Rowen's Birth Story: His and Her Versions

In this column, a father and a mother each share their unique version of their son''s natural birth.     

A Conceptual Model (The Six Mirrors of the Classroom) and It’s Application to Teaching and Learning About Microorganisms

In this paper a conceptual model of instruction “the six mirrors of the classroom” used as a frame for teaching a learning topic, the microorganisms are depicted. The paper consists of four sections: (a) the six mirrors of the classroom model (SMC); (b) the SMC as implemented in the expository and cooperative modes of instruction in classrooms and results; (c) a “Journey of Inquiry into the Wonderful World of Microorganisms” (JIWWM), developed according to the Science–Technology–Environment–Peace–Society (STEPS) approach; and (d) teaching and learning the JIWWM, in ninth-grade classes, within the SMC model. The results show that science topic can be taught in the frame of the mirrors of the classroom. When the instructional goals of the teachers used the mirror “1, classroom organization” and mirror “6, pupils’ social behavior” and the third ring around the all six mirrors cooperative skills were practiced, academic outcomes were achieved, and attitudes toward environmental preservation and peace improved. The SMC model can serve as a valuable tool for teachers, since it can design their teaching and learning settings in a more controlled environment, in terms of objectives, teachers’ and students’ social behaviors, and academic outcomes.     

An education that pierces what the knife cannot: A student perspective

If personalized medicine is the way of the future, and the physician's approach to each patient becomes more individualized and team‐based, so must the professors' approach to the medical student experience. Mayo Medical School has an innovative curriculum designed to respect and enhance the individual interests of its students. A former educator herself, and now a medical student, the author advocates for further creative curriculum design to enhance healthy student attitude learning in medical school. In her personal testimony to the healing power of art and story, she cautions institutions that ignore integrating humanities into their curriculum that their student physicians will build self‐protective barriers without self‐reflection. She argues students must have more avenues to express their emotions during difficult transitions and ethical dilemmas. This commentary describes extracurricular student projects during anatomy, and includes an example of student reflective writing in anatomy. The author suggests that narrative medicine as an emerging discipline would be an effective educational strategy when applied to any aspect of the medical curriculum, and should be considered by more medical schools for further progress in medical education. Anat Sci Educ, 2010. © 2010 American Association of Anatomists.     

The impact of curriculum change on health sciences first year students’ approaches to learning

This study aimed to use a learning inventory (the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students, ASSIST) to measure the impact of a curriculum change on students’ approaches to learning in two large courses in a health sciences first year programme. The two new Human Body Systems (HUBS) courses were designed to encourage students to take a deep approach to learning. ASSIST was completed by 599 students enrolled in a biology class in 2006 that was part of the old curriculum, and by 705 students at the beginning and end of the new HUBS courses in 2007. Changes in students’ approaches to learning over time were examined. The ASSIST scores for both HUBS courses reflected the dominance of a surface approach, followed by a strategic and then a deep approach. However, by the end of the year, students were taking a deep and strategic approach to their studies to a greater extent, and a surface approach to a lesser extent. Moreover, students enrolled in the new course adopted a deep approach to their studies to a significantly greater degree than those studying the old curriculum. Despite the predominance of a surface approach, the results suggest that it is possible to bring about small but significant positive changes in students’ learning behaviour in a very large class through curriculum change. The proportion of students preferring a surface approach, and results showing that high performance on the final exam was significantly correlated with a surface approach, probably reflected contextual factors, including assessment, and is the focus of ongoing curriculum development.     

Students’ experiences of clinic‐based learning during a final year veterinary internship programme

This study investigated veterinary students’ experiences of clinic‐based learning (CBL) during a comprehensive final year internship programme. Open‐ended surveys (n = 93) were used to gather qualitative data about students’ conceptions of what is learned during CBL and their approaches to learning in clinics. Phenomenography was used for detailed analysis of the variation evident in students’ responses. Relationships between qualitative differences in students’ conceptions and approaches were then evaluated using quantitative statistical analysis. Links to achievement during final year were examined. Close associations were found between the quality of students’ experiences of CBL and achievement during the internship programme.     

排名前10的与预防运动和体育活动猝死相关的关键问题

参加有组织的体育运动和休闲活动存在发生严重伤病甚至死亡的内在风险。虽然造成体育运动或体育活动中猝死的原因有很多,但运动医学和循证标准治疗方面的进展已使临床医生得以更有效地预防、发现和治疗可能致死的伤患。随着研究与技术不断发展进步,当前的治疗标准正在不断发展以更好地改善患者的治疗效果。本文提出了10个与运动和体育活动中猝死的主要原因及其治疗手段有关的关键问题,未来开展的研究将提高运动员和休闲运动爱好者参与运动的安全度。当前证据表明,如采取正确的预防策略或最佳治疗方案,绝大多数的死亡案例是可以避免的。     

Youth enterprise: the role of gender and life stage in motivations,aspirations and measures of success

‘Enterprise’ has increasingly become part of the United Kingdom’s political grammar and efforts to develop entrepreneurial traits and activities in young people have been a key strand of this policy focus. As the 2008 economic recession saw a curtailed youth labour market, enterprise emerged as an appealing policy ‘solution’ to youth unemployment. Traditional measures of enterprise chart the numbers of new businesses and their survival rates. This article argues these measures tell us little about new business owners: who they are, their motivations, experiences or, own definitions of success. Further, and crucially, such measures ignore the structural constraints surrounding enterprise and the range of social factors that may determine the extent of ambition, and willingness or capacity to take risks. This article argues that although gender and life stage were contributing factors, the young people’s structurally disadvantaged positions emerge as the most significant feature of why the move into self-employment did not tend to increase their economic stability as promised. This provides an important insight into the real-life experiences of young people who are engaging in enterprise activities in the contemporary economic context, as well as the role of third sector organisations in overseeing the transition from education to work.