Similarities and differences in teachers' beliefs about effective teaching of mathematics: Japan and Hawai'i

This paper examines the similarities and differences in beliefs about the effective teaching of mathematics held by teachers from two different socio-cultural backgrounds: Tokyo, Japan and Hawai'i, U.S.A. Data were collected using a part of the Teacher General Classroom Process Questionnaire (Grade 8) of the Second IEA Mathematics Study. Validation and interpretation of the data collected were based on classroom observations and interviews. The results indicate that while there are some similarities in beliefs of what constitutes effective teaching, the differences are greater. These differences appear to reflect the difference in the teachers' socio-cultural environment. In particular, the differences appear in classroom management, face-saving strategies, and providing for individual needs and differences.     

游戏化网络课程的设计与应用研究

针对游戏进入中小学课堂教学出现的困难和障碍,提出了构建面向中小学生的基于游戏化学习的网络课程。分门别类地详细介绍了此类课程的设计理念和特点:一是基于游戏化学习的课程;二是面向中小学生的网络课程;三是大学和中小学共同开设课程,同时针对每种特点提出相应的设计策略。随后,开发了"农场狂想曲科学探究网络课程",并开展了准实验研究,探讨了游戏化网络课程的教学成效。     

Comparative education,the ‘New Paradigm’ and policy borrowing: constructing knowledge for educational reform

Education reform in England is increasingly portrayed as a quest to create ‘world class’ schools through the transfer of features of ‘high performing’ school systems. The demand for evidence to support policy borrowing has been serviced by an influential intermediary network, which uses international data banks to compare education systems, and to identify and promote evidence of ‘what works’. The approach to comparisons has been portrayed as a ‘New Paradigm’ by its advocates, and whilst the network has been extensively critiqued, this has largely focused on its deviation from the norms of academic comparative education. This article explores how the ‘New Paradigm’ operates, identifying its inherent features and the strategies used to overcome the methodological issues associated with policy borrowing. This is pursued through an analysis of the rationale; assumptions; underlying ideology; methodology; omissions and silences; dealing with critics; and language and presentation of four of its influential publications.     

The changing experiences of bisexual male adolescents

Drawing on in-depth interviews with 15 openly bisexual male youth from sixth forms across the UK, this article documents positive experiences of bisexual male youth in school: participants had positive coming out experiences and did not encounter significant discrimination or harassment because of their sexual identity. Participants attribute this to the inclusive environments of their schools and local cultures. Examining the narratives of two participants who had negative experiences, this article also highlights continued issues for bisexual youth in schools. It thus advances our understanding of contemporary bisexual lives in educational institutions, and contributes to debates about whether sixth forms are more inclusive spaces than secondary schools for bisexuals.     

Fashion in the classroom II: Instructor immediacy and attire

Results of a 2 (immediacy conditions) X 3 (attire conditions) experimental study indicated lesser effects of attire on person perceptions when studied in a live interaction context as opposed to responses to photographs, as has been typical in previous studies. Influence of attire was largely limited to ratings of instructor extroversion, while immediacy influenced perceptions of extroversion, composure, character, competence, homophily, and learning. There was no statistically significant interaction between attire and immediacy; i.e., there was no indication that strategic choice of attire bolsters student ratings of non‐immediate instructors, or that “non professional” attire hurts judgements of immediate instructors.