New perspectives in gaze sensitivity research

Attending to where others are looking is thought to be of great adaptive benefit for animals when avoiding predators and interacting with group members. Many animals have been reported to respond to the gaze of others, by co-orienting their gaze with group members (gaze following) and/or responding fearfully to the gaze of predators or competitors (i.e., gaze aversion). Much of the literature has focused on the cognitive underpinnings of gaze sensitivity, namely whether animals have an understanding of the attention and visual perspectives in others. Yet there remain several unanswered questions regarding how animals learn to follow or avoid gaze and how experience may influence their behavioral responses. Many studies on the ontogeny of gaze sensitivity have shed light on how and when gaze abilities emerge and change across development, indicating the necessity to explore gaze sensitivity when animals are exposed to additional information from their environment as adults. Gaze aversion may be dependent upon experience and proximity to different predator types, other cues of predation risk, and the salience of gaze cues. Gaze following in the context of information transfer within social groups may also be dependent upon experience with group-members; therefore we propose novel means to explore the degree to which animals respond to gaze in a flexible manner, namely by inhibiting or enhancing gaze following responses. We hope this review will stimulate gaze sensitivity research to expand beyond the narrow scope of investigating underlying cognitive mechanisms, and to explore how gaze cues may function to communicate information other than attention.     

An Enquiry into the Influence of Mathematics on Students’ Choice of STEM Careers

Australia currently faces a skill shortage in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) professions unlikely to improve if the current trend of low enrolments in high-level mathematics in secondary school continues. Many factors seem to contribute to this trend, and amongst them, research recognises student attitudes towards mathematics and careers in STEM. Research also shows that teachers and classroom practices are key agents to change these attitudes. This paper examines teachers’ perceptions of students’ attitudes towards mathematics and careers in STEM, as well as classroom practices emanating from those perceptions. Combining data from two studies, a large-scale survey and an intervention, we argue three main points: (1) student attitudes and teachers’ perceptions of those attitudes quite clearly differ, (2) targeted interventions showing links between mathematics and careers in STEM can have an influence on students’ perceptions of STEM careers and (3) an implementation of classroom ability grouping based on standardised test scores can be disadvantageous to students who have a natural inclination towards STEM and positive attitudes towards mathematics.     

Novice online educator conceptual frameworks: a mental model exploration of mindful learning design

This research study explores the relationship between the socio-cognitive concept of mindfulness and university educators’ learning design conceptualisations. The multi-method research strategy utilises a concept-mapping exercise to reveal learning designer mental models for comparison with Langer Mindfulness Scale scores and critical event interviews to further illuminate the conceptualisations and factors that impact educators’ thinking when designing online units. Research participants were asked to create a concept map of their learning design and to be mindful of concepts incorporated into a Graduate Certificate of Tertiary Education. The analysis highlights some congruence between educators’ mindfulness dimensions and their learning design conceptual frameworks. The mindfulness scores appear to indicate a propensity to be more mindful in designing curriculum, as indicated by participant concept maps, yet not necessarily towards the adaptive use of technology or learner/activity-based pedagogies. The authors suggest metacognitive strategies to encourage learning design reconceptualisation.     

Self‐assessment and the disadvantaged student: potential for encouraging self‐regulated learning?

The Science Foundation Programme (SFP) at the University of KwaZulu Natal, Pietermaritzburg attempts to address past educational inequalities by providing disadvantaged matriculants with the skills, resources and self‐confidence needed to embark on their tertiary studies. Students entering the Programme typically adopt a surface approach to learning with emphasis being placed on high score achievement which results in a mark‐driven attitude towards assessment. Students also lack the metacognitive skills associated with a deep approach to learning. Within this mark‐driven culture, it is important to attempt to move students away from such a superficial approach to learning and assessment. Worldwide, self‐assessment practice has been gaining recognition, and it has been linked to the adoption of a deep approach to learning; self‐regulated learning and the development of metacognitive skills. In the biology module of the Programme, students are given two essay assignments, tasks that are routinely performed very poorly. In attempt to improve SFP students’ essay writing abilities, a self‐assessment scheme to accompany the essay tasks was instituted, hoping that this would get the students to engage with the assessment criteria. It was intended that students would not only fulfil the requirements of the task better, but also achieve the valuable skill of self‐assessment. The results provide overwhelming evidence that SFP students cannot accurately self‐assess. Their naivety and inexperience in fulfilling assessment criteria was also revealed. Overall, marks awarded by staff were significantly lower than those awarded by students, and there was no evidence to suggest that any one category of students based on academic ability were better able to self‐assess than another. Marker inconsistencies were revealed, but this was shown to have no effect on findings. In spite of these results, a case for pursuing self‐assessment is made and proposals for improving student self‐assessment practice in the SFP are suggested.     

Uncovering the effect of text structure in learning from a science text: An eye-tracking study

This study examined whether reading a refutational or non-refutational text would induce different cognitive processing, as revealed by eye-movement analyses. Unlike a standard expository text, a refutational text acknowledges a reader’s alternative conceptions about a topic, refutes them, and then introduces scientific conceptions as viable alternatives. Forty university students read one or the other type of text about the phenomenon of the tides. All had alternative conceptions about the topic. Findings showed that at post-test (off-line measure) refutational text readers learned more than non-refutational text readers. Outcomes regarding indices of visual behavior (on-line measures) during reading revealed that refutational text readers fixated the text segments presenting scientific concepts for a longer time overall than non-refutational text readers, in particular during the second-pass reading. Refutational text readers also fixated the refutational segments for a shorter time than non-refutational text readers for the control segments. Furthermore, all indices of visual attention predicted learning only for the refutational text readers. The more the students’ reading of the refutational text was strategic, the better they learned from it. Implications about eye-tracking methodology and the refutational effect are drawn.     

Confidence and Expectations About Caring for Older People With Dementia: A Cross-Sectional Survey of Student Nurses

Older people who are living with dementia often need healthcare, including hospital admissions, due to additional health conditions. Caring for older people who are living with dementia is, therefore, a core nursing role. This study investigated student nurses’ expectations of, and confidence about, caring for older people with dementia and the effect of students’ age, precourse experience, and their academic year. The design was a cross-sectional survey using questionnaires to collect data. The participants (n = 328), based at one university in England, had all had at least one practice learning placement. Most student nurses (n = 202; 62%) had precourse contact with older people with dementia and had cared for them during the course (n = 291; 89%). The student's academic year significantly affected confidence about caring for older people with dementia (p = .006), but still only 52% (n = 26) of third-year students felt “generally confident.” Precourse contact with older people with dementia had a significant impact on expectations (p = .001) and confidence in caring for people with dementia (p = .002). Students who were >25 years were significantly more likely to have had precourse contact with older people with dementia (p = < .001). Nurse educators should ensure that students entering nurse education appreciate that caring for older people who are living with dementia will be a core part of their role. They must proactively prepare nursing students to care for people with dementia, recognizing that some students have no previous contact, which may affect their confidence and experiences.     

HUMAN SUBJECTS AND COGNITIVE AGING RESEARCH: A UNIQUE SOLUTION TO A PERENNIAL PROBLEM

A fundamental concern of cognitive aging researchers is to find a representative sample of healthy, older adults who are willing to participate in experimental research. There are essentially two methods for marshalling a sizable body of older research participants. One can solicit the aid of local community‐dwelling adults through civic and church‐related organizations. Alternatively, one can travel to specific locations where elderly people are likely to congregate, for example, a retirement community. In this article, we describe our experiences with these two methods of research‐participant recruitment. The processes involved in both securing and utilizing a local body of research volunteers are presented first. We then discuss two subject‐testing expeditions outside of the university environment that have been highly successful. In the final section, we contrast selected demographic characteristics of our local and off‐site research volunteers and discuss the implications of differences between these two populations for conducting research with aged people.     

Implementing curriculum evaluation: case study of a generic undergraduate degree in health sciences

This case study presents a longitudinal, evidence‐based approach to health science curriculum reform and evaluation. Curriculum in higher education must meet the needs of diverse stakeholders and must respond to dynamic local, national and international contexts, and this creates challenges for evaluation. The long lead time prior to the introduction of new or revised university curriculum (at least two years), the length of degree programmes (three to five years) and the lag time in the availability of objective indicators of degree outcomes (at least one year post‐graduation) mean that findings may be obsolete before an evaluation can be completed. Few would argue that evaluation is important and methods and approaches for conducting curriculum evaluation are proposed in the literature, although few published reports of the outcomes of comprehensive evaluations are evident. This paper discusses potential for evaluation to establish responsive communication between students, teaching staff and programme administrators, ensuring a match between the intended, implemented and attained curriculum.     

A grey literature review of the Cultural Olympiad

This article considers the development of the UK Cultural Olympiad supporting London's successful bid to stage the Olympic Games in 2012. It suggests that the Cultural Olympiad is a complex event itself and needs to be better understood if any impacts are to be felt in a meaningful sense. The event is thus considered through review of over 50 documents relating to its management, in the context of a number of identified themes: cultural development, developing institutional frameworks, social benefit, educational benefit and promotional benefit.