Studies in Educational Evaluation最新文献

We examined how teacher support and disciplinary climate may have additional benefits for students from low (or high) socioeconomic status (SES) families in high and low globally competitive economies. Multilevel regression analyses on 184102 students from 6397 schools from diversified globally competitive economies in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) showed that: (a) students in high SES families benefited more in reading in higher than lower globally competitive economies; (b) greater teacher support improved reading in high than low globally competitive economies; (c) teacher support would alleviate the negative impact of low SES on reading; and (d) a positive disciplinary climate enhances reading performance in both high and low globally competitive economies, with SES effects being more pronounced in schools with a positive disciplinary climate, especially in low globally competitive economies. Practical implications, limitations, and future research directions are discussed.

Understanding what students do with the feedback they receive is paramount in the influence of feedback on the learning experience. Likewise, while research recommends peer feedback in classroom settings, understanding what students do with corrective peer feedback is instrumental in studying the impact of peer feedback on students learning. This study explored this understudied aspect of peer feedback through mixed-method research. One hundred fifty participants administered with peer feedback were recruited from 5 universities. After collecting data through questionnaires and interviews, it was analyzed. Results indicate that while corrective peer feedback is overly perceived as effective, students perceive it as an unfair and improper assessment model. Other novel findings were used to make pedagogical conclusions on this topic.

A Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) method, in which some subjects are taught in a foreign language (English), was initiated in Spain in 2005 and has progressively extended to half of public schools. The results have been very positive; however, it has been argued that studying subjects in a foreign language may reduce the educational outcomes of students. This paper evaluates this criticism in the Madrid bilingual program adopting a Propensity Score Matching approach, with the PISA 2015 and 2018 data. The model defines a homogenous student subsample from bilingual and nonbilingual schools in terms of the observable characteristics that may jointly influence both the selection of school type and educational scores. Our results, robust to the sample and unobservable hidden bias, indicate that the Madrid bilingual program, in addition to improving students' English level, does not reduce the skills of subjects taught in English or in Spanish.

With the rise of secondary alternative schools in the Netherlands, such as Montessori and Dalton, research into its effectiveness has become crucial. Alternative schools’ greater focus on autonomy and independence may better equip students with the self-regulated learning (SRL) skills essential for higher education. The aim of this study is to investigate the transition of secondary (alternative) education to higher education. More specifically, former Dalton (N = 184), Montessori (N = 150), and regular (N = 8614) secondary education students are compared on the perceived fit between secondary education and higher education, for example in regard to learning to work together and work alone, and SRL skills in a bootstrapped hierarchical regression. Results show that former Dalton students rate the fit of their secondary education to their higher education significantly better than students who attended regular education. No other significant differences were found when comparing Montessori and regular education students regarding fit, or when comparing both Montessori and Dalton to regular education regarding the SRL skills of students. Alternative explanations regarding the differences between alternative and regular educations are discussed.

Several studies have indicated the presence of a retention effect of admission testing in higher education, but so far little is known about the possible mechanisms behind such an effect. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between admission testing, selected psychological attributes, program performance and early dropout at university for two admission tracks (grade-based admission and test-based admission). Students from five faculties were surveyed at baseline in a prospective cohort study design. Multivariate logistic regression was used to model first-year dropout for 499 students. Results indicated the presence of a retention effect of pre-academic exam self-efficacy (PAE-SE) for the subgroup of students admitted via test-based admission. Implications of the results for research and admission testing practice are discussed.

Previous research suggests that girls get better school marks and are more often recommended for academic school tracks after primary school. Using data from a representative sample of 4529 students who were followed longitudinally between grades 1–4 in Germany, this study adds nuance to this picture. In simple logistic regression models, girls were found to get more favourable teacher ratings in terms of language and written skills and more favourable school track recommendations, while boys got better teacher ratings in terms of nature knowledge and mathematical skills. In models that included control variables (achievement test scores, teacher-rated ability to concentrate, teacher-rated social skills, and teacher-rated personality characteristics), gender gaps shifted to the boys’ advantage, with written skills remaining the only domain with female advantages. Linear growth models showed that in three out of four cases, gender gaps in teacher-rated skills widened over the course of primary school.

In the future world of work, problem-solving skills will continue to be important assets for youths. The present study tested the effectiveness of a 16-week and an additional 5-week project-based learning program designed for improving problem-solving skills. Data were collected from 97 youth (M_age = 23.03), who participated in the program, using three different sources of assessment (i.e., self, peer, rater) and two methods of measurement (i.e., survey questionnaires, task performance). A two-level hierarchical linear model was applied to data. Results from self-reports showed that problem-solving skills increased after 16-week participation, but no extra improvement was found by participating in an additional 5-week booster program. When using peers’ and raters’ reports, the participants’ skills also significantly improved throughout the 16-week program. The implications of the findings on theory are discussed.

This paper explores the power of collaborative peer feedback within doctoral writing groups by examining the effects of the feedback process that was implemented as part of a book project. Using communities of practice as a guiding theoretical framework, we identify that participants discovered how working together helped them foster collegiality, trust, and collective learning. Furthermore, writing group members felt that collaborative peer feedback helped them develop a shared repertoire and understanding of academic writing and publishing. Participants perceived collaborative peer feedback as a way to improve academic writing proficiency, build self-esteem, and foster confidence. Importantly, participants saw the experiential learning process applied in this book project as a way to discover previously tacit understandings or obscure practices in academia. Consequently, the findings of this study demonstrate that collaborative peer feedback within a safe space can foster learning-focused feedback when students are active and reflexive agents in the feedback process.

Psychometrics traditionally has assumed that the changes occurring during learning have the same dimensionality as the targeted construct. This approach is akin to understanding learning as climbing a mountain: for each ability a student can increase their ability, decrease it, or not change it. However, an alternative approach has recently been suggested – learning score analysis. This analysis is grounded in the assumption that students “slide through” the curriculum rather than “climb it”: they forget something to learn something. This approach suggests that positive and negative dynamics can occur at the same time. This suggestion is also supported by the evidence from cognitive psychology that learning and forgetting are separate cognitive processes. Hence, we contrast the traditional approach to conceptualizing growth and change to the alternative approach. We use IRT-based modeling to compare the results from both approaches, and show that the alternative approach provides more insight into learning.

The aim of this study was to explore the impact mechanism of teachers' formative assessment on students' creativity competence. Herein, structural equation modeling (SEM) was utilized to investigate the potential mediating role of self-confidence in learning and intrinsic motivation based on large-scale longitudinal tracking data. The results indicate that, after controlling for pretests of creativity competence, socioeconomic status (SES), and gender, it was found that formative assessment practices have a direct and positive predictive power for creativity competence (the direct effect accounts for 39.4 %). Furthermore, formative assessment practices indirectly and positively predict creativity competence through the mediation of self-confidence in learning (the indirect effect accounts for 10.0 %) and intrinsic motivation (the indirect effect accounts for 50.6 %). We conclude that the main contribution from formative assessment to creativity may be in building an environment that fosters self-confidence in learning and intrinsic motivation.