University instructors' ratings profiles: Stability over time,and disciplinary differences

This study investigated university instructors' teaching profiles (rank order of teaching behaviors) as they emerge from student ratings. The data consisted of student ratings of all faculty members in the physics and chemistry departments at Tel Aviv University, with no exception, who taught the same undergraduate course over two consecutive years. The ratings of these instructors were taken twice a semester (at mid- and end of semester), during the two academic years of the study, using a short rating instrument. A (4 × 5) × 2 ANOVA was conducted, with time of measurement and item serving as repeated measures, and department as a grouping factor. The same procedure was used for identifying differences between pairs of measurements for each item. These pairs compared the corresponding measures of the first year versus the second year, and separately those of mid-semester versus the end of semester. Findings indicate a very high degree of stability of instructors' profiles across time of measurement and activities to improve instructor performance on weak points; no clear-cut improvement from mid- to end-of-semester ratings except for teachers who undertake special improvement activities; and differences in teaching profiles for the two academic departments.     

The effect of different usage of the educational programming language in programming education on the programming anxiety and achievement

Education and Information Technologies - The abstract structure, logic, negative perceptions, and anxiety of programming are seen as obstacles to novice programmers. The importance of educational...     

对教育实验的思考

20世纪初至今教育实验在我国的教育研究中始终是重要的科学方法之一。它为理论与实践的结合提供了一个平台,但在实施过程中也存在一些问题。本文从教育实验的选题、评价和推广三个方面来探讨教育实验存在的问题并提出解决这些问题的对策。     

对目前教育教学中某些现象的思考

教育教学面临的不良现象较多 ,这些问题虽不具有普遍性 ,但也严重影响着教育教学质量 ,制约教育发展 ,影响民族素质的提高 ,需要通过教育教学改革加以系统解决。     

Attachment over time

Continuity in attachment classification from infancy to late adolescence was examined and related to autobiographical memories of childhood, divorce, and maladjustment. Eighty-four White middle-class children (48 girls) were seen in a modified Strange Situation at 12 months and given the Adult Attachment Interview at 18 years. In addition, data were collected on 13-year-olds' childhood recollections as well as adolescent, mother, and teacher ratings of maladjustment at 13 and 18 years of age. Divorce status of parents also was obtained. Results indicated no continuity in attachment classification from 1 to 18 years of age and no relation between infant attachment status and adolescent maladjustment. Divorce was related to 13-year-olds' childhood recollections as well as to insecure attachment status at 18 years. Eighteen-year-olds with insecure attachment classification were more likely to rate themselves as maladjusted. The results support the idea of attachment as an evolving representation dependent upon the nature of the family environment as indexed by divorce.     

Left Alone: end time for Marxist educational theory?

This paper provides an external account of the demise of the ‘old’ Marxist educational theory flowing from social reproductionism/ resistance theory. Five developments are explored in terms of how they have undercut the ‘old’ educational Marxism: hyper‐academicism; dislocations/disjunctions between theory and practice; the postmodern challenge; the new liberal ‘Left’ challenge; and, the ‘death of Marxism’ syndrome. The first two elements form the basis of some important ‘lessons’ for the revitalisation of Marxist perspectives on education. It is also argued that, although the five trends and developments have posed a serious challenge for the ‘old’ Marxist educational theory, nevertheless, it will probably circulate for some time‐‐given revivals, revisits, and as a source of easy criticism for anti‐Marxists. Finally, there has been a recent flowering of new approaches to theorising education from a Marxist perspective, which this paper maps out.     

Educational family background and the realisation of educational career intentions: participation of German upper secondary graduates in higher education over time

In this article, we evaluate the impact of social origin on the realisation of educational intentions at the time of becoming eligible for higher education in Germany. In general, we find high persistence of intentions and actual attendance of higher education. However, effects of parental education on the changes of educational intentions increase the existing social inequality with regard to higher education at the time of leaving secondary school. The group which is affected most are those young adults planning to study after vocational training—while the gap between different origin groups does not widen much during other stop-outs from education. This can be explained only partly by previous educational performance. The findings suggest that estimates of educational inequality are attenuated when entry into higher education is approximated by educational intentions of young adults.     

Stability of educational goal orientations held by teachers

This study assesses the temporal stability of teacher goal orientation and identifies factors associated with change. Seventy-four elementary teachers responded to questionnaires and interviews over a 4-year period. Teacher goal orientation was found to be a relatively stable construct, as few teachers made major and enduring shifts in goal orientation. Subjects identified a variety of factors as contributing to change in goal orientation, with student behavior emerging as a primary impetus for change. Contrary to expectation, shifts in goal orientation were most often exhibited by the more highly experienced teachers in the study. Implications are discussed.     

学习时间的元认知功能及其对教育的启示

学习时间的元认知功能有两种,即监测功能和控制功能。学习时间的监测功能体现在学习者能够根据学习时间的多少来判断学习任务的难度,从而推断随后的测验成绩。学习时间的控制功能体现在学习者以监测为依据,通过分配学习时间来控制随后的学习过程,以便提高学习成绩。     

Transforming an education system through professional learning: developing educational change at scale in Ontario

There has been increased attention to the importance of teachers and teacher quality in developing and sustaining successful education systems for some time now (Barber and Mourshed in How the world’s best performing school systems come out on top, McKinsey & Company, New York, 2007; Darling-Hammond et al. in Empowered educators: how high-performing systems shape teaching quality around the world, Jossey Bass, San Francisco, 2017). Germaine to the issue of teacher quality, however, is an acknowledgement of the value of supporting educator’s ongoing professional learning (PL). Drawing on findings from a large-scale case study of Ontario, Canada, this paper attempts to shed light on the question of how systems of PL can be developed and scaled? The research was conducted in several phases, including an extensive document analysis, followed by interviews with key respondents across the sector. The paper is framed within the notion of large-scale system change, with a focus on the importance of inter-professional relationships and joint work in establishing shared goals for educational improvement. As we noted in the larger study, a theory of action linked to knowledge of educational change and professional capacity building has informed the mindset, values, and strategies developed and implemented. This paper specifically illustrates Ontario’s whole-system’s focus on professional learning as part of this wider theory of action.     

Emphasising use over attributes in selection of educational software

Rejecting traditional checklist approaches to software selection, this paper discusses an approach emphasising classroom use of software over technical attributes. It proposes a way of thinking about software (the perspectives interactions paradigm) that takes the perspectives of the student, the teacher and the designer and uses interactions between pairs of these perspectives to generate broad questions and more specific issues to be considered when software is being assessed for purchase or classroom use. Some example packages are assessed using the paradigm for several different educational contexts, illustrating that this approach raises issues of classroom interactions and learning processes. These issues go beyond, and are more important for selection decisions than those generally considered with a checklist of software attributes.     

Smoothing Newton algorithm for linear programming over symmetric cones

By using the theory of Euclidean Jordan algebras,based on a new class of smoothing functions,the QiSun-Zhou's smoothing Newton algorithm is extended to solve linear programming over symmetric cones (SCLP).The algorithm is globally convergent under suitable assumptions.     

教育改革阻力的利益性质思考

“百名学者评论中国教育”专栏,以教育研究者的角度,就教育理论和实践中的热点、焦点、难点、冰点问题发表各种建设性见解。先期办成开放式的,一事一议,或提出问题,或分析评论,力求形成百家争鸣、百花齐放之势,激活中国之教育学术。待有重点问题时,再分专题讨论。特邀教育界有影响的专家学者参与,以教授和博士为主办成一个高层次论坛。各位同仁可就自己认为教育理论与实践中的重要问题写成评论,每篇2000-3000字为宜,诚请各位同仁在百忙中赐教赐稿。     

教育本质论争的历史回顾及价值

教育本质作为教育学的一个重要的理论问题,长期以来受到了人们的重视。教育本质论争的理论价值在于:本体论上的价值有助于揭示教育规律,认识论上的价值有助于认识教育的本质,价值论上的价值有助于进行价值判断,方法论上的价值有助于改进研究的范式,矛盾论上的价值有助于认识教育的特殊矛盾;实践价值主要表现在:规范价值有助于使教育实践按照教育本质的要求发展,行动价值有助于使教育实践按照教育规律办事,现实价值有助于革除教育的时弊。     

关于省级教育评估专业机构发展规划的思考

针对省级专业教育评估机构产生、发展中存在的问题,指出为促进教育管理体制改革的进一步深化,保证这类机构的可持续发展,必须依据“从实际出发,徐图发展”的原则进行规划,特别是要明确指导思想、发展目标和主要任务及实施策略和保障条件。     

A time of transition: exploring special educational provision in the Republic of Ireland

Special educational provision in the Republic of Ireland has experienced significant changes in the past decade. A combination of interrelated factors including litigation, legislation, parental advocacy and international developments has radically altered the landscape of special education. As a result of these changes the move towards establishing inclusive learning environments appears irreversible though many critical issues remain to be addressed at this time of transition. This study examines how key stakeholders in primary education perceive the challenge of responding appropriately to increased diversity. The results indicate that many barriers remain in the development of inclusive learning environments. The conceptual understanding of special educational needs (SEN) was seriously deficient and this affected the coherence of policy and service delivery. The system lacked strategic leadership, according to participants, and this restricted the capacity to support schools. School capacity to deliver quality education for children with SEN was constrained by the serious shortfall in the range and level of skills required and opportunities for professional development available. There was strong support for the principle of inclusion into mainstream though this was principally perceived in terms of the development of socialisation skills. It was concluded that in this transition phase schools required strategic leadership from policy‐makers to address the many challenges that remain in the establishment of inclusive learning environments.     

The Moroccan educational context: Evolving multilingualism

This article begins an investigation of the educational system of Morocco and its context of language diversity. It examines the Moroccan cultural environment and the ways the multilingualism and education of its people has been and continues to be influenced by geography, colonization periods, religion, and history. The effects of the Educational Charter are presented as the linguistic panorama that delimits biliteracy development in Morocco and serves to highlight issues faced by nations such as the United States and the Netherlands. The development of an educational model that acknowledges and validates linguistic complexity and local goals and circumstances is recommended.     

Educology: The theory of educational practice

The relationship between psychology and education may be expressed in terms of two general models: the traditional hierarchical model, according to which psychology is the “parent” discipline; and a parallel model, in which the relationship between “pure” theory and its application is metaphoric rather than paradigmatic. The hierarchical model, however, does not hold even for such a “tight” area as behavior modification, let alone for educational practice in general.Educational practice, as a professional enterprise, should be guided by a consistent set of constructs taken from the practitioner's universe of discourse. The professionalization of education has been delayed because of attempts, mostly vain, to guide practice by applying constructs derived from other disciplines. Other disciplines, notably psychology, can be useful for education but in a metaphoric sense only. “Educology” is suggested as a convenient term for the set of constructs that should give coherence to educational decision-making.