Reflective writing to inform conceptual frameworks and pilot interviews

individuals within international communities of practice to construct and adjust their worlds. I have placed these concepts, alongside initial observations of incidents which influence their conceptualisation and operation in table 1. Motivational concepts initial framework Critical incidents influencing motivational concepts framework initial observations Conflicting power agendas Naivety Frustration Lack of resources, lack of resource allocation Confusions over terminology and language Mis-matching assumptions about individual’s aims and motivations Lack of knowledge about historical and political background Conflicting cultures about role –age, gender, authority Intimacy Community Nostalgia Elitism High-context low context cultural mis-match Table 1: Motivational concepts within HE communities critical incidents influencing them initial observations Wenger points out that a community of practice is not necessarily a formal unit, but that “negotiating a joint enterprise gives rise to relations of mutual accountability amongst those involved.” Wenger, 1998. Two such units at KCMC reach across international boundaries: project initiatives, with language around goals and change, and expatriate teachers with a language around context and continuity.

3. Reflective writing to inform conceptual frameworks and pilot interviews

Reflective writing is a personal and subjective experience and I would now like to share with you my own experiences. The structure of my writing about experience at KCMC exemplifies one use of this type of writing. Writing in the third person was helpful in developing the following: 1. Personal skill in identifying and articulating critical incidents 2. A number of vignettes, to test whether they had a use in building an initial list of events influencing the initial conceptual framework not vice versa. Below are two examples about confusion over terminology and language: Scenario 1: I am the expert delivering a workshop to medical staff about using feedback and quality systems – peer observation and student evaluation. How do I start this off? She thought and chose a device with which she was comfortable: using a statement as a question – to get some feel for who was there, and to get consensus. “Of course, we all know that using student evaluation of 32 teaching is about reflective practice – right?” It was quite a nerve-wracking moment, and the answer was finally mostly no, what are you talking about, or a seriously blank look. To hide her embarrassment she said something along the lines of “well, that’s fine because this session is going to explain what that sort of practice is, why it’s important and how to start to apply it…” Regaining control calmed her nerves and gave her a minute to consider how to re-jig the structure of her session. Scenario 2: I am the coordinator negotiating practical detail about visits - Tanzania to the UK – for Senior Managers and academics. She sent off the email quickly, although she’d been thinking about the content for some time. What was on her mind was being polite and courteous and explaining that her decision was situational, not personal. The dates they had suggested to come were in a ridiculously short time how typical and how annoying – she’d been badgering them for months for dates and she didn’t want, couldn’t, organise it for them then. So she put her email together and thought nothing more of it, including that polite phrase around “In principle yes, but in practice, no.” When she first got their answer saying that they were organising to come she thought they were just being pushy. Then she looked at it more and realised that they really had mis-understood. Those top people really thought that no meant yes. She guessed it was more than a misreading of language – after all, the yes and no parts were clearly delineated. 4. Tools for analysis Developing and analysing a file of critical incidents has been used effectively by David Tripp within the school sector for both autobiographical action research and social critique Tripp, 1993. In the present context I use it as a locus for the identification of shared phenomena and the building of frameworks of understanding within which they act. It is essential to know that I use critical incidents not as concrete phenomena but rather as produced by the way we look at a situation - “a critical incident is an interpretation of the significance of an event.” Tripp, 1993 Initial themes are emerging from this range of sources but I locate my places within their generation using critical incident analysis. I cannot be an impartial observer. Robin Usher terms this approach research in the post-modern mode Usher, 2001 - where researchers must acknowledge that all research is located in knowledge-producing communities. As researchers we live in a world where the researcher must steer a course between context and findings, where one may well be a vehicle for subverting the other Sadlak 1998. The argument here is that we must be interested not only in results found, but also in where the search for information, and interpretations have come from. Where I come from forms a part of my challenge to the rhetoric and conceptual frameworks of collaborative development projects within Higher Education in Tanzania and other developing countries?, focussing on an informational paradigm to the exclusion of 33 relational understanding between communities of practice and which reflect interests rather than location Sadlack, 1998 A complexity in Finding out how experiences of teaching in KCMC Tanzanian contexts shapes UK HE teacher’s thinking is in combining two sometimes conflicting? approaches to gathering sometimes conflicting? types of narrative information: Combining approaches: • Gathering critical tales – based on the assumption that there are powerful determining structures underlying the world which are invisible to everyday understandings. The researchers job is to bring these out in the open and by so doing challenge their dominance. AND • Creating reflexive tales – which incorporate the researcher in the narrative, embodied within the contradictory privileges and struggles of the context being researched. Acknowledging that research is about how multiple ‘worlds’ are experienced or created, rather than describing the world which is ‘out there’ Sadlak, 1998 Gathering types of narrative: • Participant’s narratives through mixture of interviews observation focus group • Researcher’s narrative reflective diary product of research Our everyday lives are value laden. No action is accidental: there is enough literature and a wide enough range of well established theories within social science to make questioning this understanding foolish. A phenomenological approach, for example, leads us to uncover hidden values and understandings behind ordinary, everyday activity. What we do and how we do it shows us not only who we are, but who we think others are. Conversation analysis does much the same on a macro level, with speech as the point of action. Discourse analysis moves beyond this macro level and allows for a range of interactions and reactions. Grounded theory pushes the researcher to identify ‘what is there’ and then to analyse it in terms of social structures. Critical discourse analysis does the much the opposite – looking to see where balances of power exist and where imbalance is perpetuated, maintaining elites and an unethical status quo. 5. Developing a participatory epistemological approach Since my interests are in identifying themes in interaction and meaning as they apply to experiences of teaching between UK and Tanzanian HE professionals, and identifying the negotiation, and maintenance of power relations I am entering into an epistemological study. The value of my own experience is less clear, but must be acknowledged in the structure of emergent themes and approaches to data sources. 34 The HE environment is changing rapidly – for example the number of students in HE worldwide rose from 51 million in 1980 to about 82 million in 1995. That’s a 61 increase, which reflects the power of HE not only to reflect society and its changes, but to be a force for change Sadlack, 1998. To quote Jane Sadlak: Whatever specific characteristics we tend to associate with the concept of ‘globalisation’, it is an expression of the ‘new goepolitics’ in which a control over territory is of lesser importance that the control of, and access to all kinds of markets, the ability to generate and use knowledge and the capacity to develop new technology and human resources. As such, ‘globalisation’ becomes not only a complex interlinking of various and not only economic processes but also a sombrely dominant framework for anxiously peering into our future as individuals and members of society. Sadlack, 1998 It is clear that one means of beginning to understand the direction and force of global developments, and the social frameworks which underlie them, is through analysis of market trends, information management and institutional capacity building. An alternative approach would be to take a more experiential ‘bottom up’ one, analysing the experiences of individuals and their contribution to that albeit flexible global framework. This is the approach I take, with reference to the specific context already outlined, because it provides the best means of examining this portion of our understanding which is lacking how experiences of teaching in international contexts influences UK HE teacher’s thinking. Consequentially, in developing a methodology from this starting point it is clear that methods would necessarily encompass these aspects: 1. A critical perspective 2. Reflective, participatory approach to interaction with research contexts and participants 3. Collection and analysis of narrative 4. ‘bottom up’ approach to theoretical framework building 5. Explicit contextualisation of individual narratives with reference to global trends in Higher Education Outcomes based project evaluation misses the social and cultural aspects which shape experience and ‘success’ in the same way that a distributive model of social justice fails to recognise the existence and importance of social group and implicit values. It has been demonstrated, through research carried out in the corporate sector Hofstede, 1984 that success is dependent on shared or conflicting value patterns – or at least the ability to recognise and adapt, to shift the “mental map” of the implementer Hofstede, 1984. Success, in this context, refers to the development of equitable and respectful social relations as much as the structured distribution of resources including factual knowledge. Methods must therefore include the voice of participant groups narrative inducing interviews and the recording of particular situations, such as teaching or staff 35 discussions, so that they can be returned to by the researcher or viewed by others observation audio or visual recording Gert Hofstede’s model of four dimensions of cross-cultural interaction Hofstede, 1984, particularly his discussion of power-distance relations provides a starting point. Fairclough 1989 and Young 1990 support a critical ideological stance. Young in particular advocates attendance to group difference, and rejection of the autonomous and rational individual as the normative unit of social action. 6. Framing the project The first stage in developing from these a practical application is pilot interviewing. In following a method of interviewing designed to encourage narrative and story telling I learnt not to prompt participants. Pilot interview participants have been academics at the University of Nottingham with experience of teaching in HE in various parts of Africa. The question I put to them was this: “Tell me about your experiences, whatever you think is important to you” In coding their lengthy responses, interview participants provide examples of issues which sustain my initial thematic template and which it would be useful to specifically address in a second interview. Since they freely spoke about many of the issues listed, this emphasises that they are indeed live issues although not every interviewee mentioned all of them. For example: Lack of resources, lack of resource allocation “So the arrival…yea, it was like, oh my God it really is like this and that, um, it really is like um poor Ghanaians, they haven’t got anything.” “..then I found that there were no teachers after a while…or there were teachers who turned up occasionally.” Naivity “Well I was I guess I found this stuff out what was going on, I think I arrived rather naïve ok and romantic…” “so I kind of had some supposedly intellectual understanding of what was going in to but I don’t think you ever get any sense of emotional understanding.” Mis-matching assumptions about individuals aims and motivations “you know there were all these kind of mis-matches that related to bigger issues about the economy, society, etc, so you know, I was left with a whole series of questions about that.” 36 “I found that in some departments that used to frustrate me a bit lack of a radical agenda because coming from outside it was easier to see some of the people who were perhaps still inside the system… Additionally new themes have been raised. It’s not within the scope of this paper discuss issues about researcher bias in selecting and de-selecting issues for coding, and whether clues are given to participants subconsciously through body language etc. To avoid some of these difficulties research such this must include methods of triangualtion, and address validity early on. And so on. The point is that an iterative process is operating here. Emergent thematic strands: • Individual’s motivations in involving themselves in these activities are important • The role played by communities of practice in shaping experience are important • Identification of communities of practice and how individuals act within them • Globalisation and power relations in shaping individual experience • Personal stories reflecting popular discourses and embedded power relations • Identifying ideologies underlying language about teaching and Higher Education development in this context • Uncovering and comparing UK teacher’s concepts about social and professional identities • The influence of contact over time in altering UK teacher’s concepts of social and professional identities • Access and denial to entry into shared, exclusive, values and norms • Historical developments influencing individuals concepts of themselves, both in the UK and in Tanzania • Are there stages in moving from short to long term experience, and if so, with what consequences? Table 2: Emergent thematic strands 7. Conclusion Ethnographic and qualitative research now comprehensively rejects the notion of the researcher as an impartial observer. This research will be a participatory epistemology initiated by the belief that inherent in the structure, language and pattern of project work in Higher Education lies the unconscious implementation of cultural imperialism. This is played out in teaching and learning, and expressed in social discourses. There is a clear need to look in depth at how embedded Western values and ontologies work against community development, with a view to developing discourses within global Higher Education communities of practice. Time will tell - in narrating, contextualising and 37 analysing social relations will I really also be articulating hidden dynamics of normative interaction? Whilst locating myself within a post-structuralist data-gathering paradigm Denzin Lincoln, 2005 results will be data, not theory led, emerging from engagement with the two groups others may emerge, or need to be added for triangulation purposes References Denzin, M and Lincoln, Y Eds 1998 Collecting and Interpreting Qualitative Materials. London: Sage Publications Denzin, M and Lincoln,Y Eds 2005 The Handbook of Qualitative Research. London: Sage Publications Eggins, H and Macdonald, R 2003 The Scholarship of Academic Development. Buckingham: SHRE Open University Press Eggins, H Ed 2003 Globalisation and Reform in Higher Education. London: Open University Press Fairclough, N 1989 Language and Power. London: Longman Hofstede, G 1984 Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values. London: Sage Publications Luhanga,M,., Mkude, D., Mbwette, T., Chijoriga,M, and Ngirwa, C 2003 Strategic Planning and Higher Education Management in Africa, The University of Dar es Salaam Experience. Dar es Salaam: Dar es Salaam University Press Miller, G and Dingwall, R Eds 1997 Context Method in Qualitative Research. London: Sage Publicatons Robson, C 1995 Real World Research. .Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Sadlak, J 1998, “Globalisation and Concurrent Challenges for Higher Education” in The Globalisation of Higher Education, pp 100 – 107 Scott, P Ed 1998 The Globalisation of Higher Education. Buckingham: SHRE and Open University Press Storti, C 1990 The Art of Crossing Cultures. Maine: Intercultural Press, Inc Tripp, D 1993 Critical Incidents in Teaching. London: Routledge Usher, R 2001 “Telling a Story about Research and Research as Story telling: Postmodern Approaches to Social Resesarch” in Paechter, C., Preedy, M., Scott, D and Soler, J Eds Knowledge, Power and Learning. Pp 47 –55. London: Sage Publications Wagner, L 1995 “A Thirty-Year Perspective: From the Sixties to the Nineties” in Schuller, T Ed The changing University?. Buckingham: SHRE Open University Press, pp 15 - 24 Webster, 2006 http:webster-online-dictionary.org accessed 16-6-06 Wenger, E 1998 Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Wengraf, T 2001 Qualitative Research Interviewing. London: Sage Publications Young, I 1990 Justice and the Politics of Difference. Princeton: Princeton University Press 38 Systems Thinking as a Tool for Teaching and Learning Biological Complexity Shagufta Shafqat Chandi Abstract The changing practices in research field demand a change in the education field as well. Biology research is moving from being reductionsit to be systems biology with a more holistic approach. The system thinking is behind this change and it has emerged as a paradigm in contrast to reductionism. Because of its importance as a tool in the field of education, the present PhD project has been carried out particularly in biology education at university level to find out the extent to which systems thinking can be helpful in enhancing students understanding and their systems thinking. The research project took place in two phases.The problem which was addressed and investigated, and, the aims and methodology behind this project are being presented. Data analysis is not complete yet, however, the initial descriptive results of the project are being presented. The results are interesting and encouraging. Introduction The 20 th century has seen many breakthroughs in the field of biology. Apart from this, an obvious paradigm shift, from mechanism to holism is taking place Capra 1997. Under the influence of this mindset, a new field called systems biology is emerging considering that whole is greater than the sum of its parts and carrying a vision with emphasis on relationship of all the elements in a system. The first half of 21 st century, because of many expected advancements and projects in biology, is sometimes referred as the “era of biology” just like the first half of 20 th century that was known as the “era of physics” Mesarovic 2004. Research practices are rapidly changing and biology that once was thought to be a qualitative and a soft science is now marching towards quantification. It is no more an arena only for the biologists to study life. At present physical scientists, mathematicians, engineers and computer scientists are working with biologists NRC 2003 to build computational models of systems to predict their behaviour in response to any induced change Abersold 2000. However, in biological research, mechanistic approach gave birth to many separate fields like cell biology, genetics, molecular biology etc. Under the influence of this research practice the notion of speciality also crept into academic world. In addition to this, the two revolutions, Industrial and digital radically changed the society twice; the educational practice has not changed much King and Frick 1999. The consequences of mechanistic approach have continued in education. It is still obvious as the departmental set up in the universities is echoing the analytical mindset where teaching and research tends to be conducted in separate compartments. As a consequence of the reductionist approach to science curricula, students are learning science in a fragmentary way in tertiary education. Science students see science as a collection of disconnected facts and 39 ideas. They are often unable to see where all the information about a particular area of science fits into science as a whole. They lack the integrated understanding of science content Gulyaev et al 2002. Similarly, teaching and evaluation in biology has been a mechanistic putting emphasis on the content and paying less attention in linking organismic and cellular levels. Connection building between different components on the same level has not been attended well Verhoeff 2003; Knipples 2002. It seems that inherent complexity of biology has not been taken into account. Biology is a subject of complexity: hierarchies, network of systems and subsystems Capra 1997. In biology like all other subjects, for the sake of simplicity, Cartesian method called reductionist approach has been adopted. Therefore, reductionsit approach to teaching is blamed to leave the learners with shallow learning. Generally speaking, teaching practices are based on learning theories. In spite of knowing the importance of linking, and difficulties related with connection building, explicit and deliberate efforts seem not to be made to see and develop the links between ideas and between different components of structures being studied. This practice is responsible for leaving a gap in students’ deep learning of biology because they often do not see the links between ideas or components of a system therefore their knowledge remains incoherent Verhoeff 2003. The learning theories, especially cognitive theories, provide evidence that for meaningful learning knowledge is constructed by linking and knitting together different pieces of information Ausubel 1978; Novak 1984. Apart from this there are also evidences available supporting the view that mind is a pattern making system and non-linear connections are hard to build De Bono 1986. There are also evidences that students compartmentalise the knowledge and compartmentalisation results in incoherent knowledge and leads towards shallow learning Kalie et al 2003. A question can be raised here what makes it difficult to develop coherent understanding in terms of linking different pieces of information together. Information processing model throws light on this issue of difficulties faced by the students in learning sciences. According to this model the working memory space which is described as a holding and sharing space has got limited capacity and can easily be overloaded by imparting information more then the ability of the learner to hold and also by demanding much processing along with the information holding Johnstone 1991; Johnstone, et al 1994; Johnstone 1997b. There could be many reasons for developing shallow learning but in the light of information processing model it appears that when students are imparted information, without making underlying connections explicit, as a list of factual knowledge then to make sense of this information students have to construct links before storing it into their long term memory. Sometimes information gets stored in its perfect match resulting in coherent knowledge and deep learning. Sometimes it is linked but wrongly and results in misconception. Sometimes it is stored, without making any links, as an isolated piece of information Johnstone 1991; Johnstone, et al 1994; Johnstone 1997b. In this way students develop shallow learning and lack coherent understanding of biology. It is evident that inherent biological complexity can not be simplified into pieces forgetting about links and in the same way cognitive ability limited working memory space can not be manipulated for enhancing students understanding. However what can be manipulated is the teaching approach to facilitate the process of learning. Therefore it 40 is intended in this research project to introduce systems thinking as an instructional tool for teaching and cognitive tool for learning. It appears that systems approach to teaching biology can enhance the students understanding of biology by helping them to construct coherent and meaningful knowledge by making the underlying connections, between different components, explicit rather than just imparting the knowledge as fragmentary Assaraf Orion 2005; Kalie, et al 2003; Ossimitiz 1996. For this purpose, it is desirable to develop a teaching-learning unit in systems paradigm based on systems thinking to enhance students’ ability to see the links for better understanding of biology. It is assumed that deliberate instructional efforts to make links externally available, before they are internalised, will help students to reduce the cognitive overload and also be helpful against developing misconceptions to a certain extent and thus enhance their understanding. In addition to this it is also assumed that the systems thinking based material can also be helpful to think in levels as a way of systems thinking. Aim and Objectives of the present study The general and broad aim of this study is to use systems thinking as a cognitive tool for developing coherent understanding in biology taking in to account the complexity of living systems. The aim of this investigation is to seek out the extent to which systems thinking can be applied to teach biology. The specific objectives leading towards the broad aim would be; • To explore and know the awareness and opinion of biologists lecturers and researchers about the issues related with systems biology, systems thinking and teaching practice. • To explore difficulties of 1 st year students in understanding biology at the university of Strathclyde. • To develop teaching units based on systems thinking with a focus on making links explicit for coherent understanding • To evaluate the extent to which systems approach has has not been successful in developing coherent understanding in terms of their performance on test score. • To recommend strategies, in case of successful systems approach, for teaching biology at university level with systems approach. Literature review Two types of thinking echo in the recent literature of biology research and education, firstly the interdisciplinary thinking and secondly, the systems thinking. The interdisciplinary thinking is about to use all the tools at hand including those from physical sciences, computer science, mathematics and engineering to study the complex phenomena of life NRC 2003. Systems thinking is spoken as a tool useful to understand any kind of system Checkland 1999. New paradigm ecological or holistic has brought systems thinking into lime light Capra 1997. It is being hailed as a panacea for all the problems and referred as an untapped potential with its significant importance in the educational sphere Richmond 1994; Senge 2002. Systems thinking has been extensively used in management sciences Capra, 1997. Similarly a number of studies have been 41 reported employing systems approach in many fields including social sciences, medicine, psychology, engineering and mathematics. However, little is known about systems thinking in the context of science education Kali, et al 2003. Regarding students’ learning, it has been reported that there could be many reasons of having difficulties in understanding systems in biology and earth sciences. Learning theories relate the difficulties to the learners intrinsic ability. But some studies reflect that difficulty lies in thinking in organisational levels therefore it seems that apart from causes of difficulty which are intrinsic to learners, the multileveled nature of the systems also add to the learning difficulties. In this regard, Assaraf Orion 2004 point out the fact that students have difficulty dealing with the complex systems at all levels. They relate this difficulty to students’ inability to understand the operations at microscopic and macroscopic level, which means that students find it difficult to move across the organisational levels. Knipples also 2002 used systems thinking in teaching genetics and pointed out the inability of students to link across the organisational level and regarded it to be a cause of incoherent understanding. Similarly, Verhoeff 2003 applied systems thinking in teaching cell biology and noted students inability to understand the structural and functional processes at horizontal and vertical levels. It seems that organisational levels of systems are difficult to understand if knowledge is imparted in fragments without showing links across the levels. Therefore instructional material based on systems thinking has been reported useful in developing students understanding Kalie et al 2003. Some of the studies conducted by different people, with reference to the development of systems thinking and enhancing students understanding, in varied disciplines in different parts of the world, maintain that systems thinking plays an important role in improving the understanding of students in their particular subjects Kalie et al 2003; Assaraf Orion 2005; Ossimitiz 1996; Verhoeff 2003; Knipples 2002. Similarly, Laszlo, a systems theorist, advocates systems thinking as a methodology of ‘seeing things whole’ for sciences in Gulyaev 2002. The recommendation to use systems thinking as a methodology, however, does not provide much information about how to design curriculum that could foster such thinking Kalie et al 2003. The studies conducted by Assaraf Orion, Kalie et al, and others reported by Ossimitz focused on developing systems thinking skills. They used the subject matter to enhance the systems thinking. Knipples 2002 and Verhoeff 2003 used systems thinking as an instructional tool to develop students understanding. The result of studies showed that efforts to develop systems thinking as well as to use systems thinking as a teaching tool, in both cases students’ understanding improved. These results indicate that systems thinking are a cognitive tool for learners and instructional tool for teaching Certain facts or characteristics about systems thinking are also reported in literature. For example systems thinking is considered as a higher order thinking skill required in scientific, technological and everyday domain. Apart from this, it is also reported that it is not a general ability and regarded as a set of abilities not a single ability Kali et al 2003; Assaraf Orion 2004. In addition, some studies reported by Ossimitz Ossimitz 1994 1996; Klieme Maichle1991, 1994 in Ossimitz addressed the issue of developing and 42 measuring system thinking in school environment. It has also been reported that development and measurement of systems thinking is a difficult task but it is possible to construct indicators for measuring the development of systems thinking. It has been reported that it is important to have an appropriate instruction along with the cognitive ability to enhance the systems thinking for augmentation of learning Assaraf Orion 2004. It is assumed that systems thinking might be an inherent ability Gudovich 1997 in Kali et al 2003 therefore students might be somewhere on systems thinking continuum Kalie et al 2003. It is also assumed on the basis of previous studies that systems thinking based method of instruction will have a considerable effect on the development of systems thinking skills Assaraf Orion 2004; Caspo in Assaraf Orion 2004. It is also reported that initial cognitive potential influences the development of systems thinking but instructional design and strategies also have an effective role to play Kalie et al in Assaraf Orion 2004. As mentioned earlier that systems thinking has been used in many fields but there is dearth of such studies in science education. Although, some studies on the development on systems thinking and enhancing understanding in science education have been mentioned in the literature. However, very little has been reported with reference to systems thinking at university level. Similarly studies on systems thinking in relation to the working memory space are nearly non- existing. It is assumed that systems thinking based instructional material will enhance the understanding of students in biology, in terms of their performance on a test score; and it is also hypothesised that the ability of systems thinking is somehow related to working memory space which plays a crucial role in learning. Methodology The present project was carried out in two phases. The first phase was to achieve the first two objectives of the project. Semi-structured interviews were used to find out the opinion of the biologists about systems biology, systems thinking and their implication for education. Snowball sampling was used to locate the people knowing about systems biology. Secondly, a survey was conducted to find out the difficult core areas in the biology curriculum at the university level. The convenient sample of students, studying biology, was taken from the University of Strathclyde. The second phase of the project was mainly to develop the systems thinking based teaching units in the difficult area of biology curriculum, which was identified by the students in the first phase. In this phase four teaching units and four paper and pencil-based activities were designed and were used with the sample 1st year biology students taken from the university of Strathclyde. Furthermore, to find out the effectiveness of the units and activities, two tests pre and post test were also developed because the research design was pre and post one group experimental design. Apart from this, two surveys were also conducted. First survey, in the second phase, was to have an idea about the attributes of the sample regarding their learning activities and their opinion about biology knowledge. Second survey was conducted to find out the student’s attitude towards the teaching units and activities. 43 Furthermore, Students working memory space was also measured by using the digit span backward test. Results A very brief description is being given here about the results; however, the detail will be covered in presentation. Firstly, the interviews with the biologists indicated that systems biology is just a new name for the old thinking, which always had been close to the heart of biologists. Most of them had a positive attitude towards its progress and it’s far reaching impact on life in general, in the research and the education field. Similarly, systems thinking had been regarded as a high order skill, which can be learnt and improved as it involves content, ability to connect the information and experience. It has been commented that systems thinking is not encouraged in formal education at school level. Moreover, it has been stated that to some extent biology teaching is reductionist and the importance of systems thinking in order to enhance students’ understanding has been realised. Secondly, the biology difficulty survey revealed that genetics and molecular biology has been considered as a difficult core area in biology curriculum. Among the four difficult subtopics in genetics, highlighted in the survey, jumping gene was chosen to be an appropriate topic for developing systems thinking based units. The data obtained, form intervention of these units, has not been analysed completely but the descriptive statistics provide a general picture of the situation and reveals that the teaching units have been liked by the students and were found useful in making them think and develop their understanding of the phenomena of jumping gene and also helped the student to think in levels while studying biology. The rest of the description will be covered in the presentation. References Abersold, R., Hood, E. and Watts, D. 2000 “Equipping Scientists for the New Biology” in Nature Biotechnology, 18 Capra, F. 1997. The Web of Life: A new synthesis of mind and matter. London: Flamingo. Checkland, P. and Scholes, J. 1990 “Soft Systems Methodology in Action”. New York: John Wiley and Sons. De Bono, E. 1986 Lateral Thinking. England: Penguin books. Forrester, J. 2000 “Systems Study for the Long Term” in Senge P. Fifth Discipline. London: Nicholas Brealey Publishing. Gulyaev, S. A. and Stonyer, H. R. 2002 “Making a map of science: general systems theory as a conceptual framework for tertiary science education” in International Journal of Science Education, 24 No 7 pp 753-769. Hoban, G. 2002 Teacher Learning for Educational Change: A systems thinking approach. Buckingham: Open University Press. Haraldsson, H. V. 2004 Introduction to Systems thinking and Causal loop Diagrams. Department of chemical engineering: Lund University. Hood 2001 Under Biologys Hood. Magazine: Teaching Review 44 Johnstone, A. H. 1997b “And some Fell on Good Ground” in University Chemistry Education, 1 No1 pp 8-13 Johnstone, A. H. Sleet, R. J., and Vianna, J. F. 1994 “An Information Processising Model of Learning: Its application to an understanding Laboratory Course in Chemistry” in Studies in Higher Education 19 pp 77-78 Johnstone, A. H. 1991 “Why Science is Difficult to Learn? Things are seldom what they seem” in Journal of Computer Assisted Learning 7 pp 75-83. Kali, Y., Orion, N. and Eylon, B. 2003 “Effect of knowledge Integration Activities on Students Perception of the Earths Crust as a Cyclic System.” in Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 49 No 6 pp 545-565. King, K., Frick, T. 1999 Transforming Education: case studies in systems thinking. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Education Research Association. Knipples 2002 coping with the abstract and complex nature of Genetics in Biology Education: The yo-yo teaching and learning strategy thesis. Universiteit Utrecht: Netherlands Lane, D. C. and Olivia, R. 1998 “The greater Whole: Towards a synthesis dynamics and soft systems methodology” in European Journal of Operational Research 10 pp 214- 235. Mesarovic, M., Sreenath, S. and Keen, J. 2004 “Search for Organising Principle: Understanding in systems Biology” in Systems Biology, 1 No 1 pp 19-27 National research Council: Bio 2010: Transforming Undergraduates Education for Future Research biologists 2003 Washington: The National Academic Press. Ossimitiz, G. The Development of Systems thinking using System dynamics modelling Tools. http:www.uni-klu.ac.atusresgossimitsdyngdm_eng.htm , 2175 Richmond, B.1994 Systems Dynamicssystems Thinking: Lets Get on with it. Paper delivered at the 1994 International systems dynamics conference in Sterling, Scotland Senge, P. 2002 A Fifth Discipline: schools that learn. London: Nicholas Brealey Publishing. Verhoeff, R. P. 2003 Towards systems Thinking in Cell Biology Education Thesis. Universiteit Utrecht. 45 Students’ Attitudes towards English Teaching and Learning at Senior High Schools in Taiwan I-Fang Chung Abstract The research study explores the following two aspects of English teaching and learning in senior high schools in Taiwan. It first examines the extent to which the communicative approach is implemented in the English classroom. Secondly, it investigates the attitudes of senior high school students towards their learning of English at school. This study employed a combination of a dominant quantitative approach and a less-dominant qualitative data aggregation procedure. In the preliminary studies, data was collected through focus group interviews and classroom observations. A questionnaire survey was then carried out as the third-phase study to generate quantifiable data. A total of 838 valid questionnaires were collected and analysed with the methods of t-test and one-way ANOVA. The findings revealed that the traditional approach, which focuses on the teaching of vocabulary, grammar and the explanation of the textbook contents, still prevailed in the English classroom. Teachers’ classroom practices reflected students’ current learning purpose, which is to achieve good exam results. Although the majority of students had positive attitudes towards communicative activities in class, they showed inhibitions about speaking or participating actively in class. Background to the Study Since 1995, the Taiwan Ministry of Education MOE initiated curricular changes to introduce a more communicative approach to English language teaching in high schools. English is a compulsory subject in the Taiwan, and it is intended to enhance students’ English ability, including listening, speaking, reading, and writing, to prepare them for the advanced studies at university or for their future career. To enhance students’ communicate ability in English, the new curricula published by the MOE for English teaching in senior high school exhibited the main feature of the communicative-based teaching. The curricular change included giving secondary school administrators a free hand to select their preferred textbooks. Different versions of textbooks written according to the principles of the communicative approach are now published by private publishers and are in use at senior high schools. The new English textbooks include more colourful pictures, daily-life dialogues, and themes that are more relevant to learners’ real life than the old version textbooks. 46 However, there have been some discouraging facts concerning English teaching and learning in high school in Taiwan after the curricular innovation. From my experience as a high school English teacher for 7 years, I have observed that as a result of the enormous pressure from the joint entrance examination, teaching-to-the-test remains a common practice. Wang’s 2002 study points out that most of the teaching time and activities are spent on preparing students for the examination, and the teaching approach of grammar- translation remains dominant. It is worth noting that the revision of teaching materials or curricula is not necessarily accompanied by changes in teacher behaviour or learner attitudes, which, however, could be the critical factors that impede or facilitate the implementation process. A substantial number of studies have pointed out the obstacles in implementing the communicative approach, but comparatively few have been undertaken to explore the extent to which English teachers in the classroom in Taiwan adopt the communicative approach. With the major aim of developing learners’ competence in using language appropriately in context, CLT is in sharp contrast to the traditional teacher-fronted, grammar-based, and exam- driven classroom instruction in Taiwan. Therefore, examining the influence the curricular innovation has had on classroom instruction would be particularly significant. A communicative syllabus is essentially student-oriented, and a communicative approach presupposes that students play the central role in learning. Despite the increasing recognition of the essential role that learner expectations and attitudes play in advancing or impeding curricular change Savignon 2002, data concerning learner attitudes towards the classroom instruction they experience remains sparse in Taiwan. It is thus meaningful to explore learners’ views and attitudes to the classroom practices after the curricular innovation. Research Questions Set within the context of teaching English as a foreign language in Taiwanese senior high schools, the research study aims to investigate the following questions: 1. What are students’ experiences of classroom instruction in their English class and how do they perceive their English class? 2. To what extent do teachers’ teaching practices reflect communicative-based principles? 3. What are senior high school students’ attitudes and perceptions of the classroom instruction they have experienced at school? 4. What are students’ attitudes towards the communicative and non-communicative activities held at school? 5. What is the relationship between students of different personal backgrounds and their attitudes towards English learning at school? 47 Design of the Research Study The research study consists of three phases. In the first phase, focus group interviews with senior high school students were undertaken to find out students’ experiences of classroom instruction in their English class and how they perceive their English class. The focus group method is “a carefully planned series of discussions designed to obtain perceptions on a defined area of interest in a permissive, non-threatening environment” Krueger Casey 2000: 5. Focus group interviews were chosen as the preliminary method because with the hallmark of explicit use of group interaction, it could facilitate the collection of rich and in-depth data Morgan 1997. In the second phase of study, classroom observations were undertaken to explore the implementation of CLT in classrooms through teachers’ classroom practices. It also helped to gain insights into the actual classroom situation. Observations with three English teachers were conducted in a private senior high school where the focus group interviews were carried out. Each of the three teachers was observed for two sessions, each lasted for about 45 to 50 minutes. In the third phase, a questionnaire was generated on the basis of literature review and the data gathered from these two studies. Questionnaires were distributed to 838 students in 11 senior high schools in Pingtung County, southern Taiwan, to reveal their attitudes towards learning English at school. Focus group interviews and observations are very often used in conjunction with other methods in order to contextualize and to extend the analysis to be carried out Blaxter et al. 2001. The questionnaire survey allows the participation of a larger number of people, which would be impossible through interviews or observations. The utility of mixed methods draws together the value and strength of each phase of study and facilitates considerably the process of data collection. Questionnaire Design As stated, the three-phase research sought to explore senior high school students’ attitudes towards and perceptions of their English class at school. According to Bohner and Wänke 2002, the simplest way to assess people’s attitude is to ask a single question about their general evaluation of the attitude object, and to have them mark a response alternative along a numeric response scale. This can be achieved by using attitude scales in questionnaires for respondents to answer. Dörnyei 2003 claims that rating scales are the most popular items in research questionnaires. Likert-scale questions, for instance, is popular in studies regarding attitude measurement. A five Likert type measuring scale was therefore used in designing the questionnaire because it can effectively gather respondents’ views, opinions, and attitudes about various language-related issues. The design allowed respondents to indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with the questionnaire items. Participants were asked to 48 mark one of the responses ranging from “Strongly Agree”, “Agree”, “No Comment”, “Disagree” to “Strongly Disagree”. Respondents’ judgments were later converted into numerical form for purpose of analysis. The development of the questionnaire went through four stages: a preliminary draft, a revised draft, a pilot study and the final version. The attitude scale was designed according to the results from the preliminary studies, focus group interviews and classroom observations. A panel consisting of three English teachers and three senior high school students was formed to help assess the questionnaire. Three experienced English teachers helped by reading through both the English and Chinese versions of the questionnaire. They examined the questionnaire item by item and gave feedback on unclear, poorly worded, or irrelevant items. Based on their useful advice on the overall design of the questionnaire, amendments were made for improvement. In order to ensure that respondents understood the question wordings and knew how to go about answering the questionnaire, three second-year students were asked to answer the questionnaire draft. I asked them to offer feedback by giving comments on any terms or questions that they found confusing. The draft questionnaire was then revised to avoid mistakes or misunderstandings when it was administered in the main study. As a result of careful discussion and assessment made by the panel, an agreement was achieved on including 57 items divided into five sections in the final version of the questionnaire. Meanwhile, my supervisor also provided a valuable suggestion for improvement after viewing the questionnaire. In the questionnaire, question items 1 to 43 from the first through fourth sections are all closed questions. The four sections were categorised by four subscales, which were “learner views of English as a subject at school” Subscale 1; “learner perceptions of the classroom instruction” Subscale 2; “learner attitudes toward communicative and non-communicative activities” Subscale 3; and “students’ needs and goals in learning English” Subscale 4. Section five is a section concerning personal information of the participants, which provides the independent variables of the questionnaire. The sixth section leaves extra space for participants who want to express their further comments or thoughts to fill in. Sampling and Piloting The targeted population for this study was senior high school students. Second-year students were particularly recruited as participants in this study because they had received a senior high school education for at least one year and thus were familiar with the way English was being taught at school. The sample members in this study were recruited from different schools and classes, which were generally called “the convenience groups”. These convenience groups are a type of natural cluster; therefore the approach of cluster sampling was used in this study. By using many of the individuals from each cluster in the selected sample, results from many individuals can be gathered within little time and with less travel cost Gorard 2001. Piloting is an integral part of any research, and so is it in the questionnaire survey. The purpose of the pilot study in this study was to evaluate whether the questionnaire items 49 were understood and responded to as intended. In the pilot study, the questionnaires were distributed to 112 second-year senior high school students. In the main study, I tried to deliver the questionnaires in person and be present during the completion of the questionnaire in 7 out of the 11 schools, because it was assumed that this might result in a higher return rate of the distributed questionnaires. By doing so, I also hoped to provide immediate clarification to respondents who were having problems regarding the questionnaire. The results showed that my presence had indeed enhanced the return rate. The process of questionnaires distribution and data collection of the main study took about two weeks. A total of 892 questionnaires were completed and returned; 838 of which are valid and 56 are invalid. There was a 94 success rate the rate of questionnaire being valid of completed questionnaires which were eligible for inclusion in the analysis. The following table presents the statistical information about the questionnaire distribution and data collection. Statistical information of the samples: questionnaire distribution and data collection School Type Area Researcher’s Presence Valid Questionnaire Invalid Questionnaire S1 National Urban Yes 87 1 S2 National Urban Yes 84 4 S3 National Town Yes 83 3 S4 National Rural No 72 8 S5 National Town Yes 78 4 S6 Municipal Urban Yes 62 3 S7 Municipal Mountain No 67 6 S8 Municipal Rural No 64 8 S9 Private Rural Yes 93 3 S10 Private Urban No 77 10 S11 Private Urban Yes 71 6 Total National:5 Municipal: 3 Private: 3 Urban: 5 Town: 2 Rural: 3 Mountain: 1 Yes: 7 No: 4 838 56 Data Analysis The questionnaires were checked and then coded immediately after they were collected. Both the descriptive and inferential data analysis was used. The first category of descriptive data analysis included the reports of the general characteristics, frequencies, and percentages of the sample. The second category of the descriptive data analysis 50 concentrated on the general profile of the whole attitudinal scale as well as each subscale of the questionnaire. The inferential data first examined the relationship between participants’ personal background variables and the attitudinal scales. The second part of the inferential data analysis looked at more specific attitudes and perceptions of the participants. The relationship between the personal background variables were examined in detail by running t-tests and one-way ANOVAs. Part three of this section centred on the relationship between the attitudinal subscales. By adopting the method of Pearson’s product-moment correlation coefficient Pearson’s r, the correlation between the four subscales was explored to provide an indication of the direction positive or negative and strength strong or weak of the relationship between these subscales. Ethical Consideration In order to have ample material to trace during the process of data analysis, the focus group discussions and classroom observation were audio-taped. Before audio-taping, I asked for permission from all of my research participants. Besides, they were guaranteed anonymity and confidentiality before the studies were undertaken. They were reassured that their real names would not be mentioned in the final research report. In the questionnaire survey, respondents completed the questionnaire anonymously. It was hoped that the anonymous questionnaires would “encourage greater honesty”, leading to more truthful answers Cohen et al. 2000; Gorard 2001; Nardi 2003. The questionnaire began by providing respondents with sufficient information regarding respondent anonymity as well as confidentiality of the use of data. Respondents’ right to privacy was respected by not giving them any undue pressure when they were completing the questionnaire. They had the rights to refuse to answer questions they didn’t feel like answering, which explained why some returned questionnaires were found invalid due to incomplete answers or having too many “no comments” ticks. Finally, the names of the 11 senior high schools were replaced with codes to ensure they were unidentifiable in my final report. Conclusions The key findings of this research study were concluded below. 1. Activities students experienced in English class Senior high school English classes mainly focused on the teaching of vocabulary, grammar and the explanation of the textbook contents. The traditional teacher-centred, grammar-based, and exam-driven classroom practices were still dominant. Interestingly, although many of the participants found English class dull and boring as a result of the prevailing grammar-translation method, most of them felt the class time spent on 51 grammar teaching was moderate and appropriate. After all, as one student commented, “grammar plays the major role in tests and exams”. 2. Students’ attitudes and perceptions of the classroom instructions they have experienced at school Results of the questionnaires indicated that 55 of the participants had never experienced any of the activities, such as role play, creating dialogue, or group discussions, in their English class. 14.9 of the participants who had experienced such activities revealed that the activities were held only once in a semester. Participants generally felt their teachers stressed the importance of fluent and effective use of English in real life situations; however, 71.2 of participants also indicated that their English teacher corrected them whenever they made mistakes in using English. 65.7 of the participants showed their preference for immediate error correction when they made a mistake in speaking English. Although 62.8 of the participants agreed that the chief purpose of their English class was to prepare them to pass exams with good grades, they did not agree that English class should focus merely on grammar teaching; instead, they believed that practising speaking English in a communicative way is more important than mastering the grammar rules. 3. Students’ attitudes towards the communicative activities Respondents generally showed a positive attitude towards pair or group work and the belief that English is best learned through speaking. Despite of their passive attitudes in learning English in class, 47.1 of them expressed willingness to participate in pair or group work; at the same time, they conveyed inhibitions about participating in communicative activities. Nearly half 48.3 of the respondents expressed that they were afraid of speaking English in front of the whole class as they felt ashamed when making a mistake in speaking English. Participants in this study seem to display contradiction in their beliefs and attitudes in learning English. 4. The relationship between students of different personal background and their attitudes towards learning English at school. Results of the data analysis indicated that some personal background variables had influence on learner attitudes towards learning English at school, and some didn’t. For example, there were statistically significant differences between different genders and their attitudes. Female students showed more positive attitudes towards English as a subject at school and communicative activities. Another finding is that there were statistically significant differences between students with different majors in all of the attitudinal scales. Compared with students doing “Arts” and “Science” as a major, students doing the major “Applied Foreign Language” showed 52 more positive attitudes towards learning English at school and stronger willingness to participate in communicative activities in an English class. 5. Correlations between the subscales A significant finding is that there was a negative relationship between Subscale 2, “learner perceptions of the classroom instruction” and 3, “attitudes toward communicative and non-communicative activities”. This indicated that the less the students experienced the communicative approach, the more they looked forward to experiencing the communicative activities and believed that the activities facilitate their learning. However, the more communicative instructions the students experienced, the more reserved their attitudes became towards communicative activities or actively taking part in the communicative activities. Recommendations There are two dimensions worth pointing out with regard to the need and goal of Taiwanese senior high school students towards learning English. Essentially, these two dimensions are their short-term need and their long-term goal. Their short-term need is to pass the entrance exams to enter a good university. Their long-term goal is to develop their English communicative competence in all aspects so that they can prepare for their future career or the globalized way of life. To help students meet their need and attain their goal of learning English, English class should not only aim to prepare them for exams. The excessive use of Chinese in English class, which is found common in the study, should first be reconsidered. In order to encourage students and build their confidence in speaking English, teachers themselves should speak more English in class. This means that senior high school English teachers need to be provided with appropriate training to enhance their competence in using English in class. Since the traditional grammar-driven approach remains most efficient for producing good exam results, the obstacles to implementing the communicative approach in Taiwan seem inevitable. If the government policy makers place greater emphasis on the assessment of students’ communicative ability in the entrance exam, not only students but also teachers will be much more motivated to learn or teach in a more communicative way. Finally, as a result of limited time and budget, this research was conducted in only one geographical area in Taiwan. It would be beneficial if future studies can be extended to include more senior high schools from other parts of Taiwan. 53 References Blaxter, L., Hughes, C. and Tight, M. 2001 How to Research. Buckingham: Open University Press. Bohner, G.. and Wänke, M. 2002 Attitudes and Attitude Change. East Sussex, England and New York: Psychology Press. Bryman, A. 1988 Quantity and quality in Social Research. London: Unwin Hyman. Bryman, A. 2001 Social Research Methods. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Cohen, L., Manion, L. and Morrison, K. 2000 Research Methods in Education. London: Routledge. Dörnyei, Z. 2003 Questionnaires in Second Language Research: Construction, Administration, and Processing. London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Gorard S. 2001 Quantitative Methods in Educational Research: the role of numbers made easy. London and New York: Continuum. Hopkins, D. 2002 A Teacher’s Guide to Classroom Research 3 rd edition. Buckingham: Open University Press. Krueger, R.A. and Casey, M. A. 2000 Focus Groups: a practical guide for applied research 3 rd edition. Thousand Oaks: Sage. Morgan, D.L. 1997 Focus Groups as Qualitative Research 2 nd edition. Thousand Oaks: Sage. Muijs, D. 2004 Doing Quantitative Research in Education with SPSS. London: Sage. Nardi, P.M. 2003 Doing Survey Research: a guide to quantitative methods. Boston: Pearson Education. Oppenheim, A.N. 1992 Questionnaire Design, Interviewing and Attitude Measurement. London: Pinter. Pallant, J. 2005 SPSS Survival Manual: a step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS version 12 2 nd edition. Maidenhead, England: Open University Press. Savignon, S.J. 2002 “Communicative language teaching: linguistic theory and classroom practice” in Savignon S.J. ed Interpreting Communicative Language Teaching: contexts and concerns in teacher education. pp1-27. New Haven London: Yale University Press. Wang, C. 2002 “Innovative teaching in foreign language contexts: the case of Taiwan” in Savignon S.J. ed Interpreting Communicative Language Teaching: contexts and concerns in teacher education. pp 131-153. New Haven London: Yale University Press. 54 Researching Education: Different Ways of Knowing and Doing in Educating Black Young People Eulet Davy Abstract Much of mainstream schooling in Britain, favours a Eurocentric, White, middle class curriculum, to which sections of the school community may not have access. Young people who do not conform to these norms and values are put at a disadvantage in terms of positive school experiences and their academic achievement. Numerous studies have shown that where young people are recognised and valued by school processes and procedures; expectations are high and learning takes place in an environment of mutual respect; this is reflected in enhanced school performance. This paper presents the initial findings of an investigation into two programmes run in a Midlands city with the aim of assisting the education of Black young people. While the study will look more broadly at the strategies, which appear to be having a positive effect, this paper reflects on the initial analysis of what the young people, their parents and teachers say about the programmes impact and explores some of the underlying principles. Introduction This paper reports on one aspect of a much larger study of the attempts being made by two organisations to improve young peoples educational experiences and attainment. The organisations were set up to cater to specific needs, not necessarily just those of Black young people. The focus of the paper is, however, on the impact of the programmes on this particular group. The programmes studied grew out of the communities perceptions that educational reforms were needed in order to effect improvement in the standard of education young people were receiving. One was a communitys attempt to work with its local secondary school towards improving the educational outcomes for its school leavers. It served a multi-racial community where the majority of its service users were Black young people. A minority of the young people were White, a number of these from Eastern European countries. The young people had either experienced school exclusion, voluntarily withdrawn themselves from school or been withdrawn by parents. For some joining the programme was a managed move organised by the school or other agencies involved in processing school exclusions. A small number were self-referred onto the programme, having been excluded but not picked up by the system. The second programme, was the result of a partnership between two providers of out of school educational support. It aimed to provide in school support to primary and secondary schools with proportionately high numbers of African descent Black or Dual 55 Heritage pupils with a view to enhance the schools educational provision, improve the attainment and reduce the exclusion of these pupils. The schools studied fell within the same locality. A small number of children from the primary school fed into the secondary school, which was the focus of both programmes. There was no relationship between the programmes and neither organisation was aware of the involvement of the other, due to the fact that the school based programme operated within the schools, while the community based programme operated out of a community centre. Although the community based programme was not run exclusively for young people from the secondary school, they were given preferential access and the school maintained close links with the programme. I will refer to the programmes as community based and school based. The aim of the study was to interrogate the practical strategies adopted by the organisations to raise the achievement of Black young people; to find out from the young people what was successful in facilitating their learning and development, an important but often missing aspect of educational research, Runnymede 1998 and to hear from Black parents also a marginalised group: more often the object rather the subject of research, what they think could be done to improve their childrens education. The responses of these two groups along with those from teachers. were analysed using an Afrocentric Asante 1988 or African-centred worldview as the theoretical framework. The strategies employed by the organisations were assessed against what central government policy, Aiming High DfES 2003 and the local authority for the same Midlands city, highlighted as the issues affecting the education of Black young people and what they considered good practice in improving the situation, particularly in regard to the number attaining the benchmark of five or more A- C at GCSE. Education Reform and Black Young People Despite the reforms in British educational policy over the last fifty years and landmark publications such as: How the West Indian Child is Made Educationally Subnormal in the British School System Coard 2005, the relative performance of Black young people within the educational system continues to decline. The work of numerous scholars, including Gillborn 2005a; John 2005, indicate that this trend, far from abating, is manifesting itself in ever more subtle ways. Young people from African descent Black and Dual Heritage, as well as Pakistani and Bangladeshi backgrounds still show declining performance throughout their school career and constitute the lowest achieving groups at GCSE. This is in spite of the year on year gains, which are made by all groups. In 1996 45 per cent of white pupils achieved five or more GCSE grades A- C compared with 38 per cent of Asian and 23 per cent of Black pupils. Among this group African- Caribbean boys continued to experience the lowest GCSE examination results and the highest level of school exclusion. Office for National Statistics, 1996 In 2004 the attainment for White pupils was 52 per cent compared with 74 per cent for Chinese, 67 56 per cent for Indians and 39 per cent for African Caribbeans. DfES 2005 This figure did not include the statistics for African or dual heritage pupils. Even policies, among which were Section 11 and Ethnic Minority Attainment Grant EMAG, aimed at raising the attainment of minority young people, have failed to have an impact. Education policy, Gillborn argues Gillborn 2005; Gillborn 2006, is designed to serve White interests. This may explain how the Department for Educations Five Year Strategy 2004 could completely omit any discussion of racism, prejudice or discrimination from its agenda. Similarly the Qualifications and Curriculum Authoritys QCA 20022003 Annual Report on Inclusion devotes 22 lines to Race and Gender under the heading: Other Observations. How has this Underachievement Occurred? Underachievement and low academic success has long been a feature of the educational debate, research and policy initiatives associated with pupils from non-white communities in Britain. With the influx of migrant workers from the West Indies, at the express invitation of the British government during the postwar era, debate arose concerning the ability of the education system to educate their children. Coard’s publication met with minimal response from the then DES and the Warnock Committee, taking evidence for its influential report [into Special Educational Needs] published in 1978, managed to ignore the issue.Tomlinson 2005 Numerous reports since Coard: e.g. Warnock 1978; Rampton 1981; DES 1985, have pointed to the inadequacies of these childrens education, to prepare them to be productive adults. Some reports used a cultural deficit model in their analysis of the problem. This explained the failure by focusing on the young people and their parental, home, language and cultural background. Others pointed to systemic failure and society at large as being instrumental. This model gave rise to conflicting views on the role schools played in the process Tomlinson 1983, but focussed little attention on the school processes and procedures and wider societal issues, which more recent research has shown to be contributory factors in the underachievement of this group of young people. In more recent times there has been an attempt made to associate the failure, especially of Black African Caribbean boys with rap music and street culture Sewell 1997. That school processes and procedures contribute to underachievement, is an argument supported by a number of scholars in the field of educational research, e.g. Wright 1987; Wright 1992; Sewell 1997; Gillborn and Youdell 2000; Blair 2001. They reveal a picture of the collusion of the school system in the failure of these young people through discriminatory disciplinary practices, often resulting in exclusion; the relegation of students to lower ability groups and examination selection processes which prevent them from entering for examinations at the higher levels. 57 Who is Actually Failing in the British School System? The Eurocentric model of education, in fact, seems able to achieve better results with a section of its ethnic minorities, than with its own indigenous young people. White young people are underachieving when compared with the performance of Indian and Chinese students. The system produces above average attainment for Chinese and Indian pupils; average attainment for indigenous white students and below average attainment for Black students. This is a more pertinent issue than the continual focus on Black underachievement. If the system does not serve well, its own people, how equipped is it to meet the needs of able Black young people who are high achievers on entry. Gillborn and Mirza 2000 What is it about the British education system, which causes this high attaining group to finish school amongst the lowest achievers? Initial findings, of this study, indicate that some responsibility must be shouldered by parents for this continued educational failure. Parents expressed an urgent need for more proactive involvement in their childrens education: the need for greater emphasis on education in the home, in support with homework, additional tuition and resources to supplement the work being done in schools. The home was also recognised, by many, as the place for educating children about their own cultural norms, values and practices. Parents realised they needed to be more visible in schools. Too much responsibility had been devolved to schools during the most crucial period in their childrens education – the formative years. More recently, John 2005 urged Black parental involvement in schools; as Coard did, more than 30 years previously: to make it their duty to visit the schools that their children attend as often as possible p.53. He suggested, This will keep the teachers on their toes and make them realise you mean business where the education of your child is concerned. Coard 2005 Racism The Stephen Lawrence Inquiry and its attendant Race Relations Amendment Act 2000 put a legal duty on institutions to address the issue of institutional racism para 6.4: The collective failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture, or ethnic origin. MacPherson 1999 In his speech to the New Local Government Network NLGN conference entitled: Education and Social Exclusion: Closing the Gap the Challenge of Raising Standards for all Pupils, at the launch of Aiming High: Raising the Achievement of Minority Ethnic Pupils, Stephen Twigg made a number of commitments. Among them were: • The Race Relations Amendment Act places a new statutory duty on school to assess and monitor the impact of policies on minority ethnic pupils, staff and parents. 58 • Government can and will give a clear lead by ensuring that all national policies and programmes truly address the needs of all of our pupils in all of our schools. In 2003 the Commission for Racial Equality’s CRE initial report on compliance with the new Race Relations Amendment Act 2000 highlighted some disturbing facts about schools compliance. They were the least likely: to reply; to have identified clear goals or targets for improvement; the least positive about the effects of the changes that they had made and were the least likely to express a need for further guidance. Gillborn 2005a Schools were clearly not fulfilling their statutory duty and the governments clear lead in ensuring their national policies and programmes address the needs of all pupils, seems to be some way off. Welsing, a Black psychiatrist, firmly embeds institutionalised racism in the historical relations between white people and people of colour. She saw racism White Supremacy as the outworking of a white genetic survival imperative and fear of genetic anhiliation,which was challenged by the existence of the genetically dominant skin colouration of coloured peoples. Welsing 1991 This definition provides a framework for understanding European behaviour. A Eurocentric System Welsing also developed the theory of symbols, which grew out of her observations, as a psychiatrist, of childrens symbolic and play and the symbolism of dreams. Symbols are what the individual and the collective group employ in understanding and relating to each other. They are specific to people and their experiences and carry highly compacted messages, stored in the subconscious and continuously referred to for existence and survival. With continued use a symbol operates at a subconscious level, the user having little or no necessary conscious understanding of its meaning and facilitates communication between individuals sharing the same identity and survival necessity. Welsings theory may explain education systems ability to produce such consistent failure in Black students, in such diverse locations as the US, the UK and Australia, for example, where the majority of teachers are white and non-white teachers are trained using Eurocentric teaching methods. Although teacher influence alone cannot be held to account for the complex situation, which constitutes achievementunderachievement, the primary focus of this paper is the impact of a Eurocentric education system on the educational aspirations of Black young people, and in that, teachers play a significant role. Coard 2005 believed that most teachers were affected by societys brainwashing: the belief in the inferiority of Black people. The cultural bias associated with IQ testing ensured this outcome. Ogbu 1974 alleged that white teachers participated in the belief system of the dominant whites rather than that of the subordinate minorities and as such, the Black child was written off before teachers had taught him a thing. 59 How Eurocentricity Affects the Black Children’s Self Perception There are numerous examples in the literature e.g.Ogbu 1974; Wright 1992; Coard 2005, to name but a few which describe the ways in which the teacher can seriously affect the performance of a Black child: by being openly prejudiced, being patronising and having lower expectations of the childs abilities. Coards study found that some teachers submitted West Indian children for special educational needs assessment not on the grounds of intellectual capacity, but because they were a bloody nuisance. Coard 2005 p. 35 Wrights findings on the allocation of Black students to examination groups, support this view. Wright 1987 In an ethnographic study of an urban neighbourhood in the US, Ogbu 1974 found that Black and Mexican students were more likely to describe themselves as under-achievers when compared with Anglo and Oriental students. The Black and White doll experiments conducted with young Black children both in the UK and the US produced very similar results in both contexts. Coard reports that in every category where a positive response was called for the White doll was the most likely to be selected. Where a negative response was required the majority selected the Black doll. The Black children even chose the White doll as being representative of themselves A More Equitable System The recent focus on good practice in educating Black young people represents a move away from the more Eurocentric pedagogy towards more egalitarian educational methods. Aiming High DfES 2003, in setting out the guidelines for improving the educational attainment of Black pupils stated that: Research by the Department DfEE 1998, Ofsted Ofsted 2002; Ofsted 2002a and the Runnymede Trust Runnymede 1998, has shown that schools which achieve success for their ethnic minority pupils are characterised by certain principles. They are: Strong leadership: The head teacher and senior managers must lead an effective strategy that is applied across the whole school. High expectations: Every pupil is expected and encouraged to achieve their potential by teachers and parents. These expectations are underpinned by the practical use of data to monitor the achievement of particular groups of pupils to pinpoint and tackle underperformance. Effective teaching and learning: Lessons are planned and delivered as effectively as possible, with support provided for bilingual pupils, and teachers are able to reflect the cultures and identities of the communities represented in the school in their lessons. Ethos of respect with a clear approach to racism and bad behaviour: There is a strong ethos and culture of mutual respect where pupils are able to have their voices heard. There are clear and consistent approaches to bad behaviour, bullying and tackling racism across the whole school with a focus on prevention. 60 Parental involvement: Parents and the wider community are positively encouraged to play a full part in the life and development of the school. In the Local Education Authority LEA, in which my study was conducted, commissioned research, and later, an educational visit made to Jamaica, were undertaken aimed at improving educational outcomes for its Black pupils. The findings of the Jamaican visit will be discussed in the conclusion. The commissioned research findings are outlined below: • In line with national trends, African-Caribbean and dual heritage pupils perform on a par with white pupils at Key Stages 1 and 2. However, at Key Stage 3 4 their performance is significantly below the majority of pupils. • National evidence indicates that many African-Caribbean and dual heritage pupils are disaffected in schools and feel excluded from mainstream provision • The National Curriculum tends to be Euro-centric and de-motivating to African- Caribbean and dual heritage pupils. There are few texts and materials currently in schools that encouragesupport staff in addressing issues that are related to the lives and aspirations of African-Caribbean and dual heritage pupils. • The preferred learning styles of many African-Caribbean and dual heritage pupils are different to the learning styles traditionally expected by schools. Many pupils need a more active, oral or kinaesthetic style. There is a disproportionately high exclusion rate of African-Caribbean and dual heritage pupils. • Parents of African-Caribbean and dual heritage pupils often feel excluded from the education system. The Research Findings The data was analysed using an Afrocentric sometimes referred to as Africentric theoretical framework which has a distinct set of cosmological, ontological, epistemological and axiological attributes Mashengele 1997. The concept is based on principles, dating back to Kemet the African name for Ancient Egypt. As a methodology, it advocates the creation of more egalitarian societies, criticising western imperialistic individualism. It advocates the maintenance and enhancement of harmonious interpersonal relationships, considered the most important cultural value. This has grown out of the shared cultural and historical experiences of people of African descent. As a theory of social change,however, Asante 1988; Ani 1994 its application is not limited to African descent people. The features of this philosophy, which will be considered here are: 61 i the centrality of community and co-operative living; ii acknowledgement and respect for African traditions and cultures; iii a high level of spirituality and ethical concerns; iv harmonious co-existence with nature; v the emphasis on education and learning to liberate oneself, to challenge social inequality and to humanise the world; vi and lastly, the deep respect for ones elders and the veneration of of ones ancestors. The research findings were analysed under headings outlined in the Aiming High policy document. Strong leadership Parents, young people and teachers reported on the positive impact of the programmes on the young peoples education and sense of wellbeing. The schools saw the school based programme as a very positive addition to the school curriculum. In the community based setting, one parent respondent acknowledged that although her childs curricular access was now limited, this alternative provision actually put him in an environment where he could succeed. All groups interviewed: parents, young people and teachers felt that the organisations mentors provided strong leadership to the young people. The young people spoke about the disciplined conduct, which was expected from them both within the group setting and outside of it. The school pupils talked about being disciplined by the worker for wrongdoing as always being accompanied by advice or strategies for getting it right next time. Effective teaching and learning …minority youth do better in school when they feel strongly anchored in the identities of their families, communities, and peers and when they feel supported in pursuing a strategy of selective or additive acculturation. Gibson 1997 In the schools programme, where the young people had one hours access to the mentor each week, they felt they benefited from the contact. They highlighted, as did their parents, that access to Black workers was one of the most important aspects of the programme. Harvey 2001 considered the issue of the lack of positive same-race role models, a factor in African American youth being at risk. Many of the young people contrasted their experience of being able to communicate with someone who understands where I’m coming from, with the frustration they sometimes experienced trying to communicate with teachers, who often did not understand the issues affecting their lives. 62 The young people engaged in activities such as: drumming, drama and discussion of issues relevant to themselves. They found these activities both interesting and relevant. The drumming, rather than being merely cultural and recreational, provided a very creative introduction to a history relevant to the young peoples lives. In the schools, teachers were in the process of analysing the academic attainment of the pupils who were enrolled on the programme. Initial observation of some results had suggested an improvement in this area. The schools programme had not included extra tuition in curriculum subjects. On the community based programme, Maths, English, ICT and Arts based subjects were taught. The young people: Black, Dual Heritage and White, were particularly vocal, however, about the Black Literature course, which focusses on Black peoples liberation of their minds, and by extension, themselves, through the process of education. The aim was to impress upon the young people the power inherent in learning. One 15 year-old dual heritage female, referred to her contact with this Black Literature as a defining moment in her life. It gave her a sense of identity and pride: she did not know that black people had done anything. She concluded, that this literature should be taught in schools. Aiming Highs criteria for effective teaching and learning and the local authoritys emphasis on addressing the disaffection and exclusion experienced by some pupils; the introduction of appropriate texts and materials and the need to facilitate more active oral or kinaesthetic learning styles, were all being amply met in the work being carried out by these organsiations. High expectations A culture of high expectations in terms of work and behaviour was apparent in both organisations and the young people were aware of these expectations. Reward systems were chosen rather than the threat of punitive action. Failure to meet a target, set in conjunction with the young people, amounted to the choice made by that person rather than a sanction imposed by a mentor High achievement, exemplary attitude and behaviour were rewarded in the school based programme. The community based programme had a system which rewarded attendance, punctuality, the completion of work to a certain standard and achieving passes in their assessment. The involvement of the young people in monitoring their progress made them more accountable. 63 Ethos of respect with a clear approach to racism and bad behaviour Respect and good manners were standard requirements in both organisations disrespectful behaviour was not tolerated. Many of the parents talked about lax discipline in schools, which were eroding the behavioural standards those parents upheld at home. They applauded the organisations for the standards they set the young people. The question of discipline also arose in the young peoples conversations on respect. Even when they were to blame for problems, which had arisen, their discipline was always accompanied by a level of respect. The young people considered this important for a harmonious working relationship between themselves and the mentor. Parental involvement A clue to the early success a grossly under-researched area that Black children experience in primary school may be found in the African descent, Caribbean or Black family background. In Black families, great emphasis is placed on being bright and young children who are able to read, recite or perform in some way are a source of pride to their families who encourage them in the pursuit of excellence. Parents instil a culture of high expectation and high achievement in their children, often with the hope that the children will achieve more than they, the parents, were able to because of shortened or inadequate schooling. The high value parents put on education translates into the importance they attach to children being able to read and write by the time they start school. It is not surprising, therefore, that high numbers of Black children enter school already literate and numerate and with a real zest for learning. The Black family structure is an important aspect of a childs early education. Families tend to be close-knit, the extended family playing an important role in raising the children and the concept of the village raising the child is still prevalent. Both programmes actively encouraged parental involvement. In addition, the Black mentors some of whom were known to families socially provided checks and balances for the young people and continued the village tradition. Conclusion The programmes, by parents, teachers and the young people’s assessment were effective in meeting the social and educational needs of the young people providing a number of practical solutions to the challenges found in the Eurocentric British educational context. 64 The educational visit serves a similar purpose. The report of the visit highlighted eight key areas: Under Culturally relevant curriculum and resources it was recognised that cultural heritage and pride play key role a young persons educational, personal and social development. There was a strong sense of Parent and Community Involvement and Support and parental involvement is sought in sanctioning poor behaviour. Innovative ways are found for dealing with Behaviour and Sanctions: and there is strong cultural and societal support for head teachers, which has a major impact on discipline. Community service in school is the sanction before exclusion, which rarely happens. Pupil Participation and School Identity are bound up with uniform, student councils -exclusion cannot be authorised without student representation and student responsibility extending to care for their environment and turning up to lessons with books they rent at the beginning of the year. Extra-curricular Activities such as participation in inter-school competitions are part the overall education of the child. The quiz team practices with the school Principal, at the weekend, provide a context for less formal relationships between students and teachers. Vocational and Careers Education, Transition, is the schools preparation of students for life after school. The Guidance Counsellors and other Support Services are key to schools operations, having key preventative, interventional and administrative roles. Although not qualified teachers, Guidance Counsellors have parity in status, pay and conditions with teachers. More creative ways are found for dealing with Boys Underachievement.They are taught separately for some subjects – results show raised achievement levels in boys and girls. Teacher training addresses issues to do with gender differences in learning styles. Old Boys of the school offer mentoring in some schools. It would appear that the political will to effect change is present; there is a growing awareness of the posible causes of the problem and practical solutions are coming to light. The question which remains, however, is one of teacher training. Is the present workforce equipped to deliver these educational promises? Amos Wilson, in his book Awakening the Natural Genius of the Black Child 1991, gives this timely reminder of the major function of education: to help secure the survival of a people… And its going to require a different kind of education than what is available today p. 1. An African- centred education for Black young people, as well as young people in general, is not just desirable: it is a must if the underachievement cycle is to be broken, and young people, particularly Black young people, are to excel and become useful citizens in the 21 st century. 65 References Ani, M. 1994. Yurugu: An African-centred Critique of European Cultural Thought and Behavior. Trenton, New Jersey, Africa World Press, Inc. Asante, M. K. 1988. Afrocentricity. Trenton, New Jersey, Africa World Press, Inc. Blair, M. 2001. Why pick on me? School exclusion and Black youth. Stoke on Trent, Trentham Books. Coard, B. 2005. How the West Indian child is made educationally subnormal in the British school system: the scandal of the Black child in schools in Britain. Tell it like it is: How our schools fail Black children. B. Richardson. London, Bookmarks Trentham Books: 27 - 59. DES 1985. Education for all: Final report of the Committee of Inquiry into the education of children from ethnic minority groups. London, HMSO. DfEE 1998. Making the Difference: Teaching and Learning in Effective Multi-ethnic Schools. London. DfES 2003. Aiming High: Raising the Achievement of Minority Ethnic Pupils. London, Department for Education and Skills: 42. DfES. 2005. GCSE Results England 2004 National Statistics First Release SFR 082005 24 Feb 2005. 2005, from www.dfes.gov.ukrsgatewayDBSFR . Gibson, M. A. 1997. Complicating the ImmigrantInvoluntary Minority Typology. Anthropology Education Quarterly 283: 431-454. Gillborn, D. 2005. Education policy as an act of white supremacy: whiteness, critical race theory and education reform. Journal of Education Policy 204: 485-505. Gillborn, D. 2005a. It takes a nation of millions and a particular kind of education system to hold us back. Tell it like it is: How our schools fail Black children. B. Richardson. London, Stoke on Trent, Trentham Books: 88-96. Gillborn, D. 2006. Public Interest and the Interests of White People are Not the Same: assessment, education policy, and racism. Education Research in the Public Interest: Social Justice, Action, and Policy. G. Ladson-Billings and W. F. Tate. New York, Teachers College Press: 173-195. Gillborn, D. and S. Mirza 2000. Educational Inequality: mapping race, class and gender. A synthesis of research evidence, HMI Ofsted. Gillborn, D. and D. Youdell 2000. Rationing education: policy, practice, reform and equity. Buckingham, Open University Press. John, G. 2005. Parental and community involvement in education: time to get the balance right. Tell it this it is: How our schools fail Black children. B. Richardson. London, Stoke on Trent, Trentham Books: 238. MacPherson, W., Sir 1999. The Stephen Lawrence Inquiry. London, Stationery Office. Mashengele, D. 1997. Africentricity: new context, new challenges, new futures. SCUTREA, EDUCATION-LINE. Ofsted 2002. Achievement of Black Caribbean Pupils: Three Successful Secondary Schools. London, Office for Standards in Education: 37. Ofsted 2002a. Achievement of Black Caribbean Pupils: Three Successful Primary Schools. London, Office for Standards in Education: 29. Ogbu, J. U. 1974. The Next Generation: An Ethnography of Education in an Urban Neighborhood. New York and London, Academic Press. 66 Rampton, A. 1981. West Indian children in our schools: interim report of the committee of inquiry into the education of children from ethnic minority groups. London, Department of Education and Science: 119. Runnymede, T. 1998. Improving Practice: A whole school approach to raising achievement of African Caribbean Youth. Sewell, T. 1997. Black Masculinities and Schooling: How Black boys survive modern schooling. Stoke-on-Trent, Trentham Books. Tomlinson, S. 1983. Ethnic Minorities in British Schools A Review of the Literature, 1960-82. London, Heinemann Educational Books. Tomlinson, S. 2005. A Tribute to Bernard Coard. Tell it like it is: How our schools fail Black Children. B. Richardson. London, Stoke on Trent, Bookmarks Publications Trentham Books: 82 - 84. Warnock 1978. Special educational needs. Welsing, F. C. 1991. The Isis Papers: The Key to the Colors. Washington, DC, C.W. Publishing. Wright, C. 1987. Black Students - White Teachers. Racial Inequality in Education. B. Troyna. London, Tavistock Publications. Wright, C. 1992. Early Education: Multiracial Primary School Classrooms. Racism and Education: Structures and Strategies. D. Gill, B. Mayor and M. Blair. London, Sage. 1. 67 DO ASPECTS OF PUPIL IDENTITY LIMIT BOYS’ PERFORMANCE IN MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGES IN SECONDARY SCHOOL? DAVE EVANS Abstract Results in G.C.S.E. examinations consistently indicate that girls outperform boys at the top end of performance, defined in this study as C+ grades at G.C.S.E. At the bottom end of performance, boys obtain far more of the lower grades than girls. Why are there consistently such differences at the extremes of performance? The intention of this study is to ask questions regarding the way in which students construct their identities in relation to the motivations and ideologies in terms of learning a foreign language. Although the research question is interesting in itself due to an unexplained imbalance in gender performance, the intended outcome of the research and its ongoing rationale is to indicate possibilities for gender equity and inclusion within this area of the curriculum. The research paradigm is interpretive and the data in this paper is both quantitative and qualitative to reflect the different ways of knowing involved in the study. Qualitative data is collected from semi-structured interviews from a case study of 10 students representative in terms of ability in a year 11 class in a large secondary school. Students accepted to be interviewed on the basis of informed consent, having been assured on confidentiality and anonymity. The interviews were taped and transcribed and parental permission was obtained. My findings to date tentatively point towards connections between cultural sensibility and linguistic competence. This could have implications for culturalmulti-cultural education within the curriculum. Introduction My study is to investigate why boys in secondary schools perform less well than girls in terms of the higher grades at General Certificate of Secondary Education with particular reference to Modern Foreign Languages MFL. The study takes place in a large wide ability secondary school in South Kent. French has been chosen as the focus language for this paper because, hitherto, this is the language that all pupils in the school have so far had access to, before opting or not to take on other languages. This situation has recently changed with regard to Spanish which is now taught from Year 7. German is also taught in the school as an ‘ab initio’ option from Year 10. The research question calls for two methodological approaches as different ways of knowing. Firstly, there needs to be a quantitative method to elicit numerical data in order to establish that nationally and locally girls do indeed outperform boys at the higher A-C grades at GCSE. Secondly qualitative data is required to investigate possible reasons for this. The study is an interpretivist one where the researcher, with his own way of seeing the world positions himself to research other subjectivities. This has many implications 68 for bias that will need to be addressed in the main study with regard to data collection and interpretation. With regard to quantitative data the researcher position is a different one in that the data is numerical and represents a reality of surface level description. There is a greater objectivity in such a static reified representation of reality although numerical data is often open to subjective interpretation and may not always be what it seems to be. Nevertheless this type of data has an existence that can be seen as being more independent from the researcher as opposed to the more subjective qualitative data. At a national level for example the Office for National Statistics in 1999 stated that ‘girls outperform boys in GCSE and ‘A’ level in MFL’. Williams et al 2002 refer to GCSE results in ‘ The Guardian’ newspaper on the 24 th August 2000, showing that girls outperformed boys in French, German and Spanish’. At a local level Figure 1 shows the 2002 GCSE results in French at the secondary school where I teach and where I am conducting the research. This is an example of the distribution of grades according to gender, which in terms of trend, is replicated year on year. It shows that a great majority of the higher A-C grades goes to girls rather than boys. In this year no student was awarded an ‘A’ grade 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 A B C D E U Boys Gir ls FIGURE 1:-CHART SHOWING DISTRIBUTION OF G.C.S.E GRADES IN FRENCH IN FRENCH BY GENDER FOR 2002 AT BRACKENMOUNT SCHOOL. Brackenmount is a pseudonym to maintain the anonymity of the school The values on the chart are as follows: Horizontal axis –GCSE grade Vertical axis – student numbers 69 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 A B C D E F G Boys Gir ls FIGURE 2:- CHART SHOWING GCSE RESULTS IN FRENCH FOR 2001 BY GENDER AT BRACKENMOUNT SCHOOL. Chart values: Horizontal axis- GCSE grade Vertical axis – Student numbers In the previous year of 2001 see figure 2, a similar trend is present in that the majority of the A-C grades fall to the girls in the pattern of distribution. In this year there is an ‘A’ grade that is gained by a female student. The data, which is a way of knowing within a positivist, objective form of knowledge shows a preponderance of the higher GCSE grades falling to female pupils. However, quantitative data can only be descriptive over a wide surface area and does not get us to the underlying reason for this characteristic. We have to delve beneath the surface description to examine all the interacting elements. What do we mean by gender? According to Coates 1997 males and females are very different in the way they interact within their gender. Males are more competitive in their talk with each other as each man holds the floor before passing it on to the next man. Women are seen to be more cooperative engaging in joint productions of conversation where they will at times reciprocally finish each other’s contribution. Creese et al 2004, however, view these conversational features not as belonging as of necessity to a gender but rather as features that are taken up by each gender when deemed appropriate. Thus a man may well behave conversationally in one situation according to a role description that is deemed to be female and then he may revert to a role deemed to be male in another situation. All men are therefore not the same in their interactional behaviours. Gender features that are traditionally attached to one gender or the other may very well vary according to the person. These features can therefore be seen as person based rather than gender based. Gender may therefore be viewed not in terms of binary malefemale features but rather as 70 a continuum between contrasting and opposing aspects of behaviour that can be appropriated by any gender. Gender is therefore problematic and needs to be viewed with circumspection when claims are made with regard to MFL. Also, meanings of MFL need to be analysed. What does a Modern Foreign Language mean to each person? A DISCURSIVE APPROACH The philosophical standpoint of this study is that the individual constructs hisher identity in and through language. This occurs within a social context of power arrangements within which definitions are created with regard to social identities. The individual’s identity is constructed on a daily basis in a dialectical struggle for meaning between himherself and the social context. For Bakhtin 1981 language is always at the point of encounter between the individual and social context. The individual uses words with pre- set meanings and appropriates them for hisher own use. The word-meanings we use therefore are partly ours and partly someone else’s and may have the taste of another group or person’s ideology. A new discourse is born when other people share, in some way, the meanings that an individual has appropriated for the words that heshe uses. Fairclough 1989 refers, however, to wider and more powerful discourses shaping smaller and more localized ones. He argues that the larger ‘Orders of Discourse’ are socio-economic ones in capitalist societies and they set the conditions for the smaller sub- set of discourses which he refers to as discourse types such as advertising, management, counselling, bureaucratic and institutional practices. Educational practices have their own discourse type that is partly shaped by the larger orders of discourse but may also be shaped by other ideologies, not directly connected with socio-economics. The particular examples I have in mind for this are faith schools where other ideologies are present such as Catholic or Islamic. More powerful discourses infiltrate and colonize smaller less powerful ones through the use of language. Therefore in education one can find the language of management, performance, counselling, technology etc. My research thesis is that MFL motivations and social identities have their construction in levels of discourse that exist on three levels: the wider socio-cultural socio-economic order of discourse, the discourse type and the interactional discourse. These can be seen diagrammatically in terms of three concentric circles as follows: 71 Fairclough 1989 argues that the individual is constantly being positioned ideologically and that, as heshe occupies the social positions that are available, heshe reinforces these positions over time. The social positions of pupil, teacher, lawyer, doctor, policeman, male, female etc are reinforced through ‘normalized’ ideological language that appears to be neutral. Language appears to be neutral because of a process of internalisation where we become so used to the language we use that we no longer notice its ideological bias. The language becomes common sense, containing common sense assumptions that disguise its ideological position. We therefore risk becoming ideological constructions without recognising it as such and the power of the ideology in the language we use is all the more powerful because of its apparent neutrality. My thesis with regard to MFL, supported by research findings, is that it is an ideologically contested area of the curriculum. The extent to which ideologies relate to motivation and gender is a matter for research findings and will eventually require extensive discussion in the main study. Nevertheless we will see that motivation for MFL draws upon ideology from the three levels of discourse in the diagram. Let us consider the level of discourse from which the following statement draws its motivation for foreign language learning. The following is taken from the Nuffield Languages Inquiry 2000 ‘. . . . . the time is right for the government to declare a clear commitment to setting a national policy agenda for languages, along with an enhanced 72 international dimension in education, as a contribution to economic success and international understanding’ p 64 This inquiry points to ‘an inadequate supply of language skills available to industry across a range of languages’p23. Richard Edwards 1994 points out that a feature of discourse is its ability to make meanings seem universal within the location of a discourse and since Fairclough 1989 argues that a socio-economic order of discourse is a very powerful one, the economic meanings for MFL may be very pervasive. They may have the power to colonize the smaller discourses within the concentric circles. However, do these wider discourses resonate with pupils in their motivation to learn a foreign language? Although pupils may not seem likely to learn a language to advance the U.K’s competitive position in the world economy, they are perhaps more likely to see the mastery of a foreign language as a way of giving themselves a competitive edge in the labour market. Teachers are likely to adopt this argument as a way of enhancing the take up and performance with regard to MFL. Gardner 1985 labels this type of motivation as instrumental in that it is an externally derived motivation that has the attainment of an external goal as its sole objective. Consider the following interview extract in terms of instrumental motivation. This is between the researcher and a year 11 male pupil at a large secondary school in South Kent that I have named Brackenmount Secondary School: B = Bill D.E = Dave Evans Research interviewer D.E- Just getting into this question of learning foreign languages, do you think it’s important to learn a foreign language? B- Yes because it could be incredibly useful in later life like if you go on a holiday or anything like that. D.E- Right, do you think that’s the main use? B- Or you might want to get a job. D.E Yeh, do you think foreign languages could be useful for anything else in terms of getting to know how people live or is that not so important as getting a job or is that more important? B-It might be to some people but I wouldn’t say so to me Although Bill recognizes the social significance of language learning, that however, does not interest him. His view is that language learning can provide him with a functional outcome. The ideology for this motivation in my opinion comes from the middle part of the concentric circle that in turn draws on the wider socio-economics order of discourse. His motivation involves getting a job and going on holiday but not identifying with the culture of the target language. Instrumental motivation in this way involves achieving specific external outcomes. Gardner argues that this is a weaker form of motivation because, once the goal has been achieved, the desire to continue to be an MFL learner is then likely to subside. 73 However, both Gardner and Dornyei 2001 point out that learning a foreign language is a socio-cultural event and requires taking on target language identity or at least relating to aspects of the culture of the target language. This is described as integrative motivation that Williams et al 2004 say occurs when the student wishes to identify with the culture of the speakers of the target language. This type of motivation is regarded as stronger because it is more enduring. This is because it does not subside when a specific external goal has been achieved. It is an internal motivation stemming from a curiosity about the way people live and the ideas they may have. It is regarded as a strong form of motivation because it can involve a desire to integrate into the cultural life of the target language community. Integrative motivation in itself may not seem to be directly connected with socio-economics but this does not mean that it has no ideology. The ideology could be defined as a cultural or multi-cultural one in the wider orders of discourse. The extent to which this ideology penetrates into classroom interaction may be determined by the enthusiasm and culturallinguistic expertise of the teacher. The connection may also be made through the pupils’ family ideology and cultural links. It would be a mistake to think that instrumental and integrative motivations preclude each other. They may co-exist within the learner. More recently, Norton 2000 has proposed a social investment model for foreign language learning which combines these two motivations. In this model the learner invests hisher identity by taking on aspects of target language identity. However, heshe does this to gain a culturalprofessional return later on. This increased status may also involve a socio- economic motivation, for example a professional salary in a foreign language based profession. There is therefore in this model a notion of return in the form of an increase of one’s own social and cultural capital that does not exist in the purely integrative model. In my experience, I have noticed in my own day to day observations, that pupils do question the point of doing MFL if they do not make the connection between classroom work and any of the motivations that have been mentioned. As MFL is a socio-cultural experience, the experiences and activities evoked by the lessons are at some distance from the physical space of the classroom. MFL really is about a place and a culture far removed from the physical space of the lesson. Here the smaller discourse of the classroom has to invoke the larger surrounding discourses and if this does not happen then the meanings evoked in the physical space of the teaching activity are small and may gradually result in a loss of pupils’ motivation as they grow older. MFL, in my opinion, gives substance to theories of discourse, by showing that the larger discourse meanings shape the smaller interactional ones. Gumperz 1999 also argues in the notion of indexicality that smaller discourses actively call upon and extend towards larger ones in order to specify meaning. This means that speakers reach upwards to refine meaning. However, reaching up for larger cultural meanings does not guarantee motivation for MFL. For example the concept of nationality can often be counterproductive where pupils state that they are English and therefore should speak English and not speak French because they are not French. Wider cultural meanings are therefore not always on the side of MFL although, in this case, are probably not considered to be wide enough by teachers who wish to embrace internationalist or global attitudes. There may well be, therefore, in this case an ideological, cultural conflict between nationalism and internationalism within the classroom space. 74 We should look at some of the qualitative data obtained from semi-structured interviews with year 11 students from the same large secondary school in south Kent. The sample size is 10; six boys and four girls out of a class of 20. The sample is representative of a wide general ability range. Other students were asked and declined to be interviewed and two year 11 girls, who did accept, failed to turn up. D.E = Dave Evans Research Interviewer A = Alicia GCSE mock: 61 = C+ grade. AN = Anna GCSE mock: 67 = C+ grade Extract 1 D.E- D’you think that learning MFL is an important thing to do? AN- Yeh I’d say it’s quite important D.E- Any reason why it’s quite important? AN- Well I think it’s good to learn about other countries D.E.- Right A- It’s needed D.E.- Why is it needed? A- Ah because if you’re going abroad it’s like useful for your own uses as well as if you’ve got a job you can always get higher pay and stuff if you can speak another language. Comment on extract 1 The extract above contains examples of integrative cultural motivation by Anna and also instrumental motivation by Alicia. Extract 2 D.E.- So you say that if you’re interested in the way people live it’s gonna encourage you to become more fluent and more . . . . if you’ve got a sympathy with the way they live. A - The way they live, the way they speak, how they construct all their . . .. sentences differently, it’s more interesting. D.E.- So it’s all part of the culture? A-Yeh D.E.- Right. Would it still be possible to be fluent in the language d’you think and not want to know about the culture? A-You probably could be fluent in it but I don’t think . . . there would be things you have to be passionate about it to really sort of show how much you like it. AN- you’ve got to go to that place as well so you can actually……….. A- You have to understand and learn their culture. When you go on holiday, perhaps to France, it makes you think, ‘I really enjoy speaking this. I like the way they live’ and how they’re more friendly and stuff. 75 Comment on Extract 2 Alicia understands that language is bound up with culture, so that the way in which things are said in sentence construction and pronunciation is all part of the culture. Alicia has a very good French accent and strives for fluency. She should get an A or B grade at GCSE. Although she realizes that a qualification in a foreign language is very useful for employment, her motivation is also integrative in wishing not only to know about France but also to sound French when she speaks the language. Cultural integrative motivation is also a male student attribute in the following extract between DE, Jasmine Oliver. D.E = Dave Evans Research Interviewer J = female Year 11 student -57= grade C+ O = male Year 11 student - 59 = grade C+ 1 DE- Is it important to learn a foreign language? 2 J- I think it is 3 O- If you want to get a job in a foreign country it’s really good to learn 4 the language obviously but um but socially it depends on if you want 5 to get a job ----- 6 J- Culturally and other things too it’s good to speak different languages. 7 O- It’s useful to have on your C.V. That’s what we’re told anyway. 8 DE- are there any other reasons? 9J- Dunno, it’s like good for you, get your brain to learn other languages and stuff. 10 DE- It’s good in itself? 11 J- Yeh and when you go on holiday well it helps 12 O- I dunno there’s learning maths and learning things like algebra and 13 things but then you’ve got the language side of learning. It’s just a 14 different type of learning. It just broadens your horizons. 15 J- And it helps you learn about different cultures 16 DE- So if you have choice between the reasons of getting a job and 17 earning more money and broadening your horizons, what d’you think 18 is the most relevant? What d’you think is the more important for you? 19 O- I wouldn’t like to learn it in a job. I wouldn’t like to speak French 20 in a job, but I would if I had to. But I would just get a job in England. Comment on extract Oliver opts for the idea of languages being useful for getting a job if that’s what you want to do lines 3-5. Jasmine emphasizes the cultural motive line 6. However, Oliver shows a critical attitude in line 7, where he does not seem convinced about the economicjob argument for learning a language. This motive does not belong to him, it belongs to other people and he probably has to take it on trust. In lines 12-14 he differentiates foreign language learning from some other types of learning by saying that it ‘broadens your horizons’. My interpretation of this is that MFL is really about what is 76 going on elsewhere, away from the physical place of learning. Unlike maths and science which can exist in their own space, MFL depends upon the existence of other worlds which have to be imagined or invoked. This is the wider cultural discourse and depends upon the students’ and teachers’ motivation towards cultural knowledge and imagination. Modern languages are about making this journey from the place where they are taught to the place where they live in the real world, not only of place but also of culture. Consider the following extract highlighting aestheticaffective motivation with regard to the sounds of the foreign language. 1 DE- Would you say that you like the sound of the language that you 2 have a feeling for the sound of the language? 3 J- Yeh it sounds better than the English language 4 DE –what about you Oliver, do you have a feeling for the sound of the 5 language? 6 O- yeh, I think it’s important that they’ve got the accent but we have 7 our accent. It’s one thing having a different language but it’s very 8 unique and I think that’s great. I like it. 9 DE- Would you like to get to know French people well? 10 O- Yeh, pen friends or something. That would really help. I think 11 they should do that more often. 12 J- It’s O.K when you’re better and learning it and learning the culture. 13 O- Because you would be socializing and you’d be growing on their 14 ideas. 15 J- Especially if you had someone of your own age then you could 16 compare stuff 17 O- As you grow older you could still keep in contact. 18 DE- Would you like to live in France Jasmine? 19 J- Umm if I could speak the language I would but I wouldn’t want to 20 live there without knowing the language – be too daunting 21 O- It would be scary. 22 DE- How about you, would you like to live in France? 23 O- It’s all right going on holiday. I’d have to learn the language. 24 DE- But would you like the idea of living like French people? 25 O- Yeh, I like it. I’m not really sure about the whole set, eating the 26 dinner thing. I don’t know if that’s stereotypical or not. I don’t know 27 how I’d do it but I think I’d like it. It would be different. I prefer it to 28 going somewhere else because it’s French and England and that’s the 29 connection. Comment on extract Line 3- Jasmine prefers the sound of French to English Lines 6-8 Oliver points out that each language has its unique accent and each has to be appreciated 77 Line 12 Jasmine emphasizes that learning is about language and culture at the same time and not separately. Lines 13-14 Oliver points out the social aspects of language learning and its about absorbing different ideas within one’s own personal development and in line 17 he talks about growing up together. Lines 25-27 Oliver reflects on living within French culture and is not too sure about sitting around a dinner table for hours but then wonders if this is not just a stereotype. Oliver is able to reflect on culture and question possible stereotypes. Further on Oliver reflects on his ability at French and he obviously enjoys words and using them. His favourite subjects that he will pursue at ‘A’ level are English and Drama. DE- Would you say you’re good at French? O- At times. It’s strange even if I haven’t learned the word, I’ll be able to pick it up quite quickly and that’s exciting, when you’re picking up words and you’re being able to say them once you’ve learnt them. I think that’s great. In some ways the thesis of this study has moved some distance from the original title which is to identify aspects of identity that limit male secondary school performance in MFL It has been possible to consider types of motivation that are closely connected with ideological meaning and discourse. This is the main lesson as a researcher that I have so far learned. For reasons of space I have only been able to include a limited amount of data but the total amount I have so far collected has convinced me that there is no simple gender divide in terms of motivation. If the study were a matter of numbers, it could turn out at the end that boys are more prone to one type of motivation than another but that both genders share both types of motivation in large parts. However, I feel that the more likely direction is an awareness of the ideological and discursive nature of MFL and that this involves an interconnection between the sounds and materiality of words and the cultural worlds they bring to life. The affective and aesthetic empathy that characterizes this awareness of ‘Other’ may be a prime force towards the very best MFL learning. References Bakhtin, M. 1981. The Dialogic Imagination: Four Essays. M.Holquist ed. Austin: University of Texas Press Coates, J. 1997. One-at-a-time: The Organization of Men’s Talk. in Language and Masculinity. S. Johnson. U. Meinhof.eds. Oxford: Blackwell. Creese, A. Leonard, D. Daniels, H. Hey, V. 2004 Pedagogic Discourses, Learning and Gender Identification. Language and Education Vol.18 No.3 pages 191-206 Dornyei, Z. 2001 Motivational Strategies in the language classroom. Cambridge: C.U.P Edwards, R. and Usher R 1994 Post-modernism and Education. London: Routledge Fairclough, N. 1989 Language and Power. LondonNew York:. Longman. Gardner, R. 1985. Social Psychology and Second Language Learning: The role of Attitudes and Motivation. London. Edward Arnold 78 Gumperz, J. 1999 ‘On interactional socio-linguistic method’ in S. Sarangi C Roberts eds. Talk, Work and Institutional Order. Discourse in Medical, Mediation and Management Settings. BerlinNew York. Mouton de Gruyter. Norton, B. 2000 Identity and Language Learning. Gender, Ethnicity and Educational Change. London: Longman. Nuffield Languages Inquiry 2000. Languages: the next generation. London: Nuffield Foundation. Office for National Statistics 1999 Social Trends. London: Stationery Office. Williams, M. Burden, R Lanvers,U. 2004 ‘French is the language of Love and Stuff’. British Educational Research Journal vol. 28 No.4 pages 503-528 79 E-learning – Accessibility, Usability and Pedagogical Issues forBlind Learners Shirley Evans Abstract This study is based on an initial belief that it is more difficult for blind adult learners than sighted learners to engage in e-learning and therefore they are at a disadvantage in terms of education and training. The question posed to explore this is the extent to which there is a level playing field between e-learners who are sighted and e-learners who are blind. For the main study a group of ten blind learners and a group of ten sighted learners were observed working through an on-line learning object. The participants were all male aged between 16 and 27 with good IT skills and with limited knowledge of the subject matter. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected in terms of how long they took to work though the materials, including how much time was spent accessing, using, doing; time spent on particular activities such as answering questions and time they spent on each page; satisfaction of using the learning object; perception of the cognitive load; performance in a test 2 days later. Of paramount importance was that a reasonably accessible and enjoyable learning experience was offered. Initial analysis indicates that the blind learners took twice as long as the sighted learners on the task; they enjoyed it more but did not fair as well as the sighted learners in the performance test. This may be explained by the additional cognitive load imposed by the assistive technology. Introduction The purpose of this paper is to present the data from the main study for a PhD thesis on e- learning and blindness. There will be a consideration of general outcomes and the way in which cognitive load theory can be applied to help understand the quality of the learning experience for someone using assistive technology. This research is based on an initial belief that it is more difficult for blind adult learners than sighted learners to engage in e-learning and therefore they are at a disadvantage in terms of education and training. The question posed to explore this is the extent to which there is a level playing field between e-learners who are sighted and e-learners who are blind. The aim of the research is to examine issues that may be experienced by a blind person in an e-learning environment and to:- • gain greater understanding of, and insight into, the issues that a blind e-learner might face. • to indicate general solutions for designers of e-learning materials. • to help teachers to identify training needs and choose materials 80 • to help education and training organisations address Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 SENDA and equality and diversity issues • to inform development of legislation and policy It may be more difficult for blind learners to engage in many activities including those connected with education. One difficulty may be that it takes longer for a blind person to carry out a task than a sighted person. However the internet offers opportunities for blind people to select and engage with written information completely independently. Information and communication technologies ICTs offer opportunities for blind learners to engage in interaction with others and with learning materials, enabling active communication, both on a social front and on a learning front that was previously not available. The project has developed through four main stages. In terms of methods of collecting and analysing data and the literature there is a great deal of linkage and for the purposes of this chapter the development of a methodology is considered as a planned developmental process. In this respect the path of the development has been influenced by the research question at the time. These questions have been like stepping-stones. Initially there was the question of whether a blind learner could engage inaccess e- learning. This developed into the questions of; to what extent they could engageaccess, and then whether they were engagingaccessing on an equal footing and the quality of that engagement? In a previous study carried out by the author Evans and Sutherland, 2003 a conceptual framework of ‘accessing, doing and using’ was used to examine the extent to which a blind learner may engage in e-learning in the form of a virtual learning environment VLE in terms of time. In the study it was found that that learners using a screen reader spent up to three times longer on tasks in the VLE than sighted users. Ideally the learner should spend most of the time in the VLE doing e.g. learning and limited time should be spent on using e.g. navigating and accessing e.g. using the assistive technology. This pilot study led to the main study which incorporated the above conceptual framework and also focused on a theoretical framework based on navigation in hypertext and cognitive load theory. This latter framework is used to examine the question regarding the quality of the learning experience. Theoretical Framework Cognitive load may be viewed as the level of mental energy required to process a given amount of information. As the amount of information to be processed increases, so too does the associated cognitive load. Cognitive load theory suggests that effective instructional material promotes learning by directing cognitive resources towards activities that are relevant to learning rather than to processes that are an adjunct to learning, Cooper 1990, p.1. 81 Paas, Renki and Sweller 2003, p.2 categorise cognitive load into 3 types:- • Intrinsic cognitive load - this relates to element interactivity required in learning materials. This can be stored in the short-term memory which may only cope with a small number of interactivities. Schemas learning from previous experiences are stored in the long-term memory and can be drawn upon automatically to aid current learningproblem solving experiences and this is known as automation. • Extraneous ineffective cognitive load occurs when working memory resources are used for activities which are irrelevant to schema acquisition and automation. In this study this may include use of the screen reader and problems associated with design of the learning materials for sighted learners i.e. navigational issues. • Germane effective cognitive load is concerned with the combination of elements of working memory to create schemas. An example of this would be navigation and learning design specifically directed at the blind learner, for example and overview of the learning object. Both extraneous and germane cognitive load can be influenced by the designer whereas intrinsic cognitive load cannot be influenced by the designer. The main problem which occurs for the blind learner using a screen reader may be the large amount of information that has to be stored in the working memory in order to navigate a web page. This may be exacerbated as there is usually no method of physically marking points of interest so this information must be stored in the working memory. These difficulties will make it take longer and be more complicated to problem solve, since there will be less schemas created and less in the long term memory making it more difficult for the blind learner to problem solve. This may lead to a vicious circle with the blind learner having to work harder to solve any problem and to repeat problem solving actions more often to build up the same number of schemas as a sighted person. According to Bruenken, Plass and Leunter 2003 there are a number of ways in which cognitive load may be measured and these include:- • learners’ perception of mental effort • rating of the difficulty of materials • performance outcome • learner’s time on task • navigational behaviour • dual-task analysis Variants of all of the above have been used in this study and two other methods not used in this study are: • physiological measurement such as pupil dilation and heart rate • neuroimaging to capture brain activation 82 Method The learners involved were all male aged between 16 and 27. Ten of the males were fully sighted and ten were blind all using a screen reader, JAWS, to access information on a computer. They were all competent users of computers. All were following Level 2 or 3 courses which were not sport related. The main part of the activities revolved around these learners working through an on-line learning object on sports injuries this is part of the National Learning Network materials as funded by the Learning and Skills Council. It should be noted that a pedagogically sound and accessible learning object was chosen in order for the learners to have a positive experience. Learners were given as little information about navigation as possible. Information was limited to the need to use a play button to move to the next page; a menu button, a back button and the option to switch the audio on or off. The learners were videoed working through the materials – with the lens focus being on the screen. The information in the learning object is displayed in the form of words, graphics and audio in a linear format covering 24 pages. The learning object had screen reader functionality built in that an overview of each page was announced by the screen reader. Each method of data collection is described below together with the results in the form of a comparison between blind and sighted learners. In general averages have been used for comparison deeper analysis of the data will be carried out in the main study, however due to the number of participants it is relatively easy to pick out any anomalies.

1. Background Apart from the general data mentioned above information was collected as to the use of