The role of nonspeech rhythm in Spanish word reading

Recent literacy research shows an increasing interest in the influence of prosody on literacy acquisition. The current study examines the relationship of nonspeech rhythmic skills to children's reading acquisition, and their possible relation to stress assignment in Spanish, a syllable‐timed language. Sixty‐six third graders with no reading difficulties were scored on measures of nonspeech rhythm, word‐level decoding skill, reading fluency and reading with correct assignment of lexical stress. After controlling for verbal intelligence and working memory, hierarchical multiple regression analyses showed that nonspeech rhythm predicted unique variance in reading fluency and correct stress assignment; it did not predict decoding skills. Given that Spanish is a syllable‐timed as opposed to stress‐timed language like English, the association between nonspeech rhythm, reading fluency and stress assignment found in our study suggests that nonspeech rhythm may be a universal factor in reading acquisition, independent of the type of linguistic rhythm.     

Youth Social Justice Engagement in the Face of Anti-Latina/o Immigrant Illegitimacy

Drawing from a larger ethnographic study, in this research I examine how a group of newcomer Mexican immigrant high school students counteracted a hostile school climate, educational practices and adverse relationships with mainstream peers and adults. The purpose of this study is to help educators and policy makers understand how engaging in social justice movements in the educational context has helped immigrant students to counteract and reconstruct their adverse schooling experiences into positive contributions to their success. This study suggests that Mexican immigrant youth demonstrate agency through civic engagement and intra-tactical strategies that strengthen their linguistic, cultural, and learner identities. The article concludes with recommendations on how educators and policy makers can facilitate engagement in order to support and improve education for immigrant and Latina/o students.     

Assessment criteria for competency-based education: a study in nursing education

This study examined the effects of type of assessment criteria (performance-based vs. competency-based), the relevance of assessment criteria (relevant criteria vs. all criteria), and their interaction on secondary vocational education students’ performance and assessment skills. Students on three programmes in the domain of nursing and care (N = 93) participated in the study. Results show that students who were given the relevant criteria made more accurate assessments of an expert model, performed better on a test and achieved higher instructional efficiency (defined as the relationship between performance and mental effort) compared to students who were given all criteria. Students who were given performance-based assessment criteria made more accurate assessments of an expert model and scored higher on task performance during practice compared to students who were given competency-based assessment criteria. They invested less mental effort in the assessments, resulting in higher instructional efficiency. An interaction effect for the concreteness of answers shows that the combination of performance-based and relevant criteria leads to superior analysis of worked examples compared to the other combinations of criteria.     

Early emotional and communication functioning predicting the academic trajectories of refugee children in Canada

Abstract

We examined how emotional and communication functioning at kindergarten predicted the academic trajectories of refugee children. Drawing from a population-based Canadian cohort, the study followed 629 refugee children from age 5 to 13 and (i) modeled kindergarten, Grade 4, and Grade 7 academic trajectories via group-based trajectory modeling and (ii) investigated to what extent teacher ratings of kindergarten emotional and communication functioning predicted academic trajectory group membership. Three groups were identified: ‘Average’ (n?=?438), ‘Declining’ (n?=?119), and ‘Low-But-Improving’ (n?=?72) groups. Logistic regression analyses revealed that, in comparison to the Average trajectory, lower emotional functioning at kindergarten was associated with an increased likelihood of a Declining academic trajectory, whereas lower communication functioning at kindergarten was associated with a greater likelihood of a Low-But-Improving trajectory (versus an Average trajectory). The findings indicate that refugee children are more likely to overcome early communication challenges versus emotional challenges to achieve academically, and this has important implications for early mental health support.     

Strengthening internal quality assurance processes: facilitating student evaluation committees to contribute

Student evaluation committees play a crucial role in internal quality assurance processes as representatives of the student body. However, the students on these committees sometimes experience difficulty in providing constructive and structured feedback to faculty in an environment characterised by a strong power differential between student and staff. This study aimed to evaluate a leadership and quality assurance training implemented for students involved in internal quality assurance. Furthermore, we explored how students give shape to their internal quality assurance role. Students from three health sciences programmes participated in a mixed methods study to evaluate the training and reflect on their internal quality assurance role. Overall, the students were very enthusiastic about the training. Qualitative data analysis indicated that in their internal quality assurance role, students: (1) harnessed the power of the entire student population; (2) tried to create focus and take charge; (3) searched for a common ground with staff, and (4) they explained how they dealt with the power differential. Providing training for students with internal quality assurance roles is a valuable endeavour. Future research needs to investigate further ways to help students to contribute to internal quality assurance processes in higher education.     

Using body donor demographics to assist the implementation of donation programs in Brazil

The use of human material in anatomy education depends upon the generosity of body donors. However, little is known regarding the demographics of body donors in Brazil, where voluntary body donation is a relatively rare phenomenon. Hence, the aim of the present study was to elucidate the demographic profile of applicants to the Body Donation Program (BDP) at the Federal University of Health Sciences of Porto Alegre in Brazil, as well as to assess whether the observed characteristics of body donors are unique to that sample, or if they merely reflect the characteristics of the regional population. Information derived from the specific forms filled out by donors between January 2008 and June 2016 at the time of registration were collected. Data from 416 forms were analyzed. Based on this study, the typical applicant in Brazil is typically a white female (67.4%), over 60 years of age (60.3%), unmarried or single (70.6%), affiliated with a religious group (89.1%), of middle class background (40.4%), who has completed high school and/or holds a university degree (93.8%). The motivation of donors was, in most cases, an altruistic gesture, represented by the desire to help society and science. Elucidating these demographic characteristics of potential donors may help identify the target public to which information regarding body donation campaigns could be directed. Anat Sci Educ 10: 475–486. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.