Newswise — Better ways than testing to improve teaching and learning
Robert Pianta, Novartis US Foundation Professor of Education, head of the U.Va. Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning
As the use of standardized testing continues, under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, some researchers are working on a different approach to improve what happens in classrooms across the country. Robert Pianta has devoted his career to improving the education of preschool and kindergarten students and their teachers, because early success in school sets the foundation for future academic success.
Pianta just received a $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Institute for Education Sciences, to establish the National Research Center on Early Childhood Education, where he and his staff will implement a groundbreaking study on teacher education and train education students around the country in using a Web-based curriculum program Pianta has developed for preschool teachers.
"A lot of terrific teachers aren't aware of the really good things they do," Pianta said. "When we point it out, it becomes an insight they can share with others." Pianta recently joined with psychology professor Joseph Allen in adapting the Web-based program for high school teachers, with the support of $1.25 million from the William T. Grant Foundation. Their goal is to apply knowledge of teenagers' psychosocial development to improving teachers' interactions with the students, thereby getting the students more motivated to learn.
Sorely needed Spanish literacy assessment piloted
Marcia Invernizzi, Henderson Professor of Reading Education and director of the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening programKaren Ford, research assistant, PALS
There are almost 4 million Hispanic children, ages 5 to 9, in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Many need help learning to read, but itÃs not clear whether the help they need is the result of their having trouble with English or with learning.
"We get calls every day from schools about how to assess students who are English language learners," said Curry School of Education professor Marcia Invernizzi, primary author of PALS assessment program and Web-based resource she created 10 years ago. PALS is used throughout Virginia and in more than 40 states and six countries.
PALS español, developed by Karen Ford, who taught Spanish for 25 years, is being piloted in several school districts around the country this fall, in Colorado, Texas, Florida and Rhode Island, and possibly some Virginia schools.
"The Spanish PALS would distinguish between children not reading well because their English isn't adequate or because they have problems in literacy development, which would show up in both languages," Ford said.Background: http://pals.virginia.edu/
Encourage early interest in math and scienceRobert Tai, assistant professor of science education
What do you want to be when you grow up? Eighth-graders asked this question in 1988 were two to three times more likely to earn science and engineering degrees in college if their answer was a science-related career, according to research by Robert H. Tai, assistant professor of science education at the Curry School of Education.
Amid growing concern that too few American students are pursuing science careers and the nation is losing its dominance in this area, Tai wants to figure out how a science student learns to work on the edge of human understanding and cross the brink of discovery.
"To the question, does it matter if a person decides early on whether to pursue science? The answer is yes," Tai said. "While the outcome may not be surprising, in light of the many stories we've all heard about the lives of famous scientists, this study put this notion to the test and found a link between early life expectations and future life outcomes."
In a larger study called "Project Crossover," supported by the National Science Foundation, Tai and colleague Xitao Fan are working to track and describe the paths graduate students take to become scientists.
The NSF study involves interviewing award-winning, active scientists and science novices to gather data on what steps or experiences make up this critical transition period on the path of the science profession. "Project Crossover" could lead to improvements in the teaching of science at earlier grades, as well as in the research training of scientists at the doctoral [email protected]">[email protected]
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