Digging behavior in 12 taxa of muroid rodents

The digging behavior of 12 taxa of muroid rodents was observed on sand and peat substrates. Overall, significantly more digging was performed on peat than on sand. The percentage of animals of each taxon that dug was found to be positively correlated with both the duration of digging and the number of bouts of digging and negatively correlated with latency to dig. Differences across taxa in the duration of digging were correlated with field observations of the nesting behavior of these taxa; taxa that frequently utilize subterranean nest sites exhibited more digging than those that do not. The motor patterns used in digging are described;Mus musculus was the only species that appeared to exhibit a unique digging pattern. Digging behavior appears to be a pattern that is readily elicited in the laboratory, related to behavior in the field, and appropriated for further laboratory study.     

Mathematical tasks designed to foster a reconceptualized view of early arithmetic

We discuss mathematical tasks used in a first mathematics content course for elementary teachers at our university to foster a deep conceptual understanding of early arithmetic, including basic concepts of number, number relationships and strategies, and coordinating units of different rank. Our approach is to immerse our students in a base 8 world for up to six weeks. A key aspect is that we develop base 8 vocabulary. We use base 8 analogs of instructional sequences developed in classroom teaching experiments in the elementary grades that have been proven successful to promote deep conceptual understandings of basic arithmetic and place-value numeration in young children. As a result, our students have unique opportunities to develop a reconceptualized view of early arithmetic and learn how it can be advanced.     

私有化与美国高等教育财政的新趋势

1990年以来,私有化成为美国高等教育发展的主流趋势。众多大学热衷于资助与企业合作的教育研究项目,并且积极参与商业活动。在高等教育领域中,营利性大学呈现出最为积极的发展态势。此外,各种形式的学生经济资助力度的加大使得美国高等教育财政发生了翻天覆地的变化。对于公立和私立大学而言,私有化均意味着市场力量的大力介入。本文从以下三个视角审视美国高等教育财政的发展变化:考察1990年以来高等教育私有化的宏观发展趋势,分析该时期高等教育在校生规模、大学学费及其收入支出的变化趋势,研究当前经济危机对公立和私立高等教育部门产生的影响。大学学费的稳步增长使美国高等教育财政由政府资助转向学生及其家庭分担。学生经济资助,尤其是联邦学生贷款的大幅增长对美国高等教育财政产生了重要影响,而这种影响作用在私立非营利性大学、公立大学、私立营利性大学的表现是截然不同的。最后,私有化潮流对不同性质高等教育机构的财政及其学术研究产生了不同的动态影响。面对高校收入来源及其总额的变化,美国大学的高度自主特质使得各院校必须独立作出适应,这也由此提升了高校对于市场力量的积极响应。     

Students' insights on the use of video lectures in online classes

Video lectures (VL), considered an effective means for delivering course content and infusing teaching presence in the virtual environment, have become very popular in education. The purpose of this study was to investigate online student experiences with VL focusing on their opinion of usefulness of VL, their satisfaction with them and their perception of learning derived from them. Our findings show that students' satisfaction with VL has a strong relationship with positive overall learning experience and perception of impact of video on learning. Furthermore, VL can enhance a feeling of engagement with content because of learners' control of the media and instructors' presence. The findings also alert us on the importance of careful planning and balanced integration of VL with other course materials. This provides important information on the effectiveness of video-lectures in college teaching and learning and implications for practice in online course design.     

Inconsistencies in regulation: the continuing story of Early Childhood Services

The inconsistencies of regulation and inspection in UK early childhood services are examined. The rationale and regulatory requirements for daycare put forward by the Department of Health are compared with those currently operating within the Department for Education and Employment for schools and nursery education. The policy frameworks within the two departments are based on different assumptions about practice and lead to major inconsistencies of delivery. A more coherent policy is needed to resolve these inconsistencies.     

Semiotics and the “Connections” Standard: Significance of Semiotics for Teachers of Mathematics

For more than 14 years, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (1989, 2000) has advocated that teachers of mathematics facilitate that students make connections of various kinds, in their learning of mathematics. Semiotic theories, including those of Peirce and those of Saussure and Lacan (each for different purposes), provide useful lenses for examining ways that teachers may facilitate the making of connections, for instance between home and school mathematics, or between mathematics and other school subjects, or between different branches of mathematics. This paper describes a nested chaining model that takes into account the need for interpretation and meaning making at each step in the sequences involved in connections. A nested model has the capacity to allow for webs of signification and meaning that take into account the complexity of the processes in ways that linear semiotic chains cannot. Examples are taken from research projects with graduate students, with pre-service teachers, and with practicing teachers.     

The development and piloting of a training web site for health and safety enforcement officers

This paper evaluates the development and piloting of a training web site for Local Authority (LA) based health and safety enforcement officers and reviews the technique of knowledge elicitation as a means of informing training content. The research was part of a project funded by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to investigate the application of emerging technologies for enforcement officer training. A web site was developed to provide work-based training in the field of accident investigation, using a group knowledge elicitation technique. Evaluation of eight key aspects of the training was carried out to determine the acceptability and utility of the web site for health and safety inspector training. The majority of the respondents believed that the training was realistic and that the embedded discussion facility had the potential to improve consistency of enforcement. Whilst many of the participants reported that this exercise was their first exposure to the Internet and some experienced minor difficulties using the technology, most found training via the Internet easy to use, an enjoyable experience and one they would like to repeat.