Behavior of Infants with Iron-Deficiency Anemia

This study tested the hypothesis that infants with iron-deficiency anemia show behaviors, such as increased proximity to caregivers, increased wariness or hesitance, and decreased activity, that could contribute to “functional isolation.” The behavior of 52 Costa Rican 12- to 23-month-old infants with iron-deficiency anemia was contrasted with that of 139 comparison group infants with better iron status during free play and mental and motor testing and in the home. Infants with iron-deficiency anemia maintained closer contact with caregivers; showed less pleasure and delight; were more wary, hesitant, and easily tired; made fewer attempts at test items; were less attentive to instructions and demonstrations; and were less playful. Adult behavior also differed. The results indicate that iron-deficiency anemia in infancy is associated with alterations in affect and activity, suggesting that functional isolation is a useful framework for understanding poorer developmental outcome in iron-deficiency anemia, the world's most common single nutrient deficiency.     

FORECASTING CREDIT HOURS

This paper employs Tobit to estimate retentionprobabilities and credit hours at two universities. Theinnovation is that this technique examines credit-hourchoice with the decision to depart the university treated as the choice of zero credit hours.Tobit is appropriate for this problem because itrecognizes the lower bound of zero on credit hours andincorporates this bound into the parameter estimates and forecasts. Models are estimated for credithours in a single year and cumulative hours over asix-year horizon.     

Three‐year results of the Friendly Schools whole‐of‐school intervention on children's bullying behaviour

A group randomized controlled trial tested the efficacy of the Friendly Schools program to reduce student bullying behaviour. This socio‐ecological intervention targeted the whole school, classroom, family, and individual students to reduce bullying behaviour. Self‐report data were collected in 29 schools over three years from a cohort of 1968 eight to nine‐year‐olds. Surveys measured frequency of being bullied, bullying others, telling if bullied and observing bullying. Results indicate that intervention students were significantly less likely to observe bullying at 12, 24 and 36 months and be bullied after 12 and 36 months, and significantly more likely to tell if bullied after 12 months than comparison students. No differences were found for self‐reported perpetration of bullying. The findings suggest whole‐of‐school programs that engage students in their different social contexts appear to reduce their experiences of being bullied and increase their likelihood of telling someone if they are bullied.     

Observations of youth football training: How do coaches structure training sessions for player development?

We used systematic observation tools to explore the structure (i.e., activity and inactivity) and sequencing (i.e., the types of activities used) of football coaching sessions in Australia following the implementation of a new National Curriculum. Youth soccer coaches (n = 34), coaching within the Skill Acquisition (U11–U13 n = 19) and Game Training (U14–U17 n = 15) phases of the Football Federation Australia National Curriculum participated. Participants were filmed during a regular coaching session, with systematic observation of the session undertaken to provide a detailed analysis of the practice activities and coach behaviours. Findings indicated a session comprised of Playing Form activities (40.9%), Training Form activities (22.3%), inactivity (31%), and transitions between activities (5.8%). Coaches prescribed more Training Form activities (e.g., individual (5.4%) and drills (15.1%)) early in the session and progressed to Playing Form activities (i.e., small-sided games (15.3%) then larger games (24.8%)) later in the session. Most inactivity reflected the players listening to the coach – either in a team huddle (9.9%) or frozen on the spot during an activity (16.5%). In addition, coaches generally spent over 3 min communicating to players prior to explaining and introducing an activity regardless of when in the session the activity was scheduled.     

Ethics, Critical Thinking, and Professional Communication Pedagogy

Critical thinking pedagogy offers a supportive environment for teaching ethics in the professional communication classroom. Four important aspects of critical thinking which particularly encourage ethical thought and behavior are identifying and questioning assumptions, seeking a multiplicity of voices and alternatives on a subject, making connections, and fostering active involvement. Focusing on these behaviors allows an ongoing incorporation of ethics into many different aspects of the classroom.     

A New Marketing Paradigm for Electronic Commerce

The World Wide Web possesses unique characteristics that distinguish it in important ways from traditional commercial communications environments. Because the Web presents a fundamentally different environment for marketing activities than traditional media, conventional marketing activities are becoming transformed, as they are often difficult to implement in their present form. In this article, we discuss the idea that these changes portend an evolution in the 'marketing concept' and argue that in order for marketing efforts to be successful in this new medium, a new business paradigm is required. In this new approach, the marketing function must be reconstructed to facilitate electronic commerce in the emerging electronic society underlying the Web.     

Making Space for Consuming Practices

This empirically driven paper is about workplace learning with specific focus on the ‘work’ of consuming practices. By consuming we refer to the eating, and the drinking, and (at times) to the smoking that workers, in most organisations, do on a daily basis. Indeed, it is the quotidian nature of consuming, coupled with its absence from workplace learning research that make them noteworthy practices to explore. In using the term practice we draw on the recent tranche of practice based theorisations: notably Schatzki (1996, Organization Studies, 26(3), 465-484, 2005, Organization Studies, 27(12), 1863-1873, 2006) and Gherardi (Human Relations, 54(1), 131-139, 2001, 2006, Learning Organization, 16(5), 352-359, 2009). The paper frames consuming practices as ‘dispersed’ (general) practices and, illustrated through empirical data from multiple projects, we progressively outline how these contribute to the learning of ‘integrative’ (specialized work) practices. Our overall aim is to (re)position consuming practices from prosaic, to having much relevance for research on workplace learning.     

Understanding the Use of Student-Centered Teaching Methods in Undergraduate Chemistry Courses

A growing body of research suggests that student-centered teaching methods are associated with positive learning outcomes for undergraduate students. Yet, the extent of their use and factors leading to their adoption in fields, such as chemistry, continue to be under-explored. Utilizing survey data collected during 2015, we begin to fill this gap, first by considering the degree to which faculty and instructors use and plan to use various student-centered teaching methods in their undergraduate chemistry courses. Then, we examine three potential factors that may help us understand variation in (1) use of and (2) intentions to implement student-centered methods: attitudes toward teaching methods; teaching approaches; and institutional characteristics. Importantly, our findings suggest attitudes and individual teaching approaches are significant predictors of the use and intention to implement student-centered methods in the classroom. Perhaps surprisingly, several institutional factors examined (such as class size, percentage of time spent teaching, and type of institution) play no significant role. Given the positive student outcomes associated with various student-centered methods reported in literature, these findings suggest potential avenues for faculty and instructors’ professional development toward further implementation of these methods.

     

Support for Students with Hidden Disabilities in Universities: A Case Study

More students with disabilities are accessing the tertiary sector with many disabilities not easily observed (or hidden), because there are no physical indicators. These “hidden” disabilities affect a variety of cognitive processes and may be developmental or acquired. To ensure students with hidden disabilities can enrol, engage in and benefit from tertiary education, universities generally provide a range of supports. Typically these supports and any reasonable adjustments are negotiated with students taking into account a number of factors including, where available, any supporting documentation that they might be able to provide. This case study reports efforts within one large Australian university to support higher education students with hidden disabilities on campus. Perceptions on the use of and barriers to support available were collected from seven undergraduate students who self-identified as having hidden disabilities and from eight support staff. Results indicated that students found their informal networks to be their most effective supports, closely followed by clear, caring and flexible lecturers and tutors. There were mixed positive and negative perceptions reported on the universal and disability-specific supports available. Implications and future research directions are discussed.