Äli Leijen
Biographic Data
| ID | 1045089 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Äli Leijen |
| GIVEN NAMES | Äli |
| FAMILY NAME | Leijen |
| SIGNATURE | LEIJEN Ä |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Tartu |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-5708-3837 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 23 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 12 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 23 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2008 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
From Zero Collaboration to Teamwork: Forms of Teacher Collaboration and Factors That Support or Hinder It
Teachers tend to prefer an individualistic approach to their teaching process and collaborate with colleagues only on certain occasions. This research explored the forms of collaboration and supporting and hindering factors proceeding from the frameworks of the teacher–teacher interaction continuum and team entitativity. The findings indicated more active collaboration at lower levels of the continuum—storytelling and scanning ideas, aid and assi…
The shortage of teachers in Estonia: Causes and suggestions for additional measures from the perspective of different stakeholders
Teacher shortage is an increasingly global issue, with many countries, including Estonia, facing challenges in attracting candidates and retaining qualified teachers. State statistics and international comparisons show a worrying decade-long decline in the qualified teacher workforce in Estonia, worsening yearly. Addressing this shortage is crucial for sustaining high-quality education in the country. In response, this study involved focus group …
Enhancing teacher education program coherence: A six-year study on student perspectives in Estonia
A new psychometrically validated questionnaire for assessing teacher agency in eight dimensions across pre-service and in-service teachers
Teacher agency is an increasingly important area of research across different learning and professional development settings. In our study, we followed the ecological model of teacher agency and developed a questionnaire that allows us to differentiate eight dimensions of teacher agency. Confirmatory factor analysis showed an acceptable fit of the eight-factor model in two different domains where teachers often make decisions: planning of teachin…
Video-based collaborative learning: A pedagogical model and instructional design tool emerging from an international multiple case study
The educational potential of video is a long-lasting, multi-faceted topic, and the affordances of technological advancement have recently revitalised this discussion. However, teachers are still far from competently integrating or becoming accustomed to video-based pedagogy, especially in collaborative pedagogy. To provide teachers and teacher educators with sound principles for implementing video-supported collaborative learning (VSCL), this con…
Supporting teacher agency during a collaborative inquiry-based in-service teacher education course
Teacher agency has been explored in many studies in different contexts, however research on supporting agency is somewhat limited. In this study, we aimed to support teacher agency in a collaborative inquiry-based in-service course developed based on the ecological model of teacher agency and earlier empirical studies. We conducted a study among 57 course participants to explore the potential impact of the course on participants’ agency and inves…
Opportunities to develop student’s math-related agency in primary education: The role of teacher beliefs
Teacher beliefs and practices related to them could provide varying opportunities for students to develop their agency related to learning math. The aim of the current paper is to explore how different math teacher beliefs (concerning the nature of mathematics, constructivist beliefs, and self-efficacy) relate to different dimensions of student agency in primary education. A two-level multilevel model was analyzed to find out to what extent selec…
Teacher Education Students’ First-Time Experiences of Video-Recording Their Teaching and Analyzing it
Video-supported reflection supports the professional development of student teachers and is a natural part of teacher education. The study aims to find out teacher education students’ opinions about recording their teaching and analyzing it, to describe the experiences of recording and analyzing the videos, and to systematize their main areas of learning and development. Based on this, future video-based analysis tasks in teacher training could b…
What constitutes teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge and how it can be assessed: A literature review
Teachers’ knowledge has been an important research focus for many decades. Although many empirical studies have been carried out regarding content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge, less attention has been paid to general pedagogical knowledge (GPK). The focus of this study is the exploration of different definitions and dimensions of GPK and how it has been assessed. A systematic literature review was conducted on the EBSCOhost Web fol…
Assessing student teachers’ agency and using it for predicting commitment to teaching
In this paper, we focus on the professional agency of student teachers in the initial teacher education context. Based on the ecological model of teacher agency, a questionnaire was developed for a self-reported assessment of student teachers agency in three domains: planning of teaching and learning activities, teaching diverse ability students in the same class, using ICT in teaching. Confirmatory Factor Analysis was used to validate the struct…
To Stay or Not to Stay: An Empirical Model for Predicting Teacher Persistence
Teacher persistence has been a growing issue in recent decades. This raises the problem of the sustainability of the teaching workforce, the professionalism of working teachers and preserving the quality of education. In this study we aim to create and test an empirical model that makes it possible to predict teachers’ plans to remain in or leave the profession. Proceeding from earlier research, this study focuses on investigating the role of mot…
Designing and Implementing an In-Service Training Course for School Teams on Inclusive Education: Reflections from Participants
Significant and effective implementation of inclusive education (IE) has been a major challenge in many countries during the last decades. Although teachers’ knowledge and skills are considered a key factor for successful inclusive practice, the whole school staff commitment and contribution to implementing IE policies are equally important. Collaboration between different professionals such as teachers, school leaders, and support specialists is…
Teaching during Covid-19: The Decisions Made in Teaching
The emergency caused by COVID-19 and the transition to distance learning has made teachers face novel decision-making situations. As the teachers’ pedagogical decisions have an impact on the students’ learning experience, the aim of this study was to describe and explain what influenced the teachers’ teaching-related decisions and how these decisions were reflected in the teaching process during distance learning. The study was based on semi-stru…
Automated Feedback Is Nice and Human Presence Makes It Better: Teachers’ Perceptions of Feedback by Means of an E-Portfolio Enhanced with Learning Analytics
While there is now extensive research on feedback in the context of higher education, including pre-service teacher education, little has been reported regarding the use of feedback from teachers to other teachers. Moreover, literature on the potential advantages that the use of technology, for example electronic portfolios and learning analytics, has in improving feedback in the in-service workplace practices, is also sparse. Therefore, the aim …
School Effectiveness in Multilingual Education: A Review of Success Factors
School effectiveness research (SER) and bi/multilingual education research have been largely developed as separate research paradigms. Hence, SER research does not facilitate clear conclusions on bi/multilingual (the term ‘multilingual’ is used henceforth) education and its effectiveness. Despite the intensification of multilingual education research over the last four decades, only a few authors and studies have focused on offering a compact ove…
School leaders’ vision is the strongest predictor of their attitudes towards inclusive education practice
School leaders have an important role in supporting implementation of inclusive education practices in schools. Therefore, it is necessary to understand how school leaders’ attitudes towards inclusive education are formed. We used the Attitudes Toward Inclusive Education Scale that was developed to measure different facets of attitudes towards inclusive education for all students. The instrument was completed by 301 school leaders in Estonia. Thr…
Guided reflection procedure as a method to facilitate student teachers’ perception of their teaching to support the construction of practical knowledge
This study investigates meaningful events that student teachers identified from video recordings of their teaching practice that were used to improve their knowledge base. Data were collected from 21 student teachers at an Estonian university using a guided reflection procedure. Deductive qualitative content analysis was performed on meaningful events and student teacher reflections. Pearson’s chi-square test was used to compare the differences i…
Open learner models in supporting self-regulated learning in higher education: A systematic literature review
Towards measuring teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge – A mixed method investigation of a pilot test
Teacher Agency Following the Ecological Model: How It Is Achieved and How It Could Be Strengthened by Different Types of Reflection
This article draws on the ecological model of teacher agency and elaborates on how teacher agency is achieved, its components and how it could be strengthened. This model highlights professional competence, structural and cultural context, and professional purpose as the main elements of achieving agency. In this paper, we specify some elements of the ecological model and elaborate on how three types of reflection could be used to strengthen cond…
Doctoral Students’ Research Stall: Supervisors’ Perceptions and Intervention Strategies
We explored doctoral supervisors’ explanations for students’ lack of progress toward gaining their degree and describe the activities that supervisors said they take on such occasions. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews from 21 supervisors specializing in the fields of natural and educational sciences and then analyzed using thematic analysis. The results indicated that supervisors communicated understanding about the stalling o…
How to determine the quality of students' reflections
This article discusses some of the ambiguities related to the concept of reflection in education, and presents an alternative approach for determining the focus and quality of students’ reflection. Accordingly, the focus of reflection can vary from a concrete technical aspect of an experience to the broader societal context of that experience, and the quality of reflection can be described through successive stages of argumentation: describing, j…
Pedagogical practices of reflection in tertiary dance education
The three different perspectives on reflection in education are embedded in the philosophical traditions of pragmatism, critical social theory and Kant. We aimed to describe the pedagogical practices of reflection, and to develop a descriptive model of the practices of reflection in tertiary dance education which can be used by dance educators to support their students' reflection activities. Data about the reflection practices were collected fro…
Teacher Agency Following the Ecological Model: How It Is Achieved and How It Could Be Strengthened by Different Types of Reflection
This article draws on the ecological model of teacher agency and elaborates on how teacher agency is achieved, its components and how it could be strengthened. This model highlights professional competence, structural and cultural context, and professional purpose as the main elements of achieving agency. In this paper, we specify some elements of the ecological model and elaborate on how three types of reflection could be used to strengthen cond…
Pedagogical practices of reflection in tertiary dance education
The three different perspectives on reflection in education are embedded in the philosophical traditions of pragmatism, critical social theory and Kant. We aimed to describe the pedagogical practices of reflection, and to develop a descriptive model of the practices of reflection in tertiary dance education which can be used by dance educators to support their students' reflection activities. Data about the reflection practices were collected fro…
School leaders’ vision is the strongest predictor of their attitudes towards inclusive education practice
School leaders have an important role in supporting implementation of inclusive education practices in schools. Therefore, it is necessary to understand how school leaders’ attitudes towards inclusive education are formed. We used the Attitudes Toward Inclusive Education Scale that was developed to measure different facets of attitudes towards inclusive education for all students. The instrument was completed by 301 school leaders in Estonia. Thr…
How to determine the quality of students' reflections
This article discusses some of the ambiguities related to the concept of reflection in education, and presents an alternative approach for determining the focus and quality of students’ reflection. Accordingly, the focus of reflection can vary from a concrete technical aspect of an experience to the broader societal context of that experience, and the quality of reflection can be described through successive stages of argumentation: describing, j…
Pedagogical practices of reflection in tertiary dance education
The three different perspectives on reflection in education are embedded in the philosophical traditions of pragmatism, critical social theory and Kant. We aimed to describe the pedagogical practices of reflection, and to develop a descriptive model of the practices of reflection in tertiary dance education which can be used by dance educators to support their students' reflection activities. Data about the reflection practices were collected fro…
How to determine the quality of students' reflections
This article discusses some of the ambiguities related to the concept of reflection in education, and presents an alternative approach for determining the focus and quality of students’ reflection. Accordingly, the focus of reflection can vary from a concrete technical aspect of an experience to the broader societal context of that experience, and the quality of reflection can be described through successive stages of argumentation: describing, j…
Doctoral Students’ Research Stall: Supervisors’ Perceptions and Intervention Strategies
We explored doctoral supervisors’ explanations for students’ lack of progress toward gaining their degree and describe the activities that supervisors said they take on such occasions. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews from 21 supervisors specializing in the fields of natural and educational sciences and then analyzed using thematic analysis. The results indicated that supervisors communicated understanding about the stalling o…
Guided reflection procedure as a method to facilitate student teachers’ perception of their teaching to support the construction of practical knowledge
This study investigates meaningful events that student teachers identified from video recordings of their teaching practice that were used to improve their knowledge base. Data were collected from 21 student teachers at an Estonian university using a guided reflection procedure. Deductive qualitative content analysis was performed on meaningful events and student teacher reflections. Pearson’s chi-square test was used to compare the differences i…
Open learner models in supporting self-regulated learning in higher education: A systematic literature review
Towards measuring teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge – A mixed method investigation of a pilot test
Teacher Agency Following the Ecological Model: How It Is Achieved and How It Could Be Strengthened by Different Types of Reflection
This article draws on the ecological model of teacher agency and elaborates on how teacher agency is achieved, its components and how it could be strengthened. This model highlights professional competence, structural and cultural context, and professional purpose as the main elements of achieving agency. In this paper, we specify some elements of the ecological model and elaborate on how three types of reflection could be used to strengthen cond…
Designing and Implementing an In-Service Training Course for School Teams on Inclusive Education: Reflections from Participants
Significant and effective implementation of inclusive education (IE) has been a major challenge in many countries during the last decades. Although teachers’ knowledge and skills are considered a key factor for successful inclusive practice, the whole school staff commitment and contribution to implementing IE policies are equally important. Collaboration between different professionals such as teachers, school leaders, and support specialists is…
Teaching during Covid-19: The Decisions Made in Teaching
The emergency caused by COVID-19 and the transition to distance learning has made teachers face novel decision-making situations. As the teachers’ pedagogical decisions have an impact on the students’ learning experience, the aim of this study was to describe and explain what influenced the teachers’ teaching-related decisions and how these decisions were reflected in the teaching process during distance learning. The study was based on semi-stru…
Automated Feedback Is Nice and Human Presence Makes It Better: Teachers’ Perceptions of Feedback by Means of an E-Portfolio Enhanced with Learning Analytics
While there is now extensive research on feedback in the context of higher education, including pre-service teacher education, little has been reported regarding the use of feedback from teachers to other teachers. Moreover, literature on the potential advantages that the use of technology, for example electronic portfolios and learning analytics, has in improving feedback in the in-service workplace practices, is also sparse. Therefore, the aim …
School Effectiveness in Multilingual Education: A Review of Success Factors
School effectiveness research (SER) and bi/multilingual education research have been largely developed as separate research paradigms. Hence, SER research does not facilitate clear conclusions on bi/multilingual (the term ‘multilingual’ is used henceforth) education and its effectiveness. Despite the intensification of multilingual education research over the last four decades, only a few authors and studies have focused on offering a compact ove…
School leaders’ vision is the strongest predictor of their attitudes towards inclusive education practice
School leaders have an important role in supporting implementation of inclusive education practices in schools. Therefore, it is necessary to understand how school leaders’ attitudes towards inclusive education are formed. We used the Attitudes Toward Inclusive Education Scale that was developed to measure different facets of attitudes towards inclusive education for all students. The instrument was completed by 301 school leaders in Estonia. Thr…
What constitutes teachers’ general pedagogical knowledge and how it can be assessed: A literature review
Teachers’ knowledge has been an important research focus for many decades. Although many empirical studies have been carried out regarding content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge, less attention has been paid to general pedagogical knowledge (GPK). The focus of this study is the exploration of different definitions and dimensions of GPK and how it has been assessed. A systematic literature review was conducted on the EBSCOhost Web fol…
Assessing student teachers’ agency and using it for predicting commitment to teaching
In this paper, we focus on the professional agency of student teachers in the initial teacher education context. Based on the ecological model of teacher agency, a questionnaire was developed for a self-reported assessment of student teachers agency in three domains: planning of teaching and learning activities, teaching diverse ability students in the same class, using ICT in teaching. Confirmatory Factor Analysis was used to validate the struct…
To Stay or Not to Stay: An Empirical Model for Predicting Teacher Persistence
Teacher persistence has been a growing issue in recent decades. This raises the problem of the sustainability of the teaching workforce, the professionalism of working teachers and preserving the quality of education. In this study we aim to create and test an empirical model that makes it possible to predict teachers’ plans to remain in or leave the profession. Proceeding from earlier research, this study focuses on investigating the role of mot…
Teacher Education Students’ First-Time Experiences of Video-Recording Their Teaching and Analyzing it
Video-supported reflection supports the professional development of student teachers and is a natural part of teacher education. The study aims to find out teacher education students’ opinions about recording their teaching and analyzing it, to describe the experiences of recording and analyzing the videos, and to systematize their main areas of learning and development. Based on this, future video-based analysis tasks in teacher training could b…
A new psychometrically validated questionnaire for assessing teacher agency in eight dimensions across pre-service and in-service teachers
Teacher agency is an increasingly important area of research across different learning and professional development settings. In our study, we followed the ecological model of teacher agency and developed a questionnaire that allows us to differentiate eight dimensions of teacher agency. Confirmatory factor analysis showed an acceptable fit of the eight-factor model in two different domains where teachers often make decisions: planning of teachin…
Video-based collaborative learning: A pedagogical model and instructional design tool emerging from an international multiple case study
The educational potential of video is a long-lasting, multi-faceted topic, and the affordances of technological advancement have recently revitalised this discussion. However, teachers are still far from competently integrating or becoming accustomed to video-based pedagogy, especially in collaborative pedagogy. To provide teachers and teacher educators with sound principles for implementing video-supported collaborative learning (VSCL), this con…
Supporting teacher agency during a collaborative inquiry-based in-service teacher education course
Teacher agency has been explored in many studies in different contexts, however research on supporting agency is somewhat limited. In this study, we aimed to support teacher agency in a collaborative inquiry-based in-service course developed based on the ecological model of teacher agency and earlier empirical studies. We conducted a study among 57 course participants to explore the potential impact of the course on participants’ agency and inves…
Opportunities to develop student’s math-related agency in primary education: The role of teacher beliefs
Teacher beliefs and practices related to them could provide varying opportunities for students to develop their agency related to learning math. The aim of the current paper is to explore how different math teacher beliefs (concerning the nature of mathematics, constructivist beliefs, and self-efficacy) relate to different dimensions of student agency in primary education. A two-level multilevel model was analyzed to find out to what extent selec…
From Zero Collaboration to Teamwork: Forms of Teacher Collaboration and Factors That Support or Hinder It
Teachers tend to prefer an individualistic approach to their teaching process and collaborate with colleagues only on certain occasions. This research explored the forms of collaboration and supporting and hindering factors proceeding from the frameworks of the teacher–teacher interaction continuum and team entitativity. The findings indicated more active collaboration at lower levels of the continuum—storytelling and scanning ideas, aid and assi…
The shortage of teachers in Estonia: Causes and suggestions for additional measures from the perspective of different stakeholders
Teacher shortage is an increasingly global issue, with many countries, including Estonia, facing challenges in attracting candidates and retaining qualified teachers. State statistics and international comparisons show a worrying decade-long decline in the qualified teacher workforce in Estonia, worsening yearly. Addressing this shortage is crucial for sustaining high-quality education in the country. In response, this study involved focus group …
Enhancing teacher education program coherence: A six-year study on student perspectives in Estonia
Psychology (23 works) · Mathematics education (21 works) · Pedagogy (18 works) · Teacher Education and Leadership Studies (15 works) · Computer Science (13 works) · Sociology (12 works) · Teacher education (8 works) · Political science (7 works) · Collaborative Teaching and Inclusion (5 works) · Medical education (5 works)