Instructional development as a social movement: An illustration of analogical theorizing

Instructional development, a service activity in which a faculty member and an instructional designer work in close cooperation to redesign an existing course or to design a new one. represents the typically elusive subject of educational research: a human process. This article examines the application of naturalistic inquiry to such a research topic and suggests that such inquiry needs to be informed by research traditions in sociology and anthropology that have long used these methods. Drawing on social-movement theory, an example is presented of analogical theorizing, illustrating how socialmovement theory developed in other areas can be applied to the exploration of instructional development.     

Book reviews

Educational technology research and development -     

Changes in Parents' Work Status and Adolescents' Adjustment at School

The effects of change in parental work status on early adolescents' school adjustment before and after the transition to junior high school were examined in a 2-year longitudinal study. Data were gathered from 883 adolescents, their mothers, and teachers. Based on patterns of change or stability in parental work status during the 2 years of the study, 4 groups were compared: deprived, declining, recovery, and stable families. With parents' education controlled, teachers said that adolescents in deprived and declining families were less competent than their peers in stable or recovery families. In addition, adolescents whose parents experienced a decline in work status were the most disruptive in junior high school. While most students had difficulty adjusting to junior high school, the transition was particularly difficult for those students whose parents were simultaneously dealing with changes in work status.     

Change in Family Work Status: Effects on Parent-Adolescent Decision Making

The interactions of parental work status, family integration, and sex of child on parent-adolescent decision making were examined in a 4-wave study of 504 adolescents and their mothers. 3 work status groups were compared. Deprived families reported a layoff or demotion at Time 1 and no recovery by Time 4. Recovery families reported similar work status losses at Time 1 and reemployment by Time 4. Nondeprived families reported stable employment at both times. Adolescents in deprived households, especially boys, reported the highest conflict with parents. Adolescents in recovery families reported high conflict when parents were unemployed, but levels declined when parents were reemployed. According to mothers, daughters in deprived households enjoyed the highest level of autonomy of any adolescent group.     

Scientific Habits of Mind in Virtual Worlds

In today’s increasingly “flat” world of globalization (Friedman 2005), the need for a scientifically literate citizenry has grown more urgent. Yet, by some measures, we have done a poor job at fostering scientific habits of mind in schools. Recent research on informal games-based learning indicates that such technologies and the communities they evoke may be one viable alternative—not as a substitute for teachers and classrooms, but as an alternative to textbooks and science labs. This paper presents empirical evidence about the potential of games for fostering scientific habits of mind. In particular, we examine the scientific habits of mind and dispositions that characterize online discussion forums of the massively multiplayer online game World of Warcraft. Eighty-six percent of the forum discussions were posts engaged in “social knowledge construction” rather than social banter. Over half of the posts evidenced systems based reasoning, one in ten evidenced model-based reasoning, and 65% displayed an evaluative epistemology in which knowledge is treated as an open-ended process of evaluation and argument.     

Factitious disorder in school settings: A case example with implications for school psychologists

Factitious disorder is a condition that has received considerable attention in the medical literature yet is not fully recognized in the school setting. School psychologists can provide important data and observations that can facilitate early identification of this disorder. This article describes a case example of factitious disorder that was identified in the school setting. Symptoms of the disorder are presented, as are the differential diagnoses that must be considered. Specific recommendations for the school psychologist regarding identification, coordination with medical teams, interventions, and ethical and legal obligations are included. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The Library of the Royal Society of Physicians in Budapest becomes today's Semmelweis Medical History Library

Objectives:

The 170-year history of the library of the Royal Society of Medicine in Budapest illustrates both that political and cultural context matter and that “medical” libraries, if they survive, in due course become primarily “medical history” libraries.

Methods:

Two of the authors are on the staff of the Semmelweis Medical History Library; the third is a US scholar who makes frequent use of the library. Together, they avail themselves of archival and published materials—and personal experience with the collection—to establish the context that produced the original library, trace its evolution, and describe its present-day incarnation.

Results:

A tale of transformation emerges that reflects how collections are likely to change. The authors present events and individuals in the life of the Royal Society''s library and paint a picture of the value of today''s Semmelweis Medical History Library. Unique treasures in the collection are described.

Conclusion:

The story told here is of how a particular nineteenth-century library became a twenty-first–century institution. The authors establish its peculiarly Hungarian context and potential value to librarians and historians from outside Hungary. The overall message is that general medical libraries everywhere are perforce likely to become medical historical libraries over time.

Highlights

• Context matters. The historical background of a library helps determine its functions and its future; shifts in modes of publishing affect and monetary concerns shape the development and preservation of an historical collection.
• Libraries evolve. Medical libraries undergo a normal and profoundly useful transformation over time into repositories of medical history.
• Books alone do not a library make: Libraries can and should be settings for continuing education, cultural affirmation, and assistance to scholars by preserving and making available for use a variety of sometimes rare archival and published materials.

Implications

• Knowing the political and cultural background of a library is essential to understanding its history as well as its present-day status.
• Preserving and expanding historical collections demands vigilance and creative management, especially under difficult fiscal and political circumstances. The loyal and diligent work of Hungarians and others who helped build and preserve this library can serve as a model for other threatened collections.
• Sharing the story of a relatively unknown library''s development brings its general assets and unique resources to the attention of a wider audience of librarians and scholars. Few outside Hungary have previously had any way of knowing about the Semmelweis Medical History Library''s rich holdings.