The transition from concrete to formal thinking

The thesis consists of a developmental study designed to investigate the transition from Concrete to Formal Operational Thought. A total of 236 subjects - 48, 48, 44, 48, and 48 in five age groups (10, 11, 12 , 13 and 14 year-olds, respectively) -is tested (a) on one of Inhelder and Piaget's (1958) tasks (the Pendulum Problem) and (b) on a Four Group Task adapted from Dienes and jeeves (1965). It is argued that there are distinguishable concrete and formal operational approaches to the latter task. The samples of subjects for individual testing are chosen to be typical of the relevant school grades in terms of two variables:- raw score on the Standard Progressive Matrices and Mathematics Mark in a school examination. An introduction to the transition from Concrete to Formal Operational thinking is given and then Chapters 1, 2 and 3 provide the theoretical and empirical background to the study. The format and the learning and questioning procedures for the Pour Group Task are described in Chapter 4 (with details in Appendices I and II) and the descriptions of other measures and the experimental design given in Chapter 5 (with details in Appendix III). Scoring procedures developed for performance on the Pendulum Problem are outlined in Chapter 6 and for performance on the Four Group Task in Chapter 7 (with some transcripts from interviews on the latter task presented in Appendix IV; Appendix II also gives indications of the different types of response to questioning and the associated ratings made). Chapter 8 discusses the results purely in terms of performance categories and the frequencies of subjects in them (associated tables are in Appendix V), Chapter 9 describes the derivation of quantitative scores on the two tasks, and investigates the interrelationships of a number of variables (associated tables are in Appendix VI), Tables of raw data are presented in Appendix VII. Concrete and Formal levels of understanding of the Four Group Task are described, using detailed material from interviews, in Chapter 10, and the relationship of performance on this task to other variables discussed, together with theoretical and methodological implications in Chapter 11

Interactions Between Students With Emotional/Behavioral Disorders and Teachers in the Mainstream Setting

The author assessed the self reported behaviors of mainstream academic high school teachers who teach students with emotional/behavioral disorders with respect to preferred consequences for inappropriate student behaviors. Teachers were surveyed from four counties and asked to respond to an inappropriate student behavior with 1) positive reinforcement of the appropriate student behavior, 2) punishment of an inappropriate student behavior, 3) consequence which resulted in student escape from the academic task (negative reinforcement) or a free response of the teacher\u27s choice. Results indicated that 49.6% of teacher responses were examples of positive reinforcement, 25.4% negative reinforcement, 6.4% punishment and 18.6% other responses. A chi squared test demonstrated a significant difference between the observed responses and the expected responses for the overall results. Positive reinforcement was chosen more frequently than expected, while negative reinforcement was chosen as often as expected . These findings suggest that both reinforcement techniques are being chosen by mainstream academic teachers who teach students with emotional/behavioral disorders, despite research which suggests that negative reinforcement is ineffective for reducing inappropriate student behaviors

U.S. Race Relations and Foreign Policy

It is easy for Americans to think that the world’s most egregious human rights abuses happen in other countries. In reality, our history is plagued by injustices, and our present reality is still stained by racism and inequality. While the Michigan Journal of International Law usually publishes only pieces with a global focus, we felt it prudent in these critically important times not to shy away from the problems facing our own country. We must understand our own history before we can strive to form a better union, whether the union be the United States or the United Nations. Ambassador Susan Page is an American diplomat who has faced human rights crises both at home and abroad. We found her following call to action inspiring. We hope you do too

Sources of satisfaction and stress among Indigenous academic teachers: findings from a national Australian study

Academics of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent are few in number but play a vital role in Australian university teaching. In addition to teaching both Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, they interact with academic colleagues in a context where pressures to “Indigenize” Australian curricula and increase Indigenous enrolments are growing. In this article, we will draw on our nation-wide research with Indigenous academics to further explore this under-researched area of Australian university teaching, and the highs and lows of how Indigenous teachers experience their roles. Our findings reveal that for our Indigenous colleagues, sources of personal and professional satisfaction – as well as stress – appear qualitatively different from those commonly associated with academic work. Of particular concern are the findings in relation to issues of cultural difference on our campuses, played out in the ways Indigenous and non-Indigenous staff and students interact daily. Counterbalancing this potential negativity is the strong, indeed inspiring, commitment on the part of our Indigenous academic participants to the educational futures of their students, and thus, to the futures of Indigenous communities across Australia. The findings raise some thought-provoking questions for individuals and institutions in the higher education systems of our region, and perhaps beyond

Collaborating with Businesses to Support and Sustain Research

Financial assistance is necessary for sustaining research at universities. Business collaborations are a potential means for obtaining these funds. To secure funding, understanding the process for obtaining these business funds is important for nursing faculty members. Although faculty rarely request funding from businesses, they are often in a position to solicit financial support due to existing relationships with clinical agency administrators, staff, and community leaders. The economic support received from businesses provides outcomes in nursing research, research education, academic–service partnerships, and client health care. This article describes the steps and processes involved in successfully obtaining research funding from businesses. In addition, case examples for securing and maintaining funding from health care agencies (evidence-based practice services) and from a health manufacturing company (product evaluation) are used to demonstrate the process

Seasonal variability in methane and nitrous oxide fluxes from tropical peatlands in the western Amazon basin

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Greenhouse gas dynamics in degraded and restored tropical peatlands

Agricultural and other land uses on ombrotrophic lowland tropical peat swamps typically lead to reduced vegetation biomass and water table drawdown. We review what is known about greenhouse gas (GHG) dynamics in natural and degraded tropical peat systems in south-east Asia, and on this basis consider what can be expected in terms of GHG dynamics under restored conditions. Only limited in situ data are available on the effects of restoration and the consequences for peat carbon (C) dynamics. Hydrological restoration seeks to bring the water table closer to the peat surface and thus re-create near-natural water table conditions, in order to reduce wildfire risk and associated fire impacts on the peat C store, as well as to reduce aerobic peat decomposition rates. However, zero emissions are unlikely to be achieved due to the notable potential for carbon dioxide (CO2) production from anaerobic peat decomposition processes. Increased vegetation cover (ideally woody plants) resulting from restoration will increase shading and reduce peat surface temperatures, and this may in turn reduce aerobic decomposition rates. An increase in litter deposition rate will compensate for C losses by peat decomposition but also increase the supply of labile C, which may prime decomposition, especially in peat enriched with recalcitrant substrates. The response of tropical peatland GHG emissions to peatland restoration will also vary according to previous land use and land use intensity.Peer reviewe