The life and work of William Harvey

This year marks the four hundredth anniversary of the birth of William Harvey, discoverer of the circulation of the blood. His enunciation of this in his elegant De Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in Animalibus (1628) is of interest because it appeals not merely to anatomical and clinical observation but to quantitative methods. Although this is the work for which Harvey is best remembered he also did important work on the formation of the embryo and expounded the theory of epigenesis.     

An explorative learning approach to teaching clinical anatomy using student generated content

Translating basic sciences into a clinical framework has been approached through the implementation of various teaching techniques aimed at using a patient case scenario to facilitate learning. These techniques present students with a specific patient case and lead the students to discuss physiological processes through analysis of provided data supported by independent learning and research. However, no literature exists that describes a reverse teaching methodology in which students are given disease diagnosis and then asked to construct a patient case. This article discusses an explorative learning approach introduced in the gross anatomy course in which students were asked to use clinical skills and reasoning to create a patient case. The online knowledge‐sharing portal utilizing MediaWiki provided a necessary base for students in completing their task. Teams were given 4 weeks to complete their written online project with weekly feedback provided by 3rd year teaching assistants using the Wiki discussion page. A survey was performed to assess competence regarding a patient write up and oral presentation. Skills that the teams acquired through the completion of this project will benefit future patient interactions. This project also emphasized and reinforced the importance of effective communication, leadership, and teamwork. This study shows that a clinical anatomy project that incorporates explorative learning can be an effective way of introducing students to the skills needed for patient write ups and oral presentations. Furthermore this approach to learning allows students to excel during their clinical years and to correlate anatomy to clinical diagnoses. Anat Sci Ed 1:106–110, 2008. © 2008 American Association of Anatomists.     

Testing an Idealized Dynamic Cascade Model of the Development of Serious Violence in Adolescence

A dynamic cascade model of development of serious adolescent violence was proposed and tested through prospective inquiry with 754 children (50% male; 43% African American) from 27 schools at 4 geographic sites followed annually from kindergarten through Grade 11 (ages 5–18). Self, parent, teacher, peer, observer, and administrative reports provided data. Partial least squares analyses revealed a cascade of prediction and mediation: An early social context of disadvantage predicts harsh–inconsistent parenting, which predicts social and cognitive deficits, which predicts conduct problem behavior, which predicts elementary school social and academic failure, which predicts parental withdrawal from supervision and monitoring, which predicts deviant peer associations, which ultimately predicts adolescent violence. Findings suggest targets for in‐depth inquiry and preventive intervention.     

Advances in the assessment of social competence: Findings from a preliminary investigation of a general outcome measure for social behavior

This study describes the initial validation of an innovative social‐‐behavioral observational assessment tool that is designed to be used on a repeated basis to assess growth and development of social competence over time to: (a) identify the social functioning of all students, (b) assist in planning support for students at risk, and (c) evaluate the effectiveness of individual and system‐wide interventions. Eighteen first‐grade students were monitored over an 8‐week period using the Initiation‐Response Assessment (IRA) Code. The School Social Behavior Scales, a published teacher rating scale, was included as a criterion measure. Estimates of reliability and criterion‐related validity were calculated for the IRA. The measure's sensitivity to growth over time and between‐group variability were also assessed using hierarchical linear modeling procedures. Results indicate that scores on this measure are stable, and tap constructs similar to those assessed via teacher rating. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Emerging issues concerning the future directions of Australian senior science education: The Queensland experience

Australia's changing political, social and economic agendas have triggered a critical analysis of school curriculum. Part of this consideration has been concern over the future of science education within the context of senior schooling. Following the completion of the Senior Science Future Directions Project commissioned by the Queensland Board of Senior Secondary School Studies, fifteen issues were identified. These issues, grouped by the needs of the science disciplines, society and the individual student, are discussed with the view of understanding the future design of senior science syllabuses. Specializations: biology teacher education, science curriculum development. Specializations: professional development, curriculum design and evaluation. Specializations: professional development, science teaching.     

The off-campus intact degree program

The off-campus intact (or closed enrollment) program has been a successful method of providing graduate education and advanced degrees to practicing educators. The College of Education at Virginia Tech began delivering graduate degree programs off campus in 1972 and, as of the Spring quarter, 1980, had completed thirty-one programs. This article discusses the establishment, administration, and evaluation of these programs.