Influence of Teacher Qualifications, Experience, Instructional Methods, and Professional Development on Student Achievement on the Mississippi Writing Assessment in Grades Four and Seven

The purpose of this study was to determine if teacher qualifications, experience, instructional methods, and professional development influenced student achievement on the Mississippi Writing Assessment in grades four and seven. The study was conducted in the three coastal counties of southern Mississippi. Participants were fourth or seventh grade teachers who taught in one of the eight school districts that were included in the study. Participants were asked to provide information regarding their qualifications, amount of classroom experience, preferred instructional methods, and feelings on professional development. Also requested from each teacher was his/her classroom average on the Mississippi Writing Assessment from the 2010–2011 school year. This information from each teacher was analyzed to determine which, if any, of the factors had any impact on classroom averages. The researcher looked closely at the descriptive statistics, frequencies, correlation tables, regressions and their relationship(s) with classroom averages. An ANOVA was used to determine if the level of degree, type of certification and/or number of Language Arts hours impacted classroom averages on the writing assessment. Results of this study indicate that alternate route teachers had lower averages, and teachers who had a higher number of Language Arts semester hours had higher classroom averages. The Pearson Correlation indicated that teacher experience was not strongly correlated with classroom averages. Although instructional methods and implementation of professional development were not strongly correlated to classroom averages, they are significant predictor variables. These results could be beneficial to school districts and administrators when selecting and placing teachers, especially those who hold alternate route certification. Administrators could take note of teachers with higher averages and carefully observe instructional methods practiced daily, encouraging others to use methods considered to be effective. Administrators could also use these results when making decisions regarding professional development for writing instruction

Just Trauma-Informed Schools: Theoretical Gaps, Practice Considerations and New Directions

Trauma-informed practices in schools have proliferated over the last decade and are often framed as social justice-oriented practices. This article assesses the theoretical and empirically supported basis for the proposed relationship between trauma-informed practices and social justice. It concludes the current theory of impact linking trauma-informed practices and social justice work is not supported by evidence. In response, we document theoretical gaps which limit the potential reach of trauma-informed practices in responding to social justice issues in schools and identify potential ways in which research and practice can respond to these gaps. We also highlight critical considerations for developing and implementing socially just trauma-sensitive schools, suggesting key questions and steps social workers, educational leaders, and educators can take to embed these considerations in their practice

Role of the QBO in modulating the influence of the 11 year solar cycle on the atmosphere using constant forcings

We present a set of six 20 year experiments made with a state-of-the-art chemistry-climate model that incorporates the atmosphere from the surface to the lower thermosphere. The response of the middle atmosphere to the 11 year solar cycle, its impact on the troposphere, and especially the role of an externally prescribed stratospheric quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) is investigated with NCAR's Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM3). The model experiments use either fixed solar cycle inputs or fixed solar cycle together with prescribed QBO phase. The annual mean solar response in temperature and ozone in the upper stratosphere is in qualitative agreement with other modeling and observational studies and does not depend on the presence of the imposed QBO. However, the solar response in the middle to lower stratosphere differs significantly for the two QBO phases. During solar maxima a weaker Brewer-Dobson circulation with relative downwelling, warming, and enhanced ozone occurs in the tropical lower stratosphere during QBO east conditions, while a stronger circulation, cooling, and decreased ozone exists during QBO west conditions. The net ozone increase during QBO east is the combined result of production and advection, whereas during QBO west the effects cancel each other and result in little net ozone changes. Especially during Southern Hemisphere late winter to early spring, the solar response at polar latitudes switches sign between the two QBO phases and qualitatively confirms observations and other recent model studies. During a poleward downward modulation of the polar night jet and a corresponding modulation of the Brewer-Dobson circulation in time, solar signals are detected all the way down to the extratropical troposphere. Possible limitations of the model experiments with respect to the fixed solar cycle conditions or the prescribed QBO phases, as well as the constant sea surface temperatures, are discussed

Management Structure that Supports and Facilitates Social Good: Phase II for Paths of Hope, Inc.

In fall 2012, Molloy College embarked on an educational experiment that has now been fully integrated into the curriculum of the business programs. Over these past five years, a pedagogical philosophy has developed; students learn by doing and the evidence of learning must be demonstrated. Accreditors demand that program level outcomes reflect evidence of learning. There is no better evidence than the students’ self-report and demonstration in the real world that the knowledge and the skills acquired within the learning environment can be applied. The documentation has been published in a series of conference papers coupled with student presentations at the annual meetings of the Northeast Business and Economics Association. The mission of Molloy College articulates the call to action related to social responsibility, service, community, and study. Molloy’s commitment to academic excellence and the promotion of lifelong learning demonstrates the transformative education experienced by the students (source: Molloy Mission Statement). Therefore, the evidence of learning for the Molloy graduate program is a set of business solutions that will support social good. This paper reports on the phase II consulting work conducted for Paths of Hope, Inc. The phase II student consultants built upon the successful work on the phase I team. The details of phase I were presented at the 2017 NBEA Conference (Rodriguez, Riegel, and Mackenzie, 2017). The phase I team was faced with a significant problem, which was solved with the legal solution and the creation of a not-for-profit corporation. The phase II team’s collaboration with the newly formed corporation is focused on the development of management practices that would allow this new corporation, to survive

Vietnamese Americans: History, Education, and Societal Context

While Asian Americans are often depicted as one high-achieving group, there are in fact a wide diversity of Asian American populations that each have their own history and acculturation experiences in the United States. Vietnamese Americans are a particularly unique group; having come with other Southeast Asian refugee groups after the Vietnam War, they are a relatively recent addition to U.S. society with very different circumstances of arrival in comparison with groups from other regions of Asia. This article takes a historical lens to understand the unique factors surrounding Vietnamese American entry to the United States—including policy, societal reception, co-ethnic community, and other barriers and opportunities—that shaped acculturation experiences for this group, influencing their subsequent educational and occupational outcomes

Cecilia: an R package to automate data cleaning of administrative datasets

Introduction Data linkage has considerable potential to improve health and society. Linking vast and detailed information across multiple administrative population-scaled data sources enhances the quality of existing data, empowers population health research, and produces objective evidence to inform policy decisions. In this context, data cleaning is crucial to minimise linkage errors. Objectives and Approach As dealing with the heterogeneity of administrative datasets is an acknowledged time-consuming task, the objective is creating a public and open-source R package to automate and report steps of data cleaning in a reproducible fashion. The package automatically assesses variables and reports relevant information and issues for linkage purposes, then cleans the dataset based on problems found, reassesses the variables and reports results again. It has a default cleaning procedure based on years of accumulated linkage knowledge and an interactive exploratory session to check variables individually. The report also includes all settings from both default and interactive session. Results The package accurately detected, cleaned and reported potential linkage problems in variables such as names, addresses and dates in so far 15 actual populational datasets from multiple sources, with a diverse range of format, content, and inconsistencies. The entire process took minutes rather than hours. The reports correctly gathered, organised and presented all relevant information for linkage, in all distinct sections of the hyperlinked document, such as those related to the dataset, individual variables or settings used for cleaning. The different types of information included text, figures, data dictionaries, and frequency tables of detected issues, such as non-alphanumeric characters, annotation terms or suffixes and prefixes. The output datasets had all evaluated variables with cleaned data plus extra columns containing only issues themselves or problematic records. Conclusion/Implications The package accelerates the data cleaning of linkage variables, automating time-consuming steps, providing pertinent information for linkage as well as cleaned datasets. The complete process is time-efficient and reproducible. As the output dataset contains variables with cleaned data and detected issues, it allows assessment of the level of cleaning performed

Extracting Family Connections from Administrative Data

Introduction Record linkage has existed for decades, regarded as an activity where an entity is ascertained across different data sources. Initially medically driven to determine further outcomes. Developments in technology led to cheaper computing and storage, which ushered capture of information beyond the primary entities such as carer’s details. Objectives and Approach Administrative datasets that capture an event involving a child would more often than not, capture information about their parents or carers including relationship to the primary entity within the record. The main objective was to exploit the connections across the entities captured in a record and have that as an additional layer of information that may contribute to context. All entities extracted from one record were clearly defined as related. Information was considered true at the point of capture. Then record linkage for all the individual entities extracted were performed. Results Family structures evolve and a family structure during birth may change by the time the child attends school where carer information was recorded during enrolment. Each data source inevitably becomes a “source of truth” and understanding the different aspects of a dataset affects its credibility. Authority for collection dictates if the recording of the event is mandatory or optional and directly influences the coverage. The process of data capture and storage is also important; manual vs digital input and if any validation was present. Application of family connection to specific types of research will dictate the relevant “source of truth”. If one is to use family connections in the context of hereditary diseases, pregnancy outcomes would be more suitable than a birth registry. Conclusion/Implications Family unit as defined in the traditional sense have changed and all variations are reflected in the data. Assessing the impact of social connections to ones health may now be possible. Extracting these connections from administrative datasets can serve as additional intelligence that may inform if not shape longitudinal studies

Modifying effect of obesity on the association between sitting time and incident diabetes in post-menopausal women

Objective: To evaluate the association between self-reported daily sitting time and the incidence of type II diabetes in a cohort of postmenopausal women. Design and Methods Women (N = 88,829) without diagnosed diabetes reported the number of hours spent sitting over a typical day. Incident cases of diabetes were identified annually by self-reported initiation of using oral medications or insulin for diabetes over 14.4 years follow-up. Results: Each hour of sitting time was positively associated with increased risk of diabetes (Risk ratio (RR): 1.05; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.02–1.08]. However, sitting time was only positively associated with incident diabetes in obese women. Obese women reporting sitting 8–11 (RR: 1.08; 95% CI 1.0–1.1), 12–15 (OR: 1.13; 95% CI 1.0–1.2), and ≥16 hours (OR: 1.25; 95% CI 1.0–1.5) hours per day had an increased risk of diabetes compared to women sitting ≤ 7 hours per day. These associations were adjusted for demographics, health conditions, behaviors (smoking, diet and alcohol intake) and family history of diabetes. Time performing moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity did not modify these associations. Conclusion: Time spent sitting was independently associated with increased risk of diabetes diagnosis among obese women— a population already at high risk of the disease

Influence of Fitness on Stress Reactivity as Measured with the Trier Social Stress Test

PURPOSE: Psychosocial stress is associated with multiple health complaints which a higher cardiorespiratory fitness may reduce stress reactivity. A higher level of fitness may assist in the reduction of stress-related risk factors. Limited studies have investigated the health and cortisol response of promotoras’ (Latina community health educators) physical activity (PA) behaviors along the South Texas Mexico Border Region. The aim of this study was to assess the associations of promotoras’ fitness on stress reactivity in promotoras. METHODS: 17 promotoras’ anthropometric measures (body mass index (BMI)), were assessed before performing Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Salivary cortisol was collected before, 10-minutes, 25-minutes, and 40-minutes post TSST via passive drool method. Self-report PA included Jurca non-exercise assessment of cardiorespiratory capacity. Promotoras also performed a 2-minute step test. All tests were assessed using Spearman correlation analyses at a significance level of .05. RESULTS: Participants’ average BMI was high (31.4±7.18 kg/m²); 76.5% were overweight or obese, 30% very or extremely obese. Physical functioning levels were low (cardiorespiratory capacity 26.0±9.1 VO2/kg/min; step test 77.4 steps/2-minutes). Salivary cortisol levels revealed significant increase at the onset of the TSST and remained significantly elevated at 10-minutes post TSST. In comparison to baseline, cortisol levels remained elevated at 25-minutes and 40-minutes post TSST. CONCLUSION: Low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness and high BMI’s may have resulted in a slower cortisol recovery time after placing the body under stress in promotoras. Regular physical activity and fitness may attenuate response to psychosocial stress and enable promotoras to achieve a healthier lifestyle

Physical Fitness and Energy Balance Activity of “Promotora” Community Health Care Workers in the South Texas-Mexico Border Region

PURPOSE: Latinas along the U.S.-Mexico border are among the most physically inactive and obese segment of the U.S. population. There is widespread recognition of the cultural appropriateness of promotoras (community health workers) in health education among Latino communities. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study with 17 promotoras who reside/work in the region to investigate their physical fitness and energy balance behaviors. Promotoras completed physical testing and self-report on physical activity and dietary behaviors. Participants wore an accelerometer for one week. In addition, the validity of an activity self-report instrument to assess cardiorespiratory fitness was tested. RESULTS: Participants’ average body mass index (BMI) was high (31.4±7.18 kg/m²); 76.5% were overweight or obese, 30% very or extremely obese. Physical functioning levels were low (cardiorespiratory capacity 26.0±9.1 VO2/kg/min; step test 77.4 steps/2-minutes). Objectively measured moderate-vigorous PA (114.6 ± 87.0 minutes/week) was less than PA recommendations. Accelerometry activity significantly correlated with self-report (r = 0.71, p=0.009). Participants self-reported consuming 1889.2±492.8 kCal/day. CONCLUSION: Promotoras’ energy balance behaviors were similar to women where they reside/work. Promotoras engaging in health-promoting behaviors may enhance their effectiveness as change agents in the communities they serve