Preparing for re-entry; A program for the sojourning student

A visitor to a new country is assaulted by many changes, both environmental and cultural. Expecting things to be different the visitor is shocked by what he/she finds, thus the term culture shock. A second shock, possibly more traumatic, awaits the international sojourner upon his or her arrival home. The experiences of the returnee typically do not match his or her expectations. Frequently, the individual returning home is not anticipating adjustment difficulties. Compounding the problem is the fact that re-entry has not been widely recognized or researched and thus, little has been done to help individuals to prepare for it.Focusing on international students, who by definition return home, this paper refers to a wide range of social, cultural, political, educational and professional difficulties. The many variables which determine the extent of re-entry shock are identified and discussed. A group program is suggested as one strategy for assisting those about to return home. The results of a pilot study of such a program illustrate how it can be a powerful force to minimize the disorientation and shock of re-entry.This paper serves as a challenge to all those who are responsible or work with international students. Re-entry preparation is also a prerequisite if individuals, institutions, corporations, home countries and host countries are to maximize the benefits and minimize the problems of studying or working abroad.     

试论呼伦贝尔市治安保险的状况和发展趋势

本文分析了呼伦贝尔市治安保险的状况和目前治安保险存在的问题,并提高了呼伦贝尔市治安保险的发展趋势.     

Impact of a content and methods course sequence on prospective secondary mathematics teachers’ beliefs

In this article, we report on a study of beliefs about mathematics, teaching, and proof conducted with six prospective secondary mathematics teachers as they completed a two-semester sequence of a content course and a methods course. The initial beliefs of the participants were identified using interview and survey data, and potential shifts in beliefs were examined through further interview and survey data combined with classroom observations and written work. While their beliefs about mathematics and proof appeared to be relatively stable, their beliefs about teaching shifted from a more teacher-centered view to beliefs that foreground the activities and understandings of the students. These shifts are analyzed using the construct of belief structures, and activities and events from the courses that may have facilitated the shifts are identified. The results are consistent with the literature in some respects, such as the stability of the participants’ beliefs about mathematics. On the other hand, our results present new information about how prospective secondary mathematics teachers’ beliefs about teaching may be impacted.     

Teaching effectiveness: Comparisons between traditional and nontraditional college students

This article compares traditional college students' perceptions of effective teaching behaviors with nontraditional students' perceptions. A 15-item questionnaire was completed by undergraduates at a small Southeastern university. Nontraditional students viewed personality and interaction behaviors as more indicative of effective teaching, whereas traditional students focused on behaviors that potentially would enhance grades. The implications of the findings are discussed in light of techniques and approaches that facilitate the needs of both types of students.His major areas of interest include testing and counseling. Nina Mattie, M.A. is a recent graduate of the University of West Florida in the area of school psychology. Stephen J. Vodanovich, Ph.D. is an assistant professor in the psychology department at the University of West Florida. His major areas of interest are social psychology and industrial/organizational psychology. Chris Piotrowski, M.A. is a consultant in forensic psychology. His major areas of interest are personality assessment and online database searching.     

Classroom behavior of children and adolescents with learning disabilities: a meta-analysis

Meta-analysis was used to review the results of 25 studies that compared the classroom behavior of children and adolescents with learning disabilities (LD) to children without learning disabilities. The data were analyzed from several different methodological perspectives. Results showed that both methodologically strong and weak studies demonstrated significant behavioral deficits of children with learning disabilities compared to their nondisabled peers in each of five overall areas: on-task behavior, off-task behavior, conduct disorders, distractibility, and shy/withdrawn behavior. Both observational and teacher rating data demonstrated these differences. Effect sizes for both groups of studies seemed to cluster around 1 standard deviation, suggesting noticeable and educationally significant impairment in the behavior of children with disabilities. Analysis of grade-level effect sizes suggests some explanation for the large number of referrals often witnessed during the elementary school years. Educational implications of these behavioral differences in terms of implications for mainstreaming are discussed.     

An Empirical Investigation of the Construct Validity of Empathic Understanding Ratings

This study examined the effect of different amounts of client-therapist interaction data on empathy ratings. Audiotaped therapist-client interactions including client statement, therapist response, and subsequent client response were rated for therapist empathy by high-functioning, experienced raters. Raters made significantly different judgments about levels of therapist empathy depending on the amount of therapist-client interaction data available. The raters tended to give therapist responses higher empathy ratings when they did not hear the client's preceding statement.