Australian children with special health care needs: Social-emotional and learning competencies in the early years

This study examined the relationship between special health care needs and social-emotional and learning competence in the early years, reporting on two waves of data from the Kindergarten Cohort of Growing up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC). Six hundred and fifty children were identified through the 2-question Special Health Care Needs Screener as having special health care needs. Children with special health care needs were more likely to be male, to have been of low birth weight, to be taking prescription medications, to be diagnosed with a specific health condition and to be from families where the mother was less well educated. These children scored significantly lower on teacher-rated social-emotional and learning competencies prior to school compared to a control group of children without special health care needs. Multiple regression analyses indicated that being identified with a special health care need prior to school predicted lower social-emotional and learning competencies in the early years of school. Results are discussed in terms of the implications for policy and practice.

Middle school social sciences : exploring teachers’ conceptions of essential knowledge

This study examines teachers’ conceptions of essential knowledge in the humanities and social sciences, commonly referred to as "social education", in the middle years of schooling. Social education has long been a highly contested area of the curriculum in Australia. In Queensland, social education comprises the integrated learning area of Studies of Society and Environment (SOSE). However, the new Australian Curriculum marks a return to discipline-based study of history and geography. This phenomenographic study addresses a perceived lack of understanding in the current research literature in Australia of the nature of middle school teachers’ professional knowledge for teaching the social sciences. Teachers are conceptualised in this study as curriculum makers in the classroom and, as such, their conceptions of essential knowledge are significant. Shulman’s (1986, 1987) theory of teachers’ knowledge forms the theoretical foundation of the study, which is contextualised in Federal and State education policies and the literature on the middle phase of schooling. Transcripts of interviews conducted with a group of thirty-one Queensland middle school teachers of SOSE were subjected to phenomenographic analysis, revealing seven qualitatively different categories of description. Essential aspects of knowledge for social education emerging from the study were: (1) discipline-based knowledge; (2) curriculum knowledge; (3) knowledge derived from teaching experience; (4) knowledge of middle years learners; (5) knowledge of integration; (6) knowledge of current affairs; and (7) knowledge invested in teacher identity. The three dimensions of variation that linked and differentiated the categories were: (1) content; (2) inquiry learning; and (3) teacher autonomy. These findings are presented as an outcome space where the categories are grouped as knowledge of the learning area, knowledge of contexts and knowledge of self as teacher. The results of the study suggest that social education teachers’ identity and knowledge of self are critical aspects of their knowledge as curriculum makers. The results illustrate that the professional and personal domains intersect, extending Shulman’s (1986, 1987) original theorisation of teachers’ knowledge into the personal arena. Further, middle years teachers’ conceptions of essential knowledge reveal a practice-based theorisation of knowledge for social education that fits the goals of middle schooling. The research concludes that attention to teacher identity in teacher education and in-service professional development has considerable potential to grow teachers’ knowledge in the social sciences and enhance their capacity for school-based curriculum leadership.

Increasing inter-generational social mobility: is educational expansion the answer?

Reforms which increase the stock of education in a society have long been held by policy-makers as key to improving rates of intergenerational social mobility. Yet, despite the intuitive plausibility of this idea, the empirical evidence in support of an effect of educational expansion on social fluidity is both indirect and weak. In this paper we use the raising of the minimum school leaving age from 15 to 16 years in England and Wales in 1972 to estimate the effect of educational participation and qualification attainment on rates of intergenerational social class mobility. Because, in expectation, children born immediately before and after the policy was implemented are statistically exchangeable, the difference in the amount of education they received may be treated as exogenously determined. The exogenous nature of the additional education gain means that differences in rates of social mobility between cohorts affected by the reform can be treated as having been caused by the additional education. The data for the analysis come from the ONS Longitudinal Study, which links individual records from successive decennial censuses between 1971 and 2001. Our findings show that, although the reform resulted in an increase in educational attainment in the population as a whole and a weakening of the association between attainment and class origin, there was no reliably discernible increase in the rate of intergenerational social mobility.

Exploring the construction of social class in educational discourse: the rational order of the nation state vs. global uncertainties

This article aims to create intellectual space in which issues of social inequality and education can be analyzed and discussed in relation to the multifaceted and multi-levelled complexities of the modern world. It is divided into three sections. Section One locates the concept of social class in the context of the modern nation state during the period after the Second World War. Focusing particularly on the impact of ‘Fordism’ on social organization and cultural relations, it revisits the articulation of social justice issues in the United Kingdom, and the structures put into place at the time to alleviate educational and social inequalities. Section Two problematizes the traditional concept of social class in relation to economic, technological and sociocultural changes that have taken place around the world since the mid-1980s. In particular, it charts some of the changes to the international labour market and global patterns of consumption, and their collective impact on the re-constitution of class boundaries in ‘developed countries’. This is juxtaposed with some of the major social effects of neo-classical economic policies in recent years on the sociocultural base in developing countries. It discusses some of the ways these inequalities are reflected in education. Section Three explores tensions between the educational ideals of the ‘knowledge economy’ and the discursive range of social inequalities that are emerging within and beyond the nation state. Drawing on key motifs identified throughout, the article concludes with a reassessment of the concept of social class within the global cultural economy. This is discussed in relation to some of the major equity and human rights issues in education today.

Technology @ your fingertips : a guide to implementing technology solutions for education agencies and institutions.

"NCES 98-293"--P. [4] of cover.

From Education to Technology Commercialization

Report published in the Proceedings of the National Conference on "Education and Research in the Information Society", Plovdiv, May, 2016

Nvidia, matrox, paper? - Undergraduate game design tools in the humanities and social sciences

Eschewing costly high-tech approaches, this paper looks at the experience of using low-tech approaches to game design assignments as problem based learning and assessment tool over a number of years in undergraduate teaching. General game design concepts are discussed, along with learning outcomes and assessment rubrics in line with Blooms Taxonomy based on evidence from students who had no prior experience of serious game play or design. Approaches to creating game design based assessments are offered.

Material culture in massive multiplayer online role-playing games : the social, cultural and educational meanings of virtual goods in world of warcraft

Michaela Rizzolli

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF POINT-OF-VIEW VIDEO MODELING IN TEACHING SOCIAL INITIATION SKILLS TO CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS

Deficits in social communication and interaction have been identified as distinguishing impairments for individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). As a pivotal skill, the successful development of social communication and interaction in individuals with ASD is a lifelong objective. Point-of-view video modeling has the potential to address these deficits. This type of video involves filming the completion of a targeted skill or behavior from a first-person perspective. By presenting only what a person might see from his or her viewpoint, it has been identified to be more effective in limiting irrelevant stimuli by providing a clear frame of reference to facilitate imitation. The current study investigated the use of point-of-view video modeling in teaching social initiations (e.g., greetings). Using a multiple baseline across participants design, five kindergarten participants were taught social initiations using point-of-view video modeling and video priming. Immediately before and after viewing the entire point-of-view video model, the participants were evaluated on their social initiations with a trained, typically developing peer serving as a communication partner. Specifically, the social initiations involved participants’ abilities to shift their attention toward the peer who entered the classroom, maintain attention toward the peer, and engage in an appropriate social initiation (e.g., hi, hello). Both generalization and maintenance were tested. Overall, the data suggest point-of-view video modeling is an effective intervention for increasing social initiations in young students with ASD. However, retraining was necessary for acquisition of skills in the classroom environment. Generalization in novel environments and with a novel communication partner, and generalization to other social initiation skills was limited. Additionally, maintenance of gained social initiation skills only occurred in the intervention room. Despite the limitations of the study and variable results, there are a number of implications moving forward for both practitioners and future researchers examining point-of-view modeling and its potential impact on the social initiation skills of individuals with ASD.

Social capital and educational achievements: Coleman vs. Bourdieu

The influence of social capital on an individual’s educational achievements is the subject of numerous scientific papers. Research on social capital is most frequently based on Coleman’s (1988) or Bourdieu’s (1986) theories of capital, which are related to different paradigms of social theory: whereas Coleman’s approach has its roots in structural functionalism, Bourdieu’s approach contains elements of conflict theory. A number of authors, starting with Bourdieu, attempt to explain and prove that, when connected with the education of individuals, the activity of social capital facilitates social reproduction. Other authors support the notion that social capital is, in fact, a powerful weapon that encourages social mobility. A third group of researchers emphasise that neither of these approaches in isolation can entirety explain the influences of social capital on an individual’s education (Ho, 2003). The present paper offers a review of research focusing on the influences of social capital on educational achievements, while outlining the fundamental differences between the two theoretical approaches that are most frequently used for research of this topic. The aim of the paper is to explain the influence of social capital on an individual’s educational achievements under Bourdieu’s and Coleman’s theoretical concepts, and to establish whether combining the approaches is possible. The conclusion and arguments show that it is legitimate to use all three theoretical approaches. (DIPF/Orig.)

A new educational technology for media and communication studies : mapping media in Australia and Sweden

This chapter reports on Australian and Swedish experiences in the iterative design, development, and ongoing use of interactive educational systems we call ‘Media Maps.’ Like maps in general, Media Maps are usefully understood as complex cultural technologies; that is, they are not only physical objects, tools and artefacts, but also information creation and distribution technologies, the use and development of which are embedded in systems of knowledge and social meaning. Drawing upon Australian and Swedish experiences with one Media Map technology, this paper illustrates this three-layered approach to the development of media mapping. It shows how media mapping is being used to create authentic learning experiences for students preparing for work in the rapidly evolving media and communication industries. We also contextualise media mapping as a response to various challenges for curriculum and learning design in Media and Communication Studies that arise from shifts in tertiary education policy in a global knowledge economy.

Comparing the effectiveness of education and technology in reducing wood smoke pollution: A field experiment

This study describes a field experiment assessing the effectiveness of education and technological innovation in reducing air pollution generated by domestic wood heaters. Two-hundred and twenty four households from a small regional center in Australia were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: (1) Education only – households received a wood smoke reduction education pack containing information about the negative health impacts of wood smoke pollution, and advice about wood heater operation and firewood management; (2) SmartBurn only – households received a SmartBurn canister designed to improve combustion and help wood fires burn more efficiently, (3) Education and SmartBurn, and (4) neither Education nor SmartBurn (control). Analysis of covariance, controlling for pre-intervention household wood smoke emissions, wood moisture content, and wood heater age, revealed that education and SmartBurn were both associated with significant reduction in wood smoke emissions during the post-intervention period. Follow-up mediation analyses indicated that education reduced emissions by improving wood heater operation practices, but not by increasing health risk perceptions. As predicted, SmartBurn exerted a direct effect on emission levels, unmediated by wood heater operation practices or health risk perceptions.

Flavian laws, the railway, the newspaper and Loring’s breads

It is abound the research on the formation, rise and failure of the financial and industrial network undertaken by the Loring-Heredia-Larios triangle, bourgeois families who introduced the Industrial Revolution in the south of Andalusia. On the contrary, there are almost nonexistent studies from the perspective of the mentality that sustained their business, social and ethical model in the algid decades of their action (1850-1860). In this paper we propose some hypotheses about the ideological structures of bourgeois group and point out some keys, clues and signs for a future reconstruction of this kind, which so far has not been incardinated that early and failed malaguenan industrial revolution in streams thinking of that time.