Bringing together acculturation theory and intergroup contact theory: Predictors of Flemings’ expectations of Turks’ acculturation behavior

The present paper explores Flemish majority members’ expectations concerning the acculturation of Turkish minorities. We studied two kinds of antecedents: majority members’ perceptions of Turkish minorities’ acculturation behavior and their experiences of intergroup contact. The possible mediating role of outgroup affect was also investigated. 247 Flemish high school students completed a survey. Data were analyzed using path analyses. Results show that positive contact experiences and perceiving that Turkish immigrants make efforts to engage in contact with the host group and/or to adopt the host culture are associated with less negative affective reactions towards Turkish migrants. Perceiving that Turkish immigrants maintain their heritage culture is associated with more negative affective reactions. Our results further revealed that increased negative affective reactions are associated with less support for culture maintenance and for contact with the host group but with a higher demand for host culture adoption. The present results also show that expectations of contact engagement and expectations of host culture adoption cannot be considered as equivalent. This implies that results from studies using Berry's conceptualization of acculturation expectations (Berry, 2001) and results from studies using Bourhis’ conceptualization of acculturation expectations (Bourhis, Moïse, Perreault, & Senécal, 1997) are not directly comparable. Our data also clearly disconfirm the orthogonal structure of the fourfold acculturation model for majority members’ acculturation expectations, suggesting that relying on the specific dimensions defining acculturation expectations may constitute a more valid approach to understand ongoing acculturation processes.     

“发展”的伦理内蕴与可能生活的展开

在语义规则上,"发展"一词蕴涵着在伦理上更好的价值取向,它并非表示与价值无涉的、杂乱无章的变化。因此,正是"发展"自身而非其它附加因素使得人类社会的发展实践具有伦理规范与价值色彩。"发展"自身所固有的价值色彩为人类的当下存在打开了未来性的向度,它引领人们先行进入到未来,去为当下的发展实践做积极的道德原则勾勒,并以此原则来统摄当下的发展实践。在具体发展实践中,主体性之人能够基于其理性慎思在多种可能性中做出自己的合情、合意、合理的选择,该选择赋予了人类的自由、价值与尊严。     

孝道是中华民族伦理的核心价值——从《孝经》对中国人的影响说开去

《孝经》作为辑录中华民族伦理文化的典范文本,在古代社会承载着维护统治、教化民心的作用,这两种作用是互为存在的,具体又通过国家机构和宗法家庭来加以体现。孝道的内涵与外延,由其作者与成书的时代所决定,其特有的结构和意蕴从一开始就赢得统治者的青睐。考察历代统治者对《孝经》的态度,可以看出孝道在各个历史时期的定位与变迁,而中华民族伦理的生成与发展,从此亦脉络可寻。新中国成立后,对《孝经》的认识与态度屡有更迭,改革开放以后,我们坚持以历史唯物主义的眼光看待这部典籍,批判地加以继承,接续了中国共产党借鉴吸收人类文明一切优秀成果的传统,让我党自成立以来所遵循的路线、方针和宗旨,能够继续不断地提升孝道的伦理核心与社会主义核心价值作用,使其能够契合国家的发展方向,引领人民弘扬尊老爱幼,家庭和睦,社会和谐,迈步走向幸福高地。     

Chinese TEFL teachers’ perceptions about research and influences on their research endeavours

English has always occupied a key position in China’s education. The quality of English education depends largely on the quality of the English teaching force. Improving the overall quality of Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) teachers entails advancing both their teaching and research competence. This study, with its focus on Chinese TEFL teachers working in a higher education institution, was set up in a context where Chinese higher education colleges are being transformed into universities and research is becoming a crucial aspect of all teachers’ work. This small-scale case study investigated a group of Chinese TEFL teachers’ perceptions about research and their individual and workplace characteristics that influenced their research endeavours. The findings revealed that Chinese TEFL teachers recognised the significance of research for teaching, professional growth and career advancement. However, lack of individual characteristics such as research and disciplinary knowledge, confidence in research and intrinsic motivation impeded their research efforts. Their institution and departments seemed to encourage research; yet, more specific financial and academic support to start and sustain their research endeavours is required. This study’s findings provide implications for both individual teachers and their institutions to engage TEFL teachers more actively in research.     

Teachers’ Perceptions of Professional Incompetence and Barriers to the Dismissal Process

The problem of teacher incompetence is a serious one, affecting large numbers of American public school students. There is a significant discrepancy between estimated rates of incompetent teachers and the number of teachers actually dismissed on grounds of incompetence. This study sought to uncover the perceptions of teachers regarding a definition of professional incompetence, strategies used with incompetent teachers, and barriers to the dismissal process, through the use of a survey with more than 200 elementary school teachers in Virginia and follow-up interviews with seven of these participants. The researcher found that teachers rated classroom behaviors to be the most important factors towards a definition of professional incompetence. The teachers involved also rated the commonness of strategies used with incompetent teachers, placing dismissal among the least common actions taken by administrators, and revealed that they believed union protection, legal and other expenses, and difficulty providing documentation prevented administrators from dismissing incompetent teachers.     

Student perceptions of quality feedback in teacher education

Many reports have identified a perceived lack of quality in regard to assessment feedback in higher education contexts. One research study in 2007 on undergraduate university students found that less than half of the students (46%) collected their formative feedback, suggesting that from their perspective feedback clearly was not fulfilling the role it should. This is a study of 465 graduate students and 101 undergraduate students studying teacher education at a major Australian university. The study investigated what students perceived to be effective, quality feedback based upon their extensive higher education experiences. Students identified preferences in regard to form, detail and timing of assessment feedback. The data were collected by means of pen and paper survey and identified which strategies the students perceived to be the most effective, particularly within the context of large cohort teaching and written assessment formats. Findings agreed with research elsewhere regarding problems with assessment feedback quality and quantity, but students also provided clear indications of how realistic improvements could be made in terms of assessment feedback processes and strategies.     

Fostering online social construction of science knowledge with primary pre-service teachers working in virtual teams

As many primary pre-service teachers enter teacher education courses with little science background, it is essential in teacher education courses to provide opportunities for them to learn more science independently. The purpose of this study is to investigate an online pedagogical activity that fosters the social construction of science knowledge by primary pre-service teachers working in small virtual teams. The study investigated how the pre-service teachers collaborated online in virtual teams to complete set tasks, their attitudes toward and beliefs about the effectiveness of the online learning experience, and the types and quality of the resources developed. The findings indicated that the virtual team-produced science resource materials were generally of high quality, with nearly half the number of teams engaging with Web 2.0 technologies (e.g. wikis and blogs) to construct their product. The findings indicated positive attitudes toward the collaborative learning even though beliefs about online learning were mixed.     

好心不得好报？伦理型领导对新产品开发绩效的影响

既有关于伦理型领导与绩效关系的研究强调伦理型领导通过塑造员工认知和行为、营造组织氛围、提高企业社会责任等机制影响绩效,低估了伦理型领导在信息处理过程中对绩效的影响机制.本研究引入信息处理理论,以战略决策周密为中介变量、环境不确定性为调节变量,探索伦理型领导和新产品开发绩效之间的关系.结合探索性案例研究与问卷调查,研究发现： 战略决策周密部分中介伦理型领导对新产品开发绩效的正向作用;环境不确定性加强了伦理型领导对战略决策周密的作用;环境不确定性加强了战略决策周密的中介作用.研究表明,在高不确定性的环境下,伦理型领导更倾向采取周密的信息处理模式,进而提高了新产品应对不确定性环境的“反脆弱性”,也因此提升了新产品开发绩效.     

现行招考制度的伦理特性审视

招考制度是教育制度中的基础性制度,同时也是具有丰富伦理内涵的制度。从伦理学的视角审视现行的招考制度,至少可概括出它在三方面的伦理特性。招考制度以竞争性为伦理之源,正义性为本质所在,人本性为价值旨归。这三方面的伦理特性也是维系现行招考制度发展方向的基本向度。     

文学萨特：从荒谬人生寻找精神自由的在场——萨特文学作品中的“自由观”再解读

＂自由＂是萨特的哲学阐释与文学表述的一个关键词。萨特文学作品中的＂自由选择＂观念,张扬人在边缘境遇中的主体性选择,主张在＂选择行动＂中以体现人的本质及其价值构成,但同时强调人在自由选择的时刻必然要受到道德规律和责任伦理的制约。在这样的意义上,萨特的文学作品实际上是从荒谬人生寻找精神自由的在场。