Assessment of Student Problem-Solving on Ill-Defined Tasks

Investigations of formal problem-solving are conducted with the expectation that they will predict or at least help understand informal or everyday problem-solving. For instance, if a student scores well on a multiple-choice physics exam, the expectation is that the student will also do well on an everyday physics problem. Traditionally the evaluation of problem-solving skills in educational testing and cognitiw psychology has been dominated by formal, objectively scored tests, for example, multiple-choice tests (Garnham & Oakhill, 1994; Hambleton & Murphy, 1992). The relationship between formal and informal processes is questionable, however (Galotti, 1989). Formal tests may not elicit the same cognitive processes as informal tasks because they lack the process authenticity of informal tasks (Royer, Cisero, & Carlo, 1993). To address the lack of process authenticity, problem-solving skills can be directly evaluated using tasks that are "ill defined" and therefore more likely to elicit the cognitive processes associated with informal, everyday tasks. The purpose of the present study was to construct informal, performance tasks to evaluate both junior and senior high school students' problem-solving in mathematics. The task for students was to evaluate other students' solutions to two questions in mathematics. Results indicate that higher-achieving students generally preferred responses reflecting multiple approaches to problem-solving. A smaller number of students were also interviewed individually and asked to think aloud as they evaluated the solutions. Results indicate that students found multiple approaches to problem-solving desirable, while at the same time exhibiting problem-solving biases.Les études sur la résolution formelle de problèmes sont entreprises dans l'attente qu'elles prédiront, ou du moins aideront à comprendre, la résolution quotidienne ou informelle de problèmes. Par exemple, si un élève réussit bien à un examen de physique à choix multiples, on s'attend à ce que sa performance soit aussi positive lors de la résolution d'un problème quotidien concernant la physique. Traditionnellement, l'évaluation des habiletés de résolution de problèmes dans les tests de rendement et dans la psychologie cognitive a été dominée par des examens formels et objectifs tels ceux à choix multiples (Garnham & Oakhill, 1994; Hambleton & Murphy, 1992). Cependant, le rapport entre les processus formel et informel est discutable (Galotti, 1989). Les examens formels, n'ayant pas l'authenticité procédurale des tâches informelles, pourraient ne pas faire appel aux mêmes processus cognitifs que les examens informels (Royer, Cisero, & Carlo, 1993). Pour parer au manque d'authenticité procédurale, on peut évaluer les habiletés de résolution de problèmes en employant des tâches qui sont "mal définies" et donc plus aptes à faire appel aux processus cognitifs associés aux tâches informelles de tous les jours. Le but de la présente étude était de créer des tâches informelles pour évaluer la capacité de résolution de problèmes en mathématiques d'élèves de la 7e à la 12e année. La tâche des élèves était d'évaluer les solutions que les autres élèves avaient fournies à deux questions de mathématiques. Les résultats indiquent qu'en général, les élèves les plus performants préfirent les réponses impliquant des approches multiples à la résolution de problèmes. Lors d'entrevues individuelles avec un plus petit nombre d'élèves, on leur a demandé de réfléchir à haut voix en évaluant les solutions. Les résultats indiquent que les élèves jugent désirables les approches multiples à la résolution de problèmes, tout en démontrant des préjugés quant au processus de résolution

Operationalizing the role of trust for student wellbeing, learning and achievement

Abstract:  This paper provides an argument regarding the importance of relational trust between students and teachers during the learning process. Establishing this trust is expected to foster student wellbeing and lead to openness to learn and increased innovativeness. However, there is a relative dearth of theoretical and empirical literature on behaviors to establish relational trust (Bryk & Schneider, 2002; Tschannen-Moran & Hoy, 1997), and how these behaviors can be expected to lead to wellbeing and academic achievement. The Learning Errors and Formative Feedback (LEAFF) model is proposed to organize key aspects of the theoretical literature as they might relate to measurable ways in which trust can be promoted with specific words and actions in the classroom to enhance learning. Based on the LEAFF model, a framework is designed to operationalize facets of trust to help teachers develop trusting relationships with their students. However, the potential effects of these facets need to be empirically tested in future studies to secure optimal learning outcomes.

The effect of surveillance and appreciative inquiry on puerperal infections : a longitudinal cohort study in India

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Integrated Genomic Analysis of the Ubiquitin Pathway across Cancer Types

Protein ubiquitination is a dynamic and reversibleprocess of adding single ubiquitin molecules orvarious ubiquitin chains to target proteins. Here,using multidimensional omic data of 9,125 tumorsamples across 33 cancer types from The CancerGenome Atlas, we perform comprehensive molecu-lar characterization of 929 ubiquitin-related genesand 95 deubiquitinase genes. Among them, we sys-tematically identify top somatic driver candidates,including mutatedFBXW7with cancer-type-specificpatterns and amplifiedMDM2showing a mutuallyexclusive pattern withBRAFmutations. Ubiquitinpathway genes tend to be upregulated in cancermediated by diverse mechanisms. By integratingpan-cancer multiomic data, we identify a group oftumor samples that exhibit worse prognosis. Thesesamples are consistently associated with the upre-gulation of cell-cycle and DNA repair pathways, char-acterized by mutatedTP53,MYC/TERTamplifica-tion, andAPC/PTENdeletion. Our analysishighlights the importance of the ubiquitin pathwayin cancer development and lays a foundation fordeveloping relevant therapeutic strategies

The learning sciences in educational assessment : the role of cognitive models

270 hlm.; 23 cm