A multivariate study of the effects of high-risk factors on performance on the Brazelton Neonatal Assessment Scale.

The Brazelton Neonatal Assessment Scale was administered to 52 newborn infants. A factor analysis revealed 2 main factors, 1 along an attention-orientation dimension, the other relating to temperament arousal. A stepwise multiple linear regression analysis showed that the attention-orientation factor was related to birth weight, age of the mother, and sex and race of the baby. The only variable related to the temperament-arousal factor was 5-min Apgar scor. The study, although exploratory, demonstrates the use of multivariate techniques in the assessment of influences on newborn behavior.     

Connecting Points: Teacher Decision-Making About Student Data-Collection Technology

Journal of Science Education and Technology - For today's classroom teacher, faced with the prospect of selecting and using data collection technology, a number of questions are emerging,...     

Participatory action research: Collective reflections on gender,culture, and language

The focus of this article is the experiences of three undergraduate students who engaged in a participatory action research (PAR) project with a group of preadolescent Latina girls attending a public school in Boston, MA, USA. The aim of the 2-year project was to explore how the girls constructed knowledge about girlhood and other gender-related issues.     

An experimental study comparing English-only and Transitional Bilingual Education on Spanish-speaking preschoolers’ early literacy development

A longitudinal, experimental–control design was used to test the hypothesis that native language instruction enhances English language learner's (ELL's) native language and literacy development without significant cost to English development. In this study, 31 Spanish-speaking preschoolers (aged 38–48 months) were randomly assigned to two Head Start classrooms differing only in the language of instruction (English and Spanish). As predicted, results showed that Spanish language instruction resulted in significantly higher growth on both Spanish oral vocabulary and letter–word identification measures. There were no significant differences between classrooms on these same measures in English. Results extend previous work by showing that Transitional Bilingual Education may be a viable alternative to traditional English-only models. Implications for theory, future research, and early childhood practice are discussed.     

The use of graphic representations of sign language in leveled texts to support deaf readers

The study considered whether adding sign language graphics to the books being used for reading instruction in a first-grade classroom would promote the literacy development of students who are deaf or hard of hearing. The researchers also sought to discover whether materials existed to put the process of modifying leveled texts within the reach of the typical classroom teacher, in terms of cost and procedure. Students' reading behaviors seemed to indicate that the presence of sign graphics supported their development as readers. The materials needed to create sign support for the English print in the leveled books were commercially available.     

冬奥会五大难忘时刻

悲剧赛道 这一悲伤时刻将永远笼罩着温哥华冬奥会.2月12日,就在开幕式开始前的几个小时,诺达尔·库玛丽塔什维利,一位来自格鲁吉亚的单人雪橇运动员,在训练中通过惠斯勒赛道的最后一个弯道时,撞上赛道内墙,突然弹出,撞上了赛迫外的钢柱,后不治身亡,年仅21岁.     

The influence of self-efficacy and working memory capacity on problem-solving efficiency

We investigated the influence of self-efficacy beliefs and working memory capacity on mathematical problem-solving performance, response time, and efficiency (i.e., the ratio of problems solved correctly to time). Students completed a letter-recoding task (Experiment 1) or an operation span task (Experiment 2), rated their self-efficacy for solving mental multiplication problems, and then solved similar problems of varying complexity. We tested the motivational efficiency hypothesis, which predicted that motivational beliefs, such as self-efficacy, increase problem-solving efficiency through focused effort and strategy use. Experiments 1 and 2 reported a significant effect for self-efficacy on problem-solving performance and efficiency, but limited effects for time. A self-efficacy by working memory interaction occurred in Experiment 1, suggesting self-efficacy is beneficial as demands on working memory increase. These findings suggested that self-efficacy increased problem-solving efficiency through strategic performance rather than faster solution times, and were consistent with the motivational efficiency hypothesis.     

Academic self‐concept,gender and single‐sex schooling

This article assesses gender differences in academic self‐concept for a cohort of children born in 1958 (the National Child Development Study). It addresses the question of whether attending single‐sex or co‐educational schools affected students' perceptions of their own academic abilities (academic self‐concept). Academic self‐concept was found to be highly gendered, even controlling for prior test scores. Boys had higher self‐concepts in mathematics and science, and girls in English. Single‐sex schooling reduced the gender gap in self‐concept, while selective schooling was linked to lower academic self‐concept overall.     

Time Course of Visual Attention in Infant Categorization of Cats Versus Dogs: Evidence for a Head Bias as Revealed Through Eye Tracking

Previous looking time studies have shown that infants use the heads of cat and dog images to form category representations for these animal classes. The present research used an eye-tracking procedure to determine the time course of attention to the head and whether it reflects a preexisting bias or online learning. Six- to 7-month-olds were familiarized with cats or dogs in upright or inverted orientations and then tested with a novel cat and novel dog in the same orientation. In the upright orientation, infants fixated head over body throughout familiarization; with inversion, no head preference was observed. These findings suggest that infant reliance on the head to categorize cats versus dogs results from a bias that pushes attention to the head.