The Novice-Expert Continuum in Astronomy Knowledge

The nature of expertise in astronomy was investigated across a broad spectrum of ages and experience in China and New Zealand. Five hypotheses (capable of quantification and statistical analysis) were used to probe types of expertise identified by previous researchers: (a) domain-specific knowledge-skill in the use of scientific vocabulary and language and recognising relationships between concepts in linguistic and schematic forms; (b) higher-order theory in terms of conceptual structure and enriched scientific knowledge and reasoning; with an expectation of cultural similarity. There were 993 participants in all, age 3–80 years, including 68 junior school pupils; 68 pre-school pupils; 112 middle-school students; 109 high-school students; 79 physics undergraduates; 60 parents; 136 pre-service primary teachers; 131 pre-service secondary teachers; 72 primary teachers; 78 secondary teachers; 50 amateur astronomers and astronomy educators; and 30 astronomers and physicists; with approximately equal numbers of each group in both cultures; and of boys and girls in the case of children. For them, the methodology utilised Piagetian interviews with three media (verbal language, drawing, play-dough modelling), and for adults a questionnaire inviting responses in writing and drawing was used. The data from each group were categorised into ordinal scales and then analysed by means of Kolmogorov–Smirnov two-sample tests. The findings supported the hypotheses with evidence of all forms of expertise increasing with experience in both cultures (α level 0.05). The relative gains, overlaps and deficits in expertise across the novice-expert continuum are explored in detail.     

论小学德育课程的理念呈现及其特点

“品德与生活”、“品德与社会”课程的基本理念是“德育生活化”、“德育社会化”,通过对小学德育课程的内容目标、学生的社会生活及学习者自身因素多层次的高度整合,课程理念在整个教学过程中呈现为一条主线、点面结合、综合交叉、螺旋上升的优化形式,使内容设计表现出综合性、实践性的特点,注重学生创新思维、创造能力及时代意识的培养。     

Relating Gestures and Speech: An analysis of students' conceptions about geological sedimentary processes

Advances in cognitive science and educational research indicate that a significant part of spatial cognition is facilitated by gesture (e.g. giving directions, or describing objects or landscape features). We aligned the analysis of gestures with conceptual metaphor theory to probe the use of mental image schemas as a source of concept representations for students' learning of sedimentary processes. A hermeneutical approach enabled us to access student meaning-making from students' verbal reports and gestures about four core geological ideas that involve sea-level change and sediment deposition. The study included 25 students from three US universities. Participants were enrolled in upper-level undergraduate courses on sedimentology and stratigraphy. We used semi-structured interviews for data collection. Our gesture coding focused on three types of gestures: deictic, iconic, and metaphoric. From analysis of video recorded interviews, we interpreted image schemas in gestures and verbal reports. Results suggested that students attempted to make more iconic and metaphoric gestures when dealing with abstract concepts, such as relative sea level, base level, and unconformities. Based on the analysis of gestures that recreated certain patterns including time, strata, and sea-level fluctuations, we reasoned that proper representational gestures may indicate completeness in conceptual understanding. We concluded that students rely on image schemas to develop ideas about complex sedimentary systems. Our research also supports the hypothesis that gestures provide an independent and non-linguistic indicator of image schemas that shape conceptual development, and also play a role in the construction and communication of complex spatial and temporal concepts in the geosciences.     

基础教育阶段应大力开展职业生涯教育

本文从当前我国职业生涯教育的现状分析出发,对基础教育阶段开展职业生涯教育的意义和途径做了阐述,旨在在基础教育阶段开展职业生涯教育的重要性,以引起大家的共同思考。     

基础教育改革背景下的教师教育策略

基础教育课程改革对中小学教师提出了新的要求，也给高师教育带来了巨大的挑战。培养和造就一大批理解新课程、实施新课程的教师，是基础教育改革顺利推进的关键。在教师持续培养和终身发展的过程中，高师院校是基础，中小学校是关键，高师院校与中小学的合作是实现这一目标的有效途径。     

Astronomy alternative conceptions in pre-adolescent students in Western Australia

ABSTRACT

Alternative conceptions in astronomy are a road block to new learning. Astronomy content is included in the Australian Curriculum (AC) from Year 3 and then intermittently in Year 5, Year 7 and Year 10. In accepting that science is socio-culturally constructed, it is important for teachers to have a clear understanding of the alternative conceptions that students bring with them to the science classroom. This article reports on the alternative conceptions elicited from 546 students ranging from Year 5 through Year 7 using a modified form of the Astronomy Diagnostic Test [Danaia, L. (2006). Students’ experiences, perceptions and performance in junior secondary school science: An intervention study involving a remote telescope (Doctoral dissertation). Charles Sturt University, Bathurst]. Results show that some well identified alternative conceptions, such as the ‘eclipse model’ to explain the phases of the Moon, exist before students enter high school and prior to any formal learning on the topic. In addition, this research identified a number of alternative conceptions held by pre-adolescent students in Western Australia that were based on knowledge that should have been consolidated by students in Year 3, viz., the relative movements of the Earth, Moon and Sun. Armed with students’ alternative conceptions as a part of their pedagogical content knowledge, teachers can construct active learning experiences that will challenge students’ existing constructs in order to allow for new learning. This sample suggests that we need to identify the reasons behind the lack of consolidation of the foundation astronomy content of the Australian Curriculum outlined for students in Year 3.     

开放教育之管见

开放教育是指以学生学习为中心，采取多种教学方法，取消并突破传统教育对学习的限制的一种新的教育模式。开放教育具有远大的前途和生命力，是素质教育的有效实现形式，符合国民教育尤其是学历教育自身特点，其中的学分制是以提高教学质量为核心的科学的教学管理制度。因此，新世纪我们必经努力构建具有中国特色的现代远程开放教育体系。     

Finding Out How They Find It Out: An empirical analysis of inquiry learners’ need for support

Inquiry learning environments increasingly incorporate modelling facilities for students to articulate their research hypotheses and (acquired) domain knowledge. This study compared performance success and scientific reasoning of university students with high prior knowledge (n = 11), students from senior high‐school (n = 10), and junior high‐school (n = 10) with intermediate and low prior knowledge, respectively, in order to reveal domain novices’ need for support in such environments. Results indicated that the scientific reasoning of both groups of high‐school students was comparable to that of the experts. As high‐school students achieved significantly lower performance success scores, their expert‐like behaviour was rather ineffective; qualitative analyses substantiated this conclusion. Based on these findings, implications for supporting domain novices in inquiry learning environments are advanced.     

印度基础教育阶段教师教育及启示

印度是我国的邻邦,两国山水相连,印度自古以来就非常重视对教师的培养,独立后教师教育体系愈加完善。研究印度基础教育阶段教师教育的发展历程和现状,以期为我国教师教育改革提供借鉴。     

小学教育专业的数学文化教育——数学文化课程开设初探

在小学教育专业进行数学文化教育,既是提高大学生文化素质的要求,同时又是小学教育专业学生未来职业发展的需要。数学文化课程是小学教育专业数学文化教育的重要组成部分,其课程目标应在知识、方法和情感三个方面给予考虑。     

素质教育中的德育工作浅析

章结合中学教育的实际分析了德育工作中存在的问题，并结合素质教育的新形势提出了强化德育工作的对策．     

基础教育阶段开展艺术教育的价值论析

传统教育注重智力和学科能力的发展,缺乏情感态度与价值观及人格的养成,就连艺术教育也是以技能和专业知识为目标而缺少审美、情感和人文内容。基础教育实际存在不同程度忽略甚至否认艺术教育的重大价值的倾向。近年来教育科学研究的重大发现,使人们重新认识和审视艺术教育的价值。在教育教学中渗透艺术性、融合艺术形式,特别是通过综合性的艺术教育模式,能使学生的人格、智力、人文素养等方面得到整合发展。     

STS与基础科学教育

在各种的教育改革方案里，对于STS内容越来越多的引进，已成为一种趋势。然而，联系到我国目前教育界和学术界的现状，对有关的问题仍缺乏必要的了解和深入研究。根据若干国外的科学教育标准进行比较研究，关注的是在其中STS观念与内容的体现，以及在不同方案中表现出来的特点与差异，我们可以理解STS对于基础科学教育已经产生的影响，看到我国基础科学教育与国际相比较显示出的差距，从而对当前的认识与未来的发展都有重要的意义和借鉴作用。     

论基础教育中的教育公平

受教育权是每个公民都应该享有的权利，平等的受教育权是实现人的社会平等的一个重要方面，它是一种伦理要求。基础教育作为个人未来生存与发展的基础，应满足每个人的基本学习要求，为所有的儿童提供学习机会。     

对基础教育发展的几点思考

基础教育是国民教育的基石。我们要始终把办好基础教育特别是义务教育作为首要的教育责任，放在优先发展的地位，适度超前发展；积极引入市场机制，解决好教育经费问题；确保基础教育公平、均衡、健康、可持续地发展。     

适应基础教育需要努力发展师范教育

在我国基础教育改革发展步伐加快的形势下,师范教育要通过采取深化体制改革、不断提高教学质量、加强师资队伍建设和教学基本建设等措施,进一步增强自身的适应性.     

浅析体育在素质教育中的作用

体育是中小学贯彻教育方针、落实素质教育宗旨的重要内容,在素质教育中起着至关重要的作用。     

以色列中小学教育制度及启示

在以色列建国前,其教育制度已具雏形,建国后,经过五十多年的努力,形成了一套完善的教育制度。本文通过分析以色列中小学教育制度的形成,研究以色列中小学教育制度的特点,汲取其成功经验,提出今后我国在教育体制改革中应注意的几个问题。     

小学教育专业的数学教育改革

九年义务教育《数学课程标准》在数学课程、数学、数学学习、数学教学、评价、现代信息技术等方面的教育理念 ,是小学数学教学改革的依据 ,小教专业的数学教育改革必须适应小学数学改革的需要。本文以此为依据从课程设置、教材与教材整合、教师教学方法等方面谈谈小学教育专业理科的数学教育改革的浅见。     

我国基础教育不公平现象析因及其对策

我国基础教育中城乡,地区之间存在的不公平现象,影响到国民素质的整体提高,进而加剧了城乡,地区之间的经济和社会差别。为保证社会稳定,促进经济和社会的协调发展,必须重视并力争消除教育不公平现象,提高中央政府对基础教育的宏观调控,加强国家对经济不发达地区基础教育的投入和政策倾斜;合理配置教师资源,改善经济落后地区师资条件,落实相关的帮助贫困生完成学业的政策,是实现基础教育阶段教育公平的必然选择。