Pam Hanley

Evaluation of professional development: deploying a process-focused model

This evaluation used a change transition model to explore the processes of development of a three‐phase professional programme devised by two teams of researchers to support teachers’ expertise in six domains of science teaching. The full programme operated over two years. Interviews with developers at the end of each phase (21 interviews) and with teachers at the end of phases two and three (11 interviews) formed the main data set. The four features of the change transition model—trigger, vision, conversion, maintenance—were used as a framework for analysis of the qualitative data. Four themes emerged as contributing to the success of the process of development of the programme: establishing a shared vision of the goals of the programme and its outcomes; maintaining flexibility in implementing the phases and details of the programme; negotiating common understanding with participants; and ensuring fruitful collaboration in planning and implementation. The demands of attending to all of these features should not be underestimated in any successful developmental process. The evaluation therefore provides evidence for additional guidance in future collaborative professional development.

Children's anthropomorphic and anthropocentric ideas about micro-organisms

Different views exist about whether anthropomorphic ideas assist or hinder learning in biology. This paper discusses the anthropomorphic and anthropocentric ideas children have about micro-organisms, and whether they affect their understanding. The research was carried out in primary and secondary schools in the South of England and involved 414 children aged 7,11 and 14 years. Three different research techniques were used to elicit their ideas. Anthropomorphic and anthropocentric ideas about micro-organisms are apparent in responses from all age groups. Anthropomorphic ideas seem to help children to explain their understanding of some aspects of micro-organisms but the imbalance in childrens anthropocentric views of micro-organisms appears to prohibit them considering other aspects of micro-organisms; for example, the importance of their role in decomposition and cycling of matter, or their beneficial technological applications. The focus on the danger micro-organisms are thought to pose to human health creates a hostile view of micro-organisms and this may inhibit future learning.

The Inter-relationship of Science and Religion: A typology of engagement

This study explores whether the religious background of students affects their opinions about and attitudes to engaging with scientific explanations of the origins of the universe and of life. The study took place in four English secondary schools representing three different contexts (Christian faith-based; non-faith with majority Muslim catchment; and non-faith, mixed catchment). It comprised questionnaires and focus groups with over 200 students aged 14–16, supplemented by teacher interviews. The analysis approach was informed by grounded theory and resulted in the development of an engagement typology, which has been set in the context of the cross-cultural border crossing literature. It divides students into categories depending on both the nature and amount of engagement they were prepared to have with the relationship between science and religion. The model takes into account where students sit on four dimensions. These assess whether a students preferred knowledge base is belief-based or fact-based; their tolerance of uncertainty (do they have a need for resolution?); their open mindedness (are they unquestioning or inquiring?); and whether they conceptualise science and religion as being in conflict or harmony. Many Muslim students resisted engagement because of conflicting religious beliefs. Teachers did not always appreciate the extent to which this topic troubled some students who needed help to accommodate clashes between science and their religious beliefs. It is suggested that increased appreciation of the complexity represented by their students can guide a teacher towards an appropriate approach when covering potentially sensitive topics such as the theory of evolution.

Success for All in England: Results From the Third Year of a National Evaluation

This article reports the third-year findings of a longitudinal evaluation in England of Success for All (SFA), a comprehensive literacy program. Eighteen SFA schools across England and 18 control schools, matched on prior achievement and demographics, were included in this quasi-experimental study. The results of hierarchical linear modeling analysis reveal a statistically significant positive school-level effect for SFA schools compared with control schools on standardized reading measures of word-level and decoding skills, and there were directionally positive but nonsignificant school-level effects on measures of comprehension and fluency. Practical and policy implications of these findings are discussed, particularly as they relate to recent English government policies encouraging schools to implement research-proven approaches.

Reassessing RCTs as the ‘gold standard’: synergy not separatism in evaluation designs

ABSTRACT Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are increasingly used to evaluate educational interventions in the UK. However, RCTs remain controversial for some elements of the research community. This paper argues that the widespread use of the term ‘gold standard’ to describe RCTs is problematic, as it implies that other research methods are inferior. The usefulness of RCTs can be greatly enhanced when used in conjunction with implementation-specific measures (e.g. observation tools, attitude/engagement surveys and interviews). The proposal is advanced through case studies of two evaluations. One relates to the development of science subject leader skills and expertise at primary school level and the other to co-operative learning of primary maths. Both evaluations randomised schools to the intervention or the business-as-usual control, and compared impact using subject knowledge tests. Integral to each study was a process evaluation which looked at evidence from classroom practice along with feedback from the teachers and pupils themselves. We contend that this enabled much more holistic and richly interpretative pieces of research. The paper concludes that privilege for particular paradigms should be set aside when designing effective evaluations of educational interventions, and that it is insufficient to ask ‘what works?’ without also asking ‘why?’, ‘where?’ and ‘how?’.