Evaluation of the Somos Fuertes HIV prevention programme in college women

The goal of this study was to examine the impact of a culturally appropriate HIV prevention and sexual empowerment curriculum workshop on female college students at a Hispanic-serving institution in the USA. Female participants in the Somos Fuertes: Strong Women Making Healthy Choices curriculum (n = 175) from a variety of ethnicities completed pre- and post-surveys during the academic years 2007–2008, 2008–2009, and 2009–2010. Paired t-tests were conducted to examine pre- and post-results on five scales: perceived sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk, perceived HIV risk, intended use of barriers during sex, effective communication skills, and behavioural self-efficacy. The analyses showed significant differences with at least medium effect sizes for all variables except perceived STI risk. The evaluation results demonstrate that the workshop offers a viable curriculum to implement on college campuses interested in affecting change related to HIV prevention strategies in a multicultural female population.     

Reinforcement and the organization of behavior in golden hamsters: Sunflower seed and nest paper reinforcers

Undeprived hamsters received nest paper or sunflower seeds in their home cages, free or contingent on one of three activities. The pattern of effects of reinforcement was the same as that reported previously with food for hungry hamsters in an open field: Open rearing and scrabbling quickly increased in rate when reinforced with paper or seeds, but face washing showed little or no increase. Certain interrelations found previously between noncontingent effects of reinforcers, deprivation effects, and contingent effects were absent and therefore are not essential to the differences among these three behaviors during reinforcement. The hamsters could learn to interrupt fact washing to collect either paper or seeds, but even then they did not increase their time face washing to high levels. Raising the operant level of face washing by spraying the animals with water did not improve instrumental performance. Face washing could be classified as an involuntary activity, but this term does not provide a full account of its special properties, such as shortened bouts, during reinforcement and punishment.     

Influence of Session Context on Physical Activity Levels Among Russian Girls During a Summer Camp

Purpose: This study investigated the effect of summer camp session context on Russian girls’ physical activity (PA). Method: Girls (n = 32, M_age = 10.7 years, SD = 0.6 years) from a resident summer camp taking place in the Vologda Region of Russia were exposed to 1 session context/day (i.e., free play, organized with no choice, organized with choice) on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday for 3 weeks, with the context order counterbalanced across the 3 weeks. The organized session sport/game changed weekly. The primary outcome was accelerometer-assessed PA. Repeated-measures mixed models were used to analyze all outcome data. Results: Findings showed that girls spent a greater percentage of session time (%time) in moderate-to-vigorous PA (p < .001; effect sizes between free play and organized with no choice and organized with choice, respectively = .60, .42) and moderate PA (p < .001; effect size = .57, .39) and a lower %time in light PA (p < .001; effect size = .55, .52) in organized PA contexts compared with free play. Conclusions: This study provides novel findings in a Russian setting, suggesting that a well-planned, organized camp session can elicit higher PA levels in girls, relative to a free-play session.     

Early Childhood Teacher Education: A Global Perspective

A couple of years ago I attended a presentation at a professional meeting that made a major impact upon my life. The session, “Ways of Achieving Excellence in a Global Community,” included presentations by early childhood educators from Australia, Hungary and Finland. At the conclusion of this sharing of ideas regarding what other countries are doing to improve the lives of children, I overheard an American colleague whisper to her neighbor in amazement, “My God! We're a Third World country when it comes to child care.” Without contrasts brought out by this session, however, this educator might have never been open to the world of ideas for improving children's lives.     

Parenting and Beyond: Common Neurocircuits Underlying Parental and Altruistic Caregiving

Interpersonal relationships constitute the foundation on which human society is based. The infant-caregiver bond is the earliest and most influential of these relationships. Driven by evolutionary pressure for survival, parents feel compelled to provide care to their biological offspring. However, compassion for non-kin is also ubiquitous in human societies, motivating individuals to suppress their own self-interests to promote the well-being of non-kin members of the society. We argue that the process of early kinship-selective parental care provides the foundation for non-exclusive altruism via the activation of a general Caregiving System that regulates compassion in any of its forms. We propose a tripartite structure of this system that includes (1) the perception of need in another, (2) a caring motivational or feeling state, and (3) the delivery of a helping response to the individual in need. Findings from human and animal research point to specific neurobiological mechanisms including activation of the insula and the secretion of oxytocin that support the adaptive functioning of this Caregiving System.     

English language learners and automated scoring of essays: Critical considerations

This article presents considerations for using automated scoring systems to evaluate second language writing. A distinction is made between English language learners in English-medium educational systems and those studying English in their own countries for a variety of purposes, and between learning-to-write and writing-to-learn in a second language (Manchón, 2011a), extending Manchón's framework from instruction to assessment and drawing implications for construct definition. Next, an approach to validity based on articulating an interpretive argument is presented and discussed with reference to a recent study of the use of e-rater on the TOEFL. Challenges and opportunities for the use of automated scoring system are presented.     

A possible teleology of cultural sector data in England

ABSTRACT

In March 2019, Arts Council England (ACE), an official statistics producer, started collecting a new set of data from its National Portfolio Organisations intended to reveal whether those organizations’ intentions correlate with the perceptions of their peers and audiences. In a world dominated by quantitative data, the Impact and Insight Toolkit addresses a perceived lacuna and marks a substantial investment in qualitative metrics. ACE also expects it to address a number of other concerns – help organizations self-evaluate, measure their short-term outcomes and advocate more effectively. Indeed, it envisages that an aggregation of the data collected will support the case for sustained public support of the sector. The Toolkit’s launch comes at a time when changes to the UK’s official statistics are encouraged, and policymakers are looking elsewhere to inform their thinking. The campaigning aspect of ACE’s aspirations suggests a model of data collection and analysis distinct from that of official statistics production, valued for its impartiality. This article considers what might happen if the Toolkit, which relates to ACE’s role as a development agency, encourages data to be collected and analysed in order to deliver specific outcomes. It reflects on three visions of cultural sector data from the past 50 years: Toffler’s The Art of Measuring the Arts, DCMS’s Taking Part and ACE’s Impact and Insight Toolkit. These suggest a trajectory of cultural sector data determined by increasing importance being attached to institutional interests, and implies that the future of cultural sector data in England may be determined by how ACE addresses its potentially conflicting interests as an official data provider and development agency. Greater investment in the former would more accurately reveal the arts’ contribution to economic and social development; greater investment in the latter would encourage the teleological development of cultural sector data designed for sectorial advocacy.