A study of small group dynamics and productivity in the BSCS laboratory block program

The amount of work accomplished in the laboratory is often dependent upon the efficiency of group work. Here is an attempt to determine factors which may inhibit productivity of small group efforts.     

Proportional reasoning and the linguistic abilities required for hypothetico-deductive reasoning

The hypothesis is advanced that a necessary, though not sufficient, condition for the acquisition of proportional reasoning during adolescence is the prior internalization of key linguistic elements of argumentation, essentially those used in hypothetico-deductive reasoning. This hypothesized internalization, which does not occur in all individuals, results in some who have acquired the ability to reflect upon the correctness of self-generated answers in a hypothetico-deductive manner, and others who have not. As an initial test of the hypothesis, 46 subjects (Ss) (mean age = 21.03 years) were classified into additive, transitional, or proportional reasoning categories based upon responses to a proportions task. Group differences were found in which proportional Ss performed better than transitional Ss who in turn performed better than additive Ss on a number of items testing Ss' abilities to identify, generate, and use the linguistic elements of argumentation. Further it was found that some Ss who were successful on the linguistic items failed the proportions task, but no Ss who were successful on the proportions task failed the linguistic items. This result supports the hypothesis that the internalization of linguistic elements of argumentation is a prerequisite for proportional reasoning and by inference other advanced reasoning schemata as well. Implications for science instruction are drawn.     

也谈考试作弊现象

考试作弊现象为各种考试之大忌,是各级各类学校较为突出的学风问题。它的蔓延,会极大地伤害大多数学生的学习积极性,严重地财坏校风,本就考试作弊现象的常见方式、种类、产生原因、危害性及消除的办法等方面进行分析,力求使读对考试作弊现象有较为全面的了解,以期共同关心这一社会现象,为逐步杜绝考试作弊现象,还考试之真面目尽一分力。     

一个新的基于EFALC的推理算法

针对目前的扩展模糊描述逻辑缺乏TBox约束下的推理算法,提出TBox约束下扩展模糊描述逻辑EFALC截概念可满足性问题及其推理算法.该算法的设计参考用于经典描述逻辑的tab-leau算法;详细描述了EFALC的转化规则和推理算法的过程,并使用递归函数调用、分支裁减和引入中间结果集合这3种技术对算法进行优化.证明了该优化推理算法的最坏时间复杂性为指数,且具有完备性和正确性,同时证明了TBox约束下EFALC截概念可满足性问题的复杂性是指数时间完全的.     

Conditional reasoning with false premises facilitates the transition between familiar and abstract reasoning

Abstract reasoning is critical for science and mathematics, but is very difficult. In 3 studies, the hypothesis that alternatives generation required for conditional reasoning with false premises facilitates abstract reasoning is examined. Study 1 (n = 372) found that reasoning with false premises improved abstract reasoning in 12- to 15-year-olds. Study 2 (n = 366) found a positive effect of simply generating alternatives, but only in 19-year-olds. Study 3 (n = 92) found that 9- to 11-year-olds were able to respond logically with false premises, whereas no such ability was observed in 6- to 7-year-olds. Reasoning with false premises was found to improve reasoning with semiabstract premises in the older children. These results support the idea that alternatives generation with false premises facilitates abstract reasoning.     

审美直觉与合情推理

论述了审美直觉与合情推理及其之间的关系，重点阐述了审美直觉强化合情推理的可靠性、审美直觉调控合理推理的方向性。     

考试的功能及其对提高教学质量的影响

高等学校的考试具有引导功能,是提高教学质量的指挥棒;具有激励功能,是提高教学质量的源动力;具有检测功能,是提高教学质量的试金石;具有评价功能,是提高教学质量的催化剂;具有诊断功能,是提高教学质量的听诊器.     

考试的功能及其对提高教学质量的影响

高等学校的考试具有引导功能,是提高教学质量的“指挥棒”;具有激励功能,是提高教学质量的“源动力”;具有检洲功能,是提高教学质量的“试金石”;具有评价功能,是提高教学质量的“催化剂”;具有诊断功能,是提高教学质量的“听诊器”。     

Children's conditional reasoning part III: A design for research on children's learning of conditional reasoning and research findings

Educational Studies in Mathematics -     

The development of reasoning on the balance beam

The study described in this article examined the factors in the development of reasoning on the balance beam. The results of this and other investigations by the author led to the development of a model of problem solving and of the transition between levels of performance, that is, from novice to expert behaviors in a specific problem domain. The sample for this study consisted of 34 nonscience majors enrolled in Physical Science I at the University of Southern Mississippi. The results of this study showed (a) significant correlations between the predictor variables of numerical inductive reasoning ability and ratio span and the dependent measure of amount of practice until mastery of balance beam problems, (b) that there existed significant differences on the predictors between subjects who used the ratio scheme versus those who used the product-moment rule to do balance beam problems, (c) that the sequence of behaviors until mastery of the balance beam was not invariant, and (d) that there existed significant negative correlations between individuals' tendencies to avoid unsuccessful algorithms and the frequency of incidences of monitoring the learning process on one side and the amount of practice and the construct of short-term storage space on the other side. The results of this and other studies by the author are used to develop a model of problem solving and of the development of problem-solving behaviors. This model also includes recent findings in short-term memory and problem-solving research. The implications of this model for instruction are discussed.     

基于改进云推理模型的年径流预测

逐年年径流量之间存在相关关系,且这种相关关系具有不确定性,然而云推理模型能有效将不确定关系定量表示。根据鸭绿江流域荒沟水文站1964~2001年实测年径流系列,利用改进的云推理模型模拟相邻年份年径流关系并进行径流预测,以预测值与实际值的相对误差评价预测效果。计算结果显示,当预见期为3a时,最大相对误差为4.21%,相对误差<20%的达到100%;预见期为5a时,最大相对误差29.49%,相对误差<20%的达到80%,表明云推理模型进行年径流预测具有较好的效果。     

儿童比例推理研究的最新进展

儿童比例概念和比例推理能力的形成和发展是自皮亚杰以来的心理学研究焦点之一,也是学科教学中的一个难点。章简要介绍了近年来该领域的一些研究进展。     

Student gain in reasoning ability as a function of teacher reasoning level and teaching style preference

This study examines the effect of teacher reasoning level (i.e., concrete versus formal) and teaching style preference (i.e., inquiry vs. expository) on improvement in student reasoning ability. A random sample of fourth and seventh grade teachers and their students were selected to participate over one school year. Students completed a reasoning test in the early fall and late spring. Teachers completed two instruments in the Spring, a reasoning test and a teaching style preference questionnaire. Students of concrete operational teachers showed greater gains in reasoning ability than students of formal operational teachers while students of inquiry teachers showed slightly greater gains than students of expository teachers. Possible explanations are discussed as are suggestions for future research.     

The effects of instructional context and reasoning complexity on mathematics problem-solving

The focus of this study was on the effects of relevance in instructional context and reasoning complexity on mathematics problem-solving achievement, transfer, and attitude. Forty-six fifth graders participated in the five-day study. Students received either contextualized or decontextualized instruction involving either simple or complex reasoning. Two types of achievement questions were used, context-rich and context-poor, which required either single or multiple computational steps to solve. An interaction was found between complexity of treatment and complexity of questions. Students who studied simple problems in decontextualized contexts performed best on one-step questions, while students who studied complex problems in contextualized contexts performed best on multi-step questions (p = .003). A complexity effect was also found for student attitudes toward perceived lesson difficulty (p = .0001) as well as for perceived relevance of mathematics (p = .015). Students who studied simple problems perceived lesson difficulty and mathematics relevance more favorably than those who studied complex problems. These findings suggest that rich mathematical instructional contexts best support mathematics problem-solving, but simple, decontextualized instruction yields the most favorable attitudes.     

Danish majority children's reasoning about exclusion based on gender and ethnicity

This study investigated 282 eight- to twelve-year-old Danish majority children's judgments and justifications of exclusion based on gender and ethnicity (i.e., Danish majority children and ethnic-minority children of a Muslim background). Children's judgments and reasoning varied with the perpetrator of the exclusion and the social identity of the target. Children assessed exclusion based on ethnicity as less acceptable than exclusion based on gender and used more moral reasoning for the former than the latter. Children judged it less acceptable for a teacher than a child to exclude a child protagonist. Children were sensitive to status, judging it less acceptable to exclude a less powerful group member. The findings are discussed in relation to intergroup relations in Denmark.