Reading comprehension level and development in native and language minority adolescent low achievers:Roles of linguistic and metacognitive knowledge and fluency

In a longitudinal design, we measured 50 low-achieving adolescents’ reading comprehension development from Grades 7 to 9. There were 24 native Dutch and 26 language minority students. In addition, we assessed the roles of (a) linguistic knowledge, (b) metacognitive knowledge, and (c) reading fluency in predicting both the level and growth of reading comprehension. Students improved in reading comprehension, the language minority students more so than the native Dutch students. We can explain the level of reading comprehension by linguistic and metacognitive knowledge, whereas most fluency-related predictors appeared to be of minor importance. We can hardly explain the growth in reading comprehension by the predictors. Nevertheless, we found a significant interaction indicating that growth in vocabulary explained growth in reading comprehension for the language minority students. This finding seems to suggest that language minority students profit from gains in vocabulary, more so than native students

Teachers’ reading promotion activities:Variation, structure and correlates

The purpose of this study is to determine which different forms of reading promotion activities teachers perform in fifth and sixth grade in The Netherlands and whether different forms of reading promotion activities are acted out independently or cluster into meaningful categories of reading promotion behavior. A survey was administered to 194 teachers and data was analyzed using Principal Component Analyses (PCA). Based on the results of the PCA thirteen different types of reading promotion behavior can be distinguished. Specific teacher and class characteristics are connected with the different types of reading promotion activities teachers perform. Teachers seem to be mainly focusing on promoting the reading of fictional texts. Free reading happens most often, and teachers frequently use comics and short stories in class. Most daily activities take little or no preparation. Correlations are small but do suggest that teachers act out more different forms of reading promotion activities when there are more girls are in class than boys. Also, classes with more girls act out more activities concerning new media and nonfiction

Writing proficiency level and writing development of low-achieving adolescents: The roles of linguistic knowledge, fluency, and metacognitive knowledge

In a longitudinal design, 51 low-achieving adolescents' development in writing proficiency from Grades 7 to 9 was measured. There were 25 native-Dutch and 26 language-minority students. In addition, the roles of (i) linguistic knowledge, (ii) metacognitive knowledge, and (iii) linguistic fluency in predicting both the level and development of writing proficiency were assessed. Low-achieving students improved in writing proficiency, the language-minority students more so than the native-Dutch students. Regarding the level of writing proficiency, individual differences between low-achieving adolescents could be accounted for by receptive vocabulary, grammatical knowledge, and speed of sentence verification, suggesting that these are important components in low-achieving adolescents' writing. Regarding development in writing proficiency, grammatical knowledge predicted variation between lowachieving students. Explanations and educational implications of these findings are discussed

Towards emotional responsive mentoring of at-risk students in last-resort programs

Background: Mentors guide students in their challenges at school and in life. At-risk students in last-resort programs who are at a high risk of leaving school unqualified are especially in need of highly competent and adaptive mentors. This study therefore aimed to identify mentor qualities as perceived by at-risk students and their mentors that meet students’ needs and mentors’ capabilities.Methods: Face-to-face individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with students and mentors of two specialized programs in the Netherlands. Sensitizing concepts, derived from literature, were used to identify themes. Data analysis was conducted using thematic analyses and was validated by performing an audit.Results: The mentor qualities that at-risk students and their mentors reported were classified in three different themes. Mentor tasks consisted of guiding and motivating students and providing them with tangible methods of support. Relationships between mentor and student were based on levels of respect, equality, and bonding.Characteristics of mentors related to empathy, care, and trust.Research implications: Emotional responsiveness deserves further exploration as it appears to be an underlying concept of being a good mentor. Future research might explore mentor qualities in the context of other last-resort programs for at-risk students.Practical implications: Findings implicate that mentors have to walk a tightrope between keeping professional distance and being sensitive, suggesting constant attention to their professional development is needed.Originality: In the context of last-resort programs, an alternative perspective on mentoring at-risk students is outlined, based on perceptions of both students and mentorsTeaching and Teacher Learning (ICLON

Individual differences among at-risk students: changing the relationship between resilience and vocational identity

The way at-risk students see themselves as workers, their vocational identity, is important for their career development. Special programs for heterogeneous groups of at-risk students in the Netherlands aim to foster students' vocational identity and their task may be eased by stimulating resilience. Therefore this cross-sectional study explored whether differences in at-risk students' individual characteristics moderate the relationship between their resilience and vocational identity. In general, resilient students often have strong vocational identities compared to less resilient students. However, the strength of the relationships vary with varying personal characteristics. Results enable educational programs to attune to at-risk students with the strongest relationships between resilience and vocational identity: males, younger subgroups, and those experiencing less motivation and low school engagement.Teaching and Teacher Learning (ICLON

Reflective Goal-Setting Improves Academic Performance in Teacher and Business Education: A Large-Scale Field Experiment

Students often have trouble adjusting to higher education and this affects their performance, retention, and well-being. Scholars have suggested applying reflective goal- setting interventions, and most have found positive effects on academic performance and retention. However, one study found no effect at all, stressing the need for understanding the underlying mechanisms, as they could explain when the intervention works and why. Thus, we assessed these mechanisms through a rigorous effect test, using an experimental design and repeated measures. We measured engagement, self-regulated learning, resilience, grit, wellbeing, academic performance, and retention at three points in a large scale randomized controlled trial involving first-year teacher and business education students (N = 1,134). The treatment group earned significantly more course credits and had lower drop out rates. Contrary to previous findings, these effects were independent of gender or ethnicity. Grit, self-regulated learning, resilience, or engagement did not mediate the effects. This study confirmed reflective goal-setting’s small and direct effect on academic performance, but no mediating or moderating effects. Differences in implementation fidelity could explain previous studies’ varying effect-sizes

T cells expressing a TCR-like antibody selected against the heteroclitic variant of a shared MAGE-A epitope do not recognise the cognate epitope

Antibodies-recognising peptides bound to the major histocompatibility complex (pMHC) represent potentially valuable and promising targets for chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells to treat patients with cancer. Here, a human phage-Fab library has been selected using HLA-A2 complexed with a heteroclitic peptide variant from an epitope shared among multiple melanoma-associated antigens (MAGEs). DNA restriction analyses and phage ELISAs confirmed selection of unique antibody clones that specifically bind to HLA-A2 complexes or HLA-A2-positive target cells loaded with native or heteroclitic peptide. Antibodies selected against heteroclitic peptide, in contrast to native peptide, demonstrated significantly lower to even negligible binding towards native peptide or tumour cells that naturally expressed peptides. The binding to native peptide was not rescued by phage panning with antigen-positive tumour cells. Importantly, when antibodies directed against heteroclitic peptides were engineered into CARs and expressed by T cells, binding to native peptides and tumour cells was minimal to absent. In short, TCR-like antibodies, when isolated from a human Fab phage library using heteroclitic peptide, fail to recognise its native peptide. We therefore argue that peptide modifications to improve antibody selections should be performed with caution as resulting antibodies, either used directly or as CARs, may lose activity towards endogenously presented tumour epitopes

Possible relevance of pigeons as an indicator species for monitoring air pollution.

Wild city pigeons were caught at four different locations in the Netherlands to represent areas of high (Amsterdam-high), moderate (Amsterdam-medium), and low (Maastricht and Assen) traffic density. It is assumed that local ambient air pollution decreases as a function of traffic density. In these pigeons levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-DNA adducts, oxidative DNA damage, and heavy metal residues were determined in kidney, lung, liver, and blood (no adduct analysis in blood). The contribution of leaded gasoline to total body lead content was estimated by measuring concentrations of Pb and its isotopes in blood. We also analyzed samples of ambient air particulate matter for PAH and heavy metal concentrations at the four different locations. Interregional differences in heavy metals in ambient air particulate matter were reflected relatively well by pigeon body loads. The higher lead and cadmium concentrations in blood, kidney, liver, and lung were found in the Amsterdam high traffic density area, followed by Amsterdam medium, Assen, and Maastricht. A high Pb concentration in blood coincided with relatively low 206Pb/207Pb values, indicating a high contribution of leaded gasoline to total blood Pb concentrations in pigeons from the Amsterdam high traffic density area. Significantly enhanced blood zinc values were found in pigeons from both locations in Amsterdam compared to pigeons from the other two areas. However, no differences in Zn tissue levels between the four different groups were found. Oxidative DNA damage, determined as the ratio of 7-Hydro-8-oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine/ deoxyguanosine, in pigeon liver was highest in Amsterdam-high, followed by Assen (low traffic density). Pb content, but not the Cd content, was positively associated with oxidative DNA damage in liver tissue. In lung tissue, a negative correlation was found between oxidative DNA damage and Zn content. These results indicate that the carcinogenic potential of Pb might be ascribed to oxygen radical formation, whereas Zn plays a protective role against oxidative DNA damage. Places with high and medium traffic density could be clearly discriminated on the basis of PAH levels in the ambient air. The PAH content in particulate air samples was not, however, reflected in total PAH-related DNA adduct levels because no differences could be observed in tissue adduct levels in pigeons from the four different locations. Our results indicate that wild city pigeons can be used as biological indicators of exposure to heavy metal pollution in outdoor air