Critical realist review: exploring the real,beyond the empirical

This article defines the ‘critical realist review’, a literature-based methodological approach to critical analysis of health care studies (or any discipline charged with social interventions) that is robust, insightful and essential for the complexities of twenty-first century evidence-based health and social care. We argue that this approach, underpinned by a critical realist philosophy and methodology, will facilitate students and researchers to employ relevant theoretical insights from a range of disciplines that have necessary contributions to make to our understanding of health and social care practice and provision. We explore the limitations of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and the systematic review for informing evidence-based health and social care. The article also offers some suggestions on method, although, as we argue, the approach deliberately eschews a ‘cookbook’ approach. A glossary of terms is provided in the Appendix.     

Bottling fog? The quest for instructional management

Elsewhere, the authors have unpacked instructional leadership and have documented that such leadership is associated with more effective schools. Indeed, there has been for a considerable time nearly universal acceptance that learning-centered leadership should provide the central platform on which leadership is enacted. In this paper, a less sanguine narrative is provided on instructional management. Specifically, it documents that for all the evidence and recognition of importance, learning-focused leadership remains a small domain of action for leaders at the school and district levels. It then focuses on both the culture of the profession of school administration and the nature of schooling to explain why in the face of considerable energy and effort only marginal improvements have been realized in deepening instructional leadership. It closes with an analysis of possible paths going forward.     

Academic success through quality-managed course design

Principles of quality management (which focus on defect prevention rather than defect correction) are applied to course design. These principles mandate that 1) the mission of the course be clearly stated and reviewed in context of the total program of study, 2) the objectives for the course or program of study be clearly defined and known to the students, 3) there be numerous intermediate steps leading to the objectives, 4) students be given immediate feedback about their performance on each step, and 5) corrective action be initiated immediately when a student fails to achieve an intermediate step. These principles apply to both individual courses and to an entire course of study. The authors found that a course incorporating these principles led to an increase in student performance and long-term retention of information.Andy C. Reese, is an associate professor of immunology in the department of Cell Biology and Anatomy at the Medical College of Georgia, and he is the current president of the Georgia Academy of Science. He has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and an M.B.A. from Augusta College. His work focuses upon the development of computer assisted instructional modules and control of immune responses in neonates. Mary F. Mobley is a professor of marketing in the department of Management, Marketing, and Management Information Systems at Augusta College. She has a Ph.D. in marketing from the University of South Carolina-Columbia and a M.Ed. from Augusta College. Her research interests include quality management in education, strategic planning, and market research.     

印刷企业积极进取的力量

Julie：在过去的几周里,美国和世界金融市场经历了非常困难的时期。世界上一些大型的银行机构和投资公司纷纷破产或由政府接管。在未来的几周里,世界各地可能会有更多的金融公司带来更多的坏消息。许多金融专家们对世界经济充满沮丧和悲观的情绪。     

Redesigning library orientation for first-year medical students during the pandemic

Background:Prior to 2020, library orientation for first-year medical students at Weill Cornell Medicine took the form of an on-site treasure hunt competition. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the orientation for the MD class of 2024 was shifted to an all-virtual format. This shift mandated a full redesign of the library orientation.Case Presentation:The Samuel J. Wood Library sought to preserve the excitement and fun of the treasure hunt in the new virtual format. The competition was redesigned as a Zoom meeting using breakout rooms, with library faculty and staff serving as team facilitators. Tasks were rewritten, shifting the focus from the library''s physical spaces to its virtual services and online resources. The redesigned orientation was evaluated using two data sources: a postsession survey of student participants and a debriefing of the library employees who participated. Student evaluations were positive, while the faculty and staff provided numerous suggestions for improving future virtual orientations.Conclusions:A successful virtual library orientation requires careful preparation, including testing the competition tasks, full rehearsal with library facilitators, and a thoughtful approach to technology and logistics. We have chosen to share the materials we developed for other academic health sciences libraries that may wish to take a similar approach to their own virtual orientations.     

Big Data – What is it and why it matters

Big data, like MOOCs, altmetrics and open access, is a term that has been commonplace in the library community for some time yet, despite its prevalence, many in the library and information sector remain unsure of the relationship between big data and their roles. This editorial explores what big data could mean for the day‐to‐day practice of health library and information workers, presenting examples of big data in action, considering the ethics of accessing big data sets and the potential for new roles for library and information workers.