Measuring differentiated instruction in the Netherlands and South Korea:Factor structure equivalence, correlates, and complexity level

Differentiated instruction is considered to be an important teaching quality domain to address the needs of individual students in daily classroom practices. However, little is known about whether differentiated instruction is empirically distinguishable from other teaching quality domains in different national contexts. Additionally, little is known about how the complex skill of differentiated instruction compares with other teaching quality domains across national contexts. To gain empirical insight in differentiated instruction and other related teaching quality domains, cross-cultural comparisons provide valuable insights. In this study, teacher classroom practices of two high-performing educational systems, The Netherlands and South Korea, were observed focusing on differentiated instruction and other related teaching quality domains using an existing observation instrument. Variable-centred and person-centred approaches were applied to analyze the data. The study provides evidence that differentiated instruction can be viewed as a distinct domain of teaching quality in both national contexts, while at the same time being related to other teaching domains. In both countries, differentiated instruction was the most difficult domain of teaching quality. However, differential relationships between teaching quality domains were visible across teacher profiles and across countries

Observed teaching behaviour in secondary education across six countries:Measurement invariance and indication of cross-national variations

Effective teaching is a key factor in educational effectiveness and improvement. To facilitate the knowledge exchange regarding effective teaching in secondary education internationally, there has been a growing interest in using classroom observation measures. However, little is known regarding the comparability of observation measures across various national contexts (measurement invariance). Consequently, comparing effective teaching behaviour across contexts is compromised by issues of construct and measurement equivalence. In the present study, we investigated measurement invariance of the International Comparative Analysis of Learning and Teaching (ICALT) for measuring teaching behaviour across various national contexts including the Netherlands, South Korea, South Africa, Indonesia, Hong Kong-China, and Pakistan. Results showed that ICALT indicates full strict invariance in four out of the six countries, which provides a possibility to compare teaching behaviour in the Netherlands, South Korea, South Africa, and Indonesia. South Korea indicated the highest quality of teaching behaviour, while Indonesia indicated the lowest

Measuring teaching quality and student engagement in South Korea and The Netherlands

Six observation scales for measuring the skills of teachers and 1 scale for measuring student engagement, assessed in South Korea and The Netherlands, are sufficiently reliable and offer sufficient predictive value for student engagement. A multigroup confirmatory factor analysis shows that the factor loadings and intercepts of the scales are the same, within acceptable boundaries, in both countries. Therefore, we can compare the average scores of teachers in both countries in a reliable and valid way. The 289 Dutch teachers score significantly better on “creating a safe and stimulating learning climate” and “intensive and activating teaching” and almost significantly on “efficient classroom management”. We find no significant differences in “clear and structured instruction”. The 375 South Korean teachers perform significantly better than the Dutch teachers on “teaching learning strategies” and almost significantly on “differentiating instruction”. Furthermore, we find better student engagement in South Korea

Implications for ID practice of Instructional Designers' Cultural Identities

Are there social and political purposes for design that are culturally based? A growing body of research is concerned with the design of culturally-appropriate learning resources and environments, but the emphasis of this panel is on the instructional designer as the agent of the design. Colloquially put, if we design for ourselves, we should understand the sociocultural influences on us and how they inform our practices. We should also develop respect for, and learn from, how various global cultures address similar design problems differently. This panel includes instructional design scholars and practitioners from a range of geopolitical regions, who will share culturally-based narratives and metaphors of ID, and invite participants to do the same. (Authors' abstract

Measuring teaching skill of South Korean teachers in secondary education:Detecting a teacher's potential zone of proximal development using the Rasch model

Many observation instruments are in use to make the skills of teachers visible. These tools are used for assessment, for guidance and coaching, and for policy-oriented research into the quality of education. Depending on the purpose of use of an observation instrument, we not only need more observations about the same teacher, but the observation instrument must also meet higher psychometric requirements. Observation instruments only used to assess sample characteristics, such as the mean and dispersion, require less stringent psychometric requirements than observation instruments that are used to assess individuals. For assessing sample characteristics, it is also not necessary to do more than one observation with each respondent. Observation instruments used for individual assessments that lead to high stake decisions should meet the highest psychometric requirements possible. We can slightly mitigate the psychometric norms attached to an observation tool that is only used for guidance and coaching on the condition that the observed teacher explicitly informed that the observed lesson was representative and that this lesson offered sufficient opportunities to demonstrate all the skills the teacher has. Nevertheless, there are also additional requirements that must be met by observation instruments that are used for guidance and coaching. For good guidance and coaching, it is usually not very useful to tell an observed teacher only what went right or wrong. Teachers need concrete instructions to be able to improve. Many things that have not gone very well are often (and sometimes far) out of the reach of the teacher being observed. Coaching skills that are beyond the reach of the observed person will lead to disappointment rather than to the desired effect. The important thing in good guidance and coaching is to ensure that the observed teacher is going to take that very step, that is within his reach, but that he has not just set. Then, of course continue with the next steps, leading to incremental progress. For this, we need to have an insight into the successive difficulty of the different skills of teachers. In the past, we gained some experience with the use of the Rasch model to gain an insight into the successive level of difficulty in the actions of Dutch teachers working in elementary education. These studies are all done with the International Comparative Analysis of Learning and Teaching (ICALT) observation instrument. In this chapter, we are trying to make a next step by using the Rasch model for detecting the zone of proximal development of the observed teachers. Another new element in this study is the following: Until now, the ICALT observation instrument has been used mainly in (the culture of) European schools. In this chapter, we focus on Asian secondary education, as it takes shape in South Korea.</p

Measuring teaching skill of South Korean teachers in secondary education:Detecting a teacher's potential zone of proximal development using the Rasch model

Many observation instruments are in use to make the skills of teachers visible. These tools are used for assessment, for guidance and coaching, and for policy-oriented research into the quality of education. Depending on the purpose of use of an observation instrument, we not only need more observations about the same teacher, but the observation instrument must also meet higher psychometric requirements. Observation instruments only used to assess sample characteristics, such as the mean and dispersion, require less stringent psychometric requirements than observation instruments that are used to assess individuals. For assessing sample characteristics, it is also not necessary to do more than one observation with each respondent. Observation instruments used for individual assessments that lead to high stake decisions should meet the highest psychometric requirements possible. We can slightly mitigate the psychometric norms attached to an observation tool that is only used for guidance and coaching on the condition that the observed teacher explicitly informed that the observed lesson was representative and that this lesson offered sufficient opportunities to demonstrate all the skills the teacher has. Nevertheless, there are also additional requirements that must be met by observation instruments that are used for guidance and coaching. For good guidance and coaching, it is usually not very useful to tell an observed teacher only what went right or wrong. Teachers need concrete instructions to be able to improve. Many things that have not gone very well are often (and sometimes far) out of the reach of the teacher being observed. Coaching skills that are beyond the reach of the observed person will lead to disappointment rather than to the desired effect. The important thing in good guidance and coaching is to ensure that the observed teacher is going to take that very step, that is within his reach, but that he has not just set. Then, of course continue with the next steps, leading to incremental progress. For this, we need to have an insight into the successive difficulty of the different skills of teachers. In the past, we gained some experience with the use of the Rasch model to gain an insight into the successive level of difficulty in the actions of Dutch teachers working in elementary education. These studies are all done with the International Comparative Analysis of Learning and Teaching (ICALT) observation instrument. In this chapter, we are trying to make a next step by using the Rasch model for detecting the zone of proximal development of the observed teachers. Another new element in this study is the following: Until now, the ICALT observation instrument has been used mainly in (the culture of) European schools. In this chapter, we focus on Asian secondary education, as it takes shape in South Korea.</p

Utilization of Thermophilic Aerobic Oxidation and Electrocoagulation to Improve Fertilizer Quality from Mixed Manure Influent

Thermophilic aeration and electrochemical reactions are well-established methods for wastewater treatment to reduce metallic content, organic and inorganic matter, turbidity, coloration, and nutrient levels. In this study, thermophilic aerobic oxidation (TAO) and electrocoagulation (EC) were implemented together to improve the quality of liquid fertilizer by reducing the nutrient load and toxicity of swine manure. The influent in this study was prepared by mixing anaerobic digestate and liquid swine manure at a 1:9 ratio and treating it for 3 days at 50&ndash;60 &deg;C in a field-scale TAO system. The TAO effluent was then processed in an EC reactor for 180 min with a 30 V electric supply through two sets of iron and aluminum hybrid electrodes. The combined TAO and EC processes led to a germination index of 133% using the final efflux. The high retention of important nutrients such as total nitrogen and potassium, combined with the 100% reduction in heavy metals, over 60% reduction in trace minerals, and 89% reduction in pollutants in the final product, helped to achieve a higher germination index. Overall, the combination of TAO and EC was demonstrated to be an effective technique for enhancing the quality of liquid fertilizer derived from swine manure