What do citizens need to know? An analysis of knowledge in citizenship curricula in the UK and Ireland

Contemporary citizenship education tends to focus on the development of skills through real experiences, which has led to a relative neglect or simplification of knowledge and understanding. This article outlines a framework for analysing citizenship curricula drawing on Young’s notion of ‘powerful knowledge’ and ‘knowledge of the powerful’ and on Shulman’s account of subject knowledge, which includes substantive concepts and epistemic criteria. These ideas are used to analyse the citizenship curricula in the four nations of the UK and Ireland to assess the extent to which they provide an adequate account of knowledge and understanding of citizenship. The article concludes that it is important to reconsider the relationship between the genuinely educational aspects of citizenship education (where ‘powerful knowledge’ opens up new and diverse understandings) from the normative aims, which are more akin to a form of socialisation (where ‘knowledge of the powerful’ closes down certain possibilities).     

Using avatars and virtual environments in learning: What do they have to offer?

This paper explores and discusses arguments for the use of virtual environments and interactive avatars in supporting the achievement of student learning goals within conventional educational contexts. It describes and evaluates arguments promoted by some authors (eg, van den Brekel, 2007 ; Deuchar & Nodder, 2003 ; Dickey, 2003 ; Facer, 2004 ; de Freitas, 2006 ; de Freitas & Oliver, 2006 ; Garris, Ahlers & Driskell, 2002 ; JISC, 2007 ; Martino, 2007 ; Prensky, 2004 ; Prensky, 2007 ) relating to advantages from gaming and avatar use, ranging from enhanced engagement in learning activities, through to more purposeful and focussed communication, and, when used in group situations, better cooperation and collaboration between students. It explores the potential of avatar environments to act as powerful communication mediums for students to display knowledge and understanding, and engage in the development of 'higher order thinking skills, such as interpreting, analysing, evaluating, synthesising and solving complex problems'.
It also introduces and discusses the avatar-based authoring program MARVIN, and identifies potential for its use as a digital storytelling tool to assist students in communicating outcomes from units of learning, and in supporting the development of a range of key learning competencies identified in the New Zealand Curriculum Framework ( Ministry of Education, 2007 ). It profiles a successful example of the classroom-based use of MARVIN within a community project undertaken by groups of year 7 and 8 students at two Hamilton intermediate schools, and identifies how the program supported student thinking and relating to others key competencies ( Ministry of Education, 2007 ).     

What is science in preschool and what do teachers have to know to empower children?

In this article we problematize the purpose of teaching science in preschool and the competences preschool teachers need in order to conduct science activities in the classroom. The empirical data were collected through an action research project with five preschool and primary school teachers (K-6). In the first section of this paper we use one situation, a floating–sinking experiment, as an illustration of how two different epistemological perspectives generate different foci on which kind of science teaching competences can be fruitful in preschool settings. In the first perspective, the central goal of science teaching is the development of the children’s conceptual understanding. With this perspective, we found that the science activities with children were unsuccessful, because their thoughts about concepts did not develop as expected, the situation even enhanced a “misconception” concerning density. Moreover, the teacher was unsuccessful in supporting the children’s conceptual learning. The second perspective uses a feminist approach that scrutinizes science, where we investigate if the floating–sinking activity contributes to a feeling of participation in a scientific context for the children and if so how the teacher promotes this inclusion. This second perspective showed that the children’s scientific proficiency benefited from the situation; they had a positive experience with density which was reinforced by the teacher. The children discovered that they had power over their own learning by using an experimental approach. On the basis of these findings, we conclude that there are competences other than subject matter knowledge that are also important when preschool teachers engage children in scientific activities. Through process-oriented work with the teacher group, we identified four concrete skills: paying attention to and using children’s previous experiences; capturing unexpected things that happen at the moment they occur; asking questions that challenge the children and that stimulate further investigation; creating a situated presence, that is, “remaining” in the situation and listening to the children and their explanations. We discuss possible ways to move preschool teachers away from their feelings of inadequacy and poor self-confidence in teaching science by reinforcing this kind of pedagogical content knowledge.     

What do I want to feel? Emotion goals in childhood,adolescence, and adulthood

Beliefs about emotion utility can influence context-sensitive emotion goals (i.e., desired emotional responses). Although key for emotion regulation, emotion goals have been overlooked in children and adolescents. In 2018–2019 results of Studies 1 and 2 showed that children (N = 192, M_age = 8.65, 47% girls, 96% White) were less motivated by and found anger less useful in confrontation than adolescents (N = 192, M_age = 12.96, 50% girls, 93% White) and adults (N = 195, M_age = 29.82, 51% women, 96% White). The link between emotion goals and beliefs about emotion utility was weaker in children. In 2021, Study 3 (N = 60, 8-year-olds, 47% girls, 90% White) ruled out expectations as a possible explanation for the previous findings. Context-sensitive utility of emotions may be acquired during development.     

Technoliberal rhetoric,civic attention,and common sensation in Sergey Brin’s “Why Google Glass?”

Sergey Brin’s February 2013 TED Talk, “Why Google Glass?,” is an example of technoliberal rhetoric that offers a constricted vision of civic attention. Technoliberalism, the intensification of neoliberalism through computational technology, funds Brin’s emphasis on the primacy of action-oriented leisure, the power of connection, and the possibility of sensation without mediation. I interpret “Why Google Glass?” as indicative of how technoliberalism privatizes, marketizes, and digitizes sensation, frustrating the efforts of strangers to make common, democratic worlds. The essay concludes by underlining the continued importance of sensing-in-common, identifying specific vectors for rhetoricians to pursue in preserving the foundations of democratic community: advocating for shared public life instead of corporatized, privatized experiences; employing glass metaphors to understand how ubiquitous glassed devices shape sensation; and designing interventions with and without the aid of digital technologies to spark civic desire.     

What (more) can,and should,assessment do for learning? Observations from ‘successful learning context’ in Singapore

Singapore has earned accolades as one of the leading education systems in the world, based on its record in international assessments, including TIMMS and PISA. This has contributed to the entrenchment of ‘assessment’ becoming an institutional authority of standards, teaching (performativity) and classroom learning. It is against, and amidst such contexts, that this article traces how the notion and discourse of formative assessment and Assessment for Learning (AfL) are widely introduced and used formally across all Singaporean schools, particularly after a recent introduction of new ‘Holistic and Balanced Assessment’ policies. We argue that the very institutional authority of successful high-stake examination results, which served as critical standards of performativity of teaching and learning in the classroom, is being challenged. The changing assessment context of Singaporean schools, therefore serves as an interesting case study site for studying how formative assessment and AfL can be adapted and understood when ‘learning’ is already seen to be successful.     

“So, where do they fit in?” Teachers’ perspectives of multi-cultural education and diversity in Singapore

This qualitative study attends to six Singaporean teachers’ experiences of diversity and understanding of multicultural education to illuminate the influence of national policies and narratives on teachers’ perceptions and practice. These cases illustrate that, beyond reflection on identity and diversity, there is a need for teachers to examine how political, cultural, and economic principles have shaped their understanding of diversity and multicultural education. The authors discuss findings in light of socio-political constraints faced by Singapore teachers and forward implications for teacher education.     

What are the characteristics of nature preschools in Norway,and how do they organize their daily activities?

This study provides basic information about how Norwegian nature preschools differ from other Norwegian preschools and how they organize their daily activities. Fifty-six nature preschools and 52 other preschools were included in the study. A total of 106 headmasters and 98 pedagogical leaders filled out questionnaires about the characteristics of their preschool and the characteristics of their preschool’s outdoor activities. Two women and four men from nature preschools were interviewed about organizing a nature preschool. Most nature preschools are private and have less children and staff than other preschools. Nature preschools have more reference areas in nature and visit these areas more frequently than other preschools. Nature preschools spend a large amount of time in nature and have routines and rules that allow the children a significant amount of trust.     

Effortful Control,Behavior Problems,and Peer Relations: What Predicts Academic Adjustment in Kindergartners from Low-Income Families?

This study used a short-term longitudinal design to examine the role of effortful control, behavior problems, and peer relations in the academic adjustment of 74 kindergarten children from primarily low-income families. Teachers completed standardized measures of children's effortful control, internalizing and externalizing problems, school readiness, and academic skills. Children participated in a sociometric interview to assess peer relations. Research Findings: Correlational analyses indicate that children's effortful control, behavior problems in school, and peer relations are associated with academic adjustment variables at the end of the school year, including school readiness, reading skills, and math skills. Results of regression analyses indicate that household income and children's effortful control primarily account for variation in children's academic adjustment. The associations between children's effortful control and academic adjustment do not vary across the sex of the child or ethnicity. Mediational analyses indicate an indirect effect of effortful control on school readiness through children's internalizing problems. Practice or Policy: Effortful control emerged as a strong predictor of academic adjustment among kindergarten children from low-income families. Strategies for enhancing effortful control and school readiness among low-income children are discussed.     

Math achievement,numerical processing,and executive functions in girls with Turner syndrome: Do girls with Turner syndrome have math learning disability?

Turner syndrome is a common genetic disorder associated with select deficits in executive functions, working memory and mathematics. In Study 1, we examined growth trajectories of skills in these areas, from grades 1 to 6, among girls with or without Turner syndrome. Rates of growth and performance levels at 6th grade, on an untimed math achievement test, did not suggest that girls with Turner syndrome have math learning difficulty (MLD). However, analyses did reveal lower efficiency on timed executive function tasks, among girls with Turner syndrome, who traded accuracy for speed under mild to moderate working memory demands. In Study 2 we compared numerical processing skills of 6th graders who had either Turner syndrome, MLD, low math achievement, or typical achievement in math. A numerical decomposition task revealed numerical processing deficits for the Turner syndrome and MLD groups, relative to typically achieving students. The relative difficulties in how numerical processing vs. working memory demands affected performance accuracy differed among groups, with the former demands leading to more performance difficulties in the Turner syndrome group. Our findings support the notion that girls with Turner syndrome recruit different strategies than their peers during allegedly basic numerical processing, that numerical processing deficits vs. executive function deficits underlie their difficulties with mathematics, and that math difficulties among these girls may not be apparent on untimed tests. These finding have implications for a possible manifestation of MLD.     

Where do you come from,where do you go? Assessing skills gaps and labour market outcomes for young adults with different immigration backgrounds

Using PISA and PIAAC data from twelve OECD countries, we examine the gap in cognitive skills among immigrants and natives and evaluate how those differences have evolved over time. We also consider how demographics, family background and school quality explain the development of cognitive skills of young people with immigrant backgrounds. The results show, first, that some convergence in skills occurs between second-generation immigrants and natives over time. Second, demographics, family background and school quality variables all contribute to the achievement gaps across different groups.     

What Can We Learn from Art Practices? Exploring New Perspectives on Critical Engagement with Plurality and Difference in Community Art Education

The article presents a case of community art education in Leuven, Belgium. Participants who belong to disenfranchised groups of the local community were invited to engage in artistic actions and performances aiming at familiarising them with modern art practices. Such experiments are often disqualified as being irrelevant to the life‐conditions of these families in poverty, and hence as non‐emancipatory. In this article, the emancipatory quality of such initiatives is explored with reference to the art practices of the Belgian/Mexican artist Francis Alÿs and the reflections on emancipation by the French philosopher Jacques Rancière. These reflections help to shed a new light on the emancipatory dimension of community art practices and to consider theoretical concepts such as ‘poor pedagogy’.     

Academic self‐concept,reading attitudes and approaches to learning of children with dyslexia: do they differ from their peers?

This research aimed at exploring the motivation for reading of pupils with dyslexia, and to investigate whether they differ from their peers. A total of 32 pupils formed the LD group (22 boys and 10 girls, 5th‐ and 6th‐graders) who were diagnosed with dyslexia. A comparison group was formed of pupils who attended the same classes (N = 210), and these were divided into two groups (average/low performance, N = 115; high performance, N = 95), according to teachers’ ratings of pupils’ performance on reading. Self‐report measures were used to assess perceptions of academic ability, reading attitudes and approaches to learning. The results revealed that dyslexic pupils displayed lower academic self‐concept than the low/average and high performance groups on all domains, except Practical ability. Moreover, dyslexic pupils perceived reading less as a function of personal development, both enjoyment and utilitarian, as compared to their peers. Finally, the dyslexic group adopted the surface approach to learning, indicating an external motive, similarly to the average/low group, and adopted the deep approach to learning less as compared to their high achieving peers. The implications of these findings are discussed at pupil, teacher and classroom level.     

What do K-12 students feel when dealing with technology and engineering issues? Gardner's multiple intelligence theory implications in technology lessons for motivating engineering vocations at Spanish Secondary School

The interest on engineering and scientific studies can be raised up even from the early years of academic instructional process. This vocation may be linked to emotions and aptitudes towards technological education. Particularly, students get in touch with these technological issues (namely STEM) during the Compulsory Secondary Education in Spain (12–16 years old).This work presents a preliminary evaluation of how relevant is Gardner's multiple intelligence theory (MIT) in the teaching–learning process within the Technology Lessons. In this sense, MIT was considered as an explanation variable of the emotional response within the different educational parts (so-called syllabus units, SU) in the Technology spanish curriculum. Different intelligence style (IS) will orient the student to a vision of the engineering and technology. This work tries to identify which relationships can be established between IS and specific technology and engineering learning. This research involved up to 135 students were subsequently tested about their predominant (IS) and on the emotions that arouse in them when working with each SU. The results were statistically significant and only those with a Logic-arithmetic or Environmental IS were not affected by the SU.Best teaching and learning practicesare required for encouraging further engineering studies.     

I can't imagine doing anything else': why do teachers of children with SEN remain in the profession? Resilience,rewards and realism over time

There has been a substantial amount of research on why teachers leave the profession but little on why they stay. The paper will follow Day et al.'s work (2007) in examining the factors that determine which teachers will maintain resilience and stay in the profession, focusing particularly on those who worked as special educational needs co‐ordinators (SENCOs), analysing the careers of 19 teachers who had been in the profession for more than 15 years. Data were gathered by focus groups and life history interviews taking a qualitative, narrative enquiry approach. This research found that some situated factors in schools were found to contribute positively and/or negatively to teachers' efficacy, commitment and perceived effectiveness. Personal influences were also significant and included having children, salary requirements and flexible working patterns. An important factor, and unique to this research, was a commitment to working with children with SEN, and all respondents wanted to continue doing this in some capacity in the future. The paper concludes with the implications for policy and practice and considers possible strategies for maintaining teachers' resilience across their careers.     

“What I learn is what I like.” How do students in ICT-supported problem-based learning rate the quality of the learning experience,and how does it relate to the acquisition of competences?

Although advocated in theory, research findings on the benefits of ICT integration into inquiry-based learning arrangements such as problem-based learning (PBL) are still ambiguous. One explanation might be that until now students’ subjective views on learning in ICT-integrated, inquiry-based arrangements have not been considered extensively. The aim of the present study was to shed light on how students’ attitude towards various face-to-face and ICT-supported learning opportunities within a PBL course related to the learning outcomes, namely participants’ competence acquisition. To this end, a sample of n = 46 pre-service teacher students in a blended PBL course on pedagogical diagnostics for business and vocational education answered an online questionnaire. The questions explored the quality of the learning experience in the face-to-face and ICT-supported elements, and the students’ perceived competence acquisition. Data was analyzed with multiple regression analysis. Subjective satisfaction with the learning experience predicted competence acquisition for both face-to-face and ICT-supported course elements, but only if they were interactive in nature. In conclusion, ICT integration in a PBL course is not necessarily a threat but a benefit; however, this is true only when it is used within active and engaging learning opportunities.