Outside school time: an examination of science achievement and non-cognitive characteristics of 15-year olds in several countries

Elementary and secondary students spend more hours outside of class than in formal school and thus have more time for interaction with everyday science. However, evidence from a large international survey, Program of International Student Assessment (PISA) (OECD 2012), found a negative relationship between number of hours attending after-school science and science assessment scores in many countries, raising questions about why. The secondary analysis of the 2006, 2009, and 2012 PISA surveys found that in most Western countries the longer students attended after-school science programs (in a typical week), the lower their PISA standardized science test score, but the higher their positive attitudes toward future science careers, interest in science, and self-confidence in science. Several potential hypotheses for this relationship are examined and rejected. Further analysis of a causal relationship between frequent attendance in after-school programs and student achievement and attitudes should clearly identify the content of the program so that the analysis could distinguish experiences closely related to regular school curricula from the informal science activities that are not. A new analysis also should include carefully designed longitudinal surveys to test the effectiveness of informal experiences on later life choices in career and study.     

Pressure driven spinning: A multifaceted approach for preparing nanoscaled functionalized fibers, scaffolds, and membranes with advanced materials

Electrospinning, a flexible jet-based fiber, scaffold, and membrane fabrication approach, has been elucidated as having significance to the heath sciences. Its capabilities have been most impressive as it possesses the ability to spin composite fibers ranging from the nanometer to the micrometer scale. Nonetheless, electrospinning has limitations and hazards, negating its wider exploration, for example, the inability to handle highly conducting suspensions, to its hazardous high voltage. Hence, to date electrospinning has undergone an exhaustive research regime to a point of cliché. Thus, in the work reported herein we unveil a competing technique to electrospinning, which has overcome the above limitations and hazards yet comparable in capabilities. The fiber preparation approach unearthed herein is referred to as “pressure driven spinning (PDS).” The driving mechanism exploited in this fiber spinning process is the pressurized by-pass flow. This mechanism allows the drawing of either micro- or nanosized fibers while processing polymeric suspensions containing a wide range of advanced materials spanning structural, functional, and biological entities. Similar to electrospinning if the collection time of these continuous formed fibers is varied, composite scaffolds and membranes are generated. In keeping with our interests, multicompositional structural entities such as these could have several applications in biology and medicine, for example, ranging from the development of three-dimensional cultures (including disease models) to the development of synthetic tissues and organ structures to advanced approaches for controlled and targeted therapeutics.     

Inflammatory and apoptotic signalling pathways and concussion severity: a genetic association study

The objective was to investigate the relationship between IL-1B rs16944, IL-6 rs1800795, and CASP8 rs3834129 genetic polymorphisms and concussion severity. Rugby players from high school, senior amateur, and professional teams completed a concussion severity questionnaire and donated a DNA sample. Participants (n = 163) were split into symptom severity groups around the median number and duration of symptoms. The frequency of participants with high symptom counts (more than five symptoms) increased across the IL-1B (C/C: 35%; C/T: 51%; T/T: 56%; P = 0.047) and the IL-6 (C/C: 31%; C/G: 44%; G/G: 58%; P = 0.027) genotypes. The C–C inferred interleukin allele construct frequency, created from combining the IL-1B and IL-6 genotype data, was lower in participants reporting a high symptom count (18%), compared to those with a low symptom count (fewer than six symptoms, 36%, P = 0.002). Similarly, the C–C inferred interleukin allele construct frequency was lower in those reporting prolonged symptom duration (more than one week, 16%), as opposed to short symptom duration (less than one week, 34%, P = 0.015). This study provides evidence of novel inflammatory pathway genetic associations with concussion severity, which supports the hypothesis implicating neuroinflammation in the development of concussion symptoms.     

International Student Achievement Comparisons and US STEM Workforce Development

Journal of Science Education and Technology - Comparisons of US student achievement to other countries, conducted since the 1960s, have received extensive media coverage in the USA. Policy studies...     

Teachers as tutors: Shadow education market dynamics in Georgia

International Review of Education -     

Multiple methods: research methods in education projects at NSF1

Projects on science and mathematics education research supported by the National Science Foundation (US government) rarely employ a single method of study. Studies of educational practices that use experimental design are very rare. The most common research method is the case study method and the second most common is some form of experimental design. However, most studies use a combination of methods to study educational practices such as case study and survey. The types of methods found in this group of education researchers represent the best quality available to the education community. The proposals were selected from those carefully reviewed by a panel of senior researchers.     

Transformational practice: critical teacher research in pre-service teacher education

This article traces the experiences of three pre-service teachers as they engaged in teacher research as part of their teacher education program and considers how teacher research might disrupt dominant paradigms that aim to de-contextualize teaching and offer one-size-fits-all solutions to address inequities. In particular, the article examines: the role of the teacher’s personal and academic history in the design of their teacher research projects; how their research worked to disrupt and complicate classroom cultures and practices; and the ways in which the pre-service teachers interpreted their research in light of new contexts during their first year of teaching. This work has critical implications in an era when teacher education programs are under attack, including: the value of drawing on pre-service teachers' lived experiences as an entry point into inquiry; creating highly localized inquiries; and positioning novice teachers as knowledgeable practitioners who are able to share research with colleagues.     

The views,verdict and recommendations for school and home sex and relationships education by young deaf and hearing people

The purpose of this survey study was to explore the views of young deaf and hearing people (16–25 years old) on school and home sex and relationships education (SRE). The study addressed a critical knowledge gap in the research literature on deaf youth's perception of SRE. The small-scale study explored young deaf people's experiences of SRE and the challenges they had faced when learning about sexuality and relationships. Recommendations on how to improve school SRE lessons were also obtained. Data were collected from 81 young people (n = 27 deaf, n = 54 hearing). Overall, deaf participants indicated greater levels of satisfaction with school SRE than hearing respondents. More deaf young people than young hearing people felt that the school had provided them with enough opportunities to learn about sexuality and relationships. The deaf group showed a preference for school SRE lessons to start at a later age than the hearing group. Mothers and friends were the two sources most frequently consulted in both groups. Teachers and school nurses were a third source frequently used by the deaf group. The views of deaf and hearing youth on their own SRE are important for the development, implementation and delivery of the school SRE curriculum. The study's findings can provide educators with valuable insight on the needs of a minority group who are particularly vulnerable to sexual exploitation and sexual misinformation due to their sensory loss and associated factors.