Reconsidering conceptual change from a socio-cultural perspective: analyzing students’ meaning making in genetics in collaborative learning activities

In the learning sciences, students’ understanding of scientific concepts has often been approached in terms of conceptual change. These studies are grounded in a cognitive or a socio-cognitive approach to students’ understanding and imply a focus on the individuals’ mental representations of scientific concepts and ideas. We approach students’ conceptual change from a socio-cultural perspective as they make new meaning in genetics. Adhering to a socio-cultural perspective, we emphasize the discursive and interactional aspects of human learning and understanding. This perspective implies that the focus is on students’ meaning making processes in collaborative learning activities. In the study, we conduct an analysis of a group of students’ who interact while working to solve problems in genetics. In our analyses we emphasize four analytical aspects of the students’ meaning making: (a) the students’ use of resources in problematizing, (b) teacher interventions, (c) changes in interactional accomplishments, and (d) the institutional aspect of meaning making. Our findings suggest that students’ meaning making surrounding genetics concepts relates not only to an epistemic concern but also to an interactional and an institutional concern.

基于概念整合理论的唐代咏蝉诗认知分析——以唐代咏蝉诗三绝为例

概念整合理论主张用动态的心理空间模式来分析语言意义的在线建构过程,是一种重要的认知工具.以该理论为依据对唐代咏蝉诗三绝进行认知分析,一方面论证了概念整合对诗歌解读具有强大的解释力;另一方面为中国古典诗歌解读提供了认知语言学的新视角.     

Textual and graphical refutations: Effects on conceptual change learning

Refutation text is potentially more effective than standard text for conceptual change. Learning from text and graphic is also potentially superior to learning from text alone. In two studies, we investigated the effectiveness of both a refutation text and a refutation graphic for promoting high school students’ conceptual change learning about season change, as well as their metacognitive awareness of conceptual conflict and knowledge revision. In both studies, participants were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: (1) standard text with standard graphic, (2) standard text with refutation graphic, (3) refutation text with standard graphic, or (4) refutation text with refutation graphic. Both studies had a pretest, immediate post-test, and delayed post-test design and involved students with an initial common misconception about the causes of season change. In Study 2, explicit relevance instructions to observe the important illustration were given to the participants. In both studies, refutation text with refutation graphic was not more beneficial than other instructional materials, either at immediate or delayed post-test. In Study 1, more stable conceptual change learning emerged in readers of the refutation text with standard graphic compared to readers in the control condition. In Study 2, readers of the standard text with refutation graphic performed as well as readers of the refutation text with standard graphic. In addition, more readers of the refutation text with either graphic showed metacognitive awareness of their knowledge change compared to readers in the control condition. Educational implications underline the importance of relevance instructions for guiding readers toward the graphic and of the design of text-graphic pairing to sustain knowledge revision.     

英语短语动词的认知语义研究——以get off为例

短语动词由动词加上一个或两个小品词而构成。从传统的观点看,不能从动词的表面知道其意义,但事实上并非如此。本文从认知的视角,运用概念合成理论、认知隐喻和转喻理论对短语动词get off的认知语义进行分析研究,研究发现：（1）短语动词get off的语义是由动词和小品词的意义通过概念合成得出来的;（2）短语动词getoff的语义扩展是通过隐喻、转喻或二者交叉实现的;（3）get off的概念意义可概括为：离开就是出去;离开就是逃脱;离开就是停止;离开就是反对。（4）在短语动词get off的意义中,动词get反映的是动作本身,而小品词off则蕴含了动作的方向和路径。     

Elementary school students’ naïve conceptions and misconceptions about energy in physical education context

The purpose of this study was to explore and reveal naïve conceptions and misconceptions about energy embedded in elementary school students’ prior knowledge. Students’ performance on standardized knowledge test was used to classify students into low, median and high levels of knowledge about the cardiovascular system. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with students in each group to extract their understanding of energy in relation to food choices, physical activities, and exercises. Analysis of the interview data generated six categories of naïve conceptions and two categories of misconceptions. Different conceptual change theories, including Chi’s ontological change theory, Ohlsson’s resubsumption theory, and enculturation theory were used to analyze and understand these naïve conceptions and misconceptions and why they could be robust to change. The analyses confirm the need to adopt a multi-theoretical approach to the understanding of students’ naïve conceptions and misconceptions (Chinn & Samarapungavan, 2009. Conceptual change-multiple routes, multiple mechanisms: A commentary on Ohlsson. Educational Psychologist, 44(1), 1–10). The findings encourage physical and health educators adopt different strategies to address the potential learning obstacles brought by students’ naïve conceptions and misconceptions.     

数据库结构的设计与实现

以《城市早报》订户管理系统数据库设计为例，阐述了数据库设计的方法；需求分析、概念结构设计、逻辑结构设计和数据库结构的实现。     

Conceptual Physical Education: A Secondary Innovation

ABSTRACT

Over the last 40 years, the Conceptual Physical Education (CPE) movement has played an important role in the evolution of secondary school physical education (PE). In this article, we trace the history of CPE as well as fitness education (FE) programs that share common objectives with CPE. CPE at the college/university level is almost universal and has been shown to be a longstanding innovation. The information provided here suggests that CPE/FE programs at the secondary level are also an innovation, rather than a passing fad. Among the topics explored include factors precipitating the innovation, the stages of implementation, the current status of the innovation, factors leading to success, barriers to be overcome in program implementation, and suggestions for the future. Finally, evidence is provided to show that CPE, when conducted with fidelity, can be effective in promoting the overarching objective of quality PE programs—promoting lifelong physical activity.     

The Ako Conceptual Framework: toward a culturally and linguistically responsive pedagogy

ABSTRACT

This article offers a new model, the Ako Conceptual Framework (ACF), as a theoretical proposition to add to the critical discourse and development of culturally and linguistically responsive pedagogies within the Asia-Pacific region and beyond. By drawing on the socio-cultural theory and the concept of Zone of Proximal Development, the ACF conceptualises the intersection of culture and pedagogy using a Tongan epistemology. The ACF positions the vā (a space that is relational which enables authentic relationships to be established, nurtured and maintained) and tauhi vaha`a/vā (a responsibility that teachers, schools, educational leaders and practitioners have to establish, nurture and maintain authentic relationships) as the fundamental concepts in the development of culturally and linguistically responsive pedagogies. It is theorised that by recognising Tongan strengths-based principles, values and educational concepts, the taumu`a `oe ako (the purpose for teaching and learning), founga ako (the concepts of teaching), and feinga ako (the concepts of learning) can be aligned. Thereby, recognising and acknowledging the various knowledge systems that the students from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds arrive at school with. The concepts and implications of the ACF are discussed in this article.     

The nature of scientific conceptions: A discursive psychological perspective

Over the past three decades, the literature in science education has accumulated a tremendous amount of research on students’ conceptions—one bibliography currently lists 7000 entries concerning students’ and teachers’ conceptions and science education. Yet despite all of this research and all the advances in the associated conceptual change theory, there is evidence that students’ conceptual talk remains virtually unchanged by instruction even under the best conditions. In this article, I describe and exemplify discursive psychology as a theoretical alternative, which ultimately allows me to understand the solid nature of student talk about scientific phenomena and why science instruction faces such challenges in bringing about conceptual change. To exemplify the presentation of the theory, I draw on videotaped interviews that covered ground similar to the one featured in A Private Universe. This theoretical alternative questions some of the fundamental presuppositions and assumptions made in the constructivist and conceptual change literature—including the locus of the misconceptions, the relation of individual and collective, and the situated and constitutive nature of the talk eliciting (mis-, alternative, pre-, naïve) conceptions. I conclude with some sobering suggestions and recommendations for the praxis of science teaching and the possibility to bring about scientists’ science for and in all students any time in the near future.     

汉语歇后语的认知解读机制

歇后语是汉语习语中一种独特的表现形式,蕴含丰富的隐喻意义。概念合成是一种先进的隐喻阐释理论。基于概念合成的歇后语认知解读研究不仅获得了比较完整的歇后语认知解读路线,同时考察并完善了概念合成理论需要充实的内容。空间关联和冲突、理想化认知模型和规约化等重要认知机制以及文化影响因素需整合入概念合成理论框架以加强阐释力。