Project CoCheck

Kommunikation und Förderung beruflicher Kompetenzen im Bachelor- und Masterstudium

Im Kern von CoCheck steht das Selbstbild eigener beruflicher Kompetenzen. Dieses umfasst zum einen die Einschätzung eigener Fähigkeiten, das sogenannte Fähigkeitsselbstkonzept. Zum anderen fällt hierunter die Einschätzung eigener Möglichkeiten und Erfolgsaussichten bei der Bewältigung einer konkreten beruflichen Aufgabe, die sogenannte berufliche Selbstwirksamkeitserwartung. Zahlreiche Studien belegen eindeutig die hohe Bedeutung einer positiven Selbstwirksamkeitserwartung und eines hohen Fähigkeitsselbstkonzepts für Lernmotivation, Studienerfolg, Studienabbruch und erfolgreiche Berufsfindung (z. B. Robbins, Allen, Casillas, Peterson & Le, 2006).

1. Verbesserung der Kommunikation: Die neuen Bachelor- und Masterstudiengänge (BAMA) sind gekennzeichnet durch abstrakte curriculare Modulpläne, in denen eher Strukturvorgaben der Akkreditierungsagenturen im Mittelpunkt stehen als eine Sprache, die konkrete Aufgaben des Berufsfeldes widerspiegelt. Diese Brüche zwischen universitärer Ausbildung und Arbeitsmarkt verursachen bei den Studierenden zahlreiche Irritationen. Auch für den Arbeitsmarkt sind die BAMA-Studiengänge Neuland – insbesondere die Bachelorabschlüsse. Das Projekt CoCheck verbindet Inhalte abstrakter Lehrpläne mit konkreten beruflichen Kompetenzen. Dadurch erleichtert es die interne Kommunikation in der Lehre sowie die externe Kommunikation mit Studieninteressierten und dem Arbeitsmarkt. 

2. Förderung beruflicher Kompetenzen: Ebenfalls aufbauend auf beruflichen Kompetenzbeschreibungen werden Messinstrumente sowie Interventionen entwickelt, mit denen die Studierenden ein klares und kommunizierbares Selbstbild eigener berufsbezogener Kompetenzen aufbauen können. Konkret sollen die Studierenden ein Bewusstsein darüber erlangen (1) welche beruflichen Aufgaben sie erwarten, (2) welche sie schon bewältigen oder durch gezielte Kurswahl aufbauen können, (3) in welchen Bereichen sie sich vertiefen sollen und (4) wie sie ihre eigenen Kompetenzen im Arbeitsmarkt kommunizieren.

Primäre Zielgruppe des Projektes sind Studierende. Daneben sollen auch Studieninteressierte und Dozierende sowie Arbeitgeber und Ausbilder eingebunden werden.

Projektleitung: zusammen mit Prof. Dr. Thomas Ellwart, Uni Trier
Wissenschaftliche/r Mitarbeiter/in: Henrike Peiffer, M.Sc.
Laufzeit: ab Mai 2015
Finanzielle Förderung: Nikolaus Koch Stiftung, Trier

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Project Discovery Day

Fostering Primary School Teachers’ Abilities to Identify Gifted Students

„Discovery Day,“ a project established by the Rhineland-Palatinate government, aims at fostering gifted primary school children. The sub-project „Identification of Gifted Children,“ which is associated with the Discovery Day, is coordinated by Tanja Gabriele Baudson, Department of Giftedness Research and Education, as part of her Ph.D. thesis. „Identification of Gifted Children“ focuses on enhancing primary school teachers’ abilities to properly make out the gifted children in their classes.

Intellectually gifted children are anything but a homogeneous group: Therefore, each child may exhibit an individual profile (e.g. verbal or mathematical giftedness) by which it differs from other gifted children. This represents a true challenge to those teachers in charge of nominating children for gifted education programs.

In order to support teachers in the identification process, the present project will develop diagnostic materials for two core subjects:  mathematics and German. This comprises, for instance, diagnostic tasks, subject-related checklists, information texts or questionnaires for self-reflection. The material will be developed in an interdisciplinary collaboration between psychologists and primary school teachers. 

Research Associate: Dr. Tanja Gabriele Baudson, Dipl.-Psych., M. A.
Duration: 2007 - 2010
Funding: Ministry of Education, Science, Youth and Culture of Rhineland-Palatinate 

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Project KLIKK®

Development and Evaluation of a Training for Gifted Children's Parents

KLIKK® is the German acronym for "Communicative and Solution-Oriented Strategies for Interacting with Clever Children". KLIKK® is a parent training which addresses the needs of parents with gifted children in particular; its contents are based on an assessment of the special needs and requirements of the target group. The training is offered as an advanced training of communication  strategies along with solution-oriented elements, and thus fosters  more satisfying family interactions between the persons involved.  Training contents target motivation and stress management in particular. The effectiveness of the training has been documented in a recent Ph.D thesis submitted by psychologist Dietrich Arnold. By now, the training material has been published as a book. KLIKK® is financially supported by the Karg Foundation.

Research Associate: Dr. Dietrich Arnold
Duration: 2005 - 2010
Funding: Karg-Stiftung für Hochbegabtenförderung

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Project LOTUS

Development and Evaluation 

The project goal is to develop and evaluate a program focusing on the social and emotional aspects of giftedness. Using a group discussion-based approach, its aim is to support and promote the personality development of gifted youth. Identity formation and personal values linked to it as well as coping with one's own or others' achievement expectations have proven to be crucial aspects of counseling gifted youth. For instance, in developing their identity and value systems, which involves self-awareness and personal initiative, integrating giftedness into one's self-concept may be an issue: What does it mean to be gifted? Which opportunities and responsibilities result from being gifted? What are the sources of my self-esteem?

The project goals are: (1) to develop the program, based on theoretical and empirical findings; (2) to evaluate the program, using both formative and summative evaluation strategies; and (3) to prepare a manual for the distribution of this program to practitioners dealing with gifted youth.

Research Associate: Dr. Tanja Gabriele Baudson, Dipl.-Psych., M. A.
Duration: 2011–2014
Funding: Karg-Stiftung für Hochbegabtenförderung

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Project PULSS (Phase I)

Concomitant Scientific Evaluation of Selected Secondary Schools with Special Gifted Education Branches in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg

PISA and other student assessment studies have lead to a stronger focus on the long-term development of students' competencies and on education at junior high school level. Longitudinal studies (which encompass not only the development of students' achievement, but also further influential aspects as well as recent developments of the German Secondary School system, e.g. segregational approaches) have become necessary. Grouping children of above-average intelligence in special classes is one of these relatively recent segregational approaches.

The present research project, conducted on behalf of the Bavarian and Baden-Württembergian Ministries of Education, aims at the scientific evaluation of eight such secondary schools – four in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg each. Over the past years, these grammar schools, besides their regular classes, have implemented special branches for students of above-average intelligence. As the present study examines these special classes as well as two regular classes per school alike, a comparative evaluation of segregative and integrative concepts to foster the gifted is therefore possible.

From 2008/2009 on, students from grade five will be examined in different areas until they reach grade seven. A particular focus is on scholastic achievement and variables influencing achievement, such as attitude to work, learning and achievement motivation, self-concept of one's own abilities, etc. In addition, information will be gathered on didactic methods and curricular contents. This view will be completed by data on parents' and teachers' perspectives.

From 2009/2010 on, a second cohort will be included in order to determine whether the results from the first cohort can be replicated. The second cohort will also be examined in the above-mentioned areas from grade five on.

Research Associate: Dipl.-Psych. Katharina Vogl
Cooperation Partner: Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schneider, Dr. Eva Stumpf, Dipl.-Psych. Monika Motschenbacher, Dipl.-Psych. Christina Weiss (University of Würzburg); Prof. Dr. Albert Ziegler, Dipl.-Psych. Bettina Mader (University of Ulm)
Duration: 2008 - 2012
Funding: Ministries of Education and the Arts in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, Karg-Stiftung für Hochbegabtenförderung

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Project THINK

Intelligence in Primary School Children

Usually, intelligence is conceived of as "maximum behavior", as measured, for instance, by IQ tests. Findings on cognitive development (e.g., Baudson & Preckel, 2013) have shown that the so-called fluid intelligence in particular (comprising aspects such as logical reasoning which, in turn, represents a crucial prerequisite for learning; Schweizer & Koch, 2002) can be considered a valid index of general cognitive ability in primary school children. Cognitive speed is another dimension of intelligence; its role for cognitive ability in primary school children overall and for learning in particular has not yet been clarified.

Besides "intelligenz as maximum behavior", intelligence has been conceived of as "typical behavior", which is rather an aspect of personality instead of achievement. This aspect has also been termed "Need for cognition" (or cognitive motivation) and desscribes a person's individual inclination to occupy him- or herself with cognitively demanding issues (Cacioppo, Petty, & Kao, 1984). Persons scoring high on Need for Cognition enjoy thinking.

These constructs are measured by newly developed assessment instruments: the reasoning test THINK (Test for (highly) intelligent kids; Baudson & Preckel, 2013), scales on Clerical Speed (Wilhelm, in prep.) and a Need for Cognition scale for primary school children (Preckel & Strobel, in prep.). This project will examine the relationship between the three constructs fluid intelligence, cognitive speed, and need for cognition based on research questions such as "How does the structure of intelligence develop im primary school children?" or "What are the structural differences of gifted versus average ability students' intelligence?"

Research Associate: Dipl.-Psych. Rachel Wollschläger

Duration: July 2012–June 2016

Funding: Hogrefe Verlag, Göttingen

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