High Quality Visual Arts Education K-8, The Student, The Principal, and The Teacher

The national infrastructure of arts education shows continued rhetorical support, updated visual art standards, attributes in 21st century learning frameworks, and research affirming arts disciplines as a core subject still valued today. Concerns from the past, however, show and continue to portend a cloudy future for visual arts education against high profile national standards and high stakes assessments focused on mathematics, language arts, and science. This study provides four views of visual arts education: (a) current research, advocacy, and national and state standards supporting sustained high-quality visual arts education (HQVAE); (b) a renewed look at the Discipline-Based Art Education (Greer, 1984) approach to curriculum and pedagogy; (c) theoretical support of the art development stages in grades K-8; and (d) current analysis of the relationship between principal and teacher experiences and attitudes as they influence high quality visual arts education in northwest Washington State county schools (Catterall & Peppler, 2007; Winner & Hetland, 2007). In addition, it is hypothesized that visual arts education correlates with students’ positive educational outcomes including indicators of student capabilities and motivation achievement to support learning across the curriculum (Arts Education Partnership, 2013)

A Survey of the Design and Implementation of Teacher Evaluation Systems in Tennessee Public Schools

The purpose of this study was to provide a data base for making pertinent decisions concerning future directions for teacher evaluation in the State of Tennessee. The study specifically compared perceptions and attitudes of administrators toward evaluation purposes, implementation, methodology, degree of importance, and results of implementation. Data were categorized on the basis of administrative position, school level, size of school system, and years of experience. A survey questionnaire was developed by the researcher and mailed to a random sample of superintendents, supervisors, and principals in Tennessee. Data were reported by percent of relative frequency of responses and cross tabulations were compared using the chi square statistic. The major findings of the study were as follows: 1. The two most important purposes of teacher evaluation were improvement of instruction and increase in job performance. 2. Principals were perceived by administrators as the person most involved in teacher evaluation. 3. Teacher checklists were the most popular method of teacher evaluation. Evaluation by objectives and· setting job targets were used by 50 percent of the respondents. Classroom observations by the principal (92 percent) and supervisor (65 percent) were acceptable and desirable methods of teacher evaluation. Pre-observation conferences and post-observation conferences by principals and supervisors were acceptable and desirable methods of teacher evaluation. Student test data and competency tests for teachers were not used to a high degree by school systems and were considered an undesirable method of teacher evaluation. 4. Teacher evaluation ranked fifth in importance of eight functions of a principal. 5. Administrators indicated that an average of three hours was spent in a teacher\u27s evaluation in one year\u27s time; whereas, six hours should be spent per teacher each year for evaluation. Teachers are observed four times per year, but should be observed five times during an evaluation year. The desired and actual length of classroom observations was 30 minutes. 6. Due process is being followed relative to reviewing evaluation documents, the right to make written comments, receiving a copy of the evaluation, and being informed of the evaluation appeal process. 7. The greatest number of significant differences in perceptions and attitudes toward teacher evaluation existed when data were analyzed by size of school system rather than system level, position, or years of experience. 8. The overall evaluation process was rated by administrators in Tennessee as good (42 percent), fair (48 percent), and poor (9 percent). Based on the survey of the literature and the data gathered and analyzed in this study the following conclusions were reached: 1. There was general agreement regarding purposes, methodology, degree of importance, involvement, and results of implementation of teacher evaluation among superintendents, supervisors, and principals. 2. The evaluation system in Tennessee appears to be a result of a combination of factors including low priority placed on evaluation by administrators, lack of skills of effective evaluation procedures, and inadequate amount of time devoted to the evaluation process. 3. Teacher checklists are most appropriate in the teacher selection process and lend themselves to the personnel purposes of evaluation. A discrepancy exists between the methods used to evaluate teachers and the most important purposes of teacher evaluation. 4. Administrators want to maintain exclusive control of the evaluation process, rather than allow participation from teachers in the data collection process. 5. The reason for the lack of support for the use of test data is the lack of acceptance of testing techniques if used alone as the basis for teacher evaluation. 6. In order for the 1974 regulation to be effective it will require leadership by the State Department in the development of evaluation methodology, evaluation skills, and improved attitudes toward evaluation purposes

The political sublime: reading Kok Nam, Mozambican photographer (1939-2012)

Kok Nam began his photographic career at Studio Focus in Lourenço Marques in the 1950s, graduated to the newspaper Notícias and joined Tempo magazine in the early 1970s. Most recently he worked at the journal Savana as a photojournalist and later director. This article opens with an account of the relationship that developed between Kok Nam and the late President Samora Machel, starting with the photo-grapher’s portrait of Machel in Nachingwea in November 1974 before Independence. It traces an arc through the Popular Republic (1976-1990) from political revelation at its inception to the difficult years of civil war and Machel’s death in the plane crash at Mbuzini in 1986. The article then engages in a series of photo-commentaries across a selection of Kok Nam’s photographs, several published in their time but others selected retrospectively by Kok Nam for later exhibition and circulation. The approach taken is that of ‘association’, exploring the connections between the photographs, their histories both then and in the intervening years and other artifacts and mediums of cultural expression that deal with similar issues or signifiers picked up in the images. Among the signifiers picked up in the article are soldiers, pigs, feet, empty villages, washing, doves and bridges. The central argument is that Kok Nam participated with many others in a kind of collective hallucination during the Popular Republic, caught up in the ‘political sublime’. Later Kok Nam shows many signs of a photographic ‘second thinking’ that sought out a more delicate sublime in his own archive.Department of HE and Training approved lis

Health Inequities Researchers Need to Engage Municipal Governments

The body of research on health inequities doesn’t offer enough guidance to municipal governments. Too much emphasis is placed on individual behaviour and biomedical solutions (like access to health care services and drugs). Researchers need to offer governments more policy advice on health inequities.York's Knowledge Mobilization Unit provides services and funding for faculty, graduate students, and community organizations seeking to maximize the impact of academic research and expertise on public policy, social programming, and professional practice. It is supported by SSHRC and CIHR grants, and by the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation. [email protected] www.researchimpact.c

The role of urban municipal governments in reducing health inequities: A meta-narrative mapping analysis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The 1986 Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion coincided with a preponderance of research, worldwide, on the social determinants of health and health inequities. Despite the establishment of a 'health inequities knowledge base', the precise roles for municipal governments in reducing health inequities at the local level remain poorly defined. The objective of this study was to monitor thematic trends in this knowledge base over time, and to track scholarly prescriptions for municipal government intervention on local health inequities.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Using meta-narrative mapping, four bodies of scholarly literature - 'health promotion', 'Healthy Cities', 'population health' and 'urban health' - that have made substantial contributions to the health inequities knowledge base were analyzed over the 1986-2006 timeframe. Article abstracts were retrieved from the four literature bodies using three electronic databases (PubMed, Sociological Abstracts, Web of Science), and coded for bibliographic characteristics, article themes and determinants of health profiles, and prescriptions for municipal government interventions on health inequities.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>1004 journal abstracts pertaining to health inequities were analyzed. The overall quantity of abstracts increased considerably over the 20 year timeframe, and emerged primarily from the 'health promotion' and 'population health' literatures. 'Healthy lifestyles' and 'healthcare' were the most commonly emphasized themes in the abstracts. Only 17% of the abstracts articulated prescriptions for municipal government interventions on local health inequities. Such interventions included public health campaigns, partnering with other governments and non-governmental organizations for health interventions, and delivering effectively on existing responsibilities to improve health outcomes and reduce inequities. Abstracts originating from Europe, and from the 'Healthy Cities' and 'urban health' literatures, were most vocal regarding potential avenues for municipal government involvement on health inequities.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study has demonstrated a pervasiveness of 'behavioural' and 'biomedical' perspectives, and a lack of consideration afforded to the roles and responsibilities of municipal governments, among the health inequities scholarly community. Thus, despite considerable research activity over the past two decades, the 'health inequities knowledge base' inadequately reflects the complex aetiology of, and solutions to, population health inequities.</p

Memory burns

Among the photograph collections at Mayibuye, especially from IDAF, are numerous contact sheets. The contact sheet was part of the toolkit of the photographer in the time of analogue photography. The contact sheet is an assembly, the vertical layering of horizontal lines of film so that one synoptic glance can show what is represented in a roll of processed negative film that holds 36 frames. If the strips are placed in the correct order, you can see the number of each frame in the right order from one to 36, which represents the sequence in which the photos were taken

The blur of history: Student protest and photographic clarity in South African universities, 2015–2016

I have three points I would like to put forward – about strong photographs, about clarity and about blur. I also have a number of photographs dating from October 2015 at the University of the Western Cape that will be planted through the text as the argument unfolds.DHE

Cervical preparation for first trimester surgical abortion.

BACKGROUND: Preparing the cervix prior to surgical abortion is intended to make the procedure both easier and safer. Options for cervical preparation include osmotic dilators and pharmacologic agents. Many formulations and regimens are available, and recommendations from professional organizations vary for the use of preparatory techniques in women of different ages, parity or gestational age of the pregnancy. OBJECTIVES: To determine whether cervical preparation is necessary in the first trimester, and if so, which preparatory agent is preferred. SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched Cochrane, Popline, Embase, Medline and Lilacs databases for randomised controlled trials investigating the use of cervical preparatory techniques prior to first trimester surgical abortion. In addition, we hand-searched key references and contacted authors to locate unpublished studies or studies not identified in the database searches. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised controlled trials investigating any pharmacologic or mechanical method of cervical preparation, with the exception of nitric oxide donors (the subject of another Cochrane review), administered prior to first trimester surgical abortion were included. Outcome measures must have included the amount of cervical dilation achieved, the procedure duration or difficulty, side-effects, patient satisfaction or adverse events to be included in this review. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Trials under consideration were evaluated by considering whether inclusion criteria were met as well as methodologic quality. Fifty-one studies were included, resulting in 24 different cervical preparation comparisons. Results are reported as odds ratios (OR) for dichotomous outcomes and weighted mean differences for continuous data. MAIN RESULTS: When compared to placebo, misoprostol (400-600 microg given vaginally or sublingually), gemeprost, mifepristone (200 or 600 mg), prostaglandin E and F(2alpha) (2.5 mg administered intracervically) demonstrated larger cervical preparation effects. When misoprostol was compared to gemeprost, misoprostol was more effective in preparing the cervix and was associated with fewer gastrointestinal side-effects. For vaginal administration, administration 2 hours prior was less effective than administration 3 hours prior to the abortion. Compared to oral misoprostol administration, the vaginal route was associated with significantly greater initial cervical dilation and lower rates of side-effects; however, sublingual administration 2-3 hours prior to the procedure demonstrated cervical effects superior to vaginal administration.When misoprostol (600 microg oral or 800 microg vaginal) was compared to mifepristone (200 mg administered 24 hours prior to procedure), misoprostol had inferior cervical preparatory effects. Compared to day-prior laminaria tents, 200 or 400 microg vaginal misoprostol showed no differences in the need for further mechanical dilation or length of the procedure; similarly, the osmotic dilators Lamicel and Dilapan showed no differences in cervical ripening when compared to gemeprost, although gemeprost had cervical effects which were superior to laminaria tents. Older prostaglandin regimens (sulprostone, prostaglandin E(2) andF(2alpha)) were associated with high rates of gastrointestinal side-effects and unplanned pregnancy expulsions. Few studies reported women's satisfaction with cervical preparatory techniques. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: Modern methods of cervical ripening are generally safe, although efficacy and side-effects between methods vary. Reports of adverse events such as cervical laceration or uterine perforation are uncommon overall in this body of evidence and no published study has investigated whether cervical preparation impacts these rare outcomes. Cervical preparation decreases the length of the abortion procedure; this may become increasingly important with increasing gestational age, as mechanical dilation at later gestational ages takes longer and becomes more difficult. These data do not suggest a gestational age where the benefits of cervical dilation outweigh the side-effects, including pain, that women experience with cervical ripening procedures or the prolongation of the time interval before procedure completion. Mifepristone 200 mg, osmotic dilators and misoprostol, 400microg administered either vaginally or sublingually, are the most effective methods of cervical preparation