Can Memoirs Be Used For Spiritual Development in a Book Group?

Biographies have historically been used by Christians for instruction and encouragement. The current trend in biographical writing is the memoir. Can spiritual memoirs be used as an effective tool for learning more about Scripture, doctrine or the Christian life? Approximately twenty spiritual memoirs were read and evaluated to determine if there was a central theme or series of themes that provided a story-based context for exploring greater biblical truths. This article reviews the genre of spiritual memoirs, discusses their strengths and weaknesses, and suggests a method for preparing them for a book group format

Compelling War Correspondents to Testify: A Prerogative of International Criminal Tribunals?

A qualified testimonial privilege for war correspondents was recognized by the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in the case of Prosecutor v. Brdjanin. This article examines whether war correspondents should enjoy such a privilege in international criminal tribunals. The author illustrates that, to maintain their legitimacy, international criminal tribunals must be able to make factually accurate findings. She further illustrates that the ability of international criminal tribunals to make factually accurate findings is dependant upon their ability to obtain reliable evidence, including witness testimony. The suggestion is made that, as testimonial privileges reduce the evidence that is available to international criminal tribunals, and thereby impair the tribunals’ fact-finding abilities, they should be granted sparingly and construed narrowly. The author recognizes that it is necessary to protect the public interest in the work of war correspondents and acknowledges that a testimonial privilege may be necessary to protect war correspondents from being compelled to testify about confidential sources and materials. She argues, however, that the qualified testimonial privilege established in Prosecutor v. Brdjanin – which seeks to protect war correspondents from being compelled to testify about non-confidential sources and materials – is unwarranted. In the author’s opinion, measures short of a testimonial privilege will suffice to avoid any adverse consequences that might flow from compelling war correspondents to testify about non-confidential sources

Compelling War Correspondents to Testify: A Prerogative of International Criminal Tribunals?

A qualified testimonial privilege for war correspondents was recognized by the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in the case of Prosecutor v. Brdjanin. This article examines whether war correspondents should enjoy such a privilege in international criminal tribunals. The author illustrates that, to maintain their legitimacy, international criminal tribunals must be able to make factually accurate findings. She further illustrates that the ability of international criminal tribunals to make factually accurate findings is dependant upon their ability to obtain reliable evidence, including witness testimony. The suggestion is made that, as testimonial privileges reduce the evidence that is available to international criminal tribunals, and thereby impair the tribunals’ fact-finding abilities, they should be granted sparingly and construed narrowly. The author recognizes that it is necessary to protect the public interest in the work of war correspondents and acknowledges that a testimonial privilege may be necessary to protect war correspondents from being compelled to testify about confidential sources and materials. She argues, however, that the qualified testimonial privilege established in Prosecutor v. Brdjanin – which seeks to protect war correspondents from being compelled to testify about non-confidential sources and materials – is unwarranted. In the author’s opinion, measures short of a testimonial privilege will suffice to avoid any adverse consequences that might flow from compelling war correspondents to testify about non-confidential sources

Leveraging the Science of Learning to Enhance Student Success: An Application of Syfr Learning’s Principles of Practice

The purpose of the current article is to describe a set of empirically validated principles of practice with the potential to enhance student learning and academic performance. Specifically, we provide an overview of Syfr Learning’s principles of practice – a collection of scalable instructional techniques derived from decades of research in the domain of learning science. Further, we provide an illustrative example of the benefits of Syfr Learning’s principles of practice when incorporated into existing curricula in a K-12 setting

Preparing administrators to lead 21st century learning

Leading 21st century learning in schools looks radically different than it did 25 years ago. The rapidly changing demographics of culturally, ethnically, linguistically, racially and economically diverse students brings a complicated mix of challenges for administrators who must respond to the varied interests and needs of the school community. It is essential for school districts and principal preparation programs to collaborate in the development of the 21st century school leaders through authentic, relevant internship opportunities. By collaborating with higher education, school districts can do their part in the development of school administrators with the instructional expertise and the coaching skills needed to be the effective instructional leader for 21st century learning

Building Bridges: Opportunities Abound for P-20 Collaborations

PK-12 leaders value opportunities to collaborate with outside entities to improve student achievement and career-readiness. With increasing federal and state student-performance expectations for more than 1.4 million students enrolled in Texas public schools, collaborating with a public or private university, a community college, or a technical or health institute can provide important mutual benefits

Harnessing Information Technology to Inform Patients Facing Routine Decisions: Cancer Screening as a Test Case

PURPOSE Technology could transform routine decision making by anticipating patients’ information needs, assessing where patients are with decisions and preferences, personalizing educational experiences, facilitating patient-clinician information exchange, and supporting follow-up. This study evaluated whether patients and clinicians will use such a decision module and its impact on care, using 3 cancer screening decisions as test cases. METHODS Twelve practices with 55,453 patients using a patient portal participated in this prospective observational cohort study. Participation was open to patients who might face a cancer screening decision: women aged 40 to 49 who had not had a mammogram in 2 years, men aged 55 to 69 who had not had a prostate-specific antigen test in 2 years, and adults aged 50 to 74 overdue for colorectal cancer screening. Data sources included module responses, electronic health record data, and a postencounter survey. RESULTS In 1 year, one-fifth of the portal users (11,458 patients) faced a potential cancer screening decision. Among these patients, 20.6% started and 7.9% completed the decision module. Fully 47.2% of module completers shared responses with their clinician. After their next office visit, 57.8% of those surveyed thought their clinician had seen their responses, and many reported the module made their appointment more productive (40.7%), helped engage them in the decision (47.7%), broadened their knowledge (48.1%), and improved communication (37.5%). CONCLUSIONS Many patients face decisions that can be anticipated and proactively facilitated through technology. Although use of technology has the potential to make visits more efficient and effective, cultural, workflow, and technical changes are needed before it could be widely disseminated