Browsing by Author "Rawlins, Peter Leslie Charles"
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- ItemAcceleration in mathematics : students' perspectives : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Educational Studies (Mathematics) at Massey University(Massey University, 2000) Rawlins, Peter Leslie CharlesThis study examines accelerate programmes in mathematics within New Zealand secondary schools from the participant students point of view. Focus group interviews and questionnaires were used to gather information from students about their acceleration experiences in four state secondary schools. An analysis of the data gathered reveals that for many students, the opportunity to study one or more Bursary subjects earlier than their age cohort is seen as a motivational factor for participation in acceleration programmes. This opportunity allows them to either broaden their subject base at the Bursary level, or to repeat a subject and try and improve on their marks, perhaps securing a Scholarship. Not all students have long-term goals, however and many students appreciate the immediate challenge of working one year ahead of their normal age cohort. Contrary to fears identified by educational practitioners, this research does not support the commonly held belief that students who are accelerated will suffer from undue stress that may hinder their social and emotional development. Participants perceive that inclusion in the acceleration programme has not affected their friendship base and they report being comfortable being in classes with older students. Students perceive that they have a normal adolescent social and emotional development. Coupled with these findings is the fact that, almost without exception, participants felt that participation in an acceleration programme had been beneficial to their learning needs. No significant problems with compacting the curriculum or gaps in knowledge were identified by the majority of students in the research sample. Overall, this study demonstrates students' endorsement of acceleration programmes. Acceleration is perceived as a viable and valuable tool for meeting the educational needs of gifted and talented students within New Zealand secondary schools. It should be remembered, however, that acceleration is not the only tool available and schools are urged to develop individual, cohesive and flexible programmes to meet the needs of this very varied group.
- ItemStudents' perceptions of the formative potential of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of PhD in Education(Massey University, 2007) Rawlins, Peter Leslie CharlesResearch evidence suggests that appropriate use of formative assessment promotes effective learning. Improved learning occurs when assessment is viewed as integral to learning, and when it is supported by coherent assessment systems. Although assessment systems designed primarily around the formative purpose can provide both formative and summative information, a tension exists in practice between the summative and formative purposes of assessment. Using a theoretical framework developed by Sadler (1989), this research project investigated whether New Zealand’s new secondary school Standards-Based Assessment qualification—the National Certificate Educational Achievement (NCEA)—has the potential to satisfy both summative and formative purposes of assessment in mathematics. Theorising from a contemporary sociocultural perspective of learning, this project recognised the situated nature and interpersonal dimension of knowledge, and the impact of the social environment in promoting and directing learning. Theorising from this perspective offered opportunities to examine classroom assessment practices from a new perspective. To date, insufficient attention has been paid to the ‘students’ voice’ concerning educational matters that directly affect them. Given the situated nature of students’ engagement with formative practices a case study approach was used to investigate students’ perceptions of the formative potential of NCEA mathematics assessment tasks. Three Y12 mathematics classes from an urban secondary school formed the case study singularity for this study. Focus group interviews with nine students were conducted across the year, complemented by classroom observations, a focus group interview with the teachers, and a quantitative questionnaire with all students in each of the three Year 12 mathematics classes. An examination of the philosophical and structural design of NCEA revealed a strong potential for it to serve a duality of both formative and summative purpose of assessment. However the formative potential of NCEA was yet to be fully realised in the case study classrooms. Students’ underdeveloped knowledge of assessment criteria effectively reduced the potential for students’ independent use of self assessment strategies. This project also identified that teachers and students held differing views on preferred feedback practices. The teachers perceived that students did not read written feedback, and this perception significantly influenced the amount of written feedback that they offered to students. In contrast, students clearly displayed that they read, valued and used scaffolded written feedback to improve their learning. While the teachers preferred to offer oral feedback, students preferred to engage with their peers to use feedback to develop corrective strategies and deepen learning. The project has made a number of practical and theoretical suggestions to improve students’ understandings of the assessment criteria they are working towards, and to more effectively integrate the collaborative use of formative feedback into students’ learning experiences. In particular, it has suggested two additional perspectives on the development and use of formative assessment in a sociocultural learning environment. Firstly, that students’ knowledge of the role of formative assessment is socially and contextually situated, and develops through the social interactions that occur in the classroom. Secondly, the potential exists for formative assessment practices to stimulate collaborative learning opportunities within communities of practice.