What good is a scientist in the classroom? Participant outcomes and program design features for a short-duration science outreach intervention in K-12 classrooms

Many short-duration science outreach interventions have important societal goals of raising science literacy and increasing the size and diversity of the science workforce. Yet, these long-term outcomes are inherently challenging to evaluate. We present findings from a qualitative research study of an inquiry-based, life science outreach program to K-12 classrooms that is typical in design and excellent in execution. By considering this program as a best case of a common outreach model, the "scientist in the classroom," the study examines what benefits may be realized for each participant group and how they are achieved. We find that K-12 students are engaged in authentic, hands-on activities that generate interest in science and new views of science and scientists. Teachers learn new science content and new ways to teach it, and value collegial support of their professional work. Graduate student scientists, who are the program presenters, gain teaching and other skills, greater understanding of education and diversity issues, confidence and intrinsic satisfaction, and career benefits. A few negative outcomes also are described. Program elements that lead to these benefits are identified both from the research findings and from insights of the program developer on program design and implementation choices.     

Teachers' education, classroom quality, and young children's academic skills: results from seven studies of preschool programs

In an effort to provide high-quality preschool education, policymakers are increasingly requiring public preschool teachers to have at least a Bachelor's degree, preferably in early childhood education. Seven major studies of early care and education were used to predict classroom quality and children's academic outcomes from the educational attainment and major of teachers of 4-year-olds. The findings indicate largely null or contradictory associations, indicating that policies focused solely on increasing teachers' education will not suffice for improving classroom quality or maximizing children's academic gains. Instead, raising the effectiveness of early childhood education likely will require a broad range of professional development activities and supports targeted toward teachers' interactions with children.     

Factors influencing the incidence of utilization deficiencies and other patterns of recall/strategy-use relations in a strategic memory task

Factors that influence the incidence of utilization deficiencies and other recall/strategy-use patterns on a strategic memory task were evaluated in two hundred and fourteen 7- and 9-year-old children. Both utilization deficiencies and the incidence of children showing increases in both recall and strategy use over phases were more likely to be observed on phase transitions involving prompting or when different lists of items were included on consecutive trials; in contrast, increases in recall in the absence of increases in strategy use were more likely to be found between trials consisting of the same stimulus items. This research clearly indicates that patterns of recall/strategy-use relations, including utilization deficiencies, vary meaningfully with the age of the child and a variety of contextual factors.     

Relation between reading problems and internalizing behavior in school for preadolescent children from economically disadvantaged families

This longitudinal study of 105 economically disadvantaged children examined the relation between reading problems and internalizing behavior in 3rd- and 5th-grade assessments (8- to 12-year olds). The variable-centered results showed that reading problems predicted change in internalizing behavior in the context of child and family predictors. The person-centered results showed that children with reading problems in both grades had higher internalizing scores in 5th grade but not in 3rd grade than children with reading problems in 3rd grade or no problems. Child-reported negative emotion experiences varied similarly across grade. The results tie reading problems to emotional distress in school and support conclusions about the direction of effects and the internalization of academic difficulty for disadvantaged children.     

Adolescents' cognitive and emotional responses to marital hostility

Early adolescents' (11-14 years) responses to marital hostility were examined in a sample of 416 families. The cognitive-contextual perspective and emotional security hypothesis guided the study and 9 adolescent responses were identified. Prospective associations were examined in several structural equation models that included adolescent problems as outcomes. Self-blame and perceived threat uniquely mediated the association between Year 1 marital hostility and Year 3 adolescent externalizing problems (p<.05). Self-blame, lower constructive representations, internalization of feelings, avoidance, and emotional dysregulation uniquely mediated the association between Year 1 marital hostility and Year 3 internalizing problems. Specific cognitive and emotionally based responses are important to understanding how martial hostility affects youth and need to be considered within an integrated model.     

Cumulative stress and substantiated maltreatment: the importance of caregiver vulnerability and adult partner violence

OBJECTIVE: Our goal is to assess the effect of caregiver vulnerabilities, singly and in combination, on the substantiation of child abuse (physical, sexual) and neglect, while controlling for relevant background variables. We test the moderator role of adult partner violence in qualifying the relationship between caregiver vulnerabilities and maltreatment substantiation. METHOD: Secondary analyses of the 1998 Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Maltreatment (CIS) are used to predict child protective service investigation substantiation versus non-substantiation from a range of caregiver vulnerability factors. Involvement in partner violence was examined as a moderator in the relation between caregiver vulnerabilities and maltreatment substantiation. The CIS is an epidemiological survey of first-reported cases to child protective services, using a random sample of child welfare agencies across Canada. Child welfare workers completed a research form on the child, primary caregiver, family, perpetrator, severity and type of maltreatment, as well as services and court outcomes. All maltreatment classifications were assigned according to the Canadian legal definition of child abuse and neglect. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses were used, with stepped entry of: (1) demographic factors, socioeconomic disadvantage, and caregiver's own history of maltreatment; (2) caregiver vulnerability factors; (3) involvement in partner violence; (4) the interaction between caregiver vulnerability and partner violence. RESULTS: Caregiver substance abuse was found to be the single most potent kind of caregiver vulnerability in predicting maltreatment substantiation. When the total number of vulnerabilities was used as the predictor, prediction across all types of maltreatment increased, especially for substantiated neglect. Analyses also showed that the presence of partner violence in the home exacerbated the effect of caregiver vulnerability on substantiation. CONCLUSIONS: The total number of caregiver vulnerabilities was the best predictor of the substantiation of child abuse and neglect. This relationship was moderated by the existence of partner violence: high caregiver vulnerability and high partner violence increased the likelihood of substantiation versus non-substantiation. These results suggest that caregiver issues should be considered in tandem with partner relationships. Among child welfare cases, caregiver vulnerability and partner violence are critical targets for child maltreatment prevention and early child protective services intervention.     

Resilience to adult psychopathology following childhood maltreatment: evidence from a community sample

OBJECTIVE: Child abuse is an important risk for adult psychiatric morbidity. However, not all maltreated children experience mental health problems as adults. The aims of the present study were to address the extent of resilience to adult psychopathology in a representative community sample, and to explore predictors of a good prognosis. METHODS: Data are drawn from a follow-up of the Isle of Wight study, an epidemiological sample assessed in adolescence and at midlife. Ratings of psychiatric disorder, peer relationships and family functioning were made in adolescence; adult assessments included a lifetime psychiatric history, personality and social functioning assessments, and retrospective reports of childhood sexual and physical abuse. RESULTS: Ten percent of individuals reported repeated or severe physical or sexual abuse in childhood. Prospective measures revealed increased rates of adolescent psychiatric disorders in this group. Rates of adult psychopathology were also high. A substantial minority of abused individuals reported no mental health problems in adult life. Resilience of this kind was related to perceived parental care, adolescent peer relationships, the quality of adult love relationships, and personality style. CONCLUSION: Good quality relationships across childhood, adolescence and adulthood appear especially important for adult psychological well being in the context of childhood abuse.     

Impact of a statewide home visiting program to prevent child abuse

OBJECTIVES: To assess the impact of a voluntary, paraprofessional home visiting program in preventing child maltreatment and reducing the multiple, malleable psychosocial risks for maltreatment for which families had been targeted. METHODS: This collaborative, experimental study focused on 6 Healthy Families Alaska (HFAK) programs; 325 families were enrolled in 2000-2001, randomized to intervention and control groups, and interviewed to measure baseline attributes. Follow-up data were collected when children were 2 years old (85% follow-up rate). Outcomes included maltreatment reports, measures of potential maltreatment and parental risks, for example, poor mental health, substance use, and partner violence. HFAK records were reviewed to measure home visiting services. Home visitors were surveyed to measure perceived effectiveness and training adequacy. RESULTS: Parental risks were common at baseline, and one-sixth of families had a substantiated child protective services report in the child's first 2 years of life. There was no overall program effect on maltreatment reports, and most measures of potential maltreatment. Home visited mothers reported using mild forms of physical discipline less often than control mothers. The groups were similar in their use of more severe forms of physical discipline. There was no program impact on parental risks. There was no impact on outcomes for families with a 'high dose' of home visiting. Home visitors often failed to address parental risks and seldom linked families with community resources. Contradictions in the model compromised effectiveness. CONCLUSIONS: The program did not prevent child maltreatment, nor reduce the parental risks that had made families eligible for service. Research is needed to develop and test strategies to improve the effectiveness of home visiting.     

桂林街9号

作为这座城市最陈旧的居民区,承载了林囡囡十九年心事的桂林街终于要拆了。林囡囡踩着一双破了个洞的帆布鞋,一遍遍反复丈量着街道,在每一棵桃树下收集着失落的往事、失落的老林、失落的赵小春．和失落的母亲。