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Welcome to the Education Graduate Students Symposium from Concept to Practice May 5, 2010
Concordia University - 1400 de Maisonneuve blvd., 5th floor Montreal, Quebec |
| Cracker Barrel Panel Discussions 1 Panel Discussions 2 Panel Discussions 3 Panel Discussions 4 Posters |
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Constanza Silva LB 553 -2 An Exploration into Empirical Aesthetics and Perception: Reflections on a New Media Art Practice and Its Relation to Theory Three explorations of the application of information theory to aesthetic activity and perception – D. E. Berlyne (1971), A. Moles (1958), W.T. Powers (2005) – yield rich propositions for understanding the art-viewing experience. This paper will highlight some of these propositions. It will consider the applicability of these propositions to the art-making process, an interactive and immersive robotic environment. Finally, it will make its own proposition – that art making is an activity, at least for those that make art, that exceeds art viewing in significant ways, and may have the potential to extend and advance the theoretical models developed in these studies. Keywords: Aesthetics, perception, theory Ninat Friedland LB 553 -2 Painting a Picture of the Arts in Community Mental Health At a community centre in downtown Montreal for those marginalized by poverty, homelessness, and physical and mental illness, members participate in a weekly drop-in therapeutic arts education program. By exploring different techniques and media, these artists experience numerous benefits: the development of new skills, thereby fostering personal resources and creativity; emotional expression, through the pictorial depiction of their thoughts and emotions; and empowerment, through exerting control over their environment and by voicing their concerns on personal and social issues. Five artists in particular used eight weeks of this program as a platform from which to prepare for and participate in a community women's art exhibition. This project describes the program and subsequent exhibition. Keywords: Community mental health, art therapy, art education Houda Nasreddine LB 553 -2 Literacy and Self-Esteem This research examined whether increases in children's levels of literacy and self-esteem are related to an intervention: cooperative learning and computer assisted reading instruction (Abracadabra, web-based instruction). The investigation demonstrates that (a) cooperative learning and computer assisted reading instruction increase reading performance for student with a reading difficulty, (b) levels of self esteem changed in response to this increased literacy education. Elementary grade (1st to 6th) participants (n=20), with reading difficulty, from an after school program in a minority and low SES community participated. Reading fluency and word fluency was measured using DIBELS standardized literacy test. T-tests were used to measure mean differences for pre/post-tests, and demonstrate significant results for both reading fluency and self-esteem. Results were non-significant for word fluency. Keywords: Literacy, cooperative learning, computer assisted reading instruction Saman Javan Tabrizi LB 553-6 Active Learning for Learning Organizations In recent decades, the world has experienced tremendous changes brought about by the Information Age. Moreover, these changes have and continue to impact the way in which organizations form, operate, and compete in a global economy. They must shift away from the traditional bureaucratic structure, employ practices that enable them to continuously learn and adapt to sustain a competitive advantage (Jamali et al, 2006). Inevitably, to change—both in the collective ability of the organization and the pressures imposed by environmental factors—plays a central role in the survival of organizations. However, while the need to change has been established, 75 percent of the organizational change initiatives have failed (Beer et al, 1990) due to a multitude of factors. In addition to presenting some of the common environmental, economical, and structural inhibitors, this paper offers an exploration of the barriers to learning posed by the complexity of individuals and their interactions with one another. This will be done through: (a) the definition of active learning; (b) acceptance as a core problem; (c) the resulting consequences of acceptance as opposed to active learning; and (d) potential solutions for organizations to promote active learning. Keywords: Learning Organization, change, acceptance, active learning Tim Dolla LB 553-6 Wondering and Wandering about Wikis: Creating Imaginary Narratives in a Collaborative Environment Wikis are generally understood as an on-line environment to collaboratively assemble data and opinions from multiple voices and perspectives to quantify and qualify a particular idea or theme. But what if the same approach was used to tap into the creativity of multiple imaginations? What is the potential of the wiki as a creative tool and to foster a team mindset? I will talk about my experience using a wiki as a format for 3rd year university students to collaboratively write a fictional narrative. Julia Golden Critical Pedagogy and teacher education Critical pedagogy is a powerful tool though it is often misunderstood. The approach can help teachers analyze and act on their students' knowledge and experiences to challenge hierarchical social relations and power structures. However, there has yet to be a clear distinction between critical pedagogy and "good pedagogy" in English as a Second Language education as "good pedagogy" incorporates similar techniques to critical pedagogy without working towards challenging power relations. In this study, I attempted to integrate critical pedagogy into a pre-service teacher education program. Specifically, the novice teachers practiced three key principles of critical pedagogy: 1) draw from and validate what students already know: 2) focus on students' lived experiences and 3) question givens. The student-teachers were divided into three groups that received varying degrees of critical awareness raising through hands on lesson planning, materials adaptation and supervised teaching during a 13-week course. The results reveal that the incorporation of the above principles to challenge power relations was not successful. Instead, these principles were carried out by the student-teachers in terms of "good pedagogy" as they did not challenge power relations. My presentation will include an analysis of my results as well as a further discussion of the distinctions between critical pedagogy and "good pedagogy". Keywords: Teacher education, critical pedagogy, good pedagogy Lori Beavis Developing a Vision: Art Education and Student Teachers If education courses are based on the notion that beginning teachers will bring their own knowledge and skills to their programme and later their teaching, what role then, can art education be expected to play in their experience as a student-teacher and later as an in-classroom teacher? This paper will examine the requirement of the single art education course that pre-service educators are expected to fulfill as part of their studies in preparation for entry into the education system. According to Russell-Bowie (2002) many pre-service teachers enter the profession with little background and low confidence in art. In many instances when teachers lack confidence in their ability as art-makers they then do not make art a part of their classroom timetable. It is therefore important that universities facilitate teacher education programs to ensure the training presented to pre-service teachers provide the skills, experiences and confidence to teach art. Personal experience teaching such a course, as well as photo documentation and interviews will inform this paper as to the benefits of introducing prospective teachers to art – making, children’s artistic development and pedagogical issues related to art is explored. Keywords: Art, Education, training Stacie Travers The Study Abroad Experience: Lessons for developing meaningful study abroad programs As study abroad programs increase in popularity, several studies have surfaced attempting to show the gains of these programs, arguing for their inclusion in post-secondary curriculum. This discussion, however, examines what elements of a study abroad program have a meaningful and educational impact on its participants. The qualitative case study presented here attempts to uncover the best practices for short-term study abroad. By analyzing the way in which seven study abroad participants viewed the particular design and curriculum of their 2009 Study Trip and how they felt these aspects enhanced their overall learning experience, specific activities, features and characteristics emerged as being most and least beneficial. Knowing what features and activities best enhance the students' learning and provide them the most perceived benefits, allows for a presentation of lessons for study abroad stakeholders to draw from when planning, participating in or funding future study abroad programs. More broadly, this study also provides insight into ways of teaching (not necessarily abroad) that are more meaningful to the students and which bring about more profound change. This broader emphasis seeks to understand the processes and mechanisms underlying quality experiential education programs. Keywords: Study abroad, curriculum design, experiential education Jessica Aylsworth The effect of display context and aesthetics to museum experience Art museums strive to provide visitors with the opportunity to view, experience and contemplate art. For some this is exhilarating, yet for others the art museum can be an intimidating experience. LIke art, museum have attempted to redefine themselves over time. Museological goals have shifted towards creating visitor oriented experiences emphasizing inspiration and learning. To meet these goals, museums have had to alter their mission statements, reconsider how they contextualize and display their collections and revise their concept of the visitor. Meaningful and educational experience require more than access to artworks. The experience is vital to museum learning. Whether the visitor is consciously aware of their effects or not, the display context of museums influence the visitor experience, vital to museum learning. The aim of the paper was to explore how, or if, art museums have utilized the aesthetics and display context in their galleries to offer a unified message and inviting experience for visitors. The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts was used as a representative example of an art museum to explore how elements such as entrance design, colour and lighting, the layout and organization of the artworks, the presence and methods of contextualization contribute to or inhibit visitor experience and learning. Keywords: Display context, museum learning, viewing experience Melissa Proietti Urban Art In a Formal School Setting Urban art, which can also be termed graffiti, has a very well-documented history in connection to counter culture and youth culture representation. Despite the link between graffiti and vandalism, this medium has been shown through many different research articles to allow the creation of a space of self-identification and self-discovery for those who are participating in the art. Creating art in a space which is anonymous, culturally non-judgemental and non-conformist has been shown through interviews to increase a graffiti writers self-confidence as well as to give them a community in which to belong which is based on art. This has been proven to be very different from gang-related graffiti, and it exists as a voice for social justice of community representation as well as inclusion versus exclusion. Schools have a responsibility to engage their students in their school community, as well as to encourage students to find their place within the organized structure. By commissioning a mural project at a school, to be animated by a recognized graffiti artist, it is most likely that students will be more willing and able to create a sense of belonging for themselves in the school community. If this were to be the outcome it could be linked to the concept of counter culture incorporation in an academic setting, as well as the theory of empowerment through active citizenship, and child empowerment. These types of projects have happened many times in high schools as well as elementary schools and are very worthy of being observed and researched. Yong Song Exploring Teachers’ and Students: Perceptions of Assessment for Learning in a Chinese Context Many researchers have reported that Chinese English learners have difficulties in oral English learning. Their research demonstrates that students of Non-English Majors and English Majors not only fail to achieve the objectives of the teaching programs but also experience frustration in English language learning. In order to solve this long-existing issue, the researcher applies Assessment for learning (AFL) method to teaching and learning. Assessment for Learning known as an interactive and learning-focused pedagogy, has been shown effective in encouraging learners’ participation, identifying learners’ strengths and weaknesses and providing learners and instructors with useful feedback for further development. The researcher conducted a mixed-method study to examining teachers’ and students’ perceptions concerning AFL and explore whether AFL tasks will help learners to improve their oral English skills in a Chinese context. The results indicated that both the teachers and students prefer this AFL approach. The researcher is convinced that AFL tasks can benefit students’ English language learning, esp. intermediate and high level English major students. This study sheds light on ways to counterbalance summative assessment and formative assessment in Chinese English language teaching and learning and also offers students an alternative ways of evaluating oral English proficiency. Keywords: Learning perception, Assessment, L2 learning, Chinese Context Maria G. Contente International School Students’ Attitudes to Spanish and English: A Sociolinguistic and Empirical Perspective Using a Match-Guise Technique Attitudes towards language can determine the way individuals perceive or view the status and solidarity of a language, as well as they way its speakers are judged. This study investigates international school students’ attitudes to SLA of Spanish and English from a sociolinguistic and an empirical perspective using a match-guised technique, pioneered by Lambert, 1960. Firstly, this research offers a synopsis pertaining to the background of international education within the context of an International Baccalaureate Programme. Secondly, this investigation comprises a didactic link to the particular and relevant area of language attitudes and the matched-guise technique. The experiment consisted of 55 international Primary Youth Programme students, from a Montreal, Quebec French school and from different linguistic backgrounds. The 55 participants included 29 students from grade 4, who had studied English for three years and Spanish for one year, and 26, grade 6 students, who had studied English for six years and Spanish for three years. Each group listened to a total of eight voices, which included 4 fillers and two guises. The guises, a male and a female, were two secondary school international students bilingual native speakers of English and Spanish. Each filler and guise read a 75 second text about youth trends and the participants rated them according to status, solidarity and personal traits. Additionally, the participants completed another questionnaire related to their frequency of exposure to English and Spanish print and multimedia resources. A two-way ANOVA, yielded 14 tables. Subsequently, the data analysis revealed surprising results according to the students’ perceptions towards their SLA and usage of English and Spanish. Keywords: Second language acquisition, attitudes to L1 and L2, English and Spanish teaching, match-guise study technique Alicia Piechowiak What is “good” quality oral French? Language attitudes towards “differently” accented French in Quebec The following thesis used a modified version of the matched guise technique to investigate French second language and French Immersion teachers’ attitudes towards different French accented speakers. A total of thirty-four raters were asked to judge equally competent speech samples derived from five accented speakers: European, Québécois, Lebanese, Haitian and Anglophone. Raters judged the speakers using a four point Likert scale and providing qualitative data in the form of comments on 6 oral quality criterion derived from the Conseil Supérieur de la Langue Française and 3 prestige criterion derived from previous research (Giles, 1974; Labov, 1966; Lambert et al., 1960). The mixed method evaluations indicate that accent and the affiliated socially constructed stereotypes play a strong role in how different accented speakers are perceived in terms of oral capacities and prestige despite their equally competent performances. Likewise the data shows evidence that the formerly stigmatized reputation of the Québécois accented speaker has shifted towards a population that may be described as immigrants from some of the former French colonies or non-native speakers. Keywords: French second language and French Immersion teachers’ attitude, match-guise technique Philip Deering and Roy Wright Iroquois Learning Systems and the Indian Way School Powerful learning systems have existed in the Iroquois world for a very long time. In Kahnawake these learning systems eventually emerged in 19th Catholic school systems taught by trilingual Mohawk teachers. In 1915 and 1949 these systems were suppressed by the introduction into Kahnawake of the assimilation policies of the federal boarding and day schools. Iroquois learning systems re-emerged in the 1970s and 1980s in schools created by Mohawk people: Indian Way, 1972; Kahnawake Survival School, 1978; the Kahnawake Institute for Advanced Studies in Native Self-Sufficiency, 1979; the Step-by-Step Child and Family Center, 1983; the Karihwanó:ron Immersion Project, 1988; and the Kahnawake Language Nest, 2006. Some time during the 1980s, the federal schools, Kateri and Karonhianonhna, were decentralized to band control. There have been several studies of these decentralized federal schools; however, there are no significant studies of the Mohawk-created schools, the ones that have experienced the most success in the past forty years. The topic of presentation would be Indian Way School (1972-now) and its remarkable success at producing students with high cognitive abilities, whether operating as a monolingual, bilingual or multilingual school. Keywords: Kahnawake, community control, language of instruction Eric Weissman Ethnovideography as an Educational Tool Subtext is a rough-cut documentary exploration. It explores an urban shantytown and the strides of activists, ex-residents, and the City of Toronto to find solutions to homelessness. Its focus is the residents of Tent City. The subjects dictate where cameras go, leading us into their pasts, conflicts, and daily lives -- by road and foot through the urban landscape. We examine caves on the Don River, squats under the highway, trips to the hospital, and abandoned buildings, but our journey always leads back to Tent City … to a thorough, often surprising understanding of the people who lived there. Subtext has been used in a variety of educational settings and demonstrates the utility of ethnovideographic form(s) for reaching educational audiences and addressing sensitive social issues. I am currently exploring the affect of videographic form on audience comprehension, and its use in reflexive educational settings. I would like to show a demonstration cut and discuss the implications of this filmic form in educational settings. Keywords: Film, ethnography, education Skye Maule-O'Brien Anti-oppression Theory in Action I am proposing to present my thesis research and case study on the exploration of artist-run centre community outreach education initiatives. Focusing on Articule, a local artist-run centre, I am in the process of conducting field research on how to implement anti-oppressive pedagogy on an individual and institutional scale with the centre’s Board of Directors. Through the development and implementation of the anti-oppression workshop tailored to the needs of Articule’s current members, my desire is to utilize theoretical understandings I have gained in my educational research, and to ground the process in a supportive group dynamic that will challenge participants and the institution. It is necessary to analyze the often unquestioned positions of privilege both the members and the organization hold. By ignoring that privilege and continually maintaining what could be exclusionary practices, it is ultimately damaging to all parties involved. It is through this lens my research goal is to actualize theoretical frameworks in order to create accessible and inclusive spaces for knowledge exchange and creation in an ever diversifying society such a Montreal. Keywords: Implementation of Anti-oppressive pedagogy, outreach education initiatives, Anti-oppression theory, theoretical understanding, workshops Gabrielle Breton-Carbonneau Border crossings- Exploring the language and literacy practices of teachers and students in South African Classrooms. This research project explores how teachers in multilingual South African foundation-phase (grade 1-3) classrooms respond to the needs of an increasingly diverse student body. Post-apartheid South Africa is home to 11 official languages. While South Africa’s language in education policy suggests that students be instructed in their home language during the foundation-phase, it is not required and thus English is increasingly becoming the language of instruction in many urban schools. The researchers observed the language and literacy practices of teachers and students as they engaged with one another in a language other than their own (English). Our research questions were: 1) How does the teaching of an additional language occur without negative effects for the child’s home language and view of her/himself in this new context? 2) What are the social and pedagogical consequences that arise from such complex language encounters? This study links second language learning to literacy and is thus informed by New Literacy Studies, which conceptualizes literacy as a plural set of skills situated within a particular socio-historical context. Keywords: multilingualism, multiple literacies, early childhood Maxine Larin-Graham and Weijing Kong Mobile Phone Use by Teens in Montreal A Snap Shot of How Teens Use Their Mobile Phones in Montreal More and more teenagers around the world are using mobile phones mobileyouth.org). In a symposium presentation Weijing Kong, and Maxine Larin-Graham display the results of a study done in February, 2010 of 13 participants. The ain question in this study is how teenagers aged 14 to 16 in Montreal use their mobile phones. With observations and interviews done in various social gathering places that teenagers frequent in Montreal, Weijing and Maxine analyze the functions and factors that influence the way teenagers use their mobile phones. Some findings have shown that teens are acquiring mobile telephones from their parents for security measures, or just because “everyone else has one”. Due to the ease at which they use their phone to make rendezvous and inquiries (homework help, finding locations), the portability of the mobile phone is a major factor in their growing dependence on the device. The implication of this study is that the social use of the mobile phone is, for the most part, practical. As such, This study can inform educators and policy makers of the possible importance of mobile technology in the creation of scholastic social connections. Keywords: Cell phone, teenager, Montreal Tanya Chichekian Preservice Elementary Teachers' Conceptual Analysis of Teaching Mathematics To begin getting a sense of what is to build knowledge, the concept of a mathematical idea should be introduced at the very early stages in elementary school in order for students to develop lifelong learning skills such as developing an inquiring mind, critical thinking, and reflection. The purpose of this study is to critically examine and evaluate elementary preservice teachers' understanding of a mathematical idea. 144 elementary preservice teachers were paired up in order to design a concept map using Cmap Tools and analyzed three predetermined elements for a randomly assigned mathematical concept: epistemology, teaching methodology, and learning challenges. The evaluation was based on a scoring rubric consisting of performance indicators and on the overall quality of the presentation, including criteria such as organization, knowledge, communication and relationship. The outcomes from this study will highlight the depth of elementary preservice teachers' understanding of a mathematical concept, their flexibility in adapting their instructional approach, and the challenges and misconceptions that are tied to different learning strategies. In addition, the concept maps will be reflective of their own beliefs, learning styles, and ways of thinking. These findings will particularly be useful to teacher educators as well as to preservice teachers. Keywords: Teaching mathematics, elementary education Nadia Naffi Learning Program for Newly Immigrant Children Canada welcomes every year thousands of new immigrants coming from all over the world, of which 20.3% are children below the age of fourteen (Citizenship and Immigration Canada, 2008). These young persons are asked to come to a new country where they are supposed to adapt, integrate socially and culturally and succeed in schools, without any prior preparation or subsequent orientation. An important percentage of these children are victims of racism, discrimination and bullying, which engender behavioral, emotional and conduct disorders in addition to poor adaptation and indirect aggression. They have difficulties to create new friendships and have communication problems due to lack of language skills, and to unfamiliarity with other cultures. A thirty minutes learning program implemented at the children’s arrival at the Canadian airport, while parents are finishing paperwork and declarations, has three objectives: • Giving confidence to immigrant children by teaching them their basic rights and familiarizing them with the multiethnic and multicultural facet of the country in order to value themselves and others • Preparing them for upsetting situations such as bullying. • Giving them some tips on how to create new friendships and keep them Keywords: Immigrant children, social integration, learning program Mélissa Gardère Globalization and Education: The competency-based reform Globalization and Education: The competency-based reform at the service of economy, NOT knowledge If you walked down the halls of a Quebec high school at this very instant, what would you notice? Intelligence in the making or batteries working for the global economy? In our post-modern public school, knowledge is but a vague concept. With former standardized tests being criticized as decontextualized and expansive to produce, a competency-based reform has carefully been mulded to follow its predecessor. But at what cost? Turning students into citizens of the global economy reflects an education ideal which suppresses knowledge and increases profit. As such, In this paper, several facts are reviewed to enlighten this position; the origins of a Nation at Risk (1983); an education in link with the business market evolution; the implementation of a pedagogy that lacks the true principles of constructivism; the formality of bureaucracy; a flawed evaluation system. Quebec, Switzerland, Holland and Madagascar adopted this Neo-Liberal ideology and the service-market increased, feeding the perpetuation of production and profit. Additionally, transnational organizations such as the World Bank maliciously controlled from within the administration of a market-based notion, the competency, to limit the gap between school and the business industry. Children's ability to think is no longer a priority. They are given tasks where they are expected to find solutions. Form and process are a thing of the past. In light of this phenomenon Globalization has not only taken over Education but also children's right to choose their own. Keywords: Globalization education, competency-based-reform Mariam Khatchadourian and Hariclia Petrakos Social Skills Program The value of values: The influence of a social skills program on children’s social behaviour, affective perspective taking and empathy skills Social skills are vital to children’s healthy development as they provide them with tools to deal with their everyday life issues. The purpose of this study was to assess the influence of teaching the value of social skills to young children to enhance their prosocial behaviour and increase their affective perspective-taking and empathy skills. An eight week workshop was implemented in an afterschool program to offer children an opportunity to understand the importance of adopting prosocial behaviour in their day to day relationships. Both qualitative and quantitative analysis are presented to describe how the children benefitted from the program. Keywords: Social skills, prosocial behaviour, affective perspective Lorna Gotzman Teaching a third language to a deaf learner How can you learn a language if you cannot hear it? Language learning is based on the principle that as children we are exposed to input that allows us to formulate the phonological representations of our mother tongue. So what happens if you were not exposed to verbal input to the same degree? What happens in adulthood when you want to learn a third language? This research project is a case study of an adult deaf learner who as a child had minimal verbal input due to the fact that she is severely deaf. She is presently learning a third language, English; her first being French and second sign language. The research questions are based on the hypothesis that a learner with limited hearing ability is capable of learning the pronunciation of a third language because the first language has already provided aural phonological representation. The research questions are as follows: 1- Does language awareness help improve the perception of word stress in three and four syllable words. 2- Will the awareness of word stress only be perceptible in lexis that has already been taught? 3- Will the awareness of word stress also be applied to new lexis? Keywords: L3 learning, deaf impaired children, phonological representations Lana Bergmame Physical Activity and Adaptive and Problem Behaviours among Elementary School Children Participation in physical activity play throughout the school day has been shown to foster improved classroom attention and behaviour among children (e.g., Pellegrini, & Davis, 1993). There is limited research, however, examining the influence of unstructured physical activity periods, such as recess, on the subsequent classroom behaviours of children with behavioural concerns. Twenty-one elementary children were observed before, during, and after school recess, as well as during a Physical Education class. Self- and teacher-reported behavioural measures (BASC-2; Reynolds & Kamphaus, 2004) were also completed. Comparisons of children's adaptive and problem behaviours displayed during structured and unstructured school physical activity periods, as well as well as within the classroom, will be presented. Keywords: Physical Activity, children, behaviour Matt Evans Art Culture Language and the Liminalities of translation To live as a newly arrived expat, especially in a country where one does not speak the local language, requires a certain reliance on various other types of visual signifiers to successfully negotiate one’s strange new environment. Body language, signs and other kinds of visual clues take on greater importance as cultural indicators, but also, our approach to these comes from a perspective that is laden with certain cultural clichés, stereotypes of national characteristics and so on – “Japanese people are all so polite”, or “The Germans are so efficient” for example. Nevertheless, as we become better acquainted with the local language we begin to enter into the culture in a more authentic way. We begin to penetrate and access it on a more bona fide and personal level. As a foil to this, consider the popular critique of globalism as the flattening or “Disneyfication” of world cultures, put forth as an unfortunate inevitability that comes with advancements in communications technology and the unprecedented reach of western capitalism into world markets. Notice also the resultant proliferation in the migration of populations, adrift as either a consequence of this neo-liberal shift, or perhaps, to take advantage of the opportunities afforded by this emerging economic world order. Increasingly these are ideas explored through contemporary art, itself a changing phenomenon dominated by a new nomadic population of artists, curators and critics. Using a number of recent artworks as touchstones, I would like to further explore this intersection between language, culture, and globalism, with particular attention to the notions surrounding translation and its potential to engender new or hybrid forms. Keywords: Art culture, cultural indicators, L2 visual language, translation Adam Ashton Use of Clickers in the ENCS Faculty of Concordia University In order to guarantee that the implementation of an audience response system is successful, it is imperative that we know, not only the technical features of the product, or the benefits it could potentially provide, but the attitudes, expectations, and prejudices that learners bring with them to the classroom regarding this relatively new technology. This exploratory study determines the factors affecting the usage behaviours and perception of audience response systems (clickers) by students in first-year engineering and computer science classes at Concordia University, as well as some of the factors which affect the pedagogical effectiveness of such systems. Interviews were conducted with students in the faculty of engineering and computer science in order to explore what they perceive to be these factors. Data obtained from student interviews will be triangulated with interviews previously conducted with the teachers of classes where clickers are in use. Through this, teachers' perceptions of students' behaviours, as well as teachers' practices using clickers will help to paint a more complete picture of the learning environment. Keywords: Clickers, audience response system, student perception Diana Royea Pre-service Teachers' Conceptual and Procedural Fraction Knowledge To perform in-line with current educational reform principles, elementary school teachers are required to possess both strong procedural and conceptual mathematical knowledge. At the same time, preservice teachers' mathematical knowledge tends to be conceptually weak, procedurally rule-bound, and difficult to remediate (Ball, 1990). Despite the important role of fractions in school mathematics, fractions are arguably one of the most difficult topics to understand and to teach (Saxe, Gearhart, & Seltzer, 1999; Yoshida & Sawano, 2002). The following small scale research project was designed to assess the effectiveness of a short-term, problem-centered tutoring program on improving preservice elementary school teachers' conceptual and procedural fraction knowledge. Eight preservice teachers participated in the study. All of the participants completed a validated assessment of conceptual and procedural fraction knowledge before and after the intervention. The tutoring intervention consisted of three one-hour, problem-centered sessions that focused on making the links between fraction concepts and procedures explicit by emphasizing the application of fundamental fraction concepts. A paired-samples t-test revealed that while there was significant improvement in the pre-service teachers' conceptual fraction knowledge, there was no significant change in procedural fraction knowledge. Keywords: Pre-service teacher; fraction knowledge; remediation Laura Fontil The Influence of Cultural Capital and Parental Involvement on School Success The present study examined the relationship between cultural capital, parental involvement, and school success and described the experiences and perceptions of Canadian and immigrant families. Parents of 32 (Canadian born and immigrant) children filled out the Parent-Teacher Involvement Questionnaire and participated in focus groups. Children’s report cards were used to assess school success. The results indicated that parental involvement was correlated with school success in Canadian born families but not in immigrant families. Unexpectedly, immigrant children did significantly better in school than Canadian born children. These results have implications for school personnel who initiate and maintain communication with parents. Keywords: Parental-involvement in schools. immigrant families |