Hirsch-type characteristics of the tail of distributions. The generalised h-index

In this paper a generalisation of the h-index and g-index is given on the basis of non-negative real-valued functionals defined on subspaces of the vector space generated by the ordered samples. Several Hirsch-type measures are defined and their basic properties are analysed. Empirical properties are illustrated using examples from the micro- and meso-level. Among these measures, the h-index proved the most, the arithmetic and geometric g-indices, the least robust measures. The μ-index and the harmonic g-index provide more balanced results and are still robust enough.     

Stichwort: Soziale Benachteiligung und Bewältigung

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Learning and Instruction: a review of main research lines during recent decades

Research on learning and instruction focuses on structural and procedural characteristics of guided human learning as well as its internal and external constraints including the embeddedness of human learning into social systems. Instruction (which is in this context just as a synonym for teaching) needs to be aligned with these characteristics of human learning in order to be successful. The following article provides an overview of main research lines on learning and instruction during the recent decades with a special focus on educational psychology and empirical pedagogy. In a first step, the article will outline basic theoretical approaches to teaching and learning. Second, it will analyze the role of learning environments and students’ learning activities within these environments and, third, the role of self-directed learning in such environments. Fourth, the paper will consider the role of media in learning and instruction with a special focus on possibilities to enhance students’ cognitive flexibility. In a fifth step, the article will specify cognitive and developmental constraints of learning and its instructional consequences. Finally, the article will suggest perspectives for further interdisciplinary research in this area.     

Education,democracy and development in a period of revolutionary change

The observation of the present global scene raises questions about the socioeconomic, political and cultural framework laying the ground for a constructive interaction between the three forces which greatly determine people's existence and survival, namely Development, Democracy and Education. In this approach reference is made to John Dewey's classical remarks about the interrelation between Democracy and Education. They are examined in the light of specific historical conditions which are exemplified by references to the history of the Bohemian Lands and the first Czechoslovak Republic as well as by a critical view of current events, revealing the anti-human perversion of Dewey's model.

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Zusammenfassung Ein Blick auf die gegenwärtige weltweite Szene wirft Fragen auf nach dem politischen und sozio-ökonomischen Rahmen, der Grundlage einer konstruktiven Interaktion der drei Kräfte ist, die vor allem die Existenz und das Überleben der Menschen bestimmen, nämlich Entwicklung, Demokratie und Bildung und Erziehung. Dieser Ansatz bezieht sich auf John Deweysklassische Bemerkungen über die Wechselwirkung von Demokratie und Bildung und Erziehung. Diese werden im Lichte spezifischer historischer Bedingungen untersucht, welche gleichermaßen am Beispiel der Geschichte der Böhmischen Länder und der ersten Tschechoslowakischen Republik veranschaulicht werden, wie durch einen kritischen Ausblick auf zeitgenössische Ereignisse, die die menschenfeindliche Perversion von Deweys Modell offenbaren.

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Résumé L'observation de la scène actuelle soulève des questions au sujet du cadre socio-économique, politique et culturel qui constitue le fondement d'une interaction constructive entre les trois forces qui déterminent essentiellement l'existence et la survie des peuples, à savoir le développement, la démocratie et l'éducation. Cette approche se réfère aux remarques classiques de John Dewey sur l'interrelation entre la démocratie et l'éducation. On les examine en fonction de conditions historiques spécifiques illustrées par l'histoire des pays de la Bohème et de la première République tchécoslovaque ainsi que par une vue critique des événements actuels, qui révèlent la perversion misanthropique du modèle de Dewey.

     

The role of IQ, expertise, and motivation in the recall of familiar information

High- and low-IQ children in the first, third, and fifth grades performed two free-recall tasks: a sort-recall task with sets of categorically related pictures, and a class-recall task, with children recalling the current members of their school class. All children were deemed to be experts concerning the composition of their school class, but, unlike experts in other domains, had no special motivation associated with their expertise. Recall and clustering on both tasks were high. The high-IQ children performed better than low-IQ children only on the sort-recall task. IQ was significantly correlated with measures of performance on the sort-recall task but not on the class-recall task. The results reflect the fact that the memory benefits associated with being an expert (here, elimination of IQ effects) are related to the greater knowledge the expert possesses and not to factors of motivation.