Hong Kong students＇ approaches to learning： Cross-cultural comparisons

Anecdotal evidence abounds in Hong Kong to the effect that students entering tertiary education are predisposed to a ＂rote＂ learning approach. With the internalisation of higher education in many countries, there is still insufficient understanding of how Chinese students approach their learning. Except few studies were conducted locally, there have been no systematic studies undertaken and there is a tendency to rely on anecdotal statements about Hong Kong students＇ approaches to learning. This study was designed to see if Hong Kong Chinese students who enrolled into a 3-year undergraduate programme in occupational therapy predisposed to a surface or deep approach to learning react differently when moving progressively from one stage to the next stage in their curriculum. The study adopted a longitudinal design method and measured students＇ changes in their approaches to learning using the Biggs＇ Study Process Questionnaire （SPQ）. The internal consistency reliability estimates for SPQ scales for samples of Hong Kong, Australia and UK were compared. The results of this study indicated that Hong Kong Chinese students demonstrated a higher mean for the deep approach learning and a lower mean for the surface approach, similar to other Hong Kong studies conducted in other tertiary institutions in Hong Kong and Australia.     

从非谓语动词自身比较中掌握非谓语动词

章主要从非谓语动词本身,它们的比较和在从句中的变换讨论了非谓语动词的作用,以达到确切理解句意、准确表达思想的目的。     

Cognitive assessment of competent and impaired reading in Scottish and Brazilian children

This is an individual case study combined with subject sampling which compared the reading performance of good and poor Brazilian 4th grade children with Scottish children of equivalent reading competence and age range. A measure of efficient performance -- low error rates and fast vocal reaction-times for correct responses to words (of varying familiarity, regularity and length) and non-words (of varying length) -- was obtained and used as a basis for the identification of inefficiencies among the subjects whose results were outside the main range. Competent reading in Brazilian Portuguese and Scottish showed similarities in regard to time processing and error rates for the reading of words and non-words and mainly differed in terms of the generality of the regularity effect and of the rate of letter processing of words and for non-words. In what concerns impaired reading, in both nationalities there were examples of pure phonological dyslexia and of impairments affecting both lexical and non-lexical processes with a bias to the phonological pattern. In contrast to the Scottish sample, no cases of predominant morphemic dyslexia nor ambiguous cases were found among the Brazilians.     

On the benefits of bi-literacy: just a head start in reading or specific orthographic insights?

In a previous study [Schwartz et al. (2005). Written Language and Literacy, 8, 179–207] we showed that early literacy in Russian (L1) facilitated decoding acquisition in Hebrew (L2) among Russian-Hebrew first graders. The present study examined two alternative explanations for this finding. The first account concerns the general benefits of an early start in literacy. The second relates to the specific meta-linguistic insights engendered by early exposure to a fully fledged orthography—Russian. We therefore compared two groups who had acquired literacy prior to the onset of schooling: bi-literate bilinguals (Russian L1 literates and Hebrew L2 learners) (n = 26) and early-literacy monolinguals (Hebrew-speaking monolinguals) (n = 18). The research was conducted in two stages. First, linguistic, meta-linguistic and cognitive tasks in Hebrew were administered to all children and in Russian to the bilinguals at the beginning of the first grade. Next, reading and writing skills in Hebrew were assessed at the end of the first grade. Bi-literate bilinguals showed superior levels of phonological awareness on an initial phoneme isolation task in Hebrew compared to other three groups. In addition, the bi-literate bilinguals were found to be superior to the early-literacy monolinguals on measures of word and pseudoword accuracy, which are known to depend heavily on phonological processing efficiency, but not on fluency and spelling measures, which are more reliant on stored orthographic information. This pattern of outcomes was attributed to the facilitating effects of an orthography characterized by a fully fledged alphabet, in contrast to Hebrew’s primarily consonantal orthography, as well as the complex syllabic structure of Russian.     

Spanish-speaking children’s spelling errors with English vowel sounds that are represented by different graphemes in English and Spanish words

Vowels in Spanish have direct one-to-one letter-sound correspondences, whereas vowels in English usually have multiple spellings. For native Spanish-speaking children learning to spell in English, this transition from a shallow to a deep orthography could potentially cause difficulties. We examined whether the spelling of English vowel sounds was particularly difficult for native Spanish-speaking children, and whether the errors are consistent with Spanish orthographic rules. Twenty-six native Spanish-speaking and 53 native English-speaking children in grades 2 and 3 were given real-word and pseudoword spelling tasks in English that included words containing four vowels that have different spellings between Spanish and English. Results supported our hypothesis—native Spanish-speaking children committed significantly more vowel spelling errors that were consistent with Spanish orthography. The number of vowel spelling errors not consistent with Spanish orthography did not differ between the two language groups. These findings suggest that orthographic properties of the children’s native language influence their learning to spell in a second language. Educational implications address how knowledge of this cross language influence can aide teachers in improving spelling instruction.     

女性主义咨询及其与精神分析理论的比较

女性主义心理咨询与治疗理论是伴随着女性主义运动而兴起的,在把女性主义作为一种新的理论和方法论的基础上,形成了女性主义咨询学学派。女性主义咨询学学派在批判传统心理学特别是精神分析的基础上,动摇了精神分析的男性中心主义霸权,使女性自身经验与主观性成为心理咨询合法的范畴。     

Workplace support for newly qualified doctors and secondary school teachers: A comparative analysis

Doctors and teachers in their first year of practice face steep learning curves and increased stress, which can induce poor mental health, burnout and attrition. Informal workplace support from colleagues can help smooth transitions and aid professional development. A three-phase comparative research design was used to explore who provides informal workplace support to early-career professionals, types of support and influencing factors. Phase 1 was a systematic secondary analysis of interviews and audio diaries from 52 UK doctors in their first year of foundation training (F1s). Phase 2 involved new narrative interviews with 11 newly qualified teachers (NQTs) from English secondary schools. Phase 3 was a comparative analysis to produce a model of workplace support. Given barriers to accessing senior doctors, F1 doctors drew upon nurses, pharmacists, microbiologists, peers/near-peers and allied healthcare professionals for support. NQTs gained support from allocated mentors and seniors within subject departments, as well as teaching assistants, allied support staff and wider professional networks. Support types for both professions included information and advice on practice, orientation to local settings, collaborative development activities, observation and feedback, and socioemotional support. Influencing factors included variable departmental cultures, limited opportunities for informal contact, sometimes negative inter-group perceptions and the agentic responses of novices. The resulting workplace model of support could underpin future research and evaluations of support in similar ‘hot-action’ environments. In medicine and teaching, greater utilisation of near-peers and allied staff, improved role understanding and communication, increased informal contact and sharing successful strategies across professions could enhance supportive relationships.