HOMES AND SCHOOLS: SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF EDUCABILITY

An investigation was carried out to ascertain how 700 children aged seven to 15 (half boys and half girls), acquired the ability to define certain moral concepts, how they decided on whether an action was right or wrong, and what influenced the acquisitional process. The results showed older age‐groups gaining significantly higher mean scores in defining concepts, with a sex difference favouring girls, but no significant social class differences. However, even older age‐groups encountered difficulties with some concepts, e.g. ‘doing right’ and ‘being good’. In deciding whether an action was right or wrong, more older children claimed they decided for themselves, and a significantly higher number of older girls stated that they did so. The sample claimed that their mothers had been a major influence in acquiring moral concepts, much more so than peer‐groups. The mass media was not thought by the sample to be accepted uncritically, and the church was believed to help them most. Evidence from this research would suggest that the teacher's contribution, to the acquisition of moral concepts during the early school years, seems highly relevant.     

SOCIAL SCIENCE AND TEACHING PERFORMANCE

The Introduction of sociology and social work as main subjects in teacher education has raised a controversy as to whether they are as sound a preparation for teaching as the traditional classroom‐based main subjects.

A survey of teaching practice results at Edge Hill College of Education in the years 1966‐70 displays that sociology students perform as well as other students whilst social work students gain significantly more high grades. Since entry qualifications, age, sex, intelligence and personality factors do not differentiate these students an explanation is suggested in terms of the course. This may affect recruitment, the student's classroom performance and his ability “to utilize the social situations of teaching practice.     

审美与社会幸福

真、善、美是人类社会的三大价值，都关系着人类社会的幸福。其中，真的问题直接与科技进步相联系，善的问题直接与社会道德风尚相联系，审美对于这两都有重要的推动和成就作用。一个幸福的社会，不仅是一个法制的社会、道德的社会，也应是一个审美的社会。     

SOCIAL CLASS AND EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT

The effect of higher education upon student attitudes is one of increasing liberality and decreasing authoritarianism. In this study of 345 women students in a college of education similar trends were recorded concerning teacher‐role expectations during a three‐year period of anticipatory professional socialization. The early part of the course is seen as particularly significant in changing attitudes. The nature of the change is complex, for whilst on home‐school relationships, curriculum, organization and motivation students become more ‘open’ in their teacher‐role expectations, a hardening of attitudes was seen towards corporal punishment and teachers’ leisure time involvement with their school children. Some changes may be attributed to the orientation of the college towards certain professional beliefs and practices. The process of professional socialization is marked by increasing differentiation among students at different stages of their course on questions relating to teachers’ instrumental (task‐centred) roles. Further, this college's stress upon primary education may be responsible for only slight differences developing between the role‐concepts of groups training for different levels of school.     

SOCIAL LEARNING AND ITS MEASUREMENT

This paper is an attempt to put the vast quantity of research on the characteristics of ‘lower class’ children into the framework of a general sociological theory. It is necessarily critical of the sociological naivity of the assumptions which have underlain much of this research and argues that the clusters of characteristics seen as being the property of certain groups of children can only be understood as arising out of their relative positions within the social structure and their historical and cultural experience. It is suggested that the ‘lower classes’ are characterized by subordination to which education is seen as contributing. Sociological, historical and anthropological evidence is utilized to support the argument, which concludes with a practical suggestion for reform relating to the structure of authority and the nature of control within the schools.     

SOCIAL SCIENCE INFORMATION FINDING FOR SOCIAL POLICY ON AGING AND RELATED COURSES

This article examines the role that content on social science information finding plays in social policy on aging and related courses. First, there is considerable value for students having first‐hand knowledge of and involvement in social science information searching. Second, new developments in information services such as citation indexing and subject area abstracts and indexes in aging and other fields offer new assistance for students. Finally, incorporation of information services content through practical and comprehensive classroom approaches is discussed. Through incorporating information services content in aging policy and related courses students are better equipped to meet the demands of an information age.     

JUSTIFICATIONIST SOCIAL EPISTEMOLOGY AND CRITICAL THINKING

In this essay Juho Ritola develops a justificationist approach to social epistemology, which holds that normatively satisfactory social processes pertaining to the acquisition, storage, dissemination, and use of knowledge must be evidence‐based processes that include appropriate reflective attitudes by the relevant agents and, consequently, the relevant institutions. This implies that the teaching of critical thinking and reasoning in general should strive to bring about such attitudes in students. Ritola begins by sketching a justificationist approach and defending it on a general level against the criticism posed by Alvin Goldman. He then defends it on the level of individual reasoners against the argument set out by Michael Bishop and J.D. Trout. Based on empirical evidence, Bishop and Trout argue that the kind of reflection advocated by a justificationist approach to reasoning leads to worse outcomes than the use of various statistical prediction rules. Ritola, in contrast, maintains that one cannot and should not replace critical reflection on evidence by a mechanical application of rules. Instead, he asserts, statistical prediction rules and empirical evidence regarding our reasoning performance are part of the total evidence that we should reflect on in our critical reasoning.     

NAVIGATING SOCIAL NETWORKING AND SOCIAL MEDIA IN SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY: ETHICAL AND PROFESSIONAL CONSIDERATIONS IN TRAINING PROGRAMS

Social networking and social media have undoubtedly proliferated within the past decade, allowing widespread communication and dissemination of user‐generated content and information. Some psychology graduate programs, including school psychology, have started to embrace social networking and media for instructional and training purposes; however, there have not been any consistent ethical guidelines or standards among training programs relating to how trainers, graduate students, and practitioners should use social networking and social media professionally. This article draws on the current yet limited research on social networking and social media, and addresses the ethical challenges when managing both professional and personal online identities in school psychology. Two relevant case scenarios are discussed, along with suggested guidelines for developing technological policies for school psychologists. Future directions in research and practical implications for trainers, graduate students, and practitioners are explored.     

SOCIAL CAPITAL, SOCIAL INCLUSION AND CHANGING SCHOOL CONTEXTS: A SCOTTISH PERSPECTIVE

ABSTRACT:  This paper synthesises a collaborative review of social capital theory, with particular regard for its relevance to the changing educational landscape within Scotland. The review considers the common and distinctive elements of social capital, developed by the founding fathers – Putnam, Bourdieu and Coleman – and explores how these might help to understand the changing contexts and pursue opportunities for growth.