• Ingen resultater fundet

Impact of attitudes and perceptions

3.6 Theme five: attitudes and perceptions

3.6.1 Impact of attitudes and perceptions

Benjamin’s (2011) qualitative case-study investigated how elementary school teachers imple-mented Response to Intervention (RtI) in their general education classrooms in a southern state in the United States. The study participants represented varying backgrounds, degrees of education, experience, and grade levels. The participating school commenced RtI implemen-tation in August 2008. The data collection for this study was carried out in May to July 2009.

The participants in the study indicated that RtI policy language (through the RtI manual) provided a foundation for knowledge and understanding. Teacher descriptions of RtI were consistent with the local education authority’s definition and included language relative to policy goals, teacher tasks, and mandated policy activities. Yet all three teachers stated that the RtI policy language and implementation procedures were ambiguous and open to va-rying interpretations. Some participants had strong reactions to the ambiguity of the policy language and the lack of explicit procedures. They demonstrated concern about the precise understanding of the process and the specific steps for RtI implementation. In addition, the teachers identified the availability and consistency of RtI policy information as obstacles to understanding and implementation. In essence, RtI policy was neither readily available nor consistent, which made implementation difficult. Of particular importance is how the teachers dealt with policy ambiguity.

The results also indicate that teachers entered on the RtI implementation with differing personal attributes, including education, experience, and beliefs. The two less experien-ced teachers demonstrated anxiety, and described feeling overwhelmed, confused, and under-skilled due to a lack of technical knowledge regarding RtI implementation policies and procedures. The most experienced teacher indicated that RtI implementation seemed logical and rational given her prior knowledge and experience with similar processes. The experienced teacher expressed more confidence in her ability to implement RtI because she was able to assimilate new information into her existing knowledge base.

According to the teaching performance record data, the mid-career teacher and the teacher with the most experience demonstrated a lower degree of participation in RtI related ac-tivities; however, their student engagement scores were higher than the least experienced teacher in the study. The study results suggest that both the mid-career teacher and the most

experienced teacher used their knowledge and experience to assimilate RtI implementation into existing classroom practices and schedules.

The least experienced teacher demonstrated a strong commitment to RtI implementation. She made many different accommodations to allow for instructional and behavioural interventions, support materials, and documentation. In contrast, the mid-career and veteran teacher exhi-bited a minimalist approach to RtI implementation. Thus the two more experienced teachers opted for less invasive methods of RtI implementation. Whenever possible, they incorporated teaching and administrative RtI tasks into existing classroom practices and schedules.

The least experienced and mid-career teachers participated in collaborations related to RtI implementation with great benefits. The most experienced teacher resisted participation in collaboration. The interview showed that the teacher did not view herself as an equal among her peers. In this instance, level of teaching experience seemed to contribute to differences in teacher attitudes towards collaboration.

All teacher comments demonstrated clear communication and understanding of the schools mission and vision. All three teachers indicated that shared goals contributed to their sense of connectedness and encouraged collaboration within and between grade levels. More-over, the teachers indicated that the school principal was instrumental in creating a safe environment for learning the RtI process. Trust and shared leadership were behaviours and practices demonstrated by the principal that supported RtI implementation.

Finally, the teachers described the advantages and disadvantages of RtI. The teachers high-lighted that the advantage of RtI was data-driven decision-making. The disadvantage was that RtI required much time, particularly time on documentation. The time spent on docu-mentation was effectively taken from teachers’ core task of teaching students. This caused demotivation and frustration among the teachers.

The dissertation by Lee (2012) is also focused on exploring levels of RtI implementation, but in the context of West Virginia elementary schools and within the content area of reading.

Response to Intervention is a multi-tiered intervention model, usually incorporating three tiers, with instructional activity gradually intensifying from tier one (instruction targeting all students in the general education environment) to tier two (skill-focused, small-group, high-intensity instruction) and ultimately tier three (where children not responding to pre-vious tiered instruction receive high-intensity intervention, often leading to a decision on

their eligibility for placement in special education). In West Virginia, the implementation of RtI in reading at elementary schools has been mandatory by state policy since 1 July 2009. As part of this requirement, schools have been obligated to form curriculum teams, consisting of principals, counsellors and teachers, in order to support the use of high-quality models of teaching, scheduling, and other aspects of educational activity.

Within this context, the author sees it as relevant to perform a status-check on RtI implemen-tation levels a few years after the inception of the new state policy. The nature of the study is descriptive, in that the author wishes to provide a snapshot of RtI implementation levels at one particular moment. This is done by employing a cross-sectional research design, with a survey submitted to curriculum team members at all of West Virginia’s 435 elementary schools. The survey is designed to assess overall implementation levels as well as to allow for an analysis of potential differences in reported levels based on selected school attributes including enrolment, staff role, socioeconomic status, Title 1 status, AYP status (Adequate Yearly Progress), and principal tenure. The population for the study is the estimated 2,175 curriculum team members at all West Virginia elementary schools. The final sample, how-ever, consists only of 285 curriculum members who responded to the survey.

The primary conclusion drawn from the study is that West Virginia curriculum team mem-bers perceive RtI to be implemented at a high level in the area of reading in elementary schools. Results show that a majority of RtI indicators are rated as usually or always implemented by curriculum team members. Principals report the highest implementation levels, while classroom teachers report the lowest levels. For some RtI components, higher mean scores are reported in schools where the faculty shows a belief that RtI benefits all students, and in schools that have an evaluation plan in place for RtI. For one RtI component, higher levels are reported by schools with smaller student enrolment and by schools receiving Title one funding (supplemental funding to local school districts to meet the needs of at-risk and low-income students). For two RtI components, higher levels of implementation are reported by schools that possess an electronic RtI data-management system.

The description of the study by Bishop et al. (2012), set in New Zealand, is primarily based on a research article, drawing on evidence from secondary sources when needed to make a full report of the findings. The study is focused on the relationship between a professio-nal development programme that was designed to bring about changes in teacher practice through cycles of implementation and evaluation, and the associated changes in Maori stu-dents’ educational outcomes. This relationship is examined by documenting the outcomes

of the implementation of the Te Kotahitanga research and development project in schools in the third and fourth phases of the project. The Te Kotahitanga project commenced in 2001 with small numbers of teachers in phases one and two. Following this, the project was expanded into two further sets of schools in phase three (commenced in 2004) and phase four (joining the project in 2007).

The Te Kotahitanga research and development project sought to improve the educational performance of indigenous students in mainstream public secondary schools in New Zealand.

It was primarily a pedagogically driven school-reform initiative, focusing on supporting teachers in their implementation of a culturally responsive, relationship-based pedagogy. As part of the Te Kotahitanga project, an Effective Teaching Profile (ETP) was developed, which formed the basis of the professional learning opportunities that were offered to teachers.

The ETP was designed to identify the problems created for teachers by deficit-theorising about Maori students, emphasising that rejecting invalid explanations was a necessary first step towards developing viable classroom pedagogies. During this process, teachers were offered opportunities to draw explanations and practices from alternative discourses such as by listening to student narratives. Sharing these experiences of going to school enabled teachers to reflect upon their own understandings of Maori children, as well as upon the impact of their own teaching practices on the achievement of indigenous students.

In phases three and four, the professional development for teachers was conducted on site by in-school facilitators who were provided with professional learning opportunities by the university-based research and development team. The development process for teachers commenced with a series of formal and informal meetings at which the project was outlined to each school leader and staff. Once the school had agreed to participate, the professional development for teachers was promoted through a sequence of professional development activities, starting with an induction workshop. The introduction workshops were then followed by a cycle of the following activities:

• Individual teacher in-class observations using the Te Kotahitanga Observation Tool, intended to provide teachers with formative feedback so as to assist them to implement the ETP in their classrooms

• Individual teacher feedback provided by in-class facilitators about the lessons observed

• Group co-construction meetings for teachers of a shared class, including reflections on student participation and achievement evidence, as well as group goal setting

• Targeted shadow-coaching sessions, with in-school facilitators coaching individual tea-chers in their classroom or other environment

In addition to these professional development activities, school staff members were involved in professional development sessions run by school leaders. The in-school facilitators were supported and provided with feedback by the university-based research and development team through workshops and regular in-school visits. As for funding, the project received central government funding from the New Zealand Ministry of Education, but with the expectation that schools would gradually start to fund the project themselves.

The results show that phase three schools are maintaining the changes made in teaching practices with the associated gains in Maori students’ achievement. In addition, phase four schools are replicating this pattern of results. The authors argue that these findings have implications for sustainability and for assumptions about the strength of the association between project implementation, changes in teacher practice, and improved educational achievement for Maori students. To be sure of the strength of the association, it is necessary to be confident that the changes in teaching are associated with the Te Kotahitanga programme.

The results clearly state that teachers in schools in both phases performed similarly in terms of their implementation of the ETP, and that there was a clear association between the pro-fessional development project and the implementation of the ETP by teachers. The next step, the association between changes in Te Kotahitanga teachers’ practice and gains in Maori student achievement, is shown in the different sets of evidence provided. These revealed that changes in the phase four teachers’ classroom practices reflect changes in practice by the phase three teachers, with associated improvements in student outcomes present in both cases. In addition, in both phases there seems to be a similar pattern of positive sustained teacher–student relationships and improvements in the use of discursive practices, as well as an increase in the cognitive demand of the lessons, overall leading to positive changes in Maori students’ completed work levels and measures of student engagement. With these different sets of evidence pointing to similar results in both phase three and four schools, and the only shared variable between schools being the Te Kotahitanga professional devel-opment programme, the authors argue that there is a good case to be made regarding the strength of the positive relationship between the implementation of the programme, changes in teacher practice, and improved outcomes for Maori students.

In closing, the authors describe three main impediments encountered in the attempt to implement the Te Kotahitanga programme in schools, demonstrating the difficulties asso-ciated with conducting a large-scale comprehensive school reform model with a Maori focus.

The first was confusion about the culture of the Maori child. The importance of culture to

learning proved difficult to comprehend for many teachers and school principals, including project facilitators and regional coordinators. The second was that the ability and willingness of teachers to implement the project varied. Results revealed an uneven implementation of the Effective Teaching Profile by teachers both within and between schools, as well as uneven institutional support provided by leaders. The third was problems with showing measurable gains. It was not possible to randomly select participants, and researchers prioritised the schools’ needs to produce evidence of student performance for formative purposes above the researchers’ needs to acquire summative data.

In light of these challenges, authors conclude that reforming secondary schools in order to make them responsive to the needs of Maori students is a long-term endeavour. The importance of sticking with the principles of the project in spite of problems faced along the way is thus underlined.

The aim of the project by Crompton & Keane (2012) was to investigate the implementation of a whole-school one-to-one iPod Touch project in a middle school in the south-eastern United States. (The iPod Touch is a mobile digital music and video player device that can be used for educational purposes.) The research design was a case-study in a middle school in the south-eastern United States. The study aimed to capture the unique experience in the first phase of implementation of the one-to-one iPod Touch by conducting weekly class-room observations over a period of four months, and by conducting six focus groups with teachers and students.

The implementation involved teachers and students being given the iPod Touch devices.

Thus teachers and students were practising the innovation of employing the iPod Touch in their classroom. The implementation process investigated in the study focused largely on the teachers’ engagement and use of the devices. It gave some detail of the school principals’

involvement as “change agent” in the project, but it did not describe the economy or strategy of the involvement in the implementation of the iPod Touch devices. The experience of the students who were at the receiving end of the implementation was also investigated in the study.

School teachers were categorised into adopter categories based on observations and focus groups. The five adopter categories were: innovators (risk-takers, often with prior experience with the technologies), early adopters (those respecting the opinion of role models and school principals and willing to adopt technology and also support others in doing so), early

majo-rity adopters (often willing to adopt a technology but preferring to see others using it first), late majority adopters (adapting under pressure, but sceptical about the technology until it was in commonplace usage), and laggards (the last group to adopt, if they ever chose to).

Of the nine teachers, four were categorised as “early adopters,” two were “early majority,”

and three were “laggards.”

The school had approximately 580 students and 55 teachers. The study involved approxi-mately 350 participants: nine core teachers, and approxiapproxi-mately 115 students at each sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade level. These classes were observed weekly over a four-month period, three months after the students and teachers were given the iPod Touch. A total of fifteen classroom observations were carried out over a range of subjects. The study involved six focus groups: three with three teachers in each group, and three with six students in each group from sixth, seventh, and eighth grade.

The principal was primarily responsible for the selection of teachers and for deciding which classrooms would be observed by researchers. However, the teachers selected for the study included both active and resistant users of the iPod Touch. The researchers pointed out that there was a sample bias specifically for the focus group: teachers selected the students for the student focus group, or students volunteered themselves. Thus the student focus groups primarily consisted of well-functioning students.

The results showed that students in the “early adopter” classrooms were enthusiastic about the iPod Touch: they understood how the technology fit into their instructional activities.

Students in the “late adopter” or “laggard” classroom in the eighth grade were frustrated by their perception that the device was disruptive and offered little additional benefits, and thought school resources could be better spent elsewhere. These students also had negative opinions of the change agent (the school principal), and this also influenced their perceptions of iPod Touch use in their school. Thus the students’ attitudes to the device were largely determined by the teachers’ use of the iPod Touch. Teachers categorised as “late adopters”

and “laggards” were assigned this category not because of their negative attitude towards the device, but because they lacked an understanding of how the iPod Touch could be used in their curriculum.

The researchers found that the adopter categories were useful in describing how teachers approached the use of the iPod Touch, and they suggested that the categorisation could contribute to an improved implementation process by differentiating the approach to specific teachers. For example, a targeted workshop clearly demonstrating how a device

can be used in a specific curriculum could be the way forward for teachers who struggle to understand how to apply specific technologies in their curriculum.

The results reported by Leadbeater et al. (2015) come from two studies, both taken into consideration together and treated as a whole because they form part of the same research process, including results on start-up and take-up processes as well as considerations on the sustainability of interventions. The focus of the two studies is on describing experiences of discovering, actively evaluating and sharing the WITS programmes (Walk away, Ignore, Talk it out and Seek help) in rural Canadian elementary school settings. Thus the investigation is of the processes that promote or inhibit early users’ discovery, understanding, incorporation, and sharing of mental health promotion programmes. In addition to examining the start-up processes related to the pre-implementation phase of the WITS programmes in rural school districts, descriptions of opportunities and challenges for sustainability were also provided, illuminating the factors that influenced planning for continued use of the evidence-based WITS programmes two years after their adoption in eight rural Canadian elementary schools.

The WITS programmes are evidence-based programmes that aim to create responsive communities in order to reduce peer victimisation and bullying among children from kindergarten to grade six. The programmes focus on increasing protective factors against bullying, such as social responsibility and positive school climates. Programme resources are easily accessible online and cater to school staff, parents, community leaders, and chil-dren, thus seeking to unite adults and children across the school, family, and community ecologies. The core components of the programmes are flexible in their implementation, and include creating a common language and set of norms (“using your WITS”) that can be applied by all school or community members to deal with peer conflicts and increase social responsibility. This included lesson plans integrated with academic learning objectives, thus reducing time demands on teachers. The WITS programmes have two components: the WITS primary programme for K-3 and the WITS LEADS programme (LEADS adds a leadership component and trains children to Look and listen, Explore point of view, Act, Did it work?

and Seek help) for grades four to six.

Both studies reporting on the WITS programme implementation used a qualitative methodo-logy in the form of interviews with principals, teachers, community leaders, and other key stakeholders. Participating schools were located in rural communities in British Columbia, Canada. They received all programme books and resources (valued at C$1,000) as well as the supplies needed to continue the programmes (worth about $200). Additional support

was available upon request, provided by the WITS programmes’ community coordinator, who was employed by the co-developer of the programmes.

During the first part of the research process, in which uptake was studied, twenty indi-viduals from seven elementary schools were interviewed, following a two-wave process.

The following section reports results from the WITS uptake. Overall, the results revealed complex uptake processes, structured under the following four headings:

• Pathways leading to the discovery of programmes: Interviews indicated a variety of pathways that influenced participants’ discovery of and willingness to consider the WITS pro-grammes in their school, over and above the invitations received from the research team. Often participants recalled having heard of the programme and then rediscovered it when someone mentioned it or when they saw it in other contexts. This rediscovery process could help to convince a new principal to support programme uptake, for example, because he/she had heard of the programme before. These encounters with the programme can be labelled “passive diffusion” in that they were random and not actively sought. Word-of-mouth and peer-to-peer exchanges were also found to stimulate consideration of the programmes. In this regard, school counsellors played a key role in programme dissemination, often because they worked at several schools and talked about their experiences with WITS in multiple settings. In general, staff turnovers often occur in rural settings, and this is usually thought to disrupt implementation. However, in the process of uptake of WITS, turnover played a positive role by facilitating the flow of information across schools, as well as facilitating programme uptake when staff and administrators moved into schools already using WITS.

• Personalising motivations for adopting the programmes: Programme champions (opinion leaders, including principals, librarians and teachers who encouraged peer-to-peer communications about the ongoing use of the programme) freqeuently described their interest in WITS as centred on their personal beliefs about children’s needs, emphasising how the WITS programmes were consistent with what they were already doing. This consistency with beliefs also influenced the motivation to try the programmes.

• Alignment of programme characteristics with ongoing teaching strategies, school policies, and other programmes: The perceived fit between WITS and styles and strategies created mo-mentum for using the programmes. A positive response from teachers and children was also found to be key to programme attractiveness. The flexibility of the programme and its book-based curriculum made it a good fit in that it facilitated reaching both academic and social outcomes, acting as a support to teachers feeling the pressure of time and learning demands. However, an atmosphere of teacher overload, changing demands,