The Effect of a Zoo-Based Experiential Academic Science Program on High School Students\u27 Math and Science Achievement and Perceptions of School Climate

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of an 11th-grade and 12th-grade zoo-based academic high school experiential science program compared to a same school-district school-based academic high school experiential science program on students\u27 pretest and posttest science, math, and reading achievement, and student perceptions of program relevance, rigor, and relationships. Science coursework delivery site served as the study\u27s independent variable for the two naturally formed groups representing students ( n = 18) who completed a zoo-based experiential academic high school science program and students (n = 18) who completed a school-based experiential academic high school science program. Students in the first group, a zoo-based experiential academic high school science program, completed real world, hands-on projects at the zoo while students in the second group, those students who completed a school-based experiential academic high school science program, completed real world, simulated projects in the classroom. These groups comprised the two research arms of the study. Both groups of students were selected from the same school district. The study\u27s two dependent variables were achievement and school climate. Achievement was analyzed using norm-referenced 11th-grade pretest PLAN and 12th-grade posttest ACT test composite scores. Null hypotheses were rejected in the direction of improved test scores for both science program groups--students who completed the zoo-based experiential academic high school science program ( p \u3c .001) and students who completed the school-based experiential academic high school science program (p \u3c .001). The posttest-posttest ACT test composite score comparison was not statistically different ( p = .93) indicating program equipoise for students enrolled in both science programs. No overall weighted grade point average score improvement was observed for students in either science group, however, null hypotheses were rejected in the direction of improved science grade point average scores for 11th-grade ( p \u3c .01) and 12th-grade (p = .01) students who completed the zoo-based experiential academic high school science program. Null hypotheses were not rejected for between group posttest science grade point average scores and school district criterion reference math and reading test scores. Finally, students who completed the zoo-based experiential academic high school science program had statistically improved pretest-posttest perceptions of program relationship scores ( p \u3c .05) and compared to students who completed the school-based experiential academic high school science program had statistically greater posttest perceptions of program relevance (p \u3c .001), perceptions of program rigor (p \u3c .001), and perceptions of program relationships (p \u3c .001)

How well does Anorexia Nervosa fit with personal values? An exploratory study.

BACKGROUND: Despite an increasing clinical interest in the use of personal values as a motivational tool in psychological therapies for Anorexia Nervosa (AN), research is limited. This study explored personal values among individuals with AN, with a particular focus on the 'fit' between participants' values and their AN. METHODS: A qualitative research design was employed in this study. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were carried out among eight female outpatients and inpatients with a diagnosis of AN or Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified - AN type (EDNOS-AN type). Data was analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA; Smith, Jarman & Osborne, 1999). RESULTS: Three super-ordinate themes emerged from analysis: 'Balancing Values' (difficulty finding balance in relating to and acting on values), 'Congruence and Clashes between AN and Values' (experiences of AN representing a mixed-fit with values) and 'From Ambivalence to Motivation' (ambivalence toward both AN and recovery - in the context of its mixed-fit with values - and experiences of values as a motivational tool in recovery). CONCLUSIONS: Study findings support a role for psychological therapies in working with personal values as a means of promoting recovery in AN, through supporting individuals to explore AN's workability in the context of their values. Further research investigating the optimal stage of treatment to work with values as a motivational tool is warranted

Supportive Structures For Successful Science Teachers’ Professional Development

The Omaha Public Schools (OPS) Science Office collaborates closely with community partners to facilitate a private foundation grant that seeks to improve science education by focusing on in-service, science teachers’ professional learning in the context of professional development (PD) experiences and targeted graduate coursework. The three goals of the K-12 Comprehensive Science Teaching and Learning Grant are to 1) increase student achievement in science, 2) increase teacher effectiveness, and to 3) align and enhance science curriculum. At the end of year one, 83 teacher participants have taken graduate courses, attended professional conferences, completed action research projects, and/or have participated in content immersion workshops based on personalized professional learning plans. All of the participating teachers complete an action research portfolio and are assisted by one of 11 science instructional coaches—master teachers who ensure that the teachers’ professional learning is translated into improved classroom practice. The science instructional coaches’ preparation included training from the Institute for Inquiry affiliated with San Francisco’s Exploratorium, Discipline-Based Educational Research and other graduate courses through the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO), The Art of Instructional Coaching Training and consulting from Elena Aguilar, and a series of Science Research Immersion Workshops by Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, as well as the University of Wisconsin-Extension affiliated with Upham Woods Outdoor Learning Center. The OPS K-12 Science Supervisor is the principal investigator and the UNO STEM Community Chair and the UNO Science Community Chair are the co-PIs for the collaborative grant effort. The shared-leadership model in OPS also includes two Elementary Supervisors and the Science Lead Teacher to ensure full alignment among district goals, participants’ plans for growth, and partners’ agendas. Additionally, a grant advisory team including district-level leadership and grant officers participates in quarterly meetings to oversee the progress. Education Northwest conducts the external grant evaluation. Included in this report is the structural context of the project and implementation data from year one. These preliminary data are collected from surveys, interviews, observations, field reports, and standardized tests. Briefly, the data from assessments of youth in science from standardized test results showed slight district-wide gains at elementary school (+2% of students meeting standards) and middle school (+3% of students meeting standards) while high school standardized scores remained unchanged. Although the initial student data are encouraging, at this point in the project timeline the focus of this paper is on three of the four main structures of PD opportunities within the grant (i.e. graduate course work, conference attendance, and content immersions). The authors will discuss the details of these structures and identify potential and valuable next steps for research. The Omaha Public Schools (OPS) Science Office collaborates closely with community partners tofacilitate a private foundation grant that seeks to improve science education by focusing on in-service,science teachers’ professional learning in the context of professional development (PD) experiencesand targeted graduate coursework. The three goals of the K-12 Comprehensive Science Teachingand Learning Grant are to 1) increase student achievement in science, 2) increase teachereffectiveness, and to 3) align and enhance science curriculum. At the end of year one, 83 teacherparticipants have taken graduate courses, attended professional conferences, completed actionresearch projects, and/or have participated in content immersion workshops based on personalizedprofessional learning plans. All of the participating teachers complete an action research portfolio andare assisted by one of 11 science instructional coaches—master teachers who ensure that theteachers’ professional learning is translated into improved classroom practice.The science instructional coaches’ preparation included training from the Institute for Inquiry affiliatedwith San Francisco’s Exploratorium, Discipline-Based Educational Research and other graduatecourses through the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO), The Art of Instructional CoachingTraining and consulting from Elena Aguilar, and a series of Science Research Immersion Workshopsby Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, as well as the University of Wisconsin-Extensionaffiliated with Upham Woods Outdoor Learning Center. The OPS K-12 Science Supervisor is theprincipal investigator and the UNO STEM Community Chair and the UNO Science Community Chairare the co-PIs for the collaborative grant effort. The shared-leadership model in OPS also includestwo Elementary Supervisors and the Science Lead Teacher to ensure full alignment among districtgoals, participants’ plans for growth, and partners’ agendas. Additionally, a grant advisory teamincluding district-level leadership and grant officers participates in quarterly meetings to oversee theprogress. Education Northwest conducts the external grant evaluation.Included in this report is the structural context of the project and implementation data from year one.These preliminary data are collected from surveys, interviews, observations, field reports, andstandardized tests. Briefly, the data from assessments of youth in science from standardized testresults showed slight district-wide gains at elementary school (+2% of students meeting standards)and middle school (+3% of students meeting standards) while high school standardized scoresremained unchanged. Although the initial student data are encouraging, at this point in the projecttimeline the focus of this paper is on three of the four main structures of PD opportunities within thegrant (i.e. graduate course work, conference attendance, and content immersions). The authors willdiscuss the details of these structures and identify potential and valuable next steps for research

Influencer marketing on TikTok: how content credibility, perceived similarity, and authenticity impact consumer attitudes

Social media influencers gain a sizable following of captivated followers who are extremely valuable to marketers by continuously creating quality content on social media (Lou and Yuan, 2019). Influencers and brands work together to promote a brand's goods or services through influencer marketing, which is a strategy that brands utilise because it benefits influencers, consumers, and both parties (Mckinsey & Company, 2023). Influencer marketing has become a popular research topic in recent years, particularly in relation to consumer behaviour. The efficacy of the content is contingent upon various factors linked to the attributes of both the source and the content (Martínez-López et al., 2020). Although influencer marketing has been extensively examined in the literature which aims to reveal the influence of source and message credibility on product attitude, the impacts of perceived similarity, source admiration and psychological closeness with the influencer were neglected (Ye et al., 2021). Furthermore, the authenticity of social media influencers and number of followers could be further explored as possible underlying mechanism of the relationship between content characteristics and product attitude (Ye et al., 2021). This study aims to address three research questions: RQ1: What are the impacts of content characteristics (central cues) and perceived similarity (peripheral cues) on consumer product attitudes? RQ2: What is the impact of social media influencer type (macro- vs. micro-influencer) on consumer content perceptions and product attitudes?? RQ3: Does authenticity of influencer mediate the interrelationships between content characteristics and perceived similarity and product attitudes? In addressing these three research questions, this study contributes to the academic literature in three ways. First, it investigates how content characteristics and perceived similarity with the influencer affect consumer’s product attitudes. Second, it reveals the role of influencer authenticity on the interrelationships between content characteristics, perceived similarity and product attitudes. Third, it examines the moderating role of the number of followers on these relationships with an experimental design. The study employs a within-subject experimental design. A "within-subject" designed experiment involves exposing each participant to more than one of the treatments under test. Examples of such treatments include playing a game with two different parameter values, receiving treatment, and receiving no treatment, responding to questions more than once, or completing tasks while being stimulated by multiple external stimuli (Charness et al., 2012). The study utilizes an online questionnaire that contains measurement items for both micro and macro skincare brand influencers. Stimuli were TikTok videos and screenshots of influencer account pages that shows the number of followers. Explanatory factor analysis, reliability analysis and repeated-measure ANOVA and multiple regression analyses will be performed on data in SPSS software. Study results will provide significant insights for practitioners in terms of considering the content characteristics and perceived similarity of their endorsers and selecting the type of social media influencers they are using to promote their products

Variation in centre-specific survival in patients starting renal replacement therapy in England is explained by enhanced comorbidity information from hospitalization data

Background Unadjusted survival on renal replacement therapy (RRT) varies widely from centre to centre in England. Until now, missing data on case mix have made it impossible to determine whether this variation reflects genuine differences in the quality of care. Data linkage has the capacity to reduce missing data. Methods Modelling of survival using Cox proportional hazards of data returned to the UK Renal Registry on patients starting RRT for established renal failure in England. Data on ethnicity, socioeconomic status and comorbidity were obtained by linkage to the Hospital Episode Statistics database, using data from hospitalizations prior to starting RRT. Results Patients with missing data were reduced from 61 to 4%. The prevalence of comorbid conditions was remarkably similar across centres. When centre-specific survival was compared after adjustment solely for age, survival was below the 95% limit for 6 of 46 centres. The addition of variables into the multivariable model altered the number of centres that appeared to be ‘outliers’ with worse than expected survival as follows: ethnic origin four outliers, socioeconomic status eight outliers and year of the start of RRT four outliers. The addition of a combination of 16 comorbid conditions present at the start of RRT reduced the number of centres with worse than expected survival to one. Conclusions Linked data between a national registry and hospital admission dramatically reduced missing data, and allowed us to show that nearly all the variation between English renal centres in 3-year survival on RRT was explained by demographic factors and by comorbidity

Effect of Aging on A1C Levels in Individuals Without Diabetes: Evidence from the Framingham Offspring Study and the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2001–2004

OBJECTIVE—Although glycemic levels are known to rise with normal aging, the nondiabetic A1C range is not age specific. We examined whether A1C was associated with age in nondiabetic subjects and in subjects with normal glucose tolerance (NGT) in two population-based cohorts

Brief Review Renal Aging. Causes and consequences

Individuals age >65 years old are the fastest expanding population demographic throughout the developed world. Consequently, more aged patients than before are receiving diagnoses of impaired renal function and nephrosclerosis—age–associated histologic changes in the kidneys. Recent studies have shown that the aged kidney undergoes a range of structural changes and has altered transcriptomic, hemodynamic, and physiologic behavior at rest and in response to renal insults. These changes impair the ability of the kidney to withstand and recover from injury, contributing to the high susceptibility of the aged population to AKI and their increased propensity to develop subsequent progressive CKD. In this review, we examine these features of the aged kidney and explore the various validated and putative pathways contributing to the changes observed with aging in both experimental animal models and humans. We also discuss the potential for additional study to increase understanding of the aged kidney and lead to novel therapeutic strategies

The pathophysiology of fluid and electrolyte balance in the older adult surgical patient

Background & aims: Age-related physiological changes predispose even the healthy older adult to fluid and electrolyte abnormalities which can cause morbidity and mortality. The aim of this narrative review is to highlight key aspects of age-related pathophysiological changes that affect fluid and electrolyte balance in older adults and underpin their importance in the perioperative period. Methods: The Web of Science, MEDLINE, PubMed and Google Scholar databases were searched using key terms for relevant studies published in English on fluid balance in older adults during the 15 years preceding June 2013. Randomised controlled trials and large cohort studies were sought; other studieswere used when these were not available. The bibliographies of extracted papers were also searched for relevant articles. Results: Older adults are susceptible to dehydration and electrolyte abnormalities, with causes ranging from physical disability restricting access to fluid intake to iatrogenic causes including polypharmacy and unmonitored diuretic usage. Renal senescence, as well as physical and mental decline, increase this susceptibility. Older adults are also predisposed to water retention and related electrolyte abnormalities, exacerbated at times of physiological stress. Positive fluid balance has been shown to be an independent risk factor for morbidity and mortality in critically ill patients with acute kidney injury. Conclusions: Age-related pathophysiological changes in the handling of fluid and electrolytes make older adults undergoing surgery a high-risk group and an understanding of these changes will enable better management of fluid and electrolyte therapy in the older adult