Motivation towards learning perceived in Socratic seminar versus traditional lecture

As discussed in past literature, high school students often lack motivation towards learning (Crow, 2007; Lumsden, 1995). This lack of motivation interferes with student learning (Lumsden,1995; Vansteenkiste, Simons, Lens, Soenens, & Matos, 2005). At the middle school and collegiate level, Socratic Seminar is seen to provide motivation towards learning in students (Copeland, 2005; Mee, 2000; Strong, 1996); however, there is a need for research on student motivation as a result of Socratic Seminar at the high school level. The purpose of this study is to identify the extent to which, if any, differences exist in student motivation towards learning among students receiving English instruction via Socratic Seminar versus traditional lecture at the high school level. It was hypothesized that Socratic Seminar provides a better opportunity for students to experience the IV pillars of motivation as described by John Keller (1987a)--attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction--than traditional lecture does. A quantitative correlational design was implemented with a cross-sectional data collection administered post-implementation of traditional lecture 3 times and post-implementation of Socratic Seminar 3 times over an 8-week period with 139 11th grade English students at Lutheran High School of Orange County. The responses were viewed as a group through the application of chi-squares. Next, chi-squares were applied to analyze the group\u27s results for each question from the modified CIS. Then, the results were analyzed via Cramer\u27s V within the individual constructs of motivation as described by the CIS, which include: attention, relevance, confidence and satisfaction. The results displayed Socratic Seminar as providing a more motivating experience towards learning in certain areas of motivation while lecture was seen to be more motivating for other areas of motivation. It was originally believed the application of Socratic Seminar would provide higher student motivation toward learning. From these results, it was learned that teachers must seek a balanced approach in their teaching by applying both Socratic Seminar and lecture. In a broader sense, the lesson learned is that different teaching strategies motivate students in different ways and a wide range of teaching strategies ought to be applied

Lifelong Learning in the County: A Context of Nature, Community, and Simplicity

The purpose of this study was to understand more about the impact of living in a rural area on personal learning with older adults. This is important to consider because of the higher concentration of older adults in rural areas. This qualitative research was based on twenty interviews with older adults. All of the participants lived in the same rural county in south Georgia (USA). One of the results from this research was the positive description of living in a rural area. Despite literature that often describes rural areas in a negative light; all of the participants spoke about the positive aspect of living in a rural area. These positive characteristics were discussed as simplicity, quiet, community, and nature. Negative aspects of rural life were mentioned as lack of resources and fewer people. Ten participants were purposefully chosen who were identified as active older adults who continue to learn. Two interviews with each person were conducted and the interviews were transcribed verbatim. The findings were based on recurring themes as a result of comparative analysis throughout the process. Public schools can contribute to the continued education of older adults by holding various classes as well as incorporating volunteerism

The Influence of Relationship Stability Patterns in Emerging Adulthood on Chronic Illness and Health Behaviors

Objective Relationship status e g married single is linked to mental and physical health outcomes However beyond this static binary measure of relationship stability it is not known how different patterns of moving in and out of these static statuses effect outcomes Therefore using a recent nationally representative sample of emerging adults the present longitudinal study examined patterns of relationship stability among young people between the ages of 17 and 27 and their links with mental and physical health outcomes Method Using mixed-method participants romantic relationship status was coded across five waves into types of relationship stability patterns Then using quantitative methods we determined if relationship stability pattersn differed on self-reported measures of mental health i e psychological distress physical health e g chronic illness self-reported health and health behaviors e g sleep binge drinking smoking using appropriate regression models i e linear Poisson logistic Results Participants N 694 were five relationship stability patterns were determined Stable Single 42 6 Stable Committed 2 5 Moving into Commitment 34 2 Moving Out of Commitment 3 9 and In and Out of Commitment 16 9 Linear regression analyses revealed that these relationship stability patterns differed on health outcomes including mental health self-reported physical health and problematic health behaviors such as alcohol use Conclusions Emerging adults in the Moving Out of Commitment group seemed to fair the worst compared to those in the Stable Single group across various mental and physical health problems while those in the Moving In And Out of Commitment group only fared worse on problematic health behavior

Measurements at low energies of the polarization-transfer coefficient Kyy' for the reaction 3H(p,n)3He at 0 degrees

Measurements of the transverse polarization coefficient Kyy' for the reaction 3H(p,n)3He are reported for outgoing neutron energies of 1.94, 5.21, and 5.81 MeV. This reaction is important both as a source of polarized neutrons for nuclear physics experiments, and as a test of theoretical descriptions of the nuclear four-body system. Comparison is made to previous measurements, confirming the 3H(p,n)3He reaction can be used as a polarized neutron source with the polarization known to an accuracy of approximately 5%. Comparison to R-matrix theory suggests that the sign of the 3F3 phase-shift parameter is incorrect. Changing the sign of this parameter dramatically improves the agreement between theory and experiment.Comment: 12 pages, RevTeX, 5 eps figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Tourists\u27 perceptions of capital cities: The case study of Zagreb, Croatia

Tourism is an expanding industry throughout the world. Croatia has an extended history with tourism. Most tourists come to Croatia in order to visit the coastline with its many islands, blue sea, and ancient towns. The coastline of Croatia is a rare and beautiful destination. There are old towns, clear water, and a stunning contrast of sea and mountains. In addition, a multitude of islands, the native Mediterranean food, and clean sea help to sustain an attraction for travelers. Adding to this, the towns of Dubrovnik, Split, and Hvar are often in the headlines of popular tourist magazines. Yet, the often bypassed capital of Croatia, Zagreb, can be easily visited on the way to the coast. Therefore, it is important for the city of Zagreb to regularly gain information about tourists who visit Zagreb. Also, there is a need for the tourism industry of Croatia to include more than the Adriatic coast, especially the hinterlands as well as the capital city Zagreb. The purpose of this research is to understand English speaking tourist\u27s specific recommendations for Zagreb, relying on qualitative research. Three researchers had 89 interviews with a total of 129 participants. This general qualitative research incorporated interviews as the main source of information. After analyzing the data, the findings indicate Zagreb as friendly, easy to get around, and as an old, quaint town with enjoyable activities. The main suggestion for the city of Zagreb was to find ways to improve the physical structure and provide more information for tourists

A Usability Study of a Website for Digitized Oral Histories

This study tested the usability of the Advanced Search, Browse Theme by Collection, and Excerpt View pages of the Oral Histories of the American South website. These pages allow users to access audio and transcripts for over 500 oral histories from the Southern Oral History Program from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries. The study found that participants were satisfied with the search and browse options available via the site. The results also suggest a few minor changes to the layout of the pages to improve usability and satisfaction

Evaluation of an ATP Assay to Quantify Bacterial Attachment to Surfaces in Reduced Gravity

Aim: To develop an assay to quantify the biomass of attached cells and biofilm formed on wetted surfaces in variable-gravity environments. Methods and Results: Liquid cultures of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were exposed to 30-35 brief cycles of hypergravity (< 2-g) followed by free fall (i.e., reduced gravity) equivalent to either lunar-g (i.e., 0.17 normal Earth gravity) or micro-g (i.e., < 0.001 normal Earth gravity) in an aircraft flying a series of parabolas. Over the course of two days of parabolic flight testing, 504 polymer or metal coupons were exposed to a stationary-phase population of P. aeruginosa strain ERC1 at a concentration of 1.0 x 10(exp 5) cells per milliliter. After the final parabola on each flight test day, half of the material coupon samples were treated with either 400 micro-g/L ionic silver fluoride (microgravity-exposed cultures) or 1% formalin (lunar-gravity-exposed cultures). The remaining sample coupons from each flight test day were not treated with a fixative. All samples were returned to the laboratory for analysis within 2 hours of landing, and all biochemical assays were completed within 8 hours of exposure to variable gravity. The intracellular ATP luminescent assay accurately reflected cell physiology compared to both cultivation-based and direct-count microscopy analyses. Cells exposed to variable gravity had more than twice as much intracellular ATP as control cells exposed only to normal Earth gravity

Lunar Soil Erosion Physics for Landing Rockets on the Moon

To develop a lunar outpost, we must understand the blowing of soil during launch and landing of the new Altair Lander. For example, the Apollo 12 Lunar Module landed approximately 165 meters from the deactivated Surveyor Ill spacecraft, scouring its surfaces and creating numerous tiny pits. Based on simulations and video analysis from the Apollo missions, blowing lunar soil particles have velocities up to 2000 m/s at low ejection angles relative to the horizon, reach an apogee higher than the orbiting Command and Service Module, and travel nearly the circumference of the Moon [1-3]. The low ejection angle and high velocity are concerns for the lunar outpost

The Synergistic Contribution of Lactobacillus and Dietary Phytophenols in Host Health

Phytophenols are found ubiquitously among all plants. They are important in diets rich in fruits and vegetables because these compounds provide health benefits to the host, ultimately decreasing the incidence of chronic diseases. These compounds act as natural antioxidants and provide anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibiotic, and antineoplastic properties. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced under normal physiological functions, and low/moderate levels are required for cellular turnover and signaling. However, when ROS levels become too high, oxidative stress can occur. Phytophenols quench ROS and ultimately avoid the damaging effects ROS elicit on the cell. The highest source of bioavailable phytophenols comes from our diet as a component usually esterified in plant fiber. For phytophenols to be absorbed by the body, they must be released by esterases, or other related enzymes. The highest amount of esterase activity comes from the gastrointestinal (GI) microbiota; therefore, the host requires the activity of mutualistic bacteria in the GI tract to release absorbable phytophenols. For this reason, mutualistic bacteria have been investigated for beneficial properties in the host. Our laboratory has begun studying the interaction of Lactobacillus johnsonii N6.2 with the host since it was found to be negatively correlated with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Analyses of this strain have revealed two important characteristics: (1) It has the ability to release phytophenols from dietary fiber through the secretion of two strong cinnamoyl esterases and (2) L. johnsonii also has the ability to generate significant amounts of H2O2, controlling the activity of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), an immunomodulatory enzyme