The value and impact of information provided through library services for patient care: a systematic review

OBJECTIVE: An updated systematic review was carried out of research studies looking at the value and impact of library services on health outcomes for patients and time saved by health professionals. METHODS: A comprehensive systematic search was undertaken of the published literature to September 2003 in ERIC, LISA, MEDLINE, PREMEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register and Google. Some handsearching was carried out, reference lists were scanned and experts in the field were contacted. Twenty-eight research studies of professionally led libraries for health-care staff, including clinical librarian projects, met the inclusion criterion of at least one health or 'time saved' outcome. Papers were critically appraised using internationally accepted criteria. Data were extracted and results were summarised using a narrative format as the studies were heterogeneous and precluded a statistical analysis. RESULTS: There is evidence of impact from both traditional and clinical librarian services. The higher quality studies of traditional services measured impacts of 37-97% on general patient care, 10-31% on diagnosis, 20-51% on choice of tests, 27-45% on choice of therapy and 10-19% on reduced length of stay. Four studies of clinical librarian projects suggested that professionals saved time as a result of clinical librarian input, and two of these studies showed evidence of cost-effectiveness. However, the clinical librarian studies were generally smaller, with poorer quality standards. CONCLUSIONS: Research studies suggest that professionally led library services have an impact on health outcomes for patients and may lead to time savings for health-care professionals. The available studies vary greatly in quality but the better quality studies also suggest positive impacts. Good practice can be gathered from these studies to guide the development of a pragmatic survey for library services that includes the direct effects for patients among the outcome measures.     

Exploring organisational perspectives on implementing educational inclusion in mainstream schools

Achieving equality remains a major challenge in schools globally. In Hong Kong, the current education policy has a core value that all students have the right to learn. Policy-makers and school personnel are struggling to find ways of catering for diverse learning needs in schools. Early in 2006, a self-initiated inclusive educational project has linked one mainstream school and a special school. Their project can be seen as a pioneer in the field of education, for it provides concrete recommendations to other education practitioners on initiating whole-school participation and joint-school partnerships, integrating such collaborations into the culture of the school, and encouraging teachers committed to student voice and engagement. This article records the qualitative case study comprising the teachers' self reports to demonstrate how teachers re-shaped their perceptions, beliefs and behaviours as they developed and implemented a school-based inclusion project. It is expected that the findings of this study will assist educators to further understand present challenges in the school system regarding managing diversity and attaining inclusive education goals. In particular, local schools are now facing the challenge to implement inclusive education.     

Reports on Books

OfSTED's criteria for inspection are published and available to all. However, it is quite possible that there will be a mismatch between schools' interpretations of what OfSTED means by good practice in primary mathematics and those of the inspectors who come to inspect them. The research reported here focuses on the responses of a small set of primary schools to the inspection of their mathematics: their anticipation of issues, their expectations of what would be found and their views of how the inspection would contribute to the development of good practice. Inspectors' reports seemed frequently to match the expectations of the schools. Interpretations appeared to coincide, but in some cases there appeared to be mismatch and disagreement which raised questions about expertise or interpretations of both inspector and mathematics co-ordinator and might, in turn, affect the development of mathematics following inspection.     

Annual Index Volume 8

The objective of this paper is to report the development and use of an observation checklist to identify typically developing children with behavioural manifestations associated with inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. This measure is termed the Scope Classroom Observation Checklist (SCOC). The SCOC was developed, assessed for reliability using an independent observer and teacher ratings, and administered to a sample of 157 mainstream schoolchildren. The SCOC revealed a normal distribution of scores on the checklist, and the top and bottom quartiles of this distribution were found, as would be expected, to differ significantly on SCOC score. The SCOC had good inter‐observer reliability and a high rate of concordance with teacher ratings of attentional difficulties. The SCOC has emerged as a reliable measure that could prove to be a useful tool in a battery of screening measures to identify mainstream schoolchildren with difficulties characterised by inattention and hyperactivity‐impulsivity.     

A social perspective on teaching and learning in the context of computer-mediated communication in teacher education

Abstract

In a context where ever greater emphasis is placed on the need to exploit the potential of information and communications technology, this article argues the need for a theoretical underpinning to such developments. In higher education, the emphasis is often placed on the assumed improved cost-effectiveness associated with ‘flexible’ and ‘independent’ student learning as one of the major benefits, although such notions as flexible and independent learning tend to be taken for granted. It is argued further that even where benefits to learning are emphasised, these are often founded on relatively impoverished views of learning. Often such views fit with a technocentric and positivist perspective on learning, emphasising as they do individualism, information delivery and a limited role for the tutor. This article outlines an alternative theoretical perspective based upon Vygotskian social psychology, activity theory and social practice. Such a perspective is characterised by an emphasis on interaction, communication and collaboration. Learning itself is seen as an aspect of participation in communities of practice, in which the human relationships between teachers and students are seen as fundamental. The theory is exemplified with reference to the use of computer-mediated communication in teacher education using FirstClass computer conferencing software.     

ICT for education: a conceptual framework for the sustainable adoption of technology-enhanced learning environments in schools

The paper presents an evaluation of student and tutor experiences in the introductory module of a European Masters programme in e‐Learning, Multimedia and Consultancy. The aims and outline of the Masters programme are described, together with the pedagogical approach adopted in the introductory module which explores open and flexible learning environments with students and tutors from four European countries. The second part of the paper evaluates the success of the teaching and learning that occurred in this unit, from the perspective of both the students and tutors. Data collected include student and tutor written evaluations, reflections on the authors’ own roles in the programme, and analysis of the products contained in the environment. The paper concludes by detailing future developments in the Masters programme that have been influenced by this cycle of evaluation.     

Strategies for mentoring pedagogical knowledge

Fundamental for mentoring a preservice teacher is the mentor’s articulation of pedagogical knowledge, which in this research draws upon specific practices, viz.: planning, timetabling lessons, preparation, teaching strategies, content knowledge, problem solving, questioning, classroom management, implementation, assessment and viewpoints for teaching. Mentoring is haphazard; consequently, mentors need a pedagogical knowledge framework and a repertoire of pedagogical knowledge strategies to guide a preservice teacher’s development. Yet, what are strategies for mentoring pedagogical knowledge practices? This qualitative research investigates mentoring strategies assigned to pedagogical knowledge from 27 experienced mentor teachers. Findings showed that there were multiple strategies that can be linked to specific pedagogical knowledge practices. For example, mentoring strategies associated with planning for teaching can include co-planning, verbally reflecting on planning with the mentee and showing examples of the mentor teacher’s planning (e.g. teacher’s plans, school plans, district and state plans). This article provides a bank of practical strategies for mentoring pedagogical knowledge practices to assist a preservice teacher’s development.     

保护好孩子的梦想

美国马萨诸塞州小男孩詹姆斯做梦都想拥有一套乐高"绿宝石午夜火车"玩具。他用了整整两年时间攒够了钱款,却失望地发现这款玩具已经停卖了,而无论是网上的少量存货还是二手转卖,它们的标价对詹姆斯来说都是天文数字。于是小男孩给乐高玩具写了一封信询问,却得知这款玩具已经停产。让人内心温暖的是,在詹姆斯11岁生日时,他收到了乐高悄悄寄来了这份惊喜。你一定想分享詹姆斯的快乐,小男孩脸上欢呼雀跃的表情,是不是也让你感动呢?这让我不禁联想起同样让人内心温暖的一个小女孩。当得知妈妈吃光了她的万圣节糖果时,小女孩红着眼眶,挤出笑容安慰妈妈说:妈妈我不生你的气,我只是有点伤心……吃那么多糖果会让你头痛,你应该多喝水……下一个万圣节我就不会伤心了,但你不能没有跟我商量就吃掉我的糖果,明年我们一起分享好吗?其实这只是父母们的一个万圣节恶作剧,还有很多小朋友也得到了同样的"噩耗",孩子们天真的各种抓狂让人捧腹,还有小女孩的"next Halloween we can share my candy"让人感动。我相信小女孩长大后,她如果听说有个小朋友特别渴望得到心中的"乐高",她也一定会帮助实现。瞧,正能量就是这样传播和积聚的。