Linking ‘The Book of Nature’ and ‘The Book of Science’: Using Circular Motion as an Exemplar beyond the Textbook

Bacon exhorted the natural philosophers of his day to read and interpret the book of nature by clever and cunning experimentation. The increasing scientific activity after Bacon and Galileo, however, quickly produced a second book. This was a book of interpretations of nature, namely the the book of science. Newton went beyond Bacon and Galileo and developedan ongoing dialogue between these two books, a repeated give and takebetween mathematical construct and physical reality. Unfortunately, thephysics textbook, the book of science the students read, does not acquaintthem with this style of reasoning. As an example of high-grade scientificthinking this paper discusses Newton's long struggle with the concepts ofinertia and especially of centrifugal force. In his quest to understand thedynamics of circular motion Newton clearly progressed through four levelsof conceptualizations, leading to progressively less severe discrepancies, inhis ascent to a full understanding of centripetal acceleration. While it is notpossible or desirable to expect teachers or students to recapitulate high-gradescientific thinking, partial retelling of the intellectual struggle that was involved in establishing important scientific concepts must be seen as important. This kind of pedagogy, however, requires that physics teachers have a good understanding of the history of scientific ideas as well as the findings of cognitive science.     

Safe Discussions Rather Than First Hand Encounters: Adolescents Examine Racism Through One Historical Fiction Text

summary This article presents a case study class response to Mildred Taylors now classic and widely read novel, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry. Through data collected during one school year, the ways urban, adolescent students use their contemporary lenses to interpret the literary theme of confronting, overcoming and challenging racism are discussed. The participants responses are organized into four reader response categories that explicate the complex and interactive interpretations developed by the children while reading the novel. In addition to providing insights about the participants textual understanding, pedagogical findings indicate that the book can also be used to explore the nature of racism while creating a safe space to confront and more deeply understand racisms impact on the past as well as the students current reality.     

La Croissance des depenses publiques d'education en Allemagne: 1829–1989

Résumé Le retournement de conjoncture du début des années 1970 s'est traduit par un renouveau des travaux relatifs aux cycles longs de type Kondratieff. Face à la fluctuation atypique de certaines variables (prix, production, etc ...), les acquis théoriques antérieurs semblaient avoir épuisé leur capacité explicative. Il devenait nécessaire d'énoncer et de vérifier des hypothèses nouvelles pour expliquer les traits originaux de la crise de structure qui se dessinait. Les résultats des travaux développés au sein du groupe de recherche en Histoire Quantitative et Théories du Long Terme de l'Université de Montpellier I répondent à cette nécessité. Ils introduisent une relation entre les dépenses engagées pour le développement des hommes (salaires, éducation, santé etc ...) et celles consacrées à la croissance matérielle.

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The downturn in the economic situation in the early 1970s gave rise to new work on long-term Kondratieff cycles. Given the atypical fluctuation in some variables (prices, production, etc.), previous theories appeared to have exhausted their ability to explain events. To explain the original features of the structural crisis that was developing, it has become necessary to put forward and test new hypotheses. The results of work carried out by the research group on Quantitative History and Long-Term Theories at the University of Montpellier I meet this requirement. They introduce a relationship between expenditure on human development (wages, education, health, etc.) and that devoted to material growth.

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Zusammenfassung Die Verschlechterung der wirtschaftlichen Situation in den frühen 70ern gab der Arbeit an langfristigen Kontratieff — Zyklen Aufschwung. In Anbetracht der atypischen Fluktuation einiger Variablen (Preise, Produktion, usw.) schienen vorangegangene Theorien die Ereignisse nicht mehr erklären zu können. Um die Ursachen der sich entwickelnden strukturellen Krise erklären zu können wurde es notwendig, neue Hypothesen aufzustellen und auszuprobieren. Die Ergebnisse der von der Forschungsgruppe über Quantitative Geschichte und Langzeittheorien an der Universität von Montpellier I durchgeführten Studien erfüllen diese Anforderungen. Sie stellen Ausgaben für die menschliche Entwicklung (Lohn, Bildung, Gesundheit usw.) und Ausgaben für materielles Wachstum in Relation.

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Resumen La degradación de la situación económica a comienzos de los a~nos setenta ha originado un nuevo trabajo sobre ciclos Kondratieff de largo plazo. Dada la fluctuación atípica de algunas variables (precios, producción, etc.), las teorías previas aparentemente habían agotado su capacidad de explicar los hechos. A efectos de explicar las características originales de la crisis estructural que se estaba desarrollando, surgió la necesidad de adelantar y comprobar nuevas hipótesis. Los resultados del trabajo realizado por el grupo de investigación de Historia Cuantitativa y Teorías de Largo Plazo de la Universidad de Montpellier I satisfacen estos requisitos. Ellos introducen una relación entre los gastos y esfuerzos destinados al desarrollo humano (salarios, educación, sanidad, etc.) y aquellos dedicados al crecimiento material.

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Equity issues in local resourcing of education: Community financing of primary schools in Bhutan

Community financing is an important source of supplementary funds for education, particularly where governments are unable to meet all the needs of their peoples. While this is widely recognised, little empirical research has been conducted on the topic. This paper analyses patterns in Bhutan. It observes that until the 1990s few resources for education were provided by communities, but that the scale of financing has increased during the present decade. The paper notes that although communities have in general responded positively to government calls for local inputs, local resourcing has some problematic aspects. The paper focuses particularly on issues of regional, rural/urban and socio-economic equity, and shows how discussion of Bhutanese experiences contributes to the international literature.

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Zusammenfassung Finanzierungen über die Gemeinde sind eine wichtige Quelle der Bezuschussung von Bildung, besonders dort, wo Regierungen nicht in der Lage sind, den Bedürfnissen der Bevölkerung gerecht zu werden. Obwohl dies weitreichend bekannt ist, gibt es kaum empirische Studien zu diesem Thema. Dieser Artikel befaßt sich mit der Situation in Bhutan. Es wird festgestellt, daß die Gemeinden bis zu den 90ern kaum Gelder für die Bildung zur Verfügung stellten, daß aber der Rahmen der Finanzierung in diesem Jahrzehnt gestiegen ist. Der Autor beschreibt, daß trotz einer allgemein positiven Antwort seitens der Gemeinden auf Forderungen der Regierung nach lokalen Finanzbeiträgen, Probleme hinsichtlich lokaler Finanzierungen bestehen. Insbesondere befaßt sich der Artikel mit Themen über regionale, ländliche und städtische und sozialökonomische Gleichheit und zeigt, wie die Diskussion über die Erfahrungen in Bhutan zur internationalen Literatur beiträgt.

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Resumen La financiación a través de la comunidad es una fuente importante de recursos adicionales para la educación, particularmente allí donde los gobiernos son incapaces de satisfacer todas las necesidades de sus habitantes. Si bien este es un hecho ampliamente conocido, existen muy pocos estudios empíricos sobre este tema. El trabajo analiza los modelos existentes en Bhután y observa que hasta los años noventa, eran pocos los recursos financieros provistos por las comunidades, mientras que durante la década actual han aumentado estos niveles de financiación. El estudio observa que, a pesar de que las comunidades, en general, han respondido de forma positiva a las llamadas del gobierno a realizar inversiones locales, la creación de recursos locales tiene algunos aspectos problemáticos. El trabajo se concentra particularmente en problemas de equidad regional, rural/urbana y socioeconómica, demostrando cómo la discusión sobre experiencias bhutanesas presta su aporte a la literatura internacional.

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Résumé Le financement communautaire représente une source importante de fonds supplémentaires pour l'éducation, en particulier quand le gouvernement ne peut répondre à tous les besoins de la population. Bien que ce fait soit largement reconnu, il n'existe que peu de recherche empirique sur le sujet. Cet article analyse différents modèles existant au Bhoutan. Il constate tout d'abord que jusque dans les années 90, les communautés ne fournissaient qu'une faible partie des ressources de l'éducation, mais que cette forme de financement a augmenté au cours de la dernière décennie. Il relève également qu'en dépit de la réaction généralement positive de la part des communautés envers l'incitation du gouvernement à un financement local, ce modèle présente néanmoins des difficultés. L'article se concentre d'autre part sur les questions d'équitabilité entre régions, entre villes et provinces et entre niveaux socioéconomiques, et révèle que la discussion sur les expériences du Bhoutan contribue à enrichir la littérature internationale.

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The acquisition of basic multiplication skills

Children learning the basic multiplications, use knowledge which they acquired in former stages. Certain additions, for instance the doubles, known by heart, can support the learning process for multiplication. It makes a great difference in cognitive achievement whether children know multiplication facts by heart or whether they are able to figure out basic multiplications. If education supports the development of informal thinking strategies, children become so skilled at this, that the border between figuring out and knowing by heart will gradually disappear. By using informal strategies children will acquire a flexible mental structure of multiplication facts instead of a collection of rules.     

Jean-Jacques Rousseau's views on adult education

Although Rousseau describes inÉmile only his scheme for childhood education, he presents us in this work with some direct statements which can be applied to explain more fully the nature of adult education. The author surveys Rousseau's ideas on the role of the general will in adult educational philosophy, subject matter, methodology and negative education, as well as the relationships between the family, student, teacher, community and the state. He concludes that the modern Rousseau would not limit education to males and would recognize that the four Rousseauian periods of educational development — infancy, childhood, youngster, adolescence — is followed by a fifth: adulthood. Adult education is the logical continuation of the four previous phases. Throughout each phase education must permit intellectual and moral growth and always allow for creativity and diversity. Only then can adults become positive contributors to their society.

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Zusammenfassung Obwohl Rousseau inÉmile nur seine eigene Vorstellung der Kindererziehung beschreibt, präsentiert er uns in dieser Arbeit Standpunkte, die auch auf Erwachsenenbildung zutreffen. Der Autor beleuchtet Rousseaus Ideen zur Rolle des generellen Willens sowohl in der Philosophie der Erwachsenenbildung als auch in Inhalten, in Methodologien und in negativer Erziehung, sowie zu den Beziehungen zwischen Familie, Schüler, Lehrer, Gemeinde und Staat. Er schließt, daß der moderne Rousseau Bildung nicht nur auf die männliche Bevölkerung beschränken würde und zudem erkennen würde, daß zu den vier Rousseauschen Phasen der erzieherischen Entwicklung — Kleinkindalter, Kindheit, Heranwachsender und Jugendlicher eine fünfte Phase hinzukommen muß: das Erwachsenenalter. Erwachsenenbildung ist die logische Folge der vier vorangegangenen Phasen. In jeder Phase muß Erziehung intellektuelles und moralisches Wachstum beinhalten und Kreativität und Vielfalt berücksichtigen. Nur dann können Erwachsene Positives zu ihrer Gesellschaft beitragen.

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Resumen Si bien enÉmile, Rousseau describe solamente su idea de la educación de la niñez, en este trabajo nos confronta con algunas afirmaciones directas que pueden aplicarse para explicar con mayor profundidad la naturaleza de la educación de adultos. El autor investiga las ideas de Rousseau relativas a la voluntad general en la filosofía de educación de adultos, en el objetivo, en la metodología y en la educación negativa, así como las relaciones existentes entre la familia, el estudiante, el docente, la comunidad y el Estado. Su conclusión es que el moderno Rousseau no limitaría la educación a los varones y que reconocería que los cuatro períodos que Rousseau ha establecido para el desarrollo educacional: infancia, niñez, pubertad, adolescencia, deben completarse con una quinta etapa: la adultez. La educación del adulto es la continuación lógica de las cuatro fases previas. Desde su comienzo hasta su final, cada una de estas fases de la educación debe permitir el crecimiento intelectual y moral y ofrecer el espacio necesario para la creatividad y la diversidad. Son condiciones indispensables para que los adultos puedan prestar un aporte positivo a la sociedad a la que pertenecen.

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Résumé Bien que Rousseau ne décrive dans l'Émile que son modèle d'éducation de l'enfant, il fait dans cette oeuvre quelques déclarations directes que l'on peut utiliser pour définir plus amplement la nature de l'éducation des adultes. L'auteur présente les idées de Rousseau sur le rôle de la volonté générale dans la philosophie de l'éducation des adultes, les sujets, la méthodologie et l'éducation négative, de même que dans les relations entre famille, apprenant, enseignant, communauté et État. Il en déduit qu'un Rousseau contemporain ne limiterait pas l'éducation aux seuls garçons et reconnaîtrait que ses quatre périodes du développement pédagogique — première enfance, enfance, jeunesse et adolescence — sont suivies d'une cinquième, l'âge adulte. L'éducation des adultes est la continuation logique des quatre phases précédentes. À l'intérieur de chaque phase, l'éducation doit permettre une croissance intellectuelle et morale, et toujours laisser une part à la créativité et la diversité. Ce n'est qu'à cette condition que les adultes peuvent devenir des citoyens qui contribuent de façon positive à leur société.

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Connecting Teacher Beliefs to the Use of Children’s Literature in the Teaching of Mathematics

This article presents examples that illustrate how teachers use childrens literature in the teaching of mathematics. The examples are related to four curriculum ideologies that have influenced mathematics education in the USA for the last 75 years. It discusses why it is relevant to help teachers understand the ideological positions that influence their use of childrens literature during mathematics instruction, summarizes the four ideological positions, and presents results of a study of how teachers ideological positions relate to their use of childrens literature in the teaching of mathematics. The study examines two research questionsCan an instructional tool be developed that will highlight for teachers the different ways in which they and others use childrens literature to teach mathematics? and Can that instructional tool stimulate teacher discussion and reflection about their own beliefs and the ideological nature of the instructional environment in which they learned (as students) and teach (as teachers)? Study results indicate that both questions can be answered in the affirmative.     

School effectiveness and effectiveness indicators: Parents', students', teachers', and principals' perspectives

The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of school effectiveness among parents, students, teachers and principals, and differences in their perceptions across school levels (primary vs. secondary) and types (religious state vs. non-religious state). Finally, the results were compared with school effectiveness indicators in the literature. A sample of all categories of subject in eight Israeli schools were interviewed (N=64). Analysis reveals that parents stressed school outputs, teachers stressed their skills and teaching processes, students emphasized both inputs and outcomes, and principals chiefly inputs. Religious schools gave more weight than others to values. These findings are broadly in line with the literature, but any comprehensive analysis of school effectiveness demands reference to all aspects of the concept.

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Zusammenfassung Ziel dieser Studie war eine Untersuchung darüber, für wie effektiv Eltern, Schüler, Lehrer und Direktoren die Schule beurteilen und wie unterschiedlich diese Wahrnehmungen auf den verschiedenen Schulebenen und -arten sind (Primarstufe und Sekundarstufe, religiös und nicht-religiös). Danach wurden die Ergebnisse mit Indikatoren über Schuleffektivität in der Literatur verglichen. Man führte Interviews mit den Zielgruppen in acht israelischen Schulen durch (N=64). Die Analysen zeigten, daß Eltern am meisten Wert auf Schulergebnisse legten, Lehrer auf ihre Fähigkeiten und Lehrprozesse, Schüler empfanden Lernen und Ergebnisse als gleich wichtig und Direktoren interessierte hauptsächlich das Lernen. Religiöse Schulen legten mehr Gewicht auf Wertvorstellungen als andere. Diese Ergebnisse stehen im allgemeinen mit der Literatur in Einklang, aber jede umfassende Analyse der Schuleffektivität erfordert die Berücksichtigung aller Aspekte des Konzepts.

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Resumen El propósito de este estudio residía en examinar las percepciones referentes a la eficacia de la escuela entre padres, estudiantes, docentes y directores, y las diferencias en sus percepciones a través de los diferentes niveles (primario vs. secundario) y tipos de escuelas (religiosas vs. laicas). Finalmente, los resultados se compararon con los indicadores de eficacia escolar establecidos en la literatura. Se ha interrogado a un grupo representativo de todas las categorias de sujetos en ocho escuelas israelíes (N=64). Los análisis revelan que los padres ponían énfasis en los rendimientos escolares, los maestros enfatizaban sus habilidades y procedimientos de enseñanza, los estudiantes enfatizaban tanto los esfuerzos como los resultados, y los directores, principalmente, los esfuerzos. Las escuelas religiosas, más que otras, adjudicaban una mayor importancia a los valores. Estos resultados coinciden de forma global con los datos que indica la literatura, pero todo análisis integrado de eficacia escolar exige la referencia a todos los aspectos del concepto.

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Résumé Le but de cette étude était d'appréhender comment parents, élèves, enseignants et directeurs d'école perçoivent l'efficacité scolaire, et si cette appréciation est différente selon le niveau scolaire (primaire ou secondaire) et le type d'école (statut religieux ou laïque). En dernier lieu, les résultats ont été comparés avec les indicateurs de l'efficacité scolaire relevés dans la littérature. Un échantillon de chaque groupe de sujets de huit écoles israéliennes a été soumis à des entretiens. L'analyse révèle que les parents font valoir le rendement scolaire, les enseignants s'attachent à leurs compétences et leurs méthodes pédagogiques, les élèves soulignent à la fois le contenu des programmes et les résultats scolaires, et les directeurs d'établissement se concentrent en premier lieu sur les contenus pédagogiques. Les écoles religieuses quant à elles donnent davantage de poids aux valeurs. Ces résultats correspondent d'une façon générale à ceux de la littérature, mais toute analyse complète sur l'efficacité scolaire doit couvrir tous les aspects du concept.

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Jekyll and hyde in the classroom: A comparative case study in educational failure

This article describes the curriculum Enrichment Program (CEP), an attempt at partial privatization in a Jerusalem elementary school. Although the school was part of the free public education system, under the CEP parents could pay for their children to receive extra teaching over and above the basic curriculum. Because of a high drop-out rate and other problems, the project was terminated after a short period. The author examines the reasons for the failure of the scheme and analyses its wider implications.

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Zusammenfassung Dieser Artikel beschreibt das Curriculum Enrichment Program (CEP — Curriculum Erweiterungsprojekt), ein Versuch zur teilweisen Privatisierung einer Grundschule in Jerusalem. Obwohl die Schule Teil eines freien öffentlichen Bildungssystems war, stand es den Eltern frei, gegen Bezahlung erweiterten Unterricht über das Grundcurriculum hinaus für ihre Kinder zu erhalten. Das Projekt wurde schon nach kurzer Zeit aufgrund von hohen Schulversagerquoten und anderen Problemen beendet. Der Autor untersucht die Gründe für den Fehlschlag des Systems und analysiert die weiteren Auswirkungen.

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Resumen Este artículo describe un proyecto de ampliación del programa de enseñanza Llamado Curriculum Enrichment Program (CEP) como un proyecto de privatización parcial que se realizó en una escuela de primera enseñanza de Jerusalén. Si bien la escuela formaba parte del sistema de educación pública, el CEP ofrecía la posibilidad de que los padres pagaran una instrucción adicional al programa básico para sus hijos. A causa de una elevada cuota de bajas y de otros problemas, el proyecto fue terminado poco tiempo después. El autor examina las razones del fracaso de este delineamiento y analiza las consecuencias de mayor trascendencia.

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Résumé Cet article décrit le projet d'enrichissement des curriculums, qui était une tentative de privatisation partielle dans une école primaire de Jérusalem. Bien que cette école fasse partie du système d'enseignement public, ce projet donnait l'option aux parents de payer pour que leurs enfants reçoivent un enseignement supplémentaire, en dehors du curriculum de base ou supérieur à celui-ci. En raison du taux élevé d'abandons et d'autres problèmes, le projet fut interrompu après une courte période. L'auteur étudie les raisons de l'échec de ce modèle et en analyse les répercussions indirectes.

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Learning by Ostension: Thomas Kuhn on Science Education

Significant claims about science education form an integral part of Thomas Kuhn's philosophy. Since the late 1950s, when Kuhn started wrestling with the ideas of normal research and convergent thought, the nature of science education has played an important role in his argument. Hence, the nature of science education is an essential aspect of the phase-model of scientific development developed in his famous The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, just as his later work on categories and conceptual structures takes its starting point in the transmission rather than the creation of concepts and categories.     

Hierarchies in mathematics education

In mathematics education literature the term hierarchy is used in a number of ways. It is important that the mathematics educator consider the usefulness of the hierarchies presented by various researchers and theorists, in the light of their application to teaching. Current works on mathematical learning hierarchies are illustrated and in particular the work of the mathematics team of the research project Concepts in Secondary Mathematics and Science is examined.     

‘... for more and better religious education’

Mahner and Bunge argue that (1) science and religion are incompatible, in order to develop their thesis, that (2) a religious education ... is an obstacle to the development of a scientific mentality, and that therefore we should only teach our children (3) how science explains the existence of religion in historical, biological, psychological and sociological terms, and that (4) religious education should be kept away from public schools ... I offer brief comments on each of these strands of their argument. Religionists, to use Mahner and Bunge's term, generally come from a specific stance so I shall make it clear, from the outset, that these remarks come from a Christian standpoint, even though many of them are much more widely applicable. Although I agree with some of the observations which Mahner and Bunge make, my conclusions are generally opposite to theirs on each of the four points.     

Analyzing children's errors on written mathematical tasks

Methods developed by Newman and Casey for analyzing errors made by children attempting verbal arithmetic problems are described, with particular emphasis being given to Newman's hierarchy of error causes. Data obtained by Newman, Casey, and Clements are presented. These show that a large proportion of errors made by children in grades 5–7 in Victoria on verbal arithmetic problems are in the Newman categories Comprehension, Transformation, Process Skills, and Carelessness.     

Quality assurance and women in higher education

This paper examines a range of positive and negative consequences for women of Quality Assurance (QA) initiatives in one Australian university. Drawing on Foucaults concepts of governmentality and power/knowledge, it is argued that the popular repressive hypothesis of power via governmentality hides a positive and potentially productive dimension of power. Following recent work by feminist political theorists, my claim here is that a corporatist managerial discourse such as QA can be used strategically for a politics of transformation in the interests of women. The paper begins with an outline of the parameters of debate about and critiques of the QA agenda in the Australian higher education sector, and highlights some potentially negative consequences for women in terms of their structural location in the university. An overview of QA audit processes then leads into a closer examination of one universitys response to QA initiatives. The culture and management style of this regional university was significantly transformed from an informal and pastoral model to one with open systems of accountability and performance targets built around equity issues. In that regard, it is argued, equity target groups including women, became the visible focus of the development and implementation of new systems designed to bring equity into the mainstream. In closing, I argue that in this particular university, the new managerialism of QA was indeed a panoptic mechanism of making visible: productivity, equity groups, procedures and outcomes. But in an institutional context where open systems were lacking and womens contributions invisible and undervalued, the QA agenda brought new opportunities not only for women but for other groups previously marginalised and silenced.     

Academic-industry liaison in the United Kingdom: economic perspectives

In recent years, higher educational institutions (HEIs) have been under increasing pressure to liaise more closely with industry. This paper draws on some relevant areas of economic theory to analyse the relationship between HEIs and industrial organisations. The nature of the benefits from liaison is examined, and the implications for financing liaison activities are considered. It is argued that liaison can frequently strengthen the traditional functions of HEIs by contributing to teaching and research. However, there is justification for the fears of many academics that in practice the outcome of closer industrial involvement may be to weaken these functions. Such undesirable outcomes reflect the weaknesses of the internal organisation of HEIs; in particular, the scope for opportunistic behaviour provided by the incompleteness of the academic contract, and the informational disadvantages suffered by senior management. In the light of these arguments, the final section considers alternative systems for organising liaison, drawing on examples from the United Kingdom. The criteria for assessment are concerned with the likely effectiveness of the systems in reducing the costs of both facilitating and policing liaison activities.     

Critical thinking and the Spock Fallacy

Conventional instruction in critical thinking technique tends to conflate logical thinking with rational or good thinking. But in doing so, it ignores the creative and intuitive functions of rationality, thereby encouraging a mechanically rote approach to textual analysis, problem solving and problem construction. This overemphasis upon straightforwardly logical calculus of justification functions, and its concomitant deemphasis of intuitive pattern of discovery ones, constitute the Spock Fallacy. Its epistemological weakness and pedagogical hazards are explored.The author of two books and numerous articles, one of his specialties is philosophy of education and critical thinking.     

Socialist mathematics education: Does it exist?

A recent book by Frank Swetz and others has postulated the existence of the phenomenon socialist mathematics education. In this paper we consider critically Swet's arguments and assertions and suggest an alternative methodology whereby one might attempt to describe socialist mathematics education.     

How Real is the Quantum World?

The three main theses proposed by Mario Bunge are discussed. The peculiar nature of quantum discreteness is argued in disagreement with his first one. General agreement, with some important distinctions, is expressed instead with his other two theses about the peculiar nature of the properties of quantum objects, and the realist interpretation of Quantum Theory. The notion of context dependent, but objectively definable, properties, and the redefinition of Natural Laws as general constraints allowing the occurrence of random events not conflicting with them are however needed in order to qualify more precisely the meaning of terms such as properties and realism. A new probabilistic formulation of Quantum Mechanics in phase space, which eliminates, together with the unphysical concept of probability waves, also the main paradoxical features of the conventional theory, is finally briefly sketched.     

Structured study questions as a social work teaching method: A controlled experimental study

Two prior studies have described and provided initial empirical support for the effectiveness of structured study questions as a method of instruction within didactic social work education. The present report describes the design, conduct and results of a more methodologically rigorous experimental study, comparing the effectiveness of study questions versus a method of teaching called learning through discussion in promoting M.S.W. students learning of sophisticated research skills. Using a pretest-posttest alternative treatment group design, with blind evaluations of student performance, the study question method was found to be superior to learning through discussion. These results support the more extensive use of the study question method of instruction within social work education.Bruce A. Thyer is a professor of social work at the University of Georgia, where he obtained his M.S.W. degree in 1978. Dr. Thyer earned his Ph.D. in social work and psychology from the University of Michigan in 1982. His research interests involve promoting applied behavior analysis within social work. Geraldine Jackson-White is an instructor of social work at the University of Georgia, where she obtained her M.S.W. in 1977. Ms. Jackson-White is a doctoral candidate in public administration at the University of Georgia. Richard Sutphen has an M.A. in sociology from Memphis State University and an M.S.W. from the University of Georgia where he is currently a doctoral student in social work. Dorothy F. Carrillo received her M.S.W. from Atlanta University and is currently a doctoral student in social work at the University of Georgia where she is also an instructor of social work.Tim Stocks of the University of Texas at Arlington School of Social Work provided valuable statistical consultation.