Sample duration and type of stimuli in delayed matching-to-sample in rhesus monkeys

Two experiments were performed to determine the effect of sample duration (0.1, 2, and 4 sec), delay interval (.03, 4, 8, 16, and 32 sec), and type of stimulus (color and shape) on the matching performance of rhesus monkeys. In Experiment 1, the 15 possible delay-duration combinations were randomly presented in blocks of 15 trials. In Experiment 2, each duration was held constant and the five delays randomly presented. Then each delay interval was held constant with the three durations randomly varied. Matching performance increased as sample duration increased (ps < .01 and .005), while length of delay did not significantly affect performance. The type of stimuli paired in the matching test significantly affected performance (ps < .05 and .10) with the shape/shape choices leading to the poorest performance. Stimulus discriminability and amount of training with brief sample durations were implicated as significant determinants of matching performance.     

Hierarchical Mentoring: A Transformative Strategy for Improving Diversity and Retention in Undergraduate STEM Disciplines

In the United States, less than half of the students who enter into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate curricula as freshmen will actually graduate with a STEM degree. There is even greater disparity in the national STEM graduation rates of students from underrepresented groups with approximately three-fourths of minority students leaving STEM disciplines at the undergraduate level. A host of programs have been designed and implemented to model best practices in retaining students in STEM disciplines. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Professors Program at Louisiana State University, under leadership of HHMI Professor Isiah M. Warner, represents one of these programs and reports on a mentoring model that addresses the key factors that impact STEM student attrition at the undergraduate level. By integrating mentoring and strategic academic interventions into a structured research program, an innovative model has been developed to guide STEM undergraduate majors in adopting the metacognitive strategies that allow them to excel in their programs of study, as they learn to appreciate and understand science more completely. Comparisons of the persistence of participants and nonparticipants in STEM curricular, at the host university and with other national universities and colleges, show the impact of the model’s salient features on improving STEM retention through graduation for all students, particularly those from underrepresented groups.     

Evaluating metacognitive scaffolding in Guided Invention Activities

Invention and Productive Failure activities ask students to generate methods that capture the important properties of some given data (e.g., uncertainty) before being taught the expert solution. Invention and Productive Failure activities are a class of scientific inquiry activities in that students create, implement, and evaluate mathematical models based on data. Yet, lacking sufficient inquiry skills, students often do not actualize the full potential of these activities. We identified key invention strategies in which students often fail to engage: exploratory analysis, peer interaction, self-explanation, and evaluation. A classroom study with 134 students evaluated the effect of supporting these skills on the quality and outcomes of the invention process. Students in the Unguided Invention condition received conventional Invention Activities; students in the Guided Invention condition received complementary metacognitive scaffolding. Students were asked to invent methods for calculating uncertainties in best-fitting lines. Guided Invention students invented methods that included more conceptual features and ranked the given datasets more accurately, although the quality of their mathematical expressions was not improved. At the process level, Guided Invention students revised their methods more frequently and had more and better instances of unprompted self-explanations even on components of the activity that were not supported by the metacognitive scaffolding. Classroom observations are used to demonstrate the effect of the scaffolding on students’ learning behaviours. These results suggest that process guidance in the form of metacognitive scaffolding augments the inherent benefits of Invention Activities and can lead to gains at both domain and inquiry levels.     

Aluminium tolerance in barley （Hordeum vulgare L.）： physiological mechanisms, genetics and screening methods

Aluminium （Al） toxicity is one of the major limiting factors for barley production on acid soils. It inhibits root cell division and elongation, thus reducing water and nutrient uptake, consequently resulting in poor plant growth and yield. Plants tolerate Al either through external resistance mechanisms, by which Al is excluded from plant tissues or internal tolerance mechanisms, conferring the ability of plants to tolerate Al ion in the plant symplasm where Al that has permeated the plas- malemma is sequestered or converted into an innocuous form. Barley is considered to be most sensitive to Al toxicity among cereal species. Al tolerance in barley has been assessed by several methods, such as nutrient solution culture, soil bioassay and field screening. Genetic and molecular mapping research has shown that Al tolerance in barley is controlled by a single locus which is located on chromosome 4H. Molecular markers linked with Al tolerance loci have been identified and validated in a range of diverse populations. This paper reviews the （1） screening methods for evaluating Al tolerance, （2） genetics and （3） mechanisms underlying Al tolerance in barley.     

Relationship Reciprocation Modulates Resource Allocation in Adolescent Social Networks: Developmental Effects

Adolescence is characterized as a period of social reorientation toward peer relationships, entailing the emergence of sophisticated social abilities. Two studies (Study 1: N = 42, ages 13–17; Study 2: N = 81, ages 13–16) investigated age group differences in the impact of relationship reciprocation within school‐based social networks on an experimental measure of cooperation behavior. Results suggest development between mid‐ and late adolescence in the extent to which reciprocation of social ties predicted resource allocation. With increasing age group, investment decisions increasingly reflected the degree to which peers reciprocated feelings of friendship. This result may reflect social‐cognitive development, which could facilitate the ability to navigate an increasingly complex social world in adolescence and promote positive and enduring relationships into adulthood.     

The rights of children and young people under special educational needs legislation in England: an inclusive agenda?

ABSTRACT

In this article we consider the rights of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities in England, introduced under the Children and Families Act 2014, within the context of the wider reforms made by the Act. Drawing primarily on key informant interviews conducted as part of an ESRC project on Autonomy, Rights and Children with Special Needs: A New Paradigm? (ES/P002641/1), and making reference to the international framework of children’s and disabled persons’ rights, we present an analysis of the (mostly professional) viewpoints gathered and what they tell us about the progress towards the realisation of children and young people’s autonomy and agency in this field.     

Community Consultation in Developing Museum Projects: A Case Study Using the Repertory Grid Technique

Good community consultation is a powerful tool in developing new museum projects and exhibitions, facilitating a more effective delivery of service to a diverse public. Existing techniques for both user and community consultation are limited with front end evaluation particularly undeveloped in the sector, often providing no meaningful base by which to compare project outcomes. Tension exists between government, which values quantitative data, and researchers who argue qualitative methods are more appropriate for evaluating community projects. This article reports a pilot study using the repertory grid technique to examine a ‘socially excluded’, ethnically diverse local community's perceptions, expectations and previous experiences of similar projects, to provide a benchmark against which to compare outcomes. This research formed part of the front end evaluation for a New Deal for Community's Project run by Sheffield Galleries and Museums Trust. The repertory grid technique was developed in psychological studies as a means of understanding respondents' own world views, and is particularly helpful in working with people with poor language skills. Although this study only used the technique qualitatively, it can be used to combine both quantitative and qualitative data, providing more robust data for evidence-based policy decisions. Using the repertory grid technique, respondents were able to list both perceived and practical barriers to participation in projects. The technique also enabled them to articulate what would motivate them to become involved in future projects. The repertory grid technique has significant potential for use in community consultation and project evaluation as a means of understanding local residents' perceptions and its visual representation means that its findings can be easily understood by participants, policy-makers and practitioners.     

Girls Helping Girls: Assessing the Influence of College Student Mentors in an Afterschool Engineering Program

Current data suggest fewer females than males continue to be interested in engineering and that this gender gap is first evidenced during middle school years. One might expect that female engineering role models would encourage adolescent girls to pursue future careers in engineering and thereby increase the girls’ interests in and attitudes towards science and mathematics. This study sought to correlate middle school girls’ overall confidence in science and mathematics with a year-long, afterschool mentoring program led by female engineering students from a local university. The results demonstrated that there was a significant correlation between the quality of the mentoring relationship and the girls’ confidence in mathematics. The relationship between female role models and young girls’ attitudes toward science and mathematics is discussed.