Visuospatial working memory in adolescents with poor performance in mathematics: variation depending on reading skills

The first purpose of this study was to investigate whether the visuospatial working memory (VSWM) skills of 15–16‐year‐old pupils with difficulties in mathematics differ from those of their normally achieving peers. The goal was to broaden the view of the complex system of VSWM. A set of passive and active VSWM tasks was used. The study’s second purpose was to investigate whether pupils with mathematical difficulties differed in their VSWM skills based on whether they had signs of reading deficits or not. Results indicate that the pupils with poor performance in maths showed poorer performance on certain VSWM tasks. The group with deficits only in maths had less capacity for storing passive visual simultaneous information, while the group with difficulties both in maths and reading had deficits in both storing (passive visual and visuospatial information) and processing, and had less ability to control irrelevant visuospatial information compared to their peers of the same age. The results indicate a general VSWM deficit in pupils with both mathematics and reading problems and a specific VSWM deficit in pupils with only mathematics problems.     

Reducing disruptive behaviours and improving classroom behavioural climate with class‐wide positive behaviour support in middle schools

Disruptive behaviour in classrooms is a significant challenge for learning in schools and a risk factor for students’ academic achievement and a significant source of teachers’ work‐related stress. Earlier research shows that clear behavioural expectations, monitoring students’ adherence to them and behaviour‐specific praise are effective practices to reduce disruptive behaviour. Although behaviour problems are common in middle schools, most of the interventions have been developed and studied in elementary schools. This randomised study evaluated the effects of a class‐wide intervention on classroom behavioural climate and disruptive behaviour, on teacher‐experienced stress and on the time needed for behaviour management in middle school. The classes were selected for intervention by their teachers on the basis of poor behavioural climate. The intervention was based on teachers’ cooperation; they collectively agreed on clear behavioural expectations, used positive feedback and, if needed, applied consequences in response to high rates of disruptive behaviour. The results indicated medium to large effects on classroom behavioural climate according to teachers’ evaluations, and somewhat more inconsistent effects on classroom behavioural climate according to student evaluations and in the time needed for behaviour management. The behavioural climate of the classes remained at a constant level during the follow‐up. The intervention was well accepted by teachers and students. The results suggest that an easily applicable intervention may produce significant improvements in classroom behavioural climate in middle schools.     

Pupillary and Attentional Responses to Infant Facial Expressions in Mothers Across Socioeconomic Variations

Maternal responses to infant facial expressions were examined in two socioeconomically diverse samples of South African mothers (Study I, N = 111; and Study II, N = 214; age: 17–44 years) using pupil and gaze tracking. Study I showed increased pupil response to infant distress expressions in groups recruited from private as compared to public maternity clinics, possibly reflecting underlying differences in socioeconomic status (SES) across the groups. Study II, sampling uniformly low-SES neighborhoods, found increased pupil dilation and faster orientation to expressions of infant distress, but only in the highest income group. These results are consistent with maternal physiological and attentional sensitivity to infant distress cues but challenge the universality of this sensitivity across socioeconomic diversity.     

Behavioral Regulatory Problems Are Associated With a Lower Attentional Bias to Fearful Faces During Infancy

To investigate the role of early regulatory problems (RP), such as problems in feeding, sleeping, and calming down during later development, the association between parent-reported RP at 3 months (no-RP, n = 110; RP, n = 66) and attention to emotional faces at 8 months was studied. Eight-month-old infants had a strong tendency to look at faces and to specifically fearful faces, and the individual variance in this tendency was assessed with eye tracking using a face-distractor paradigm. The early RPs were related to a lower attention bias to fearful faces compared to happy and neutral faces after controlling for temperamental negative affectivity. This suggests that early RPs are related to the processing of emotional information later during infancy.     

Multimethod assessment of self-regulated learning in college students: different methods for different components?

Instructional Science - Although self-regulated learning (SRL) is seen as highly relevant for successful college learning, college students oftentimes show a lack in SRL abilities. Therefore, it...     

How to Assess and Categorize Teachers’ Views of Science? Two Methodological Issues

Research in Science Education - This paper addresses two methodological issues related to the assessment of teachers’ views of science. The first concerns the distinction between the...     

Adaptive progressive download based on the MPEG-4 file format

In this paper we describe how progressive download and adaptive streaming can be combined into a simple and efficient streaming framework. Based on the MPEG-4 file format (MP4) we use HTTP for transport and argue that these two components are sufficient for specifying an open streaming architecture. The client selects appropriate chunks from the MP4 file to be transferred based on (1) the header information (i.e. the “moov” box) in the first part of the file and (2) his observation of network throughput. The framework is completely client driven which allows for better server scalability and reduces signalling overhead. We discuss architecture and implementation issues such as complexity, interoperability and scalability and compare to 3GPP PSS Rel-6 adaptive streaming when appropriate. Measurements from a simple MP4/HTTP streaming client are presented showing that appropriate chunks are selected such that increased reliability is achieved.     

Educational optimism among parents: a pilot study

This study explored parents' (N = 351) educational optimism in terms of their trust in the possibilities of school to develop children’s intelligence. It was found that educational optimism could be depicted as a bipolar factor with optimism and pessimism on the opposing ends of the same dimension. Optimistic parents indicated more satisfaction with their children’s school and had a relatively positive assessment of their children’s academic success, which they explained in accord with their dynamic notion of intelligence, i.e. the child’s effort and help from the teacher. Parental notions of intelligence seem to serve as an important interpretative source for educational hopefulness.     

Dynamic and shared sense-making in large-scale curriculum reform in school districts

ABSTRACT

Shared sense-making is suggested to be key for curriculum reform. Shared sense-making entails constructing a collective understanding of the meaning for reform, its significance and its implications for schools, through dialogue and negotiation across the levels of the educational system. This study explored changes in hands-on strategies of shared sense-making, and ways of orchestrating curriculum reform work in the districts in Finland, following the introduction of new national curriculum policy. Longitudinal focus group interview data collected from curriculum coordinating groups during the reform work was utilised. The data were qualitatively content analysed. The two sets of shared sense-making strategies were identified in this study, including those strategies utilised by the groups in building their understanding of what the reform is all about, and those concerning the reform orchestration. The strategies employed evolved from simple to more complex, during the progression of curriculum work. Results also showed that the coordinating groups were well aware of their high autonomy and resulting responsibility in orchestrating the district-level curriculum work. However, the advance in shared sense-making strategies employed by the groups indicated that they were highly committed to constructing collective understanding about the reform, its significance and implications for schools through dialogue and negotiation with practitioners.