Teaching Communication Skills to Medical Students: Unexpected attitudes and outcomes

Experiences in teaching communication skills to medical and veterinary medical students are described. The first involved unexpected attitudes of resentment arising when students took on the role of a patient undergoing a clinical examination. The emergence of empathy as a learning issue due to greater self-awareness was a useful outcome. The second involved resistance to dealing with ethical problems arising during problem-based learning cases. These two emotionally laden attitudes would not have been revealed if more passive traditional ways of teaching had been used. While ability to empathise with another and the ability to deal with difficult interpersonal situations are desirable in the medical professional, there is a paucity of teaching approaches dealing with this aspect of self-development in the undergraduate curriculum. This poses a real challenge to us as facilitators of learning.     

Resolving the amalgam: connecting pedagogical content knowledge,content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge

ABSTRACT

This paper concludes the Special Issue (SI) ‘Probing the Amalgam: the relationship between science teachers’ content, pedagogical and pedagogical content knowledge’. We review the five papers (Sorge et al; Gess-Newsome et al; Kind; Pitjeng-Mosabala and Rollnick; and Liepertz and Bronowski) by discussing evidence these present regarding the relationships between content knowledge (CK), pedagogical knowledge (PK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK); the development of CK, PK and PCK in novice and experienced secondary science teachers and how CK, PK and/or PCK impact students’ learning. In conclusion, we draw these findings together in offering proposals for future research via reconsideration of Shulman’s amalgam. This includes post-hoc examination of a PCK model known as ‘the Consensus Model’ (Gess-Newsome, [2015]. A model of teacher professional knowledge and skill including PCK: Results of the thinking from the PCK Summit. In A. Berry, P. J. Friedrichsen, & J. Loughran (Eds.), Re-examining Pedagogical Content Knowledge in Science Education (pp. 28–42). New York, NY: Routledge; Neumann, Kind, & Harms [2018]. Probing the amalgam: The relationship between science teachers’ content, pedagogical and pedagogical content knowledge. International Journal of Science Education, 1–15) and presentation of a novel PCK structure based on evidence from the SI studies.     

Metacognition, Self-Regulation, and Self-Regulated Learning: Research Recommendations

Much research has been conducted on metacognition, self-regulation, and self-regulated learning, but the articles in this special issue make it clear that we still have many unanswered questions. Recommendations for research include providing clear definitions of processes, identifying relevant theories, ensuring that assessments clearly reflect processes, linking processes with academic outcomes, conducting more educational developmental research, and tying processes firmly with instructional methods. Collectively, these recommendations will enhance our understanding of metacognition, self-regulation, and self-regulated learning and will lead to solid implications for educational policy and practice.     

The Relationship of Spelling Recognition, RAN, and Phonological Awareness to Reading Skills in Older Poor Readers and Younger Reading-Matched Controls

The role of spelling recognition was examined in word reading skills and reading comprehension for dyslexic and nondyslexic children. Dyslexic and nondyslexic children were matched on their raw word reading proficiency. Relationships between spelling recognition and the following were examined for both groups of children: verbal ability, working memory, phonological measures, rapid naming, word reading, and reading comprehension. Children’s performance in spelling recognition was significantly associated with their skills in word reading and reading comprehension regardless of their reading disability status. Furthermore, spelling recognition contributed significant variance to reading comprehension for both dyslexic and nondyslexic children after the effects of phonological awareness, rapid naming, and word reading proficiency had been accounted for. The results support the role of spelling recognition in reading development for both groups of children and they are discussed using a componential reading fluency framework.     

Research Mentorship in Counselor Education

The purpose of this national survey was to determine whether pretenured counselor educators receive research mentorship, and if so, what instructional and relational factors occur within that relationship. Pretenured counselor educators in counselor education programs accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs were surveyed (N = 269). The 139 respondents (51.7% response rate) indicated that most (n / 107) pretenured counselor educators receive research mentorship. The relationship(s), most often described as cooperative (n / 84) and open (n / 70), focused primarily on navigation of promotion and tenure (n / 87) and generating refereed publications (n / 95) and presentations (n / 72).     

Responding to student expectations: a partnership approach to course evaluation

This paper presents a study that used newly developed instruments to investigate student expectations at two points in a semester‐based course. Course convenors were able to make some changes in response to the feedback, explain to students how the feedback had informed the course processes, and work with tutors on delivery enhancements. The administration of these instruments, a partnership approach involving students, tutors and lecturers, contributed to the creation of a responsive teaching and learning environment. In addition to enabling real‐time changes to be made, evaluation of the total teaching and learning experience ensured that improvements were made to subsequent offerings of the same course. Also, insights from one course were evaluated in terms of applicability to other courses offered within the same academic discipline. The study finds that establishing student expectations provides a framework for developing a responsive and iterative approach to achieving excellence in teaching and learning.     

Data‐Driven Improvement in Prekindergarten Classrooms: Report From a Partnership in an Urban District

In 2014–2015 and 2015–2016, a metropolitan school system in the southern United States embarked on a unique mission to improve the quality of its public prekindergarten programs through a partnership with a group of developmental researchers in an iterative, data‐based venture. Data on 407 children in Year 1 and 433 in Year 2 (who were enrolled in 26 classrooms and extensively observed) are presented from the first 2 years of the ongoing partnership. All children were 4 years of age. Variability in classroom practices, measured empirically, and variability in child outcomes provided the means to examine the relations between children's gains in academic and social‐emotional areas and major areas of classroom practices. Lessons learned, the eight identified significant practices, implications, and next steps in the partnership are addressed.     

App-Based Manipulatives and Explicit Instruction to Support Division with Remainders

ABSTRACT

In theory, both virtual manipulatives and explicit instruction are viable options to support students with disabilities as they learn mathematics. This study explored the effect of a treatment package—an app-based virtual manipulative (Cuisenaire® Rods) in conjunction with explicit instruction—on students’ acquisition and generalization of solving problems involving division of whole numbers with remainders. Three middle school students with disabilities participated in this multiple baseline, multiple probe across participants single case design study. Each of the students acquired the mathematical behavior of being able to solve division with remainders problems. In other words, a functional relation existed between the intervention package of explicit instruction and the Cuisenaire® Rods app-based manipulative and students’ accuracy in solving division with remainders problems. Yet, two students failed to generalize the skill without the explicit instruction and use of the app-based manipulative.     

Faculty ratings as a measure of departmental and administrator quality

This study examined the usefulness of faculty ratings as a measure of departmental quality. Two hundred and thirty-three faculty members from six departments responded to two questionnaires relating to the department—the Department Evaluation Survey (DES)—and to the department head—the Administrator Evaluation Survey (AES). A factor analysis of the DES revealed three underlying dimensions: Satisfaction with the Department's Academic Environment, Satisfaction with the Department's Governance and Operating Procedures, and Satisfaction with Student Quality. The factor analysis of the AES identified only one underlying dimension. Both the DES and AES were found to be highly reliable and effective in discriminating among departments. Very high positive correlations were also found between selacted DES and AES items suggesting that the performance of the head plays a very important role in faculty perceptions of the departments, and vice versa. Faculty ratings would appear to be a useful initial criterion in evaluating a department or head.     

The future direction of schooling

This chapter provides a cross-societal discussion of the findings of the Schooling for the future study, the case studies. It examines why senior educators and policy leaders in each of the six case study societies believe that bureaucratic school systems are the most likely scenario for future even though these are not the most desired. It examines some of the key factors that account for senior educators and policy leaders’ views, and the changes they argue are needed to achieve the desired scenario for the future. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the contribution and the implications of the study for the usefulness of the OECD scenarios as policy tools.