Narrative elaboration and participation: two dimensions of maternal elicitation style

This study investigated the narrative scaffolding styles of Spanish-speaking and English-speaking mothers as they engaged their preschool-aged children in family reminiscing and book sharing interactions. Specifically, the study examined the dimensions of narrative elaboration and participation in mothers' scaffolding styles across the 2 narrative tasks. Cluster analyses identified 2 styles of maternal scaffolding for each context, differing in the degree to which mothers elaborated, the manner in which they did so, and the extent to which they encouraged child participation. Findings highlight the importance of both narrative elaboration and narrative participation as defining dimensions of maternal scaffolding styles. Results are discussed in relation to variations in socialization practices and the role these practices might play in children's development.     

La Réunion d'experts sur la présentation des cultures d'Asie dans les manuels et le matériel d'enseignement des pays occidentaux,Paris, mai 1956

Sans résumé     

Family Engagement and Latine Children’s Early Narrative Skills

Early Childhood Education Journal - The present study examined the concurrent relations between culture-specific dimensions of family engagement for low-income, Pan-Latine families and...     

Culturally Embedded Measurement of Latino Caregivers’ Engagement in Head Start: A Tale of Two Forms of Engagement

Practice and Policy: The preschool years represent a critical time to foster family engagement in education for children growing up in poverty. Yet the ways in which Latino families with lower levels of income engage with their children’s education at home and at school might look different from how middle-income parents from the dominant U.S. culture do, depending on cultural values and beliefs about best ways to support children’s learning as well as on socioeconomic realities that present barriers for traditional forms of engagement. This study sought to examine further the psychometric functioning of a promising new measure of family engagement, developed with and for Latino Head Start families. Research Findings: Results of this study supported continued use of this measure, with clear caveats and directions for future research. Findings suggested that the ways Latino Head Start parents engage with children’s learning and development at home (e.g., supporting children’s social awareness and behavior, connection to cultural heritage, academic skills) might be a more culturally nuanced and salient form of engagement, while school-based engagement (e.g., volunteering at school, communicating with teachers) might be a more universal form. Findings contribute to understandings of Latino family engagement as well as to methodological considerations for culture-specific measurement development efforts, with relevance for early education researchers and professionals.     

Defining family engagement among Latino Head Start parents: A mixed-methods measurement development study

Given the increasing numbers of Latino children and, specifically, of dual-language learning Latino children, entering the U.S. educational system, culturally contextualized models are needed to understand how parents construct their involvement roles and support their children's educational experiences. Current measures of parenting and family engagement have been developed primarily with European American families and, thus, might not capture engagement behaviors unique to other ethnic groups. Lacking culture-appropriate measurement limits our ability to construct programs that adequately incorporate protective factors to promote children's successful development. The present mixed-methods investigation employed an emic approach to understand family engagement conceptualizations for a pan-Latino population. One hundred thirteen parents from 14 Head Start programs in a large, northeastern city participated in the first study, in which domains of family engagement were identified and specific items were co-constructed to capture family engagement behaviors. Then, 650 caregivers participated in a second study examining the construct validity of the resulting 65-item measure across two language versions: Parental Engagement of Families from Latino Backgrounds(PEFL-English) and Participación Educativa de Familias Latinas (PEFL-Spanish). Four theoretically meaningful dimensions of family engagement among Latino Head Start families were identified empirically. The measure was then validated with teacher report of family involvement and parent report of satisfaction with their experiences in Head Start.     

A driver model of a two-man bobsleigh

Up to now, the optimization of structural parameters affecting the performance of a bobsleigh has been carried out mainly on the basis of athletes’ feedback, thus leading to a series of small modifications without univocal guidelines. Even though on-track tests represent a basic step for the final tuning of the sled, experimentation does not seem to represent an appropriate tool to objectively determine the influence of such structural parameters on the overall performance. In fact, their effect can easily be masked by driving errors, changes in the ice surface conditions and temperature thus requiring repeated tests for achieving statistical evidence. For this reason, numerical analysis, carried out with a 3D model of the bobsled, turns out to be a privileged instrument to optimize bob design although limitations in the sled model (e.g. ice friction properties that still have to be fully understood) may affect the obtained results. However, such tool is able to provide useful indications only if a correct driver model is implemented. This work focuses on the development of a numerical model of a bobsleigh driver that aims at reproducing the driving behaviour of real-world cup drivers and is basically made up of two steps: the identification of the trajectory that allows minimizing run time and the determination of the driver’s inputs to exactly follow that trajectory. For comparison purposes, the simulated driver’s inputs are compared with recorded ones on Cesana Pariol Olympic track.     

Cardiac indexes, cardiac damage biomarkers and energy expenditure in professional cyclists during the Giro d'Italia 3-weeks stage race

Introduction

The study of cardiac response to strenuous and continuous exercise is crucial to understanding the physiology of endurance. N-terminal proB-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is a potential marker for monitoring myocardial wall stress, and troponins (TnT and TnI) are widely used in the diagnosis of cardiac ischemia and infarction. Strenuous exercise may generate transitory ischemia, myocardial stress, and diastolic left ventricular dysfunction, inducing the increased production of both these biomarkers. We measured changes in NT-proBNP and TnT in elite cyclists during a 3-week stage race, a model of strenuous exercise.

Materials and methods:

The study population was 9 professional cyclists participating in the 2011 Giro d’Italia. Pre-analytical and analytical phases scrupulously followed official recommendations. Anthropometric data, net energy expenditure and cardiac indexes (rate, diastolic and systolic blood pressure) were recorded. Blood samples were drawn pre-race (day −1) and at days 12 and 22; NT-proBNP and highly sensitive-troponin (Hs-TnT) concentrations were assayed and corrected for plasma volume changes.

Results:

Body-mass index decreased and energy expenditure increased by 52% during the race. NT-proBNP concentrations increased [day −1: 23.52 ng/L (9.67–34.33); day 12: 63.46 ng/L (22.15–93.31); P = 0.039; day 22: 89.26 ng/L (34.66–129.78) vs. day −1; P < 0.001] and correlated with heart rate (r = −0.51; P = 0.006), systolic pressure (r = 0.39; P = 0.046) and energy expenditure (r = 0.70; P < 0.001). TnT concentrations did not vary, but a widened TnT amplitude distribution was observed.

Conclusions:

Increases in NT-proBNP correlated with higher energy expenditure over a 3-week cycling stage race, possibly indicating myocardial stress.