Nancy Stevens Presentation

https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/guest-art-pres/1007/thumbnail.jp

The Balkanization of the High School Reading Specialist: Searching for an Identity

There is a lack of research on how Wisconsin\u27s high schools are addressing the literacy needs of their students. State Statute 118.015 requires a district reading specialist, but there has been very little research done on compliance; therefore, the first phase of the study was to collect and analyze both demographic and descriptive data via a survey to determine compliance with the Statute, focusing specifically on the secondary level. It is argued that a careful, in-depth study on the role of the secondary reading specialist is needed to understand the current use of professionals in this role. While there is a dearth of research on the role, the research that does exist demonstrates the lack of consistency in role definition. Thus, the second phase of this research was to construct a case study of the role of a reading specialist, Donna, in the context of the high school. The goal was to develop a deep and rich understanding of her role. A qualitative research design was used because the use of an inductive approach was best suited to the development of a case study. The study was conducted using the constant comparative method in which interviews and observations provided the basis for further investigation and elaboration. Key themes and sub-themes were identified through inductive analysis. Four major themes emerged. The first is the lack of compliance with State Statute 118.015. The three others are the lack of definitive licensure for the evolving role of the high school reading specialist into that of coach, the lack of clear definitions and role responsibilities, and the importance of features that distinguish high schools from elementary or middle schools, thus making them unique. The present study explores the theoretical shift taking place in the role of the reading specialist in reading and literacy in the 21st century, from an intervention focus to a more broadly defined, schoolwide, professional development model. The results of this study indicate that this shift is resulting in a wide variety of opinions as to the direction of the role; thus, this balkanization is prohibiting a clear definition and understanding of the role of the reading specialist at the high school level. The implications of the survey and case study data for students, teachers and schools are discussed, including suggestions for future research

Choice and Rigor: Achieving a Balance in Middle School Reading/Language Arts Classrooms in the Era of the Common Core

While the advantages of reading workshops are well known (Atwell, 1998), there is currently a debate among scholars, practitioners, and politicians about the use of instructional/independent level texts in light of the Common Core Standards’ end-of-year requirement for students to be reading at grade level (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010). Particularly in middle school, where motivation to read often declines, a workshop approach can help students develop and strengthen their interest in reading. A classroom survey completed by middle school students in a suburban school district in the Midwestern United States illustrates students’ positive response to a reading workshop approach (Atwell). However, students must also be able to read grade-level text proficiently. Using a combination of workshop and instruction with grade-level texts will help support students in reaching the end-of-year standards required by the Common Core

Issue 1: Giidosendiwag (We Walk Together): Creating Culturally Based Supports for Urban Indigenous Youth in Care

In Ontario, as elsewhere in the country, there are limited Indigenous-specific resources to assist in strengthening Indigenous youth, families, and communities. We explore how that might be changed by using the Anishnaabeg Youth in Transition Program at Niijkiwendidaa Anishnaabekwewag Services Circle, based in Peterborough, Ontario, as one model of service delivery. Niijkiwendidaa is situated in the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, one of several Anishnaabeg nations, and falls within the Williams Treaty area. We demonstrate how embedding culture in youth services greatly enhances the quality of life for youth now, and in the long term. We draw on these ideas and our integrative model to show how this approach can be both restorative and restitutive, providing it as an example that might meet the needs of other communities. With a view to acting on the recommendations highlighted in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, we propose that a rebuilding of relationships, and the cultural rooting of helping systems, are essential to raising our youth to become healthy, strong adults

The use of System of Rice Intensification (SRI) near Maromizaha Protected Area, Madagascar

Rice agriculture is key to food security in Madagascar, yet land conversion for traditional rice growing, or tavy, exerts significant deforestation pressures. A method known as System of Rice Intensification (SRI), has been promoted by development and conservation groups near Maromizaha Protected Area in Madagascar on the premise that it is more sustainable than traditional rice-growing practices. Although the aim of promoting SRI in the region has been to reduce deforestation pressures, preliminary observations suggest that SRI has not been widely adopted. Household surveys and observations were conducted in the communities surrounding Maromizaha Forest to assess the use of SRI, to inform future decisions on SRI training and other approaches. Results reveal that SRI has not been widely adopted despite familiarity and generally positive perceptions of the method’s usefulness. Various issues with SRI adoption near Maromizaha include disparities in access to training, the number of people per household available to participate in farming tasks, and the amount of land appropriate for implementation of SRI. We highlight questions surrounding SRI’s perceived impacts upon rice yield and to explore locally-informed sustainable agricultural alternatives to both traditional rice growing practices and SRI to reduce deforestation pressures in the Maromizaha area. RésuméL'agriculture rizicole est la clé de la sécurité alimentaire à Madagascar en même temps que la conversion de terres pour l'agriculture traditionnelle sous la forme de tavy est une source de déforestation. Des méthodes d'intensification agricole ont été proposées par des groupes de développement et de conservation. Une de ces méthodes, le Système de Riziculture Intensive (SRI), a été encouragée dans le site d'étude de l’Aire protégée de Maromizaha sur le principe d’une plus grande viabilité par rapport aux pratiques traditionnelles de la riziculture. Si la promotion de l’SRI dans la région était motivée par une réduction des pressions de déforestation, des indications préliminaires suggèrent que le SRI n'a pas été largement adopté. Des enquêtes auprès des ménages et des observations ont été menées auprès des communautés riveraines de la forêt de Maromizaha afin de comprendre les choix des intéressés afin de mieux orienter les futures décisions sur la formation à dispenser pour l’SRI et d’autres approches. Les résultats révèlent que le SRI n'a pas été largement adopté malgré la familiarité et des perceptions généralement positives de l'utilité de la méthode. Divers obstacles à l'adoption du SRI autour de Maromizaha comprennent les disparités dans l'accès à la formation, le nombre de personnes par ménage disponibles pour participer aux tâches agricoles et la quantité de terres appropriées pour la mise en œuvre du SRI. Les questions relatives aux impacts perçus du SRI sur la production de riz sont exposées et mises en contexte avec des alternatives agricoles durables aux pratiques traditionnelles de la culture du riz connues localement et au SRI afin de réduire les pressions de la déforestation dans la région de Maromizaha

A phosphorylation map of the bovine papillomavirus E1 helicase

BACKGROUND: Papillomaviruses undergo a complex life cycle requiring regulated DNA replication. The papillomavirus E1 helicase is essential for viral DNA replication and plays a key role in controlling viral genome copy number. The E1 helicase is regulated at least in part by protein phosphorylation, however no systematic approach to phosphate site mapping has been attempted. We have utilized mass spectrometry of purified bovine papillomavirus E1 protein to identify and characterize new sites of phosphorylation. RESULTS: Mass spectrometry and in silico sequence analysis were used to identify phosphate sites on the BPV E1 protein and kinases that may recognize these sites. Five new and two previously known phosphorylation sites were identified. A phosphate site map was created and used to develop a general model for the role of phosphorylation in E1 function. CONCLUSION: Mass spectrometric analysis identified seven phosphorylated amino acids on the BPV E1 protein. Taken with three previously identified sites, there are at least ten phosphoamino acids on BPV E1. A number of kinases were identified by sequence analysis that could potentially phosphorylate E1 at the identified positions. Several of these kinases have known roles in regulating cell cycle progression. A BPV E1 phosphate map and a discussion of the possible role of phosphorylation in E1 function are presented

Macroscelideans (Myohyracinae and Rhynchocyoninae) from the late Oligocene Nsungwe formation of the Rukwa Rift Basin, southwestern Tanzania

The fossil record of macroscelidean mammals is notoriously patchy, with a significant spatial and temporal gap separating faunas from the early Oligocene localities of northern Africa and the early Miocene localities of eastern and southern Africa. Here we describe fossil macroscelideans representing Myohyracinae and Rhynchocyoninae recovered from a rift-fill sequence of richly fossiliferous sandstones in the late Oligocene Nsungwe Formation in the Rukwa Rift Basin of southwestern Tanzania. Radiometrically dated to 25.2 Ma, a new Palaeogene myohyracine taxon (Rukwasengi butleri) is represented by a partial maxilla (RRBP 05409) preserving a lightly worn M2-M3. The M2 exhibits a less hypsodont and mesiodistally elongate morphology than the early Miocene Myohyrax oswaldi, and the three-rooted M3 exhibits a tiny mesially positioned fossette. A new rhynchocyonine (Oligorhynchocyon songwensis) is represented by specimens more brachyodont than the early Miocene Miorhynchocyon. Taken together these finds document a rare window into macroscelidean evolutionary history with diversification of the group near the Palaeogene-Neogene Transition (PNT). Continued exploration offers a refined perspective on mid-Cenozoic faunal and ecosystem dynamics on continental Africa, expanding opportunities for recognising trends in palaeobiological diversity across habitat types and through time

Speech Communication

Contains reports on three research projects.U. S. Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories, Office of Aerospace Research under Contract F19628-69-C-0044National Institutes of Health (Grant 2 ROl NB-04332-06