Implementation and Effects of a Conflict Resolution Program in a Urban Middle School

Conflict is the most crucial issue jeopardizing school safety in middle schools today. With escalating violence, a school-based program teaching conflict resolution skills may reduce disruption to an orderly environment and provide a peaceful alternative to violence. The primary purpose of this study was to identify and investigate possible effects of a conflict resolution program in an urban middle school. The secondary purpose was to examine the program ’s impact on students selected as conflict resolution managers. Data were collected from the total student body, and teachers, as well as conflict resolution managers. In this study, there was no decrease in the proportion and rate of suspensions from baseline to project year; instead an increase was seen. When the data was disaggregated into violent and nonviolent categories, there remained no statistically significant differences. Conversely, there was a statistically significant decrease in the proportion of students receiving referrals. Effect size estimates indicated meaningful change. However, there was no evidence o f a change in rate o f referrals per student. This finding held true when the referral data was disaggregated into violent and nonviolent categories. In examining teacher perceptions after program implementation, teachers perceived improvement in general discipline, albeit limited to fighting and conflict resolution. Additionally, more teachers felt that students take part in solving their own problems in school. While reality indicated an increase in the proportion and rate of behavior incidents, teachers perceived improvement. Several reasons were offered for this dichotomy. In examining all students’ feelings related to disagreements or conflicts and their relationships with others, no significant differences were found. Furthermore, for conflict resolution managers, no significant positive differences were found in attendance rate, GPA, referral rate, and self-esteem. Effect size estimates did indicate a somewhat meaningful improvement in self-esteem. As a result of these findings, it is recommended that the cadre approach be supplemented with a total student body model, integrating conflict resolution skills into the total school curriculum

Progettare, documentare e osservare all\u2019asilo nido: un\u2019esperienza con il software eNido

La ricerca si sviluppa sull\u2019analisi dell\u2019esperienza con il software eNido, in uso dall\u2019anno educativo 2012-2013 presso l\u2019Asilo nido \u201cle Coccole\u201d di Arzergrande in provincia di Pa- dova, in gestione alla Cooperativa sociale Cosep di Padova. L\u2019asilo nido \ue8 un servizio per la prima infanzia che non si limita pi\uf9 ad essere un servi- zio prettamente assistenziale; ma oggi la famiglia e la societ\ue0 attribuisce un importante compito educativo. I servizi per la prima infanzia sono arrivati oggi a riconoscere la centralit\ue0 e valorizzazione del bambino, in quanto soggetto attivo dell\u2019educazione. Tale concetto deve essere ricordato quando si progetta; gli educatori, infatti, sono chiamati a progettare, ossia creare contesti capaci di accogliere differenti ambiti, di integrare e dare senso alle diverse esperienze dei bambini. L\u2019educatore deve anche osservare e documentare, tenendo traccia di ci\uf2 che osserva e progettando possibili rilanci, evi- denziando l\u2019intento pedagogico e l\u2019azione educativa. Con l\u2019evoluzione delle tecnologie e del Web 2.0 si sono modificate le modalit\ue0 di condivisione, documentazione, progetta- zione e catalogazione delle esperienze. Ed \ue8 qui che si inserisce l\u2019analisi del software eNido, un programma web che automatizza le attivit\ue0 didattiche ed amministrative di un asilo nido e fornisce uno strumento di comunicazione con i genitori dei bambini iscritti. Si \ue8 cercato di rilevare se l\u2019utilizzo del software abbia aumentato il livello di competenza delle educatrici nelle aree della progettazione, osservazione e documenta- zione

The role of food and nutrition system approaches in tackling hidden hunger

One of the World`s greatest challenges is to secure sufficient and healthy food for all, and to do so in an environmentally sustainable manner. This review explores the interrelationships of food, health, and environment, and their role in addressing chronic micronutrient deficiencies, also known as "hidden hunger", affecting over two billion people worldwide. While the complexity and underlying determinants of undernutrition have been well-understood for decades, the scaling of food and nutrition system approaches that combine sustainable agriculture aimed at improved diet diversity and livelihoods have been limited in their development and implementation. However, an integrated system approach to reduce hidden hunger could potentially serve as a sustainable opportunity

Agricultural biodiversity is essential for a sustainable improvement in food and nutrition security

Agricultural biodiversity has hitherto been valued almost exclusively as a source of traits that can be used in scientific breeding programs to improve the productivity of crop varieties and livestock breeds. We argue that it can make a far greater contribution to increased productivity. In particular, a wider deployment of agricultural biodiversity is an essential component in the sustainable delivery of a more secure food supply. Diversity of kingdoms, species and genepools can increase the productivity of farming systems in a range of growing conditions, and more diverse farming systems are also generally more resilient in the face of perturbations, thus enhancing food security. Diversity can maintain and increase soil fertility and mitigate the impact of pests and diseases. Diversity of diet, founded on diverse farming systems, delivers better nutrition and greater health, with additional benefits for human productivity and livelihoods. Agricultural biodiversity will also be absolutely essential to cope with the predicted impacts of climate change, not simply as a source of traits but as the underpinnings of more resilient farm ecosystems. Many of the benefits of agricultural biodiversity are manifested at different ecological and human scales, and cut across political divisions, requiring a cross-sectoral approach to reassess the role of agricultural biodiversity in sustainable and secure food production

Self-regulated strategies for school writing tasks: A cross-cultural report

We investigated cross-cultural differences in ninth-grade students' reported use of self-regulated strategies for writing. We assessed 12 self-regulated strategies for writing tapping environmental, behavioural, and personal self-regulated processes. Seven hundred and thirty-two Portuguese and Brazilian students in transition to high school (Mage = 14.3; 372 male and 306 female) from mainstream urban schools reported on their use of the strategies. Statistical analyses included a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) with 12 dependent variables (self-regulated strategies for writing) and 2 between-subjects variables (country and gender). There were significant main effects for country with medium effect sizes and statistically significant small effect sizes for gender main effects. All-male and all-female comparisons indicated significant differences and medium effect sizes within gender groups. The majority of the differences tapped personal self-regulated strategies. Taken together, these findings suggest that initiating and controlling writing may be a contextualised bounded process

A role for TSPO in mitochondrial Ca2+ homeostasis and redox stress signaling

The 18 kDa translocator protein TSPO localizes on the outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM). Systematically overexpressed at sites of neuroinflammation it is adopted as a biomarker of brain conditions. TSPO inhibits the autophagic removal of mitochondria by limiting PARK2-mediated mitochondrial ubiquitination via a peri-organelle accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Here we describe that TSPO deregulates mitochondrial Ca2+ signaling leading to a parallel increase in the cytosolic Ca2+ pools that activate the Ca2+-dependent NADPH oxidase (NOX) thereby increasing ROS. The inhibition of mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake by TSPO is a consequence of the phosphorylation of the voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC1) by the protein kinase A (PKA), which is recruited to the mitochondria, in complex with the Acyl-CoA binding domain containing 3 (ACBD3). Notably, the neurotransmitter glutamate, which contributes neuronal toxicity in age-dependent conditions, triggers this TSPO-dependent mechanism of cell signaling leading to cellular demise. TSPO is therefore proposed as a novel OMM-based pathway to control intracellular Ca2+ dynamics and redox transients in neuronal cytotoxicity

Unprecedented directed lateral lithiations of tertiary carbons on NHC platforms

International audienceUnexpected and unprecedented directed remote lateral lithiation at one CH(CH3)2 of the 3-(2,6-di-isopropylphenyl) wingtip took place upon the reaction of functionalised N-heterocyclic carbene-type molecules with excess of LiCH2SiMe3, leading to dilithiated dianionic 4-amido-N-heterocyclic carbenes. DFT calculations show that the nature of the isolated species are under thermodynamic control