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The teaching of first-degree equations is a key point in secondary school curricula and requires the careful planning and selection of appropriate teaching materials. On the other hand, dyslexia, a specific learning disability, is increasingly common in the classroom. Thus, in the context of inclusion, the teaching methodology used by the mathematics teacher to present the concept of equation is a crucial factor for ensuring the equal and active participation of all students in the educational process. In this article, we present a two-month teaching intervention on first-degree equations that we carried out with forty students with dyslexia randomly divided into two classes, who were attending a special vocational high school in Greece. In one group, we used manipulative materials, while in the other group, we used traditional teaching methods. The results, which are derived from a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, showed that the students in the first group achieved better results in the final test than did the students in the second group, while at the same time, they showed increased engagement in the learning process and, to some extent, improved their social skills and gained confidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the impact of an intervention on primary school students' construction of knowledge on ocean acidification and the development of their systems thinking. Eighty-five 11 to 12-year-old students from five different classes of two public primary schools in Greece participated in the 8-h intervention. The intervention included inquiry-based and knowledge-integration activities, and students worked in groups during all activities. Rich pictures, made by the groups at the beginning and the end of the intervention, were used to evaluate their progress in their knowledge concerning the carbon cycle, as well as in their systems thinking. Our findings showed that the intervention contributed to primary students' conceptual knowledge of the carbon cycle and the inclusion of ocean acidification in the carbon cycle. It also helped them improve their systems thinking, indicating that students' systems thinking at this age could be developed through formal instruction with interventions which emphasize content knowledge and use an earth systems approach. Moreover, our findings indicate that the systems thinking perspective can serve as an effective approach to help children better understand and critically engage with complex environmental issues, such as ocean acidification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acquiring proficiency in a second language enables learners to interact and communicate effectively in daily situations. Language learners can improve their ability to articulate their thoughts clearly and effectively. Understanding grammar aids learners to use language effectively in written forms. Grammar mechanics is one of the strategies to improve grammar comprehension which could be done through one of the most important instructional procedures, which helps the learners to overcome the challenges during the lessons. The current research aims to investigate the role of teaching intervention in improving grammar comprehension of a group of Kurdish EFL undergraduate learners. A one-group pre-experimental study was conducted to measure participant improvement through pre-test and post-test assessments. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was employed to analyse the collected data. A Paired Sample T-Test was used to assess the level improvement between pre-test and post-test. The findings indicate a significant improvement in grammar comprehension between the pre-test and post-test results following the teaching intervention. The study provides an insight that the educators can improve the grammar comprehension of the learners using targeted materials in the teaching context, especially for the Kurdish EFL learners.

Copyright of Revista Tecnología, Ciencia & Educación is the property of Centro de Estudios Financieros SL and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Acquiring proficiency in a second language enables learners to interact and communicate effectively in daily situations. Language learners can improve their ability to articulate their thoughts clearly and effectively. Understanding grammar aids learners to use language effectively in written forms. Grammar mechanics is one of the strategies to improve grammar comprehension which could be done through one of the most important instructional procedures, which helps the learners to overcome the challenges during the lessons. The current research aims to investigate the role of teaching intervention in improving grammar comprehension of a group of Kurdish EFL undergraduate learners. A one-group pre-experimental study was conducted to measure participant improvement through pre-test and post-test assessments. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was employed to analyse the collected data. A Paired Sample T-Test was used to assess the level improvement between pre-test and post-test. The findings indicate a significant improvement in grammar comprehension between the pre-test and post-test results following the teaching intervention. The study provides an insight that the educators can improve the grammar comprehension of the learners using targeted materials in the teaching context, especially for the Kurdish EFL learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study presents the design and validation of a Physical Education for Sustainable Development (PESD) instrument. This consists of a 25-item quantitative instrument that assesses the teaching interventions of physical education teachers. A total of 358 physical education teachers completed the questionnaire. The instrument uses an 8-point Likert scale. For the validation of the instrument, content validation, factorial validation, reliability through Cronbach's alpha, and stability through test–retest were considered. The results show that the PESD is a two-factor instrument with very high reliability (0.95). In addition, positive results were found for the temporal stability of the scale. The principal component factor analysis results show that the scale consists of two factors: (1) environmental, health, and economic sustainability; and (2) social sustainability, gender, and inclusion. This questionnaire is the first valid and reliable tool to measure the ability of physical education teachers to promote attitudes that favour sustainable actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Retos: Nuevas Perspectivas de Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación is the property of Federacion Espanola de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educacion Fisica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

One of the key difficulties confronting universities today is how to use the current technology to raise educational standards and support educational reform. This is due to the ongoing growth of network technology. This study primarily explores the collaborative filtering recommendation algorithm-based recommendation model for college civics teaching materials. Analyzed are both the functional and non-functional demands for collegiate civic and political science teaching materials. For these requirements, the collaborative filtering recommendation algorithm is put out, and it is enhanced so that it may be applied in real-world settings. In order to execute the model, the system architecture and process are established, and the impacts of teaching interventions are used to examine the outcomes of the suggested practical teaching of civic and political science teaching materials in colleges and universities. The findings revealed that the p-values of the significance probabilities were, respectively, 0.056, 0.007, and 0.235 for the entrance exam and the first semester final examination, the entrance examination and the second semester final examination, and the first semester final examination and the second semester final examination. The collaborative filtering recommendation algorithm-based recommendation model for teaching resources recommendation of university thinking and politics proposed in this paper is effective in enhancing students’ learning autonomy and promoting the exchange of ideas. It has a certain effect.

With the development of information technology and the advancement of education informatization, the use of mathematical modeling and extensive data analysis technology makes the realization of precision education possible. In this paper, we study the problem of precise teaching intervention from the perspective of multi-stage decision-making, introduce a reinforcement learning algorithm, portray the process attributes and temporal characteristics of teaching, use a Q-learning algorithm to construct a general framework for precise teaching intervention, and through the empirical study of Ideologicalcs teaching in colleges and universities, we show the specific application of this framework in teaching practice and analyze the digital transformation path of the Ideologicalcs education in colleges and universities. The results show that under precise teaching intervention, the students’ pre-post test scores of each Ideologicalcs behavioral characteristic index are significantly different at the 0.05 level. This study helps improve students’ learning effectiveness and provides support for teachers to conduct precise ideological teaching.

A productive understanding of rate of change concept is essential for constructing a robust understanding of derivatives. There is substantial evidence in the research that students enter and leave their Calculus courses with naive understandings of rate of change. Implementing a short unit on "what is rate of change" can address these issues and better support students in understanding the fundamental ideas of Calculus. This paper provides a short teaching intervention that instructors can utilize to help students build a productive understanding of rate of change that will aid them in understanding derivatives as instantaneous rates of change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collocation knowledge is claimed to be poor even among upper-intermediate and advanced learners of English as a second language, which implies that not enough attention is being drawn to these lexical items in lessons. To address this problem, we designed a 12-week teaching intervention in which the participants (39 students of Charles University in Prague) were divided into two groups: an experimental group with an intensive explicit collocation focus (20) and a control group with no such care dedicated to collocations (19). Th e division of the students was performed in such a way that the groups were equal in terms of the variables which tend to infl uence the learning process the most, namely language aptitude, anxiety, motivation, and learning strategies. Th e results showed that the experimental group achieved signifi cantly higher scores for collocation knowledge. No signifi cant diff erence was found between the groups in understanding of word meanings. Deliberate teaching of collocations with systematic revision and practice thus proved to be more eff ective than meaning-focused teaching of individual words.

Approximately 45% of paediatric deaths in the United Kingdom (UK) were as a result of trauma. Computed tomography (CT) provides time efficient and accurate diagnosis, increasing chances of survival. Whilst use of CT in evaluating paediatric trauma has been invaluable it carries significant radiation risks, largely because children have greater radiation sensitivity than adults. Although national paediatric trauma workload in the UK is proportionately low, the majority of paediatric patients are conveyed to hospitals which predominantly undertake CT scans on adult patients. This research aimed to determine the confidence levels of radiographers when performing paediatric CT trauma scans in three public hospitals in the UK, and whether a teaching intervention improved their perceived self-confidence. Individual questionnaires containing eight qualitative and quantitative questions were used to ascertain radiographers' perceived confidence levels. A teaching intervention was developed based on responses. A post-intervention questionnaire was used to determine whether radiographers' confidence levels had improved. Radiographers (n = 45) reported a mean confidence score of 5.6 (standard deviation 2.2) and 8.0 (standard deviation 1.7) scanning paediatric trauma patients pre- and post-intervention respectively. A paired two group t-test found this difference to be statistically significant at p <.00001. Radiographers reported several factors which negatively influenced confidence levels, including limited experience and postgraduate education. Radiographers reported to be less confident scanning paediatric CT trauma patients compared to adults, pre- and post-intervention, however this research does not clarify whether this is as a result of an increase in competence. Further research regarding this concept warrants investigation. Results suggest further training based on negative factors reported by radiographers can increase confidence when performing this type of scan, assisting radiographers in optimising paediatric patient doses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study presents the design and validation of a Physical Education for Sustainable Development (PESD) instrument. This consists of a 25-item quantitative instrument that assesses the teaching interventions of physical education teachers. A total of 358 physical education teachers completed the questionnaire. The instrument uses an 8-point Likert scale. For the validation of the instrument, content validation, factorial validation, reliability through Cronbach’s alpha, and stability through test–retest were considered. The results show that the PESD is a two-factor instrument with very high reliability (0.95). In addition, positive results were found for the temporal stability of the scale. The principal component factor analysis results show that the scale consists of two factors: (1) environmental, health, and economic sustainability; and (2) social sustainability, gender, and inclusion. This questionnaire is the first valid and reliable tool to measure the ability of physical education teachers to promote attitudes that favour sustainable actions.

In traditional advanced mathematics lectures the instructor usually provides definitions, theorems, and proofs on the board rather quickly. The students often cannot make sense of these during the lecture as they are busy writing. In order to gain an understanding of the content, an intensive post-class processing on the basis of their notes would therefore be necessary for many students. However, students often do not post-class process lectures carefully. Furthermore, they often do not record the lecturer's oral explanations that are essential to make sense of the formal lecture content. One approach to address these problems is a flipped classroom, in which students come into contact with new content before class, while the in-class time is used for activities that help students make sense of it. We implemented an adaptation of this approach in a proof-oriented analysis course, in which the instructor used the in-class time to illustrate how experts in mathematics make sense of new definitions, theorems, and proofs, while keeping the lecture as the mode of teaching. In this article we describe this adaptation, its possible benefits for addressing students' problems in learning from traditional mathematics lectures, and its actual effects, which we investigated in an empirical study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study investigates the efficacy of the Praat Program (hereafter Praat) in improving Chinese English as a foreign language (EFL) in university students' English pronunciation. Pronunciation is one of the essential components of speaking skills as it helps enunciate the intended meaning. However, it is also one of the most challenging aspects due to a lack of practice or opportunity to use English regularly or receive corrective feedback or objective evaluation from an independent source. 18 Chinese EFL university students participated in the study, and training sessions were held on Praat. The study lasted six weeks. The participants took two English pronunciation pretests from PTE "Read Aloud" tests before participating in the training sessions. They received ongoing technical support during their Praat use. At the end of Week 6 of their participation, they were given two English pronunciation posttests. Statistical comparisons between the pretest and posttest results suggested significant pronunciation improvement (p < 0.05) with a moderate effect size. Six participants were then recruited for individual interviews based on their pronunciation performance to investigate their perceptions of Praat and factors that explained their processes and efficacy in using Praat. Qualitative results suggest that the students perceived Praat as helpful in improving their pronunciation (e.g., providing listening input, opportunities for output, and feedback on their pitch contour, which was not ordinarily available to them in the English learning context). Factors such as Praat's stress-free environment were identified as influential in helping them use Praat effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Human Review is the property of Eagora Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

目的 设计短期培训干预方案, 以参加安宁疗护培训的医务人员作为研究对象, 在培训干预前后采用“医务人员安宁疗护知识态度行为调查表” (Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Hospice Care, KAPHC) 进行重复测量, 分析评价教学干预对医务人员安宁疗护知识、威胁感、益处感、障碍感、主观规范、自我效能、行为意向的影响效果, 为全国安宁疗护试点地区开展同类安宁疗护服务能力培训提供可参考借签的模式样板。方法 采用问卷法进行干预前后的调查, 采用描述统计、卡方检验、t检验进行干预前后的对比分析。结果 通过重复测量发现, 医务人员培训干预前后的知识 (t=-14.07, P < 0.001) 、威胁感 (t=-3.10, P < 0.001) 、益处感 (t=-4.36, P < 0.001) 、障碍感 (t=-3.03, P < 0.001) 、主观规范 (t=-2.35, P=0.019) 、自我效能 (t=-7.44, P < 0.001) 维度的得分均有提高。目的 结论短期教育培训可有效帮助和促进医务人员及时更新安宁疗护知识和技能, 减轻医务人员提供安宁疗护服务的威胁感和障碍感, 提升其益处感和自我效能, 是当前推动安宁疗护开展和提高安宁疗护服务质量行之有效的干预手段。 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What conceptions do we have of language didactics in the educational systems of sub-Saharan French-speaking Africa? What are the underlying research practices? What objects are most researched in language didactics? Does didactics of literature exist as a research discipline? Does a tradition of research and scientific production on the above-mentioned issues prevail in universities? This study undertakes to investigate the conceptualizations and practices in force in sub-Saharan Africa in the disciplinary field of DLL. It is thus envisaged to make a state of the art of DLL research in the geographical and educational area of French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa through the analysis of a corpus of scientific publications in some university journals before proposing guidelines of empowerment in order to improve the teaching intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we compare the academic performance and perceptions of two student groups. The control group includes students that receive traditional accounting instruction (TA) during the totality of a lecture. The experimental group receives a research-informed teaching (RIT) intervention for the final 10 minutes of TA delivery (PER sample). Using questionnaire data, we find that the perceptions of both groups of students are equivalent at the start of the semester, suggesting two homogenous groups. However, at the end of the semester, we find the PER sample that receives the RIT intervention develops more critical perceptions. We find that the TA sample consolidates the views expressed in textbooks. Moreover, using mid-term and final exam values as a measure for academic performance, we find that the academic performance of both groups is equivalent at the mid-term point. However, the RIT intervention group demonstrates higher performance compared to the TA sample at the end of the semester. Overall our results suggest that undergraduate accounting students have the ability and sophistication to appreciate accounting research knowledge as a social phenomenon which can enhance their intrinsic motivation to develop accounting knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solidity of social-emotional skills has become a useful tool related to success in the lives of individuals. Some statements claim that a high level of IQ does not ensure assertiveness when acting or making good decisions, but that there must be a balance between it and socio-emotional intelligence. What concerns social-emotional education cannot be simplified as a look inside, but represents a greater complexity, although it leads the subject to self-centeredness; individual concreteness, to discover their inner strength, promote personal growth and the construction of their own identity, its purpose is not individualism, but it is a collective consciousness, where competences such as self-knowledge, self-regulation, autonomy, empathy and collaboration come into play. The present research was carried out in the pandemic situation caused by the COVID-19 virus, it pursues the objectives of a more clearly understanding of socio-emotionalskills development process, in addition to identify the factors that prevent their acquisition, as well as explaining the benefits that individuals can achieve by promoting these abilities. This is channeled by an interpretative paradigm to analyze the phenomena in which the participating subjects are involved; how certain factors interfere with the development of social-emotional skills. This is linked to a qualitative approach, thus focusing on the experiences of the sample in question. The process takes the methodology of the case study due to the small number of students who manifest socioemotional limitations. Data collection was carried out through interviews, observation guides, file research and anecdotal recording. These techniques and instruments made it possible to systematize the information obtained and then schematize them. It was found that there are different factors that influence the development of the emotional intelligence, such as parents, parenting style, teaching intervention, psychological, psychiatric or neurological issues, as well as the disposition and motivation of students. It is concluded that socio-emotional skills are not innate, but it is necessary to activate them, they are influenced, limited or propitiated, by the particular life experience, in the same way they are not acquired at the same pace. Another relevant point is the teaching preparation necessary to achieve a socioemotional solidity, in order to lead students to emerge the best version of themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the findings of a study exploring the possibilities of improving students’ argumentation skills concerning evaporation process and factors affecting evaporation by implementing two teaching schemes, with and without the use of particle theory. The participants (ages 10/11, n = 77) were students of four fifth-grade classes of two Greek regular public primary schools. The research data were collected through an open-ended written test (pre- and post-intervention) and a semi-structured interview (post-intervention). Results revealed that the improvement of students’ argumentation skills regarding the evaporation process and the factors affecting evaporation is feasible through an appropriate teaching intervention. This concerns mainly the components of claim and evidence, whereas the use of the particle theory seems to contribute further to this improvement, as well as to the improvement of the reasoning component. Implications for science education are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to measure the effects of teaching problem-solving strategies as an integrated part of the mathematical content prescribed by the curriculum. By implementing the designs principles developed in the previous study, we carry out a one-year-long teaching intervention in a Swedish upper secondary school. Pre- and post-tests are used to compare the development of the experimental group with a control group. The results show that the development in mathematical knowledge in general is similar for the experimental group and the control group. However, the experimental group has a significantly better development in problem-solving ability. This study presents relevant implications to practitioners and other educational designers on how to enhance problem-solving ability by focusing on teaching problems-solving strategies integrated throughout the curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The studies devoted to the so-called good language learners that emerged in the 1970s (Rubin 1975) reveal that efficient learners fall back on an abundant and highly individualised array of techniques and strategic behaviours related to and employed while learning. The well-known taxonomies by Oxford (1990) and O'Malley and Chamot (1990) gave rise to analyses and investigations in the field of learner autonomy and self-development, also in pronunciation learning/teaching. As has been corroborated by empirical studies (Oxford 2001a; Oxford 2001b; Chamot, 2004) strategy training contributes to the increase in overall proficiency as well as to a number of invaluable benefits such as enhanced motivation, greater self-efficacy, anxiety reduction and more positive attitudes. Although studies dedicated to the relationship between learning strategies and pronunciation are still in their infancy, there are a number of investigations that set the directions for further research and development (Peterson 2000; Pawlak 2008; Pawlak and Oxford 2018). The paper presents results of a pilot study conducted in a secondary school that aimed at observing how learners develop pronunciation strategies as a result of regular pronunciation input and feedback from the teacher. It addresses a tentative assumption that explicit pronunciation training may contribute to the enhanced strategy use and consequently to better oral performance. Detecting and naming the strategies employed by the learners as well as selecting the most effective ones for more explicit application aided and boosted the learners' awareness and confidence, which was confirmed by data obtained from questionnaires and from participant observation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study explored the possibilities to improve students’ argumentation ability concerning factors that affect dissolving, through the implementation of two versions of a teaching scheme, with and without particle theory. The participants (age range 10–11, n = 27) belonged to two fifth-grade classes of a primary school in Northern Greece. Data were collected through an open-ended written test and a semi-structured interview targeting four of the components of an argument: Claims, data, warrants, and rebuttals, for five factors affecting the dissolving of a solid substance in water: Temperature, stirring, amount of the substance, grain size, and nature of the substance itself. Results showed an improvement concerning the structure of students’ arguments, whereas improvements in content quality appeared mainly in some cases where particle theory was implemented. Study limitations and implications for science education are discussed.

Copyright of Hellenic Journal of Research in Education / Ereuna Stīn Ekpaideusī is the property of Laboratory of Research in Pedagogy & Educational Practices and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article discusses the didactic potential of a teaching intervention supported by games, manipulative materials and collective discussions, to contribute to the construction of the concept of Decimal Numbering System, by elementary school students. The study considered the National Pact for Literacy at the Right Age and the Mathematical Literacy of the Bahia Pact and had the theoretical support of the Theory of Didactic Situations. The study included an experimental group (EG) and a control group (CG). Both underwent a pre and a post test, and a teaching intervention between them. Given the results obtained, we can infer the existence of a positive effect on the teaching intervention proposed for the EG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In engineering education, educational technologies and teaching interventions are often used to maintain the student retention high. Most of them are strongly related to either in-class or take-home assessment. This paper compares the impact of both assessments on student performance for one academic semester. The findings are expected to re-align the focus of educational technology and teaching intervention research. Fifty-five laboratory sessions were analyzed, involving five Introductory Programming classes with a total of 87 Information Technology and Information System undergraduates. The study shows that, by considering only significant changes, in-class assessment leads to higher assessment mark as the students can easily seek help and focus on the tasks. Technical problems are also unlikely to occur as the classroom (or the laboratory in our case) is well-facilitated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies indicate that language teaching can utilize mass culture texts to help students detect implicit cultural values and social meanings. The present study assesses a teaching intervention involving the critical interpretation of TV texts as a form of mass culture. The design, implementation and evaluation of teaching material aims to raise the students' critical literacy by revealing hidden and normalized language ideologies in the representation of language varieties in such texts. Enhancing the students' critical literacy is among the main goals of the multiliteracies model, on which the whole intervention procedure is based. The study was conducted in a Greek public primary school class of the 6th grade for approximately three months. The findings of the teaching intervention reveal the difficulties involved in the denaturalization of the dominant language ideologies through a brief program of critical literacy, especially when conducted in a school environment that either implicitly or explicitly reinforces language homogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's 2017 'classroom revolution' call intends to transform current teacher-centered pedagogies with brand-new philosophies and technologies. As a new entry point for classroom research, I problematize a naturalized (mis)belief—teacher-centered (Confucian) didactic pedagogies are not conducive to critical thinking cultivation—that has enthralled Chinese teachers in an epistemological-moral-pedagogical dilemma. My problematization, philosophically informed and practice-research grounded, unfolds in four steps. First, I explicate the presumed clash between the claimed Confucian pedagogies and critical thinking. Second, I historicize the Confucian pedagogical philosophy to implode the naturalized (mis)belief and some stereotypical (mis)understandings of Confucian teaching and learning, demonstrating instead an epistemological compatibility therebetween. Third, I unpack how my phenomenological case study discerns an unrecognized yet educative 'repair moment' in a Chinese math classroom, generating a possible re-conjoining between teachers' self-despised yet habitually implemented 'Confucian do-after-me pedagogy' and critical mathematical reasoning. Through observations and interviews, I illustrate how this 'repair moment' can become pedagogically significant, overturning teachers' naturalized (mis)belief, redeeming them from the moral-practical dilemma, and cultivating their critical pedagogical consciousness. Finally, I argue that this paper not only provides a philosophical-plus-empirical paradigm for teaching invention in China and beyond but also sheds new light on cross-cultural learning in transnational curriculum studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In STEM project group teams, men speak for more time (Meadows and Sekaquaptewa, in: Proceedings of ASEE annual conference, 2011) and engage in more active technical participation than women, which can have negative long-term consequences (Cheryan et al. in Psychol Bull 143:1–35, 2017; Lord et al. in IEEE Trans Educ 54(4):610–618, 2011). In the current study, we tested the effects of a brief counter-stereotypic video intervention on gender gaps in verbal participation on mixed-gender teams of STEM students (N = 143). Participants viewed either a control video of an engineering student team behaving in a gender stereotype-consistent way (men talked longer and presented more technical information than women) in a group presentation and group interview, or a gender counter-stereotypic intervention version (roles reversed) prior to engaging in their own STEM group project task in a laboratory setting. Analysis of video footage of the groups showed that men spoke longer than women in the control condition, but men and women spoke for equal time in the intervention condition. This result was corroborated by participants' self-report of their verbal participation in their group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study explored the possibilities to improve students' argumentation ability concerning factors that affect dissolving, through the implementation of two versions of a teaching scheme, with and without particle theory. The participants (age range 10-11, n = 27) belonged to two fifth-grade classes of a primary school in Northern Greece. Data were collected through an open-ended written test and a semi-structured interview targeting four of the components of an argument: Claims, data, warrants, and rebuttals, for five factors affecting the dissolving of a solid substance in water: Temperature, stirring, amount of the substance, grain size, and nature of the substance itself. Results showed an improvement concerning the structure of students' arguments, whereas improvements in content quality appeared mainly in some cases where particle theory was implemented. Study limitations and implications for science education are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This work is based on the idea that young children benefit from early introduction of scientific concepts. Few researches describe didactical strategies focusing on physics understanding for young children and analyse their effectiveness in standard classroom environments. Purpose: The aim is to identify whether didactical strategies referring to a precursor model can be used to help children construct explanation of physical phenomena. Sample: We present results that test children’s capacity (aged 5-6) to build knowledge within a precursor model in order to describe, explain and predict the phenomenon of shadow formation. Design and methods: The teaching intervention’s efficiency is tested in a standard classroom setting. Data were collected through individual interviews, using identical tasks before and after the teaching intervention. Results: The analysis of children's ideas shows that the use of a constructivist didactical strategy referring to a precursor model of shadow formation by teachers has a positive effect on children’s understanding and ability to identify shadows as a physical phenomenon. Conclusion: Such results support the importance of science teaching in preschools. In particular, the didactical strategy focuses children’s attention to a critical aspect of their understanding and destabilizes their previous representations. It has implications for preschool teacher professional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study was aimed at investigating the effects of a video feedback coaching intervention for upper-grade primary school teachers on students’ cognitive gains in scientific knowledge. This teaching intervention was designed with the use of inquiry-based learning principles for teachers, such as the empirical cycle and the posing of thought-provoking questions. The intervention was put into practice in 10 upper-grade classrooms. The trajectory comprised four lessons, complemented with two premeasures and two postmeasures. The control condition consisted of 11 upper-grade teachers and their students. The success of the intervention was tested using an established standardized achievement test and situated measures. In this way, by means of premeasure and postmeasure questionnaires and video data, an assessment could be made of the change in students’ scientific knowledge before, during, and after the intervention. In this study, we primarily focused on the dynamics of students’ real-time expressions of scientific knowledge in the classroom. Important indicators of the effect of the intervention were found. Through focusing on the number of explanations and predictions, a significant increase could be seen in the proportion of students’ utterances displaying scientific understanding in the intervention condition. In addition, students in the intervention condition more often reasoned on higher complexity levels than students in the control condition. No effect was found for students’ scientific knowledge as measured with a standardized achievement test. Implications for future studies are stressed, as well as the importance of enriching the evaluation of intervention studies by focusing on dynamics in the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Spinal anesthesia is a widely practiced anesthetic technique for cesarean delivery. Record charting and keeping during obstetric spinal anesthesia demand accuracy and completeness for patient′s safety, medico-legal and research purposes. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of teaching on improving audit of the anesthetic record charts for spinal anesthesia in obstetrics. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 100 anesthetic charts for spinal anesthesia in the obstetric theatre of our hospital. This was followed by a lecture given by a consultant anesthetist on the importance of the anesthesia record keeping with emphasis on obstetric spinal anesthesia. Immediately after the lecture, post teaching intervention audit of 400 anesthetic charts for obstetric spinal anesthesia in four consecutive periods of 100 charts each were done. Data collected were analyzed with SPSS version 16.0. Results: A total of 500 anesthetic record charts were studied. Average percentage completion of anesthetic charts before the lecture (pre-intervention); first, second, third and fourth audit (post-intervention) were 56.1%, 70.1%, 78.1%, 81.3% and 87.7%, respectively. The level of improvement in the filling of the charts pre- and post-teaching intervention in the elective cases (54.72 vs. 83.69) and emergency cases (48.67 vs. 82.27) were statistically significant respectively (P < 0.05). Conclusion: There was a significant improvement in the adequacy of documentation of anesthetic record chart for obstetric spinal anesthesia after a teaching intervention.

Grounded in self-determination theory and achievement goal theory, this quasi-experimental study evaluated the effectiveness of a teaching intervention programme to improve predisposition towards physical education based on developing a task-oriented motivational climate and supporting basic psychological needs. The final sample consisted of 35 secondary education students, aged 15-17 (Mage = 15.35, SD = 0.49), divided into two groups: control (n = 15) and experimental (n = 20). The intervention programme was applied in the experimental group to 12 acrosport unit lessons based on motivational strategies by means of TARGET areas (i.e. Task, authority, recognition, grouping, evaluation and time). Firstly, the experimental group obtained significantly higher values in perceived support of the basic psychological needs and in the perceived task-oriented motivational climate in the acrosport unit. Secondly, this intervention was effective in generating a significant increase in predisposition towards physical education in the experimental group. Noteworthy is the need to generate interventions in different content areas that may improve students' predisposition towards physical education, which could contribute to them adopting a more active lifestyle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]