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Poco a poco, se va lejos: Developing a Spanish Z-degree at Colorado State University Pueblo
No full textIn this talk, Dr. Katie Brown shares insights from the development and implementation of a Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) Spanish degree at Colorado State University Pueblo, a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). She discusses both the theoretical and practical considerations that shaped the process, highlighting how creating their own curriculum allowed them to integrate students’ lived experiences and identities while aligning with the program objectives and course learning outcomes. This approach not only enhanced accessibility but also advanced our commitment to inclusion, diversity, equity, and student-centered pedagogy. She reflects on key lessons learned, challenges encountered, and what they might have done differently. Additionally, she offers recommendations for those looking to embark on their own Z-degree
Shaping the Future of Information Literacy Instruction through Connections to Students\u27 Everyday Lives
Get PDFWant to keep your instruction relevant for the future by increasing student interest? One way to engage and motivate students is to connect information literacy to their everyday lives. This session features activities that identify and expand upon students’ information literacy skills outside of college, including process maps, discussions about experts in their own lives, and real-life research assignments where students write to their legislators, prepare remarks for a school board meeting, create a lesson plan, and much more! Participants will leave with ideas for transforming one of their own lessons to connect it to students’ everyday lives
Understanding Loneliness in the Digital Age: Implications of Social Media Use
Get PDFDespite the promise of greater connectivity through digital platforms, loneliness remains prevalent among young adults. This study investigates the impact of different types of social media use on loneliness through an experimental design—an uncommon but needed approach in a field dominated by correlational studies. Participants (n=17) were randomly assigned to one of five conditions: active use with positive feedback, active use with negative feedback, broadcasting with positive feedback, broadcasting with negative feedback, and passive scrolling. Each participant interacted with a mock social media platform tailored to the University of Northern Colorado community. Loneliness was assessed using the Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale immediately after the interaction. Results from a one-way ANOVA revealed a statistically significant difference in loneliness scores between groups, with passive scrollers reporting significantly higher loneliness than all other conditions. A trend was also observed suggesting that receiving positive feedback may further reduce loneliness, though this did not reach statistical significance. These findings support the hypothesis that interactive engagement—regardless of feedback quality—may buffer against loneliness more effectively than passive content consumption. This study contributes to a growing body of literature suggesting that how social media is used is more critical than how much it is used, with implications for future research and mental health interventions
Meet Them Where They Are: Itinerant Early Childhood Special Education Services in Community-Based Settings
Get PDFPreschoolers naturally learn and develop within their environments and communities. Itinerant early childhood special education (ECSE) services within community-based settings such as homes, childcare locations, and private preschool programs are used in some areas to provide inclusive services. Key collaborators to this model include families, ECSE professionals, and early childhood education (ECE) staff (Division for Early Childhood [DEC] & National Association for the Education of Young Children [NAEYC], 2009). The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the experiences and perspectives of adult collaborators in a single case of a Wisconsin district implementing itinerant ECSE services in community-based settings. Using a phenomenological case study design, built on a framework of the bioecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1976, 1994; Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2006) paired with access, participation, and supports as components of inclusion (DEC & NAEYC, 2009), a holistic description of the program was obtained to further understanding of this service model.
Data collection for this project included interviews, observations, researcher journaling, and material data (Creswell & Poth, 2018). There were 11 participants comprised of family participants, community-based early childhood staff, and district staff, and observations were conducted in six different settings. Data were collected, analyzed, and coded into themes over several months using a constant comparative method.
Outcomes revealed eleven overarching themes addressing the research questions. Some subthemes were consistently present among collaborator groups, while others emerged from one or two roles. Themes included Meet Them Where They Are, Adult Relationships, Logistics, Service Implementation, Child Needs and Individualization, Peer Community, Adult Preparedness, Staffing Factors, Varying Methods and Expectations, Safety and Wellbeing, and Program Awareness and Understanding.
The present study offered evidence that itinerant community-based services had value for collaborators, while challenges also existed. Through the complex interworking of people, systems, and settings, the program aimed to individualize supports for child access and participation. Findings indicated the model could foster child development, belonging, and adult partnerships. A strong value for meeting preschoolers and families where they are was present. Relationships, trust, and collaboration were central to the program, while personalities, attitudes, skills, experience, and environmental considerations could impact team success
Grades That Matter: Implementing Alternative Grading Approaches
Get PDFExplore alternative grading approaches that prioritize meaningful feedback, student growth, and deeper learning. This session will introduce strategies such as specifications grading, contract grading, and ungrading, offering insights into how they can enhance motivation and equity in the classroom
The Power of Yet: Using Active Learning to Build Resilient Learners
Get PDFDiscover how the concept of The Power of Yet can transform student learning by fostering resilience and persistence. This session will explore active learning strategies that help students embrace challenges, develop a growth mindset, and build the skills needed to navigate setbacks with confidence
Lived Experiences of Reintegration for Afghanistan Veterans Who Were Army Combat Medics
Get PDFThe purpose of this study was to examine the lived experiences, strengths, and challenges of reintegrating into civilian life for GWOT Army veterans who were medics. Three veterans completed in-depth interviews about their reintegration experiences. Results were organized into domains, core ideas, and categories. This study added to the existing literature on both combat medics and military transitions and suggests new areas of future research on combat medics and their transitions post-military.
Participants expressed feeling nervous about their reintegration, primarily due to their familiarity with the structured military lifestyle, anxiety regarding how much or little their family would need them, and the challenge of finding a new purpose in their civilian life. These veterans tended to avoid discussing deeper emotions, often providing surface-level responses when prompted about their emotional experience. This avoidance of emotional expression emerged as a key finding, suggesting that combat medics’ military experience may encourage the suppression of emotions as a coping mechanism.
A novel finding not previously highlighted in previous literature was the explanation of a distinct combat medic “personality,” which participants described as a bonding mechanism among medics but also a source of alienation when interacting with others outside of the medic population. Every participant explained how combat medics have a “dark sense of humor” and that they are often not understood by others. Therefore, they actively suppressed that part of their personality after they left the military and felt like they were not able to fully be themselves anywhere. A particular strength that was emphasized by all participants was their ability to remain calm under pressure, particularly in their current civilian careers. These reports added to existing literature on Army veterans in general as well as the literature on combat medics.
The results of this study strengthened current understanding of military reintegration while also providing a more nuanced view of the lived experiences of veterans who were combat medics during their reintegration into the civilian world. These results were used to provide recommendations for current mental health and medical providers to be better able to connect with and help these people when they work with them. Recommendations include targeted group programming through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare to help support veterans during their initial transition period following their discharge from the military. There are also operational recommendations that could be implemented at a higher level such as edits to manualized treatment protocols or policy changes that would benefit every military occupational specialty (MOS), not just combat medics. There are also community-level recommendations to help the family and friends of veterans better support those veterans.
Research on combat medics and their reintegration should continue to explore the unique aspects of this group of veterans so that providers can better understand their experiences, and therefore more effectively help them if they should need help
What Are the Preferred Delivery Modes for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-Insomnia Treatment Among Adults with Chronic Insomnia Disorder?
Get PDFSleep difficulties are one of the most common complaints for adults in primary care and mental health centers. Chronic insomnia is a serious condition that could significantly impact overall health and well-being, as well as personal and social life. Assessing individual receptiveness and preference for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)-I treatment delivery mode could increase their utilization of CBT-I, leading to improved patient outcomes and reduced healthcare costs. The purpose of this scholarly project was to determine the receptivity to and delivery preferences for CBT-I among adults with chronic insomnia. The following project question guided this study:
Q1 How receptive to and what are the preferred delivery modes (face-to-face, via internet program, or smartphone app) for cognitive behavioral therapy-insomnia (CBT-I) treatment among adults with chronic insomnia disorder?
This descriptive, non-experimental evidence-based practice project could describe adults\u27 preferences if they were given options for treatment modalities for their insomnia. The survey used for this scholarly project was the Treatment Acceptability and Preferences measure developed in 2009 by Dr. Souraya Sidani. It was updated to the Treatment Perceptions and Preference measure in 2018. Using the theory of planned behavior as a framework for project development could assist healthcare providers in understanding and assessing an individual\u27s attitudes, perceived behavioral control, and intention to participate in cognitive behavioral therapy for treating insomnia. This approach ultimately aimed to improve sleep outcomes. The data analysis results showed that 20.7% of participants preferred face-to-face CBT-I delivery, 10.3% preferred an internet program and 69% preferred a smartphone app. Providers could improve therapy outcomes for chronic insomnia patients by personalizing CBT-I delivery based on individual receptivity and preferences, thus increasing health equity and access to care
Exploring Efficient Neuropeptide Extraction Methods for Quantitative Peptidomics and Application in a Principal Central Auditory Nucleus
No full textNeuropeptides are short sequences of amino acids that function along with classical neurotransmitters in the central nervous system. They serve as neuromodulators in the neuronal circuits by affecting the synaptic transmission and serve as signaling molecules that induce intracellular response by activating many intercellular signaling pathways. Due to their extensive roles, they are often implicated in several neurological disorders as well as hearing related disorders. Traditionally, neuropeptides were studied using the common immunoassay methods such as ELISA, Edman Sequencing, and Western blotting. However, these traditional methods have limitations in terms of robustness, the detection of post-translational modifications, and prior knowledge of the peptide sequence is required. Alternatively, liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has revolutionized the field of peptidomics, as it allows the analysis of neuropeptides that bear post-translational modifications, and requires minimal sample volumes, and no need for prior knowledge of a particular peptide sequence. Although mass spectrometry based peptidomics is a robust and effective method for neuropeptide analysis, the extraction of neuropeptides may pose some challenges in terms of detection and identification of neuropeptides. This study is premised on determining the most efficient neuropeptide extraction protocol and utilizing it to obtain endogenous neuropeptide profile of a principal central auditory nucleus and how it is impacted by deafening noise. In this work, four different neuropeptide extraction protocols from brain tissue samples were examined for efficiency in LC-MS/MS analysis. Overall, acidified methanol extraction was the most efficient, yielding over twenty neuropeptides with seventeen of them being novel. The work also revealed noise induced alterations in the neuropeptide levels and implicate them as potential therapeutic targets
Five Domains of Program Development
No full textThis module is a brief course in the core models of program evaluation that can theoretically be applied to any set of actions to reduce a problem or improve an outcome. These models show how all directed acts begin with a need which then develops into a theory of how to address the need. After this, the theory produces a program which is implemented and which is followed by a measurement of the outcome on the original need