UbiqBio: Adoptions and Outcomes of Mobile Biology Games in the Ecology of School

The integration of learning games into schools holds significant promise, yet faces numerous obstacles. Ubiquitous games (casual games for smart phones) attempt to motivate students to engage repeatedly with content beyond school, while enabling teachers to facilitate deeper reflection on game-related curricula during class. During a two-year study, researchers developed four biology-themed UbiqGames and curricula. An analysis of gameplay patterns and posttest data suggests that both male and female students played the games. Correlation of content knowledge gains with specific game design attributes (e.g., simulation feedback and depth of content) suggested areas for further research on “casual” learning games.     

Patron-Initiated Purchasing: Evaluating Criteria and Workflows

The University of Mississippi Libraries began a patron-initiated purchasing program in 2009. After a successful year of purchasing, the authors evaluated both the criteria and workflows. The process included sharing results with subject librarians and the Collection Development Steering Committee. As a result, changes were made to both the criteria and the workflows.     

Integrating Information Literacy into the Graduate Liberal Arts Curriculum: A Faculty-Librarian Collaborative Course Model

SUMMARY

The article presents a faculty-librarian collaborative course model for information literacy instruction for liberal arts students. Information literacy was integrated seamlessly into a master's thesis seminar, and the faculty member and librarian worked together to teach students effective research skills while helping them make personal connections to their theses. The learning experience was transformational. As students engaged themselves with problems of the real world and shared their learning, their voices articulated insights about themselves and the world. The authors conclude that integrating information literacy into the curriculum and teaching students holistically is the key to successful student learning.     

Beyond Generic Mentoring: Helping trainee teachers to teach primary science

Support material to assist primary teacher mentors to help trainee teachers improve their medium-term and individual lesson plans, as well as their science lessons, was developed. This support material comprised checklists that focused on science, rather than generic teaching, illustrated by examples of trainee teachers' work, with a commentary. The trial of the material involved 64 teacher mentors and 26 trainee teachers. Trainees' practice in science was found to have improved in subsequent unmentored lessons, but good practice was not transferred to other subjects. Teachers also reported that their own practice improved and indicated that the material would be valuable in science in-service training with their colleagues.     

Communication and gender identity: A retrospective analysis

Gender identity constancy and change must be traversed over the life span. The participants in this study, age 67 to 97 years, described their femininity and masculinity and provided examples of same‐sexed and opposite‐sexed behaviors. Their narratives suggest that their interactions with others, circumstances, and life stage all affect their gender identity constancy and change. Gender identity constancy and change appear to result from multiple factors.     

Using Social-Impact Borrowing to Expand Preschool-to-Third Grade Programs in Urban Schools

Budget constraints and difficulty raising taxes limit school districts from expanding education programming, even when research shows that additional expenditures would generate economic benefits that are greater than costs. Recently, coalitions of private investors, philanthropists, education practitioners, and government finance analysts have emerged to create opportunities to expand education services that promise high rates of social net benefits without raising taxes or reducing other expenditures. These collaborators have a strong interest in obtaining careful estimates of educational program effectiveness. We describe the use of social-impact borrowing to increase access to the Child-Parent Center preschool-to-third grade intervention for at-risk students in the Chicago Public School District. The partners include the city, school district, investors, nonprofit organizations, and a university. The key to the feasibility of social-impact borrowing is the ability to document that early intervention can reduce the need for later special-education services. With the help of private investors and nonprofit organizations, it is possible for public school districts to finance services with funds from private sources and use future cost savings to repay this debt. We discuss how social-impact borrowing is being used in Chicago and in Salt Lake County as the nation's first 2 instances of using pay-for-performance social-impact borrowing to support early education.     

Ethical implications of assessment: Thoughts on pigs and process in an early childhood course

A graduate student in early childhood education discusses observations of his children during and after Hurricanes Rita and Katrina struck the Gulf Coast. He relates his use of responsive parenting and provides examples of his children's learning and play that emerged after the storms. He reflects upon how aspects of developmentally appropriate practice are applicable to parenting and how teachers may support reciprocal relationships with families.     

Professional Growth of Novice and Experienced STEM Teachers

Journal of Science Education and Technology - The first years of teaching are crucial for novice teachers’ integration into and retainment in the education system. The support they receive...     

Please Pass the Ketchup: Cooked Tomatoes May Do More to Prevent Cancer than Fresh

ABSTRACT:  One of the core competencies in the IFT Education standards is for students to achieve competency in communications skills (that is, oral and written communication, listening, interviewing, and so on). According to the IFT guidelines, by the time students graduate, they should not only be able to search for and condense information but also be able to "communicate technical information to a non-technical audience." The Education Division of IFT sponsors an annual writing competition for undergraduate students to bring attention to and promote the development of communication skills. The short essays can be on any technical subject or latest development in the food science and technology field that may be important to the consumer. The article must be written in nontechnical language such that someone reading a local newspaper could understand it. Due date for submissions is typically the first week in June. More information on eligibility, rules, submission, and judging criteria will be posted on IFT's Education Division website. Monetary prizes are awarded to the authors of the top 3 papers, and the winning entry is published in the Journal of Food Science Education (JFSE) each year. JFSE is pleased to publish this year's winning entry submitted by Judy Smith from the Univ. of Maine.     

Enhancing Higher Order Thinking Skills Among Inservice Science Teachers Via Embedded Assessment

Testing students on higher order thinking skills may reinforce these skills among them. To research this assertion, we developed a graduate course for inservice science teachers in a framework of a “Journal Club”—a hybrid course which combines face-to-face classroom discussions with online activities, interrelating teaching, learning, and assessment. The course involves graduate students in critical evaluation of science education articles and cognitive debates, and tests them on these skills. Our study examined the learning processes and outcomes of 51 graduate students, from three consecutive semesters. Findings indicated that the students’ higher order thinking skills were enhanced in terms of their ability to (a) pose complex questions, (b) present solid opinions, (c) introduce consistent arguments, and (d) demonstrate critical thinking.