Aggressive consultation in the schools with mini-consultants,college credits—and a show of power

How can a consultant or “change agent” become effective in the public schools? (a) A university instructor placed undergraduate education students in elementary classrooms every morning for a year to conduct behavioral projects. These “innocent change agents” stimulated teachers to ponder their teaching through explaining goals and procedures and collecting data. (b) Graduate students in school psychology served as “mini-consultants.” (c) The teachers were enrolled in a year-long course for college credits and salary increments and assigned behavioral projects in their classrooms. Thirteen teachers successfully changed behaviors in 60 of 70 attempts. Fifteen recommendations are presented.     

Toward instituting a chaperone policy in outpatient pediatric clinics

ObjectivesWe sought to evaluate child, parent and medical provider preferences for chaperones for outpatient encounters and to evaluate the acceptability and frequency of utilization following institution of a chaperone policy. Secondarily, we sought to understand what medical history and examinations teens consider “sensitive.”DesignWe conducted an observational study 1 month before and 1 month after institution of outpatient clinic chaperone policy. Post clinic questionnaires were used for patients ≥12 years old, parents, and clinicians. A research assistant observed chaperone use.SettingAdolescent Medicine, Urology, and Rehabilitation Clinics at a regional, tertiary-care pediatric hospital, in a major metropolitan area were studied.ParticipantsConvenience sample: 117 clinic patients during control period and 119 after policy implementation.Main outcome measuresPreferences for and satisfaction with chaperone use were documented.ResultsAlthough non-parent chaperones were usually declined (99.6%), offers were appreciated. Non-parent chaperone use increased modestly (5.3–18.1%).Most patients preferred not to have non-parent chaperones. This preference was greater among older patients (88%), than early teens (52%). After experiencing sensitive examinations, more young adolescent patients (89%) wished their parent had been present than older patients (38%). Patients’ opinions about what constitutes “sensitive” questions and examinations and chaperone preferences varied widely. Providers often did not recognize issues patients and parents considered sensitive questioning (21% agreement), but recognized sensitive physical examinations better (74% agreement). Providers felt chaperones had been a detriment to examination and exams would have gone better without one only 1% of the time.ConclusionsAlthough usually declined, offers of chaperones were appreciated and use of non-parent chaperones increased modestly. Offering chaperones for sensitive examinations may remind providers about appropriate, respectful patient encounters. Implications for children's hospitals’ patient safety and satisfaction, and institutional staff protection and costs are significant.Practice implicationsQuestions and examinations which patients consider sensitive vary widely. Asking patients for their preferences for examination chaperones may reassure them about the appropriateness of examinations, remind staff to conduct respectful examinations and protect providers from accusations of impropriety. Since most chaperone offers are declined, the cost of asking is likely to be minimal.     

MSIs across the globe: laying the foundation for future research

In this paper, we explore the role that Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) play in democratizing education in the USA and around the world, examining both the institutions and their larger context. We also put forth recommendations for reaching and empowering students attending MSIs and “students at the margins” across the globe.     

A web-based tool for dissertation writing Rosanne Strachan, Rowena Murray and Hilary Grierson

Online web tools are becoming an important and accessible means of supporting learning in higher education. Student writing is central to teaching and learning ( Lillis, 2001 ). This paper describes an online tool designed to support dissertation writing. By combining three types of online space—instructional material, a writing space and planning templates—this tool aimed to provide a holistic approach to writing and writing development. This paper demonstrates how the tool was used in an academic course in order to address certain teaching and learning problems identified by the course tutor. Student feedback suggests that while further development is needed, the tool was still useful. This paper raises awareness of the complex array of issues involved in dissertation writing and provides insights into solutions to writing problems. While we designed what we considered to be a web‐based tool for dissertation writing, we argue that the writing space and planning templates go some way towards creating an environment for the development of learning ( Häkkinen, 2002 ).     

Our Designs and the Social Agendas They Carry

Although the work of learning scientists and instructional designers has brought about countless curricula, designs, and theoretical claims, the community has been less active in communicating the explicit and implicit critical social agendas that result (or could result) from their work. It is our belief that the community of learning scientists is well positioned to build transformative models of what could be, to develop learning and teaching interventions that have impact, and to advance theory that will prove valuable to others. This potential, we argue, would be significantly heightened if we as a community embrace the critical agendas that are central to so many discussions in anthropology, philosophy, or even curriculum development more generally. Instead of simply building an artifact to help individuals accomplish a particular task, or to meet a specific standard, the focus of critical design work is to develop sociotechnical structures that facilitate individuals in critiquing and improving themselves and the societies in which they function, and then we use our understanding of participation with these structures to advance theory. As an example of critical design work, we describe the Quest Atlantis project and the methodology used in its creation.

The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways; the point is to change it. (Karl Marx, 1845/1998)