Pathways from parental stimulation of children’s curiosity to high school science course accomplishments and science career interest and skill

Curiosity is fundamental to scientific inquiry and pursuance. Parents are important in encouraging children’s involvement in science. This longitudinal study examined pathways from parental stimulation of children’s curiosity per se to their science acquisition (SA). A latent variable of SA was indicated by the inter-related variables of high school science course accomplishments, career interest, and skill. A conceptual model investigated parental stimulation of children’s curiosity as related to SA via science intrinsic motivation and science achievement. The Fullerton Longitudinal Study provided data spanning school entry through high school (N?=?118). Parental stimulation of curiosity at age 8 years comprised exposing children to new experiences, promoting curiosity, encouraging asking questions, and taking children to a museum. Intrinsic motivation was measured at ages 9, 10, and 13 years, and achievement at ages 9, 10, and 11 years. Structural equation modelling was used for analyses. Controlling for socio-economic status, parental stimulation of curiosity bore positive and significant relations to science intrinsic motivation and achievement, which in turn related to SA. Gender neither related to stimulation of curiosity nor contributed to the model. Findings highlight the importance of parental stimulation of children’s curiosity in facilitating trajectories into science, and relevance to science education is discussed.     

The multimedia case as a tool for professional development: an analysis of online and face-to-face interaction among mathematics pre-service teachers, in-service teachers, mathematicians, and mathematics teacher educators

In this study, we consider the potential of multimedia cases as tools for teacher professional development. Specifically, we examined online and face-to-face discussions that occurred within groups composed of pre-service mathematics teachers, in-service mathematics teachers, mathematicians, and mathematics teacher educators. Discussions within these heterogeneous groups tended to focus on issues of classroom implementation of the tasks shown in the multimedia case. Secondary foci of discussion included task characteristics and appropriateness of tasks for engaging students in thinking about mathematical concepts and processes. Analysis of contributions to discussions across group member type revealed differences that suggest that the variety of backgrounds and experiences of group members can blend in ways that support rich and critical discussions of mathematics, teaching, and learning.     

Is day care safe? A review of research on accidental injuries

A major concern about the effects of day care has been the safety of the children who participate. Although studies are limited, a body of research literature is beginning to emerge that provides some important information about the magnitude of accidental injuries in day care centers.Charles W. Snow is Professor and Jane King Teleki is Associate Professor, Department of Child Development and Family Relations; David M. Cline is Assistant Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine; and Kathleen Dunn is Clinical Instructor, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health Policy, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.     

Examining the relationship between perceptions of teaching self-efficacy,school support and teacher and paraeducator burnout in a residential school setting

Despite teacher self-efficacy and burnout’s influence on student outcomes, little research has been conducted on teacher self-efficacy and burnout in residential treatment schools. This study attempts to fill this need by examining the self-efficacy and burnout of teachers and paraeducators in a residential treatment school in the United States. We explore the relationships between educators’ perceptions of school supports and educators’ sense of self-efficacy and burnout Our results revealed that while educators’ perceptions of school supports were not related to educators’ sense of efficacy, there was a significant relationship between educators’ perceptions of school supports and reported levels of burnout. Educators who reported lower levels of school supports had high levels of burnout. We discuss implications for larger studies on this topic and for supporting educator well-being in residential treatment schools.     

Effects of a brief but intensive remedial computer intervention in a sub-sample of kindergartners with early literacy delays

Living Letters is an adaptive game designed to promote children??s combining of how the proper name sounds with their knowledge of how the name looks. A randomized controlled trial (RCT) was used to experimentally test whether priming for attending to the sound-symbol relationship in the proper name can reduce the risk for developing reading problems in the first two grades of primary education. A Web-based computer program with more intensive practice than could be offered by teachers affords activities that prompt young children to pay attention to print as an object of investigation. The study focused on a sub-sample of 110 five-year-old Dutch children from 15 schools seriously delayed in code-related knowledge. Outcomes support the need for early remedial computer programs, and demonstrate that, without a brief but intensive treatment, more children from the at-risk group lack the capacity to benefit from beginning reading instruction in the early grades. With an early intervention in kindergarten, children with code-related skills delays gained about half a standard deviation on standardized tests at the end of grade 2.     

Dispositions in the field: viewing mathematics teacher education through the lens of Bourdieu’s social field theory

Mathematics teacher educators are confronted with numerous challenges and complexities as they work to inspire prospective teachers to embrace inquiry-based pedagogies. The research study described in this paper asks what a teacher educator and faculty advisor can learn from prospective secondary mathematics teachers as they construct (and are constructed by) official pedagogical discourses embedded in mathematics classrooms. Drawing on the theoretical constructs of Bourdieu, I present several pervasive discourses, or dispositions, as storied by prospective mathematics teachers. These discourses highlight prospective teachers’ negotiations of conflicting habitus-field fits during their teacher education field experience. The reflections put forth in this paper offer insights into the roles of mathematics teacher educators and teacher education programs in general.     

Stephen Colbert's Civics Lesson: How Colbert Super PAC Taught Viewers About Campaign Finance

This study tests whether exposure to The Colbert Report influenced knowledge of super PACs and 501(c)(4) groups, and ascertains how having such knowledge influenced viewers' perceptions about the role of money in politics. Our analysis of a national random sample of adults interviewed after the 2012 presidential election found that viewing The Colbert Report both increased peoples' perception of how knowledgeable they were about super PACs and 501(c)(4) groups and increased actual knowledge of campaign finance regulation regarding these independent expenditure groups. Findings suggest that the political satirist was more successful in informing his viewers about super PACs and 501(c)(4) groups than were other types of news media. Viewing The Colbert Report also indirectly influenced how useful his audience perceived money to be in politics.     

“Why Does Rain Fall?”: Children Prefer to Learn From an Informant Who Uses Noncircular Explanations

These two studies explored 3‐ and 5‐year‐olds' evaluation of noncircular and circular explanations, and their use of such explanations to determine informant credibility. Although 5‐year‐olds demonstrated a selective preference for noncircular over circular explanations (Experiment 1: Long Explanations; Experiment 2: Short Explanations), 3‐year‐olds only demonstrated a preference for the noncircular when the explanations were shortened (Experiment 2). Children's evaluation of the explanations extended to their inferences about the informants' future credibility. Both age groups demonstrated a selective preference for learning novel explanations from an informant who had previously provided noncircular explanations—although only 5‐year‐olds also preferred to learn novel labels from her. The implications and scope of children's ability to monitor the quality of an informant's explanation are discussed.