Collaborative art-making for reducing marginalisation and promoting intercultural education and inclusion

The main goal of this study is to examine how teachers and students experienced the implementation of educational activities, materials and related pedagogical strategies of collaborative art-making. The activities were designed to strengthen intercultural education and inclusion practices, reduce social and academic marginalisation and increase the participation of marginalised children in the curricula, cultures and societies of schools. The current study examines only the implementation of activities in Cyprus. The findings of this study suggest that collaborative art-making allowed the voices of culturally diverse students to be heard, promoting the exchange of ideas and stories regarding diversity. Additionally, the implementation of the activities led to the development of students’ civic efficacy and democratic agency, while it contributed to friendship development.     

Why first language learning is not second language learning — Wittgenstein's rejection of St. Augustine's conception of learning

The Philosophical Investigations starts with a quotation from St. Augustine on language learning. The usual reconstruction of Wittgenstein's criticism of St. Augustine's view on language focusses on meaning — that is, the picture theory which he had in common with Wittgenstein's own earlier views. This paper shows that Wittgenstein in discussing ostensive definition, understanding, and the private language argument also attacks St. Augustine's notion of learning. In recent years the Augustinian conception has been resurrected in cognitive theories postulating an innate language of thought (e.g., Fodor), making Wittgenstein's claims that this conception of learning is paradoxical very relevant.     

Rats in a levered T-maze task show evidence of time–place discriminations in two different measures

It is difficult for rats to learn to go to an arm of a T-maze to receive food that is dependent on the time of day, unless the amount of food in each daily session is different. In the same task, rats show evidence of time–place discriminations if they are required to press levers in the arms of the T-maze, but learning is only evident when the first lever press is considered, and not the first arm visited. These data suggest that rats struggle to use time as a discriminative stimulus unless the rewards/events differ in some dimension, or unless the goal locations can be visited prior to making a response. If both of these conditions are met in the same task, it might be possible to compare time–place learning in two different measures that essentially indicate performance before and after entering the arms of the T-maze. In the present study, we investigated time–place learning in rats with a levered T-maze task in which the amounts of food varied depending on the time of day. The first arm choices and first lever presses both indicated that the rats had acquired time–place discriminations, and both of these measures became significantly different from chance during the same block. However, there were subtle differences between the two measures, which suggest that time–place discrimination is aided by visiting the goal locations.     

The best laid plans: Educational innovation in elementary teacher generated integrated STEM lesson plans

ABSTRACT

Students need to be prepared for the 21st century by developing the literacy skills necessary for participating in the age of synthesis—an age that requires a progressive set of skills and knowledge. The authors identified nine educational innovations that are perceived to be effective for preparing students for the 21st century age of synthesis society. They coded a collection of 39 teacher-generated Grade 3–5 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) lesson plans to document the extent to which the teachers included these nine educational innovations their STEM lesson planning. The authors found practices such as project-based and student-centered learning (which are common established approaches to teaching STEM) to be strongly represented in the plans, whereas practices such as family involvement and place-based learning (which have not been traditionally used in STEM instruction) were less evident in the plans. In their discussion they explore the implications for STEM teaching, and potential directions for future research.     

Development of the ‘Museum Health and Social Care Service’ to promote the use of arts and cultural activities by health and social care professionals caring for older people

ABSTRACT

It is well documented that engagement in arts and cultural activities contributes to improving and maintaining the health and well-being of older people. Despite this, many health and social care professionals do not recognize or accept arts and cultural activities as relevant to their care remit. To address this, a team of 17 individuals comprising older service users, and staff from a range of health and social care, arts, and museum and archive services in North East England worked collaboratively to design and develop the Museum Health and Social Care Service (MHSCS). MHSCS is a resource and training package that reinforces the care and clinical benefits of arts and cultural activities to older people’s health and wellbeing, aimed at supporting health and social care professionals to acknowledge and use these activities as integral to care delivery.     

Literacy for All: Findings from an Australian study

This article summarises some of the major findings of a study published in 2000 for the Commonwealth government of Australia. It argues that school systems in Australia are moving towards the goal of literacy for all and suggests some of the factors that are and may be contributing to its achievement.     

Lecture attendance is a pivotal factor for improving prospective teachers’ academic performance in Teaching and Learning Mathematics

The value and importance of lectures in higher education is part of a modern education discourse worldwide. This study aims to estimate the importance of lectures for prospective teachers of kindergarten, preschool and early primary school. We analysed academic achievements of prospective teachers who had either mandatorily or voluntarily attended lectures in the subject of teaching and learning mathematics. Students’ examination grades in a maths course with mandatory or voluntary lecture attendance were analysed with a logistic model testing the association between lecture attendance requirement and grades. We show that mandatory lecture attendance (1) more than double the odds of students receiving a pass grade when their situated and tacit knowledge was examined and (2) quadrupled the odds of students achieving the highest grade (pass with distinction) when both their understanding of elementary mathematics and their situated and tacit knowledge of teaching and learning mathematics were examined. Our study provides evidence for a significant positive role of lecture attendance for students acquiring skills in Teaching and Learning Mathematics. While attending lectures students receive situated tacit knowledge of the subject which is otherwise difficult, if not impossible, for them to obtain in a different way. The observed improvement may have an additional positive effect in being a step towards overcoming a maths anxiety, which is otherwise relatively common among prospective teachers.     

Taste + odor interactions in compound aversion conditioning

In three experiments with rats, taste + odor interactions in compound aversion conditioning were investigated. In Experiment 1, two odors (0.02% almond and 0.02% orange) were compared on single-element odor aversions, taste (denatonium) potentiated odor aversions, and potentiated odor aversions following taste extinction. Although no odor differences were seen following single-element conditioning, both types of potentiated orange odor aversions were stronger than their almond odor counterparts. These data show that odors of similar conditionability are differentially potentiated by the same taste. To determine whether these differences were due to unique perceptual representations, the effects of elemental extinction or compound extinction on aversions to the compound were investigated in Experiments 2 and 3. In Experiment 2, orange odor extinction weakened responding to the compound significantly more than taste extinction did. In contrast, almond odor extinction and taste extinction produced similar decrements in responding to the compound in Experiment 3. These results suggest that the perceptual representation of these specific taste + odor compounds are different, and they are discussed in regard to configural and within-compound association accounts of potentiation.