The effect of language modification of mathematics story problems on problem-solving in online homework

Instructional Science - Students’ grasp of the non-mathematical language in a mathematics story problem—such as vocabulary and syntax—may have an important effect on their...     

Recreating blood-brain barrier physiology and structure on chip: A novel neurovascular microfluidic bioreactor

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a critical structure that serves as the gatekeeper between the central nervous system and the rest of the body. It is the responsibility of the BBB to facilitate the entry of required nutrients into the brain and to exclude potentially harmful compounds; however, this complex structure has remained difficult to model faithfully in vitro. Accurate in vitro models are necessary for understanding how the BBB forms and functions, as well as for evaluating drug and toxin penetration across the barrier. Many previous models have failed to support all the cell types involved in the BBB formation and/or lacked the flow-created shear forces needed for mature tight junction formation. To address these issues and to help establish a more faithful in vitro model of the BBB, we have designed and fabricated a microfluidic device that is comprised of both a vascular chamber and a brain chamber separated by a porous membrane. This design allows for cell-to-cell communication between endothelial cells, astrocytes, and pericytes and independent perfusion of both compartments separated by the membrane. This NeuroVascular Unit (NVU) represents approximately one-millionth of the human brain, and hence, has sufficient cell mass to support a breadth of analytical measurements. The NVU has been validated with both fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-dextran diffusion and transendothelial electrical resistance. The NVU has enabled in vitro modeling of the BBB using all human cell types and sampling effluent from both sides of the barrier.     

Meta‐Analysis of Theory of Mind and Peer Popularity in the Preschool and Early School Years

It has been argued that children who possess an advanced theory of mind (ToM) are viewed positively by their peers, but the empirical findings are mixed. This meta‐analysis of 20 studies including 2,096 children (aged from 2 years, 8 months to 10 years) revealed a significant overall association (r = .19) indicating that children with higher ToM scores were also more popular in their peer group. The effect did not vary with age. The effect was weaker for boys (r = .12) compared to girls (r = .30). ToM was more strongly associated with popularity (r = .23) than with rejection (r = .13). These findings confirm that ToM development has significant implications for children's peer relationships.     

INSTITUTIONAL PUBLICATION PRODUCTIVITY IN SELECTED GERONTOLOGY JOURNALS, 1984‐1993

Researchers in several disciplines have been interested in institutional research publication productivity as a means of assessing institutional reputation in a given field. However, no previous research has specifically examined institutional productivity in the field of gerontology. The authors selected six non‐medical, non‐biological scholarly journals devoted to gerontological issues. Each was examined issue by issue for the 10‐year period 1984‐1993 to determine the institutional affiliations of contributing authors. Institutional rankings for the composite six journals for the total period and each of the two 5‐year periods were determined by awarding credit to the authors’ institutions based on authorship order. The six journals were: Activities, Adaptation, and Aging; Educational Gerontology; The Gerontologist; Gerontology and Geriatrics Education; the Journal of Applied Gerontology; and the Journals of Gerontology (Social Sciences and Psychological Sciences sections only). In the composite of the six journals, the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), the University of Southern California, Duke University, Pennsylvania State University, and the University of Florida emerged as the five most productive individual institutions for the overall 10‐year period on this one measure of program quality.     

Bottom‐up processing and reading comprehension in experienced adult readers

Previous research has indicated a weak to moderate role for word recognition skill in contributing to reading comprehension efficiency in highly experienced adult readers. The goal of this study was to re‐evaluate the strength of this association, including assessment of the contribution of skill in discriminating unfamiliar shapes and identifying letters. Unexpectedly, the results revealed a very strong association between efficiency in reading connected text and word recognition skill, as measured by efficiency of access to the orthographic lexicon. Ability to identify letters rapidly and accurately also contributed to orthographic access skill. These associations were only minimally reduced by controlling for skill in discriminating unfamiliar shapes. The results were interpreted in terms of the verbal‐efficiency theory, according to which rapid and accurate lower‐level processing liberates resources for equally crucial higher‐level comprehension processing, ultimately resulting in more efficient text comprehension.     

THE OLDER HEARING‐IMPAIRED STUDENT: MANAGING OBSTACLES TO LEARNING

With the number of older Americans increasing, many colleges and universities are attempting to serve the needs of this population by offering tuition reductions, alternative scheduling, and special courses to older learners. Consequently, more and more older persons appear to be returning to colleges and universities on a part‐time or full‐time basis. However, many of these older students may not be receiving maximum benefit from their educational experiences, owing to hearing impairments. This article discusses obstacles and problems that confront the older hearing‐impaired student in the classroom and presents possible management solutions.