Collaborative and Competitive Video Games for Teaching Computing in Higher Education

This study measures the success of using a collaborative and competitive video game, named Space Race, to teach computing to first year engineering students. Space Race is played by teams of four, each with their own tablet, collaborating to compete against the other teams in the class. The impact of the game on student learning was studied through measurements using 485 students, over one term. Surveys were used to gauge student reception of the game. Pre and post-tests, and in-course examinations were used to quantify student performance. The game was well received with at least 82% of the students that played it recommending it to others. In some cases, game participants outperformed non-participants on course exams. On the final course exam, all of the statistically significant (p<0.05) comparisons (42% of the relevant questions) showed a performance improvement of game participants on the questions, with a maximum grade improvement of 41%. The findings also suggest that some students retain the knowledge obtained from Space Race for at least 7 weeks. The results of this study provide strong evidence that a collaborative and competitive video game can be an effective tool for teaching computing in post-secondary education.     

Highlighting and taking notes are equally ineffective when Reading paper or eText

Education and Information Technologies - The present study examined whether there is a difference in comprehension when reading from computer-based text versus reading from paper-based text and...     

Dynamics of list-server discussion on genetically modified foods

Computer-mediated discussion lists, or list-servers, are popular tools in settings ranging from professional to personal to educational. A discussion list on genetically modified food (GMF) was created in September 2000 as part of the Forum on Genetically Modified Food developed by Science Controversies: Online Partnerships in Education (SCOPE), an educational project that uses computer resources to aid research and learning around unresolved scientific questions. The discussion list "GMF-Science" was actively supported from January 2001 to May 2002. The GMF-Science list welcomed anyone interested in discussing the controversies surrounding GMF. Here, we analyze the dynamics of the discussions and how the GMF-Science list may contribute to learning. Activity on the GMF-Science discussion list reflected some but not all the controversies that were appearing in more traditional publication formats, broached other topics not well represented in the published literature, and tended to leave undiscussed the more technical research developments.     

The Developing Bodily Self: How Posture Constrains Body Representation in Childhood

Adults’ body representation is constrained by multisensory information and knowledge of the body such as its possible postures. This study (N = 180) tested for similar constraints in children. Using the rubber hand illusion with adults and 6- to 7-year olds, we measured proprioceptive drift (an index of hand localization) and ratings of felt hand ownership. The fake hand was either congruent or incongruent with the participant’s own. Across ages, congruency of posture and visual–tactile congruency yielded greater drift toward the fake hand. Ownership ratings were higher with congruent visual–tactile information, but unaffected by posture. Posture constrains body representation similarly in children and adults, suggesting that children have sensitive, robust mechanisms for maintaining a sense of bodily self.     

Cultural Components of Sex Differences in Color Preference

Preferences for pink and blue were tested in children aged 4–11 years in three small-scale societies: Shipibo villages in the Peruvian Amazon, kastom villages in the highlands of Tanna Island, Vanuatu, and BaYaka foragers in the northern Republic of Congo; and compared to children from an Australian global city (total N = 232). No sex differences were found in preference for pink in any of the three societies not influenced by global culture (ds − 0.31–0.23), in contrast to a female preference for pink in the global city (d = 1.24). Results suggest that the pairing of female and pink is a cultural phenomenon and is not driven by an essential preference for pink in girls.     

Education and psychological distress in adolescence and mid-life: Do private schools make a difference?

This article extends the evidence base on childhood circumstances, education and psychological distress. We examine the link between childhood advantage and disadvantage, the type of school attended during adolescence and psychological distress at ages 16 and 42. The analysis uses a large, population-based birth cohort study, the 1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70) (n = 17,198) using a structural equation modelling (SEM) approach. More advantaged young people were more likely to attend private schools, but we find no evidence for an effect of private schooling on psychological distress for men, and for women there was an association between private schooling and raised psychological distress at age 16. Having a university degree was associated with a modest reduction in psychological distress in mid-life. We establish that maternal psychological distress at age 10 was a risk factor for the offspring’s psychological distress both in adolescence and in mid-life, and adolescent psychological distress predicts psychological distress in mid-life. We conclude that schools which are academically successful do not necessarily provide wider benefits in terms of mental health.     

Patterns of maternal behavior among neglectful families: implications for research and intervention

OBJECTIVE: The heterogeneity within neglecting caregivers has not been explored in an empirical fashion. The current study sought to address this limitation by utilizing archival data in order to explore variability of maternal behavior among neglectful families. METHOD: The current study utilized archival data containing caseworker and self-report information on 100 mothers for whom neglect had been substantiated and was the primary referral concern. Cluster analysis was used to describe patterns of maternal behavior. Subsequent analysis was used to determine differences between the clusters on degree of neglect, maternal depression, perceived social support, and other demographic characteristics (income, education). RESULTS: Five distinct patterns of maternal behavior emerged, each with different ratings of maternal confidence, relatedness, impulse control, and willingness to engage in verbal interactions. The clusters differed on ratings of neglect, life stressors, resource problems and adult problems. The clusters were similar in terms of maternal education, number of children in the home, and monthly income. Additionally, women in all clusters reported similar levels of depression, similar number of children, and a comparable amount of social support. CONCLUSIONS: The five clusters are described and implications for intervention approaches are discussed.     

‘Students that just hate school wouldn’t go’: educationally disengaged and disadvantaged young people’s talk about university education

This paper contributes to a growing body of literature on widening university participation and brings a focus on the classed and embodied nature of young people’s imagination to existing discussions. We interviewed 250 young people living in disadvantaged communities across five Australian states who had experienced disengagement from compulsory primary and secondary schooling. We asked them about their education and their educational futures, specifically how they imagined universities and university participation. For these young people, universities were imagined as ‘big’, ‘massive’ alienating schools. The paper explores how the elements of schooling from which these young people disengaged became tangible barriers to imagining and pursuing participation in university education. The primary barrier they described was their relationships with school teachers. Our analysis shows how relationships with teachers can impact the imagined improbability/probability of university participation. We offer suggestions for how barriers to university created by poor relationships with teachers may be overcome.     

Scaling Culture Change through Institutional Logics: A Look at the American Association of Universities (AAU) STEM Initiative

ABSTRACT

Little research examines scaled culture change attempted across a network of institutions moving toward more enterprise-level changes. This study attempts to fill that gap by studying the American Association of Universities (AAU) Undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) Initiative and its attempt to scale culture change related to improving STEM teaching across the entire AAU network. The findings show that culture change was being facilitated through AAU’s development of institutional logics that created a new and compelling value system for campuses. However, the logics and conversations had not translated into widespread changes in institutional practices, policies, and structures. The study also identifies hidden values that can play a role in stalling scaled culture change.