Outsider

An outsider is someone or something that does not belong to a particular group or that is not accepted by or isolated from society. The inspiration behind this piece came from the idea of creating a shell -- a second skin -- for a person to inhabit. By almost completely enveloping its inhabitant, this piece transcends its primary function as a coat and becomes an impermanent structural barrier. By clothing our bodies we create a clear distinction between inside and outside, protecting ourselves from the elements of nature that might come to harm us. This layer of protection thus provides the wearer with a sense of security and comfort. The oversized drape of the coat shrouds any indication of the wearer\u27s body, obscuring their identity. In consequence, the wearer truly becomes an outsider as the individual is unable to be identified, and thus avoids any association with a particular group

Wisteria

This evening gown, which I titled Wisteria, was inspired by the climbing Wisteria shrub with fragrant purple flowers. Wisteria has beautiful delicate clusters of flowers, in an elegant deep purple, a color associated with royalty through the ages

The effects of visual representations on teacher training of phonological awareness principles

Teachers are now being held to high accountability standards in reading instruction, yet studies show that teachers lack adequate knowledge in reading and phonological awareness principles (Moats, 1994, 2009; Spencer, Schuele, Guillot, & Lee, 2008). The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of visual representations of letter/sound production (i.e., Phonic Faces, Norris, 2001) on improving teacher knowledge of phonological awareness principles, and to determine if there is a concomitant improvement in phonological awareness and reading acquisition for children in those classrooms. Seventeen kindergarten teachers from a Mississippi school were pretested on phonological awareness principles, then divided into three groups: Phonic Faces Training (PFT), with visual strategies; Traditional Training (TT), with no visual strategies; and a No Training (NT) control group. The PFT and TT groups participated in one half-day training in phonological awareness principles. All groups were posttested immediately after training, and again 3 months later at the end of the school year. Gains in phonological awareness knowledge from pretest to posttest and delayed posttest were analyzed. School records of data from the January and April administrations of subtests from the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (Good & Kaminski, 2002) were compared for relative student gains. The results of this study revealed that all three groups made gains from pretest to posttest, and there were no significant differences between groups who were trained and the NT control group. In student performance, there was a significant difference in gain in Nonsense Word Fluency favoring the PFT group over the TT group and NT. The NT group did not differ from either of the inservice groups on gains in Nonsense Word Fluency. The NT teachers’ students gained the most in Letter Naming Fluency

Food for Thought: A Novel Media Literacy Intervention on Food Advertising Targeting Young Children and their Parents

The prevalence of obese children has tripled during the past three decades. While lack of physical activity and unhealthy eating have been the primary focus of public health efforts, media has a significant influence on food choices and food consumption. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine if a media literacy intervention would increase knowledge and decrease the persuasive nature of unhealthy food advertisements. Parents (n=12) and their children (n=15) were recruited from two Boys and Girls clubs. They participated in a 2-hour educational, intervention workshop. The parents completed a pretest and a posttest assessing changes in knowledge and attitudes about food advertisements. Volunteers from the workshop signed up to participate in focus groups. There were two focus groups with parents (n=5) and two focus groups with children (n=6). According to quantitative results, there were positive changes in parents’ media literacy knowledge after the workshop. Focus group data highlighted that children learned about the purpose of advertisements and how to be more critical of unhealthy food advertisements. In addition, both parents and children revealed positive changes regarding their intentions and behaviors in eating healthy. Media literacy interventions are a promising strategy for educating parents and young children about food advertisements which can help address childhood obesity

Gender, Race, and Precarity: Theorizing the Parallels Between Early Childhood Educators and Sessional Faculty in Ontario

This paper critically examines the parallels of devaluation encountered by early childhood educators and sessional faculty members in Ontario as reflective praxis. The three authors’ experiences are diverse and include a tenured professor and two sessional faculty members, both of whom have worked in the field of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). The narratives of the authors inform the concerning trend of precarity and devaluation embedded within two polarizing spectrums of the Ontario educational landscape: Post-Secondary Education (PSE) and ECEC. Although these aforementioned areas of education rarely intersect, the authors centre them on the frontline of the neoliberal assault on education transpiring in Ontario today. The three authors self-identify as female settlers; two have doctoral degrees; one has an MA and is an early childhood educator (ECE). One author self-identifies as a racialized and white-coded cis-gendered woman, and two self-identify as white, cis-gendered women. All of the authors have worked in Ontario’s post-secondary landscape, one as sessional faculty member and then a tenured professor, and two as sessional faculty members. The paper will problematize the neoliberal assault on higher education and ECEC through a Feminist Political Economy (FPE) conceptual framework in order to draw on the multifaceted ways feminized discourses devalue the work of ECEs and perpetuate the overrepresentation of women, particularly racialized women in precarious faculty positions.Cet article examine de manière critique les parallèles de dévalorisation subie par les éducateurs de la petite enfance et les membres du corps enseignant à temps partiel en Ontario en tant que praxis réflexive. Les expériences des trois auteures sont diverses, car il s’agit d’une professeure titulaire et de deux membres du corps enseignant à temps partiel, qui ont toutes deux travaillé dans le domaine de la protection et de l’éducation de la petite enfance (PEPE). Les récits des auteures illustrent la tendance inquiétante vers la précarité et la dévalorisation enchâssées au sein de deux spectres polarisants du paysage éducatif en Ontario : l’éducation postsecondaire (EPS) et la protection et l’éducation de la petite enfance (PEPE). Bien que les domaines de l’éducation susmentionnés ne se recoupent que rarement, les auteures les placent aux premières lignes de l’assaut néolibéral sur l’éducation qui surgit aujourd’hui en Ontario. Les trois auteures s’identifient comme des femmes, deux d’entre elles sont titulaires d’un doctorat, la troisième est titulaire d’une maîtrise et est éducatrice de la petite enfance (EPE). Une auteure s’identifie comme femme cisgenre, racialisée et perçue comme étant de race blanche, et deux auteures s’identifient comme des femmes blanches cisgenres. Toutes les auteures ont travaillé dans le contexte postsecondaire en Ontario, l’une en tant que chargée de cours à temps partiel, puis professeure titulaire, et deux en tant que chargées de cours à temps partiel. L’article problématise l’assaut néolibéral sur l’enseignement supérieur et la PEPE par le biais d’un cadre conceptuel d’économie politique féministe (EPF) afin de montrer les multiples façons dont les discours féminisés dévalorisent le travail des EPE et perpétuent la surreprésentation des femmes, en particulier des femmes racialisées au sein des postes précaires du corps professoral

Development and Evaluation of a Reflective Log Assignment Designed to Enhance Postgraduate Psychology Students’ Learning Experience

This paper describes the development and evaluation of a reflective log assignment introduced on a taught postgraduate psychology programme. Whether the reflective logs were an effective tool to enhance thinking and learning across a module was examined and how valuable students found the logs was explored. Logs of 13 students were examined using content analysis to establish the extent of reflective writing. Students demonstrated high levels of reflection across the course. Eight students participated in focus groups which explored their experiences of completing logs, and focus group transcripts were analysed thematically. Participants generally viewed the log positively, using it to aid retention, voice opinions and further deep thinking. Preference for the log to count towards course credits was voiced. The logs therefore proved to be effective learning aids and were acceptable to, and valued by, postgraduate psychology students. Further consideration as to how logs are assessed is required

Predicting Invasion Rates for Phragmites australis

In wetlands of Utah and southern Idaho as well as estuaries of the east coast, the ten-foot tall invasive grass Phragmites australis can be found near waterways, where it outcompetes native plants and degrades wildlife habitat. Phragmites australis is an obligate out-crossing plant that can spread sexually through seed disper- sal, or asexually via stolons and rhi- zomes (Kettenring and Mock 2012). Small patches are usually a single genetic individual, spreading vegetatively (and slowly) via runners; when patches become genetically diverse viable seeds are produced and invasion rates can be increase by an order of magnitude (Kettenring et al. 2011

Using Interviewing in Public Health Research: Experiences of Novice Researchers

In this article, we provide the experiences of three novice public health researchers conducting studies with several vulnerable populations: women, people with disabilities, and children. We describe all phases of our interview studies including developing data collection guides, planning the interview in an appropriate setting, conducting the interviews, and bringing the interview to a close. Specific components of the interviews that are discussed include establishing rapport and minimizing the power imbalance inherent between interviewer and interviewee, including the added power imbalance that vulnerable populations experience. Issues of maintaining quality and rigor, as well as ethical considerations for working with our specific populations are also discussed