Stefan Kleinke and David Cross
The purpose of this two-part research was to investigate the effect of remote learning on student progress in elementary education. Part 2, presented in this paper, is a follow-up…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this two-part research was to investigate the effect of remote learning on student progress in elementary education. Part 2, presented in this paper, is a follow-up study to examine how student progression in the two pandemic-induced environments compared to the pre-pandemic conditions.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors expanded the quantitative, quasi-experimental factorial design of the authors' initial study with additional ex-post-facto standardized test score data from before the pandemic to enhance the group comparison with a control: the conventional pre-pandemic classroom environment. Thus, the authors were able to examine in which ways the two pandemic-induced learning environments (remote and hybrid) may have affected learner progress in the two subject areas: English Language (ELA) and Math. Additionally, the authors provided a grade-by-grade breakdown of analysis results.
Findings
Findings revealed significant group differences in grade levels at or below 6th grade. In the majority of analyzed comparisons, learner achievement in the hybrid group was significantly lower than those in either the remote or the classroom group, or both.
Research limitations/implications
The additional findings further supported the authors' initial hypotheses: Differences in the consistency and continuity of educational approaches, as well as potential differences in learner predispositions and the availability of home support systems may have influenced observed results. Thus, this research also contributes to the general knowledge about learner needs in elementary education.
Originality/value
During the pandemic, remote learning became ubiquitous. However, in contrast to e-learning in postsecondary education, for which an abundance of research has been conducted, relatively little is known about the efficacy of such approaches in elementary education.
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Stefan Kleinke and David Cross
The purpose of this two-part research was to investigate the effect of remote learning on student progress in elementary education. Part one, presented in this paper, examined…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this two-part research was to investigate the effect of remote learning on student progress in elementary education. Part one, presented in this paper, examined achievement differences between learners in a fully remote learning environment and those in a hybrid setting.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative, quasi-experimental study with factorial design was used to investigate group differences in student achievement between the different learning environments. Ex-post-facto data from standardized test scores were utilized to examine in which ways the learning environment may have affected learner progress in two distinct subject areas crucial to elementary education: English language (ELA) and math.
Findings
Findings revealed a significant difference between the two learning environments in both subject areas. While preexisting group differences, selection biases and testing inconsistencies could be effectively ruled out as potential causes for the observed differences, other factors such as developmental and environmental differences between the learning environments seemed to be influential. Therefore, the follow-on research aimed at further investigating and confirming the influence of such factors and will be presented in a Part 2 paper.
Practical implications
Knowledge of the observed differences in learning achievements between the different environments, as well as the factors likely causing them, may aid educators and school administrators in their decision processes when faced with difficult circumstances such as during the pandemic.
Originality/value
When the SARS-CoV-2 virus started to rapidly spread around the globe, educators across the world were looking for alternatives to classroom instruction. Remote learning became an essential tool. However, in contrast to e-learning in postsecondary education, for which an abundance of research has been conducted, relatively little is known about the efficacy of such approaches in elementary education. Lacking this type of information, it seems that educators and administrators are facing difficult decisions when trying to align the often conflicting demands of public health, local politics and parent pressure with what may be best for student learning.
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This paper aims to present an insightful interview with Professor David Ahlstrom, a distinguished scholar in the field of entrepreneurship and management in emerging economies.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present an insightful interview with Professor David Ahlstrom, a distinguished scholar in the field of entrepreneurship and management in emerging economies.
Design/methodology/approach
The interview explores Professor Ahlstrom’s extensive research on the dynamics of emerging economies, institutional theory, corporate governance, China’s early economic takeoff and the dissemination of management knowledge.
Findings
Drawing upon his prolific body of work, the discussion delves into how businesses navigate the complexities of globalization, adapt to institutional pressures and innovate within the constraints and opportunities presented by emerging economies, particularly during their reform process. Professor Ahlstrom shares his perspectives on the evolution of corporate governance practices, international business in turbulent environments and the pivotal role of entrepreneurship in driving economic growth and innovation in China and other emerging economies. Furthermore, he reflects on the challenges and rewards of scholarly publishing and the vital importance of management education in shaping future leaders and researchers.
Originality/value
Through his insights, Professor Ahlstrom not only elucidates the nuanced interplay between theory and practice in management but also offers valuable advice to aspiring scholars in the field. This paper aims to contribute to the ongoing dialogue on management research and practice in emerging economies, offering readers a comprehensive overview of key issues and future directions as seen through the lens of one of the field’s most respected voices.
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Phillip W. Balsmeier and Anita K. Heck
Discusses cross‐cultural communication as a process of becoming aware of another culture's habits, actions and reasons behind behaviours; and explores low‐context, high‐context…
Abstract
Discusses cross‐cultural communication as a process of becoming aware of another culture's habits, actions and reasons behind behaviours; and explores low‐context, high‐context, frontstage and backstage cultures, along with the differences between them. Basic principles (conversational, presentation and written) are used to illustrate how cultures vary in communication style. Examples of attitude, priorities and behaviours which are influenced by culture are explained using factors of age, family, money and material possessions, space, time, priorities and gifts.
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THE Reference Department of Paisley Central Library today occupies the room which was the original Public Library built in 1870 and opened to the public in April 1871. Since that…
Abstract
THE Reference Department of Paisley Central Library today occupies the room which was the original Public Library built in 1870 and opened to the public in April 1871. Since that date two extensions to the building have taken place. The first, in 1882, provided a separate room for both Reference and Lending libraries; the second, opened in 1938, provided a new Children's Department. Together with the original cost of the building, these extensions were entirely financed by Sir Peter Coats, James Coats of Auchendrane and Daniel Coats respectively. The people of Paisley indeed owe much to this one family, whose generosity was great. They not only provided the capital required but continued to donate many useful and often extremely valuable works of reference over the many years that followed. In 1975 Paisley Library was incorporated in the new Renfrew District library service.
This chapter seeks to explore different aspects of Modernism in the works of Ernest Hemingway, in particular The Garden of Eden that is set in the 1920s and The Sun Also Rises…
Abstract
This chapter seeks to explore different aspects of Modernism in the works of Ernest Hemingway, in particular The Garden of Eden that is set in the 1920s and The Sun Also Rises that was created in 1926. Therefore, the aim is to demonstrate what makes The Garden of Eden Modernist even though it was first published in 1986. In other words, the main point is to show how Hemingway constructs Modernism and whether there are parallels between the depictions of Modernism in both works. The first part of this chapter particularly emphasises aspects of American Modernism as the basis for the second part that focuses on the analyses of the works.
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Abstract
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The New Year will see Britain a member of the largest multi‐national free trade area in the world and there must be few who see it as anything less than the beginning of a new…
Abstract
The New Year will see Britain a member of the largest multi‐national free trade area in the world and there must be few who see it as anything less than the beginning of a new era, in trade, its trends, customs and usages and especially in the field of labour, relations, mobility, practices. Much can be foreseen but to some extent it is all very unpredictable. Optimists see it as a vast market of 250 millions, with a lot of money in their pockets, waiting for British exports; others, not quite so sure, fear the movement of trade may well be in reverse and if the increasing number of great articulated motor trucks, heavily laden with food and other goods, now spilling from the Channel ports into the roads of Kent are an indication, the last could well be true. They come from faraway places, not all in the European Economic Community; from Yugoslavia and Budapest, cities of the Rhineland, from Amsterdam, Stuttgart, Mulhouse and Milano. Kent has had its invasions before, with the Legions of Claudius and in 1940 when the battle roared through the Kentish skies. Hitherto quiet villagers are now in revolt against the pre‐juggernaut invasion; they, too, fear more will come with the enlarged EEC, thundering through their one‐street communities.
David Lynch, Richard Smith, Steven Provost and Jake Madden
This paper argues that in a well-organised school with strong leadership and vision coupled with a concerted effort to improve the teaching performance of each teacher, student…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper argues that in a well-organised school with strong leadership and vision coupled with a concerted effort to improve the teaching performance of each teacher, student achievement can be enhanced. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that while macro-effect sizes such as “whole of school” metrics are useful for school leaders in their professional development roles, there are important micro-conditions that can be uncovered in a more detailed analysis of student achievement data.
Design/methodology/approach
Evidence of student achievement in a variety of standardised and non-standardised assessment tasks was subjected to examination in a post hoc, case study design. The assessment tasks were the South Australian Spelling Test Waddington Reading Test, a school-wide diagnostic writing task, teacher running records and National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy. Performance in selected classrooms was compared on these tests utilising a variety of parametric quantitative statistics.
Findings
School-based reform initiatives require external criteria on which to base decision making. Without such criteria based on data and the capacity to interpret it, interactions in the school culture have unanticipated consequences that have the potential to neutralise school improvement strategies. Further, findings suggest that fewer but sharper and quicker data collection tools are more valuable in such teacher decision making, but these require expertise to produce and interpret them.
Research limitations/implications
This paper provides insights from one school, but the reported data are embedded in a sustained five year school reform programme.
Practical implications
This paper documents a whole school organisational reform model devised by a school head and leadership team to improve student academic performance. The paper offers a process for developing a data-based school reform strategy for professional development to enhance both student achievement and school outcomes.
Social implications
The paper outlines a model for school reform that is focused on all students increasing their academic outcomes. By emphasising collaborative teacher work based on research-justified teaching approaches, the model shows that social inequalities can be reversed.
Originality/value
The paper outlines a whole of school reform model focused through a combination of distributed leadership, data-driven decision making, within a context of a coaching, mentoring and feedback regime for teachers. Together this model is an application of theoretical ideas to school reform.