School Education Through the Eyes of Parents

Data from surveys of parents of students in Russian schools of various types in the years 2006 to 2011 show a high level of desire to invest in their children's education. There has been a high degree of stability in aspirations and investment in spite of the economic problems caused by global recession.     

Destined to Design? How and Why Australian Women Choose to Study Industrial Design

Despite over three decades of legislation and initiatives designed to tackle the traditional gender divide in the science, technology and design fields, only a quarter of the registered architects in Australia are women. There are no statistics available for other design disciplines, with little known about why women choose design as a career path and who or what influences this decision. This qualitative research addresses this knowledge gap, through semi‐structured in‐depth interviews conducted with 19 Australian women who completed an industrial (product) design degree. Thematic analysis revealed three key themes: childhood aptitude and exposure; significant experiences and people; and design as a serendipitous choice. The findings emphasise the importance of early exposure to design as a potential career choice, highlighting the critical role played by parents, teachers, professionals and social networks.     

Bibliometric methods in libraries of the Republic of Belarus: History and contemporary state

This paper considers the use of bibliometric methods in library and information activities, as well as the role of libraries of the Republic of Belarus in increasing the publication activities of researchers and the promotion of scientific journals.     

Distance education copyright,intellectual property,and antitrust concerns

Abstract

An empirical examination of accredited American higher education institutions was conducted to obtain baseline data regarding distance education copyright, intellectual property, and antitrust concerns. Additionally, a multiple‐case study involving ten of the top thirty accredited distance education institutions in America was conducted. Policy approaches were examined for all institutions, and differences were discussed between public and private institutions as well as between the following Carnegie Classification institutions: Research I and II, Doctorate I and II, and Master's I and II. Data indicated that, out of the schools surveyed, 22% of the institutions in these Carnegie Classification categories published copyright and intellectual property policies on their institution's Web site. In the case study, it was found that 90% of the institutions centrally controlled their distance education program administration as well as the copyright and intellectual property policies related to it.     

Children's ideas on light and vision

This paper reports a small‐scale longitudinal enquiry into the development of children's ideas on light and vision. It followed the same class from Year 4 (age 9) through to Year 6 (age 11), but the greater part of the information came from Year 5. The data were derived from the children's drawings and written responses, and from small group interviews. Care was taken to ensure that the ideas elicited were the true beliefs of the children. No formal instruction in the subject had been given, nor was any attempted. In the analysis, the children's views have been classified according to a hierarchical set of models, which reflect the strong adherence to an active vision interpretation held by the majority. The extent of progression towards the more scientific view is reported. In the introduction and discussion comparison is made between contemporary non‐scientific conceptions of vision, and the speculations of pre‐scientific philosophers. A final section presents some implications of these findings for teaching the topic.     

An intervention in the Halliwick Method procedures (swimming) for a group of individuals with Downs syndrome

The purpose of this study was to intervene in the process of the Halliwick Method (swimming), in order to improve the method, or some of its aspects, for a sample of 14 individuals with Downs syndrome (aged six to 21 years), using both an individualized educational setting approach and a differentiation of the elements of the Halliwick Method. The pre-intervention phase included medical examination, IQ, measurement of the behaviour according to the Rutter Scale and a Test of Physical Performance for each subject. Next, the subjects were assigned to seven pairs of case studies, where each individual following a Halliwick Methods swimming programme was paired with an individual following a modified swimming programme based on the same method, on physical health variables, IQ, behaviour and motor abilities. The duration of each swimming programme was 24 weeks for each individual, at a frequency of once per week, for 40 minutes. In the light of the findings of this study, further recommendations for the improvement of Halliwick Method procedures were made, common factors that affected the performance of each individual were identified and their relation with performance was explored.     

Tool Support for Teaching the Personal Software Process

Software engineering education can be viewed as a challenging task. Computer science students tend to focus on the programming aspects of a project, and take a “hacking approach” to completing a project, rather than viewing the process. Our course material includes teaching the Personal Software Process (PSP). Students are required to produce defect and effort metrics, as well as project summary reports. Tools to assist information recording and production of reports are difficult for students to access. The cost in terms of financial and learning time is usually too high at the educational level to justify using commercial tools that are available for the professional software engineer. We have developed a tool—Personal Assistant for Software Engineers—to aid students in the learning of the PSP. The tool has been successfully used in four subjects for a semester. Following feedback and evaluation, it has been redesigned, and is currently in stage two. The tool has been useful for students, and has automated the previous manual process of producing time and defect reports, along with project summaries, thus allowing them to focus on the meaning of the information.     

How can pre-service primary teachers' perspectives contribute to a pedagogy that problematises the ‘practical’ in teacher education?

This study examined pre-service primary teachers' perspectives on teaching and learning experiences within college-based courses in ‘practical’ subject areas within a teacher education programme. Following three individual lectures (one each in art, music and physical education), pre-service teachers (n=11) participated in focus group interviews sharing their perspectives on the teaching and learning experiences. These data were analysed thematically and supported by teacher educators' (n=3) planning and reflection documentation. Although the problematic nature of the ‘practical’ suggests appeal and peril of the ‘practical’, the important nature of negotiating the ‘practical’ to enhance student learning is apparent. Students emphasised the value of practical engagement and expressed a strong preference for working in groups to create a safe learning environment to develop confidence and competence. These insights suggest key aspects of a pedagogy of teacher education in these ‘practical’ areas. The importance of being aware of and, in some cases, challenging student perspectives on how they learn best in these curricular areas is discussed.