Developing,Evaluating and Demonstrating the Use of a Conceptual Survey in Mechanical Waves

An understanding of mechanical waves is a pre‐requisite for the study of many topics in advanced physics, and indeed in many other disciplines. There have been many research studies in mechanical waves, all of which have revealed that students have trouble with the basic concepts. Therefore, in order for teachers to prepare appropriate instruction for their classes, it is useful to diagnose their students' conceptions—if possible before they enter class. It is for this purpose that many diagnostic instruments have been developed, often in the form of multiple‐choice tests. In this study, we have used the open‐ended Wave Diagnostic Test to develop a multiple‐choice conceptual survey in an evolutionary manner. The two‐year development procedure included open‐ended surveys and interviews involving 299 Thai students and 88 Australian students. The final version, called the Mechanical Waves Conceptual Survey, has been administered to 632 Australian students from high school to second‐year university and 270 Thai high school students. Standard statistical analyses show that the survey is reliable and valid. Further validity checks, including consultation with experts, were also carried out. The survey has four subtopics—propagation, superposition, reflection, and standing waves—and the teachers can choose the subtopics relevant for their students. In this paper we also demonstrate the use of a typical survey question to test students' conceptual understanding and identify common alternative conceptions.     

Attempting to document teachers' professional knowledge

This paper explores ways of uncovering and documenting teachers' professional knowledge. Through a research project that has worked with a number of teachers over an extensive period of time, serious attempts have been made to make the (often) tacit nature of teachers' knowledge more explicit in ways that might begin to address the question of what a knowledge base in teaching might look like. The paper examines methodological issues that have guided this research and illustrates how the knowledge of teachers can be articulated in ways that might help to clarify particular features of practice. An important aspect of the research reported in this paper is the need to have a language of teaching that is common to participants. Therefore, the research reported in this paper offers one way of considering this issue and offers a methodology for exploration and further development whilst simultaneously highlighting some aspects of the problematic nature of developing such a methodology.     

Language and Educational Practice

This paper picks up and discusses issues regarding the relationship between language and practice commented upon by Michael Fielding in an earlier edition of this journal. The position taken is sympathetic to Fielding's concerns but attempts to situate the debate in a wider theoretical perspective. The basic thrust of the argument centres around two considerations: the extent to which language may be said to be partly constitutive of educational practices and a radical misconception as to the nature of education inherent in what Fielding labels 'the language of performativity'.     

Can Professional Studies Be Included in the Liberal Arts Curriculum?

This article discusses a business school professor's approach to teaching a University Seminar, the first course in the freshman year component of the liberal arts requirements at Seattle Pacific University. Drawing on Cardinal Newman's The Idea of a University (1873/1947), three theses shaped the design of the seminar. First, the seminar topic should be put in historical, social, and ethical perspective. Second, the Christian Scriptures should provide a set of control beliefs that can be used in moral and practical discernment about the social responsibilities of business. Third, the use of common texts can help in fostering broader social goals.     

Analysis and treatment of child abuse: A set of behavioral propositions

Five propositions are presented to suggest the potential of a behavioral approach to the understanding and treatment of child abuse. Each proposition deals with an important source of child abuse: (a) ineffective child management techniques; (b) deliberately punitive child rearing practices; (c) impulsive acts by the parent triggered by the child; (d) high levels of stress; and (e) negative attitude toward the child. For each proposition we discuss supportive findings from both child abuse and general psychological research as well as the additional information that would be needed in order to obtain a better functional analysis of clinical cases. Based on this discussion, behavioral therapy strategies are proposed with special attention being given to the various measures needed to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment programs.     

Using critical questions to evaluate written and oral arguments in an undergraduate general education seminar: a quasi-experimental study

Reading and Writing - Although the Toulmin model (1958) has dominated argumentation research, it does not provide many tools for evaluating argument quality. Towards that end, we draw on work in...