Researcher Study Thyself: AERA Participants' Speaking Times and Turns by Gender

This research compares speaking times and turns of female and male presenters and audience members at the 2000 Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA). In their presentations, males spoke longer than females, but the differences were not statistically significant. They spoke significantly longer than females, however, when posing questions or comments during open discussions, and they made a significantly greater number of responses to these questions and comments. Some chairs were inconsistent in monitoring allotted speaking times. Females' participation was lower in less-structured situations, such as open discussions and co-presented papers, than in settings with greater structure.     

Academics' Strategies and Obstacles in Achieving Collaboration between Universities and SMEs

There is an ongoing debate both in the United States and Europe about the need to develop a broader view of scholarship and the different activities connected with it, including ‘service to the community’. This empirical study reveals that researchers who are engaged in collaboration with small and medium enterprises (SMEs) encounter many hindrances within the academic structure and obstacles due cultural differences that needs to be overcome. But it is also evident that they are creative and learn different strategies in accomplishing their goals and they also bring back useful experiences and knowledge from their cooperation into their research and teaching within the academic organization. We suggest that attention should be paid to the broader and more elaborate view of collaborative knowledge production that we present in the article if university structures are to provide better support for their academic staff to interact profitably with the community, and thereby create a ‘win–win situation’ for everyone involved.     

Developing History Students' Skills in the Transition to University

With growing numbers and diversity of students, as well as demands from employers and students themselves, many humanities and social science tutors have become increasingly aware of the importance of developing students' skills. The first year of university is a particularly important point of intervention, not only to ensure the successful transition to degree level work, but to create the foundations for learning and skills development in subsequent years of disciplinary study and beyond. There is still, however, often a lack of confidence on the part of subject tutors concerning the introduction of skills to students whose primary motivation for study is discipline-based. This paper describes a practical approach to this problem in history, but one easily transferable to other disciplines. It combines subject and skills in a way which engages student interest, and encourages students to become more confident in a variety of practical skills, as well as more reflexive in relation to their subject and the ways in which they approach learning in it.     

Temporal cortex activation explains children’s improvement in math attitudes

Math attitudes are related to achievement, yet we do not know how the brain supports changes in math attitudes. 51 children (54.9% female, 45.1% male; 37.3% White, 33.3% Black, 11.8% Latino, 5.9% Asian, 11.8% Other) solved a multiplication task inside the scanner when they were approximately 11 (time 1; T1) and 13 (time 2; T2) years old (i.e., mean age). Results revealed clusters in the left middle to superior temporal gyri at T1 associated with math attitudes at T1 and with their longitudinal improvement. However, changes in attitudes were not associated with brain changes over time. These findings suggest that relying on the storage of arithmetic facts, involved in memory retrieval, explains the development of positive math attitudes.     

Effect of water ingestion on endurance capacity during prolonged running

This study examined the influence of water ingestion on endurance capacity during submaximal treadmill running. Four men and four women with a mean (± S.E.) age of 21.4 ± 0.7 years, height of 169 + 2 cm, body mass of 63.1 ± 2.9 kg and VO ₂ max of 51.1 ± 1.8 ml kg^?1 min^?1, performed two randomly assigned treadmill runs at 70% VO ₂ max to exhaustion. No fluid was ingested during one trial (NF‐trial), whereas a single water bolus of 3.0 ml kg^?1 body mass was ingested immediately pre‐exercise and serial feedings of 2.0 ml kg^?1 body mass were ingested every 15 min during exercise in a fluid replacement trial (FR‐trial). Run time for the NF‐trial was 77.7 ± 7.7 min, compared to 103 ± 12.4 min for the FR‐trial (P<0.01). Body mass (corrected for water ingestion) decreased by 2.0 ± 0.2% in the NF‐trial and 2.7 ± 0.2% in the FR‐trial (P<0.01), while plasma volume decreased by 1.1 ± 1.1% and 3.5 ± 1.1% in the two trials respectively (N.S.). However, these apparent differences in circulatory volume were not associated with differences in rectal temperature. Respiratory exchange ratios indicated increased carbohydrate metabolism (73% vs 64% of total energy expenditure) and suppressed fat metabolism after 75 min of exercise in the NF‐trial compared with the FR‐trial (NF‐trial, 0.90 ± 0.01; FR‐trial, 0.86 ± 0.03; P<0.01). Blood glucose concentrations were similar in both trials, while blood lactate concentrations were higher in the NF‐trial at the end of exercise (4.83 ± 0.34 vs 4.18 ± 0.38 mM; P<0.05). In summary, water ingestion during prolonged running improved endurance capacity.     

The Impacts of Library Services on Interlibrary Loan Requests Canceled due to Local Availability

Abstract

Interlibrary loan (ILL) services receive requests for resources that are available locally and form a major portion of canceled requests. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between requests canceled due to local availability and three aspects to identify impacts on ILL. The authors explored library service aspects such as collection format, the link resolver knowledge base, and discovery system functionality for potential influence on requests for locally available resources. Quantitative methods were used to identify evidence of different aspects’ impact through analysis of ILL borrowing request data. The most important finding was that the discovery system had impact on ILL services by improving retrievability of locally available resources published recently. The results suggest that a modern discovery system can efficiently provide more relevant results sourced from a carefully curated set of authoritative resources, save users’ time to access available materials, and reduce library staff members’ time and effort. This study will be helpful to libraries through its analysis of library services that impact the cancelation of ILL requests due to local availability and how those services may influence service improvement.     

Oral Interactions in Secondary Science Classrooms: a Grounded Approach to Identifying Oral Feedback Types and Practices

Feedback is an important practice in promoting learning. This study examines teachers’ oral feedback practices, with an analysis grounded in students’ perceptions of what helps them learn. Based on 38 hours of lesson observations, interviews with 10 teachers and 84 students, we identify how teachers conceptualise and practice oral feedback. Based on student interviews, three main types of oral interaction were found to constitute feedback: discrepancy, success criteria comments and open questions. Current practices appear to address the feedback dimensions of ‘How am I going?’ and ‘Where to next?’, but seem to be lacking with respect to addressing the question related to ‘Where am I going?’ Feedback is infrequently used by science teachers compared with other types of oral interaction and the feedback types most frequently reported by students to help learning were used least often. Teachers used oral feedback types differently in whole class and small group situations. We use findings to elaborate an ideal-typical model of feedback practices, with divergent practices involving more frequent use of oral feedback, focusing on learning rather than task. The study concludes with implications for practice in teaching and teacher education.

     

Participatory Communication with Social Media

Abstract Major museums worldwide are starting to use social media such as blogs, podcasts and content shares to engage users via participatory communication. This marks a shift in how museums publicly communicate their role as custodians of cultural content and so presents debate around an institution's attitude towards cultural authority. It also signifies a new possible direction for museum learning. This article reports on a range of initiatives that demonstrate how participatory communication via social media can be integrated into museum practices. It argues that the social media space presents an ideal opportunity for museums to build online communities of interest around authentic cultural information, and concludes with some recent findings on and recommendations for social media implementation.     

The SPECTRAL project: a training needs analysis for providers of clinical question answering services

Purpose: To characterise the training needs of those providing clinical question answering services (CQAS). Participants: Seventeen specialist UK staff working in CQAS, 21 from general health library UK staff and eight international respondents. Methodology: A literature review examined documented training needs for CQAS staff. A follow‐up questionnaire examined prior training and experience and identified training needs for the surveyed staff. Results/outcomes: Ninety per cent of CQAS staff had worked in health services for 3 years or longer. Training received in preparation for the CQAS role comprised literature searching (including the PRECEPT/ADEPT and cochrane library courses) and critical appraisal. Skills considered ‘essential’ for clinical question answering were ‘literature searching’ (100%), ‘understanding the context of clinical questions’, ‘bibliographic databases’, ‘evidence‐based sources’ and ‘the Internet’ (all 93%). Main training needs for specialist CQAS staff include management and organisation of CQAS and technical skills in interpretation and presentation. Discussion/conclusion: CQAS staff require a formal training programme. Most CQAS staff considered that this should be a mandatory requirement.     

Applying findings from a systematic review of workplace‐based e‐learning: implications for health information professionals

Objectives: To systematically review the UK published literature on e‐learning in the health workplace and to apply the findings to one of the most prolific UK e‐learning initiatives in the health sector—the National Library for Health Facilitated Online Learning Interactive Opportunity (FOLIO) Programme. Methods: Sensitive searches were conducted across assia , Australian Education Index, British Education Index, cinahl , CSA Abstracts, Dissertation Abstracts, Emerald, eric , ibss , Index to Theses, lisa , medline , Psyc Info and Social Science Citation Index. Additional citations were identified from reference lists of included studies and of relevant reviews; citation tracking and contact with experts. Twenty‐nine studies met the inclusion criteria and were coded and analysed using thematic analysis as described by Miles & Huberman (Qualitative Data Analysis: A Sourcebook of New Methods. Newbury Park, CA: Sage, 1984). Results: Five broad themes were identified from the 29 included studies: (i) peer communication; (ii) flexibility; (iii) support; (iv) knowledge validation; and (v) course presentation and design. These broad themes were supported by a total of eleven sub‐themes. Components from the FOLIO Programme were analysed and existing and proposed developments were mapped against each sub‐theme. This provides a valuable framework for ongoing course development. Conclusion: Librarians involved in delivering and supporting e‐learning can benefit from applying the findings from the systematic review to existing programmes, exemplified by the FOLIO Programme. The resultant framework can also be used in developing new e‐learning programmes.