Some new applications of physics to medical investigation

Roentgen's discovery of X-rays in 1895 found almost immediate application in medical diagnosis and soon afterwards in therapy. It remains of great importance in both these fields, but in recent years other forms of penetrating radiation have been used in medical investigation. This article reviews recent progress and future possibilities in the light of the basic principles involved.     

Out-of-school care and problem behavior trajectories among low-income adolescents: individual, family, and neighborhood characteristics as added risks

Using a developmental systems approach, this study considered longitudinal links between adolescents' out-of-school care experiences and behavioral trajectories within a random sample of 819 adolescents ages 10 to 14 years at Wave 1 from low-income, urban families. Multiple aspects of context were considered, including the location, supervision, and structure of adolescents' care arrangements, as well as parenting practices and perceived neighborhood environments. Regression models indicated that out-of-home care, whether supervised or unsupervised, showed modest longitudinal relations with heightened rates of delinquency, drug and alcohol use, and school problems. Out-of-home care was linked with particularly deleterious outcomes for adolescents with high earlier rates of behavior problems, low parental monitoring, and low perceived neighborhood collective efficacy.     

Food and Culture: A Pedagogical Approach to Contextualizing Food‐Based Activities in Multicultural Counseling Courses

Pedagogic approaches that draw on reflective practices and experiential activities are valued for their perceived ability to enhance multicultural understanding. The use of food‐based assignments is not uncommon in multicultural counseling courses; however, the authors contend that although these activities may be experiential in nature, they are often devoid of any meaningful in‐depth discussion about related contextual elements, such as power dynamics, economic systems, familial structures, cultural values, and religious meaning. This article describes a food‐based assignment used in a multicultural counseling course incorporating firsthand experience with members of various cultures. Anecdotal evidence, as well as suggestions for practice, is included.     

Africa's educational dilemma: Roadblocks to universal literacy for social integration and change

Literacy is constantly evolving to meet the needs of African people, but the obstacles (or roadblocks) to universal literacy in Africa are numerous. This paper sets out to analyze them. Some date from colonial regimes, which created elites. Since then, rapid population growth has outstripped gains in literacy, while the differences between male and female literacy, and between urban and rural areas, remain marked. The multiplicity of languages presents a challenge, increasingly met by the use of community languages, although most African states continue to rely on English, French and Portuguese for official and educational purposes. Literacy is ultimately a social construction that determines and is determined by a given social order. Those in power have a vested interest in restricting access to literacy, and there are ambiguities in the policies of national and international agencies. In particular, literacy has been linked to economic and technical development while its promoters have sought to preserve the interests of government, so that consciousness-raising has not been truly adopted. A model of roadblocks is presented, and the article concludes with nine propositions for an analysis of their relationships.

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Zusammenfassung Die Alphabetisierung wird ständig weiterentwickelt, um den Bedürfnissen afrikanischer Völker gerecht zu werden, aber es gibt zahlreiche Hindernisse (oderSperren) für eine universelle Alphabetisierung in Afrika. In diesem Artikel sollen sie analysiert werden. Einige stammen noch von den Kolonialregierungen, die Elitegruppen bildeten. Seitdem hat der rapide Bevölkerungsanstieg die Erfolge der Alphabetisierung überholt, and die Alphabetisierung von Männern und Frauen sowie von der städtischen und ländlichen Bevölkerung unterscheiden sich weiterhin deutlich. Die Sprachenvielfalt ist eine Herausforderung, der man mehr und mehr durch Anwendung von Gemeinschaftssprachen begegnet, obwohl sich die Mehrzahl der afrikanischen Staaten für offizielle und erzieherische Zwecke immer noch der englischen, französischen und portugiesischen Sprache bedient. Die Alphabetisierung ist letztendlich ein soziales Gefüge, das eine gegebene soziale Ordnung beeinflußt und auch von ihr bestimmt wird. Die Machthaber haben ein persönliches Interesse an einem begrenzten Zugang zur Alphabetisierung, und es gibt Unstimmigkeiten in den Maßnahmen nationaler und internationaler Institutionen. Im besonderen wurde die Alphabetisierung mit wirtschaftlichen und technischen Entwicklungen in Verbindung gebracht, wobei ihre Förderer bestrebt waren, die Interessen der Regierung zu wahren, so daß eine Bewußtseinsöffnung in Wahrheit nicht eingetreten ist. Es wird eine Übersicht Über die Hindernisse gegeben, und der Artikel schließt mit neun Vorschlägen zu einer Analyse darüber, welche Beziehungen zwischen diesen Hindernissen bestehen.

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Résumé L'alphabétisation se développe d'une manière constante pour répondre aux besoins du peuple africain, mais les obstacles (les barrages de route) à la généralisation de l'alphabétisme en Afrique sont nombreux. Le présent article se propose de les analyser. Certains sont issus des régimes coloniaux, qui ont créé des élites. Depuis lors, la rapide croissance économique a devancé le développement de l'alphabétisation, tandis que les différences entre l'alphabétisme féminin et masculin, et entre les zones urbaines et rurales, restent marquées. La multiplicité des langues pose un problème, résolu de plus en plus par l'utilisation des langues locales, bien que la plupart des Etats africains continuent de faire appel à l'anglais, au français et au portugais dans le domaine officiel et dans l'éducation. L'alphabétisation est en fin de compte une construction sociale qui détermine et est déterminée par un ordre social donné. Ceux qui détiennent le pouvoir ont intérêt à réduire l'accès à l'alphabétisation, et les politiques des organisations nationales et internationales sont ambiguës. En particulier, l'alphabétisation a été liée au développement économique et technique, tandis que ses promoteurs ont cherché à préserver les intérêts des gouvernements, si bien que la prise de conscience n'a pas été véritablement adoptée. On présente un modèle debarrage de route, et l'article conclut par neuf propositions pour l'analyse de leurs relations.

     

The corporate curriculum: Schools as sites of new knowledge production

This paper investigates the ways in which corporate ideas are impacting on Australian education, with a particular emphasis on secondary schools. We note the growing importance of a culture of enterprise in changing the practices of schooling, indicating how a performative organisational culture is producing different identities and relationships in educational work. The paper begins by considering the imperative for schools and individuals to be enterprising. It then moves on to examine more closely the impact of this discursive shift on teachers, students and school communities as they engage in enterprising practices. We draw on our research of over 50 state and private schools mainly in south-east Queensland to demonstrate how the newly emergent corporate ‘curriculum’ is producing a changing set of imperatives, responsibilities and outcomes for leadership in ‘enterprising’ schools.     

Augmenting the Simple View of Reading for Struggling Adult Readers: A Unique Role for Background Knowledge

This study explored the background knowledge (BK) and reading comprehension (RC) relationship for struggling adult readers. Using confirmatory factor analyses, a single-factor BK model exhibited better fit than a two-factor model separating academic knowledge and general information, which indicates that BK represents a unidimensional construct for this population. In addition, one measure of oral vocabulary loaded with a latent factor of BK, which was separable from a latent factor of two additional oral vocabulary subtests. Using structural equation modeling, we found that BK exhibited a direct effect on RC after controlling for participants’ grade level, decoding, listening comprehension, and oral vocabulary.     

Cross-Modal Transfer of Shape is Difficult to Demonstrate in One-Month-Olds

We tested 1-month-olds for cross-modal transfer of shape between touch and vision using a procedure described by Meltzoff and Borton, but including controls for side bias and stimulus preference. In Experiment 1 (N = 48), infants' looking times to smooth and nubby visual stimuli were not influenced by previous oral exposure to one of the shapes during the preceding 90 s, except for an effect on the first test trial in one group; this effect could have been due to limited cross-modal transfer, to Type 1 error, or to side bias, possibly interacting with a small stimulus preference. The failure of that effect to replicate in a group (N = 16) with less side bias (Experiment 2) suggests that it was not due to cross-modal transfer. Experiment 3 (N = 32), an exact replication of Meltzoff and Borton's experiment, also failed to yield evidence of cross-modal transfer. Overall, there is not good evidence that 1-month-olds can transfer information about these shapes from touch to vision. Future studies exploring the ability to transfer information about other shapes will be easier to interpret if they include controls for side bias and stimulus preference.