What If the Doors of Every Schoolhouse Opened to Social-Emotional Learning Tomorrow: Reflections on How to Feasibly Scale Up High-Quality SEL

Social-emotional learning (SEL) refers to a set of competencies that form the basis of human interaction. So, SEL in schools is no fad. But what would happen if every school actively wanted to bring in SEL tomorrow? Using the articles in the special issue on SEL as a springboard, this article looks at the neurological basis of SEL, SEL best practices, approaches to SEL instruction, assessment, and the complex issue of SEL and equity, and it reflects on the implications of these areas for scaling up sooner rather than later. Specific guidelines are provided, starting with this basic point: There are not enough experts available to guide this process, so schools must invest in staff learning about SEL, its rootedness in our biology, its basic role in accomplishing everything humans try to accomplish, and what we know about best practices and must provide cohort-based, ongoing professional development experiences that provide continuous support.     

Genetic and environmental influences on prereading skills and early reading and spelling development in the United States, Australia, and Scandinavia

Genetic and environmental influences on prereading skills in preschool and on early reading and spelling development at the end of kindergarten were compared among samples of identical and fraternal twins from the U.S. (Colorado), Australia, and Scandinavia. Mean comparisons revealed significantly lower preschool print knowledge in Scandinavia, consistent with the relatively lower amount of shared book reading and letter-based activities with parents, and lack of emphasis on print knowledge in Scandinavian preschools. The patterns of correlations between all preschool environment measures and prereading skills within the samples were remarkably similar, as were the patterns of genetic, shared environment, and non-shared environment estimates: in all samples, genetic influence was substantial and shared environment influence was relatively weak for phonological awareness, rapid naming, and verbal memory; genetic influence was weak, and shared environment influence was relatively strong for vocabulary and print knowledge. In contrast, for reading and spelling assessed at the end of kindergarten in the Australian and U.S. samples, there was some preliminary evidence for country differences in the magnitude of genetic and environmental influences. We argue that the apparently higher genetic and lower shared environment influence in the Australian sample was related to a greater emphasis on formal reading instruction, resulting in more advanced reading and spelling skills at the end of kindergarten, and thus there was greater opportunity to observe genetic influences on response to systematic reading instruction among the Australian twins.     

The engineering of engineering education: curriculum development from a designer's point of view

Engineers have a set of powerful tools at their disposal for designing robust and reliable technical systems. In educational design these tools are seldom applied. This paper explores the application of concepts from the systems approach in an educational context. The paradigms of design methodology and systems engineering appear to be suitable for both analysing existing education and designing new curricula.     

Influences on the intention to enter higher education: the importance of expected returns

Research points to several determinants of the private demand for higher education, which include individual, social, economic, and institutional variables. Of these variables, economic factors are considered to be highly relevant, especially in the current financial crisis. The paper investigates the link between expected rates of return to higher education and the intention of secondary education graduates to pursue university studies. The effect of additional variables influencing the choice of higher education (ability, gender, socioeconomic status [SES], type of secondary school, area of residence) is also examined. The findings show a significant link between the perceived rates of return and the intention of secondary school graduates to enter tertiary education. With the exception of residence, all independent variables are strong determinants of the intention to enter higher education. The paper also points to the considerable effect of the financial crisis on students’ expectations in that respondents reported lower perceived rates of return compared to previous estimates in the same country. The implications of the findings for higher education policy are discussed.     

Student evaluations of course and teacher: factor analysis and SSA approaches

The present study attempts to discover organizing principles in college students’ evaluations of their formal and informal educational programs. The study was conducted during the 1998–99 academic year. The data consisted of 14,344 assessment sheets completed by students at the Jordan Valley Regional College in Israel. Each assessment sheet contained 12 variables. Factor analysis revealed two main factors: the course (seven variables) and the teacher (five variables). A Smallest Space Analysis (SSA) revealed an additional distinction. Some of the evaluation items relate directly to the course or teacher and some relate to the interaction between the course or teacher and the students. Distinguishing between these categories could be helpful in identifying or correcting bias in student evaluations.     

Processes of problem solving: Comparison of an American and a European view

Analysis of the ability to solve problems occupies an important place in recent research within instructional psychology. In the U.S.A. processes of problem solving are now mostly studied within the framework of the information-processing approach. A European trend in research on thinking and problem solving, that parallels this American work, is based on the action-oriented approach. Until now both approaches have developed independently. A consequence of this situation could be that differences between both conceptions will be accentuated, while points of convergence remain hidden. Therefore it seems desirable to start an exchange of ideas between the two approaches. The present article provides an example in this direction. The example relates to the work of Resnick and Glaser on problem solving in instructional settings on the one hand, and a view developed in the Netherlands during the 70s on the other.Paper presented at a seminar at the University of Pittsburgh, Learning Research and Development Center, March 1979.     

Preparing Healthcare Professionals for Telemedicine: Results from Educational Needs Research

As part of an overall research program to create a set of web-based interactive distance learning modules, an educational needs assessment was conducted. The educational needs assessment is undertaken to collect information via observation and interview as to which knowledge areas are most desirable for incorporation into the interactive distance learning modules. This research is best undertaken with a neutral stance and without any preconceptions or hypotheses as to which knowledge areas are likely to be most useful. The interactive modules were designed to enhance the utilization of telemedicine by health care providers. This paper is a report on the methodology used and the findings of the needs assessment. The educational needs assessment acts as a compass to guide the creation of curricula. In the design of interactive learning, the needs assessment may be an important tool that informs not only the selection of the content, but also the selection of technology and courseware processes. The methodology described herein may be useful as a template for other authors of interactive learning courseware. The results of this study identified four clusters of content to be offered and confirmed the selection of interactive, web-based distance learning as the most appropriate delivery approach.