What Does a Modern Anatomist Look like? Current Trends in the Training of Anatomy Educators

Anatomical sciences are foundational to the health professions, yet little is known about the qualifications of anatomy educators at the graduate and professional level in the United States. Moreover, there is concern that the number of qualified anatomy educators being trained may be insufficient to meet the growing demand posed by new and expanded programs in medicine and allied health specialties. The authors surveyed anatomists from across the country to (i) characterize the educational credentials of current anatomy educators and (ii) assess the perceived need for education-focused postdoctoral positions or formal mentorships to prepare anatomists for teaching-intensive faculty positions. To probe the survey responses more deeply, one-on-one interviews were conducted with eight individuals selected to represent a diverse sample of respondents in terms of institution, gender, and academic rank. Results indicate that 30–40% of educators at the graduate level and approximately 60% of those at the undergraduate level lack graduate coursework in histology, embryology, and neuroanatomy. Forty-five percent of respondents had completed a postdoctoral fellowship. Eighty-six percent replied “yes/maybe” to the question of whether an anatomy education postdoctoral fellowship would benefit doctoral graduates. The top 3 reasons for this recommendation were to (i) establish independent educational research, (ii) improve a publication record, and (iii) gain additional teaching experience. Notable weaknesses of education-focused postdoctoral training were related to finances, fear of exploitation, and undervaluing of teaching. Moving forward, postdoctoral fellowships and other forms of postgraduate training may represent a key strategy for training anatomists in the current educational climate. Anat Sci Educ 00: 000–000. © 2018 American Association of Anatomists.     

Salience of Emotional Intelligence as a Core Characteristic of Being a Counselor

The authors investigated the association between emotional intelligence and counseling self‐efficacy. Participants were 140 counseling students and practicing counselors who completed the Emotional Judgment Inventory and the Counseling Self‐Estimate Inventory. Emotional intelligence differentiated counselors from noncounselors (Mdn d = .6650) but provided mixed results in differentiating counseling students and counselors. Moreover, the emotional intelligence factors Identifying Own Emotions, Expressing Emotions Adaptively, and Using Emotions in Problem Solving successfully predicted counseling self‐efficacy of both counseling students and practicing counselors (R = .537). Emotional intelligence may be another marker for individuals exploring professional counseling as a career and for improving students' counseling self‐efficacy.     

Attention Deficit Disorder as a factor in the origin of behavioural disturbance in schools

The education of children with behavioural difficulties is under scrutiny from various quarters. The provision of specialised school environments isbeing questioned and, at the same time, there is pressure to minimise the exclusion of disruptive pupils. The study reported in this article lookedat a group of children whose behaviour had prompted placement in a school for emotionally and behaviourally disordered (EBD) pupils. The results showed the overall rate of psychiatric disturbance in the group was 86% and, in particular, that the rate of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) was 70%. These findings suggest that a significant minority of disruptive pupils may have their difficulties compounded by the presence of ADHD, and raises the question of whether specific screening processes should be established for such pupils.     

Assessing students' ability to trace matter in dynamic systems in cell biology

College-level biology courses contain many complex processes that are often taught and learned as detailed narratives. These processes can be better understood by perceiving them as dynamic systems that are governed by common fundamental principles. Conservation of matter is such a principle, and thus tracing matter is an essential step in learning to reason about biological processes. We present here multiple-choice questions that measure students' ability and inclination to trace matter through photosynthesis and cellular respiration. Data associated with each question come from students in a large undergraduate biology course that was undergoing a shift in instructional strategy toward making fundamental principles (such as tracing matter) a central theme. We also present findings from interviews with students in the course. Our data indicate that 1) many students are not using tracing matter as a tool to reason about biological processes, 2) students have particular difficulties tracing matter between systems and have a persistent tendency to interconvert matter and energy, and 3) instructional changes seem to be effective in promoting application of the tracing matter principle. Using these items as diagnostic tools allows instructors to be proactive in addressing students' misconceptions and ineffective reasoning.     

ENHANCING THE LIVES OF THE AGED IN A RETIREMENT CENTER THROUGH A PROGRAM OF READING

Readarama was established for a community retirement center in Athens, Georgia. The sessions, held 1 hour weekly for 12 weeks, were attended by healthy and active elderly women whose ages ranged from 59 to 75. The participants were lifelong readers who enjoyed reading as a hobby and Readarama as a social outlet. The participants were representative of the entire adult population, not a subgroup to be labeled the elderly. Readarama points out the value of the reading group as an outlet for an already‐established hobby and as a means of forming social contacts for the retiree.     

Punishment and Pastoral Care

Can concerns relating to the care and support of pupils and those with punishment and blame be reconciled? Much is written on the former but today even when discipline and control are the focus there is little consideration of punishment and blame. Indeed, we might think that discussion of these issues can be excluded from the educational debate. In this paper John Wilson argues to the contrary. He posits that our backgrounds and experience may make us disinclined to punish and that what we can do is significantly limited by the law. Wilson suggests that this situation means that we lose contact with a whole set of basic concepts that underpin human life and are essential for any form of moral, personal and social education. Punishment is not just an unpleasant necessity but an essential part of education and perhaps even care.