The practicum in school psychology: Making use of a university-based psychological service center

This paper examines the manner in which a university clinic may be used to provide a portion of a school psychology student's practicum experiences. Advantages highlighted include providing a broader base of experience than just those of the public school system, and intensive and varied doctoral-level supervision. Discussion centered on the continued need for providing practicum experiences that expose students to a variety of situations.     

Faculty needs, doctoral preparation, and the future of teacher preparation programs in the education of deaf and hard of hearing students

The purposes of the study were to obtain and analyze data on the need for, and desired characteristics of, faculty in deaf education at American institutions of higher education (IHEs), and to assess the present and projected status of doctoral-level teacher preparation programs in deaf education at American IHEs. Program directors and coordinators provided information on current and projected faculty openings, the number of active doctoral students, faculty research interests, program strengths, and needs in the field. Results indicated a pending shortage due to faculty retirements and a paucity of doctoral-level graduates. Most faculty listed literacy and language as a primary research interest as well as a program strength. The ability to generate new knowledge through research was found to be less desirable for future faculty than teaching ability. Suggestions for improving doctoral preparation and moving the field to evidence-based practices are provided.     

Results of two national surveys of leadership personnel needs in deaf education

Seventy university teacher preparation programs and 100 instructional programs serving at least 120 deaf and hard of hearing students were surveyed separately to (a) determine the demand for additional doctoral-level leadership personnel in deaf education, (b) obtain guidance for university leadership preparation programs in deaf education for the purpose of recruiting leadership personnel, and (c) identify experiences that would be relevant to the positions for which prospective leadership personnel are preparing. Data representing 54% of teacher preparation programs and 65% of instructional programs serving deaf and hard of hearing students in the United States evince the need for additional doctoral-level personnel for faculty positions in university teacher preparation programs in deaf education, as well as the need for leadership positions in instructional programs serving deaf and hard of hearing children. Data also provide direction for leadership preparation programs in addressing the leadership personnel needs of the field.     

Doctoral ‘orphans’: nurturing and supporting the success of postgraduates who have lost their supervisors

Much research into doctoral student-supervisor relations focuses on developing positive interactions. For many students, however, the research experience can be troubled by breakdowns in communication and even the loss of the supervisor(s), turning the student into a doctoral ‘orphan’ and impacting on their academic identity and ability and confidence in producing a sound doctoral-level contribution to knowledge. Our work with a range of UK- and internationally-based doctoral students looks specifically at reasons for supervisor loss and/or absence and the students' experience of being doctoral ‘orphans’ in terms of identity, confidence and progress. In focusing on those who achieve successful completion, it suggests the need for institutional and community support and highlights the development of effective strategies leading to ownership, empowerment and emotional resilience.     

Leveraging learning technologies for collaborative writing in an online pharmacotherapy course

The purpose of this project was to evaluate the development and delivery of a hypertext case scenario document to be used as the capstone assessment tool for doctoral-level physical therapy students. The integration of Web-based collaborative tools (PBworks? and Google Sites?) allowed students in this all-online course to apply their pharmacotherapy knowledge in a physical therapy patient scenario, while working with colleagues to determine the best route of patient care. Students developed digital writing skills imperative to a patient-centered, collaborative health-care field, and practiced evidence-based patient care. The findings demonstrate that the implementation of collaborative digital writing with a hypertext document case scenario assessment as the primary assessment tool in this online pharmacotherapy course delivered to doctoral-level physical therapy students is a feasible and effective educational strategy.     

A Student Portfolio Approach to Conducting Doctoral Social Work Comprehensive Examinations

ABSTRACT

This report describes using a student portfolio approach to the structure and conduct of doctoral-level comprehensive examinations in the field of social work. Portfolios have been used as the primary method (one exception in over 40 students) to conducting social work comprehensive examinations at the author's former university, and this doctoral program appears to be unique in this regard among North American social work programs. The approach to organizing the written and oral components of comprehensive examinations using a portfolio is described, along with some of the advantages and disadvantages of this technique. Other doctoral programs are encouraged to include this method as one option in evaluating student readiness to conduct dissertation research and attainment of pedagogical objectives.     

A comparison of Web 2.0 tools in a doctoral course

Adult, professional students in a doctoral-level course used Web 2.0 tools such as wikis, blogs, and online discussions to develop answers to six “Big Questions” related to higher education finance and also produced a research paper that used original data or the research literature to improve understanding of a specific topic. At the close of the course, students were asked to provide examples of learning for each question and each tool, and to evaluate the tools used. Bloom's Digital Taxonomy was used to evaluate levels of learning. Results indicated that the level of learning mirrored that of the Big Question or was at higher levels when students used new tools. Wikis generated objections from students who did not care for group work, although others found it a good collaborative tool. Blogs were more acceptable, but online discussions were preferred because of the interaction and sharing among students. Research papers allowed students to learn material of their own interest and to do so in depth.     

Expanding roles or evolving identity? Doctoral school psychologists in school vs. nonschool practice settings

The purpose of this study was to investigate variables related to the professional identity and career path of school-based vs. non-school-based doctoral-level school psychologists. Two hundred seventy-three psychologists trained as school psychologists completed a questionnaire developed to investigate their training, experience, and perceptions. Respondents differed little by employment setting (school-based vs. non-school-based) in reports of their training or experiences. However, significant differences were found among groups in two areas: ratings of relative importance of characteristics of employment setting, and perceived identity as a school psychologist.     

The Blueprint I revisited: Training and practice in school psychology

In 1984, the National School Psychology Inservice Training Network (NSPITN) published School psychology: A blueprint for training and practice (Blueprint I), which recognized that America's public schools were troubled and focused on how school psychology could help with a transformation; the role of school psychologists was divided into 16 practice domains. In 1997, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) published a successor, School psychology: A blueprint for training and practice II (Blueprint II), which credits the first edition with having “driven much of the progress in school psychology.” To better understand the impact of the Blueprint I, this study analyzes responses from Nebraska and Iowa school psychologists about it, finding that doctoral-level respondents believed that they were more competently trained than subdoctoral school psychologists in the research domain; quality of training was rated higher by respondents receiving degrees after 1984 in class management, classroom organization and social structures, interpersonal communication and consultation, legal/ethical and professional issues, multicultural concerns, parental involvement, research, and systems development and planning. Analyses revealed numerous areas of congruence and dissonance between training and practice. Respondents reported a preference to decrease the amount of time spent in assessment and increase the time spent in all other domains (except basic academic skills). The relevance to the Blueprint II and the implications for school psychology training and practices are discussed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Predicting Scientific Understanding of Prospective Elementary Teachers: Role of Gender,Education Level,Courses in Science,and Attitudes Toward Science and Mathematics

A multiple regression analysis of the relationship between prospective teachers' scientific understanding and Gender, Education Level (High School, College), Courses in Science (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Earth Science, Astronomy, and Agriculture), Attitude Towards Science, and Attitude Towards Mathematics is reported. Undergraduate elementary science students (N = 176) in an urban doctoral-level university in the United States participated in this study. The results of this study showed Gender, completion of courses in High School Chemistry and Physics, College Chemistry and Physics, and Attitudes Toward Mathematics and Science significantly correlated with scientific understanding. Based on a regression model, Gender, and College Chemistry and Physics experiences added significant predictive accuracy to scientific understanding among prospective elementary teachers compared to the other variables.     

A National Survey of the Program and Enrollment Characteristics of Counselor Education Programs

ACES sponsored a national survey of state supervisors of guidance and counselor education institutions and of nontraditional institutions offering graduate degrees in guidance and counseling in order to secure information regarding (a) the licensure of guidance counselors, (b) the use of a competency-based approach to the certification of counselors, (c) the manpower needs for persons in guidance and personnel work, and (d) the program characteristics of counselor education institutions. Only a relatively small number of states anticipate becoming involved in the licensure of conselors in the foreseeable future; 53.6 percent of the states expect their certification of counselors to be competency-based within 2 to 5 years, and 76.1 percent of counselor education institutions have decided to make their programs competency-based but progress is slow. There is an oversupply of BA-level guidance persons, school counselors, and doctoral-level persons seeking faculty positions; there is a strong preference for ethnic minorities and women to fill counselor education positions; and abnormally high faculty/graduate ratios were reported for many institutions.     

A challenging time in the history of lamaze international: an interview with francine nichols

Dr. Francine Nichols-President of Lamaze International from 1988 to 1991 (when the organization was known as "the American Society for Psychoprophylaxis in Obstetrics" or "ASPO/Lamaze") and the founding editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education in 1990-is a woman with many skills that have contributed to her success throughout her career. Dr. Nichols is a knowledgeable leader in maternal-newborn nursing, a respected nurse and childbirth educator, a researcher, and an author. However, these skills were not the abilities she relied upon the most to lead the Lamaze organization through a challenging period in the 1980s; rather, Dr. Nichols's tenacity, business savvy, and willingness to face controversy helped guide Lamaze International back on track so that it was able to grow into the strong organization it remains today. This interview took place by telephone on June 12, 2006, when Dr. Nichols was in Washington, D.C., for the summer to coordinate the National Institute of Nursing Research's Summer Genetics Institute, a doctoral-level course cosponsored by Georgetown University.     

Progress For Women In Academe,Yet Inequities Persist: Evidence from NSOPF:99

In this study, we use data from the 1999 National Study of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF:99) to measure the unexplained wage gap between men and women in academe. We pay particular attention to how these unexplained wage gaps have changed over time by comparing the results from the 1999 survey to published results from previous national surveys and test for the sensitivity of these findings to the method used for measuring the unexplained wage gap and the type of institution or field being examined. We found that there has been a notable reduction in the overall unexplained wage gap between men and women, and that there is no longer any evidence of a statistically significant pay differential between men and women in doctoral-level or liberal arts institutions. The results also show that significant pay differentials still persist in some segments of academe, and that overall women with comparable qualifications to men have lower salaries.Earlier versions of this paper were presented at the annual meetings of the Association for Institutional Research, Tampa, FL, May 2003, and the Association for the Study of Higher Education, Portland, OR, November 2003.     

Can SpRY recognize any PAM in human cells?

The application of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated proteins (Cas) can be limited due to a lack of compatible protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) sequences in the DNA regions of interest. Recently, SpRY, a variant of Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9), was reported, which nearly completely fulfils the PAM requirement. Meanwhile, PAMs for SpRY have not been well addressed. In our previous study, we developed the PAM Definition by Observable Sequence Excision (PAM-DOSE) and green fluorescent protein (GFP)‍-reporter systems to study PAMs in human cells. Herein, we endeavored to identify the PAMs of SpRY with these two methods. The results indicated that 5''-NRN-3'', 5''-NTA-3'', and 5''-NCK-3'' could be considered as canonical PAMs. 5''-NCA-3'' and 5''-NTK-3'' may serve as non-priority PAMs. At the same time, PAM of 5''-NYC-3'' is not recommended for human cells. These findings provide further insights into the application of SpRY for human genome editing.     

Gender Equality Programmes in German Institutions of Higher Education—The North Rhine-Westphalia Case

This article describes the theoretical basis and presents some results of an empirical investigation into all the institutions of higher education in North Rhine-Westphalia, the largest of the German La ?nder that has the largest number of universities (twenty-seven universities and universities of applied sciences, (fachhochschulen), in all). For these institutions, a gender equality policy was elaborated in 1993 by the Ministry of Science and Research of the Land. It is titled ''Basic Principles for the Promotion of Women at the Institutions of Higher Education in North Rhine-Westphalia'' (referred to as ''Basic Principles'' in the text to follow). It became compulsory for all the universities in 1993 and for all the fachhochschulen, as well, in 1995. In 1998, the author was commissioned to assess the impact of these ''basic principles'' three years later.     

Mothers' Beliefs about Feelings and Children's Emotional Understanding

We revised Hyson and Lee's (1996) Caregiver's Beliefs about Feelings questionnaire for use with parents. One hundred and fifteen mothers of 4- to 6- year-old children completed the Parents' Beliefs about Feelings questionnaire (PBAF). We assessed emotional understanding of 60 of the children using Denham's (1986) measure. Factor analysis supported a 2-factor solution for the PBAF. The first subscale (Emotion Language) reflected mothers' belief in socializing emotion language. The second subscale (Developmental Beliefs) assessed mothers' belief that their children were not developmentally ready to control or talk about emotions. Mothers' Developmental Beliefs scores were positively related to mothers' negative emotional expressiveness. Mothers' Emotion Language scores were positively related to children's knowledge of emotion terms. Results may help educators design intervention programs to teach children emotional and social skills.     

Do you know what I'm thinking? A comparison of teacher and parent perspectives of underachieving gifted students' attitudes

The Achievement Orientation Model posits students are motivated to do well in school when they believe they have the necessary skills to perform a task (self-efficacy), find the task meaningful (goal valuation), and see their environment as supportive. When these factors are present, students self-regulate and achieve. We examined these factors from underachieving gifted students', their parents', and teachers' perspectives. Results indicated teachers recognize students who are confident and not confident about their abilities to be academically successful; however, they are less able to recognize when students value the work they are encountering in school. Parents' perceptions of students' attitudes more closely correlated with students' perceptions than teachers' perceptions correlated with students' perceptions. Teachers and parents appeared to base their perception of the importance students hold for school on their perception of students' self-regulation. Furthermore, gender differences existed in students' perceptions. Females' self-efficacy scores were statistically lower than males' self-efficacy scores, and males' self-regulation scores were lower than females' self-regulation scores. We provide suggestions for how school psychologists may use these findings to (a) collect important information from students, teachers, and parents, (b) interpret these data to identify underlying influential factors, and (c) guide the development of appropriate interventions to address student underachievement.     

Teachers' perceptions and attitudes about Response to Intervention (RTI) in their schools: A qualitative analysis

As Response to Intervention (RTI) models are increasingly implemented in United States' schools, it is important to consider the perceptions of those directly involved. The current study assessed teachers' perceptions of RTI and utilized qualitative methodology and a computer-based text search program to explore teachers' perceptions of RTI. Constant comparison analysis yielded four emergent themes related to teacher perception of RTI: (a) overall understanding of RTI, (b) teachers' perceptions of barriers to RTI in their schools, (c) teachers' suggestions to improve RTI, and (d) teachers' suggestions for making paperwork more efficient. We conclude with implications for training and RTI implementation.     

Problems and Inconsistencies with Kolb's Learning Styles

Kolb's Learning Style Inventory (LSI) (1984) is frequently used within many areas of study and research as a method of assigning students to a given learning style. However, this paper argues that there are substantial problems with the theoretical foundations of his work. Anomalies are noted with the claimed relationship with Jung's styles (1977) and with Kolb's use of 'possibility processing' (Tyler, 1978). It is argued that these anomalies make it impossible for firm conclusions about the nature of Kolb's learning style to be made. Implications for the use of Kolb's learning styles are presented.