Learning to use scientific concepts

In responding to the research on conceptual change, this article attempts to make two points. First, scientific concepts are not possessed by individuals; rather, they are part of a culture’s resources, which individuals learn to use for their own or for group purposes. Second, particular concepts are most effectively mastered when the learner is deeply engaged in solving a problem for which they function as effective semiotic tools in achieving a solution. On these grounds, it is argued that the mastering of scientific concepts is best achieved through learning to use them in motivated inquiry.

Fairness in multicultural assessment systems

This paper is about fairness (equity) in large‐scale assessment systems within multicultural societies. It makes the key assumptions that fairness is fundamentally a sociocultural, rather than a technical, issue and that fair assessment cannot be considered in isolation from both the curriculum and the educational opportunities of the students. Equity is defined as a qualitative concern for what is just. This involves, but is not the same as, equality of opportunity and of outcome. In relation to large‐scale assessment four topics are addressed: the nature of the assessment system; recognizing experiences of different groups; cultural diversity; and monitoring group performance. The conclusion is that, while we can never achieve fair assessment, we can make it fairer. At the heart of this improvement process is openness about design, constructs and scoring which brings out into the open the values and biases of the test design process.     

Effects of cuing in an “irrelevant” context

Normally, retention of an avoidance response by a rat is impaired when the test context is novel or does not correspond to the training context. Experiment 1 demonstrates that such an impairment of test performance can be alleviated if a rat receives a cuing treatment or reminder of training in the novel test context prior to testing. Experiment 2 indicates that when rats receive avoidance training in one context and then receive a reminder of training in a novel context, they perform more poorly when tested in the training context than do animals that receive no reminder. This finding is discussed in relation to current theories of contextual influence over retention performance.     

Hybrid structures: Faculty use and perception of web-based courseware as a supplement to face-to-face instruction

The researchers examined responses from 862 faculty members at 38 institutions nationwide using the blackboard Learning Management System (LMS) to supplement their face-to-face instruction. The four research questions addressed the primary uses that faculty make of blackboard, perceptions that faculty have of how certain blackboard features enhance or elevate (or might enhance or elevate) their assessment of student work and instructional capabilities, and how faculty use of blackboard might positively affect the psychosocial climate within the face-to-face classroom setting. Additional analysis sought to identify the factors that predict use and positive perception of blackboard as a supplement to face-to-face teaching activities. The results indicate that faculty primarily used blackboard as a course management/administration tool to make course documents available to students and manage course grades. Few faculty used blackboard for instructional or assessment purposes, and even fewer utilized blackboard to foster a more positive sense of community within their face-to-face classes. Faculty attitudes, on the whole, were positive when it came to the classroom management functions of blackboard, but neutral or otherwise undecided in terms of its instructional or psychosocial benefits. The main factor in determining blackboard usage—whether for course administration or instructional purposes—was experience with the tool. In addition, women had more positive attitudes than men did in terms of blackboard's potential to enhance classroom management and foster a positive relational climate. Limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are discussed before concluding.     

The good, the bad and the ugly: teachers' perception of quality in fiction for adolescent readers

Recent years have seen a great development in fiction written for the adolescent market‐teenage fiction. This article seeks to explore the notion of quality in teenage fiction building on earlier research by Whitehead (1977), Hall and Coles (1999), and Benton (1995a) and using findings from interviews with teachers in secondary schools in the South West of England in 2003 and 2004, the first phase in a study into perceptions of quality in teenage fiction. Questions are raised about whether English teachers have sufficient knowledge of this genre of literature to support pleasure and progress in reading for adolescents and also whether teenage fiction should be more directly addressed in the curriculum perhaps through a school canon, which may apply educational criteria to define a body of literature that begins where the child is, but allows for clear progression in reading.     

Apprenticeship in literacy

A four-level taxonomy is proposed for categorizing the ways in which literacy is defined operationally in education. The four levels—performative, functional, informational, epistemic—are distinguished in terms of conceptualizations of the relationships between writing and speaking and between writing and thinking. This taxonomy is then used to examine the results of recent research on early literacy development. Two major findings emerge: (a) the universal predisposition among children to develop actively an understanding of the forms and functions of written language and (b) differences between cultural groups in the ways literacy activities are organized. It is argued that an emphasis should be placed on the highest level of literacy in the school curriculum and that this should be the case forall children and at all ages.     

Connecting university science experiences to middle school science teaching

Summary Science teachers naturally rely on their university science experiences as a foundation for teaching middle school science. This foundation consists of knowledge far too complex for the middle level students to comprehend. In order for middle school science teachers to utilize their university science training they must search for ways to adapt their college experiences into appropriate middle school learning experience. The criteria set forth above provide broad-based guidelines for translating university science laboratory experiences into middle school activities. These guidelines are used by preservice teachers in our project as they identify, test, and organize a resource file of hands-on inquiry activities for use in their first year classrooms. It is anticipated that this file will provide a basis for future curriculum development as the teacher becomes more comfortable and more experienced in teaching hands-on science. The presentation of these guidelines is not meant to preclude any other criteria or considerations which a teacher or science department deems important. This is merely one example of how teachers may proceed to utilize their advanced science training as a basis for teaching middle school science.     

Similarity grouping of Australian universities

The Unified National System of Australian Universities was created out of universities, institutes of technology and colleges of advanced education. In this study similarity clustering of universities within this system is attempted based on two data sets: one based on evaluative ratings and the other on quantitative performance indicators. With the exception of three traditional universities that tended to cluster together across data sets no consistent clustering emerged. Within data sets there was no tendency for the emergent clusters to reflect the origins of the institutions in any consistent manner. It is suggested that the Unified National System has not reduced diversity.     

The Validity of National Curriculum Assessment

This paper reviews the validity of National Curriculum assessment in England. It works with the concept of 'consequential validity' (Messick, 1989) which incorporates both conventional 'reliability'issues and the use to which any assessment is put. The review uses the eight stage 'threats to validity'model developed by Crooks, Kane and Cohen (1996). The complexity of National Curriculum assessment makes evaluation difficult. These assessments are used for a variety of purposes so that the 'consequential'aspects are compounded. National Curriculum assessment also involves both Teacher Assessment and tests – each of which has strengths and limitations in relation to validity. The main finding is that the validity of National Curriculum assessment hinges on the balance between Teacher Assessment and testing. Between them they can meet Crooks et al.' s requirements of a valid assessment system. The current emphasis on the use of test results for school accountability and as a measure of national standards has undermined Teacher Assessment to a point at which the validity of the system is in question.     

Validating NSSE Against Student Outcomes: Are They Related?

While there exist many examples of institutional use of the results of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), there is a relative paucity of research explicitly linking student outcomes to responses on the survey. A major Doctoral-Extensive institution in the Southeast recently conducted a large-scale implementation of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). We have linked multiple years of NSSE responses to several student outcomes: freshman retention, GPA, pursuit of graduate education, and employment outcome upon commencement/degree conferral. Our research finds minimal explanatory power in the NSSE benchmarks for these outcomes. A statistically derived model from the individual NSSE items shows greater promise, although there are difficulties in replicating the model for previous student cohorts.