Directions for Integration in Australia: Overview of a Report to the Commonwealth Schools Commission. Part II.

Drawing upon information from a national survey, this paper examines the extent to which integration is being achieved for children with disabilities in Australian schools. Technical and organizational issues leading to identification of major barriers to integration together with possible strategies to overcome these are discussed. A need for policy‐oriented research in this field is identified, particularly the provision of accurate prevalence figures and other data to help monitor the impact of policy. Overall, there is evidence of a national movement towards integration but typically this is occurring within a context of inadequate policy formulation, organizational development and resource provision.     

A modern and interactive approach to learning engineering mathematics

The challenges facing those charged with teaching mathematics to engineers are enormous. Faced with large groups of students possessing a considerable range of abilities, prior experiences, and motivations, it is incumbent upon the developers and deliverers of mathematics programmes to engineers to ensure that such programmes are as inclusive as possible and take into account the particular and often individual needs of the student. Often a mathematics lecturer is caught between the demands of an engineering department expecting students to know and apply advanced techniques, and the needs of groups of students who lack confidence, have serious gaps in their knowledge and sometimes lack ability in mathematics. This paper describes an innovative approach to these challenges which involves a mix of traditional and modern technologies and which has been used with some effect at Loughborough University, for the teaching of mathematics to first year undergraduate engineering students.     

Exploration and validation of clusters of physically abused children

OBJECTIVE: Cluster analysis was used to enhance understanding of heterogeneity in social adjustment of physically abused children. METHOD: Ninety-eight physically abused children (ages 5-10) were clustered on the basis of social adjustment, as measured by observed behavior with peers on the school playground and by teacher reports of social behavior. Seventy-seven matched nonabused children served as a comparison sample. Clusters were validated on the basis of observed parental sensitivity, parents' self-reported disciplinary tactics, and children's social information processing operations (i.e., generation of solutions to peer relationship problems and attributions of peer intentions in social situations). RESULTS: Three subgroups of physically abused children emerged from the cluster analysis; clusters were labeled Socially Well Adjusted, Hanging in There, and Social Difficulties. Examination of cluster differences on risk and protective factors provided substantial evidence in support of the external validity of the three-cluster solution. Specifically, clusters differed significantly in attributions of peer intent and in parenting (i.e., sensitivity and harshness of parenting). Clusters also differed in the ways in which they were similar to, or different from, the comparison group of nonabused children. CONCLUSIONS: Results supported the contention that there were clinically relevant subgroups of physically abused children with potentially unique treatment needs. Findings also pointed to the relevance of social information processing operations and parenting context in understanding diversity among physically abused children. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Pending replication, findings provide support for the importance of considering unique treatment of needs among physically abused children. A singular approach to intervention is unlikely to be effective for these children. For example, some physically abused children might need a more intensive focus on development of prosocial skills in relationships with peers while the prosocial skills of other abused children will be developmentally appropriate. In contrast, most physically abused children might benefit from training in social problem-solving skills. Findings also point to the importance of promoting positive parenting practices in addition to reducing harsh discipline of physically abusive parents.     

Temporal networks in collaborative learning: A case study

Social Network Analysis (SNA) has enabled researchers to understand and optimize the key dimensions of collaborative learning. A majority of SNA research has so far used static networks, ie, aggregated networks that compile interactions without considering when certain activities or relationships occurred. Compressing a temporal process by discarding time, however, may result in reductionist oversimplifications. In this study, we demonstrate the potentials of temporal networks in the analysis of online peer collaboration. In particular, we study: (1) social interactions by analysing learners' collaborative behaviour, part of a case study in which they worked on academic writing tasks, and (2) cognitive interactions through the analysis of students' self-regulated learning tactics. The study included 123 students and 2550 interactions. By using temporal networks, we show how to analyse the longitudinal evolution of a collaborative network visually and quantitatively. Correlation coefficients with grades, when calculated with time-respecting temporal measures of centrality, were more correlated with learning outcomes than traditional centrality measures. Using temporal networks to analyse the co-temporal and longitudinal development, reach, and diffusion patterns of students' learning tactics has provided novel insights into the complex dynamics of learning, not commonly offered through static networks.