PREPARING THE EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGIST

The author describes the course for the Diploma in Applied Educational Technology at the University of York. with particular reference to the programme of practical attachments and visits.     

Concurrent validity of the test of nonverbal intelligence with learning disabled children

Results of the TONI, WISC-R, and WRAT were compared for a sample of 66 learning disabled children: 51 males (32 white, 19 black) and 15 females (9 white, 6 black) whose mean age was 9–5 (SD = 1–10). The mean score of the TONI was significantly different from the Performance IQ. Nonsignificant differences were found between the TONI and Full Scale IQ and between the TONI and Verbal IQ. Correlation coefficients between the TONI and WISC-R ranged from a low of .35 for the Verbal IQ to .44 for both the Full Scale and Performance IQs. The correlation coefficients between the TONI and standard scores of the WRAT were .38, .27, and .23, for Reading, Spelling, and Arithmetic, respectively. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

Associations among Adult Attachment Representations, Maternal Sensitivity, and Infant-Mother Attachment in a Sample of Adolescent Mothers

Associations among adolescent attachment organization, maternal sensitivity, and infant attachment organization were examined prospectively in 74 teenaged mother-infant dyads. Pregnant teenagers' attachment organizations predicted both sensitivity and infant-mother attachments. Mothers classified autonomous (F) in the prenatal period showed higher levels of sensitivity at both 3 and 9 months than mothers classified dismissing (Ds), preoccupied (E), or unresolved (U). Correspondence between maternal attachment (F vs. Ds/E/U) and infant attachment (secure [B] vs. avoidant [A]/resistant [C]/ disorganized [D]) was observed in 58 of 74 (78%) dyads. Exact 4-group (Ds/E/F/U and A/B/C/D) agreement was observed in 50 of 74 (68%) families. In contrast, associations between maternal sensitivity and infant attachment were not significant, leading to questions about the processes that link attachment representations, maternal behavior, and infant attachment in adolescent mothers.     

A teacher education program in elementary science that connects content,methods, practicum,and student teaching

Conclusion To educate teachers who have adequate content knowledge, possess the necessary skills to implement effective teaching strategies, and are confident and have positive attitudes toward science and the teaching of science, alternative teaching models are necessary. The University of Wyoming model provides such an alternative. Based on observations and interviews of students and the mentor teachers, it is apparent that it has created a very positive response in prospective teachers who have participated in it. The Wyoming model provided an effective process to train future elementary teachers. Even though it focused on science, the basis is general enough that it could be successfully extended to other disciplines with only minor modifications; however, all of the major components of the Wyoming model are vital to its success. Content courses designed specifically for prospective teachers have been successful in giving the students the content knowledge and providing opportunities for effective modeling. The seminars provide strong mechanisms to connect content to methodology and make the content relevant to teaching and to children. Because of their modeling, peer coaching, and sharing their time and students, the mentor teachers are essential partners in helping the university educate future teachers. Finally, the cooperation of all partners—district administrators, teachers, science content and science education university faculty, and students—is necessary to provide early and continuous experiences to prospective teachers. This material is based upon work supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation (Grant No. TTE-8851105). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, and/or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the NSF.     

Generating multiple solutions for a problem: A comparison of the responses of U.S. and Japanese students

A task involving simple mathematics, yet complex in its call for the generation of multiple solution methods, was administered to about 150 U.S. students, most of whom were in fourth grade. Written responses were examined for correctness, evidence of strategy use and mode of explanation. Results for the U.S. sample were also compared to those obtained from about 200 Japanese fourth-grade students. Students in both countries (a) produced multiple solutions and explanations of their solutions, (b) exhibited almost identical patterns and frequency of strategy use across response occasions, and (c) used the same kinds of explanations, with a majority of the responses involving solution explanations that combined both visual and verbal/symbolic features. Nevertheless, Japanese students tended to produce explanations involving more sophisticated mathematical ideas (multiplication rather than addition) and formalisms (mathematical expressions rather than verbal explanations) than did U.S. students.     

Empirical foundations of atomism in ancient Greek philosophy

The way by which ancient Greek philosophers came to the concept of atom is presented. The concept of atom, a great creation of the human mind, gave a direct, modern-like explanation of the world, at times in which the huge amount of experimental and theoretical information of today was not available. This lack proved not an impossible obstacle for ancient Greek atomistic philosophers. The continuous regeneration, which makes Nature seem eternal, the physiology of nourishment, the orderly growth and decay of humans, animals and plants, the spreading of a sent, the evaporation and condensation of water, the wearing out of a pavement by the steps of passers-by etc., led philosophers to the concept of atoms. Similar experiences can be appealed to in teaching the concept today. Nevertheless, the concept of atom was not conceived in the same way in all ancient philosophical schools. The struggle to understand Nature, brought forth brilliant ideas and intuitions, which are directly connected to modern aspects of atomic theory, like the atomicity of time and the symmetries of the world of elementary particles. Teachers today can, with benefit to their students, retrace the ancient steps to atomic theory.     

Reputation disparity in teaching and research productivity and rewards in the context of consequences of institutionalization of Publish or Perish culture in academia

The reputation disparity between teaching and research has stirred up an unending debate. The age-long notion that teaching and research overlap has become a controversial issue in academia. Consequences of the institutionalization of Publish OR Perish (POP) abound in the literature. This paper investigates the reputations disparity between teaching and research productivity and the rewards for these academic activities. It explores which, out of teaching activities and research publications receive higher or less attention and rewards. Relevant existing literature was reviewed to establish the institutionalization of POP and its consequences of the reputations disparity between teaching and research and its adverse effects on these activities. Evidence from the literature reviewed reveals the existence of POP reputation disparity as part of its consequences. A key finding is that teaching activities are insignificant and unrewarded as research publications. Neither the effectiveness nor the number of teaching loads counts like the numbers of publications.