Issues to Consider in Designing WebQuests: A Literature Review

A WebQuest is an inquiry-based online learning technique. This technique has been widely adopted in K–16 education. Therefore, it is important that conditions of effective WebQuest design are defined. Through this article the author presents techniques for improving WebQuest design based on current research. More specifically, the author analyzes the WebQuest technique in terms of the principles of cognitive load theory, interactivity, accessibility, and usability and visual appearance. The author argues that several factors must be taken into consideration in order to effectively design WebQuests that will educate without impeding the learning process.     

Pedagogical influence of interaction with cooperating teachers on the efficacy beliefs of student teachers

Abstract

Cooperating teachers are often identified as some of the most important figures in the preparation of new teachers, and the reasons are not difficult to understand. Surprisingly, however, very little research has been conducted to quantify the effects of cooperating teachers on student teachers. This study examines the impact of student teachers' perceived interactions with their cooperating teachers and the influence that interaction has on student teachers' self‐efficacy for teaching. Results indicate a moderate correlation between perceptions of teaching efficacy and cooperating teacher‐student teacher interactions. Differences were found in the frequency of interaction based on the certification level of the student teacher, with elementary level student teachers perceiving a greater amount of interaction with their cooperating teachers. However, no differences based on certification level were detected in perceived efficacy. Student teachers' perceptions of the level of guidance offered by their cooperating teachers provided the most reliable predictor for their efficacy belief.     

New trends in science education

I intend to review the main contributions from the impressive developments made in science education research during the last decade. These developments have made the construction of a coherent body of knowledge possible allowing us to expect a significant improvement in the science teaching/learning process. I shall refer, in particular, to the new trends in science education research, both in the domain of science learning and science teacher‐training.     

Measuring the local economic impact of universities: an approach that considers uncertainty

The contribution of universities to society is due to the effects generated both in the supply and in the demand side, the latter being associated with the injection of demand as a result of the activities these institutions carry out. This paper focuses on the impact of the demand side by designing a methodology based on Monte Carlo simulations so as to introduce stochastic elements in calculating the economic impact of universities. We apply this methodology to the case of Valencian public universities, introducing stochastic elements in all the elements which imply assumptions with uncertainty. The results highlight the importance of considering uncertainty by generating multipliers which can vary around the average value by 18 % in the case of output and employment, and 10 % in the case of income.     

¿Cómo determinan los niños la concordancia de género?: Refutación de la teoría del género natural

Resumen

En este artículo se presentan los datos de un experimento realizado sobre el desarrollo del género con 160 niños hispanoparlantes de 4 a 11 años de edad. Las tres posibles claves (información semántica, morfofonológica, y sintáctica) que los hablantes pueden emplear para determinar el género del nombre y su concordancia con otros elementos variables que lo acompañan, han sido manipuladas experimentalmente para ofrecer las combinaciones posibles. Así se han presentado 1) items en los que solamente estaba presente una clave, 2) items en los que había un efecto combinado de dos de ellas en concordancia (ambas ya sea masculinas, o femeninas), 3) e items en los que las claves estaban en conflicto (una de ellas era masculina y la otra femenina, por ejemplo).

Los resultados hallados (que se comparan con los obtenidos en otras lenguas) dan apoyo a la perspectiva teórica que defiende que los niños prestan más atendón a la información sintáctica y morfofonológica (intralingüística) que a la semántica (extralinguistica).     

Nuevas perspectivas metodológicas para el estudio del habla egocéntrica

Resumen

Las hipótesis de Vygotski sobre el papel del habla egocéntrica en la regulación de las acciones representa uno de los temas de mayor interés para los estudiosos del binomio pensamiento-lenguaje. Para abrir nuevas vías al análisis de este campo del lenguaje es necesario reflexionar sobre una serie de cuestiones fundamentales, sin las cuales el sentido de estas hipótesis se desvirtúa. Estas quedan reflejadas en los siguientes puntos: a) definición vygotskiana de habla egocéntrica (indiferentiatión entre el habla para los demás y el habla para uno mismo); b) requisitos conversacionales elicitadores de este tipo de habla, los cuales evidencian su origen social (i. e., incremento del número de emisiones egocéntircas cuando el niño actúa en compañía de otros niños); y por último, c) el papel del contexto extralingüistico (i. e., objetos físicos sobre los que se actúa). Dada la gran dependencia del discurso infantil de la situación concreta, el contexto extralingüístico es analizado como un requisito conversational más, responsable del mantenimiento de la conversación (habla social) y del habla egocéntrica asociada a ésta. Finalmente, la revisión de estas cuestiones invita a desarrollar una perspectiva dialógica de análisis a partir de las nociones de diálogo, habla interna y emisión de Bajtin. La perspectiva dialógica permitirá analizar las emisiones de carácter egocéntrico en el contexto lingüístico y/o conversacional en que emergen.     

Psicología de la instrucción,razonamiento y conocimientos específicos

Resumen

El objetivo de este artículo es presentar la línea de investigación sobre Psicología de la Instrucción desarrollada en la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Esta línea se ha originado, en términos generales, a partir de los problemas que tenía planteados la teoría de Piaget en torno al estudio de las operaciones formales. El intento de explicar los resultados anteriores llevaron a considerar fundamental el estudio del contenido en las tareas con estructura lógica y en el razonamiento en general. Los trabajos dentro de esta línea se han visto influidos por los estudios realizados sobre expertos y novatos en áreas de conocimiento específicas y los realizados sobre concepciones previas o erróneas (misconceptions). Concretamente se presentan dos investigaciones específicas. Una sobre las ideas de los alumnos adolescentes en Química y otra sobre la comprensión de textos y las variables que influyen en él. En resumen, puede considerarse que hemos pasado de unas preocupaciones más centradas en los procesos cognitivos de razonamiento a otras que tienen más en cuenta la importancia del conocimiento específico y por tanto de las variables instruccionales.     

Types of aggressive victims in bullying situations at secondary school / Tipos de víctimas agresivas en situaciones de bullying en Educación Secundaria

Abstract

The distinction between subtypes of passive and aggressive victims in studies of bullying has been a cornerstone of research in recent decades. However, some aspects of victimization still need further elaboration, such as the differentiation of subtypes of aggressive victims of bullying, the dynamics of the process of victimization, and the perceptions that participants have of their victimized classmates. The objective of this qualitative research is to distinguish between different types of aggressive victims, taking account of the testimonies of secondary school students. Focus groups and in-depth interviews have been conducted with 72 adolescents from the second, third and fourth years of Compulsory Secondary Education and the information has been analysed following the steps proposed by Grounded Theory; a systematic methodology involving the discovery of theory through the analysis of data. The results identify six types of aggressive victims: due to the accumulation of stress, provocative victims, victims through contagion, passive telltale victims, academically gifted victims protected by teachers, and finally, displaced aggression victims.     

Learning styles and approaches to learning in excellent and average first-year university students

We assessed the learning approaches and learning styles of a sample of 148 excellent students selected from 11 degrees from nine centers of the Polytechnic University of Valencia (Spain), and we compared the results with those of a sample of 133 average students from the same centers. We found that excellent students took deeper approach than average students and that they preferred reflective and theoretical learning styles. Average students adopted a more surface approach, and they preferred active and pragmatic learning styles. Greater academic achievement was related to the deep approach and to the reflective and theoretical learning styles. Poorer academic achievement was related to the surface approach and an active style. University professors may reinforce the deep approach by placing high aims for students which go well beyond reproducing knowledge but use other complementary methods other than expository teaching: problem solving, case studies, designing projects, raising questions, discussion and negotiation in the classroom, etc. To accomplish this, teachers must encourage students to be committed, and these methods help do that. It also helps to introduce more demanding evaluation procedures which do not merely involve repeating what has been learnt, but include training guidance that offers students feedback.     

Evaluating intelligent interfaces for post-editing automatic transcriptions of online video lectures

Video lectures are fast becoming an everyday educational resource in higher education. They are being incorporated into existing university curricula around the world, while also emerging as a key component of the open education movement. In 2007, the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) implemented its poliMedia lecture capture system for the creation and publication of quality educational video content and now has a collection of over 10,000 video objects. In 2011, it embarked on the EU-subsidised transLectures project to add automatic subtitles to these videos in both Spanish and other languages. By doing so, it allows access to their educational content by non-native speakers and the deaf and hard-of-hearing, as well as enabling advanced repository management functions. In this paper, following a short introduction to poliMedia, transLectures and Docència en Xarxa (Teaching Online), the UPV’s action plan to boost the use of digital resources at the university, we will discuss the three-stage evaluation process carried out with the collaboration of UPV lecturers to find the best interaction protocol for the task of post-editing automatic subtitles.