Tuning in to teacher–talk: a second language learner struggles to comprehend

This article presents findings from a 9–month ethnographic study of cross–cultural learning for the purpose of helping teachers better understand classroom conditions and behaviors that support and hinder students’ comprehension of teachers’ spoken language. Data from a close, observational study of an 8–year–old learning to get along in a new language environment illustrate conditions that caused her to tune out and those that supported her attempts to comprehend. Because spoken language often sounds like an incomprehensible string of sounds to a new language learner, this article suggests that incomprehensibility as well as students’ discomfort and sense of vulnerability can be greatly reduced when teachers scaffold their use of language in specific ways.     

Digging behavior in 12 taxa of muroid rodents

The digging behavior of 12 taxa of muroid rodents was observed on sand and peat substrates. Overall, significantly more digging was performed on peat than on sand. The percentage of animals of each taxon that dug was found to be positively correlated with both the duration of digging and the number of bouts of digging and negatively correlated with latency to dig. Differences across taxa in the duration of digging were correlated with field observations of the nesting behavior of these taxa; taxa that frequently utilize subterranean nest sites exhibited more digging than those that do not. The motor patterns used in digging are described;Mus musculus was the only species that appeared to exhibit a unique digging pattern. Digging behavior appears to be a pattern that is readily elicited in the laboratory, related to behavior in the field, and appropriated for further laboratory study.     

私有化与美国高等教育财政的新趋势

1990年以来,私有化成为美国高等教育发展的主流趋势。众多大学热衷于资助与企业合作的教育研究项目,并且积极参与商业活动。在高等教育领域中,营利性大学呈现出最为积极的发展态势。此外,各种形式的学生经济资助力度的加大使得美国高等教育财政发生了翻天覆地的变化。对于公立和私立大学而言,私有化均意味着市场力量的大力介入。本文从以下三个视角审视美国高等教育财政的发展变化:考察1990年以来高等教育私有化的宏观发展趋势,分析该时期高等教育在校生规模、大学学费及其收入支出的变化趋势,研究当前经济危机对公立和私立高等教育部门产生的影响。大学学费的稳步增长使美国高等教育财政由政府资助转向学生及其家庭分担。学生经济资助,尤其是联邦学生贷款的大幅增长对美国高等教育财政产生了重要影响,而这种影响作用在私立非营利性大学、公立大学、私立营利性大学的表现是截然不同的。最后,私有化潮流对不同性质高等教育机构的财政及其学术研究产生了不同的动态影响。面对高校收入来源及其总额的变化,美国大学的高度自主特质使得各院校必须独立作出适应,这也由此提升了高校对于市场力量的积极响应。     

经济相关事务对美国大学教师及组织的影响

经济相关事务指这样一种理念,即大学不仅仅要产出发明,还要保证这些发明能够成为创新成果并通过专利和许可转化到商业经济之中,创建和培养新的公司,展开为工业界服务或与其合作的研究,并发展出对技术进步有所贡献的领域。本文讨论了导致教师角色和大学组织变化的因素,受经济相关事务影响而建立的项目带来了教师群体研究的深化和学科交叉性的增强,特别的手段还包括在经济相关领域聘请新增教师的专项基金、研究所和研究中心的增加以及推进学科交叉性的计划。新型的研究所出现,与工业界展开合作,整个大学校因也都致力于此,负责技术转化的机构极大地扩展了。     

Effects of balance training on postural sway, leg extensor strength, and jumping height in adolescents

Deficits in strength of the lower extremities and postural control have been associated with a high risk of sustaining sport-related injuries. Such injuries often occur during physical education (PE) classes and mostly affect the lower extremities. Thus, the objectives of this study were to investigate the effects of balance training on postural sway, leg extensor strength, and jumping height in adolescents. Twenty high school students participated in this study and were assigned to either an intervention (n = 10) or control group (n = 10). The intervention group participated in a 4-week balance-training program integrated in their physical education lessons. Pre- and posttests included the measurements of postural sway on a balance platform, jumping height on a force platform, and maximal isometric leg extension force on a leg-press. Balance training resulted in significantly improved postural control, increased jumping height, and enhanced rate of force development of the leg extensors. Physiological adaptations rather than learning effects seem to be responsible for the observed findings. These results could have an impact on improving the performance level in various sports and on reducing the injury prevalence of the lower extremities.     

Child‐rearing practices and children's communicative interactions in a village in Botswana

Increasingly, research is indicating the need to consider language development in the particular cultural, socio‐economic and child‐rearing context in which it is occurring. The observations in this paper, conducted over a period of nine months while the first author lived with a family in a village in Botswana, highlight the need for a more thorough understanding of the ‘local’ child‐rearing practices and the nature of typically developing children's communicative interactions. Mothers' orientation towards interacting with their babies, as well as the interaction style with their young children, is described. Implications for further research are discussed.     

Video-stimulated recall as a catalyst for teacher professional learning

The purpose of this article is to examine the potential of video-catalysed reflective practice for supporting ongoing teacher professional learning in numeracy. We explore this potential through a synthesis of two case studies that investigated different approaches to supporting teacher reflection on practice through the use of video-stimulated recall: one case involved a single researcher and a single teacher, and the other case included two researchers working with a pair of teachers. Data were analysed through the use of two conceptual lenses which were synthesised from literature related to levels of teacher reflection and teacher change. The analysis suggests that video-stimulated recall can be an effective medium for promoting teacher professional learning, providing quality reflection and questioning are included as crucial elements of the processes.