Conditions influencing faculty voting in collective bargaining elections

This research examines the factors that influenced voting behavior in two faculty union defeats at New York University. Faculty members' and librarians' demographic and professional characteristics referred to in previous research on collective bargaining were not good predictors of how they voted in these elections. However, their satisfaction with conditions at NYU, especially satisfaction with participation in governance, was a strong predictor of how they voted. Furthermore, faculty characteristics were found to influence their satisfaction with conditions. This paper also discusses the importance of the swing votes cast in a run-off election by the members of a previously defeated third party and the influence on the election outcomes of an independent group of faculty members opposed to unionization.     

It's All About Me: The User-Centered Approach as a Solution to the Challenges Posed by Information Literacy Instruction

The Future Voices in Public Services column is a forum for students in graduate library and information science programs to discuss key issues they see in academic library public services, to envision what they feel librarians in public service have to offer to academia, to tell us of their visions for the profession, or to tell us of research that is going on in library schools. We hope to provide fresh perspectives from those entering our field, in both the United States and other countries. Interested faculty of graduate library and information science programs, who would like their students’ ideas represented in these pages, are invited to contact Nancy H. Dewald at nxd7@psu.edu

Samantha Sinanan is an MLIS candidate in the School of Library, Archival and Information Studies at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Here she proposes that librarians should seek to understand the Net Generation searcher's perspective in order to teach information literacy most effectively.

Accredited by the American Library Association with the Canadian Library Association, SLAIS is an internationally recognized graduate school at The University of British Columbia, in beautiful Vancouver. At SLAIS we are in the business of preparing professionals to exercise leadership in planning, implementing, and promoting the preservation, organization, and effective use of society's recorded information and ideas. We offer the master's degree in Library and Information Studies (MLIS) and the master's degree in Archival Studies (MAS). In addition, we sponsor a multidisciplinary Master of Arts in Children's Literature (MACL) with five other departments. Opportunities are also available for post-master's study, including a Ph.D. program in library, archival & information studies. For more information, visit www.slais.ubc.ca     

How It's Done: Examining Distance Education Library Instruction and Assessment

ABSTRACT

While articles on individual studies, surveys, and programs abound, there is a lack of baseline data regarding what and how libraries provide instruction for their distant populations. Do libraries generally provide information literacy or library instruction to students at a distance? How is instruction usually provided? Is instruction generally assessed? If so, how is instruction assessed? These questions were asked of librarians in an online survey of 143 institutions offering distance programs, randomly sampled from the College Blue Book. With a 55% response rate, data about instruction offerings and assessment were correlated with information about library staff size, budget, and student enrollment. The expectation was that larger libraries with more money and students would provide more and better services, but interestingly these factors had far less influence than anticipated. It seems that the individual efforts of librarians were the major determinants for services offered by libraries at institutions with distant students.     

Providing Access to Engagement in Learning: The Potential of Universal Design for Learning in Museum Design

Following passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), many museums improved the accessibility of their facilities. Even so, individuals with disabilities still lag behind in participation and engagement in museum experiences. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provides an alternate model for the design of museum programs and exhibit spaces, one that is more aligned to progressive concepts of disability, providing not only physical access but also access to engagement in learning. In this article we argue that UDL has the potential to substantially improve the design of informal learning environments. Through two illustrative examples, we describe how the UDL design guidelines can be used to improve the probability that engagement will occur as individuals interact with exhibits, programs, and people in museums.     

On the relation between automated essay scoring and modern views of the writing construct

This paper examines the construct measured by automated essay scoring (AES) systems. AES systems measure features of the text structure, linguistic structure, and conventional print form of essays; as such, the systems primarily measure text production skills. In the current state-of-the-art, AES provide little direct evidence about such matters as strength of argumentation or rhetorical effectiveness. However, since there is a relationship between ease of text production and ability to mobilize cognitive resources to address rhetorical and conceptual problems, AES systems have strong correlations with overall performance and can effectively distinguish students in a position to apply a broader writing construct from those for whom text production constitutes a significant barrier to achievement. The papers begins by defining writing as a construct and then turns to the e-rater scoring engine as an example of AES state-of-the-art construct measurement. Common criticisms of AES are defined and explicated—fundamental objections to the construct measured, methods used to measure the construct, and technical inadequacies—and a direction for future research is identified through a socio-cognitive approach to AES.     

Prediction of habitual physical activity level and weight status from fundamental movement skill level

Abstract

Fundamental movement skills (FMS) have been assessed in children in order to investigate the issues of the low proportion of children who meet physical activity (PA) guidelines and rising levels of obesity. The aim of this research was to identify whether previous or current FMS level is a better predictor of PA levels and weight status in children. In January 2012 (year 1), 281 children were recruited from one primary school in the West Midlands, UK. Children performed eight FMS three times, which were videoed and assessed using a subjective checklist. Sprint speed and jump height were measured objectively. Height and mass were measured to calculate the body mass index to determine the weight status. Skinfold calliper readings were used to calculate body fat percentage. One year later, in January 2013, all these tests were repeated on the same children, with the additional collection of PA data via the use of pedometers. Following multiple linear regression, it was identified that prior mastery in FMS was a better predictor of current PA, whereas current FMS was a better predictor of current weight status. Overall, FMS mastery is needed in childhood to be able to participate in PA and maintain a healthy weight status.     

Fine motor skills and executive function both contribute to kindergarten achievement

This study examined the contribution of executive function (EF) and multiple aspects of fine motor skills to achievement on 6 standardized assessments in a sample of middle-socioeconomic status kindergarteners. Three- and 4-year-olds' (n=213) fine and gross motor skills were assessed in a home visit before kindergarten, EF was measured at fall of kindergarten, and Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Academic Achievement were administered at fall and spring. Correlations indicated that EF and fine motor skills appeared distinct. Further, controlling for background variables, higher levels of both EF and fine motor skills, specifically design copy, predicted higher achievement on multiple subtests at kindergarten entry, as well as improvement from fall to spring. Implications for research on school readiness are discussed.     

Exploring opportunities available and perceived barriers to physical activity engagement in children and young people with Down syndrome

Primary objective: The aim of this study was to explore physical activity (PA) amongst children and young people with Down syndrome (DS). Method and procedures: The youth physical activity promotion model (YPAP) was used to inform semi-structured interviews to explore PA of children and young people with DS. Participants were three males and five females, aged between 6 and 21?years (16.38?+?5.04?years (mean?+?SD)) who had been diagnosed with the condition DS. Dyadic interviews were conducted with the participant and their parent(s). The interviews were recorded and transcribed, and inductive and deductive analyses of the data were completed. Main outcomes and results: The results were structured around the YPAP Model’s key themes included: enabling factors (seasonal variation, transport, type of activity and independence); predisposing factors (enjoyment, social interaction, dislikes of PA, following instructions, and understanding of PA); reinforcing factors (support and opportunities, parents, and care providers); and barriers to PA engagement (ear problems). Conclusion: The children and young people with DS in the study typically only engaged in fun, unstructured activities. Key facilitators for PA participation were social interactions and parental support. Increasing the level of independence for people with DS within adolescence may have beneficial effects for PA participation in later life.     

A Developmental Framework for Enhancing Resiliency in Adult Survivors of Childhood Abuse

Roughly one third of children subjected to abusive environments grow into healthy and capable adults, demonstrating remarkable resiliency, despite risks for developing maladaptive self-structures and destructive behaviors (Werner, American Journal of Orthopsychiatry 59:72–81 1989; Kendall-Tackett et al., Psychological Bulletin 113:164–180 1993). This paper suggests that, for adults with developmental arrests due to childhood traumas, it may be beneficial to approach enhancing resilience through interventions meant to foster resiliency factors in adolescents and children, tailored appropriately for an adult. Connections to current and effective interventions are reviewed as well as an invitation to the international community for additional perspectives.     

Plato and the Police: Dogs,Guardians, and Why Accountability is the Wrong Answer

Attention to significant commonalities between the position of teachers and police officers, we suggest, illuminates problematic aspects of their position within a democracy. Demographically, both the teaching force and the police force are disproportionately white, yet the commonalities extend beyond race. We suspect too little attention has been paid to other social categorizations, namely social class and gender. Toward this end, we explore the significant commonalities between the position of teachers and police officers and suggest that aspects of their position within a democracy make accountability a problematic tactic for addressing systematic failures. In this article we turn to Plato's discussion of the guardians for his ideal Republic because Plato squarely faces a problem that still dogs us: How are those persons given the right to uphold order to be prevented from turning on the polis they are meant to protect? The answer we offer rests on a theorization of a middle position and on a democratically situated ethical response to the other.