Engaging Students with Learning Disabilities in Instructional Discourse: A Commentary on the REACH Papers

The four articles on instructional discourse contributed by the members of the REACH project offer rich examples of the learning opportunities for students with learning disabilities (LD) in upper‐elementary and middle‐school content classrooms. In this commentary, I highlight possible reasons for variations in instructional engagement within and across the studies, discuss the challenges to engaging students with LD in discipline‐based instruction, and stress the value for the LD field of greater attention to instructional discourse.     

Making IT work for municipalities: Building municipal wireless networks

The lack of widely available, affordable broadband Internet access has spurred a movement in which municipalities are rolling out wireless broadband networks. This movement has raised a number of questions including: Why are municipalities acting as the early adopters of wireless broadband technology? How does increased state regulation of municipal broadband networks affect this trend and how can cities respond? As cities use wireless broadband technology to enhance services to citizens, the growth of municipal wireless deployments has transitioned from linear to exponential. In response, many states have passed laws to regulate and restrict cities' ability to own, operate, deploy, or profit from either telecommunications or information services. Current and pending laws will be examined to understand how cities can deploy a wireless broadband network under these regulations. An analysis of municipal facilities and technology expertise illustrates the opportunity for public–private cooperation in wireless deployments. This paper will show that cooperation is beneficial in many cases. Finally, current business models will be examined for their ability to foster cooperation between the public and private sectors, bridge the digital divide, and create competition among private sector providers.     

Strength,Weakness, Opportunity,Threat (SWOT) Analysis of the Adaptations to Anatomical Education in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland in Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has driven the fastest changes to higher education across the globe, necessitated by social distancing measures preventing face-to-face teaching. This has led to an almost immediate switch to distance learning by higher education institutions. Anatomy faces some unique challenges. Intrinsically, anatomy is a three-dimensional subject that requires a sound understanding of the relationships between structures, often achieved by the study of human cadaveric material, models, and virtual resources. This study sought to identify the approaches taken in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland to deliver anatomical education through online means. Data were collected from 14 different universities in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland and compared adopting a thematic analysis approach. Once themes were generated, they were collectively brought together using a strength, weakness, opportunity, threat (SWOT) analysis. Key themes included the opportunity to develop new online resources and the chance to engage in new academic collaborations. Academics frequently mentioned the challenge that time constrains could place on the quality and effectiveness of these resources; especially as in many cases the aim of these resources was to compensate for a lack of exposure to cadaveric exposure. Comparisons of the actions taken by multiple higher education institutions reveal the ways that academics have tried to balance this demand. Discussions will facilitate decisions being made by higher education institutions regarding adapting the curriculum and assessment methods in anatomy.     

Stepping stones in learning

This article is an analysis of data drawn from semi-structured, taperecorded interviews with five female primary school headteachers. The research focused on their perceptions of their management role. One significant and unexpected finding was that these women not only denied feeling stressed but were deriving immense satisfaction from their work. It is suggested that much of their enjoyment comes from the high degree of emotional intelligence they display in managing people, time and resources and which also partly accounts for their success and managerial confidence. The degree of power, control and choice which these women exercise in their work lends support to the claim that there is an emerging group of managers in primary education who may represent the ‘new women of power’.     

Unfair play in World Cup qualification? An analysis of the 1998–2010 FIFA World Cup performances and the bias in the allocation of tournament berths

This paper reviews the FIFA World Cups 1998–2010 with data available from the FIFA website and assesses the performance of each region in relation to the number of World Cup qualifications spots that the region is awarded. We raise the issue of whether FIFA should be more concerned with the participation of more members from its federations in the World Cup than the financial gain from doing so. Our non-econometric analysis illustrates that the current allocation may be resulting in the awarding of qualification spots to teams that if not unfair, certainly warrants discussion. We seek to demonstrate that the current system of qualification is based neither on ensuring the qualification of the best 32 teams in the world, nor does it fairly allocate qualification spots on the number of teams per federation or any other metric. We conclude with a plea for more transparent allocation processes.     

Disentangling the Role of Domain-Specific Knowledge in Student Modeling

Research in Science Education - This study explores the role of domain-specific knowledge in students’ modeling practice and how this knowledge interacts with two domain-general modeling...     

Law enforcement officers as investigators and therapists in child sexual abuse: A training model

Law enforcement officers, often the first professionals to come in contact with a victim of child sexual abuse, can either increase or decrease the traumatic impact on the child and the family at the time of disclosure. The model for a training program for police officers in handling cases of child sexual abuse outlined in this paper is divided into three sections. The first part is directed towards theoretical issues involved in this problem, including an explanation of the history and background of sexual abuse of children by adults and of the difference in the dynamics of extra- and intrafamilial sexual abuse. The second part consists of a detailed explanation of different types of sex offenses and of standard physical examinations of sexual abuse victims. Graded slides of physical trauma geared towards wound identification are paired with relaxation exercises. The third section focuses on special considerations when interviewing sexually abused children. The difference between interviewing and interrogation, specific questioning techniques, and the use of videotape is explained. Each part of this training procedure is followed by a question and answer period and small group discussions for the purpose of encouraging disclosure and better understanding of the officers' personal reactions to cases of child sexual abuse.     

A pragmatic approach to courseware development in WIMP environments

Courseware development often involves a great deal of effort. One approach to minimising effort while maintaining flexibility is illustrated, using a tutoring system as an example. The system comprises two parts: a 'shell' which contains facilities useful for many different subjects, and an interpreter which generates questions which are subject specific.     

College Students’ Reasons for Depression Nondisclosure in Primary Care

Unwillingness to share depression experiences with primary care physicians contributes to the undertreatment of depression. This project examined college students’ reasons for depression nondisclosure to primary care providers (PCPs). Undergraduate participants read a vignette describing someone with depression and completed measures of disclosure barriers. Analyses indicated 26% of respondents would NOT disclose depression symptoms to PCPs. Reasons for nondisclosure included difficulty initiating the depression conversation, medication aversion, and fear of referral to a psychologist. Also, anger toward the vignette character varied with disclosure willingness, suggesting that nondisclosers feel more stigma than disclosers and are less likely to engage in psychotherapy. Because engagement in pharmacological and/or psychotherapeutic treatment requires identification of depression in healthcare settings, increased understanding of disclosure barriers could increase students’ access to depression treatment.     

Higher education for the elderly: Continuing in the mainstream of American life

Research in Higher Education - Do persons over age 62 enroll in universities to maintain their social interaction and stay in life's mainstream? This question was researched through a...