure (99.74%), and consumption time (0 seconds). Therefore, the Random tree algorithm outperforms others. This research contributes in two ways: scientifically by testing eight algorithms—Random tree, Naïve Bayes Multinomial, Support Vector Machine (SVM), Random forest (RF), K-Nearest Neighbor, Ada Boost, Multilayer perceptron, and Logistic regression—to predict private high school graduation, and secondly by recommending school administrators to develop a selective enrollment model.

Dwelling Upon the Backstage of the Success of Rural Schools: A Systematic Review Analysis

The subject of this study is to look into the ‘secret’ behind the success of rural schools. For this purpose, successful schools were searched in databases and 31 studies were reached as a result of the said examination. These studies were analyzed by systematic review analysis. According to the results of the research, 13 themes and 70 codes emerged. It has been revealed that school administrators have strong leadership characteristics and accordingly, school cultures of the schools in question constitute a healthy structure. In addition, teachers attach importance to their own professional development. They have a strong communication with each other with the stakeholders e.g., administrators/students within the school and their communication with families is also strong. In these schools, instructional materials are sufficient, student interactions are given importance, and there are environments where social activities can be carried out easily. Lastly, school administrations make student-centered plans with measurable realistic missions.

Using Existing School Messaging Platforms to Inform Parents about Their Child’s Attendance

School attendance is strongly associated with academic success and high school completion, but approximately one-in-seven students miss nearly one month of school each year. To address absenteeism, we partnered with four public school districts in the metro-Atlanta area and experimentally deployed email and text messages to inform parents about their child’s attendance. Parents received personalized monthly messages through the school districts’ existing messaging platforms that had zero marginal cost per message. The messages informed parents about their child’s number of absences and how that number compared to absences of their peers. For most parents, this information was delivered through email as opposed to text, and parents of students most in need of improved attendance were the hardest to reach. Intent-to-treat estimates show the intervention reduced end-of-year absences by four-tenths to two-thirds of a day (2 to 3%) and reduced the probability of chronic absenteeism by 2 to 6%, while actually receiving the messages reduced end-of-year absences by two-thirds to almost one day (3 to 4%) and reduced the probability of chronic absenteeism by 4 to 7%.

Home school at the edge of chaos during the lockdown: Social workers’ perspectives

As a response to prevent the spread of COVID-19, during the spring of 2020, home schooling replaced classroom education. From the social worker’s perspective, this paper explores how home school was organised among the social work client families and what types of resources were needed and launched to control the complexity of home schooling during the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic. The conceptual frameworks applied to theorise the self-organisation of home school and how resources were mobilised are complexity theory and social capital theory. The empirical analysis is based on digital diaries written by 33 Finnish social workers and analysed using a thematic qualitative content analysis.The findings demonstrate the intertwined combination ofsocial (social environment and communication), human (cultural, psychological andpedagogical) and physical (technological, spatial and biological) capital needed for the successful self-organising of home schooling. These capitals cannot predict the emergence of successful home schooling, nor can they function as a resource alone because self-organisation requiresinteractions between all essential dimensions. The results provide a deeper understanding for social work professionals regarding schooling and organising multidimensional support for children and their families.

Validity of Android Application-Based Interactive Media to Improve Literacy

Literacy is a major component of school success, so students with deficits in reading skills generally experience a disadvantage in educational attainment. Reading is an activity to find meaning and writing that involves physical and mental activities. This is also in line with the opinion of) that Reading is one's mental process towards a text. In its narrow sense, reading means analyzing a text composed of letters and trying to interpret it as a whole. Learning to read according to is one of the most important skills children will acquire in the early years of school and difficulties in acquiring this skill can have adverse educational outcomes. there are still grade 1 Students whose reading skills are low, so there needs to be an effort made by the teacher in improving reading skills, one of which is using learning media. This study aims to create an interactive media product that is valid for use in early reading learning activities for grade 1 elementary school students. It is hoped that this developed product can help students learn to read. interactive media development using the Lee & Owen development model. products developed in validity by media, material, and language experts. the results of the product development validation test fall into the valid criteria and can be used to learn to read beginning. from the results of the interactive media validation carried out, it obtained a validity value of 81.66% in the "very valid" category. Interactive media products were developed based on the needs of 1st grade students. Validity of Android Application-Based Interactive Media to Improve Literacy in Class 1 Elementary Schools.

Scaling up a Technology-Based Literacy Innovation: Evolution of the Teacher Professional Development Course

Good teachers are a major predictor of students’ success in school and beyond it. Finding ways to increase the quality of teaching has been a concern for educational systems across various income contexts and, particularly, in the Global South. This paper discusses the iterative design of an online teacher professional development program geared to improving teachers’ English language instruction by means of implementing early literacy software. The program was implemented in various modes (face-to-face, blended and online) with early primary teachers scattered throughout Kenya during the pandemic school closures and after reopening. Relying on the blended learning approach, a potentially effective technology-driven TPD offers multifaceted content, has adaptive and flexible design, and is ongoing until mastery of core concepts is achieved. Further, such solution develops motivational dispositions of teachers about teaching with early literacy software so that its perceived value and the likelihood of success are high, and the benefits outweigh the costs of implementation. The next step of this research is to learn about the specific outcomes of the blended TPD, including changes in literacy instruction and subsequent improvements in student literacy skills.