Mental toughness and transitions to high school and to undergraduate study

Mental toughness can be conceptualised as a set of attributes that allow people to deal effectively with challenges, stressors and pressure. Recent work has suggested that it may be a valuable construct to consider within educational settings. The current studies explored the associations between mental toughness and educational transitions. Study 1 examined the relationships between mental toughness and concerns about moving to a new school in 105 children aged 12–13 years of age. The results revealed significant relationships between several aspects of mental toughness, but particularly confidence in abilities, and children’s concerns. Study 2 examined the relationships between mental toughness and adjustment to university in 200 undergraduate students at various stages of their course. The results revealed a role for several aspects of mental toughness; commitment, control of life, control of emotion, confidence in abilities and interpersonal confidence. The results are discussed in terms of implications for educational practice. It is suggested that measures of mental toughness could be used to identify individuals who may benefit from additional support during transition to a new school or to university, and that future research should explore the potential benefits of mental toughness training.     

情感智力在成人素质教育中的作用

当前我国成人高等教育主要是“专长教育”。它对学员的情感智力相对没有给予应有的重视,所以整体上制约了成人受教育者素质的全面发展。探索内省情感智力、人际情感智力、生态情感智力在成人素质教育中的作用和意义,建议把情感智力培养纳入成人素质教育体系,这有利于提高受教育者的整体素质。     

以人为本,构建教师的教育信念

教师教育信念是教师在其人生信念的指导下通过对其在教育教学交互作用中的行为的反思批判、建构并被始终坚信、敬奉和践行的个性化的实践知识体系。以人为本,构建教师的教育信念,对教师专业化发展具有十分重要的意义。     

Developing emotional intelligence competence among teachers

A growing body of research has linked emotional intelligence (EI) to different life aspects, including personal well-being, quality of social relationships and professional effectiveness. In the field of education, EI has been linked to different aspects of school life, such as learning, academic achievements and pro-social behaviours among students and more recently, to effective teaching. The paper reports the qualitative findings of a comprehensive research project which followed a two-year emotional intelligence development programme, as part of teacher-targeted professional development training in one school in Israel. Data is based on 26 in-depth interviews with school teachers. The focus of the study was to explore what impacts an EI training programme might have upon the participants. The findings indicate that EI can be developed in teachers and that the EI training programmes may be effective in bringing about positive EI shifts and related behaviours which may positively impact upon teachers' practice, their sense of meaningfulness and their relations with students.     

A biographical perspective on chicano educational success

The lack of educational success among Latinos has been the focus of much research concerned with identifying factors contributing to school failure. However, some Latinos do achieve educational success and receive college degrees. Their lives can serve as case studies of minority educational success. This study used autobiographical and interview data to construct the life histories of two Chicanos in order to examine their interpretations of their educational experiences and the sociocultural factors which they identified as influencing those experiences. An additional purpose was to provide detailed biographical information which is currently not available on educationally successful Chicanos. A biographical perspective provides a counterbalance to perceptions of the role of sociocultural factors such as ethnicity in the education of minorities which view them as static or unproblematic. When examined within the contexts of lives that undergo transitions across biographical time, the influence of sociocultural factors such as ethnicity is shown to vary and to require an examination of their impact that shifts across educational careers. His research interests include examining relatiponships between literacy, cullure, and socialization in written and oral genres, including the life histories of Chicano educators. He holds a Ph.D. in language and literacy from The Ohio State University Her research and teaching interests focus on bilingual education in Spanish and English. She holds a Ph.D. in curriculum and the study of schooling from UCLA.     

Supporting the Development of Emotional Intelligence Competencies to Ease the Transition from Primary to High School

This study aims to explore (1) whether pupils with high emotional intelligence (EI) cope better with the transition to high school; and (2) whether the introduction of an intervention programme to support the development of EI competencies can increase EI and self‐worth, and so ease the negative effects of transition. Results suggest that pupils with high/average levels of EI cope better with transition in terms of grade point average, self‐worth, school attendance and behaviour than pupils with low EI. In addition, pupils with low baseline EI scores responded positively to the intervention programme, although a negative change was noted in pupils with high baseline emotional intelligence. Results are considered in terms of implications for educational practice.     

“生活·实践”教育的哲学辨识

“生活·实践”教育不仅是一个重要的教育实践策略或路径,更是一个思想方案。它所聚焦的重大理论问题是,教育何以在本质上是“生活·实践”的。在教育本质研究的历史与传统中,教育“真理话语”主要有形而上学-神逻辑、历史-经验逻辑、生活-实践逻辑三种解释范式。“生活·实践”教育理论建立在马克思主义哲学基础之上,具有深厚的本体论意蕴。教育之所以在本质上是“生活·实践”的,是因为人的本质是生成的而非预成的,是在“生活·实践”中生成的,只有在“生活·实践”中,人才能得到自由全面的发展。“生活·实践”教育理论如想建立一个完整的教育观念系统,就有必要在本体论研究上着紧用力。     

风险管理:教育信息化的新课题

教育信息化促进了教育领域在多个层面发生变革,为教育创造更多社会效益奠定可能。教育信息化也为教育过程引入更多风险,这些风险构成制约教育效益产生的重要因素。在教育信息化规划与实施中引入风险管理(Risk Management,RM)的机制,通过风险管理,有效地分析、控制、评估教育信息化中的风险,提高教育信息化的效益,保障教育信息化稳定、持久推进,这将成为未来教育信息化的一项重要研究课题。     

“EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE” IN THE CLASSROOM? AN ARISTOTELIAN CRITIQUE

A bstract .  A recent trend in moral education, social and emotional learning, incorporates the mantra of emotional intelligence (EI) as a key element in an extensive program of character building. In making his famous claim that the good life would have to include appropriate emotions, Aristotle obviously considered the schooling of emotions to be an indispensable part of moral education. However, in this essay Kristján Kristjánsson casts doubt on the assumption that Aristotelians should approve of the clarion call for EI, as understood by Daniel Goleman and the proponents of social and emotional learning, in the classroom. Various marked differences between EI and Aristotelian emotional virtue are highlighted and explored. Kristjánsson argues that the claims of EI lack moral ballast and that when this fact is added to an existing heap of educational problems attached to the implementation of EI programs, educators had better rethink their reliance on EI as a model of emotion cultivation, and perhaps revert to the teachings of Aristotle himself.     

重心转移与问题转换——改革开放以来教育理论与实践关系研究之研究

改革开放以来,人们对教育理论与实践关系进行了持续而广泛的讨论。在关注重心上,这些讨论经历了从＂教育理论＂到＂教育实践＂的转移,而在提问方式上则从＂教育理论怎样联系实际（实践）＂转向＂教育理论如何走向实践＂、从＂如何建构面向实践的教育理论＂转向＂教育实践者如何建构理论＂。在梳理有关上述问题讨论的基础上,认为有关教育理论与实践关系的研究仍需进一步凸显＂专业视野＂,走向＂实践分析＂,关注＂中国语境＂。     

Child labour and educational success in Portugal

The current debate on child labour focuses on developing countries. However, Portugal is an example of a relatively developed country where child labour is still a matter of concern as between 8% and 12% of Portuguese children may be classified as workers. This paper studies the patterns of child labour in Portugal and assesses the consequences of working on the educational success of Portuguese children. The analysis controls for typically unobserved attributes such as a child's interest in school and educational ambitions and uses geographical variation in policies designed to tackle child labour and in labour inspection regimes to instrument child labour. We find that economic work hinders educational success, while domestic work does not appear to be harmful. Furthermore, after controlling for a host of socio-economic variables, factors such as a child's interest in school and educational ambitions have a large effect on boosting educational success and reducing economic work.     

Mindsets That Promote Resilience: When Students Believe That Personal Characteristics Can Be Developed

Because challenges are ubiquitous, resilience is essential for success in school and in life. In this article we review research demonstrating the impact of students’ mindsets on their resilience in the face of academic and social challenges. We show that students who believe (or are taught) that intellectual abilities are qualities that can be developed (as opposed to qualities that are fixed) tend to show higher achievement across challenging school transitions and greater course completion rates in challenging math courses. New research also shows that believing (or being taught) that social attributes can be developed can lower adolescents’ aggression and stress in response to peer victimization or exclusion, and result in enhanced school performance. We conclude by discussing why psychological interventions that change students’ mindsets are effective and what educators can do to foster these mindsets and create resilience in educational settings.     

Educational software usability: Artifact or Design?

Online educational technologies and e‐learning tools are providing new opportunities for students to learn worldwide, and they continue to play an important role in anatomical sciences education. Yet, as we shift to teaching online, particularly within the anatomical sciences, it has become apparent that e‐learning tool success is based on more than just user satisfaction and preliminary learning outcomes—rather it is a multidimensional construct that should be addressed from an integrated perspective. The efficiency, effectiveness and satisfaction with which a user can navigate an e‐learning tool is known as usability, and represents a construct which we propose can be used to quantitatively evaluate e‐learning tool success. To assess the usability of an e‐learning tool, usability testing should be employed during the design and development phases (i.e., prior to its release to users) as well as during its delivery (i.e., following its release to users). However, both the commercial educational software industry and individual academic developers in the anatomical sciences have overlooked the added value of additional usability testing. Reducing learner frustration and anxiety during e‐learning tool use is essential in ensuring e‐learning tool success, and will require a commitment on the part of the developers to engage in usability testing during all stages of an e‐learning tool's life cycle. Anat Sci Educ 10: 190–199. © 2016 American Association of Anatomists.     

From IDEA to Implementation: A Discussion of Foundational and Future Responsiveness‐to‐Intervention Research

The IDEA reauthorization of 2004 highlights the application of responsiveness to intervention (RTI) to both early intervention (EI) service delivery and learning disabilities (LD) identification practices, creating the potential for wide‐scale execution. Implementation of any educational reform necessitates more than simply changing practices: It is important to understand the foundation upon which the reform stands, as well as the questions yet unanswered by research. This review of literature, therefore, emphasizes what is known about RTI as well as what remains to be learned, beginning with foundational concepts—model iterations—and moving to applications—EI and LD identification. Ultimately, the complexities of the RTI construct, with its potential for systemic change, necessitate a partnership between researchers and practitioners to both implement and further investigate RTI on a wide scale.     

思想政治教育中的交往困境

交往作为马克思主义理论的重要哲学范畴,是审视思想政治教育得失的重要视角。结合马克思主义交往理论和思想政治教育实践,研究发现在当前思想政治教育中,存在着主体间性异化、生活性交往异化和精神性交往缺失的困境。     

“新教育实验”的基本理论与实践探索

作为一项综合性、整体性、长期性的改革实验,新教育实验追求这样四重教育境界;成为学生享受成长快乐的理想乐园;成为教师实现专业发展的理想舞台;成为学校提升教育品质的理想平台;成为新教育共同体的精神家园和共同成长的理想村落。新教育实验的核心理念是:为了一切人,为了人的一切。其基本观点是:无限相信学生与教师的潜力;交给学生一生有用的东西;重视精神状态,倡导成功体验;强调个性发展,注重特色教育;让师生与人类崇高精神对话。新教育实验的探索和实施可归纳为“六大行动”,即营造书香校园、师生共写随笔、聆听窗外声音、双语口才训练、建立数码社区、构建理想课堂。     

基于SLOODLE平台的分布式虚拟学习系统的教育应用初探

把具有分布式虚拟学习环境特性的Secondlife与拥有灵活课程活动配置功能的MOODLE进行整合,将为在网络教学中的学习者增强感知性和交互性,创建情境式教学环境,实现个性化学习等方面发挥重要作用。文章简要介绍了SLOODLE这一有效整合上述两大平台的三维分布式虚拟学习系统,剖析了系统的组成结构及主要教育功能模块,最后分析了它所具备的教育价值。     

Relationships of personality,affect, emotional intelligence and coping with student stress and academic success: Different patterns of association for stress and success

The associations of personality, affect, trait emotional intelligence (EI) and coping style measured at the start of the academic year with later academic performance were examined in a group of undergraduate students at the University of Edinburgh. The associations of the dispositional and affect measures with concurrent stress and life satisfaction were also examined. The survey was completed by 238 students, of whom 163 gave permission for their end-of-year marks to be accessed. Complete data for modelling stress and academic success were available for 216 and 156 students respectively. The associations of academic success and stress differed, and high stress was not a risk factor for poor academic performance. Further analyses were based on the extraction of three composite factors (Emotional Regulation, Avoidance and Task Focus) from the EI and coping subscales. Structural equation modelling showed that academic performance was predicted by Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, positive affect and the Task Focus factor. Modelling for stress and life satisfaction showed relationships with personality, affect, and the Task Focus and Emotion Regulation factors. The Task Focus factor played a mediating role in both models, and the Emotion Regulation factor acted as a mediator in the model for stress and life satisfaction. The theoretical interpretation of these results, and their potential applications in interventions targeting at-risk students, are discussed.     

论教育理论的特性及其价值实现

教育理论以一种不具有普遍操作性的抽象形态存在于人类教育生活中。教育理论是一种部分化的理论,难以面对整体化的教育实践;教育理论具有独特的话语形式和规则,缺乏直接进入教育实践的操作性知识。教育理论缺乏刚性的抽象特性,直接决定着其价值实现途径的独特性。