Worsening staffing challenges in special education have led to increased reliance on emergency permits to staff special education positions, but there is little large-scale quantitative evidence about special education teachers (SETs) who entered the workforce with emergency permits. We used longitudinal data from Pennsylvania to study the composition, distribution, and stability of emergency permitted special education teachers (EPSETs). EPSETs were more racially and ethnically diverse than other novice SETs, and they disproportionately taught in schools serving more historically disadvantaged students. EPSETs of color were more likely to leave the workforce and were less likely to transition to full certification than other EPSETs, as were EPSETs in schools with higher percentages of students of color in a district. Efforts to retain and fully credential EPSETs of color and EPSETs in harder-to-staff schools are one mechanism to improve the racial and ethnic diversity of the SET workforce and address special education staffing challenges.
Elizabeth Burnett Rossi, Brittney L. Goscicki, Aunna M. Colter
et al.
Behavior intervention plans (BIPs) represent an important document in communicating a set of strategies to ameliorate behavior problems of students with disabilities. However, little is known about how in-service teachers implement a range of these strategies. Using a large-scale survey, this study examined teachers’ use of 18 behavior support strategies and statistical predictors of their use. Respondents included 655 certified special educators (pre-K through transition) with at least one student with a BIP. Results indicated that teachers use general strategies, like modeling and consistent routines, most frequently and specialized strategies, like visual schedules or token economies, least frequently. Factor analyses showed that teachers package these strategies into three factors: General Behavior Supports, Promoting Independence Supports, and Specialized Behavior Supports. Some statistical predictors were unique to one factor, while others, like behavioral internship experiences and school supports, were consistent across all factors. In addition, teachers who had caseloads with neither an emotional disturbance (ED) nor autism diagnosis implemented behavior support strategies less frequently. Future research, training, and policy implications are discussed.
Mauricio Echiburu, José L. Marcos, René Ríos
et al.
In 1949, Captain Alberto Larraguibel and his horse Huaso set the world record for equestrian high jump in Viña del Mar, Chile, by clearing a height of 2.47 meters, a mark that remains unbeaten. This work proposes the use of this historical event as a teaching resource for physics, integrating perspectives from biomechanics and veterinary medicine. Based on the analysis of an audiovisual record of the jump, a kinematic model is developed using the \textit{Tracker} software, determining variables such as displacement, velocity, and acceleration of the horse--rider system. The results make it possible to reflect on the biomechanical and physiological factors involved in animal performance, thus linking physics with real biological processes. It is proposed that this interdisciplinary approach, based on authentic cultural and scientific contexts, may promote meaningful learning, motivation, and a more comprehensive understanding of natural phenomena in science education.
Candi Running Bear, Fred Spooner, Belva C. Collins
et al.
Distance education delivery via technology is not new to education, and the COVID-19 pandemic increased this type of instruction throughout the United States. Distance education delivery to preschoolers can be challenging, since young children, especially those with developmental delays, may not have the skills or attention span to be distance learners. On the contrary, effective distance education delivery for young children is possible. Shared reading is an evidence-based practice that promotes early literacy and is traditionally used in a face-to-face format. In this model program description, an instructional team adapted shared reading for distance education delivery to three Native American preschoolers with developmental delays in the rural southwest to determine their engagement at a distance. Results from the model program evaluation demonstrated that shared reading can be successfully implemented with remote preschoolers to increase their engagement. Suggestions are offered for others who may find it necessary to implement similar distance delivery with young children.
Krasavina Yulia, Ponomarenko Ekaterina, Shishkina Anastasia
et al.
The digital divide is a concept that has been explained as deficiencies in accessing and mastering new technologies caused by economic, social, or personal reasons. Overcoming the digital divide is a crucial social issue that implies focused research on digital literacy in the most vulnerable groups. Objectives. This study is aimed at assessing operational digital literacy in deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) university students and revealing potential grounds for hearing disability digital divide. Methods. The selection of study participants involved purposive sampling. Qualitative data on learning experiences in digital media were collected through verbal protocol sessions, diary entries, and semi-structured interviews with DHH university students. Grounded theory (open and axial coding) was used to analyse the data collected during interviews and verbal protocol sessions. Data collected from diary entries were analysed with Voyant Tools. Results. The main findings were categorised into: the use of the Internet and mobile applications, the digital divide, the use of text editors and spreadsheet programs, document creation and editing, and Internet search. The digital divide phenomenon in DHH students was described through the causal paradigm model. Conclusions. The study clarifies the difficulties that DHH participants faced in every stage of completing experimental tasks in the digital environment and provides arguments for proving that the grounds for the hearing disability digital divide are rooted in the lack of reading, writing, and written communication skills and not technical skills. The study also revealed the students' 'survival' strategies to overcome difficulties with poor reading skills and perceiving auditory information.
The term artificial intelligence (AI) first appeared in the mid-20th century. It wasn't until well into the 21st century that AI began to flourish. Today, AI has found very diverse applications. One area that is just beginning to be explored is physics education. The aim of this work is to contribute to this burgeoning educational field through a ChatGPT application named Networked Observatory for Virtual Astronomy (NOVA). This application provides students with simulated astronomical data in a ChatGPT-based environment, where they can put their scientific skills to work by formulating hypotheses, analyzing data, and drawing verifiable conclusions through interaction with ChatGPT.
Conventional research on educational effects typically either employs a "years of schooling" measure of education, or dichotomizes attainment as a point-in-time treatment. Yet, such a conceptualization of education is misaligned with the sequential process by which individuals make educational transitions. In this paper, I propose a causal mediation framework for the study of educational effects on outcomes such as earnings. The framework considers the effect of a given educational transition as operating indirectly, via progression through subsequent transitions, as well as directly, net of these transitions. I demonstrate that the average treatment effect (ATE) of education can be additively decomposed into mutually exclusive components that capture these direct and indirect effects. The decomposition has several special properties which distinguish it from conventional mediation decompositions of the ATE, properties which facilitate less restrictive identification assumptions as well as identification of all causal paths in the decomposition. An analysis of the returns to high school completion in the NLSY97 cohort suggests that the payoff to a high school degree stems overwhelmingly from its direct labor market returns. Mediation via college attendance, completion and graduate school attendance is small because of individuals' low counterfactual progression rates through these subsequent transitions.
Nicolle Gonçalves Moreira, Maria Clara Borges Gomes, Samuel Molina Schnorr
O presente trabalho objetivou avaliar o potencial de um modelo didático tátil de uma serpente do Cerrado voltado para alunos com Deficiência Visual (DV). Realizamos entrevistas com professores da Sala de Recursos Multifuncionais (SRM) específica para estudantes com DV de uma escola pública, a fim de avaliar o modelo produzido e sua aplicabilidade, bem como entender melhor o funcionamento da SRM. Foi feita uma observação com três alunos da SRM para que eles avaliassem o modelo junto a um professor da sala. No geral, o modelo demonstrou ser adequado para discentes com DV, sendo avaliado positivamente tanto pelos professores quanto pelos alunos, com algumas ressalvas quanto à adequação para estudantes com baixa visão e quanto ao entendimento apenas pela descrição.
Maria Gabriela Pissinati Trindade, Melyna Gonçalves de Rezende, Leandro da Silva Barcellos
et al.
Este estudo discute o processo de criação e validação do jogo digital Gametum, desenvolvido para ser um recurso para o ensino da divisão celular e gametogênese, no intuito de auxiliar o trabalho docente. Utilizamos uma abordagem de pesquisa qualitativa exploratória, com coleta de dados por meio de questionários com perguntas, durante uma validação por pares com professores e graduandos, além de uma aplicação em uma turma de ensino médio. Os resultados e opiniões dos graduandos indicam uma recepção positiva do jogo, evidenciando a familiaridade desses discentes com a sua utilização e considerando-o como um recurso atrativo. Os professores participantes avaliaram Gametum como uma proposta válida para revisão de conteúdos, destacando sua utilidade como uma dinâmica para fixação. Dentre as sugestões de alterações fornecidas pelos avaliadores estão a inclusão de instruções mais detalhadas e modificações no design, as quais foram incorporadas à versão final. Concluímos que Gametum pode ser um recurso viável para professores utilizarem no ensino da divisão celular em Biologia, auxiliando no aprendizado dos conteúdos relacionados.
Maricleide Pereira de Lima Mendes, Iago Lima Cerqueira
Este estudo aborda a concepção de práticas educativas para o Ensino de Ciências na Educação do Campo. O objetivo central foi realizar uma revisão de literatura em periódicos nacionais sobre a concepção de práticas pedagógicas voltadas para o ensino de Ciências na Educação do Campo. Fundamentado em autores como: Arroyo (2006), Caldart (2012), Freire (1997, 2011), Souza (2012), Augusto e Mendes (2022), a pesquisa qualitativa exploratória baseou-se na análise de seis artigos (2 na Scielo e 4 na Revista Brasileira de Educação do Campo) publicados entre 2018 e 2023. A Educação do Campo, com suas especificidades e desafios, destaca-se pela necessidade de contextualização e interdisciplinaridade no ensino de Ciências. A conclusão aponta para existência de desafios a serem superados e a importância incontestável da continuidade de pesquisas na área, ressaltando a complexidade da modalidade educacional e a necessidade de abordagens específicas para promover uma educação de qualidade no campo.
Baessler, Franziska, Zafar, Ali, Koelkebeck, Katja
et al.
Objectives: Physicians and psychologists at psychiatric university hospitals are assigned teaching tasks from the first day of work without necessarily having the prerequisite training in teaching methods. This exploratory survey provides a needs-based analysis for the prospective didactic training of physicians and psychologists at psychiatric hospitals in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.Methods: An online questionnaire was distributed at medical schools via email in German-speaking countries in Europe. All physicians involved in teaching medical students at psychiatry faculties were eligible to participate in the survey. Participants were further requested to recruit eligible participants (snowball sampling). Responses were analyzed descriptively, and differences between groups were calculated using nonparametric Mann-Whitney U tests (p<.05).Results: Overall, 97 respondents (male=55, female=42; mean age= 40.6) from 19 medical schools completed the survey. The respondents consisted of 43 residents, 39 specialists, 6 chief physicians and 9 psychologists. Of the respondents, 97.6% rated didactic competence as either highly relevant or rather relevant for teaching medical students. The highest overall interest was shown for bedside teaching (mode=4; IQR: 2-4) and error culture (mode=3; IQR: 2-4). Respondents expressed the highest training needs for topics regarding presentation and communication (mode=3; IQR: 2-3). Resident physicians were significantly more interested in bedside teaching (U=362.0, p=0.004) and roleplay (U=425.0; p=0.036) than specialist physicians, who were more interested in examination didactics (U=415.0; p=0.022). Chief physicians displayed significantly deeper interest in group dynamics (U=51; p=0.023) than specialist physicians. In-person training was preferred by a majority of respondents, and 27.4% preferred online/web-based training.Conclusions: The majority of physicians and psychologists at psychiatric university hospitals considered professional development for faculty to be helpful for teaching medical students. Bedside teaching and error culture management were the most desired teaching topics for training medical teachers. Tailored educational interventions are recommended, with target-oriented priorities for different hierarchical levels.
Venkat Rao Vishnumolakala, Adam H. Larson, Sheila S. Qureshi
et al.
Recent studies have identified various factors influencing how medical students choose medical specialties. An important factor that has been overlooked is learning approach. For Qatar-based medical students aspiring to train overseas, specialty preference often hinges on the relationships between learning approach and career values. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was employed to explore the relationships between learning approach, career values, and specialty preference. Data were collected from two surveys of 108 medical students at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q): the Revised Two-Factor Study Process Questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F) to assess learning approach and the adapted version of the How Medical Students Choose Questionnaire (HMSCQ) to assess career values and specialty preferences. The results showed significant correlations between learning approach, career values, and specialty preference. Surface learning approach correlated with seeking prestige, imitating role models, and valuing a varied scope of practice while deep learning approach correlated with interest in research and hospital-based careers. Our model accounted for variances in specialty preference to the following degrees: internal medicine (38%), family medicine (25%), neurology (27%), and psychiatry (18%). Medical students in Qatar adopt the learning approach that helps them achieve their career goals and matches their perceptions of medical specialties. Medical educators can foster a deeper learning approach by helping students to clarify their aims for pursuing a medical career, providing early exposure to medical specialties, and fostering a research mindset to enhance intrinsic curiosity. Students interested in physician research careers should be provided opportunities to pursue independent research.
Mai M. A. Shehata, Dalia M. Kamel, Nisreen A. Helmy
et al.
Background and Study Aim. Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) affects a significant proportion of women, impacting their daily lives and well-being. The association between physical activity levels, the prevalence of premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and the severity of PMS remains debatable. Therefore, this study aimed to identify physical activity levels among a cohort of Egyptian females with PMS.
Material and Methods. This study included one hundred females with PMS. Physical activity levels, anaerobic power, aerobic capacity, BMI, and dysmenorrhea were investigated. PMS severity was assessed using the Premenstrual Syndrome Scale (PMSS), and the females' physical activity was evaluated using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). The 1-mile submaximal test and the Running-Based Anaerobic Sprint Test (RAST) were used to assess aerobic capacity and anaerobic power, respectively.
Results. The findings revealed a significant association between PMS severity and physical activity (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in aerobic capacity among those with mild, moderate, and severe PMS (p > 0.05). There was no significant association between PMS severity and marital status (p > 0.05), whereas there was a significant association with dysmenorrhea (p < 0.05), especially among moderate and severe PMS sufferers. Females with severe PMS had a significantly higher BMI than those with mild PMS (p < 0.05) and those with moderate PMS (p < 0.05). Mild and moderate PMS females showed no significant difference in BMI (p > 0.05).
Conclusions. It can be concluded that physical activity levels and BMI may affect PMS. Therefore, being physically active and maintaining a normal-range BMI might reduce PMS severity.
Peter Nicolai Aashamar, Kirsti Klette, Anders Stig Christensen
Purpose: The study aimed at investigating the prevalence and characteristics of classroom practices geared at promoting higher-order social studies thinking, and the potential dilemma for teachers between focusing on explaining knowledge to and intellectually challenging students.
Design/methodology/approach: A comparative design using data from naturalistic classroom observations of 80 social studies lessons in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. We deployed the PLATO observation system to systematically measure intellectual challenge and the conceptual complexity of teacher explanations across the three countries.
Findings: We found evidence that many teachers promoted higher-order thinking to varying degrees within and across the three countries. Furthermore, Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish teachers seemed to focus on different teaching practices related to higher-order thinking.
Practical implications: These findings provide important empirical knowledge about naturally occurring classroom practices in the Nordic context that may be relevant for teachers to reflect on higher-order thinking in social studies.
Special aspects of education, Social sciences (General)
Kyrie Zhixuan Zhou, Yilin Zhu, Jingwen Shan
et al.
Sex education helps children obtain knowledge and awareness of sexuality, and protects them against sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy, and sexual abuse. Sex education is not well taught to children in China -- both school-based education and parental communication on this topic are limited. To interrogate the status quo of sex education in China and explore suitable interventions, we conducted a series of formative studies including interviews and social media analysis. Multiple stakeholders such as children, parents, education practitioners, and the general public were engaged for an in-depth understanding of their unique needs regarding teaching and learning sex education. We found that school-based sex education for Chinese children was currently insufficient and restrictive. Involving parents in sex education posed several challenges, such as a lack of sexuality and pedagogy knowledge, and embarrassment in initiating sex education conversations. Culture and politics were major hurdles to effective sex education. Based on the findings, we reflect on the complex interactions between culture, politics, education policy, and pedagogy, and discuss situated design of sex education in broader cultural and social contexts.
John C. Howell, Brian Flores, Juan Javier Naranjo
et al.
We report on an educational pilot program for low-cost physics experimentation run in Ecuador, South Africa, and the United States. The program was developed after having needs-based discussions with African educators, researchers, and leaders. It was determined that the need and desire for low-cost, skills-building, and active-learning tools is very high. From this, we developed a 3D-printable, Raspberry Pi-based multispectral camera (15 to 25 spectral channels in the visible and near-IR) for as little as $100. The program allows students to learn 3D modeling, 3D printing, feedback, control, image analysis, Python programming, systems integration and artificial intelligence as well as spectroscopy. After completing their cameras, the students in the program studied plant health, plant stress, post-harvest fruit ripeness, and polarization and spectral analysis of nanostructured insect wings, the latter of which won the ``best-applied research" award at a conference poster session and will be highlighted in this paper. Importantly, these cameras can be an integral part of any developing country's agricultural, recycling, medical, and pharmaceutical infrastructure. Thus, we believe this experiment can play an important role at the intersection of student training and developing countries' capacity building.
Cyberattacks frequently target higher educational institutions, making cybersecurity awareness and resilience critical for students. However, limited research exists on cybersecurity awareness, attitudes, and resilience among students in higher education. This study addresses this gap using the Theory of Planned Behavior as a theoretical framework. A modified Human Aspects of Information Security Questionnaire was employed to gather 266 valid responses from undergraduate and postgraduate students at a South African higher education institution. Key dimensions of cybersecurity awareness and behavior, including password management, email usage, social media practices, and mobile device security, were assessed. A significant disparity in cybersecurity awareness and practices, with postgraduate students demonstrating superior performance across several dimensions was noted. This research postulates the existence of a Cybersecurity-Education Inflection Point during the transition to postgraduate studies, coined as the Cybersecurity-Resilience Gap. These concepts provide a foundation for developing targeted cybersecurity education initiatives in higher education, particularly highlighting the need for earlier intervention at the undergraduate level.
Educational disparities within the Dominican Republic (DR) have long-standing origins rooted in economic, political, and social inequity. Addressing these challenges has necessarily called for capacity building with respect to educational materials, high-quality instruction, and structural resourcing. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT have begun to pique the interest of Dominican educators due to their perceived potential to bridge these educational gaps. However, a substantial body of AI fairness literature has documented ways AI disproportionately reinforces power dynamics reflective of jurisdictions driving AI development and deployment policies, collectively termed the AI Global North. As such, indiscriminate adoption of this technology for DR education, even in part, risks perpetuating forms of digital coloniality. Therefore, this paper centers embracing AI-facilitated educational reform by critically examining how AI-driven tools like ChatGPT in DR education may replicate facets of digital colonialism. We provide a concise overview of 20th-century Dominican education reforms following the 1916 US occupation. Then, we employ identified neocolonial aspects historically shaping Dominican education to interrogate the perceived advantages of ChatGPT for contemporary Dominican education, as outlined by a Dominican scholar. This work invites AI Global North & South developers, stakeholders, and Dominican leaders alike to exercise a relational contextualization of data-centric epistemologies like ChatGPT to reap its transformative benefits while remaining vigilant of safeguarding Dominican digital sovereignty.
Uncertainty is an important and fundamental concept in physics education. Students are often first exposed to uncertainty in introductory labs, expand their knowledge across lab courses, and then are introduced to quantum mechanical uncertainty in upper-division courses. This study is part of a larger project evaluating student thinking about uncertainty across these contexts. In this research, we investigate advanced physics student thinking about uncertainty by asking them conceptual questions about how a hypothetical distribution of measurements would change if `more' or `better' data were collected in four different experimental scenarios. The scenarios include both classical and quantum experiments, as well as experiments that theoretically result in an expected single value or an expected distribution. This investigation is motivated by our goal of finding insights into students' potential point- and set-like thinking about uncertainty and of shining light on the limitations of those binary paradigms.
Physics Education Research (PER) studies have demonstrated that undergraduate students struggle with fundamental principles from Electromagnetism (EM) and Special Relativity (SR). However, few studies have approached the intersection of the two subjects: the role which EM played in inspiring the development of SR. To address this issue, this paper presents two simulations which highlight the fundamental role of electromagnetism in special relativity. The first simulation demonstrates the Lorentz Transformations and the origin of the Gamma Factor from Maxwell's Equations. The second simulation offers an experiential introduction to the Biot-Savart Law, from which the Displacement Current in Ampere-Maxwell's Law can be derived. These programs may be useful in an undergraduate electromagnetism course. The simulations discussed in this paper are available at the link given in the footnote.