Teacher perspectives on partnerships on families of children with autism

The success of students with disabilities in school and community largely relies on productive family professional partnerships (FPPs). The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) recognises the importance of family collaboration to student success by mandating that parents be involved in the Individualised Education Plan (IEP) process as full team members. While several previous studies examined the perspectives of parents of children with disabilities on partnerships with educators, less research exists on teacher perspectives on family professional collaborations. Additionally, there are even fewer studies that focus on teacher perspectives on partnerships with parents of children with autism, a disability category which continues to increase in prevalence. The present study contributes to the literature by examining teacher perspectives on factors that build and hinder positive partnerships with families of children with autism. Researchers surveyed 25 Special Education teachers and conducted additional individual interviews and open-ended questionnaires to examine teachers' first-hand experiences. Findings identified four common themes that educators felt helped and hindered collaborative relationships with families. Study results may lead to the development of specific family professional collaboration strategies that can be implemented and discussed in school districts, teacher trainings, pre-service teacher education programs and family workshops.     

Effects of Diverse STEM Role Model Videos in Promoting Adolescents’ Identification

International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education - Role models are critical for broadening participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM); however, little is...     

A strategic approach to developing e-learning capability for healthcare

Objectives: This article examines a strategic approach to developing e‐learning capability to enhance learning opportunities for the workforce of a healthcare organization. Emphasis is given to the procurement of a bespoke Managed Learning Environment (MLE). Strategic organizational issues impacting on future e‐learning developments are considered. Methods: The 2‐year implementation plan was evaluated through a two phase external research project. The first phase focused on the effectiveness of a training programme designed to build capacity for e‐learning within the Northern area and also included a virtual learning environment usability study which informed the MLE specification. The second phase evaluation is ongoing during 2005 and interim findings are presented. Results: The MLE has been piloted and on‐line learning packages have been acquired. There has been a phased take‐up of e‐learning opportunities and e‐tutor training. Some virtual Communities of Practice have been established. Key organizational issues have been identified and ongoing findings are informing strategic planning. Conclusions: The healthcare MLE is offering enhanced learning opportunities and assisting area healthcare providers in training their dispersed workforces. Blended learning strategies are most successful. The need for protected time for e‐learning is a key issue, financial savings are available. Progress has been slowed by identified organizational constraints—the MLE's benefits are widely recognized.     

Oral Communication Skills in Higher Education: Using a Performance-Based Evaluation Rubric to Assess Communication Skills

This study used The Competent Speaker, a rubric developed by the National Communication Association (S. P. Morreale, M. R. Moore, K. P. Taylor, D. Surges-Tatum, & R. Hulbert-Johnson, 1993), to evaluate student performance in general education public speaking courses as a case study of student skills and programmatic assessment. Results indicate that students taking the general education public speaking course are below satisfactory standards on five of the eight competencies defined by the National Communication Association and are above satisfactory standards on two of the eight competencies. Implications for this particular program, other communication departments, and communication across the curriculum in general education are discussed. We also offer suggestions for those in other disciplines or educational settings in the use of performance evaluation rubrics for assessing other student skills/knowledge and for training new teachers.

Using Web-Based Key Character and Classification Instruction for Teaching Undergraduate Students Insect Identification

The purpose of the study was to determine whether undergraduate students receiving web-based instruction based on traditional, key character, or classification instruction differed in their performance of insect identification tasks. All groups showed a significant improvement in insect identifications on pre- and post-two-dimensional picture specimen quizzes. The study also determined student performance on insect identification tasks was not as good as for family-level identification as compared to broader insect orders and arthropod classification identification tasks. Finally, students erred significantly more by misidentification than misspelling specimen names on prepared specimen quizzes. Results of this study support that short web-based insect identification exercises can improve insect identification performance. Also included is a discussion of how these results can be used in teaching and future research on biological identification.