Conference Agenda

Quality monitoring of education is preferably based on different types of information from multiple sources (Baker & Linn, 2002; Schafer, 2003). In Flanders (Northern Belgium), the following sources are used: the school inspections of the Flemish inspectorate of education, the national assessments and the international large-scale assessments in which Flanders participates. All these sources provide school performance feedback (SPF). Therefore, Flemish schools will receive SPF-reports of various sources. These sources can lead to more reliable decision making about the effectiveness of schools, if, the information from different sources is accurate and consistent (Chester, 2005; Porter et al., 2004). However, it remains unclear to what extent the results of different sources align for Flemish schools. After all, those sources have completely different designs and use different techniques for estimation and analysis.

We examine the alignment between SPF-reports in primary and secondary education at the school level. We focus on sources that address results in mathematics and reading:

• National assessment for reading 2018 (primary education);

• National assessment for mathematics 2021 (primary education);

• National assessment for mathematics 2018 for the general track in the second year of secondary education;

• National assessment for mathematics 2019 for the vocational track in the second year of secondary education;

• PIRLS 2016;

• TIMSS 2019;

• PISA 2018;

• Inspections for mathematics and Dutch in school year 2018-2019 and 2019-2020.

For each school, school effects were first estimated for all national and international assessments the school participated in, using type 0, type A and type B contextualised achievement models (Leckie & Prior, 2022). Based on these estimated school effects, every school was categorised multiple times as below average, average or above average. As such, a school could be categorised as below average for PISA, but average for the national assessment. Note that schools are already classified in four categories by the inspectorate: below expectation, approaches expectation, meets expectation and exceeds expectation. Secondly, we linked the results (i.e. the estimated school effects and/or the categorisation by the inspectorate) of every school by considering the administrative code of each school. In this way, we can compare – for instance – the results of a school on TIMSS 2019 with the SPF from the inspection for mathematics.

Our results indicate that the SPF of different sources align for the majority of the Flemish schools, especially when controlling for background characteristics of students and schools by using a type B model. We find the lowest alignment when comparing different sources based on type 0 school effects. However, for a limit number of schools, the results of multiple sources are different and sometimes even contradictory. Notice that these contradictory results can have a substantial impact on schools, for instance when the results on one particular source determine the attribution of specific consequences (e.g. an additional school audit by the inspectorate).

This paper proposal is most closely related to the MoREi network and the subtheme ‘Leveraging research and data for inquiry, insight, innovation and professional learning’.

During the past two decades, extensive research has demonstrated the importance of a rich and comprehensive home literacy environment (HLE) in students’ reading comprehension development (Dong et al., 2020). Because most of these studies solely assumed a direct association, the underlying mechanisms - including potential mediating factors - remain unclear (Wiescholek et al., 2018). The investigation of mediating factors is nevertheless of crucial importance to gain a deeper understanding through which specific pathways HLE affects students’ reading comprehension skills.

We propose a model that includes both a direct path between HLE and students’ reading comprehension skills and multiple paths that run via two mediating factors, being students’ reading enjoyment and motivation as well as their reading frequency. These factors are likely to influence the relationship between HLE and reading comprehension, as previous research has shown that students’ reading enjoyment, motivation and frequency are, on the one hand, affected by HLE (Baker et al., 1997; Arzubiaga et al., 2002; Altun, 2022) and, on the other hand, might contribute to the reading comprehension ability of students (Becker et al., 2010; Soemer & Schiefele, 2018; Stutz et al., 2016; Yang et al., 2018). Additionally, we considered HLE as a complex, comprehensive construct reflecting various components in students’ home environment that might contribute to their language and literacy development. In line with Burgess and colleagues (2002), we distinguished HLE as either active (e.g. literacy-related activities parents do with their child) or passive (e.g. parents’ reading enjoyment, the number of books at home). These specific aspects were separately included in our model, allowing us to examine their individual contribution on students’ reading comprehension. This study aimed to assess whether students’ reading enjoyment, motivation and frequency influenced the association between various aspects of the active as well as passive HLE and Grade 4 students’ reading comprehension.

We reported on Flemish data (Belgium) of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2021. Participants were 5114 students from 141 schools and their parents. A parallel mediation analysis using structural equation modelling is tested to simultaneously assess relations between the variables under investigation. We demonstrated differential associations between specific aspects of HLE and fourth graders’ reading comprehension. Both an active reading climate (β = .178, p < .001) and the amount of books at home (β = .252, p < .001) were found to be positively associated with students’ reading comprehension. We found no contributions of parents’ reading enjoyment (β = -.006, p > .05), and their reading frequency (β = -.026, p > .05) on students’ reading comprehension. Regarding the investigation of mediating factors in the relation between aspects of HLE and students’ reading comprehension, we only found evidence for a mediating role of students’ reading frequency in the association between the amount of books at home and students’ reading comprehension abilities (β = .006, p < .01).

Our findings confirmed the importance of conceptualizing HLE as a broad, multi-componential construct as well as pointed out the inevitable role of parents in students’ reading comprehension development.

Conceptual framework and context.

School inspections are widespread accountability and educational quality improvement practices implemented worldwide. They involve external evaluation of schools based on standards and site visits, resulting in judgments. Comparative studies have been conducted in Anglo-Saxon and European countries (Ehren et al., 2015; Jones et al., 2017). In general terms, there are different effects found in school inspections: conceptual effect (a significant change in the comprehension about the school), symbolic effect (reinforcement of previous ideas) and instrumental effect (decisions based on inspection’s results) (Penninckx et al., 2016). However, evidence about their impact on school improvement is noticeably mixed. Moreover, educational settings in the global south face different systemic challenges and their school inspections are scarcely researched (Bravo, 2019; Díaz & Rodríguez, 2020).

Aim and research questions.

This study aimed to understand schools’ experiences with inspections in Chile. The issues explored in the research were ‘How do school leaders and teachers experience inspections?’ and ‘What kind of effects are produced by inspections?’.

Methodology.

A mixed-methods approach was developed to answer the research questions. A combination of interviews and non-participant observations were conducted three times during the inspections cycle and 8-12 weeks after. This approach allowed a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon and experiences of school actors (Cresswell & Poth, 2017). 21 schools (public and private subsidized) participated in the study Interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematically analyzed (Braun & Clarke, 2021).

Results, findings, learning.

School actors perceive school inspections in Chile as valuable. They experience some initial stress and anxiety; however, this emotional effect dissipates quickly during the inspection. Inspectors emphasize the formative dimension and orientation. Compared with findings in high-stakes systems, this study shows less resistance to feedback and more acceptance. Moreover, school actors value the external perspective and the opportunity to examine their practices and receive expert feedback. The inspections’ results are generally consistent with the diagnosis held by school leaders. The challenge is that the feedback provided little new information, and the chance to prompt new insights about the school is somewhat limited.

Consequently, the effect is short-term and adjustment to previously planned actions, and less substantial on the institutional capacities. Since feedback frequently reinforces schools’ analysis, these results suggest a noticeable symbolic effect (McCrone et al., 2007). Only in a few cases was observed a conceptual effect when feedback allowed schools to identify blind spots and recognize overlooked management aspects (Penninckx et al., 2016).

The use of information for decision-making and the articulation among educational public agencies are critical dimensions to transform lessons from the inspections into sustainable changes. The potential effect inspections can have on systemic improvement seems limited by insufficient local administrators' and ministerial advisors' involvement and minimal articulation with improvement policies.

Connection to the conference theme.

These findings offer a salient opportunity to understand diverse forms of evaluation and shed light on the role of inspections in professional learning and capacity building.This research is closely connected with the sub-theme "Leveraging research and data for inquiry, insight, innovation and professional learning".

Framing

In school improvement projects, where schools collaborate with university researchers, it is crucial to establish a solid foundation for the collaboration (Barnett et al., 2010; Frerichs et al., 2017; Solvason et al., 2018). Establishing trusting collaborations is seen as essential for integrating research and practice (Kirschenbaum & Reagan, 2001; OECD, 2022). In my project, the collaboration is beneficial for the school leader teams, as the researchers provides them with support in managing their school improvement projects. For us researchers, the collaboration provides access and insights into the school's development processes. In such collaborations, trust plays an important role in securing the quality of the data collected and the validity of the research findings (Cunliffe & Alcadipani, 2016). The establishment of a trusting and open collaboration is, however, a demanding process. It takes time and energy from both parties.

Research questions

Which aspects are of importance when establishing trusting collaborations in school-university partnerships?

Context

The study builds on experiences from a project in which eight school-university collaborations have been established. The aim of the collaborations is to enhance the sustainability of the school improvement projects led by school- and project leader teams as well as to gain insight into the factors important for sustainable school improvement. The interest in writing this paper is not directly connected to the aim of the collaborations. Instead, the interest stems from the experiences gained through the demanding process of establishing them.

Methods and data material

The study is inspired by action research methods, which involve intervening in the practice that we are simultaneously researching (McIntosh, 2010).

This empirical case study draws on interviews, communication data and meeting observations and analyses how trusting collaborations were built between the research team and the school leader teams within the first year of the project.

Findings

The study finds the following three crucial aspects of building trusting collaborations between school leader teams and university researchers: (1) alignment of expectations, (2) the level of demands from researchers to practitioners, and (3) the choice of communication connected to translating theory into practice.

Educational importance

The findings are applicable to the practice of academic researchers or consultants who are to work with school practitioners. Working with a focus on the three aspects contributes to building trusting collaborations in Research and Development projects. The study may be of interest to other conference participants involved in school-university partnerships, regardless the theme and aim of their study, as this study is primarily a methodological contribution.

Connection to the conference theme

The study is related to the parts of the conference theme concerned with engaged and purposeful dialogue between academic researchers and school communities.

This study examines the impact on cultivating professional capital and culture of teachers and schools raised by the initiatives of Professional Graduate Projects (PGP) of University of Fukui, Japan. The design of Fukui PGP stands out as it adopts the idea that teachers are reflective practitioners whose learning comes by doing (e.g., Dewey, 1910; Schön, 1983). This initiative adapts the continuous reflective mode of Lesson Study (Kimura & Kishino, 2019) at its core structure to allow for collaborative inquiry-based action research with teachers and schools.

Our graduate students who are pre-service and in-service teachers engage into reflective practicum and conduct action research at partner schools. Especially, in-service teachers’ practicum and research are conducted at their working places (schools). Finally, they write the Longitudinal Reflective Practice Record to keep track of their practices, which can serve as an evidentiary basis for identifying the quality of learning at each phase and how the level of learning has evolved throughout the Lesson Study. Based on this context, the study aims to address the following research question: how did the Fukui PGP influence teachers at different career stages and support their professional capital development, advance Lesson Study practice at their workplaces, and involvement in professional learning communities and culture?

This study uses qualitative data collected from the Longitudinal Reflective Practice Records written by three graduate students enrolled as: new entrance teachers, in-service teachers, and school leaders to evaluate the Fukui PGP’s impact on teachers and schools. To clarify research questions, this study uses the concept of professional capital (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012) as the analytical framework. Professional capital broadens the idea of teacher expertise from the individual to the organizational level and the idea of teaching skills and knowledge to a whole range of qualitative abilities, including social relationships. These aspects will clarify the impact on cultivating professional capital and culture raised by Fukui PGP. As case study, three records were analyzed using a qualitative content analysis approach that focuse on interpreting and understanding the subjects’ agency attainment and professional development through episode narratives. To be more specific, episodes relating to critical moments such as “turning point”, “change”, and “development” were extracted from their practice reports and displayed in timelines to compare and interpret the characteristics of their respective professional developmental journeys based on the concept of professional capital.

As results, the collaborative inquiry School-University partnerships in Fukui PGP, including the systematic curriculum and activities designed for facilitating teachers’ collaborative inquiries as social capital at schools and universities, turns out to be critical in attributing to teachers’ agentic enactments as human and decisional capital leading to school reforms through data analysis. The analyzed Longitudinal Reflective Practice Records featured three common dimensions aligned to narratives and episodes found in the reflective writings. Expressions to identify pivotal moments in their learning included; “experience of change”, “motivation for professional growth”, and “concrete sense of development”.

These findings show that high quality teaching and learning of teachers can be supported by collaborative inquiry school-university partnerships.

Despite nearly two decades of study, there remains a lack of empirical investigations of KMb efforts (Powell et al., 2018), which is especially pronounced for approaches that rely on sustained interactions among research producers, intermediaries, and research users (Beckett et al., 2018; Oliver et al., 2019). A key factor contributing to this knowledge gap is the paucity of evaluation tools with strong psychometric and pragmatic properties that could enable comparisons across contexts, support informed decision making for increasing the effectiveness and sustainability of interactions, and provide evidence for the outcomes and impacts of mobilizing knowledge among diverse research actors (Davies et al., 2015; Durose et al., 2018; Hoekstra et al., 2020). This purpose of this paper is to build out the argument that research impact assessment in education could make rapid strides with modest changes to current practice.

The methods in this paper build upon an earlier review of impact assessment tools designed for collaborative research approaches (Author, 2021). Due to the volume of primary studies focused on collaborative research, particularly over the last 10 years, the review was structured as an overview. Analogous to systematic and scoping reviews of individual studies, overviews provide a way of “bringing together reviews in a transparent and systematic way and aiding informed decision making by gathering, appraising and systematically analysing this evidence” (Hunt et al., 2018, p. 2). In total, after screening an initial set of 1,223 abstracts followed by 141 full-text articles, eight reviews were analyzed (Boivin et al., 2018; Buchanan et al., 2016; Granner & Sharpe, 2004; Hamzeh et al., 2019; Lawlor et al., 2019; Lewis et al., 2015; Sandoval et al., 2012; Squires et al., 2011). I extend the overview’s analysis of these eight articles by focusing on tools that meet the following criteria: (a) developed or applied within the past five years, (b) intended for use in K-12 education settings with multiple audiences (e.g., researchers, practitioners, policymakers), and (c) strong psychometric and pragmatic properties.

While the analysis phase of this work is still underway, five instruments will be examined and compared, followed by a discussion of enduring challenges for assessing impact. Those five tools are the following: (1) Brown et al.’s (2022) Research-Use Benefits, Costs, and Signification Survey; (2) Brennan et al.’s (2017) Seeking, Engaging with and Evaluating Research; (3) Neal et al.’s (2020) Archival Search of Use of Research Evidence; (4) Penuel et al.’s (2016) Survey of Practitioners’ Use of Research; (5) Farley-Ripple’s (2017) Survey of Evidence in Education for Schools.

Current quantitative approaches to measuring the impacts of research collaborations in education are failing to do so in ways that are meaningful, consistent, rigorous, reproducible, and equitable. This paper makes a first step in addressing this issue by exploring promising impact assessment tools from fields of study with conceptual similarities to research collaboration.

This paper proposal presents results from a study on experienced Swiss teachers’ workplace learning triggered by continuous professional development. It addresses the question of how teacher workplace learning takes place in the specific contexts.

Workplace learning of teachers is seen as embedded in daily classroom activities: Both, formal and informal workplace learning are considered (Hallinger & Kulophas, 2020). Research on workplace learn-ing has expanded considerably in the last years and can nowadays be considered a broad and interdis-ciplinary sub-discipline. A central aspect of the scholarly debate is the question of sustaining teachers' professional competences, with much attention being paid to the link between formal and informal learn-ing (Geeraerts et al., 2018).

The context of the study refers to a professional development procedure called STEEV (simultaneously teaching and evaluation that is effective and visible; in German: LUUISE) (Beywl et al., 2023). STEEV draws on research on teaching (e.g., Helmke & Weinert, 2021) and further education (e.g., Lipowsky & Rzejak, 2021). In addition, it fosters "evaluative thinking" (Dunn & Hattie, 2021, Hattie, 2023: teachers plan ahead, thinking about how they can assess and also promote the success of their teaching by means of collecting relevant data in a way that is integrated into existing classroom practices. The change of perspective, "seeing through the eyes of the learners" (Hattie, 2009), is crucial. This process strengthens the expertise of teachers by supporting them to address pedagogical challenges effectively and to achieve high teaching goals. Specific features of the program are a high practical orientation with close support of the participants by coaches during the planning of a data-based teaching intervention, the implementation in the classroom, which usually lasts several weeks, and the collegial reflection.

Methodologically, a grounded theory research approach was adopted corresponding to the pragmatistic line of Strauss & Corbin (1990). Through narrative and focused interviews STEEV-experienced teachers are asked about their experiences. Applying theoretical sampling and theoretical sensitivity, the inter-view data was analysed to develop concepts and then elaborated into categories. Finally, a learning model was developed. It suggests the importance of the connection between learning-oriented action and reflection by the teacher. This is similar to the experiential learning cycle of professional develop-ment (Kolb, 1984). The results of the study indicate on the one hand the effect of work-based learning and on the other hand effects on effective teaching.

Findings from this study can inform research and practical interventions in various contexts as the un-derlying theoretical assumptions are based on international evidence (e.g., Hattie 2023). It makes teacher workplace learning tangible (in the specific context) and points to the benefit of teacher (con-tinuing) education process involved for quality professional education as well as school effectiveness and improvement. Moreover, attempts can be identified how teacher workplace learning can be support-ed externally. Furthermore, it contributes to the expansion of scientific work in still young academic field of teacher workplace learning.

Contemporary education is moving towards a stronger connection with research, driven by policy and the recognition of the positive influence of research-informed educational practice (RIEP) on teachers' professional development. However, the practical integration of research into everyday school life is still in progress across many contexts. This paper examines the participation of teachers and school leaders in RIEPs that support inclusive education.

We take RIEP to refer to the utilisation of academic research by teachers and school leaders to inform their teaching methodologies, decision-making processes, leadership approaches, and ongoing professional development (Brown, et al, 2022).

We issued a survey to a total of 534 teachers and school leaders from Catalonia (N=343), Poland (N=112), and England (N=79). We have adopted Baudrillard's (1968) theoretical framework as a deductive lens. Firstly, we examined the benefits that the teachers and school leaders perceived as associated with using research in their professional practice, particularly in terms of: improvements in teaching, pedagogical understanding, and inspiration for using innovative approaches. Secondly, we explored the costs that the teachers and school leaders perceived as linked to using academic research in their professional practice, including: limited financial and logistical resources and teachers’ lack of preparedness in using research. Lastly, we examined the teachers’ and school leaders’ own sense of aspiration to use academic research in their professional practice, involving factors such as a perceived prestige or sense of professional identity associated with using research.

The findings of the study indicate that in terms of the benefits of using RIEPs, the items that received higher scores are associated with: the practical utility of research in guiding the development of new practices (M=4.09 – up to 5), enhancing the learning experience of students (M=4.14), and providing teachers with new and innovative ideas (M=4.9). Additionally, respondents expressed that there was a greater likelihood of them utilising research when it aligns with the objectives of the school and the specific needs of their students.

Regarding the costs associated with research use, respondents acknowledged the challenges they face in effectively translating research findings into practitioner-friendly language (M=3.90) and integrating those findings with their practical knowledge as educators (M=3.92).

Furthermore, respondents perceived research evidence to be significant primarily when its utilization aligns with the expectations of school leaders and the improvement priorities of the school itself. They viewed RIEPs as a ‘hallmark of an effective profession’ (M=3.76), contributing to the enhancement of their ‘school’s reputation and attractiveness as a place for both professional growth and learning’ (M=3.88).

The study findings highlight both the positive and critical attitudes the teachers have towards employing RIEPs in their professional practice. On the one hand, they recognized research and the potential positive impact research can have on teaching practices and school development. On the other hand, they articulated the challenges and considerations that teachers face if incorporating research into their professional activity. This study draws recommendations from the respondents’ contributions, offering them up for adaptation and practical application in the ongoing bid to nurture more inclusive education systems.

This paper presentation focuses on results from the first two years of pan-Canadian research seeking to examine how teacher education programs support, nurture and sustain well-being. In keeping with antiracist and anti-oppressive calls to action in Teacher Education, a holistic model focusing on mental, emotional, physical and cultural conceptions of wellbeing guided the research questions. In year 1, the questionnaire was disseminated to the Senior Administration of Teacher Education Programs. In year 2, the questionnaire was disseminated to teacher candidates enrolled in Teacher Education programs. The results provide insight on the theory and practice of preparing teachers with well-being as a foundation for their professional lives as leaders in education.

The theoretical framework for this study is interdisciplinary, drawing on research in positive psychology (Bakker & Schaufeli, 2008; Ben-Shahar, 2008; Keyes & Annas, 2009; Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000), positive organizational scholarship (POS) (Carr, 2004; Gallos, 2008; Luthans & Youssef, 2007; Roberts & Dutton, 2009), and work-related learning (Fenwick, 2008; Smith, 2020). Supported by this framework that connects wellbeing and professional learning, this research responds to a need to examine pre-service programs across a variety of educational settings, and to explore future policies and practices from a more holistic perspective (Alexander, Gerofsky & Wideen, 1999; Authors, 2010).

This multi-year research project is designed using a mixed-method approach (McMillan & Wimmer, 2008) to identify and describe programs, practices, and policies for promoting well-being across teacher education sites in Canada. Qualitative data from the questionnaires were inductively analyzed using the constant comparison method (Gay & Airasian, 2003; Glaser & Strauss, 1967). Quantitative data analysis included frequency counts, means, standard deviations, and percentages. Finally, the data were compared and contrasted with the themes derived from the review of related research on fostering well-being in teacher education programs.

Based on responses from administrators and students across teacher education programs in Canada, wellbeing is a consideration in the design and delivery of pre-service preparation. While intellectual, social, and emotional wellbeing tend to be the most familiar aspects for including in programs and policies, attention to cultural and spiritual wellbeing emerged through the survey responses emerged as important areas for further consideration. Student responses varied and at times, provided responses that were contrary to the administrators’ responses. Findings from this study highlight the importance of supporting and promoting wellbeing as a foundational part of formative and early professional learning experiences in pre-service teacher education. Overall, the findings inform initial recommendations for a holistic perspective to support and promote teacher well-being during pre-service education that take into account multiple pillars of wellbeing. Survey results provide additional insights on the theory and practice of preparing teachers with well-being as a foundation for their professional lives as leaders in education.

Recognizing the importance of professional learning as pathway towards school effectiveness, the findings from this study inform policy and practice to support teacher development from a foundation of wellbeing as integral to initial teacher education and continuing professional development for teachers.

The under-representation of minority ethnicities in the teaching workforce in Scotland has been a long-standing and persistent issue (e.g. Hartshorn et al 2005; BBC 2015; Hepburn 2017, Arshad, 2021). The aim of the study reported in this paper was to contribute to ongoing discussions about this issue. Informed by semi-structured interviews with minority ethnic teachers in Scottish schools, the study offers insider perspectives into the factors that affect recruitment, retention and progression of teachers from minority ethnic backgrounds, with a specific focus on teacher education and the probation year. Kholi (2021) suggests a need to understand how minority ethnic teachers negotiate their professional identities, and considers whether their personal identities actively or consciously affected their teaching. Whilst schools can be important sites for children and young people to encounter social justice, so too, are they sites for teachers to encounter social justice. Yet some minority ethnic teachers appear to feel confident in utilising their cultural and linguistic skills while others choose to assimilate in order to ‘fit in’. This potentially oppresses minority ethnic teacher’s identity (Beijaard and Meijer, 2017).

This paper draws on qualitative research conducted with minority ethnic teachers from the West of Scotland. All were educated in Britain but selection criteria ensured a mix of different cultural and religious backgrounds. Focus groups enabled their responses to be analysed, in order to explore their experiences and perceptions of their contribution to the profession. It was also important to seek their views on responding to the needs of the minority ethnic children they teach and whether they felt that their cultural, religious and linguistic skills were of benefit to all the children they teach. Critical race theory provided a useful lens to examine the teaching lives of minority ethnic teachers, with respect to the particular issues they face because of their culture, religion and language (Ladson-Billings, 1995; Bhopal, 2018).

Findings throw light into the influences that shape the participants as developing professionals and enable them to negotiate the complexities associated with their minority status. In addition, findings show that equality of opportunity symbolised by the offer of a place in a teacher education programme is not sufficient to ensure that individuals from minority ethnic backgrounds have a fair chance at completing the programme and the probation period. Unless the challenges associated with their minority status are recognised and appropriate support is put in place to counteract them, these aspiring teachers are less likely than their majority-status peers to experience success. An unsuccessful outcome can be devastating on a personal level and will contribute to the perpetuation of existing disparities in the representation of minority ethnicities in the teaching workforce in Scottish schools.

The recommendations for Teacher Education Institutions and Local Authorities arising from this study can be useful not only in relation to student teachers and probationers from minority ethnic backgrounds but also in relation to aspiring teachers from other under-represented groups.

The concept of teacher academic optimism (TAO) is gaining importance as a framework for understanding in-school factors that influence student achievement. It emphasizes the interplay between teacher efficacy, teacher trust in students and parents, and academic emphasis, and has been shown to be a crucial determinant of a teacher’s ability to optimize learning opportunities (Chang, 2011; Hoy et al., 2006; Woolfolk Hoy et al., 2008). Even after controlling for background variables such as socioeconomic status (SES) and migration background, research shows a positive correlation between TAO and student outcomes (Ates & Unal, 2021), underscoring the significance of academically optimistic teachers. Despite the potential promise of the concept, there still is limited understanding of the factors that influence TAO and whether teachers are equally optimistic in different classroom contexts. Therefore, this study focuses on the extent to which the subconcepts of TAO vary with classroom composition, educational track, and with teachers’ perception of academic optimism at the school level.

Data were collected in Antwerp, the largest city in Flanders (Belgium) and with a (for this study) relevant variety of secondary schools in terms of ethnicity and SES. Via stratified clustered systematic sampling a total of 1061 teachers from 37 secondary schools participated in the study. The adapted (and validated) Survey for Academic Optimism (Lelieur et al., 2022) was used to map out teacher and school academic optimism (SAO). We also surveyed the compositional features and the educational track of the class group the respondents had in mind answering the TAO items. Data were analysed through Bayesian multilevel structural equitation modelling. Model comparison showed a clear hierarchy of fit, as measured by the dWAIC (McElreath, 2020), in favour of the model with intercepts, school random effects, fixed effects, and school academic optimism effects for each one of the sub-scales within teacher academic optimism.

Our results illuminate the importance of considering the effects of educational track in understanding variations in teacher trust in students and parents. In schools with a similar level of SAO, educational track, rather than students’ background characteristics, plays a determining role. Specifically, students in the vocational finality have teachers with lower levels of TAO compared to students in other finalities. Previous research has highlighted the heightened risk of lower learning achievements among students in vocational tracks (Van Houtte & Demanet, 2016), but the presence of optimistic teachers has the potential to reverse this trend. Additionally, our study contributes to the existing literature by highlighting the pivotal relationship between SAO and TAO. To foster inclusive and effective learning environments, policymakers and educators should prioritize investing in SAO. This includes cultivating a teaching team that believes in its ability to educate all children, fostering a trusting environment that actively involves students and parents, and maintaining high expectations for all students, regardless of their background characteristics or educational track.

This proposal is closely related to the subtheme: Leading schools and education systems that promote equity, inclusion, belonging, diversity, social justice, global citizenship and/ or environmental sustainability.

PURPOSE

In the United States increased public and political hostility toward teaching contributed to historically low teacher morale (Merrimack, 2022, 2023). These negative sentiments have caused many teachers to leave the profession, thus hindering efforts to improve schools and sustain change initiatives. We argue that one way to address this issue is by fostering a sense of belonging in teachers. Being in a supportive and nurturing professional community when facing challenges fosters resilience and success (Day & Gu, 2014). Moreover, a sense of belonging could serve to mitigate negative feelings and improve well-being (Allen, 2020, Bjorklund, 2023). This qualitative study adds to the literature on sense of belonging by exploring how teachers experience belonging at their school and what schools can do to foster feelings of belonging.

FRAMEWORK

Sense of Belonging

Feeling a sense of belonging is a fundamental human need (Baumeister & Leary, 1995). Over the past decade, researchers have found that positive relationships and a sense of belonging are important for peoples’ physical and mental well-being (Allen, 2020; Holt-Lundstad et al., 2010). Research exploring the antecedents and outcomes of sense of belonging in K-16 contexts identifies benefits of sense of belonging for students (e.g., Allen et al., 2021; Bjorklund, 2019; Goodenow, 1993; Strayhorn, 2012). However, few have explored educators’ experiences of belonging (e.g., Bjorklund, 2023; Pesonen et al., 2021; Skaalvik & Skaalvik, 2011, 2019).

DATA & METHODS

This paper examines interviews with 39 elementary school teachers from one school district in the Western United States. All participants were hired by the district in the past five years and ranged in teaching experience from 2 to 20 years. Interviews were conducted from January through May 2023. Questions probed participant experiences of belonging at their school site and how the school helped or hindered their sense of belonging. Using the analytical software, MAXQDA, we engaged in a two-cycle coding process (Miles et al., 2014; Saldaña, 2016) to create and finalize our codes. We then used thematic memos to flesh out our findings.

FINDINGS

Preliminary findings suggest four themes related to how the school organization fostered feelings of belonging: Creating space for socialization between school staff, principal support, creating time for collaboration between colleagues, and showing trust in teachers. Participants all mentioned the importance of school leadership to their sense of belonging at the school.

IMPORTANCE FOR PRACTICE AND THEORY

This work offers implications for school leaders and researchers. School leaders are well-positioned to impact teachers’ sense of belonging and thus should be attentive to signs of belonging or not belonging among teachers. In the paper we identify specific strategies school leaders might consider. Future research might explore critical questions such as: What constellations of belonging networks exist within the school and what opportunities for inclusion or exclusion do they create for new teachers? What are the power dynamics of belonging in schools? How can school leadership help minoritized teachers feel a sense of belonging? Answering such questions may be the key to improving teacher job satisfaction and school change goals.

 

The authors are members of a team of researchers conducting a national evaluation of the impact of the National Council for Special Education’s (NCSE’s) frontline services in primary post-primary and special schools in Ireland. The general functions of the NCSE include planning and co-ordinating education provision and support services for children with special educational needs; disseminating information on best practice in relation to the education of children with special educational needs and assessing and reviewing the associated resources required including ensuring students’ progress is monitored and viewed. This national evaluation is particularly significant as Ireland in its ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on 20 March 2018, places an obligation on state parties to recognise the right of persons with disabilities to education and their inclusion in the general education system. Building teachers’ capacity as educational leaders remains critical in achieving the transformation of the school system required to realise Ireland’s duties and responsibilities in this regard.

Data were collected through document analysis, surveys, interviews with parents-carers, school staff and other professionals. Ten case studies were also conducted in primary, post-primary and special schools involving children and young people, parents-carers, principals, teachers, special needs assistants (SNAs) and other professionals who were supporting children with special educational needs in the case-study schools. Based on the authors’ belief and previous experience that involving teachers as co-researchers in the evaluation of national policy related to education contributes positively to teachers’ educational leadership capacity, six teachers were recruited as co-researchers for the case-study element of the research. Additionally, the research process is greatly enriched by the close-to-practice expertise that teachers bring to the research and evaluation process, which cannot be equalled by a researcher who is more distant from the practice. Crucially, the combination of teachers and researchers working together as co-researchers is a powerful combination that can ultimately effect positive and dynamic practice and policy change.

This paper reports on the innovative methodological design developed by the authors which included an online professional learning programme co-delivered online via Microsoft Teams by the authors; the co-construction of the case-study elements by the authors and the teachers, which included Individual and Focus-Group Interviews; Participatory Encounters with Children and Young People; Document Review and Observation Schedules. The findings of the case-studies suggest that adopting participative approaches to the evaluation of national policies yields findings that are attuned with the acoustic of practice; provides validation for both participants and teachers as co-researchers and challenges the responsivity of existing policy. The potential impact of this methodological approach on educational leadership capacity is interrogated through the lenses of the model for educational leadership proposed by the Centre for School Leadership and the impact on the person of the leader and the practice of the leader considered. Professional Standards; Reflection on Practice; Relevant Experiential Learning; Individual and Collaborative Learning; Cognitive Development and Flexible and Sustainable Professional Learning are identified and interrogated in the context of their inextricable links with teachers’ educational leadership competence.

Distributed leadership (DL) employs a broad perspective of leadership, conceptualising it as a practice that is spread across leaders, followers, and the situation (Spillane et al. 2001). The construct is exceedingly popular and is a prominent discourse in both policy and practice spheres (Harris 2013). DL is endorsed in school policies internationally including Ireland (Barrett and Joyce 2018; Department of Education 2022). Yet little is known about how DL is currently being enacted in Irish post-primary schools as well as the potential impact that it is having on school life. The aim of this doctoral research was hence to explore DL in Irish post-primary schools.

This aim was achieved using a mixed methods research design underpinned by an interpretivist approach. While interpretivism is typically associated with qualitative research, it can also be employed for mixed methods research (McChesney and Aldridge 2019). The study comprised three phases, namely a scoping review of international empirical literature on DL, an online survey with post-primary school personnel working in Ireland (n=363) which was based on an adapted version of the Distributed Leadership Inventory (Hulpia et al. 2009), and semi-structured interviews with post-primary school principals and deputy principals working in Ireland (n=15). Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke 2008; Braun et al. 2022).

There are several outcomes of this study. A map of recent international empirical research on DL including research trends and implications is outlined. An overview of Irish post-primary school personnel’s interpretations of DL is presented, highlighting differences regarding what is shared, who it is shared with, and how it is shared. The varying degrees and models of DL enactment in this context are presented, noting challenges regarding the culture of leadership in schools, the complexity of relationships among staff, variations in the enactment of teacher leadership, and the threat of ‘tick-the-box’ DL. An overview of the challenges to the sustainability of the role of school leaders is outlined due to administrative overload, policy proliferation, and the complexity of the role, with DL suggested by participants as a tool to aid these challenges.

This research has implications for research, policy, and practice. Areas of future research are identified along with the suggestion to replicate existing research and use new methodologies in new contexts to build on the existing corpus of literature. Tensions between policy and participants’ interpretations and enactment of DL are identified. Theoretical implications include the identified need to further conceptualise the culture required for DL to flourish, the way in which labour is divided, and the use of DL as a sustainable practice. A framework for enacting DL as a teacher empowerment practice is presented and the need to rethink the role of school leaders and create further collaboration between school leaders and policy makers was identified.

This research links to the conference theme as school leadership is integral to effectiveness and improvement in schools. This research is particularly linked to the subtheme of leading improvement collaboratively and sustainable through the shared practice of DL.

Objectives, problem of practice and purpose

In a recent study on novice principals’ coping strategies during the Covid-19 pandemic Sahlin et al. (submitted) concluded that the principals’ coping strategies were based on adaptive leadership (Harris, 2021), as a way of handling situations that were rapidly changing and unclear. The uncertainty and stressful situations the principals experienced demanded adaptive leadership strategies and emotional management and leadership, as suggested by Optlaka and Crawford (2021). Adaptive emotional leadership and management are necessary for the principals to maintain resilience in handling stress and be flexible and adaptable in all situations during a low-intensive crisis, where ‘good enough’ is based on and reflects upon professional decisions rather than personal emotions of fear and stress. More research should be focused on conducting a follow-up survey study after two years to the same principals and investigate what they continued to work on, what were their most important lessons and what they changed in their leadership practices based on their experiences of leading during the Covid-19 pandemic. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore principals’ perceptions of their leadership during the pandemic and how it has changed their leadership practices today.

Perspective(s) or theoretical framework, or context

In this study, adaptive leadership theory (Heifetz et al, 2009; Obolensky, 2014;Yukl & Mashud, 2010) and the concept of leadership as practice (Spillane, Halverson & Diamond, 2004) is used to understand the findings of the study and to analyse the empirical data.

Methods, techniques, modes or approach to inquiry

The study is based on a qualitative research approach using a digital questionnaire which will be sent to all the principals (n = 193) who were studying at the national training program in Sweden during the Covid-19 pandemic and who was a part of the initial study (Sahlin et al., submitted).

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Results, findings, learning

This follow-up study has not yet been completed but is based on a previously completed study on novice principals coping strategies and leadership during the Covid-19 pandemic (Sahlin et.al., submitted).

Educational importance of this research or inquiry for theory, practice, and/or policy

For educational research, this paper contributes valuable knowledge about key factors for principal leadership during a low-intensive crisis in a Nordic context, for both practitioners and policy makers.

Connection to the conference theme

This paper connects to the “Educational Leadership Network” and to crossover sub-theme of the conference: “Ongoing system and school implications arising from the COVID-19 crisis”.

Focus of Inquiry: This paper explores how collaborative engagement with youth as co-researchers in a longitudinal research study of youth STEM trajectories provides unique opportunities to center youth voices, knowledge, and perspectives and to cultivate a sense of belonging for youth in supportive learning environments. Co-researchers are researchers from populations of the research itself, including: youth, teachers, and school leaders. Drawing on seven years of collaboration with six youth co-researchers at various stages of college and graduate school, we highlight the key features of youth participation, how youth participation shaped the design, implementation, and dissemination of the research, and in what ways this collaboration supported a sense of belonging between youth and adults over time. This paper responds to the ICSEI sub-theme “policy and practice learning to support teacher and school leader development,” by shedding light on features of the collaborative co-research process that may inform educators seeking to build partnerships with youth and cultivate a sense of belonging for youth in learning spaces that may have traditionally excluded their perspectives.

Theoretical/ Conceptual Perspectives: We draw on the core concepts of a community of practice (Lave & Wenger, 1991) framework, including practices, mentoring relationships, identity and sense of belonging (Good et al., 2012) to design our collaborative co-research process and understand how and in what ways youth feel acceptance and membership in our research community of practice. We also draw on key features of youth participatory action research (Caraballo, Lozenski, Lyiscott & Morell, 2017) to center youth voices and perspectives and position young people as collaborators bringing critical expertise and intimate knowledge about their own lives.

Data & Method: Data are drawn from a case study of a seven-year education research fellowship that prepared six youth who are study participants in Staying in Science to expand their STEM research experiences into an education research context. We draw on multiple sources of data, including interview transcripts, recordings, written reflections of our collaborative process, and historical documentation of the ways youth participated in the design of surveys and interview protocols and co-conducting interviews with study participants. Using this data, we identify the key features of our co-research process that support youths’ sense of belonging both to the study and to the process of research.

Findings

Analysis revealed a set of strategies and practices educators utilized that contributed to and/or hindered youth being key collaborators on a longitudinal study exploring their and their peer’s STEM trajectories. For example, we found that adult researchers authentically addressed power in adult-youth co-researcher relationships by actively inviting input, communicating when input was not incorporated, and clearly articulating adult and youth roles.

Educational Importance for Practice and Theory

This project shares findings about the practices, routines, and structures that adults and youth have enacted that have been critical to a productive collaborative co-research process. We focus on sharing strategies that teachers, school, and college educators can implement in their educational settings to support the process of centering youth voices and perspectives and promote inclusion and belonging in education.

Literacy is tied to productivity, employment, and earnings potential, but performance on reading assessments has been stagnant or declining for years within the US (National Center for Education Statistics, 2012, 2022). Despite multiple decades of attention (“Editorial: Overcoming Racial Injustice,” 2020), historically underrepresented student groups’ outcomes are especially poor.

Researchers have identified teaching practices that consistently support student growth in reading comprehension (Graham et al., 2018; Graham & Hebert, 2011). Among them, a strong factor is the use of student-centered practices (Davis, 2010), including those that leverage writing instruction, such as pair/trio sharing where students can try out ideas in a “low risk” setting (Matsumura et al., 2022). However, these student-centered routines are not commonly found in reading instruction, raising the question of why implementation at scale is not occurring for proven practices.

Networked improvement communities (NICs) have become a popular approach to addressing major problems of practice in education (Bryk et al., 2011, 2013; Russell et al., 2017). NICs combine the organizational routines and analytic lenses of improvement science with the collective knowledge and coordinated effort of networks, offering a potentially powerful method for managing complex problems. Although improvement science has been well-researched in other industries (Ogrinc et al., 2012; Rother, 2009) and networks have been explored for educational improvement (Muijs, 2010), more studies are required to test the use of NICs, specifically. This need for research on the effectiveness of NICs is particularly critical for NICs focused on instruction inside the classroom, where there is significant complexity in all elements needed to productively shape student learning. Recent work suggests NICs can improve classroom instruction, but has not focused on explicit analysis of the relationship between implementation and student outcomes.

In this study, we examine two years (2021-22, 2022-23) of student outcome and teacher implementation data in a large NIC. Depth of implementation was assessed using teacher self-reported implementation of six core teaching practices and student outcomes were measured using NWEA’s MAP Reading assessment. This NIC focused teachers on a set of six student-centered routines to understand their impact on student reading outcomes. The network led professional development sessions and held network-wide convenings, fulfilling an essential NIC function by creating inter-organizational spaces for productive collaboration (Russell et al., 2017). Teachers were introduced to these instructional practices and learned how to embed them in their classrooms during professional development sessions. In network convenings, network members came together to align on group norms and share their successes.

The findings show that the benefit of having a high-implementing teacher was only slightly less in magnitude than a typical four months of learning at the national scale. Results also showed consistent benefits across both study years for student groups with power. Benefits for underpowered student groups (students with special needs and Black students) were positive but noisy. This study has implications for practitioners as they decide how to implement high-quality professional education to support interventions, as well as for researchers’ theory-building about the impact of using a NIC-based implementation approach.

Introduction

As the world emerges from the pandemic, the negative impacts on student learning and education structures are evident. Educators and researchers face the challenges resulting from the disruption to learning. As students resume in-person schooling, a key emerging challenge is their adjustment to being back in classrooms (Rapanta et al., 2021). These challenges encompass the socio-emotional state of students, including difficulties in sitting for extended periods and engaging meaningfully with their peers. Believing that peer interaction and collaborative classroom learning are crucial for student growth (Laal & Ghodsi, 2012; Wood and O'Malley, 1996, Vygotsky, 1987) our paper asks: How do teachers understand the change in student social behaviors in classrooms since their return to in-person schooling?

Context

This study involved five teachers from schools in India's capital, Delhi. Delhi had one of the worst impacts of Covid-19. Some estimate that approximately 4 million people lost their lives between April 2020 and January 2022. Therefore it is no surprise that schools in India were restricted to online classes for most of the past three years.

Methods and Analysis

In this qualitative study, we interviewed five school teachers from three private schools. These schools experienced significant closures during the pandemic, including one school being the epicenter of COVID-19 cases among Delhi schools in 2021. The forty-five-minute interviews aimed to capture teachers' classroom experiences in the past six months. Recorded interviews were transcribed for analysis. We utilized the constant comparative method (Glasser, 1965) to identify overarching themes of teacher perceptions about student behavior.

Findings

Analysis revealed four prominent themes. Firstly, teachers noticed a rise in "shy" students, resulting in quieter classrooms and reduced student enthusiasm. Secondly, students exhibited decreased teamwork skills, displaying impatience and reluctance to compromise. Interestingly, a third theme emerged, indicating that online pandemic-formed groups led to exclusive cliques within classrooms. Finally and most concerningly, all teachers in the study talked about how they were especially worried about the students who had been isolated even before the pandemic. Coming back to classrooms after spending more than a year in a home environment has been especially difficult for students who, pre-pandemic, also felt isolated by their peers and regressed in their social growth over the past two years.

Implications:

Most people expected the pandemic's long-term effects to dissipate upon returning to normal. However, this study highlights a new normal with fresh challenges for teachers and students. Based on our findings, we make the claim that there needs to be support for all returning students that goes beyond helping them “cover-up” academic content and explicitly centers students’ socio-emotional growth. Furthermore, administrators must assist teachers in working with students who are especially struggling with reintegration into in-person classes.

Importance and Connection to ICSEI theme:

This study is connected to the themes of the need for continued professional development (CPD) and the subtheme of the ongoing system and school implications arising from the COVID-19 crisis. This reserach speaks to the teacher's perception of the long-lasting social impact of school closures and online school.

Beliefs about gender norms can result in disproportional exclusionary discipline when educators over-policing students whose behavior deviates from teachers’ gender expectations. Using the inclusivity professional development framework, we outline core elements of effective professional development theorized to influence school disciplinary rates. Despite several case studies suggesting IPD may be an important component in developing supportive educator-allies for LGBTQ+ youth (Greytak et al., 2013; Mangin, 2019; Payne & Smith, 2011), few quantitative studies have connected IPD with improvements in disciplinary outcomes.

Purpose

This study examines a large, U.S. school district’s implementation of an IPD program in elementary schools. The program trains educators in preventing bias-based bullying, learning about LGBTQ+ identities, and creating welcoming classrooms for all families. Our cross-sectional study addresses two main research goals: First, we investigate differences between which schools in the volunteered for the IPD program by evaluating school demographics and other characteristics each year (2018-2019). Second, we examine whether participation in the IPD program contributed to disciplinary outcomes.

Methods

School data comes from two sources: 1) the administrative and discipline data for 33 elementary schools, and 2) district training records. Using demographic data from the School Report Card, we examine the balance of school demographics between IPD and Non-IPD schools using t-tests. Next, we examine IPD's contribution to school disciplinary outcomes using Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) multivariate regression analysis controlling for race, SES, and special education enrollment.

Results

IPD schools enroll fewer low-SES students (t(33) = 3.348, p = 0.002), and marginally less special education students (t(33) = 2.013, p = 0.053). Non-IPD schools have less white students (t(33) = -2.208, p = 0.035), more Black/African American students (t(33) = 3.336, p = 0.002), and more students with two or more races (t(33) = 3.464, p = 0.002) than IPD schools.

OLS Multivariate Regression Analysis

When controlling for school demographics, IPD schools have lower suspension (β = -1.592, p = 0.032), assault (β = -1.098, p = 0.049), and endangering behavior rates (β = -0.284, p = 0.027) than Non-IPD schools. There are no significant differences in other school violations (β=-0.157, p = 0.209) and weapon-related incidents (β = -0.045, p = 0.191) between IPD and Non-IPD schools. Overall, our results suggest the IPD program contributes to lower behavioral performance of students even after controlling for school demographics.

Discussion

Effective instruction of K12 students requires pedagogical expertise and appropriate understanding about how students’ identities and social statuses influence their school experiences (Gay, 2010; Ladson-Billings, 1999; Shulman, 1987). The IPD curriculum aims to enhance educators’ understanding of how and why school structures should change to reach

Objectives

This paper reports the development work in cooperation between school and university at an introductory programme in Sweden. The introductory programme is an alternative educational path to support students who do not qualify for the national upper-secondary programmes. These students, for instance, migrant students or students with intellectual disabilities, belong to groups that are at-risk and have been marginalised in different ways during their school paths. An important challenge that we focus upon is that a majority of the students do not reach the goals set in the national curriculum for eligibility for a national programme or establishment in the labor market. More specifically, a narrow focus on eligibility for the national programmes implies that eligibility is measured in grades. Many students attend the programme for several years without achieving grades, even though they develop competences that are relevant and may facilitate transitions to future educational and professional paths.

This paper aims to investigate and shed light on alternative methods to map and assess students’ progress in ways that are not constrained by the formal curriculum.

The research questions are:

1. From a practice perspective, is it possible to develop alternative assessment categories?

2. If so, what categories were put into practice?

3. Why were these categories selected?

Perspective

Grades can constitute external motivation for students to engage in short time learning (Stan, 2012). However, when students run the risk of not reaching grades they often stop trying. Therefore, there is a need to develop methods both to motivate, and to show progress for students who experience failure to reach grades. Beyond assessing student achievement, data can support the development of teaching practices (Datnow & Park, 2018). This study investigates what such data could be and how the awareness and use of it is developed by teachers.

Methods

This paper draws from engaged scholarship (Van de Ven, 2007) and collaboration between practitioners in schools and researchers. Different techniques have been tested in the study to create matrixes and templates that support teachers and students in their reflective work on their learning and development. These tools were created after discussions and testing and an iterative process. Interviews were conducted with teachers and students to document this process. The data is compiled from continuous notes and documents generated during the process.

Findings

Preliminary findings show that the process of designing, testing, and implementing templates for assessment is long and complex. It implies that teachers need to come to a shared understanding of relevant data that reflect students’ success and not only their failures. An important consequence is that the process facilitated teachers’ and students’ engagement in deeper conversations about their learning, and the factors that may bring successful transitions for this student group. One challenge is that the process is time-demanding and requires planning and needs a focused investment by the school leadership in order to be implemented. Hopefully, the results of this study can provide an example for others who struggle to promote equity, inclusion and citizenship in their education.

Formal (i.e. systematically collected) school performance feedback (SPF) (such as test scores from central tests) can be a powerful tool for data-based decision making (Schildkamp, 2019). The assumption here is that school leaders and teachers (can) use SPF as a mirror to identify strengths and weaknesses in order to inform and drive teaching and school improvement (Coburn & Turner, 2011; Hulpia & Valcke, 2004; Schildkamp & Teddlie, 2008). However, research has found that both school leaders and teachers mostly fail to translate this data into meaningful information (Goffin, Janssen, & Vanhoof, 2023; Mandinach & Gummer, 2016; van der Kleij & Eggen, 2013). As a result, critical signals may not be picked up, or worse, incorrect or invalid inferences may lead to wrong decisions.

Sensemaking is a crucial stage in the cycle of data use (Mandinach & Schildkamp, 2021; Schildkamp, 2019), in which school leaders and teachers try to understand what the data means for the school or the classroom (Datnow, Park, & Kennedy-Lewis, 2012; Spillane, 2012). In this, comparing school’s performance against a well-chosen comparator, such as other (comparable) school’s performance (i.e. norm comparisons), can support users in understanding what the SPF means (Neumann, Trautwein, & Nagy, 2011; Schildkamp, Rekers-Mombarg, & Harms, 2012; Vanhoof, Mahieu, & Van Petegem, 2009). After all, only after SPF is interpreted (and analysed) it is transformed into information that can be used as a basis for data-based decision making (Mandinach, Honey, Light, & Brunner, 2008; Schildkamp & Poortman, 2015). Although education professionals commonly compare their school’s performance to that of a reference group (Goffin et al., 2023), literature shows that interpreting such norm-oriented information in SPF presents challenges (Hellrung & Hartig, 2013). In addition, it appears that data use processes are hampered when the norm-oriented comparator for SPF is not perceived as 'fair' (Vanhoof, Verhaeghe, & Van Petegem, 2009).

Given these considerations, in this study we explore the importance of comparing SPF in sensemaking (RQ1) and describe - from a user perspective - appropriate indicators and operationalisations for valid norm comparisons (RQ2). To this end, we conducted a Delphi study with two systematic rounds of consultations with both (future) feedback users and educational scientists. 18 informants participated in the study. Their responses were initially (round 1) analysed inductively according to the principles of Grounded Theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) and subsequently (round 2) deductively according to principles of framework analysis (Miles & Huberman, 1984). Preliminary results suggest that norm comparisons mainly help to understand the broader context of a school’s performance. In addition, the importance of comparing both 'gross' and 'net' school test scores appears to be endorsed. Finally, informants underline - in pursuit of valid comparisons of SPF - the importance of taking into account (mainly) pupil intake characteristics. As school feedback from central tests only proves relevant when the SPF is interpreted (and used) meaningfully and validly, these findings give rise to a discussion of theoretical lessons and policy implications.

Introduction

Over time it has become evident that peers and networks of students play a key role in their social and academic development (Bhargava et al. [2022], Calvo-Armengol et al. [2009]). Hence, analyzing social networks in classrooms is important to understand and leverage the benefits of these connections (Zarate [2023]). However gauging and collating this information can be daunting for teachers, especially when they have to cater to large classroom sizes and multiple administrative responsibilities in schools (King and Nomikou, 2018). Hence we ask a dual question; What are the social networks of students in Indian classrooms? Second, How do teachers engage with the network data of their classrooms?

Context

This study involved 24 classrooms and teachers from three schools with a total of 584 students in total. Participating classrooms ranged from grades 1 - 10. The schools from the states of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh were selected to represent three different economic brackets (low, middle, and high income).

Methods and Analysis

The study utilized a mixed-method approach to answer the research questions. Quantitatively, we used the method of social network analysis (Jackson et al. [2023]) to unpack and visualize these networks.

Additionally, we conducted semi-structured interviews with teachers as they were making sense of the visuals of their classroom network data. The qualitative data were analyzed using a constant comparative method (Glasser, 1965) to surface the different themes in the ways that teachers engage with their classroom data and connect it to daily practices.

Findings

Through our network analysis, we found that there was considerable dispersion in degrees across several dimensions. At least 20% of students in each classroom get nominated by only one other individual as a very good friend. On the other end of the spectrum, 20% of the students within each classroom get nominated by more than 6 individuals as very good friends. Similar levels of dispersion are seen in academic help and recess networks.

In our interviews, we saw teachers being surprised about the students who were isolated in their classrooms. While they had an idea of the “popular” students in their classrooms, they were less aware of the students who were at the margins. Second, teachers were making tangible connections between the data and their future practices. These prospective practices ranged from making seating plans according to the data to nominating isolated students to take a more active part in school events.

Implications and Connection to ICSEI Theme:

Through our network analysis, it is evident that there are students in classrooms who do feel isolated and need more support. Additionally, our engagements with teachers speak to the fact that they value data that is specific to their classrooms. We see teachers making nuanced inferences from the data and relating it back to tangible practices. This study connects to the overarching theme of the conference to create professional support and training for teachers utilizing data. Additionally, it also directly connects to the sub-theme of leveraging research and data for inquiry, insight, innovation, and professional learning.

To improve successfully, schools should engage in data-informed school improvement, and research shows that principals are key players when it comes to such data use in schools (e. g. Datnow & Hubbard, 2016; Demski & Racherbäumer, 2015). Only few schools engage in data-informed improvement systematically (e. g. Demski, 2019), and the implementation of such practices seems to be contingent on several factors (e. g. Altrichter & Maag Merki, 2016; Bremm et al., 2017). The question therefore is how principals (and their schools) can be supported and trained so that their practice is more data-informed. So far, the discourse regarding school improvement in Germany has focused on the responsibility that individual schools have for their own improvement, whereas the tasks and responsibilities of superordinate actors in the local and regional school administration (LRSA) have hardly been addressed (Authors 1). According to German law, LRSA have supervisory responsibility for the schools (Ackeren et al., 2015, p. 97; Authors 2). However, there is no coherent strategy or a common understanding of the role and tasks that LRSA have with regard to school improvement (e. g. Brüsemeister & Gromala, 2020; Authors 1). Instead, there is a lack of concrete guidance at the policy and legal level, on how to shape the role of LRSA, e.g., with regard to their support services for schools (Authors 1). Their self-perceptions primarily involves a controlling, possibly advisory function, but no responsibility for enabling schools to improve (Authors 2). And although “‘data-based’ governance has become a large part of contemporary school supervision” (Dabisch, 2023, p. 65), the support practices of LRSA with regard to data use are highly heterogeneous (Dabisch, 2023; Huber et al., 2020). Moreover, there is little theoretical input or research on how LRSA can and should be trained if they should function as supporting agency for school improvement (Authors 1). Consequently, most schools currently are on their own when it comes to school improvement capacities, such as data-informed school improvement (ibid). This paper therefore aims to explore what LRSA in Germany can or should do to support schools in developing a data-informed approach to improvement. To do so, we used guided interviews (Mayring, 2015) with principals and teachers of successful schools to understand the prerequisites of data-informed practices in schools. We moreover used observation protocols of expert workshops with experts from administration, practice, and research, in which they discussed what structures, resources, and professional support schools need to develop data-informed practices based on the interview data. Initial findings point to the importance of school-wide – and possibly cross-organizational – structures, networking between schools as well as between different actors in the field, and collaboration as relevant organizational structures that need to be supported by LRSA. Moreover, LRSA must cultivate positive attitudes toward data and improvement in principals and teachers, which necessitates that LRSA actors model that attitude. Since LRSA often are not specifically trained for their task, it is also vital that they acquire knowledge about data (use) as well as helpful structures for effective data use first.

The inclusion of diversity-oriented play materials (DPM) in Early Childhood Education (ECE) is a requirement of internationally utilized quality rating scales (e.g. CLASS, ECERS) and licensing regulations (NAEYC, 2019; Sakai et al, 2003). DPM include racially diverse dolls, kitchen/food items, musical instruments, and international dress-up clothes (NAEYC, 2019; Sakai et al. 2003). As US ECE programs tend to receive low Cultural Awareness and Promoting Diversity scores (Sakai et al, 2003; Sanders & Downer, 2012), the inclusion of DPM is criticized as insufficient, favoring pedagogical approaches to reduce inequality (Durden et al. 2015; Suoto-Manning & Rabadi-Raol, 2018). In the micro context of dramatic play, children reenact everyday life, including reproducing macro systems of power and oppression (Vygotsky, 1978; Rogers et al., 2021; Velez-Agosto et al., 2017). Without appropriate professional development (PD), ECE may inadvertently reinforce macro systems of oppression (Iruka et al., 2020; MacNevin & Bermin, 2017). This paper investigates how ECE teachers integrated new DPM into classroom activities after receiving anti-bias training, how DPM prompted conversations about diversity, and PD needed to promote equity in ECE.

Methods

Data was collected as part of a Research Practice Partnership within a university affiliated ECE program in the United States. The teachers (n=32, M 28-years) were predominantly female (91%), English home-language (69%) and of diverse (63% person of color, 37% White/non-Hispanic). Teachers participated in a full day anti-biased PD and were given new DPM including multilingual blocks, international musical instruments, kitchen/household items, and global fabrics and textiles. To explore teachers’ engagement with DPM and application of anti-biased PD, an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design used an online-survey followed by semi-structured interviews.

Results

Teachers reported children were very/interested (70%) in the DPM and that there was an increase (56%) in conversations related to equity and diversity. Some (37%) of teachers only provided access to DPM in free-play settings, while (49%) both allowed access to DPM in free-play and included them in planned anti-bias pedagogical practice at least 2-3 times per week.

Qualitative data indicated that the DPM sparked new modes of dramatic play, promoted inclusion among children from non-White backgrounds, and garnered positive approval from parents. “I took out the play clothes and she brought these wonderful, these different fabrics from Africa and I just put them like different scarves. And yeah, you see the play has like changed.” Teachers noted the insufficiency of simply including new DPM, highlighting the importance of dialogue. Teachers requested explicit training in using DPM to promote equity without reinforcing societal bias.

Educational Importance and Connection to Conference Theme

Inclusion of diversity-oriented play materials is a necessary, but insufficient, approach to leverage ECE as a mechanism to reduce inequality. ECE teachers have varying degrees of comfort and training in implementing anti-bias pedagogy, which could contribute to the reinforcement of structural inequality through children’s dramatic play. ECE professional development programs and quality rating scales must include a more specific focus on anti-bias pedagogical strategies (Escayg, 2019; Iruka et al., 2022).

Early childhood education (ECE) is one of the most challenged contexts when it comes to discussions of critical topics that address inequities such as race and racism with young children (Sanders & Farago, 2018). ECE has been seen as the antidote to address systemic inequities children face through the use of multicultural pedagogy embedded within Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP) (Escayg, 2019; NAEYC, 2019). Though DAP provides a necessary developmental perspective, its historical underpinnings reflect the values of White middle-class Americans, which may blind ECE providers from understanding the profound impacts of racism (Suoto-Manning & Rabadi-Raol, 2018), leading to ineffective engagement with children and their families (Bouette et al., 2011). This race evasive approach leaves families to bear the responsibility to teach others about their lived experiences, while also advocating for their children of color (Sanders & Downer, 2012). This study investigates early childhood educators' perceptions on the role of families and providers to support children’s development of cultural diversity and exploring the ways they are engaging with families on diversity topics.

Methods

We conducted a Research Practice Partnership study to address racial bias and anti-racist pedagogy within a university affiliated ECE program. Participants included 32 teachers of 0-5 years-olds. The teachers predominantly identified as women (91%) and their mean age was 38 years. 69% identified English as their first language, 63% identified as a person of color, and 37% identified as White/non-hispanic. To explore teachers’ engagement with anti-racist pedagogy, an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design used an online survey followed by semi-structured interviews to extend emergent themes from the survey (Chen et al., 2009; Guyton & Wesche, 2005; Taylor & Sobel, 2001).

Results

Quantitative findings demonstrate that the majority (76%) of educators believe that families and ECE providers have an equal responsibility in supporting children’s awareness of cultural diversity and bias. Educators were evenly split across feeling confident (18% consistently confident, 32% usually confident) and beginning confidence (37% somewhat comfortable, 13% not yet confident) when engaging with families around culture and diversity topics. Qualitative findings demonstrate that while educators found that open communication was most effective for building trust and maintaining relationships with families from different backgrounds, they tended to focus on inviting families to contribute to the curriculum.

Implications and Connection to ICSEI Theme

ECE programs must move away from focusing on families as educators, to focusing on families as learners in an inclusive, bidirectional process of supporting children’s development, thereby, addressing and promoting social justice and equity. Educators need to better understand the diverse families that they are working with, including their lived experiences, goals, and expectations so that families feel connected to the learning process (Iruka et al., 2020). ECE must be a resource for helping families to become more knowledgeable about the education system by combating myths, discussing parental rights, and identifying school processes that can support their children. Anti-racist ECE recognizes the racial history of ECE, the strength of families, and systematically addresses discrimination and bias to provide opportunities for all children to thrive (Iruka et al., 2022).

Using data from an ongoing research practice partnership (RPP), we share a set of curricular outcomes focused on anti-bias education from early childhood educators and university researchers. This presentation focuses on two research question(s) that highlight RPP outcomes.

- --How are early childhood educators (ECE) incorporating anti-bias and anti-racist materials into their curriculum following multiple years of professional development?

- --How do the curriculum changes at the early childhood centers represent how teachers are blending developmentally appropriate practices with anti-bias frameworks?

The RPP has developed professional development activities including two full-day teacher institutes, multiple teacher reading groups, identifying useful webinars and online seminars and conferences, and developing one-on-one mentoring between center administrators and ECE. During COVID-19 shelter-in-place, the teachers began writing curricula using National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) four goals of anti-bias education: identity, diversity, justice, and activism. Teachers created the “Mykala Doll” activity which allows children to ask the doll questions about her brown skin color, curly hair, favorite things, and family and community affiliations. Units also included children participating in a school supply drive for homeless children and partnering with Scholastic INC who donated a book for every pair of pajamas the children collected during the pajama drive.

We relied heavily on established anti-bias (Derman-Sparks et al., 2019; Souto-Manning & Rabadi-Raol, 2018) and new anti-racist pedagogy scholarship (Escaygu, 2019; Wright, 2021) to analyze the curricular changes from the past three years. Material documents and artifacts were collected from the centers with the permission of the administration. The researchers were an integral part of the professional development series and continue to interview individual and focus groups of educators at the centers. Data Sources are material documents, such as lesson plans and newsletters to parents and families, and curricular artifacts of children’s work. We also introduce recent interview data from ECE educators who have participated in the RPP.

Through participation in the RPP educators became more intentional with incorporating social justice content and racial, cultural and social identity development in classrooms ages 9 months to four years old. This intentional planning included teachers generating lessons that include families as partners, but did not rely on families to initiate cultural activities. Activities around holidays and cultural events remain important; however, educators have developed lessons that are not attached to calendar events, therefore normalizing anti-bias curriculum as everyday practice and institutional culture.

While the conceptual literature focused on anti-racist education gains prominence in early childhood conversations (Escayg, 2020; Muller, et al.,2022; NAEYC, 2020), the empirical research documenting anti-racist education practices and children’s outcomes in early childhood remains scant. Education practitioners, including those who collaborated in the RPP, desire examples and models of practice. In order to develop equity models of practice in ECE, researchers and practitioners working in collaborative spaces need more professional development models and examples of practice (Wright, 2021). The outcomes of the professional development series have enhanced the center’s effectiveness and improvement towards equity-minded ECE.

The effectiveness of a school system can be assessed not only by the quality of education it delivers but also by its ability to mitigate educational inequality and ensure equity (Nachbauer & Kyriakides, 2020). In this regard, it is crucial to first sketch an overall picture of the trends and patterns of educational inequality across school systems. We conducted research to identify how global educational inequality has changed over time. We focused particularly on educational outcomes to provide a fuller picture of the tangible effects of school systems across different societies/nations in terms of educational equality. The research questions were:

•What are the global trends in inequality in educational outcomes?

•What are the patterns according to the multi-index for measuring inequality in educational outcomes?

•Are the patterns of educational outcomes, as represented by the inequality indices, similar worldwide, or are there notable variations?

Regarding our research questions, cross-national comparison research highlights that countries have made significant efforts to reduce educational inequality, and some progress has been reported (e.g., Baker & LeTendre, 2005) whereas a recent meta-analysis shows that educational inequalities are more pronounced in higher-income countries (Kim et al., 2019). This mixed picture is because the measures of inequality vary as well as the period of analysis covered by research is different.

To address the issues in existing studies, we adopted a multi-index approach to measuring educational inequality and covered the period of analysis more comprehensively. Specifically, we created five standardized indices of educational inequality, each ranging from 0 to 1. These indices include commonly used measures such as 1) variance in academic achievement explained by family SES and 2) the Gini coefficient using academic achievement. The indices also include three more measures: 3) the proportion of students achieving a basic level within a country/society, 4) the difference in scores between the top and bottom groups within a country/society, and 5) the proportion of students from the bottom 25% of SES among the top 25% of academic achievers (i.e., showing resilience of low SES students). We used mathematics test scores measured by PISA from 2003 to 2018, encompassing six different time points.

Results show that inequality in educational outcomes remain substantive. Specifically, during the period from 2003 to 2018, overall inequality in educational outcomes slightly intensified. The R-square showing the relationship between SES and academic achievement slightly decreased whereas the other four indices remained the same or showed an upward trend, indicating either no improvement or worsening of educational inequality. As far as PISA 2018 is concerned, the global trend of educational inequality has more similarities, characterized by the striking difference in the proportion of students achieving a basic level of academic proficiency (i.e., proficient level 2 by PISA) among the countries; in countries with higher overall inequality, the proportion of students reaching a basic level of academic proficiency was lower.

In conclusion, this study is significant in that it empirically presents the global trends in educational inequality from multiple inequality lenses, thereby highlighting areas needing further improvement.

In the highly stratified German educational system the transition to secondary school is crucial for students´ educational pathways. Teachers’ give an enrollment recommendation based on students´ performance for a secondary school-track after grade four. This recommendation is not binding and 15% of students attend a higher school-type than recommended.

Given the importance of the transition it is alarming that this decision is still highly associated with students´ social background (SES) (Boudon, 1974; Broer, 2019). Also deviations from teachers´ recommendation are biased due to parental motives of status attainment and opportunity costs. As higher family support among high-SES students is anticipated, teachers’ assess students´ potential to be successful at the academic track differently (Neugebauer, 2010). Even though research showed that about 70% of students who attended an academic-track school without an academic-track enrollment recommendation (ATER) were successful (Pfost et al., 2018), little is known about success factors. Referring to Wigfield and Eccles’ (2000) expectancy-value theory, motivational factors like students´ expectation of success or extrinsic motivation promote educational attainment (Ditton et al., 2019). Being potentially malleable it is promising to assess the role of motivational factors to buffer against educational inequalities (Wang & Finch, 2018).

Thus we investigated whether SES (parental education and occupation), opportunity costs (financial burden and learning stress) and motivational factors (expectation of success, perceived idealistic parental aspirations, value of education and performance-related motivation) are of specific relevance for the educational attainment of incorrectly assessed students (obtained an Abitur (Higher School Certificate) without ATER.). We used four measurement points from the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS, SC3) starting in Grade 7 in Winter 2012/13 (N=2,671 students; M=10.4 years, SD=0.85, 48.2% female) (NEPS Network, 2021).

A MANOVA was conducted comparing students with and without ATER who obtained Abitur. Furthermore, group-comparing structural equation models (SEM) were specified comparing all students in our sample by the recommendation received in terms of their educational attainment. Value of education and performance-related motivation were modelled latently, reliabilities were good. Furthermore we controlled for a set of competence-related measures, gender, school-type, and language spoken at home.

The MANOVA revealed higher SES and motivation among students who obtained Abitur with ATER, while students without ATER scored higher on learning stress. SEMs showed that SES (especially parental education) was more relevant for students without ATER. Motivational factors (especially expectation of success) were important in both groups, but more relevant for students with ATER.

Findings underline the importance of SES – especially for students without ATER parental education is key to educational attainment meaning another disadvantage for low-SES students. In general motivation is relevant for educational attainment of all students.

Relating to the conference theme the following practical implications arise: Aiming to reduce educational inequalities, including the institutional level and the role of the teacher is necessary. Providing teachers’ feedback on the accuracy of their enrollment recommendations is promising to enhance students’ educational attainment. Also longer learning together or a higher flexibility in changing school-tracks should be discussed. On the individual level fostering all students´ motivation is important.

Purpose – In Australia, under the National Assessment Plan, educational accountability testing in literacy and numeracy is annually undertaken with one million students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 to monitor student achievement and inform policy. This is undertaken through high-stakes testing through the National Assessment Program—Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests. Since 2008, NAPLAN improvements have focused on how the results are publicly reported, but it still continues to draw criticism for its narrow scope and negative impact on students. This small-scale study aims to highlight the views of students across Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 who sat for the NAPLAN test in 2023 and their experience of sitting the new online adaptive version of this test as well as their perception of its usefulness in their learning.

Research question – What perceptions do students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 have of the importance of NAPLAN tests within their own learning?

Context – Changes to the NAPLAN in 2023, included introducing earlier testing in March, and improved reporting methods. Over 2022-23, the Australian government aims to provide $26.4 billion to states and territories to support school education under its Quality Schools arrangements. The NAPLAN, as a system-level tool indicates the effectiveness of this return on investment. The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority claim NAPLAN 2023 will assist teachers in providing targeted learning support, including challenging high-performers and identifying students who need support. This suggested diagnostic ability will be available for students and schools when results come out in July this year. They suggest the test will assist schools in mapping individual student progress, identifying strengths and weaknesses in teaching programs and setting school goals for further improvement in literacy and numeracy. NAPLAN results are transparently reported since 2008 on the MySchool website, positioning it as a high-stakes test meeting public accountability and confidence in Australian schooling. However, practitioners and researchers have advocated against this test’s negative impact on equitable teaching and learning across Australian schools.

Methods – This study used an open-access, quantitative survey tool to identify Australian students' perceptions of the usefulness of this test in their learning. This novel approach, securing student voice on a large-scale test, was the first of its kind in Australia, even though substantial research has been done on NAPLAN's impact on students, schools and teachers.

Evidence – Over 500 students took part in this study and provided their views on the NAPLAN test. This data is being analysed to understand its usefulness as perceived by Australian students who undertake NAPLAN four times during the duration of their school years.

Educational importance – The findings provide student-level first-hand insight into the effectiveness of this test. The findings may provide recommendations for improvements to NAPLAN test administration, reporting and data use in schools.

Connection to the conference theme – The findings may inform educational systems through leveraging research and data on student perceptions of NAPLAN for better inquiry, insight, innovation and professional learning on using the data from these tests at the student and teacher level.

Research question

How can rubrics be converted into transcripted grades in an equitable manner?

Objective

This paper offers tools and insights for developing equitable grading systems aligned with schools' pedagogical philosophies. Two case studies illustrate successful grade conversion methods, promoting equitable grade distributions and empowering students.

Context

Case study 1: School A - An international project-based learning (PBL) school that prioritizes student autonomy and engagement. The grading system relies on 3-point rubrics, which are converted into letter grades for transcripts.

Case study 2: School B - A traditional Brazilian school following the National Common Core Curriculum (BNCC), with a rigorous academic environment. Rubrics were used to evaluate an interdisciplinary project, which were then converted into points and incorporated into the overall grading system.

Method and techniques

In School A, each course employs 4 concept rubrics (Advanced, Proficient, Developing, and Not yet) to assess outcomes. Previous boundaries were set for converting these rubrics into letter grades. However, this approach had limitations. For instance, receiving a "Developing" in any outcome restricted the maximum achievable grade to a B. This resulted in a skewed distribution of final grades and generated frustration among students and teachers, shifting their focus away from the learning process.

To address these challenges, a new formula was developed (doesn't fit here)

In School B, the interdisciplinary project was assessed using 4-point rubrics, at the end summing 1 point to the students' final grades. There were a total of 5 rubrics, one for individual assessment and four for group assessment. The individual rubric accounted for 0.5 points, while the four group rubrics combined accounted for the other 0.5 points. If a student achieved a perfect score, they would receive a total of 8 points (4 from the individual and 4 from the group rubrics). This value of 8 points was considered equivalent to 1 point in their final grade. To calculate this proportion, this was performed:

Individual rubric +(Group Rubric 1 + Group rubric 2 + Group Rubric 3 + Group Rubric 4)/4)/8

This would result in how much would be summed in their final semester grade on the disciplines.

Data

The data for School A pertains to the final grades of students during the 2022-2023 school year.

The data for School B represents the points that were added to students' final grades for the second semester of 2018.

Graph 1: School's A grades for Math 9th grade

Graph 2: School's A student count of all subjects of 10th grade students

Graph 3: School's B grade distribution.

Conclusion

In summary, this article explores innovative grading solutions that align with pedagogical philosophies, emphasizing holistic student assessments over letter grades. It presents successful case studies from School A and School B, demonstrating the positive impact of new grading methods.

In conclusion, the article highlights the importance of refining grading methodologies to meet evolving educational demands, promoting fair and effective assessments that empower students on their learning journeys.