Individuals and societies continue and end their lives within the framework of values. One of the most important of these values is the concept of homeland. Homeland refers to the land, where the individuals were born and live in, a piece of which may also be owned by such individuals. The concept of homeland is always given utmost importance in…

The present study incorporated a scaffolding decision making procedure on an authentic environmental socio-scientific issue and investigated how students' decisions are intertwined with their values. Computer-based activities provided necessary information and allowed for the consideration of multiple aspects of the issue, the study of the effects…

Background: Recent effectiveness studies have investigated the relationship between two dimensions of effectiveness -- namely, quality and equity. Specifically, the question of whether effective schools can also reduce the initial differences in student outcomes attributed to student background factors has been examined. In this context, the…

A framework based on research on bullying and on educational effectiveness was offered to schools to assist them in developing strategies and actions to improve their learning environment, their policy for teaching, and their evaluation mechanisms in order to reduce bullying. At the beginning and end of the intervention, the Revised Olweus…

This article examines whether variation in school effectiveness in terms of reducing bullying can be attributed to differences in their classroom and school learning environment. All 6th grade students ("n"?=?1504) of 35 primary schools in Cyprus participated in this study. The revised Olweus bully/victim questionnaire was used to…

The dynamic model of educational effectiveness defines school level factors associated with student outcomes. Emphasis is given to the two main aspects of policy, evaluation, and improvement in schools which affect quality of teaching and learning at both the level of teachers and students: a) teaching and b) school learning environment. Five…

The aim of this study was to develop a theory-driven model combining personal and familial factors that act as parameters of bullying and victimization experiences at school and to test its ability to fit the data. It was found that a child involved in peer violence at school is a child that looks different than the rest, is disliked and isolated…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a simulation-based learning environment on elementary school students' (11-12 years old) development of system thinking skills. The learning environment included interactive simulations using the Stagecast Creator software to simulate the ecosystem of a marsh. Simulations are an important…

Bullying is a matter of significant concern in the Cypriot educational setting. Teachers usually report their difficulties in understanding bullies and their anxiety to find effective ways to deal with them. This project investigated the self-concepts of a sample of nine boys identified as bullies at the end of primary schooling in Nicosia,…

This document contains the second volume of the proceedings of the 30th Annual Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education. Conference presentations are centered around the theme "Mathematics at the Centre." This volume features 60 research reports by presenters with last names beginning between Abr…