Supporting Teachers in Arts Integration Strategies to Foster Foundational Literacy Skills of Emergent Bilinguals

Oral language skills are essential to the future literacy of students in kindergarten and first grade, especially emergent bilinguals (EBs). Yet, U.S. teachers receive few professional development opportunities that prepare them to use effective strategies for promoting oral language development. Since teacher education is compartmentalized into curricular silos, methods for literacy instruction are taught in one course, methods for arts instruction in another, and so on. This article argues that well-designed arts integration can meet a key need of young, linguistically diverse students by providing opportunities for oral language practice across content areas. Experimental evidence that arts-based instruction benefits the speaking skills of EBs is presented; the underlying mechanisms are explored. An example of a fieldwork program that provided pre-service teachers with hands-on experience in K-1 classes is included, showing how they learned to enhance the verbal skills of EBs through integration of drama, music, and movement

Supporting teachers in arts integration strategies to foster foundational literacy skills of emergent bilinguals

Oral language skills are essential to the future literacy of students in kindergarten and first grade, especially emergent bilinguals (EBs). Yet, U.S. teachers receive few professional development opportunities that prepare them to use effective strategies for promoting oral language development. Since teacher education is compartmentalized into curricular silos, methods for literacy instruction are taught in one course, methods for arts instruction in another, and so on. This article argues that well-designed arts integration can meet a key need of young, linguistically diverse students by providing opportunities for oral language practice across content areas. Experimental evidence that arts-based instruction benefits the speaking skills of EBs is presented; the underlying mechanisms are explored. An example of a fieldwork program that provided pre-service teachers with hands-on experience in K-1 classes is included, showing how they learned to enhance the verbal skills of EBs through integration of drama, music, and movement

An Enhanced Rate-Based Emission Trading Program for NO x

Since 1997 government and industry in The Netherlands have been engaged in intensive policy discussions on how to design an emission trading program that would satisfy the Government’s policy objectives within the national and international regulatory framework and accommodate industry’s need for a flexible and cost-effective approach. Early on in the discussion the most promising solution was a rate-based approach, which dynamically allocated saleable emission credits based on a performance standard rate and actual energy used by facilities. All industrial facilities above a threshold of 20 MWth would be judged on their ability to meet this performance rate. Those “cleaner” than the standard can sell excess credits to others with an allocation that is less than their actual NOX emission. With some changes in law, such a design could be made to fit well into the national and EU legislative framework while at the same time uniquely meeting industry’s requirement of flexibility toward economic growth and facility expansion. (An analysis of the legislative changes required will be given in a separate paper by Chris Dekkers.) However, the environmental outcome of such a system is not as certain as under an absolute emission cap. At the request of the Netherlands Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment (VROM), Automated Credit Exchange (ACE), in close cooperation with the working group of government and industry representatives introduced a number of features into the Dutch NOX program allowing full exploitation of market mechanisms while allowing intermediate adjustments in the performance standard rates. The design is geared toward meeting environmental targets without jeopardizing the trading market the program intends to create. The paper discusses the genesis of the two-tier credit system ACE helped to design, explains the differences between primary (fixed) and secondary (variable) credits, and outlines how the Dutch system is expected to function once implemented in 2004. The paper also discusses the market trading simulation held in early 2001 to assess and test the trading program, and reviews also the current status of the market program development

A Laser Point Frame to Measure Cover

The point sample method has been a standard plotless method for measurement of ground cover on ragelands since it was introduced by Levy in 1927. The instrument most commonly used to do point sampling is the point frame. Since its introduction, the point frame has undergone numberous modifications to improve efficiency and ease of use. This article introduces a laser point frame (LPF) that was designed by the Agricultural Research Service for measurement of ground cover and utilizes lasers in place of conventional metal pins. A comparative pilot study was conducted on a shortgrass prairie in northern Colorado to compare data collected using a magnetic point frame (MPF) with data collected using the LPF. Cover by species was measured from identical plots using 100 points per plot for each point frame, and sampling times were recorded for each plot. Correlations between cover data collected using the MPF and the LPF were relatively high (r2 = 0.62-0.81). Total average vegetative cover measured with the MPF was 35%, compared with 40%, using the LPF. Cover of total grasses, C4 grasses, C3 grasses, and litter, were significantly greater with the LPF method. Total sampling time per 100 points was almost half using the LPF compared with the MPF. The LPF was easy to use, efficient for measurement of cover, and is a potential replacement for conventional point frames.The Rangeland Ecology & Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform August 2020Legacy DOIs that must be preserved: 10.2458/azu_rangelands_v58i5_welt