Participatory creativities: developing a research design for children’s pastoral encounters with the natural world

ABSTRACT

In this paper, the author discusses the interrelationship between creativity, children’s experiences of the natural world and pastoral education. Based on a research design developed whilst undertaking a professional doctorate in education (EdD), and grounded in a theoretical framework of children’s rights, the author explores the creative uncertainties of collaboratively researching children’s educational experiences with nature. The paper considers the ways in which the research design supports a pastoral care agenda, whilst encouraging the emergence of ‘creative artefacts’, alongside the extent to which the focus of the research, encounters with the natural world, might be deemed pastorally minded in its own right. The children who have participated in the research then draw the paper to a close, sharing what their involvement in the project has meant to them. Images and excerpts of children’s own creative reflections are offered as illustration of the powerful confluence of the Creative and the Pastoral.     

Operationalizing and validating disciplinary literacy in secondary education

The goal of this study was to define the construct and establish the validity of disciplinary literacy, which has recently gained attention from the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers in Common Core State Standards for English language arts & literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects [PDF]. Authors, Washington, DC, 2010). After defining disciplinary literacy in the four core disciplines of English language arts, science, history and social studies, and mathematics, scales were developed and administered to a snowball sample of professionals nationwide, with 857 respondents. The data showed evidence of disciplinary literacy as a multidimensional construct with three related factors: source literacy, analytic literacy, and expressive literacy. Based on EFA and CFA results, we can conclude that there are at least three types of literacy in operation among the four core disciplines. The three factors of literacy varied significantly by the four core disciplines of English/language arts (ELA), science, history and social studies, and mathematics, supporting the notion that each discipline uses literacy uniquely. This is the first study of its kind to attempt to define, quantify, and validate the construct of disciplinary literacy.     

Paired peer learning through engineering education outreach

ABSTRACT

Undergraduate education incorporating active learning and vicarious experience through education outreach presents a critical opportunity to influence future engineering teaching and practice capabilities. Engineering education outreach activities have been shown to have multiple benefits; increasing interest and engagement with science and engineering for school children, providing teachers with expert contributions to engineering subject knowledge, and developing professional generic skills for engineers such as communication and teamwork. This pilot intervention paired 10 pre-service teachers and 11 student engineers to enact engineering outreach in primary schools, reaching 269 children. A longitudinal mixed methods design was employed to measure change in attitudes and Education Outreach Self-Efficacy in student engineers; alongside attitudes, Teaching Engineering Self-Efficacy and Engineering Subject Knowledge Confidence in pre-service teachers. Highly significant improvements were noted in the pre-service teachers’ confidence and self-efficacy, while both the teachers and engineers qualitatively described benefits arising from the paired peer mentor model.     

建立全球合作伙伴关系

要让人们赶上时代的步伐,就要对他们进行及时的、非常切实有用的培训,有可能就给他们很短的一点时间的培训,如果他们有时间的话,就可以马     

The Relationship between Attitudes, Knowledge, and Demographic Variables of High School Teachers Regarding Food Irradiation

ABSTRACT:  The purpose of this study was to use a validated instrument to determine the attitudes and knowledge of high school teachers regarding food irradiation, and to determine the correlations among their knowledge and attitudes and certain demographic variables. Knowledge and attitudes about food irradiation were measured in selected high school family and consumer sciences teachers ( n = 121) who taught Food and Nutrition, Food Science and Technology, and/or Food Production Management and Services, via a 24-item instrument with 6 factors. Results revealed these teachers held neutral to positive attitudes about the safety of irradiated foods, their perception of the risk of foodborne illness, and learning about food irradiation, and neutral to negative perceptions of their understanding of food irradiation and their competence to teach about it. These teachers had a moderate knowledge base regarding food irradiation. Teachers' attitudes regarding the safety of food irradiation were positively correlated with their perceived understanding of food irradiation, actual knowledge of it, and competence to teach about it. Their perceived understanding of food irradiation was positively correlated with competence to teach about it, knowledge, and attitudes toward the safety of food irradiation. The only demographic variable correlated with knowledge or attitudes was teachers' previous food irradiation educational experiences. These data suggest the importance of education for family and consumer sciences teachers concerning food irradiation.     

Temperament, emotion, and social interactive behavior in the strange situation: a component process analysis of attachment system functioning

This study examines the contributions of temperamentally and nontemperamentally based emotional reactions to the organization of social interactive behavior within the Strange Situation to better understand the emotional underpinnings of attachment system functioning. At 12 1/2 and 19 1/2 months, temperamental fear (assessed via maternal report) was related to independent per-episode dimensions of social interactive and distress behavior. Fear was moderately correlated with both distress and interactive dimensions at each age. Path-analytic models revealed that temperamental fear had direct effects on interactive behavior and also indirect effects mediated by preceding distress reactions. However, residualized measures of "context-specific" distress (with temperamental variance removed) were still highly consistent across Strange Situation episodes and also significantly predicted subsequent social interactive behavior; furthermore, stable distress reactions from 12 1/2 to 19 1/2 months significantly predicted concurrent stability in social interactive behavior. We discuss likely sources of "context-specific" emotional influences on Strange Situation behavior and also age-related differences in these findings.