Predictive and concurrent relations between literacy skills in Grades 1 and 3: A longitudinal study of Italian children

A sample of 170 Italian children was assessed for reading accuracy, reading speed, text comprehension and spelling in Grades 1 and 3 in order to investigate the concurrent and longitudinal relationships among literacy skills. Main results from multivariate analyses (regression, discriminant and path analyses) indicated that reading speed was the best predictor of later literacy and that spelling was the most stable measure and influenced text comprehension and reading speed. An asymmetry was also observed in the longitudinal relationship between reading and spelling errors, with reading errors predicting later spelling errors and a non-significant result in the opposite direction.     

Concurrent and longitudinal predictors of calculation skills in preschoolers

Early calculation abilities in preschoolers are predictive of mathematics achievement in subsequent grades (e.g., Jordan et al. 2009). Two studies were conducted to evaluate concurrent and longitudinal predictors of early calculation skills. In the first study, 102 preschoolers (57.8 % female; mean age?=?60.57?±?8.66 months) were given vocabulary, language comprehension, and verbal working memory tasks and a test battery that evaluated components of early number competence (quantity comparison, counting, number line, size seriation, semantic knowledge of digits, visual-spatial memory). The children were also asked to complete early calculation tasks, including addition and subtraction calculations. The results of this task constituted the dependent variable. The results showed that vocabulary, size seriation, and visual-spatial memory were significant concurrent predictors of early calculation competence. In the second study, 43 children completed the early number competence battery at time 1 (53.5 % female; mean age?=?59.30?±?3.46 months) and the linguistic and early calculation tasks at time 2, about 10 months later (mean age?=?69.43?±?3.31 months). The analysis of the longitudinal predictors of early calculation showed significant effects for counting and size seriation. The implications for preschool assessment and intervention are discussed.     

Reciprocal longitudinal relations between nonresident father involvement and adolescent delinquency

Using a representative sample of low-income, primarily minority adolescents (N=647, aged 10-14 years at Wave 1), this study examined bidirectional longitudinal relations between nonresident father involvement, defined as contact and responsibility for children's care and behavior, and adolescent engagement in delinquent activities. Autoregressive and fixed effects models found that higher nonresident father involvement predicted subsequent decreases in adolescent delinquency, particularly for youth with initial engagement in delinquent activities. Adolescent delinquency did not predict subsequent changes in father involvement. However, the two factors covaried: As adolescent delinquency increased, so too did father involvement, suggesting that nonresident fathers may increase their involvement in the face of adolescent problem behavior, with this pattern driven primarily by African American families.     

Listening text comprehension in preschoolers: a longitudinal study on the role of semantic components

A longitudinal study analyzed (a) which lower- and higher-level semantic components uniquely predicted listening text comprehension and (b) the nature of the relation (i.e., direct and indirect) between the predictors and listening text comprehension in preschoolers. One-hundred and fifty-two children participated in the present study (68 females; mean age = 4;10 years/months and 5;5 years/months at Time 1 and Time 2, respectively). Participants were administered measures to evaluate listening text comprehension (Time 1 and Time 2) and (a) expressive and receptive word knowledge (lower-level semantic components), and (b) inferential skills and the ability to use context (higher-level semantic components) (Time 1). Verbal short-term and working memory were also included as control variables. Data were analyzed using path analysis models. Results showed that both types of semantic components (a) accounted for unique variance in listening text comprehension at Time 2, with lower-level semantic components explaining a larger proportion of variance than higher-level semantic components; (b) were related to later listening text comprehension through direct and indirect relations. Memory resources did not significantly contribute to listening text comprehension. The results are discussed in light of their theoretical relevance and educational/practical implications.     

Reciprocal relations between achievement goals and academic performance in a collectivist higher education context: a longitudinal study

European Journal of Psychology of Education - This study examined the bidirectional longitudinal relations between achievement goals and academic performance among Chinese college students. The...     

克林顿政府与中美关系的演变

克林顿政府执政初期 ,由于对中国情况不了解 ,以及受大选政治和国内反华势力的影响 ,对华实行“遏制”与“接触”政策 ,不断在人权、贸易、台湾和军售等问题上制造事端 ,使中美关系一直走下坡路 ,并降到中美建交以来的最低点。进入第二任期后 ,克林顿随着个人地位的巩固和政治外交上的成熟 ,在对华政策上所受干扰和压力减少 ,能以务实的态度来处理中美关系 ,对对华政策做出调整 ,用全面接触政策替代了孤立遏制政策 ,从此中美关系进入了较成熟稳定发展的新时期     

Tracking changes in pre-service EFL teacher beliefs in Greece: A longitudinal study

This article reports on a longitudinal study that aims to investigate pre-service EFL teacher beliefs about learning and teaching in Greece. The study attempts to track possible changes in those beliefs during a 3-year teacher education program and explores the impact of teaching practice, in particular, on student teachers’ beliefs. The results indicate that while there is a gradual and sometimes significant development in student teachers’ beliefs during the program, student teachers’ engagement in the teaching practice seems to have a low impact on the development of their beliefs. Those findings are interpreted with reference to the structure and context of the specific teacher education program and can be useful for the design and development of EFL teacher education programs.     

Differential prognosis of reading-disabled children as a function of gender,socieconomic status,IQ, and severity: A longitudinal study

Data from 104 reading-disabled subjects tested on two occasions over an average interval of nearly five years were used to test hypotheses of differential prognosis for reading performance and symbol-processing speed as a function of gender, socioeconomic status, general intelligence, and initial severity. With respect to reading performance, significant main effects due to intelligence and severity were found. Moreover, the interaction between initial severity and test occasion was significant for reading performance due to a greater rate of improvement for the more severely disabled subjects. No evidence was obtained, however, for differential developmental rates as a unction of gender, socioeconomic status, or intelligence for this measure. With regard to symbol-processing speed, significant main effects were found due to gender, intelligence, and severity, whereas developmental rates were found to differ as a function of gender and socioeconomic status.     

Pupils' mathematical performance in grades 3 and 6. A longitudinal study

The main purpose of this study was to analyse how pupils, differing in achievement levels in mathematics, performed operations with numbers and solved mathematical problems. What strategies did they use in different grades when they performed the operations and solved the problems correctly, and what types of errors were involved when they solved an item incorrectly? What types of errors disappear and what types of errors remain at a later grade? Five groups of pupils, comprising a total number of 900, who have shown different developments in mathematical achievement from grades 3 to 6 have been studied. When the pupils solved items correctly they used the same strategies irrespective of their total results. However, when they made errors they used a number of different strategies. The results of this study implicate that it is very essential that the teaching be individualised and built upon how the pupils think when solving mathematical problems.     

A reading level match study of nonword reading skills in poor readers with varying IQ.

This study evaluated the hypothesis that poor readers are characterized by poor nonword reading skills, but that a specific deficit, as opposed to a developmental lag, in nonword reading will be found only in subjects whose reading is discrepant from intellectual ability. To test this hypothesis, we measured nonword reading skills in 93 (64 male, 29 female) third-grade poor readers and 54 (37 male, 17 female) fifth-grade poor readers (with and without reading/IQ discrepancies) who were matched to 147 (81 male, 66 female) nondisabled first graders on word identification skills. Results showed third- and fifth-grade poor readers to be significantly more impaired than word-identification level match first graders on all measures on nonword reading. These findings were not related to the verbal IQ level within the poor reader groups and, thus, provide strong evidence for a deficit in nonword reading skills that is not explained by verbal intelligence.     

A longitudinal study on the uses of mobile tablet devices and changes in digital media literacy of young adults

This study examined whether gaining access to a new digital device enhanced the digital media literacy of young adults and what factors determine such change. Thirty-five young adults were given a mobile tablet device and observed for one year. Participants engaged in an online community, responding regularly to online surveys and discussion forums. Digital media literacy, using multidimensional scales, was measured at the beginning and end of the study. Usage was measured every month to track changes over time. When measured with multiple dimensional scales, the participants’ digital media literacy levels increased over time. Those who used the tablet device for information access and social activities increased their digital media literacy in some dimensions. However, an increase in digital media literacy was not directly related to the time spent on the tablet.     

A longitudinal study of moral reasoning

Several issues concerning Gilligan's model of moral orientations and Kohlberg's models of moral stages and moral orientations were examined in a longitudinal study with 233 subjects (from 78 families) who ranged in age from 5 to 63 years. They participated in 2 identical interviews separated by a 2-year interval. In each interview, they discussed hypothetical dilemmas and a personally generated real-life dilemma, which were scored for both moral stage and moral orientation (both Gilligan's and Kohlberg's typologies). Results revealed few violations of the stage sequence over the longitudinal interval, supporting Kohlberg's moral stage model. Sex differences were almost completely absent for both Gilligan's and Kohlberg's moral orientations, although there were clear developmental trends. Hypothetical and real-life dilemmas elicited different moral orientations, especially in terms of Kohlberg's typology. The interrelations between the 2 models of moral orientations were generally weak, indicating that they are not synonymous.     

The reciprocal relationship between motivation and self-regulation: A longitudinal study on academic performance

While previous studies have examined the single directional effects of motivation constructs in influencing students' use of self-regulatory strategies, few attempts have been made to unravel their interrelationship in a unified framework. In this study we adopt the social cognitive perspective and examine the reciprocal interplay between motivation and self-regulation constructs (as measured by the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory) in influencing academic performance. Based on two waves of measurements obtained from a large sample of undergraduates from a university in Hong Kong, a cross-lagged structural equation model identified significant reciprocal effects whereby students' self-regulation predicted their subsequent motivation. After controlling for prior academic achievement, student motivation was also found to be the strongest predictor of academic performance. The findings from this study have major implications for the importance placed on motivation and self-regulation as means of facilitating academic success.     

研究生教育与社会进步的关系研究

从研究生教育特征和社会进步的内涵以及研究生教育和社会进步的关系等方面,阐述研究生教育对中国社会经济发展和社会进步起了巨大的推动作用,社会进步也推动了研究生教育的可持续发展。     

智力障碍与学习障碍的差异

在日常教育中，患有学习障碍的儿童通常会被误认为是患有智力障碍，或者是真正有智力障碍的儿童被认为只是有某方面的学习障碍，这种误解常常导致患儿不能进行及时有效的治疗，给患儿及家长造成巨大的心理压力。文章通过阐述智力障碍与学习障碍的概念以及发生原因来对智力障碍及学习障碍进行区分，并在此基础上，提出对智力障碍及学习障碍的治疗方法。