Resilience Among Children Exposed to Domestic Violence: The Role of Risk and Protective Factors

Individual and family characteristics that predict resilience among children exposed to domestic violence (DV) were examined. Mother–child dyads ( n  =   190) were assessed when the children were 2, 3, and 4 years of age. DV-exposed children were 3.7 times more likely than nonexposed children to develop internalizing or externalizing problems. However, 54% of DV-exposed children maintained positive adaptation and were characterized by easy temperament (odds ratio [OR] = .39, d  = .52) and nondepressed mothers (OR = 1.14, d  = .07), as compared to their nonresilient counterparts. Chronic DV was associated with maternal depression, difficult child temperament, and internalizing or externalizing symptoms. Results underscore heterogeneous outcomes among DV-exposed children and the influence of individual and family characteristics on children's adaptation.     

Native American Racial Identity Development and College Adjustment at Two‐Year Institutions

In this study, a series of simultaneous multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between racial identity development and college adjustment for a sample of 76 Choctaw community college students in the South. Results indicated that 3 of the 4 racial identity statuses (dissonance, immersion‐emersion, and internalization) were significantly related to college adjustment, whereas the 4th status, conformity, was not. Implications for research and practice are provided.     

Neoliberal contradictions in two private niches of educational ‘choice’

This article brings together ethnographies of two privileged educational settings in the United States – a private school in California’s Central Valley following the progressivist Sudbury model, and an affluent New England boarding school’s summer enrichment program. Each of these institutions serves as an alternative to and/or extension of publicly accessible education institutions during a neoliberal era of marketization and growing educational inequality. By comparing findings from ethnographic studies of each institution, we find that both celebrate open access and socially responsible pedagogical values in ways that obscure mechanisms of exclusion and an entrenched individualist ideology. We discuss two particular contradictions that manifest in both settings: first, a discourse of openness and inclusivity that belies the ways in which access is mediated by constructions of who best ‘fits’ the special learning community; and second, an outspoken allegiance to socially engaged values of diversity and democracy that belies the ways in which these values are commodified and appropriated for students’ individual advantage(s). In comparing such sites, we argue for the importance of tracing the mechanisms of advantage in under-researched ‘niches’ of the dynamically shifting and unequally accessed neoliberal marketplace for educational opportunity.     

Trust-building in the mentoring of students of color

Trust is a vital component of mentoring, particularly when protégés are people of color who have experienced racism and discrimination. My findings are part of a larger study that culminated in the formulation of a theory of multicultural mentoring. Trust was found to be foundational for successful multicultural mentoring relationships. In my study of how mentors establish trust with graduate protégés of color, the following mentor practices were found to promote trust: listening, maintaining excellent communication, having a holistic understanding of the protégé, self-disclosing, using humor, being willing to discuss race and culture, acknowledging mistakes, and behaving with integrity. The mentors not only worked to establish interpersonal trust, they also attended to institutional and sociocultural trust concerns that impacted their protégés. Considerable time, skill, commitment, and effort are required for mentors to establish trust with protégés of color. Recommendations for the provision of mentor support are provided.     

A shifting landscape: using tablets to support learning in students with diverse abilities

As technology becomes a larger part of people’s everyday lives, it is logical to think that it should also become a part of the learning process. The use of tablets in classrooms is becoming an area of interest as researchers are trying to understand what the benefits are – if any – to using these devices. This article gives an overview of some of the recent literature related to the benefits and challenges associated with the use of tablets with students in middle schools. Prevalent themes include the benefits of using tablets with students who have learning disabilities, and the challenges that can arise in the classroom, specifically issues of safety and security, access to apps and disruptive behaviours when using these devices. The authors share qualitative case studies of two teachers who have used tablets extensively with their students and discuss how their experiences resonate with the literature. The authors conclude with a summary of the affordances and constraints of using tablets with students who have special needs and offer workable solutions for some of the challenges educators face when using these devices.     

Using video to support in-service teacher professional development: the state of the field,limitations and possibilities

Video is increasingly used to support in-service teacher professional development (TPD). Advances in affordability and usability of technology mean that interest is set to develop further. Studies in this area are diverse in terms of scale, methodology and context. This places limitations on undertaking a systematic review; therefore the authors use a scoping review approach. Their analysis involves 82 studies from which they thematise subtopics and assess research characteristics. This provides a much-needed analysis to inform researchers and practitioners. Additionally, the authors identify robust studies that consider the effect of video on teacher cognition and classroom practice. A consistent finding is that video is effective when used as part of TPD. Since studies largely use thematic qualitative analysis, however, this consensus needs further examination. Further qualitative and quantitative research is needed to identify how the use of video impacts on classroom practices.