Urban legends are plausible stories--told as truths--that revolve around the complexities and challenges of modern life. Sociologists have not managed to pin down exactly how and why these stories get started, but they are clearly spread by word of mouth and there is usually a grain of truth in them (and sometimes, as it turns out in the case of…

A novel explanation of belief bias in relational reasoning is presented based on the role of working memory and retrieval in deductive reasoning, and the influence of prior knowledge on this process. It is proposed that belief bias is caused by the believability of a conclusion in working memory which influences its activation level, determining…

This paper critically discusses the role of the interpreter in the validation of the prior learning of recent immigrants arriving in Sweden by drawing on a perspective from the sociology of translation. The recent immigrants' difficulties with speaking the local language is usually described as the main problem when it comes to validating their…

With more adults seeking unique and meaningful learning experiences in both recreational and professional arenas, informal learning institutions, such as museums, zoos, and botanical gardens are a natural source. Informal learning opportunities are the business of these institutions; moreover, a goal in education mission statements of many of…

Categorization is one of the main mental processes by which perception and conception develop. Nevertheless, categorization receives little attention with the development of critical thinking in Taiwan elementary schools. Thus, the present study investigates the effect that individual differences have on performing categorization tasks.…

In this study, we examine students' educational attitudes upon the transition to Dutch senior vocational education (SVE), a transition associated with high dropout rates in the first year. Prior studies have identified differences in educational attitudes between sociodemographic groups. However, the mechanisms underlying those differences remain…

Purpose: The study uses data drawn from a senior finance major cohort of 78 female undergraduates at Zayed University (ZU)-UAE to investigate factors, which increase the likelihood of achieving better academic performance in an Islamic finance course based on information about socioeconomic background of female students. The paper aims to discuss…

Two-year colleges enroll many students every year that are not prepared for college level work. The purpose of this study was to determine what factors contribute to students needing to take remediation as well as what factors lead to successfully exiting developmental education. This study looked at students who began postsecondary education in…

Research on the experiences of teacher leaders returning to classroom teaching (Fiarman, 2007; Munroe, 2013, 2014a) has indicated that this career change is complex and often fraught with unanticipated tensions and frustrations such that the potential contribution of these returning teacher leaders is not realized. We explore the experience of a…

Context: The field of athletic training needs young engaged professionals for continued progress in allied health care. Academic and clinical requirements during the entry-level education could potentially impact the decisions and directions these students choose to pursue as young professionals. Objective: To determine the difference in…

This study aims at measuring the amount of the effect of the reader's background knowledge on performance in reading comprehension tests through the assessment of information gained in reading comprehension (RC) tests across-four testing techniques, short answer questions ,true-false items, multiple-choice items, and cloze test and re-test. This…

International education is an increasingly important part of business programs throughout the world. This paper investigates the willingness of Kuwaiti business students to study abroad. It tests the hypotheses that student willingness to study abroad is related to a number of variables, including self-efficacy, perceived benefit of study abroad,…

With the growing prevalence of Web 2.0 technologies and use of online resources in their classrooms, language learners have increasing exposure to online texts. In this study we attempted to understand how university level second language (L2) readers construct meaning when reading online. We investigated L2 readers' information-seeking strategies…

This study examines the changing perspectives of Taiwanese student teachers toward the news coverage of educational events by proposing a framework of reading, dialogue, and reflection on education-related news report. In this study, we enrolled 28 student teachers to participate in the framework, being practiced seven times. To validate the…

In a democratic education system, it is important to provide equal opportunity to every child. Both educators and researchers acknowledge a gap between students who attend school ready to learn and those who do not. School readiness prepares students for this learning. The purpose of the study was to ascertain Turkish classroom teachers'…