Early retention: Are there long-term beneficial effects?

The purpose of this study was to examine whether retention of kindergarten and first-grade children is associated with long-term beneficial effects. Thirty-one children who had been retained were compared to 31 children who had similar grades but had never been retained. The dependent measures were grade point average in the second through fifth grades and four teacher-assessed areas of functioning in the fourth and fifth grade: social competence, cognitive competence, externalizing problems, and internalizing problems. The results indicated that retention was not associated with long-term beneficial effects but rather, especially for White children, appeared to be associated with poorer academic and social functioning. Implications and limitations of the study are discussed.     

Review of Scottish Arts Council Report,Taking Part in Scotland 2008

The review looks at the 2008 report by the Scottish Arts Council (SAC) into audience involvement in the arts and culture in Scotland. It notes that the research is part of a continuing attempt by the SAC to map trends in audience participation in the arts, and that the survey often provides an in-depth account of how people spend their leisure time. However, it notes some deficiencies in its remit and questions whether the limitations of the report make it a valuable contribution to the SAC's future direction and policies.     

CASE Tools: Constructivism and its Application to Learning and Usability of Software Engineering Tools

Software Engineering is a new discipline aimed at the improvement of the production of large, quality software systems. Interest in CASE tools has grown because of the important role they play in supporting the software development process. Studies show these complex and sophisticated tools have a positive impact on quality and productivity but they have been slow to be adopted by industry; this is partially explained by the difficulty of learning to use the tool.     

INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION AND PROFESSIONAL PREPARATION IN CAMPUS‐BASED CHILD DEVELOPMENT LABORATORY PROGRAMS

ABSTRACT

In an undergraduate families and communities course situated at a university in the borderlands of the United States and Mexico, early childhood majors have used Black feminist thought combined with photovoice to generate projects that explore family and community experiences with power and oppression. As a professor, teaching assistant, and student enrolled in the course, we share our conceptualization of Black feminist photovoice, student trends and issues engaging with photovoice throughout the semester, and provide an example culminating project that focuses on colonization. By describing students’ engagement with Black feminist photovoice, we illustrate how transformative spaces can be forged in early childhood teacher education, where students critically examine the struggles and empowerment of marginalized communities, and generate possibilities to serve as agents of social justice and change.     

The Role of Images in the Secondary School Change Process

Abstract

Secondary schools are facing significant reculturalization in the very meaning of secondary school education. Educators involved in such changes are coping with finding new ways of conceptualizing and implementing such changes. This paper employs the concept of images, as a component of personal practical, in order to understand the impact of the reculturalization currently being experienced in some Ontario secondary schools. The article explores the difficulties in dealing with reculturalization incurred because of the past images of secondary school department heads and explores new images emerging in some of the studied schools.     

Gender differences in perceptions of studying for the GCSE

This study explored gender differences in perceptions of studying for the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE). The sample comprised 644 pupils drawn from eight schools in Outer London, UK. The schools encompassed pupils who could be regarded as high, middle and low achievers drawn from co‐educational and single‐sex schools. Pupils completed a self‐report questionnaire on two occasions, once in Year 10 and once in Year 11. The questionnaire was designed to assess perceptions of studying for the GCSE including statements relating to coursework, examinations, research, study strategies and homework. This research demonstrated few gender differences in perceptions of studying among Year 10 and Year 11 pupils, who had similar attainment levels. In this sample, the boys were conscientious and completed more homework in Year 10. For the future, it appears important to explore further how the attainment of girls might be mediated by anxiety.     

Twelve Years of English in Six Weeks

Abstract

Is This a College? City on a Hill: Testing the American Dream at City College By James Traub Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 371 pages, 1994, $25. Reviewed by Martha E. Kendall.     

New Media

ELECTRONIC PUBLISHING PLUS: MEDIA FOR A TECHNOLOGICAL FUTURE edited by Martin Greenberger (White Plains, NY: Knowledge Industry Publications, 1985—$45.00/29.95)

NEWSPAPERS AND NEW MEDIA by David A. Patten (White Plains, NY: Knowledge Industry Publications, 1986—$34.95/24.95)

GREAT EXPECTATIONS: A TELEVISION MANAGER'S GUIDE TO THE FUTURE by Paul Bortz, et al. (Washington, DC: National Association of Broadcasters, 1986—$40.00, paper)

VIDEO DEMOCRACY: THE VOTE-FROM-HOME REVOLUTION by Richard Hollander (Lomond Publications, P.O. Box 88, Mt. Airy, MD 21771—$14.95)

THE NEW TELEVISION TECHNOLOGIES by Lynne Schafer Gross (Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown, 1986—price not given, paper)

USING COMPUTERS: HUMAN FACTORS IN INFORMATION SYSTEMS by Raymond S. Nickerson (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1986—$22.50)

THE CULT OF INFORMATION: THE FOLKLORE OF COMPUTERS AND THE TRUE ART OF THINKING by Theodore Roszak (New York: Pantheon, 1986—$17.95)     

Electronic Media Production

AUDIO IN MEDIA by Stanley R. Alten (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing, 1990—price not given, ISBN 0-534-12132-2, 644 pp.)

RADIO PRODUCTION WORKTEXT: STUDIO AND EQUIPMENT by Lynne Gross and David E. Reese (Stoneham, MA: Focal Press, 1990—$19.95, paper, ISBN 0-240-80045-1,146 pp.)

BROADCAST/CABLECOPYWRITING by Peter B. Orlik (Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon, 1990—price not given, ISBN 0-205-12325-2, 746 pp.)

REWRITING NETWORK NEWS: WORDWATCHING TIPS FROM 345 TV AND RADIO SCRIPTS by Mervin Block (Chicago: Bonus Books, 1990—price not given, ISBN 0-929387-15-5, 221 pp.)

SCRIPT SUPERVISING AND FILM CONTINUITY by Pat Miller (Stoneham, MA Focal Press, 1990—$24.95, paper, ISBN 0-240-80018-4, 228 pp.)

PUBLIC RELATIONS WRITING by E. W. Brody and Dan L. Lattimore (New York: Praeger, 1990—$16.95, ISBN 0-275-92896-9, 267 pp.)

SIGHT SOUND MOTION: APPLIED MEDIA AESTHETICS by Herbert Zettl (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1990—price not given, ISBN 0-534-07952-0, 408 pp.)

THE TECHNIQUE OF TELEVISION PRODUCTION by Gerald Millerson (Stoneham, MA: Focal Press, 1990—price not given, paper, ISBN 0-240-51289-8, 566 pp.)

TV SCENIC DESIGN HANDBOOK by Gerald Millerson (Stoneham, MA: Focal Press, 1989—price not given, paper, ISBN 0-240-51285-5, 249 pp.)

THE VIDEO STUDIO by Alan Bermingham, et al. (Stoneham, MA: Focal Press, 1990—$18.95, paper, ISBN 0-240-51267-7,192 pp.)

ELECTRONIC POST-PRODUCTION TERMS AND CONCEPTS by Arthur Schneider (Stoneham, MA: Focal Press, 1990—$19.95, paper, ISBN 0-240-80006-0,152 pp.)

INTRODUCTION TO TELEVISION PRODUCTION by Ken Fielding (White Plains, NY: Longman, 1990—price notgiven, ISBN 0-8013-0313-3, 307 pp.)

CORPORATE TELEVISION: A PRODUCER'S HANDBOOK by Ray DiZazzo (Stoneham, MA: Focal Press, 1990—price not given, paper, ISBN 0-240-80023-0, 201 pp.)