The Socio-Cultural Image of Childhood (Based on an Analysis of Soviet and Russian Feature Films about Children)

The current state of childhood research is grounded in classical psychological theories, and Russian psychology is tied to cultural and historical theory in particular. These theories were invented to generalize and make sense of the realities of childhood as they existed at the time when these theories were created. Rapid social changes, especially during recent decades, have led to the emergence of a wide range of sources that bear witness to how the day-to-day life of childhood has changed. The understanding of childhood has continued to transform from one era to another. A metaphor was even coined to describe it, and at some point there was even a specific metaphor coined, “the disappearance of childhood.” This article seeks to explore how the image of childhood has changed in relation to the image of adulthood. As material for analysis, we chose Soviet and Russian movies from the 1940s to 2000s. The study is based on the assumption that a sequential analysis based on Yuri Lotman’s theory of the structure of the text demonstrates how the image of childhood changes over time. If in the 1940s and 1950s the child was presented as immature and not quite grown up, the adult was portrayed as the embodiment of the ideal form of the individual, and the main conflict was structured around childish immaturity, then gradually over the decades more and more main characters who were children and adults were portrayed as different kinds of individuals, and the child (or teenager) sometimes came to embody obviously negative features. The child–adult dichotomy itself lost its significance.     

Diverging discourses: Examining how college students majoring in communication define diversity

Colleges and universities in the United States often promote diversity through a neoliberal lens by framing diversity as a celebration of individual differences or a commodity that students can gain by attending their institution. In communication courses, diversity has been conceptualized through both neoliberal and critical lenses, but limited research has investigated how communication students define and explain diversity. The focus of this study was to understand how communication students define diversity. We performed thematic analyses on open-ended survey responses to investigate how communication students define diversity. Four themes emerged from our analyses: (a) diversity is a mechanism for unifying communities, (b) diversity is an affirmation of individual differences, (c) diversity is a harbinger of acceptance and equality, and (d) diversity is a disruptive force that re-centers the voices of traditionally marginalized people. Our findings indicate most communication students define diversity through a neoliberal lens. However, 3% of our participants conceptualized diversity through a critical lens by explaining that diversity should create space for those who are marginalized to have their voices heard. We conclude by providing recommendations for communication instructors to incorporate more critical conversations about diversity into their classrooms and foster diverging discourses about diversity across communication curricula.     

Resolving the amalgam: connecting pedagogical content knowledge,content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge

ABSTRACT

This paper concludes the Special Issue (SI) ‘Probing the Amalgam: the relationship between science teachers’ content, pedagogical and pedagogical content knowledge’. We review the five papers (Sorge et al; Gess-Newsome et al; Kind; Pitjeng-Mosabala and Rollnick; and Liepertz and Bronowski) by discussing evidence these present regarding the relationships between content knowledge (CK), pedagogical knowledge (PK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK); the development of CK, PK and PCK in novice and experienced secondary science teachers and how CK, PK and/or PCK impact students’ learning. In conclusion, we draw these findings together in offering proposals for future research via reconsideration of Shulman’s amalgam. This includes post-hoc examination of a PCK model known as ‘the Consensus Model’ (Gess-Newsome, [2015]. A model of teacher professional knowledge and skill including PCK: Results of the thinking from the PCK Summit. In A. Berry, P. J. Friedrichsen, & J. Loughran (Eds.), Re-examining Pedagogical Content Knowledge in Science Education (pp. 28–42). New York, NY: Routledge; Neumann, Kind, & Harms [2018]. Probing the amalgam: The relationship between science teachers’ content, pedagogical and pedagogical content knowledge. International Journal of Science Education, 1–15) and presentation of a novel PCK structure based on evidence from the SI studies.     

Educational Support for Saudi Students with Learning Disabilities in Higher Education

Disability laws in Saudi Arabia mandate that higher education institutions provide support for special needs learners in order to ensure educational opportunities equivalent to opportunities for their nondisabled peers. These institutions experience challenges, however, in providing the necessary support to undergraduate and postgraduate students with learning disabilities (LDs). We conducted an exploratory study to assess educational support requirements and affordances for undergraduate and postgraduate students with LDs attending institutions of higher education in Saudi Arabia. We completed semistructured interviews with 22 special needs learners diagnosed with a LD (16 undergraduate and six postgraduate). The findings suggest that additional support services are needed for undergraduate and postgraduate students with LDs attending Saudi institutions of higher education.     

Validation of the swimming competence questionnaire for children

ABSTRACT

Two studies were employed to test the reliability and validity of the Swimming Competence Questionnaire (SCQ) among primary school children. Study 1 was a cross-sectional survey in 4959 primary school children. Study 2 was a pre-post-test quasi-experiment among 1609 primary school children who underwent a 20-lesson learn-to-swim programme. In Study 1, exploratory structural equation modelling revealed excellent goodness-of-fit and scale reliability for a two-factor model comprising distance and skill factors, which supported the construct and convergent validity. SCQ scores were significantly and positively correlated with swimming outcomes (i.e., self-efficacy, intention, swimming frequency), which supported SCQ’s concurrent and criterion validity. Average variance extracted for the SCQ factors exceeded cut-off criteria supporting discriminant validity. In Study 2, pre-test SCQ scores correlated significantly and positively with the SCQ scores, self-efficacy, intention, and swimming frequency at post-test, which supported SCQ’s test-retest reliability and predictive validity. Positive intraclass correlation between SCQ scores and coach ratings at post-test provided evidence for SCQ’s inter-rater reliability. SCQ scores significantly improved at post-test, which supported SCQ’s ecological validity. In conclusion, findings indicate that the SCQ is a valid and reliable measure to assess primary school children’s swimming competence, in terms of swimming distance and basic water survival skills.     

PTSD symptom cluster profiles of youth who have experienced sexual or physical abuse

The research examined whether youth (6–17 years old) who were referred for treatment due to sexual, physical, or both types of abuse presented with distinct profiles of PTSD DSM-IV-TR symptom clusters. When examining data for the 749 youth participants, five PTSD symptom cluster profiles were identified with each profile representing approximately 20% of the youth. The five profiles were also differentiated with respect to being referred for physical or sexual abuse, age, parental ratings of internalizing symptoms, and self-reported depression. The youth referred for treatment in the aftermath of child sexual, physical, or both sexual and physical abuse presented with different profiles of PTSD symptom clusters thereby suggesting a need for individualized tailoring of evidenced-based treatments. Two cognitive behavioral approaches, designed for traumatized children and either their nonoffending or offending parents, were described for treating youth with the distinct PTSD profiles.     

Evidence-based practice instruction by faculty members and librarians in North American optometry and ophthalmology programs

North American optometry and ophthalmology faculty members and vision science librarians were surveyed online (14% response rate) about teaching evidence-based practice (EBP). Similar to studies of other health care programs, all five EBP steps (Ask, Acquire, Appraise, Apply, Assess) were taught to varying degrees. Optometry and ophthalmology EBP educators may want to place further emphasis on (1) the Apply and Assess steps, (2) faculty- and student-generated questions and self-assessment in clinical settings, (3) online teaching strategies, (4) programmatic integration of EBP learning objectives, and (5) collaboration between faculty members and librarians.