Mobile phones in education: Challenges and opportunities for learning

The millennials use mobile phones on a daily basis to keep in touch with family and friends (Lenhart 2010). However, the role of mobile phones in education needs to be close examined as educators strive to incorporate mobile leaning devices in the classroom. Consequently, schools will not only need to evaluate their school curriculums but also recognize the power in the digital devices to engage, enable, and empower Gen-M and iGen learners. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to provide a rationale for the need for administrators to design guidelines for schools planning to adopt mobile phones in their curricula. Additionally, this article is intended to stimulate reflections on effective ways to adopt mobile phones in education to engage learners.     

mLearning: Anytime,anywhere learning transcending the boundaries of the educational box

In the age of our mobile learning, an impending onus is placed on educational institutions to embrace this technological innovation that is widely accepted, used, and available globally. The clear societal value of mobile technology as a productivity tool for engagement, creation, and collaboration has generated a new need for education to revisit existing instructional paradigms constrained by physical walls and time. Mobile learning (mLearning) creates a venue to promote a culture of participation where learners and leaders alike can engage in combined efforts with multiplicative outcomes of greater success. This article explores the factors that national, state, and local educational organizations must understand in order to make steps toward successful integration of mLearning technology. Characteristics necessary for effective and efficient use of mLearning strategies for educators are also examined.     

Effect of a Hanging Exercise on the Epiphyseal Cartilage of the Humerus of Albino Rats

This study was designed to determine the number of days of pedometer monitoring necessary to achieve reliable and valid estimates of a 1-year average of step counts in adults based on either consecutive days (CD) or random days (RD) of data collection. Twenty-three participants (16 women; M age = 38 years, SD = 9.9) wore a Yamax SW 200 pedometer and recorded their step counts for 365 consecutive days. Nine measurement periods of various lengths were selected (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 14, 21, and 30 days). Each measurement period was randomly selected 10 times each for CD and RD from the larger database. For reliability and validity, two-way intraclass correlation coefficients and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) were calculated, respectively. The year-round average was considered the criterion measure of the “true” habitual physical activity. Data were analyzed separately by CD and RD. At least 5 CD or 6 RD were necessary to achieve an ICC of .80. A minimum of 30 CD or 14 RD were necessary to achieve an MAPE lower than 10%. These findings provide researchers and practitioners with useful information to determine appropriate measurement length and the method of data selection based on a desired level of reliability and validity.     

Effectiveness and Relevance of Training for International Counseling Graduates: A Qualitative Inquiry

The present study was a qualitative study that sought to examine the experiences and perceptions of international counseling graduates (ICGs) who had returned to their home country to work, focusing on the effectiveness and relevance of the training they had received in the United States. Participants were also asked to outline the roles they played in the development of professional counseling in their own country. Eight themes emerged from in-depth interviews involving nine participants: (a) Pioneering and Leadership, (b) American-centric Training, (c) Sojourner and Returnee Adjustment Distress, (d) Personal Investment from Trainers, (e) Student-Centered Training, (f) Time and Financial Constraints, (g) Independent Learning, and (h) Research. The data indicated that participants’ perceptions of the effectiveness and relevance of their training were mixed. Implications for training international counseling students are considered.     

Cross-language activation of phonology in young bilingual readers

We investigated whether children who were learning to read simultaneously in English and French activate phonological representations from only the language in which they are reading or from both of their languages. Children in French Immersion programs in Grade 3 were asked to name aloud cognates, interlingual homographs, interlingual homophones, and matched control words. Half of the participants performed the task in English, their first oral language, and half performed the task in French. Control monolingual children in each language were also tested. In the French reading task, fewer errors were observed for cognates and interlingual homophones than for matched control words, whereas more errors were produced for interlingual homographs than matched controls. Only the inhibitory interlingual homograph effect was observed in the English reading task. These data provide evidence that phonological activation in bilinguals is not language selective. The locus of each of these effects in the bilingual word recognition system is discussed.     

Teaching the Immigrant Child: Application of Child Development Theories

Immigrant children are an under-researched yet a steadily growing group. It is therefore compelling for practitioners to understand challenges these children are likely to encounter in the classroom so as to effectively meet their needs. In this article various theoretical perspectives of prominent child development theories are analyzed in an attempt to understand immigrant children in the classroom. Theories of Maslow, Freud, Erikson, Piaget, Vygotsky, and Bronfenbrenner are explicitly discussed. Some suggestions for practice are also provided.     

Study abroad as a collaborative endeavor

Gary Rhodes, Albert Biscarra, Lisa Loberg, and Katie Roller suggest that the next steps to improve study‐abroad programs are to increase the diversity of student participants and partner with departments across the academic and student affairs spectrum.     

Patterns of Risk and Protective Factors Among Alaska Children: Association With Maternal and Child Well-Being

This study used population-representative data to examine associations of risk and protective factor patterns among Alaska Native/American Indian (AN/AI; N = 592) and non-Native (N = 1,018) children with maternal and child outcomes at age 3 years. Among AN/AI children, a high risk/moderate protection class was associated with child developmental risk and mothers being less likely to feel comfortable asking for help or knowing where to go for parenting information compared to a low socioeconomic status/high protection class. Among non-Native children, a moderate risk/high protection class was associated with child developmental risk and mothers being less likely to feel comfortable asking for help compared to a low risk/high protection class. Results provide insight on the intersection of risk and protective factors among Alaska families.     

Teachers’ perspectives on their use of ICT in teaching and learning: A case study

This article presents the perspectives of science and mathematics teachers on their use of information and communication technology (ICT) in teaching and learning in Tanzania. The findings show that few teachers used computers for teaching and learning purposes while majority of them used computers for administrative purposes. Additionally, teachers were found to have limited confidence in using technology to facilitate specific concepts or skills, to support creativity, and to support students to learn complex concepts. Therefore, it is suggested that schools explore strategies ICT integration strategies that focus more on making a shift from teaching technology or using technology for administrative purpose to appropriate pedagogical uses that could enhance student learning.