Mejores prácticas de desarrollo profesional docente en Estados Unidos

This paper discusses best practices in teachers’ professional development (PD) in the United States (U.S.). We begin by presenting a conceptual framework for effective professional development, which suggests five key features that make professional development effective—content focus, active learning, coherence, sustained duration, and collective participation. We then describe the findings from recent U.S. research that has tested the five features, with an emphasis on the results of rigorous randomized control trials. We discuss several insights gained from this work and that have helped refine the framework. They are that (a) changing procedural classroom behavior is easier than improving content knowledge or inquiry-oriented instruction techniques; (b) teachers vary in response to the same PD; (c) PD is more successful when it is explicitly linked to classroom lessons; (d) PD research and implementation must allow for urban contexts (e.g., student and teacher mobility); and (e) leadership plays a key role in supporting and encouraging teachers to implement in the classroom the ideas and strategies they learned in the PD. We then examine three major trends in how professional development for teachers is evolving in the U.S.—a move away from short workshops, linking teacher PD to evaluations, and the use of video technology to improve and monitor the effects of PD. Finally, we discuss the challenges faced by districts and schools in implementing effective professional development.Este artículo analiza las mejores prácticas de desarrollo profesional docente (DPD) en los Estados Unidos de América (USA). Comenzamos presentando un marco conceptual sobre DPD, que sugiere la existencia de cinco características clave que favorecen un DPD efectivo: foco en el contenido, aprendizaje activo, coherencia, duración sostenida, y participación colectiva. Continuamos describiendo los resultados de recientes investigaciones que han puesto a prueba dichas cinco características en USA, enfatizando los resultados de rigurosos estudios experimentales aleatorizados. Discutimos las lecciones aprendidas a partir de dichos estudios, que nos han permitido refinar nuestro marco teórico sobre el DPD efectivo. Hemos aprendido que (a) cambiar el comportamiento de los profesores en clase es más fácil que mejorar sus conocimientos disciplinares o las estrategias instruccionales de alto nivel; (b) los profesores varían en respuesta al mismo DPD; (c) DPD es más exitoso cuando está explícitamente conectado con la práctica docente; (d) la investigación y la implementación del DPD debe tener en cuenta las condiciones de las áreas urbanas (e.g., la movilidad de estudiantes y profesores); y (e) los líderes juegan un rol fundamental apoyando y animando a los profesores para que apliquen en sus clases las ideas y estrategias aprendidas en DPD. Después examinamos tres tendencias generales en la evaluación reciente del DPD en USA—un descenso en el uso de cursos y talleres de corta duración, la conexión del DPD con las evaluaciones del profesorado, y el uso de video-tecnología para mejorar y supervisar los efectos del DPD. Finalmente, discutimos las dificultades que los distritos y las escuelas encuentran para implementar DPD efectivo

RF and THz Identification Using a New Generation of Chipless RFID Tags

This article presents two chipless RFID approaches where data are reading using electromagnetic waves and where the medium encoding the data is completely passive. The former approach rests on the use of RF waves (more precisely the ultra-wide band UWB). The tags developed for this application are comparable with very specific, planar, conductive, radar targets where the relation between the tag geometry and its electromagnetic signature is perfectly known and is used to encode the data. The principle of operation as well as the realization process of the RF tags presented in this paper is similar to those already reported in the literature. However, contrary to the majority of chipless RFID tags, these labels do not present an antenna function dissociated from the circuit part where the data are stored. Here, functions such as the receiver, the treatment and the emitter of the signal are closely dependent. The data storage capacity of the RF chipless tags is proportional to of the used frequency bandwidth. As radio spectrum is regulated, the number of possible encoding bits is thus strongly limited with this technology. This is the reason why we introduce a new family of tags radically different from the preceding one, where data is encoded in volume thanks to a multilayer structure operating in the THz domain. These two approaches although different are complementary and allow to increase significantly the data storage capacity of the chipless tags. Simulation and experimental results are reported in this paper for both configurations. We demonstrate a coding capacity of 3.3 bit/cm2 for RFID chipless tags and a potential 10 bits coding capacity in the THz domain

Studying changes in the practice of two teachers developing assessment for learning

This paper describes changes in the practice of two teachers, observed over an eighteen month period, who were participating in a study intended to support teachers in developing their use of assessment in support of learning. The design of the intervention allowed each teacher to choose for themselves which aspects of their practice to develop. Analysis of lesson observations, journal entries and interviews indicate that both teachers were keen to change their practice, but were concerned about the disruption to their established routines, and in particular about the potential for loss of control of their classes. Both teachers did effect significant changes in their classrooms, but these tended to be developments of existing preferred ways of working, rather than radical innovations. In conclusion, it is suggested that to be most effective, teacher professional development needs to be structured strongly enough to afford teacher growth, but flexible enough to allow different teachers to take their practice in different ways

Defining a self-evaluation digital literacy framework for secondary educators: the DigiLit Leicester project

Despite the growing interest in digital literacy within educational policy, guidance for secondary educators in terms of how digital literacy translates into the classroom is lacking. As a result, many teachers feel ill-prepared to support their learners in using technology effectively. The DigiLit Leicester project created an infrastructure for holistic, integrated change, by supporting staff development in the area of digital literacy for secondary school teachers and teaching support staff. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how the critique of existing digital literacy frameworks enabled a self-evaluation framework for practitioners to be developed. Crucially, this framework enables a co-operative, partnership approach to be taken to pedagogic innovation. Moreover, it enables social and ethical issues to underpin a focus on teacher-agency and radical collegiality inside the domain of digital literacy. Thus, the authors argue that the shared development framework constitutes a new model for implementing digital literacy aimed at transforming the provision of secondary education across a city

The Cyclic AMP Cascade Is Altered in the Fragile X Nervous System

Fragile X syndrome (FX), the most common heritable cause of mental retardation and autism, is a developmental disorder characterized by physical, cognitive, and behavioral deficits. FX results from a trinucleotide expansion mutation in the fmr1 gene that reduces levels of fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP). Although research efforts have focused on FMRP's impact on mGluR signaling, how the loss of FMRP leads to the individual symptoms of FX is not known. Previous studies on human FX blood cells revealed alterations in the cyclic adenosine 3′, 5′-monophosphate (cAMP) cascade. We tested the hypothesis that cAMP signaling is altered in the FX nervous system using three different model systems. Induced levels of cAMP in platelets and in brains of fmr1 knockout mice are substantially reduced. Cyclic AMP induction is also significantly reduced in human FX neural cells. Furthermore, cAMP production is decreased in the heads of FX Drosophila and this defect can be rescued by reintroduction of the dfmr gene. Our results indicate that a robust defect in cAMP production in FX is conserved across species and suggest that cAMP metabolism may serve as a useful biomarker in the human disease population. Reduced cAMP induction has implications for the underlying causes of FX and autism spectrum disorders. Pharmacological agents known to modulate the cAMP cascade may be therapeutic in FX patients and can be tested in these models, thus supplementing current efforts centered on mGluR signaling

Professional development and sustainable development goals

Professional development is defined as a consciously designed systematic process that helps professionals to attain, utilize, and retain knowledge, skills, and expertise. It is simply a process of obtaining skills, qualifications, and experience that help in advancement in one’s career. In the field of education, it is defined as the process of improving staff skills and competencies needed to produce outstanding performance of students. It also refers to a process of improving an organization’s staff capabilities through access to education and training opportunities for better output. Professional development can include a variety of approaches such as formal and informal education, vocational, specialized, or skill-based training, or advanced professional learning

Effects of degree and timing of social housing on reversal learning and response to novel objects in dairy calves

Rodents and primates deprived of early social contact exhibit deficits in learning and behavioural flexibility. They often also exhibit apparent signs of elevated anxiety, although the relationship between these effects has not been studied. To investigate whether dairy calves are similarly affected, we first compared calves housed in standard individual pens (n = 7) to those housed in a dynamic group with access to their mothers (n = 8). All calves learned to approach the correct stimulus in a visual discrimination task. Only one individually housed calf was able to re-learn the task when the stimuli were reversed, compared to all but one calf from the group. A second experiment investigated whether this effect might be explained by anxiety in individually housed animals interfering with their learning, and tested varying degrees of social contact in addition to the complex group: pair housing beginning early (approximately 6 days old) and late (6 weeks old). Again, fewer individually reared calves learned the reversal task (2 of 10 or 20%) compared to early paired and grouped calves (16 of 21 or 76% of calves). Late paired calves had intermediate success. Individually housed calves were slower to touch novel objects, but the magnitude of the fear response did not correlate with reversal performance. We conclude that individually housed calves have learning deficits, but these deficits were not likely associated with increased anxiety

Positive End-Expiratory Pressure may alter breathing cardiovascular variability and baroreflex gain in mechanically ventilated patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Baroreflex allows to reduce sudden rises or falls of arterial pressure through parallel RR interval fluctuations induced by autonomic nervous system. During spontaneous breathing, the application of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) may affect the autonomic nervous system, as suggested by changes in baroreflex efficiency and RR variability. During mechanical ventilation, some patients have stable cardiorespiratory phase difference and high-frequency amplitude of RR variability (HF-RR amplitude) over time and others do not. Our first hypothesis was that a steady pattern could be associated with reduced baroreflex sensitivity and HF-RR amplitude, reflecting a blunted autonomic nervous function. Our second hypothesis was that PEEP, widely used in critical care patients, could affect their autonomic function, promoting both steady pattern and reduced baroreflex sensitivity.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We tested the effect of increasing PEEP from 5 to 10 cm H2O on the breathing variability of arterial pressure and RR intervals, and on the baroreflex. Invasive arterial pressure, ECG and ventilatory flow were recorded in 23 mechanically ventilated patients during 15 minutes for both PEEP levels. HF amplitude of RR and systolic blood pressure (SBP) time series and HF phase differences between RR, SBP and ventilatory signals were continuously computed by complex demodulation. Cross-spectral analysis was used to assess the coherence and gain functions between RR and SBP, yielding baroreflex-sensitivity indices.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>At PEEP 10, the 12 patients with a stable pattern had lower baroreflex gain and HF-RR amplitude of variability than the 11 other patients. Increasing PEEP was generally associated with a decreased baroreflex gain and a greater stability of HF-RR amplitude and cardiorespiratory phase difference. Four patients who exhibited a variable pattern at PEEP 5 became stable at PEEP 10. At PEEP 10, a stable pattern was associated with higher organ failure score and catecholamine dosage.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>During mechanical ventilation, stable HF-RR amplitude and cardiorespiratory phase difference over time reflect a blunted autonomic nervous function which might worsen as PEEP increases.</p

Study protocol for a group randomized controlled trial of a classroom-based intervention aimed at preventing early risk factors for drug abuse: integrating effectiveness and implementation research

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>While a number of preventive interventions delivered within schools have shown both short-term and long-term impact in epidemiologically based randomized field trials, programs are not often sustained with high-quality implementation over time. This study was designed to support two purposes. The first purpose was to test the effectiveness of a universal classroom-based intervention, the Whole Day First Grade Program (WD), aimed at two early antecedents to drug abuse and other problem behaviors, namely, aggressive, disruptive behavior and poor academic achievement. The second purpose--the focus of this paper--was to examine the utility of a multilevel structure to support high levels of implementation during the effectiveness trial, to sustain WD practices across additional years, and to train additional teachers in WD practices.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The WD intervention integrated three components, each previously tested separately: classroom behavior management; instruction, specifically reading; and family-classroom partnerships around behavior and learning. Teachers and students in 12 schools were randomly assigned to receive either the WD intervention or the standard first-grade program of the school system (SC). Three consecutive cohorts of first graders were randomized within schools to WD or SC classrooms and followed through the end of third grade to test the effectiveness of the WD intervention. Teacher practices were assessed over three years to examine the utility of the multilevel structure to support sustainability and scaling-up.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The design employed in this trial appears to have considerable utility to provide data on WD effectiveness and to inform the field with regard to structures required to move evidence-based programs into practice.</p> <p>Trial Registration</p> <p><b>Clinical Trials Registration Number</b>: NCT00257088</p