��I WAS TOLD IT WAS GOING TO BE HARD WORK BUT I WASN��T TOLD IT WAS GOING TO BE THIS MUCH WORK��: THE EXPERIENCES AND ASPIRATIONS OF UNDERGRADUATE SCIENCE STUDENTS

The recruitment and training of scientists is an area of international concern. Much of the research and policy focus around this issue in the UK has been on how science is taught in schools and in particular on the structure of the school science curriculum. Much less attention has been devoted to the undergraduate student experience and the trajectory that learners take which can lead to higher education and into careers as professional scientists and technicians. This paper reports the findings from a comparative study of the experiences and aspirations of almost 1,000 art and science undergraduates studying at 6 elite British universities. There is no evidence to suggest that undergraduate scientists are put off a career in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics field, although theirs is arguably a less positive experience than that of their peers who study arts subjects. Most science undergraduates have clear career aspirations which are largely linked to remaining in the field and often involve further study. For many, these aspirations lead them towards the applied sciences and away from a career in ‘pure’ research or academia.     

ORIENTATIONS TO PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION: UNDERSTANDING THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO PD OUTCOMES ACROSS MULTIPLE PROJECTS

Given the large investment in teacher professional development (PD), further understanding of the factors that impact PD success is needed. In a previous study, the authors established a framework for categorizing PD projects using the notion of orientations. A PD orientation is comprised of project characteristics that drive the PD design and implementation for that project. In this study, we applied this orientation framework to 14 science and mathematics PD projects and examined the relationship between projects of differing orientations and PD outcomes (e.g. perceived improvement in teaching practices). The results provide support for the value of the framework and demonstrate that PD projects with different orientations exhibit differing participant outcomes. This study also provides evidence of the value of this research framework for understanding how PD implementation characteristics are related to PD outcomes, as well as points to the value of a “balanced” orientation where both content and pedagogy are addressed in equal parts.     

Current Developments in Research on the Teaching of Grammar

With the rise of communicative methodology in the late 1970s, the role of grammar instruction in second language learning was downplayed, and it was even suggested that teaching grammar was not only unhelpful but might actually be detrimental. However, recent research has demonstrated the need for formal instruction for learners to attain high levels of accuracy. This has led to a resurgence of grammar teaching, and its role in second language acquisition has become the focus of much current investigation. In this     

Infant speech recognition in multisyllabic contexts

In 2 infant speech recognition experiments using trisyllabic sequences, the amount of redundancy within nontarget, context syllables was manipulated. Infants 6 1/2 months old were trained to discriminate the syllables [ba] versus [du] in contexts that were either redundant (e.g., [ko ba ko] or [ti ba ti]) or mixed (e.g., [ko ba ti] or [ti ba ko]) A visually reinforced head-turning procedure was employed. In Experiment 1, context was manipulated between subjects, but in Experiment 2 each subject received all 4 contexts (2 redundant, 2 mixed). Infants consistently recognized the familiar target in all contexts, but did so more successfully in redundant than in mixed trisyllablic contexts. These results suggest that amount of speech redundancy may be an important factor in infants' perceptual capabilities.     

Sharing a place-based indigenous methodology and learnings

Abstract

Building on a methodology of Cooperative Inquiry, the outcomes of five interconnected place-based learning projects from Australia are synthesised and elaborated in this paper. The methodology can facilitate the everyday living and sharing of an Earth-based consciousness: one that enriches Transformative Sustainability Education (TSE) through recognising meanings and stories in landscape, and celebrates Indigenous ways of knowing, being and doing. Indigenous-led environmental education is shown to link with one of the longest continuous environmental education systems in the world and it is contended that because of its ongoing history, environmental education carries a cultural obligation. In Australia, every landscape is Indigenous and storied, and all Australians have an inherent right to learn that joy in place, along with the responsibility to care for it. Teaching and learning a relationship with place as family, is one way that environmental education can lead that campaign. This place-based methodology is a lifetime commitment involving everyday actions for change, a whole-of-education dedication.     

Exploring reading in social semiotics: theory and methods

ABSTRACT

The aim of this paper is to critically review how social semiotics has contributed to the study of reading and to develop an agenda for further research. We consider the theoretical and methodological resources that social semiotics has developed to account for multimodal text in the contemporary semiotic landscape, and explore how they can be used to teach critical reading skills to young people to support their participation in different social domains. We reflect on the possibilities and limitations of different analytical frameworks, highlighting barriers and possibilities for advancing social semiotic scholarship on reading and beyond. We end with a sketch of a new research agenda for social semiotics, in the light of technological change and its implications for reading.     

A perinatal intervention program for urban american indians part 2: the story of a program and its implications for practice

This is the story of how a culturally aware staff successfully intervened with a clientele of another culture. A high infant mortality rate for American Indians in Milwaukee, WI, prompted a community health agency to initiate a program to address the problem. Efforts were made to educate the American Indian community about the importance of both prenatal and postnatal care. Part 1 of this report was published (Davis & Prater, 2001) and presented the design and implementation of the program, as well as program outcomes. Here, Part 2 describes aspects of the same program, including the personal story of a client and the results of an evaluation conducted by a three-person research team. Implications for practice are also presented. Among these are suggestions for hiring and retaining staff, locating and retaining clients, addressing cultural sensitivity, and identifying administrative actions that enhance program operation. The personal stories of two additional clients are included to illustrate the difficult reality of some clients' lives and the resulting necessity for flexibility and resourcefulness on the part of program staff. This program represents the positive impact that program workers had on the problem of American Indian infant mortality.     

Children's Understanding of One‐to‐one Correspondence in the Context of Sharing

The principle of one‐to‐one correspondence is involved in sharing objects by distributive counting. Understanding one‐to‐one correspondence has been inferred from preschool children's success in sharing. This inference is questioned on methodological grounds. Twenty‐four children, aged between 3#fr1/2> and 4#fr1/2> years, took part in a study which compared their judgements of shares in conditions where the shares were either visible or invisible, equal or unequal, and of either small or large numbers of heterogeneous or homogeneous objects. Children judged better when the shares were small and visible. Whether children typically develop an understanding of one‐to‐one correspondence first in the context of sharing and then in other contexts such as counting or using guidelines remains unknown, as studies of these other contexts typically expose children to a conflict between one‐to‐one correspondence and perceptual cues.     

Mathematical problem solving and young children

Educators of young children can enhance the development of a problem-solving thought process through daily activities in their classrooms. An emphasis should be placed on the actual thought process needed to solve problems that occur in everyday living. Educators can follow simple suggestions to create problem-solving situations for all ages of children. The process of thinking through a problem and finding a solution is more important than traditional mathematics counting and memorizing useless facts. Even very young children are capable of a problem-solving process that is on the appropriate developmental level. The problem-solving process is constructivist in nature, as each individual perceives problems according to her or his background and developmental levels. Educators need to make a conscious effort to capitalize on all stages of problem-solving thinking to enhance future mathematical development.     

National unity in cultural diversity: how national and linguistic identities affected Swiss language curricula (1914–1961)

Abstract

By the end of the nineteenth century, the relationship between the state, language and schooling had become extremely close: a state was supposed to be “national”, and a real nation was supposed to be monolingual. Following the literature on nation-building, it is because schooling was charged with the task of forming such nations that curricula intended for the great majority of pupils included only one language. The theory of a direct effect of national identity on curricula was elaborated by focusing on the typical monolingual nation-state. This paper discusses the theory from the perspective of a multilingual state: Switzerland. The study’s analysis shows that in the 1914–1945 period the Swiss state’s multilingualism became part of the Swiss national identity and learning another national language became a matter of patriotic education. However, this new conception did not affect all curricula in the same manner. The economic and pedagogical rationales given voice by actors other than the state seem to be equally important factors in explaining the decisions made regarding language curricula as a state’s national identity. Therefore, warning is given against the assumption that a school’s language policy automatically aligns with a state’s national identity.