Accuracy and feasibility of video analysis for assessing hamstring flexibility and validity of the sit-and-reach test

The accuracy of video analysis of the passive straight-leg raise test (PSLR) and the validity of the sit-and-reach test (SR) were tested in 60 men and women. Computer software measured static hip-joint flexion accurately. High within-session reliability of the PSLR was demonstrated (R > .97). Test-retest (separate days) reliability for SR was high in men (R = .97) and women R = .98) moderate for PSLR in men (R = .79) and women (R = .89). SR validity (PSLR as criterion) was higher in women (Day 1, r = .69; Day 2, r = .81) than men (Day 1, r = .64; Day 2, r = .66). In conclusion, video analysis is accurate and feasible for assessing static joint angles, PSLR and SR tests are very reliable methods for assessing flexibility, and the SR validity for hamstring flexibility was found to be moderate in women and low in men.     

Teachers’ Perspectives on a Professional Development Intervention to Improve Science Instruction Among English Language Learners

Our 5-year professional development intervention is designed to promote elementary teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, and practices in teaching science, along with English language and mathematics for English Language Learning (ELL) students in urban schools. In this study, we used an end-of-year questionnaire as a primary data source to seek teachers’ perspectives on our intervention during the first year of implementation. Teachers believed that the intervention, including curriculum materials and teacher workshops, effectively promoted students’ science learning, along with English language development and mathematics learning. Teachers highlighted strengths and areas needing improvement in the intervention. Teachers’ perspectives have been incorporated into our on-going intervention efforts and offer insights into features of effective professional development initiatives in improving science achievement for all students.

Preparing GTAs for Active Learning in the General Chemistry Lab: Development of an Evidence-Based Rehearsal Module for a Mixed-Reality Teaching Simulator

Journal of Science Education and Technology - There is an assumption that graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) have mastery of the chemistry content they are teaching and preparation to instruct...     

Effects of within-class ability grouping on social interaction,achievement, and motivation

This study examined how grouping arrangements affect students achievement, social interaction, and motivation. Students of high, average and low ability were randomly assigned to homogeneous or heterogeneous ability groups. All groups attended the same plant biology course. The main results indicate that low-ability students achieve more and are more motivated to learn in heterogeneous groups. Average-ability students perform better in homogeneous groups whereas high-ability students show equally strong learning outcomes in homogeneous and heterogeneous groups. Results on social interaction indicate that heterogeneous groups produce higher proportions of individual elaborations, whereas homogeneous groups use relatively more collaborative elaborations. In the discussion, these differences in social interaction are used to explain the differential effects of grouping arrangements on achievement scores. Practical implications are discussed and topics for further research are advanced.     

Paraprofessional home visitors’ perspectives on addressing poor mental health,substance abuse,and domestic violence: A qualitative study

This research was conducted to understand paraprofessional home visitors’ perceptions of their training in addressing poor mental health, substance abuse, and domestic violence, and their actions in working with families in addressing these issues. Five focus groups were conducted with a total of 28 paraprofessional home visitors. Three main themes emerged from qualitative analysis. Home visitors experienced tension between addressing families’ more pressing needs such as housing or utilities and addressing poor mental health, substance abuse, and domestic violence. Home visitors felt that they received extensive training in these risk areas, but that this training focused heavily on knowledge acquisition rather than skill development. Home visitors also desired more guidance in addressing families’ poor mental health, substance abuse, and domestic violence concerns—namely, more clarity on the extent to which they should address these issues during visits and more and varied supervision. Home visitors need more training on how to initiate conversations about mental health, substance abuse, and domestic violence, including how to transition conversations from other client needs. Home visiting programs must clarify home visitors’ roles in addressing clients’ poor mental health, substance abuse, and domestic violence and provide additional and varied supervision to home visitors.     

Cognitive Representations of Self, Family, and Peers in School-Age Children: Links with Social Competence and Sociometric Status

Attachment and social-cognitive theories of interpersonal relations have underscored the integral role that internalized cognitive representations may play as mediators of the link between family and peer relationships. 3 predictions consistent with this conceptualization received support in the present study of 161 7–12-year-old school children. In Part 1 of the study, significant connections were found among different components of cognitive representations, including social perceptions, interpersonal expectancies, and schematic organization and processing of social information. Moreover, generalization was found among children's representations across 3 interpersonal domains–that is, family, peer, and self. In Part 2, negative representations of self and others were found to be associated with increased social impairment, including dysfunctional social behavior and less positive status in the peer group. Implications of the findings for theories of interpersonal competence and interventions with socially impaired children are discussed.     

Children’s acquisition and use of the control-of-variables strategy: effects of explicit and implicit instructional guidance

Direct instruction is a proven effective method to strengthen children’s ability to design unconfounded experiments using the control-of-variables strategy (CVS). Recent research suggests that task segmentation can also promote children’s use of this strategy. The present study investigated this assumption by comparing the relative effectiveness of both instructional approaches in elementary science classes. Children in the direct instruction condition (n = 22) were taught the CVS prior to investigating a multivariable inquiry task. Children in the task structuring condition (n = 23) were not, but received a segmented version of the inquiry task that addressed the variables in successive order. Children in the control condition (n = 22) investigated the multivariable inquiry task without additional support. Comparison among these three conditions revealed that task structuring equals direct instruction in effectiveness to promote children to use the CVS and draw valid inferences, and that either type of guidance is more effective than unguided inquiry learning. However, as children’s knowledge of the CVS improved as much in either condition, more practice seems needed for children to take full advantage of both instructional approaches.