European Educational Research Journal |
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CONTENTS [click on author's name for abstract and full text] |
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THEME Learners and Their Learning/Working
Environments
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INTRODUCTION |
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Learners and their Learning/Working Environments Schools and workplaces today exist in different social, economic, systemic and political contexts than they did a few decades ago. Societies and communities have changed, family systems have been redefined, and workplace contexts are different (Graham, 1995). In turn, learning occurs in fundamentally different social and economic contexts than in previous decades (Honig et al, 2001). If we view occasions for learning, resources and support, not from the policy maker’s view, but through the student’s lens, one can see that youth[1]have many opportunities for learning in and out of school, and that these learning environments, and their attached relationships, are likely to shape them in various ways. In this issue we would like to explore different learning environments of pupils in schools and young adults in their workplace environments, in order to develop an understanding of the contexts in which they work and learn. Overview The issue is divided into two interrelated parts. The first part addresses pupils and their learning environments in schools, both in terms of school climate as well as school-parent connections. The second part explores the learning and workplace environments of young adults, also in terms of student-teacher relationships. In the first part De Fraine, Van Damme and Onghena take an ‘outsider’s view’ to look at school environments. Given the current political and media hype over school league tables and other measures of school performance, the first article – by De Fraine et al – is particular commendable. Using a multiple regression analysis, they argue that effects of group composition in secondary classes and schools (in a Flemish/Dutch speaking context) influence pupil achievement and well-being. For example, the composition of groups of students is said to have an effect ‘over and above’ individual characteristics, which is the agreed correction made in order to compare schools. This, in turn, questions not only the ways ‘fair’ comparisons can be achieved, but also how much sense it makes to compare them at all. In the second article, and in a more ‘southern’ context (Turkey), Collins explores the perceptions of administrators, teachers and students on what it means for a school to be ‘effective’. Amongst the most important features of an ‘effective school’ were, in their opinion, strong school leadership, a good school culture/climate and good quality human resources, however they define those. On the other hand, and in the third article, Papatheodorou gives students a voice to discuss their experiences of the physical environment in which they work and learn. It is argued that the physical environment of the school, and in particular the outdoor areas and facilities, are important influences on pupils’ learning experiences. In the fourth article Walker turns to pupils’ home-school environment. She examines British secondary schools’ parents evening and focuses on the difficulties faced by teachers, parents and students to integrate the young person into this kind of school-home liaison. Whilst this article draws on ‘live’ interviews, Rabusicová & Emmerová investigate the role of parents as school partners through the legislation of and media coverage in the Czech Republic. Interestingly, both articles regard parents as an important part of the ‘educational triangle’ which consists of the young person, the teacher and parents. The second part of this Special Issue consists of three articles. In article six Karen Evans explores the ways in which social changes impact on the lives of young adults. The life experiences of nine hundred students in the former East and West Germany were compared with those in England, and they were equally sampled from those in Higher Education, unemployed and employed. In answering the title’s question, she argues that young people in both countries are struggling to take control of their lives, whilst the reasons for this are different and varied. In article seven Sambrook develops a model of those factors that influence work-related learning, both in and at work, and at the organisational, functional and individual level. In particular, she focuses on those factors influencing computer based learning and argues that identifying these factors is likely to help managers to identify ways of enhancing learning. In the concluding article, by Tor Aase Johannessen, Joe Harkin & Oyvind Mikalsen, students are given the voice again, to evaluate their teachers informally. Interestingly, the findings show that there are great commonalities amongst students, regardless of their countries of origin or curriculum area. They all appear to judge the creation of a positive learning climate as the most important factor in what they regard as effective teaching. Throughout these articles runs a common theme, that of the learning-working environment of young people. If we consider where and how learning takes place from the pupil/student or other perspectives, it is evident that students have many teachers and learning opportunities throughout their day, both in and out of school. It reminds us that young people are more than just students; they are young people with many relations in addition to, or perhaps even instead of, their school. Keeping this in mind, we might ask the following questions: In which ways do students, teachers and parents communicate and talk about their learning experiences? How can we develop a broader conception of what learning is and where it takes place? We hope that this issue encourages the reader to consider students’ learning-working environments in a wider sense, and perhaps subsequently the development of research that provides an enhanced theorised understanding of the area. CHRISTER BRUSLING Oslo University College, Norway BIRGIT PEPIN Oxford Brookes University, United Kingdom Note [1] We use the term ‘youth’ here to refer to all young people of school age, that is up to the end of upper secondary schooling. References Graham, P.A. (1995) Assimilation, Adjustment,
and Access: an antiquarian view of American education, in D. Ravitch
& M. Vinovskis (Eds) Learning from the Past (pp. 3‑24).
Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press.
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Accountability of Schools and Teachers: what should be taken into account? |
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The domain of school effectiveness relates to the question of accountability of schools. It is commonly agreed that a correction should be made for student background in order to achieve fair comparisons between schools. But even then, a fair estimation of the schools’ value added is not achieved. The composition of the group of students has arguably an effect over and above individual student characteristics. This study addresses the effects of group composition in secondary schools and classes on achievement and well-being. Compositional effects are discussed with reference to type A and type B effects. Type A effects are school effectiveness indices, controlling for student background. Type B school effects are controlled for both student background and school context. |
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Does a School Make a Difference? Perceptions of an ‘Effective School’ |
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This article examines perceptions of an effective school considering relevant literature, teachers’, administrators’ and students’ judgments. It discusses effectiveness as it applies to private school systems operating in Turkey. It gives abridged aspects of the current Turkish Education System: state; and private. This perception, Eastern European, Quasi-Mediterranean, draws commonalities with Western systems lying groundwork for comparisons of universal problems faced by educators. The study employed qualitative case study methods and procedures. Data were collected through interview schedules, document analysis and observation notes. Results show that the subjects perceive ‘effective school’ qualities as being school leadership, school culture/climate and quality human resources. Commonality can be found between the situation presented here and other developing school systems. |
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How We Like Our School to Be ... Pupils’ Voices |
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Overall research findings have revealed that the school environment both immediate and in the wider sense of the community does play a role in pupils’ academic and behavioural outcomes. The present article aims to discuss pupils’ experiences of, and suggestions for, the physical environment of the school which they attend. A case study was conducted in the United Kingdom in a primary school located in an area that is characterised by high levels of economic and social deprivation. Methods of collecting data included documentary evidence, interviews, observations, focus groups and pupils’ drawings and designs. The study findings have shown that there are great concerns about pupils’ learning and behavioural outcomes and that the school experiences overcrowding conditions as well as lack of space and facilities that provide opportunities for creative activities. The pupils themselves also showed awareness about the limitations of their school environment and their discussions revealed the physical environment to be of considerable importance to their experience of learning. The implications of the study findings for teachers, policy makers and budget holders will be highlighted. |
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The Missing Person: student roles in home-school interviews |
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In British secondary schools the ‘Parents’ Evening’ is held annually for each year group to allow parents and subject teachers to meet and discuss a child’s progress. This article draws from two qualitative studies of Parents’ Evenings and focusses on the difficulties faced by parents, teachers and students in trying to integrate the young person into this type of home-school liaison. Much of the data consisted of tape-recordings of Parents’ Evening interviews made by teachers or parents. Key analytical concepts include the parent-teacher-student interview characterised as ‘institutional talk’, where the participants struggle over control of personal information, definition of problems and follow-up action. Even though it is becoming more common for students to attend these events, the article brings out their relative powerlessness and concludes that, while parents and teachers contest authority within the interview, the role, power and identity of the young person is even more problematic. |
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The Role of Parents as Educational and Social Partners of Schools in the Czech Republic: legislation and media analysis |
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The article presents results of the first stage of a three year research project on the role of parents as educational and social partners of the school in the Czech Republic. Basic questions are: What does the school consider parents to be and how is their position defined in the legislature? To what extent are parents influenced in their attitudes to school by the reflection of the contemporary school in the media? The methodological frame of this study includes application of the existing theoretical framework and methods like content analysis of the school legislature and documents, and analysis of selected media. Such analyses focus on how information about schools and school system is presented to parents and the general public. As far as legislative conditions are concerned, the results indicate that they do not define precisely parents’ position towards the school and therefore it is only up to the good will of both sides – parents and teachers – to create their own definitions. As far as the media context is concerned, the picture presented by media is rather unfavourable towards school issues and teachers in particular which could make interactions between the school and parents not an easy matter. |
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Taking Control of their Lives? The Youth, Citizenship and Social Change Project |
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The question of whether there now exists a period of ‘extended dependency’ in young people’s transitions is central to the ‘Youth, Citizenship and Social Change Research Programme’. The project ‘Taking Control’ aims to understand how young adults experience control and exercise personal agency as they pass through extended periods of transition in education and training, work, unemployment and in their personal lives in selected localities experiencing economic transformation in England and the new Germany. Through a combination of questionnaire survey and group interviews the study has investigated how, in different ways, choice and uncertainty can be important dimensions in young people’s biographies in contemporary societies. Their experiences and their futures are not exclusively determined by socialising and structural influences, but also involve elements of subjectivity, choice and agency. The research contributes to understanding of the process involved in becoming ‘independent’ and ‘personally effective’ in different settings and has aimed to involve researchers and users (young people, policy-makers and practitioners) in debate about the most effective ways to support transitions in early adult life. While building on methodological approaches and findings of the author’s previous Anglo-German research, this research is new and distinctive in its theme of control in the under researched ‘young adult’ phase (up to 25) and in the inclusion of the post communist society of eastern Germany in the selected localities. |
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Factors Influencing Learning in Work: a comparison of two research projects (European- and United Kingdom-based) |
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This article reports on two research studies exploring factors influencing learning, one in the United Kingdom (UK) and the other conducted across Europe. The European project focused on an investigation of the role of human resource development (HRD) practitioners in creating opportunities for, and supporting, lifelong learning. This article examines one aspect of that project – factors inhibiting and enhancing learning in work, specifically in large, learning-oriented organisations. These factors were categorised at organisational, functional and individual levels. The UK project focused on computer-based learning, with researchers exploring learners’ perceptions of the quality of computer-based learning materials. Computer-based resources can offer accessible, flexible and affordable learning opportunities. However, it is important for managers, HRD practitioners and learners to be able to judge the quality of information and communication technology (ICT) based resources to ensure effective learning. It is also important for managers and HRD practitioners to be able to recognise, understand and address the more subjective factors identified by learners themselves which might the effectiveness of ICT-based learning in education and work contexts. Drawing upon the two research studies, the article identifies, compares and contrasts the various factors influencing learning in work, at organisational, functional and individual levels, and then focuses upon factors influencing computer-based learning. Research findings suggest that the same factors could be both positive and negative features, highlighting the complexity and subjectivity of investigating both factors influencing learning in work and learners’ perceptions of the quality of computer-based learning materials. However, it is argued that identifying such factors is an important step, enabling managers and HRD practitioners to recognise how learning might be hindered or helped within the organisational, and particularly ICT, context. The article presents a model of factors influencing learning in work. |
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Constructs Used by 17‑19 Year Old Students in Northern Europe When Informally Evaluating their Teachers |
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This article reports the findings of a joint international Socrates project, ‘Quali-Teach’, that researched the constructs that students aged 17‑19 in England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Lithuania and Norway use to informally evaluate their teachers. Although one would expect considerable differences in the constructs due to the factual differences in the educational systems of the countries, as well as other factors, the study shows no signficant differences between the groups. The most important determinants of student evaluation of teachers are constructs that describe affective behaviours of the teacher, which have an impact on the learning climate; and constructs that describe aspects of the professionality of the teacher, such as his/her teaching skills. In keeping with earlier research by the principal researchers, the main finding seems to be that the creation of a positive learning climate is the most important factor in effective teaching, in the perceptions of young adults, irrespective of country and curriculum area; combined with a range of professional skills that may be developed in initial training. |
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Commercialism in Education: historical perspectives, global dimensions and European educational research fields of interest |
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Around the globe, the systems of public education currently are being transformed into marketised institutions. Education is essential to the basic needs of every individual. But in a so-called ‘free-market’ economy, access to schools and universities is open only to those who can afford it. Jan Amos Comenius, Adam Smith, and Wilhelm von Humboldt, among others, laid the theoretical foundations of public education. Today, however, their ideas are being functionalised by corporate libertarians and ‘free-market’ ideologues. With the help of the WTO’s General Agreement on Trade in Services they promote the abolishment of the public sector worldwide, including the EU. In opposition to this, the struggle for public education cannot be grounded on the demand for free und full access to (higher) education alone. It has to be conceptualised, in addition, within the horizon of a non-eurocentric, postmodern, global public sphere. |
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