Learner Characteristics that Influence the Treatment Effectiveness of Early Literacy Interventions: A Meta‐Analytic Review

The purpose of this article was to systematically review the available research on learner characteristics that influence the treatment effectiveness of early literacy interventions. Meta‐analytic procedures were applied to a total of 30 studies that met the inclusionary and exclusionary criteria. Mean average effect sizes were computed for seven primary learner characteristic categories: (1) rapid naming, (2) alphabetic principle, (3) phonological awareness, (4) problem behavior, (5) memory, (6) IQ, and (7) demographic. The primary learner characteristics that influenced the treatment responsiveness of early literacy interventions were, in order of magnitude, rapid naming, problem behavior, phonological awareness, alphabetic principle, memory, IQ, and demographics. With the exception of the demographic category, the obtained effect sizes for the primary learner characteristics were moderately large. The demographic primary learner characteristic (i.e., disability, ethnicity, grade‐level status) of children was not statistically (p < 0.05) distinct from zero. The findings, limitations, and future research needs are discussed.     

More Unintended Consequences of High-Stakes Testing

This article explores the basis of negative sentiments toward and current critiques of high-stakes student testing from within the education profession. To promote some balance for current policy debates, evidence for 10 unintended, unrecognized, or unarticulated positive consequences is provided. The article concludes with an examination of the relationship between high-stakes testing and accountability systems.     

Interlibrary loan and commercial document supply: Finding the right fit

This study examined the cost and performance of six commercial document suppliers accessible via OCLC, and comapared their service to that of traditional interlibrary loan (ILL). Results indicated that, while commercial firms cannot be recommended as a wholesale replacement for ILL, they can add much-needed flexibility to a library's overall plan for document delivery.     

Identification of Alcohol by Smell among Preschoolers: Evidence for Early Socialization about Drugs Occurring in the Home

This study tested preschoolers' ability to provide accurate verbal associations to alcoholic beverage odors and whether this ability was related to parental drinking patterns and motivations. Older preschoolers performed better than younger preschoolers; photographic cues improved performance; children who correctly identified a substance by smell had socially appropriate knowledge of the culturally appropriate users of the substance; children reported liking substances that are used mainly by children and adults, and generally reported disliking substances whose use is legally limited to adults only; children were better at identifying substances they commonly use, but success at recognition of alcoholic beverages was related to heavier parental drinking and use of alcohol for escape reasons. Findings have implications for theories of socialization to drug use and for models of prevention.     

Science literacy and academic identity formulation

The purpose of this article is to report findings from an ethnographic study that focused on the co‐development of science literacy and academic identity formulation within a third‐grade classroom. Our theoretical framework draws from sociocultural theory and studies of scientific literacy. Through analysis of classroom discourse, we identified opportunities afforded students to learn specific scientific knowledge and practices during a series of science investigations. The results of this study suggest that the collective practice of the scientific conversations and activities that took place within this classroom enabled students to engage in the construction of communal science knowledge through multiple textual forms. By examining the ways in which students contributed to the construction of scientific understanding, and then by examining their performances within and across events, we present evidence of the co‐development of students' academic identities and scientific literacy. Students' communication and participation in science during the investigations enabled them to learn the structure of the discipline by identifying and engaging in scientific activities. The intersection of academic identities with the development of scientific literacy provides a basis for considering specific ways to achieve scientific literacy for all students. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 41: 1111–1144, 2004     

An Autonomist Biopolitics of Education: Reproduction,Resistance, and the Specter of Constituent Bíos

In considering the enigmatic relationships between philosophy, politics, and pedagogy, this essay attempts to map some of the currents in educational scholarship, particularly those running between reproduction theories and resistance theories. While these two theoretical frameworks have been at odds with one another, Gregory Bourassa suggests that both share orthodox commitments that prevent them from appreciating the constituent dimensions of revolutionary subjectivity. In seeking an alternative orientation, Bourassa proposes an autonomist biopolitics of education. This framework inverts the traditional circuits of resistance and suggests that schools follow behind and resist the constituent life forms (constituent bíos) of students. If resistance theory only attempts to identify the ways in which students resist school practices, it risks obscuring the potentiality of constituent bíos as a social ontology that is primary, always already present, and subject to the resistant practices of the school. Therefore, a key contribution of this essay is its development of an autonomist biopolitics of education. Within this framework, constituent bíos is recognized as the foundational and constitutive motor to which schools are constantly reacting. The adoption of this perspective, alongside more conventional understandings of resistance, offers a more nuanced conception of the relation between forms of life and schools.     

A person-centered approach to achievement goal orientations in competitive tennis players: Associations with motivation and mental toughness

Background:Research on achievement goal orientations in sport has typically relied on the use of variable-centered approaches that tend to overlook population heterogeneity.In this study,we used a person-centered approach to identify subgroups of competitive tennis players according to unique combinations of achievement goal orientations and tested for subgroup differences in motivation and mental toughness.Methods:A sample of 323 competitive tennis athletes(69.35%male)between 15 and 25 years of age(17.60±2.40 years,mean±SD)completed the 3×2 Achievement Goal Questionnaire for Sport,Sport Motivation Scale Ⅱ,and Mental Toughness Index.Latent profile analysis was used to identify unique combinations of achievement goal orientations.Comparisons between latent subgroups on autonomous motivation,controlled motivation,and mental toughness were performed using analysis of variance.Results:Latent profile analysis supported 3 distinct patterns of achievement goal profiles that were primarily distinguishable based on valence of competence(i.e.,approach vs.avoidance).Analyses of variance indicated that athletes who were classified into subgroups that endorsed approach types of goals(regardless of the types of avoidance goals they endorsed)reported higher levels of autonomous motivation and mental toughness.Conclusion:Results indicated that athletes tend to pursue a number of achievement goals collectively rather than in isolation.Although approach goals are more commonly linked to adaptive psychological functioning and positive outcomes,avoidance goals may also be associated with desirable psychological characteristics if they are pursued in conjunction with approach types of achievement goals.     

Ali–Frazier 1: Black Gladiators,White Promoters,and the Economics of Big-Time Boxing

Abstract

The March 1971 heavyweight championship bout between undefeated black boxers Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier elicited numerous responses. Ali, because of his brash persona, refusal to be drafted into the Vietnam War, and outspoken criticisms of white racism, had become a potent symbol of 1960s rebellion and Black Power. Frazier, by claiming the heavyweight championship while Ali was banished, cozying up to white politicians, and refusing to criticize the US government, made himself a worthy foil for Ali’s politics. But as the rhetoric surrounding the fight intensified, regarding black masculinity, patriotism, and community pride, one key aspect of the fight opened up debates in a surprising realm: the economics of black athletes and the possibilities and limitations of black capitalism. In an era when black capitalist programmes emerged nationwide, and when African-American athletes took on more vocal roles as community activists, the battles over the bout’s financial promotion became intense. While the boxers took home an unprecedented $2.5 million each for their participation, total revenues reached nearly $30 million. Discussions of the fight’s payout shed light on a wide range of economic issues facing the black community, and some of the unresolved issues in the quest for civil rights.