Suchergebnisse

Over the past decade, national and transnational organizations have advanced the cause of individuals who seek international protection from persecution based on their sexual orientation and gender identity and expression (SOGIE). To help actualize the vision of international protection from SOGIE-based persecution, the Organization for Refuge, Asylum, and Migration (ORAM) developed and designed a two-day workshop for professionals. This workshop, which is titled Sexual and Gender Minorities: What Refugee Professionals Need to Know and Do, is intended to professionalize frontline workers for engagement with and protection of refugees fleeing from SOGIE-based persecution. The workshop was implemented in 13 countries: Australia, India, Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Malaysia, Malta, New Zealand, Senegal, Switzerland, Trinidad, Turkey, and the United States. Several of these countries are considered to be hostile environments for LGBTI individuals.

Although educators are at the center of contentious high-stakes teacher accountability policies, we know very little about their attitudes toward these policies. This research gap is unfortunate because teachers are considered key actors in successful implementation of educational reforms. To what extent do the politics that accompany the introduction of high-stakes teacher accountability policies affect teachers' support for the policies themselves? To address this gap, we used data from an experimental survey of teachers in New Jersey (n=444), where a new reform—Teacher Effectiveness and Accountability for Children of New Jersey Act (TEACHNJ)—was signed into law in 2012 and implemented shortly after. The cornerstone of the reform is a new evaluation system that ties student performance on standardized tests to teachers' evaluation. We found that the majority of teachers oppose the new evaluation system. Teachers' attitudes were shaped by the politics of the key actors advocating for the policy, perceptions of implementation efforts, and beliefs in the potential outcome of the policy. Open-ended responses indicated that teachers question the validity of the evaluation system and are concerned about the negative intended and unintended consequences of the system. We conclude this paper by discussing the implications of these findings for policy studies and policymaking.

Although educators are at the center of contentious high-stakes teacher accountability policies, we know very little about their attitudes toward these policies. This research gap is unfortunate because teachers are considered key actors in successful implementation of educational reforms. To what extent do the politics that accompany the introduction of high-stakes teacher accountability policies affect teachers' support for the policies themselves? To address this gap, we used data from an experimental survey of teachers in New Jersey (n=444), where a new reform—Teacher Effectiveness and Accountability for Children of New Jersey Act (TEACHNJ)—was signed into law in 2012 and implemented shortly after. The cornerstone of the reform is a new evaluation system that ties student performance on standardized tests to teachers' evaluation. We found that the majority of teachers oppose the new evaluation system. Teachers' attitudes were shaped by the politics of the key actors advocating for the policy, perceptions of implementation efforts, and beliefs in the potential outcome of the policy. Open-ended responses indicated that teachers question the validity of the evaluation system and are concerned about the negative intended and unintended consequences of the system. We conclude this paper by discussing the implications of these findings for policy studies and policymaking. ; Aunque los educadores están en el centro de las polémicas políticas de responsabilidad de los maestros, sabemos muy poco acerca de sus actitudes hacia estas políticas. Esta brecha de investigación es desafortunada porque los maestros son considerados actores clave en la implementación exitosa de las reformas educativas. ¿Hasta qué punto la política que acompaña a la introducción de políticas de responsabilidad de maestros de alto riesgo afecta el apoyo de los profesores a las políticas mismas? Para abordar esta laguna, utilizamos datos de una encuesta experimental de maestros en New Jersey (n = 444), donde una nueva reforma -La Ley de Eficacia y Rendición de Cuentas de los Maestros de Niños de New Jersey (TEACHNJ) poco después. La piedra angular de la reforma es un nuevo sistema de evaluación que vincula el desempeño de los estudiantes en las pruebas estandarizadas con las evaluaciones de los maestros. Encontramos que la mayoría de los maestros en nuestro estudio se oponen al nuevo sistema de evaluación. Las actitudes de los maestros fueron moldeadas por la política de los actores claves que abogaban por la política, las percepciones de los esfuerzos de implementación y las creencias en el resultado potencial de la política. Las respuestas abiertas indican que los docentes cuestionan la validez del sistema de evaluación y están preocupados por las consecuencias negativas y no intencionales del sistema. Concluimos este trabajo discutiendo las implicaciones de estos hallazgos para los estudios de políticas y la formulación de políticas. ; Embora os educadores estejam no centro das controvertidas políticas de responsabilidade dos professores, sabemos muito pouco sobre suas atitudes em relação a essas políticas. Esta lacuna de pesquisa é lamentável porque os professores são considerados protagonistas da implementação bem-sucedida de reformas educacionais. Em que medida a política que acompanha a introdução de políticas de responsabilidade de professores de alto risco afeta o apoio dos professores às próprias políticas? Para abordar esta lacuna, utilizamos dados de uma Pesquisa de Professores Experimentais em New Jersey (n = 444), onde uma nova reforma - Lei de Responsabilidade e Responsabilidade dos Professores de Nova Jersey (TEACHNJ) pouco depois. A pedra angular da reforma é um novo sistema de avaliação que relaciona o desempenho do aluno em testes padronizados com avaliações de professores. Achamos que a maioria dos professores em nosso estudo se opõe ao novo sistema de avaliação. As atitudes dos professores foram moldadas pela política dos principais atores que defendiam políticas, percepções de esforços de implementação e crenças sobre o resultado potencial da política. As respostas abertas indicam que os professores questionam a validade do sistema de avaliação e estão preocupados com as conseqüências negativas e não intencionais do sistema. Concluímos este artigo discutindo as implicações desses achados para estudos de política e elaboração de políticas.

Although Sense of Belonging has long been an important construct in understanding student success in higher education, it has not been examined in the alumni context. In this article, we explore the association between graduate students' Sense of Belonging and alumni engagement. We draw on an original data set ( n = 1,601) that combines administrative records on alumni giving and data from a 2017 survey. Using multivariate analyses, we show that alumni with a stronger Sense of Belonging are more likely to give to their alma mater and to hold pro-philanthropic attitudes. Furthermore, Sense of Belonging is positively associated with other forms of alumni engagement and participation, including volunteering. Our findings highlight the need to examine the link between unintentional social interactions and alumni engagement and giving.

Organizational networks shape education policy by influencing power holders and elites, but do they have similar effects on grassroots activists? We use data from the National Survey on Opting Out (2016 and 2018; n = 2,909) to examine the role of organizational networks in mobilizing activists in the opt-out movement (a movement in which parents and caregivers refuse to have their children sit for standardized tests). Despite characterizations of the opt-out movement as a bunch of "soccer moms" disappointed with their children's tests scores, our findings show that opt-out is in fact a structured movement reliant on social movement organizations (SMOs) with agendas that go beyond standardized tests. Further, we demonstrate a small but significant correlation between contact with SMOs and individual policy preferences. These patterns suggest that organizational networks may inform education policy by creating a social space for activists to learn about different policy ideas in education. We discuss implications for research and practice.

One of the most prominent educational social movements in the United States during the past two decades has been the opt-out movement, in which parents and caregivers refuse to have their school-aged children sit for federally mandated tests. Although early responses by government officials framed the movement in terms of race, class, and gender, in truth we know little about the actual motivations that drive opt-out activists. In this study, we build on social movements theories to examine who participate in the opt-out movement, as well as whether these partici-pants or their motivations changed over time. By doing so, we seek to build upon the existing literature by synthesizing the two primary theoretical perspectives on social movements and ac-tivism – uniting the focus on the social psychological determinants of individual activism with the focus on the role of external factors. Our analysis is based on data from two waves of the Na-tional Survey on Opting Out (2016: n=1,611; 2018: n=1,298). Our analysis show both stability and change in the opt-out movement between 2016 and 2018. Although the data reveal certain sociodemographic changes in the composition of the movement, these changes in demographics do not fully account for shifts in activist motivations over time. We also find that much of the variation in motivation across key social categories (e.g., political ideology, teachers/non-teachers, and parents/non-parents) holds over time. In contrast to common perceptions of the opt-out movement, which often portray parental concerns over their child's achievement as the pre-dominant motivation for participation, our study reveals that activists in the movement indicate they are motivated by political and ethical ideas. Participants in the opt-out movement are more concerned with collective problems, such as the well-being of teachers, broad curriculum, and privatization of public education, than with individual challenges. Given the massive changes that took place in the political and policy spheres during our period of study, the degree to which activist motivation stayed constant is notable – suggesting that many of these motivations are insulated from politics.

Citizen preferences play a key role in a democracy, and there is a substantial body of work that tries to understand the role that public preferences play in the policy process. Despite the important role public opinion plays, there are only limited efforts to document public opinion about education, psychology, and health. The Public Matters project seeks to address this gap by providing reliable, valid public opinion data to inform public debate. The Project includes a series of public opinion surveys on a variety of issues related to governance, policies, and practice that have the potential to affect human development.

During the past few years the opt out movement, in which parents refuse to have their school-aged children take federally mandated educational assessments, has gained momentum. Yet many important questions about opting out remain unanswered: Who is actually opting out? What motivates parents who opt their children out of the tests? Are those who opt out trying to protect their children, or do they have broader political aims? These are some of the questions that we aim to address in this study. Data for this study come from the National Survey on Opting Out, which was conducted from January 20, 2016 through March 31, 2016. We recruited respondents online, through links on the webpages and social media channels of opt out groups. The survey was administered electronically. The sample consisted of a total of 1,641 respondents from 47 states.

One of the overarching goals of international large-scale assessments (ILSA) is to inform public discourse about the quality of education different countries. To fulfill this function, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), for example, raises awareness of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) results through different forms of traditional and social media (e.g., press releases and other activities under the slogan PISA Day). Scholars have responded to the rapid growth of ILSA by examining public discourse through newspapers articles, policy documents, and other outlets. However, we know very little about whether and to what extent the general public is actually affected by PISA results. This article expands the range of stakeholders that engage with PISA by exploring public opinion. Specifically, the study uses data regarding public trust in education from the 2011 wave of the International Social Survey Program (ISSP). Drawing on survey data from 30 countries and Hierarchical Linear Models (HLM), the study shows that PISA ranking have a significant effect on public perceptions. After taking into account gross domestic product (GDP), we find that in high performing countries the general public expresses higher levels of confidence in the education system. We discuss these patterns in the context of growing politization of education policy making and the use of ILSA as evidence.

In conjunction with global efforts, Israel has committed to promoting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students' rights to a safe, affirming learning environment. Given Israeli society's mostly negative perception of homosexuality as well as the growing role of religious parties in the government, the authors question the extent to which this commitment is realized. Using data from the Israeli School Climate Survey conducted in 2016 (n=909), this article documents the school experiences of LGBT students. Findings reveal that LGBT students in Israel occasionally hear homophobic remarks in schools, they experience high levels of victimization (verbal, sexual, and physical), and they report limited access to school-based supports. Moreover, school climate varies across communities in Israel. We argue that by avoiding a centralized effort to address homophobic and transphobic bullying and by allowing communities and schools to lead the way, Israel maintains its international standing while limiting its internal conflict.