Verbal energy: attending to poetry

This paper contends that the current English curriculum does not adequately acknowledge the potential of poetry to make meaning through sound. It reflects on how sound may embody or communicate meaning, and seeks enhanced conceptions of this aspect of poetry for pedagogy and the curriculum. It begins with the attention the mainstream press gave to Seamus Heaney's remarks about Eminem, and progresses to consider Heaney's notion of ‘verbal energy’ in the light of developing conceptions of multimodal ‘new literacies’. It suggests that new approaches could accord with an oral heritage approach to poetry while also acknowledging the influence of the communicational environments pupils experience beyond English classrooms. Throughout, the author draws on material that has informed his on‐going Teacher Training Agency‐sponsored project exploring the ways in which pupils approach poetry as sound, soon to be detailed on web resources for the English teaching community.     

The Status of Career and Technical Education Undergraduate and Graduate Programs in the United States

The purpose of this study was to examine undergraduate and graduate student enrollments, course delivery modes, and curricular trends and issues of CTE programs. Based on findings from 139 program/department coordinators, results emphasized that although CTE programs within institutions of higher education have declined in number (Fletcher, Gordon, Asunda, &; Zirkle, 2015 Fletcher, E., &; Djajalaksana, Y. (2015). Instructional strategy preferences in the career and technical education classroom. Journal of Research in Business Education, 57(1), 32–56. [Google Scholar]), student enrollments within those programs have remained steady compared to prior studies (Bruening et al., 2001 Bruening, T., Scanlon, D., Hodes, C., Dhital, P., Shao, X., &; Liu, S. (2001). The status of career and technical education teacher preparation programs. (Report No. V051A990004). Minneapolis, MN: The National Research Center for Career and Technical Education. [Google Scholar]; Lynch, 1990 Lynch, R. (1990). A national database on vocational teacher education (Report No. V051A80004-89). Berkeley, CA: National Center for Research in Vocational Education. [Google Scholar]). Even so, CTE program/department administrators have articulated that declining student enrollment is a major challenge within their programs. Additionally, the development of online courses and the impact of state/national educational reform initiatives were identified as major curricular trends for CTE programs. Recommendations include the need for CTE faculty to embrace online instruction, and for programs to use broader nomenclature of CTE/Workforce Education, instead of names of more traditional subdisciplines within the field to remain more accessible and sustainable in the future. The condition of undergraduate and graduate CTE programs will likely impact the viability and sustainability of CTE teacher preparation programs, recruitment of a talented and diverse CTE teaching force, continuity of the U.S. teaching workforce, and ability of K–12 teachers to maintain high-quality CTE programs.     

The Key Stage 3 Strategy: what kind of reform is this?

The Key Stage 3 Strategy is a complex and evolving government strategy intended to improve the education of 11‐ to 14‐year‐olds in England. This paper provides a snapshot of its development by early 2004, drawing on our evaluation of the pilot phase which began in 2000. The evolution of the Strategy, with its phased introduction of both subject and cross‐curricular strands, is described. We then examine the policy intentions and evidence base which underpin it before considering what the Strategy offers in terms of curricular and pedagogical reform. While the Strategy seeks to improve schooling for 11‐ to 14‐year‐olds, it has struggled to offer a coherent approach, though recent changes in emphasis may help. We conclude that a more radical approach to the learning needs of 11‐ to 14‐year‐olds is needed and draw evidence from international trends in middle years education.     

Intellectual Disability and Developmental Risk: Promoting Intervention to Improve Child and Family Well‐Being

Initial intervention processes for children with intellectual disabilities (IDs) largely focused on direct efforts to impact core cognitive and academic deficits associated with the diagnosis. Recent research on risk processes in families of children with ID, however, has influenced new developmental system approaches to early intervention. Recent risk and resilience processes are reviewed that connect stress, family process, and the high rates of behavioral problems in children with ID that have substantial influence on child and family outcomes. These models are linked to emerging evidence‐based intervention processes that focus on strategic parent skill training and mindfulness interventions that reduce parental stress and create indirect benefits for children's behavioral competencies. A family‐focused developmental systems approach (M. J. Guralnick, 2011) is emphasized.     

A Symbiosis of Access: Proliferating STEM PhD Training in the U.S. from 1920–2010

Minerva - Over the course of the 20th century, unprecedented growth in scientific discovery was fueled by broad growth in the number of university-based scientists. During this period the American...     

Further validation of the Qualitative Scoring System for the modified bender-gestalt test

This study compared the Qualitative Scoring System for the modified version of the Bender-Gestalt Test and the Developmental Scoring System for the Bender-Gestalt Test in predicting performance on the Metropolitan Achievement Test. The subjects were 409 first through fourth graders from regular classes in a public elementary school. Both scoring systems correlated significantly with school achievement. However, the Qualitative system correlated higher than the Developmental system with all Metropolitan Achievement Test subscores. Tests for differences between correlations indicated that five of these comparisons were statistically significant.     

Concurrent validity of the Stanford-Binet: Fourth edition and Kaufman assessment battery for children with learning-disabled students

This study examined the concurrent validity of the composite and area scores of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth Edition (SBIV) and the Mental Processing Composite and global scale scores of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC). The tenability of interpreting the SBIV using the fluid/crystallized model, as suggested by the authors, was also considered. The subjects were 30 Black, learning-disabled elementary school students. Results of a t test indicated that the Mental Processing Composite score of the K-ABC was significantly higher than the SBIV Composite score. Moderate to high correlations were obtained when SBIV composite and area scores were compared to K-ABC composite and scale scores, reflecting a positive relationship between the two tests. The measures of fluid abilities (K-ABC Composite score; SBIV Abstract/Visual Reasoning) were highly correlated. The results of a multiple regression analysis indicated a moderate degree of correlation among the measures of crystallized ability (K-ABC Achievement; SBIV Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning). The findings of this study demonstrated adequate concurrent validity for the SBIV. In addition, the results provided limited support for describing test results utilizing the fluid/crystallized interpretation model. Further research is suggested in order to examine other validity issues, such as classification of special education students and the SBIV's relationship to other similar instruments.