Parental guidance of young children’s mathematics and scientific inquiry in games,cooking, and nature activities

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the influence of guidance instruction and type of activity on parental guidance of young children’s mathematics and scientific inquiry during cooking, games, and nature activities at home. Thirty families participated with their preschool-aged child; half were randomly assigned to an inquiry guidance instruction group and encouraged to support children’s reasoning with open-ended prompts and questions. Families participated in activities for one month, some of which they audio-recorded. Families engaged in processes of comparing, predicting, evaluating and concluding more often after inquiry guidance instruction, and incorporated inquiry processes into all activity types. Mathematics was most frequently observed in games and cooking. The results suggest that parents can use inquiry guidance to support preschoolers’ mathematics and scientific inquiry in a variety of activities performed at home. As children engage in inquiry-based learning during co-constructed activities with parents, they develop conceptual understanding of mathematics and scientific inquiry in a positive social context.     

Implementing Effective Literacy Initiatives in the Secondary School

Concerns about literacy are currently high on the political agenda in the UK. With the National Literacy Strategy now in place in primary schools, attention is being focused upon how pupils in secondary schools can be supported in continuing to develop their literacy skills. In this article we will briefly consider the current state of literacy within secondary schools and the different curriculum elements that need to be part of a secondary literacy initiative. We examine the key factors, identified through research and good practice, which will influence the successful implementation of a literacy strategy within secondary schools and indicate how such factors might translate into effective practice within schools and classrooms.     

Effects of tactile stimulation on the initiation and maintenance of the following response in Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

Effects of tactile contact with an imprinting stimulus object on the initiation and maintenance of the following response in neonatal Japanese quail,Coturnix coturnix japonica, were examined. Tactile contact with an imprinting stimulus object was permitted during a preexposure period and/or during a following test. Results indicated that following was stronger when tactile contact was permitted during either the preexposure or test periods than when such contact was not given. Following occurred sooner when contact was permitted during the preexposure period than during following only, or when no contact was permitted. The greatest strength of following occurred when tactile stimulation was permitted during both preexposure and testing periods. It was concluded that the results support the hypothesis that tactile stimulation can facilitate both the initiation and maintenance of following behavior, and this is interpreted as being consistent with Schneirla’s (1965) theory.     

The Effects of Training and Performance Feedback During Behavioral Consultation on General Education Middle School Teachers' Integrity to Functional Analysis Procedures

Gickling's model of curriculum-based assessment (CBA) has been linked to problem identification and intervention development and is used in several school consultation approaches. This article uses Ellis's (2001) three levels of research criteria to examine the use of CBA in a school consultation model. Aside from the need for more psychometric data, available research has consistently supported the theoretical soundness and demonstrated the effectiveness of CBA. However, there is evidence that CBA lacks widespread and consistent implementation. Areas for future research and implications for practice are included.     

Feminist theory and collaborative learning in seminar contexts

This paper describes the processes undertaken to construct more equitable and accountable evaluation procedures within seminars: that is, contexts where the salient modalities being evaluated are participation and oral expression. We describe the distinctive features of our model, including facilitation of the work of teaching assistants, ways to operationalize feminist pedagogy, and processes for evaluation. We articulate the specifics of these features as well as offering a comprehensive 'insider's' account of the actual seminar process we employ. We end by describing teaching, learning, evaluation and institutional outcomes.     

Implementing a culturally attuned functional behavioural assessment to understand and address challenging behaviours demonstrated by students from diverse backgrounds

As the US student population continues to become increasingly diverse, educators have encountered difficulties in distinguishing between cultural differences and genuine disability indicators. This concern is clearly evident in assisting students from diverse backgrounds who demonstrate chronic challenging behaviours. Past practices (e.g. disciplinary office referrals, out-of-school suspensions, expulsion) have contributed to the likelihood of students from diverse backgrounds being misidentified as having an emotional or behavioural disorder. However, by tailoring the functional behavioural assessment (FBA), educators better differentiate cultural factors from disability characteristics and better understand the students’ needs. This paper will discuss the significance in meeting the needs of an increasingly diverse student population, provide an overview of the FBA process and present considerations in creating a culturally attuned FBA.     

Perspectives on select field-based experiences for pre-service teachers of students with emotional and behavioural disorders

The proficiency with which teachers of students with emotional and behavioural disorders (EBD) plan for, provide instructional activities, and address the challenging behaviour of their students is influenced by the nature of their preservice teacher preparation. The purpose of this study was to examine educators’ perceptions of the importance of preservice field-based experiences. Results indicate that educators of students with EBD consider student teaching of both students with EBD and students without disabilities very important experience. Educators with more than 10 years experience also indicated that the observation of police, parole, and judicial services concerned with students with EBD was an important preservice experience. Limitations of the study and implications for preservice teacher preparation are discussed.     

The ACRL Framework for Information Literacy in Higher Education: Implications for Health Sciences Librarianship

The Association of College and Research Libraries is developing a new framework of information literacy concepts that will revise and replace the previously adopted standards. This framework consists of six threshold concepts that are more flexible than the original standards, and that work to identify both the function and the feelings behind information literacy education practices. This column outlines the new tentative framework with an eye toward its implications for health sciences libraries, and suggests ways the medical library community might work with this new document.     

Sport Commitment Among Competitive Female Gymnasts

The purpose of this study was to examine age and competitive level differences in the relationship between determinants and level of sport commitment. Gymnasts (N = 304) comprised three age groups (8–11, 11–14.5, and 14.5–18 years) and two competitive levels (Levels 5–6 and 8–10). Multiple regression analyses revealed: (a) perceived costs and social constraints from parents and best friends were the strongest predictors of commitment for the youngest gymnasts, (b) perceived costs, personal investments, and parent social constraints predicted commitment for 11–14.5-year-old gymnasts, and (c) perceived competence and costs predicted commitment for the oldest gymnasts. Competitive level differences also emerged; for Level 5–6 gymnasts, personal investments, perceived costs, coach social support, and social constraints by coach, best friend, and teammates were predictors of commitment. Personal investments and teammate social constraints were significant predictors for Level 8–10 gymnasts. Developmental factors and additional determinants are important to consider in further studies of the sport commitment model.     

The Impact of Girls' Interscholastic Sport Participation on Academic Orientation

Abstract

This study was designed to assess the influence of athletics and other extracurricular activities on the academic orientation of female high school students. Senior girls were categorized into groups—labeled athlete-only (comprising students who participated only in athletics as an extracurricular activity), service-only (students who participated in service activities only), athlete-service (students participating in both) and neither (students whose extracurricular activities included neither athletics nor service activities). Categorizations were based on listings from their high school yearbooks. Those taking the ACT college entrance exam (N = 487) were compared on composite and English scores to the other groups, and to national and state averages. Analyses of covariance, controlling for SES and extent of activity involvement revealed that the athlete-only group recorded the lowest average scores, but these could not be attributed to the participation category to which they belonged. Rather, socioeconomic level and extent of activity involvement were factors contributing to most of the differences between groups in which higher SES levels and higher levels of involvement were predictive of higher ACT scores. Moreover, none of the groups' scores were significantly different from national or slate averages. These results refute the notion that involvement only in athletics is detrimental to educational achievements for females, and lead to certain recommendations for longitudinal, multi-measure investigations of academic orientations.