Arthur,James et al ed (2012) Research methods and methodologies in education Sage (London & Thousand Oaks CA) isbn 978‐0‐85702‐039‐0 456 pp £26.99 (paper and e‐versions; boards £75) http://www.sagepub.co.uk/arthur

Aimed at postgraduates within education and educational research methods courses, this book integrates the theoretical and practical aspects of educational research. It journeys through designing, planning and conducting research to analytical techniques, impact and dissemination. Whether you are a new educational researcher or more established, you might find your own copy of this book useful for in‐depth study or for reference: borrow a copy to help you decide. Nancy El‐Farargy     

中国智力障碍者生活质量核心指标的再研究

智力障碍者生活质量已成为国际社会研究的热点之一。我们对中国智力障碍者生活质量进行了跨文化研究。前期研究确定中国智力障碍者生活质量有七个主要成分,本次研究是对前期研究的深入。本次研究有以下新发现,智障者本人与家长和教师在对智障者生活质量核心指标方面有较大差异,智障者本人在生活质量方面反映出7个指标、家长在对智障者生活质量方面反映5个核心指标、教师在对智障者生活质量方面反映3个核心指标,智障者本人、家长和教师都认为健康是智障者生活质量中最重要的指标。研究结果给我们的重要启示是:以人为本,尊重智力障碍者的自身愿望,充分了解他们的需求,是提高他们的生活质量的重要前提。     

ECA's seventy‐fifth anniversary volume: A special review

In this special book review, Communication Quarterly's Book Review Editor, Gerald M. Phillips, assesses the volume commissioned by the Eastern Communication Association to commemorate ECA's seventy‐fifth anniversary. Designed to reflect the diversity of the discipline of communication, part one is composed of twelve chapters and surveys contemporary research and theory in rhetoric, the social sciences, oral interpretation, freedom of speech and civil liberties, media and speech education. Part two, composed of five chapters, provides an overview of the organizational and conceptual issues guiding the way in which this profession organizes its knowledge. Professor Phillips concludes that, “It is a book we can be proud of, because it is well done by first‐rate scholars.”     

普通学前教育专业开设国学教育课程的研究——以泊头职业学院为例

传统蒙学教育有许多优秀的教学经验需要继承和发扬。课题组结合学前教育专业课程特点和学生的实际生活编写了《国学教育课程》校本教材,通过教学实践,学生得到了很好的思想教育和传统文化的熏陶,其思想、行为习惯等多个方面有了明显的改善,教学实践促进了学生的成长,为他们将来从事幼儿园教学工作奠定了良好的基础。     

Lies,damn lies,and statistics revisited a comparison of three methods of representing change

Numerous authors have argued that change is fundamental to the education process, and that the measurement of change is an essential element in efforts to assess the quality and effectiveness of postsecondary education. Despite widespread support for the concept of studying student growth and development, many researchers have been critical of existing methods of representing change. Intended for assessment practitioners and educational researchers, this study examines three methods of measuring change: (1) gain scores, (2) residual scores, and (3) repeated measures. Analyses indicate that all three methods are seriously flawed, although repeated measures offer the greatest potential for adequately representing student growth and development.Paper Presented at the Thirty-First Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, San Francisco, May 26–29 1991.Approximately 10 percent of the cost of this research was supported by a $2000 grant from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) via the AAHE Assessment Forum.Part of the title for this paper is borrowed from Michael Wheeler (1976),Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics: The Maniupulation of Public Opinion in America, New York, Dell.     

Asian medical students: quality of life and motivation to learn

Issues linked with the notions of quality of life (QOL) and motivation to learn among Asian medical students have not been well documented. This is true in both the international and the New Zealand contexts. Our paper addresses this lack of research by focusing on the QOL of international and domestic Asian students studying in New Zealand, where Asian students form a significant proportion of tertiary students. Although there is evidence to suggest that Asian students do well academically, it was felt that an investigation into their QOL would be instructive as QOL will likely have an impact on cognition, behavior, general well-being, and motivation. The present study surveyed fourth- and fifth-year medical students to examine the relationship between QOL and motivation to learn and to consider how Asian medical students compare against European medical and non-medical student peers. The study utilized the World Health Organization—Quality of Life questionnaire (BREF version) and a shortened version of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire. The results show that the Asian medical students in this study generated significantly lower scores in terms of their satisfaction with social relationships compared with their non-Asian peers. In addition, international Asian medical students appear to be more at risk than domestic Asian students with respect to test anxiety. The paper considers the findings and the implications for quality of life, motivation to learn, medical education, and the Asian student community.     

Jung,Insung & Latchem,Colin ed (2012) Quality assurance and accreditation in distance education and e‐learning Routledge (New York & London) isbn 978‐0‐415‐88735‐9 285 pp $44.95http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415887359/

Informative, useful, and with practical inputs on quality assurance and accreditation in open, distance and e‐learning education, this book is worthy to be consulted by teachers, researchers, quality technicians, practitioners, and policy makers. If the content of this book is likely to be relevant to you, you should arrange to borrow a copy for a while. Ramesh Sharma     

论终身教育和学习思潮下的学校教育改革

终身教育和终身学习已成为当代世界性的一种重要教育思潮,体现了一种新的教育观念,学校教育必须顺应这种思潮,以终身教育和终身学习为指导进行全面的改革,充分认识学校教育是“基础与发展”的统一,一方面要为人适应社会生产和生活奠定良好的基础;另一方面,要考虑人的终身学习与发展,为人的一生发展打下基础,根据终身和学习思潮的要求不断进行改革,就必须大力调整教育结构,改革教学内容,转变教育观念,并转变教师教书育人的模式与方法。学校教育要主动沟通家庭和社会教育,建立三位一体的教育网络,以培养基础扎实、眼界开阔、适应能力强,有创新精神的高质量人才。     

中小学德育教材研究二十年:回顾与前瞻

以往研究在德育教材编写的理念、德育教材的功能和定位、优秀传统文化与社会主义核心价值观融入德育教材的路径等方面提出了一些富有新意和价值的观点,值得肯定。但是,以往研究也存在一些不足。在研究基础方面,教材编写理念研究成果丰富,教材基础理论研究薄弱;在研究视角方面,侧重教材编写者视角的研究,忽视教材使用者视角的研究;在研究内容方面,教材内容研究分散,基于课程标准的教材研究欠缺;在研究范围方面,注重教材编写研究,忽视教材建设其他方面的研究;在研究深度方面,重视个别国家教材的介绍,缺乏对其深度反思;在研究方法方面,多采用常规方法,较少运用教材研究常用方法。基于以往德育教材研究的问题以及德育教材的时代境遇,未来德育教材研究要加强基本理论研究、关注德育教材的使用研究、侧重基于课程标准的德育教材研究、拓展德育教材的研究范围、增进对国外德育教材研究的深度反思、重视运用教材研究常用方法。     

俄罗斯军校校园文化建设的特点与启示

知识育人、教学育人和管理育人等传统教育方式在当今世界主要国家的军事院校得到普遍运用.文化育人,用校园文化建设推动军校学员人文素质的全面提高,是一种新的教育理念,也是提高军校学员综合素质的有效途径.本文介绍了俄罗斯军校校园文化建设的特点,指出了其对我军校园文化建设的启示和意义.     

Cognitive Styles: an integrated model

Abstract Cognitive styles are potentially useful in education as a means of characterizing stable individual differences that influence the effectiveness of teaching and learning. However, anyone interested in using styles in either research or practice is faced with a literature that is not only disorganized but also dated. Little basic research is being done to clarify the conceptual and measurement problems that bedevil the field. One way to revive interest in basic research would be to link ‘traditional’ conceptions of cognitive styles with the more vigorous field of cognitive psychology. This might result in new ways of conceptualizing individual styles, as well as resolving the problem of the relationships between styles. In this paper, I take a step in this direction by integrating some of the more common conceptions of cognitive styles into an information processing model of cognition.     

Case studies of gifted kindergarten children part II: The parents and teachers

Early life experiences can powerfully impact attitudes toward learning and later achievements in education. The chances for optimal development of children with special needs, including the gifted and talented, can be enhanced with identification and intervention at an early age. This paper reports on investigations into the lives of five gifted kindergarten students utilizing a case‐study methodology, which yielded themes relating to intellectual, achievement, social, affective, physical, aesthetic, and creative domains (discussed in Part I, published in Roeper Review, volume 26, pp. 192‐207). This paper, Part II, will discuss parental and teacher influences.     

论微博对大学生思想政治教育工作的影响及其对策

微博作为一种新型的网络交互平台,深受大学生的喜欢,并深刻地影响着大学生的生活方式和认知行为。微博的广泛运用,给高校思想政治教育既带来积极作用,同时不乏消极影响。如何充分发挥微博带来的机遇、应对其挑战,成为今后高校思想政治教育的重要研究目标。首先高校要建立大学生思想政治教育的微博交流平台;其次,思想政治教育工作者要更新教育理念;最后,要加强大学生网络素质教育,正确使用微博。     

Fairness in Measurement and Selection: Statistical,Philosophical, and Public Perspectives

Selection decisions have a major impact on our education, occupation, and quality of life, and the role of standardized tests in selection has always been a source of controversy. Here, I consider various definitions of fairness in measurement and selection—those emerging from within educational measurement and statistics, those from philosophy, and finally, those from the public. I use examples of public challenges to selection practices to illustrate the fact that technical and philosophical definitions of fairness do not align well with public concerns. I emphasize the importance of promoting awareness of existing standards, advocating for the fair use of testing and selection practices, and communicating in a candid and straightforward way when engaging with test takers and test users.     

Stability of the AAMD adaptive behavior scale,public school version

For a sample of 49 regular class children, test-retest stability was investigated for domains and subdomains of the AAMD Adaptive Behavior Scale, Public School Version. Satisfactory indices of reliability were obtained for all Part One domains except Vocational Activity (r=.43), and for all Part One subdomains except two, Care of Clothing and Dressing and Undressing. Part Two, however, evidenced good reliability coefficients for only three of the 11 domains studied. Moreover, there was a tendency for Part Two retest ratings to be lower (less deviant) than original ratings. These findings suggest that Part One scores are stable and therefore potentially useful, but Part Two domains may lack discriminative power and stability when used with regular class children.     

Mana Wahine and Washday at the Pā

Abstract

Washday at the Pā (‘pā’ is used colloquially by Pākehā to refer to a Māori settlement) is the title of an old schoolbook, a picture reading book for younger schoolchildren, which was produced in 1964 by the state education system in Aotearoa-New Zealand in 1964, written and photographed by Ans Westra, who later became one of the most famous photographers in the country. Washday at the Pā provoked a national debate when the Minister of Education acceded to protests by the Māori Womens Welfare League against its use in classrooms by withdrawing it completely, and the story of this controversy has remained alive in national consciousness ever since. This research brings Māori feminist philosophy to the Washday debate: I take up Mana Wahine theory as a useful lens on the controversy, understood as an event about, with and for women, in the history of Māori education. The purpose of this article is to reread, using Mana Wahine theory, existing arguments about the book’s withdrawal, and to propose an original resolution of the question at the centre of debate: should the book have been withdrawn from schools, or not?     

Designing a Utopia: An Architectural Studio Experience on David Harvey's Edilia

The design of a utopia was devised as a studio project in order to bring critical thinking into the design studio and to stimulate creativity. By suggesting a utopia, the pedagogical aim was to improve progressive thinking and critical thought in the design education of architectural students — and also future architects. From this perspective, the utopia called Edilia, from the book Spaces of Hope by the critical geographer David Harvey, was taken as a basis for the students to design a utopic environment. In addition to Harvey's book, students were not only challenged by the idea of an alternative society but also by the idea of a different space. Utopia, as an inter‐disciplinary subject, brought various issues and different perspectives into the design studio such as public and private realms, everyday life, work, leisure, nature, technology and sustainability. With the help of the concept of utopia, a theoretically‐informed design studio enabled students to criticise the existing world, dream about an alternative one and make the design of their dreams in a creative way.     

Andrew,Michael D & Jelmberg,James R ed (2010) How teachers learn Peter Lang (New York & Bern) isbn 978‐1‐4331‐0842‐6 220 pp $35.95http://www.peterlang.com/download/datasheet/54201/datasheet_310842.pdf

The book describes a five‐year teacher education programme at US's University of New Hampshire (unh ). It includes several research articles about what supports the programme, especially the internship (teaching practice) component, which is a full year long. The book is useful for educators especially those involved in teacher training and preparation. If the content of this book is likely to be relevant to you, I recommend that you arrange to borrow a copy for a while. Othman N Alsawaie     

高职院校党委书记应牢固树立的四个观念

全面提高高等教育质量,是党中央、国务院作出的重大决策,是教育规划纲要提出的明确要求.要全面提高教育质量,在党政班子中具有核心作用的高职院校党委书记,必须进一步转变思想观念,以科学发展观为指导,深刻理解高职教育的基本特性和阶段性特征,牢固树立科学的教育观、质量观、人才观和发展观,为学院全面提高教育教学质量提供引领,建立保障.     

Promoting a Just Education: Dilemmas of rights,freedom and justice

This paper identifies and addresses some dilemmas to be faced in promoting educational projects concerned with human rights. Part of the difficulty that human rights education initiatives must cope with is the way in which value has been historically conferred upon particular notions such as freedom and justice. I argue here that a just education must grapple head‐on with the conceptual dilemmas that have been inherited and refuse to shy away from the implications of those dilemmas. To do this I address the fundamental fictions upon which rights are based and view those fictions as nonetheless useful for opening up the ethical terms of human rights education. With reference to the work of Arendt, Lyotard and Levinas, I conclude that the real potential of human rights education lies in its capacity to provoke insights that help youth live with ambiguity and dilemma, where freedom, justice, and responsibility cannot be dictated to them, but rather involve tough decisions that must be made in everyday life.