开展机构协作发展远程教育

[译者按]本文原文发表于"学习联邦"(Com-monwea]th of Learning)网站<知识系列>(Know]-edge Series)栏目(2003年).学习联邦是英联邦各成员国的政府首脑倡议成立的政府间组织,其宗旨是鼓励开发和共享开放学习和远程教育的知识、资源和技术.目前我国远程教育机构也正在开展各种形式的协作,既有电大之间的协作,也有电大与其他教育机构的协作,还有国际间的协作,但毕竟一切刚刚起步,许多地方有待于进一步完善.因此,我们认为这篇经验之谈的文章所提出的一些原则、建议、指南等对我们有一定指导意义和借鉴价值.现将其译成中文,以飨读者,并向印度甘地国立开放大学Sharma高级讲师和Chaudhary教授以及学习联邦组织致谢!     

School-based early intervention and later child maltreatment in the Chicago Longitudinal Study

Investigated were the effects of participation in the Title I Child-Parent Centers (CPC) on substantiated reports of child maltreatment for 1,408 children (93% of whom are African American) in the Chicago Longitudinal Study. The CPCs provide child education and family support services in high-poverty areas. After adjusting for preprogram maltreatment and background factors, 913 preschool participants had significantly lower rates of court petitions of maltreatment by age 17 than 495 children of the same age who participated in alternative kindergarten interventions (5.0% vs. 10.5%, a 52% reduction). Participation for 4 to 6 years was significantly associated with lower rates of maltreatment (3.6% vs. 6.9%, a 48% reduction). Findings based on child protective service records (as well as combined protective service and court records) were similar. Preschool length, family risk, and school poverty were associated with lower rates of maltreatment. Parental involvement in school and school mobility were significant mediators of intervention effects.     

Reading Recovery 20 Years Down the Track: Looking forward,looking back

Reading Recovery is an intensive literacy programme designed for young students who have been identified as being at‐risk of reading failure after 1 year of schooling. The intervention was developed and trialled in New Zealand over 20 years ago and is now implemented in a number of education systems. The focus of this article is on recent research into the operationalisation of the programme with an overview of what it has done well and what it has not done so well. Reading Recovery has been very successful in bringing about change on the political and teacher training levels. In terms of efficacy in remediating literacy difficulties, however, the findings are more equivocal. What we have learned from Reading Recovery may assist in the implementation of new interventions based on more contemporary research.     

Examining youth perceptions and social contexts of litter to improve marine debris environmental education

Abstract

Youth have astute observations about site-specific personal and environmental factors that contribute to littering and marine debris, and they have a strong potential to act as change agents in communities. Interactions with youth in Pinellas County Florida add insights into a growing body of research on environmental education and marine debris prevention. This study assessed perceptions of marine debris and littering behaviors through group discussions with middle school and high school students (N = ～44), evaluations at summer camp programs (N = ～31) and pre- and post-assessments of environmental field trips (pre-assessment N = ～120; post-assessment N = ～140). Youth showed high initial awareness of the effects of marine debris on the environment but showed less understanding about the role of watersheds and biodegradation in marine litter issues. A majority of youth attributed others’ littering behavior to dispositional factors, like laziness, while attributing their own littering to situational factors, like poorly placed bins. Student observations of educators and parents also influenced littering behaviors and willingness to act. To reduce littering, education and outreach programs need to (1) provide opportunities for ongoing assessment of complex marine debris topics, (2) align visual and written or verbal messages, (3) reduce actor/observer bias related to littering behaviors, and (4) support adult role models.     

Contrasts in student engagement,meaning-making,dislikes, and challenges in a discovery-based program of game design learning

This implementation study explores middle school, high school and community college student experiences in Globaloria, an educational pilot program of game design offered in schools within the U.S. state of West Virginia, supported by a non-profit organization based in New York City called the World Wide Workshop Foundation. This study reports on student engagement, meaning making and critique of the program, in their own words. The study’s data source was a mid-program student feedback survey implemented in Pilot Year 2 (2008/2009) of the 5 year design-based research initiative, in which the researchers posed a set of open-ended questions in an online survey questionnaire answered by 199 students. Responses were analyzed using inductive textual analysis. While the initial purpose for data collection was to elicit actionable program improvements as part of a design-based research process, several themes emergent in the data tie into recent debates in the education literature around discovery-based learning. In this paper, we draw linkages from the categories of findings that emerged in student feedback to this literature, and identify new scholarly research questions that can be addressed in the ongoing pilot, the investigation of which might contribute new empirical insights related to recent critiques of discovery based learning, self-determination theory, and the productive failure phenomenon.     

What Recent Reviews Tell Us About the Efficacy of Reading Interventions for Struggling Readers in the Early Years of Schooling

An analysis of large and influential published reviews of research pertaining to the reading acquisition of young struggling readers in the early years of schooling was undertaken. The reviews were selected on the basis that they either had been commissioned by federal governments or had been conducted by reputable research institutions and had been released in the past 10 years. A search of published literature pertaining to the topic found three federal reviews (from the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia), a What Works Clearinghouse Report into beginning reading programmes, a review of reading interventions by Slavin et al. and a synthesis of meta-analyses by Hattie. Analysis of these reviews indicated that there are key commonalities in findings about how to teach reading to young students. Reviews of interventions revealed some flaws and therefore provide limited information useful to programme implementation and development for young struggling readers.     

Making sense of double number lines in professional development: exploring teachers’ understandings of proportional relationships

This study presents a qualitative analysis of the knowledge teachers in one professional development course used to reason about proportional relationships with double number lines. We work from the knowledge-in-pieces perspective to consider the existing knowledge the participants did or did not invoke when learning to reason with this new-to-them representation. We analyzed videotaped sessions of a group of urban middle-grade teachers across five class meetings. Our findings include discussion of the two pieces of knowledge that emerged as important for reasoning about proportions with the representation and three knowledge pieces that deterred meaning making. Implications for professional development are discussed as are the implications for conceptualizing teachers’ understanding through a knowledge-in-pieces lens.     

Writing-to-learn in undergraduate science education: a community-based, conceptually driven approach

Despite substantial evidence that writing can be an effective tool to promote student learning and engagement, writing-to-learn (WTL) practices are still not widely implemented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, particularly at research universities. Two major deterrents to progress are the lack of a community of science faculty committed to undertaking and applying the necessary pedagogical research, and the absence of a conceptual framework to systematically guide study designs and integrate findings. To address these issues, we undertook an initiative, supported by the National Science Foundation and sponsored by the Reinvention Center, to build a community of WTL/STEM educators who would undertake a heuristic review of the literature and formulate a conceptual framework. In addition to generating a searchable database of empirically validated and promising WTL practices, our work lays the foundation for multi-university empirical studies of the effectiveness of WTL practices in advancing student learning and engagement.     

IQs ARE VERY STRONG BUT IMPERFECT INDICATORS OF PSYCHOMETRIC g: RESULTS FROM JOINT CONFIRMATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS

The most global score yielded by intelligence tests, IQs, are supported by substantial validity evidence and have historically been central to the identification of intellectual disabilities, learning disabilities, and giftedness. This study examined the extent to which IQs measure the ability they target, psychometric g. Data from three samples of children and adolescents (Ns = 200, 150, and 135) who completed varying pairs of individually administered, multidimensional intelligence tests were analyzed using a joint confirmatory factor analysis to generate correlations between IQs and general factors representing psychometric g. The resulting values, expressed as g loadings, for the six IQs ranged from .88 to .95 (M = .92). The accuracy of IQs in measuring psychometric g, the meaning of reliable specific ability variance in IQs not accounted for by psychometric g, and the use of IQs in schools and related settings are discussed.     

The use of touch devices for enhancing academic achievement: A meta‐analysis

Touch devices such as tablets and smartphones are widely adopted in educational settings and have many desirable features. However, research supporting the use of touch devices to improve academic achievement is emergent and has not been evaluated through a meta‐analysis. We conducted a meta‐analysis of 65 group and single case design research studies, published 2010–2018, to evaluate the effects of touch device implementation on academic achievement. The overall mean effect sizes were moderate for group design and single case design studies. Participant, intervention, and study attributes were also evaluated to describe the research and how these attributes may moderate the results. Overall, results suggest that touch devices may be an effective tool for enhancing academic achievement. The need to conduct additional, rigorous research on the use of touch devices as well as implications for researchers and practitioners are discussed.