A cross-national mixed-method study of reality pedagogy

This mixed-methods cross-national study investigated the effectiveness of reality pedagogy (an approach in which teachers become part of students’ activities, practices and rituals) in terms of changes in student perceptions of their learning environment and attitudes towards science. A questionnaire was administered to 142 students in grades 8–10 in the Bronx, New York City and Dresden, Germany. The questionnaire combines learning environment scales from the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey and the What Is Happening In this Class? Questionnaire with attitude scales from the Test of Science-Related Attitudes. Student interviews were used to support questionnaire findings. Quantitative data analyses revealed that reality pedagogy had a greater impact on students in the Bronx than in Dresden, with qualitative data clarifying differences in how reality pedagogy was enacted in each geographic area. Overall, our findings add to the body of evidence concerning the effectiveness of reality pedagogy as an approach to teaching and learning science across a variety of contexts. © 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrech

Using Student-Teachers’ Reports of Self-Efficacy to Evaluate an Early Childhood Science Course

The purpose of this study was to evaluate teaching effectiveness in an elective science course, in the Early Childhood Education Department of Athens University in Greece. For this, a sequential mixed research design was applied to investigate freshmen beliefs about the effectiveness of their future teaching in kindergarten. An enhancement and a worsening student beliefs groups were identified based on their changing beliefs. In the first group, students were more effective in self-modeling of teaching and perceived the classroom environment in a more positive light than their fellows. Both groups asserted the need for more teaching activities. ©, © National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators

A typology of chemistry classroom environments: Exploring the relationships between 10th grade students' perceptions, attitudes and gender

The present study was the first in Greece in which educational effectiveness theory constituted a knowledge base for investigating the impact of chemistry classroom environment in 10 Grade students' enjoyment of class. An interpretive heuristic schema was developed and utilised in order to incorporate two factors of teacher behaviour at classroom level, namely, 'content coverage' and 'cognitive teaching processes', with the patterns of a typology of classroom environments. The latter was drawn from data collected in Attica (a region in Greece) using a new and valid instrument, the How Chemistry Class is Working, while the Enjoyment of Chemistry Lessons scale was used to measure students' attitudes. A two-step cluster analysis revealed four patterns of the typology that were adaptable to the heuristic schema. The relationship between the patterns and students' gender, as well the variation in the level of students' enjoyment among the patterns, were explored. The traditional chemistry classroom environments were found to prevail and to be less enjoyable for the students, especially for the girls. It was found also that students enjoy chemistry lessons more when their goals are taken into account and they have an active role in learning process. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

Development, Validation, and Use of a Greek-Language Questionnaire for Assessing Learning Environments in Grade 10 Chemistry Classes

This study describes the development and validation of a Greek-language instrument that can be used to assess grade 10 students' perceptions of their chemistry classroom environment as a means of showing differences between chemistry learning environments in Greece (Attica) and Cyprus. The development of the instrument was based on available learning environment questionnaires. The questionnaire was administered to 1,394 students from 49 chemistry classes in Attica, and the resulting data were analyzed to explore the reliability and the validity of the new instrument. The validated questionnaire was administered to 225 students from 15 classes in urban areas of Cyprus. The data analyses supported the questionnaire's internal consistency, discriminant validity, and ability to differentiate between classrooms. Effect sizes and independent samples t test analyses revealed differences between the two samples. Cypriot students viewed their chemistry classroom environment more favorably than did the Attica students. A possible cause for this difference could be the knowledge-centered aspect of the grade 10 chemistry curriculum in Greece compared to the corresponding tool-instrumental knowledge curriculum in Cyprus. © 2009 National Science Council, Taiwan

Validity and use of the What Is Happening In this Class? (WIHIC) questionnaire in university business statistics classrooms

Considerable past classroom learning environment research has focused on the primary and secondary levels of education and the subject areas of science and mathematics. The current study is distinctive in its focus on university business statistics learning environments. For the first time, we validated and applied the widely-used What Is Happening In this Class? (WIHIC) questionnaires among tertiary statistics students. With a sample of 375 students from 12 university statistics classes, we furnished evidence to support the WIHIC’s factor structure, internal consistency reliability, predictive validity (in terms of associations with two types of statistics anxiety) and discriminant validity (in terms of differentiating between three ethnic groups). Limitations, contributions and suggestions for future research are discussed