• An examination of perceptions of parental influence on attitudes to language learning

      Bartram, Brendan (Routledge (Taylor & Francis), 2006)
      Background The assumption that parents have some effect on their children's attitudes to learning is one that few educationalists would challenge. The ways in which this influence is brought to bear are a slightly more complex and contentious matter, however. Purpose The paper uses data from a tri-national PhD study on pupil attitudes to examine perceptions of the ways in which parents influence children's orientations towards foreign language learning (FLL). The comparative element is useful in providing a contrasting range of settings in which to examine the issue. The paper thus aims to provide some indication of the similarity and importance of particular influences by identifying features that seem significant, irrespective of setting. Sample A total of 411 learners of French, German and English (as foreign languages), represented in roughly equal numbers from across the ability range, took part in the survey. The pupils, aged 15 - 16, were drawn from two centrally located mixed comprehensive schools in each country—England, Germany and The Netherlands. The schools were similar in terms of size, social intake and their semi-urban location. Care was taken to ensure as close a gender balance as possible. Design and methods The study was designed as a qualitative survey and involved three data collection instruments. The first stage of data was collected using a written word association prompt distributed to the whole sample. The second stage involved around half the pupils generating written accounts of their attitudes and the factors they perceived to be influential. A total of 80 pupils took part in the final stage, consisting of 14 focus group interviews. A system of open coding was applied to all the data to support the process of inductive category building used in their analysis. Results The findings offer some evidence for an association between parental and pupil attitudes. Parental influence appears to operate in a number of ways, ranging from the role model potential of positive/negative behaviours and the communication of educational regrets, to the ways in which parents help to construct their children's understandings of language importance and status. The extent of parental language knowledge appears to be an important additional factor. Conclusions The evidence suggests that the ways in which parents contribute to the construction of their children's understanding of language utility are particularly important, and that this may be a key factor in the more positive attitudes demonstrated by the German pupils and the more negative orientations among the English participants.
    • Attitudes to language learning: a comparative study of peer group influences

      Bartram, Brendan (Routledge, 2006)
      This article examines the nature and influence of peer group perceptions on pupils' attitudes to learning German and French. It begins with an overview of key findings from the literature, before reviewing selected results from a large PhD attitudinal survey using a multi-stage qualitative research design. The article focuses on the perceptions of a total of 295 French and German learners at mixed comprehensive schools in England, Germany and the Neterlands. The pupils' views are described and compared, and an attempt is made to identify factors commonly involved in the construction of language-learning peer cultures. The notions of language choice and gender identity emerge as important themes and are discussed in detail, particularly with regard to the ways in which they articulate with social considerations
    • Comparing Language Learning Attitudes in England, Germany and the Netherlands: some methodological considerations

      Bartram, Brendan (Symposium Journals, 2006)
      The following article examines the methodological considerations involved in carrying out a trinational comparative survey of pupils' attitudes to learning French, German and English (as foreign languages) at comprehensive schools in England, Germany and the Netherlands. The research was conducted as part of a Ph.D. study aiming to describe the nature of the pupils' attitudes and to examine and compare the pupils' perceptions of educational and socio-cultural influences in the different contexts. A discussion of the broader theoretical framework in which the study is located is followed by an analysis of research design and decision-making. This includes a detailed review of country, sample and instrument selection, along with an examination of the practicalities of access, piloting and analysis. Finally, a number of ethical issues are considered.
    • Global Learning: What do pupils need?

      Serf, Jeffrey M.; Ballin, Ben (Sheffield: Geographical Association, 2008)
      This article argues that if pupils are to make progress, the curriculum needs to consider what pupils need from their education system in the context of a changing world.
    • Interactive pedagogy and subsequent effects on learning in science classrooms.

      McGregor, Debra (Routledge (Taylor & Francis), 2004)
      Observations of pupils-in-action whilst carrying out investigations indicated that there was plenty of social and cooperative exchange. There was, however, infrequent discussion regarding the planning of experimental approaches, predicting outcomes, consideration of the meaning of evidence and evaluation of task solutions. These observations informed the nature of interactive in-service programmes developed in Keele University Education Department. Professional development was designed to purposely illustrate a wide repertoire of pedagogic strategies that focused around these issues to support cognitive development of pupils. The interactive nature of the in-service training was shown to affect widespread 'change in teachers' practice. These teachers, involved in experiential in-service, reflected that they intervened more regularly in children's learning. Their engagement in in-service training as learners in problem-solving situations resulted in conceptual shifts in understanding the learning processes their pedagogical transformations could affect. The impact of this changed praxis on pupils' learning in investigational situations was studied after in-service intervention. These findings were compared with the performance of pupils of the same year group carrying out the same investigations before in-service intervention. The more interactive nature of the teachers' changed pedagogy appeared to affect change in the way pupils themselves interacted and learnt from and with each other. Explicitly sharing subjective views through exploratory talk was found to be important to affect learning through social interaction.
    • Measure beyond Pleasure: Evaluating the Impact on Learning of Out-of-School Programmes for Able and Gifted Pupils in England

      Lambert, Mike (Common Ground Publishing Pty Ltd., 2003)
      School-education in England is replete with new projects and initiatives of various kinds. Many require formal evaluation of their impact and effectiveness, often carried out by researchers from higher education. One of these initiatives has been the development in recent years of ‘Advanced Learning Centres’ – out-of-school programmes for school-pupils. The author of this paper is now undertaking a three-year national evaluation of the impact on learning of pupils’ attendance at these Centres. This paper presents and analyses some of the issues and obstacles of doing this evaluation. These include facing the ‘Hawthorne effect’ of initial enthusiasm, the need to identify the historical context of out-of-school learning for able pupils, the difficulties of measuring against goals and intended outcomes, and tensions between the need for measurement and the ethos of the Centres themselves. The paper identifies ways forward for the evaluation process and relates this to evaluation of other similar projects elsewhere.
    • The influence of task structure on students' learning processes: observations from case studies in secondary school science

      McGregor, Debra (Taylor & Francis, 2008)
      This paper examines the impact of task structure on students' learning processes in the context of several case studies in practical secondary school science. Three levels of differentiated task structure were investigated: open (no structured in-task support), partially structured (some in-task support), or prescriptive (highly structured in-task support). Analysis focused on the students' social exchanges, particularly the nature of the talk and action during task resolution, and the quality of task outcomes. Reflections on the observations highlight where and how pedagogic tactics could be focused to support more effective social and cognitive interactions and thus higher-quality task resolutions.