Uncovering variability in children's concepts and conceptual change

Capturing the structure and development of human conceptual knowledge is a challenging but fundamental task in Cognitive Science. The most prominent approach to uncovering these concepts is Multidimensional scaling (MDS), which has provided insight into the structure of human perception and conceptual knowledge. However, MDS usually requires participants to produce large numbers of similarity judgments, leading to prohibitively long experiments for most developmental research. Furthermore, MDS provides a single psychological space, tailored to a fixed set of stimuli. In contrast, we present a method that learns psychological spaces flexibly and generalizes to novel stimuli. In addition, our approach uses a simple, developmentally appropriate task, which allows for short and engaging developmental studies. We evaluate the feasibility of our approach on simulated data and find that it can uncover the true structure even when the data consists of aggregations of diverse categorizers. We then apply the method to data from the World Color Survey and find that it can discover language-specific color organization. Finally, we use the method in a novel developmental experiment and find age-dependent differences in conceptual spaces for fruit categories. These results suggest that our method is robust and widely applicable in developmental tasks with children as young as four years old.

Molecular Pathogenesis of Colorectal Cancer with an Emphasis on Recent Advances in Biomarkers, as Well as Nanotechnology-Based Diagnostic and Therapeutic Approaches

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a serious disease that affects millions of people throughout the world, despite considerable advances in therapy. The formation of colorectal adenomas and invasive adenocarcinomas is the consequence of a succession of genetic and epigenetic changes in the normal colonic epithelium. Genetic and epigenetic processes associated with the onset, development, and metastasis of sporadic CRC have been studied in depth, resulting in identifying biomarkers that might be used to predict behaviour and prognosis beyond staging and influence therapeutic options. A novel biomarker, or a group of biomarkers, must be discovered in order to build an accurate and clinically useful test that may be used as an alternative to conventional methods for the early detection of CRC and to identify prospective new therapeutic intervention targets. To minimise the mortality burden of colorectal cancer, new screening methods with higher accuracy and nano-based diagnostic precision are needed. Cytotoxic medication has negative side effects and is restricted by medication resistance. One of the most promising cancer treatment techniques is the use of nano-based carrier system as a medication delivery mechanism. To deliver cytotoxic medicines, targeted nanoparticles might take advantage of differently expressed molecules on the surface of cancer cells. The use of different compounds as ligands on the surface of nanoparticles to interact with cancer cells, enabling the efficient delivery of antitumor medicines. Formulations based on nanoparticles might aid in early cancer diagnosis and help to overcome the limitations of traditional treatments, including low water solubility, nonspecific biodistribution, and restricted bioavailability. This article addresses about the molecular pathogenesis of CRC and highlights about biomarkers. It also provides conceptual knowledge of nanotechnology-based diagnostic techniques and therapeutic approaches for malignant colorectal cancer.

Predicting the Mathematical Abstraction Processes Using the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy: Secondary School 7th Graders

In this study, it was investigated whether it would be possible to observe abstraction processes of secondary school 7th graders using the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy. For this purpose, eight students participated in the study. The study was conducted at a state secondary school in Turkey. Purposeful sampling method was used in the selection of students and different students were examined by their achievement levels. The research was modeled as a case study and the data were obtained through interviews. Therefore, the data were collected through an interview form developed by the researchers. The collected data were analyzed according to descriptive analysis method. The findings show that the abstraction process differs according to the dimensions of the taxonomy. Accordingly, it was determined that a student who abstracts information should behave at least at the application level in the cognitive level and at least at the conceptual knowledge level in the knowledge dimension. It was also considered that the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy categorized the cognitive mechanisms required by abstraction processes thoroughly. Supporting this study with quantitative data is suggested so that the findings may become more significant. Keywords: mathematical abstraction, mathematics education, equations, Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, APOS theory

Fostering an entrepreneurial mindset: A typology for aligning instructional strategies with three dominant entrepreneurial mindset conceptualizations

Entrepreneurship education in higher education institutions (HEIs) increasingly aims at fostering an entrepreneurial mindset (EM) in students. However, large heterogeneity exists in conceptualizations of EM. This is a challenge for educators as it is difficult to develop instructional strategies to foster students’ EM when there is no clarity about what this mindset is. The purpose of the article is to address this challenge. It does so by analysing and synthesizing current literature in the field of entrepreneurship education in HEIs and develops a taxonomy that depicts three dominant conceptualizations of EM, their theoretical origins and the type of attributes typically associated with each conceptualization. The article goes beyond the integrative literature review by reflecting on the consequences for the design of entrepreneurship education of the simultaneous existence of these three dominant conceptualizations. The author develops a typology for aligning instructional strategies with the EM conceptualizations and thus contributes to practice by providing a better understanding of how to achieve coherence between learning outcomes and instructional choices. The article advances the field’s conceptual knowledge about EM and thereby facilitates future theory generation.

Establishing Knowledge Management Model of Quality Management Systems for Higher Education Institutions

Knowledge management is a valuable antecedent in enhancing the competitive advantage and sustainability of an organization. Various quality management standards acknowledge the necessities and importance of knowledge management within quality management since both areas complement each other. Therefore, this state drives the need to conduct more knowledge management research related to quality management. However, research on knowledge management within quality management systems specifically in higher education institutions is still underexplored. This chapter attempts to explore the establishment of a knowledge management model in supporting the implementation of quality management standards. Several knowledge management enabler factors are suggested, namely strategic focus and leadership, culture, organization, structure, technology, processes, top management, measurement, knowledge, and people. An empirical study is suggested in the future to further support the conceptual knowledge management model established in this chapter.

A Concept Attainment Model Using Cloud-Based Mobile Learning to Enhance the Mathematical Conceptual Knowledge of Undergraduate Students

The COVID-19 situation has affected the instructional process, with both students and instructors having to adapt to the conditions that have emerged. The inclusion of online tools as part of teaching and learning is imperative, especially in mathematics courses, in order to provide knowledge and to create a learning environment as close as possible to face-to-face learning. This study focuses on the mathematical conceptual knowledge of undergraduate students using a concept attainment model. This consists of a three-phase learning process involving the presentation of information and conceptualization, a conceptual comprehension test, and an analysis of thinking strategy. It also features the implementation of cloud-based mobile learning features, including cloud learning devices, cloud learning services, and cloud learning environments as the components of the proposed instruction model. The model was evaluated by experts before being used to investigate the mathematical conceptual knowledge of undergraduate students and how pre-test scores differ from post-test scores. Descriptive statistics and t-test were used to analyze the data. The results revealed that the overall scores for the suitability of the model indicate that this approach is most suitable, and that students learning through a concept attainment model using cloud-based mobile learning obtain a higher post-test score in mathematical conceptual knowledge compared to their pre-test score, at a level of .05 statistical significance. The framework of this study can be useful for mathematics instructors or others educators when it comes to applying it in order to develop students in mathematics contexts.

Newton’s law learning assessment: an experience with high school students

The Force Concepts Inventory is a test to determine the level of conceptual knowledge of students about mechanical physics and to evaluate the effectiveness of different teaching strategies on the conceptual component of learning. The test is applied with the purpose of knowing the level of conceptualization of the students of a Physics subject course. The results of the pre-test made it possible to find out the level of conceptualization that the students possessed and provided information for the development of workshops based on real physical situations that required the elaboration of force diagrams. The results of the post-test allowed estimating Hake’s learning and showed evidence about the conceptual evolution of the students and information to develop future teaching activities on Newton’s laws.

Teachers’ metacognition and Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTs) of Elementary School learners in Eastern Samar, Philippines

This investigation aimed to identify a significant relationship between teachers' metacognition and learners’ higher-order thinking skills (HOTs). The correlational research method was employed to satisfy the investigation's primary objective. Two respondents were involved, including a total enumeration of Grade VI teachers and randomly selected Grade VI learners in Can-avid District. Through the administration of adapted sets of questionnaires and analysis of data using appropriate descriptive and inferential statistical tools, the study revealed the following salient findings: (1) majority of the teacher respondents indicated a very high level of conceptual knowledge of cognition and planning skills of cognition regulation rather than procedural knowledge and evaluating and monitoring skills; (2) learners have exhibited very poor higher-order thinking skills in terms of scientific inquiry skills of analyzing, evaluating, and creating; and that (3) teachers’ metacognition only manifested a weak negative correlation with learners creating skills. The study recommends the advancement of teachers’ metacognition and learners’ HOTs through active integration of said skills in the curriculum and providing opportunities for teachers’ professional advancement. Finally, future researchers should conduct a larger-scale inquiry to fully comprehend the relationship between the variables studied in this study and to fully realize the impact of metacognition on learners' skills, which was not demonstrated in this paper.

Developing Female Pre-Service Teachers' Mathematics Self-Efficacy by Integrating History of Mathematics into Teaching During Lesson Study

History of mathematics (HOM) was incorporated into peer teaching during lesson study as a strategy to augment the mathematics self-efficacy of female pre-service teachers in Ghana. An overview of studies on methodological approaches of integrating the history of mathematics into the teaching and learning process was presented. Mathematics Self-efficacy Scale and Grade Descriptor Grid were used to assess 12 female pre-service teachers' confidence level and performance respectively during lesson study. Results revealed that pre-service teachers exhibited a moderate self-efficacy level as well as moderately good performance in lesson instruction. A web-based questionnaire item responded by participants revealed that integrating HOM into lessons has the potential to improve teachers' self-efficacy. The impact of the study included: change of pre-service teachers' perception about teaching mathematics, a positive attitude towards mathematics, broadened conceptual knowledge and exposure to the multiplicity of problem-solving approaches. It was recommended that innovative pedagogical strategies should be adopted to enhance females' self-efficacy towards teaching mathematics. Also, teachers need to participate in lesson study as a professional collaboration which can improve their pedagogical knowledge. Further studies should investigate the relationship between prospective female teachers' self-efficacy and their mathematics achievement.