Tanja Janssen

Writing Experiment Manuals in Science Education: The Impact of Writing, Genre, and Audience.

In this study, Grade 9 students wrote experiment manuals for their peers describing a simple physics investigation to explore whether air takes space. Peers executed these manuals and their processes were videotaped. In several experimental conditions, these videotapes were played back for authors. Then they had to rewrite the experiment manual. Three weeks later they wrote a letter‐of‐advice, explaining to peers how to write an experiment manual. Both measures (rewritten manuals and letter‐of‐advice) showed clear effects of the condition in which writers saw real‐time readers’ feedback on their own manual, on understanding of the genre of an experiment manual, as well as on the understanding of physics topics introduced.

Literary Reading Activities of Good and Weak Students: A Think Aloud Study

In this study we examined how good and weak students of literature interact with short literary stories. We focused on differences in the use of cognitive and affective reading activities, and in the extent to which good and weak students adapt their activities to (parts of) the story they are reading.19 Dutch tenth-grade students from 8 classes participated in the study, of whom 10 were known to be good students of literature and 9 were known as weak literature students. Each student read five literary stories under think aloud conditions. The stories were presented segment by segment on a computer screen. Students responses were transcribed, segmented and coded. Analysis of variance was applied to the data to test the diffrences between good and weak students.Results show that good students were more evaluative and emotional in their responses to the stories than were their weaker peers. Moreover, they appeared to be more sensitive to differences between stories than were weak students. Implications for further research and for literature teaching are outlined.RésuméL’objectif de cette recherche est d’analyser l’approche de textes littéraires par les lecteurs débutants, forts et faibles en littérature. Nous nous sommes concentrés sur les différences concernant d’une part l’emploi d’activités cognitives et affectives et d’autre part la mesure où les lecteurs forts et faibles adaptent leurs stratégies au texte, intégral ou partiel, qu ’ils sont en train de lire.19 lycéens néerlandais, tirés de 8 classes, ont participé à la recherche: 10 d’entre eux étant reconnus ‘forts’ en littérature et 9 ‘faibles’. Chaque élève a lu 5 textes littéraires en formulant à haute voix ses pensées, les textes littéraires étant présentés en fragments à l’écran d’ordinateur. Les pensées ainsi formulées ont été transcrites, segmentées et codées. Nous avons évalué les différences entre élèves forts et élèves faibles en appliquant la méthode d’analyse statistique.La recherche a avéré que l’évaluation des textes littéraires faite par les élèves forts a été plus élaborée que celle faites par élèves faibles. Par rapport aux élèves faibles. les élèves forts se sont montrés plus sensibles aux différences entre les textes littéraires. A la fin de l’article nous montrons les conséquences pour des recherches ultérieures et pour l’enseignement littéraire.

The effect of observational learning on students’ performance, processes, and motivation in two creative domains

BACKGROUND Previous research has shown that observation can be effective for learning in various domains, for example, argumentative writing and mathematics. The question in this paper is whether observational learning can also be beneficial when learning to perform creative tasks in visual and verbal arts. AIMS We hypothesized that observation has a positive effect on performance, process, and motivation. We expected similarity in competence between the model and the observer to influence the effectiveness of observation. Sample.  A total of 131 Dutch students (10(th) grade, 15 years old) participated. METHOD Two experiments were carried out (one for visual and one for verbal arts). Participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions; two observational learning conditions and a control condition (learning by practising). The observational learning conditions differed in instructional focus (on the weaker or the more competent model of a pair to be observed). RESULTS We found positive effects of observation on creative products, creative processes, and motivation in the visual domain. In the verbal domain, observation seemed to affect the creative process, but not the other variables. The model similarity hypothesis was not confirmed. CONCLUSIONS Results suggest that observation may foster learning in creative domains, especially in the visual arts.

Self-questioning in the literature classroom: effects on students’ interpretation and appreciation of short stories

In this study we examined the effects of self-questioning on students’ interpretation and appreciation of complex short stories. Two experiments were carried out, in which tenth grade students from different secondary schools participated. In Experiment 1 self-questioning instruction was compared to instructor-made questions about stories. In Experiment 2 two forms of self-questioning instruction were compared: an unguided and a guided form. Literature discussions in peer groups formed a substantial part of all conditions. Results showed that (unguided) self-questioning had a positive effect on students’ appreciation of literary stories, compared to instructor-prepared questions and to guided self-questioning. The results for quality of interpretation were more diffuse. In Experiment 1 effects on students’ story interpretation could not be established. In Experiment 2 a main effect on story interpretation was found for both the guided and unguided form of self-questioning instruction. In addition, students’ reading experience appeared to be important for the effectiveness of the unguided self-questioning condition: avid readers tended to benefit more from this condition than infrequent readers. We conclude that an open literature approach, based on ‘authentic’ student-generated questions in response to short stories, can be beneficial for students’ story interpretation and appreciation.

Process execution of writing and reading: considering text quality, learner and task characteristics

We have conducted systematic reflections, data reanalyses, and incorporated results from several studies to promote discussion, enhance understanding, and build theory. Two models guide our research and analyses: The Descriptive Interactive Process (DIP) model (Fig. 20.1, left), and the Experimental Interactive Process (EIP) model (Fig. 20.1, right). In the DIP model, the main idea is to study processes: What happens during task execution, and how does the process change accordingly? The complexity can be illustrated by adding three components to the model: (a) quality of the output—what variation in processes is related to variation in output quality?; (b) task characteristics—what degree do processes vary with task features (e.g., computer versus pen-and-paper writing)?; and (c) learner characteristics—what degree doesthe way skilled versus unskilled writers adjust their process to tasks vary? In the EIP model (Fig. 20.1, right), the general aim is to detect the effect of interventions on processes: Do different instructional variables affect thetarget process differently? This model can be extended by adding the product variable—Do instructional variables affect the target process differently, and does the product quality vary accordingly?—and learner characteristics: Does the way instructional variables affect the target process vary with regard to learner characteristics? Do good writers profit as much from the experimental instruction as poor writers? Does the experimental instruction change the processes carried out while writing in the same way for good and poor writers?

How do secondary school students write poetry? How creative writing processes relate to final products

Do different creative writing processes lead to qualitatively different writing products? In this study we examined how Dutch speaking secondary school students (16-years old, 11 grade) wrote two poems. Students’ on line writing processes were recorded by a keystroke logging program: Inputlog. Text production, pausing, and several types of revision activities were coded. Each poem was holistically rated for quality by seven judges. Next, we examined the relationship between students’ writing processes and the quality of their final text. We found that relatively much text production in the beginning of the writing process and relatively many high level revisions towards the end of the writing process, influenced the final text positively. Pausing and other types of revision were negatively related to the text quality, at least in some of the phases of the writing process.

Writing Hypertexts: Proposed effects on writing processes and knowledge acquisition

In this paper we propose that hypertext writing at school could have beneficial effects on the acquisition of content knowledge and the acquisition of writing skills compared to linear writing. We view the effects of hypertext writing on writing skills from the perspective of “shared” cognitive activities in writing linear texts and hypertexts. In a pilot study we examined the effects of hypertext writing on writing processes and we related the occurrence of writing processes to the quality of the resulting writing products. We set up this study to identify students’ cognitive activities during hypertext and linear writing. We also tried to determine whether hypertext writing could facilitate linear writing. We focused on the most central, distinctive features of linear and hypertext writing. For linear writing, this is a linearization process: i.e., transforming elements of content into linear text. For hypertext writing, this is a hierarchicalization process: converting a linearly presented line of thought into a hierarchical structure. Students (N=123) from Grades 8 and 9 performed two linearization tasks and two hierarchicalization tasks under think aloud conditions. Results showed that Planning and Analyzing activities contributed to the final quality of hypertexts and linear texts, and that these activities were more often elicited in hypertext tasks than in linear writing. We argue that writing hypertexts stimulates the use of writing activities that are positively related to writing proficiency. Moreover, we speculate that creating hypertext writing conditions and optimizing these conditions for different writer/learner styles might be a theoretical and practical challenge for mother tongue teaching.

Observations of the companion to the pulsar PSR B1718-19. The role of tidal circularisation

We present optical and infrared observations taken with the Very Large Telescope of the eclipsing binary pulsar system PSR B1718-19. The candidate companion of the pulsar, identified earlier in Hubble Space Telescope observations, has been detected in all three bands, R , I , and J . These detections allowed us to derive constraints on temperature, radius, and mass, pointing to a companion that has expanded to a radius between one of a main sequence star and one at the Roche-limit. We focus on the role of tidal circularisation in the system, which will have transformed the initially eccentric orbit expected from formation scenarios into the nearly circular orbit presently observed. Based on simple energy balance arguments, we are able to draw a picture of the companions evolution resulting from the energy deposition in the star due to circularisation. In this picture, our measurement of the companions parameters is consistent with the expected initial eccentricity. However, with the present understanding of tidal dissipation, it remains difficult to account for the short time in which the system was circularised.

Interpretation and literary competences: empirical approaches to key concepts in literary education

Janssen, T., Pieper, I.,& Van de Ven, P.-H. (2012). Interpretation and literary competences. Empirical approaches in key concepts in literary education. Editorial. L1-Educational Studies in Language and Literature, 12, p. 1-3. Corresponding author: Tanja Janssen, Research Institute for Child Development & Education, University of Amsterdam; Nieuwe Prinsengracht 130, 1018 VZ, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, email: T.M.Janssen@uva.nl

Non satis scire : To know is not enough e-assessment of student-teachers' competence as new teachers

In teacher education programmes, text-based portfolios are generally used to assess student-teachers’ competence as new teachers. However, striking discrepancies are known to exist between the competencies reflected in a written portfolio and the competencies observed in actual classroom practice. Multiple assessments should be used to provide a more valid assessment of student-teachers’ competence as new teachers. Technology can support this kind of multiple and flexible ways of assessment. In a Research & Development project, four types of e-assessments were designed, implemented and evaluated in 27 interventions in 13 post-graduated teacher education programs in the Netherlands. Teacher educators reported positive outcomes of the interventions in terms of new procedures, materials and tools. No significant effects were found of the implementation of the four types of e-assessments on the evaluation by either teacher educators or studentteachers. A possible explanation for this absence of effects might be teething problems of the interventions implemented.