1,720,957 research outputs found
Differentiating instruction for learners’ mathematics self-efficacy in inclusive classrooms: Can learners with dyscalculia also benefit?
Get PDFPoor mathematics self-efficacy (MSE) has been recorded among learners at all levels in Nigeria. The study reported on here sought to establish the efficacy of differentiated instruction (DI) in raising learners’ MSE in inclusive settings. We also explored the differential effects of DI on the MSE of learners with dyscalculia, as well as on high- and low-achieving learners. We adopted a control group quasi-experimental research design involving 1 experimental and 1 control group. A total of 4 mathematics teachers and 158 Senior Secondary II (SSII) learners in 4 regular classes participated in the study. Mathematics teachers participated in a one week DI training workshop to equip them with DI skills for whole-term mathematics instruction. The Students’ Mathematics Self-efficacy Scale (SMSES) was used for data collection at pre- and post-intervention evaluations. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). The major findings reveal that using DI led to significant improvements in learners’ MSE. Prior achievement (PA) had a significant influence on MSE;however, DI was effective in reducing the negative effects of poor PA on the self-efficacy of low-achieving learners and learners with dyscalculia. It was concluded that DI offers teachers the impetus to help all learners to improve their self-efficacy in mathematics
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Mathematics self-efficacy as a predictor of science technology engineering and mathematics (STEM) career inclination among secondary school students with disabilities
Get PDFAbstract: Persons with disabilities are underrepresented in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers. This study sought to find out the predictive validity of Mathematics self-efficacy on STEM career inclination among Students With Disabilities (SWD) in technical and inclusive secondary schools in Enugu State, Nigeria. A descriptive quantitative correlation research design was adopted for the study. Three instruments (Demographics Questionnaire, Mathematics self-efficacy Questionnaire and STEM Career Inclination Measures) were used to collect data from 587 students with disabilities in 38 Technical secondary schools and 4 inclusive oriented secondary schools in the area. Data collected for the study were analyzed using mean, standard deviation and multiple regression analysis. Results showed that Mathematics self-efficacy has a positive link with an inclination towards STEM-related careers among SWD. It was concluded that building STEM self-efficacy in students with disabilities could be a productive way of bridging the gap of underrepresentation of persons with disabilities in STEM careers. It was recommended that researchers, career counselors, science teachers and all stakeholders in disability Education should intensify efforts towards building and strengthening mathematics self-efficacy among students with disabilities in technical and inclusive education secondary schools
Being differently abled: disability through the lens of hierarchy of binaries and Bitso-lebe-ke Seromo
Get PDFAbstract: Background: Despite its acceptability, the term disability has not been able to shirk the sense of incompleteness, lack, deprivation and incapacitation embodied in the prefix ‘dis-’. The current wave of anti-discrimination on disability issues, calls for constant re-examination of the language and the appellations we use in respect of people with disabilities. Objectives: The aim of this study is to subject the term disability to some relevancy litmus test with a view to prevent it from acquiring Lyotard’s ‘grand narrative’ and to propose and argue for the term ‘differently abled’ because of its transformative and anti-discriminatory slant. Method: The study took the form of a literature review using the optic of Derrida’s hierarchy of binaries and the Sesotho proverb, ‘Bitso-lebe-ke seromo’, (A bad name is ominous) to explore the connotations of the term disability as a disenfranchising social construct. Results: Read through the lens of Derrida’s idea of difference, disability as a concept has no inherent meaning and its meaning derives from its being differentiated from other concepts. Viewed through the lens of Bitso-lebe-ke seromo and read in the context of its deep symbolical significance, the term disability holds immense spiritual power. Conclusion: The study concludes that the term disability or disabled is exclusionary, stigmatizing, and anti-transformational. As such it embodies imperfection, incapacitation and inferiority. Not only is it ominous, it places upon people with disability the perpetual mark of unattractiveness. Against this background the term differently abled seems to convey more empowering overtones than the term disability
Transition to higher education for students with autism : challenges and support needs
Get PDFAbstract: Increasing pieces evidence suggest that learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families experience limiting challenges in their transition at different developmental and academic levels in life. It is not clear, however, what the specific challenges that limit their successful transition are, despite parents' and teachers' efforts to support them. The current study sought to investigate the factors challenging students with ASD in transitioning to higher education. The study adopted a phenomenological qualitative research design with a total of 10first-year students with ASD in higher education institutions in Nigeria. The one-on-one interview was conducted, guided by a semi-structured interview schedule. Data collected were analyzed using content analysis, through the inductive thematic procedure. The results revealed five main themes, which include: academic functioning difficulties, social difficulties, structural issues, mental health problems, and lack of resources and supports. Each major theme was discussed based on the emerging subthemes. The findings of the study suggest an increased need for academic, social, materials, and environmental supports for students with ASD who transition to higher education institutions. More supports should be put in place to help learners with autism develop personal resources that will encourage their success in higher education institutions
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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