Undergraduate Engineering Students’ Beliefs,Coping Strategies,and Academic Performance: An Evaluation of Theoretical Models

Research has identified factors associated with academic success by evaluating relations among psychological and academic variables, although few studies have examined theoretical models to understand the complex links. This study used structural equation modeling to investigate whether the relation between test anxiety and final course grades was mediated by personal control, self-efficacy, goal orientation, coping strategies, and self-regulation. Participants were 297 undergraduate students taking an algebra course designed for engineering students. Results indicated that the proposed theoretical model was supported by the data, although a modified model produced a better fit. Other competing models were also tested. Collectively, analyses revealed that the psychological variables played important roles in predicting students’ grades, as all the structural coefficients and R ² statistics were statistically and practically significant. Findings suggest value in the development and testing of additional models that contribute to the expansion of intervention programs to enhance academic outcomes among students.     

DEVELOPING AN INTERDISCIPLINARY GERIATRIC CURRICULUM: THE PERILS AND PAYOFFS OF COLLABORATION

Almost all of the emphasis within interdisciplinary education in geriatrics has focused on the training of clinical teams, to the exclusion of an appreciation for the unique issues facing educational teams. This paper explores the perils and payoffs of the development and implementation of an interdisciplinary curriculum by an inter-institutional faculty team at the Rhode Island Geriatric Education Center (RIGEC). Following a discussion of the principles and concepts guiding the development of the curriculum - an interdisciplinary team approach, a goal-based focus, and continuous quality improvement - the structure and implementation of the curriculum development are described. Special attention is directed toward process and outcome evaluation issues. Lastly, recommendations related to the educational team process are suggested as guidelines for faculty developing academic teams in gerontology and geriatrics. Overall, the unique and multifaceted challenges of educational teams are highlighted and lessons learned from the RIGEC experience summarized.     

The power of ethnic studies: portraits of first-generation Latina/o students carving out un sitio and claiming una lengua

For more than 50 years, college and high school students, families, and community activists have fought for the preservation of ethnic studies. Qualitative research studies consistently have shown positive outcomes, including increased academic engagement and affirmation, for students who take ethnic studies in K-16. In this article, I argue that Latina/o students who enrolled in ethnic studies courses benefited academically and personally from culturally responsive pedagogies. The portraits presented in this article are part of a larger ethnographic study of the schooling experiences of Latina/o students. Data were collected from in-depth, semi-structured interviews, and field notes at two universities. Findings show that the students’ experiences in the courses served as sitio y lengua [a space and a language/discourse] in which they experienced:(1) intersecting sitios of home and school pedagogies; (2) (re)claimed an academic space and identity; and (3) (re)defined and (re)connected the boundaries of community space. Ultimately, this article advocates for the expansion of ethnic studies.     

经济相关事务对美国大学教师及组织的影响

经济相关事务指这样一种理念,即大学不仅仅要产出发明,还要保证这些发明能够成为创新成果并通过专利和许可转化到商业经济之中,创建和培养新的公司,展开为工业界服务或与其合作的研究,并发展出对技术进步有所贡献的领域。本文讨论了导致教师角色和大学组织变化的因素,受经济相关事务影响而建立的项目带来了教师群体研究的深化和学科交叉性的增强,特别的手段还包括在经济相关领域聘请新增教师的专项基金、研究所和研究中心的增加以及推进学科交叉性的计划。新型的研究所出现,与工业界展开合作,整个大学校因也都致力于此,负责技术转化的机构极大地扩展了。     

Digging behavior in 12 taxa of muroid rodents

The digging behavior of 12 taxa of muroid rodents was observed on sand and peat substrates. Overall, significantly more digging was performed on peat than on sand. The percentage of animals of each taxon that dug was found to be positively correlated with both the duration of digging and the number of bouts of digging and negatively correlated with latency to dig. Differences across taxa in the duration of digging were correlated with field observations of the nesting behavior of these taxa; taxa that frequently utilize subterranean nest sites exhibited more digging than those that do not. The motor patterns used in digging are described;Mus musculus was the only species that appeared to exhibit a unique digging pattern. Digging behavior appears to be a pattern that is readily elicited in the laboratory, related to behavior in the field, and appropriated for further laboratory study.     

Child‐rearing practices and children's communicative interactions in a village in Botswana

Increasingly, research is indicating the need to consider language development in the particular cultural, socio‐economic and child‐rearing context in which it is occurring. The observations in this paper, conducted over a period of nine months while the first author lived with a family in a village in Botswana, highlight the need for a more thorough understanding of the ‘local’ child‐rearing practices and the nature of typically developing children's communicative interactions. Mothers' orientation towards interacting with their babies, as well as the interaction style with their young children, is described. Implications for further research are discussed.