Public school teachers’ perceptions of what promotes or hinders their use of outdoor learning spaces

Learning Environments Research - The creation of outdoor learning spaces (OLS) such as school gardens is increasing in frequency in elementary and secondary schools in Canada. Previous research has...     

Care Ethics in Education

This article uses the Kentucky portfolio assessment to illustrate ways a sophisticated writing requirement can stimulate statewide professional development and school change. Though the authors question the accountability function of the assessment, they applaud the broad and deep professional development movement that has resulted because of it. They conclude that this particular high-stakes test has benefits for teachers and students that far outweigh its limitations as an accountability instrument.     

Deviation: A communication perspective

This theoretical model presents a processual and analytic perspective from which to study the effects of perceived deviation upon rule governed conversational sequences. The model conjoins rules and systems perspectives in the postulate that the stability of each episode relies upon the coordinated maintenance of homeostasis by interactants whose rule structure repetoires may vary as a function of experience. Directions for future research are also proposed.     

Promoting cultural competence in counseling Asian American children and adolescents

Asian Americans are commonly perceived as the diligent and high‐achieving “model minority.” This positive stereotype has negative consequences for this ethnic minority group because it trivializes their social and mental health problems. This image of success has made many overlook the true nature of the struggles many Asian American families have to face in the United States. Scientific literature suggests that Asian American children experience major adjustment problems in school including loneliness, isolation, withdrawal, rejection, anxiety, low self‐esteem, and interpersonal distress. Cultural barriers exist between the Asian and the dominant society and influence Asian Americans' cognitive appraisal and coping choices when personal and emotional problems arise. These barriers also prevent clinicians from identifying and subsequently providing effective mental health services for Asian American children and their families. In this article, the authors examine the Asian cultural conceptions of mental health and various cultural barriers in an attempt to promote cultural understanding and competence among clinicians working with Asian American children and their families. Recommendations for clinical practice and future research directions are provided. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Developing Motivation and Cognitive Learning Strategies Through an Undergraduate Learning Community

This study describes the effects on student motivation and cognitive learning strategies of an approach involving an undergraduate learner-centered community of learners approach to instruction. Six learning communities were created using the following objectives: integrated courses, active and collaborative learning, and opportunities for learning through information technology and library resources. Instructors attended ten workshops designed to assist them in developing the learning communities according to the objectives of the program. Results indicate significant changes in motivation and cognitive strategy use by the end of participation in the learning community. Within the motivation subscales, students in the learning communities reported significantly higher levels of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, more internal control of their learning, and self-efficacy, along with significantly lower levels of test anxiety and task value. Within the learning strategies subscales, students reported increases in their use of rehearsal strategies, organization strategies, critical thinking, time management, and the use of peer learning and help-seeking behaviors.     

Note-taking in the college classroom as evidence of generative learning

College student notes were analysed with respect to the amount of words copied directly, omitted and added to the teacher’s overheads or PowerPoint slides in order to understand the effect of teacher scaffolds on student generative learning during initial encoding. Scores on quizzes taken at the end of classes from which notes were collected were analysed with respect to the content of student notes and teacher scaffolds. Statistically significant results were found when comparing how much students copied, added and omitted, whether teachers used PowerPoint presentations or overheads, and with respect to the amount of information teachers presented visually. Significant effects also were found on performance quiz items with respect to the amount of information that teachers provided.     

“Why do dogs pant?”: Characteristics of parental explanations about science predict children's knowledge

Using a new method for examining parental explanations in a laboratory setting, the prompted explanation task, this study examines how characteristics of parental explanations about biology relate to children's knowledge. Parents (N = 148; M_age = 38; 84% female, 16% male; 67% having completed college) of children ages 7–10 (M_age = 8.92; 47% female, 53% male; 58% White, 9.5% Black, 9.5% Asian) provided answers to eight how and why questions about biology. Parents used a number of different approaches to address the questions, including providing more mechanistic responses to how questions and more teleological responses to why questions. The characteristics of parental explanations—most notably, how frequently parents provided correct responses—predicted children's performance on measures of verbal intelligence and biological knowledge. Additional exploratory analyses and implications for children's learning are discussed.