The Semiotics of Learning New Words

In several of his papers, Charles S. Peirce illustrates processes of interpreting and understanding signs by examples from second language vocabulary teaching and learning. The insights conveyed by means of these little pedagogical scenarios are not meant as contributions to the psychology of second language learning, but they aim at elucidating fundamental semiotic implications of knowledge acquisition in general. Peirce's semiotic premise that a well‐understood sign is one that represents an object and creates an interpretant is essential to the understanding of how new words and signs in general can be taught and learned. The article argues that Peirce's theory of the object of the sign, especially of the necessity of collateral experience of the object of a sign, can help to understand the riddle posed by of the Meno paradox of the impossibility of learning what we do not yet know. It examines the semiotic implications of the didactic methods of teaching and learning through translation, ostension, mental and real images, as well as metacognition, and it shows how icons, indices, and symbols are essential to learning new words.     

Comparing the magnitude and direction of asymmetry during the squat,countermovement and drop jump tests in elite youth female soccer players

ABSTRACT

The aims of the present study were to provide an in-depth comparison of inter-limb asymmetry and determine how consistently asymmetry favours the same limb during different vertical jump tests. Eighteen elite female under-17 soccer players conducted unilateral squat jumps (SJ), countermovement jumps (CMJ) and drop jumps (DJ) on a portable force platform, with jump height, peak force, concentric impulse and peak power as common metrics across tests. For the magnitude of asymmetry, concentric impulse was significantly greater during the SJ test compared to CMJ (p = 0.019) and DJ (p = 0.003). No other significant differences in magnitude were present. For the direction of asymmetry, Kappa coefficients revealed fair to substantial levels of agreement between the SJ and CMJ (Kappa = 0.35 to 0.61) tests, but only slight to fair levels of agreement between the SJ and DJ (Kappa = ?0.26 to 0.18) and CMJ and DJ (Kappa = ?0.13 to 0.26) tests. These results highlight that the mean asymmetry value may be a poor indicator of true variability of between-limb differences in healthy athletes. The direction of asymmetry may provide a useful monitoring tool for practitioners in healthy athletes, when no obvious between-limb deficit exists.     

A historical analysis of academic development using the theoretical lens of Pierre Bourdieu

This paper provides a history of academic development by examining how a South African institution coped with the potent social forces confronting it before the collapse of apartheid. Theoretically, it draws on the framework of Pierre Bourdieu and engages with a paper written a decade ago by Naidoo, who also used Bourdieu to understand institutional change in South Africa in the late 1980s. Through contrasting the habitus of two professors, it is argued that academic development helps to preserve the autonomy of the university field by refracting forces impinging on it from the economic and political realms.     

The Potential Impact of COVID-19 on Student Learning and How Schools Can Respond

There is no denying the impact that the coronravirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has had on many aspects of our lives. This article looks at the potential impact of COVID-19 on student learning as schools abruptly morphed into virtual learning environments using data from several instructional, practice, and assessment solutions offered by Renaissance. First, three hypothetical learning scenarios are considered using normative data from Star assessments to explore the potential impact on reading and math test performace. Next, data on Focus Skills are used to highlight which grades may have missed the most foundational math and reading content if instruction was stopped or reduced. Last, data from two of Renaissance's practice tools are used to evaluate whether students were practicing key skills following school closures. The article concludes that academic decline will likely occur but may be tempered by the increased use of practice tools; effects may look different for math and reading; and may impact grades and schools differently. As such, schools may need to leverage decision-making frameworks, such as the Multi-tiered Systems of Support/Response-to-Intervention (MTSS/RTI) framework, more than ever to identify needs and target instruction where it matters most when school begins in fall 2020.     

School Education Through the Eyes of Parents

Data from surveys of parents of students in Russian schools of various types in the years 2006 to 2011 show a high level of desire to invest in their children's education. There has been a high degree of stability in aspirations and investment in spite of the economic problems caused by global recession.     

Bibliometric methods in libraries of the Republic of Belarus: History and contemporary state

This paper considers the use of bibliometric methods in library and information activities, as well as the role of libraries of the Republic of Belarus in increasing the publication activities of researchers and the promotion of scientific journals.     

Distance education copyright,intellectual property,and antitrust concerns

Abstract

An empirical examination of accredited American higher education institutions was conducted to obtain baseline data regarding distance education copyright, intellectual property, and antitrust concerns. Additionally, a multiple‐case study involving ten of the top thirty accredited distance education institutions in America was conducted. Policy approaches were examined for all institutions, and differences were discussed between public and private institutions as well as between the following Carnegie Classification institutions: Research I and II, Doctorate I and II, and Master's I and II. Data indicated that, out of the schools surveyed, 22% of the institutions in these Carnegie Classification categories published copyright and intellectual property policies on their institution's Web site. In the case study, it was found that 90% of the institutions centrally controlled their distance education program administration as well as the copyright and intellectual property policies related to it.