The education system is drawn in opposite directions both in research and in practice: Outcome-based evaluation and achievements on the one hand and values-based education on the other. The research and theory on the topic is also divided. Values based education is supported almost exclusively by theoretical arguments and qualitative research…

This article discusses the changes in basic education in Turkey, with a particular focus on religious education and its ramifications for the education system. The latest education reform, 4 + 4 + 4 (or 4+), the largest education reform in recent Turkish history, has brought radical changes to the school system regarding religious education. For…

The article presents a qualitative study which explores Chinese school teachers' imaginaries of Chinese and other education systems. It also investigates how social media has shaped their imaginaries. By reference to the literature on imaginary, discourse, and media, the study views imaginary as an instantiation of a particular discourse or…

This qualitative study explored the beliefs of students, parents and teachers on the purposes of schooling in order to provide a context for understanding beliefs and attitudes to school learning and achievement. Focus groups were conducted with Year 9 and 10 students (aged 13-15 years) and parents and teachers in three secondary schools in…

This study investigated newly qualified K-8 teachers' visions of science learning and teaching after they had completed preparation in a science teaching methods course I taught. What visions of science learning and teaching were these newly qualified teachers taking away from my course? How did these visions compare with those advocated by reform…

In this essay, the author laments the fact that middle schools are so often neglected both within and outside of the world of education. She issues a call to action for middle school teachers: in order to make communities aware of just how valuable middle schools are, educators should create opportunities to show off what their students are doing,…

Self- and collective efficacy beliefs were examined as correlates of attitudes toward school of teachers, school staff, and parents. 726 teachers, 387 staff members, and 1994 parents from 18 junior high schools in Milan and Rome, Italy, were administered questionnaires assessing self-efficacy beliefs, perceptions about colleagues' behavior,…