Take-home video for adult literacy

In the past, it has not been possible to teach oneself to read at home, because learners could not read the books to teach them. Videos and interactive compact discs have changed that situation and challenge current assumptions of the pedagogy of literacy. This article describes an experimental adult literacy project using video technology. The language used is English, but the basic concepts apply to any alphabetic or syllabic writing system. A half-hour cartoon video can help adults and adolescents with learning difficulties. Computer-animated cartoon graphics are attractive to look at, and simplify complex material in a clear, lively way. This video technique is also proving useful for distance learners, children, and learners of English as a second language. Methods and principles are to be extended using interactive compact discs.

---

Zusammenfassung In der Vergangenheit war es nicht möglich, sich selbst in Heimarbeit lesen beizubringen, da die Lernenden die Lehrbücher nicht lesen konnten. Videos und interaktive Compact discs haben diese Situation geändert und gegenwärtige Meinungen zur Pädagogik der Alphabetisierung herausgefordert. Dieser Artikel beschreibt ein experimentelles Erwachsenenalphabetisierungsprogramm, das Videotechnologie anwendet. Arbeitssprache ist Englisch, aber das Grundkonzept gilt für jedes alphabetische oder syllabische Schreibsystem. Ein halbstündiges Zeichentrickvideo soll Erwachsenen und Jugendlichen mit Lernschwierigkeiten helfen. Computeranimierte Zeichentrickgraphiken sind attraktive Lernmittel, die komplexes Material klar und lebendig vereinfachen. Diese Videotechnik dient auch Fernlerndenden, Kindern und Lernenden mit Englisch als Zweitsprache. Methoden und Prinzipien müssen durch den Gebrauch von interaktiven Compakt Discs erweitert werden.

---

Resumen Durante el pasado, no ha sido posible el autoaprendizaje de la lectura en el hogar, ya que los lectores no estaban en condiciones de leer los libros de enseñanza. Ahora, los videos y los discos compactos interactivos cambiaron esta situación, creando un desafío para los conceptos corrientes de la pedagogía de alfabetización. Este artículo describe un proyecto experimental de alfabetización de adultos mediante el uso de tecnología de video. El lenguaje utilizado es el inglés, pero los conceptos básicos son aplicables para cualquier sistema de escritura alfabética o silábica. Un video de dibujos animados de media hora de duración puede ayudar a los adultos y adolescentes con dificultades de aprendizaje. Las gráficas animadas por computadora son atractivas para el espectador y simplifican materias complejas de un modo claro y ameno. Esta técnica de video también está mostrando su utilidad para el estudio a distancia, para la instrucción de niños y para el aprendizaje del inglés como segunda lengua. Los métodos y los principios también se pueden ampliar mediante la utilización de discos compactos interactivos.

---

Résumé Jusqu'à présent, il n'était pas possible d'apprendre à lire seul chez soi, puisque les apprenants ne pouvaient pas lire les manuels d'enseignement. La vidéographie et le disque compact interactif ont modifié cette situation et remettent en cause les principes courants de la pédagogie de l'alphabétisation. L'article décrit un projet expérimental d'alphabétisation des adultes qui exploite la technologie vidéo. La langue utilisée est l'anglais, mais les concepts de base peuvent être appliqués à tout système d'écriture alphabétique ou syllabique. Un dessin animé sur vidéo d'une demi-heure se propose d'aider les adultes et adolescents éprouvant des difficultés. Les graphiques animés par électronique sont agréables à regarder et illustrent de façon claire et vivante les matières complexes. Cette technique vidéo se révèle également utile pour les apprenants à distance, les enfants et pour l'enseignement de l'anglais en seconde langue. Les méthodes et principes d'utilisation de disques compact interactifs restent à développer.

---

, , . - . . , . . , , , . -, . -.

     

Policy communities,issue networks and the formulation of Australian higher education policy

Governments in most western countries consult extensively with clientele groups in the process of formulating higher education policy. The nature of these consultative mechanisms, in turn, influences the manner in which decisions are made, and the substance of policy outcomes. This article explores the changing style of government-interest group interaction in Australia over the decade 1985–94 and how these changes have effected the way policy is determined. It is argued that Australia has gone through three phases over that time. Until 1987 policy was formulated by a stable policy community. From 1988–90, when a number of major reforms were introduced, this framework was replaced by a brief period of state direction. During the early 1990s a new environment characterised by unstable issue networks emerged.     

The Pseudo-Conceptual and the Pseudo-Analytical Thought Processes in Mathematics Learning

This paper suggests a theoretical framework to deal with some well known phenomena in mathematical behavior. Assuming that the notions conceptual and analytical are clear enough in the domain of mathematical thinking, the notions pseudo-conceptual and pseudo-analytical are proposed and explained. Examples from mathematics classrooms, mathematics exams, and homework assignments are analyzed and discussed within the proposed theoretical framework.The notions pseudo-conceptual and pseudo-analytical proposed in this paper, actually narrow the extension of the notion cognitive by restricting it to the domain of meaningful contexts. Analysis of meaningless behaviors, it is claimed, requires a different theoretical framework. The attempt to analyze meaningless behaviors in the same way as meaningful behaviors is called here the cognitive approach fallacy.     

Education for work: Reflections towards a theory of vocational education

By integrating aspects of a philosophy of work and a sociology of work, this article draws conclusions relevant to framing a theory of vocational education. Education for work is accepted in this paper as the common central meaning of the term vocational education. The two concepts, education and work, are first examined separately: work is seen to include recreational and occupational work, while occupational work is seen to fall on a continuum ranging from constrained to unconstrained occupational work. Education and training are distinguished. After a discussion of the conceptual links which might be drawn between education and work, recommendations are made about the aims, the place, and the curriculum of vocational education within the general institution of education.

---

Zusammenfassung Durch die Integration von Aspekten einer Philosophie der Arbeit und einer Soziologie der Arbeit kommt der Verfasser dieses Artikels zu Schlußfolgerungen, die eine Theorie der Berufsbildung entwickeln. Bildung für die Arbeit wird in diesem Artikel als die allgemeine, zentrale Bedeutung des Begriffes Berufsbildung verstanden. Die beiden Begriffe Erziehung, und Arbeit werden zunächst einzeln untersucht: Arbeit umfaßt hier Freizeit- und Berufsarbeit; Berufsarbeit ist ein Kontinuum von mehr oder weniger vorgegebener Tätigkeit. Es wird zwischen Bildung und Ausbildung unterschieden. Im Anschluß an eine Diskussion über begriffliche Gemeinsamkeiten zwischen Erziehung und Arbeit werden Vorschläge über Ziele, Einordnung und Curriculum der Berufsbildung innerhalb des allgemeinen Systems der Erziehung unterbreitet.

---

Résumé En intégrant des aspects d'une philosophie et d'une sociologie du travail, cet article tire des conclusions pertinentes pour l'élaboration d'une théorie de l'éducation professionnelle. L'éducation pour le travail est prise dans cet article au sens commun central du terme éducation professionnelle. Tout d'abord, on examine séparément les deux concepts éducation et travail: on considère que le travail inclut les occupations récréatives et professionnelles alors que le travail professionnel est vu en tant qu'un continuum allant du travail professionnel contraint au travail non contraint. On distingue l'éducation de la formation. Après une discussion sur les liens conceptuels qui pourraient être établis entre l'éducation et le travail, des recommandations sont faites sur les objectifs, la place et le contenu de l'éducation professionnelle au sein de l'institution générale de l'éducation.

     

The Law of Unintended Consequences: The ‘Real’ Cost of Top-Down Reform

In most jurisdictions around the world,governments, in the name of economiccompetitiveness, have imposed comprehensive andquite dramatic changes on state schools. Mostchanges require a more centralized and rigorouscurriculum for pupils, a plethora ofaccountability measures and mandatoryin-service for teachers, and carefully definedand more onerous responsibilities for schoolleaders. The province of Ontario is nodifferent. Since 1995, its educational systemhas experienced quite revolutionary changes– all instituted with break-neck speed. At thesame time most schools in Ontario are employinginternal change strategies to address theseoutside pressures. These change forces havecoalesced to redefine the work and lives ofteachers and school leaders in many intendedand unintended ways. There is a substantialliterature on both external and internal changeforces, but very little has been written aboutthe conjunction of these change forces with thepersonal side of change for teachers andleaders. Based on two studies undertaken by theInternational Centre for Educational Change atthe Ontario Institute for Studies inEducation/University of Toronto, this paperexamines the unintended consequences of thesechange forces on the teachers and principals ofone secondary school in Ontario, Canada. Theteachers and leaders of Lord Byron High Schoolare not averse to change and are generallyquite content to do whatever is in the bestinterests of their students. The school has along history of innovation and change and areputation for attending to a wide diversity ofstudent needs.Through the use of multiple conceptual lenses,this paper addresses the unintendedconsequences of systemic change to the schooland its teachers and principals. At a time whenteacher shortages and teacher morale aregrowing problems for many educationaljurisdictions, this investigation will point toan urgent need to build better bridges ofunderstanding between policy makers and policyimplementers, and for researchers to provideresearch that is more sensitive to the work andlives of real people in real schools.     

Research and scholarship: Perceptions of senior academic administrators

This paper reports selected findings from the first stage of a study on the research role within academic work in Australian universities. These findings come from the interview component of the study and discuss the perceptions that senior academic administrators hold on research and scholarship. The analysis of the interviews indicates that research covers a wide and varied range of activities across the disciplines found in a university and therefore needs to be defined broadly. However, research has three major attributes: new knowledge, enquiry and publication of results and views. Scholarship was perceived to be part of the research process, providing the context for good research by adding the element of breadth to the depth of research. In addition, scholarship describes the manner of pursuing a serious, sustained line of enquiry as well as the dissemination process.     

The notion of infinite measuring number and its relevance in the intuition of infinity

In this paper a concept of infinity is described which extrapolates themeasuring properties of number rather thancounting aspects (which lead to cardinal number theory).Infinite measuring numbers are part of a coherent number system extending the real numbers, including both infinitely large and infinitely small quantities. A suitable extension is the superreal number system described here; an alternative extension is the hyperreal number field used in non-standard analysis which is also mentioned.Various theorems are proved in careful detail to illustrate that certain properties of infinity which might be considered false in a cardinal sense are true in a measuring sense. Thus cardinal infinity is now only one of a choice of possible extensions of the number concept to the infinite case. It is therefore inappropriate to judge the correctness of intuitions of infinity within a cardinal framework alone, especially those intuitions which relate to measurement rather than one-one correspondence.The same comments apply in general to the analysis of naive intuitions within an extrapolated formal framework.     

The decline of the modern paradigm in education

The education system is widely perceived to be functioning poorly, and this paper argues that there is in fact a deep crisis caused by the gap between the system and the changing world that surrounds it. Post-modern conditions stress the production of information rather than the productivity of land or capital, and a relativistic world-view rather than adherence to a fixed religion or ideology, which in turn gives rise to pluralism and shifting social frameworks. At the same time, the pursuit of Truth is no longer seen as the highest goal in life, and the possession of proof of education is no longer a guarantee of access to the Good Life. Educational institutions are dysfunctional because they remain wedded to outmoded parameters in their aims, activities, structures, methods and perceptions of their clientele. Through a wide-ranging review of recent conceptual debate and assessment of social trends, the paper explores the implications of radical contemporary changes in the parameters: the search for a new paradigm of education has only just begun.

---

Zusammenfassung Das Bildungssystem wird weitgehend als unzulänglich betrachtet, und dieser Artikel argumentiert dahingehend, daß es in der Tat eine tiefgreifende Krise gibt, die durch die Kluft zwischen dem System und der sich ändernden Welt um es herum ist. Postmoderne Bedingungen legen eher Wert auf die Erstellung von Informationen als auf die Produktivität von Land oder Kapital. Man zieht eine relativistische Weltanschauung einer festgelegten Religion oder Ideologie vor, die wiederum Pluralismus und sich ändernde soziale Rahmenbedingungen fördert. Gleichzeitig wird die Suche nach der Wahrheit nicht länger als oberstes Ziel im Leben angesehen und der Besitz von Bildungsnachweisen ist nicht länger eine Garantie für ein gutes Leben. Bildungsinstitutionen funktionieren nicht mehr, weil sie in ihren Zielen, Aktivitäten, Strukturen, Methoden und Wahrnehmungen ihrer Zielen, Aktivitäten, Strukturen, Methoden und Wahrnehmungen ihrer Zielgruppen mit unzeitgemäßen Normen verknüpft sind. Mittels eines weitreichenden überblicks über jüngste Debatten über Konzepte und die Einschätzung sozialer Trends, untersucht der Artikel die Auswirkungen radikaler zeitgenössischer Anderungen der Normen; die Suche nach einem neuen Paradigma der Bildung hat gerade erst begonnen.

---

Resumen Hay una percepción general de que el funcionamiento del sistema de educación es deficiente, y este trabajo sostiene que, efectivamente, se produce una profunda crisis causada por la brecha existente entre el sistema y el mundo cambiante que lo rodea. Las condiciones postmodernistas ponen énfasis en la producción de informaciones más que en la productividad de la tierra o del capital, y en una óptica del mundo relativista más que en la adhesión a una religión o ideología fija, lo que por su parte da origen al pluralismo y a sistemas sociales cambiantes. Al mismo tiempo, la busca de la Verdad ya no es considerada como la meta más importante en la vida, y la titularidad de pruebas de formación ya no garantiza el acceso a la Buena Vida. Las instituciones de la educación muestran una disfunción porque aún se atienen a parámetros obsoletos en cuanto a objetivos, actividades, estructuras, métodos y percepciones de su clientela. A través de una amplia reseña de debates conceptuales recientes y de la valoración de tendencias sociales, el trabajo explora las implicaciones que los cambios radicales contemporáneos tienen en los parámetros; la busca de un nuevo paradigma de educaión solamente acaba de comenzar.

---

Résumé Le système éducatif a la réputation largement répandue de mal fonctionner, et l'article expose qu'il existe en effet une crise profonde due à l'écart entre le système d'éducation et le monde en évolution qui l'entoure. Les conditions de vie post-modernes font passer au premier plan la production de l'information à la place de la productivité de la terre et du capital, et une vision du monde relativiste remplace l'adhésion à une religion ou une idéologie fixe, qui à son tour engendre le pluralisme et la modification des structures sociales. Parallèlement, la recherche de la vérité n'est plus le but suprême dans la vie, et la détention d'une preuve d'éducation n'est plus une garantie d'accès à une vie réussie. Le dysfonctionnement des institutions éducatives réside donc dans leur attachement obstiné à des modèles périmés quant à leurs objectifs, leurs activités, leurs structures, leurs méthodes et leur vision de la clientèle. Sur la base d'une vaste étude sur le récent débat conceptuel et une évaluation des tendances sociales, l'article analyse les conséquences des changements radicaux contemporains sur ces modèles: la recherche d'un nouveau type d'éducation ne fait que commencer.

---

, . , , . , , . . , . , , , , . ; .

     

Vicarious learning from dialogue and discourse

This study examined learning in the domain of sentence parsing and syntax treediagram construction. The aim of the study was to assess whether subjects could learn vicariously from recordings of interactions between a previous student and a tutor.Four intervention conditions and a control condition were compared. Subjects in a dialogue group (DL) read printed tutorial notes and subsequently vicariously viewed dynamic (animated) recordings of tree diagrams being constructed by a previous student in the presence of a tutor.The discourse (DI) condition was similar except that subjects viewed recordings of tree diagrams being constructed by a tutor who concurrently verbalised instructional discourse.In a third condition (DO), subjects viewed tree-diagram construction animation clips which were not annotated with either dialogue or discourse. In a linear text (LT) condition, subjects were given only printed tutorial notes. A control (CO) condition involved pre and post testing without any intervention.Results indicated that the dialogue condition was as effective as the discourse condition. This provides support for contention that re-usable dialogue is a useful resource for the vicarious learner. Another finding was that un-annotated animated diagrams were surprisingly effective. Several reasons for their effectiveness are suggested from the literature on instructional animations.     

Culturally appropriate means and ends of counselling as described by the First Nations people of British Columbia

This paper focuses on one aspect of the author's Ph.D. dissertation which examined the facilitation of healing for First Nations people of British Columbia Canada. the research finding discussed in this paper is that the means and ends of counselling for First Nations people differ from those of the Western therapeutic approaches utilized by the majority culture in Canada. These differences are illustrated by the First Nations world view and the unique goals of healing for First Nations people. it is necessary for counsellors to be responsive to these goals if they are to be effective in working with Native people (Please note that the terms First Nations, Native, and Aboriginal are used interchangeably to refer to the same people).     

Counsellor education and the future: Cautious sailing

The future remains always elusive and yet by examining the present, some hints of what is to come may be seen by the discerning. In this article, six existing social forces (the baby boom, the new woman, the silicon chip, disenchantment, the monetary system and the increased tempo of modern life) are reviewed as well as some of the implications of these forces for counselling education programmes. The hope is that such an examination will help counsellors and counsellor educators to be better prepared for the future and therefore better able to influence it.University of Alberta     

Children's Responses to Contrasting `Realistic' Mathematics Problems: Just how realistic are children ready to be?

In recent years there has been an increasing emphasis within the world of mathematics education on realistic problem solving. At the same time research has shown that children typically remain apparently unwilling or unable to introduce realistic considerations when solving supposedly realistic word problems, though research has also shown that children's behaviour in this domain does vary as a function of the nature of the item, its context and the child's social background. This paper analyses 11–12 year-old English children's responses to two realistic problems. The first is taken from English national tests; the second is a revised version of this item which has been rewritten to encourage a more realistic pattern of responses. Through a comparison of responses to the two items it is suggested that, given suitable realistic problems, many children may be more willing and able to introduce realistic responses in a testing context than earlier research might lead us to expect.This revised version was published online in September 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Socialist mathematics education: Does it exist?

A recent book by Frank Swetz and others has postulated the existence of the phenomenon socialist mathematics education. In this paper we consider critically Swet's arguments and assertions and suggest an alternative methodology whereby one might attempt to describe socialist mathematics education.     

Child-methods in secondary mathematics

An earlier research project, the Concepts in Secondary Mathematics and Science (Mathematics) project, identified both a hierarchy of levels of understanding in different areas of secondary mathematics, and a number of particular errors which were made by significant proportions of the children tested. Preliminary consideration of these errors and the strategies which appear to have given rise to them suggests that the use of informal naive methods which are limited in their applicability is widespread even at fourth-year level. The suggestion is made that there may be two systems of mathematics coexisting in the secondary school classroom: the formal taught system, and a system of child-methods which are based upon a counting, adding-on or building-up approach, and by which children attempt to solve mathematical problems within a human-sense framework. The difficulties which some children appear to experience in mathematics is suggested to be due in part to these children's non-initiation into the formal taught system. The implication of such a view for teaching and research are indicated.     

Swedish Universities towards Self-Regulation: A New Look at Institutional Autonomy

Swedish universities are required to change towards more effective self-regulation as the government has recently reduced state steering and devolved further responsibilities to them. In this paper, self-regulation is related to the concept of autonomy, a concept which is analysed on the two dimensions of purpose and authority, resulting in four models of state governance and consequently in a different space of action for the institutions. However, in order to develop self-regulation, the space granted must also be used effectively to realise autonomy. Six Swedish higher education institutions are analysed concerning how they have used their new space of action and what restrictions they have met in their efforts for self-regulation.     

Interactive development of subject matter in the mathematics classroom

There are considerable differences among mathematics teachers with regard to the quatlity of their way of developing mathematical knowledge in the classroom. Such differences are analysed. To develop mathematical meaning requires both a consistent presentation of the mathematical symbols and of the referential meaning of these symbols with respect to the given task. On the basis of this conception we assume that the quality of teaching will differ according to how teachers cope with the relation between these two sides of meaning. From a sample of 26 teachers, an expert teacher and a non-expert teacher were selected by means of classroom observation with scales of instructional quality variables. For each of these two teachers, two lessons introducing probability (sixth grade) are analysed. For this purpose, teacher and student contributions are coded. For the expert teacher, graphic visualizations of the development of mathematical concepts across time show soft transitions between the different aspects of mathematical meaning. These transitions are made possible by a consistent explication of the relation between formal symbols and the given mathematical task. In the case of the other teacher, explication of the relationship between the object side and the symbol side of mathematical meaning is much rarer, and there are sudden switches from one aspect of meaning to another. Further differences concern the handling of student contributions.We gratefully acknowledge the help of Wolfgang Barz, Regina Dietrich and Claudia Krüger with recording, transcribing or coding lessons. For their comments on draft versions of the paper the authors thank Deborah Ball, Jere Brophy, Willibald Dörfler, Alexander Gruza and two anonymous reviewers.     

Third Graders' Interpretations of Equality and the Equal Symbol

This paper analyzes the interpretations of equality and the equal symbol of the third-grade children who participated in a year long whole-class socio constructivist teaching experiment. These children initially interpreted the equal symbol as a command to perform an arithmetical operation; it was less natural to them to interpret it as a relational symbol to compare two quantities. By the end of the school year, children were able to conceptualize the quantitative sameness of two numerical expressions and describe it by using the phrase is the same as, the words equal or equals, or the symbols = or =s. These children expanded their conceptualizations of equality due to their active role in class discussions, the arithmetical tasks that took into account children's difficulties, and the teacher's intellectual sensitivity to strike a delicate balance between the force of teaching and the freedom of learning (Freudenthal, 1991, p. 55).     

Assumptions Underlying Performance-Based Budgeting

Interest in performance budgeting is growing despite a lack of research on its effectiveness. U.S. states have largely used incremental and formula budgeting processes to fund higher education. However, more than half of them are experimenting with some form of performance budgeting. There have been similar attempts to reform budget practices in the U.S. in the past, but most of these processes have been largely abandoned. Governmental performance budgeting for higher education assumes policy objectives are stable, complex decisions on budget trade-offs can be made at governmental levels on the basis of data, institutions operate as bureaucracies, resources can be linked to outcomes, outcomes are identifiable and can be agreed upon, accountability can be achieved through budget policies, and current practices create incentives to enrol unqualified students. These assumptions are not realistic. Consequently, performance budgeting will not meet proponents expectations and will suffer the fate of past budget fads.     

Challenges to the counsellor in a changing world — The impact of environmental changes in universities on the concepts of student counselling

This article will first consider in a systematic way how student counselling is related to change. In doing so it will refer to the development of student counselling in Germany. Formulating the thesis that student counsellors find themselves symptomatically confronted with changes which hint at deeper challenges than those they have known before, it will then explore new dimensions of change in universities and show how they may be linked with impulses and answers given by counselling and psychotherapy. Finally it will take a look at the professionalization of student counselling in the light of those changes.Bergische Universität — Gesamthochschule Wuppertal     

Bilinguals' understanding of logical connectives in English and Sesotho

Students in Lesotho secondary schools were given a test on the logical connectives and, or, and if-then in either English or Sesotho. In forms 1 and 2, the Sesotho groups performed better than the English groups, although both groups performed poorly. In form 4, the English group excelled. Analysis of responses to certain categories of questions was undertaken, for example, questions with negatives, questions which called for indirect reasoning, or questions whose answers were not determinable. Certain incorrect reasoning patterns, such as inverse reasoning, were investigated. Although certain differences between language groups were found, the differences were attributed to relative understanding of language rather than to Whorfian differences in logic between language groups.