英国报业变革图强之路

英国的全国性报纸或许是世界上最好的报纸之一,它们独立于政治控制之外,把娱乐内容与新闻信息的生产放在同等重要位置,报纸满是色彩丰富的各类增刊、副刊、Sudoku游戏,附带有免费DVD、电影票和假日促销券等.为什么这些报纸的所有者要费尽心思留住读者呢?购买报纸的读者数量一代一代地在减少,在过去10年中,全国性报纸流失了数百万读者.日报及周末报纸的发行量10年前是3100万份,但到了2005年8月,这个数字下降为2200万份.     

ADHD,parent perspectives and parent–teacher relationships: grounds for conflict

Educational policy and the school effectiveness movement often involve rhetoric about the benefit of parent involvement in schools, but high‐quality relationships between parents and teachers are not always straightforwardly achieved, and this may be particularly true in the case of parents of children presenting with academic problems and/or social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. A systematic review of qualitative research was conducted to explore the school‐related experiences of parents of pupils diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Six studies reported in seven papers met the inclusion criteria. High‐quality parent–teacher relationships were found to be the exception, with mothers feeling silenced and criticised. Findings show commonalities with wider research about parents, but identify additional grounds for conflict resulting from parental blame for pupils' disruptive behaviour, and the ambivalent nature of the concept of ADHD.     

Developing an appreciation of what it means to be a school-based teacher educator

The nature of partnership between schools and higher education institutions is changing in many countries, with experienced teachers taking on more responsibility for teacher education whilst remaining in their school as teachers, rather than entering the higher education sector to become teacher educators. This research considers the perspectives of these school-based teacher educators (SBTEs) in England, exploring the impact that this role has on them, their student-teachers and their schools. Some benefits and challenges that they face in the dual role of teacher and teacher educator are revealed. The research takes an interpretive perspective, listening to the meanings being constructed by the participants through use of a questionnaire, semi-structured interviews and a focus group of student-teachers who learned from these SBTEs. Possible impacts on student-teachers’ learning and implications for the development of high-quality teacher education are examined.     

The hidden benefits of part-time higher education study to working practices: is there a case for making them more visible?

Within the UK, part-time study is now seen as important in meeting wider government objectives for higher education (HE) and for sustainable economic growth through skills development. Yet, measures to capture the impact of HE may not be wholly appropriate to part-time study. In particular, the continuing focus on tangible, economic measures may be down-playing, or even completely overlooking, other gains. Data from a longitudinal study of part-time students show that irrespective of whether graduates had changed job or employer, or had stayed in the same job, individuals reported substantial work-related gains from their HE studies. We suggest that current research questions that focus on job moves and progression within the labour market, may well be the wrong questions to ask to gauge measures of benefits/returns to HE. Further research is needed to develop measures to fully capture the social returns of skills acquisition through part-time study.     

Time-motion,tactical and technical analysis in top-level karatekas according to gender,match outcome and weight categories

The aim of this study was to define the time-motion (i.e., fighting, preparatory and breaking activity), technical (i.e., attack, timed-attack, counterattack, blocking and grasps) and tactical (i.e., upper limb, lower-limb, combination and throwing) profiles of the senior top-level karate competition played under the most recent rules of the International Karate Federation in relation to gender, match outcome and weight categories. Time-motion, tactical actions and technical executions were investigated of senior karatekas (n = 60) during the Karate World Championship. The referee’s decisions caused an overall activity-to-break ratio of ~1:1.5 with a significant difference (P = 0.025) between karateka’s weight categories (light = 1:1.5; middle = 1:2 and heavy = 1:1). High-intensity actions (i.e., attack and defensive actions performed quickly and powerfully) were higher in male compared to female athletes. Top-level karatekas used upper limb techniques more than lower limb ones, with both applied in the head more than in the body. For the high-intensity-actions to pause ratio and the percentage of combined techniques, light weight category was significantly higher than middle weight category. These findings suggest that training programs may need to be specific to the requirements of the gender and weight categories.     

Adaptation Guidance for Evidence-Based Teen Pregnancy and STI/HIV Prevention Curricula: From Development to Practice

Evidence-based interventions (EBIs) are effective in preventing adolescent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections; however, prevention practitioners are challenged when selecting and adapting the most appropriate programs. While there are existing adaptation frameworks, there is little practical guidance in applying research in the field. To address this need, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Reproductive Health initiated the Adaptation Guidance Project. The project included the development of a comprehensive adaptation guidance framework and adaptation kits for select evidence-based teen pregnancy and HIV prevention programs. In addition, three innovative concepts emerged that have application to other adaptation program and evaluation efforts, including moving research into practice. First, the authors defined the core components of an EBI in three distinct ways: core content, core pedagogy, and core implementation. Second, they piloted a practitioner-friendly adaptation guidance-messaging schema—Green, Yellow, and Red Light Adaptations, and last they included fidelity/adaptation monitoring logs. This article will describe the process used to develop the adaptation guidance kits, including the main features and tools.     

Communication aids in the classroom: the views of education staff and speech and language therapists involved with the Communication Aids Project

The findings presented in this paper are part of an independent evaluation study of the Communication Aids Project (CAP). The study was carried out between July 2003 and April 2004 and looked at the impact of CAP on children receiving communication aids and evaluated the CAP strategy of assessment and delivery. In this paper the views of education staff and speech and language therapists who were working with communication aid users in school are presented. The professionals who were interviewed provided positive feedback on the existence of CAP, on the assessment for the communication aid, particularly where the use of the aid in the classroom was considered, and on the children's increased participation in classroom and learning activities since receiving the aid. They also highlighted the issue of managing parents' expectations regarding the use of aids and the value of and need for continued training for professionals working with communication aids in the classroom. The authors of this article, Jannet Wright, senior lecturer, Chris Donlan, senior lecturer, Caroline Newton, lecturer, and Michael Clarke, lecturer, from University College London; Claire Lister, from the Institute of Child Health, London; and Jasmina Cherguit, assistant psychologist, draw upon their findings to develop recommendations for future policy, practice and professional development.     

A Collaborative Approach to Planning in the Content Areas for Students with Learning Disabilities: Accessing the General Curriculum

The purpose of this article is to describe a collaborative approach to planning in the content areas to include and allow students with learning disabilities access to the general education curriculum. Procedures for selecting and organizing content, determining activities, identifying accommodations and modifications necessary to enhance content learning, and assessing student performance are presented. In addition, a sample unit plan and a lesson plan are included to illustrate the outcomes of collaborative planning based on effective teaching practices.     

Teaching and Assessing Writing: an Australian Perspective

This article examines issues of writing instruction and assessment as they relate to an approach to English language education that has been developed in Australia. The approach, put forward by proponents of genre theory, is underpinned by the argument that it is essential for all teachers, and especially English teachers, to have a ‘metalanguage’ about language education. The expectation is that such a metalanguage makes it possible for teachers and students to develop shared understandings of how written and spoken language works in their various forms. The related argument is that the teacher represents an authoritative (as distinct from authoritarian) language user in the classroom and is responsible for teaching the linguistic characteristics of texts as well as the relationship between texts and the cultural and social contexts in which they are produced and received. In this article I examine the ‘genre’ position and consider its relevance to the business of teaching, learning and assessing in the English classroom.