Up Bloom’s pyramid with slices of Fink’s pie: Mapping an occupational therapy curriculum

Curriculum design is a complex task. One tool used in the design process is curriculum mapping. A mandated transition from a quarter to a semester academic calendar, alongside preparation of accreditation self-study materials, provided an opportunity for faculty teaching in an entry-level occupational therapy program to review the underlying basis of the curriculum. Two taxonomies of learning (Bloom’s cognitive domain and Fink’s taxonomy of significant learning experiences) were used to examine existing courses and to consider how learning outcomes and experiences varied over the sequence of courses in the curriculum. This led to the creation of a series of course maps that have been useful in informing current curriculum design and guiding future work. In this article, the authors describe the context under which this review took place, briefly review the pertinent literature relating to curriculum design and mapping in occupational therapy education, discuss the mapping process, and provide examples of course maps. The authors reflect on the process and plans for using what was learned in future curricular design projects

Antoine de la Sale’s Petit Jehan de Saintré and the Comte de Tressan

Louis-Élisabeth de la Vergne, comte de Tressan (1715-1783) recast Antoine de La Sale’s Jehan de Saintré (1456) in “miniature” for the Bibliothèque universelle des romans in 1780. Close analysis of the author’s substantial revisions – cuts, explanatory footnotes, character development, narratorial interventions, and explicit reworkings of the plot – shows how Tressan refashioned a medieval courtly fiction to appeal to a broad range of eighteenth-century readers.En 1780 pour la Bibliothèque universelle des romans, Louis-Élisabeth de la Vergne, comte de Tressan (1715-1783), remania en « miniature » le roman de Jehan de Saintré (1456) par Antoine de La Sale. Notre analyse des révisions importantes – omissions, notes historiques, approfondissement psychologique des personnages, interventions d’auteur, et modifications explicites de l’intrigue – effectuées par lui montre comment Tressan reconfigure un roman courtois médiéval pour plaire au grand public des lecteurs de son siècle

Antoine de la Sale’s Petit Jehan de Saintré and the Comte de Tressan

Louis-Élisabeth de la Vergne, comte de Tressan (1715-1783) recast Antoine de La Sale’s Jehan de Saintré (1456) in “miniature” for the Bibliothèque universelle des romans in 1780. Close analysis of the author’s substantial revisions – cuts, explanatory footnotes, character development, narratorial interventions, and explicit reworkings of the plot – shows how Tressan refashioned a medieval courtly fiction to appeal to a broad range of eighteenth-century readers.En 1780 pour la Bibliothèque universelle des romans, Louis-Élisabeth de la Vergne, comte de Tressan (1715-1783), remania en « miniature » le roman de Jehan de Saintré (1456) par Antoine de La Sale. Notre analyse des révisions importantes – omissions, notes historiques, approfondissement psychologique des personnages, interventions d’auteur, et modifications explicites de l’intrigue – effectuées par lui montre comment Tressan reconfigure un roman courtois médiéval pour plaire au grand public des lecteurs de son siècle

Multifactorial assessment of Parkinson’s disease course and outcomes using trajectory modeling in a multiethnic, multisite cohort – extension of the LONG-PD study

BackgroundThe severity, progression, and outcomes of motor and non-motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD) are quite variable. Following PD cohorts holds promise for identifying predictors of disease severity and progression.MethodsPD patients (N = 871) were enrolled at five sites. Enrollment occurred within 5 years of initial motor symptom onset. Disease progression was assessed annually for 2-to-10 years after onset. Group-based trajectory modeling was used to identify groups differing in disease progression. Models were developed for UPDRS-III scores, UPDRS-III tremor and bradykinesia-rigidity subscores, Hoehn & Yahr (H&Y) stage, Mini-Mental Status Exam (MMSE) scores, and UPDRS-III, H&Y and MMSE scores considered together. Predictors of trajectory-group membership were modeled simultaneously with the trajectories. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis evaluated survival free of PD outcomes.ResultsThe best fitting models identified three groups. One showed a relatively benign, slowly progressing trajectory (Group 1), a second showed a moderate, intermediately progressing trajectory (Group 2), and a third showed a more severe, rapidly progressing trajectory (Group 3). Stable trajectory-group membership occurred relatively early in the disease course, 5 years after initial motor symptom. Predictors of intermediate and more severe trajectory-group membership varied across the single variable models and the multivariable model jointly considering UPDRS-III, H&Y and MMSE scores. In the multivariable model, membership in Group 2 (28.4% of patients), relative to Group 1 (50.5%), was associated with male sex, younger age-at-onset, fewer education-years, pesticide exposure, absence of reported head injury, and akinetic/rigid subtype at initial presentation. Membership in Group 3 (21.3%), relative to Group 1, was associated with older age-at-onset, fewer education-years, pesticide exposure, and the absence of a tremor-predominant subtype at initial presentation. Persistent freezing, persistent falls, and cognitive impairment occurred earliest and more frequently in Group 3, later and less frequently in Group 2, and latest and least frequently in Group 1. Furthermore, autonomic complications, dysphagia, and psychosis occurred more frequently in Groups 2 and 3 than in Group 1.ConclusionModeling disease course using multiple objective assessments over an extended follow-up duration identified groups that more accurately reflect differences in PD course, prognosis, and outcomes than assessing single parameters over shorter intervals

Asking the readers: audience research into alternative journalism

Alternative forms of journalism are said to challenge the passive role of audience members as receivers and to foster active citizenship among alternative journalists and audiences. Yet the scholarly literature on alternative journalism contains more assertions about than evidence from the audience. Downing has described the audience for alternative media as “the virtually unknown”, prompting him to urge journalism scholars to undertake more audience research to help increase our understanding of this allegedly active and civic-minded public. This exploratory study of the people who regularly read a contemporary example of alternative journalism—an investigative local blog covering one UK city—is intended to contribute towards filling the gap identified by Downing. Audience views are explored by means of questionnaires and focus groups, providing some evidence that individuals are attracted to alternative journalism by their dissatisfaction with mainstream media; that they see alternative media as helping them make sense of the world; and that, to an extent, engaging with such media is both a prompt to, and a reflection of, readers’ democratic engagement as citizens. Recognising the limitations of this small study, the article concludes by reiterating Downing's call for further research