Suarez reports a greater magnitude of fluctuating dental asymmetry for Neandertal sample when compared with a sample of modern Ohio whites. He postulates that this greater antimeric variance could be due to a greater degree of inbreeding in the Neandertal populations. In the present investigation, the magnitude of fluctuating dental asymmetry is evaluated for Eskimo and Pueblo populations. These populations were found to exhibit dental variance of equal magnitude to that of the Neandertal population. As these populations are not highly inbred, a stress related mechanism is suggested to explain these observations and the inbreeding hypothesis is rejected. The implications of this mechanism to Brace's Probable Mutation Effect are discussed.
This literature review critically synthesizes 10 years of international teacher expectations research using a simplified "expectation effect process" model. New developments in teacher expectation research are outlined, including effects of teacher expectations on students, teachers' development of expectations, teachers' differential treatment of students, and students' reactions to teacher expectations. A brief overview of pre-2008 research presents the foundations of the post-2008 research using the same "expectation effect process" model. A separate section about Australian research is also included. Results of the literature review show that while qualitative research on the topic has increased from 2008 to 2018, quantitative studies still prevail and qualitative studies on the topic-particularly those which consider students' perspectives-are rare. Hence, this article argues that the development of a more holistic, in-depth understanding of how teacher expectations affect student outcomes is possible through contextually embedded qualitative research that includes exploration of students' reactions to teacher expectations. In this way, further understandings about how and why expectation effects vary between students could be gained.
Words and stories have the power to resonate with people. Composite narratives can be constructed using multiple participant accounts, representing their experiences while also capturing the properties and categories of qualitative research findings. The ability of composite narratives to represent the multiple facets of theory construction through a singular narrative point-of-view is unique and provides a concise and credible method to present research findings. This paper explains how composite narratives can be constructed to present the research data that findings are built upon through an illustrative example of the process. The example of a composite narrative presented in this article is one of a larger set from a grounded theory study about a substantive group of Australian students’ experiences of their interactions in the classroom that communicate their teachers’ expectations of them. Narratives have the power to affect change in society by enhancing the transferability of research findings, presenting research findings with impact because they are engaging and memorable for readers. Qualitative researchers who are interested in composing composite narratives to reflect multiple participants’ different experiences, through interview data, will benefit from the justification and example of the technique, which provides a model for future research.
This article reviews the international literature about streaming and the effects of this practice on the learning outcomes for secondary school students in Australia. Streaming in secondary schools across Australia has again increased in popularity after more than a century of literature that often discourages the practice. This article discusses the practice of streaming and its effect on students' academic, social and psychological learning outcomes and how teachers may mediate these effects. In addition, the article examines the extent to which the various outcomes of streaming align with the Australian National Curriculum and with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's recommendations for promoting equity and quality in education. While research is contentious and often contested, the literature generally shows that streaming impacts negatively on student learning outcomes. The findings of this literature review suggest the need for more research within the Australian context about how teachers' perspectives of streaming influence learning outcomes and how streaming influences minority and disadvantaged groups in Australia.
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