A comparison of first-year,fifth-year,and former teachers on efficacy,ego development,and problem solving

Differences in first-year (N=50), fifth-year (N=49) and former (N=30) teachers on measures of efficacy, ego development, and problem solving were analyzed. The three groups were graduates from the same university who responded to a written survey. ANOVA was used for each variable across all groups, with an alpha level of.05, and the Scheffé multiple range test was used to determine significance between groups. On measures of efficacy and ego development, both first-year and fifth-year teachers scored significantly higher than former teachers, but did not differ from each other. There were no significant differences among the groups on the measure of problem solving.     

To design or to integrate? Instructional design versus technology integration in developing learning interventions

Instructional Design Knowledge (IDK) can inform technology integration decisions and Technology Pedagogy and Content Knowledge (TPACK) can help instructional design processes. As a means to understand how teachers may draw from their TPACK and IDK as they design instructions and develop technology-enhanced learning activities, we examined the final projects of two groups of teachers enrolled in graduate-level instructional design and technology courses. By using both content and social network analysis methods, we identified the IDK and TPACK components exemplified in teachers’ projects. While the content analysis revealed differences between the two groups, some findings were common across the courses such as teachers minimally connecting technology to their content areas, exhibiting limited knowledge on learning needs, and having difficulties in engaging in design thinking processes. Furthermore, the social network analysis identified various communities of the knowledge components, highlighting when teachers tended to use their IDK and TPACK as they planned technology-enhanced learning activities and were engaged in instructional design respectively.

     

School psychologists and the practice of consultation

This article reports the results of an investigation of the consultation practices of school psychologists. It was found that consultation is one of the school psychologist's major professional functions, and that psychologists feel that other school personnel want them to spend more of their professional time consulting than they do at present. Client-centered consultation is the dominant variety practiced by the respondents, and they tend to conceptualize their consultation efforts in a humanistic (Rogerian) or behavioristic framework. Age and salary are factors in the amount and type of consultation done. Most of the respondents had little formal training in consultation and have learned what they know on the job.     

Solitary vs. Shared: Exploring the Social Dimension of Museum Learning

The literature suggests that the social dimension is an important aspect of museum learning. Many visitors report having discussed or shared information with their companions. There is also evidence, however, that some museum visitors prefer to visit alone or to learn by themselves. This study explores qualitative and quantitative differences in the nature and outcomes of solitary and shared museum learning experiences. Forty solitary adults and 40 adults visiting in pairs were observed and interviewed during their visit to a museum exhibition area, and a proportion of participants were contacted by telephone four weeks after the visit. The findings challenge the supposition that social interaction is more beneficial to learning than a solitary experience and suggest that, for adult learners, solitary and shared learning experiences can be equally beneficial but in different ways.     

Great experiments in physics

Accurate measurement of angular sizes of stars became possible with the advent of stellar interferometry pioneered by Michelson and Pease which was limited to only the brightest giant stars. Only with the discovery of a new effect, by Hanbury Brown and Twiss, the measurement of stellar sizes became possible for a large number of stars. This method named after them had far reaching applications in nuclear and high energy physics.