Women scholars: Closing the publication gap

As more females receive advanced degrees in business and enter the field of teaching in higher education, the role of females as publishers in scholarly journals will increase. Data collected from 27 business-oriented journals covering a 23-year time period support this premise. The purpose of this article is to present that data in order to show the changing role of women in publishing and to highlight some of the similarities and differences between female and male authors.     

From Communities of Interest to Communities Of Practice: The Role and Impact of Professional Development in Nuclear Security Education

In recent years, nuclear security has gained prominence on the international security agenda. Driven by post 9/11 anxieties and the politicization of fears regarding nuclear terrorism, concerns in this area have spawned a wealth of initiatives, which seek to counter this threat. Principal among these have been efforts to promote nuclear security education and infuse teaching and learning in this sphere with a more holistic understanding of the subject, its relevance and its implications. Against this background, this article sets out the findings of empirical research into the impact of nuclear security ‘train-the-trainer’ professional development courses on the practice of an emerging cadre of nuclear security educators. In particular, the paper explores the value of this model as a means of establishing sustainable communities of practice in the context of nuclear security education.     

媒介素养教学方法和教师培训

由于全球文化急剧变化以及素养在提高个人、社会和文化发展中的作用,如今的素养概念已经扩展为包括数字、视觉和电子媒介以及流行文化在内的一种内涵;这也就提升了媒介素养教育对个人和社会发展的重要意义。开展媒介素养教育可以在正规和非正规教育环境下进行,它将对学生学习动机的激发、师生关系的改善、公民技能的提高产生作用。     

A Deliberate Practice Approach to Teaching Phylogenetic Analysis

One goal of postsecondary education is to assist students in developing expert-level understanding. Previous attempts to encourage expert-level understanding of phylogenetic analysis in college science classrooms have largely focused on isolated, or “one-shot,” in-class activities. Using a deliberate practice instructional approach, we designed a set of five assignments for a 300-level plant systematics course that incrementally introduces the concepts and skills used in phylogenetic analysis. In our assignments, students learned the process of constructing phylogenetic trees through a series of increasingly difficult tasks; thus, skill development served as a framework for building content knowledge. We present results from 5 yr of final exam scores, pre- and postconcept assessments, and student surveys to assess the impact of our new pedagogical materials on student performance related to constructing and interpreting phylogenetic trees. Students improved in their ability to interpret relationships within trees and improved in several aspects related to between-tree comparisons and tree construction skills. Student feedback indicated that most students believed our approach prepared them to engage in tree construction and gave them confidence in their abilities. Overall, our data confirm that instructional approaches implementing deliberate practice address student misconceptions, improve student experiences, and foster deeper understanding of difficult scientific concepts.     

Pedagogical Media Competencies of Preservice Teachers in Germany and the United States: A Comparative Analysis of Theory and Practice

Teachers need knowledge and skills to make effective use of the growing variety of media and technology texts and tools available for use in elementary and secondary education. For this reason, pedagogical media competencies are highly relevant for teachers’ professional development. The theory of media pedagogical competencies is first defined and then located in the context of the relevant scholarly literature from both Germany and the United States. We conducted a comparative analysis of German and U.S. pedagogical media competency models and report data on a survey of teacher education programs in Germany and the United States to identify the proportion of programs of study that include courses in media didactics, media and school reform, and media education. We consider the implications of the missing connections between the theoretical framework of pedagogical media competencies and the current practice of media pedagogical teacher training, revealing implications for further work needed to improve the integration of media in various school-related contexts.     

The effects of token reinforcement on delinquents' classroom behavior

The effects of a token reinforcement program on the classroom behavior of 19 delinquent boys in a correctional institution were investigated. Appropriate classroom behavior was defined in terms of four component categories: on-time/in-seat, on-task, social interaction, and assignment completion. A measure of total appropriate classroom behavior was calculated by summing the frequency of target response occurrence for each component behavior. Withdrawal and reinstatement of token reinforcement procedures demonstrated experimental control of total appropriate classroom behavior; however, considerable variability of component behaviors was observed. Token reinforcement control was most clearly demonstrated with on-time/in-seat behavior; assignment behavior was similarly influenced but showed greater variability; on-task behavior was noticeably affected but exhibited an ascending trend during the reversal phase; and social interaction behavior showed fluctuations which appeared unrelated to reinforcement contingencies. These findings suggest that the use of global, composite measures may mask program effects on important component behaviors.