E-culture of Russian students: Socio-cultural differentiation

Education and Information Technologies - Electronic culture constitutes a new form of social adjustment in the digital era. Our study aims to reveal socio-cultural differentiation in the social...     

The Use of Concept Maps as an Assessment Tool in Physics Classes: Can One Use Concept Maps for Quantitative Evaluations?

Research in Science Education - The aim of the present research was to explore the use of concept maps as an assessment tool. The research question posed was: can concept maps be used to...     

Zur Bedeutung von „Raum“ in Organisationen Allgemeiner Erwachsenenbildung – Ergebnisse einer qualitativ-rekonstruktiven Studie

Against the background of discourses concerning regional educational landscapes and the increasing interest in theoretical constructs of “space” in educational theory, this article addresses the question of how educational spaces are collectively understood in adult education organizations. This question is examined through a qualitative reconstructive study. Data sources for the study include group discussions and interviews from nine general adult education organizations chosen through theoretical sampling. The data analysis was conducted using a documentary interpretation method. The results indicate that the organizations studied reveal perspectives of educational spaces that differ along lines of territorial and experiential understanding. The concluding discussion provides hypotheses concerning possible connections between socio-economic structures and a territorial understanding of space and between the organizational or subject matter constitution of organizations and an experiential understanding of space.     

Versions of Vygotsky

The current prominent influence of the theories of L. S. Vygotsky on studies of education, particularly of pedagogic practice, requires a re-examination. The dominance of deficient editions of his writings has had regrettable consequences such as a misplaced reading of the 'one of proximal development' The publication of his recent, albeit incomplete, Collected Works in English affords an opportunity to reassess Vygotsky' work. Potential areas for such rethinking include: a comparison between his work and influence with that of Piaget; Vygotsky' own epistemology and methodology; and the relevance of his approach to contemporary concerns.     

Defending Constructivism in Science Education

After an impressive development throughout the last two decades, supported by a greatamount of research and innovation, science education seemed to be becoming a newscientific domain. This transformation of Science Education into a specific field of researchand knowledge is usually associated with the establishment of what has been called anemergent consensus about constructivist positions. However, some voices have begunto question these constructivist positions and therefore the idea of an advancementtowards a coherent body of knowledge in the field of science education. The goalof this work is to analyse some of the current criticisms of the so-called constructivistorientations and to study their implications for the development of science education asa coherent body of knowledge.     

International trends in health science librarianship Part 10: The Greater China area

This is the 10th in a series of articles exploring international trends in health science librarianship. This issue describes developments in health science librarianship in the first decade of the 21st century in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The next issue will report on Japan and South Korea. JM     

Item difficulty in the evaluation of computer-based instruction: an example from neuroanatomy

This article reports large item effects in a study of computer-based learning of neuroanatomy. Outcome measures of the efficiency of learning, transfer of learning, and generalization of knowledge diverged by a wide margin across test items, with certain sets of items emerging as particularly difficult to master. In addition, the outcomes of comparisons between instructional methods changed with the difficulty of the items to be learned. More challenging items better differentiated between instructional methods. This set of results is important for two reasons. First, it suggests that instruction may be more efficient if sets of consistently difficult items are the targets of instructional methods particularly suited to them. Second, there is wide variation in the published literature regarding the outcomes of empirical evaluations of computer-based instruction. As a consequence, many questions arise as to the factors that may affect such evaluations. The present article demonstrates that the level of challenge in the material that is presented to learners is an important factor to consider in the evaluation of a computer-based instructional system.     

Correlates of problem recognition and intentions to change among caregivers of abused and neglected children

OBJECTIVE: To identify individual, family, and caseworker characteristics associated with problem recognition (PR) and intentions to change (ITC) in a sample of caregivers who received in-home child welfare services following substantiated reports of child abuse or neglect. METHODS: Caregivers were interviewed at 4 weeks, 16 weeks, and 1 year after referral for in-home services. In these interviews, the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment scale assessed PR and ITC in relation to caregiving practices. Additional data were obtained from administrative records and surveys of in-home services caseworkers. We used growth models to identify caregiver, family, and caseworker characteristics associated with initial levels of PR and ITC, and with changes in PR and ITC over time. RESULTS: Contrary to expectations, there were no overall increases in PR and ITC during the first 4 months of in-home services. PR and ITC scores fluctuated over time, in relation to some external events, case characteristics, and caseworker characteristics; however, we were able to account for small portions of the variance in PR and ITC. Controlling for social desirability bias and other variables in the analysis, negative life events, lack of network support, and the severity of caregiver depression were associated with greater PR; housing problems were associated with lower PR. Caregiver depression and age were associated with ITC. Caregivers whose children had been removed from their homes showed significant increases in ITC in the first few months of in-home services. The duration of caseworkers' child welfare experience predicted increases in their clients' PR in the first 4 months and more frequent contacts with an experienced caseworker predicted small, but significant increases in ITC over time. CONCLUSIONS: PR and ITC are associated with somewhat different case characteristics and may be affected by caseworkers' experience.