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The German school system employs centrally organized performance assessments (some of which are called "VERA") as a way of promoting lesson development. In recent years, several German federal states introduced a computer-based performance testing system which will replace the paper-pencil testing system in the future. Scores from computer-based testing are required to be equivalent to paper-pencil testing scores so that the new testing medium does not lead to disadvantages for students. Therefore, the current study aimed at investigating the size of the mode effect and the moderating impact of students' gender, academic achievement and mainly spoken language in everyday life. In addition, the variance of the mode effect across tasks was investigated. The study was conducted in four German federal states in 2019 using a field experimental design. The test scores of 5140 eighth-graders from 165 schools in the subject German were analysed. The results of multi-level modelling revealed that students' test scores in the computerized version of the VERA test were significantly lower than in the paper-pencil version. Students with a lower academic achievement were more disadvantaged by the VERA computerized test. The results were inconsistent regarding the interactions between testing mode and students' gender and mainly spoken language in everyday life. The variance of the mode effect across tasks was high. Research into different subjects and in other federal states and countries under different testing conditions might yield further evidence about the generalizability of these results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Conference on Theoretical and Computational Algebra 2023 (TCA 2023) took place in Pocinho, Portugal, attracting over 80 researchers from Europe, Australia, Brazil, Canada, and the USA. The conference covered various topics in algebra and automated reasoning, with a significant focus on semigroup theory. As a result, the editors of 'Semigroup Forum' decided to dedicate a special issue to selected papers from TCA 2023. This issue includes 11 papers that underwent a rigorous refereeing process, with additional papers still under review for future publication. The conference also honored Dr. Gracinda M. S. Gomes, a retired professor from the University of Lisbon, who made significant contributions to semigroup theory and fostered collaboration between Portugal and the UK. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Poverty's impact on children's academic outcome is a cause for concern in most urban Asian cities as education is viewed as one of the main channels of social mobility. Few studies examined how poor children's hope could be enhanced through school social support. Objective: This paper examines how children from low-income families' perceived frequencies and importance of social support from teachers and classmates, influence their levels of hope in academic achievement. Method: Utilizing a partially-mixed sequential design—first, with survey data from a larger study on low-income children (n = 513), this paper explores if perceived frequency of social support is associated with level of hope as well as the role of perceived importance in moderating the frequencies of school social support on sense of hope; second, to enrich the child-reported results, two in-depth focus group discussions with elementary school teachers (n = 10) were conducted. Results: Statistical analysis reveals that the frequency of social support from teachers and classmates is associated with the level of hope in low-income children. Furthermore, when teacher's support was rated important by children, there was a positive association between social support and hope. Integrating statistical results and qualitative insights, this paper extends extant literature on social support typologies with a novel category; 'support in providing opportunities for success'. Conclusion: This paper underscores the important role schools play as a source of social support for children. Such social support aids higher hope levels in low-income children which could translate into better academic outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a critical exploration of a reported decline in student achievement in Australia (2000–2020). Declining student achievement is framed as symptomatic of broader dysfunction within the education system. The context of declining student achievement is articulated through a Bourdieusian being critical sociology of education. This is achieved using the concepts of illusio and educationalisation as they intersect with Australian schools, in which classroom teachers are given responsibility for solving social and economic ills. As such, due consideration of the goals and commitments to action in the Melbourne Declaration (Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA, 2008), and the Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration (Education Council, 2019) is provided. Drawing from these formative documents, the 'stakes' that matter are examined highlighting the potential misalignment between equality of opportunity in ameliorating educational disadvantage and the priorities of modern educational discourse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participation in student peer leader roles, roles in which more senior students serve as mentors and educators to their peers, have continued to grow in their application and importance to institutions of higher education around the globe. Using a theoretical approach based in Legitimate Peripheral Participation and drawing from the International Survey of Peer Leaders, our paper explored the role of the quality and quantity of participation in important outcomes of the college experience: leadership development, skill development, and academic success. The results showed that the number of hours per week spent on peer leadership activities and the total number of peer leadership positions contributed to positive quality of engagement and enhanced students' academic outcomes, overall leadership skills, and career readiness. Moreover, findings showed that the quality of engagement moderated the influences of the quantity of participation particularly for measures of academic success. As students develop relationships with faculty, staff, and peers throughout their time in peer leader roles and feel a deepening sense of connection and belonging to the college or university, students in peer leader roles become fuller participants in the academic community and, as a result, develop the knowledge, skills, and ways of doing, thinking, knowing, and being that are critical for student success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early career academics face a rapidly changing higher education sector and too little is known about what helps them flourish in the profession. This paper responds to that gap by reporting research undertaken in a single or intrinsic case study of one Australian university. We invited participation from a full cohort of 1019 academics in one large College. Of those, 41 early career academics or ECAs and 45 more senior academics or MSAs engaged in a 50-question survey. Of those, 18 ECAs and 16 MSAs who had flagged interest then completed an in-depth interview. We learned about: ECAs' work; what they and MSAs think impedes and enables that work; work-life balance; and experiences of mentoring and career development. We also asked for their perspectives on the future. We found remarkable agreement across the two cohorts that mirrors concerns expressed in a growing, internationally significant literature. Members of both cohorts appealed for strengthened organisational and sectoral commitments to caring career pathways and sought more certainty in challenging times. Our findings led us to conclude that academics have high hopes that universities and those in higher education policy settings can address work overload; enhance professional development across all duties; make leaner systems and processes; have more realistic expectations about research; and better value academics' profound commitments to higher education. Those findings accord with other results reported in comparable jurisdictions around the world and add weight to an increasingly compelling case to recentre and refocus on people in university organisational cultures and practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition to university is a time of great change and adjustment. The challenges of university life can lead to numerous negative consequences for the students. Despite the importance of successful transition for both the student and the university, the current body of literature comprises methodological inconsistencies and disparate analytical goals that make it difficult to identify the most salient and effective factors that help predict transition success. This paper presents a systematic review of research linking personal level risk and protective factors to the outcome of academic achievement among students making the transition to university. This is part of a larger review, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) and Synthesis Without Meta-analysis (SWiM) guidelines, preregistered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO, CRD42022330515), searching PsychInfo, Web of Science, and ERIC databases. Records were included if they studied ‘traditional’ first year students transitioning to university and were longitudinal in design and excluded if they looked at specific subgroups of students (e.g. international students). The search yielded 27 articles that were eligible, highlighting a broad range of salient factors ranging from personality traits to procrastination and perfectionism. The findings are discussed in relation to moving the research forward towards an intervention to enhance the probability of successful student transition to university. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper draws attention to empirical work on widening access to understand the silence on race matters in English higher education. This work repurposes a critical race theoretical framework that offers a glimpse of how the issue of unequal access to higher education has been framed in the research field. It is argued here that the framing of widening access reveals a persistent colour-evasiveness that is dominant. The findings show that widening access policy has not benefitted students of colour as they are not accessing higher education with the same kind of success as their white peers. The paper concludes for a call for race-conscious interventions to remedy the continued race inequity in accessing highly rejective institutions based on the evidence gathered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Driven by the focus on standardised assessment and performance-driven accountability, a considerable body of literature has documented differences in students' academic achievement across school sectors, both internationally and in Australia. However, few studies have to date explored the potential mechanisms underlying such differences, particularly through the lens of school climate and student engagement. And despite extensive literature on school climate and student engagement, including their relationships with achievement, the differences in these patterns across school sectors remain under-studied. In this paper, we leverage nationally representative data from a large-scale longitudinal survey in Australia with linked administrative data on student achievement to reveal different patterns of school climate and student engagement across government, Catholic and independent sectors. Employing multivariable regression analyses, we identify unique school climate and student engagement facets that are associated with improved achievement in each of these sectors, offering important pointers for educational policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing students' reading and numeracy skills remain key goals of contemporary schooling. In Australia, the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests have assessed these skills since 2008. Previous research found a significant gender gap in favour of females for the NAPLAN writing test, yet no study has examined whether gender gaps exist for reading and numeracy or their developmental pattern across the school years. Given the educational and public interest in NAPLAN and its considerable costs, it is important to understand what these tests reveal about student outcomes. The paper presents the first investigation of patterns of male and female student achievement on the NAPLAN reading and numeracy tests from 2008 to 2021. It applies the equivalent year level technique to explain the pedagogical significance of NAPLAN achievement and compares the findings with the writing gender gap to present a fuller picture of male and female achievement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this concluding commentary, I embed the articles of the special issue "Transition from school into university mathematics: experiences across educational contexts" into the current landscape of research on secondary–tertiary transition, and discuss the advancement they made related to the synthesis published in 2008 by Gueudet. My aim is to elaborate a new synthesis across the topics of affect and the use of sociocultural perspectives that have framed the work of all contributions. For that, I focus on four major themes. First, I consider the complex relationship between affect and socio-cultural dimensions in the papers, which raises the need for theory networking in further research clarifying mutual roles of the two dimensions. Second, international diversity is only partially expressed in the collection of papers, thus should be a major topic of research in future that would provide a more comprehensive view on the transition from school to university mathematics. I thirdly discuss how the collection of papers deepens our understanding of the complexity and diversity related to the students' experience with the secondary–tertiary transition and its potential impact for teaching. Finally, I propose and justify the need for systematic design and evaluation of interventions targeting a change in students' affect related to the transition. In sum, the wide range of the significant findings in this special issue and their mutual relations add new perspectives to the research on secondary–tertiary transition and evidence a new spectrum of research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over 80,000 children in England were being looked after in Local Authority care in 2020 and a further 40,000 people were defined as 'care leavers'. Although a significant body of research highlights the prevalence of educational low achievement in the care experienced population, official government figures show that around 13% of care experienced pupils progress to higher education by the age of 19. In a climate of 'widening participation' in which universities encourage inclusion and student diversity, this research invited students with a care background to discuss their experiences of settling into university life. Data was collected using in-depth interviews with 42 students from four universities and an online survey completed by 192 students in 29 universities in England and Wales. Findings revealed that although care experienced students overcome significant challenges to progress to higher education, over half considered dropping out. Others reported feeling isolated and inadequately supported, both financially and pastorally, by their institution. This paper uses a lens of resilience to consider the environmental factors that impact upon student transitions, and concludes that universities must act to balance inequalities in order to appropriately welcome and appreciate care leavers for the skills and experience they bring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-cognitive abilities, also termed as Social and Emotional Skills (SSES), are believed to have a profound and far-reaching impact on individuals' growth and development. Previous psychological experiments confirmed that non-cognitive factors could have an impact on education, health and social well-being. The SSES reports by OECD offer insights on multiple facets of non-cognitive information during adolescents' growth, which seeks further understanding of the mechanisms and contextual features influencing the formation and development of students' non-cognitive skills as well as subject learning. Based on the OECD 2019 Suzhou data, this study tested a number of hypotheses concerning social and emotional skills and subject learning achievements, including mathematics, reading literacy and arts. The results confirmed that various social and emotional non-cognitive constructs emerged to be facilitating disciplinary learning, including mathematics, reading literacy and arts achievements. This paper offers some reflections on the integration of non-cognitive skills in designing the education policy guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses a large sample of students from a Dutch university to describe variations in academic performance following a change in the strictness of academic dismissal policies. The research setting includes one moment in which the performance threshold for academic dismissal has been changed, keeping constant other characteristics of the educational system. Using a descriptive approach, we show that after the threshold has been raised the number of credits earned by academically weak students increases. A higher threshold level also brings their study effort forward in time, as evidenced by a decrease in the number of no-shows and an increase in the number of credits earned during regular exams. We also show that some students perceive the minimum performance level as a target level. The evidence suggests that variations in the implementation of academic dismissal policies affect students' tendency to procrastinate, especially among weaker students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corporal punishment (CP) is a widely spread disciplining practice among parents and caregivers globally. Our paper aimed to explore the relationship between the parental attitudes towards CP, expected outcomes of CP, and parenting practices on one hand, with the reported dysfunctions of their children, on the other. Additionally, we aimed to explore the relationship between the use of CP and the reported academic, developmental, and psychological–emotional dysfunctions of their children. The present study involved a nationally representative sample of 1186 parents in Serbia, who had at least one child aged 0–18 years at the moment of interviewing. The parents filled out a series of questionnaires on their attitudes towards CP, expectations of CP outcomes, and their parental practices. Findings indicate that parents that report having a child with dysfunctions have positive attitudes towards CP and expect positive outcomes of CP. These parents also report using more CP as a disciplining method, as well as other harsh disciplining practices. We also identified parental positive expectations of CP, use of physical assault, psychological aggression, neglect as significant predictors of reported child dysfunctions severity. Having all the results in mind, we can assume that children with health-related and school-related issues might be at potential risk of further maltreatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For over a century, since Aboriginal children were permitted to access mainstream Australian schools, there has been a significant gap in academic achievement between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students. Community engagement by schools is recognised as a key factor in Aboriginal student success, but school approaches to community engagement remain inconsistent and driven by deficit thinking. As part of the Aboriginal Voices Project, this paper explores community engagement at six New South Wales (NSW) public school sites and applies Decolonising Race Theory (DRT) as a critical Indigenous lens to interpret and understand the challenges that students, families, and schools face within their relationships. While we find evidence of school–community partnerships that prioritise Indigenous healing, for the schools in this paper, there is a complexity within relationships with community that reflects the interaction between assimilationist positioning of Aboriginal students that often contains positive and negative elements simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our understanding of multiple goals has been advanced through the lines of research that focus on their pursuit of academic achievement goals and of academic and social goals. These prior efforts, however, are not free from conceptual and methodological limitations. To further advance the field, we put this paper together with two purposes in mind. First, we propose a goal complex model as a new approach to studying the coordination, consequences, and social contexts of pursuing multiple goals. In doing so, we highlight the role of academic goals as the means towards pursuing social goals as the end goals. Second, we proffer a model that explains sociocultural influences on the development of social and academic goals as well as goal complexes. To this end, we highlight the role of parents, teachers, and classmates/peers in promoting students' social and academic goals and in facilitating the formation of goal complexes through these key social agents' influences on the students' goal-related beliefs. Conceptual implications and methodological recommendations for future research on students' multiple goals are discussed. Together, the goal complex approach and the sociocultural model we present in this paper provide the field with directions for future research that seeks to better understand students' pursuit of multiple goals as they navigate complex sociocultural demands in their day-to-day tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the intersection of income and race in structuring access to higher education among students that participate in a national high-stakes exam in Brazil. Our objectives are (i) to estimate the probability of students coming from different income strata, racial groups, and performance levels to access higher education and (ii) to decompose income and racial effects into direct (net of educational performance) and indirect effects (through educational performance). Our data comes from a panel of high school graduates tracked between 2012 and 2017 and allow us to describe the following findings. Firstly, the probability of entering higher education is always higher among candidates from higher income strata. Second, there is a convergence in admission probabilities across the performance scale. Third, the admission curve across a performance scale is much steeper among applicants from low-income strata compared to richer students. In all of these results, students self-identified as black, brown, or indigenous (BBI) are less likely to transition to higher education than whites, even though they are in the same income and performance strata. We suggest that students from privileged socioeconomic backgrounds benefit from alternative entry strategies, such as paying tuition at less competitive private colleges. For students from low-income strata, the main alternative for entering higher education is through high academic performance. By decomposing racial effects, we show the cumulative effect of racial stratification; the gap between white and BBI students is both related to higher propensity of transitioning to higher education and higher educational performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximately 6–9% of trainees will have performance issues of variable degrees with 3–5% of trainees struggling to complete their training and requiring additional targeted time or an extension of training. Some even leave the profession. The environment is complex, often chaotic and overstretched, and, now, made more difficult due to the impact of COVID-19 on medical training. Addressing learning and implementing new behaviours is a challenge and important, as there are still 'never events', and medical errors sadly can include wilful neglect and assault. Such traumatic experiences can be a huge drain of resources for faculty, who often feel underprepared to deal with such occurrences. Failure to address them can lead to bitterness and loss of the medical workforce, rarely suicide, huge remedial costs, and legal challenges to educational institutions and employers. The purpose of this paper is to gain an understanding of why trainees struggle and/or fail and to be able to analyse the causes of poor performance; to know how to pick up these issues early and raise them; and to ultimately deal effectively with performance problems to get a good outcome for the trainees, patients, and institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper, while conceptual in nature, is informed by both research and practice. Exploring the "engagement interface" as the site for student engagement (SE), we offer a conceptual contribution in engaging with the Kahu and Nelson (2018) model by bringing in a fuller understanding of SE grounded in the higher education context rather than being uncritically transplanted from a compulsory education context. This involves consideration of the multiple facets of SE as well as the dynamic, shifting and multilocal nature of the construct. The paper then proceeds to enhance the details of the model, grounding them in a finer-grained reading of the literature and relating educational constructs to the model's proposed "mechanisms" in a conceptually substantiated way. This further extends Kahu and Nelson's aim of illuminating the "black box" of SE. Our third contribution is to practice by proposing tactics: informed by the literature, we invite practitioners to consider ways in which they can increase the likelihood of facilitating engagement with, and by, students more constructively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Doctoral students' program non-completion continues to be a worldwide phenomenon. Given the challenges across the globe following the 2020-22 pandemic, we need scholarly and skilled PhD and education (EdD) doctoral program graduates. A place to look for retention improvement is by studying what students learn and how they are taught in their university doctoral programs. One purpose of this case study was to describe how 12 EdD students in a program seminar responded to instruction in research and writing strategies during their first year of a four-year program. The second purpose was to examine student responses to formative assessments and describe and explain ongoing instructional adjustments using a Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) framework within our own faculty community of practice. Analysis of surveys and student work indicated that writing and research strategies were instructive, engaging, and useful in building research and writing foundations. Analysis of multiple formative assessments helped us refine our instructional strategies during the year. Because all students completed the first high stakes program milestone (comprehensive paper) in year two, our findings suggested that the seminar's instructional strategies established a foundation for student success and timely program progress. Using multiple formative assessments over time was critical in strengthening our teaching practice as well. We recommended instructional practices associated with student research and writing skill development as well as student progress and retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surveys with rating scales are often used in higher education research to measure student learning and development, yet testing and reporting on the longitudinal psychometric properties of these instruments is rare. Rasch techniques allow scholars to map item difficulty and individual aptitude on the same linear, continuous scale to compare respondents' development against scale challenge. This paper uses an example from the Interfaith Diversity Experiences and Attitudes Longitudinal Survey (IDEALS) to demonstrate how Rasch modeling can help researchers improve their instruments over time. Results indicate that adding more difficult items, particularly related to behavior, improved scale performance from one time point to another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of web-based biology learning environment in improving academic performance via a meta-analysis. In looking for the studies on web-based biology learning environment, several keyword patterns from the abstracts (e.g., Pattern 1: web-based learning and biology education) were recruited in well-known databases (e.g., ERIC, EBSCO, Springer Link). Finally, 22 papers were apparent for the current meta-analysis examining the effect of web-based biology learning environment on academic performance. All statistical data from the studies were initially inserted into an Excel sheet and then imported into comprehensive meta-analysis (CMA) statistics software to calculate Hedges' g values. The overall effect-size of web-based biology learning environment pointed to a medium effect. Also, it was found that the educational level and type of experimental design, as moderator variables, did not positively affect the students' academic performance along with web-based biology learning environment. In light of the findings, it can be concluded that web-based biology learning environment is somewhat effective at improving the students' academic performance. The current study recommends that further studies should be undertaken to deepen the implementation processes of the studies with extreme values and explore what makes them unique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic performance, a globally understood metric, is utilized worldwide across disparate teaching and learning environments and is regarded as a quantifiable indicator of learning gain. The ability to reliably estimate student's academic performance is important and can assist academic staff to improve the provision of support. However, it is recognized that academic performance estimation is non-trivial and affected by multiple factors, including a student's engagement with learning activities and their social, geographic, and demographic characteristics. This paper investigates the opportunity to develop reliable models for predicting student performance using Artificial Intelligence. Specifically, we propose two-step academic performance prediction using feature weighted support vector machine and artificial neural network (ANN) learning. A feature weighted SVM, where the importance of different features to the outcome is calculated using information gain ratios, is employed to perform coarse-grained binary classification (pass, P 1 , or fail, P 0 ). Subsequently, detailed score levels are divided from D to A+, and ANN learning is employed for fine-grained, multi-class training of the P 1 and P 0 classes separately. The experiments and our subsequent ablation study, which are conducted on the student datasets from two Portuguese secondary schools, have proved the effectiveness of this hybridized method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Socioeconomic status has been a long-time discussed topic due to its impact on children's school paths. However, despite extant research indicating strong relationships between students' socioeconomic status, use of self-regulated learning strategies, and academic achievement, research on interventions addressing these topics is limited. This investigation aimed to examine the effectiveness of a school-based, narrative-based program to promote self-regulated learning strategies and academic performance among fourth-graders from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Twelve classes were randomly assigned to the intervention or control group. The students from low socioeconomic status backgrounds in each group were enrolled in the study. A quasi-experimental study with three measurement moments was conducted. Data were gathered from self-reported questionnaires and an on-task measure. Findings indicate that the program was efficacious in promoting the use of self-regulated learning strategies and academic performance in children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. This research paper discusses both practical implications and future research guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper discusses in part the findings from the first author's master's dissertation exploring the experience of childhood in the context of increased academic expectations in society, with special reference to Kerala, India. The objectives were to understand how academic expectations on children shape their childhoods and to document children's time use and daily lives. A mixed research design was chosen: in-depth interviews were supplemented by a quantitative study on the time allocations of children for different activities. Triangulation of data was done by interviewing three groups of participants: children (n = 10), parents (n = 8), and key informants (n = 3) selected through convenience and purposive sampling. The qualitative data and time-use data are from separate samples. The latter study was conducted on fifth and sixth graders (N = 320) from the Kozhikode district of Kerala. Children's voices indicated an over-emphasis on academic achievement from different quarters: parents, teachers, and peers. This is reflected in their day-to-day conversations, peer cultures, and daily pursuits. Findings from the time-use study supported the qualitative data: routines of children predominantly revolved around academic activities (35% of 24 hours, including time at school), and little time was devoted to physical play (5.67%). Parents' voices corroborated these findings and gave insights into the children's internalization of societal beliefs regarding academic achievement. Inputs from the key informants helped understand the development of the societal beliefs and practices that perpetuate a preoccupation with educational attainment in the community, and the adverse psycho-social impact it has on the children in this context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the need for a more comprehensive framework of excellence in higher education, which goes beyond academic achievement alone, placing emphasis on its integration with personal characteristics, and acknowledging the diversity in the student population. Two research studies were conducted to establish this comprehensive framework. The pilot study aimed to offer a conceptual definition of the excellent university student according to the perceptions of the academic community. The study, which involved 26 teachers and 159 students, was informed by teacher interviews, student essays, and focus group discussions. The established conceptual framework of excellence was based on a subset of essential attributes that could be embodied by a real student. The conceptual framework comprises facets of expertness, proactive learning, and being a good person organised within the dimensions of educational and personal excellence. It is complemented by academic achievement and underpinned by genuine study motivation. Building upon the findings of the pilot study, the main study aimed to develop and implement a systematic procedure for identifying excellent students. The study, which involved 53 teachers and 112 students, was based on a multisource assessment of multiple contextually relevant criteria of excellence. The identification procedure involved three phases: teacher nomination and assessment, academic achievement assessment, and peer assessment. As a result, 10 excellent students were identified who met all the conceptual criteria of excellence. In conclusion, this paper presents a comprehensive conceptual and methodological framework for defining and identifying excellent university students, grounded in both theoretical principles and empirical findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents and discusses an authentic landmark in the history of science, namely H. v. Foerster's Cybernetics of Cybernetics, 1974. This is a book rarely known even by many specialists. This paper argues that von Foerster's book constitutes a unique achievement in the history of science. A thorough presentation is introduced that brings a complete panorama of concepts, problems and approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses register data to study how a particular age reward feature affects admission into two highly competitive study programs: medicine and law. The Norwegian admission system to higher education is centralized, and applicants compete in two quotas: one quota almost entirely based on grade point average from upper secondary education and one quota where students can compete with improved grades and where being older automatically increases the chance of acceptance, by awarding age points. For these study programs, we find that the admission system creates a waiting game, as gaining admission in the second quota is nearly impossible without accumulating a substantial amount of age points. If age predicts completion in higher education, this waiting game might be justified. However, if anything, we find the opposite to be true. Our paper suggests that age should carry less weight in admission decisions and that countries and/or higher education institutions should carefully consider how their admission system affects student incentives and how applicants are selected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A higher proportion of students are privately educated in Australia, compared with many other nations. In this paper, we tested the assumption that private schools offer better quality education than public schools. We examined differences in student achievement on the National Assessment Programme: Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) between public, independent, and catholic schools. Cross-sectional regressions using large samples of students (n = 1583–1810) at Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 showed few sector differences in NAPLAN scores in any domain. No differences were evident after controlling for socioeconomic status and prior NAPLAN achievement. Using longitudinal modelling, we also found no sector differences in the rate of growth for reading and numeracy between Year 3 and Year 9. Results indicate that already higher achieving students are more likely to attend private schools, but private school attendance does not alter academic trajectories, thus undermining conceptions of private schools adding value to student outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper highlights findings from the first phase of an ongoing qualitative Youth Participatory Acton Research (YPAR) study with a group of students with foster care experience at a large public university in the Northeastern United States. The first phase of data collection consisted of a focus group designed and carried out by co-researchers, amongst themselves. Data was analyzed in two ways, by a faculty member and doctoral student, using thematic content analysis, and through a collaborative analytic process with student co-researchers using an adapted version of Carol Gilligan's, "Listening Guide" in which co-researchers created, analyzed and performed "I Poems" from the focus group transcript. Findings from each data analytic process were compared and contrasted; discrepancies amongst themes from each analytic process led to the merging and creation of new modified themes. Findings illuminate the barriers and facilitators to completion of high school, and applying to college for this cohort of students, as well as barriers and facilitators to retention once in college. Additionally, recommendations are made for university professionals to become more affirming of scholars connected to foster care systems. This study is unique in that it is the first known study to engage with college students with foster care experience in a participatory research process that centers their voices, concerns and priorities in both research design and data. Student organizing and action emanating from the PAR approach are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite an expenditure of over $45 billion in the last decade aimed at meeting the Closing the Gap strategies, successive Federal and state governments have overseen a generation of Aboriginal students who have experienced a failure of promised improvements to their educational outcomes. Recent scholarship has highlighted the paucity of quality research that has often underpinned many State and Federal programmes designed to meet these cohorts' educational needs. This paper foregrounds student voice and contributes evidence-based scholarship to the experiences of schooling experienced by over 100 Aboriginal students across six schools in NSW, Australia. Data generated through yarning sessions across all secondary year levels (7–12) provide unique insights into Aboriginal students' educational, social and cultural aspirations for schooling. Utilising Moodie's (2018) Decolonising Race Theory framework, the importance of foundationally embedding education within Aboriginal students' onto-epistemological affiliations to Country and Place, and need to engage with Indigenous knowledges, emerged as critical factors for Aboriginal students experiencing success at school, as an Aboriginal student. Yarning revealed that while some students felt a sense of loss or shame about intergenerationally disrupted connections to Country and community, the sense of connection associated with their Aboriginal identity drove them purposively and actively to resist colonial process of assimilation and elimination. This enabled them to champion for greater recognition and appreciation for educational outcomes embedded within their Aboriginality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the effect of university prestige stratification on scholars' career achievements. We focus on 766 STEM PhD graduates hired by Mexican universities between 1992 and 2016. We rank university according to their prestige based on the pairwise assessment of quality contained in the PhD hiring networks. Further, we use a quasi-experimental design matching pairs of individuals with the same characteristics, PhD training or first job experience. Our results challenge the positive association between prestige and academic performance as predicted by the 'Matthew effect'. Scholars hired internally sustain higher performance over their careers in comparison to those who move up or down the prestige hierarchy. Further, we find a positive (negative) relation between downward (upward) prestige mobility and performance that relates to the "big-fish-little-pond" effect (BFLPE). The evidence of a BFLPE-like effect has policy implications because hinders the knowledge flows throughout the science system and individual achievements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has shown that students' beliefs related to mathematics are connected to their affect and motivation as well as their mathematical thinking and activity. Moreover, high parental expectations have been shown to play a role in students' positive beliefs and self-efficacy. This paper reports on two studies investigating parental expectations related to students' beliefs and their perceived achievement. These studies highlighted an unusual, but confirmed finding that students who do not perceive that their parents have specific mathematics achievement expectations show more positive mathematics-related beliefs and higher perceived mathematics achievement than students who believe their parents do have specific expectations. This paper explores possible reasons for this finding related to parents' methods of conveying their expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current plans within the European Space Agency (ESA) for the future investigation of Mars (after the ExoMars programme) are centred around participation in the Mars Sample Return (MSR) programme led by NASA. This programme is housed within the Human and Robotic Exploration (HRE) Directorate of ESA. This White Paper, in response to the Voyage 2050 call, focuses on the important scientific objectives for the investigation of Mars outside the present HRE planning. The achievement of these objectives by Science Directorate missions is entirely consistent with ESA's Science Programme. We illustrate this with a theme centred around the study of the Martian polar caps and the investigation of recent (Amazonian) climate change produced by known oscillations in Mars' orbital parameters. Deciphering the record of climate contained within the polar caps would allow us to learn about the climatic evolution of another planet over the past few to hundreds of millions of years, and also addresses the more general goal of investigating volatile-related dynamic processes in the Solar System. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background This paper explores the role of providing structure for students within a new blended-learning family medicine curriculum at Saarland University. This study intends to clarify the role of different structural elements for different learning approaches (deep vs. structured vs. surface learning). Methods This study is based on a mixed-methods approach. Fifth year medical students' (n = 84) learning approaches, measured by a shortened version of the ASSIST questionnaire, were correlated with students' academic performance in state exams and the family medicine exam. Based on learning approaches and age, participants were purposefully sampled into two semi-structured group interviews with seven participants each. Results Although surface approach learning weakly correlated with lower performance in the first state exam (rho = 0.231), surface approach learning did not correlate with lower performance in the family medicine assessment. Based on qualitative results, the structural design of the curriculum seemed to have a high impact on students' satisfaction and motivation to learn. The reduction of extraneous cognitive load was identified as effective in motivating students to study. Deep-learning students highlighted the positive effects of curriculum activities that foster germane cognitive load through schema- based learning. Conclusions Especially for surface approach learners it may be important to provide structured guidance and provide a clear alignment of course content in a blended-learning curriculum, even in higher education. Deep and structured approach learners also benefit from a clear course structure that keeps extraneous cognitive load low and fosters schema acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This systematic literature review sought to examine whether iPad or other mobile technology use by school students aged 9 to 14 years enhanced academic outcomes. Conducted in March 2019 using the PRISMA statement, the review identified 43 studies published between 2010 and 2019 which specifically addressed the research question. Findings revealed that iPad use for specific school learning areas such as mathematics, English, science, and the like has not consistently enhanced academic outcomes. Some reviewed papers also indicated that teachers were not always employing the technology most effectively. To defend the current extensive classroom use of mobile technology such as iPads, further research employing within-subject designs must be conducted. Such research must assess the efficacy of iPad use for attaining specific content area outcomes against pedagogies which utilise paper reading, handwriting and/or other manipulations of teaching materials. Moreover, teacher professional learning needs to be provided so that when teachers use iPads in classrooms they are able to deploy them in the most appropriate way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the determinants of school friendship networks among adolescents, proposing a model of network formation and estimating it using a sample of about 10,000 secondary school students in four countries: England, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. We test the idea that networks arise according to homophily along many characteristics (gender, school achievement and ethnic and cultural backgrounds), and assess the relative importance of each factor. In addition to gender, we find that country of origin, generational status and religion predict friendship for foreign-born students. For individuals born in the survey country, ties depend on a broader set of factors, including socioeconomic status and school achievement. In sum, homophilic preferences go considerably beyond ethnicity. Multiculturalism, which gives prominence to ethnic backgrounds, risks emphasising the differences in that dimension at the expense of affinity in others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Efficiency in education constitutes a dimension of the quality of education and gaining knowledge about the teachers' efficiency can contribute to improving the learning achievement of students. The main purpose of this paper is to evaluate the teachers' efficiency in order to determine which policies should be promoted in the future to reach a teaching environment enabling the teachers to be efficient. That is, we want to have a better insight about how to distribute the available resources to improve key factors of the teaching-learning context that are desirable to let them to achieve efficiency. To this aim, we measure the teachers' efficiency from a wide multi-criteria decision making sense. We consider all the significant variables at the same importance level, assuming that efficient teachers are those achieving the best possible values for all of them simultaneously. Data from TIMSS and PIRLS 2011 for fourth-grade Spanish teachers in reading, mathematics and science are used. Firstly, three synthetic indexes (weak, strong and mixed) are built using a multi-criteria decision making approach that incorporates desirable ranges for the variable values. This allows us to know which teachers are performing better, within or worse than the desired limits. Afterward, a second stage analysis is performed to investigate the extent to which the controllable variables are determinant in the teachers' rankings associated with these indexes. With all of this, key variables for being in the best/worst ranking positions are identified, which lets us better know which measures should be taken to promote efficiency in teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the results of fundamental importance achieved by the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (IV&S), Far East Branch (FEB), Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) for the period 1962‒2021. We consider the most important achievements classified under the following headings: Volcanological research includes petrologic and geochemical features of ejecta by volcanoes in the Kuril–Kamchatka region; the age of volcanoes and the phases of volcanogenic catastrophism in Kamchatka; hydrothermal systems and geothermal reserves of Kamchatka; hydrothermal metasomatism and volcanogenic mineral generation and mineralization; Geophysical research includes the seismology of volcanoes; deformation at active volcanoes; tectonic earthquakes and tsunamis; the internal structure of volcanic systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is in response to the manuscript entitled "Open educational resources and college textbook choices: a review of research on efficacy and perceptions" (Hilton in Educ Technol Res Dev 64(4): 573–590, 2016) from a theoretical perspective. The response describes the way many of the papers reviewed by Hilton were undertheorized, limiting their potential for impact. A brief summary of more recent research shows one current direction toward stronger theorization of OER research. Over the short-term, including during the rapid shift to digital learning catalyzed by the COVID-19 pandemic, OER adoption can be expected to save college students money and close the achievement gap between Pell-eligible students and their wealthier peers. Over the longer term, this benefit will likely disappear, and faculty will need to more fully explore the affordances of the 5Rs in order to create dramatic improvements in success for all students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autistic individuals often struggle to successfully navigate emerging adulthood (EA). College is an increasingly common context in which individuals learn and hone the necessary skills for adulthood. The goal of this paper is to systematically review and assess the existing research on college as a context of EA development in autistic individuals, particularly in terms of understanding whether and how this context might be critically different for those who are typically developing or developing with other disabilities. Our findings indicate that ASD college students report feeling prepared academically, but exhibit weaknesses in daily living and social skills. Interventions largely focus on social skills, and rarely evaluate outcomes relevant to college success or longer-term emerging adulthood independence. We conclude with hypotheses and recommendations for future work that are essential for understanding and supporting ASD students as they navigate potentially unique challenges in college and their transition to independence during EA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of educational robotics, teachers of secondary and high school frequently request clear indications on which type of robot is most effective for strengthening students' mental schemes on the robot. This paper investigates whether using crafts and recycled materials or structured materials to build robots is more effective in terms of pupils' cognition in educational robotics. Some scholarship argues that using crafts and recycled materials to build a robot from scratch is more effective than using structured materials. The design of the educational research applied here, and in which we tested this hypothesis, included two different robotics activities, carried out in Italy with two classes of secondary school. In the first, we asked the students to build a robot from scratch using crafts and recycled materials, while in the other we asked the students to build a robot from structured materials. These two activities were preceded and followed by the completion, by students, of the same questionnaire about knowledge of mechanics, manual skills, conceptualization of robots, and beliefs about the robotization of everyday life machines, which were the learning outcomes identified in this study according to the concept of constructive alignment and outcome-based education. Results show that building a robot from scratch increases pupils' knowledge and manual skills, while building a robot with structured materials increases their awareness of the robotization of machines. Thus, current scholarship's approach is only partially confirmed. To conclude, although pupils' appreciation involves equally both these robotics activities, each of these outlines a specific educational outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, technological advances had an impact on the field of education, and computer technologies were started to be used mainly in visual arts, architecture and planning departments in colleges. However, applications such as the use of conventional drawing tools and graphical techniques, sketching, drawing plans, sections, and elevations on paper and production of models are still prevalent in landscape architecture, architecture, interior design or planning departments. Digital technologies are also utilized as supplementary tools. The current article scrutinized student attitudes towards digital and conventional drawing methods in landscape architecture department environmental design studios and the impact of these techniques on the academic success in the course. The study was conducted with KTU Landscape Architecture Department students. Initially, an analysis of variance was conducted to determine whether there was a difference between student attitudes towards conventional and digital drawing techniques in environmental design studio. It was determined that there was a difference between the attitudes of the students between the items 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23 in the scale that contained statements (23 items) to measure student attitudes (p <.05), and no difference was observed between the student attitudes in remaining items (p >.05). The highest difference was found (F = 168.200) in item 23, followed by items 18 (F = 106,290), 10 (F = 104,533), and 14 (F = 103.292). In the second stage, to determine the effects of using digital or conventional drawing techniques in landscape design studio on the student achievement in the course, a quasi-experimental study was conducted with a pre-test post-test model with control group. It was determined that the pretest findings had a significant effect on both groups (p <.05). Digital and conventional drawing techniques that students learned in environmental design studio were correlated with their academic achievements and the difference between the groups was significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes an innovative statistical method to measure the impact of the class/school on student achievements in multiple subjects. We propose a semiparametric model for a bivariate response variable with random coefficients, that are assumed to follow a discrete distribution with an unknown number of support points, together with an Expectation-Maximization algorithm—called BSPEM algorithm—to estimate its parameters. In the case study, we apply the BSPEM algorithm to data about Italian middle schools, considering students nested within classes, and we identify subpopulations of classes, standing on their effects on student achievements in reading and mathematics. The proposed model is extremely informative in exploring the correlation between multiple class effects, which are typical of the educational production function. The estimated class effects on reading and mathematics student achievements are then explained in terms of various class and school level characteristics selected by means of a LASSO regression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student-teacher relationships play an important role in both teacher and student experiences in higher education and have been found to be linked to learning, classroom management, and to student absenteeism. Although historically conceptualised in terms of immediacy or distance and measured with reference to behaviours, the growing recognition of the role of emotions and of power—as well as the development of a range of multidimensional models of social relationships—all suggest it is time to re-evaluate how student-teacher relationships are understood. This paper develops a theoretical model of student-teacher affective relationships in higher education based on three dimensions: affection/warmth, attachment/safety, and assertion/power. The three-dimensional model was tested using the Classroom Affective Relationships Inventory (CARI) with data from 851 students. The data supported the use of this multidimensional model for student-teacher relationships with both two- and three-dimensional models of relationships being identified as appropriate. The theoretical development of a multidimensional model and the empirical development of an instrument with which to explore these dimensions has important implications for higher education teachers, administrators and researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contemporary research is considering new forms of literacy that extend beyond the skills required to process alphanumeric data. The skills involved in visualising, reasoning, and communicating about 2D and 3D spatial information are commonly referred to as 'Spatial Literacy'. Research has highlighted a positive relationship between Spatial Literacy and achievement across a diverse range of subject areas. Internationally, researchers have observed that students often have underdeveloped levels of Spatial Literacy on matriculation to third-level courses, particularly in the STEM area. In an attempt to better understand the potential reasons for this, this paper endeavours to unpack the complex nature of Spatial Literacy, its definition and associated metrics. Concerns are raised about the Spatial Literacy levels of Irish students based on international metrics and benchmarking against other jurisdictions. This paper seeks to problematize Spatial Literacy within the Irish educational context with a particular focus on dominant curriculum ideologies and education policy discourse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The information on academic performance rates—what percentage of the enrolled credits a student can pass in one academic year—showed traditionally a relatively low students' academic performance at Spanish public universities. However, over the period 2008–2014, the academic productivity of undergraduate students at public higher education institutions improved considerably. In this period, Spanish universities experienced changes related to the structuring of the educational curriculum—the homogenization of undergraduate university degrees—and the policy of tuition fees. In relation to the latter, the entry into force of the Royal Decree-Law 14/2012 (the so-called Decreto Wert) allowed universities a considerable increase in tuition fees. Using data for Spanish public universities for the academic years 2008/2009 and 2013/2014, this paper studied to what extent this educational law contributed to the improvement of the academic performance of undergraduate students. Using a stochastic frontier analysis for panel data, this paper showed that the increase in undergraduate tuition fees (first enrolment) acted as a catalyst in reducing the inefficiencies of the Spanish public university system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper provides for the first time an overview of orthopaedic surgeons nominated for the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine during the first six decades of the twentieth century. The study is part of the project "Enacting Excellency: Nobel Prize nominations for surgeons 1901-1960".Methods: The nomination letters were gathered in the archive of the Nobel Committee at the Karolinska Institute in Solna, Sweden.Results: Among the nominees, we find renowned scholars like Pierre Delbet, Themistocles Gluck, Gerhard Küntscher, Adolf Lorenz, Friedrich Pauwels, Leslie Rush, and Marius Smith-Petersen. The focus of the paper is on nominations for Pauwels (work on biomechanics) and Küntscher (the Küntscher nail). Both were nominated by German surgeons.Conclusions: Although no orthopaedic surgeon has yet received a Nobel Prize for an orthopaedic achievement, Nobel archive files can help reconstruct important trends in the field during the twentieth century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) without intellectual disability frequently experience academic problems, in part due to executive functioning (EF) deficits. There are currently no evidence-based interventions targeting academic EF skills (e.g., organization, prioritization, etc.) for middle school youth with ASD. The need is critical given increasing demands on these skills during the transition from elementary to middle school. An intervention targeting academic EF skills, Achieving Independence and Mastery in School (AIMS), was recently developed. This paper reports on an open trial of the AIMS—Outpatient intervention with 21 middle schoolers with ASD. Results suggest high feasibility/satisfaction, and improved EF, particularly in the domains of organization and materials management. These promising results support further intervention development work and suggest that academic EF skills are malleable in youth with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]