Conceptualizing the Classroom of Target Students: A Qualitative Investigation of Panelists' Experiences during Standard Setting

Increasingly, research has focused on the cognitive processes associated with various standard-setting activities. This qualitative study involved an examination of 16 third-grade reading teachers' experiences with the cognitive task of conceptualizing an entire classroom of hypothetical target students when the single-passage bookmark method or the yes/no method was used during a one-day mock panel meeting. Data were collected using in-depth focus group interviews with eight participants from each of the panel meetings, and a whole-text analysis revealed three categories. Most participants experienced difficulty in attempting to conceive of an entire classroom of target students. Most of them were ultimately unable to do so and made use of alternative cognitive strategies. More fundamental issues also contributed to the difficulties experienced in attempting to complete the required cognitive task. Implications of the findings for standard setting and for further research are also discussed.     

Stories that stayed "under the skin"

This paper is a critical reflection on students' withholding of relevant personal stories in a college classroom which was uniquely designed to validate and welcome them. The instructor in Stories Under the Skin, an interdisciplinary course in history of science at Harvard, generously shared her own stories in lectures, regularly called upon students' subjective judgement, and engaged them in explicit discussion of the value of personal experience as evidence. Still, students' reactions were those of hesitancy and questioning the appropriateness of personal stories in an academic or scientific discussion. The qualitative lens used in this research not only helps capture the polyphony of student opinions on the subject, but also serves as a key point of debate about the use of interpretive, qualitative data in an academic setting today. The paper calls on students and instructors to acknowledge the difficulty of presenting subjective experiences in the context of academic or scientific discourse, and to consider ways of legitimizing and stimulating the constructive use of personal story in a college classroom.     

Anonymity in classroom voting and debating

The advent of networked environments into the classroom is changing classroom debates in many ways. This article addresses one key attribute of these environments, namely anonymity, to explore its consequences for co-present adolescents anonymous, by virtue of the computer system, to peers not to teachers. Three studies with 16-17 year-olds used a vote-debate-vote scenario to explore in Study 1 (N = 59) anonymous, public or private voting with public oral debate; Study 2 (N = 79) anonymous, public or private voting with public written debate; and Study 3 (N = 84) anonymous or public voting and debating. Students were more likely to change their views after debate and show less convergence to group norms if voting anonymously. However, anonymous debate created an increased amount of off-task behaviour, but only at the beginning of the lesson. In general, anonymity was found to bring positive benefits to classroom argumentation.     

基于文献计量分析的近30年国内外土壤科学发展过程解析(1986—2014年)

借助Web of Science 和CNKI数据库, 利用文献计量学方法定量分析了1986—2014 年近30 年来国内外发表的土壤科学文献, 研究了土壤科学不同时期(1986—1995 年、1996—2005 年、2006—2014 年)发展与演变过程, 对比了国内外土壤科学发展的异同点。早期的国际土壤科学是以土壤肥力主导的农田土壤学研究, 逐渐转向关注以生态环境为核心的问题导向研究, 以及强调土壤生物驱动的土壤过程研究;而我国土壤科学研究更注重区域特色, 以地力提升、土壤侵蚀与水土保持、土壤污染与修复等问题导向更加明确, 发展过程中学科间的交叉与融合不断增强。文章期望以文献计量学的分析方法客观评价土壤科学发展的脉络, 把握学科发展前沿, 提升土壤科学研究的创新能力, 从而推动我国土壤科学的发展。     

教师备课必须把握的7个环节

备课既是教师实施课堂教学的前提条件,又是有效提高教学质量和水平的重要保证。阐述了教师备课过程中应把握好的7个环节以及应注意的几个问题。     

基于信息生态链理论的信息管理流程重组

从信息生态链角度出发,分析了信息管理流程与信息生态链之间的关系,探讨了基于信息生态链理论的信息管理流程重组指导思想和分析方法,并在此基础上提出了信息管理流程重组的模式与方法。     

Teaching poetry: writing poetry — teaching as a writer

This paper considers the ways in which the authentic strategies and struggles of the creative writer in formulating a text, can be translated into classroom activity. It explores four activities which derived from my own practice as a writer, and demonstrates the process of adapting, trialling and evaluating them in a range of different classroom settings. The paper attempts to answer the questions: w ere these ‘real‐life’ processes successful as a basis for learning activities? How did the learners respond and what can we learn from heir responses? The paper concludes with the premise that being congruent with one's own ‘real‐life’ strategies can indeed lead to valid learning activities, and that these activities help us to deconstruct many of the myths about what it means to be creative.     

Process gain and process loss: comparing interpersonal processes and performance of culturally diverse and non-diverse teams across time

Members of 82 student groups involved in a Team Learning instructional format were surveyed with the Group Style Instrument (GSI) to examine the possible dimensions of team oriented behaviors and individualistically oriented behaviors. Exploratory factor models and confirmatory factor models were compared to find the best factor structure fit. The GSI was found to have dimensions that were team and individualistically oriented. From a second sample data was collected across four months on the group process and group performance of culturally non-diverse and culturally diverse groups. Data were evaluated in two significant ways. First, the team orientation and individual orientation dimensions were used to define interpersonal processing. Second, the team process dimensions were used to define interpersonal processing. Second, the team process dimensions were examined further to evaluate their relation to group performance. Early on the diverse teams showed less team orientation and more individual orientation than non-diverse teams, but through frequent feedback on task and interpersonal processing, the diverse teams caught up by the third time period. By the end, diverse teams maintained high team orientation but also allowed a reasonable extent of individual orientation. The diverse teams were beginning to utilize diversity to their advantage. Team and Individualistic orientations showed significant relations to team performance across time. Suggestions are given for future research.     

Classroom Learning Environments and Students' Approaches to Learning

Four hundred and eighty-four students from two metropolitan secondary schools completed the Learning Process Questionnaire, the Individualised Classroom Environment Questionnaire and the Learner Self Concept scale. Relationships between perceptions of the classroom learning environment, approaches to learning and self concept as a learner were investigated. Gender and level of schooling (junior high versus senior high) differences were examined. Results showed Deep Approaches to learning were significantly related to classroom learning environments which were perceived to be highly personalised and to be encouraging active participation in the learning process and the use of investigative skills in learning activities. High learner self concept was positively associated with Deep Approaches to learning and with classrooms perceived as high in Personalisation. It was negatively associated with Surface Approaches to learning. Differences in perceptions of learning environments and approaches to learning in relation to gender and level of schooling were small. The implications of these findings are discussed and strategies for facilitating Deep Approaches to learning are referred to. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Research on the Dynamics of the Hormonal Status of Athletes in a Series of Vibration and Traditional Training Exercises

The article presents the most important results of metabolic (hormonal) study of dosed vibration training (DVT).The author presents vibrating training as an alternative to anabolic steroids on the basis of a comparison of the effectiveness of two types of stimulants - forbidden (doping) and non-medicinal non-invasive, relating to permitted physical means.The study shows that the level of androgens (testosterone),corticosteroids (cortisol), thyroid hormones (thyroxine,triiodothyronine),hormones of adenohypophysis (prolactin) increased under the effect of dosed vibration training.At the same time the level of hormones have no changes under traditional strength training with the use of a synthetic anabolic steroid (retabolil).For the duration of a limited period of time (1 microcycles) dosed vibrotraining causes a more powerful secretion of testosterone than the traditional strength training with the use of anabolic steroids. In this case,the overall time spent on the performance of the DVT training program comprises not more than 15% of the time spent on the traditional training exercises.