Daddy’s Hands

I remember daddy’s hands folded silently in prayer And reaching out to hold me, when I had a nightmare     

Conceptions of e‐learning and professional development for e‐learning held by tertiary educators in New Zealand

The conceptions an individual holds about a phenomenon can influence and determine associated behaviours and perspectives. Consequently, they have a bearing upon how learning about a phenomenon is undertaken and how that phenomenon is experienced and applied in context. A phenomenographic research approach was used to gather the expressed experiences of e‐learning and professional development for e‐learning held by teachers and support staff from institutions across New Zealand. Five conceptions of e‐learning (as tool and equipment; as a facilitator of interaction; as learning; as a reduction in distance; and as a collaborative enterprise) and four conceptions of professional development for e‐learning (as training; as opening up possibilities; as collaboration; and as relevant and purposeful) were discovered. In this report, we discuss the conceptions, and show how they are interrelated through outcome space. Implications for the professional development of tertiary teachers and teaching support staff are outlined. The study provides some insights for individuals, institutions and those responsible for planning and implementing professional development programmes to help them to support the development and progress of e‐learning in appropriate and rewarding directions.     

Commonly known,commonly not known,totally unknown: a framework for students becoming researchers

Providing undergraduate students with research experience has been asserted as a way of reinventing university education. This assertion lacks both substantial empirical evidence and a coherent theoretical framework. In this paper, the authors consider both research and theory relating to undergraduate research and present the Research Skill Development framework, which can be used to both chart and monitor students’ research skill development. An example is given of the practical application of this framework, together with associated preliminary research findings. Further related research directions are also suggested.

I am neither especially clever nor especially gifted. I am only very, very curious.

– Albert Einstein     

Seeking sustainability competence and capability in the ESD and HESD literature: an international philosophical hermeneutic analysis

Education for sustainable development (ESD) and higher education for sustainable development (HESD) are complex, multidisciplinary fields of enquiry, drawing on concepts and terms from different disciplines and languages. Although the fields are advancing in their acceptability within educational systems worldwide, they are currently struggling to achieve sought-after graduate and societal outcomes such as environmentally-responsible or sustainability-focussed-citizenship. The research described in this article explores the possibility that miscommunication or misunderstanding of basic concepts within these fields is contributing to slow progress towards their objectives. We used a philosophical hermeneutic analysis to explore how the terms ‘competence’ and ‘capability’ are used within selected ESD/HESD papers. We identify substantial internal contradictions and inconsistencies with respect to differences between learners’ abilities and their willingness to perform these abilities, and to the educational context in which these outcomes are sought. We emphasise the importance of linking educational objectives with pedagogical approaches to teaching and assessment.     

Producing caring qualified teachers: An exploration of the influence of pre-service teacher concerns on learner-centeredness

In a time where students in the United States academic performance continues to lag behind in the international rankings, a disconcerting phenomenon in concerns literature indicates that pre-service and in-service teachers report low levels of concerns regarding the effect implementation of educational innovations have on students. This study explored the relationship of pre-service teachers' learner-centeredness and their concerns related to how learner-centered education affects students. Results indicated that as learner-centeredness increased, so did concerns about student outcomes. Implications for teacher education programmes in the US and abroad will be discussed.     

Trust in media and government: A recursive model for natives of Hong Kong and Mainland China

This study explored whether a female student's level of attractiveness affects the degree to which she is believed when making a claim of sexual harassment, and whether attractiveness is related to perceptions of how likely it is that she will be sexually harassed. Participants viewed one of three photographs of a female model who was made to appear a) unattractive, b) attractive and pristine, or c) attractive but not pristine. Afterwards they read a case file in which the photographed model claimed to have been sexually harassed by one of her professors. Finally, participants rated the photographed model's veracity and their perceptions regarding how likely it was that the model would be sexually harassed. Results indicated that when she was perceived as unattractive, the model was rated as more deceptive and less likely to be harassed than when she was perceived as attractive, regardless of whether she was perceived to be pristine or not. These results and their implications are discussed.     

Virtual worlds and moral evaluation

Consider the multi-user virtual worlds of online games such as EVE and World of Warcraft, or the multi-user virtual world of Second Life. Suppose a player performs an action in one of these worlds, via his or her virtual character, which would be wrong, if the virtual world were real. What is the moral status of this virtual action? In this paper I consider arguments for and against the Asymmetry Thesis: the thesis that such virtual actions are never wrong. I also explain how the truth of the Asymmetry Thesis is closely aligned with the possibility of what Edward Castronova has called closed synthetic worlds. With some qualifications, the ultimate conclusion is that the Asymmetry Thesis is false and that these closed worlds are impossible.     

Does school choice increase the rate of youth entrepreneurship?

Because entrepreneurial activity is a key source of economic growth, promoting youth entrepreneurship has become a priority for policymakers. School choice programs force administrators and teachers to be more entrepreneurial in their jobs by encouraging innovation and by creating competition and a more business-like environment in K-12 education. Does going to school in this climate make students more likely to become entrepreneurs? In this paper we test whether youth entrepreneurship rates are higher in counties with school choice programs. We find that voucher programs create higher rates of youth entrepreneurship, while charter schools do not, relative to traditional public schools.     

The double back salto dismount from the parallel bars

The purpose of this study was to identify those mechanical determinants or their trends that distinguished a gymnast's best performance of the double back salto dismount on parallel bars from those judged to be inferior. Dismounts, in the tucked position, by nine Canadian gymnasts were analysed. Unique to this study was the inclusive analysis of multiple performances of the same skill by these athletes. It was felt that within-subject comparisons would reveal the kinematic variables on which the gymnast may focus in order to achieve their best performances. A non-parametric median sign test was used to compare mechanical variables, within subjects, between the dismount judged the best and those dismounts awarded a lower score. Three judges judged each dismount. In comparison to poorer performances of the dismount, statistical analyses revealed that athlete's best performances were characterised by (1) a higher release point, more vertical velocity yet with less angular momentum at take-off, (2) greater height, with a tighter and earlier tuck position during the flight phase, and (3) a greater range of motion and a more compact squat position at landing (all p's < .06).