Audio teleconferencing and the adult learner: Strategies for effective practice

Abstract

Audio teleconferencing is a distance learning delivery system that has often been overlooked by educational institutions and other organizations. However, the trend toward adoption of “high‐end” (and high cost) delivery systems is giving way to a new trend toward appropriate selection of a delivery system based on course content, course design, and intended audience. This article takes a close look at audio teleconferencing as a viable option for many distance learning situations, discusses the importance of the audio component in distance learning, and suggests management and delivery strategies for organizations considering this medium.     

Improving comprehension online: effects of deep vocabulary instruction with bilingual and monolingual fifth graders

This quasi-experimental study investigated the effects of an Internet-delivered universally designed depth of vocabulary intervention that targeted both English-speaking and Spanish–English-speaking students. Two hundred forty students, 49% of whom were Spanish–English bilinguals, participated in the 16-week intervention. Intervention students read eight multimedia texts with embedded instruction on 40 words and reading strategy support. Students could access all texts and activities in Spanish and English. In comparison to a control group, there were significant intervention effects on a standardized measure of vocabulary knowledge, but effects were non-significant for comprehension. Similarly, significant effects on researcher-developed measures of vocabulary depth were detected, but not for a researcher-developed measure of breadth.     

An integrated assessment of the effects of Title I on school behavior,resources, and student achievement

We examine the effects of Title I on school behavior, resources, and academic performance using a rich set of school finance and student-level achievement data from one large urban school district using a regression discontinuity design. We find that Title I eligibility raises Federal revenues of schools by about $460 per student. This is partially offset by decreases in revenues from state categorical aid grants, so that the net increase to schools is about $360 per student. We find no impact on overall school-level test scores, but also no impact among the subgroups of students most likely to be affected by Title I. A novel finding is that schools appear to respond to the incentives embedded in the Title I allocation process by manipulating the fraction of their students signed up for free lunch to secure more Federal funds.     

过自己的生活

我热爱语言，欣赏人们通过改变声调轻松交流的能力。我经常看名言警句，品味其中的不同内涵，含义的不同归因于强调内容的不同以及用不同方式读同一组词。我之所以非常看重用作本文标题的这句话，有很多原因，说这句话的时候，无论强调哪个词，整个句子都非常重要。     

Knowing 'now', learning futures. The politics and knowledge practices of vocational education and training

This paper locates vocational knowledges and institutions (of the state) within the broader context of contemporary discourses of ‘risk society’, while paying attention to the history and politics of Vocational Education and Training (VET) and work-related learning in Australia VET is interrogated as institutional space(s) in and through which the projects of governance and regulation and that of knowledge management co-exist in a symbiotic relationship. Rather than position VET as an objectified site of unified knowledge, this paper attempts to map epistemological ontological terrains that shape knowledge practices inherent in VET. Although challenging and re-mapping familiar terrain may involve discomfort and anxiety, it is argued that, through such a shared endeavour, knowledge practitioners within VET - learners, teachers, researchers and policy makers - will be better situated to make sense of the epistemological ontological challenges inherent in these ‘new’ times and so continually make the case for policies and practices that have the capacity to contribute more equitable and sustainable futures.     

The process of relationship development and deterioration: Turning points in friendships that have terminated

This study examines friendships that have ended. Five recalled trajectories for dissolved friendships were found. Certain turning points were generally associated with increases in friendship closeness, while others were associated with decreases in closeness. In addition, gender differences were found for several of the turning points reported. Implications are discussed for interpersonal communication research based on a traditional linear conceptualization of relational development and deterioration.