The salient history of Dalton education in the Netherlands

In the Netherlands there are 400 Dalton schools, while Dalton education has all but disappeared elsewhere, including in its country of origin: the USA. Following a brief period in the 1920s in which it enjoyed strong international interest, it disappeared from the scene. How can it be that the Dalton Plan still exists only in the Netherlands? This article compares the history of Dalton education in the Netherlands with that in Britain and the USA. Circumstances were more favourable in the Netherlands in the 1920s, although the growth was modest. Factors that inhibited the increase of Dalton education in the Netherlands in these early days are similar to those that presumably hastened its disappearance elsewhere. There was a growth spurt in the Netherlands from the 1980s onwards. This seems to be a side effect of the introduction of a new Education Act and the pressure on schools to market themselves.     

Editorial

A video abstract of this article can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FvyP1egxw0&feature=player_embedded     

The development of children with ADHD in day treatment centres after school hours

The behavioural and emotional development of children with ADHD visiting day treatment centres after school hours is described and the childrearing factors that govern positive development explored. Test scores on the Child behaviour checklist (CBCL) and ADHD behavioural symptoms rating scale were obtained over a period of nine months, in a sample of 86 children with ADHD, and related to the activities of the professional care‐givers. Behavioural control mixed with affectionate and emotional support reduced the ADHD symptoms at the follow‐up. According to the CBCL measures, the overall emotional and behavioural problems of the children did not improve. This suggests that prolongation of the day treatment is still required after nine months.     

What Works in Writing With Peer Response? A Review of Intervention Studies With Children and Adolescents

Peer response is viewed as an important aspect of writing instruction. Several meta-studies indicated that peer response is effective. However, these studies did not focus on the specific aspects of peer response that made it effective. The present review analyzes the effects of instructional factors accompanying peer response in 26 studies on writing proficiency. Three theoretical perspectives are distinguished: a cognitive, a social-cognitive, and a genre perspective underlying the reviewed studies. In all studies, additional instruction in strategies, rules for interaction, genre knowledge, or a combination of these instructional aspects to writing with peer response is provided. Peer response with such additional instruction seems effective compared with individual writing. Recommendations for future investigations are directed to methodological issues for comparing the effects of separate instructional components for writing with peer response. In addition, it is advised to direct future studies towards more controlled research into the effects of instruction in genre knowledge on writing with peer response.     

The content of educational technology curricula: a cross-curricular state of the art

The purpose of this study is to analyze the content features of educational technology curricula for primary education developed by national governments. A qualitative cross-case document analysis of the national educational technology curriculum of Norway, Flanders and England was conducted. The analysis focuses on the underlying visions, specific aims and instruction related aspects that are integrated in the national educational technology curricula of the three cases under investigation. The results indicate that specific aims mainly focus on the critical use of educational technology; safe and responsible use of educational technology; information retrieval, processing and production; communication by use of educational technology; and use of educational technology for subject learning. It is possible that a discrepancy exists between the concepts of digital literacy and the specific aims that are addressed in educational technology curricula. Moreover, the rationales that underlie educational technology curricula represent a catalytic and social point of view rather than an economic one. The implications of our findings for curriculum developers and researchers are discussed.     

Content and timing of feedback in a web-based learning environment: effects on learning as a function of prior knowledge

This study investigated the effectiveness of different types of feedback content (elaborate versus global) and feedback timing (immediate versus delayed) for learning genetics in a web-based learning environment as a function of learners' prior knowledge. It was hypothesized that learning outcomes of students with low prior knowledge would be fostered by immediate elaborate feedback, whereas those of students with more prior knowledge would be enhanced by delayed global feedback. Students' perceptions of the feedback they received were explored. Results showed a significant positive effect of global feedback on learning outcomes for higher prior knowledge learners, although those who received elaborate feedback gave a higher appreciation rating. The findings are discussed in terms of implications for the design and delivery of feedback in web-based learning environments.     

Why teachers use digital learning materials: The role of self-efficacy, subjective norm and attitude

Although Information and Communication Technology (ICT) seems a promising tool in an educational context, many teachers are reluctant to integrate it in their daily practice. A large scale survey was undertaken amongst primary and secondary school teachers in the Netherlands to explore possible determinants of the educational use of digital learning materials (DLMs) in order to develop interventions to reduce teachers’ reluctance to use ICT and more specifically to stimulate the use of DLMs. Basing on the Integrative Model of Behaviour Prediction it was conjectured that self-efficacy, attitude and subjective norm would take a central role in explaining the intention to use DLMs. Several other predictors were added to the conceptual model whose effects were hypothesized to be mediated by the three central variables. All conjectured relationships were found using mediation analysis on survey data from 1,484 teachers. Intention to use DLMs was most strongly determined by attitude, followed by self-efficacy. ICT skills was in its turn the strongest predictor of self-efficacy. Subjective norm played only a limited role in the intention to use DLMs. Basing on the outcome of this study, persuasive communication focusing on positive outcomes and skills based training seem appropriate interventions to promote a positive attitude towards DLM and improve self-efficacy in using DLMs.     

Dynamics of Individual Television Viewing Behavior: Models,Empirical Evidence,and a Research Program

Television viewing often is a sequence of a multitude of activities that can vary tremendously from the moment the TV set is turned on until it is turned off again. Previous models of individual viewing behavior as well as empirical studies have focused on isolated aspects of viewing only, such as the frequency and duration of viewing or patterns of selecting a specific program. This paper draws attention to the complete process of TV viewing. We develop a process model to describe whole viewing sessions. Furthermore, a review of the empirical evidence on viewing behavior and a typology of factors influencing the viewing process are presented, concluded by a research program.