Infants as Others: uncertainties,difficulties and (im)possibilities in researching infants’ lives

Increasingly, researchers are trying to understand what daily life is like for infants in non-parental care from the perspectives of the infants themselves. In this article, we argue that it is profoundly difficult, if not impossible, to know how infants experience their worlds with any certainty and, indeed, whether they do or do not possess well-worked out ‘perspectives’ on their experiences. Three key difficulties are discussed: firstly, the difficulty of interpreting non-verbal expressions and behaviour; secondly, the difficulty of knowing whether researchers’ constructions of the ‘infant’s perspective’ align with the infant’s experiences of their world; and, thirdly, the difficulty of providing opportunities for infants to disrupt researchers’ predetermined categories of understanding, meanings and expectations. Because of these difficulties, we argue that research endeavours to understand infants’ experiences in non-parental care should be seen as sites of ethical rather than epistemological practice.     

Playing with popular culture – an ethnography of children's sociodramatic play in the classroom

This article explores how ethnography allows for an understanding of the way children are empowered through the use of popular culture during sociodramatic play. The study discussed was conducted in an inner-city Primary school in regional New South Wales, Australia. The participants were a composite fifth-to-sixth grade class, and the research focused on dramaturgical sessions. The methods were diverse, employing an ethnographic framework, including participant observations, performance and focus groups. The findings reveal that children have a shared knowledge of popular culture that is used during drama to create and perpetuate their own subversive subculture. This process is carried out through children's bricolage of popular texts and use of carnival-like humour. Overall, the article enriches understandings of how children collectively create cultures with their peers through the use of popular culture during improvised drama sessions in the classroom. The article further discusses the associated implications of these cultural processes for pedagogy.     

An ethnography of the outdoor classroom – how teachers manage risk in the outdoors

This article explores the approaches to risk that some teachers adopt when they are involved in facilitating outdoor activities. The research was carried out at a residential outdoor centre as part of a PhD study and a follow-up pilot project. The participants were primary school pupils, their teachers and the centre staff. For the purpose of this article, the term ‘teacher’ is used to refer to both visiting teachers accompanying the school groups and the centre staff. This research was eclectic. It took an ethnographic approach using participant observation and semi-structured interviews to collect a variety of data. Ethnography was considered as the most appropriate for this research because it puts an emphasis on understanding the perceptions and cultures of the people and organisations studied. The findings of the research have shown that, on occasion, teachers take a controlling approach when facilitating outdoor activities in order to manage the perceived risk of being in the outdoors. This tended to result in the disempowerment of the children and put the teachers in a position of power, which had serious implications for the pupils’ learning experience. By giving the children specific instructions, and mainly focusing on maintaining discipline during the activities, teachers do not allow their pupils to workout how to deal with risk. The article argues that this had a negative impact on the educational process by taking away opportunities for learning from the children.     

“You don't look like your profile picture”: the ethical implications of researching online identities in higher education

Social media sites and other contemporary technologies open the possibility for the construction of online identities that are loosely connected to physical bodies; this construction allows individuals to edit their identities constantly, in a continuous process of self-recreation. In parallel, universities utilise printed and electronic media to present themselves in the best light possible through the process of branding, which – it is argued here – constitutes an instance of hyper-real identity assemblage. This article explores the ethical implications of researching brand construction in university advertisements. The authors reflect upon the ethical implications of conducting educational research on university identities when such identities rely on the representations of racially minoritised students. Online identity construction through technology invites a discussion of postmodern notions of self and reality; this article presents an exploration of a postmodern ethics for educational research.     

The case for mixed methodologies in researching the teacher’s use of humour in adult education

Inconsistencies within the literature result in teachers not having sufficient guidance to develop their humour use in support of learning without risking their professionalism. This article argues for more comprehensive evidence to guide teachers’ use of humour, based on mixed methodological approaches. The case is also made for the Interpersonal Communication Competence Model (ICCM) to be used as a consistent theoretical framework when researching teachers’ use of humour. A methodological literature review design is deployed to explore the conceptualisation, methodologies and situational factors within the selected research. The selected research is analysed in accordance with the ICCM’s five key concepts of motivation, knowledge, skills, outcomes and context. Comparisons are made against a depiction of humour based on the ICCM. The analysis reveals a diversity of conceptualisations of humour and different situational factors influencing teachers’ use of humour, and shows that findings conflict with ‘competent communication’. No research studies linked the various influencing factors together to provide all-embracing guidance for teachers. Studies based on mono-methodologies using qualitative or quantitative research designs only appear to provide the teacher with pieces of the jigsaw pertaining to humour use in teaching. Although mixed methodologies have their own design concerns, the author argues that they offer an opportunity to merge multiple situational factors to produce a more accurate representation of humour use within a teaching context. In conclusion, he proposes that future research utilises a mixed methodological approach along with the ICCM to capture supportive and contradictory perspectives of humour use.     

Apprenticeship in England – the continued role of the academic–vocational divide in shaping learner identities

Successive governments have pledged to enhance the quality of apprenticeship in Britain so as to achieve ‘parity of esteem’ with academic study. Yet, at the same time, the discourse of the academic-vocational divide has dominated the academic, policy-maker and practitioner debates. This paper draws on two recent studies designed to explore the learner identities of apprentices on different apprenticeship programmes: motor vehicle maintenance (level 2) and engineering (level 3). Through this work, we are able to explore the role of the academic–vocational divide in identity construction and to challenge assumptions about vocational learners. It will be argued, that, far from being ‘naturally practical’, the young people draw on normative discursive categories in their construction of continuous identities. The findings raise important questions about the UK apprenticeship system as currently conceived, while at the same time drawing attention to the possibility for change.     

The Presence of D-Alanine in Phascolosoma Arcuatum (Sipuncula)

D-Aminoacidsareusuallyviewedasunnaturalisomers.Theyoccuronlyoccasionallyinsizablequantities[1].InPhascolosomaarcuatum,freealanineaccumulatewhenexposedtoenvironmentalstress.Whentheconcentrationofthisaminoacidwastestedusingenzymaticmethods,[2]onlyapproximatelyhalfthetotalamountofalaninedeterminedusinghighpressureliquidchromatography['1wasaccoountedfor.WesuspectthatD-alaninemustbepresentinP.arcuatumataratherhighlevelasD-alaninecouldnotbedetectedbythestandardenzpoaticanalysis,whichisstereospecif…     

Constructing new identities? The role of gender and education in rural girls' life aspirations in Peru

This paper focuses on rural and indigenous girls and their mothers in Peru, examining how they position schooling and education in their current life and future aspirations, in order to better understand girls' increasing participation in education. It is argued here that the high educational aspirations girls and their families have are not only related to the desire to overcome poverty and marginalisation but also to oppressive gender relations. The widening of female roles available to young rural women is impacting on their identities and life projects. The paper shows that these processes are not purely individual but intertwined with intergenerational agreements, family projects, and shared understandings of the changes needed to improve the life of young women, revealing important transformations in rural and indigenous families. The paper analyses qualitative data from boys and girls in three settings and focuses in more detail on three in-depth case studies.     

The premise and promise of inquiry based mathematics in pre‐service teacher education: a poststructuralist analysis

Many teacher educators have recently implemented inquiry based instructional practices into their programs (Crawford & Deer, 1993 Crawford, K and Deer, C. (1993). Do we practise what we preach? Putting policy into practice in teacher education. South Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 21: 111–121. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]; Foss & Kleinsasser, 1996 Foss, D and Kleinsasser, R. (1996). Pre‐service elementary teachers’ views of pedagogical and ­mathematical content knowledge. Teaching and Teacher Education, 12(4): 429–442. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar]; Klein, 1996 Klein M (1996) The possibilities and limitations of constructivist practice in pre‐service teacher education in mathematics Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, Australia  [Google Scholar], 1997 Klein, M. (1997). Looking again at the ‘supportive’ environment of constructivist pedagogy. ­Journal of Education for Teaching, 23(3): 277–292. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar], 1998 Klein M (1998) New knowledge, new teachers, new times in: C. Kanes, M. Goos & E. Warren (Eds) Teaching mathematics in new times (Brisbane, Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia) 295 302  [Google Scholar], 2001 Klein M (2001) Correcting mathematical and attitudinal deficiencies in pre‐service teacher education in: J. Bobis, B. Perry & M. Mitchelmore (Eds) Numeracy and beyond (Sydney, Australia, MERGA) 338 345  [Google Scholar]; Schuck, 1996 Schuck, S. (1996). Reflections on the dilemmas and tensions in mathematics education courses for student teachers. Asia‐Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 24(1): 75–82. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]; Tillema & Knol, 1997 Tillema, M and Knol, W. (1997). Collaborative planning by teacher educators to promote belief changes in their students. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 3(1): 29–46. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]). In mathematics education the promise has been that pre‐service teachers’ socialization into new interactive ways of learning will not only lead to the (re)construction of powerful mathematical ideas and relationships, but that it will facilitate the implementation of these inquiry based practices in the classroom. This promise, however, is not often realized (Foss & Kleinsasser, 1996 Foss, D and Kleinsasser, R. (1996). Pre‐service elementary teachers’ views of pedagogical and ­mathematical content knowledge. Teaching and Teacher Education, 12(4): 429–442. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar]; Tillema & Knol, 1997 Tillema, M and Knol, W. (1997). Collaborative planning by teacher educators to promote belief changes in their students. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 3(1): 29–46. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]). One reading of why this may be so, relying on and made visible through a poststructuralist analytic lens, is (a) that perhaps the pre‐service teachers’ ability to act in inquiry‐based, generative ways in the classroom does not necessarily follow from, but is produced or constituted in, teaching/learning interactions in school and teacher education, and (b) it may be that pedagogic practices in teacher education unintentionally and invisibly reproduce old epistemologies and ontologies that support knowledge transmission and teacher authority over student authored engagement and construction of ideas. In this paper the premise of a rational, autonomous agent of change on which so much of current practice is based is challenged, and the possible implications for teacher education discussed.     

Constructivist learning environments and the (im)possibility to change students’ perceptions of assessment demands and approaches to learning

Recent research shows that, as students interpret the demands of the assessment tasks, they vary their approaches to learning in order to cope with the assessment tasks. Three research questions are central in the present paper: (1) Do students who participate in a constructivist learning environment change their perception of assessment demands towards more deep level demands? (2) Do students in a constructivist learning environment change their approaches to learning towards a more deep approach to learning? (3) Is there a relation between change in approaches to learning and change in the perceptions of the assessment demands? Students following the course ‘Education and psychology’ of the teacher training program at the University of Antwerp completed questionnaires during the first, the second and the final lesson of the course. One questionnaire measured their approaches to learning and the other their general perceptions of the assessment demands. The course ‘Education and psychology’ can be labelled as a ‘constructivist learning environment’ with congruent assessment methods. Results of the paired sampled t-tests indicated that students indeed do change their perceptions of assessment demands towards more deep level demands. However, the results also indicated that students did not change their approach to learning towards a more deep approach. On the contrary, students seem to develop more surface approaches to learning during the course. Correlation analyses indicated that only changes of perceptions of assessment demands towards less surface levels are significantly related to changes in approaches to learning, towards a more surface approach. Results of the stepwise multiple regression analyses indicated that students’ approach to learning at the beginning of the course seems to have a higher impact on the extent to which they change their approach to learning than how students perceive the demands of the assessment within the course. These results point us to the complexity of the relationship between the learning environment, the students’ perceptions of assessment demands, and students’ approaches to learning.     

The future of the humanities in primary schools – reflections in troubled times

ABSTRACT

This article reflects on the implications for practitioners, researchers and policy-makers of the future of the humanities in primary schools in the light of the challenges facing future generations. There is wide divergence in the four jurisdictions of the UK. The humanities are perceived as important, in principle, though curriculum frameworks differ. However, the status of the humanities is often uncertain, in practice, given the current emphasis on outcomes in literacy and numeracy. There is a lack of robust research on how, and by whom, the humanities are taught. The more theoretical articles suggest that the humanities, broadly conceived, are an essential aspect of young children’s education – to enable a deeper understanding of human culture and identity, and to develop the qualities and values needed in a diverse world. Additionally, curricular breadth is required alongside a realisation that narrowly focusing on propositional knowledge is limiting. While this has implications for the whole curriculum, History, Geography and Religious Education have key roles in meeting these aims and in engaging and motivating young children. A stronger policy steer is called for, to ensure that schools give more priority to humanities education, with greater investment in professional development in Initial Teacher Education and beyond.     

Something old,something new,something borrowed,and something Froebel? The development of origami in early childhood education in Japan

ABSTRACT

This study examines how origami has been implemented, practised, and developed in the early childhood education of Japan over the past 140 years. Historically speaking, paper-folding has been part of Japanese symbolic art, craft culture, and religious ceremonial artefacts since paper and paper-folding techniques were first imported from China during the seventh century. By the eighteenth century, paper-folding provided a form of mass entertainment in Japanese society. During the 1870s, paper-folding was dramatically transformed into a pedagogical tool within Japanese kindergartens after Friedrich Froebel’s (1782–1852) kindergarten system and its curriculum was transferred to Japan from the West. “Papier-Falten” (paper-folding) comprised an element of Froebel’s Occupations – which was a series of handiwork activities – in his kindergarten curriculum, whereby various folding techniques and models were derived from European traditional paper-folding and introduced into a Japanese kindergarten curriculum that was associated with the concept of Froebel’s kindergarten. Particularly seen in early childhood education in Japan, what we now call origami developed as a new form of paper-folding. This gradually emerged through the marriage of Western (German) and Eastern (Japanese) paper-folding cultures. The study highlights the benefits and uniqueness of cultural transmission and transformation when developing origami in early childhood education in Japan.     

The accommodation of contested identities: The impact of participation in a practice-based masters programme on beginning teachers’ professional identity and sense of agency

Teachers' professional training and development has been the focus of intense academic and political debate. This paper contributes to this by considering Beginning Teachers' (BTs') self-views of their professional identity. The findings are derived from a mixed methods study with questionnaires (n = 886) and focus groups and interviews (n = 60) with BTs in Wales. Drawing on a socio-cultural approach, the findings illustrate how BTs’ integration of competing professional identities bolstered their sense of professional agency. These findings have salience within a policy context where both teacher education and professional development are increasingly aligned with the narrow organizational objectives of the school.     

The Story of Mathematicians(1)

Isaac Newton (1642～1727), one of the greatest minds of all time and one of the inventors of calculus, did not always act intelligent. As a boy, he was sent to the barn to cut a hole for the cats in     

The Story of Mathematicians(3)

Pythagoras(c.585～500 B.C.E.),the famed Greekwho contributed to geometry and number theory,oncechallenged a student by agreeing to pay him a penny for     

The Power(力量)of Love

亲爱的同学们,看看下面的图,再读读后面的短文,然后请你猜一猜,这九幅图分别对应哪些段落?1)EverydayDonny’sparentsvisithimatthehospital.TheysitnexttoDonny’sbedandtalktohim.ButDonnynevertalkstothem.Hejustsleeps.2)WhenDonny’sfathersays“Rusty,”Donnymoveshisarm.“Rusty!”Donny’sfathersaysagain.AgainDonnymoveshisarm.3)Donny’sparentshaveanidea.Theytellthenurses,“WewanttobringDonny’sdogtothehospital.IsitOK?”Thenursesagreed.4)Thenextday,Donny’sparentsbringRustytothehospital.Whentheyputthe…     

The Story of Mathematicians (2)

Albert Einstein (1879～1955), world famous physicist, inventor of the theory of relativity, was well known for his unconventional dress. He rarely wore socks and sometimes wore overshoes over his bare feet. He also refused to wear hats, even in bad weather, on the promise that if it rained, his hair would dry faster than his hat.