Translating Normalcy: Tutors Navigating Spaces Between Expectations and Experiences for Non-Traditional Students

Non-traditional students make up a large portion of the current college student population. Mike Rose indicates that the “non-traditional student is becoming the new norm” for higher education, and according to the National Center for Education Statistics, nontraditional students make up “almost 40%” of all students enrolled in higher education (8). This number is slippery, however, as there are different definitions of non-traditional students. The National Center for Education Statistics defines non-traditional students as students who have had at least a five-year break in their education (National). Sometimes financial independence or high school-related experiences are the guides for this label, which includes those who have a GED, were homeschooled, or have an international schooling background (Hess, National). At my institution, non-traditional students are classified as students over the age of 25, and they make up 37% of our student population.University Writing Cente

You Can\u27t Be Creative Anymore : Students Reflect on the Lingering Effects of the Five-Paragraph Essay

The five-paragraph essay continues to make headlines in composition and pedagogy journals and on teacher listservs. This long-cherished genre has been touted for teaching the basics to writers in college, and teachers often claim that it is the best foundation for solid essay writing. In contrast, there are numerous five-paragraph essay critics who claim that the essay is a “school-created thing” that has no real-world value and persists due to an enshrinement in textbooks as preparation for objective standardized testing. Regardless of the debate, one thing remains: there is little research on the essay from the students’ perspective. This essay uses qualitative research to explore how students have been impacted by this standardized format of writing instruction, and the essay concludes with options for increasing student voices and agency as writers

Beyond Tickets and Comma Splices: Using Writing Center Coaching Techniques to Support Online Learners

Many college students struggle with technical difficulties when enrolled in an online or hybrid class. Sometimes students do not even have a choice about online options, such as in the COVID-19 era, when the shift to remote instruction has happened and could happen at any time. Students need support for success in the online environment, yet many support models focus on the immediate problem rather than deeper root causes for the problem or misunderstanding. Traditional support models may use a ticket-based system that strives to quickly resolve the issue at hand. While the ticket-based system has some merit, there is a need for additional support via a technology coaching approach, which was influenced by writing center philosophies. This type of approach can focus on teaching students proper netiquette, appropriate techniques, and basic computer skills, which will enable them to succeed not just in a single online course but also in an online program or an eventual work environment. The article concludes with a discussion of collaboration and the importance of slow thinking, a concept inspired by the Slow Food movement which actively encourages problem solving and reflection

Teaching Tone: Utilizing Writing Center Coaching in First-Year Composition Peer Review

Many first-year writing students represent writing assignments as distinct moments or “discreet units,” as described by composition scholar N. Sommers (2013, p. 10). In these cases, the comments provided on the papers by teachers, classmates, or tutors are applicable only to that one instance of fixing the paper as opposed to being applied to the student writer’s past, present, and future writing occasions. Because of this tendency to isolate writing occasions, teachers must work to make instruction stick for the long run and be a “bridge” to other writing assignments, as opposed to only applying the material to the one instance of the paper (p. 10). This IRB-approved study examines qualitative survey data about peer review from one semester of a first-year writing class and the partnering writing center. Results indicate that students connected peer review to error hunting, which implies that feedback is about a single paper, rather than about developing general writing skills. Recommendations based on this study include shifting peer review to include “encouraging tone” and commentary outside of the paper itself, which can result in developing confidence for student writers (p. 6)

Exploring Students’ Perceptions of the Connection Between Personal Effort and Academic Performance

The goal of this study was to explore the relationship between students’ perceptions of the link between personal effort and academic performance to promote effective pedagogy, contributing to the potential for increased retention/progression/graduation rates. Based on Treisman’s (2013) assertion that students do not connect hard work with success, the researchers hypothesized that students would fail to connect the level of effort (as measured by motivation, effort, attendance, attention/engagement, and reading the textbook) they invested in a course with performance in the course (as measured by expected course grade). A mixed-methods survey containing both quantitative and qualitative measures of effort was administered before and after the first graded course assignment in each class. Results supported our hypotheses, but not exactly as expected. Students connected hard work with success in the first administration of the survey; however, the link between personal effort and academic performance disappeared in the second administration of the survey. Qualitative findings were explored to further illuminate students’ phenomenological experiences in the classroom

Further Exploring Students’ Connection between Effort and Performance: What’s Personality Got to Do with It?

The goal of this study was to further explore the relationship between effort, performance, and personality in an attempt to promote effective pedagogy, contributing to the potential for increased progression and retention rates. The current study relies on Uri Treisman’s work focused on the connection between hard work and success/retention. Repeatedly, Treisman (2013, 2001, 1992) found that in his research, students do not connect hard work with success; instead, students report that natural abilities are a better predictor of success in a course. In addition to Treisman’s work, the study expanded to focus on elements of personality, in particular Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews and Kelly’s (2007) concept of grit, as defined as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals.” The revised study used a mixed-method approach that combined quantitative and qualitative research methods. Results are in line with Triesman’s findings that students are failing to connect hard work with success. The qualitative portions of the study indicate that students know what they are supposed to be doing in terms of studying; however, they do not understand how to go about studying. Personality measures are expected to shed further light on the disconnect

Fetal MRI in the Identification of a Fetal Ventral Wall Defect Spectrum

Objective  To ascertain if useful criteria for prenatal diagnosis of fetal ventral body wall defects (VBWDs) exists by reviewing published literature on diagnosis of VBWD as compared with our own diagnostic experience. Study Design  A comprehensive literature review of diagnostic criteria of fetal VBWD including pentalogy of Cantrell (POC), omphalocele, exstrophy, imperforate anus, spina bifida (OEIS), cloacal exstrophy, limb-body wall complex (LBWC), and body stalk anomaly was performed followed by a retrospective review of all fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations from our medical center over a 2-year period. Results  Classically, OEIS is omphalocele, bladder exstrophy, imperforate anus, and spina bifida. POC is defects of the supraumbilical abdomen, sternum, diaphragm, pericardium, and heart. LBWC is two of the following: exencephaly or enencephaly with facial clefts, thoracoschisis or abdominoschisis, and limb defects. Twenty-four cases of VBWD on MRI over a 24-month period were identified with seven cases involving defects of additional organ systems. Six of these seven cases demonstrated findings from two or more of the traditional diagnoses POC, OEIS, and LBWC making diagnosis and counseling difficult. Conclusion  There is a lack of consensus on useful diagnostic criteria within the published literature which is reflected in our own diagnostic experience and poses a challenge for accurate prenatal counseling

Rational Design of Combination Enzyme Therapy for Celiac Sprue

SummaryCeliac sprue (also known as celiac disease) is an inheritable, gluten-induced enteropathy of the upper small intestine with an estimated prevalence of 0.5%–1% in most parts of the world. The ubiquitous nature of food gluten, coupled with inadequate labeling regulations in most countries, constantly poses a threat of disease exacerbation and relapse for patients. Here, we demonstrate that a two-enzyme cocktail comprised of a glutamine-specific cysteine protease (EP-B2) that functions under gastric conditions and a PEP, which acts in concert with pancreatic proteases under duodenal conditions, is a particularly potent candidate for celiac sprue therapy. At a gluten:EP-B2:PEP weight ratio of 75:3:1, grocery store gluten is fully detoxified within 10 min of simulated duodenal conditions, as judged by chromatographic analysis, biopsy-derived T cell proliferation assays, and a commercial antigluten antibody test

Developing physical activity interventions for adults with spinal cord injury. Part 2: Motivational counseling and peer-mediated interventions for people intending to be active

Objective: The majority of people with spinal cord injury (SCI) do not engage in sufficient leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) to attain fitness benefits; however, many have good intentions to be active. This paper describes two pilot interventions targeting people with SCI who are insufficiently active but intend to be active (i.e., intenders ). Method: Study 1 examined the effects of a single, telephone-based counseling session on self-regulatory efficacy, intentions, and action plans for LTPA among seven men and women with paraplegia or tetraplegia. Study 2 examined the effects of a home-based strengthtraining session, delivered by a peer and a fitness trainer, on strength-training task self-efficacy, intentions, action plans, and behavior. Participants were 11 men and women with paraplegia. Results: The counseling session (Study 1) yielded medium- to large-sized increases in participants\u27 confidence to set LTPA goals and intentions to be active. The home visit (Study 2) produced medium- to large-sized increases in task self-efficacy, barrier self-efficacy, intentions, action planning, and strength-training behavior from baseline to 4 weeks after the visit. Conclusions/Implications: Study 1 findings provide preliminary evidence that a single counseling session can impact key determinants of LTPA among intenders with SCI. Study 2 findings demonstrate the potential utility of a peer-mediated, home-based strength training session for positively influencing social cognitions and strength-training behavior. Together, these studies provide evidence and resources for intervention strategies to promote LTPA. among intenders with SCI, a population for whom LTPA interventions and resources are scarcely available. © 2013 American Psychological Association

Risk Stratification of Sentinel Node Metastasis Disease Burden and Phenotype in Stage III Melanoma Patients

Background: Currently, all patients with American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) pT2b-pT4b melanomas and a positive sentinel node biopsy are now considered for adjuvant systemic therapy without consideration of the burden of disease in the metastatic nodes. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort analysis of 1377 pT1-pT4b melanoma patients treated at an academic cancer center. Standard variables regarding patient, primary tumor, and sentinel node characteristics, in addition to sentinel node metastasis maximum tumor deposit size (MTDS) in millimeters and extracapsular spread (ECS) status, were analyzed for predicting disease-specific survival (DSS). Results: The incidence of SN+ was 17.3% (238/1377) and ECS was 10.5% (25/238). Increasing AJCC N stage was associated with worse DSS. There was no difference in DSS between the IIIB and IIIC groups. Subgroup analyses showed that the optimal MTDS cut-point was 0.7 mm for the pT1b-pT4a SN+ subgroups, but there was no cut-point for the pT4b SN+ subgroup. Patients with MTDS <0.7 mm and no ECS had similar survival outcomes as the N0 patients with the same T stage. Nodal risk categories were developed using the 0.7 mm MTDS cut-point and ECS status. The incidence of low-risk disease, according to the new nodal risk model, was 22.3% (53/238) in the stage III cohort, with 49% (26/53) in the pT2b-pT3a and pT3b-pT4a subgroups and none in the pT4b subgroup. Similar outcomes were observed for overall and distant metastasis-free survival. Conclusion: We propose a more granular classification system, based on tumor burden and ECS status in the sentinel node, that identifies low-risk patients in the AJCC IIIB and IIIC subgroups who may otherwise be observed