Improving teacher questioning in science using ICAP theory

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to investigate the efficacy of professional development in changing two middle school science teachers’ questioning to include more questions that require deeper student responses. The professional development was based on ICAP theory which proposes a framework for identifying cognitive engagement based on what is required of students. ICAP hypothesizes that Interactive and Constructive questions, such as those requiring inferential thought and collaboration, lead to deeper thinking and therefore stronger learning gains than questions that are more Active, Passive. Teacher questioning before and after the PD showed a marked improvement in increasing the number of questions that required students to make inferences about the materials. Student gain scores from tests on the lesson’s content suggests a positive relationship between constructive questions and student learning. This paper also details a coding scheme based on ICAP that can be used to provide feedback on teachers’ questioning.     

Implementing Outcomes Assessment in an Academic Affairs Support Unit

While outcomes assessment has become a focus for institutions of higher education, assessment in academic support units remain sparse. Traditionally, assessment has been comprised of one-time student satisfaction surveys and/or supervisor evaluations tied specifically to job criteria. Although informative, these methods fail to account for or measure specific student learning outcomes completed by students via their interaction with faculty and staff. This article presents the development and implementation of a program of outcomes assessment at a 4-year public university in the northeast. Results indicate that students come to college with varying expectations of the role of academic advisors and range on a continuum of academic and social preparation to meet the demands of higher education. A majority of students are meeting the stated learning outcomes. Feedback from this assessment model is being used to improve the quality of services provided to successive cohorts of students at this institution.     

S + T + M = E as a Convergent Model for the Nature of STEM

Science & Education - The paper provides a theoretical synthesis that addresses the multiple calls to consider the existence of an integrated nature of STEM (science, technology, engineering,...     

Professional standards for the teaching of science: An exploratory study

The Science Education Professional Development (SEPD) Project was commissioned by the Commonwealth Department of Employment, Education and Training (DEET) as part of its Projects of National Significance Program. Its brief was to develop a national strategy for enhancing the professional development of science teachers. This paper summarises one component of the Project's work, an exploration of the feasibility of establishing professional standards or expectations for teachers of science. The aim was to give clearer purpose and direction to professional development planning and to provide a more valid basis for evaluating science teachers for career development. Specializations: Teachers' work and policy, teacher development, educational evaluation, teacher evaluation, research on teaching.     

Moral disengagement: A new lens with which to examine children’s justifications for lying

ABSTRACT

The development of children’s lie-telling abilities is considered to be a social and cognitive milestone. While occasional lying is developmentally appropriate, the use of frequent, antisocial lies as a maladaptive problem-solving mechanism can indicate behaviour problems. Since lying is often considered a moral transgression, researchers should examine lying from the perspective of moral theory to understand children’s reasons for lying, which may help to understand how chronic lying develops. A theoretical framework, namely the social cognitive process of moral disengagement (MD) could not only provide new insight into children’s justifications for telling common lies, but also atypical, antisocial lies. This paper aims to describe how MD may be applied to explain children’s justifications for lying, especially antisocial lies, and how adults can address MD by modelling the positive consequences of truth-telling, to promote honesty in children.     

Income, family characteristics, and physical violence toward children

OBJECTIVE: This paper discusses the ways in which existing microeconomic theories of partner abuse, intra-family bargaining, and distribution of resources within families may contribute to our current understanding of physical child abuse. The empirical implications of this discussion are then tested on data from the 1985 National Family Violence Survey (NFVS) in order to estimate the effects of income, family characteristics, and state characteristics on physical violence toward children. METHODOLOGY: The sample consists of 2,760 families with children from the NFVS. Probit and ordered probit models are used to explore relationships between income, family characteristics, state characteristics, and physical violence toward children among single-parent and two-parent families. RESULTS: In both single-parent and two-parent families, depression, maternal alcohol consumption, and history of family violence affect children's probabilities of being abused. Additionally, income is significantly related to violence toward children in single-parent families. CONCLUSIONS: These results reinforce earlier findings that demographic characteristics, maternal depression, maternal alcohol use, and intra-family patterns of violence may largely contribute to child abuse. This research also suggests that income may play a substantially more important role in regard to parental violence in single-parent families than in two-parent families.     

Anatomical Sciences Education Vol. 4, Issue 5, 2011 Cover Image

Drawing session from an art and anatomy workshop for medical students at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and art students at the University of Texas at San Antonio. A current trend in medical education is to integrate aspects of the humanities into the medical school curriculum. In this issue of ASE, Dr. Charleen Moore and her colleagues describe an art and anatomy workshop that uses drawing exercises to increase observational skills, to foster the development of humanistic sensitivities, and to emphasize the emotional aspects of dealing with mortality. (Photograph by Penelope Borchers).     

Balancing Disruptive Students' Rights with Campus Safety

Disruptive students potentially pose significant problems for campus administrators as they strive to maintain a safe campus environment conducive to learning while not violating the legal rights of the students. Maintaining a safe campus is important because increasing numbers of students with mental and cognitive disorders are enrolling in college and university classes. This article examines selected court cases involving disruptive students who alleged violations of their First Amendment right of free speech, due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment, and violations of the rights afforded them under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act. The rulings in these cases were used to develop campus guidelines and procedures to address the actions of disruptive students.     

Policy orientation effects on performance with licensing to start-ups and small companies

This study empirically tests a model of a university's selectivity and support policy orientation for technology licensing and its interaction with the external environment for entrepreneurship. Using a sample of 134 US research universities, we investigate main, two-way and three-way interaction effects for two measures of technology transfer performance—licenses with companies that subsequently go public and product royalties. Results indicate both main and moderating effects for both measures of performance. Implications for practice and policy are offered, with special attention to public universities.