Researching and promoting phonological awareness in the nursery class

The paper summarises the pilot study and the first two phases of a longitudinal study which set out to prevent the emergence of written language difficulties, by addressing the ability of pre-schoolers to make phonological judgements. It describes the assessment procedure which was used with 240 nursery-class children, aged 4 years 5 months, and the activities which were designed to give these children experience in attending to the sound structure of language before the assessment was carried out. Following assessment 41 children were identified as having poor rhyme awareness and were targeted for one-to-one training. In the second phase of the study, also discussed here, 21 were given training in the skills supporting phonological awareness and the remainder were assigned to a control group for equivalent training in categorisation skills. It is intended that the literacy skills of both groups will be assessed when the children are 7 years old.     

Evaluation of an evolving virtual high school

The aim of this paper is to describe the dominant schools of thought in relation to learning theories and how computermediated technologies can be integrated in relation to these theories. A framework is proposed for integrating the learning theories, situating the use of these learning theories in different instructional contexts. Hence, instead of regarding the learning theories as discordant, it is rather proposed that human cognition is complex and that there is a role for behaviourist, cognitivist, constructivist and social constructivist models of learning based on the objectives and context of learning. Moreover, computer-mediated instructional technologies can also be appropriated accordingly based on the different contexts of learning and instruction. Théories de l’apprentissage et technologies numériques. Cet article tente de décrire les différentes écoles de pensées relatives aux théories de l'apprentissage et de l'intégration des nouvelles technologies numériques. Nous proposons de situer les diverses applications de ces théories dans divers contextes d'enseignement. Sans mettre en opposition ces théories, nous tentons de démontrer la complexité de la connaissance humaine, tout en montrant le rôle des divers modèles d'apprentissage, behavioristes, cognitivistes ou socio-constructivistes et dans quelles mesures l'usage des technologies numériques peut s'y intégrer. Lerntheorien und computervermittelte Unterrichtstechniken. Das Ziel dieses Beitrags ist, die dominierenden Denkschulen in Bezug auf Lerntheorien und wie computervermittelte Techniken in diese Theorien eingefügt werden können, zu beschreiben. Wir schlagen einen Rahmen vor, in den die Lerntheorien integriert sind, und der ihre Verwendung in verschiedenen Unterrichtskontexten darlegt. Daher schlagen wir vor, statt die Lerntheorien als disharmonisch zu betrachten, lieber darauf abzustellen, dass menschliches Erkennungsvermögen komplex ist, und dass dabei Platz für Behavioristen, Kognitivisten, Konstruktivisten und Sozialkonstruktivisten ist, ihre Lernmodelle auf die Ziele und den Kontext des Lernens anzusetzen. Außerdem können computervermittelte Unterrichtstechniken auch angemessen auf Grundlage der verschiedenen Kontexte von Lehren und Lernen reflektiert werden.     

Assessing the contribution of collections of case studies to academic development in higher education

The purpose of this article is to provide a critical review of the motivating factors, processes and outcomes pertaining to learning‐centred curriculum reform in higher education. A case study example is provided from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of British Columbia. Although academic units on university campuses tend to present many unique contextual challenges, and are at different stages in curriculum re‐design, useful lessons can be learned across settings without “re‐inventing the wheel,” or falling into similar implementation problems. A flexible framework, guiding principles and strategic approach to developing and implementing learning‐centred curricula are provided to assist academic developers. Curricular reform has implications for learning communities, planning, assessment and programming in higher education.     

Graph Magic: A Visual Graph Package for Students

This paper presents Graph Magic, a package of Java classes that represents graphs. It is specifically designed for undergraduate students to use early in their studies. It combines graph visualization with ease of programming. It allows students to implement graph algorithms using high level, easy to understand methods. Students create graphs for their programs interactively. Their programs manipulate the graphs while the students continue to view them. The emphasis on interactive editing combined with interruptible viewing provides a powerful tool for student exploration of graph concepts and algorithms.     

Internet Use and Social Networking Among Middle Aged and Older Adults

In this study, the associations between Internet use and the social networks of adults over 50 years of age were examined. A sample (n = 2284) from the 2004 wave of the Health and Retirement Survey was used. In regression models considering a number of control variables, frequency of contact with friends, frequency of contact with family, and attendance at organizational meetings (not including religious services) were found to have a significant positive association with Internet use for adults over 50. Results add to the body of research that suggests Internet use can strengthen social networks, looking specifically at adults over 50.     

AN ALTERNATIVE TO AURAL REHABILITATION FOR THE OLDER HEARING‐AID USER: AN EDUCATIONAL MODEL USING SUPPORTIVE SERVICES

Over 6 million older Americans are hearing impaired. Many of them are facing the decision to seek help through hearing aids. Once the decision has been made and amplification is obtained, a program of aural rehabiliation can facilitate adjustment to the hearing aid and foster more successful communication. Unfortunately, the number of professionals trained to provide rehabilitative services to hearing‐impaired persons are few relative to the number of persons who need these services. This paper describes a model for delivering aural rehabiliation services through providers trained by audiologists certified by the American Speech‐Language‐Hearing Association. After being trained, staff at senior centers, nursing homes, and state or local agencies who deal with either hearing impairment or aging could serve as program providers. The model program consists of four phases: education, desensitization, rehabilitation strategies, and responsibility training.     

Emotional Climate and Behavioral Management during Sleep Time in Early Childhood Education Settings

The majority of children cease napping between 3 and 5 years of age yet, internationally, the allocation of a sleep time during the day for children of this age remains a practice in many early childhood education (ECE) settings. These dual circumstances present a disjuncture between children's sleep needs and center practices, that may cause conflict for staff, increase stress for children and escalate negative emotional climate in the room. Testing this hypothesis requires observation of both the emotional climate and behavioral management used in ECE rooms that extends into the sleep time. This study was the first to apply the Classroom Assessment and Scoring System (CLASS) Pre-K (Pianta, La Paro, & Hamre, 2008) to observe the emotional climate and behavioral management during sleep time. Pilot results indicated that the CLASS Pre-K functioned reliably to measure emotional climate and behavioral management in sleep time. However, new sleep-specific examples of the dimensions used were developed, to help orient fieldworkers to the CLASS Pre-K rating system in the sleep time context. The CLASS was then used to assess emotional climate and behavior management between the non-sleep and sleep time sessions, in 113 ECE rooms in Queensland, Australia. In these rooms 2.114 children were observed. Of these children, 71% did not sleep at any point during the allotted sleep times. There was a significant drop in emotional climate and behavioral management between the non-sleep and sleep-time sessions. Furthermore, the duration of mandated sleep time (a period of time where no activities are provided to non-sleeping children) accounted for significant independent variance in the observed emotional climate during sleep-time. The CLASS Pre-K presents a valuable tool to assess the emotional climate and behavior management during sleep-time and draws attention to the need for further studies of sleep time in ECE settings.     

Adopting self-accreditation in response to the diversity of higher education: quality assurance in Taiwan and its impact on institutions

In 2012, Taiwan implemented a dual-track quality assurance system comprising accreditation and self-accreditation in higher education institutions. Self-accrediting institutions can accredit their programs without requiring approval from external quality assurance agencies. In contrast to other countries, the Ministry of Education of Taiwan authorized self-accrediting institutions to develop their own evaluation standards. This study investigated the institution-based accreditation standards and their implications on institutional internal quality assurance. Content analysis revealed that 37 % of the indicators of self-accreditation were new and not used as review indicators in the original accreditation track. Two frequently added indicators were featured indicators and levels of internationalization. The results also indicated that institutions tend to structure their internal quality assurance systems uniquely. Three types of approaches for developing institution-based standards were identified: bottom-up, hybrid, and innovative approaches. Self-accreditation has benefited institutions committed to educational quality and pursuing excellence by enabling them to employ a fitness-for-purpose approach. The diversity of higher education and educational policy changes constitute new challenges to higher education. Balancing between accountability and autonomy is critical for all stakeholders of higher education.     

Gender Differences in Faculty Member Job Satisfaction: Equity Forestalled?

Guided by Hagedorn’s (2000) theory of faculty job satisfaction, mindful of social and organizational structures of higher education, and acknowledging recent changes in the academic labor market, this study examines satisfaction for approximately 30,000 tenured and tenure-track faculty members in 100 US colleges and universities. Findings revealed similarity between female and male faculty members in some aspects of work satisfaction, but difference in other areas in which women reported lower satisfaction. Findings also revealed that perceptions of department fit, recognition, work role balance, and mentoring are more important to women faculty’s satisfaction than male peers. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.