Teaching Inferential Statistics to Social Work Students: A Decision-making Flow Chart

Given that social work research courses are typically built on modernist principles of teaching and content, it is not surprising that the majority of social work students dread these courses. Few attempts have been made to better align the modernist content of quantitative research with the postmodern philosophy and values inherent in current social work. This article presents a decision-making flow chart in conjunction with a problem-based learning framework so that students can be self-directed in the process of determining which inferential statistic to use when given a case example.     

Improving the Motivation and Retention of Online Students Through the Use of ARCS-Based E-Mails

Abstract

This study examined the use of ARCS-based, motivational mass e-mail messages designed to improve the motivation and retention of students enrolled in an online, entry-level, undergraduate computer applications course. Data from the Course Interest Survey, based on Keller's ARCS model, were gathered and analyzed for two online groups (one treatment and one control) and compared with a face-to-face class for differences in attention, relevance, confidence, satisfaction, and overall motivation. Based on the analysis, this article argues that simple, cost-effective, and easy-to-design mass e-mail messages show potential for addressing some of the motivational needs and retention concerns of online students.     

A data generating review that bops,twists and pulls at misconceptions

Statistics is an integral part of the K–12 mathematics curriculum (age 5–18). Naturally, students construct misconceptions of what they learn. This article discusses The Bop It^© Challenge, a review activity assesses student understanding and reveals their misundertandings of statistical concepts.     

Longitudinal Associations Between Executive Control and Developing Mathematical Competence in Preschool Boys and Girls

Executive control (EC) is related to mathematics performance in middle childhood. However, little is known regarding how EC and informal numeracy differentially support mathematics skill acquisition in preschoolers. A sample of preschoolers (115 girls, 113 boys), stratified by social risk, completed an EC task battery at 3 years, informal numeracy assessments at 3.75 and 4.5 years, and a broad mathematics assessment during kindergarten. Strong associations were observed between latent EC at age 3 and mathematics achievement in kindergarten, which remained robust after accounting for earlier informal numeracy, socioeconomic status, language and processing speed. Relations between EC and mathematics achievement were stronger in girls than in boys. Findings highlight the unique role of EC in predicting which children may have difficulty transitioning to formal mathematics instruction.     

Consolidation and Transfer of Learning After Observing Hand Gesture

Children who observe gesture while learning mathematics perform better than children who do not, when tested immediately after training. How does observing gesture influence learning over time? Children (n = 184, ages = 7–10) were instructed with a videotaped lesson on mathematical equivalence and tested immediately after training and 24 hr later. The lesson either included speech and gesture or only speech. Children who saw gesture performed better overall and performance improved after 24 hr. Children who only heard speech did not improve after the delay. The gesture group also showed stronger transfer to different problem types. These findings suggest that gesture enhances learning of abstract concepts and affects how learning is consolidated over time.     

PUSH(ing) Limits: Using Fiction in the Classroom for Human Behavior and the Social Environment

The use of fiction and autobiography in social science course work has been shown to enhance students' learning experience. Using the novel PUSH, by Sapphire, we designed a curriculum supplement for the social work course, human behavior and the social environment (HBSE) that encourages students to integrate course content in an innovative way and enables them to apply the material to life-like situations. The HBSE supplement allows students to explore poignant and problematic issues that push them past intrapersonal and interpersonal limits. Classes are infused with energy and the critical consciousness of the students. Final projects are a systematic case study of a chosen character (or characters) in the book and are a testament to student critical thinking and creativity. Methods, assignments, and student experiences in an introductory BSW course are described.     

Dribble files: Methodologies to evaluate learning and performance in complex environments

Research in the area of technology learning environments is tremendously complex. Tasks performed in these contexts are highly cognitive and mostly invisible to the observer. The nature of performance in these contexts is explained not only by the outcome but also by the process. However, evaluating the learning process with respect to tasks involving technology is difficult to measure objectively. As a result, audit trails (also called log or dribble files) are becoming extremely valuable tools in evaluating learning and performance in complex environments. This article reviews efforts of researchers in various areas, describes the nature of research using dribble files, and provides a framework on which investigators might build evaluations.     

Counsellor supervision In Zimbabwe: A new direction

This paper examines theneed for a new paradigm of counsellor supervision in Zimbabwe andprovides components for a new paradigm. The article identifiesissues that need to be considered in order to develop counsellorsupervision practice in an appropriate cultural and social contextfor the country. The issues that are examined are: counsellortraining in Zimbabwe; sociohistoric and present racial themes inZimbabwe; the impact of Eurocentric counselling theory, research andpractice in Zimbabwe; and the basic tenets of indigenous culture inZimbabwe that impact on the counsellor supervision process.     

Free-Living Comparison of Physical Activity and Sleep Data from Fitbit Activity Trackers Worn on the Dominant and Nondominant Wrists

Despite proprietary algorithms to account for differences, output from activity trackers worn on different wrists may not be comparable because individuals vary in their reliance on each hand during free-living activities.

Participants (n = 48) wore Fitbit Flex or Flex2 monitors on each wrist for three days. T tests, equivalence tests, and correlations were used to compare steps, Calories, distance, active minutes, and sleep duration recorded by dominant and nondominant wrist-worn monitors and effect sizes and mean absolute and percent difference were calculated.

The nondominant Flex2 monitor was not equivalent to the dominant wrist-worn monitor and recorded significantly more steps/day (absolute difference = 708), miles/day (0.3), and active minutes/day (7.9) than the dominant Flex2 monitor. For all variables, nondominant and dominant output was correlated (r>0.75).

Nondominant and dominant Flex2 monitors are significantly different, but there were small differences for Flex monitors. Research should investigate effects on behavior and replicate findings using other monitors.     

Utility value interventions in a college biology lab: The impact on motivation

Science writing, such as lab reports, allows students to form a meaningful understanding of scientific concepts. However, students often view scientific writing as unimportant and utilize surface level approaches when completing writing assignments. The current study implemented three experimental interventions (directly-communicated, self-generated, and hybrid) aligned with prior literature and designed to improve the utility value of lab reports in college settings. Participants (n = 1,002) were recruited from 43 lab sections of an introductory biology course at a large southeastern university. Measures of subjective task value (utility value, attainment value, cost, and intrinsic value) were collected pre-, mid-, and post-intervention. The self-generated and hybrid groups exhibited higher self-reported utility value by posttest compared to the control group. Requiring students to generate their own utility value toward a task, followed by a written reflection, increases students' maintained and situational interest for biology laboratory reports.