Teaching seasons with hands-on models: model transformation

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of using ‘hands-on’ models (HOMs) to teach the subject of seasons – a topic about which students often have misconceptions – on students’ expressed models. To this end, three different HOMs were developed. The study sample consisted of 80 seventh graders (ages 12–13). The study had a quasi-experimental design, and a model with a control group was used. The experimental group and the control group were assigned randomly. The study data were collected using an open-ended question form that was administered three times: pre-instruction, post-instruction and a long time after instruction (permanence). The collected data were analysed using the content analysis technique. Frequencies and percentages were used to analyse the changes in the students’ expressed models. The results of the analyses showed that using HOMs was an effective method for teaching the subject of seasons. It was concluded that whereas teaching with HOMs led the students to a ‘scientific’ model, the teaching method used in the control group led the students to a ‘synthesis’ model. In addition, the learning that occurred in the group taught with the HOMs was found to be more permanent than the learning that occurred in the control group. Based on these results, the use of HOMs to teach astronomy and the generalisation of these models has been recommended. Lastly, issues to consider when teaching the subject of seasons have been outlined.     

Effects of disfluency and test expectancy on learning with text

Do students learn better with texts that are Open image in new window (i.e., disfluent)? Previous research yielded discrepant findings concerning this question. To clarify these discrepancies, the present study aimed at identifying a boundary condition that determines when disfluent text is, and is not, beneficial to learning. This boundary condition is knowledge about whether a test will follow (high test expectancy) versus not (low test expectancy). Participants with high test expectancy may already engage in effortful processing, so that making text harder-to-read (disfluent) might not change their processing mode any further. Thus, particularly when no test is expected, disfluency is supposed to exert its beneficial effect. This assumption was tested in a 2?×?2 design (N?=?97) with text legibility (fluent vs. disfluent) and test expectancy (low vs. high) as factors, and learning outcomes (retention, transfer) and learning times as main dependent variables. Results revealed that high test expectancy led to better learning outcomes (for retention and transfer), but disfluent text did not. Unlike expected, there was no interaction between the two factors. Moreover, both high test expectancy and disfluency led to longer learning times, resulting in a lower efficiency when learning with disfluent compared to fluent text. Hence, the present results further question the stability and generalizability of a positive disfluency effect on learning, because only high test expectancy – but not disfluency - stimulated better learning through more effortful processing the way it was supposed to.     

Probleme und Konzepte software-ergonomischer Beratung am Beispiel eines Informationssystems im World Wide Web (WWW)

Zusammenfassung. Die vorliegende Arbeit gibt Einblick in ein software- ergonomisches Beratungsprojekt zur Entwicklung eines internetbasierten Informationssystems. Sie beschreibt projektspezifische Probleme und die darauf aufbauende Konzeption des Beratungsprojekts. Es galt, insbesondere drei Problembereiche zu berücksichtigen: (1) Zusammenarbeit von Software-Entwicklern und Ergonomen, (2) Integration von Grundprinzipien software-ergonomischer Gestaltung in ein klassisches Vorgehensmodell der Software-Entwicklung (V-Modell) und (3) Wahl des Zeitpunkts für den Beginn der Beratung. Der konkrete Beratungsproze? unterteilte sich in drei Phasen: Analyse, Gestaltung und Bewertung des Informationssystems. In jeder dieser Phasen kamen verschiedene software-ergonomische Methoden (Schriftliche Benutzerbefragung, Gebrauchstauglichkeitsstudien etc.) zum Einsatz, die an die Bedingungen des Projektes angepa?t wurden. Der besondere Schwerpunkt lag dabei auf der Analysephase. Eingegangen am 23. November 1998 / Angenommen am 25. M?rz 1999     

Koch,Friedrich. 1997. Das Wilde Kind. Die Geschichte einer gescheiterten Dressur

International Review of Education -     

Incidence of violence in Turkish schools: A review

The present article deals with the incidence of violence cases inTurkish schools. A review of research based on published research reports andunpublished M.Sc. and Ph.D. dissertations is presented and basic lines of researchare discussed. Special emphasis was placed upon culturally specific issues,besides the culturally determined attitudes of parents and teachers. The need for anationwide system for the prevention of violence and corporal punishment wasemphasized.     

A cross-linguistic comparison of phonological awareness and word recognition

Phonological awareness is one of the critical skills in the acquisition of reading in an alphabetic orthography. The development of phonological awareness was compared across Turkish and English-speaking kindergarten and first-grade children (n = 138). The Turkish-speakers were more proficient in both handling of the syllables and deleting final phonemes of words. These patterns were related to the characteristics of the respective spoken languages (such as the saliency of the syllable, familiarity of the nonword patterns, importance of onset or final phoneme deletion, importance of vowel harmony) and the development of phonological awareness was discussed as a function of the characteristics of spoken language, orthography and literacy instruction.