43 research outputs found
Sex differences in mathematical performance : what do we know about them?
It is generally accepted that mathematics is one academic field where male superiority of achievement is well-established. Far fewer women than men go into careers as mathematicians and those who do, generally do not reach equal employment status with men. Such facts seem to be the culmination of sex differences in mathematical performance which begin to appear around the age of 12 to 15. Up till then, the mathematical performance of boys and girls seems to be fairly equal at any of the three cognitive levels of computation, knowledge of concepts and problem-solving ability on which mathematical achievement is most common:y gauged. The change in performance at the secondary level of schooling tends to be in favour of males who are seen to perform better than females particularly on tasks involving visual spatialisation ability and mathematical reasoning. The girls' discontinuity of performance, even when they have had an identical learning background, has prompted researchers to investigate possible explanations for a phenomenon which Walden and Walkerdine (1982) stress should not be confused with an "overall failure."peer-reviewe
An approach to picture compositions
Most language teachers would agree that teaching composition, the "putting together ... of a sequence of connected sentences" (Byrne, 1978) is a long and often intricate process involving the use of a progression of techniques ranging fr:om very controlled exercises to "free compositions". Along this continuum of methods one finds a major technique which Sarkar (1978) describes as unsurpassed as a stimulus to creative expression": the use of the Picture Composition.peer-reviewe
Quality Evaluation of Early Childhood Education Programmes
In 1989 the New Zealand Council for Educational Research organised a seminar on
Assessment in Early Childhood Education. This was one of the first times that the
topic of assessment and evaluation received formal airing by the early childhood
community. Until then, the generally accepted wisdom had been that assessment in
early childhood education was inappropriate because of the very young age of the
children who use this service and the great variability in developmental progress at this
age.
The 1990s saw a decided increase in interest in assessment and evaluation. Curricular
change, and with it, assessment and evaluation, became part of the national policy
agenda for all parts of the educational sector
"How Is My Child Doing?": Selected Case Studies of How Childcare Centres Meet the DoPs Requirement to Discuss Children's Progress with Parents
The 1989 New Zealand educational reforms heralded major changes in all sectors
of education. These changes included the introduction of a charter, which is
essentially a contract, between the Crown and each individual education service.
The Early Childhood Charter Guidelines: A Statement of Desirable Objectives and
Practices, promulgated by the Minister of Education in December 1990, became
the basis for the contract document required of early childhood centres which
sought to become chartered centres in receipt of government finding.
The Early Childhood Charter Guidelines, commonly referred to as the `DoPs',
include over 60 requirements and objectives which early childhood services must
meet as part of their contractual obligations (Meade and Dalli, 1991). Included in
these is a requirement that centre personnel make provision at all times 'for
parents and families to discuss their child's progress and be informed about their
child's daily programme' (Ministry of Education 1990, p.3).
The meaning and intent of the above requirement was investigated in a study
carried out in the second half of 1994 in which government agency, parent, and
centre personnel understanding of the requirement was investigated. The study
was carried out as part of the requirements of the Master of Education programme
in which the first author was enrolled. This paper focuses on data from interviews
with parents and teachers which show how teachers in eleven childcare centres
translated the requirement into manageable systems within their centres. The
paper also illuminates the practices that developed in the centres from these
systems and the extent to which the requirement became a tool for the
development of parent-teacher partnerships in the education and care of children
Editorial
Editorial for special issue of EECERJ from members of the Special Interest Group on Professionalism in Early Childhood Education and Care
Professionnalisation du système d’accueil et d’éducation
Le plan stratégique décennal pour l’éducation de la petite enfance initié en 2002 en Nouvelle-Zélande a suscité l’intérêt international parce qu’il visait notamment à constituer d’ici à 2012 des équipes de professionnels de l’éducation spécialisés dans la petite enfance. Cette politique de professionnalisation a commencé dans les années soixante-dix, en se donnant comme principes la qualité, l’équité et le respect de la diversité. Cet article reprend les étapes les plus importantes de l’évolution de ce secteur vers une professionnalisation et commente les orientations politiques actuelles.New Zealand’s ten-year strategic plan for early childhood education introduced in 2002 has attracted international interest particularly because of its aim to achieve a fully qualified childhood workforce in teacher-led services by 2012. The professionalisation agenda has a history stretching back to the 1970s in which quality, equity and respect for diversity have been driving forces. This paper reviews important milestones in the sector’s journey towards professionalism including commentary on current policy directions.El plan estratégico decenal para la educación de la pequeña infancia, iniciado en 2002 en Nueva Zelanda, suscitó el interés internacional, ya que pretendÃa concretamente constituir, con un horizonte fijado en el año 2012, equipos de profesionales de la educación, especializados en la pequeña infancia. Esta polÃtica de profesionalización empezó durante los años setenta, atribuyéndose como principios la calidad, la igualdad y el respeto de la diversidad. Este artÃculo retoma las etapas más importantes de la evolución de dicho sector hacia una profesionalización, y del mismo modo, comenta las orientaciones polÃticas actuales
Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power
While research on children’s humour is growing, few investigations have focused on how children use humour in conflict interactions, and specifically in group early childhood settings. Using data extracts from a project that investigated children’s naturally occurring conflict interactions in a multi-ethnic early childhood setting, we use interactional sociolinguistics to analyse how children used humour at unexpected moments during conflict situations. The analysis probes different meanings carried in the children’s use of humour, illustrating how humour intersected with personal and relational power to resolve or defuse conflict, or to coerce compliance with existing peer relational positions. The analysis broadens understandings of the significance of humour in children’s lives in early childhood settings, and particularly in the context of conflict interactions that have a ‘stretchy temporality’ connecting interactive moves to others in the past, and to existing power positions in peer relationships
Editorial: Reviewing the educational landscape of 2010
Reviewing the educational landscape of 201