Piagetian tasks as readiness measures in mathematics instruction: A critical review

The purpose of this review was to synthesize the research on the relationship between performance on Piagetian tasks of concrete operations and performance on mathematics learning tasks in order to determine whether the Piagetian tasks make useful readiness measures. The research consistently indicates that, while there is a positive correlation between performance on Piagetian tasks and mathematics achievement, many school mathematics tasks can be mastered by children who have not yet developed the reasoning abilities measured by Piagetian tasks. This does not diminish the validity of Piaget's theory, but rather suggests that the kinds of reasoning processes identified by Piaget are not essential in solving many school mathematics tasks.     

On the notions of ambiguity and information loss

One of the fundamental problems in information science is to distinguish various objects (such as books or journal articles) on the basis of associated values (such as authors and titles). Where the values fail to distinguish two distinct objects we say that the objects are ambigious under the given value assignment. To obtain a measure of ambiguity, it is only necessary to count the number of ways that the objects can be arranged for each set of ambiguous objects, multiply these counts and take logarithms. It is shown that such an approach leads to a measure in the formal sense and that the measure depends only on the definition of equality of values so that it can be simply extended to sets of values and ordered sets of values. It is also shown that it is possible to construct a function of ambiguity that one can call “information” and that the information loss that occurs when distinct values are grouped into equivalence classes (as in the use of search and sort keys) is also a measure. Finally, it is shown that ambiguity and information as here defined are directly related to Shannon's definition of “information” thus tieing this approach to that portion of information theory associated with the derivation of optimal distributions frequently used in information science models.     

Students’ perceptions of vocabulary knowledge and learning in a middle school science classroom

This study investigated eighth-grade science students’ (13–14-year-olds) perceptions of their vocabulary knowledge, learning, and content achievement. Data sources included pre- and posttest of students’ perceptions of vocabulary knowledge, students’ perceptions of vocabulary and reading strategies surveys, and a content achievement test. Students’ perceptions of vocabulary knowledge were compared before and after instruction to see whether students believed they gained knowledge and the ability to explain categories of technical science terms. Students’ perceptions of vocabulary knowledge increased as a result of instruction. The participants had favorable views of the vocabulary and reading strategies implemented and believed the literacy approaches were important for their developing science knowledge. In addition, students’ content achievement was compared to a national data set. Students in this study outperformed a national data set on all content knowledge items assessed. Students’ perceptions of their knowledge and vocabulary and reading strategies were congruent with their content achievement. This study is one of the first to highlight the pivotal role students’ perception of vocabulary knowledge and vocabulary and reading strategies plays in science content learning.     

A Murray Cod assemblage: Re/considering riverScape pedagogy

ABSTRACT

This article enacts Deleuze and Guattari's (1987 Deleuze, G., & Guattari, F. (1987). A thousand plateaus: Capitalism and schizophrenia (B. Massumi, Trans.). Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. (Original work published in 1980) [Google Scholar]) concept assemblage to craft a riverScape pedagogy that is informed by, and responsive to, the Murray Cod, the river, and its circumstances. The Murray Cod, the largest fish species in Australia's Murray-Darling Basin, has diverse cultural meanings. Cod are at once a creation being of Indigenous people, a migratory predator that breeds in response to warm floodwaters, and a fish suffering significant ecological decline as a result of changes to land and water use in its habitat. Murray Cod assemblage weaves these elements together to re/create a bioegalitarian pedagogy, part thought experiment and part teaching strategy.     

How Prepared Are MSW Graduates for Doctoral Research? Views of PhD Research Faculty

ABSTRACT

This national survey of PhD faculty assessed the research preparation of entering doctoral social work students on a wide range of research knowledge and related skills. The prior literature shows that PhD programs repeat much BSW and MSW research course content. This study shows that the trend continues and has perhaps widened. PhD research faculty report that the typical entering PhD student displayed solid conceptual, ethics, and writing skills but lesser preparation for conducting quantitative and qualitative research, including methods related to understanding evidence-based practice. The research expectations of responding PhD faculty were low, reflecting limited retention and little production of research among typical entering doctoral students. These findings raise the issue of how effectively the social work profession prepares students for research and for future PhD education.     

Recorded Student Interviews in Improving Instruction

Abstract

A Valuable Resource: Key Resources on Teaching, Learning, Curriculum, and Faculty Development By Robert J. Menges and B. Claude Mathis San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1988, 406 pages, index, $35. Reviewed by Ohmer Milton

Accomplished Advocates for Change: Women in Academe: Outsiders in the Sacred Grove By Nadya Aisenberg and Mona Harrington Amherst: The University of Massachusetts Press, 1988, xii + 207 pages. Reviewed by Amy A. Kass

The Power of Scientific Thought: The Cultural Meaning of the Scientific Revolution By Margaret C. Jacob Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1988, xii + 274 pages, $29.95. Reviewed by Robert L. Spaeth     

The Overlap of Child and Adult Writing Vocabularies

Many mechanistic rules of thumb for evaluating the goodness of fit of structural equation models (SEM) emphasize model parsimony; all other things being equal, a simpler, more parsimonious model with fewer estimated parameters is better than a more complex model Although this is usually good advice, in the present article a heuristic counterexample is demonstrated in which parsimony as typically operationalized in indices of fit may be undesirable. Specifically, in simplex models of longitudinal data, the failure to include correlated uniquenesses relating the same indicators administered on different occasions will typically lead to systematically inflated estimates of stability. Although simplex models with correlated uniquenesses are substantially less parsimonious and may be unacceptable according to mechanistic decision rules that penalize model complexity, it can be argued a priori that these additional parameter estimates should be included. Simulated data . are used to support this claim and to evaluate the behavior of a variety of fit indices and decision rules. The results demonstrate the validity of Bollen and Long’s (1993) conclusion that “test statistics and fit indices are very beneficial, but they are no replacement for sound judgment and substantive expertise” (p. 8).     

The development of a perceived masculinity scale

This essay posits that masculinity can be usefully understood from a communication perspective, and it specifically defines masculinity as a social and symbolic construct. In this view, the meanings and associations attributed to masculinity are a product of the enduring images and characteristics people have ascribed and assigned to men in groups over time. Based upon a survey of contemporary published research regarding masculinity, it is concluded that masculinity is now a multidimensional construct which attributes ten traits to people viewed as masculine which are examined in terms of: (1) physiological energy; (2) physical characteristics; (3) gender‐related sociocultural roles; (4) idealized gender; (5) gender preferences; (6) subjective gender‐identity; (7) gender‐related age identity; (8) gender‐related racial and national identities; (9) lust; and, (10) male eroticism. Specific questionnaires used to measure these dimensions are reviewed, and based on the responses of 562 subjects, the reliability and validity of one of these questionnaires is examined in detail. The essay concludes by recommending the use of the Perceived Masculinity Questionnaire 47, and it outlines some of the uses that can be made of a Perceived Masculinity Scale, especially some potential classroom uses.