The effects of parental teaching on compliance behavior of children

In this study, we examined how effectively parents learn and apply the techniques of reinforcement, effective praise, instructive praise, direct teaching, and corrective teaching with noncompliant children in their homes. Four children considered at risk for antisocial behavior problems participated with their parents in the project. The parents received training from a parent coach in techniques that they then implemented to teach their child to be compliant. A multiple baseline‐probe design was used to evaluate the procedures. Throughout the study, the parents' implementation of the techniques and the children's responses were observed. The results showed an increase in the parents' application of these skills and an increase in the children's overall compliance in the home. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 41: 337–350, 2004.     

Proofs and refutations in the undergraduate mathematics classroom

In his 1976 book, Proofs and Refutations, Lakatos presents a collection of case studies to illustrate methods of mathematical discovery in the history of mathematics. In this paper, we reframe these methods in ways that we have found make them more amenable for use as a framework for research on learning and teaching mathematics. We present an episode from an undergraduate abstract algebra classroom to illustrate the guided reinvention of mathematics through processes that strongly parallel those described by Lakatos. Our analysis suggests that the constructs described by Lakatos can provide a useful framework for making sense of the mathematical activity in classrooms where students are actively engaged in the development of mathematical ideas and provide design heuristics for instructional approaches that support the learning of mathematics through the process of guided reinvention.     

Indiana women of achievement: using self-directedness,self-efficacy and self-determination to explore opportunities for leadership

This article shares examples of how leadership opportunities, self-directedness, self-efficacy and self-determination developed in professional women who have been recognised as leaders. This study presents six women honoured as ‘Women of Achievement’. Through narrative interviews, each woman described aspects of her life that guided decision-making and her approach to various life situations. Using the narrative examples provided, one may be able to see themes or strategies for working with other learners to enhance their own leadership. Findings included: growth and development as leaders within their own environments and through interactions with people who mentored or influenced them; openness to opportunities presented to them; the effect that time, place and culture contributed to the goals and tasks that these women undertook. While they were bound by social constraints concerning gender, race and class, each found a way to adapt within those environments and make changes for the better through their contributions. Consistently, these women realised their actions made a difference. Implications for further research include: enhancing self-directedness, self-efficacy and self-determination in women; expanding the definition of leadership; and understanding the motivation for engaging in leadership opportunities. Through this and other research, we seek to expand women’s roles and participation as leaders.     

Students' mental models of the environment

What are students' mental models of the environment? In what ways, if any, do students' mental models vary by grade level or community setting? These two questions guided the research reported in this article. The Environments Task was administered to students from 25 different teacher‐classrooms. The student responses were first inductively analyzed in order to identify students' mental models of the environment. The second phase of analysis involved the statistical testing of the identified mental models. From this analysis four mental models emerged: Model 1, the environment as a place where animals/plants live—a natural place; Model 2, the environment as a place that supports life; Model 3, the environment as a place impacted or modified by human activity; and Model 4, the environment as a place where animals, plants, and humans live. The dominant mental model was Mental Model 1. Yet, a greater frequency of urban students than suburban and rural students held Mental Model 3. The implications to environmental science education are explored. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 327–348, 2007     

What Mathematics Education May Prepare Students for the Society of the Future?

This paper attempts to engage the field in a discussion about what mathematics is needed for students to engage in society, especially with an increase in technology and digitalization. In this respect, mathematics holds a special place in STEM as machines do most of the calculations that students are taught in K-12. We raise questions about what mathematical proficiency means in today’s world and what shifts need to be made in both content and pedagogy to prepare students for 21st Century Skills and mathematical reasoning.     

A Campus-Wide Study of STEM Courses: New Perspectives on Teaching Practices and Perceptions

At the University of Maine, middle and high school science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teachers observed 51 STEM courses across 13 different departments and collected information on the active-engagement nature of instruction. The results of these observations show that faculty members teaching STEM courses cannot simply be classified into two groups, traditional lecturers or instructors who teach in a highly interactive manner, but instead exhibit a continuum of instructional behaviors between these two classifications. In addition, the observation data reveal that student behavior differs greatly in classes with varied levels of lecture. Although faculty members who teach large-enrollment courses are more likely to lecture, we also identified instructors of several large courses using interactive teaching methods. Observed faculty members were also asked to complete a survey about how often they use specific teaching practices, and we find that faculty members are generally self-aware of their own practices. Taken together, these findings provide comprehensive information about the range of STEM teaching practices at a campus-wide level and how such information can be used to design targeted professional development for faculty.     

Attitudes of Australian chiropractic students toward whole body donation: A cross‐sectional study

Cadavers play an important role in anatomy education. In Australia, bodies for anatomy education are acquired only through donations. To gain insight into educational dynamics in an anatomy laboratory as well as to facilitate body donation programs and thanksgiving ceremonies, it is important to understand students' attitudes toward body donation. In this cross‐sectional study, the attitudes of Macquarie University's first, second, and fifth year chiropractic students toward body donation were investigated. Macquarie University chiropractic students have a four semester long anatomy program, which includes cadaver‐based instruction on prosected specimens. A questionnaire was used to record respondents' demographics and attitudes toward body donation: personal, by a relative, and by a stranger. It was found that ethnicity and religion affect attitudes toward body donation, with Australian students being more willing to donate a stranger's body and atheists and agnostics being more willing to donate in general. Furthermore, willingness to donate one's own or a family member's body decreases as year of study increases, suggesting a possible negative impact of exposure to cadavers in the anatomy laboratory. This was only true, however, after controlling for age. Thus, the impact of viewing and handling prosected specimens, which is the norm in anatomy classes in Australia, may not be as strong as dissecting cadavers. It is suggested that anatomists and educators prepare students for cadaver‐based instruction as well as exhibit sensitivity to cultural differences in how students approach working with cadavers, when informing different communities about body donation programs and in devising thanksgiving ceremonies. Anat Sci Educ 7: 117–123. © 2013 American Association of Anatomists.     

The production of anatomical teaching resources using three‐dimensional (3D) printing technology

The teaching of anatomy has consistently been the subject of societal controversy, especially in the context of employing cadaveric materials in professional medical and allied health professional training. The reduction in dissection‐based teaching in medical and allied health professional training programs has been in part due to the financial considerations involved in maintaining bequest programs, accessing human cadavers and concerns with health and safety considerations for students and staff exposed to formalin‐containing embalming fluids. This report details how additive manufacturing or three‐dimensional (3D) printing allows the creation of reproductions of prosected human cadaver and other anatomical specimens that obviates many of the above issues. These 3D prints are high resolution, accurate color reproductions of prosections based on data acquired by surface scanning or CT imaging. The application of 3D printing to produce models of negative spaces, contrast CT radiographic data using segmentation software is illustrated. The accuracy of printed specimens is compared with original specimens. This alternative approach to producing anatomically accurate reproductions offers many advantages over plastination as it allows rapid production of multiple copies of any dissected specimen, at any size scale and should be suitable for any teaching facility in any country, thereby avoiding some of the cultural and ethical issues associated with cadaver specimens either in an embalmed or plastinated form. Anat Sci Educ 7: 479–486. © 2014 American Association of Anatomists.     

Snakes or Ladders? Evaluating a LibGuides Pilot at UCD Library

Online subject guides are commonly used by libraries to provide information support to students. LibGuides (a cloud-based commercial product launched in 2007) represents one of the latest incarnations of the traditional subject guide or portal, and are widely used across American academic libraries. In Ireland however, library subject guides of entirely local design and hosted on a local web server still dominate.This paper outlines the project management process involved in implementing a LibGuides pilot at University College Dublin Library, including the planning, design and implementation of a new range of subject-related guides. The pilot nature of the project necessitated a strong focus on evaluation, particularly in assessing the effectiveness and suitability of LibGuides as a platform for delivering information literacy support, both from an administrative and end-user perspective. A two-stranded approach was used in this review process, incorporating quantitative web statistics and analytics alongside qualitative feedback from students, academic staff and Library staff.Feedback that was gathered suggested that the LibGuides subject guides were generally viewed very positively by both staff and students. Notwithstanding this, awareness (as indicated through usage statistics) remained moderate during the pilot, pointing to the importance of the visibility, positioning and promotion of guides.