Empirical foundations of atomism in ancient Greek philosophy     

Sotirios A. Sakkopoulos  Evagelos G. Vitoratos 《Science & Education》1996,5(3):293-303

The way by which ancient Greek philosophers came to the concept of atom is presented. The concept of atom, a great creation of the human mind, gave a direct, modern-like explanation of the world, at times in which the huge amount of experimental and theoretical information of today was not available. This lack proved not an impossible obstacle for ancient Greek atomistic philosophers. The continuous regeneration, which makes Nature seem eternal, the physiology of nourishment, the orderly growth and decay of humans, animals and plants, the spreading of a sent, the evaporation and condensation of water, the wearing out of a pavement by the steps of passers-by etc., led philosophers to the concept of atoms. Similar experiences can be appealed to in teaching the concept today. Nevertheless, the concept of atom was not conceived in the same way in all ancient philosophical schools. The struggle to understand Nature, brought forth brilliant ideas and intuitions, which are directly connected to modern aspects of atomic theory, like the atomicity of time and the symmetries of the world of elementary particles. Teachers today can, with benefit to their students, retrace the ancient steps to atomic theory.  相似文献   

The challenges of setting up the evaluation of extension systems by using a systems approach: the case of Greece,Italy and Slovenia     

Evagelos D. Lioutas  Chrysanthi Charatsari  Majda Černič Istenič  Giuseppe La Rocca  Marcello De Rosa 《The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension》2019,25(2):139-160

Purpose: Considering current debates on ecosystem services’ effectiveness and the AIS/AKIS functioning, in this study we suggest a new, systemic way to evaluate extension systems (ESs). Using this model, we compared the effectiveness of ESs in three countries with essential differences but also characteristic similarities in their agricultural sectors: Greece, Italy and Slovenia.

Design/methodology/approach: Initially, we defined ‘extension system’ as a wide range of actors integrating resources with the aim of co-producing value (not for but with) farmers. To capture the value flow within this constellation of actors we distinguished between the notion of ‘value in production’ – i.e. the value embodied in service offerings – and the value emanating when service content is used in real settings or ‘value in use.’

Findings: Our approach revealed that, despite their structural and organizational differences, the ES in the three countries share common problems arising from a limited focus on the issue of value in use.

Practical implications: The application of a systemic approach – seeing farmers as co-creators and not as end-users of extension services – in the evaluation of ESs contributes to better understand the complexity of value flow within the system and can strengthen extension systems’ effectiveness.

Theoretical implications: The present study, by reconsidering traditional evaluation approaches and by focusing on value co-production, offers an alternative value-centric framework for the conceptualization of extension services and points out to the need for refining the evaluation criteria of ESs.

Originality/value: Our work, by emphasizing the reciprocal creation of value within ESs, and by adding the concept of value in use, offers a new systems approach worth considering when evaluating ESs within different organizational and sociocultural contexts.  相似文献   

The Use of Drama in Science Education: The Case of “Blegdamsvej Faust”     

Pantidos  Panagiotis  Spathi  Kalliopi  Vitoratos  Evagelos 《Science & Education》2001,10(1-2):107-117

This is a study of the structure of ‘The Blegdamsvej Faust’ and its relation to Goethe's classical play Faust. The ‘Blegdamsvej Faust’, a play written and performed by Bohr's students in 1932, is inspired by the very rapid development of Physics in those turbulent years. A struggle is made to promote the odd idea of a weightless particle. Moreover, this study lays emphasis on the fact that new ideas of Physical Sciences become more accessible, comprehensible and familiar through dramatization. For scenario-vehicles one may use as a basis plays from the classical repertoire or write something new. Several hints are given in this article.  相似文献   

Farmers’ motivational orientation toward participation in competence development projects: a self-determination theory perspective     

Chrysanthi Charatsari  Evagelos D. Lioutas  Alex Koutsouris 《The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension》2017,23(2):105-120

Purpose: In this study, we use a self-determination theory (SDT) approach to understand farmers’ attitudes toward, and intentions for, participation in competence development projects (CDP).

Design/methodology/approach: By applying SDT, we developed two measures. The first one assessed the degree to which the three basic human psychological needs motivate farmers to engage in CDP, and the second concerned farmers’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to seek knowledge through participation in CDP. Using data from two samples of farmers, we examined the effect of SDT needs and the influence of the different regulatory styles on individuals’ decision to participate in CDP.

Findings: Our findings indicated that participation in CDP is guided by the most internal forms of human motivation (identified, integrated, and intrinsic motivation), and that deficits in the needs for autonomy and competence predict farmers’ decision to participate in CDP.

Practical implications: These results stress the importance of designing CDP that promote self-directedness, emphasise choice rather than rewards, and generate the conditions that support farmers’ autonomy.

Theoretical implications: Our work suggests that the integration of social psychology into extension/education research can paint a more detailed picture of the way farmers interact with extension/education services.

Originality/value: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that uses an SDT framework to examine farmers’ motivation toward participation in CDP. Hence, this research opens a new realm for extension/education research, while it also contributes to the SDT literature by examining the role of self-determined motivation in a different life domain.  相似文献