COMBINING SELF‐MONITORING AND AN INTERDEPENDENT GROUP CONTINGENCY TO IMPROVE THE BEHAVIOR OF SIXTH GRADERS WITH EBD

A withdrawal design was used to examine the influence of a self‐monitoring procedure on the overall effectiveness of an interdependent group contingency intervention implemented in a sixth‐grade classroom in an alternative school serving students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Dependent variables included student on‐task, off‐task, and disruptive behaviors exhibited during language arts. Following baseline, the classroom teacher implemented an interdependent group contingency using randomized criteria for reinforcement and randomized reinforcers. Next, a self‐monitoring intervention procedure was added to the existing interdependent group contingency intervention. The self‐monitoring procedure was then withdrawn and reinstated. Results indicated that though there were improvements in behavior from baseline upon intervention implementation, the self‐monitoring procedure did not increase the effectiveness of the interdependent group contingency intervention. Limitations and suggestions for future research investigating the influence of self‐monitoring on group contingency interventions are discussed.     

Evangelical Christian parents’ attitudes towards abstinence-based sex education: ‘I want my kids to have great sex!’

While an overwhelming majority of people in the USA support some form of school-based sexual education, the specific content and context for that instruction varies widely, making it difficult to assess support for particular types of programmes. This is particularly the case for evangelical Christians, about whom there is a lack of scholarly consensus concerning support for sexual education. This paper addresses this gap, and examines the assumption that evangelical Christians uniformly support abstinence-only sexual education, using qualitative analysis among a group of evangelical Christians in a medium-sized Texas city. Respondents were asked during interviews to identify the types of sex education-related content they support, and where and how they believe these messages should be taught. Respondents were also asked to identify their rationales for supporting (or opposing) certain elements of sexual education. Interviews revealed a group of evangelical Christian parents who verbalised their explicit opposition to abstinence-based sex education in schools, lamenting the sex-negative messages they believe to be associated with it. It additionally became apparent that these parents believe that their opposition to abstinence-based sexual education aligns with a silent majority of evangelical Christians.     

A survey on evaluation practices in teaching and learning centres

There is general consensus that teaching and learning centres have a positive impact on promoting and supporting a culture that values teaching and learning, yet there is limited evidence on how centres evaluate their work. For this purpose, a survey was developed and administered to the directors of 88 Canadian centres; 46 of which completed the survey. In this paper, we share centres’ approaches to evaluation that emerged from the survey findings and the artifact analysis. By raising awareness of evaluation approaches, we are better positioned to identify further opportunities to develop a more systematic and coherent approach to evaluation.     

Naomi's Birth

A first-time mother, who is also a nurse, tells the story of her drug-free birth at a free-standing birth center.     

Prevalence of overweight among deaf children

The study examined the prevalence of overweight cases in a sample of 151 deaf children aged 6-11 years. Participants were deaf students attending six elementary schools, both regular and special, in four states. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated using height and weight, plotted on the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) U.S. BMI-for-age growth charts, then compared to national values for same age and gender (CDC, 2006a, 2006b; National Center for Health Statistics, 2005). The results indicated that the prevalence of overweight deaf children aged 6-11 years was above the national percentage for same age and gender. A larger percentage of boys was overweight (24.7%) than girls (20.4%). After age 8 years, girls showed a consistent decrease in BMI with increasing age, a trend not demonstrated by boys. As a group, deaf children demonstrate a higher prevalence of overweight than national averages.     

The Variable Importance of General Intelligence (g) in the Cognitive Abilities of Children and Adolescents

Virtually all research affirms the importance of a general factor (i.e., Spearman’s g) in accounting for individual differences in intelligence (Spearman, 1904 Spearman, C. 1904. General intelligence, objectively determined and measured. American Journal of Psychology, 15: 201–293. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar]). However, some scholars have suggested that cognitive abilities are not organised uniformly across all levels of age and ability. Using standardisation data from the Woodcock Johnson Test of Cognitive Ability Revised, the present study examines the influence of Spearman’s g in samples that vary in terms of ability (i.e., high and low ability) and age (i.e., children and adolescents). Findings suggest that as children mature, their cognitive abilities become increasingly differentiated, irrespective of individual differences in general ability.     

Using a Conceptual Understanding and Procedural Fluency Heuristic to Target Math Interventions with Students in Early Elementary

The study examined the use of a conceptual and procedural framework for identifying math deficits and delivering appropriate interventions. Participants were two first‐grade students and one third‐grade student, who were identified as struggling with the grade‐appropriate content in math. The first‐grade students focused on addition and the third‐grade student focused on multiplication. Each student's conceptual understanding was assessed, and students who lacked conceptual understanding received an intervention that addressed underlying concepts. Students with acceptable understanding of the underlying concepts received an intervention that focused on the procedure. The study used a single‐case, multiple‐baseline design, but the contra‐indicated intervention was administered for the first 2 weeks following baseline, with the prescribed intervention for the final 2 weeks. Each student showed more growth during the prescribed intervention phase when compared to the contra‐indicated phase.