Developing creativity and problem-solving skills of engineering students: a comparison of web- and pen-and-paper-based approaches

Problem-solving is a key engineering skill, yet is an area in which engineering graduates underperform. This paper investigates the potential of using web-based tools to teach students problem-solving techniques without the need to make use of class time. An idea generation experiment involving 90 students was designed. Students were surveyed about their study habits and reported they use electronic-based materials more than paper-based materials while studying, suggesting students may engage with web-based tools. Students then generated solutions to a problem task using either a paper-based template or an equivalent web interface. Students who used the web-based approach performed as well as students who used the paper-based approach, suggesting the technique can be successfully adopted and taught online. Web-based tools may therefore be adopted as supplementary material in a range of engineering courses as a way to increase students’ options for enhancing problem-solving skills.     

The changing structure of teacher compensation, 1970–1994

This paper considers how the structures of teacher salaries in public school districts have changed over the last quarter century and whether salary increases have been allocated so as to achieve the greatest gain in educational quality. Using New York state data for the 1970–1994 period, we find that even though some districts appear to behave in ways consistent with the often expressed goal of recruiting and retaining the most able college graduates, most districts do not. The vast majority of districts have inefficiently allocated a disproportionately large share of resources to veteran teachers for whom job tenure is only marginally affected. This finding has important implications for the policy debate regarding whether increased spending on education will, or could, improve educational performance as well as the design of alternative compensation schemes.     

Engaging Gypsy and Traveller pupils in secondary education in Wales: tensions and dilemmas of addressing difference

Despite decades of research and policy, we are still some way in the U.K. from ameliorating barriers for Gypsy and Traveller pupils. A complex set of factors exist which influence young people’s engagement with secondary education. This interpretive-deductive study, which draws upon ‘tensions and dilemmas of difference’, presents Gypsy/Traveller learners’ perceptions and those of their parents and teachers about the barriers encountered. Findings around ‘intra-cultural conflict’ demonstrate significant tensions between and within cultures that are profound for young people during this stage of education. Resilient, supportive mothers and strong bonds with teachers and children from the mainstream community, appeared essential in helping young people to manage criticism and resist pressure to conform to cultural norms. However, a fundamental shift in societal attitude is required and critical thought paid to inclusive education, or young learners who remain in education may end up on the periphery of both societies.     

Educating in the Seventh Fire: Debwewin,Mino‐bimaadiziwin,and Ecological Justice

The Anishinaabe Seven Fires Creation Story can be read as a theory on which all human beings share a fundamental love of reflecting reality in what they think and do. In this article, Marc Kruse, Nicolas Tanchuk, and Robert Hamilton argue that this ethical theory is correct but that the colonial ideology taught in our schools can obscure our knowledge of this fact. Specifically, the authors claim that decolonizing education requires teaching students and teachers alike to see the presence of value whenever they encounter other beings animated by a responsiveness to reality. All living things strive to perceive and respond to reality — to live and continue to learn — even if epistemic faculties differ. All living things, then, the authors conclude, are rightly seen as our relatives and kin, as bearers of value to whom we owe moral respect, as Anishinaabe elders have long taught.     

Interprofessional education in gross anatomy: Experience with first‐year medical and physical therapy students at Mayo Clinic

Interprofessional education (IPE) in clinical practice is believed to improve outcomes in health care delivery. Integrating teaching and learning objectives through cross discipline student interaction in basic sciences has the potential to initiate interprofessional collaboration at the early stages of health care education. Student attitudes and effectiveness of IPE in the context of a combined gross anatomy course for first‐year students in Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) and Doctor of Medicine (MD) degrees curricula were evaluated. Integrated teams of MD and DPT students participated in part of the gross anatomy dissection course at Mayo Medical School. A survey was administered to 42 MD and 28 DPT students that assessed their attitudes toward IPE and cooperation among health care professionals. Pre‐ and post‐experience surveys were evaluated. Positive comments were related to opportunities for developing a better understanding of the nature and scope of each other's programs, encouraging teamwork and communication, mutual respect, and reducing the perceptual divide between disciplines. Ninety‐two percent of the students agreed that interprofessional learning would help them in becoming a more effective member of the health care team. This initial experience with IPE in gross anatomy provides a basis for continued development of interdisciplinary educational strategies. Anat Sci Ed 1:258–263, 2008. © 2008 American Association of Anatomists.     

High School Students' Jobs: Related and Unrelated to School

Work experience can be beneficial to high school students, especially when the work is regular and less than 20 hours/week. Previous studies have found that school-related work experience provides more learning opportunities with fewer negative consequences than jobs unrelated to school. This study analyzed responses of 22,183 seniors from 868 high schools who had been employed during the school year. In this study, contrary to previous studies, students with school-related jobs expected to get less education and were academically less able than those whose jobs were unrelated to school. Comparisons of students' self-reports of the quality of their jobs failed to confirm the hypothesis that school-related jobs were more advantageous than jobs unrelated to school. Black students were nearly twice as likely to report having school-related jobs as non-Hispanic white students. The difference in job quality may result from schools underinvesting in high-quality cooperative education, internships, and other forms of work-based learning.     

Illuminating the ‘boy problem’ from children's and teachers' perspectives: a pilot study

The apparent educational underperformance of boys has received phenomenal attention worldwide for many years. In the UK, it has led to various government reports and policies aimed at raising boys' achievement. This small-scale qualitative-interpretive pilot study, undertaken in one urban primary school in North Wales, reports the findings from exploring boys', aged six to seven years, perceptions of education. It also presents teachers' perceptions of how boys' learn and what they regard to be visible gender differences in the classroom. The research suggests that although many boys within this age group seemed generally positive about school and learning, certain issues were emerging for some boys that, if not addressed, could result in disengagement and/or underperformance. Factors include: issues related to boys' reading and literacy; boys' preference for screen-based, digital devices; gender binaries in relation to learning styles and behaviours; gender-specific syndromes; and teacher concerns about the impact of a ‘feminised’ education sector. The objective of this paper is to examine, after decades of research studies and government reports, what do we really know about the perceptions of young male learners and their experiences within the context of the primary classroom?