Comparison of computed tomography and chest radiography in the detection of rib fractures in abused infants

PURPOSE: Chest radiographs (CXR) are the standard method for evaluating rib fractures in abused infants. Computed tomography (CT) is a sensitive method to detect rib fractures. The purpose of this study was to compare CT and CXR in the evaluation of rib fractures in abused infants. METHODS: This retrospective study included all 12 abused infants identified from 1999 to 2004 who had rib fractures and both CXR and CT (8 abdomen CTs, 4 chest CTs). CT exams had been performed for clinical indications, and were obtained within one day of the CXR. Studies were reviewed by two pediatric radiologists to determine the number, locations, and approximate ages of the rib fractures. A total of 225 ribs were completely (192) or partially (33) seen by CT, and the matched ribs on CXR were used for the analysis. RESULTS: The mean patient age was 2.5 months (1.2-5.6), with seven females and five males. While 131 fractures were visualized by CT, only 79 were seen by CXR (p<.001). One patient had fractures only seen by CT. There were significantly (p<.05) more early subacute (24 vs. 4), subacute (47 vs. 26), and old fractures (4 vs. 0) seen by CT than by CXR. Anterior (42 vs. 11), anterolateral (21 vs. 12), posterolateral (9 vs. 3) and posterior (39 vs. 24) fractures were better seen by CT than by CXR (p<.01). Bilateral fractures were detected more often by CT (11) than by CXR (6). CONCLUSIONS: While this study group is small, these findings suggest that CT is better than CXR in visualizing rib fractures in abused infants.     

Diarrhea Management Training in Early Childhood Settings

This study addresses the health of young children and how to safely and effectively care for children with diarrhea in the home and in early child care settings. A baseline survey showed the prevalence of oral rehydration solution (ORS) usage at last diarrhea bout to be low. An educational workshop was developed to train parents and child care professionals on how to properly manage young children with diarrhea and reduce the risk of diarrhea spread at home and in early childhood settings. Specific intervention activities are discussed and program activities, including specially designed materials for mixing homemade ORS are described. A comparison of pre- and postintervention data indicates substantial gains in knowledge among both urban and rural populations. Implications of research findings are discussed along with suggestions for future research.     

The role of dispositions in the development of pedagogical knowledge for pre-service science teacher education

ABSTRACT

Research on teacher education, especially on the development of teacher educators, is limited. This paper considers the role of dispositions in the development of pedagogical knowledge (PK) for science teacher educators (STEs), across stages of career. It argues that beliefs and perceptions shift and change along with, but not directly related to, what STEs pay attention to and when they pay attention to it. The eight participants were asked to identify the critical experiences (CEs) of their career that impacted on their development of PK. CEs were analyzed using Morine-Dershimer and Kent’s (1999) model of PK as a framework, but also to identify common emergent themes across participants and common emergent themes for individuals that led to identification of patterns of actions and finally, participant’s dispositions. The notion that beliefs, dispositions and PK are all developed for each individual at their own pace and in their own way is reinforced.     

The Effect of Cooperative Groups on Regular Class Spelling Achievement of Special Needs Learners

This study examined the utility of cooperative groups as a technology for mainstreaming academically deficit students in a regular fourth grade classroom. Twenty‐seven students (mean age 8.6 years), including five targeted special needs learners, took a weekly spelling test of 20 words chosen from the fourth grade reader. A return to baseline research design indicated that cooperative groups promoted higher academic mastery among those with special needs and regular education learners when compared with two types of individualistic techniques. Results support the use of cooperative groups as a technique for academic as well as social mainstreaming in the regular classroom.     

Priorities for evaluation of nontraditional degree programs

The request to evaluate a nontraditional degree program sounds simple enough. But what does it mean “to evaluate the program?” This article identifies twelve major areas seeming to require evaluative attention according to the perspectives of a number of different groups of people. In addition to identifying these areas, the study suggested priorities for the areas in terms of their long-term, overall importance in a complete evaluation plan and their immediate or short-term importance in the early stages of program implementation.     

Practical independent research projects in science: a synthesis and evaluation of the evidence of impact on high school students

Practical independent research projects (IRPs) are a feature of school science in a number of countries. To assess the impact of IRPs on students, a systematic review of the literature was undertaken. Thirty-nine papers met the review inclusion criteria, reporting on work from twelve countries. The review indicates that IRPs are often associated with wider initiatives such as authentic science, problem-based learning, and project-based learning. There is considerable variability in the nature of IRP work in relation to focus, models of provision, assessment, the involvement of external partners such as universities and employers, and funding, and this diversity affects judgements on the quality of the evidence base on impact. The majority of the research reviewed explored areas such as conceptual understanding, motivation to study science once it is no longer compulsory and attitudes to science, and the development of practical skills. Benefits were identified in relation to the learning of science ideas, affective responses to science, views of pursuing careers involving science, and development of a range of skills. Studies focusing on traditionally under-represented groups indicated that such students felt more positive about science as a result of undertaking IRPs. The review findings indicate that further work is needed to enhance the quality of the available evidence, to consider the ways in which IRPs can be validly assessed, to explore more fully the potential benefits for traditionally under-represented groups, and to explore more fully the potential longer-term benefits of participation in IRPs at high school level.     

The Importance of Epistemic Cognition in Student-Centred Learning

To infer the sophistication ofepistemic thinking in a sample of undergraduatestudents, 25 participants completed afree-response task in which they were asked togive reasons for their agreement ordisagreement with a small number of beliefsabout the role of tutorials and of tutors ingaining knowledge. Responses were analysedaccording to King and Kitchener's (1994) stagesof reasoning, revealing that the justificationsoffered were either at the stages ofpre-reflective or quasi-reflective thinkingwith none exhibiting reflective thinking. Thefindings have two main pedagogicalimplications: first that good teaching beunderstood not as a set of performance skillswhich may only be opportunistically related tostudents' extant conceptualisations but as thelocus through which students confront their ownepistemic beliefs. A second implication isthat to extend students' reasoning, teachingpractices must focus explicitly on thedifficult issue of what counts as evidence.     

Initiating Change in Prospective Elementary School Teachers' Orientations to Mathematics Teaching by Building on Beliefs

Many mathematics educators have found thatprospective elementary school teachers' beliefsinterfere with their learning of mathematics.Often teacher educators consider these beliefsto be wrong or naïve and seek to challengethem so prospective teachers will reject themfor more generative beliefs. Because of theresilience of prospective teachers' beliefs inresponse to these challenges, teacher educatorscould consider alternative ways of thinkingabout and addressing beliefs, particularly thepotential of building on rather than tearingdown pre-existing beliefs. Data from anearly-field experience linked to amathematics-for-teachers course provideevidence that when prospective teachers workintimately with children, in this case tryingto teach 10-year-olds about fractions, theexperience has the intensity from which beliefscan grow. Most of the prospective teachers inthe study were surprised that mathematicsteaching was more difficult than they hadanticipated. They began to consider theimportance of providing children time to thinkwhen solving mathematical problems. The changedescribed in the study is incremental ratherthan monumental, suggesting that building uponprospective teachers' existing beliefs will bea gradual process.