PEER AND TEACHER PREFERENCE,STUDENT–TEACHER RELATIONSHIPS,STUDENT ETHNICITY,AND PEER VICTIMIZATION IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

This research was supported, in part, by a grant from the National Institute for Mental Health (5R44MH07071‐03) awarded to Dr. Melissa E. DeRosier. Additional support comes from an Institute of Education Sciences post‐doctoral fellowship training award to the University of Florida (R324B1200002). The research was conducted at 3‐C Institute. The authors thank the staff and students of the Wake County Public School System in North Carolina for their cooperation and support in the implementation of this research project. In addition, the authors thank Drs. Janey McMillen, Natalie O'Brian, and Melanie Wilson for their invaluable efforts as project coordinators, as well as the many interns of the 3‐C Institute for their assistance in successfully completing this research project.     

Using curriculum-based measurement to inform reading instruction

The focus of this article is recent CBM work that incorporates diagnostic reading assessment. The goal is to help general and special educators tailor more effective reading instruction for developing readers. The development process for this CBM diagnostic reading assessment is described; the resulting assessment is presented; and preliminary data on its technical features and utility are provided. This research was supported in part by Grant #H324C000022 from the US Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, and Core Grant #HD15052 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to Vanderbilt University. Statements do not reflect the position or policy.     

The Age Factor in the Prediction of Tertary Academic Success

This study examined the predictive power of age in the academic performance of Behavioural Science students at the Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education. Other predictor variables included were study methods, Tertiary Entrance score, personal problems, satisfaction with college, self‐concept, locus of control and flexibility of thinking. 79 students, 93% of the total population, responded to the questionnaire containing scales measuring the above variables. Results from multiple regression analyses showed that the contribution of age outweighed by far that of any other variable. The next best predictors were study methods and environment factors. The contribution of personality traits and T.E. score was minimal. A high correlation between age and study methods was also noted. A greater acceptance of older age students into Behavioural Science courses was suggested.     

英国职前教师教育课程现状述评——以爱丁堡大学莫雷教育学院和伦敦大学教育学院为例

本文以2006年度爱丁堡大学莫雷教育学院BED课程计划和伦敦大学教育学院PGCE课程计划为例,透析英国当前的职前教师教育课程,对其现状、特点及负面效果进行阐述分析。作为他山之石,英国的职前教师教育课程可以对我国的教师教育改革有所启示。     

Green beans: Gardening with two's

The nearby neighborhood garden project provided an almost daily trip for our group of two-year-olds. There we discovered limitless opportunities for learning. Gardening provided a sense of continuity that is hard to achieve with young ones.Karen Hack is the Early Childhood Special Education Teacher of the two's group at the Infant Care Center. Virginia Flynn was the Administrative Supervisor of the Infant Care Center and is currently Assistant Education Director of the Infant Health and Development Program, The New York League for Early Learning, Inc.     

Closing loops

Roger Brown, the Chair of the Editorial Advisory Board, and I are delighted that John Aubrey Douglass, Senior Research Fellow of the Center for Studies in Higher Education at the University of California Berkeley, has agreed to edit this special issue of perspectives. The papers arise out of contributions to a Symposium in September 2004 on UK and US Higher Education Funding and Access, organised by the Oxford Centre for Higher Education Policy Studies (OxCHEPS) and the Center for Studies in Higher Education at the University of California Berkeley campus. It was co‐chaired by John and David Palfreyman, the Director of OxCHEPS, and it is a pleasure and privilege to publish some of the main papers.

We are indebted to the AUA, the Sutton Trust, the Higher Education Policy Institute, the Rothermere Institute, the Institute for Governmental Studies (UC Berkeley), the Center for British Studies (UC Berkeley), and the University of California Office of the President, all of whom provided support for the Symposium.

John’s first paper sets the scene on the UK funding environment and student support, and provides a context for those that follow. Ed.     

The Effect of Loans on the Persistence and Attainment of Community College Students

This study informs public policies regarding the use of subsidized loans as financial aid for community college students. Using logistic regression, it analyzes the National Center for Education Statistics’ Beginning Postsecondary Students (BPS 90/94) data to predict persistence to the second year of college and associate’s degree attainment over five years. During the period under study, loans did not contribute to higher persistence and attainment rates. Loans are observed to have a negative effect on persistence and no effect on degree attainment. Estimates of the interaction effects of borrowing and income status are insignificant but demonstrate the need for further testing. The findings are attributed to a combination of the high uncertainty of degree completion among community college students and the negative affective component of indebtedness. Earlier versions of this paper were presented at the American Education Finance Association Annual Meeting (Austin, Texas, March, 2000) and at the AIR Forum (Cincinnati, Ohio, May 2000). It has also appeared as a working paper of the Institute for Higher Education Law and Governance at the University of Houston, Texas (IHELG Monograph 01–07).This paper is based upon work supported by the Association for Institutional Research, the National Center for Education Statistics and the National Science Foundation under Association for Institutional Research Grant No. 99-128-0.     

Multi-Method Evaluation of Instruction in Engineering Classes

Student evaluation of instruction in college and university courses has been a routine and mandatory part of undergraduate and graduate education for some time. A major shortcoming of the process is that it often relies exclusively on the opinions or qualitative judgments of students rather than the learning or transfer of knowledge that takes place in the classroom. To develop a more objective system of assessment, this research focused on a learning-centered approach to course work and teaching evaluation. Standardized testing tools were developed suitable for measuring the content knowledge of students in a representative group of undergraduate courses. Course evaluations were conducted using two systems of assessment: the traditional student questionnaire feedback system and one based on the learning-centered approach using a computer-based question bank and on-line testing. Significant performance differences were evident in pretest/posttest comparisons of student learning. Favorable ratings of instruction are reflected in opinions on student questionnaires. No relationship was demonstrated between learning and traditional course evaluation outcomes. Our hypothesis that the learning-centered approach provides information that is not available using the traditional student feedback system was supported.Support for this research was provided in part by Grant No. P116B981224-00 from the U.S. Department of Education, Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Programs awarded to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the Department of Education, and no official endorsement should be inferred.     

Mnemonic-strategy reduction of prose-learning interference

One hundred and sixty college students read three fictitious biographical passages according to either imagery-mnemonic or no-strategy control instructions. In one mnemonic condition, subjects formed separate images involving each biographical name and its associated facts: in another mnemonic condition, the biographical name and its associated facts were integrated within a single composite image. Relative to an interference-control condition, integrated mnemonic subjects recalled more factual information, whereas separate mnemonic subjects did not. In addition, the recall of integrated mnemonic subjects was statistically no different from that of a noninterference control condition, whereas the recall of separate mnemonic subjects was lower. Both theoretical and educational implications of the results are discussed. The first author’s contribution to this work was supported by an Organized Research Grant from the Graduate School of Illinois State University. The second author’s contribution was supported by the National Institute of Education under Grant No. NIE-G-81-0009 to the Wisconsin Center for Education Research and was facilitated by a Romnes Faculty Fellowship from the Graduate School of the University of Wisconsin, Madison.     

K-12 teachers’ perceptions of and their satisfaction with interaction type in blended learning environments

Blended learning is an effective approach to instruction that combines features of face-to-face learning and computer-mediated learning. This study investigated the relationship between student perceptions of three types of interaction and blended learning course satisfaction. The participants included K-12 teachers enrolled in a graduate-level course. Results indicate that students (a) perceived interaction as important to their learning experiences and (b) were moderately satisfied in their blended learning course. The predictive model of student satisfaction including three types of interaction was reliable. Of the three types of interaction, learner–content interaction was the strongest predictor of student satisfaction when the course design involved a low amount of collaborative activities. Additionally, student personality was found to be a vital factor for interaction and satisfaction in this type of course design. Students who reported having an extroverted personality noted more interaction and a higher level of student satisfaction than those who self-reported as introverted.     

Changes in student attitudes during a course in relation to instructional media

Summary Scales measuring attitude toward a course were administered five times at equally spaced intervals throughout the course to college students. The students were in courses taught by one of four methods of instruction; programed, television, small class, and large class. The mean scores on the attitude scales differed significantly among the methods of instruction on each of the five administrations. The means of the methods were consistently ordered as follows: programed instruction television instruction > small class > large class. There was also a consistent decline in the mean scores over the five administrations. Novelty of the method for the students was offered as the variable differentiating the methods associated with the attitudinal differences. Other hypotheses were also discussed. The research reported here was one of several projects performed pursuant to a contract with the Office of Education, United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.     

Why Teach? Motives for Teaching Revisited

The 1960s saw a rapid expansion of teacher education in Singapore. This was followed by an attempt to ensure quality teacher education, beginning with the establishment of the Institute of Education in 1973. The Institute was established to take over the responsibilities of teacher preparation and educational research, functions which were performed by the Teachers' Training College, the School of Education of the University of Singapore and the Research Unit of the Ministry of Education. Since its establishment, the Institute has provided pre-service training for some 6000 teachers, both non-graduates and graduates. In addition to these, some fifteen thousand teachers have gone through in-service courses of one kind or another at the Institute over the past decade (Lun and Chan, 1983). The above facts show the concern with and effort dedicated to the improvement of teacher quality in Singapore.     

国家精品课程网站建设的思考——基于英语语言类课程的调查分析

本文以2003-2008年共评选出的54门英语语言类国家精品课程为研究对象,从总体概况、课程模块建设、运行情况三方面对网站建设情况进行了详细分析.数据表明,网站整体建设质量有待改进,课程资源共享程度不够.作者在分析的基础上对国家精品课程网站建设提出了行之有效的建议.     

网络课程开发工作流管理系统的设计与开发

创新网络课程开发的管理模式,提高网络课程开发的工作效率,越来越受到国内远程教育界的关注。开发支持网络课程开发业务的管理信息系统已成迫切需求,基于工作流技术构建相应的系统是解决此类问题的最佳途径。东北财经大学网络教育学院和北京师范大学知识工程研究中心合作,通过系统环境、组织结构和职责调查、业务流程及业务流程数据分析,对国内网络教育学院网络课程开发过程进行调研,形成网络课程开发的业务流程并进行工作流建模,然后基于JBPM工作流引擎,开发了支持项目管理、模式管理且可以配置流程的网络课程开发工作流管理系统。     

网络课程再工程的设计与实现

越来越多的大学正逐步把现有的网络课程平台向教育云服务平台过渡,实际上这是一个网络课程系统再工程的过程。在保持原有网络课程系统主要功能的基础上,移植原系统所使用的框架和重构原系统的数据访问层,采用GoogleApp Engine、Google Web Toolkit和Ext-GWT等技术并结合面向服务开发方式,我们成功地实施了把传统技术开发的网络课程再工程到Google云计算平台。随着Google App Engine SDK的不断完善,会有越来越多的优秀框架陆续受到支持,从而降低再工程的难度。     

Cerebral hemisphere asymmetry: Methods,issues, and implications

This is the seventh ERIC/ECTJ Annual Review Paper, preparation of which was supported by the ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) Clearing-house on Information Resources, Syracuse University. The material in this article was prepared pursuant to a contract with the National Institute of Education, U.S. Department of Education. Contractors undertaking such projects under government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their judgment in professional and technical matters. Points of view or opinions do not necessarily represent the official view or opinion of the NIE. - Ed. The author’s own research discussed in this article was supported in part by research grants from the National Institute of Mental Health and from the National Science Foundation.     

大学视频公开课与精品课程的融合性研究

随着开放教育在国内的不断发展,教育部先后启动了精品课程和高校视频公开课建设项目。二者在课程分布、课程内容的专业程度、授课形式、实时互动情况等方面存在差异。当前,高校开放课程建设需要加强二者的融合,促进课程均衡分布;统一建设模式,提高网站影响力,扩大使用范围;扩大建设范围,组建专业建设团队。     

Computer-assisted instruction for dispersed populations: System cost models

Provision of CAI of any sophistication requires-at least with present technology-the existence of a large central computing system. Thus, if rural regions or dispersed populations (e.g. deaf students) are to be able to share in the potential of CAI, an extensive communication system is required. This paper provides cost estimates for a CAI system capable of handling 1300 highly despersed student terminals; in order to do this it develops cost models for alternative te restrial and satellite communication systems. Perhaps the most interesting result to emerge from the analysis is the viability of a satellite based system; for average terminal to computer distances on the order of 500 miles there is a distinct advantage for satellite based systems. Assuming 2,000 hours per year usuage of the student erminals, the system cost for a satellite based system serving a highly dispersed population is $ 0.85 per student contact hour.This work was supported by Grant No. OEG-0-70-4797 from the Bureau of Education for the Handicapped, U.S. Office of Education, to the Institute for Mathematical Studies in the Social Sciences (IMSSS), Stanford University. Portions of the paper were previously presented at the XXII International Congress of the International Astronautical Federation, Brussels, September 1971, and at the International School on Computers in Education, Pugnochiuso, Italy, July 1972.John Ball is the manager of the Computer Based Laboratory of IMSSS; Dean Jamison is a staff member of IMSSS, Assistant Professor of Management Science, Graduate School of Business, and Assistant Professor (by courtesy), School of Education, Stanford University. The authors are indebted to J. E. G. Ferraz and Joanne Leslie Jamison for valuable assistance with this paper.     

How Sustainable Are In‐service Teacher‐training Courses?

The present research addressed the issue of ‘life after a course’. The study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of four in‐service teacher‐training courses at the Hong Kong Institute of Education in terms of their usefulness and relevance to the teachers’ needs on return to school. An end‐of‐course evaluation questionnaire and a follow‐up questionnaire were sent six months after the courses to see if there were any significant differences in the participants’ views on the effectiveness of a course at two different time points. Qualitative data collected from interviews between the tutors and participants six months after the courses were also analysed to find out which aspects of the courses were considered to be most useful to the teachers on their return to school, and why they were useful. The findings from the research give valuable insights into the design of teacher‐education courses.