Using the student perceptions of assessment questionnaire (SPAQ) to develop an assessment typology for science classes
- Authors: Dorman, Jeffrey , Waldrip, Bruce , Fisher, Darrell
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Foundation Journal of Science Education Vol. 9, no. 1 (2008), p. 13-17
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: This article reports research conducted on students’ perceptions of assessment in science classes in Queensland and Western Australia. A specially developed instrument, the Student Perceptions of Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ) which assesses Congruence with Planned Learning, Authenticity, Student Consultation, Transparency, and Diversity was used to collect data from 3,055 students. Hierarchical cluster analysis resulted in a four cluster solution being accepted. While one cluster of 799 students held positive perceptions of assessment, another cluster of 640 students held negative views. The SPAQ allows for a greater focus on classroom-based perceptions of assessment rather than crude external accountability measures that decontextualise classroom assessment.
Interpersonal behaviour styles of primary education teachers during science lessons
- Authors: Fisher, Darrell , den Brok, Perry , Waldrip, Bruce , Dorman, Jeffrey
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Learning Environments Research Vol. 14, no. 3 (2011), p. 187-204
- Full Text: false
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- Description: This study reports the first development in Australia of primary science teacher typologies of teacher–student interpersonal behaviour, which was measured by students’ perceptions using the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI). Earlier work with the QTI in The Netherlands has revealed eight different interpersonal styles, which were later confirmed with an American sample of secondary-school teachers and which were similar to types found with Australian secondary-school science teachers. The present study investigated the extent to which typologies found in earlier studies also apply to primary teachers. A cluster analysis was used to determine Australian typologies and to compare these with earlier findings. Prior typologies could only be partially confirmed, and the found typology of six styles was able to explain variance in both student outcomes and perceptions of cultural elements of the learning environment.
Identifying exemplary science teachers through their students' perceptions of the assessment process
- Authors: Waldrip, Bruce , Fisher, Darrell , Dorman, Jeffrey
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Research in Science and Technology Education Vol. 27, no. 1 (2009), p. 117-129
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: This paper reports on part of a large-scale study aimed at examining students’ perceptions of assessment. This paper will report on a study utilising mixed methodology in 150 Australian middle school classrooms. The purpose of the study described in this paper was to use the Students’ Perceptions of Assessment Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (SPAQ) to identify and describe exemplary science teachers. With a sample of over 3000 science students, the reliability of the SPAQ scales ranged from 0.62 to 0.82. The exemplary teachers were identified as those whose students’ perceptions were more than one standard deviation above the mean on three of the five scales of Congruence with planned learning, Transparency, Authenticity, Student consultation, and Diversity. The construct validity of the SPAQ to identify these exemplary teachers was confirmed through interviews with students and these views are reported in the article.
Changing primary students' perceptions of teacher interpersonal behaviours in science
- Authors: Waldrip, Bruce , Reene, Paula , Fisher, Darrell , Dorman, Jeffrey
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Research in Science Education Vol. 38, no. 2 (2008), p. 213-235
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: The paper reports on part of a large-scale study aimed at examining students’ perceptions of teacher–student interactions. This paper will report on a study utilising mixed methodology in 12 Queensland primary classrooms. After the students’ perceptions were established, the teachers, through a consultative process, developed strategies to change the students’ perceptions of their classroom over a 3 month period. The paper reports on what strategies these teachers utilised and what changes in students’ perceptions resulted. The classroom teachers were interviewed about the change in students’ perceptions, what changes they had sought to promote in their classrooms, and what they felt had been achieved in their classrooms. The study found that students were able to articulate what changes the teacher had implemented, what their reaction was to these changes and their perception of the classroom environment as a result of these implemented strategies.