Presenter passion and presentation design on reviewer assessment and subsequent success: An empirical study of high technology proposal and business plan presentations

We investigate two fundamental research questions related to the funding of early-stage technology enterprises. First, does presentation design, and the presenting entrepreneur's passion and preparedness, influence experts' assessment of the merit and commercialization potential of an emerging firm's technology? Second, are the entrepreneur's passion and preparedness during a formal presentation associated with future technology success? We analyze twenty-two video-taped presentations to a U.S. Department of Defense technology transfer and granting consortium, and track subsequent technology success. From the data it appears that both entrepreneurial passion and presentation design does influence expert assessment of a technology, and future commercialization success can be predicted to some extent by the level of entrepreneurial passion exhibited during the presentation.     

Getting assessment right at the classroom level: using formative assessment for decision making

Current high-stakes accountability mandates emphasize data use for school improvement. However, teachers often lack training for effective data use, and data is often too far removed from students to actually influence instructional practice. This qualitative case study was designed to gain a better understanding of a district-wide, teacher-centered approach to data use. Findings suggest that when data is used to “inform” instruction rather than “evaluate” instruction, teachers begin to practice reflective teaching. A common language emerged across grade levels facilitating a collaborative approach to data use. Using the theoretical framework of Self-Determination Theory, we propose a data informed instructional theoretical model that stakeholders in K-12 education systems can use to enhance instruction and learning at the classroom level. This teacher-centered model is of particular importance as a framework to build collective capacity by meeting psychological needs of teachers of autonomy, competence, and relatedness.     

Measures of reading comprehension: do they measure different skills for children learning English as a second language?

The validity of two measures of English reading comprehension was examined across three different groups of English language learners (ELLs; 64 Portuguese, 66 Spanish and 65 Cantonese). All three groups were achieving within the average range in second grade. An exploratory principal components analysis of reading skills was carried out to determine which skills were related to two commonly used tests of reading comprehension, the Woodcock Language Proficiency Battery??s test of Passage Comprehension (WLPB-PC; Woodcock, 1991) and the Gray Oral Reading Test-4 (GORT-4; Wiederholt & Bryant, 2001). The factor solutions were different for the three language groups but showed many similarities in that the GORT-4 and WLPB-R tests of reading comprehension fell on the same factor within each group. Hierarchical regression analyses examining relationships among vocabulary, decoding and reading comprehension showed that language group membership did not significantly predict performance on either measure of reading comprehension. Differences that arose are likely due to issues with task validity and not ELL status. Limitations and future research are discussed.     

Reading comprehension of immigrant students in Germany: research evidence on determinants and target points for intervention

International studies, such as the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), have shown that, in most participating countries, students who do not typically speak the test language at home reach lower levels of reading comprehension than students using the test language at home (Stanat & Christensen, 2006). Results from PISA indicate that Germany is among the countries with the most pronounced differences in reading comprehension between immigrant students and students from native families. The present article summarizes these findings and shows that the reading achievement gap persists even when the socioeconomic and educational background of students?? families are controlled. Furthermore, although controlling for background factors reduces the effect of the language spoken at home on reading, it continues to be substantial. Using these findings as a starting point, the article addresses the question of what should be done to close this gap. It summarizes research findings indicating that oral proficiency presents an important determinant of reading comprehension in a second language. This suggests that effective general approaches to second-language teaching are needed to promote reading literacy in a L2. The article closes with a discussion of the available evidence on the effectiveness of such approaches and outlines the need for further research.     

Rethinking library service to distance education students: analyzing the embedded librarian model

Since fall 2009, reference librarians at The George Washington University's Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library have been embedded in online classes through Blackboard within the School of Nursing and School of Medicine and Health Sciences. The authors sought to determine the types of questions asked of the librarian, with the goal of informing future interactions with distance education classes to help develop a standard "protocol" for working with this population of students. Eighty-two questions were categorized and qualitatively analyzed. The findings have prompted librarians to explore tools such as Elluminate Live!, a tool that allows librarians to provide synchronous instruction within the Blackboard environment.     

History of education in Brazil: the construction of a knowledge field

This article analyses the general characteristics of the construction of the field of history of education in Brazil. To do so, it highlights the existing historiography and aims to describe the process of institutionalisation of this knowledge field, which, in general terms, has been focused on the area of teacher training. Since the nineteenth century, however, it has also been possible to identify systematic historiographical efforts in Brazil that are not directly related to the school system, but rather to the teaching of and research into the history of education within Brazilian universities. The article addresses the organisation of the field, the ways in which it has been structured and the strategies of academic legitimisation employed to achieve this. These include the regular production of dissertations and doctoral theses, the publication of books and journals, academic events and the creation of research groups and scientific associations, through which research findings have found national and international circulation. This set of indicators creates conditions for an understanding of the expansion and reconfiguration of the field of history of education that began in the 1980s, as well as of the challenges this phenomenon presents to current historiography and teacher training in Brazil.     

The flight attendant dilemma: an analysis of communication and sensemaking during in-flight emergencies

Building on past research, this article argues that organizational life can be usefully construed as a series of communicative performances that are embedded and enacted in everyday discursive practices. Specifically, this research explores the sensemaking process individuals undertake when faced with the dilemma of knowing when to invent appropriate ways to respond rather than being automatically constrained by past routines. The research presents case study evidence drawn from participant observation and interviews with flight attendants from a major U.S. airline. Shown to be high in emotional and impression management, flight attendants perform a feminized role that privileges accommodation over authority and reassurance over safety that may influence their performances in emergency situations. The work ends with an evaluation of the dominant air travel performance in relation to safety and offers recommendations for facilitating communication and coordination among flight attendants and pilots.     

Expanding Our Roles: Embedded in Curriculum Design

This article describes how librarians became involved as members of an interdisciplinary curricular team in a problem-based learning course for first- and second-year medical students. The experience illustrates how librarians can become part of a team, collaborating with medical faculty to assist in revising curricula, incorporating innovative teaching techniques, and creating effective simulated patient case scenarios. Working within an interdisciplinary collaborative team on curriculum development allows librarians to move beyond the traditional role of instruction and can lead to additional opportunities, including research and ongoing involvement in curricular changes.