Parents' Child Care Arrangements and their Ecological Correlates

Young children rely on their parents for making decisions about their child care experiences. Parents' child care arrangements are affected by the information they gather, their values and childrearing beliefs, their knowledge of child care quality, and the extent to which they are satisfied with their child care choices. Parents' decisions about child care are also influenced by ecological correlates, such as child age, maternal education and hours of employment, family ethnicity and income, and state and federal child care policies. This review addresses each of these elements and their role in parents' child care arrangements and concludes with recommendations for honoring parents' child care ideals through better child care quality information and higher professional standards for child care providers.     

Effect of short-term application of kinesio tape on the flexion-relaxation phenomenon,trunk postural control and trunk repositioning in healthy females

This study was designed to investigate the potential effects of kinesio tape on the flexion-relaxation phenomenon, trunk postural control and trunk position sense when applied for a short period (30 min) to the low back of healthy female participants. Twenty-four participants were assigned to one of two groups: kinesio tape applied in either the recommended stretched or non-stretched (control) manner over the low back. Tests were performed at three time points (pre-tape, with tape, post-tape) to assess low-back muscle flexion-relaxation, position sense during active trunk repositioning and trunk postural control during seated balance. Results demonstrated that wearing kinesio tape did not affect the angle at which the erector spinae muscles became silent during trunk flexion (flexion-relaxation). Trunk repositioning error increased when wearing kinesio tape in both the stretched and non-stretched manner, and this increased error persisted after the tape was removed. Seated balance control improved when wearing kinesio tape in both the stretched and non-stretched manner, and these improvements persisted after the tape was removed. In conclusion, these findings do not support the general suggestions that short-term use of kinesio tape on the low-back region alter low-back muscle activation and enhance tasks related to proprioception, at least under these taping conditions in a group of healthy females.     

evolving research of mathematics teacher educators: the case of non-standard issues in solving standard problems

This study describes the learning of researchers who engage in mathematics teacher education as an integral part of their practice. As teacher educators working with teachers on the subject of proportional reasoning, the authors reflected on teachers solutions to a standard problem and analyzed answers that would conventionally be considered incorrect. This exploration showed that some incorrect answers made sense, were based on problem situation analysis, and brought attention to the fact that conventional formal answers were given without much deliberation on their meaning in the situation. This insight prompted a second research phase in which teachers discussed and explained alternative solutions, and developed deeper analysis of problem situation in solutions that had been correct in the first place. The importance of making teachers aware of the nature of alternative solutions was further exhibited in a third research phase in which teachers evaluated childrens answers to the same problem. The pedagogical insight that emerged stressed the importance of making teachers aware of the tension between an almost automatic application of a mathematical model, and of analyzing problem situation during problem solving. In addition, the researchers developed better understanding of the mathematical challenge associated with the proportional reasoning problem, a stronger awareness of the role of sensitivity to their learners (the teachers), and of the role of reflection.