Rewriting Critical Pedagogy for Public Schools: Technological Possibilities

Critical pedagogy has been a powerful and persistent force in academia, informing dissertations, courses, and research. Despite this impact on higher education, critical pedagogy has not had similar success in public schools, even though these institutions host large numbers of marginalized students. One reason for this lack of influence in public schools is that the space of schooling is not particularly receptive to the ambitions and priorities of critical pedagogy. In this article, we build on the claim that there is a poor fit between public schools and critical pedagogy by laying out an argument for improving this fit by extending critical pedagogy. This extension can lead to the creation of new school spaces—spaces of difference—that will provide a more conducive environment to use critical pedagogy. To do this, we take the unconventional position that critical pedagogy be used with technology to create spaces of difference that will further opportunities for marginalized students and their ability to “name the world.” An in-depth consideration of these spaces of difference and their relation to critical pedagogy is presented to reveal how it can lead to forms of critical learning to address the needs of all students, including those most marginalized as they move through public schools.

Paper Session II-C - The Next Generation Mobile User Objective System (MUOS)

The Navy’s Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Follow- On (UFO) constellation provides narrowband tactical satellite communications to the DoD warfighter. The UFO constellation, initially launched in 1993, will begin to reach the end of its design life early in the next century. The Navy has developed an acquisition strategy to replace the UFO constellation and briefed it to the MILSATCOM Senior Warfighters Forum (SWarF) and the MILSATCOM Senior Steering Group. The Joint Requirements Oversight Council (JROC) will be briefed in the near future. That strategy consists of three components: (1) procure a UHF gapfiller satellite (UFO F11) for launch in 2003, (2) use commercial satellite assets as much as practical, and (3) procure the Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) with an initial operational capability in 2007. This paper presents the Navy’s plans for continuing to provide communications to the mobile warfighter and provides the details, as currently planned, for the MUOS acquisition

Recommendations for the surveillance of education and employment outcomes in survivors of childhood, adolescent, and young adult cancer: A report from the International Late Effects of Childhood Cancer Guideline Harmonization Group.

Educational achievement and employment outcomes are critical indicators of quality of life in survivors of childhood, adolescent, and young adult (CAYA) cancer. This review is aimed at providing an evidence-based clinical practice guideline (CPG) with internationally harmonized recommendations for the surveillance of education and employment outcomes in survivors of CAYA cancer diagnosed before the age of 30 years. The CPG was developed by a multidisciplinary panel under the umbrella of the International Late Effects of Childhood Cancer Guideline Harmonization Group. After evaluating concordances and discordances of 4 existing CPGs, the authors performed a systematic literature search through February 2021. They screened articles for eligibility, assessed quality, and extracted and summarized the data from included articles. The authors formulated recommendations based on the evidence and clinical judgment. There were 3930 articles identified, and 83 of them, originating from 17 countries, were included. On a group level, survivors were more likely to have lower educational achievement and more likely to be unemployed than comparisons. Key risk factors for poor outcomes included receiving a primary diagnosis of a central nervous system tumor and experiencing late effects. The authors recommend that health care providers be aware of the risk of educational and employment problems, implement regular surveillance, and refer survivors to specialists if problems are identified. In conclusion, this review presents a harmonized CPG that aims to facilitate evidence-based care, positively influence education and employment outcomes, and ultimately minimize the burden of disease and treatment-related late adverse effects for survivors of CAYA cancers. LAY SUMMARY: A multidisciplinary panel has developed guidelines for the surveillance of education and employment outcomes among survivors of childhood, adolescent, and young adult cancer. On the basis of evidence showing that survivors are at risk for lower educational achievement and unemployment, it is recommended that all survivors receive regular screening for educational and employment outcomes

Health related quality of life of obese adolescents in Kuwait

Obesity impairs health related quality of life (HRQL) in adolescents, but most evidence in this area has mostly come from western societies. We wanted to test the hypothesis that obesity impairs HRQL in Kuwaiti adolescents, and to test for differences in HRQL assessed by self-report and parent-proxy report. In 500 Kuwaiti 10-14 year olds HRQL was assessed using the Peds QL (TM) with both adolescent self-reports (n = 500) and parent-proxy reports (n = 374). Obesity was not significantly associated with HRQL in regression analysis. In a paired comparison of 98 pairs of obese adolescents vs. 98 healthy weight peers, impairment of HRQL reached significance only for physical score (95% CI = -1.5, -9.4), not for psychosocial score or total score. In a paired comparison of parent-proxy vs. self-reports for the obese adolescents, total score (95% CI = -4.9, -10.9), physical score (95% CI = -3.2, -11.0), and psychosocial score (95% CI = -4.2, -10.8) were all significantly lower in the parent reports. Obesity is not associated with marked impairment of HRQL in adolescents in Kuwait, in contrast to studies in western societies. This may reflect cultural differences in attitudes towards obesity

Is there a difference between child self-ratings and parent proxy-ratings of the quality of life of children with a diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)? A systematic review of the literature

There are contemporary indicators that parent proxy-ratings and child self-ratings of a child’s quality of life (QoL) are not interchangeable. This review examines dual informant studies to assess parent–child agreement on the QoL of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. A systematic search of four major databases (PsycINFO, MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane databases) was completed, and related peer-reviewed journals were hand-searched. Studies which reported quantitative QoL ratings for matched parent and child dyads were screened in accordance with relevant inclusion and exclusion criteria. Key findings were extracted from thirteen relevant studies, which were rated for conformity to the recommendations of an adapted version of the STROBE statement guidelines for observational studies. In the majority of studies reviewed, children rated their QoL more highly than their parents. There was some evidence for greater agreement on the physical health domain than psychosocial domains

Use of metered-dose inhaler electronic monitoring in a real-world asthma randomized controlled trial

Background Electronic monitoring of inhaled asthma medications is one method to measure medication adherence and patterns of use. Information on the performance of monitors in a randomized controlled trial allows researchers and clinicians to understand their utility and limitations. The Smartinhaler Tracker is an electronic monitor for metered-dose inhalers (MDIs) that records the date, time, and number of actuations. Objective To determine the performance of the Smartinhaler monitors used in a 24-week randomized controlled trial of 303 patients with asthma in a real-world setting. Methods Prestudy use checks involved 2 actuations of the MDI, with a further 2 performed 2 hours later. Within-study monitor checks, performed before dispensing at clinic visits 2 to 4, included a computerized check of monitor clock function, actuation accuracy, and battery life. Within-study data checks involved computerized checks of monitor clock function before data upload. Results Two thousand six hundred seventy-eight of 2728 monitors (98.2%) passed prestudy use checks. Seventy-six of 2642 monitors (2.9%) dispensed to participants failed within-study monitor checks. Fifty-one of 2642 monitors (1.9%) malfunctioned before data upload, mostly as a result of fluid immersion. Ninety-three of 2642 monitors (3.5%) were lost or thrown away by participants. Complete data was available from 2498 of 2642 dispensed monitors (94.5%) and 2498 of 2549 returned monitors (98.0%). Conclusions The Smartinhaler Tracker is a reliable monitor for measuring MDI use in a real-world setting. Use of extensive monitor and data-checking protocols reduces data loss. In a research or clinical setting, the use of a validated and reliable electronic monitor represents the reference standard for assessing patterns of medication use

Patient-reported quality of life outcomes for children with serious congenital heart defects

Objective To compare patient-reported, health-related quality of life (QoL) for children with serious congenital heart defects (CHDs) and unaffected classmates and to investigate the demographic and clinical factors influencing QoL. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting UK National Health Service. Patients UK-wide cohort of children with serious CHDs aged 10–14 years requiring cardiac intervention in the first year of life in one of 17 UK paediatric cardiac surgical centres operating during 1992–1995. A comparison group of classmates of similar age and sex was recruited. Main outcome measures Child self-report of healthrelated QoL scores (Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, PedsQL) and parental report of schooling and social activities. Results Questionnaires were completed by 477 children with CHDs (56% boys; mean age 12.1 (SD 1.0) years) and 464 classmates (55%; 12.0 (SD 1.1) years). Children with CHDs rated QoL significantly lower than classmates (CHDs: median 78.3 (IQR 65.0–88.6); classmates: 88.0 (80.2–94.6)) and scored lower on physical (CHDs: 84.4; classmates: 93.8; difference 9.4 (7.8 to 10.9)) and psychosocial functioning subscales (CHDs: 76.7, classmates: 85.0; difference 8.3 (6.0 to 10.6)). Cardiac interventions, school absence, regular medications and non-cardiac comorbidities were independently associated with reduced QoL. Participation in sport positively influenced QoL and was associated with higher psychosocial functioning scores. Conclusions Children with serious CHDs experience lower QoL than unaffected classmates. This appears related to the burden of clinical intervention rather than underlying cardiac diagnosis. Participation in sports activities is positively associated with increased emotional well-being. Child self-report measures of QoL would be a valuable addition to clinical outcome audit in this age group.RLK was awarded an MRC Special Training Fellowship in Health of the Public and Health Services Research (reference G106/1083). TD was supported by an NIHR Academic Clinical Fellowship. This work was supported by a British Heart Foundation project grant (reference PG/02/065/13934). The Centre for Paediatric Epidemiology and Biostatistics benefits from funding support from the Medical Research Council in its capacity as the MRC Centre of Epidemiology for Child Health (reference G04005546). Great Ormond St Hospital for Children NHS Trust and the UCL Institute of Child Health receives a proportion of funding from the Department of Health’s NIHR Biomedical Research Centres schem

Is obesity associated with reduced health-related quality of life in Latino, black and white children in the community?

OBJECTIVE: Few studies have examined the impact of obesity on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in non-clinical community samples of children, and methodological limitations have hindered drawing firm conclusions, especially whether the impact is similar across racial/ethnic groups. The present aims were to examine at what levels of non-normal weight, school-aged children experience lower HRQOL and whether this differs among racial/ethnic groups, when controlling for socioeconomic status (SES) differences. DESIGN: Cross-sectional community cohort survey. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Data are from the Healthy Passages, reporting on 4824 Latino, black and white 5th graders in a population-based survey conducted in three United States metropolitan areas. Children's weight status was classified from measured weight and height into underweight (1%), normal weight (52%), overweight (19%), obese (13%) and extremely obese (14%). Children reported their own HRQOL using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory and additional scales addressing global self-worth, physical appearance and body satisfaction. Parents reported children's overall health status. RESULTS: Each increment in higher non-healthy weight class—overweight to obese to extremely obese—was associated with significantly lower scores in more domains of psychosocial HRQOL compared with that in normal weight. However, only extremely obese children reported significantly lower physical HRQOL. Differences among weight classes remained when adjusting for SES and were independent of race/ethnicity. Underweight children generally reported HRQOL that was not significantly different from normal weight children. CONCLUSIONS: Overweight, obese and extremely obese 5th graders on average experience worse HRQOL than normal weight children, especially in psychosocial domains including self-worth and peer relationships, regardless of race/ethnicity. If messages can be conveyed in a sensitive and supportive manner, the desire to improve HRQOL could provide additional motivation for children and their parents in addressing unhealthy weight