A New Autonomy-Supportive Way of Teaching That Increases Conceptual Learning: Teaching in Students' Preferred Ways

We tested the educational utility of “teaching in students' preferred ways” as a new autonomy-supportive way of teaching to enhance students' autonomy and conceptual learning. A pilot test first differentiated preferred versus nonpreferred ways of teaching. In the main study, a hired teacher who was blind to the purpose of the study taught 63 college-age participants in small groups the same 48-minute lesson in one of these two different ways, and we assessed participants' perceived autonomy support, autonomy-need satisfaction, engagement (self-report and rater scored), and conceptual learning (self-report and rater scored). Multilevel analyses showed that participants randomly assigned to receive a preferred way of teaching perceived the teacher as more autonomy supportive and showed significantly greater autonomy-need satisfaction, engagement, and conceptual learning. Mediation analyses using multilevel modeling for clustered data showed that this way of teaching enhanced conceptual learning because it first increased students' autonomy. We conclude that “teaching in students' preferred ways” represents a way of teaching that increases students' autonomy, engagement, and conceptual learning.     

Testing interest and self-efficacy as predictors of academic self-regulation and achievement

We examined whether individual interest, as an affective motivational variable, could predict academic self-regulation and achievement, above and beyond what academic self-efficacy predicted. We tested the relationships between academic self-efficacy, individual interest, grade goals, self-regulation, and achievement of Korean middle school students (N = 500) in four different subject areas. Consistent with previous findings, self-efficacy predicted achievement both directly and indirectly via grade goals. Self-efficacy also predicted self-regulation, but only when grade goals mediated the relationship. Supporting our hypothesis, individual interest functioned as a correlated yet independent and direct predictor of self-regulation. It also predicted achievement, but only when self-regulation mediated the relationship. We thus suggest that academic self-regulation could be encouraged through the promotion of two distinct motivational sources, academic self-efficacy and individual interest. We further suggest that the pathways linking individual interest to academic self-regulation and achievement may differ from those linking academic self-efficacy to the same variables.     

Connecting K–12 School Media Centers to University Library Resources Through Interlibrary Loan: A Case Study From Eastern North Carolina

Providing interlibrary loan service to K–12 schools is investigated in this article. Request analysis of a university interlibrary loan service to schools is presented along with a survey of those schools’ use of the service. Results from a survey of other libraries that provide similar loan services to schools are also presented. A lengthy literature review of interlibrary loan for K–12 schools places modern offerings in an historical perspective.     

The Effects of Attachment Styles and Efficacy of Communication on Avoidance Following a Relational Partner's Deception

This investigation examined the effects of attachment styles and efficacy of communication on avoidance following a relational partner's deceptive communication. Efficacy of communication was explored as a mediating variable. Students (n = 123) who reported being deceived by their relational partner were recruited for the study. The data revealed that, compared to individuals with other attachment styles, those with a high anxious/ambivalent attachment tendency were more likely to avoid discussing the deception with their partner. In addition, efficacy of communication was negatively associated with avoidance. The results further revealed, however, that efficacy of communication mediated the link between attachment and avoidance. More specifically, highly anxious/ambivalent individuals were more likely to perceive relatively low efficacy of communication, and such perception, in turn, influenced their avoidance. Findings of the study provide an explanation for the association between attachment and avoidance.     

The Bologna Process Offers New Research Opportunities for Academic Business Librarians Worldwide

European education ministers and officials signed a Bologna Declaration with a goal to reform, strengthen, and standardize higher education programs and degree structures by 2010. Graduates will become more mobile and marketable to employers throughout Europe. These programs shall also attract students worldwide. Higher education programs on other continents have taken notice and are in the process of initiating similar goals and outcomes. All of these events are creating new research opportunities for academic business librarians in all aspects of library support and services including collection development, reference, and instruction.     

The Effects of Incorporating Web‐assisted Learning with Team Teaching in Seventh‐grade Science Classes

Due to the implementation of a 9‐year integrated curriculum scheme in Taiwan, research on team teaching and web‐based technology appears to be urgent. The purpose of this study was incorporated web‐assisted learning with team teaching in seventh‐grade science classes. The specific research question concerned student performance and attitudes about the teaching method. Two certified science teachers and four classes of the seventh graders participated in this study. It used a mixed methods design, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative techniques. The main data included students’ scores, questionnaires, teachers’ self‐reflections, and the researcher’s interviews with teachers. The results showed that the average final examination scores of students experiencing the experimental teaching method were higher than that of those receiving traditional teaching. The two teaching methods showed significant difference in respect of students’ achievement. The research had limitations because of students’ abilities of data collection, computer use, and discussion, but more than one‐half of the students preferred the experimental method to traditional teaching. However, team teachers would encounter the problems of technology ability, time constraints, and entrance examination pressure.     

Effects of Cognitive Flexibility Theory‐based instruction on Korean high school history teaching

Understanding complex conceptual relationships is crucial for Korean high school history learning. The motivating hypothesis for this study is that a Cognitive Flexibility Theory‐based Hypertext instructional module will promote acquisition of advanced knowledge associated with complex conceptual relationships. This study focussed on improving Korean history teaching and learning in terms of these learner characteristics based on Cognitive Flexibility Theory, an influential constructivist approach in the field of educational technology. A referential hypertext program based on Spiro and his colleagues’ (1988, 1990) Cognitive Flexibility Theory (CFT) was developed for this study. Three learning programs were presented: (1) Cognitive Flexibility Theory‐Based Hypertext (CFTH), (2) hierarchical hypertext, similar to CFTH except for its hierarchical node connections, and (3) a textbook representing the typical Korean high school history instruction process. The effects of these three treatments on history achievement were examined in terms of post‐test item characteristics. Independent variables were students’ IQ, and prior knowledge and motivation toward each learning program that was measured after the treatment. Students’ achievement was the highest among three groups, especially in complex items: comparison, analysis and synthesis. In the CFTH group high IQ and low PK students’ achievement was most improved, and motivation was the chief influential factor in explaining the achievement.