Developing Scientific Literacy in a Primary School

The science education literature demonstrates that scientific literacy is generally valued and acknowledged among educators as a desirable student learning outcome. However, what scientific literacy really means in terms of classroom practice and student learning is debatable due to the inherent complexity of the term and varying expectations of what it means for learning outcomes. To date the teacher voice has been noticeably absent from this debate even though the very nature of teacher expertise lies at the heart of the processes which shape students' scientific literacy. The research reported in this paper taps into the expertise of (participating) primary teachers by analyzing the insights and thinking that emerged as they attempted to unravel some of the pedagogical complexities associated with constructing an understanding of scientific literacy in their own classrooms. The research examines the processes and structures within one primary school that were created to provide conditions to allow teachers to explore and build on the range of ideas that presently inform the scientific literacy debate. The research reports these teachers' views and practices that shaped their actions in teaching for scientific literacy.     

Oregon Teacher Pathway: Responding to National Trends

ABSTRACT

National population trends demonstrate a shift in the U.S. ethnic population, similar to changes in the ethnic landscape of U.S. public schools. However, the teaching landscape has not adjusted to align with student demographics. Research highlights the academic and social/emotional benefit for students of color who experience having a teacher of color during their education. Therefore, it is valuable to consider frameworks for increasing the number of teachers of color in the educational landscape. Although there are initiatives for supporting these efforts in urban communities, rural communities often are not seen as having much need in this area. The authors of this article present literature and findings on the impact and needs for diversifying teacher education, and then outline a self-study of the Oregon Teacher Pathway (OTP) as a framework that takes into consideration promising practices for recruiting and supporting preservice teachers of color in rural eastern Oregon and other rural and urban communities.     

The ‘punk rock principal’: a metaphor for rethinking educational leadership

ABSTRACT

This paper advances an alternative leadership metaphor of ‘punk rock leadership’. I work through the usefulness of a metaphor of punk rock leadership as a way of exploring one principal's vision of leadership and his efforts to work outside of system expectations in his quest to achieve the school's goals. In doing so, I contribute to our wider understanding of the methodological process, affordances, and challenges of using metaphors to theorise empirical data. Empirically, this paper contributes to critical research into principals’ practices in times of change, and to notions of power and leadership discourses in schools.     

The growing (but still limited) importance of evidence in education policy and practice

The last decade of education change has been characterized by the rise of evidence-based policy and practice agendas. Internationally, we are witnessing efforts to increase and incorporate research use in public services. This article examines efforts in education to address the research–practice gap through an emerging field we term knowledge mobilization (KM). We explore some of the controversy surrounding the use of ‘evidence’, outline national and international KM initiatives and consider some of the issues and challenges that arise from the increased interest in evidence and research use in education. We also assess the current state and desirable future directions of efforts to strengthen the role of research and evidence in education.     

A season-long team-building intervention: examining the effect of team goal setting on cohesion

The purpose of the current study was to determine whether the implementation of a season-long team-building intervention program using team goal setting increased perceptions of cohesion. The participants were 86 female high school basketball players from 8 teams. The teams were randomly assigned to either an experimental team goal-setting or control condition. Each participant completed the Group Environment Questionnaire (GEQ; Carron, Brawley, & Widmeyer, 2002; Carron, Widmeyer, & Brawley, 1985), which assessed cohesion at both the beginning and end of the season. Overall, the results revealed a significant multivariate effect, Pillai's trace F(12, 438) = 2.68, p = .002. Post hoc analyses showed that at the beginning of the season, athletes from both conditions did not differ in their perceptions of cohesion. However, at the end of the season, athletes in the team goal-setting condition held higher perceptions of cohesion than athletes in the control condition. Overall, the results indicated that team goal setting was an effective team-building tool for influencing cohesiveness in sport teams.     

Analysis of format duplication in an academic library collection

The issue of format duplication in academic library collections is increasingly complicated and perplexing in an environment of static or dwindling resources, soaring user expectations, dynamic access models, and inconsistent and changing publisher and vendor pricing structures. The problem is further complicated for libraries serving a university with multiple campus locations. This paper surveys recent investigative projects and highlights the work of a Duplicate Formats Task Force at Pennsylvania State University charged with determining the extent and nature of format duplication at that institution.     

Verbal energy: attending to poetry

This paper contends that the current English curriculum does not adequately acknowledge the potential of poetry to make meaning through sound. It reflects on how sound may embody or communicate meaning, and seeks enhanced conceptions of this aspect of poetry for pedagogy and the curriculum. It begins with the attention the mainstream press gave to Seamus Heaney's remarks about Eminem, and progresses to consider Heaney's notion of ‘verbal energy’ in the light of developing conceptions of multimodal ‘new literacies’. It suggests that new approaches could accord with an oral heritage approach to poetry while also acknowledging the influence of the communicational environments pupils experience beyond English classrooms. Throughout, the author draws on material that has informed his on‐going Teacher Training Agency‐sponsored project exploring the ways in which pupils approach poetry as sound, soon to be detailed on web resources for the English teaching community.     

Perceived and experienced stigma among people living with HIV: Examining the role of prior stigmatization on reasons for and against future disclosures

HIV remains a significant health concern entering the fourth decade of the epidemic [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2014. HIV basics. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/basics/index.html], and people living with HIV continue to grapple with stigma. This study uses Leary and Schreindorfer's [1998 Leary, M. R., &; Schreindorfer, L. S. (1998). The stigmatization of HIV and AIDS: Rubbing salt in the wound. In V. J. Derlega &; A. P. Barbee (Eds.), HIV and social interaction (pp. 12–29). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. [Google Scholar]. The stigmatization of HIV and AIDS: Rubbing salt in the wound. In V. J. Derlega &; A. P. Barbee (Eds.), HIV and social interaction (pp. 12 Lekas, H. M., Siegel, K., &; Schrimshaw, E. W. (2006). Continuities and discontinuities in the experiences of felt and enacted stigma among women with HIV/AIDS. Qualitative Health Research, 16, 1165–1190. doi:10.1177/1049732306292284[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]–29 Lekas, H. M., Siegel, K., &; Schrimshaw, E. W. (2006). Continuities and discontinuities in the experiences of felt and enacted stigma among women with HIV/AIDS. Qualitative Health Research, 16, 1165–1190. doi:10.1177/1049732306292284[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage] conceptualization of stigma to explore prior stigmatization on reasons for and against future disclosures. We interviewed HIV+ individuals (N?=?59) and used a combination of deductive and inductive coding to analyze participants’ responses. Deductive codes consisted of four stigma characteristics (pose a threat to others’ health and safety, deviate from group standards, create negative emotional reactions in others, and failure to contribute), experiences of feeling stigmatized due to HIV status (yes or no), and the degree to which HIV stigma was a concern (major, minor, or no concern). Inductive coding identified examples of perceived and experienced stigma and stigma concerns on future disclosure decision-making. Practical implications discuss individual, institutional, and societal stigma-reduction interventions and programs.