The Right Kind of Wrong: A “Knowledge in Pieces” Approach to Science Learning in Museums

Research has highlighted the vast gulf that exists between experts' and novices' understandings of science, and how difficult it is to bridge this gulf. When this research is applied to the design of museum exhibits and outreach material, it becomes clear that there is a tension between being scientifically correct and communicating effectively to a broad, diverse audience. In this paper we present a new approach to thinking about science learning in museums. Drawing on decades of research from the learning sciences, we argue that being “wrong” is an inescapable part of learning, and that not all simplifications are problematic. Instead, being “wrong” involves the gradual restructuring of many fine‐grained intuitive or commonsense notions that persist throughout the learning process and play an essential role in scientific expertise. We discuss the implications of adopting this approach for museum design.     

STEM课堂中学生情感能量的质性分析

STEM教学已经成为跨学科教育的主流,然而目前我国针对学生STEM课堂情绪的研究主要以问卷调查等定量研究为主,质性研究较少。问卷调查作为一种课后的检测手段,降低了对学生直观情绪变化探究的真实性。而且情绪虽然通过个人表达,但它作用于日常社会交互并被社会交互所影响。描述微观社会环境中社会互动结果的情感能量(Emotional Energy),可以反映个体或集体在进行成功的社会交互后的情感体验,有助于人们从社会学视角分析情绪与认知间的相互作用。基于情感能量模型,采用民族志观察法,对某乐高课堂中的学生情绪状态进行分析后发现:(1)在STEM课程中情感能量有戏剧性和非戏剧性的波动,这种情绪能量体验会随着课程的深入而发生变化;(2)学生的情感能量与其课堂表现紧密相关;(3)高强度的小组情感能量更有助于科学知识的理解;(4)将情感注入STEM学习会增强学生的学习兴趣。因此,教师在STEM教学中要注意学生课堂情绪的调节,采取一定的教学支持或干预措施激励学生探究和小组合作,提升STEM教学质量。     

Sound Localization and Sensitivity to Interaural Time Differences in Human Infants

The role of interaural time differences in infants' sound localization was investigated. One experiment on free-field sound localization corroborated previous findings that the minimum audible angle changes substantially toward the end of the first half year after birth, and 3 experiments explored interaural time discrimination in that age range. The first of these 3 experiments used an adaptive psychophysical procedure, showing that infants responded appropriately in a sound lateralization task that provides a direct measure of interaural time discrimination. The other 2 experiments improved on the psychophysical procedure by taking into account the ceiling level on performance in the task. Infants aged 16, 20, and 28 weeks had thresholds in the range of 50 to 75 microsec, with no apparent age difference. These thresholds were much lower than would be predicted from studies of free-field sound localization, indicating that sensitivity to interaural time differences is not a limiting factor for the precision of sound localization in this age range. Instead, age-related changes in free-field sound localization may reflect the need to integrate across different localization cues and to calibrate the changing values of cues due to head growth.     

英国公民教育现状及社交媒介与公民教育的关系——伊恩·戴维斯教授访谈录

为了更全面地了解英国公民教育现状以及当代世界公民教育的新问题,采访人与英国约克大学教育学教授、教育系副主任、教育与社会公正研究中心主任、教育研究所主任,著名的公民教育专家伊恩·戴维斯进行了访谈,对英国公民教育国家课程标准向品格教育的转向进行讨论,辨别什么是好的公民教育,探讨如何评估公民教育效果,思考社交媒介等新技术与公民教育的关系。在访谈的过程中,比较了中英两国的教育实践,总结了部分公民教育经验。     

Suggestions for staff development in teaching critical thinking

Trends towards the devolution of responsibility for decision‐making to the school level are evident in education systems throughout the world. Underpinning policies of devolution are assumptions that school communities will work collaboratively to make decisions appropriate to the local context. However, collaborative processes do not occur automatically. In this paper, a case study of one school committee is presented to outline the processes used and to highlight the difficulties experienced in working collaboratively to develop a school behaviour management policy.