Freewriting for fluency and flow in eighth and ninth grade reading classes

The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file.Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on February 15, 2008)Vita.Thesis (Ph. D.) University of Missouri-Columbia 2007.This study examined the experiences of students in regular freewriting sessions.Freewriting is defined as nonstop writing during which the writer may freely move through topics but may not stop writing. This sustained writing, as this study explored, builds fluency in student writing, generates motivation to write, and promotes flow experiences for student writers. This qualitative case study included some quantitative data as well, thus a form of mixed method research was conducted, including interviews, student writing, observations, surveys, fluency measures, and writing apprehension scales.Data was collected over 18 weeks involving 17 eighth and ninth graders in two reading classrooms and their teacher. Students completed five-minute freewrites most every day for 18 weeks as part of their classroom warm-up.Includes bibliographical reference

Honeymoon : When Will You Shine For Me?

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/3886/thumbnail.jp

Parent experience of implementing home programs: Semi-structured interviews

Abstract presented at the 5th Biennial Conference of the Australasian Academy of Cerebral Palsy & Developmental Medicine, 3-6 March 2010, Christchurch, New Zealan

Using audit and feedback to increase clinician adherence to clinical practice guidelines in brain injury rehabilitation: v

ObjectiveThis study evaluated whether frequent (fortnightly) audit and feedback cycles over a sustained period of time (>12 months) increased clinician adherence to recommended guidelines in acquired brain injury rehabilitation.DesignA before and after study design.SettingA metropolitan inpatient brain injury rehabilitation unit.ParticipantsClinicians; medical, nursing and allied health staff.InterventionsFortnightly cycles of audit and feedback for 14 months. Each fortnight, medical file and observational audits were completed against 114 clinical indicators.Main outcome measureAdherence to guideline indicators before and after intervention, calculated by proportions, Mann-Whitney U and Chi square analysis.ResultsClinical and statistical significant improvements in median clinical indicator adherence were found immediately following the audit and feedback program from 38.8% (95% CI 34.3 to 44.4) to 83.6% (95% CI 81.8 to 88.5). Three months after cessation of the intervention, median adherence had decreased from 82.3% to 76.6% (95% CI 72.7 to 83.3, pConclusionA fortnightly audit and feedback program increased clinicians’ adherence to guideline recommendations in an inpatient acquired brain injury rehabilitation setting. We propose future studies build on the evidence-based method used in the present study to determine effectiveness and develop an implementation toolkit for scale-up.</div

Effects of early intervention targeting mathematically at-risk first grade students [abstract]

Abstract only availableIn the 2006-2007 school year, 7.3 percent of third grade students scored in the lowest percentile in mathematics on the Missouri Assessment Program test. This percentage increased as students progressed through school. In tenth grade, 24 percent of students scored below average. Although it is troubling that 7.3 percent of students were already struggling in third grade, this data shows more students are falling behind in mathematics as they progress through the grades. These percentages stress the importance of reaching students during early grades because a sound base in mathematics will keep students at grade-level throughout their schooling. Our study targets two first grade students who have been identified as mathematically at-risk by their teachers. One is a Caucasian male while the other is an African American female. The project examines whether or not individualized tutoring sessions based on an intervention program can increase the students' procedural and conceptual understanding in mathematics. Initial assessments measuring the students' understanding of mathematical concepts were administered. The research team met with students biweekly for tutoring sessions that targeted the skills they struggled with on the assessments. Students' progress was monitored throughout the year and the research team adjusted the students' activities based on each student's strengths and areas of concern. In May, students will be reassessed using the initial assessment. Results from the two time points will be compared and analyzed to ascertain how the students' performance has changed. The study will focus on students' performance in all of these areas with the assumption that the intervention program will have a positive influence. If significant improvement does not emerge, a reevaluation of the tasks and a consideration of what other factors might have affected student performance will be undertaken. Early intervention programs, such as this one, are an important step in helping mathematically at-risk students perform at grade level