Organization and use of the mental lexicon by deaf and hearing individuals

Two experiments explored the taxonomic organization of mental lexicons in deaf and hearing college students. Experiment 1 used a single-word association task to examine relations between categories and their members. Results indicated that both groups' lexical knowledge is similar in terms of overall organization, with associations between category names and exemplars stronger for hearing students; only the deaf students showed asymmetrical exemplar-category relations. Experiment 2 used verbal analogies to explore the application of taxonomic knowledge in an academically relevant task. Significant differences between deaf and hearing students were obtained for six types of analogies, although deaf students who were better readers displayed response patterns more like hearing students'. Hearing students' responses reflected their lexical organization; deaf students' did not. These findings implicate the interaction of word knowledge, world knowledge, and literacy skills, emphasizing the need to adapt instructional methods to student knowledge in educational contexts.     

Action Learning—a learning and teaching method in the preparation programme for supervisors of midwives

Supervision of midwives is a statutory responsibility, which provides a mechanism for support and guidance to every practising midwife in the United Kingdom. To be eligible for appointment as a supervisor, midwives are required to undertake a preparation programme successfully. Because of the changing nature of the professional role and education, the level of the programme of preparation has evolved from an attendance course, to programmes delivered at diploma, degree and, more recently, Masters' level. In collaboration with clinical colleagues and the statutory authorities, the University of Hertfordshire has presented a programme of preparation at Masters' level since 1997. Revalidation in 2001 provided the opportunity to review the learning and teaching methods, and a decision was made to use Action Learning as an important component of the new programme that commenced in 2002. Alongside the normal university quality assessment mechanisms, a systematic evaluation was undertaken to explore the acceptability and perceived usefulness of Action Learning by the students of the second and third cohorts. This paper presents the findings of this evaluation.     

Motivational Interviewing Strategies for Disaffected Secondary School Students: A case example

This study considers the application and effectiveness of Motivational Interviewing (MI) as an intervention strategy for secondary school pupils experiencing disaffection. Using a case study example, the process of intervention and the use of specific techniques from other psychological approaches are described. Results identify issues concerning the process of MI and discuss implications of MI work for the educational practitioner. In conclusion, a positive evaluation of the general usefulness of the model within current educational psychology practice is made, highlighting possibilities to evaluate applications of MI interventions involving psychologists with younger pupils or teachers and parents.     

Reflective Teachers and Teacher Educators in the Pacific Region: Conversations with us not about us

This article reports on a study of Pacific primary school teachers’ and university lecturers’ reflections on their involvement in the in-service Bachelor of Education degree programme offered at the regional University of the South Pacific (USP) in Fiji. Two rich sets of data have emerged from this study. Firstly, there are a number of critical reflections by ourselves as teacher educators concerning levels of equitable student access and participation in our degree as it is reconceptualised for distance and flexible delivery to increase levels of teacher professionalism across the Pacific region. Secondly, there has emerged a set of statements from teachers themselves about: teaching and learning; professional development opportunities; and what it means to be a professional educator in the Pacific region. This later data suggests an alternative set of voices in what has largely been a “conversation between us about them” conducted by Ministries of Education, Curriculum Development Units, USP, other educational bodies and the media in the Pacific, but particularly Fiji, about teachers and teachers’ work. Critical reflection upon our own practice as teacher educators and the voices of experienced teachers are particularly pertinent not only as we seek to reshape a degree programme to suit the needs of the region’s primary school teachers but also as “rethinking” debates about the purposes of education in the Pacific region are on-going yet exclusive.     

Parent involvement and reading: Using curriculum‐based measurement to assess the effects of paired reading

This study examined the effectiveness of a paired reading intervention using curriculum‐based measurement (CBM) probes to document reading progress for one fourth‐ and two third‐grade students. These students were considered below‐average readers. Parents and children used the paired reading method in their homes for 10 minutes, four times a week. Children and parents were also provided with reading material at their instructional level. Results showed that the children's reading accuracy and rates increased from baseline to follow‐up on CBM measures and on pre/posttesting. In addition, students and parents gave favorable treatment acceptability ratings for paired reading. Implications for future research are outlined. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 40: 613–626, 2003.     

A Pedagogy of Friendship: young children’s friendships and how schools can support them

Children’s friendships are often neglected by teachers and researchers. This phenomenological study conducted with seven children aged five and six years explores young children’s perceptions of their everyday friendship experiences. This multi-method study used role play interviews, drawings and persona doll scenarios to consider children’s everyday experiences of friendship in school. The paper discusses the importance of socio-cultural aspects of children’s friendship including: imaginary friends; losing friends; protecting time and space to develop friendships and children’s routines and practices as they form and maintain friendships. Data and findings are discussed, leading to an original conceptual framework: a ‘Pedagogy of Friendship’. This is designed to help children make meaning from their friendship experiences and also provide practitioners with the opportunity to nurture and scaffold children through their friendship experiences in schools. We suggest that there is a need to raise the profile of children’s friendships in early childhood education and generate an educational perspective on friendship. Finally we conclude that listening to children’s views of friendship indicates that the application of the framework of a ‘Pedagogy of Friendship’ would be beneficial to children’s all round learning and development.     

An exploration of important factors in the decision-making process undertaken by foundation degree students with respect to level 6 progression

Deciding what degree to study and where are very important decisions to make for a range of practical and economic reasons, and much research has been undertaken in this area. What has not been considered previously is the decision-making processes of students who have completed an associate degree, such as a Higher National Diploma or Foundation Degree, and are now considering where to complete their Bachelor education. Associate degrees are often provided by further education colleges (FECs) in partnership with universities, and the choices available to college-based higher education students are whether to continue at the college or move to university. A mixed-methods approach was adopted comprising of an online questionnaire and subsequent focus groups of students studying at HE at a southwest FEC. The findings showed that equal importance is placed on the practical issues of proximity and familiarity as on course suitability, with the only differences between those remaining at college and those moving to university being financially based.     

Popular Illustration

Susan E. Meyer's America's Great Illustrators (New York: Harry Abrams, 1978—$35.00)

Donald Walton's A Rockwell Portrait: An Intimate Biography (Kansas City: Sheed, Andrews & McMeel, 1978—$12.95)

William Hillcourt's Norman Rockwell's World of Scouting (New York: Harry Abrams, 1977—$17.95)

Leonard S. Marcus' The American Store Window (New York: Whitney Library of Design/ Watson-Guptill, 1978—$25.00)

J.C. Cooper's An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols (New York: Thames and Hudson, 1978— $14.95)

Cathy Guisewite's The Cathy Chronicles (Kansas City: Sheed, Andrews & McMeel, 1978—$12.95/7.95)

Frank Lohan's Pen and Ink Techniques (Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1978—$5.95)

Allen Hurlburt's The Grid: A Modular System for the Design and Production of Newspapers, Magazines, and Books (New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1978—$16.95)

Edward Booth-Clibborn, ed. European Illustration 78/79 (New York: Hastings House, 1978— $47.50)

Ken Kesey's Sorcercers: A Collection of Fantasy Art (New York: Ballantine, 1978—$7.95, paper)

Rock Art: The Golden Age of Record Album Covers (New York: Ballantine, 1977—$8.95, paper)

David Sandison's Rockvisions: The Art of David Oxtoby (New York: Dutton, 1978—$8.95, paper)

Byron Preiss, ed. The Illustrated Roger Zelazny (New York: Baronet Publishing Co., 1978—$8.95, paper)

Ian Summers, ed. Tomorrow and Beyond: Masterpieces of Science Fiction Art (New York: Workman Publishing Co., 1978—$19.95/9.95)

Jose Pierre's An Illustrated Dictionary of Pop Art (London: Eyre Methuen/Woodbury, N.Y.: Barron's Educational Series, 1977—$3.95, paper)

Gene Baro's Graphicstudio U.S.F.: An Experiment in Art and Education (Brooklyn, N.Y.: Brooklyn Museum, 1978—price not given, paper)

Joni K. Miller & Lowry Thompson's The Rubber Stamp Album (New York: Workman Publishing Co., 1978—$12.50/6.95)     

Writing quality in Chinese children: speed and fluency matter

There were two goals of the present study. The first was to create a scoring scheme by which 9-year-old Chinese children??s writing compositions could be rated to form a total score for writing quality. The second was to examine cognitive correlates of writing quality at age 9 from measures administered at ages 6?C9. Age 9 writing compositions were scored using a 7-element rubric; following confirmatory factor analyses, 5 of these elements were retained to represent overall writing quality for subsequent analyses. Measures of vocabulary knowledge, Chinese word dictation, phonological awareness, speed of processing, speeded naming, and handwriting fluency at ages 6?C9 were all significantly associated with the obtained overall writing quality measure even when the statistical effect of age was removed. With vocabulary knowledge, dictation skill, age, gender, and phonological awareness included in a regression equation, 35% of the variance in age 9 writing quality was explained. With the variables of speed of processing, speeded naming, and handwriting fluency additionally included as a block, 12% additional variance in the equation was explained. In addition to gender, overall unique correlates of writing quality were dictation, speed of processing, and handwriting fluency, underscoring the importance of both general automaticity and specific writing fluency for writing quality development in children.