Mentoring for inclusion: A model class for special and general educators

Abstract

The following paper presents content and outcomes of a model class for instructing general and special educators in best practices of inclusive education. Key components of the class were (a) an emphasis on cooperative learning and team decision making, (b) highly structured problem‐solving activities, and (c) the use of in vivo case studies involving children with disabilities in local schools. These components were designed to model professional activities associated with the successful inclusion of children with disabilities in general education classrooms. Course content is supported by brief reviews of related research. Course outcomes, problems encountered, and recommendations for replication are presented.     

Report from Libraries in the Digital Age (LIDA), June 13–17, 2016, Zadar,Croatia

ABSTRACT

Libraries in the Digital Age (LIDA) 2016 takes place every 2 years, and was held this year at the University of Zadar, in Zadar, Croatia, from June 13–17, 2016. Each LIDA, two themes are chosen in advance. This year, the themes were “Digital Curation and Preservation: Current Trends and Research” and “Use Studies, Education, and Training for Digital Library Collections.” A presentation of each theme by university professors and subsequent keynotes relevant to each theme by two world-renowned experts provided context and ensured a shared perspective among LIDA attendees. Conference-goers were presented a balanced approach to theoretical and practical questions in a number of areas of digital libraries, including the presentation of research on information seeking practices among special communities, data mining projects, the exploration of platforms and experiences, and digitization. Additionally, a number of the contributed papers, panels, demonstrations, and workshops spanned the two themes, making for not only an informative conference, but also a particularly rich and coherent experience for attendees. Opportunities for junior researchers were numerous, with the conference priding itself on the mentorship opportunities available. In 2018, you might find yourself tempted to see what LIDA is all about; if you do, you will no doubt find yourself in a breath-taking venue along the Croatian coast surrounded by engaged, supportive, and collaborative researchers and professionals from around the world – in my opinion, you won't regret it.     

Creating cultures of disability to control young people in Australian schools

State and territory education departments across Australia have been attempting to respond to reported increases in the levels of disruption in schools. The problem is considered particularly severe in urban secondary schools. This paper examines the way in which integration or “mainstreaming” policies have been subverted in order to control disruptive young people by labeling them as defective.     

Teachers’ technology adoption and practices: lessons learned from the IWB phenomenon

The twenty-first century has seen unprecedented investment from governments around the world in educational technologies in schools. This paper investigates Australian teachers’ adoption and use of a popular technology that has been extensively supported by governments and school systems: the interactive whiteboard (IWB). The study suggests that a number of the barriers identified in the early days of adoption and use of this technology, such as professional support and access, still remain for many teachers, thereby impeding effective practices. The research also found that primary school teachers were using the technology in diverse ways, in contrast to secondary teachers who were using the IWB mainly for instructionist, presentational purposes. We conclude by considering various ways of reducing the effect of the identified barriers to support implementation of educational technologies in the classroom, especially the next generation of technologies promoted by governments and systems.     

Two teacher quality measures and the role of context: evidence from Chile

This research examines empirically the relationship between two measures of teacher quality: one based on professional standards and a second one using teacher value-added estimates. It also studies the extent to which teacher observable characteristics, such as teacher training variables, are associated to better performance on either of these measures and whether any of these two assessments is able to effectively measure teacher quality isolated from the effect of the context where teachers work. Context in this article is defined as any variable that is not under the direct control of the teacher but plays an important role on student learning and we believe is captured by school and municipal variables. The study uses hierarchical linear models and information from national and standardized assessments from Chile, specifically from the municipal education sector. Results show a small correlation between the two measures of teacher quality, in the lower end of results from previous studies conducted in the USA, and suggest that there is only a limited relationship between both measures of teacher quality. Teacher initial education type and professional development were statistically associated only to the standard-based measure of teacher quality. Context (both the school and municipal levels) plays an important role in the teacher effect measure, and in the standard-based measures, therefore, we conclude that neither of these measures are context-free. We expect that these results will contribute to the discussion about how to best measure teacher quality and how to evaluate teacher performance both in Chile and other parts of the world.     

Quantifying physical activity in first-through fourth-grade physical education via pedometry

The aim of this study was to determine pedometry steps per minute (SPM) cutscores that accurately quantify physical activity (PA) time in first- through fourth-grade physical education. A total of 257 participants were grouped in two data pools, first- and second-grade (n = 126), and third- and fourth-grade (n = 131). Systematic observation was the PA criterion instrument and pedometry was the predictor instrument. Correlations between physical activity measures were strong (r = .82-.89, p < .01). Ten min of PA and 33.33% of the lesson time engaged in PA within a 30-min class can be quantified by 61-63 SPM for first- and second-grade, and 58-61 SPM for third- and fourth-grade. IN CONCOLUSION: (a) SPM values were a valid indicator of students achieving or not achieving PA criteria, and (b) pedometry is a valid and practical tool for physical activity surveillance within physical education.