Plenaries
Plenaries The national strategy seems to insist that every lesson follows the 3 part format of starter, main activity, plenary. As an AST in tend to network with colleagues in other schools where the view for specialist ICT teachers is that plenaries are often inappropriate in the context of ICT lessons where pupils are working on ongoing coursework tasks [e.g building and documenting a database for GCSE coursework over a series of lessons for 2 months]. Plenaries seem to be effective in lesson
Test Anxiety
Test Anxiety I'm researching into the effects of test anxiety on children in key stage one and two SAT's results. I have found research suggesting that the effect lowers children's test scores but haven't been able to find any research that suggests that test anxiety can help children to perform in their SAT's. I was wondering if you could help?
Mathematics Relevance
I am researching into the views that children hold with regards to the relevance of mathematics outside the classroom. My starting point was a journal article by BSRLM 23(2) 'Children's experience of Mathematics' which I found very helpful, and outlined children's views from not being useful at all to being able to see the relevance outside school. I would like to explore this area further with an emphasis on primary school children, especially Key Stage 2. Can you point me in the right directio
Speed reading
Speed reading For my dissertation I want to find out the effectiveness of speed reading and photoreading on reading attainments in children. I have seen these things advertised widely in the US and wondered if their purported benefits of increased reading speeds, higher retention and comprehension are at all justified. So little seems to be known of the technique in UK. I wondered if there has been any research other than what the vendors claim.
Emotional development Grouping
I am carrying out research for my literature review into the impact of grouping/setting on children's emotional and social development.(KS1/2) The information I have found mainly relates to the impact of ability groups on academic achievement, and one further reference which mentions the impact they have on children's self-esteem (The Social World of Children's Learning; Pollard, 1996). I have also found some general information on the role of the school in the child's social and emotional devel
1.4 Law, skills and learning outcomes This unit has a number of learning outcomes. In relation to a course of study, a learning outcome is simply something which you should be able to do (and to show that you can do) at the end of studying a particular unit. The learning outcomes are concerned with ability to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of company law, and also ability to demonstrate a range of skills, including use of IT, research and problem-solving. In addition to being listed at the beginning of the unit, th
14-19 Education and Training: A Commentary by the Teaching and Learning Research Programme May 2006
This commentary is the product of a major Economic and Social Research Council funded project within the United Kingdom. It is the fourth in a series of TLRP commentaries and it aims to set out a vision for the future development of teaching and learning between now and 2020. The scope of the study encompasses issues across post-compulsory, school, HE, voluntary and work based contexts and as such provides material relevant to all 14-19 teachers, trainers and policy makers. The commentary draws
What Works in Parenting Support? A Review of the International Evidence
This is a review, completed in 2004, of the international evidence regarding the effectiveness of parenting support programmes, carried out by the Policy Research Unit on behalf of the DfES.
Introduction This unit will introduce you to the law making process in Scotland. It is drawn from the Open University course W150 An introduction to law in contemporary Scotland. The Scottish legal system and many aspects of the law in Scotland are different from those in England and Wales. Like the law of England and Wales, Scots law today represents centuries of development and growth. Its evolution has been influenced by many factors, social and economic, the effects of war and religious change,
The impact of different modes of assessment on achievement and progress in the learning and skills s
This is a very thorough and comprehensive study into the impact of various assessment modes on achievement and progress in the learning and skills sector. Commissioned to conduct the investigation by the Learning and Skills Research Centre, City and Guilds and the University for Industry, the project team had access to a wide range of institutions in the sector in order to compare and contrast the assessment experiences of learners and to ascertain which assessment regimes work best in which con
Evaluation of Increased Flexibility for 14 to 16 Year Olds Programme: The Second Year
The resource is an evaluation report carried out by the National Foundation for Educational Research on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills into the second year of the Increased Flexibility Programme (IFP) for 14 to 16 Year Olds. Given the wider availability of vocational and work related learning options for 14-16 year olds since the relaxation of National Curriculum requirements at Key Stage 4, the research offers a valuable insight into the implications of this for young people,
A study of the transition from the Foundation Stage to Key Stage 1
The focus of the report is the change that occurs when children move from the Foundation Stage to Key Stage 1. This resource is presented by the National Foundation for Education Research (NFER) and is relevant for early years’ teachers, teacher education students, tutors and families.
Social software and learning. An Opening Education report from Futurelab
The paper is one in a series of publications from Futurelab with the generic title of “Opening Education”. The series as a whole is designed to complement their existing resources of research-based literature reviews and practical guidance materials. These papers are designed specifically to provoke debate and challenge thinking by bringing together examples of educational practice and research and draw on the fields of creative arts, media and technical innovation.
Practicum’s (Teaching Experience) contribution to students’ learning to teach
Paper presented at the British Educational Research Association Annual Conference 2006. This paper reports on early findings of a long-term research project being carried out by the practicum (professional experience) team in the Faculty of Education (Epsom campus) at The University of Auckland, New Zealand.
Making teaching fit: embodiment, gender and performance in Beginning Teachers’ working lives
This is a paper presented at the British Educational Research Association Annual Conference 2006. The research was intended to explore “gendered social realities negotiated by Beginning Teachers in the constitution of their new professional identities”.
An evaluation of performance of schools before and after moving into new buildings or significantly
This is a document published by Estyn, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate for Education and Training in Wales. It reports the findings of a research study which documents the changes in performance grades obtained by a sample of schools in statutory inspections during the period 2003-2005 which had moved to new buildings or undergone major refurbishment
Can listening to background music improve children’s behaviour and performance in mathematics?
This is a paper presented at the British Educational Research Association Conference, University of Warwick, 11-14 September 1997. The resource is a summary of two empirical studies designed to explore the effects of background music on children’s behaviour and their learning of mathematics.
Parental involvement in the development of children's reading skill: a five-year longitudinal study
This is a research digest from the DfES Research Informed Practice Site (TRIPS). The research took place in Canada and involved 168 children and their parents. It followed the children’s progress in reading from the age of four until age nine years and examined both their home literacy experiences and their performance in reading as measured by standard school tests.
Steiner Schools in England
This comprehensive report of a DfES commissioned research project into Steiner schools in England provides a systematic review of literature on Steiner education, case studies of good practice observed in Steiner schools and recommendations for ways in which Steiner schools and mainstream education could learn from each other.
The European Educational Research Journal
The European Educational Research Journal (EERJ) is a ‘a peer-refereed international journal devoted to Europeanization in educational research'. Articles from the EERJ are freely available online once they have been published for eighteen months. More recent articles are freely available as abstracts only.
