A focused analysis of TVET: unique opportunities and strategies for investing in and engaging youth in Nicaraguan society

Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is increasingly emphasised by international education organisations. In Nicaragua, particularly, this type of engagement is viewed as a potential for boosting the economy, improving employment and building the infrastructure and sustainability of remote and marginalised communities. To date, one specific region in Nicaragua has thoughtfully engaged multiple sectors to support TVET through public–private partnerships (PPPs) and community-level networks. The data for this article were collected through in-person interviews with TVET stakeholders over a two-week site visit in support of a USAID evaluation. In addition to interviews, data collection included analyses of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges of TVET providers in the region. This study considers the demographics, economics and educational realities of Nicaragua and the potential for PPPs to enhance opportunities for youth and community development.     

An ecological analysis of after-school program participation and the development of academic performance and motivational attributes for disadvantaged children

This longitudinal study evaluated after-school program (ASP) participation and the development of academic performance (school grades, reading achievement) and teacher-rated motivational attributes (expectancy of success, effectance motivation) over a school year. Participants were 599 boys and girls (6.3 to 10.6 years) from an urban, disadvantaged city in the United States. An ecological analysis of after-school arrangements identified 4 patterns of care: ASP care, parent care, combined parent/self-sibling care, and combined other-adult/self-sibling care. Aspects of academic performance and motivational attributes were significantly higher (p<.05) at the end of the school year for children in ASP care compared with those in the 3 alternative patterns of care. Differences were marked for children rated as highly engaged in ASP activities.     

Resource Centres in Departments of Higher Education: a survey in Great Britain

This paper presents the results of a survey conducted among departmental resource centres in higher education. The survey aimed at quantifying, validating and supplementing information gathered through visits, case studies and the literature and was constructed around six areas: information about each center; details of the learning resources housed in them; an assessment of their use; feedback and evaluation activities; information about the staff in charge of centres; and finally a section on general comments made by respondents.     

Schoolchildren's revision tactics

Two studies are described which presented children with computer-based writing tasks. One compared observations of pairs and singletons within a classroom setting, with P5 children as subjects. The other video-recorded S2 learning difficulty pupils working in partnership or with a teacher and compared task performance under both dyad conditions. Focussing specifically upon evidence relating to revision during and following composition, both studies support a general observation in the field of writing research that children lack diagnostic strategies. However, there is some evidence that this finding is affected by writing task so that the problem may be in transfer, rather than lack, of skills. Developing useful teaching software to remedy this depends on an understanding of writing processes as writing competence develops; a programme for further work in this field is outlined.     

Hostility, hostile detachment, and conflict engagement in marriages: effects on child and family functioning

This study examined the relations between patterns of marital communication, child adjustment, and family functioning. Couples with a 4- or 5-year-old child were divided into three groups (N = 126) based on observed patterns of emotional communication: Hostile couples showed a cumulative increase in negative speaker behaviors over the course of a high-conflict marital discussion; hostile-withdrawn couples showed a cumulative increase in both negative speaker and negative listener behaviors over the course of the interaction; and engaged couples showed a cumulative increase in both positive speaker and listener behaviors over the course of the interaction. The families of these three types of couples were then compared on child outcomes (i.e., peer relations, behavior problems), parenting quality, co-parenting quality, and family-level functioning. Differences in marital violence and marital satisfaction between marital couples were also examined in relation to family risk. Families in which couples were hostile-detached showed the most negative outcomes. Hostile-detached couples were more likely than hostile or conflict-engaging couples to use more power-assertive methods of discipline; to be ineffective in co-parenting their child; to have family units that were less cohesive, less playful, and more conflictual; and to have children that exhibited behavior problems. Results also indicated that marital typology still accounted for significant variance in child outcome after controlling for marital violence and marital satisfaction. Differences in the absolute degree of negative behaviors also did not account for results. Findings are discussed in terms of the detrimental impact of marital conflict on child and family functioning.     

Pedagogic imaginings: negotiating pedagogies of care/protection in a risk society

Child care and protection have become key issues of concern for all teachers, and particularly for those teachers responsible for the care of young children. In this paper, we analyse focus group data on the topic of child care and protection produced by primary school teachers in Queensland, Australia. By drawing on concepts from cultural globalization, risk society and the sociology of childhood we outline the images, imaginary worlds and imagined professional identities constructed by a cohort of teachers. In particular, we pay attention to teachers' accounts of changes to everyday schooling practices in the context of new child protection legislation and policies. We argue that education and/or professional development in relation to child care/protection must involve critical engagement and contestation of the images, imaginary worlds and imagined collective professional identities of teachers and children constructed, and consumed often uncritically in these new times.     

Professional controversies between teachers about their summative assessment practices: a tool for building assessment capacity

Abstract

This article describes two collaborative research projects whose common goal was to explore the potential role of professional controversies in building teachers’ summative assessment capacity. In the first project, upper primary teachers were encouraged to compare their practices through a form of social moderation, without prior instructor input or theoretical preparation. In the second project, lower secondary school teachers were encouraged to compare their summative assessment practices with reference to a theoretical model of curriculum alignment, under the guidance of an instructor. The findings support the potentially constructive role of professional controversies in supporting teachers’ professional development for summative assessment. They highlight the status of references called upon in discussion of controversies, and their contribution to the construction of the subjects under discussion.     

The design and evaluation of Link: A computer-based learning system for correlation

This paper describes the design and evaluation of a computer-assisted learning program called Link , which was designed to be used by psychology students to review their understanding of correlation. Unlike existing computer-assisted learning programs that were reviewed, Link makes use of data from authentic research studies in psychology and provides learner activities that are specifically designed to address students' misconceptions about correlation. A summative evaluation study of Link involving fifty psychology students was carried out to assess the effect on students' understanding of correlation. It was found that the use of Link significantly contributed to students' general understanding of correlation. However, it was found that students use of paper-based instructional materials could also achieve this. The implication of this research outcome is considered in relation to the design and use of computer-assisted learning applications for statistics in higher education.