Continuing professional development needs and activities of school psychologists

The study investigated school psychologists' continuing professional development (CPD) needs and their relationship to selected demographic factors, preservice training, incentives, and typical engagement in various CPD activities. A survey questionnaire was mailed to 500 randomly selected National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) members, and responses were received from 235. Respondents reported their greatest CPD needs to be in the areas of direct service and consultation. No demographic variables were related to respondents' CPD needs. Few preservice training or incentive factors were related to CPD needs. Respondents' perceived value of preservice training in CPD management was related to their CPD needs, but few respondents reported that they had received this type of preservice training. Several personal incentives for CPD, including self‐assessment of CPD needs, opportunity to practice new skills and receive feedback during CPD training, and opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of CPD training and CPD goal attainment were related to CPD needs. Respondents' CPD needs in each specific skill area, including direct service, consultation, assessment, program planning and evaluation, supervision, and research, had significant but low correlations with the amount of actual CPD activity in the respective skill area. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Individual differences in relative metacomprehension accuracy: variation within and across task manipulations

In recent decades, increasing numbers of studies have focused on metacomprehension accuracy, or readers’ ability to distinguish between texts comprehended more vs. less well. Following early findings that suggested readers are fairly poor at doing so, a number of studies have identified specific tasks to supplement a single reading of text that have resulted in greater metacomprehension accuracy. One assumption underlying these studies is that, in the absence of such tasks, metacomprehension accuracy is uniformly poor, and given their implementation, readers uniformly improve. Here we describe the individual variation that occurs both in the absence (e.g., within a single text reading manipulation) and presence (e.g., within a rereading or selective rereading task manipulation) of these supplementary tasks (N = 214), in order to make a case for greater attention to individual differences in metacomprehension accuracy. We also introduce a new manipulation in metacomprehension research, selective rereading, and argue that certain types of tasks may be more likely to reveal individual differences in metacomprehension accuracy due to the nature of the task being more or less demanding on working memory capacity.     

Teaching multiplication to low math performers: Guided versus structured instruction

The results of an intervention program forstudents with difficulties learning mathematicsare reported. Two kinds of math intervention,guided versus structured instruction, werecompared to regular math instruction. A totalof 75 students from regular and specialeducation, aged seven to thirteen,participated. Ability and automaticitymultiplication tests were administered beforeand after the four-month training period. Theresults show that the students in both of theexperimental conditions improved more than thestudents in the control condition. Someadditional differences were found between thetwo experimental interventions. Guidedinstruction appeared to be more effective forlow performing students than structuredinstruction and especially for those studentsin regular education. Special educationstudents appear to benefit most from structuredinstruction for the automaticity ofmultiplication problems. A three monthfollow-up test showed the acquired knowledge tobe well-established in both groups.     

Assessing a novel application of web-based technology to support implementation of school wellness policies and prevent obesity

Childhood obesity is one of the most pressing public health concerns in the United States. Because schools are a critical site to promote wellness and prevent obesity, extensive policy and legislative efforts have focused on school-based food services, nutrition education, physical education, and overall physical activity. Unfortunately, research indicates that most of these policies prove ineffective due to insufficient implementation. A small number of web-based programs have emerged that are designed to support the implementation of school wellness policies. The purpose of the current study is to present and interpret findings from an evaluation of the web-based portion of a program implemented throughout the state of Pennsylvania. In total, 192 registered users completed a survey designed to evaluate their utilization and perceptions of the web-based features of the Health eTools for Schools program. Participants represented the following stakeholder groups: school nurses, teachers, wellness coordinators, administrators, and food service directors. Findings indicate the web-based portion of the Health eTools for Schools program is comprehensive, well-designed, and has the potential to support implementation of school wellness policies geared toward obesity prevention. At present, the web-based features are most effective in providing school nurses with tools and resources to execute their roles related to obesity prevention. Applications supporting other groups such as teachers and food service directors require further development to be equally effective. The number of programs with this focus is likely to increase and further research is needed to address other aspects of these programs as well as their impact on student level outcomes such as eating habits, body mass index, physical activity levels, and physical fitness.     

film history

Kevin Brownlow The War, the West and the Wilderness (New York; Alfred A. Knopf, 1979 – $27.50, hardcover).

Marshall Deutelbaum, "Image" on the Art and Evolution of the Film (New York: Dover Publications, 1979 – $8.95 in paper).

American Theatres of Today, Volumes I and II, by R.W. Sexton and B.F. Betts (New Yorks Architectural Book Publishing Inc., 1927 and 1930 – reprinted at $35.00 in one volume, 360 pages, hardcover).

Picture Palace Architecture in Australia by Ross Thorne (South Melbourne: Sun Books, 1976 – $9.95 in paper from Vestal).

Temples of Illusion by Roger Brett($14.95, paper).

Carol Herselle Krinsky Rockefeller Center (New York: Oxford University Press, 1978 – $17.50 hardcover/ $9.95 paper)

Richard Taylor Film Propaganda: Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany (London: Croom Helm/ New York: Barnes & Nonle, 1979—$25.00)

William Kittredge and Steren M. Krauzer, eds. Stories into Film (New York: Harper & RowP2olophon Books, 1979—price not given, paper)

Richard Dyer Stars (London: British Film Institute, 1979—E2.25, or about $5.00, paper)