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Exploring the Lived Experiences of Rural Southwest Minnesota Teachers in the Spring 2020 Transition to Distance Learning During the COVID-19 Pandemic
No full textThe purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to understand the lived experience of rural teachers in Southwest Minnesota during the spring 2020 transition to distance learning and to unearth any connection between the transition experience and rural teacher retention. The rapid and dramatic transition to distance learning for public schools was a result of the COVID19 pandemic. There was a marked difference in how individual school districts responded to Governor Walz’s mandates regarding school closure. Rural schools faced unique challenges not encountered by metro districts, specifically related to location. Twelve rural Southwest Minnesota career teachers were interviewed using a semi-formal interview protocol. The interviews were conducted virtually. The interview transcripts were member checked, coded, and analyzed for themes. Observation notes supported validity through triangulation of data and reflexivity to reduce researcher bias promoting credibility. Data collection and data analysis were iterative processes. The interviewees identified frustrations, successes, and areas of personal and professional growth as a result of the spring 2020 experience. Collectively, access to resources, internet connectivity, isolation, working parents, student engagement, and social emotional health were obstacles having rural roots. The teachers missed daily in-person contact with their students and viewed distance learning as an inferior instructional delivery model for the majority of their students. Several of the interviewees expressed concerns regarding their own well-being as a result of transitional expectations. In spite of the challenges, the 12 rural teachers professed a continued commitment to rural education for various reasons. Ties to the land and strong relationships were two powerful reasons for their collective commitment to small rural schools
Hydration and Nutrition During Labor
Get PDFBackground/Purpose: Historically women have birthed in their own homes. As birth moved to the hospital, concerns surrounding gastric aspiration following general anesthesia led to restrictive intake policies for laboring women. Current professional recommendations vary regarding nutritional intake in labor. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether there are differences in maternal outcomes when different forms of hydration and nutrition are used during labor. Theoretical Framework: Neuman’s Systems Model was the theoretical framework used to guide the research process. This model includes four systems (client-client, environment, health, and nursing) which work together to promote holistic wellness. Methods: A thorough database search using CINAHL, PubMED, Science Direct, Scopus initially identified 37,155 articles. Inclusion criteria included articles which discussed oral nutrition and hydration during labor and maternal outcomes, English language, Level I-III, and published between 2009-2020. Articles published prior to 2009 were excluded along with Level IV and V articles, and duplicates. Ultimately 25 articles were selected for inclusion. Results/Findings: Oral intake of foods and fluids and intravenous fluids significantly improved the duration of labor, mode of delivery, and reduced the need for oxytocin induction or augmentation without any adverse effects on maternal and neonatal outcomes. Multiple research studies demonstrated that intravenous dextrose fluids significantly reduced labor duration. Restrictions to oral intake during labor can impede the physiological labor process. Implications for Research and Practice: Providing intravenous dextrose fluids and eliminating the prohibition of oral intake during labor may improve labor outcomes. By allowing women to eat and drink during labor and recommending beneficial options, the physiological need for nutrition is honored. Nurse-Midwives embrace midwifery\u27s art and science as they partner with women through education, counseling, and shared decision-making. Women are provided with the space to make those decisions for their own body\u27s needs
Special Education Teachers and Burnout: the Factors That Contribute to it and Effective Strategies That Combat it
Get PDFThis thesis will explore the reasons behind teacher burnout in special education. The field of special education has increased dramatically throughout the years. As more research is being done to determine the various disabilities out there, the need for special education teachers increases. There is a gentleman by the name of Maslach that discovered the term “burnout”. According to Maslach there are three different components of burnout: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and lack of personal accomplishment. After researching this topic the four findings that contribute to teacher burnout include: stress management, workplace characteristics, benefits of mindfulness, and identifying the disabilities that affect teacher burnout the most. Stress management focuses on how the special education teacher manages their stress. Workplace characteristics can also play a role in teacher burnout. This could include the special education teacher’s age, how long they have been in the field, and how much collaboration they have with other teachers and support staff in their building. Mindfulness is a tool that special education teachers can use to assist them with burnout. The most common disabilities that are associated with burnout are students with Developmental Cognitive Delay, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and Emotional Behavior Disorders
Instructor Characteristics and Student Achievement: Do Student Perceptions of Teacher Attributes Impact Their Success?
Get PDFThis paper addresses the following question: How does student perception of teacher appearance, age, and community connection affect student achievement in the classroom? Literature from ERIC, EBSCO, Google Scholar, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Sage Journals, and the Gutman Library at the Harvard Graduate School of Education was reviewed for international academic studies published between 1960-2021. A variety of qualitative and quantitative research was considered from elementary, secondary, and post-secondary institutions. The research overwhelmingly concludes that teacher appearance and age do not directly translate to greater classroom effectiveness on their own but that relational teaching practices, community building, and teacher reputation do have a large impact on classroom success
Among Friends Spring 2021 Vol 21 No 2
No full textContents: Primetime in April Worst. Year. Ever? New Books Silent Books Looking Back, Moving Forward Annual Report: 2020-2021 Friends Year in Review Footnotes: Celebrating staff accomplishments and milestoneshttps://spark.bethel.edu/library-newsletter/1011/thumbnail.jp
A Descriptive Study of the Accommodations, Assistive Technologies, and Supports Chosen by Students with an Intellectual Disability Attending a Post-Secondary Institution
No full textThis study used a mixed methods approach to investigate the perceptions of students with intellectual disabilities (ID) attending a Transition Postsecondary Program for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (TPSID). This study explored what they perceived to be the most chosen and helpful accommodations, assistive technologies, and supports and why they chose them. The researcher sent out an electronic survey to students with ID attending a Transition Program for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (TPSID) to determine the most chosen and helpful accommodations, assistive technologies, and supports and why they found them helpful.The top ranked accommodations used and found most helpful in this study included: use of computer on test, extended time for assignments, extended time on tests, quiet area for testing, tests read aloud, and alternate format for materials. The top ranked assistive technologies used and found most helpful in this study included: Google Drive, personal phone, laptop, computer, or Chromebook, Grammarly, and reading helpers. Read&Write for Google Chrome was ranked as one of the top six assistive technologies used but was not ranked as one of the top six assistive technologies found to be most helpful. The top ranked supports used and found most helpful in the study included peer mentor for social activities, proofreader or grammar support, peer mentor or tutor, peer notetaker and out of class tutor or counseling. Peer reader was identified as one of the top six supports used but it was not among the top six supports found most helpful
Taking a Moment for Mindfulness: a Review on the Efficacy of Mindfulness Interventions on Student Academic Attainment
No full textMindfulness, or the act of paying attention on purpose without judgment, has received significant attention for its role in stress reduction. As stress levels are closely tied to academic outcomes for students it is logical to presume a connection between mindfulness and academic attainment. With the percentage of students experiencing stress and anxiety continuing to climb, mindfulness interventions within classrooms and schools could serve as a method for combating this increased prevalence while influencing the achievement of students. A review of the current literature indicates a positive association between mindfulness and academic performance for students. The observed impact appears to be both direct and mediated through increases in other factors including improvements in executive function, working memory capacity, self-efficacy, and resilience along with decreases in the stress and anxiety experienced by students. Research has also provided support for a neurological mechanism through which mindfulness practices produce changes in amygdala activity even when not actively in a mindfulness state. These results are significant in that they indicate that interventions provided in schools to increase the overall mindfulness of students result in improved academic outcomes for students
Inquiry-Based Pedagogy for Inclusive Classrooms
No full textInquiry-based learning is a popular topic in today’s mainstreams classrooms due to increasing student needs and the push to create more inclusive classrooms. This thesis explores the benefits of inquiry-based learning and inclusive classrooms. Inquiry-based learning teaches students important skills that traditional curriculums do not teach unless intentional modifications are made to the curriculum. Skills such as communication, organization, problem-solving and problem posing, tolerance, grit, self-efficacy, how to make connections, apply new learning, attentive listening, and research skills are all developed during inquiry-based learning experiences. Inclusive classrooms are necessary for students to learn to collaborate with people who think and behave differently than them. Ultimately, using inquiry to create an inclusive learning environment allows students to choose their learning path and teachers to differentiate instruction, which increases overall engagement in school
Measurements of the Electroweak Diboson Production Cross Sections in Proton-Proton Collisions at s =5.02 TeV Using Leptonic Decays
No full textThe first measurements of diboson production cross sections in proton-proton interactions at a center-of-mass energy of 5.02 TeV are reported. They are based on data collected with the CMS detector at the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 302 pb-1. Events with two, three, or four charged light leptons (electrons or muons) in the final state are analyzed. The WW, WZ, and ZZ total cross sections are measured as σWW=37.0-5.2+5.5(stat)-2.6+2.7(syst) pb, σWZ=6.4-2.1+2.5(stat)-0.3+0.5(syst) pb, and σZZ=5.3-2.1+2.5(stat)-0.4+0.5(syst) pb. All measurements are in good agreement with theoretical calculations at combined next-to-next-to-leading order quantum chromodynamics and next-to-leading order electroweak accuracy
Measurement of the top quark mass using events with a single reconstructed top quark in pp collisions at √s = 13 TeV
No full textA measurement of the top quark mass is performed using a data sample enriched with single top quark events produced in the t channel. The study is based on proton- proton collision data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb−1, recorded at s = 13 TeV by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2016. Candidate events are selected by requiring an isolated high-momentum lepton (muon or electron) and exactly two jets, of which one is identified as originating from a bottom quark. Multivariate discriminants are designed to separate the signal from the background. Optimized thresholds are placed on the discriminant outputs to obtain an event sample with high signal purity. The top quark mass is found to be 172.13−0.77+0.76 GeV, where the uncertainty includes both the statistical and systematic components, reaching sub-GeV precision for the first time in this event topology. The masses of the top quark and antiquark are also determined separately using the lepton charge in the final state, from which the mass ratio and difference are determined to be 0.9952−0.0104+0.0079 and 0.83−1.35+1.79 GeV, respectively. The results are consistent with CPT invariance. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]