Thesis (MPhil (Journalism))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Most journalists readily acknowledge that they cannot be proud at all of their numeracy. The literature also depicts a rather bleak scenario regarding journalists' use and often misuse of numbers. This matter raises concerns especially in the present century, characterised by a rapid development in the area of science and technology. Numeracy is essential to make sense of those developments that are frequently explained by means of numbers or mathematical and statistical concepts.

Die Untersuchungen, deren Ergebnisse in den Heften 32 und 33 der Potsdamer Studien zur Grundschulforschung vorgelegt wurden, gingen den Fragen nach, was Kinder am Anfang und am Ende des ersten Schuljahres über die Größe Geld wissen, welche elementaren Fähigkeiten sie im Umgang mit Geld haben und wie sich diese Kenntnisse und Fähigkeiten im Verlaufe des ersten Schuljahres weiterentwickeln. Mit den nun vorliegenden Ergebnissen unserer dritten Studie zum Thema Geld knüpfen wir an diese vorangegangenen Studien an. In diesem Heft wird dargestellt, welche Kompetenzen die an unseren Untersuchungen beteiligten Kinder am Ende der Klasse 2 besitzen und wie sich diese Kompetenzen im Vergleich zu den anderen Messzeitpunkten verändert haben. Außerdem sind wir der Frage nachgegangen, ob Zusammenhänge zwischen dem Vorwissen der Kinder bezogen auf unseren Untersuchungsgegenstand und den Rechenfähigkeiten am Ende der Klasse 2 bestehen. Im Ergebnis dieser Studien haben wir ein Modell für das Größenkonzept der Größe Geld entwickelt.

Thèse numérisée par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Thèse numérisée par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

This thesis examined the relationship between classroom quality, approaches-to-learning, and early academic skills among 384 Latino dual language learners (DLLs) enrolled in Florida Head Start programs. The children were living in low-income homes where Spanish was the primary language spoken by at least one parent. The study analyzed the extent to which approaches-to-learning behaviors moderate early literacy and numeracy skills in Head Start classrooms of varying quality. During the spring of their prek-4 year, the children were administered the English and Spanish Letter-Word Identification and Applied Problems subtests of the WJ-III (Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001) and the Batería III (Muñoz-Sandoval, Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2005) Tests of Achievement. General features of classroom quality were measured using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS; Pianta, La Paro, & Hamre, 2008). Multilevel models indicated that there is a negative association between a classroom's level of emotional support and early English Literacy Skills, a positive association between Attention/Persistence Learning Behaviors and early English Literacy Skills, and a positive association between Competence Motivation Learning Behaviors and early English Numeracy Skills. Approaches-to-learning behaviors did not moderate the relationship between classroom quality and early academic skills. Results are consistent with previous research that has found that general measures of classroom quality may not capture the cultural and linguistic factors that influence a DLL's early academic skills. The current findings are consistent with previous literature on the positive influence of approaches-to-learning behaviors on early academic skills. Implications for practice include using culturally responsive teaching practices, creating a positive classroom environment, and supporting the development of Attention/Persistence and Competence Motivation Learning Behaviors. Implications for research include strengths-based research examining the promotive role of approaches-to-learning in DLL development and using culturally sensitive measures of classroom quality.