Assessing womanist thought: The rhetoric of Susan L. Taylor

This essay focuses on the rhetoric of Susan L. Taylor, communications director and former editor of Essence, a national magazine targeted to African American women. Taylor is also the author of the magazine's monthly column, “In the Spirit.” Her monthly columns focusing on African American women's empowerment epitomize the tenets of womanist epistemology and methodology and therefore are worthy of scholarly attention.     

Transtheoretical-based bullying prevention effectiveness trials in middle schools and high schools

Background Bullying threatens the physical and mental well-being of students across a broad range of schools. Tailored interventions based on the Transtheoretical model and delivered over the Internet were designed to reduce participation in each of three roles related to bullying (bully, victim and passive bystander).

Methods Effectiveness trials were completed in 12 middle schools and 13 high schools in the USA. A diverse sample of 1237 middle (6th–8th grade, with 45.1% in the 7th grade; ages 11–14) and 1215 high school (9th–11th grade, with 41.6% in the 9th grade; ages 14–17) students were available for analyses.

Results Analyses showed significant treatment effects for both intervention groups when compared to control for both the middle and high school programs.

Conclusions Given the relative ease of dissemination, these programs could be applied as stand-alone practices or as part of more intensive interventions.     

One-trial context fear conditioning with immediate shock: The roles of transport and contextual cues

In three experiments, using a total of 120 albino rats, we assessed whether transportation cues might evoke some of the freezing (i.e., defensive immobility) that we see in a context on a day following a footshock given immediately after placement in that context. The results suggested that immediate shock could directly condition strong fear to both simulated and actual transport cues. Although conditioning to transport cues explains some of the freezing that is seen on the test day, it does not explain all of it. We also found evidence that some of the freezing is due to conditioning to permanent features of the context in which the immediate shock is given. The results support a role for transport cues in theories of context conditioning and argue against shock-processing accounts of the conditioning deficit that results from immediate shock.     

Using a situative perspective to gain a deeper understanding of how children’s strengths are related to social context

Over the last twenty-five years, there has been an increase in the availability of published checklists and schedules which allow practitioners to identify the strengths of children and young people, including those with special educational needs. While helpful, these assessments are unable to tell us about the nature of contextual factors which support the expression of particular strengths. In this study, we took a situative perspective to explore how specific classroom practices facilitated strengths. A multiple case study design was used to analyse practices nominated by three children/young people with special educational needs. Qualitative analysis revealed how aspects of practice afforded the opportunity for each child to participate in ways which they equated with their strengths. This style of strength-based assessment led to a more sustained examination of supportive practice features than would have been achieved through interview alone.     

Gender,Gender Role Identity,and Type of Relationship as Predictors of Relationship Behavior and Beliefs in College Students

The authors explored the relationship of gender, gender role identity, and type of relationship—same‐sex friendship, cross‐sex friendship, or romantic relationship—to relationship behaviors and beliefs among 429 college students. They discuss implications for individual and group counseling, consultation, and primary prevention on college campuses.     

A New Tool for Collection Assessment: One Library's Response to the Calls to Action Issued by Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission

ABSTRACT

The University of Manitoba's Neil John Maclean Health Sciences Library is a recognized leader in Indigenous and circumpolar health for establishing the Aboriginal Health Collection in 1997, the first discrete collection of materials on the health of Indigenous peoples located in an academic health sciences library in Canada. This article describes the history, development, and scope of what is now known as the Indigenous Health Collection. In June 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) issued the calls to action as part of its mandate to gather information and document the history of Indian Residential Schools and their legacy for all Canadians. The ninety-four calls to action provide clear guidance to governments, institutions, and people to initiate changes to address the legacy in a spirit of true reconciliation. The Neil John Maclean Health Sciences Library was uniquely positioned to respond to the TRC calls to action. The enduring legacy of the residential schools and other discriminatory government policies is one that continues to impact the health status of many people in Canada who identify as Indigenous, First Nations, Metis, Inuit, or Aboriginal. The Indigenous Health Collection includes materials on the health, wellness, and lived experience of Indigenous peoples, the determinants that impact health, and publications documenting community-based and academic research and knowledge. This article provides an example of how an academic health sciences library used the seven TRC calls to action related to health as a framework to assess the resources and collections relied on by educators and students in the health professions.     

‘Shoot for the moon!’ Students' identities as writers in the context of the classroom

A study of students' identities as writers was carried out in the classroom of a New Zealand primary teacher who had been formally identified by a national body of teachers as having excellent practice in supporting literacy acquisition. The researchers, Professor Janice Wearmouth, from the University of Bedfordshire, Mere Berryman, from the University of Waikato, New Zealand, and Lisa Whittle, from the Department of Conservation, Wellington, New Zealand, aimed to compare high and low literacy achievers' identities as writers within the context of this teacher's pedagogy and the learning environment of her classroom. The researchers concluded that all students, both high and low achievers, were developing very positive writing identities in a context where the teacher's method of supporting her students' writing was very well planned through a process‐writing approach. This teacher had a very high degree of subject and pedagogical content knowledge and an acute awareness of her students' literacy learning needs. Her approach had an immediacy of responsiveness in relation to every student's learning and, above all, had recognition of the overwhelming importance of positive relationships in the classroom, teacher to student and peer to peer.     

The gifted child with attention deficit disorder: An identification and intervention challenge

Studies of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often emphasize the problems, diagnosis and treatment, but rarely consider the characteristics which are remarkably similar to those of creativity. This study reviews the literature on ADHD traits, their similarity to gifted and creative behaviors, and the implications for educational interventions. A case study of a boy identified with ADHD provides the focus for our discussions. The conclusions point to the need for more varied instructional interventions, emotional and social support, and collaboration between educators and parents.     

Evidenced Based Practices that Promote Transition to Postsecondary Education: Listening to a Decade of Expert Voices

As increasing numbers of students with disabilities access postsecondary education, research studies and literature reviews have investigated the needs of these students who chose to pursue postsecondary education. These articles included studies that (a) asked students with disabilities to identify needs and (b) summarized needs in literature reviews about students with disabilities in postsecondary education. This article summarizes needs and recommendations from college students with disabilities and authors who reviewed related literature from 1995–2006. The summary includes needs in five areas: self-determination, social skills, academic preparation, accommodations, and assistive technology (AT). Each of these areas of need is described and recommendations for practice are discussed. The purpose of this article is to identify a set of evidence-based transition practices that will address these needs and increase the likelihood of success for students who enroll in postsecondary education institutions.