521 research outputs found
Physical and Behavioral Measures that Predict Cats' Socialization in an Animal Shelter Environment during a Three-Day Period
Information from surveys completed by the cats' caregivers provided a score for the level of socialization of cats. We examined the effectiveness of structured assessments and measures in their ability to distinguish More and Less Socialized cats in a shelter-like setting over a three day period. Statistical models were developed that best predicted More and Less Socialized cats. Measures from these models were used to calculate a point system where more points indicated more socialization. In combination with key socialized behaviors, these points were able to fairly accurately distinguish More Socialized from Less Socialized cats
Should Dogs and Cats be Given as Gifts?
Policies that state pets should not be adopted as gifts are prevalent at animal welfare organizations, despite the fact that this belief is unfounded. Denying adopters who intend to give the animals as gifts may unnecessarily impede the overarching goal of increasing adoptions of pets from our nations' shelter system. We found that receiving a dog or cat as a gift was not associated with impact on self-perceived love/attachment, or whether the dog or cat was still in the home. These results suggest there is no increased risk of relinquishment for dogs and cats received as a gift
Giving a Student Voice to California's Dropout Crisis
Shares what first-year high school students find motivating or discouraging; how they view family, peer, and school factors; and how demographic characteristics, attitudes toward school, and support networks affect the odds of their dropping out
Sustaining SchoolâBased Asthma Interventions Through Policy and Practice Change
BACKGROUND Schools are an ideal setting for implementation of asthma interventions for children; however, sustaining schoolâbased programs can be challenging. This study illustrates policy and practice changes brought about through the Childhood Asthma Linkages in Missouri ( CALM ) program to sustain such programs. METHODS Researchers analyzed caregiverâreported quantitative data regarding asthmaârelated outcomes in preintervention and postintervention surveys and qualitative data regarding sustainability efforts in schools reported by CALM grantees. A grounded theory approach was used to identify key concepts and themes that emerged. RESULTS In 330 children, significant improvements were seen in asthma symptoms, rescue inhaler use, health care utilization, school absenteeism, and activity limitations. Overall, 27 schoolâbased policy and practice changes supporting program sustainability were reported, with policy changes most often concerning the assessment and/or monitoring of children with asthma in the school setting, and practice changes most often regarding institution of regular asthma education programs for students and school personnel. CONCLUSIONS Sustaining schoolâbased asthma programs is challenging, but can be realized through the participation of diverse partners in enacting policy and practice changes that support the institutionalization of programs into the dayâtoâday processes of the schools.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/101775/1/josh12104.pd
Large Dog Relinquishment to Two Municipal Facilities in New York City and Washington, D.C.: Identifying Targets for Intervention
While the overall trend in euthanasia has been decreasing nationally, large dogs are at a higher risk of euthanasia than other sized dogs in most animal shelters in the United States. We hypothesized one way to increase the lives saved with respect to these large dogs is to keep them home when possible. In order to develop solutions to decrease relinquishment, a survey was developed to learn more about the reasons owners relinquish large dogs. The survey was administered to owners relinquishing their dogs at two large municipal facilities, one in New York City and one in Washington, D.C. There were 157 responses between the two facilities. We found both significant similarities and differences between respondents and their dogs from the two cities. We identified opportunities to potentially support future relinquishers and found that targets for interventions are likely different in each community
Supporting the Literacy Development of Children Living in Homeless Shelters
Insights into how educators can create greater classroom support for homeless children, particularly in literacy learning and development, are provided in this article
Influence of technology on social interaction and play in autistic children
The social and communication differences associated with autism can make
engaging in social play difficult for autistic children. However, it has been suggested
that digital technologies could motivate or inspire autistic children to communicate
with other people and engage in collaborative play. This conflicts with the increasing
concerns from parents and practitioners around the impact of technologies on social
interaction in children and young people, which could be exacerbated in autistic
children due to the aforementioned difficulties in social interaction. This thesis
includes five studies which aim to explore whether and how technology can provide
opportunities for autistic children to engage in social play with peers.
Chapter 1 outlines the context and rationale for exploring the influence of technology
on social play and interaction in autistic children. In neurotypical children, technology
is likely to have small or negligible effects on social development. A number of studies
have shown that features of technology, such as the interface and the software
design, can encourage social interaction. Autism is associated with social differences
and difficulties in social interaction, and a number of technologies have been
designed to teach or mediate social interaction in autistic children, with relative
success. A further number of studies have suggested that autistic children are more
likely to engage in social play and interaction when using digital technologies. Chapter
2 provides a brief overview of key issues in autism research and justifies some of the
research methodologies chosen in the remainder of the thesis.
Chapter 3 explored how educational practitioners used technology in classrooms with
autistic students. In an online survey, practitioners said that they more frequently used
technology to teach social skills to autistic students, rather than to facilitate peer
interactions. Respondents also said that technologies such as smart boards, tablets,
and computers were used more widely than more recently developed technologies,
such as tangibles and robotics. These results were followed up by focus groups, where practitioners highlighted that different features of interfaces made children
more aware of social partners and could sometimes encourage or inhibit interactions
depending on childrenâs social interaction style and technological preferences.
According to practitioners, children who were interested in technology would be more
likely to socially benefit from it, than others who were less interested in technology.
Chapters 4 and 5 reported on a design-based research study, in collaboration with
educational practitioners, to explore the influence of different technologies and
classroom environments on childrenâs social interactions and play. The main finding
was that children interacted differently both with technologies and with other people,
and that different apps and technological interfaces produced unique patterns of
social interactions. Children engaged in more social play with peers while using the
iPad and Code-A-Pillar technologies, and more social play with adults while using
Osmo. Novelty appeared to have the strongest environmental influence on social
interactions in digital environments, even more than creating collaborative spaces
and having practitioners directing childrenâs social play.
Chapters 6 and 7 compared social play and joint engagement in pairs of children
while they played with digital and non-digital toys and explored the effect of enforced
collaboration. The results showed that children engaged in more social play and joint
engagement when using digital toys. Enforcing collaboration led to more interactive
play and joint engagement in both digital and non-digital conditions. This suggests
that technology itself can strongly mediate social interaction in autistic children,
perhaps more than the childrenâs own interests and social interaction styles.
Together, the studies within this thesis highlight that there are many ways in which
autistic children engage with other people while using digital technologies, and many
opportunities to foster these interactions in classroom settings. In conclusion, as
summarised in chapter 8, technologies do influence social interaction in autistic
children, but so do childrenâs social interaction styles and preferences, the wider classroom environment including adult roles, and so do particular technological
interfaces and software. In terms of how technology mediates interaction, it can
provide a socially inclusive space where children can jointly engage with others on
devices and activities which interest them, provide an engaging environment where
others can scaffold interaction (i.e. practitioners), or the technology itself can mediate
child-led interactions through childrenâs interests
Systems Thinking in a Second Grade Curriculum: Students Engaged to Address a Statewide Drought
Faced with issues, such as drought and climate change, educators around the world acknowledge the need for developing studentsâ ability to solve problems within and across contexts. A systems thinking pedagogy, which recognizes interdependence and interconnected relationships among concrete elements and abstract concepts (Meadows, 2008; Senge et al., 2012), has potential to transform the classroom into a space of observing, theorizing, discovering, and analyzing, thus linking academic learning to the real world. In a qualitative case study in one school located in a major metropolitan area in California, USA teachers and their 7- and 8-year-old students used systems thinking in an interdisciplinary project-based curriculum. Through reflection and investigations, students devised solutions and used innovative approaches to publicly engage peers and family members in taking action to address an environmental crisis
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