DROPOUT AND STOPOUT PATTERNS AMONG DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATION STUDENTS IN TEXAS COMMUNITY COLLEGES

The dropout/stopout patterns of community college students were examined in the research reported here. About two thirds of the 51,903 students in the study were enrolled in developmental education courses. Success in college was defined as a passing grade point average after five semesters of coursework. Student success was found to be associated with enrollment patterns, initial skill deficiencies, and age. Community college students who enrolled for consecutive semesters outperformed students with other types of enrollment patterns.     

Reliability of a Digital Method to Determine Frontal Area of a Cyclist

Eight cyclists were photographed with a digital camera for three trials while positioned on their own bicycle wearing their helmet. The positions were different from each other and described as hands on the brake hoods, hands below the curve of the brake hoods on the handlebars, and using aerobars. Twenty-four trials were digitized by two different individuals three times to estimate the inter- and intra-rater reliability of the method. The intraclass correlation coefficient (p < .05) value for the intra-rater (test–retest) reliability was .993, and for inter-rater consistency, it was .976. There were significant differences (p < .05) between digitizers and between trials, apparently due to a learning effect that disappeared by the third trial. Due to small differences between digitizers and trials, caution is recommended when considering the use of this method.     

Relations of Power,Speed, Flexibility,and Certain Anthropometric Measures of Junior High School Girls

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the differences among 7th, 8th, and 9th grade girls in power, speed, and flexibility and to determine the relation between power and flexibility, speed and flexibility, and speed and certain anthropometric measures. The subjects were enrolled in ungraded physical education classes. Seventh grade girls were faster than 8th grade girls in the 50-yard dash. Ninth grade girls broad jumped farther than 7th and 8th grade girls. No significant relations were found in the other items studied.     

The Jumpstart Model: The Contours of a New Force in Early Literacy

Jumpstart is a growing literacy program that is now active in 17 states in addition to the District of Columbia. The Jumpstart Model pairs children of low-income families with college mentors in the child's typical learning environment. Despite the prevalence and importance of Jumpstart, little has been written about either the general model of Jumpstart or the positive impacts the program has on both the children and the AmeriCorps members.     

Examining problem-solving skills in technology-rich environments as related to numeracy and literacy

ABSTRACT

This study sought to a better understanding of the construct of problem solving in technology-rich environments and the effect of literacy and numeracy on problem solving. Data used in this study were drawn from Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies US data which includes 5010 completed cases and a total of 1326 variables. The assessment of literacy, numeracy and problem-solving competencies were administrated using computer-based approaches. The result of the study showed that adults with higher numeracy and literacy competencies were more likely to have higher level of problem-solving skills. The results of the analyses also revealed that solution latency (i.e. time) were an important factor influencing problem-solving skills. This study indicates that basic mathematical skills are essential for solving problems that require interpersonal communication, computer and software knowledge, planning, and organising. The findings from this study provide several implications for researchers, educators, teachers and policymakers.     

Engagement with empires: Irish Catholic female religious teachers in colonial South Australia 1868–1901

This paper addresses the roles of Irish Catholic female religious institutes for teachers in the context of the recent debates about education and empire. Nineteenth century colonial South Australia provides an opportunity to examine such institutes, for example the Irish Dominicans from Cabra Dublin, the Irish Mercy Institute from Baggot Street, Dublin, and to a much lesser extent, the English Dominicans from Stone in England. The discussion canvasses the notion of the role of these religious teachers within three empires: the British Empire, the Irish church acting as a ‘Second Empire’, and within a third empire, the ‘Woman's Empire’. Key aspects in examining the flow or transference of education by these Sisters in a colonial setting, lie in their own histories, their spiritual focus, the schools they established for their students, and the curriculum they adopted in the social and geographic environments in which they found themselves.     

The impact of a language education programme on the development of PGCE English student teachers' perceptions of subject identity

This article builds on work by Burley and Pomphrey, described in previous articles (2002 Burley, S and Pomphrey, C. 2002a. Intercomprehension: a move towards a new type of language teacher. Language Learning Journal, 25: 46–51. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]a, 2000 Burley S Pomphrey C From language user to language teacher 2002b www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/documents/00002356.htm  [Google Scholar]b, 2003 Burley, S and Pomphrey, C. 2003. Intercomprehension in language teacher education: a dialogue between English and Modern Languages. Language Awareness, 12(3 & 4): 247–255. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]). It describes student teachers' changing perceptions of English as a subject as they experience a language education programme on their PGCE English course. What began as a programme for encouraging cross‐curricular links between the subjects of English and Modern Languages has also effected dramatic changes in English student teachers' perceptions of their subject and thus their subject identity. The focus is on English student teachers. The Modern Languages student teachers also gained from the collaboration, and this has been documented in articles by Burley and Pomphrey, and a booklet entitled ‘Language teacher education’ (2004). The data informing this article were collected over the past four years through student feedback, evaluations of individual sessions and overall evaluations.     

God's antipodean teaching force: An historical exposition on Catholic teaching religious in Australia

From the 1850s to the 1970s the teaching force in Catholic schools in Australia was dominated by priests, female religious and brothers. This paper details the scope of existing research on these teachers, the demands of their religious vocation, their own education, the atmosphere which they established in the schools, leadership opportunities, and the ‘darker side’ of their way of life. Such expositions can promote reflection on the possibility that teaching can be influenced by discourses of ‘vocation’ and ‘the giving of service’, every bit as much as it can be by ‘industrial’ and ‘labour’ perspectives.