Science learning and a Sense of Place in a Urban Middle School

This paper offers an analysis into low-income, urban middle school children's sense of place and what and how their sense of place matters in science learning by focusing on the following questions: In what ways is students' sense of place leveraged in a science classroom? How does the content and context of science class shape how students leverage their sense of place? What learning opportunities emerge when sense of place is leveraged in class? Drawing from an ethnographic investigation into an environmental statistics class in a mid-sized public middle school, we examined sense of place events from their source, process, and outcome perspectives. Our findings are presented from two aspects of sense of place events, (1) characterizing students' sense of place by exploring sources of the sense of place events, and (2) examining processes of how students' sense of place is being leveraged in the episodes. We also examine two kinds of tensions that emerge in the class when sense of place is leveraged by students and acknowledged by the teacher: epistemological tensions (related to what the students are learning) and procedural tensions (related to how they are learning).     

Gender issues in teaching information technology courses by distance education

This paper looks at reasons why women are still under‐represented in tertiary level technological education after 20 years of discussion, and argues that it is important for society to look at ways of not only improving educational access to women but also providing equal benefit once enrolled. Distance education is often seen as a solution to access problems but the particular needs of women in distance education must be considered. Financial, attitudinal and skills barriers may need to be overcome if there is a pre‐enrolment requirement of quality access to computing equipment. Ways of improving both participation and persistence of women in information technology courses are discussed.     

Sources of teachers’ self-efficacy for technology integration from formal,informal, and independent professional learning

Educational technology research and development - Teachers do not consistently maximize the potential of classroom technologies for enhancing student learning. As their self-efficacy is positively...     

Reality Television Programming and Diverging Gratifications: The Influence of Content on Gratifications Obtained

The study explores how competition-based reality shows with different thematic content influence gratifications obtained by viewers. Participants completed surveys regarding their reasons for watching reality programs in general and their reasons for watching specific reality shows (The Apprentice, The Bachelor/Bachelorette, and Survivor). Results identified a new gratification dimension not previously observed in other gratifications research (personal utility), and that correlations exist between the specific content of reality-based programs and the gratifications obtained by the viewers.     

History,identity, and the school curriculum in Northern Ireland: an empirical study of secondary students' ideas and perspectives

This study reports results of an empirical investigation of secondary students' conceptions of history and identity in Northern Ireland. Interviews with 253 students from a variety of backgrounds indicate that they initially identify with a wide range of historical themes, but that these identifications narrow as they study the required national curriculum during the first 3 years of secondary school. Often, they draw selectively from the formal curriculum in order to support their developing identification with the history of their own political/religious communities. This process is most apparent among boys, at predominantly Protestant schools, and in schools located in areas of conflict. These findings suggest that to address history's role in ongoing community conflict, educators may need to challenge more directly the beliefs and assumptions held by students of varied backgrounds, as well as to provide a clearer alternative to the partisan histories encountered elsewhere.