Socioeconomic strata, mobile technology, and education: a comparative analysis

Mobile devices are highly portable, easily distributable, substantially affordable, and have the potential to be pedagogically complementary resources in education. This study, incorporating mixed method analyses, discusses the implications of a mobile learning technology-based learning model in two public primary schools near the Mexico-USA border in the state of Baja California, Mexico. One school was located in an urban slum and the other in a rural village community. Empirical and ethnographic data were collected through a series of achievement tests, observations, surveys, and interviews involving 160 s grade school children recruited by convenience sampling. The general technology infrastructure, distinctive features of mobile learning to supplement literacy development, profound contextual phenomena arising from the two uniquely underserved communities, and social factors possibly influencing the educational experiences are discussed. The findings suggest that students in the rural village, seriously lacking educational resources and technology exposure, may have benefited substantially more from mobile technologies than urban school students possibly due to their relatively higher socio-economic status and higher parental involvement and interest in education. In contrast, there was no evidence of interaction with parental education levels, the experience of teachers or school principals, or the teacher’s perception or preparation of the technology. Overall, the mobile learning technology adoption was rapid, seamless, and actively driven by the students rather than the teacher. The challenges of the phenomenal migratory nature of most families in this unique geographical region are also discussed to benefit future studies.     

Optimising the use of note-taking as an external cognitive aid for increasing learning

Taking notes is of uttermost importance in academic and commercial use and success. Different techniques for note-taking utilise different cognitive processes and strategies. This experimental study examined ways to enhance cognitive performance via different note-taking techniques. By comparing performances of traditional, linear style note-taking with alternative non-linear technique, we aimed to examine the efficiency and importance of different ways of taking notes. Twenty-six volunteer adult learners from an information management course participated in this study. Cognitive performance scores from a traditional linear note-taking group were compared with another group by using a commercially available non-linear note-taking technique. Both groups were tested in two settings: after a classroom lecture and a panel forum discussion. Tasks included measures on story comprehension, memory, complexity of mental representations and metacognitive skills. Data analysis revealed that the non-linear note-takers were significantly better than the linear group both in terms of the quantity and the quality of the learned material. This study demonstrates the importance of using cognitively compatible note-taking techniques. It identifies the cognitive mechanisms behind effective note-taking and knowledge representation. Using such techniques enables deeper understanding and more integrated knowledge management.     

The Changing Role of Sports in Urban Development: A Case Study of Debrecen (Hungary)

In the last few decades, researchers are paying more and more attention to study the connections between sports and urban development. The main purpose of this study is to examine the changing role of sports in urban development through the example of Debrecen and to present the differences between the various historical periods. As a result, it can be concluded that on the one hand, in the inter-war years and in the period after 2000, the broader influence of sports was recognised, and local government made special efforts to use sports for the development of local economy, as well as for the improvement of the image of the city. By contrast, in the period between 1945 and 1990, the main approach used was from the side of mass sports, with satisfying the needs of workers and the general population deemed as the most important. On the other hand, from the early 1930s, i.e. from the beginning of urban planning (with the exception of the period during World War II and the 1950s), the leaders of the city paid special attention to ensure that sports facilities be included in the local development plans of Debrecen.     

Teacher Education in Hungary: system,process, perspectives

The author sees the Hungarian teacher education system as being in a state of transition and development and identifies a number of the planning issues to be faced.

There has existed, traditionally in Hungary, the two routes through teacher‐training familiar to many Western countries, characterised as the e'cole normale/university dichotomy. This has revealed a familiar problem: the older the age‐range for which the student is being trained, the less emphasis on pedagogy in the training.

Hungarian teacher education faces other problems. There is still a shortage of teachers, despite a high level of demand for training; demographic problems weigh heavily.

Attempts at finding solutions through mergers of institutions at different levels meet resistance, and the conflict of values from universities and teachers’ colleges echoes similar debates in, for example, France and Greece. The problems encountered raise a fundamental question: who should decide the nature of the teacher‐training programme: the specialist academics and pedagogues, or the employing community? In Hungary, the debate continues.     

Implications of instructional psychology for the design of educational television

This article examines the implications of a cognitive model of learning for the design of educational broadcast television. Specifically examined are research studies with instructional implications for such functions as pacing, cueing, modeling, and transformation of the television presentation. Robert B. Kozma is Associate Professor at School of Education, Associate Research Scientist at the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, and Project Director, National Center for Research to Improve Post Secondary Teaching and Learning, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the American Educational Research Association Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA, 1984. Appreciation is expressed to Barbara Beath, Edward Saunders, anonymous reviewers, and students in the author’s seminar on educational television for their helpful comments.     

Instructional design in a chemistry laboratory course: The impact of structure and aptitudes on performance and attitudes

Elements of instructional design such as explicitly stated objectives, reviews, examples, questions, and feedback were incorporated into the laboratory manual and instruction for a unit on kinetics in a college laboratory course. This treatment (high structure) was given to five sections of students (N = 109), while a laboratory manual and instructions that emphasized informational content without the use of these design strategies (low structure) was given to another five sections (N = 108) taught by the same instructors. The students receiving the additional structure scored significantly higher on a quiz, took less time to solve a set of laboratory problems, and felt more satisfied with the instruction provided. There were no differences between groups in their comfort with the knowledge acquired. There were no interactions with performance outcomes, but several occurred for attitudes, treatments, and personality measures. The more conforming the students, the more satisfied they were with the instruction in the high-structured group and the less they liked it in the low-structured group. The more motivated the students, the more they liked the instruction in the high-structure treatment, and even more in the low-structure group. There was also a complex interaction among treatment, anxiety, ability, and treatment satisfaction.     

Should We Become More International or More Regional? Aspects of Minority Higher Education in Europe

A form of internationalization of higher education that is very much worth pursuing is regionalization, because, frequently, in Europe the political borders of nation-states fail to coincide with ethno-linguistic realities. As border areas are frequently neglected by the political centres of various nation-states, the education of minority group peoples in such areas may also be neglected. Two solutions to the specific problems of higher education for ethno-linguistic minority group members are, on the one hand, multilingual universities and, on the other hand, regional co-operation in higher education in border areas.