Content analysis of shyness portrayals in television advertising

This study tested the hypotheses that shyness is under‐represented in television advertising and that among shy characters, women and children are over‐represented. Network commercials were content‐analyzed for their characterizations of inhibited behaviors. Results indicated that shyness was rarely exhibited and, within the shy portrayals, men and children were more likely to be depicted as shy.     

The Religious Roots of Ernest L. Boyer's Educational Vision: A Theology of Public Pietism

The educational theories and policies promoted by Ernest L. Boyer (1928–1995), who served as chancellor of the SUNY system, U.S. Commissioner (Secretary) of Education, and president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, were significantly influenced by his affiliations with the Brethren in Christ Church and the Society of Friends (Quakers) even though he rarely spoke about his faith publicly. Drawing on Anabaptist, pietistic, and apophatic (silence-oriented) theological traditions, Boyer's public career demonstrated a service-focused convictional theology that could be termed “public pietism.” Boyer's educational philosophy focused on human connectedness and called for all citizens to be active participants in improving their communities by living out nonsectarian “consensus virtues.” While Boyer was a strong proponent of the separation of church and state, his public service was imbued with deeply held Christian values.     

The trickster figure in African-American teaching: Pre- and postdesegregation

This paper explores African-American cultural performance as it exists in education. It focuses on the trickster performance and reveals this community tradition in action through research conducted with African-American educators at two urban schools in the South. The goal of the research is to increase the recognition and use of cultural performance in schools and to create an enhanced learning environment.     

Approaches to illuminate content-specific gameplay decisions using open-ended game data

Educational technology research and development - Games can be rich environments for learning and can elicit evidence of students’ conceptual understanding and inquiry processes. Illuminating...     

Development of the Secure Counselor: Case Examples Supporting Pistole & Watkins's (1995) Discussion of Attachment Theory in Counseling Supervision

The author clarifies key concepts and assumptions of attachment theory, emphasizing the importance of adult attachment relationships in counseling supervision. Case examples are presented of supervisee behaviors and subsequent supervision strategies used during a semester‐long practicum. The case examples illustrate how the application of theoretical constructs described in attachment theory can foster productive supervisor and supervisee alliances.     

Examining Drivers of Course Performance: An Exploratory Examination of an Introductory CIS Applications Course

The accelerating diffusion of broadband Internet access provides many opportunities for the development of pedagogically robust Web‐based instruction (WBI). While the supporting technology infrastructure of broadband disseminates, the attention of academic researchers focuses upon issues such as the drivers of student usage of WBI. Specifically, the research presented herein examined the impact of WBI on a student's aggregate course performance. We hypothesized that learning independence (LI) is a determinate factor in a student's use of WBI. In this study, we employed structural equation modeling techniques to examine the data and assess the direct and indirect effects of LI on WBI usage. The subjects, students in an introductory Computer Information Systems applications course, used a Web‐based tutorial program for skills instruction. The findings of this study suggest that WBI usage has a significant impact on a student's course performance. Despite its plausibility, the effect of LI on WBI usage was not significant. However, we did conclude that two of the second order factors of the LI construct have a direct effect on a student's performance in the course.     

Exploring Out-of-School Play and Educational Readiness

Play researchers and theorists have cautioned that children’s early play is changing in a manner that is detrimental to their development. Meanwhile U.S. governmental pressures and increasingly higher standards for education are changing the landscape of kindergarten and early learning. This study investigates the relationship between children’s out-of-school play and their educational readiness. Parents of kindergarten students in a suburban Midwestern school district completed the Child Play Survey on time their children spent in out-of-school play. Kindergarten teachers rated students on three domains of readiness using the newly devised Illinois Kindergarten Individual Development Survey (KIDS 2015): Attention to Learning—Self-Regulation (ATL-REG); Social and Emotional Development (SED); and Language and Literacy Development (LLD). Correlational and regression analyses suggest that time in out-of-school play is not positively associated to teacher ratings of academic and behavioral performance in kindergarten. Rather, increased time in outdoor play on school days and non-school days resulted in lower scores on all three readiness domains. Time in outdoor play was correlated to free-reduced lunch eligibility, the socioeconomic measure utilized in the study. Parent education level, income level, attendance at 3-year-old preschool and daycare attendance were found to positively influence readiness measures. Implications for future research are presented.     

Abilities and affordances: factors influencing successful child–tablet communication

Using Luhmann’s communication theory and affordance theories, we develop a framework to examine how kindergarten-grade 2 students interact with tablet computers. We assessed whether cognitive ability and device configuration influence how successfully children use tablet computers. We found that children’s limited ability to direct their cognitive resources affects child–tablet communication (i.e., sending and receiving information to and from the device). While it may appear that children simply know how to use this technology, they are actually engaged in a systematic assessment of the device governed by their level of attentional maturity. Interestingly, tablet computers designed for adults result in a higher frequency of successful communication but prolonged communication was most likely to take place on child-focused tablet computers. It seems that communication success and user engagement are independent.