Technology Transfer and Patents: Implications for the Production of Scientific Knowledge

This article explores articulations between scientific publication and the patent system: (a) Previously patented work may function as inputs to lab activity, (b) patents may result from lab activity, (c) patents may delay scientific publication, and (d) issued patents may enhance a researcher's credibility. As patentable subject matter expands and as universities engage actively in technology transfer, researchers in cutting-edge subjects can no longer depend on pursuing inquiries in ignorance of the patent system.     

Self-managing groups and the professional lives of teachers: A case study

The purpose of the study was to examine how interdisciplinary teaching teams were used in a newly opened Midwestern middle school to produce a work environment different from the one found in most traditionally organized schools. Five salient features of the work environment are described: organization around interdisciplinary teams, shared leadership, focus on children, the influence of the principal, and integrated programming for children. The article includes an analysis of how interdisciplinary teaching teams at this school affected some traditionally problematic aspects of teachers' work. Interdisciplinary teams are discussed as one illustration of self-managing work groups in school organizations.An earlier version of this article was presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, April 7, 1988.     

Homicide death rates in childhood in 23 developed countries: U.S. rates atypically high

World Health Organization vital statistics data were used to compare U.S. homicide death rates with those in 23 other developed countries. Using rank ordering and comparison with mean and median rates for the other countries, U.S. homicide rates for the general population were found to be exceptionally high among developed countries. Similarly, U.S. homicide death rates for infants and for 1–4-year-olds were atypically high. The U.S. infant homicide rates were also unusual because of a male predominance. After infancy, high female homicide rates in the U.S. were more unusual than the male rates. The atypically high homicide risk in the U.S. apparently begins in early childhood, affecting particularly male infants and females after infancy. The data and other cited information suggest that features of U.S. society may promote homicide in childhood. The scope and nature of the U.S. childhood homicide problem warrants a focused effort to develop specific preventive approaches.     

Covariates and Mixture Modeling: Results of a Simulation Study Exploring the Impact of Misspecified Effects on Class Enumeration

For some time, there have been differing recommendations about how and when to include covariates in the mixture model building process. Some have advocated the inclusion of covariates after enumeration, whereas others recommend including them early on in the modeling process. These conflicting recommendations have led to inconsistent practices and unease in trusting modeling results. In an attempt to resolve this discord, we conducted a Monte Carlo simulation to examine the impact of covariate exclusion and misspecification of covariate effects on the enumeration process. We considered population and analysis models with both direct and indirect paths from the covariates to the latent class indicators. As expected, misspecified covariate effects most commonly led to the overextraction of classes. Findings suggest that the number of classes could be reliably determined using the unconditional latent class model, thus our recommendation is that class enumeration be done prior to the inclusion of covariates.     

Mental effort and video-based learning: The relationship of preconceptions and the effects of interactive and covert practice

Recommendations for the design of interactive video materials are often based on the premise that interactive video may overcome learners' preconceptions of television as “easy.” This study investigated learner preconceptions of the difficulty of interactive video, instructional television, and television, and examined the effects of actively or covertly responding to practice questions on perceived mental effort, recall, and inferences. Seventy-one undergraduate students completed a questionnaire assessing their preconceptions of the difficulty of the three media, received their treatment, completed a questionnaire assessing perceived mental effort, then completed a recall and inference posttest. Before the lesson, the learners perceived it to be significantly easier to learn from interactive video than from instructional television and television, and significantly easier to learn from instructional television than from television. There were no significant differences in the mental effort ratings or inference scores among the three groups. The interactive video group recalled significantly more information than the television group. Possible reasons for findings and suggestions for further research are discussed.     

Approach tendency and threat display as related to social status of Siamese fighting fish,Betta splendens

Forty-eight maleBetta splendens were assigned to three groups of 16 (eight pairs) each. In two of the groups, pairs of fish were first allowed to fight until a dominance-subordinance relationship was established. Then each subject was tested on measures of time spent in approach and threat display toward either (1) its own pair member, with which it was experienced and familiar (Group EF), or toward (2) another combat-experienced fish, with which it was unfamiliar (Group EU). A third group of inexperienced and unfamiliar individuals (Group IU) were first exposed to their own mirror images and then tested for approach and threat-display duration. Pairs of these fish were then allowed to fight until dominance was determined. The three major findings were: (a) Dominant subjects approached and displayed significantly more than subordinates in all three groups; (2) Dominant subjects of Group IU did not differ significantly from dominants in the other two groups with respect to time spent in approach and display; and (3) Fish exposed to mirrors prior to combat required significantly fewer sessions to establish dominance than fish not receiving mirror exposure. Results suggest that dominant fish can be distinguished on the basis of their approach tendency and threat-display scores prior to actual physical combat. An habituation model of dominance determination was proposed.     

Social Competence and Language Skills in Mandarin–English Bilingual Preschoolers: The Moderation Effect of Emotion Regulation

Research Findings: The main aim of this study was to examine whether language skills and emotion regulation are associated with social competence and whether the relationship between English skills and social competence is moderated by emotion regulation in Mandarin–English bilingual preschoolers. The language skills of 96 children ages 36–69 months from Australian child care centers were assessed using standardized English and Mandarin tests. Social competence was assessed using teacher reports on the Behavior Assessment System for Children–2 (BASC-2) with 4 composite scales: Externalizing, Internalizing, Behavioral Symptoms, and Adaptive Skills. Positive emotion regulation and emotion dysregulation were assessed using the disappointing gift task and teacher report on the Emotion Regulation Checklist. The results show that positive emotion regulation, emotion dysregulation, English skills, and Mandarin skills were associated with different composites of the BASC-2; the relationships between English skills and Behavioral Symptoms were moderated by positive emotion regulation; and English skills and Adaptive Skills were moderated by emotion dysregulation. Practice or Policy: Discussion of the results includes new considerations for a focus on emotion regulation as well as language to promote social competence in bilingual children.     

Developing educational goals: insights from a Peer Assisted Teaching Scheme

The rapid changes facing higher education are placing increased focus on the quality of the student experience, achieving learning outcomes, and employability expectations. As a result, academics in teaching roles are increasingly measured on performance via student evaluations amplifying attention on professional development initiatives for academics. One such initiative is the Peer Assisted Teaching Scheme currently in practice across many Australian universities. The critical component of the scheme is the establishment of teaching goals that provide focus and direction for the peer partnership. This study addresses two questions: (1) Around which aspects do academics set their goals for teaching improvement? and (2) How do academics’ goals align with the SMART goal-setting framework that is prescribed in the scheme? Findings from five Australian universities showed that goals align with a variety of educational areas yet many were underdeveloped, or misaligned with the proposed strategy. The implications of this are discussed and a framework for setting education goals for teaching improvement is developed.     

Improving Campus Climate to Support Faculty Diversity and Retention: A Pilot Program for New Faculty

We report on a series of pilot programs that we developed and carried out to support the success and satisfaction of new faculty, particularly faculty of color. We hope that others committed to retaining and supporting underrepresented faculty can apply our learning from this pilot project, as a whole or in part.Fred P. Piercy, Ph.D. (University of Florida), M.Ed. (University of South Carolina), B.A. (Wake Forest University) is the Department Head of the Department of Human Development at Virginia Tech. His professional interests include family therapy education, HIV social science research and prevention, and family intervention for adolescent drug abusers. Valerie Giddings, Ph.D., M.S. (Virginia Tech), B.S. (Bennett College) is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Lifelong Learning at Winston-Salem State University. Her professional interests include anthropometry and apparel fit, cultural aesthetics for apparel, and diversity issues in higher education. Katherine R. Allen, Ph.D., M.A. (Syracuse University), B.S. (University of Connecticut) is a Professor in Human Development at Virginia Tech. Her interests include family diversity over the life course, adult sibling ties in transition, and persistence of women and minorities in IT majors. Benjamin Dixon, Ed.D. (University of Massachusetts), M.A.T. (Harvard University), B.Mus.Ed. (Howard University) is the Vice President for Multicultural Affairs at Virginia Tech. His interests include diversity, multicultural education, ethical pluralism, and equity and inclusion issues related to organizational management and development. Peggy S. Meszaros, Ph.D. (University of Maryland), M.S. (University of Kentucky), B.S. (Austin Peay State University) is the William E. Lavery Professor of Human Development and the Director of the Center for Information Technology Impacts on Children, Youth, and Families at Virginia Tech. Her interests include positive youth development, leadership issues, female career transitions, and mother/daughter communication. Karen Joest, Ph.D. (Virginia Tech), M.S. (Chaminade University), B.S. (Indiana State University) is an Assistant Professor of Child and Family Studies at the State University of New York, College at Oneonta. Her interests include adolescents exposed to domestic violence, use of qualitative research, and use of technology and feminist pedagogy     

Building Vocabulary Knowledge in Preschoolers Through Shared Book Reading and Gameplay

This study moves beyond previous investigations to examine whether an educational intervention combining shared book reading with a vocabulary game increases children's vocabulary knowledge. Four‐year‐olds (N = 44) were randomly assigned to dyads in either an intervention (shared book reading plus vocabulary review game) or comparison condition (shared book reading, after‐reading vocabulary review, and game that did not teach vocabulary). After two 30‐min sessions, results demonstrated that the intervention condition outperformed the comparison condition on measures of receptive and expressive knowledge of taught vocabulary words. Children in the intervention group who scored the lowest at pretest on the receptive measure saw the most gains in taught word knowledge. Findings suggest that combining vocabulary gameplay with shared book reading improved children's learning of the vocabulary words in comparison to a comparison group.