Foreign Media Systems

Patricia Hindley, Gail M. Martin, and Jean McNulty The Tangled Net: Basic Issues in Canadian Communications (Vancouver, British Columbia: J.J. Douglas Ltd., 1977—$12.95)

Tom Burns The BBC: Public Institution and Private World (London: Macmillan [New York: Holmes & Meier Publishers, Inc.], 1977—$19.50)

Alison McLeay The World of the Onedin Line (Newton Abbot, England (North Pomfret, Vt.): David & Charles, 1977—$11.95)     

IN THE KINGDOM OF THE BLIND: SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTING INSTITUTIONAL REPOSITORIES IN THE UNITED KINGDOM AND THE SHERPA PARTNERSHIP EXPERIENCE

This paper takes an overview of the work of the Securing a Hybrid Environment for Research Preservation and Access (SHERPA) team and the SHERPA Partnership institutions in the area of developing, populating and maintaining institutional open access repositories. Crucial to this work has been the development of a mutually supporting and enabling Partnership community, something that has now been recognised as needed by institutions that lie outside it. To this end, SHERPA is involved in efforts to support the individuals and institutions across the United Kingdom and Europe who are engaging with the open access agenda on a practical level; through setting up community networks and disseminating experience. Key in the experience of the SHERPA Partnership has been the role of advocacy of open access and institutional repositories to the research community. Whilst this experience has been unique to each institution, there are many shared lessons and best practice that the Partnership has recently reflected on and that are articulated within this paper. Finally, brief coverage on some of the vital community tools developed and maintained by SHERPA, and reflections on the evolving direction of open access in the United Kingdom, are made.     

Assessing jail coverage in introductory criminal justice textbooks

Despite their integral and multi-functional role within the criminal justice system, jails receive limited societal and research attention. The present study assesses the extent to which jail-related information is presented in fourteen leading introductory criminal justice texts. In general, it was found that there are 4.8 pages of prison-related information for every one page of jail coverage, and that roughly 72% of all jail-related information is found within the corrections sections of introductory criminal justice texts. Suggestions regarding future directions for authors of these texts are offered.     

Applying and Interpreting Mixture Distribution Latent State-Trait Models

Latent state-trait (LST) models are commonly applied to determine the extent to which observed variables reflect trait-like versus state-like constructs. Mixture distribution LST (M-LST) models relax the assumption of population homogeneity made in traditional LST models, allowing researchers to identify subpopulations (latent classes) with differing trait- and state-like attributes. Applications of M-LST models are scarce, presumably because of the analysis complexity. We present a step-by-step tutorial for evaluating M-LST models based on an application to mother, father, and teacher reports of children’s inattention (n = 811). In the application, we found three latent classes for mother and father reports and four classes for teacher reports. All reporter solutions contained classes with very low, low, and moderate levels of inattention. The teacher solution also contained a class with high inattention. Comparable mother and father (but not teacher) classes exhibited similar levels of trait and state variance.     

Voices of teachers with dyslexia in Finnish and English further and higher educational settings

This paper sheds light onto a poorly presented group of professionals – teachers with dyslexia in Finnish and English further and higher educational settings. The purpose of this qualitative study was, firstly, to discover what teachers with dyslexia could tell us about the manifestation of dyslexia and the challenges they face in the practice of teaching, and secondly, to find out what these professionals feel about being a dyslexic teacher. The data were gathered through the narrative interviews of six teachers and was analysed using thematic narrative analysis. Teachers’ narratives revealed that they had accepted their difficulties but also discovered their own strengths to overcome them. The data also indicated that these teachers appreciate their educator’s role, acknowledging the importance of empathy and understanding towards their students. Teachers with dyslexia can be successful and useful in training fellow practitioners to be more aware of students’ difficulties with dyslexia, hence having the potential to broaden capacity for inclusion and social equality in educational establishments.     

The relationship between quality of the present level of academic achievement and functional performance statement and student learning

The present level of academic achievement and functional performance (PLAAFP) is an essential component of the individualised educational program (IEP) process because it identifies student strengths and areas for growth. However, there is minimal research that examines components of an IEP and student outcomes. The current study examined the relationship between PLAAFP quality and student achievement, and between training and ongoing professional development and quality of the PLAAFP. The data were obtained from 211 special education teachers in one state. Results suggested that ongoing professional development predicted the quality of the PLAAFP statement, accounted for a large amount of the variance (r² = 0.14) in the PLAAFP quality score, and was a stronger predictor than participating in a single training. Additionally, PLAAFP quality predicted winter achievement scores beyond the school district, fall achievement scores and teacher variables, and accounted for significant and moderate amount of unique variance for reading (r² = 0.05) and math (r² = 0.07). Implications for research and practice are included.     

Back to the future? Reflections on three phases of education policy reform in Wales and their implications for teachers

Journal of Educational Change - Wales’ education system is part-way through an extensive journey of reform. This contextual paper explores the evolution of that journey, from the...     

Nap effects on preschool children’s learning of letter-sound mappings

This study explored whether a daytime nap aids children's acquisition of letter-sound knowledge, which is a fundamental component for learning to read. Thirty-two preschool children in Sydney, Australia (M_age = 4 years;3 months) were taught letter-sound mappings in two sessions: one followed by a nap and the other by a wakeful period. Learning was assessed by explicit letter-sound mappings (“Which sound does this letter make?”) and knowledge generalization tasks (“Here's Tav and Cav, which one is /kav/?”). Results from the knowledge generalization task showed better performance after a nap than after wake. However, no nap benefit was found for explicit letter-sound knowledge. This study provides initial evidence that naps could be beneficial for preschool children's learning of letter-sound mappings.     

The Canadian Preservice Teacher Education Practicum: An Examination of Fostering University and School Collaboration,Mentor Teacher Guidance,and Re-centring the Practicum

Interchange - The history of Canadian preservice teacher practicums demonstrates that great effort has been put forth to bridge the perceived divide between university teaching programs and...