Introduction: memory ethics��or the presence of the past in the present

This special issue of Archival Science examines the orientations, paradoxes, and tensions evident in the ethical struggles over the construction of the past and the degree to which archival agency can intercede in supporting a broadly drawn historical justice that also engages contemporary issues. Inspired and framed by a May 2008 conference hosted by School of Information and Labadie Collection, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, the following essays offer case study examinations of how archival institutions and archivists contribute to societal memory systems through both their action and inaction, especially in regard to societal struggles over the meanings to be derived from the past.     

A framework for revitalisation of rural education and training systems in sub-Saharan Africa: Strengthening the human resource base for food security and sustainable livelihoods

Recent studies of the current state of rural education and training (RET) systems in sub-Saharan Africa have assessed their ability to provide for the learning needs essential for more knowledgeable and productive small-scale rural households. These are most necessary if the endemic causes of rural poverty (poor nutrition, lack of sustainable livelihoods, etc.) are to be overcome. A brief historical background and analysis of the major current constraints to improvement in the sector are discussed. Paramount among those factors leading to its present ‘malaise’ is the lack of a whole-systems perspective and the absence of any coherent policy framework in most countries. There is evidence of some recent innovations, both in the public sector and through the work of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), civil society organisations (CSOs) and other private bodies. These provide hope of a new sense of direction that could lead towards meaningful ‘revitalisation’ of the sector. A suggested framework offers 10 key steps which, it is argued, could largely be achieved with modest internal resources and very little external support, provided that the necessary leadership and managerial capacities are in place.     

Experience and brain development

This article considers how experience can influence the developing and mature brain and proposes a new categorization scheme based upon the type of information stored and the brain mechanisms that appear to be involved in storing it. In this scheme, experience-expectant information storage refers to incorporation of environmental information that is ubiquitous in the environment and common to all species members, such as the basic elements of pattern perception. Experience-expectant processes appear to have evolved as a neural preparation for incorporating specific information: in many sensory systems, synaptic connections between nerve cells are overproduced, and a subsequent selection process occurs in which aspects of sensory experience determine the pattern of connections that remains. Experience-dependent information storage refers to incorporation of environmental information that is idiosyncratic, or unique to the individual, such as learning about one's specific physical environment or vocabulary. The neural basis of experience-dependent processes appears to involve active formation of new synaptic connections in response to the events providing the information to be stored. Although these processes probably do not occur entirely independently of one another in development, the categories offer a new view more in accord with neural mechanisms than were terms like "critical" or "sensitive period."     

Workplace as Community: Perspectives on Science Teachers’ Professional Learning

This study explores teacher professional learning within the workplace context of a science department community. Workplace learning is considered in terms of the construction and flow of information about science, pedagogy and the relationships of science to the wider community. Implications for establishing sound conditions for teacher workplace learning are also considered, particularly the importance of trust.     

Professional Learning Communities: A Review of the Literature

International evidence suggests that educational reform’s progress depends on teachers’ individual and collective capacity and its link with school-wide capacity for promoting pupils’ learning. Building capacity is therefore critical. Capacity is a complex blend of motivation, skill, positive learning, organisational conditions and culture, and infrastructure of support. Put together, it gives individuals, groups, whole school communities and school systems the power to get involved in and sustain learning over time. Developing professional learning communities appears to hold considerable promise for capacity building for sustainable improvement. As such, it has become a ‘hot topic’ in many countries.     

Effectiveness of using learner‐centered principles on student retention in distance education courses in rural schools

This article examines the effectiveness of training facilitators in secondary schools to follow APA learner‐centered principles to support learners in distance education. The study was a cluster‐randomized control trial with 36 match pairs of schools and 246 students in the rural USA. The schools were selected at random and assigned at random to treatment condition. Instructors were blind to the treatment condition as were the local facilitators and schools. Data on length of time spent in the course and whether students completed the semester were analyzed. The results indicated that students in the intervention condition completed the first semester at a statistically higher rate than control students where facilitators did not have this training. The number of weeks students remained in the course was likewise statistically different with students in the intervention condition staying in the course more weeks holding instructor constant.     

Individual differences in infants' information processing: reliability, stability, and prediction

A group of 46 full-term and 54 high-risk preterm (less than 1,500 grams birthweight) infants were tested at 6, 7, and/or 8 months of age (corrected age for preterms) on a battery of problems assessing visual recognition memory and tactual-visual cross-modal transfer. At all 3 ages, scores obtained on aggregates of 6-11 problems in the battery significantly predicted 3-year Stanford-Binet IQ: correlations ranged from r = .37 to r = .63, and clustered between r = .50 and r = .60. When aggregates from 2 or 3 ages were used as predictors, multiple correlations were as high as R = .60 and R = .70. Cutoffs for predicting children at risk for mental retardation (IQ less than 70) or cognitive delay (IQ less than 85) showed reasonable sensitivity and specificity, although low scores were poor at detecting IQs less than 70. The internal consistency of composites, indexed by alpha coefficients, was unexpectedly low, primarily because the problems shared little variance. However, stability coefficients between assessments as much as 1 and 2 months apart were moderate in magnitude, ranging from r = .30 to r = .50. Considering the high degree of predictive validity, the stability figures appear to be better estimates of reliability for these measures than are indices of internal consistency. The relations reported here were similar for both full-terms and preterms.     

Visual recognition memory: a predictor of later cognitive functioning in preterms

A number of preterms who had participated in a study of visual recognition memory when they were 6 months of age were seen at older ages to assess the predictive validity of the early visual measures for cognitive outcome. The Bayley scales were administered at 6, 12, and 24 months, the Stanford-Binet at 34 and 40 months, and the WISC-R at 6 years. Novelty scores, which reflect the relative amount of time infants look at new compared to familiar stimuli, constituted the measure of infant visual processing. These scores, obtained by averaging over performance on the 3 or 4 problems administered at 6 months of age, were consistently and significantly related to cognitive measures from 24 months to 6 years, with correlations ranging from r = .53 to r = .66. Parental education, which was unrelated to novelty scores, bore a strong relationship to outcome beginning at 24 months. Although both measures contributed uniquely to the variance in cognitive outcome at 24 months and 6 years, visual novelty scores made a stronger contribution than did parental education. Neither 6- nor 12-month Bayley scores, nor various perinatal variables, were related to outcome.