Religion as Dialogical Resource: A Socio-cultural Approach

William James proposed a psychological study of religion examining people's religious experiences, and to see in what sense these were good for them. The recent developments of psychology of religion moved far from that initial proposition. In this paper, we propose a sociocultural perspective to religion that renews with that initial stance. After recalling Vygtotsky's core ideas, we suggest that religion, as cultural and symbolic system, participates to the orchestration of human activities and sense-making. Such orchestration works both from within the person, through internalized values and ideas, and from without, through the person's interactions with others, discourses, cultural objects etc. This leads us to consider religions as supporting various forms of dialogical dynamics—intra-psychological dialogues, interpersonal with present, absent or imaginary others, as well as inter-group dialogues—which we illustrate with empirical vignettes. The example of religious tensions in the Balkans in the 90's highlights how much the historical-cultural embeddedness of these dynamics can also lead to the end of dialogicality, and therefore, sense-makin

Symmetrical social relation as a factor in conservation tasks

According to Siegal’s hypothesis, despite having concrete operational abilities some children are not successful in conservation tasks. Social factors, such as repetition of question asked by an adult experimenter alter the manifestation of existing cognitive abilities. This study varied the following aspects of conservation tasks: symmetrical vs. asymmetrical power relation. The children in the study were asked to solve three different conservation tasks (quantity of continued material, length, and number). Each task was repeated twice; once with an adult experimenter and once with a child experimenter. Results show that children’s responses were affected by social factors only in a certain tasks. In other tasks children’s responses remained unaffected in both situations. This suggests that there exists an interaction between the experimenter and the task, and that the affect of social factor is mediated by a particular characteristic of the task. Results indicate that the modifying factor is the task difficulty

Standards of educational achievements in Serbia: Experience from the first decade

Od 2000. godine opšte obrazovanje u Srbiji prolazi kroz značajne reformske procese koji su, sasvim očekivano, bili povezani sa brojnim dilemama i diskusijama. Iako je proces reforme nekoliko puta menjao pravac i koncepciju, standardi obrazovnih postignuća učenika bili su deo svih koncepcija. Prvo su razvijeni standardi za kraj osnovnog obrazovanja, zatim standardi za kraj prvog ciklusa osnovnog obrazovanja, a poslednjih nekoliko godina radi se na razvoju standarda za opšte srednje obrazovanje. U ovom radu biće analizirana konceptualna pitanja u vezi sa standardima obrazovnih postignuća, a zatim i proces uvođenja i razvoja standarda obrazovnih postignuća u obrazovni sistem Srbije. U prvom delu rada biće razmatrana sledeća konceptualna pitanja: šta su standardi obrazovnih postignuća, po kojim karakteristikama mogu da se razlikuju, zašto su važni bez obzira na sve razlike između pojedinih vrsta standarda i koja su ključna pitanja koja prate uvođenje standarda u obrazovni sistem. U drugom delu rada biće razmatrano kako su razvijani standardi za osnovno i opšte srednje obrazovanje u Srbiji - šta je bio koncept u osnovi njihovog razvoja, ko je bio uključen u njihov razvoj i koji su bili ključni izazovi tokom tog procesa. U zaključnom delu rada biće formulisana teza da su teškoće u razvoju i primeni standarda odraz problema sa kojima se suočava reforma obrazovanja u celini. Osim toga, biće skicirana i četiri scenarija za dalju sudbinu standarda u obrazovnom sistemu u Srbiji: (a) standardi će poslužiti da učenje i nastava u učionici i školi postanu relevantniji, kvalitetniji i pravedniji, (b) standardi će služiti samo kao osnova za nacionalna testiranja i ispite, (v) standardi će, kao nekadašnji ciljevi, biti samo 'mrtvo slovo" na papiru i (g) standardi će biti ukinuti.Since 2000, general education in Serbia has been passing through significant reform processes, which have been subsequently connected with various dilemmas. Although the reform process has changed its direction and concept for several times, standards of educational achievements, o students have always been a part of all concepts. First, there were standards developed for the end of the primary school education, and in recent few years, the work has been done on standards for general secondary education. In this paper, we are analysing concept issues concerning standards of educational achievements, and then the process of introducing and developing of educational achievements into the educational system of Serbia. In the first part of the paper, the following conceptual issues will be discussed: What are the standards of the educational achievements, what are the characteristics they can differ among themselves, why are they important, regardless the differences between some sorts of standards, which are the key issues following the introducing of standards into the educational system. In the second part of the paper, we are discussing the development of standards of primary and secondary education in Serbia - what would be the concept in the essence of their development, and what would be the key challenge during the process. In the conclusion, we are formulating the statement about the difficulties in application standards as the result of problems, which the educational reform is facing overall. Apart from this, there are going to be four scenarios stated for further development of standards in the educational system of Serbia: (a) the standards will serve for the teaching in the classroom to be more relevant, of a better quality and justifiable (b) standards will serve as the basis for national testing and exams (c) standards will, as former aims, mean nothing, d) standards will be abolished

The Big Improvement in PISA 2009 Reading Achievements in Serbia: Improvement of the Quality of Education or Something Else?

The PISA 2009 results in Serbia show a big improvement in reading literacy compared to 2006 – the average score is 41 points higher, which is equal to the effect of a whole year of schooling in OECD countries and represents the second highest improvement ever recorded in a PISA study. In the present paper, we discuss potential reasons for such a big improvement based on analysis of the PISA 2009 reading achievements in different countries, with a special focus on countries from the same region (Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Romania and Albania). The analysis shows that the largest part of the improvement was realised at lower achieving levels, suggesting that the dominant method of teaching in schools is a traditional method oriented towards the acquisition and reproduction of academic knowledge. Findings of data analysis support the conclusion that the improvement is mainly the result of certain contextual factors, such as higher student motivation and a high level of official support for the PISA study in Serbia, rather than representing a real improvement in the quality of education

Construction and co-construction in the zone of proximal development: Could both Piaget and Vygotsky be right?

Osnovni cilj ovog istraživanja je da se odgovori na sledeća pitanja: (1) Kakva je povezanost između zone aktuelnog razvoja (ZAR) i zone narednog razvoja (ZNR)?, (2) Da li će efekti rešavanja zadataka uz pomoć odrasle osobe biti relativno trajni?, (3) Da li ZNR ima prediktivnu vrednost za buduće postignuće nezavisno od ZAR? i (4) Koji aspekt zajedničkog rešavanja ima veći značaj za predikciju budućeg postignuća dece - afektivno-motivacioni ili kognitivni? Izveden je eksperiment sa paralelnim grupama u kojem je učestvovalo 126 dece. Eksperimentalni tretman se sastojao od zajedničkog rešavanja Ravenovih matrica pri čemu je eksperimentator pružao graduiranu pomoć ispitanicima. Dobijeni rezultati sugerišu: (1) da postoji pozitivna niska korelacija između ZAR i ZNR, (2) da zajedničko rešavanje ima relativno trajne efekte kada je u pitanju kasnije postignuće dece, (3) da je ZNR važan prediktor kasnijeg postignuća nezavisno od ZAR, i (4) da afektivno-motivacioni aspekt zajedničke delatnosti ima snažniji uticaj na kasnije postignuće nego kognitivni aspekti mada i oni imaju određeni efekat.The main goal of the research is to get evidence to address the following issues: (1) What is the relationship between the Zone of Actual Development (ZAD) and the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)?, (2) Is the effect of the tasks joint solving relatively durable?, (3) Does the ZPD have predictive values for the future achievement over and above of ZAD?, and (4) What is more important for the prediction of future achievements - affective-motivational or cognitive help in joint solving? The experiment with parallel groups with 126 subjects is realised. Experimental treatment is consisted of solving of Raven matrices items with a gradual help given by experimenter according to previously defined plan. The results suggest: (1) there is positive and low correlation between ZAD and ZPD, (2) the effect of joint solving is relatively durable, (3) ZPD is significant predictor of future achievements over and above of ZAD, and (4) affective-motivational aspect of joint activity has stronger influence on future achievements than cognitive one

Towards a science inquiry test in primary education: development of items and scales

Background Inquiry-based learning is widely applied in science education; however, so far, the outcomes of learning process have been systematically assessed mainly at the secondary school level. For primary school students, there is no valid instrument for assessing the outcomes of their science inquiry. The aim of the current study was to develop a test for assessing science learning outcomes (analytical skills, planning skills, interpretation skills, and science knowledge) related to the five phases of inquiry-based learning (Orientation, Conceptualization, Investigation, Conclusion, and Discussion) at primary education level (ISCED 1). Results A set of contextualized science tasks was created to assess each of the learning outcomes at three levels. The Science Inquiry Test for Primary Education (SIT-PE test) was developed through several phases, including pilot studies with large groups of fourth-grade students (10 to 11 years of age). The 1 PL Item Response Theory model was used to analyze the quality of the test and items based on the test's reliability score, item difficulty measure, infit and outfit indices, estimation of item discrimination, item-scale correlation, and the quality of the scoring key. The final test, consisting of 24 items, was used with a sample of 1868 students. The analysis showed the SIT-PE test to be of good quality on test level and item level and to also have good predictive validity. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the correlated factors model and second-order factor model of the science learning outcomes both had a good fit to data collected with the SIT-PE test. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the multidimensionality of science learning outcomes and validated four dimensions of the model: analytical skills, planning skills, interpretation skills, and science knowledge. Conclusions In conclusion, the SIT-PE test could be further used for assessing students' inquiry competence in primary education. However, it could be even further improved in several ways and this study provides guidelines on how to do that. In addition, the SIT-PE provides test developers with information on how to design derivations of the SIT-PE test for assessing particular science inquiry outcomes or the same outcomes in older age groups as well

Unfolding the assessment process in a whole class mathematics setting

Aktivnosti ocenjivanja na času predstavljaju važan aspekt prakse u učionici. U isto vreme, debata o prednostima i značaju formativnog ocenjivanja spram sumativnog i dalje se nastavlja. Ocenjivanje se ne odvija izvan okvira svakodnevne prakse u učionici, pa se, samim tim, na ocenjivanje gleda kao veoma kompleksan proces. U ovom radu želimo da istražimo način na koji se ocenjivanje stavlja u službu učenja učenika i da li se informacije koje nastavnik kroz ocenjivanje prikuplja koriste (ili ne) kako bi se svakodnevna praksa nastavnika u nastavi matematike prilagodila raznovrsnim potrebama učenika. Za potrebe ovog rada autori su pratili nastavnu praksu iskusnog nastavnika matematike u jednoj gimnaziji u Beogradu. Prakse ocenjivanja nastavnika posmatrane su u periodu od tri nedelje. Analiza pokazuje da nastavnik poseduje kompleksnu predstavu o tome kako ocenjivanje u učionici treba da izgleda, ali je percepcija toga u velikoj meri odvojena od nastave, što je u skladu s prethodnim nalazima. Međutim, elementi formativnog ocenjivanja se pojavljuju, pa doprinose tome da se ocenjivanje nađe u službi učenja. Uprkos tome, kada se pobliže posmatra način na koji nastavnik prati napredak učenika, evidentiran je ograničen skup praksi. Uočen je i nesklad između percepcija učenika i nastavnika u vezi s procesom ocenjivanja i primenjenim praksama. Takođe, nastavnik se suočava s teškoćama kada treba da verbalizuje neke od aspekata sopstvene prakse, naročito ako se oni vezuju za formativne karakteristike procene postgnuća učenika. PR Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 179034 i br. 179018. .Assessment activities in the class are an important aspect of classroom practice, while there is much debate with respect to the formative vs. summative assessment routines and the outcomes that each of them provides for students' learning. As classroom assessment does not occur in seclusion of other aspects of classroom life, the process is seen as rather complex. In this study we wished to explore how assessment serves the function of supporting students' learning and whether this evidence is used to adapt teacher's practices in meeting different learning needs in the mathematics classroom. The authors observed assessment practices of an experienced math teacher in a grammar school in Belgrade. Teacher's assessment practices were observed during a three week period. The analysis has shown the teacher to hold a somewhat complex perception of assessment, yet the perception is largely detached from teaching, which is in line with the previously reported results. However, the elements of formative assessment do emerge, thus contributing to the assessment being in service of learning. In spite of this, a narrow set of practices are visible when observing how the teacher keeps track of students' progress. A mismatch is visible between students' and teacher's perceptions of the assessment as a whole and some of the practices exercised in the process. The teacher struggled to verbalize some aspects of own assessment practices, especially those related to more formative aspects

Uloga asimetrične interakcije u proceni neverbalnih sposobnosti dece iz Svratišta

The aim of this article is to show how a differently organized testing procedure can lead to a better understanding of intellectual capacity in children who live or work in the streets. The study presented in it tried to answer the following questions: 1) Does the achievement of children from the Drop-in center improve significantly on a nonverbal intelligence test when solved together with the experimenter? 2) Which type of scaffolding is most effective for children's task solving - affective-motivational, visual cognitive or verbal cognitive? 3) Which features of the asymmetric interactions enable children to find a solution to the tasks that they previously failed to solve? The sample consisted of 30 children from the Belgrade Drop-in center. Initially, the Kohs block design test was administered independently to children, and if they failed to solve it, the experimenter would provide scaffolding gradually, as listed above. The results showed that the children's achievement was very low when doing the test independently, but improved significantly when solving the tasks in interaction. According to cluster analysis four groups of children were identified which served as basis for the qualitative analysis. The conversational analysis between the children and the experimenter showed what proved to be the most significant difference between the groups, which is the function of affective-motivational help with task solving. It also demonstrated that the affective-motivational aid was a part of every successful interaction, but usually needed to be combined with its cognitive variants. As these results suggest, the standardized testing procedures need to be adapted so as to make sure that the children understand the demands of the tasks and that they are motivated and supported to reach the goal of the interaction. Only then can we obtain more valid information about the cognitive capacities of the children from the Drop-in center.Kognitivna procena dece iz marginalizovanih sredina često je otežana zbog kulturoloških razlika koje se javljaju između normiranog i ispitivanog uzorka, zatim zbog prepreka koje nosi nizak socioekonomski status ispitivane dece, njihova edukativna depriviranost, ali i jezičkih barijera koje se javljaju prilikom testiranja. Upravo radi potrebe da se poveća informativnost kognitivnih procena i kod dece iz marginalizovanih sredina, razvilo se dinamičko procenjivanje, koje podrazumeva dobijanje informacija o aktuelnom, ali i o potencijalnom postignuću deteta. U ovom istraživanju želeli smo da bolje razumemo intelektualne kapacitete i specifičnosti korisnika beogradskog Svratišta za decu koja žive ili rade na ulici. Konkretno, cilj istraživanja bio je usmeren ka traženju odgovora na sledeća pitanja: 1) Da li se postignuće dece iz Svratišta na neverbalnom testu inteligencije značajno povećava kada ga rešavaju u asimetričnoj interakciji sa ispitivačem; 2) Koja vrsta pomoći je najčešće bila potrebna deci da urade zadatke koje nisu mogli samostalno - afektivno-motivaciona pomoć, vizuelna ili verbalna varijanta kognitivne pomoći; 3) Na koji način su deca u okviru datih pomoći došla do rešenja za koja prethodno nisu imala neophodne kognitivne strukture ili nisu uspela da ih upotrebe da bi došla do rešenja? U istraživanju je učestvovalo tridesetoro dece, korisnika Svratišta za decu koji žive u neformalnim naseljima, potiču iz mnogočlanih, ekstremno siromašnih porodica i izjašnjavaju se kao pripadnici romske zajednice. Najveći broj njih odlikuje vaspitno-edukativna depriviranost. Neverbalne kognitivne sposobnosti dece merene su testom Kosove kocke - suptestom u REVISK testu. Zadatak svakog deteta bio je da prvo pokuša samostalno da sklopi kocke i tek u slučaju neuspeha ispitivač je pružao prvo afektivno-motivacionu pomoć - sugerisao je detetu da razmisli ponovo i hrabrio ga time da on veruje da dete sigurno može da reši taj zadatak. Ukoliko uz ovaj nivo pomoći dete ne bi uspelo da reši zadatak, ispitivač je prelazio na prvi korak kognitivnog nivoa pomoći (vizuelna kognitivna pomoć), u kom se detetu davao model sa iscrtanim granicama kocaka. Ako ni uz ovaj nivo pomoći dete ne bi uspelo da reši zadatak, ispitivač je prelazio na drugi korak kognitivnog nivoa pomoći, koji je obuhvatao verbalno predstavljanje strategije koja je prethodno vizuelno sugerisana. Nakon ovog nivoa pomoći ispitivač je prelazio na sledeći zadatak koji dete nije uspešno rešilo u samostalnom pokušaju. Sva ispitivanja su snimana video-kamerom, uz prethodno odobrenje svakog deteta i saglasnost roditelja. Dobijeni rezultati pokazuju da su u okviru samostalnog rešavanja deca postizala značajno niže skorove u odnosu na norme koje su nastale na osnovu standardizacije instrumenta u opštoj populaciji. Ovaj nalaz je očekivan, s obzirom na to da su postignuća dece procenjivana na osnovu normativne grupe koja nije referentna za ispitivanu populaciju. Međutim, ispitivana deca su u asimetričnoj interakciji pokazala značajno napredovanje. Na osnovu dobijenih kvantitativnih podataka nismo bili u mogućnosti da izdvojimo jednu pomoć koja je najviše doprinela napretku, ali nam je u tome pomogla kvalitativna analiza interakcija ispitivača i dece. Kao polazna osnova za kvalitativnu analizu poslužila nam je klaster analiza, kojom su izdvojene četiri grupe dece. Ova analiza je pokazala da je afektivno-motivaciona pomoć bila sastavni deo svake uspešne interakcije, s tim što su se klasteri razlikovali prema tome koju je funkciju imala afektivno-motivaciona pomoć pri rešavanju testa u asimetričnoj interakciji. Dobijeni rezultati sugerišu da je za dobijanje tačnije informacije o kognitivnim kapacitetima dece Svratišta neophodno napustiti okvire standardne testovne procedure kako bi im bila obezbeđena mogućnost za bolje razumevanje zahteva koji su pred njima, kao i motivacija i podrška neophodni za postizanje cilja interakcije