Successful implementation of information and communication technology integration in Malaysian public schools: An activity systems analysis approach

This multiple-case study drew upon Engeström's (1987) activity theory (AT) to understand the conditions and explain the systematic contradictions that facilitate successful Information and Communication Technology (ICT) integration in schools. The data were collected through in-depth interviews and document analysis from one primary and one secondary public school in Malaysia. In-depth interviews were carried out with nine participants, including principals, ICT coordinators, and teachers. Findings revealed three conditions that led to successful ICT integration: 1) types of ICT tools in the school, 2) rules and regulations in the school that shape the ICT culture, and 3) division of labour within the school community. The findings indicate that school stakeholders must work together to resolve tensions introduced by systemic contradictions in different activity systems, which shape school ICT culture. The study aims to enrich the discourse on ICT integration by assisting school stakeholders to reflect on their own ICT integration strategies.     

计算机技术与中学英语教学整合的思考

随着我国素质教育和新课程改革的不断推进，计算机辅助教学也得到了深入的发展。本文就是在这种背景下，在教学实践的基础上对计算机技术与中学英语教学的整合进行研究。本文从计算机辅助教学的优点、计算机技术在中学英语教学中的具体运用、在英语教学中运用计算机技术对教师的具体要求和在英语教学中运用计算机技术的几点注意事项四个方面，提出了新课程改革下计算机技术与中学英语教学整合的一些思考。     

Teachers' beliefs and integration of information and communications technology in Italian schools

Abstract

The goal of the present study was to examine teaching styles with information and communications technology (ICT); in Italian schools and in particular to explore whether there is a relationship between personal theories of teaching and learning, levels of competence in ICT, and how ICT is integrated into classroom activities. Teachers with high and low levels of competence in ICT were interviewed in order to examine their beliefs, perceptions, and experiences related to teaching with and without the computer. They were asked to reflect both on themselves as teachers and on their pupils. The results of this preliminary study appeared to indicate that both personal theories of teaching and the level of competence with ICT play a major role in how teachers implement ICT and in their perception of their own and their pupils' motivation     

Life circumstances and public policies for young children in immigrant families

Young children, birth through eight, are more diverse than other age groups in the United States. They are more likely to be first- or second-generation immigrants and, as a consequence, more likely to belong to racial-ethnic groups originating outside European nations. Many also live with parents whose heritage language is not English. For these reasons, children in immigrant families merit special attention by policy-makers, program administrators, and others who have responsibility for assuring that the young children of today become competent students, workers, citizens, and parents in the years ahead. The development of effective policies and programs for all children and families depends on having information about their life circumstances, including their family composition, education, work, income, and housing, and for immigrants, also their country of origin, citizenship, and language skills. This article presents new results from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey for 2005, 2006, and 2007, reflecting important life circumstances of young children in immigrant families, compared to those in native-born families. We present new population projections from the U.S. Census Bureau, which highlight the increasingly important role that children of immigrants will play in the economy and civil society during the coming decades. We then discuss implications for the design and implementation of effective policies and programs.     

The role of Internet use and parental mediation on cyberbullying victimization among Spanish children from rural public schools

Cyberbullying victimization research on individual and familial correlates is scarce in Spain. By building upon previous studies, this research examines the role of Internet usage and parental mediation in online victimization. Spanish children from rural public schools (10–12 years; n?=?1068) completed a self-report questionnaire which measured being cyberbullied, Internet use and parental mediation strategies. Logistic regression analyses examined the association among cyberbullying victimization, online activities, intensity and purposes of online communication, and restricting, evaluating and co-using parental mediation. The results show that Internet use, specifically online communication, increases the likelihood of cyberbullying victimization. Conversely, monitoring software installed on the computer, joint creation of rules regarding the time spent online and personal information shared help lessen the likelihood of online victimization. The results are examined in the light of previous research, while implications for practice and future research are considered.     

The relative quality and cost-effectiveness of private and public schools for low-income families: a case study in a developing country

The “mushrooming” of private schools for low-income families has been widely noted in the literature; however, very little is known about the quality of these schools. This research explored the relative quality of private unaided (recognised and unrecognised) and government schools in low-income areas of Hyderabad, India. A preliminary census to locate unrecognised private schools – not on official lists – was conducted. Data were collected on achievement and background variables for 3,910 pupils from a stratified random sample of schools. Using multilevel modelling shows that pupils in private unrecognised and recognised schools, when controlled for age, pupil's IQ, and class average IQ, achieve higher scores in mathematics and English than equivalent pupils in government schools. There is no significant difference between private and government schools in pupil achievement in Urdu. The achievement advantage for private schools did not arise because of greater resources available, at least in terms of per pupil teacher salaries.     

Multisensory programs in the public schools: A brighter future for LD children

A longitudinal study followed the progress of a group of elementary SLD students as they were instructed using the Alphabetic Phonics (AP) curriculum. After a three year period, the AP curriculum produced positive results in reading comprehension for most SLD students, particularly those who began the program in first and second grade. Students in resource and self-contained settings made significant gains in reading comprehension, although the two types of students exhibited different patterns of progress. Students of different ability levels responded differently to the AP curriculum. Average and above average students made significant progress in reading comprehension, but below average students did not advance substantially in relation to their ability level. At the end of three years, classroom teachers had a significantly more positive view of students’ word attack, oral reading, and silent reading comprehension skills.     

The impact of charter schools on the efficiency of traditional public schools: Evidence from Michigan

This paper examines the competitive effects of charter schools on the efficiency of traditional public schools. The analysis utilizes a statewide school-level longitudinal dataset of Michigan schools from 1994 to 2004. Fixed effect and two alternative estimation methods are employed. Overall, the results suggest that charter competition had a negative impact on student achievement and school efficiency in Michigan's traditional public schools. The effect is small or negligible in the short run, but becomes more substantial in the long run.     

The effects of bereavement on children in Hulberside secondary schools

John Holland, of the Humberside Special Needs Support Service, and Corinne Ludford, who teaches at the Bridlington School, North Humberside, cosider the effects of bereavement on children in schools and suggest ways of helping them. Evidence indicates that bereavement can impact heavily on the child resulting in vulnerability. The consequent problems were recognied in the recent Code of Practice on the Identification & Assessment of Special Educational Needs (1994) as potentially affecting the progress of children. Bereavement and associated problems are discussed in the context of the authors' small scale research in secondary schools in Humberside, and ways of helping the bereaved child in order to reduce special educational needs are suggested.     

Diagnostic studies of children with specific reading disability as applied in Irvington,New Jersey,public schools

Annals of Dyslexia - Our work over the past eleven years with children with specific reading disability seen in a hospital mental hygiene clinic, in private practice, and in the public schools has...     

城市公共工程与公共艺术融合探析

通过提出现代城市公共工程形式和内涵上存在的问题,结合公共艺术在城市总体设计和城市公共空间设计2个层面上的表达,指出公共工程的设计与建造,应依据不同的场所地域特色、工程类型限制和民众需求,更加积极主动地融入城市环境与市民生活中,体现出以强调"融合"和"公众需求"为主的公共工程艺术化趋势.     

中职电子技术专业教师应会的教学软件

中职电子技术专业教师不仅要掌握本学科的专业知识,还应该掌握现代教育技术的知识,文章以Office、Flash、EDA等软件为例,分析了计算机辅助教学软件在电子技术专业教学中的作用.     

Tablet computers in Philippine public schools: school-level factors that influence technology management and use

Many developing countries are investing in large-scale initiatives to deploy information and communications technology in schools. However, merely equipping schools with hardware and software does not guarantee that the technology is used effectively to improve learning outcomes. This study aims to identify factors that influence the use of technology in schools in a developing-country context. It investigates this through a multiple-case study of the Australian AID tablet computer programme in the Philippines, in which 1000 tablets were given to nine public schools for student use. Focusing specifically on the impact at a whole-school level, the study revealed factors affecting outcomes that were specific to a developing-country context, as well as confirming the relevance of more general factors identified in the literature. The study also brings to light tablet-specific benefits and issues in this context. These results have implications for the effective school-level implementation of technology programmes in developing countries. Recommendations that proceed from these are presented for policy-makers and school administrators looking to use these devices in schools.     

Mission matters: The cost of small high schools revisited

With the financial support of several large foundations and the federal government, creating small schools has become a prominent high school reform strategy in many large American cities. While some research supports this strategy, little research assesses the relative costs of these smaller schools. We use data on over 200 New York City high schools, from 1996 through 2003, to estimate school cost functions relating per pupil expenditures to school size, controlling for school output and quality, student characteristics, and school organization.We find that the structure of costs differs across schools depending upon mission—comprehensive or themed. At their current levels of outputs, themed schools minimize per pupil costs at smaller enrollments than comprehensive schools, but these optimally sized themed schools also cost more per pupil than optimally sized comprehensive schools. We also find that both themed and comprehensive high schools at actual sizes are smaller than their optimal sizes.