To Block or Not To Block: That's Not the Question

Abstract

The block schedule emerged in the late 1980s as one structuring practice that allowed educators to address several problems associated with the traditional high school schedule. Among its posited advantages is the opportunity for teachers to engage students in active teaching strategies that require more time than the traditional schedule allows. Research on the use of teaching strategies in traditional and block schedule high schools is limited. Similarities and differences in survey responses of more than 2,000 teachers working in traditional- and block-schedule schools were described and analyzed in this study. In general, few differences were evident in opinions about level of use, appropriateness, and training for a variety of instruction approaches.     

受让赃物能否善意取得

《物权法》将善意取得作为取得所有权的特殊方式,但对赃物转让的受让人能否适用没有直接规定。对赃物转让原则上应不适用善意取得制度,但应明确在例外情况下可能适用善意取得的规则。     

To Boxplot or Not to Boxplot?

The lower quartile is the median of all of the values to the left of the median of the whole set of data; the upper quartile is the median of all of the values to the right of the median of the whole set of data.     

To Challenge or Not To Challenge: The Mentor's Dilemma

This paper focuses upon open and distance learning initial teacher education in both primary and secondary sectors and explores the ways in which mentors challenge PGCE students in their professional thinking and classroom practice. It draws upon ethnographic research on mentors and student teachers during one presentation of the course. The data are based on observations of mentors working with students on final student placement, conversations with specialist subject mentor trainers as well as questionnaire and other source material. An analysis of how mentors articulate their knowledge base; the dialogue between mentor and student and the challenge of moving from novice to expert for the student teacher are all considered. Our conclusions have implications for all ITT and will also be a source of valuable practical help for student teachers and mentors.     

To Feedback or Not to Feedback in Student Self-assessment

Extensive research (Black & Wiliam, 1998) notes the importance of feedback for learning. It is posited that even final-year undergraduate students will benefit from feedback and would thus value tutor feedback as an integral part of the student self-assessment process. At a British university, students were trained to carry out self-assessment of two types: firstly, self-assessment prior to peer and tutor feedback and secondly, self-assessment which integrated feedback as part of the process. Students overwhelmingly favoured the latter. In addition, analysis of student errors showed that, contrary to expectations, the majority of students' errors in translation were principally caused by their native language. Furthermore, discussion and questions on criteria revealed that students' expectations of their grades were closely related to the amount of time and effort which they had invested in their work. This was external to the actual standard of their work and their awareness of this.     

To Be or Not to Be:A Comparison between Two Novels

Both the two short novels The Short Happy Life of Francis Macombev by Hemingway and Barn Burning by Faulkner are well-known.Macomber and Sartoris are protagonists in these two novels respectively.Both of them were betrayers to some one and to themselves;both of them had the important transformation in their life and grew mature.This article is making a comparison between these two novels from the perspective of rite of passage to explore their common theme:To Be is much more important than Not To Be,a life with self-determination and self-respect is much more significant than a life without self-judgment and dominated.     

Not Enough Science or Not Enough Learning? Exploring the Gaps between Leadership Theory and Practice

This paper addresses the relationships between leadership theory, practice and development, drawing on both the higher education and wider leadership literature. It explores why challenges and problems exist within the contested field of leadership theory and why gaps remain between theory and practice after more than a century of research – and indeed, with increasing levels of research, scholarship and development in the last 25 years. After highlighting the importance of context for theory, practice and development, the first section of the paper examines a range of factors that contribute to theoretical ‘contests’ including different starting assumptions made by researchers, the different focus of studies, examination of different causal links to explain leadership, differences in values and cultural lenses and different constructs, terminology and perspectives. The second section examines the challenges faced by leadership practitioners, as individuals, and through exercising leadership as a collective responsibility in the context of changing operating environments within higher education institutions and across sectors and countries. The author highlights three areas where some re‐thinking of the links between theory and practice are necessary – at the input stage, linking research findings and recruitment practices; in terms of outcomes, by researching links between leaders, leadership and performance; and in process terms, to examine more deeply complex and relational dynamic of leadership in action. The third section offers a number of specific suggestions as to how closer alignment between theory, practice and development can be achieved. The paper concludes by arguing for greater maturity (in research, practice and development) that acknowledges that leadership is played out in complex, dynamic and changing social systems. A stronger emphasis on ‘leadership learning’ should deliver both better science and better outcomes for leaders and led in higher education.     

To Math or Not to Math: The Algebra-Calculus Pipeline and Postsecondary Mathematics Remediation

This article reports on a study designed to estimate the effect of high school coursetaking in the algebra-calculus pipeline on the likelihood of placing out of postsecondary remedial mathematics. A nonparametric variant of propensity score analysis was used on a nationally representative data set to remove selection bias and test for an effect among all comparable students and among students least likely to enroll in precalculus, trigonometry, or calculus. The effect failed to reach practical significance among all comparable students and was particularly weak among students least likely to take precalculus, trigonometry, or calculus. These findings suggest that the regression-based results that factor strongly into discussions on high school graduation requirements for mathematics coursetaking contain substantial selection bias.     

光在建筑空间中的作用

对于建筑师来说,光影是一种建筑材料,如果忽视了光影的存在,设计就不会体现出光影的有效价值。建筑环境是一个各种空间功能的集合体,光的功能因不同的空间而产生不同的作用,不仅仅迎合生物学的原理,同时要满足人们心理上的需要。在光所构成的氛围中,阴影造型也非常重要。因为没有阴影的空间是不存在的,设计光的同时也在设计阴影。光不仅是装饰,而且是起重要的烘托作用,建筑光影的作用让空间充满活力。     

Subscores Based on Classical Test Theory: To Report or Not to Report

There is an increasing interest in reporting subscores, both at examinee level and at aggregate levels. However, it is important to ensure reasonable subscore performance in terms of high reliability and validity to minimize incorrect instructional and remediation decisions. This article employs a statistical measure based on classical test theory that is conceptually similar to the test reliability measure and can be used to determine when subscores have any added value over total scores. The usefulness of subscores is examined both at the level of the examinees and at the level of the institutions that the examinees belong to. The suggested approach is applied to two data sets from a basic skills test. The results provide little support in favor of reporting subscores for either examinees or institutions for the tests studied here.     

To See or Not To See: Preservice Teacher Attitudes Toward Color Blindness

This study examined the perspectives of 85 undergraduate preservice teacher candidates engaged in a required survey course on diversity at a midsized Midwestern university. Candidates completed the Common Beliefs Survey at both the beginning and end of the 16-week semester. Quantitative analysis of the pre- and postcourse Likert ratings of candidates indicated a significant negative shift relative to the statement, “I don't think of my students in terms of their race or ethnicity; I am color-blind when it comes to my teaching.” Further qualitative analysis of candidates who provided written rationale for their numeric response indicated prevailing themes of conscious bias, intentional color-blindness, and movement toward appreciation of racial difference as a critical cognizance. Implications for teacher education include experiences beyond the scope of a survey course if significant schematic shift leading to the potential for educational equity is to be realized.     

捐,还是不捐,这是一个问题

2004年岁末,突如其来的海啸震惊了全世界, 也包括我所在的学校。灾难发生后几天,高二有个班 发起了募捐活动,很快,学校德育处接手了此事,一 场为灾民献爱心的活动轰轰烈烈地开展起来了。学 校规定,学生捐款以班为单位,班主任随本班捐款, 并准备在周一的升旗仪式上举行一个捐赠仪式。     

To Parcel or Not to Parcel: Exploring the Question,Weighing the Merits

We examine the controversial practice of using parcels of items as manifest variables in structural equation modeling (SEM) procedures. After detailing arguments pro and con, we conclude that the unconsidered use of parcels is never warranted, while, at the same time, the considered use of parcels cannot be dismissed out of hand. In large part, the decision to parcel or not depends on one's philosophical stance regarding scientific inquiry (e.g., empiricist vs. pragmatist) and the substantive goal of a study (e.g., to understand the structure of a set of items or to examine the nature of a set of constructs). Prior to creating parcels, however, we recommend strongly that investigators acquire a thorough understanding of the nature and dimensionality of the items to be parceled. With this knowledge in hand, various techniques for creating parcels can be utilized to minimize potential pitfalls and to optimize the measurement structure of constructs in SEM procedures. A number of parceling techniques are described, noting their strengths and weaknesses.