Early Childhood Education and Care Content for the Social Work Curriculum

Social workers are poised to play an important role in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings; however, they need the knowledge and skills necessary to make a meaningful contribution. This article presents learning activities that infuse ECEC content, centered on the following four areas for social work education: (1) history of the profession, (2) observation of current practice, (3) culturally competent service delivery, and (4) advocacy to enhance social justice. Through this infusion of content, social work educators can better prepare their students for the growing field of ECEC practice and for social work practice more broadly.     

Measuring Pharmacy Student Attitudes Toward Prayer: The Student Prayer Attitude Scale (SPAS)

The objective of this study was to develop and validate an instrument to assess the attitude of student pharmacists toward prayer in general and in particular as it relates to their academic performance. To fulfill the study objective, faculty from seven colleges of pharmacy located at Christian universities collaboratively developed the Student Prayer Attitude Scale (SPAS). The items were used to assess the attitudes of student pharmacists toward prayer as well as the effects of prayer on personal lives and academic performance. Faculty investigators asked 1,563 students to complete the survey and received 677 valid responses. A principal components analysis with promax rotation was conducted and revealed a two-factor structure: (a) general attitude toward prayer and (b) specific attitude regarding the impact of prayer on academic performance. Analysis of variance was used to compare student responses by religious identity. Students identifying as atheist or agnostic were significantly different in their responses than students from theistic religions; however, the responses of students from various theistic religions were not significantly different from one another. Faculty concluded that SPAS is a reliable tool for measuring student attitudes toward prayer. The use of such a tool could help faculty tailor educational opportunities to allow pharmacy students to explore prayer more fully and be aware of its impact on the patients they serve.     

An empirical taxonomy of youths' fears: Cluster analysis of the American fear survey schedule

Fears profiles among children and adolescents were explored using the Fear Survey Schedule for Children‐American version (FSSC‐AM; J.J. Burnham, 1995, 2005). Eight cluster profiles were identified via multistage Euclidean grouping and supported by homogeneity coefficients and replication. Four clusters reflected overall level of fears (i.e., very low, below average, moderate, and multiple), and four others exhibited specific peaks associated with school‐related fears, medical fears, and scary things. Demographic characteristics associated with cluster profile membership revealed variability primarily based on gender and age, with some differences associated with community type. Comparisons with prior results on earlier fear surveys and implications for school refusal behavior provide a useful context for discussion. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 43: 673–683, 2006.     

Concurrent and Subsequent Associations Between Daily Digital Technology Use and High‐Risk Adolescents’ Mental Health Symptoms

Adolescents are spending an unprecedented amount of time using digital technologies (especially mobile technologies), and there are concerns that adolescents’ constant connectivity is associated with poor mental health, particularly among at‐risk adolescents. Participants included 151 adolescents at risk for mental health problems (M_age = 13.1) who completed a baseline assessment, 30‐day ecological momentary assessment, and 18 month follow‐up assessment. Results from multilevel regression models showed that daily reports of both time spent using digital technologies and the number of text messages sent were associated with increased same‐day attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorder (CD) symptoms. Adolescents’ reported digital technology usage and text messaging across the ecological momentary assessment (EMA) period was also associated with poorer self‐regulation and increases in conduct problem symptoms between the baseline and follow‐up assessments.     

A Longitudinal Analysis of the Relations Among Professional Development,Educators’ Beliefs and Perceived Skills,and Response-to-Intervention Implementation

ABSTRACT

Professional development is a critical systems-level intervention thought to facilitate Response-to-Intervention (RtI) implementation. The current study examined the relations between professional development, educator outcomes, and problem-solving implementation within an RtI framework using growth curve modeling. School leadership teams from pilot schools (n = 34) participated in 3 years of training. Pilot schools also received job-embedded coaching. Comparison schools (n = 27) provided a referent group. Results indicated that problem-solving implementation increased faster at pilot schools (β = 0.10, SE = 0.05, t = 2.03, p < .05). In addition, beliefs regarding data-based decision-making (β = 0.36, SE = 0.17, t = 2.13, p < .05) and perceived problem-solving skills applied to academics (β = 0.30, SE = 0.10, t = 3.07, p < .01) positively related to implementation. Implications include the needs to further explore professional development activities and for consultants to utilize evidence-based professional development principles when supporting RtI implementation.     

教育与可持续发展相结合案例研究——以肯尼亚青年多科技术学院模式为例

引言背景资料在殖民统治时期,教育制度在性质上既是分层性的,也是隔离性的,肯尼亚人同其他非洲人一样只被允许接受关于职业和农业教育,其目的是为殖民者提供廉价的体力劳动者(Sorobea,1992;Sheffield,1971)。这在殖民时期的各种教育报告中被反复提及,包括:弗雷泽,1902年;菲尔普斯斯托克斯,1924年;毕彻,1949年。而学历教育则是     

Marketing Theory and Practice On‐line: a Development Towards International Collaboration

The authors detail the development of an on‐line course, “Marketing Theory and Practice On‐line” (MTPO) as part of the charter‐mandated commitment of Monash University of Australia to deliver quality flexible education transnationally. The course, that is now offered to both on‐campus and distance education students, uses a full range of media and computer technologies, including the Internet, e‐mail, bulletin boards, on‐line library facilities, video animations, and hypertext. The guiding principles for the development of the course were that the methodology must enrich the learning experience; the communication shell must enrich a scholarly environment; and the subject development should encourage and facilitate new opportunities. The ultimate aim is to utilize MTPO as the basis for international collaboration and to use the collaboration in question to develop a stronger intellectual package with specialist marketing subjects at both the undergraduate and the postgraduate levels.     

Influences and Experiences Affecting the Pro‐environmental Behaviour of Educators

This paper examines the relative importance of various categories of influence and formative life experiences on the development of environmental educators’ knowledge and concern for the environment. The authors analyse the ways in which the importance of influences may change through time or be affected by the subject's age. Conclusions are drawn and discussed, including the crucial role of the family and of childhood experiences outdoors in promoting the development of concern for the environment and pro‐environmental adult behaviour.     

A Place to Protest

The national media converged on Baltimore, Charleston, and Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 and 2015 to cover protests in response to police violence toward African American males. Although national and local media covered the events and the aftermath, alternative media sought to provide additional viewpoints and spur readers to respond. This study analyzed the practices, content, and public discourse connected to alternative weekly newspapers in Baltimore, Charleston, and St. Louis. The study examined whether the publications reflected ideal roles of alternative media, including representing different viewpoints, using non-traditional methods of content, and providing a space for the public to challenge systems of power and oppression. The authors also studied the online forums associated with all three publications, including each organization’s website and Facebook page, as potential spaces for alternative publics to emerge around a shared interest in collective action. The publications showed some characteristics of the ideal form of alternative media, but most lacked the diverse voices and critical calls to action needed to represent the normative standard. The discourse the news organizations spurred also fell short of the ideal. The forums lacked rational and critical engagement, and commenters largely failed to promote sincere attempts to engage in community conversation.