A Qualitative Exploration of Counseling Interns’ Experiences and Perceptions of Moonlight

The purpose of this article is to present the findings produced from a basic qualitative study designed to explore the experiences and perceptions of mental health counseling interns exposed to the popular film, Moonlight. Data collection included a focus group interview, completed written reflections, and member checking activities. Implications for counselor education, suggestions for integrating Moonlight into curriculum, limitations, and directions for future research are examined

A Qualitative Investigation Of Clinical Mental Health Counseling Interns’ Experiential Reflections On The Popular Film, Moonlight: An Intersectional Activity In Multicultural Counselor Education

Counselor educators and supervisors have the incumbent responsibility to ensure that CITs are sufficiently prepared to engage in counseling work with clientele from diverse backgrounds. Extant literature has demonstrated the use of film to teach CITs about racism and antiracism, promote exploration and awareness of racial attitudes, and examine the interactions of culturally diverse individuals. Films have also been utilized to assist CITs with acquiring knowledge about certain categorical cultural and social populations. Despite the recognition of popular film as a beneficial media to facilitate cultural learning in counselor education, there exists a gap in the literature regarding the experiences and understandings of CITs exposed to media, specifically film, that explicitly portray the dynamic interactions of intersectional identities through a lens of development. Additionally, no studies in the counselor education field have focused on the experiences of more advanced counseling students enrolled in clinical courses such as practicum and internship who have been exposed to multicultural or intersectional films. In this study, a basic interpretative qualitative approach was employed to explore the experiences and perceptions of mental health counseling interns exposed to the popular film, Moonlight. Five final themes emerged as a result of this study. 12 master’s level counseling interns engaged in a focus group interview, completed written reflection responses, and participated in member checks to discuss their experiences and perceptions of the film. Interpretations of themes were presented to conceptualize and discuss implications for counselor education and supervision, suggestions for integrating Moonlight, or other similar films, into curriculum, and directions for future research

Teaching Models: Designing Instruction for 21st Century Learners (Book Review)

Book review by Joshua C. Elliott. Milman, N. B., & Kilbane, C.R. (2013). Teaching models: Designing instruction for 21st century learners. New York, NY: Pearson. ISBN: 978020560997

Book Review - Online, Blended, and Distance Education: Building Successful Programs in Schools

Book review by Joshua C. Elliott. Clark, T. & Barbour, M.K. (Eds.). (2015). Online, Blended, and Distance Education: Building Successful Programs in Schools. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing, 2015. ISBN: 9781620361641 (pbk.

The EXCITE Grant: A Case in Innovative Library Professional Development

Libraries programs are sometimes offered on a trial and error basis. The EXCITE program offers an intensive professional development experience. This experience is designed to help librarians develop their ability to identify community needs and develop innovative programs to meet those needs. The program ran on a cohort basis with 6 out of the 12 applications being accepted. Library cohorts that successfully finish the program are awarded partial funding to implement what they create

Online Professional Development: Criteria for Selection by Teachers and Evaluation by Administrators

The purpose of the current qualitative case study was to explore which criteria administrators in a mid-sized public school district in Connecticut use when evaluating whether an online professional development program meets the needs of both the district and the teachers. The study also explored which criteria teachers use when they are selecting an online professional development program. The first research question was, what criteria do school administrators use in evaluating online professional development programs as effective professional development for teachers? The second research question was, what criteria do teachers use in selecting online professional development programs? Data were collected through interviews with administrators, interviews with teachers, and analysis of relevant documents. Participants in the study included district administrators who play a role in the approval process for professional development and district teachers who have completed online professional development. Several themes and subthemes for both administrators and teachers emerged. Administrators consider the structure, reputation, convenience, and district alignment when evaluating an online professional development program. Teachers consider the structure, topic, and convenience of online professional development when selecting a program. The primary suggestion for future research is an investigation into the reasons for the perception of teachers and administrators concerning the perceived discrepancy between how the two groups select effective professional development. Continued research may make the use of online professional development an increasingly productive means of professional growth. The findings of the current study may inform other public school districts of the value of such a collaborative effort

How and Why to Localise the Scientific Realism Debate: Making Historical Arguments in the Scientific Realism Debate Compatible with Methodological Pluralism

I argue for a new way of localising historical arguments in the scientific realism debate. We should see historical arguments as attempts to empirically assess scientific methods. For such arguments to be good, they need to be about a single method. Therefore, only if there is a unified method of science can historical inductions on science license general conclusions about the epistemic status of current science. However the consensus seems to be that there is no such unified scientific method. Various versions of methodological pluralism seem to undermine any attempt to assess scientific methods through historical means, as they make it hard to see methods as persisting through theory change or as applying beyond a very specific field. In particular, views of scientific methods that see them as highly context specific seem to undermine any kind of historical realism debate. I attempt to outline a way in which we can individuate scientific methods in order to empirically test them. I also argue that the impact of context can be accounted for in a way that still leaves room for historical assessments of methods if we categorise contexts according to types of difficulty. The view of the historical scientific realism debate we end up with is one in which various methodological resources are argued to be either unreliable or reliable for a given type of difficulty, based on evidence from the history of science. These conclusions about the reliability of methods may be relevant to the epistemic status of a given theory, but establishing which methods and difficulties are present in an actual scientific context requires detailed engagement with local evidence. I compare my position with other localist views and explain how it offers more role for historical inductions on science than some other localist writers

Wildlife-Friendly Fence Policy on Federal Public Lands Managed by the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management

Many wildlife species are negatively impacted by the presence of fences on the landscape. Climate change is only exacerbating the problem as home ranges shift and species face heightened levels of stress. In recent decades, wildlife biologists have studied these impacts and devised ways of constructing fences to increase habitat connectivity and significantly reduce fence-related injury and mortality rates. Conservationists attempting to address this issue on a landscape level face significant challenges resulting from complex land ownership patterns, specifically across the western United States. The two largest landowners in the U.S. are the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). These federal agencies, which manage their jurisdictional lands on behalf of the American public, construct fences and issue permits and leases to construct fences on much of their lands for a variety of reasons. This professional paper addresses a piece of the wildlife-fence conflict by summarizing and analyzing the polices that guide fence practices on USFS and BLM lands. Specifically, this paper (1) summarizes and describes the statutes, regulations, and directives that are most relevant and potentially useful to making wildlife-friendly decisions about fencing on federal public lands administered by the USFS and BLM, (2) summarizes the fence-related guidance provided in USFS and BLM regulations and directives related to forest/field office planning, allotment management planning, and grazing permit decision making, (3) explains how these policies can be drawn upon by the USFS and BLM to consider, justify, and compel the use of wildlife-friendly fencing, and (4) provides recommendations to wildlife advocates for policy-level changes that can be made to better encourage and compel the consideration and use of wildlife-friendly fences on federal lands managed by these agencies. The ultimate purpose of this paper is to arm wildlife advocates with the information necessary to successfully advocate for improved fence policy and practice on USFS and BLM lands. By setting a strong example, these agencies could positively impact the fence policies and practices of other agencies and landowners, contributing to a positive, landscape-scale impact for wildlife