The Iowa Homemaker vol.40, no.1

As Others See Us, Tom Emmerson, Beth Lambeth and Sue Guernsey, page 6 China Cues for Smart Shoppers, Doris Post, page 8 Reflections of You, Sylvia Noid, page 9 Campus Tours, Inc., Patty Anderson, page 10 Child Development Experts Study “Multiple Mother” Effects, Carol Calhoon, page 11 Behind the TV Camera, Carolynn DeLay, page 12 Gray Meals, One Subject of Food Technology, Mary Ellen Muckenhirn, page 14 Coed Chooses Spring Fashion’s Fancy, Laveda Jansonius, page 17 Expand Your World, Marty Keeney, page 18 RAIN, Diane Houser, page 21 What’s Going On?, Carol Shellenbarger, page 2

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

Effects of a peer-mediated phonological skill and reading comprehension program on reading skill acquisition for middle school students with reading disabilities

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a peer-mediated instructional approach on the teaching of phonological skills and reading comprehension for middle school (sixth- to eighth-grade) students with reading disabilities. All students (n = 38) were identified as having learning disabilities and reading at the third-grade level or below. One group was taught using a peer-mediated phonological skill program, Linguistics Skills Training (LST), and a peer-mediated reading comprehension program, Peer Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS). The contrast group was taught in the more traditional whole-class format using a widely implemented remedial reading program. The results showed significant differences between conditions, with students receiving the LST/PALS instruction outperforming the contrast group on Letter-Word Identification, Word Attack, and Passage Comprehension using the Woodcock-Johnson Test of Achievement-III. Furthermore, large effect sizes for growth were found on Letter-Word Identification, Word Attack, and Passage Comprehension for the LST/PALS treatment group. No differences were found between conditions for reading fluency. Findings are discussed in regard to instruction delivery format (peer tutoring vs. whole class) with respect to best practices for middle school students with reading disabilities

Curriculum-Based Measurement for Mathematics at the High School Level What We Do Not Know . . . What We Need to Know

The purpose of this article is to explore the research and developmental needs for curriculum-based measurement (CBM) at the secondary level (9th through 12th grades) for mathematics. Much has been accomplished empirically on the validity, reliability, and utility of CBM as an assessment measure in mathematics at the elementary level. Encouragingly, a few CBM mathematics studies are beginning to emerge at the early (preschool through 1st grades) and middle school levels (6th through 8th grades); however, only one study exists on the use of CBM as an assessment tool for secondary-level mathematics courses. First, the author discusses the current mathematics predicament of secondary students with and without disabilities and their teachers. She then, within the different educational settings (general education, inclusion, resource, self-contained) available at the secondary level, discusses the types of CBM research (technical adequacy, instructional utility) needed

The Effects of Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies and Curriculum-Based Measurement on the Mathematics Performance of Secondary Students with Disabilities

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of peer-assisted learning strategies (PALS) and curriculum-based measurement (CBM) on the mathematics performance of secondary students with disabilities. Ten classes with 92 students in Grades 9 through 12 participated. All students were significantly below grade level and received mathematics instruction in self-contained resource rooms. Classrooms were randomly assigned to PALS/CBM or the classroom mathematics program (control). PALS/CBM was implemented twice weekly and CBM was conducted weekly for 15 weeks. PALS/CBM students improved their computation math skills significantly more than control students, but no significant difference was found on concepts/application math skills. On questionnaires, teachers and students indicated that they (a) liked using PALS, (b) felt PALS was helpful in increasing mathematics skills, (c) thought CBM graphs increased motivation to work hard in math, and (d) would like to participate in PALS/CBM again. Results are discussed with respect to research and practice

Lexical Analysis of Words on Commonly Used Standardized Spelling Assessments

The purpose of this study was to examine the morphological characteristics (i.e., number of morphemes in each word, degree of transparency between a derived morpheme and its root word) and frequency data (i.e., the standard frequency index; SFI) of six commonly used standardized spelling assessments and their alternate forms (when available). Results indicate high variability among the assessments and their alternate forms on the use of multimorphemic transparent and opaque words. Variability based on the SFI index between tests and their alternate forms was relatively low. Findings are discussed in regard to providing researchers and practitioners with a deeper understanding diagnostically of the morphological and frequency requirements and complexities of these standardized spelling assessments

The Erosion of FAPE for Students with LD

How schoolsfulfill Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) requirements has evolved. Decades of general and special education reforms have led to dramatic increases in expectations for students in special education to be included in the general education classroom and curriculum and to achieve to the same high standards as their general education peers. Students with learning disabilities (LD) in particular are impacted by these reforms. The notion of their individually‐appropriate education has been slowly eroded as limitations in special education practices and the goals of education reform have been responded to. As special education intentions and practices advance, stakeholders have a responsibility to protect the FAPE of students with LD, to ensure meeting these students’ individualized learning needs

Making FAPE Appropriate Now for Students with Learning Disabilities

Since its inception, a premise of special education has been to provide students with disabilities with an appropriate education. The interpretation of appropriate has evolved across eras of special education. For students with learning disabilities, emphases on inclusion and high‐stakes achievement have eroded the intention of FAPE. It is time for a re‐envisioning of FAPE. A new vision should not presume the same outcomes for all. Restoring goals and individualized curriculum informed by the general education curriculum instead of exclusively focused “in the general education curriculum” is the way forward

Response to intervention: Treatment validity and implementation challenges in the primary and middle grades

The primary purpose of this chapter is to describe intensive multicomponent reading interventions for use in Response to Intervention (RTI) implementation within elementary and middle schools. In early elementary grades, RTI has a focus on prevention through effective classroom instruction and increasingly powerful early interventions to meet student needs. By contrast, in middle school, the focus of RTI shifts to remediation and the provision of interventions with the power to help more students to be able to read on grade level. First, we provide an overview of RTI and explain the notion of treatment validity within RTI implementation. Next, we describe a kindergarten study that illustrates how the intensity of delivery may impact expected outcomes at Tier 2 and then summarize research on extensive interventions for the primary grades. Then we summarize remedial interventions for older students and examine the percent of older students whose reading could be normalized by focusing on a newly developed intensive middle school remedial intervention that incorporates code- and meaning-focused instruction in a peer-mediated format. Finally, we will discuss RTI challenges and implementation issues