Multimodal Communication Support for Word Recognition and Literacy in Children With Language Delays

As the definition of being literate transforms from being able to read and write to being able to decipher a variety of mediums (e.g., music, text emojis, and more!), it is necessary that curriculum is adapted to reflect these changes. This paper discusses 11 preschoolers aged 4 to 6 years with language delays and their ability to recognize one-syllable words. Two different interventions assessed word recognition. One intervention paired gestures with five words. The second intervention had participants create self-interpreted drawings for each of the remaining five words. To determine whether or not gestures and drawing were effective literacy strategies, participants’ word recognition scores pre and post intervention were analyzed. Assessments featured a visual field of three printed words and analyzed participants’ printed word recognition by asking them to point to the orally presented word. The correct responses connected to gestures versus drawing were compared. This study was inspired by the Stage to Page program, a collaboration between Ballet Vero Beach, The Learning Alliance, and the School District of Indian River County that worked to connect the art of dance and literacy in elementary-aged students (The Learning Alliance, 2021, 0:00). The program aimed to combat illiteracy and reach the community’s goal of 90% of students reading at grade-level by the end of third grade. Curriculum combined dance and literacy, ended in a culminating post-performance workshop, and identified that integrating the arts is a unique way to provide students access to text and support other areas of learning, such as literacy and reading

Populism: A Comparative Study of the Rise of the Alt-Right in Germany and the United States

The far-right extremist movements in Germany and the United States have gained attention and proved concerning, manifesting in the forms of terrorism, nationalism, and xenophobia. The radical right often utilizes populism to undermine liberal institutions, with a proneness to discrimination and violence. Right-wing populism in Germany has been a movement founded on fear, which has expanded to include governmental and political institutions. In the United States, populists often criticize the political elite for catering to the needs of minorities. The influence of the economic crisis on the lower-income, blue-collar areas of the country has been impactful enough to allow for populist rhetoric to gain a foothold in America. Populism is successful only if accompanied by effective propaganda and rhetoric tactics. In Germany, far-right populist parties focus on the political elites’ disrespect for German nationalism. In the United States, Donald Trump was able to push rhetoric through an unconventional campaign and build a following that will continue to grow quietly, despite the ending of his term of presidency, through hateful ideologies that portend a cataclysmic event. This event may be necessary for far-right wing extremism to be collectively rejected from American society with as much enthusiasm as seen with the rejection of Nazism following WWII and the Holocaust

Modeling Employee Burnout and Stress Levels Using Generalized Linear Models

In recent years, mental health has become a more prominent problem worldwide. One specific area of rising concern is the increase in the amount of stress and burnout that many people are experiencing. This research seeks to investigate the factors that are affecting stress and burnout as they pertain to the workplace environment. A series of multinomial logistic regression models and Poisson regression models are used to identify the factors affecting employees’ stress and burnout with respect to the workplace environment using the most recent Work, Family, and Health Study (WFHS) dataset from the Work, Family, and Health Network. This research found that important factors affecting stress and burnout include decision authority, job demands, and job satisfaction

Discrimination by Association: The Role of Race and Exoneration in Hiring Decisions

People convicted of felonies are often discriminated against when applying for jobs after prison (Mikkelson & Schweitzer, 2019). Interestingly, exonerated individuals are also discriminated against upon their release, even though they were wrongfully convicted. To date, there has been no direct comparison of the discrimination between these two groups when they are applying for jobs. The present study closes this gap by comparing the application strength of candidates with varying categories of race, legal status, and community support. We collected data from 299 CloudResearch participants online and presented them with job application materials that they evaluated as if they were hiring managers. Results showed that across all independent variables, the applicant who was guilty of the crime was rated significantly lower than the other candidates. Additionally, the applicant who falsely confessed was also viewed less favorably than the control group in terms of character. These findings suggest that attitude, policy, and program changes are needed to improve the reentry process for people who have been incarcerated, including those who have been exonerated

Psychosocial Student Adaptations to COVID-19 in Higher Education: A Mixed-Methods Approach to COVID-19 through the Theoretical Framework of Anomie

The COVID-19 pandemic affected individuals and social institutions because of an abrupt and expansive change to norms and values, which are key characteristics of an anomic state. The purpose of this exploratory and descriptive study was to understand how students enrolled at a residential university perceived educational and societal pressures associated with COVID-19. This research applied a mixed-methods approach and relied upon three phrases of research: (1) pilot questionnaire (n = 54), (2) qualitative interviews (n = 14), and (3) quantitative questionnaire (n = 253). Findings suggested similarities in how university students responded to COVID-19 and how communities had responded previously to other forms of natural disasters. Students indicated experiencing worsening mental health and loss of social connection to others within the community. This project concludes with a discussion of the implications of natural disasters, such as COVID-19, for individual and group responses to strain through resilience, coping mechanisms, and adaptation. Keywords: COVID-19, anomie, natural disasters, mental health, educatio

Partake or Be Departed: Insularity of Setting within the Dystopian Imagination and The Mark: The Beast Rules the World

Insularity of setting within the dystopia is a motif that is shared between works of dystopian fiction and works in the utopian imagination as a whole. Each dystopia or utopia is unique in how it creates and uses insularity of setting to facilitate the confinement of its subjected society to a prescribed set of social, political, religious, and economic practices. Timothy LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins use the framework of rapture fiction and the motif of insularity of setting to create an international dystopia in their novel The Mark: The Beast Rules the World. The global insularity conceived within The Mark is unique in light of the traditionally isolated insularity found in classic dystopian and utopian works. The study of insularity of setting in the works of More’s Utopia, Orwell’s 1984, and Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 can be applied to the insularity found in The Mark, contributing to a better understanding of how this motif is used in dystopian fiction and how it works to create a globally insular dystopia in The Mark

The Roycean Communal Ideal in T. S. Eliot\u27s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”

T. S. Eliot’s poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” has often been read as a thoroughly cynical assessment of the modern individual and community. This totalizing portrayal misses the poem’s ability to serve as a foil to a more ideal community. If Eliot is so ill-disposed to the timid, fragile Prufrock and his shallow, ostentatious social network, then Eliot must believe in the essence of a better community. We may look to one of Eliot’s intellectual mentors, Josiah Royce, for his philosophy of community, which stands as an ideal inverse in relation to the Prufrockian community. After examining Royce’s thought and reviewing the scholarly dialogue on this topic, this article contrasts the inferior Prufrockian community with the Roycean community, its ideal counterpart, on their respective communication styles, quality of interpersonal relationships, and conceptions of selfhood. These comparisons elucidate Royce’s vision for social living and demonstrate how “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” affirms the possibility for flourishing human community

Punishment versus Hope: Perceptions of Social Media Portrayals of Restorative Justice

Research focused on the intersection of social media messages and perceptions of restorative justice has the potential to provide insight on criminal justice reform. In light of national conversations about mass incarceration, restorative justice has become a topic of conversation on social media, particularly among activists. This research utilized qualitative interviews (n = 20) to ascertain Gen Z college students’ familiarity with, understanding of, and interpretation of messages about restorative justice as portrayed in social media posts that they have been exposed to during the course of their everyday lives. The study found that most participants learned about restorative justice in the classroom and generally had positive perceptions of restorative justice, and that many believed the general public likely views restorative justice as “soft on crime.” Additionally, the severity of the crime influenced how accepting participants were of restorative justice. These findings have the potential to contribute to the literature on restorative justice, as well as to current advocacy practices as they are perceived by young adults

Multimodal Communication Support for Word Recognition and Literacy in Children With Language Delays

As the definition of being literate transforms from being able to read and write to being able to decipher a variety of mediums (e.g., music, text emojis, and more!), it is necessary that curriculum is adapted to reflect these changes. This paper discusses 11 preschoolers aged 4 to 6 years with language delays and their ability to recognize one-syllable words. Two different interventions assessed word recognition. One intervention paired gestures with five words. The second intervention had participants create self-interpreted drawings for each of the remaining five words. To determine whether or not gestures and drawing were effective literacy strategies, participants’ word recognition scores pre and post intervention were analyzed. Assessments featured a visual field of three printed words and analyzed participants’ printed word recognition by asking them to point to the orally presented word. The correct responses connected to gestures versus drawing were compared. This study was inspired by the Stage to Page program, a collaboration between Ballet Vero Beach, The Learning Alliance, and the School District of Indian River County that worked to connect the art of dance and literacy in elementary-aged students (The Learning Alliance, 2021, 0:00). The program aimed to combat illiteracy and reach the community’s goal of 90% of students reading at grade-level by the end of third grade. Curriculum combined dance and literacy, ended in a culminating post-performance workshop, and identified that integrating the arts is a unique way to provide students access to text and support other areas of learning, such as literacy and reading