Challenging Beliefs to Promote Student Learning

Students (and teachers) have a difficult time learning things that contradict their current understanding of the world; most of us believe that new information we receive confirms our earlier beliefs, theories, interpretations, and arguments. Often we seek out information that confirms these beliefs, while overlooking or avoiding contradictory views and data. Simply lecturing to students is less effective than active learning in developing high-order cognitive skills.To learn and grow, we must confront competing theories and evidence. To teach effectively, and promote student learning, we must encourage our students to do so, too

Five Myths and Realities About Generation Y

The notion of generational differences has been around since society has been documented. The bible documents conflict between generations. In the 1950’s, Elvis Presley’s unashamed hip swivelling was surely going to be the end of society. Our parents did not understand us, and we struggle to understand why our children would prefer to spend hours on interactive video games instead of kicking a football in the park. Our world is very different today from the world of our parents, grandparents and their parents, so it stands to reason that generations will adapt to a different world as well as influence the progress of the world. Born between 1980 and 1994 (McRindle, 2006), these people are often characterised as being fickle, technology savvy, disrespectful of authority and over confident. In the workplace, tension often mounts as managers and co-workers are confronted by alien views of the world of work from a generation raised on technology and excesses. At university, lecturers are often taken aback by attitudes so foreign to their way of developing knowledge, they cannot reconcile the two. This paper explores some of the myths and ambiguities about Generation Y (Gen Y) to help understand their style and some strategies to help academics cope with Gen Y students in their classroom

Using Ubuntu: A New Research Trend for Developing Effective Communication across Cultural Barriers

Language and communication provide great challenges in a global world. New trends in communicating effectively across cultural and geographic boundaries face inherent and often subtle barriers. Generally, communicators do not even realize that they have missed hidden cues until the occasion and opportunity have passed. Enhancing communication requires an individual or group to understand the underlying concepts upon which the language and communication practices depend; these concepts also serve as the basic elements for developing social, economic, educational, political, and other related structures. These underlying concepts form our world views. Comprehending the complex interconnections between language and communication and these related sub-fields relies on recognizing the world view concepts that underlie these connections. In this research paper we offer the following research question: what knowledge or understanding is required for effective communication across cultural differences? And we use Ubuntu as an example of world view’s impact on human communication and structure

At odds with inclusive education

A research treatise on "inclusive education."This article presents the author's views, experiences and observations as well as ideas obtained from reviews of literature concerning inclusive education. The author questions the usefulness, practicability and acceptability of inclusive education, especially in developing countries where there are teacher-pupil ratios and acute shortages of teaching/leaning materials. If our aim is to empower children so that they become independent and full participants in society, then we need special and separate schooling so that these children get the most relevant and appropriate knowledge, skills and abilities that will enable them to compete meaningfully with anyone else in the world of work. To the author, inclusive education is a step backwards; it is an attempt to undermine our achievements in special needs education

The Echo: October 7, 1988

Parents’ Weekend features ‘food, fellowship and fun’ – Coach Odle to be honored – Taylor University again rates as ‘one of the best’ – New Faculty Spotlight – Musical cast announced – Parents’ Weekend Schedule Highlights – Developing our World (Series) Views – TU students active in pro-life march – Alumnus donates software – Intramural Football Stats… -- Chicago Sculpture donates to Taylor – Home is… Where you hang your head – Lynette’s guide to… Where to Go and What to See – Taylor equestrians sponsor first show – SAC Your ticket to… -- Perspectives and Issues – Campus media plans new programming for year – Amnesty International chapter formed – Bakke shares Ecuador experience – Unity creates success for soccer – Campus Notices – Cross country team sets season goals – Taylor football outscores Andersonhttps://pillars.taylor.edu/echo-1988-1989/1004/thumbnail.jp

Critical Success Factors for a Knowledge-Based Economy: An Empirical Study into Background Factors of Economic Dynamism

The past decade has shown a rising popularity of the notion of the knowledge-based economy. In Europe this has led to important political paradigms such as the Lisbon Accord and the Barcelona targets, which have become signposts for R&D policy in the EU. The relationship between knowledge and economic growth is often studied in a conceptual and empirical context by addressing correlations between these factors (on the basis of e.g. the new growth theory and endogenous growth theory). This paper takes a complementary, more exploratory route. Starting from the notions of modern knowledge and growth theory, it examines views and attitudes of experts and industrial, R&D or research leaders to identify the critical success factors that are decisive for economic dynamism of a region or country. Knowledge is conceived of as a social capital asset that may reduce or maintain accelerated economic growth. In our study, a sample of 'knowledge experts' is used to identify the relative importance attached by these experts to the various factors that shape the force field of a knowledge-based economy. The results are analyzed using statistical regression methods and common factor analysis. The study is carried out for different types of regions/ countries in the world (the Netherlands, developed regions, developing regions, and semi-developed regions).critical success factors/factor analysis/growth/innovation/knowledge-based economy

Curtin’s Circus : the Prime Minister and Canberra news correspondents, 1941-1945

While the Australian wartime Prime Minister, John Curtin, has been the subject of intensive biographical and historical material, particularly during World War II, very few publications have focused on his relationships with journalists. Certainly, there is a distinct absence of a comprehensive study of his mass media strategies that would give us a detailed insight into his leadership in a critical period. Major forces converged with the commencement of another global war, the rapid expansion of relatively new radio and film industries, along with the appointment as prime minister of a skilful Labor communicator, well-known for his passionately anti-conscription views during World War I.This thesis investigates Curtin’s success in persuading the predominantly conservative news media to promote his wartime views. First, it identifies the prime minister’s mass media strategies to influence the Canberra Parliamentary Press Gallery journalists and their editors to accept his wartime policies and portray them positively in the media.The thesis argues that Curtin revealed a genius for initiating, developing and overseeing mass media strategies that made the best use of the latest technology to persuade journalists to communicate his government’s policies. In doing so, he extended the Australian public sphere, and his impact on political communications remains evident today. Curtin also bestowed a permanent legacy to benefit the parliamentary press gallery, contributing to our understanding of contemporary political journalism

Indigenous citizenship, shared fate, and non-ideal circumstances

This paper discusses the notion of ‘citizenship as shared fate’ as a potentially inclusive and real-world responsive way of understanding Indigenous citizenship in a non-ideal world. The paper draws on Melissa Williams’ work on ‘citizenship as shared fate,’ and assesses some of the benefits and drawbacks of using this notion to understand citizenship in Indigenous and modern state contexts. In particular, the paper focuses on the challenges that existing non-ideal circumstances – past and enduring injustices and unequal power relations – bring to the understanding of ‘citizenship as shared fate’, and the normative constraints for realizing such citizenship in our contemporary world. By developing this notion in light of Indigenous claims for justice, the paper proposes three side constraints to the notion of ‘citizenship as shared fate,’ including its openness to different views of history, the role of history in shaping the future, and acknowledging – and countering – prevailing power relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. The paper concludes by looking at some of the implications of the reconceptualized notion of ‘citizenship as shared fate’ for the shaping of Indigenous/non-Indigenous relations in the Nordic/Sápmi context

The Effects of Trade, Aid, and Investment on China's Image in Developing Countries

One goal of China’s Go Out policy is to create goodwill in countries around the world. At the same time, China’s growing economic engagement has provoked much criticism. This paper is the first to study whether these activities change the attitudes of individuals in developing countries towards China at both the national and subnational level. Using repeated cross-sectional survey data from the Latinobarómetro, we analyze whether and how growing amounts of exports, foreign aid, and foreign direct investment from China to Latin America affect opinions on China within 18 Latin American countries over the 2002-2013 period. We run instrumental-variables regressions by exploiting exogenous variation in the supply of Chinese exports, aid, and investment proxied by China’s market penetration of developing countries outside Latin America. In contrast to the widespread criticism, we do not find evidence that China’s growing economic activities in the respective countries deteriorate average attitudes towards China — neither at the national nor the provincial level. However, our results show that the young, educated, and economically privileged population develops more positive views of China. We interpret this as evidence that China’s economic engagement creates winners and losers