Transgender theory, queer measurements, cis gender : gender perception discordance and marital quality amongst cisgender couples

Conventionally, surveys measure gender by asking respondents to select whether they identify as a man or woman. While researchers once considered this unproblematic, recent insights from queer theory and transgender studies exemplify that: 1.) binary measurements are insufficient because they obscure variation within groups, and 2.) single measurements are incomplete because how one sees themselves may not align with how others see them. To interrogate the transgender/cisgender binary that undergirds these differential practices, I analyze survey data from 458 cisgender married same-sex and different-sex couples in which actors place themselves and their spouse on a gender typicality scale. First, I critically explore the differences between self-determined and spouse-determined gender, investigating the demographic characteristics that correlate with placement on the gender-typicality scale. Next, I examine whether disagreements in perceptions of gender-typicality between spouses are related to marital quality, with implications for health. I find that higher levels of discordance in gender perceptions correlate with lower levels of marital quality. Results suggest the need to measure gender beyond the binary to capture intimate relationship dynamics.Sociolog

Mitchell\u27s Story: A Cautionary Tale of Underlying Cardiovascular Disease and the Call for Increased Pre-participation Sports Physicals at the Intercollegiate Level

Non

Growth Models in Action: Selected Case Studies

This paper provides an overview of the issues related to the use of growth to model student achievement. Case studies from nine states and two cities are presented to demonstrate the diversity in the definitions of growth across the nation as well as the complexities of incorporating growth into pre-existing state systems. Several suggestions for future research are also provided. Accessed 12,865 times on https://pareonline.net from August 25, 2005 to December 31, 2019. For downloads from January 1, 2020 forward, please click on the PlumX Metrics link to the right

Did Spending Cuts During the Great Recession Really Cause Student Outcomes to Decline?

Jackson, Wigger, and Xiong (2020a, JWX) provide evidence that education spending reductions following the Great Recession had widespread negative impacts on student achievement and attainment. This paper describes our process of duplicating JWX and highlights a variety of tests we employ to investigate the nature and robustness of the relationship between school spending reductions and student outcomes. Though per-pupil expenditures undoubtedly shifted downward due to the Great Recession, contrary to JWX, our findings indicate there is not a clear and compelling story about the impact of those reductions on student achievement. Moreover, we find that the relationship between K-12 spending and college-going rates is likely confounded with contemporaneous higher education funding trends. While we believe that K-12 spending reductions may have negative impacts on student outcomes, our results suggest that estimating generalizable causal effects remains a significant challenge

Advanced Placement Course-Taking and ACT Testing Outcomes in Arkansas

This report examines trends in Advanced Placement (AP) course-taking in Arkansas. The AP program allows students to access college-level content while still enrolled in high school. Using de-identified student-level data from 2015-16 to 2017-18 from the Arkansas Department of Education, this research investigates whether students who take AP courses demonstrate better college readiness and examines how these trends vary for different demographic and socioeconomic groups throughout the state. While we cannot estimate the causal effect of AP coursework on student outcomes, this study presents key findings related to the Advanced Placement program which are relevant to policymakers and educators in Arkansas

Capacity building efforts and perceptions for wildlife surveillance to detect zoonotic pathogens: comparing stakeholder perspectives.

BackgroundThe capacity to conduct zoonotic pathogen surveillance in wildlife is critical for the recognition and identification of emerging health threats. The PREDICT project, a component of United States Agency for International Development's Emerging Pandemic Threats program, has introduced capacity building efforts to increase zoonotic pathogen surveillance in wildlife in global 'hot spot' regions where zoonotic disease emergence is likely to occur. Understanding priorities, challenges, and opportunities from the perspectives of the stakeholders is a key component of any successful capacity building program.MethodsA survey was administered to wildlife officials and to PREDICT-implementing in-country project scientists in 16 participating countries in order to identify similarities and differences in perspectives between the groups regarding capacity needs for zoonotic pathogen surveillance in wildlife.ResultsBoth stakeholder groups identified some human-animal interfaces (i.e. areas of high contact between wildlife and humans with the potential risk for disease transmission), such as hunting and markets, as important for ongoing targeting of wildlife surveillance. Similarly, findings regarding challenges across stakeholder groups showed some agreement in that a lack of sustainable funding across regions was the greatest challenge for conducting wildlife surveillance for zoonotic pathogens (wildlife officials: 96% and project scientists: 81%). However, the opportunity for improving zoonotic pathogen surveillance capacity identified most frequently by wildlife officials as important was increasing communication or coordination among agencies, sectors, or regions (100% of wildlife officials), whereas the most frequent opportunities identified as important by project scientists were increasing human capacity, increasing laboratory capacity, and the growing interest or awareness regarding wildlife disease or surveillance programs (all identified by 69% of project scientists).ConclusionsA One Health approach to capacity building applied at local and global scales will have the greatest impact on improving zoonotic pathogen surveillance in wildlife. This approach will involve increasing communication and cooperation across ministries and sectors so that experts and stakeholders work together to identify and mitigate surveillance gaps. Over time, this transdisciplinary approach to capacity building will help overcome existing challenges and promote efficient targeting of high risk interfaces for zoonotic pathogen transmission

Stabilizing the Retromer Complex in a Human Stem Cell Model of Alzheimer's Disease Reduces TAU Phosphorylation Independently of Amyloid Precursor Protein.

Developing effective therapeutics for complex diseases such as late-onset, sporadic Alzheimer's disease (SAD) is difficult due to genetic and environmental heterogeneity in the human population and the limitations of existing animal models. Here, we used hiPSC-derived neurons to test a compound that stabilizes the retromer, a highly conserved multiprotein assembly that plays a pivotal role in trafficking molecules through the endosomal network. Using this human-specific system, we have confirmed previous data generated in murine models and show that retromer stabilization has a potentially beneficial effect on amyloid beta generation from human stem cell-derived neurons. We further demonstrate that manipulation of retromer complex levels within neurons affects pathogenic TAU phosphorylation in an amyloid-independent manner. Taken together, our work demonstrates that retromer stabilization is a promising candidate for therapeutic development in AD and highlights the advantages of testing novel compounds in a human-specific, neuronal system