Is the self-paced instructional program,via microcomputer-based instruction,the most effective method of addressing individual learning differences?

One of the canons that guides the design of microcomputer-based instructional programs is to use a self-paced instructional method. However, there has been some indication that moderate levels of external pacing may prove to be more effective for overall learning, in terms of amount of content acquired and level of competency achieved with that content. Hypotheses derived from this idea were tested using three types of pacing. Learning was evaluated using five achievement tests ranging in difficulty from memorizing facts to problem solving. Experimental results supported the hypothesis favoring moderate levels of external pacing and found that the common principle of using self-paced instructional methods as the best style for all types of microcomputer instruction is an incorrect assumption.     

Negotiating Genre and New Media for STEM News

ABSTRACT

This article—co-authored by a transdisciplinary team of social scientists and journalists in the United States—traces changes to the news landscape in recent decades, and asks: How are legacy media producers grappling with these new realities? As part of a four-year collaboration on young adult news consumption, we take a participatory action research approach to this question, tacking back and forth between newsroom concepts and anthropological ones in pursuit of a synthesis that strengthens both. Starting from anthropological frameworks of participation, the authors argue that broadcast videos typically position their audiences as overhearers rather than interlocutors, while the reverse is true for social media, and that these tendencies shape audience expectations. We find that many audiences have what we call poetic motivations: they are drawn to stories that exemplify their genre. For example, the participatory nature of social media genres translates well to a more candid style that can incorporate live questions and other direct participation. The study reported here focuses on STEM news, but many of the findings apply to news production in general. Our reflective methods can also be applied more widely in the field of journalism to synthesize perspectives from theory and practice.     

Methodology-21: what do we do in the afterward?

This paper asks “after what” and situates qualitative research in the present moment in the midst of various “deaths” and “returns.” With a focus on fleshing out post-qualitative research, it first sketches efforts to discipline qualitative research via standards and rubrics as a part of neoliberal govenmentality and then elaborates what post-qualitative might mean via four exemplars. The first is from Sweden, a focus on relational entangled data analysis in the feminist classroom; the next two exemplars are collaborative studies from Australia at the intersection of Western and Aboriginal knowledge systems; the final exemplar is from Egypt, a feminist post-colonial study of the women’s mosque movement. The paper concludes with a call to “imagine forward” out of troubling a narrow scientificity and enacting an “after” of neoliberalism.     

Preadolescent perceptions of challenging and difficult course activities and their motivational distinctions

The present research sought to determine if primary school students differentiate between classes that are challenging and those that are difficult, and how these distinctions relate to their motivation and achievement. Results indicated that there are three types of challenges/difficulties. Challenging classes are those that are demanding of the students but within their ability, are important and are tied to interests; students in these classes are more likely to adopt mastery goal orientations. Purely difficult classes are not valued, require a lot of effort, but are threatening to students’ efficacy. Classes that are difficult compared to others are those that are more demanding for the student than other students or other classes. These classes are not valued and are also seen as a threat to efficacy. Both purely difficult and difficult compared to others classes were negatively related to achievement, and students in these classes are more likely to adopt performance avoidance goal orientations.     

The 2002 Conference on the Future of School Psychology: Implications for Consultation,Intervention, and Prevention Services

In November 2002, the multisite Conference on the Future of School Psychology was sponsored by major professional associations of school psychologists. Conference goals included achieving consensus on current and future demands for school, conceptualizing the practice of school psychology in the face of diminishing numbers and increasing demand for services, and developing an agenda to use school psychology resources to maximize the benefits to the children and schools. Consultation, intervention, and prevention were major themes in all conference activities. The present article provides an overview of the conference and a summary of issues and outcomes from the conference that relate to educational and psychological consultation services.     

Follow-up to the 2002 Futures Conference: Collaborating to Serve All Children,Families, and Schools

Recommendations of the Thayer, Spring Hill, and Olympia conferences are examined as they relate to ways we can support and make positive contributions to students, families, and schools. In the current issue of the Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation, Hatzichristou and Lampropoulou (this issue), Meyers, Meyers, and Grogg (this issue), Nastasi (this issue), and Wizda (this issue) share important insights that can guide efforts to implement ideas discussed at the recent 2002 Futures Conference. Their ideas, along with literature on the public health model, are discussed. Points are made about the move to evidence-based interventions, as well as the use of Internet technology to facilitate collaboration and follow-up to the 2002 conference.