Gender Effects in School Subject Preferences: a research note

Rankings of liking for nine curriculum subjects were obtained from 93 middle school pupils aged 11‐13 years, who also completed the Children's Sex Role Inventory. Statistically significant gender differences in the rankings of English and humanities were found, which were both preferred by girls, and for physical education (PE) and science, which were preferred by boys. Some statistically significant associations between subject rankings and sex typing measures also emerged. Higher rankings of music and humanities were associated with higher Femininity scores, while higher rankings for PE were associated with lower Femininity scores. The only significant association with Masculinity was for English, where higher rankings were associated with lower Masculinity. No significant associations with Masculinity or Femininity were found for science, a traditionally male‐stereotyped curriculum area. Associations found between the rankings of the different subjects indicated a tendency for pupils to prefer either more academic or more practical subjects, but there was no indication from the limited data available on their performance that this could be related to their academic ability. The implications of these preliminary findings for future investigations are discussed.     

Visual representations of the internet in greek school textbooks and students’ experiences

Our research is concerned with the visual representations found in textbooks used for the teaching of the Internet in Greek secondary schools. Visualization, as both the product and the process of creation, interpretation and reflection upon pictures and images, is considered here to be very important, as it is the only way students gain insight into the nature and function of the Internet, its size, complexity and invisibility. Initially, we attempted to analyze and reflect upon school textbooks’ visual interpretations of the Internet. A scheme of categories of visual representations has been identified and reveals the characteristics of the textbooks’ representations as well as their limitations. Sketch-comics and computer snap-shots are the more popular types of Vrep, although a considerable number of them cannot be characterized as accurate and few of them have an explanatory or complementary function in terms of the content presented in the text. We have also explored the impact on students’ readings of two visual representations in one of the textbooks, used without any caption or textual information. The phenomenological aspects of the VRep seem to attract students’ attention and create obstacles in conceptualizing the main idea conveyed in both representations, but when the field of ICT is implied and not clearly portrayed in the VRep, students face serious problems in recognizing the phenomenon. It seems that it is difficult for an image on its own to paint a thousand words.     

Teacher self-assessment of evidence-based classroom practices: preliminary findings across primary,intermediate and secondary level teachers

The limited implementation of evidence-based classroom practices and ways to provide effective professional development to address this challenge remain enduring concerns in education. Despite these concerns, there exists a well-established research literature on evidence-based practices for effective classroom management and instructional practices. One identified area of need is research investigating the extent that different classroom practices are more or less important across school and grade levels. The current study examined results from 612 general education teachers across school levels (323 primary, 208 intermediate, 81 secondary) who completed an on-line self-assessment of their use of evidence-based classroom practices. Statistical analysis found significant differences in teachers’ self-reported use of several evidence-based classroom practices across school levels (primary, intermediate, secondary). Implications are presented for using teacher self-assessment to inform professional development in schools.     

The effect of periodized resistance training on accelerative sprint performance

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of periodized resistance training on accelerative sprint performance. Sixteen physically active men participated in a randomized controlled study. An experimental group (n = 10) completed an 8-week periodized resistance training intervention, while a control group (n = 6) did not train. Pre- and post-training measures of 20-m straight-line sprint time, including a 10-m split, maximum strength, and explosive strength, were recorded. Flight time, stance time, stride length, and stride frequency were quantified from digitized video recordings of the first three strides of the 20-m sprint. Resistance training resulted in significant increases in maximum strength (parallel back squat: 19%) and explosive strength (6–10%). However, both groups increased 0–10 m sprint times (experimental group = 6%; control group = 3%) while 10–20 m times were reduced (experimental group = 7%; control group = 4%), highlighting the mechanical differences between the distinct sprint phases. The change during the 0–10 m interval was accompanied by a reduction in stride frequency during the first three strides. Strength coaches should be aware that the potential benefits of increased muscular strength during short sprints are likely to be affected by mechanical specificity and that improvements in sprinting performance may not occur immediately after a period of resistance training.     

Performance and perception in the flipped classroom

Changes in the conceptualisation of higher education have led to instructional methods that embrace technology as a teaching medium. These changes have led to the flipped classroom phenomenon - where content is delivered outside class, through media such as video and podcast, and engagement with the content, through problem-solving and/or group work, occurs in class. Studies investigating the impact of the flipped classroom have mainly looked at the student experience with little focus on whether exam outcomes are enhanced by flipping. An undergraduate Material Technology course at The University of the West Indies was taught in two formats over two successive years. The course was taught during the 2012/13 academic year in a ‘traditional’ format but, after reflecting on student feedback and personal pedagogy, the lecturer restructured the class and taught it in a flipped format during the 2013/14 academic year. This research examines whether the flipped format improved the learning experience in relation to exam performance and student perception. Data was gathered through analysis of course grades and student evaluation questionnaires. The lecturer’s reflective comments were also reviewed before and after the study. Analysis of the qualitative data shows that the flipped format led to a slight improvement in how students perceived the course and the lecturer’s reflection shows that they are keen to continue with the flipped format as it allowed more time for them to work with students at an individual level. While no significant change in relation to average cohort exam performance was found, fewer students in the flipped classroom achieved marks at the highest level. It is therefore recommended that practitioners who intend to flip their classroom pay as much attention to student performance as they do to student perception.     

Thinking with certainty or with doubt: a Lacanian theorisation of discursive knowledge in teacher education

ABSTRACT

The paper presents a theorisation of pedagogic knowledge formation, as a continuous attempt to understand the positions in discourse we occupy. The paper documents some participatory practitioner research by teacher educators centred on a course development initiative for student teachers of English, at an English university. Students researched their experiences of becoming a teacher within a course that was largely school-based, whilst their tutors researched their own involvement in the process (the main focus of this paper). Drawing on Lacanian theory, tutors are depicted as learning subjects having more or less certainty or doubt about the knowledge they possess. In attempting to understand this interplay of certainty and doubt, tutors arrive at stronger conceptualisations of learning. Through this approach, the paper provides a theoretically informed conception of professional knowledge, as involving a process of renewing ideas about learning, in meeting or resisting external demands.     

Providing access to electronic information resources in further education

This article aims to provide a baseline for future studies on the provision and support for the use of digital or electronic information services (EIS) in further education. The analysis presented is based on a multi‐level model of access, which encompasses access to and availability of information and communication technology (ICT) resources, access to and availability of EIS resources, and the third leg of staff skills and their development. The research was conducted within the third cycle of the JISC (Joint Information Services Committee) User Behaviour Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, in 2001/2002. Evidence was gathered from library and information service web sites and various stakeholders, including library and information service staff, academic staff and students to generate insights into the provision of access to EIS in further education. Sector‐wide funding initiatives have had a significant impact on ICT infrastructures, and these attract a positive response from students. EIS are represented on some library web sites but both web site development and EIS availability is very much less advanced than in higher education. Staff, however, lack sufficient dedicated access to ICT to be able to develop their own skills and use. There remains a low level of access to electronic information resources, with only limited access to these resources through library web sites. LIS managers face a number of challenges in enhancing this provision, including licensing arrangements, tight budgets that need to be spread across many discipline areas, and the absence of EIS designed specifically for the further education student. The other key challenge lies in the provision of time and opportunity for academic and LIS staff to develop their ICT and EIS skills, and, more generally in the further development of the role of Information and Learning Technology (ILT) Champions.     

Facilitating growth in prospective teachers’ knowledge: teaching geometry in primary schools

This paper reports on a study that focused on growth of understanding about teaching geometry by a group of prospective teachers engaged in lesson plan study within a computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environment. Participation in the activity was found to facilitate considerable growth in the participants?? pedagogical-content knowledge (PCK). Factors that influenced growth in PCK included the nature of the lesson planning task, the cognitive scaffolds inserted into the CSCL virtual space, the meta-language scaffolds provided to the participants, and the provision of both private and public discourse spaces. The paper concludes with recommendations for enhancing effective knowledge-building discourse about mathematics PCK within prospective teacher education CSCL environments.