College students' willingness to terminate a pregnancy

403 male and 420 female Michigan State University undergraduate students responded to survey questions on their willingness to terminate a pregnancy. The number of students willing to terminate a pregnancy changed according to situational scenarios and general questions presented. While 96% opted to terminate a life-threatening tubal pregnancy, only 3% would do so in the case of a fetus of unwanted gender. Except for cases of incest and rape, respondents were 2.3 times more likely to terminate for biomedical than for psychosocial reasons. 89% were willing to terminate for incest and 82% for rape. The 75% who considered the fetus to be a child were less inclined to terminate than those who perceived otherwise. These findings paralleled those of other studies which found that attitudes toward abortion are not strongly linked to gender. Most respondents were able to weigh moral convictions against taxing situations when considering pregnancy termination.     

Moving Fiercely Linear Preservice Teachers into the Joys of Integrating Art in the Classroom: An Artist Residency in a University Early Childhood and Special Education Program

How can artist residencies for preservice teachers plant seeds for future classrooms? Teacher educators and a teaching artist describe a two-tiered residency in an early childhood and special education program that transformed preservice teachers' attitudes toward visual art and arts integration. Findings are based on teaching artist and instructor reflections as well as a qualitative analysis of student journal entries. Preservice teachers who had no prior art training and were resistant toward abstract painting began to enjoy it and appreciate the value of art for children's learning. They came to recognize visual art as a tool to support social development and children with special needs, understood the importance of process in children's art experiences, and considered ways to integrate art throughout the curriculum. We urge teacher educators and teaching artists to incorporate artist residencies into teacher education programs to prepare future teachers to integrate the arts into the classrooms of tomorrow.     

Sport treiben ein Leben lang?

Current demographic development attracts the attention of the sports sciences to the determinants of sport participation among people in the second half of life. Due to various life experiences in this age cohort, the question arises as to how much sports experiences affect contemporary sport participation. Starting with research into the life course people had followed, persons aged over 50 years were interviewed retrospectively about their current and former participation in sporting activities. Results show that sport participation of many years’ standing in the first half of life in particular, as well as sport activities in young adulthood, has a positive affect on the course of sport participation in the second half of life. Furthermore, period and cohort effects indicate that sports commitment is moderately affected by the variables sex and social environment.