Critical perspectives on Danish early childhood education and care: between the technical and the political

This paper discusses trends in contemporary Danish early childhood education and care (ECEC). Data are sourced from various policy documents, along with material from ongoing research projects in which the authors are involved. It is claimed that contemporary policy on Danish day care services has a tendency to emphasize narrow curriculum improvements and standardized testing. The democratic dimensions are still relatively strong, but at the moment these dimensions are interpreted within a skills‐and‐testing framework, which is leading to a situation where the political masquerades as the technical.     

Using digital images of the zebra finch song system as a tool to teach organizational effects of steroid hormones: a free downloadable module

Zebra finch song behavior is sexually dimorphic: males sing and females do not. The neural system underlying this behavior is sexually dimorphic, and this sex difference is easy to quantify. During development, the zebra finch song system can be altered by steroid hormones, specifically estradiol, which actually masculinizes it. Because of the ease of quantification and experimental manipulation, the zebra finch song system has great potential for use in undergraduate labs. Unfortunately, the underlying costs prohibit use of this system in undergraduate labs. Further, the time required to perform a developmental study renders such undertakings unrealistic within a single academic term. We have overcome these barriers by creating digital tools, including an image library of song nuclei from zebra finch brains. Students using this library replicate and extend a published experiment examining the dose of estradiol required to masculinize the female zebra finch brain. We have used this library for several terms, and students not only obtain significant experimental results but also make gains in understanding content, experimental controls, and inferential statistics (analysis of variance and post hoc tests). We have provided free access to these digital tools at the following website: http://mdcune.psych.ucla.edu/modules/birdsong.     

The Otis and Otisennon Tests: Their Contributions

After tracing the development of the Otis test series from 1918 to the present, the author argues that there will be a continuing demand for group-administered general mental ability tests in education. Nevertheless, he foresees a need for better ways of relating ability test scores with skills and achievements to make them more educationally useful.     

Emergent Team Roles in Organizational Meetings: Identifying Communication Patterns via Cluster Analysis

Previous team role taxonomies have largely relied on self-report data, have focused on functional roles and have described individual predispositions or personality traits. Instead, this study takes a communicative approach and proposes that team roles are produced, shaped and sustained in communicative behaviors. To identify team roles communicatively, 59 regular organizational meetings were videotaped and analyzed. Cluster analysis revealed five emergent roles: the solution seeker, the problem analyst, the procedural facilitator, the complainer, and the indifferent. In terms of meeting outcomes, solution seekers were beneficial to idea longevity, whereas complainers were harmful for meeting satisfaction and idea longevity. Future research directions and managerial implications are highlighted.     

The Influence of Instructor-Student Rapport on Instructors’ Professional and Organizational Outcomes

Students and teachers have relational goals and needs, yet little research has examined the relational goals of instructors and how achieving those goals may affect instructor outcomes. This study examined instructors’ perspectives on instructor-student rapport. Results revealed that instructors who build rapport with students are likely to experience teaching satisfaction, affective commitment to the institution, and enhanced teaching efficacy. However, instructor-student rapport was not related to instructor morale. The findings in this study highlight the importance of positive instructor-student relationships in the classroom and the implications for both instructors and administrators.     

On the Margins of the "Information Society": A Comparative Study of Mediation

While much has been written about marginalization as a structural phenomenon, there is little understanding of how the dynamics of marginalization unfold at the micro level in urban contexts. We seek to understand these micro-level marginalization processes via a comparative study of Bangalore, India, and Ronneby, Sweden. Our analysis highlights the important role that “mediators” such as governmental agencies, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and international agencies play in ensuring the success of initiatives launched by national governments and international agencies for drawing disadvantaged groups into the information society.     

Are there any questions? one teacher’s view of students and their questions in a fourth-grade classroom

While many teachers agree that the questions students ask are valuable, researchers have found that student questions are notably absent from most classrooms. We know almost nothing about the exceptions to this—classrooms where teachers manage to elicit and use student questions effectively in instruction. One fourth grade teacher, known for her use of student questions, was selected for this study. Classroom observations and interviews were used to gather data; qualitative methods were utilized to analyze the teacher interviews and the interactions surrounding 260 questions students asked during observations. This paper highlights the teacher’s stance toward her students and their questions. 1) The teacher viewed her students as learners who asked questions to increase their understanding. 2) The teacher viewed the assumptions revealed by student questions, as ‘steps’ to the curriculum. 3) The teacher viewed her students’ questions through the lens of potential; that is, she responded to questions based on how they might promote the understanding of her students.