Socrates,discussion and moral education

For Socrates, as he appears in Plato's dialogues, the process of discussion is essential for preparing human beings to lead a moral life. Only through discussion, Socrates maintains, can we be led to an understanding of such concepts as wisdom, courage and justice. The author of this article believes that the Socratic notion of the moral value of discussion is still valid. In support of this view, he examines two recent works:Dialogues on Moral Education by John Wilson and Barbara Cowell, andMoral Education, Secular and Religious by John L. Elias. Finally, the author suggests how the Socratic concept of dialogue might be used in moral education today.

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Zusammenfassung Für Sokrates, wie er in Platos Dialogen erscheint, ist der Prozeß der Diskussion wesentlicher Bestandteil der Vorbereitung des Menschen auf ein moralisches Leben. Sokrates behauptet, daß wir nur durch Diskussion an ein Verständnis von Begriffen wie Weisheit, Mut und Gerechtigkeit herangeführt werden können. Der Autor dieses Artikels glaubt, daß der sokratische Begriff des moralischen Wertes der Diskussion immer noch Gültigkeit besitzt. Zur Unterstützung dieser These untersucht er zwei kürzlich erschienene Werke: Dialogues on Moral Education (Dialoge zu moralischer Bildung) von John Wilson und Barbara Cowell und Moral Education, Secular and Religious (Moralische Bildung, weltlich und geistlich) von John L. Elias. Zum Schluß unterbreitet der Autor Vorschläge, wie das sokratische Konzept des Dialogs heutzutage in der moralischen Erziehung Verwendung finden könnte.

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Resumen Para Sócrates, tal como se presenta en los diálogos platónicos, el proceso de discusión es fundamental en la preparación de los seres humanos para llevar una vida moral. Sócrates sostiene que sólo la discusión nos podrá guiar hacia el entendimiento de conceptos tales como sabiduría, valor y justicia. El autor de este artículo sostiene que la noción socrática del valor moral de la discusión sigue teniendo vigencia. Corroborando este punto de vista, examina dos obras recientes:Dialogues on Moral Education, de John Wilson y Barbara Cowell,y Moral education, Secular and Religious, de John L. Elias. Al finalizar, el autor sugiere la forma en la que el concepto socrático del diálogo podría aplicarse en la educación moral de nuestros días.

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Résumé Comme Platon l'transcrit dans ses dialogues, le processus de la discussion était pour Socrate essentiel dans la préparation des hommes à un mode de vie moral. Il insistait sur le fait que ce n'est qu'à travers la discussion que nous pouvons accéder à la compréhension de concepts tels que la sagesse, le courage ou la justice. L'auteur de cet article expose que la notion socratique de la valeur morale de la discussion est toujours valable. Pour soutenir ce point de vue, il analyse deux ouvrages récents:Dialogues on Moral Education de John Wilson et Barbara Cowell, etMoral Education, Secular and Religious de John L. Elias. L'auteur conclut en suggérant des formes d'application du concept socratique du dialogue dans l'éducation morale d'aujourd'hui.

     

On the front-line: Teachers as active observers of pupils’ mental health

There is a growing expectation that schoolteachers should not only act as educators by delivering the national curriculum, but also be more involved as tier one mental health professionals. In this role they are expected to assume some responsibility in the early identification of children's mental health problems and to refer these children for appropriate support as required [NHS Health Advisory Service. (1995). Together we stand: The commissioning, role and management of child and adolescent mental health services. London, UK: HMSO]. In this paper, we examine teachers’ experiences in light of these expectations and in the context of greater inclusion. We undertook in-depth interviews, to explore teachers’ views on competency and training in mental health management. Our findings indicate a widespread perception that teachers feel inadequately prepared to manage pupils with mental health needs. The findings are discussed with reference to the changing role of the teacher, current education policy and teacher training.     

Let’s Face(book) It: Analyzing Interactions in Social Network Groups for Chemistry Learning

We examined how social network (SN) groups contribute to the learning of chemistry. The main goal was to determine whether chemistry learning could occur in the group discourse. The emphasis was on groups of students in the 11th and 12th grades who learn chemistry in preparation for their final external examination. A total of 1118 discourse events were tallied in the different groups. We analyzed the different events that were found in chemistry learning Facebook groups (CLFGs). The analysis revealed that seven types of interactions were observed in the CLFGs: The most common interaction (47 %) dealt with organizing learning (e.g., announcements regarding homework, the location of the next class); learning interactions were observed in 22 % of the posts, and links to learning materials and social interactions constituted about 20 % each. The learning events that were ascertained underwent a deeper examination and three different types of chemistry learning interactions were identified. This examination was based on the theoretical framework of the commognitive approach to learning (Sfard in Thinking as communicating. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2008), which will be explained. The identified learning interactions that were observed in the Facebook groups illustrate the potential of SNs to serve as an additional tool for teachers to advance their students’ learning of chemistry.     

Interactive Broadcast Television in Australia

Interactive television is being used increasingly as a delivery format for distance education and open learning courses. In most applications, the delivery is to a closed audience within the framework of formal programmes of study. This paper reports on programmes in Western Australia where interactive educational television is being used in broadcast modes. The paper discusses the impact of the ensuing interactivity on the quality of the broadcast programmes from an instructional perspective.     

An international collaborative investigation of beginning seventh grade students' understandings of scientific inquiry: Establishing a baseline

Although understandings of scientific inquiry (as opposed to conducting inquiry) are included in science education reform documents around the world, little is known about what students have learned about inquiry during their elementary school years. This is partially due to the lack of any assessment instrument to measure understandings about scientific inquiry. However, a valid and reliable assessment has recently been developed and published, Views About Scientific Inquiry (VASI; Lederman et al. [2014], Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51, 65–83). The purpose of this large-scale international project was to collect the first baseline data on what beginning middle school students have learned about scientific inquiry during their elementary school years. Eighteen countries/regions spanning six continents including 2,634 students participated in the study. The participating countries/regions were: Australia, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Mainland China, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United States. In many countries, science is not formally taught until middle school, which is the rationale for choosing seventh grade students for this investigation. This baseline data will simultaneously provide information on what, if anything, students learn about inquiry in elementary school, as well as their beginning knowledge as they enter secondary school. It is important to note that collecting data from all of the approximately 200 countries globally was not humanly possible, and it was also not possible to collect data from every region of each country. The results overwhelmingly show that students around the world at the beginning of grade seven have very little understandings about scientific inquiry. Some countries do show reasonable understandings in certain aspects but the overall picture of understandings of scientific inquiry is not what is hoped for after completing 6 years of elementary education in any country.     

Reliability and Validity Evidence for Achievement Goal Models in High School Physical Education Settings

Although empirical research in academic areas provides support for both a 3-factor as well as a 4-factor achievement goal model, both models were proposed and tested with a collegiate sample. Little is known about the generalizability of either model with high school level samples. This study was designed to examine whether the 3-factor model (Mastery Goals, Performance-Approach Goals, and Performance-Avoidance Goals) or the 4-factor model (Mastery-Approach Goals, Mastery-Avoidance Goals, Performance-Approach Goals, and Performance-Avoidance Goals) is appropriate in high school physical education settings. The factorial validity of the models and internal consistency reliability were tested with confirmatory factor analysis, invariance testing, and tests of internal consistency across 2 samples. The results reveal that the items from the 4-factor achievement goal model can produce internally consistent and valid scores for high school students in physical education settings; the 4-factor model provides a better fit to the data than the 3-factor model. The multistep invariance analysis, however, reveals only metric invariance across 2 school samples.     

Seven Years After the Call: Students’ and Graduates’ Perceptions of the Re-envisioned Ed.D.

Given continued confusion about the Ed.D.degree, universities affiliated with the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED) have re-envisioned it using a set of guiding principles and design features. In this study, we investigated why students and graduates chose to pursue the Ed.D., what and how they learned, how they viewed themselves, and whether they perceived their programs to be aligned with CPED’s principles. Data were collected from 296 participants at 14 CPED institutions using an online survey. Results indicated respondents agreed that their programs were aligned with CPED principles, helped them meet their professional and personal goals, and developed them as scholarly practitioners.