Improving the quality of online discussion: the effects of strategies designed based on cognitive load theory principles

This article focuses on heavy cognitive load as the reason for the lack of quality associated with conventional online discussion. Using the principles of cognitive load theory, four online discussion strategies were designed specifically aiming at reducing the discussants’ cognitive load and thus enhancing the quality of their online discussion. The results indicate that, compared to a conventional discussion strategy, the discussion quality was significantly enhanced for participants using example-posting strategy and limited-number-of-posting strategy. Cognitive load was significantly reduced for participants using filtered-posting and combination strategies. Instructional efficiency of all proposed strategies was found to be significantly better than conventional discussion strategy. The results are discussed and implications of the findings on instructional design application and future research are also presented.     

Instructional design best practices for Second Life: a case study from a college-level English course

Interest in the instructional application of virtual worlds, such as Second Life (SL), has grown substantially. However, little information is available about effective instructional activities using virtual worlds. This case study illustrates lessons learned from a pilot integrating SL into a two-semester English course at a large southwestern US university. A building activity was implemented in the first semester, and based on qualitative and quantitative formative evaluation results and additional planning, the instructional activity for the second semester was modified. These changes substantially enhanced students' learning experiences. Eight general and five discussion/debate-specific best practices discussed for implementing SL in college-level courses include capitalising on social interactions and establishing a clear connection of activities with learning objectives. This study demonstrates the importance of combining careful instructional design with ongoing assessment when implementing emerging technologies. It also indicates that course learning goals and students' needs should be considered first and foremost when adopting new technologies for instruction.     

Teachers’ perceptions of the benefits and challenges of three-dimensional virtual worlds for social skills practice

This case study describes how a systematic 7-Step Virtual Worlds Teacher Training Workshop guided the enculturation of 18 special education teachers into three-dimensional virtual worlds. The main purpose was to enable these teachers to make informed decisions about the usability of virtual worlds for students with social skills challenges, such as students with autism. A 10-point rating scale was used to measure the perceived usability of virtual worlds for social skills practice. Although the mean usability was higher after the intervention, a Wilcoxon signed-rank test did not reveal a statistically significant difference between the mean ratings (p = .14). A majority of the participants (76%) tended to be supportive of the idea of using virtual worlds in special education. Three key themes emerged from the qualitative instruments, namely, Virtual World Pedagogy, Virtual World Benefits, and Virtual World Challenges, encompassing 18 codes overall. This article focuses on the benefits and challenges of virtual worlds for social skills practice as perceived by special education teachers. Social skills practice and repeated practice opportunities in a stress-reduced environment emerged as the key benefits, although these affordances were affected by various challenges. The study concludes with suggestions for future research for special education purposes.     

智能时代教育研究的认识论变革与方法论转变

文章对教育领域的"三个世界"及其智能虚拟映射进行了认识切割,在此基础上提出了三个新的智能虚拟世界:代表数字化教育事实和存在的世界一’、代表人工智能教育认识的世界二’、代表人工智能教育思想和知识库的世界三’。文章指出,这三个新的智能虚拟世界是教育领域的"三个世界"在人工智能环境下的智能虚拟映射,扩展了传统教育研究的本体论假设,进而导致认识论的全方位变革。此外,文章还从认识主体、研究对象、研究范式、推理思维、知识表征等五个方面的变化,阐明了教育研究的认识论变革所引发的方法论转变。文章的研究有助于理解智能时代教育的过程与本质,并为教育人工智能系统的设计、开发与应用提供理论依据。     

“Are you saying I'm to blame?” Exploring the Influence of a Principal on Elementary Science Delivery

This research exercise, employing an action research model for curriculum improvement, explored the factors influencing science program delivery at an elementary school in New Zealand. Using a validated science program delivery evaluation tool, the Science Curriculum Implementation Questionnaire (SCIQ), as a foundation for data collection, staff discussion and collaborative decision-making, a school embarked on a self-review process and, first of all, identified factors influencing science program delivery and, secondly, identified strategies for improvement of science delivery. After a school-wide cycle of focused science delivery improvement, the evaluation was repeated and further emerging trends and strategies for improvement were collaboratively discussed and implemented. Implications of this self-review process on science program delivery improvement are discussed, especially within the context of the role of the principal in influencing curriculum delivery.     

简说参与式课堂教学设计及其方案规范

参与式教学设计分析吸纳了前二代教学设计的教学思想和课堂模式的合理成果,以建构主义学习理论和多元智能学说为主要基础。在实践中探索正在逐渐形成的第三代课堂教学设计。本文概要介绍了这种教学设计的发展路径及其基本理念和设计策略,并理性地阐述了参与式课堂教学设计方案的写作规范。     

The relationship between formative assessment and reading achievement: A multilevel analysis of students in 19 countries/regions

Despite the general consensus on the positive impact of formative assessment on student learning, researchers have not shown the underlying mechanisms between specific formative assessment strategies and academic performance on an international sample. This study examines the link between student and teacher reports of teachers’ formative assessment strategies (i.e. clarifying goals and monitoring progress, providing feedback, and instructional adjustments) and students’ reading achievement, based on data from 151,969 fifteen-year-olds in 5,225 schools in 19 countries/regions in PISA 2018 via multilevel analysis of plausible values. The results show that clarifying goals and monitoring progress, and instruction adjustments are positively linked to reading achievement, but providing feedback alone has no significant impact. These findings highlight the complexity of formative assessment as a multifaceted concept and the different impacts of formative assessment strategies on student learning. Implications for researchers and practitioners are discussed.     

Children's play: the differential effects of intrafamilial physical and sexual abuse

This study investigated the play of sexually abused, physically abused, physically and sexually abused, and nonabused children between the ages of 3.5 years and 10 years. Using a modified form of the Lowenfeld World Technique, we observed each child in four individual sessions in which the child was asked to create a world picture in the sandtray. Their worlds were drawn up, photographed, and analyzed according to three differing criteria. The results indicated both structural and thematic differences across the four groups. The controls made representational and phantasy worlds whose themes were domestic and phantasy wish fulfillment. The sexually abused children's worlds were representational and mixed, and themes focused on sexuality and the need for protection and nurturance. The physically abused created representational and phantasy worlds in which were displayed considerable aggression and disorganization; and their themes were concerned with conflict, chaos, and phantasy wish fulfillment. The physically and sexually abused were the most diverse; and although their worlds were representational and phantasy ones displaying considerable aggression, thematic content was conflictual in a quarter of cases but also ranged over all categories except domestic.     

从世界田径锦标赛看中国男子100 m的发展对策

当前中国男子100m项目竞赛水平和世界前列水平存在较大差距．研究分析了中国男子100m比赛最好成绩和世界田径锦标赛成绩的差异，以期寻求缩小差距迎头赶上的对策．     

School principals as mediating agents in education reforms

School principals may be seen as mediating agents, standing at the school doorstep, between the extra-school and intra-school worlds. The principals’ mediating role becomes more crucial during a time of education reform, which involves external demands on the one hand, and teachers’ resistance to these demands on the other. This study explores how principals mediate between the demands of a national reform policy and teachers’ attitudes and needs. In this qualitative study, 59 school principals were interviewed. Findings from the data analysis indicated that principals used two complementary mediation strategies: (1) mobilising the teachers towards the reform and (2) mobilising the reform towards the teachers. The mediating strategies used by principals are discussed, suggesting practical implications and further research avenues.     

中国古代教学心理思想分析

中国古代有着丰富的教学心理思想,从现代教学心理学角度对其进行分析和总结,对于继承和发扬我国古代优秀教学思想、促进教学心理研究的本土化,推进现代教学改革具有重要意义。本文从学习价值、学习动力、学习策略、教师品质、学生观、教学策略六个方面分析了我国古代的教学心理思想,探讨了古代教学心理思想对现代教学和研究的启示。     

Methods that matter in addressing cultural diversity with teacher candidates

Drawing on a combination of prior experience, theoretical stance, and intuition, along with pedagogical practices identified to be effective in addressing diversity with teacher candidates, a model for teaching multicultural education to teacher candidates was designed. This study examined how particular elements of this model were effective in developing teacher candidate’s cultural competence. The results indicate that teacher candidates gained substantial knowledge about and experiences with issues of diversity by the end of the course. Participants pointed to the multiple methods employed in the class; in particular the interactive strategies, group work, diverse cultural experiences, and opportunities to critically reflect on these experiences as accounting for their gains. Their sense of ownership and understanding has given them the ability to use these strategies in their own future work. Implications for research and teacher education are discussed.     

Accuracy of scale conceptions in science: Mental maneuverings across many orders of spatial magnitude

The use of unifying themes that span the various branches of science is recommended to enhance curricular coherence in science instruction. Conceptions of spatial scale are one such unifying theme. This research explored the accuracy of spatial scale conceptions of science phenomena across a spectrum of 215 participants: fifth grade, seventh grade, ninth grade, twelfth grade, and doctoral students in science. Conceptions spanning sizes from one nanometer to one billion meters were investigated through use of written assessments and individual interviews. Results showed that accuracy of conceptions at small scale were not symmetrical with respect to conceptions at large scale. Large scale accuracy tended to decline in a smooth, uniform fashion as the scale increased, whereas small scale accuracy displayed a discontinuity at the microscopic level. To conceptually interact with scales far removed from human scale, experts used strategies of mentally jumping to a new scale‐world. Experts tended not to transition smoothly between the differently scaled worlds but rather to make a discontinuous leap, maintaining abstract linkages between the worlds via mathematics. Implications of these findings for curriculum development and classroom instruction are discussed. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 43: 1061–1085, 2006     

Learning within the worlds of reifications, selves, and phenomena: expanding on the thinking of Vygotsky and Popper

A framework, termed the RSP, is proposed. It is mainly for analyzing and explaining how learning occurs. This framework is grounded in the social-cultural perspective, in particular, in the thinking of both Vygotsky and Popper. Although the thinking of Popper is generally not referred to as having a social-cultural orientation, mostly due to misunderstanding, he and Vygotsky are defensibly complementary. In a nutshell, Vygotsky’s social-cultural (inter-psychological) plane is enriched by Popper’s distinction between physical and conceptual-abstract worlds, while Popper’s mental world is enhanced by Vygotskian and post-Vygotskian work emphasizing personality, that is, the whole self. Integrating and expanding on both Vygotsky and Popper, the RSP framework further unpacks how learning occurs as dialectical interactions between the Worlds of reifications (R), selves (S), and phenomena (P). The World of Reifications (R) extends Popper’s World 3 by emphasizing the developmental nature of conjectures to theories. The World of Selves (S) now extends Popper’s World 2 from cognitive dimensions to the whole individual. And the World of Phenomena (P) extends Popper’s World 1 to include the relationships between objects forming phenomena, including the physical, social, and spiritual dimensions. The interactions among the three Worlds result in five learning outcomes: cognition, metacognition, action, reflective action, and epistemic cognition. It is contended that these five outcomes are necessary criteria for holistic learning. The framework is then applied to analyzing various issues such as resolving lethal mutations, identity, and learning as becoming.     

Durkheim Said What?: Creating Talking Textbooks With Augmented Reality and Project-Based Activities

Abstract

This study explored utilizing augmented reality (AR) and project-based learning (PBL) strategies to increase students’ understandings of sociological paradigms and the theorists’ motivations behind their development. Using a posttest-only quasi-experimental control group design with experimental intervention, three groups of students’ scores were compared on a post-unit assessment. The PBL-only group, the PBL-AR group, and a control group were also compared over time on the post-unit assessment, a quiz, and the midterm. PBL-AR students’ scores were higher on all three assessments. The project’s design, implementation, and findings are discussed, along with implications for future curricular redesign using novel tools and technologies.     

教育技术领域的内涵、外延及其探究方法——访教育技术学知名专家亚历山大·罗米斯佐夫斯基博士

[编者按] 亚历山大·罗米斯佐夫斯基博士(Alexander Romiszowski)是美国雪城大学教学设计、开发和评估系的教授,国际知名的教育技术学家,远程教育理论家和思想家,他的著作在很大程度上影响了教育技术和教学设计领域的界定.     

International assistance to third world educational management training—A critical examination of alternative strategies

Recent years have seen an increase in international assistance to Third World educational management training. A range of strategies have been adopted by Third World governments and donor agencies to promote training improvement. The paper examines these strategies, drawing on the literature and the author's direct involvement in a U.K. funded research project concerned with developing materials for Third World Educational management training. The lessons from experiences are considered and an attempt is made to identify factors influencing the impact of alternative strategies, which may have implications for international assistance in this field. It is concluded that strategies can at best be catalytic and that a combination of integrated strategies focusing on all components of institutional and personnel development is most likely to contribute towards improvement. It is suggested that more flexible and innovative strategies could offer considerable potential and warrant greater attention by those concerned with educational management training development.     

师范生现代教育技术能力培养的教学策略研究

高等师范院校开设"现代教育技术"公共课程,是培养师范专业学生现代教育技术能力,适应信息社会下未来教师角色的必经之路,但在教学过程中往往存在由于教学策略不当而导致教学效果不佳的困境.本文从教学类型、教学方法、教学程序、教学资源的利用方式和课堂互动质量五个方面,对"现代教育技术"公共课任课教师的教学策略进行了比较分析,找出教学策略方面普遍存在的问题与不足,从而尝试性地总结出适合该课程的较为合理的教学策略,为今后"现代教育技术"公共课的开展具有一定的借鉴和指导作用.     

体现科学本质的科学教学

理解科学本质是科学素养的内涵之一,是实现提高科学素养的科学教育目标的关键因素。现代科学本质观对科学知识、科学探究和科学事业进行了新的诠释。根据现代科学本质观,发展科学本质观下的科学教学理念,构建科学教育的三维目标,形成融入科学本质的科学教学策略,提升学生的科学本质观。