The Child on the Threshold of Becoming a Pupil

The functions of a preschooler's imagination that are required for a child to become immersed in the new social situation of development that characterizes the beginning of the early school ages are analyzed. The new social situation of development consists, above all, of new forms of interaction for the child with adults and other children within new primary activity—education. Imagination is viewed as a condition for the development of interaction during the older preschool ages based on a number of important indicators—the degree of development of social-communication skills and communicative competence—that underlie the “social component” of school readiness.     

Consultation for Teachers and Children's Language and Literacy Development during Pre-Kindergarten

MyTeachingPartner (MTP) is a teacher professional development program designed to improve the quality of teacher-child interactions in pre-kindergarten classrooms and children's language and literacy development. The program includes language/literacy activities and two Web-based resources—video exemplars of effective interactions and individualized consultation—designed to support teachers' high quality implementation of these activities. This study examined the impacts of the MTP Web-based resources on the language and literacy development of 1,165 children during pre-kindergarten. Children whose teachers were randomly assigned to receive access to both the video exemplars and participated in consultation (MTP Consultancy n = 65) made greater gains in receptive language skills during pre-kindergarten compared to children whose teachers were randomly assigned to receive access to the video exemplars only (MTP Video Library n = 69). Further, among MTP Consultancy teachers, more hours of participating in the consultation process was positively associated with children's receptive language development, and more hours implementing the language/literacy activities was positively associated with children's language and literacy development. Implications for improving children's school readiness and promoting teachers' participation in professional development programs are discussed.     

In Honor of the President of the Congress: A. N. Leont'Yev-Lenin Prize Laureate

The editorial staff of the journal Voprosy psikhologii and the Soviet psychological community heartily congratulate Aleksey Nikolayevich Leont'yev on receiving the highest scientific award — the Lenin Prize — for his book Problemy razvitiya psikhiki [Problems of mental development].     

The Problem of Generalization in the Works of L. S. Vygotsky

An aspect of Vygotsky's psychological theory which is still meaningful as a genuine scientific problem today is the treatment he gave to the structure, function, and formation of generalization as a special means of reflecting reality in human consciousness. Many of the central propositions of the theory — concerning such questions as the role of symbols in the establishment of higher mental functions, the hierarchical structure of consciousness, and the connection between instruction and development — were refined, concentrated, and cast in a new light by the concept of generalization which Lev Semyonovich worked on so intensively in the last years of his life. The problem of generalization is the knot that ties together the fundamental strands of the whole conception. By carefully untying it one can avoid misunderstandings in evaluating some of Vygotsky's propositions, and, even more important, one can then correctly understand his fundamental ideas, which he clearly formulated but was not able to develop fully. The significance of these ideas is such that they belong in the arsenal of modern psychology to resolve burning theoretical and practical problems of the day.     

Remembering Malcolm J. Casadaban

Malcolm J. Casadaban died on 13 September 2009 from an infection and was found to have a weakened strain of the bacterium Yersinia pestis in his blood. This tragic event took the life of one of the most creative and influential geneticists of our time. In the late 1970s and ''80s, Malcolm invented novel approaches which changed the way many of us did science. Jon Beckwith, Tom Silhavy, and Olaf Schneewind have chronicled his scientific life from graduate school to his death and give us insight into Malcolm''s genius.Philip Matsumura Editor in Chief, Journal of Bacteriology     

PHYTOREMEDIATION IN EDUCATION: TEXTILE DYE TEACHING EXPERIMENTS

Phytoremediation, the use of plants to clean up contaminated soil and water, has a wide range of applications and advantages, and can be extended to scientific education. Phytoremediation of textile dyes can be used as a scientific experiment or demonstration in teaching laboratories of middle school, high school and college students. In the experiments that we developed, students were involved in a hands-on activity where they were able to learn about phytoremediation concepts. Experiments were set up with 20—40 mg L^?1 dye solutions of different colors. Students can be involved in the set up process and may be involved in the experimental design. In its simplest forms, they use two-week-old sunflower seedlings and place them into a test tube of known volume of dye solution. Color change and/ or dye disappearance can be monitored by visual comparison or with a spectrophotometer. Intensity and extent of the lab work depends on student's educational level, and time constraints. Among the many dyes tested, Evan's Blue proved to be the most readily decolorized azo dye. Results could be observed within 1–2 hours. From our experience, dye phytoremediation experiments are suitable and easy to understand by both college and middle school students. These experiments help visual learners, as students compare the color of the dye solution before and after the plant application. In general, simple phytoremediation experiments of this kind can be introduced in many classes including biology, biochemistry and ecological engineering. This paper presents success stories of teaching phytoremediation to middle school and college students.     

The Pedagogy of Common Sense

This book is addressed to the teacher—the teacher of today's mass school; and these two italicized words require explanation.     

The Impact of a Funded Research Program on Music Education Policy

Sounds of Learning: The Impact of Music Education is a research program designed to allow researchers to examine the roles of music education in the lives of school-aged children to expand the understanding of music's role in a quality education. The NAMM Foundation, the sponsoring organization, has provided more than $1,000,000 to fund research on the impact of music education on student achievement and success in school; all aspects of a child's growth and development; the uses and functions of music in daily life; and home, school, and community environments. Quality research about the role and impact of music education conducted by experienced researchers who publish in rigorous, peer-reviewed, scientific research journals plays a vital role in moving a public policy agenda forward to achieve expanded access to music education for all children. The goal is that this research will inform policy debates and development to achieve policies that support opportunities for every child to experience the power and benefits of learning music.     

Experiments with Light

This article describes an unlikely collaboration between a high school chemistry teacher and a high school English teacher who attempted to teach scientific concepts through poetry. Inspired by poet John Updike's (1960) "Cosmic Gall," these two teachers crafted writing tasks aimed at teaching science content through literary devices. The result was an inspiring account and unlikely marriage of academic disciplines.     

Prescriptions for medical research. I--Management within the Medical Research Council.

In their submission to the government in advance of the white paper on science policy in the United Kingdom the Medical Research Council commends the MRC''s own approach to managing directly funded research. But a series of semi-structured interviews with the directors of some of the MRC''s units suggests a gap between the MRC''s model of managed research and the reality. Although such units are theoretically managed from MRC head office (and units are charged an overhead for this), in practice each unit runs its own affairs. Between major reviews average contact time with the head office contact person is seven hours a year. The first paper argues that a purchaser-provider split would recognise the benefits of decentralisation and allow units to bid for research funds from several sources, the successful ones guaranteeing their survival through a rolling series of research programmes. The second paper criticises the MRC''s cumbersome peer review system. Reliance on outside experts atrophies the scientific skills of head office staff and builds delays into decision making. A purchaser-provider model would allow the head office scientific staff to act like commercial research and development managers, commissioning research, and using the outcome, rather than peer review, as a criterion for continued funding.     

National surveillance program on occupational exposure to the human immunodeficiency virus among health care workers in Canada.

To determine the accuracy of various predictors of school problems, we conducted a 3-year prospective study of 1999 children who began school in the Niagara region of Ontario in 1980. During the year before school entry the parents gave a health, developmental and behavioural history during an interview with a community health nurse, and the children underwent vision and hearing screening tests and the Denver Developmental Screening Test (DDST). At the end of the 1980-81 school year the kindergarten teachers rated the children''s learning problems. At the end of the 1982-83 school year the presence of school problems was ascertained, and the predictive accuracy of items from the preschool history and examination and of the kindergarten teachers'' ratings was calculated. The health, developmental and behavioural history with or without the DDST was found to predict later school problems with acceptable accuracy. The kindergarten teachers'' ratings gave slightly more accurate predictions. We conclude that in communities where prompt diagnostic evaluation and effective therapeutic or preventive help can be provided to children identified as being at high risk, health professionals may play a useful role in screening for future school problems.     

Prevention of psychosocial problems in children with chronic illness.

Children with chronic illness and disability are at considerably increased risk of psychosocial problems, such as neurosis, attention deficit and poor adjustment to school. Health care professionals, especially primary care physicians, can do a great deal to prevent such problems in these children and their families. The approach outlined here is based on an understanding of the transactional model of development, in which the child interacts with--and to some extent creates--the social environment, and on a "noncategorical" concept in which common elements in chronic illness are recognized and emphasized. The physician''s role is to inform the family of the child''s condition as soon as possible, to offer hope, encouragement and guidance, to watch the child''s development, to maintain a shared view of the child and family, and, if possible, to ensure continuity of care.     

Gravity mechanisms in tonic motor system. Neurophysiological and muscle aspects

Nowadays it is widely believed that the animal motor system historically evolved under the powerful pressure of gravity forces. By the late 1970s, many manifestations of the microgravity effects on the motor system had already been known. At the same time, the basic sensorimotor relationships during exposure to zero-gravity remained unexplored. The article considers the main results of the studies of the scientific school of I.B. Kozlovskaya regarding the roles of the gravitational forces in the functioning of the tonic motor system in humans and other mammals. In these studies, it was demonstrated that the muscle tonic system is relatively independent and possesses its own structures and mechanisms at every level—from receptors to effectors. The support afferent input plays the main role in the regulation of the postural tonic system. The withdrawal of the support afferentation leads to the decline of the tonic motor units activity in extensor muscles and the alteration of the motor units recruitment patterns in the spinal cord. The decline of the tonic activity of the extensor motoneurons triggers on the development of the sensorimotor effects of microgravity including atony and muscle atrophy.     

Children's understanding of inheritance

Results of an interview study with eighty-four secondary school students indicate that children's theories about inheritance may he well-developed and coherent (though many do not conform to accepted scientific theory) before the topic is taught in school biology. The research alerts teachers to a number of commonly held viewpoints—for example intra-specific variation is often explained in terms of developmental defects, many students believe that acquired characteristics are inherited, and many also appear not to understand the equality of parental gene contribution or the mechanism of inheritance generally. Although the results suggest some improvement in understanding with age, especially between 14 and 16 years, several alternative viewpoints persisted in the older age groups. The authors discuss the implications of the work for biology teachers and suggest that more emphasis be given in lower secondary courses to the significance of genetics to life in general and to man in particular. Links between existing knowledge of familiar instances of inheritance and more technical aspects of genetics will, it is proposed, be important in future learning.     

Jean Rouch's ethnographic path

This article considers the multiple influences that have shaped Jean Rouch's ethnographic gaze upon the Songhay people of Niger. Marcel Griaule, Rouch's mentor, undoubtedly influenced his student's ethnographic approach to Songhay. But Rouch was equally influenced, I am convinced, by his direct and unforgettable confrontation with the mysteries of the Songhay world. After a discussion of the methodological and theoretical orientations of the Griaule school, I analyze Rouch's major ethnographic work, La Religion et la magie Songhay, focusing upon how Griaulian epistemology and Songhay realities molded the textual presentation. I then discuss several of Rouch's major films—Les Magiciens de Wanzerbé, The Lion Hunters, Les Maîtres Fous, and Tourou et Bitti, placing them within an ethnographic and epistemological context. This analysis leads to a consideration of Rouch's unrecognized contribution to anthropology.     

Factors facilitating research: a survey of zoo and aquarium professionals

The purpose of this survey was to assess the background, training, and perceptions of professionals conducting and coordinating research at North American zoos and aquariums accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and to identify the factors they considered critical to successful scientific programs. We analyzed responses to a 57‐item questionnaire from 231 professionals at AZA zoos and aquariums. The majority of those surveyed conducted behavioral research, conducted research only in a captive setting, held curatorial positions, had their salaries supported by their institutions' operating budget, and considered themselves part of a successful scientific program. About 30% of those we surveyed possessed a doctoral research degree in comparison to 55% possessing lesser level degrees—19% with master's, 34% with bachelor's, and 2% with other degrees. Support from the chief executive officer and personnel dedicated to conducting scientific programs were judged as the two most important factors contributing to the successful scientific programs. The information provided in this report may be used to develop and improve both established and newly initiated scientific programs in zoos and aquariums. Zoo Biol 29:663–675, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

The Heat Is On! Using Particle Models to Change Students' Conceptions of Heat and Temperature

Elementary, middle-level, and high school science teachers commonly find their students have misconceptions about heat and temperature. Unfortunately, student misconceptions are difficult to modify or change and can prevent students from learning the accurate scientific explanation. In order to improve our students' understanding of heat and temperature, we created a three-part instructional activity designed to engage them in the development of kinetic particle models. First, the students use household materials—food coloring and water—to investigate and create particle models depicting motion at the molecular level. Second, the students complete a similar activity designed to help them visualize the connections between heat and particle motion. Third, the students build a thermometer, observe it in action, and create particle models explaining how the thermometer works. By the end of the series of activities, the students are able develop their own definitions for heat and temperature. Through this hands-on and minds-on series of activities, students learn to define and differentiate the concepts of heat and temperature.     

A knitted model gut—extending the possibilities

This paper reports on young people's understanding of genes as they near the end of their compulsory science education in the UK. A sample of 482 school students aged 14–16, drawn from across the ability range, took part in this study. Findings, based mainly on written responses to written questions, but supported by interview data, show that this sample had only a very limited understanding of the most basic ideas relating to function, structure, and location of genes. It is argued that these findings are not atypical for this population of school students. The implications for teaching the more complex genetic concepts demanded by the National Curriculum —genetic engineering, for example — are considered.     

Exploring the importance of institutional contexts for the development of ethnic stereotypes: a comparison of schools in Belgium and England

This article suggests the usefulness of an ecological approach in studying the development of teachers' ethnic stereotypes in schools. It builds on existing research in this area by exploring the importance of nationally specific educational contexts and school characteristics on the development of teachers' stereotypes of Turkish minority students. Observation and interview data from case-study research involving one Flemish (Belgian) and one English secondary, multicultural inner-city school suggest differences between Flemish and English teachers' ethnic stereotypes. These differences can in part be explained by the influence of nationally specific regulations governing teachers' power to evaluate students, a nationally specific policy on ethnic minority cultures and needs, the ethnic and gender composition of the school's student and staff population, and the enforcement of an inclusive school policy by the school's senior management. The conclusions discuss implications for further research on ethnic stereotyping and discrimination in schools.     

Marine scientific research and marine pollution in China

Abstract

In recent years coastal states everywhere in the world have paid attention to the preservation of the marine environment and the conduct of marine scientific research. The scope and nature of China's marine scientific research have been expanded and diversified since the late 1970s because of the growing importance of the ocean for the “Four Modernization “ programs. More and more programs have been designed and executed to find fishing resources, search for offshore oil and gas, promote maritime defense, help alleviate the marine pollution problems, reinforce China's territorial claim in the South China Sea, participate in Antarctic scientific research, and to better understand the whole marine environment. This article first examines China's attitude toward the legal regimes of marine pollution and marine scientific research. It depicts China's marine scientific research activities from the early 1950s. Finally it suggests that more scientific research programs will be designed in support of China's ocean development plans in the future.