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on Education |
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Issue of 2015‒09‒26
thirty-one papers chosen by João Carlos Correia Leitão Universidade da Beira Interior |
| By: | Béla Molnár (University of Western Hungary – Berzsenyi Dániel Faculty for Teacher Training) |
| Abstract: | Besides recognizing the facts mentioned in former publications (according to which training time was reduced to four years from 1949 and there was a withdrawal in training teachers of primary schools instead of developing it), it is necessary to point out that training teachers of primary schools could also show results between 1945 and 1959. It is the subject of the thesis to explore the changes in the structure of the training of primary school teachers in Hungary in the last 15 years of the training at secondary level. Among the objectives it was formulated where the training of primary school teachers was situated in the system of teachers’ training and what intentions presented themselves in connection with the modernization of the training.The changes occurring in the system of education entailed the change of training primary school teachers. The formation of training primary school teachers was in connection with extending public education. When re-organizing schools at secondary level, the training cycle of training primary school teachers was reduced.In 1944/45 the dual structure of five years created in 1941 survived, in this system the students of the third year of a lycée could go on for higher education at the 4th then the 5th year of a training institute of primary school teachers.In November 1947, two pedagogical colleges began to function in Budapest and Szeged where class teachers were trained for primary schools and so were trained specialized teachers for teaching certain groups of subjects at the senior section of primary school. Training time comprised 6 semesters at the college. In 1948 ecclesiastical schools were nationalized then the Minister stopped the training of primary school teachers at secondary level. Pedagogical colleges functioned on the grounds of their original objectives until 1949 then the training of priimary school teachers was made a task of colleges.In 1949 a system of general and specialized secondary grammar schools was built up. Pedagogical secondary grammar school became a formation that lasted four years adapting itself to the system of secondary schools. Pedagogical secondary grammar school prepared for studies at higher level, on the other hand, it offered a specialized qualification of primary school and kindergarten teacher.In 1950 a decree with legal force created institutes of training primary school teachers. |
| Keywords: | History of education, training primary school teachers, Hungary, teacher training college, pedagogical secondary grammar school |
| JEL: | I29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:itepro:2905222&r=all |
| By: | Tamas Keller (TARKI Social Research Institute and Research Centre for Educational and Network Studies, Hungarian Academy of Sciences) |
| Abstract: | This paper argues that school grades cannot be interpreted solely as a reward for a given school performance, since they also reflect teachers’ ratings of pupils. Grades therefore contain valuable information about pupils’ own – usually unknown – ability. The incorporated assessment in grade might be translated into self-assessment, which could influence the effort that pupils invest in education. Getting discounted grades in year 6 for a given level of math performance assessed using a PISA-like test has a positive effect on math test scores in year 8 of elementary education and also influences later outcomes in secondary education. The empirical analysis tries to minimize the possible bias caused by the measurement error in year 6 test scores (unmeasured ability) and employs classroom fixed-effect instrumental variable (IV) regression and difference-in-difference models. The main analysis is based on a unique Hungarian individual-level panel dataset with two observations about the same individual – one in year 6 (12/13 years old) and again two years later, in year 8 (14/15 years old) of elementary education. The data for three entire school cohorts is analyzed – approximately 140,000 individuals. Highlights • Examines the impact of teachers’ grading standards on pupils’ school performance • Takes advantage of having two different measures of pupils’ math knowledge: teacher-given grades and centralized test scores • Assumes that grades are more than test scores, since they incorporate teachers’ ratings • Tries to estimate teachers’ grading standards and minimizes unmeasured ability bias by employing IV regression and diff-in-diff approaches • Finds that year 6 grades positively influence year 8 test scores and year 10 outcomes • Argues that teachers’ assessments translate to self-assessment, which influences pupils’ effort • Concludes that grading standards in elementary school accompany pupils to secondary school |
| Keywords: | School performance; Inflated school grades; Feedback, Good teacher; Educational panel data; Hungarian National Assessment of Basic Competencies |
| JEL: | I20 I21 J24 |
| Date: | 2015–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:has:bworkp:1505&r=all |
| By: | Clara Akunna Anih (School of Science Education, Enugu State College of Education (Technical) Enugu, Enugu State Nigeria); Joy Johnbest Egbo (School of Science EAbakaliki Road GRA, Enugu, Enugu State Nigeria) |
| Abstract: | The annual performance of students in the senior secondary school certificate examination (SSCE) conducted by the West African Examination Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council (NECO) is unsatisfactory. Among the factors responsible for this problem are lack of practical activities and the problem of gender effect in achievement of science concepts. Three research questions were used for the study and two null hypotheses were posed to guide the study. The research design was a quasi- experimental design. Population for the study was one thousand six hundred (1600) SS II science students. A sample of one hundred and twenty students was used for the study. The instrument for data collection was Science Achievement Test (SAT) developed by the researchers. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions. The reliability coefficient of the instrument was estimated to be 0.75 using Spearman’s Rank Order Correlation Coefficient (P). The study showed that: the impact of practical activities on achievement of science concepts is high. Students taught using practical activities had a higher mean score than those taught with lecture method; male science students achieved higher than female science students in Science Achievement Test (SAT); there is significant difference in favour of the practical activities than the lecture method. It was recommended among others that well equipped laboratories should be provided for the schools by government. |
| Keywords: | Gender, Practical activities, Achievement, Science. |
| JEL: | I29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704890&r=all |
| By: | Sarah Pirmohamed (University of Huddersfield); Daniel Boduszek (University of Huddersfield) |
| Abstract: | Prior research has highlighted gender differences in academic motivational attributes, and how these predict achievement for each gender. However, not only does a vast amount of inconsistency exist amongst such literature, a lack of studies to date have measured how certain attributes (specifically self-efficacy, active learning strategies, independent study time) predict achievement to a different extent for males and females.The present study hence expands of prior research and investigates existing gender differences in academic motivation (achievement goal, leaning goal, performance goal, self-efficacy, and active learning strategies) and study habits (hours) amongst undergraduate students. Additionally, it measures how these attributes predict achievement grade (overall %) to a different extent for male and female students.The study employed a cross-sectional design, and was gathered through a prospective and retrospective questionnaire (including an adapted version of the Motivation towards Science Learning Questionnaire), from a mixed gender sample of 323 final year students belonging to various schools within the University Of Huddersfield. T-test results revealed small but significant differences, favouring females in achievement goal and study time. Multiple regression analysis revealed that study time, active learning strategies, performance goal and self-efficacy were significant predictors of achievement for males, accounting for 28% of variance in grade, whereas self-efficacy was the only significant predictor of achievement for females, accounting for 14% of variance in grade. Ultimately, through the evaluation of the current methodology, recommendations for future research are made. Future research should continue to explore gender differences in the attributes discussed, but also expand to account for additional factors to lead to a more comprehensive understanding of motivation and achievement. As well as this, findings offer practical implications highlighting the importance of self-efficacy and proposing methods in which higher education institutions can develop to encourage motivation in the particular attributes each gender is lacking. |
| Keywords: | Motivation, higher education, university, undergraduate, curriculum, achievement, gender differences, study habits, self-efficacy. |
| JEL: | I29 I23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704648&r=all |
| By: | Charles Wild Wild (University of Hertfordshire); Daniel Berger (University of Hertfordshire) |
| Abstract: | Authentic assessments are closely aligned with activities that take place in real work settings, as distinct from the often artificial constructs of university courses. The undergraduate law degree differs from many other degrees, in that it requires arguments to be constructed, at even the most academic level. While the traditional ‘paper-based’ assessment strategy provides a pragmatic solution to the problem of a general lack of time and resources to grade students en masse, the authors believe that the use of authentic assessment techniques, in accredited and university-run extra and co-curricular activities (ECCAs), are perfectly placed to augment legal education. As long as the ECCAs are delivered with academic law degree learning outcomes taken under consideration, and are rigorously delivered by staff who are trained and experienced to elicit optimum student performance, students will benefit from authentic assessment in other indirectly connected areas of their academic lives.By delivering authentic assessments methods in ECCAs, a combination of formative and summative techniques used throughout the assessment processes improves student performance, which thereby has positive cross-impact onto law degree academic performance. This two-way communicative assessment strategy allows students to benefit from continuous mid-assessment feedback, which serves to best demonstrate the adversarial nature of the legal system and the demands placed on lawyers to provide clear, simple, usable legal advice – a skill best learned in the ECCA authentic assessment environment, rather than in the artificial ‘one-shot’ approach to traditional coursework and paper-based exam assessments, which provides primarily a summative assessment and/or a weak/unusable formative element in future assessments. Further benefits, such as increased confidence in critical reasoning skills, also improves the students’ academic performance.The authors examine data which shows the entry tariff of the entire student cohort, and then the entry tariff of the student control group who participated in ECCAs in the 2014-15 academic year. These datasets demonstrate that the control group were a true reflection of the capabilities of the general student population. By then comparing academic performance of the control group before and after exposure to ECCAs, the authors assert that there is a correlation between exposure to authentic assessment techniques, and improved general academic performance. |
| Keywords: | Authentic assessment, co-curricular activities, enhanced student performance, summative assessment, formative assessment |
| JEL: | I21 I23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:itepro:2904991&r=all |
| By: | Jamal BOUOIYOUR; Amal MIFTAH |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we empirically investigate the relationship between international migration and education attainment levels. We ask whether rural children who live in households that experience migration or/and receiving remittances are more likely to complete school at a given age than children who live in non-migrant households. Higher secondary and higher education levels are examined separately. Our results clearly show that children in remittance-receiving households complete significantly more years of schooling. In particular, remittances increase the probability of a male child completing high school. However, the evidence suggests that the international migration lowers deeply the chances of children completing higher education. Evidence also indicates the utmost importance of households' socio-economic status in determining to what extent the household mitigates the possible detrimental effects of migration on their children's educational outcomes. |
| Keywords: | International migration; Education; Remittances; Morocco |
| JEL: | F24 I22 O15 O55 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tac:wpaper:2015-2016_3&r=all |
| By: | Isabel Vieira (Universidade de Évora) |
| Abstract: | The transition from secondary to higher education may be a challenging time for students. Adjustment to a new social environment, different pedagogical and learning approaches, more autonomy but also more responsibility, are dealt with differently by each individual. One study concluded that the distance between the university and the family residence has, on average, a negative effect on academic performance, particularly noted on male students. However, the empirical evidence on the causes for such effect is mostly indirect. In this paper, we tentatively look into the determinants of the impact of distance on academic performance. Methodologically, we draw on data collected through a web survey applied across a sample of undergraduate students. We expect to enhance the sustained discussion over this issue, which is of the utmost importance for the families, for the universities’ student support services and, ultimately, for the authorities planning the territorial dispersion of the network of higher education institutions. |
| Keywords: | Academic performance; Geographical distance; Academic transition; gender. |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704703&r=all |
| By: | Loris Vergolini; Eleonora Vlach |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we analyse social inequalities along the horizontal dimension of education in Italy. More precisely, we focus on the role of family background in completing specific fields of study both at secondary and tertiary levels of education. To mitigate the limitations of the traditional sequential model, we construct a typology of educational paths based on two axes: the prestige of one’s choice of high-school track (academic or vocational) and the labour market returns of the university field of study (high or low). The ranking of the latter is performed by looking at the labour market returns in terms of monthly net income, as provided by the Survey of Household Income and Wealth carried out by the Bank of Italy. We identify four paths: academic-high, academic-low, vocational-high, and vocational-low. We investigate the influence of social inequalities on educational path using data from the Istat “Survey on the transition to work of University graduates” regarding cohorts of university graduates in 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004 and 2007. Results obtained from multinomial logistic regressions confirm predictions based on rational action theory. More precisely, we find that family background, defined in terms of parental education, exerts a positive and significant effect on the completion of the most advantageous educational path. Moreover, we find that high-performing students from lower socio-economic backgrounds show a higher probability of completing the vocational-high path. This result suggests that a vocational upper secondary degree could be perceived as a sort of security option for students from less wealthy families, which allows them to invest in the most lucrative and risky fields at university. |
| Keywords: | social origins, educational path, fields of study, Italy |
| JEL: | I23 I24 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fbk:wpaper:2015-08&r=all |
| By: | Lester Lusher; Doug Campbell; Scott Carrell |
| Abstract: | Over the past 40 years, higher education institutions in the U.S. have experienced a dramatic shift in the racial composition of students enrolled in both undergraduate and graduate programs. Using administrative data from a large, diverse university in California, we identify the extent to which the academic outcomes of undergraduates are affected by the race/ethnicity of their graduate student teaching assistants (TAs). To overcome selection issues in course taking, we exploit the timing of TA assignments, which occur after students enroll in a course, and we estimate models with both class and student fixed effects. Results show a positive and significant increase in course grades when students are assigned TAs of a similar race/ethnicity. These effects are largest in classes where TAs are given advanced copies of exams and when exams had no multiple choice questions. We also find that assignment to similar race TAs positively affect both section and office hour attendance, suggesting that TA-student match quality and role model effects are the primary drivers of the results. |
| JEL: | I2 I23 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:21568&r=all |
| By: | Simon Søbstad Bensnes (Department of Economics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology) |
| Abstract: | Pollen is known to cause allergic reactions in approximately 20% of the population. These reactions have significant detrimental effects on sleep, concentration, and cognitive performance. Coincidentally, in many countries the local proliferation of pollen is concentrated in the spring when students take high-stakes exams. Despite these observations, the effect of pollen allergies on school performance has so far received nearly no attention from economists. Using administrative data on Norwegian high school students merged with daily pollen counts, this paper examines the effect of exposure to pollen spores on exam outcomes. I take advantage of the fact that students take several exams in a variety of subjects on different dates, but at the same location, to implement a student fixed effects model. In all specifications increased pollen proliferation on the exam date is found to significantly reduce cognitive performance measured by examination grade. On average, a one standard deviation increase in the ambient pollen level at the mean leads to a 2.5% of a standard deviation decrease in test scores for the average student, with potentially larger effects for allergic students. Supporting the reduced form estimates, the effect is somewhat more pronounced in subsamples with higher prevalence rates of hay fever. Additionally, I find that an increase in the ambient pollen level across exams reduces the probability that a given student graduates on time, and enrolls in higher education. An implication of these findings is that random increases in pollen counts can temporarily reduce cognitive abilities for allergic students who will score worse relative to their peers on high stake exams, and consequently be at a disadvantage when competing for jobs or higher education. |
| Keywords: | High school, test score, graduation, pollen, allergic rhinitis, hay fever |
| JEL: | I10 I20 I21 |
| Date: | 2015–09–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nst:samfok:16615&r=all |
| By: | Annah Bengesai (University of KwaZulu-Natal) |
| Abstract: | One of the goals of the transformation of education in South Africa has been to improve educational attainment. In spite of this, South Africa still exhibits low mean years of schooling (9 years) as a consequence of high dropout rates, with a significant proportion of female students at each age cohort not making the transition from one educational level to the next. This has raised the question of what enables or hinders successful educational transitions. Increasingly, there is recognition that social capital is integral in helping students successfully negotiate these transitions. This social capital inheres in personal experiences and interactions that students have with others over space and time and facilitates social outcomes. Using three waves of the National Income Dynamics Study (South Africa), this study sought to model the influence of social capital on the probability of making the following educational transitions: primary school completion, high school completion and post-secondary education completion. Acknowledging the protective effect of education on young women, this study makes the argument that it is the interrelationship between the key educational transitions which shape educational productivity. A retrospective methodology is adopted to disentangle the effect of events occurring in one trajectory on those in another. In particular, the study applies a sequential logit model to estimate transition probabilities of passing through key educational transitions. |
| Keywords: | educational attainment, sequential logit, transition probabilities, South Africa |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704652&r=all |
| By: | Charles T. Clotfelter; Helen F. Ladd; Jacob L. Vigdor |
| Abstract: | College attendance and completion in the U.S. are strongly correlated with race and socioeconomic background. Do public postsecondary institutions themselves exacerbate pre-college disparities, or reduce them? We address this question using longitudinal data linking the records of students at North Carolina’s public four-year universities to their public K-12 records. As a result of an institutional structure forged during the period of Jim Crow segregation, black students who attend the state’s public university system are likely to experience markedly more racial isolation in college than they did in middle school. Another, more positive consequence of this structure is to boost in-state public four-year college enrollment and graduation by African-American students relative to white students with similar backgrounds. Conditional on enrolling in one of the state’s public universities, however, black students lag behind whites in grades and graduation rates. Regarding socioeconomic background, we find that lower-status youth are less likely to enter the system and less likely to succeed once they enter than those with higher status. The socioeconomic gap in graduation rates among matriculants has, however, declined in recent years. |
| JEL: | I2 |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:21577&r=all |
| By: | Hurwitz, Michael; Goodman, Joshua Samuel; Smith, Jonathan; Fox, Julia |
| Abstract: | Research consistently shows that college choice in an important predictor of college completion and labor market outcomes. These longer term implications of college choice, combined with suboptimal choices made by many low-income but high-achieving students, has sparked several large-scale initiatives to improve college choice. Strategically targeting those students most susceptible to making questionable decisions in the college-choice process remains challenging, as variation in college choice is largely unexplained by easily measurable socio-demographic characteristics. This paper explores the potential to improve upon existing models and, more generally, to better understand college choice by documenting the similarities in college enrollment patterns between younger and older siblings. To do so, we identify siblings in the millions of SAT test-takers between the 2004 and 2011 high school graduation cohorts. We find that younger siblings enroll in the same college as their older sibling 21.2 percent of the time. Also, conditional on their own SAT scores, we find that younger siblings whose older siblings enrolled in four-year colleges and the most selective colleges are 17.4 and 21.3 percentage points, respectively, more likely to themselves enroll in four-year and the most selective colleges. Overall, adding characteristics and enrollment decisions of older siblings to standard college choice models improves model fit and consequently, are valuable pieces of information for explanatory and predictive power. |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hrv:hksfac:22805380&r=all |
| By: | Petr Svoboda (Faculty of Management, University of Economics, Prague); Monika Harantova (Faculty of Management, University of Economics, Prague) |
| Abstract: | Higher education institutions involve in marketing efforts to build up a good image and improve the level of satisfaction of all stakeholders. Building of good relationships between higher education institutions and their students is essential for their long-term success. After all, only satisfied students and alumni can bring the best promotion of the university via word of mouth marketing and other ways. Higher education institutions should identify and meet expectations of students to attract more prospective students and to retain the present ones. This study aims at the quality of higher education institutions and its evaluation from the alumni perspective. The paper also suggests methods for evaluating alumni satisfaction, loyalty and other factors. Using this methodology, higher education institutions can obtain responses to questions of how they should represent themselves to the public in the future and how they should build their image and strong brand. |
| Keywords: | Alumni, Higher education, Image, Loyalty, Marketing, Quality, Satisfaction |
| JEL: | M31 A00 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704957&r=all |
| By: | Darko Loncaric (University of Rijeka, Faculty of Teacher Education); Sanja Tatalovi (University of Rijeka, Faculty of Teacher Education) |
| Abstract: | This study investigates personality-coping relationship through pattern approach to coping with school failure. Students using different patterns of coping when confronted with an academic stressor were described with respect to their scores on extraversion, neuroticism, test anxiety and self-esteem scales.The sample consisted of 436 Croatian elementary school students (214 girls and 222 boys, mean age 12.72). Data regarding the students’ sex and age were collected in addition to coping scales, and measures of extroversion, neuroticism, test anxiety and self-esteem. Six groups with different pattern of coping were compared. Two of the groups consist of students who have very high or very low score on all coping strategies. The remaining students were classified into four groups: a) students focused strictly on problem-focused coping, b) those focused on both problem solving and social support, c) those focused on avoidant coping, and d) emotionally reactive students.Current results show that these students differ with respect to all variables included in the study: self-esteem, neuroticism, extraversion, and test anxiety. Advantages of the pattern analysis approach in explaining some contradictory findings from previous correlational research are emphasized together with the teacher’s role in facilitating adaptive coping strategies for pupils better learning outcomes. |
| Keywords: | stress, personality, coping patterns, teachers |
| JEL: | I00 I21 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704899&r=all |
| By: | Mike Sherrill (Aoyama Gakuin University) |
| Abstract: | In current times universities around the world have bolstered efforts to “globalize” or “internationalize” their campuses. This is often articulated concretely as the intent to prepare students to be “global citizens”. In tandem with this goal some universities also express the desire to develop “servant leaders”, those well equipped to lead, but who do so through collaboration and putting the needs of others first. Indeed such educational pursuits herald new potential in our contemporary societies for greater compassion, peace, and justice through mutual understanding and appreciation across cultures. However, in order to move beyond conceptualization toward actualization, we are forced to carefully consider how and to what degree the core curricula of institutions of higher education cultivate mutual global citizenship. A growing body of research identifies a point of intersection of the concerns above in the rubric “global-service-learning”. Such an approach to learning seeks to integrate academic pursuit with community engagement in a context outside the participant’s country of origin. Moreover, it is characterized by a shift away from thinking of service as “doing for” and more towards “doing with”. Drawing insight from the relevant current literature, this paper explores the relationship between global service learning and higher education. Special consideration is given to the role of universities in promoting capacity development through education and action on behalf of marginalized global communities. The paper concludes with reflections and insights gained from recent participation in global service learning programs in India and the Philippines. |
| Keywords: | global service learning, higher education, global citizenship, capacity development |
| JEL: | I23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704420&r=all |
| By: | Tsang Lang Liang (Hsiuping University of Science & Technology); Tsung-min Liu (Hsiuping University of Science & Technology); Rong-feng Wu (Hsiuping University of Science & Technology); Yu Gi Chao (National Changhua University of Education) |
| Abstract: | This study determines the relationship affect between senior and vocational high school principals’ leadership behaviors and teachers’ performance of professional development and investigates the mediating effect of teacher self-directed learning. The population of this study was the 75,520 teachers in vocational high school. And the sampling technique was stratified sampling. The participants were teachers in public and private senior and vocational high schools, including 304 teachers in public school and 335 teachers in private school. The sample included 10 senior high schools (including five public and five private schools) and 10 vocational high schools (including five public and five private schools). The results showed that public school principals’ transformational leadership behaviors and private school principals’ transactional leadership behaviors were positive with teachers’ performance of professional development, and particularly, teachers’ self-directed learning had complete mediating effects. Transformational or transactional leadership behaviors enhance teachers’ self-directed learning willingness and promote their performance of professional development in public and private high schools. |
| Keywords: | Transformational leadership; Transactional leadership; Self-directed learning; Professional development. |
| JEL: | I29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704741&r=all |
| By: | Wolszczak, Joanna |
| Abstract: | This study uses data envelopment analysis (DEA) to evaluate the relative efficiency of 500 higher education institutions (HEIs) in ten European countries and the U.S. for the period between 2000 and 2010. Efficiency scores are determined using different input - output sets (inputs: total revenue, academic staff, administration staff, total number of students; outputs: total number of publications, number of scientific articles, graduates) and considering different frontiers: global frontiers (all HEIs pooled together) and a regional frontier (Europe and the U.S. having their own frontiers). Changes in total factor productivity are assessed by means of the Malmquist index and are decomposed into pure efficiency change s and frontier shifts. Also investigate d are the external factors affecting the degree of HEI inefficiency, e.g. institutional setting s (size and department composition), location, funding structure (using two - stage DEA analysis following the bootstrap procedure proposed by Simar and Wilson, 2007). Specifically, it is found that the role of the university funding structure in HEI technical efficiency is different in Europe and in the U.S. Increased government funding is associated with an increase in inefficiency only in the case of European units, while the share of funds from tuition fees decreases the efficiency of American public institutions but relates to efficiency improvements in European universities. |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences, higher education institutions, efficiency, two-stage DEA |
| Date: | 2014–08–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:indrel:qt7c87d4hk&r=all |
| By: | BAFUNSO OLANIKE AINA (MRS) (FEDERAL COLLEGE OF EDUCATION (TECHNICAL),) |
| Abstract: | This paper presented some research based opinions on the use of literature in language classroom especially for reading and writing skills development. It also sought to determine the impact of literature (literacy texts) as instructional strategy on developing reading and writing skills of students in Senior Secondary School, class II in ESL Classroom. The paper also attempted to establish various arguments in support of literature as authentic materials to be used in language classroom, especially in teaching the language skills of reading and writing. With stratified randomized sampling technique, 60 S.S II Students were selected from a Senior Secondary School, FCE(T), Akoka. The study used Descriptive survey and Quasi Experimental Method. A literary text titled “A Women in Her Prime” which is among the prescribed text for WAEC (West African Examination Council) was given to the students to read. There are two groups of respondents in this work, i.e the controlled (30) and experimental group (30). The experimental group was given a kind of guide or intervention on how to read and respond to questions in writing form. The students in these two groups were observed and accessed. In reading, students reading interest, speed, comprehension, word recognition and right pronunciation were measured using the scale of insufficient, average reading, good reading and excellent reading. In writing, students were asked to write on topics such as summary of ideas presented in the text, themes and subject matter, character etc. A random picking was done on which of the written essays to be used for analysis. The data gathered were analyzed using a paired sample t-test to compare the significant different between the performance of the controlled group and experimental group. The performance of those who were not exposed to the intervention /literary skills and instructional guide is (X = 19.28; SD = 3.680) while those in experimental group is (X = 35.67; SD = 5.299). This is shown in the calculated value (t-cal) of 13.127 which is greater than the critical value (t-crit) of 1.98 with 99 degree of freedom at 0.05 level of significance. It is recommended that the literature of the targeted language should be used, taking into consideration the objective. Relevant classroom activities and techniques should be considered by teachers. The paper concluded by affirming that the use of literature is an adequate instructional strategy in ESL classroom, hence, should be employed by ESL teachers. |
| Keywords: | Literature, Language skills, Instructional Strategy, ESL, Intervention Assessment, Stylistic and Language Based Approach. |
| JEL: | A31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704954&r=all |
| By: | Wadinlada Thuratham (Khon Kaen University); Dararat Khampusaen (Khon Kaen University) |
| Abstract: | Technology-enhanced language learning (TELL) has played an importantly integral tool in providing EFL students with valuable language experiences in language classrooms. Since the introduction of recording machine for pronunciation in 1970s’, teaching and learning innovation has been advanced and moved forward with an interesting pace. It is however an unanswered question whether teaching innovation can make any true advantages to Asian students who have typically been familiar with a spoon-feeding learning approach. This study focuses on technology-enabled lessons as a supplemental teaching tool for teaching English writing to EFL university students in a Thai university. Additionally, a discussion is developed on the benefits found in using technology (e.g., web-based lessons, blogs, electronic feedback, and Microsoft Office Word) as a part of writing activities. The researcher is particularly interested in investigating on how Asian students harness technology when they have always been passive learners in schools. The paper thus further illustrates the importance of promoting learner autonomy in Asian EFL context and elaborates the main factors contributing to its development. The author also criticizes on the effectiveness of TELL in an Asian university for future advancement in EFL education. |
| Keywords: | TELL, learning autonomy, Asian students, writing |
| JEL: | I23 I29 Z00 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2703972&r=all |
| By: | Debdulal Thakur (BITS-PILANI (Goa Campus)); Shrabani Mukherjee (Madras School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we present a choice function of a rural household about her/his ward‟s schooling. It makes an empirical evaluation on the basis of simple theoretical framework using primary data set, surveyed from two backward districts of West Bengal. It explores the underlying causes of discontinuation of school of wards by examining choice function of the parents using ordered probit analysis. The likelihood of drop out is higher in primary level towards low income category households and significantly depends on parents‟ attributes which are mostly endogenous in an educational production function and other exogenous difficulties in accessing school. It is also triggered up by lack of expectation about the future impact of child education on life. |
| Keywords: | School Education, Dropouts, Household‟s Choice, Ordered Probit Analysis, Primary Survey Data |
| JEL: | C25 C80 D19 I21 I25 |
| Date: | 2015–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mad:wpaper:2015-106&r=all |
| By: | Estrada, Ricardo |
| Abstract: | Because of data limitations, there is little empirical research on how firms conduct hiring and the merits of different recruitment strategies. In this paper, I take advantage of a unique setting that allows me to compare the quality (value-added to student achievement) of the teachers hired in a discretionary proce3ss led by the teachers' union in Mexico with those hired on the basis of a screening rule. My results show that the teachers' union selects applicants of a considerably lower quality than those selected using a standardized test, despite the fact that the test has no power to predict teacher quality. I find evidence that the results are not explained by the self-selection of high-quality teachers to follow the test-based process. The combination of these results indicates that the teachers selected through the discretionary process are from the bottom of the distribution of applicant quality. My analysis also reveals that joint committees of state officials and union representatives allocate teachers hired in this way to schools in more "desirable" localities, but with similar pre-treatment trends in outcomes. Findings are consistent with standard models of rent extraction. |
| Keywords: | Hiring methods; Teachers' unions; School quality; Teacher hiring; Rent extraction |
| JEL: | I21 J51 M51 |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eui:euiwps:mwp2015/14&r=all |
| By: | Rudina Guleker (European University of Tirana) |
| Abstract: | Thinking is becoming a priority in the education systems across the world. Yet it is sill a commodity that is relatively new in Albanian classrooms. While there are many factors to blame, a big responsibility falls to the teacher. In the effort to assess the state of higher order thinking in teachers, this study aims to determine the extent to which pre-service teachers of English language are able to identify the thinking levels in certain classroom learning activities according to Bloom's Taxonomy. The participants of the study (n=38) were students of masters of education in English who completed a questionnaire to determine the level of thinking in vignette-like classroom activities.The mean for ten vignettes was 6.02 and there was no statistical significance between the means and the reported level of comfort in teaching the skills. The results showed that more qualitative data is needed to further explain the factors that influenced their decisions. |
| Keywords: | preservice, higher order thinking, language teachers |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:itepro:2905313&r=all |
| By: | jim tangas (Department of Education and Training Victoria) |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this paper is to discuss the trajectory of reform and the drivers for reform in initial teacher education in Victoria and Australia and to consider next steps from a policy perspective. A particular focus is the experience from the Smarter Schools National Partnership for Improving Teacher Quality, and how the achievements of initiatives under this banner provided a platform for further larger scale improvements in initial teacher education. The complexity of the teacher preparation landscape in Australia adds to the degree of difficulty in achieving significant and enduring reform. The discussion draws on the international literature, proceedings of a national forum on initial teacher education in Australia and a recent influential report on intila teacher education. |
| Keywords: | teacher, preparation, policy |
| JEL: | I28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:itepro:2905311&r=all |
| By: | Nicholas Turner (U.S. Department of the Treasury); Eric Zwick (University of Chicago); David Berger (Northwestern University) |
| Abstract: | Does student debt affect life-cycle decisions? There is growing concern in the press and policy circles that student debt burdens delay the choice to buy a home, to start a family, or to take the most desirable career path. We revisit this debate using income tax return and borrowing data from the population of student borrowers in the US. We estimate the causal effect of student debt burdens on homeownership rates, household formation, and occupational choice using two complementary research designs. The first design exploits discontinuities and shifts in Pell grant eligibility to generate exogenous differences in the level of student loans across comparable households. The second design is a difference-in-differences design based on the introduction of grant-for-loan exchange programs at several colleges. We combine our results with a life-cycle model of human capital accumulation to estimate the return to public investments in post-secondary education. |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:red:sed015:710&r=all |
| By: | Jeremy Teitelbaum (California Polytechnic State College San Luis Obisp) |
| Abstract: | As more college classrooms become diverse, and the issue of inclusivity becomes more prevalent in higher learning, faculty find themselves in a central role of creating and moderating environments that encourage and support diversity of opinions and ideas. This paper describes a year-long project undertaken at a technical college in communication (public speaking and small groups) classes to engage students in a term-length community service project aimed at building bridges with non-profit community organizations. The primary goal of the project was twofold: first, to connect students with diverse community organizations serving individual with very different backgrounds and experiences from the students. Second, was to assign diverse students to work together on a project while applying class material about teamwork, communication, leadership, roles, decision-making and problem solving to their own experiences. Preliminary findings suggest the project was successful in achieving both goals. The framework for the project will be shared so that any instructor who is looking for an opportunity to add more diversity and inclusivity into their classrooms will be able to model a similar group project of their own. |
| Keywords: | Diversity, Inclusivity, Classroom, Groups, Projects |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2703451&r=all |
| By: | OECD |
| Abstract: | Most teachers participating in the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) report that they see themselves as facilitators to students’ own enquiry (94%) and that students should think of their own solutions to practical problems before teachers show them the solution (93%). These answers indicate that most teachers hold constructivist beliefs, i.e., they see learning as an active process that aims to foster critical and independent thinking. At the same time, teachers report using passive teaching practices, such as presenting a summary of recently learned work, more frequently than active teaching practices. Less than a third of teachers ask students to work on a project that requires at least a week to complete (an active teaching practice). Engagement in professional development and a positive classroom climate are among the factors associated with a more frequent use of active teaching. |
| Date: | 2015–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:eduaah:13-en&r=all |
| By: | Carpena,Fenella; Cole,Shawn A.; Shapiro,Jeremy; Zia,Bilal Husnain |
| Abstract: | This paper uses a large scale field experiment in India to study attitudinal, behavioral, and cognitive constraints that stymie the link between financial education and financial outcomes. The study complements financial education with (i) participant classroom motivation with pay for performance on a knowledge test, (ii) intensity of treatment with personalized financial counseling, and (iii) behavioral nudges with financial goal setting. The analysis finds no impact of pay for performance but significant effects of both counseling and goal setting on real financial outcomes. These results identify important complements to financial education that can bridge the gap between financial knowledge and financial behavior change. |
| Keywords: | Access to Finance,Curriculum&Instruction,Financial Literacy,Effective Schools and Teachers,Access&Equity in Basic Education |
| Date: | 2015–09–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:7413&r=all |
| By: | Ágnes N. Tóth (NYME) |
| Abstract: | The practice of pedagogy in the third millennium is struggling to overcome shortcomings that have been reiterated by many, ones that still appear to be insurmountable in spite of tremendous efforts made to remedy them, including issues such as the efficiency of schools, the transparency of education, the shortcomings of professional pedagogy, the relations network of schools and their users, early drop-outs and dealing with social disadvantages. Are these anomalies still outstanding debts for contemporary pedagogy to pay?The objective of this study is to put Hungarian efforts in education in a European context just over a decade after EU accession and to identify areas requiring immediate action and to analyse such areas from social, economic and pedagogical aspects. We wish to highlight problem areas to draw the attention of not only the theoretical and practicing experts in the international pedagogy community but also the attention of decision-makers to these issues, thus taking a step closer to tackling these problems. |
| Keywords: | shortcomings of education; efficiency of education; accountability of education; teachers’ professionalism; equal opportunities. |
| JEL: | I21 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:itepro:2805153&r=all |
| By: | Lana Plumanns (IMA/ZLW & IfU of RWTH Aachen University); Thorsten Sommer (IMA/ZLW & IfU of RWTH Aachen University); Katharina Schuster (IMA/ZLW & IfU of RWTH Aachen University); Anja Richert (IMA/ZLW & IfU of RWTH Aachen University); Sabina Jeschke (IMA/ZLW & IfU of RWTH Aachen University) |
| Abstract: | The first three industrial revolutions were characterized by the invention of water and steam engine, centralized electric power infrastructure and mass production as well as digital computing and communications technology. The current developments caused by the fourth revolution, also known as “Industry 4.0”, pose major challenges to almost every kind of work, workplace, and the employees. Due to the concepts of cyber-physical systems, Internet of Things and the increasing globalization, remote work is a fast-growing trend in the workplace, and educational strategies within virtual worlds become more important. Especially methods as teaching and learning within virtual worlds are expected to have an enormous impact on advanced education in the future. However, it is not trivial to transfer a reliable educational method from real to the virtual worlds. Therefore, it is im-portant to adapt, check and change even small didactic elements to guarantee a sus-tainable learning success. As there is a lot of ongoing research about using virtual worlds for the training of hazardous situations, it has to be figured out which potential those environments bear for the everyday education of academic staff and which competencies and educational support trainers need to have respectively can give in those worlds. The used approach for this study was to investigate the trainers’ didactic perspective on mixed-reality teaching and learning. A total of ten trainers from different areas in Germa-ny took part in this study. Every participant pursued both roles: the teaching and the learning part in a virtual learning environment. In order to assess the learning success and important key factors the experiment yields data from the participants’ behavior, their answers to a semi-structured interview and video analysis, recorded from the virtual world. Resulting data were analyzed by using different qualitative as well as quantitative methods. The findings of this explorative research suggest the potential for learning in virtual worlds and give inside into influencing variables. The online gaming experience and the age of participants can be shown to be related to participants’ performance in the virtual world. It looks like the barriers for the affected trainers are low regarding utilization of virtual worlds. Together with the mentioned advantages and possible usages, the potential of these setups is shown. |
| Keywords: | Education, Mixed-Reality, Teaching, Virtual World |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:2704813&r=all |
| By: | Hyatt, James A |
| Keywords: | Education |
| Date: | 2015–06–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:cshedu:qt3wt6j1h7&r=all |