School libraries, political information and information literacy provision : findings from a Scottish study

This paper presents the findings of research which explored Scottish school libraries’ information provision and information literacy support in the run-up to two major political events: the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum (SIR) and the 2015 General UK Parliamentary Election (GE). To do this, the project identified, through an online survey, what political information seeking secondary school students engaged in through school libraries, what information provision and information literacy support was available to students relating to political issues and events, and what barriers school libraries faced in providing these aspects of political education. It also identified what information seeking students engaged in, what levels of information provision and information literacy support relating to politics are provided by school libraries, and to explore the perceptions and experiences of library staff relating to work in this area. Analysis of the results indicates that there are mixed levels of provision across school libraries in Scotland and that this variation may be influenced by inconsistent policies from local councils and individual schools themselves, as well as variations in the experience and views of library staff. Key activities to support young people’s political education are identified, and several reasons library staff do not engage in political work are discussed. The findings are linked to previous research, with a discussion of the need to encourage and support school library staff to contribute to the political education of students alongside teaching staff. Several recommendations for schools and library staff are made, relating to a consideration of the role of school libraries, how they can provide relevant political information, the importance of clear policies around political information provision and the support required for school library workers

The Constitution and the Campaign Trail: When Political Action Becomes State Action

Constitutional law often splits society into two realms: public and private. A person’s constitutional rights and obligations depend on her classification into one of these realms. Almost all constitutional rights are only protected against encroachment by the state, and thus whether an action constitutes private or state action is incredibly significant. However, the body of law that governs this determination—the state action doctrine—is notoriously muddled. The longstanding assumption is that political candidates and their campaigns are private actors, though the Court has on occasion, such as in the “white primary” cases, held that action by political parties constitutes state action. However, in recent years, the focus of electioneering has shifted away from political parties, and the democratic process has become far more candidate centric. At the same time, actions that might violate the Constitution if they were carried out by a state actor, such as the removal of protestors from campaign rallies and the rescission of press credentials for campaign events, have become widely publicized. In light of these developments, this Note argues that it is time to consider whether a candidate’s actions should now be considered state action for purposes of constitutional tort claims. By combining elements from the Supreme Court’s many formulations of the state action doctrine and invoking the logic behind the cases in which the Court found state action by political parties, this Note proposes a framework for assessing whether a candidate and her campaign’s conduct on the campaign trail should be considered state action

Health of American Indian and Alaska Native Elders in California

Analyzes the health risks, health status, and utilization of and access to health services among American Indians/Alaska Natives age 55 and older in California, as well as trends in demographics and underlying factors including economic security

Intolerance of uncertainty predicts storm fears

Severe storms present challenges and risks to global mental health. To address these risks, underlying vulnerability factors should be considered. For example, storms often cause fear by presenting unpredictable or uncertain situations, which may be particularly distressful for individuals who experience broad intolerance of uncertainty. This is especially salient for those who experience disproportionate and uncontrollable fears and anxiety. For those high in intolerance of uncertainty, fears regarding storms could be more likely or more extreme, leading to increased distress in the event or anticipation of storms. This study investigates the possibility of uncertainty intolerance as a predictive factor for storm fears. Storm fears were assessed in severity using the Storm Fear Questionnaire (SFQ), and intolerance of uncertainty is measured using the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS). Results of a linear regression model indicated that intolerance of uncertainty is a significant predictor of storm fears. This replicates previous literature implicating a relationship between broad intolerance of uncertainty and storm fears, and also contributes to broader literature implicating intolerance of uncertainty as a transdiagnostic factor across anxiety-related disorders. As a result of global climate change, severe weather events continue to grow more extreme and more common. As such, mental health risks related to severe weather events are increasingly important to understand. Intolerance of uncertainty has previously been identified as a risk factor in anxiety and related disorders (Eysenck, 1997) as well as weather-related trauma (Pardue, 2018). The present study serves to bridge a literature gap by linking intolerance of uncertainty to storm fear specifically

Behavior Change Trajectories and Metabolic Syndrome Risk Factor Clustering During the Transition to College: A Feasibility Pilot Study

International Journal of Exercise Science 15(5): 125-141, 2022. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is typically diagnosed in adults; however, MetS risk factors are growing in prevalence during youth and young adulthood. Though the transition from high school to college is associated with adverse changes in lifestyle behaviors that may contribute to MetS risk factor development, the relationship between pre-college MetS risk status and transition-related behavior change is unknown. This prospective study aimed to describe the relationship between pre-college MetS risk status and transition-related behavior change trajectories in college-bound students. Moreover, it aimed to assess the feasibility of the study design, including acceptability to both participants and investigators, prior to implementation in a larger sample. Participants (n = 21, 18.3 ± 0.3 y/o) were assessed for MetS risk factors during their last semester of high school. Self-report behavioral data on dietary habits, physical activity, sleep, stress, and alcohol consumption were collected at baseline and during the fall and spring semesters of the first year of college. Linear mixed models revealed drastic increases in alcohol consumption (β11 = 0.39, p \u3c 0.001) and apparent decreases in moderate-vigorous physical activity (β11 = -0.15, p = 0.185) during the college transition. Furthermore, 47.6% of students had ≥ 1 MetS risk factor at baseline and those with a greater number of risk factors experienced a more severe alcohol-related behavior change trajectory (β11 = 0.29, p \u3c 0.050). These findings highlight the importance of primordial prevention strategies against early MetS risk development, given the potential relationship with future behavioral trajectories. Future research should aim to further characterize this relationship using comprehensive, longitudinal measures that span the college transition in larger, more diverse samples

Widening Access to Higher Education for Students from Economically Disadvantaged Backgrounds : What Works and Why? [Summary Report]

There are significant social inequalities in access to higher education internationally. Students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds remain persistently under-represented in higher education (HE). Put simply, university populations fail to reflect their broader societies, with the vast majority of entrants coming from more advantaged backgrounds. Our research contributes to the ongoing effort by systematically examining the evidence for policy and programme interventions that widen access to higher education. We also examined trends in widening access in Scotland, barriers to access, and the impact of the national outreach scheme, the Schools for Higher Education Programme (SHEP), in supporting students to overcome these barriers. We provide recommendations for different stakeholders

Dimensions of hope and the school environment: Results from a school-wide needs assessment at an urban high school

Objectives: Various aspects of hope can play a major role in how students from urban locales perceive their school environment. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between various dimensions of hope and the school environment as perceived by adolescents at an urban high school. Methods: Data from a school-wide needs assessment measuring urban adolescents’ perceived hope and perceptions of the school environment were analyzed. Results: The analysis from regression models indicate that the dimensions of hope variables can be predicted by perceptions of the school environment. Conclusion: Overall, the urban adolescent hope domains of Spirituality, Personal Agency, Education, and Caring Connections all proved to be important elements correlated with the school environment. Implications of these findings for future research and practice are discusse

Metal-organic framework-activated carbon composite materials for the removal of ammonia from contaminated airstreams

L.N.M and R.E.M wish to acknowledge the financial support from the EPSRC industrial CASE award (grant EP/N50936X/1). A.T and G.B would like to thank the financial support from the Fondo per il finanziamento delle attività base di ricerca (grant PJ-RIC-FFABR_2017).Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a class of porous materials that show promise in the removal of Toxic Industrial Chemicals (TICs) from contaminated airstreams, though their development for this application has so far been hindered by issues of water stability and the wide availability and low cost of traditionally used activated carbons. Here a series of three MOF-activated carbon composite materials with different MOF to carbon ratios are prepared by growing STAM-17-OEt crystals inside the commercially available BPL activated carbon. The composite materials display excellent water stability and increased uptake of ammonia gas when compared to unimpregnated carbon. Such properties make these composites very promising in the fields of air purification and personal protective equipment.PostprintPeer reviewe