Philosophy: A Special Place in the Liberal Arts

Abstract

A comprehensive model of the dynamics of one-on-one teaching is described. Adoption of specific teaching styles is influenced by the learning styles of students; the interest in faculty to build interpersonal relationships with learners; teacher need to control the task; the capability of students; and situational constraints. In clinical settings, thesis work, and other areas, faculty preferred the use of Personal Model, Facilitator, and Delegator teaching styles. Relative to classroom teaching, these styles were used more frequently and the Expert and Formal Authority Styles were less prominent. This is consistent with the goals of one-on-one teaching to develop the ability of learners to work independently.     

Science teachers' knowledge about and attitudes towards the use of models and modelling in learning science

A semi-structured interview was used to enquire into the knowledge of models and modelling held by a total sample of 39 Brazilian science teachers working in 'fundamental' (ages 6-14 years) and 'medium' (ages 15-17 years) schools, student teachers, and university teachers. This paper focuses on their perceptions of the role of models in science teaching. The teachers' ideas are organized in three groups: the status and value of models; the influences that inform the translation of these general ideas into classroom practice; and how they respond to the outcomes of students' modelling activities. The teachers interviewed generally showed an awareness of the value of models in the learning of science but not of their value in learning about science. They were also uncertain of the relationship that could exist in the classroom between various types of models. Modelling, as an activity by students, whilst praised in theory, would not seem to be widely practised. Where practised, the outcomes are by no means always treated with that integrity that learning about science would call for.     

Laptops in the Scottish Primary School: Interim Report

Abstract

The following paper should be seen as an addition to that provided in the Proceedings of the 7th ICTE.’ For reasons of brevity, it does not deal to any large extent with the background to the project, but details the progress of a study into the effects of introducing laptops into primary (elementary) school. The project has provided every pupil in one class with a laptop computer and has tracked the use being made of it as a curriculum tool for writing. The second phase of the project is under way, with a completion date of April 1991.     

>How to avoid implying that physicalism is true: a problem for teachers of science

It is difficult to teach science without implying, in a broad sense, that physicalism is true. This is a problem for teachers, regardless of whether they accept or reject physicalism, as well as for students. Physicalism‐‐it used to be called materialism‐‐is not a single doctrine, but a family of doctrines. Six of these are described and it is argued that they are not logically favoured by science. Since alternative metaphysical schemes exist (e.g. Whitehead's) which are consistent with scientific facts, evidence which supports a scientific theory over rivals, even decisively, does not have the logical power to decide in favour of physicalism. Science teaching's insinuation of physicalism can be avoided by deliberately stressing such uncontroversial features of science as: the unfinished nature of research; the use of idealizations in scientific theories; how all scientific theories at best only approach the truth; and that older theories are now known to be, strictly, false, although they still fit the facts to some degree.     

Evaluating a monolingual multinational digital library by using usability: An exploratory approach from a developing country

In this paper the authors present a preliminary discussion on some of the results from a survey aimed to explore, describe and explain some of the usability characteristics in digital libraries evaluation in the Mexican context. The study is framed in the evaluation of a multinational and monolingual digital library: the Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library, from the University of Alicante in Spain. The evaluators were Mexican “expert” users (i.e. Spanish-speaking professional university librarians specialized in electronic reference services) who were asked to carry on an evaluation instrument based on usability criteria as taken from some models in developed countries. Some questions that might be answered with future research are outlined in this paper.