Library as place: results of a delphi study.

OBJECTIVE: An expert consensus on the future of the library as place was developed to assist health sciences librarians in designing new library spaces. METHOD: An expert panel of health sciences librarians, building consultants, architects, and information technologists was asked to reflect on the likelihood, desirability, timing, and impact on building design of more than seventy possible changes in the use of library space. RESULTS: An expert consensus predicted that the roles librarians play and the way libraries are used will substantially change. These changes come in response to changes in technology, scholarly communication, learning environments, and the health care economy. CONCLUSIONS: How health sciences library space is used will be far less consistent by 2015, as space becomes more tailored to institutional needs. However, the manner in which health sciences libraries develop and deliver services and collections will drastically change in the next decade. Libraries will continue to exist and will provide support for knowledge management and clinical trials, provide access to digital materials, and play a host of other roles that will enable libraries to emerge as institutional change agents.     

Sampling Methods and Sample Populations in Quantitative Mass Communication Research Studies: A 15-Year Census of Six Journals

This study evaluated the sampling methods and sample populations used in all U.S.-based survey and experimental mass communication studies published between 2000 and 2014 in six major journals (N = 1,173). Most studies used nonprobability samples, and more than half used student samples. Experiments used more nonprobability and student samples than surveys. Funded studies used more probability and nonstudent samples than nonfunded studies. Implications of results pertaining to population validity and interpretations of findings for mass communication research are discussed.     

The Relationship Between Motor Skill Proficiency and Body Mass Index in Preschool Children

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between motor proficiency and body mass index (BMI) in preschool children. Thirty-eight children ages 4–6 years had their BMI calculated and were assessed using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2 (MABC-2; Henderson, Sugden, & Barnett, 2007). These data were analyzed in two ways. The correlation between BMI and MABC-2 percentile ranks was calculated. Next, the groups were subdivided based on BMI status (high, M = 85.5; medium, M = 49.8; low, M = 10.8), and compared using t tests to determine if differences existed in MABC-2 percentile ranks. No significant relationship existed between MABC-2 and BMI percentile ranks (r = -.237). However, significant differences in MABC-2 percentile ranks existed between high and low (p = .042), and high and medium (p = .043) groups. These results suggest that preschool children classified as overweight or obese may have lower motor proficiency than their normal weight and under weight peers. This study indicates there is a direct relationship between motor proficiency and BMI in the preschool population.     

The relative benefits of learning by teaching and teaching expectancy

The purpose of this study was to explore the hypothesis that learning is enhanced through the act of teaching others. Specifically, two experiments aimed to disentangle the relative effects of teaching expectancy (i.e., preparing to teach) and actually teaching (i.e., explaining to others for instructional purposes) on learning. Some participants studied a lesson on the Doppler Effect without the expectation of later teaching the material and then took a comprehension test on the material (control group). Other students studied the same lesson with instructions that they would later teach the material; of those expecting to teach, some participants actually taught the material by presenting a brief video-recorded lecture before being tested (teaching group), whereas others only prepared to teach before being tested (preparation group). Results of Experiment 1 indicated that both the preparation group and teaching group significantly outperformed the control group on an immediate comprehension test (Teaching vs. Control: d = 0.82; Preparation vs. Control: d = 0.59). However, when the same test was given following a one-week delay (Experiment 2), only the teaching group significantly outperformed the control group (Teaching vs. Control: d = 0.79; Preparation vs. Control: d = 0.24). Overall, these findings suggest that when students actually teach the content of a lesson, they develop a deeper and more persistent understanding of the material than from solely preparing to teach.     

Tennessee Promise: A Response to Organizational Change

Community colleges in Tennessee, either directly or indirectly, experienced unprecedented change as a result of Tennessee Promise. The present study explored how student support service administrators at three community colleges responded to organizational change as a result of the Tennessee Promise legislation. Investigators selected community colleges for the multi-site case study because the legislative impact would be actualized by the preparations made to serve incoming Promise recipients. The delivery of orientation services framed organizational change because the service staff facilitate connections and provide information to incoming students. Challenges like a shifting population, ill-equipped infrastructure, inadequate remediation support, heightened interest for social engagement opportunities, misinformation, and unmet fiscal needs left administrators seeking coherence through the change process. Investigators found community college administrators react to change similarly. Administrators acknowledged change as continuous, created a culture of innovation among stakeholders, and were not afraid to fail as responses to the organizational change phenomenon.     

The Literacy Early Action Project (LEAP): exploring factors underpinning progress with literacy for a child in his first year of school

In this article, Anthony Feiler, senior lecturer in the Graduate School of Education at the University of Bristol, and Elaine Logan, lecturer in early years education at the City of Bristol College, present a case study of a child who made strong progress with literacy during his first year at school. The child and his family participated in the Literacy Early Action Project (LEAP), a home-visiting scheme for children judged by school staff to be at risk of struggling with literacy. A teaching assistant made weekly home visits during the year and developed literacy support activities with the child's mother and grandparents. Five key factors underpinning the child's progress are identified here: the flexibility in the teaching assistant's approach that enabled extended family members to become engaged in literacy support; the teaching assistant's sensitivity to family culture; the playful approach to learning adopted by the teaching assistant; putting the child at the centre of the intervention; and the existence of a school culture that strongly promoted involvement for parents. Anthony Feiler and Elaine Logan conclude that teaching assistants in the UK might be given more scope to develop support strategies for early childhood education that involve collaborative work with parents.