Social responsiveness and physical space as determinants of agonistic behavior inBetta splendens

Two experiments examined the conditions under whichBetta agonistic responding occurs by manipulating physical space and the species and social responsiveness of an opponent. In Experiment 1, both the species (conspecific or nonconspecific) and the aggressiveness (aggressive or nonaggressive) of the opponent were manipulated. The results indicated that agonistic behavior was greater with both conspecifics and aggressive opponents. Experiment 2 examined the effects of physical space and social responsiveness of the opponent on intraspecific aggressive behavior. An inverse relationship was found between physical space and the number of attacks directed toward the opponent. The results of both experiments also indicated thatBetta tend to attack aggressive opponents more than nonaggressive ones. It is suggested thatBetta aggress either when the individual animal is threatened or when physical space is limited.     

Collaborative Problem Solving in Five‐Year‐Old Children: Evidence of social facilitation and social loafing

Children’s problem solving while working by themselves or with a partner was investigated to explore whether young children are susceptible to social facilitation and social loafing. Five‐year‐olds were asked to complete easy or hard puzzles, either alone or with a partner. Half of the children were given instructions indicating that their performance would be evaluated and the other half were not. Children showed social facilitation, in that they performed better with a partner than when working alone under evaluation conditions, with the easy puzzle. Children also showed social loafing, in that performance with a partner was poorer when working under no evaluation than evaluation conditions, with the easy puzzle. Performance with the hard puzzle did not differ whether children worked alone or with a partner, but children working on the hard puzzle under no evaluation conditions performed better than those working under evaluation conditions. The findings suggest that evaluation affects children’s performance in group settings in different ways depending on task difficulty.     

Critical incidents and critical requirements in mentoring

Many traditional faculty now find themselves working with nontraditional students. New faculty models such as mentoring have emerged in response to the new student. The purpose of this study was to examine the mentoring role at Empire State College, State University of New York, on the basis of mentors' behavior responses to mentor-defined problems. The Critical Incident Technique was the method used to elicit reported and recalled incidents which either facilitated or impeded mentoring. Significant problems cited in the findings included communications gap in mentor/student relationship and the student's incompletion of academic work. Typical corresponding responses to such problems included providing support, demythologizing the learning process, setting behavior limits, and assessing and reassessing student performance. On the other hand, the critical requirements which were inductively derived from the critical incidents, as well as the practical implications which were gleaned from the study, revealed a definite extension of the traditional faculty role.The original document from which this article was adapted, including an extensive bibliography is on file with University of Microfilms International, Ann Arbor Michigan, 48108.     

Understanding of Idiomatic Expressions in Context in Skilled and Less Skilled Comprehenders: Online Processing and Interpretation

This article reports a study in which good and poor comprehenders (in 2 age groups: 8- and 10-year-olds) read short passages containing phrases that could be interpreted as idiomatic or not, depending on the context. Familiarity was manipulated by including real (English) idioms and novel (translations of Italian) idioms. Reading times for the target phrases were measured and the children’s understanding of the target expressions was assessed. The older children and better comprehenders were more likely to interpret idiomatic phrases correctly. In particular, there was an interaction between age and meaning condition: The younger children were less able to choose an appropriate interpretation of the figurative expressions. In general, children spent relatively more time reading the idiomatic expressions than the literal ones, with the exception of less skilled comprehenders when presented with novel (Italian) idioms. They seemed not to appreciate that these expressions needed any particular effort for interpretation.     

“You don’t have to travel the world”: accumulating experiences on the path toward globally competent teaching

As classrooms become increasingly diverse and students need more complex skills for collaboratively addressing transnational issues, we need a better understanding of the factors that contribute to globally competent teaching. Education research has highlighted the benefits of study abroad and overseas teaching, as well as local cross-cultural immersion, but these options are not always feasible. We sought to identify the various means by which teachers develop global competence. Through this qualitative case study of 10 global educators, we found that international travel, though present in some instances, was not always necessary. In fact, it was an accumulation of experiences that prompted teachers to incorporate global perspectives, lessons, and skill development throughout their careers. Thus, globally competent teaching may be better conceptualized as a path, rather than as an end goal.     

Unionised faculty and the political left: Communism and the American Federation of Teachers on the eve of the Second World War

During the contentious late 1930s and early 1940s, American education and American labour struggled with both internal and external concerns over Communist infiltration. These struggles converged on the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), a union of 30,000 K–12 and college teachers. Through its focus on leftist politics and organised college faculty, this article contends that college faculty played critical roles in the debates over Communism within the union, that the end of the Popular Front fundamentally weakened the college locals and that the ultimate purge of Communist locals had devastating effects on faculty unionisation.