Accelerating the educational progress of intellectually gifted youths 1

Aptitude and achievement tests designed for much older students are invaluable for finding extremely high ability at younger ages. Results of the first two years of the Study of Mathematically and Scientifically Precocious Youth are examined to show that considerable educational acceleration is not only feasible but also desirable for those young people who are eager to move ahead. Skipping school grades, taking college courses part‐time, studying in special courses, and entering college early are inexpensive and supplemental to regular school practices. We do not advocate the usual in‐grade, non‐accelerative “enrichment”; procedures often recommended for intellectually gifted children. An heuristic overview is presented of the main assumptions and findings of the Study thus far.     

Shaping up? Three acts of education studies as textual critique

This paper presents a study of dominant educational discourses through textual critique and argues that such an approach enables education studies to preserve an important distinction from teacher training. The texts deconstructed here are specific to English education, but the discourses at work have international relevance as the rhetorics of accountability, performance and measurement (which we call cells of discourse) have global reach. Ward described a national picture in England whereby the great majority, if not all, of education studies undergraduate courses appear to be taught alongside, or within (through shared modules) teacher training programmes. But from a sociological position, these are two increasingly conflicting arenas—the study of education and the training of teachers. In response, Ward called for the subject to radicalize teacher education. The implications of this are significant if education studies is to retain a status as agent of critique. In this paper we return to the theme of education studies as a discrete practice from teacher training and suggest that any acceptance of a proximal relation to teacher education is counter‐productive. In so doing we offer three contemporary examples of the subject at deconstructive work, scrutinizing the published standards for teacher training in England, employer discourse and the Tomlinson report (commissioned by the English government to offer proposals for the reworking of vocational education) and the new curriculum for adult literacy in England. Particular attention is given to analysing the ways in which such texts speak the currently powerful discourse of standards.     

Reviews

In 2002, I wrote a critical account in this journal of the Performance and Innovation Unit’s analysis of workforce development and the policy which has since emanated from it. Lloyd and Payne, again in this journal, criticized that account for both claiming too much in terms of progress made and for saying too little about what policies are needed to usher in a demand‐led system. In this rejoinder, the areas of agreement and disagreement between us are explored and this exploration reveals that we are in favour of radically different routes out of the low skills equilibrium. What is at stake is not a routine argument between academics, but a genuine dispute about how the UK could become a high skills society.     

Reviews

The sets out the intentions of the Labour Government for its third term. Where necessary, its provisions will be subject to legislation in 2005. This article argues that the Five‐year strategy, like much education policy since 1997, ignores important reasons for inequality of educational outcome in urban areas. Moreover, it may make matters worse. And its prime emphasis on school improvement measures will ensure that staff will be blamed if their schools falter.     

The Development and Validation of the Physical Self-concept Scale for Older Adults

Physical self-concept plays a central role in older adults’ physical health, mental health and psychological well-being; however, little attention has been paid to the underlying dimensions of physical self-concept in the elderly. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a new measurement for older adults. First, a qualitative study (Study 1) was conducted that included semistructured interviews and a focus group discussion. The second study established an initial instrument. Through item pool generation, content validation assessment, factor analysis, and item analysis (n = 187), the Physical Self-Concept Scale for Older Adults (PSCS-O) was produced containing 18 items and six dimensions. Finally, in the third study (n = 233), the PSCS-O showed adequate factorial stability and the initial certerion validity. The PSCS-O were able to explain 49.2% of the variance in older adults’ well-being. In addition, Ability to Live Independently, which was introduced as a new factor by the PSCS-O, was the strongest predictor of the older adults’ overall subjective well-being. In conclusion, the preliminary results from this study demonstrated that this new instrument, the PSCS-O, has sound psychometric properties. The PSCS-O may be a suitable and useful instrument in the study of physical self-concept in older adults in the future.     

Low expectations equal no expectations: Aspirations,motivation, and achievement in secondary school

Underachievement and failure to complete school have long-term negative consequences for students. Aspirations regarding completion of secondary school that predict achievement outcomes are related to factors amenable to intervention. This study investigates relationships between academic achievement and self-reported educational aspirations, motivation, affiliation with peers and teachers, and attributions. Survey participants were 5369 Year 10 and Year 11 students at 19 nationally representative secondary schools in New Zealand, and available achievement records were sourced for 2439 Year 11 students. Survey data were factor analyzed followed by further examination of relationships across demographic factors, self-reported aspirations, motivational factors (Doing My Best and Doing Just Enough), attributions, and interpersonal affiliations (Teacher and Peer). For Year 11 students, relationships between different factors and subsequent achievement were also analyzed. Students who indicated no aspiration to complete a school qualification were indistinguishable from those with low or moderate aspirations, and the analyses supported only two divergent groups comprising students with either low or high aspirations to complete qualifications. Aspirations were significantly related to different patterns of motivation, affiliation, and attributions predictive of academic achievement. Students of different ethnicity and gender also fell unequally across the two groups. These results suggest that promoting low or even moderate expectations and aspirations for student achievement may actually reinforce lower academic achievement. Instead, teachers and schools should communicate high expectations to prevent school failure and effective interventions to enhance student outcomes.     

Enhancing scientific discovery learning through metacognitive support

Using a virtual physics lab, we analyzed the impact of metacognitive support on simulation-based scientific discovery learning (SDL). The dependent variables for learning outcome were the immediate conceptual knowledge gain and the retained conceptual knowledge three weeks later. Additional dependent variables were the actual use of a domain-specific cognitive strategy, motivation, emotions, and cognitive load. To contrast the effects of metacognitive support with possible effects of goal specificity, the experimental study followed a 2 × 2 design with a sample of N = 129 ninth grade students and with metacognitive support (yes vs. no) and learning goals (specific vs. nonspecific) as factors. The results showed positive effects of metacognitive support on learning outcome, on actual cognitive strategy use, and on learning emotions. No interaction effect of metacognitive support and goal specificity on learning outcome was observed.