Are we promoting critical autonomous thinking? A discussion on conversational genres and whether they can help us answer this question

This work is based on the assumption that if the classroom is a space in which manifestations of critical autonomous thinking appear systematically, then it promotes that same kind of thinking by the students, in other contexts. But what count as manifestations of critical autonomous thinking, and how can we observe them? As Robert Young's Habermasian work on indoctrination and conversational genres seemed a promising conceptual framework for understanding classroom situations in this respect, we took it as a starting point for exploring answers to these questions. Our exploration, both through fieldwork and theoretical reflection, led us to some findings, among which are (1) the existence of new genres which refine the conceptual categories originally formulated by Young; (2) that analysis of function is not enough, requiring also a contents dimension with which one can study what critical autonomous thinking is promoted about, in particular classroom situations; and (3) that classroom situations can be more contradictory and fragmented than presupposed by the very idea of genre.     

The Centre-periphery in Knowledge Production in the Twenty-first Century

This paper examines the new configurations in global relations and the centrality of knowledge as the emerging currency in that relationship. Taking into account the vacuum created by the collapse of the Soviet Union, and especially the subduing effect that this has had on Marxist scholars and scholarship as the once core critical paradigm, the paper argues that the 'centre-periphery' fault line and dichotomy may be far less obvious to the younger generation than to the predecessors. This has to do with the fact that on the one hand, discourses of concealment with benign exteriors have so permeated the life spaces including those in the 'periphery', making it ever more difficult to separate what is real and what is not. On the other hand, the forces of the new global economy have led to structural acquiescence of the economies of the South to the extent that one witnesses the poor countries becoming quite desperate to become, and remain, attractive to globalised capital. In the far less categorical scenario in which the younger generation of scholars in the North and the South are now growing, the paper first presents an argument for a closer scrutiny of knowledge, its construction, legitimation and dissemination in the light of intensifying North-South disparities. Second, it argues for recognition to be given to scholarships that have transcended this dangerous ravine. It finally argues for even greater acknowledgment to those scholars in the South who, with their piercing de-constructive and generative theorisation and analyses of knowledge as an intrinsic part of democratic politics, promise to bring out the hitherto underplayed issue of cognitive justice and the challenge of the integration of knowledge systems.     

Questioning a tradition: A French way of excellence

The following article was written in French as a keynote speech at the IGIP Symposiumat the Biel School of Engineering (University of Applied Sciences, in Biel, Switzerland), held in March 2000. The topic of this symposium was 'Unique and Excellent'. It aimed to show that engineering education cannot really head towards unification, but will reach uniqueness and excellency if there are many different ways of educating engineers. What happens on the spot, in each technical university, in each course, is much more important for excellence than the fact that all curricula can be compared directly at an international level. Owing to the very particular way of educating engineers in France, it was considered most important to learn about this particular organization. André Béraud accepted presenting it to the audience. His contribution had a very lively echo. The text presents a short outline of the history of French engineering education and its very particular ways and means. Engineering is not taught at technical universities but at Grandes Ecoles (Grand Schools), which represent a very high level of education open only to the very best. They will form the élite of the public servants of France, much more than what is generally considered the task of an engineer. In consequence, the education is broadly based with humanities as an important element in it; it is also very scientific, with mathematics and theoretical physics as central topics. The disadvantage of such a system lies in the fact that it is most rigid, not very open to the needs of industry and of foreign students. There have been, however, some changes.     

UNESCO’s utopia of lifelong learning: An intellectual history

International Review of Education -     

Intercultural Communication Competence Scale: Invariance and Construct Validation in Portugal

ABSTRACT

This article explores the psychometric validation of an Intercultural Communication Competence (ICC) scale. Three studies were performed: (1) psychometric evidence pertaining to the scale’s reliability and factor structure and an analysis of the measurement invariance; (2) assessment of convergent and predictive validity; and (3) analyzes the association between ICC and affective and cognitive dimensions of cultural empathy. A three-factor model with eight items yielded the best fit to the data. The scale showed non-invariance between genders, but proved to be a predictor of intercultural contact. Convergent validity were demonstrated.     

Key components of learning ecologies: A Delphi assessment

The educational landscape has changed in recent years, requiring reflection about new pedagogical methods and theories. There are three important perspectives as drivers of pedagogical reflection: lifelong and life-wide learning, the idea of learning as a social construct in which internal elements and changing external factors converge, and the recognition of technology as a resource that can promote ubiquitous and expanded learning. Learning ecology has been proposed as a conceptual and empirical framework, but its still emergent nature along with its multidimensionality and complexity require further exploration. The Delphi study we present as part of a broader research project aims to identify the components of learning ecologies. Three panel rounds with international experts were carried out, after which two important dimensions emerged in the structure of learning ecologies. The first is related to intrinsic “learning dispositions,” which is made up of three categories: the subject's ideas about learning, their motivations and expectations. The second dimension, called “learning processes,” comprises four components: relationships, resources, actions and context. The identification of the components of learning ecologies and their influence on formal, non-formal and informal training processes will provide guidance for educational policies and help to better organize training programmes.     

Implementing Research‐Based Instruction to Prevent Reading Problems Among Low‐Income Students: Is Earlier Better?

It is currently considered imperative to introduce reading instruction as early as possible. This proposition was tested by assigning groups of kindergarteners (N = 256) to two conditions differing in their emphasis on prevention. In the first, teacher‐implemented research‐based interventions were implemented during kindergarten and first grade. In the second, only the first‐grade intervention was implemented. Analyses were conducted separately for students not at risk, at low risk, and at high risk of reading problems. In the short term, the kindergarten intervention was highly effective for both low‐risk and high‐risk students, but it is only for the latter group that early gains translated into better reading skills at the end of first grade. Not‐at‐risk students did not benefit from the early introduction of reading instruction.