An Activity-Based Language Intervention Program for Kindergarten Children: A Retrospective Evaluation

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of a small-group intervention based on the naturalistic approach on 220 children from 3–5 years of age. All kindergarten children received weekly sessions delivered by a SLP in collaboration with the kindergarten teacher. These sessions included various book related activities. Two intervention groups were identified: children from middle SES neighborhoods and children from low SES neighborhoods. A control group was matched to the first group and included children from middle SES neighborhoods. Children participating in the program were pre and post tested using three language tests in order to assess basic language skills. The main finding was that children in the intervention groups showed significantly greater gains from pre- to post-test relative to children in the comparison group. The program benefited children from different SES environments. The greatest progress was in the area of vocabulary. In sum, the combination of small group setting and age-appropriate interactive activities served to provide language promoting opportunities for these children.     

Case Study on the Implementation of School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports in an Alternative Educational Setting

School-wide positive behavior interventions and supports (SW-PBIS) can effectively reduce problem behaviors and simultaneously increase pro-social behaviors in general education settings. SW-PBIS is not a “packaged” intervention, but a framework through which schools create systemic changes for promoting expected behaviors, while also monitoring and intervening with students who have behavior concerns through a tiered model of service delivery. A case study documenting the SW-PBIS implementation process in an alternative educational setting is presented. Alternative schools typically serve students who qualify to receive special education services, have a lower staff-to-student ratio, and often warrant more intensive student interventions as compared to general education settings. These differences from traditional environments pose unique challenges to the SW-PBIS implementation process. Suggestions for neutralizing these challenges such as providing enhanced Tier 1 supports and extensive staff training are explained in depth in this case study.     

INFORMING A LEARNING PROGRESSION IN GENETICS: WHICH SHOULD BE TAUGHT FIRST,MENDELIAN INHERITANCE OR THE CENTRAL DOGMA OF MOLECULAR BIOLOGY?

The Framework for Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards in the USA emphasize learning progressions (LPs) that support conceptual coherence and the gradual building of knowledge over time. In the domain of genetics there are two independently developed alternative LPs. In essence, the difference between the two progressions hinges on conjectures regarding the accessibility of Mendelian versus molecular genetics, the conceptual dependencies between them, and the order in which they should be taught. The discrepancies between the two progressions stem, in part, from gaps in the current research base. To address the question of whether learning one aspect of genetics, Mendelian or molecular, supports the learning of the other, we analyzed correlations between students’ test scores on item subsets for Mendelian and molecular genetics on written pre-post assessments. Students were seventh graders who received intensive instruction in Mendelian and molecular genetics. We found that students’ pretest scores on the molecular items were moderately correlated with their posttest scores on the Mendelian genetics item set (but not the other way around). This suggests that molecular genetics understandings may bootstrap the learning of Mendelian genetics. Implying that, in contrast to prevalent practice, molecular genetics should be taught before Mendelian genetics.     

Promoting Middle School Students’ Understandings of Molecular Genetics

Genetics is the cornerstone of modern biology and understanding genetics is a critical aspect of scientific literacy. Research has shown, however, that many high school graduates lack fundamental understandings in genetics necessary to make informed decisions or to participate in public debates over emerging technologies in molecular genetics. Currently, much of genetics instruction occurs at the high school level. However, recent policy reports suggest that we may need to begin introducing aspects of core concepts in earlier grades and to successively develop students’ understandings of these concepts in subsequent grades. Given the paucity of research about genetics learning at the middle school level, we know very little about what students in earlier grades are capable of reasoning about in this domain. In this paper, we discuss a research study aimed at fostering deeper understandings of molecular genetics at the middle school level. As part of the research we designed a two-week model-based inquiry unit implemented in two 7th grade classrooms (N = 135). We describe our instructional design and report results based on analysis of pre/post assessments and written artifacts of the unit. Our findings suggest that middle school students can develop: (a) a view of genes as productive instructions for proteins, (b) an understanding of the role of proteins in mediating genetic effects, and (c) can use this knowledge to reason about a novel genetic phenomena. However, there were significant differences in the learning gains in both classrooms and we provide speculative explanations of what may have caused these differences.     

World-Rank and/or Locally Relevant? Organizational Identity in the Mission Statements of Higher Education Organizations in Israel, 2008–2018

Minerva - Israeli higher education organizations are currently under pressure to achieve global excellence, satisfy Israeli economic and security needs, and serve Israel’s diverse social...     

Assessing Metadata and Controlling Quality in Scholarly Ebooks

This article explores the development and automation of quality assurance procedures for locally loading electronic books (ebooks) on the Ontario Council of University Libraries’ Scholars Portal Platform. The authors conducted a two-phase study of MARC record fields indexed on the platform to detect errors and implement workflow changes to the quality control process. The authors report on this process and the costs involved and suggest that the challenges of ebook metadata are not met by MARC and a new metadata standard should be considered in the near future.     

Changes in Belief Orientations of Preservice Teachers and Their Relation to Inquiry Activities

Research in science education suggests that teachers?? beliefs are linked to the use of inquiry-based instruction; teachers holding a constructivist belief are more likely to engage in student-centered activities in the classroom. However, there is currently little research on the ways in which teachers?? beliefs change over time, and in particular, the relationship between instructional activities in teacher education programs and their impact on teachers?? beliefs. We examined shifts in secondary preservice teachers?? belief orientations as they progressed through a science methods course. We found that overall many of the preservice teachers progressed in their orientation beliefs from a teacher-centered orientation to more student-centered orientation. We characterized four trajectories of change or clusters that describe how preservice teachers?? beliefs changed over the course of the semester (15?weeks). We also describe the different ways in which preservice teachers reacted to specific instructional activities, and how those activities influenced their belief orientation. In particular, we found that preservice teachers in a cluster that exhibited a particular trajectory (progression or regression toward/away from student-centered belief orientation) reacted differently to some activities compared to preservice teachers in some other clusters. We discuss these shifts as reflecting changes in priorities of beliefs within belief systems. We argue that teacher educators need to think carefully about the interplay of these beliefs when designing activities so that they can respond (i.e., to a reversal in beliefs) during the course rather than waiting until the end.