Etiology of reading difficulties as a function of gender and severity     

Jesse L. Hawke  Sally J. Wadsworth  Richard K. Olson  John C. DeFries 《Reading and writing》2007,20(1-2):13-25

To test the hypothesis that the etiology of reading difficulties may differ for males and females in more severely impaired samples, reading performance data from monozygotic (MZ), same-sex dizygotic (DZ_ss), and opposite-sex dizygotic (DZ_os) twin pairs were analyzed using a model-fitting implementation of the DeFries-Fulker (DF) model (Purcell & Sham, 2003, Behavior genetics, 33, 271–278). Five non-independent samples were selected using cut-offs of −1 (N = 737 pairs), −1.5 (N = 654), −2 (N = 468), −2.5 (N = 335), and −3 (N = 198) standard deviations (s) below the mean composite reading score of control twins. Male/female gender ratios for children with reading difficulties were significantly higher than 1.0 for all five samples and increased as a function of severity (viz., 1.15, 1.17, 1.40, 1.61, and 1.88, respectively). When the DF model was fit to the data, estimates of heritability (h _g²) and shared environmental influences (c _g²) were not significantly different for males and females in any of the groups. Consequently, the most parsimonious model that provided a good fit to the data at all five levels of severity equated the heritabilities and shared environmental influences for males and females, and fixed the DZ_os coefficient of genetic relatedness at 0.5. Thus, these results provide no evidence for a differential etiology of reading difficulties as a function of gender in more severely impaired samples, and suggest that the same genetic and environmental influences contribute to reading difficulties in males and females, irrespective of severity.  相似文献   

Head Start in Transition     

Sally Lubeck  Mary DeVries  Julie Nicholson  Jackie Post 《Early education and development》1997,8(3):219-244

This article explores the history of Head Start, the federal early education program for economically disadvantaged preschool children in the United States, as a way of understanding what it means to talk about change in the late twentieth century. The history of Head Start has been a story of administrative changes and improvement and accountability initiatives in the realm of public policy, a ominant narrative of progress and rational planning that is consonant with a large, centralized governance structure. In an effort to create another way of conceiving of the organization, we first examine shifting definitions and conflicting interpretations of parental involvement and staff development within the program to reveal some of the tensions inherent in all human endeavors. We then draw on interviews with women who work in and are served by Head Start to show how needs and resources vary and how policy mandates can have differential—and unintended—effects. In the conclusion, we suggest, following Toulmin (1990), that the certainty and stability that has characterized public policy since the Enlightment must now be tempered with a postmodern recognition of change, complexity, and variability. Rather than one history, we see many histories. Instead of one approach, we see value in tailoring improvement initiatives to the needs of families and staff in specific circumstances.  相似文献   

The Development of Health Knowledge in Low-Income Mexican-American Children     

Norma Olvera-Ezzell  Thomas G. Power  Jennifer H. Cousins  Ana Maria Guerra  Marisela Trujillo 《Child development》1994,65(2):416-427

Children growing up in poverty are at risk for various health problems. For low-income, Mexican-American children, these risks include obesity, diabetes, and accidental injuries, 3 conditions that can largely be prevented by healthy life-styles. Despite the potential for prevention through education leading to health-promoting behaviors, very little is known about the development of health knowledge in this population. The present study examined low-income, Mexican-American children's understanding of the relation between health behavior and health status in 3 areas: nutrition, hygiene, and safety. 79 children (41 boys, 38 girls) ages 4 to 8 years participated. Children's knowledge was assessed in a structured play situation conducted in a laboratory setting. Results revealed that children knew the least about the relation between food consumption and their health, and knew the most about beneficial and harmful practices in the areas of safety and hygiene. Age and gender differences were also significant, with girls and older children more likely to provide elaborate and complex rationales for their responses. Implications of the findings for understanding the role of cognitive development and experience in the development of health knowledge are considered.  相似文献   

Teachers' and Pupils' Experiences of Integrated Education in Uganda     

Susanne Arbeiter  Sally Hartley 《International Journal of Disability, Development & Education》2002,49(1):61-78

Under the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme in Uganda, which was implemented in 1997, the idea of integrated education was put into practice. Today children with disabilities are enrolled in regular primary schools in the whole country. After three years of experience with UPE, the aim of this study was to examine the views of teachers about their needs for training and support regarding the task of teaching children with disabilities in ordinary classrooms. A qualitative approach was chosen using individual interviews, focus group discussions with teachers, pupils and head teachers, and observations in classrooms. Three primary schools in different districts of Uganda were selected as research sites. For a number of reasons data collection from the pupils proved problematic but generally the findings confirmed the information drawn from the review of literature. In addition to the high teacher-pupil ratio, there is an alarming lack of resources in the schools and an urgent need for teacher training to meet special needs in the classroom. Despite these difficult conditions found in schools, many teachers had positive attitudes towards integrating children with disabilities, but only a few examples from the classroom observations showed good practice for meeting a diversity of needs.  相似文献   

Making the Case for Budget Reductions: Pierce County Library’s FY2013 Budget     

Neel Parikh  Clifford Jo  Georgia Lomax  Sally Porter Smith 《Public Library Quarterly》2014,33(1):23-75

This article features a discussion about how Pierce County (Washington) Library’s 2013 budgeting process and budget document explain budget cuts and service changes to users and taxpayers within the context of the library’s continuing effort to improve operational efficiency and maintain valued core, customer, and community services. Pierce County Library is an independent municipal corporation established by state law and is funded from a separate property tax levy as a junior taxing district.  相似文献   

Principals’ experiences of being evaluated: a phenomenological study     

Oksana Parylo  Sally J. Zepeda  Ed Bengtson 《Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability》2012,24(3):215-238

This phenomenological study sought to understand principals?? lived experiences of being evaluated with reliance on the principles of developmental supervision and adult learning theory. Analysis of interview data from 16 principals revealed 3 major constructs in principal evaluation: evaluation is a complex, constantly changing system; principal evaluation is a year-long continuous process; and, effective principal evaluation is transparent, planned, and aligned with personal and system goals. Principal evaluation incorporated experiential and self-directed learning, and emphasized structure, collaboration, and ownership of the process by principals. Directive informational and collaborative interpersonal approaches were favored by principals and their evaluators. The findings contribute new knowledge about the phenomenon and have implications for reconceptualization and redesign of principal evaluation processes.  相似文献   

Googling "deaf": deafness in the world's English-language press     

Power D 《American annals of the deaf》2006,151(5):513-518

An internet search tool, Google Alert, was used to survey the global English-language press July-December 2005 for references to deaf people. The survey found that such references focus on people who are deaf rather than the disability itself, thus demonstrating how well deaf people fit into the mainstream. Derogatory terminology such as "deaf and dumb" was rare. However, when used metaphorically, the term deaf usually had negative connotations. Implications for the public view of deaf people are considered in this context.  相似文献   

Solving the problem of problem-solving domains     

Susan M. Markle  Sally Droege 《Performance Improvement》1980,19(1):30-50

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The challenges of school inspection practice in demonstrating and improving education quality: stakeholder perceptions in China     

Zheng  Hong  Thomas  Sally 《Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability》2022,34(3):391-422

Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability - This paper presents new evidence that explores the strengths, weaknesses and overall quality of school inspection practice in China. In one...  相似文献