The Usefulness of a Science Degree: The “lost voices” of science trained professionals

This paper reports a study of science graduates who are employed in positions outside their discipline specialisation. The research was designed to uncover the reasons for them choosing to study science at university, the competencies they utilise in their work and their lives, and how these relate to their undergraduate education in science. The study is seen as important in that already about one‐half of science graduates are in such positions and it is argued that there is a need in scientific and technologically based societies to have a greater representation of such people in decision‐making positions in government and industry. The directions for the science degree that can be drawn from the data gathered are congruent with those arising from other relevant studies. That is, attention should be paid to widely used skills, such as communication and problem‐solving, and to developing an understanding of science within its social and ethical context. An argument is mounted for considering the way the science degree is presented to potential students and to the general public.     

Becoming a researcher: forms of capital associated with “research capacity” trajectories of young British social anthropologists

The paper privileges the voices of British social anthropologists examining their perceptions of how their research expertise was acquired. Reference is made to the case of education research in Britain, which, by comparison with social anthropology, reveals limited capacity as measured through performance audits of scientific research quality. The paper endeavours to facilitate knowledge transfer by uncovering and theoretically classifying the origins of research capacity. Life history interviews provide the data which illuminate the grounded nature of symbolic capital. The intellectual formation of the sample is characterised through Pierre Bourdieu’s theorisation of symbolic capital. The results indicate that research capacity can be characterised in terms of a transmission of symbolic capital, including that gained in the field through institutional affiliations whose reputational assets enhance the power of academics to play the game.     

Child-initiated learning,the outdoor environment and the ‘underachieving’ child

The Foundation Phase for Wales advocates an experiential, play-based approach to learning for children aged three to seven years that includes child-initiated activity within the outdoor environment. In previous research, Foundation Phase practitioners maintained that children perceived to be ‘underachieving’ within the classroom came into their own when engaged in child-initiated learning outdoors. This study, which involved eight Foundation Phase teachers, aimed to explore these perceived differences as well as teachers’ perceptions of ‘underachievement’. It is concluded that the more natural outdoor spaces in which child-initiated activity took place appeared to amplify the effects of child-initiated learning and diminish the perception of underachievement; that engagement in this project enabled some teachers to see ‘underachievement’ as being distributed across people, place and activity; and that through constructing the outdoor ‘space’ as a ‘place’ embedded with positive meanings, children may have had the opportunity to reconstruct themselves as strong, competent children rather than as ‘underachieving’ pupils.     

Multiagency working in the early years: confidence,competence and context

Research and development with regard to interprofessional practice have extended over recent decades to early years services in children’s centres (CCs). However, most children in England attend private and voluntary settings, rather than CCs. where early years practitioners have varying amounts of opportunity, training and experience to work interprofessionally. Developing our Social Practice analysis of case studies, we propose a theoretical framework for interpreting early years interprofessional practice that takes account of specific contexts, noting conditions which promote boundary-crossing competence. This paper presents selected findings from a survey of 52 early years practitioners from England about their experiences of interprofessional working, woven together with case study exemplars. Their extensive responses to open-ended survey questions showed great variation in work with other professions and in reported levels of confidence and competence. However, there were also differences depending on the setting type. Findings suggest the need to tailor training to individual contexts, and argue for securing space for practitioners to gain experience of interprofessional working through mentored opportunities.     

Statistical Power of Randomization Tests Used with Multiple-Baseline Designs

Statistical power was estimated for 3 randomization tests used with multiple-baseline designs. In 1 test, participants were randomly assigned to baseline conditions; in the 2nd, intervention points were randomly assigned; and in the 3rd, the authors used both forms of random assignment. Power was studied for several series lengths (N = 10, 20, 30), several effect sizes (d = 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0), and several levels of autocorrelation among the errors (p ₁ = 0, .1, .2, .3, .4, and .5). Power was found to be similar among the 3 tests. Power was low for effect sizes of 0.5 and 1.0 but was often adequate (> .80) for effect sizes of 1.5 and 2.0.     

The Relative Achievement of the Objectives of Elementary School Science in Minnesota Schools

The authors investigated the relationship between self-perceptions of ability and achievement in math, science, and English from Grades 8 to 11 (N = 342). A state-trait model that included an association between stable (i.e., trait-like) components of self-perceptions and achievement as well as time-specific (i.e., state-like) effects during the transition to high school (i.e., Grade 8 to Grade 9) demonstrated superior fit to alternative models that did not incorporate these features. Stable components of self-perceptions of ability and achievement exhibited a substantial association in this model. In most instances, however, there also was evidence of a positive effect of self-perceptions in Grade 8 on achievement in Grade 9.     

Primary Student Teachers' Ideas about Teaching a Physics Topic

This study examines Finnish and English primary student teachers' ideas when planning to teach a physics topic during their science education studies. Many primary student teachers lack sufficient subject knowledge, which prevents them from constructing the scientific pedagogical content knowledge that enables them to concentrate on pupils' thinking and process skills needed in a physics topic. Therefore they will have problems constructing learning environments that encourage pupils to take active control of their learning. In order to develop effective pedagogical content knowledge it is of the utmost importance that the science educators responsible for physics courses pay special attention to the promotion of favourable attitudes towards the teaching of physics topics. This can be done by focusing on how to teach some basic familiar topics. Quality, not quantity, is important in focusing on both subject knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge. The construction of pedagogical content knowledge is a complex interrelationship of attitudes, subject, and pedagogical knowledge. All three of them need to be developed to enable students to confidently and effectively teach young children.     

Recognition of prior learning,self-realisation and identity within Axel Honneth's theory of recognition

This paper argues for the significance of Axel Honneth's theory of recognition for understanding recognition of prior learning (RPL). Case studies of the experiences of RPL by paraprofessional workers in health and social care in the UK and Sweden are used to explicate this significance. The results maintain that there are varying conditions of recognition. These conditions are often fluid, negotiable and ambivalent. However, RPL appears to support self-realisation and self-awareness, when it co-occurs with individual's identification with associated practices. Workplace salary, affordances for practice and collegial values may shape the esteem and thus the potential for self-realisation. RPL can thus help facilitate the development of a more positive relationship to individuals engaged in RPL processes, enhancing their learning and development.     

Situating the ‘beyond’: adventure-learning and Indigenous cultural competence

In 2010, an Indigenous Elder from the Wiradjuri nation and a group of academics from Charles Sturt University travelled to Menindee, a small locality on the edge of the Australian outback. They were embarked upon an ‘adventure-learning’ research journey to study ways of learning by creating a community of practice with an Elder from the Ngyampa/Barkandji nation. This article first explores the implications of this innovative approach to transformative learning for professional development and for teaching and learning practice. It then reflects on the significance of location for pedagogic approaches aimed at closing the education gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians in universities.     

An investigation of factors involved when educational psychologists supervise other professionals

Inter-professional supervision combines the social processes of supervision and multi-agency working: both complex and often poorly understood processes. This paper discusses the first author’s research of inter-professional supervision, involving an educational psychologist (EP) supervising another professional and complements the recently published guidelines on professional supervision produced by the Division of Educational and Child Psychology (DECP). The research involved 10 semi-structured interviews with six EPs (supervisors) and four other professionals (supervisees) recruited through purposive sampling. Interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed and coded using thematic analysis. Research findings suggested that inter-professional supervision was viewed positively. However, participants had a patchy experience of the contracting aspects of supervision and some talked of conflicting conceptualisations of supervision placing a strain on the supervisory relationship. Conclusions reflect the need to view supervision as a process enacted within multiple contexts which impact upon supervision in important ways.