A Comparison of the Effects of Fluency Training and Accuracy Training on Application and Retention

The effects of fluency training on the acquisition and retention of a composite skill were compared with those of training to accuracy only. Participants were 30 college students, and the task was a stimulus equivalence task, similar to the one used by Binder (1995) in earlier assessments. Participants learned associations between Hebrew symbols and nonsense syllables and between nonsense syllables and Arabic numerals. Immediately after training and every 2 or 4 weeks for 16 weeks, they were tested on a composite task that required both associations. Retention of the original component associations was also assessed after 4 months. With respect to the composite skill, fluency training resulted in: a) higher response rates immediately after training and across the 16 weeks; b) better accuracy 4 and 16 weeks after training; and c) less deterioration of accuracy after 16 weeks. Effects on the component skills were similar. The results document that for skilled adult learners, fluency training can aid the acquisition of a higher level skill and increase the retention of accuracy for both the component and composite skills.     

Using Wikis to Collaboratively Prepare for Qualifying Examinations:

This article focuses on the experiences of seven Ph.D. students implementing a wiki to collaboratively prepare for qualifying examinations in the educational technology program at a large southeastern university. Concomitant study for such a rigorous examination is rare, and the trials and tribulations of the group are described in detail. Specific guidelines highlighting effective preparation options for qualifying exams are often elusive, and, as such, this article explores current research related to collaborative preparation and mentoring, as well as the qualifying examination process in total, in hopes of adding to the scientific body of knowledge related to these subjects. It also offers best practice strategies, suggests possible technology tips regarding wiki implementation, and seeks to better scaffold future scholars and/or mentors seeking to effectively participate in or plan for collaborative qualifying examination preparation.     

真理和容忍在美国（节选）

美国没有王室,但肯尼迪家族却是这个国家的贵族;美国人不迷信．可发生在肯尼迪家族身上的恶咒却让举国惊骇。《纽约时报》说：“爱德华．肯尼迪是肯尼迪家族里最后一位可以影响美国政治的成员。他个人即是荣耀、理想主义政治和奉献的化身。”1983年,爱德华·肯尼迪在Liberty Baptist College发表Truth and Tolerancein America演讲。演讲严谨不失幽默．是模仿语音、练习演讲的优秀范本。     

Class,Ethnicity and Civic Governance: A Social Profile of Football Club Directors on Merseyside in the Late-Nineteenth Century

By presenting a wide range of evidence relating to the social characteristics of directors of Merseyside's professional football clubs, an attempt is made in this article to locate the late-nineteenth-century professional football club within the prevailing power relations of the localities in which they were based. The primary objective of the study is to assess the extent to which professional football clubs were part of a network of civic organizations utilized by the urban middle class as a means of maintaining their social and political cohesion. On the basis of the evidence presented here, it is demonstrated that a significant proportion of directors were involved in influential socio-political organizations on Merseyside. It is concluded that the Merseyside football clubs can be viewed as cultural organizations that were integral to the shaping of civic governance.     

Technical Reliability Assessment of the Actigraph GT1M Accelerometer

The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of the Actigraph GT1M (Pensacola, FL, USA) accelerometer activity count and step functions. Fifty GT1M accelerometers were initialized to collect simultaneous acceleration counts and steps data using 15-sec epochs. All reliability testing was completed using a mechanical shaker plate to perform six different test conditions in Experiment 1 and 18 test conditions in Experiment 2. The overall intra- and inter-instrument reliability of the GT1M was CV_intra = 2.9% and CV_inter = 3.5% for counts and CV_intra = 1.1% and CV_inter = 1.2% for steps. No batch effects were evident in the 50 GT1Ms. The Actigraph GT1M accelerometer demonstrated good reliability for measuring both counts and steps. However, the ability of the GT1M to consistently detect acceleration at a given acceleration and frequency condition varied widely. Future studies clarifying the filtering limitations and the threshold necessary to detect the occurrence of movement are warranted.     

Explaining Hong Kong Students’ International Achievement in Civic Learning

This study identifies predictors of Hong Kong students’ civic learning. It has adopted a cross-sectional quantitative design using secondary data from the 2009 International Civics and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS 2009; Schulz et al., 2010). Multi-level analysis reveals that most of the variance in student achievement can be accounted for by school level rather than individual level factors. Student background variables are largely insignificant suggesting the resilience of many Hong Kong students. Regarding Hong Kong students’ achievements in civic learning, a possible explanation is made and implications are developed for both theory and practice.     

Responding to the technological imperative: the experience of an open and distance education institution

This paper examines the key impact that technology is having on shaping and, indeed, fusing the worlds of work both outside and inside tertiary institutions. The transformation of organisations by technology creates key challenges for tertiary institutions which are identified. One tertiary institution's attempts to engage with these challenges is illuminated through case study research. The institution in question, Deakin University, is a major open and distance education organisation in Australia. In grappling with the technological imperative, issues of leadership, management and organisational change come to the fore. Leadership in dynamically evolving organisations committed to the use of educational technologies in a range of diverse teaching‐learning contexts is an enormously complex and difficult task. The complexities, ambiguities and difficulties of leadership in such an environment are illuminated in this paper through the presentation of a set of eight interconnected issues which reveal some of the experiences of people within the University who are attempting to manage educational change and technological innovation.     

A program for excellence in physics and physical science teaching

Conclusion It seems reasonable to conclude that the impact of these projects has been extensive and that we have met our basic objectives regarding the improvement of science education for the target teachers and students. The long-term goal of improved scientific literacy of at least a part of the citizens of this country and world can only be assessed by some form of longitudinal study that is beyond the scope and funding for these projects. But our assessment of what has been accomplished in the short term efforts seems to indicate very positive gains in those areas of knowledge, confidence, and pedagogical capability that we believe will enable the participants to make contributions to the improvement of scientific literacy for the students with whom they work. In short, we believe we have had two successful and worthwhile programs that have been useful and effective.