Word reading and word spelling in French adult literacy students: the relationship with oral language skills

We analysed word reading and spelling in French adults with low levels of literacy (A‐IL). As well as examining phonological and lexical processes, we explored the relationship between literacy and oral language skills. Fifty‐two adult literacy students were compared with reading level‐matched pupils in Years 1–3 of primary school on reading tasks (pseudoword reading, word reading, text comprehension), spelling tasks (pseudoword spelling, text dictation) and oral language tasks. A‐IL scored the same as children on word reading and spelling but less well on pseudoword reading and spelling. They also produced fewer phonologically acceptable errors in the dictation. Regarding oral language skills, as a group A‐IL encountered greater difficulty in phonology than in morphosyntax and semantics, and correlations revealed strong relationships between literacy levels and oral skills, particularly in the domain of phonology. Within their group, however, A‐IL displayed several distinct language profiles. These could reflect different risk factors leading to functional illiteracy and are discussed regarding the cognitive and environmental causes of impaired reading acquisition.     

The Media Audience: A Brief Biography—Stages of Growth or Paradigm Change?

The concept of audience was widely adapted from its earlier origins in public spectacles and performance to apply to the new circumstances of mass media reception in the early 20th century, and especially to the public for film and broadcasting. It could even be applied more generally to include print media. The then novel usage of the term was a component in the larger paradigm of mass communications that in turn rested on certain preconceptions about its ‘mass’ character. These preconceptions have been challenged by subsequent research and theory. More recently, however, the ongoing transformation of the means of communication may have rendered the whole mass communication paradigm itself obsolescent, and with it the concept of a mass audience. In this article it is argued that paradigmatic change in ideas about the audience may be less due to a shift in technology than to the more fundamental theoretical changes of the intervening period.     

The Irish Christian Brothers and the National Board of Education: Challenging the Myths

For close to 170 years the general consensus from historians has been that Edmund Rice, who founded the Irish Christian Brothers in 1802, was an unenthusiastic applicant to the National Board of Education in Ireland in 1832 and later withdrew his schools because he believed his education was incompatible with the philosophy underpinning the conduct of Board schools. Three myths were created and have circulated over many years to uphold and sustain a pretence that this was the situation which prevailed. These myths are that the Christian Brothers were reluctant participants with the Board; that the Board’s system of education was inimical to the Brothers; and that the Christian Brothers left the Board as a matter of principle. This paper contests these myths and argues that they made virtue of an internal rift that dramatically divided the Christian Brothers politically for over a century. This was a rift that sidelined Edmund Rice and those who supported him.     

Children's Norm Enforcement in Their Interactions With Peers

This study investigates how children negotiate social norms with peers. In Study 1, 48 pairs of 3‐ and 5‐year‐olds (N = 96) and in Study 2, 48 pairs of 5‐ and 7‐year‐olds (N = 96) were presented with sorting tasks with conflicting instructions (one child by color, the other by shape) or identical instructions. Three‐year‐olds differed from older children: They were less selective for the contexts in which they enforced norms, and they (as well as the older children to a lesser extent) used grammatical constructions objectifying the norms (“It works like this” rather than “You must do it like this”). These results suggested that children's understanding of social norms becomes more flexible during the preschool years.     

Some reflections on the western bias of media theory

This paper sketches a personal perspective of this phenomenon, as seen through Western eyes, and looks at some of its origins, manifestations and possible effects. The roots lie deeply embeded in Western social science where they are mixed with ideas about the superiority of Western (and Protestant) society. In relation to media theory, the bias partly comes from the extent to which media theory is dependent on and reflective of the meda themsleves, which according to some hypotheses are also very ‘Western’ if not ‘American’. The question arises how to combat, avoid or counter the bias in seeking a more universal form of media theory.     

How multi-levels of individual and team learning interact in a public healthcare organisation: a conceptual framework

The aim of this paper is to review the relevant literature on organisational learning and offer a preliminary conceptual framework as a basis to explore how the multi-levels of individual learning and team learning interact in a public healthcare organisation. The organisational learning literature highlights a need for further understanding of how the multi-levels of organisational learning interact and a broadly accepted theory of organisational learning has not yet emerged. Organisational learning is a multi-level concept and while there has been some multi-level research, more is required to understand the mechanisms that facilitate the flow of learning between the levels. This paper explores multi-level learning, using action learning as a basis through which we consider how individual learning and team learning interact. The preliminary conceptual framework seeks to contribute to our understanding of the interaction between the individual and team levels of learning and the processes and conditions that facilitate or hinder the flow of learning. As this framework provides a means of exploring individual learning in a team setting it has the potential to develop understanding as to how to enhance the effectiveness of learning interactions in the healthcare sector and other sectors. In turn this exploration could lead to enhanced understanding of the mechanisms involved in the flow of learning.