Assessment of 21st Century Skills

This chapter describes an action research in which creative story writing was used to assess student understanding of graph construction. Students were encouraged to write stories involving motion and visually depict verbal descriptions of stories in the form of tables and line graphs. Student work revealed several misconceptions held by students vis-à-vis writing motion-based stories, tabulation of data, plotting of graphs, and establishing congruence between stories and graphs. This study suggests several feedback measures that can be used by teachers to rectify these misconceptions.

Children’s conceptions of coronavirus

The present study aimed to examine children’s conceptions of coronavirus as denoted in their verbal descriptions and drawings and whether these vary as a function of children’s age and the mode of expression. Data were collected in Greece during spring 2020 and 344 children aged 4 to 10 years were first asked to verbally describe coronavirus and then to produce a drawing of it. Content analysis of data revealed the following main themes: (a) Coronavirus, (b) Medical, (c) Psychological, and (d) Social. Results showed that children from an early age present a remarkable level of understanding of coronavirus and the COVID-19 disease as a multidimensional construct, which can be designated not only through characteristics of the Sars-Cov-2 but also through its medical, social, and psychological consequences on people’s lives. Moreover, children were found to emphasize different aspects of this construct depending on their age and the mode of expression.

Weight Perception Measured by Verbal Descriptions and Visual Descriptions: Which Measurement Correlates with Weight Loss Intentions among Female Nursing Students?

Background: Young females tend to overestimate their weight status, which might induce unhealthy weight loss intentions and behaviours. This study aimed to examine weight perception measured by visual and verbal descriptions and its correlation with weight loss intentions among female nursing students. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 600 female nursing students from four medical colleges in Shanghai, China. The participants rated perceptions of their weight by selecting a silhouette from the female Photographic Figure Rating Scale (PFRS) and one of the following verbal descriptions: “very underweight”, “slightly underweight”, “normal”, “overweight” or “obese”. Weight loss intentions were measured using the question “How often do you want to lose weight?”. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated from self-reported height and weight. Data were analysed using univariate and ordinal logistic regression analyses. Results: The accuracy of weight perceptions measured by verbal descriptions and visual descriptions was 44.50% and 55%, respectively. In females with underweight BMI (n = 135), 88.15% and 49.63% accurately classified their weight using visual descriptions and verbal descriptions, respectively. These females were more likely to overestimate (53.83% vs. 14.50%) and less likely to underestimate (1.67% vs. 30.50%) their weight when using verbal descriptions than when using visual descriptions. For verbal descriptions, weight overestimation was associated with weight loss intentions (odds ratio, 1.80; 95% confidence interval, 1.25–2.60). However, for visual descriptions, the two variables were not associated. Conclusions: A mismatch occurred between weight perceptions measured by the two methods and BMI status among female nursing students. Compared with verbal descriptions, visual descriptions had higher weight perception accuracy. However, weight overestimation measured by verbal descriptions was more likely to be associated with stronger intentions to lose weight than that of visual descriptions. These findings suggest that methodological discrepancies should be taken into account when measuring weight perception in future studies.

How to Design an Objective Test to Assess Personality: Step by Step

<p>Objective tests allow us to study the behavior that people show, without having to resort to the analysis of the verbal descriptions they make about their own behavior. Objective tests have been widely used to study abilities, and it was not until the works of Cattell and Warburton that these instruments also began to be systematically designed to study personality. In this work, we describe what objective tests are and why they have the potential to be a useful instrument in personality assessment. We present what researchers need to know to design an objective personality test. To this end, we offer an example of the process that we followed to design a test that measures self-control. This work could serve as a basis for researchers who want to design this type of instruments.</p>

How to Design an Objective Test to Assess Personality: Step by Step

<p>Objective tests allow us to study the behavior that people show, without having to resort to the analysis of the verbal descriptions they make about their own behavior. Objective tests have been widely used to study abilities, and it was not until the works of Cattell and Warburton that these instruments also began to be systematically designed to study personality. In this work, we describe what objective tests are and why they have the potential to be a useful instrument in personality assessment. We present what researchers need to know to design an objective personality test. To this end, we offer an example of the process that we followed to design a test that measures self-control. This work could serve as a basis for researchers who want to design this type of instruments.</p>

Formally Representing How Psychological Processes Shape Actions and One Another Using Functional Fields

Many psychological theories understand that a person’s actions are psychologically mediated – i.e., they are caused most proximally by how the person perceives their situation. Here, I discuss how functional field models can be used to represent the perceived situation as a path model detailing the forces a person understands as connecting actions, features of the environment, and their ultimate appraisal of the situation. I illustrate how specific situational factors can be represented as affecting a person’s actions by affecting these perceived forces, and thus their understanding of the action’s expected effects. I describe how verbal descriptions of the situation, or of their reasons for action, can be formally represented within field models. Finally, I describe how field models can be used to represent arguments about how traits relate to one another, such as how a person’s level of extraversion or callousness might affect the levels of many other traits. More generally, functional field models can help to represent how people actively construct their environment, and how we can better utilize people’s verbal descriptions of their own traits or their reasons for action.

JOANNA LEE (b. 1982)Your Little Voice (2001)

This chapter discusses Joanna Lee’s Your Little Voice (2001). This is an early but typical example of Lee’s work. Full of innovative quirks and wild contrasts in character, it is a perfect choice for singers wishing to try ‘avant-garde’ repertoire for the first time. They will surely revel in the experience, and not find it as daunting as feared. A tuning fork will be helpful at the start, and later also if needed to recall pitches after instances of speaking or whispering. A full-page glossary makes everything clear, but still leaves room for personal interpretative input. Verbal descriptions for the myriad vocal styles requested are encapsulated acutely. Rhythms are also notated strictly, with traditional time signatures; indeed, maintaining momentum and a discernible pulse is a distinctive and important aspect.