An analytic framework for assessing distinctive course features within and across grade levels

Strage, Amy; Tyler, Adam; Rohwer, William D.; Thomas, John W.

doi:10.1016/s0361-476x(87)80002-4

Cited by 17 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…However, provisions of this kind seem to discourage students from engaging in active, diligent, generative study activities on their own, and may even impede the development of competence at autonomous learning associated with academic success at subsequent grade levels (Thomas et al, 1991). That the presence of compensatory practices is widespread at the secondary school level (Sanford, 1987;Strage et al, 1987), and that differences between supports and com-…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…reading and rereading) to a far greater extent than did college students when preparing for tests (Christopoulos et al, 1987). We concluded that these grade level differences in students' study activities were attributable to other differences we observed between these grade levels in particular features of courses, principally the tendency for tests at the college versus secondary level to be composed of items that required the integration of ideas as opposed to the reproduction of information and the tendency for secondary level but not college instructors to rehearse criterion responses prior to the test (Strage, Tyler, Rohwer, and Thomas, 1987).…”

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confidence: 81%

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Interrelationships among students' study activities, self‐concept of academic ability, and achievement as a function of characteristics of high‐school biology courses

Thomas

Bol

Warkentin

et al. 1993

Applied Cognitive Psychology

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This investigation focused on the interrelationships among students' study activities, students' self-concept of academic ability ratings, students' academic achievement, and instructional practices in 12 high school biology courses. Using a framework derived from a previous investigation, course features were classified into those that appear to (a) place demands on, (b) support, or (c) compensate for student engagement in particular study activities. Students' study activities, self-concept of academic ability ratings, and achievement were measured with experimenter-developed instruments. Results are reported for (a) characteristics of instruments and course features, (b) relationships between central factors of the investigation, and (c) multi-level relationships between course features and student variables. Results at the student level indicated that self-concept of academic ability and, to a lesser extent, students' study activities were positively associated with student achievement. Students' self-ccncept of academic ability ratings were also linked to students' engagement in generative, proactive study activities. At the course level the supportive practices of providing challenging homework assignments and extensive feedback on student coursework were associated with student engagement in effortful, generative, proactive study activities. The provision of extensive feedback was also associated with high student achievement. Multi-level relationships were analysed using hierarchical linear modelling (HLM) analyses. These analyses revealed, for example, that in courses in which little or no feedback is given on homework assignments, the relationship between achievement and student engagement in diligent effort management activities was enhanced. Other HLM analyses were conducted to examine the mediating role of course features on the relationship between students' self-concept of academic ability and their study activities and achievement. For example, the presence of challenging course demands was associated with an enhancement of the relationship between self-concept of academic ability and achievement whereas the presence of instructor provisions (supports and compensations) designed to reduce course demands was associated with a reduction in this relationship.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 81%

Interrelationships among students' study activities, self‐concept of academic ability, and achievement as a function of characteristics of high‐school biology courses

Thomas

Bol

Warkentin

et al. 1993

Applied Cognitive Psychology

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“…As tests become more central, teachers dedicate increasing amounts of class time to content that will be tested, and also to preparing their students for the level of mastery of the material that they will be required to demonstrate on those tests (Frederiksen & Collins, 1989;Lomax, West, Harmon, Viator, & Madaus, 1992;Madaus, 1988;Nickerson, 1989;Norris, 1989;Snow, 1989). Several authors have pointed out that this may not be all bad, if the tests call for higher-order levels of mastery of the material and if the demands inherent in these items have not been effectively negated by instructional compensations such as having seen the exact item before and had the opportunity to memorize its answer (Bol & Strage, 1996;Madaus, 1988;Resnick & Resnick, 1994;Strage, Thomas, Christopoulos, & Rohwer, 1987). While the overall weight of tests was similar across the groups of teachers participating in this study, the cognitive demand of the items varied.…”

Section: General Discussion and Implications For Teacher Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

High school biology: What makes it a challenge for teachers?

Strage

Bol

1996

J. Res. Sci. Teach.

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This study contributes to our understanding of the complex issues inherent in dealing with the heterogeneity of current high school science classrooms, by reporting on in-depth interviews with 38 experienced biology teachers. Analyses of teachers' responses revealed complex and occasionally counterintuitive relationships among: (a) their perceptions of what was distinctive about their school, its biology program, or their students; (b) their allocation of class time; (c) their efforts to individualize instruction and meet the needs of a heterogeneous student population; (d) their student outcome goals; and (e) the methods they used to evaluate student progress. Thus, for example, of the 9 teachers who cited the diversity of their students, 4 also commented on their poor motivation, but another 4 also commented on their high motivation. In addition, teachers reported using a similar range of instructional formats but for different reasons, depending on the characteristics of their students (e.g., cooperative learning groups used to compensate for poor attention spans, to challenge bright students, and to foster social tolerance). Discussion of these findings addresses several points of relevance for science education, teacher preparation, and curriculum reform.The present study had two major aims. The first was to report the results of detailed analyses of the ways in which high school biology is taught by experienced teachers in a representative sample of classrooms, so as to consider the many different ways a particular curriculum can be approached, and to discuss the contexts in which specific teaching strategies seemed most successful. A second major goal of this study was to consider the implications for teacher preparation, and how teachers can best be equipped to deliver challenging curricula to the dauntingly varied group of youngsters making up America's schools today.Current reconceptualizations of curricular frameworks reflect the goal of helping students integrate what they learn in the science classroom into their daily lives, by placing the curriculum content in more ecologically valid contexts, making it more inquiry-based, and urging the adoption of outcomes assessment measures which tap students' ability to engage in guided discovery activities rather than their memory for content per se (cf., for example, recommendations of the National Science Teachers Association, 1982;Bronkhurst & Yaeger, 1986). Such reconceptualizations also now place greater emphasis on the need to develop students' critical 0

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“…The framework that emerged from this study includes a threefold distinction among course features (Strage, Tyler, Rohwer, and Thomas 1987). First, courses can impose different demands on students' study activities.…”

Section: A Framework For Understanding How Features Of Courses Might mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, whereas supports prompt students to cope with demands on their own, compensations reduce the effect of that demand, thus reducing the need for students to engage in the appropriate study behavior. In our previous research, we found compensatory practices to be nearly universal at the secondary level (Strage et al, 1987). For example, whereas college instructors might use the last class before a test to answer students' questions (a support), secondary-level teachers typically distributed handouts and conducted review sessions during this class period.…”

Section: A Framework For Understanding How Features Of Courses Might mentioning

confidence: 99%

Antecedents of college students' study deficiencies: the relationship between course features and students' study activities

Bol¹,

Warkentin²

1991

High Educ

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Students entering institutions of higher learning have been observed to be deficient in the skills and dispositions necessary for engaging in sustained autonomous study. Evidence from investigations comparing instructional features and students' study activities across different courses and grade levels suggests that (a) particular features of courses may act to prompt or inhibit the development of proficiency at academic studying; and (b) the difficulties experienced by postsecondary students may be traced to certain discontinuties between characteristics of courses at the secondary versus postsecondary levels. These discontinuities can be described in terms of three dimensions: (a) differences in the demands made on particular study activities associated with different coursework requirements; (b) the degree to which instructors provide supportive practices designed to facilitate or sustain students' productive study activities; and (c) the prevalance of teaching strategies designed to compensate students for their study deficiencies. Using evidence from extant research on studying and results from recent investigation of secondary-level courses, the claim is made that particular patterns of instructorimplemented demands (workload, test difficulty, and latitude for self-direction) and compensations (test review practices, overlap between test items and instructor handouts, and the presence of 'safety nets') might account for deficiencies in the study activities of postsecondary graduates. Further, improving the level of preparedness of secondary-level graduates for the demands associated with higher education courses is discussed in terms of the need for the provision of particular support practices (e.g., feedback, clear performance expectations, and guided practice) in secondary-level courses.

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An analytic framework for assessing distinctive course features within and across grade levels

Cited by 17 publications

References 23 publications

Interrelationships among students' study activities, self‐concept of academic ability, and achievement as a function of characteristics of high‐school biology courses

Interrelationships among students' study activities, self‐concept of academic ability, and achievement as a function of characteristics of high‐school biology courses

High school biology: What makes it a challenge for teachers?

Antecedents of college students' study deficiencies: the relationship between course features and students' study activities

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