Education for thinking

This paper reports a study of epistemological beliefs of Hong Kong teacher education students in which such four belief dimensions have been identified. The result is similar to that found by Schommer with North American university students in that the number of dimensions is the same but the nature of the dimensions is different. The paper hypothesizes that these differences can be accounted for in terms of differences in cultural context. In particular, the difference in dimensions concerned with authority–expert knowledge and effort and learning reported in this study might be explained by value differences between Western (North American) and non-Western (Hong Kong Chinese) culture. From a methodological perspective, the interview data also imply difficulties in measuring knowledge beliefs and one finding from the study is that in-depth interviews to complement quantitative data are necessary for trustworthy study of epistemological beliefs.

Exploratory Study of Hong Kong Teacher Education Students' Epistemological Beliefs: Cultural Perspectives and Implications on Beliefs Research

Anyone who watches the television news has seen images of firefighters rescuing people from burning buildings and paramedics treating bombing victims. How do these individuals make the split-second decisions that save lives? Most studies of decision making, based on artificial tasks assigned in laboratory settings, view people as biased and unskilled. Gary Klein is one of the developers of the naturalistic decision-making approach, which views people as inherently skilled and experienced. Since 1985, Klein has conducted fieldwork to find out how people tackle challenges in difficult, nonroutine situations. Sources of Power is based on observations of humans acting under such real-life constraints as time pressure, high stakes, personal responsibility, and shifting conditions. In addition to providing information that can be used by professionals in management, psychology, engineering, and other fields, the book presents an overview of the research approach of naturalistic decision making and expands our knowledge of the strengths people bring to difficult tasks.

Sources of Power: How People Make Decisions

Professional knowledge or motivation? Investigating the role of teachers’ expertise on the quality of technology-enhanced lesson plans

What is the best approach to educating students is, evidently, the pivotal question in educational research. In the general debate on this question, clear positions are often taken―for example, whether teacher-led instruction or more student-directed approaches should be followed. In the current narrative review, this central question and the different stances taken are explored for a specific field of learning, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) domains. The current article starts with an argument as to why the traditional, more directive teacher-led educational approach to STEM learning may not always lead to deep conceptual knowledge and proposes exploring more engaged forms of learning. More specifically, a particular arrangement for engaged learning, inquiry learning, is taken as an example in this exploration. It is argued that the effects of educational methods are influenced by a multitude of (interacting) factors related to student and teacher characteristics, context, domain, frequency of use, timing, and probably more. Therefore, this article tries to outline a more nuanced and balanced stance towards choosing educational approaches. A picture is presented to show that adopting and combining different approaches, at both the lesson and the curricular levels, may be necessary to reach optimal levels of learning. Existing and upcoming technologies may play a decisive role in realizing this more complex, but also more realistic view of learning in STEM.

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Moving towards engaged learning in STEM domains; there is no simple answer, but clearly a road ahead

How to sequence video modeling examples and inquiry tasks to foster scientific reasoning

Math achievement, math self-concept, and vocational interests are critical predictors of STEM careers and are closely linked to high school coursework. Young women are less likely to choose advanced math courses in high school, and encouraging young women to enroll in advanced math courses may therefore bring more women into STEM careers. We looked at a German statewide educational reform that required all students to take advanced math courses and examined differential effects of the reform on young men and women’s math achievement, math self-concept, vocational interests, and field of study at university. We compared data from 4,730 students before the reform and 4,715 students after the reform. We specified multiple regression models and tested main effects of gender and cohort as well as the effect of the Cohort × Gender interaction on all outcomes. All outcomes showed clear gender differences favoring young men before the reform. However, the reform was associated with different effects for young men and women: Whereas gender differences in math achievement were smaller after the reform, differences between young men and women in math self-concept and realistic and investigative vocational interests were larger after the reform than before. Gender differences in the field of study at university did not differ between before and after the reform. Results suggest that reducing course choice options in high school does not automatically increase gender equality in STEM fields. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved)

Maximizing Gender Equality by Minimizing Course Choice Options? Effects of Obligatory Coursework in Math on Gender Differences in STEM.

Television programs are a central part of children's everyday lives. These programs often transmit stereotypes about gender roles such as "math is for boys and not for girls." So far, however, it is unclear whether stereotypes that are embedded in television programs affect girls' and boys' performance, motivational dispositions, or attitudes. On the basis of research on expectancy-value theory and stereotype threat, we conducted a randomized study with a total of 335 fifth-grade students to address this question. As the experimental material, we used a television program that had originally been produced for a national TV channel. The program was designed to show children that math could be interesting and fun. In the experimental condition, the program included a gender stereotyped segment in which two girls who were frustrated with math copied their math homework from a male classmate. In the control condition, participants watched an equally long, neutral summary of the first part of the video. We investigated effects on boys' and girls' stereotype endorsement, math performance, and different motivational constructs to gain insights into differential effects. On the basis of prior research, we expected negative effects of watching the stereotypes on girls' performance, motivational dispositions, and attitudes. Effects on the same outcomes for boys as well as children's stereotype endorsement were explored as open questions. We pre-registered our research predictions and analyses before conducting the experiment. Our results provide partial support for short-term effects of gender stereotypes embedded in television programs: Watching the stereotypes embedded in the video increased boys' and girls' stereotype endorsement. Boys reported a higher sense of belonging but lower utility value after watching the video with the stereotypes. Boys' other outcome variables were not affected, and there were also no effects on girl's performance, motivational dispositions, or attitudes. Results offer initial insights into how even short segments involving gender stereotypes in television shows can influence girls' and boys' stereotype endorsement and how such stereotypes may constitute one factor that contributes to gender differences in the STEM fields.

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Gender Stereotypes in a Children's Television Program: Effects on Girls' and Boys' Stereotype Endorsement, Math Performance, Motivational Dispositions, and Attitudes.

Background Further developing students' thinking about knowledge and knowing in science (epistemic beliefs) is considered a normative goal of science education in many countries around the world, even for elementary-school-aged children. Aims The goal of the present study was to introduce and evaluate a new intervention in science education aimed at developing children's epistemic beliefs, epistemic curiosity, and investigative interests. The intervention included an inquiry-based learning approach as well as reflections on epistemic issues because these methods are currently seen as most promising for fostering students' epistemic beliefs. Sample Data were collected from 65 elementary school children in Grades 3 and 4 (58.46% boys, age: M = 8.73, SD = 0.60) who participated in a voluntary extracurricular STEM enrichment programme in south-west Germany. Methods We investigated the effectiveness of the intervention by applying a randomized block design with a treated control group and repeated measures. The effectiveness of the intervention was analysed via multiple linear regression analyses. Results The results indicated that the children assigned to the intervention developed more sophisticated epistemic beliefs and a higher level of epistemic curiosity than the children assigned to the control condition. No intervention effects were found on investigative interests. Conclusions The results provide initial evidence for the effectiveness of the intervention and demonstrate that it is possible to improve epistemic beliefs among elementary school children in Grades 3 and 4. The study provides a starting point for understanding how young children develop epistemic beliefs.

Effects of an extracurricular science intervention on elementary school children's epistemic beliefs: A randomized controlled trial

Scientific reasoning abilities are already developing in elementary-school-aged children and enable them to understand the world around them. The goal of the current study was to develop a new inst...

Kerstin Oschatz

Papers

How to sequence video modeling examples and inquiry tasks to foster scientific reasoning

Maximizing Gender Equality by Minimizing Course Choice Options? Effects of Obligatory Coursework in Math on Gender Differences in STEM.

Gender Stereotypes in a Children's Television Program: Effects on Girls' and Boys' Stereotype Endorsement, Math Performance, Motivational Dispositions, and Attitudes.

Effects of an extracurricular science intervention on elementary school children's epistemic beliefs: A randomized controlled trial

Scientific Reasoning in Elementary School Children: Assessment of the Inquiry Cycle: