Showing papers in "Review of Educational Research in 2001"

Extrinsic Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation in Education: Reconsidered Once Again:

Abstract: The finding that extrinsic rewards can undermine intrinsic motivation has been highly controversial since it first appeared (Deci, 1971). A meta-analysis published in this journal (Cameron & Pierce, 1994) concluded that the undermining effect was minimal and largely inconsequential for educational policy. However, a more recent meta-analysis (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 1999) showed that the Cameron and Pierce meta-analysis was seriously flawed and that its conclusions were incorrect. This article briefly reviews the results of the more recent meta-analysis, which showed that tangible rewards do indeed have a substantial undermining effect. The meta-analysis provided strong support for cognitive evaluation theory (Deci & Ryan, 1980), which Cameron and Pierce had advocated abandoning. The results are briefly discussed in terms of their relevance for educational practice.

Teaching Reading Comprehension Strategies to Students With Learning Disabilities: A Review of Research

Abstract: We review the body of research on reading comprehension for students with learning disabilities. First, we describe the factors that lead to the comprehension difficulties of these students. Next we describe our procedures for reviewing the literature on effective instructional methods for this population. Next we review the body of studies involving instructional methods for improving the comprehension of narrative text. This is followed by the research on techniques for improving the comprehension of expository text. We conclude with a discussion of ongoing issues in the field—in particular, (a) the increased use of socially mediated instruction, (b) the need to teach multiple strategies to students to improve comprehension, and (c) controversies in how important it is to explicitly teach specific strategies versus merely providing flexible frameworks to structure dialogue on texts read.

Systematic Phonics Instruction Helps Students Learn to Read: Evidence from the National Reading Panel’s Meta-Analysis

Abstract: A quantitative meta-analysis evaluating the effects of systematic phonics instruction compared to unsystematic or no-phonics instruction on learning to read was conducted using 66 treatment-control comparisons derived from 38 experiments. The overall effect of phonics instruction on reading was moderate, d = 0.41. Effects persisted after instruction ended. Effects were larger when phonics instruction began early (d = 0.55) than after first grade (d = 0.27). Phonics benefited decoding, word reading, text comprehension, and spelling in many readers. Phonics helped low and middle SES readers, younger students at risk for reading disability (RD), and older students with RD, but it did not help low achieving readers that included students with cognitive limitations. Synthetic phonics and larger-unit systematic phonics programs produced a similar advantage in reading. Delivering instruction to small groups and classes was not less effective than tutoring. Systematic phonics instruction helped children learn to ...

Small Group and Individual Learning with Technology: A Meta-Analysis:

Abstract: This study quantitatively synthesized the empirical research on the effects of social context (i.e., small group versus individual learning) when students learn using computer technology. In total, 486 independent findings were extracted from 122 studies involving 11,317 learners. The results indicate that, on average, small group learning had significantly more positive effects than individual learning on student individual achievement (mean ES = +0.15), group task performance (mean ES = +0.31), and several process and affective outcomes. However, findings on both individual achievement and group task performance were significantly heterogeneous. Through weighted least squares univariate and multiple regression analyses, we found that variability in each of the two cognitive outcomes could be accounted for by a few technology, task, grouping, and learner characteristics in the studies.

Literacy and Learning Out of School: A Review of Theory and Research

Abstract: In this article we review research on literacy in out-of-school settings. Our first purpose is to identify the conceptual advances in theories of literacy that have arisen from non-school-based research and to trace their evolution. We are especially interested in clarifying the historical roots of current theories. A second purpose is to highlight recent research on literacy in out-of-school settings that exemplifies the range and dimensions of current work. Finally, we call for an examination of the relationships between school and nonschool contexts as a new direction for theory and research. We ask, How can research on literacy and out-of-school learning help us to think anew about literacy teaching and learning across a range of contexts, including school?

Effects of Interventions to Promote Self-Determination for Individuals With Disabilities:

Abstract: Self-determination, the combination of skills, knowledge, and beliefs that enable a person to engage in goal-directed, self-regulated, autonomous behavior, has become an important part of special education and related services for people with disabilities. Research on the outcomes of self-determination interventions has been sparse. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive review of literature and used quantitative methods of meta-analysis to investigate what self-determination interventions have been studied, what groups of individuals with disabilities have been taught self-determination, and what levels of outcomes have been achieved using self-determination interventions. Fifty-one studies were identified that intervened to promote one or more components of self-determination; 22 were included in meta-analyses. The median effect size across 100 group intervention comparisons (contained in 9 studies) was 1.38. In contrast, 13 single subject studies included 18 interventions and produced a median per...

Gestures: Their Role in Teaching and Learning:

Abstract: Gestures are central to human cognition and constitute a pervasive element of human communication across cultures; even congenitally blind individuals use gestures when they talk. Yet there exists virtually no educational research that focuses on the role of gestures in knowing and learning and the implications they have for designing and evaluating learning environments. The purpose of this article is to provide a review of the existing literature in anthropology, linguistics, psychology, and education and, in the context of several concrete analyses of gesture use, to articulate potential focus questions that are relevant to educational research of knowing, learning, and teaching.

Gender Equity and Information Technology in Education: The Second Decade

Abstract: This article presents a review on gender differences and information and communication technology (ICT) in primary and secondary education. First the rapid development of the use of ICT in education is outlined. Then the topics of access to computers, computer-related learning processes, and educational outcomes are discussed. The review also provides insight into the background of gender differences in participation in computer activities and performance in relation to ICT. The research reviewed focused on the role of teachers and fellow classmates, on the different approaches of girls and boys to ICT, and on the preferences of girls regarding the structure and design of software. The research also analyzed the complex meaning of computer attitudes as both a cause and a consequence of differences in the participation and performance of girls and boys. The extent and nature of these differences vary from application to application.

Genres of Research in Multicultural Education.

Abstract: This article develops a conceptual framework of research genres that illustrate the complex multidisciplinary roots of multicultural education. The primary objective is to provide educational researchers and teacher educators with a lens as they design new (or rethink existing) inquiry and teacher preparation programs in the meta-disciplinary field of multicultural education. Other objectives are to encourage multicultural theoreticians to consult a range of original research (as opposed to other theoreticians and secondary or tertiary sources in the field), and to underscore hopeful possibilities for practice. The framework also invites a rethinking of the genres as conceptualized in this paper. The proposed genres originate from the author’s immersion in multi-cultural theory, research, and practice spanning over three decades. Examples of research are included to clarify the nature of the genres, as well as the interactive connections across genres within the framework as a whole and implications for p...

If Meaning Is Constructed, What Is It Made From? Toward a Cultural Theory of Reading

Abstract: This essay explores the notion of meaning, particularly as applied to acts of producing and reading texts. The analysis is grounded in principles of activity theory and cultural semiotics and focuses on the ways in which reading takes place among readers and texts in a culturally mediated, codified experience characterized here as the “transactional zone.” The author builds on Vygotsky’s work to argue that meaning comes through a reader’s generation of new texts in response to the text being read. As a means of accounting for this phenomenon, examples are provided from studies illustrating, for instance, Vygotsky’s zones of meaning, the dialogic role of composing during a reading transaction, and the necessity of culturally constructed subjectivity in meaning construction. The author concludes by locating meaning in the transactional zone in which signs become tools for extending or developing concepts and the richness of meaning coming from the potential of a reading transaction to generate new texts.“Wh...

Mentoring in the Preparation of Graduate Researchers of Color

Abstract: Schools of graduate education in the United States continue to be challenged to attract and retain students of color. We argue that effective mentoring within a department can improve multicultural students’ graduate school experience and better position them for success in their postdoctoral careers. To be an effective mentor, a faculty member must cultivate understanding of the experience of students from various cultural backgrounds. This task is especially challenging for White faculty members because of societal dynamics involving race and ethnicity. We propose actions to help faculty members enhance their multicultural competence in mentoring.

Rescaling Ordinal Data to Interval Data in Educational Research

Abstract: Many statistical procedures used in educational research are described as requiring that dependent variables follow a normal distribution, implying an interval scale of measurement. Despite the desirability of interval scales, many dependent variables possess an ordinal scale of measurement in which the differences among values composing the scale are unequal in terms of what is being measured, permitting only a rank ordering of scores. This means that data possessing an ordinal scale will not satisfy the assumption of normality needed in many statistical procedures and may produce biased statistical results that threaten the validity of inferences. This article shows how the measurement technique known as item response theory can be used to rescale ordinal data to an interval scale. The authors provide examples of rescaling using student performance data and argue that educational researchers should routinely consider rescaling ordinal data using item response theory.

Negative Effects of Reward on Intrinsic Motivation—A Limited Phenomenon: Comment on Deci, Koestner, and Ryan (2001):

Abstract: A major concern in educational settings is that the use of rewards and incentives may destroy students’ intrinsic motivation to perform activities. In collaboration with other researchers, the author conducted a meta-analysis of the literature that showed that negative effects of reward were limited and easily avoidable (Cameron & Pierce, 1994; Eisenberger & Cameron, 1996). Deci, Koestner, and Ryan (2001) suggest that our work was seriously flawed; they present a summary of their meta-analysis on the topic (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 1999a) and claim that rewards do substantially undermine intrinsic interest. In this comment, it is argued that there is no inherent negative property of reward. By organizing studies according to cognitive evaluation theory, Deci et al. (1999a) collapsed across distinct reward procedures and were able to obtain pervasive negative effects. When studies are organized according to the actual procedures used, however, negative effects are limited to a specific set of circumstances.

A Selective Synthesis of the Experimental Literature on Dynamic Assessment

Abstract: Dynamic assessment is a procedure that determines whether substantive changes occur in examinee behavior if feedback is provided across an array of increasingly complex or challenging tasks. This procedure contrasts with traditional models of assessment in which there is no feedback from the examiner on student performance. This article summarizes a meta-analysis of published studies on dynamic assessment. Thirty studies, which yielded 170 effect sizes (ESs), were reviewed. An analysis of main effects showed that ESs varied significantly as a function of ability group (underachievers yielded higher and children with learning disabilities yielded lower ESs than average, hearing-impaired, and mentally retarded participants did), chronological age (younger students yield higher ESs than older students do), sample size (studies with moderate sample sizes yielded larger ESs than did studies with small or large sample sizes), and type of assessment procedure (scaffolding and general strategies yielded larger ES...

Testing Accommodations for Examinees With Disabilities: A Review of Psychometric, Legal, and Social Policy Issues:

Abstract: The provision of testing accommodations for examinees with disabling conditions has become an important topic in recent years. This review presents a summary of the relevant issues. The first section traces the history of legislation related to the testing of individuals with disabilities and presents a brief summary of guidelines issued by relevant testing organizations. The second section provides a description of disabilities typically accommodated in large-scale examinations and highlights the ever-increasing role of learning disabilities in testing practice. Summaries of legal cases concerning testing accommodations are then presented. Next, psychometric issues are described, and results and ideas for future research are presented. The review also examines the emerging role of learning disabilities in the area of testing accommodations and addresses the intensely debated social policy questions related to equity and fairness in educational assessment.

The Pervasive Negative Effects of Rewards on Intrinsic Motivation: Response to Cameron (2001)

Abstract: Our meta-analysis (this issue) clarified when rewards undermine, leave unchanged, and enhance intrinsic motivation and pointed out flaws in Cameron and Pierce’s (1994) meta-analysis. Cameron’s (2001) commentary did not reveal any problems with our meta-analysis, nor did it defend the validity of Cameron and Pierce’s. Instead, Cameron referred to a fourth meta-analysis by her group; little detail was presented about the new meta-analysis, but it appears to have the same types of errors as the first three. Cameron also presented a new theoretical account of reward effects—the fourth by her group, which sequentially abandoned the previous ones as they were found wanting. Cameron concluded again that there is no reason to avoid using performance-contingent rewards in educational settings, yet her application of the research results to education lacks ecological validity.

Preparation of Educational Researchers in Philosophical Foundations of Inquiry

Abstract: In this article we examine the nature, scope, and significance of basic philosophical issues in the preparation of researchers. Following a brief review of the history of educational research and a discussion of the philosophy of science supporting much of this research, we present and discuss two central assertions in the context of the growing prominence of paradigmatic and methodological pluralism in education and the human sciences. The first assertion is that the curriculum for preparing researchers in education continues to be dominated by the epistemology of logical empiricism, the philosophy of science undergirding the quantitative research tradition. The second assertion is that research education tends to place a disproportionate emphasis on technical methods and procedures, with little attention given to the philosophical, moral, and political values that underpin procedural practices and that frame, however tacitly, the context for knowledge production. We argue that the hegemony of quantitati...