Analysis of lexical quality and its relation to writing quality for 4th grade,primary school students in Chile

Few studies have addressed vocabulary quality in developing writing skill in Spanish. Even less addressed it within the Chilean educational system. The specific objective of this study was to characterize, using a comprehensive set of indicators, the quality of the vocabulary produced by Chilean 4th grade students. Based on a national writing survey, a sample of 2056 texts written by 685 students was collected (narrative, persuasive, and informative texts). Current literature defines lexical quality as a composite of diverse factors that, while distinct, are interrelated. To represent the properties of the vocabulary, a set of indicators were selected: (a) lexical diversity; (b) lexical sophistication; and (c) lexical density. Using multilevel modeling (students and schools as levels 1 and 2) to explain a global writing score we found that diversity was a significant determinant for narrative and persuasive texts, density was a significant determinant for the three genres and sophistication was a significant determinant for narrative and expository text. In addition, indicators related to gender and socioeconomic conditions were only significant determinants of narrative stories. The parts of speech most often used also varied according to the purpose of each text. In all genres, words had a short extension and were very sensitive to the input presented in the stimuli. These results imply a significant challenge to this education system: how to promote the development of vocabulary in all children in order to support language learning.     

Education and Work in a European Framework

In industrialised countries education and work are no longer two opposing realities, there now being greater and greater mutual dependence between them. One the one hand, the working world demands higher levels of training and continuous refresher courses or retraining. On the other hand, the educational system is forced to adapt its teaching to the changing demands of the labour market.

In this paper an analysis if is made of both the most representative trends of this phenomenon and present day answers to an ‘education for work’ in the environment of the countries of the European Economic Community.     

Bildungserfolg und adoleszente Abl?sung bei S?hnen aus t??rkischen Migrantenfamilien

Many studies have shown that young males of Turkish descent are disadvantaged in terms of educational opportunity in Germany. In this, the lower educational successes of children from migrant families are neither simple effects of lower levels of social capital nor of lower educational aspiration. With the aim of tracing unexplained mechanisms of the intergenerational transmission of educational chances, the interdependency of educational success or failure of young men of Turkish descent and adolescent processes of detachment and family relations were reconstructed using an intergenerational research design. This shows the major importance of parents?? processing of their immigration experiences in the context of discrimination and disadvantage, the effects of this on the parent-child-relationship, especially in adolescence, and the impact of intergenerational dynamics on the realization, processing and effects of differing educational aspirations and careers.     

An Examination of Perceived Therapeutic Bond as a Mediator of Psychological Outcomes

The client's perception of the therapy relationship is an essential component of modern theoretical orientations. To date, there is a lack of quantitative research examining how the therapeutic bond affects therapy outcomes in college counseling. This study used path analysis to examine longitudinal therapy outcomes with 423 college students. Having a stronger therapeutic bond predicted decreased symptoms of depression, social anxiety, and academic distress. Findings support continued attention to developing a working relationship.     

The use of Lawson's test of formal reasoning in the Israeli science education context

Lawson's test of formal reasoning was used in the Israeli educational context in order to investigate the relationship between students' achievement in science and in mathematics, to compare the performance of boys and girls, and to compare the performance of Israeli and U.S. populations. It was found that, in general, boys outperform girls; there is only a small correlation between achievement in science and math and Lawson test; and that the Israeli population achieved significantly higher than the U.S. population on the Piagetian skills measured by the test: It was concluded that the future use of Lawson's test by the high school teacher is doubtful.     

Experiences in education innovation: developing tools in support of active learning

The paper focuses on educational projects developed in the ETSII (Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Industriales) of the Polytechnic University of Madrid during the past few years. These projects were developed as new tools for enhancing the active role of students, for improving practical teaching, especially by means of virtual laboratories and different sets of problems and exercises, and for promoting self-learning. The paper analyses the use of ICT in teaching, with the case of a developed e-learning platform as a tracking system for subjects. The paper concludes by discussing the new educational trends in the Centre, devoted to develop an active role of students by activities such as peer mentoring and laboratory monitors programs, and competitions for achieving multidisciplinary engineering challenges.     

Psychological and Contextual Influences on the Teacher Selection Interview: A Model for Future Research

Within the K-12 educational arena, interviews are a required component of the selection process and represent the most popular predictor for hiring teachers (Castetter & Young, 2000). Noticeably absent from empirical examination is the psychological interplay between interviewers and interviewees during the face-to-face teacher selection interview. While some research has identified potential ways in which isolated psychological variables affect hiring decisions, there has been little systematic investigation of how such variables, combined, influence the face-to-face teacher selection interview process. To begin filling a research void that exists in face-to-face teacher interviewing, this paper will: (a) review relevant literature on the selection interview and psychological variables' (e.g., similarity and attraction, likeability, perceived expertness) effects on the interview process, (b) apply findings of psychological research to the teacher selection interview (dyad vs. panel format), (c) propose a model that integrates these various influences, and (d) outline research directions that would allow for empirical validation of the proposed model.     

The expansion of English-medium instruction in the Nordic countries: Can top-down university language policies encourage bottom-up disciplinary literacy goals?

Recently, in the wake of the Bologna Declaration and similar international initiatives, there has been a rapid increase in the number of university courses and programmes taught through the medium of English. Surveys have consistently shown the Nordic countries to be at the forefront of this trend towards English-medium instruction (EMI). In this paper, we discuss the introduction of EMI in four Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden). We present the educational setting and the EMI debate in each of these countries and summarize relevant research findings. We then make some tentative suggestions for the introduction of EMI in higher education in other countries. In particular, we are interested in university language policies and their relevance for the day-to-day work of faculty. We problematize one-size-fits-all university language policies, suggesting that in order for policies to be seen as relevant they need to be flexible enough to take into account disciplinary differences. In this respect, we make some specific suggestions about the content of university language policies and EMI course syllabuses. Here we recommend that university language policies should encourage the discussion of disciplinary literacy goals and require course syllabuses to detail disciplinary-specific language-learning outcomes.     

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Initiatives: A Survey of University Libraries in Nigeria

The study investigated the extent of adoption of electronic theses and dissertations in university libraries in Nigeria. Data collection for the study was via online questionnaire. The study revealed that digitization of theses and dissertations started between 1980 and 1995. It was found that only a few university libraries have embraced digitization of theses and dissertations in Nigeria. Benefits of electronic theses and dissertations were identified as improving university ranking and visibility, increasing access to the theses and dissertations, saving space in the library, enabling others link to the work with persistent URLs, preserving the work for future generations, and saving costs for students. Challenges such as unstable internet connectivity, lack of funding, irregular power supply, lack of information technology personnel, absence of electronic theses and dissertations submission policy, and copyright issues were identified. It is hoped that the study might provide insights useful for librarians planning to embark on the digitization of theses and dissertations project.