Factor Analysis of Drawings: Application to college student models of the greenhouse effect

Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify models underlying drawings of the greenhouse effect made by over 200 entering university freshmen. Initial content analysis allowed deconstruction of drawings into salient features, with grouping of these features via factor analysis. A resulting 4-factor solution explains 62% of the data variance, suggesting that 4 archetype models of the greenhouse effect dominate thinking within this population. Factor scores, indicating the extent to which each student's drawing aligned with representative models, were compared to performance on conceptual understanding and attitudes measures, demographics, and non-cognitive features of drawings. Student drawings were also compared to drawings made by scientists to ascertain the extent to which models reflect more sophisticated and accurate models. Results indicate that student and scientist drawings share some similarities, most notably the presence of some features of the most sophisticated non-scientific model held among the study population. Prior knowledge, prior attitudes, gender, and non-cognitive components are also predictive of an individual student's model. This work presents a new technique for analyzing drawings, with general implications for the use of drawings in investigating student conceptions.     

Writing Stories to Enhance Scientific Literacy

In response to international concerns about scientific literacy and students’ waning interest in school science, this study investigated the effects of a science‐writing project about the socioscientific issue (SSI) of biosecurity on the development of students’ scientific literacy. Students generated two BioStories each that merged scientific information with the narrative storylines in the project. The study was conducted in two phases. In the exploratory phase, a qualitative case study of a sixth‐grade class involving classroom observations and interviews informed the design of the second, confirmatory phase of the study, which was conducted at a different school. This phase involved a mixed methods approach featuring a quasi‐experimental design with two classes of Australian middle school students (i.e., sixth grade, 11 years of age, n = 55). The results support the argument that writing the sequence of stories helped the students become more familiar with biosecurity issues, develop a deeper understanding of related biological concepts, and improve their interest in science. On the basis of these findings, teachers should be encouraged to engage their students in the practice of writing about SSI in a way that integrates scientific information into narrative storylines. Extending the practice to older students and exploring additional issues related to writing about SSI are recommended for further research.     

Solidarity through collaborative research

While numerous publications signal the merits of collaborative research, few studies provide interpretive analyses of collaborative‐research practices or collaborative relationships. Through this multiple case study design of collaborative‐research teams, the authors attempt to provide such an analysis by focusing on the collaborative‐research experiences of seven qualitative researchers from two contrasting research teams in Australia and North America. They highlight how solidarity emerged from successful interactions between interdependent members, and how these were both professionally and personally rewarding for individuals and the teams. As well, they identify the opportunities for solidarity afforded to researchers from vertical collaborations (i.e. collaborations involving differential status between team members) that featured evolving and transforming mentoring relationships through the history of the research projects. They propose that solidarity can be stratified within large research teams through sub‐units like dyads. Finally, they suggest that collaborating researchers might benefit from reviewing case studies of collaborative relationships, and engaging in mutual interrogation and subsequent individual reflections of their articulated collaborative practices and relationships.     

Ecological science fieldwork and secondary school biology in England: does a more secure future lie in Geography?

Abstract

Fieldwork has always been an important component in the teaching of ecology in England’s secondary schools where it has been delivered almost exclusively as part of the biology curriculum for nearly 70 years. However, historical evidence shows that both the quantity and quality of ecology fieldwork has been declining in recent decades at a time when the scope, complexity and interdisciplinarity of ecological science has been growing. This paper presents evidence of a continuing decline in ecology fieldwork over the past 15 years, discusses some possible causes and reviews solutions to reverse the trend. In particular, it argues that teaching scientific ecology through geography fieldwork could overcome several of the fundamental obstacles encountered in biology education. Trends in biology and geography fieldwork are compared. These show that the risks to ecology in forging a strong relationship, and increased dependency, with geography teaching are likely to be outweighed by reciprocal benefits.     

Student Authoritarianism and Teacher Authoritarianism as Factors in the Determination of Student Performance and Attitudes

Recent investigations designed to elucidate the teacher behaviors which are facilitative of positive student attitudes and increased student performance have presented inconsistent results. It is hypothesized that the inconsistency between studies may be due to an interaction between teacher characteristics and student characteristics in the determination of the dependent variables involved. To test this hypothesis, teachers and students in a West Coast high school were administered a revised version of the California F-Scale (a measure of authoritarianism). High- and Low-F groups of both teachers and students were selected, and students’ grades and attitudes toward their teachers were observed. It was found that High-F students exposed to Low-F teachers showed particularly low attitudes toward their teachers and particularly low grades. Data for other combinations of student and teacher characteristics were essentially equivalent.     

Purifying Rhetoric: Empedocles and the Myth of Rhetorical Theory

The polymath Empedocles has not been considered a prominent figure in the history of rhetorical studies nor contemporary appropriations of antiquity, despite the reported attribution of his invention of rhetoric by Aristotle. This neglect is understandable, as the surviving fragments of Empedocles' work provide no significant reference to rhetoric per se. Attention to the folklore surrounding Empedocles (including legends of his deeds as a physician and politician, and his association with Pythagoras, Gorgias, and the god Apollo) is noteworthy, however, as it helps explain ways the ancient Greeks conceptualized rhetoric as a potentially healing discourse. Analysis of the Empedoclean tradition discloses a call to redress any human penchant for violence and to resist tyranny, themes relevant for critical rhetorical studies today. These contributions further demonstrate an affinity between Empedocles and Kenneth Burke's concern with the purification of war, and temper the recent interest in an Isocratean development of citizens by advancing a more ecumenical perspective on humanity.     

Google and the “Twisted Cyber Spy” Affair: US–Chinese Communication in an Age of Globalization

The “twisted cyber spy” affair began in 2010, when Google was attacked by Chinese cyber-warriors charged with stealing Google's intellectual property, planting viruses in its computers, and hacking the accounts of Chinese human rights activists. In the ensuing international embroglio, the US mainstream press, corporate leaders, and White House deployed what I call the rhetoric of belligerent humanitarianism to try to shame the Chinese while making a case for global free markets, unfettered speech, and emerging democracy. That rhetorical strategy carries heavy baggage, however, as it tends to insult the international community, exalt neo-liberal capitalism, sound paternalistic, and feel missionary. Belligerent humanitarianism sounds prudent, however, when compared to the rhetorical strategy of the US military–industrial complex, which marshals the rhetoric of warhawk hysteria to escalate threats into crises and political questions into armed inevitabilities. To counter these two rhetorical strategies, this essay argues that China's leaders deploy the rhetoric of traumatized nationalism, wherein they merge a biting sense of imperial victimage, Maoist tropes of heroism, and a new-found sense of market mastery to portray the US as a tottering land of hypocrisy and China as the rising hope for a new world order. The “Twisted Cyber Spy” affair therefore offers a case study of US–Chinese communication in an age of globalization.     

Jefferson's First Declaration of Independence: A Summary View of the Rights of British America Revisited

This essay examines Jefferson's Summary View of the Rights of British America as evidence of his craft as a storyteller. Specifically, I argue that Jefferson deploys a series of narrative renderings, the rhetorical effect of which is to eliminate the possibility of any genuine reconciliation with the English government. On the basis of this interpretation I conclude that the Summary View represents Jefferson's first declaration of independence.     

Private Tutoring and Social Cohesion

Mastering the public school curriculum is so important to a child's occupational future that in many regions of the world “shadow” education outside of the public system has now become the norm. In one way, this is excellent news because private investment in human capital is a strong contributor to economic and social development. However, private demand is driving a separate and powerful private industry. According to the constitutional standards in many countries, education is supposed to be “free.” This suggests that, in some instances, shadow education might be unconstitutional. The United Nations Declaration on Human Rights also says that education should be free. This suggests that in some circumstances, shadow education may be contrary to the principles of human rights. The question addressed in this article is whether shadow education is wrong. This article summarizes the arguments in favor and against shadow education and ends with a series of recommendations to better manage what has become a worldwide dilemma.