Creating a Library Orientation Card Game to Reach New Transfer Students

Librarians and staff at a public university drew upon previous experience with instructional games to develop, implement, and assess a card game as a library orientation activity for new transfer students. This project was shaped by a desire to meet transfer students’ unique needs as well as the logistical constraints associated with the university’s transfer student orientation. The card game, modeled after Apples to Apples, presented information about the campus library system in a fun, informal way that allowed transfer students to socialize with each other while learning. Survey responses indicated that students found the game both enjoyable and helpful.     

From School Counselor to Counselor Educator: A Phenomenological Study

Through a phenomenological study, the experiences of 8 early‐career school counselor educators who entered academia directly from positions as P–12 school counselors were examined. Results revealed that the participants experienced numerous challenges and supports related to their transition. Recommendations for counselor educators, doctoral students, and new faculty are provided.     

Special Education in a 4‐Year Response to Intervention (RtI) Environment: Characteristics of Students with Learning Disability and Grade of Identification

This 4‐year longitudinal research was designed to study special education determinations of students who participated in Tier 2 intervention in a Response to Intervention (RtI) model focused on reading across Grades 1–4. We compared identification rates for learning disabilities (LD) and student characteristics of 381 students the year prior to implementation with 377 students in the RtI environment. Across schools, 38–60 percent of students were English language learners (ELL). Key outcomes by Grade 4 for students with LD who had participated in a model of RtI were relatively greater reading impairment with effect sizes ranging from 0.64 to 0.82, and more equitable representation across ELL and native English speakers than in the cohort prior to RtI implementation. Notably, one‐third of the students identified for special services as LD in these schools were not identified until 4th grade.     

A Snapshot of Industry and Academic Professional Activities,Compensation, and Engagement in Educational Measurement

This paper provides a snapshot of educational measurement professionals—their educational, professional and demographic backgrounds, as well as their workplace settings, job tasks, professional involvement, and compensation practices. Two previous studies have surveyed employers, but this is the first attempt to conduct a comprehensive survey of measurement professionals. Five hundred and forty-two (31.5% response rate) measurement professionals, the vast majority who held a doctorate degree, responded to the survey from January to April 2007. Overall, these individuals were primarily employed in academic settings, research and testing organizations, and educational or governmental agencies. Results were reported across and within work setting, degree, and other demographic and background factors that may influence work, behavior, and compensation in educational measurement and assessment.     

Librarian integration in a four-year medical school curriculum: a timeline

The Taubman Health Sciences Library (THL) is integrated in all four years of the University of Michigan Medical School (UMMS) curriculum. Information resources are introduced at strategic points throughout the curriculum so that students receive training at times when they are most likely to need the resource. Most of the core instruction sessions are taught in teams that consist of librarians and UMMS faculty, which provides unique learning opportunities for students. This article describes each THL instruction activity in the four-year undergraduate UMMS curriculum and provides commentary on the overall effectiveness of this integrated approach to instruction.     

Mamakind or papakind? [Mom's child or Dad's child]: Parent-specific patterns in early adolescents' intergenerational academic value transmission

The present study investigates the intergenerational transmission of the valuing of math within family. We tested if there are groups of students showing differential intergenerational transmission patterns.Based on a two-wave longitudinal sample of 1198 German fifth graders, their mothers (N = 874), and fathers (N = 733), structural equation mixture models showed two groups of students. In the first group, only the mothers' valuing of math predicted the students' own values in this domain, while in the other group the fathers' valuing of math was the only significant predictor. Parental school involvement and parenting styles were ruled out as causes for this pattern. Dyad gender composition, however, predicted group membership.The results are discussed in terms of parent and student characteristics affecting patterns in intergenerational values transmission.     

Men’s Perceptions of Pregnancy-Related Weight Gain: A Psychosocial Firestorm (Upheaval) Intertwined With Supportive Intentions

In-depth interviews were conducted with 16 men who had a significant other who had given birth within the last 5 years. Men were asked about their perceptions of pregnancy-related weight gain, and content analysis was used to identify themes from the interviews. Men described nine themes related to perinatal weight gain: (a) negative perceptions, (b) eating behaviors, (c) exercise habits, (d) health impact, (e) body changes, (f) weight-loss success, (g) “it bothered her more than me,” (h) “the weight gain wasn’t a problem,” and (i) intimacy. Together, these themes offer a glimpse into men’s experiences and highlight the discord and balance between experiencing negative feelings/perceptions and being a supportive partner. This information on how men perceive pregnancy-related weight gain can be used to develop interventions to assist men to support their significant others in meeting weight loss goals following pregnancy.     

What you see is what you get: The role of early adolescents’ perceptions in the intergenerational transmission of academic values

The present research addresses processes involved in academic value transmission within family. Drawing on expectancy x value and social learning theory, a two-wave longitudinal study based on data from 1014 students, 878 mothers, and 748 fathers was conducted to examine the mechanisms of parental influence. Structural equation modeling provided evidence for a multi-step mediation process. Predictions of the parents’ academic values on students’ values were shown to be mediated through parents’ actual and student-perceived parental school involvement. Students’ perceptions of the parents’ academic values, inferred from the perceived involvement, in turn, predicted students’ own values. In the discussion, the central role of students’ perceptions in these processes is emphasized.