Item-writing Rules: Collective Wisdom

In student assessment, teachers place the greatest weight on tests they have constructed themselves and have an equally great interest in the quality of those tests. To increase the validity of teacher-made tests, many item-writing rules-of-thumb are available in the literature, but few rules have been tested experimentally. In light of the paucity of empirical studies, the validity of any given guideline might best be established by relying on experts. This study analyzed twenty classroom assessment textbooks to identify a consensus list of item-writing rules. Forty rules for which there was agreement among textbook authors are presented. The rules address four different validity concerns-potentially confusing wording or ambiguous requirements, the problem of guessing, test-taking efficiency, and controlling for testwiseness

Scharfe Zungen im ORF und der BBC

Diese Forschungsarbeit widmet sich dem weitgehend unerforschten Phänomen der politischen TV-Satire und ihrer Rolle im öffentlich-rechtlichen Fernsehen. Vor dem Hintergrund klassischer Humortheorien sowie den Cultural Studies als Metatheorie, wird dieses in Österreich relativ junge Fernseh-Format analysiert. Der Fokus liegt dabei auf der ORF-Satire „Dorfers Donnerstalk“. Diese Sendung im speziellen sowie die österreichische Politsatire im Allgemeinen werden mit dem Pendant in Großbritannien verglichen. Dabei stellt sich heraus, dass sich diese beiden Länder in Bezug auf Politsatire und Humor gar nicht so unähnlich sind. Ein besonderes Augenmerk wird in dieser wissenschaftlichen Arbeit auf die Funktionen der Politsatire, aber auch auf deren Grenzen, gelegt. So herrscht ein Widerspruch in der Hinsicht, dass Satire keine, oder kaum Tabus hat, und es auf der anderen Seite immer wieder zu Interventionen von Seiten der Politiker oder des Fernsehsenders kommt. Die Autorin beschäftigt sich, im Sinne der Cultural Studies, mit den dominierenden wie den kritischen Diskursen zum Thema Politsatire und versucht damit eine Ausgangsbasis für weitere Forschungen in diese Richtung zu schaffen. Um einen tieferen Einblick in die Thematik zu gewinnen, wurden sieben Experten – darunter Satiriker, Politikberater sowie Medienwissenschaftler – aus Österreich und Großbritannien ausführlich zu Politsaire im Fernsehen befragt

Zirkuläre RNAs als diagnostische und prognostische Biomarker für Patienten mit klarzelligem Nierenzellkarzinom

Fragestellung: Zirkuläre RNAs spielen eine bedeutende Rolle in der Karzinogenese verschiedener Tumorentitäten. Da sie mutmaßlich eine hohe Tumor- und Gewebespezifität besitzen, haben sie großes Potenzial als Biomarker. Vor dem Hintergrund, dass das Wissen über zirkuläre RNAs im klarzelligen Nierenzellkarzinom begrenzt ist, wurde das Expressionsprofil von sieben zirkulären RNAs (circCOL5A, circEHD2, circEDEM2, circEGNL3, circNETO2, circSCARB1, circSOD2) in einer Kohorte von Patienten mit einem klarzelligen Nierenzellkarzinom untersucht. Material und Methoden: Prospektiv wurde das Gewebe von Patienten mit einem klarzelligen Nierenzellkarzinom, die sich einer radikalen/partiellen Nephrektomie unterzogen, in der Biobank des Universitätsklinikum Bonn gesammelt. Die Gesamt-RNA wurde von 121 Tumorgeweben und 91 normalen Nierengeweben RNA isoliert und das Expressionsprofil der zirkulären RNAs durch eine quantitative real-time PCR bestimmt. Ergebnisse: Die Expression von circEHD2, circENGLN3 und circNETO2 war im klarzelligen Nierenzellkarzinom im Vergleich zum normalen Gewebe signifikant erhöht, wobei die circEGLN3 Expression mit einer hohen Genauigkeit (Sensitivität 87%, Spezifität 78%) zwischen Tumor- und Normalgewebe unterscheiden konnte. Keine der zirkulären RNAs war mit klinisch-pathologischen Parametern korreliert. Eine hohe circEHD2 und niedrige circNETO2 Expression konnten unabhängig von klinisch-pathologischen Parametern (pT, cM, Grading) ein verkürztes progressionsfreies, krebsspezifisches und Gesamtüberleben bei Patienten mit klarzelligen Nierenzellkarzinom vorhersagen. Schlussfolgerungen: Die Analyse von zirkulären RNAs kann diagnostische und prognostische Informationen liefern und so möglicherweise helfen, die individuelle Behandlung und letztendlich das Überleben von Patienten mit einem Nierenzellkarzinom zu verbessern.CircEHD2, CircNETO2 and CircEGLN3 as Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarkers for Patients with Renal Cell Carcinoma Background: Circular RNA (circRNA) plays an important role in the carcinogenesis of various tumors. It is assumed that circRNAs have a high tissue and tumor specificity, thus they are discussed as cancer biomarkers. The knowledge about circRNAs in clear cell renal carcinoma (ccRCC) is limited so far, and thus we studied the expression profile of seven circRNAs (circCOL5A1, circEHD2, circEDEM2, circEGNL3, circNETO2, circSCARB1, circSOD2) in a cohort of ccRCC patients. Methods: Fresh-frozen normal and cancerous tissues were prospectively collected from patients with ccRCC undergoing partial/radical nephrectomy. Total RNA was isolated from 121 ccRCC and 91 normal renal tissues, and the circRNA expression profile was determined using quantitative real-time PCR. Results: circEHD2, circENGLN3, and circNETO2 were upregulated in ccRCC compared with non-malignant renal tissue. circENGLN3 expression was highly discriminative between normal and cancerous tissue. None of the circRNAs was correlated with clinicopathological parameters. High circEHD2 and low circNETO2 levels were an independent predictor of a shortened progression-free survival, cancer-specific survival, and overall survival in patients with ccRCC undergoing nephrectomy. Conclusions: The analysis of circRNAs may provide diagnostic and prognostic information. Thus, circRNAs could help to optimize the individual treatment and ultimately improve ccRCC patients’ survival

Toward a feminist political ecology of household food and water security during drought in northern Nicaragua

Few studies assess the relationship between food and water access, despite global concerns about people’s inability to maintain access to both food and water. We conducted a mixed-methods comparative case study in northern Nicaragua, with smallholders from two neighboring communities that differed in water availability and institutional strength, using a feminist political ecology framework and food and water security definitions that focus on access, availability, use, and stability. We adopted a participatory approach that included: a sex-disaggregated survey in 2016; interviews, participant observation, and community-based water quality testing from 2014 to 2019; and analysis of a severe drought that occurred from 2014 to 2017. Our results suggest that uneven power relations, biophysical conditions, gender, and institutions shape food and water access, and indicate that households across both communities average 2 months of drinking water insecurity during the dry season followed by an average of 2.5 months of food insecurity early in the growing season. The average duration of lean food months was similar across communities and sex, but water insecurity lasted longer in the community that had weaker local institutions and less surface water availability. Ethnographic research helped to document uneven and gendered experiences of water access and to illustrate how they were also shaped by conflicts over water for irrigation vs. domestic uses and cross-scalar limitations in water and land governance. Although we found that gender and institutions were not strong predictors of several food and water insecurity indicators on their own, both factors influenced the terms of access, conflict, and cooperative governance needed to secure resources and well-being. Our study highlights the need for theory, methods, and field research that integrate the analysis of food and water security, and it contributes to developing a feminist political ecology approach that unifies this analysis with a focus on gender

Allele-specific enhancer interaction at the Peg3 imprinted domain

Copyright: © 2019 Kim et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. The parental allele specificity of mammalian imprinted genes has been evolutionarily well conserved, although its functional constraints and associated mechanisms are not fully understood. In the current study, we generated a mouse mutant with switched active alleles driving the switch from paternal-to-maternal expression for Peg3 and the maternal-to-paternal expression for Zim1. The expression levels of Peg3 and Zim1, but not the spatial expression patterns, within the brain showed clear differences between wild type and mutant animals. We identified putative enhancers localized upstream of Peg3 that displayed allele-biased DNA methylation, and that also participate in allele-biased chromosomal conformations with regional promoters. Most importantly, these data suggest for the first time that long-distance enhancers may contribute to allelic expression within imprinted domains through allele-biased interactions with regional promoters

Balanced Literacy in an Urban School District

This is the authors' accepted manuscript, post peer-review. The publisher's official version is available electronically from: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOER.98.5.272-280.Balanced literacy is a philosophical orientation that assumes that reading and writing achievement are developed through instruction and support in multiple environments using various approaches that differ by level of teacher support and child control. This study describes one urban school district’s real-world attempt to create a balance between reading and writing, between teacher-directed and student-centered activities, and between skillsbased and meaning based approaches to literacy instruction. A triangulation strategy using multiple methods of data collection, including classroom observations, inventories of the physical environment of classrooms and school buildings, teacher surveys, and student interviews, was used to measure balanced literacy components. Results suggest that teacherdirected instruction, a fundamental aspect of balanced literacy, was implemented less often than either independent reading or writing activities. Teachers appeared to be allocating instructional time as directed by district administrators, and they were implementing components of a balanced literacy program. Additionally, most school buildings had a physical environment supportive of balanced literacy. However, the amount of time devoted to instruction and modeling effective reading and writing strategies seemed too limited for a group of students with poorly developed reading and writing skills

Interventions for Speech and Language Outcomes for Children with ANSD: A Systematic Review

Purpose or Research Questions: In children with ANSD, how does amplification compared to cochlear implantation affect speech and language outcomes? Background: Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder, or ANSD is a sensorineural hearing loss characterized by an impairment of the auditory nerve. This generally means that while sound is able to travel through the outer, middle, and inner ear, it is unable to successfully reach the brain. Cochlear Implants (CIs) and hearing aids have both become common interventions for children with ANSD. The purpose of this systematic review is to investigate differences in speech and language outcomes between the two interventions. Methods/Proposed Methods: A literature search was conducted using the following search string: (ANSD OR CND OR Auditory Neuropathy OR Cochlear Nerve Deficiency) AND (children OR pediatric OR school) AND (amplification OR Hearing aids OR hearing amplification OR acoustic stimulation) AND (cochlear implant* OR electric stimulation). Three major databases were searched; PubMed, Ovid, and MedlinePlus. Studies including speech and language outcomes of this population of children were included. Exclusion criteria included children with comorbities, non-English speaking populations, and studies that only considered academic achievement outcomes. 12 studies met the inclusion criteria by addressing one or more of the aspects of our research questions. Eleven of the 12 studies addressed the use of cochlear implantation, and 5 addressed the use of hearing aids. Studies were evaluated for quality using the Cincinnati Children’s LEGEND Appraisal Forms. Data regarding participant, intervention, and outcome variables are reported. Results/Anticipated Results: All studies included were observational in design, including cohort studies and comparisons between children with ANSD and SNHL. The literature supports both hearing aids and CIs as acceptable intervention measures for ANSD. Evidence of favorable outcomes were demonstrated for both types of intervention in children with ANSD. Speech and language outcomes for both the hearing aid subjects and cochlear implant subjects were similar. All participants showed an improved auditory performance to some degree, yet all 12 studies were considered exploratory with methodological limitations and confounding issues. Discussion (e.g., interpretation of results; potential contribution of anticipated results) Due to the wide variety of outcomes for children with ANSD, it is important to identify children who will benefit from amplification and those who are appropriate candidates for cochlear implantation. The clinical evidence determining the differences in speech and language outcomes between CI and HA interventions in the ANSD population is limited. Stronger evidence is needed to demonstrate any important differences in cochlear implant benefit compared to hearing aid benefit as it pertains to speech and language outcomes in children with ANSD

Relationships between coronary heart disease risk factors and serum ionized calcium in Kennedy Space Center Cohort

Kennedy Space Center (KSC) employees are reported to be at high risk for coronary heart disease (CHD). Risk factors for CHD include high serum total cholesterol levels, low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC), elevated triglyceride, smoking, inactivity, high blood pressure, being male, and being older. Higher dietary and/or serum calcium Ca(++) may be related to a lower risk for CHD. Fifty men and 37 women participated. Subjects were tested in the morning after fasting 12 hours. Information relative to smoking and exercise habits was obtained; seated blood pressures were measured; and blood drawn. KCS men had higher risk values than KCS women as related to HDLC, triglycerides, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure. Smoking and nonsmoking groups did not differ for other risk factors or for serum Ca(++) levels. Exercise and sedentary groups differed in total cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Serum Ca(++) levels were related to age, increasing with age in the sedentary group and decreasing in the exercisers, equally for men and women. It is concluded that these relationships may be significant to the risk of CHD and/or the risk of bone demineralization in an aging population

Towards smallholder food and water security: Climate variability in the context of multiple livelihood hazards in Nicaragua

Climate variability and change affect both food and water security, as do other hazards, such as shifting food prices, plant pathogens, and political economic changes. Although household food and water insecurity affect billions, most studies analyze them separately. This article develops a relational approach to explaining household access to food and water in a multi-hazard context. We identify pathways linking hazards to livelihood vulnerability and assess the relative importance of climate-related hazards. Analyzing longitudinal data collected from two surveys of the same 311 smallholder households in northern Nicaragua, conducted in 2014 and again in 2017, we find that peak seasons of food and water stress are asynchronous across the agricultural calendar, resulting in a total of five to six months of food and/or water stress. Across households, we find a significant positive relationship between water and food insecurity, even after adjusting for household fixed effects. Households experienced less food and water insecurity in 2017 than in 2014, due in part to the end of a severe drought in 2016, but remained concerned about damage from a severe coffee leaf rust outbreak and unfavorable agrifood prices that reduce income and threaten food security. Higher incomes and larger farm areas correlated with improved food and water security. We propose a generalizable approach for the joint assessment of household food and water security, which foregrounds the influence of seasonality and climate variability in the context of multiple hazards. This approach and our findings can contribute to developing integrated risk reduction strategies, building resilient livelihoods, and informing policy changes and partnerships with organized smallholders to improve resource access and sovereignty