Integrative Anthropological Method in History of Culture and Education

This is the story of three professors who found collective success in certain old-time approaches to teaching. Using three different first-person perspectives from Professors Burg, Piedmont, and Kamke, we examine some of the key components of such teaching orientation that may be helpful for professors navigating increased enrollments, while trying to engage students to learn not only the subject matter, but also, perhaps more importantly, about themselves as human beings.

The relevance of this classic approach is reflected in the fact that all of us, typically unawares, continue to apply, and expand on, the way of education to which we were introduced a long time ago. In essence, that old-time teaching showed us how to be, in the words of Angyal, simultaneously autonomous (i.e., being oneself, standing alone) and homonomous (belonging/surrendering to something greater than oneself).     

Agricultural and science education: a socio-analysis of their intersection and positions within the educational field

It can be argued that agricultural science is one of the original forms of science education. However, over the past century, agricultural science education has habitually been perceived as an educational venue meant solely for production agriculturalists. When examining modern agricultural education we find it to be a minority within the broader field of science education, contradicting its historically stout scientific standing within the sciences. This educational shift leaves one to ponder the historic development of contemporary agricultural education. To gain deeper insight into these questions we reviewed the historical evolution of agricultural education within the United States. We then examined the professional habitus, or cultural nuances, associated with contemporary agricultural education. Next, we considered potential outcomes associated with the profession embracing post-modern perspectives within mainstream science and community-based education. Finally, we call for critical venues within agriculture education to question the status quo and challenge the acceptance of commonly held views.     

Rethinking participation in the Aarhus as European Capital of Culture 2017 project

This paper examines the relationship between cultural participation and regional development with reference to the European Capital of Culture in 2017. From the bidding stage, Aarhus 2017 claimed it put “participation” at the heart of its strategic plans, through consultation at roadshows and exhibitions. In addition, it aspired to use culture as a catalyst for development not only in the city of Aarhus but across the region of Central Denmark. This paper, therefore, examines how participation is defined and implemented to address regional development in the Aarhus 2017 process through textual analysis of documentation from Aarhus 2017 and delivery partners as well as over 20 interviews with managers and participants involved in a range of 2017 projects. The paper argues against the common prioritisation of urban and professional cultural institutions and makes the case for decentralised cultural provision that supports both amateurs and professionals through a regional networked structure.     

Early kindergarten identification of academically not-ready children by use of human figure drawing developmental score

The Koppitz Human Figure Drawing (HFD) Test was examined for use in early identification of academically not-ready kindergarten children. HFD developmental scores of a group of children who later “passed” the Metroplitan Readiness Test (stanine score ≥4), as required for admission to the first-grade classroom, were compared with the HFD scores of a group of children who later “failed” the Metropolitan Readiness Test (stanine score ≤3). Evaluation of the test data showed that the optimum HFD score cut-off point for prediction of nonreadiness was ≤3; 42% of the nonready and 90% of the ready children, as defined by the Metropolitan Readiness Test (MTR) score criterion, were correctly identified. An overall hit rate of 75% was obtained on the experimental population. The work indicates that HFD developmental scores are useful for early identification of the academically not-ready kindergarten child.     

Increasing Positive Playground Interaction for Kindergarten Students at Risk for Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Students who experience social withdrawal and anxiety (internalizing difficulties) are often overlooked in schools due to the covert nature of their symptoms. The literature lacks empirically supported preventive approaches for kindergarten students who are socially withdrawn and behind their peers in developing social skills. Furthermore, research suggests that parents often are not adequately involved in interventions during this critical period of social development. In response to this need, a school-based intervention was implemented to increase the positive social interaction of three kindergarten students on the playground. Treatment consisted of (a) social skills training, (b) adult mediation, (c) self-evaluation and reinforcement, and (d) parent involvement through home notes. The effects of this intervention were assessed on the playground during recess using partial interval recording of target students’ positive interactions. During implementation of the intervention, all target students demonstrated improvements in social interaction. Future studies should investigate whether addressing the limitations of this study would yield stronger results with this underserved population.     

Young Children's Reasoning About the Effects of Emotional and Physiological States on Academic Performance

This study assessed young children's understanding of the effects of emotional and physiological states on cognitive performance. Five, 6-, 7-year-olds, and adults ( N = 96) predicted and explained how children experiencing a variety of physiological and emotional states would perform on academic tasks. Scenarios included: (a) negative and positive emotions, (b) negative and positive physiological states, and (c) control conditions. All age groups understood the impairing effects of negative emotions and physiological states. Only 7-year-olds, however, showed adult-like reasoning about the potential enhancing effects of positive internal states and routinely cited cognitive mechanisms to explain how internal states affect performance. These results shed light on theory-of-mind development and also have significance for children's everyday school success.     

情人节

Valentine's Day has come and gone for this year, and I only got one small present. That may sound like I'm complaining, but I'm not, for it was the most wonderful gift I have ever received on that special day.     

Causes of educational segregation in Sweden – school choice or residential segregation

The aims of the study were to examine changes in school segregation across different types of municipalities between 1998 and 2011 in Sweden, and to explore the extent to which these changes are the consequences of school choice. Multilevel models were applied to register data using a counterfactual approach. The results showed that school segregation with respect to migration background and educational achievement had increased over time, while social segregation remained rather constant. The degree of school segregation varied largely across different municipality types, and it was concluded that school choice was a determinant of school segregation. The findings have strong policy implications and are discussed in relation to the recent educational reforms in Sweden.     

The impact of three‐dimensional computational modeling on student understanding of astronomy concepts: a qualitative analysis

In this study, we explore an alternate mode for teaching and learning the dynamic, three‐dimensional (3D) relationships that are central to understanding astronomical concepts. To this end, we implemented an innovative undergraduate course in which we used inexpensive computer modeling tools. As the second of a two‐paper series, this report focuses on the qualitative differences of students' understandings of both spatial and declarative knowledge domains as reflected by their two distinct learning environments — a traditional astronomy classroom and an experimental astronomy course grounded in problem‐solving and modeling with dynamic, 3D, computational modeling software. We found that students who constructed 3D computational models tended to have a more scientifically sophisticated understanding of dynamic spatial relationships, whereas students in the traditional class developed more accurate understandings of the properties and general facts and figures regarding celestial bodies.