Are Prompts Provided by Electronic Books as Effective for Teaching Preschoolers a Biological Concept as Those Provided by Adults?

Research Findings: Prior research indicates that shared book reading is an effective method for teaching biological concepts to young children. Adult questioning during reading enhances children’s comprehension. We investigated whether adult prompting during the reading of an electronic book enhanced children’s understanding of a biological concept. Ninety-one 4-year-olds read about camouflage in 3 conditions. We varied how prompts were provided: (a) read by the book, (b) read by a researcher, or (c) given face to face by the researcher. There was an interaction between children’s initial vocabulary level and condition. Children with low vocabulary scores gave fewer camouflage responses than their high-vocabulary peers, and this effect was particularly pronounced in the book-read condition. Children’s executive function was also measured and discussed. Practice or Policy: Our findings indicate that under some circumstances electronic prompts built into touchscreen books can be as effective at supporting conceptual development as the same prompts provided by a coreading adult. However, children with low vocabulary skills may be particularly supported by adult-led prompting. We suggest that adult prompting be used to motivate children to test and revise their own biological theories. Once children have learned strategies for updating their concepts, electronic prompting may be useful for scaffolding children’s transition to using the strategies when reading alone.     

Do teachers’ knowledge and behaviour reflect their qualifications and training?

It is easier to collect data on teachers’ qualifications, experience, or training than to get a precise idea of their command of subject matter or their classroom behaviour. However, research consistently shows that “class effect” (the impact on a student of being in one class rather than another) on pupil performance is relatively high, especially in Africa, whereas the impact of qualifications, experience, or training on pupil learning is generally low. The purpose of this paper is to compare teacher academic qualifications and professional training on the one hand, with teacher test scores and behaviour on the other, showing the weak links between the former and the latter. What also emerges is the importance of certain external management-related factors such as the vastly reduced hours of effective learning time due to high rates of absenteeism and delayed term starts. Despite the importance of what really happens in the classroom, it remains difficult to measure the classroom dynamic reliably and accurately.

Preservice special educators’ perceptions of collaboration and co-teaching during university fieldwork: implications for personnel preparation

Abstract

Special education teachers today must demonstrate effective skills in collaboration and often engage in co-teaching with general education colleagues to meet the needs of students with disabilities. In this study, we describe a university-based early fieldwork in which university students seeking teaching licensure in special education taught children from the local urban community, thus developing their collaboration and co-teaching skills under the supervision of university faculty. Although citing challenges such as time constraints and overcoming personality differences, the majority of these preservice special educators reported growth in their teaching skills as the main outcome of this fieldwork in co-planning and co-instructing lessons to meet the diverse learning needs of children from the local community. These preservice special educators’ perceptions of this co-teaching fieldwork experience highlight the importance of special education teacher preparation programs that explicitly train students in collaboration and co-teaching skills.     

The diagnostic utility of sexual behavior problems in diagnosing sexual abuse in a forensic child abuse evaluation clinic

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the utility of sexual behavior problems as a diagnostic indicator of sexual abuse. The hypothesis was that sexual behavior problems are multiply determined and consequently are variably related to sexual abuse in a clinical sample. METHOD: A sample of 247 children evaluated for sexual abuse at a multidisciplinary forensic child abuse evaluation clinic were included. Results from the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Child Sexual Behavior Inventory (CSBI) were analyzed and compared to the results of a structured abuse assessment performed independent of these scores. RESULTS: The forensic team assessment found evidence of sexual abuse in 25% of cases, and no evidence in 61%. Children in this sample exhibited an elevated level of both sexual and nonsexual behavior problems. However, considerable variability was noted in sexual behavior problem scores. Thus, in this study a high score or a low score had no relationship to the diagnosis of sexual abuse. Indeed, nonsexually abused children were just as likely to have high CSBI scores as sexually abused children. CONCLUSIONS: This study found no significant relationship between a diagnosis of sexual abuse and the presence or absence of sexual behavior problems in a sample of children referred for sexual abuse evaluation. The finding suggests that community professionals should use caution in relying on sexual behavior problems as a diagnostic indicator of abuse.     

Medical forensic photography of the sexually abused child

The dramatic increase in reports of sexual abuse has resulted in increasing referrals to physicians for medical evaluation and has placed demands on physicians to adequately and expertly assess these children. High quality, close-up photographs of significant lesions can be an important part of this evaluation. Camera systems recommended vary from colposcopes to close-up 35-mm systems to instant cameras. Physicians who examine sexually abused children should have ready access to an adequate photographic system, as well as basic knowledge of camera operation, film procedures, and medicolegal implications. Case studies and discussion are used to review colposcopic and close-up 35-mm camera techniques available to the physician to photograph the sexual abuse victim.     

Examining the impact of an online social media challenge on participant physical activity and body weight in the United States

This study examined use of an online social media physical activity (PA) challenge to encourage participants to complete at least 13 races in the year 2013. Following the challenge, researchers recruited participants through the Facebook group. Using the #13in2013 Twitter hashtag, participants completed an online survey. Survey participants reported completing a significantly greater mean total number of races during the challenge (17.5 ± 6.9 races) than the previous year (8.6 ± 7.4 races, p = .001) and 93% (n = 56) reported completing at least 13 races. Participants completed a mean of 1.4 ± 2.1 virtual races. Mean reported number of total miles ran/walked during the challenge was significantly greater (718.4 ± 465.0 miles) than the previous year (462.1 ± 436.5 miles, p = .002). Mean reported participant body weight post-challenge (68.2 ± 13.1 kg) was significantly lower than reported weight pre-challenge (69.7 ± 14.4 kg, p = .012). This study demonstrated that a social media PA challenge has the potential to present a scalable way to motivate individuals to participate in PA and decrease body weight.     

Teaching in Australian Higher Education: Possible Effects of Commonwealth Government Policies

In this essay, I review the main elements of the Dawkins program for change in Australian higher education ‐ very rapid expansion of enrolments, amalgamations, the designation of “priority areas”, the equity plan which aims to increase the participation of disadvantaged groups, the re‐organisation of distance education, the requirement for staff appraisal and the development of performance indicators ‐ and explore, in a speculative and personal way, some possible effects on the nature and quality of teaching in higher education institutions. Both positive and negative scenarios for future development are presented and I argue that the outcome is still in the balance, while acknowledging that the financial situation created by the steady erosion of per capita funding and recent patterns of over‐enrolment may be tipping the balance decisively towards decline.     

Passage independence within standardized reading comprehension tests

In tests used to measure reading comprehension, validity is important in obtaining accurate results. Unfortunately, studies have shown that people can correctly answer some questions of these tests without reading the related passage. These findings bring forth the need to address whether this phenomenon is observed in multiple-choice only tests or in those that employ open-ended questions. Three common standardized reading comprehension tests were examined: the WIAT-III, the CAAT, and the Nelson–Denny. The WIAT-III is composed of open-ended questions, while the other two tests utilize multiple-choice questions. All participants were instructed to answer the questions to the best of their ability, without access to the related passage. The results revealed that participants correctly answered the questions at a significantly higher rate than by chance for the multiple-choice, which supports the independency issue. For the open-ended questions, participants still answered with 18% accuracy, without the passages.     

Language‐in‐education across the Baltic: policies,practices and challenges

Since their political reorientation that started in the late 1980s, the Baltic states have experienced profound social reforms to rebuild their democratizing societies. Education has featured as a key vehicle to this transformation process of overcoming the limitations of the Soviet past. National legislative frameworks were therefore soon provided to restructure educational systems and allow for ‘liberal’ approaches to schooling. The process of policy‐making for a new concept of education, however, entailed numerous challenges, and it has resulted in a diverse tapestry of educational provision across the Baltic. With specific focus on minority education, this paper presents a comparative analysis of education policies and practices in contemporary Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in response to emerging language needs in these intensely multiethnic settings.