Tipping the Balance from Expert to Facilitator: Examining Myths about Being a Teacher Educator

This self-study addresses two questions: (1) how did self-study aid the teacher educator in interrogating her beliefs about and mediate her projection of teacher-as-facilitator versus teacher-as-expert? and (2) in what ways did prospective elementary teachers in an undergraduate, interdisciplinary science course exert control over their learning as a result of the teacher educator's self-interrogation of practices? In her teaching role with prospective teachers, Nicole explored a major myth about teaching concerning the image of the professor as the primary expert in the classroom. Critical events analysis revealed instances where she exerted power as an expert or assumed the role of facilitator. Instead of clearly marked instances where she took actions to exert her various roles in the classroom, she found that classroom events could not be categorized neatly. There were cases where she acted as an expert and students felt free to make their own decisions about their learning. When she was uncertain or attempted to relinquish control, students often responded by not taking control of their learning.     

Improving Distance Education for Students with Special Needs: A Qualitative Study of Students’ Experiences with an Online Library Research Course

This article describes a study in which seven students with diverse disabilities participated in a one-credit online library research course which had been adapted to be accessible using the best practices literature on distance education for students with special needs. Students provided feedback on the design of the course and participated in in-depth interviews. Results of this study suggest any given class may have students with different types of disabilities, with different paths toward learning. Using the principles of universal design for learning can improve distance education not only for students with special needs, but for all types of learners.     

Pharmacist perception and use of UpToDate?

A cross-sectional survey of a convenience sample of 1,199 pharmacists was conducted to describe pharmacists'' use and perception of UpToDate®. Of 472 (39%) respondents, 217 (46%) reported using UpToDate. Most respondents who used or had heard of UpToDate indicated willingness to change a treatment plan based on UpToDate recommendations (77%). Many believed that UpToDate is updated weekly (31%) or monthly (49%) and that all articles undergo external peer review (51%). In conclusion, the majority of respondents reported that they would adjust drug therapy based on UpToDate recommendations; however, many pharmacists may hold misconceptions regarding the updating and peer-review processes.     

Raising Activity Levels: A Multidimensional Analysis of Curriculum Change

Using Fullan's (1982) The Meaning of Educational Change (Toronto, OISE Press) multidimensional framework, this paper discusses the problems of curriculum change by examining the subjective experiences of physical education teachers. The discussion was based on interviews with teachers who were involved in a study to change health behaviors of high school students. Although no discernable changes in behavior were observed, the explanations for the results, as reported by the teachers, have provided insights of greater importance. Two physical education classes consisting of boys and girls aged between 11 and 13 years from 20 secondary schools were selected for pre-test and post-test measurements. The data collected included a survey, direct observation, heart rate monitoring and motion sensoring. A teacher-designed modification of the physical education curriculum was used as an intervention as it was specifically aimed at increasing activity. A debriefing of teachers in the experimental group indicated that they considered the teacher-designed lesson guide to be valuable. However, when the teachers were faced with implementing change in their physical classes, they (like the researchers) underestimated the situational and personal-social factors that prevented untested ideas from being transformed into firm beliefs and values. The findings confirmed the predictions of a multidimensional model of educational change, which indicated that, when challenged, technological and material innovations are more easily changed than attitudes, beliefs and values held by teachers.     

Understanding teachers’ will and capacity to accomplish physical education curriculum reform: the implications for teacher development

Drawing on data generated by a two-year ethnographic study in a high security Spanish prison, this article explores the multiple meanings given to the social practices of sport and physical activity. We provide details of the following key themes that emerged from the analysis: (a) escaping time; (b) perceived therapeutic benefits; (c) social control; (d) gendered dimensions; and (e) performing masculinity. The findings suggest that a diverse and contradictory set of meanings are associated with sport and physical activity within this particular prison culture, and that the performance of specific kinds of masculinity is both a process and product that shapes the construction of experience in powerful ways.     

The effects of 15 min and 30 min of exercise on affective responses both during and after exercise

Although much research has examined the relationship between exercise and affect, few studies have considered the effects of exercise bouts of different durations and few researchers have questioned the longer term effects that might be associated with acute exercise. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of the standard health recommended exercise duration of 30?min with a shorter (15?min) bout of exercise upon individuals' affect scores both during and after exercise. Twenty-three (mean age 22.4 years) physically active participants engaged in two counterbalanced cycle ergometer exercise conditions for 15?min (short bout) and 30?min (moderate bout). The participants completed the Subjective Exercise Experience Scale before, during, 5?min, 30 mins, 1?h and 2?h after both exercise conditions. A series of 2 × 6 within-participant repeated-measures analyses of variance for positive well-being (P?<0.01), psychological distress (P?<0.01) and fatigue (P?<0.01) scores revealed significant time main effects, with improved scores over time. No significant differences were noted between the 15-min and 30-min exercise bouts. These results indicate that positive affective responses are experienced by exercisers after relatively short bouts of acute exercise and these effects can still be evident some time later.     

Preservice teachers' coping styles and their responses to bullying

The literature suggests that teacher responses to bullying are a function of the type of aggression (overt vs. relational), the gender of the children involved, and characteristics of the teacher. We extended the literature by examining teachers' dispositional coping styles as a predictor of their responses to bullying. Preservice teachers (N = 97) completed a measure of coping styles and then responded to eight vignettes showing overt or relational aggression occurring among boys or girls. Overt aggression was viewed as a bigger problem than relational aggression, and teacher interventions were deemed more necessary for overt than relational aggression. Preservice teachers who typically use more active coping, less denial coping, and less self‐blame responded more actively to bullying, especially in response to relational aggression among boys. These findings point to the need to consider teacher coping styles when working with them to intervene effectively in responding to bullying. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

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.     

Maternal work conditions and child development

How do maternal work conditions, such as psychological stress and physical hazards, affect children's development? Combining data from the Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and the Occupational Information Network allows us to shed some light on this question. We employ various techniques including OLS with extensive controls, a value added approach and individual fixed effects in order to address potential endogeneity problems. Our results reveal that mothers’ exposure to work-related hazards negatively affects children's cognitive development and to work-related stress negatively affects children's behavioral development. While maternal time investments play a small but significant role in mediating these negative associations, paternal time investments neither reinforce nor compensate these associations.