Teacher career trajectories and aspirations in context: A mixed methods study of second-stage teachers in New South Wales

The aim of this thesis is to describe, interpret and explain the career trajectories and aspirations of second-stage teachers in New South Wales and to identify the key contextual factors influencing their careers. Successive government reforms targeting teacher quality and professionalism have significantly shifted the work landscape for teachers. The concept of ‘career’ provides a useful conceptual lens through which to analyse teachers’ work patterns and goals. Recent studies suggest that some teachers are redefining what it means to have a teaching career and seeking alternative trajectories that may expand their job roles (Peske, Liu, Johnson, Kauffman, & Kardos, 2001; Rinke, 2009, 2011; Rippon, 2005; Smethem, 2007). Whilst levels of teacher attrition are described as having “reached epidemic proportions” in Australia, the U.S and U.K (Gallant & Riley, 2014, p. 562), current research has given insufficient attention to the within-career issues that shape teacher career decision-making (Buchanan, 2009b; Clandinin et al., 2015; Lindqvist & Nordänger, 2016). Whereas beginning teachers have been given considerable research attention, this thesis examined ‘second-stage teachers’ in their fourth to tenth year of teaching (Kirkpatrick & Johnson, 2014). Having overcome their early survival concerns, second-stage teachers shift focus to the future and contemplate how, if at all, they might develop a teaching career. This study used a convergent parallel mixed methods design, wherein both qualitative and quantitative data were collected in parallel, analysed separately and finally integrated. This study had three data sets: policy documents, workforce statistics and semi-structured interviews with twenty-four second-stage teachers representing a range of ages and school levels, sectors and locations. This cohort of teachers is the first generation for whom compulsory Standards and accreditation has applied under the New Scheme system. This thesis offers two original contributions to the knowledge base. Firstly, this thesis identifies six specific career trajectories that second-stage teachers aspire to, recognising these as different roles that teachers may shift between rather than pre-determined pathways. The model presented here offers a more nuanced understanding of teacher retention/attrition that extends beyond classifying teachers as stayers/leavers.Secondly, this thesis brings to light three key contextual factors that influence second-stage teachers’ careers: professional cultures amongst teachers, the current status of teaching and the practical implementation and enactment of policy agendas. The thesis concludes by highlighting points of convergence and divergence within the data to show how the current policy context is not well aligned with second-stage teachers’ lived career experiences

Factors related to success in the doctoral program at Boston University School of Education

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston UniversityPurpose The purpose of the study was to identify those factors which are related to success in the doctoral program, to analyze the relative importance and frequency of factors identified, and to draw implications and conclusions from the findings. Procedures The population of 327 subjects in five groups were all applicants to the doctoral program at Boston University School of Education, some of whom graduated, some of whom did not. Information for the study was obtained from the records of the School of Education, from responses to a questionnaire and data sheet, and from interviews. A group of graduates were first compared with a group of non-graduates to see if there were significant differences between the groups on four screening variabless undergraduate grade point average, graduate grade point average, score on the Boston University General Association Test, and recommendations in seven areas (taken individually and as a total). There was a difference on total recommendations in favor of the graduates significant at the .05 level. On the other variables there were no significant differences between the groups. [TRUNCATED

Profits, Commercial Food Supplier Involvement, and School Vending Machine Snack Food Availability: Implications for Implementing the New Competitive Foods Rule

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/107388/1/josh12165.pd

Physical Activity Breaks and Facilities in US Secondary Schools

BACKGROUND Research on physical activity breaks and facilities (indoor and outdoor) in secondary schools is relatively limited. METHODS School administrators and students in nationally representative samples of 8th (middle school) and 10th/12th grade (high school) students were surveyed annually from 2008‐2009 to 2011‐2012. School administrators reported information about physical activity breaks and facilities. Students self‐reported height, weight, and physical activity. RESULTS The prevalence of physical activity breaks and indoor and outdoor facilities (dichotomized by median split) differed significantly by region of the country, school size, student race/ethnicity, and school socioeconomic status (SES). Breaks were associated with lower odds of overweight (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.91, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.83‐1.00) and obesity (AOR = 0.86, 95% CI: 0.75‐0.99) among middle school students. Among low‐SES middle school students and schools, higher indoor facilities were associated with lower rates of overweight and obesity. Among high school students, higher indoor and outdoor facilities were associated with 19‐42% higher odds of moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity. CONCLUSIONS Physical activity breaks and school facilities may help to address high rates of overweight/obesity and low physical activity levels among secondary students, especially lower‐SES students. Students in all schools should have equal access to these resources.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/108694/1/josh12206.pd

Clustering and correlates of screen-time and eating behaviours among young adolescents

Background: Screen-time and eating behaviours are associated in adolescents, but few studies have examined the clustering of these health behaviours in this age group. The identification of clustered health behaviours, and influences on adolescents’ clustered health behaviours, at the time when they are most likely to become habitual, is important for intervention design. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and clustering of health behaviours in adolescents, and examine the sociodemographic, individual, behavioural, and home social and physical environmental correlates of clustered health behaviours. Methods: Adolescents aged 11–12 years (n = 527, 48% boys) completed a questionnaire during class-time which assessed screen-time (ST), fruit and vegetable (FV), and energy-dense (ED) snack consumption using a Food Frequency Questionnaire. Health behaviours were categorised into high and low frequencies based on recommendations for FV and ST and median splits for ED snacks. Adolescents reported on their habits, self-efficacy, eating at the television (TV), eating and watching TV together with parents, restrictive parenting practices, and the availability and accessibility of foods within the home. Behavioural clustering was assessed using an observed over expected ratio (O/E). Correlates of clustered behaviours were examined using multivariate multinomial logistic regression. Results: Approximately 70% reported having two or three health risk behaviours. Overall, O/E ratios were close to 1, which indicates clustering. The three risk behaviour combination of low FV, high ED, and high ST occurred more frequently than expected (O/E ratio = 1.06 95% CI 1.01, 1.15. Individual, behavioural, and social and physical home environmental correlates were differentially associated with behavioural clusters. Correlates consistently associated with clusters included eating ED snacks while watching TV, eating at the TV with parents, and the availability and accessibility of ED snack foods within the home. Conclusions: There is a high prevalence of screen time and unhealthy eating, and screen time is coupled with unhealthy dietary behaviours. Strategies and policies are required that simultaneously address reductions in screen time and changes to habitual dietary patterns, such as TV snacking and snack availability and accessibility. These may require a combination of individual, social and environmental changes alongside conscious and more automatic (nudging) strategies

Bacterial subversion of NLR-mediated immune responses

Members of the mammalian Nod-like receptor (NLR) protein family are important intracellular sensors for bacteria. Bacteria have evolved under the pressure of detection by host immune sensing systems, leading to adaptive subversion strategies to dampen immune responses for their benefits. These include modification of microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs), interception of innate immune pathways by secreted effector proteins and sophisticated instruction of anti-inflammatory adaptive immune responses. Here, we summarise our current understanding of subversion strategies used by bacterial pathogens to manipulate NLR-mediated responses, focusing on the well-studied members NOD1/2, and the inflammasome forming NLRs NLRC4, and NLRP3. We discuss how bacterial pathogens and their products activate these NLRs to promote inflammation and disease and the range of mechanisms used by bacterial pathogens to evade detection by NLRs and to block or dampen NLR activation to ultimately interfere with the generation of host immunity. Moreover, we discuss how bacteria utilise NLRs to facilitate immunotolerance and persistence in the host and outline how various mechanisms used to attenuate innate immune responses towards bacterial pathogens can also aid the host by reducing immunopathologies. Finally, we describe the therapeutic potential of harnessing immune subversion strategies used by bacteria to treat chronic inflammatory conditions

The rainbow saturation number is linear

Given a graph H , we say that an edge-colored graph G is H -rainbow saturated if it does not contain a rainbow copy of H, but the addition of any nonedge in any color creates a rainbow copy of H. The rainbow saturation number rsat (n,H) is the minimum number of edges among all H-rainbow saturated edge-colored graphs on n vertices. We prove that for any nonempty graph H, the rainbow saturation number is linear in n, thus proving a conjecture of Girão, Lewis, and Popielarz. In addition, we give an improved upper bound on the rainbow saturation number of the complete graph, disproving a second conjecture of Girão, Lewis, and Popielarz

KSU Chorale, Women\u27s Choir, and Northwestern Middle School 8th Grade Chorus

Kennesaw State University School of Music presents KSU Chorale, Women\u27s Choir, and Northwestern Middle School 8th Grade Chorus.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/1154/thumbnail.jp

Remote control of glucose homeostasis in vivo using photopharmacology

Photopharmacology describes the use of light to precisely deliver drug activity in space and time. Such approaches promise to improve drug specificity by reducing off-target effects. As a proof-of-concept, we have subjected the fourth generation photoswitchable sulfonylurea JB253 to comprehensive toxicology assessment, including mutagenicity and maximum/repeated tolerated dose studies, as well as in vivo testing in rodents. Here, we show that JB253 is well-tolerated with minimal mutagenicity and can be used to optically-control glucose homeostasis in anesthetized mice following delivery of blue light to the pancreas. These studies provide the first demonstration that photopharmacology may one day be applicable to the light-guided treatment of type 2 diabetes and other metabolic disease states in vivo in humans