Tap the Screen: Technology Integration in Our Students’ Lives

The focus of this study is to document and describe the integration of technology in the everyday lives of students in Grades 3–8 attending a high-performing public school district in an affluent Chicago suburb. The following research questions guide this study: How do students in Grades 3–8 integrate technology into their lives? What are the implications of students’ technology integration for teaching and learning? How can teachers capitalize upon students’ technology integration in ways that inform instructional practice? A review of the literature presents related information in areas that explore the increasingly digital world of our students; curriculum, instruction, and research; innovation, creativity, and learning environments; student social and cognitive development; and student technology use. In this ethnographic study, qualitative research methods are used to interview 55 students in 17 focus groups. An analysis of focus group data is presented in the following categories: technology device access and use; gaming; electronic book readers; television and online video; imposed limits on technology; communicating using technology; and technology in the school environment. Student technology use information is presented in the student voice and is then discussed in the context of improving teaching and learning. This study recommends that both parents and teachers should intentionally seek to understand the technology-enabled pursuits of children to better understand the “whole child.” Further, teachers and other school leaders are encouraged to welcome student-owned technology in school and encourage project-based learning opportunities

Slide to Unlock: Creating a Technology-Integrated Environment for Our Students

The focus of this study is to explore how to support teachers in capitalizing on students’ technology skills, experiences, and preferences to offer enhanced teaching and learning experiences in school. Using a framework developed by Wagner et al. (2006), technology integration is systemically examined in terms of “4 Cs:” context, culture, conditions, and competencies to construct an “As-Is” picture of a school district based upon current realities. Next, a series of changes are proposed and the 4 Cs are used to describe the “To-Be” picture of the organization at the end of the proposed change journey. The three teachers who participated in this study used a protocol developed by the researcher with over 150 students that allowed the teachers to learn about their students’ technology skills, experiences, and preferences both in and outside of school. Information from the survey data was used by the researcher and participating teachers to co-plan technology-integrated projects that matched the students’ technology skills, experiences, and preferences. An analysis of the student projects and teacher interview data resulted in a set of eight strategies for educators, Creating a Technology-Integrated Environment for Our Students, presented in two themes. Theme one offers, Provide Technology-Integrated Student Learning Opportunities: (1) engage students by allowing choices; (2) share learning experiences (student-to-student; student-to-teacher); (3) create with digital tools, learn outside of school, and simplify learning experiences; and (4) practice student-centered assessment. Theme two offers, Provide a Technology- Integrated Environment: (5) seek student opinions and match tools with student interests; (6) build capacity in the classroom; (7) provide models for all teachers; and (8) allow students to take the lead

Click to Agree: Policies Impacting a One-to-One Mobile Learning Environment

The focus of this study is to evaluate current and recommend new school board policies to implement and maintain a one-to-one mobile learning initiative using iPads in a K–8 school district. The district’s current acceptable use policy is analyzed and it was determined that no modifications are necessary to govern the new one-to-one initiative. A new administrative procedure is proposed to address issues related to iPad use in and out of the district. A Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy is proposed for students and staff to supplement the electronic devices provided by the school district. The current acceptable use policy, the proposed mobile device administrative procedure, and the proposed BYOD policy are discussed from various perspectives. Advocated policy statements are proposed that discuss the goals, objectives, needs, values, and preferences of the various stakeholders affected by the one-to-one mobile learning initiative. The oneto- one initiative is presented in terms of educational, economic, social, political, and moral and ethical analyses. The policy argument offers practical considerations for implementing the proposed mobile device administrative procedure, and a “pro and con” argument regarding the proposed BYOD policy is provided. The policy implementation plan discusses the educational, communication, and professional development activities needed for implementation. The policy assessment plan presents progress monitoring processes to ensure that the policies and administrative procedure continue to meet the needs of students and staff during the course of the initiative. Finally, the summary impact statement theorizes possible effects of the proposed policies and administrative procedure

Large-scale variation in density of an aquatic ecosystem indicator species

Funding: This work was supported by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Hudson River Natural Resource Trustees.Monitoring indicator species is a pragmatic approach to natural resource assessments, especially when the link between the indicator species and ecosystem state is well justified. However, conducting ecosystem assessments over representative spatial scales that are insensitive to local heterogeneity is challenging. We examine the link between polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination and population density of an aquatic habitat specialist over a large spatial scale using non-invasive genetic spatial capture-recapture. Using American mink (Neovison vison), a predatory mammal and an indicator of aquatic ecosystems, we compared estimates of density in two major river systems, one with extremely high levels of PCB contamination (Hudson River), and a hydrologically independent river with lower PCB levels (Mohawk River). Our work supports the hypothesis that mink densities are substantially (1.64-1.67 times) lower in the contaminated river system. We demonstrate the value of coupling the indicator species concept with well-conceived and spatially representative monitoring protocols. PCBs have demonstrable detrimental effects on aquatic ecosystems, including mink, and these effects are likely to be profound and long-lasting, manifesting as population-level impacts. Through integrating non-invasive data collection, genetic analysis, and spatial capture-recapture methods, we present a monitoring framework for generating robust density estimates across large spatial scales.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Methods and Applications of Social Media Monitoring of Mental Health During Disasters: Scoping Review

Background: With the increasing frequency and magnitude of disasters internationally, there is growing research and clinical interest in the application of social media sites for disaster mental health surveillance. However, important questions remain regarding the extent to which unstructured social media data can be harnessed for clinically meaningful decision-making. Objective: This comprehensive scoping review synthesizes interdisciplinary literature with a particular focus on research methods and applications. Methods: A total of 6 health and computer science databases were searched for studies published before April 20, 2021, resulting in the identification of 47 studies. Included studies were published in peer-reviewed outlets and examined mental health during disasters or crises by using social media data. Results: Applications across 31 mental health issues were identified, which were grouped into the following three broader themes: estimating mental health burden, planning or evaluating interventions and policies, and knowledge discovery. Mental health assessments were completed by primarily using lexical dictionaries and human annotations. The analyses included a range of supervised and unsupervised machine learning, statistical modeling, and qualitative techniques. The overall reporting quality was poor, with key details such as the total number of users and data features often not being reported. Further, biases in sample selection and related limitations in generalizability were often overlooked. Conclusions: The application of social media monitoring has considerable potential for measuring mental health impacts on populations during disasters. Studies have primarily conceptualized mental health in broad terms, such as distress or negative affect, but greater focus is required on validating mental health assessments. There was little evidence for the clinical integration of social media-based disaster mental health monitoring, such as combining surveillance with social media-based interventions or developing and testing real-world disaster management tools. To address issues with study quality, a structured set of reporting guidelines is recommended to improve the methodological quality, replicability, and clinical relevance of future research on the social media monitoring of mental health during disasters

Sedimentological characterization of Antarctic moraines using UAVs and Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry

In glacial environments particle-size analysis of moraines provides insights into clast origin, transport history, depositional mechanism and processes of reworking. Traditional methods for grain-size classification are labour-intensive, physically intrusive and are limited to patch-scale (1m2) observation. We develop emerging, high-resolution ground- and unmanned aerial vehicle-based ‘Structure-from-Motion’ (UAV-SfM) photogrammetry to recover grain-size information across an moraine surface in the Heritage Range, Antarctica. SfM data products were benchmarked against equivalent datasets acquired using terrestrial laser scanning, and were found to be accurate to within 1.7 and 50mm for patch- and site-scale modelling, respectively. Grain-size distributions were obtained through digital grain classification, or ‘photo-sieving’, of patch-scale SfM orthoimagery. Photo-sieved distributions were accurate to <2mm compared to control distributions derived from dry sieving. A relationship between patch-scale median grain size and the standard deviation of local surface elevations was applied to a site-scale UAV-SfM model to facilitate upscaling and the production of a spatially continuous map of the median grain size across a 0.3 km2 area of moraine. This highly automated workflow for site scale sedimentological characterization eliminates much of the subjectivity associated with traditional methods and forms a sound basis for subsequent glaciological process interpretation and analysis

Future Directions for Whole Atmosphere Modeling:Developments in the Context of Space Weather

Coupled Sun‐to‐Earth models represent a key part of the future development of space weather forecasting. With respect to predicting the state of the thermosphere and ionosphere, there has been a recent paradigm shift; it is now clear that any self‐respecting model of this region needs to include some representation of forcing from the lower atmosphere, as well as solar and geomagnetic forcing. Here we assess existing modeling capability and set out a roadmap for the important next steps needed to ensure further advances. These steps include a model verification strategy, analysis of the impact of non‐hydrostatic dynamical cores, and a cost‐benefit analysis of model chemistry for weather and climate applications

Attenuated Expression of DFFB is a Hallmark of Oligodendrogliomas with 1p-Allelic Loss

Allelic loss of chromosome 1p is frequently observed in oligodendroglioma. We screened 177 oligodendroglial tumors for 1p deletions and found 6 tumors with localized 1p36 deletions. Several apoptosis regulation genes have been mapped to this region, including Tumor Protein 73 (p73), DNA Fragmentation Factor subunits alpha (DFFA) and beta (DFFB), and Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor Superfamily Members 9 and 25 (TNFRSF9, TNFRSF25). We compared expression levels of these 5 genes in pairs of 1p-loss and 1p-intact tumors using quantitative reverse-transcriptase PCR (QRTPCR) to test if 1p deletions had an effect on expression. Only the DFFB gene demonstrated decreased expression in all tumor pairs tested. Mutational analysis did not reveal DFFB mutations in 12 tested samples. However, it is possible that DFFB haploinsufficiency from 1p allelic loss is a contributing factor in oligodendroglioma development