From letter names to word reading: The nascent role of sublexical fluency

Information processing theory suggests that sublexical fluency skills are important to word reading development, but there are few supportive data. This study investigated if sublexical fluency (letter name fluency, letter sound fluency, and phoneme segmentation fluency) contributed to the development of word reading and spelling in 92 kindergarten children. The pattern of findings suggests that, as early as kindergarten, sublexical fluency skills explain a small, but significant, amount of unique variance in literacy outcomes when also considering the influence of accuracy in these skills. Also, growth in sublexical fluency skills is related to both word reading and spelling proficiency at the end of kindergarten. We suggest that knowledge of early literacy skill development may be enhanced by attention to sublexical fluency and that these skills, specifically letter sound fluency, may provide the mechanism that supports early word reading and spelling.     

Planned adolescent pregnancy: themes related to the pregnancy

Health-care providers need to recognize that not all adolescent pregnancies occur as a result of error. A small subset of adolescents intentionally plan their pregnancy. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the experiences of 14- to 17-year-old pregnant females who had planned their pregnancies. Participants were recruited from one prenatal clinic at a large tertiary medical center in the eastern region of the United States. Three themes emerged from participant interviews that were related to the adolescents' pregnancies. Themes included living environment issues, adjustment to the pregnancy, and an increased motivation to do well in school and work to provide a good life for their infants. Understanding the phenomena of planned adolescent pregnancy can provide a basis for health-care providers to provide support to adolescent females in this life transition. Understanding the common experience of these adolescents can assist health-care providers to develop individualized interventions to best meet these young women's needs and to improve birth outcomes among this population.     

Effect of a global alteration of running technique on kinematics and economy

In this study, we examined the consequences of a global alteration in running technique on running kinematics and running economy in triathletes. Sixteen sub-elite triathletes were pre and post tested for running economy and running kinematics at 215 and 250 m.min-1. The members of the treatment group (n=8) were exposed to 12 weeks of instruction in the "pose method" of running, while the members of the control group (n=8) maintained their usual running technique. After the treatment period, the experimental group demonstrated a significant decrease in mean stride length (from 137.25+/-7.63 cm to 129.19+/-7.43 cm; P<0.05), a post-treatment difference in vertical oscillation compared with the control group (6.92+/-1.00 vs. 8.44+/-1.00 cm; P<0.05) and a mean increase in submaximal absolute oxygen cost (from 3.28+/-0.36 l.min-1 to 3.53+/-0.43 l.min-1; P<0.01). The control group exhibited no significant changes in either running kinematics or oxygen cost. The global change in running mechanics associated with 12 weeks of instruction in the pose method resulted in a decrease in stride length, a reduced vertical oscillation in comparison with the control group and a decrease of running economy in triathletes.     

‘It’s not that easy to solve’: edTPA and preservice teacher learning

This three year qualitative study of a university pilot of the edTPA, a performance assessment for preservice teachers, questioned candidates’ learning at the nexus of claims that the edTPA serves a dual role as both a formative assessment for candidates’ ongoing learning as well as a summative assessment of their readiness to teach. The analysis highlighted affordances and constraints of the assessment in the areas of: (1) depth of professional learning, (2) differentiation for diverse learners, (3) focus on school, community and family context, (4) professional reflection within classroom realities, and (5) as an evaluation tool. The discussion positions the findings alongside other published implementation studies of the edTPA in terms of current reforms. It especially problematizes the positioning of preservice teachers as professional learners in light of pressures for compliance and standardization.     

Web Sites that Address Epidural Anesthesia for Childbirth

Epidural analgesia has become a popular way to reduce pain during labor. Because epidural use is not limited to women who plan its use, but extends to some who originally planned a nonmedicated birth, it is important for the childbirth educator to provide information on this topic to all women. In this column, the authors provide examples of Web sites that address epidural anesthesia. Web sites for professionals and consumers are included. Encouraging the use of such resources by expectant parents can provide them with good information and allow the class time on this topic to be that of clarification.     

Literacy practices and the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC): A conceptual critique

International Review of Education - The Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) assesses key skills in literacy, numeracy and problem-solving in technology-rich...     

Nutrition and HIV-Positive Pregnancy

When an HIV-positive woman becomes pregnant, additional nutritional considerations are warranted. Compared to routine prenatal nutritional assessment and intervention, pregnant HIV-positive women have increased needs to promote a healthy outcome. This column contains information on HIV and pregnancy, nutrition and infection, and nutrition for HIV-positive pregnancy. This content can be integrated into childbirth education settings to improve care to women who are HIV-positive.     

Monitoring elementary students’ writing progress using curriculum-based measures: grade and gender differences

The purpose of this study was to examine slopes from curriculum-based measures of writing (CBM-W) as indicators of growth in writing. Responses to story prompts administered for 5 min to 89 students in Grades 2–5 were collected across 12 weeks and scored for correct word sequences (CWS) and correct minus incorrect sequences (CIWS). Linear mixed modeling revealed that, for students in Grades 2–3, a linear model with random effects on both intercept and slope fit the data best. For students in Grades 4–5, growth trends varied depending on number of weeks and scoring procedure used. The time point at which slopes were significantly different from zero varied by scoring procedure and grade. Gender was related to intercept and slope for CWS and CIWS in Grades 2–3 and to intercept and linear slope for CWS and CIWS in Grades 4–5. Findings suggest that CBM-W may be appropriate for monitoring student progress, and that gender should be considered in data-based decision making.