A framework for designing interactive multimedia to scaffold young children's understanding of historical chronology

Young children's understanding of thehistorical past is often characterised by alack of temporal differentiation and a sense oftotal discontinuity with the present. Researchhas suggested that this situation may be causedin part by their formation of inappropriaterepresentations when solving problems ofchronology. To help children construct moreappropriate external representations forparticular tasks and reason more effectivelywith them about chronological concepts, weinvestigated the role that interactivemultimedia might play in scaffoldingteacher-led activities in the classroom. Inthis paper we report on our conceptual designand pedagogical approach to developingeffective dynamic, interactive representationsand activities at the computer interface, aimedat bridging the conceptual gap between concreteexperience and abstract concepts. Evaluationsof the software built using this frameworkshowed that the program was well received bychildren and teachers alike, and that it wasable to facilitate children's understanding of,and ability to reason about, chronology.     

Contextualized-OLPC education project in rural India: measuring learning impact and mediation of computer self-efficacy

The One Laptop per Child (OLPC) initiative has been at the forefront of introducing low-cost computers in developing countries. We argue that the problem is not as much as a focus on the provision of affordable technologies, but the lack of consideration of deeply contextualized implementation design and the lack of understanding of psychological mechanisms at the user-level that influence learning impact. A longitudinal quasi-experimental design among nine rural Indian primary schools involved pre- and post- experiment measures conducted with both test (n = 126) and control groups (n = 79). The study objective was to prioritize local contexts during technology implementation design in order to attain educational impact in terms of improved learning outcomes for students. The Contextualized-OLPC education project utilized strategies identified by the Technology-Community-Management model to address contextually germane factors of teacher training, unbiased gender access, and local language use. A second objective was to assess impact of technology introduction while countering extant techno-determinist approaches of impact assessment. We first demonstrated that technological knowledge was associated positively with functional literacy. We situated the experiment in the social cognitive theory to demonstrate that computer self-efficacy mediates the relationship between technological literacy attained as a consequence of the Contextualized-OLPC education project and a specific learning outcome, functional literacy. Overall, the research illustrated that giving primacy to mere deployment of OLPC laptops has limited relevance to children, both in use and outcome. In support, the results demonstrated the role of contextualized technology in rural classrooms alongside an understanding of user psychology that influence learning impact.     

Supporting Pupils in Finnish and Swedish Schools—Teachers’ Views

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the different support systems used by teachers in compulsory education. Class and subject teachers and special educators from Finland (N?=?57) and Sweden (N?=?57) participated in the study, in which both qualitative and quantitative methods were used. Participants completed an electronic questionnaire to identify the supports and methods they use when working with pupils who have special educational needs. The findings indicate both similarities and differences between the two countries. One of the most common forms of support was individualisation, including pedagogical modifications. Methods of supporting academic skills such as reading differed from those used to support behavioral issues. Positive pedagogy and structuring the environment were used ways of supporting pupils with behavioral challenges. Results for both countries are compared and support needs are discussed.     

Effects of a Pre‐service Teacher Preparation Programme on Effective Instruction

A quasi‐experimental, treatment‐control group investigation was designed to test the effects of a pre‐service training course on effective instruction. Research findings from teacher effects research and cognitive strategy instruction were translated into two direct instructional models: one model for explicit or well‐structured skills and one model for implicit skills or higher‐level thinking strategies. Following a course on effective instruction from their teacher educators, student teachers implemented standardised lessons to apply selected research‐derived teaching behaviours and to increase pupil engagement rates. Based on trained observers’ pre‐and post‐training classroom observations, a significant treatment effect was found for student teachers’ teaching behaviours regarding effective instruction and for pupil engagement rates. Ratings from supervising teachers also showed that the student teachers who participated in the course on effective instruction used the recommended instructional skills after completion of the course significantly better than prior to the course.     

一条表扬的链子

年级:5年级材料:链环或曲别针方法:1.每当学生们表现出色,我都会加以表扬。当然,在这之前,我和学生们已经讨论过什么是表扬,以及表扬的重要意义。通过讨论,大家达成了一致意见,即如果他们得到我的表     

The Rhetoric of the Probable in Scientific Commentaries: The Debate Over the Species Status of the Red Wolf

This article looks at the commentary's role in scientific disputation by analyzing the rhetoric in two scientific papers. First, it considers each author's explanation as to why disagreement exists among scientists. Second, it investigates one author's accusation that “cultural norms” have foreclosed research avenues in evolutionary studies. Third, it examines each author's appeal to values. These values cohere with their explanations as to why disagreements exist and their particular recommendations for administrating the Endangered Species Act.     

Measuring spontaneous and instructed evaluation processes during Web search: Integrating concurrent thinking-aloud protocols and eye-tracking data

Web searching for complex information requires to appropriately evaluating diverse sources of information. Information science studies identified different criteria applied by searchers to evaluate Web information. However, the explicit evaluation instructions used in these studies might have resulted in a distortion of spontaneous evaluation processes. Accordingly, the present study compared explicit evaluation instructions and neutral thinking-aloud instructions. Data from thinking-aloud protocols, eye tracking, and information problem-solving were collected from 30 participants equally distributed to two experimental conditions, that is, the Instructed Evaluation condition and the Spontaneous Evaluation condition. Instructed evaluation, as compared to spontaneous evaluation, resulted in more verbal utterances of quality-related evaluation criteria, in an increased attention focus on user ratings displayed on Web pages, and in better quality of decision making, although participants in the Instructed Evaluation condition were not able to better justify their decision as compared to participants in the Spontaneous Evaluation condition.     

Between a rock and a hard place: women and computer technology

This paper explores certain possible reasons behind the uneasy relationship between women and technology. The cultural identification of technology with masculinity has been well documented through previous research. However, we feel it is useful to revisit this complex relationship through the scope of a more subtle distinction between ‘users’ and ‘connoisseurs’, and the struggle over power, which revolves around a specific form of hegemonic masculinity. We draw on interviews that examine students’ experiences, emotions, and statements about gender, technology, mathematics, and education, and we try to offer an understanding of the ways women negotiate their position within the dominant discourse about computing and mathematics. Our analysis employs post-structuralist discourse theory.     

Internationalisation and distance education: a Hong Kong case study

The accelerating globalisation of world economic relations has been paralleled by a progressive internationalisation of higher education, including the use of distance education. But the modification of distance education materials and the provision of local tutorial support are only rarely undertaken, despite the fact that in social science and the humanities such materials are culturally saturated. This Hong Kong case study in teacher education examines the issues, describes the opportunities and difficulties involved, and argues that cultural adaptation merits a higher priority than at present.