Lessons from Lockdown: Parent Perspectives on Home-learning Mathematics During COVID-19 Lockdown

International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education - During the COVID-19 pandemic, many parents suddenly had to assume responsibility for their children’s learning at home. Research...     

The psychological contract of science students: social exchange with universities and university staff from the students' perspective

Considerable research has been undertaken involving the student experience and depicting undergraduate students as consumers of education. This construction of the relationship between students and universities is based primarily on notions of economic exchange. In this paper, using the construct of the psychological contract, we show that social exchanges can also occur. In a study sponsored by the leaders of a university's science faculty, 10 student-researchers recorded their experience of being a science undergraduate student using an innovative video data collection method called VideoVoices. We present a case study using the data recorded by one student-researcher that shows that students can have more complex conceptions of their relationships than that of passive consumer with respect to their reciprocal obligations to their university and lecturers. Psychological contract theory has been widely used in management and organisation studies literature, but the use of this theory in the context of higher education is much sparser. We argue that psychological contract theory, besides encouraging a more useful and complex view of students at university, has the potential to suggest future research directions and strategies to improve relationships between students and universities.     

逝去的爱

My days are growing long My nights are growing shortMy life is growing strongMy death is growing closeMaybe I’ll forget Maybe I’ll remember Maybe I’ll loveMaybe I’ll hateI thought I knewI thought I forgotI thought I would Lose my memory of you逝去的爱     

The Benefits &; Drawbacks of Integrating Cloud Computing and Interactive Whiteboards in Teacher Preparation

Twenty-first century technology has changed the way tools are used to support and enhance learning and instruction. Cloud computing and interactive white boards, make it possible for learners to interact, simulate, collaborate, and document learning experiences and real world problem-solving. This article discusses how various technologies (blogs, wikis, GoogleDocs, and interactive white boards) have been used at one private university in teacher preparation courses. Authors discuss the benefits and drawbacks of each tool for students and faculty and how technologies are made user-friendly for learners of different technology ability. Authors highlight tool usage and issues encountered by students and faculty and how the use of these tools can be useful for the students in their careers.     

From inclusion to access： Paradigm shifts in special education

From the Salamanca Statement in 1994 to the Dakar Framework in 2000, UNESCO （United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization） has spearheaded an international movement for acceptance, equity and access in the education of students with disabilities. Inclusion, mandated in Salamanca, is considered the first step. Today, the focus is upon the identification and implementation of educational models that ensure access. This article discusses paradigm shifts taking place in special education in schools of the United States that respond to the ideals set forth in these statements： cultural competency, universal design for learning and collaborative models of assessment and instruction. Practices discussed here can provide guidance for educators worldwide as they strive toward the goals of Salamanca and Dakar.     

The Impact of a Practice-Teaching Professional Development Model on Teachers’ Inquiry Instruction and Inquiry Efficacy Beliefs

This study examined changes in middle school teachers’ beliefs about inquiry, implementation of inquiry practices, and self-efficacy to teach science through inquiry after participating in a year-long professional development program. The professional development model design was based on Bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory of learning and literature on effective professional development. Using the Electronic Quality of Inquiry Protocol (EQUIP) before and after the program (Marshall, Smart & Horton, 2010), teachers’ quality of inquiry instruction significantly increased across all 4 EQUIP factors. To assess teachers’ inquiry teaching efficacy, the Teaching Science as Inquiry (TSI; Dira-Smolleck, 2004) instrument was administered 3 times to the teacher participants. Changes between time points of TSI administration were examined for personal self-efficacy and outcome expectancy across 5 essential features of classroom inquiry. Findings for the personal self-efficacy scale showed statistically significant gains from pre-Institute to 1-year follow-up for all 5 inquiry features. Teachers’ outcome expectancy beliefs significantly increased across the program for 3 of the 5 essential features of inquiry. The results indicate the effectiveness of the professional development model at increasing the participants’ inquiry efficacy as well as the quality of their inquiry instruction. Our study provides evidence to support the need to include collaborative practice-teaching and reflection opportunities within professional development models that aim to increase teachers’ use of inquiry-based instructional strategies.     

Visual complexity in infancy: contour or numerosity?

To examine the relationship between visual attention in infancy and the stimulus variables of contour and numerosity, 2- and 4-month-old infants were placed in 3 experimental conditions. In the first condition, the patterns shown to the infants varied in amount of contour but had an equal number of elements; in the second, they varied in numerosity but had an equal amount of contour; and in the third, the patterns varied in both numerosity and contour. The results showed that contour and numerosity acting in tandem are responsible for the age-complexity shift observed in previous investigations of infant attention.     

Normative fat-free mass index values for a diverse sample of collegiate female athletes

The purpose of this study was to establish normative fat-free mass index (FFMI) ranges in collegiate female athletes. A sample of 266 female athletes (Mean±SD; Age: 19.7 ± 1.5 yrs, Height: 166.0 ± 6.4 cm, Weight: 63.2 ± 8.8 kg) were included in analyses. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry measured bone mineral content (BMC; kg) and lean mass (LM; kg). Fat-free mass index was calculated as follows: FFMI = (BMC + LM)/Height². Participants were classified by sport: cross-country (XC), field hockey, football, gymnastics, lacrosse, resistance-trained, swimming track. Mean, range and percentile ranks of FFMI were calculated for the full sample for each cohort. For all females, mean FFMI was 16.9 ± 1.7 kg/m², FFMI values ranged from 13.3 to 25.5 kg/m². The XC athletes had the lowest FFMI (15.3 ± 0.96 kg/m²; p < 0.001). Mean FFMI measures were similar between all other female athletes. Percentile ranks varied across sport; median FFMI was highest for football (18.0 kg/m²), lowest for XC (15.1 kg/m²) and ranged between 16.4 and 17.3 kg/m² for all other athletes. Establishing sport-specific FFMI values for female athletes may be beneficial for athletes and coaches by leading to more appropriate body composition goals based on FFM.