Free: Why Authors are Giving Books Away on the Internet

With increasing frequency, authors in academic and non-academic fields are releasing their books for free digital distribution. Anecdotal evidence suggests that exposure to both authors and books increases when books are available as free downloads, and that print sales are not negatively affected. For this study we interviewed ten authors to determine their perceptions of the effect free digital distribution has on the impact and sales of their work. In addition, we examined the sales data of two books over a two year period of time, in which one book was freely available for the second year. All of the individuals we surveyed felt free digital downloads increased the distribution and impact of their book. None of the authors felt that print sales were negatively affected. Data from our book sale comparison suggest that in the case we studied, free digital distribution did not negatively affect sales.     

论《寄小读者》的经典化历程

从百年中国儿童文学史发展的角度,仔细考察冰心的散文集((寄小读者>的经典化历程,可以发现,((寄小读者>的经典化是以其作品内容以及艺术特色的内在资质最终确立了它的经典地位的.现在它已成为学术界关注的研究热点之一,探讨它的经典化对于当下儿童文学作家的创作有着重要的启示作用.     

Welcome to the Neighborhood! Reinventing Academic Life for Undergraduate Students

June Pierce Youatt, Wyl McCully, and Sue A. Blanshan describe an innovative, collaborative approach to making on‐campus life more accessible to students at Michigan State University.     

Inservice Science Supervisors' Assessments of a Novice Science Teacher's Videotaped Lesson

Journal of Science Teacher Education -     

Impact of early intervention on expressive and receptive language development among young children with permanent hearing loss

Along with early detection, early intervention (EI) is critical for children identified with hearing loss. Evidence indicates that many children with sensorineural hearing loss experience improved language abilities if EI services were initiated at an "early" age. The present study's objectives were to determine the impact of a state EI program on language over time of children with permanent hearing loss and evaluate the association of EI enrollment by age 6 months with early language skill development. Young children in a state EI program were included in this longitudinal study. Results indicate that children enrolled prior to age 6 months were more likely to have age-appropriate language skills at baseline than children enrolled at or after 6 months, and maintained age-appropriate skills over time. Children enrolled at or after 6 months had lower baseline skills but made significant language progress, irrespective of hearing loss severity.     

The ontologies of complexity and learning about complex systems

This paper discusses a study of students learning core conceptual perspectives from recent scientific research on complexity using a hypermedia learning environment in which different types of scaffolding were provided. Three comparison groups used a hypermedia system with agent-based models and scaffolds for problem-based learning activities that varied in terms of the types of text based scaffolds that were provided related to a set of complex systems concepts. Although significant declarative knowledge gains were found for the main experimental treatment in which the students received the most scaffolding, there were no significant differences amongst the three groups in terms of the more cognitively demanding performance on problem solving tasks. However, it was found across all groups that the students who enriched their ontologies about how complex systems function performed at a significantly higher level on transfer problem solving tasks in the posttest. It is proposed that the combination of interactive representational scaffolds associated with NetLogo agent-based models in complex systems cases and problem solving scaffolding allowed participants to abstract ontological dimensions about how systems of this type function that, in turn, was associated with the higher performance on the problem solving transfer tasks. Theoretical and design implications for learning about complex systems are discussed.     

Intercultural Identities: Addressing the Global Dimension through Art Education

Recent educational policy and practice have established an extended role for all subjects in addressing children and young peoples' academic and interpersonal development, with strategies facilitating key skills and wider learning across areas of Citizenship and Personal, Social and Health education providing an integrated approach to education and welfare. The significance of global development education within a holistic curriculum acknowledges the increased awareness of the interconnected nature of our relationship with each other and with the planet we share as world citizens. The arts have a strong track‐record in addressing such key issues – challenging hierarchical paradigms which reinforce prejudice and stereotyping, the arts encourage reflexive processes and critical engagement with diversity and pluralist perspectives. This article investigates curricular approaches to the global dimension within education in relation to theoretical perspectives and policies, presenting an intercultural art case study as a model of practice in engaging diverse participants in reflection on their own and others' experiences across a range of socio‐cultural contexts. Current political shifts reaffirming the centrality of the discrete disciplines over cross‐curricular practice could potentially undermine a more holistic approach to education. The article argues that policy and practice, implemented in response to changing political and philosophical ideology, must nevertheless maintain a commitment to fostering interdisciplinary values of cultural awareness. Such practice must form part of an inclusive internationalist educational vision, impacting on social cohesion.