scholarly journals Teachers’ Use of Within-Class Ability Groups in the Primary Classroom: A Mixed Methods Study of Social Comparison

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Louise Webb-Williams

It is common practice within primary classrooms for teachers to spilt children into different ability groups so that children of similar level are taught together. Whilst this practice is used across the globe, research is mixed on the benefits of such grouping strategy. This paper presents data collected from mixed methods research which investigated teachers use of grouping strategies and social comparison, the act of comparing oneself with others. It focuses on when, why and with whom children from different ability groups compare themselves and the impact this has on their self-perceptions. Drawing upon data from children aged between 10 and 11 years from 12 primary schools, social comparison was found to play a significant role in daily classroom life for some children. The study identified different strands of the social comparison process including acknowledgment, topic, target, and direction, and it revealed positive and negative effects of social comparison. A difference by ability group was identified. Children within the low ability group were particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of social comparison and found to engage in more frequent and intentional social comparisons which were heavily relied upon for self-evaluation and performance evaluation. The paper discusses the educational implications of social comparison regarding pupil ability grouping strategies, motivation, engagement, and academic performance. Implications for teacher education and professional development is discussed.

Author(s):  
Alyaha Daniel Felix Ohide ◽  
Rosemary Wahu Mbogo

<div><p>Teachers often find themselves frustrated at work because of conflicting expectations concerning their professional and social roles within the community. This paper looks at the effect of teachers’ perception of their profession on their satisfaction at job and performance. The authors employ a survey design in private schools in Yei Town, South Sudan to establish the impact of these perceptions. Simple random sampling technique was used to select the respondents from ten private schools. The respondents’ therefore included 10 head teachers, 100 teachers giving a total of 110 respondents. Questionnaires were used for data collection. Data collected was analysed by the use of Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 12.0 was and presented in frequencies and percentages and a regression analysis performed to establish the relationships among the variables. The study findings indicated that a considerable number of the teachers (38.9%) indicated that teacher’s own perception of their own profession does not affect the teachers’ job satisfaction and performance.</p></div>


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 387-400
Author(s):  
Faisal M Ahsan ◽  
Ajay Singal

The rapidly growing and gradual emergence of multinational firms from the Indian sub-continent now calls for thorough re-understandings of extant theories and existing ideologies of the ‘internationalization’ process. We would initially assess the three-stage model of internationalization in the context of mid-size Indian firms and intend to investigate the relationship between performance and degree of internationalization. Based on the longitudinal dataset (2005-12) of publicly listed firms, our findings suggested that mid-size firms remained stuck up in the first stage of internationalization and accordingly exhibit a downward-sloping relationship between internationalization’s degree and performance. Most of the mid-size firms continued to show a predominantly family-controlled stance, and the impact of family ownership shows negative effects on the degree of internationalization. By examining the performance heterogeneity in family-owned firms towards internationalization, this paper enriches the existing body of research and assume it to be a prolific addition in the literature on international expansion.


2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 70-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele Raja ◽  
Antonella Azzoni

AbstractThe aim of the present study was to investigate sexual behavior in a population of psychiatric patients affected by schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder or bipolar disorder by means of an ad hoc questionnaire designed to explore the three phases of the sexual response: desire (or interest), arousal, and performance. The study assessed patients’ attitude toward sexuality, several aspects of their sexual behavior, including patients’ awareness of the risk of sexually transmitted diseases (STD), contraceptive strategy preferred by patients, and sexual effects of psychotropic medication. Patients reported a high frequency of sexual dysfunction, in particular, hyposexuality. Schizophrenia diagnosis and female gender were associated with lower levels of sexual performance. The impact of psychotropic drugs on patients’ sexuality was significant, with both positive and negative effects. Although 65.8% of patients reported to be concerned about the risk of contracting infections during sexual intercourse, most of them engaged in sexual behavior at high risk for acquisition and transmission of STD. Patients’ compliance with contraceptive measures was poor.


2016 ◽  
Vol 78 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahkameh Valikhani ◽  
Rahinah Ibrahim ◽  
Mohd Shahrizal Dolah

Pre-schools and primary schools play a prominent role in the lives of children. In this phase of their life, reading and writing would begin. There are studies which explored the relationships between writing and reading performance and furniture in the classroom. A considerable body of research addresses the role of school furniture on children’s health. Nevertheless, the impact of furniture on behaviour received fairly insufficient attention in design and furniture industries. Since children have no choice in selecting their furniture, they ended becoming passive users in the design process. In this paper, we aim to understand the impacts that school furniture have on children’s health and performance. This paper reviews previous studies about children’s furniture at educational centers in order to introduce a new prototype of school furniture. This study could inform designers and those involved in children related educational systems to develop better furniture designs in schools.


2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (9) ◽  
pp. 1441-1454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela Richardson ◽  
Gillian Pedley ◽  
Ferruccio Pelone ◽  
Farrukh Akhtar ◽  
Jacqueline Chang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTBackground:Dementia in younger people, known as young (YOD) or early onset dementia (EOD), can pose significant challenges. YOD is often diagnosed in those in paid employment who have relatively young children, leading to different challenges to those for older people. It is therefore very important to provide support tailored to their specific needs. This systematic review aimed to synthesize the literature investigating the impact of psychosocial interventions for people with YOD and their family carers.Method:Eight electronic databases were searched and three key journals were also hand searched. Narrative synthesis of the selected articles was undertaken.Results:Of the 498 records identified, 495 were ineligible after application of the exclusion criteria. The final sample included three studies, all of which were employment-based. Two were qualitative and one used mixed methods. Study quality was mixed. People with YOD and their carers reported benefits from participating in work-based interventions designed for those with YOD, including improved self-esteem and sense of purpose. Social contact was highlighted. Despite cognitive decline, maintenance in well-being was also reported. Carers described benefits for people with YOD, which extended outside the intervention, e.g. enhanced sleep and mood. The impact of the interventions on carers was not assessed.Conclusions:This review suggests work-based interventions providing supported, meaningful work outside the home can be beneficial. However, the dearth of studies, the lack of focus on family carers and their mixed quality demonstrate the need for better quality, mixed methods research with larger sample sizes.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Elizabeth (Libby) J. Sander ◽  
Cecelia Marques ◽  
James Birt ◽  
Matthew Stead ◽  
Oliver Baumann

Abstract The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019)-induced changes in the workplace present a timely opportunity for human resource management practitioners to consider and remediate the deleterious effects of noise, a commonly cited complaint of employees working in open-plan office (OPO) environments. While self-reports suggest that OPO noise is perceived as a stressor, there is little experimental research comprehensively investigating the effects of noise on employees in terms of their cognitive performance, physiological indicators of stress, and affect. Employing a simulated office setting, we compared the effects of a typical OPO auditory environment to a quieter private office auditory environment on a range of objective and subjective measures of well-being and performance. While OPO noise did not reduce immediate cognitive task performance compared to the quieter environment, it did reduce psychological well-being as evidenced by self-reports of mood, facial expressions of emotion, and physiological indicators of stress in the form of heartrate and skin conductivity. Our research highlights the importance of using a multimodal approach to assess the impact of workplace stressors such as noise. Such an approach will allow HR practitioners to make data-driven recommendations about the design and modification of workspaces to minimize negative effects and support employee well-being.


Sports ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Huyghe ◽  
Aaron Scanlan ◽  
Vincent Dalbo ◽  
Julio Calleja-González

Air travel requirements are a concern for National Basketball Association (NBA) coaches, players, and owners, as sport-based research has demonstrated short-haul flights (≤6 h) increase injury risk and impede performance. However, examination of the impact of air travel on player health and performance specifically in the NBA is scarce. Therefore, we conducted a narrative review of literature examining the influence of air travel on health and performance in team sport athletes with suggestions for future research directions in the NBA. Prominent empirical findings and practical recommendations are highlighted pertaining to sleep, nutrition, recovery, and scheduling strategies to alleviate the negative effects of air travel on health and performance in NBA players.


Author(s):  
Melody Muzavazi ◽  
Stephen M. Mahere

The study sought to investigate the negative effects of ‘double-sessioning’ and perspectives held by District Schools Inspector (DSI), school heads and teachers, on pupil learning and provision of quality education in schools practising hot-sitting in Goromonzi District. It employed a mixed methods research design. The study population comprised the DSI, all heads and teachers in primary schools practising ‘double-sessioning’, commonly referred to as ‘hot-seating’ in the District. Six schools that were practising hot-seating were purposively selected out of a total of 85 schools in the District to participate in the study. The target population was stratified according to position of the respondents, i.e.: teacher, school head or DSI. The study sample size was 51, randomly-selected from each stratum. Data-gathering instruments included: structured questionnaires, interview schedules and Focus Group Discussion guides. Questionnaires were administered to 32 teachers while the DSI and 6 School Heads were interviewed, and 12 more teachers participated in Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). Data were analysed using the thematic analysis technique. Findings revealed that double sessioning had the following negative effects on pupil learning and provision of quality education, viz: hot-seating reduces teaching-learning contact time; causes destruction of resources (e.g. furniture) through overuse; gives rise to increased challenges relating to the supervision of teachers, and compromises the quality of education. However, ‘hot-seating’ increases access to education for children. Based on the negative effects of ‘hot-seating’ that emerged from the District, the study recommends that Policy-makers and Education Planners need to review this double sessioning policy and practice.


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