Temperament, Emotion, and Cognition at Fourteen Months: The MacArthur Longitudinal Twin Study

200 pairs of twins were assessed at 14 months of age in the laboratory and home. Measures were obtained of temperament, emotion, and cognition/language. Comparisons between identical and fraternal twin correlations suggest that individual differences are due in part to heritable influences. For temperament, genetic influence was significant for behavioral observations of inhibition to the unfamiliar, tester ratings of activity, and parental ratings of temperament. For emotion, significant genetic influence was found for empathy and parental ratings of negative emotion. The estimate of heritability for parental report of expression of negative emotions was relatively high, whereas that for expression of positive emotions was low, a finding consistent with previous research. For cognition and language, genetic influence was significant for behavioral indices of spatial memory, categorization, and word comprehension. Shared rearing environment appears influential for parental reports of language and for positive emotions, but not for other measures of emotion or for temperament.     

“I have a Preschool Buddy” Exploring the Role of High School Students in Facilitating the Pre-academic Skills and Social Development of Preschool Children

The purpose of this research is to explore the role of a director of a preschool program who mentors and trains high school students to teach and work directly with preschool children in the context of individual lessons, small group activities, and large group instruction. This participant-observer research study also examines how the director assesses the high school students ability to work effectively with the preschoolers they are assigned to teach and addresses the pre-academic and social learner outcomes for these children in this unique preschool program. Parent feedback pertaining to preschool learning outcomes is also examined.     

Systemizing and the gender gap: examining academic achievement and perseverance in STEM

For years, a popular explanation for women choosing to abandon studies in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) has been their lack of aptitude. This study challenged that notion by integrating theories of cognitive style, academic emotion, self-efficacy, and motivation to explain students’ academic achievement and perseverance in STEM when transitioning to college. A sample of 1597 high school and junior college students participated. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were first conducted to validate a reduced version of the cognitive style questionnaire. Structural equation modeling revealed that the cognitive style known as systemizing indirectly predicted STEM achievement and persistence by way of intrinsic motivation, learning anxiety, and self-efficacy, providing a new perspective for re-examining the gender gap in STEM.

     

Feeling 10 feet tall: creative inclusion in a community of practice

This paper explores the potential role of creative learning in helping to create positive experiences for socially excluded young people. Noting the increased influence of the market into education and the onus engendered in the ‘Third Way’, which seeks to give socially and economically marginal individuals the opportunity to adapt to changing economic conditions, while neglecting the underlying causes of exclusion, the paper focuses on a group of 14–18 year olds' experience of performance‐based training as part of a government‐funded Creative Partnerships project in Durham/Sunderland. The paper argues that creative learning cannot provide a solution to the ills of educational disadvantage, but that its untapped potential lies in its ability to provide a ‘community of practice’ in which an individual can take personal ownership of his or her own learning experience in a communal context.     

Modifications in children's goals when encountering obstacles to conflict resolution

Previous studies have demonstrated that children's goals are associated with their success in peer relationships. The current study extends earlier findings by examining changes in children's goals during hypothetical conflicts. Participants were 252 children ages 9 to 12 years old (133 boys, 119 girls). As predicted, children's goals changed significantly when they encountered obstacles to conflict resolution, and these changes were predictive of their subsequent strategy choices. Both aggressive- and submissive-rejected children were more likely to evidence antisocial changes in their goals, including an increased desire to retaliate. They also showed reluctance to forego instrumental objectives. Other findings highlighted the need to investigate the combinations of goals children pursue as predictors of their strategies and the quality of their peer relationships.     

Studieren an der Berufsakademie oder an der Universität, Fachhochschule oder Pädagogischen Hochschule?

Beim übergang von der Schule auf die Universit?t müssen sich Abiturienten u.a. für einen bestimmten Hochschultypus entscheiden. Der Fokus in diesem Beitrag liegt auf der sogenannten Berufsakademie, die in einigen Bundesl?ndern eine interessante, aber wenig beachtete Alternative zu Universit?t, Fachhochschule und P?dagogischer Hochschule darstellt. Anhand einer gro?en L?ngsschnittstudie, die in Baden-Württemberg durchgeführt wird, werden der Leistungsstand, der famili?re Hintergrund, die beruflichen Interessen und die Studienwahlmotive von (künftigen) Studierenden an den verschiedenen Hochschultypen untersucht. Berufsakademien erwiesen sich insbesondere für Abiturienten mit weniger günstigem famili?ren Hintergrund und dem Wunsch, rasch finanziell unabh?ngig zu sein, sowie für Absolventen beruflicher Gymnasien als attraktive Alternative zur Universit?t. Berücksichtigt man die schulische Herkunft (berufliches vs. allgemeinbildendes Gymnasium), so fanden sich ?hnliche kognitive Eingangsvoraussetzungen bei Studierenden wirtschaftswissenschaftlicher F?cher an Berufsakademie, Fachhochschule und Universit?t.     

Computers on wheels: an alternative to 'each one has one'

Four fifth‐grade classrooms embarked on a modified ubiquitous computing initiative in the fall of 2003. Two 15‐computer wireless laptop carts were shared among the four classrooms in an effort to integrate technology across the curriculum and affect change in student learning and teacher pedagogy. This initiative—in contrast to other one‐to‐one programmemess and stationary labs—offers public schools alternatives to budget constraints and instructional‐space overhead. Results indicate positive teacher technology competence and confidence, as well as instructional strategies that were student‐centred made meaningful uses of technology. Teacher technological knowledge and efficacy, pedagogical knowledge, and a supportive school community seem to be strong indicators for impacting technology integration in this context.