IN SEARCH OF MEANING: A REMINISCENCE PROGRAM FOR OLDER PERSONS

A pilot evaluation is reported of a reminiscence program aimed at increasing personal meaning. Fifty-seven older persons completed both a sentence completion questionnaire measuring personal meaning and a depression scale administered before and after the program. In comparison to a group from a representative survey that was matched on life contexts, the personal meaning profile of the intervention group was more negative and more focused on self. Hence, a group with impoverished meaning was participating in the program. After the intervention, the personal meaning profile was more positive, in particular with regard to self-evaluations and evaluations of social relations. The group that improved most on depression also improved most on personal meaning. Further research on the program is warranted.     

LINKING STUDENTS AND CLASSES: STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING LEARNING AND THINKING

Research in cognitive and social psychology is beginning to suggest strategies which will allow us to improve students’ learning and thinking skills. Classroom studies using four teaching strategies based on research in these areas will be described. The four techniques are: using modified cooperative learning groups within classes; linking upper‐ and lower‐level classes for metacognitive instruction; using short‐term, coached cooperative learning groups; and using student mentors. A common factor in the four techniques is that students think aloud in groups as they solve problems or discuss controversial issues. Modified cooperative learning groups were successful in upper‐level courses. Thinking and learning skills improved in these classes. However, in lower‐level courses, particularly those which contained underprepared students, more guidance (modeling, coaching and structure) was needed than was available within most peer cooperative groups. Modeling and coaching were provided by linking students from upper‐level courses with lower‐level students on short‐term, issue‐based projects and for semester‐long classes. Such arrangements result in what Collins, Brown and Newman (1989) have termed cognitive apprenticeships. Cognitive apprenticeships lead to improved attitudes toward the content area, perception of improved cognitive skills and some gains in content mastery.     

CHANGING VISIONS OF EXCELLENCE IN ONTARIO SCHOOL POLICY: THE CASES OF LIVING AND LEARNING AND FOR THE LOVE OF LEARNING

In this essay, Rosa Bruno‐Jofré and George Hills examine two major Ontario policy documents: 1968's Living and Learning and 1994's For the Love of Learning. The purpose is, first, to gain insight into the uses of the term “excellence” in the context of discourse about educational aims and evaluation, and, second, to explore how these uses may have changed over time. Bruno‐Jofré and Hills employ the conceptual framework developed by Madhu Prakash and Leonard Waks to elucidate the varied notions of excellence contained in the two reports. Bruno‐Jofré and Hills argue that Living and Learning is an eclectic report that creates continuity by aligning itself with the pedagogically progressive tradition in Ontario; that propounds a holistic conception of excellence centered on the all‐around development of the self; and that seeks simultaneously to secure a sense of being Canadian while dealing with rapidly emerging social fragmentation. For the Love of Learning, in contrast, attempts to combine a technical view of excellence in education (stressing various literacies and skills as measurable indicators) with the principles of caring and the goals of social responsibility. Each report can be seen as an attempt to respond to the expectations of a population that had become increasingly diverse in the interval between the two reports. What is cause for concern in terms of policymaking, Bruno‐Jofré and Hills conclude, is the turn away from broader, more comprehensive and coherent views of excellence in education toward narrower and more fragmented accounts that are preoccupied with various types of literacy or loosely related vocational and other skills. The effect of this shift is to leave educational policy and practice in the schools essentially rudderless.     

GUIDING THE OLDER LEARNER: A USE OF THE PERSONAL INVENTORY

This article suggests that the older learner, in either formal or informal study programs, benefits by participation in small group guidance sessions that are based on the personal inventory procedure. Two programs of this type were used in credit and noncredit classes with success. Wider use of this guidance method is proposed as an orientation process for individual learners and retirement career seekers.     

PERSONAL REFLECTIONS ON THE ROLE OF ART IN JEWISH EDUCATION

There are two components to this presentation — one deals with sociological analysis, whether based on research data or on armchair speculation; the other is outright prognostication. Only a very thin line divides prognostication from prophecy, and I am keenly aware of the dangers to which I am exposing myself since, as our sages taught us after the destruction of the Temple, only children and fools possess prophetic faculties. This danger is compounded by the very nature of our professional work. We cannot merely speculate about the future; our métier requires that we propose policy or, if you prefer, assist and guide our lay leadership in making policy.     

THE LEARNING AND RETENTION OF TEACHING SKILLS BY OLDER ADULTS: A TIME SERIES ANALYSIS

Comparative analysis of time series data (T1 = preprogram; T2 = postpro‐gram; T3 = 6‐month followup) collected for the first year class of an older adult teacher training program (N = 35; mean age = 69.1 years) documents that the elderly learn and retain materials learned at different rates. Variables such as age, sex, teaching experience, education, and race/ethnicity all potentially play a role in differentiating the learning process. Evaluation results further confirm that the initial acquisition of leadership skills by older adults is no guarantee that those skills will be maintained successfully over time. There may also be a false sense of confidence in some older learners that is gained simply by their having successfully completed an organized course of training. Study findings lead to recommendations emphasizing the importance of promoting resilient skills capacity in the teaching domain by older adults by means of a variety of skills‐preservation program techniques inlcuding the provision of educational seminars, “retooling” sessions, and reunion programs subsequent to the offering of the initial teacher training program.     

LEARNING COHERENT MATHEMATICS THROUGH SEQUENCES OF MICROTASKS: MAKING A DIFFERENCE FOR SECONDARY LEARNERS

We report on the work of 3 schools which set out to make a difference for their previously low-attaining students. Through naturalistic enquiry over 3 years, we built a picture of their practices. Against a national trend, students reported positive attitudes to mathematics and, in 2 out of 3 schools, showed improvement in attainment, so we probe more deeply into the teaching. The lessons broadly conformed to an approach combining inclusive participation with complex and coherent development of mathematical ideas. To understand how the teachers orchestrated this, we developed lesson analysis techniques that focus on how thinking, repertoire and understanding are scaffolded by teachers through sequences of microtasks.     

EDUCATION FOR OLDER ADULTS: OUT OF THE COLLEGE AND INTO THE COMMUNITY

On investigation of Union College, a two‐year college in New Jersey, it was discovered that senior citizens failed to take advantage of free college classes, for deep‐seated psychological as well as logistical reasons. In 1979, the college launched a program of bringing classes to older Americans in their own settings (Y's, churches, senior housing complexes, etc.) in subjects and at times of their own choosing. Clearly meeting a great need, the program expanded until it reached nearly 600 students in 25 classes. Success is in large part due to the work of skilled, compassionate teachers. An ongoing teacher‐training regime with emphasis on gerontology keeps them abreast of new techniques and ensures a continuing exchange of ideas. In the course of this training, it has become evident that much remains to be learned about education and the older adult. As a consequence, a joint research project of Union College and the Rutgers University Institute of Aging has been planned, with the Union College classes serving as a field test of the program and more generally of the impact of education on older Americans.     

DEVELOPMENT, VALIDATION, AND USE OF A GREEK-LANGUAGE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR ASSESSING LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS IN GRADE 10 CHEMISTRY CLASSES

This study describes the development and validation of a Greek-language instrument that can be used to assess grade 10 students' perceptions of their chemistry classroom environment as a means of showing differences between chemistry learning environments in Greece (Attica) and Cyprus. The development of the instrument was based on available learning environment questionnaires. The questionnaire was administered to 1,394 students from 49 chemistry classes in Attica, and the resulting data were analyzed to explore the reliability and the validity of the new instrument. The validated questionnaire was administered to 225 students from 15 classes in urban areas of Cyprus. The data analyses supported the questionnaire's internal consistency, discriminant validity, and ability to differentiate between classrooms. Effect sizes and independent samples t test analyses revealed differences between the two samples. Cypriot students viewed their chemistry classroom environment more favorably than did the Attica students. A possible cause for this difference could be the knowledge-centered aspect of the grade 10 chemistry curriculum in Greece compared to the corresponding tool-instrumental knowledge curriculum in Cyprus.     

TECHNOLOGY AND TESTING: STATE OF THE ART AND TRENDS FOR THE FUTURE

Until recently, computers and computer related technology have been used in testing primarily to provide large scale programs with cost effective scoring and reporting. However, the "microcomputer revolution" is beginning to have a significant impact on how technology is being employed in testing. The present paper reviews a number of existing applications where microcomputers have been successfully employed in the context of testing. Then, future trends in both technology and instruction are examined for possible impact upon testing.     

OLDER ADULTS' PARTICIPATION IN UNIVERSITY CLASSES: COGNITIVE,MORALE, AND FAMILY CORRELATES

The number of older adults taking advantage of courses offered by institutions of higher learning is increasing. Despite this trend in university and college enrollment, educators know little about the reasons why adults aged 55 years and over are making the decision to return to school. This paper describes the results of an exploratory study about: (1) educational motivations of older students; (2) effect of involvement in university classes on older adults' attitude toward aging; and (3) impact of older individuals' participation in university classes on marital relations.

Interviews were_ conducted with twenty‐one married couples, aged 55 years and older (X = 68.54), with one spouse attending university classes. In order to compute life satisfaction analyses, a control sample was secured. This group consisted of 33 married couples, 55 years and over (X = 70.93), with neither spouse participating in continuing education.

Results indicated that older students viewed intrinsic learning goals to be significantly more important than extrinsic incentives (p<.01). Student couples reported significantly more positive attitudes toward growing older than did nonstudent couples (p<.05). Although participation in university classes had only a minimal impact on members' marital interaction, student couples express satisfaction with this effect.

Recommendations suggested the construction of assessment measures of older adults' self‐initiated versus externally reinforced learning goals. It is advised that pre‐ and posttest interview schedules be used when determining the impact on family solidarity of older adults' pursual of further learning. Future research is suggested which explores whether participation in continuing education provides skills or information for older persons to adjust to their changing environments which in turn would have an influence on level of morale.     

THE ACTIVE INGREDIENTS IN HUMOR: PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL BENEFITS AND RISKS FOR OLDER ADULTS

Humor produces psychological and physiological effects on our body that are similar to the health benefits of aerobic exercise. These benefits are some of the best kept secrets from those persons who probably have the most to gain from that information - older adults. Many of them who must live with chronic pain, arthritis, rheumatism, emphysema, memory loss, depression, and stress may be able to cope better with their conditions or find temporary relief by using humor. This article presents an up-to-date, comprehensive synthesis of 30 years of research evidence on 15 psychophysiological benefits of humor and laughter with their implications for older adults. The specific risks for this growing segment of the population also are identified. Strategies for communicating this information through publications and formal presentations by health educators working in gerontology are suggested. A curriculum outline is provided for use in developing short, feature presentations or integrating the content into existing exercise and health-related courses and programs. If these efforts are effective, eventually the health benefits of humor and laughter will be as familiar to our senior citizens as the risk factors associated with heart disease and smoking.     

CLASSROOMS AND CULTURE: THE ROLE OF CONTEXT IN SHAPING MOTIVATION AND IDENTITY FOR SCIENCE LEARNING IN INDIGENOUS ADOLESCENTS

Many rural indigenous communities rely on science knowledge and innovation for survival and economic advancement, which requires community members to be motivated for learning science. Children in these communities have been viewed by some as unmotivated due to their low science achievement as they progress in school, particularly into majority secondary schools. Current theories of motivation, such as achievement goal theory, take classroom context into account when examining individual motivation. However, motivational climate can also be considered as tightly woven with the cultural and social practices of a community rather than individual perception. In this study, researchers spent time in two indigenous villages observing classrooms, participating in community events, and talking with community members. During those visits, Attayal/Sediq children in Taiwan (n?=?18) and Mopan Mayan children in Belize (n?=?18) participated in three semi-structured interviews about their experience learning science in school, home, and community. Results indicate that motivation for learning science is closely linked with their identity as science learners. Three themes emerged to illuminate how social practices may or may not support individual identity, and consequently motivation, for learning science—student/teacher relationships, support for learning, and motivational climate. Differences between children in Taiwan and Belize are explored. Implications for motivation theory, educational practice, and policy are discussed.     

北京市残疾儿童、少年随班就读调查报告

大力开展残疾儿童少年随班就读是普及残疾儿童义务教育的需要。它既符合国情，是发展残疾儿童少年义务教育的主要形式，也符合国际上残疾儿童少年教育发展的大趋势。“七五”中期至“八五”期间，北京市在开展盲、低视力、聋和重听以及轻度弱智儿童随班就读方面进行了较为广泛的实验。这次对随班就读工作的全面调查和分析，为贯彻北京市特殊教育“九五”发展规划中提出的“巩固、发展、完善、提高”一方针，使北京市残疾儿童随班就读工作发展到一个新的水平，提供借鉴和参考。     

天津市残疾儿童、少年随班就读调查报告

通过典型调查，就天津市九年义务教育的基本情况、现有的特殊教育评估体系、随班就读的规模、安置形式、分布情况及各界的态度反映和对随班就读的教学、管理、评估与师资培训等十二个方面问题进行研究，反映出天津市随班就读效果的实际情况，并通过调查探索残疾儿童少年成功随班就读的决定因素，为推广随班就读的原则、措施、方法提供理论依据，促进这项事业更快发展。