Challenging the premises of international policy reviews: an introduction to the review symposium

In 2009, a think tank called the International Alliance of Leading Education Institutes (IALEI) announced the results of a study entitled Climate Change and Sustainable Development: The Response from Education. Intended for a policy audience, the study offered a glimpse into the status of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and an early look at the emergence of Climate Change Education (CCE), in 10 different nations. As with most international reports, the IALEI report provoked many questions, some of which are more broadly relevant to scholarship and practice. This paper introduces a review symposium that addresses three such questions: (1) How coherent is the concept of ESD across national contexts and what conceptual tensions continue to surround ESD and CCE? (2) Can nation-level analyses tell us anything useful about countries where education is not centrally governed? and (3) In light of the evolving relationship between educational research and policy, how should researchers engage with ongoing policy debates?     

Teaching Critical Thinking and Problem Defining Skills

Critical thinking and skills in defining problems have been among the goals of a computers and society course that had its credits reduced and student number increased. In an attempt to prevent worsening the students' learning, four measures were taken. The results actually improved from a failure rate of 21.5% to 0.7%. This was mainly due to tighter project structure and additional student work. Reduced course material and improved teacher preparation did not seem to have any effect, while more focused project teaching may have contributed to the decreased failure rate. Further improvements may be gained through time estimation in the problem definition process.     

Measuring efficiency of Tunisian schools in the presence of quasi-fixed inputs: A bootstrap data envelopment analysis approach

The objective of this paper is to measure the efficiency of high schools in Tunisia. We use a statistical data envelopment analysis (DEA)-bootstrap approach with quasi-fixed inputs to estimate the precision of our measure. To do so, we developed a statistical model serving as the foundation of the data generation process (DGP). The DGP is constructed such that we can implement both smooth homogeneous and heterogeneous bootstrap methods. Bootstrap simulations were used to estimate and correct the bias, and to construct confidence intervals for the efficiency measures. The simulation results show that the efficiency measures are subject to sampling variations. The adjusted measure reveals that high schools with residence services would have to give up less than 12.1% of their resources on average to be efficient.     

Optimizing segmental movement in the jumping header in soccer

This study looks at segmental movements in the jumping header from an optimization viewpoint. Investigations on the header so far have focused on head restriction in the movement but have not clarified how and to what extent body segments influence the performance of the skill. In the present study a biomechanical model was used to analyze the jumping header in simulated competition to give a clear picture of an optimized header. Skilled soccer players headed balls at speeds of 13 m x s(-1) the results indicated that the head moves as a free non-restricted segment in the jumping header and should be allowed to do so, even though much soccer literature says otherwise to prevent injuries. The arm movement showed individual characteristics and gave no general advantages in optimizing ball speed after impact in the header The movement of the legs was, on the other hand, the single most important factor in the skill. Therefore, coaches and players shouldfocus on developing muscle strength in the stomach, back and pelvis and should put no restrictions on head and arm movement to optimize the jumping header.     

‘We Have to Go Where the Money Is’—Dilemmas in the Role of Nutrition Scientists: An Interview Study

In Western societies scientists are increasingly expected to seek media exposure and cooperate with industry. Little attention has been given to the way such expectations affect the role of scientific experts in society. To investigate scientists’ own perspectives on these issues eight exploratory, in-depth interviews were conducted in Denmark with reputable nutrition scientists. Additionally, eight interviews were held with ‘key informants’ from the field of nutrition policy. It was found that nutrition scientists experience two dilemmas: first, between their aspiration to make a collective impact on public health and the powerful incentives of each to appear frequently in the media with new messages; second, between their need to cooperate with the food industry for financial reasons and their fear that this may compromise their independence and scientific integrity. It is argued that the dilemmas identified in this study should be dealt with openly by the relevant groups of scientists.     

Equitable access: Information seeking behavior,information needs,and necessary library accommodations for transgender patrons

This study highlights the unique accommodations integral to welcoming transgender library patrons. Research shows transgender people have unique needs which differ from lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) individuals, and experience substantial barriers to obtaining quality library service. Most studies in the past exploring the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender library users focused exclusively on LGBQ users. This study surveyed adult transgender individuals (n = 102) with an online questionnaire. The majority of participants were white, designated female at birth, and under 40 years old. Survey respondents needed libraries to make accommodations for them to feel safe (p < 0.001). The top 5 accommodations needed were recent transgender literature, gender identity or expression as part of library nondiscrimination policy, gender neutral, single-stall bathrooms where a key did not need to be requested, recent LGBQ literature), and an established remote process for name change.     

The extended Theory of Planned Behaviour and college grades: the role of cognition and past behaviour in the prediction of students’ academic intentions and achievements

Understanding the underlying processes influencing college students’ academic achievement represents an important goal of educational research. The aim of the present study was to examine the utility of the extended Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and the relative influence of cognitive processes and measures of past behaviour in the prediction of grade intentions and actual grades in the context of higher education. Our results show that perceived behavioural control (PBC), subjective norms (SN) and past grades emerged as significant predictors and were able to explain 41% of the variance in grade intentions, while the influence of cognitive processes (planning and future orientation) was not significant. With respect to the prediction of actual grades, we found that habitual school attendance and past grades explained 26% of the variance in actual grades. Again, the influence of cognitive processes (planning and future orientation) was not significant. The main discussion is centred on the utility of the extended TPB in the prediction of academic achievement and the complex relationship between cognitive processes and past behaviour in predicting human actions in general. Limitations and implications of the study are also discussed.     

Team-Based Ultrasound Objective Structured Practice Examination (OSPE) in the Anatomy Course

The clinical use of ultrasound has dramatically increased, necessitating early ultrasound education and the development of new tools in ultrasound training and assessment. The goal of this study was to devise a novel low-resource examination that tested the anatomical knowledge and technical skill of early undergraduate medical students in a gross anatomy course. The team-based ultrasound objective structured practice examination (OSPE) was created as a method for assessing practical ultrasound competencies, anatomical knowledge, and non-technical skills such as teamwork and professionalism. The examination utilized a rotation of students through four team roles as they scanned different areas of the body. This station-based examination required four models and four instructors, and tested ultrasound skills in the heart, abdominal vessels, abdominal organs, and neck regions. A Likert scale survey assessed student attitudes toward the examination. Survey data from participants (n = 46) were examined along with OSPE examination grades (n = 52). Mean and standard deviations were calculated for examination items and survey responses. Student grades were high in both technical (96.5%). and professional (96.5%) competencies with structure identification scoring the lowest (93.8%). There were no statistical differences between performances in each of the body regions being scanned. The survey showed that students deemed the examination to be fair and effective. In addition, students agreed that the examination motivated them to practice ultrasound. The team-based OSPE was found to be an efficient and student-favored method for evaluating integrated ultrasound competencies, anatomical knowledge, team-work, and professional attributes.