The development of sensitivity to causally relevant dynamic information

The present study examined whether younger observers (kindergartners, second graders, and fourth graders) could extract relative weight information from collisions and also lifting events, and if they could judge whether collisions were natural (i.e., momentum conserving) or anomalous (non-momentum conserving). 20 children at each age and 20 adults viewed videotapes of 8 collisions (4 natural, 4 anomalous) and 6 sequences of lifting events. Observers also viewed sequences of static images taken from these events. Observers at all grade levels were able to reliably judge relative weight in both collisions and lifting events, and could differentiate between natural and anomalous collisions. Performance was much poorer when static sequences of the events were viewed, especially for the young children. A consistent age trend was noted across tasks: adults performed better than second and fourth graders who, in turn, performed better than kindergartners. In addition, there was evidence that younger children were differentially aided when the kinematics of the event made the kinetics more pronounced.     

Improving study success and diversity in Dutch higher education using performance agreements

Tertiary Education and Management - More and more governments have started to introduce elements of performance in the funding mechanisms for their higher education institutions. An example is a...     

Cultural conditionally and aid to education in east Africa

Aid to African education often involves the imposition of conditions that create dependency and undermine indigenous educational patterns. Such conditions can include the insistence on textbooks written and published abroad, the use of examination systems devised in Europe or North America, and the neglect of African culture and languages. In the first part of this article the author examines the attempts at educational reform after the African states had achieved independence. The second part highlights the renewed dangers of educational dependency following the 1990 World Conference on Education for All, held in Jomtien, Thailand. The last part of the article discusses whether there is such a thing as educational aid for empowerment and gives some examples of good educational aid projects in Africa.

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Zusammenfassung Hilfeleistungen für das afrikanische Bildungssystem rufen oftmals Bedingungen hervor, die zu Abhängigkeiten und der Unterminierung einheimischer Bildungsmuster führen. Solche Bedingungen können das Bestehen auf der Benutzung von im Ausland geschriebenen und veröffentlichten Textbücher sein, die Anwendung von in Europa oder Nordamerika üblichen Bewertungssystemen und die Vernachlässigung afrikanischer Kulturen und Sprachen. Im ersten Teil dieses Artikels untersucht die Autorin den Versuch einer Bildungsreform nach Erlangung der Unabhängigkeit der afrikanischen Staaten. Der zweite Teil unterstreicht die neuerliche Gefahr einer Abhängigkeit im Bildungssystem nach der Weltkonferenz: Bildung für Alle in Jomtien, Thailand 1990. Im Schlußteil wird die Existenz einer Bildungshilfe zur Selbsthilfte diskutiert und beispielhafte Hilfsprojekte in Afrika angesprochen.

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Résumé Les mesures d'assistance à l'éducation en Afrique impliquent souvent le diktat de conditions qui sont génératrices de dépendance et annihilent les modèles pédagogiques autochtones. Elles imposent par exemple l'utilisation de manuels rédigés et publiés à l'étranger, l'application de règlements d'examens élaborés en Europe ou en Amérique du Nord, et négligent les cultures et langues africaines. Dans une première partie, l'auteur analyse les tentatives de réforme pédagogique entreprises par les Etats africains après leur indépendance. Elle se concentre ensuite sur les dangers de dépendance pédagogique ravivés par le Congrès mondial sur l'éducation pour tous tenu à Jomtien en Thaïlande. En dernier lieu, l'auteur pose la question de savoir s'il existe une aide pédagogique pour l'autonomisation, en donnant quelques exemples réussis de projets d'assistance pédagogique en Afrique.

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Sumario La ayuda concedida a Africa en el área de la educación está frecuentemente supeditada a condiciones que crean dependencia y que socavan los patrones educacionales indígenas. Entre ellas, la insistencia en el uso de libros de texto escritos y editados en el extranjero, el requerimiento de evaluar según sistemas concebidos en Europa o América del Norte, y el desprecio de las culturas y lenguajes africanos. En la primera parte del artículo se examinan los intentos de reforma educative posteriores a la independencia de los países africanos. En la segunda, la atención se centra en los peligros de dependencia educacional que nuevamente surgen tras la Conferencia mundial sobre educación para todos, celebrada en 1990 en Jomtien, Tailandia. En la última parte se pregunta si existe algo parecido a la ayuda educativa para la habilitacion y describe algunos buenos proyectos de ayuda educacional en Africa.

     

Preliminary studies on the hypoglycaemic effect ofAbroma augusta in alloxan diabetic rats

The hypoglycemic effect of the aqueous extract ofAbroma augusta (Family: Steculiceae) was studied in normal as well as alloxan diabetic rats. Treatement of diabetic rats with 4 ml (4gm dry weight) of agueous extract ofA. augusta for 16 weeks resulted in gradual but significant fall in fasting blood glucose and improvement in glucose tolerance. Serum total and LDL cholesterol and triacylglycerol which increased in diabetic rats showed improvement. These results show that the water extract ofA. augusta has both hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic effects.     

How important is it to my parents? Transmission of STEM academic values: the role of parents’ values and practices and children’s perceptions of parental influences

The success of science education in classroom and out-of-school settings can be influenced by parents’ behaviours and STEM-related values. The present study investigated pathways in parent-to-child transmission of STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) values by examining at same time parents’ values and behaviours, along with their children’s perceptions of these parental influences. The study included 1071 students (M_age?=?12.15) and the same number of their parents. Path analysis revealed that children’s importance value of the STEM school fields was best explained by their perceptions of parental values and behaviours in STEM. On the other hand, parents’ self-reported values and behaviours had a weak effect in predicting children’s values, which can be explained by inaccurate children’s perceptions of their parents. The results suggest that parents more easily convey beliefs about the utility than the attainment value of STEM. Namely, parents’ utility value had a larger effect in predicting children’s value, partly mediated through children’s perception of parents’ encouragement of STEM interests. The study highlights the role of children’s perceptions of their parents’ beliefs and behaviours and the importance of communicating STEM-related values within the family. Practical implications for parents and science educators are discussed.     

Not all roads lead to Rome — Comparing different types of motivational regulation profiles

The self-regulation of motivation represents a key feature of self-regulated learning. Recent studies have documented that students use a variety of strategies to sustain their learning motivation and that most of these strategies have positive effects. However, less is known about how students integrate the various motivational strategies into an individual motivational regulation profile and which kind of profiles are most adaptive with respect to enhanced effort and persistence. To shed more light on this issue, we examined the motivational regulation profiles within two samples of German high-school and college students. In Study 1 (N = 231 11th and 12th grade students), latent profile analysis revealed five subgroups of students holding different motivational regulation profiles. In Study 2 (N = 600 college students), the five class solution was replicated with slight changes in the nature of the profiles. In both studies, profiles with a higher overall level of motivational strategy use were associated with a higher level of effort and achievement. Regarding differences in profile shape, results indicated that profiles emphasizing mastery and/or performance-approach self-talk were most adaptive. Implications of the findings for future research on motivational regulation are discussed.     

Relationship between inductive arithmetic argumentation and deductive algebraic proof

In this paper, we present a cognitive analysis of the relationship between the argumentation process leading to the construction of a conjecture and its algebraic proof in solving Calendar Algebra problems. To solve this kind of problem, students encounter two sources of potential difficulties: the shift from using arithmetic in the argumentation to using algebra in the proof and the shift from an inductive argument towards a deductive proof. Thus, the aims of this article are to describe these cognitive difficulties and to show how students overcome them. Methodologically, we compare students’ problem solving process corresponding to three problems presented in the first four lessons of a teaching experiment. The analysis and comparison between these three resolution processes is performed using Toulmin’s model.     

Reardon,Betty. 2001. Education for a Culture of Peace in a Gender Perspective

International Review of Education -