Beyond grades: developing knowledge sharing in learning communities as a graduate attribute

ABSTRACT

The ability to share knowledge is an important attribute that students develop in learning communities (LCs), enabling them to succeed in their education and careers. Insufficient research addresses the development of such knowledge sharing in LCs though, including whether it aligns with students’ success (i.e., grades). To address this gap, the current study investigates various determinants of knowledge sharing and their effects on student success. Survey data from 183 psychology students measure altruism, trust, belongingness (community identification), perceived social interaction, and attitudes toward and expectations of the benefits of knowledge sharing. A path analysis shows that trust affects the expected personal and community benefits of knowledge sharing indirectly, through students’ general attitudes toward knowledge sharing. Altruism, trust, and belongingness affect the personal benefits of knowledge sharing indirectly through social interaction. No significant relation emerges with first-year study success. Knowledge sharing as added attribute does not appear aligned with study success measured by individual course grades.     

Patterns of development in second-career teachers' conceptions of learning and teaching

This study was aimed at deepening our understanding of second-career teachers' conceptions of teaching and learning. Initial conceptions held by 207 candidates entering an alternative teacher education programme were explored using a semi-structured questionnaire covering background characteristics and four themes concerning teaching and learning. A limited number of distinct conceptions could be identified and related to respondents' background characteristics. After the first semester of the programme, three patterns of development were found in a subset of 70 participants: growth, consolidation and regression. Pedagogical implications for fostering growth in second-career teachers are discussed.     

Tailor-made: Towards a pedagogy for educating second-career teachers

Many countries suffer from teacher shortages. One possible solution to this problem is to recruit second-career teachers. These second-career teachers form an intriguing group. They bring an abundance of previous experiences into a new, professional domain. The purpose of this study is to identify pedagogical principles that support the training of second-career teachers. Special attention is given to the transfer of previous experiences obtained in different professional contexts. The literature on alternative certification programmes is reviewed from a pedagogical perspective. The results indicate that second-career teachers differ from first-career teachers in several respects. These differences appear to be related to their previous experiences. The differences also appear to influence their professional development. The study suggests that a tailor-made pedagogy for second-career teachers is needed, along with certain programme features, which take into account the specific needs of this group of students. Four design principles were identified, i.e.: addressing expectations, addressing challenges related to the transition to teaching, addressing transfer and developing a theory of practice.     

Some empirical notes on the epo epidemic in professional cycling

The 1990-2010 period in professional cycling is labeled by some as the epo epidemic. Surprisingly, performance enhancement by epo and blood doping is not that clear-cut for endurance athletes, leading to the question whether doping indeed strongly influenced cyclists' performances from the 1990s onwards. We examined the records (1947-2008) of the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and Vuelta a Espa?a (N = 181) and assessed the time it took riders to win the race. The findings revealed normally distributed performances and linear and quartic relationships in victors' performances over time that correspond with Brewer's (2002) sociohistorical analysis of professional cycling suggesting that effects of the epo epidemic on professional cyclists'achievements may be overestimated.     

Measuring the unmeasurable: a country's non-R&D expenditure on product and service innovation

Knowledge about non-R&D innovation expenditure, such as patenting and licensing, design, trial production, tooling-up, manpower training, market research and investment in fixed assets, is extremely sparse and questions about the latter were very poorly answered in the recent Community Innovation Survey (CIS). Using information regarding the quality of replies, we reach a tentative national estimate of 1992 innovation expenditure for all manufacturing and service industries in the Netherlands. Expenditure on product-related R&D represents about one quarter of total product (and service) innovation expenditure. Roughly half of the latter consists of investment in fixed assets, the latter being more important in services than in manufacturing.     

Clarifying pre-service teacher perceptions of mentor teachers’ developing use of mentoring skills

The aim of this study is to clarify how pre-service teachers perceive mentor teachers’ use of mentoring skills. Sixty stimulated-recall interviews were conducted, each in connection with a previously recorded mentoring dialogue. A quantitative analysis showed that six types of mentoring skills appeared to be perceived by pre-service teachers as offering emotional support and five others as offering task assistance. After mentor teachers were trained in mentoring skills, shifts in their frequencies of use of distinct skills, as observed by independent raters, corresponded to a considerable extent with shifts in frequencies of pre-service teacher perceptions of mentor teachers’ mentoring behaviour.     

Flipped-Class Pedagogy Enhances Student Metacognition and Collaborative-Learning Strategies in Higher Education But Effect Does Not Persist

In flipped-class pedagogy, students prepare themselves at home before lectures, often by watching short video clips of the course contents. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of flipped classes on motivation and learning strategies in higher education using a controlled, pre- and posttest approach. The same students were followed in a traditional course and in a course in which flipped classes were substituted for part of the traditional lectures. On the basis of the validated Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ), we found that flipped-class pedagogy enhanced the MSLQ components critical thinking, task value, and peer learning. However, the effects of flipped classes were not long-lasting. We therefore propose repeated use of flipped classes in a curriculum to make effects on metacognition and collaborative-learning strategies sustainable.     

Review Essay: Activating the AIDS Archive

The Railroad Problem with Reference to Government Ownership. Compiled by Harrison Boyd Summers and Robert E. Summers. New York: H. W. Wilson Co., 1939; pp. 308. $1.25.

Government Ownership of Railroads. Compiled and arranged by J. Weston Walch. Portland: The Platform News Publishing Co., 1939; pp. 164. $2.50.

The United States and War. The Reference Shelf, Vol. 12, No. 8. Compiled by Julia E. Johnson. New York: The H. W. Wilson Co., 1939; pp. 179. $.90.

Chain Stores and Legislation. The Reference Shelf, Vol. 12, No. 7. Compiled by Daniel Bloomfield. New York: The H. W. Wilson Co., 1939; pp. 466. $1.25.

Debate Index (New Edition Revised) The Reference Shelf, Vol. 12, No. 9. Compiled by Edith M. Phelps. New York: The H. W. Wilson Co., 1939; pp. 130. $ .75.

You Sell with Your Voice. By E. C. Buehler and Martin Maloney. New York: Ronald Press, 1939; pp. VI + 93. $2.00.

A Drill Manual for Improving Speech. By William Norwood Brigance and Florence M. Henderson. Chicago: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1939; pp. xxi + 246.

Speech Correction, Principles and Methods. By C. Van Riper. Prentice‐Hall, Inc., 1939; pp. 434. $2.50.

Correcting Nervous Speech Disorders. By M. F. Gifford. New York: Prentice‐Hall, 1939; pp. XV + 197. $2.85.

The Personality Structure of Stuttering. By James F. Bender. New York: The Pitman Publishing Co., 1939; pp. XVI + 189. $2.00.

Voice and Speech Problems. By Letitia Raubicheck, Estelle H. Davis, and L. Adèle Carll. New York: Prentice‐Hall, 1939; pp. xxviii + 559. $1.60.

Taking the Stage. By Charlotte Crocker, Victor Fields, Will Broomall. New York: Pitman Publishing Co., 1939; pp. 339. $2.00.

Shakespeare. By Mark Van Doren. New York: Henry Holt and Co., 1939; pp. 336. $3.00.

Modern Theatre Practice. (Second Edition) By Hubert C. Heffner, Samuel Selden, and Hunton D. Sellman, with an Appendix on Costume by Fairfax Proudfit Walkup. New York: F. S. Crofts &; Co., 1939; illustrated; pp. 425. $3.00.

Early Stages. By John Gielgud. New York: The Macmillan Co., 1939; pp. 322. $3.00.

Strolling Players and Drama in the Provinces 1660–1675. By Sybil Rosenfeld. Cambridge, England: The University Press; New York: The Macmillan Co., 1939; pp. 333. $4.00.

American Folk Plays. Edited with an Introduction by Frederick H. Koch. New York: D. Appleton‐Century Co., 1939; pp. xlvi + 592, illustrated. $4.00.

The Stage and the School (Revised Edition). By Katherine Anne Ommanney. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1939; pp. xix + 504. $1.60.

Theatre For Children. By Winifred Ward. New York: D. Appleton‐Century Co., 1939; pp. xiv + 333. $3.00.

Everyday English. By G. E. McElfresh and E. C. Ingalls. New York: Thomas Nelson &; Sons, 1939; pp. 372.

The Best One‐Act Plays of 1938. Edited by Margaret Mayorga. New York: Dodd, Mead &; Company, 1939; pp. 392. $2.50.

Magic Dials. By Lowell Thomas. New York: Lee Furman Inc., 1939; pp. 142. $2.00. Also published in a $1.00 edition. New York: James Werblow Polygraphic Company of America.

Journalism on the Air. By Dowling Leatherwood. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Burgess Publishing Co., 1939; pp. iii + 100. $1.75.

How to Write for Radio. By James Whipple. New York: Whittlesey House 1938: pp. xxi+425. $3.50.

How to Succeed Through Speech. By E. F. Du Teau. Boston: Christopher Publishing House, 1938: pp. 171. $1.75.

The Mechanics of Instantaneous Acetate Recording. By Sam H. Hawver. Los Angeles: Cellutone Record Manufacturing Co., 1937; pp. 14. 50c.

Advanced Disc Recording. Inglewood, California: Universal Microphone Co., Ltd., 1937; pamphlet, pp. 30. 10c.

Suggestive Outlines in Speech for the Elementary, Intermediate, and Secondary Schools. Prepared by the Michigan Association of Teachers of Speech. J. A. McMonagle, Michigan State College, President. Mimeographed; pp. iii + 69. $1.00.

A Course Book in Public Speaking (Second Revised Edition). By Wilbur E. Gilman, Bower Aly, Loren D. Reid. Columbia, Missouri : The Artcraft Press; pp. xii + 227.

Latin and Greek in Current Use. By Eli E. Burriss and Lionel Casson. New York: Prentice‐Hall, 1939; pp. xiv + 286. $2.50.     

Some Empirical Notes on the Epo Epidemic in Professional Cycling

The 1990–2010 period in professional cycling is labeled by some as the epo epidemic. Surprisingly, performance enhancement by epo and blood doping is not that clear-cut for endurance athletes, leading to the question whether doping indeed strongly influenced cyclists' performances from the 1990s onwards. We examined the records (1947–2008) of the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and Vuelta a España (N = 181) and assessed the time it took riders to win the race. The findings revealed normally distributed performances and linear and quartic relationships in victors' performances over time that correspond with Brewer's (2002) sociohistorical analysis of professional cycling, suggesting that effects of the epo epidemic on professional cyclists' achievements may be overestimated.