Listening with the inner ear

To listen with attuned ears, we must concentrate on keeping our listening paths open and readied for signals which originate from within ourselves and from others. To do so effectively, it is essential that we sharpen both our “inner and outer ears”; in an effort to remove those distractions and disturbances which interfere with harmonious listening.     

The United States Regular Education Initiative

ABSTRACT

The Regular Education Initiative (REI) has been proposed in the United States as a means of integrating special education students into regular classes. REI has caused considerable debate as to its merits in both regular and special educational systems. The implications of this debate are discussed as well as specific problems and issues regarding REI.     

Long‐term outcome of oral language and phonological awareness intervention with socially disadvantaged preschoolers: the impact on language and literacy

Early intervention aims to prevent poor literacy outcomes associated with social disadvantage. This study examined whether the short‐term positive effect of a preschool classroom‐based oral language and phonological awareness (PA) programme was maintained and transferred to literacy 2 years later. The vocabulary knowledge, grammatical skill, auditory comprehension and reading comprehension of 54 6–7‐year‐old Australian children who attended school in a low‐socioeconomic area were measured. Children's PA abilities were also assessed and are reported elsewhere. There were no significant differences between children who had received intervention in preschool and those who had not, with the entire cohort performing below the average range of the general population. The findings indicated that while generating short‐term positive effects, intervention in preschool did not enhance socially disadvantaged children's language and literacy achievement in the long term.     

Method Boundness Among Zoo and Park Educators

A national survey of 131 park and zoo educators' teaching beliefs was conducted in 14 parks and zoos in the US in 1996 by The Ohio State University Extension. The survey included two primary instruments. The Van Tilburg/Heimlich Teaching Beliefs Scale and a self‐report time on task and importance of task related to teaching methods and techniques. A third series of questions explored teaching purposes. The Van Tilburg/Heimlich Teaching Beliefs Scale is a psychometric instrument containing two parallel Thurston equal‐appearing interval scales. Outcomes are graphed into a two by two matrix using the concepts of ‘sensitivity’ and ‘inclusion’. Developed with a theoretical base of adult education, these scales apply well to nonformal environmental educators. An operational hypothesis for the study, which was corroborated by the data, was that a preponderance of respondents would self‐identify their beliefs to be those of ‘Enabler’ – low control, high inclusion. The application of beliefs to practice, however, might suggest otherwise.     

A Review of “Faith in Children: Stories from Faith-Based Children's Centers”

Islamic education has always recognized spiritual and moral values as significant elements in developing a “balanced” human being. One way of demonstrating spiritual and moral concepts is through effective teaching methods that integrate and forefront these values. This article offers an investigation of how the authors’ teaching approaches integrate spiritual and moral values in tertiary/university curriculum subjects as part of the students’ spiritual and moral development.