The development of sex role stereotypes in the third year: relationships to gender labeling, gender identity, sex-typed toy preference, and family characteristics

The onset and development of preschoolers' awareness of sex role stereotypes, gender labeling, gender identity, and sex-typed toy preference were explored in 26-, 31-, and 36-month-old children. Gender labeling, gender identity, sex-typed toy preferences, and awareness of adult sex role differences were observed in significantly more 26-month-old children than would have been expected by chance. Verbal gender labeling was observed in a majority of 26-month-olds, while verbal and nonverbal gender identity were observed in a majority of 31-month-olds. Nonverbal gender labeling and awareness of adult sex role differences were observed in a majority of children by 36 months. No evidence of awareness of sex differences in children's toys was found in the majority of children at any age. Awareness of sex role differences in children's toys was not related to awareness of adult sex role differences. Brighter children were more aware of adult sex role differences. Sex-typed toy preference was not related to awareness of sex role differences but was related to gender identity. Predictors of sex role development included the mothers' employment, and the father's personality traits, attitudes toward women, and sex-typed activities in the home. Implications for theories of early sex role development are discussed.     

Mentor perspectives on the place of undergraduate research mentoring in academic identity and career development: an analysis of award winning mentors

Abstract

This study examines how Undergraduate Research (UR) mentoring fits into the career profile of award-winning UR mentors and the factors that motivate engagement as UR mentors. Twenty-four award-winning UR mentors in four countries were interviewed about their mentoring practices. Six themes emerged: (1) Academic Identity and Motivations; (2) Challenges to Academic Identity and Career Development; (3) Enhanced Research Productivity; (4) Recognition and Reward; (5) Institution Values Commitment and (6) Developing Other Mentors. The authors discuss these themes and how the findings can be utilized for academic development and identity formation for faculty.     

Practitioners' perspectives and experiences of supporting bilingual pupils on the autism spectrum in two linguistically different educational settings

With greater linguistic diversity in educational settings around the world as a result of international migration, and a rise in autism diagnoses, educators are more frequently teaching children who are both neurodiverse and linguistically different to their peers. The aim of the present study was to uncover the perspectives and experiences of educational practitioners who provide support for bilingual learners on the autism spectrum in two linguistically different educational settings: England and Wales. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 practitioners (5 teachers, 4 teaching assistants, 3 special educational needs coordinators and 1 speech and language therapist) working in mainstream schools. Data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), which seeks to illuminate participants' lived experience. Three superordinate themes were extracted from the data: (1) perspectives on bilingualism in autism; (2) comparisons across two linguistically different settings; (3) creating inclusive learning environments. The results demonstrate that practitioners had concerns about the feasibility of bilingualism for some autistic pupils, and argued that exposure to two languages may have a negative impact on their development. Future research should focus on finding effective ways to identify and support learning needs among bilingual pupils to ensure that children who are ‘doubly different’ from their peers not only have access to educational provision, but also have opportunities to harness and celebrate their differences.     

Re-engagement with education over the life course: motivations and barriers

ABSTRACT

As the Australian labour market restructures and the pace of technological advances quickens, reskilling and up-skilling are now required for sustained employability. Thus, many adults embark on further study after spending a period of time in the workforce. To examine the reasons for re-engaging, and for not re-engaging with education during adulthood, we conduct analysis of longitudinal data collected from a cohort of people who completed school in 1991. The majority of the participants completed an educational qualification between 25 and 44 years and were thus, lifelong learners. Understanding the patterns of re-engagement with education and the reasons why some people choose to re-engage whereas others do not contributes to current policy debates about how education prepares Australians for life.     

Gender and management in further education in Scotland: an agenda for research

Research on gender and education is somewhat limited in Scotland, and research that explores the further education sector from a gender perspective is particularly lacking. This paper argues for such work, and underlines its importance given the prominence of FE in the Scottish policy context as a key contributor to the knowledge economy and lifelong learning agendas of the Scottish parliament. The argument is also made that research on gender—including masculinities—may have particular salience in Scotland because of specific cultural assumptions and practices that inhibit the recognition of women in management. The paper reports on a small pilot study of senior women managers in the further education sector in Scotland, and draws on their experiences to advocate further research that is attentive to the gendered nature of organizations and the interrelationship of masculinities and managerialism.     

Don't they teach that in high school? Examining the high school to college information literacy gap

College librarians express concern over incoming students' information literacy skills and lack of skills preparing them for college-level research. However, it is unclear whether information literacy skills are not being taught at the high school level, whether they are not being retained or transferred as students move on to college, or whether there is a disconnect between the skills taught in high school and those expected of incoming college students. This study explores these questions through a set of parallel surveys sent to a national sample of high school and college librarians. Findings suggest that high school and college librarians agree on the importance of most skills though they vary in their emphasis on their importance, and that information literacy skills are being taught in high school but do not seem to transfer to college. The paper concludes with suggestions for increased communication and collaboration to bridge the high school to college transition.     

Open access megajournals: The publisher perspective (Part 2: Operational realities)

This paper is the second of two Learned Publishing articles in which we report the results of a series of interviews, with senior publishers and editors exploring open access megajournals (OAMJs). Megajournals (of which PLoS One is the best known example) represent a relatively new approach to scholarly communication and can be characterized as large, broad‐scope, open access journals, which take an innovative approach to peer review, basing acceptance decisions solely on the technical or scientific soundness of the article. Based on interviews with 31 publishers and editors, this paper reports the perceived cultural, operational, and technical challenges associated with launching, growing, and maintaining a megajournal. We find that overcoming these challenges while delivering the societal benefits associated with OAMJs is seen to require significant investment in people and systems, as well as an ongoing commitment to the model.     

Network therapy using videotape disclosures for adult sexual abuse survivors.

Treatment of childhood sexual abuse survivors may be enhanced by a technique designed to generate a therapeutic constituency for the survivor around the disclosure of childhood abuse experiences. The need for validating relationships is hypothesized as a condition for successful treatment. The videotaped disclosure process proceeds in five stages: (1) Deciding to make a tape, (2) making a videotape following a semistructured interview format, (3) the patient viewing the tape, (4) showing the tape to potential therapeutic team members, and (5) possibly using the tape for a confrontation with the abuser. The technique has been used on 27 cases. Case histories are given to illustrate the procedure. Discussion includes potential mechanisms of action and issues in treatment that arise with the use of the method described.     

Keith Haring in Pisa and Melbourne: Controversy and conservation

Keith Haring painted large outdoor murals in Melbourne, Australia, in 1984 (the Collingwood Mural) and at Pisa in Italy in 1989 (Tuttomondo). Recently, both murals have been analyzed and conserved by similar teams of conservators and scientists. The original appearance of the Collingwood Mural was severely compromised, and the original materials much degraded. Tuttomondo was somewhat altered visually but with less physical damage. There were initial suggestions to repaint Tuttomondo but these were dissipated by good communication of the analytical findings. In Melbourne, there was a high-profile and emotive campaign to have the Collingwood Mural repainted. Conservators and government were heavily criticized for supposedly ignoring the artist's wishes. However, detailed research into Haring's published statements revealed that conservation does respect his artistic aims. For the Collingwood Mural, conservators had to consider whether to reduce the visual disturbances which obscured the works. Practices documented by conservation theorists and routinely undertaken by conservators guided the decision to apply mechanically reversible re-integration. This made Haring's unique ‘line’ visible and accessible again, and pleased the public. The controversies showed how conservators must communicate clearly and tactfully; appreciate the feelings of the public and involve communities in conservation, without compromising rigorous scientific and curatorial research.