In 1665 Henry Oldenberg launched the world’s first scholarly journal. The purpose
of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society was “to allow scientists to impart their
knowledge to one another and contribute what they can to the grand design of improving
natural knowledge and perfecting all philosophical arts and science.” Three hundred and
fifty years later we would still recognise the key elements of his creation: the promotion of
sound science through peer review, the recognition of scientists and the creation of a permanent
record of important ideas and research. Education & Self Development is a ‘traditional’
journal – as are most of the well-established scholarly journals around the world.
Journal Articles
Do changes in instructional time, professional development and age explain changes in reading comprehension at the country level? An exploration of PIRLS 2006 and 2016
Several international large-scale assessments in education take place every 3 to 5 years. PIRLS (the
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) takes place every 5 years. If data from only one
moment are considered, it is difficult to explain differences in achievement between countries. But
we can also consider data from two (or more) years and focus on changes over time within each
of the participating countries. Following countries over a certain period in such a longitudinal approach
facilitates causal inferences on the effects of characteristics of educational systems.
In this study, we investigate the effects of instructional time for language and reading and of amount
of professional development of teachers on reading comprehension in Grade 4. We also study the
effect of changes in the average age of students. By accounting for the effects of age and schooling
we come to a slightly different ranking of countries in PIRLS. We use a difference-in-difference approach
with correlation matrices. One of our conclusions is that professional development of teachers
has an effect on the achievement level of students.
Electronic Portfolio Architecture Based on Knowledge Support in Senior Project Design
ePortfolios based on the practice in self-assessment, and self-reflection and self-regulation are viewed
as important tools in facilitating and supporting learner-centered environment at higher education.
This study explains how an electronic portfolio system was designed and used as a useful repository
for learning products to help instructors monitor in-service kindergarten teachers’ progress, provide
feedback and develop in-service kindergarten teachers’ self-assessment, and self-reflection and selfregulation
through the presentation of a detailed and ongoing short-term training program used as
a comprehensive measure to determine degree mastery in Department of Early Child Development
at Wenzhou University in China. The finding show in-service kindergarten teachers can be trained
to carry out authentic tasks associated with ePortfolio and reveals that instructors can improve inservice
kindergarten teachers’ skills by enhancing their motivation and inspiring their positive training
in the curriculum, such as building group cohesiveness and having positive learning experiences.
Self-development in Old Age versus the Challenges of the Information Society: The Polish-Bulgarian-Portuguese Perspective
The paper presents the result of a study to diagnose the level of interest of elderly people in the
study of digital skills, and attempts to answer the two questions of whether older people feel the
need for self-development in this area and how they find themselves in the information society. The
comparative study was carried out as part of the international project Erasmus+ Adult Education,
titled Silver Civic Education (2017-1-PL01-KA204-038695) implemented in the years 2017-2019. It
involved seniors from three partner countries of the project: Poland, Portugal and Bulgaria, which
made it possible both to determine general educational expectations of elderly people and to identify
specific issues for each country. Elderly people are a very heterogeneous group, they require educational
support in many areas, and especially in the area of new technologies. This can influence
maintaining or stimulating their curiosity and self-development, and therefore contribute to raising
their quality of life and enabling them to use life to the full.
An integrative binary lesson as an example of innovative educational technologies in a higher education
This article describes the findings of a theoretical analysis of scientific literature on binary lessons –
a form of team-teaching in which two teachers present differing perspectives in the form of a dialogue
between two viewpoints and contrasting viewpoints. It examines the potential for this innovative
educational technology, in a competence approach. The analysis shows that Russian and foreign
studies classify binary lessons into problem binary lesson, interdisciplinary project binary lesson,
and active binary lesson. There are some difficulties with the definition of the concept of the binary
technology, which the authors tested in 2014-2016. The article suggests the term «integrative binary
lesson» as a psychological and pedagogical technology, that includes a systematic and consistent application
of interdisciplinary complex of educational classes, realized in active form.
The relationship of socio-psychological security and academic performance of the educational environment of municipalities
This article studies the link between the two most important parameters of the modern educational
system: academic performance and socio-psychological security. It is based on environmental
approach. The concept of “psychological safety” is considered in the context of modern foreign and
domestic concepts. An empirical study provided data of the socio-psychological monitoring from
2016 and the published educational rating of municipalities. Data was used to identify probabilistic
predictors of the possible involvement of students in drug use. The study involved 107,289 students of
This article studies the link between the two most important parameters of the modern educational
system: academic performance and socio-psychological security. It is based on environmental
approach. The concept of “psychological safety” is considered in the context of modern foreign and
domestic concepts. An empirical study provided data of the socio-psychological monitoring from
2016 and the published educational rating of municipalities. Data was used to identify probabilistic
predictors of the possible involvement of students in drug use. The study involved 107,289 students of
The formation and development of students’ academic mobility in V. I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University
The article examines the theoretical and methodological foundations underpinning students’ academic
mobility. Comprehensive analysis enabled the authors to group and systematize key types of
academic mobility. Six criteria for this systematization were identified: geographical orientation,
duration of action, the nature of the implementation, the planned outcome, the form of implementation,
and the method of organization. Empirical data of network educational programs and
students’ academic mobility within V. I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University was analysed and
the positive and negative factors of its development were identified. The key issues in the development
of students’ academic mobility were ranked with the help of expert assessment and based on
the method of multidimensional pair scaling. The data enabled the authors to offer priority and
secondary support areas and tools for university’s academic mobility. The research substantiates
the importance and potential effectiveness of the development of students’ academic mobility for
the further integration the Crimean higher education system into the wider Russian Federation and
provides a basis for improving educational policy in the University.
Learning effectiveness and evaluation technology in schools for hearing-impaired children
The modern system of special education in the Republic of Kazakhstan is undergoing significant
changes. Following the global practice of ensuring equal access to education, schools for hearing
impaired children are switching to updated curricula, the topics and requirements of which are
equivalent to those of ordinary schools. The successful learning of deaf and hearing-impaired children
requires qualitative changes in the forms and methods of pedagogical influence on students.
However, to evaluate the effectiveness of the learning process by traditional methods in this case is
difficult, since it is necessary to implement a correction component in the new environment. This
article shows the concept of learning effectiveness within a school for hearing-impaired children. It
identifies a number of qualitative indicators that affect the learning process of children with special
educational needs, including the need to use modern information technologies. The paper proposes
a developed mathematical model for evaluating pedagogical efficiency in a special school, describes
the technology of its application and testing results to confirm the functionality.
Teacher training for the development of social intelligence in schoolchildren
The high dynamism and aspiration to technologization of the modern world is directing the attention
of scientists to the problem of social intelligence. The use of information technologies leads
to folding of the general culture of the personality, and a reduction of direct communication. The
communication skills of direct interaction, goodwill, and speech in interpersonal relationship are
lost. In particular, it influences the social and communicative development of children: giving rise to
difficulties in communication, a deficiency of good manners, and the culture of speech culture relationships
that affects the results of education. This article discusses the development of social intelligence
in school students, and identifies subjective and objective factors and social and pedagogical
ways of teacher training in these matters.
E&SD 14(1) March 2019
This is the English language contents page for E&SD 14(1)
Nick Rushby
Editorial: Plus ca change; c’est la meme chose! 6
Retraction 10
Nigel Fancourt
Looked after children: embedding attachment awareness in schools 11
Shalini Dixit
Generating Self-reflection: Findings from self-development workshops in teacher training curriculum 20
Mourat Tchoshanov, M Cruz Quinones, Elena Ibragimova, Liliana Shakirova and Kadriya Shakirova
Multiple Cross-case Examination of Lower Secondary School Mathematics Teachers’ Topic-Specific Content Knowledge in the U.S. and Russia 31
Milausha V. Gabdulkhakova
The ratio of tolerance to uncertainty, motivation for success, worldview and anxiety among male and female students in higher educational institutions of Kazan 45
Inna I. Golovanova, Nadezhda V. Telegina, Olga I. Donetskaya
Preparation for future teacher professional activity using a system for assessing the formation of competences 57
Anatolii Kasprzha, Anna Kobtseva, Margarita Shishkina
Pedagogical leadership as а school management tool and an object of research 68
Inna V. Krotova, Anna I. Akhmetzyanova
The psychological model of the specialist-defectologist’s readiness for professional and acmeological development 80
Lyudmila А. Mosunova, Elena V. Diner, Julia V. Buldakova and Svetlana N. Russkich
The development of interest in philological knowledge in the socio-cultural environment of the region 95
Editorial: Plus ca change; c’est la meme chose!
I received a shock last month. Forty years ago I wrote a book called An Introduction
to Educational Computing, and now the publishers have written saying that they want to
republish it in its original form as part of a programme to revive some of their key titles.
Their reason is that they believe these titles “very much reflect the context of the times in
which they were published. For newer libraries, it represents a chance to build up where,
for various political or economic reasons, library holdings have been neglected in the past
50 years but budgets are still strong.”
Well, this was all very flattering but it was a surprise none the less! I have a copy on
my bookshelf but I had not opened it for many years. It was time to re-read it and see
whether it was as dated as I suspected it was.
Looked after children: embedding attachment awareness in schools
The educational potential of many children in the state’s care, including those in institutional homes
and fostered or adopted children, is unfulfilled. One possible contributory factor to their lack of
success is that schools do not fully address their wider personal anxieties and insecurities. Attachment
theory has been adopted in several educational districts (‘local authorities’) in England, and
this study reports on an evaluative mixed-methods research study of such training; it also theorises
this as a broader question about how schools engage with research. There was rich evidence that the
programme had an impact on whole staff understanding of attachment theory. Teachers and staff
commented positively on the impact of the programme; impact on pupils’ outcomes was hard to
quantify, though qualitative findings suggested that well-being was improving. Senior leader commitment,
support and resource allocation were crucial to effectively embedding the training, and
various structural issues were illuminated. The implications for embedding attachment awareness
more widely are discussed, and for our understanding of research use by schools.
Generating Self-reflection: Findings from self-development workshops in teacher training curriculum
Teacher education and development practices across the globe today, insist on having reflective
practices at their core. Given that self-reflective process rests upon psychological education, it is
widely agreed that student-teachers should be provided opportunities for self-learning through reflection
and assimilation of new ideas. However, self-development being a subjective concept, there
is lack of established methods for training teachers for self-reflective practices leading to self-development.
One such method is the self-development workshops recently added to pre-service teachertraining
in India. The present paper analyses the effectiveness of the self-development workshops in
teacher education curriculum. Drawing data from self-development workshops, based on Rogerian
approach, as part of a teacher training course, the paper traces and documents the intra-personal
and interpersonal growth of its participants.
Lower Secondary School Mathematics Teachers’ Topic- Specific Content Knowledge in the U.S. and Russia
This interpretive cross-case study examined the U.S. and Russian teachers’ topic-specific knowledge
of lower secondary mathematics. In total, N=16 teachers (8 from the U.S., and 8 from Russia) were
selected for the study using non-probability purposive sampling technique. Teachers completed the
Teacher Content Knowledge Survey (TCKS) as part of the purposive selection. The survey consisted
of multiple-choice items measuring teachers’ content knowledge at the cognitive levels of knowing,
applying, and reasoning. Teachers were also interviewed on the topic of fraction division using questions
addressing their content and pedagogical content knowledge. In order to analyze the qualitative
data, we conducted meaning coding and linguistic analysis of teacher narratives as primary
methods of analysis.
The study revealed that there are explicit similarities and differences in teachers’ content knowledge
as well as its cognitive types. The results are reflected in meanings expressed and language used by
teachers while responding to topic-specific questions on the division of fractions. The results of the
study suggest that in the cross-national context teachers’ knowledge could vary depending on curricular
as well as socio-cultural priorities placed on teaching and learning of mathematics.
The study’s main findings contribute to the body of literature in the field of cross-national research
on teacher knowledge with a narrow focus on a topic-specific knowledge. It suggests close comparison
and learning about issues related to teacher knowledge in the U.S. and Russia with a potential
focus on re-examining practices in teacher preparation and professional development.
The ratio of tolerance to uncertainty, motivation for success, worldview and anxiety among male and female students in higher educational institutions of Kazan
The article describes a study of tolerance of uncertainty as the most important mechanism for the
effective functioning of a person in everyday, educational and professional activities. It presents data
on the manifestation of tolerance/ intolerance of uncertainty, motivation for success, perception of
the world, and anxiety among male and female students of higher educational institutions of Kazan
together with the relationship between these psychological parameters. The study aims to identify
the severity and interrelationships between tolerance for these factors. The study found psychological
differences between male and female students in terms of anxiety, motivation to achieve success,
and conviction in the kindness of the World, and indicated that in the males and females there is a
prevailing intolerance of uncertainty. The sources of this intolerance are shown. It also showed the
interrelations of intolerance of uncertainty with the motivation to achieve success among males. In
contrast, in female subjects, the motivation to achieve success is directly related to the peculiarities
of the world perception. At the same time, anxiety among students of both groups studied remained
low. A slight excess in the level of anxiety among female students is accompanied by a decrease in
the level of self-worth. The results of this study can be used to develop a theoretical model of personal
prerequisites for self-regulation of educational activities, training programs, and psychological
counselling.
Preparation for future teacher professional activity using a system for assessing the formation of competences
The system of teacher professional training is currently focused on changing approaches to the
organization of the practical component. A competence approach involves the evaluation of educational
outcomes from the perspective of competence development. The purpose of this article
is to determine the levels of competence formation among student teachers to identify the main
competence components of further professional development. The study involved the assessment
of 132 reports on master’s work following the results of pedagogical practice. The analysis enabled
the identification of the problem areas in competence formation. The article presents the system of
competency assessment developed by the authors during the undergraduates’ teaching practice. It
offers recommendations for improving the basic professional educational programs, for changes
both in the structure of the module itself and in the order of mastering the modules.
Pedagogical leadership as а school management tool and an object of research
The article examines the questionnaire developed by F. Hallinger for assessing pedagogical leadership.
Numerous international studies show that the principal and his executive team determine the
educational strategy of the school, promote its continuous and sustainable development, and ensure
high educational results of students. The aim of the study was to justify the possibility of using this
diagnostic tool in the work of the principal. It present and discusses the results, their completeness,
and the convenience of using the instrument.
The psychological model of the specialist-defectologist’s readiness for professional and acmeological development
In this study the author proceeds from the assumptions that the professional competence of a specialist
who works with people with disabilities is based on psychological readiness as an integral
personal quality of professional assisting people’s professions that are directly related to the willingness
of a subject of professional activity to professional acmeological development. However
the specialist-defectologist must, firstly, have a psychological readiness to work in the absence of
ready-made algorithms to provide assistance; secondly, to be able to predict in conditions of a deficit
of information because of the high degree of differentiation in the psychophysical development of
persons with disabilities; thirdly, constantly accumulate observations and use the increased volume
of information with the aim of its optimal adaptation and development as the main criterion for the
effectiveness of the correctional-pedagogical process.
Thus, the defectologists, listeners of advanced training courses, were taken as an experimental group
of this empirical research as a group of specialists who decided to develop additional educational
space.
The study was conducted with psychodiagnostic tools: valid and reliable questionnaires, a computer
program for statistical processing of SPSS data. Interpretation of the data was carried out according
to their compliance with N (0.1) and a high level of reliability: p≤0.001*** and p≤0.01**.
As the result within the framework of the psychological model of readiness, the potential factors for
expanding the zone of professional competence of the defectologist were determined: “self-respect”,
“adaptability” and a system-forming indicator with high factor load (from the block of motivational
personal characteristics of psychological readiness) – “motivation to achieve success”.
The development of interest in philological knowledge in the socio-cultural environment of the region
Education is no longer a closed sphere and there is a need to use philological knowledge as a basic
value through cultural and educational projects. This must take into account the regional culture
of speech, rhetoric, literature, and history. This project developed the format of an Open University
within which the project “Russian environment” was implemented. This was based on activityoriented,
personality-oriented approaches to learning, the concept of imagination development, and
the theory of functional systems. It led to the concept of development of philological knowledge in
the region, which the authors see as a system of content, methodological and information technology
components that meet the needs and demands of the socio-cultural environment. The article
presents experimental data on the efficiency of the approach. Philological knowledge is thought to
be an instrument of national identity formation, fostering tolerance and respect for the values of
national culture.
E&SD 13(4) December 2018
This is the English language contents page for E&SD 13(4)
Nick Rushby
Editorial: What’s in my bookcase 6
Milica Krivokapic
Imitative Learning: the teacher as a role model 11
Catherine Doherty
Cultivating ‘good’ practice or ‘best’ practice? moralities for teacher education 20
Neelofar Ahmed
Cross-cultural educational partnerships to prepare global leaders: training teachers, teacher candidates, and school principals to teach students in the multi-cultural classroom 32
Yu Cheng Shen, Hai-Yan Nie, Yu-Lui
Electronic portfolio architecture based on knowledge support in senior project design 41
Aysylu G. Gilemshina
A differentiated approach for teaching Russian language to foreign students: the example of Arabic-speaking students 53
Natalia E. Zhdanova
Teenagers’ vandalism and the importance of parent-child relationships in addressing it 62
Valentina Sharlanova
Strengths-based professional and career development of teachers 71
Farit M.Yusupov
Evaluating the effectiveness of a professional orientation procedure 80
Notes for authors 100