Early and late adopter effects between schools in a one-to-one computer initiative

Although there are numerous studies on the development of teachers’ professional digital competence, only a few have studied the intermediate levels of the education system and its impact over time. A structural merger of three Norwegian municipalities allowed for a natural field experiment involving two school districts. In the present study, we explored potential differences in early and late adopter effects on teachers from school districts. Survey data were collected to assess teacher-level perceptions of organisational support and access to collaborative professional communities. Teachers also rated themselves according to the Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework for digital competence and answered questions to assess their level of student-centred teaching beliefs. The data were analysed using Structural Equation Model (SEM) to explore associations between study variables and patterns of differences between school districts. The results indicate that municipality- or school district-level initiatives have influenced the behaviour of school management and in the teacher community, and possibly result in a more student-centred teaching style in the classroom. The present paper adds new insights into how teachers and schools are influenced by the intermediate levels of the education system. The findings from our study may thus be of interest to researchers exploring the professional development of digital competence for teachers and schools. Moreover, as we highlight how school districts approach and support schools in the implementation of one-to-one coverage of digital devices in schools, we bring updated knowledge to this research field.publishedVersio

Resistive Switching and Current Conduction Mechanisms in Hexagonal Boron Nitride Threshold Memristors with Nickel Electrodes

The two-dimensional (2D) insulating material hexagonal boron nitride (h BN) has attracted much attention as the active medium in memristive devices due to its favorable physical properties, among others, a wide bandgap that enables a large switching window. Metal filament formation is frequently suggested for h-BN devices as the resistive switching (RS) mechanism, usually supported by highly specialized methods like conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM) or transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Here, we investigate the switching of multilayer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) threshold memristors with two nickel (Ni) electrodes through their current conduction mechanisms. Both the high and the low resistance states are analyzed through temperature-dependent current-voltage measurements. We propose the formation and retraction of nickel filaments along boron defects in the h-BN film as the resistive switching mechanism. We corroborate our electrical data with TEM analyses to establish temperature-dependent current-voltage measurements as a valuable tool for the analysis of resistive switching phenomena in memristors made of 2D materials. Our memristors exhibit a wide and tunable current operation range and low stand-by currents, in line with the state of the art in h-BN-based threshold switches, a low cycle-to-cycle variability of 5%, and a large On/Off ratio of 10${^7}$.Comment: 39 page

Profiling and Researching TIMSS by Introducing a Content Lens on Eighth-grade Science (PARTICLES)

This doctoral thesis scrutinizes the content dimension of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) to explore: “What content-specific profiles can we obtain about the students’ strengths and weaknesses, and teachers’ instruction, by disaggregating the test into its items and responses?” and “Why is the relationship between science achievement and teachers’ content coverage seemingly so weak in TIMSS?” Four papers apply advanced analyses of the students’ and teachers’ response-level data in TIMSS 2011 and 2015. Findings suggest variation in the Norwegian pupils’ achievement across science topics compared with the international averages (Paper 1), and the degree of their teachers’ coverage of the topics in class across grades (Paper 2), which can inform educators’ decision-making. Results from instructional sensitivity analyses in TIMSS 2015 in papers 3 and 4 suggest that a finer-grained analysis is required to pick up on instruction when the assessments are remote from the instruction. The indicators for content coverage require further attention as they might not be optimal for their purpose

Stianalyser til NIFU-rapport 2020:2. Utrykt vedlegg til rapporten Fra 16 til 30. Om utdanning, jobb og inntekt for 9341 unge fra Østlandet, 14 år etter at de gikk ut av tiende klasse i 2002

Dette arbeidsnotatet presenterer detaljerte stianalyser til studien hvis hovedfunn er formidlet i rapporten Fra 16 til 30 (Markussen, Daus, og Hovdhaugen, 2020). Stianalyser hjelper oss å se hvordan variabler sammen forklarer komplekse sammenhenger mellom bakenforliggende forhold og utdanning, posisjon i arbeidslivet eller inntekt. Hovedfunnene fra stianalysene i dette arbeidsnotatet samsvarer med funnene i rapporten, men går dypere inn på hvordan bakenforliggende forhold som kjønn, foreldres utdanning og andre forhold formidles gjennom mellomliggende forhold, som for eksempel karaktersnittet fra grunnskolen, på utfallsvariabelen

The sensitivity of TIMSS country rankings in science achievement to differences in opportunity to learn at classroom level

Background Fair comparisons of educational systems in large-scale assessments can be made only if the differences in curricula have little impact on the outcomes. This study investigated the sensitivity of science achievement rankings to varying degrees of curriculum implementation in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Methods Country-specific teacher-reported curriculum implementation profiles across the TIMSS science domains were charted including their within-country variability across the classrooms for 33 participating countries of TIMSS 2015. A sensitivity test compared the original ranking to TIMSS curriculum implementation scenarios (a least-possible, a most-possible, and more realistic country-specific median implementation). Results In contrast to expectations, no support was found for a positive relationship between opportunity to learn and science achievement at the between-country level or the within-country level, with only minor exceptions. The sensitivity analysis under different curriculum implementation scenarios also suggests little impact on the rank order of the countries. Conclusions Plausible explanations for this null finding are addressed; attention and research efforts should focus on improving the quality of curriculum implementation indicators in large-scale assessments

Læringsspill er populært, men utbyttet usikkert

Med digitalisering av skolen, har det blitt økt tilgang på digitale ressurser, herunder digitale læringsspill. Dagens elever er vokst opp med spill og underholdning, og ønsker slike elementer også i læringsverktøy. Et viktig spørsmål er om læringsspill øker elevens motivasjon, og gir det samme, eller bedre, læringsutbytte som mer tradisjonell undervisning? NIFU har gjennom et randomisert, kontrollert eksperiment (RCT) studert utbyttet av å bruke et simuleringsspill i valgfaget markedsføring og ledelse i videregående. Her gir vi innblikk i de foreløpige funnene

Satisfaction is insufficient: Insights from a randomized, controlled trial of a marketing simulation game

Background: The development and promotion of educational games are still outpacing knowledge of these games' effects, raising calls for evidence of benefits and challenges. Studies suggest that students and teachers like games, but the payoff of the investment in terms of increased motivation and achievement remains unclear. Objectives: This study investigates the pure effect of a marketing simulation game on motivation, perceived learning and achievement, above and beyond regular student-active instruction. Methods: We applied a randomized, controlled experiment in a marketing course in upper-secondary schools (Nclasses = 22; Nstudents = 433) comparing a collaborative–competitive marketing simulation game with regular, case-based, student-active instruction on three groups of outcome measures: motivation, perceived ability, and achievement. Additionally, students and teachers provided quantitative and qualitative feedback on game experiences. Results and Conclusions: We showcase the importance of a robust study design with valid compound instruments. Moreover, investigations of the game implementation and experiences reveal insights about intervention timing, differential negative consequences by gender and need for reflection opportunities. We find no clear evidence of positive or negative effects of the game, despite students' and teachers' satisfaction. Implications: Beyond the effect evaluation, we offer recommendations to researchers and developers of educational games about scaffolding, timing and teacher competence building

Exploring content knowledge: Country profile of science strengths and weaknesses in TIMSS. Possible implications for educational professionals and science research.

This study offers curriculum developers, teachers and science education researchers a fine-grained profile on strengths and weaknesses in specific science domains and topics. The study involved a representative sample of 3844 Norwegian pupils in grade 8. Their responses on 216 TIMSS items in 18 topics from 4 science domains were modelled in a hierarchical item response model. An internal comparison identified topics that were relatively harder or easier compared to other topics for the Norwegian pupils, and an external comparison identified topics that were relatively harder or easier for the Norwegian pupils compared with the average of TIMSS participating countries. Interpretation of the profile necessitates contextualisation; hence, these strengths and weaknesses as well as their plausible explanations and possible implications are discussed from the perspectives of curriculum development, teacher training and science education research

Fra 16 til 30: Om utdanning, jobb og inntekt for 9341 unge fra Østlandet, 14 år etter at de gikk ut av tiende klasse i 2002

Vi har fulgt nesten 10 000 personer på Østlandet fra de gikk ut av tiende klasse som 16- åringer våren 2002, gjennom videregående og annen utdanning og over i arbeidslivet til de var 30 år gamle i 2016. Vi har studert kompetanseoppnåelse fra videregående opplæring og høyere utdanning, samt posisjon i arbeidslivet og inntekt ved 30 års alder