Proportional reasoning and the linguistic abilities required for hypothetico-deductive reasoning     

Anton E. Lawson  David I. Lawson  Chester A. Lawson 《科学教学研究杂志》1984,21(2):119-131

The hypothesis is advanced that a necessary, though not sufficient, condition for the acquisition of proportional reasoning during adolescence is the prior internalization of key linguistic elements of argumentation, essentially those used in hypothetico-deductive reasoning. This hypothesized internalization, which does not occur in all individuals, results in some who have acquired the ability to reflect upon the correctness of self-generated answers in a hypothetico-deductive manner, and others who have not. As an initial test of the hypothesis, 46 subjects (Ss) (mean age = 21.03 years) were classified into additive, transitional, or proportional reasoning categories based upon responses to a proportions task. Group differences were found in which proportional Ss performed better than transitional Ss who in turn performed better than additive Ss on a number of items testing Ss' abilities to identify, generate, and use the linguistic elements of argumentation. Further it was found that some Ss who were successful on the linguistic items failed the proportions task, but no Ss who were successful on the proportions task failed the linguistic items. This result supports the hypothesis that the internalization of linguistic elements of argumentation is a prerequisite for proportional reasoning and by inference other advanced reasoning schemata as well. Implications for science instruction are drawn.  相似文献   

Cultural diversity and differences in formal reasoning ability     

Anton E. Lawson  Jonathan M. Bealer 《科学教学研究杂志》1984,21(7):735-743

To test the hypothesis that cultural diversity contributes to the development of formal reasoning, samples of adolescents from three predominately white middle-class communities located in areas that varied in the extent to which they offered cultural diversity (i.e., rural, suburan homogeneous, suburban heterogeneous) were administered a test of formal reasoning and a test of analytical intelligence. Results showed significant differences in formal reasoning in favor of the suburban heterogeneous sample on complex reasoning items. The suburban groups showed equal performance (but superior to the rural Ss) on the test of analytical intelligence. On the less complex reasoning items and on one item embedded in a rural farming context, the rural Ss showed relatively better performance. Implications for using science instruction to promote formal reasoning are discussed.  相似文献   

Using reasoning ability as the basis for assigning laboratory partners in nonmajors biology     

Anton E. Lawson 《科学教学研究杂志》1992,29(7):729-741

Students in a large one-semester nonmajors college biology course were classified into one of three groups (intuitive—I, transitional—T, reflective—R) based upon a pretest of scientific reasoning ability. Laboratory teams of two students each then were formed, such that all possible combinations of reasoning abilities were represented (i.e., I-I, I-T, I-R, T-T, T-R, R-R). Students worked with their assigned partners during each of the course's 14 laboratory sessions. Gains in reasoning ability, laboratory achievement, and course achievement, as well as changes in students' opinions of their motivation, enjoyment of the laboratory, and their own and their partner's reasoning abilities were assessed at the end of the semester. Significant pre- to posttest gains in reasoning ability by the intuitive and transitional students were found, but these gains were not significantly related to the laboratory partner's reasoning ability. Also, course achievement was not significantly related to the laboratory partner's reasoning ability. Students were perceptive of others' reasoning ability; the more able reasoners were generally viewed as being more motivated, having better ideas, and being better at doing science. Additional results also indicated that course enjoyment and motivation was significantly decreased for the transitional students when they were paired with intuitive students. Apparently, for students in transition (i.e., not at an equilibrium state with regard to reasoning level), it is frustrating to work with a less able reasoner. However, some evidence was found to suggest that reflective students may benefit from working with a less able partner.  相似文献   

The acquisition of formal operational schemata during adolescence: The role of the biconditional     

Anton E. Lawson 《科学教学研究杂志》1983,20(4):347-356

To test the hypothesis that the basic “logic” utilized by individuals in scientific hypothesis testing is the biconditional (if and only if), and that the biconditional is a precondition for the development of formal operations, a sample of 387 students in grades eight, ten, twelve, and college were administered eight reasoning items. Five of the items involved the formal operational schemata of probability, proportions and correlations. Two of the items involved propositions and correlations. Two of the items involved propositional logic. One item involved the biconditional. Percentages of correct responses on most of the items increased with age. A principal-component analysis revealed three factors, two of which were identified as involving operational thought, one of which involved propositional logic. As predicted, the biconditional reasoning item loaded on one of the operational thought factors. A Guttman scale analysis of the items failed to reveal a unidimensional scale, yet the biconditional reasoning item ordered first supporting the hypothesis that it is a precondition for formal operational reasoning. Implications for teaching science students how to test hypotheses are discussed.  相似文献   

Development of social category representations: early appreciation of roles and deontic relations     

Kalish CW  Lawson CA 《Child development》2008,79(3):577-593

Three experiments explored the significance of deontic properties (involving rights and obligations) in representations of social categories. Preschool-aged children ( M = 4.8), young school-aged children ( M = 8.2), and adults judged the centrality of behavioral, psychological, and deontic properties for both familiar (Experiments 1 and 2, N s = 50 and 52, respectively) and novel (Experiment 3, N = 64) social categories. Preschool-aged children were the most consistent in treating deontic properties as central: Knowing a person's social category membership was more informative about obligations than about behavioral frequencies or psychological preferences. Adults treated deontic properties as central to some categories but also recognized a set that was primarily predictive of psychological dispositions. The results argue for the significance of deontic properties in the development of social cognition.  相似文献   

Reduced Autobiographical Memory Specificity Among Maltreated Preschoolers: The Indirect Effect of Neglect Through Maternal Reminiscing     

Monica Lawson  Kristin Valentino  Ruth Speidel  Christina G. McDonnell  E. Mark Cummings 《Child development》2020,91(1):271-288

Maternal reminiscing and preschoolers’ (M = 5.00 years, SD = 1.11) autobiographical memory specificity (AMS) were examined among abusive (n = 24), neglecting (n = 78), emotionally maltreating (n = 32), and demographically similar nonmaltreating families (n = 74). Neglect was negatively associated with child AMS and the quantity of maternal elaborations. In a moderated mediation model, neglect was negatively associated with the quantity of maternal elaborations, which was positively associated with AMS when mothers reminisced in a coherent and sensitive manner (i.e., affective quality). In the context of high maternal affective quality, maternal elaborative quantity accounted for reduced AMS among neglected preschoolers. The findings extend observations of reduced AMS to neglected preschoolers and inform theoretical models of autobiographical memory development.  相似文献   

Censorship,the Internet and schools: a new moral panic?     

Tony Lawson  Chris Comber 《Curriculum Journal》2013,24(2):273-285

As the use of the Internet in schools increases, so too do anxieties over inappropriate access, often fuelled by a popular media focus upon the dangers of children's exposure to pornographic or extremist material. Teachers and school managers, attempting to weigh such hazards against the education potential of access to global information sources, are caught in the crossfire between those who call for rigid controls and those who argue for freedom and access. In the context of these contrary positions, this article begins by exploring the extent to which current public concern over Internet access can be seen as the “moral panic” of the 1990s. Following this, we draw upon examples from Education Departments' Superhighways Initiative (EDSI) to examine the responses of teachers faced with these dilemmas and the effectiveness of various strategies in resolving them. While a combination of control over access (particularly for younger children) and sanctions for inappropriate use was in operation in most schools, many teachers' preferred strategy was to alert pupils to the potential dangers, and to educate them to become responsible users.  相似文献   

Changing pedagogic codes in a class of landscape architects learning ‘ecologically sustainable development’     

G.M. Lawson 《British Journal of Sociology of Education》2010,31(2):199-216

Professional discourse in education has been the focus of research conducted mostly with teachers and professional practitioners, but the work of students in the built environment has largely been ignored. This article presents an analysis of students’ visual discourse in the final professional year of a landscape architecture course in Brisbane, Australia. The study has a multi‐method design and includes drawings, interviews and documentary materials, but focuses on the drawings in this paper. Using the theory of Bernstein, the analysis considers student representations as inter‐relations between professional identity and discretionary space for legitimate knowledge formation in landscape planning. It shows a shift in how students persuade the teacher of their expanding views of this field. The discussion of this shift centres on the professional knowledge that students choose rather than need to learn. It points to the differences within a class that a teacher must address in curriculum design in a contemporary professional course.  相似文献   

Issues of vision,innovation, mission,outcomes and competent practice     

Hal A. Lawson  Katharine Hooper‐Briar 《教育政策杂志》2013,28(5):157-159

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Limits and potentials of social networking in academia: case study of the evolution of a mathematics Facebook community     

John Hallam Goodband  Peter Charles Samuels  Duncan Lawson  Roy Bhakta 《Learning, Media and Technology》2012,37(3):236-252

The use of social networking services has rapidly increased in recent years, especially by university students. Some authors assert that they have educational potential in terms of promoting collaborative learning practices among undergraduate students which enhance engagement and understanding. This possibility is particularly relevant to mathematics learning, because university communities are frequently experienced as isolating and performance-oriented. This case study reports on the use of Facebook to support mathematical communication and more participative learning identities within a UK university mathematics department. It describes how the reactive formation of a student-led Facebook community became a source of conflict within the wider academic social community and how this conflict was eventually resolved. While it raises questions about the extent to which Facebook can encourage open collaborative learning within the wider context of student aspirations in a competitive climate, it notes its potential for fostering cross-cohort student support in a subject which frequently induces anxiety in its students.  相似文献