Rhetoric of Science: Enriching the Discipline

The author discusses how pursuing a rhetoric of science has consequences for both our understanding of science and our practice of rhetorical analysis. From a rhetorical perspective, science becomes a persuasive enterprise continuous with other persuasive practices in a culture. And rhetoric itself requires enrichment in three areas to become a better instrument of analysis for scientific texts; it needs to incorporate early modern dialectic, a more flexible stylistics, and an appreciation of the role of visualization in scientific argument.     

How money matters for young children's development: parental investment and family processes

This study used data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and its 1997 Child Development Supplement to examine how family income matters for young children's development. The sample included 753 children who were between ages 3 and 5 years in 1997. Two sets of mediating factors were examined that reflect two dominating views in the literature: (1) the investment perspective, and (2) the family process perspective. The study examined how two measures of income (stability and level) were associated with preschool children's developmental outcomes (Woodcock-Johnson [W-J] Achievement Test scores and the Behavior Problem Index [BPI]) through investment and family process pathways. Results supported the hypothesis that distinct mediating mechanisms operate on the association between income and different child outcomes. Much of the association between income and children's W-J scores was mediated by the family's ability to invest in providing a stimulating learning environment. In contrast, family income was associated with children's BPI scores primarily through maternal emotional distress and parenting practices. Level of income was associated with W-J letter-word scores and income stability was associated with W-J applied problem scores and BPI, even after all controls were included in the models.     

Evolving Technologies Support Mobile and Collaborative Curriculum: A Case Study

This case study describes the efforts of librarians to integrate mobile devices, collaboration tools, and resources into a School of Medicine third-year pediatric clerkship. Additional class emphasis is on evidence-based searching and journal article evaluation and presentation. The class objectives ensure that students are comfortable with mobile devices and collaboration tools. Over the eight-year history of the course, student acceptance of the mobile devices used diminished as the devices aged, necessitating the evaluation and selection of new technologies. Collaboration tools and mobile applications employed in the course evolved to accommodate curriculum changes.     

Predicting First Grade Reading Performance from Kindergarten Response to Tier 1 Instruction

Many schools are beginning to implement multi-tier response to intervention (RTI) models for the prevention of reading difficulties and to assist in the identification of students with learning disabilities (LD). The present study was part of our larger ongoing longitudinal RTI investigation within the Florida Learning Disabilities Center grant. This study used a longitudinal correlational design, conducted in 7 ethnically and socio-economically diverse schools. We observed reading instruction in 20 classrooms, examined response rates to kindergarten Tier 1 instruction, and predicted students' first grade reading performance based upon kindergarten growth and end of year reading performance (n = 203). Teachers followed an explicit core reading program and overall, classroom instruction was rated as effective. Results indicate that controlling for students' end of kindergarten reading, their growth across kindergarten on a variety of language and literacy measures suppressed predictions of first grade performance. Specifically, the steeper the students' trajectory to a satisfactory outcome, the less likely they were to demonstrate good performance in first grade. Implications for future research and RTI implementation are discussed.     

Teaching about violence prevention: A bridge between public health and criminal justice educators

Public health perspectives on violence-related injuries have become increasingly important over the past two decades, yet they are rarely mentioned in criminal justice educational texts or articles. Here we provide a brief overview of the public health approach to the prevention of violence and related injuries and compare it to an approach to crime prevention commonly associated with the criminal justice approach: deterrence. The prevention of sexual assault on college and university campuses is used as an illustration of the two approaches. Finally, given the similarities between the manner in which these two multi-disciplinary fields approach violence prevention, we explore how and why criminal justice educators might want to teach a bridge between public health and criminal justice.     

Laudatio auf Herrn Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Wolfgang Mitter anl?sslich der Verleihung der Ehrenmitgliedschaft der DGfE

Ohne Zusammenfassung