The current state of using learning analytics to measure and support K-12 student engagement: A scoping review

Student engagement has been identified as a critical construct for understanding and predicting educational success. However, research has shown that it can be hard to align data-driven insights of engagement with observed and self-reported levels of engagement. Given the emergence and increasing application of learning analytics (LA) within K-12 education, further research is needed to understand how engagement is being conceptualized and measured within LA research. This scoping review identifies and synthesizes literature published between 2011-2022, focused on LA and student engagement in K-12 contexts, and indexed in five international databases. 27 articles and conference papers from 13 different countries were included for review. We found that most of the research was undertaken in middle school years within STEM subjects. The results show that there is a wide discrepancy in researchers' understanding and operationalization of engagement and little evidence to suggest that LA improves learning outcomes and support. However, the potential to do so remains strong. Guidance is provided for future LA engagement research to better align with these goals

Impact Of The Future Project On Student Motivation: Meeting Basic Psychological Needs To Improve Academic Dispositions

Student motivation in high school is a long-standing topic of interest considering the widespread problem of low academic engagement and relatively high dropout rates, which are predicted by low attendance. This prevailing problem is indicative that previous interventions have not been sufficient. One hypothesis is that interventions may be too targeted towards outcomes and neglect what motivation researchers in psychology have learned over decades. Motivation researchers, specifically self-determination theorists, have identified three underlying psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness) that are critical to fostering intrinsic motivation. This study hypothesizes that these needs are not being met in the school setting even when academic interventions are present. This study will explore how a new intervention, The Future Project, that is not directly academic in nature but as a Positive Youth Development program may proactively foster these psychological needs and could be more effective in enhancing high school student academic motivation. The programming includes four facets: building one-on-one relationships between a student and mentor, exposing students to skill building courses, supporting students individually to design projects that they are passionate about and that have an impact on the world in some way, and it develops an intimate team of students who serve as collaborative leaders in their schools to support each other and their peers in self-reflection or personal project development. This is a mixed methods phenomenological study using secondary data analysis of student and alumni interviews, principal and teacher surveys, and teacher interviews. All data was collected by The Future Project in Spring 2016 to explore the student experience when participating in The Future Project programming and to gather feedback from students, teachers, and administrators. This study will use this data to explore how participating in The Future Project may contribute to fulfilling students’ needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness; and how that influences student academic motivation and engagement, which have previously been determined as precursors to academic achievement; and to illustrate the mechanisms that connect autonomy, competence, and relatedness with academic motivation and engagement

The Blind Spots: The importance of measuring non-academic indicators that are critical to producing positive outcomes specifically for youth who are living in adverse conditions

The study explores the impact of measuring non-academic indicators to establish and promote positive secondary and post-secondary outcomes, specifically for youth living in adverse conditions. In pursuit of this objective, the sixth grade population attending a traditional public middle school in Wilmington, Delaware completed the Search Institute’s Developmental Asset Profile (DAP), a self-report survey designed to understand the strengths and supports young people have in their lives. The assessment of the secondary data was the result of already existing programming and evaluation initiatives by the United Way of Delaware. The analyses show that participants perceptions of self, family, and community indirectly influence future decision making, academic and personal development while advocating for intentional alignment across their core contexts for the continued promotion of positive outcomes. Implications for relevant community stakeholders including recommendations for future research and practice are discussed

IMPACT: The Journal of the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning. Volume 6, Issue 1, Winter 2017

IMPACT: The Journal of the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching & Learning is a peer-reviewed, biannual online journal that publishes scholarly and creative non-fiction essays about the theory, practice and assessment of interdisciplinary education. Impact is produced by the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching & Learning at the College of General Studies, Boston University (www.bu.edu/cgs/citl)

2019 NYAR (Savannah) Program

Conference Progra

Teaching Artists Research Project

There have been remarkable advances in arts education, both in and out of schools, over the last fifteen years, despite a difficult policy environment. Teaching artists, the hybrid professionals that link the arts to education and community life, are the creative resource behind much of this innovation. Their best efforts are redefining the roles the arts play in public education. Their work is central to arts organizations' strategies for civic engagement and diverse audiences. Excellent research has shown that arts education is instrumental to the social, emotional, and cognitive development of thousands of young people. But little is known about teaching artists. The Teaching Artists Research Project (TARP) deepens our understanding of world of teaching artists through studies in twelve communities, and it will inform policy designed to make their work sustainable, more effective, and more meaningful. A dozen study sites were selected where funding was available to support exploration of the local conditions and dynamics in arts education: Boston, Seattle, Providence, and eight California communities (San Francisco/Alameda County, Los Angeles, San Diego, Bakersfield, San Bernardino, Santa Cruz, Salinas, and Humboldt County). A thorough literature review was conducted, and NORC conducted stakeholder meetings and focus groups, identified key issues and began designing a multi-methods study that would include surveys for both artists and program managers as well as in-depth interviews of stakeholders -- teaching artists, program managers, school officials, classroom teachers and arts specialists, principals, funders, and arts educators in a wide variety of venues.There are no professional associations and no accreditation for teaching artists, so a great deal of time was spent building a sample of teaching artists and program managers in every study site. The survey instrument was developed and tested, and then fielded on-line in the study sites sequentially, beginning in Chicago, and ending with the southern California sites. To assure a reliable response rate, online surveys were supplemented by a telephone survey. Lists of potential key informants were accumulated for each site, and interviewers were recruited, hired, and trained in each site. Most of the interviewers were teaching artists themselves, and many had significant field knowledge and familiarity with the landscape of arts education in their community. The surveys collected data on some fundamental questions:Who are teaching artists?Where do they work? Under what terms and conditions?What sort of education have they had?How are they hired and what qualifications do employers look for?How much do they make?How much experience do they have?What drew them to the field? What pushes them out?What are their goals?Qualitative interviews with a subsample of survey respondents and key informants delved deeply into the dynamics and policies that drive arts education, the curricula and pedagogy teaching artists bring to the work, and personal histories of some artists. The interviews gathered more detailed information on the local character of teaching artist communities, in-depth descriptions and narratives of teaching artists' experiences, and followed up on items or issues that arose in preliminary analysis of the quantitative survey data. These conversations illuminated the work teaching artists believe is their best and identified the kinds of structural and organizational supports that enable work at the highest level. The interview process explored key areas with the artists, such as how to best develop their capacities, understand the dynamics between their artistic and educational practice, and how to keep them engaged in the field. Another critical topic explored during these conversations was how higher education can make a more meaningful and strategic contribution toward preparing young artists to work in the field. The TARP report includes serious reflection on the conditions and policies that have affected arts education in schools, particularly over the last thirty years, a period of intense school reform efforts and consistent erosion of arts education for students. The report includes new and important qualitative data about teaching artists, documenting their educational background, economic status, the conditions in which they work, and their goals as artists and educators. It also includes new insights about how learning in the arts is associated with learning in general, illuminating findings from other studies that have suggested a powerful connection between arts education and positive outcomes for students in a wide range of domains

The effectiveness of the hearbuilder software program on the acquisition of phonological awareness skills for African-American children in prekindergarten: implications for educational leaders, 2017

This mixed methods study was designed to examine the effectiveness of the HearBuilder Phonological Awareness software program on the acquisition of phonological awareness in African-American preschool children. Additionally, the researcher investigated the relationship between the independent variables of student engagement, student motivation, student behavior, and student attendance on the dependent variable of acquisition of phonological awareness as measured by the gain score. Descriptive statistical analyses were used to describe, summarize, and interpret the data collected. After examining the aforesaid variables, the researcher found there were no significant relationships between the gain scores and any of the independent variables. But there were useful significant relationships between the independent variables of student motivation, student engagement, and student attendance. The researcher also examined the differences between the pretest and posttest for the experimental and control groups combined. A significant difference was found between these two tests suggesting that the HearBuilder Phonological Awareness software program was effective in improving students performance in the experimental group. There was no significant difference, however, between pre and posttest based on gender. So while one can see the effectiveness in the HearBuilder Phonological Awareness program based on the difference between the pre and posttest, the reason does not lie in the variables selected as independent variables, but in other variables not included in the study such as instructional strategies. Finally, the researcher investigated the difference in the performance of the experimental group and the control group as measured by the mean gain scores. Key results revealed that the experimental group scored higher than the control group on the HearBuilder Phonological Awareness posttest as measured by the gain score. Early Childhood administrators can utilize this investigation as a vehicle to advance their instructional leadership skills and teachers can improve their pedagogical practices. KEY TERMS: Effectiveness of phonological awareness; HearBuilder Software Program; mixed methods; prekindergarten; student motivation; student engagement; student attendance, Early Childhood Education, Education, Educational Leadershi

2017 NYAR (Savannah) Program

N/

Improving School Improvement

PREFACEIn opening this volume, you might be thinking:Is another book on school improvement really needed?Clearly our answer is yes. Our analyses of prevailing school improvement legislation, planning, and literature indicates fundamental deficiencies, especially with respect to enhancing equity of opportunity and closing the achievement gap.Here is what our work uniquely brings to policy and planning tables:(1) An expanded framework for school improvement – We highlight that moving from a two- to a three-component policy and practice framework is essential for closing the opportunity and achievement gaps. (That is, expanding from focusing primarily on instruction and management/government concerns by establishing a third primary component to improve how schools address barriers to learning and teaching.)(2) An emphasis on integrating a deep understanding of motivation – We underscore that concerns about engagement, management of behavior, school climate, equity of opportunity, and student outcomes require an up-to-date grasp of motivation and especially intrinsic motivation.(3) Clarification of the nature and scope of personalized teaching – We define personalization as the process of matching learner motivation and capabilities and stress that it is the learner's perception that determines whether the match is a good one.(4) A reframing of remediation and special education – We formulate these processes as personalized special assistance that is applied in and out of classrooms and practiced in a sequential and hierarchical manner.(5) A prototype for transforming student and learning supports – We provide a framework for a unified, comprehensive, and equitable system designed to address barriers to learning and teaching and re-engage disconnected students and families.(6) A reworking of the leadership structure for whole school improvement --We outline how the operational infrastructure can and must be realigned in keeping with a three component school improvement framework.(7) A systemic approach to enhancing school-community collaboration – We delineate a leadership role for schools in outreaching to communities in order to work on shared concerns through a formal collaborative operational infrastructure that enables weaving together resources to advance the work.(8) An expanded framework for school accountability – We reframe school accountability to ensure a balanced approach that accounts for a shift to a three component school improvement policy.(9) Guidance for substantive, scalable, and sustainable systemic changes –We frame mechanisms and discuss lessons learned related to facilitating fundamental systemic changes and replicating and sustaining them across a district.The frameworks and practices presented are based on our many years of work in schools and from efforts to enhance school-community collaboration. We incorporate insights from various theories and the large body of relevant research and from lessons learned and shared by many school leaders and staff who strive everyday to do their best for children.Our emphasis on new directions in no way is meant to demean current efforts. We know that the demands placed on those working in schools go well beyond what anyone should be asked to do. Given the current working conditions in many schools, our intent is to help make the hard work generate better results. To this end, we highlight new directions and systemic pathways for improving school outcomes.Some of what we propose is difficult to accomplish. Hopefully, the fact that there are schools, districts, and state agencies already trailblazing the way will engender a sense of hope and encouragement to those committed to innovation.It will be obvious that our work owes much to many. We are especially grateful to those who are pioneering major systemic changes across the country. These leaders and so many in the field have generously offered their insights and wisdom. And, of course, we are indebted to hundreds of scholars whose research and writing is a shared treasure. As always, we take this opportunity to thank Perry Nelson and the host of graduate and undergraduate students at UCLA who contribute so much to our work each day, and to the many young people and their families who continue to teach us all.Respectfully submitted for your consideration,Howard Adelman & Linda Taylo

Bridging the In-and-Out of School Divide: Lessons for Supporting Learning in Educational Makerspaces

Makerspaces and the practice known as “making” (creating physical and digital projects through often interdisciplinary, hands-on practices) have sparked interest in the world of educational policy, research, and practice as an opportunity for improving youths’ motivation to engage with: science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), social-emotional learning, creativity, equitable learning, and more. The full extent of making’s potential as an education practice is not yet known but continues to be explored both in and out of schools. Through three successive studies, I explore the learning taking place in both in-and-out of school environments and discuss the lessons learned in both settings for understanding and improving educational maker practice across contexts. The first study consists of a gap analysis of prior research literature related to educational making for youth across contexts to inform measurement of learning in schools and research. I identified the gaps between what learning has been measured in research, by what means, for which populations, and categorized learning outcomes based on practices the literature has indicated are critical to the making process. This sparked the need for a deep investigation into relatively unexplored practices that support learning to make and learning through making. The second study expanded upon learning outcomes identified in the gap analysis in an out-of-school setting, a makerspace based on a grant for STEM making in a transitional housing facility for young adults who have left foster care without the support of family, college, and often employment. Through legitimate peripheral participation with a local maker community of practice, the makerspace supported the creative, entrepreneurial, and even therapeutic needs of the youths. The third study captures learning outcomes in a school makerspace. Students in a high school physics class worked as a team to compete locally in a drone-designing challenge and developed documentation practices to share ideas, learn from their mistakes, and get feedback. Taken together, these studies suggest that like youth, practices transform as they inhabit new contexts; a learning practice used in schools offers different affordances to the same practice out of schools. To measure and support learning in educational makerspaces or other learning contexts, one must understand both the educational practice and the larger organizational and cultural context that shapes it