Expectations of Mentoring: Novice Teachers’ Voices

Mentoring, as an avenue to support and retain new teachers, has received a renewed interest. As Trubowitz suggests, “School systems are finding that beginning teachers who have access to intensive mentoring are less likely to leave teaching” (2004, p. 59). While several factors may cause teachers to leave, alienation has been identified as one of the major forces. According to previous research, teachers experience “a combination of feelings of isolation, normlessness, powerlessness, and meaninglessness” (Benham & O’Brien, 2002, p. 20). Such feelings of isolation are compounded by the current accountability demands and the professional pressure teachers’ experience. Thus, it is imperative to consider alternative strategies aimed at providing the kind of support congruent with beginning teacher’s needs in order to be successful (Breaux & Wong, 2003, p. iii). A goal of such strategies should be the effective socialization of teachers, and providing on-going support for growth, through different approaches including mentoring (Darling-Hammond, 2003; Brennan, Thames, & Roberts, 1999). Although mentoring can be an effective means to enhance teacher efficacy and help beginning teachers (Breaux & Wong, 2003; Delgado, 1999; Yost, 2002), limited research focuses on teachers’ perspectives associated with their own expectations of mentoring, particularly in diverse school settings (Wang & Odell, 2002). Further, researchers suggest, “There has been limited evidence that points to the expectations of new teachers relative to mentoring” (Tillman, 2005, p. 616). Thus, it is essential that teachers’ voices be illuminated to better understand their needs so that school leaders may “consider the benefits of consulting with novice teachers about their expectations in the mentoring arrangement” (Tillman, 2005, p. 626). Much of the current literature on teacher mentoring is based on experiences of mentors (Ganser, 1996; Trubowitz, 2004), and mentoring internship program descriptions (Brennan, Thames, & Roberts, 1999) however, novice teachers’ voices tend to be absent from the discourse. While few studies have focused on teachers’ perceptions (Rowley, 1999; Olebe, Jackson, & Danielson, 1999), additional research is needed so that beginning teachers’ voices contribute to a better understanding of mentoring as a vehicle to reduce isolation, successfully socialize new teachers into the demands of the profession, provide culturally responsive support to novice teachers, and reduce teacher turnover. Such inquiry could also be useful to avoid the common pitfalls that might have a detrimental effect on teachers and students. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to present the results of a study conducted to examine teachers’ expectations of mentoring

Habitat use and activities of the piping plover, Charadrius melodus, wintering on South Padre Island, Texas

The Piping Plover, Charadrius melodus, is endangered in its breeding sites and threatened in its wintering sites. This migratory shorebird spends 3 to 4 months on northern U.S. and southern Canadian breeding sites and the remainder of the year in Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, and southern U.S. wintering sites. Up to 2.4% of the estimated Piping Plover population remains for the 9 to 10 month non-breeding season on South Padre Island (S.P.I.). During the non-breeding season, I conducted censuses at 15 sites in the southern portion of South Padre Island to determine Piping Plover habitat preferences. Piping Plovers prefer bay side flats as opposed to beach areas on South Padre Island, and habitat use is determined by conditions such as exposure and wetness of bay side habitats. Piping Plovers tend to forage in habitats close to the Laguna Madre, such as mud flats and roost farther away on the sand flats

University Of Texas Pan American, Edinburg, Texas: A Reciprocal Study Abroad Program With The Leuphana University, Lunenburg, Germany

This paper describes the process for expanding an existing ten year study abroad program between two universities, the University of Texas Pan American, Edinburg, Texas, and the Leuphana University, Lueneburg, Germany. The model for this reciprocal educational program will include a process for enrollment, suggested curricula, course scheduling, sources for financial aid and student living accommodations. Technology will be a resource tool to increase student access for bridging these educational barriers. This model will facilitate the process for students from both universities to study abroad for a semester while earning credits in their area of study. This paper will further address cultural diversities and language differences that may hinder communications and impede learning.&nbsp

Prevent Congenital Syphilis: A Facebook-Based Retrospective Analysis of Community Questions to Identify Gaps in Knowledge and Misconceptions

Background: Congenital syphilis is a significant public health issue that occurs when a pregnant woman with untreated syphilis transmits the infection to her unborn child, which can lead to severe health consequences such as developmental delay, stillbirth, and neonatal death. Despite the availability of effective treatments, the incidence of congenital syphilis has been increasing in recent years, particularly in certain populations such as women of color and those living in poverty. This project aims to better inform public health measures by leveraging social media as a data source for understanding community perspectives on syphilis prevention and management. Methods: In this study, we conducted a Facebook-based retrospective analysis of community questions related to syphilis. Utilizing convenience sampling, data was collected from the UTRGV School of Medicine - Pediatrics Prevent Congenital Syphilis Facebook group from February 2021 to June 2023. The sample size consisted of 1,320 Facebook group members. Group member questions were categorized into 14 different categories, and the geographic distribution of users was determined based on the available profile information. Results: Our analysis revealed that a total of 234 users actively engaged with the Facebook group by posting, commenting, or sending direct messages to the group administrators via Messenger. Among the 146 users with available geographic location data, 44.9% were from Africa, 13.7% from Asia, 2.3% from North America, and 0.9% from Europe. We observed representation from a total of 26 countries, with the top 3 countries of South Africa, Kenya, and Zambia representing 52.1% of our users. Overall, we identified 168 users who had questions directly related to syphilis. Notably, the highest number of questions pertained to Treatment & Medication with 82 total questions, Symptoms & Signs with 45 total questions, and Pregnancy & Congenital Syphilis with 29 total questions. Conclusions: The utilization of social media platforms, such as Facebook, allows for a broader reach and greater engagement with communities worldwide. The active interest demonstrated by the engagement of users within the Facebook group indicates a strong willingness to seek information and clarification regarding syphilis-related topics. The significant number of questions regarding the treatment and symptoms of syphilis provides valuable insights that can guide the development of targeted outreach initiatives. The data collected in this study will be reviewed with the UTRGV SOM Prevent Congenital Syphilis team and the State of Texas DHSH who fund the project, incorporating their suggestions and expertise into the project going forward. We aim to collaborate with healthcare providers, public health organizations, and community stakeholders to implement targeted awareness campaigns. By leveraging the findings from this project, we seek to create impactful educational materials and campaigns that address the identified knowledge gaps and misconceptions, ultimately reducing the incidence of congenital syphilis. This study underscores the critical need for public health education, emphasizes the extensive influence of social media platforms, and demonstrates the strong engagement surrounding syphilis-related subjects

Reaction control system integrated systems performance analysis - LM computer program user's manual

Reaction control system integrated systems performance analysis LM computer program - users manua

Examining Classroom Observation Instruments for English Language Learners: An Example of Proposing Causal Structure Pertaining to Pedagogy

The purpose of this dissertation study was to describe teacher pedagogy through the use of systematic review, observation data, and to comment on causal structure. Three objectives were necessary: the assessment of the literature of classroom observation instruments used in observing English language learners, using archival classroom observation data from Project Middle School Science for English Language Learners (MSSELL), and the casual commentary of teachers’ pedagogy during Project MSSELL. The Project MSSELL is a randomized, longitudinal, field-based, National Science Foundation (NSF) funded research project (NSF Award No. DRL-0822343; 2009-2010). Included in the project was archived data for the pedagogy of eight grade 5 teachers during a science intervention. The observation protocol, Transitional Bilingual Observation Protocol (TBOP), used in the project is theoretically derived from the transitional bilingual observation model (Lara-Alecio & Parker, 1994), and measures classroom frequency events in four instruction domains: Language of Instruction, Language Content, Communication Mode, and Activity Structure. The data for this dissertation are taken from both a treatment and control group. The treatment group is comprised of four teachers participating in the intervention associated with Project MSSELL, while the control group is comprised of four teachers not participating in the intervention. By conducting the following: (a) systematic review of classroom observation instruments evaluating classrooms with English language learners (ELL); (b) frequency analysis in classroom events during Project MSSELL; and (c) commentary of the causal inference for the project in relation to teachers’ pedagogy, the researcher further describes the project’s feasibility toward pedagogy conducive to ELL academic achievement. Results from this study implicate treatment teachers, when compared to control teachers, focus more on writing as a way of communication between the student and teacher. Additionally, through a systematic review of classroom observations instruments, the researcher highlights the TBOP’s strength toward recording pedagogy. Through causal commentary the researcher converts Project MSSELL into a simple causal structure to indicate the causal effects at the local level. The resultant commentary provided further insight into teachers’ pedagogy during Project MSSELL. The data for this dissertation are taken from both a treatment and control group. The treatment group is comprised of four teachers participating in the intervention associated with Project MSSELL, while the control group is comprised of four teachers not participating in the intervention. By conducting the following: (a) systematic review of classroom observation instruments evaluating classrooms with English language learners (ELL); (b) frequency analysis in classroom events during Project MSSELL; and (c) commentary of the causal inference for the project in relation to teachers’ pedagogy, the researcher further describes the project’s feasibility toward pedagogy conducive to ELL academic achievement. Results from this study implicate treatment teachers, when compared to control teachers, focus more on writing as a way of communication between the student and teacher. Additionally, through a systematic review of classroom observations instruments, the researcher highlights the TBOP’s strength toward recording pedagogy. Through causal commentary the researcher converts Project MSSELL into a simple causal structure to indicate the causal effects at the local level. The resultant commentary provided further insight into teachers’ pedagogy during Project MSSELL

Methodology for Developing a Probabilistic Risk Assessment Model of Spacecraft Rendezvous and Dockings

In 2007 NASA was preparing to send two new visiting vehicles carrying logistics and propellant to the International Space Station (ISS). These new vehicles were the European Space Agency s (ESA) Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), the Jules Verne, and the Japanese Aerospace and Explorations Agency s (JAXA) H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV). The ISS Program wanted to quantify the increased risk to the ISS from these visiting vehicles. At the time, only the Shuttle, the Soyuz, and the Progress vehicles rendezvoused and docked to the ISS. The increased risk to the ISS was from an increase in vehicle traffic, thereby, increasing the potential catastrophic collision during the rendezvous and the docking or berthing of the spacecraft to the ISS. A universal method of evaluating the risk of rendezvous and docking or berthing was created by the ISS s Risk Team to accommodate the increasing number of rendezvous and docking or berthing operations due to the increasing number of different spacecraft, as well as the future arrival of commercial spacecraft. Before the first docking attempt of ESA's ATV and JAXA's HTV to the ISS, a probabilistic risk model was developed to quantitatively calculate the risk of collision of each spacecraft with the ISS. The 5 rendezvous and docking risk models (Soyuz, Progress, Shuttle, ATV, and HTV) have been used to build and refine the modeling methodology for rendezvous and docking of spacecrafts. This risk modeling methodology will be NASA s basis for evaluating the addition of future ISS visiting spacecrafts hazards, including SpaceX s Dragon, Orbital Science s Cygnus, and NASA s own Orion spacecraft. This paper will describe the methodology used for developing a visiting vehicle risk model

The Use of Diverse Surface Weather Data Collection Systems in Support of the 1996 Olympic Games

Proceedings of the 1997 Georgia Water Resources Conference, March 20-22, 1997, Athens, Georgia.Sponsored and Organized by: U.S. Geological Survey, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, The University of Georgia, Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of TechnologyThis book was published by the Institute of Ecology, The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602 with partial funding provided by the U.S. Department of Interior, Geological Survey, through the Georgia Water Research Institutes Authorization Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-397). The views and statements advanced in this publication are solely those of the authors and do not represent official views or policies of the University of Georgia or the U.S. Geological Survey or the conference sponsors

Leadership and Management Are One and the Same

Defining the attributes of change catalysts within high functioning organizations, including the academic enterprise, is desirable. An understanding of these attributes within our academy may foster faculty interest and engagement in seeking administrative roles and serve to bolster succession planning within our schools. On one hand, there have been numerous publications teasing out the purported differences between leadership and management. On the other hand, does segregating these important characteristics based upon arbitrary distinctions do more harm than good? This commentary represents the work of a group of academic leaders participating in the 2015-2016 AACP Academic Leadership Fellowship Program. This work was presented as a debate at the 2016 AACP Interim Meeting in Tampa, Florida, in February 2016

Fijación a ligamento sacroespinoso en el tratamiento y prevención del prolapso de cúpula vaginal: experiencia en el Hospital Universitario Dr. José Eleuterio González

El prolapso de cúpula vaginal se presenta como complicación tardía de la histerectomía abdominal o vaginal y afecta la calidad de vida de las pacientes. La fijación de cúpula vaginal es una opción de tratamiento y se ha utilizado también de manera profiláctica durante la histerectomía. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio prospectivo, longitudinal, descriptivo, no comparativo, no ciego, en 25 pacientes a quienes se les realizó fijación de cúpula vaginal a ligamento sacroespinoso en el Hospital Universitario Dr. José Eleuterio González de enero de 2005 a enero de 2008, dando seguimiento a un año con exploración física y cuestionarios de calidad de vida PFIQ-7 y PFDI-20. Resultados: De las 25 pacientes, con una edad media de 58 años, catorce tenían antecedente de histerectomía. Se realizó fijación de cúpula vaginal a ligamento sacroespinoso en nueve pacientes (36%), fijación de cúpula mas plastia vaginal a cinco pacientes (20%) e histerectomía vaginal más fijación a sacroespinoso mas plastia vaginal a 11 pacientes (44%), con una tasa de recurrencia de 8%. Se obtuvo mejoría significativa en el prolapso de cúpula vaginal (p ≤ 0.004), del cistocele (p ≤ 0.001) y rectocele (p ≤ 0.001), así como en la calidad de vida (p ≤ 0.000). Conclusiones: La fijación de cúpula vaginal al ligamento sacroespinoso ha demostrado ser una técnica efectiva en el tratamiento y prevención del prolapso de cúpula vaginal, corroborando en nuestro estudio lo descrito en la literatura