The use of cognitive mapping in teaching and learning strategies

Summary In this exercise the first five criteria of Table 3 were probably met. Our subsequent checks may enable us to claim that criterion 6 is also met, and there is little doubt that without it most chemistry teachers would remain sceptical about the worth of such an “extra” set of activities. The exercise also indicates that it is possible with modifications to move research techniques like 5 and 8 in Table 3 into at least the realm of possibility of teacher-centred or didactic classrooms.     

Motor control and sequencing of boys with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) during computer game play

The motor control of 49 unmedicated boys clinically diagnosed with ADHD, case‐matched with 49 non‐ADHD boys, was assessed while playing Crash Bandicoot I, a Sony^TM Playstation platform computer video game. In Crash Bandicoot participants control the movements of a small‐animated figure through a hazardous jungle environment. Operationally defined measures of motor control were designated by (1) the stage of the game completed (ie, the number of obstacles successfully passed) before losing the figure's ‘life’, (2) the level of complexity that the stage represented and (3) the time taken to get to that point during the video game play. These measures were assessed under contrasting conditions of low or high working memory and distracter loads. Four tasks were administered (totalling 12 trials), incorporating both with and without distracter conditions. For those trials with the distracter, a segment of the television show The Simpsons was simultaneously played on a television screen adjacent to the computer game monitor. A 5‐way MANOVA revealed that ADHD boys took less time to complete their trials under the direct condition (ie, no working memory load) on Crash Bandicoot, compared to their matched non‐ADHD peers. When the task required additional working memory, however, the ADHD boys took significantly longer. Cumulative frequency plots of game performance revealed that in terms of the number of obstacles completed, the control participants successfully navigated more obstacles on the low working memory load task than the ADHD participants, but that the performance of the two groups was less distinguishable on the high working memory load task. The findings have implications for assessment and management of children with ADHD.     

Selectivity,admissions and intakes to ‘comprehensive’ schools in London,England

This study focuses on admissions criteria used for ‘comprehensive’ secondary schools in London, UK. It was found that schools whose admissions were controlled by the local authority were more likely to report giving priority to children with medical/social needs and special educational needs than were schools that controlled their own admissions; the latter were more likely to report the use of various potentially ‘creaming’ criteria. There was also more ‘selectivity’ among London comprehensive schools with autonomy over admissions, with higher proportions using potentially selective admissions criteria than in the rest of England. Moreover, it was found that schools with responsibility for their own admissions had lower proportions of pupils with special educational needs and obtained higher scores in public examination ‘league tables’ than schools whose admissions were controlled by the local authority. The findings suggest that some schools, although nominally ‘comprehensive’, appear to restrict access to certain groups of pupils.     

Improving online social presence through asynchronous video

Online learning has become a reality for many students in higher education. Unfortunately, something that has also become a reality is a sense of isolation in online courses, and Moore (1980) has warned that students' sense of distance can threaten their ability to learn. The community of inquiry framework (Garrison, Anderson, & Archer, 2000) has provided insight into ways that online interactions can improve students' and instructors' social presence and learning. Emerging video technologies may be able to improve these interactions and thus more easily support the development of communities of inquiry. In this study we interviewed students in three distinct courses using different video-based instructional strategies. A large majority of students indicated feeling that the video-based communication made their instructors seem more real, present, and familiar, and that these relationships were similar to face-to-face instruction. Video communication impacted students' social presence in similar ways, although to a lesser degree than they believed it impacted instructor social presence. We conclude with discussion for future research and practice.     

Academic Communities of Engagement: an expansive lens for examining support structures in blended and online learning

Educational technology research and development - In this article we share the Academic Communities of Engagement (ACE) framework, which describes a student’s ability to engage affectively,...     

Toward functional expertise through formal education: identifying an opportunity for higher education

In this paper, we synthesize research on the nature and development of expertise to propose a developmental model that describes four main areas of expert knowledge: procedural, conditional, and conceptual knowledge, along with knowledge generation. We propose that these types of expert knowledge map onto and promote the development of four types of expert performance: procedural, functional, adaptive, and generative expertise. Further, we propose that expertise develops in terms of a fluency dimension consisting of execution, repertoire, and automaticity. We propose that this model highlights a potential opportunity for educators and instructional designers to target the appropriate level of expertise through teaching specific knowledge types in progression and providing practice and feedback to improve fluency. At a minimum, graduates would possess a degree of functional fluency and be better able to enter the workforce. Being aware of the need, and also knowing how, to conditionalize their own knowledge should also accelerate their continued acquisition of expertise throughout their career.

     

The impact of higher education on adult students in Australia

This article is part of a study of the impact of higher education on aspects of the employment of a national sample of adult students (25 and over) who enrolled in higher education in Australia in 1978. The study shows that from the point of view of employment these adult students drew much benefit from their higher education. Females tended to benefit more than males. A further article in a later issue will consider for the same group the impact of higher education on the person.     

中国传统诗词批评特色的文化根源--叶嘉莹诗词批评学习札记

叶嘉莹女士在其著作中认为中国传统诗词批评的特性是由中国语文之特性造成的,这种看法不够正确。本文对叶女士的观点进行了分析,指出是中国传统文化导致了中国传统诗词批评的特点。