A comparison of inter-professional education programs in preparing prospective teachers and speech and language pathologists for collaborative language–literacy instruction

Ensuring teacher and speech and language pathology graduates are prepared to work collaboratively together to meet the diverse language literacy learning needs of children is an important goal. This study investigated the efficacy of a 3-h inter-professional education program focused on explicit instruction in the language skills that underpin early reading and spelling acquisition. The combined program incorporated student teachers and student speech and language pathologists (SLPs) working together on case-based instructional planning supplemented with structured opportunities for the groups to share their respective expertise in curriculum and linguistic knowledge. Student teachers (n = 18) and student SLPs (n = 27) were randomly assigned to this combined intervention or a comparison intervention that replaced the structured opportunities to share curriculum and linguistic knowledge with spending time together focused on non-language/literacy based activities. Before-and-after comparisons indicated that only the students in the combined condition increased their linguistic/curricular knowledge (p < 0.05). However, neither of the interventions improved students’ case-based instructional planning for children’s literacy learning over and above what they could achieve working individually. Implications for the pre-service preparation of teachers and SLPs are discussed.     

GENDER MODERATES ASSOCIATION BETWEEN EMOTIONAL‐BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS AND TEXT COMPREHENSION IN CHILDREN WITH BOTH READING DIFFICULTIES AND ADHD

Evidence suggests that higher order linguistic functioning such as text comprehension is particularly vulnerable to emotional modulation. Gender has been identified as an important moderating variable in emotional expression such that girls tend toward internalizing emotions (e.g., sadness, anxiety) whereas boys tend toward externalizing emotions (e.g., anger, combativeness), which may influence the relationship between emotion and text comprehension. The present study examined whether gender moderates the relationship between emotional‐behavioral problems and text comprehension among children (n = 187; boys = 115, girls = 72) with both word reading difficulties (RD) and attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a sample widely acknowledged to be at increased risk for developing emotional‐behavioral problems such as anxiety, poor academic self‐concept, and delinquency. A moderated regression analysis tested for the significance of two separate interaction terms (i.e., gender × externalizing problems, gender × internalizing problems) after controlling for gender, IQ, basic reading skills, cognitive‐linguistic processes closely related to reading, attentional problems, internalizing problems, and externalizing problems. Results indicated that gender significantly and uniquely moderates the relationship between emotional‐behavioral problems and text comprehension. Specifically, text comprehension was relatively lower among girls with relatively higher externalizing problems, whereas no such association was observed among boys. These results contribute to our understanding of cognition–emotion interactions within reading development and raise important implications.     

Learning to teach primary geography in the context of school placement: lessons from an all-Ireland study

Teaching education is Ireland is currently undergoing significant structural and conceptual changes. School placement is at the centre of these reforms. This article reports the findings of an all-Ireland study which investigates student teachers’ experiences of teaching geography during their school placements. Based on data collected from surveys and focus group interviews with one cohort of B.Ed. students, this study illustrates the emotional journey of school placement, emerging identities as teacher, the positive impact of initial teacher education, the problematic nature of messages from ‘third parties’ and conflicting conceptualisations of geography. The findings of this study are important for student teachers and teacher educators as they illustrate the complexity of school placement and the importance of emotional as well as cognitive engagement.     

Formulating secondary-level reading interventions

Recent advances concerning emerging/beginning reading skills, positive behavioral support (PBS), and three-tiered schoolwide prevention models combined with federal mandates (i.e., IDEA and No Child Left Behind) have stimulated interest in providing early and intensive instructional intervention services to children at risk for reading and behavior problems. New measures for identifying students as early as kindergarten who are not acquiring early basic literacy skills make this possible. However, questions regarding exactly how to formulate, deliver, sustain, and manage secondary-level interventions remain to be addressed. This paper describes first-year, first-grade findings for students participating in secondary-level interventions (i.e., small-group reading instruction) in a randomized trial of the efficacy of secondary and tertiary reading and behavior interventions under way at the Center for Early Intervention in Reading and Behavior, University of Kansas. The formulation of the experimental secondary-level intervention was guided by evidence supporting the efficacy of (a) small groups of 3 to 6 participating students and low student-teacher ratio combined with (b) explicit, phonics-based instruction. Selected curricula were Reading Mastery, Proactive Reading, Programmed Reading, and Read Well, use of which varied by choice across experimental-group schools. PBS was an additional intervention context in experimental schools. Comparison schools and first-grade teachers did not employ the three-tiered model, early screening, or PBS; most students were taught using conventional whole-group instruction, little or no individualization, and curricula with weak scientific evidence. Initial results indicate significantly larger growth for experimental secondary-level at-risk students than for comparisons. Experimental-group first graders not showing growth were those identified with disabilities or behavioral risks and English language learners. Implications are discussed.     

Searching for the Songlines of Aboriginal education and culture within Australian higher education

The introduction of spaces that encouraged the participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in higher education became a reality in the early 1980s. Since then, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander educators and leaders have worked tirelessly to find their ‘fit’ within the Western academy, which continues to impose a colonial, Western educative framework onto Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. More recently, universities are attempting to move towards a ‘whole of university’ approach to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander higher education. To achieve such a major shift across the academy, Indigenous values, perspectives and knowledges need to be acknowledged as a strong contributor to the environments of universities in all core areas: student engagement, learning and teaching, research and workforce. In a move to achieving a ‘whole of university’ approach which revolves around Aboriginal culture and knowledges, the Wollotuka Institute at the University of Newcastle developed a set of cultural standards, as part of an international accreditation process, to guide a culturally affirming environment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and staff. This environment acknowledges the unique cultural values and perspectives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. In this paper, the authors explore, from an Indigenous Standpoint, the creation of a university environment that privileges Aboriginal values, principles, knowledges and perspectives. The paper exposes how traditional Aboriginal Songlines, particularly in Aboriginal education, were disrupted, and how the creation and emergence of a contemporary environment of Aboriginal educational and cultural affirmation works towards the re-emergence of Songlines within higher education.     

Mushrooms and sweetgrass: A biotic harvest of culture and place-based learning

What can two books do? This critical review essay explores Tsing's (2015 Tsing, A. L. (2015). The mushroom at the end of the world: On the possibility of life in capitalist ruins. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) The Mushroom at the End of the World: On the Possibility of Life in Capitalist Ruins, and Kimmerer's (2013 Kimmerer, R. W. (2013). Braiding sweetgrass: Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge and the teachings of plants. Minneapolis, MN: Milkweed Editions. [Google Scholar]) Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants. The benefits of environmental learning through deep reading are examined. Each of these books works to solidify and expand commitments to particular environmental and cultural themes, most notably the combined power of natural history and cultural study, and the tensions between our hyper-mobile, immigrant global culture and the desire many of us have to stay put long enough to truly belong.     

Authentic Pedagogy and Students with Severe Disabilities

This paper describes a project carried out by the first author, an academic in special education, with the other authors, teachers of students with severe disabilities. It aimed to explore the application of the New South Wales (NSW) model of pedagogy, derived from authentic pedagogy, to the education of students with severe intellectual disabilities. The project was directed at students with severe intellectual disability who were unable to use spoken language for receptive and/or expressive communication and who were being taught augmentative and alternative means of communication. The group analysed and reframed the development of communication skills in relation to the elements of deep knowledge, deep understanding and higher order thinking, which are components of the dimension of intellectual quality in the NSW model. This analysis is presented here as an example of the way the authentic pedagogy framework can be applied to teach cognitive skills that are usually assumed by teachers of normally developing students.     

I “Like” That: Exploring the Characteristics That Promote Social Media Engagement With News Photographs

While business models and technological innovations continue to disrupt journalistic practice, global image culture has never been stronger. Developed society is inundated daily with a torrent of images. Yet some of these are barely seen, while others almost instantly accrue scores of likes, shares, and comments. What, then, are the factors that constitute engaging, social photojournalism? Using Q methodology, which bridges qualitative and quantitative approaches, 30 participants ranked photos published on Instagram by news organizations or photographers and shared insight through interviews on what factors affect their engagement. In this way, the users' and the images' characteristics were both studied to shed light on why certain photos accrue more engagement and why certain types of people “like” certain types of content. The findings identify three types of users—feature lovers, newshounds, and optimists—and describe their motivations for interacting on the platform. Insights on how the number of people in the frame, the visibility of facial features, the presence of watermarks, and the post type affect user engagement were also gathered and discussed.