First-year impact of an Early Reading First project on language and early reading skill development

This study is of a federally-funded Early Reading First project aimed at improving school readiness by creating Centers of Excellence which focus on language and early reading skills development of low-income preschool children. The project consisted of a content standards-based curriculum and instructional program, literacy enriched classrooms, ongoing professional development, and parent involvement. The analysis focuses on 65 randomly assigned preschoolers attending state preschools (treatment = 37 and control = 28), enrolled for at least 18 weeks, who would be eligible by birth date for entry into public kindergarten the following year. Results demonstrate the intervention to be effective in improving the receptive language and early reading skills of participating preschoolers

Evaluation of a Flipped Classroom in Mechanics of Materials

Recent interest towards the implementation of flipped (or inverted) classroom models parallelsthe wide availability of technology and the shift from lecture-based teaching methods towardsstudent-centered teaching methods in undergraduate engineering education. The flippedclassroom involves two components, computer-based video instruction outside of the classroomand interactive learning activities inside the classroom. The intent is to create an active andengaging classroom experience that can be tailored to meet the needs of students possessing awide range of learning styles. This can potentially reduce attrition, improve knowledge retention,and enhance skill development in engineering.The goals of this study are to compare and contrast the effectiveness of a flipped classroom and atraditional lecture-based classroom in a first course in mechanics of materials. Two 5-weeksummer session courses in mechanics of materials were used to perform the study. The firstcourse was taught in a traditional lecture-based format where, during face-to-face meetings, newconcepts were introduced during the lecture, example problems were performed by the instructorand in groups by students; outside of class students solved problems as part of homeworkassignments. The second course was taught using a flipped classroom approach where face-to-face sessions were used for active learning techniques involving group discussions, problemsolving sessions, and demonstrations. Outside of class students were required to watchscreencast tutorials on YouTube and answer concept questions as well as complete additionalhomework problems.Assessment on the effectiveness of the flipped classroom is based on performance of pre andpost quiz scores, student survey feedback, and instructor observations. Students in the flippedclassroom (test group) performed better on pre quiz scores (mean of 0.12 versus 0.03) and postquiz scores (mean of 0.58 versus 0.38) as compared to the traditional classroom (control group).Quizzes were scored 0 or 1 without partial credit, where a score of 1 indicated a correctnumerical answer and correct units. Controlling for prior academic achievement and initiallevels of content-specific achievement, a multiple linear regression analysis shows that 8% of thevariability in post quiz scores may be attributed to the instructional delivery approach. Theresults indicate that there is evidence to suggest that participation in the flipped classroom resultsin better performance than participation in the traditional lecture-based classroom

Effectiveness of music interventions to reduce test anxiety in pharmacy students

Background: The main objective of this pilot study was to evaluate the impact of a classroom activity involving music on anxiety associated with preparing for and taking an assessment. Methods: Two hundred and two (202) pharmacy students were randomly assigned to one of two conditions of the experimental study: active music playing (n = 103) versus passive music listening (n = 99). All students completed a pre-test, a mid-test, and a post-test including: an “Attitudes and Perceptions” survey, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Adults (STAI Survey), and a knowledge assessment. Data were analyzed to determine the impact each of the music interventions had on students’ test anxiety. Results: Both types of musical interventions produced similar results in terms of anxiety reduction. Faced with an upcoming test prior to the musical intervention, average state-trait anxiety scores increased; after the musical intervention, state-trait anxiety scores decreased. Conclusions: The use of music helped to reduce test anxiety, even after one brief musical intervention, regardless of whether students passively listened to music or actively played music