EUROPEAN DISSERTATION SUMMARIES

To alleviate teachers’ reluctance toward practical work, there has been much discussion on teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge, teaching materials, and failsafe strategies for practical work. Despite these efforts, practical work is still regarded as a challenging task for many elementary science teachers. To understand the complexity of teachers’ conflicts in practical work, this study examines teachers’ ideas about teaching and learning that influence teachers’ decision‐making and action on teaching practical work. More important than knowing technical–rational aspects of practical work is to understand the internal contradictions that teachers have to resolve within themselves regarding their capabilities and beliefs about science teaching and practical work. Using stories and experiences of 38 third‐year university students in a science method course in Korea, we seek to understand the conflicts and negotiations that they experience as they make decisions regarding practical work throughout their course. Reflective writings and group discussions on their lived experiences and concerns were used to probe participants’ ideas on teaching using practical work. From written and verbal data, themes were saturated in terms of the aspects which could (dis)encourage their practice. Results suggest that there are multifactorial challenges in pre‐service teachers’ understandings and concerns in practical work. Besides time, materials, and curriculum, pedagogical assumptions and values also compositely challenge the minds of teachers. As the pre‐service elementary teachers negotiated within themselves the importance of science in classroom and social levels, the question is raised about their identities as pre‐service elementary teachers to appreciate the balance between science teaching and practical work.     

The Effect of a National Initiative on Exam Results

ABSTRACT

This paper considers the examination results of TVEI and non TVEI pupils in the database established at the University of Newcastle in 1985‐87. The pupils took national exams in the summer of 1987, when they were about 16 years old. Their average grades (Exam Means) and their accumulated grades (Exam Totals) were considered separately.

The Exam Mean and Exam Total scores were generally worse for TVEI than non TVEI pupils, even when pupils with the same ability test scores and aspirational scores were compared. However, it is possible that non TVEI factors caused the discrepancy in results and it is these factors which are the subjects of this paper.

The paper considers firstly whether the differences are an artefact of regression analysis. Secondly, the data are considered using various multilevel models. Both analyses suggest that there was no TVEI effect on the Exam Mean score and a negative TVEI effect on the Exam Total. Various explanations for these findings, concerning internal school allocational and curriculum policies, are considered and discussed.     

Media Education in Primary Schools in Austria: Teaching Materials

Abstract

This article describes the questionnaire by which the Austrian Ministry of Education investigated the state of media education in primary schools, and briefly summarizes the results. It then describes the teaching materials that have been and are being produced.     

Technology's impact: symbiotic or asymbiotic impact on differing cultures?

Over the past three years or more, the authors have been examining the impact of technology interventions on students and teachers – from cultures where English is a second language. It is their hypothesis that students and teachers from non‐English speaking nations suffer severe disadvantages when technological interventions are superimposed on existing traditional pedagogical models. This paper is the latest in a series that examines extent pedagogies, primarily in Asia, and the pressures of having to re‐conceptualize what has been a tradition for centuries. It traces significant educational origins to their cultural roots and examines contemporary initiatives that, if implemented, may well disrupt. It offers possible solutions that, if approached with reconciliation as its focus, might offset catastrophic results and, in fact, achieve pedagogical symbiosis.L'impact de la technologie: symbiotique ou asymbiotique selon des cultures différentes. Durant les 3 dernières années ou plus, des auteurs ont examiné les interventions sur les étudiants et les enseignants appartenant à des cultures où l'anglais est une seconde langue. C'est une hypothèse que les étudiants et enseignants de pays non anglophones souffrent de plusieurs d´esavantages quand les interventions technologiques sont imposées sur les modèles pédagogiques traditionnels. Cet article est le plus récent d'une série qui examine plusieurs pédagogies, particulièrement en Asie, et les pressions de revoir la conceptualisation qui a été la tradition pendant des siècles. Il met les origines éducatives significatives depuis leurs racines culturelles et examine les initiatives contemporaires qui, si elles sont en oeuvre, peuvent aboutir à des ruptures. L'article offre des solutions possibles qui, si elles sont approchées dans un esprit de conciliation comme point de mire, permettent d'éviter des résultats catastrophiques et, en fait, aboutir à une symbiose pédagogique.Die Wirkung der Technik: Symbiotische oder Asymbiotic Wirkung auf unterschiedliche Kulturen? Über die letzten drei Jahre oder mehr haben die Autoren die Wirkung von Technikeingriffen auf Studenten und Lehrer aus Kulturen geprüft, in denen Englisch eine zweite Sprache ist. Es ist ihre Hypothese, daß Studenten und Lehrer aus nicht englisch sprechenden Nationen schwerwiegende Nachteile erleiden, wenn mit technologischen Eingriffen vorhandene traditionelle pädagogische Modelle überlagert werden. Dieses Papier ist das letzte einer Serie, die umfangreiche pädagogische Gebiete untersucht, in erster Linie in Asien, und den Zwang prüft, das wieder konzeptualisieren zu müssen, was Jahrhunderte eine Tradition gewesen ist. Es verfolgt signifikante Bildungsursprünge hin zu ihren kulturellen Wurzeln und prüft zeitgenössische Initiativen, die, wenn durchgeführt, das gut unterbrechen können. Es bietet mögliche Lösungen an, die, mit dem Ziel der Aussöhnung, katastrophale Ergebnisse ausgleichen und in der Tat eine pädagogische Symbiose erreichen könnten.     

解读西南联大:大学校长的视角

西南联大已是历史名词,然而其业绩依然光辉。以大学校长为视角,为解读西南联大提供了新的视角。联大的成功与该校校长的治校有方紧紧相连,其先进的办学理念,科学的管理模式以及个人的人格修养都促成了联大的向前发展。而这些都值得今天的大学校长们去感悟和借鉴,从而更好地引领大学的发展和建设。     

概率神经网络在汽轮发电机组故障诊断中的应用

汽轮发电机组逐渐智能化,功能不断增强,但不确定性因素和不确定性信息仍然大量存在。针对该问题,用概率神经网络（PNN）诊断汽轮发电机组故障。PNN优点较多,机器学习算法简易、方便训练,相比于传统样本处理方法,PNN可训练样本并引入训练网络,更好地确保诊断结果正确率与可信度。MATLAB仿真结果表明,PNN在保证诊断结果准确的基础上,速度更快、分类性能大幅提高,诊断效率也提高至98%。     

柏拉图领导教育思想初探

柏拉图的《理想国》是一部内涵丰富的著作，从领导教育的角度看，它是一部领导教育的巨著。柏拉图对领导者的素质、领导者的教育与选拔以及领导教育的课程设置等内容作了详细的阐述，形成了自己的领导教育理论体系，具有自己的特色。     

奥运会临时超市网点最佳设计

通过对预演运动会的问卷调查进行统计分析，得出观众在性别、年龄、出行、就餐和购物等方面的规律，又以餐饮为基准，通过横向纵向比较找出了就餐与出行方式、消费额之间的联系，进而测算出20个商区的人流量分布。最后，建立了以成本为目标函数，以观众的购物欲望、商业赢利为约束条件的整数规划模型，对其中的参数N、n、Q、q、λ进行合理估计，给出一组数据，借助MATLAB软件计算出了MS网点的最佳设计方案。     

具有特殊形貌的氧化锌纳米结构材料

ZnO作为一种重要的半导体和压电材料，具有异常丰富的形貌。本文主要对具有特殊形貌的氧化锌结构材料的研究进展进行评述。     

欧盟基本法的本质

欧盟基本法是欧盟法律的主要渊源。欧盟基本法在欧盟法律体系中具有宪法的三个最基本特征,即地位具最高性,内容具根本性,程序具严格性,在欧盟法律体系中实际上起着宪法的作用。