Learning to teach: new times,new practices (2nd ed.), by Gloria Latham,Mindy Blaise,Shelley Dole,Julie Faulkner and Karen Malone,South Melbourne,Oxford, 2011, 387 pp., AUD$92.95 (paperback), ISBN 978-0-195-56179-1

In the present article, you will read three different voices and their perspectives on the "What Keeps Teachers Going in Spite of Everything?" project that took place in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Sonia Nieto, a university researcher who initiated the project, provides the introduction and explanations for what evolved. Stephen Gordon and Junia Yearwood, two high school teachers in the Boston Public Schools, contribute their own reflections about the project. A different font represents each voice.     

Caring and Critical Thinking in the Teaching of Young Adolescents

In this article, I consider what Noddings’ ideas about the critical lessons schools should teach might suggest for social education and critical thinking at the middle school level. Giving particular consideration to Noddings’ calls to engage young people in self-understanding and allow students to pursue their interests, this article explores how the middle school years present an especially rich opportunity to engage students in an examination of the period of young adolescence, allow them to enter the debates about schooling for the middle grades, and use students’ interests as a springboard for examining complex social issues. Considering Noddings’ (2015, p. 1) urging for us to engage in the mission of “producing better adults,” I argue that the critical middle school years offer a generative time in young people’s lives to advance this important work.     

Potential of one-to-one technologies in the classroom: teachers and students weigh in

Increased efforts to promote 21st century learning emphasize the central role of technology in instructional delivery in order to advance the multifaceted abilities and skills required for student success in an increasingly technology-rich learning and work environment. A qualitative study was conducted in a large, economically diverse, mid-Atlantic school district to examine the implementation of six technology devices in 18 elementary, middle, and high school classrooms. The purpose was to understand teachers’ and students’ experiences related to the instructional implications of each device to inform long term, one-to-one implementation of an appropriate technology device to meet the district’s strategic goals for a 21st century learning environment. Teacher interviews and student focus groups revealed several themes related to technology integration, factors influencing implementation, impact on instruction, and impact on student motivation and engagement. Findings are discussed in relation to the district infrastructure and other considerations to support a one-to-one teaching and learning environment and how each of the six devices support the establishment of 21st century learning environments.     

The impact of short-term adventure-based outdoor programs on college students’ stress reduction

This study examines the effect of short-term adventure-based outdoor programs (AOP) on reducing college students’ stress levels. The effects of sex and different outdoor adventure activities in stress reduction are also evaluated. Thirty-three college students participated in selected short-term backpacking, canoeing, and kayaking programs. Student's salivary samples were collected to evaluate physiological stress response (as measured by levels of cortisol) and their psychological stress levels were collected through a modified 12-item questionnaire. Stress responses were measured at three different time points, including the second weekly meeting in the classroom, before the field trip, and at the conclusion of the field trip. Findings suggest that short-term AOP affords opportunities for college students to be away from daily challenges, and in turn reduce college students’ psychological stress levels and provide a temporary relief of physiological stress levels. No significant differences in college students’ stress levels were found between sex and different outdoor adventure activities.     

COMMUNITY COLLEGE TELEPHONE SURVEY RESEARCH: AN OVERVIEW OF METHODOLOGY AND UTILITY

The rise to prominence of surveys by telephone has been attributed to advances in telephone technology, improvement of telephone research procedures, near complete accessibility of any population via the telephone, expansion of a survey industry that requires quality data generated in an efficient and timely manner for eager clients, and availability of considerable information, based on experiment and experience, on what techniques work or do not work when doing telephone surveys. This article details 10 years of experience with telephone survey methodology utilized at Johnson County Community College (JCCC) to collect data from business and industry, former students, and individuals residing in JCCC's service area. Of particular interest to community college researchers are the results of comparisons between mail survey respondents and nonrespondents who were later telephoned for an interview. These comparisons were conducted on results of annual studies of JCCC's career program completers. Although nonrespondents tended to be younger and more often male than female, there were no notable differences in the level of success and satisfaction reported.