An example of evaluation in the development of a tertiary physics programme

Conclusion As stated in the introduction, an integral part of the philosophy of school or institutional based curriculum development is that staff involvement in ongoing evaluation will lead to programme improvement. In this case, the results outlined above were used by the staff as a basis for discussing the future structure of first year Physics courses at MSC. The outcome was that the rationale, design and implementation of the new course was adopted for the entire first year course. Development of the course continues.     

Incorporating partial credit in computer-aided assessment of Mathematics in secondary education

In a mathematical examination on paper, partial credit is normally awarded for an answer that is not correct, but, nevertheless, contains some of the correct working. Assessment on computer normally marks an incorrect answer wrong and awards no marks. This can lead to discrepancies between marks awarded for the same examination given in the two different media. The current paper presents possible solutions to this problem and the results of experiments designed to test how successful these solutions are in practice. In light of the findings, developments to the assessment engine have been made and some questions redesigned for use in real automated examinations. The results were obtained as part of the Project for Assessments in Scotland using Information Technology (PASS‐IT): a major collaborative programme involving the leading educational agencies in Scotland (see http://www.pass‐it.org.uk for more details). PASS‐IT has demonstrated that the computer can help measure lower order student skill profiles provided the computer assessment package is sophisticated enough. Optional steps are required to mimic partial credit; randomisation of parameters is needed for practice and the avoidance of copying; the ability to capture and mark automatically mathematical expressions and short free text responses; and the delivery in a number of feedback modes are all vital ingredients of an automatic assessment system. PASS‐IT has shown how to ensure that education drives technology and not vice versa. Finally, collaboration has been paramount within PASS‐IT and should continue. No single group has all the keys to unlock the future of computer‐aided assessment. Scotland is well placed to move forward and e‐assess where its students e‐learn in a large range of subjects such as those delivered via the SCHOLAR Programme (see http://scholar.hw.ac.uk ). It should be done too by ensuring that teachers remain central to the learning cycle by supporting the demanding work they do through the supply of suitably filtered data on student performance. Special educational needs can also be addressed more effectively by the use of technology.     

Model confusion in chemistry

Conclusion This paper has been a preliminary discussion of model confusion about acids and bases, presenting evidence (some of it to be elaborated) that the Arrhenius and the Lowry-Bronsted models are confused in some textbooks, and in many students' minds. A similar analysis of other concepts in chemistry (are some problems about ions a results of carrying Daltonian and Newtonian models of atoma beyond their utility—since in those models atoms are unbreakable; are covalent bonding ideas served at all well by the Bohr model of the atom?) may be a valuable area for research.     

Figure Facts: Encouraging Undergraduates to Take a Data-Centered Approach to Reading Primary Literature

The ability to interpret experimental data is essential to understanding and participating in the process of scientific discovery. Reading primary research articles can be a frustrating experience for undergraduate biology students because they have very little experience interpreting data. To enhance their data interpretation skills, students used a template called “Figure Facts” to assist them with primary literature–based reading assignments in an advanced cellular neuroscience course. The Figure Facts template encourages students to adopt a data-centric approach, rather than a text-based approach, to understand research articles. Specifically, Figure Facts requires students to focus on the experimental data presented in each figure and identify specific conclusions that may be drawn from those results. Students who used Figure Facts for one semester increased the amount of time they spent examining figures in a primary research article, and regular exposure to primary literature was associated with improved student performance on a data interpretation skills test. Students reported decreased frustration associated with interpreting data figures, and their opinions of the Figure Facts template were overwhelmingly positive. In this paper, we present Figure Facts for others to adopt and adapt, with reflection on its implementation and effectiveness in improving undergraduate science education.     

Higher education in a changing environment: Regional,national and trans‐national issues

The significance of competing conceptions of civic engagement is increasingly apparent as efforts are made to respond to the measurement imperative that characterises contemporary higher education. The importance of devising appropriate means of recognising and incentivising civic engagement is asserted in this paper and the potential offered by emerging measurement and mapping methodologies is considered. The empirical basis for the argument derives from a multi‐site case study of the process of embedding community‐based learning within Irish higher education. Analysis of interview data from four cases, drawn from the university and extra‐university sector, yielded, inter alia, a typology of orientations to civic engagement. Findings are discussed, including those relating to orientations, ambivalence, scepticism, and legitimisation strategies. The case is made that these themes and the factors which impact on sustainability are mirrored within the wider domain of civic engagement—hence the opportunity to learn from a civically engaged pedagogy.     

Levels of Analysis in Higher Education Research

This article examines the levels of analysis adopted in higher education research, using a database of 567 articles published in 15 leading higher education journals internationally during 2010. Level of analysis is a relatively overlooked issue in this field of research, when compared with methodology, theory and/or topic—to which it is, of course, closely related—but is worthy of more investigation. The article seeks to address the question of whether certain levels of analysis are more or less common for different kinds of research. Eight levels of analysis are recognized, varying from the individual, through the course, department, institution, region, nation and system up to the international. The relationships between level of analysis, journal, theme, methodology and authors' characteristics are considered. It is argued that, given the constraints of available data and intended audiences, while valuable research may be conducted at all levels of analysis, the key issue is choosing an appropriate level for the questions being explored, and the methods and theories being applied.     

Public television in 1976: A projection of station operation and costs

Periodically, technology develops what is touted as a new medium which makes all others obsolete. Television was going to erase radio, tape was going to do away with disc recordings, and quadrasonic sound will do away with stereo which in turn replaced monaural recording methods. Getting the most attention on these lines now is cable television and the competing methods of home video recording—cartridges, cassettes, videodiscs etc. In the following article, Mr. Christians, a Ph.D. candidate in communications at the University of Illinois, suggests that the so‐called home video “revolution” is really nothing of the kind—but rather more of the same content and controlling interests merely wrapped in different garb.     

‘One of the Worst Statistics in British Sport,and Wholly Unacceptable’: The Contribution of Privately Educated Members of Team GB to the Summer Olympic Games, 2000–2012

Much has been published on sport in Britain's private schools of the Victorian and Edwardian eras, but no research of modern policy, practice and outcomes has been conducted since the 1970s. Assessment of the contribution of these schools to Team GB at recent summer Olympic Games – and to international sport in general – by politicians, sports leaders and physical education lobbyists has thus largely been informed by speculation. Future government policy on physical education and sport in schools may therefore be influenced by flawed evidence. This article examines the schooling of all members of Team GB for the summer Olympic Games of 2000–2012, and compares the contribution of its privately educated and state-educated members in terms of performance in competition and medals won. Online research using the websites of schools, sports associations, governing bodies of sport, Olympic associations and the media, together with biographies of sportsmen and sportswomen, provided information about each team member's schooling, sporting background and Olympic record. The speculation was inaccurate – exaggerating the proportion of privately educated members of Team GB but underestimating their contribution.     

Cricket bowling deliveries and the discrimination ability of professional and amateur batters

Bowlers in cricket try to disguise their bowling action by movement pattern similarity. The batter’s task is, therefore, to solve rapidly perceptual discrimination problems. Previous research has suggested that batters can discriminate perceptual cues that provide depth or target information. However, at present, there is a lack of applied research evidence on further perceptual cue utilization, including bowling delivery identification. This ability is required when batting against wrist-spin bowlers who may use five different types of delivery. In the present study, we assessed this perceptual discrimination ability among three distinct standards of batters. In addition, the relative potency of body action and ball flight information was assessed by visual occlusion techniques. We found that more expert batters in general showed greater perceptual discrimination skills when faced with different ball types. However, this discrimination ability was linked specifically to delivery type and to previous experience. We also found that additional ball flight information provided no more advantage to this discrimination ability. This finding reinforces the importance of advanced cue information and the need to expose cricket batters to different bowling actions. Further study of the development of movement pattern recognition is recommended.     

Hemispheric Teaching Strategies in the Acquisition and Retention of a Motor Skill

An extreme preference in processing information within either the left or right hemisphere is known as hemisphericity. A previous study investigating hemisphericity as a factor in motor skill learning (Murray, 1979) found that matching subjects' hemisphericity characteristics with hemispherical teaching strategies enhanced skill acquisition. In contrast, our study examined the effects of hemispherical teaching strategies on a group of subjects who did not present hemisphericity. Right-handed male high school students were randomly assigned to either a left hemisphere, right hemisphere, or an interhemispherical teaching condition. Subjects in the right hemisphere and interhemispherical conditions performed and learned the skill more effectively than subjects in the left hemisphere teaching condition. The right hemisphere and interhemispherical groups performed comparably in acquisition; however, the interhemispherical group showed significantly better retention of the skill. Motor skill acquisition and retention for nondominant processors appears best served by directing both verbal and nonverbal attention to the skill.