Visual Sequential Memory and Spelling Ability

Although good visual memory is frequently cited as an essential requirement for competent spelling, there is little empirical evidence to support this. In this paper visual sequential memory was studied in two separate controlled experiments which compared the test performances of 13‐year‐old poor spellers and controls. Test materials were carefully designed to obtain a measure of visual memory with minimal interference from verbal coding. With the variable of IQ controlled for, visual memory did not appear to differentiate between the groups unless mediated by verbal coding.     

New directions for lifelong learning using network technologies

The requirements placed on learning technologies to support lifelong learning differ considerably from those placed on technologies to support particular fragments of a learning lifetime. The time scales involved in lifelong learning, together with its multi‐institutional and episodic nature are not reflected in today’s mainstream learning technologies and their associated architectures. The article presents an integrated model and architecture to serve as the basis for the realisation of networked learning technologies serving the specific needs and characteristics of lifelong learners. The integrative model is called a ‘Learning Network’ (LN) and its requirements and architecture are explored, together with the ways in which its application can help in reducing barriers to lifelong learning.     

Science education,cognitive developmental research and theory in the U.K.

Conclusion In the papers presented one can detect a number of major areas of concern. The theorists like Shayer are largely concerned with the development and refinement of frameworks for studying cognitive development. Their ultimate purposes varied from reconstructing the entire field of science education, to accelerating cognitive development, to changing the ‘alternative frameworks’ of children. In essence, they seek totailor the teaching-learning process in accordance with a theoretical blue print. Those who see the problems as more content and context specific would prefer to chip away at particular topics which create teaching difficulties, thereby contributing to the improvement of practice in a more direct, piecemeal fashion. They could perhaps be described astinkers. So we havetinkers andtailors. Thesoldiers amongst us would equip teachers with the weapons needed to attack their own problems directly. They are working away at developing techniques Oh yes, thespies are the moles like me who are concerned with uncovering the secrets of classroom life, with identifying the structures, patterns and processes which characterise classroom interaction, and with the describing and monitoring the ‘theories in action’ and strategies which skilled practitioners have evolved to cope with the problems of promoting cognitive development in classroom settings. The ultimate question then, is what contribution can the tinkers, tailors, soldiers and spies make to science education?     

Public school teachers’ perceptions of what promotes or hinders their use of outdoor learning spaces

Learning Environments Research - The creation of outdoor learning spaces (OLS) such as school gardens is increasing in frequency in elementary and secondary schools in Canada. Previous research has...     

Postmodern principles for responsive reading assessment

This paper reviews the concept of high‐stakes assessment against a background of postmodernism, and argues that the inaccessibility of cognitive processes is only one part of the problem of reading assessment: even greater challenges are posed by a postmodern analysis, in which an ‘incredulity toward metanarratives’ leads to a series of six theoretical positions, from each of which is derived a practical imperative that might guide us in establishing postmodern principles of assessment. These six imperatives are then explored in relation to two practical contexts, one in the area of portfolio or evidence‐based assessment, the other in the area of computer‐based assessment of reading. In both cases, it is argued that, working from first principles, the case for using such approaches can be established. Second, it is argued that while both these approaches to assessment offer empirical and methodological challenges that have yet to be met, they also offer opportunities for valuing the individual subject and diminishing the authority of the author and the text in ways that are in harmony with a postmodern position.     

Defining and seeking to identify critical Internet literacy: a discourse analysis of fifth‐graders' Internet search and evaluation activity

Pedagogic focus is shifting increasingly from teaching students to search the Internet efficiently to encouraging critical Internet literacy, but this paper argues that these more complex and subtle skills are both challenging to teach and difficult to identify. The paper presents an analysis of the discourse of triads of fifth graders undertaking an Internet search task that emphasised decisions relating to the trustworthiness and relevance of websites. The analysis uses two lenses – the Vygotskian concept of obuchenie and Mercer's notion of ‘inter‐thinking’ – to help identify discourse markers that could support teachers in identifying and teaching critical Internet literacy. More work is needed, but it is argued that if our goal is to develop critical Internet literacy, the concept of obuchenie helps us to understand the socio‐cognitive prerequisites of group learning in Internet searching tasks, while the concept of ‘interthinking’ offers us a distribution mechanism that can be applied in helping students acquire the skills of independent and critical analysis as they carry out those tasks.     

Professional Learning Through Everyday Work: How Finance Professionals Self-Regulate Their Learning

Professional learning is a critical component of ongoing improvement and innovation and the adoption of new practices in the workplace. Professional learning is often achieved through learning embedded in everyday work tasks. However, little is known about how professionals self-regulate their learning through regular work activities. This paper explores how professionals in the finance sector (n-30) self-regulate their learning through day-to-day work. Analysis focuses on three sub-processes of self-regulated learning that have been identified as significant predictors of good self-regulated learning at work. A key characteristic of good self-regulation is viewing learning as a form of long-term, personalised self-improvement. This studyprovides a foundation for future policy and planning in organisations aiming to encourage self-regulated learning.