Augmentative and alternative communication in Canadian children with developmental disabilities

This thesis presents a two-part investigation of AAC use within a sample of children who have Developmental Disabilities (DD) with or without autism. Study 1 was derived from an online survey of 148 parents of children with DD. Within this sample, the types of AAC systems most commonly used and the levels of communication achieved are described. These variables were compared in children with autism to children with DD only. Factors affecting AAC use were examined (i.e., age, adaptive skills, and maladaptive behaviour). Study 2 involves an in-depth telephone interview with 12 parents of children who use an AAC system. Interview questions focused on four main areas; AAC use in general (e.g., communication level, functional use, participation), AAC service use/barriers (e.g., initial training, follow-up support, wait-lists, eligibility, parent satisfaction), experience across time (e.g., transitions, maintenance), and considerations of AAC use specific to children with autism (e.g., generalization, self-stimulatory use)

Scaffolding: A Promising Approach to Fostering Critical Thinking

Many undergraduate students struggle when asked to engage in critical thinking. One approach we have found useful in fostering critical thinking is scaffolding, a process that involves the use of prompts, supports, and modeling to build a removable structure from which students can learn complex thinking skills. Through the development of these critical thinking skills, students are better able to analyze and formulate recommendations for real world applications. This paper discusses how to incorporate a critical thinking scaffold to guide the design and facilitation of a case-based learningdiscussed

A Systematic Review of the Relationships Among Psychosocial Factors and Coping in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus contributes to poor health outcomes including mortality, yet there is a gap in the literature when seeking to understand the influence of psychosocial factors on coping in this population. The paper presents a systematic review of quantitative studies that examined relationships among psychosocial determinants and coping in adults with type 2 diabetes. This review is the second layer of knowledge discovery for the concept, “Taking on a life-altering change is a rhythmical journey of experiencing ups and downs on the way to acceptance.” The life-altering change was determined to be a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes, the journey is the ups and downs of coping with the diagnosis as people work toward acceptance of type 2 diabetes. The review includes a synthesis of findings from 22 quantitative studies of psychosocial factors and coping in adults with type 2 diabetes. Anxiety, depression, stress, and diabetes distress were identified as key influential psychosocial factors. Increased social support was inversely related to emotional distress and coping styles were related to social well-being, psychological health, and physical health outcomes. The positive coping style of problem-focused coping was linked to improved psychological and physical health. Emotional responses to diagnosis were related to depression and anxiety. Negative coping styles of resignation, protest, or isolation were higher in women and linked to poorer quality of life, while avoidance was linked to increased diabetes-related distress and depressive symptoms

Enhancing faculty performance through coaching: Targeted, individualized support

Coaching in higher education is a relatively new field; although, it has been taking place in educational institutions for some time, even if it was not labeled as such. This paper describes the faculty development filosophies of a US-based higher education institution with a strong culture of supporting faculty and promoting social change. A coaching model was implemented as a means for professional development. It was designed to be facilitated through a peer relationship and it offers problem-focused, contextualized opportunities for faculty to collaborate, thus making the experience and outcome more meaningful. The coaching model is individualized, confidential, non-evaluative, and incorporates three pathways to support the professional development needs of faculty: self-assigned, a request from college leadership as a means to support faculty in an identified area of need, or the New Faculty Orientation (NFO) instructor may recommend a faculty member for coaching as a way to further engage in topics not discussed in-depth in NFO.DOI: 10.18870/hlrc.v4i4.22

A Second Chance: Improving Chicago's GED Performance

An analysis of Chicago's low GED pass rate and suggestions for improvement

Validation of the Vaccination Confidence Scale: A Brief Measure to Identify Parents at Risk for Refusing Adolescent Vaccines

Objective To validate a brief measure of vaccination confidence using a large, nationally representative sample of parents. Methods We analyzed weighted data from 9018 parents who completed the 2010 National Immunization Survey–Teen, an annual, population-based telephone survey. Parents reported on the immunization history of a 13- to 17-year-old child in their households for vaccines including tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis (Tdap), meningococcal, and human papillomavirus vaccines. For each vaccine, separate logistic regression models assessed associations between parents\u27 mean scores on the 8-item Vaccination Confidence Scale and vaccine refusal, vaccine delay, and vaccination status. We repeated analyses for the scale\u27s 4-item short form. Results One quarter of parents (24%) reported refusal of any vaccine, with refusal of specific vaccines ranging from 21% for human papillomavirus to 2% for Tdap. Using the full 8-item scale, vaccination confidence was negatively associated with measures of vaccine refusal and positively associated with measures of vaccination status. For example, refusal of any vaccine was more common among parents whose scale scores were medium (odds ratio, 2.08; 95% confidence interval, 1.75–2.47) or low (odds ratio, 4.61; 95% confidence interval, 3.51–6.05) versus high. For the 4-item short form, scores were also consistently associated with vaccine refusal and vaccination status. Vaccination confidence was inconsistently associated with vaccine delay. Conclusions The Vaccination Confidence Scale shows promise as a tool for identifying parents at risk for refusing adolescent vaccines. The scale\u27s short form appears to offer comparable performance

Peer Coaching as Professional Development for Remote, Online Faculty

To date, much of the coaching literature focuses on work with elementary teachers in the area of literacy (for example, Stover, Kissel, Haag, & Schoniker, 2011). Very little research regarding faculty coaching at the university level has been conducted. Anecdotal evidence suggests that coaching is beneficial to higher education faculty and that those who engage in coaching are more confident in their teaching (McDowell, Bedford & DiTommaso Downs, 2014). . However, no empirical evidence exists to support this, nor is there data to indicate the extent to which pedagogical straggles learned in coaching are transferred to the classroom.https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/symposium2018/1010/thumbnail.jp

Human Trafficking by the Numbers: The Initial Benchmark of Prevalence and Economic Impact for Texas

Prevalence HighlightsCurrently, there are approximately 79,000 minor and youth victims of sex trafficking in Texas.Currently, there are approximately 234,000 workers who are victims of labor trafficking in Texas.Currently, there arean estimated 313,000 victims of human trafficking in Texas.Cost HighlightsMinor and youth sex trafficking costs the state of Texas approximately $6.6 billion. Traffickers exploit approximately$600 million from victims of labor trafficking in Texas.BackgroundThough human trafficking is widespread in geographically large states with large urban centers like Texas, the true scope of this hidden crime is largely unconfirmed as data on human trafficking are difficult to ascertain. Existing data gathered in anti-trafficking efforts focus almost exclusively on identified victims, shedding light on only a fraction of the problem. The first phase of the Statewide Human Trafficking Mapping Project of Texas focused on providing empiricallygrounded data as a benchmark about the extent of human trafficking across the state. The following three primary research questions guided our data collection efforts, which included queries of existing databases, interviews, focus groups, and web-based surveys.1.What is the prevalence of human trafficking in Texas?2.What is the economic impact of human trafficking in Texas?3.What is our understanding of human trafficking in Texas?MethodsThe findings in this report were derived using a multi-methods approach to quantify the prevalence and economic impact of human trafficking in Texas. Higher-than-average risk industry and community segments were chosen for sex and labor markets. We defined community segments asgroups of people considered to be at higher-than-average risk of trafficking because of risk indicators found in trafficking cases (e.g. homelessness). More specifically, rather than attempting to establish prevalence of trafficking among the 27.4 million people living in Texas, for the purposes of demonstrating our methodology, establishing some benchmarks on human trafficking prevalence and economic impact estimates, and providing a concrete example of our planned activities moving forward, victimization rates were applied to a select few community segments that are at higher-than-average risk of trafficking.The methodology has addressed the critical industry and community segments to accurately estimate prevalencewhile reducing overlap between the chosen segments

Resilience of Coral-Associated Bacterial Communities Exposed to Fish Farm Effluent

10.1371/journal.pone.0007319PLoS ONE410