Showing papers on "Curriculum published in 1974"

Social Selection and Stratification Within Schools

Abstract: This paper examines the degree to which stratification within schools contributes to the prevalent association between socioeconomic background and educational outcomes of students. The institutionalized mechanisms for social selection and differentiation, such as tracking and curriculum assignment, are essessed in 48 urban public high schools. Little evidence is found for overt class bias in placement. The relationship between socioeconomic status and curriculum assignment is largely mediated by verbal achievement. stratification patterns entail segregation and the allocation of resources within schools, however. The paper concludes that educational outcomes depend more on the criteria of selection than on the process within schools.

Creative Activities for Young Children

Abstract: This sixth edition text is an activity-oriented approach to encouraging creativity in infants, toddlers, and children to age eight. Activities are presented in a developmental context and support instructor participation.All major topics are covered for early childhood programs and early childhood specialist curriculum programs with focus on art and art related areas, as well as the basic subjects such as creativity in math, language arts, science, social studies, environmental education, and many more.ALSO AVAILABLE INSTUCTOR SUPPLEMENTS CALL CUSTOMER SUPPORT TO ORDERInstructor Manual, ISBN: 0-8273-8364-9

Interrelationships of fishes

Abstract: Preface. Teaching as Applied Behavior Analysis: A Professional Difference. The Learn Unit: A Natural Fracture of Teaching. The Repertoires of Teachers Who Are Behavior Analysts. The Strategic Analysis of Instruction and Learning. Teacher Repertoires for Students from Prelistener to Early Reader Status. Teaching Practices for Students with Advanced Repertoires of Verbal Behavior (Reader to Editor of Own Written Work). Behavioral Selection and the Content of Curriculum. Writing and Designing Curricula. Teaching and Mentoring Teachers. The School Psychologist and Other Supportive Personnel: A Contemporary Behavioral Perspective. Glossary. Index.

A Comparison of Second Language Learners and Monolinguals on Divergent Thinking Tasks at the Elementary School Level

Abstract: RESEARCH STUDIES INTO the effect of introducing a foreign language into the elementary school curriculum have concurred that the addition of the second language has not impaired the general achievement or the native language progress of children. Johnson, Ellison, and Flores (1961, 1963) found no significant differences in native language skill areas between school children who had studied a second language and those that had not. In a similar study, Smith (1967) concluded that the addition of a foreign language to the fourth grade curriculum did not interfere with achievement in the basic skills tested. Potts (1967) also found no significant differences in first language reading proficiency or in general achievement. These investigations and reports of similar unpublished studies (Donoghue, 1965, 1969) indicated that the inclusion of a Foreign Language in the Elementary School (FLES) program did not produce negative interference in the learning of native language skills, nor did it reduce the extent of average gain in pupil achievement in the basic skills of the first language. Theoretical Framework The case for FLES has tended to rest upon "educational efficiency" (Andersson, 1969) and on the evidence that foreign language instruction was not detrimental to general achievement in the basic native language skills. However, the investigator feels that a unique contribution that FLES could make to the cognitive development of children is not being emphasized. Pilot studies by the present author (Landry, 1973a, 1973b) have hypothesized and supported the fact that experience with two languages at the elementary school level has significant effects upon creative functioning as measured by divergent thinking tasks. Other research studies support the possibility that second-language learning has a positive relationship with divergent thinking abilities. Riegel, Ramsey, and Riegel (1967) compared an American group who had learned Spanish in school to a Spanish group who went to an American school. Twenty-four American and twenty-four Spanish subjects gave restricted ssociations in English and in Spanish to 35 stimuli under seven different instructions. The

Developmental Psychology as a Guide to Value Education: A Review of “Kohlbergian” Programs

Abstract: The enthusiasm that Kohlberg and his associates have recently generated in value education programs lies not so much in new curriculum materials and new teaching techniques, nor in the demonstration of spectacular results in their pilot programs, but rather in the way they discuss their general directions and purposes in terms of philosophical and psychological theory and research. Kohlberg has characterized his efforts as "warmed-over Dewey," and refers to John Dewey as "the only modem thinker about education worth taking seriously" (Kohlberg, 1971a). Dewey laid out an educational program in broad philosophical terms. It was not, however, until Piaget's work that a psychology was begun which "developed the general premises of Dewey ... into a science of great richness and logical and empirical rigor." Following Piaget, Kohlberg has worked "to make Dewey's ideas concrete," and Kohlberg's associates, in turn, have worked on "an application of Kohlberg to a high school curriculum (Sprinthall, 1971b)." Educational programs with such a venerable lineage (DeweyPiaget-Kohlberg, and so forth), have created interest because of the intellectual heft behind them and the promise of initiating something more than a superficial, piecemeal, short-lived fad. A review of these current educational programs entails a consideration of the way in which the foundational ideas have been extended in educational practice and a consideration of their distinctive features. I shall not review the psychological research on which the programs are based but rather the way in which the conclusions from research are used to guide program construction. The gist of this review is that "Kohlbergian" value education programs are based on ideas that separately have widespread acceptance and that have been around for some time; the programs integrate and "concretize" these basic ideas in new ways, although many further developments are necessary before one can claim to have successfully developed a distinctively new kind of educational program. Some next steps in program development will be suggested.

Testing and Decision-Making Procedures for Selected Individualized Instructional Programs

Abstract: The idea of developing instructional programs in our schools to meet individual student needs is not a new theme in American education (Washburne, 1922; Wilhelms, 1962), but it has been only in the last decade that such programs have been implemented on any large-scale basis in the schools. The basic argument in favor of individualizing instruction comes from a multitude of research and evaluation studies that suggest that students differ in interests, motivation, learning rate, goals, and capacity for learning, among other things; and, therefore, group-based instruction on a common curriculum is inappropriate to meet their educational needs. The necessity for change in our schools is evident when one notes, for example, that schools provide successful learning experiences for only about one-third of our students (Block, 1971). On the basis of Project TALENT data, Flanagan, Davis, Dailey, Shaycoft, Orr, Goldberg, and Neyman (1964) and Flanagan (1973) reported that our standard instructional programs are inadequate to handle the large individual differences in any age or grade group. In addition, these authors note that schools generally fail to help the student to cultivate a sense of responsibility for his educational, personal, and social development or to make realistic educational decisions and choices about his future.

Why Special Education Isn 't Special

Abstract: Special education has developed in recent years to diagnose more effectively and teach children who, for a wide variety of reasons, cannot learn from a regular curriculum. In this article, the author notes that despite their increasing size and sophistication, special education programs have not been successful for the majority of their students. He suggests that one reason for their ineffectiveness may be the ways in which special educators-teachers, psychologists and administrators-relate to the regular personnel of schools. Because special education is marginal to public school operation, political and organizational obstacles may infringe on the autonomy, funds, and quality of programs special educators can provide.

Learning psychology by doing psychology: guidance through the curriculum

Abstract: Recently we have heard the call for counselors, to be involved in classroom activities. Consultation has been one mode for doing that; classroom teaching has been another. Sprinthall and Erickson present the experimental results of a program that has the dual goals of teaching psychological content and promoting psychological growth in individuals. Their article presents the rationale for deliberate psychological education as a mode for individual, direct and developmental intervention in schools. Following the rationale, a detailed description is given of classroom learning experiences actually employed to achieve the overall objectives of psychological maturation of pupils. Descriptions and data are drawn from the current program under development in a public secondary school. The authors also discuss the implications for a new guidance delivery system through the curriculum.

The Practical Utility of Measures of College Environments

Abstract: "How can I decide whether the present or the experimental dormitory arrangement is best?" "How can I choose the best college for me?" "How satisfied are our students with our professors?" "Which goals for our college have the greatest support in the community?" These questions are often heard by institutional researchers, psychologists, and sociologists. Asking these questions are students, administrators, and faculty. Implicitly, they all are asking for information that will help them make decisions. They want to choose, evaluate, or improve colleges. To do this, they need objective information that will help them choose between courses of action. So, they come to the researcher for help. What objective information can he provide that will be useful? If the researcher turns to current measures of college environments, he is likely to be frustrated. As recently suggested in a review (Baird, 1973), there is little in existing measures of the college environment to help in pragmatic decisions, and they are so atheoretical and global that they are unrelated to concepts that could suggest pragmatic actions. The purpose of this paper is to (1) review how environmental measures have been used and (2) suggest how environmental measures could be made more useful. The questions that researchers hear suggest the scope of purposes that environmental measures are asked to serve. These purposes may be grouped into several major categories of decisions for which environmental information may be useful: decisions among institutions, decisions within institutions, decisions concerning people, and decisions concerning nonpersonal resources. Decisions among institutions are those that involve the comparison of one institution with others, or of one type of institution with others, for example, when a high school student selects a college, or when a state legislator decides whether to spend more on universities or community colleges. Decisions within institutions are decisions that involve the comparison of one part of an institution with another, or of one way of doing things with another. Examples include comparing the teaching practices in the humanities with those in engineering and comparing an experimental curriculum with the regular curriculum. Decisions concerning people include those

Course Evaluation: When?.

Abstract: For Classroom Courses: Yes No Did the class meet at the announced time? Did the class meet for the required number of contact hours (generally, 1 hour of credit per 55 minutes of approvable content)? Was the material presented in a clear and concise manner? Did the instructor encourage class participation? Did you find the student materials and/or audio/visual aids useful to you? What helped you the most in this course?

Implications of the IEA Studies for Curriculum and Instruction.

Abstract: The International Association for the Evaluation of Education Achievement (IEA) is an organization of twenty-two national research centers which are engaged in the study of education.' Organized in 1959, this group published a pilot study in 19622 and a study of mathematics achievement in 1967.3 It has just published studies of achievement in science,4 reading comprehension,5 and literature6 and will in the near future publish studies of achievement in French as a foreign language,' English as a foreign language,8 and in civic education.9 The IEA represents a cooperative approach to international research on educational problems. In each country there is a national research center which is involved as a cooperative partner in the cross-national research. This group of research centers has been concerned with the use of international tests, questionnaires, and other methods to relate student achievement and attitudes to instructional, social, and economic factors in each nation. The overall aim of this research is to establish generalizations which will be of value in education,

1: Conceptual Development and Instruction:

Abstract: Conceptual development and the learning of concepts have become of interest as topics for research in psychology in the past two decades. During the same period, curriculum developers have focused on concepts, both in identifying the specific subject matter to be included in the curriculum and in designing methods of instruction. Thus a vast literature is accumulating on the topic of this chapter, conceptual development and instruction, which provides a readily available source of representative theory and research. We have identified two systematic viewpoints to be given detailed presentation in this chapter. One is Piagetian theory and the other a model of conceptual learning and development we will refer to as the Wisconsin Model. Piagetian theory was chosen because of its power and comprehensiveness and because it now appears to be on the threshold of application to concerns and problems of education. The Wisconsin Model has only recently been reported and is still under refinement (Klausmeier, 1971; Klausmeier, Ghatala & Frayer, 1972). It is intended to influence directly the design of curriculum materials, instructional strategies, and the related assessment tools and procedures. The Piagetian system, which has been under formulation and refinement

Sex Education for the Handicapped

Abstract: The handicapped are in need of family living courses even more than the non-handicapped for the following reasons: they often spend less time at home so parents have less opportunity to talk with them; their parents are often less qualified to teach them properly; they need more help in controlling their sexual impulses because they have less opportunity to express themselves in other areas; and because they may want to prevent the birth of children for their own sake or the sake of the child contraceptive information may be necessary. The only two programs revealed in a search of the literature were those of Chaplin and Kratter and Thorne. The paucity of material in the literature led the writer to contact by letter fifty-five individuals and agencies including those mentioned in Maws thesis on sex education. (Maw 1953) The letter stated that the author was doing research in the field of family life courses and sex education for the handicapped and asked for information on any such programs. Included in the letter to those working in the field of mental deficiency was the pamphlet To Protect the Retarded Adolescent published by the Human Betterment Association for Voluntary Sterilization. Forty-four answers were received. Most of these writers expressed a need for more information in this area but were unable to give any data or supply any leads. The letter from a specialists in Education of Exceptional Children of the Department of Health Education and Welfare is typical. "We regret that we do not know of any studies specifically on sex education of the retarded aside from the general treatises in this field. While we have reason to believe that a considerable amount of sex education is carried on in the units on family living we find little specific reference in curriculum guides for the retarded." Also the writer made some inquiries in the Philadelphia metropolitan area to determine whether there were any programs in the special classes or in the schools for the handicapped. (excerpt)

Too Much to Know.

Abstract: There has been an enormous explosion of scientific information in recent years. This leaves professors to think carefully about which knowledge is most important for students. What are the basic ingredients of a scientific education?