Presentation of a flashing light following one-trial fear conditioning enhances retention

Rats exposed for 60 sec to a flashing light stimulus following one-trial fear conditioning showed enhanced retention performance relative to controls not exposed to the flashing light. The results of a second experiment demonstrated a time-dependent gradient of the enhancement effect. In view of additional data indicating that the flashing light is not aversive, these results suggest that the presentation of an exteroceptive stimulus can influence memory processing.     

Child abuse in Turkey: an experience in overcoming denial and a description of 50 cases

OBJECTIVE: To share the experiences of the first clinical multidisciplinary child abuse and neglect (CAN) team in Turkey with international child abuse community. METHODS: The authors established the first Turkish CAN follow-up team at Dr. Behcet Uz Children's Hospital. Following a training program in five teaching hospitals in Izmir, the authors kept a record of every case diagnosed with CAN from these hospitals between 1996 and 1998. The demographic, epidemiologic, and medical features of this case series are summarized. RESULTS: Fifty cases were diagnosed and followed-up. Seventy-six percent of patients were reported from Dr. Behcet Uz Children's Hospital. Age and sex distribution was 9.2 +/- 6.7 years and 46% male, 54% female, respectively. The offenders were only father in 38%, only mother in 28%, and multiple in 34%. More than three CAN risk factors were present in 94%. Of the children reported 44% survived, 14% died, and 42% were lost to follow-up. Sixteen percent were free of reabuse, and 42% survived with handicaps. CONCLUSIONS: Child abuse and neglect is a reality in Turkey. The team's work increased pediatricians' awareness of CAN. Reporting these cases to Social Affairs Bureau was established for the first time in Turkey. Physicians in Turkey need training to diagnose and properly report CAN. The implemen tation of a national CAN prevention program is an urgent need for Turkey.     

Parental responses to sibling conflict: the effects of development and parent gender

Mothers' and fathers' responses to their children's spontaneous sibling conflicts were observed using a wireless microphone system. Eighty-eight two-child, two-parent families participated in three home observations. Secondborn children were 3 to 5 years of age and firstborn children were 2 to 4 years older. Associations between parents' enactment of three categories of conflict management strategies (passive nonintervention, child-centered management, and parental control) and sibling interaction quality varied according to children's ages, gender of the monitoring parent, and type of strategy used. Passive nonintervention was highly associated with the occurrence of subsequent conflict. Younger sibling dyads, in particular, behaved more antagonistically when their parents did not intervene. In contrast, older sibling dyads were less involved and less close when their mothers intervened in any way. Results suggest that relatively younger sibling dyads may benefit more than older dyads from parental intervention.     

Encountering the past in the present: An exploratory study of educational heritage tourism

This article presents an educational programme designed to explore the multicultural history of Poland. Targeting Jewish and non-Jewish students of Polish heritage, the Polonia Programme (PP) was conceptualised with the aim of applying the tools of experiential education to initiate a new approach to examining one of the world’s most challenging and fraught historical narratives. The programme, piloted in the summer of 2014, takes two groups of young people from the United States to Poland each year. It features a combination of formal lectures and interactive tours, complemented by structured and semi-structured discussions. The destination of this particular tour, with these particular participants, both challenges and reinforces accepted notions of “heritage tourism” within an experiential educational framework. This framework enables a sense of group connectivity which allows students to be, perhaps, more open to alternative narratives about the past. The authors of this article, who were involved in evaluating the pilot launch of the Polonia Programme, found that the programme’s experiential approach succeeded in encouraging participants in the pilot cohort to challenge ideas about their definitions of and preconceptions about “who and what counts as Polish”. For many, the experience shifted their understanding of Poland towards one which took its multi-ethnic and multicultural history into account. Several discovered new perspectives on their own identity and heritage, while others reached a new understanding of the shared histories of Poles and Jews. The experiential nature of this programme also allowed students to encounter difficult histories: experience, then, became a vehicle for more challenging conversations and deeper learning.     

Perceptions of pedagogical formation students about Web 2.0 tools and educational practices

This study aims to examine pedagogical formation students’ perceptions about Web 2.0 tools and educational practices. A case study approach forms the methodological framework of this study. This study was conducted with 42 pedagogical formation students of an Instructional Technology and Material Design course during the 2014–2015 spring semester. During the course, the students created digital materials such as puzzles, concept maps, worksheets, presentations and posters by using software including Prezi, Glogster, and Webspiration. Furthermore they were introduced to numerous Web 2.0 tools which were required learning for the purpose of the course. The data for this study was collected by the researcher through a questionnaire and open-ended questions developed in order to identify students’ views on Web 2.0 tools and educational practices they will face in their future professional life. Content analysis, frequency and percentage were used in the analysis of data. Answers to the following were sought from the data analysis: (1) which Web 2.0 tools do students use or planned to use in their current and future professional life (teaching profession); (2) what are the reasons students want to use Web 2.0 tools in their professional life as a teacher; (3) what are the views of students about their use of Web 2.0 tools in the educational context; and (4) what are students’ views about Web 3.0 technologies and the changes and innovations that will be brought about by these technologies in the field of education.     

Teachers' self‐reported pedagogical practices toward socially inhibited,hyperactive, and average children

This study examined teachers' self‐reported pedagogical practices toward socially inhibited, hyperactive, and average kindergartners. A self‐report instrument was developed and examined in three samples of kindergartners and their teachers. Principal components analyses were conducted in four datasets pertaining to 1 child per teacher. Two dimensions, Behavior Regulation and Socioemotional Support, emerged, which could be measured with internally consistent scales. Preliminary validity support was obtained for them. Multilevel comparisons revealed that teachers reported more behavior regulation for hyperactive versus inhibited and average children, more socioemotional support for inhibited versus hyperactive and average children, and more socioemotional support for hyperactive versus average children in two samples. Exploratory analyses of the other (i.e., random) sample of children yielded corresponding effects of hyperactivity on behavior regulation, and social inhibition on socioemotional support, but no effect of hyperactivity on socioemotional support. Results are discussed in terms of the saliency of behavior differences. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 43: 635–651, 2006.     

Matching/mismatching revisited: an empirical study of learning and teaching styles

This paper presents results of a research project that explored the relationship between matching and mismatching instructional presentation style (breadth-first and depth-first) with students' cognitive style (field-dependence/-independence) in a computer-based learning environment. 73 postgraduate students were asked to create Web pages using HTML, using instructional materials that were either matched or mismatched with their cognitive styles. Significant differences in performance on a multiple choice test of conceptual knowledge were found for students learning in matched and mismatched conditions. Performance in matched conditions was significantly superior to that in mismatched conditions. However, significant effects were found for gender, matching mainly affecting male students. Performance on a practical test of Web page creation was not linked to matching or mismatching, but was linked to an interaction between gender and instructional presentation style. The findings provide support for the notion that matching and mismatching can have significant effects on learning outcomes. The paper concludes with suggestions for further research.     

Using Efficient Model Based Sum-Scores for Conducting Skills Diagnoses

Consider test data, a specified set of dichotomous skills measured by the test, and an IRT cognitive diagnosis model (ICDM). Statistical estimation of the data set using the ICDM can provide examinee estimates of mastery for these skills, referred to generally as attributes. With such detailed information about each examinee, future instruction can be tailored specifically for each student, often referred to as formative assessment. However, use of such cognitive diagnosis models to estimate skills in classrooms can require computationally intensive and complicated statistical estimation algorithms, which can diminish the breadth of applications of attribute level diagnosis. We explore the use of sum-scores (each attribute measured by a sum-score) combined with estimated model-based sum-score mastery/nonmastery cutoffs as an easy-to-use and intuitive method to estimate attribute mastery in classrooms and other settings where simple skills diagnostic approaches are desirable. Using a simulation study of skills diagnosis test settings and assuming a test consisting of a model-based calibrated set of items, correct classification rates (CCRs) are compared among four model-based approaches for estimating attribute mastery, namely using full model-based estimation and three different methods of computing sum-scores (simple sum-scores, complex sum-scores, and weighted complex sum-scores) combined with model-based mastery sum-score cutoffs. In summary, the results suggest that model-based sum-scores and mastery cutoffs can be used to estimate examinee attribute mastery with only moderate reductions in CCRs in comparison with the full model-based estimation approach. Certain topics are mentioned that are currently being investigated, especially applications in classroom and textbook settings.     

Peer relationships of children with cochlear implants

Previous research on children with cochlear implants has focused mostly on their speech perception and production. With the growing numbers of children who use the implant, it is important to assess other aspects of these children's functioning. This article offers a qualitative and quantitative analysis of interviews with parents who described their children's communication skills and peer relationships before they had the implant and afterward. Results show that the implant has the potential to improve deaf children's relationships with hearing peers. Nonetheless, children with implants still face communication obstacles, which impede their social relationships with hearing peers. Results are discussed in light of the different points of view of various "stake holders" regarding cochlear implants in children.     

Reflections on the Umbrella Movement: Implications for civic education and critical thinking

Abstract

The 2014 Umbrella Movement was one of the most significant social and political events in recent Hong Kong history. This paper offers some initial reflections on the connections between the movement and broader issues related to civic education, critical thinking, and theories of education. First, it is suggested that the movement closely resembles a form of civic education known as ‘action civics,’ offering an alternative pedagogy that might encourage more authentic civic participation. Second, the movement raises questions about how the teaching of critical thinking can be made more practically relevant to modern citizenship. Third, the deep political polarization associated with the movement indicates that civic education and critical thinking training need to pay attention to cognitive biases that affect political ideology. Finally, the Umbrella Movement reflects the failure of democratization in Hong Kong and coincides with increasing political pressures on the local education system. We discuss how political reality connects to issues about democratic education, critical pedagogy, and the idea of political neutrality in education.