The Ethnic Composition of Nursery Classes and its Effect on Children's Adjustment to Nursery

Teachers’ perceptions of how children had adjusted to school were collected from two groups of classes; one group had a 100% British White population, the other was made up of 26% British White, 54% British Asian, 15% British Afro‐Caribbean and 5% from other groupings. Results showed that the children in the multi‐ethnic classes, the girls and morning attenders were rated by the teachers as having settled significantly better than the British White sample, the boys and afternoon attenders. Possible causes for these findings could lie in the school induction policies, the social makeup of the groups, the teacher subjectivity in completing the schedule or the mix of children from different backgrounds on the one hand compared to the more monoethnic makeup on the other.     

Digital Rhetoric: Toward an Integrated Theory

This article surveys the literature on digital rhetoric, which encompasses a wide range of issues, including novel strategies of self-expression and collaboration, the characteristics, affordances, and constraints of the new digital media, and the formation of identities and communities in digital spaces. It notes the current disparate nature of the field and calls for an integrated theory of digital rhetoric that charts new directions for rhetorical studies in general and the rhetoric of science and technology in particular.     

Using Collaborative Assessment to Examine the Relationship between Self-Reported Beliefs and the Documentable Practices of Preschool Teachers

A team of researchers used a collaborative assessment protocol to compare the self-reported teaching beliefs of a convenience sample of preschool teachers (N = 57) to their documentable practices (i.e., practices that could be observed, recorded, and categorized using a deductive strategy). Data were examined from survey instruments, detailed classroom observations and time-sampling, curriculum materials, and program artifacts. Results indicated that when child-directed choice/play time, emergent literacy and language development activities were emphasized, teachers self-reported beliefs were more strongly aligned with developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) as a philosophy of practice. When consistent routines, organized classrooms, preplanned curriculum, and teacher-directed learning were the dominant behaviors, the teachers were found to report more “traditional” or academic-oriented beliefs.     

Identity Constructions and Inter-Organizational Collaboration: Islamic Faith-Based Organizations and the Polio Vaccination Stoppage in Northern Nigeria

Polio eradication has received greater attention in medicine and public health than communication studies. In the context of a Northern Nigerian vaccination stoppage by Islamic faith-based organizations (FBOs), this study—informed by the inter-organizational collaboration literature—focused on the FBOs. Through analyses of 119 statements by 19 FBO spokespersons in Nigerian newspapers, the study found the FBOs claimed an identity of concern for the people’s representation and safety; constructed the identity of federal government organizations (FGOs) as unjust, unethical, and unresponsive; constructed the identity of global north organizations (GNOs) as preoccupied with depopulation, operating above the law, and as bullies; and described FGO/GNO communication practices as authoritarian, closed, and deceptive.     

Having a Ball with Confidence Intervals

Confidence intervals are often misinterpreted. This article describes an activity which helps students understand what it means to have confidence in a Process.     

Security,Extremism and Education: Safeguarding or Surveillance?

This article analyses how education is positioned in the current concerns about security and extremism. This means firstly examining the different meanings of security (national, human and societal) and who provides security for whom. Initially, a central dilemma is acknowledged: that schooling appears to be simultaneously irrelevant to the huge global questions of security and yet central to the learning of alternative ways to conduct human relations. With regard to extremism, two aspects of importance in ideological compliance or challenge are firstly the attempted securitisation of education, and secondly the role of education in young people joining or supporting extremist movements. The UK’s ‘Prevent’ strategy is examined here. The issue of how to safeguard young people without securitising institutions suggests four key features: inclusivity, encounters with difference, networking and active citizenship. Critiquing sacred texts and the use of humour and satire also act to foster resilience. Educational approaches within transitional justice underline the importance of tackling violence in schools and promoting a human rights culture that promotes both human security and ultimately national security.     

Learning to Learn to Teach: An ``Experiment' Model for Teaching and Teacher Preparation in Mathematics

This paper describes a model for generating andaccumulating knowledge for both teaching andteacher education. The model is applied firstto prepare prospective teachers to learn toteach mathematics when they enter theclassroom. The concept of treating lessons asexperiments is used to explicate theintentional, rigorous, and systematic processof learning to teach through studying one's ownpractice. The concept of planning teachingexperiences so that others can learn fromone's experience is used to put into practicethe notion of contributing to a sharedprofessional knowledge base for teachingmathematics. The same model is then applied tothe work of improving teacher preparationprograms in mathematics. Parallels are drawnbetween the concepts emphasized for prospectiveteachers and those that are employed byinstructors who study and improve teacherpreparation experiences. In this way, parallelsalso are seen in the processes used to generatean accumulating knowledge base for teaching andfor teacher education.     

Designing electronic text: The role of print-based research

This is the 14th ERIC/ECTJ Annual Review Paper, preparation of which was supported by the ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) Clearinghouse on Information Resources, Syracuse University. The material in this article was prepared pursuant to a contract with the National Institute of Education, U.S. Department of Education. Contractors undertaking such projects under govemment sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their judgement in professional and technical matters. Points of view or opinions do not necessarily represent the official view or opinion of the NIE.—Ed.