Interaction and Communication of Agents in Networks and Language Complexity Estimates

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smid, Jan; Obitko, Marek; Fisher, David; Truszkowski, Walt

2004-01-01

Knowledge acquisition and sharing are arguably the most critical activities of communicating agents. We report about our on-going project featuring knowledge acquisition and sharing among communicating agents embedded in a network. The applications we target range from hardware robots to virtual entities such as internet agents. Agent experiments can be simulated using a convenient simulation language. We analyzed the complexity of communicating agent simulations using Java and Easel. Scenarios we have studied are listed below. The communication among agents can range from declarative queries to sub-natural language queries. 1) A set of agents monitoring an object are asked to build activity profiles based on exchanging elementary observations; 2) A set of car drivers form a line, where every car is following its predecessor. An unsafe distance cm create a strong wave in the line. Individual agents are asked to incorporate and apply directions how to avoid the wave. 3) A set of micro-vehicles form a grid and are asked to propagate information and concepts to a central server.

Single service point: it's all in the design.

PubMed

Bradigan, Pamela S; Rodman, Ruey L

2008-01-01

"Design thinking" principles from a leading design firm, IDEO, were key elements in the planning process for a one-desk service model, the ASK Desk, at the John A. Prior Health Sciences Library. The library administration and staff employed the methodology to enhance customer experiences, meet technology challenges, and compete in a changing education environment. The most recent renovations demonstrate how the principles were applied. The concept of "continuous design thinking" is important in the library's daily operations to serve customers most effectively.

Children's Conception of Price as a Function of Questions Asked.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dahlgren, Lars Owe

An experiment concerning children's conceptions of price was conducted to investigate the influence of the context of a problem on its apprehension. A total of 120 children of several age groups (nursery school, grades 2, 4, and 6) were interviewed individually. An initial question was asked ("Why does a bun cost about one Swedish…

Friendship group identification, multidimensional self-concept, and experience of developmental tasks in adolescence.

PubMed

Tarrant, Mark; MacKenzie, Liam; Hewitt, Lisa A

2006-08-01

This study applied a social identity perspective to the study of adolescent self-concept and social development. British adolescents aged 14-15 years (N=114) completed a questionnaire which asked them to: (i) rate their degree of identification with a school-based friendship group; (ii) complete a measure of multi-dimensional self-concept; and (iii) report their experiences of a variety of personal, relational and socio-institutional (e.g., achieving economic independence) developmental tasks. Compared to low identifiers, participants who were highly identified with a friendship group reported highest levels of self-esteem; and these differences were most marked in non-academic domains of self. High identifiers also displayed higher levels of general self-esteem and reported more positive experiences of personal and relational developmental tasks. The discussion focuses on the potential benefits to understanding of social developmental processes that can be derived from a consideration of adolescents' subjective appraisals of their peer relations.

Evolving political science. Biological adaptation, rational action, and symbolism.

PubMed

Tingley, Dustin

2006-01-01

Political science, as a discipline, has been reluctant to adopt theories and methodologies developed in fields studying human behavior from an evolutionary standpoint. I ask whether evolutionary concepts are reconcilable with standard political-science theories and whether those concepts help solve puzzles to which these theories classically are applied. I find that evolutionary concepts readily and simultaneously accommodate theories of rational choice, symbolism, interpretation, and acculturation. Moreover, phenomena perennially hard to explain in standard political science become clearer when human interactions are understood in light of natural selection and evolutionary psychology. These phenomena include the political and economic effects of emotion, status, personal attractiveness, and variations in information-processing and decision-making under uncertainty; exemplary is the use of "focal points" in multiple-equilibrium games. I conclude with an overview of recent research by, and ongoing debates among, scholars analyzing politics in evolutionarily sophisticated terms.

Questioning the evidence for a claim in a socio-scientific issue: an aspect of scientific literacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roberts, Ros; Gott, Richard

2010-11-01

Understanding the science in a 'socio-scientific issue' is at the heart of the varied definitions of 'scientific literacy'. Many consider that understanding evidence is necessary to participate in decision making and to challenge the science that affects people's lives. A model is described that links practical work, argumentation and scientific literacy which is used as the basis of this research. If students are explicitly taught about evidence does this transfer to students asking questions in the context of a local socio-scientific issue? What do they ask questions about? Sixty-five primary teacher training students were given the pre-test, before being taught the 'concepts of evidence' and applying them in an open-ended investigation and were tested again 15 weeks later. Data were coded using Toulmin's argument pattern (TAP) and the 'concepts of evidence'. After the intervention it was found that, in relation to a socio-scientific issue, they raised significantly more questions specifically about the evidence that lead to the scientists' claims although questions explicitly targeting the quality of the data were still rare. This has implications for curricula that aim for scientific literacy.

Ask not what physics can do for biology--ask what biology can do for physics.

PubMed

Frauenfelder, Hans

2014-10-08

Stan Ulam, the famous mathematician, said once to Hans Frauenfelder: 'Ask not what Physics can do for biology, ask what biology can do for physics'. The interaction between biologists and physicists is a two-way street. Biology reveals the secrets of complex systems, physics provides the physical tools and the theoretical concepts to understand the complexity. The perspective gives a personal view of the path to some of the physical concepts that are relevant for biology and physics (Frauenfelder et al 1999 Rev. Mod. Phys. 71 S419-S442). Schrödinger's book (Schrödinger 1944 What is Life? (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)), loved by physicists and hated by eminent biologists (Dronamraju 1999 Genetics 153 1071-6), still shows how a great physicist looked at biology well before the first protein structure was known.

Free Associations Mirroring Self- and World-Related Concepts: Implications for Personal Construct Theory, Psycholinguistics and Philosophical Psychology.

PubMed

Kuška, Martin; Trnka, Radek; Kuběna, Aleš A; Růžička, Jiří

2016-01-01

People construe reality by using words as basic units of meaningful categorization. The present theory-driven study applied the method of a free association task to explore how people express the concepts of the world and the self in words. The respondents were asked to recall any five words relating with the word world. Afterward they were asked to recall any five words relating with the word self. The method of free association provided the respondents with absolute freedom to choose any words they wanted. Such free recall task is suggested as being a relatively direct approach to the respondents' self- and world-related conceptual categories, without enormous rational processing. The results provide us, first, with associative ranges for constructs of the world and the self, where some associative dimensions are defined by semantic polarities in the meanings of peripheral categories (e.g., Nature vs. Culture). Second, our analysis showed that some groups of verbal categories that were associated with the words world and self are central, while others are peripheral with respect to the central position. Third, the analysis of category networks revealed that some categories play the role of a transmitter, mediating the pathway between other categories in the network.

Free Associations Mirroring Self- and World-Related Concepts: Implications for Personal Construct Theory, Psycholinguistics and Philosophical Psychology

PubMed Central

Kuška, Martin; Trnka, Radek; Kuběna, Aleš A.; Růžička, Jiří

2016-01-01

People construe reality by using words as basic units of meaningful categorization. The present theory-driven study applied the method of a free association task to explore how people express the concepts of the world and the self in words. The respondents were asked to recall any five words relating with the word world. Afterward they were asked to recall any five words relating with the word self. The method of free association provided the respondents with absolute freedom to choose any words they wanted. Such free recall task is suggested as being a relatively direct approach to the respondents’ self- and world-related conceptual categories, without enormous rational processing. The results provide us, first, with associative ranges for constructs of the world and the self, where some associative dimensions are defined by semantic polarities in the meanings of peripheral categories (e.g., Nature vs. Culture). Second, our analysis showed that some groups of verbal categories that were associated with the words world and self are central, while others are peripheral with respect to the central position. Third, the analysis of category networks revealed that some categories play the role of a transmitter, mediating the pathway between other categories in the network. PMID:27445940

Electronic Handbooks Simplify Process Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2012-01-01

Getting a multitude of people to work together to manage processes across many organizations for example, flight projects, research, technologies, or data centers and others is not an easy task. Just ask Dr. Barry E. Jacobs, a research computer scientist at Goddard Space Flight Center. He helped NASA develop a process management solution that provided documenting tools for process developers and participants to help them quickly learn, adapt, test, and teach their views. Some of these tools included editable files for subprocess descriptions, document descriptions, role guidelines, manager worksheets, and references. First utilized for NASA's Headquarters Directives Management process, the approach led to the invention of a concept called the Electronic Handbook (EHB). This EHB concept was successfully applied to NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, among other NASA programs. Several Federal agencies showed interest in the concept, so Jacobs and his team visited these agencies to show them how their specific processes could be managed by the methodology, as well as to create mockup versions of the EHBs.

Adaptive hybrid brain-computer interaction: ask a trainer for assistance!

PubMed

Müller-Putz, Gernot R; Steyrl, David; Faller, Josef

2014-01-01

In applying mental imagery brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) to end users, training is a key part for novice users to get control. In general learning situations, it is an established concept that a trainer assists a trainee to improve his/her aptitude in certain skills. In this work, we want to evaluate whether we can apply this concept in the context of event-related desynchronization (ERD) based, adaptive, hybrid BCIs. Hence, in a first session we merged the features of a high aptitude BCI user, a trainer, and a novice user, the trainee, in a closed-loop BCI feedback task and automatically adapted the classifier over time. In a second session the trainees operated the system unassisted. Twelve healthy participants ran through this protocol. Along with the trainer, the trainees achieved a very high overall peak accuracy of 95.3 %. In the second session, where users operated the BCI unassisted, they still achieved a high overall peak accuracy of 83.6%. Ten of twelve first time BCI users successfully achieved significantly better than chance accuracy. Concluding, we can say that this trainer-trainee approach is very promising. Future research should investigate, whether this approach is superior to conventional training approaches. This trainer-trainee concept could have potential for future application of BCIs to end users.

Ask not what physics can do for biology—ask what biology can do for physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frauenfelder, Hans

2014-10-01

Stan Ulam, the famous mathematician, said once to Hans Frauenfelder: ‘Ask not what Physics can do for biology, ask what biology can do for physics’. The interaction between biologists and physicists is a two-way street. Biology reveals the secrets of complex systems, physics provides the physical tools and the theoretical concepts to understand the complexity. The perspective gives a personal view of the path to some of the physical concepts that are relevant for biology and physics (Frauenfelder et al 1999 Rev. Mod. Phys. 71 S419-S442). Schrödinger’s book (Schrödinger 1944 What is Life? (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)), loved by physicists and hated by eminent biologists (Dronamraju 1999 Genetics 153 1071-6), still shows how a great physicist looked at biology well before the first protein structure was known.

Students' Conceptions of a Mathematical Definition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zaslavsky, Orit; Shir, Karni

2005-01-01

This article deals with 12th-grade students' conceptions of a mathematical definition. Their conceptions of a definition were revealed through individual and group activities in which they were asked to consider a number of possible definitions of four mathematical concepts: two geometric and two analytic. Data consisted of written responses to…

Using Learner Generated Examples to Introduce New Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, Anne; Shipman, Steve

2008-01-01

In this paper we describe learners being asked to generate examples of new mathematical concepts, thus developing and exploring example spaces. First we elaborate the theoretical background for learner generated examples (LGEs) in learning new concepts. The data we then present provides evidence of the possibility of learning new concepts through…

What Can a Concept Do? Rethinking Education's Queer Assemblages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rasmussen, Mary Lou; Allen, Louisa

2014-01-01

In a discussion of Deleuze's theorization of concepts, Todd May asks "what can a concept do with that which cannot be identified?" Or to put it another way, May writes--"A concept is a way of addressing the difference that lies beneath the identities we experience." This is not to say that identities, concepts, and experiences…

Mastering the Concepts of Geologic Time: Novice Students' Understanding of the Principles of Relative Age

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Speta, M.; Reid, L.

2010-12-01

Misconceptions can adversely affect students’ mastery of the fundamental geoscience concepts necessary for development of the knowledge base required to become a professional geoscientist. In the fall of 2009, in-class learning assessments were introduced into a large (400 student) undergraduate introductory geoscience course to help students develop expert-like problem solving skills for geologic problems. They were also designed to reveal students’ misconceptions on geoscience concepts in order to help direct the course of instruction. These assessments were based on simple, real-world scenarios that geoscientists encounter in their research. One of these assessments focused on the application of concepts of geologic time. It asked students to give the relative ages of granite, schist and shale based on a sketch of two outcrops, and to describe the reasoning behind their answer. In order to test all of the principles of relative age, the assignment had two possible solutions. A post-course analysis of student responses on these assessments was carried out using a modified constant comparative analysis method to identify common misconceptions. This analysis revealed that 61% of students failed to identify both possible solutions. Furthermore, 55% of students applied the principle of superposition to intrusive igneous and metamorphic rocks, and 18% treated the once connected outcrops as having separate geologic histories. 56% of students could not support their proposed geologic history with appropriate reasoning. These results suggest that the principles of relative geologic time that students had the greatest difficulty with were when to apply the principle of superposition and how to apply the principle of original continuity. Students also had difficulty using the principles of relative age to provide appropriate scientific reasoning for their choices.

Shared Features Dominate Semantic Richness Effects for Concrete Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grondin, Ray; Lupker, Stephen J.; McRae, Ken

2009-01-01

When asked to list semantic features for concrete concepts, participants list many features for some concepts and few for others. Concepts with many semantic features are processed faster in lexical and semantic decision tasks [Pexman, P. M., Lupker, S. J., & Hino, Y. (2002). "The impact of feedback semantics in visual word recognition:…

Communicating Microbiology Concepts from Multiple Contexts through Poster Presentations.

PubMed

Gruss, Amy Borello

2018-01-01

Accredited environmental engineering degrees require graduates to be able to apply their scholarship to concepts of professional practice and design. This transferable skill of relating what you learn in one setting to another situation is vital for all professions, not just engineering. A course project involving designing and presenting a professional poster was implemented to enhance student mastery in Environmental Engineering Microbiology while also developing communication and transferable skills vital for all majors. Students were asked to read a contemporary non-fiction book relating to microbiology and expand upon the book's thesis by integrating course content, news articles, and peer-reviewed journal articles. They then were required to present this information in class using a professional poster. Students felt the project allowed them to synthesize and organize information, analyze ideas, and integrate ideas from various sources. These transferable skills are vital for students and professionals alike to be able to communicate advanced information and master a topic.

The 2002 Sydney Gay Games: re-presenting "lesbian" identities through sporting space.

PubMed

Lambert, Karen

2009-01-01

In this article poetic representation in qualitative research is explored in relation to researching "lesbian" lives. Set within the context of The 2002 Sydney Gay Games the article considers how poetry can bring to light experiences at the intersection of sexuality, sport, and place. The article details three aspects to this process. First, by asking what queer theory could do for particular research subjects, a robust, malleable, and transportable theoretical concept of "queer" is proposed that is responsive to the participants' lives and experiences. Second, this concept is applied methodologically in order to unsettle more traditional academic modes of representing interview data through the use of poetic forms of representation. Finally, a poem constructed from the Opening Ceremony of The Gay Games is presented and analyzed. Poetic representation is thus offered as a distinct methodology that permits a particular kind of "queer" analysis when researching "lesbian" lives.

"The World is No Longer Flat to Me": Student Perceptions of Threshold Concepts in World Regional Geography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fouberg, Erin H.

2013-01-01

Through qualitative analysis of 80 student essays, the author examines geographic concepts students describe as holding traits of threshold concepts. With a group of 11 Honors students, the author employs metacogntion, asking students to analyze their own learning to discover their threshold concepts. Recognizing the role of liminality, this study…

Fijian Teachers' Conceptions of Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dayal, Hem Chand; Lingam, Govinda Ishwar

2015-01-01

Teacher's conceptions are important as they could have a strong influence on their professional practices. This study set out to explore Fijian teacher's conceptions of assessment. Seventy teachers enrolled in an assessment course at a university in Fiji were involved in this study. Data was collected by asking teachers to write a reflection on…

Growing Up with Ghosts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shafer, Susan

1976-01-01

A study of 34 third grade working class children of various ethnic backgrounds attempted to discover children's conceptions of ghosts. Children were exposed to information about ghosts and asked many "simple" and "wild" questions to elicit their conceptions. (MS)

A Structural Model Related to the Understanding of the Concept of Function: Definition and Problem Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Panaoura, Areti; Michael-Chrysanthou, Paraskevi; Gagatsis, Athanasios; Elia, Iliada; Philippou, Andreas

2017-01-01

This article focuses on exploring students' understanding of the concept of function concerning three main aspects: secondary students' ability to (1) define the concept of function and present examples of functions, (2) solve tasks which asked them to recognize and interpret the concept of function presented in different forms of representation,…

For Want of a Better Word: Unlocking Threshold Concepts in Natural Sciences with a Key from the Humanities?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, David A.; Loertscher, Jennifer; Minderhout, Vicky; Lewis, Jennifer E.

2017-01-01

The process of identifying threshold concepts invites experts to reflect on their discipline in a new way with the ultimate goal of improving learning and teaching. During a workshop to identify threshold concepts in biochemistry, we asked a group of natural scientists to explore "signification," a threshold concept from the humanities,…

Relationship between pastoralists' evaluation of rangeland state and vegetation threshold changes in Mongolian rangelands.

PubMed

Kakinuma, Kaoru; Sasaki, Takehiro; Jamsran, Undarmaa; Okuro, Toshiya; Takeuchi, Kazuhiko

2014-10-01

Applying the threshold concept to rangeland management is an important challenge in semi-arid and arid regions. Threshold recognition and prediction is necessary to enable local pastoralists to prevent the occurrence of an undesirable state that would result from unsustainable grazing pressure, but this requires a better understanding of the pastoralists' perception of vegetation threshold changes. We estimated plant species cover in survey plots along grazing gradients in steppe and desert-steppe areas of Mongolia. We also conducted interviews with local pastoralists and asked them to evaluate whether the plots were suitable for grazing. Floristic composition changed nonlinearly along the grazing gradient in both the desert-steppe and steppe areas. Pastoralists observed the floristic composition changes along the grazing gradients, but their evaluations of grazing suitability did not always decrease along the grazing gradients, both of which included areas in a post-threshold state. These results indicated that local pastoralists and scientists may have different perceptions of vegetation states, even though both of groups used plant species and coverage as indicators in their evaluations. Therefore, in future studies of rangeland management, researchers and pastoralists should exchange their knowledge and perceptions to successfully apply the threshold concept to rangeland management.

Design of a radiator shade for testing in a simulated lunar environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huff, Jaimi; Remington, Randy; Tang, Toan

1992-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and The Universities Space Research Association (USRA) have chosen the parabolic/catenary concept from their sponsored Fall 1991 lunar radiation shade project for further testing and development. NASA asked the design team to build a shading device and support structure for testing in a vacuum chamber. Besides the support structure for the catenary shading device, the design team was asked to develop a system for varying the shade shape so that the device can be tested at different focal lengths. The design team developed concept variants and combined the concept variants to form overall designs. Using a decision matrix, an overall design was selected by the team from several overall design alternatives. Concept variants were developed for three primary functions. The three functions were structural support, shape adjustments, and end shielding. The shade adjustment function was divided into two sub-functions, arc length adjustment, and width adjustment.

Relationships among Aspects of Student Alienation and Self Concept

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tarquin, Kristen; Cook-Cottone, Catherine

2008-01-01

This study investigated the relationships among previous experiences of student alienation and the various aspects of self concept. A total of 351 undergraduate students were administered the Student Alienation and Trauma Survey-Revised (SATS-R) and the Tennessee Self Concept Scale: Second Edition (TSCS:2). Students were asked to report on their…

Gifted Elementary Students' Interactions with Female and Male Scientists in a Biochemistry Enrichment Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

She, Candace Hsiao-Ching; Barrow, Lloyd H.

1997-01-01

Examines how gender and self-concept relate to gifted elementary students' participation in a biochemistry enrichment program taught by female and male scientists. Students with low self-concepts asked more questions and received more feedback than students with high self-concepts. Student-initiated questions and gender differences in interaction…

A Cognitive Approach to Threshold Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Guy

2013-01-01

This paper asks a fundamental question: what is happening inside the mind of the undergraduate during teaching and learning experiences, and how should curricula be designed to support it? A number of concepts lend themselves to providing an answer, principle among which is the relatively recent idea of Threshold Concepts. In this paper we attempt…

Deep Understanding of Electromagnetism Using Crosscutting Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

De Poorter, John; De Lange, Jan; Devoldere, Lies; Van Landeghem, Jouri; Strubbe, Katrien

2017-01-01

Crosscutting concepts like patterns and models are fundamental parts in both the American framework of science education (from the AAAS) and our proposals for a new science education framework in Flanders. These concepts deepen the insight of both students and teachers. They help students to ask relevant questions during an inquiry and they give…

Viewing experience and naturalness of 3D images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seuntiëns, Pieter J.; Heynderickx, Ingrid E.; IJsselsteijn, Wijnand A.; van den Avoort, Paul M. J.; Berentsen, Jelle; Dalm, Iwan J.; Lambooij, Marc T.; Oosting, Willem

2005-11-01

The term 'image quality' is often used to measure the performance of an imaging system. Recent research showed however that image quality may not be the most appropriate term to capture the evaluative processes associated with experiencing 3D images. The added value of depth in 3D images is clearly recognized when viewers judge image quality of unimpaired 3D images against their 2D counterparts. However, when viewers are asked to rate image quality of impaired 2D and 3D images, the image quality results for both 2D and 3D images are mainly determined by the introduced artefacts, and the addition of depth in the 3D images is hardly accounted for. In this experiment we applied and tested the more general evaluative concepts of 'naturalness' and 'viewing experience'. It was hypothesized that these concepts would better reflect the added value of depth in 3D images. Four scenes were used varying in dimension (2D and 3D) and noise level (6 levels of white gaussian noise). Results showed that both viewing experience and naturalness were rated higher in 3D than in 2D when the same noise level was applied. Thus, the added value of depth is clearly demonstrated when the concepts of viewing experience and naturalness are being evaluated. The added value of 3D over 2D, expressed in noise level, was 2 dB for viewing experience and 4 dB for naturalness, indicating that naturalness appears the more sensitive evaluative concept for demonstrating the psychological impact of 3D displays.

Teaching Mathematics: Challenging the Sacred Cow of Mathematical Certainty.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borba, Marcelo C.

1992-01-01

Challenges the concept of mathematical certainty and questions whether it is a useful concept for elementary and secondary mathematics curriculum. Encourages teachers to bring this issue into the classroom and ask students to think about it critically. (HB)

Beckham as Physicist?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ireson, Gren

2001-01-01

If football captures the interest of students, it can be used to teach physics. In this case, a Beckham free-kick can be used to introduce concepts such as drag, the Bernoulli principle, Reynolds number, and the Magnus effect by asking the simple question: How does he curve the ball so much? Introduces basic mechanics along the way. (Author/ASK)

Any Questions? Want to Stimulate Student Curiosity? Let Them Ask Questions!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weiss, Tarin Harrar

2013-01-01

Of the eight scientific practices highlighted in "A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas," the first is for students to develop abilities to ask questions and define problems (NRC 2012). Constructing a range of questions about an object or phenomenon validates not only what students have…

Use of Concept Maps as an Assessment Tool in Mechanical Engineering Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tembe, B. L.; Kamble, S. K.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study to investigate, how third year mechanical engineering students are able to use their knowledge of concept maps in their study of the topic of "Introduction to the Internal Combustion Engines (IICE)". 41 students participated in this study. Firstly, the students were taught about concept maps and then asked to…

Teachers' Self-Concept and Valuing of Learning: Relations with Teaching Approaches and Beliefs about Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeung, Alexander S.; Craven, Rhonda G.; Kaur, Gurvinder

2014-01-01

One's self-concept and value perceptions can significantly influence one's behaviours and beliefs. Australian teachers from urban and rural areas of the state of New South Wales were asked to respond to survey items on two predictors (teacher self-concept, valuing of learning) and three outcomes. Confirmatory factor analysis established the five…

Manual and computer-aided materials selection for industrial production: An exercise in decision making

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bates, Seth P.

1990-01-01

Students are introduced to methods and concepts for systematic selection and evaluation of materials which are to be used to manufacture specific products in industry. For this laboratory exercise, students are asked to work in groups to identify and describe a product, then to proceed through the process to select a list of three candidates to make the item from. The exercise draws on knowledge of mechanical, physical, and chemical properties, common materials test techniques, and resource management skills in finding and assessing property data. A very important part of the exercise is the students' introduction to decision making algorithms, and learning how to apply them to a complex decision making process.

Development of inquiry behavior in concept identification.

PubMed

Vassilopoulos, C A; Dickerson, D J

1992-08-01

We studied inquiry behavior in concept identification in first-, fifth-, eighth-grade, and college students with problems involving eight four-letter strings. The task was to identify the correct string by asking questions related to either one letter or four letters that were answered by yes or no. Processing demands were manipulated by comparing (a) a condition in which letter strings were removed from view as feedback eliminated them as possible solutions with a condition in which strings remained in view and (b) problems that were structured so that relevant letter categories were easy to identify with problems that were not. Problem solving generally improved with age. First graders tended to ask questions that eliminated solutions one by one, whereas the older groups asked more informative questions. At the three upper grade levels, strategies for selecting queries were adapted to situations, with less demanding strategies being used when processing demands were higher.

Teaching chemistry concepts using differentiated instruction via tiered labs and activity menus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Collins, Betsy C.

Today's high school classrooms are composed of students with different levels of knowing and ways of understanding. Differentiating the type of work that they are asked to do to achieve the same objective is one way to meet each student's special circumstances on a somewhat equal playing field. By doing so, students are being challenged at their level rather than just blindly going through the same motions that they see others around them doing. Offering students choices to better understand a concept places the student in the driver seat of their educational journey. The purpose of this research project was to design and implement choice activities within the chemistry classroom to more appropriately teach and assess chemistry concepts and assess understanding of those concepts. These choice activities included tiered-laboratory investigations and activity menus. This project was implemented over the course of two trimesters in a high school chemistry classroom. Topics covered included calculating and interpreting density and applying significant figures, calculating and interpreting percent composition with the mole concept, and stoichiometry. The effectiveness of the tiered-labs and activity menus were evaluated using pre and post test comparisons, student surveys, and general in-class observations. Gains in conceptual understanding and student motivation were documented. These findings indicated that allowing choice and leveling of skills to achieve the same conceptual understanding promoted student learning and the overall enjoyment and motivation for learning.

Conceptions of Trust: How Designers Approach Usable Privacy and Security

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Birge, Colin

2013-01-01

Designers who create user interfaces are frequently required to ask users for personal information. For the user, this is a "trust question": Do I, the user, trust the system or entity that is asking me for this information? The creation and management of these trust questions is an important aspect of the research field called usable…

Communicating Microbiology Concepts from Multiple Contexts through Poster Presentations †

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

Accredited environmental engineering degrees require graduates to be able to apply their scholarship to concepts of professional practice and design. This transferable skill of relating what you learn in one setting to another situation is vital for all professions, not just engineering. A course project involving designing and presenting a professional poster was implemented to enhance student mastery in Environmental Engineering Microbiology while also developing communication and transferable skills vital for all majors. Students were asked to read a contemporary non-fiction book relating to microbiology and expand upon the book’s thesis by integrating course content, news articles, and peer-reviewed journal articles. They then were required to present this information in class using a professional poster. Students felt the project allowed them to synthesize and organize information, analyze ideas, and integrate ideas from various sources. These transferable skills are vital for students and professionals alike to be able to communicate advanced information and master a topic. PMID:29904521

The Grammar of Exchange: A Comparative Study of Reciprocal Constructions Across Languages

PubMed Central

Majid, Asifa; Evans, Nicholas; Gaby, Alice; Levinson, Stephen C.

2010-01-01

Cultures are built on social exchange. Most languages have dedicated grammatical machinery for expressing this. To demonstrate that statistical methods can also be applied to grammatical meaning, we here ask whether the underlying meanings of these grammatical constructions are based on shared common concepts. To explore this, we designed video stimuli of reciprocated actions (e.g., “giving to each other”) and symmetrical states (e.g., “sitting next to each other”), and with the help of a team of linguists collected responses from 20 languages around the world. Statistical analyses revealed that many languages do, in fact, share a common conceptual core for reciprocal meanings but that this is not a universally expressed concept. The recurrent pattern of conceptual packaging found across languages is compatible with the view that there is a shared non-linguistic understanding of reciprocation. But, nevertheless, there are considerable differences between languages in the exact extensional patterns, highlighting that even in the domain of grammar semantics is highly language-specific. PMID:21713188

Mobility disorders and pain, interrelations that need new research concepts and advanced clinical commitments

PubMed Central

Sajer, Sascha

2017-01-01

This Perspective will discuss topics recently suggested by Prof. Helmut Kern, Vienna, Austria, to advance the research activities of his team, that is: Topic A, 10 years post RISE; Topic B, New research for new solutions on old research questions; Topic C, Working groups on nerve regeneration, training-parameters of seniors in different ages, muscle adaptation; and studies of connective tissue and cartilage. This Perspective summarizes some of the basic concepts and of the evidence-based tools for developing further translational research activities. Clinically relevant results will ask for continuous interests of Basic and Applied Myologists and for the support during the next five to ten years of public and private granting agencies. All together, they will end in protocols, devices and multidisciplinary managements for persons suffering with muscle denervation, neuromuscular-related or non-related pain and for the increasing population of old, older and oldest senior citizens in Europe and beyond. PMID:29299226

Using the Concept Map Technique in Teaching Introductory Cell Biology to College Freshmen

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yarden, Hagit; Marbach-Ad, Gili; Gershoni, Jonathan M.

2004-01-01

In our study, we focused on the conceptual understanding of the concepts and processes presented in the first lectures of an introductory course in cellular biology for biology majors. The study topic we considered was, "the structure of DNA and the functions of nucleotides". One hundred and eighteen students were asked to prepare concept maps…

The Concept of the Earth's Shape: A Study of Conceptual Change in Childhood. Technical Report No. 467.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vosniadou, Stella; Brewer, William F.

This paper presents the results of an experiment which investigated elementary school children's concept of the earth's shape and the related concept of gravity. First, third, and fifth grade children were asked a series of factual, explanatory, and generative questions in an attempt to understand as clearly as possible the way they conceptualized…

Variation of SNOMED CT coding of clinical research concepts among coding experts.

PubMed

Andrews, James E; Richesson, Rachel L; Krischer, Jeffrey

2007-01-01

To compare consistency of coding among professional SNOMED CT coders representing three commercial providers of coding services when coding clinical research concepts with SNOMED CT. A sample of clinical research questions from case report forms (CRFs) generated by the NIH-funded Rare Disease Clinical Research Network (RDCRN) were sent to three coding companies with instructions to code the core concepts using SNOMED CT. The sample consisted of 319 question/answer pairs from 15 separate studies. The companies were asked to select SNOMED CT concepts (in any form, including post-coordinated) that capture the core concept(s) reflected in the question. Also, they were asked to state their level of certainty, as well as how precise they felt their coding was. Basic frequencies were calculated to determine raw level agreement among the companies and other descriptive information. Krippendorff's alpha was used to determine a statistical measure of agreement among the coding companies for several measures (semantic, certainty, and precision). No significant level of agreement among the experts was found. There is little semantic agreement in coding of clinical research data items across coders from 3 professional coding services, even using a very liberal definition of agreement.

Mapping Students' Spoken Conceptions of Equality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anakin, Megan

2013-01-01

This study expands contemporary theorising about students' conceptions of equality. A nationally representative sample of New Zealand students' were asked to provide a spoken numerical response and an explanation as they solved an arithmetic additive missing number problem. Students' responses were conceptualised as acts of communication and…

The Role of Communication in the Professional Socialization Process.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barnett, George A.; Carson, David L.

To explore the professional socialization of technical writers and communicators, 98 professional technical communicators were administered a questionnaire identifying key concepts in the field. On seven occasions, professionals, teachers, and graduate students were asked to estimate how greatly these concepts, together with four additional terms…

On the Problems of Asking for a Definition of Quality in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wittek, Line; Kvernbekk, Tone

2011-01-01

In this article we discuss the problems of asking for a definition of quality in education from a philosophy of language perspective. We take the concept of quality as it appears in higher education discourse as our example. More specifically we discuss the possibility of obtaining a precise, unified definition of quality by addressing the problem…

Children's Self-Documentation and Understanding of the Concepts "Healthy" and "Unhealthy"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reeve, Suzanne; Bell, Philip

2009-01-01

The present paper describes a study in which 13 children aged 9-11 years, of diverse ethnic, linguistic, and socio-economic backgrounds, were asked to use a digital camera and small notebook to document the range of things they consider to be healthy and unhealthy. Using open-ended interview questions, the children were then asked to explain each…

Deep understanding of electromagnetism using crosscutting concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Poorter, John; De Lange, Jan; Devoldere, Lies; Van Landeghem, Jouri; Strubbe, Katrien

2017-01-01

Crosscutting concepts like patterns and models are fundamental parts in both the American framework of science education (from the AAAS) and our proposals for a new science education framework in Flanders. These concepts deepen the insight of both students and teachers. They help students to ask relevant questions during an inquiry and they give an understanding in how scientists built up their scientific theories. We illustrate the didactical possibilities of crosscutting concepts within the field of electromagnetism.

How Healthy Is Our Pond?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sterling, Donna R.; Hargrove, Dori L.

2014-01-01

With crosscutting concepts such as stability and change in the "Next Generation Science Standards," this article was written for those who have wondered how to teach these concepts in a way that is relevant to students. In this investigation, students ask the question, "Why is the pond dirty?" As students investigate the health…

Reconciliation--A Rhetorical Concept/ion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doxtader, Erik

2003-01-01

What is reconciliation? A source of historical puzzlement and contemporary controversy over how to make history, this question asks after those words which constitute a beginning (again), that moment in which endless cycles of conflict give way to the hope for "unity in difference." Concerned with the dynamics of its operation, the present essay…

Cultural Conceptions of Morality: Examining Laypeople's Associations of Moral Character

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vauclair, Christin-Melanie; Wilson, Marc; Fischer, Ronald

2014-01-01

Whether moral conceptions are universal or culture-specific is controversial in moral psychology. One option is to refrain from imposing theoretical constraints and to ask laypeople from different cultures how "they" conceptualize morality. Our article adopts this approach by examining laypeople's associations of moral character in…

Undergraduate Students' Conceptions of Mathematics: An International Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Petocz, Peter; Reid, Anna; Wood, Leigh N.; Smith, Geoff H.; Mather, Glyn; Harding, Ansie; Engelbrecht, Johann; Houston, Ken; Hillel, Joel; Perrett, Gillian

2007-01-01

In this paper, we report on an international study of undergraduate mathematics students; conceptions of mathematics. Almost 1,200 students in five countries completed a short survey including three open-ended questions asking about their views of mathematics and its role in their future studies and planned professions. Responses were analysed…

How Neighborhoods Influence Health: Lessons to be learned from the application of political ecology

PubMed Central

Chitewere, Tendai; Shim, Janet K.; Barker, Judith C.; Yen, Irene H.

2017-01-01

AIM This paper articulates how political ecology can be a useful tool for asking fundamental questions and applying relevant methods to investigate structures that impact relationship between neighborhood and health. Through a narrative analysis, we identify how political ecology can develop our future agendas for neighborhood-health research as it relates to social, political, environmental, and economic structures. Political ecology makes clear the connection between political economy and neighborhood by highlighting the historical and structural processes that produce and maintain social inequality, which affect health and well-being. These concepts encourage researchers to examine how people construct neighborhood and health in different ways that, in turn, can influence different health outcomes and, thus, efforts to address solutions. PMID:28342425

How Neighborhoods Influence Health: Lessons to be learned from the application of political ecology.

PubMed

Chitewere, Tendai; Shim, Janet K; Barker, Judith C; Yen, Irene H

2017-05-01

This paper articulates how political ecology can be a useful tool for asking fundamental questions and applying relevant methods to investigate structures that impact relationship between neighborhood and health. Through a narrative analysis, we identify how political ecology can develop our future agendas for neighborhood-health research as it relates to social, political, environmental, and economic structures. Political ecology makes clear the connection between political economy and neighborhood by highlighting the historical and structural processes that produce and maintain social inequality, which affect health and well-being. These concepts encourage researchers to examine how people construct neighborhood and health in different ways that, in turn, can influence different health outcomes and, thus, efforts to address solutions. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Research into command, control, and communications in space construction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, Randal

1990-01-01

Coordinating and controlling large numbers of autonomous or semi-autonomous robot elements in a space construction activity will present problems that are very different from most command and control problems encountered in the space business. As part of our research into the feasibility of robot constructors in space, the CSC Operations Group is examining a variety of command, control, and communications (C3) issues. Two major questions being asked are: can we apply C3 techniques and technologies already developed for use in space; and are there suitable terrestrial solutions for extraterrestrial C3 problems? An overview of the control architectures, command strategies, and communications technologies that we are examining is provided and plans for simulations and demonstrations of our concepts are described.

Facilitating students' application of the integral and the area under the curve concepts in physics problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Dong-Hai

This research project investigates the difficulties students encounter when solving physics problems involving the integral and the area under the curve concepts and the strategies to facilitate students learning to solve those types of problems. The research contexts of this project are calculus-based physics courses covering mechanics and electromagnetism. In phase I of the project, individual teaching/learning interviews were conducted with 20 students in mechanics and 15 students from the same cohort in electromagnetism. The students were asked to solve problems on several topics of mechanics and electromagnetism. These problems involved calculating physical quantities (e.g. velocity, acceleration, work, electric field, electric resistance, electric current) by integrating or finding the area under the curve of functions of related quantities (e.g. position, velocity, force, charge density, resistivity, current density). Verbal hints were provided when students made an error or were unable to proceed. A total number of 140 one-hour interviews were conducted in this phase, which provided insights into students' difficulties when solving the problems involving the integral and the area under the curve concepts and the hints to help students overcome those difficulties. In phase II of the project, tutorials were created to facilitate students' learning to solve physics problems involving the integral and the area under the curve concepts. Each tutorial consisted of a set of exercises and a protocol that incorporated the helpful hints to target the difficulties that students expressed in phase I of the project. Focus group learning interviews were conducted to test the effectiveness of the tutorials in comparison with standard learning materials (i.e. textbook problems and solutions). Overall results indicated that students learning with our tutorials outperformed students learning with standard materials in applying the integral and the area under the curve concepts to physics problems. The results of this project provide broader and deeper insights into students' problem solving with the integral and the area under the curve concepts and suggest strategies to facilitate students' learning to apply these concepts to physics problems. This study also has significant implications for further research, curriculum development and instruction.

Symbolic Interaction and Applied Social Research

PubMed Central

Kotarba, Joseph A.

2014-01-01

In symbolic interaction, a traditional yet unfortunate and unnecessary distinction has been made between basic and applied research. The argument has been made that basic research is intended to generate new knowledge, whereas applied research is intended to apply knowledge to the solution of practical (social and organizational) problems. I will argue that the distinction between basic and applied research in symbolic interaction is outdated and dysfunctional. The masters of symbolic interactionist thought have left us a proud legacy of shaping their scholarly thinking and inquiry in response to and in light of practical issues of the day (e.g., Znaniecki, and Blumer). Current interactionist work continues this tradition in topical areas such as social justice studies. Applied research, especially in term of evaluation and needs assessment studies, can be designed to serve both basic and applied goals. Symbolic interaction provides three great resources to do this. The first is its orientation to dynamic sensitizing concepts that direct research and ask questions instead of supplying a priori and often impractical answers. The second is its orientation to qualitative methods, and appreciation for the logic of grounded theory. The third is interactionism’s overall holistic approach to interfacing with the everyday life world. The primary illustrative case here is the qualitative component of the evaluation of an NIH-funded, translational medical research program. The qualitative component has provided interactionist-inspired insights into translational research, such as examining cultural change in medical research in terms of changes in the form and content of formal and informal discourse among scientists; delineating the impact of significant symbols such as "my lab" on the social organization of science; and appreciating the essence of the self-concept "scientist" on the increasingly bureaucratic and administrative identities of medical researchers. This component has also contributed to the basic social scientific literature on complex organizations and the self. PMID:25221375

Symbolic Interaction and Applied Social Research: A FOCUS ON TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE RESEARCH1.

PubMed

Kotarba, Joseph A

2014-08-01

In symbolic interaction, a traditional yet unfortunate and unnecessary distinction has been made between basic and applied research. The argument has been made that basic research is intended to generate new knowledge, whereas applied research is intended to apply knowledge to the solution of practical (social and organizational) problems. I will argue that the distinction between basic and applied research in symbolic interaction is outdated and dysfunctional. The masters of symbolic interactionist thought have left us a proud legacy of shaping their scholarly thinking and inquiry in response to and in light of practical issues of the day (e.g., Znaniecki, and Blumer). Current interactionist work continues this tradition in topical areas such as social justice studies. Applied research, especially in term of evaluation and needs assessment studies, can be designed to serve both basic and applied goals. Symbolic interaction provides three great resources to do this. The first is its orientation to dynamic sensitizing concepts that direct research and ask questions instead of supplying a priori and often impractical answers. The second is its orientation to qualitative methods, and appreciation for the logic of grounded theory. The third is interactionism's overall holistic approach to interfacing with the everyday life world. The primary illustrative case here is the qualitative component of the evaluation of an NIH-funded, translational medical research program. The qualitative component has provided interactionist-inspired insights into translational research, such as examining cultural change in medical research in terms of changes in the form and content of formal and informal discourse among scientists; delineating the impact of significant symbols such as "my lab" on the social organization of science; and appreciating the essence of the self-concept "scientist" on the increasingly bureaucratic and administrative identities of medical researchers. This component has also contributed to the basic social scientific literature on complex organizations and the self.

What Are Essential Concepts in "Astronomy 101"? A New Approach to Find Consensus from Two Different Samples of Instructors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zeilik, Michael; Morris-Dueer, Vicki J.

2004-01-01

In the summers of 1997, 1998, and 1999, we gave attendees (N=44) at a workshop called Teaching Astronomy Conceptually a cognitive task: to rank 200 concepts often taught in "Astronomy 101." Prior to these workshops, we asked an expert panel (N=18) of Astronomy 101 teachers to also rank these concepts. Among the workshop participants, the…

Uncovering Astronomy Students’ Understandings of the Age of the Universe: A Literature Review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grundstrom, Erika; Slater, T.; Stassun, K.

2008-05-01

Most education reform documents describing what students should understand about astronomy include concepts surrounding the immense size scale and ancient age of our Universe. If an appreciation for "deep time” is needed to develop mastery of astronomical concepts, then astronomy educators need to become aware of how students, and the general public, think about concepts of immense timescales. As a first step toward addressing this issue, we conducted a survey of the educational research literature on students’ conceptions of long timescales. Most recent research efforts have focused on two strategies. One is to show figures illustrating geologic strata to students who are asked to determine the sequence of events based on the concepts of original horizontality and superposition with younger sediments overlying older sediments. The other research design is to employ a card-sorting technique where people are asked to arrange events in order in relative sequence and sometimes asked to space them on a timeline. The key finding is that students can often place historical events in the correct relative order but are unable to place them with correct relative spacing or accurate absolute dates. Other findings are that current research does not reveal gender or racial biases in student thinking and it does not show that students always distinguish between the Big Bang and the formation of the Sun or Earth. It is clear that researchers in earth science education have not focused on cosmological time frames, only geologic time frames, thus leaving an important deficit in the literature. Prior to turning our attention to curriculum materials development focused on improving student understanding of long timescales in astronomy, we plan to expand these studies to include cosmological events.

Selective optical contacting for solar spectrum management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Jianfeng; Chen, Weijian; Wang, Bo; Zhang, Zhilong; Huang, Shujuan; Shrestha, Santosh; Wen, Xiaoming; Patterson, Robert; Conibeer, Gavin

2017-02-01

Solar spectrum management using up/down conversion is an important method to improve the photovoltaic energy conversion efficiency. It asks for a monochromatic luminescence absorption at the band edge of the photovoltaic device to reduce both the sub-band-gap and over-band-gap energy losses. Here, we demonstrate an energy selective optical contacting concept to improve the luminescence transfer efficiency for spectrum management. By increasing both the luminescence emission and re-absorption ability through photonic resonance, an efficient photon transfer channel could be established between the luminescence emitter and the photovoltaic component in a near-field region. This concept is not only able to compensate the insufficient band edge absorption ability of the photovoltaic device, but also to break the far-field limitation of luminescence radiation. The energy selection on the optical spectrum naturally imposed by the mode resonance is also helpful to improve the monochromaticity of the luminescence yield. In this paper, a photonic crystal cavity is used to realize the optical contacting concept between a thin silicon film and spectrum converter. The optical power and photon flux transferred between different components are calculated analytically using the electromagnetic Green's function. The corresponding radiative dipole moment is estimated by the fluctuation-dissipation theorem. The example shows an over 80 times enhancement in the luminescence absorbance by the silicon layer, illustrating the great potential of this concept to be applied on nano-structured photovoltaic devices.

Development of the Flame Test Concept Inventory: Measuring Student Thinking about Atomic Emission

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bretz, Stacey Lowery; Murata Mayo, Ana Vasquez

2018-01-01

This study reports the development of a 19-item Flame Test Concept Inventory, an assessment tool to measure students' understanding of atomic emission. Fifty-two students enrolled in secondary and postsecondary chemistry courses were interviewed about atomic emission and explicitly asked to explain flame test demonstrations and energy level…

What Do We Make of Design? Design as a Concept in Educational Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Kennon M.; Boling, Elizabeth

2009-01-01

The purpose of the research reported in this article is to identify, where possible, fundamental qualities which tend to be associated with idealized representations of the concept of "design" in educational technology. Accordingly, the authors ask, "What are essential characteristics of design in educational technology, as represented in and…

Concepts of Kinship Relations and Inheritance in Childhood and Adolescence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Joanne M.; Smith, Lesley A.

2010-01-01

This paper examines the development and consistency of children's (4, 7, 10, and 14 years) naive concepts of inheritance using three tasks. A modified adoption task asked participants to distinguish between biological and social parentage in their predictions and explanations of the origins of different feature types (physical characteristics,…

Elementary School Students' Understandings of Technology Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Robert S.; Ginns, Ian S.; McRobbie, Campbell J.

2002-01-01

Students in grades 2 (n=27), 4 (n=37), and 6 (n=28) were asked questions about artifacts or pictures. Their explanations, which revealed their understanding of such technological concepts as material properties and stability, were classified as naive, artifact related, or not artifact related. Explanations tended to cluster in a classification at…

Visualizing Accounting Transaction Flows into Financial Statements

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Daniel J.

2012-01-01

Professors who teach the introductory accounting course should ask themselves: "What are the core concepts that I wish to have my non-majors remember if I meet them at their ten-year alumni class reunion?" There is a fundamental logic to financial accounting. This teaching note presents foundational accounting concepts in a manner that…

Children's and Adolescents' Conceptions of Personhood: A Narrative Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Komolova, Masha; Pasupathi, Monisha; Wainryb, Cecilia; Lucas, Sarah

2017-01-01

Children's and adolescents' narratives of interpersonal experiences can inform our understanding of developmental shifts in the use of personhood concepts. We present results from two studies ("n"s = 90, 112) with children aged five to 16 years. In the first study, children were asked to describe one positive and another negative…

In-Class Incentives that Encourage Students to Take Concept Assessments Seriously

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Michelle; Thomas, Katie; Dunham, Maitreya

2012-01-01

Pre/post concept assessment testing is becoming increasingly common in college courses. Instructors use different approaches to give assessments, but few studies have examined how administration differences affect results. Here, we ask if administering a posttest on the final exam differs from administering it on the last day of class with extra…

"What Happened?" Teaching Attribution Theory through Ambiguous Prompts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McArthur, John

2011-01-01

The concept of attribution, "the act of explaining why something happens or why a person acts a particular way," is typically an abstract concept. This 35-50-minute activity invites students to make a series of attributions by asking them "What happened?" in ambiguous scenes presented in class. Then, students retrospectively identify what…

Questions To Ask and Issues To Consider While Supervising Elementary Mathematics Student Teachers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Philip, Randolph A.

2000-01-01

Presents four questions to consider when supervising elementary mathematics teachers, who come with many preconceptions about teaching and learning mathematics: What mathematical concepts, procedures, or algorithms are you teaching? Are the concepts and procedures part of a unit? What types of questions do you pose? and What understanding of…

The Use of Sequence and Synthesis for Teaching Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frey, Linda; Reigeluth, Charles M.

In order to investigate the effects of sequence and synthesis in the teaching of taxonomically-related concepts, a study was conducted in which 27 students from Syracuse University were asked to examine printed instructions dealing with kinds of sailboats and then to respond to a test based on those instructions. The synthesizing structure…

Blended Learning in Vocational Education: Teachers' Conceptions of Blended Learning and Their Approaches to Teaching and Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bliuc, Ana-Maria; Casey, Grant; Bachfischer, Agnieszka; Goodyear, Peter; Ellis, Robert A.

2012-01-01

This paper presents research exploring teachers' experiences of using blended learning in vocational education. Teachers involved in designing and teaching using blended learning from a major Australian vocational education provider participated in the study. They received open-ended questionnaires asking to describe their conceptions of blended…

Prospective Teachers' Metaphorical Perceptions on the Concept of Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aysegul, Derman; Serdar, Derman

2015-01-01

The aim of this study is to reveal prospective teachers' perceptions of the concept of science by asking them to use metaphors to describe it. A metaphor elicitation method was employed in this study. The data obtained from the study were considered with both quantitative and qualitative (Content Analysis) analyses. The study determined the…

Using Just in Time Teaching in a Global Climate Change Course to Address Misconceptions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schuenemann, K. C.

2013-12-01

Just in Time Teaching (JiTT) is employed in an introductory Global Climate Change college course with the intention of addressing common misconceptions and climate myths. Students enter the course with a variety of prior knowledge and opinions on global warming, and JiTT can be used as a constructivist pedagogical approach to make use of this prior knowledge. Students are asked to watch a short video or do a reading, sometimes screen capture videos created by the professor as review of material from the previous class, a video available on the web from NASA or NOAA, for example, or a reading from an online article or their textbook. After the video or reading, students answer a question carefully designed to pry at a common misconception, or simply are asked for the 'muddiest point' that remains on the concept. This assignment is done the night before class using a web program. The program aggregates the answers in an organized way so the professor can use the answers to design the day's lesson to address common misconceptions or concerns students displayed in their answers, as well as quickly assign participation credit to students who completed the assignment. On the other hand, if students display that they have already mastered the material, the professor can confidently move on to the next concept. The JiTT pedagogical method personalizes each lecture period to the students in that particular class for maximum efficiency while catching and fixing misconceptions in a timely manner. This technique requires students to spend time with the material outside of class, acts as review of important concepts, and increases engagement in class due to the personalization of the course. Evaluation results from use of this technique will be presented. Examples of successful JiTT videos, questions, student answers, and techniques for addressing misconceptions during lecture will also be presented with the intention that instructors can easily apply this technique to their next course.

Academic freedom, analysis, and the Code of Professional Conduct.

PubMed

Snelling, Paul C; Lipscomb, Martin

2004-11-01

Despite nursing's move into higher education, academic freedom has received little attention within the literature. After discussing the concept of academic freedom, this paper argues that there is a potential tension between academic freedom and the requirement to educate student nurses who are fit for practice. One way in which this tension might be revealed is in the marking of student assignments. We ask the question--how should nurse educators mark an essay which is sufficiently analytical but reaches moral conclusions that lie outside the Code of Professional Conduct? We argue that despite an understandable temptation to penalise such an essay, invoking the Code of Professional Conduct to do so, no penalty should be applied, and academic freedom for students within higher education should be encouraged. This is because first, academic freedom is a good in itself especially as it allows unconventional and unpalatable conclusions to be discussed and rebutted, and second, applying a penalty on these grounds is necessarily inconsistent.

77 FR 30349 - Alderox, Inc., Applied Solar, Inc., Artes Medical, Inc., AskMeNow, Inc., Blink Logic Inc., and...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-22

... SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [File No. 500-1] Alderox, Inc., Applied Solar, Inc., Artes Medical, Inc., AskMeNow, Inc., Blink Logic Inc., and Convergence Ethanol, Inc.; Order of Suspension of... Blink Logic Inc. because it has not filed any periodic reports since the period ended June 30, 2009. It...

Why change habits? Early modern medical innovation between medicalisation and medical culture.

PubMed

Loetz, Francisca

2010-01-01

Based on a discussion of the concept of medicalisation and medical culture in Anglo-American, French-, and German-speaking historiography the paper argues that medical innovation in Europe from the sixteenth to the mid-nineteenth century should be approached in a different way. Instead of asking from the perspective of a too narrow concept of medicalisation why medical innovations were rejected by the population, (medical) historians should analyse medical culture and ask why people should have changed their health and illness behaviour. This conceptual argument is deduced from four empirical examples: the introduction of smallpox vaccination, "medical police," the problem of medical professionalization, and the questions arising around the relations between the healthy/sick and their practitioners.

Social Facilitation Effects by Pedagogical Conversational Agent: Lexical Network Analysis in an Online Explanation Task

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hayashi, Yugo

2015-01-01

The present study investigates web-based learning activities of undergraduate students who generate explanations about a key concept taught in a large-scale classroom. The present study used an online system with Pedagogical Conversational Agent (PCA), asked to explain about the key concept from different points and provided suggestions and…

An Investigation of K-8 Preservice Teachers' Concept Images and Mathematical Definitions of Polygons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Robin A.

2004-01-01

In this paper, the author presents a study which explored K-8 preservice teachers' concept images and mathematical definitions of polygons. This study was carried out in which K-8 teacher candidates enrolled in an elementary mathematics content course were asked to sort, identify, and provide definitions of such shapes including triangles,…

Bringing Forth Mathematical Concepts: Signifying Sensorimotor Enactment in Fields of Promoted Action

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abrahamson, Dor; Tminic, Dragan

2015-01-01

Inspired by Enactivist philosophy yet in dialog with it, we ask what theory of embodied cognition might best serve in articulating implications of Enactivism for mathematics education. We offer a blend of Dynamical Systems Theory and Sociocultural Theory as an analytic lens on micro-processes of action-to-concept evolution. We also illustrate the…

Algorithmic Contexts and Learning Potentiality: A Case Study of Students' Understanding of Calculus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pettersson, Kerstin; Scheja, Max

2008-01-01

The study explores the nature of students' conceptual understanding of calculus. Twenty students of engineering were asked to reflect in writing on the meaning of the concepts of limit and integral. A sub-sample of four students was selected for subsequent interviews, which explored in detail the students' understandings of the two concepts.…

College Students' Conceptions of Stem Cells, Stem Cell Research, and Cloning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Concannon, James P.; Siegel, Marcelle A.; Halverson, Kristy; Freyermuth, Sharyn

2010-01-01

In this study, we examined 96 undergraduate non-science majors' conceptions of stem cells, stem cell research, and cloning. This study was performed at a large, Midwest, research extensive university. Participants in the study were asked to answer 23 questions relating to stem cells, stem cell research, and cloning in an on-line assessment before…

Perceptions of Leadership: An Examination of College Students' Understandings of the Concept of Leadership

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haber, Paige

2012-01-01

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to examine how college students define the concept of leadership and to identify gender, racial, and age differences within these definitions. Participants were 1100 undergraduate students drawn from a national sample. Participants were asked to detail their definitions of leadership, which were analyzed…

Turkish Primary Students' Conceptions about the Particulate Nature of Matter

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozmen, Haluk

2011-01-01

This study was conducted to determine 4th, 5th, and 6th grade primary students' conceptions about the particulate nature of matter in daily-life events. Five questions were asked of students and interviews were used to collect data. The interviews were conducted with 12 students, four students from each grade, after they finished the formal…

Design of Tasks for Online Assessment That Supports Understanding of Students' Conceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yerushalmy, Michal; Nagari-Haddif, Galit; Olsher, Shai

2017-01-01

In the present study, we ask whether and how online assessment can inform teaching about students' understanding of advanced concepts. Our main goal is to illustrate how we study design of tasks that support reliable online formative assessment by automatically analyzing the objects and relations that characterize the students' submissions. We aim…

Pre-Service Teachers' Metaphorical Perceptions Regarding the Concept of Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akinoglu, Orhan

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to reveal pre-service teachers' perceptions regarding the concept of "curriculum" through metaphors. Phenomenology, which is one of the qualitative research designs, was used in the study. Data of the study was obtained by asking a total of 123 pre-service teachers, including 84 females and 39 males and…

An Examination of Conceptualization of Sport Metaphors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dervent, Fatih

2016-01-01

This study examined the metaphors that were used by athletes, coaches, faculty members, and sport managers to describe the concept of "sport". Participants (N = 473) were asked to reveal the single metaphor they had in minds in the sense of the concept of sport by the prompt "Sport is like … because …" 22 valid metaphors were…

Gender Differences in Preschoolers' Understanding of the Concept of Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schroeder, Meadow; Graham, Susan A.; McKeough, Anne; Stock, Hayli; Palmer, Jaime

2010-01-01

This study investigated gender differences in North American preschoolers' biological reasoning about the concept of "life". Four-year-olds (M = 4.6, SD = 3.3 months) and five-year-olds (M = 5.6, SD = 3.8 months) were asked about the function of 13 body parts, organs, and bodily processes. Results indicated that the likelihood of…

Development of the Kinetic Molecular Theory of Gases Concept Inventory: Preliminary Results on University Students' Misconceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erceg, Nataša; Aviani, Ivica; Mešic, Vanes; Gluncic, Matko; Žauhar, Gordana

2016-01-01

In this study, we investigated students' understanding of concepts related to the microscopic model of gas. We thoroughly reviewed the relevant literature and conducted think alouds with students by asking them to answer open-ended questions about the kinetic molecular theory of gases. Thereafter, we transformed the open-ended questions into…

Key concepts and methods in social vulnerability and adaptive capacity

Treesearch

Daniel J. Murphy; Carina Wyborn; Laurie Yung; Daniel R. Williams

2015-01-01

National forests have been asked to assess how climate change will impact nearby human communities. To assist their thinking on this topic, we examine the concepts of social vulnerability and adaptive capacity with an emphasis on a range of theoretical and methodological approaches. This analysis is designed to help researchers and decision-makers select appropriate...

Metaphorical Conceptualizations of Football Coach through Social Cognitive Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dervent, Fatih; Inan, Mehmet

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the metaphors which were used to describe the concept "football coach" by some stakeholders in football, such as players, club officials and referees. Each individual (N = 389) within the study group was asked to reveal the single metaphor s/he has in mind in respect of the concept of football…

Learning in the Learner's Perspective. I. Some Common-Sense Conceptions. No. 76.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saljo, Roger

Ninety Swedish teenagers and adults with varying levels of formal education were interviewed about their own learning experiences and techniques. Subjects were then asked what they actually meant by learning. The concept was variously defined as: (1) an increase in knowledge (merely a synonym for the word learning); (2) memorizing; (3) an…

Must a Developed Democratic State Fully Resource Any Tertiary Education for Its Citizens?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scholes, Vanessa

2014-01-01

This article takes a parsimonious conception of a developed State operating under a minimalist conception of democracy and asks whether such a State must fully resource any tertiary (post-compulsory) education for its citizens A key public policy barrier to arguing an absolute obligation for the State to resource any tertiary education is…

Children's multiplicative transformations of discrete and continuous quantities.

PubMed

Barth, Hilary; Baron, Andrew; Spelke, Elizabeth; Carey, Susan

2009-08-01

Recent studies have documented an evolutionarily primitive, early emerging cognitive system for the mental representation of numerical quantity (the analog magnitude system). Studies with nonhuman primates, human infants, and preschoolers have shown this system to support computations of numerical ordering, addition, and subtraction involving whole number concepts prior to arithmetic training. Here we report evidence that this system supports children's predictions about the outcomes of halving and perhaps also doubling transformations. A total of 138 kindergartners and first graders were asked to reason about the quantity resulting from the doubling or halving of an initial numerosity (of a set of dots) or an initial length (of a bar). Controls for dot size, total dot area, and dot density ensured that children were responding to the number of dots in the arrays. Prior to formal instruction in symbolic multiplication, division, or rational number, halving (and perhaps doubling) computations appear to be deployed over discrete and possibly continuous quantities. The ability to apply simple multiplicative transformations to analog magnitude representations of quantity may form a part of the toolkit that children use to construct later concepts of rational number.

Evolution and the American social sciences: An evolutionary social scientist's view.

PubMed

Thayer, Bradley A

2004-03-01

American social scientists rarely ever use evolutionary concepts to explain behavior, despite the potential of such concepts to elucidate major social problems. I argue that this observation can be understood as the product of three influences: an ideologically narrowed political liberalism; a fear of ''Social Darwinism'' as a scientific idea, rather than a scientific apostasy; and a widely believed criticism of evolutionary thinking as deterministic, reductionistic, and Panglossian. I ask what is to be done to encourage social scientists to learn and to apply evolutionary lessons. I answer with four solutions. First, evolutionary social scientists should more effectively educate their non-evolutionary students and colleagues. Second, they should publicize, even popularize, accessible refutations of perennially misleading criticisms. Third, they should more credibly assure skeptics that evolutionary theory not only keeps the ''social'' in social science but better explains social behavior than can any individual-level theory, such as rational-choice theory. Fourth, they should recall that biology took generations to become Darwinian, and they must understand that the social sciences may take as long to become evolutionary.

A Worksheet to Enhance Students’ Conceptual Understanding in Vector Components

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wutchana, Umporn; Emarat, Narumon

2017-09-01

With and without physical context, we explored 59 undergraduate students’conceptual and procedural understanding of vector components using both open ended problems and multiple choice items designed based on research instruments used in physics education research. The results showed that a number of students produce errors and revealed alternative conceptions especially when asked to draw graphical form of vector components. It indicated that most of them did not develop a strong foundation of understanding in vector components and could not apply those concepts to such problems with physical context. Based on the findings, we designed a worksheet to enhance the students’ conceptual understanding in vector components. The worksheet is composed of three parts which help students to construct their own understanding of definition, graphical form, and magnitude of vector components. To validate the worksheet, focus group discussions of 3 and 10 graduate students (science in-service teachers) had been conducted. The modified worksheet was then distributed to 41 grade 9 students in a science class. The students spent approximately 50 minutes to complete the worksheet. They sketched and measured vectors and its components and compared with the trigonometry ratio to condense the concepts of vector components. After completing the worksheet, their conceptual model had been verified. 83% of them constructed the correct model of vector components.

43 CFR 2884.22 - Can BLM ask me for additional information?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Can BLM ask me for additional information? 2884.22 Section 2884.22 Public Lands: Interior Regulations Relating to Public Lands (Continued) BUREAU... THE MINERAL LEASING ACT Applying for MLA Grants or TUPs § 2884.22 Can BLM ask me for additional...

43 CFR 2884.22 - Can BLM ask me for additional information?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Can BLM ask me for additional information? 2884.22 Section 2884.22 Public Lands: Interior Regulations Relating to Public Lands (Continued) BUREAU... THE MINERAL LEASING ACT Applying for MLA Grants or TUPs § 2884.22 Can BLM ask me for additional...

Asking Questions as a Key Strategy in Guiding a Novice Teacher: A Self-Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olsher, Gila; Kantor, Itay-Danny

2012-01-01

This self-study explores the instruction of a novice teacher by an expert mentor teacher, while applying the strategy of asking questions instead of the more common pattern of giving advice and guidance in the form of telling. The study examines the educational potential embedded in the question-asking strategy as a key mentoring resource when…

NASA's Astro-Venture Engages Exceptional Students in Earth System Science Using Inquiry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oguinn, C.

2003-12-01

Astro-Venture is an educational, interactive, multimedia Web environment highlighting NASA careers and astrobiology research in the areas of Astronomy, Geology, Biology and Atmospheric Sciences. Students in grades 5-8 role-play NASA careers, as they search for and design a planet with the necessary characteristics for human habitation. Astro-Venture uses online multimedia activities and off-line inquiry explorations to engage students in guided inquiry aligned with the 5 E inquiry model. This model has proven to be effective with exceptional students. Students are presented with the intellectual confrontation of how to design a planet and star system that would be able to meet their biological survival needs. This provides a purpose for the online and off-line explorations used throughout the site. Students first explore "what" conditions are necessary to support human habitability by engaging in multimedia training modules, which allow them to change astronomical, atmospheric, geological and biological aspects of the Earth and our star system and to view the effects of these changes on Earth. By focusing on Earth, students draw on their prior knowledge, which helps them to connect their new knowledge to their existing schema. Cause and effect relationships of Earth provide a concrete model from which students can observe patterns and generalize abstract results to an imagined planet. From these observations, students draw conclusions about what aspects allowed Earth to remain habitable. Once students have generalized needed conditions of "what" we need for a habitable planet, they conduct further research in off-line, standards-based classroom activities that also follow the inquiry model and help students to understand "why" we need these conditions. These lessons focus on standards-based concepts such as states of matter and the structure and movement of the Earth's interior. These lessons follow the inquiry structure commonly referred to as the five E's as follows: Engage: Draws on students' prior knowledge, builds on previous lesson concepts, introduces the purpose of the lesson and the scientific question which is the problem or intellectual confrontation they will explore. Explore: Students form hypotheses and conduct an exploration that will help them to collect data and evidence to answer the scientific question. Explain: Students reflect on the explore activity by recording their results and conclusions. They participate in guided discussions or activities that help to guide their understanding of the concepts. Extend/Apply: Students demonstrate their understanding of the concept and/or apply it to another situation. Evaluate: Students are evaluated on their understanding of the concept often using rubrics. After students have mastered the "whats" and "whys," they engage in multimedia mission modules that simulate "how" scientists might search for a planet and star system that meets these requirements using the inquiry process. Students are first asked to hypothesize the likelihood of finding a star system that meets these requirements. They then simulate the methods scientists might use to collect data on various stars and planets to deduce whether the star system meets the requirements for habitability or not. After collecting and analyzing this data, students are asked to draw conclusions in comparing their results to their initial hypothesis. Students apply all that they've learned to design a planet that meets the requirements for human habitability in all areas. Through this process, they learn that Earth works as a system in meeting our needs.

Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Judgment, but Were Afraid to Ask!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Priest, Simon

1990-01-01

Outdoor leaders with sound judgment can gather many specific experiences, induce them into a collection of general concepts, store these as memory maps in the mind, later recall the general concepts as needed, and deduce a specific prediction from them. Proposes that evaluative reflection after a judgment is made is the component missing from most…

Application of Core Science Concepts Using Digital Video: A "Hands-On" Laptop Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jarvinen, Michael Keith; Jarvinen, Lamis Zaher; Sheehan, Danielle N.

2012-01-01

Today's undergraduates are highly engaged in a variety of social media outlets. Given their comfort with technology, we wondered if we could use this phenomenon to teach science-related material. We asked students to use freeware to make a short video with text, images, and music as a way to explain scientific concepts that are traditionally…

Philosophy for Children Meets the Art of Living: A Holistic Approach to an Education for Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

D'Olimpio, Laura; Teschers, Christoph

2016-01-01

This article explores the meeting of two approaches towards philosophy and education: the philosophy for children (P4C) approach advocated by Lipman and others, and Schmid's (2000a) philosophical concept of" Lebenskunst" (the art of living). Schmid explores the concept of the beautiful or good life by asking what is necessary for each…

Academic Self-Concept and Causal Attributions for Success and Failure Amongst Elementary School Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lohbeck, Annette; Grube, Dietmar; Moschner, Barbara

2017-01-01

A great deal of research shows that the way in which children attribute causes to their successes and failures in school has implications for the development of their academic self-concept (ASC). The most common attributions are ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck. The present study asked 68 elementary school children aged seven to eight…

Starting and Teaching Basic Robotics in the Classroom: Modern, Engaging Engineering in Technology Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bianco, Andrew S.

2014-01-01

All technology educators have favorite lessons and projects that they most desire to teach. Many teachers might ask why teach robotics when there are many other concepts to cover with the students? The answer to this question is to engage students in science, technology, engineering, and math (commonly referred to as STEM) concepts. In order for…

The Development of the Concept of "Matter": A Cross-Age Study of How Children Describe Materials

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krnel, Dusan; Watson, Rod; Glazar, Sasa A.

2005-01-01

The development of the concept of matter was explored by interviewing 84 children aged 3-13 in Slovenia. Children were asked to describe objects and substances placed in front of them. Children's responses were coded and explored for patterns indicating development with age. The patterns of responses indicate that by acting on objects and…

The Self-Concepts of Children From Intact and Divorced Families: Can They Be Affected in School Settings?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parish, Thomas S.; Philip, Mary K.

1982-01-01

Seventeen teachers received inservice instructions regarding Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and then were asked to assess their students' needs and attempt to fulfill them to the very best of their ability. Of the 376 grade-school students, only children from intact families adopted significantly more positive self-concepts from the experience.…

Exploring Students' Conceptions of Science Learning via Drawing: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsieh, Wen-Min; Tsai, Chin-Chung

2017-01-01

This cross-sectional study explored students' conceptions of science learning via drawing analysis. A total of 906 Taiwanese students in 4th, 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th grade were asked to use drawing to illustrate how they conceptualise science learning. Students' drawings were analysed using a coding checklist to determine the presence or absence…

The Outcomes of Learning from the Social Science Foundation Course: Students' Understandings of Price Control, Power and Oligopoly.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, Elizabeth; And Others

Students' understandings of the concepts of price control, oligopoly, and power before, during, and after taking a social science foundation course (D101) at Great Britain's Open University were investigated. Students were asked 10 questions on key concepts taught in the course. Three of the questions are addressed: (1) Why doesn't the…

Learning Illustrated: An Exploratory Cross-Sectional Drawing Analysis of Students' Conceptions of Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsieh, Wen-Min; Tsai, Chin-Chung

2018-01-01

Using the draw-a-picture technique, the authors explored the learning conceptions held by students across grade levels. A total of 1,067 Taiwanese students in Grades 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 participated in this study. Participants were asked to use drawing to illustrate how they conceptualize learning. A coding checklist was developed to analyze…

In the Beginning Was the Other: Lacanian Psychoanalysis and Its Implications for Educational Research Method

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hyldgaard, Kirsten

2009-01-01

In much of educational philosophy and sciences the fundamental concepts are the subject conceived of as conscious and constituting and the learning process conceived of as a matter of cognition. This article asks what the effect would be on educational research method and educational theory in general if the fundamental concept were the subject in…

Size Is Big or Little: An Approach to the Dimensionality of Children's Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Webb, Roger A.

This paper reports a study carried out with 14 children (ranging in age from 2.8 to 3.5 years) which investigated children's concepts of difference. Pairs of small objects differing on a number of dimensions were presented to the children. As each pair of objects was presented, children were asked to select the object that was…

Examining Student Conceptions of Covariation: A Focus on the Line of Best Fit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Casey, Stephanie A.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this research study was to learn about students' conceptions concerning the line of best fit just prior to their introduction to the topic. Task-based interviews were conducted with thirty-three students, focused on five tasks that asked them to place the line of best fit on a scatterplot and explain their reasoning throughout the…

[Knowledge retain of BLS and BLS-D theoretical contents in a long-term follow-up].

PubMed

Paolini, Enrico; Conti, Elettra; Guerra, Federico; Capucci, Alessandro

2018-03-01

Despite the many recent improvements in basic life support (BLS) and the widespread training to a great number of lay rescuers, out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is still a major cause of death. Nowadays, BLS teaching protocols ask for many concepts to be learned and specific algorithms to be applied, without any available data on how much all these inputs are retained by the students. The present survey aims to evaluate how BLS is really retained by those rescuers (laypersons and nurses) who do not often put it into practice. The first survey was targeted at laypersons who are responsible for security in their work environment. The second survey was targeted at nurses operating in low-intensity wards or out-of-hospital clinics. Both surveys were anonymous and asked specific questions aimed at evaluating how BLS/BLS-D (BLS and defibrillation) information was retained on an average of 3 years after training completion. Lay rescuers showed difficulties in recognizing specific signs of OHCA, were unsure on when to call the emergency medical service and retained few and sometime erroneous information on the correct BLS sequence to perform. The nurses operating in low-intensity settings performed better in terms of OHCA recognition and advanced medical assistance activation, while how to set and operate an automatic external defibrillation was seldom clear. BLS information is usually not retained after a 3-year follow-up by people who are not involved in OHCA management as part of their everyday job. It should be useful to lower the number of concepts taught in current BLS courses in order to focus on the most significant aspects of it, such as prompt emergency medical system activation and early defibrillation.

Socio-Political-Cultural Foundations of Environmental Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKeown-Ice, Rosalyn; Dendinger, Roger

2000-01-01

Identifies social science concepts that are prerequisite for understanding or analyzing environmental issues through a review of social science textbooks and educational materials, and interviews with social scientists. (Author/ASK)

Concept identification for a power take-off shielding campaign.

PubMed

Tinc, P J; Madden, E; Park, S; Weil, R; Sorensen, J A

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT Machinery entanglements, specifically power take-off (PTO) entanglements, are a leading cause of injuries and fatalities on farms. In order to address this life-threatening issue, a social marketing campaign is being developed to reduce barriers and emphasize motivators to shielding. This article discusses the process of designing, testing, and selecting concepts to be used in the campaign. Small-group discussions (triads) were held to test 13 message concepts. Participants were asked to provide feedback and select the two messages that they believed to be most powerful. Upon completion, three message concepts were selected to be finalized.

76 FR 7575 - National Cancer Institute; Notice of Meeting

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-02-10

... Budget Presentations; Reports of Special Initiatives; RFA and RFP Concept Reviews; and Scientific..., hotel, and airport shuttles will be inspected before being allowed on campus. Visitors will be asked to...

The Protozoa, A Kingdom By Default?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blackwell, Will H.; Powell, Martha J.

2001-01-01

Changes in the concepts of kingdoms of organisms are substantial and Protozoa is loosely characterized. Presents a case explaining how Protozoa interface with other kingdoms of organisms now recognized. (Contains 55 references.) (ASK)

A Study of Faculty Perception of the Implementation of the Articulated Faculty Concept. Self-Study Report No. 3. Institutional Research Series 1981.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zimmerman, Woodford W.

In 1975 and 1981, surveys were conducted at the Lima regional campus of Ohio State University (OSU) to determine the perceptions of tenured and nontenured faculty with regard to the articulated faculty concept, whereby regional campus instructors are fully affiliated with academic departments at the OSU central campus. Faculty were asked to…

Lay Concepts of the Relative Importance of Different Influences on Health; Are There Major Socio-Demographic Variations?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Macintyre, Sally; McKay, Laura; Ellaway, Anne

2006-01-01

There is an extensive literature within anthropology, sociology and psychology about lay concepts of determinants of health and illness. Many of these studies have used single sex or social class samples, often in narrow age bands, and many are qualitative in approach. We asked respondents in a health survey to say how important (on a five-point…

The Relationship between Students' Perception of the Scientific Models and Their Alternative Conceptions of the Lunar Phases

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Su-Kyeong

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to reveal whether there were differences in the understanding of scientific models according to their conceptions of lunar phases. The participants were 252 10th grader in South Korea. They were asked to respond SUMS (Students Understanding of Models in Science) instrument and to draw and explain why the different lunar…

An Open Task to Promote Students to Create Statistical Concepts through Modelling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Albarracín, Lluís; Aymerich, Àngels; Gorgorió, Núria

2017-01-01

This article reports on the solutions of a group of 22 students, aged 15/16 years old, when facing a statistical modelling activity. They were given the salary lists of 5 companies and were asked what could be said about their salary structure; no hint was given. The results show that students not only used a wide range of data concepts and…

Effects of University Education on the Conception of Reality. Reports from the Institute of Education, University of Goteborg.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dahlgren, Lars Owe

The effects of university education in economics on students' conceptions of economic aspects of their everyday life were studied. A random sample of 15 beginninq students at the University of Goteborg, Sweden, were interviewed before and after the course. Ten questions were asked that were taken from the students' everyday life and brought out…

Assessing Prospective Chemistry Teachers' Understanding of Gases through Qualitative and Quantitative Analyses of Their Concept Maps

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kibar, Zeynep Bak; Yaman, Fatma; Ayas, Alipasa

2013-01-01

The use of concept mapping as a tool to measure the meaningful learning of students is the focus of this study. The study was carried out with 24 last year students (22 years old) from the Department of Chemistry Teaching at Fatih Faculty of Education, Karadeniz Technical University (KTU). Prospective Chemistry Teachers (PCT) were asked to create…

MEASURING EVERYDAY RACIAL/ETHNIC DISCRIMINATION IN HEALTH SURVEYS: How Best to Ask the Questions, in One or Two Stages, Across Multiple Racial/Ethnic Groups?

PubMed

Shariff-Marco, Salma; Breen, Nancy; Landrine, Hope; Reeve, Bryce B; Krieger, Nancy; Gee, Gilbert C; Williams, David R; Mays, Vickie M; Ponce, Ninez A; Alegría, Margarita; Liu, Benmei; Willis, Gordon; Johnson, Timothy P

2011-01-01

While it is clear that self-reported racial/ethnic discrimination is related to illness, there are challenges in measuring self-reported discrimination or unfair treatment. In the present study, we evaluate the psychometric properties of a self-reported instrument across racial/ ethnic groups in a population-based sample, and we test and interpret findings from applying two different widely-used approaches to asking about discrimination and unfair treatment. Even though we found that the subset of items we tested tap into a single underlying concept, we also found that different groups are more likely to report on different aspects of discrimination. Whether race is mentioned in the survey question affects both frequency and mean scores of reports of racial/ethnic discrimination. Our findings suggest caution to researchers when comparing studies that have used different approaches to measure racial/ethnic discrimination and allow us to suggest practical empirical guidelines for measuring and analyzing racial/ethnic discrimination. No less important, we have developed a self-reported measure of recent racial/ethnic discrimination that functions well in a range of different racial/ethnic groups and makes it possible to compare how racial/ethnic discrimination is associated with health disparities among multiple racial/ethnic groups.

Analysis of astronomical concepts presented by students of the Federal Institute of São Paulo - Cubatão Campus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moraes, A. C.; Voelzke, M. R.; de Macedo, J. A.

2016-04-01

This article reports the results of a survey of proficiency in astronomy, conducted among students of the Course of Technology in Industrial Automation at the São Paulo Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology at the Cubatão campus. In order to assess the level of the students' prior knowledge, they were asked to fill out a questionnaire with twenty-five basic questions. This first step revealed the scant proficiency the students obtained both in elementary and high school. In order to correct this serious shortcoming, a course in astronomy was applied- additionally to the official content program - containing attendance lessons and videos. In a second step, the students' answers were analyzed again, and it was verified that there was a significant improvement in their learning.

Courtesy in caring. The patient as customer.

PubMed

DeBaca, V

1990-01-01

If you were paying $500 a night for a hotel room,. would you be happy if you were told you would be sharing it with a stranger? While such a question cannot be literally asked about a hospital experience, metaphorically it can be--and is--asked every time a patient enters a hospital. The idea of patient-as-consumer is not longer just another trendy concept but an integral part of the way many hospitals do business, and it's the hospital manager's responsibility to ensure the customer's satisfaction.

Asking a Great Question: A Librarian Teaches Questioning Skills to First-Year Medical Students.

PubMed

Adams, Nancy E

2015-01-01

In a single one-hour session, first-year medical students were taught a framework for differentiating between lower-order questions that lead to knowledge of facts and higher-order questions that lead to integration of concepts and deeper learning, thereby preparing them for problem-based learning (PBL). Students generated lists of questions in response to an assertion prompt and categorized them according to Bloom's Taxonomy. These data were analyzed in addition to data from the course exam, which asked them to formulate a higher-level question in response to a prompt. Categorizing questions according to Bloom's Taxonomy was a more difficult task for students than was formulating higher-order questions. Students reported that the skills that they learned were used in subsequent PBL sessions to formulate higher-order learning objectives that integrated new and previously-learned concepts.

The new Medical College Admission Test: Implications for teaching psychology.

PubMed

Mitchell, Karen; Lewis, Richard S; Satterfield, Jason; Hong, Barry A

2016-01-01

This year's applicants to medical school took a newly revised version of the Medical College Admission Test. Unlike applicants in the past, they were asked to demonstrate their knowledge and use of concepts commonly taught in introductory psychology courses. The new Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior Test asked applicants to demonstrate the ways in which psychological, social, and biological factors influence perceptions and reactions to the world; behavior and behavior change; what people think about themselves and others; the cultural and social differences that influence well-being; and the relationships among social stratification, access to resources, and well-being. Building from the classic biopsychosocial model, this article provides the rationale for testing psychology concepts in application to medical school. It describes the concepts and skills that the new exam tests and shows how they lay the foundation for learning in medical school about the behavioral and sociocultural determinants of health. This article discusses the implications of these changes for undergraduate psychology faculty and psychology curricula as well as their importance to the profession of psychology at large. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

The New Medical College Admission Test: Implications for Teaching Psychology

PubMed Central

Mitchell, Karen; Satterfield, Jason; Lewis, Richard S.; Hong, Barry A.

2017-01-01

This year’s applicants to medical school took a newly revised version of the Medical College Admission Test. Unlike applicants in the past, they were asked to demonstrate their knowledge and use of concepts commonly taught in introductory psychology courses. The new Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior Test asked applicants to demonstrate the ways in which psychological, social, and biological factors influence perceptions and reactions to the world; behavior and behavior change; what people think about themselves and others; the cultural and social differences that influence well-being; and the relationships among social stratification, access to resources, and well-being. Building from the classic biopsychosocial model, this article provides the rationale for testing psychology concepts in application to medical school. It describes the concepts and skills that the new exam tests and shows how they lay the foundation for learning in medical school about the behavioral and sociocultural determinants of health. This article discusses the implications of these changes for undergraduate psychology faculty and psychology curricula as well as their importance to the profession of psychology at large. PMID:26866988

Conceptions of Happiness and Unhappiness among Italian Psychology Undergraduates.

PubMed

Sotgiu, Igor

2016-01-01

The present study aims at investigating the conceptions of happiness and unhappiness in a sample of Italian psychology undergraduates. Participants completed a questionnaire asking them to report the most important things that made them feel happy (happiness components) and those ones that made them feel unhappy (unhappiness components). Different measures of overall happiness and overall unhappiness were also obtained by asking respondents to assess to what extent each reported happiness and unhappiness component was present in their life, and by inviting them to provide a global judgment about their happiness and unhappiness. Results indicated that participants did not conceptualize happiness and unhappiness as perfect antonyms. Indeed, both investigated concepts encompassed a similar set of semantic components; however, the perceived salience of some of them - assessed in terms of frequency of citation and average ranking - significantly varied between happiness and unhappiness. With regard to the measurement of overall happiness and unhappiness, on average, respondents considered themselves as moderately happy and only slightly unhappy. However, a judgmental asymmetry was found when comparing global and specific evaluations of unhappiness. Theoretical and empirical implications of the study are discussed.

Conceptions of Happiness and Unhappiness among Italian Psychology Undergraduates

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

The present study aims at investigating the conceptions of happiness and unhappiness in a sample of Italian psychology undergraduates. Participants completed a questionnaire asking them to report the most important things that made them feel happy (happiness components) and those ones that made them feel unhappy (unhappiness components). Different measures of overall happiness and overall unhappiness were also obtained by asking respondents to assess to what extent each reported happiness and unhappiness component was present in their life, and by inviting them to provide a global judgment about their happiness and unhappiness. Results indicated that participants did not conceptualize happiness and unhappiness as perfect antonyms. Indeed, both investigated concepts encompassed a similar set of semantic components; however, the perceived salience of some of them − assessed in terms of frequency of citation and average ranking − significantly varied between happiness and unhappiness. With regard to the measurement of overall happiness and unhappiness, on average, respondents considered themselves as moderately happy and only slightly unhappy. However, a judgmental asymmetry was found when comparing global and specific evaluations of unhappiness. Theoretical and empirical implications of the study are discussed. PMID:27977718

The key factors affecting students' individual interest in school science lessons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheung, Derek

2018-01-01

Individual interest in school science lessons can be defined as a relatively stable and enduring personal emotion comprising affective and behavioural reactions to events in the regular science lessons at school. Little research has compared the importance of different factors affecting students' individual interest in school science lessons. The present study aimed to address this gap, using a mixed methods design. Qualitative interview data were collected from 60 Hong Kong junior secondary school students, who were asked to describe the nature of their interest in science lessons and the factors to which they attribute this. Teacher interviews, parent interviews, and classroom observations were conducted to triangulate student interview data. Five factors affecting students' individual interest in school science lessons were identified: situational influences in science lessons, individual interest in science, science self-concept, grade level, and gender. Quantitative data were then collected from 591 students using a questionnaire. Structural equation modelling was applied to test a hypothesised model, which provided an acceptable fit to the student data. The strongest factor affecting students' individual interest in school science lessons was science self-concept, followed by individual interest in science and situational influences in science lessons. Grade level and gender were found to be nonsignificant factors. These findings suggest that teachers should pay special attention to the association between academic self-concept and interest if they want to motivate students to learn science at school.

Sticker Bonding.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frazier, Laura Corbin

2000-01-01

Introduces a science activity on the bonding of chemical compounds. Assigns students the role of either a cation or anion and asks them to write the ions they may bond with. Assesses students' understanding of charge, bonding, and other concepts. (YDS)

The kinds of questions asked by novice teachers in learning mathematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zahra, L.; Kusmayadi, T. A.; Usodo, B.

2018-05-01

This study describes the kinds of questions asked by novice teachers during mathematics learning process in senior high school. This study used descriptive analysis. The subjects of this study were two novice teachers who teach mathematics in 10th grade. The result showed that the frequently asked questions by novice teachers based on the objective were compliance questions, rethorical questions and sometimes prompting questions and probing questions. The frequently questions asked by novice teacher based on the cognitive process dimension of Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy were questions of remembering, questions of understanding, questions of applying, questions of analyzing and questions of evaluating. The novice teachers asked the routine questions which had same thinking level. The question with the highest level of thinking did not asked by the novice teachers.

Students Are Not Highly Familiar with Astronomy Concepts--But What about the Teachers?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kiroglu, Kasim

2015-01-01

This study aims to assess primary school teachers' knowledge of basic astronomy concepts, such as the sizes and shapes of, and the distances between, the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon, lunar and solar eclipses, and the motions of the Moon and the Earth. Out of a total of 1,533 teachers, 398 (26%) were reached and asked to take a knowledge test. On…

Rural and urban Ugandan primary school children's alternative ideas about animals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Otaala, Justine

This study examined rural and urban Ugandan primary children's alternative ideas about animals through the use of qualitative research methods. Thirty-six children were selected from lower, middle, and upper primary grades in two primary schools (rural and urban). Data were collected using interview-about-instance technique. Children were shown 18 color photographs of instances and non-instances of familiar animals and asked to say if the photographed objects were animals or not. They were then asked to give reasons to justify their answers. The interviews were audiotaped and transcribed. The results indicate that children tended to apply the label "animal" to large mammals, usually found at home, on the farm, in the zoo, and in the wild. Humans were not categorized as animals, particularly by children in the lower grades. Although the children in upper grades correctly identified humans as animals, they used reasons that were irrelevant to animal attributes and improperly derived from the biological concept of evolution. Many attributes children used to categorize instances of animals were scientifically unacceptable and included superficial features, such as body outline, anatomical features (body parts), external features (visual cues), presence or absence and number of appendages. Movement and eating (nutrition) were the most popular attributes children used to identify instances of animals. The main differences in children's ideas emanated from the reasons used to identify animals. Older rural children drew upon their cultural and traditional practices more often than urban children. Anthropomorphic thinking was predominant among younger children in both settings, but diminished with progression in children's grade levels. Some of the implications of this study are: (1) teachers, teacher educators and curriculum developers should consider learners' ideas in planning and developing teaching materials and interventions. (2) Teachers should relate humans to other animals during instruction. (3) Textbooks and teaching materials need careful scrutiny to insure they include humans and other small animals as part of the animal kingdom. (4) Teaching interventions should begin with the basic attributes of animals and insure children understand the relationship between the attributes and concepts. (5) Encourage the use of examples and non-examples of the concept "animal" during instruction.

The Rebirth of High School Geography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glowacki, Walter

1972-01-01

Describes a new high school geography curriculum that does not rely on memorization and rote learning but rather teaches concepts and stimulates the student to ask a series of questions that will help him understand the world. (AN)

Using Dragon Curves To Learn about Length and Area.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Lyle R.

1999-01-01

Utilizes dragon curves which are made with three tiles and can be used to create fascinating patterns to help students understand the concepts of length, area, and perimeter of regions as defined by dragon curves. (ASK)

Journeys, Adventures, Bridges and Puzzles: A case study approach to understanding teachers' conceptions of STEM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kenney, Meghan

Legislative changes and discussions about the United States falling further and further behind other nations in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) achievement are growing. As they grow, STEM instruction in elementary school has earned its place as a national area of interest in education. In the case of Ivory School District, teachers are being asked to radically change their daily practices by consistently implementing inquiry-based STEM experiences in their classrooms. As such, teachers are being asked to scale a divide between the district expectations and their knowledge and experience. Many fourth grade educators are teachers who have been trained as generalists and typically do not have specific background or experience in the philosophy, instructional strategies, or content associated with STEM. Using a prototype approach, this study aims to understand how such teachers conceptualize STEM instruction and the relationship between their experience and conceptions.

How do Students Conceptualise Health and its Risk Factors? A Study among Iranian Schoolchildren

PubMed Central

Haghdoost, Ali-Akbar; Ashrafi Asgar-Abad, Ahad; Shokoohi, Mostafa; Alam, Mahin; Esmaeili, Maryam; Hojabri, Neda

2013-01-01

Background: To assess the concept of children concerning their health and its risk factors, a group of primary and middle school students were asked to draw a few relevant pictures in order to deeply explore the comprehension of this key group. Methods: In this cross-sectional study 1165 students, aged 7-15 years old, selected through random stratified sampling, were asked to draw a number of eight paintings, four paintings on health concepts, and the other four on health risk factors. The paintings were then assessed by two independent observers, and their themes and contents were abstracted and analysed. Results: The students drew a total of 2330 paintings, 1165 paintings on the concept of health, and 1165 paintings on health risk factors. The most and least expressed health concepts concerned “mental health” and “healthy diet” (73.3% and 4.8%, respectively). Considering health risk factors, “unhealthy diet” and the two concepts of “environmental hazards” and “neglected personal hygiene” had the most (95%) and least (1.4% each) frequencies. Students in public schools, primary level and girls drew more pictures about health concept or/and its risk factors (P<0.05). The association between parents’ education level and the numbers of pictures were not statistically significant. Conclusion: Although students had a broad view about health and its risk factors, generally little attention had been paid to some of the main aspects such as physical activity, healthy diet, mental and oral health, and environmental hazards. In addition, it seems that parents’ educational level, as one of the main socio-economic factors, did not have any significant impact on their concepts. PMID:24596834

40 CFR Appendix I to Part 310 - Frequently Asked Questions

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 27 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Frequently Asked Questions I Appendix I to Part 310 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) SUPERFUND... have a release in an elementary school, can the school district apply for reimbursement? No, for...

The 'Practice Entrepreneur' - An Australian case study of a systems thinking inspired health promotion initiative.

PubMed

Joyce, A; Green, C; Carey, G; Malbon, E

2017-01-23

The potential of systems science concepts to inform approaches for addressing complex public health problems, such as obesity prevention, has been attracting significant attention over the last decade. Despite its recent popularity, there are very few studies examining the application of systems science concepts, termed systems thinking, in practice and whether (if at all) it influences the implementation of health promotion in real world settings and in what ways. Healthy Together Victoria (HTV) was based on a systems thinking approach to address obesity prevention alongside other chronic health problems and was implemented across 14 local government areas. This paper examines the experience of practitioners from one of those intervention sites. In-depth interviews with eight practitioners revealed that there was a rigidity with which they had experienced previous health promotion jobs relative to the flexibility and fluidity of HTV. While the health promotion literature does not indicate that health promotion should be overly prescriptive, the experience of these practitioners suggests it is being applied as such in real world settings. Within HTV, asking people to work with 'systems thinking', without giving a prescription about what systems thinking is, enabled practitioners to be 'practice entrepreneurs' by choosing from a variety of systems thinking methods (mapping, reflection) to engage actively in their positions. This highlights the importance of understanding how key concepts, both traditional planning approaches and systems science concepts, are interpreted and then implemented in real world settings. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Standing at the crossroads: Identity and recognition of the Applied Science Technologist in British Columbia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roemer, Thomas

Modern technical education in British Columbia has been affected by two societal trends: in industry, engineering technology evolved as a discipline to bridge the increasing chasm between the process-oriented skill sets of tradespersons/technicians, and the declarative knowledge focus of engineering; in education, the provincial college and institute system was created to address the need for a new post-secondary credential situated between trades certificates and university degrees. The Applied Science Technologist arguably forms the intersection of these two concepts. Almost forty years after its inception, it is timely to ask if the original model has matured into a distinct occupational category in industry, education, and in the public mind. The thesis proposes three environments, the Formative, Market and Public Domain, respectively. Interviews, surveys and personal experience afforded insights into the dynamics of these domains with respect to a fledgling occupational category, while the socio-philosophical concepts of culture, habitus and social imaginary provide the tools to interpret the findings. The thesis postulates that an emerging occupational category will not only challenge existing cultures and habitus, but that over time it will influence the imaginaries of each domain and society as a whole. Ultimately, the occupational category will be truly successful only when the general public is able to distinguish it from related disciplines. Charles Taylor's writings on multiculturalism are used to discuss identity and recognition of the Applied Science Technologist in each domain while Pierre Bourdieu's perspectives on the existence of habitus and self-proliferating elites form the framework to examine the relationships between technologists and engineers. Taylor's theory of multiple concurrent social imaginaries guides the comparison of divergent expectations among academic, career and vocational instructors at British Columbia's colleges. The thesis concludes with recommendations for the sustainability of the Applied Science Technologist as distinct occupational category. Keywords. engineering technology; community college; diploma; recognition; identity; social imaginaries

A Cross-Age Study of the Understanding of Three Genetic Concepts: How Do They Image the Gene, DNA and Chromosome?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saka, Arzu; Cerrah, Lale; Akdeniz, Ali Riza; Ayas, Alipasa

2006-01-01

The study was carried out with 175 Turkish students by using drawings at different ages understanding of gene, DNA and chromosome concepts. Students from 8th, 9th, 11th grades and, science and biology student teachers were simply asked to draw the structure of gene, DNA and chromosome in a cell and also to give explanations about these three…

Intuitiveness of Symbol Features for Air Traffic Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ngo, Mary Kim; Vu, Kim-Phuong L.; Thorpe, Elaine; Battiste, Vernol; Strybel, Thomas Z.

2012-01-01

We present the results of two online surveys asking participants to indicate what type of air traffic information might be conveyed by a number of symbols and symbol features (color, fill, text, and shape). The results of this initial study suggest that the well-developed concepts of ownership, altitude, and trajectory are readily associated with certain symbol features, while the relatively novel concept of equipage was not clearly associated with any specific symbol feature.

A comment on the use of flushing time, residence time, and age as transport time scales

USGS Publications Warehouse

Monsen, N.E.; Cloern, J.E.; Lucas, L.V.; Monismith, Stephen G.

2002-01-01

Applications of transport time scales are pervasive in biological, hydrologic, and geochemical studies yet these times scales are not consistently defined and applied with rigor in the literature. We compare three transport time scales (flushing time, age, and residence time) commonly used to measure the retention of water or scalar quantities transported with water. We identify the underlying assumptions associated with each time scale, describe procedures for computing these time scales in idealized cases, and identify pitfalls when real-world systems deviate from these idealizations. We then apply the time scale definitions to a shallow 378 ha tidal lake to illustrate how deviations between real water bodies and the idealized examples can result from: (1) non-steady flow; (2) spatial variability in bathymetry, circulation, and transport time scales; and (3) tides that introduce complexities not accounted for in the idealized cases. These examples illustrate that no single transport time scale is valid for all time periods, locations, and constituents, and no one time scale describes all transport processes. We encourage aquatic scientists to rigorously define the transport time scale when it is applied, identify the underlying assumptions in the application of that concept, and ask if those assumptions are valid in the application of that approach for computing transport time scales in real systems.

Experiential learning: transforming theory into practice.

PubMed

Yardley, Sarah; Teunissen, Pim W; Dornan, Tim

2012-01-01

Whilst much is debated about the importance of experiential learning in curriculum development, the concept only becomes effective if it is applied in an appropriate way. We believe that this effectiveness is directly related to a sound understanding of the theory, supporting the learning. The purpose of this article is to introduce readers to the theories underpinning experiential learning, which are then expanded further in an AMEE Guide, which considers the theoretical basis of experiential learning from a social learning, constructionist perspective and applies it to three stages of medical education: early workplace experience, clerkships and residency. This article argues for the importance and relevance of experiential learning and addresses questions that are commonly asked about it. First, we answer the questions 'what is experiential learning?' and 'how does it relate to social learning theory?' to orientate readers to the principles on which our arguments are based. Then, we consider why those ideas (theories) are relevant to educators--ranging from those with responsibilities for curriculum design to 'hands-on' teachers and workplace supervisors. The remainder of this article discusses how experiential learning theories and a socio-cultural perspective can be applied in practice. We hope that this will give readers a taste for our more detailed AMEE Guide and the further reading recommended at the end of it.

Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Journal of Chemical Education, 2001

2001-01-01

Bubbles are a fun way to introduce the concepts of surface tension, intermolecular forces, and the use of surfactants. Presents two activities in which students add chemicals to liquid dishwashing detergent with water in order to create longer lasting bubbles. (ASK)

Blood Pressure Regulation: Every Adaptation is an Integration?

PubMed Central

Joyner, Michael J.; Limberg, Jacqueline K.

2013-01-01

This focused review serves to explore relevant issues in regard to blood pressure regulation and by doing so, provides the initial stimulus paper for the Thematic Review series “Blood Pressure Regulation” to be published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology over the coming months. In this introduction, we highlight how variable normal blood pressure can be and challenge the reader to take another look at some key concepts related to blood pressure regulation. We point out that there is frequently an underappreciated balance between peripheral vasodilation and systemic blood pressure regulation and ask the question: Are changes in blood pressure, in effect, reasonable and integrated adaptations to the physiological challenge at hand? We conclude with the idea that blood pressure regulatory systems are both flexible and redundant; ensuring a wide variety of activities associated with life can be accompanied by a perfusion pressure that can serve multiple masters. PMID:23558925

Gordon Research Conference on Nonlinear Optics and Lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haus, Hermann

1992-02-01

The topics chosen were production of X rays with high power lasers, generation of millimeter waves with femtosecond pulses, microcavities and microlasers, second harmonic generation in fibers and advances in photorefractivity and parallel optical processing. It introduces ways of thinking and scientific methods in fields that are related, but would not generally appear in specialized conferences. There were three such examples: the methods of nonlinear optics as applied to electronic signal processing, the concept of squeezing (special quantum states of the electromagnetic field) as used to explain the generation of gravitational waves in the expanding universe, and particle interferometers with particle- instead of wave-gratings. By asking Nobel laureate Bloembergen one year in advance to give the traditional after dinner speech, we were privileged to hear him speak of the history of optics over the centuries resulting in the various principles of linear optics, and the highly accelerated pace of discovery of the analogous principles in nonlinear optics.

Asking the Right Questions: Techniques for Collaboration and School Change. 2nd Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holcomb, Edie L.

This work provides school change leaders with tools, techniques, tips, examples, illustrations, and stories about promoting school change. Tools provided include histograms, surveys, run charts, weighted voting, force-field analysis, decision matrices, and many others. Chapter 1, "Introduction," applies a matrix for asking questions…

Applied Mathematics Should Be Taught Mixed.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Gary I.

1994-01-01

Discusses the differences between applied and pure mathematics and provides extensive history of mixed mathematics. Argues that applied mathematics should be taught allowing for speculative mathematics, which involves breaking down a given problem into simpler parts until one arrives at first principles. (ASK)

The new consumer of medicine--the pharmacy technicians' perspective.

PubMed

Traulsen, Janine M; Noerreslet, Mikkel

2004-08-01

Market research, and more recently health services research, has adopted the concept of the 'new consumer' to describe customers/patients who are becoming more demanding. This study aims to determine the relevancee of the concept 'new consumer' for pharmacy practice, in light of the theory of 'risk society'. Qualitative in-depth interviews were carried out with seven pharmacy technicians from six different pharmacies in the Copenhagen area, Denmark. They were asked to describe developments, over time, in consumer behaviour. They were asked to focus on three themes: information, the authority of the pharmacy staff, and their predictions of the future pharmacy customer. Young customers, particularly parents of pre-school children, as well as the chronically ill appeared to share the characteristics associated with the 'new consumer'. They were: information strong (well-informed) and information seeking (inquisitive); asked critical questions; showed a desire to longer initiate dialogue; sought counselling and in general no longer blindly accepted the authority of the pharmacy staff. According to pharmacy technicians a 'new consumer' does exist and is visible in community pharmacies in Copenhagen. Seen in light of the theory of risk society, we further conclude that the behaviour of the 'new consumer' is indicative of an attempt to minimize risk of drug therapy.

Developing concepts of ordinary and extraordinary communication.

PubMed

Lane, Jonathan D; Evans, E Margaret; Brink, Kimberly A; Wellman, Henry M

2016-01-01

We examine how understandings of ordinary and extraordinary communication develop. Three- to 10-year-old children and adults (N = 183) were given scenarios in which a protagonist wanted help from a human (their parent) or from God. Scenarios varied in whether protagonists expressed their desires aloud (by asking) or silently (by hoping), whether (for human scenarios) parents were nearby or far away, and whether (for God scenarios) protagonists expressed desires through ordinary means (asking or hoping) or more extraordinary means (praying). Following each scenario, participants were asked whether the recipient (either the parent or God) was aware of the protagonist's desire. Children as young as 3 to 4 years old understood that both loudness and distance limit the effectiveness of human communication, reporting that humans would most likely be aware of desires when they were expressed both aloud and nearby. As well, by this age children reported that God would more often be aware of desires than would humans, but children of all ages often reported that God (like humans) would be more aware of desires expressed aloud (rather than silently). These concepts of ordinary and extraordinary communication continued to be refined through middle childhood. Children's performance on standard theory-of-mind tasks and participants' religious background predicted whether they attributed awareness to God. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Unifying concepts in the high school biology curriculum, one or many: An investigation of rural, suburban, and urban schools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Judith Ann

2000-10-01

Nine high school biology teachers from rural, suburban, and urban school settings, were interviewed about what idea, topic, or concept, if any, they use to unify their high school biology curriculum. Professional scientists and educational organizations have proposed that high school biology teachers use "biological evolution" as a unifying concept of their curriculum. Interviews, concept maps, and classroom syllabi and outlines were provided as data for these nine case studies. Each teacher was asked what topics were included in their curriculum to determine if a wide enough content was taught to warrant unification. The teachers' responses were compared to content and concepts listed in the National Science Content Standards, the Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements for Science, and a paper (Hurd, Bybee, Kahle, and Yager, 1980) that proposed what and how topics should be taught in the high school biology class by the year 2000. The nine teachers were asked to draw a concept map showing how these topics were interrelated and what concept, if any, "unified" them. A unifying concept is defined as a concept introduced early in the year and referred back to whenever new topics are introduced illustrating how the new topic is related to the previous ones through this unifying concept. Seven of the nine teachers did use at least one unifying concept. Two use evolution or natural selection, two use the web of life, two use the characteristics of life, and one uses scientific inquiry. The data collected in this study indicate high school teachers use these concepts such as the web of life and the characteristics of life because they believe they are easily understood by their students and less controversial than the theory of evolution. This study also presents evidence that school setting has minimal influence on what concept teachers use to unify their curriculum and that teachers have a significant amount of academic freedom to choose what they want to teach and how they want to teach it. The data suggests that teachers choose their unifying concept based on their personal beliefs of what their students will accept and on their past interactions with parents, students, and administrators when various unifying concepts were used.

Four Easy Nudges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chenfield, Mimi Brodsky

1991-01-01

Advises teachers desiring to be more creative to ask "what else?" and "what if?" to trigger their students' imaginations. Two other useful techniques are "showing it" to introduce new concepts and "faking it" to invite participation and encourage involvement. Having fun won't hurt! (MLH)

Probabilistic Risk Assessment to Inform Decision Making: Frequently Asked Questions

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

General concepts and principles of Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA), describe how PRA can improve the bases of Agency decisions, and provide illustrations of how PRA has been used in risk estimation and in describing the uncertainty in decision making.

Sacred Sky and Cyberspace

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clynes, F.

2011-06-01

The concept of the sacred world beyond the stars found expression in the works of Plato, into Gnosticism and was incorporated into Christianity where medieval images of the cosmos pictured the heavenly domain as beyond the stars. Today cyberspace literature abounds with descriptions of a transmundane space, a great Beyond. This talk looks at current views of cyberspace and asks if they are a re-packaging of the age-old concept of a sacred sky in a secular and technological format?

Self-Concept and Learning. A Review of Literature on the Relationship Between Students Self-Concept and School Achievement, and One Way to Assess a Students Attitude Toward Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Millard, Joseph E.

The author contends that there is a strong relationship between a students' scholastic success and self-image. Following a brief literature review, the Self-Anchoring Attitude Scale (SAAS), an inventory designed to assess attitude, is discussed. Each subject is asked to write down what they would say about students who like to learn, and what they…

Development of a Self-Rated Mixed Methods Skills Assessment: The National Institutes of Health Mixed Methods Research Training Program for the Health Sciences.

PubMed

Guetterman, Timothy C; Creswell, John W; Wittink, Marsha; Barg, Fran K; Castro, Felipe G; Dahlberg, Britt; Watkins, Daphne C; Deutsch, Charles; Gallo, Joseph J

2017-01-01

Demand for training in mixed methods is high, with little research on faculty development or assessment in mixed methods. We describe the development of a self-rated mixed methods skills assessment and provide validity evidence. The instrument taps six research domains: "Research question," "Design/approach," "Sampling," "Data collection," "Analysis," and "Dissemination." Respondents are asked to rate their ability to define or explain concepts of mixed methods under each domain, their ability to apply the concepts to problems, and the extent to which they need to improve. We administered the questionnaire to 145 faculty and students using an internet survey. We analyzed descriptive statistics and performance characteristics of the questionnaire using the Cronbach alpha to assess reliability and an analysis of variance that compared a mixed methods experience index with assessment scores to assess criterion relatedness. Internal consistency reliability was high for the total set of items (0.95) and adequate (≥0.71) for all but one subscale. Consistent with establishing criterion validity, respondents who had more professional experiences with mixed methods (eg, published a mixed methods article) rated themselves as more skilled, which was statistically significant across the research domains. This self-rated mixed methods assessment instrument may be a useful tool to assess skills in mixed methods for training programs. It can be applied widely at the graduate and faculty level. For the learner, assessment may lead to enhanced motivation to learn and training focused on self-identified needs. For faculty, the assessment may improve curriculum and course content planning.

Differential Calculus: Concepts and Notation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hobbs, David; Relf, Simon

1997-01-01

Suggests that many students with A-level mathematics, and even with a degree in mathematics or a related subject, do not have an understanding of the basic principles of calculus. Describes the approach used in three textbooks currently in use. Contains 14 references. (Author/ASK)

Sediment in Lake Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nord, Gail; Nord, John

1998-01-01

Describes how a mathematical model can be constructed and used to better understand human impact on natural resources. Uses the source of many current discussions in northern Idaho to present algebraic concepts and show an application of exponential functions. Contains 13 references. (ASK)

Solving Solutions: Exploring Unknowns through Chemistry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burns, John; Yoshina, Granville; Goodding, Debbie; Streitberger, Eric

2000-01-01

Presents a chemistry activity that introduces students to one type of chemical bond by developing the integer operation concept of zero pairs. Leads to an activity of combining drops of 0.3 molar solutions to form six different colored precipitates from five solutions. (ASK)

Extending the Regular Curriculum through Creative Problem Solving.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bohan, Harry; Bohan, Susan

1993-01-01

Uses ancient Egyptian numeration system in a new setting to extend the concepts of base, place value, and correspondence. Discusses similarities and differences between the Egyptian and decimal systems. Students are asked to propose changes to make the Egyptian system easier. (LDR)

Are Schools and Colleges Institutions?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glatter, Ron

2015-01-01

This paper asks whether schools and colleges should be regarded as institutions as well as organizations, and if so what are the implications. Different conceptions of "institution" are examined including an attempt to distinguish "institution" from "organization". It is suggested that institutions are committed to a…

Concept analysis of culture applied to nursing.

PubMed

Marzilli, Colleen

2014-01-01

Culture is an important concept, especially when applied to nursing. A concept analysis of culture is essential to understanding the meaning of the word. This article applies Rodgers' (2000) concept analysis template and provides a definition of the word culture as it applies to nursing practice. This article supplies examples of the concept of culture to aid the reader in understanding its application to nursing and includes a case study demonstrating components of culture that must be respected and included when providing health care.

Marine Corps Officer Attitudes Toward the Repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-01

are quite different, since conceptions of morality may be normative or descriptive and refer to some distinct notion of “right” and “wrong” behavior...of respondents, with the broader concept of tolerance by society rather moral correctness, and this is apparent in the responses by Marine Corps... moral relativism .” While this term has been defined in numerous ways, perhaps the best definition is provided by Stanford University’s Encyclopedia of

Applying the theory of planned behavior: nursing students' intention to seek clinical experiences using the essential clinical behavior database.

PubMed

Meyer, Linda

2002-03-01

This study examined the antecedents and determinants predictive of whether nursing students (N = 92) intend to ask for assignments to perform nursing behaviors after using a database to record essential clinical behaviors. The results of applying the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to behavioral intention using multivariant path analysis suggested that the endogenous variables, attitude and subjective norms, had a significant effect on the intention to ask for assignments to perform nursing behaviors. In addition, it was primarily through attitudes and subjective norms that the respective antecedents or exogenous variables, behavioral beliefs and normative beliefs, affected the intention to ask for assignments to perform nursing behaviors. The lack of direct influence of perceived behavioral control on intention and the direct negative impact of control belief on intention were contrary to expectations, given the tenets of the TPB.

[Structures and processes in outpatient neurorehabilitation].

PubMed

Pöppl, Dominik; Deck, R; Kringler, W; Reuther, P

2014-06-01

Quality of structures, processes and outcome are commonly accepted as dimensions of quality management and quality assurance. Data of structures and processes are not published to date for German outpatient neurorehabilitation. Rehabilitative care and service providers are legally bound to apply concepts of quality management and quality assurance. The service providers pass recommendations, which have to be implemented by outpatient neurorehabilitation centres. Data analysis of existing structures and processes in outpatient neurorehabilitation centres are embedded as a part of a long-term multicentres outcome study. 22 outpatient neurorehabilitation centres participated in an online survey with 227 items using the google tool "Docs" between September and December 2011. Following issues were asked: general information about the centres (e. g. date of establishment, number of therapy places, kind of patients, responsible organization), utility supply contracts with service providers, local cooperation and networking, staff and equipment and appliances, treatment concepts, processes of therapy (e. g. individual and group therapy, frequency, concentration, planning), team processes, goals and team development, quality management and documentation. In the meantime outpatient centres of neurorehabilitation are well-established as care providers and commonly accepted by service providers. However a comprehensive availability does not exist. The results show comparable structures of the centres, what is mostly determined by the service provider audited regulatory framework. Different concepts result in different processes. There are a lot of hints with respect to different concepts in form and content to implement the legally obligated mandate. In general their work with context -factors is still a frequently unused potential. It can be countered by the therapeutic inclusion of the social and environmental living conditions of the patients. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Bequeathing Family Continuity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spanier, Graham B.

1989-01-01

Notes that many children who experience abuse, family disruption, or poverty reach adulthood with a strong commitment to family life. Questions whether changes in American families are indicators of pathology, deterioration, and instability; and asks how dysfunctional families transmit commitment to the concept of family to succeeding generations.…

Enhancing Historical Reasoning: A Strategy Including Formative Assessment with Systematic Continuous Feedback

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Méndez, Sergio; Tirado, Felipe

2016-01-01

Learning History promotes students' reasoning. According to Van Drie & Van Boxtel (2008), historical reasoning involves six elements: substantive concepts, metaconcepts, asking historical questions, using sources, contextualization, and argumentation. Although there are didactic strategies that promote historical reasoning, these do not…

The Voyage between Truth and Fiction: Stories of the "Titanic."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanchez, Rebecca R.

1994-01-01

Describes the activities in a high school English class aimed at instructing students concerning the concept of "historical fiction." Outlines class activities in which students are asked to write fictional narratives based on the historical facts concerning the sinking of the "Titanic." (HB)

Charles Darwin's Botanical Investigations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harley, Suzanne M.

2010-01-01

Charles Darwin's botanical studies provide a way to expose students to his work that followed the publication of "On the Origin of Species." We can use stories from his plant investigations to illustrate key concepts in the life sciences and model how questions are asked and answered in science.

Geometry and Op Art.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brewer, Evelyn J.

1999-01-01

Describes an activity in which students use computers and techniques from Op Art to learn various geometric concepts. Allows them to see the distinct connection between art and mathematics from a personal perspective. Reinforces writing, speaking, and drawing skills while creating slide shows related to the project. (ASK)

Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis - Towards a new paradigm.

PubMed

Blaschke, Thomas; Hay, Geoffrey J; Kelly, Maggi; Lang, Stefan; Hofmann, Peter; Addink, Elisabeth; Queiroz Feitosa, Raul; van der Meer, Freek; van der Werff, Harald; van Coillie, Frieke; Tiede, Dirk

2014-01-01

The amount of scientific literature on (Geographic) Object-based Image Analysis - GEOBIA has been and still is sharply increasing. These approaches to analysing imagery have antecedents in earlier research on image segmentation and use GIS-like spatial analysis within classification and feature extraction approaches. This article investigates these development and its implications and asks whether or not this is a new paradigm in remote sensing and Geographic Information Science (GIScience). We first discuss several limitations of prevailing per-pixel methods when applied to high resolution images. Then we explore the paradigm concept developed by Kuhn (1962) and discuss whether GEOBIA can be regarded as a paradigm according to this definition. We crystallize core concepts of GEOBIA, including the role of objects, of ontologies and the multiplicity of scales and we discuss how these conceptual developments support important methods in remote sensing such as change detection and accuracy assessment. The ramifications of the different theoretical foundations between the ' per-pixel paradigm ' and GEOBIA are analysed, as are some of the challenges along this path from pixels, to objects, to geo-intelligence. Based on several paradigm indications as defined by Kuhn and based on an analysis of peer-reviewed scientific literature we conclude that GEOBIA is a new and evolving paradigm.

Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis – Towards a new paradigm

PubMed Central

Blaschke, Thomas; Hay, Geoffrey J.; Kelly, Maggi; Lang, Stefan; Hofmann, Peter; Addink, Elisabeth; Queiroz Feitosa, Raul; van der Meer, Freek; van der Werff, Harald; van Coillie, Frieke; Tiede, Dirk

2014-01-01

The amount of scientific literature on (Geographic) Object-based Image Analysis – GEOBIA has been and still is sharply increasing. These approaches to analysing imagery have antecedents in earlier research on image segmentation and use GIS-like spatial analysis within classification and feature extraction approaches. This article investigates these development and its implications and asks whether or not this is a new paradigm in remote sensing and Geographic Information Science (GIScience). We first discuss several limitations of prevailing per-pixel methods when applied to high resolution images. Then we explore the paradigm concept developed by Kuhn (1962) and discuss whether GEOBIA can be regarded as a paradigm according to this definition. We crystallize core concepts of GEOBIA, including the role of objects, of ontologies and the multiplicity of scales and we discuss how these conceptual developments support important methods in remote sensing such as change detection and accuracy assessment. The ramifications of the different theoretical foundations between the ‘per-pixel paradigm’ and GEOBIA are analysed, as are some of the challenges along this path from pixels, to objects, to geo-intelligence. Based on several paradigm indications as defined by Kuhn and based on an analysis of peer-reviewed scientific literature we conclude that GEOBIA is a new and evolving paradigm. PMID:24623958

How to Apply | Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program

Cancer.gov

To be considered for the program, you must meet the eligibility requirements and complete all parts of the application, as described below. If you have additional questions about the application process, please contact our office. You must apply through our online application process. When applying, you will be asked to:

Personalized Learning in Algebra

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walkington, Candace; Sherman, Milan; Howell, Elizabeth

2014-01-01

Mathematical "funds of knowledge" (Civil 2007) that students bring from their community and home lives can offer entry points for concepts such as functions and rate of change, which are important "big ideas" across all grade levels (NCTM 2000). The Common Core State Standards (CCSSI 2010) ask high school students to…

A Computer-aided Learning Exercise in Spectrophotometry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pamula, Frederick

1994-01-01

Discusses the use of a computer simulation program in teaching the concepts of spectrophotometry. Introduces several parts of the program and program usage. Presents an assessment activity to evaluate students' mastery of material. Concludes with the advantages of this approach to the student and to the assessor. (ASK)

Metalearning Capacity and Threshold Concept Engagement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Sophie C.; Meyer, Jan H. F.

2010-01-01

This study aims to further our understanding of metalearning activity through the analysis of qualitative data gathered from 370 first-year microeconomics students in three UK universities. The students were asked to produce undirected reflective essays in response to a personal "learning profile" generated before, and after, the…

ASK1 regulates the survival of neuroblastoma cells by interacting with TLX and stabilizing HIF-1α.

PubMed

Sobhan, Praveen K; Zhai, Qiwei; Green, Lydia C; Hansford, Loen M; Funa, Keiko

2017-01-01

Elevated expression of TLX (also called as NR2E1) in neuroblastoma (NB) correlates with unfavorable prognosis, and TLX is required for self-renewal of NB cells. Knockdown of TLX has been shown to reduce the NB sphere-forming ability. ASK1 (MAP3K5) and TLX expression are both enhanced in SP (side population) NB and patient-derived primary NB sphere cell lines, but the majority of non-SP NB lines express lower ASK1 expression. We found that ASK1 phosphorylated and stabilized TLX, which led induction of HIF-1α, and its downstream VEGF-A in an Akt dependent manner. In depleting ASK1 upon hypoxia, TLX decreased and the apoptosis ratio of NB cells was enhanced, while low-ASK1-expressing NB cell lines were refractory in TUNEL assay by using flow cytometry. Interestingly, primary NB spheres cell lines express only high levels of active pASK1Thr-838 but the established cell lines expressed inhibitory pASK1Ser-966, and both could be targeted by ASK1 depletion. We report a novel pro-survival role of ASK1 in the tumorigenic NB cell populations, which may be applied as a therapeutic target, inducing apoptosis specifically in cancer stem cells. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Appraisal of Space Words and Allocation of Emotion Words in Bodily Space

PubMed Central

Marmolejo-Ramos, Fernando; Elosúa, María Rosa; Yamada, Yuki; Hamm, Nicholas Francis; Noguchi, Kimihiro

2013-01-01

The body-specificity hypothesis (BSH) predicts that right-handers and left-handers allocate positive and negative concepts differently on the horizontal plane, i.e., while left-handers allocate negative concepts on the right-hand side of their bodily space, right-handers allocate such concepts to the left-hand side. Similar research shows that people, in general, tend to allocate positive and negative concepts in upper and lower areas, respectively, in relation to the vertical plane. Further research shows a higher salience of the vertical plane over the horizontal plane in the performance of sensorimotor tasks. The aim of the paper is to examine whether there should be a dominance of the vertical plane over the horizontal plane, not only at a sensorimotor level but also at a conceptual level. In Experiment 1, various participants from diverse linguistic backgrounds were asked to rate the words “up”, “down”, “left”, and “right”. In Experiment 2, right-handed participants from two linguistic backgrounds were asked to allocate emotion words into a square grid divided into four boxes of equal areas. Results suggest that the vertical plane is more salient than the horizontal plane regarding the allocation of emotion words and positively-valenced words were placed in upper locations whereas negatively-valenced words were placed in lower locations. Together, the results lend support to the BSH while also suggesting a higher saliency of the vertical plane over the horizontal plane in the allocation of valenced words. PMID:24349112

Comments on Timothy F. Murphy's 'the afterlife of embryonic persons: what a strange place heaven must be'.

PubMed

Head, Ivan F

2012-12-01

In this issue, Timothy F. Murphy has written a thought-provoking and carefully nuanced article that focuses on the question of a link between a first moment of conception and an end-state beyond death in the resurrection of a human person. He is particularly concerned to probe the theological implications of asserting that the person exists from the moment of conception, and he does so by asking the reader to imagine what kind of resurrected persons would thus populate a heaven filled with, for instance, the resurrected that had in this biotic life lived but a few hours post conception, or had, say, a CV that covered no more than 5 days of cellular replication. By implication, he asks us to imagine a resurrected person whose earthly life lacked memory, consciousness or bodily form, and rather had persisted as a cluster of undifferentiated pluripotent cells. Murphy's candid and fair treatment of these topics is a helpful invitation to some theologians to follow more thoroughly all implications of dogmatically held positions and to consider more thoroughly new ways of thinking of the person as an emergent reality. Copyright © 2012 Reproductive Healthcare Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

SemanticFind: Locating What You Want in a Patient Record, Not Just What You Ask For

PubMed Central

Prager, John M.; Liang, Jennifer J.; Devarakonda, Murthy V.

2017-01-01

We present a new model of patient record search, called SemanticFind, which goes beyond traditional textual and medical synonym matches by locating patient data that a clinician would want to see rather than just what they ask for. The new model is implemented by making extensive use of the UMLS semantic network, distributional semantics, and NLP, to match query terms along several dimensions in a patient record with the returned matches organized accordingly. The new approach finds all clinically related concepts without the user having to ask for them. An evaluation of the accuracy of SemanticFind shows that it found twice as many relevant matches compared to those found by literal (traditional) search alone, along with very high precision and recall. These results suggest potential uses for SemanticFind in clinical practice, retrospective chart reviews, and in automated extraction of quality metrics. PMID:28815139

A Concept-Mapping Strategy for Assessing Conceptual Change in a Student-Directed, Research-Based Geoscience Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rebich, S.

2003-12-01

The concept mapping technique has been proposed as a method for examining the evolving nature of students' conceptualizations of scientific concepts, and promises insight into a dimension of learning different from the one accessible through more conventional classroom testing techniques. The theory behind concept mapping is based on an assumption that knowledge acquisition is accomplished through "linking" of new information to an existing knowledge framework, and that meaningful (as opposed to arbitrary or verbatim) links allow for deeper understanding and conceptual change. Reflecting this theory, concept maps are constructed as a network of related concepts connected by labeled links that illustrate the relationship between the concepts. Two concepts connected by one such link make up a "proposition", the basic element of the concept map structure. In this paper, we examine the results of a pre- and post-test assessment program for an upper-division undergraduate geography course entitled "Mock Environmental Summit," which was part of a research project on assessment. Concept mapping was identified as a potentially powerful assessment tool for this course, as more conventional tools such as multiple-choice tests did not seem to provide a reliable indication of the learning students were experiencing as a result of the student-directed research, presentations, and discussions that make up a substantial portion of the course. The assessment program began at the beginning of the course with a one-hour training session during which students were introduced to the theory behind concept mapping, provided with instructions and guidance for constructing a concept map using the CMap software developed and maintained by the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition at the University of West Florida, and asked to collaboratively construct a concept map on a topic not related to the one to be assessed. This training session was followed by a 45-minute "pre-test" on the topic of global climate change, for which students were provided with a list of questions to guide their thoughts during the concept map construction. Following the pre-test, students were not exposed to further concept mapping until the end of the course, when they were asked to complete a "post-test" consisting of exactly the same task. In addition to a summary of our results, this paper presents an overview of available digital concept-mapping tools, proposed scoring techniques, and design principles to keep in mind when designing a concept-mapping assessment program. We also discuss our experience with concept map assessment, the insights it provided into the evolution in student understanding of global climate change that resulted from the course, and our ideas about the potential role of concept mapping in an overall assessment program for interdisciplinary and/or student-directed curricula.

Beyond the ‘dyad’: a qualitative re-evaluation of the changing clinical consultation

PubMed Central

Swinglehurst, Deborah; Roberts, Celia; Li, Shuangyu; Weber, Orest; Singy, Pascal

2014-01-01

Objective To identify characteristics of consultations that do not conform to the traditionally understood communication ‘dyad’, in order to highlight implications for medical education and develop a reflective ‘toolkit’ for use by medical practitioners and educators in the analysis of consultations. Design A series of interdisciplinary research workshops spanning 12 months explored the social impact of globalisation and computerisation on the clinical consultation, focusing specifically on contemporary challenges to the clinician–patient dyad. Researchers presented detailed case studies of consultations, taken from their recent research projects. Drawing on concepts from applied sociolinguistics, further analysis of selected case studies prompted the identification of key emergent themes. Setting University departments in the UK and Switzerland. Participants Six researchers with backgrounds in medicine, applied linguistics, sociolinguistics and medical education. One workshop was also attended by PhD students conducting research on healthcare interactions. Results The contemporary consultation is characterised by a multiplicity of voices. Incorporation of additional voices in the consultation creates new forms of order (and disorder) in the interaction. The roles ‘clinician’ and ‘patient’ are blurred as they become increasingly distributed between different participants. These new consultation arrangements make new demands on clinicians, which lie beyond the scope of most educational programmes for clinical communication. Conclusions The consultation is changing. Traditional consultation models that assume a ‘dyadic’ consultation do not adequately incorporate the realities of many contemporary consultations. A paradox emerges between the need to manage consultations in a ‘super-diverse’ multilingual society, while also attending to increasing requirements for standardised protocol-driven approaches to care prompted by computer use. The tension between standardisation and flexibility requires addressing in educational contexts. Drawing on concepts from applied sociolinguistics and the findings of these research observations, the authors offer a reflective ‘toolkit’ of questions to ask of the consultation in the context of enquiry-based learning. PMID:25270858

Beyond the 'dyad': a qualitative re-evaluation of the changing clinical consultation.

PubMed

Swinglehurst, Deborah; Roberts, Celia; Li, Shuangyu; Weber, Orest; Singy, Pascal

2014-09-29

To identify characteristics of consultations that do not conform to the traditionally understood communication 'dyad', in order to highlight implications for medical education and develop a reflective 'toolkit' for use by medical practitioners and educators in the analysis of consultations. A series of interdisciplinary research workshops spanning 12 months explored the social impact of globalisation and computerisation on the clinical consultation, focusing specifically on contemporary challenges to the clinician-patient dyad. Researchers presented detailed case studies of consultations, taken from their recent research projects. Drawing on concepts from applied sociolinguistics, further analysis of selected case studies prompted the identification of key emergent themes. University departments in the UK and Switzerland. Six researchers with backgrounds in medicine, applied linguistics, sociolinguistics and medical education. One workshop was also attended by PhD students conducting research on healthcare interactions. The contemporary consultation is characterised by a multiplicity of voices. Incorporation of additional voices in the consultation creates new forms of order (and disorder) in the interaction. The roles 'clinician' and 'patient' are blurred as they become increasingly distributed between different participants. These new consultation arrangements make new demands on clinicians, which lie beyond the scope of most educational programmes for clinical communication. The consultation is changing. Traditional consultation models that assume a 'dyadic' consultation do not adequately incorporate the realities of many contemporary consultations. A paradox emerges between the need to manage consultations in a 'super-diverse' multilingual society, while also attending to increasing requirements for standardised protocol-driven approaches to care prompted by computer use. The tension between standardisation and flexibility requires addressing in educational contexts. Drawing on concepts from applied sociolinguistics and the findings of these research observations, the authors offer a reflective 'toolkit' of questions to ask of the consultation in the context of enquiry-based learning. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Allocating health care resources: a questionnaire experiment on the predictive success of rules.

PubMed

Ahlert, Marlies; Schwettmann, Lars

2017-06-26

The topic of this paper is related to equity in health within a country. In public health care sectors of many countries decisions on priority setting with respect to treatment of different types of diseases or patient groups are implicitly or explicitly made. Priorities are realized by allocation decisions for medical resources where moral judgments play an important role with respect to goals and measures that should be applied. The aim of this study is to explore the moral intuitions held in the German society related to priorities in medical treatment. We use an experimental questionnaire method established in the Empirical Social Choice literature. Participants are asked to make decisions in a sequence of distributive problems where a limited amount of treatment time has to be allocated to hypothetically described patients. The decision problems serve as an intuition pump. Situations are systematically varied with respect to patients' initial health levels, their ability to benefit from treatment time, and the amount of treatment time available. Subjects are also asked to describe their deliberations. We focus on the acceptance of different allocation principles including equity concepts and utilitarian properties. We investigate rule characteristics like order preservation or monotonicity with respect to resources, severity, or effectiveness. We check the consistency of individual choices with stated reasoning. The goals and allocation principles revealed show that the moral intuitions held by our experimental subjects are much more complex than the principles commonly applied in health economic theory. Especially, cost-utility principles are rarely applied, whereas the goal of equality of health gain is observed more often. The principle not to leave any patient untreated is very dominant. We also observe the degrees to which extent certain monotonicity principles, known from welfare economics, are followed. Subjects were able to describe their moral judgments in written statements. We also find evidence that they followed their respective intuitions very consistently in their decisions. Findings of the kind presented in this paper may serve as an important input for the public and political discussion when decisions on priorities in the public health care sector are formed.

Environmental Education Saves the Day

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haines, Sarah; Kilpatrick, Cynthia

2007-01-01

At the start of each school year at Oil City Elementary Magnet School in Oil City, Louisiana, eager students ask, "What's our theme this year?" This curiosity comes from their expectations that they will study a different environmental concept each year. Kindergarten classes learn to "Be a Friend to the Earth," followed by life…

Some Big Questions about Design in Educational Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gibbons, Andrew S.

2016-01-01

This article asks five questions that lead us to the foundations of design practice in educational technology. Design processes structure time, space, place, activity, role, goal, and resource. For educational technology to advance in its understanding of design practice, it must question whether we have clear conceptions of how abstract…

Reframing Primary Curriculum through Concepts of Place

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Power, Kerith; Green, Monica

2014-01-01

Australian curricula name "sustainability" as a key priority area with implications for preparing pre-service teachers. In the research that generated this paper, we asked: How can framing teaching through space and place inform pre-service teachers' pedagogical thinking and practice? In new third year Bachelor of Education (primary)…

Prelinguistic Relational Concepts: Investigating Analogical Processing in Infants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferry, Alissa L.; Hespos, Susan J.; Gentner, Dedre

2015-01-01

This research asks whether analogical processing ability is present in human infants, using the simplest and most basic relation--the "same-different" relation. Experiment 1 (N = 26) tested whether 7- and 9-month-olds spontaneously detect and generalize these relations from a single example, as previous research has suggested. The…

What's the Matter? Studying the Concept of Matter in Middle School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abell, Sandra K.; And Others

1996-01-01

Describes a fifth-grade science classroom where students were asked to invent an operational definition of matter and validate that definition by designing and implementing a variety of tests. Challenges students to confront their misunderstandings about matter and move beyond merely reciting a definition. (JRH)

Beatles versus Beethoven: Using Music to Introduce Cognitive Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herman, Andrew P.; Wyant, Christopher P.

2006-01-01

The concepts of social cognition and cognitive structures are important aspects of constructivism and human communication theory. By asking students to listen to different musical selections and fill in a simple rubric, different schemas become apparent. This creates an opportunity to discuss how cognitions relate to communication. Students who…

Psychosomatic Medicine: The Scientific Foundation of the Biopsychosocial Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Novack, Dennis H.; Cameron, Oliver; Epel, Elissa; Ader, Robert; Waldstein, Shari R.; Levenstein, Susan; Antoni, Michael H.; Wainer, Alicia Rojas

2007-01-01

Objective: This article presents major concepts and research findings from the field of psychosomatic medicine that the authors believe should be taught to all medical students. Method: The authors asked senior scholars involved in psychosomatic medicine to summarize key findings in their respective fields. Results: The authors provide an overview…

Research Productivity and Academics' Conceptions of Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brew, Angela; Boud, David; Namgung, Sang Un; Lucas, Lisa; Crawford, Karin

2016-01-01

This paper asks the question: do people with different levels of research productivity and identification as a researcher think of research differently? It discusses a study that differentiated levels of research productivity among English and Australian academics working in research-intensive environments in three broad discipline areas: science,…

Fluid Thinking.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clift, Philip A.

1992-01-01

Provides a student worksheet and set-up instructions for a science experiment to demonstrate the concept of density. Students are asked to explain the phenomenon in which a liquid of lower density placed in the bottom of two vertical flasks flows up to replace the liquid of higher density in the upper flask. (MDH)

Knowledge, Character and Professionalisation in Nineteenth-Century British Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellis, Heather

2014-01-01

Historians have frequently referred to the British Association for the Advancement of Science as an institution that had the professionalisation of British science as its chief aim. This article seeks to complicate this picture by asking what, if any, concept of "professionalisation" would have been understood by nineteenth-century…

Developing Geographers through Photography: Enlarging Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanders, Rickie

2007-01-01

This paper explores how photographs can be used to teach urban social geography to second- and third-year university students. In it the author describes her work acquainting students with the skill of "directed observation". She argues that teaching geography through photography is not merely asking students to take pictures but rather, the…

Transformative? Integrative? Troublesome? Undergraduate Honors Student Reflections on Information Literacy Threshold Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Rachel E.

2017-01-01

In this exploratory study the authors ask students enrolled in a credit-bearing undergraduate research methods course to rank and evaluate the troublesome, transformative, and integrative nature of the six frames currently comprising the "Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education." The results indicate that students have…

Genre, Reflection, and Multimodality: Capturing Uptake in the Making

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fiscus, Jaclyn M.

2017-01-01

Scholarship on metacognition in the composition classroom shows how asking students to create reflective texts can help cue, analyze, and assess transfer. By following the composition processes of 13 students doing a remixing assignment, this project examines how genre mediates reflection. I use Rhetorical Genre Studies' conception of…

Taking the Write Way

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giordano, Geoffrey

2011-01-01

Young students generally don't make up their lessons as they go along. But many music educators are encouraging just that by teaching composition alongside traditional musical concepts. Rather than simply relying on rote exercises that focus on basic musical principles and techniques, teachers are asking students to create their own music early on…

Using Antenna Arrays to Motivate the Study of Sinusoids

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Becker, J. P.

2010-01-01

Educational activities involving antenna arrays to motivate the study of sinusoids are described. Specifically, using fundamental concepts related to phase and simple geometric arguments, students are asked to predict the location of interference nulls in the radiation pattern of two-element phased array antennas. The location of the radiation…

'You'll See That Everywhere': Institutional Isomorphism in Secondary School Subject Departments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Puttick, Steven

2017-01-01

This paper asks why spatially separated school departments might exhibit, in different ways, very similar practices. Data from an ethnographic study of three secondary school geography departments in England are discussed through a concept of "isomorphism" (homogenising forces), drawn from neo-institutional theory. Similarities across…

Food-Based Science Curriculum Increases 4th Graders Multidisciplinary Science Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hovland, Jana A.; Carraway-Stage, Virginia G.; Cela, Artenida; Collins, Caitlin; Díaz, Sebastián R.; Collins, Angelo; Duffrin, Melani W.

2013-01-01

Health professionals and policymakers are asking educators to place more emphasis on food and nutrition education. Integrating these topics into science curricula using hand-on, food-based activities may strengthen students' understanding of science concepts. The Food, Math, and Science Teaching Enhancement Resource (FoodMASTER) Initiative is a…

Digital Art Making as a Representational Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Halverson, Erica Rosenfeld

2013-01-01

In this article I bring artistic production into the learning sciences conversation by using the production of representations as a bridging concept between art making and the new literacies. Through case studies with 4 youth media arts organizations across the United States I ask how organizations structure the process of producing…

In Search of a Hero, in Search of Self

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jolley, Susan Arpajian

2007-01-01

In this article, the author vitalizes her British literature course by asking seniors to investigate, through an I-Search paper, the concept of heroism. Students research a historic or contemporary individual, drawing on their understanding of heroic literary figures previously studied, and interview family, community members, and others connected…

Calculus Student Understanding of Continuity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wangle, Jayleen Lillian

2013-01-01

Continuity is a central concept in calculus. Yet very few students seem to understand the nature of continuity. The research described was conducted in two stages. Students were asked questions in multiple choice and true/false format regarding function, limit and continuity. These results were used to identify participants as strong, weak or…

Elementary Algebra Connections to Precalculus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lopez-Boada, Roberto; Daire, Sandra Arguelles

2013-01-01

This article examines the attitudes of some precalculus students to solve trigonometric and logarithmic equations and systems using the concepts of elementary algebra. With the goal of enticing the students to search for and use connections among mathematical topics, they are asked to solve equations or systems specifically designed to allow…

Process Versus Product

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Remmo, Matthew J.

2005-01-01

This article asks the question: "What can you get when you combine 100 students from three career technical programs, six student-created concepts, three highly-motivated instructors, and two leaders in automotive technology?" The answer can be found in this author's description of a program at the Elkhart Area Career Center (EACC) in…

The National Stream Quality Accounting Network (NASQAN) - Some questions and answers

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ficke, John F.; Hawkinson, Richard O.

1975-01-01

One of the major new efforts of the U.S. Geological Survey is the National Stream Quality Accounting Network (NASQAN). This circular is intended to answer some of the frequently asked questions concerning concepts used in establishing NASQAN, its purposes, design, value, and future plans.

High School Students' Views about Technology.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Griffiths, Alan K.; Heath, Nancy Parsons

In this technologically expanding world it is important for teachers and other educators to be aware of students' existing conceptions of technology and to provide appropriate avenues for change. This study interviewed high school students (n=26) in Newfoundland, Canada, about their beliefs of science and technology. Questions were asked regarding…

A Surprisingly Radical Problem

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ledford, Sarah D.; Garner, Mary L.; Teachey, Angela L.

2012-01-01

Sometimes, in the teaching and learning of mathematics, open-ended problems posed by teachers or students can lead to a fuller understanding of mathematical concepts--a depth of understanding that no one could have anticipated. Interesting solutions and ideas emerged unexpectedly when the authors asked prospective and in-service teachers an "old"…

Partners for Success? Undergraduate Women's Post-Feminist Constructions of Intimate Relationships

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blair, Elizabeth E.

2017-01-01

Past research suggests that undergraduate women have faced educational cultures in which their college experience is defined through romantic experiences. This study expands this literature by investigating how heightened achievement expectations for undergraduate women inform their broader conceptions of intimate relationships, by asking the…

Attitudes Towards Menstruation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stevens, Gwendolyn; Gardner, Sheldon

To explore current conceptions about menstruation, 50 male and female undergraduate students were asked to Q sort symptoms from the Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire (MDQ). The MDQ is a scale which contains 47 symptoms which have been associated with the menstrual cycle. The Q sort is a statistical technique in which data are analyzed as…

Protein and Carbohydrate Contents of Plant Seeds: An Introduction to Biochemical Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deutch, Charles E.; Egan, Todd P.; Meekins, J. Forrest; Siegel, Carol

2004-01-01

The first of two projects developed for an introductory biology course of science majors titled Biological Concepts I is described. Students were divided into groups and were asked to determine the total amount of protein and carbohydrate in different types of seeds that were provided to them.

Learning How to Ask: Women and Negotiation.

PubMed

Fischer, Lauren H; Bajaj, Anureet K

2017-03-01

Women are less likely to reach top-level leadership positions, and more likely to leave academic positions, than men, and are likely to earn less money than men. Women are also less likely to initiate a negotiation-a process that is crucial for professional advancement. This reluctance to ask hinders their advancement and can have long-lasting consequences-both financial and professional. The reasons that women do not ask are multifactorial. In this article, we will explore reasons why women are less likely to negotiate, the barriers they face when they do, and strategies that women can apply to improve their negotiation skills.

Biology Students’ Initial Mental Model about Microorganism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamdiyati, Y.; Sudargo, F.; Redjeki, S.; Fitriani, A.

2017-02-01

The purpose of this study was to identify biology students’ initial mental model about microorganism. This research used descriptive method with 32 sixth semester biology students at Biology Education Departement-Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia as its respondents. Data was taken at the beginning of the 6th semester before respondents endure microbiology course. Instrument used to assess mental model was drawing-writing test in which it contains concepts such as structure of bacteria, archaea, virus, and fungi. Students were asked to describe their imagination about the structure of microorganisms and subsequently asked to explain the structure of microorganisms in writing through open-ended questions. Students’ response was then compared to scientists or experts’ mental models as the targeted mental model. Student mental models were categorized into five levels (levels 1-5), namely “there is no drawing/writing,” “wrong or irrelevant drawing/writing of question,” “partially correct drawing/writing,” “the drawing/writing that has some deficiencies,” and “completely correct and complete drawing/writing.” Results showed that the level of mental models through drawing or writing about the four concepts were varied. The highest level of mental models through drawing (D5) was found in the concept of bacteria, while the highest level of mental models through writing (W3) was found in the concept of bacteria, virus, and fungi. Mental model levels most commonly found in each concept through drawing-writing tests (D/W) were bacteria (D2/W2), Archaea (D1/W1 and D2/W2), virus (D3/W3), and fungi (D2/W1). From these results it is advisable to improve lectures and assessment strategy to enhance or complement students’ mental models about microorganisms.

Caring in context: caring practices in a sample of Hong Kong nurses.

PubMed

Arthur, D; Pang, S; Wong, T

1998-12-01

In an effort to place the international literature and research in nursing in a Chinese cultural context a study was commenced to examine the caring practices of nurses in Hong Kong. In view of a recent study (Wilkes & Wallis, 1993) which utilised Roach's 5Cs of caring (Roach, 1987, 1992), a pilot study was commenced on a sample of 77 Hong Kong Registered Nurses studying a Diploma of Nursing. An open ended questionnaire was designed which asked nurses to respond to questions about caring in general and the 5Cs: compassion, competence, confidence, conscience and commitment. The questions asked what each of the concepts meant to them as a nurse. Data was analysed into themes based on key words for each of the six areas revealing that the sample of Hong Kong nurses viewed caring in a similar light to those in overseas studies. The sample highlighted compassion and competence as their major features and it is suggested that methodological problems may have inhibited a deeper analysis of their caring attributes and behaviours. When asked to expand on the 5 Cs in terms of their own practice they were able to supply themes which were closely related to Roach's definitions but which may have been more 'textbook' in their origin and certainly lacked a richness of response. The paucity of responses in terms of clarity and richness of data, followed by discussions with the participants led to conclusions about the methodological issues of cross-cultural research and recommendations for future research are made. Highlighted are the problems with attempting to use concepts such as the 5 Cs across cultures and the problems encountered with translation of concepts related to caring from Chinese into English, and vice-versa. The study has provided some insights into the concepts of caring in Hong Kong Chinese nurses. In the light of advances in China and unification of previously separate countries these findings provide and offer insights into nursing in China and are encouraging for future research.

Assessing Approaches to Teaching Systems Thinking: Reading Article vs. Game Play

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pfirman, S. L.; O'Garra, T.; Lee, J.; Bachrach, E.; Bachman, G.; Orlove, B. S.

2016-12-01

Problem-solving in the complex domain of climate change requires consideration of the dynamics of systems as wholes. The long time frame, coupled with multiple interacting elements is challenging to teach through traditionally linear approaches, such as lectures or reading. On the other hand some have claimed that games are potentially useful in teaching system skills, due to their iterative, interacting, and problem solving character. In this experiment, we evaluated the impact of the EcoChains: Arctic Crisis card game on participants' mental models using a `fuzzy cognitive mapping' approach. The study population included 41 participants randomly assigned to the treatment/game play n=21 and the control/reading illustrated article: n=20. To obtain cognitive maps from participants, the first step was explaining how to draw a map, using an unrelated map as an example. Following the explanation, participants were handed large sheets of paper and asked to write down all the concepts they could think of related to: Arctic marine & sea-ice ecosystems, including the species & inhabitants of these ecosystems, all the different factors that negatively affect the health of Arctic marine & sea-ice ecosystems, its species & inhabitants, all the different factors that positively affect the health of Arctic marine & sea-ice ecosystems, its species & inhabitants. Once participants had drafted their list of concepts, they were asked to construct maps with the concepts in the center followed by arrows drawn between them to represent the direction of relationships between concepts. After the intervention - either playing the EcoChains card game or reading the illustrated article - participants were handed back their maps, together with a different colored pencil from the one they used previously, and asked to adjust the maps based on what they had learned from playing Ecochains/reading the article. Results indicate that both playing EcoChains and reading an illustrated article with similar information, increased systems thinking. Assessment indicates that the text-based approach had greater quantitative gains as evaluated through the number of nodes and types of connections. Additional analysis is ongoing to examine potential differences in the quality of learning gains.

From competencies to human interests: ways of knowing and understanding in medical education.

PubMed

Kumagai, Arno K

2014-07-01

When considering the teaching and learning of topics of social relevance in medicine, such as professionalism, medical ethics, the doctor-patient relationship, and issues of diversity and social justice, one is tempted to ask, are the ways of knowing in these fields different from that in the biomedical and clinical sciences? Furthermore, given that the competency approach is dominant in medical education, one might also ask, is the competency model truly appropriate for all of the types of knowledge necessary to become a good physician? These questions are not merely academic, for they are at the core of how these subjects are taught, learned, and assessed.The goal of this article is threefold: first, to explore the nature of knowing and the educational goals in different areas of medicine and, in particular, those areas that have social relevance; second, to critically review the concept of competencies when applied to education in these areas; and third, to explore alternative strategies for teaching, learning, and assessment. This discussion reflects a view that the goal of education in areas of social relevance in medicine should be the enhancement of an understanding of-a deep and abiding connection with-the social responsibilities of the physician. Moving beyond competencies, this approach aspires toward the development of practical wisdom (phronesis) which, when embodied in the physician, links the knowledge and skills of the biomedical and clinical sciences with a moral orientation and call to action that addresses human interests in the practice of medicine.

Why Sketching May Aid Learning From Science Texts: Contrasting Sketching With Written Explanations.

PubMed

Scheiter, Katharina; Schleinschok, Katrin; Ainsworth, Shaaron

2017-10-01

The goal of this study was to explore two accounts for why sketching during learning from text is helpful: (1) sketching acts like other constructive strategies such as self-explanation because it helps learners to identify relevant information and generate inferences; or (2) that in addition to these general effects, sketching has more specific benefits due to the pictorial representation that is constructed. Seventy-three seventh-graders (32 girls, M = 12.82 years) were first taught how to either create sketches or self-explain while studying science texts. During a subsequent learning phase, all students were asked to read an expository text about the greenhouse effect. Finally, they were asked to write down everything they remembered and then answer transfer questions. Strategy quality during learning was assessed as the number of key concepts that had either been sketched or mentioned in the self-explanations. The results showed that at an overall performance level there were only marginal group differences. However, a more in-depth analysis revealed that whereas no group differences emerged for students implementing either strategy poorly, the sketching group clearly outperformed the self-explanation group for students who applied the strategies with higher quality. Furthermore, higher sketching quality was strongly related to better learning outcomes. Thus, the study's results are more in line with the second account: Sketching can have a beneficial effect on learning above and beyond generating written explanations; at least, if well deployed. Copyright © 2017 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Difficult Concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fosbury, R.

2005-12-01

Beautiful colour images of the sky are both a blessing and a curse for the communication of astronomy to the public. While undoubtedly attractive, they can obscure the fact that discoveries are often made in astrophysics using techniques and measurements that are much more difficult to grasp and certainly less appealing to view. Should we try to explain such concepts as spectroscopy, polarimetry and interferometry, or is it a lost cause? The most effective approach to this problem may be to lead the audience to ask the question themselves: "But how do you know that?"

Interpretation and use of evidence in state policymaking: a qualitative analysis

PubMed Central

Apollonio, Dorie E; Bero, Lisa A

2017-01-01

Introduction Researchers advocating for evidence-informed policy have attempted to encourage policymakers to develop a greater understanding of research and researchers to develop a better understanding of the policymaking process. Our aim was to apply findings drawn from studies of the policymaking process, specifically the theory of policy windows, to identify strategies used to integrate evidence into policymaking and points in the policymaking process where evidence was more or less relevant. Methods Our observational study relied on interviews conducted with 24 policymakers from the USA who had been trained to interpret scientific research in multiple iterations of an evidence-based workshop. Participants were asked to describe cases where they had been involved in making health policy and to provide examples in which research was used, either successfully or unsuccessfully. Interviews were transcribed, independently coded by multiple members of the study team and analysed for content using key words, concepts identified by participants and concepts arising from review of the texts. Results Our results suggest that policymakers who focused on health issues used multiple strategies to encourage evidence-informed policymaking. The respondents used a strict definition of what constituted evidence, and relied on their experience with research to discourage the use of less rigorous research. Their experience suggested that evidence was less useful in identifying problems, encouraging political action or ensuring feasibility and more useful in developing policy alternatives. Conclusions Past research has suggested multiple strategies to increase the use of evidence in policymaking, including the development of rapid-response research and policy-oriented summaries of data. Our findings suggest that these strategies may be most relevant to the policymaking stream, which develops policy alternatives. In addition, we identify several strategies that policymakers and researchers can apply to encourage evidence-informed policymaking. PMID:28219958

Development of a Self-Rated Mixed Methods Skills Assessment: The NIH Mixed Methods Research Training Program for the Health Sciences

PubMed Central

Guetterman, Timothy C.; Creswell, John W.; Wittink, Marsha; Barg, Fran K.; Castro, Felipe G.; Dahlberg, Britt; Watkins, Daphne C.; Deutsch, Charles; Gallo, Joseph J.

2017-01-01

Introduction Demand for training in mixed methods is high, with little research on faculty development or assessment in mixed methods. We describe the development of a Self-Rated Mixed Methods Skills Assessment and provide validity evidence. The instrument taps six research domains: “Research question,” “Design/approach,” “Sampling,” “Data collection,” “Analysis,” and “Dissemination.” Respondents are asked to rate their ability to define or explain concepts of mixed methods under each domain, their ability to apply the concepts to problems, and the extent to which they need to improve. Methods We administered the questionnaire to 145 faculty and students using an internet survey. We analyzed descriptive statistics and performance characteristics of the questionnaire using Cronbach’s alpha to assess reliability and an ANOVA that compared a mixed methods experience index with assessment scores to assess criterion-relatedness. Results Internal consistency reliability was high for the total set of items (.95) and adequate (>=.71) for all but one subscale. Consistent with establishing criterion validity, respondents who had more professional experiences with mixed methods (e.g., published a mixed methods paper) rated themselves as more skilled, which was statistically significant across the research domains. Discussion This Self-Rated Mixed Methods Assessment instrument may be a useful tool to assess skills in mixed methods for training programs. It can be applied widely at the graduate and faculty level. For the learner, assessment may lead to enhanced motivation to learn and training focused on self-identified needs. For faculty, the assessment may improve curriculum and course content planning. PMID:28562495

An Active Learning Activity to Reinforce the Design Components of the Corticosteroids

PubMed Central

Mandela, Prashant

2018-01-01

Despite the popularity of active learning applications over the past few decades, few activities have been reported for the field of medicinal chemistry. The purpose of this study is to report a new active learning activity, describe participant contributions, and examine participant performance on the assessment questions mapped to the objective covered by the activity. In this particular activity, students are asked to design two novel corticosteroids as a group (6–8 students per group) based on the design characteristics of marketed corticosteroids covered in lecture coupled with their pharmaceutics knowledge from the previous semester and then defend their design to the class through an interactive presentation model. Although class performance on the objective mapped to this material on the assessment did not reach statistical significance, use of this activity has allowed fruitful discussion of misunderstood concepts and facilitated multiple changes to the lecture presentation. As pharmacy schools continue to emphasize alternative learning pedagogies, publication of previously implemented activities demonstrating their use will help others apply similar methodologies. PMID:29401733

An Active Learning Activity to Reinforce the Design Components of the Corticosteroids.

PubMed

Slauson, Stephen R; Mandela, Prashant

2018-02-05

Despite the popularity of active learning applications over the past few decades, few activities have been reported for the field of medicinal chemistry. The purpose of this study is to report a new active learning activity, describe participant contributions, and examine participant performance on the assessment questions mapped to the objective covered by the activity. In this particular activity, students are asked to design two novel corticosteroids as a group (6-8 students per group) based on the design characteristics of marketed corticosteroids covered in lecture coupled with their pharmaceutics knowledge from the previous semester and then defend their design to the class through an interactive presentation model. Although class performance on the objective mapped to this material on the assessment did not reach statistical significance, use of this activity has allowed fruitful discussion of misunderstood concepts and facilitated multiple changes to the lecture presentation. As pharmacy schools continue to emphasize alternative learning pedagogies, publication of previously implemented activities demonstrating their use will help others apply similar methodologies.

STEM Integration in Middle School Life Science: Student Learning and Attitudes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guzey, S. Selcen; Moore, Tamara J.; Harwell, Michael; Moreno, Mario

2016-08-01

In many countries around the world, there has been an increasing emphasis on improving science education. Recent reform efforts in the USA call for teachers to integrate scientific and engineering practices into science teaching; for example, science teachers are asked to provide learning experiences for students that apply crosscutting concepts (e.g., patterns, scale) and increase understanding of disciplinary core ideas (e.g., physical science, earth science). Engineering practices and engineering design are essential elements of this new vision of science teaching and learning. This paper presents a research study that evaluates the effects of an engineering design-based science curriculum on student learning and attitudes. Three middle school life science teachers and 275 seventh grade students participated in the study. Content assessments and attitude surveys were administered before and after the implementation of the curriculum unit. Statewide mathematics test proficiency scores were included in the data analysis as well. Results provide evidence of the positive effects of implementing the engineering design-based science unit on student attitudes and learning.

Some steps toward a central theory of ecosystem dynamics.

PubMed

Ulanowicz, Robert E

2003-12-01

Ecology is said by many to suffer for want of a central theory, such as Newton's laws of motion provide for classical mechanics or Schroedinger's wave equation provides for quantum physics. From among a plurality of contending laws to govern ecosystem behavior, the principle of increasing ascendency shows some early promise of being able to address the major questions asked of a theory of ecosystems, including, "How do organisms come to be distributed in time and space?, what accounts for the log-normal distribution of species numbers?, and how is the diversity of ecosystems related to their stability, resilience and persistence?" While some progress has been made in applying the concept of ascendency to the first issue, more work is needed to articulate exactly how it relates to the latter two. Accordingly, seven theoretical tasks are suggested that could help to establish these connections and to promote further consideration of the ascendency principle as the kernel of a theory of ecosystems.

Coaching for Success: A Residency Search Primer and Update for Preceptors and Faculty

PubMed Central

Adams, Alex J.; Ulbrich, Timothy R.; Soric, Mate M.

2015-01-01

Pharmacy residency programs have become increasingly competitive in recent years, and changes to the residency search and application process have altered the process for matching with a residency. In this article, major residency topics, from the benefits of residency training to searching for and ranking programs, are summarized. A discussion of tips and tricks for applying for residencies and interviewing for positions is included along with specific suggestions developed with data following the implementation of the Pharmacy Online Residency Centralized Application Service (PhORCAS). The article is organized in a question and answer format to help facilitate understanding of key concepts and common questions that may arise from applicants. Many changes have taken place in the residency search and application process in recent years, and the process of obtaining a residency is complex. Residency applicants and those advising applicants may find value in the answers to commonly asked residency application questions to help ensure the greatest chance of a successful residency match. PMID:26405338

"Futile Care"-An Emergency Medicine Approach: Ethical and Legal Considerations.

PubMed

Simon, Jeremy R; Kraus, Chadd; Rosenberg, Mark; Wang, David H; Clayborne, Elizabeth P; Derse, Arthur R

2017-11-01

Futility often serves as a proposed reason for withholding or withdrawing medical treatment, even in the face of patient and family requests. Although there is substantial literature describing the meaning and use of futility, little of it is specific to emergency medicine. Furthermore, the literature does not provide a widely accepted definition of futility, and thus is difficult if not impossible to apply. Some argue that even a clear concept of futility would be inappropriate to use. This article will review the origins of and meanings suggested for futility, specific challenges such cases create in the emergency department (ED), and the relevant legal background. It will then propose an approach to cases of perceived futility that is applicable in the ED and does not rely on unilateral decisions to withhold treatment, but rather on avoiding and resolving the conflicts that lead to physicians' believing that patients are asking them to provide "futile" care. Copyright © 2017 American College of Emergency Physicians. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Thinking before sinning: reasoning processes in hedonic consumption

PubMed Central

de Witt Huberts, Jessie; Evers, Catharine; de Ridder, Denise

2014-01-01

Whereas hedonic consumption is often labeled as impulsive, findings from self-licensing research suggest that people sometimes rely on reasons to justify hedonic consumption. Although the concept of self-licensing assumes the involvement of reasoning processes, this has not been demonstrated explicitly. Two studies investigated whether people indeed rely on reasons to allow themselves a guilty pleasure. Participants were exposed to a food temptation after which passive and active reasoning was assessed by asking participants to indicate the justifications that applied to them for indulging in that temptation (Study 1) or having them construe reasons to consume the hedonic product (Study 2). Regression analyses indicated that higher levels of temptation predicted the number of reasons employed and construed to justify consumption. By providing evidence for the involvement of reasoning processes, these findings support the assumption of self-licensing theory that temptations not only exert their influence by making us more impulsive, but can also facilitate gratification by triggering deliberative reasoning processes. PMID:25408680

Student-Posed Problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harper, Kathleen A.; Etkina, Eugenia

2002-10-01

As part of weekly reports,1 structured journals in which students answer three standard questions each week, they respond to the prompt, If I were the instructor, what questions would I ask or problems assign to determine if my students understood the material? An initial analysis of the results shows that some student-generated problems indicate fundamental misunderstandings of basic physical concepts. A further investigation explores the relevance of the problems to the week's material, whether the problems are solvable, and the type of problems (conceptual or calculation-based) written. Also, possible links between various characteristics of the problems and conceptual achievement are being explored. The results of this study spark many more questions for further work. A summary of current findings will be presented, along with its relationship to previous work concerning problem posing.2 1Etkina, E. Weekly Reports;A Two-Way Feedback Tool, Science Education, 84, 594-605 (2000). 2Mestre, J.P., Probing Adults Conceptual Understanding and Transfer of Learning Via Problem Posing, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 23, 9-50 (2002).

An assessment of high school students' conceptual structures of heat and temperature through concept maps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aykutlu, Isil; Bezen, Sevim; Bayrak, Celal

2017-02-01

This study is a qualitative one conducted in order to determine 9th, 10th, and 11th grade high school students' conceptual structures of heat and temperature through concept maps. The study was realized with the participation of a total of 80 students. As data gathering tool, a concept map developed by the researchers, which includes such items as heat, temperature, and matter, was used. Students were asked to form a concept map by using the concepts in the form and the concepts they thought were related with these. Data obtained from the research was analyzed via content analysis. As a result of the study, it was determined that students have misconceptions and lack of knowledge of heat and temperature. Lastly, the following can be given as examples of students' misconceptions or lack of knowledge: they think temperature comes into being as a result of heat and that heat is a kind of energy.

How Do Organic Chemistry Students Understand and Apply Hydrogen Bonding?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henderleiter, J.; Smart, R.; Anderson, J.; Elian, O.

2001-08-01

Students completing a year-long organic chemistry sequence were interviewed to assess how they understood, explained, and applied knowledge of hydrogen bonding to the physical behavior of molecules. Students were asked to define hydrogen bonding and explain situations in which hydrogen bonding could occur. They were asked to predict and explain how hydrogen bonding influences boiling point, the solubility of molecules, and NMR and IR spectra. Results suggest that although students may be able to give appropriate definitions of hydrogen bonding and may recognize when this phenomenon can occur, significant numbers cannot apply their knowledge of hydrogen bonding to physical properties of molecules or to the interpretation of spectral data. Some possess misconceptions concerning boiling points and the ability of molecules to induce hydrogen bonding. Instructional strategies must be adjusted to address these issues.

Comprehending emergent systems phenomena through direct-manipulation animation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aguirre, Priscilla Abel

This study seeks to understand the type of interaction mode that best supports learning and comprehension of emergent systems phenomena. Given that the literature has established that students hold robust misconceptions of such phenomena, this study investigates the influence of using three types of interaction; speed-manipulation animation (SMN), post-manipulation animation (PMA) and direct-manipulation animation (DMA) for increasing comprehension and testing transfer of the phenomena, by looking at the effect of simultaneous interaction of haptic and visual channels on long term and working memories when seeking to comprehend emergent phenomena. The questions asked were: (1) Does the teaching of emergent phenomena, with the aid of a dynamic interactive modeling tool (i.e., SMA, PMA or DMA), improve students' mental model construction of systems, thus increasing comprehension of this scientific concept? And (2) does the teaching of emergent phenomena, with the aid of a dynamic interactive modeling tool, give the students the necessary complex cognitive skill which can then be applied to similar (near transfer) and/or novel, but different, (far transfer) scenarios? In an empirical study undergraduate and graduate students were asked to participate in one of three experimental conditions: SMA, PMA, or DMA. The results of the study found that it was the participants of the SMA treatment condition that had the most improvement in post-test scores. Students' understanding of the phenomena increased most when they used a dynamic model with few interactive elements (i.e., start, stop, and speed) that allowed for real time visualization of one's interaction on the phenomena. Furthermore, no indication was found that the learning of emergent phenomena, with the aid of a dynamic interactive modeling tool, gave the students the necessary complex cognitive skill which could then be applied to similar (near transfer) and/or novel, but different, (far transfer) scenarios. Finally, besides treatment condition, gender and age were also shown to be predictors of score differences; overall, males did better than females, and younger students did better than older students.

Building chemistry one atom at a time: An investigation of the effects of two curricula in students' understanding of covalent bonding and atomic size

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bull, Barbara Jeanne

Chemists have to rely on models to aid in the explanation of phenomena they experience. Instruction of atomic theory has been used as the introduction and primary model for many concepts in chemistry. Therefore, it is important for students to have a robust understanding of the different atomic models, their relationships and their limitations. Previous research has shown that students have alternative conceptions concerning their interpretation of atomic models, but there is less exploration into how students apply their understanding of atomic structure to other chemical concepts. Therefore, this research concentrated on the development of three Model Eliciting Activities to investigate the most fundamental topic of the atom and how students applied their atomic model to covalent bonding and atomic size. Along with the investigation into students' use of their atomic models, a comparison was included between a traditional chemistry curriculum using an Atoms First approach and Chemistry, Life, the Universe and Everything (CLUE), a NSF-funded general chemistry curriculum. Treatment and Control groups were employed to determine the effectiveness of the curricula in conveying the relationship between atoms, covalent bonds and atomic size. The CLUE students developed a Cloud representation on the Atomic Model Eliciting Activity and maintained this depiction through the Covalent Bonding Model Eliciting Activity. The traditional students more often illustrated the atom using a Bohr representation and continued to apply the same model to their portrayal of covalent bonding. During the analysis of the Atomic Size Model Eliciting Activity, students had difficulty fully supporting their explanation of the atomic size trend. Utilizing the beSocratic platform, an activity was designed to aid students' construction of explanations using Toulmin's Argumentation Pattern. In order to study the effectiveness of the activity, the students were asked questions relating to a four-week long investigation into the identity of an inorganic salt during their laboratory class. Students who completed the activity exhibited an improvement in their explanation of the identity of their salt's cation. After completing the activity, another question was posed about the identity of their anion. Both groups saw a decrease in the percentage of students who included reasoning in their answer; however, the activity group maintained a significantly higher percentage of responses with a reasoning than the control group.

More than Meets the Eye

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Tom John; Throop, Susie; Timku, Ladep

2009-01-01

On a partly sunny afternoon, a fourth-grade class at the Marietta Center for Advanced Academics in Marietta, Georgia, was gearing up to explore key concepts regarding the nature of light. Armed with translucent beads and white pipe cleaners, the classroom teacher asked each student to count eight beads and then encouraged them to closely observe…

The High School Underground Press: Content Analysis, Member Attitudes, and Beliefs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Feldman, Samuel Nathan

Developing a rationale for the high school underground press is the objective of this study. To accomplish this, principals, underground editors, and student editors were asked to rate six concepts and to complete an attitudes and beliefs scale, and thirteen high school underground newspapers and five major court decisions were examined using…

Academic Attitudes and Psychological Well-Being of Black American Psychology Graduate Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uqdah, Aesha L.; Tyler, Kenneth M.; DeLoach, Chante

2009-01-01

The goal of this study is to explore the relationships between academic self-concept, perception of competency in related domains, and academic motivation (intrinsic, extrinsic, and amotivation), and reported anxiety and depression among Black American psychology graduate students. The major research question asks whether there is a relationship…

Difficult Conversations: As Important to Teach as Math or Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sherman, Andrew

2017-01-01

Carl Honoré, a noted author, broadcaster, and lecturer, visited GEMS World Academy Chicago, to discuss the "slow movement," which asks parents to reconsider how they spend time with their children. The concept of slow parenting encourages parents to "slow down" to enjoy the experience, thus enhancing the quality of the time…

Characteristics of Pre-Service Primary School Teachers' Configural Reasoning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Llinares, Salvador; Clemente, Francisco

2014-01-01

The goal of this study is to identify the characteristics of pre-service primary teachers' configural reasoning, understood as the relationships between concepts and figures set to solve geometrical proof problems. Ninety-seven primary teachers were asked to solve two geometrical proof problems in which a geometrical figure was provided. The…

Polyphony in the Classroom: Reporting Narrative Action Research Reflexively

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niemi, Reetta; Heikkinen, Hannu L. T.; Kannas, Lasse

2010-01-01

In this article we will present a reflexive way of producing a narrative analysis on teaching and learning that involves all participants of the pedagogical process. Our theoretical contribution rests on the concept "lived pedagogy", adapted from Max van Manen's term "lived experience". Like van Manen, we start by asking the…

Connecting Solubility, Equilibrium, and Periodicity in a Green, Inquiry Experiment for the General Chemistry Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cacciatore, Kristen L.; Amado, Jose; Evans, Jason J.; Sevian, Hannah

2008-01-01

We present a novel first-year chemistry laboratory experiment that connects solubility, equilibrium, and chemical periodicity concepts. It employs a unique format that asks students to replicate experiments described in different sample lab reports, each lacking some essential information, rather than follow a scripted procedure. This structure is…

On the Content-Dependence of Prospective Teachers' Knowledge: A Case of Exemplifying Definitions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leikin, Roza; Zazkis, Rina

2010-01-01

In this article, we demonstrate that prospective teachers' content knowledge related to defining mathematical concepts is dependent on content area. We use the example of generation (a research tool we developed in a previous study) to investigate prospective teachers' knowledge. We asked prospective secondary mathematics teachers to provide…

Teacher Education and the Expanding Role of The Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berman, Louise M.

1981-01-01

Two major questions need to be asked by teacher preparation institutions: (1) What ought to be the key areas of study for youth in the decade ahead? and (2) How should teachers be prepared to teach in these areas? Six concepts are suggested for a teacher education program for the 1980s. (JN)

The Effects of Game Design on Learning Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Michael W.; Shen, Yuzhong

2014-01-01

This article details the administration and results of an experiment conducted to assess the impact of three video game design concepts upon learning outcomes. The principles tested include game aesthetics, player choice, and player competition. The experiment participants were asked to play a serious game over the course of a week, and the…

Minimum viable populations: Is there a 'magic number' for conservation practitioners?

Treesearch

Curtis H. Flather; Gregory D. Hayward; Steven R. Beissinger; Philip A. Stephens

2011-01-01

Establishing species conservation priorities and recovery goals is often enhanced by extinction risk estimates. The need to set goals, even in data-deficient situations, has prompted researchers to ask whether general guidelines could replace individual estimates of extinction risk. To inform conservation policy, recent studies have revived the concept of the minimum...

Investigating First Year Elementary Mathematics Teacher Education Students' Knowledge of Prism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bozkurt, Ali; Koc, Yusuf

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate first year elementary mathematics teacher education students' knowledge of prism. For this goal, the participants were asked to define the geometric concept of prism. The participants were 158 first year elementary mathematics teacher education students from a public university in Southern Turkey. The…

Advanced Learners' Foreign Language-Related Emotions across the Four Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piniel, Katalin; Albert, Ágnes

2018-01-01

Individual differences researchers have recently begun to investigate the concept of emotions and their role in language learning (MacIntyre, Gregersen, & Mercer, 2016). Our aim is to report on a project exploring English majors' feelings related to their use of foreign languages. Using a qualitative research design, participants were asked to…

Maximal Preference Utilitarianism as an Educational Aspiration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stables, Andrew

2016-01-01

This paper attempts to square libertarian principles with the reality of formal education by asking how far we should and can allow people to do as they wish in educational settings. The major focus is on children in schools, as the concept "childhood" "ipso facto" implies restrictions on doing as one wishes, and schools as…

Science and Creation: Geological, Theological & Educational Perspectives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Robert W., Ed.

This book provides working examples of how different teachers, scientists, and theologians have dealt with problems of "creation science" versus evolutionary concepts. A 1982 symposia on the topic of science and creation was so well received that the participants were asked to submit formal presentations; this book is a collection of these papers.…

The Post-Human I: Encountering "Data" in New Materialism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Somerville, Margaret

2016-01-01

The editors of a recent special edition of "Qualitative Studies in Education" map a new field of post-qualitative research and raise fundamental questions about core concepts such as "method" and "data." They ask whether qualitative inquiry as we know it is any longer possible if we understand language, the human and…

Meaning of Parental Involvement among Korean Immigrant Parents: A Mixed-Methods Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Yanghee Anna; An, Sohyun; Kim, Hyun Chu Leah; Kim, Jihye

2018-01-01

The authors' goal was to identify ways in which Korean immigrant parents define the concept of parental involvement and to examine the statistical significances of interrelationships among these meanings. Seventy-seven parents responded to an open-ended question that asked them to define the meaning of parental involvement; 141 responses were…

Climate Cases: Learning about Student Conceptualizations of Global Climate Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tierney, Benjamin P.

2013-01-01

The complex topic of global climate change continues to be a challenging yet important topic among science educators and researchers. This mixed methods study adds to the growing research by investigating student conceptions of climate change from a system theory perspective (Von Bertalanffy, 1968) by asking the question, "How do differences…

Against Boldness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Mary M.

2010-01-01

This special issue, "Bold Ideas for a New Era in Teacher Education, Teacher Preparation, and Teacher Practice," seeks to examine the impact of bold ideas on our field. Authors were asked to propose particular bold ideas that they wanted to examine. I proposed to examine the concept of bold ideas itself. In this article, I challenge the notion that…

For and Against Diversity in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Badley, Graham

2007-01-01

Diversity is generally discussed in terms such as "being diverse", "being unlike", "difference" and "variety". Academics, as expressive writers, try to make their understanding of a concept such as diversity as explicit as possible, as part of their discourse of giving and asking for reasons. As such, diversity may be viewed both positively and…

The Emotion Concepts of Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bullock, Merry; Russell, James A.

This report discusses three studies of 2- to 5-year-old children's interpretations of facial expressions in terms of (1) the structure of the emotional domain and (2) prototypic example, overlap, and range of emotion categories. In the first study, 78 children were asked to make similarity judgments about 10 photographed facial expressions by…

How to Tackle Tough Facility Design Considerations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kalina, David

2007-01-01

This article is part of a series that has offered insight on planning a facilities project, hiring professionals, delivery system options and owner's responsibilities. In this article, the author focuses on some of the planning and design concepts one may be asked to consider in providing direction to his design and construction team. These…

Unraveling Reliability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Popham, W. James

2009-01-01

If a person were to ask an educator to identify the two most important attributes of an education test, the response most certainly would be "validity and reliability." These two tightly wedded concepts have become icons in the field of education assessment. As far as validity is concerned, the term doesn't refer to the accuracy of a test. Rather,…

The Great Guppy Experiment: A Recipe for Integrated Biology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cuiper, Auke

2014-01-01

In this new context concept approach, field research on the Trinidadian guppy is used as an appealing example of evolutionary change in populations. Pupils are asked to investigate the underlying mechanisms. In doing so, defects in their knowledge are revealed, in particular the role of meiosis in creating genetic variation. The reason for these…

What people think about Ecological restoration and Related Topics: At a first look

Treesearch

Susan C. Barro; Nadine A. Bopp

1999-01-01

This study repersents a first step in gaining awareness of what people think about ecological and related concepts. Forty-one undergraduate nonscience majors at a liberal arts college in chicago were asked to define, explain, or illustrate the follong four terms: "forest preserves," "natural area," "ecological restoration," and "...

The Virtual University for Small States of the Commonwealth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

West, Paul; Daniel, John

2009-01-01

The Virtual University for Small States of the Commonwealth (VUSSC) was conceived by ministers at their triennial Conference of Commonwealth Ministers of Education in 2000. The Commonwealth of Learning was asked to investigate possible models, and presented a proposal to ministers at their next conference in 2003. The concept of a virtual…

Manipulating 3D-Printed and Paper Models Enhances Student Understanding of Viral Replication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Couper, Lisa; Johannes, Kristen; Powers, Jackie; Silberglitt, Matt; Davenport, Jodi

2016-01-01

Understanding key concepts in molecular biology requires reasoning about molecular processes that are not directly observable and, as such, presents a challenge to students and teachers. We ask whether novel interactive physical models and activities can help students understand key processes in viral replication. Our 3D tangible models are…

Reframing Responsibility in the Social Justice Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Applebaum, Barbara

2012-01-01

This article examines a question that white students often ask when they learn about their role in systemic racial oppression: "Why am I responsible?" I argue that the conception of responsibility that grounds this question is focused on causality and individual action and makes it difficult for white students to understand how within the context…

Elementary Students' Metaphors for Democracy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dundar, Hakan

2012-01-01

The purpose of the research was to reveal elementary 8th grade students' opinions concerning democracy with the aid of metaphors. The students were asked to produce metaphors about the concept of democracy. 140 students from 3 public schools in Ankara (Turkey) participated in the research. 55% of the students were females and 45% were males. The…

Two Balls' Collision of Mass Ratio 3:1

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ogawara, Yasuo; Hull, Michael M.

2018-01-01

Students will sometimes ask why momentum and kinetic energy concepts are both necessary. When physics teachers demonstrate situations that require both an understanding of kinetic energy and momentum, a favorite is Newton's cradle, or a comparable demonstration of two balls of equal mass hitting each other. However, in addition to the case of two…

The Nigerian University Teachers' Effectiveness as Perceived by Their Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Okoye, Nnamdi S.

2008-01-01

The study investigated the Delta State University, Abraka, Students' concept of the "effective teacher". A sample of 200 second year university students selected from four faculties were asked to select three most important characteristics of a good teacher from a list of ten. The data obtained were analysed using the percentage…

Risk complexity and the wildland firefighter

Treesearch

Ivan Pupulidy

2012-01-01

Between 2000 and 2010 the US Forest Service and the Department of the Interior experienced 82 wildland fire fatalities. Our most recent organizational focus has been to eliminate fatalities. The chief of the USFS, in a letter to all employees, asked us to "suspend disbelief" with regard to the concept of a "zero fatality organization". This plea...

What Makes Us Tick...Tock?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Talbot, Kristen; Hug, Barbara

2013-01-01

Teachers often ask: How can I engage my students in the study of "real" science? The answer can be found in the National Research Council's "A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas" (NRC 2012). This framework calls for a new approach to science education and is the basis for…

The Difficulties That the Undergraduate Students Face about Inner Product Space

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burhanzade, Hülya; Aygör, Nilgün

2016-01-01

In this qualitative research, we studied difficulties that undergraduate students face while learning the concept of inner product space. Participants were 35 first-year mathematics students from Yildiz Technical University in the 2011 and 2012 academic years. We asked participants to solve 5 inner product space questions. Data were jointly…

Children's Conceptual Development: A Long-Run Investigation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saglam, Yilmaz; Ozbek, Merve

2016-01-01

The study sought to investigate conceptual change process. It is specifically aimed to probe children's initial ideas and how or to what way those ideas alter in the long run. A total of 18 children volunteered and participated in the study. Individual interviews were conducted. The children were asked to define the concept of evaporation, explain…

Representations of Loneliness in Children's Drawings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Misailidi, Plousia; Bonoti, Fotini; Savva, Georgia

2012-01-01

This article reports the results of a study which aimed to examine the development of children's ability to depict loneliness in their drawings. Seventy-eight children and 20 adults took part in the study. Participants were first asked a series of questions assessing their conceptions of loneliness, and were then invited to draw a picture that…

A Study on High School Students' Perceptions of "Geographical Environment"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nurettin, Bilgen

2015-01-01

This research investigates how high school students perceive the concept "environment". The research was conducted on 191 Social Science High School students from 9 to 12th grades in Istanbul and Denizli within 2012 to 2013 academic year. In the study, students were asked to draw a picture of the "environment". The research…

African American Adolescents' Perceptions of Ethnic Socialization and Racial Socialization as Distinct Processes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paasch-Anderson, Julie; Lamborn, Susie D.

2014-01-01

Ethnic socialization and racial socialization were examined as discrete concepts using a semistructured interview to assess message content for each form of socialization. We were interested in whether adolescents distinguished between these forms of socialization. Fifty-five African American 11th- and 12th-grade students were asked separate…

Developing Concepts of Ordinary and Extraordinary Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lane, Jonathan D.; Evans, E. Margaret; Brink, Kimberly A.; Wellman, Henry M.

2016-01-01

We examine how understandings of ordinary and extraordinary communication develop. Three- to 10-year-old children and adults (N = 183) were given scenarios in which a protagonist wanted help from a human (their parent) or from God. Scenarios varied in whether protagonists expressed their desires aloud (by asking) or silently (by hoping), whether…

Gender Segregation of Adolescent Science Career Plans in 50 Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sikora, Joanna; Pokropek, Artur

2012-01-01

Using data from the Program for International Student Assessment 2006 surveys for 50 countries, this paper explores gender segregation of adolescent science career plans. We ask whether, in different cultures, bridging the male-female gap in science self-concept could reduce gender disparities in students' career preferences. Bringing together the…

Viability analysis in biological evaluations: Concepts of population viability analysis, biological population, and ecological scale

Treesearch

Gregory D. Hayward; John R. Squires

1994-01-01

Environmental protection strategies often rely on environmental impact assessments. As part of the assessment process biologists are routinely asked to evaluate the effects of management actions on plants and animals. This evaluation often requires that biologists make judgments about the viability of affected populations. However, population viability...

Experience of Social Support among Working Mothers: A Concept Map

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phang, A. Young; Lee, Ki-Hak

2009-01-01

The purpose of the study was to identify, categorize, and provide a model for the understanding of social support among Korean working mothers. The participants were interviewed and asked what kind of social support they received that allowed them to maintain work and family life. Using multidimensional scaling and hierarchical clustering analysis…

The Author's I: Adolescents Mediating Selfhood through Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLean, Cheryl A.

2012-01-01

This article looks across two ethnographic case studies on immigrant youth literacy practices in order to understand how two 10th-grade, Caribbean immigrant, high-school students use discourses of academic writing to mediate selfhood. Drawing on the concept of writing as ecology and Black Diaspora theory, the study asked the question: How do…

Wearing Forces Spectacles

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perrin, Graham

2012-01-01

When providing training to teachers struggling with the concept of forces, the author encourages them to start with something within the experience of the children they are teaching. For example, show them photographs taken on windy days, such as that of a tree, and ask them to explain what is happening. This encourages the children to focus on…

Chinese and Japanese Students' Conceptions of the "Ideal English Lesson"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Littlewood, William

2010-01-01

In developing strategies for increasing learner involvement, a key factor is the extent to which these strategies are compatible with learners' own expectations and preferences. In order to explore this factor, tertiary students in four Asian countries were asked (in an online survey designed on the basis of exploratory interviews) to give their…

Science Shorts: Sort It out

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adams, Barbara

2007-01-01

Many children enjoy collecting items such as seashells, state quarters, and trading cards. Asking students to think about the ways in which similar items differ, how objects can be grouped by a common characteristic, and how groups can be subsets of a larger category leads to an understanding of fundamental mathematics and science concepts: sets,…

Assessment of student learning associated with tree thinking in an undergraduate introductory organismal biology course.

PubMed

Smith, James J; Cheruvelil, Kendra Spence; Auvenshine, Stacie

2013-01-01

Phylogenetic trees provide visual representations of ancestor-descendant relationships, a core concept of evolutionary theory. We introduced "tree thinking" into our introductory organismal biology course (freshman/sophomore majors) to help teach organismal diversity within an evolutionary framework. Our instructional strategy consisted of designing and implementing a set of experiences to help students learn to read, interpret, and manipulate phylogenetic trees, with a particular emphasis on using data to evaluate alternative phylogenetic hypotheses (trees). To assess the outcomes of these learning experiences, we designed and implemented a Phylogeny Assessment Tool (PhAT), an open-ended response instrument that asked students to: 1) map characters on phylogenetic trees; 2) apply an objective criterion to decide which of two trees (alternative hypotheses) is "better"; and 3) demonstrate understanding of phylogenetic trees as depictions of ancestor-descendant relationships. A pre-post test design was used with the PhAT to collect data from students in two consecutive Fall semesters. Students in both semesters made significant gains in their abilities to map characters onto phylogenetic trees and to choose between two alternative hypotheses of relationship (trees) by applying the principle of parsimony (Occam's razor). However, learning gains were much lower in the area of student interpretation of phylogenetic trees as representations of ancestor-descendant relationships.

Machine Learning in Medicine

PubMed Central

Deo, Rahul C.

2015-01-01

Spurred by advances in processing power, memory, storage, and an unprecedented wealth of data, computers are being asked to tackle increasingly complex learning tasks, often with astonishing success. Computers have now mastered a popular variant of poker, learned the laws of physics from experimental data, and become experts in video games – tasks which would have been deemed impossible not too long ago. In parallel, the number of companies centered on applying complex data analysis to varying industries has exploded, and it is thus unsurprising that some analytic companies are turning attention to problems in healthcare. The purpose of this review is to explore what problems in medicine might benefit from such learning approaches and use examples from the literature to introduce basic concepts in machine learning. It is important to note that seemingly large enough medical data sets and adequate learning algorithms have been available for many decades – and yet, although there are thousands of papers applying machine learning algorithms to medical data, very few have contributed meaningfully to clinical care. This lack of impact stands in stark contrast to the enormous relevance of machine learning to many other industries. Thus part of my effort will be to identify what obstacles there may be to changing the practice of medicine through statistical learning approaches, and discuss how these might be overcome. PMID:26572668

Assessment of Student Learning Associated with Tree Thinking in an Undergraduate Introductory Organismal Biology Course

PubMed Central

Smith, James J.; Cheruvelil, Kendra Spence; Auvenshine, Stacie

2013-01-01

Phylogenetic trees provide visual representations of ancestor–descendant relationships, a core concept of evolutionary theory. We introduced “tree thinking” into our introductory organismal biology course (freshman/sophomore majors) to help teach organismal diversity within an evolutionary framework. Our instructional strategy consisted of designing and implementing a set of experiences to help students learn to read, interpret, and manipulate phylogenetic trees, with a particular emphasis on using data to evaluate alternative phylogenetic hypotheses (trees). To assess the outcomes of these learning experiences, we designed and implemented a Phylogeny Assessment Tool (PhAT), an open-ended response instrument that asked students to: 1) map characters on phylogenetic trees; 2) apply an objective criterion to decide which of two trees (alternative hypotheses) is “better”; and 3) demonstrate understanding of phylogenetic trees as depictions of ancestor–descendant relationships. A pre–post test design was used with the PhAT to collect data from students in two consecutive Fall semesters. Students in both semesters made significant gains in their abilities to map characters onto phylogenetic trees and to choose between two alternative hypotheses of relationship (trees) by applying the principle of parsimony (Occam's razor). However, learning gains were much lower in the area of student interpretation of phylogenetic trees as representations of ancestor–descendant relationships. PMID:24006401

Unit asking: a method to boost donations and beyond.

PubMed

Hsee, Christopher K; Zhang, Jiao; Lu, Zoe Y; Xu, Fei

2013-09-01

The solicitation of charitable donations costs billions of dollars annually. Here, we introduce a virtually costless method for boosting charitable donations to a group of needy persons: merely asking donors to indicate a hypothetical amount for helping one of the needy persons before asking donors to decide how much to donate for all of the needy persons. We demonstrated, in both real fund-raisers and scenario-based research, that this simple unit-asking method greatly increases donations for the group of needy persons. Different from phenomena such as the foot-in-the-door and identifiable-victim effects, the unit-asking effect arises because donors are initially scope insensitive and subsequently scope consistent. The method applies to both traditional paper-based fund-raisers and increasingly popular Web-based fund-raisers and has implications for domains other than fund-raisers, such as auctions and budget proposals. Our research suggests that a subtle manipulation based on psychological science can generate a substantial effect in real life.

Alternative Conceptions: Turning Adversity into Advantage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferreira, Annalize; Lemmer, Miriam; Gunstone, Richard

2017-08-01

While a vast body of research has identified difficulties in students' understanding about forces and acceleration and their related alternative conceptions, far less research suggests ways to use students' alternative conceptions to enhance conceptual understanding of a specific fundamental concept. This study focused on distinguishing between students' conceptual understanding of the Newtonian concept of gravitational acceleration being the same for all objects and students' alternative conception that heavy objects fall faster. A multiple choice questionnaire was distributed to first year physics students for three consecutive years at a university in South Africa. The results indicate that changing the direction of motion and the physics quantity asked in paired questions revealed practically significant inconsistencies in students' reasoning and conceptions. This research contributes to the body of knowledge in proposing how the alternative conception of mass-related gravitational acceleration can be used in instruction to enhance conceptual understanding of the force-mass-acceleration relationship. Understanding of this relationship not only promotes conceptual understanding of the basic Newtonian concepts of the laws of motion which forms the critical foundation on which more advanced physics courses are built, but also contributes towards students' perception of physics as a set of coherent ideas applicable in all contexts.

Subliminally perceived odours modulate female intrasexual competition: an eye movement study.

PubMed

Parma, Valentina; Tirindelli, Roberto; Bisazza, Angelo; Massaccesi, Stefano; Castiello, Umberto

2012-01-01

Evidence suggests that subliminal odorants influence human perception and behavior. It has been hypothesized that the human sex-steroid derived compound 4,16-androstadien-3-one (androstadienone) functions as a human chemosignal. The most intensively studied steroid compound, androstadienone is known to be biologically relevant since it seems to convey information about male mate quality to women. It is unclear if the effects of androstadienone are menstrual cycle related. In the first experiment, heterosexual women were exposed to androstadienone or a control compound and asked to view stimuli such as female faces, male faces and familiar objects while their eye movements were recorded. In the second experiment the same women were asked to rate the level of stimuli attractiveness following exposure to the study or control compound. The results indicated that women at high conception risk spent more time viewing the female than the male faces regardless of the compound administered. Women at a low conception risk exhibited a preference for female faces only following exposure to androstadienone. We contend that a woman's level of fertility influences her evaluation of potential competitors (e.g., faces of other women) during times critical for reproduction. Subliminally perceived odorants, such as androstadienone, might similarly enhance intrasexual competition strategies in women during fertility phases not critical for conception. These findings offer a substantial contribution to the current debate about the effects that subliminally perceived body odors might have on behavior.

The power of water

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mavrodi, Aikaterini

2017-04-01

This programme has been designed to help students understand: 1. The connections between the Watershed Protection and the water they use, exploring the watersheds in the area of their residence. Students will be guided to understand a variety of concepts related to water use, efficiency, and students' own impacts on their watershed. 2. The water supply: Where does it come from? Once the students understand their home watershed the next key concept is to understand where the water they use at home comes from, from the faucet to the actual waterbody within their watershed that is the source of their drinking water. Students will understand the ways their local waterbodies are connected and the direction of the water. 3. Water efficiency. Once students understand where their water comes from, the activity moves on to the concepts of using water more efficiently by investigating how we use or waste water, where it comes from and where it goes after it goes down the drain. We will use several activities, for example to ask students to find how much water a faucet that loses 25 drips per minute would waste in one day, by using a drip calculator, or to ask students and members of their family, to complete a water use table. 4. City water company. The students also gain knowledge of how the City manages the water resources and how to manage water on personal basis.

Preliminary design of a radiator shading device for a lunar outpost

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barron, Carlos; Castro, Norma I.; Phillips, Brian

1991-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is designing a thermal control system for an outpost to be placed permanently on the Moon. One of the functions of the thermal control system is to reject waste heat, which can be accomplished through a radiator. At the lunar equator and during the lunar midday, an unshaded radiator absorbs more heat than it rejects. This problem can be solved by using a shading device to reduce radiation incident on the radiator. The design team was asked to develop concepts for reducing the radiation incident on the radiator and for deploying the radiator and shade system for a 10 kW and a 25 kW heat rejection system. The design team was also asked to develop the best concepts into preliminary design. From the several alternatives developed by the design team, the best one was selected using a decision matrix. Preliminary design of the best concept include support structure, stress analyses, and thermal performance. In addition, the team developed ideas for removing lunar dust from the shading device. The final design solution consisted of a winged radiator shading system with a rail support structure and a scissors mechanism for deployment. The total radiator area required was calculated to be 389 sq m for the 10 kW heat rejection system and 973 sq m for the 25 kW heat rejection system.

A matter of life and death: knowledge about the body and concept of death in adults with intellectual disabilities.

PubMed

McEvoy, J; Treacy, B; Quigley, J

2017-01-01

An increased awareness of how people with intellectual disabilities (ID) understand death and dying is necessary in supporting life-long learning, post-bereavement support and planning end-of-life care. Previous research suggests that adults with ID have a limited or 'patchy' understanding of the basic biological components of death. However, the relationship between biological understanding of how the body works and conceptualisation of death remains unexplored in this population. Thirty adults with ID were interviewed to assess their knowledge of human body function and their understanding of the concept of death. Using pictures, participants were asked if they recognised certain organs, asked to explain the function of various body parts and what would happen if certain body parts were missing or did not work. Participants who referred to 'life' or 'not dying' as the goal of body function were categorised as 'Life Theorisers'. In addition, participants were asked about the causes of death, whether all things die and the status of the body after death. The results support previous studies suggesting that understanding of death in adults with ID varies from partial to full comprehension and is associated with level of ID. Also, death comprehension was positively correlated with total body interview scores and 'Life Theorisers' who understood that body parts maintain life and who spontaneously appealed to 'vitalistic' concepts when reasoning about the human body were also more sophisticated in their understanding of death. The study highlights the relationship between knowledge about the goal of human body functioning and death comprehension in adults with ID. The potential that learning to adopt a 'vitalistic' approach to human functioning may have on the acquisition of a greater understanding of death and dying, understanding illness and supporting end-of-life planning is discussed. © 2016 MENCAP and International Association of the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Withdrawal Phenomena: A Concept Analysis for the Development of a Nursing Diagnosis.

PubMed

Dändliker, This; Kolbe, Nina

This study explored the concept of withdrawal phenomena from the perspective of nurses, with the aim of developing a nursing diagnosis. Concept analysis was used as the framework of the study, a systematized review was conducted to identify relevant studies, and interpretation was based on qualitative content analysis. Specifying aspects, defining characteristics, related factors, and risk factors were extracted and classified into categories. Thirteen studies were identified as a basis for the construction of two nursing diagnoses: "withdrawal phenomena" and "risk of withdrawal complications." The proposed nursing diagnoses require further discussion. The NANDA International Diagnosis Development Committee was asked to examine the proposed diagnoses. However, it was too early to determine implications for nursing practice based on the results of this study.

Now That You Want to Take Your HIV/AIDS Vaccine/Biological Product Research Concept into the Clinic: What are “cGMP”?

PubMed Central

Sheets, Rebecca L.; Rangavajhula, Vijaya; Pullen, Jeffrey K.; Butler, Chris; Mehra, Vijay; Shapiro, Stuart

2015-01-01

The Division of AIDS Vaccine Research Program funds the discovery and development of HIV/AIDS vaccine candidates. Basic researchers, having discovered a potential vaccine in the laboratory, next want to take that candidate into the clinic to test the concept in humans, to see if it translates. Many of them have heard of “cGMP” and know that they are supposed to make a “GMP product” to take into the clinic, but often they are not very familiar with what “cGMP” means and why these good practices are so important. As members of the Vaccine Translational Research Branch, we frequently get asked “can’t we use the material we made in the lab in the clinic?” or “aren’t Phase 1 studies exempt from cGMP?” Over the years, we have had many experiences where researchers or their selected contract manufacturing organizations have not applied an appropriate degree of compliance with cGMP suitable for the clinical phase of development. We share some of these experiences and the lessons learned, along with explaining the importance of cGMP, just what cGMP means, and what they can assure, in an effort to de-mystify this subject and facilitate the rapid and safe translational development of HIV vaccines. PMID:25698494

Now that you want to take your HIV/AIDS vaccine/biological product research concept into the clinic: what are the "cGMP"?

PubMed

Sheets, Rebecca L; Rangavajhula, Vijaya; Pullen, Jeffrey K; Butler, Chris; Mehra, Vijay; Shapiro, Stuart; Pensiero, Michael

2015-04-08

The Division of AIDS Vaccine Research Program funds the discovery and development of HIV/AIDS vaccine candidates. Basic researchers, having discovered a potential vaccine in the laboratory, next want to take that candidate into the clinic to test the concept in humans, to see if it translates. Many of them have heard of "cGMP" and know that they are supposed to make a "GMP product" to take into the clinic, but often they are not very familiar with what "cGMP" means and why these good practices are so important. As members of the Vaccine Translational Research Branch, we frequently get asked "can't we use the material we made in the lab in the clinic?" or "aren't Phase 1 studies exempt from cGMP?" Over the years, we have had many experiences where researchers or their selected contract manufacturing organizations have not applied an appropriate degree of compliance with cGMP suitable for the clinical phase of development. We share some of these experiences and the lessons learned, along with explaining the importance of cGMP, just what cGMP means, and what they can assure, in an effort to de-mystify this subject and facilitate the rapid and safe translational development of HIV vaccines. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

MYCIN II: design and implementation of a therapy reference with complex content-based indexing.

PubMed Central

Kim, D. K.; Fagan, L. M.; Jones, K. T.; Berrios, D. C.; Yu, V. L.

1998-01-01

We describe the construction of MYCIN II, a prototype system that provides for content-based markup and search of a forthcoming clinical therapeutics textbook, Antimicrobial Therapy and Vaccines. Existing commercial search technology for digital references utilizes generic tools such as textword-based searches with geographical or statistical refinements. We suggest that the drawbacks of such systems significantly restrict their use in everyday clinical practice. This is in spite of the fact that there is a great need for the information contained within these same references. The system we describe is intended to supplement keyword searching so that certain important questions can be asked easily and can be answered reliably (in terms of precision and recall). Our method attacks this problem in a restricted domain of knowledge-clinical infectious disease. For example, we would like to be able to answer the class of questions exemplified by the following query: "What antimicrobial agents can be used to treat endocarditis caused by Eikenella corrodens?" We have compiled and analyzed a list of such questions to develop a concept-based markup scheme. This scheme was then applied within an HTML markup to electronically "highlight" passages from three textbook chapters. We constructed a functioning web-based search interface. Our system also provides semi-automated querying of PubMed using our concept markup and the user's actions as a guide. PMID:9929205

MYCIN II: design and implementation of a therapy reference with complex content-based indexing.

PubMed

Kim, D K; Fagan, L M; Jones, K T; Berrios, D C; Yu, V L

1998-01-01

We describe the construction of MYCIN II, a prototype system that provides for content-based markup and search of a forthcoming clinical therapeutics textbook, Antimicrobial Therapy and Vaccines. Existing commercial search technology for digital references utilizes generic tools such as textword-based searches with geographical or statistical refinements. We suggest that the drawbacks of such systems significantly restrict their use in everyday clinical practice. This is in spite of the fact that there is a great need for the information contained within these same references. The system we describe is intended to supplement keyword searching so that certain important questions can be asked easily and can be answered reliably (in terms of precision and recall). Our method attacks this problem in a restricted domain of knowledge-clinical infectious disease. For example, we would like to be able to answer the class of questions exemplified by the following query: "What antimicrobial agents can be used to treat endocarditis caused by Eikenella corrodens?" We have compiled and analyzed a list of such questions to develop a concept-based markup scheme. This scheme was then applied within an HTML markup to electronically "highlight" passages from three textbook chapters. We constructed a functioning web-based search interface. Our system also provides semi-automated querying of PubMed using our concept markup and the user's actions as a guide.

Clarifying concepts of food parenting practices. A Delphi study with an application to snacking behavior.

PubMed

Gevers, D W M; Kremers, S P J; de Vries, N K; van Assema, P

2014-08-01

Inconsistencies in measurements of food parenting practices continue to exist. Fundamental to this problem is the lack of clarity about what is understood by different concepts of food parenting practices. The purpose of this study was to clarify food parenting practice concepts related to snacking. A three round Delphi study among an international group of experts (n = 63) was conducted. In the first round, an open-ended survey was used to collect food parenting practice descriptions and concept labels associated with those practices. In the second round, participants were asked to match up descriptions with the appropriate concept labels. The third and final round allowed participants to reconsider how descriptions and concept labels were matched, taking into account the opinions expressed in round two. Round one produced 408 descriptions of food parenting practices and 110 different concept names. Round two started with 116 descriptions of food parenting practices and 20 concept names. On 40 descriptions, consensus regarding the underlying concept name was reached in round two. Of the remaining 76 descriptions, consensus on 47 descriptions regarding the underlying concept name was reached in round three. The present study supports the essential process of consensus development with respect to food parenting practices concepts. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chemical protective clothing; a study into the ability of staff to perform lifesaving procedures

PubMed Central

Coates, M.; Jundi, A.; James, M.

2000-01-01

Objective—To investigate the ability of medical and nursing staff to perform certain tasks while wearing a chemical protection suit with a respirator. Tasks chosen were those that would be required before decontamination. Methods—Ten experienced accident and emergency doctors (middle grade and consultants) and 10 nurses were asked to perform certain tasks that were judged to be life saving, relevant to triage, or necessary to confirm death, on an advanced life support manikin, while wearing a TST-Sweden chemical protection suit. The operators were objectively assessed by one of the authors for achieving each task, then asked to make a subjective assessment of the difficulty experienced. Results—Medical staff were asked to ventilate the manikin using a bag-valve-mask, intubate within 30 seconds, apply monitor electrodes and cables and check cardiac rhythm, apply gel pads and defibrillate safely, and finally, fold the cruciform triage card to show "RED", and attach it to the manikin. All the doctors completed these tasks, except for one, who could only intubate the manikin after several attempts. Nursing staff were asked to open and apply an oxygen mask, adjust oxygen flow, size and insert an oropharyngeal airway, ventilate the manikin using a bag-valve-mask, apply a pressure bandage to a limb, and fold the cruciform triage card to show "YELLOW", and attach it to the manikin. All the nurses completed these tasks. Operators reported varying degrees of difficulty, the most difficult tasks were those requiring fine movements or delicate control. Generally, operators found the butyl rubber gloves cumbersome. Communication difficulties were frequently reported. Although only intubation was formally timed, tasks were perceived to take longer. Some operators found the suits too warm and uncomfortable. Conclusion—Should the need arise, the TST-Sweden chemical protection suits would enable experienced doctors and nurses to perform lifesaving measures effectively, without significant impairment to their skills. Tasks would be easier to accomplish with better fitting gloves. PMID:10718233

One Label or Two? Linguistic Influences on the Similarity Judgment of Objects between English and Japanese Speakers

PubMed Central

Masuda, Takahiko; Ishii, Keiko; Miwa, Koji; Rashid, Marghalara; Lee, Hajin; Mahdi, Rania

2017-01-01

Recent findings have re-examined the linguistic influence on cognition and perception, while identifying evidence that supports the Whorfian hypothesis. We examine how English and Japanese speakers perceive similarity of pairs of objects, by using two sets of stimuli: one in which two distinct linguistic categories apply to respective object images in English, but only one linguistic category applies in Japanese; and another in which two distinct linguistic categories apply to respective object images in Japanese, but only one applies in English. We conducted four studies and tested different groups of participants in each of them. In Study 1, we asked participants to name the two objects before engaging in the similarity judgment task. Here, we expected a strong linguistic effect. In Study 2, we asked participants to engage in the same task without naming, where we assumed that the condition is close enough to our daily visual information processing where language is not necessarily prompted. We further explored whether the language still influences the similarity perception by asking participants to engage in the same task basing on the visual similarity (Study 3) and the functional similarity (Study 4). The results overall indicated that English and Japanese speakers perceived the two objects to be more similar when they were in the same linguistic categories than when they were in different linguistic categories in their respective languages. Implications for research testing the Whorfian hypothesis and the requirement for methodological development beyond behavioral measures are discussed. PMID:29018375

Developing the conceptual instructional design with inquiry-based instruction model of secondary students at the 10th grade level on digestion system and cellular degradation issue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rotjanakunnatam, Boonthida; Chayaburakul, Kanokporn

2018-01-01

The aims of this research study was to develop the conceptual instructional design with the Inquiry-Based Instruction Model (IBIM) of secondary students at the 10th grade level on Digestion System and Cellular Degradation issue using both oxygen and oxygen-degrading cellular nutrients were designed instructional model with a sample size of 45 secondary students at the 10th Grade level. Data were collected by asking students to do a questionnaire pre and post learning processes. The questionnaire consists of two main parts that composed of students' perception questionnaire and the questionnaire that asked the question answer concept for the selected questionnaire. The 10-item Conceptual Thinking Test (CTT) was assessed students' conceptual thinking evaluation that it was covered in two main concepts, namely; Oxygen degradation nutrients and degradation nutrients without oxygen. The data by classifying students' answers into 5 groups and measuring them in frequency and a percentage of students' performances of their learning pre and post activities with the Inquiry-Based Instruction Model were analyzed as a tutorial. The results of this research found that: After the learning activities with the IBIM, most students developed concepts of both oxygen and oxygen-degrading cellular nutrients in the correct, complete and correct concept, and there are a number of students who have conceptual ideas in the wrong concept, and no concept was clearly reduced. However, the results are still found that; some students have some misconceptions, such as; the concept of direction of electron motion and formation of the ATP of bioactivities of life. This cause may come from the nature of the content, the complexity, the continuity, the movement, and the time constraints only in the classroom. Based on this research, it is suggested that some students may take some time, and the limited time in the classroom to their learning activity with content creation content binding and dramatic storytelling increases in a relaxed classroom learning environment.

Quantitative descriptions of generalized arousal, an elementary function of the vertebrate brain

PubMed Central

Quinkert, Amy Wells; Vimal, Vivek; Weil, Zachary M.; Reeke, George N.; Schiff, Nicholas D.; Banavar, Jayanth R.; Pfaff, Donald W.

2011-01-01

We review a concept of the most primitive, fundamental function of the vertebrate CNS, generalized arousal (GA). Three independent lines of evidence indicate the existence of GA: statistical, genetic, and mechanistic. Here we ask, is this concept amenable to quantitative analysis? Answering in the affirmative, four quantitative approaches have proven useful: (i) factor analysis, (ii) information theory, (iii) deterministic chaos, and (iv) application of a Gaussian equation. It strikes us that, to date, not just one but at least four different quantitative approaches seem necessary for describing different aspects of scientific work on GA. PMID:21555568

Ira C. Ritter and The Kroger Co., v. Jerry and Ruth Stanton. "Trial by Jury." Lesson Plans for Secondary Teachers on the Constitutional Protections of Trial by Jury. Courts in the Classroom: Curriculum Concepts and Other Information on Indiana's Courts for the K-12 Educator.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Osborn, Elizabeth

In the case of Ritter v. Stanton, the attorneys for Ira Ritter and Kroger alleged that the amount of damages awarded by the jury were excessive and asked the Indiana Supreme Court to review the matter. This set of three lesson plans for secondary educators uses the Ritter v. Stanton case to examine the concept of the U.S. constitutional right to…

Concepts of formal concept analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Žáček, Martin; Homola, Dan; Miarka, Rostislav

2017-07-01

The aim of this article is apply of Formal Concept Analysis on concept of world. Formal concept analysis (FCA) as a methodology of data analysis, information management and knowledge representation has potential to be applied to a verity of linguistic problems. FCA is mathematical theory for concepts and concept hierarchies that reflects an understanding of concept. Formal concept analysis explicitly formalizes extension and intension of a concept, their mutual relationships. A distinguishing feature of FCA is an inherent integration of three components of conceptual processing of data and knowledge, namely, the discovery and reasoning with concepts in data, discovery and reasoning with dependencies in data, and visualization of data, concepts, and dependencies with folding/unfolding capabilities.

The Stories We Need: Anthropology, Philosophy, Narrative and Higher Education Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scutt, Cecily; Hobson, Julia

2013-01-01

As higher education research is largely practised by those immersed within the university, the questions we ask, and the stories we tell, over time co-create the university itself. Using Bruner's concept of the "narrative mode," we argue for a revaluing of narrative and storytelling within higher education research. We ground our…

Inhibiting Factors in Generating Examples by Mathematics Teachers and Student Teachers: The Case of Binary Operation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zaslavsky, Orit; Peled, Irit

1996-01-01

Inservice (n=36) and preservice (n=67) mathematics teachers were asked for a commutative, nonassociative binary operation. Responses were analyzed for correctness, productiveness, mathematical content, and underlying difficulties. Both groups exhibited a weak concept by failing to produce an example and using a limited content search space.…

Assessing the Quality of PhD Dissertations. A Survey of External Committee Members

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kyvik, Svein; Thune, Taran

2015-01-01

This article reports on a study of the quality assessment of doctoral dissertations, and asks whether examiner characteristics influence assessment of research quality in PhD dissertations. Utilising a multi-dimensional concept of quality of PhD dissertations, we look at differences in assessment of research quality, and particularly test whether…

"Compromises That We Make": Whiteness in the Dual Language Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burns, Meg

2017-01-01

This case study of a two-way dual language school explores the role of whiteness in a bilingual space, specifically with regards to parent involvement. I ask how whiteness operates in this setting and how the school's response to parent involvement reflects and/or challenges white supremacy. Using the concept of "interest convergence"…

Historical Significance from Turkish Students' Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Avarogullari, Muhammet; Kolcu, Nurten

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine how students in a south-western province of Turkey employ historical significance which is one of the second order concepts of historical thinking. 44 11th and 12th grade students participated in the study. They were asked to identify the most significant 10 persons in the history and provide their reasons…

Sustainability, the Next Generation Science Standards, and the Education of Future Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Egger, Anne E.; Kastens, Kim A.; Turrin, Margaret K.

2017-01-01

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) emphasize how human activities affect the Earth and how Earth processes impact humans, placing the concept of sustainability within the Earth and Space Sciences. We ask: how prepared are future teachers to address sustainability and systems thinking as encoded in the NGSS? And how can geoscientists…

Sorting out Ideas about Function

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hillen, Amy F.; Malik, LuAnn

2013-01-01

Card sorting has the potential to provide opportunities for exploration of a variety of topics and levels. In a card-sorting task, each participant is presented with a set of cards--each of which depicts a relationship--and is asked to sort the cards into categories that make sense to him or her. The concept of function is critical to…

Global Self-Esteem: Cognitive Interpretation in an Academic Setting.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeung, Alexander Seeshing

Researchers have assumed that global self-esteem (often labeled as general self-concept), being a general aggregate of perceptions of the self, is content free. Recent research has, however, shown that responses to self-esteem survey items are influenced by the context in which the respondents are asked to make their responses--a chameleon effect.…

The Relationship between Mathematical Knowledge of Numbers and Operations and Mathematics Beliefs of Prospective Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stiegelmeyer, Cindy

2012-01-01

This study surveyed 82 preservice elementary teachers using items from an instrument designed to predict student achievement based on a teacher's mathematics knowledge for teaching (MKT) in numbers and operations concepts. Additional mathematics beliefs items asked participants to rate their level of agreement with math myths and math anxiety…

Multicultural Education as an Emotional Situation: Practice Encountering the Unexpected in Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shim, Jenna Min

2014-01-01

Juxtaposing the concepts of screen memory, counter-transference and the holding environment within psychoanalytic theory, this essay explores the author's emotional experience, who begins the exploration by asking several questions. What happens to a teacher's emotional world and her consciousness in the process of trying to shift…

Addressing the Baseline: Erving Goffman and Ethics in a Postgraduate Degree for Practising Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDonald, Geraldine; Higgins, Joanna; Shuker, Mary Jane

2008-01-01

In response to the claim that students who have received an undergraduate degree in education lack adequate preparation for postgraduate study, the designers of a masters course in research methods set an assignment at the first meeting which asked practising teachers to match Goffman's dramaturgical concepts to observation of behaviour in public.…

Coaching College Women's Golf: Profiling an Emerging Profession

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewis, Nancy; Miller, Michael

2006-01-01

Intercollegiate athletics have struggled with the concept of same-sex coaches, asking the question of whether or not those who coach women or men should be of the same gender. With the advent of Title IX, the conversation has grown particularly acute in non-revenue sports, such as women's golf. The current national study profiles NCAA Division I…

Can the United States Defeat Radical Islam

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-05-22

It strongly disapproves of idolatry, the popular cult of saints and tomb visitation. 11...twentieth century, Sayyid Qutb (1906-1966), an Egyptian Islamic radical, referencing al-Wahhab, developed a modified concept of jahiliyya. In Qutb’s...It strongly disapproves of idolatry, the popular cult of saints and tomb visitation. When ibn Taymiyya was asked if the murderous. Mongols, who

Reconstructing Imagined Finnishness: The Case of Art Education through the Concept of Place

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paatela-Nieminen, Martina; Itkonen, Tuija; Talib, Mirja-Tytti

2016-01-01

This multidisciplinary article presents a methodology, a research project and selected outcomes from an environmental art education course for teacher students. The course is part of an art education minor at the University of Helsinki, Department of Teacher Education. The students were asked to construct their place through an intertextual art…

Occupational Prestige and Its Relationship to Traditional and Non-Traditional Views of Women's Roles.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Medvene, Arnold; Collins, Anne

The social status of occupations has remained stable over the past four decades. However, much about the concept of occupational prestige has been learned by studies that implicitly assume a masculine context. Because of the extensive social and cultural changes associated with the women's equal rights movement, this study asked questions about…

Definition of Successful Aging by Elderly Canadian Males: The Manitoba Follow-Up Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tate, Robert B.; Lah, Leedine; Cuddy, T. Edward

2003-01-01

Purpose: Although the concept of successful aging is used widely in the field of gerontology, there is no agreed-on standard or common underlying definition for measuring success in aging. Our recent survey of an elderly male population asked respondents to define "successful aging." This paper describes the themes that evolved from…

Artificial Sanity: A Case Study for a Class in Introductory Psychology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Quinn, Sheila O'Brien

2005-01-01

Using the story of death row inmate Charles Singleton, who developed paranoid schizophrenia while in prison awaiting execution, this case study explores the relationship between a society's concept of mental illness and its treatment of people who are mentally ill. Students are asked to identify the model of mental illness assumed by each of the…

Conflicting Community Commitments: A Dialogical Analysis of a British Woman's World War II Diaries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gillespie, Alex; Cornish, Flora; Aveling, Emma-Louise; Zittoun, Tania

2008-01-01

Recent developments of the concept of "sense of community" have highlighted the multiplicity of people's senses of community. In this article, the authors introduce the theory of the dialogical self as a means of theorizing the conflicts that can arise between a person's commitments to multiple communities. They ask the question,…

Challenges Facing Canadian Federal Offenders Newly Released to the Community: A Concept Map

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Jason D.

2004-01-01

The purpose of the study was to describe the needs of newly released Canadian federal offenders as perceived by community parole supervisors. Seventy-four Canadian parole supervisors were asked to answer the following question: "What challenges do parolees face in the first 90 days after release?" The data were analyzed using…

Teacher-Student Interaction and Learning in On-Line Theological Education. Part I: Concepts and Concerns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heinemann, Mark H.

2005-01-01

Many theological educators ask how on-line classes can provide students with the kind of personal teacher-student interaction that is needed in a healthy and holistic approach to preparation for ministry. A quantitative study was undertaken for the purpose of examining the relationships between three major types of teacher-student interaction…

Work All Day, Study at Night: The Interactive Evening Lecture to Invigorate Working Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stone, Gerard

2014-01-01

Gerard Stone was asked to present the evening lecture in a first-year undergraduate accounting subject. The aim of the subject matter was to provide students with an understanding of fundamental accounting issues and concepts. The subject coordinator advised Stone that, from past experience, most students who attend the evening lecture would be…

EcoEvo-MAPS: An Ecology and Evolution Assessment for Introductory through Advanced Undergraduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Summers, Mindi M.; Couch, Brian A.; Knight, Jennifer K.; Brownell, Sara E.; Crowe, Alison J.; Semsar, Katharine; Wright, Christian D.; Smith, Michelle K.

2018-01-01

A new assessment tool, Ecology and Evolution--Measuring Achievement and Progression in Science or EcoEvo-MAPS, measures student thinking in ecology and evolution during an undergraduate course of study. EcoEvo-MAPS targets foundational concepts in ecology and evolution and uses a novel approach that asks students to evaluate a series of…

Concept Learning versus Problem Solving: Evaluating a Threat to the Validity of a Particulate Gas Law Question

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanger, Michael J.; Vaughn, C. Kevin; Binkley, David A.

2013-01-01

Three different samples of students were asked to answer five multiple-choice questions concerning the properties of a sample of helium gas (particle speed, state of matter, sample volume, sample pressure, and particle distribution), including a particulate question first used by Nurrenbern and Pickering (particle distribution). In the first…

How Do Finnish Pre-Adolescents Perceive Religion and Spirituality?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ubani, Martin; Tirri, Kirsi

2006-01-01

The purpose of this study is to investigate how Finnish pre-adolescents perceive religion and spirituality. The participants of the study are 12- to 13-year-old Grade 6 pupils (N=102). The pupils were asked to give their meanings of religion and spirituality. The data includes over 700 written expressions on the two concepts. The qualitative…

Measurement of Social Participation and Its Place in Social Capital Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guillen, Laura; Coromina, Lluis; Saris, Willem E.

2011-01-01

The concept of social capital has become very popular but its definition and measurement are still rather unclear. We frame our study in one of its components, social participation. In this article we develop an optimal measure for social participation based on the questions asked in the first round of the European Social Survey. Our analyses…

Thinking Change Inclusively: Views of Educational Administrators on Inclusive Education as a Reform Initiative

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sakiz, Halis

2016-01-01

This paper is an attempt to delve into the debate about educational change and evaluate this concept around the paradigms introduced by inclusive education. The paper embarks on views of 27 educational administrators working in different educational institutions in Turkey. Participants are asked to provide their views on educational change and the…

The Able Privilege Scale: A New Educational Tool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Larson, Alan B.; Choate, Robert O.

2011-01-01

The Able Privilege Scale (APS) is a theoretically derived reflexive instrument that asks participants to assess their level of personal power and privilege in relation to society depending upon the presence, and/or type, of disability. The 23-items on the APS are derived form McIntosh's concept of white privilege (1988) and adapted to reflect…

Children's Drawings about "Radiation"--Before and after Fukushima

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neumann, Susanne; Hopf, Martin

2013-01-01

Although the term "radiation" has a fixed place in everyday life as well as in the media, there is very little empirical research on students' conceptions about this topic. In our study we wanted to find out what students associate with this term. In 2009, we asked 509 students (between grade 4 and grade 6) from seven different schools…

Challenges of Parenting Children with a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: A Concept Map

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Jason D.; Bednar, Lisa M.

2004-01-01

The purpose of the study was to describe the challenges of parents of children with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Nineteen birth, foster or adoptive parents were asked to answer the following question: "What are the challenges you face parenting a child with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder?" The data were analyzed using…

There Is More to Fluency than Speed and Accuracy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hedrick, Wanda, Ed.

2007-01-01

Fluency is another concept whose many definitions lead to widely differing practices. It is easy to understand that reading words on a page does not make a person fluent if they don't take away meaning from that reading. Hedrick asks that teachers and administrators examine policies that let speed and accuracy in reading substitute for meaning…

A Task-Dependent Causal Role for Low-Level Visual Processes in Spoken Word Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ostarek, Markus; Huettig, Falk

2017-01-01

It is well established that the comprehension of spoken words referring to object concepts relies on high-level visual areas in the ventral stream that build increasingly abstract representations. It is much less clear whether basic low-level visual representations are also involved. Here we asked in what task situations low-level visual…

Teaching, Teacher Education, and the Humanities: Reconsidering Education as a "Geisteswissenschaft"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Biesta, Gert

2015-01-01

In this essay Gert Biesta asks what the humanities can contribute to the field of teacher education. In addressing this question he turns to the idea of education as a "Geisteswissenschaft" as it was developed in the German-speaking context in the first decades of the twentieth century. In this conception, education is configured as an…

Academic "Place-Making": Fostering Attachment, Belonging and Identity for Indigenous Students in Australian Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carter, Jennifer; Hollinsworth, David; Raciti, Maria; Gilbey, Kathryn

2018-01-01

Place is a concept used to explore how people ascribe meaning to their physical and social surrounds, and their emotional affects. Exploring the university as a place can highlight social relations affecting Australian Indigenous students' sense of belonging and identity. We asked what university factors contribute to the development of a positive…

Accommodating Faculty Requests and Staying True to Your Pedagogical Ideals in the One-Shot Information Literacy Session

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Rachel Elizabeth

2016-01-01

Librarians are frequently asked to teach several databases in a one-shot session, despite findings suggesting that such database demonstrations do not lead to optimal student outcomes. The "ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education" highlights the concepts of metaliteracy and metacognition. This paper investigates ways…

Creating a Video Documentary as a Tool for Reflection and Assessment: Capturing Guerilla Marketing in Action

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Seung Hwan; Hoffman, K. Douglas; Chowdhury, Shahin A.; Sergueeva, Ksenia

2018-01-01

In this exercise, students were asked to devise a guerilla marketing campaign that achieved the four primary goals of guerilla marketing: message, unconventionality, hedonics, and value. Students documented their guerilla marketing event (via a video documentary) and discussed how they achieved their four objectives using the concepts and theories…

The Knowledge of DNA and DNA Technologies among Pre-Service Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cardak, Osman; Dikmenli, Musa

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine the alternative conceptions of elementary school pre-service science teachers regarding DNA and DNA technologies. The questions asked in the study related to subjects including the structure and role of DNA molecule, structure of genes, some genetic technologies, Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) plants,…

Uncertainty and Complexity in Mathematical Modeling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cannon, Susan O.; Sanders, Mark

2017-01-01

Modeling is an effective tool to help students access mathematical concepts. Finding a math teacher who has not drawn a fraction bar or pie chart on the board would be difficult, as would finding students who have not been asked to draw models and represent numbers in different ways. In this article, the authors will discuss: (1) the properties of…

Influence of Linguistic and Cultural Variables on Conceptual Learning in Second Language Situations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonzalez, Virginia; Schallert, Diane L.

A study investigated the way in which monolingual English-speaking college students developed new concepts for the linguistic structures and sociocultural symbolic meanings of gender that are unique to the Spanish language. Subjects were seven students of first-year intensive Spanish. They were asked to perform two problem-solving tasks: defining,…

Teaching Strategies to Develop Inquiry and Literacy Skills: "Languaging" in Foreign Language Immersion Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Husbye, Nicholas; Dorner, Lisa M.

2017-01-01

One-way, or foreign language, immersion schools face unique challenges as they seek to support the literacy development of their students. This manuscript draws on sociocultural theories of literacy development and the concept of languaging, the process of using language to make meaning. Working with two classrooms over one semester, we asked:…

"It's Like a Giant Brain with a Keyboard": Children's Understandings about How Computers Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robertson, Judy; Manches, Andrew; Pain, Helen

2017-01-01

Thirty years ago, when personal computers were first becoming available in homes and schools, a large group of primary school-age children were asked to share their attitudes about computers, their conceptions regarding how computers function, and their beliefs concerning computers' agency. The researchers wanted to gather baseline data regarding…

Untrodden Paths: A Critical Conversation about Wilder Places in Outdoor Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Straker, Jo; Potter, Tom G.; Irwin, David

2017-01-01

This paper asks, what is the outdoors, and challenges conceptions of the role the outdoors play in education. It critically examines why a better understanding of the outdoors is important to outdoor education, how wilder places are essential to education, and how learning generated from these places can be translated into sustainable thinking and…

Make Your Own Digital Thermometer!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sorey, Timothy; Willard, Teri; Kim, Bom

2010-01-01

In the hands-on, guided-inquiry lesson presented in this article, high school students create, calibrate, and apply an affordable scientific-grade instrument (Lapp and Cyrus 2000). In just four class periods, they build a homemade integrated circuit (IC) digital thermometer, apply a math model to calibrate their instrument, and ask a researchable…

Applied Research in Child and Adolescent Development: A Practical Guide

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maholmes, Valerie, Ed.; Lomonaco, Carmela Gina, Ed.

2010-01-01

Developed for an NIH training institute, this volume is organized around the most frequently asked questions by researchers starting their careers in applied research in child and adolescent development. With contributions from the leading scholars in the field, actual research experiences highlight the challenges one faces in conducting such…

A Critical Review of Qualitative Interviews in Applied Linguistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mann, Steve

2011-01-01

This article asks what applied linguistics can learn from related disciplines with regard to the collection, analysis and representation of qualitative interviews. It assesses the contributions of qualitative sociology, anthropology, discursive psychology and outlines four "discourse dilemmas" which might provide the basis for a more critical and…

The angler specialization concept applied: New York’s Salmon River anglers

Treesearch

Chad P. Dawson; Tommy L. Brown; Nancy Connelly

1992-01-01

The concept of angler specialization was applied to a study of Salmon River anglers to test this concept when using a variety of angling techniques and two species groups within the same environmental setting. A revision of the concept is suggested to account for angler expectancy and cognitive processes.

Drawing on student knowledge in human anatomy and physiology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slominski, Tara Nicole

Prior to instruction, students may have developed alternative conceptions about the mechanics behind human physiology. To help students re-shape these ideas into correct reasoning, the faulty characteristics reinforcing the alternative conceptions need to made explicit. This study used student-generated drawings to expose alternative conceptions Human Anatomy and Physiology students had prior to instruction on neuron physiology. Specifically, we investigated how students thought about neuron communication across a synapse (n=355) and how neuron activity can be modified (n=311). When asked to depict basic communication between two neurons, at least 80% of students demonstrated incorrect ideas about synaptic transmission. When targeting spatial and temporal summation, only eleven students (3.5%) were able to accurately depict at least one form of summation. In response to both drawing questions, student drawings revealed multiple alternative conceptions that resulted in a deeper analysis and characterization of the wide variation of student ideas.

Walking Back to the Future.

PubMed

Loeffler, Jonna; Raab, Markus; Cañal-Bruland, Rouwen

2017-09-01

Embodied cognition frameworks suggest a direct link between sensorimotor experience and cognitive representations of concepts ( Shapiro, 2011 ). We examined whether this holds also true for concepts that cannot be directly perceived with the sensorimotor system (i.e., temporal concepts). To test this, participants learned object-space (Exp. 1) or object-time (Exp. 2) associations. Afterwards, participants were asked to assign the objects to their location in space/time meanwhile they walked backward, forward, or stood on a treadmill. We hypothesized that walking backward should facilitate the online processing of "behind"/"past"-related stimuli, but hinder the processing of "ahead"/"future"-related stimuli, and a reversed effect for forward walking. Indeed, "ahead"- and "future"-related stimuli were processed slower during backward walking. During forward walking and standing, stimuli were processed equally fast. The results provide partial evidence for the activation of specific spatial and temporal concepts by whole-body movements and are discussed in the context of movement familiarity.

Spectrum of concepts associated with the term "biodiversity": a case study in a biodiversity hotspot in South America.

PubMed

Cerda, Claudia; Bidegain, Iñigo

2018-03-10

In most conservation programs that include public participation, the word "biodiversity" is used. However, many variables influence the public understanding of the term and determine what biodiversity means to local stakeholders. Those representations of the concept must be addressed and included in conservation actions. We asked 47 local stakeholders in a biosphere reserve (BR) located in a biodiversity hotspot in South America, for whom the conservation of biodiversity is not the main focus of interest, to explain how they understand the term "biodiversity." Twenty-two different definitions were provided, ranging from purely ecological concepts to the human dimension. Although the diversity of animals and plants was the most frequently mentioned concept, the variety of concepts that emerged suggested that more explicit examples of social constructions must be considered in public participatory projects and environmental education programs. Actors living in a close relationship with nature provide a greater diversity of elements in defining biodiversity, visualizing ecological but also instrumental values.

Beyond baking soda: Demonstrating the link between volcanic eruptions and viscosity to all ages

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smithka, I. N.; Walters, R. L.; Harpp, K. S.

2014-12-01

Public interest in volcanic eruptions and societal relevance of volcanic hazards provide an excellent basis for successful earth science outreach. During a museum-based earth science outreach event free and open to the public, we used two new interactive experiments to illustrate the relationship between gas content, magma viscosity, and eruption style. Learning objectives for visitors are to understand: how gas drives volcanic eruptions, the differences between effusive and explosive eruption styles, viscosity's control on gas pressure within a magma reservoir, and the role of gas pressure on eruption style. Visitors apply the scientific method by asking research questions and testing hypotheses by conducting the experiments. The demonstrations are framed with real life examples of volcanic eruptions (e.g., Mt. St. Helens eruption in 1980), providing context for the scientific concepts. The first activity demonstrates the concept of fluid viscosity and how gas interacts with fluids of different viscosities. Visitors blow bubbles into water and corn syrup. The corn syrup is so viscous that bubbles are trapped, showing how a more viscous material builds up higher gas pressure. Visitors are asked which kind of magma (high or low viscosity) will produce an explosive eruption. To demonstrate an explosive eruption, visitors add an Alka-Seltzer tablet to water in a snap-top film canister. The reaction rapidly produces carbon dioxide gas, increasing pressure in the canister until the lid pops off and the canister launches a few meters into the air (tinyurl.com/nzsgfoe). Increasing gas pressure in the canister is analogous to gas pressure building within a magma reservoir beneath a volcano. The lid represents high-viscosity magma that prevents degassing, causing gas pressure to reach explosive levels. This interactive activity is combined with a display of an effusive eruption: add vinegar to baking soda in a model volcano to produce a quick-flowing eruption. These demonstrations were implemented in March 2014 at "Can You Dig It?", a popular annual collaborative outreach event hosted by the Florida Museum of Natural History and the University of Florida Department of Geological Sciences (>1,500 visitors). These experiments were also used to illustrate volcanic processes at the VGP Exploration Station, AGU 2013.

Crayon Coloured Planets: Using Children's Drawings as Guides for Improving Astronomy Teaching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Mello, A. B.; Epitácio Pereira, D. N.; Gonzalez, E. A. M.; de Nader, R. V.; de Lima, B. C. G.

2006-08-01

Many institutions around the world run programs to teach astronomy to young children (7 to 11 years old), but it is often very difficult to evaluate the efficiency of the methods and materials employed. Interviews and written tests are usually unsuitable, or at least impractical, for that purpose. Our group of researchers and students of the Observatório do Valongo (Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro - Brazil) have been teaching children basic notions of astronomy, especially about the solar system, through games and activities, and we have used children's drawings to evaluate our educational methods and didactic material. The artistic expression of children is strongly linked to their everyday life experiences. This way, their representation of the solar system is influenced by the manner that this concept was formed from their experiences at home and the notions learned at school. To evaluate this perception, before the educational activities take place, the students are asked to make drawings of the solar system, without any further instructions. After the activities at the Observatory, we then ask the children to make a new drawing using the new information that they acquired. Over 400 drawings have been collected and analyzed individually, and a database was developed to keep all the information obtained from them. In order to allow a statistical analysis of the whole sample of drawings, some objective topics were defined. These can be divided in two groups: the first is about the individual presence of components of the solar system (natural satellites, rings around giant planets, comets etc.), and the second is about the relative dimensions of the celestial bodies. For each of these topics, we applied a statistical test to check if there was a significant improvement from the drawings made before the activities to those collected after the activities. We concluded that there was a substantial improvement in most of the topics defined. The result of this analysis is being used to enhance our didactic practices, and improve our ability to introduce basic concepts about our neighborhood in the universe to young children.

'It's good enough': Swedish general dental practitioners on reasons for accepting substandard root filling quality.

PubMed

Dahlström, L; Lindwall, O; Rystedt, H; Reit, C

2018-04-01

The concept of 'good enough' is central and necessary in the assessment of root filling quality. The aim was to explore the concept by analysing reasons and arguments for the acceptance or rejection of substandard root filling quality as reported by general dental practitioners (GDPs) in Sweden. The study was designed as a qualitative and exploratory study based on seven videotaped focus group interviews analysed by means of qualitative content analysis. Thirty-three GDPs employed in the Public Dental Health Service in Gothenburg, Sweden, participated (4-6 GDPs/interview). In all, nine predetermined questions were followed. Before each focus group, the participants received radiographs of 37 root fillings and were asked to assess the root filling quality. The three cases representing the most divergent assessments served as a basis for the discussion. The cases were presented without clinical information; the dentists would relate to the cases as being just root filled by themselves. The radiographs did not provide a sufficient basis for decisions on whether or not to accept the root filling. This study emphasized that dentists did not primarily look for these arguments in the technical details of the root filling per se, but instead, they considered selected features of the contextual situation. The GDPs constantly introduced relevant 'ad hoc considerations' to account for the decisions they made. These contextual considerations were related to aspects of pulpal and periapical disease, risks (e.g. technical complications) or to consumed resources (personal and/or economic). It was obvious that the concept of 'good enough' does not exist as a general formula ready to be applied in particular situations. Instead, it is necessarily and irremediably tied to contextual properties that emerge from case to case. © 2017 International Endodontic Journal. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

'It means everyone should know their status': exploring lay conceptions of sickle cell trait and sickle cell trait screening among African Americans within middle reproductive age.

PubMed

Mayo-Gamble, Tilicia L; Barnes, Priscilla A; Cunningham Erves, Jennifer; Middlestadt, Susan E; Lin, Hsien-Chang

2017-02-21

This study examined the meaning of sickle cell trait and sickle cell trait screening from the lay perspective of African Americans. African Americans (N = 300), ages 18-35 and unaware of their sickle cell trait status, completed two open-ended questions from a larger survey. One question asked for their understanding of sickle cell trait; the other asked for their understanding of sickle cell trait screening. Content analysis occurred in two phases: (1) In vivo and holistic coding; and (2) focused coding. Four categories emerged illustrating lay conceptions of sickle cell trait; (1) Perceived as an illness; (2) Perceived recognition of the inheritance pattern of sickle cell trait; (3) Perceived lack of knowledge of sickle cell trait; and (4) Perceived importance of sickle cell trait. Five categories emerged illustrating lay conceptions for sickle cell trait screening: (1) Perceived recognition that screening means getting tested for sickle cell trait; (2) Perceived lack of knowledge of sickle cell trait screening; (3) Perceived health benefit of sickle cell trait screening; (4) Perceived importance of sickle cell trait screening; and (5) Perceived barriers to sickle cell trait screening. Sickle cell trait and sickle cell trait screening are concepts that are both regarded as important among this high-risk population. However, there is still misunderstanding concerning the hereditary nature and reproductive implications of sickle cell trait. Interventions seeking to improve communication on the need for sickle cell trait screening should begin by identifying what the population at large understands, knows and/or believes to improve their ability to make informed health decisions.

Making sense of (exceptional) causal relations. A cross-cultural and cross-linguistic study.

PubMed

Le Guen, Olivier; Samland, Jana; Friedrich, Thomas; Hanus, Daniel; Brown, Penelope

2015-01-01

In order to make sense of the world, humans tend to see causation almost everywhere. Although most causal relations may seem straightforward, they are not always construed in the same way cross-culturally. In this study, we investigate concepts of "chance," "coincidence," or "randomness" that refer to assumed relations between intention, action, and outcome in situations, and we ask how people from different cultures make sense of such non-law-like connections. Based on a framework proposed by Alicke (2000), we administered a task that aims to be a neutral tool for investigating causal construals cross-culturally and cross-linguistically. Members of four different cultural groups, rural Mayan Yucatec and Tseltal speakers from Mexico and urban students from Mexico and Germany, were presented with a set of scenarios involving various types of causal and non-causal relations and were asked to explain the described events. Three links varied as to whether they were present or not in the scenarios: Intention-to-Action, Action-to-Outcome, and Intention-to-Outcome. Our results show that causality is recognized in all four cultural groups. However, how causality and especially non-law-like relations are interpreted depends on the type of links, the cultural background and the language used. In all three groups, Action-to-Outcome is the decisive link for recognizing causality. Despite the fact that the two Mayan groups share similar cultural backgrounds, they display different ideologies regarding concepts of non-law-like relations. The data suggests that the concept of "chance" is not universal, but seems to be an explanation that only some cultural groups draw on to make sense of specific situations. Of particular importance is the existence of linguistic concepts in each language that trigger ideas of causality in the responses from each cultural group.

Practitioner perspectives on foundational capabilities.

PubMed

Leider, Jonathon P; Juliano, Chrissie; Castrucci, Brian C; Beitsch, Leslie M; Dilley, Abby; Nelson, Rachel; Kaiman, Sherry; Sprague, James B

2015-01-01

National efforts are underway to classify a minimum set of public health services that all jurisdictions throughout the United States should provide regardless of location. Such a set of basic programs would be supported by crosscutting services, known as the "foundational capabilities" (FCs). These FCs are assessment services, preparedness and disaster response, policy development, communications, community partnership, and organizational support activities. To ascertain familiarity with the term and concept of FCs and gather related perspectives from state and local public health practitioners. In fall 2013, we interviewed 50 leaders from state and local health departments. We asked about familiarity with the term "foundational capabilities," as well as the broader concept of FCs. We attempted to triangulate the utility of the FC concept by asking respondents about priority programs and services, about perceived unique contributions made by public health, and about prevalence and funding for the FCs. Telephone-based interviews. Fifty leaders of state and local health departments. Practitioner familiarity with and perspectives on the FCs, information about current funding streams for public health, and the likelihood of creating nationwide FCs that would be recognized and accepted by all jurisdictions. Slightly more than half of the leaders interviewed said that they were familiar with the concept of FCs. In most cases, health departments had all of the capabilities to some degree, although operationalization varied. Few indicated that current funding levels were sufficient to support implementing a minimum level of FCs nationally. Respondents were not able to articulate the current or optimal levels of services for the various capabilities, nor the costs associated with them. Further research is needed to understand the role of FCs as part of the foundational public health services.

Using Newborn Screening Bloodspots for Research: Public Preferences for Policy Options.

PubMed

Hayeems, Robin Z; Miller, Fiona A; Barg, Carolyn J; Bombard, Yvonne; Cressman, Celine; Painter-Main, Michael; Wilson, Brenda; Little, Julian; Allanson, Judith; Avard, Denise; Giguere, Yves; Chakraborty, Pranesh; Carroll, June C

2016-06-01

Retaining residual newborn screening (NBS) bloodspots for medical research remains contentious. To inform this debate, we sought to understand public preferences for, and reasons for preferring, alternative policy options. We assessed preferences among 4 policy options for research use of residual bloodspots through a bilingual national Internet survey of a representative sample of Canadians. Fifty percent of respondents were randomly assigned to select reasons supporting these preferences. Understanding of and attitudes toward screening and research concepts, and demographics were assessed. Of 1102 respondents (94% participation rate; 47% completion rate), the overall preference among policy options was ask permission (67%); this option was also the most acceptable choice (80%). Assume permission was acceptable to 46%, no permission required was acceptable to 29%, and no research allowed was acceptable to 26%. The acceptability of the ask permission option was reduced among participants assigned to the reasoning exercise (84% vs 76%; P = .004). Compared with assume/no permission required, ordered logistic regression showed a significant reduction in preference for the ask permission option with greater understanding of concepts (odds ratio, 0.87; P < .001), greater confidence in science (odds ratio, 0.16; P < .001), and a perceived responsibility to contribute to research (odds ratio, 0.39; P < .001). Surveyed Canadians prefer that explicit permission is sought for storage and research use of NBS bloodspots. This preference was diminished when reasons supporting and opposing routine storage, and other policy options, were presented. Findings warrant consideration as NBS communities strategize to respond to shifting legislative contexts. Copyright © 2016 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Improving Comprehension through Repetition...Repetition...Repetition. Working Paper No. 276.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Sandra; Witte, Pauline

Because teachers are asking for specific suggestions to help students apply comprehension skills and read content material, a mechanism that assists students in acquiring and applying specific comprehension skills as they read content texts is being investigated. The mechanism is called marginal gloss because learning activities are placed in the…

Effects of Storytelling to Facilitate EFL Speaking Using Web-Based Multimedia System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hwang, Wu-Yuin; Shadiev, Rustam; Hsu, Jung-Lung; Huang, Yueh-Min; Hsu, Guo-Liang; Lin, Yi-Chun

2016-01-01

This study applied storytelling in the English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom in order to promote speaking skills. Students were asked to practice speaking EFL through producing individual and interactive stories with a Web-based multimedia system. We aimed to investigate an effectiveness of applying individual and interactive storytelling…

Students' Difficulties with Applying a Familiar Formula in an Unfamiliar Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoch, Maureen; Dreyfus, Tommy

2005-01-01

This paper discusses problems many tenth grade students have when asked to apply a familiar formula in an unfamiliar context: specifically factoring a compound expression. Some of their attempts at solution are presented and discussed in terms of structure sense. (Contains 1 table.) [For complete proceedings, see ED496848.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) | Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program

Cancer.gov

Am I eligible? To be considered for the Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program (CPFP), you must meet eligibility criteria related to educational attainment, US citizenship/permanent residency status, and the duration of prior postdoctoral research experience. Refer to the Eligibility Requirements for details. How do I apply? You must apply through our online application process.

Improving High School Students' Understanding of Potential Difference in Simple Electric Circuits

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liegeois, Laurent; Chasseigne, G'erard; Papin, Sophie; Mullet, Etienne

2003-01-01

This paper reports two studies into the understanding of the concept of potential difference in the current-potential difference-resistance context among 8th-12th graders (Study 1), and the efficiency of a learning device derived from Social Judgment Theory (Study 2). These two studies showed that: (a) when asked to infer potential difference from…

Educational Criteria for Evaluating Simple Class Diagrams Made by Novices for Conceptual Modeling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kayama, Mizue; Ogata, Shinpei; Asano, David K.; Hashimoto, Masami

2016-01-01

Conceptual modeling is one of the most important learning topics for higher education and secondary education. The goal of conceptual modeling in this research is to draw a class diagram using given notation to satisfy the given requirements. In this case, the subjects are asked to choose concepts to satisfy the given requirements and to correctly…

Rethinking the Concept of Sustainability: Hiroshima as a Subject of Peace Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ide, Kanako

2017-01-01

The article discusses a sustainable educational approach for developing a moral value of peace by using a historical event, the bombing of Hiroshima. To make the case, the article uses the care theory of Nel Noddings to discuss the interpersonal aspects of peace education. The article asks how care theory handles tragedies like Hiroshima and it…

Implicit Theories of Creativity in Computer Science in the United States and China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tang, Chaoying; Baer, John; Kaufman, James C.

2015-01-01

To study implicit concepts of creativity in computer science in the United States and mainland China, we first asked 308 Chinese computer scientists for adjectives that would describe a creative computer scientist. Computer scientists and non-computer scientists from China (N = 1069) and the United States (N = 971) then rated how well those…

Identify Fractions and Decimals on a Number Line

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shaughnessy, Meghan M.

2011-01-01

Tasks that ask students to label rational number points on a number line are common not only in curricula in the upper elementary school grades but also on state assessments. Such tasks target foundational rational number concepts: A fraction (or a decimal) is more than a shaded part of an area, a part of a pizza, or a representation using…

Comprehensive School Reform at the Helm: The North Carolina Instructional Leadership Reform Program. Benchmark. Volume 5, Issue 4, Fall 2004

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Janc, Helen; Appelbaum, Deborah

2004-01-01

This newsletter discusses how in many ways the development of the school reform concept parallels with the evolution of thinking about principal leadership over the past decade. Under Comprehensive School Reform (CSR), schools are increasingly being asked to use data to plan for improvement and to fortify instruction and professional development…

O 'Iluminismo' na Alemanha--As Concepcoes de Mendelssohn e Kant (The 'Enlightenment' in Germany--The Concepts of Mendelssohn and Kant).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mainka, Peter Johann

2000-01-01

States that in 1783 J. F. Zollner, a Berlin theologian, asked the question: "What is 'Enlightenment'?" Notes that the next year Immanuel Kant and Moses Mendelssohn gave definitions of the Enlightenment that are famous in the history of ideas. Analyzes and discusses the definitions through keywords such as reason, criticism, and…

The Myth Incarnate: Recoupling Processes, Turmoil, and Inhabited Institutions in an Urban Elementary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hallett, Tim

2010-01-01

The study of institutional myths has been central to organizational sociology, cultural sociology, and the sociology of education for 30 years. This article examines how the myth concept has been used and develops neglected possibilities by asking: What happens when myths become incarnate, and how does this occur? In other words, what happens when…

A Spoonful of C[subscript 12]H[subscript 22]O[subscript 11] Makes the Chemistry Go Down: Candy Motivations in the High School Chemistry Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ennever, Fanny K.

2007-01-01

A food motivation activity, using a candy bar for high school chemistry classes is described. The use of everyday items like candy makes lab sessions interesting for students and may also help connect chemical concepts to their observable world and encourage them to ask questions.

Concepts of Plants Held by Young Brazilian Children: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bartoszeck, Amauri Betini; Cosmo, Claudete Rosa; da Silva, Bernadete Rocha; Tunnicliffe, Sue Dale

2015-01-01

Children from southern and northern Brazil have a basic knowledge of plants, which they observe during their everyday life. Children ages between 3 to 10 years old (kindergarten & primary school), but the majority of them in the age group of 4-5 (total 145) were asked to draw what they think is a plant (total sample = 332). Afterwards, a equal…

Labov's Concept of the Vernacular Speech: The Site of Language Structure, Acquisition and Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Agnihotri, Rama Kant

2013-01-01

The basic questions that a scholar interested in the study of language asks are concerned with language structure, acquisition, and change. William Labov is a linguist who has deeply influenced the linguistic scene in the past 60 years. It is to Labov's credit that he showed, backed by solid evidence, that the questions concerning language change,…

Everything You've Always Wanted to Know About Weather But Were Afraid to Ask.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abbott, Verlin M.

This unit, designed for primary grades of the elementary schools, focuses on weather and is divided into the following five major parts: Weather Affects Man and His Environment; Air, Wind, and Weather; Clouds and Humidity; Precipitation; and Micro-Environments. Each part includes a list of the concepts to be taught, the behavioral objectives and…

Conation: Cultivating the "Will" to Succeed among Middle and High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riggs, Ernestine G.

2007-01-01

A great deal of research has been conducted regarding extrinsic and intrinsic motivation and which concept has the most effective impact on the learning process. Teachers are constantly asking: "How can I motivate my struggling or low achieving students to learn the essential skills and strategies they will need to be able to compete in this…

Invent an Audience--Create a Context: How Writers Are Referring to Readers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schindler, Kirsten

In teaching writing, the "audience" became and still is fundamental, leading to the question of how students can learn to adapt their text to the assumed readership and at the same time, learn to write for their addressees. A study focused on how writers cope with the writing process, asking several questions about the concept of…

Videogame Construction by Engineering Students for Understanding Modelling Processes: The Case of Simulating Water Behaviour

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pretelín-Ricárdez, Angel; Sacristán, Ana Isabel

2015-01-01

We present some results of an ongoing research project where university engineering students were asked to construct videogames involving the use of physical systems models. The objective is to help them identify and understand the elements and concepts involved in the modelling process. That is, we use game design as a constructionist approach…

Book of Solutions: Frequent Questions on Concepts, Issues and Strategies for the Education of Language Minority Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berube, Barney; And Others

Responses to over 100 of the most frequently-asked questions about the education of language-minority students are presented for Maine school personnel. The book has 12 sections. The first lists and defines common acronyms, and the second addresses various aspects of student evaluation, including: identification of limited-English-proficient (LEP)…

Young Brazilian and Norwegian Children’s Concepts of Strategies and Goals for Emotion Regulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vikan, Arne; Karstad, Silja Berg; Dias, Maria

2013-01-01

Four-hundred-and-eighty children in the age groups of four and six years, 240 each from Brazil and Norway, were asked how their feelings of anger, sadness and fear were reduced in a recollected episode, to propose emotion regulation strategies for protagonists and to envisage the result of regulation strategies. A majority of even the youngest…

A Matter of Prior Knowledge: Canadian Young Children's Conceptions about the Future in the Global Community

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chareka, Ottilia

2010-01-01

Young Canadian boys and girls aged nine to eleven were asked to consider their personal futures, the future of their community and the future of the world. Mixed methods were employed for data collection and analysis. Responses were compared with those given by children in eight countries and the discussion focused on the importance prior…

Subliminally Perceived Odours Modulate Female Intrasexual Competition: An Eye Movement Study

PubMed Central

Parma, Valentina; Tirindelli, Roberto; Bisazza, Angelo; Massaccesi, Stefano; Castiello, Umberto

2012-01-01

Background Evidence suggests that subliminal odorants influence human perception and behavior. It has been hypothesized that the human sex-steroid derived compound 4,16-androstadien-3-one (androstadienone) functions as a human chemosignal. The most intensively studied steroid compound, androstadienone is known to be biologically relevant since it seems to convey information about male mate quality to women. It is unclear if the effects of androstadienone are menstrual cycle related. Methodology/Principal Findings In the first experiment, heterosexual women were exposed to androstadienone or a control compound and asked to view stimuli such as female faces, male faces and familiar objects while their eye movements were recorded. In the second experiment the same women were asked to rate the level of stimuli attractiveness following exposure to the study or control compound. The results indicated that women at high conception risk spent more time viewing the female than the male faces regardless of the compound administered. Women at a low conception risk exhibited a preference for female faces only following exposure to androstadienone. Conclusions/Significance We contend that a woman's level of fertility influences her evaluation of potential competitors (e.g., faces of other women) during times critical for reproduction. Subliminally perceived odorants, such as androstadienone, might similarly enhance intrasexual competition strategies in women during fertility phases not critical for conception. These findings offer a substantial contribution to the current debate about the effects that subliminally perceived body odors might have on behavior. PMID:22383968

Student Use of Physics to Make Sense of Incomplete but Functional VPython Programs in a Lab Setting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weatherford, Shawn A.

2011-12-01

Computational activities in Matter & Interactions, an introductory calculus-based physics course, have the instructional goal of providing students with the experience of applying the same set of a small number of fundamental principles to model a wide range of physical systems. However there are significant instructional challenges for students to build computer programs under limited time constraints, especially for students who are unfamiliar with programming languages and concepts. Prior attempts at designing effective computational activities were successful at having students ultimately build working VPython programs under the tutelage of experienced teaching assistants in a studio lab setting. A pilot study revealed that students who completed these computational activities had significant difficultly repeating the exact same tasks and further, had difficulty predicting the animation that would be produced by the example program after interpreting the program code. This study explores the interpretation and prediction tasks as part of an instructional sequence where students are asked to read and comprehend a functional, but incomplete program. Rather than asking students to begin their computational tasks with modifying program code, we explicitly ask students to interpret an existing program that is missing key lines of code. The missing lines of code correspond to the algebraic form of fundamental physics principles or the calculation of forces which would exist between analogous physical objects in the natural world. Students are then asked to draw a prediction of what they would see in the simulation produced by the VPython program and ultimately run the program to evaluate the students' prediction. This study specifically looks at how the participants use physics while interpreting the program code and creating a whiteboard prediction. This study also examines how students evaluate their understanding of the program and modification goals at the beginning of the modification task. While working in groups over the course of a semester, study participants were recorded while they completed three activities using these incomplete programs. Analysis of the video data showed that study participants had little difficulty interpreting physics quantities, generating a prediction, or determining how to modify the incomplete program. Participants did not base their prediction solely from the information from the incomplete program. When participants tried to predict the motion of the objects in the simulation, many turned to their knowledge of how the system would evolve if it represented an analogous real-world physical system. For example, participants attributed the real-world behavior of springs to helix objects even though the program did not include calculations for the spring to exert a force when stretched. Participants rarely interpreted lines of code in the computational loop during the first computational activity, but this changed during latter computational activities with most participants using their physics knowledge to interpret the computational loop. Computational activities in the Matter & Interactions curriculum were revised in light of these findings to include an instructional sequence of tasks to build a comprehension of the example program. The modified activities also ask students to create an additional whiteboard prediction for the time-evolution of the real-world phenomena which the example program will eventually model. This thesis shows how comprehension tasks identified by Palinscar and Brown (1984) as effective in improving reading comprehension are also effective in helping students apply their physics knowledge to interpret a computer program which attempts to model a real-world phenomena and identify errors in their understanding of the use, or omission, of fundamental physics principles in a computational model.

PROSOPAGNOSIA

PubMed Central

Bornstein, B.; Kidron, D. P.

1959-01-01

“And what is the nature of this knowledge or recollection? I mean to ask, Whether a person, who having seen or heard or in any way perceived anything, knows not only that, but has a conception of something else which is the subject, not of the same but of some other kind of knowledge, may not be fairly said to recollect that of which he has the conception?” “And when the recollection is derived from like things, then another consideration is sure to arise, which is, Whether the likeness in any degree falls short or not of that which is recollected?” “The Philosophy of Plato” Phaedo (the Jowett translation). Images PMID:13655102

Silver Sulfadiazine

MedlinePlus

... wide variety of bacteria.This medication is sometimes prescribed for other uses; ask your doctor or pharmacist ... of it or use it more often than prescribed by your doctor.Do not apply this drug ...

Design and analysis of simple choice surveys for natural resource management

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fieberg, John; Cornicelli, Louis; Fulton, David C.; Grund, Marrett D.

2010-01-01

We used a simple yet powerful method for judging public support for management actions from randomized surveys. We asked respondents to rank choices (representing management regulations under consideration) according to their preference, and we then used discrete choice models to estimate probability of choosing among options (conditional on the set of options presented to respondents). Because choices may share similar unmodeled characteristics, the multinomial logit model, commonly applied to discrete choice data, may not be appropriate. We introduced the nested logit model, which offers a simple approach for incorporating correlation among choices. This forced choice survey approach provides a useful method of gathering public input; it is relatively easy to apply in practice, and the data are likely to be more informative than asking constituents to rate attractiveness of each option separately.

Quantum Behavior of an Autonomous Maxwell Demon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chapman, Adrian; Miyake, Akimasa

2015-03-01

A Maxwell Demon is an agent that can exploit knowledge of a system's microstate to perform useful work. The second law of thermodynamics is only recovered upon taking into account the work required to irreversibly update the demon's memory, bringing information theoretic concepts into a thermodynamic framework. Recently, there has been interest in modeling a classical Maxwell demon as an autonomous physical system to study this information-work tradeoff explicitly. Motivated by the idea that states with non-local entanglement structure can be used as a computational resource, we ask whether these states have thermodynamic resource quality as well by generalizing a particular classical autonomous Maxwell demon to the quantum regime. We treat the full quantum description using a matrix product operator formalism, which allows us to handle quantum and classical correlations in a unified framework. Applying this, together with techniques from statistical mechanics, we are able to approximate nonlocal quantities such as the erasure performed on the demon's memory register when correlations are present. Finally, we examine how the demon may use these correlations as a resource to outperform its classical counterpart.

Applying the Socratic Method to Physics Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corcoran, Ed

2005-04-01

We have restructured University Physics I and II in accordance with methods that PER has shown to be effective, including a more interactive discussion- and activity-based curriculum based on the premise that developing understanding requires an interactive process in which students have the opportunity to talk through and think through ideas with both other students and the teacher. Studies have shown that in classes implementing this approach to teaching as compared to classes using a traditional approach, students have significantly higher gains on the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). This has been true in UPI. However, UPI FCI results seem to suggest that there is a significant conceptual hole in students' understanding of Newton's Second Law. Two labs in UPI which teach Newton's Second Law will be redesigned replacing more activity with students as a group talking through, thinking through, and answering conceptual questions asked by the TA. The results will be measured by comparing FCI results to those from previous semesters, coupled with interviews. The results will be analyzed, and we will attempt to understand why gains were or were not made.

Queering high school biology textbooks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snyder, Vicky L.; Broadway, Francis S.

2004-08-01

As teachers committed to educating all students, we need to learn more about how instructional materials shape representations of sexuality and gender. Through its insistent deconstruction of the norms that structure practice and belief, queer theory offers perspectives from which science educators can question assumptions embedded in textbooks. This article applies queer theory to analyze eight biology textbooks used in the United States. Specifically, we ask how biology textbooks address sexuality outside the heterosexual norm and if they propagate heteronormative attitudes. The textbooks examined offer deafening silences, antiseptic factoids, socially sanitized concepts, and politically correct binary-gendered illustrations. In these textbooks, the term homosexuality was used only in the context of AIDS where, along with iv drug users, they were identified as an affected group. The pervasive acceptance of heteronormative behavior privileges students that fit the heterosexual norm, and oppresses through omission and silence those who do not. We offer implications for practice to help science educators broaden their perspectives on the constructs of sexuality and gender to construct new ways of knowing and understanding differences in science classrooms and the natural world.

Safety intelligence: an exploration of senior managers' characteristics.

PubMed

Fruhen, L S; Mearns, K J; Flin, R; Kirwan, B

2014-07-01

Senior managers can have a strong influence on organisational safety. But little is known about which of their personal attributes support their impact on safety. In this paper, we introduce the concept of 'safety intelligence' as related to senior managers' ability to develop and enact safety policies and explore possible characteristics related to it in two studies. Study 1 (N = 76) involved direct reports to chief executive officers (CEOs) of European air traffic management (ATM) organisations, who completed a short questionnaire asking about characteristics and behaviours that are ideal for a CEO's influence on safety. Study 2 involved senior ATM managers (N = 9) in various positions in interviews concerning their day-to-day work on safety. Both studies indicated six attributes of senior managers as relevant for their safety intelligence, particularly, social competence and safety knowledge, followed by motivation, problem-solving, personality and interpersonal leadership skills. These results have recently been applied in guidance for safety management practices in a White Paper published by EUROCONTROL. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

Unified Technical Concepts. Math for Technicians.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

Unified Technical Concepts (UTC) is a modular system for teaching applied physics in two-year postsecondary technician programs. This UTC classroom textbook, consisting of 10 chapters, deals with mathematical concepts as they apply to the study of physics. Addressed in the individual chapters of the text are the following topics: angles and…

Applying Self-Efficacy Theory to Understanding the Behavioral Expectations of College Students with Disabilities in Requesting Accommodations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snitker-Magin, Mikael C.

2010-01-01

The purpose of the study was to apply Bandura's self-efficacy theory to understanding the behavior of college students with disabilities in requesting accommodations. Students with disabilities were recruited from 20 two-year and four-year postsecondary institutions by asking student disabilities services staff to forward an email invitation to…

40 CFR 1039.615 - What special provisions apply to engines using noncommercial fuels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... noncommercial fuels significantly different than the specified test fuel of the same type, you may ask to use... following provisions apply: (1) You must certify the engine using the test fuel specified in § 1039.501. (2... the specified test fuel, consistent with the provisions of paragraph (b)(1) of this section. (b) To...

40 CFR 1039.615 - What special provisions apply to engines using noncommercial fuels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... noncommercial fuels significantly different than the specified test fuel of the same type, you may ask to use... following provisions apply: (1) You must certify the engine using the test fuel specified in § 1039.501. (2... the specified test fuel, consistent with the provisions of paragraph (b)(1) of this section. (b) To...

40 CFR 1039.615 - What special provisions apply to engines using noncommercial fuels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... noncommercial fuels significantly different than the specified test fuel of the same type, you may ask to use... following provisions apply: (1) You must certify the engine using the test fuel specified in § 1039.501. (2... the specified test fuel, consistent with the provisions of paragraph (b)(1) of this section. (b) To...

40 CFR 1039.615 - What special provisions apply to engines using noncommercial fuels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... noncommercial fuels significantly different than the specified test fuel of the same type, you may ask to use... following provisions apply: (1) You must certify the engine using the test fuel specified in § 1039.501. (2... the specified test fuel, consistent with the provisions of paragraph (b)(1) of this section. (b) To...

40 CFR 1039.615 - What special provisions apply to engines using noncommercial fuels?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... noncommercial fuels significantly different than the specified test fuel of the same type, you may ask to use... following provisions apply: (1) You must certify the engine using the test fuel specified in § 1039.501. (2... the specified test fuel, consistent with the provisions of paragraph (b)(1) of this section. (b) To...

40 CFR 1051.640 - What special provisions apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? 1051.640 Section 1051.640... apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? You may ask to exempt custom-designed off-highway motorcycles that are substantially similar to highway motorcycles under the...

40 CFR 1051.640 - What special provisions apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? 1051.640 Section 1051.640... apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? You may ask to exempt custom-designed off-highway motorcycles that are substantially similar to highway motorcycles under the...

40 CFR 1051.640 - What special provisions apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? 1051.640 Section 1051.640... apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? You may ask to exempt custom-designed off-highway motorcycles that are substantially similar to highway motorcycles under the...

40 CFR 1051.640 - What special provisions apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? 1051.640 Section 1051.640... apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? You may ask to exempt custom-designed off-highway motorcycles that are substantially similar to highway motorcycles under the...

40 CFR 1051.640 - What special provisions apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? 1051.640 Section 1051.640... apply for custom off-highway motorcycles that are similar to highway motorcycles? You may ask to exempt custom-designed off-highway motorcycles that are substantially similar to highway motorcycles under the...

Plenary Speeches: Applied Linguists without Borders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tarone, Elaine

2013-01-01

Until 1989, the American Association for Applied Linguistics (AAAL) could have been viewed as an interest group of the Linguistics Society of America (LSA); AAAL met in two designated meeting rooms as a subsection of the LSA conference. In 1991, I was asked to organize the first independent meeting of AAAL in New York City, with the help of…

Machine Learning in Medicine.

PubMed

Deo, Rahul C

2015-11-17

Spurred by advances in processing power, memory, storage, and an unprecedented wealth of data, computers are being asked to tackle increasingly complex learning tasks, often with astonishing success. Computers have now mastered a popular variant of poker, learned the laws of physics from experimental data, and become experts in video games - tasks that would have been deemed impossible not too long ago. In parallel, the number of companies centered on applying complex data analysis to varying industries has exploded, and it is thus unsurprising that some analytic companies are turning attention to problems in health care. The purpose of this review is to explore what problems in medicine might benefit from such learning approaches and use examples from the literature to introduce basic concepts in machine learning. It is important to note that seemingly large enough medical data sets and adequate learning algorithms have been available for many decades, and yet, although there are thousands of papers applying machine learning algorithms to medical data, very few have contributed meaningfully to clinical care. This lack of impact stands in stark contrast to the enormous relevance of machine learning to many other industries. Thus, part of my effort will be to identify what obstacles there may be to changing the practice of medicine through statistical learning approaches, and discuss how these might be overcome. © 2015 American Heart Association, Inc.

Simultaneous anatomical sketching as learning by doing method of teaching human anatomy.

PubMed

Noorafshan, Ali; Hoseini, Leila; Amini, Mitra; Dehghani, Mohammad-Reza; Kojuri, Javad; Bazrafkan, Leila

2014-01-01

Learning by lecture is a passive experience. Many innovative techniques have been presented to stimulate students to assume a more active attitude toward learning. In this study, simultaneous sketch drawing, as an interactive learning technique was applied to teach anatomy to the medical students. We reconstructed a fun interactive model of teaching anatomy as simultaneous anatomic sketching. To test the model's instruction effectiveness, we conducted a quasi- experimental study and then the students were asked to write their learning experiences in their portfolio, also their view was evaluated by a questionnaire. The results of portfolio evaluation revealed that students believed that this method leads to deep learning and understanding anatomical subjects better. Evaluation of the students' views on this teaching approach was showed that, more than 80% of the students were agreed or completely agreed with this statement that leaning anatomy concepts are easier and the class is less boring with this method. More than 60% of the students were agreed or completely agreed to sketch anatomical figures with professor simultaneously. They also found the sketching make anatomy more attractive and it reduced the time for learning anatomy. These number of students were agree or completely agree that the method help them learning anatomical concept in anatomy laboratory. More than 80% of the students found the simultaneous sketching is a good method for learning anatomy overall. Sketch drawing, as an interactive learning technique, is an attractive for students to learn anatomy.

Qualitative research: a review of methods with use of examples from the total knee replacement literature.

PubMed

Beaton, Dorcas E; Clark, Jocalyn P

2009-05-01

Qualitative research is a useful approach to explore perplexing or complicated clinical situations. Since 1996, at least fifteen qualitative studies in the area of total knee replacement alone were found. Qualitative studies overcome the limits of quantitative work because they can explicate deeper meaning and complexity associated with questions such as why patients decline joint replacement surgery, why they do not adhere to pain medication and exercise regimens, how they manage in the postoperative period, and why providers do not always provide evidence-based care. In this paper, we review the role of qualitative methods in orthopaedic research, using knee osteoarthritis as an illustrative example. Qualitative research questions tend to be inductive, and the stance of the investigator is relevant and explicitly acknowledged. Qualitative methodologies include grounded theory, phenomenology, and ethnography and involve gathering opinions and text from individuals or focus groups. The methods are rigorous and take training and time to apply. Analysis of the textual data typically proceeds with the identification, coding, and categorization of patterns in the data for the purpose of generating concepts from within the data. With use of analytic techniques, researchers strive to explain the findings; questions are asked to tease out different levels of meaning, identify new concepts and themes, and permit a deeper interpretation and understanding. Orthopaedic practitioners should consider the use of qualitative research as a tool for exploring the meaning and complexities behind some of the perplexing phenomena that they observe in research findings and clinical practice.

Student understanding of pH: "i don't know what the log actually is, i only know where the button is on my calculator".

PubMed

Watters, Dianne J; Watters, James J

2006-07-01

In foundation biochemistry and biological chemistry courses, a major problem area that has been identified is students' lack of understanding of pH, acids, bases, and buffers and their inability to apply their knowledge in solving acid/base problems. The aim of this study was to explore students' conceptions of pH and their ability to solve problems associated with the behavior of biological acids to understand the source of student difficulties. The responses given by most students are characteristic of an atomistic approach in which they pay no attention to the structure of the problem and concentrate only on juggling the elements together until they get a solution. Many students reported difficulty in understanding what the question was asking and were unable to interpret a simple graph showing the pH activity profile of an enzyme. The most startling finding was the lack of basic understanding of logarithms and the inability of all except one student to perform a simple calculation on logs without a calculator. This deficiency in high school mathematical skills severely hampered their understanding of pH. This study has highlighted a widespread deficiency in basic mathematical skills among first year undergraduates and a fragmented understanding of acids and bases. Implications for the way in which the concepts of pH and buffers are taught are discussed. Copyright © 2006 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Simultaneous anatomical sketching as learning by doing method of teaching human anatomy

PubMed Central

Noorafshan, Ali; Hoseini, Leila; Amini, Mitra; Dehghani, Mohammad-Reza; Kojuri, Javad; Bazrafkan, Leila

2014-01-01

Objective: Learning by lecture is a passive experience. Many innovative techniques have been presented to stimulate students to assume a more active attitude toward learning. In this study, simultaneous sketch drawing, as an interactive learning technique was applied to teach anatomy to the medical students. Materials and Methods: We reconstructed a fun interactive model of teaching anatomy as simultaneous anatomic sketching. To test the model's instruction effectiveness, we conducted a quasi- experimental study and then the students were asked to write their learning experiences in their portfolio, also their view was evaluated by a questionnaire. Results: The results of portfolio evaluation revealed that students believed that this method leads to deep learning and understanding anatomical subjects better. Evaluation of the students’ views on this teaching approach was showed that, more than 80% of the students were agreed or completely agreed with this statement that leaning anatomy concepts are easier and the class is less boring with this method. More than 60% of the students were agreed or completely agreed to sketch anatomical figures with professor simultaneously. They also found the sketching make anatomy more attractive and it reduced the time for learning anatomy. These number of students were agree or completely agree that the method help them learning anatomical concept in anatomy laboratory. More than 80% of the students found the simultaneous sketching is a good method for learning anatomy overall. Conclusion: Sketch drawing, as an interactive learning technique, is an attractive for students to learn anatomy. PMID:25013843

Prostitutes and chimney sweeps both have problems: towards full integration of both sexes in the study of occupational health.

PubMed

Messing, K; Dumais, L; Romito, P

1993-01-01

Recently, natural and social scientists have pointed out that the need to make scientific results apply to both sexes is not met by simply adding women as research subjects. They suggest that the social and biological specificity of both sexes must be recognized and adjustments made to the ways questions are asked, hypotheses are generated, research subjects are chosen, and data are analysed. It is important to examine the definitions, concepts and methods used in research in occupational health to see whether they obstruct recognition of women's occupational health problems or interfere with gender-neutral standard setting. Unravelling the effects of sex on occupational health is complicated by the fact that women and men do not, by and large, work at the same jobs. Definitions of "work" must in some cases be adjusted to take account of women's occupations, just as definitions involving "health" must include women's biological specificity. Appropriate changes must be made to generate sex-inclusive definitions of exposures to occupational hazards and of health effects. Methods for evaluating exposures typical of women's work must be developed. Women and their work must be appropriately included when standards for occupational exposures are set. If these adjustments are not made, women's occupational health problems will be seriously underestimated and understanding of health problems of both sexes will be hindered. Sociological analysis should also be done to reveal the mechanisms by which biased concepts and procedures develop and are reinforced.

Effects of a computerized cardiac teletriage decision support system on nurse performance: results of a controlled human factors experiment using a mid-fidelity prototype.

PubMed

Somoza, Kirsten Carroll; Momtahan, Kathryn; Lindgaard, Gitte

2007-01-01

A gap exists in cardiac care between known best practices and the actual level of care administered. To help bridge this gap, a proof of concept interface for a PDA-based decision support system (DSS) was designed for cardiac care nurses engaged in teletriage. This interface was developed through a user-centered design process. Quality of assessment, quality of recommendations, and number of questions asked were measured. Cardiac floor nurses' assessment quality performance, but not their recommendation quality performance, improved with the DSS. Nurses asked more questions with the DSS than without it, and these additional questions were predominantly classifiable as essential or beneficial to a good assessment. The average participant satisfaction score with the DSS was above neutral.

Preservice Biology Teachers' Conceptions about the Tentative Nature of Theories and Models in Biology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reinisch, Bianca; Krüger, Dirk

2018-01-01

In research on the nature of science, there is a need to investigate the role and status of different scientific knowledge forms. Theories and models are two of the most important knowledge forms within biology and are the focus of this study. During interviews, preservice biology teachers (N = 10) were asked about their understanding of theories…

In Building a Script for an Emotion, Do Preschoolers Add Its Cause before Its Behavior Consequence?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Widen, Sherri C.; Russell, James A.

2011-01-01

An emotion concept is a script in which an emotion event is an ordered sequence of subevents from situational cause through bodily changes to behavioral consequence. As children build a script for each emotion, in what order do they add each subevent? Preschoolers (N = 108, three to five years), were asked to name the protagonist's emotion in…

Is Authentic Cross-Cultural Collaboration Possible between Universities and Public Schools within a Professional Development School Model? Perceptions from the Field

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parkinson, Debra D.; Muir Welsh, Kate

2009-01-01

In 2003, a state in the Rocky Mountain region combined the concept of partner schools (Goodlad, 1993) and the model of a professional development school (Holmes Group, 1986, 1995) to develop four university public school partnerships. This study asked two guiding questions: Is authentic cross-cultural collaboration possible between a university…

How Do You Say "Twos" in Spanish, if "Two" Is "Dos"? Language as Means and Object in a Bilingual Kindergarten Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mulvihill, Naomi

2014-01-01

In this essay Naomi Mulvihill uses vignettes from her bilingual kindergarten classroom to explore the dynamic processes by which young children make sense of language, focusing on instances in which she asks her students to compare texts presented in English and Spanish. Using Piaget's concept of disequilibrium as a guiding framework,…

Expanding the Deweyan Self: Revisiting an Underexplored Past to Inform Future Inquiry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blanken-Webb, Jane

2014-01-01

This article considers the concept of self as a core concern within the philosophy of education. The question that is asked is "How do we understand the self that is being educated? This issue is a concern as is any theory of education today that seeks to persuade teachers and public alike that education should be grounded in a healthy,…

Developing an Introductory Level MIS Project in Accordance with AACSB Assurance of Learning Standard 15

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwieger, Dana

2012-01-01

As part of the introductory level management information systems (MIS) course, faculty are asked to introduce the students to MIS concepts as well as to help them develop technology-related skills benefitting them in their course work and beyond. However, with a vast array of MIS topics that could be covered and class time at a premium, it is…

The Experience of Feeling Disrespected: A Humanbecoming Perspective.

PubMed

Hawkins, Kim

2017-04-01

The concept of feeling disrespected was explored using the Parse research method. Ten women living with embodied largeness were asked, "What is the experience of feeling disrespected?" The structure of the living experience was feeling disrespected is mortifying disheartenment arising with disquieting irreverence, as distancing affiliations surface while enduring hardship. The findings provided new knowledge of living quality, advanced nursing practice, and presented future direction for research.

A Study of the Development of Students' Visualizations of Program State during an Elementary Object-Oriented Programming Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sajaniemi, Jorma; Kuittinen, Marja; Tikansalo, Taina

2008-01-01

Students' understanding of object-oriented (OO) program execution was studied by asking students to draw a picture of a program state at a specific moment. Students were given minimal instructions on what to include in their drawings in order to see what they considered to be central concepts and relationships in program execution. Three drawing…

A Comparison of Two Methods of Active Learning in Physics: Inventing a General Solution versus Compare and Contrast

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chin, Doris B.; Chi, Min; Schwartz, Daniel L.

2016-01-01

A common approach for introducing students to a new science concept is to present them with multiple cases of the phenomenon and ask them to explore. The expectation is that students will naturally take advantage of the multiple cases to support their learning and seek an underlying principle for the phenomenon. However, the success of such tasks…

A National Study Comparing Baldrige Core Values and Concepts with AACN Indicators of Quality: Facilitating CCNE-Baccalaureate Colleges of Nursing Move toward More Effective Continuous Performance Improvement Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mattin, Deborah C.

2013-01-01

The AACN has asked academic leaders to align the performance of their organizations to the prescribed standards within the "Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing" Practice document and has provided indicators of quality suggestions for program enhancement as a means of promoting continuous performance…

Chemical Properties and Change. Fourth Grade. Revised. Anchorage School District Elementary Science Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Butler, John, Ed.

In this unit students are asked to mix materials together and look closely at what happens. From this experience, plus teacher input, they are introduced to the concept that matter is made of small particles which cannot be seen, but can be manipulated. Students learn the difference between a physical and a chemical change and that there are four…

The New Kind of Hospital Volunteer: Ethics within a Not-for-Profit Organization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Orwig, Marcy Leasum

2011-01-01

While experts agree the U.S. recession is over, many employees feel that they are still being asked to do more work for less pay. This concept of less compensation for employees is not surprising, but no one has addressed how volunteers in organizations might also be affected by the economy. Are volunteers also expected to do more work for…

Culturally Responsive Education: Diversity in Our Classrooms. Frequently Asked Questions for Saundra Tomlinson-Clarke, Ph.D., and Penelope Lattimer, Ph.D. REL Mid-Atlantic Webinar

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic, 2015

2015-01-01

The webinar, "Culturally Responsive Education: Diversity in Our Classrooms" focused on the concept of culturally responsive education. Goals of the webinar included: (1) Learning what the research says about effective ways to promote culturally responsive education; (2) Discussion of ways to meet the cultural and linguistic needs of all…

Cooking and Hammering: Primary School Pupils' Concepts of Their Craft Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Müürsepp, Mare; Kikkull, Andry

2014-01-01

The aim of the study is to clear the significance of craft skills for the pupils in age nine and twelve years. More than 200 pupils were asked to define, what are the most important skills for the pupils of their age. The results bring out that category of the skills related to craft subject is of the most presented categories in pupils' self…

Utility of Self-Made Crossword Puzzles as an Active Learning Method to Study Biochemistry in Undergraduate Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coticone, Sulekha Rao

2013-01-01

To incorporate an active learning component in a one-semester biochemistry course, students were asked to create crossword puzzles using key concepts. Student observations on the use of self-made crossword puzzles as an active-learning instructional tool were collected using a 5-point Likert survey at the end of the semester. A majority of the…

Leadership for Equity and Social Justice in Arab and Jewish Schools in Israel: Leadership Trajectories and Pedagogical Praxis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arar, Khalid Husny

2015-01-01

The research investigated how principals in Israel's Jewish and Arab school systems perceive and practice their role in promoting equitable education to bridge socio-economic and pedagogic gaps. It asked how Jewish and Arab principals understand the concept of social justice and what they do in order to promote social justice reality in their…

Using Student Writing and Lexical Analysis to Reveal Student Thinking about the Role of Stop Codons in the Central Dogma

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Prevost, Luanna B.; Smith, Michelle K.; Knight, Jennifer K.

2016-01-01

Previous work has shown that students have persistent difficulties in understanding how central dogma processes can be affected by a stop codon mutation. To explore these difficulties, we modified two multiple-choice questions from the Genetics Concept Assessment into three open-ended questions that asked students to write about how a stop codon…

How the Public Views Wilderness: More Results from the USA Survey on Recreation and the Environment

Treesearch

H. Ken Cordell; Michael A. Tarrant; John C. Bergstrom

1998-01-01

More than 1,900 people in the United States over age 15 were asked about their awareness of the National Wilderness Preservation System, adequacy of the amount of wilderness protected, and the importance of various benefits or values from wilderness protection. Findings indicate broad support for the concept of wilderness, based mostly on the ecological, environmental...

"A Long-Legged Fly upon the Stream": Poetry, Memory and the Unconscious

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bayley, Nicholas

2016-01-01

In this paper I introduce some concepts from psychoanalysis, a poem, a clinical vignette and a personal anecdote. I am asking what light the knowledge of unconscious processes can throw on the memorisation of poems and therefore what use to the individual can be derived from learning poems by heart. A version of the paper was first given at the…

"Our Zoo to You": The Link between Zoo Animals in the Classroom and Science and Literacy Concepts in First-Grade Journal Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilson, Kathleen; Trainin, Guy; Laughridge, Virginia; Brooks, David; Wickless, Mimi

2011-01-01

This study examined first-grade students' journal writing to determine how placing live zoo animals in classrooms for science education links to students' emergent and early writing. Students were asked to write journal entries during the daily language arts period. Although no direct instruction in informational text writing was offered, teachers…

Children's Perception of Black and White Boxes and Bobo Dolls as a Reflection of How They Regard Their Own and Other's Racial Membership.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stabler, John R.; Johnson, Edward E.

Investigation of how children's responses to black and white objects reflect racial concepts is reported. One series of experiments asking Headstart children to guess which objects they liked or disliked were hidden in black or white boxes. Although white children guessed more often that positively evaluated objects were in white boxes, black…

Voices from the Sweatshops: A Glimpse of American Women through the Writing of a Dime Novel.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chilcoat, George W.

1990-01-01

Presents a class activity that uses the dime novel in a critical mode as an avenue to increase student's knowledge of the concepts and themes of women's experiences during the nineteenth century. Provides background of the dime novel. Asks students to compose their own dime novel, and provides a student handout that outlines the process. (RW)

Biased Processing of Threat-Related Information Rather than Knowledge Deficits Contributes to Overestimation of Threat in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moritz, Steffen; Pohl, Rudiger F.

2009-01-01

Overestimation of threat (OET) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The present study deconstructed this complex concept and looked for specific deviances in OCD relative to controls. A total of 46 participants with OCD and 51 nonclinical controls were asked: (a) to estimate the incidence rate for 20…

Teaching of evolution in public schools: A cross-cultural examination

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stewart, Joshua M.

The current study sought to examine how the cultural settings of Colorado, United States, and Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany, influenced perspectives, understandings, and acceptance of college students who want to become teachers (i.e., prospective teachers) in regard to the theory of evolution, creationism, and intelligent design with both quantitative and qualitative components. The quantitative sample for the study consisted of 221 German prospective teachers from Baden-Wurttemberg and 231 United States prospective teachers from Colorado. The quantitative component consisted of a 42-item survey with both Likert and true/false items to examine how (1) country of origin, (2) religious participation, and (3) educational background influence students' views and understandings of the theory of evolution and alternative conceptions. Additionally, in a Likert 6-item motivated reasoning task (a theoretical construct), prospective teachers were asked to read and critique arguments supporting and opposing the theory of evolution; differences in how students critiqued arguments were hypothesized to demonstrate biases. For a separate sample from the same locations (8 German and 11 United States students), a qualitative component examined prospective teachers' positions on teaching the theory of evolution in public schools. Prospective teachers were asked to provide support for their position, anticipate opposing arguments, and implications that both positions would have for students. Lastly, prospective teachers were also asked to explain and define the theory of evolution. The current study aided in examining how teachers' perspectives, understandings, and acceptance impacted what was taught in the science classroom. The researcher found that country of origin, religious behavior, and educational background predicted prospective teachers' responses to numerous criterion variables used in the current study. Further, qualitative results expressed major differences between prospective teachers' views regarding the inclusion of evolution or alternative conceptions in public schools, between Colorado and Baden-Wurttemberg. As a potential indicator, findings from the current study may be useful in understanding potential differences between these two countries, in regard to perceptions of the theory of evolution and alternative conceptions. Further, findings from the current study might also inform how these topics might be covered in educational settings with a lowered risk of conflict.

Applied Epistemology and Understanding in Information Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gorichanaz, Tim

2017-01-01

Introduction: Applied epistemology allows information studies to benefit from developments in philosophy. In information studies, epistemic concepts are rarely considered in detail. This paper offers a review of several epistemic concepts, focusing on understanding, as a call for further work in applied epistemology in information studies. Method:…

Priming thoughts about extravagance: implications for consumer decisions about luxury products.

PubMed

Park, Jongwon; Kim, Kyeongheui; Kwak, Junsik; Wyer, Robert S

2014-03-01

If a semantic concept is accessible in memory, it can direct attention to the attributes of a target that exemplify this concept. When these attributes have both affective and utilitarian implications that are evaluatively opposite, the relative impact of these different implications depends on an individual's ability and motivation to expend the cognitive effort required to evaluate them. These assumptions were confirmed in six experiments on the impact of priming the concept of extravagance on attention to a product's luxury-related features and consequent reactions to it. Priming this concept decreased the choice of a luxury product if participants were both motivated and able to construe the utilitarian implications of the product's extravagance-related features. When participants were either distracted from deliberating on their choices or were asked to recommend a product to others, however, priming extravagance led them to base their judgments on the affective reactions that the features spontaneously elicited and consequently increased their choice of the product. © 2013 American Psychological Association

Psychosocial experiences associated with confirmed and self-identified dyslexia: a participant-driven concept map of adult perspectives.

PubMed

Nalavany, Blace Arthur; Carawan, Lena Williams; Rennick, Robyn A

2011-01-01

Concept mapping (a mixed qualitative-quantitative methodology) was used to describe and understand the psychosocial experiences of adults with confirmed and self-identified dyslexia. Using innovative processes of art and photography, Phase 1 of the study included 15 adults who participated in focus groups and in-depth interviews and were asked to elucidate their experiences with dyslexia. On index cards, 75 statements and experiences with dyslexia were recorded. The second phase of the study included 39 participants who sorted these statements into self-defined categories and rated each statement to reflect their personal experiences to produce a visual representation, or concept map, of their experience. The final concept map generated nine distinct cluster themes: Organization Skills for Success; Finding Success; A Good Support System Makes the Difference; On Being Overwhelmed; Emotional Downside; Why Can't They See It?; Pain, Hurt, and Embarrassment From Past to Present; Fear of Disclosure; and Moving Forward. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Computer simulations for the Mars Atmospheric and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission through NASA's "Project Spectra!"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Christofferson, R.; Wood, E. L.; Euler, G.

2012-12-01

"Project Spectra!" is a standards-based light science and engineering program on solar system exploration that includes both hands-on paper and pencil activities as well as Flash-based computer games that help students solidify understanding of high-level planetary and solar physics. Using computer interactive games where students experience and manipulate the information makes abstract concepts accessible. Visualizing lessons with multi-media tools solidifies understanding and retention of knowledge. Since students can choose what to watch and explore, the interactives accommodate a broad range of learning styles. Students can go back and forth through the interactives if they've missed a concept or wish to view something again. In the end, students are asked critical thinking questions and conduct web-based research. As a part of the Mars Atmospheric and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission education programming, we've developed two new "Project Spectra!" interactives that go hand-in-hand with a paper and pencil activity. The MAVEN mission will study volatiles in the upper atmosphere to help piece together Mars' climate history. In the first interactive, students explore black body radiation, albedo, and a simplified greenhouse effect to establish what factors contribute to overall planetary temperature and how they contribute. Students are asked to create a scenario in which a planet they build and design is able to maintain liquid water on the surface. In the second interactive, students are asked to consider Mars and the conditions needed for Mars to support water on the surface, keeping some variables fixed. Ideally, students will walk away with the very basic and critical elements required for climate studies, which has far-reaching implications beyond the study of Mars. These interactives are currently being pilot tested at Arvada High School in Colorado.

Computer simulations for the Mars Atmospheric and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission through NASA's 'Project Spectra!'

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wood, E. L.

2013-12-01

'Project Spectra!' is a standards-based light science and engineering program on solar system exploration that includes both hands-on paper and pencil activities as well as Flash-based computer games that help students solidify understanding of high-level planetary and solar physics. Using computer interactive games where students experience and manipulate the information makes abstract concepts accessible. Visualizing lessons with multi-media tools solidifies understanding and retention of knowledge. Since students can choose what to watch and explore, the interactives accommodate a broad range of learning styles. Students can go back and forth through the interactives if they've missed a concept or wish to view something again. In the end, students are asked critical thinking questions and conduct web-based research. As a part of the Mars Atmospheric and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission education programming, we've developed two new 'Project Spectra!' interactives that go hand-in-hand with a paper and pencil activity. The MAVEN mission will study volatiles in the upper atmosphere to help piece together Mars' climate history. In the first interactive, students explore black body radiation, albedo, and a simplified greenhouse effect to establish what factors contribute to overall planetary temperature and how they contribute. Students are asked to create a scenario in which a planet they build and design is able to maintain liquid water on the surface. In the second interactive, students are asked to consider Mars and the conditions needed for Mars to support water on the surface, keeping some variables fixed. Ideally, students will walk away with the very basic and critical elements required for climate studies, which has far-reaching implications beyond the study of Mars. These interactives were pilot tested at Arvada High School in Colorado.

Limit order book and its modeling in terms of Gibbs Grand-Canonical Ensemble

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bicci, Alberto

2016-12-01

In the domain of so called Econophysics some attempts have been already made for applying the theory of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics to economics and financial markets. In this paper a similar approach is made from a different perspective, trying to model the limit order book and price formation process of a given stock by the Grand-Canonical Gibbs Ensemble for the bid and ask orders. The application of the Bose-Einstein statistics to this ensemble allows then to derive the distribution of the sell and buy orders as a function of price. As a consequence we can define in a meaningful way expressions for the temperatures of the ensembles of bid orders and of ask orders, which are a function of minimum bid, maximum ask and closure prices of the stock as well as of the exchanged volume of shares. It is demonstrated that the difference between the ask and bid orders temperatures can be related to the VAO (Volume Accumulation Oscillator), an indicator empirically defined in Technical Analysis of stock markets. Furthermore the derived distributions for aggregate bid and ask orders can be subject to well defined validations against real data, giving a falsifiable character to the model.

Interpretation and use of evidence in state policymaking: a qualitative analysis.

PubMed

Apollonio, Dorie E; Bero, Lisa A

2017-02-20

Researchers advocating for evidence-informed policy have attempted to encourage policymakers to develop a greater understanding of research and researchers to develop a better understanding of the policymaking process. Our aim was to apply findings drawn from studies of the policymaking process, specifically the theory of policy windows, to identify strategies used to integrate evidence into policymaking and points in the policymaking process where evidence was more or less relevant. Our observational study relied on interviews conducted with 24 policymakers from the USA who had been trained to interpret scientific research in multiple iterations of an evidence-based workshop. Participants were asked to describe cases where they had been involved in making health policy and to provide examples in which research was used, either successfully or unsuccessfully. Interviews were transcribed, independently coded by multiple members of the study team and analysed for content using key words, concepts identified by participants and concepts arising from review of the texts. Our results suggest that policymakers who focused on health issues used multiple strategies to encourage evidence-informed policymaking. The respondents used a strict definition of what constituted evidence, and relied on their experience with research to discourage the use of less rigorous research. Their experience suggested that evidence was less useful in identifying problems, encouraging political action or ensuring feasibility and more useful in developing policy alternatives. Past research has suggested multiple strategies to increase the use of evidence in policymaking, including the development of rapid-response research and policy-oriented summaries of data. Our findings suggest that these strategies may be most relevant to the policymaking stream, which develops policy alternatives. In addition, we identify several strategies that policymakers and researchers can apply to encourage evidence-informed policymaking. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Making Behavioral Science More Useful.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lorsch, Jay W.

1979-01-01

The author makes a plea to both academics and managers to consider the price business pays for applying universal theories in particular situations and asks each to take a role in rectifying the situation. (Author/IRT)

"Ask Ernö": a self-learning tool for assignment and prediction of nuclear magnetic resonance spectra.

PubMed

Castillo, Andrés M; Bernal, Andrés; Dieden, Reiner; Patiny, Luc; Wist, Julien

2016-01-01

We present "Ask Ernö", a self-learning system for the automatic analysis of NMR spectra, consisting of integrated chemical shift assignment and prediction tools. The output of the automatic assignment component initializes and improves a database of assigned protons that is used by the chemical shift predictor. In turn, the predictions provided by the latter facilitate improvement of the assignment process. Iteration on these steps allows Ask Ernö to improve its ability to assign and predict spectra without any prior knowledge or assistance from human experts. This concept was tested by training such a system with a dataset of 2341 molecules and their (1)H-NMR spectra, and evaluating the accuracy of chemical shift predictions on a test set of 298 partially assigned molecules (2007 assigned protons). After 10 iterations, Ask Ernö was able to decrease its prediction error by 17 %, reaching an average error of 0.265 ppm. Over 60 % of the test chemical shifts were predicted within 0.2 ppm, while only 5 % still presented a prediction error of more than 1 ppm. Ask Ernö introduces an innovative approach to automatic NMR analysis that constantly learns and improves when provided with new data. Furthermore, it completely avoids the need for manually assigned spectra. This system has the potential to be turned into a fully autonomous tool able to compete with the best alternatives currently available.Graphical abstractSelf-learning loop. Any progress in the prediction (forward problem) will improve the assignment ability (reverse problem) and vice versa.

Causes, coping, and culture: a comparative survey study on representation of back pain in three Swiss language regions.

PubMed

Schulz, Peter J; Hartung, Uwe; Riva, Silvia

2013-01-01

This study intends to contribute to a research tradition that asks how causal attributions of illnesses affect coping behavior. Causal attributions are understood as the most important element of illness representations and coping as a means to preserve quality of life. The issue is applied to a condition so far often neglected in research on illness representations-back pain-and a third concept is added to the picture: culture. The aim of this study is (a) to explore the causal factors to which persons with back pain attribute the further course of their illness, (b) to find out whether the attributed causes are predictors of coping maxims, and (c) to find out whether cultural factors affect attributions and coping and moderate the relationship between the two. A total of 1259 gainfully employed or self-employed persons with recent episodes of back pain were recruited in the three language regions of Switzerland. They were asked to complete a structured online interview, measuring among many other variables attributed causes, coping maxims, and affiliation to one of the Swiss micro-cultures (German-, French- or Italian-speaking). Attributed causes of the illness that can be influenced by a patient go along with more active coping styles. Cultural affiliation impacts on coping maxims independently, but culture moderates the relationship of attributed causes and coping maxims only in two of twenty possible cases. The results show that cultural differences can be analytically incorporated in the models of illness representations. Results may help to improve healthcare providers' communication with patients and plan public health campaigns. The approach to micro-cultural differences and the substantive relationships between alterability of causes and activity in coping may help the further development of models of illness representations.

Examining the Value of Menopausal Symptom Relief Among US Women.

PubMed

Craig, Benjamin M; Mitchell, Sandra A

2016-01-01

Menopausal symptoms can cause significant distress to women, yet little is known about the value women place on these symptoms. In April 2013, 3397 US women, aged 40 to 69 years, completed an online survey that included 30 paired comparisons. Specifically, respondents were shown two menopausal symptoms described using the Patient-Reported Outcomes Version of the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events and asked, "Which do you prefer?" From their choices, we estimated a generalized linear model to assess the values women place on symptom relief in terms of quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). Approximately half the respondents (1753 of 3397 [52%]) always preferred a reduced lifespan (up to 90 days) instead of experiencing menopausal symptoms at their worst for 30 days. For most of the symptoms (248 of 263 [94%]), including low-grade events, QALYs were significantly reduced (P < 0.05). The value women placed on relief ranged widely by symptom domain: the relief from depression, problems with memory, headache, pain in abdomen, problems with anger, and vomiting were the most valuable. Overall, the value women place on menopausal symptom relief is surprisingly high. As the first national study to directly ask women about their preferences and to estimate the value of menopausal symptom relief on a QALY scale, this work provides critical evidence for health outcomes research in midlife women and can be applied in the evaluation of treatments that reduce or eliminate menopausal symptoms. This work also provides proof-of-concept for an approach to value Patient-Reported Outcomes Version of the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events responses on a QALY scale. Copyright © 2016 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Causes, Coping, and Culture: A Comparative Survey Study on Representation of Back Pain in Three Swiss Language Regions

PubMed Central

Schulz, Peter J.; Hartung, Uwe; Riva, Silvia

2013-01-01

Introduction This study intends to contribute to a research tradition that asks how causal attributions of illnesses affect coping behavior. Causal attributions are understood as the most important element of illness representations and coping as a means to preserve quality of life. The issue is applied to a condition so far often neglected in research on illness representations–back pain–and a third concept is added to the picture: culture. Aim The aim of this study is (a) to explore the causal factors to which persons with back pain attribute the further course of their illness, (b) to find out whether the attributed causes are predictors of coping maxims, and (c) to find out whether cultural factors affect attributions and coping and moderate the relationship between the two. Methods A total of 1259 gainfully employed or self-employed persons with recent episodes of back pain were recruited in the three language regions of Switzerland. They were asked to complete a structured online interview, measuring among many other variables attributed causes, coping maxims, and affiliation to one of the Swiss micro-cultures (German-, French- or Italian-speaking). Results Attributed causes of the illness that can be influenced by a patient go along with more active coping styles. Cultural affiliation impacts on coping maxims independently, but culture moderates the relationship of attributed causes and coping maxims only in two of twenty possible cases. Implications The results show that cultural differences can be analytically incorporated in the models of illness representations. Results may help to improve healthcare providers’ communication with patients and plan public health campaigns. The approach to micro-cultural differences and the substantive relationships between alterability of causes and activity in coping may help the further development of models of illness representations. PMID:24223756

Low efficacy of non-opioid drugs in opioid withdrawal symptoms.

PubMed

Hermann, Derik; Klages, Eckard; Welzel, Helga; Mann, Karl; Croissant, Bernhard

2005-06-01

Opioid withdrawal, stress or cues associated with opioid consumption can induce opioid craving. If opioids are not available, opioid-dependent patients usually search for alternative drugs. Because several non-opioid drugs stimulate the endogenous opioidergic system, this concept may explain their frequent use by opioid-dependent patients. We hypothesized that non-opioid drugs alleviate opioid withdrawal symptoms and are therefore consumed by opioid addicts. We asked 89 opioid-dependent patients participating in an out-patient opioid maintenance program to estimate the potential of several non-opioid drugs in being able to alleviate opioid withdrawal. We applied a five-point Lickert scale (1 = very good reduction of opioid withdrawal; 5 = no reduction of opioid withdrawal). Patients could also indicate a worsening of opioid withdrawal. Values (mean +/- SD) were: for benzodiazepines, 3.2 +/- 1.1; tricyclic antidepressants, 3.6 +/- 1.1; cannabis, 3.6 +/- 1.0; alcohol, 4.1 +/- 1.1; cocaine, 4.2 +/- 1.1; amphetamine, 4.4 +/- 0.9; nicotine, 4.7 +/- 0.7; and caffeine, 4.9 +/- 0.5. A worsening of opioid withdrawal was reported by 62% of the patients for cocaine, 62% for amphetamine, 50% for caffeine, 37.5% for cannabis, 27% for nicotine, 26% for alcohol, 8% for tricyclic antidepressants and 3% for benzodiazepines. Our study shows a low efficacy of non-opioid drugs in alleviating opioid withdrawal symptoms. The data basis of this study was good and the sample was suitable to be asked for estimations of drug-drug interactions. Of the patients, 26 - 62% even reported a worsening of opioid withdrawal for cannabis, alcohol, cocaine and amphetamine. Only benzodiazepines and tricyclic antidepressants were reported to have a moderate positive effect on opioid withdrawal.

The Evolution of Vocational Psychology: Questions for a Postmodern Applied Discipline

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krieshok, Thomas S.; Motl, Thomas C.; Rutt, Benjamin T.

2011-01-01

Vocational psychology has a long history of acting as a lens that focuses research in basic sciences on the particular experience of work in people's lives. This article presents several areas on the ascendancy in the broader scientific literature and ask how vocational psychology might apply them to issues of work in people's lives. The authors'…

Convention Planning: Enriching the Senior Experience with an Applied Communication Class.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muir, Janette Kenner

When an instructor was asked to serve as the second vice president for the Eastern Communication Association, she found ways to incorporate her students into the process of convention planning. To assist her in her duties she developed a special topics course in applied communication that required the students to carry out much of the work for the…

Identifying organisms

PubMed Central

Napier, Stephen

2017-01-01

Defenders of human, embryonic, destructive stem-cell research and early abortion typically argue for their position by showing that you and I do not come into existence at conception but rather at some point after. Eugene Mills has provided an ingenious argument that you and I could not have come into existence at conception. I argue against Mills’s argument on two counts: first, his argument depends upon a cursory limning of human conception, and when fuller details are considered, a premise in his argument is undercut. Second, Mills’s argument invites us to ask questions about how to identify individual organisms. Given a fuller description of human conception and some plausible metaphysical principles, I argue that Mills should hold instead that you and I do in fact come into being at conception. Summary One way to argue that early abortions are permissible is to argue against the view that you and I come into existence at conception. Most abortion rights defenders argue for this conclusion by noting that in order for you and I to exist, there must be developed psychological capacities. Eugene Mills takes a different route and argues that you and I could not come into existence at conception because that would mean being identical to an egg – which he rightly notes we cannot be. I argue against Mills in this article. PMID:28698707

Elementary Teacher's Conceptions of Inquiry Teaching: Messages for Teacher Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ireland, Joseph E.; Watters, James J.; Brownlee, Jo; Lupton, Mandy

2012-02-01

This study explored practicing elementary school teacher's conceptions of teaching in ways that foster inquiry-based learning in the science curriculum (inquiry teaching). The advocacy for inquiry-based learning in contemporary curricula assumes the principle that students learn in their own way by drawing on direct experience fostered by the teacher. That students should be able to discover answers themselves through active engagement with new experiences was central to the thinking of eminent educators such as Pestalozzi, Dewey and Montessori. However, even after many years of research and practice, inquiry learning as a referent for teaching still struggles to find expression in the average teachers' pedagogy. This study drew on interview data from 20 elementary teachers. A phenomenographic analysis revealed three conceptions of teaching for inquiry learning in science in the elementary years of schooling: (a) The Experience-centered conception where teachers focused on providing interesting sensory experiences to students; (b) The Problem-centered conception where teachers focused on engaging students with challenging problems; and (c) The Question-centered conception where teachers focused on helping students to ask and answer their own questions. Understanding teachers' conceptions has implications for both the enactment of inquiry teaching in the classroom as well as the uptake of new teaching behaviors during professional development, with enhanced outcomes for engaging students in Science.

The Effect of Visual Variability on the Learning of Academic Concepts.

PubMed

Bourgoyne, Ashley; Alt, Mary

2017-06-10

The purpose of this study was to identify effects of variability of visual input on development of conceptual representations of academic concepts for college-age students with normal language (NL) and those with language-learning disabilities (LLD). Students with NL (n = 11) and LLD (n = 11) participated in a computer-based training for introductory biology course concepts. Participants were trained on half the concepts under a low-variability condition and half under a high-variability condition. Participants completed a posttest in which they were asked to identify and rate the accuracy of novel and trained visual representations of the concepts. We performed separate repeated measures analyses of variance to examine the accuracy of identification and ratings. Participants were equally accurate on trained and novel items in the high-variability condition, but were less accurate on novel items only in the low-variability condition. The LLD group showed the same pattern as the NL group; they were just less accurate. Results indicated that high-variability visual input may facilitate the acquisition of academic concepts in college students with NL and LLD. High-variability visual input may be especially beneficial for generalization to novel representations of concepts. Implicit learning methods may be harnessed by college courses to provide students with basic conceptual knowledge when they are entering courses or beginning new units.

Resequencing Skills and Concepts in Applied Calculus Using the Computer as a Tool.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heid, M. Kathleen

1988-01-01

During the first 12 weeks of an applied calculus course, two classes of college students studied calculus concepts using graphical and symbol-manipulation computer programs to perform routine manipulations. Three weeks were spent on skill development. Students showed better understanding of concepts and performed almost as well on routine skills.…

Drawing on student knowledge of neuroanatomy and neurophysiology.

PubMed

Slominski, Tara N; Momsen, Jennifer L; Montplaisir, Lisa M

2017-06-01

Drawings are an underutilized assessment format in Human Anatomy and Physiology (HA&P), despite their potential to reveal student content understanding and alternative conceptions. This study used student-generated drawings to explore student knowledge in a HA&P course. The drawing tasks in this study focused on chemical synapses between neurons, an abstract concept in HA&P. Using two preinstruction drawing tasks, students were asked to depict synaptic transmission and summation. In response to the first drawing task, 20% of students ( n = 352) created accurate representations of neuron anatomy. The remaining students created drawings suggesting an inaccurate or incomplete understanding of synaptic transmission. Of the 208 inaccurate student-generated drawings, 21% depicted the neurons as touching. When asked to illustrate summation, only 10 students (roughly 4%) were able to produce an accurate drawing. Overall, students were more successful at drawing anatomy (synapse) than physiology (summation) before formal instruction. The common errors observed in student-generated drawings indicate students do not enter the classroom as blank slates. The error of "touching" neurons in a chemical synapse suggests that students may be using intuitive or experiential knowledge when reasoning about physiological concepts. These results 1 ) support the utility of drawing tasks as a tool to reveal student content knowledge about neuroanatomy and neurophysiology; and 2 ) suggest students enter the classroom with better knowledge of anatomy than physiology. Collectively, the findings from this study inform both practitioners and researchers about the prevalence and nature of student difficulties in HA&P, while also demonstrating the utility of drawing in revealing student knowledge. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Readiness of organizations for change, motivation and conflict-handling intentions: senior nursing students' perceptions.

PubMed

Mrayyan, Majd T; Modallal, Rola; Awamreh, Khitam; Atoum, Maysoun; Abdullah, Muna; Suliman, Samah

2008-03-01

This study examined the perceptions of 62 senior nursing students of the readiness of Jordanian organizations for change, students' motivators and their conflict-handling intentions. Such concepts should be taught at Schools of Nursing in order to prepare the students as nurses in the near future. It is found that the course of "Nursing Leadership and Management" has positive influence on students' understanding of the studied concepts. This descriptive study was conducted in seven hospitals. Grossman and Valiga's (2000) [Grossman, S., Valiga, T.M., 2000. The New Leadership Challenge: Creating the Future of Nursing. F.A. Davis, Philadelphia, pp. 147-148.] instrument was used to measure the readiness of organizations for change. As they progress in the course, the students' perceptions about the organizational readiness to change increased; the students "somehow" perceived that the Jordanian organizations were ready to change. The students were asked what motivates and they were asked about their conflict-handling techniques. Senior nursing students reported that private hospitals were better than governmental hospitals in their readiness for change. In general, male students perceived the readiness of organizations for change more positively than female students. The students were mainly motivated by "achievement" and used "collaboration" as a primary conflict-handling technique. Further studies are needed to explore in-depth the concept of the readiness of organizations for change. Achievement is a strong motivator that should be encouraged among students. Conflict-handling techniques in general and collaboration in particular should be taught for nursing students as these techniques will influence their future professional lives.

Challenging Roadblocks to Cancer Cure.

PubMed

Loda, Massimo

2016-09-01

The Pezcoller Symposium in Trento, Italy, June 2015, focused entirely on the question of why advanced cancer cure is so uncommon despite the extraordinarily rapid growth of invaluable therapeutic information. Participants were asked to define and to critically evaluate real and potential obstacles to permanent disease eradication. High-level concepts on potential road blocks to cures as well as opportunities for intervention in diverse areas of investigation ranging from genomic alterations to metabolism, microenvironment, immunity, and mechanotransduction were discussed. Provocative concepts and novel therapeutic avenues were proposed. What follows is a critical analysis of the highlights of this meeting. Cancer Res; 76(17); 4924-30. ©2016 AACR. ©2016 American Association for Cancer Research.

Comparing Outcomes from Field and Classroom Based Settings for Undergraduate Geoscience Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skinner, M. R.; Harris, R. A.; Flores, J.

2011-12-01

Field based learning can be found in nearly every course offered in Geology at Brigham Young University. For example, in our Structural Geology course field studies substitute for labs. Students collect data their own data from several different structural settings of the Wasatch Range. Our curriculum also includes a two-week, sophomore-level field course that introduces students to interpreting field relations themselves and sets the stage for much of what they learn in their upper-division courses. Our senior-level six-week field geology course includes classical field mapping with exercises in petroleum and mineral exploration, environmental geology and geological hazards. Experiments with substituting field-based general education courses for those in traditional classroom settings indicate that student cognition, course enjoyment and recruiting of majors significantly increase in a field-based course. We offer a field-based introductory geology course (Geo 102) that is taught in seven, six-hour field trips during which students travel to localities of geologic interest to investigate a variety of fundamental geological problems. We compare the outcomes of Geo 102 with a traditional classroom-based geology course (Geo 101). For the comparison both courses are taught by the same instructor, use the same text and supplementary materials and take the same exams. The results of 7 years of reporting indicate that test scores and final grades are one-half grade point higher for Geo 102 students versus those in traditional introductory courses. Student evaluations of the course are also 0.8-1.4 points higher on a scale of 1-8, and are consistently the highest in the Department and College. Other observations include increased attendance, attention and curiosity. The later two are measured by the number of students asking questions of other students as well as the instructors, and the total number of questions asked during class time in the field versus the classroom. Normal classroom involvement includes two or three students asking nearly all of the questions, while in Geo 102 it is closer to half the class, and not the same students each time. Not only do more individuals participate in asking questions in Geo 102, but each participant asks more questions as well. Questions asked in class are generally specific to the discussion, while field questions are commonly multidisciplinary in nature. Field-based courses also encourage more students to collaborate with each other and to integrate shared observations due to the many different aspects of the geosciences present at each site. One of the most important pay-offs is the 50% increase in the number of students changing their major to geology in the field-based versus classroom-based courses. Field-based learning increases the depth of student understanding of the subjects they investigate as well as student involvement and enthusiasm in the class. The tradeoff we make for realizing significant individual and group discovery in the field is that more responsibility is placed on the student to understand the broad based geologic concepts found in the text. The field based approach allows the students to immediately apply their learning in real world applications.

Assessment of Surface Ship Maintenance Requirements

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-01-01

specifically Operational Availability (Ao) and Expected Service Life ( ESL ). Second, it requested NDRI to develop a maintenance requirement concept for each...ship class that supports ESL but allows for some risk within the maintenance strategy. It also asked researchers to define the risks to Ao and ESL ...to minimize negative effects to Ao and ESL and maintain the largest, most capable fleet possible. Note that the tasking did not request a complete

A Data Specification for Software Project Performance Measures: Results of a Collaboration on Performance Measurement

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-07-01

cycle Evolution of a system, product, service, project or other human-made entity from conception through retirement [ ISO 12207 ]. Logical line of...012 [ ISO 1995] International Organization for Standardization. ISO /IEC 12207 :1995—Information technology— Software life cycle processes. http...definitions, authors were asked to use or align with already existing standards such as those available through ISO and IEEE when possible. Literature

Compilation of Papers Presented to Meeting on Space Vehicle Landing and Recovery Research and Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1962-01-01

A meeting on Space Vehicle Landing and Recovery was held on July 10-11, 1962 at NASA Headquarters. The Centers were asked to participate in this meeting in accordance with their interest, activities, and requirements in the subject area. Primary emphasis was directed toward parachutes, parachute-rocket systems, paragliders, and lifting rotor concepts applicable to bothe booster and spacecraft landing and recovery.

Using the Missing Pin to Challenge Concepts of Refraction and Total Internal Reflection

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tamang, Sushmika; Nopparatjamjomras, Suchai; Chitaree, Ratchapak; Nopparatjamjomras, Thasaneeya R.

2015-01-01

A container was placed on top of a piece of white paper, and a pin positioned so that it vertically touched an outside wall of the container. Students were asked to predict the image of the pin when it was observed from the top of the container. Two scenarios of either an empty container or a container completely filled with water were considered…

The Gospel of Work: A Study in Values and Value Change. Teacher and Student Manuals.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kline, William A.

A study of value change, this unit for college-preparatory students focuses on the ethic of work in America. The student is asked to evaluate the ethic of work from the Puritans to the present and to account for changes in the concept brought about by industrialism and, most importantly, by the depression of the 1930's. He is then confronted with…

An Investigation of Play: From the Voices of Fifth- and Sixth-Grade Talented and Gifted Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beisser, Sally Rapp; Gillespie, Catherine Wilson; Thacker, Valerie Marsh

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the concept of play through the eyes of talented and gifted (TAG) fifth- and sixth-grade students. Three focus groups consisting of fifth- and sixth-grade TAG students were conducted in one urban, one suburban, and one rural school district in the Midwest. Students were asked to describe the value of play…

Censorship in All Seasons: Considering the Fiction of the Past, the Present, and the Future to Help Students Understanding the Concept of Censorship in Our World Today.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boreen, Jean

A curriculum that asks students to consider the implications of censorship would include not only "Fahrenheit 451" but also other works of adolescent literature, Holocaust literature, and science fiction. Works written about the Holocaust, which can be considered a type of absolute censorship, help students to consider censorship's…

An Analysis of the Understanding of Geological Time by Students at Secondary and Post-Secondary Level. Research Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hidalgo, Antonio J.; Otero, Jose

2004-01-01

This paper addresses the concept of geological time as used by students who face tasks that demand three types of skills: to locate events in time, to order them according to time calendar, and to manage time intervals. The empirical study consisted of asking high school students as well as technical school students to carry out tasks that…

The Efficacy of ’Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

psychologists explored the concepts, experimental and cor- relation evidence supported dividing cohesion into two distinct types: social cohesion and task...cohesion. Social cohesion is the nature and quality of the emotional bonds within a group—the degree to which members spend time together, like...along (that is, has high social cohesion ) would perform better. Almost counterintuitively, it has been shown that in some situations, high social

Building theory-based concepts: four-year-olds preferentially seek explanations for features of kinds.

PubMed

Cimpian, Andrei; Petro, Gina

2014-05-01

Is the structure of human concepts continuous across development, or does it undergo qualitative transformations? Extensive evidence with adults has demonstrated that they are motivated to understand why categories have the features they do. To investigate whether young children display a similar motivation-an issue that bears on the question of continuity vs. transformation in conceptual structure-we conducted three studies involving 4-year-olds (N=90) and adults (N=124). Experiments 1 and 2 suggested that 4-year-olds indeed display a strong motivation to explain why categories have the features they do. Specifically, when provided with the option of asking "why?" about features of novel categories vs. features of individuals from other novel categories, children preferred to ask "why?" about the category features. Moreover, children's explanatory preference was specific to facts about categories per se and did not extend to facts that were merely presented in the context of multiple category instances. Experiment 3 also ruled out the possibility that the category facts were preferred because these facts were more surprising. In sum, these three studies reveal an early-emerging motivation to make sense of the categories encountered in the world and, more generally, speak to the richness of children's conceptual representations. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Expert Radiation Oncologist Interpretations of Involved-Site Radiation Therapy Guidelines in the Management of Hodgkin Lymphoma

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hoppe, Bradford S.; Hoppe, Richard T., E-mail: rhoppe@stanford.edu

Purpose: Recently, involved-site radiation therapy (ISRT) guidelines have been developed and published to replace the previous concept of involved-field radiation therapy for patients with lymphoma. However, these ISRT guidelines may be interpreted in different ways, posing difficulties for prospective clinical trials. This study reports survey results regarding interpretation of the ISRT guidelines. Methods and Materials: Forty-four expert lymphoma radiation oncologists were asked to participate in a survey that included 7 different cases associated with 9 questions. The questions pertained to ISRT contouring and asked respondents to choose between 2 different answers (no “correct” answer) and a third write-in option allowed.more » Results: Fifty-two percent of those surveyed responded to the questionnaire. Among those who responded, 72% have practiced for >10 years, 46% have treated >20 Hodgkin lymphoma cases annually, and 100% were familiar with the ISRT concept. Among the 9 questions associated with the 7 cases, 3 had concordance among the expert radiation oncologists of greater than 70%. Six of the questions had less than 70% concordance (range, 56%-67%). Conclusions: Even among expert radiation oncologists, interpretation of ISRT guidelines is variable. Further guidance for ISRT field design will be needed to reduce variability among practicing physicians.« less

Physics faculty beliefs and values about the teaching and learning of problem solving. II. Procedures for measurement and analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henderson, Charles; Yerushalmi, Edit; Kuo, Vince H.; Heller, Kenneth; Heller, Patricia

2007-12-01

To identify and describe the basis upon which instructors make curricular and pedagogical decisions, we have developed an artifact-based interview and an analysis technique based on multilayered concept maps. The policy capturing technique used in the interview asks instructors to make judgments about concrete instructional artifacts similar to those they likely encounter in their teaching environment. The analysis procedure alternatively employs both an a priori systems view analysis and an emergent categorization to construct a multilayered concept map, which is a hierarchically arranged set of concept maps where child maps include more details than parent maps. Although our goal was to develop a model of physics faculty beliefs about the teaching and learning of problem solving in the context of an introductory calculus-based physics course, the techniques described here are applicable to a variety of situations in which instructors make decisions that influence teaching and learning.

Exploring positioning as an analytical tool for understanding becoming mathematics teachers' identities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skog, Kicki; Andersson, Annica

2015-03-01

The aim of this article is to explore how a sociopolitical analysis can contribute to a deeper understanding of critical aspects for becoming primary mathematics teachers' identities during teacher education. The question we ask is the following: How may power relations in university settings affect becoming mathematics teachers' subject positioning? We elaborate on the elusive and interrelated concepts of identity, positioning and power, seen as dynamic and changeable. As these concepts represent three interconnected parts of research analysis in an on-going larger project data from different sources will be used in this illustration. In this paper, we clarify the theoretical stance, ground the concepts historically and strive to connect them to research analysis. In this way, we show that power relations and subject positioning in social settings are critical aspects and need to be taken seriously into account if we aim at understanding becoming teachers' identities.

Comparison of Science-Technology-Society Approach and Textbook Oriented Instruction on Students' Abilities to Apply Science Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapici, Hasan Ozgur; Akcay, Hakan; Yager, Robert E.

2017-01-01

It is important for students to learn concepts and using them for solving problems and further learning. Within this respect, the purpose of this study is to investigate students' abilities to apply science concepts that they have learned from Science-Technology-Society based approach or textbook oriented instruction. Current study is based on…

Equity and health policy in Africa: using concept mapping in Moore (Burkina Faso).

PubMed

Ridde, Valéry

2008-04-22

This methodological article is based on a health policy research project conducted in Burkina Faso (West Africa). Concept mapping (CM) was used as a research method to understand the local views of equity among stakeholders, who were concerned by the health policy under consideration. While this technique has been used in North America and elsewhere, to our knowledge it has not yet been applied in Africa in any vernacular language. Its application raises many issues and certain methodological limitations. Our objective in this article is to present its use in this particular context, and to share a number of methodological observations on the subject. Two CMs were done among two different groups of local stakeholders following four steps: generating ideas, structuring the ideas, computing maps using multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis methods, and interpreting maps. Fifteen nurses were invited to take part in the study, all of whom had undergone training on health policies. Of these, nine nurses (60%) ultimately attended the two-day meeting, conducted in French. Of 45 members of village health committees who attended training on health policies, only eight were literate in the local language (Moore). Seven of these (88%) came to the meeting. The local perception of equity seems close to the egalitarian model. The actors are not ready to compromise social stability and peace for the benefit of the worst-off. The discussion on the methodological limitations of CM raises the limitations of asking a single question in Moore and the challenge of translating a concept as complex as equity. While the translation of equity into Moore undoubtedly oriented the discussions toward social relations, we believe that, in the context of this study, the open-ended question concerning social justice has a threefold relevance. At the same time, those limitations were transformed into strengths. We understand that it was essential to resort to the focus group approach to explore deeply a complex subject such as equity, which became, after the two CMs, one of the important topics of the research. Using this technique in a new context was not the easiest thing to do. Nevertheless, contrary to what local organizers thought when we explained to them this "crazy" idea of applying the technique in Moore with peasants, we believe we have shown that it was feasible, even with persons not literate in French.

There Is More Variation "within" than "across" Domains: An Interview with Paul A. Kirschner about Applying Cognitive Psychology-Based Instructional Design Principles in Mathematics Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirschner, Paul A.; Verschaffel, Lieven; Star, Jon; Van Dooren, Wim

2017-01-01

In this interview we asked Paul A. Kirschner about his comments and reflections regarding the idea to apply cognitive psychology-based instructional design principles to mathematics education and some related issues. With a main focus on cognitive psychology, educational psychology, educational technology and instructional design, this…

Making sense of (exceptional) causal relations. A cross-cultural and cross-linguistic study

PubMed Central

Le Guen, Olivier; Samland, Jana; Friedrich, Thomas; Hanus, Daniel; Brown, Penelope

2015-01-01

In order to make sense of the world, humans tend to see causation almost everywhere. Although most causal relations may seem straightforward, they are not always construed in the same way cross-culturally. In this study, we investigate concepts of “chance,” “coincidence,” or “randomness” that refer to assumed relations between intention, action, and outcome in situations, and we ask how people from different cultures make sense of such non-law-like connections. Based on a framework proposed by Alicke (2000), we administered a task that aims to be a neutral tool for investigating causal construals cross-culturally and cross-linguistically. Members of four different cultural groups, rural Mayan Yucatec and Tseltal speakers from Mexico and urban students from Mexico and Germany, were presented with a set of scenarios involving various types of causal and non-causal relations and were asked to explain the described events. Three links varied as to whether they were present or not in the scenarios: Intention-to-Action, Action-to-Outcome, and Intention-to-Outcome. Our results show that causality is recognized in all four cultural groups. However, how causality and especially non-law-like relations are interpreted depends on the type of links, the cultural background and the language used. In all three groups, Action-to-Outcome is the decisive link for recognizing causality. Despite the fact that the two Mayan groups share similar cultural backgrounds, they display different ideologies regarding concepts of non-law-like relations. The data suggests that the concept of “chance” is not universal, but seems to be an explanation that only some cultural groups draw on to make sense of specific situations. Of particular importance is the existence of linguistic concepts in each language that trigger ideas of causality in the responses from each cultural group. PMID:26579028

Developing An Internship Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chase, Valerie

1984-01-01

Provided are suggestions for developing museum/aquarium internship programs. These include writing detailed job descriptions, advertising, designing application forms asking all the information needed, supervising the interns, interviewing applicants as they were applying for a paid position, and others. (JN)

Fogger and Mister Final Signed Letter

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

EPA has asked pesticide companies to provide data or amend registrations of products claiming to control public health microorganisms when applied by fogging and/or misting methods. The letter further describes the ways in which the company may respond.