Urban youths’ hybrid positioning in science practices at the margin: a look inside a school–museum–scientist partnership project and an after-school science program

In what ways do urban youths’ hybridity constitute positioning and engagement in science-as-practice? In what ways are they “hybridizing” and hence surviving in a system that positions them as certain types of learners and within which they come to position themselves often as other than envisioned? To answer these questions, I draw from two ethnographic case studies, one a scientist–museum–school partnership initiative, and the other, an after-school science program for girls only, both serving poor, ethnically and linguistically diverse youth in Montreal, Canada. Through a study of the micro dialectics from the perspective of youth, I show what we can learn from examples of doing science in a formal and informal educational context supportive of marginalized science practices resembling in part, at least, science-as-practice. Through an integration of the findings with current discourses of relevance in science education such as funds of knowledge and youth centered, co-opted science, I contribute to the formulation of a global pedagogy of science education and in particular, what such may imply in the eyes of youth in French Canada.     

The illusion of scholastic incompetence and peer acceptance in primary school

This paper reports results from two studies aimed at examining whether perception of social acceptance and actual social acceptance differ according to the presence of an illusion of scholastic incompetence. Results of both studies conducted in Belgium and in Quebec (respectively 179 and 543 participants) show that children’s illusion of scholastic incompetence is linked to a negative perception of social acceptance. However, according to the evaluation by peers, social acceptance of those children is similar to the others. This suggests a generalization of the negative bias of self-evaluation to both academic and social domains. The discussion proposes further variables that could improve the understanding of the origin of the illusion of incompetence.     

Images of Science Linked to Labwork: A Survey of Secondary School and University Students

This paper presents findings about the images of science drawn upon in laboratory work, by upper secondary and university students, in academic streams with a science focus. Data were collected through four written questions, administered to a total of 368 students. The questions all required students to comment on laboratory investigations carried out by research scientists or by science students. We show that students' reasoning has an epistemological and an ontological dimension, and that it often differs significantly from accepted perspectives on the nature of science. The issue for teaching appears to be showing students what counts (and what does not count) as appropriate reasoning in actual situations. In other words, explicit teaching about the various relationships that can exist between theory and data would transform labwork towards a more critical process that involves making and justifying decisions.     

Challenges in identifying target skills for math disability screening and intervention

Gersten, Jordan, and Flojo (in this series) review their research on math difficulties, with an emphasis on applying current knowledge to inform practices of early identification and intervention. On a practical level, educators are in dire need of empirically based screening and intervention tools. From a scientific perspective, it is important to recognize the need to clearly define what we seek to identify and remediate, and to acknowledge that we are currently far from achieving this goal despite recent advances in the field. Among the studies reviewed by Gersten et al., as well as other studies by several other researchers, there is much variability in how mathematics difficulties are defined and measured, and even in the terms used to refer to them. I address the degree of consensus and controversy currently characterizing the state of math learning disabilities research, with an emphasis on the usefulness of a developmental perspective in appraising this young field.     

Adult outcomes in women who experienced parental violence during childhood

OBJECTIVE: The aims of this work are to analyze the associations between violence suffered at the hands of fathers and mothers in childhood and adolescence and three outcomes in adulthood--having or not having children, marital status, and occupational status--controlling for the possible impact of partner violence. METHOD: This cross-sectional study examined a sample of 510 women, attending various health care and social services facilities in a Northern Italian city. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. RESULTS: Almost one quarter of the respondents reported some kind of abuse by one or both parents, and 18.2% had experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a partner or ex-partner; women abused by parents were more likely to experience partner violence. Irrespective of whether they experienced partner violence, women abused by parents were more likely to be childless, divorced or never married, and in a precarious occupational situation. CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first one carried out in Italy on this subject: results largely confirmed the trends found in studies in other countries. However, two of the associations which emerged, namely between parents' abuse and being divorced or never married and between parents' abuse and being childless, are worth noting, since they could be interpreted as failures or, on the contrary, as active and positive choices made by abused women in a difficult context. Qualitative data from case histories provided insights into the violence some women have suffered and its consequences, but also into women's great resilience and strengths.     

Collaborative learning at the computer; How social processes ‘interface’ with human-computer interaction

In drawing an ‘outline sketch’ of the field of research on interactional learning situations with computers, this paper attempts to provide a general framework for the contributions which follow. After a brief overview of the theoretical grounding of studies in the field, we examine the extent to which learner-computer interaction and learner-learner interaction can interfere with or support one another.

The need for a change of theoretical perspective on the role of social interaction in learning is highlighted. It is argued that viewing collaborative learning in terms of joint negotiation of a common problem space might help in defining the optimal characteristics of educational software.

Finally, the critical role of social dimensions such as social comparisons between partners is pointed out. In conclusion, the need for more local theories, taking particular account of the learning domain, is stressed.

     

Total time for magnetic field penetration into a superconducting strip of type-I material

The field-induced transition of a flat strip of superconducting material is shown to proceed via two dynamically distinct stages. The dynamics of the first stage is well known; however, the existence of a second stage has not previously been recognized. It is shown that the second stage of the transition lasts at least as long as the first one when the applied field exceeds the critical field by about 90%. It is concluded that the second stage plays an important role even when moderate fields are used to induce the transition.     

Building strong parent–teacher relationships in primary education: the challenge of two-way communication

This study investigates which subjects teachers talk about with parents in parent–teacher conferences and other contact moments, and how they communicate with regard to these subjects. Fifty-five in-depth interviews were carried out with teachers from special education schools, at-risk schools serving low socio-economic status children and mainstream primary education schools in the southern part of the Netherlands. The results illustrate that (1) two-way communication is used the most in at-risk schools, (2) teachers find it difficult to involve parents in the decision-making process concerning special care for the child, and (3) the teachers’ attitude towards parents is best when it comes to difficult discussion topics. When situations are really difficult, teachers stand alongside the parents instead of addressing them from their expert role, asking them ‘How can we solve this together?’. Teachers should be more aware of this quality, and not be afraid to address difficult subjects or conflicts.     

Students’ relationships to knowledges,place identity and agency concerning the St. Lawrence river

Our study is framed according to a transformational-sociocritical approach to an education for sustainable development (ESD) that, in particular, considers landscapes as learning contexts of potential use for fostering engagement in the areas of environmental protection and sustainable development. In keeping with this perspective, we surveyed students aged 16–17 years from the Lower St. Lawrence region (Quebec, Canada) concerning their knowledge and perceptions of issues pertaining to the St. Lawrence, the river facing them on an everyday basis, and about their role as citizens in that connection. In respect of theoretical considerations, we propose developing the concepts of relationships to knowledge, place identity and agency. An analysis of questionnaires (N=334) has served to: bring out the learnings and issues pertaining to the St. Lawrence River that students consider to be meaningful; characterise the various identity-centred relationships with this landscape; and define the eco-civic agency of the students surveyed. The results of this analysis then provide a basis for some proposals for an ESD curriculum relating to the St. Lawrence River that is rooted in students’ concerns. While the environmental issues dealt with occur locally, the potential transfer of results into other curricula and educational contexts is also discussed.     

Comprehension of the night and day cycle among French and Cameroonian children aged 7–8 years

Cultural Studies of Science Education - In this article, we compared French and Cameroonian schoolchildren’s initial conceptions and comprehension of the night and day cycle in order to test...