Teaching Supply Chain Management Complexities: A SCOR Model Based Classroom Simulation

The SCOR (Supply Chain Operations Reference) Model Supply Chain Classroom Simulation is an in‐class experiential learning activity that helps students develop a holistic understanding of the processes and challenges of supply chain management. The simulation has broader learning objectives than other supply chain related activities such as the Beer Game. Competing supply chains work to produce and sell two products, each experiencing differential demand. Seasonal demand, time delays, quality defects, and disruptions offer complexities that are part of actual supply chain management. The behavioral dynamics of collaboration between various functional nodes is illustrated through students’ interactions as they try to achieve their role's objectives. Through their decisions and actions, students develop a practical understanding of the processes and complexities of supply chain management. The classroom simulation actively engages students, and has been used successfully in multiple courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels at multiple universities and by a major corporation during a manager training session. Assessments indicate that the simulation is an effective experiential learning activity. While it offers learning outcome flexibility, common debrief themes are SCOR model processes, supply chain relationships, information flow, seasonal demand, quality defects, reverse logistics, and supply chain disruptions.     

Schools for the deaf and the No Child Left Behind Act

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) emphasizes educational accountability for all students. Twenty-eight states have policies to aggregate student participation and proficiency data for schools for the deaf in NCLB reports. The remaining states account for these students in other ways: referring student data to "sending" schools and aggregating data to the district or state level are most prominent. In reports of student assessment results for academic year 2002-2003, three schools for the deaf made "Adequate Yearly Progress" under NCLB: These schools demonstrated at least a 95% participation rate in assessments, and at least 95% of their students met or surpassed state proficiency benchmarks in reading and mathematics. Proficiency levels for other schools varied by report, but were often comparable to those of students with disabilities. Challenges and strategies for capturing the impact of NCLB accountability policies on deaf students are discussed.     

An Exploration of the Relationship Among Teacher Efficacy,Collective Teacher Efficacy,and Goal Consensus

This study explored the relationships among individual teacher efficacy, collective teacher efficacy, and goal consensus/vision. Participants included 113 teachers of a high school located in the southwestern USA. During a teacher inservice meeting, teachers completed three surveys that measured the variables under study. Correlational and regression analyses were performed to examine the relationships among individual teacher efficacy, collective teacher efficacy, and goal consensus/vision. Collective teacher efficacy was found to be correlated with all of the other variables examined, but was most highly correlated with goal consensus/vision. Individual teacher efficacy, while related to collective teacher efficacy, was not found to be related to goal consensus/vision. Findings from this study suggest that, because individual teacher efficacy, collective teacher efficacy and goal consensus/vision are related, changing one could have an impact on the others. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Enjoying A Good Story: Why We Use Children’s Literature When Teaching Adults

Early childhood teacher educators frequently enhance their teaching by reading children’s books to their adult students. It is not unusual for faculty outside of early childhood to question devoting precious class time to read-alouds which they may consider a curious, if not frivolous, instructional strategy. Quality children’s literature can, however, enhance students’ experiences in the college classroom, contribute to their understanding of course content, promote their personal growth and self-understanding, increase their appreciation for quality children’s literature, and enhance their ability to integrate storybooks into their own teaching. Children’s books often capture a child’s point of view. They have the potential to provide historical or cultural perspectives on children and families. They also can lead to the examination of universal truths and can facilitate the discussion of sensitive or emotional issues A list of books with suggested uses is included.     

Understanding Cultural Differences in the Antecedents of Pro-Environmental Behavior: A Comparative Analysis of Business Students in the United States and Chile

We surveyed business students in the U. S. (n = 256) and Chile (n = 310). The survey included measures drawn from studies of pro-environmental behavior using Schwartz's norm activation theory (Schwartz, 1977 Schwartz, S. H. 1977. “Normative influences on altruism”. In Advances in experimental social psychology, Edited by: Berkowitz, L. Vol. 10, 221–279. New York: Academic Press. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]), the theory of reasoned action (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980 Ajzen, I. and Fishbein, M. 1980. Understanding attitudes and predicting social behavior, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.  [Google Scholar]), and a values-beliefs-norms model created by Stern, Dietz, Abel, Guagnano, and Kalof (1999) Stern, P. C., Dietz, T., Abel, T., Guagnano, G. A. and Kalof, L. 1999. A value-belief-norm theory of support for social movements: The case of environmentalism. Human Ecology Review, 6(2): 81–97.  [Google Scholar]. Our results show Chilean business students are more altruistic than business students in the United States and Chilean students felt stronger pressures from their peers to engage in pro-environmental behaviors. Chilean business students also expressed higher levels of awareness of environmental problems, a greater sense of obligation to protect the environment, a stronger willingness to limit property rights, and stronger intentions to engage in pro-environmental behavior.     

Metacognition and Middle Grade Mathematics Teachers: Supporting Productive Struggle

Communicating mathematical ideas through writing, listening, and verbalizing allows students to think about how they “think” about mathematics. By focusing this communication on a reflection of how one thinks about mathematics, metacognitive writing engages students as mathematicians and learners. In this article we describe a professional development that we implemented with middle grade mathematics teachers focused on metacognitive writing as a tool to support productive struggle in the mathematics classroom. Thus, this practitioner article adds to the knowledge base on how to develop middle grade teachers metacognitive writing through engagement in productive struggle. Recommendations for practice are included.     

The Value of Reanalysis: TV Viewing and Attention Problems

Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth ( N  =   1,159), this study reexamines the link between maternal reports of television viewing at ages 1 and 3 and attention problems at age 7. This work represents a reanalysis and extension of recent research suggesting young children's television viewing causes subsequent attention problems. The nonlinear specification reveals the association between television watching and attention problems exists—if at all—only at very high levels of viewing. Adding 2 covariates to the regression model eliminated even this modest effect. The earlier findings are not robust. This study also considers whether its own findings are sensitive to unobserved confounding using fixed-effects estimation. In general, it finds no meaningful relation between television viewing and attention problems.