Comprehensive School Guidance Programs in the United States: A Career Profile

An overview of the origin, evolution, and current status of comprehensive school guidance programs in the United States is presented. Specific emphasis is given to the important and central roles that career development concepts and practices have within these programs in the elementary, middle, and high schools of the United States. Possible implications for international career guidance leaders and practitioners are provided.

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Résumé. Programmes d’orientation pour l′enseignement secondaire aux Etats-Unis: un profil de vie professionnelle On présente une vue d′ensemble de l’origine, de l′évolution et de l′état actuel des programmes d’orientation pour l′enseignement secondaire aux Etats-Unis. On souligne en particulier les rôles importants et centraux que les concepts et les pratiques en matière de développement de vie professionnelle ont dans ces programmes dans les écoles primaires, l’enseignement secondaire moyen et l’enseignement secondaire supérieur aux Etats-Unis. On cite les implications possibles de cette analyse pour les autorités et les praticiens internationaux de conseil de carrière.Zusammenfassung. Umfassende schulische Beratungsprogramme in den USA: Ein Berufsprofil Es wird ein Überblick über die Ursprünge, die Entwicklung und den aktuellen Status umfassender schulischer Beratungsprogramme in den USA gegeben. Besondere Betonung liegt auf der wichtigen und zentralen Bedeutung, die Berufswahlkonzepte und –aktivitäten in diesen Programmen in den Grund-, Mittel- und Hochschulen der USA haben. Mögliche Schlussfolgerungen für internationale Leitfiguren der Beratung und Berater werden vorgeschlagen.Resumen. Programas Comprensivos de Orientación Escolar en los Estados Unidos: Un Perfil Profesional Se presenta un panorama general del origen, evolución y estado actual de los programas comprensivos de orientación escolar en los Estados Unidos. Se hace especial hincapié en la importancia y el papel central que juegan los conceptos y prácticas del desarrollo de la carrera dentro de estos programas en los niveles de educación primaria, secundaria inferior y superior de los Estados Unidos. Se sugieren posibles implicaciones para los orientadores y responsables de la orientación para la carrera en el ámbito internacional.

     

Two sources of proactive interference in spatial working memory: Multiple effects of repeated trials on radial maze performance by rats

Rats were trained in 8- and 12-arm radial mazes. Each trial began with a study phase (forced choices of 4 arms). The trial ended after a 2-h delay in a test phase consisting of free choices among 8 arms; choices of the 4 arms not yet visited were correct (rewarded). Proactive interference (PI) was induced by an interference phase that occurred on some days 2 or 3 h prior to the study phase. In the PI-repetition condition, the interference phase consisted of forced choices of the 8 arms that were later presented in the study and test phases; in the PI-nonrepetition condition, the interference consisted of forced choices of the 4 arms that were correct during the test phase. Test-phase performance was most accurate in the No PI (single-trial) condition and least accurate in the PI-repetition condition. A second experiment showed that repetitions per se were not responsible for the PI; when the interference phase consisted only of choices of the same 4 arms later presented in the study phase, no PI was observed. These findings suggest two sources of PI. One source, measured by the difference between No PI and PI-nonrepetition conditions, appears to be a difficulty in discriminating the temporal order of visits to arms in the interference and study phases. The other source of PI, measured by the difference between the nonrepetition and repetition conditions, remains to be identified; some possibilities are discussed.     

An analysis of intuitive and model-directed media-selection decisions

Media-selection decisions of 30 instructional development graduate students were studied under intuitive and model-directed decision-making conditions. Students were given three media-selection problems and were directed to select an appropriate medium for each problem and to write a rationale for the medium selected. The students used thier intuitions to select media for the first problem. They used a formal media selection process to select media for the other two problems. Results indicated that the proportion of students who made correct media selections when they used their intuition was not significantly different from the proportion who made correct selections the first time they used the formal selection process. The proportion of students who made correct selections the second time they used the formal process was significantly greater than the proportion who made correct selection decisions when using their intuition and when using the formal selection process the first time. Subsequent analysis, however, indicated that there was no correlation between the correct use of the formal selection process and making correct media-selection decisions. Implications for the design and use of formal media selection processes in instructional development are described. The authors appreciate the assistance provided by Gene Glass regarding the analysis and interpretation of the data reported in this study.     

A multilevel study of position effects in PISA achievement tests: student- and school-level predictors in the German tracked school system

Abstract

Position effects (PE) cause decreasing probabilities of correct item responses towards the end of a test. We analysed PEs in science, mathematics and reading tests administered in the German extension to the PISA 2006 study with respect to their variability at the student- and school-level. PEs were strongest in reading and weakest in mathematics. Variability in PEs was found at both levels of analysis. PEs were stronger for male students, for students with a migration background (science and mathematics), and for students with a less favourable socio-economic background (reading). At the school level, PEs were stronger in lower school tracks and in schools with a high proportion of students with a migration background. The relationships of the test scores with the covariates partly reflected the covariates’ relationships with PEs. Our findings suggest that PEs should be taken seriously in large-scale assessments as they have an undesirable impact on the results.     

Contextualizing the Relationship Between Nature of Scientific Knowledge and Scientific Inquiry

Science & Education - How nature of scientific knowledge (NOSK) or nature of science (NOS) and scientific inquiry (SI) are contextualized, or related to each other, significantly impacts both...     

Faculty perceptions of librarian value: The moderating relationship between librarian contact,course goals,and students' research skills

Faculty perceptions of librarians' contributions to students' research skills has been linked to frequency of librarian contact in the extant literature. Yet, to date, no studies have tested this hypothesis via a large-scale nationally representative data set. In addition, the hypothesis that faculty perceptions of librarians might also be a function of faculty course goals has yet to be tested. This current study analyzed the most recent Ithaka S + R US Faculty Survey responses to evaluate the relationship between librarian contact, course goals, and faculty perceptions of librarians' contributions. The analyses support the conclusion that perceived frequency of librarian interaction and faculty course goals are both associated with faculty perceptions of librarians' contributions to students' research skill development. Furthermore, this study unveiled a moderating effect between perceived frequency of librarian contact and faculty course goals; that is, one is contingent on the other.     

Bearing the burden of doubt: female coaches' experiences of gender relations

Based on interview research, this study examined how master female coaches based in the United Kingdom experienced relations with men within their profession. Using a feminist cultural studies approach to examine how sport promotes and maintains a gender order unfavorable to women, we found that female coaches felt the need to continually prove themselves and often experienced coaching as a hostile and intimidating culture. Participants reported a gradual reduction in such unwelcoming behavior from men, seemingly because they had proved to be no threat to the existing patriarchal structure. A critical exploration of coaching is needed to understand how masculine hegemony leads to women's relative powerlessness as coaches. Furthermore, the findings present a case for a greater emphasis on sociocultural education within the UK coaching curricula.     

Cross-Domain Trajectories of Students’ Ability Self-Concepts and Intrinsic Values in Math and Language Arts

Different cross-domain trajectories in the development of students’ ability self-concepts (ASCs) and their intrinsic valuing of math and language arts were examined in a cross-sequential study spanning Grades 1 through 12 (n = 1,069). Growth mixture modeling analyses identified a Moderate Math Decline/Stable High Language Arts class and a Moderate Math Decline/Strong Language Arts Decline class for students’ ASC trajectories. Students’ intrinsic value trajectories included a Strong Math Decline/Language Arts Decline Leveling Off, a Moderate Math Decline/Strong Language Arts Decline, and a Stable Math and Language Arts Trajectories class. These classes differed with regard to student characteristics, including gender, family background, and math and reading aptitudes. They also resulted in different high school math course enrollments, career aspirations, and adult careers.