Towards a relational understanding of teacher autonomy: The role of trust for Canadian and Finnish teachers

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 394-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
Audrey Paradis ◽  
Sonja Lutovac ◽  
Katri Jokikokko ◽  
Raimo Kaasila

We argue that teacher autonomy should be conceptualised differently from its current form, that confines teacher autonomy to the individual, or to freedom from control. Here, we investigate the role of trust concerning teachers’ perceptions of their own autonomy, embedded in differing contexts and relations. To display contextual variations, we study qualitatively a sample of Canadian and Finnish upper-secondary school mathematics teachers. Our findings reveal that trust plays a decisive role in whether teachers feel autonomous or not, and that trust plays a central role in relationships teachers have at work. Furthermore, trust is articulated differently according to the teachers’ context. Based on our findings, we argue that a reconceptualisation of teacher autonomy is needed. A relational conceptualisation of teacher autonomy, highlights its inherent relationality and contextual sensitivity, provides new insight into the teachers’ work, and supports more empowering ways for teachers to exert a proactive influence on their autonomy.

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1087
Author(s):  
Loreley Castelli ◽  
María Laura Genchi García ◽  
Anne Dalmon ◽  
Daniela Arredondo ◽  
Karina Antúnez ◽  
...  

RNA viruses play a significant role in the current high losses of pollinators. Although many studies have focused on the epidemiology of western honey bee (Apis mellifera) viruses at the colony level, the dynamics of virus infection within colonies remains poorly explored. In this study, the two main variants of the ubiquitous honey bee virus DWV as well as three major honey bee viruses (SBV, ABPV and BQCV) were analyzed from Varroa-destructor-parasitized pupae. More precisely, RT-qPCR was used to quantify and compare virus genome copies across honey bee pupae at the individual and subfamily levels (i.e., patrilines, sharing the same mother queen but with different drones as fathers). Additionally, virus genome copies were compared in cells parasitized by reproducing and non-reproducing mite foundresses to assess the role of this vector. Only DWV was detected in the samples, and the two variants of this virus significantly differed when comparing the sampling period, colonies and patrilines. Moreover, DWV-A and DWV-B exhibited different infection patterns, reflecting contrasting dynamics. Altogether, these results provide new insight into honey bee diseases and stress the need for more studies about the mechanisms of intra-colonial disease variation in social insects.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aron Gauti Laxdal

The overreaching aim of this thesis was to gain a better understanding of the students’ perceptions of the learning environment in upper secondary school physical education, with special focus on marginalized subgroups. More specifically, the intention was to explore whether students perceived their learning environment differently depending on their teachers’ gender, the learning support they received or the perceived competence they had. Despite the learning environment being a well-researched phenomenon in the more academic school subjects, there was a substantial knowledge gap concerning its influence in physical education. The individual works that form this ensemble aimed to occlude some of those gaps. In an effort to achieve the aforementioned aims, a new instrument measuring teacher learning support in the physical education context was also constructed and validated. The chosen methodology for the thesis was cross-sectional, comprising of a multicomponent self-report questionnaire. The data was analyzed using various analytical tools, including structural modeling analysis and MANCOVA between group comparisons. The participants were 1133 upper secondary school students (Mage = 17.2, SD = 0.86) from Norway (n = 554) and Iceland (n = 579), and 17 Norwegian PE teachers (11 males, 6 females). The sampling of participants was performed using a stratified procedure representing both urban, suburban and rural settlements. Multiple steps were taken to ensure adequate sample representability. The collective results of the individual papers indicate that the current organizational trends in PE are more in line with the needs of the highly competent students, and less so with the needs of the less competent students. This tendency intensifies the differences between these groups and may be one of the primary drivers behind the negative relationship between age and appreciation for the subject. Further, the students do not appear to be self- regulating their learning to the same extent as they are in other subjects, despite the teachers efforts to facilitate the behavior. The cause of this discrepancy likely being PE’s reputation as a recreational subject, underlined by the absence of homework and the playful nature of the lessons. Additionally, the role of the teacher’s gender in influencing the PE experience seems to be exaggerated. Gender matching and positive discrimination of female PE teachers are therefore unlikely to improve the learning environment of female students. The concluding recommendations are multitudinous and include suggestions to all the stakeholders of the subject. They include an appeal to the policymakers to rely more heavily on the body of research when implementing or adjusting policy, a plea to the teaching institutions educating the physical education teachers to emphasize formative teaching practices to a greater extent in their program, in order to promote learning behavior, and a call to the physical education teachers to address the various challenges related to the less interested and less competent students by reducing the benefits of sporting experience and ameliorating the current curriculum implementations by introducing more non-traditional sports and activities.


Author(s):  
Petr Hlaďo ◽  
Jaroslava Dosedlová ◽  
Klára Harvánková ◽  
Petr Novotný ◽  
Jaroslav Gottfried ◽  
...  

Maintaining and promoting teachers’ work ability is essential for increasing productivity and preventing early exit from the teaching profession. This study aimed to identify the predictors of work ability among upper-secondary school teachers and examine the mediating role of burnout. A large and diverse group of Czech upper-secondary school teachers was surveyed to address this goal. The sample comprised 531 upper-secondary school teachers (50.0 ± 9.94 years, 19.9 ± 10.62 in the teaching profession, 57.6% females). Relatively greater empirical support was found for the effects of burnout, sense of coherence, work–life balance, and perceived relationships in the school environment on work ability than for the impact of age, homeroom teacher duties, workload, and caring for elderly relatives. Furthermore, burnout served as an important mediator of the relationship between sense of coherence and work ability. Teachers with a higher sense of coherence are thus better able to cope with adverse work circumstances and identify and mobilize internal and external resources to prevent professional exhaustion and the subsequent decline in work ability. The study can guide interventions on the work ability of teachers.


2008 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katariina Salmela-Aro ◽  
Noona Kiuru ◽  
Minna Pietikäinen ◽  
Jukka Jokela

School burnout can be defined as consisting of exhaustion due to school demands, cynical, and detached attitude toward one’s school, and feelings of inadequacy as a student ( Kiuru, Aunola, Nurmi, Leskinen, & Salmela-Aro, 2008 ; Salmela-Aro & Näätänen, 2005 ; Schaufeli, Martínez, Pinto, Salanova, & Bakker, 2002 ). The first aim of the present study was to examine the extent to which schools differ in school-related burnout. Moreover, the aim was to examine the extent to which school-related and background factors are associated with school burnout at the school level and at the individual level. The participants were 58,657 students from 431 comprehensive schools and 29,515 students from 228 upper secondary schools who filled in a questionnaire measuring their school burnout, school-related variables (i.e., negative school climate, positive motivation received from teachers, support from the school), and background variables (i.e., gender, grade-point average, socio-economic status, and family structure). The results revealed only small differences between schools in school burnout. Among the comprehensive school students the results at the school-level showed that negative school climate typical of the school was positively related, while support from school shared among school members was negatively related to school-related burnout. Among upper secondary school students, in turn, positive motivation received from teachers typical of the school was negatively related to school-related burnout. At the individual level, negative school climate was positively related, and support from school and positive motivation received from teachers were negatively related to burnout among both the comprehensive and upper secondary school students. In addition, girls and those with lower GPA experienced higher levels of school burnout compared to boys and those with higher GPA.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 301-303
Author(s):  
Charu Dhankar

The nature nurture issue has been an important debate in all aspects of the individual development. According to Jensen’s heritability ratio, hereditary has an impeccable influence in the development process. Based on these, dermatoglyphics has been used in the present case study in order to observe the innate potential of an individual, to give parents an insight into their child’s hidden potential and to groom them effectively. The present case study is confined to the acquiring methods and unique quotients of the subject. The findings of the study revealed the unique quotients of the subject and the best suitable acquisition method for the subject.  Aim/Purpose: To test the methods of learning and unique quotients of the subject with the help of Dermatoglyphics Multiple Intelligence Test DMIT.  Int. J. Soc. Sci. Manage. Vol-2, issue-3: 301-303 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ijssm.v2i3.12651 


2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
Mette Bunting ◽  
Geir Moshuus

Mye forskning om skoleavbrudd i videregående opplæring ser på risikofaktorer, som sosio-økonomisk bakgrunn, grunnskolepoeng og kjønn, og kan derfor sies å fokusere på individuelle og strukturelle faktorer. Artikkelen argumenterer for heller å se på skoleavbrudd som et samspill eller møte mellom individet og systemet, det individuelle og strukturelle. Forskningen baseres på data fra en longitudinell kvalitativ studie i sitt fjerde år. Informantene er ungdom i NAV-systemet som har sluttet på videregående skole, men som fortsatt har skolerett. Gjennom den indirekte metoden, en intervjumetode basert på etnografiske intervjuer, søkes det å legge til rette for at ungdommene kan fortelle sine historier med egne ord og på sin måte. Disse fortellingene belyser avbruddsprosessene, og beskriver opplevelser forut for avbruddet. Funnene viser at selv om ungdommene sier dette skjer på grunn av enkelthendelser, belyser fortellingene deres at dette er komplekse prosesser som ligger til grunn, gjerne år tilbake. Artikkelen konkluderer med at sosialt medierte prosesser også utenfor skole, må vektlegges for å kunne forstå skoleavbrudd.Nøkkelord: frafall, kvalitativ longitudinell studie, livshistorier, etnografisk intervju, ungdom, videregående skoleAbstractResearch on dropout from upper secondary school usually focuses on risk factors such as socioeconomic background, previous academic results and gender—that is, on individual and structural factors. The present article argues for a shift of focus, looking at dropping out as an interaction between the person and the system—between the individual and the structural. This research draws on interview data from a longitudinal qualitative study (now in its fourth year) of young people both in and out of school. The informants were young dropouts currently in the welfare system. Using the indirect method (developed from ethnographic interviews), the interviewer sought to establish an environment in which these young people could use their own words when sharing their stories. Those stories provide an insight into the processes and experiences prior to the event of dropping out. The findings show that although young people describe dropping out as a singular event, their stories indicate complex preceding processes, often from some years before. The article concludes that socially mediated interactions between the individual and the structural, both inside school and out of school, must be considered when seeking to understand why young people drop out.Keywords: dropout, qualitative longitudinal study, life stories, ethnographic interview, youth, upper secondary school


Author(s):  
Michael Lambiris

The traditional way of providing feedback to students after tests or assignments is labour-intensive. This paper explains the concepts and techniques used by the author to build computer-based applications that analyse students’ answers and generate individualised, detailed and constructive feedback. The paper explains how the data gathered from a student’s answers can be combined with other knowledge about the subject matter being taught, and the specific test questions, to create computerised routines that evaluate the individual student’s performance. This information can be presented in ways that help students to assess their progress, both in relation to their acquired knowledge in specified areas of study, and with regard to their ability to exercise relevant skills. In this way, appropriate feedback can be provided to large numbers of students quickly and efficiently. The same techniques can be used to provide information to the instructor about the performance of the group as a whole, with a degree of detail and accuracy that exceeds the impressions usually gained through traditional marking. The paper also explains the role of the subject instructor in designing and creating feedback-generating applications. The methodologies described provide insight into the details of the process and are a useful basis for further experimentation and development.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 546-557
Author(s):  
Eman A. AlMuraie ◽  
Norah A. Algarni ◽  
Nidhal Sh. Alahmad

This study aimed to recognize upper-secondary school science teachers’ perceptions of the meaning, importance, and integrating mechanisms of science, technology, engineering, math (STEM) education, taking in to account the differences between the science teachers’ perceptions according to their specialties, years of experience, and degrees. A closed-ended questionnaire was distributed among 700 science teachers (biology, physics, and chemistry) in Riyadh, and 255 teachers responded. The results showed a strong alignment in the upper-secondary school science teachers’ perceptions of the meaning and the importance of STEM education, although there was less of a consensus regarding the integrating mechanisms. There were statistically significant differences in the physics teachers’ perceptions of STEM meaning, although there were otherwise no significant differences by specialty in the science teachers’ perceptions of the importance of STEM education and its integration mechanisms. Furthermore, the teachers showed no statistically significant differences in STEM’s meaning, importance, or integrating mechanisms according to their years of experience. Based on the results, recommendations included intensifying professional development programs on utilizing technology, engineering, and mathematics in learning science concepts and application. Keywords: integration mechanisms, science teachers, STEM education, teachers’ perceptions, upper secondary school


Osvitolohiya ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 37-44
Author(s):  
Olena Lyubovets

The article describes the concept of «value», «value orientations»; a generalized classification of values is given. Based on the results of national opinion polls, the priority basic values of Ukrainian youth have been identified. The article shows their attitude to the current political and socio-economic situation in the country, the acute problems of society. Besides, the level of their public activity is outlined. The role of education as one of the dominant factors in the formation of universal and civic values of the individual ir revealed. Moreover, the article shows the problem of education of students as a component of the educational process in higher education institutions. Furthermore, it sheds the light on the decisive role of social and humanitarian disciplines in education of active civil position of students. Finally, the main teaching methods that contribute to the moral, ethical and civic development of students are identified. It is concluded that on the basis of knowledge acquired in higher education and acquired competencies, a young person develops his values of the world, a conscious perception of the processes of state formation, an adequate attitude to current socio- political events.


eLife ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linton M Traub

Besides AP-2 and clathrin triskelia, clathrin coat inception depends on a group of early-arriving proteins including Fcho1/2 and Eps15/R. Using genome-edited cells, we described the role of the unstructured Fcho linker in stable AP-2 membrane deposition. Here, expanding this strategy in combination with a new set of llama nanobodies against EPS15 shows an FCHO1/2–EPS15/R partnership plays a decisive role in coat initiation. A nanobody containing an Asn-Pro-Phe peptide within the complementarity-determining region 3 loop is a function-blocking pseudoligand for tandem EPS15/R EH domains. Yet, in living cells, EH domains gathered at clathrin-coated structures are poorly accessible, indicating residence by endogenous NPF-bearing partners. Forcibly sequestering cytosolic EPS15 in genome-edited cells with nanobodies tethered to early endosomes or mitochondria changes the subcellular location and availability of EPS15. This combined approach has strong effects on clathrin coat structure and function by dictating the stability of AP-2 assemblies at the plasma membrane.


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