Can Pre-entry Characteristics Account for the Ethnic Attainment Gap? An Analysis of a Flemish University

Research in Higher Education - Discussions about social justice imply discussions about higher education. After all, a whole set of literature has illustrated how ethnic minority students face all...     

An abbreviated form of the WISC-R: Is it valid?

The completed WISC-Rs of 76 white urban children (6–0 to 15–9) were rescored utilizing the Satz and Mogel criteria for an abbreviated intelligence measure. Extremely high correlations for IQs (.96 – .98) and subtests (.66 – .95) were found. However, when mean differences between complete WISC-R and the shortened form were examined, significant differences between administrations were found. Furthermore, one-third of the subjects showed changes in intelligence classification levels when the abbreviated form was used. Thus, two of the three criteria previously suggested for a valid abbreviated intelligence test of: (a) a significantly high correlation between administration forms; (b) nonsignificant t-tests between the abbreviated and standard form mean IQ; and (c) low percentage of IQ classification change with the administration of the short form, were not met. It was concluded, however, that the abbreviated WISC-R may be appropriate when intelligence is a question relative to candidacy for therapy or as a noncritical, general indication of intelligence when IQ classification is not important and/or assessment time is limited.     

Vocational education: Can it serve the gifted?

Vocational education offers additional opportunities and resources for gifted students.     

Education for Critical Thinking: Can it be non‐indoctrinative?

An ideal of education is to ensure that our children develop into autonomous critical thinkers. The ‘indoctrination objection’, however, calls into question whether education, aimed at cultivating autonomous critical thinkers, is possible. The core of the concern is that since the young child lacks even modest capacities for assessing reasons, the constituent components of critical thinking have to be indoctrinated if there is to be any hope of the child's attaining the ideal. Our primary objective is to defuse this objection. We argue, first, that even if the indoctrination objection can be dealt with at the level of beliefs by an account that distinguishes between beliefs instilled in the child at the non‐rational stage that are indoctrinative and those that are non‐indoctrinative, there can be non‐autonomous ‘proto critical thinkers’ who lack autonomy with respect to the requisite motivational components. We then ask what must be added to the account to ensure that proto critical thinkers develop into autonomous ones. We suggest that motivational elements, even if instilled at a stage at which the child has insufficiently developed cognitive capacities, can be ‘truly the child's own’ only relationally: the autonomous motivational elements are ones with respect to which the future child is self‐governing.     

An Analysis of Prospects for Changing Faculty Roles and Rewards: Can Scholarship Be Reconsidered?

Ernest Boyer's book, Scholarship Reconsidered (1990) is examined through use of Sarason's (1982) construct of regularities, and Lewin's (1976) force field analysis model for understanding behavior. It is concluded that prospects for implementing Boyer's proposals for renewal of the American university through restructuring faculty roles and rewards will depend less on simply urging the case for reform, and more on devising strategies that respond to forces shaping the present regularities of academic life. In particular, it is asserted that successful change in the definition of scholarship will be possible only through reduction of the resistance produced by legitimate concerns about altering the present system.     

An Analysis of Individualism in the Declaration of Independence

The awareness of individualism can be traced back to the period of American Revolution when the Declaration of Independence was produced.It expressed basic beliefs concerning freedom,equality,democracy,privacy and the relationship between people and government,which were exactly what the philosophy of individualism mostly dealt with at that time.This paper is to exploit the essence of individualism by analyzing the Declaration .The analysis enables us to reconsider its significance to the issue of America human rights and foreign policies.     

An Analysis of the Causes of Catherine’s Tragedy

Tragedy is an everlasting theme of Hai Mingwei’s literary works,every character can not save themselves from defeat and death.The article will probe the reasons of Catherine’s tragic fate to make people rethink life and reveal the aesthetic significance of tragedy.     

Can creativity be measured? An attempt to clarify the notion of creativity and general directions for future research

The goal of this investigation is to demonstrate that much of the confusion regarding the measurement of creativity is caused by the insufficient clarity of its definition and to provide suggestions for an improved assessment and new possible tools of investigation (e.g. interviews).It is shown that three dimensions of creativity (novelty, appropriateness and impact) constitute a framework within which creativity can be defined and measured.Further clarity to the definition of creativity is added by distinguishing between person's and product's creativity and providing definitions for each.Based on this new definition, it is argued that Divergent Thinking, Remote Associates or some personality scales can be considered neither the only components of the creative process/cognition/potential nor “creativity tests”. The use of the terms “creativity test” and “measure of creative process” in the literature are criticized and it is indicated when they should be used.It is also shown that claims to have found a general factor of creativity are based on methodological and conceptual errors.Finally it is concluded that a person's creativity can only be assessed indirectly (for example with self report questionnaires or official external recognition) but it cannot be measured directly.     

Disruption of the representativeness heuristic: Can we be perturbed into using correct probabilistic reasoning?

Some misconceptions in learning and understanding statistical or probabilistic concepts stem from the use of what is called the representativeness heuristic for solving such problems. Incorrect solutions to problems is the result. This study provided graduate students enrolled in beginning inferential statistics with a series of experiences which seemed to disrupt such faulty logic by having them experience logical inconsistencies. Such direct experimental involvement with applied probability problems was recommended as a means to enhance the use of more appropriate probabilistic reasoning in subsequent statistical or probability problems.     

Twitter for teaching: Can social media be used to enhance the process of learning?

Can social media be used to enhance the process of learning by students in higher education? Social media have become widely adopted by students in their personal lives. However, the application of social media to teaching and learning remains to be fully explored. In this study, the use of the social media tool Twitter for teaching was considered. Undergraduate students in Business and Management (n = 252) were encouraged to use Twitter for communicating with their tutor and each other during a 12‐week course. Their involvement was evaluated using a survey considering amount of Twitter usage and students' attitudes and experiences. The data were analysed using factor analyses, which revealed a single usage construct and three attitudinal factors. Three findings emerged. Firstly, a positive correlation was found between amount of Twitter usage and student engagement in university‐associated activities including organising their social lives and sharing information. Secondly, course‐related tweeting was not related to interpersonal relationships between students and their tutor. Thirdly, Twitter usage did not impact class attendance. The results are salient for educational practitioners wishing to introduce social media into their teaching.     

Can learning of basketball be enhanced through a web-based multimedia course? An experimental study

This study’s aim is the creation of a web-based multimedia course for Physical Education (PE) students’ familiarization with the teaching of basketball, and the evaluation of its use as a complementary tool to conventional instruction, in terms of learning effectiveness and student acceptance. The course includes multimedia learning material as well as interactive learning activities and quizzes on the cognitive components of basic basketball skills and on other basketball-related topics (history of the sport, referee’s signals, training aids, basketball court). The study involved 88 undergraduate students during one semester. They were randomly assigned to two groups: a group that used the web-based multimedia course and also attended a conventional face-to-face course on the teaching of basketball (N?=?45), and another group that only attended the conventional face-to-face course (N?=?43). A pretest/posttest research design was followed. For both groups basketball knowledge was measured at the beginning and at the end of the semester through written questionnaires. The responses of the students of the first group towards the web-based course were also assessed, at the end of the semester, through a written feedback questionnaire. Within both groups, significant increases in students’ basketball knowledge were found. However, the web-based multimedia course in combination with conventional face-to-face instruction was significantly more effective than conventional face-to-face instruction alone in increasing students’ cognitive learning regarding the sport of basketball, at the same time being well-accepted by the students. These findings support the effectiveness of blended learning for PE at higher education level as well as the acceptance of this mode of learning by PE students.     

An Analysis of the Process of School‐Based Evaluation: A Critique of the IMTEC Programme

Five case-studies of mathematics departments in secondary schools in England are analysed. Three areas are studied closely: the horizontal integration of the mathematics curriculum, curriculum provision for the mathematically least able, and school-based, in-service training.     

An Analysis of the Dual Sides of Shylock’s Character

The Merchant of Venice is one of the most outstanding comedies of Shakespeare. The story happened in Venice in 16th century. Shylock is a typical character in this play. Shylock was looked down upon and humiliated by Christians as a Jew. Shylock, who found everyone in that society was against him, felt him isolated by Christians in Venice. But it is true that as a usurer, shylock was greedy and miserly, he lost kindness and reason; Shylock was oppressed and humiliated as a Jew. This paper focuses on the dual sides of Shylock’s character. On one hand he is miserly, unfeeling, vicious and sly; on the other hand, he is oppressed and humiliated.     

Can the Emotion Recognition Ability of Deaf Children be Enhanced? A Pilot Study

We evaluated the effectiveness of an 11-lesson psychoeducational program designed to enhance the ability of deaf children to understand the emotional experience of themselves and other people. The "Funny Faces Program" was provided to 14 children, aged 9 to 13, with moderate to profound hearing impairments. All children were enrolled in an "oral" education program at a school for the deaf. Alternate forms of the Emotion Recognition Scales (Dyck, Ferguson, & Shochet, 2001) were administered at pretest and posttest. Results indicate significant increases in emotion vocabulary and emotion comprehension but not in the speed or accuracy of emotion recognition (ER), from pretest to posttest. At posttest, children whose hearing loss was moderate to severe did not differ from hearing children in ER abilities but children with profound hearing loss continued to show substantial ability deficits.     

Professional Memory in Context: Can it Help Counter the ‘Counter-revolution’?

This article explores the concept of ‘Professional Memory’ in English teaching. It argues that English teacher memories, analysed through a collective lens and in particular conjunctures, can provide powerful evidence of practitioner-led reform and development. Such evidence can be used to challenge the existing theoretical framework of English teaching and the dominant discourses surrounding the subject.     

Real school improvement: is it in the eye of the beholder?

The outcomes of a school improvement programme were measured in 26 primary schools over one year. Authorised pupil and staff absences and staff turnover decreased, and unauthorised pupil absences significantly increased (p < 0.05). Fixed-term exclusions significantly decreased (p < 0.001). The self-esteem of 316 pupils aged between 4 and 11 before and after programme implementation showed a significant increase (p < 0.001). Staff self-esteem also increased significantly (p < 0.05) and provided a significant indicator of programme sustainability (p < 0.05). Thematic analysis of data from staff interviews demonstrated that the effectiveness of school improvement programmes rested on staff participation in terms of capacity, perceptions of change and stability of the school before programme implementation. These elements were incorporated into a model of school improvement. Goal Attainment Scores were significantly correlated with fidelity of programme participation (p < 0.05). Feedback indicated that there was more to school improvement programmes than simply buying one “off the shelf.”     

Clinical judgment vs. the computer: Can the school psychologist be replaced by a machine?

Can the school psychologist be replaced by a computer? The role of the computer in administering, scoring, and interpreting psychoeducational tests is examined. Both the intelligent computer model and the computer-as-assistant model are analyzed to determine what threat they may pose to the job security of school psychologists.