General Mass Communication

THE KNOWLEDGE INDUSTRY 200: 1983 EDITION—AMERICA'S TWO HUNDRED LARGEST MEDIA AND INFORMATION COMPANIES (White Plains, N.Y.: Knowledge Industry Publications, 1983---price not given, paper; with hardback edition available from Gale Research Co., Detroit---$98.00)

MASS COMMUNICATION THEORY: AN INTRODUCTION by Denis McQuail (Beverly Hills, Calif.: Sage Publications, 1983---$25.00/$12.50)

CREATING MEDIA CULTURE by Robert P. Snow (Beverly Hills, Calif.: Sage Publications, 1983---$25.00/ $12.50)

THE CRITICAL COMMUNICATIONS REVIEW, VOLUME I: LABOR, THE WORKING CLASS, AND THE MEDIA edited by Vincent Mosco and Janet Wasko (Norwood, N.J.: Ablex, 1983---$37.50/$21.95)

MARCONI TO McLUHAN: A SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY OF N.Y. TIMES SUNDAY MAGAZINE ARTICLES ON COMMUNICATION, 1900-1980 by Gerald V. Flannery (Department of Communication, University of Southwestern Louisiana, Lafayette, LA 70504---$12.00, paper)

INTRODUCTION TO MASS COMMUNICATION by Jay Black and Frederick C. Whitney (Dubuque, Iowa: Wm. C. Brown, 1983---price not given, paper)     

General Communication

THE CRITICAL COMMUNICATIONS REVIEW, VOLUME CHANGING PATTERNS OF COMMUNICATIONS CONTROL, edited by Vincent Mosco and Janet Wasko (Norwood, New Jersey: Ablex, 1984—$37.50 to institutions, $24.50 to individuals)./

CLOSING THE CIRCLE: A CULTURAL HISTORY OF THE ROCK REVOLUTION, by Herbert I. London (Chicago: Nelson-Hall, 1984—$20.95/10.95).

KOREAN AIRLINES INCIDENT: U.S. INTELLIGENCE DISCLOSURES, by David M. Johnson (Harvard University Program on Information Resources Policy, 200 Aiken, Cambridge, Massachusetts).

GREAT AMERICAN BRANDS, by David Powers Cleary (New York: Fairchild, 1981—$17.50).

A HISTORY OF ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE IN THE BELL SYSTEM: PHYSICAL SCIENCES (1924-1980), edited by S. Millman (Bell Telephone Laboratories Inc., 600 Mountain Avenue, Room 6G-301A Murray Hill, New Jersey 07974, 1983—price not given).     

I’d rather they did Experiments with us…. Than just Talking: Irish Children’s Views of Primary School Science

This paper reports on a national study that explored primary pupils’ attitudes towards and experiences of school science in the Republic of Ireland. The study focussed on collecting data from children and in doing so recognises the importance of children’s views as an essential part of reviewing curriculum implementation. The findings of this large-scale study are based on an analysis of data gathered from observations of 15 primary classrooms, 1,149 children’s questionnaires and 11 group interviews. In this paper the findings regarding the extent to which the children appear to be engaging in ‘deductive’ (didactic) and ‘inductive’ (inquiry-based) approaches in their science classes, and their attitudes towards school science are presented. Encouragingly, evidence from all parts of the study revealed that in general Irish children are very positive towards learning science in school and are being provided with some opportunities to engage in hands-on inquiry in science, commonly via group work. However, there were also indications that, for some pupils, hands-on science experiences were infrequent, and for a few did not appear to be happening at all. It was not especially evident that pupils were being afforded opportunities to lead their own scientific investigations. Teacher explanation, teacher demonstration, reading and writing featured frequently in pupils’ responses and while the pupils expressed mixed feelings about these methodologies, one thing was apparent: hands-on inquiry based approaches to science had far greater appeal to the children. The significance of the findings of this study are considered in light of the findings and recommendations from recent national and international reports on inquiry-based approaches in science education.     

Faculty Organizational Commitment and Citizenship

Building on a theoretical framework that links characteristics of individuals and their work settings to organizational commitment (OC) and citizenship behavior, this study considers why faculty may be disengaging from institutional service. Analyses of survey data collected from a state system of higher education suggest that job characteristics, exchanges and social learning are associated with faculty members’ OC. For instance, opportunities for advancement and research support, as well as responsiveness of administrators to faculty, contributed to the likelihood that faculty would accept a position at their institution again if given the chance. Commitment, however, did not significantly affect time spent on institutional service. Two job characteristics—time spent on research and time spent on teaching—were negatively associated with this behavior.     

Speech, Image, Action: Animating Tales from Shakespeare

Two assumptions are challenged in this article: that children are naturally disposed toward the animated cartoon, and that translating Shakespeare's plays into this medium automatically simplifies and gives them child appeal. It examines the confusions and cross-purposes that surrounded the making of the Animated Tales videos, and argues that there are dangers in their uncritical use in schools. It concludes with suggestions as to how they may, nevertheless, be effectively employed with children of all ages.