Teachers' Understanding of the Role of Executive Functions in Mathematics Learning

Cognitive psychology research has suggested an important role for executive functions, the set of skills that monitor and control thought and action, in learning mathematics. However, there is currently little evidence about whether teachers are aware of the importance of these skills and, if so, how they come by this information. We conducted an online survey of teachers' views on the importance of a range of skills for mathematics learning. Teachers rated executive function skills, and in particular inhibition and shifting, to be important for mathematics. The value placed on executive function skills increased with increasing teaching experience. Most teachers reported that they were aware of these skills, although few knew the term “executive functions.” This awareness had come about through their teaching experience rather than from formal instruction. Researchers and teacher educators could do more to highlight the importance of these skills to trainee or new teachers.     

The Role of Executive Functions in Reading Comprehension

Our goal in this paper is to understand the extent to which, and under what conditions, executive functions (EFs) play a role in reading comprehension processes. We begin with a brief review of core components of EF (inhibition, shifting, and updating) and reading comprehension. We then discuss the status of EFs in process models of reading comprehension. Next, we review and synthesize empirical evidence in the extant literature for the involvement of core components of EF in reading comprehension processes under different reading conditions and across different populations. In conclusion, we propose that EFs may help explain complex interactions between the reader, the text, and the discourse situation, and call for both existing and future models of reading comprehension to include EFs as explicit components.     

图书馆在大学生信息素养教育中的作用

信息素养是信息时代的人才特征,是知识经济时代大学生应具备的基本素质,图书馆在信息素养教育中具有举足轻重的地位与作用。加强对大学生信息素养的培养和提升,是社会对高等教育的要求,也是高等教育事业顺应社会发展,深化教育改革的需要。公共图书馆应发挥其资源优势、技术优势和专业人才优势,培养和提升大学生的信息素养。     

Kindergarten Children's Executive Functions Predict Their Second-Grade Academic Achievement and Behavior

Whether and to what extent kindergarten children's executive functions (EF) constitute promising targets of early intervention is currently unclear. This study examined whether kindergarten children's EF predicted their second-grade academic achievement and behavior. This was done using (a) a longitudinal and nationally representative sample (N = 8,920, M_age = 97.6 months), (b) multiple measures of EF, academic achievement, and behavior, and (c) extensive statistical control including for domain-specific and domain-general lagged dependent variables. All three measures of EF—working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control—positively and significantly predicted reading, mathematics, and science achievement. In addition, inhibitory control negatively predicted both externalizing and internalizing problem behaviors. Children's EF constitute promising targets of experimentally evaluated interventions for increasing academic and behavioral functioning.     

Contribution of Executive Functions to Learning Sequential Actions in Young Children

This study examined whether executive functions impact how flexibly children represent task context in performing repeated sequential actions. Japanese children in Experiments 1 (N = 52; 3–6 years) and 2 (N = 50, 4–6 years) performed sequential actions repeatedly; one group received reminders. Experiment 1 indicated that reminders promote flexible changes in contextual representations. Experiment 2 observed such effects in younger children and showed executive functions were associated with the flexible representation of task context. Reminders did not perfectly compensate for the role of executive functions but wiped out individual differences in executive functions that contribute to children’s acquisition of routines. Therefore, setting goals before context-dependent actions is necessary, but not sufficient, to modulate contextual representations in routines.     

The Role of Executive Functions in Socioeconomic Attainment Gaps: Results From a Randomized Controlled Trial

The socioeconomic attainment gap in mathematics starts early and increases over time. This study aimed to examine why this gap exists. Four-year-olds from diverse backgrounds were randomly allocated to a brief intervention designed to improve executive functions (N = 87) or to an active control group (N = 88). The study was preregistered and followed CONSORT guidelines. Executive functions and mathematical skills were measured at baseline, 1 week, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year posttraining. Executive functions mediated the relation between socioeconomic status and mathematical skills. Children improved over training, but this did not transfer to untrained executive functions or mathematics. Executive functions may explain socioeconomic attainment gaps, but cognitive training directly targeting executive functions is not an effective way to narrow this gap.     

Evidence for Common Etiological Influences on Early Literacy Skills in Kindergarten

Understanding how the etiology of print awareness and phonological awareness are related to the etiology of decoding can provide insights into the development of word reading. To address this issue, we examined the degree of overlap among etiological influences of prereading skills in 1,252 twin pairs in kindergarten. Genetic, shared environmental, and nonshared environmental factors were significant for all three literacy phenotypes. The majority of genetic and shared environmental influence on decoding was due to common factors that included print awareness and phonological awareness. Notably, only a single genetic factor contributed to all three literacy phenotypes, but there was additional shared environmental influence common to phonological awareness and decoding. Findings suggest commonalities in the etiology of prereading literacy skills that could inform work on the development of reading skill.     

The Prerequisites for Successful Teaching and Learning of Literacy

The report of the European Union High Level Group of Experts on Literacy presents a clear statement of their vision for the future of literacy in our continent. The first part of the statement is: ‘All citizens of Europe shall be literate, so as to achieve their aspirations as individuals, family members, workers and citizens.’ How is this vision to be achieved? This article analyses 16 preconditions necessary for achieving the vision, classifying them as physiological, social, linguistic, educational, governmental and motivational. In each category these prerequisites are related to the Group's findings and recommendations, especially where current policy and provision may be lacking. For example, for most people, normal or corrected-to-normal vision and hearing are essential for literacy development. Arguably, this implies mass screening of young children at the appropriate ages so that problems can be identified and treated — but this is not in fact routine everywhere. The article concludes by analysing the Council of Ministers' conclusions of November 2012 against the framework provided by the prerequisites, in order to judge the likelihood of ambitious targets for 2020 being achieved in this ‘age of austerity’.     

基于问题的学习模式在幼儿园教育中的应用

基于问题的学习模式的运用可以分为设计和实施两个相互联系的过程,在幼儿园教育中应用该模式的具体方式为：为幼儿选择一个有意义的问题,并以真实有趣的情境呈现问题,以便让幼儿更好地理解该问题;以自主探究和教师指导相结合的方式解决该问题,鼓励幼儿用多元表征方式来展示成果,并设法引导幼儿以客观的态度对自己和他人进行评价。     

幼儿园协商学习的内涵、范围及其实施

幼儿园实施协商学习具有重要意义,它有利于幼儿的全面发展、教师的专业发展以及教学效果的提高.在开展幼儿园协商学习过程中,教师应坚持渐进性、全面性和适度性原则,在教师和幼儿实现传统角色的转换、建立民主和谐师幼关系的基础上,遵循一定的实施步骤,以促进协商学习在幼儿园教学中的有效实施.     

提高幼儿教师媒介素养的策略探析

媒介素养是指人们面对媒体各种信息时的选择、理解、质疑、评估、创造、生产能力及思辨的反应能力.幼儿教师媒介素养包括基本媒介素养和学科媒介素养,它具有双重属性.文章在分析幼儿教师媒介素养现状的基础上,对如何提高媒介素养提出了建议.在职前教育阶段应该开展相关课程;幼儿园应当发挥主体作用,营造媒介素养学习的氛围与环境;通过网络学习与实践反思相结合,发挥幼儿教师自主性,解决教育教学实际问题.     

Measurement of Executive Functioning Using a Playful Robot in Kindergarten

Abstract

We explored the potential of a robotics application in education as a measurement tool of child executive functioning skills. Sixty-five kindergarteners received assignments to go through a maze with a programmable robot, the Bee-Bot. Via observation we quantified how they solved these tasks. Their performance was successfully aggregated into a latent variable, which was used to predict the outcomes on standardized tasks that measure executive functioning. The latent variable significantly predicted performance on several tasks that measure problem-solving abilities, memory, visuospatial abilities and attention. It did not significantly predict pencil-and-paper tasks that measured visuospatial ability and nonverbal or design fluency. This study showed that it is possible to use a playful robotics task to obtain information on children’s ability. We recommend more research on using diverse robots in larger samples with different age groups to further explore the possibilities of robots as a test instrument.     

Emergent Environmental Literacy in the Nonnarrative Compositions of Kindergarten Children

This article shows how links between science and literacy offer kindergarten children the opportunity to create and express their individual understandings about environmental change through emergent environmental literacy. This article reports on one of the science experiences in a kindergarten classroom in which the children explored the phenomenon of environmental change. The kindergarten science program can help children learn how scientists look at the world; young children can express these concepts through nonnarrative compositions. The article concludes with suggestions for teaching practice in the kindergarten science program.     

The Role of Artists in Sites for Learning

Socially engaged, participatory and educational arts activities have been recognised by artists as a legitimate area of creative practice for a considerable time. Current policy initiatives around social inclusion and life long learning demonstrate that this government has a keen interest in the transformative nature of creativity and participation in arts activity. This paper explores the significance of the, Arts Council's Artists in Sites for Learning Scheme and a related piece of research within the context of recent cultural agendas and governmental policy initiatives. The research examined the ‘forms of engagement’ that occur between artists, participants and others and concludes that the role the artist inhabits within this form of creative practice is multifaceted and highly sophisticated. This paper also raises key issues concerning the ‘value’ and critical assessment of this form of practice and the need for appropriate support for (and evaluation of) it in the future.     

Reading Attitudes and Literacy Skills in Prekindergarten and Kindergarten Children

The current study addressed the development of reading attitudes and their relationship to reading skills. Forty-one prekindergarten and kindergarten learners in 1 of 3 cohorts were assessed 2 or 4 times during the course of a year. Findings indicated a slight decrease in reading attitudes during the kindergarten year. Expected increases in skills were generally indicated with pronounced increases in sight word recognition during the kindergarten year, after other skills had been mastered. Decreases in some skills were evident after summer recess. Other findings from the study and recommendations for future research and practice are provided.     

幼儿园教师信息素养调查分析

幼儿园教师信息素养是其专业素质的重要组成部分。一项对大连市200名幼儿园教师信息素养状况的调查显示,年龄31岁以上、教龄10年以上、职称高级教师以上的幼儿园教师的信息素养总体水平要高于其他条件下的幼儿园教师。职前所学专业不是影响幼儿园教师信息素养的重要因素。幼儿园教师信息素养存在显著的学历差异。     

Home Literacy Environment and Head Start Children's Language Development: The Role of Approaches to Learning

Research Findings: This study examined whether approaches to learning moderate the association between home literacy environment and English receptive vocabulary development. The Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (2003 cohort) was used for analysis. Latent growth curve modeling was utilized to test a quadratic model of English receptive vocabulary development. Results showed that children's approaches to learning significantly moderated the influence of home literacy environment on English receptive vocabulary development. Post hoc probing of the simple slopes demonstrated that children with more positive approaches to learning and lower levels of home literacy environment had a higher English receptive vocabulary trajectory. The implications of the study results for early literacy interventions are discussed. Practice or Policy: Findings from this study may have implications for early educators who aim to improve Head Start children's language competencies by targeting home literacy environment and approaches to learning. At a preliminary level, the study findings suggest that positive approaches to learning may compensate for a limited home literacy environment. Because positive approaches to learning can facilitate learning in other domains, for instance, language learning, this information may be useful for early educators in terms of promoting positive learning attitudes and predispositions toward learning.