Preschool Children’s Adjustment Following a Hurricane: Risk and Resilience in the Face of Adversity

Research Findings: It is clear that disasters negatively affect both adults and children. Yet there is little research examining the mechanisms whereby some people are negatively affected by disasters whereas others are resilient to these negative effects. Family functioning and child characteristics might be factors that influence the impact of disasters on young children. We tested this premise in a sample of 118 children living in an area affected by a Category 3 hurricane, with 47 of these children participating before and after the hurricane. Results indicated that disaster experiences and emotion regulation are predictors of adjustment following natural disasters. Findings also suggested that the effects of disaster experiences on children’s adjustment are sometimes indirect through their impact on parental depression and parent hostility. Practice or Policy: These findings indicate that working to minimize the likelihood of parent–child separations during disasters could reduce the negative effects of disasters on children. In addition, promoting better emotional regulatory abilities in young children may help them to be more resilient when experiencing natural disasters, and providing parents with the support they need to more effectively parent may also decrease the likelihood that children will experience adjustment difficulties following disasters.     

Encouraging the development of higher-level study skills using an experiential learning framework

Teachers have only recently considered how study skills support in higher education (HE) can be delivered in a way that encourages experiential learning. This paper aims to substantiate, or otherwise, the idea that a carefully developed initiative can encourage the experiential learning of study skills. In addition, it considers whether such an approach might also allow student access to some of the higher-level study skills required for successful university study. Focus group data were used to evaluate a module delivered to sports students at a post-1992 university in the UK. This data suggested that the module facilitated learning in each stage of Kolb's experiential learning cycle. Moreover, there was evidence that the module encouraged students to undertake an ‘epistemological shift’ in which they moved from seeing knowledge as a set of uncontested facts to seeing it as something that they are expected to question and contribute to themselves.     

Exploring sexuality education opportunities at in-home sex-toy parties in the United States

While debates about adolescent sexuality education persist in the United States, little attention has been paid to adult sexuality education. Research suggests that teachable moments may be present in interactions between adult bookstore employees and the consumers who shop at these venues. The purpose of this study was to explore the potential for in-home sex-toy parties as an avenue for adult sexuality education for women. A total of 1197 women who facilitate in-home sex-toy parties for a large US-based company completed an online questionnaire related to their experiences facilitating these parties. As part of this larger survey, participants reported in an open-ended question the three most commonly asked questions they received when facilitating a party in the previous three months. Questions reported (n = 3149) were analyzed for commonalities using qualitative methods. Resulting themes were then compared with Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) guidelines for comprehensive sexuality education to assess the potential for teachable moments at the events. Of the 36 topical areas identified by SIECUS, 31 areas were represented in questions reported by consultants indicating a strong potential for teachable moments related to sexuality education. In-home sex-toy parties may provide an additional avenue through which to increase adult sexual literacy.     

Political diversify is alive in TV and newspaper rooms

Journalists and broadcasters at small, medium, and large newspapers and television stations were compared on their political views, using a 45‐card Q‐deck containing liberal, conservative, and pragmatic statements. Results indicate widespread political diversity among reporters with broadcasters exhibiting more conservative viewpoints.     

Degree of Participation in Related Areas by Men Physical Education Majors in Five of the Illinois State Universities

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the feasibility of measuring degrees of participation of physical education majors in areas closely related to their profession. Areas selected were intercollegiate and intramural sports and professional activities. Five universities in Illinois provided the basic information pertinent to the study involving 683 majors. An analysis of the information indicated a highly questionable degree of participation. The greatest amount of participation was in intercollegiate and intramural sports. The least amount of participation was in professional club activity and participation in the work of the state and national physical education organizations.     

Raising critical issues in the analysis of gender and science in children’s literature

Trevor Owens’ paper provides a critique of the role of gender and authority in selected children’s books that presented biographies of Albert Einstein and Marie Curie. In the context of discussing Trevor’s (2009) article about children’s literature, this forum explores issues related to the (a) representation and construction of gender, science, and childhood in literature for children; (b) the need to consider socio/historical/cultural contexts in analytical and theoretical frameworks; and (c) the importance of fostering critical literacy perspectives in pre- and in-service science teachers and the children whom they teach.     

Making America’s schools great now: reclaiming democracy and activist leadership under Trump

Trump’s vow to ‘make America great again’ seeks to usher in a policy agenda reminiscent of an era that served as a boon to the rich while devastating poor, working-class, Americans, particularly people of color. His education policy and budget blueprint prove no exception, signalling troubling priorities for those who value strong public institutions, civil rights, and investments in public schools. In this essay, I argue that the current political moment requires an educational leadership committed to making America’s schools great now by reclaiming public schools as pillars of democracy through resistance, taking a stand on issues, and actively leading change. I conclude with calls to (a) resist efforts to dismantle education as a public good, (b) reclaim a vision of education grounded in equality, liberation, and justice, and (c) revolutionise how education leadership is conceptualized, practiced, and sustained.     

A Race to the Top From the Bottom of the Well? The Paradox of Race and U.S. Education Reform

Abstract

This article explores the paradox of “race” and U.S. education reform in the 21st century. I consider how the invisible ontology of race and its entangled relationship with class divert our attention from economic inequality and undermine policies intended to redress racial inequality in schools. I conclude that the education research community must unpack its use of “race” and focus on the role of racism in the maintenance of racial caste in America's schools.