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

Author(s):  
Paula Armstrong

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.

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Armstrong

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.


2012 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sam Ngwenya ◽  
Mahlomolo Khumalo

The study investigates the relationship between CEO compensation and performance of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in South Africa, using data for the period 2009 to 2011. The results indicated that there exist no positive relationship between CEO compensation and SOEs performance as measured by return on assets. The results also indicated a positive relationship between CEO compensation (base salary) and the size of SOEs as measured by total revenue and number of employees. The results suggest that board members of SOEs in South Africa should hold CEOs accountable for the performance of SOEs, and should not pay huge salaries and bonuses to non performing CEOs.


2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 869-880 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huo-Tsan Chang ◽  
Chia-Yi Feng ◽  
Chi-Lih Shyu

We adopted the perspectives of organizational support and self-regulation to examine how counseling and individual management, respectively, moderate career competencies to predict career success. Hierarchical linear modelling was conducted with 604 employees and 217 managers of 26 manufacturing companies in Taiwan. As we predicted, our results showed that career competencies were positively related to career success. Also, career counseling and individual career management were found to have a moderating effect on the relationship between career competencies and subjective career success. Implications and limitations of the findings are discussed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 223-249
Author(s):  
Oluwasheyi Oladipo

 The wave of globalization is having far-reaching implications for the economic wellbeing of citizens in all regions and among all income groups. Using data from 1994q1 to 2012q4, the paper investigates the relationship between globalization and income inequality in South Africa. We find no evidence that globalization might have deepened income inequality in South Africa, particularly in the provinces. Rather, the paper found strong evidence indicating that income distribution is improving, and has become more so, in provinces that have stronger links to the world economy. Strengthening those links appears to result in reductions in inequality. 


Author(s):  
William C. Smith ◽  
Jessica Holloway

Abstract Teachers, as frontline providers of education, are increasingly targets of accountability reforms. Such reforms often narrowly define ‘teacher quality’ around performative terms. Past research suggests holding teachers to account for student performance measures (i.e. test scores) damages their job satisfaction, including increasing stress and burnout. This article examines whether the relationship between test-based accountability and teacher satisfaction can be, in part, explained by the emphasis of student test scores in teacher appraisals. Although historically used for formative purposes, recent research demonstrates that across a large range of countries, nearly all teachers work in a system where their appraisal is based, in part, on students’ test scores. Using data from the 2013 Teaching and Learning International Survey, we pool data from 33 countries to evaluate the direct and indirect effect of school testing culture on teacher satisfaction. Results suggest that there is a direct relationship between the intensity of the testing culture and the satisfaction of teachers, as well as an indirect relationship with test score emphasis in teacher appraisals suppressing potential positive effects of appraisals on teacher satisfaction.


2016 ◽  
Vol 32 ◽  
pp. 24
Author(s):  
Karen Fung ◽  
Samira ElAtia

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. 


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Federico ◽  
Agnieszka Golec ◽  
Tomasz Baran

Religion is frequently a key component of national identity. This is notably true in Poland, where national identity is strongly tied to traditional Catholic values. In the present study, we examine the relationship between religious commitment (indicated by self-identification as religious and frequency of practice) and two kinds of national identity in Poland: national collective narcissism, an exaggerated belief in an in-group’s greatness that is insufficiently recognized by others; and national ingroup satisfaction, a belief in the value of the national ingroup. We predicted that although both forms of national identity would be linked to religious commitment, Polish collective narcissism would have an especially strong relationship with religiosity, given that populist rhetoric in Poland relies on grievance-oriented nationalist appeals that emphasize threats to Poland’s traditional Catholic character. In cross-sectional and dynamic analyses using data from a six-wave panel study of Polish adults, we find support for these predictions, though we do not find clear evidence that within-person changes in collective narcissism and ingroup satisfaction are linked with within-person changes in religiosity.


Author(s):  
Kai Matsui ◽  
◽  
Yoichi Kageyama ◽  
Hiroshi Yokoyama

Lake Hachiroko, Japan, has many water quality issues, evident from phenomena such as green algae blooms. Understanding the details of the surface water quality of the lake, and the effect of seasons on the quality, is important. In our previous studies, we conducted fuzzy regression analysis of remote sensing data and direct measurements of water quality. The results showed that estimation maps of water quality were well created, using only five data points of the water quality parameters. To obtain maps that are in good agreement with the experimental data, remote sensing data and water quality values should be acquired simultaneously. However, performing such simultaneous observations can affect the preparation of the water quality estimation maps. We overcame this obstacle by using fuzzy c-means clustering (FCM), and considered the effect of specific disturbances and uncertainties on the remote sensing data. Furthermore, FCM using only remote sensing data creates estimation maps in which relative water surface conditions are classified. Therefore, determining the relationship between FCM results and water quality facilitates the creation of low-cost, high-frequency water quality estimation maps. Our results indicated that FCM was particularly effective in determining the presence of suspended solids (SS) during water quality analysis. However, the relationship between FCM results and water quality has not been determined in detail. In this study, we analyzed the water quality conditions of Lake Hachiroko with FCM using the data collected by the Advanced Space-borne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer on Terra and, the Operational Land Imager on Landsat-8. In addition, FCM results were compared with the maps created by fuzzy regression analysis and the actual conditions of water pollution. The results indicated that (i) the maps created using FCM are effective in determining the water surface conditions, (ii) the FCM maps using data obtained during August and September have a strong relationship with biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and SS, and (iii) the FCM maps using data obtained during May and June have a strong relationship with chemical oxygen demand (COD), SS, and total nitrogen (T-N).


Author(s):  
Armend Tahirsylaj

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.


Author(s):  
Brynne D. Ovalle ◽  
Rahul Chakraborty

This article has two purposes: (a) to examine the relationship between intercultural power relations and the widespread practice of accent discrimination and (b) to underscore the ramifications of accent discrimination both for the individual and for global society as a whole. First, authors review social theory regarding language and group identity construction, and then go on to integrate more current studies linking accent bias to sociocultural variables. Authors discuss three examples of intercultural accent discrimination in order to illustrate how this link manifests itself in the broader context of international relations (i.e., how accent discrimination is generated in situations of unequal power) and, using a review of current research, assess the consequences of accent discrimination for the individual. Finally, the article highlights the impact that linguistic discrimination is having on linguistic diversity globally, partially using data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and partially by offering a potential context for interpreting the emergence of practices that seek to reduce or modify speaker accents.


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