A model for training the new bioinformationist.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives were to examine the effectiveness of a curriculum designed to increase bioinformatics competencies of librarians with diverse backgrounds and to identify demographic factors that may affect the learning process. METHODS: Sixteen professional staff participated in a 12-week training course consisting of 5 distinct modules: molecular biology, genetic analysis, biotechnology, research literature, and databases. Participants completed a 120-question pretest and an 88-question posttest designed to evaluate the effectiveness of the training. RESULTS: Training was deemed successful as all participants scored higher on the posttest than the pretest. Data analysis was conducted in relation to participant background. Holding a biology degree did not seem to affect posttest results. Years of experience, however, had an impact on final scores in the databases section, as senior team members had greater difficulty learning the material. DISCUSSION: As the need for specialized information in the area of molecular biology and genetics becomes more central for the effectiveness of organizations, it is crucial for libraries to quickly align with those needs by having a clear vision for increasing the skills and competencies of their staff in this subject area. This paper describes an effective model for learning that was developed and tested by the Eskind Biomedical Library.     

Working toward integrated practice: Understanding the interaction among formative assessment strategies

The purpose of this study was to directly observe and investigate the factors that support or hinder the implementation of an integrated approach to formative assessment and to understand how the implementation of formative assessment strategies interact. The authors present findings from a collective case study that included the observation of six teachers (three mathematics and three English language arts) who were purposefully sampled from a large, public, suburban high school in the northeast United States. The analysis of the case studies resulted in the identification of different patterns in teachers’ formative assessment practice. These patterns illustrate how the complex interaction between formative assessment practices can either support or hinder the implementation of an integrated approach to formative assessment and suggests classroom observations as a potential mechanism for identifying challenges and informing just-in-time professional development.     

Children "tune out" in response to the ambiguous communication style of powerless adults

Changes in children's attentional engagement were assessed as a function of their exposure to "teachers" who differed in perceived power and the communication style that is associated with perceived power. In Study 1, "teachers" (women assigned to an instructional role) were selected on the basis of their perceived power; low-power women were more likely than high-power women to display communication ambiguity. Children responded to low-power women with low levels of (1) autonomic orienting (consistent with low attention) and (2) high errors on a cognitively demanding task (mental arithmetic). Attentional disengagement was found to be mediated by the ambiguous communication style of low-power adults. In Study 2, the "teacher" was a confederate who systematically varied the facial and vocal ambiguity of her instructions. Children showed the lowest levels of orienting and the highest level of errors when the "teacher" was ambiguous in both face and voice. Results were interpreted as showing that adult ambiguity (naturally occurring or experimentally produced) leads to reductions in children's attentional engagement.     

Teachers' approaches to teaching and responses to student evaluation in a problem‐based medical program

Teachers' approaches to teaching may influence the way they interpret and respond to student evaluations. In this article we explore the relationship between teachers' approaches to teaching and responses to qualitative student feedback in a problem‐based medical program. We asked all lecturers and theme session presenters in 2003 who had received student feedback comments in the past 2 years (N=121) to complete anonymously the Approaches to Teaching inventory (16 items) and an Approach to Feedback Inventory (14 items). Results were that most teachers report making changes to their teaching in response to students' suggestions at least sometimes. The types of change(s) teachers make are consistent with their approach. Teachers strong on a conceptual‐change student‐focussed (CCSF) approach are more responsive to feedback and positive about strategies for improving their teaching. To encourage teachers to use student feedback as a guide to improving their teaching, institutions may need to provide a systematic program of teacher education that focuses on teachers' conceptions, approaches and supports observation of exemplary practice.     

Differentiating between difficult-to-remediate and readily remediated poor readers: more evidence against the IQ-achievement discrepancy definition of reading disability

In this article we discuss research bearing on the traditional use of the IQ-achievement discrepancy to define specific reading disability. We initially review the evidence presented by Rutter and Yule (1975) in support of this practice, and then discuss results from subsequent studies that have questioned the reliability of their findings. We also discuss results from more recent studies demonstrating that the IQ-achievement discrepancy does not reliably distinguish poor from normal readers, whereas language-based measures do reliably distinguish these groups. We highlight results from a study we recently completed, in which it was found that IQ scores did not differentiate between poor readers who were found to be readily remediated and poor readers who were difficult to remediate. In view of the convergent evidence against the use of IQ scores to define specific reading disability, we suggest that the IQ-achievement discrepancy definition of this disorder be discarded.     

一双袜子

一个晴朗的下午，我沿第五大街而行，忽然想起需要买双袜子。为何我只想买一双，现在原因已无关紧要了。我拐进跃如入眼帘的第一家袜店，一个不到17岁的男售货员迎上来，说：“先生，您要买什么？”“我想买双短袜。”他双眸闪闪发光，声音饱含激情。“您知道您进的可是世上最好的袜店吗？”我倒并未意识到这点，我是偶然进来的。“随我来”，男孩欣喜若狂地说。我跟着他到了店的后部。     

Toward reduced bias and increased utility in the assessment of school refusal behavior: The case for diverse samples and evaluations of context

The current article reviews the literature on school refusal behavior. Definitional inconsistencies, the effects of biased assessment processes, and the consequences of the lack of ethnic, racial, and economic diversity in school refusal research samples are highlighted. An increase in the use of low‐income, ethnic minority, community samples in school refusal research is proposed in order to create a more representative and useful literature. Concerns regarding artificial and impractical divisions between the commonly used labels of school refusal and truancy are also discussed. Suggestions are proposed for a new pragmatic framework of school refusal assessment for research and clinical work that utilizes and enhances Kearney's functional approach. The framework has the potential to incorporate the influences of multiple cultural contexts in order to aid professionals from different disciplines in both prevention and early intervention for school refusal in low‐income, ethnic minority populations. Additional suggestions for future direction in school refusal research are also discussed. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Students' perceptions of clinical attachments across rural and metropolitan settings

For many years, medical students at the University of Sydney undertook their clinical clerkships in traditional metropolitan teaching hospitals, which were regarded as the ‘gold standard’ for clinical training. In 2001 the university established a rural clinical school at which increasing numbers of students now complete a significant proportion of their medical education. The aim of the study reported here is to examine students’ perceptions of what facilitates their learning in clinical settings and to compare their perceptions across rural and metropolitan settings. Focus groups were conducted to collect students’ views on their experiences of learning in clinical settings. The findings were used to generate a questionnaire with items designed directly from focus‐group data ensuring content validity. The questionnaire was sent to all students in the 2004 cohort. Exploratory factor analysis was used to provide evidence of construct validity. The internal consistency reliability of the questionnaire was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. Factor scores were computed to compare students’ perceptions across the two settings. Four factors were extracted: (1) clinical teachers’ orientation to teaching; (2) opportunities to develop clinical skills; (3) supportiveness of the clinical setting; and (4) student confidence and sense of self‐efficacy. Students rated the rural experience more highly and positively than the metropolitan hospital experience with regard to all four factors. This study highlights the positive role that rural attachments can play in providing an educationally sound learning experience. The findings are important in the context of both the drive, among medical programs worldwide, to seek out additional and alternative settings for clinical education and the national agenda to foster student interest in rural careers through positive rural training experiences.     

Stability of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children For A Sample Of At-Risk Preschool Children

This study examined the stability of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) for a sample of at-risk preschool children. Over a 9-month time interval, the stability coefficients (corrected for restriction in range) for the global scales of the K-ABC ranged from .78 to .88. The stability coefficients (corrected for restriction in range) for the K-ABC subtests ranged from .65 to .79. It was concluded that scores on the K-ABC for at-risk preschool children display adequate stability, but that the Simultaneous scale appears to be more amenable to change than either the Sequential or Achievement scales.