Images as orienting activity: using theory to inform classroom practices

Conceptualizations of teacher knowledge have shifted to focusing on the role of experiential rather than theoretical knowledge. There are different approaches to this, but the idea of an image that guides practice is widespread. One approach to images that has not been frequently investigated in studies of second language teachers is through sociocultural theory, specifically in the contribution of activity theory known as orienting activity. In this view, images mediate teaching actions by linking theoretical knowledge and practical experience. This article will use orienting activity to examine the role that images play in an English as a second language teacher’s personal practical knowledge by drawing on classroom observations, informal discussions, simulated recall interviews and documentary evidence collected over a nine month period. Analysis of the data shows that several key images mediated the teacher’s classroom actions. These emerged in the observations and in the teacher’s commentary on planned and spontaneous, routine and novel and successful and unsuccessful activities. The images appeared to have developed through both tacit knowledge associated with practical experience and theoretical knowledge associated with research and theory. This demonstrates the usefulness of orienting activity as a theoretical framework for exploring classroom practices and teacher development through the links it can make between theory and practice.     

Pornography use and sexism among heterosexual men

ABSTRACT

The idea that pornography promotes sexism is a commonly purported one. This study employed an online sample of heterosexual men (N = 323) to investigate the relationship between pornography use (in terms of both overall level of pornography use and use of violent and/or humiliating pornography) and old-fashioned and modern sexism. The moderating effects of agreeableness and perceived realism of pornography were also assessed. Level of general pornography use and use of violent and/or humiliating pornography was not predictive of either sexism measure. Agreeableness was negatively predictive of both sexism measures, whereas perceived realism was positively predictive of sexism. Agreeableness and perceived realism did not moderate the relationship between level of pornography use and any of the outcome measures.     

Influences on Student Cognitions About Evaluation

Interviews on two occasions with 71 Grade 2, 4 and 6 students in a multi-ethnic setting in Toronto, Canada, found that student cognitions about evaluation mediated the relationship between evaluation and achievement. Parents, peers and student characteristics influenced student cognitions about evaluation. Parents identified the evaluation dimensions their children should attend to, raised student aspirations, stated how well student work attained standards and recommended actions children should take in response to the evaluation. Peer interpretations influenced whether a given performance was viewed as superior or inferior. Older student peers focused attention, to a greater extent than parents, on specific aspects of student performance that could be ameliorated through self-remediation. Children became more sophisticated evaluation consumers as they grew older. Females processed evaluation data more productively than males. There were few cultural differences in response to evaluation. Students responded to traditional and alternate evaluation in very similar ways.     

Marking a Transition

This issue of Journal of Library Administration marks a transition of editorship for “Global Perspectives.” This column will provide a retrospective of past contributions under the founding Editor, Jim Agee. It will look briefly at the landscape of libraries and library organizations worldwide from a variety of sources, and conclude with a call for future submissions, with updated and expanded parameters.     

Filipino parents’ school choice and loyalty: a factor analysis

This quantitative study aims to ascertain the significant relationship existing between parents’ profile, and their school choice and school loyalty. Data were gathered using the researcher’s two-part made instrument. Respondents were first asked to fill in a robotfoto for purpose of profiling their baseline characteristics and were later asked to rate listed indicators, using a modified 8-point Likert scale. Using statistical tools such as the ANOVA, factor analysis, correlation, mean, and standard deviation, data were treated indepth. It is interesting to note that although parents are loyal to their alma mater, this does not have a much impact on their choice of school for their children. On the whole, parents’ choice of school is based on its indispensable qualities. Among the three interval-scale profiles of the parent respondents such as age, income, tuition fee payment and number of children, none of these relate to school choice, but age, income, and tuition fee payment negatively relate to school loyalty. From their nominal-scale profiles, significant differences were noted in their school choice when grouped according to civil status, place of work, and terms of payment. With respect to school loyalty, significant differences occurred in their responses when classified according to gender, terms of payment and their active participation in the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA).     

Teachers’ intuitive interaction competence and how to learn it

In the study that forms the basis of this article, I have shed light on various aspects of how the intuitive actions of the teacher appear in the classroom, and also drawn attention to the tacit aspect of this kind of actions. Furthermore, I have discussed how these can be seen as a significant part of the teacher’s intuitive action competency. The investigation also discusses how teachers’ education can facilitate the development of this competency. The study argues that what is crucial to how the teacher handles unexpected situations is that he, based on his experience, manages to face new situations with enough creativity to break free from established patterns across situations, and act in an appropriate manner according to the emerging situation. Data are collected by using video recordings, applying videography as a methodological approach. Four teachers have been videotaped in the classroom, in total 45–50 h.     

Qualitative review synthesis: the relationship between inattention and academic achievement

Background: A body of literature has emerged that links inattentive symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to poor academic achievement. Major variation across studies renders conclusions about this relationship complex.

Purpose: This review will provide a qualitative synthesis of these studies that (1) use community samples and (2) examine inattention as a separate dimension from hyperactivity/impulsivity. The aim of this review is to ascertain whether the relationship documented between inattention and academic outcomes in ADHD also holds for the dimensional trait of inattention as manifest in non-clinical community samples of children and adolescents, taking into consideration both academic achievement and academic performance across age.

Design and methods: A comprehensive search was carried out using two databases. The PRISMA guidelines were used to report the search steps. The QUIPS tool was used to rate the quality of studies, followed by a best evidence synthesis to summarise these results.

Results: Out of 1748 citations found, 27 articles met the specific inclusion criteria. Results point to a strong effect according to the best evidence synthesis: 7 studies that have low risk of bias found that teacher-rated inattention is significantly predicative of poor academic achievement in community samples of children.

Conclusions: This review provides support for a consistent, negative relationship between classroom inattention as reported by teachers and both standardised academic test achievement and classroom performance outcomes for children in preschool (moderate evidence), elementary school and longitudinally from elementary to high school. The average relationship was stronger when classroom performance was measured, as compared to standardised achievement. However, the quantitative strength of relationship has not been confirmed with a meta-analysis due to heterogeneity and too few high-quality studies identified. Variance across the studies in terms of the strength of association suggests that other unexamined factors (e.g. cognitive function or motivation) may be contributing to this relationship. Implications for educators and clinicians who work within the school setting are discussed.     

Educational Research Expenditure in Switzerland: Overview and Analysis

Switzerland spends about 6% of its GDP on education. In the past few years, there have been carrying out important reforms in the educational field, for example introducing a vocational high school diploma and creating specialized higher vocational institution (hautes écoles). What is the extent of educational research in this context? There are very little data on this subject. To meet the need of information, we carried out a study examining expenditure on Swiss educational research from 1998 to 2000 and the link between sources of funding and research centres. The results of the above-mentioned study show that expenditure on educational research is modest compared with the overall cost of the educational system. It also reveals a distinct distribution of tasks amongst the institutions directly dependent on state educational administrations and universities. Although there are also other sources of funds, educational research relies mainly on public funding. This is disconcerting, as public budgets have been facing cuts in recent years, and new requirements for research needs will arise (future research is likely to involve such activities as evaluating reforms and participating in international survey). We conclude new funding strategies have to be found and researchers need to communicate their results more effectively.