Chapter 5 of DETYA's volume "The Impact of Educational Research" (Selby-Smith 2000) begins with an examination of the peculiarity of decision making in the VET sector, followed by an examination of the idiosyncratic consequences for the function of research in the sector. Having established the distinctiveness of VET in relation to these two key…

The concept of a behavior domain is a reasonable and essential foundation for psychometric work based on true score theory, the linear model of common factor analysis, and the nonlinear models of item response theory. Investigators applying these models to test data generally treat the true scores or factors or traits as abstractive psychological…

Purpose: This commentary is written in response to a companion paper by Nan Bernstein Ratner ("Evidence-Based Practice: An Examination of its Ramifications for the Practice of Speech-Language Pathology"). Method: The comments reflect my experience as Vice President for Research and Technology of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association…

The framework for this paper is a recently developed theory of abstraction in context. The paper reports on data collected from one student working on tasks concerned with absolute value functions. It examines the relationship between mathematical constructions and abstractions. It argues that an abstraction is a consolidated construction that can…

Students frequently struggle when scientific instruction seems divorced from personal experience, especially in the physical sub-disciplines, like climatology, where exercise books often present historical or abstracted case studies. In contrast I present a three-phase project involving student input on experimental design, data collection, and…

Reinforcers lose their effectiveness when they are presented repeatedly. Early researchers labeled this loss of effectiveness as "satiation" without conducting an experimental analysis. When such an analysis is conducted, "habituation" provides a more precise and empirically accurate label for the changes in reinforcer effectiveness. This paper…

NCTM's Principles and Standards for School Mathematics advises that school mathematics experiences at all levels should include opportunities to learn about mathematics by working on problems arising in contexts outside of mathematics. Students should be given the opportunity to learn mathematics by building on their understandings of how the…

In order to become a UK Nurse Prescriber, a First Level Registered Nurse must undergo an approved University based educational programme, which consists of theory, and a period of practice supervised by doctors. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) requires nurses undertaking this programme to have some formal university attendance and to be…

Though classroom instructional strategies should clearly be based on sound science and research, knowing when to use them and with whom is more of an art. In "The Art and Science of Teaching: A Comprehensive Framework for Effective Instruction," author Robert J. Marzano presents a model for ensuring quality teaching that balances the necessity of…

Introduction: Evidence-based medicine (EBM) integrates published clinical evidence with patient values and clinical expertise, the output of which is informed medical decision making. Key skills for evidence-based practice include acquisition and appraisal of clinical information. Faculty clinicians often lack expertise in these skills and are…

Even though Joel lived a continent away, many sixth-graders at a Title I school in California could easily identify with his life of poverty. Their empathy motivated them to launch an ambitious charitable project, which, Mr. Mitchell argues, had far greater educational value than the relentless test preparation that is standard fare in most…

There has been renewed emphasis on the vocational in recent policy documents concerning provision for the 14-19 age group. More open acknowledgement of the vocational/academic divide within English education has appeared alongside the creation of increased vocational opportunities for young people. Research undertaken for the Transforming Learning…

Social science research suggests that reducing class size has its largest effects on the achievement of minority and inner-city children during the first year of formal schooling. Despite scholarly disagreements about the implications of specific studies on class size, economists generally agree that targeted class-size policies rest on stronger…

Pedro Hernandez-Ramos, James L. Koch, Albert Bruno, and Eric Carlson describe the online collaboratory planned for the Global Social Benefit Incubator (GSBI), an international education program designed to serve social benefit entrepreneurs working in the fields of education, health, economic development, the environment, and equality around the…

Management educators teaching topics such as motivation and leadership face the challenge of clearly explaining why so many diverse theories exist and why each represents a useful tool worth learning. The large number of "core" theories in these and other management domains often frustrates students, who see the lack of a single, comprehensive…