scholarly journals Using Hierarchical Linear Modelling to Examine Factors Predicting English Language Students’ Reading Achievement

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 ◽  
pp. 24
Author(s):  
Karen Fung ◽  
Samira ElAtia
Keyword(s):  
Language Arts ◽  
English Language ◽  
Model Identification ◽  
Reading Performance ◽  
School Level ◽  
Reading Scores ◽  
Hierarchical Linear Modelling ◽  
Linear Modelling ◽  
Full Picture ◽  
Using Data

Using Hierarchical Linear Modelling (HLM), this study aimed to identify factors such as ESL/ELL/EAL status that would predict students’ reading performance in an English language arts exam taken across Canada. Using data from the 2007 administration of the Pan-Canadian Assessment Program (PCAP) along with the accompanying surveys for students and the schools, a two-level (student level and school level) HLM model was analyzed for predictive relationships. Results showed that, at the student level, predictors such as students’ participation in class discussions, language spoken at home, parents’ encouragement to read at a young age, and the number of individual projects requiring students to work outside of class contributed significantly to the students’ reading scores. However, none of the school-level predictors were found to be significant. All the significant predictors contributed to only 12% of the variability in this HLM model. Identification of more signi cant variables is needed in order to have a full picture of students’ reading competence and achievement. S’appuyant sur la modélisation linéaire hiérarchique (MLH), ce e étude porte sur l’identi cation des facteurs, comme le statut ALS/ELL/ALA, qui prédiraient les acquis en lecture d’élèves lors d’un examen d’anglais administré partout au Canada. Les auteures ont employé des données du Programme pancanadien d’évaluation (PPCE), y compris les sondages connexes pour les élèves et les écoles, a n d’analyser les liens prédictifs d’un modèle HLM à deux niveaux (élève et école). Les résultats indiquent que les prédicteurs tels la participation des élèves aux dis- cussions en classe, la langue parlée à la maison, la mesure dans laquelle les parents encouragent leurs enfants à lire dès un jeune âge et le nombre de projets individuels exigeant du travail à l’extérieur de la salle de classe, contribuaient de façon significative aux résultats des élèves en lecture. Toutefois, aucun des prédicteurs au niveau de l’école ne s’est révélé comme étant significatif. Dans leur ensemble, les prédicteurs significatifs n’ont contribué qu’à 12% de la variabilité du modèle MLH. A n d’arriver à une vue globale du rendement et de la compétence en lecture des élèves, il faudra identifier plus de variables signi catifs. 

scholarly journals Fissures in standards formulation: The role of neoconservative and neoliberal discourses in justifying standards development in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

2007 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha Caughlan ◽  
Richard Beach
Keyword(s):  
Language Arts ◽  
English Language Arts ◽  
English Language ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
School Level ◽  
Content Standards ◽  
High School Level ◽  
Writing Standards ◽  
Standards Development

An analysis of English/language arts standards development in Wisconsin and Minnesota in the late 1990s and early 2000s shows a process of compromise between neoliberal and neoconservative factions involved in promoting and writing standards, with the voices of educators conspicuously absent. Interpretive and critical discourse analyses of versions of English/language arts standards at the high school level and of public documents related to standards promotion reveal initial conflicts between neoconservative and neoliberal discourses, which over time were integrated in final standards documents. The content standards finally released for use in guiding curriculum in each state were bland and incoherent documents that reflected neither a deep knowledge of the field nor an acknowledgement of what is likely to engage young learners. The study suggests the need for looking more critically at standards as political documents, and a greater consideration of educators' expertise in the process of their future development and revision.

scholarly journals Teacher characteristics and student performance: An analysis using hierarchical linear modelling

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Armstrong
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Teacher Characteristics ◽  
Subject Knowledge ◽  
Hierarchical Linear Modelling ◽  
Linear Modelling ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Teacher Age ◽  
The Relationship

This research makes use of hierarchical linear modelling to investigate which teacher characteristics are significantly associated with student performance. Using data from the SACMEQ III study of 2007, an interesting and potentially important finding is that younger teachers are better able to improve the mean mathematics performance of their students. Furthermore, younger teachers themselves perform better on subject tests than do their older counterparts. Identical models are run for Sub Saharan countries bordering on South Africa, as well for Kenya and the strong relationship between teacher age and student performance is not observed. Similarly, the model is run for South Africa using data from SACMEQ II (conducted in 2002) and the relationship between teacher age and student performance is also not observed. It must be noted that South African teachers were not tested in SACMEQ II so it was not possible to observe differences in subject knowledge amongst teachers in different cohorts and it was not possible to control for teachers’ level of subject knowledge when observing the relationship between teacher age and student performance. Changes in teacher education n in the late 1990s and early 2000s may explain the differences in the performance of younger teachers relative to their older counterparts observed in the later dataset.

scholarly journals Teacher characteristics and student performance: An analysis using hierarchical linear modelling

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Armstrong
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Teacher Characteristics ◽  
Subject Knowledge ◽  
Hierarchical Linear Modelling ◽  
Linear Modelling ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Teacher Age ◽  
The Relationship

This research makes use of hierarchical linear modelling to investigate which teacher characteristics are significantly associated with student performance. Using data from the SACMEQ III study of 2007, an interesting and potentially important finding is that younger teachers are better able to improve the mean mathematics performance of their students. Furthermore, younger teachers themselves perform better on subject tests than do their older counterparts. Identical models are run for Sub Saharan countries bordering on South Africa, as well for Kenya and the strong relationship between teacher age and student performance is not observed. Similarly, the model is run for South Africa using data from SACMEQ II (conducted in 2002) and the relationship between teacher age and student performance is also not observed. It must be noted that South African teachers were not tested in SACMEQ II so it was not possible to observe differences in subject knowledge amongst teachers in different cohorts and it was not possible to control for teachers’ level of subject knowledge when observing the relationship between teacher age and student performance. Changes in teacher education in the late 1990s and early 2000s may explain the differences in the performance of younger teachers relative to their older counterparts observed in the later dataset.

scholarly journals Who Are America’s Teachers of the Year?

AERA Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 233285842110255
Author(s):  
Christopher Redding ◽  
Ted Myers
Keyword(s):  
Elementary Education ◽  
Social Studies ◽  
Language Arts ◽  
English Language ◽  
The United States ◽  
School Level ◽  
High School Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Teachers Of The Year ◽  
Teacher Recognition

The Teacher of the Year (TOY) program is the longest-standing teacher recognition program in the United States. The purpose of this study is to describe the characteristics of state and national TOY awardees and the schools in which they teach. To accomplish this aim, we develop a new data set including the characteristics of all TOY awardees and their schools from 1988 to 2019. Using descriptive and regression analysis, we find that TOY awardees are most likely to teach at the high school level, while the most common subjects taught were elementary education, English language arts, natural sciences, and, for National TOY awardees, social studies. They also have a greater probability of being selected from schools with a smaller fraction of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, and higher student enrollments. We discuss how these differences may impede the TOY program’s efforts to amplify teachers’ voice in education policymaking.

scholarly journals School District Reform in Newark: Within- and Between-School Changes in Achievement Growth

ILR Review ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
pp. 323-354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Chin ◽  
Thomas J. Kane ◽  
Whitney Kozakowski ◽  
Beth E. Schueler ◽  
Douglas O. Staiger
Keyword(s):  
School District ◽  
Language Arts ◽  
English Language ◽  
Value Added ◽  
School District Reform ◽  
School Year ◽  
A Value ◽  
Achievement Growth ◽  
Value Added Model ◽  
Using Data

In the 2011–12 school year, the Newark Public School district (NPS) launched a set of educational reforms supported by a gift from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan. Using data from 2008–09 through 2015–16, the authors evaluate the change in Newark students’ achievement growth relative to similar students and schools elsewhere in New Jersey. They measure achievement growth using a “value-added” model, controlling for prior achievement, demographics, and peer characteristics. By the fifth year of reform, Newark saw statistically significant gains in English language arts (ELA) achievement growth and no significant change in math achievement growth. Perhaps because of the disruptive nature of the reforms, growth declined initially before rebounding in later years. Much of the improvement was attributed to shifting enrollment from lower- to higher-growth district and charter schools.

scholarly journals How Changes in Entry Requirements Alter the Teacher Workforce and Affect Student Achievement

2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 176-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald Boyd ◽  
Pamela Grossman ◽  
Hamilton Lankford ◽  
Susanna Loeb ◽  
James Wyckoff
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Student Achievement ◽  
Language Arts ◽  
English Language ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
High Poverty ◽  
Entry Requirements ◽  
Teacher Workforce ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Improving Student Achievement

We are in the midst of what amounts to a national experiment in how best to attract, prepare, and retain teachers, particularly for high-poverty urban schools. Using data on students and teachers in grades 3–8, this study assesses the effects of pathways into teaching in New York City on the teacher workforce and on student achievement. We ask whether teachers who enter through new routes, with reduced coursework prior to teaching, are more or less effective at improving student achievement. When compared to teachers who completed a university-based teacher education program, teachers with reduced coursework prior to entry often provide smaller initial gains in both mathematics and English language arts. Most differences disappear as the cohort matures, and many of the differences are not large in magnitude, typically 2 to 5 percent of a standard deviation. The variation in effectiveness within pathways is far greater than the average differences between pathways.

Not Where You Start, but How Much You Grow: An Addendum to the Coleman Report

2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (9) ◽  
pp. 678-685
Author(s):  
Allison C. Atteberry ◽  
Andrew J. McEachin
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Educational Opportunity ◽  
School Level ◽  
Learning Rates ◽  
Achievement Outcomes ◽  
Coleman Report ◽  
Key Dimensions ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Dominant Narratives

The Equality of Educational Opportunity Study (1966)—the Coleman Report—lodged a key takeaway in the minds of educators, researchers, and parents: Schools do not strongly shape students’ achievement outcomes. This finding has been influential to the field; however, Coleman himself suggested that—had longitudinal data been available to him—decomposing the variance in students’ growth rates rather than their levels of achievement would have provided a clearer insight into school effects. Inspired by an intriguing finding from an earlier study conducted in 1988 by Bryk and Raudenbush, we take up Coleman’s suggestion using data provided by NWEA, which has administered over 200 million vertically scaled assessments across all 50 states since 2008. We replicated Bryk and Raudenbush’s surprising finding that most of the variation in student learning rates lies between rather than within schools. For students moving from Grades 1 through 5, we found 75% (math) to 80% (English language arts) of the variance in achievement rates is at the school level. We find similar results in preliminary analyses of data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Class 1998-99 (ECLS-K:99). These results are intriguing because they call into question one of the dominant narratives about the extent to which schools shape students’ achievement; however, more research is needed. Our goal is to invite other scholars to conduct similar analyses in other data contexts. We delineate four key dimensions along which results need to be further probed, first and foremost with an eye toward the role of test score scaling practices, which may be of central importance.

Computer Science Trends and Trade-offs in California High Schools

2021 ◽  
pp. 0013161X2110548
Author(s):  
Paul Bruno ◽  
Colleen M. Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Language Arts ◽  
Computer Science ◽  
Test Scores ◽  
English Language ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
School Level ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Staff Level

Purpose: We aim to better understand the curricular, staffing, and achievement trade-offs entailed by expansions of high-school computer science (CS) for students, schools, and school leaders. Methods: We use descriptive, correlational, and quasi-experimental methods to analyze statewide longitudinal course-, school-, and staff-level data from California, where CS course taking has expanded rapidly. Findings: We find that these rapid CS course expansions have not come at the expense of CS teachers’ observable qualifications (namely certification, education, or experience). Within-school course taking patterns over time suggest that CS enrollment growth has come at the expense of social studies, English/language arts (ELA), and arts courses, as well as from other miscellaneous electives. However, we find no evidence that increased enrollment of students in CS courses at a school has a significant effect on students’ math or ELA test scores. Implications: Flexible authorization requirements for CS teachers appear to have allowed school leaders to staff new CS courses with teachers whose observable qualifications are strong, though we do not observe teachers’ CS teaching skill. Increasing CS participation is unlikely to noticeably improve school-level student test scores, but administrators also do not need to be overly concerned that test scores will suffer. However, school leaders and policymakers should think carefully about what courses new CS courses will replace and whether such replacements are worthwhile.

scholarly journals Trends in Teacher Monitoring Methods across Curriculum and Didaktik Traditions: Evidence from three PISA waves

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 3-24
Author(s):  
Armend Tahirsylaj
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Monitoring Methods ◽  
Previous Survey ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Quantitative Research Methods ◽  
Hierarchical Linear Modelling ◽  
Linear Modelling ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Mathematics And Science

The main objectives of this study were to examine trends in teacher monitoring methods (TMMs) among a representative set of 12 curriculum and didaktik countries, using data from PISA 2009, 2012, and 2015, and the association of TMMs with students’ reading, mathematics, and science performance accordingly. Curriculum and didaktik education traditions frame the study theoretically, while quantitative research methods are used, consisting of a two-sample difference of proportion test and hierarchical linear modelling. The findings suggest that across the PISA waves, the control over teachers is growing across all countries and in all three subject domains and four TMMs. However, the proportion of students in schools where any of the TMMs are used is higher and more statistically significant for curriculum than for didaktik countries. Student tests, teacher peer review, and principal observation are much more common TMMs than external inspector observation across all countries. Nevertheless, the use of external inspector observation is very low in several didaktik countries, and in the case of Finland almost inexistent. Results for Sweden seem to be over-reported as in previous survey work it was found that teacher self-assessment is the most common TMM, however, teacher self-assessment is not a variable included in the PISA survey. The results from within-country hierarchical linear models (HLMs) of associations of TMMs with students’ reading (2009), mathematics (2012), and science (2015) performance in PISA show mixed, and at times relatively large, effects from country to country and across three PISA waves, and interestingly the associations had diminished by PISA 2015. Adding a more diverse set of questions to PISA contextual questionnaires is warranted for results to be more meaningful and representative across more countries.

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