Mothers' Views on Teaching their Preschoolers in Everyday Situations

Mothers' views of what they teach their preschoolers in everyday situations and their beliefs about the importance of teaching particular kinds of skills were explored. Middle class mothers of 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children were asked to identify situations/activities in which they intentionally set out to teach their child and situations/activities in which teaching occurs incidental to some other goal. Most mothers reported teaching both cognitive/academic and social/life skills, but they differed in the relative emphases they put on each type. Few mothers spontaneously reported teaching metacognitive skills, although when specifically asked whether they taught any "learning-to-learn" skills they indicated that they did. Nevertheless, the skills they identified were lower-level process skills such as listening and paying attention rather than higher-level self-regulatory skills such as planning and monitoring progress. Some educators have questioned the extent to which parents are aware of and take advantage of the opportunities for teaching afforded by everyday interactions with their children. The present results suggest that this need not be a concern with respect to middle class families in the cognitive and social domains but that it is of concern in the metacognitive domain. It seems clear that there should be an increased emphasis in parent education programs and materials on how and why to foster metacognition.     

Lessons from black-thicket jungle: What is feasible in village schools of disadvantaged areas?

Comparative examination of the national goals of education as presented by various developing countries shows such goals to be often abstract and overly idealistic: a long way from the harsh reality of most rural village schools. Drawing on the results of a lengthy field study in a disadvantaged area of Sri Lanka, this article discusses the matter of feasibility in the shadow of too high expectations. It is concluded that ambitious goals should be operationalized at a practicable level, and recommendations are put forward for feasible action. As a rigidly ordered system of schooling may be an inevitable stage in a progressive evolution of schooling types, patience is needed before criticizing schools which lack creative teaching and problem-solving approaches. It is emphasised that the most important raw materials of the educational system are abundantly present, i.e., human resources. Children are eager to learn; parents are potentially supportive and want education for the sake of learning as well as for jobs. And most importantly for the success of the schools, dedicated principals and teachers are present in unexpectedly high numbers considering the constraints they face. The importance of such educators is stressed, along with implications for selection, training and remuneration.

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Zusammenfassung Vergleichende Studien der staatlichen Bildungsziele, wie sie von verschiedenen Entwicklungsländern vorgelegt wurden, zeigen, daß solche Ziele oft abstrakt und allzu idealistisch und von der rauhen Wirklichkeit der meisten ländlichen Dorfschulen weit entfernt sind. Die Autorin diskutiert, indem sie sich auf die Ergebnisse einer umfangreichen Feldstudie in einem benachteiligten Gebiet Sri Lankas bezieht, die Frage der Durchführbarkeit im Schatten überhöhter Erwartungen. Sie kommt dabei zu dem Schluß, daß die hochgesteckten Ziele auf eine gangbare Ebene zugeschnitten werden müßten, und gibt Empfehlungen für durchführbare Maßnahmen. Da ein straff organisiertes Unterrichtssystem ein unvermeidliches Stadium in einer fortschreitenden Entwicklung von Unterrichtstypen sein kann, ist Geduld angebracht, bevor man Schulen kritisiert, denen es an kreativem Lehren und Ansätzen zur Problemlösung mangelt. Betont wird, daß die wichtigsten Rohstoffe des Bildungssystems in Überfluß vorhanden sind, z.B. der Reichtum an Menschen. Kinder sind lernbegierig, Eltern unterstützen sie unter Umständen und wünschen eine Ausbildung sowohl um des Lernens willen als auch im Hinblick auf einen Arbeitsplatz. Und es gibt, was für den Erfolg der Schulen von größter Wichtigkeit ist, eine unerwartet hohe Zahl von engagierten Direktoren und Lehrern, wenn man die Widrigkeiten bedenkt, mit denen sie zu kämpfen haben. Die Bedeutung solcher Erzieher wird hervorgehoben unter Berücksichtigung der Konsequenzen für deren Auswahl, Ausbildung und Vergütung.

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Résumé L'examen comparé des objectifs éducatifs nationaux présentés par divers pays en développement révèle qu'ils sont souvent abstraits et excessivement idéalistes — et par conséquent bien éloignés de la dure réalité de la plupart des écoles rurales. En s'appuyant sur les résultats d'une étude très longue menée sur le terrain dans une région désavantagée du Sri Lanka, le présent article examine la question de faisabilité à l'ombre de ces exigences exagérées. On conclut que les objectifs ambitieux devraient être réalisés au niveau pratique et des recommandations sont faites pour l'action possible. Du fait qu'un système d'éducation agencé strictement peut devenir la phase inévitable de l'évolution progressive de divers types d'éducation, il convient d'être patient avant de procéder à la critique des écoles où un enseignement créatif et des approches orientées vers la solution de problèmes font défaut. On souligne que les matières premières les plus importantes d'un système éducatif, à savoir les ressources humaines, sont abondantes. Les enfants sont désireux d'apprendre, les parents constituent un soutien potentiel et souhaitent une éducation en vue d'acquérir des connaissances et de trouver un emploi. Et ce qui est capital pour le succès des écoles, il existe un nombre inopinément élevé de directeurs et d'enseignants dévoués, compte tenu des contraintes auxquelles ils doivent faire face. On met en lumière l'importance de ces éducateurs ainsi que les implications pour leur sélection, leur formation et leur rémunération.

     

“UNIFIED”: Bridging the Researcher–Practitioner Divide in Mind,Brain, and Education

Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE) science is by definition transdisciplinary. However, the communication and collaboration between constituent disciplines needed for true transdisciplinarity remains relatively rare. Consequently, many of the potential benefits of MBE science remain unrealized for parties on all sides of the discipline. The present commentary first conducts an analysis of the current strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of transdisciplinary partnerships in MBE. A new, free, and international web platform (“UNIFIED”) is then proposed to broker relationships between researchers and teachers within schools. This website would allow users to form collaborations based on a system of tags indexing their research interests as well as practicalities such as their location. Such a website appears well placed to realize many of the opportunities, and mitigate the threats and weaknesses, of transdisciplinary MBE research. The article concludes with an appeal to interested researchers and schools to contribute to the development of the project.     

Context matters: increasing understanding with interactive Clicker Case studies

Although interactive technology is presumed to increase student understanding in large classes, no previous research studies have empirically explored the effects of Clicker Cases on students?? performance. A Clicker Case is a story (e.g., a problem someone is facing) that uses clickers (student response systems) to engage students in understanding the meaning of the science contained within the story. Using an experimental randomized Solomon design across 11 institutions, we found that Clicker Cases increased student understanding more than PowerPoint lectures in large introductory biology classrooms, although there was variation across institutions and topics. By examining student performance in conjunction with faculty experience, we found that strong Clicker Cases created dissonance, captured attention and involved students in interpreting data or making decisions. This study provides a model for collaborative research across multiple institutions and demonstrates the need for using multiple institutions and topics in research on education.     

When Is Teleconsultation Acceptable to School Psychologists?

ABSTRACT

School psychologists report a desire to increase consultation with teachers but are limited by competing job demands. Consultation via videoconference (i.e., teleconsultation) offers one possible means of increasing consultant availability to teachers, but little is known about the acceptability of this technology in actual practice. In this exploratory study, we conducted an online survey to assess the conditions under which school consultants would use teleconsultation to assist teachers remotely. Sixty-two school psychology practitioners, trainers, and trainees completed a choice-based conjoint survey designed to assess teleconsultation acceptability in the context of varying commute times, consultee comfort levels, and student problem severities. Findings suggest important differences in teleconsultation acceptability in the context of real-world tradeoffs. Implications of these results are discussed, as well as the potential for using conjoint analysis to better understand technology decisions among school consultants.     

Learning by pigeons playing against tit-for-tat in an operant prisoner’s dilemma

Each of four pigeons was exposed to a single random-ratio schedule of reinforcement in which the probability of reinforcement for a peck on either of two keys was 1/25. Reinforcer amounts were determined by an iterated prisoner’s dilemma (IPD) matrix in which the “other player” (a computer) playedtit-for-tat. One key served as thecooperation(C) key; the other served as thedefection(D) key. If a peck was scheduled to be reinforced and the D-key was pecked, the immediate reinforcer of that peck was always higher than it would have been had the C-key been pecked. However, if the C-key was pecked and thefollowing peck was scheduled to be reinforced, reinforcement amount for pecks on either key were higher than they would have been if the previous peck had been on the D-key. Although immediate reinforcement was always higher for D-pecks, the overall reinforcement rate increased linearly with the proportion of C-pecks. C-pecks thus constituted a form of self-control. All the pigeons initially defected with this procedure. However, when feedback signals were introduced that indicated which key had last been pecked,cooperation (relative rate of C-pecks)—hence, self-control—increased for all the pigeons.     

The interaction of conditioned taste aversions and schedule-induced polydipsia: Effects of repeated conditioning trials

In Experiment 1, rats poisoned following schedule-induced saccharin consumption showed a moderate reduction in the schedule-induced consumption of saccharin. With repeated poisoning, schedule-induced saccharin polydipsia was markedly reduced. Acquisition of conditioned aversion under the schedule-induced procedure was significantly slower than acquisition under water deprivation. In addition, recovery of consumption of the previously poisoned solution during extinction was more rapid under schedule-induced polydipsia. Experiment 2 revealed that schedule-induced polydipsia was less sensitive to suppression by conditioned aversions than a prandial drinking condition in which subjects were equally food deprived but were given a mass feeding instead of spaced pellet deliveries, suggesting that the relative insensitivity of schedule-induced polydipsia to conditioned taste aversions is not simply a function of different levels of food deprivation. This relative insensitivity is offered as a partial basis for the occurrence and maintenance of schedule-induced alcohol polydipsia.     

Transition time: Make it a time of learning for children

Young children spend much of their day in transition, passing from one place or activity to another. Caregivers can use this time for planned activities which reinforce learning.Betty Ruth Baker is Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction and Director of Early Childhood Education at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.     

Hybrid structures: Faculty use and perception of web-based courseware as a supplement to face-to-face instruction

The researchers examined responses from 862 faculty members at 38 institutions nationwide using the blackboard Learning Management System (LMS) to supplement their face-to-face instruction. The four research questions addressed the primary uses that faculty make of blackboard, perceptions that faculty have of how certain blackboard features enhance or elevate (or might enhance or elevate) their assessment of student work and instructional capabilities, and how faculty use of blackboard might positively affect the psychosocial climate within the face-to-face classroom setting. Additional analysis sought to identify the factors that predict use and positive perception of blackboard as a supplement to face-to-face teaching activities. The results indicate that faculty primarily used blackboard as a course management/administration tool to make course documents available to students and manage course grades. Few faculty used blackboard for instructional or assessment purposes, and even fewer utilized blackboard to foster a more positive sense of community within their face-to-face classes. Faculty attitudes, on the whole, were positive when it came to the classroom management functions of blackboard, but neutral or otherwise undecided in terms of its instructional or psychosocial benefits. The main factor in determining blackboard usage—whether for course administration or instructional purposes—was experience with the tool. In addition, women had more positive attitudes than men did in terms of blackboard's potential to enhance classroom management and foster a positive relational climate. Limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are discussed before concluding.