Levels in Learning

In 1957, Van Hiele published his study on levels in learning mathematics. In this article we present an elaboration of the theory on levels in learning and an illustration of this theory based on empirical results. We distinguish between three levels: The first is the formation of an image out of a range of familiar examples or experiences. Second, on the basis of the image a schema can be built, which includes all kinds of interrelated details. Third, a theory can be developed with basic assumptions, definitions, and logical inferences. Before entering the next level, the learner should be sufficiently experienced on the actual level. It is shown that the theory on levels in learning can be integrated with other learning principles, such as notions from constructivism.     

What is it worth? An empirical investigation into attitudes towards education amongst youngsters following secondary education in Flanders

This paper argues that whereas the social relevance of attitudes towards education is commonly confined to their direct impact on educational aspirations or attainment, attitudes may also impact on educational success in a way similar to cultural capital. Survey data were used to assess the support for three different attitudes with respect to the perceived value of attending school among youngsters (n = 853) following secondary education in Flanders (the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium). The results revealed substantial differences according to the pupils’ cultural capital, time perspective, personal educational experiences and social mobility. These findings are taken as a starting point for a broader discussion about how attention to attitudes may enable us to account for the power struggles in which the educational field and the teaching profession are involved.     

Arrested Motherhood: Parenting,Cognitive Distortions,and Depressive Symptoms in Mothers Being Released from Incarceration

Objective. The present study examines cognitive and emotional problems in mothers being released from incarceration. Design. Participants were 98 mothers who were about to be released or had just been released from incarceration, and 63 comparison mothers from disadvantaged areas with low socioeconomic status, both with young children. Mothers provided self-report data on parenting behaviors, cognitive distortions, depressive symptoms, and socioeconomic difficulties. Results. Mothers being released from incarceration reported less optimal parenting behaviors (i.e., less involvement and poorer monitoring) and higher levels of cognitive distortions and depressive symptoms than comparison mothers. Cognitive distortions and depressive symptoms were related to less optimal reported parenting behaviors. Conclusions. Cognitive distortions, depressive symptoms, and less optimal reported parenting behaviors may be factors in incarcerated and formerly incarcerated mothers, which might put their children at risk, beyond risks associated with low socioeconomic status.     

Public value creation in digital government

Public value theory offers innovative ways to plan, design, and implement digital government initiatives. The theory has gained the attention of researchers due to its powerful proposition that shifts the focus of public sector management from internal efficiency to value creation processes that occur outside the organization. While public value creation has become the expectation that digital government initiatives have to fulfil, there is lack of theoretical clarity on what public value means and on how digital technologies can contribute to its creation. The special issue presents a collection of six papers that provide new insights on how digital technologies support public value creation. Building on their contributions, the editorial note conceptualizes the realm of public value creation by highlighting: (1) the integrated nature of public value creation supported by digital government implementations rather than enhancing the values provided by individual technologies or innovations, (2) how the outcome of public value creation is reflected in the combined consumption of the various services enabled by technologies and (3) how public value creation is enabled by organizational capabilities and configurations.     

Using feedback requests to actively involve assessees in peer assessment: effects on the assessor’s feedback content and assessee’s agreement with feedback

Criticizing the common approach of supporting peer assessment through providing assessors with an explication of assessment criteria, recent insights on peer assessment call for support focusing on assessees, who often assume a passive role of receivers of feedback. Feedback requests, which require assessees to formulate their specific needs for feedback, have therefore been put forward as an alternative to supporting peer assessment, even though there is little known about their exact impact on feedback. Operationalizing effective feedback as feedback that (1) elaborates on the evaluation and (2) to which the receiver is agreeable, the present study examines how these two variables are affected by feedback requests, compared to an explanation of assessment criteria in the form of a content checklist. Situated against the backdrop of a writing task for 125 first-year students in an educational studies program at university, the study uses a 2 × 2 factorial design that resulted in four conditions: a control, feedback request, content checklist, and combination condition. The results underline the importance of taking message length into account when studying the effects of support for peer assessment. Although feedback requests did not have an impact on the raw number of elaborations, the proportion of informative elaborations within feedback messages was significantly higher in conditions that used a feedback request. In other words, it appears that the feedback request stimulated students to write more focused messages. In comparison with feedback content, the use of a feedback request did, however, not have a significant effect on agreement with feedback.     

Treating children's aggressive behavior problems using cognitive behavior therapy with virtual reality: A multicenter randomized controlled trial

This multicenter randomized controlled trial investigated whether interactive virtual reality enhanced effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to reduce children's aggressive behavior problems. Boys with aggressive behavior problems (N = 115; M_age = 10.58, SD = 1.48; 95.7% born in Netherlands) were randomized into three groups: CBT with virtual reality, CBT with roleplays, or care-as-usual. Bayesian analyses showed that CBT with virtual reality more likely reduced aggressive behavior compared to care-as-usual for six of seven outcomes (ds 0.19–0.95), and compared to CBT with roleplays for four outcomes (ds 0.14–0.68). Moreover, compared to roleplays, virtual reality more likely enhanced children's emotional engagement, practice immersion, and treatment appreciation. Thus, virtual reality may be a promising tool to enhance CBT effectiveness for children with aggressive behavior problems.     

Some empirical notes on the epo epidemic in professional cycling

The 1990-2010 period in professional cycling is labeled by some as the epo epidemic. Surprisingly, performance enhancement by epo and blood doping is not that clear-cut for endurance athletes, leading to the question whether doping indeed strongly influenced cyclists' performances from the 1990s onwards. We examined the records (1947-2008) of the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and Vuelta a Espa?a (N = 181) and assessed the time it took riders to win the race. The findings revealed normally distributed performances and linear and quartic relationships in victors' performances over time that correspond with Brewer's (2002) sociohistorical analysis of professional cycling suggesting that effects of the epo epidemic on professional cyclists'achievements may be overestimated.