Praxis Vol:1 No: 1

PraxisThe Journal of Practitioner

Based Research Vol 1 No 1

2011

3Contents

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PraxisThe Journal of Practitioner Based Research Vol 1 No 1

Editor

Graeme Blench

Assistant Principal, (Higher Education) and Director of Teaching and Learning, Sunderland College

Editorial advisory board and reviewers

Dr. Andy Convery

Senior lecturer, University of Sunderland

Dr. Massoud Hajsadr

Lecturer, Sunderland College

Richard Hodgson

Higher Education Quality & Enhancement Officer, Sunderland College

Stuart Laverick

Principal, Worcester College of Technology

Tom Oliphant

Lecturer, Sunderland College

Dr. Penny Rumbold

Senior Research Assistant, Northumbria University

Alistair Thompson

Dean of Business School, Teesside University

Dr. Caroline Walker-Gleaves

Senior Lecturer, Durham University

Rob Whitton

Higher Education Manager, Sunderland College

ContentsArticlesForeword for the journal ‘Praxis’ 4

Dr. Caroline Walker-Gleaves

Enhancing the transition from a Foundation Degree to the third year of an Undergraduate Degree 17

G. Mytton* and P.L.S. Rumbold

Push to Go 32

Allison Hicks and Tom Oliphant

Sophisticated or Simple: Which type of technology enhances learning experience? 46

Massoud Hajsadr

Helping Experienced Teacher Trainers to Improve Their Practice: A Case Study of a Mentoring Partnership 72

Andy Convery and Steven Fletcher

5Is there a place for caring teaching in education?

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Is there a place for caring teaching in education?Caroline Walker, Durham University

Alan Gleaves, Durham University

Abstract

The importance attached to student feedback within programmes of study has always been an important issue for lecturers and academics and the institutions in which they work. However, standardized national ratings scales that claim to evaluate the quality of the student experience are contemporary phenomena within post compulsory education. Central to conceptualizations of ‘quality teaching and student experience’ appear to be the notion of ‘care’, and how this appears to characterize either the ability of particular academics to create effective learning environments or their seeming ability to teach and respond in ways that students apparently value and desire. This paper discusses diverse definitions of care and asks whether there is a place for it in contemporary post compulsory education.

Introduction

Expert teachers and their teaching matter: through the way that such teachers speak to students, the questioning strategies that they adopt, the level of expectation and aspiration that they engender, the way that their classes are organized, such teachers appear to make a difference (Hattie, 2003; Skelton, 2007). Tsui (2009) suggests that the critical differences between expert and non-expert teachers are manifested in three dimensions: their ability to integrate aspects of teacher knowledge in relation to the teaching act; their response to their contexts of work; and their ability to engage in reflection and conscious deliberation. Nevertheless, the studies concerning ‘expert teachers’ across all sectors of education are beset by contention and controversy. On the basis of what and who should define the nature of ‘expertise’, and in addition, whether or not ‘excellent’ teaching is a subset of ‘expert’ teaching (Welker, 1991; Pollard and Tomlin 1995; Skelton, 2005), the field of qualitative assessment of teaching quality is intensely problematic.

In spite of this however, the literature on both ‘expert’ and ‘excellent’ teachers suggests that teachers classified as ‘expert’ and ‘excellent’ exhibit a bounded array of practices and behaviours an important core of which is characterized by students as ‘caring’ (Agne, 1992; Hattie, 2003; Sawatzky et al, 2009).

Foreword for the journal ‘Praxis’Dr. Caroline Walker-Gleaves, Senior Lecturer in Special Education and Inclusion, School of Education, Durham UniversityI am thrilled and honoured to be introducing this new journal ‘Praxis’. Creating a new journal and finding a place for it in the hearts and minds of practitioners is a very difficult thing to do, especially when there is so much dispersed knowledge, whether on the web, within communities of practice, or within classrooms. This journal sits at the heart of making sense of ‘dispersed knowledge’ and has as its aim the effort to create meaning from the constant dialogue that is theory and practice, or ‘praxis’. The effort to create meaning out of practice, wherever and whenever it occurs, faces all practitioners. It is a constant process of using immediate, specific pieces of learning and teaching, and finding a place within other, dispersed knowledge and parts of theory, in order to create meaningful practice. I am very hopeful that this new journal will reveal the nature of ‘praxis’ and offer practitioners an insightful path to understanding their students as well as their own practices and workplaces.


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The historical and philosophical basis of care in education

According to Fine (2007), the origins of the work ‘care’ illustrate its complex and contested use in modern society. In Greek, the etymological root of the word ‘care’, ‘charis’, was used to signify grace or favour. The Greek work ‘charitas’ signified that someone or something was of grace or kindness. The Latin term ‘caritas’ is a derivation of the Greek word ‘charitas’ and is commonly translated as love or charity. The conflation of the word ‘care’ to the Latin ‘caritas’ was probably due to the Roman Catholic Church (Reich, 1995) who fostered the relationship between faith, hope and charity and privileged them as the tenets of the Christian faith.

According to Reich, the Latin word for care is ‘cura’, and it was used in literature in opposing ways, but ones that give a clue to the dichotomy that care presents in modern society. For example, cura was used as an adjective to denote the weight of a mission or activity; it was used as a noun to describe a responsibility that weighed heavily on people; and finally, it was used as a noun to mean a liberating force that enabled people to be empowered to their fullest possibility, a use of the word particularly common in the writings of Seneca. In other words, it presented many of the contradictions that are so evident in current debates on its place in education and society.

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED, 2009) meaning sheds further light on care’s etymology. The OED attributes care’s origins to Old English words – the noun ‘caru’ meaning ‘ a worry or a care’; and a verb ‘carian’ that meant to trouble oneself. In sum, to care meant ‘to worry over or about’. Even these meanings have not remained static however, and as with almost all linguistic conventions, have changed to reflect society’s concerns and norms. Consequently, the trajectory of meaning assigned to ‘care’ altered in Victorian times, in which ‘care’ referred to the constant monitoring of the sick to prevent the spread of disease to the general population. In this sense, the personal meaning of caring as being troubled by expanded to cover a universal solicitousness.

These diverse historical trajectories stand behind many of the structures that are evident both in the way that teachers organize their work and institutions plan their curricula, but as we shall show, the underlying philosophies are in increasing tension with the financial and other constraints that education increasingly suffers in the 21st century.

As Isenbarger & Zembylas (2006) point out, in the way that these teachers worry both about the prospects of students who do not achieve and those who do, from caring about standards of work to grade profiles of their students, from being concerned to maximise time spent in scaffolding of particular concepts rather than others, through to creating particular classroom climates, caring teaching manifests itself as mattering about a diverse range of issues, incidents and individuals. Students value such teachers for their caring teaching: to them, it is teaching that is experienced as that which goes to any lengths to ensure that they learn (Duffy, 2005; Larson, 2006). By extension therefore, a caring teacher must be defined as one who is motivated to do all that it is possible to do to maximise a students chance of success (Fjortoft, 2004; Walker et al, 2006).

So caring evidently matters. Even so, the literature suggests strongly that it is unclear just what experienced and specific dispositions and actions are interpreted as caring rather than other types of affect, such as trust, or kindness, or love. Related directly to that, there are conceptual gaps in understanding whether the perceived caring on the part of the student is always accompanied by intended caring on the part of the teacher. Indeed, there are few studies of caring teachers and their teaching that are based concretely on evidence either from the classrooms of the perceived ‘caring’ teachers, or the testimonies of ‘caring’ teachers themselves, and especially so within the context of teaching in post compulsory education. Indeed, precise descriptions and theorizations of possible links between teaching, affective outcomes and learning progress are sparse (see for example in this precise respect, the exceptional work of Ladson-Billings (1995), Thayer-Bacon & Bacon (1996), and Goldstein (1999)).

This paper attempts to define what caring teaching means and how it is translated into pedagogic principle; three threads of literature are examined: the historical and philosophical basis of care; pedagogical meanings and purposes of care; and finally, the intersection of professional standards and institutional aims concerning care. Conclusions are drawn concerning the place of pedagogic caring in contemporary education.


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But it is in higher education that the meaning and practice of care and caring is most puzzling and intractable: Thayer-Bacon & Bacon (1996) and Weston & McAlpine (1998) both argue for example that caring academics can and do make a difference to students’ learning and lives in a very profound way. However, there is scant research to confirm this, and to complicate matters, some research maintains that caring is simply a disposition and that as a personal quality it plays a confusing and confused role in teaching in higher education (Macfarlane, 2004), apart from in those circumstances where an academic is a social or virtuous role model (Fenwick, 2006).

What is evident already is that caring is often seen as a form of positive and wholly beneficial relational social justice. From national reports and strategy documents (for example DfEE, 2001; DfES, 2002, 2003, 2007; DfE 2010; Ofsted, 2003; SENDA, 2001; Equality Act, 2010) most reform initiatives continue to be predicated on the belief that teaching needs not only to be predicated upon a ‘caring’ and responsible relation to pupils and students and all those who teachers encounter, but that this is embedded within an overt goal of social justice and consequent societal reform (Poplin & Rivera, 2005).

The intersection of professional standards and institutional aims concerning care

This complex weaving of caring teaching as societal preparation, achievement, and moral and spiritual growth is explicit in the curriculum for the preparation of schoolteachers within the UK.

In the UK, teachers have legal responsibilities in the area of their duty of care to pupils arising out of three sources (NUT, 2005) that must be evidenced in practice and adhered to before the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) by the relevant Secretary of State and subsequently maintained throughout Professional Practice, under the aegis of the General Teaching Council for England (GTC). These three sources of care arising out of law are:

1) The common law duty of care;

2) The statutory duty of care; and

3) The duty of care arising from the contract of employment.

In the first case, civil law has evolved the concept of ‘in loco parentis’ and in any occurring legal action a judge may use precedent casework to assess whether a teacher has acted, as would a reasonably prudent parent. In the second case, The Children Act 1989 section 3(5), defines the duty of care to the effect that a person with care of a child may do all that is reasonable in the circumstances for the purposes of safeguarding or promoting the welfare of the child.

Pedagogical meanings and purposes of care

Care and caring have deep roots in education. As a matter of social relations in wider society, care has existed comfortably side-by-side values of compassion and social responsibility over the past 100 years. However, since the late twentieth century the world has arguably become increasingly led by the pursuit of profit and self-interest, concepts that are perhaps discordant with the nature and actions of care (Sennett, 1998; Fine, 2007). Nel Noddings (2002, 2003) asserts that this is a deeply troubling situation for education exacerbated by the frequently repeated mantra that education’s main aim is to maintain a nation’s economic health, as illustrated by the increasing numbers of qualifications having explicit skills and employability outcomes (Knight & Yorke, 2003). Nevertheless, there are dissenting voices. Noddings (2003) herself writes: ‘there is more to individual life and the life of a nation than economic superiority’ (p. 84), and later on, ‘to be happy, children must learn to exercise virtues in ways that help to maintain positive relations with others, especially with those others who share the aim of establishing caring relations’ (p. 160). Noddings cites teachers as playing a major role, perhaps the major role, in doing this.

The importance of caring in teaching is well documented in the literature. It appears as a central factor in almost all studies of excellent and outstanding teachers and teaching and academic work, and across all educational sectors, some rather more than others. In Early Years Education, caring is associated with high levels of attachment and nurture (Freeman & Swick, 2004). At the compulsory schooling level, many studies confirm that teachers express an overwhelming desire to care for pupils and enact caring pedagogies, on the basis that such teaching will benefit their pupils in a multiplicity of ways: cognitively, socially, affectively, physically, and morally (Wentzel, 1997; Monzo & Rueda, 2001; Larson & Silverman, 2005). In post compulsory education and training, studies attest to the power of caring and compassion and emotional recognition of non-traditional ‘learners’ stories’ (Avis & Bathmaker, 2004; Jephcote et al, 2008; Robson & Bailey, 2009), stressing the life histories of learners and suggesting that marginalized adult learners need ‘different’ sorts of pedagogies, ones that are more relational and responsive, and perhaps less theorizable, that Fenwick (2006) has termed ‘poorer pedagogies’.


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Fitzmaurice (2008) asserts that the moral basis of higher education is its attention to justice, goodness and integrity, whilst Barnett & Coate (2005) suggest that academics’ practice should be predicated upon common and shared agreements as to the universality of ‘good teaching’.

These fluidities and complexities are reflected in ‘The UK Professional Standards Framework for teaching and supporting learning in higher education’ (HEA, 2009). Currently however, notwithstanding the application of these standards across the whole of the sector, the Professional Standards have no statutory power and indeed have become the subject of deep cynicism and resistance within many universities (for example Kolsaker, 2008). However, although the standards are presented as descriptors to fit alongside the institutional aims and values, examining the descriptors in the light of the focus of this thesis, caring, tells us that the Core Professional Values should be applied to the practices of individual academics, not in any consistent sense, but as guiding principles. These Core Values are:

1) Respect for individual learners

2) Commitment to incorporating the process and outcomes of relevant research, scholarship and/or professional practice

3) Commitment to development of learning communities

4) Commitment to encouraging participation in higher education, acknowledging diversity and promoting equality of opportunity

5) Commitment to continuing professional development and evaluation of practice

Arguably, the need for establishing standards of professional behaviour that are constantly fluid and responsive has led to ambiguity and vagueness at the level of the academic, who ironically, is the point of contact with the ‘market’ – that is, the students. In an age when it has been suggested that UK universities need to ‘codify’ their obligations to these students as well as having the public’s expectations made transparent, it has been suggested that we need something of a Hippocratic Oath (Ashby (1969); Watson (2007)).

In the third case, care is defined as the process of carrying out the professional duties of a schoolteacher as circumstances may require under the reasonable direction of the head teacher of that school.

An examination of the professional standards in the Post-Compulsory Education and Training (or Further Education) Sector of the UK Institute for Learning (IFL, 2010) provides a contrast in the way that teachers and other professionals are expected to work and behave in relation to care. Whilst currently having no statutory basis then, the values and mission encoded in the IFL Code of Professional Practice are listed as six areas of ‘behaviour’ that practitioners are expected to ‘know’ as follows:

• Integrity

• Respect

• Care

• Practice

• Disclosure

• Responsibility

However, in the expansion of these in the more detailed code, there is little explicit recognition of the individual relational behaviour of a professional toward a student within this code, any professional obligation only making reference to external ethical and statutory structures, such as the importance of anti-oppressive practices and acting in accordance with anti-discriminatory legislation.

The changes in funding in the further education sector have been keenly felt as pressures on the quality of relationship between students and lecturers at an individual level (Avis & Bathmaker, 2004). However, the relative cushioning of academics within higher education from issues of recruitment and retention until relatively recently, has led to quite a different trajectory in terms of the development of the academic’s role in the ‘student learning experience’ (McWilliam, 2007).

During the last 50 years higher education in the UK has expanded and diversified, and as a result, it has gone through a series of complex changes which are affecting its organization structure, its traditional practices and the moral bases on which it has stood (Nixon et al, 2001). Whilst it is well documented elsewhere (see for example Nixon et al, 2001) there is consensus amongst the literature that it is the market and the business of learning which have become the dominant discourses, and that in this context, ‘the actual practice of education becomes detached from a moral perspective’ (Pring, 2001, p. 102).


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ReferencesAgne, K. J. (1992) Caring: The Expert Teacher’s Edge. Educational Horizons, 70 (3), 120-124.

Ashby, E. (1969) A Hippocratic Oath For The Academic profession. Minerva, 8(1), 64-66.

Avis, J. & Bathmaker, A-M. (2004) The Politics Of Care - Emotional Labour And Trainee FE Lecturers. Journal Of Vocational Education And Training, 56(1), 5-19.

Barnett, R. & Coate, K. (2005) Engaging The Curriculum In Higher Education. Buckingham: SRHE/OUP.

Carnell, E. (2007) Conceptions of Effective Teaching In Higher Education: Extending the Boundaries. Teaching in Higher Education, 12(1), 25-40.

DfE (Department for Education) (2010) The Importance of Teaching: Schools White Paper. Sudbury/Suffolk: HMSO.

DfEE (Department For Education And Employment) (2001) Green Paper ‘Schools: Building On Success’. Sudbury/Suffolk: HMSO.

DfES (Department For Education And Skills) (2002) Green Paper ‘14–19: Opportunity And Excellence’. Sudbury/Suffolk: HMSO.

DfES (Department For Education And Skills) (2003) Green Paper ‘Every Child Matters: Change For Children’. Sudbury/Suffolk: HMSO.

DfES (Department For Education And Skills) (2007) White Paper ‘Care Matters: Transforming The Lives Of Children And Young People In Care’. Norwich: HMSO.

Duffy, J. (2005) Want to Graduate Nurses Who Care? Assessing Nursing Students’ Caring Competencies. Annual Review of Nursing, 3(1), 73-97.

Equality Act (2010) Accessed at: http://www.equalities.gov.uk/equality_act_2010.aspx, May 10th 2011.

Fenwick, T. (2006) The Audacity Of Hope: Towards Poorer Pedagogies. Studies In The Education Of Adults, 38(1), 9-24.

Fine, M.D. (2007) A Caring Society? London: Palgrave.

Fjortoft, N. (2004) Caring Pharmacists, Caring Teachers. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 68 (1), 1-2

Concluding thoughts

Noddings (1984) argues that teachers and academics should not define happiness for their students, and not pursue particular virtues or values as ends other than to care for others and for them to acknowledge that caring. Noddings is careful to point out though, that it is not the explicit practice of the act of caring that makes it so central to teaching – this, she argues, is a form of narcissism - it is its situated-ness, what she terms ‘response-ability’, that elevates care into a virtuous and authentic relational interaction. However, personal experiences of relationships, no matter that they may be in the context of teaching and learning, are often positioned as indulgences on the basis that they do not and should not impact on what is learned and how it is learned within the higher education classroom and collapse ultimately into what many educationalists have called a ‘therapeutic discourse’.

Indeed, such a notion of a ‘caring’ academic demonstrates a common fallacy about caring’s place and power in the cognitive sense, and it is arguable that were there more evidence within the post compulsory education context to demonstrate that caring encounters improve motivation and academic achievement, then caring pedagogies might become more culturally acceptable. However, as Carnell (2007) points out, there are so many demands on teachers’ time and a proliferation in the responsibilities that they are expected to carry, choosing to care might seem like a perplexing choice to make.


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Monzo, L.D. & Rueda, R.S. (2001) Professional Roles, Caring, And Scaffolds: Latino Teachers’ And Paraeducators’ Interactions With Latino Students. American Journal Of Education, 109(4),

Nixon, J., Marks, A., Rowland, S., & Walker, M. (2001) Towards A New Academic Professionalism: A Manifesto Of Hope. British Journal Of Sociology Of Education, 22(2), 229-244.

Noddings, N. (2002) Educating Moral People. New York: Teachers College Press.

Noddings, N. (2003) Happiness And Education. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Noddings, N. (1984) Caring: A Feminist Approach To Ethics And Moral Education. Berkeley, CA: University Of California Press.

NUT (National Union of Teachers) (2005) Education, The Law And You. www.teachers.org.uk. Accessed May 16th, 2007.

Ofsted (Office For Standards In Education) (2003) Teachers’ Early Professional Development: E-Publication. Www.Ofsted.Gov.Uk, Accessed December 19th, 2006.

OED (2009) Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Pollard, R., & Tomlin, M. (1995) The Use Of Expert Teachers To Improve Education. Education, 116(1), 3-9.

Poplin, M., & Rivera, J. (2005) Merging Social Justice And Accountability: Educating Qualified And Effective Teachers. Theory Into Practice, 44(1), 27–37.

Pring, R. (2001) Education As A Moral Practice. Journal of Moral Education, 30(2), 101-112.

Reich, W.T. (1995) ‘History Of The Notion Of Care’. In W.T. Reich (Ed) Encyclopedia Of Bioethics (Revised Edition). New York: Simon And Schuster, 319-331.

Robson, J. & Bailey, B. (2009) ‘Bowing From The Heart’: An Investigation Into Discourses Of Professionalism And The Work Of Caring For Students In Further Education. British Educational Research Journal, 35(1), 99-117.

Sawatzky, J. V., Enns, C., Ashcroft, T.J., Davis, P.L. & Harder, B.N. (2009) Teaching Excellence In Nursing Education: A Caring Framework. Journal of Professional Nursing, 25(5), 260-266.

Freeman, N.K. & Swick, K.J. (2004) Preservice Interns Implement Service-Learning: Helping Young Children Reach Out to Their Community. Early Childhood Education Journal, 31(2), 107-112.

Goldstein, L. (1999) The Relational Zone: The Role Of Caring In The Co-Construction Of Mind. American Educational Research Journal, 36(3), 647-673.

Hattie, J. (2003) Teachers Make A Difference: Distinguishing Expert Teachers From Novice And Experienced Teachers. Paper Presented At The Australian Council For Educational Research, University Of Auckland, October 2003.

HEA (Higher Education Academy) (2009) National Professional Standards Framework For Teaching And Supporting Learning In Higher Education. Www.Heacademy.Ac.Uk, Accessed January 2nd, 2009.

IfL (Institute for Learning) (2010) Accessed at: http://www.ifl.ac.uk/, May 2nd 2011.

Isenbarger, L., Zembylas, M. (2006) The Emotional Labour Of Caring In Teaching. Teaching and Teaching Education, 22(1), 120-314.

Jephcote, M., Salisbury, J., & Rees, G. (2008) Being A Teacher In Further Education In Changing Times. Research In Post Compulsory Education, 13(2), 163-172.

Knight, P. & Yorke, M. (2003) Learning, Curriculum and Employability In Higher Education. London: Routledge.

Kolsaker, A. (2008) Academic Professionalism In The Managerialist Era: A Study Of English Watson, D. (2007) Does Higher Education Need a Hippocratic Oath? Higher Education Quarterly, 61(3), 362-374.

Ladson-Billings, G. (1995) Toward A Theory Of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy. American Educational Research Journal, 32(3), 465-491.

Larson, A. (2006) Student Perception Of Caring Teaching In Physical Education. Sport, Education and Society, 11(4), 337-352.

Larson, A. & Silverman, S.J. (2005) Rationales And Practices Used By Caring Physical Education Teachers. Sport, Education And Society, 10(2), 175-193.

Macfarlane, B. (2004) Teaching With Integrity. London: RoutledgeFalmer.

McWilliam, E. (2007) Managing ‘Nearly Reasonable’ Risk In The Contemporary University. Studies In Higher Education, 32(3), 311-321.

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Article in press:Mytton,G. Rumbold,P.(2011) Enhancing the transition from a Foundation Degree to the third year of an Undergraduate Degree. Innovations in Education & Teaching International, 48(3).

Enhancing the transition from a Foundation Degree to the third year of an Undergraduate DegreeG. Mytton* and P.L.S. Rumbolda) Sports Science Department, Sunderland College,

Sunderland, United Kingdom;

b) School of Life Sciences, Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom.

*Corresponding author. Email: [email protected]

Graham Mytton is Programme Leader for Exercise, Health and Fitness and Sports Coaching Foundation Degrees in the HE Sport Department at The Sunderland College, Sunderland. His research interests include physiological fatigue during continuous aerobic exercise and secondary research in the development of evidence based practice in Higher Education Teaching.

Dr Penny Rumbold is a Senior Research Assistant in the School of Life Sciences, Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences at Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne. Her main research interests include energy intake and appetite responses following sport-specific exercise in free-living adolescent populations and secondary research in the development of evidence based practice in Higher Education Teaching.

Enhancing the transition from a Foundation Degree to the third year of an Undergraduate Degree

One-day, transition to university workshops have been successful in enhancing peer networks. This study aimed to influence the transition from a Foundation Degree to a third year Undergraduate Degree programme through the use of peer led workshops. Two 2-hour workshops were planned and delivered by five previous students of the Foundation Degree, all of whom were completing their third year of an Undergraduate Degree.

Sennett, R. (1998) The Corrosion Of Character. New York: Norton.

Skelton, A. (2007) International Perspectives On Teaching Excellence In Higher Education. London: Routledge.

Skelton, A. (2005) Understanding Teaching Excellence In Higher Education. London: Routledge.

Thayer-Bacon, B. & Bacon, C.S. (1996) Caring Professors: A Model. The Journal of General Education, 45(4), 255-56.

Tsui, A. B. M. (2009) Distinctive Qualities of Expert Teachers. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 15(4), 421-439.

Walker, C., Gleaves, A. & Grey, J. (2006) A Study Of The Difficulties Of Care And Support In New University Teachers’ Work. Teachers And Teaching: Theory And Practice, 12(3), 347-363.

Welker, R. (1991) Expertise And The Teacher As Expert: Rethinking A Questionable Metaphor. American Educational Research Journal, 28(1), 19-35.

Wentzel, K.R. (1997) Student Motivation In Middle School: The Role Of Perceived Pedagogical Caring. Journal Of Educational Psychology, 89(3), 411-419.

Weston, C. & McAlpine, L. (1998) How six outstanding mathematics professors view teaching and learning: The importance of caring. International Journal of Academic Development, 3(2), 146-155.


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Two techniques can be employed to quantitatively measure subjective parameters. These include visual analogue scales (VAS), which are continuous scales and Likert scales, which take the form of fixed-point scales. Parker et al. (2006) used Likert scales to explore emotions (intrapersonal abilities, interpersonal abilities, adaptability and stress management abilities) of students during the transition between high school and university. The use of VAS to assess subjective experiences quantitatively however is more appropriate compared to the use of Likert scales. The result of a VAS is dependent on the individual’s unique interpretation of the question and also their current knowledge and experience of the area being studied (Wewers & Lowe, 1990). The numerical values derived from VAS have properties of a ratio scale rather than an interval scale (Price et al. 1983), thus warranting parametric analysis. Visual analogue scales have been used successfully in various other research domains such as pain (Keet, Gray, Harley & Lambert, 2007), mood (Scholey et al. 2009) and appetite (Gilbert, Drapeau, Astrup & Tremblay, 2009) to explore subjective experiences quantitatively. Consequently, subjective parameters regarding the transition between educational institutions can be explored and analysed quantitatively in a statistically robust manner using VAS.

Another area which has gained attention with regards to Higher Education settings is the effectiveness of peer tuition (Topping, 1996). Peer tuition, guidance and advice have been shown to increase understanding and enjoyment which consequently impacts on student learning (Topping, 1996). Peer tutoring has been employed in both a subject specific manner (Evans, Flower & Holton, 2001; Xu, Hartman, Uribe & Mencke, 2001) and using a general advice and guidance concept (Yuen Loke & Chow, 2007). Yuen Loke and Chow (2007) identified two key findings, firstly peer tutoring led to enhanced subject knowledge, learning of skills and intellectual gains in nursing students. Secondly, the tutors leading the sessions stated that their own personal development had been improved, more specifically for those with aspirations in the education sector they felt they were given an opportunity to experience teaching in an appropriate setting. These findings clearly emphasise the importance of peer tutoring for both the student tutees and indeed the tutors. Thus it seems that students who have successfully made educational transitions would provide the most effective peer tutoring due to their enhanced subject knowledge as demonstrated by Yuen Locke and Chow (2007).

The direct relationship between peer tuition and the transition to university from other educational institutes has not been explored extensively. Peat et al. (2000) have used one-day peer led workshops held on a weekend before the start of the first semester to enhance the transition to university for first year students. These talks took place on the university premises, where students were segregated into their respective degree routes (60-100 students per group).

The workshops were delivered to 19 current Foundation Degree students. Visual analogue scales exploring students feelings and knowledge of the third year were administered prior to the first workshop, immediately after the second workshop and 3 months following the second workshop. Quantitative analyses found that the peer led workshops enhanced learners knowledge regarding course options, the third year project, module options and location of the universities sports science department. There was also a feeling of increased apprehensiveness following the peer led workshops. The transition from a Foundation Degree to the third year of an Undergraduate Degree can be enhanced by the delivery of two 2-hour peer led knowledge transfer workshops as part of Foundation Degree programmes.

Keywords: transition; peer; foundation degree; undergraduate degree

Introduction

In England, Foundation Degree programmes are the equivalent to the first two years of an honours degree and are therefore recognised as a university level qualification. Typically, Foundation Degrees are delivered by Further Education colleges and following completion, students are provided with the opportunity to ‘top up’ their qualification to an honours degree at a partner university. Despite this ‘top up’ year being an important progression and structured pathway for students to take to obtain an honours degree, to our knowledge there are no data exploring the transition from Foundation Degree programmes to Undergraduate Degree programmes at universities. Extensive research has been conducted into the transition from school to university (Christie, 2009; Christie, Munro & Wager, 2005; Nardi, 2001; Neumark & Rothstein, 2006; Parker, Hogan, Eastabrook, Oke & Wood, 2006; Parker, Summerfeldt, Hogan & Majeski, 2004; Reay, 2002). The majority of these studies have typically explored student experiences and emotions, such as intrapersonal abilities, interpersonal abilities, adaptability, emotional intelligence and stress management abilities, with regards to the transition from school to university (Christie, 2009; Parker et al. 2006; Parker et al. 2004). There are no data however exploring the influence of knowledge transfer on the transition between educational institutions.

Qualitative research methods such as case studies (Nardi, 2001), longitudinal surveys (Neumark & Rothstein, 2006) and interviews (Christie, 2009; Christie et al. 2005; Reay, 2002) have been the most frequent data collection methods used to explore educational transitional experiences of students. However, one study employed a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods (Peat, Dalziel & Grant, 2000), whilst a study by Parker et al. (2006) has exclusively used quantitative research methods to explore the emotional transition from high school to university.


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Workshop intervention

Two 2-hour workshops were planned and delivered by five previous students of the Foundation Degree courses, all of whom were currently studying to top up their qualification to a BSc (Hons) in Sport and Exercise Development. The first workshop was designed around the topic of the third year project, a 40 credit individual research project. The second workshop was designed around more general information on the top-up year including module choices, teaching staff and extracurricular activities. The two workshops were delivered on consecutive weeks as part of the normal timetable of lessons. Delivering students were asked to make their workshops interactive and keep at least 20 minutes at the end of the workshop to answer questions from the current second year Foundation Degree students attending the workshops.

Data collection

The 100mm VAS (provided in appendix 1) were designed to assess current students feelings about, and knowledge of, the third year top-up process. The VAS required students to respond to 10 questions anchored by completely agree (100 mm) to completely disagree (0 mm) regarding application decision, course options, module options, location of the universities sports science department, the third year project, feelings of excitement, how daunted or apprehensive they felt, feelings of confidence, the relevance of the workshops and whether the workshops should be repeated the following year. The students were required to mark a vertical line on the VAS to correspond with what they were subjectively feeling at the time the VAS were administered. The VAS were administered to the students prior to the first workshop (PRE), immediately after the second workshop (POST) and at 3 months after the second workshop (3M). The VAS scale was employed as it allows for parametric statistical tests to be used in the data analysis stage.

Data analysis

For each of the 10 VAS questions for the PRE, POST and 3M time points the mean (±SD) was calculated and entered into SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences v16, IL, USA) for analysis. A one-way ANOVA with repeated measures (PRE, POST, 3M) was conducted on each VAS and when a significant difference was identified a Post Hoc analysis in the form of a Bonferroni adjustment was employed. For all one-way repeated measures ANOVA a Mauchly’s sphericity test was conducted and the Greenhouse-Geisser correction was applied if the assumption of sphericity had been violated. The significance level was set at p<0.05.

Features which were covered in the talks included the creation of peer groups, exchange of contact details by students, university guided tours and also a question and answer element. It was reported that the workshops facilitated the formation of social networks and peer groups, reducing anxiety, depression and loneliness levels and thus enhancing the transitional experience to university (Peat et al. 2000). The Student Transition and Retention survey by Cook, Rushton and Macintosh (2006) identified that attention needs to be focussed on open days to inform students opinion of Higher Education. Firstly, such research needs to be extended to explore whether similar favourable findings regarding the transition to university are identified when peer led workshops are conducted away from university premises. Secondly, the inclusion of peer led workshops may be more widely accepted in educational institutions if the workshops are shorter in duration (i.e. less than one day) and are included as part of the specific course or module as opposed to being offered on an extra-curricular basis.

The purpose of the present study therefore was to quantitatively explore if the transition from Foundation Degree programmes to an Undergraduate BSc (Hons) programme in Sport and Exercise Development is enhanced following the introduction of two 2-hour peer led workshops.

Method

Participants

Nineteen students were recruited from the Foundation Degree in Sports Coaching or the Foundation Degree in Exercise, Health & Fitness based at a North-East Further Education College. These courses are 2-year full time Foundation Degree routes and help fulfil the college strategy aim to reach out in the region to widen participation at a local level using a short cycle sub-degree offer. All students were in the second year of their Foundation Degree course and were at the time considering applying to top up their qualification to a full degree. The personal characteristics of the participant group are provided (table 1). Fourteen students arrived on the course directly from studying full time at Level 3 having achieved at least 120 UCAS points. There were five mature learners (over 21 years old at the start of the Foundation Degree) whose pathways onto the course were varied but all included a recreational level of participation in sport or exercise. Sixteen of the participants were drawn from the local area where participation in full time Higher Education is well below average at 9.2% for 18-30 year olds.


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However, the standard deviation values suggest some narrowing variation in feelings of confidence. Similarly, feelings of excitement about the third year was high and although a significance was identified (F(2,20)=3.658, p=0.04) the effect was lost after post hoc analyses had been conducted (p=0.98). The standard deviation however does suggest some increasing variation in excitement.

Quality control

In the POST and 3M questionnaires the students indicated that the workshops were relevant (the VAS mean and standard deviation was 88±18mm) and that they should be repeated for the following year’s cohorts (89±18mm).

Discussion

The main finding of this study was that the peer led workshops positively influenced the transition from a Foundation Degree programme to an Undergraduate BSc (Hons) programmes in Sport and Exercise Development. It was identified that students felt they had increased knowledge regarding parameters such as course options, the third year project, module options and the location of the universities sports science department. Interestingly, the students also felt more apprehensive about the prospect of going to university. However the students expressed that the peer led workshop interventions were relevant and useful and strongly identified that they should be repeated for the next cohort of second year Foundation Degree students. In addition, this increase in apprehensiveness did not reduce the students intentions to apply for the third year Undergraduate Degree programme in Sport and Exercise Development.

Affected variables

The peer led workshops had an immediate and sustained increase in students knowledge about course options and understanding regarding the third year project. Such a strong effect may have been a result of one of the 2-hour workshops being dedicated solely to information regarding course options and the third year project. With regards to knowledge about course options, Christie (2009) identified that student choice processes in Higher Education were underpinned by deep-seated worries of the market and the prospect of spending their lives in ‘dead-end’ jobs. This finding illustrated the importance of Higher Education for students with regards to financial success. It may be the case that immediately following the peer led workshops the Foundation Degree students recognised the potential impact their course choice could have on career pathways and thus financial success.

Results

Affected variables

Mean (±) SD agreement ratings over time, for knowledge about course options, module options, location of the sports science department, understanding of the third year project and feelings of apprehension are provided (table 2).

The students felt that their knowledge about the course options (F(2,20)=11.58, p<0.001) and module options (F(2,20)=15.050, p<0.001) had significantly increased after the workshop intervention. Specifically, for knowledge about course options there was a significant increase between PRE and POST workshop ratings (p<0.001) and between POST workshop and 3M ratings (p=0.032). For knowledge about module options there was a significant increase between PRE workshop and 3M ratings (p<0.001).

The students also felt that their knowledge regarding the location of the university’s sports science department had significantly increased following the workshop intervention (F(2,20)=5.323, p=0.014), in particular between PRE workshop and 3M ratings (p=0.045).

There was a significant increase in understanding about the requirements of the third year project (F(2,20)=13.688, p<0.001), in particular between PRE workshop and POST workshop ratings (p=0.048) and between PRE workshop and 3M ratings (p=0.001).

When asked if the students were apprehensive about the prospect of going to university to complete their Undergraduate Degree, feelings of apprehension significantly increased over time (F(2,20)=3.736, p=0.042). This significant increase was found between PRE workshop and 3M ratings (p=0.030).

Unchanged variables

Mean (±SD) agreement ratings over time, for application decision, feelings of excitement and feelings of confidence are provided (table 3).

The workshop intervention had no effect on students intentions to apply for the third year (F(2,20)=0.890, p=0.426) or how confident they were feeling (F(2,20)=0.019, p=0.981).


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The increase in knowledge regarding module options three months following the peer led workshops may be explained by the work of Peat et al. (2000). The cited authors identified that following a one-day peer led, transition to university workshop, students felt they developed realistic expectations of the demands of university life which eased the transition process. Therefore, as the start date of the Undergraduate Degree programme drew closer, in the present study, it may have been the case that the information regarding module choices had been given some thought and that the students were coming to terms with the expected workload as an undergraduate student at university.

In addition, the finding that knowledge concerning the location of the universities sports science department increased three months following the peer led workshops is also in line with the findings of Peat et al. (2000), whereby 13 students felt that they could find their way around the university campus more easily, (geographic orientation to university life) following a one-day peer led transition to university workshop. It seems that if peer led university transition workshop include information regarding the location of facilities then the knowledge base for transitional students was successfully enhanced and thus beneficial for the students.

Students felt more apprehensive three months following the peer led workshops which was an unexpected but interesting finding. It may have been the case that prior to the workshops and immediately after, the students had not thought too much about the inevitable move to university to complete their Undergraduate Degree (Christie, 2009). It seems the realisation of being daunted about going to university occurred three months after the delivery of the workshops, as the university start date drew nearer. In absence of any evidence in the present study that students were dissuaded from going to university following the peer led workshops (demonstrated by no change concerning application intention), this finding was interpreted in a positive manner. Parker et al. (2006) explored the relationship between emotional intelligence and academic retention in high-school students making the transition to university. The findings of the present study can therefore be linked to this notion, whereby adding knowledge allows the development of emotional intelligence over time regarding the transition from a Foundation Degree to an Undergraduate Degree programme at university. This time period may encourage students to acknowledge the full requirements of a university degree programme before they arrive and thus be better prepared.

Indeed, understanding with regards to course options continued to increase when asked about this variable at the three month time point, possibly suggesting that after the importance of their choice had been recognised the students took it upon themselves to research this topic further to make an informed decision.

The immediate and sustained increase in students understanding of the third year project may stem from the emphasis put on this topic during the workshops. In addition, in comparison to other modules as part of Undergraduate Degree programmes the third year project is the only 40 credit module, whereas other modules are typically 20 credits or 10 credits, thus adding extra emphasis of its importance for undergraduate students.

In a similar study to the present, Peat et al. (2000) identified that following a one-day peer led workshop, students felt they developed realistic expectations of the demands of university life which eased the transition process. This may have been the case in the present study since immediately after the peer led workshops the students felt they had more understanding with regards to the third year project. This understanding continued to increase when students were asked about this variable after three months, just before they were due to start the third year of their Undergraduate Degree. Firstly, in the short-term this suggests that the workshops in the present study immediately contributed to the increased understanding simply because the students attended them. In the long-term, it suggests some independent research on the students part, whereby during the three month period immediately following the workshops before they started university, the students took it upon themselves to explore potential third year research topics.

Interestingly, unlike the responses for course options and the third year project, responses regarding module options, location of the university sports facilities and feelings of apprehensiveness had not increased immediately after the peer led workshops but had increased when sampled at the three month follow up period. This finding can be explained in two ways; the first is that such factors need time to ‘sink in’. Alternatively, it may have been the case that students felt these factors were less important in terms of the immediate potential impact they could have on future career pathways and financial success, which have been identified as important factors informing student choices (Christie, 2009).


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Conclusion and future directionsIn conclusion, the present study was the first study to quantitatively explore if the transition from a Foundation Degree programme to an Undergraduate BSc (Hons) programme in Sport and Exercise Development was enhanced following the introduction of two 2-hour peer led workshops. Key findings included an increase in student knowledge regarding course options, the third year project, module options, location of the universities sports science department and feelings of apprehension. Feelings such as excitement and confidence concerning the third year were not influenced by the peer led workshops. Therefore the transition from a Foundation Degree to the third year of an Undergraduate Degree can be enhanced by the delivery of two 2-hour peer led workshops which facilitate students knowledge regarding the requirements of the ‘top up’ year. It is recommended that peer led workshops with the aim of transferring knowledge regarding the ‘top up’ year should be incorporated into all Foundation Degree programmes.

It may be advantageous in future research in this domain, to identify important topics which may benefit from a standalone peer led workshop, as was the case in the present study with regards to information about the third year project. It would be interesting to compare the impact of such standalone peer led workshops between second year Foundation Degree students making the transition to the third year at a different Higher Education institution and current second year university students progressing to the third year within the same Higher Education institution. In addition, future research should intervene with a similar series of peer led knowledge transfer workshops and differentiate between responses of non-mature (≤21 years old) and mature (>21 years old) students.

Notes on contributors

Mr Graham Mytton, HE Sport Department, Sunderland College, Bede Centre (H310), Durham Road, Sunderland, SR3 4AH. Tel: +44(0)191 5116182. Fax: +44(0)1915116380. Email: [email protected]

Dr Penny Rumbold PhD, School of Life Sciences, Department of Sport and exercise Sciences, Northumbria University, Northumberland Building (Room 447), Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST. Tel: +44(0)191 2274749. Fax: Email: [email protected]

Unchanged variables

The peer led workshops had no immediate or sustained effect on students intentions to apply for the third year of the Undergraduate Degree programme, feelings of excitement or feelings of confidence in the present study. In terms of the application decision, there was no tendency for the peer led workshops to persuade or dissuade students from applying for the third year of the Undergraduate Degree programme. Thus there is inevitability about attending university and therefore a predictability of Higher Education, which has been termed the transition infrastructure (Christie, 2009). The cited author suggests that a students trust in Higher Education is strengthened by the fear and nervousness associated with the potential negative consequences (reduced financial success) of not making the transition to university. The information regarding the transition infrastructure suggests that students making the transition to university have strong views in terms of their application decision, which is unlikely to be influenced by interventions such as peer led workshops.

The present study did not identify changes in feelings of excitement or feelings of confidence following the workshops. This is contrary to research findings in this domain which suggests that peer led workshops can benefit emotional factors (Peat et al. 2000). Differences in findings may be due to the cohort of students who volunteered to participate in the present study. Other studies of this nature have focussed on the transition between high-school and university, not the transition of Foundation Degree students to an Undergraduate Degree programme at a university. During educational transitions it is believed that non-traditional students (i.e. those typically enrolled on Foundation Degrees) are affected by self-confidence issues and the need to ‘fit in’ due to financial, social and cultural barriers (Chrisite 2009; Christie, Tett, Cree, Hounsell & McCune, 2008). Having completed two years of a Foundation Degree programme together, the cohorts of students in the present study, although classified as non-traditional students based on their age (five mature students), socio-demographic background and pathway to the Foundation Degree were already highly socially acquainted with one another. This serves as potential reason for feelings such as excitement and confidence being unaffected in the present study.


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Peat, M., Dalziel, J. & Grant, A. M. (2000) ‘Enhancing the transition to university by facilitating social and study networks: results of a one-day workshop.’ Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 37, pp. 293-303.

Price, D. D., McGrath, P. A., Rafii, A. & Buckingham, B. (1983) ‘The validation of visual analogue scales as ratio scale measures for chronic and experimental pain.’ Pain, 17, pp. 45-56.

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Scholey, A. Haskell,C. Robertson,B. Kennedy,D. Milne,A. & Wetherall,M. (2009) ‘Chewing gum alleviates negative mood and reduces cortisol during acute laboratory psychological stress.’ Physiology and Behavior, 97, pp. 304–312.

Topping, K. J. (1996) ‘The effectiveness of peer tutoring in further and higher education: a typology and review of the literature.’ Higher Education, 32, pp. 321-345.

Wewers, M. E. & Lowe, N. K. (1990) ‘A critical review of visual analogue scales in the measurement of clinical phenomena.’ Research in Nursing and Health, 13, pp. 227-236.

Xu, Y., Hartman, S., Uribe, G. & Mencke, R. (2001) ‘The effects of peer tutoring on undergraduate students’ final examination scores in mathematics.’ Journal of College Reading and Learning, Sept.

Yuen Loke, A. J. T. & Chow, F. L. W. (2007) ‘Learning partnership - the experience of peer tutoring among nursing students: A qualitative study.’ International Journal of Nursing Studies, 44, pp. 237–244.

ReferencesChristie, H. (2009) ‘Emotional journeys: young people and transitions to university.’ British Journal of Sociology of Education, 30, pp. 123-136.

Christie, H., Munro, M. & Wager, F. (2005) ‘Day students in higher education: widening access students and successful transitions to university life.’ International Studies in Sociology of Education, 15, pp. 3-29.

Christie, H., Tett, T., Cree, V., Hounsell, J. & McCune, V. (2008) ‘A real rollercoaster of confidence and emotions: Learning to be a university student.’ Studies in Higher Education, 33 (5), pp. 567-581.

Cook, A., Rushton, B. S. & Macintosh, K. A. (2006) ‘The STAR (Student transition and retention) project.’ [Online] Available at: www.ulster.ac.uk/star.

Evans, W., Flower, J. & Holton, D. (2001) ‘Peer tutoring in first year undergraduate mathematics.’ The International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 32, pp. 161-173.

Gilbert, J. Drapeau,V. Astrup,A. & Tremblay,A. (2009) ‘Relationship between diet induced changes in body fat and appetite sensations in women.’ Appetite, 52, pp. 809-812.

Keet, J. Gray,J. Harley,Y. & Lambert,M. (2007) ‘The effect of medial patellar taping on pain, strength and neuromuscular recruitment in subjects with and without patellofemoral pain.’ Physiotherapy, 93, pp.45-52.

Nardi, E. (2001) ‘The transition from school to university in Italy: examination reform and outstanding issues.’ Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy and Practice, 8, pp. 339-351.

Neumark, D. & Rothstein, D. (2006) ‘School-to-career programs and transitions to employment and higher education.’ Economics of Education Review, 25, pp. 364-393.

Parker, J. D. A., Hogan, M. J., Eastabrook, J. M., Oke, A. Wood, L. M. (2006) ‘Emotional intelligence and student retention: predicting the successful transition from high school to university.’ Personality and Individual Differences, 41, pp. 1329-1336.

Parker, J. D. A., Summerfeldt, L. J., Hogan, M. J. & Majeski, S. A. (2004) ‘Emotional intelligence and academic success: examining the transition from high school to university.’ Personality and Individual Differences, 36, pp. 163-172.


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Note: The peer led workshops did not influence application decision, feelings of excitement or feelings of confidence towards the third year. PRE = prior to the first workshop, POST = immediately post the second workshop and 3M = three months after the second workshop. 100 = indicated completely agree and 0 = completely disagree.

Foundation Degree Level 2; Top-up Year Workshops

1) I will be applying to do the top-up 3rd year at Sunderland University

Completely Agree Completely disagree

2) I know about the course options I will be asked to choose from


3) I know about the module options I will be asked to choose from


4) I know where the University sports science department is based


5) I understand what I will be asked to do for my 3rd year project


6) I am excited about the top-up 3rd year


7) I am daunted by the thought of going to University


8) I am confident I will be able to complete the top-up 3rd year


9) The workshops were relevant to me


10) The workshops should be repeated for next year’s students


Table 1: Student Characteristics

n

Course Gender Status

FdSc Sports Coaching

FdSc Exercise, Health & Fitness

Male FemaleNon- mature

Mature

19 11 8 16 3 14 5

Table 2. Mean (±SD) agreement ratings for knowledge of course options, module options, location of the sports science department, understanding of the third year project and feelings of apprehension towards the third year

QuestionPRE (mm) POST (mm) 3M (mm)Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD

I know about the course options I can choose from

39 28 54 26 85* 20

I know about the module options I can choose from

25 20 60 28 80* 18

I know where the university sports science department is based

54 38 75 26 87* 24

I understand what I will be asked to do for my third year project

25 27 66* 29 86* 19

I am daunted by the thought of going to university

17 26 34 37 41* 34

Note: *Significant increase from PRE workshop value; †significant increase from POST workshop value. PRE = prior to the first workshop, POST = immediately post the second workshop and 3M = three months after the second workshop. 100 = indicated completely agree and 0 = completely disagree.

Table 3. Mean (±SD) agreement ratings for application decision, feelings of excitement and confidence towards the third year

QuestionPRE (mm) POST (mm) 3M (mm)Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD

I will be applying to do the top-up third year

99 3 96 7 97 8

I am excited about the top-up third year

98 6 89 18 94 13

I am confident I will be able to complete the top-up third year

85 17 85 15 86 13


33Push to Go: an exploration of the impact of HE upon early years workers

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This cynicism goes back to 2001 and the rolling out of the first foundation degrees in Early Childhood Studies, some of which became ‘sector endorsed’ and which would “create a new level of professional practice known as Senior Practitioner” (DfES, 2002, p 1). This document goes on:

“Senior Practitioner represents the first part of an important new career pathway which recognises the existing skills and abilities of practitioners in the early years sector and enables them to enhance professional development to move upwards or into related sectors. It enables committed and hardworking EY practitioners... to gain recognition for advanced skills with children. Senior Practitioners will help raise standards and give recognition they deserve” (DfES, 2002, p1-2).

Owen (2006) interprets these changes to the EY training and staff development in terms of how foundation degrees (FdAs) in Early Childhood Studies were designed to provide non-traditional students with routes into HE, who could then go on to complete a BA. These foundation degrees and the movement they offered into the third year of a related BA, Owen (2006) says, proved popular:

“The direct and clear link into the traditional higher education sector, and then, for those who want it, into teaching, makes it far more attractive than the NVQ level 4 which requires the same depth and range of study – but without such an obvious payback for the effort”.

(Owen, 2006, p 186)

There may be clear lines of progression, but does it provide these new graduates with an “obvious payback”? And if it does, what is that payback?

O’Keefe and Tait (2004) were more circumspect about the future and stated quite clearly that the career and educational opportunities held out by the currency provided by these FdAs is “unknown” (p 31). Yet they too clearly intimate an optimistic future: “It does offer something, rather than nothing, should practitioners wish to continue to practice” (O’Keefe and Tait, p 31). This optimism is also tempered with some scepticism concerning the sector’s ability to respond positively to this new Senior Practitioner status via remuneration and recognition (O’Keefe and Tait, p 39). This scepticism is an echo of some of their respondents to what they saw as the possible outcomes to this new status, for example, one student raised concerns about how these changes could have negative impacts upon workplace relationships (O’Keefe and Tait, p 31). These concerns about micropolitics look particularly prescient.

Push to Go: an exploration of the impact of HE upon early years workersAllison Hicks: graduate of FdA Early Childhood Studies and Practice and BA Early Childhood Studies, currently working for Barnado’s

Tom Oliphant: lecturer in Education and Care at the Sunderland College

Introduction

As the public sector cuts begin to bite this autumn, it is already looking likely that many of New Labour’s childcare initiatives will be severely curtailed (Ramesh and Gentleman 2011). One of these initiatives was the introduction of the Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) in 2007, an attempt to raise the standards in early years education and care by employing these ‘graduate leaders’. Will EYPS weather the storm of cuts that the coalition government has imposed upon local government or will it go the way of the short-lived Senior Practitioner, an earlier attempt to raise the educational profile of early years workers? This research explores and considers the rise and demise of the Senior Practitioner and the effect of that this had upon three early years workers.

Was there a feeling of déjà vu circulating nurseries, colleges of FE and universities in the autumn of 2006 with the DfES’s intention to create the new status of Early Years Professional and took its first tentative steps out of the confines of the DfES bureaucracy and into the pilot schemes of academia? Were there early years workers and lecturers asking themselves: “Haven’t we been here before?” and “Will the new status stick this time?” However for some early years practitioners the response may well have been: “Don’t hold your breath.”


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Williams (1976) charts the changing meaning of the term career from the 16th century meaning for racecourse or gallop and by extension any rapid or uninterrupted activity, to the mid 19th century, when it started to take on the meanings of the present day: “to indicate progress in a vocation and then the vocation itself” (1976, p 44) and by the 20th century Williams argues that career “is applied with some conscious and unconscious class distinction to work or to a job which contains some implicit promise of progress” (Williams, p 44, emphasis in the original). Hughes (1937) claimed that if work is seen purely in instrumental terms then that work doesn’t merit the term career and suggests that career involves an ‘investment of self’ and what Bourdieu and Passeron (1997) theorise as the creation of a “habitus”, to inculcate the values and beliefs of particular professional groups. This may be similar to the idea of ‘passion’ that Moyles (2001) speaks of and it may be that it is with this sense of passion and self investment that early years practitioners may be said to have a career, though many lack any “implicit promise of progress” in terms of economic reward, status and recognition. In this sense, early years practitioners operate within a career cul-de-sac. A cul-de-sac that the FdA and Senior Practitioner status seemed to be about to open up onto an avenue of progression, reward and recognition.

Both Moyles (2001) and O’Keefe and Tait (2004) use the terms, professional and practitioner uncritically. Moyles (2001) claims that early years ‘practitioners’ are driven by passion i.e. the love of working with/for young children, and professionalism, but nowhere does she explicate professionalism except in common sense ways. O’Keefe and Tait (2004, p 28) also use the term uncritically and in unexplicated ways, asking will the FdA enable early years practitioners to feel “more professional”? Interestingly the FdA students that were interviewed by O’Keefe and Tait (2004) were much more sceptical of the use of the term than the academics, intimating the problematic use of the term in this context. Professionalism and professions are contentious terms especially with regard to education workers and their work, for example, Gray (2006, pp 28-29) following Goodson and Hargreaves (1996) uses six different categories to classify professionalism.

Both Moyles (2001) and O’Keefe and Tait (2004) use the term ‘practitioner’ in problematic ways. Moyles (2001) claims that ‘practitioners’ are driven by passion ie the love of working with/for young children, and professionalism, but are beset by paradoxes: free play versus prescriptive outcomes; informal learning versus formal curriculum and commitment and professionalism versus low status, low pay and low commitment by employers who demand ‘flexibility’. She goes on to claim that this ‘black hole’ of paradoxes often create in practitioners, low confidence; a lack of critical reflection; powerlessness and an inability to make their voice heard.

Methodology

O’Keefe and Tait (2004) gathered data between 2001 and 2003 and since then the first cohort of FdA graduates of this programme have progressed on to a BA in Early Childhood Studies and successfully graduated in the summer of 2005. Of these six students who continued following the dual path of continuing their career and studying for a BA, two received first class honours degree; two received upper second class honours degrees and two received lower second class honours degrees. We, as a graduate of this process and as a lecturer on the FdA part of this success story, decided to explore some of the issues and concerns raised by Moyle (2001); O’Keefe and Tait (2004) and Hicks (2005). We interviewed three of the six graduates in the year following their graduation (2006) to review their career in the light of their educational success and new found status. This research is deliberately small scale, exploratory and tentative: a “pulse taking” to consider the aspirational progress of these women. The research is not definitive, nor do we seek to generalise, but rather to take stock of the changes that the FdA and BA had unleashed upon these students. These are personal tales (Plummer, 1983), ideographic and unique. They are also (on-going) stories that the authors, were actors within, though we have deliberately kept the researchers’ biographies in abeyance, lacking the confidence and skill to weave our biographies with theirs.

Context

The world of work for these three women in this study prior to their re-entrance into education was generally one of order and predictability, more or less challenging, depending on their level of skill and experience, taking on increased responsibility as their employers utilised their increased confidence, skills and ambition that the FdA wrought. It was also a world of work which was low paid, had little status, with few opportunities for progression.

It was this predictability and orderliness that was unsettled via a whole series of external interventions, eg the foundation stage curriculum; Literacy and Numeracy strategies; inclusion; etc. accompanied by increased performativity and official scrutiny; whilst also, for the first time, there would be real opportunities for career advancement for these women via sector endorsed FdAs and “Senior Practitioner” status.

Career change happens within particular contexts: within particular discourses, within particular constrains and opportunities, individual, organisational and ‘professional’.


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However, as early years settings become increasingly school-like as school is “spreading its traditions, constructions, methods and rationality down the age range” (Dahlberg and Moss, 2005, p 25), i.e. an increasingly formalised curriculum with an emphasis upon recording, measuring and meeting targets; there are the possibilities for further deepening of the divide between non-teaching practitioners and teaching practitioners. Perhaps some of the former believe that since their role is changing – increased checking on child progress and permanent teacher substitute but with no change in salary or status – that they may as well make a conscious change and either jump ship and move out of early years altogether or cross the floor and make the attempt to train to become a teacher. Foundation degrees in Early Childhood Studies provided the opportunities for both such career changes as well as providing the opportunities for all students of FdA’s to become critical and reflective practitioners, to deepen and clarify their passion and cope with the paradoxes increasingly surfacing within early years (O’Keefe and Tait, 2004).

Is the “black hole” that Moyles (2001) alerts us to, but doesn’t explicate, the result of this permeation of performativity and the technology of control and measurement within early years? Just as performativity has permeated other reaches of education, it has finally impacted upon early years due to the cumulative impact of the avalanche of reform. Reform that has crushed one sector of education after another, from FE to schools and back to HE and now early education:

“The increasing technologising of pre-school policy and practice brings with it an increasing weight of paper, advising, guiding or insisting on what should be done and how – policy documents; research papers; curricula, standards, guidance on best practice, and so on. This growing mountain of official or expert paper becomes a prime means of governing pre-school practitioners, laying down norms to which they must conform and contributing to a dominant discourse that smothers contestability and advances conformity”

(Dahlberg and Moss, 2005, p 169)

She also suggests that early years practitioners can act and think in a professionally critical and reflective way through partnerships with researchers such as in the StEPs project (2001). O’Keefe and Tait (2004) intimate something similar, suggesting that the catharsis for reflection and criticality can come through engagement on an FdA in Early Childhood Studies.

However Moyles (2001) is using “practitioner” as catch-all concept. It is too broad a concept and conceals more than it reveals. There are real and gross differences within this group that Moyles calls practitioners: from nursery assistants, to nursery nurses; teaching assistants; higher level teaching assistants; classroom assistants; nursery teachers and primary teachers, with the big divide between non-teaching practitioners and teaching practitioners. The former are usually paid little more than minimum wage whereas the latter are paid twice as much and more. In an earlier study, Moyles and Suschitzky (1994) claim that “Whatever the overt similarities, underlying these is a fundamental differentiation in salary and status...” (p 247). This difference in pay seems to becoming more of an issue as many non-teaching practitioners in schools increasingly take on the tasks of teaching whilst the teacher is preparing and marking (see Moyles and Suschitzky, 1994, for an exploration of the differences in roles between nursery teachers and nursery nurses). This may have been exacerbated by the recent round of ‘workforce reform’, where many non-teaching practitioners may see their pay and conditions of service worsen.

In terms of qualifications we also see major differences with many non-teaching practitioners having only level three qualifications, whereas teaching practitioners have the benefit of level three qualifications and a degree plus QTS.

O’Keefe and Tait (2004) use the term “unique practitioner”, however it is unclear if these 10 practitioners within their sample are unique because of their skills and their position as students on one of the first sector endorsed Early Childhood Studies FdAs or are these individuals unique as are any other early years practitioner?

As has already been suggested a regulative discourse has come to dominate education and other public services within the UK (see Gray 2006). Brown (2005) uses the term “governmentality” to analyse this neo-conservative offensive, whilst Ball (2003) uses the term “performativity” to describe the erosion of teachers’ autonomy; identity and ‘soul’ via the imposition of targets; prescribed outcomes; explicit and heavy handed surveillance, monitoring and regulation. Further, in terms of philosophy, non-teaching practitioners, such as nursery nurses, may be more opposed to prescribed outcomes than teaching practitioners.


38

Results and Analysis

Of the three FdA graduates we spoke to, all had gone on to the complete the BA at the university from which the FdA was franchised. Two lived and worked in the city and the third lived and worked in a neighbouring borough. Two were the first generation in their families to gain degrees. All three had left their place of employment following their FdA, one whilst the BA was in progress and the others following the completion of the BA. Not only had they left their place of employment, in all cases primary schools, with two working at the same primary school, but they had left that sector entirely. Two were now working in FE, one as an early years lecturer and one as a Curriculum Support and the third had continued in education enrolling on a PGCE in post 16 education. The main reasons for leaving their employment upon gaining the FdA/BA were to gain recognition for the qualifications that they had worked so hard to gain and to increase their income. All three women spoke with a degree of resentment in their voices about the way that their previous employers – all primary schools – had not recognised nor valued their qualifications:

“...under no circumstances does she (the headteacher) accept or acknowledge the qualification or study I’ve done.” (W)

“...never got anymore recognition (from the school for the FdA or BA)... we had overstepped what she (the headteacher) wanted from us.” (P)

Here was a vocational qualification, an FdA in Early Childhood Studies which was ‘sector endorsed’; would lead to ‘senior practitioner’ status as well as up-skill and upgrade the early years workforce, yet there was no official way that head teachers or nursery managers could reward and recognise those skills, nor the effort and commitment that had been needed to gain those qualifications, especially once it became apparent that the status of ‘senior practitioner’ was a shimmering mirage in the distance that would not be substantiated by government, national or local.

These machinations left the FdA graduates in limbo: a promised senior practitioner status that didn’t materialise was bad enough, but the wound would be salted with the introduction of the Higher Level Teaching Assistant status. HLTA was a status that needed a three day course to acquire, when these women had worked following an FdA for two nights a week for two years and required many further hours of study on top of that. The HLTA would allow the holders to stand in for the teacher when they were preparing and marking or otherwise unavailable and provide the holders with higher incomes.

Nutbrown (2004, pp 2-3) catalogues fifteen reforms from the introduction of the National Curriculum through to the National Literacy and Numeracy strategies to the introduction and implementation of the foundation stage. These reforms and initiatives, she argues, ignore and undermine a century of practice and wisdom within early education. As one of Moyles’ practitioners says:

“I now KNOW our principles (of play) don’t sit easily alongside a prescribed curriculum. How can we carry on with what is so centrally important to us (and to young children) when we are pressured into making sure children at certain arbitrary levels... themselves inappropriate to children’s developmental needs?”

(Moyles, 2001, p 91, emphasis in the original)

Nutbrown (2004, p 4) goes further and suggests that the traditional values and practices of early years education may be lost to a whole new generation of teacher practitioners due to a training which lacks an introduction to early childhood educators such as Isaacs, McMillan or Froebel; lacks the intellectual justification for a play based curriculum and lacks the use observations as a means to assess.

This epidemic of reforms that Dahlberg and Moss (2005) and Nutbrown (2004) refer to, not only changes what practitioners do, whether they be in early years or further education, but more importantly these reforms change who they are (Ball, 2003). The teacher or lecturer or early years practitioner can no longer be the person, the professional, that they once were and are forced into becoming agents of target setting and instruments of control.

Will performativity in early years provide the impetus for some of the non-teaching staff to use FdAs (and BAs in many instances) to escape their low status, low paid careers, accepting that a performative culture now permeates throughout education and care and move into employment that recognises their qualifications and which has a reasonable rate of remuneration, eg management; teaching or FE?


40

Micropolitics is the third factor that is part of this matrix for change. Micropolitics has been described as the “dark side of organisational life” (Hoyle, 1988 p 256) and is both conflict and phenomenological in outlook, recognising the multi-layered, interest diverse nature of organisational life, embracing “those strategies by which individuals and groups in organisational contexts seek to use their resources of power and influence to further their interests” (Hoyle, 1988, p 256). The headteachers at both of these schools were constrained by the non-materialisation of the status of “Senior Practitioner” and by their budgets, but it seems that their own agendas, as perceived by these three women, were constraining factors, as they clearly felt that their interests were not part of their headteachers’ agendas.

Ironically the experience of higher education, coupled with the experience of class teaching increased the respect that these practitioners had for teachers and teaching, as W said: “prior to that I thought there was very little difference between a teacher and a nursery nurse... there is a big difference... it gave me a lot of respect for teaching staff.” Whilst P said that “it made me more aware of what teachers had to do.”

All three women had little ambition to leave their places of work at the start of the FdA. W had been at the same school for over 6 years, J for over 20 years and A had been a parent helper then classroom assistant for 12 years in total. For P the progression to an FdA, followed by a BA, seemed a logical continuation of her adult education, having left school at 16 with no qualifications. Education was seen as a series of increasingly difficult stepping stones. For W and J the FdA came up at the right time: both were frustrated with their roles within their workplace. And for all three women the FdA increased their self-confidence in their own abilities, yet in all three cases, that increased self-confidence, as well as increased skills and knowledge has been lost to the settings that were once so central to their working lives. As J said when asked if she felt that the FdA had led to progression:

“It can lead you on to doing other things. Which I suppose if I say that, then it is. But it’s not a clear progression route. My only way to progress was to get out. So in that way it’s not progression. It’s not a progression within my job role. It’s a progression to something else. It’s not what I would have liked ideally.”

Yet the graduates of the FdA were arguably better educated and more highly skilled than most of the holders of HLTA status and had, up until the emergence of the HLTA, successfully stood in for teachers and taught whole and parts of classes.

W felt that it was the introduction of the HLTA and being told by her head teacher that she could be put forward for the HLTA status ie the three day course, but that she wasn’t “guaranteed a job at the end of the day”, coupled with her experience of teaching to a whole class that: “...made me realise that I’m working towards a BA, but I was really being used in the classroom. I’m good enough to stand here and do this. I’m good enough to go into the class. I’m good enough to mentor for the Canadian teacher, but I’m not good enough to have a pay rise – so that was the push to go.”

For P and J the push to go came from the situation when the head teacher of their primary school told them that they wouldn’t be allowed to be put forward for the HLTA status – both women were in low income households and would benefit greatly from extra income – but was told that a colleague who didn’t have the qualifications for the job that she was doing would be put forward: “That was when we decided that we had to get out.”

This “push to go” seems to have been triggered by a combination of biographical changes; structural interventions and micropolitical conflicts. Biography and the documenting of biographical changes can help us understand the impact of, and responses to, structural interventions and change (Roberts, 2002, p 5). The biographical changes that these women are constructing are professional, educational and in terms of self-perception. They felt increasingly ambitious, confident and skilled following the FdA: “it gave me the confidence to think I could do more and the confidence to go”, but at the same time it increased the feeling of being “professionally undervalued” (W).

These changes were brought about by structural interventions and their responses to these, of which there seems to be three separate strands:1) those which they successfully utilised ie the introduction of the FdA and entrance on to the BA programme and 2) those which seemed to create barriers to progress: the non-materialisation of “senior practitioner” status and the creation of the HLTA and 3) those which created a dissonance with their own values, the introduction of the foundation stage and its assessment. J said “I came across different ways of working (Reggio Emilia and others whilst on the FdA), you think: that sounds really good, I would like to give that a try... But because the teachers and managers didn’t know about that, they wouldn’t give me the chance to do that within my practice. They worked to the foundation stage document”


42

Driven by the engine of bureaucratic urgency for workforce reform within childcare to “increase participation for economic competitiveness” (DfES, 2004) the need to commit to a clear professional development route did not address the disparate origins of childcare qualifications, teacher identity and teachers as managers and employers.

Historically generic childcare qualifications have grown in response to education initiatives; in turn childcare workers have moved across the education floor from early years across key stages in response to the head teachers’ directives and are faced by a cul-de-sac which prevents further recognition and movement.

Five years on from the first Foundation Degree in Early Childhood Studies the newly planned Integrated Qualifications Network (Owen, 2006) intended to pull together the disparate origins of childcare qualifications and offer a new status, one of Early Years Professional offers little to the three women (and many others who have successfully completed an FdA and BA) as the short validation pathway criteria suggests that entry will be restricted to those candidates having three years experience within a 0-5 year setting, as all three women worked across all key stages at the request of their head teacher.

ConclusionThe three graduates of FdA in Early Childhood Studies within our study no longer work with children. Instead they topped up to a BA (Hons) and uprooted, taking their skill; new found confidence; reflective practice and criticality into F.E. and the role of teaching young people and adults. This begs the question: what was “the obvious payback for the effort” that Owen (2006) claims FdA’s provide? These women all echoed the emotive “passion” that Moyles (2001) seeks to define within the early years workforce; they gave a heavy investment of self in both their practice and learning. Years of employment and CPD training with little recognition; coupled with external part time study over five years is evidence of this investment, but more so is the disappointment they expressed of the lack of acknowledgement regarding status and pay from employers for their heavy investment. The final ‘push to go’ being the illusion of the Senior Practitioner role which dropped off the scene just as the first cohort of FdA’s were nearing completion and the introduction of yet another status; the HLTA. Consequently the graduates within this study made a career change and Early Years settings lost out in reaping the rewards of increased skills at the technical and associate level the FdA was engineered to create.

In 2004 a retrospective report commissioned by the DfES recommended that “all institutions offering Foundation Degrees make available to prospective students clear, accurate information on the career, professional and academic profession opportunities which are available”, however it offers no acknowledgement to the illusive status of Senior Practitioner. Did this report unearth fundamental differences in what was being promoted to prospective students and the punctured engagement of employers? The three women interviewed all voiced their observations of there being a ‘distinct divide’ (J) between non-teaching and teaching staff and a reluctance in recognising their growing skill. This raises the question as to why the role of Senior Practitioner was promoted as a progression route on successful completion of the FdA by the DfES in 2002; why it continued to be actively promoted up to 2003 (DfES, 2002; Sure Start, 2003) and reinforced in recruitment materials (Pre School Learning Alliance and University of Sunderland)? Parallel to these messages documents published (DfES, 2003) on behalf of the Teacher Training Agency (TTA) and Aimhigher were publicising contradictory routes; the first advertising HLTA Professional Standards, the latter HLTA as a progression route following a Foundation Degree. Were there conflicts and divisions within the education bureaucracy working from very different agendas? Sure Start gave sector endorsement to the Foundation Degree route, was it their intention for the early years agenda to continue as a specialism in its own right?


44

Nutbrown, C. (2004) Early childhood education in contexts of change, in Nutbrown, C, (ed), Research Studies in Early Childhood Education (Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books).

O’Keefe, J. and Tait, K. (2004) An examination of the UK Early Years Foundation Degrees and the evolution of Senior Practitioners – enhancing work-based practice by engaging in reflective and critical thinking, International Journal of Early Years Education, Vol. 12, No. 1, 25 – 41.

Owen, S. (2006) Training and Workforce Issues in the Early Years, in Pugh, G and Duffy, B, (eds) Contemporary Issues in Early Years (London: Sage).

Plummer, K. (1983) Documents for Life: An Introduction to the Problems and Literature of a Humanistic Method (London: Unwin Hyman).

Ramesh, R and Gentleman, A (2011) Cuts will force 250 Sure Start centres to close, say charities. The Guardian 28/1/2011.

Roberts, B. (2002) Biographical Research (Buckingham: Open University Press).

SureStart (2003) Information for Employers: SureStart Unit Recognised Early Years Sector-Endorsed Foundation Degree. Senior practitioner: A new pathway for professionals. (London: DfES)

Williams, R (1976) Keywords: A vocabulary of culture and society. (London: Fontana)

References:Ball, S. J. (2003) The teacher’s soul and the terrors of performativity. Education Policy, Vol. 18, No. 2, 215-228.

Bourdieu, P. and Passeron, J-C. (1977) Reproduction in Education, Society and Culture (London: Sage).

Brown, W. (2005) Edgework: Critical Essays in Knowledge and Politics (New Jersey: Princeton University Press).

Dahlberg, G. and Moss, P. (2005) Ethics and Politics in Early Childhood Education (London: RoutledgeFalmer).

DfES, (2002) Senior Practitioner: New Pathways for Professionals. Summary-Statement of Requirement Early Years Sector-Endorsed Foundation Degree (London: DfES).

DfES, (2004) Foundation Degree Task Force Report to Ministers (London: DfES).

Goodson, I and Hargreaves, A. (eds) (1996) Teachers’ Professional Lives (London: Falmer Press).

Gray, S. L. (2006) Teachers Under Siege (Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books).

Hicks, A. (2005) Unpublished Research

Hoyle, E. (1988) Micropolitics of educational organisations, in Westoby, A, (ed) Culture and Power in Educational Organisations (Milton Keynes: Open University Press).

Hughes, E. C. (1937) Institutional office and the person, in Hughes, E C, 1958, Men and their Work (New York: Free Press).

Moyles, J. (2001) Passion, Paradox and Professionalism in Early Years Education, Early Years, Vol. 21, No. 2, 81- 95.

Moyles, J. and Suschitzky, W. (1994) The comparative roles of nursery teachers and nursery nurses, Educational Research, Vol. 36, No. 3, Winter, 247- 258.

47Sophisticated or Simple: Which type of technology enhances learning experience?

46

Table1 shows some initial aspects of student performance, for the academic year 2004-2005, when this study began. Although these results were much better than the previous academic years, when students rarely acquired grades higher than pass, still there were no distinction grades and only 30% of the students chose to continue their hnd/c course in software development.

Table 1: Initial Worrying Results

Table 1 2004-2005 Relative Frequency %Number of Completers 20 71%Number of PASS grades 11 55%

Number of MERIT grades 9 45%

Number of DISTINCTION grades 0 0%Number choosing the general computing on second year

14 70%

Number choosing the software development on the second year

6 30%

Total number of students 28 -

In our initial evaluation it was reported that in order to improve the situation the following issues needed to be addressed.

1) Learners were quite weak at algorithmic thinking

2) Learners displayed diverse levels of abilities and receptiveness and hence the more receptive learners were quickly bored whereas the less receptive students were continuously overstretched

3) Students generally possessed short attention spans and poor memory retentions

4) Students favoured task-based learning

5) Feedbacks were valued by students if they were helpful and could be used to improve student grades

6) Learners were generally very poor note makers and often unorganized note keepers

In order to address the above issues and to improve the teaching of programming at college a major development work began in 2005, which later was named as the Blended Animated Teaching (BAT).

Sophisticated or Simple: Which type of technology enhances learning experience?Massoud Hajsadr, Sunderland College - [email protected]

Abstract

This paper reports the findings of a seven year long study. This study began in the academic year 2004-2005 with the main objective of finding practical ways of utilising technology to improve learners’ learning experience of the core unit of ‘programming concepts’ for higher national diploma and certificate at Sunderland College. Students’ poor performances and achievements in this unit was the main aspiring factor for this study where we have developed sophisticated flash animations, visual conceptualization techniques, online access to the teaching material and a rigorous assessment-based learning scheme. We have also tried the very simple communication technology of email to support and enhance student learning experience.

In this paper we will convey our experience in using both the very sophisticated and the very simple technologies in order to get the balance of cost versus benefits right.

Keywords

Blended assessment-based learning emotion motivation

Why don’t they enrol on software development?

Students find programming concepts quite a challenge at the higher education level (Sayers et al 2004, Koper et al 2004, Boyle 2005). Students at the Sunderland College, studying Higher National Diploma (HND) and Certificate (HNC) in computing, also find the concepts of programming difficult to learn. This is a core subject on the first year of their two year course.

Thereafter, on the second year, students have the option to continue in either general computing or in software development. However the frustrating learning experience of this subject affects their confidence and discourages them from continuing in the much needed field of software development.


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Figure 1: Mechanical View Point to the Concept of Selection

Fourteen interim assessments were designed in order to continuously assess student progression and to provide them with formative feedback. The first 10 assessments prepare the students for the PASS grade. These 10 assessments start from single concept solutions to quite complex multi-concept solutions. Completing the first 10 assessments is a major milestone for all students.

Thereafter students are given the opportunity to enhance their programming skills by completing assessments 11 and 12, whereby their abilities to apply their learnt concepts are challenged with unfamiliar circumstances. This engages them in some higher order thinking, worthy of MERIT grade.

Assessment 13 and 14, which prepare students for the DISTINCTION grade, also challenge the students’ higher order thinking, but they are mainly designed to encourage them to do independent learning. The teaching objects of BAT for the concepts relevant to assessments 13 and 14 are not discussed in class.

The creation of BAT (2005-2007)

The above list specified our immediate pedagogic objectives, as listed below, some of which we aimed to achieve with the assistance of technology.

1) Algorithmic thinking had to be made more mechanical using visual representations for operations and timelines

2) Learners should be able to progress at their own pace

3) Teaching material should comprise small teaching blocks (objects) which could be delivered in about 10 minutes followed by class activities

4) All teaching material must be available online as reference

5) There should be a number of interim assessments for formative feedbacks and repetition of concepts

6) Student documentation of the interim assessments and their received feedbacks should be collected as portfolios in order to support their work on the final assignment

At the time, utilisation of technology in combination with face-to-face classroom teaching was considered a value adding solution (Valiantha 2002, Metcalf & Bielawski 2003). However blended pedagogies were still in infant stages and in much need of further study (Oliver & Trigwell 2005, Bonk 2006).

In a study about learners’ experience from blended approaches, their success had been suggested to depend on the selection and organization of resources and the way they were integrated into classroom teaching (Higgins 2003). Hence it was decided that a web based provision, which was later named BAT (Blended Animated Teaching), should be developed.

BAT, by design, was made up of a number of teaching objects which were organised in accordance to the scheme of work for classroom teaching. The teaching objects, which were the centre of classroom discussions, were Flash animations with audio and delivered the main concepts. With each object came a number of activities and worksheets which could be used to enhance student understanding of the concepts.

Figure 1 displays one of the BAT’s teaching objects which provided students with a mechanical point of view to the algorithmic thinking behind the concept of selection and contained the worksheet number 1.


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The new students starting in the academic year 2006-2007 were also actively encouraged to cast their critical eyes over BAT’s teaching objects and were praised for providing feedback. Their feedback was also acted upon, which positively encouraged them to participate in correcting and improving BAT further.

Table 2 demonstrates the sudden improvement in the students’ performance and the huge increase in the number of students choosing to continue in Software Development rather than General Computing. We believed that BAT, had improved the learning experience of our students (Hajsadr 2007).

Table 22004-2005

Relative Frequency %

2005-2006


2006-2007


Number of Completers

20 71% 25 83% 17 85%

Number of PASS grades

11 55% 10 40% 9 53%

Number of MERIT grades

9 45% 12 48% 5 29%

Number of DISTINCTION grades

0 0% 3 12% 3 18%

Number choosing the general computing on second year

14 70% 9 36% 6 35%


6 30% 16 64% 11 65%

Total number of students

28 - 30 - 20 -

Table 2: Results of 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 Compared with 2004-2005

Figure 2: The Teaching Object for the First Type of Iteration

Figure 2 depicts one of the BAT’s more advanced teaching objects. This object demonstrates the first type of iteration in which the number of iterations is pre-determined. There are quite a number of tasks planned for this object preparing the students for the forthcoming interim assessment 8.

BAT was designed and completed in the academic year 2005-2006 with much input from the students in that year. Students were continuously encouraged to critically view the teaching objects and give feedback. Students’ views were often implemented which in turn encouraged greater participation and critical viewing by them.

BAT also won the JISC RSC Northern e-learning best practitioner award in 2006 (JISC 2006).


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The two cohorts of the students from 2005 to 2007 were quite motivated. This had perhaps been due to the special attention they were receiving or the respect and value that was given to their view points (eraut 2006) in shaping bat. Motivated students sustain higher levels of commitment and enjoy higher levels of success (Schunk et al 2007, Wang & Lin 2007).

Also as mentioned before, students in those two academic years were continuously encouraged to view the animated teaching objects online and provide feedback. Hence they were inadvertently experiencing more frequent exposure to the concepts. It is therefore possible that more regular exposure to the concepts had improved their memory (Anderson 1985) of the concepts which in turn improved their performance.

Whether the glorious success of 2005 to 2007 was due to students’ elevated motivation and commitment or simply due to their frequent exposure to the concepts and improved memory of the subject, we wanted to try and repeat that success again. Hence this year (2010-2011) we opted for a less sophisticated solution and offered the students an anytime email support (aes), which was to provide more individual student assistance in completing their interim assessments. Using the push-mail technology, email enquiries were instantly delivered to an internet enabled mobile phone just like a sms and was often responded to in minutes.

Aes was promoted heavily in class and also via the initial email casts. Those students who had communicated during the week were thanked in class and their progress was congratulated openly. Figure 3 shows the daily email traffic initiated by the students in this academic year. As shown in figure 3, at its peak, email enquiries reached 21 per day. Though, at first glance, this number may seem small compared to the number of emails we all receive daily at work, but much greater effort was needed to respond to these emails.

The number of email traffic gradually rose and so did the complexity of the enquiries. This was because, as time went by, students were becoming more engaged with this unit and also the assessments were becoming progressively more complex. In addition, due to student diversity, the enquiries were often from a wide number of assessments.

The great learning downturn (2007-2010)

Utilisation of bat pedagogy and resources continued from 2007 through to 2010. However the results weren’t very encouraging. As shown in table 3, there was a sudden return to the same student performances as pre-bat era. This was despite our extra effort to provide students with feedback that were more comprehensible, timely and acted upon (Carless 2006, Gibbs & Simpson 2004).

Assessment feedback, which was already central (Black & Williams 1998, hattie & jaeger 1998) in the students learning, was improved in presentation and volume to the extent that was commented on by the external examiner from edexcel. It was hoped that improving the feedback, which has been suggested to be one of the key characteristics of quality teaching (Ramsden 2003, Higgins et al 2001, Chanock 2000), would render better results. However as shown in table 3, the results were still disappointing.

In the academic year 2009-2010, even greater attention was paid to the motivational affects of feedback on student achievement (yorke 2003) and some positive statements for greater student confidence and engagement (pitts 2005) were added to the feedback. Hull and du Boulay (2009) suggest that negative feedback can influence students’ motivational state and meta-cognitive processes.

Table 3: Data from 2007 to 2010 Indicate a downturn

Nevertheless, as indicated in Table 3, the outcomes weren’t significantly different from the previous two years. In fact, that year (2009-2010), even a smaller percentage of students chose to enrol on the Software Development course.

Let’s get pushy (2010-2011)

I had invested too much time, knowledge and experience in the creation of bat to accept defeat, but it was obvious that the great results of 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 had not solely been due to this provision. Focusing so much on developing a sophisticated utilisation of technology had perhaps distracted me from the fact that teaching and learning requires more human care than it does technology.


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Figure 4: Daily email casting traffic

Table 4 demonstrates the number of points allocated to each assessment and how they were used to measure student progress. As shown, when students completed assessment 10, they were declared as ready for the PASS grade. When they completed assessment 12, they were declared ready for the MERIT grade and accomplishing assessment 14 ranked them as ready for the DISTINCTION grade.

Figure 3: Daily emails Traffic Initiated by Students from 27/9/2010 to 17/4/2011

The other element of complexity was the issue of student motivation and the affect that individually composed feedback could have on them. Providing written feedback that is motivating is quite challenging because students’ reactions are unique to each one and thus, for written feedback to become the motivator for learning, it must be unique to each student. Most importantly feedback must be perceived by students as enabling their learning (MacLellan 2001), yet it should also reflect their achievements, not only in terms of their knowledge, but also in terms of their efforts and abilities (Offir et al 2007).

The year began with email casts promoting the AES and sending the weekly concept brief(s) to the students. Also after the initial campaign, as shown in Figure 4, email casts were sent for festive greetings and to wish the students greater success in the New Year. The email casts often contained gentle reminders that students should maintain their progress momentum.


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Table 52007-2008

Relative Freq %

2008-2009

Relative Freq %

2009-2010

Relative Freq %

2010-2011

Relative Freq %

Number of Completers

26 84% 20 80% 23 85% 30 94%

Number of PASS grades

23 88% 15 75% 17 74% 13 43%

Number of MERIT grades

2 8% 4 20% 5 22% 8 27%

Number of DISTINCTION grades

1 4% 1 5% 1 4% 9 30%

Number choosing the general computing on second year

19 73% 14 70% 18 78% 9 30%


7 27% 6 30% 5 22% 21 70%

Total number of students

31 - 25 - 27 - 32 -

Table 5: Academic Year 2010-2011 Compared with Three Years from 2007 to 2010

The forecasted results for 2010-2011 compared with the results of three years from 2007 to 2010 are extremely promising. In addition, the percentage of students who have already declared their intention to continue their hnd/c in software development is very encouraging.

Data analysis

According to kember (2003), for an analysis to yield useful conclusions beyond reasonable doubt, it is best if at least three sources (triangulation) of data are used. For the purpose of this paper, in order to reach a reasonable conclusion, we will present supportive data from five different angles.

As shown in Table 4, the cumulative percentage progress in acquiring the skill points for PASS is 56%, for MERIT is 76% and for DISTINCTION is 100%. Though these measurements are useful, but they are not the final grades for students. The final grades are awarded after completing the final assignment.

No. of completed Assessments

Points given

Cumulative points

Cumulative percentage %

0 0 0 0%1 2 2 4%2 1 3 7%3 3 6 13%4 3 9 20%5 3 12 27%6 2 14 31%7 2 16 36%9 5 21 47%10 4 25 56% PASS11 4 29 64%12 5 34 76% MERIT13 8 42 93%14 3 45 100% DISTINCTION

Table 4: Points Given to Each Assessment

Table 5 shows the estimated results for this academic year in comparison with the three disappointing years from 2007-2010. This estimation is based on the number of assessments that students have completed to date. Twenty one students (70%) have already announced their intentions to continue the course in Software Development.


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Years/ErasPASS grade

Relative Freq %

MERIT grade

Relative Freq %

DIST grade

Relative Freq %

Total

2005-2007 BAT era

19 45% 17 40% 6 14% 42

2007-2010 post BAT era

55 80% 11 16% 3 4% 69

2010-2011 AES era

13 43% 8 27% 9 30% 30

Table 6: Data for the Three Eras

As shown in figure 6, in achieving PASS grades, the students from the post-BAT era were clearly the winners, whereas the students from the AES era were the clear winners in achieving DISTINCTION grades.

Figure 6: Grades for the Three Eras

Angle 1

Figure 3 showed quite a good level of daily email traffic initiated by the students this year. Here, only emails containing queries were counted. A simple calculation showed an average of 4 emails per day, including holidays, from 27/9/2010 to 17/4/2011. A better measure may be the students’ weekly communication as shown in figure 5.

Figure 5: Weekly Traffic of email Enquiries by Students from 27/9/2010 to 17/4/2011 Including 4 Holiday Weeks.

Figure 5 shows average email communication traffic of 24 per week. Since rarely one student initiated more than one query per week, it would be correct to claim that on average about 24 students out of the 30 were using AES per week including the holiday weeks. This implies a very healthy (24/30 = 80%) student weekly learning engagement.

Angle 2

Table 6 shows the collated results for the three periods of 2005-2007 (BAT era), 2007- 2010 (post-BAT era) and 2010-2011 (AES era). The total number of students in these three eras weren’t so greatly different from one another to cause any statistical concerns.


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Table 7 shows part of a long questionnaire which was conducted only this year. As shown here, learner emotional issues such as interest, confidence, anxiety, respect, happiness, trust, certainty, frustration, excitement, engagement, etc. are queried. The expected responses were numbers in the scale of 0 to 10. An entry of 10 indicated the peak of a feeling and 0 the complete absence of a feeling.

As shown in Table 7, we can claim that such high levels of positive student emotions imply that the AES has been a successful scheme.

At the end of the above questionnaire, there was a question where students were asked to write at least three prominent and useful features about the teaching they received this year. The top four responses are listed below.

1) Quick feedback (100%)

2) Useful feedback (70%)

3) Helpful Animations (60%)

4) Online Resources (43%)

This means that in everyone’s view the quick email feedback had been a prominent and useful feature of the teaching style adopted for the programming unit this year. It is interesting to notice that only 60% thought that the BAT’s teaching objects were useful or prominent. Even less was thought of the online resources. This is despite the fact that often the answer to a students query was simply the URL of a particular page from the BAT’s online resources which resulted in query resolution.

Angle 4

Table 8 shows a small section of a large datasheet on which student progress in completing the 14 interim assessments were recorded. The format of the progress datasheets has been the same for all three eras. On this datasheet, the lesson number refers to the weeks in which there has been a scheduled lesson.

For example, as shown in lesson thirteen (week 13), Joe successfully completed nine assessments whereas David had only completed three assessments. He was working towards completing the fourth assessment. David did finally succeed in completing the forth assessment in lesson 15.

Since it is true that almost all of the DISTINCTION students and most of the MERIT students tend to choose Software Development, it is reasonable to claim success in attracting students to this field of study in the AES era. It is also reasonable to claim that the students from the AES era have performed better.

Angle 3

In the teaching and learning environment, learners’ emotions are a crucial factor affecting their learning experience. Higgins et al (2001) for example argues that students make emotional investments in their assignments and expect some return on their investment.

Zhang & Shu (2008) suggest that emotions are interwoven into the process of teaching and learning and can be used to manage and enhance learning. Such enhanced learning environments are often referred to as positive (Gates 2000, Fineman 2000), which will influence learners’ feelings and behaviour (Miller et al 2007). Good teaching environments promote feelings of happiness, confidence, self-worth, enthusiasm, achievement, certainty and satisfaction.

Table 7: Questionnaire of Emotion Collected in the Third Week of March 2011


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Table 9: Sample Student Cumulative Percentage Gain Sheet

Table 9 is a sample of the student cumulative percentage gain sheet. The cumulative percentages were shown in Table 4. For example, as shown in Table 9, Jodie completed the third assessment in lesson 13 and hence her cumulated percentage was 13%. Joe completed his tenth assessment in lesson 14 and so his cumulative percentage gain as derived from Table 4, was 56%.

Students normally begin working on their interim assessments in lesson 8 and can continue until lesson 28. However, rarely everyone completes all 14 assessments. Nevertheless the minimum of 10 assessments are required to be qualified to start working on the final assignment, whereby students’ final grades of PASS, MERIT and DISTINCTION are awarded.

During the BAT and the post-BAT eras students would print and submit their completed assessments for marking in class. If they were successful, then the number for that assessment was recorded on the datasheet for that lesson. But the marked assessments with feedbacks and the brief for the next assessment weren’t often returned to students until the week after. As a result students were unable to continue with assessment work for a week.

In the AES era, students could submit their completed assessments anytime via email. This way, their feedbacks could be emailed back almost immediately. If they were successful, then their feedbacks and the brief for the next assessment were emailed back to them. Hence there was less waiting and no idle weeks. Consequently some students were sometimes able to complete two assessments in a week. In this case the higher assessment number of the two was recorded for that week.

Table 8: Sample of Student Progress Datasheet

In the AES era students could also submit work during the holiday weeks. Their work was still commented on, marked and, if successful, was recorded for that week. In our forthcoming comparison of the three eras, these weeks, which are marked as ‘OFF’ in Table 8, were discounted.


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Figure 7: Progress Rate for the Three Eras

The graphs in Figure 7 are formed from the average values calculated from the small populations of students over 18 weeks as shown in Table 10. The averages for the same lessons from different eras may not be significantly different to allow us to make any judgement.

In order to test this we have used the two tailed unpaired t-test. Here the null hypothesis was that the average values for the same week or lesson numbers were not significantly different. The alternative hypothesis was that, if the probability value fell below 0.05, then the averages were from different populations and, as such, they could be used to compare and make judgement on student progress and performance.

Table 11 shows the t-test results for each lesson comparing the BAT and post-BAT eras with the AES era. As shown in Table 11 the average values from the post-BAT era were all significantly different from the corresponding averages from the AES era.

Also as shown in Table 11, the average values from the BAT era were significantly different from the corresponding averages from the AES era from lesson 16 through to lesson 25.

Table 10: Average Cumulative Percentage Gains for the First 18 Weeks

We are going to compare only the first 18 weeks (week 8 through to week 25) of students’ assessment work progress for the three eras. This is because there were only 18 weeks of data available for the AES era. The values in Table 10 are the averages of the students’ percentage gains for the recorded lessons.

For example the average percentage gains for the 30 students from the AES era in lesson 21 was 59%. For the same week, the average percentage gain for the 69 student from the post-BAT era was 43%.

Figure 7 shows the student progress in accordance to their average percentage gains. As shown, the 30 students from the AES era displayed the fastest progress rate. Figure 7 also shows that the 69 students from the post-BAT era displayed the slowest progress. The 42 students from the BAT era displayed a progress quite similar to that of the AES era.


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Table 12: Percentage of Passed Students

Since passing the milestone of PASS grade was a significant stage for students, it is reasonable to claim that the students from the AES era were reaching this decisive stage much earlier in the year resulting in calmer, happier and more confident students.

This corresponds with students’ feedback as shown in Table 7. The average mark given to the questionnaire item, ‘Feel certain of being able to complete the unit’ was 9.1. Also the average mark to the questionnaire item, ‘Feel happy and content with this unit’ was 8.1. Finally the average response to the questionnaire item, ‘Feel on course with this unit’ was 8.5.

Figure 8 shows a graph indicating the rate of increase in the number of PASS students. The rate for the AES era is clearly the fastest. Although the rate of increase in the number of already passed students are somewhat similar for the first few weeks, but the students from the AES era do show a much faster progress afterwards.

Hence we can claim that the weekly progress of students from the AES era, as shown in Figure 7, were significantly better than the students from the post-BAT era. We can also claim that student weekly progress from the AES era, for the most part, was significantly better than the weekly progress during the BAT era.

Table 11: t-test Results

Angle 5

As explained before, completion of the assessment number 10 was a significant event for every student because it meant that they had already reached the PASS grade, qualifying them to take the final assignment. After reaching this milestone, students could continue working on the rest of the assessments perhaps with a greater ease of mind.

Table 12 shows the percentages of PASS qualified students as the weeks went by. As shown, by the time of lesson 22, 97% of the students from the AES era had already acquired the PASS grade compared with 68% and 83% for the post-BAT and BAT eras respectively.


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In many respects, the results from the bat and the aes eras were similar. The commonalities between the two eras were the high level of tutor-tutees communication and learner engagement with learning.

An ideal teaching environment is one in which tutor–tutees communication takes place for the following main considerations:

1) Learner emotions and motivation

2) Learner scheduling and direction

3) Subject concept retention, comprehension and application

The essential function of a teaching and learning environment is the third consideration for which sophisticated technology has still much greater room for application. However, since learning is a human activity, the first two considerations take precedence where a simple communication media such as email can be immensely effective.

ReferencesAnderson, j.R., 1985. Cognitive psychology and its implications, 2nd ed, w.H. Freeman and company new york, pp. 135-138.

Black, p. and William d., 1998. Assessment and classroom learning, assessment in education: principles, policy and practice, 5(1), pp.7-74.

Http://www.Informaworld.Com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a739137310

Bonk, c., 2006. Blended learning: situations and solutions, presentation to oxford brookes university, http://www.Trainingshare.Com/pdfs/sfx1d28.Pdf

Boyle, t., 2005. A dynamic, systematic method for developing blended learning, education, communication and information. 5 (3), Pp.221-232.

Carless, d., 2006. Differing perceptions in the feedback process, studies in higher education, 31(2), pp.219-233.

Chanock, k., 2000, Comments on essays: do students understand what tutor write?, Teaching in higher education, 5(1), pp. 95-105

Eraut, m., 2006. Feedback, learning in health and social care, 5(3), pp. 111-118.

Fineman, s., 2000. Emotional arenas revisited, emotion in organizations, 2nd ed, thousand oaks, ca:sage., Pp. 1-24.

Figure 8: percentage of pass qualified students

ConclusionThe five angles of supportive data clearly showed that the aes scheme did significantly improve student performance and learning experience compared with the previous years.

The students were happier with greater commitments. They were engaged with learning and were showing unusual levels of interest in completing their assessments. Also 70% of the students, the highest ever, have already indicated their interest in continuing their second year of hnd/c in software development.

The aes scheme was implemented using the simple technology of email, but without the backing of the sophisticated resources of bat, responding to the students’ queries in a clear and useful way would have been impossible. In response to student queries, they were often directed to the appropriate pages of bat with the appropriate teaching objects or sample solutions.


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evaluation in higher education, 26(4), pp. 307-318.

Metcalf, d. S. and Bielawski, l., 2003. Blended elearning : integrating knowledge performance support and online learning, hrd products (press) , pp.99-100.

Miller, k. I., Considine, j. and Garner, j., 2007.“Let me tell you about my job”: exploring the terrain of emotion in the workplace, management communication, 20, pp. 231-260.

Offir, b., Zeichner, o. and Barth, i., 2007. Impact of feedback on an academic motivation among students in peripheral areas, in r. Hochman (ed.) Contemporary issues in higher education; 4th international conference, sep 3-6, ariel university, pp. 174-185.

Oliver, m. and Trigwell, k., 2005. Can ‘blended learning’ be redeemed?, E-learning, 2 (1), pp.17-26.

Pitts, s. E., 2005. ‘Testing, testing...’ How do students use written feedback, active learning in higher education, 6, pp. 218-229.

Ramsden, p., 2003. Learning to teach in higher education, 2nd edn, London routledge falmer.

Sayers, h. M., Nicell, m. A. and Hagan, s. J. , 2004. Supporting and assessing first year programming: the use of webct, italics e-journal, 3(1), pp 1-16. Http://www.Ics.Heacademy.Ac.Uk/italics/vol3-1/sayers/webct.Pdf

Schunk, d. H., Pintrich, p. R. and Meece, j. L., 2007. Motivation is education: theory, research and application, pearson merrill, prentice hall, 2nd ed.

Valiathan, p., 2002. Blended learning models, learning circuits, archives articles 2002. Http://www.Learningcircuits.Org

Wang, s. and Lin, s. S. J., 2007. The application of social cognitive theory to web-based learning through netports, British journal of educational technology, 38(4), pp. 600-612

Yoke, m., 2003. Formative assessment in higher education: moves towards theory and the enhancement of pedagogic practice, higher education, 45, pp. 477-501.

Zhang, q. and Shu, w., 2008. Exploring emotion in teaching: emotional labor, burnout, and satisfaction in Chinese higher education, communication education, 57(1), pp. 105-122.

Gates, g. S., 2000. The socialization of feelings in undergraduate education: a study of emotional management, college student journal, 34, pp. 485-504.

Gibbs, g. and Simpson, c., 2004. Conditions under which assessment supports students’ learning, learning and teaching in higher education, 1, pp.3-31.

Http://resources.Glos.Ac.Uk/tli/lets/journals/lathe/issue1/index.Cfm

Hajsadr, m., 2007. Blended animated teaching, paper presented at the twelfth Cambridge conference on open and distance learning, pp. 25-34

Http://www2.Open.Ac.Uk/r06/conference/cambridgeconferencepapers2.Pdf

Hattie, j. And jaeger, r., 1998. Assessment and classroom learning: a deductive approach, assessment in education: principles, policy and practice, 5(1), pp.111-122.

Http://www.Informaworld.Com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a739137305~frm=titlelink

Higgins, r., Hartley, p. And skelton, a., 2001, Getting the message across: the problem of communicating assessment feedback, teaching in higher education, 6(2), pp. 269-274.

Higgins, s., 2003. Does ict improve learning and teaching in schools?, Monograph, British educational research association.

Hull, a. and Du Boulay, b., 2009. Scaffolding motivation and metacognition in learning in learning programming, frontiers in artificial intelligence and application, 200, pp. 755-756. Http://portal.Acm.Org/citation.Cfm?Id=1659450.1659596

Jisc 2006, lord puttnam presents rsc northern e-learning awards http://www.Jisc.Ac.Uk/news/stories/2006/12/news_rscnorthern.Aspx

Kember, d., 2003. To control or not to control: the question of whether experimental designs are appropriate for evaluating teaching innovations in higher education, assessment and evaluation in higher education, 28(1), pp. 89-101.

Koper, r., Pannakeet, k., Hendriks, m. & Hummel, h., 2004. Building communities for the exchange of learning objects: theoretical foundations and requirements, alt-j, research in learning technology, 12 (1), pp.21 - 35.

Maclellan, e., 2001. Assessment for learning: the differing perceptions of tutors and students, assessment and

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Helping Experienced Teacher Trainers to Improve Their Practice: A Case Study of a Mentoring Partnership

Background

In 2007, the University of Sunderland Centre for Excellence in Teacher Training (SUNCETT) funded an initiative whereby three recently qualified teachers who had impressed on their initial teacher training were awarded a two-year bursary to join the established teacher education team and work with them as mentees.

When this case-study began, in September 2007, I was a University-based PGCE Post-Compulsory Education and Training tutor with 26 years’ FE teaching experience including 15 years’ PCET teacher education experience. I had a Ph.D in Education and a number of publications on teacher development. My mentee teacher-trainer was Steven, a 25 year-old Law graduate who had developed a specialist interest in teaching Numeracy and had one year’s experience teaching “Skills for Life” with a training provider, and who had demonstrated that he had the potential to develop as a teacher educator of the future. The intention was that he shadow and contribute to my teacher training programme as appropriate, and increasingly work with partner college staff. Steven supported me from the beginning of the programme, and we had regular joint-planning and review sessions as he took increasing responsibility for teaching, preparation and administration of the course.

It may be helpful to clarify the nature of our mentoring relationship.“Mentoring” is often loosely defined; for example, in my own teaching experience, my mentor in the 1980s was chosen by myself; as an insecure entrant to FE teaching, I identified and gravitated towards the “wise and trusted guide” who could provide support as I negotiated the occupational and institutional culture (i.e. as I learned how to cope as a teacher). In my case, my mentor did “satisfy a need created by an absence” (Aldred and Smith, 1992). However, since the 1990s, mentorship has been more formally used to describe formal guided training for new entrants to the profession, and mentors are often both recognised and financially rewarded. Mentors are now assigned to trainee-teachers, and have defined roles and responsibilities, and may be expected to model and coach desirable teaching strategies and approaches.

In our case, I was keen to adopt the role of mentor and assume the professional recognition that associates with the status, and I had to acknowledge that Steven, my mentee, had some advantages in our situation. I had only taught the latter part of this particular Cert Ed programme and I lacked a working experience of how the full programme knitted together. Steven had recent experience of the full course, but only from the trainee’s perspective.

Helping Experienced Teacher Trainers to Improve Their Practice: A Case Study of a Mentoring PartnershipAndy Convery (University of Sunderland) and Steven Fletcher Tynemet College, [email protected] or [email protected]

Abstract

This paper is prompted by two incidents in my relationship (as mentor) with a beginning teacher educator in an HEI. As an experienced teacher educator I believed that I modelled critical reflective practice for the trainee-teachers, but the incidents suggest that

a) my concern for my image as a teacher-educator;

together with

b) the need to ensure all my trainee-teachers completed their Cert Ed assignments on time had influenced my approach in the teacher education classroom. My need to be seen to be presenting well-managed experiences may have conflicted with my ability to address the trainees’ concerns in their own classrooms.

If these influences are widely shared by other teacher trainers, this may raise questions about:

a) whether teacher-trainers’ modelling of generic teaching skills is all-important;

b) the design of teacher-education programmes to ensure that they are responsive to trainee-teachers’ needs;

c) the support and updating that experienced teacher educators need.

A significant insight from this study was the recognition of the learning opportunities that arise when adopting a mentor role.

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Revisiting this excerpt of reflective writing that I shared with Steven, at one extreme I can justify my cautious response to the educational innovation. In my defence I could argue that experienced teachers refine a repertoire of experience by gradually incorporating new approaches and by incrementally testing them in various classroom contexts, and that only the naïve would still believe in the appeal of easy new answers to complex teaching problems.

However, at risk of being too self-indulgent, I suggest that this excerpt does indicate that my discussions with Steven were forcing me to review and revise my established and secure self-image as having some expertise expert in teacher education. This manifested itself in my deflated acknowledgement that I’m no longer young, hungry and theoretically predatory, and that I may have become conservative and defensive. Now whereas Steven’s might understandably declare a beginning teacher’s need to maintain self-image that has long been widely documented (Pollard (1985), Nias (1989), Hargreaves (1992)), perhaps we experienced Teacher Educators are content to perpetuate the attractive conceit that we have worked through any worries about our public image through the gradual adoption of critical self-reflection. However, it may be that our Teacher Education roles have not been achieved by overcoming classroom insecurities, but actually we use our Teacher Educator roles as a way of coping with threats to our self-image. Perhaps we find security through avoiding teaching challenging classes that might threaten our preferred image, and our career progression elevates us into high status teaching (teaching teachers) and modelling social constructivist learning approaches before a paying audience of polite and responsive adult learners. Indeed, Noel’s study of FE Teacher Educators indicated that many were keen to embrace the identity of teacher-educators, but this was linked to a concern to have credibility in their institutions and be seen to be “getting it right”(2006:165). If my own concerns for defending my self-image are shared more widely with other teacher educators, it may have important implications for understanding how teacher educators both practice, and contribute to the debate about, teacher education.

Before one is critical of FE-based teacher educators for wishing to preserve their relatively protected teaching status within a “very imperfect” free-market in education (Foster Report, 2005), let us remember that many of these mature teacher-educators will have experienced the full effects of 1994 FE college incorporation, which led to what a subsequent Government later admitted was “a harsh national funding regime”, resulting in “some poor and much mediocre provision” and “a workforce whose skills and career development has often been neglected”, amidst the continuing threatening effects of “unhealthy levels of casualisation” (DfES, 2002). It would be strange if the decimation of their FE workforce colleagues had not led to some defensive, risk-averse behaviours from those suffering from “survivor syndrome” (Appelbaum et al,1997).

Thus, our relationship was unusually interdependent, and particularly appropriate to a “joint planning”, rather than a hierarchical “expert-novice” approach; and Steven’s degree of relative subject expertise may have improved his confidence as a mentee. It was also apparent early in our work that the trainee-teacher group related to, and had expectations of Steven in the full tutor role.

Critical Incidents from the Mentorship – Episode One

To help readers consider the nature of our mentoring relationship, it may help to study two episodes from our working. The first is an excerpt from some reflective writing which I wrote after we had been working on a planning discussion, about four weeks into the course:

“Steven mentioned how much he was looking forward to doing a new CPD course that would us develop trainees’ “thinking skills”.

My immediate response to this was that I too would be interested to encounter this course, and to see how it could be incorporated into my teaching. However, I was shocked to realise that Steven sees this as a huge exploratory and liberating experience that will enable him to reach the trainees through opening a new door, whereas my response is framed around a much more defensive attitude – I’m wondering how I’ll accommodate it into my overall approach – i.e. how I can contain and incorporate it – possibly even “neutralise” this threat to my existing teacher education practice.

What did discomfort me was my sneaking hope that it wasn’t really anything better than I was already doing, and that I could steal the best bits to reinforce my existing good practice – I’m fairly confident that most of what I do in teacher-education is beneficial for trainees, and that my techniques and strategies together with the approaches that I recommend are effective in getting their learners an improved classroom experience.

I think that I’m most shocked at my realisation that I’ve aged; at 54, I’ve begun to shrink from embracing the new and I’m trying to hopelessly secure my sandcastle of accumulated educational experience against the incoming tide. It’s a realisation that I’m over the hump – losing the uphill, challenging, hungry energy of anticipation and having it replaced by a downhill easy coasting of practised responses, avoiding not only the bumps but also the excited responsiveness.

And the real shock was that I’ve gradually become different to the established image I’ve come to believe of as myself...” October 2007 (slightly edited)


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Critical Incidents from the Mentorship Episode Two

January 2008

When we returned to our own PGCE classroom after the Christmas break, we began to study assessment and its implications for learning and classroom management. I was preparing to use a case-study which I had devised to use as a stimulus to discussion of assessment theory. On the first side of my fictional case- study, an enthusiastic teacher energetically delights in explaining Victorian social change to a History class.

However, the other side of the case-study sheet shows the alternative perspective of a bored student in the class, descending into disengagement as the talking teacher continues without pausing. Using this sheet as a focus, I was intending to draw from the class how formative assessment activities might involve learners and prevent disengagement.

I was discussing my intended strategy with Steven when he suggested that an alternative approach might be to begin by asking the learners to design their own case study of a typically disengaged learner and, using these as a focus, work back to explore how assessment can address classroom management issues. I eventually agreed, so we handed out flip chart paper and small groups produced four case-study caricatures. Apart from the satisfaction which learners derived from constructing these cases, it was noticeable that three of the four trainee- teachers’ cases depicted students with strongly challenging behaviour and anti-social tendencies (or at least, anti-academic tendencies). This highlighted a major difference between the trainees’ perspective and my own. My teaching objective was to illustrate that students need good teaching to prevent them from disengaging, whereas the trainee-teachers’ concern was to illustrate that teachers need good strategies to cope with indigenous disengagement.

Whilst empathising with the causes of teacher-educators’ anxieties does not mitigate the effects of these insecurities on their practice and their trainees’ experiences, understanding the situation may lead to the necessary support for experienced teacher-educators.

Consequently, from reflection on the above episode, I suggest that attempting to preserve and present a stable teacher-educator role and identity may have several implications:

1) As in my diary entry, the defensiveness of teacher educators might militate against the introduction of a variety of innovatory practices (e.g. from new methods to new technologies).

2) The seductive ideal of the teacher educator as “model of good practices” might be over-emphasised by those of us needing reassurance. Thus, we teacher educators are likely to promote the practice of “modelling” (Lunenberg, 2007), despite lack of evidence that modelling by tutors on teacher education programmes actually influences trainee teachers’ practice significantly in a range of contexts (Ofsted, 2006)

3) The modelling of good practice in teacher education classrooms might allow us to achieve very rewarding experiences using a (limited) range of strategies whereas we might struggle in more difficult classrooms (including those in which some of our more resilient trainee-teacher are placed). Might “best practice” always be easiest to demonstrate in “best classrooms”?

4) Might the satisfactions and rewards of being a model of “good practice” inhibit us from investigating more effective alternative models of teacher education (e.g. transferring our resources to improving mentor support in placements, so trainees see good practice modelled where it would be most effective, in the trainee’s classroom)?

Having raised some questions about established teacher educators’ motivations and behaviour, it may be helpful to consider further how these influence my approach in the classroom by focusing on an example from my joint practice with Steven in the pre-service Teacher Education class.


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It could be argued that the necessity of ensuring trainees achieved the Cert Ed might dominate a Teacher Educator’s practice ( not least because this was my major accountability indicator) and as a Teacher Educator I can reconcile this “assessment-led” approach in the belief that the Cert Ed curriculum generally encapsulates desirable teacher education practices. However, critically reflecting on my practice with Steven indicated that in some aspects of my approach to teaching on the Cert Ed, there was a tension between “getting the trainees through” and maximising their personal practical development in a range of contexts. Now although simultaneously ‘challenging’ and ‘managing’ learners is a constant tension in all teaching, I would argue that “joint planning” of sessions from the two perspectives enabled a more continuous scrutiny of provision to ensure that the aims of the course were being better realised through the assignments mechanism. Steven’s continual questioning of the established approach served to better ensure that “what works” was not sufficient.

2. Modelling of good practice might be of limited use

“Modelling” of good practice is common across teacher education, and to some extent necessary to ensure that all trainee-teachers become familiar with a wide range of approaches. However, although modelling of good practice is celebrated by inspectors,

“The taught aspect of the training is good with teacher trainers modelling much generic good practice.“ (Ofsted 2008)

And also in the teacher education literature (e.g. Lunenberg, 2007), it appears to be a necessary, but not sufficient condition for FE teacher education, as Ofsted also point out that trainees are limited in their ability to transfer these skills in their own practice.

“Concerns remain about the quality of the practice element of the course, despite this being largely satisfactory with more than half of the trainees observed demonstrating good or better teaching skills. The concerns, as in previous inspections, relate to the development of the trainees’ subject specialist knowledge and skills which is not always supported by effective mentoring. As a consequence, not all trainees achieved their full potential”

I took a number of learning points from our mentor/mentee planning experience:

1) As an experienced teacher educator, I was trying to guide my trainee-teachers towards meeting the assignment requirements, and I was not sufficiently aware that their more fundamental and pressing classroom management concerns might dismiss my input as mere ‘theory’.

2) As a new teacher educator in a mentee “shadowing” role, Steven enjoyed a more objective perspective on the trainees’ needs that wasn’t compromised by my focus on ensuring they demonstrated achievement of the pre-ordained learning outcome.

3) As a fresh perspective on the experience, Steven wasn’t “paralysed by tradition” and could evaluate how learners’ fundamental needs would be best addressed. As the experienced teacher, I knew “what worked”; Steven was open to “possibility thinking” about “what might work better”.

In summary, I had been concerned that the learners should follow my explanation about student-centred experiences, and had prepared a teacher-led activity to manipulate that outcome; Steven’s actual student-centred experience that replaced it made my outcome more difficult to secure in the given time, but was more likely to engage meaningfully with trainee-teachers’ experiences beyond fulfilling their immediate assignment task and improve their working knowledge of their practice.

Working and learning together; some emerging issues for Teacher Education

The experience of working with a new teacher educator was prompting me to review the taken-for-granted assumptions that guided my practice. A number of issues became evident from this reflective opportunity.

1) “Joint planning” facilitates reflection on aims

I had become conscious that my practice claimed to be guided by three intentions:

a) Primarily, to ensure that all my trainees met the assessment requirements to achieve a Certificate in Education;

b) Implicit in this, to ensure that the trainees provided the best opportunities for their students;

c) For the future, to ensure that as new teachers, they developed the disposition to reflectively and responsively develop their professional practice through their careers.


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Although Lunenberg does stress the importance of teacher educators modelling by consciously using those opportunities which arise in the teacher-training classroom to illustrate the ambiguity of teaching and the range of alternatives open to teachers whenever a decision has to be made, there remains the question of the extent to which trainee-teachers would find this either helpful or relatable in their current teaching situations. It may be that the trainee-teacher in a challenging placement would prefer the reassurance of certainty, especially when the culture of an institution under-siege might emphasise secure collegial virtues such as ‘firmness’, ‘consistency’, and ‘team approaches’ to problematic situations. Trainee-teachers might adopt generic practices insofar as they are perceived as relevant (i.e. that they “work”), but they might then bypass the professional uncertainties of teaching, for while these are certainly valued in the safe-house that is the academic HE (or FE in HE) environment, they may unfortunately be dismissed as irrelevant theory by those in teaching situations who are struggling to cope with more concrete issues such as avoiding confrontations and retaining student numbers.

3. How might teacher educators best support trainees in their practices?

If modelling is not likely to be effective, then what approaches might lead to the adoption of good practices in trainee teachers’ contexts? It may be helpful to address this question by considering Fielding et al (2004) “Factors Influencing the Transfer of Good Practice”. Although Fielding’s research investigated wider initiatives governing transfer of practice between schools, this issue of transferring good practice would seem fundamental to the role of teacher educators (and indeed to the “mentor/mentee” relationship which stimulated this case study). Consequently, transfer of practice may prove a helpful lens through which to evaluate our roles in improving teacher education. Fielding suggests that for transfer to be effective, it has to fully engage the learner. He argues that “talk of ‘transfer’ is misleading because it misses out the mutuality of the process” (2004:1). Fielding stressed that “good practice” can’t just be “donated”, but had most effect when it was developed by colleagues working together to address a particular context. If we accept his findings, the implication is that we can’t just tell (or show) trainee-teachers what to do – they have to be fully involved in adopting these practices. Fielding’s study encountered terms such as ‘originators’ and ‘recipients’ of good practice, but he criticised such mechanistic images of donating good practices as simplistic and ineffective. His study indicated that practitioners usually only adopt practices when they are actively involved in creating – or recreating – practices for their own contexts. (His findings also revealed that originators were far more enthusiastic about sustaining good practice than the intended recipients.)

One can appreciate how modelling of good practice is attractive to a teacher educator as it enables the educator to retain control of the classroom and demonstrate polished teaching skills. However, teacher educators might concentrate on those aspects of their practice that are immediately subject to scrutiny (e.g. managing exemplary student-centred activities utilising good resources to audiences of trainee-teachers, observers and inspectors) rather than focusing upon the trainees’ own contexts, as my example of the student case studies might illustrate. Ofsted (2008) also found that,

“Trainees are not sufficiently exposed to the breadth and range of learners in the post-compulsory sector in either their teaching practice or through the taught courses.

and this suggests that Teacher Educators like myself may be unconsciously limiting trainee-teachers’ experiences through modelling teaching methods in conducive teacher education settings with motivated adult groups. Such representations of “good practice” in HE classrooms might unintentionally neglect the difficulties of adopting such strategies in more challenging contexts.

There are a number of pressures driving Teacher Educators to prioritise the modelling of good practice, not least the encouragement from Teacher Education literature. Thus Lunenberg’s (2007) research into the “exemplary role of teacher educators”, recommends that they should model best practice for their learners, citing Blume who states “teachers teach as they are taught, and not as they are taught to teach”. His review also quotes Russell’s (1997) belief “How I teach IS the message” (2007:588), and this indicates the importance which a teacher educator may attribute to his or her classroom performance. For the teacher educator (as with all teachers), the belief that one’s own practice will influence trainees has a strong appeal. Indeed, in our own University Certificate of Education programme, the overarching aim is “to foster the holistic development of critical, creative and inspirational teachers in the Lifelong Learning Sector”(2010:4), and this may invite us, as teacher educators, to present ourselves primarily as models of good classroom practice. Although it is necessary that trainee teachers do experience a range of teaching methods and approaches, dynamic activities modelled in the HEI setting may not always seem as relevant to trainee-teachers placed in more challenging learning environments. As Fielding argues, “Judgements of decontextualised representation of a practice are often not much use to teachers” (2005:4). Our trainee-teacher placement contexts can be different because of either learners’ attitudes and dispositions or even negative institutional cultures. Indeed, it could be argued that, in response to Blume’s assertion that “teachers teach as they are taught, and not as they are taught to teach”, a Business Studies trainee who has experienced a well-modelled Certificate of Education programme may be better equipped to teach on a Cert Ed programme than on a Business Studies Course.


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On reflection, working with a new entrant to teacher education (and comparatively, to teaching itself) gave me a freedom that provided a reflective opportunity together with some stimulating practical confrontation to my established practice as a teacher educator. Thinking about a mentee’s responsiveness to one’s practice does create that mirror that enables focused reflection, not least by comparing the mentee’s thinking with one’s own and trying to account for the personal differences (or to rationalise away that lack of difference.) I believe that it was important that there was a distance between our career experiences which reduced my instinct towards defensive competitiveness, and thus created the conditions for more self-critical realisations to be articulated by myself; however, whether my younger mentee felt wholly comfortable being confronted by my well-intentioned self-disclosures must also be considered.

There are inevitably, satisfactions attached to being given a mentee to work with; as Nias (1989) has pointed out, sharing accumulated learning over the years provides a major satisfaction for mid-career teachers. (And seeing a young teacher adopt some of one’s own practices provides comforting feedback.) Stenhouse (1975) describes how reflectively researching practice can create a “second level of consciousness” about our practices and enables us to review them. The advantage of focused “practice creation” (Fielding 2004) moves beyond mere pathological reflection on how practice could have been improved, as the joint focus is on practical alternatives that can be adopted to meet our trainees’ emerging needs. When “reflective practice” is given a contextual application, it develops a concrete (and messy) reality in the shape of plans, re-organisations and revisions of materials. Reflective practice with a mentee moves closer to a form of mutual practice improvement.

It would thus seem that for effective adoption of good practice, we in teacher education should endeavour to ensure that trainee-teachers see themselves as originators – i.e. fully involved in identifying and developing a contextually relevant practice. Fielding’s experience would seem to agree with our own case study experience – that what is important is to make opportunities for engagement more appealing for those least likely to articulate their needs (2004:6).

As we discovered when asking teachers to design their own case studies, acknowledging – and building upon – the trainee-teacher’s own teaching context is crucial. This is a factor that Fielding suggests arises from joint planning: the mutuality of the process is important as it “develops a new way of working that fits the different context of the partner teacher.” And this respecting of the trainee-teacher’s perspective of their placement, and acknowledging their priorities, is more likely to engage the learners in confident reflection on the teaching and learning process. As others have found (e.g. Biesta, 2007), it is the capacity for reflection on why a strategy might be appropriate to a particular context which represents good or “best” practice (rather than particular teaching methods). And this positive disposition to reflectively explore practice (Fielding described this as “meta-practice”) tended to develop through a combination of ‘experiential’, ‘reflective’ and ‘contextual’ support, in which learning teachers observed practices, considered and planned their application, and then were supported in attempting to apply these approaches in their own context. In most teacher education courses, we attempt to create this combination of reflection informing and arising from practice, and the challenge for Cert Ed programmes will be in ensuring that securing the written assignments that are necessary to secure the award do not override the need for the teacher educator’s attention to contextual support.

Conclusion

Developing learning opportunities for an experienced Teacher Educator

Noel’s study into the needs of FE teacher educators acknowledges that experienced teacher educators do continue to need support; she cites Korthagen’s (2005:191) identification of a “need for support for new and experienced teacher educators to share their knowledge and mutually facilitate each other’s development.” This can too easily be interpreted as a manifesto for new teacher educators to learn from experienced practitioners; however, as Evans et al (2007) suggest, and as my experience learning with and from Steven demonstrated, working with a newcomer to teacher education leads to the creation of new (and improved) forms of practical knowledge.


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Korthagen F,Loughran J and Lunenberg M (2005) “Teaching Teachers – studies into the expertise of teacher educators: an introduction to this theme issue” Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol21 (2), pp107-115 cited in Noel P (2006) “The secret life of teacher educators: becoming a teacher educator in the learning and skills sector” Journal of Vocational Education and Training Vol 58, no.2, pp151-170

Lunenberg M, Korthagen F, Swennen A (2007) “The teacher educator as a role model” Teaching and Teacher Education Vol 23, pp 586–601

Nias J (1989) Primary Teachers Talking (Routledge: London)

Noel P (2006) “The secret life of teacher educators: becoming a teacher educator in the learning and skills sector” Journal of Vocational Education and Training Vol 58, no.2, pp151-170

Ofsted (2008) The Initial Training of Further Education Teachers; Findings From 2006-07 Inspections of Courses Leading To National Awarding Body Qualifications

Pollard A (1985) The Social World of The Primary School (Cassell: London)

Russell, T. (1997) “How I teach IS the message” In Loughran J & Russell T (Eds.), Purpose, passion and pedagogy in teacher education (pp. 32–47). London/Washington, DC: Falmer Press.

Stenhouse L (1975) Curriculum Research and Evaluation (London: Heinemann)

University of Sunderland (2010) PG/Cert Ed Programme Student Handbook

Finally, I would suggest that the responsibility experienced by a late-career teacher educator to support a mentee away from the mistakes that he himself has made does encourage a higher degree of self-scrutiny than might normally be afforded. Aspects of this relationship have illustrated some of the most salient features of situated learning; that learning about teacher education practice continues in the appreciation of the current process, and does not reside in the certified accumulation of learning awards from the past. Our experience accords with Evans et al’s construct of situated work-based learning:

“The concepts of novice and expert do not have the same salience: Newcomers bring capabilities with them, they participate, move through, and eventually move on with strengthened capabilities, which they share on the way. Expert status in this context comes with the responsibilities for creating and maintaining the environment for full participation” (Evans et al, 2006: 13)

Seen from this perspective, the mentor’s responsibility is to create opportunities to critique, rather than to confer, good teacher education practices.

ReferencesAppelbaum,S H, Delage, C, Labib, N, Gault G,(1997) “The survivor syndrome: aftermath of downsizing” Career Development International Volume: 2 Issue: 6 pp 278 – 86

Biesta G (2007).“Why “what works” won’t work. Evidence-based practice and the democratic deficit of educational research” Educational Theory 57(1), 1-22.

Blume, R. (1971).“Humanizing teacher education” PHI Delta Kappan, Vol 53, 411–415.

Evans K, Hodkinson P, Rainbird H, and Unwin L (2006) Improving Workplace Learning (Routledge: London)

Fielding M, Bragg S, Craig J, Cunningham I, Eraut M, Gillinson S, Horne M, Robinson C and Thorp J, (2004) Factors Influencing The Transfer of Good Practice DfES Research Report RR615 (University of Sussex)

Hargreaves.A , (1994) Changing Times, Changing Teachers (Cassell: London)


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PraxisThe Journal of Practitioner Based Research Vol 1 No 1

Aims and Scope

Praxis; the Journal of Practitioner-based Research seeks to support research and scholarly activity within Sunderland College. Submitted papers may cover any topic within the post-compulsory sector, but papers relating to teaching and learning, examples of research-informed good practice (and its impact upon the student learning experience) are particularly welcomed. The remit of Praxis is broad, therefore contributions may be derived from many different fields including, (but not limited to) an action research base, the addressing of fundamental philosophical issues, reports of outcomes of classroom practice or be informed by empirical studies.

Submitted papers will be judged on methodological thoroughness and relevance to the post-compulsory sector.

Praxis aims for a high academic standard with relevance to the field of educational practices.

ISSN Number 2047 - 1858

0191 511 6000www.citysun.ac.uk

Philadelphia, Success Road, Houghton-le-Spring DH4 4TL

Praxis Vol:1 No: 1

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Transcript of Praxis Vol:1 No: 1