Family Learning Culture Assessment: Development of metrics of the collective epistemic orientations and achievement motivations in diverse families

The family, in educational psychology research, is unidimensional. It is either a covariate, a tool for school agenda or narrowly defined by a single person, usually the mother and her college educational attainment. These diminutions of family hamper efforts to fully understand critical contextual factors that impact student learning, like family. Inspired by Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) and Family Communication Practices (FCP), Family Learning Culture Theory (FLCT) emerged as the conceptual framework for a exploratory research project, which interviewed three middle-class family representatives, of high school students in two school districts in a Southeastern city in the United States. Aggregate findings, from that preliminary study reveal that family expectations towards learning, school and knowledge, is shaped academic success is a multi-membered, cultural dynamic which extends beyond households and bloodlines. This study also found that over time, family is less directive and more consultative in its support for children’s personal fulfillment and goal attainment, which may not include college. The results of this study informed the development of the Family Learning Culture Assessment, which combines interdisciplinary, reliability-tested, metrics along with new dimensions unearthed during the qualitative study, to understand emergent family typologies in school-based settings. This research and the resulting assessment have implications for removing deficit-based binaries, like engaged or disengaged, and replacing them with more nuanced descriptive typologies, reflective of families as complete cultural entities. The possibilities for targeted support or intervention are as varied as the typologies themselves.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/gradposters/1138/thumbnail.jp

Dialogue and studio space: the architectural design studio as the setting for continuous reflection

Teaching and learning in the design studio aims to continuously offer the learner opportunities to relate their individual experience to the discourses shaping the professional field through an iterative process of inquiries, reflection and actions. This paper highlights the role of level-specific dialogue in the provision of design studio teaching at the early stages of the student’s journey toward professionalization. It will be suggested that the Problem-Based Learning model enshrined in the idea of studio teaching alone does not facilitate for a sufficiently refined and truly reflective learning experience. By looking at a range of publications on the reflective practitioner, I hope to focus the discussion on the diachronic nature of dialogue in the disciplinary context of architectural education. The discussion of a number of case studies from the First Year provision at the CASS School of Architecture will illustrate a participatory approach to the dialogical scaffolding of early learning experiences and the assessment of generated outcomes as the conceptual framework of dialogical learning in the design studio. It will be argued that sustaining a dialogical process, based on multi-voiced provision, can contribute to the continuity of the learning experience at advanced levels of undergraduate studies, while critically addressing concerns raised about traditional studio teaching practices

Research vs. Reality How School Districts Meet the Developmental Needs of School Principals

This study examined the shared experiences of elementary principals on the professional development provided to them from their district. The study population consisted of 16 elementary school principals in a district in a state in the mid-Atlantic region. A general qualitative methods approach that was informed by phenomenology was followed. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and a focus group with the participants and was then organized into themes to answer the following research questions: (1) What approaches to development are being implemented to support elementary principals in a district in a state in the Mid-Atlantic region? (2) Which methods of development are perceived by principals to be the most effective? A major purpose of the study was to determine if the research on the development of principals aligns with the reality of how principals are being developed by the district in which they work. Three major themes and five subthemes were revealed by the research and concluded with the implications for practice and research. Five significant findings resulted from this work and shed light on the potential for school districts to adequately support the developmental needs of elementary school principals

Targeted Education for the Prevention of Vaccine Refusal

Vaccinations are important factors in the eradication of most communicable diseases. Tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) vaccine has been found to decrease the incidence and further spread of pertussis, and even nullify its existence, yet many postpartum mothers opt not to receive the vaccination even if eligible to do so. It was unknown whether clinical nursing staff at the project site had sufficient knowledge about Tdap vaccine to educate postpartum mothers to accept the vaccine. The practice-focused question explored whether an educational program and a toolkit implemented for nursing staff members on the postpartum nursing unit would improve Tdap vaccination rates among postpartum mothers. The health belief model, theory of planned behavior, and social learning theory provided a framework for the project. Evidence obtained from the results of pre- and post-testing of nursing staff on their vaccine-related knowledge and attitudes showed a statistically significant increase in knowledge (z = -3.366, p = .001). Descriptive statistics were used to evaluate the change in Tdap refusal after the education. The use of Tdap vaccine in the postpartum period improved slightly with fewer postpartum mothers refusing the vaccine in the post-education period. Project findings showed that providing Tdap vaccine education to clinical nursing staff could prepare them to teach postpartum mothers about the benefits of Tdap vaccination, which may improve the percentage of postpartum mothers who will accept the vaccine. Higher vaccination rates might contribute to positive social change by decreasing pertussis transmission rates for newborns

Advanced Integral Equation and Hybrid Methods for the Efficient Analysis of General Waveguide and Antenna Structures

Three new numerical methods for the calculation of passive waveguide and antenna structures are presented in this work. They are designed to be used within a comprehensive hybrid CAD tool for the efficient analysis of those building blocks for which the fast mode-matching/2-D finite element technique cannot be applied. The advanced algorithms introduced here are doubly higher order, that is higher order basis functions are considered for current/field modeling whereas geometry discretization is performed with triangular/tetrahedral elements of higher polynomial degree

Does Justice Exist?: An Examination Of The Association Between Race And Perceptions Of The Criminal Justice System.

This paper examines the association between race and perceptions of trust in the criminal justice system amongst five different racial groups. Sociologists have diligently worked towards determining the effects of race, on court decisions, because (1) it is an important social issue, (2) it is widely considered a testing ground for propositions derived from conflict theory, and (3) the research literature is laced with contradictory findings and conclusions (Unnever et al. 1980). The present study will determine if there is a disconnection between minority groups and the criminal justice system. Furthermore, it will discover if blackness alone is the factor that attracts criminal injustices

DO WE NEED TO TRAIN TEACHERS AND STUDENTS TO CARE ABOUT OTHER LIVING BEINGS?

The aim of the present work is to show that early learning at school about animal welfare can help the future generation to respect our planet and to care about other living beings. This educational process should start at the level of primary school to create a significant imprinting in students who are very young. First of all, it would be necessary to integrate primary school guidelines with additional ones that teach students to respect our species and others. Secondly, I do hope that Croatia may become leader in teaching students the respect toward animals. It would also be desirable that the Croatian Ministry of Education presents brand new guidelines which should include: firstly teachers' training on the topic and, secondly, students' training by means of their own teachers. This is a complex project, but at the same time extremely motivatin

THE ROLE OF THE SCHOOL SPACE IN PRESCHOOLERS' LEARNING PROCESSES

Purpose of the study The first aim of the present article was to investigate the role of school environment as an important factor in the learning process of children attending preschools in Istria (i.e. a part of Croatia where many people speak Italian). The school space is also called “Third educator” by famous pedagogues and it is constituted by labs, corridors, materials shape of the building, colours of the walls, quality of the lightings, type of furnishings and all didactic materials. It is a specific environment where the children live, learn, experience, get in touch with other people. Methodology The method used in our research was both quantitative as qualitative analyses of pedagogical documentation, observation of the environment of preschools and interviews with the educational boards of every school. Results The results showed that the school space is mostly in accordance with the requirements of the current legislation of the Country of Croatia and also confirmed the importance of it as “Third educator”, especially when the educators themselves were able to ameliorate the richness of corners and materials made available for children, encouraging in this way the development of the child's independence, maturation of identity and development of competencies. Implications In conclusion, school environment significantly affects child's learning, both because of the influence of architectural structures as because relational contexts and stimuli offered by the environment and by the educators. It means that the Ministry of Education in any Country should pay attention to the way buildings are constructed, especially regarding the richness of corners and materials at disposal of the children and of the educators

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