The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of instructional leadership on high school students' academic achievement in the Chinese context and to determine which specific instructional leadership dimensions have the most important role. The sample included 26 high schools with 26 principals and 4288 students in Shenyang, China. The principals rated their instructional leadership according to the Revised Instructional Leadership Questionnaire of China (ILQC-R). The hypotheses were tested using hierarchical linear models. The results indicated that, after controlling for student background, school context, and principal demographics, overall instructional leadership showed a significantly moderating influence on the relationship between high school entrance scores and college entrance scores for students. Regarding the four different dimensions, different influence trends were observed. The dimensions of managing instruction, defining the school mission and goals, and promoting teacher development were found to influence students' college entrance scores in both direct and indirect ways; however, no significant impact on students from managing public relations was found.

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A longitudinal designed research study was conducted to provide empirical evidence regarding the influences of three dimensions of students’ school adaptation on their math achievement growth over the first year of high school. These dimensions included learning adaptation, stress management, and personal communication. Student math achievement growth was measured using the student growth percentile (SGP) score. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test for the possible mediating role of self-concept behind those three relationships. Based on the model comparison, it was discovered that school adaptation significantly and positively influences student math achievement growth via mediating effects of student academic self-concept, as opposed to showing a direct impact on students. The findings of this study have important implications for educators and parents to aid students in their pursuit of academic success.

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Web‐based scientific inquiry learning is characterized as providing an autonomy‐supportive environment for students to solve scientific problems. However, as a complementary approach for improving students' learning, structure‐supportive strategies in a web‐based learning environment deserve further exploration. Whilst both teachers and platforms could make essential contributions in providing structure support, research findings concerning how teachers could successfully interact with the platform in such an environment are scarce. Grounded on self‐determination theory, two quasi‐experimental studies with pre and post measurements were conducted to address two questions. First, whether structure support could improve students' inquiry learning in an autonomous web‐based inquiry learning environment? Second, what is the relationship between teachers and platforms in doing this? As hypothesized, study 1 provides empirical evidence on the effectiveness of applying structure‐supportive instructional strategies in autonomous web‐based scientific inquiry. Study 2 confirmed that students performed best in the class with high structure support provided by both teachers and platforms. The results shed light on the positive impacts of integrating both autonomy and structure support and emphasize the critical role of teachers in a web‐based inquiry learning environment. Additionally, they infer a possible causal link between the efficient application of structure strategies and students' learning outcomes. What is already known about this topic A web‐based scientific inquiry learning environment is helpful in assisting science inquiry learning. However, appropriate scaffolding is critical for students in regulating their learning. The autonomy‐ and structure‐supportive strategies could positively influence students' academic performance in the traditional face‐to‐face environment. However, how to integrate both strategies in web‐based learning environments deserves more exploration. Both teachers and platforms should make important contributions in providing structure support, but empirical evidence on how to integrate both are highly needed. What this paper adds The findings of the current study contribute to the growing body of literature by highlighting the potential importance of self‐determination theory (SDT) in designing instructional strategies from an integrated perspective, particularly in a web‐based scientific learning environment. The results shed light on the positive impacts of integrating both autonomy and structure support, but also provide more implications inferring a possible causal link between the efficient application of structure strategies and students' learning outcomes. The results further indicated the essential role of teachers in a web‐based inquiry science environment. Implications for practice and/or policy As we recognize the significance of autonomy‐supportive web‐based learning environments, its weaknesses should not be ignored. In designing such a platform, appropriate str...

This study aimed to explore what factors affect teachers’ acceptance and instructional use of ICT in Chinese higher vocational colleges. Grounded in the modified UTAUT model, the current study investigated the direct and indirect effects of teachers’ performance expectancy, effort expectancy, external conditions, and behavioral intentions on using ICT in teaching. A total of 6087 teachers from 219 vocational colleges in 28 provinces in China participated in a large-scale survey. Structural equation modeling revealed that the teachers’ psychological perceptions (including performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and intention to use ICT technology) and the external support conditions (including professional development support, infrastructures, the climate of organizational reform and innovation, and teacher performance assessment mechanisms) significantly directly affect the use of ICT in Chinese higher vocational college teachers’ teaching practice. Moreover, this study confirmed the mediating role of teachers’ intention to use ICT in teaching in the relationship between teachers’ psychological perceptions and ICT instructional usage behavior. However, there were differences in the significance of these variables in the chain effect of teachers’ intention to use ICT. These findings expand our understanding of the factors influencing ICT use in teaching among VET teachers in China, thus providing practical implications for higher vocational college managers to promote teachers’ ICT teaching behaviors.

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