University of Cumbria Open Access Journals
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Childhood poverty in Wales and its implications for schools - a survey of trainee teachers’ perceptions
Get PDFWith a third of all pupils in Wales in poverty it is essential that trainee teachers in the principality understand the nature of poverty and develop a practical understanding of how best to deal with its negative effects. In order to explore trainee teachers’ perceptions of these issues a detailed questionnaire was completed by 94 of the 96 third year trainee teachers on a BA in Primary Education with QTS programme at a university in Wales. The data revealed a mature understanding of the main issues. Childhood poverty was seen by the respondents as a state of material, educational and emotional deprivation which prevents children and young people from developing their potential as individuals and from developing into fully active members of society. The respondents felt that schools had a central role to play in tackling the negative effects of poverty and that there were a range of positive measures that all schools needed to take in order to achieve this. The data also revealed that there were some practical areas related to combating childhood poverty which the respondents were yet to gain full confidence in tackling. The survey has significant implications for all those concerned with childhood poverty and initial teacher education in Wales and beyond
Using an arts-based approach to develop critical reflection in initial teaching trainees
Get PDFThis paper outlines a small-scale Case Study, which took place in England, involving six School Direct Primary teacher trainees acting as participants. Important assessment points, evidencing progress against the Teachers\u27 Standards, are ‘Units of Learning’. These contain sequences of lessons, planned and evaluated by the trainees, assessing impact on both pupils’ progress and their own professional development. The final element of each Unit is a critical reflection and it was felt this needed support. At the start of the project, the reflective elements of the Units of Learning were analysed and, using an online forum, participants shared their understanding of the term ‘critical reflection’. Responding to this, a teaching session, using both flipped learning techniques (Flipped Learning Network: 2014) and Loads’ ‘Cut up and Collage’ (2010) approach was designed to support their developing understanding: an approach that could also be applied in different context. It was hoped improved reflection about practice would lead to change and identifiable progress from ‘novice’ to ‘competence’. Subsequent Units of Learning were analysed following the intervention and participants’ opinions canvassed to assess how their reflections had developed. Findings revealed some improvement in critical thinking, with participants becoming more reflective about their personal and professional identities as teachers
Moving the focus from grades to feedback: A case study of pass/fail marking
Get PDFAssessment is a crucial aspect of academic work. Indeed, there is substantial literature on assessment design and how to ensure the integrity of students’ learning. Much work goes into enhancing assessment practices to ensure the validity of assessment to safeguard the reliability of students’ knowledge. Yet relatively little research has investigated how university educators might learn about significant assessment concepts through experiencing them for themselves. This evaluation sought to explore how a change in a marking approach on a professional development module for academics supported an assessment for learning approach. The reasons for the change are described and the experience of implementing a pass/fail model on an assessment-focused module is discussed. Data was collected from an interactive student activity, external examiner feedback, and a module evaluation survey. Findings indicated a range of reactions suggesting that consultation processes, orientation time, student involvement, and care with nomenclature are required by those considering similar changes
Promoting student engagement with academic literacy feedback: an institute wide initiative
Get PDFThe transition to Higher Education, while often exciting, is demanding for many students. Successful transition necessitates learning the conventions of scholarly conversation, including how to read and create work in an academic context. Knowledge of academic literacy practices is an important part of this process but these discourses and practices are often unfamiliar to students and this has implications for the development of academic identities. In this article, we report on an institution-wide initiative between librarians, lecturers and learning developers, designed to raise awareness of the role of feedback in developing academic literacies. While the rate of participation was low this initiative offered a space outside the formal curriculum and assessment processes to engage with students about feedback. The associated publicity raised the profile of feedback internally and offered valuable opportunities to open conversations about feedback with students and staff. The evolution of the initiative is discussed
How can student peer assessment be used to improve the quality of student learning?
Get PDFThis study looks at student peer assessment as a learning tool and a way of enhancing student learning at a university in England. Peer assessment is a formative process and has the aim of improving student understanding of learning as it happens, through assessing each other\u27s work against set marking criteria. In addition, the aim is to improve students\u27 subject knowledge, the quality of learning and ultimately the quality of summative assessments. Peer assessment has gained increased popularity in the recent years, with the growing focus on collaborative learning (Pearce, Mulder and Baik, 2009). The aim of this study was to determine if peer review, as part of formative assessment, can improve student understanding of the assessment process, which, in turn, should improve student learning. Moreover, the study was designed as a resource for improving for teaching staff, who may wish to consider integrating student peer assessment in their modules. Although there are benefits and limitations to using this method in teaching, the study suggests that the benefits outweigh the difficulties and recommends that student peer assessment is used as an alternative way of finding the balance between different forms of assessment
An Investigation into children\u27s gender stereotypes and the effect they have on children’s career aspirations
Get PDFThis research project investigates gender stereotypes in primary school aged children. It considers whether gender stereotypes are present, whether age range has an impact on children’s gender stereotypes and the impact preconceptions may have on children’s career aspirations. This project uses questionnaires and interviews to collect data. The findings of this research suggest that primary school aged children do have gender stereotypes and that gender does play a role in children career aspirations, but children’s gender stereotypes are varied and some children may even actively seek to expose gender stereotypes, especially girls. Boys appear to aspire to more physically demanding careers such as football whereas girls ambition lies in the intellectually demanding careers like that of doctors and teachers
An investigation into the impact of gender on early specialisation in sport
Get PDFThis investigation was carried out with the aim of establishing a potential correlation between a child’s gender and early specialisation in sport. 126 subjects took part in the investigation, ranging in age from 14-16 years old. The study itself was quite small scale. All subjects attended a mixture of rural and urban post-primary schools within Northern Ireland.
The subjects completed a questionnaire, created to analyse the overall number and gender of students who have specialised in a single sport. The questions were selected to gauge past and present sport involvement. Males spent 6.1 hours per week participating in sport, whilst females spent 5.6 hours, meaning males participated in more hours of sport than females. All but one of the 126 subjects, 82 males and 44 females, participated in sport. On average, 36% of subjects participate in one sport only. Of this 36%, 52% are female, with 36% being male, meaning more female subjects have specialised in a single sport
The Masters in Teaching and Learning: Lessons to be learnt and key stakeholder perceptions
Get PDFThis research investigates lessons to be learnt from and key stakeholder perceptions of the government-prescribed Masters in Teaching and Learning (MTL). Located within the secondary school phase and higher education in the English West Midlands, this article presents findings within a multiple case study from interviews with recently qualified teachers (RQTs) who had started the MTL as newly qualified teachers (NQTs); RQTs who chose not to undertake the MTL; and Deans of Education. Although the MTL represented a major shift in the professional development of teachers, their perceptions have generally been overlooked in academic literature, despite over 2,000 teachers in England starting the programme in 2010. Overall, respondents perceived the MTL to have its merits, although there were concerns about the programme and its implementation. Several common themes emerged, such as concern regarding the target cohorts; the impact on learning and teaching; and a lack of support/ interest from schools. Although seven of the eight universities within the region have now discarded the MTL and there is no longer any funding available for Masters level professional development for teachers in England, this article provides key messages to inform Masters level professional development for teachers
Teaching Assistants’ Conditions of Employment and Workload: Reliance upon Goodwill and Ad Hoc Systems of Preparation Time
Get PDFThis paper draws upon research with a group of work-based students studying for a Foundation Degree in Educational Support. It highlights levels of goodwill evident within their day to day planning and preparation and the ad hoc nature of opportunities for teachers and teaching assistants to work together for planning and feedback purposes. This paper will demonstrate evidence that the high workload experienced by teachers may now be experienced by some teaching assistants. Main findings presented are that as teaching assistants’ roles have become more pedagogically focussed, opportunities to plan and prepare with teachers have become essential to their role. However, time for teachers and teaching assistants to plan and prepare together is not a priority. Many teaching assistants increasingly spend their own time planning and preparing to be able to practise effectively. Some evidence here suggests this is expected rather than voluntary and has become part of the ‘culture’ of the teaching assistant profession. Further research is needed to explore this
An Investigation in to whether a correlation exists between an individual\u27s socioeconomic status and levels of dropout from physical activity
Get PDFPhysical activity is essential to an individual’s health, and it is of concern within Northern Ireland that many are not meeting the recommended daily levels of activity laid out by the World Health Organisation (2011). As a result many are not gaining the health benefits that correspond to partaking in physical activity regularly. The issue of socioeconomic status is often discussed in research into physical activity, and it has been suggested that socioeconomic status can affect the sporting participation of an individual. This study was completed in order to determine if a positive correlation exists between a pupil’s socioeconomic status and their levels of dropout from physical activity. The study sample for this investigation included 115 subjects, 58 males and 57 females. The subjects consisted of Primary 6 pupils, aged 9-10 years old. The pupils attend five primary schools across Northern Ireland, in a range of rural and urban environments. A pupil questionnaire was used to collect the data for both variables. Parental occupation was used as a gauge of the average household income which in turn was used to determine socioeconomic status. The pupils were also asked to complete a questionnaire on their current participation in physical activities, and the activities they have dropped out of. The results showed no correlation present between socioeconomic status and dropout from physical activity. It is the aim of the author to highlight the need for equal opportunities to be presented to individuals of all socioeconomic backgrounds in the hope that participation in physical activity will increase, thereby decreasing dropout levels. In turn this will have health benefits as more individuals will be achieving the recommended levels of daily physical activity