Preferences towards sex education and information from an ethnically diverse sample of young people

This paper reports sex education preferences from an ethnically diverse sample of 3007 15–18 year olds. Findings are presented on preferred topics, where and from whom young people would like to receive this information. Preferences were centred around learning more about sexual behaviour and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in particular, and receiving this at school from someone ‘professional’ and of similar age. Females showed a greater preference towards learning about emotions, relationships and contraception, and to having this delivered by someone of the same sex. Of the four main ethnic groups, Black and Asian students generally reported more sex education preferences than White British or White Other students. Black students wanted to learn more about biological issues and cultural issues alongside sexual behaviour and STIs. Black male students reported a greater than average preference towards family‐based information, and interest towards someone of the same ethnic background delivering sex education was also expressed. Asian students reported stronger preferences for more information about STIs and contraception, and wished to keep sex education out of the family household. Implications for sex and relationships education and working with professionals and parents are outlined.     

Librarianship and Information Science in the Maghreb 1966–1999: An Annotated Bibliography

This work is an annotated bibliography that consists of articles, books, conference papers, dissertations, reports, etc. published in various library and information science forums on the subject of librarianship in the Maghreb. The goal of preparing this work is to provide a list of citations with abstracts that librarians, library students, and library scholars can use to perform research within this subject area and further the body of knowledge. The research methodology that was used to find these citations involved searching the database versions of ERIC, Dissertations Abstracts Online, and Library Literature within the online public access catalog of the Auburn University library system. It also involved searching the online databases of Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA), British Education Index, andEducation Abstracts within the DIALOG database as well as the respective print versions of these resources. While this work is by no means an exhaustive critique of the entire Maghrebi library and information science literature, it does strive to be comprehensive in terms of its country-by-country analysis of librarianship and information science within the region. In providing a citation for a non-English language work, the English equivalent of the title of that work will be given next to the non-English title.     

A rationale for differentiated staffing

The improvement of staff utilization practices through the technique of differentiated staffing is the subject of this paper. The authors bring together the various definitions of the term differentiated staffing and propose a more inclusive definition. Drawing from the literature in organizational change, the authors document in a logical and systematic manner the parameters of differentiated staffing and the problems that are likely to be associated with its introduction. The major part of the paper analyzes the potential of differentiated staffing for improving many deficiencies that are apparent in present methods of utilizing professional personnel in the public schools and in the decision-making procedures of those organizations. The authours urge controlled and systematic pilot projects be undertaken before largescale or even system-wide adoption.

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Résumé Le sujet de cette étude porte sur l'amélioration des méthodes d'utilisation du personnel au moyen de la technique de la différenciation du personnel. Les auteurs regroupent les diverses définitions de l'expression différenciation du personnel et proposent une définition plus globale. En s'inspirant des documents relatifs aux changements structuraux en matière d'organisation, les auteurs appuient sur des documents, d'une manière logique et systématique, leur idée des paramètres de la différenciation du personnel et des problèmes qui vraisemblablement accompagneront sa mise en application. Cette étude est consacrée principalement à l'analyse des possibilités qu'offre la différenciation du personnel en vue d'améliorer les nombreuses lacunes que l'on constate à l'égard des méthodes actuelles d'utilisation du personnel qualifié dans les écoles publiques et au niveau des méthodes de prise de décision des ces organismes. Les auteurs préconisent le recours à des projets pilotes méthodiques et bien dirigés avant que cette nouvelle technique soit adoptée sur une vaste échelle ou même à celle du système.

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The authors wish to express their appreciation to the following for their helpful criticisms of an earlier draft of this paper: Dr. John Brubacher, Dept. of Educational Administration, University of Connecticut, Storrs; Dr. Walter J. Hartrick, Centre for the Study of Education Administration, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver; Dr. James L. Olivero, The Southwestern Cooperative Educational Laboratory, Albuquerque, New Mexico; Dr. Philip J. Runkel, Center for the Advanced Study of Educational Administration, University of Oregon, Eugene.     

Assessment of an online piloted module targeted toward home‐based food operators in Iowa

Understanding safe food practice is important for home‐based food operators to prevent foodborne illness. Earlier work has found that home‐based food operators lack food safety knowledge and may benefit from training that is specifically tailored to their needs. Unfortunately, home‐based food operators may be deterred from enrolling in traditional educational formats due to their busy schedules. The objective of this study was to pilot and evaluate the effectiveness of an online food safety education module for home‐based food operators in Iowa through three learning assessments. Twenty‐one participants enrolled in a blended workshop in which participants completed one online module before attending a face‐to‐face session where they completed the remaining five modules. The effectiveness of the online module was measured by examining the first‐attempt average scores on learning assessments, the number of assessment attempts required to achieve 100%, and the first‐attempt performance by question type. The three learning assessment tools resulted in first‐attempt averages of approximately 86%, 90%, and 83%, surpassing our standard of effectiveness of 75% and showing good potential for the online format. The learning assessment attempt numbers of 4.65, 1.67, and 3.81 showed difficulty with knowledge transfer for some topics. Comprehension and analysis‐style questions had first‐attempt success rates of approximately 85% and 88%, respectively. Scores on knowledge and application‐style questions were lower with first‐attempt success rates of approximately 80% and 75%, respectively. These findings were used to improve the first online module and guide the transition of the remaining five modules to the online format.     

Classroom Peer Acceptance, Friendship, and Victimization: Destinct Relation Systems That Contribute Uniquely to Children's School Adjustment?

The proposition that relationships make differential (i.e., unique, redundant, contingent) contributions to adjustment was examined by investigating the linkages between children's participation in different types of peer relationships (i.e., friendship, peer acceptance, peer victimazation) and their adjustment to school. Relationship measure were gathered for 5-to 6- year-old children(105 males, 95 females) twice during kindergaten (i.e., fall and spring) nad were correlated with adjustment indicators at each time of assessment and used to predict changes in school adjstment over time. Examination of the relative associations between the relationship measures and children's adjustment revealed of both unshared (i.e., unique) and shared (i.e., redundant) linkages, depending on the form of adjustment examined.These findings suggest that adjustment may be influenced by the diverse experiences (i.e., provisions) that children encounter in different forms of relationship, and that certain types of relationships may have greater or lesser adaptive significance depending on the adjustment outcome examined     

Timed essay writing: implications for high-stakes tests

The majority of high-stakes tests from elementary school through postsecondary education include the timed impromptu essay as a measure of writing performance. For adolescents with writing disorders, this type of evaluation often presents a significant barrier. The purpose of the current study was twofold. First, we investigated the influence of handwritten, typed, and typed/edited formats of an expository essay on the quality scores received by students with (n = 65) and without (n = 65) dyslexia. Second, we examined the contribution of spelling, handwriting, fluency, and vocabulary complexity to the quality scores that students with and without dyslexia received on the same writing task. Analyses indicated that vocabulary complexity, verbosity, spelling, and handwriting accounted for more variance in essay quality scores for writers with dyslexia than for their typically achieving peers. Both group and individual student outcomes are reported to better understand the needs of struggling writers with dyslexia. Implications for assessment, instruction, and accommodations are discussed with an eye toward reform efforts that target improved teaching and learning.