Value orientations of elementary and secondary physical education teachers in Flanders

The purpose of this research was to examine and compare physical educators'value profiles. The Value Orientation Inventory was used to collect data from 528 elementary and 637 secondary physical education teachers in Flanders. Teacher characteristics, including gender and years of teaching experience revealed only minor differences in value orientations. Significant differences in teachers' value orientations were observed between teachers in elementary and secondary schools. The different value profiles of these two teacher groups are discussed in the perspective of the recently introduced conceptual innovations in physical education mandated by the Flemish government. The teachers at the elementary level placed a high priority on the disciplinary mastery and the self-actualization orientations; those at the secondary level scored high on the social responsibility and disciplinary mastery orientations. The findings from this study suggest that teaching level influences teachers' value orientation. Teachers appeared to adjust their curricular priorities to meet the demands and needs of students in elementary versus secondary schools.     

Mental arithmetic in children with mathematics learning disabilities: the adaptive use of approximate calculation in an addition verification task

The adaptive use of approximate calculation was examined using a verification task with 18 third graders with mathematics learning disabilities, 22 typically achieving third graders, and 21 typically achieving second graders. Participants were asked to make true-false decisions on simple and complex addition problems while the distance between the proposed and the correct answer was manipulated. Both typically achieving groups were sensitive to answer plausibility on simple problems, were faster at rejecting extremely incorrect results than at accepting correct answers on complex addition problems, and showed a reduction of the complexity effect on implausible problems, attesting to the use of approximate calculation. Conversely, children with mathematics disabilities were unaffected by answer plausibility on simple addition problems, processed implausible and correct sums with equal speed on complex problems, and exhibited a smaller reduction of the complexity effect on implausible problems. They also made more errors on implausible problems. Different hypotheses are discussed to account for these results.     

Stability of repeated student evaluations of teaching in the second preclinical year of a medical curriculum

The second preclinical year of the medical curriculum at the Medical Faculty of the University of Lausanne in Switzerland includes nine multidisciplinary organ-system-oriented modules consisting of lectures and problem-based-learning tutorials. This study reports the experience accumulated with the evaluation of lectures during the academic years 1998–1999 and 1999–2000. The ratings of the different modules were highly variable, indicating the ability of students to have a critical view on the teaching and the teachers. There was a close to very close correlation between the ratings obtained during the two study years. The high discriminative capacity of students in evaluating the teaching and the teachers was also supported by their critical point of view expressed in free comments. Our observations stress therefore the reliability of teaching evaluations systematically performed by medical students.     

“Do I need research skills in working life?”: University students’ motivation and difficulties in quantitative methods courses

This study explored university students’ views of whether they will need research skills in their future work in relation to their approaches to learning, situational orientations on a learning situation of quantitative methods, and difficulties experienced in quantitative research courses. Education and psychology students in both Finland (N = 46) and the USA (N = 122), who thought that they would need research skills in their future work, differed significantly from the students who were not sure whether they would need these skills. The students, who considered research skills important for their future work, were more task-oriented, used a deeper approach to learning and experienced fewer difficulties in the learning of research skills than other students. This finding implies that experiences in learning, learning approaches and situational orientations are related to expectations about future work. For instruction, this means that if we were somehow able to change students’ experiences and orientations towards research into a more positive direction, students might be better prepared for their future work.     

Modeling Judgments in the Angoff and Contrasting-Groups Method of Standard Setting

Essential for the validity of the judgments in a standard-setting study is that they follow the implicit task assumptions. In the Angoff method, judgments are assumed to be inversely related to the difficulty of the items; contrasting-groups judgments are assumed to be positively related to the ability of the students. In the present study, judgments from both procedures were modeled with a random-effects probit regression model. The Angoff judgments showed a weaker link with the position of the items on the latent scale than the contrasting-groups judgments with the position of the students. Hence, in the specific context of the study, the contrasting-groups judgments were more aligned with the underlying assumptions of the method than the Angoff judgments .     

Teachers' views on citizenship education in secondary education in The Netherlands

In 2005 the Dutch Minister of Education proposed making it compulsory for all schools in The Netherlands to stimulate active citizenship and social integration. Teachers must give these educational goals a tangible form in their practice. What are the teachers' views on citizenship education? Concepts of citizenship education and the teacher's role in it may differ widely, and very different perspectives on values and value development are possible. This article addresses how teachers view citizenship education. We present the results of a survey conducted among a representative sample of Dutch secondary schools. The results show that teachers make clear choices in the importance they attach to certain values. Teachers want students to acquire skills to analyse, communicate and reflect on values, and they want to stimulate the development of certain values. The chosen values relate to different types of citizenship. School level, school subject and the age of the teachers make a difference to the importance teachers attach to different values.     

A National Survey of School Counselor Preparation Programs: Screening Methods,Faculty Experiences,Curricular Content,and Fieldwork Requirements

This article describes the results of a national survey regarding the preparation of entry‐level school counseling students. The questionnaire asked counselor educators about credit hours, screening methods, previous faculty experiences in a school setting, course content, and fieldwork requirements. Survey results revealed similarities and differences among school counselor preparation programs.     

A model for optimizing step size of learning tasks in competency-based multimedia practicals

Learners are often overwhelmed by the complexity of realistic learning tasks, but reducing this complexity through traditional Instructional Design (ID) methods jeopardizes the authenticity of the learning experience. To solve this apparent paradox, a two-phase ID model is presented. Phase 1 consists of cognitive task analysis, where a systematic approach to problem solving (SAP) is identified in conjunction with skill decomposition and determination of task complexity. In the subsequent design phase, inductive micro-level sequencing based on the four-component ID model (van Merriënboer, 1997) is applied where worked-out examples and problems accompanied by process worksheets assure the necessary variability of practice. Step size in a multiple-step whole-task approach—needed for the process worksheets—is determined on the basis of estimated part-task complexity. A developmental study of the model is illustrated with examples from the domain of law.     

Analysing ancient DNA

Much of what we know about extinct organisms comes from traits that are not preserved in the fossil record. Until recently, morphological analysis was the only tool available for scientists to determine relationships for extinct fossil organisms. We now know that ‘ancient’ DNA can be preserved in the remains of extinct organisms. By targeting specific gene sequences, it may be possible to deduce biochemical characteristics and through sequence comparisons, to estimate the extent of evolutionary divergence. By comparing the amount and type of these changes, one could estimate how quickly some DNA ‘evolves’ relative to other segments, or which genes have the most flexibility or are more conserved over time. The compilation of these data would yield greater understanding of the physiology of extinct organisms and provide a much clearer picture of genetic change over time, and the mechanics behind ‘evolution’.