The role of expert searching in the Family Physicians' Inquiries Network (FPIN).

OBJECTIVE: This article describes the contributions of medical librarians, as members of the Family Physicians' Inquiries Network (FPIN), to the creation of a database of clinical questions and answers that allows family physicians to practice evidence-based medicine using high-quality information at the point of care. The medical librarians have contributed their evidence-based search expertise and knowledge of information systems that support the processes and output of the consortium. METHODS: Since its inception, librarians have been included as valued members of the FPIN community. FPIN recognizes the search expertise of librarians, and each FPIN librarian must meet qualifications demonstrating appropriate experience and training in evidence-based medicine. The consortium works collaboratively to produce the Clinical Inquiries series published in family medicine publications. RESULTS: Over 170 Clinical Inquiries have appeared in Journal of Family Practice (JFP) and American Family Physician (AFP). Surveys have shown that this series has become the most widely read part of the JFP Website. As a result, FPIN has formalized specific librarian roles that have helped build the organizational infrastructure. CONCLUSIONS: All of the activities of the consortium are highly collaborative, and the librarian community reflects that. The FPIN librarians are valuable and equal contributors to the process of creating, updating, and maintaining high-quality clinical information for practicing primary care physicians. Of particular value is the skill of expert searching that the librarians bring to FPIN's products.     

Gaze pursuit and arm control of adolescent males diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and normal controls: evidence of a dissociation in processing visual information of short and long duration

Three-dimensional kinematic analysis of line of gaze, arm and ball was used to describe the visual and motor behaviour of male adolescents diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The ADHD participants were tested when both on (ADHD-On) and off (ADHD-Off) their medication and compared to age-matched normal controls in a modified table tennis task that required tracking the ball and hitting to cued right and left targets. Long-duration information was provided by a pre-cue, in which the target was illuminated approximately 2 s before the serve, and short-duration information by an early-cue illuminated about 350 ms after the serve, leaving approximately 500 ms to select the target and perform the action. The ADHD groups differed significantly from the control group in both the pre-cue and early-cue conditions in being less accurate, in having a later onset and duration of pursuit tracking, and a higher frequency of gaze on and off the ball. The use of medication significantly reduced the gaze frequency of the ADHD participants, but surprisingly this did not lead to an increase in pursuit tracking, suggesting a barrier was reached beyond which ball flight information could not be processed. The control and ADHD groups did not differ in arm movement onset, duration and velocity in the short-duration early-cue condition; in the long-duration pre-cue condition, however, the ADHD group's movement time onset and arm velocity differed significantly from controls. The results show that the ADHD groups were able to process short-duration information without experiencing adverse effects on their motor behaviour; however, long-duration information contributed to irregular movement control.     

The Effects of Standardized Testing on Teaching and Schools

How much influence does standardized testing exert on teaching and learning in upper elementary classrooms? Is there any difference between the impact of testing on low-SES and high-SES classrooms? How much impact does “teaching to the test” appear to have on test scores?     

Classification of children in special education: Importance of pre-assessment information

The records of 137 students for whom complete data files were available were examined in order to determine the extent to which pre-assessment data (teacher referral information and standardized reading test scores) could successfully be used to predict the handicapping classifications decided on by child-study teams. We were specifically interested in the predictive power of pre-assessment information above and beyond that provided by handicapped children's race and gender. Results of our analyses indicated that pre-assessment data can successfully predict the handicapped classifications of the majority of special education students, as well as differentiate students who are found eligible for special education from those found to be ineligible.     

Predictors of teachers perceived self-competence in classroom management

The purpose of this exploratory study was to identify predictors of teacher manageability beliefs (the degree to which teachers believe they can personally manage a behavior). One hundred and eighty-two teachers completed the 39-item, nine-subtest Teacher Manageability Scale (TMS), which asked participants to rate each behavior (on a 5-point scale) by responding to the question “How easily can you manage the behavior when any student…?” Results of a multivariate regression analysis evaluating the relationship between the nine subtests (dependent variables) and eleven teacher-reported independent variables indicated that between 13% and 18% of the variance was predicted for the six TMS subtests achieving significance. The variables related to the greatest number of dependent measures were student academic achievement and socioeconomic status. Surprisingly, principal's disciplinary support and class size (enrollment) failed to predict even a single subtest. Implications for professional educators working with students identified for special educational services and future research are discussed.     

Primary Teachers' thinking about the English National Curriculum for science: Autobiographies,warrants, and autonomy

Primary teachers, whether or not they have a specialized background in science, hold the key to understanding how science is presently working in primary schools. This paper examines their confidence and identity as science teachers in tandem with their views on the English National Curriculum and the warrants they give for those views. Data for this study were collected by in‐depth interviews of a small sample of primary teachers, setting their views in the context of their science‐related life histories. These are presented in three ways—by biographical sketches illuminating their self‐image as science teachers; by analysis of their views on the curriculum; and by analysis of the types of knowledge they used as warrants for their views. Analysis showed that their professional self‐image and their ‘science autobiographies’ were mutually validating. Where science teaching had become embedded into their perception of themselves as teachers, their critiques of the science curriculum and their desire for autonomy in its teaching could be shown to be consistent with their values © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 37: 1043–1056, 2000     

Alignment of Mathematics State-Level Standards and Assessments: The Role of Reviewer Agreement

This article examines the role of reviewer agreement in judgments about alignment between tests and standards. We used case data from three state alignment studies to explore how different approaches to incorporating reviewer agreement changes alignment conclusions. The three case studies showed varying degrees of reviewer agreement about correspondences between objectives and test items. Moreover, taking into account reviewer agreement in the analyses sometimes had a marked effect on alignment conclusions. We discuss reasons for differences across case studies and alignment approaches, as well as implications for future alignment efforts.