Guidance in inquiry-based instruction – an attempt to disentangle a manifold construct

Inquiry-based instruction is an important teaching strategy in science education that can be implemented to achieve different learning goals (e.g. the learning of science content or of inquiry skills and strategies). Inquiry-based instruction is often combined with guidance attempting to assist students to effectively engage in inquiry activities and, through this engagement, reach the intended goals. In recent research, the type and amount of guidance needed to foster student’s learninghas received considerable attention. One challenge in interpreting the results of this line of research is the manifold meanings of the term ‘guidance’ and its implementation in inquiry-based instruction. Moreover, the effectiveness of a particular type and amount of guidance may also depend on the learning goal that is to be achieved. In this paper, we draw on existing research and theoretical considerations in attempting to disentangle three major dimensions in which the implementation of guidance may vary: (a) the degree of autonomy, (b) the degree of conceptual information, and (c) the cognitive domain of guidance. We discuss how these dimensions can be used to capture and systemise fidings of existing studies as well as to infer desiderata for further research on the role of guidance in inquiry-based instruction.     

Linking Survey and Media Content Data: Opportunities,Considerations, and Pitfalls

In media effects research a fundamental choice is often made between (field) experiments or observational studies that rely on survey data in combination with data about the information environment or media coverage. Such studies linking survey data and media content data are often dubbed “linkage studies.” On the one hand, such designs are the state of the art in our field and on the other hand, they come with a long list of challenges and choices. This article reviews the rationales for linkage studies, outlines different types of linkage studies, reviews the state-of-the-art in this area, discusses which survey and content items to use in an analysis, reviews different types of analyses, outlines considerations for alternative specifications, and provides a step-by-step example.     

Wege in die Wissenschaft

Zusammenfassung Dieser Artikel besch?ftigt sich mit einem Themengebiet, das in der erziehungswissenschaftlichen Wissenschafts-, Hochschul-und Berufsforschung bislang kaum analysiert worden ist. Unter Bezug auf die Ergebnisse einer schriftlichen Befragung von rund 3.800 Absolventen erziehungswissenschaftlicher Hauptfachstudieng?nge (Diplom, Magister) in ganz Deutschland wird die Frage untersucht, wie gro? die Gruppe der Studierenden aus diesen Studieng?ngen ist, die sich einige Jahre nach dem Studienabschluss im Arbeitsfeld Hochschule und Forschung beruflich platzieren kann bzw. promoviert, durch welche Merkmale diese Gruppe gekennzeichnet ist und welche Bedingungsfaktoren den Weg in die Wissenschaft beeinflussen. Nach einem überblick über den bisherigen Stand der Forschung und der Darstellung zentraler Resultate des Diplom-und Magister-Surveys zum Weg in die Wissenschaft werden abschlie?end einige Konsequenzen diskutiert, die sich aus den Befunden für eine Reform der bisherigen Hauptfachstudieng?nge bzw. für die zukünftige Gestaltung neuer Studieng?nge mit Blick auf eine Verbesserung der Nachwuchsf?rderung für das Fach Erziehungswissenschaft ergeben.

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Summary Paths into Science: The Results of a National Survey of Graduates from Diplom and Magister Programs in Educational Science This article examines a topic which has hardly been dealt with in the field of Educational Science. A survey of around 3,800 graduates of Educational Science in both Diplom and Magister programs in Germany asked what proportion of graduates went on to work or commence a Ph.D. in higher education. It also investigated the characteristics of such graduates and the conditions which determined their path into science. Following an overview of preceding research in this area and a presentation of the central results of the survey, the consequences of the findings for a reform of courses and an improvement in the training of academics in the field of Educational Science will be discussed.

     

The impact of stereoscopic imagery and motion on anatomical structure recognition and visual attention performance

Gross anatomy is located in a three‐dimensional space. Visualizing aspects of structures in gross anatomy education should aim to provide information that best resembles their original spatial proportions. Stereoscopic three‐dimensional imagery might offer possibilities to implement this aim, though some research has revealed potential impairments that may result from observing stereoscopic visualizations, such as discomfort. However, possible impairments of working memory such as decreased visual attention performance due to applying this technology in gross anatomy education have not yet been investigated. Similarly, in gross anatomy education the impact of stereoscopic imagery on learners’ recognition of anatomical‐spatial relationships and the impact of different presentation formats have only been investigated in a small number of studies. In this study, the performance of 171 teacher trainees working on the anatomy of hearing was examined, either with non‐stereoscopic or stereoscopic imagery. Static and dynamic picture presentations were applied. Overall, benefits for stereoscopic imagery on estimating anatomical‐spatial relations were found. The performance on a visual attention test indicates that the impact of stereoscopic visualizations on the human cognitive system varies more from person to person compared to non‐stereoscopic visualizations. In addition, combinations of temporarily moving pictures and stereoscopic imagery lead to decreased visual attention performance compared to combinations of moving pictures and non‐stereoscopic imagery. Anat Sci Educ 11: 15–24. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.     

A Conceptual Characterization of Online Videos Explaining Natural Selection

Educational videos on the Internet comprise a vast and highly diverse source of information. Online search engines facilitate access to numerous videos claiming to explain natural selection, but little is known about the degree to which the video content match key evolutionary content identified as important in evolution education research. In this study, we therefore analyzed the content of 60 videos accessed through the Internet, using a criteria catalog with 38 operationalized variables derived from research literature. The variables were sorted into four categories: (a) key concepts (e.g. limited resources and inherited variation), (b) threshold concepts (abstract concepts with a transforming and integrative function), (c) misconceptions (e.g. that evolution is driven by need), and (d) organismal context (e.g. animal or plant). The results indicate that some concepts are frequently communicated, and certain taxa are commonly used to illustrate concepts, while others are seldom included. In addition, evolutionary phenomena at small temporal and spatial scales, such as subcellular processes, are rarely covered. Rather, the focus is on population-level events over time scales spanning years or longer. This is consistent with an observed lack of explanations regarding how randomly occurring mutations provide the basis for variation (and thus natural selection). The findings imply, among other things, that some components of natural selection warrant far more attention in biology teaching and science education research.     

Effects of S-adenosylmethionine on production of secondary metabolites in Streptomyces diastatochromogenes 1628

Journal of Zhejiang University-SCIENCE B -...     

Who aspires to higher education? Axes of inequality,values of education and higher education aspirations in secondary schools in Luxembourg and the Swiss Canton of Bern

This article reports a study that investigated secondary school students’ higher education aspirations (towards university studies, ISCED 6 and above) and how these differ between student groups as well as how these are impacted by values of education. Panel data of more than 300 secondary school students in two countries, Luxembourg and Switzerland (the Swiss Canton of Bern) was analysed. Schools are structured differently in the education systems of Luxembourg and the Swiss Canton of Bern. The results of our analysis show that students in the Luxembourgish sample more often aspire to higher education than in the Swiss sample. Disparities in higher education aspirations were also more pronounced in the Luxembourgish sample, boys and students from families of low socio‐economic status (SES) were less likely to aspire to higher education. While the effects of values of education are generally scarce, stimulation in terms of anticipated enjoyment and interest derived from participation in higher education seems to have a positive effect on higher education aspirations.