Instructional methods and languages in class: A comparison of two teaching approaches and two teaching languages in the field of intercultural learning

The article presents the results of a quasi-experimental intervention study with a 2 × 2 factorial design. We implemented a problem-based intercultural learning unit in four secondary schools (grades 9 to 12) and varied the teaching approach (analytical/affective-experiential) and the language of instruction (German/English). The learning unit covered six 45-min lessons and was conducted in nine school courses (n = 143). Five additional school courses (n = 66) served as a control group. In all experimental groups, students engaged with critical incidents. These were either analysed (analytical focus) or acted out as role plays (affective-experiential focus). In addition, students analysed film clips (analytical focus) or participated in a simulation game (affective-experiential focus). The experimental groups outperformed the control group in the post-test, which required the analysis of critical incidents. Both teaching approaches were equally effective; however, students evaluated affective-experiential learning more positively. Using a foreign language for teaching did not impair performance.     

高校教学管理中的四大关系的探讨

本文结合实际简要阐述了高等学校教学管理工作要处理好的四大关系，力争为高校教育管理和教学提供一些可资借鉴的有益经验。     

形近字简化分化过程的探讨

关于形近字的形成原因，有人认为是汉字演变过程中分化与简化的结果，但没有较详细的论证。笔者以现代汉字中的一些形近字为对象，分析了几十组彼此间有音义关系或是有造字义联系的形近字，并探讨了其形成的过程，以期揭示一些由汉字分化与简化形成的形近字的成因，给汉字研究和汉字教学提供一些参考资料。     

Rethinking researcher–teacher roles and relationships in educational action research through the use of Nel Noddings’ ethics of care

ABSTRACT

Action research approaches have evolved out of a criticism of previous research traditions, where teachers have been seen as research objects, at risk of being marginalized. Such approaches have also arisen out of the view that teaching, learning, and educational research are interrelated. In action research, teachers are seen as professionals, raising their status to subjects, conducting own research. The research is carried out with or by people rather than on someone, which changes the roles and relationships. Ethical dilemmas can arise, especially evident in action research, where the distinctions between researcher and researched are blurred or removed altogether. This paper aims to explore the changing roles and relationships between researchers and teachers in action research through a philosophical analysis based on the writings of Nel Noddings, especially the concept of ethics of care. The analysis creates an opportunity for a rethinking of researcher–teacher roles, focusing on responsibility and knowledge as well as reciprocity and communication. Based on the author’s own action research experiences, various dilemmas are discussed. Obstacles to and opportunities for developing caring relationships between researchers and teachers will also be highlighted. The implications of the study include valuing both researcher and teacher expertise and learning to understand each other’s perspectives as well as giving tailored care. It is also vital to find strategies to contextualize and enact these views and beliefs within the researcher–teacher relationship. Neither researchers nor teachers will have total control over the process, as they stay open to each other’s perspectives and needs based on a caring relationship.     

背景特征视角下农民工的工作-家庭关系比较——以家庭式迁移农民工为例

对由外省以家庭形式迁移至浙江省及以家庭形式在浙江省内跨县（市）迁移的432位农民工进行问卷调查,比较具有不同背景特征的农民工在工作-家庭关系各维度上的差异,并分析差异产生的原因。研究发现,具有不同老人随迁情况、子女留守情况、受教育程度等的农民工在工作-家庭关系的不同维度上存在差异。该研究结果可为相关政府部门、用人单位结合家庭式迁移农民工的背景特征制定有针对性的改善工作-家庭关系的政策提供参考。     

英语逻辑连接词在阅读理解过程中的作用

英语逻辑连接词是连接句内或句子间语义关系的逻辑纽带.逻辑连接词在阅读理解过程中起重要作用--通过逻辑连接词,读者可以了解句内或句子之间的语义关系,甚至可经前句从逻辑上预见后续句的语义,从而提高阅读速度,很快理解阅读材料的语义.     

Does Fidelity of Implementation Account for Changes in Teacher–Child Interactions in a Randomized Controlled Trial of Banking Time?

This study examined fidelity of implementation in a randomized trial of Banking Time, a classroom-based intervention intended to improve children's behavior, specifically for those at risk for developing externalizing behavior problems, through improving the quality of teacher–child interactions. The study sample comes from a randomized controlled trial that took place over three years and included 183 teachers and 470 preschool children recruited across three sites. Results exploring fidelity of implementation indicated that Banking Time practices were present across treatment and nontreatment groups. In addition, the presence of more Positive Banking Time Practices accounted for improvements in teacher–child interactions while Restricted Banking Time Practices showed inconsistent patterns, relating both to positive and negative teacher–child interactions. Further, random assignment to Banking Time resulted in the presence of more Positive Banking Time Practices and fewer Restricted Banking Time Practices, which accounted for the improved teacher–child interactions. Thus, findings point to the critical need to better account for intervention fidelity across conditions in randomized trials, allowing for better understanding of the mechanism through which interventions lead to intended outcomes.     

What the West could learn from the East: a reflective analysis

Drawing on Lugones’ ideas of world traveling, Dewey’s notion of education as experience, and Greene’s vision of seeing small/seeing big, this article inquires into lives lived in an Eastern educational milieu with attention reflectively paid to what educators in the West could learn from those in the East. Rather than focusing on mega narratives largely created by policy-makers and derived from accumulations of theory and/or political decision-making, this practical research in the reflective vein takes a ‘big’ look at three ‘small stories’ that emerged in a narrative inquiry we conducted in a Chinese elementary school and imagines their portability to Western educational contexts. Reflective attention is specifically paid to: (1) teaching without words, (2) principal images, and (3) shared responsibility for failure. What these small stories from our narrative inquiry research might disrupt, if introduced to Western educational settings, is especially taken up.