A Nonlinear Dynamic Latent Class Structural Equation Model

In this article, we propose a nonlinear dynamic latent class structural equation modeling (NDLC-SEM). It can be used to examine intra-individual processes of observed or latent variables. These processes are decomposed into parts which include individual- and time-specific components. Unobserved heterogeneity of the intra-individual processes are modeled via a latent Markov process that can be predicted by individual- and time-specific variables as random effects. We discuss examples of sub-models which are special cases of the more general NDLC-SEM framework. Furthermore, we provide empirical examples and illustrate how to estimate this model in a Bayesian framework. Finally, we discuss essential properties of the proposed framework, give recommendations for applications, and highlight some general problems in the estimation of parameters in comprehensive frameworks for intensive longitudinal data.     

Design of a student lab program for nanoscience and technology – an intervention study on students’ perceptions of the Nature of Science,the Nature of Scientists and the Nature of Scientific Inquiry

Background: This article describes the design and the evaluation of a student lab program on the topic of nanoscience and technology (NST), mainly focusing on Nanoscience and its applications. The program was designed for students in grades 8–10 and was part of a larger outreach program of the Collaborative Research Center ‘Function by Switching’ at Kiel University. The Model of Educational Reconstruction (MER) served as a framework for the research-based design of the student lab.

Purpose: We aimed to develop an authentic science activity in the area of NST in order to support scientific inquiry learning and to provide a deeper understanding of scientific topics.

Sample: A total of 154 secondary school students from grades 8–10 of seven different secondary schools participated in this study.

Design and methods: A pre-post questionnaire with six subscales on students’ perceptions of the Nature of Science (NOS), Scientific Inquiry (NOSI) and the involved scientists (NOST) in the area of nanoscience and nanotechnology was applied.

Results: Results show that the applied explicit and reflective approach embedded in the nanoscience content significantly improved the participating students’ perceptions of NOS, NOSI and NOST facets. After the lab visit, students’ answers corresponded to a more adequate perception of today’s science and scientists. Some gender differences in learning gains were also detected.

Conclusion: The study served its main purpose which was to investigate a well-balanced strategy to develop authentic out-of-school-learning environments with a focus on NOS/NOSI/NOST. Testing students’ perceptions of the nature of nanoscience provided insights into students’ worlds and served as feedback for the lab program. The outcomes of this study might help to better understand and further develop authentic (nano)science programs in out-of-school settings and science outreach programs.     

Comprehending conflicting science-related texts: graphs as plausibility cues

When reading conflicting science-related texts, readers may attend to cues which allow them to assess plausibility. One such plausibility cue is the use of graphs in the texts, which are regarded as typical of ‘hard science’. The goal of our study was to investigate the effects of the presence of graphs on the perceived plausibility and situation model strength for conflicting science-related texts, while including the influence of readers’ amount of experience with scientific texts and graphs as a potential moderator of these effects. In an experiment mimicking web-based informal learning, 77 university students read texts on controversial scientific issues which were presented with either graphs or tables. Perceived plausibility and situation model strength for each text were assessed immediately after reading; reader variables were assessed several weeks prior to the experiment proper. The results suggest that graphs can indeed serve as plausibility cues and thus boost situation model strength for texts which contain them. This effect was mediated by the perceived plausibility of the information in the texts with graphs. However, whether readers use graphs as plausibility cues in texts with conflicting information seems to depend also on their amount of experience with scientific texts and graphs.     

Using Multimedia Graphic Organizer Software in the Prewriting Activities of Primary School Students: What Are the Benefits?

The use of multimedia graphic organizer software and how it influenced the prewriting process for primary school children were evaluated. An analysis of writing samples generated by second-grade students with diverse writing abilities was carried out. Students were given two opportunities to participate in prewriting activities—one without and one with the use of multimedia graphic organizer software. The results indicated that the use of multimedia graphic organizer software can provide some benefits to writing for elementary school children.     

Leitgedanken der Franzosischen Schulreform

Ohne ZusammenfassungÜbersetzt aus Documents administratifs, veröffentlicht in L'Éducation Nationale, Nr. 35, Dezember 1956. Eine englische Übersetzung dieser Präambel veröffentlichten wir in unserer letzten Nummer (III/4).     

(N)Olympia in Germany? An analysis of the referendum against Munich 2022

In November 2013, local citizens of Munich and the surrounding districts voted in a referendum against a city’s bid for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. Since this is but one example of such a failed referendum—others being the ones in Poland, Switzerland and Austria—it is astonishing that it seems to become common practice to conduct public polls regarding the bid for a mega sport event. The city of Hamburg, for instance, will be the next German city to hold a referendum on its bid for the 2024 Olympic Games in November 2015. Against this backdrop, we introduce the ‘Arenatheoretical Model’ into mega event research and conduct a qualitative content analysis of the media coverage on the Munich referendum. Three nationwide German newspapers were analysed as the model suggests that this coverage has a profound influence on the public opinion in other parts of the country. The aim was to identify arguments brought forward to explain the outcome of the referendum. Besides a number of other issues, such as concerns regarding event legacy and regional matters, major findings stress the significance of a damaged brand image of international sport organisations and ‘their’ events. Based on these insights, a number of implications can be derived for other cities/nations and sport organisations that depend on a favourable public opinion in their efforts to stage a mega sport event.     

找到心仪工作,只需六招

Whether your preferred destination is the executive suite or simply the nearest exit from your current position, don't let your job take you aimlessly down any path. In fact when it comes to career planning, don't think in terms of "jobs" at all, says corporate transitions expert William Bridges, Ph.D. Instead he suggests building your career plan on "doing the work you're best at for the employers who need it."     

Multiple mediation analysis of the relationship between rapid naming and reading

It is well established that rapid automatised naming (RAN) correlates with reading ability. Despite several attempts, no single component process (mediator) has been identified that fully accounts for the correlation. The present paper estimated the explanatory value of several mediators for the RAN–reading correlation. One hundred and sixty‐nine preschool students were given measures of RAN and additional measures of phonological awareness, lexical search speed, letter knowledge and paired associate learning. Their reading skills were tested a year later along with speed of processing. The influence of the mediators on the RAN–reading correlation was estimated as indirect effects in mediation analyses. Phonological awareness and letter knowledge significantly mediated the RAN–reading relationship, each accounting for a moderate part of the correlation between RAN and reading fluency. Thus, the RAN–reading correlation was partly, but not fully, accounted for by precursors of reading that are currently known.     

National Media Coverage and the Creation of a Canadian ‘Hockey World’: The Winnipeg-Montreal Stanley Cup Hockey Challenges, 1899–1903

This essay examines media coverage of five Stanley Cup hockey championship series played between hockey clubs based in Winnipeg and Montreal from 1899 to 1903. Coverage of the Winnipeg–Montreal challenges contributed significantly to the growth of a Canadian ‘hockey world’ – and a broader ‘world of sport’ – during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. First, press reports and telegraph re-enactments linked fans in Winnipeg and Montreal together. At the same time, newspapers in other Canadian centres provided coverage of Stanley Cup matches. As the media constructed a shared sports information system throughout Canada, people were drawn into a wide-ranging community of interest centred on sport. Telegraph bulletins, in particular, gave fans a strong sense of participation in games that were being played in other places. By 1903, Stanley Cup hockey challenges had become ‘national’ Canadian events, followed by audiences across the country through news stories and ‘live’ telegraph reconstructions.