Developing mathematical knowledge for teaching in a methods course: the case of function

This study describes teacher learning in a teaching experiment consisting of a content-focused methods course involving the mathematical knowledge for teaching function. Prospective and practicing teachers in the course showed growth in their ability to define function, to provide examples of functions and link them to the definition, in the connections they could make between function representations, and to consider the role of definition in mathematics and the K-12 classroom. Written assessments, interview data, and class discourse analyses illustrate how the course supported the development of mathematical knowledge that built on individual teachers’ prior knowledge as well as the development of a stronger collective understanding of function.     

Pedagogical design considerations in sex education on interactive multimedia using CD‐Rom: an example of sexual intercourse

Human sexuality is a significant issue for educators to understand and teach about, and for young people to learn about. The development of interactive multimedia technologies has added a range of new dimensions associated with designing pedagogies for sex education on Interactive Multimedia (IMM). Here, a module on CD‐Rom on Sexuality and Human Relationships designed for student teachers is presented as an example of a resource, and analysed for the pedagogical considerations that accompany it. The paper concludes that the conceptualisation and design of IMM on CD‐Rom on sexuality is able to address a range of commonly used pedagogies. The most significant pedagogical renegotiation appears to lie in the transposing of human‐to‐human interaction, as in discussion, real life scenarios, simulation, role analysis, values and attitude clarification, to human‐to‐screen interaction. This may be addressed principally by using camera phones where human‐to‐human interaction occurs visually and in real time, whilst email and discussion groups can cater for delayed, typed text human‐to‐human interactions. For some learners, using IMM on CD‐Rom for sex education may be less effective, but for others it may be ideal as it provides for privacy, solo contemplation, self‐dialogue, and negates embarrassment in front of peers or teachers.     

The effects of team training on team outcomes: A meta‐analysis

A meta‐analysis was conducted to determine relationships between team training and team effectiveness. Results from the 21 studies provided evidence that training is positively related to team effectiveness and effectiveness in five outcome categories: affective, cognitive, subjective task‐based skill, objective task‐based skill, and teamwork skill.     

Instructional Interventions Across the Inquiry Process

ABSTRACT

Information literacy aims to develop in students the necessary skills, knowledge, and dispositions to use information to solve problems, make decisions, and generate new knowledge. The literature is replete with examples of guiding students in accessing and evaluating information sources. Less prevalent is processing information—the heart of the inquiry. Analysis, inference, and synthesis are critical thinking skills that take information literacy beyond a bibliographic task. In this liberal arts college setting, librarians team with consultants in quantitative reasoning, writing, and presentation technologies to deliver an information literacy program that supports not only the search, but also the analysis, interpretation, synthesis, and presentation of findings and insights.     

Examination of adolescents' screen time and physical fitness as independent correlates of weight status and blood pressure

Abstract

Physical fitness performance is an important health correlate yet is often unrelated to sedentary behaviour in early adolescence. In this study, we examined the association of sedentary behaviour (i.e. screen time) with weight-related health markers and blood pressure, after controlling for cardiorespiratory fitness performance. American middle school students (N = 153, 56% females) aged 11–15 years (mean 12.6 years, s = 0.5) completed assessments of cardiorespiratory fitness performance, screen time, weight status (BMI percentile, waist-to-height ratio), and blood pressure. Multivariate analysis of covariance, controlling for cardiorespiratory fitness performance, found those who met the daily recommendation of 2 h or less of screen time (n = 36, 23.5%) had significantly lower BMI (p < 0.05) and systolic blood pressure (p < 0.01) compared with those who exceeded this recommendation. Findings suggest specific intervention programmes may be designed to target both cardiorespiratory fitness and sedentary behaviours to maximize early adolescent health because these behaviours are likely to have unique and independent effects on youth health markers.     

Integrating medical communication skills with library skills curricula among first year medical students at the University of the West Indies,St. Augustine

A two-year study designed to integrate the medical communication skills and library skills curricula at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine is reported. Given that an integrated approach to curriculum development offers benefits to learners and staff. The objective of this study was to explore the feasibility of implementing this approach among Year 1 pre-clinical students in 1997 and 1998. Student performance on an essay question that integrated the application of students' knowledge of written communication and library skills in a final examination performance was assessed. Pre- and post-test results of students' library skills were compared within each year. anova analysis indicated that there was a significant increase in mean scores from pre-test to post-test which suggests that students performed better on a test of their knowledge and application of library skills after instruction, but the unavailability of a control group made this finding inconclusive. The findings are discussed in relation to practical and intellectual issues in curriculum integration. It is concluded that this type of curriculum integration is feasible, creates linkages in the curriculum and does not increase demand on student time.     

Examining Children's Implicit Racial Attitudes Using Exemplar and Category-Based Measures

The goal of this research was to examine children's implicit racial attitudes. Across three studies, a total of 359 White 5- to 12-year-olds completed child-friendly exemplar (Affective Priming Task; Affect Misattribution Procedure) and category-based (Implicit Association Test) implicit measures of racial attitudes. Younger children (5- to 8-year-olds) showed automatic ingroup positivity toward White child exemplars, whereas older children (9- to 12-year-olds) did not. Children also showed no evidence of automatic negativity toward Black exemplars, despite demonstrating consistent pro-White versus Black bias on the category-based measure. Together, the results suggest that (a) implicit ingroup and outgroup attitudes can follow distinct developmental trajectories, and (b) the spontaneous activation of implicit intergroup attitudes can depend on the salience of race.