Jagiellonian Digital Library contains 900 687 digital objects
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- A wide spectrum of research on preschool spelling development in different languages is presented. In Poland, children at kindergarten are usually at a stage of pre-literacy. Invented spelling means the writing produced by young children (aged 3–7 years) before they are formally taught reading and writing or are at the beginning of the learning process. Their writing is more spontaneous than learned. The paper describes investigations on the development of early literacy and factors influencing it, such as knowledge about orthographic (spelling) patterns, early morphological awareness or teaching methods. Children’s early writing provides a window on their conceptualisation of the written language, illustrating the process of rising language awareness and spelling skills. Invented spelling is considered, together with phonological abilities and letter knowledge, as a strong predictor of later literacy skills.
- According to theory, educational goods and services have an important impact on a child’s human capital. Although the majority of educational services in Poland are delivered within a public education system, various educational costs are borne by parents. This paper looks at the socio-economic determinants of private spending on education, including fees, private tutoring and courses, educational goods and materials, and the internet. The analysis was performed using the Polish Household Budget Survey for 2009 and 2010. Results from a logit regression suggest that disposable household income per capita and parental level of education, especially mother’s level of education have the greatest impact on spending on educational goods and services. This was true for all analysed categories of expenditure. Regional disparities and community size were an important factor especially with regards to spending on private tutoring and additional courses.
- Aggressive behaviour in children and adolescents can be connected with their social and cognitive competence. This article is an attempt to analyse the relationship between aggression and the development of the mentalization process as the fundamental aspect of social cognition which is closely related to the phenomenon of ‘theory of mind’. The development of ‘theory of mind’, in addition to mentalization, appears manifest in the relationship of aggressive behaviour with its primary teleological function. Recent reform of the Polish education system included the lowering of the age for compulsory education. The question of whether this may increase aggression levels in children during the first stage of education is discussed in the light of the study findings.
- The aim of the study was to determine the species composition of microscopic fungi colonizing dead wood of birch, beech, sycamore maple and sorb (Karkonosze Mountains), and black alder, mountain pine, willow, Swiss pine, sorb, sycamore maple and birch in the Tatras. The mycological analysis was conducted in 2015 and 2016 in the foothills and in the lower and upper montane zones of the Karkonosze Mounts, Karkonosze National Park, and in 2016 in the Białka Valley and Chochołowska Valley in the Tatras, Tatra National Park. For both, Karkonosze Mounts and Tatras, the dominant microscopic fungi inhabiting dead wood belonged to the genus Trichoderma. The Mycobiota of dead wood in the lower classes of decomposition was characterized by a higher species biodiversity but the lower numbers of colonies isolated.
- The aim of the study was to present the role of polymeric materials in various industries. The article discusses the statistics related to the global production of plastics in the years 1950-2015. The paper presents the properties and application of polymer materials, and also made the characteristics of the processes of degradation of polymers, detailing the processes induced by chemical agents, physical and biological. Attention is paid to the characteristics of the biodegradation process. The work has also raised issues associated with the development of ever-larger amounts of polymer waste.
- Although lifelong learning seems expected within the contemporary labour market, only 1,3% of unemployed Poles participate in non-formal vocational training. Approximately half take part in training programmes organised by local labour offices, whereas the remainder initiate training on their own, which incurs expenses, but otherwise allows a free choice of training. In this paper, employment effectiveness for these two groups is compared on the basis of data from the Polish LFS of 2001–2013. For this purpose a logit model of outflows from unemployment to employment was estimated. The outcomes indicated that results of the two approaches to training differed – those initiated by the local labour office increased the probability of short term employment, whereas action initiated by the unemployed themselves led to similar effects, but mainly in the medium term. Effectiveness of training varied according to the characteristics of the unemployed.
- Although the Mayr’s definition of species is commonly accepted for eukaryotic organisms, bacteria do not meet those established criteria. Thus, a special approach is necessaryto elaborate the definition resistant to such limitations as for example the lack of sexual reproduction or horizontal gene transfers. One of the most problematictaxa in microbiology is the Bacillus cereus group composed of several closely related bacteria. Thus, on the basis of this model, doubts concerning bacterial taxonomy arediscussed in the light of actual, molecular data.
- Among the plant species occuring naturally in Poland, apart from edible and completely harmless to humans, there are also poisonous ones. Without specific knowledge it is not easy to recognize and distinguish them. To make it even more difficult, those plants are able to develop visually tempting fruits. Such species are the topic of this article.Plants are toxic due to the poisons they contain. Toxicity is therefore a natural method of defense against being eaten, which directly affects the survivability of species. Sometimes slight contact with a toxic plant is enough to feel detrimental consequences. In terms of the structure, toxins belong to various organic compound groups, e.g. glycosides, alkaloids or they can be derivatives of certain organic compounds. Some of them are harmful even in tiny amounts, like in a yew’s case, others- in small doses are herbal medicines known for centuries (as black elder or lily of the valley) and wreak havoc in human organisms after overdosing.
- The analyses of influence of class size on academic achievement used data from study conducted in 2006 by the Regional Examination Board in Cracow (Poland). The variables explaining the achievements of lower secondary school pupils were identified using regression analysis. The model explains 71% of variance of exam results. These variables were used to identify statistical twins. Their assignment to the experimental and control group was performed in three ways: by stratification using Mahalanobis distance, matching one-to-many and one-to-one using k-means method. The last method proved the most successful. The effect of class size on student outcomes proved statistically insignificant. However, pupils from classes with below 23 pupils achieved higher mean scores than their peers from larger classes by 0.039 standard deviation.
- The analysis of chemistry textbooks for the 3rd stage of education was carried out in order to obtain in-depth information on the degree of realization of the first educational goal from general requirements (learning outcomes) of the core curriculum: A student obtains and processes information from various sources with the use of information-communication technologies. The range of occurrence of content related to the periodic table of elements in chemistry textbooks for the 3rd stage of education was investigated. The choice of this source of information was dictated by the provisions of the curriculum for general education on the one hand, and on the other, by the fact that the periodic table is a foundation of modern chemistry – the good command of the periodic table not only allows to systematize the knowledge, but also, to anticipate and understand the properties of chemical elements. We analyzed all the series of chemistry textbooks for junior high schools, which have been approved for use in schools by the Ministry of Education since 2009. The study results indicate that the content of all series of textbooks contains the periodic table of elements along with the materials helpful in forming the skills of reading data from such source of information. The most authors of textbooks also took care of that the periodic table of elements was present in every part of the series, which should help students in consolidating the ability to use this tool. The colors most often used in periodic tables to indicate the nature of the chemical elements were different shades of blue and pink, which may help in consolidating the knowledge, but it can also lead to the formation of students’ misconceptions about the properties of elements.
- The article approaches the question of how provisions for the 2008 core curriculum are implemented at lower secondary school within the sub-area of linguistic awareness. It also covers, how Polish language grammar is taught, and student results. Data was obtained from the study: Didactics of literature and Polish language in middle school under the new core curriculum, including results from: tests measuring knowledge and skills involving linguistic awareness, non-participant observation of language classes, information collected from interviews with teachers and students, and questionnaires. The analysis of this varied data allowed construction of a multi-faceted image of linguistic awareness teaching in middle school which emerged to appear highly traditional and geared towards theoretical knowledge of the Polish language. This model does not satisfy the principles for functional language teaching, as prescribed by the new core curriculum. This may explain, why many middle school students experience difficulty in the application of their abstract knowledge to practical situations.
- The article deals with teaching literature in the context of individual reading experience. Creating the analogy between reading and journey, questions are posed about the student’s freedom as reader, privacy and the uniqueness of the act of individual reading in the educational process. This culminates with the basic question of whether a reader needs school. The main analysis, supported by references to works of Certeau, Izer and Nietzsche, concentrates on the problems of change of status and function of literature in contemporary life, both social and individual, rejection of reading, preservation of passive attitude through educational routine and identification of knowledge about literature with the experience of its reception. Conclusions concentrate on redefinition of the aims of literary education, presentation of reading as an existential need and also deal with the reader’s freedom and responsibility, the role of school in building the reader’s competence, as well as with the range and form of the teacher’s activity. The author postulates structural changes which would allow introduction of a variety of organizational solutions and classes focusing on literature.
- The article demonstrates the consequences on validity when test items are misclassified as constructed-response but in fact function as selected-response. From the review of items included in the scientific part of the national exam (2002–11) that concludes 3-year lower secondary school, 9 items, which were classified as constructed-response but functioning in content and psychometrically as selected-response, were identified. One such item was examined in a case study using IRT modelling. The study showed how guessing of correct responses to items might influence test validity when using an incorrectly classified format.
- The article describes school culture and reports studies in which this construct was used to explain student risky behaviours. School culture embraces assumptions, values and beliefs shared by the school community. Teachers’ caring attitudes and commitment, clarity of school norms and rules and the high value of academic achievement have been proved to have a positive influence on school effectiveness and student healthy development. Research on school culture, similarly to studies on school climate, integrate diverse research communities interested in school performance and the effectiveness of prevention programs.
- The article describes the importance of spatial data resources and GIS tools in environmental education. Data resources available at European and national level andpossibilities of their use in education have been presented. Assessment of usefulness of these resources for environmental education objectives was made. Examples of useof spatial data in environmental education are presented.
- The article discusses interplay between institutions in higher education (HEIs) and the socio-economic environment. Analysis of the formal and legal conditions and changes in the HEI environment shows that cooperation is becoming an increasingly important dimension in management. In this paper, a tendency in the institutionalisation of these relations and the effects of a new mechanism for distribution of benefits on their shaping was observed, and which was characteristic of the stakeholder theory presented. The empirical section investigates the regional perspective for missions and development strategies of HEIs in the presence of certain categories of external stakeholders. The study showed that HEIs most frequently addressed cooperation with representatives of business and public authorities. HEIs recognised these two types of entity as external stakeholders in the region. It was also found that type of HEI influenced its orientation to cooperation. State higher schools of vocational education were the most friendly towards cooperation with regional stakeholders.
- The article discusses reading from the perspective of human inquiry into the nature of experience. The author pinpoints a dual problem. The first relates to difficulties with definition of experience in the philosophical tradition. The second is an influence of 20th century theories which replace the concept of interpretation with the concept of reading. The main thesis of the article argues for the necessity to enter a new reflection on the experience of reading away from its essentialistic tendency, to be more based on pragmatics and performatics. This could be followed by questions about how literature works, the kind of experience that is created in the process of reading and how people should be inspired to embrace literature. In view of the reading crisis and the crisis of classics these questions seem crucially important.
- The article discusses the specific character of changes in the evaluation of the sense of social integration in the classroom between third and sixth graders in primary school, and their social, demographic and cognitive determinants, with special consideration given to the position in the sociometric network. The analysis of latent growth curves – based on a scalar longitudinal measurement invariance, a bifactor model of the Perceived Peer Integration Questionnaire (PPI) and three rounds of the nationwide study School conditions of education effectiveness (N = 4349) – indicate that the second stage of learning in primary school is characterised by more negative perceptions of social integration in classroom settings, which cannot be explained either by socio-demographic variables or the relationships taking place within peer networks. This indicates that it might be linked to developmental changes rather than the actual worsening of peer relations.
- The article explores young people’s reluctance to read literature and how to motivate a generation of digital natives to reach for a book. The author reflects on literary education inspired by a literary criticism workshop. Special attention is drawn to the most recent literature as particularly motivating because it poses a challenge to both teachers and pupils. Additional approaches for teachers to consider in order to nurture an affinity for reading include rejection of instrumentalism in literary education (e.g. teaching to the test) and expression of the teacher’s personal fascination with literature and organization of classes in “the free zone of reading”.
