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Session Information
09 SES 06 A, The Relations Between Teacher Quality, Instructional Quality and Student Outcome And Their Roles In The Context Of School Climate
Symposium
Contribution
The aim of the study was to investigate causal effects of teacher characteristics and school climate on mathematics achievement, taking advantage of data from TIMSS. International large-scale studies, such as TIMSS, typically have a cross-sectional design. With such designs it is difficult to establish causal relations between variables, because observed relations are influenced by omitted variables, reverse causation, and errors of measurement (Murnane & Willet, 2010). However, by investigating within-country change over time, biasing influence from omitted variables in the form of fixed country characteristics is avoided, thereby increasing the possibility to make correct causal inferences. Furthermore, with aggregated data, errors of measurement have only little impact. The analyses therefore were based on a panel data set formed by data aggregated to the country level from the 38 countries which participated with grade 8 in both TIMSS 2007 and TIMSS 2011 (Mullis et al., 2012). Different methods have been devised in order to control for the effect of the units which are subject to repeated measurements, such as regressions based on difference scores, or regression analyses in which units are identified with dummy variables. Here we applied structural equation modelling (SEM) techniques, which offer several advantages such as use of both latent and manifest variables, and possibilities to compare models based on different assumptions (Bollen & Brand, 2008). The analyses focused teacher characteristics (educational level, teaching experience and major academic discipline studied), professional development, self-efficacy and school climate (SEAS), which in previous research have been shown to influence mathematics achievement (Kyriakides et al., 2010; Wang & Degol, 2015). Results showed that the teachers’ attained level of education had effects on mathematics achievement. Quite substantial effects of professional development on student achievement were also identified. Teacher self-efficacy, as assessed by self-reports of preparedness for teaching in different domains, was positively, but insignificantly, related to student achievement. No effects were found of the teacher characteristics years of teaching experience and the major academic discipline studied. SEAS did not satisfy ideals of unidimensionality, and only items reflecting parental support for student achievement and students’ desire to perform well were significantly related to student achievement. No differences were found in the strength of effects for OECD and non-OECD countries. It is concluded that there was both agreement and disagreement between current and previous findings, and that the reasons for the disagreements need to be investigated in further research.
References
Bollen, K. A., & Brand, J. E. (2008). Fixed and Random Effects in Panel Data Using Structural Equations Models. California Center for Population Research, On-Line Working Paper Series, PWP-CCPR-2008-003 Kyriakides, L., Creemers, B., Antoniou, P., & Demetriou, D. (2010). A synthesis of studies searching for school factors: implications for theory and research. British Educational Research Journal, 36(5), 807-830. doi: 10.1080/01411920903165603. Mullis, I.V.S., Martin, M.O., Foy, P., & Arora, A. (2012). TIMSS 2011 International Results in Mathematics. Chestnut Hill, MA: TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center, Boston College. Murnane, R. J., & Willett, J. B. (2010). Methods matter: Improving causal inference in educational and social science research. Oxford University Press. Wang, M.-T., & Degol, J. L. (2015). School Climate: a Review of the Construct, Measurement, and Impact on Student Outcomes. Educational Psychology Review, 1-38.
Programme by Network 2019
00. Central Events (Keynotes, EERA-Panel, EERJ Round Table, Invited Sessions)
Network 1. Continuing Professional Development: Learning for Individuals, Leaders, and Organisations
Network 2. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Network 3. Curriculum Innovation
Network 4. Inclusive Education
Network 5. Children and Youth at Risk and Urban Education
Network 6. Open Learning: Media, Environments and Cultures
Network 7. Social Justice and Intercultural Education
Network 8. Research on Health Education
Network 9. Assessment, Evaluation, Testing and Measurement
Network 10. Teacher Education Research
Network 11. Educational Effectiveness and Quality Assurance
Network 12. LISnet - Library and Information Science Network
Network 13. Philosophy of Education
Network 14. Communities, Families and Schooling in Educational Research
Network 15. Research Partnerships in Education
Network 16. ICT in Education and Training
Network 17. Histories of Education
Network 18. Research in Sport Pedagogy
Network 19. Ethnography
Network 20. Research in Innovative Intercultural Learning Environments
Network 22. Research in Higher Education
Network 23. Policy Studies and Politics of Education
Network 24. Mathematics Education Research
Network 25. Research on Children's Rights in Education
Network 26. Educational Leadership
Network 27. Didactics – Learning and Teaching
Network 28. Sociologies of Education
Network 29. Reserach on Arts Education
Network 30. Research on Environmental und Sustainability Education
Network 31. Research on Language and Education (LEd)
Network 32. Organizational Education
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