An analysis of program evaluation course content in CSHSE–accredited human services baccalaureate programs

This study examines evaluation course content for undergraduate Human Services programs. Evaluation is not generally considered to be an undergraduate topic, and as a result, there is limited understanding of evaluation course content for undergraduate programs. The increased focus on evaluation in the human service field warrants a targeted review of the preparation and training provided to potential members of the profession, particularly at the baccalaureate degree level. This research examines syllabi for program evaluation courses in baccalaureate level Human Services Programs accredited by the Council for Standards in Human Services Education (CSHSE) to determine whether there is alignment between professional evaluation competencies and human services program evaluation course content. Content analysis of program evaluation course syllabi and cross-case analysis reveals how Human Services program evaluation course content compares with Essential Competencies for Program Evaluators (ECPE)-based standards for professional program evaluators. Implications for education, practice and future research are discussed.     

Investigating the Educational Implications of Embodied Cognition: A Model Interdisciplinary Inquiry in Mind,Brain, and Education Curricula

Much educational neuroscience research investigates connections between cognition, neuroscience, and educational theory and practice without reference to the body. In contrast, proponents of embodied cognition posit that the bodily action and perception play a central role in cognitive development. Some researchers within the field of Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE) explore this theory by researching the impact of sensorimotor activity on academic competencies such as language comprehension, mathematics, and scientific thinking. In this article, I call for this work to be highlighted more centrally in MBE training programs. Toward this end, I model an investigation of the concept of embodied cognition that can be used in MBE curricula with a dual purpose: to train future practitioners in the seminal metaphor of mind as an embodied system, and to demonstrate effective interdisciplinary research, which is critical to advancing the field of Mind, Brain, and Education.     

Educational psychology at the university of Wisconsin

A 44 item questionnaire and free response instrument was given to 280 students selected from two different kinds of introductory educational psychology courses: (a) A “module”; approach involving selection of 3 five‐week modules from a list of such courses; and (b) A specially prepared composite learning and development course covering 1 semester. Analysis of the results lead to the following conclusions: (1) “In theory”; students preferred the module approach; (2) “In practice”; students preferred the composite 1 semester course; (3) The outstanding variable contributing to students’ assessment of relevancy, and teaching procedures, was the instructor. The implication of these findings for innovations in teaching students is discussed.     

现代教育技术在广西高校精品课程建设中的实践与研究

文章通过现代教育技术应用于精品课程建设中的实践与研究,从现代教育技术的理论培训、精品课程的建设培训、网络课程建设、精品课程网站建设等方面阐述了广西高校应用现代教育技术在全区精品课程建设中所取的成果,为今后精品课程建设上升新的台阶提供了可借鉴的经验。     

教育研究的实践定位

教育是一种实践。教育研究是对教育实践的研究。在基础教育领域里,中小学教师是教育实践者。各级教研人员和师范院校中从事教育学教学及研究的教师是教育研究者。教育实践可产生案例,案例经分析、提炼可形成经验,经验经抽象、系统化可形成理论。教育研究是沟通教育实践与教育理论的中介、桥梁。教育研究走向实践的途径可有“校志”和“教师随笔批注”。教育研究者走向实践。应有三点警示。     

School Counselor Preparation to Meet the Guidance Needs of Exceptional Students: A National Study

A representative sample of counselor educators at U.S. universities were surveyed to identify the kinds of curricula school counselor preparation programs use for preparing students to work with exceptional students (ES). Program courses in exceptional student education (ESE), competencies, field experiences, state certification requirements for ESE courses, the degree of importance accorded by counselor educators to prepare graduates to serve ES, and the educators' level of satisfaction with current program requirements were investigated. Sixty‐two percent of the programs surveyed did not offer a specific ESE course; however, 53% of these programs (N = 146) reported that ESE competencies were incorporated in other program courses.     

Analyzing the curricula of doctor of philosophy in educational technology-related programs in the United States

The purpose of this study was to analyze on-campus and online PhD programs in educational technology-related fields in the United States. In particular, it sought to evaluate the most common program titles; core, elective, and research courses based on program curricula. The research design was quantitative content analysis and data were collected from six different sources. The study found 44 institutions offered campus-based degree programs and four offered online degree programs in educational technology-related fields with 27 different program titles. In addition, 324 core courses, 157 elective courses, and 260 research courses were further analyzed. The results revealed that the most common program titles were Curriculum and Instruction, Learning Design and Technology, Instructional Technology, Learning Technologies, Instructional Design and Technology, and Educational Technology. The most common core courses were Instructional Design, Advanced Instructional Design, Curriculum Theory, Needs Assessment, Internship in Instructional Technology, Instructional Systems Design, and Theories of Learning and Instruction. The most common elective courses were Multicultural Education, Foundations of Distance Learning, Educational Foundations, and Message Design. The most common research courses were Quantitative Methods, Qualitative Methods, Qualitative Research, Educational Research Methods, Multivariate Analysis, Introduction to Qualitative Research in Education, and Mixed Methods. Furthermore, this study provided discussion and implications for current study as well as recommendations for future research.     

An assessment of the quantitative skills of students taking introductory college biology courses

Twenty-three mathematical competencies were identified and a 46-item multiple choice test was developed to measure the extent to which students entering introductory college biology courses possessed these competencies. Students enrolled in semester-long introductory courses for science majors and non-science majors were given the test at the beginning and end of the courses. The relationships between the mathematical competencies possessed by students at the beginning of the semester and 15 variables dealing with student characteristics were examined. Also investigated was the relationship between test scores and the type of mathematics courses taken during the semester students were enrolled in the introductory biology courses.     

Educational Psychology: What Do We Teach, What Should We Teach?

Teacher education students sometimes question the value of educational psychology courses even though educational psychology textbooks are primarily concerned with understanding and improving classroom teaching and learning. A survey of current educational psychology textbooks and instructors reveals that (a) most texts cover a wide variety of topics, (b) instructors rate most of these topics as important, (c) there are large variations in depth of coverage among texts, and (d) all texts contain numerous classroom applications. The questionable reputation of the educational psychology course may stem from its broad coverage. A dozen or more topics in one semester may decrease the probability that most students will achieve a solid grasp of any one topic, leaving students uncertain about the course's meaning and applicability. A proposed solution is to offer the introductory course as a two-semester sequence, with the second course offered as an elective.     

The Usefulness of Educational Research for Trainee Teachers' Learning

In this paper the authors argue that subject-related educational research can play an important role in trainee teachers' learning since it provides a disciplined perspective from which trainees can derive new ideas and understandings related to their own developing practice as well as a critical basis from which to formulate, examine and justify their views through reference to a wider, collective pool of experience. However, the authors strongly argue that research will only contribute usefully to trainees' learning provided certain fundamental principles governing the inclusion of research within the structure of the training course as a whole are applied. In the first section of the paper the authors define ten necessary principles which determine the conditions for successful use of research-based ideas in trainees' learning. Research-based ideas introduced on a training course, it is argued, must be seen by trainees, and subject mentors, to have a significant practical relevance with regard to classroom practice. The ideas and arguments must be carefully selected and strategically integrated within a course and must elicit informed critical evaluation. The second half of the paper consists of two illustrative examples of how these principles are applied in the integration of two research-based ideas ('inductive grammar teaching' and 'Interpretations of History') on the Modern Foreign Languages and History PGCE courses at the University of Cambridge School of Education.     

教育技术职业人员教育技术标准的研究——《中国教育技术标准(CETS)研究》项目阶段性成果之四

通过对国内教育技术职业人员教育技术素养文献的研究,提出了教育技术职业人员的教育技术标准,从 5 个维度来规定教育技术职业人员应该具备的教育技术素养;并分别为各级教育技术(电化教育)机构内专业人员和学校教育技术(电化教育)机构内专业人员,以及中小学信息技术课程专职教师制定了相应的绩效指标。     

Effects of early literacy environments on the reading attitudes, behaviours and values of veteran teachers

Research has linked early literacy environments to the attitudes, behaviours and instructional values of reading teachers, but most prior research has addressed preservice or early inservice teachers. This mixed-methods, hypothesis-generating, Q methodology-based study explored the relationship between early literacy environments and the subsequent reading experiences, attitudes and behaviours of a purposive sample of veteran literacy educators. By-person factor analysis identified three empirical profiles of shared reading experiences, attitudes and behaviours: Early Readers Supported by Nurturing Early Literacy Environments; Early Readers Not Supported by Nurturing Early Literacy Environments; and Later Readers Not Supported by Nurturing Early Literacy Environments. Conceptual variables found across all models using qualitative analysis included: Nature of Early Literacy Environments, Early and Later Competence and Appreciation of Reading, Attitudes about the Value of Reading, and Instructional Values and Behaviors in Literacy Education. These models suggest further evidence for the importance of early literacy environments (both home and classroom environments) and provide empirically-derived testable hypotheses for future research.     

密歇根州立大学硕士层次小学教师培养方案评析

美国密歇根州立大学的教育学院有三个硕士层次的小学教师培养方案,即课程与教学专业硕士生方案、教育文科硕士方案和读写教学文科硕士方案。这三个培养方案都招收有教学经验的小学教师和其他相关人员,培养方向具有多样选择性,课程体系的设置门数为10-11门,学分数为30-33学分,学习方式有传统的课堂教学和网络学习两种。培养方案的这些特点对我国小学教师的培养具有多方面的参考价值。     

本科师范生教育科研能力培养研究综述

教育科研能力对教师专业发展和课堂有效教学具有十分重要的意义。但是,在教育教学改革实践中教师的教育科研能力却凸显薄弱,这种状况已经影响到中小学教师专业水平和教育教学质量的有效提升。因此,在职前师范生教育过程中,开设教育科研知识课程和进行教育科研能力培养训练就显得特别重要。近年来,职前师范生教育科研能力培养问题已经得到越来越多学者和专家的关注。概括起来,主要包括以下几个焦点问题：本科师范生教育科研能力的构成要素,本科师范生教育科研能力的现状,本科师范生教育科研能力相对滞后成因,本科师范生教育科研能力培养模式。     

Improving the Research Climate in Social Work Curricula

Abstract

Research courses are associated with performance anxiety and educational insecurity for many social work students. This paper makes the case that student anxiety associated with research courses is rooted in the history of the social work profession, and this history sheds light on the present day climate of research in social work education. The authors suggest that improvement to the research climate in social work education requires an “institutional” response. To that end, this paper describes a committee process that resulted in changes to one school's curriculum policy by revamping student learning objectives for a sequence of five research courses that spanned BSW and MSW programs. The committee produced a continuum of student learning expectations based on Bloom's taxonomy, which represents a logical progression of knowledge and skill competencies as students advance through their course work.     

构建“三位一体”的师范生教育技术能力培养模式研究

教师的教育技术能力是推动教育信息化的重要因素,加强师范生的教育技术能力培养是教育信息化可持续发展的基本要求。针对目前师范生的教育技术能力培养中存在问题,提出构建"现代教育技术课程学习、学科微格教学训练和教育实习"三位一体的师范生教育技术能力培养模式,通过现代教育技术课程学习、微格教学视频点播评价平台和院校协作共同体多种途径,共同提高师范生信息素养、教学技能和信息技术与学科教学整合能力,为适应基础教育信息化发展需要的师范生教育技术能力培养,提供一套行之有效的办法。     

Educational research in Europe

Summary This article is divided into three parts. It begins with an overview of the historical background of educational research as a scientific discipline which emerged in Europe towards the end of the nineteenth century and gives two definitions: the first characterizes educational research as to its content, the second as to its functions. The second part deals, one by one, with the national and international structures of educational research and development. The article ends with a series of views on the prospects for educational research, deliberately looking beyond the European framework. Original language: French Armin Gretler Graduated in sociology at the University of Geneva and took post-graduate courses at the Bologna Centre of the Johns Hopkins University, the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies and at Pittsburgh State University. Vocational education researcher at the International Labour Office (ILO) from 1963 to 1968. Independent researcher from 1968 to 1971. Director of the Swiss Co-ordination Centre for Research in Education (CSRE) in Aarau since 1971. Member of Parliament for the Canton of Aargau from 1979 to 1993, member of that canton's Education Council from 1977 to 1989. Founding member of the Société suisse de recherche en éducation and of the European educational Research Association (EERA). He has published several books and many articles on educational research.     

Using collaborative two‐stage examinations to address test anxiety in a large enrollment gateway course

Large enrollment foundational courses are perceived as “high stakes” because of their potential to act as barriers for progression to the next course or admittance to a program. The nature of gateway courses makes them ideal settings to explore the relationship between anxiety, pedagogical interventions, and student performance. Here, two‐stage collaborative examinations were implemented to improve test‐taking skills and address widespread test anxiety in an introductory human anatomy course. Test anxiety data were collected (using the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire) before the first examination and last examination. Most students experienced decreased test anxiety over the course of the semester; however, some students may have experienced performance limiting conditions due to test anxiety at the end of the semester based on academic ability in the course (in “C” students when compared to “A” students: P < 0.00006 and “B” students: P < 0.05), overall academic ability (in academically weaker students: P < 0.025), and demographic factors (in women: P < 0.025). The strongest performances on examinations were primarily observed in already academically strong students (mean individual performance: P < 0.000, mean group performance: P < 0.000). Furthermore, changes in test anxiety were not significantly associated with the group portion of the examinations. Patterns of changes in test anxiety over the course of the semester underscore a complex interaction between test anxiety, student background, and student performance. Results suggest that pathways for test anxiety in “high stakes” courses may be separate from the mechanisms responsible for the benefits of collaborative testing. Anat Sci Educ 10: 409–422. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.     

Educational Value and Models-Based Practice in Physical Education

Abstract

A models-based approach has been advocated as a means of overcoming the serious limitations of the traditional approach to physical education. One of the difficulties with this approach is that physical educators have sought to use it to achieve diverse and sometimes competing educational benefits, and these wide-ranging aspirations are rarely if ever achieved. Models-based practice offers a possible resolution to these problems by limiting the range of learning outcomes, subject matter and teaching strategies appropriate to each pedagogical model and thus the arguments that can be used for educational value. In this article, two examples are provided to support a case for educational value. This case is built on an examination of one established pedagogical model, Sport Education, which is informed by a perspective on ethics. Next, I consider Physical Literacy which, I suggest, is an existentialist philosophical perspective that could form the basis of a new pedagogical model. It is argued, in conclusion, that a models-based approach along with a reconstructed notion of educational value may offer a possible future for physical education that is well grounded in various philosophical arguments and the means to facilitate a wide range of diverse individual and social educational ‘goods’.     

Research Schools: Grounding Research in Educational Practice

ABSTRACT— Education lacks a strong infrastructure for connecting research with educational practice and policy. The need for this linkage grows as findings in cognitive science and biology become ever more relevant to education. Teachers often lack the background knowledge needed to interpret scientific results, whereas scientists often lack an understanding of pedagogical goals. We need to build an infrastructure that supports sustainable collaboration between researchers and teachers and creates a strong research foundation for education. A primary agent of the lasting collaboration between researchers and practitioners in medicine is the teaching hospital, where researchers and practitioners work together on research that is relevant to practice and the training of young professionals. Education needs analogous institutions—research schools—that join researchers and teachers in living, community‐based schools. In these schools, practice shapes research as much as research informs practice. Research schools will provide a fundamental infrastructure for linking transdisciplinary research on learning with educational policy and practice.