Achievement goals,efficacy beliefs and coping strategies in mathematics: The roles of perceived parent and teacher goal emphases

This study examines children’s perceptions of the achievement goals parents and teachers emphasize for them in mathematics, and the relation of these goals to children’s personal achievement goals, self-efficacy beliefs, and coping strategies. Results indicated that children’s perceptions of both parent and teacher mastery and performance goal emphases predicted children’s personal goals. Further, children’s personal goals mediated the relation between perceived parent and teacher goal emphases and children’s efficacy beliefs and coping strategies. Children’s perceptions of parent and teacher emphasis on performance goals varied slightly by gender but not ethnic background, whereas variance across groups in perceptions of mastery emphases did not reach practical significance. Relations between goal perceptions, personal goals, efficacy and coping strategies also did not vary by gender or ethnic background. Implications for future research regarding the goals children perceive to be emphasized in home and school contexts, and their importance for children’s adaptive beliefs and behaviors in mathematics, are discussed.     

Selection into Online Community College Courses and Their Effects on Persistence

Online courses at the college level are growing in popularity, and nearly all community colleges offer online courses (Allen and Seaman in Tracking online education in the United States, Babson Survey Research Group, Babson Park, 2015). What is the effect of the expanded availability of online curricula on persistence in the field and towards a degree? We use a model of self-selection to estimate the effect of taking an online course, using region and time variation in Internet service as a source of identifying variation. Our method, as opposed to standard experimental methods, allows us to consider the effect among students who actually choose to take such courses. For the average person, taking an online course has a negative effect on the probability of taking another course in the same field and on the probability of earning a degree. The negative effect on graduation for students who choose to take an online course is stronger than the negative effect for the average student. Community colleges must balance these results against the attractive features of online courses, and institutions may want to consider actively targeting online courses toward those most likely to do well in them.     

Reading development in adults

A comparison of the development of reading ability among adults with that of children—from the lowest levels of literacy to the most advanced. Included in the comparison are characteristics of adults at each level of development, the kind of instruction that will help bring them from lower to higher levels, and the particular difficulties they experience at the various levels. The article concludes with a historical overview of the changes in literacy standards and needs in the United States and the growing recognition that among the adult illiterates, particularly native English speakers who have very limited reading skills, are large numbers who have dyslexia. This article is based, in part, on an earlier paper, “New Views on Developing Basic Skills with Adults,” presented at the National Conference on Adult Literacy, Washington, D.C., January, 1984.     

Are reading methods changing again?

This paper was first written as a talk to the Orton Dyslexia Society, in response to present reading reforms in California and elsewhere. A historical context is provided which suggests that such reforms are but a small chapter in a long-standing tension between code emphasis and meaning emphasis approaches to reading. This tension has been fueling debate for an entire century, with outcomes at any given point apparently decided as much by fashion and politics as by research and experience. More collaboration is called for between remedial specialists and “regular education” teachers, to reduce the incidence of children who require special help.     

Economic Deprivation and Early Childhood Development

We consider 3 questions regarding the effects of economic deprivation on child development. First, how are developmental outcomes in childhood affected by poverty and such poverty correlates as single parenthood, ethnicity, and maternal education? Second, what are the developmental consequences of the duration and timing of family economic deprivation? And, third, what is the comparative influence of economic deprivation at the family and neighborhood level? We investigate these issues with longitudinal data from the Infant Health and Development Program. We find that family income and poverty status are powerful correlates of the cognitive development and behavior of children, even after accounting for other differences—in particular family structure and maternal schooling—between low- and high-income families. While the duration of poverty matters, its timing in early childhood does not. Age-5 IQs are found to be higher in neighborhoods with greater concentrations of affluent neighbors, while the prevalence of low-income neighbors appears to increase the incidence of externalizing behavior problems.     

#3: continuous labor support

In this position paper-one of six care practice papers published by Lamaze International and reprinted here with permission-the benefit of continuous labor support is discussed and presented as an evidence-based practice that helps promote, protect, and support normal birth. The paper is written for childbearing women and their families. Women with continuous support are less likely to have a cesarean, an instrument delivery, and regional anesthesia. They are also less likely to report dissatisfaction with or negatively rate their childbirth experience. The value of the doula for both the laboring woman and her labor partner is discussed. The accompanying commentary-written by a leading proponent of maternity care practices-supports evidence that promotes continuous labor support. Lamaze International encourages women to plan for a supportive birth environment that includes continuous support.     

企业文化特征与竞争情报相互关系研究述评

在全面梳理国内外有关情报文化理论研究的基础上,对近十年来企业文化特征与竞争情报相互关系的理论研究进展进行了评述,认为目前在该领域已形成了"情报文化基础说"、"情报文化过程说"和"情报文化影响因素说"三种主要观点,但是也存在着缺少针对不同国家和企业文化类型特征的企业文化与竞争情报相互关系的理论研究和实证分析,因而难以为各国丰富多彩的企业竞争情报实践提供理论指导等突出问题。     

Writing fluency and quality in kindergarten and first grade: the role of attention,reading, transcription,and oral language

In the present study, we examined the influence of kindergarten component skills on writing outcomes, both concurrently and longitudinally to first grade. Using data from 265 students, we investigated a model of writing development including attention regulation along with students’ reading, spelling, handwriting fluency, and oral language component skills. Results from structural equation modeling demonstrated that a model including attention was better fitting than a model with only language and literacy factors. Attention, a higher-order literacy factor related to reading and spelling proficiency, and automaticity in letter-writing were uniquely and positively related to compositional fluency in kindergarten. Attention and higher-order literacy factor were predictive of both composition quality and fluency in first grade, while oral language showed unique relations with first grade writing quality. Implications for writing development and instruction are discussed.