Restricting a Familiar Name in Response to Learning a New One: Evidence for the Mutual Exclusivity Bias in Young Two-Year-Olds

Children under 2¹/₂ years old tend to interpret novel words in accordance with the Mutual Exclusivity Principle, but tend not to reinterpret familiar words this way. Because alternative principle have been proposed that only predict the novel word effects, and because tests of the familiar word effects may have been flawed, a new test was administered. In Experiment 1 ( N = 32), 24- to 25-month-olds heard stories in which a novel noun was used for an atypical exemplar of a familiar noun. When asked to select exemplars of the familiar noun, they showed a small but reliable tendency to avoid the object from the story. In Experiment 2 ( N = 16), the novel nouns in the stories were replaced by pronouns and proper names, and the children did not avoid the story object in the test of the familiar noun. Thus, the aversion to this object that was observed in Experiment I was not due to its greater exposure or its being referenced immediately before testing, but to toddlers' Mutual Exclusivity bias. Their bias is hypothesized to be a form of implicit probabilistic knowledge that derives from the competitive nature of category retrieval.     

Scenariation: Scenario generation for online teaching in nursing and health sciences

There are increased opportunities for online delivery innovation within the education sector because of rapid advances in Internet technology. This paper describes a unique and efficient approach to simulation called ‘scenariation’. The scenariation project aimed to establish efficient processes for the development of scenariation content and evaluate the use of a specific scenariation nurse education module. Students were presented with video simulating the workplace and then prompted to make clinical decisions such as selecting treatment options. The scenariation approach was implemented with a group of 380 1st‐year nursing students and evaluated using multifaceted online evaluation. The results of this qualitative evaluation highlight not just the potential of scenariation but also some of the difficulties associated with online delivery to large and diverse student groups. Students valued the relevance to practice and interactive nature of scenariation, but some reported technical difficulties. The paper concludes by extending the discussion of scenariation to the areas of inter‐professional learning and the integration of scenariation with face‐to‐face high fidelity simulation.     

Can we use young people’s knowledge to develop teachers and HIV-related education?

Despite recent progress in meeting the goals of the Education for All agenda, certain groups of young people are particularly vulnerable to exclusion and underachievement, including children with HIV/AIDS, children living in poverty, and children with disabilities. HIV/AIDS has reduced many young people’s rights to access education, to live a full and healthy life, and to have a life as a child. This article focuses on attempts to continue to empower young people to protect themselves from HIV by exploring the dynamics around HIV-related education in schools, in particular by examining the role that young people’s knowledge can play in improving curricula and thus reducing HIV/AIDS rates. The authors draw on qualitative research in a total of eight schools in Kenya, Tanzania, and South Africa. Preliminary findings suggest that pupil consultation and dialogue can be used to inform thinking on the curriculum for HIV education.     

Measuring the Expertise of Paediatric Rehabilitation Therapists

This article describes the development of a classification system to measure the expertise levels of practicing paediatric rehabilitation therapists. Seventy‐five therapists from five disciplines (physical, occupational, speech‐language, behaviour, and recreational therapy) were involved, along with 170 peers, and 188 parents of children with disabilities. A cluster analysis of 10 indicators of expertise (derived from a battery of self‐completed, peer‐completed, and parent‐completed measures) indicated three levels of therapist expertise—novice, intermediate, and expert. Expertise level was related to various aspects of experience but not to therapy discipline. The classification system will be useful for the education and professional development of paediatric therapists, and for research on expertise in paediatric rehabilitation.     

Probing identity,integration and adaptation: Big questions,little answers

In 0035 and 0040 acculturation typology integration is defined by two core components – maintenance of traditional heritage culture and participation in the wider society. These components, underpinned by attitudes, behaviors and identities, are believed to contribute in an additive fashion to the psychological and sociocultural adaptation of immigrants and ethnic minorities, and international research has shown that integration generally leads to more positive outcomes than separation, assimilation or marginalization. This paper draws on an international program of research and describes four multi-method studies that raise and explore key questions about the process, assessment and context of integration and its relationship to adaptation. Three questions are posed for consideration: (1) How is the dynamic process of integration experienced and articulated by immigrants? (2) How do our conceptualization and measurement of identity as an aspect of heritage culture maintenance impact the additive model of integration and adaptation? and (3) Under what conditions does integration fail to be adaptive? Tentative answers are offered, and recommendations are made for future studies to guide the development of acculturation theory and research.     

Effects of aerobic exercise on overweight children's cognitive functioning: a randomized controlled trial

The study tested the effect of aerobic exercise training on executive function in overweight children. Ninety-four sedentary, overweight but otherwise healthy children (mean age = 9.2 years, body mass index 85th percentile) were randomized to a low-dose (20 min/day exercise), high-dose (40 min/day exercise), or control condition. Exercise sessions met 5 days/week for 15 weeks. The Cognitive Assessment System (CAS), a standardized test of cognitive processes, was administered individually before and following intervention. Analysis of covariance on posttest scores revealed effects on executive function. Group differences emerged for the CAS Planning scale (p = .03). Planning scores for the high-dose group were significantly greater than those of the control group. Exercise may prove to be a simple, yet important, method of enhancing aspects of children's mental functioning that are central to cognitive and social development.     

White Counseling Supervisees’ Experiences Working with Latino Youth: A Phenomenological Study

The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of White counseling students who facilitated a group intervention with Latino adolescents. A phenomenological approach revealed several challenges experienced by the counselors in working across race and culture. Two major themes that emerged from the analysis included counselors’ lack of cultural knowledge and the presence of White racial bias. These experiences engendered the counselors’ self-doubt regarding their abilities to work effectively across culture. Suggestions for training and supporting future professionals in work across race and ethnicity are included, with examples of supervisory responses to learner’s biased statements.     

Ensuring the Provision of Accessible Digital Resources

A lack of awareness of disability issues in the provision of digital educational material is resulting in a situation where much of this material is, to some degree, inaccessible to people with certain disabilities. Current and proposed disability legislation in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom means that any educational material produced by institutions, and which has accessibility barriers, may soon be illegal. This paper discusses the issues involved in the provision of accessible digital material, with a heavy emphasis on Web‐based resources, with a view to raising awareness and avoiding a potentially embarrassing situation for educational institutions. The various assistive technologies used by disabled people to access digital material are discussed, along with the problems by inaccessible material, illustrated by examples of inaccessible Web pages. Solutions for ensuring the accessibility of digital material are provided, including a discussion of open standards and guidelines and principles of accessible content design