Refine
Year of publication
Document Type
- Article (34)
- Monograph/Edited Volume (5)
- Postprint (2)
- Doctoral Thesis (1)
- Other (1)
Language
- English (43) (remove)
Is part of the Bibliography
- yes (43)
Keywords
- Reading comprehension (4)
- Reading strategies (4)
- Self-regulated learning (3)
- Bilingualism (2)
- Handwriting production (2)
- Kinematics (2)
- Metacognition (2)
- Morphemes (2)
- Spelling (2)
- Syllables (2)
Institute
- Department Grundschulpädagogik (43) (remove)
Although the general development of mathematical abilities in primary school has been the focus of many researchers, the development of place value understanding has rarely been investigated to date. This is possibly due to the lack of conceptual approaches and empirical studies related to this topic. To fill this gap, a theory-driven and empirically validated model was developed that describes five sequential conceptual levels of place value understanding. The level sequence model gives us the ability to estimate general abilities and difficulties in primary school pupils in the development of a conceptual place value understanding. The level sequence model was tried and tested in Germany, and given that number words are very differently constructed in German and in the languages used in South African classrooms, this study aims to investigate whether this level sequence model can be transferred to South Africa. The findings based on the responses of 198 Grade 2-4 learners show that the English translation of the test items results in the same item level allocation as the original German test items, especially for the three basic levels. Educational implications are provided, in particular concrete suggestions on how place value might be taught according to the model and how to collect specific empirical data related to place value understanding.
The goal of this research was to highlight the role social regulatory processes play in making students’ teamwork in reciprocal teaching (RT) groups (a classroom activity in which students take the teacher’s role in small group reading sessions) effective. In addition to teamwork quality, we expected peer feedback to be a key factor in enhancing students’ reading comprehension achievements. Because previous research (Schünemann et al. in Contemp Educ Psychol 38:289–305, 2013) has shown that procedures of self-regulated learning (SRL) augment the effects of RT methods, we further assumed that such procedures would promote the quality of students’ collaborative efforts. In a cluster-randomized trial, students in 12 fifth-grade classes practiced a strategic approach to reading either in a RT condition or in a RT + SRL condition. In one of the 14 sessions, students’ interactive behavior was videotaped. Strategy use and reading comprehension were assessed at pretest, posttest, and maintenance. Performance differences between conditions were reliable only at maintenance. A multilevel mediation analysis showed that relative to RT students, RT + SRL students were better able to provide their teammates with informative feedback and organize their group work in a task-focused manner. Only feedback quality mediated the sustainability of treatment effects on strategy use and reading comprehension. In essence, this research suggests that effective reading comprehension trainings should integrate explicit instruction and practice in reading strategies, SRL, and focus on supportive peer processes in small groups with extensive instruction and practice in peer feedback.
Background: The aim of the present study was to investigate the psychometric characteristics of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) in a sample of dementia patients and their spousal caregivers. Methods: We investigated the reliability and validity of the 14-item PSS in a sample of 80 couples, each including one spouse who had been diagnosed with mild to moderate dementia (mean age 75.55, SD = 5.85, 38.7% female) and one spousal caregiver (mean age 73.06, SD = 6.75, 61.3% female). We also examined the factor structure and sensitivity of the scale with regard to gender differences. Results: Exploratory factor analysis of the PSS revealed a two-factor solution for the scale; the first factor reflected general stress while the second factor consisted of items reflecting the perceived ability to cope with stressors. A confirmatory factor analysis verified that the data were a better fit for the two-factor model than a one-factor model. The two factors of the PSS showed good reliability for patients as well as for caregivers ranging between alpha = 0.73 and alpha = 0.82. Perceived stress was significantly positively correlated with depressive symptomatology in both caregivers and patients. Mean PSS scores did not significantly differ between male and female patients nor did they differ between male and female caregivers. Conclusion: The present data indicate that the PSS provides a reliable and valid measure of perceived stress in dementia patients and their caregivers.
In this study, reciprocal teaching (RT) was combined with specific self-regulation procedures to promote the reading comprehension of fifth grade students. Twenty four classes with N = 534 students were assigned to RT plus strategy implementation procedures (RT +SIP), RT plus outcome regulation procedures (RT + ORP), RT plus strategy implementation and outcome regulation procedures (RT+ SRL), or RT without explicit instruction in self-regulation. At maintenance students assigned to the three self-regulation conditions outperformed RT students according to a standardized measure of reading comprehension. RT+ SIP and RT + SRL students outperformed RI as well as RI + ORP students using a measure of reading strategy performance. However, reading comprehension was only mediated by strategy performance under the RT + SRL condition. Among students assigned to the RI + ORP condition, an improvement in reading motivation between pretest and posttest and between posttest and maintenance was observed. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
In this classroom intervention study, reciprocal teaching (RI) of reading strategies was combined with explicit instruction in self-regulated learning (SRL) to promote the reading comprehension of fifth-grade students (N = 306). Twelve intact classes were randomly assigned either to an RT + SRL condition or to an RI condition without explicit instruction in self-regulation. Three additional classes served as a no-treatment comparison group. Strategies instruction was delivered by trained assistants in conventional German language lessons. Students practiced the application of these strategies in small groups. Both at posttest and at maintenance (8 weeks after the intervention), students in the two intervention conditions (RT and RI + SRL) outperformed comparison students in measures of reading comprehension, strategy-related task performance, and self-efficacy for reading. Relative to RI students, students in the RI + SRL condition were better able to maintain training-induced performance gains over the follow-up interval. A moderated mediation analysis revealed that this difference in the sustainability of the two treatments was (a) mediated by the successful mastery of the learned strategies and (b) most evident among students with poor reading fluency skills.
Editorial
(2008)
Searching for an adequate method to investigate human development (especially the development of theoretical thinking) Vygotsky and his collaborators developed the causal genetic method The basic idea of this method consists in the investigation of psychic functions and structures by their formation under controlled conditions'(for instance via a formation experiment in classroom). But is this method also applicable in instructional settings using modern communications media? This paper is an attempt to find. an answer to the question: By what means is the investigation of the formation of theoretical thinking realizable through the application of the causal-genetic method in instructional settings using hypermedia and distance learning? However, a closer examination of the question itself shows that there are three interrelated aspects, namely: the investigation and formation of theoretical thinking; distance learning using modern communications media; the causal-genetic method. It will be shown that in a formation experiment learning with a hyper-media- educational program, which is based on the theory of learning- activity,' students reach a new level of cognitive development which is characterized by the growing ability of complex and dialectical thinking