Papers by Brynja Halldórsdóttir
This article presents an qualitative case study of a recent educational development project 1,2 F... more This article presents an qualitative case study of a recent educational development project 1,2 Fellaskóli in Breiðholt, which took place during the 2012-2013 academic year. Fellaskóli is in many ways unique as nearly half of the student population speaks a language other than Icelandic at home. One of the main purposes of the project, 1, 2 and Fellaskóli, is to intertwine school and after-school programs in an effort to improve reading, language and social skills for six and seven year old students. The opportunity for greater exposure to an Icelandic speaking environment through the lengthening and combining of the school and after-school program is part of a broader project in the neighborhood to support and improve resident experiences. In the spring of 2012, the school received funding and subsequently lengthened the school day and hired classroom aides who were placed in the classrooms during the school day and who then took charge of the children during the after-school program times.
This article begins with a discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of the evaluation project, where the authors explore recent research on school and after-school care, its melding, the importance of socialization for children, as well as a discussion of education in a multicultural context and active bilingualism as it informs the discussion of the results of the research. The researchers interviewed employees, children and parents to better understand their school and after-school experiences as well as conducting a number of site visits which included tours of the school grounds lead by students and extensive document reviews. Student and parent interviews were audio recorded for further analysis and parent focus groups included interpreters in order to facilitate discussion.
The findings indicate high parental satisfaction with the new program as parents noted the improved opportunity students had to build social contacts both with adults and other children. However, parent involvement was low and cultural and language barriers seemed to hinder active parent-teacher cooperation. Many parents noted they valued the multicultural learning environment the school offered although a few noted there had been small racial incidents between students. Both teachers and support staff found that the work day often did not allow for enough time to collaboratively work on development of curriculum and activities. Furthermore, support staff indicated that they would have liked more input in the development of the project. Classroom support staff indicated they often could not find enough time in the day to plan activities for the afterschool programs and were often left out of meetings relevant to the project. Over all, the children reported satisfaction with the changes in the program, and neither the parents nor the children reported significant tiredness due to the length of the school day. Children made a clear distiction between the role of the teacher and the support staff, and noted that they apprieciated that some of the staff was with them through out the day into the after school time. However, the children also pointed out areas for improvement, as they noted how loud and disorganized the transition between school and the after-school area was. Overall the researchers concluded that a signficiant effort was being made in regard to improving children´s language and readings skills as well as addressing the varied social and cultural needs of the students. The authors also noted various areas that the school administrators and teachers can focus on for improvement. The article concludes with a discussion of the practical and academic lessons to be drawn from this project.
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Papers by Brynja Halldórsdóttir
This article begins with a discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of the evaluation project, where the authors explore recent research on school and after-school care, its melding, the importance of socialization for children, as well as a discussion of education in a multicultural context and active bilingualism as it informs the discussion of the results of the research. The researchers interviewed employees, children and parents to better understand their school and after-school experiences as well as conducting a number of site visits which included tours of the school grounds lead by students and extensive document reviews. Student and parent interviews were audio recorded for further analysis and parent focus groups included interpreters in order to facilitate discussion.
The findings indicate high parental satisfaction with the new program as parents noted the improved opportunity students had to build social contacts both with adults and other children. However, parent involvement was low and cultural and language barriers seemed to hinder active parent-teacher cooperation. Many parents noted they valued the multicultural learning environment the school offered although a few noted there had been small racial incidents between students. Both teachers and support staff found that the work day often did not allow for enough time to collaboratively work on development of curriculum and activities. Furthermore, support staff indicated that they would have liked more input in the development of the project. Classroom support staff indicated they often could not find enough time in the day to plan activities for the afterschool programs and were often left out of meetings relevant to the project. Over all, the children reported satisfaction with the changes in the program, and neither the parents nor the children reported significant tiredness due to the length of the school day. Children made a clear distiction between the role of the teacher and the support staff, and noted that they apprieciated that some of the staff was with them through out the day into the after school time. However, the children also pointed out areas for improvement, as they noted how loud and disorganized the transition between school and the after-school area was. Overall the researchers concluded that a signficiant effort was being made in regard to improving children´s language and readings skills as well as addressing the varied social and cultural needs of the students. The authors also noted various areas that the school administrators and teachers can focus on for improvement. The article concludes with a discussion of the practical and academic lessons to be drawn from this project.
This article begins with a discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of the evaluation project, where the authors explore recent research on school and after-school care, its melding, the importance of socialization for children, as well as a discussion of education in a multicultural context and active bilingualism as it informs the discussion of the results of the research. The researchers interviewed employees, children and parents to better understand their school and after-school experiences as well as conducting a number of site visits which included tours of the school grounds lead by students and extensive document reviews. Student and parent interviews were audio recorded for further analysis and parent focus groups included interpreters in order to facilitate discussion.
The findings indicate high parental satisfaction with the new program as parents noted the improved opportunity students had to build social contacts both with adults and other children. However, parent involvement was low and cultural and language barriers seemed to hinder active parent-teacher cooperation. Many parents noted they valued the multicultural learning environment the school offered although a few noted there had been small racial incidents between students. Both teachers and support staff found that the work day often did not allow for enough time to collaboratively work on development of curriculum and activities. Furthermore, support staff indicated that they would have liked more input in the development of the project. Classroom support staff indicated they often could not find enough time in the day to plan activities for the afterschool programs and were often left out of meetings relevant to the project. Over all, the children reported satisfaction with the changes in the program, and neither the parents nor the children reported significant tiredness due to the length of the school day. Children made a clear distiction between the role of the teacher and the support staff, and noted that they apprieciated that some of the staff was with them through out the day into the after school time. However, the children also pointed out areas for improvement, as they noted how loud and disorganized the transition between school and the after-school area was. Overall the researchers concluded that a signficiant effort was being made in regard to improving children´s language and readings skills as well as addressing the varied social and cultural needs of the students. The authors also noted various areas that the school administrators and teachers can focus on for improvement. The article concludes with a discussion of the practical and academic lessons to be drawn from this project.