Cognitive Methods in Counselor Training

With the renewed interest in the role of cognition in counselor training, numerous studies examining this phenomenon have emerged. This article reviews existing literature relevant to cognitive issues in training. The effects of various cognitive attributes such as conceptual level and cognitive style are discussed. Similarly, the impact of various cognitive training strategies on trainee performance are examined, such as modification of trainee cognitions to enhance skill generalization and cognitive restructuring techniques to alter maladaptive cognitions of trainees. In addition, methodological issues that have served to limit research activity are addressed. Brief recommendations are offered for future research and training efforts.     

Educational Attainment as Process: Using Hierarchical Discrete-Time Event History Analysis to Model Rate of Progress

Variables that address student enrollment patterns (e.g., persistence, enrollment inconsistency, completed credit hours, course credit load, course completion rate, procrastination) constitute a longstanding fixture of analytical strategies in educational research, particularly research that focuses on explaining variation in academic outcomes. However, nearly all measures of enrollment patterns are handicapped by untested assumptions about a more fundamental measure, namely students’ rate of progress. In this paper, I first explain how a variety of widely used measures of enrollment patterns are inextricably linked to students’ rate of progress. I then describe a method of modeling mathematically students’ rate of progress that employs hierarchical (multilevel) discrete-time event history analysis of repeated events. I conclude with an empirical example of the application of this method in which I test several hypotheses concerning students’ rate of progress through the remedial math sequence toward the outcome of college-level math competency. In addition to the utility of the method that is proposed here, the issues discussed in this paper have important practical implications for institutional research, particularly with respect to the use of the various measures of enrollment patterns to explain variation in students’ attainment.

Assessment of the power performance of racing cyclists

A 30‐s ‘all‐out’ power protocol was studied in four groups of racing cyclists including internationals (n = 8), Category 1 (n = 10), Category 2 (n = 15) and Category 3 (n = 11). Following warm‐up each subject completed five trials interspersed by 3 min of low intensity exercise on an ergowheel racing cycle ergometry system at a power output of 15 W kg^–1 body weight, generated at 130 rev min^–1. Temporal indices of performance included delay time (DT) to achieve the power criterion, total time (TT) of the maintenance of the power criterion and the ratio of TT/DT. ‘Explosive’ leg strength was assessed from a vertical jump. The results indicated that international and Category 1 cyclists had lower DT (2.2 ± 0.1s and 2.1 +0.0s, respectively; P<0.05), higher TT (28.1 ±0.7s and 27.0+0.7s, respectively; P<0.05) and elevated TT/DT (12.8 and 12.9, respectively; P<0.01). ‘Explosive’ leg strength was also higher (P<0.05) in the internationals than in the other groups of cyclists. The protocol provides a sport‐related method for the assessment of short term endurance performance ability in racing cyclists which may be of value in identifying the anaerobic capability of individual cyclists.     

Once Attained, Can Quality Child Care Be Maintained?

Research Findings: This study was designed to assess whether investments in child care quality were maintained 3 years after public funding for these centers was significantly reduced. An earlier evaluation documented significant improvements in classroom environments, teachers' sensitivity, and teachers' child-centered beliefs following a 15-month state intervention in 24 early care and education programs serving high numbers of children from low-income families. The current study used a quasi-experimental design, with pre- and postdata collected through direct observations and questionnaires in nonrandom treatment and comparison groups. Practice or Policy: Results at the 3-year follow-up showed that the majority (92%) of centers in the intervention group were accredited and that significant improvements in classroom environments were maintained after funding was significantly reduced. However, erosion in more sensitive measures (i.e., teacher sensitivity and child-centered beliefs) during the period of reduced funding suggested some concern that programs serving high concentrations of children from low-income families may require some consistent state support if they are to yield the positive life outcomes desired by economists and policymakers.     

The effects of conditioned taste aversions on schedule-induced polydipsia: An analysis of the initiation and postpellet temporal distribution of licking

Animals poisoned following the schedule-induced consumption of saccharin initially continued to drink following spaced pellet deliveries. Neither the initiation of postpellet drinking (i.e., bout, initiation) nor the size and duration of the bouts was effected by the conditioned aversion procedure. With repeated conditioning trials (i.e., repeated pairings of saccharin and LiCl), schedule induced drinking was eventually reduced. The specific components underlying schedule-induced consumption, however, were differentially affected by the aversion training. Specifically, the decrease in schedule-induced drinking was effected primarily by a decrease in licking occurring between 10 and 60 sec after pellet delivery. Bout initiation and licking immediately postpellet (i.e., within the first 10 sec following pellet delivery) were most resistant to suppression and appeared to be responsible for the relative insensitivity of schedule-induced drinking to conditioned taste aversions. The differential effects of taste aversion conditioning on individual components of elicited behavior are discussed.     

School Science Achievement in Japan and Singapore: A Tale of Two Cities

This paper compares and contrasts school science achievement between two top scoring nations, Japan and Singapore, on the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) assessments. The first part of the study is devoted to examining cross-national comparisons on selected background questions administered in the TIMSS survey, while the second part examines selected educational attributes and practices that might help explain their consistently high achievement in science. Attention to TIMSS data has chiefly focused on the achievement gap between US and other nations. This report moves beyond US deficit comparisons to examine results and programs of high achieving nations to better inform efforts to close the gaps.