Impact Comparison of Face-to-Face and Asynchronous Learning Environments on Student Performance

The purpose of this action research project was to explore the impact of the Face-to-Face and Asynchronous learning environments on student performance. The recent Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 pushed primary and secondary schools nationwide to offer an online learning environment as an option in public education. Accordingly, grand debate arose about whether students’ performance remained the same regardless of learning environment. A mixed-method study was used to determine significant difference in student performance, and analysis depicted learning environment outcomes by race as well. Data analysis revealed no significant difference in student performance between the Face-to-Face and Asynchronous learning environments overall. However, when examining data by student background, it was found that students of some predetermined race groups demonstrated higher performance in one learning environment over the other. The research findings from this study may prove beneficial in informing individual educators as they improve their own practices in diversifying curriculum to meet student needs. The outcomes may also provide information for stakeholders of urban and/or diverse school districts to consider as they make program decisions and determine solutions to current faults and necessities in academics

Ethnobotanical Study in Casma, Peru: The Important Knowledge of Ethnobotanicals from Local People

I began to investigate how local people use medicinal plants in Peru in the summer of 2007. It soon became apparent that many of the citizens of the small coastal town of Casma have an extensive knowledge of how to identify, prepare, and use these plants. During the summer of 2008, I did extensive research on the subject; however, focused more on the local knowledge of medicinal plants. To put my work in context, I researched ethnobotany more generally and became more aware of the worldwide implications, local background traditions and life, and local knowledge that impact the use and utilization of medicinal plants in my study. Local knowledge is only important in a global perspective

The Prisoner as Object: Rhetorical Agency and the Literacy of Prison Tattooing

Prison is an environment by which man is no longer a man. In an institution designed to limit the agency of incarcerated individuals, a literacy event has unfolded through the rhetorical practice of prison tattooing that allows individuals to re/gain their agency. Tattoos allow for the incarcerated, who are seen as state property, to break down the dehumanizing assemblage that has been created. The body, now an object, becomes a site for rhetorical communication where an emergent agency develops within the relationship of all intra-acting factors. I analyze and build upon ambient rhetoric, visual rhetoric, Kairos, and counternarratives to understand the humanizing literacy event that has unfolded, interviewing three formerly incarcerated men to gain an insider understanding of a rhetorical tool used by an exclusive group of individuals

BE Well: Biss Enterprises Wellness and Fitness Program

BE Well is a Wellness and Fitness program designed to be implemented in a fictitious company for the Administrative Communication course at Stephen F. Austin State University. A team of three employees from the organization, Biss Enterprises, was asked to develop the program by the CEO of the company. The team researched and explored different options to create a wellness and fitness program suitable for all the employees in the company

Venezuelan Forced Migration to Peru During Sociopolitical Crisis: an Analysis of Perceived Social Support and Emotion Regulation Strategies

While many studies have examined the impact of forced migration on Venezuelan migrants in Latin America, to date scholars have not examined the effect of certain coping mechanisms, namely social support and emotion regulation. Using data from 386 Venezuelan migrants living in Peru (M = 20.22 years, SD = 1.33, 46.4% women), we investigated whether perceived social support from three different sources (family, friends, and significant other) correlated with emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and suppression) while controlling for the type of cohabitation and time of residence. The results (1) confirmed the originally proposed internal structure of the Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale and Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, showing reliability and validity even in a sample of migrants. Findings demonstrated that (2) perceived social support from family positively predicted cognitive reappraisal strategy when including friends and significant other as covariates; (3) Venezuelans who have resided longer in Peru compared to more recent migrants used cognitive reappraisal strategy at a higher rate despite perceiving low family social support; (4) Venezuelans who resided in Peru for a longer period of time reported higher suppression strategy use when having low significant other support; and (5) there were gender differences regarding cognitive reappraisal as a dependent variable. More specifically, in men, family was a better predictor than friend or significant other support, while among women, family and significant other had the biggest impact. These results demonstrate the importance of social support elements and time of residence on the healthy management of emotions under difficult circumstances, such as forced migration

Domesticated dogs’ (Canis familiaris) use of the solidity principle

Shannon M. A. Kundey, Chelsea Taglang, Ayelet Baruch, and Rebecca German, Department of Psychology, Hood College; Andres De Los Reyes, Comprehensive Assessment and Intervention Program, Department of Psychology, University of Maryland at College Park. We would like to thank Jessica Arbuthnot, Rebecca Allen, Ariel Coshun, Erica Royer, Sherry McClurkin, Sabrina Molina, and Robin Reutten for their assistance in data collection and participant recruitment for this study.Organisms must often make predictions about the trajectories of moving objects. However, often these objects become hidden. To later locate such objects, the organism must maintain a representation of the object in memory and generate an expectation about where it will later appear. We explored adult dogs’ knowledge and use of the solidity principle (that one solid object cannot pass through another solid object) by evaluating search behavior. Subjects watched as a treat rolled down an inclined tube into a box. The box either did or did not contain a solid wall dividing it in half. To find the treat, subjects had to modify their search behavior based on the presence or absence of the wall, which either did or did not block the treat’s trajectory. Dogs correctly searched the near location when the barrier was present and the far location when the barrier was absent. They displayed this behavior from the first trial, as well as performed correctly when trial types were intermingled. These results suggest that dogs direct their searches in accordance with the solidity principle

Designing pit emptying technologies: combining lessons from the field with systems thinking

The ideal pit emptying machine has been envisioned to be safe, hygienic, and economical, while being mobile and lightweight, allowing access to pits located away from main roads. The machine should be robust, should be amenable to easy operation by a few personnel, and can be maintained using local expertise and supplies. Using the insights from a recent workshop and our own field experience, we discuss the challenges of designing such a machine, and broaden the discussion to include the entire system of pit emptying, collection, and transport. We classify pit emptying technologies according to the type of pit (e.g., wet pits with little trash, wet pits with lots of trash, and dry pits with lots of trash), and argue that designing technologies accordingly should be the focus in the future. A systems approach that includes transport optimisation, sustainability of small businesses, and operator safety and training is advocated

Venezuelan Forced Migration to Peru During Sociopolitical Crisis: an Analysis of Perceived Social Support and Emotion Regulation Strategies

Indexado en ScopusWhile many studies have examined the impact of forced migration on Venezuelan migrants in Latin America, to date scholars have not examined the efect of certain coping mechanisms, namely social support and emotion regulation. Using data from 386 Venezuelan migrants living in Peru (M=20.22 years, SD=1.33, 46.4% women), we investigated whether perceived social support from three diferent sources (family, friends, and signifcant other) correlated with emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and suppression) while controlling for the type of cohabitation and time of residence. The results (1) confrmed the originally proposed internal structure of the Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale and Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, showing reliability and validity even in a sample of migrants. Findings demonstrated that (2) perceived social support from family positively predicted cognitive reappraisal strategy when including friends and signifcant other as covariates; (3) Venezuelans who have resided longer in Peru compared to more recent migrants used cognitive reappraisal strategy at a higher rate despite perceiving low family social support; (4) Venezuelans who resided in Peru for a longer period of time reported higher suppression strategy use when having low signifcant other support; and (5) there were gender diferences regarding cognitive reappraisal as a dependent variable. More specifcally, in men, family was a better predictor than friend or signifcant other support, while among women, family and signifcant other had the biggest impact. These results demonstrate the importance of social support elements and time of residence on the healthy management of emotions under difcult circumstances, such as forced migration.Revisión por pare

Challenges in Clinical Management of Radiation-Induced Illnesses in Exploration Spaceflight

Historical solar particle events (SPEs) provide context for some understanding of acute radiation exposure risk to astronauts traveling outside of low Earth orbit. Modeling of potential doses delivered to exploration crewmembers anticipates limited radiation-induced health impacts, including prodromal symptoms of nausea, emesis, and fatigue, but suggests that more severe clinical manifestations are unlikely. Recent large animal-model research in space-analogs closely mimicking SPEs has identified coagulopathic events independent of the hematopoietic sequelae of higher radiation doses, similar in manifestation to disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). We explored the challenges of clinical management of radiation-related clinical manifestations, using currently accepted modeling techniques and anticipated physiological sequelae, to identify medical capabilities needed to successfully manage SPE-induced radiation illnesses during exploration spaceflight

What happens inside a pour-flush pit? Insights from comprehensive characterization

The pour-flush toilet is extensively used in many countries, but the biodegradation within pour-flush leach pits has not been fully characterised. We present a comprehensive physical, chemical, and microbiological analysis of pour-flush active and standing leach pits in South Africa. Four household toilet sites were sampled four times over 11 months. The pour-flush pit filling rate was estimated to be 0.11m3/y, which is lower than those of other sanitation technologies. Faecal sludge in active leach pits had similar ash, VS, CODT and TKN as other onsite technologies, but higher moisture content. The CODT in pour-flush sludge decreased 85% in 27 days in a short-term laboratory test. Microbial DNA sequencing showed that both aerobic and anaerobic degradation occurred in active and standing pits. Specific microorganisms were identified and differences in microbial communities in active, standing, and single pits were described, providing important insights into processes occurring within pour-flush pits