THE HONG KONG SMALL CLASS TEACHING (SCT) STUDY Maurice Galton Faculty of Education, University of...

THE HONG KONG SMALL CLASS TEACHING (SCT)

STUDY

Maurice Galton

Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge (mg [email protected])

1

BACKGROUND

TO THE SCT

STUDY

2

Study on Small Class Teaching

Year of Study

Small classes

20-25 pupils

Normal classes

35-37 pupils

2004/05 P1(small) P2 (normal)

2005/06 P1(small) P2(small) P3(normal)

2006/07 P1 (normal) P2(small) P3(small)

2007/08 P2 (normal) P3 (normal)

3

1. The main research questions

4

What are the benefits of SCT in the local context?

What teaching strategies, professional support and resources are necessary in order to maximise the benefits of SCT in Hong Kong primary schools?

5

Do pupils in small classes make more progress than those in regular ones?

Are attitudes to languages and mathematics stronger in small classes? Does self-esteem/motivation improve?

Do attitudes and attainment improve the longer pupils remain in small classes?

Is attainment or attitude associated with certain teacher and pupil behaviour?

Do pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds benefit the most?

What other factors (school leadership, parent support) influence performance in small classes ?

6

Research Methods Used in the Study

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At school levelChineseEnglishMathematicsParents’ surveyPrincipals’ surveyP1-P4 year groups

At class levelTeacher characteristicsGenderExperienceQualificationsTrainingSubject specialismSurvey of opinions

Class size

ObservationQuestions askedStatements madeFeedback given etc.Class/group/ individualSustained

At pupil levelPupil characteristicsGenderAgePlace of birthS.E.S

Outcome measuresAttainmentAttitudesSelf-esteemMotivation

ObservationsTime on taskPupil talkTarget’s setting

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SAMPLES

In most years of the study some 700 classes were tested in Chinese, mathematics and English

Approx 20,000 pupils took part in P1 , 23,500 in P2, 20,500 in P3 and 11, 000 in P4.

53.9% of the initial P1 sample were in small classes, 27.2% from the regular classes in the same schools and 18.9% from the reference schools.

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2. The Main Results

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Conflicting views on the benefit of small classes

What teachers say What the research shows

More individual attention for pupils Little change but conversations last longer

Better pupil attainment Moderate increases in a few cases

Better attitudes/motivation Attitudes decline year by year but more slowly than in normal classes

Improved relationships with pupils Yes: according to pupil interviews

11

School Learning Orientation (combined attitude & motivation as % of

maximum score)

65

70

75

80

85

90

start P1 end P1 end P2 end P3 end P4

smallnormal

12

Relative academic

Performance of SCT classes

and control classes

13

End of P1 scores

35

40

45

50

55

Chinese English Maths

cohort 1cohort 2control

14

End of P2 scores

35

40

45

50

55



15

End of P3 scores

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65



16

End of P4 scores

30

35

40

45

50

55

60


cohort 1controlreference

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Main ConclusionsThese results are difficult to interpret but in all cases differences between

the various samples are not large with small to very small effect sizes.

Cohort 2 do best in P1 drop back in P2 but do better again when they return to normal classes in P3

Cohort 1 do least well in P1 and P2 (except in English) hold their own in P3 (compared to controls) but fall back again when they return to normal classes in P4

There is therefore no overwhelming evidence that being in a small class boosts pupils’ attainment. Consequently being in a small class for 3 rather than 2 years has a marginal effect. Returning to a large class has a positive effect in Cohort 2 but a negative one in Cohort 1. The fact that these trends are not consistent suggest that

Initial attainment at the start of the year is the major determinant of progress

The expertise of the teacher of a particular class is also a crucial factor Teachers in small classes were still experimenting with different

teaching approaches; hence the variable results

. 18

Teacher Talk in Hong Kong Primary Classrooms

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Teacher talk during lessons

12%

73%

8%

3%4%

indivindiv-groupindiv-classgroup-no focusclass-no focus

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Some implications of this finding

The figure for the average % observation when no pupil was in focus had dropped from 73% to 66% by the end of the study. During this time pupils were

Listening to the teacher talk or watching him/her demonstrate

Singing a song or reciting a poem/story/ writing on the board in unison

In a 35 minute period there is a maximum of 12.3 minutes to give individual attention ( either alone in a group or as part of the class). With 20 pupils this gives a maximum of 37 seconds. With 40 the figure is 19 seconds.

. 21

Four types of teacher of teacher behaviour

Cluster analysis used to identify 4 teacher types:

Type 1 (30.1%): Individual/pair sustained enquirers

Type 2 (18.5%): group task monitorsType 3 (30.1%): Whole class instructorsType 4 (21.3%): Whole class questioners

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Questions by type (as % of all observations)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

fact closed open other

type 1type 2type 3type 4

23

Statements by type (as % of all observations)

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

fact ideas direction other


24

Feedback by type (as % of all observations)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

corr inform behaviour routine monitor


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Audience by type (as % of all observations)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

indiv

pair

grou

pcla

ss

no foc

us

susta

ined


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Effectiveness of teacher types

At P1 there were no significant differences in attainment between the teacher types in any subject but pupils taught by individual/pair sustained enquirers had higher learning dispositions (combined subject attitude & motivation score) in Chinese. In mathematics pupils in the top third of the ability range taught by whole class questioners had the strongest learning disposition.

At P2 only English registered significant results. Pupils in the top third of the ability range made significant progress in attainment and had better learning disposition when taught by whole class questioners.

When aggregated scores were used P2 pupils taught by whole class instructors had the worst learning disposition while those taught by whole class questioners had the best. There were no attainment differences.

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Pupil behaviour in the classroom

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Four types of pupil behaviour

Cluster analysis used to identify 4 pupil types These are similar to those identified in UK:

Type 1 (43.8%): Solitary workersType 2 (22.4%): intermittent workersType 3 (23.3%): Active collaboratorsType 4 (10.5%): Attention grabbers

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Pupils’ behaviour (as % of all observations)

0

10

2030

4050

6070

8090

100

on-task in-base Indiv work Group work


30

Pupil-teacher behaviour (as % of all observations)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Indiv att part class part group seeks att


31

Pupil-pupil behaviour (as % of all observations)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

initiates responds sustains same task


32

Pupil types as a function of teacher types

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Ind Enq Gp Mon Class Inst Class Quest

sol workersint workersactive collatt grabbers

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Some implications & findings

No attainment, attitude or subject differences between pupil types

More active collaborators in small classes (25.2% compared to 18% in normal classes)

Girls constituted 54.8% of solitary workers while 59% of attention grabbers were boys

In P1, P2 and P3 solitary workers are in the majority. In P3 there were more active collaborators (30%) and fewer attention grabbers (7.1%)

In general patterns are stable suggesting types may be, in part, a function of personality rather than a consequence of teaching approach.

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SCHOOL FACTORS AIDING SUCCESS

35

School aggregated scores were ranked to give 6 high attaining schools and 4 low attaining ones. Comparisons were then made on a number of measures

Successful schools had Principals who took an active part in curriculum

development and teachers’ professional learning Teachers who tended to favour the individual/pair

sustained enquiry approach More mathematics teachers teaching mathematics

and less mathematics teachers teaching other subjects

Higher levels of parental support

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3. RECENT IDEAS ABOUT LEARNING & THEIR RELEVANCE TO SCT

37

Watkins’ (2003) Three Ways of Learning

LEARNING

as being taught (LBT):

process of knowledge acquisition

as Individual Sense Making (LIS):

making sense of experience

as building knowledge with others (LBKO)

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Ways of Knowing I

kn ow in g th is o rth a t ab ou t som eth in g

teach in g asin s tru c tion

kn ow in g ru lesfo r u se o f

in fo rm ation

kn ow in g h owto u se

in fo rm ation

in fo rm ation p rocess in g

P roced u ra l kn ow led g e

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Teaching as Instruction

Provide an Advanced Organizer Check what pupils know with quick, snappy

question & answer session Present new knowledge Provide for practice which emphasises application Extend practice by homework Give feedback which is informative Review new learning

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Uses of Direct Instruction

YES

• Mathematical procedures

• English grammar

• Scientific information

• Historical facts

• Using maps

• Practical skills

NO

• Mathematical problem solving

• Extended writing

• Scientific investigations

• Discussing controversial social science topics

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Ways of Knowing II

kn ow led g e o fid eas

teach in g asen q u iry

u n d ers tan d in g an dap p lica tion o f

p rin c ip les

recog n it ion o fc lasses

'b e lon g in g ''n o t b e lon g in g '

con s tru c tivism

con cep tu a l kn ow led g e

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Teaching as EnquiryEngaging in complex cognitive processes requires thoughtful discourse. Pupils are invited to make predictions, debate alternatives, etc. This can take place during interactive whole class teaching or during peer interaction in pairs or groups and should involve:

Placing the topic in the wider, meaningful context (big picture)

Using ‘open ended’ questions Allowing suitable ‘wait times’ Encouraging explanations or elaboration of

answers.

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Ways of Knowing III

kn ow led g e o fon e 's cog n it ive

p rocesses

teach in g assca ffo ld in g

ap p lica tion o fap p rop ria te

th in k in gs tra teg ies

M on ito rin gp rocesses an d

id en tifyin gerro rs

D eve lop in g E xp ert p e rfo rm an ce

M etacog n it ive kn ow led g e

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Teaching as ScaffoldingHelping pupils to learn how to ‘think for themselves’ requires temporary frameworks. They reduce ‘the degrees of freedom a child must manage in the task to prevent error rather than induce it’. (Bruner)

Providing models of appropriate response (e.g. model answers, demonstrations etc.)feedback as in guided discoveryIdentifying potential problems from the outsetRehearsing an argument (pupils explain to class/group in words their reasoning e.g.their answer to a maths problem) Cue Cards ( as in writing frames ) Self-evaluation checklists (requires pupils to check through the process by which they reached a conclusion and to indicate how it might be improved

45

What research says about What research says about effective teachingeffective teaching

John Hattie (2005) surveyed a large number of studies and concluded that the following were important (effect size in brackets):

Motivation: improving disposition to learn (0.61) More questions, particularly challenging ones (0.42) Informing feedback (self regulation) (0.95) Feedback that reinforces effort (0.94) rather than general

praise (0.14) Corrective feedback (0.37) Peer tutoring (0.56)

The more we increase the use of these variables the better our results. 46

Six key principles to keep SCT on track Use assessment

to inform future instruction

Give feedback which helps pupils

to sort out their own mistakes

Communicate learning goals to class in terms of

process not outcomes

Provide more thinking time

during questioning

Develop cooperation between pupils by

pair/group work

Boost participation during class discussions 47

Small Class Teaching: The next steps

48

Professional DevelopmentLearning Circles have been well received with the number increasing during the past year. Attendance appears to improve the quality of classroom discourseMore needs to be done for coordinators who in many schools exercise sole responsibility for running the SCT programme.Some Principals need to rethink their leadership strategies (less delegation and more active participation) particularly in relation to pedagogy.

49

Teachers who attended Learning Circles

• Offer more ideas• Provide more informing feedback• Have pupils of different abilities working

on different tasks• Often sit pupils of different ability by

themselves when working on these tasks• More often praise for effort

50

Factors promoting successful professional learning communities

Offers intra- school as well as inter-school

sharing & support

Takes account of contexts

(school environment,

pupils etc)

Involves collaboration with peers, mentors &

outside experts

Takes place over a lengthy

period

Addresses key issues in

curriculum & instruction

Must be linked to specific

content areas

Provides resources &

opportunities to practice new

ideas51

LEADERSHIP & LEARNING

52

Experienced and less experienced Principals

Experienced school leadersGave teachers less freedom to try out

different pedagogic strategies.More likely to delegate total responsibility

for small class teaching to middle managersSaw their main role as acquiring as many

resources as possible, setting clear goals, and formulating practicable action plans.

Less likely to supply time for collaborative lesson planning or peer observation.

53

LEADERSHIP & ACCOUNTABILITY

• According to MacBeath (2008) today’s school leaders are often “more concerned with accounting than learning, with compliance than with risk-taking and with public relations than with the quality of student experience,”

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Leadership for LearningLeadership for Learning

MacBeath suggests that Leadership for Learning requires a kind of collegiality which challenges rather than reinforces existing practice. Learning is viewed as a collaborative, communicative and cooperative experience and, as such, it involves everyone; senior managers, teachers, support staff, pupils and parents.

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5 CONDITIONS FOR WHOLE SCHOOL LEARNING

1. A focus on learning: learning at the heart of all we do

2. Conditions for learning: attending to conditions which optimise learning

3. Creating a dialogue about learning and leadership

4. Sharing leadership

5. Sharing a sense of accountability56

Where learning and leadership meet

LearningLearning LeadershipLeadershipIs an activity

Is about change

Is both individual and distributed

Is an activity

Is about change

Is both individual and distributed

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QAD, EDB (2008) 58

Leaders as learners

The most notable trait of great leaders, certainly of great change leaders, is their quest for learning. They show an exceptional willingness to push themselves out of their own comfort zones, even after they have achieved a great deal. They continue to take risks, even when there is no obvious reason for them to do so. And they are open to people and ideas even at a time in life when they might reasonably think—because of their success—that they know everything. (Hesselbein, et al., 1996, p. 78)

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Leadership studies

• School leaders improve teaching and learning indirectly and most powerfully through their influence on staff motivation, commitment and working conditions

• School leadership has a greater influence on schools and students when it is widely distributed

• Collaborative patterns beyond the school strengthen the quality of learning and teaching(Leithwood, 2006)

Leithwood et al.

59

Leadership for Learning

Dialogue

A focus on learning

Conditions for learning

Shared leadership

Mutual accountability

60

Leadership is exercised

not at the apex of the

organisational pyramid

but at the centre of the

web of human

relationships.

(Joe Murphy, 1994)

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Student learning

Professional learning

Organisational learning

leadership

62

Student learning

Professional learning

Organisational learning

leadership

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The task of leadership is to make visible the how, why and where of learning. It achieves this by conversations and demonstrations around pupil learning, professional learning and learnings which transcend the boundaries of the school. The challenge for leadership is to nurture the dialogue, to make transparent ways in learning interconnects and infuses behaviour. It promotes a continuing restless inquiry into what works best, when, where, for whom and with what outcome. Its vision is of the intelligent school and its practice intersects with the wider world of learning. (MacBeath et al, 2007)

MAKING LEARNING VISIBLEMAKING LEARNING VISIBLE

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Flying below the radar

An extra-ordinary generation of school leaders who have bucked the trend, who are not intimidated and oppressed by ‘the centre’ because with imaginative leaders and committed creative teachers they follow their best professional instincts, who don’t say I’d love to do innovation but I can’t afford to because of ……..

They’ve just got on innovating and doing exciting things and running very good schools - exciting places for teachers and kids to be in.

(David Hargreaves)

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Go to the peopleGo to the peopleLive among themLive among themStart with what they knowStart with what they knowAnd when the deed is done And when the deed is done The mission accomplishedThe mission accomplishedOf the best leadersOf the best leadersThe people will sayThe people will sayWe did itWe did itOurselves.Ourselves.

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Some References

MacBeath, J. (2008) Leadership for Learning: exploring Similarity and Living with Difference, in J. MacBeath and Y.C. Cheng [Eds] Leadership for Learning: International Perspectives, London: Sense Publishers

Watkins, C (2003) Learning: A sense-makers guide, London: Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL).

Watkins, C. (2005) Classrooms as Learning Communities: What’s in it for schools? London: Routledge.

Wood, D. (1998) How Children Think and Learn,Oxford: Blackwells

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