Childbirth educators, doulas, nurses, and women respond to the six care practices for normal birth

This collection of commentaries by childbirth educators, doulas, a labor and delivery nurse, and a woman preparing for the birth of her second baby provide an overall response to all six of Lamaze International's care practice papers that promote normal birth: Labor Begins on Its Own; Freedom of Movement throughout Labor; Continuous Labor Support; No Routine Interventions; Non-Supine (e.g., Upright or Side-Lying) Positions for Birth; and No Separation of Mother and Baby with Unlimited Opportunity for Breastfeeding. Strategies for using the position papers to facilitate learning in childbirth classes and for helping expectant parents access and understand research are presented. The commentaries describe the value of the position papers as a catalyst for professional growth, a foundation for creating change, a way to encourage reflection among professionals and women planning for the births of their babies, and an inspiration for everyone who advocates normal birth.     

Book review

Latent Variable Models: An Introduction to Factor, Path, and Structural Analysis (3rd ed.). John C. Loehlin. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., 1998, 309 pages, $29.95 (paper).     

Mental and Psychomotor Task Performance in an Open Ocean Underwater Environment

Abstract

A form for student evaluation of instructional effectiveness was developed and evaluated. The form included two sections: (1) an 18-item section designed to evaluate each of six dimensions of instruction, and (2) an 8-item section designed to assess course outcomes. Analysis of 1382 completed forms from 66 sections of 25 different types of lifetime sports classes demonstrated: (1) alpha coefficients of five of the six scales representing the dimensions of instruction ranged from .68 to .83; (2) ratings on instructional methods were predictive of satisfaction with the instructor and course, but none were predictive of progress toward course objectives (participation, competence and attitude); and (3) enthusiasm for the subject matter, and sensitivity to class progress were most predictive of course outcomes. Followup questionnaires from students who had been enrolled in highly rated classes yielded significantly higher scores on participation and teaching activity levels as well as satisfaction with the course and instructor than questionnaires from those who had been enrolled in low rated classes. Potential for elimination of items to develop a shorter survey form was explored.     

Coach Selections and the Relative Age Effect in Male Youth Ice Hockey

Relative age effects (RAEs; when relatively older children possess participation and performance advantages over relatively younger children) are frequent in male team sports. One possible explanation is that coaches select players based on physical attributes, which are more likely witnessed in relatively older athletes. Purpose: To determine if coach selections are responsible for RAEs by comparing RAEs in male players who played competitive versus noncompetitive ice hockey. Method: Using chi-square, we analyzed the birth dates of 147,991 male ice hockey players who were 5 to 17 years old. Players' birth dates were divided into four quartiles, beginning with January to March, which coincides with Hockey Canada's selection year. Results: There were strong RAEs (p < .001) when players were selected to competitive teams by coaches through a tryout system. On noncompetitive teams that did not have coach selections, there were strong RAEs (p < .001) from 5 to 8 years old, but not 9 to 17 years old. Conclusions: Although coaches might perpetuate RAEs, other influential social agents might include parents, which ought to be investigated in future research.     

Understanding Reading Anxiety: New Insights from Neuroscience

Recent advances in research have furthered understanding of the many roles that emotions play in fostering effective learning. This editorial argues, against fashion, that the affective domain is neither separate from nor less significant in the learning process than the cognitive domain. It begins with a vignette of a struggling reader. It then defines emotions and explains their role in learning, using cognitive psychology and neuroscience as the research base. Next, it examines the influence of the affective domain on learning to interpret symbols. The editorial concludes with an analysis of reading anxiety and recommendations for practice.     

How European American and Taiwanese Mothers Talk to Their Children About Learning

Little cross‐cultural research exists on parental socialization of children's learning beliefs. The current study compared 218 conversations between European American and Taiwanese mothers and children (6–10 years) about good and poor learning. The findings support well‐documented cultural differences in learning beliefs. European Americans mentioned mental activities and positive affect more, whereas Taiwanese mentioned learning virtues and negative affect more. Mothers, especially European American, reciprocated their children's talk about mental activities, learning virtues, and negative affect. Children, especially Taiwanese, reciprocated their mother's talk about positive affect. Mothers invoked more mental activities and positive affect when discussing good learning, but more learning virtues and negative affect when discussing poor learning. These findings reveal a source of cultural differences in beliefs and potential enculturation.     

Influencing graduate students' classroom achievement,homework habits and motivation to learn with verbal praise

Identifying factors that influence students' learning in the classroom continues to be an important objective of educators at all levels. To address this issue, researchers have investigated a multitude of instructional variables that impact students' motivation to learn. One instructional variable, verbal praise, has often been identified as an important mediator in the enhancement of students' motivation to learn. However, the lack of consistent findings regarding students' reactions to verbal praise, combined with the lack of research on adult learners, prompted the current investigation. Using an experimental design, this study revealed that graduate students exposed to well-administered verbal praise by a professor performed significantly better on a professor-created examination, spent significantly more time doing homework and exhibited higher motivation to learn in the classroom than did studentswho received no verbal praise. Characteristics of effective verbal praise that contributed to these outcomes, the potential usefulness of verbal praise as a reinforcer of student motivations and directions for future research are discussed.