Centralization vs. decentralization in medical school libraries

Does the medical school library in the United States operate more commonly under the university library or the medical school administration? University-connected medical school libraries were asked to indicate (a) the source of their budgets, whether from the central library or the medical school, and (b) the responsibility for their acquisitions and cataloging. Returns received from sixtyeight of the seventy eligible institutions showed decentralization to be much the most common: 71 percent of the libraries are funded by their medical schools; 79 percent are responsible for their own acquisitions and processing. The factor most often associated with centralization of both budget and operation is public ownership. Decentralization is associated with service to one or two rather than three or more professional schools. Location of the medical school in a different city from the university is highly favorable to autonomy. Other factors associated with these trends are discussed.     

Challenging Assumptions Underlying the Metamorphosis Phase: Ethnographic Analysis of Metamorphosis Within an Unemployment Organization

Organizational communication scholars have grappled with assimilation processes and expanded the theoretical conceptualization of each phase. This article joins in conversation with organizational communication scholars by identifying and problematizing the assumption that reaching metamorphosis is always a positive experience. Through the ethnographic analysis of empirical data collected from an unemployment support organization, the author argues that being an established organizational member is sometimes counter to organizational objectives. While traditional organizations attempt to maintain and grow their membership, some alternative organizational formats aim to minimize membership. This premise challenges the assumption that achieving metamorphosis is always a desirable state of organizational membership. Furthermore, this study reveals how communication changes when it is undesirable for service recipients to reach metamorphosis.     

Teaching engaged research literacy: A description and assessment of the Research Ripped from the Headlines project

Courses: This assignment can be implemented in wide-range of courses that have research-related goals at the undergraduate or master's degree level. Applicable courses include Research Methods, Capstone, Interpersonal Communication, Organizational Communication, Intercultural Communication, Health Communication, Gender, and Family Communication.

Objectives: This assignment serves to increase students’ information literacy related to research gathering, critique, analysis, and implementation. For this assignment, students will: (a) identify and examine a news article that uses research; (b) trace the origins and conduct an analysis of the research study cited in the news article or a related research study; and (c) deliver an informative discussion that explains the news article, selected research study, and connect their analysis to research and research methodology principles. In all, this assignment improves students' media literacy related to social media and technology, and increases student affect for research practices. Finally, this assignment describes one model of using curriculum assessment to generate innovative pedagogical opportunities.     

Collegiate athletes and career identity

Given the unique experiences of collegiate athletes and the need to facilitate their transition as they complete postsecondary education and join the workforce, the present study sought to evaluate a group-administered career development program at a US university focused on preparing students for the transition into professional life upon graduation. Utilizing the quantitative portion of the Life After Sport Scale, we surveyed National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I student athletes to examine the relationship between attending the career intervention sessions and career-athlete identity. Results suggested that attending one or more program session workshops was not significantly related to career-athlete identity, while student gender had the strongest association with this potentially important construct in student athlete career development. Research and practice implications of these findings are discussed.     

Negotiating national identity through loss: Australian newspaper coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup

Sport and the media have long served as arenas for the development of national identity, both of which are examined in this study of the newspaper coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. This article reports on the findings of a content analysis of newspaper coverage of the FIFA World Cup; the newspaper data collected included all major daily Australian newspapers. Following an in-depth analysis, five themes emerged: patriotism; dealing with loss; celebrity; national identity; and ethnicity. This paper examines the related themes of dealing with loss and national identity. Analysis revealed that during the pre-event phase, a clearly articulated national identity was constructed through the media; this was then used as a reference point for subsequent media coverage following Australia’s loss to Germany, a significant turning point for the Australian team. The aim of this article is to investigate the role played by the mass media in the representation, production and construction of Australian national identity within the context of sporting loss in an international competition. Media representation of Australian sporting nationalism is used as a lens through which to examine how elements of Australian national identity were represented, reproduced and reinforced by the media following the Australian soccer team’s poor performance.     

The importance of measuring growth in response to intervention models: Testing a core assumption

A core assumption of response to instruction or intervention (RTI) models is the importance of measuring growth in achievement over time in response to effective instruction or intervention. Many RTI models actively monitor growth for identifying individuals who need different levels of intervention. A large-scale (N=23,438), two-year longitudinal study of first grade children was carried out to compare the predictive validity of measures of achievement status, growth in achievement, and their combination for predicting future reading achievement. The results indicate that under typical conditions, measures of growth do not make a contribution to prediction that is independent of measures of achievement status. These results question the validity of a core assumption of RTI models.     

Understanding Imaginative Thinking During Childhood: Sociocultural Conceptions of Creativity and Imaginative Thought

Understanding imagination as both a cognitive and affective endeavor is crucial in order for educators to promote creative and imaginative thinking in informal and formal learning environments. It is the primary aim of this paper to develop the theoretical discussion of Vygotsky’s writings on young children’s imaginative abilities launched by Gajdamaschko (Teach Educ 16(1):13–22, 2005) and Lindqvist (Res J 15(2&3):245–251, 2003). This paper illustrates Vygotsky’s writings on the cognitive processes involved in children’s imagination and creativity and concludes with a discussion focused on the components of an educational environment that can either support or stifle children’s imaginative abilities. It is through this continuing discussion that, as researchers, we hope to extend and challenge current conceptions of the role of imaginative thinking in early education.     

Computational auditory scene analysis: listening to several things at once

The problem of distinguishing particular sounds, such as conversation, against a background of irrelevant noise is a matter of common experience. Psychologists have studied it for some 40 years, but is is only comparatively recently that computer modelling of the phenomenon has been attempted. This article reviews progress made, possible practical applications, and prospects for the future.