Selected aspects of conditions in the use of new media as an important part of the training of teachers in the Czech Republic and Poland - differences,risks and threats

The paper presents the complex problems of preparation of pedagogy students to work as teachers in the context of their readiness to use ICT in the didactic process. The complexity of this subject matter has been proved by the current, ongoing, discussion about the direction of the expected transformations of contemporary schools and the prospective teachers education system in the age of prevalent digitization. Considering the complexity of conditions, the main research problem has been formulated as follows: Conditions of what type affect the preparation of prospective teachers to use new media in learning and teaching process?. Thus, the empirical analysis conducted in the paper focuses on the following issues: the style of using new media by students, identification of students’ attitudes towards media, subjective (from the students’ point of view) assessment of how university level schools are prepared to shape modern media competences among their students and self-evaluation of media and IT competences in the group of prospective teachers. Czech and Polish students, despite being the so called digital natives, do not present homogeneous styles of using new media. They also reveal different attitudes toward applying digital solutions to the didactic process. Factors such as: low evaluation of one’s own competences or lack of evaluation in this area, lack of creative approach to the use of new media, lack of education in the area of new applications, lack of skills necessary to handle basic digital tools (e.g. interactive board, e-learning platforms) negatively affect, in most cases, the attitude toward the active use of ICT tools in future didactic work. On the basis of the gathered empirical data and inductive qualitative analysis a typology of students attitudes toward new media was developed. It consists of four categories: techno-optimist, techno-realist, techno-pessimist and techno-ignorant. The whole of analyses has the character of comparative research and involves two neighboring countries of the Visegrad Group: Poland (N?=?466) and Czech Republic (N?=?168).     

Fused empirical mode decomposition and wavelets for locating combined damage in a truss-type structure through vibration analysis

Structural health monitoring （SHM） is a relevant topic for civil systems and involves the monitoring, data processing and interpretation to evaluate the condition of a structure, in order to detect damage. In real structures, two or more sites or types of damage can be present at the same time. It has been shown that one kind of damaged condition can interfere with the detection of another kind of damage, leading to an incorrect assessment about the structure condition. Identifying combined damage on struc- tures still represents a challenge for condition monitoring, because the reliable identification of a combined damaged condition is a difficult task. Thus, this work presents a fusion of methodologies, where a single wavelet-packet and the empirical mode decom- position （EMD） method are combined with artificial neural networks （ANNs） for the automated and online identification-location of single or multiple-combined damage in a scaled model of a five-bay truss-type structure. Results showed that the proposed methodology is very efficient and reliable for identifying and locating the three kinds of damage, as well as their combinations. Therefore, this methodology could be applied to detection-location of damage in real truss-type structures, which would help to improve the characteristics and life span of real structures.     

Conjoint Behavioral Consultation: Community–School Collaboration and Behavioral Outcomes Using Multiple Baseline

A plethora of literature suggests that collaborative partnerships among families, educators, and outside service providers are necessary and beneficial to address behavior problems, but there continues to be a lack of coordination among these stakeholders. The current study used conjoint behavioral consultation (CBC) to facilitate the development and implementation of collaborative intervention plans. Parents, teachers, and an outside mental health provider worked together to create and support behavioral intervention plans that were implemented at home and school. The results of this multiple baseline study indicate that collaborative interventions developed through the CBC process were effective in improving behavior at home and school. More specifically, visual analysis of the data, along with calculated effect sizes, showed an increase in the percentage of time that all 3 participants complied with expectations during problematic routines at home and school. Implications, limitations, and future research directions are discussed.     

An Exploratory Analysis of Differential Item Functioning and Its Possible Sources in a Higher Education Admissions Context

We analyzed a pool of items from an admissions test for differential item functioning (DIF) for groups based on age, socioeconomic status, citizenship, or English language status using Mantel-Haenszel and item response theory. DIF items were systematically examined to identify its possible sources by item type, content, and wording. DIF was primarily found in the citizenship group. As suggested by expert reviewers, possible sources of DIF in the direction of U.S. citizens was often in Quantitative Reasoning in items containing figures, charts, tables depicting real-world (as opposed to abstract) contexts. DIF items in the direction of non-U.S. citizens included “mathematical” items containing few words. DIF for the Verbal Reasoning items included geocultural references and proper names that may be differentially familiar for non-U.S. citizens. This study is responsive to foundational changes in the fairness section of the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, which now consider additional groups in sensitivity analyses, given the increasing demographic diversity in test-taker populations.     

De l'espace du dessin a celui de l'objet. Une activité de mises en correspondances entre des dessins en perspective cavalière et des objects réels

Résumé L'objectif du travail présenté est de mieux comprendre les difficultés de lecture de dessins d'objets en perspective que rencontre des sujets adultes de bas niveau de formation. 33 sujets participent à l'expérience. Ils doivent décrire verbalement deux dessins en perspective cavalière, puis choisir, parmi un ensemble de dix objets en bois possédant des propriétés spatiales définies, l'object correspondant à chaque dessin donné. Les résultats obtenus montrent que la perception de la troisième dimension dépend des propriétés graphiques des dessins et fonctionne sur le mode du tout ou rien: la troisième dimension est lue par une majorité de sujets, et le quart de la population rencontre des difficultés; nous n'avons observé que très peu de réponses correspondant à un décodage partiel de la profondeur. En conclusion divers procédés pour entraîner les sujets à lire des dessins d'objets en perspective sont abordés.

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From drawing to object space. Analysis of activities connecting objects with their perspective drawings

The aim of the work described here was to gain a better understanding of the difficulties met by adults, of lower levels of education, on reading perspective drawings. 33 subjects took part in the experiment. They had to describe verbally two perspective drawings of objects, then choose, from a collection of ten wooden objects with defined spatial properties, the one corresponding to each drawing. The results obtained show that reading of the third dimension depends on the graphic properties of the drawings, and that success is an all or nothing matter. The third dimension was correctly read by a majority of the subjects, but a quarter of the sample experienced difficulties. We noted that very few answers corresponded to a partial decoding. To conclude, various training procedures are discussed.

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Je remercie Madame Régine Lorfeuvre qui a collaboré à cette expérimentation. Elle a rédigé un mémoire sur ce thème à l'Institut de Biométrie Humaine et d'Orientation Professionnelle de Marseille.     

Hip adductor muscle function in forward skating

Adductor strain injuries are prevalent in ice hockey. It has long been speculated that adductor muscular strains may be caused by repeated eccentric contractions which decelerate the leg during a stride. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of skating speed with muscle activity and lower limb kinematics, with a particular focus on the role of the hip adductors. Seven collegiate ice hockey players consented to participate. Surface electromyography (EMG) and kinematics of the lower extremities were measured at three skating velocities 3.33 m/s (slow), 5.00 m/s (medium) and 6.66 m/s (fast). The adductor magnus muscle exhibited disproportionately larger increases in peak muscle activation and significantly prolonged activation with increased speed. Stride rate and stride length also increased significantly with skating velocity, in contrast, hip, knee and ankle total ranges of motion did not. To accommodate for the increased stride rate with higher skating speeds, the rate of hip abduction increased significantly in concert with activations of adductor magnus indicating a substantial eccentric contraction. In conclusion, these findings highlight the functional importance of the adductor muscle group and hip abduction–adduction in skating performance as well as indirectly support the notion that groin strain injury potential increases with skating speed.     

Development and testing of a direct observation code training protocol for elementary aged students with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Observational measures can add objective data to both research and clinical evaluations of children’s behavior in the classroom. However, they pose challenges for training and attaining high levels of interrater reliability between observers. The Behavioral Observation of Students in Schools (BOSS) is a commonly used school-based observation instrument that is well adapted to measure symptoms of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the classroom setting. Reliable use of the BOSS for clinical or research purposes requires training to reach reliable standards (kappa?≥?0.80). The current study conducted training observations in one suburban and one urban elementary school in the Greater Boston area. To enhance interrater reliability and reduce training time, supplemental guidelines, including 30 additional rules to follow, were developed over two consecutive school years. The complete protocol was then used for training in the third school year. To reach sufficient interrater reliability (kappa?≥?0.80) during training, 45 training observations were required in the first year while, in the third year, only 17 observations were required. High interrater reliability was sustained after training across all three school years, accumulating a total of 1,001 post-training observations. It is estimated that clinicians or researchers following this proposed protocol, who are naive to the BOSS, will require approximately 30 training observations to reach proficient reliability. We believe this protocol will make the BOSS more accessible for clinical and research usage, and the procedures used to obtain high interrater reliability using the BOSS are broadly applicable to a variety of observational measures.     

In defense of good textbooks

This study examined the design of the associate dean's position within the context of the top 50 colleges and schools of education. Three design parameters of individual positions developed by Mintzberg (1983) were used to examine how associate deans' positions are designed: (a) the specialization of the job, (b) the formalization of the behavior in carrying out the job, and (c) the training and indoctrination required for the job. The conclusion and implications provide guidelines for the organization and governance of the dean's office.     

Computers

COMPUTER FUNDAMENTALS FOR AN INFORMATION AGE, by Gary Shelly and Thomas J. Cashman (Brea., Calif.: Anaheim Publishing, 1984—price not given, paper)

COMPUTERS: THE NON-TECHNOLOGICAL (HUMAN) FACTORS–A RECOMMENDED READING LIST ON COMPUTER ERGONOMICS & USER FRIENDLY DESIGN, edited by John L. Burch (The Report Store, 910 Massachusetts Avenue, Suite 503, Lawrence, KS 66044–$34.95, paper)

HOW TO PREVENT COMPUTER CRIME: A GUIDE FOR MANAGERS, by August Bequai (New York: John Wiley, 1983–$27.95)

VIDEO DISPLAYS, WORK, AND VISION, by the National Research Council (Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press, 1983—price not given, paper)

MEMORIES THAT SHAPED AN INDUSTRY: DECISIONS LEADING TO ISM SYSTEM/360, by Emerson W. Pugh (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1984—price not given)

HIGH-SPEED COMPUTING DEVICES, by Engineering Research Associates, Inc. (Los Angeles: Tomash Publishers–distribution by MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.—price not given)

THE COMPUTER COMES OF AGE: THE PEOPLE, THE HARDWARE, AND THE SOFTWARE, by Rene Monceau (Cambridge: - MIT Press, 1984—price not given)

FIRE IN THE VALLEY: THE MAKING OF THE PERSONAL COMPUTER, by Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine (Osborne/McGraw-Hill, 2600 Tenth Street, Berkeley, Calif. 94710–$9.95, paper)

EXECUCOMP: MAXIMUM MANAGEMENT WITH THE NEW COMPUTERS, by F. Warren Benton (New York: John Wiley, 1983–$19.95)

ONLINE COMMUNITIES: A CASE STUDY OF THE OFFICE OF THE FUTURE, by Starr Roxanne Hiltz (Norwood, N.J.: Ablex, 1984—price not given)

INTRODUCTION TO LOCAL AREA COMPUTER NETWORKS, by K.C.E. Gee (New York: Wiley/Interscience, 1983–$16.95, paper)

LOCAL AREA NETWORKS: ISSUES, PRODUCTS, AND DEVELOPMENTS, by V.E. Cheong and R.A. Hirschheim (New York: Wiley/Interscience, 1983–$29.95)

BUSINESS DATA COMMUNICATIONS: BASIC CONCEPTS, SECURITY, AND DESIGN, by Jerry Fitzgerald (New York: John Wiley, 1984–$30.95)

INFORMATION MANAGEMENT IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, edited by Forest W. Horton and Donald A. Marchand (Information Resources Press, 1700 N. Moore St., Arlington, VA 22209–$48.80 including postage)

ELECTRONIC ILLUSIONS: A SKEPTIC'S VIEW OF OUR HIGH-TECH FUTURE, by Ian Reinecke (New York: Penguin Books, 1984–$7.95, paper)