Working Women: The Transition’s Impact on Female Labor Force Participation in Former Communist Countries

In the late twentieth century, Central and Eastern European countries went through a transformation from a command economy to a market economy. Under the command economy there was virtually no unemployment, and most citizens were employed by the government. Women experienced high labor force participation and received generous family benefits. During the transition from a planned to a market economy, labor force participation rates for women dropped significantly and the benefits families received were no longer universally assured. The dismantling of social family benefits in a post-socialist economy resulted in a low female labor force participation rate, hindering a full potential for economic growth and reducing living standards. The transition experiences of Hungary and Poland are presented as case studies to demonstrate that “market establishment” is not a sufficient condition for a successful transition for an average citizen

Culturally Responsive Literature

Culturally responsive teaching is an effective way for educators to create relevant learning experiences that build on students’ strengths and cultural backgrounds. As a result, culturally responsive teaching has had positive learning outcomes for minority students because they are taking ownership of their learning and risks in trusting learning environments. This article defines culturally responsive teaching and explains how teachers can incorporate it into their lessons. First, it examines research on culturally responsive practices and culturally relevant pedagogy. Next, it explains the characteristics of culturally responsive teaching. Then, it offers suggestions on implementing culturally responsive practices into the classroom. The article concludes with examples of culturally responsive literature that can be implemented into the classroom. Through culturally responsive teaching, students’ learning needs can be met, while placing an emphasis on students’ different cultures, showing that all students are respected and valued in the classroom (Callins, 2006)

Mindfulness Matters

Mindfulness is an effective way for educators and students to manage their emotions, as well as reduce stress and anxiety. When implemented, mindfulness practices help students focus on the present moment and regulate their emotions. This article will first define mindfulness and explain how teachers can incorporate mindfulness strategies into an elementary classroom setting. Next, it examines mindfulness programs that school districts are using throughout the United States. Then, it explains social emotional learning and activities that support these practices within the classroom. The article concludes by offering outcomes and implications for mindfulness. Through mindfulness techniques, students can foster a positive environment and improve their social and physical well-being

Scaling up Payments for Watershed Services: Recommendations for Increasing Participation in Watershed Conservation Among Non-Industrial Private Forest Landowners in the Sebago Lake Watershed, Maine

Payments for Watershed Services (PWS) programs are receiving attention throughout the U.S. as a policy option to secure water quality in a cost effective manner. PWS programs face many challenges in implementation; prominent among them is designing a program that generates interest and participation among the suppliers of water quality, upstream private landowners. This report seeks to inform the development of a PWS program in Southeast Maine by examining the system of incentives needed to encourage private forest owners to adopt conservation best management practices that enhance water quality downstream. While focused on the Sebago Lake watershed, which provides drinking water for the Greater Portland area, this project approaches the localized study as a specific case to identify biophysical, institutional, economic and social factors that favor or limit the scaling up of PWS schemes. This analysis combines a systematic review of literature on landowner preferences to existing incentive programs, interviews with program administrators from PWS schemes throughout the U.S., and interviews with key stakeholders in Southeast Maine. This report provides a set of recommendations organized around: segmentation of landowners; targeting and positioning PWS programs; selecting attractive program attributes; and leveraging effective outreach channels and tactics. Key recommendations include: co-create program attributes with landowners; encourage peer to peer communication to build support and awareness; provide a portfolio of financial and non-financial incentives to increase interest; and partner with existing conservation organizations to add capabilities and resources.Master of ScienceNatural Resources and EnvironmentUniversity of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90874/1/scaling_up_watershed_services_2012.pd

A Framework for Coaching in Early Childhood Settings: Drawing on Bank Street College of Education’s Developmental-Interaction Approach (DIA)

Coaching helps teachers activate and better articulate their previous knowledge, skills, values, and belief systems, along with new concepts, to construct and continually refine an approach that is meaningful in their everyday work. This framework captures some commonalities of a positive coaching stance across contexts while allowing enough flexibility to make use of these ideas in ways that will serve that setting and teachers best.https://educate.bankstreet.edu/bsec/1009/thumbnail.jp

When Less is More: Evolutionary Origins of the Affect Heuristic

The human mind is built for approximations. When considering the value of a large aggregate of different items, for example, we typically do not summate the many individual values. Instead, we appear to form an immediate impression of the likeability of the option based on the average quality of the full collection, which is easier to evaluate and remember. While useful in many situations, this affect heuristic can lead to apparently irrational decision-making. For example, studies have shown that people are willing to pay more for a small set of high-quality goods than for the same set of high-quality goods with lower-quality items added [e.g. 1]. We explored whether this kind of choice behavior could be seen in other primates. In two experiments, one in the laboratory and one in the field, using two different sets of food items, we found that rhesus monkeys preferred a highly-valued food item alone to the identical item paired with a food of positive but lower value. This finding provides experimental evidence that, under certain conditions, macaque monkeys follow an affect heuristic that can cause them to prefer less food. Conservation of this affect heuristic could account for similar ‘irrational’ biases in humans, and may reflect a more general complexity reduction strategy in which averages, prototypes, or stereotypes represent a set or group

Assessing the Language of 2-year-olds: From Theory to Practice

Early screening for language problems is a priority given the importance of language for success in school and interpersonal relationships. The paucity of reliable behavioral instruments for this age group prompted the development of a new touchscreen language screener for 2-year-olds that relies on language comprehension. Developmental literature guided selection of age-appropriate markers of language disorder risk that are culturally and dialectally neutral and could be reliably assessed. Items extend beyond products of linguistic knowledge (vocabulary and syntax) and tap the process by which children learn language, also known as fast mapping. After piloting an extensive set of items (139), two phases of testing with over 500 children aged 2; 0–2; 11 were conducted to choose the final 40-item set. Rasch analysis was used to select the best fitting and least redundant items. Norms were created based on 270 children. Sufficient test-retest reliability, Cronbach\u27s alpha, and convergent validity with the MB-CDI and PPVT are reported. This quick behavioral measure of language capabilities could support research studies and facilitate the early detection of language problems