Influences on Individuals to Enrol in Undergraduate Technology Teacher Education Programs in Australia

Within the context of a wide-spread technology teacher shortage, this study focused on undergraduates enrolled in technology teacher education programs (TTEPs) in Australia. The aim of this study was to ascertain the basic demographics of the enrolled student population, and to examine factors that were linked to the decision of individuals in choosing to become technology teachers. The literature search identified useful Australian studies which gave an overview of recent TTEP enrolment trends in tertiary institutions. A questionnaire was constructed as part of the quantitative research design and then distributed to Australian universities that were offering TTEPs at the undergraduate level. From this data the demographics of the respondents were ascertained. To produce a causal model, path analysis was employed using a backward stepwise regression process to weight the dependencies of the model. The study found that enrolees in TTEPs represent a diverse group, with some universities having a distinct clientele profile. The study identified a desire to teach as the most positive influence on individuals\u27 decision to enrol in a TTEP. The causal model indicated that it is fostering of hobbies and interests, and the climate, program and personnel of the secondary school that has the potential to influence individuals\u27 decisions to become a technology teacher

Factors that Influence the Desire to Become Teachers of Technology: An Australian Study

In this study, 337 pre-service teachers enrolled in Technology Teacher Education Programs (TTEP), in eight tertiary institutions across Australia, responded to a questionnaire seeking information about those factors that influenced their decision to become teachers of Technical and Applied Studies (TAS). The study found: a majority of the respondents were male (71%); most came from urban areas (61%); just over half (51%) entered the course from the workforce and just over a third of the respondents entered the course direct from school. Of the 172 respondents who came from the work force, a total of 93 (86 male) had prior trade experience. Factor analysis of attitudinal items set against a four-point Likert scale produced three factors related to their decision to become TAS teachers. These included encouragement from members of the community, the influence of experiences in technology at school, and a desire to teach. A three stage regression model was created with the scale ‘Desire to Teach’ as the ultimate dependent variable. Factors most strongly influencing ‘Desire to Teach’ included hobbies and interests prior to enrolment, encouragement from members of the community and the influence of experiences in technology at school. The authors propose a number of strategies for promoting technology teaching and increasing the TTEP student intake, based on their findings

Relationship between cardiovascular risk and lipid testing in one health care system: a retrospective cohort study.

BackgroundThe US Preventive Services Taskforce (USPSTF) recommends routine lipid screening beginning age 35 for men [1]. For women age 20 and older, as well as men age 20-34, screening is recommended if cardiovascular risk factors are present. Prior research has focused on underutilization but not overuse of lipid testing. The objective is to document over- and under-use of lipid testing in an insured population of persons at low, moderate and high cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk for persons not already on statins.MethodsThe study is a retrospective cohort study that included all adults without prior CVD who were continuously enrolled in a large integrated healthcare system from 2005 to 2010. Measures included lipid test frequency extracted from administrative data and Framingham cardiovascular risk equations applied using electronic medical record data. Five year lipid testing patterns were examined by age, sex and CVD risk. Generalized linear models were used to estimate the relative risk for over testing associated with patient characteristics.ResultsAmong males and females for whom testing is not recommended, 35.8 % and 61.5 % received at least one lipid test in the prior 5 years and 8.4 % and 24.4 % had two or more. Over-testing was associated with age, race, comorbidity, primary care use and neighborhood income. Among individuals at moderate and high-risk (not already treated with statins) and for whom screening is recommended, between 21.4 % and 25.1 % of individuals received no screening in the prior 5 years.ConclusionsBased on USPSTF lipid screening recommendations, this study documents substantial over-testing among individuals with low CVD risk and under-testing among individuals with moderate to high-risk not already on statins. Opportunity exists to better focus lipid screening efforts appropriate to CVD risk

Information Systems as Representations: A Review of the Theory and Evidence

Representation theory proposes that the basic purpose of an information system (IS) is to faithfully represent certain real-world phenomena, allowing users to reason about these phenomena more cost- effectively than if they were observed directly. Over the past three decades, the theory has underpinned much research on conceptual modeling in IS analysis and design and, increasingly, research on other IS phenomena such as data quality, system alignment, IS security, and system use. The original theory has also inspired further development of its core premises and advances in methodological guidelines to improve its use and evaluation. Nonetheless, the theory has attracted repeated criticisms regarding its validity, relevance, usefulness, and robustness. Given the burgeoning literature on the theory over time, both positive and negative, the time is ripe for a narrative, developmental review. We review representation theory, examine how it has been used, and critically evaluate its contributions and limitations. Based on our findings, we articulate a set of recommendations for improving its application, development, testing, and evaluation

Crop specific implications of yield and energy use efficiency in non-inversion tillage systems

Douglas Warner, Ron Stobart, Nathan Morris, John Tzilivakis, Andrew Green, Kathleen Lewis, ‘Crop specific implications of yield and energy use efficiency in non-inversion tillage systems’, paper presented at Crop Protection in Northern Britain 2016, Dundee, UK, 23-24 February, 2016.This paper reports how non-inversion (reduced) tillage impacts energy consumption and crop yield, utilising 8 years of replicated field trials undertaken by The New Farming Systems study in the East of England. Tillage regimes include: (1) plough, (2) shallow non-inversion (typically 10 cm), and (3) deep non-inversion (20-25 cm) within two rotations of either (1) winter sown / spring sown crops or (2) winter sown / spring sown + autumn cover crop. Energy use per ha (highest to lowest) was: plough > deep non-inversion > shallow non-inversion. Crop specific and temporal yield responses were observed. Winter sown crops responded favourably to deep non-inversion tillage, and yields improved as the trial progressed. When considered in combination with lower energy input per hectare, energy efficiency increased relative to the plough-only control. Yield response to shallow non-inversion tillage was variable. Spring sown crops, notably spring beans, declined in yield and overall energy efficiency, in the non-inversion tillage treatments.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Supporting Resource Equity for Oregon’s Home Visiting Workforce: Exploring Racial, Ethnic & Linguistic Differences

Home visitors of color—those whose lived experience and background reflect the cultural, racial and linguistic diversity of so many Oregon families—cope with compounding stressors related to structural racism, bias and documented pay inequities. This learning brief is the first in a series to share findings from a 2023 statewide survey of Oregon’s home visiting workforce. This study has provided a wealth of information about this workforce and how to improve and support its well-being and retention, with a focus on the needs and experiences of home visitors of color and those who speak languages other than English

Supporting Resource Equity for Oregon’s Home Visiting Workforce: Exploring Program Model and Regional Differences

Prenatal and early childhood home visiting is an effective strategy for promoting positive birth outcomes, improving family well-being and preventing child abuse and neglect. One key to successful services is having a strong, well-supported home visiting workforce. In Oregon and nationally, this critical workforce is facing a crisis as programs struggle to hire and retain skilled home visitors, and workers face low pay, difficult working conditions and high job stress. This learning brief is the second in a series to share findings from a 2023 survey of Oregon’s home visiting workforce, which provides a wealth of information about how to improve and support workforce well-being and retention, with a focus on the needs and experiences of home visitors of color and those who speak languages other than English

Heritability of phenotypic udder traits to improve resilience to mastitis in Texel ewes

There are no estimates of the heritability of phenotypic udder traits in suckler sheep, which produce meat lambs, and whether these are associated with resilience to mastitis. Mastitis is a common disease which damages the mammary gland and reduces productivity. The aims of this study were to investigate the feasibility of collecting udder phenotypes, their heritability and their association with mastitis in suckler ewes. Udder and teat conformation, teat lesions, intramammary masses (IMM) and litter size were recorded from 10 Texel flocks in Great Britain between 2012 and 2014; 968 records were collected. Pedigree data were obtained from an online pedigree recording system. Univariate quantitative genetic parameters were estimated using animal and sire models. Linear mixed models were used to analyse continuous traits and generalised linear mixed models were used to analyse binary traits. Continuous traits had higher heritabilities than binary with teat placement and teat length heritability (h2) highest at 0.35 (SD 0.04) and 0.42 (SD 0.04), respectively. Udder width, drop and separation heritabilities were lower and varied with udder volume. The heritabilities of IMM and teat lesions (sire model) were 0.18 (SD 0.12) and 0.17 (SD 0.11), respectively. All heritabilities were sufficiently high to be in a selection programme to increase resilience to mastitis in the population of Texel sheep. Further studies are required to investigate genetic relationships between traits and to determine whether udder traits predict IMM, and the potential benefits from including traits in a selection programme to increase resilience to chronic mastitis