Pros and Cons of In-Service Teacher Professional Development via Observation of Filmed Classes

Filming lessons is one of the most common and effective tools in teacher professional improvement and development. In-depth interviews with 60 teachers in Israel Southern District reveal their experience with filmed lessons in professional development. This qualitative constructivist study showed that the main reason for teachers' objection to lesson filming is that the camera affects the processes occurring in the classroom. The study further demonstrated that filmed lessons significantly enhance insights into processes of learning and instruction and advance teachers' reflection on their practice.

Defining Microgames in Education Context

The concept of microgaming in education is relatively new and it has evident potential for supporting learning in various learning environments. However, there is little consensus in the education literature on how micro-games are defined. The present article proposes a conceptual definition of mi-crogames by considering related terms and learning approaches in education. Microgames in education context are defined as very small and short games that provide brief engagement and meaningful experience for players, support learning and instruction toward specific objectives, and integrate with existing resources. This article further elaborates the key definition elements to indicate microgame characteristics and provides some examples to demonstrate the kinds of games that fit this definition. The proposed definition acts as a fundamental starting point to study microgames for educational purposes in the future.

Out of Place: Artists, Pedagogy, and Purpose

Broad in scope, Out of Place: Artists, Pedagogy, and Purpose presents an overview of the different paths taken by artists and artist collectives as they navigate their way from formative experiences into pedagogy. Focusing on the realms in- and outside the academy (the places and persons involved in post-secondary education) and the multiple forms and functions of pedagogy (practices of learning and instruction), the contributions in this volume engage individual and collective artistic practices as they adapt to meet the factors and historical conditions of the people and communities they serve through solidarity, equity, and creativity. With this critically, historicist approach in mind, the contributions in Out of Place historicize, study, critique, revise, reframe, and question the academy, its operations and exclusions. The extensive range of contributions, emphasizing community-oriented projects both inside and outside the United States, is grouped into three overarching categories: artists who work in academic institutions but whose social and pedagogical engagement extends beyond the walls of the academy; artists who engage in pedagogical initiatives or forms of institutional critique that were established outside of an art school or university setting; and artist–scholars who are doing transformative and inter/transdisciplinary work within their respective institutions. Collectives and projects represented in Out of Place comprise Art Practical, Axis Lab, BFAMFAPhD, Beta-Local, Black Lunch Table Project, The Black School, The Center for Undisciplined Research, Devening Projects, ds4si, Elsewhere, Ghana ThinkTank, Gudskul, The Icebox Project Space, Las Hermanas Iglesias, The Laundromat Project, Occupy Museums, Peebls, PlantBot Genetics, Queer Conversations on Culture and the Arts, Related Tactics, Side by Side, ‘sindikit, Sustainable Native Communities Collaborative, and Tiger Strikes Asteriod.

Sensory and Perceptual Abilities in People With Down Syndrome

During typical development, the efficiency with which distinct image attributes, objects such as faces, and emotions are analyzed depends on the development of ocular functioning (sensory level) and brain mechanisms mediating perceptual abilities (neural level). Compared to typically developing individuals, ocular differences are more frequent in persons with Down syndrome (DS) and include an increased incidence of refractive errors, i.e. hyperopia and myopia, and difficulties with accommodation (focusing up close). In most cases, these conditions can be corrected with bifocals, resulting in greatly improved literary skills that underlie reading, particularly for younger persons with DS. In addition, individuals with DS seem to benefit from the spatially structured presentation of visual material when learning, another accommodation that can be implemented during instruction. Finally, although not specific to DS, young children and adults with DS generally identify and recognize emotions less efficiently than do persons without DS. However, among persons with DS, these difficulties seem to be more pronounced for more intense emotions, including fear and anger. In sum, visual profiles based on sensory and perceptual performance can advance our understanding of atypical information processing among persons with DS, as well as provide practical information aimed at improving learning and instruction.

Impacts Of Language Learning On The Development Of Cognition

The basic theoretical goal of cognitive psychology is to describe the information processing mechanism during human action. The driving role of concept and situational role of textbook in language education is the further development of learners' intelligence for the purpose of developing learners' competency in language use. This study discusses cognitive psychology-based foreign language learning and instruction.

Cognition (and Learning) On the Loose

Annie Murphy Paul's new book, "The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain," covers emerging research that extends our understanding of thinking beyond the typical view of "mind in the brain." Illustrated with stories, this book unpacks new recognitions, and provides the implications for the design of learning and instruction.

Taking an Equity Lens: Reconceptualizing Research on Latinx Students’ Schooling Experiences and Educational Outcomes

Previous research has expanded our understanding of Latinx students’ schooling and outcomes in many ways, but current knowledge fails to appreciate nuances associated with the constantly evolving Latinx population. In many cases, schools are ill prepared to serve these students. I offer recommendations for developing a robust knowledge base on the education of Latinx students and the roles that schools play in perpetuating or ameliorating inequities. Specifically, I discuss strength-based perspectives and the expansive diversity of the population as concepts that are essential to framing research and interventions that aim to improve education for the Latinx student population. I review the empirical evidence on achievement outputs and key features of the school opportunity gap—segregation, discrimination, family-school partnerships, classroom teaching and learning, and instruction language use. Finally, I propose implications for developing equity-oriented reforms to support the continuous improvement of Latinx students’ education.