Mexican Educators Survey on Anatomical Sciences Education and a Review of World Tendencies

Anatomical sciences curricula have been under constant reform over the years, with many countries having to reduce course hours while trying to preserve laboratory time. In Mexico, schools have historically been autonomous and unregulated, and data regarding structure and methods are still lacking. A national survey was sent by the Mexican Society of Anatomy to 110 anatomical sciences educators. The questionnaire consisted of 50 items (open and multiple choice) for gross anatomy, microscopic anatomy, neuroanatomy, and embryology courses in medical schools across Mexico. A clinical approach was the most common course approach in all disciplines. Contact course hours and laboratory hours were higher in Mexican anatomy education compared to other countries, with the highest reported contact hours for embryology (133.4 ± 44.1) and histology (125 ± 33.2). There were similar contact hours to other countries for gross anatomy (228.5 ± 60.5). Neuroanatomy course hours (43.9 ± 13.1) were less than reported by the United States and similar to Saudi Arabia and higher than the United Kingdom. Dissection and microscopy with histological slides predominate as the most common laboratory activities. Traditional methods prevail in most of the courses in Mexico and only a few educators have implemented innovative and technological tools. Implementation of new methods, approaches, and curricular changes are needed to enhance anatomical sciences education in Mexico.     

Generalizability theory and the fair and valid assessment of linguistic minorities

We discuss generalizability (G) theory and the fair and valid assessment of linguistic minorities, especially emergent bilinguals. G theory allows examination of the relationship between score variation and language variation (e.g., variation of proficiency across languages, language modes, and social contexts). Studies examining score variation across items administered in emergent bilinguals' first and second languages show that the interaction of student and the facets (sources of measurement error) item and language is an important source of score variation. Each item poses a unique set of linguistic challenges in each language, and each emergent bilingual individual has a unique set of strengths and weaknesses in each language. Based on these findings, G theory can inform the process of test construction in large-scale testing programmes and the development of testing models that ensure more valid and fair interpretations of test scores for linguistic minorities.     

Probabilistic Approaches to Examining Linguistic Features of Test Items and Their Effect on the Performance of English Language Learners

This article addresses validity and fairness in the testing of English language learners (ELLs)—students in the United States who are developing English as a second language. It discusses limitations of current approaches to examining the linguistic features of items and their effect on the performance of ELL students. The article submits that these limitations stem from the fact that current ELL testing practices are not effective in addressing three basic notions on the nature of language and the linguistic features of test items: (a) language is a probabilistic phenomenon, (b) the linguistic features of test items are multidimensional and interconnected, and (c) each test item has a unique set of linguistic affordances and constraints. Along with the limitations of current testing practices, for each notion, the article discusses evidence of the effectiveness of several probabilistic approaches to examining the linguistic features of test items in ELL testing.     

Education in Basic Skills and Training for Productive Work

The success of global policies and strategies aimed at training for productive work depends to a large extent on the level of development of basic skills among the work force and, likewise, training costs will vary according to the level of general preparation of those entering on the process. In view of the close relationship between the structure of the school system, the development of basic skills and actual training, different options are available to resolve imbalances between training for productive employment and previous basic education. Our conclusions are that training cannot replace basic education, that the process of technological change goes hand in hand with an increased demand for workers with a high level of education, that substituting training in specific skills for good basic education is not the most efficient option, and that one of the favorable effects of primary education is that it facilitates after- school training. This article seeks to identify certain dimensions of human resource training which are often overlooked in relation to both basic skills and specific training proper: namely, the imbalances existing between vocational training and previous education, and the options available for correcting them.     

Long-Term Effects of Food Supplementation and Psychosocial Intervention on the Physical Growth of Colombian Infants at Risk of Malnutrition

280 Colombian infants at risk of malnutrition were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 experimental groups formed by the presence/absence of 2 interventions: (1) food supplementation for the entire family, from mid-pregnancy until the target child was 3 years old, and (2) a twice-weekly home-visiting program to promote cognitive development, from birth until age 3. All families received free medical care and were studied prospectively. At 3 years of age, children who had received food supplementation averaged 2.6 cm and 642 grams larger than controls. Home visiting and supplementation together reduced the number of children with severe growth retardation. 3 years after intervention (age 6), supplementation effects remained. Children in the home visit condition had become larger than controls, by 1.7 cm and 448 grams. The interactive effect to reduce stunting was marginally significant at this age, and the overall distribution of scores was improved. Other results suggest that changes in family functioning as well as biological mechanisms account for the observed pattern of results.     

Measuring Multidimensional Subjective Well-Being with the I COPPE Scale in a Hispanic Sample

The purpose of this study was to provide initial validity evidence for measuring multidimensional subjective well-being in a Hispanic sample with the Interpersonal, Community, Occupational, Physical, Psychological, Economic (I COPPE) Scale. Participants were 641 English-speaking adults who self-identified as Hispanic. Bi-factor analyses were used to evaluate (a) the a priori measurement theory for responses to the I COPPE Scale and (b) convergent relationships of the seven I COPPE subjective well-being factors with scores from established comparison instruments. There was evidence that (a) the a priori hypothesized measurement theory for responses to the I COPPE Scale emerged in an exploratory bi-factor analysis and (b) the I COPPE subjective well-being factors exhibited convergent relationships with scores from comparison instruments. Use of the I COPPE Scale to derive multidimensional measures of subjective well-being may be of potential utility to future research in the interdisciplinary study of human movement and in a diversity of populations in which health disparities may exist.     

Social constructs regarding the physical and sexual energy of whites,indigenous South Americans and blacks in Spanish and Colombian primary school reading books between 1900 and 1960*

This article analyses the manner in which the physical and sexual energy of the white, native South American and black populations was represented in reading books for elementary school children in Spain and Colombia between 1900 and 1960. Ninety reading books from representative authors were examined. It was found that the ideal of extraordinary physical vigour attributed to the white male was decisive in justifying Spanish imperialism, the superiority of the male in the patriarchal family and the intervention of authorities in administering people’s bodies. In the case of Spanish texts, the might attributed to the white race was shown as having a motive of pride, whereas in the Colombian case, the mixture with Native Americans and blacks tended to be used as an explanation for the ‘weakness’ of Colombians. Evidence is also found of the way in which education was implicitly conceived as a process of cultural ‘whitening’.