Transforming what they read: helping eleven‐year‐olds engage with Internet information

This article explores an issue of great current concern: how do we help primary aged children to engage with, and to benefit from, information from the Internet? The notion of ‘engagement’ is considered in the context of constructivist learning theory. A short case study based on a small‐scale research project in a primary school classroom in England is presented in order to illustrate the difficulties that arise when children undertake information handling work involving access to vast amounts of information. The end products from two groups of children are found to be far from what might have been expected from children of their ability, background and experience. Engagement with the ideas contained in non‐fiction texts is isolated as a crucial factor. Approaches, including the EXIT model, are presented and considered as ways in which engagement might be encouraged.     

A review of photovoice applications in environment,sustainability, and conservation contexts: is the method maintaining its emancipatory intents?

Abstract

Photovoice, a Participatory Action Research method developed by Wang and Burris, has gained popularity as a pedagogical tool to engage youth with environmental, sustainability, and conservation issues. Influenced by Paulo Freire’s critical pedagogy, feminist theory, and documentary photography, photovoice supports reflection about place, critical dialogue about community issues, and social change by reaching policymakers. Some scholars have modified the method and applied varying frameworks to increase relevance for diverse participants. However, adaptation also may lose the original tenets. Through a scoping review, this study examined methodological applications to science, conservation, and sustainability education and whether emerging approaches align with Wang and Burris’ original goals. The scoping review identified and analyzed four applications of photovoice: i) place as pedagogy, ii) conservation and sustainability, iii) STEM teaching; and iv) decolonizing education. Current scholarship shows promise for photovoice in environmental education applications to support participatory, diverse, and equitable educational settings, but some projects would benefit from more explicit attention to the original emancipatory intents of the method.     

Contents Volume 16 (2003)

Volume Contents

Contents Volume 16 (2003)     

Different,yet similar: factors motivating international degree collaboration in higher education. The case of Finnish-Russian double degree programmes

ABSTRACT

The study investigates factors motivating universities to engage in international degree collaboration. The Finnish-Russian university framework is used as the locus for studying international collaboration. The paper employs resource dependency and institutional, stakeholder and market push and pull perspectives in a conceptual model explaining the drivers of international degree collaboration. The research focuses on the interaction of the various factors that motivate partners to seek international degree cooperation, possible sources of conflict, and issues of compatibility and complementarity. In particular, the study compares the roles of different stakeholders and the institutional contexts of Finland and Russia. The motives of the Finnish and Russian universities included in the study were found to be generally compatible, yet different enough to complement each other.     

‘Fathers and sons’ in Xenophon’s teaching of the man taking care of himself

This article considers the oeuvre of Xenophon (c.430–354 bc) as providing an insight into the concept of ‘care of the self’ in Greek education. In many of his works the leading characters are men who take care of themselves through education. Addressing the theme of ‘fathers and sons’, Xenophon aimed to show that ‘care of the self’ is a particular way of upbringing in the family and in the polis, where the older instruct the younger in fulfilling their duties according to their age, following model examples of thought and conduct during work and leisure. Thus, with the help of specific situations involving parents and children, mentors and their pupils, Xenophon established a general framework for understanding the ancient citizens and family men, to whom education and self-education were a special means of finding their own identity in their culture.     

Portage Guide to Early Education: a review of research

Abstract Portage Guide to Early Education is a home‐based early intervention service for developmentally delayed preschool children. It consists of the triadic model of service delivery, a set of reading materials and a method of training parents to teach their own children. Each of these components are critically evaluated and recommendation made for the future development of Portage. Outcome studies are reviewed and evidence is found of developmental acceleration for mildly delayed children.

A wider range of dependent variables is needed to assess more fully the impact of Portage on both the child and the family. As yet no data are available on long‐term effects of Portage. The case is made for viewing Portage as one amongst several service options available for developmentally delayed preschool children and their families.     

Four Student Teachers' Pedagogical Reasoning on Functions

This study attempts to identify theinfluence of student teachers' subject matterknowledge for teaching on the process ofpedagogical reasoning. This influence isstudied through the way in which the concept offunction is presented to pupils in teachingthrough the textbook problems. Our findingsshow that the four student teachers in ourstudy differed in their subject-matterknowledge for teaching both in the differentaspects of concepts they emphasised and in theuse of a representation repertoire to structurelearning activities. All of this conditionedthe use of graphical and algebraic modes intheir planning of subject matter to bepresented to pupils. We explored also theinfluence of images of mathematics,teaching and learning on student teachers'organisation of the subject matter forteaching, but found this only slight. Finally,regarding the relationship between subjectmatter knowledge and pedagogical contentknowledge in student-teachers' ways of knowingthe subject matter, we offer some implicationsof these findings for mathematics teachereducation programmes.