Shakespeare in the Curriculum: direction by content

The results of a survey of secondary English Shakespeare teaching in one local education authority are reported. Centralised control of curriculum content in English is discussed in relation to findings about how much Shakespeare teaching is done and which plays teachers selected. The suggestion is made that recent controversy about content direction has deflected attention from the more important issues of methods of teaching and in‐service education.     

Fostering geospatial thinking in science education through a customisable smartphone application

Enhanced capabilities of modern smartphones offer the potential to design tools that support new forms of teaching and learning. Increased access to mobile‐networked environments and geospatial systems provide opportunities for developing new educational experiences that support a geospatial approach to science, fostering new ways of thinking about science. However, designing effective innovative educational mobile applications remains a challenge. Applications need to be accessible to teachers that are not tech‐savvy as well as those that are, foster active learning pedagogies, enable flexible and creative use, as well as fit within the curriculum. This paper describes a smartphone application developed together with pre‐service science teachers, designed to be customisable by teachers while supporting a geospatial approach to science education. The design process and trial illustrate application use, how it supports a geospatial approach to science education and raises issues around mobile technologies, teacher pedagogies and adoption.     

Peer Group Norms and Accountability Moderate the Effect of School Norms on Children's Intergroup Attitudes

The present study examined the interactive effects of school norms, peer norms, and accountability on children's intergroup attitudes. Participants (n = 229) aged 5–11 years, in a between‐subjects design, were randomly assigned to a peer group with an inclusion or exclusion norm, learned their school either had an inclusion norm or not, and were accountable to either their peer group, teachers, or nobody. Findings indicated, irrespective of age, that an inclusive school norm was less effective when the peer group had an exclusive norm and children were held accountable to their peers or teachers. These findings support social identity development theory (D. Nesdale, 2004, 2007), which expects both the in‐group peer and school norm to influence children's intergroup attitudes.     

发展特殊教育多媒体教学资源的实践经验

面对信息科技教育的挑战,特殊教育教师已广泛应用计算机教导残疾儿童.然而,适合残疾儿童使用或学习的计算机多媒体资源,极为匮乏.本文旨在阐释发展特殊教育多媒体资源的策略,包括成立教学资源小组、建立软件库、构建网页、制作学习软件及调适性配件.结论指出计划成果丰富,有助推动特殊教育教学.     

Finding Nexus: connecting youth work and research practices

Participation in educational and social research helps to develop understanding of how young people learn and to consider wider aspects of their lives to enable their voices to be heard and acted upon. Research also facilitates the articulation and sharing of methodologies across a range of professional practices. We assert that theory and practice in educational youth work offers a position of strength from which to undertake research. In making this assertion, we suggest cross‐disciplinarity between youth work and research practices in order to build research mindedness among youth workers who, through this nexus, are well‐placed to engage in practice based research. Drawing on discourses about young people, youth work and youth participation, we identify five elements of youth work practice that can be aligned with research processes: reflexivity; positionality and bias; insider cultural competence; rapport and trust; power relationships. The article examines how these elements are present in youth work and a range of research settings. We identify youth work methods and dispositions as enhancing research capacity which could also be useful in building participatory research methods in disciplinary areas beyond education. Yet, in making these connections, we also identify a range of factors that show this nexus as complex and contestable. Reflecting on the lessons learned from our experiences as youth work practitioners and academic researchers, we propose that finding nexus, which in this instance is between youth work and research paradigms, could inform educational research practices and contributes to developing a meaningful praxis.     

Mapping the knowledge structure exhibited by a cohort of students based on their understanding of how a galvanic cell produces energy

This study evaluates the use of an open‐ended question to determine students' knowledge structure on the topic of galvanic cells. The open‐ended question was developed and administered to 163 Grade 10 students who had earlier completed a course on electrochemistry. Students' responses were marked as well as coded on the basis of the fields identified from their responses. This was then evaluated statistically to determine the collective knowledge structure of the sample of students. The knowledge structure thus mapped contains both canonical concepts and alternative conceptions (ACs). An important finding emerging from this study is that instructors need to focus student's attention on the dynamic processes involving electrons and ions during the operation of galvanic cells. In order for students to fully understand how a galvanic cell operates, they need to see the whole picture. There are three critical components that lead to students' understanding of how an oxidation–reduction reaction can generate energy and how a circuit is complete: transfer of electrons during oxidation–reduction half‐reactions, flow of electrons within metals, and migration of ions in solution. Also, we found that it is possible for students to use correct chemistry concepts in an incorrect way by establishing linkages among these in an inappropriate manner. We reiterate that apart from evaluating students' ACs, it is also important to evaluate the links between the concepts and conceptions present in students' knowledge structure so that teaching can be made more effective.     

Making Meaningful Choices: an investigation into young children's intonation patterns in storytelling

Abstract This paper investigates the meaningful choices in intonation made by young children. A category system for classifying choices is outlined and an experiment is reported in which randomly selected groups of 41/2‐5 year‐olds heard and retold stories in different situations. Results indicate that all groups distinguished narrative from other forms of discourse and drew upon intonation resources appropriately. Differences were found between recalling a story with pictures and one without, suggesting that these are different cognitive tasks and that children make different selections from choices available to them.     

How Are We the Same or Different: Information Needs and Barriers of Domestic and International Students

The study sought to (1) investigate whether international students differ from domestic students in their information needs and barriers encountered, and (2) test the relative importance of students' domestic/international status against their gender and level of study. A survey was used to collect data from international and domestic undergraduate and graduate students in a US public university. The study collected 1259 responses. Regression analysis was used for analyzing the data. International and domestic students were found to be similar in their top-ranked needs (e.g., career information) and barriers (e.g., irrelevant and non-credible information). Compared to their gender and level of study, students' domestic/international status resulted in fewer significant differences in their needs and barriers. However, for the areas where domestic/international status was significant, its effect size was often prominent. Differences between domestic and international students are more notable in the barriers than in the information needs. Based on the findings, six propositions were developed. The implications for research and practice are discussed.