European Scientific Cooperation and Research Infrastructures: Past Tendencies and Future Prospects

Since the 1960s, Europe has developed adiversified network of agencies and institutesin parallel with the political dynamics of theTreaty of Rome (1957). Recently, the EuropeanCommission has launched a debate about thefuture of European R&D policy. This has, inturn, highlighted the importance of researchinfrastructures in European science. Thispaper discusses the achievements of Europe'smultilateral approach in this domain, andsuggests guidelines for future policy.     

Coverage and overlaps in bibliographic databases relevant to forensic medicine: a comparative analysis of MEDLINE

This study was designed to make a comparative evaluation of the performance of MEDLINE in covering serial literature. Forensic medicine was chosen because it is an interdisciplinary subject area that would test MEDLARS at the periphery of the system. The evaluation of database coverage was based upon articles included in the bibliographies of scholars in the field of forensic medicine. This method was considered appropriate for characterizing work used by researchers in this field. The results of comparing MEDLINE to other databases evoked some concerns about the selective indexing policy of MEDLINE in serving the interests of those working in forensic medicine.     

Utilisation conjointe du milieu et des ressources technologiques pour la formation des maîtres

Perusse, P., Décamps, E.A. and Pécot, F. “Utilisation conjointe du milieu et des ressources technologiques pour la formation des maîtres,” Revue ATEE Journal 3(1980)119‐133.

The training of teachers simply must develop. Yet, this development is at times thwarted by the latent conservative attitude of education. The introduction of educational technology, the technical and psychological integration of new teaching practices and more precisely of the latest products of audiovisual research, together with the computerized communications systems could provide the opportunity for that necessary break between the past and the present.

The resulting modification of relationships between those who teach and those who are taught, the new definition of tasks, and more particularly the part given to learners in the training of future teachers will make possible an opening towards the outside world and the coming into existence of a school of responsibility through responsibility. The first experiments show that we still have a long way to go before that aim is achieved.     

DOCTORAL TRAINING IN EUROPE

This article essentially fulfills three tasks, that of giving a rapid and systematic overview of doctoral programmes by country in western Europe, that of describing certain initiatives taken by specific countries with the aim of improving third cycle (doctoral) studies, and that of arguing in favour of the establishment of so‐called European inter‐university doctoral programmes. So far as the first task is concerned, the authors note that all but two of the countries concerned have opted for the so‐called PhD type of doctoral programme rather than for long‐cycle programmes. In the case of the second task, they have given particular attention to efforts made in the Federal Republic of Germany to create separate doctoral level institutions. In the case of the third task, the authors have sketched a networking process by which inter‐university and inter‐disciplinary doctoral programmes are being created in certain specific disciplines, particularly scientific ones. The authors consider that such doctorates hold great potential but that their elaboration is being held up by lack of resources and by difficulties in finding, matching, and linking partners.     

An alternative conceptual framework from chemistry education

Today's scientific and technological communication stakes are such that we can no longer be content with merely asking ourselves whether they are giving a faithful or a distorted image of the results of scientific activity, with a view to affording the modern man of breeding an extra smattering of knowledge.

Another way of looking at the problem is to ask how best the popularization of science and technology can be utilized to further a particular policy goal, and what strategic decisions need to be made to help bring that goal about. If we called on the conceptual armoury and strategic models to be found in the literature of both the East and the West, we would be in line with this perspective.     

Broadcast reform revisited: Reverend Everett C. Parker and the “standing” case (office of communication of the United church of Christ v. Federal Communications Commission)

Office of Communication of the United Church of Christ v. Federal Communications Commission (1966), sometimes known as the “WLBT” case, was an instance where local citizens successfully challenged the broadcast license of a racist Mississippi broadcaster. The challenge worked in large part because it was tied to a larger social movement, that of Civil Rights. The effort resulted in the expansion of the legal doctrine of standing (that is, who could bring an action before regulatory agencies and courts) to normal citizens, and thus sparked the growth of citizen activism and participatory politics in various spheres, including consumer rights, environmental protection, and, of course, broadcast reform. The article tells the story of the case and its chief protagonist, Reverend Everett C. Parker.     

Reciprocal peer tutoring in a physical education setting: influence of peer tutor training and gender on motor performance and self-efficacy outcomes

Students often do not take full advantage of peer tutoring instructional strategies because they are not sufficiently prepared to fulfill the role of tutor. This study examined whether implementing a peer tutor training program prior to the beginning of reciprocal peer tutoring (RPT) sessions might help overcome this issue. Gender differences were also explored. In a physical education setting, 48 novice ninth-graders were assigned in symmetric dyads to a physical practice associated with trained RPT condition (TRPT; n = 24) or a physical practice associated with spontaneous RPT condition (SRPT; n = 24). Moreover, 24 participants were assigned to a physical practice without any form of RPT control condition (PP). The peer tutor training, based on an original group interview technique, aimed at enhancing the explanatory potential of the tutor and his/her sensitivity to the specific needs of the tutee. Results indicated a superior motor performance for the TRPT condition and no difference between the SRPT and PP conditions. Interestingly, a positive relation between motor performance and self-efficacy beliefs was found for TRPT females. The assumption that the development of metacognitive awareness is one of the mechanisms underlying RPT’s effectiveness was thus supported.     

Effects of Junior Kindergarten on Emerging Literacy in Children from Low-Income and Linguistic-Minority Families

We study the benefits of junior kindergarten for linguistic-minority 4-year-olds compared to their linguistic-majority classmates from the same low-income neighborhoods. At the end of the school year, linguistic-minority children made significantly greater improvements in language skills than their host society classmates. At the mid-year point, junior kindergarten teachers made efforts to help linguistic-minority children overcome the challenges of the school environment of their new host society by adapting their pedagogical strategies to those showing difficulty in their receptive vocabulary skills. They also offered greater means of contact to parents of linguistic-minority children having difficulty attaining language proficiency than to parents of children showing better improvements. Parents of linguistic-minority students showing smaller gains were more likely to use a larger proportion of the communication methods offered by teachers and participate in the parent–school relationship for the well-being of their children. Long-term results suggest that linguistic-minority children continued to make significant improvements.

ENTRE REPRODUCTION ET MOBILISATION: LES RAPPORTS DE GENRE EN FORMATION CONTINUE EN FRANCE ET AU CANADA

La situation des femmes en éducation initiale a beaucoup évolué depuis 40 ans. Mais qu’en est-il de leur situation en éducation et formation des adultes? Cet article, comparant le Canada et la France, montre que si les femmes ont un taux de participation plus élevé que les hommes, ce qui est un fait connu, leur présence plus forte en formation à vocation professionnelle constitue, toutefois, un phénomène nouveau. L’analyse met en relief certaines particularités, telles qu’un recours plus important à la formation continue au Canada, ou encore une probabilité plus élevée, en France, de la participation des employés à temps complet. Dans les deux pays, la participation des femmes demeure modulée par divers facteurs sociaux.