Remembering Nina Lenček, 18 January 1924–25 November 2014

Columbia University Libraries’ longtime Slavic & East European Studies Librarian Nina Len?ek passed away on November 25, 2014, at the age of 90. On January 22, 2015, a large group of her friends, family, and colleagues gathered at Butler Library to remember, honor, and celebrate her remarkable life and legacy.     

Didactic competencies of teachers from the learner’s viewpoint

Teacher competencies can be researched in many different ways. In the present article they are studied from the learner’s viewpoint. The article presents results of the extensive project “Teacher Education for New Competencies for the Knowledge Society and the Role of these Competencies in Educational Goal Attainment at School”, carried out at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ljubljana, with the financial support of the Slovenian Ministry of Education and Sport. We present the results of the learner’s judgement of the teacher’s didactic competencies. We formed a questionnaire with which we operationalised teacher competencies with the purpose of measuring the teacher’s efficiency of instruction. In order to achieve the goals of modern instruction it is important to engage both models: learner‐centred and teacher‐centred education. The research showed that elements of the traditional instruction model are more frequently used than the model that demands a changed learner role.     

Conceptualizing and Measuring the Social Uses of the Internet: The Case of Personal Web Sites

The researchers working on information society measures have recently started to consider how people use the Internet not only as a tool but also as a platform for social relations. As the ultimate objective of information society measures is to provide reliable guidelines for social policy, finding criteria for separating “positive” uses of Internet from “negative” ones is an important task. This article employs the concepts of communicative and strategic action as defined by Habermas for that purpose. A general conceptual typology of three communicative and three strategic social uses of Internet is offered, which can be applied to measure uses of any of the Internet's interactive services. A specific empirical application to social uses of personal web sites demonstrates that the deduced measurement instruments achieve satisfying levels of validity and reliability.     

Nurturing moments of transformation in teachers – comparative perspectives on the challenges of professional development

This article discusses teachers' views of their own learning. Two groups of teachers attending graduate programmes in Seattle, Washington in the United States of America (USA) and Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom (UK), participated in a project that encouraged them to discuss examples of effective professional development. The teachers from the UK were enrolled on a Masters degree course for staff working with pupils with autism. The teachers from the USA were enrolled on a Masters degree course specifically focused upon working with children who have moderate to severe difficulties. Both groups of teachers were working, at least for a portion of their timetables, with pupils who had low incidence disabilities. Phyllis Jones, of the University of South Florida, Elizabeth West, from the Department of Special Education at Boise State University, and Dana Stevens, who is working on her PhD in special education at the University of Washington, analysed the critical moments of professional development identified by the teachers in both contexts. Four themes emerged: seeing the relationship between theory and practice, the role of the professor or lecturer in mediating learning, learning from others and reflecting in action. In this article, the authors analyse the themes in relation to the subtle differences that occurred within, and across, the two contexts. This analysis will assist in the design of quality professional development opportunities that reflect teachers' voices. Teachers make meaning of their learning in highly personal ways and, although it is possible to nurture formalised learning opportunities, teacher educators need to be constantly aware of the contextual and personal meaning making that is at play.     

Philosophy of education in post-Soviet societies of Eastern Europe: Poland,Lithuania and Slovenia

This article explores the role of philosophy of education in three post-Soviet societies of Eastern Europe: Poland, Lithuania and Slovenia. The characteristic themes and approaches of philosophical reflection about education in these societies are explored with reference to three periods: the pre-Soviet, Soviet and post-Soviet periods.     

The design,use and evaluation of hypermedia flashcards as a teaching tool

TechTrends - We find h-cards to be a popular and versatile addition to a wide variety of introductory and advanced courses. The use of client-side JavaScript means that you can use hcards...     

Effects of rule changes on physical demands and shot characteristics of elite-standard men’s squash and implications for training

The physical demands and rally characteristics of elite-standard men’s squash have not been well documented since recent rule changes (scoring and tin height). This information is needed to design optimal training drills for physical conditioning provided here based on an analysis of movement and shot information. Matches at the 2010 (n = 14) and 2011 (n = 27) Rowe British Grand Prix were analysed. Rallies were split into four ball-in-play duration categories using the 25th (short), 75th (medium), 95th percentiles (long) and maximum values. Cohen’s d and chi-squared tests of independence evaluated effects of rally and rule changes on patterns of play. The proportion of long, middle and short shots was related to the duration of the rally with more shots played in the middle and front of the court in short rallies (phi = 0.12). The frequencies of shots played from different areas of the court have not changed after the adoption of new rules but there is less time available to return shots that reflect the attacking nature of match play for elite-standard men players. Aspiring and current elite-standard players need to condition themselves to improve their ability to cope with these demands using the ghosting patterns presented that mimic demands of modern match play.     

Depictions of Gender on Primetime Television: A Quantitative Content Analysis

To document current portrayals of women and men on primetime television, a quantitative content analysis was conducted. A 1-week composite of primetime television programming across 9 broadcast and cable networks was randomly sampled, yielding 89 programs and 1,254 characters. Consistent with prior findings, women were significantly underrepresented on primetime TV when compared with men. Analyses examined representations of gender in the realms of occupation, aggression, sexualization, and stereotypically masculine and feminine attributes, with comparisons drawn across different age groups. Contrary to popular belief, these findings suggest that the current state of primetime television does not represent a “golden age” for women. Although it appears that some gender stereotypes have declined when compared to previous decades, others (e.g., dominant men, sexually provocative women) have persisted. Implications are discussed in terms of cultivation and social cognitive theories.     

Breaking New Ground: The Case for Seed Libraries in the Academic Library

Seed libraries are a relatively new innovation in the library field, offering seeds, gardening information, and the opportunity for community and ecological engagement to members. While they are increasingly popular in public libraries, they have not yet established a foothold in academic libraries. This paper defines the nature and role of seed libraries, the current state of seed libraries in North American universities, and offers recommendations for the establishment of seed libraries in academic libraries.