Alternative models of entrance exams and access to higher education: the case of the Czech Republic

The study compares the potential effects of a university admission exam model based on program-specific knowledge and an alternative model relying on general study aptitude (GSA) in the context of a strongly stratified educational system with considerable excess of demand over supply of university education. Using results of the Sonda Maturant 1998 survey, we show that in the specific context of the Czech Republic, displaying the above characteristics in the given period, an admission exam model based on general study aptitude tests may improve the access of talented individuals with lower socioeconomic status to university education. Our simulations show that with the GSA model (provided the model assumptions are met), the relative chances of an applicant with a university-educated father would be only by one-fourth higher than the relative chances of a student with a less educated father, as compared to the more than a one-third difference in case of the model emphasizing program-specific knowledge. The odds ratio for the GSA model is by 28% points lower for mother’s education.     

Research–practice interactions as reported in recent design studies: still promising, still hazy

This study portrays recent research?Cpractice connections found in 18 design research reports focusing on the creation of instructional solutions. Solutions in different stages of development varied greatly in duration, ranging from one lesson to a whole year curriculum, spanned all levels of education, many subjects (science, math, language, culture, teacher education, etc.). Close collaboration between researchers and practitioners was prominent in all of the 18 projects studied. Participants in primary and secondary education projects have quite distinct roles regarding the teaching and researching, but they design their instruction solutions often collaboratively. Nearly all projects reported on how designed solutions were anchored in research, either from literature or from in-house project data. All articles indicated that research fed (re-)design, but few specified how. Based on our findings, we call for increased research and reporting on the specific strategies employed by design research participants to facilitate the production of new theoretical understanding through design of instructional solutions.     

Analysis of broadcast literature: Broadcast Journalism in “education on the air” 1930–1953

During the past six years the Journal of Broadcasting has brought to its readers bibliographies on specific topics (audience measurement techniques, content analysis, etc.) and from publications devoted to a specific field (law, economics, journalism, etc.). The bibliography published below belongs to this second category. Education on the Air, the yearbook of the Institute for Education by Radio‐Television, is a continuous record of the deliberations of a convention devoted to exploring the informative and cultural uses of broadcasting. Under the direction of I. Keith Tyler, the IERT was for many years the only major association devoted exclusively to this subject area, and many of the present organizations now in the field are “spin‐offs” from these annual meetings hosted by the Ohio State University. Within the framework of the IERT, the subject of broadcast journalism has not been neglected. Over a period of almost 30 years, this use of radio for informing the public of the events of the day was discussed in various IERT sessions.

This bibliography was prepared to assist researchers and students interested in the growth and development of broadcast journalism as reflected in the IERT annual meetings. Dr. Heath is professor of journalism at Oklahoma State University, and is former chairman of the Council on Radio‐Television Journalism of the Association for Education in Journalism. Mr. Wolfson is working toward his doctorate at Michigan State University. They collaborated on this bibliography while at Iowa State University.     

Emergent Agents: The Forgotten Publics in Crisis Communication and Issues Management Research

Crisis communication research rarely highlights the voices of marginalized publics or their advocates whose interests are affected by crisis situations. We take a different approach by using a response to a natural disaster to expand our theorizing about crisis situations beyond those that hurt the bottom line. Using official statements from Senators Landrieu and Obama about events surrounding Hurricane Katrina as texts for analysis, we demonstrate how they used transcendence, rhetorically, and appropriated the Bush administration's key term—security—to garner more support for their positions, Katrina sufferers, and relief efforts. Implications of this strategy serve to broaden crisis communication theorizing, and to provide insights into ways to strengthen the quality of crisis emergency response planning and response protocols.     

Best Practices in Crisis Communication: Evolution of Practice through Research

The stories of four practitioners are presented regarding their involvement with the Aspen conference and their reflections on the essays in this forum. Their stories suggest that the ability for academics and practitioners to co-create engaged scholarship depends on articulating common values and interests, creating a shared language that allows them to develop and execute a project and to disseminate their findings in useful ways, and constructing a space for reflection on organizational processes. This suggests that academic and practitioners need to negotiate their differences in values, language, and approach in ways that co-create a mutually satisfying project.     

The University of Texas: Looking Forward: Research Libraries in the 21st Century

ABSTRACT

This paper provides an overview of strategic initiatives identified by the University of Texas Libraries to address the challenges of operating research libraries in an increasingly digital environment.     

Preface

No abstract available for this article.     

After Care: the education and occupation of adults who have been in care

abstract

Data from the 1981 and 1991 sweeps of the National Child Development Study are used to explore the educational qualifications and the subsequent occupations of people who had experienced care as children. The results confirm previous investigations which show that people who have been in care have much lower educational qualifications than their peers who have never been in care; they also show that they have higher risks of unemployment and, if they obtain jobs, are more likely to be in lower‐level jobs. These results do not, however, apply equally to all people who have ever been in care. People who experienced short periods of care before the age of one perform close to the national average, while one of the most disadvantaged groups are people who came into care before eleven years of age and did not leave care until after eleven. This group typically remained in care for around nine years, and they not only had low educational attainments but also had even lower occupational attainments than would have been expected given their lack of qualifications.     

UpToDate versus DynaMed: a cross-sectional study comparing the speed and accuracy of two point-of-care information tools

Objective:To compare the accuracy, time to answer, user confidence, and user satisfaction between UpToDate and DynaMed (formerly DynaMed Plus), which are two popular point-of-care information tools.Methods:A crossover study was conducted with medical residents in obstetrics and gynecology and family medicine at the University of Toronto in order to compare the speed and accuracy with which they retrieved answers to clinical questions using UpToDate and DynaMed. Experiments took place between February 2017 and December 2019. Following a short tutorial on how to use each tool and completion of a background survey, participants attempted to find answers to two clinical questions in each tool. Time to answer each question, the chosen answer, confidence score, and satisfaction score were recorded for each clinical question.Results:A total of 57 residents took part in the experiment, including 32 from family medicine and 25 from obstetrics and gynecology. Accuracy in clinical answers was equal between UpToDate (average 1.35 out of 2) and DynaMed (average 1.36 out of 2). However, time to answer was 2.5 minutes faster in UpToDate compared to DynaMed. Participants were also more confident and satisfied with their answers in UpToDate compared to DynaMed.Conclusions:Despite a preference for UpToDate and a higher confidence in responses, the accuracy of clinical answers in UpToDate was equal to those in DynaMed. Previous exposure to UpToDate likely played a major role in participants'' preferences. More research in this area is recommended.