The effects of computer-administered instructions providing domain or strategy knowledge on the comprehension of familiar and unfamiliar expository text.

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of computer-administered instructions on the comprehension of familiar and unfamiliar college-level material. The instructions addressed two majors issues: (a) the effects of domain-specific knowledge and (b) the effects of strategy knowledge (i.e., knowledge about methods for active, purposeful reading). There were 157 university students who were recruited from psychology classes to participate in the study. There were two instructional conditions and two control conditions for the familiar and unfamiliar domain. The first instructional condition presented background information and information on concepts that were central to the topic. The second instructional condition instructed subjects on when and how to generate questions, summarize, and reread portions of the text. The third condition was a control condition in which subjects only read the text before taking the comprehension tests. The fourth condition was a control condition in which subjects were given the domain instructions and the tests without reading the text. The results were examined in terms of performance on each of three comprehension tests. On the sentence verification test, only a main effect for content familiarity was found. Subjects in the unfamiliar content condition performed better than subjects in the familiar content condition. On the summary test, there was a significant interaction of instruction with content familiarity. Contrary to what was expected, the advantage of the strategy condition over the control was not significant for the familiar content condition. For the unfamiliar content condition both the domain and strategy conditions showed a significant advantage over the control condition, but there was no difference between the domain and strategy. For the inference task, no effects of instructions were found for either condition of content familiarity. The findings provide support for the conclusion that strategy knowledge can be useful for comprehension even in the absence of domain knowledge. The evidence for the efficacy of the domain instructions used in the present study was weak, possibly due to methodological problems. The findings also support the use of multiple measures of comprehension in studies that examine the effects of comprehension instructions

Secondary Students' Involvement in Their IEP Meetings: Administrators' Perceptions

Secondary administrators in one southwestern state answered a 10-question web-based survey about student preparation for and involvement in their IEP meetings. Almost half of the 456 building-level special education administrative contacts who received our e-mail request completed the survey. Administrators reported that their schools teach students about their disability, invite them to their IEP meetings, encourage their participation at IEP meetings, and solicit student opinions during the meetings. Few administrators expected students to lead their own IEP meeting. Responses differed by administrative role. Principals answered questions differently than special education directors and special education teachers working part-time as administrators. The administrators' perceptions of student involvement differed from the results of direct observations of secondary IEP meetings.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

College Students' Collaborative Use of Inspiration‚Ñ¢ to Generate Concept Maps in an Educational Technology Class

Presented is a qualitative study of five groups of college students using Inspiration™ to construct concept maps in an educational technology class. Analyses addressed how the maps changed during the semester, how the course concepts were applied in a final project, and whether or not students reported that the concept mapping activity facilitated their learning. Participants easily learned to use Inspiration™ for developing concept maps. Findings suggest that the concept maps did reflect student learning and that when done in collaboration seemed to facilitate learning. However, collaboration did not come easily or successfully to two of the five groups. The final projects of students who were in problematic groups were less sophisticated than those developed by students who did work collaboratively on their concept maps. An important implication is that students need to be provided with more assistance in successful collaboration to effectively use the concept mapping tool.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

Fostering 21st Century Skill Development by Engaging Students in Authentic Game Design Projects in a High School Computer Programming Class

This study used technology-rich ethnography (TRE) to examine the use of game development in a high school computer programming class for the development of 21st century skills. High school students created games for elementary school students while obtaining formative feedback from their younger clients. Our experience suggests that in the teaching of computer science in high schools, the development of games that include common game features such as dynamic feedback systems, backstory, levels, cheats, and compelling graphics challenges students and engages them in learning. Incorporating real client feedback is also useful for improving their work and connecting it to the “real” world. This article reports findings from the second year of a research project with a high school computer programming class. The authors argue that such approaches that leverage video games, design, programming, authenticity, and cooperation mobilize multiple 21st century skills that must be nurtured among contemporary young people so that they may grow to be part of a productive citizenry.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

A Study Strategies Self-Efficacy Instrument for Use with Community College Students

Theories of self-efficacy and self-regulation were used to examine scores from an instrument that measures self-efficacy for using self-regulatory study strategies. The authors investigated the dimensionality of responses to the Study Skills Self-Efficacy Scale using exploratory factor analysis and Rasch measurement. They also investigated the utility of the Rasch measures in differentiating between groups of students who report being academically successful or at risk. The participants were 550 social science students at a midsized northeastern community-technical college. Results indicated that responses define three related dimensions and that measures were able to differentiate between students reporting to be academically successful or at risk. Additional items need to be developed to increase measurement precision along various portions of the self-efficacy dimensions.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

Concordance of Self-Report and Measured Height and Weight of College Students

Objective: This study examined associations between college students\u27 self-report and measured height and weight. Methods: Participants (N = 1,686) were 77% white, 62% female, aged 18–24 years (mean ± SD, 19.1 ± 1.1 years), and enrolled at 8 US universities. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated for self-report (via online survey); trained researchers measured height and weight and categorized them as normal (18.5 to \u3c 25), overweight (25 to \u3c 30), obese (30 to \u3c 35), and morbidly obese (≥ 35). Results: Concordance of self-report vs objectively measured BMI groups using chi-square revealed that 93% were accurate, 4% were underestimated, and 2.7% were overestimated. Pearson correlations and adjusted linear regression revealed significant associations between self-report and measured BMI (r = .97; P \u3c .001) and BMI adjusted for age, gender, and race/ethnicity (R2 = .94). Concordance was also high between BMI categories (kappa = 0.77; P \u3c .001). Conclusions and Implications: Findings provide support for the utility of self-report height and weight for survey research in college students

Ensuring due process in the IACUC and animal welfare setting: considerations in developing noncompliance policies and procedures for institutional animal care and use committees and institutional officials

Every institution that is involved in research with animals is expected to have in place policies and procedures for the management of allegations of noncompliance with the Animal Welfare Act and the U.S. Public Health Service Policy on the Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. We present here a model set of recommendations for institutional animal care and use committees and institutional officials to ensure appropriate consideration of allegations of noncompliance with federal Animal Welfare Act regulations that carry a significant risk or specific threat to animal welfare. This guidance has 3 overarching aims: 1) protecting the welfare of research animals; 2) according fair treatment and due process to an individual accused of noncompliance; and 3) ensuring compliance with federal regulations. Through this guidance, the present work seeks to advance the cause of scientific integrity, animal welfare, and the public trust while recognizing and supporting the critical importance of animal research for the betterment of the health of both humans and animals.â Hansen, B. C., Gografe, S., Pritt, S., Jen, K.â L. C., McWhirter, C. A., Barman, S. M., Comuzzie, A., Greene, M., McNulty, J. A., Michele, D. E., Moaddab, N., Nelson, R. J., Norris, K., Uray, K. D., Banks, R., Westlund, K. N., Yates, B. J., Silverman, J., Hansen, K. D., Redman, B. Ensuring due process in the IACUC and animal welfare setting: considerations in developing noncompliance policies and procedures for institutional animal care and use committees and institutional officials. FASEB J. 31, 4216â 4225 (2017). www.fasebj.orgPeer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154293/1/fsb2fj201601250r.pd

Academic boredom among students in higher education: a mixed-methods exploration of characteristics, contributors and consequences

Academic boredom contributes usually adversely towards student engagement, learning and overall performance across a diverse range of settings including universities. The formal study of academic boredom in higher education remains, however, a relatively underdeveloped field and one surprisingly neglected in the UK. Adopting contemporary perspectives rooted in Control-Value Theory, details of a mixed-methods exploration of academic boredom among 235 final year undergraduates attending a single university in England are presented. Quantitative data from the principal survey instrument employed included measurement using the BPS-UKHE, a revised boredom proneness scale developed for use across the sector. Qualitative data arose primarily from ten research interviews. Findings indicate that about half of all respondents reported experiencing the most common precursors of academic boredom at least occasionally (e.g. monotony, repetition, time slowing down, lack of desire for challenge, loss of concentration and motivation to learn, restlessness); traditional lectures with a perceived excess and inappropriate use of PowerPoint stimulating the actual onset of boredom more than other interactive forms of delivery. Coping strategies when bored included daydreaming, texting and turning to social media. Boredom also occurred during the completion of assignments used to assess modules. Quantitative and qualitative differences between those identified as more prone to boredom than others extended to self-study (fewer hours), attendance (good rather than excellent) and final degree outcome (lower marks and a lower proportion of first and upper second class degree awards). Findings are considered valuable empirically, as well as theoretically, leading to recommendations surrounding boredom mitigation which challenge cultural traditions and pedagogical norms