Dutch sixth graders’ use of shortcut strategies in solving multidigit arithmetic problems

Strategy flexibility, adaptivity, and the use of clever shortcut strategies are of major importance in current primary school mathematics education worldwide. However, empirical results show that primary school students use such shortcut strategies rather infrequently. The aims of the present study were to analyze the extent to which Dutch sixth graders (12-year-olds) use shortcut strategies in solving multidigit addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division problems, to what extent student factors and task instructions affected this frequency of shortcut strategy use, and to what extent the strategies differed in performance. A sample of 648 sixth graders from 23 Dutch primary schools completed a paper-and-pencil task of 12 multidigit arithmetic problems, designed to elicit specific shortcut strategies such as compensation. Based on the students’ written work, strategies were classified into whether a shortcut strategy was used or not. Results showed that the frequency of shortcut strategies ranged between 6 and 21% across problem types, and that boys and high mathematics achievers were more inclined to use shortcut strategies. An explicit instruction to look for a shortcut strategy increased the frequency of these strategies in the addition and multiplication problems, but not in the subtraction and division problems. Finally, the use of shortcut strategies did not yield higher performance than using standard strategies. All in all, spontaneous as well as stimulated use of shortcut strategies by Dutch sixth graders was not very common.     

A holistic approach to supporting distance learning using the Internet: transformation, nottranslation

This is the first of a series of papers describing how the Open University, a large distance education institution, has embraced the Internet as a medium for supporting its students, tutors, academics, and administrators throughout the education process. This paper reports on a holistic approach to integrating technology into the teaching process which addresses how to provide necessary functions in effective forms—some traditional, some new. It describes the development and structure of actual systems, which incorporate electronic student registration; electronic assignment submission, marking, and recording; electronic tutorials and other interaction; and electronic examinations. It describes and summarises some of the findings of the evaluation of those systems, including student, academic, and administrator feedback. Finally, this paper reflects on the benefits of an integrated holistic approach in exploiting the Internet's potential to support distance learning on a massive scale. Subsequent papers in this series will address specific areas in detail: the student experience, the role of the tutor in an electronic environment, and the institutional perspective.     

Influences on the Literacy Hour

This paper outlines some of the key influences on the development of the National Literacy Strategy. In particular, it concentrates on the influences of international data on reading standards, international analyses of school effectiveness and some sources which have influenced the main components of the Framework for Teaching which supports the Literacy Hour. Finally, it draws upon national inspection evidence that many schools are likely to have much to gain from adopting the Literacy Hour. This conclusion is supported by the highly significant gains in the achievement of over 7000 pupils which have been reported in the evaluations of the National Literacy Project (NLP), the initiative on which the National Literacy Strategy is based. The paper is based on a more detailed review of research and other related evidence (Beard, in press).     

Neighborhood Press and Immigration

This research studied the way immigration is depicted by the neighborhood press of Barcelona. Mainstream media tend to give visibility to immigrants when problems arise. Through this visibility based on problems, and the processes of framing, a virtual social identity is constructed and given to the immigration population. However, the neighborhood press of Barcelona, inscribed within the Catalan regional press’ own idea of journalism, offers a different approach to this issue due to its history, neighborhood and commitment to the region. Through a frame analysis, three main frames gave a depiction of the immigrants different from the one the mainstream media use. The results show that this differentiated depiction still stereotypes immigrants while not granting them enough visibility even when there is no blaming or attack. In this sense, while accounting for the differences, the neighborhood press of Barcelona misses a chance of depicting immigration in a more accurate way.     

Adults and Reading Disability: A New Field of Inquiry

This paper first describes the development of adult literacy pedagogy and philosophy in Australia, then reports and discusses two studies of research into reading disability for adults. The first study uses a quantitative approach with a sample of 102 asthma patients and has important implications for the assessment of adults' reading. The second study is a theory‐driven, critical case study of the stated needs for literacy of 11 adult literacy learners. These stated literacy needs are argued to be socially constructed, influenced by the external environment of more general socio‐political contexts as well as particular civic, personal and workplace literacy requirements. These needs are also influenced by the adult learners' reconstructions and memories of schooling and the views about literacy of significant others, all of which affect the adult learners' perceptions of their ‘reading failure.’ The perspectives offered by the two different studies provide understandings and insights into this new field of inquiry.     

丫环的诱惑--白薇对宝玉访晴雯的颓废主义叙述

白薇是中国颓废主义创作阶段的代表作家之一.论文以白薇的坎坷人生经历为切入点,深刻分析了其颓废主义创作手法形成的原因及发展过程.从白薇的第一部剧作<琳丽>开始,美与爱的主题就开始显现.到了<访雯>,白薇就达到了颓废主义创作的顶峰.<访雯>与意大利文学家加百列·邓南遮的<死城>有着众多相似之处.爱、死和美是两部剧作中共同关心的主题;宝玉跟晴雯的绵绵爱意与里奥纳多跟妹妹玛丽亚之间的爱情都属非比寻常的兄妹之恋;两部剧都注重了对场景和情节的刻画,反映出颓废主义的精神特征.但是,如果从女性解放的角度分析,白薇笔下晴雯的形象已经超越了邓南遮的玛丽亚;同时,宝玉的形象又为亚莱桑特罗这个人物所不及.总之,白薇<访雯>的创作源头很可能来自邓南遮的<死城>,并且在一定程度上有所超越,因而备受关注.     

Stress Regulation in Adolescents: Physiological Reactivity During the Adult Attachment Interview and Conflict Interaction

The current study examined whether adolescents’ attachment representations were associated with differences in emotion regulation during the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI; C. George, N. Kaplan, & M. Main, 1996 ) and during a mother–adolescent conflict interaction task (Family Interaction Task [FIT]; J. P. Allen et al., 2003 ). Participants were one hundred and fifty‐six 14‐year‐old adolescents. Dismissing adolescents showed less interbeat interval (IBI) reactivity (indicating less stress) during the AAI than secure adolescents. However, during the FIT, dismissing adolescents showed more IBI reactivity. No differences in physiological reactivity were found between individuals with resolved or unresolved loss or trauma during the AAI or FIT. The results indicate that dismissing adolescents may effectively use a defensive strategy during the AAI but less so in direct conflict interaction with their attachment figure.