Hilary Putnam interviewed by Naoko Saito and Paul Standish

The interview, which took place on the eve of the 2012 American presidential election, coincides with the publication of three major works by or about Hilary Putnam. It begins and ends with the topic of science, drawing attention to science's profound importance but also to its contemporary forms of distortion. It explores Putnam's current views on realism, with reference to conceptual relativity and ‘objectivity without objects’. The nature of philosophy and its sometimes‐dishonest relationship to scepticism is considered, especially in relation to the work of Stanley Cavell and Richard Rorty. Putnam acknowledges that he has learned much from Wittgenstein, but he laments Wittgenstein's apparent insensitivity to the value of, and spiritual depth in, Plato. He recognises Rorty's contribution to the revival of pragmatism, but he roundly criticises the version of it advanced by Rorty and by his student, Robert Brandom. It is classical pragmatism's achievement in overcoming the fact‐value dichotomy that Putnam wishes particularly to emphasise. While acknowledging tensions in the work of Dewey, between the sensitive aesthetician and the social reformer, Putnam stresses Dewey's importance, alongside that of Martin Buber, in shaping his own political and religious views. In the course of the discussion further tensions are considered—between pragmatism and American transcendentalism, and between analytic and continental philosophy. The interview closes with reference to politics and to the perilous situation of the humanities today.     

Dear Hilary Shuard…

Since the demise of the Schools Council, the newly formed School Curriculum Development Committee has initiated, as one of its first projects, an exploratory study of the mathematics curriculum for the six to 13 age range. In this open letter to Hilary Shuard, the project director, a case for particular consideration for the needs of pupils with learning difficulties is presented by Alec Williams, Bishop Grosseteste College, Lincoln. He has recently piloted, for the Mathematical Association/NARE, the new diploma course in the Teaching of Mathematics to Low Attainers in Secondary Schools.     

Power, Language, and Literacy in The Great Gilly Hopkins

To compensate for her feelings of anger and helplessness over her mother’s abandonment and subsequent displacements, the foster child Gilly Hopkins seeks power and agency through the primary means at her disposal: through the use of language and fairy tales. She constructs a Cinderella fantasy of an idealized mother who will rescue her. She also resonates strongly with the Rumpelstiltskin story, as it is a story about the power of language, and highlights a dynamic of exploitation that seems familiar to her. Through relationships with William Ernest, Trotter, Mr. Randolph, and Miss Harris, Gillie learns, however, to move beyond the habit of exploiting others as objects, and to experience the beauty of language for its own sake. Her emotional and psychological development can be charted through her changing relationship to the imaginative and expressive potentialities of language. Most importantly, literacy becomes not a basis for illusory control and manipulative power, but for the kind of human relationships that make possible the building of a self. Language becomes a rich inner resource, not simply a means for power over others.

Literacy Literacy

The paper argues that the term ‘literacy’ has become attached to too many disparate practices, and that renewed attention needs to be paid to how the acquisition and use of skills of written communication are conditioned by the core structures of the home, the classroom, and the state. It reviews the current usages of literacy and examines the agenda for further research in the central areas of reading and particularly writing. Attention is drawn to the contemporary engagement with literacy as a basic skill, and to the recent implementation in England of the “National Literacy Strategy.” The close parallels between the 19th and early 21st century literacy strategies are noted. If historians wish to apply their research to an interrogation of contemporary ideology and practice, greater attention should be paid to domestic instruction and to the role of government over time.     

Literacy,Numeracy and Computer Literacy

Abstract

Prevailing hierarchical attitudes have prevented most British organisations changing to more successful democratically run organisational cultures. Many academics have played a part in this by themselves suppressing the lessons of best democratic practice. The human and economic cost of hierarchical working and teaching/ learning practices makes it morally incumbent on those who work in education to rationally and honestly evaluate evidence and voice the central and urgent need for top managers to take the lead in the culture change process required for high quality educational and industrial performance.     

信息教育中的教师信息素养及培养

在信息教育中，教师的作用是多方面的，一方面自身也需要接受信息教育；另一方面，教师又是学校教育的主要承担者，在学科教学中让学生接受信息教育，教师自身的信息素养关系到整个信息教育的成败。本文论述了教师信息素养的重要性和特征，还对如何提高我国的教师信息素养提出了若干建议。     

浅谈在情趣中进行识字教学

低年级的识字教学是小学语文教学的重点,也是难点,机械重复地练习会让学生失去对学习的兴趣。而兴趣是学习活动的强化剂,学生有了兴趣就会产生强烈的求知欲,学习的主动性和积极性就能得到最大限度的发挥,因而,在情趣中进行识字教学必然会收到事半功倍的效果。     

The Literacy Component of Mathematical and Scientific Literacy

This opening article of the Special Issue makes an argument for parallel definitions of scientific literacy and mathematical literacy that have shared features: importance of general cognitive and metacognitive abilities and reasoning/thinking and discipline-specific language, habits-of-mind/emotional dispositions, and information communication technology strategies to prepare people for adult life and democratic citizenship. These frameworks provide potential insights into research and pedagogy. Furthermore, they provide guidelines for second-generation standards, curriculum development and assessment so as not to overlook or underemphasize the fundamental literacy component of mathematical and scientific literacy for all students, which can result in fuller participation in the public debate about science, mathematics, technology, society, and environment issues.     

利用思维导图培养学生的视觉素养

信息社会和读图时代的来临。使视觉素养成为21世纪大众的基本素养。目前学生视觉素养普遍缺乏,与社会发展要求存在差距,亟待采取有效的方法加快学生视觉素养培养的步伐。从如何合理、有效地提高学生视觉素养水平出发．提出了应用思维导图从事实、理解、应用和发散4个层次进行视觉素养培养的模式与策略,以期从更广的角度进行理论探讨和实践尝试。     

在课程整合中培养学生的信息素养

信息技术作为认知工具的课程整合,它无疑将是信息时代占主导地位的课程教学,也必将成为教育教学的重要方式方法。因此,在教育、信息化的大背景下,倡导和探索信息技术与学科整合,对于培养学生的“信息素养”,特别是对于学生创新精神、协作意识和实践能力的培养,都具有十分重要的现实意义。笔者在信息技术与学科整合中如何培养学生信息素养,作一些初步的探讨。