Attachment Patterns at Age Six in South Germany: Predictability from Infancy and Implications for Preschool Behavior

A cross-cultural replication of concordance between attachment patterns to mother in infancy and patterns of reunion responses to mother at age 6 was tested for 40 children in Regensburg, South Germany. Concordance between the 4 types of attachment status (A, B, C, D) in infancy and at age 6 was 82%. When observed in preschool at age 5, children classified securely attached (B) at age 6 were more competent in their play quality and conflict resolution, showed fewer behavior problems, and attributed less hostility in a social perception picture test compared to the insecurely attached (A, D) children. Children classified disorganized (D) at age 6 were found almost as often in the incompetent preschool behavior groups as the avoidantly attached (A) children, independent of best-fitting alternative attachment pattern. Thus, disorganization at age 6 may be considered as an insecure attachment.     

Foreign Communications

Yonah Alexander's The Role of Communications in the Middle East Conflict: Ideological and Religious Aspects (new York: Praeger Special Studies, 1974—$17.50)

Paul Hartmann and Charles Husband's Racism and the Mass Media: A Study of the role of the Mass Media in the formation of White Beliefs and Attitudes in Britain (Totowa, N.J.: Rowman and Littlefield, l974—$13.50)

Towards Modern Management in Radio and Television: International Colloquy European Broadcasting Union, 1 rue de Varembe, CH-1211, Geneva 20 Switzerland—$2.00, paper)

In Search (Information Canada, 171 Slater St., Ottawa KiA 0S9 Canada—quarterly, $2.50 per year)     

An educational program in the medical uses of computers for rural physicians

The Medical College of Ohio and three rural hospitals co-sponsored three educational programs in the medical applications of computers for rural physicians in Northwest Ohio. The College's Outreach Librarian played a major role in the programs. These programs were significant and possibly unique because of the comprehensiveness of the material presented and their focus on training rural physicians. Topics covered in the programs included: basic computer skills; online catalogs; online databases; CD-ROMs; the World Wide Web; and e-mail.     

Exploring the role of ‘brokers’ in developing a localised curriculum

ABSTRACT

There is a move in some countries, including England, towards less curriculum control by government. This stands in contrast to a national curriculum which may be universally applied in all schools within a state/country. National curricula tend to use either content-based (subject mastery) or process (skills)-based models. More localised curricula have the potential to be more issue- and problem-centred using local resources and people as part of their building blocks. However, marketisation and globalisation typified by Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ‘effect’ on national policies have discouraged teachers' creativity and curriculum innovation and negated teacher agency. Unfortunately, schools and community partners can find it hard to work together because of logistical, communication and cultural impediments, which gives significance to the role of curriculum brokers who can bridge these divides. This paper offers a case study of two brokers in order to describe, understand and conceptualise their role in curriculum development. The wider implications for curriculum development are outlined.     

The Zeitschriftendatenbank and the Elektronische Zeitschriftenbibliothek: An Update on Services

The authors discuss the Zeitschriftendatenbank (the German Union Catalog of Serials) and the Elektronische Zeitschriftenbibliothek (the Electronic Journals Library). They then present an overview of the cooperative efforts to integrate the two databases at a functional level, the services that have resulted so far from these efforts, and the prospects for the future.     

Stories of practitioner enquiry: using narrative interviews to explore teachers’ perspectives of learning to learn

The Campaign for Learning’s Learning to Learn Phase 4 was a research project in which teachers undertook practitioner enquiry to explore innovative pedagogies under the umbrella term of learning to learn. In 2008, to gain greater understanding of what this process meant to the participating teachers the research team at Newcastle University undertook narrative interviews which examined three key areas: the motivation for undertaking practitioner enquiry, the experience for both teachers and students, and the support needed to facilitate success. This paper examines how the decision to use narrative interviews in conjunction with an iterative validation process supported a meaningful and ethical exchange between the teachers and researchers, where knowledge generation was foregrounded, and how despite each teacher producing a unique, highly contextual story, cross-narrative themes emerged which have enabled the research team to broaden our understanding of practitioner enquiry.     

What to do when feeling bored?: Students' strategies for coping with boredom

The goal of this study was to explore different strategies for coping with boredom. A questionnaire was developed targeting two dimensions of coping, namely approach versus avoidance oriented coping and cognitive versus behavioral oriented coping. First, based on the responses of 976 students (51% female) from grades 5 to 10, the structure of the coping with boredom scales was verified by confirmatory factor analysis. In a second step, 3 different boredom-coping groups were identified by latent profile analysis. These three groups were named Reappraisers, Criticizers, and Evaders. Third, differences between these groups concerning their frequency of experiencing boredom, their academic achievement, and other emotional, motivational, and cognitive aspects of academic achievement situations were analyzed. Relative to the other 2 groups, Reappraisers preferred cognitive-approach strategies, were less frequently bored, and experienced the most positive pattern of emotional, motivational, and cognitive outcomes. Finally, methodological and educational implications and directions for future research are discussed.