Observations on the analysis and control of teacher-student interaction in the foreign language classroom based on video-tape recordings

Six one-hour sections of an intensified first- and second-year French course conducted by graduate-student teaching fellows were video-taped. These tapes were analyzed in order to determine teaching problems related to teacher-student interactions. The analysis led to specific recommendations for more effective and efficient classroom teaching concerning specification of student terminal behavior, diagnostic testing, strategies of teaching, contingency management, and language skills. A filmed training program, based on the videotapes, was administered to the teaching fellows.     

Crossing the Divide: A Survey of the High School Activities That Best Prepared Students to Write in College

Learning is a concept that is routinely used in various educational settings, and the enhancement of learning is the primary goal of many, if not all, educators and administrators. People involved in education, however, may not necessarily have extensively explored this commonly cited notion, and some may not have subsequently realized the conceptual depth and variations that learning entails in developing classroom materials and practices. For example, learning may be domain specific, and may involve a wide variety of processes and expressions. Additionally, it is linked to an array of factors, including individual differences, such as temperament, and culturally relative dimensions, such as value priorities. This article discusses implications for classroom practices to facilitate educators’ application of this complex concept.     

The Differential Effects of Repeating Kindergarten

We use the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study to investigate national patterns addressing (a) who repeats kindergarten, and (b) the subsequent cognitive effects of this event. Using OLS regression techniques, we investigate 1st-time kindergartners who are promoted, 1st-time kindergartners who are retained, and children who are already repeating kindergarten. Boys, children from low socioeconomic backgrounds, and children who enter kindergarten younger than typical age standards are consistently at risk for repeating kindergarten, but racial/ethnic patterns differ across the 2 cohorts of kindergarten repeaters. Evidence suggests that repeating kindergarten rarely leads to cognitive benefits in literacy or mathematics performance. On average, kindergarten repeaters continue to perform below their peers in terms of literacy skills both at the end of kindergarten and at the end of first grade (effect size [ES] = ?0.20 and ?0.24, respectively). In mathematics, the performance differentials are smaller but remain statistically significant. Evidence suggests that these differences vary somewhat by children's background and the school setting. Most children appear to receive little or no cognitive benefit from repeating kindergarten, suggesting the need for a careful reconsideration of current retention practices.     

The Key to Developing America's Workforce

Central Community College (CCC; Columbus, Nebraska) has taken the lead in several business, industry, and educational collaborations, beginning locally, then expanding statewide. This article shares two models that other community colleges may wish to replicate. The first describes the development of a collaborative team. The second shows that, by using the collaborative team approach, community colleges can generate substantial increases in both funding and full-time equivalents (a basis for community college funding inNebraska)while serving business andindustry.For example, since June 1998 CCC has generated nearly $1.4 million for its business and industry training programs. As a result of collaboration among CCC, the Nebraska Community College System, government agencies, and business and industry, the Statewide Interactive Multimedia Training Library was established.     

A Radical Approach to the Administration of Education

The specialist schools programme is currently seen by policy makers as a way of transforming the comprehensive education system, and meeting the local needs of parents for diversity and excellence. Insofar as this policy has an evidence-base this has been provided by studies showing higher levels of attainment among existing specialist schools. This article shows that if these advantages occur then there is a danger that they do so at a cost in terms of inclusion. The existing specialist schools have also shown a greater tendency to take proportionately fewer children from poor families over time, especially where these schools are also their own admission authorities. If this trend continues it will exacerbate the pre-existing social and economic segregation in the education system. The article ends by considering some of the implications for school organisation.     

College Students’ Perceptions About the Plausibility of Human-Induced Climate Change

Overcoming students’ misconceptions may be a challenge when teaching about phenomena such as climate change. Students tend to cite short-term weather effects as evidence to support or refute long-term climate transformations, which displays a fundamental misunderstanding about weather and climate distinctions. Confusion about weather and climate may also reflect student misunderstanding about deep time, a concept that spans several scientific content areas. This study examines the relationships between students’ understanding of deep time and their understandings of the distinctions between weather and climate, as well as how these understandings influence students’ perceptions about the plausibility of human-induced global climate change. Undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory science class on global climate change completed measures of their (a) understanding of distinctions between weather and climate, (b) knowledge of deep time, and (c) plausibility perceptions of human-induced climate change, both at the beginning and end of the course. The study includes comparison groups of similar students enrolled in introductory physical geography classes. Results revealed that greater knowledge of deep time and increased plausibility perceptions of human-induced climate change provide significant explanation of variance in students’ understanding of weather and climate distinctions. Furthermore, students achieve significantly increased understanding of weather and climate, even with brief instruction.     

Are Student Evaluations of Teaching Effectiveness Valid for Measuring Student Learning Outcomes in Business Related Classes? A Neural Network and Bayesian Analyses

In this study we investigate the underlying relational structure between student evaluations of teaching effectiveness (SETEs) and achievement of student learning outcomes in 116 business related courses. Utilizing traditional statistical techniques, a neural network analysis and a Bayesian data reduction and classification algorithm, we find little or no support for the validity of SETEs as a general indicator of teaching effectiveness or student learning. In fact, the underlying structure appears to be non-linear and possibly negatively bimodal where the most effective instructors are within the middle percentiles of student course ratings, while instructors receiving ratings in the top quintile or the bottom quintile are associated with significantly lower levels of student achievement.     

A global snapshot of the state of digital collections in the health sciences, 2013

Two hundred twenty-nine health sciences libraries (HSLs) worldwide were surveyed regarding the availability of digital collections, evidence of the type of digital collections, level of access, software used, and HSL type. Of the surveyed libraries, 69% (n = 157) had digital collections, with an average of 1,531 items in each collection; 49% (n = 112) also had institutional repositories. In most cases (n = 147), these collections were publicly available. The predominant platforms for disseminating these digital collections were CONTENTdm and library web pages. Only 50% (n = 77) of these collections were managed by the health sciences library itself.     

The Relationships Among Generativity,Values, Individual Differences,and Commitment to an Ideal Vision

Kaufman ( 2006a , 2011 ) defines Ideal Visions as measurable statements of the kind of world an organization, as well as its associates and external stakeholders, commits to help create for the future. This study investigated the relationships among several research‐supported variables regarding personality aspects and individual characteristics with indicators of individuals’ motivation to achieve goals aimed at adding value to external clients and society. Indicators of generative beliefs, values, individual differences, and commitment to an Ideal Vision were examined in this study. Generativity (the concern in establishing and guiding the next generation), membership and activity in a formal civic organization, and gender, each demonstrated a statistically significant relationship with commitment to an Ideal Vision. In addition, various values were ranked differentially by those with relatively high versus low commitment to an Ideal Vision. A discussion of how these variables warrant the ongoing investigation into these variables is provided.     

Comparison of Research Speed and Accuracy Using WestlawNext and Lexis Advance

ABSTRACT

In 2010, Thomson Reuters released a new search engine to the legal academy called WestlawNext. WestlawNext's single-search-box approach revolutionized the legal research process. LexisNexis followed with its own next-generation search engine, Lexis Advance. This study compares the speed and accuracy of WestlawNext and Lexis Advance for basic legal research questions. Fifty-five participants answered five legal questions in each system. We reviewed their results and research trails to determine how the systems compared on speed and accuracy. Our results indicate few significant differences between the two systems for basic legal research tasks utilizing keyword searches.