An NCME Instructional Module on Polytomous Item Response Theory Models

A polytomous item is one for which the responses are scored according to three or more categories. Given the increasing use of polytomous items in assessment practices, item response theory (IRT) models specialized for polytomous items are becoming increasingly common. The purpose of this ITEMS module is to provide an accessible overview of polytomous IRT models. The module presents commonly encountered polytomous IRT models, describes their properties, and contrasts their defining principles and assumptions. After completing this module, the reader should have a sound understating of what a polytomous IRT model is, the manner in which the equations of the models are generated from the model's underlying step functions, how widely used polytomous IRT models differ with respect to their definitional properties, and how to interpret the parameters of polytomous IRT models.     

Application of colour metallography in the examination of ancient metals

The use of colour in the metallographic examination of ancient metals is useful both for research and teaching purposes. Application of different optical methods of examination include: polarized light, with or without a first-order red compensator, and differential interference contrast microscopy (DIC). The use of DIC can be combined with the other techniques mentioned in the text for the examination of etched or unetched metal surfaces, which are best observed microscopically using a metallograph. Colour techniques are now used routinely in industrial metallography, and are available for a variety of metals and alloys. Colour tint etching can be used to enhance grain structure or different phases present in the metallic artefact which may not be visible in conventional etched samples, or which lack optical contrast. Many more applications of these techniques in the examination of ancient metals will be published in the literature as they become better known and second-hand equipment with DIC lenses enter the market at a price suitable for conservation laboratories to purchase them.     

Teacher quality: a comparison of National Board-certified and non-Board-certified teachers of deaf students

THE STUDY was designed to identify specific components of teacher excellence, focusing initially on the characteristics of the small number of teachers of the deaf who are certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), then comparing those with the characteristics of other teachers identified as master teachers by university faculty in teacher preparation in deafness. Classroom observation, written lesson plans, teacher questionnaires on beliefs, and content analysis of interactive electronic focus groups were used to compare the two groups of teachers. Results indicated similarities between Board-certified and non-Board-certified master teachers in regard to teacher behaviors and commitment to well-founded pedagogical principles. Differences were found in classroom priorities and in the greater level of interconnectivity expressed by Board-certified teachers as the result of becoming Board certified. Recommendations are made for preparing teachers of deaf students.     

Positioning Whitehead as a Means to Enhance Social Justice in Education

This paper attends to a theoretical overview in process philosophy and empirical data, with the intent of providing a way forward for social justice in education. The introduction of Whitehead into the role of an educationalist questions what social justice means and how to enact it through pedagogy. The focus of thought about social justice in education is removed from a human-only activity and repositioned as a global concern that builds upon the work of the new materialisms and post humanism. In times of environmental crisis, the use of Whitehead is a means to enhance the personal, social and global aspects of educational provision, whilst retaining a focus and call to action with respect to nature and everything non-human. Whitehead was resolute that he could avoid human-nature bifurcation, and his construction of ‘process metaphysics’ was to resolve the issues created by knowledge potentially becoming abstracted and devoid of nature, process and/or context. This piece puts Whitehead to work for social justice issues, such as those caused by the injustices of and in contemporary capitalism, whilst recognizing this work must simultaneously attend to environmental and planetary concerns.     

Universities,public policy and economic development in Latin America: the cases of Mexico and Venezuela

Since the establishment of national university systems in Mexico and Venezuela, three principal demands have dominated the formulation of university policy: the ideological demand imposed by government rhetoric and national aspirations (a demand reflected in federal expenditure), the demand of the national economy for different areas and levels of professional expertise, and the broad-based political and social demand for upward mobility by way of university education. Tensions between these three demands in both Mexico and Venezuela have stemmed from the historically decreasing ability of Latin American economies to produce significant long-term social mobility into the middle classes. Although in the 1940s and 1950s the university systems played important roles in promoting social mobility, by the 1960s the number of professional jobs was much smaller than the number of university graduates. By the 1980s, the social role of the universities was severely limited by economic crisis brought on by a combination of dropping oil prices, debt, and government deficits. The major challenge currently facing Mexico and Venezuela in higher education policy is to restart economic growth to provide jobs for university graduates.     

Ambivalent journey: Teacher career paths in Oman

This study investigated the career paths of 625 university graduates who prepared to be secondary school teachers in Oman, their assessment of their current work situation, and the extent to which their initial commitment to teaching was related to their subsequent career satisfaction and intention to remain in teaching. While nearly all graduates entered teaching, their decision was marked by ambivalence. Nearly half of the graduates reported being only somewhat or not at all committed to teaching as a career when they graduated. It also appears that initial commitment to teaching operates as an important lens through which teachers view their subsequent careers. Those initially more committed to teaching were more likely to be satisfied with the progress they made in their career, more likely to think that their current teaching position offered them opportunities for advancement, and more likely to want to remain in teaching than were graduates who had a lower initial commitment to teaching. The authors discuss both the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.     

Reductionism versus emergentism: A framework for understanding conceptions of giftedness

In this article, I propose that various conceptions and theoretical models of giftedness can be understood along a continuum from the most reductionist to the most emergentist. Along with this continuum, I specify four levels of analysis based on the human functional hierarchy: the biological, operational (computational), intentional, and activity levels. I illustrate how reductionist and emergentist approaches provide contrasting views of intelligence and giftedness, with the former seeking basic elements and lower level explanations and the latter stressing complexity and higher level organization. I suggest that clearly articulating levels of analysis and principles for efforts of the reductionist or emergentist nature will enhance conceptual clarity and methodological rigor. Whether giftedness is understood in the reductionist or emergentist frameworks has many practical and policy implications for gifted education.     

Head start teaching center: Evaluation of a new approach to head start staff development

Head Start Teaching Centers are a national demonstration project designed to provide participatory training in all Head Start component areas within the context of an exemplary Head Start program. Each Teaching Center employs an independent evaluation to study this alternative approach to Head Start staff development. This paper presents the results of the outcome evaluation for the first year of the New England Head Start Teaching Center. The New England Head Start Teaching Center was designed to provide intensive training during a 3 or 5 day period of residence at the Teaching Center. This paper briefly describes the national Head Start Teaching Center model, the implementation of this model in the New England region, the outcome evaluation plan, and the results from the first year of training. The analyses of year one data indicated that training provided by the New England Head Start Teaching Center produced significant gains. As compared to similar Head Start employees who did not participate in training, both trainees and their supervisors reported significant gains in trainees' knowledge, skills, and expertise after participating in the New England Head Start Teaching Center training.