Article Review #2

Article Review
Ely, E.E., Pullen, P.C., Kennedy, M.J., & Cole Williams, M. (2015). A Multimedia Tool to Deliver Professional Development of Vocabulary Instruction. Journal of Special Education Technology, 30(1), 59-72.

This is a very thorough article on research done concerning the effectiveness of a specific multimedia approach to deliver professional development. The authors chose the use of evidence-based vocabulary instruction as their study topic. Details about the general lack of research on effective professional development delivery, failure of many teachers to use evidence-based reading practices, and lack of effective vocabulary instruction in schools is included. Difficulty moving effective practices from research to classroom and the general ineffectiveness of most professional development are also covered.

The authors include information from previous studies concerning ways to bridge the research-to-practice gap. They include information from a study in 2000 that called the current understanding of how to promote sustainable use of evidence-based practices, emerging after 30 years of research. Basic guidelines which have been established over this time period concerning effective PD are given and the authors point out how vague and broad these are. Research on teachers watching video of themselves teaching and then reflecting is discussed as effective, however the limited studies on use of video when other teachers model instruction is also detailed.

This article gives a great amount of information on how the videos were produced, and the theories behind the reasoning. The article also includes the online address of the video, so readers can view it. The video was produced using specific guidelines, from previous research, and these guidelines are also included in the article. Data about the participants, setting, baseline, intervention, and post-intervention are given. Discussion about how and why the data was collected, is also included. The checklist used to collect the data is also included. With all of this information included in the article, the study is quite easy to understand. 

The results of the study were positive, and detailed in the article. The authors clearly understood the limitations of their study, including the limited number of participants and discussed them. Future research implications are also discussed. 

This article was extremely interesting to me, because of the topic of effective professional development (PD). I lead PD on classroom management and behavior each year for my campus and will be presenting at Region 10 this summer. I have often worried about the effectiveness of my presentations and wondered how to get the teachers in the training to implement the information presented. 

The in-depth discussion of research on vocabulary instruction and professional development, were very interesting to me. The authors point out current reform efforts focusing on professional development, a very current and controversial topic. I, personally, have had little professional development I found to be useful or I carried forward into my classroom. The occasional training I did find useful have been high cost, outside of the district training. Any research into how to provide professional development which will effect my classroom quickly and continue long-term is important research to me and to my students. 

Article Review 1

Having a background in software engineering, I have experienced the extreme ratio of men to women in engineering, firsthand. I have also heard the occasional news story addressing single-gender education and the benefits to girls in mathematics.  So, when I came across an article titled Female Students' Experiences of Computer Technology in Single- versus Mixed-Gender School Settings, I knew I had to review it.

Burke and Murphy (2006) conducted a small study of female students who had experienced both mixed-gender and single-gender computer use in the classroom. The 12 students who volunteered for this study had all used computers in a mixed-gender setting in junior high and were currently in a grade 12 class on Communications' Technology in a single-gender school. The data collected was via a questionnaire, an interview, and a focus group.

The article cites several previous studies that led to this study.  Among these are studies on gender inequality in math, science, and technology, studies on the growth of technology in the workplace, and information on the low percentage of women in computer science. This allows anyone, regardless of their personal experiences, to understand the need for research in this area.

The questions and responses fell into the three areas of attention, confidence, and learning. The researchers concluded the girls felt they received more attention, felt more confident, and indicated they felt they were given more complex tasks, which resulted in more learning.  These findings were similar to previous studies involving single-gender education.

One criticism I have concerning this research is the small sample.  With a study of only 12 students, and all in the same current single-gender class setting, many things could have led to the feelings expressed by the students. Perhaps the teacher they had currently was simply better at giving attention, building confidence, and teaching than the teachers they had previously.  The ratio of students to teachers, computers to students, and available technology could have all been contributing factors to the feelings of the students.  Additionally, the general feelings of students in junior high versus students in their senior year of high school are significantly different, in my experience.

The authors do acknowledge the feelings of the students toward their school in general and the size of the school (much smaller than their previous schools) could have changed the general feelings of the participants.  They also feel it might be of value to conduct further research between two high schools (one of mixed-gender and one of single-gender) comparing the perceptions of the students toward technology and the actual learning of these students.

Overall, the article was worth reading, but led me to more questions than answers.  I hope to find additional studies in this area, with larger study groups and less variables. In my area of interest, special education, I am not certain the discrepancy between the feelings of females toward technology in single-gender and mixed-gender classes would exist.  I would love to see a study to confirm this, but in my experience of 50+ special education students, gender discrepancy of any kind has not been a concern.  Perhaps the low developmental (and social) level of my students would explain this lack of discrepancy.

Reference:

Burke, L. & Murphy, E. (2006). Female students’ experiences of computer technology in single- versus mixed-gender school settings.  E-Journal of Instructional Science and Technology, v9, n1.