The role of cognitive flexibility in young children’s potential for learning under dynamic testing conditions

The aim of the current study was to investigate to what extent children’s potential for learning is related to their level of cognitive flexibility. Potential for learning was measured through a dynamic testing procedure that aimed to measure how much a child can profit from a training procedure integrated into the testing process, including the amount and type of feedback the children required during this training procedure. The study followed a pre-test–training–post-test control group design. Participants were 153 6–7-year-old children. Half of this group of children were provided with a standardised graduated prompts procedure. The other half of the participants performed a non-inductive cognitive task. Children’s cognitive flexibility was measured through a card sorting test and a test of verbal fluency. Results show that cognitive flexibility was positively related to children’s performance, but only for children in the practice-only condition who received no training. These outcomes suggest that dynamic testing, and more in particular, the graduated prompting procedure, supports children’s cognitive flexibility, thereby giving children with weaker flexibility the opportunity to show more of their cognitive potential as measured through inductive reasoning.

     

Children’s solving of ‘Tower of Hanoi’ tasks: dynamic testing with the help of a robot

Abstract

The present study investigated the usefulness of a pre-programmed, teleoperated, socially assistive peer robot in dynamic testing of complex problem solving utilising the Tower of Hanoi. The robot, in a ‘Wizard of Oz’ setting, provided instructions and prompts during dynamic testing to children when they had to solve 3?D Tower of Hanoi puzzles. Participants were 37?second grade 8-year-old children, of whom half received graduated prompts training between pre-test and post-test, delivered by the robot, and half did not. It was found that children’s progression in task accuracy varied considerably, depending on whether or not children were trained in solving Tower puzzles. Trained children showed greater progression in the number of Tower problems that they could solve accurately, made considerably fewer steps, although the Tower puzzles increased quickly in difficulty level. The mean completion time of trained children decreased at a slower rate than that of the untrained children, but both groups of children took considerably more time to think and plan ahead before they started the solving process. Only moderate relations with planning behaviour were found. In general, the study revealed that computerised dynamic testing with a robot as assistant has much potential in unveiling children’s potential for learning and their ways of tackling complex problems. The advantages and challenges of using a robot in educational assessment were discussed.     

Dewey’s Link with Daoism: Ideals of nature,cultivation practices,and applications in lessons

This article explores the pedagogical implications of John Dewey’s claim that his definition of experience is shared by Daoists. It compares characteristics of experience with those in Daoism, and then considers the similarities and differences between key cultivation practices each proposes, focusing on the roles of the teacher and sage. My main reference to Daoism is the translation of the Daodejing by Roger Ames and David Hall, who use Dewey’s conception of experience to explain the character of Daoism. There are two facts that Dewey chooses to define experience and link with Daoism—what it is not, and what it is. Comparisons of these facts with Daoism support Dewey’s claim: both define the ‘what is’ as the principle of unity of opposites. While sharing this view, their proposals for its cultivation reveal similarities, but also some significant differences. The Daodejing gives the Daoist sage a major role to play in the cultivation process of other persons, as does Dewey for the teacher. However, unlike Dewey’s teacher who guides the process, the sage is to create a cultivating environment, thus allowing the sage to ‘let go.’ The Daoist practices offer new ideas to consider in the quest for experience in lessons.     

桑树情缘

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Dynamic testing in indigenous and ethnic minority children

Our study aim was to examine whether ethnic-minority children would show different change patterns to indigenous children when presented with a seriation task within a dynamic testing context based on graduated prompt-techniques. We hypothesized that both Dutch-indigenous and ethnic-minority children would employ more sophisticated strategies after graduated prompt-training compared with untrained control-group children, and that trained ethnicity groups would show different progression paths from pre- to posttest. We also hypothesized that ethnic-minority and Dutch-indigenous children would progress differently in types of strategies over the course of their training, and that they would differ in number and type of instructions needed; i.e., whether various learning patterns could be detected. We further examined which variables predicted strategy-level best. Dynamically tested children changed their strategy behavior into the direction of a more advanced strategy; this change was the largest for the initial weaker scoring ethnic-minority children. These children also initially needed more but progressively needed less cognitive hints than Dutch-indigenous children during training. The graduated prompts approach we made use of clearly unfolds possibilities to detect and describe strong and weaker points in each child's solving processes before, during and after training. With a short intervention it appeared possible to describe how many prompts when and what type of prompts a child needed during training, i.e. to describe “the learning while tested” process.     

Using teacher inquiry to support technology-enhanced formative assessment: a review of the literature to inform a new method

In this paper we review the literature on teacher inquiry (TI) to explore the possibility that this process can equip teachers to investigate students’ learning as a step towards the process of formative assessment. We draw a distinction between formative assessment and summative forms of assessment [CRELL. (2009). The transition to computer-based assessment: New approaches to skills assessment and implications for large-scale testing. In F. Scheuermann & J. Björnsson (Eds.), JRC Scientific and technical reports. Ispra: Author; Webb, M. (2010). Beginning teacher education and collaborative formative e-assessment. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 35, 597–618; EACEA. (2009). National testing of pupils in Europe: Objectives, organisation and use of results. Brussels: Eurydice; OECD. (2010b). Assessing the effects of ICT in education (F. Scheuermann & E. Pedró, Eds.). Paris: JRC, OECD]. Our review of TI is combined with a review of the research concerning the way that practices with technology can support the assessment process. We conclude with a comparison of TI and teacher design research from which we extract the characteristics for a method of TI that can be used to develop technology-enhanced formative assessment: teacher inquiry into student learning. In this review, our primary focus is upon enabling teachers to use technology effectively to inquire about their students’ learning progress.     

Collection development in support of a global information network: A case study of LEISA, low external input and sustainable agriculture

Conclusions Collecting, collating, presenting and disseminating information are key success areas for information centers. This is where many organizations either gain or lose competitive advantage. Information not managed professionally and constructively has little value. It remains inaccessible, and its existence unknown. In this sense ILEIA has profiled itself in such a way that it has maintained its capacity to continue the strategic collection of grey literature and to retain a status which has ensured and is recognized as having a special niche in development-orientated publishing and information exchange. ILEIA has been successful in collecting and disseminating information during the 20 years of its existence. The main reasons for this success must be sought in the methodology underlying the editorial approach and the continuous attention that has been given to networking and profiling ILEIA's activities.