Teacher and Student Use of Gesture and Access to Secondary Mathematics for Students with Learning Disabilities: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hord, Casey; Marita, Samantha; Walsh, Jennifer B.; Tomaro, Taylor-Marie; Gordon, Kiyana; Saldanha, Rene L.

2016-01-01

The researchers conducted an exploratory qualitative case study to describe the gesturing processes of tutors and students when engaging in secondary mathematics. The use of gestures ranged in complexity from simple gestures, such as pointing and moving the pointing finger in an arching motion to demonstrate mathematics relationships within…

Multimedia Exploratory Data Analysis for Geospatial Data Mining: The Case for Augmented Seriation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gluck, Myke

2001-01-01

Reviews the role of exploratory data analysis (EDA) for spatial data mining and presents a case study addressing environmental risk assessments in New York State to illustrate the feasibility and usability of augmenting seriation for spatial data analysis. Describes augmentation with multimedia tools to understand relationships among spatial,…

Risk and Protective Factors of Micronesian Youth in Hawai’i: An Exploratory Study

PubMed Central

Okamoto, Scott K.; Mayeda, David T.; Ushiroda, Mari; Rehuher, Davis; Lauilefue, Tui; Ongalibang, Ophelia

2009-01-01

This exploratory, qualitative study examined the risk and protective factors of Micronesian middle and high school students in Hawai’i. Forty one Micronesian youth participated in 9 focus groups that explored their experiences within their schools, families, and communities. The findings describe youths’ experiences of ecological stress beginning with their migration to Hawai’i, and the potential outcomes of this stress (e.g., fighting, gangs, and drug use). Cultural buffers, such as traditional practices and culturally specific prevention programs, were described as aspects that prevented adverse outcomes. Implications for prevention practice are discussed. PMID:20559460

Interorganizational health care systems implementations: an exploratory study of early electronic commerce initiatives.

PubMed

Payton, F C; Ginzberg, M J

2001-01-01

Changing business practices, customers needs, and market dynamics have driven many organizations to implement interorganizational systems (IOSs). IOSs have been successfully implemented in the banking, cotton, airline, and consumer-goods industries, and recently attention has turned to the health care industry. This article describes an exploratory study of health care IOS implementations based on the voluntary community health information network (CHIN) model.

Social Worker Perceptions of the Portrayal of the Profession in the News and Entertainment Media: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zugazaga, Carole B.; Surette, Raymond B.; Mendez, Monica; Otto, Charles W.

2006-01-01

This exploratory study describes social workers' perceptions of the depiction of the social work profession found in the news and entertainment media. A random sample of 665 MSW social workers who were members of the Florida Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers were surveyed regarding how they felt the profession was depicted in…

Investigating the Reading-to-Write Processes and Source Use of L2 Postgraduate Students in Real-Life Academic Tasks: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCulloch, Sharon

2013-01-01

Existing studies of source use in academic student writing tend to i), focus more on the writing than the reading end of the reading-to-write continuum and ii), involve the use of insufficiently "naturalistic" writing tasks. Thus, in order to explore the potential of an alternative approach, this paper describes an exploratory case study…

Exploring high school science students' perceptions of parental involvement in their education.

PubMed

Mji, Andile; Mbinda, Zoleka

2005-08-01

This exploratory study describes high school students' perceptions of their parents' involvement in their education and in relation to school achievement. A new 12-item Parental Involvement Scale was used to measure parents' involvement in curricular and extracurricular activities and using exploratory analyses to estimate the scale's properties. Exploratory analysis resulted in the reduction of the 12 items to 8, with an internal consistency (Cronbach alpha) .82. Grade 12 science students indicated that their less educated parents were involved in activities pertaining to their learning; however, high perceived parental involvement in curricular activities was related to low achievement. It is recommended that further exploratory analyses be undertaken to examine the reported two-dimensional model of the Parental Involvement Scale.

Exploratory studies to decide whether and how to proceed with full-scale evaluations of public health interventions: a systematic review of guidance.

PubMed

Hallingberg, Britt; Turley, Ruth; Segrott, Jeremy; Wight, Daniel; Craig, Peter; Moore, Laurence; Murphy, Simon; Robling, Michael; Simpson, Sharon Anne; Moore, Graham

2018-01-01

Evaluations of complex interventions in public health are frequently undermined by problems that can be identified before the effectiveness study stage. Exploratory studies, often termed pilot and feasibility studies, are a key step in assessing the feasibility and value of progressing to an effectiveness study. Such studies can provide vital information to support more robust evaluations, thereby reducing costs and minimising potential harms of the intervention. This systematic review forms the first phase of a wider project to address the need for stand-alone guidance for public health researchers on designing and conducting exploratory studies. The review objectives were to identify and examine existing recommendations concerning when such studies should be undertaken, questions they should answer, suitable methods, criteria for deciding whether to progress to an effectiveness study and appropriate reporting. We searched for published and unpublished guidance reported between January 2000 and November 2016 via bibliographic databases, websites, citation tracking and expert recommendations. Included papers were thematically synthesized. The search retrieved 4095 unique records. Thirty papers were included, representing 25 unique sources of guidance/recommendations. Eight themes were identified: pre-requisites for conducting an exploratory study, nomenclature, guidance for intervention assessment, guidance surrounding any future evaluation study design, flexible versus fixed design, progression criteria to a future evaluation study, stakeholder involvement and reporting of exploratory studies. Exploratory studies were described as being concerned with the intervention content, the future evaluation design or both. However, the nomenclature and endorsed methods underpinning these aims were inconsistent across papers. There was little guidance on what should precede or follow an exploratory study and decision-making surrounding this. Existing recommendations are inconsistent concerning the aims, designs and conduct of exploratory studies, and guidance is lacking on the evidence needed to inform when to proceed to an effectiveness study. PROSPERO 2016, CRD42016047843.

An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

EPA announced the availability of the final report, An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin Exposure in Ceramic Art Studios. This report investigates the potential dioxin exposure to artists/hobbyists who use ball clay to make pottery and related products. Dermal, inhalation, and ingestion exposures to clay were measured at the ceramics art department of Ohio State University in Columbus, OH. The exposure estimates were based on measured levels of clay in the studio air, deposited on surrogate food samples and on the skin of the artists. The purpose of this report is to describe an exploratory investigation of potential dioxin exposures to artists/hobbyists who use ball clay to make pottery and related products.

Describing medical student curiosity across a four year curriculum: An exploratory study.

PubMed

Sternszus, Robert; Saroyan, Alenoush; Steinert, Yvonne

2017-04-01

Intellectual curiosity can be defined as a desire for knowledge that leads to exploratory behavior and consists of an inherent and stable trait (i.e. trait curiosity) and a variable context-dependent state (i.e. state curiosity). Although intellectual curiosity has been considered an important aspect of medical education and practice, its relationship to medical education has not been empirically investigated. The purpose of this exploratory study was to describe medical students' intellectual curiosity across a four-year undergraduate program. We employed a cross-sectional design in which medical students, across a four-year undergraduate program at McGill University, completed the Melbourne Curiosity Inventory as a measure of their state and trait intellectual curiosity. A Mixed Models ANOVA was used to compare students across year of training. Four hundred and two out of 751 students completed the inventory (53.5%). Trait curiosity was significantly higher than state curiosity (M = 64.5, SD = 8.5 versus M = 58.5, SD = 11.6) overall, and within each year of training. This study is the first to describe state and trait intellectual curiosity in undergraduate medical education. Findings suggest that medical students' state curiosity may not be optimally supported and highlight avenues for further research.

Five Describing Factors of Dyslexia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tamboer, Peter; Vorst, Harrie C. M.; Oort, Frans J.

2016-01-01

Two subtypes of dyslexia (phonological, visual) have been under debate in various studies. However, the number of symptoms of dyslexia described in the literature exceeds the number of subtypes, and underlying relations remain unclear. We investigated underlying cognitive features of dyslexia with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. A…

Empowered to Play: A Case Study Describing the Impact of Powered Mobility on the Exploratory Play of Disabled Children.

PubMed

Sonday, Amshuda; Gretschel, Pam

2016-03-01

Exploratory play is one of the most vital ways in which children learn about their environment and develop. It is well documented that limited mobility restricts a child's ability to engage in their environment through exploratory play. In this study, a qualitative, collective case study design explored the impact of powered mobility on the exploratory play of two children with physical disabilities. Data were collected from the children, their parents and their siblings through participant observation and in-depth, informal interviews. This paper focuses on two themes: Opportunity to Play revealed how powered mobility increased opportunities for the children to become more actively engaged in exploratory play with others across a wider array of contexts, and My Child was Transformed highlighted significant changes in the affect and motivation of each child, which seemed to be linked to their increased internal control over their play choices. The findings suggest that the provision of powered mobility is a key contributor promoting the participation of physically disabled children in exploratory play. Because of undergraduate curricular constraints, a limitation of this study was that data were only confined to 2 months; affecting the depth of data gained that prolonged engagement would have offered. The study recommends for occupational therapy practice that occupational therapists advocate for easier access to powered mobility through governmental and policy means. The study also recommends further research be conducted on the experiences of the caregivers on how these powered mobility devices have influenced their day-to-day occupations. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Views of child sexual abuse in two cultural communities: an exploratory study among African Americans and Latinos.

PubMed

Fontes, L A; Cruz, M; Tabachnick, J

2001-05-01

This exploratory study investigates knowledge and ideas about child sexual abuse among African Americans and Latinos through focus group discussions. Participants defined and described child sexual abuse, acknowledged that it occurred in their communities, and expressed their sense that family risk factors, risky institutions, and offender propensities were its root causes. Latino participants identified cultural transitions as another contributor. Responses and conversational style differed somewhat by gender and cultural identity. The authors discuss implications for child sexual abuse prevention, intervention, and research.

Spectral Knowledge (SK-UTALCA): Software for Exploratory Analysis of High-Resolution Spectral Reflectance Data on Plant Breeding

PubMed Central

Lobos, Gustavo A.; Poblete-Echeverría, Carlos

2017-01-01

This article describes public, free software that provides efficient exploratory analysis of high-resolution spectral reflectance data. Spectral reflectance data can suffer from problems such as poor signal to noise ratios in various wavebands or invalid measurements due to changes in incoming solar radiation or operator fatigue leading to poor orientation of sensors. Thus, exploratory data analysis is essential to identify appropriate data for further analyses. This software overcomes the problem that analysis tools such as Excel are cumbersome to use for the high number of wavelengths and samples typically acquired in these studies. The software, Spectral Knowledge (SK-UTALCA), was initially developed for plant breeding, but it is also suitable for other studies such as precision agriculture, crop protection, ecophysiology plant nutrition, and soil fertility. Various spectral reflectance indices (SRIs) are often used to relate crop characteristics to spectral data and the software is loaded with 255 SRIs which can be applied quickly to the data. This article describes the architecture and functions of SK-UTALCA and the features of the data that led to the development of each of its modules. PMID:28119705

Spectral Knowledge (SK-UTALCA): Software for Exploratory Analysis of High-Resolution Spectral Reflectance Data on Plant Breeding.

PubMed

Lobos, Gustavo A; Poblete-Echeverría, Carlos

2016-01-01

This article describes public, free software that provides efficient exploratory analysis of high-resolution spectral reflectance data. Spectral reflectance data can suffer from problems such as poor signal to noise ratios in various wavebands or invalid measurements due to changes in incoming solar radiation or operator fatigue leading to poor orientation of sensors. Thus, exploratory data analysis is essential to identify appropriate data for further analyses. This software overcomes the problem that analysis tools such as Excel are cumbersome to use for the high number of wavelengths and samples typically acquired in these studies. The software, Spectral Knowledge (SK-UTALCA), was initially developed for plant breeding, but it is also suitable for other studies such as precision agriculture, crop protection, ecophysiology plant nutrition, and soil fertility. Various spectral reflectance indices (SRIs) are often used to relate crop characteristics to spectral data and the software is loaded with 255 SRIs which can be applied quickly to the data. This article describes the architecture and functions of SK-UTALCA and the features of the data that led to the development of each of its modules.

Developing Leadership for Life: Outcomes from a Collegiate Student-Alumni Mentoring Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Priest, Kerry L.; Donley, Sarah

2014-01-01

This application brief describes the exploratory assessment of a mentoring program between current students and alumni of a leadership studies minor program. We connect leadership education research and practice in two ways: first, we describe a process of qualitative program evaluation to inform program best practices and improvement. In doing…

Development and Initial Validation of the Volition in Exercise Questionnaire (VEQ)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elsborg, P.; Wikman, J. M.; Nielsen, G.; Tolver, A.; Elbe, A.-M.

2017-01-01

The present study describes the development and validation of an instrument to measure volition in the exercise context. Volition describes an individual's self-regulatory mental processes that are responsible for taking and maintaining a desirable action (e.g., exercising regularly). The scale structure was developed in an exploratory factor…

An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

EPA has released an external review draft entitled, An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin Exposure in Ceramic Art Studios(External Review Draft). The public comment period and the external peer-review workshop are separate processes that provide opportunities for all interested parties to comment on the document. In addition to consideration by EPA, all public comments submitted in accordance with this notice will also be forwarded to EPA’s contractor for the external peer-review panel prior to the workshop. EPA has realeased this draft document solely for the purpose of pre-dissemination peer review under applicable information quality guidelines. This document has not been formally disseminated by EPA. It does not represent and should not be construed to represent any Agency policy or determination. The purpose of this report is to describe an exploratory investigation of potential dioxin exposures to artists/hobbyists who use ball clay to make pottery and related products.

Realist explanatory theory building method for social epidemiology: a protocol for a mixed method multilevel study of neighbourhood context and postnatal depression.

PubMed

Eastwood, John G; Jalaludin, Bin B; Kemp, Lynn A

2014-01-01

A recent criticism of social epidemiological studies, and multi-level studies in particular has been a paucity of theory. We will present here the protocol for a study that aims to build a theory of the social epidemiology of maternal depression. We use a critical realist approach which is trans-disciplinary, encompassing both quantitative and qualitative traditions, and that assumes both ontological and hierarchical stratification of reality. We describe a critical realist Explanatory Theory Building Method comprising of an: 1) emergent phase, 2) construction phase, and 3) confirmatory phase. A concurrent triangulated mixed method multilevel cross-sectional study design is described. The Emergent Phase uses: interviews, focus groups, exploratory data analysis, exploratory factor analysis, regression, and multilevel Bayesian spatial data analysis to detect and describe phenomena. Abductive and retroductive reasoning will be applied to: categorical principal component analysis, exploratory factor analysis, regression, coding of concepts and categories, constant comparative analysis, drawing of conceptual networks, and situational analysis to generate theoretical concepts. The Theory Construction Phase will include: 1) defining stratified levels; 2) analytic resolution; 3) abductive reasoning; 4) comparative analysis (triangulation); 5) retroduction; 6) postulate and proposition development; 7) comparison and assessment of theories; and 8) conceptual frameworks and model development. The strength of the critical realist methodology described is the extent to which this paradigm is able to support the epistemological, ontological, axiological, methodological and rhetorical positions of both quantitative and qualitative research in the field of social epidemiology. The extensive multilevel Bayesian studies, intensive qualitative studies, latent variable theory, abductive triangulation, and Inference to Best Explanation provide a strong foundation for Theory Construction. The study will contribute to defining the role that realism and mixed methods can play in explaining the social determinants and developmental origins of health and disease.

Leadership Development Experiences of Exemplary Roman Catholic Parish Priests: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ong, Rosemarie A.

2013-01-01

This qualitative, phenomenological study addressed the research question: How do exemplary Roman Catholic parish priests perceive and describe their leadership development experience? The study explored experiences considered important in developing leadership, including how they occurred, the meaning provided, the definition of exemplary…

Clinical Implications From an Exploratory Study of Postural Management of Breech Presentation

PubMed Central

Founds, Sandra A.

2013-01-01

The results from an exploratory study of the effectiveness of maternal knee-chest posture for producing cephalic version of breech presentation are shown. Methods are briefly described and clinical implications are presented. Among 25 women, fewer who performed the maternal knee-chest postural intervention experienced fetal cephalic version than women in the control group who did nothing to influence breech presentation. Despite limitations of the underpowered findings, trends in the data may indicate that parity and gestational age were potentially relevant covariates of version. Postural management is not an evidence-based practice. This exploratory study indicates that maternal knee-chest posture may work opposite to the expected direction, but the small sample size precludes generalizations about efficacy of knee-chest postural management. At least one adequately powered trial that controls for parity and gestational age is needed to determine whether knee-chest postural management results in no effect, a small, or small to moderate clinically significant effect. PMID:16814225

Studying the Education of Educators: Methodology.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sirotnik, Kenneth A.

1988-01-01

Describes the methodology and research design of SEE, the study of the Education of Educators. The approach is multimethodological, exploratory, descriptive, and evaluative. The research design permits examination of working assumptions and concentration on the individual site--the college, the education departments, and specific programs within…

Toward a Measure of Professional Development for Graduate Student Teaching Assistants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeChenne, Sue Ellen; Lesseig, Kristin; Anderson, Shawn M.; Li, Sissi L.; Staus, Nancy L.; Barthel, Celeste

2012-01-01

This study describes the development and validation of an instrument to measure graduate teaching assistants' (GTAs) learning about teaching during professional development. In the pilot study, exploratory factor analysis of data from 239 graduate students indicates a single factor structure. The second study, involving 177 science, technology,…

Exploratory Phase for Optimizing Lifetime Position 4 of the COS/FUV Detector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roman-Duval, Julia; Indriolo, Nick; De Rosa, Gisella; Fox, Andrew; Oliveira, Cristina; Penton, Steve; Sahnow, David; Sonnentrucker, Paule; White, James

2018-05-01

The COS/FUV detector uses a microchannel plate, whose response (gain) decreases with usage, a process called gain-sag. To mitigate these gain-sag effects, COS/FUV science spectra are periodically moved to pristine locations of the detector, i.e. different lifetime positions (LP). Preparations for the move from LP3 to LP4 started with an exploratory phase between May and October 2016, while the LP4 move occurred on October 2, 2017. This ISR describes the LP4 exploratory phase, during which the feasibility of placing LP4 at -2.5'' below LP3 (-5'' below LP1) was examined, the effects of the LP4 move on the science quality and calibration accuracy of spectra were investigated, and the final location of LP4 (- 2.5'' below LP3) was determined. We describe in detail the strategy adopted for the LP4 exploratory phase to ensure that all potential issues were identified and resolved well in advance of the LP4 move.

Basic Exploratory Research versus Guideline-Compliant Studies Used for Hazard Evaluation and Risk Assessment: Bisphenol A as a Case Study

PubMed Central

Tyl, Rochelle W.

2009-01-01

Background Myers et al. [Environ Health Perspect 117:309–315 (2009)] argued that Good Laboratory Practices (GLPs) cannot be used as a criterion for selecting data for risk assessment, using bisphenol A (BPA) as a case study. They did not discuss the role(s) of guideline-compliant studies versus basic/exploratory research studies, and they criticized both GLPs and guideline-compliant studies and their roles in formal hazard evaluation and risk assessment. They also specifically criticized our published guideline-compliant dietary studies on BPA in rats and mice and 17β-estradiol (E2) in mice. Objectives As the study director/first author of the criticized E2 and BPA studies, I discuss the uses of basic research versus guideline-compliant studies, how testing guidelines are developed and revised, how new end points are validated, and the role of GLPs. I also provide an overview of the BPA guideline-compliant and exploratory research animal studies and describe BPA pharmacokinetics in rats and humans. I present responses to specific criticisms by Myers et al. Discussion and conclusions Weight-of-evidence evaluations have consistently concluded that low-level BPA oral exposures do not adversely affect human developmental or reproductive health, and I encourage increased validation efforts for “new” end points for inclusion in guideline studies, as well as performance of robust long-term studies to follow early effects (observed in small exploratory studies) to any adverse consequences. PMID:20049112

Teacher Talk and Perceived Teacher Effectiveness: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nápoles, Jessica

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to describe the perceptions of teachers, ensemble members, and outside observers when evaluating the effectiveness of rehearsals conducted with reduced amounts of verbal instruction. Preservice teachers led choral rehearsals employing Archibeque's "rule of seven," wherein instructions were delivered in seven…

Family-School Socialization: Problems and Prospects.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Case Western Reserve Univ., Cleveland, OH. Inst. on the Family and the Bureaucratic Society.

This document includes the proposal and implementation of a study focusing on the family's expectations, orientations, and cultural practices with regard to the educational system and the system's expectations, orientations and practices concerning the child and his family. The basic problem in this exploratory study is to describe analytically…

Establishing Evidence for Internal Structure Using Exploratory Factor Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, Joshua C.

2017-01-01

Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is a data reduction technique used to condense data into smaller sets of summary variables by identifying underlying factors potentially accounting for patterns of collinearity among said variables. Using an illustrative example, the 5 general steps of EFA are described with best practices for decision making…

Does It Make a Sound: Are Open Access Monographs Discoverable in Library Catalogs?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCollough, Aaron

2017-01-01

This article describes an exploratory study examining the common perception among library-based publishers that open access academic publications (especially monographs) are not readily discoverable in library catalogs. Using titles from the Michigan Publishing imprint, digital culture books, the study provides an empirical basis for evaluating…

Women In Management: Causal Explanations of Performance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deaux, Kay

This paper reports on exploratory studies to determine whether sex differences in the attribution process are operative among first-level management positions. Studies were conducted within several organizations using similar procedures in each. First-level management males and females, matched as closely as possible, were asked to describe an…

Development and Construct Validation of an Academic Emotions Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Govaerts, Sophie; Gregoire, Jacques

2008-01-01

This article describes the development and two studies on the construct validity of the Academic Emotions Scale (AES). The AES is a French self-report questionnaire assessing six emotions in the context of school learning: enjoyment, hope, pride, anxiety, shame and frustration. Its construct validity was studied through exploratory and…

Researching Learner Self-Efficacy and Online Participation through Speech Functions: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sánchez-Castro, Olga; Strambi, Antonella

2017-01-01

This study explores the potential contribution of Eggins and Slade's (2004) Speech Functions as tools for describing learners' participation patterns in Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication (SCMC). Our analysis focuses on the relationship between learners' self-efficacy (i.e. personal judgments of second language performance capabilities)…

Knowledge Work and Telework: An Exploratory Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bentley, Kaye; Yoong, Pak

2000-01-01

Describes a case study conducted in New Zealand that investigated how knowledge workers used home-based teleworking, using information and Internet technology. Discusses findings that indicate a preference for doing most work at the office, and considers implications for human resources management, practice, and research. (Contains 26 references.)…

Youth Expectations about Therapeutic Alliance in a Residential Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manso, Ana; Rauktis, Mary Elizabeth; Boyd, A. Suzanne

2008-01-01

This exploratory study used qualitative methods to better understand how youths in a residential setting perceive their relationships with the counselors. Using focus group methodology, the study focused on how youth describe the relationship, what staff qualities the youth are able to identify as important in engaging and maintaining the…

Moral Disengagement in Science and Business Students: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cory, Suzanne N.

2015-01-01

Cases of unethical business practices and technical failures have been extensively reported. It seems that actions are often taken by individuals with little apparent concern for those affected by their negative outcomes, which can be described as moral disengagement. This study investigates levels of moral disengagement demonstrated by business…

A Descriptive Study of Differing School Health Delivery Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Becker, Sherri I.; Maughan, Erin

2017-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to identify and describe emerging models of school health services. Participants (N = 11) provided information regarding their models in semistructured phone interviews. Results identified a variety of funding sources as well as different staffing configurations and supervision. Strengths of…

Adult Instructors' Perceptions on ICT and Diffusion Practices: Implications for Equity of Access

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salinas-Amescua, Bertha

2007-01-01

This study suggests equity of access goes beyond technological availability. Based on a larger exploratory study of the initial implementation stage of the Mexican government's community technology centers, CTCs ("plazas comunitarias"), adult education instructors' perceptions and diffusion practices are described as a mediating factor…

Users' Interaction with World Wide Web Resources: An Exploratory Study Using a Holistic Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Peiling; Hawk, William B.; Tenopir, Carol

2000-01-01

Presents results of a study that explores factors of user-Web interaction in finding factual information, develops a conceptual framework for studying user-Web interaction, and applies a process-tracing method for conducting holistic user-Web studies. Describes measurement techniques and proposes a model consisting of the user, interface, and the…

Widening Participation in Sport-Related Studies in Higher Education: An Exploratory Study of Symbolic Struggles

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lundvall, Suzanne; Meckbach, Susanne

2012-01-01

This paper focuses on widening participation in higher education and the low recruitment of students from diverse backgrounds within sport-related programs. The purpose of the study has been to describe and increase the understanding of how the preconditions and premises for choosing to study "sport" appear to students from diverse…

Application of Local Linear Embedding to Nonlinear Exploratory Latent Structure Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Haonan; Iyer, Hari

2007-01-01

In this paper we discuss the use of a recent dimension reduction technique called Locally Linear Embedding, introduced by Roweis and Saul, for performing an exploratory latent structure analysis. The coordinate variables from the locally linear embedding describing the manifold on which the data reside serve as the latent variable scores. We…

The Use of Published Clinical Study Reports to Support U.S. Food and Drug Administration Approval of Imaging Agents.

PubMed

Rieves, Dwaine; Jacobs, Paula

2016-12-01

Pharmaceutical companies typically perform prospective, multicenter phase 3 clinical studies to support approval of a new imaging agent by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In uncommon situations, the FDA has approved imaging agents based solely, or in large part, on the clinical study experience described in published reports, including reports of exploratory (i.e., phase 1 or 2) studies performed at a single clinical site. We performed a survey of published reports to assess the potential of the reported information to support FDA approval of a commonly cited investigational imaging agent. Our survey revealed critical data limitations in most publications, all of which reported exploratory clinical studies. Here we summarize the precedent for FDA approval of imaging agents using effectiveness data from publications, FDA guidance, and our experience in reviewing publications. We also present a key-data checklist for investigators to consider in the design, conduct, and reporting of exploratory clinical studies for publication. We encourage editors and peer reviewers to consider requiring these key data when reviewing these reports for publication. © 2016 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Inc.

Active Collaborative Learning through Remote Tutoring

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gehret, Austin U.; Elliot, Lisa B.; MacDonald, Jonathan H. C.

2017-01-01

An exploratory case study approach was used to describe remote tutoring in biochemistry and general chemistry with students who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH). Data collected for analysis were based on the observations of the participant tutor. The research questions guiding this study included (1) How is active learning accomplished in…

An Exploratory Study of Women in the Health Professions Schools. Executive Summary.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Urban and Rural Systems Associates, San Francisco, CA.

The study focused on eight health professions: medicine, osteopathy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, optometry, podiatry, pharmacy, and public health. Its central tasks were to identify and explore the barriers to success that women face as medical/professional school applicants and students and to describe the discrimination process that limits…

Examining the Content of Preservice Teachers' Reflections of Early Field Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Subramaniam, Karthigeyan

2013-01-01

This paper describes an exploratory study that examined the content of preservice elementary teachers' reflections of their documented early field experiences of science teaching in authentic contexts. The study used an early field experience model that was focused on the objective of profiling an elementary science teacher as the practical…

Online Software Applications for Learning: Observations from an Elementary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tay, Lee Yong; Lim, Cher Ping; Nair, Shanthi Suraj; Lim, Siew Khiaw

2014-01-01

This exploratory case study research describes the integration of Information Communication Technology (ICT) into the teaching and learning of English, mathematics and science in an elementary school in Singapore. The school in this case study research is one of the first primary-level future schools that was set up under the…

Using a "Literacy across the Curriculum" Intervention Using Self-Regulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bentham, Jo; Davies, Peter; Galbraith, David

2016-01-01

This paper describes an exploratory trial conducted with 14-15 year-old students in English state schools who were studying business start-ups as part of a course in "Business Studies". The intervention uses a "Story Grammar" strategy to improve students' reasoning by increasing the frequency and complexity of their use of…

Development and Assessment of the Social Issues Advocacy Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nilsson, Johanna E.; Marszalek, Jacob M.; Linnemeyer, Rachel M.; Bahner, Angela D.; Misialek, Leah Hanson

2011-01-01

This article describes the development and the initial psychometric evaluation of the Social Issues Advocacy Scale in two studies. In the first study, an exploratory factor analysis (n = 278) revealed a four-factor scale, accounting for 71.4% of the variance, measuring different aspects of social issue advocacy: Political and Social Advocacy,…

A Social Judgment Analysis of Information Source Preference Profiles: An Exploratory Study to Empirically Represent Media Selection Patterns.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stefl-Mabry, Joette

2003-01-01

Describes a study that empirically identified individual preferences profiles to understand information-seeking behavior among professional groups for six selected information sources. Highlights include Social Judgment Analysis; the development of the survey used, a copy of which is appended; hypotheses tested; results of multiple regression…

Innovating Science Teaching with a Transformative Learning Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gudiño Paredes, Sandra

2018-01-01

This exploratory study aimed to describe the impact of the 'Science in Family project', as a transformative learning model for science teachers trying to improve student's attitudes toward STEM subjects. This study took place in a public elementary school in Monterrey, Mexico, which has been developing this project for more than thirteen years…

Debugging: Finding, Fixing and Flailing, a Multi-Institutional Study of Novice Debuggers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fitzgerald, Sue; Lewandowski, Gary; McCauley, Renee; Murphy, Laurie; Simon, Beth; Thomas, Lynda; Zander, Carol

2008-01-01

Debugging is often difficult and frustrating for novices. Yet because students typically debug outside the classroom and often in isolation, instructors rarely have the opportunity to closely observe students while they debug. This paper describes the details of an exploratory study of the debugging skills and behaviors of contemporary novice Java…

Exemplary Secondary Vocational Education: An Exploratory Study of Seven Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hayward, Becky J.; And Others

A study was conducted to explore the question of what works in secondary vocational education--whether exemplary vocational programs can be identified, whether their key features can be described, and whether there are lessons to be learned that can assist others in devising strategies to improve secondary vocational education. Methodology…

Teaching Scientific Literacy in an Introductory Women's Studies Course: A Case Study in Interdisciplinary Collaboration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fuselier, Linda; Murphy, Claudia; Bender, Anita; Falcón, Kandace Creel

2015-01-01

Background and purpose: The purpose of this exploratory case study is to describe how scholars negotiated disciplinary divides to develop and communicate to their students an understanding of the basic features of scientific knowledge. Our goals were to examine boundary crossing in interdisciplinary collaboration and to assess the efficacy of…

The "UIC German" Game App for the Enhancement of Foreign Language Learning--Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ryder, Robert; Machajewski, Szymon

2017-01-01

This qualitative case study reports the adoption of gamification in a college level foreign language courses. An exploratory approach allows the authors to describe how gamification was applied and what results were documented. A custom mobile app was adopted to increase engagement and interest of students in the specific field of study. External…

Piaget, Inhelder and "Minecraft"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schifter, Catherine C.; Cipollone, Maria; Moffat, Frederick

2013-01-01

This paper describes an exploratory study observing the use of "Minecraft" (a popular sandbox style online video game environment) in a high school English literature classroom. We use Piaget and Inhelder's (1969) constructivist theories about the formal operational stage of development to interpret the concepts of plot and…

An Exploratory Study of ICT Use in English Language Learning among EFL University Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tri, Dang Hoang; Nguyen, Nhung Hong Thi

2014-01-01

There has been a large volume of published studies describing the attitudes of teachers and students towards ICT usage to study English; nevertheless, limited research has been conducted to examine the use of ICT in terms of frequency of use, purposes, perceptions, and expectations among EFL students. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to…

Design of Teacher Assistance Tools in an Exploratory Learning Environment for Algebraic Generalization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gutierrez-Santos, S.; Geraniou, E.; Pearce-Lazard, D.; Poulovassilis, A.

2012-01-01

The MiGen project is designing and developing an intelligent exploratory environment to support 11-14-year-old students in their learning of algebraic generalization. Deployed within the classroom, the system also provides tools to assist teachers in monitoring students' activities and progress. This paper describes the design of these Teacher…

A Note on Procrustean Rotation in Exploratory Factor Analysis: A Computer Intensive Approach to Goodness-of-Fit Evaluation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raykov, Tenko; Little, Todd D.

1999-01-01

Describes a method for evaluating results of Procrustean rotation to a target factor pattern matrix in exploratory factor analysis. The approach, based on the bootstrap method, yields empirical approximations of the sampling distributions of: (1) differences between target elements and rotated factor pattern matrices; and (2) the overall…

A Social Approach to Decision-Making Capacity: Exploratory Research with People with Experience of Mental Health Treatment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDaid, Shari; Delaney, Sarah

2011-01-01

This paper reports on exploratory, qualitative research conducted with eight people with experience of mental health treatment about their understanding of decision-making capacity. While acknowledging that there are times when mental or emotional distress can interfere with the capacity to make decisions, participants described how their capacity…

Development of an Instrument to Measure Student Use of Academic Success Skills: An Exploratory Factor Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carey, John; Brigman, Greg; Webb, Linda; Villares, Elizabeth; Harrington, Karen

2014-01-01

This article describes the development of the Student Engagement in School Success Skills instrument including item development and exploratory factor analysis. The instrument was developed to measure student use of the skills and strategies identified as most critical for long-term school success that are typically taught by school counselors.

Electronics Lab Instructors' Approaches to Troubleshooting Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dounas-Frazer, Dimitri R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2017-01-01

In this exploratory qualitative study, we describe instructors' self-reported practices for teaching and assessing students' ability to troubleshoot in electronics lab courses. We collected audio data from interviews with 20 electronics instructors from 18 institutions that varied by size, selectivity, and other factors. In addition to describing…

SSMA Science Reviewers' Forecasts for the Future of Science Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jinks, Jerry; Hoffer, Terry

1989-01-01

Described is a study which was conducted as an exploratory assessment of science reviewers' perceptions for the future of science education. Arrives at interpretations for identified categories of computers and high technology, science curriculum, teacher education, training, certification, standards, teaching methods, and materials. (RT)

Children's Well-Being in Day Care Centres: An Exploratory Empirical Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayr, Toni; Ulich, Michaela

1999-01-01

Used educators' ratings to describe preschool children's well-being in day care centers. Identified 11 independent dimensions of well-being: empathic, prosocial behavior; social initiative and vitality; self-assertiveness, openness; pleasure in exploring; coping with stress; positive self-defense; pleasure in sensory experiences;…

Measuring Vocational Preferences: Ranking versus Categorical Rating Procedures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carifio, James

1978-01-01

Describes a study to compare the relative validities of ranking v categorical rating procedures for obtaining student vocational preference data in exploratory program assignment situations. Students indicated their vocational program preferences from career clusters, and the frequency of wrong assignments made by each method was analyzed. (MF)

Are Educational Psychologists Stressed? A Pilot Study of Educational Psychologists' Perceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gersch, Irvine; Teuma, Anna

2005-01-01

This paper describes an exploratory pilot research project, aimed at investigating occupational stress amongst educational psychologists. It investigated three areas: educational psychologists' perceptions of their own stress levels, sources of stress and possible work conditions, which may reduce stress levels. Data was collected via…

Cognitive Assessment Practices: A Survey of School Psychologists

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sotelo-Dynega, Marlene; Dixon, Shauna G.

2014-01-01

The present article describes an exploratory study regarding the preferred cognitive assessment practices of current school psychologists. Three hundred and twenty-three school psychologists participated in the survey. The results suggest that the majority of school psychologists endorsed that they base their assessment practices on an underlying…

The Process of Mentoring Pregnant Adolescents: An Exploratory Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blinn-Pike, Lynn; Kuschel, Diane; McDaniel, Annette; Mingus, Suzanne; Mutti, Megan Poole

1998-01-01

The process that occurs in relationships between volunteer adult mentors and pregnant adolescent "mentees" is described empirically; testable hypotheses based on findings concerning the mentor role are proposed. Case records from 20 mentors are analyzed; findings regarding mentors' roles are discussed. Criteria for conceptualizing quasi-parenting…

Group Counseling for African American Elementary Students: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steen, Sam

2009-01-01

This article describes a group counseling intervention promoting academic achievement and ethnic identity development for twenty fifth grade African American elementary students. The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) scores of students participating in the treatment group improved significantly over those in the control group. Implications…

Arab International Students' Experiences in a U.S. University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abo Rabia, Hazza M.

2015-01-01

This qualitative, exploratory study described the experiences of Arab international students in a U.S. postsecondary institution. This research identified those factors that Arab international students reported as facilitating or obstructing their academic success, promoting or limiting their socialization within the context of their postsecondary…

Storymaking: Combining Making and Storytelling in a School Makerspace

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bull, Glen; Schmidt-Crawford, Denise A.; McKenna, Michael C.; Cohoon, Jim

2017-01-01

"Storymaking" makes use of school makerspaces to combine making and storytelling. Constructing a diorama is a common storytelling activity in schools. This exploratory study describes preliminary efforts that explored the feasibility of extending "Make to Learn" activities with elementary and middle school students from two…

An Exploratory Study of the Ways in Which Elementary School Principals Use Their Emotional Intelligence to Address Conflict in Their Educational Organizations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Espinoza, Lorissa

2016-01-01

Purpose. This study described the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and strategies associated with emotional intelligence (EI) that elementary school principals used to address conflict in their organizations. This study also determined the impact EI had on elementary school principals' perceptions of their ability to lead their organizations. This…

The Use of Personal Digital Assistants as Tools for Work-Based Learning in Clinical Internships

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akkerman, Sanne; Filius, Renee

2011-01-01

Though mobile technologies have been studied, their specific value in supporting work-based learning has not yet been investigated. This paper describes a small exploratory study in health care education in which medical students work in clinical practice. The study investigates both the perceived potential as well as the actual role of PDAs in…

Virtual Worlds as the Next Asset of Virtual Learning Environments for Students in Business?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pelet, Jean-Eric; Lecat, Benoît

2012-01-01

The authors' research examines the effectiveness of a web-based virtual learning environment (VLE) in the context of management studies. This article provides two main contributions. First, an exploratory study introduces and describes the concept of VLE applied to the training of seven students in an "interactivity design" (IS) course.…

Taking the Show on the Road in Holding Academic Classes in Community Agencies: Exploratory Study Findings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Katz, Ellen; Serbinski, Sarah; Mishna, Faye

2017-01-01

Social work educators often teach students clinical knowledge within a university classroom, whereas students tend to learn clinical practice through their practicum experiences. This article describes data from a cross-sectional, mixed-method study on one way to effectively bridge the gap between teaching clinical knowledge and practice to…

An Exploratory Study of Corporate Universities in China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sham, Clare

2007-01-01

Purpose: The main purpose of this paper is to examine the empirical status of corporate universities (CUs) in China. An a priori CU framework was employed in an attempt to describe the key functions that an ideal type of CU in China should perform. Design/methodology/approach: Three case studies were conducted to test the relevance of this…

Child Abuse and Neglect Among Mexican American Migrants: A Study of Cases.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berrios, Lex

The exploratory study described the etiology of child abuse and neglect among Mexican American migrants and provided a brief assessment of services rendered to clients. The frequencies of specific traits and behaviors were tallied to trace some generalized social situations and trends. Data were obtained primarily from 140 files, most of which…

Nursing Home Quality, Cost, Staffing, and Staff Mix

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rantz, Marilyn J.; Hicks, Lanis; Grando, Victoria; Petroski, Gregory F.; Madsen, Richard W.; Mehr, David R.; Conn, Vicki; Zwygart-Staffacher, Mary; Scott, Jill; Flesner, Marcia; Bostick, Jane; Porter, Rose; Maas, Meridean

2004-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe the processes of care, organizational attributes, cost of care, staffing level, and staff mix in a sample of Missouri homes with good, average, and poor resident outcomes. Design and Methods: A three-group exploratory study design was used, with 92 nursing homes randomly selected from all nursing…

Limited Intervention at Sub Concept of Fractions in the Object Conversion into Fractions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kurniawan, Henry; Nusantara, Toto; Subanji; Susiswo; Setiawan, Iwan; Sutawidjaja, Akbar; As'ari, Abdur Rahman; Muksar, Makbul

2016-01-01

This research is an exploratory study with a qualitative approach, which is based on interviews with a task-based the purpose of this study is to describe the understanding of elementary school students in interpreting sub concept fractions in changing of the object is given to fractions with limit intervention. While intervention on problems…

Do High-Ability Students Disidentify with Science? A Descriptive Study of U.S. Ninth Graders in 2009

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andersen, Lori; Chen, Jason A.

2016-01-01

The present study describes science expectancy-value motivation classes within a nationally representative sample of students who were U.S. ninth graders in 2009. An expectancy-value model was the basis for science-specific profile indicators (self-efficacy, attainment value, utility value, interest-enjoyment value). Using exploratory latent class…

Finding One's Place: A Case Study of a Music Atelierista

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bond, Vanessa L.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory case study was to document one teacher's journey as he negotiated the role of music atelierista (music studio teacher) in a school inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach (REA). Through the collection of qualitative data over a one-year time period and subsequent analysis, the author identified and described the…

"The Reality of It All": History Students Read the Movies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marcus, Alan S.; Paxton, Richard J.; Meyerson, Peter

2006-01-01

What and how do students learn about history from motion pictures? How does this knowledge interact with the history they learn in school? This is a complex problem space that has seen little empirical research. To lay the groundwork for addressing these questions, we describe two exploratory studies. The first study takes a broad view, using…

An Exploratory Study of a Story Problem Assessment: Understanding Children's Number Sense

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shumway, Jessica F.; Westenskow, Arla; Moyer-Packenham, Patricia S.

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify and describe students' use of number sense as they solved story problem tasks. Three 8- and 9-year-old students participated in clinical interviews. Through a process of holistic and qualitative coding, researchers used the number sense view as a theoretical framework for exploring how students' number…

Contemplating a New Model for Air Force Aerospace Medical Technician Skills Sustainment Training

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-03-01

qualitative research designs. The major designs described by these researchers included: grounded theory , narrative research ... phenomenological research , ethnographies , content analysis, and case study . Because each of these designs can stand alone as an individual research ...exploratory, embedded, single case study . A mixed methods research approach will be applied in an effort to discover

The Effects of Traumatic Brain Injury during Adolescence on Career Plans and Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balaban, Tammy; Hyde, Nellemarie; Colantonio, Angela

2009-01-01

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) often occurs during the years when individuals are aiming for vocational goals and acquiring skills needed to achieve vocational success. This exploratory study aimed to describe the perceived long-term impact on career outcomes for individuals who were hospitalized with a TBI during adolescence. This study used a…

Differences in Spatio-Temporal Behavior of Zebrafish in the Open Tank Paradigm after a Short-Period Confinement into Dark and Bright Environments

PubMed Central

Rosemberg, Denis B.; Rico, Eduardo P.; Mussulini, Ben Hur M.; Piato, Ângelo L.; Calcagnotto, Maria E.; Bonan, Carla D.; Dias, Renato D.; Blaser, Rachel E.; Souza, Diogo O.; de Oliveira, Diogo L.

2011-01-01

The open tank paradigm, also known as novel tank diving test, is a protocol used to evaluate the zebrafish behavior. Several characteristics have been described for this species, including scototaxis, which is the natural preference for dark environments in detriment of bright ones. However, there is no evidence regarding the influence of “natural stimuli” in zebrafish subjected to novelty-based paradigms. In this report, we evaluated the spatio-temporal exploratory activity of the short-fin zebrafish phenotype in the open tank after a short-period confinement into dark/bright environments. A total of 44 animals were individually confined during a 10-min single session into one of three environments: black-painted, white-painted, and transparent cylinders (dark, bright, and transparent groups). Fish were further subjected to the novel tank test and their exploratory profile was recorded during a 15-min trial. The results demonstrated that zebrafish increased their vertical exploratory activity during the first 6-min, where the bright group spent more time and travelled a higher distance in the top area. Interestingly, all behavioral parameters measured for the dark group were similar to the transparent one. These data were confirmed by automated analysis of track and occupancy plots and also demonstrated that zebrafish display a classical homebase formation in the bottom area of the tank. A detailed spatio-temporal study of zebrafish exploratory behavior and the construction of representative ethograms showed that the experimental groups presented significant differences in the first 3-min vs. last 3-min of test. Although the main factors involved in these behavioral responses still remain ambiguous and require further investigation, the current report describes an alternative methodological approach for assessing the zebrafish behavior after a forced exposure to different environments. Additionally, the analysis of ethologically-relevant patterns across time could be a potential phenotyping tool to evaluate the zebrafish exploratory profile in the open tank task. PMID:21559304

Implementing Social Norm Pedagogy to Impact Students' Personal Health Behavior

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kramer, Mary M.; Stover, Sheri

2015-01-01

This quantitative exploratory research study describes the incorporation of Social Norms as a unique pedagogical method in an undergraduate Health Behaviors course (N = 32). With the use of an audience response system (clickers), students anonymously answered health-behavior related questions. Aggregate data from the class was compared to state…

Inference and Discovery in an Exploratory Laboratory. Technical Report No. 10.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shute, Valerie; And Others

This paper describes the results of a study done as part of a research program investigating the use of computer-based laboratories to support self-paced discovery learning in related to microeconomics, electricity, and light refraction. Program objectives include maximizing the laboratories' effectiveness in helping students learn content…

Ontario Kindergarten Teachers' Social Media Discussions about Full Day Kindergarten

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lynch, Meghan

2014-01-01

This exploratory netnographic study describes how a sample of Ontario kindergarten teachers perceive the new Ontario Full Day Kindergarten (FDK) curriculum. Discussions from teacher message boards, the comment sections of online news articles, and interviews with kindergarten teachers were analyzed and coded using a qualitative approach. Analysis…

An Exploratory Study of Young Persons' Attachment Styles and Perceived Reasons for Parental Divorce.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Tavi R.; Ehrenberg, Marion F.

1998-01-01

Explored relationship between undergraduate students' perceptions of the reasons for their parents' divorces and their own feelings of security in romantic relationships. Found that 73% described insecure attachment styles. Perceived reasons for divorce involving expressions of overt anger, involvement of children, and extramarital affairs were…

Critical Incidents in Sustaining School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andreou, Theresa E.; McIntosh, Kent; Ross, Scott W.; Kahn, Joshua D.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory study was to identify, categorize, and describe practitioners' perspectives regarding factors that help and hinder sustainability of Tier I (universal) systems within School-wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS). Seventeen participants involved in sustaining Tier I SWPBIS over several years…

The Information Seeking and Use Behaviors of Retired Investors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Connor, Lisa G.

2013-01-01

This exploratory study examines the information seeking and use behaviors of a group of US retired or near-retirement investors from everyday life information seeking and serious leisure perspectives. Although primarily qualitative, it also collects and analyzes quantitative data to describe retired investors' information preferences and use.…

Using Web-Based Practice to Enhance Mathematics Learning and Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nguyen, Diem M.; Kulm, Gerald

2005-01-01

This article describes 1) the special features and accessibility of an innovative web-based practice instrument (WebMA) designed with randomized short-answer, matching and multiple choice items incorporated with automatically adapted feedback for middle school students; and 2) an exploratory study that compares the effects and contributions of…

The Complementary Effects of Empathy and Nonverbal Communication Training on Persuasion Capabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peterson, Robin T.; Leonhardt, James M.

2015-01-01

This paper investigates the possible complementary effects that training in empathy and nonverbal communication may have on persuasion capabilities. The narrative considers implications from the literature and describes an exploratory study in which students, in a managerial setting, were trained in empathy and nonverbal communication. Subsequent…

An Exploratory Study of School Counselling Teachers' Motivation Changes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Wei; Yuan, Rui; Zhang, Hong

2018-01-01

This brief report describes an investigation into the motivational changes of two school counselling teachers in two rural schools in the Chinese context. The findings revealed the mixed motivations of the participants in joining school counselling and how their motivations transformed through their professional engagement and social interactions…

Building on Strength: Positive Youth Development in Juvenile Justice Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barton William H.; Butts, Jeffrey A.

2008-01-01

This report describes the results of an exploratory study of juvenile justice programs where managers and practitioners are attempting to build youth interventions with strength-based, positive youth development principles. Previous researchers have not adequately documented how such reforms take place, let alone whether they produce effective…

Male Teachers' Experiences of Own Aggression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Botha, Johan; Myburgh, Chris; Poggenpoel, Marie

2013-01-01

We describe an exploratory, descriptive, and contextual study on the lived experiences of 17 male teachers' own aggression in the Gert Sibande district in Mpumalanga province. Individual phenomenological interviews were used to collect data from these volunteers for this qualitative research. The data were analysed by means of an open coding…

Successes and Challenges in East African Conservation Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson-Pynn, Julie S.; Johnson, Laura R.

2005-01-01

Environmental education (EE) programs that include service-learning components have great potential to positively impact East African youth, their communities, and their ecology. This exploratory study describes 2 programs in East Africa, The Jane Goodall Institute's Roots & Shoots (R&S) and Wildlife Clubs of Uganda (WCU). The authors…

Initial Reliability and Validity of the Perceived Social Competence Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson-Butcher, Dawn; Iachini, Aidyn L.; Amorose, Anthony J.

2008-01-01

Objective: This study describes the development and validation of a perceived social competence scale that social workers can easily use to assess children's and youth's social competence. Method: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted on a calibration and a cross-validation sample of youth. Predictive validity was also…

A Broadened Sales Curriculum: Exploratory Evidence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leisen, Birgit; Tippins, Michael J.; Lilly, Bryan

2004-01-01

This article describes research aimed at aligning education offerings with practitioner views of what topics should be offered in a marketing education. Data were collected across two investigations. In Study 1, a typical profile of marketing curriculum was developed by reviewing marketing programs at AACSB-accredited schools. This typical profile…

The Semiotic Ecology and Linguistic Complexity of an Online Game World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thorne, Steven L.; Fischer, Ingrid; Lu, Xiaofei

2012-01-01

Multiplayer online games form complex semiotic ecologies that include game-generated texts, player-to-player communication and collaboration, and associated websites that support in-game play. This article describes an exploratory study of the massively multiplayer online game (MMO) "World of Warcraft" ("WoW"), with specific…

An Investigation of School Counselor Self-Efficacy with English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Leonissa V.; Ziomek-Daigle, Jolie; Haskins, Natoya Hill; Paisley, Pamela O.

2017-01-01

This exploratory quantitative study described school counselors' self-efficacy with English language learners. Findings suggest that school counselors with exposure to and experiences with English language learners have higher levels of self-efficacy. Statistically significant and practical differences in self-efficacy were apparent by race, U.S.…

Teacher's Guide for Spinning Tables. Elementary Science Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hein, George E.; And Others

This teacher's guide suggests a number of ways to use a spinning table to explore circular motion. Activities are described which are appropriate for children in kindergarten through third grade. Suggestions are made for exploratory activities using the equipment rather than supplying detailed instructions for formal activities. Equipment and…

Black African Parents' Experiences of an Educational Psychology Service

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawrence, Zena

2014-01-01

The evidence base that explores Black African parents' experiences of an Educational Psychology Service (EPS) is limited. This article describes an exploratory mixed methods research study undertaken during 2009-2011, that explored Black African parents' engagement with a UK EPS. Quantitative data were gathered from the EPS preschool database and…

Stakeholders' Qualitative Perspectives of Effective Telepractice Pedagogy in Speech-Language Pathology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Overby, Megan S.

2018-01-01

Background: Academic programmes in speech-language pathology are increasingly providing telehealth/telepractice clinical education to students. Despite this growth, there is little information describing effective ways to teach it. Aims: The current exploratory study analyzed the perceptions of speech-language pathology/therapy (SLP/SLT) faculty,…

The Discussion of Biotechnology Controversial Issues--An Exploratory Study about Its Potentialities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rocha dos Reis, Pedro

This paper describes a qualitative research that used small group discussion activities centered in biotechnology and genetics controversies as a contribution to the promotion of students' thinking tools. Students' written conclusions and reflections about the activities, teachers' interviews, participant observation of the classes, and their…

Retaining Pathological Gamblers in Cognitive Behavior Therapy through Motivational Enhancement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wulfert, Edelgard; Blanchard, Edward B.; Freidenberg, Brian M.; Martell, Rebecca S.

2006-01-01

Treatment for pathological gambling is in its infancy. Several cognitive and behavioral interventions have shown promise, but high attrition and relapse rates suggest that gamblers requesting treatment are not uniformly committed to change. This article describes an exploratory study with 9 severe pathological gamblers--in their majority horse…

Integrating a Transcultural Perspective into the Social Work Curriculum: A Descriptive and Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Drabble, Laurie; Sen, Soma; Oppenheimer, Sergio Yomar

2012-01-01

This paper describes a transcultural perspective, employed by one social work program, as an integrative framework for addressing diversity throughout the curriculum. The transcultural perspective incorporates five interrelated but distinct dimensions: (1) culture (recognizing the importance of culture at all levels of practice); (2) understanding…

Consortium for Planning, Developing, and Implementing Exploratory Industrial Career Development Models (Phase I of Three Phases). Interim Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oregon State Univ., Corvallis.

The report describes the organizational phase of a project designed to create program models and supporting literature for exploratory industrial career development programs for grades seven to ten. The project was undertaken by Oregon State University in cooperation with the Oregon State Department of Education and involved the formation of a…

Exploration of Learning Strategies Associated With Aha Learning Moments.

PubMed

Pilcher, Jobeth W

2016-01-01

Educators recognize aha moments as powerful aspects of learning. Yet limited research has been performed regarding how to promote these learning moments. This article describes an exploratory study of aha learning moments as experienced and described by participants. Findings showed use of visuals, scenarios, storytelling, Socratic questions, and expert explanation led to aha learning moments. The findings provide guidance regarding the types of learning strategies that can be used to promote aha moments.

Advanced thermally stable jet fuels: Technical progress report, October 1994--December 1994

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schobert, H.H.; Eser, S.; Song, C.

There are five tasks within this project on thermally stable coal-based jet fuels. Progress on each of the tasks is described. Task 1, Investigation of the quantitative degradation chemistry of fuels, has 5 subtasks which are described: Literature review on thermal stability of jet fuels; Pyrolytic and catalytic reactions of potential endothermic fuels: cis- and trans-decalin; Use of site specific {sup 13}C-labeling to examine the thermal stressing of 1-phenylhexane: A case study for the determination of reaction kinetics in complex fuel mixtures versus model compound studies; Estimation of critical temperatures of jet fuels; and Surface effects on deposit formation inmore » a flow reactor system. Under Task 2, Investigation of incipient deposition, the subtask reported is Uncertainty analysis on growth and deposition of particles during heating of coal-derived aviation gas turbine fuels; under Task 3, Characterization of solid gums, sediments, and carbonaceous deposits, is subtask, Studies of surface chemistry of PX-21 activated carbon during thermal degradation of jet A-1 fuel and n-dodecane; under Task 4, Coal-based fuel stabilization studies, is subtask, Exploratory screening and development potential of jet fuel thermal stabilizers over 400 C; and under Task 5, Exploratory studies on the direct conversion of coal to high quality jet fuels, are 4 subtasks: Novel approaches to low-severity coal liquefaction and coal/resid co-processing using water and dispersed catalysts; Shape-selective naphthalene hydrogenation for production of thermally stable jet fuels; Design of a batch mode and a continuous mode three-phase reactor system for the liquefaction of coal and upgrading of coal liquids; and Exploratory studies on coal liquids upgrading using mesopores molecular sieve catalysts. 136 refs., 69 figs., 24 tabs.« less

The TIMSS Videotape Classroom Study: Methods and Findings from an Exploratory Research Project on Eighth-Grade Mathematics Instruction in Germany, Japan, and the United States.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stigler, James W.; Gonzales, Patrick; Kawanaka, Takako; Knoll, Steffen; Serrano, Ana

1999-01-01

Describes the methods and preliminary findings of the Videotape Classroom Study, a video survey of eighth-grade mathematics lessons in Germany, Japan, and the United States. Part of the Third International Mathematics and Science study, this research project is the first study of videotaped records from national probability samples. (SLD)

Exploratory factor analysis of self-reported symptoms in a large, population-based military cohort

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background US military engagements have consistently raised concern over the array of health outcomes experienced by service members postdeployment. Exploratory factor analysis has been used in studies of 1991 Gulf War-related illnesses, and may increase understanding of symptoms and health outcomes associated with current military conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The objective of this study was to use exploratory factor analysis to describe the correlations among numerous physical and psychological symptoms in terms of a smaller number of unobserved variables or factors. Methods The Millennium Cohort Study collects extensive self-reported health data from a large, population-based military cohort, providing a unique opportunity to investigate the interrelationships of numerous physical and psychological symptoms among US military personnel. This study used data from the Millennium Cohort Study, a large, population-based military cohort. Exploratory factor analysis was used to examine the covariance structure of symptoms reported by approximately 50,000 cohort members during 2004-2006. Analyses incorporated 89 symptoms, including responses to several validated instruments embedded in the questionnaire. Techniques accommodated the categorical and sometimes incomplete nature of the survey data. Results A 14-factor model accounted for 60 percent of the total variance in symptoms data and included factors related to several physical, psychological, and behavioral constructs. A notable finding was that many factors appeared to load in accordance with symptom co-location within the survey instrument, highlighting the difficulty in disassociating the effects of question content, location, and response format on factor structure. Conclusions This study demonstrates the potential strengths and weaknesses of exploratory factor analysis to heighten understanding of the complex associations among symptoms. Further research is needed to investigate the relationship between factor analytic results and survey structure, as well as to assess the relationship between factor scores and key exposure variables. PMID:20950474

Vegetation ecological restoration during geothermic exploratory perforation: A case study in Mexico

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ortega-Rubio, A.; Salinas, F.; Naranjo, A.

1997-12-31

At Las Tres Virgenes, B.C.S., Mexico developed the Geothermic exploratory drilling of the area. One of the main recommendations of our Environmental Impact Assessment Study includes transplantation of the plant individuals found in the zones of roads and drilling platforms. In this work we describe the methodologies used to transplant the vegetal individuals found in such zones. We listed the species selected and the survivorship rate obtained for every one of them. From a total of 4,266 transplanted individuals, including many endemic species, a total of 2349 survived. Members of the Agavaceae and Cactaceae families show the maximum survivorship rate,more » meanwhile the members of the Burseraceae, Euphorbiaceae and Fouqueriaceae families exhibited the minimum survivorship rate (between 12.7% and 20%).« less

An Exploratory Study of the Academic Engagement and Beliefs of Latino Male High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Torres, Mellie

2017-01-01

This study provides insights to the school experiences of Latino male students through an exploration of how they describe their beliefs about education and how they engage in school for academic success. Data is drawn from interviews and surveys conducted with Latino males that participated in New York University's Black and Latino Male School…

"There Was a Great Collision in the Stock Market": Middle School Students, Online Primary Sources, and Historical Sense Making.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Frances Jacobson

2002-01-01

Describes an exploratory study of eighth-grade students and their use of online primary sources for an oral history unit on family farming. Highlights include using photographs from the Depression era to write stories; use of bibliographic information; higher level thinking skills; use of humor; and implications for secondary social studies and…

Burning California Chaparral - An Exploratory Study of Some Common Shrubs and Their Combustion Characteristics

Treesearch

David R. Weise; Darold E. Ward

1991-01-01

Abstract. Prescribed fire is a tool used to manage vegetation in southern California. The nature and quantity of gaseous and particulate emissions have not been described for California chaparral. A study examining carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), and particulate matter emissions from fuel beds constructed from common chaparral shrubs was initiated. Chamise...

Exploratory Research and Development Fund, FY 1990

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1992-05-01

The Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory Exploratory R D Fund FY 1990 report is compiled from annual reports submitted by principal investigators following the close of the fiscal year. This report describes the projects supported and summarizes their accomplishments. It constitutes a part of an Exploratory R D Fund (ERF) planning and documentation process that includes an annual planning cycle, projection selection, implementation, and review. The research areas covered in this report are: Accelerator and fusion research; applied science; cell and molecular biology; chemical biodynamics; chemical sciences; earth sciences; engineering; information and computing sciences; materials sciences; nuclear science; physics and research medicinemore » and radiation biophysics.« less

Capturing Career Reflections: Construction of an Instrument to Explore Careers and Career Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDonald, Kimberly S.; Hite, Linda M.; Mansour-Cole, Dina

2006-01-01

This study describes the development and validation of an instrument to tap employee reflections on career interests, needs and career development opportunities. Item construction was based on issues identified in previous qualitative research and themes prevalent in recent HRD career development literature. Pilot data for an exploratory factor…

Development of an Empirically-Based Conditional Learning Progression for Climate Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Breslyn, Wayne; Drewes, Andrea; McGinnis, J. Randy; Hestness, Emily; Mouza, Chrystalla

2017-01-01

Climate change encompasses a broad and complex set of concepts that is often challenging for students and educators. Using a learning progressions (LPs) knowledge system, we developed a LP that described student learning of climate change. In this exploratory study, we present findings from written assessments of climate change (n = 294) and…

Brothers, Sisters and Fictive Kin: Communication about Sex among Urban Black Siblings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wallace, Scyatta A.; Hooper, Lisa M.; Persad, Malini

2014-01-01

Siblings have been shown to influence youth substance use and violent behavior. However, limited research has examined sibling-influences on sexual activity, particularly among urban Black youth. The current qualitative research was an exploratory study to describe discussions among siblings about sex and sexual health. Individual interviews were…

Reasons Underlying Treatment Preference: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cochran, Bryan N.; Pruitt, Larry; Fukuda, Seiya; Zoellner, Lori A.; Feeny, Norah C.

2008-01-01

Very little is known about what factors influence women's treatment preferences after a sexual assault. To learn more about these factors, data were collected from 273 women who read a standard "if this happened to you, what would you do" scenario describing a sexual assault and subsequent trauma-related psychiatric symptoms. After reading…

Debriefing Interviews and Coaching Conversations: Strategies to Promote Student Reflexivity and Action

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maritz, J.; Jooste, K.

2011-01-01

Without conscious will and engagement in critical reflexivity as a process of growth and learning in research, students remain unaware of their subjective biases and the effect of bias on the inquiry. A qualitative, exploratory, single descriptive case study was used to explore and describe the operationalisation of debriefing interviews and…

Chasing "Ubuntu": Using ICTs to Promote Reflective Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Malone, Todd; Wilder, Hilary

2008-01-01

Purpose: To describe an exploratory study in which an online learning system was used to provide an intercultural experience for pre-service education students from New Jersey and Namibia. Design/methodology/approach: Pre-service education students from New Jersey and Namibia were enrolled in an online course in the fall of 2004. The following…

An Exploratory Study of Binge Drinking in the Aboriginal Population

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wardman, Dennis; Quantz, Darryl

2005-01-01

There is little research available on binge drinking among the Aboriginal population. Between March and June 2004, 15 Aboriginal persons participated in a semi-structured interview related to their binge drinking behaviors. The majority of participants were women and described a family history of alcoholism and childhood abuse. Factors that…

First-Generation College Students: Personal Best Leadership Experiences and Intramural Sports Participation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milone, Joseph P.

2016-01-01

The phenomenon of interest in this exploratory case study was the self-reported leadership skills of first-generation college students who were actively participating in intramural sports. Specifically, the purpose was to describe participants' reports of engaging in behaviors or actions, during intramural sports, that are aligned with the…

An Examination of the Relationship between Principal Technology Leadership and Technology Integration in Urban Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Draper, Kathryn L.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory/quantitative descriptive and correlational study was to examine the relationship between principal technology leadership and technology integration in urban schools. The technology activities of principals along with Organizational Health Instrument (OHI) survey outcomes perceived by their faculty were described and…

Selected Papers in School Finance: 1975.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tron, Esther O.; And Others

The three papers in this volume describe exploratory efforts to adjust state aid to local school districts so as to reflect differences in local costs unrelated to school program content. Each study is limited to an analysis of relevant data for one of the three states considered--Michigan, California, and Florida. The underlying assumption is…

Design Principles for Computer-Assisted Instruction in Histology Education: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deniz, Hasan; Cakir, Hasan

2006-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to describe the development process and the key components of a computer-assisted histology material. Computer-assisted histology material is designed to supplement traditional histology education in a large Midwestern university. Usability information of the computer-assisted instruction (CAI) material was obtained…

The Impact of Powerful Oral Language Lab on Chilean EFL Preservice Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Hsuying Chiou; Andruske, Cynthia Lee

2013-01-01

This exploratory qualitative case study reports the impact of using a public-speaking structure (Powerful Oral Language Lab [POLL]) in teaching preservice Chilean English pedagogy students. It describes how this task-based method of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher training is related to language strategic competence. Twenty students…

Development and Initial Validation of the Self-Directed Learning Inventory with Korean College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suh, Han Na; Wang, Kenneth T.; Arterberry, Brooke J.

2015-01-01

This article describes the development and psychometric evaluation of the Self-Directed Learning Inventory (SDLI) tailored to Korean college students, based on study evidences of differences in learning behavior across culture and educational level. With a sample of 605 female college students in Korea, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) results…

The Perceived Value of Higher Education: The Voice of Chinese Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lai, Linda S. L.; To, W. M.; Lung, Jane W. Y.; Lai, T. M.

2012-01-01

This paper describes an exploratory study on the perceived value of higher education by Chinese students in Macao SAR, Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Taipei. Using responses from 316 students, we find that the Sheth-Newman-Gross Theory of Consumption Values explains how students perceive the services offered by higher education institutions. Students…

HOMOGENEOUS CLASSROOM GROUPING BASED ON CONCEPTUAL SYSTEMS THEORY IN AN EDUCATION ENRICHMENT PROJECT -- AN EXPLORATORY STUDY.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

HUNT, DAVID E.

EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENTS, HIGHLY STRUCTURED OR UNSTRUCTURED, WERE DIFFERENTIALLY EFFECTIVE WITH STUDENTS OF VARYING PERSONALITIES. THE REPORT CONSIDERED THE UTILITY AND RELEVANCE OF THE CONCEPTUAL SYSTEMS MODEL BY DESCRIBING A SPECIFIC PROJECT IN WHICH THE MODEL SERVED AS THE BASIS FOR FORMING HOMOGENEOUS CLASSROOM GROUPS. THE PROJECT WAS…

Promoting Student-Teacher Interactions: Exploring a Peer Coaching Model for Teachers in a Preschool Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Stacy R.; Finlon, Kristy J.; Kobak, Roger; Izard, Carroll E.

2017-01-01

Peer coaching provides an attractive alternative to traditional professional development for promoting classroom quality in a sustainable, cost-effective manner by creating a collaborative teaching community. This exploratory study describes the development and evaluation of the Colleague Observation And CoacHing (COACH) program, a peer coaching…

Purposes and Effects of Lying.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hample, Dale

Three exploratory studies were aimed at describing the purposes of lies and the consequences of lying. Data were collected through a partly open-ended questionnaire, a content analysis of several tape-recorded interviews, and a large-scale survey. The results showed that two of every three lies were told for selfish reasons, while three of every…

Measuring Experiential Avoidance: A Preliminary Test of a Working Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hayes, Steven C.; Strosahl, Kirk; Wilson, Kelly G.; Bissett, Richard T.; Pistorello, Jacqueline; Toarmino, Dosheen; Polusny, Melissa A.; Dykstra, Thane A.; Batten, Sonja V.; Bergan, John; Stewart, Sherry H.; Zvolensky, Michael J.; Eifert, Georg H.; Bond, Frank W.; Forsyth, John P.; Karekla, Maria; Mccurry, Susan M.

2004-01-01

The present study describes the development of a short, general measure of experiential avoidance, based on a specific theoretical approach to this process. A theoretically driven iterative exploratory analysis using structural equation modeling on data from a clinical sample yielded a single factor comprising 9 items. A fully confirmatory factor…

Border Pedagogy Cafes: Grassroots Conversations that Matter

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Necochea, Juan; Cline, Zulmara

2008-01-01

This exploratory study uses qualitative methods to analyze the impact of conversations in the Border Pedagogy "Cafes" on more than 500 binational educators from the Tijuana/San Diego area on the U.S.-Mexico border. Four important themes emerged from the analysis that describe the impact of the cafes and offer a strong foundation on which…

Undergraduate Student Perceptions of the Pedagogy Used in a Leadership Course: A Qualitative Examination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Odom, Summer F.

2015-01-01

This exploratory, qualitative, descriptive study examined undergraduate student perspectives of pedagogy used in an undergraduate leadership elective course to describe how students view the effectiveness and impact of pedagogies used in the course. Undergraduate students (n = 28) reflected on the effectiveness of the pedagogies and the learning…

Serendipity in Teaching and Learning: The Importance of Critical Moments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giordano, Peter J.

2010-01-01

Can professors, through their casual, random remarks to students, alter lives and transform identities? The answer, based on two exploratory studies described in this article, appears to be yes. Drawing from constructive-developmental ideas of student maturation and from features of chaos theory as applied to the complex dynamic system of…

Student Reasoning about Electrostatic and Gravitational Potential Energy: An Exploratory Study with Interdisciplinary Consequences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindsey, Beth A.

2014-01-01

This paper describes an investigation into student reasoning about potential energy in the context of introductory electrostatics. Similar incorrect reasoning patterns emerged both in written questions administered after relevant instruction and in one-on-one interviews. These reasoning patterns are also prevalent in responses to questions posed…

Developing a Scale for Quality of Using Learning Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tasci, Guntay; Yurdugul, Halil

2016-01-01

This study aims to develop a measurement tool to measure the quality of using learning strategies. First, the quality of using learning strategies was described based on the literature. The 32 items in the 5-point Likert scale were then administered to 320 prospective teachers, and they were analysed with exploratory factor analysis using…

A Construct Validation of the Mental Models Learning Outcome Using Exploratory Factor Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheehan, Joseph; Tessmer, Martin

A mental model is a knowledge structure composed of concepts and the relations between them. Mental models are distinct from declarative and procedural knowledge--they go beyond semantic relationships and skills acquisition and contain varied intellectual skills and knowledge. This study describes an initial investigation into the construct…

A Strategic Governance Review for Multi-Organizational Systems of Education, Training, and Professional Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daley, Glenn A.; Levy, Dina G.; Kaganoff, Tessa; Augustine, Catherine A.; Benjamin, Roger; Bikson, Tora K.; Gates, Susan M.; Moini, Joy S.

A study was conducted to develop tools for describing and evaluating external governance in the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD's) multiorganizational system of education, training, and professional development. An exploratory conceptual framework and taxonomy for understanding external governance in the DoD context was developed, and the…

Assessing the Developmental Instruction Model: An Exploratory Study of Classroom "Fit" Using Environmental Types

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salter, Daniel W.

2013-01-01

To support the instructional process, Knefelkamp advanced the developmental instruction model (DIM) to describe the aspects of academic environments that facilitate the epistemological development of college students, consistent with the Perry scheme. No related measurement tool has been developed for the DIM, which may account for the lack of…

Using Simulation to Develop Entrepreneurial Skills and Mind-Set: An Exploratory Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Costin, Yvonne; O'Brien, Michael P.; Slattery, Darina M.

2018-01-01

Entrepreneurs need to develop a range of skills to be successful, including skills in decision making, risk management, problem solving, communication, and teamwork. Games and simulations are increasingly being used in both academia and business to encourage such skills development. This paper describes a business simulation module whereby…

Measurement of participation: intersecting person, task, and environment.

PubMed

Mallinson, Trudy; Hammel, Joy

2010-09-01

The goals of this article are to describe participation as a transaction and issues involved in measuring and intervening using this transactional approach; describe ecologic and systems-based theoretic approaches for conceptualizing person-task-environment transactions; and illustrate examples of an exploratory strategy, radar plots, as a clinical tool for rehabilitation professionals to show this interaction and use it to inform participation-focused interventions with people with disabilities in rehabilitation settings. Participation necessarily occurs at the intersection of what the person can do, wants to do, has the opportunity to do, and is not prevented from doing. It is a transaction that occurs at the nexus of the person-task-environment. Measurement of participation should capture this transactive nature. Radar plots are part of a group of graphic displays frequently referred to as exploratory data analysis. In situations in which theory is not well developed, exploratory techniques such as radar plots may hold promise as ways to explore better the relationship among variables. This article describes strengths and limitations of radar plots and presents an example with data from the Community Participation Database. Copyright 2010 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Prevalence of urinary tract infection (UTI) in sequential acutely unwell children presenting in primary care: exploratory study.

PubMed

O'Brien, Kathryn; Stanton, Naomi; Edwards, Adrian; Hood, Kerenza; Butler, Christopher C

2011-03-01

Due to the non-specific nature of symptoms of UTI in children and low levels of urine sampling, the prevalence of UTI amongst acutely ill children in primary care is unknown. To undertake an exploratory study of acutely ill children consulting in primary care, determine the feasibility of obtaining urine samples, and describe presenting symptoms and signs, and the proportion with UTI. Exploratory, observational study. Four general practices in South Wales. A total of 99 sequential attendees with acute illness aged less than five years. UTI defined by >10(5) organisms/ml on laboratory culture of urine. Urine samples were obtained in 75 (76%) children. Three (4%) met microbiological criteria for UTI. GPs indicated they would not normally have obtained urine samples in any of these three children. However, all had received antibiotics for suspected alternative infections. Urine sample collection is feasible from the majority of acutely ill children in primary care, including infants. Some cases of UTI may be missed if children thought to have an alternative site of infection are excluded from urine sampling. A larger study is needed to more accurately determine the prevalence of UTI in children consulting with acute illness in primary care, and to explore which symptoms and signs might help clinicians effectively target urine sampling.

Successful despite poor flight performance: range expansion is associated with enhanced exploratory behaviour and fast development.

PubMed

Reim, Elisabeth; Blesinger, Simone; Förster, Lisa; Fischer, Klaus

2018-05-29

Anthropogenic interference forces species to respond to changing environmental conditions. One possible response is dispersal and concomitant range shifts, allowing individuals to escape unfavourable conditions or to track the shifting climate niche. Range expansions depend on both dispersal capacity and the ability to establish populations beyond the former range. We here compare well-established core populations with recently established edge populations in the currently northward expanding butterfly Lycaena tityrus. Edge populations were characterized by shorter development times and smaller size, a higher sensitivity to high temperature and an enhanced exploratory behaviour. The differences between core and edge populations found suggest adaptation to local climates and an enhanced dispersal ability in edge populations. In particular, enhanced exploratory behaviour may be advantageous in all steps of the dispersal process and may have facilitated the current range expansion. This study describes differences associated with a current range expansion, knowledge which might be useful for a better understanding of species responses to environmental change. We further report on variation between males and females in morphology and flight behaviour, with males showing a longer flight endurance and more pronounced exploratory behaviour than females. © 2018 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2018 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Shipboard Crew Fatigue, Safety and Reduced Manning

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1990-11-01

This report describes an exploratory first phase of an investigation of human stress and : fatigue in the merchant marine. Its principal purposes were to: survey the effects of : fatigue on human performance in the transportation industries; describe...

A Study of Low-Wage Workers and Their Response to High Intensity Training. Volume I: Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Earl E.

The intent of this study was to describe low-wage, low-skill workers within the context of their work environment and to develop techniques to measure the effects of Skill Advancement's skill training program on the participants. Due to the lack of research findings in this area, these research efforts were somewhat exploratory in nature,…

Cyberinfrastructure and Scientific Collaboration: Application of a Virtual Team Performance Framework with Potential Relevance to Education. WCER Working Paper No. 2010-12

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kraemer, Sara; Thorn, Christopher A.

2010-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory study was to identify and describe some of the dimensions of scientific collaborations using high throughput computing (HTC) through the lens of a virtual team performance framework. A secondary purpose was to assess the viability of using a virtual team performance framework to study scientific collaborations using…

The "Critical Friend" Role in Fostering Reflective Practices and Developing Staff Cohesion: A Case Study in a New Secondary School, New Zealand

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Noeline; Adam, Amina

2015-01-01

This exploratory case study, arising from a longitudinal project into the establishment of a new secondary school in New Zealand, examines reflective practice through critical friend roles among staff. The paper describes, through the lens of Bourdieu's logic of practice, the implementation of a critical friendship approach linked to the school…

An exploratory study of the relationship between changes in emotion and cognitive processes and treatment outcome in borderline personality disorder.

PubMed

McMain, Shelley; Links, Paul S; Guimond, Tim; Wnuk, Susan; Eynan, Rahel; Bergmans, Yvonne; Warwar, Serine

2013-01-01

This exploratory study examined specific emotion processes and cognitive problem-solving processes in individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD), and assessed the relationship of these changes to treatment outcome. Emotion and cognitive problem-solving processes were assessed using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, the Linguistic Inquiry Word Count, the Derogatis Affect Balance Scale, and the Problem Solving Inventory. Participants who showed greater improvements in affect balance, problem solving, and the ability to identify and describe emotions showed greater improvements on treatment outcome, with affect balance remaining statistically significant under the most conservative conditions. The results provide preliminary evidence to support the theory that specific improvements in emotion and cognitive processes are associated with positive treatment outcomes (symptom distress, interpersonal functioning) in BPD. The implications for treatment are discussed.

The Role of Conflict Identification and Management in Sustaining Community Collaboration: Report on a Four-Year Exploratory Study.

PubMed

Blanch, Andrea K; Boustead, Robyn; Boothroyd, Roger A; Evans, Mary E; Chen, Huey-Jen

2015-07-01

Community collaboration has become increasingly common in behavioral health services. Conflict is likely to occur in any community coalition bringing together organizations with differing mandates, missions, and histories. However, research on how coalitions identify and handle conflict, and on the impact of conflict on sustainability is scarce. An exploratory study examined conflict in two federally funded children's "systems of care" using site visits and concept mapping to describe differences in how sites conceptualize and respond to conflict. Results suggest that unacknowledged and unaddressed conflict can negatively affect the development and sustainability of sites, and that focusing on cooperation may, paradoxically, make it more difficult to acknowledge conflict and to implement conflict transformation processes. Implications for behavioral health administrators are discussed, including potential interventions that could address these issues.

Nonverbal Vocal Communication of Emotions in Interviews with Child and Adolescent Psychoanalysts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tokgoz, Tuba

2014-01-01

This exploratory study attempted to examine both the words and the prosody/melody of the language within the framework of Bucci's Multiple Code Theory. The sample consisted of twelve audio-recorded, semi-structured interviews of child and adolescent psychoanalysts who were asked to describe their work with patients. It is observed that emotionally…

Institutions within School Organizations: Looking inside the Black Box.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McMeekin, R. W.; Latorre, Marcela; Celedon, Francisca

This paper uses concepts from New Institutional Economics and subdisciplines within economics to describe factors related to schools' success. It draws on an exploratory study of a small sample of public and private primary schools in Chile to show that it is possible to apply the concepts proposed in the paper and that there is a positive…

Using the 5Ps Leadership Analysis to Examine the Battle of Antietam: An Explanation and Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hull, Bradley Z.; Allen, Scott J.

2012-01-01

The authors describe an exploratory analytical tool called "The 5Ps Leadership Analysis" (Personal Attributes, Position, Purpose, Practices/Processes, and Product) as a heuristic for better understanding the complexities of leadership. Using "The 5Ps Leadership Analysis," the authors explore the leadership of General Robert E.…

An Examination of Intimate Partner Violence and Psychological Stressors in Adult Abortion Patients

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ely, Gretchen E.; Otis, Melanie D.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this article is to describe an exploratory study examining the relationship between intimate partner violence and psychological stressors in a sample of 188 adult abortion patients. Results indicate the almost 15% of respondents report a history of abuse by the coconceiving partner. In addition, women who reported having had one or…

Investing in Diversity in London Schools: Leadership Preparation for Black and Global Majority Educators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Lauri; Campbell-Stephens, Rosemary

2010-01-01

This article traces the historical roots, describes the philosophy and curriculum, and analyzes the approach to leadership in Investing in Diversity, a 1-year Black-led leadership development course in the London schools. An exploratory qualitative case study approach was used to collect historical and empirical data about the program over a…

Mars Lander/Rover vehicle development: An advanced space design project for USRA and NASA/OAST

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1987-01-01

The accomplishments of the Utah State University (USU) Mars Lander/Rover (MLR) design class during the Winter Quarter are delineated and explained. Environment and trajectory, ground systems, balloon system, and payload system are described. Results from this effort will provide a valid and useful basis for further studies of Mars exploratory vehicles.

Investigating L2 Spoken English through the Role Play Learner Corpus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nava, Andrea; Pedrazzini, Luciana

2011-01-01

We describe an exploratory study carried out within the University of Milan, Department of English the aim of which was to analyse features of the spoken English of first-year Modern Languages undergraduates. We compiled a learner corpus, the "Role Play" corpus, which consisted of 69 role-play interactions in English carried out by…

Single Session Web-Based Counselling: A Thematic Analysis of Content from the Perspective of the Client

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodda, S. N.; Lubman, D. I.; Cheetham, A.; Dowling, N. A.; Jackson, A. C.

2015-01-01

Despite the exponential growth of non-appointment-based web counselling, there is limited information on what happens in a single session intervention. This exploratory study, involving a thematic analysis of 85 counselling transcripts of people seeking help for problem gambling, aimed to describe the presentation and content of online…

Applying HOPSCOTCH as an Exer-Learning Game in English Lessons: Two Exploratory Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lucht, Martina; Heidig, Steffi

2013-01-01

This article describes HOPSCOTCH, a design concept for an "exer-learning game" to engage elementary school children in learning. Exer-learning is a new genre of digital learning games that combines playing and learning with physical activity (exercise). HOPSCOTCH is a first design concept for exer-learning games that can be applied to…

Introducing a Writing Coach into an MBA Course: Perspectives of Students and Coaches

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rice-Bailey, Tammy; Baker, Kimberly S.

2017-01-01

This article describes an interdisciplinary partnership that resulted in the introduction of a writing coach into an MBA class on critical and analytical thinking. By examining the response to this role by the writing coaches themselves and by the students enrolled in three sections of this new course, this exploratory study endeavors to answer…

Development and Validation of the Calling and Vocation Questionnaire (CVQ) and Brief Calling Scale (BCS)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dik, Bryan J.; Eldridge, Brandy M.; Steger, Michael F.; Duffy, Ryan D.

2012-01-01

Research on work as a calling is limited by measurement concerns. In response, the authors introduce the multidimensional Calling and Vocation Questionnaire (CVQ) and the Brief Calling scale (BCS), instruments assessing presence of, and search for, a calling. Study 1 describes CVQ development using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis…

Exploring Parental Philosophies regarding Childcare: Overlap Orientations and the Influence of Childcare Programmes on Families

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baumgartner, Jennifer J.; McBride, Brent

2009-01-01

This exploratory study examined the beliefs held by families regarding childcare. In-depth interviews were conducted with parents of children ages 3-5 in full-day childcare. Parents described their experiences with childcare, thoughts about the continuity between childcare and home environments and other life philosophies. From the analysis of the…

The Implications of Sex Tourism on Men's Social, Psychological, and Physical Health

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bender, Kimberly; Furman, Rich

2004-01-01

This article explores sex tourism and possible concerns for the male sex tourist through a content analysis of sex tourism web sites. This qualitative, exploratory study describes the manner in which sex tour web sites attract and maintain male customers. Findings related to mens psychosocial health are placed within an international context.…

Rejecting Admission Offers to a Selective Math and Science School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Brent M.

2014-01-01

An exploratory study of applicants who rejected admission to the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS) is described in this article. TAMS is a residential early college entry program at the University of North Texas in Denton. Up to 600 mathematically talented sophomores apply to TAMS each year and among the 200 selectees, a predictable…

Exploring Gender and Self-Efficacy Ratings of Athletic Training Students over Time

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carr, W. David; Volberding, Jennifer L.

2014-01-01

Objective: To describe the development of a self-efficacy instrument and to explore the changes by gender in student self-efficacy ratings over 1 year. Design and Setting: An exploratory study utilizing an instrument that measures self-efficacy in undergraduate students in a university setting. Patients or Other Participants: Thirty students (13…

NHEXAS PHASE I MARYLAND STUDY--STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE FOR EXPLORATORY DATA ANALYSIS AND SUMMARY STATISTICS (D05)

EPA Science Inventory

This SOP describes the methods and procedures for two types of QA procedures: spot checks of hand entered data, and QA procedures for co-located and split samples. The spot checks were used to determine whether the error rate goal for the input of hand entered data was being att...

Research Connections: The San Diego Striving Readers' Project: Building Academic Success for Adolescent Readers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDonald, Trevor; Thornley, Christina; Staley, Rosemary; Moore, David W.

2009-01-01

This Research Connections column describes the background to and the research base for the San Diego Unified School Districts' federally funded Striving Readers Project. The curriculum for the project was developed out of a longitudinal study into the literacy experiences of secondary students in New Zealand and from exploratory work in San Diego…

Test Anxiety and GCSE Performance: The Effect of Gender and Socio-Economic Background

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Putwain, David William

2008-01-01

Despite a well established body of international literature describing the effect of test anxiety on student performance in a range of assessments, there has been little work conducted on samples of students from the UK. The purpose of this exploratory study is two-fold. First, to establish the relationship between test anxiety and assessment…

Exploring the Amount and Type of Writing Instruction during Language Arts Instruction in Kindergarten Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Puranik, Cynthia S.; Al Otaiba, Stephanie; Sidler, Jessica Folsom; Greulich, Luana

2014-01-01

The objective of this exploratory investigation was to examine the nature of writing instruction in kindergarten classrooms and to describe student writing outcomes at the end of the school year. Participants for this study included 21 teachers and 238 kindergarten children from nine schools. Classroom teachers were videotaped once each in the…

Girls, and Gender and Power Relationships in an Urban Middle School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCullough, Susan

2017-01-01

This paper describes the practices employed by middle school girls in New York City to negotiate their postfeminist school environment and considers the contested notion of girls' agency. Based on an exploratory ethnographic study, the data reveal that girls--to varying degrees of success--enacted a range of practices to gain power over the…

Exploratory Research and Development Fund, FY 1990. Report on Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1992-05-01

The Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory Exploratory R&D Fund FY 1990 report is compiled from annual reports submitted by principal investigators following the close of the fiscal year. This report describes the projects supported and summarizes their accomplishments. It constitutes a part of an Exploratory R&D Fund (ERF) planning and documentation process that includes an annual planning cycle, projection selection, implementation, and review. The research areas covered in this report are: Accelerator and fusion research; applied science; cell and molecular biology; chemical biodynamics; chemical sciences; earth sciences; engineering; information and computing sciences; materials sciences; nuclear science; physics and research medicine and radiationmore » biophysics.« less

The Evaluation of a Self-Enumerated Scale of Quality of Life (CASP-19) in the Context of Research on Ageing: A Combination of Exploratory and Confirmatory Approaches

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiggins, R. D.; Netuveli, G.; Hyde, M.; Higgs, P.; Blane, D.

2008-01-01

This paper describes the conceptual development of a self-enumerated scale of quality of life (CASP-19) and presents an empirical evaluation of its structure using a combination of exploratory and confirmatory factor analytic approaches across three different survey settings for older people living in England and Wales in the new millennium. All…

Exploratory behavior in rats postnatally exposed to cocaine and housed in an enriched environment.

PubMed

Magalhães, Ana; Melo, Pedro; Alves, Cecília Juliana; Tavares, Maria Amélia; de Sousa, Liliana; Summavielle, Teresa

2008-10-01

Exposure to cocaine in early periods of postnatal life is usually associated with changes in development of neurotransmitter systems and structure of the central nervous system. Such changes are most likely correlated with behavioral alterations. Environmental enrichment conditions (EC) in early stages is a factor that affects structural and behavioral development. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of EC on rats postnatally exposed to cocaine on exploratory behavior. Wistar rats were assigned to four groups-Group 1: pups exposed to cocaine hydrochloride (15 mg/kg body weight/day) s.c., in two daily doses, from postnatal day (PND) 1 to 28 and reared in EC; Group 2: pups exposed to cocaine as previously described and reared in a standard environmental conditions (SC); Group 3: pups saline-injected and reared in EC; and Group 4: pups saline-injected and reared in SC. On PND 21, 24, and 28, groups of four rats (to reduce anxiety) were placed for 10 minutes into an arena with several objects. The following exploratory behavioral categories were examined: object interaction, exploration, manipulation, approximation, and total time of object contact. Animals from Group 2 showed decreased object interaction and total contact on PND 21. Control offspring reared in EE showed decreases in exploratory behavior at all ages analyzed compared with the control SE group, while cocaine-exposed animals reared in EC showed decreased object interaction, object approximation, and total exploratory behavior. The results in this group suggest that EC improved information acquisition and memory processes in animals postnatally exposed to cocaine.

Evaluation of Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Douglas, K. A.; Yale, M. S.; Bennett, D. E.; Haugan, M. P.; Bryan, L. A.

2014-12-01

The Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) is a widely used instrument designed to measure student attitudes toward physics and learning physics. Previous research revealed a fairly complex factor structure. In this study, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted on data from an undergraduate introductory physics course (n =3844 ) to determine whether a more parsimonious factor structure exists. Exploratory factor analysis results indicate that many of the items from the original CLASS have poor psychometric properties and could not be used in a revised factor structure. The cross validation showed acceptable fit statistics for a three factor model found in the exploratory factor analysis. This research suggests that a more optimum measurement of students' attitudes about physics and learning physics is obtained with a 15-item instrument, which describes the factors of personal application, personal effort, and problem solving. The proposed revised version of the CLASS offers researchers the opportunity to test a shortened version of the instrument that may be able to provide information about students' attitudes in the areas of personal application of physics, personal effort in a physics course, and approaches to problem solving.

Coordination strategies of crew management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Conley, Sharon; Cano, Yvonne; Bryant, Don

1991-01-01

An exploratory study that describes and contrasts two three-person flight crews performing in a B-727 simulator is presented. This study specifically attempts to delineate crew communication patterns accounting for measured differences in performance across routine and nonroutine flight patterns. The communication patterns in the two crews evaluated indicated different modes of coordination, i.e., standardization in the less effective crew and planning/mutual adjustment in the more effective crew.

Perceptions of Fathers' Involvement in Their Daughters' Sports: The Relationship to Self-Esteem and Fear of Failure in Specialized AAU Basketball Players

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Veinot, Jan E.

2014-01-01

This study was designed to investigate and describe a daughter's perception of father involvement in her sports; and the relationship to her self-esteem and fear of failure. The purpose of the study was exploratory in nature and it was hypothesized that quality father involvement would be positively associated with a daughter's self-esteem and…

Pattern of Task Interpretation and Self-Regulated Learning Strategies of High School Students and College Freshmen during an Engineering Design Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawanto, Oenardi; Butler, Deborah; Cartier, Sylvie C.; Santoso, Harry B.; Goodridge, Wade; Lawanto, Kevin N.; Clark, David

2013-01-01

The objective of this exploratory study was to describe patterns in self-regulated learning (SRL) for both high school students and college freshmen while engaged in a design activity. The main research question guiding this study was: How did high school and first-year college students self-regulate their approaches to learning when engaged in an…

Planning representation for automated exploratory data analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

St. Amant, Robert; Cohen, Paul R.

1994-03-01

Igor is a knowledge-based system for exploratory statistical analysis of complex systems and environments. Igor has two related goals: to help automate the search for interesting patterns in data sets, and to help develop models that capture significant relationships in the data. We outline a language for Igor, based on techniques of opportunistic planning, which balances control and opportunism. We describe the application of Igor to the analysis of the behavior of Phoenix, an artificial intelligence planning system.

The Emergence of Inclusive Exploratory Talk in Primary Students' Peer Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rajala, Antti; Hilppo, Jaakko; Lipponen, Lasse

2012-01-01

In this study, we examine a prominent type of classroom talk, exploratory talk, in primary school peer interactions. Exploratory talk has been shown to be productive in facilitating problem solving and fostering school achievement. However, within the growing body of research concerning exploratory talk, the relation between exploratory talk and…

Characteristics of women with continued use of vaginal pessaries.

PubMed

Lewthwaite, Barbara J; Staley, Doug; Girouard, Lise; Maslow, Ken

2013-01-01

Vaginal pessaries have been shown to be a safe, effective treatment for pelvic organ prolapse, and in some cases, female urinary incontinence. There are limited data that predict long-term pessary use; therefore, the aim of this retrospective, exploratory study was to describe selected characteristics of women using a pessary for 12 months or longer in a nurse-run clinic.

ComPLuS Model: A New Insight in Pupils' Collaborative Talk, Actions and Balance during a Computer-Mediated Music Task

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nikolaidou, Georgia N.

2012-01-01

This exploratory work describes and analyses the collaborative interactions that emerge during computer-based music composition in the primary school. The study draws on socio-cultural theories of learning, originated within Vygotsky's theoretical context, and proposes a new model, namely Computer-mediated Praxis and Logos under Synergy (ComPLuS).…

Moving in Unexpected Directions: Texas Elementary Uses Exploratory Research to Map Out an Evaluation Plan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chapman, Sue; Ortloff, Debora; Weaver, Laurie; Vesey, Winona; Anderson, Mary; Marquez, Michael; Sanchez, Melissa

2013-01-01

This article describes the actions taken by the members of the school leadership team at McWhirter Elementary Professional Development Laboratory School in Webster, Texas, when the results of the state reading assessment in spring 2010, had taken a sudden and dramatic drop from the previous year. The team designed an action research study to…

Grounding Vision through Experimental Manipulation

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-01-01

Speculatrix" by their creator to emphasise their exploratory behaviour , described as: "it explores its environment actively, persistently, systematically...as most animals do" (Walter, 1950). These robots had very simple control circuitry, and their behaviour depended greatly on the morphology and...a long developing process. More studies are needed though to ascertain how the dorsal pathway (action) influences the ventral (perception) both in

When Familiarity Breeds Respect: Toward the Depolarization of Police and Student Attitudes toward Each Other.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diamond, Michael Jay; And Others

An exploratory project, designed to facilitate non-violent interactions between activist students and police, is described. A total of 30 policemen and 161 volunteer college students, of whom 92 served as a no-treatment control group, were involved. The effects of 3 possible types of contact were studied: (1) squad-car riding; (2) informal dinners…

MP3 Players: Applications and Implications for the Use of Popular Technology in Secondary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stiler, Gary M.

2007-01-01

This article explores potential uses for MP3 players in secondary classrooms. It presents an overview of current applications and describes an exploratory study of classroom uses. Seven high school teachers and one teacher educator participated in a three-month project to examine MP3 technology as applied to high school instruction. Their ideas…

Reviewing Core Kindergarten and First-Grade Reading Programs in Light of No Child Left Behind: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al Otaiba, Stephanie; Kosanovich-Grek, Marcia L.; Torgesen, Joseph K.; Hassler, Laura; Wahl, Michelle

2005-01-01

This article describes the findings of our review process for core reading programs and provides a preliminary rubric emanating from this process for rating core reading programs. To our knowledge, this is the first published review of the current "Reading First" guidelines and includes all five components of scientifically based reading…

An interdisciplinary team communication framework and its application to healthcare 'e-teams' systems design

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Background There are few studies that examine the processes that interdisciplinary teams engage in and how we can design health information systems (HIS) to support those team processes. This was an exploratory study with two purposes: (1) To develop a framework for interdisciplinary team communication based on structures, processes and outcomes that were identified as having occurred during weekly team meetings. (2) To use the framework to guide 'e-teams' HIS design to support interdisciplinary team meeting communication. Methods An ethnographic approach was used to collect data on two interdisciplinary teams. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the data according to structures, processes and outcomes. Results We present details for team meta-concepts of structures, processes and outcomes and the concepts and sub concepts within each meta-concept. We also provide an exploratory framework for interdisciplinary team communication and describe how the framework can guide HIS design to support 'e-teams'. Conclusion The structures, processes and outcomes that describe interdisciplinary teams are complex and often occur in a non-linear fashion. Electronic data support, process facilitation and team video conferencing are three HIS tools that can enhance team function. PMID:19754966

An interdisciplinary team communication framework and its application to healthcare 'e-teams' systems design.

PubMed

Kuziemsky, Craig E; Borycki, Elizabeth M; Purkis, Mary Ellen; Black, Fraser; Boyle, Michael; Cloutier-Fisher, Denise; Fox, Lee Ann; MacKenzie, Patricia; Syme, Ann; Tschanz, Coby; Wainwright, Wendy; Wong, Helen

2009-09-15

There are few studies that examine the processes that interdisciplinary teams engage in and how we can design health information systems (HIS) to support those team processes. This was an exploratory study with two purposes: (1) To develop a framework for interdisciplinary team communication based on structures, processes and outcomes that were identified as having occurred during weekly team meetings. (2) To use the framework to guide 'e-teams' HIS design to support interdisciplinary team meeting communication. An ethnographic approach was used to collect data on two interdisciplinary teams. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the data according to structures, processes and outcomes. We present details for team meta-concepts of structures, processes and outcomes and the concepts and sub concepts within each meta-concept. We also provide an exploratory framework for interdisciplinary team communication and describe how the framework can guide HIS design to support 'e-teams'. The structures, processes and outcomes that describe interdisciplinary teams are complex and often occur in a non-linear fashion. Electronic data support, process facilitation and team video conferencing are three HIS tools that can enhance team function.

Recovery-Oriented Mental Health Practice in a Community Care Unit: An Exploratory Study.

PubMed

McKenna, Brian; Oakes, Jane; Fourniotis, Niki; Toomey, Nigel; Furness, Trentham

A recovery-oriented model of care has become the major focus of mental health service delivery in the state of Victoria, Australia. However, there is a total absence of knowledge of recovery-oriented mental health practice in community care units (CCUs). Therefore, the aims of this exploratory study were to: (a) describe what aspects of the current model of care fit within the domains of recovery; and (b) describe the pragmatic processes that staff use to mold their care within the domains of recovery. Twenty-one key stakeholders provided informed voluntary consent to participate in one-to-one interviews. Six content domains evolved to include: (a) a common vision: "a continuous journey"; (b) promoting hope; (c) promoting autonomy and self-determination; (d) meaningful engagement; (e) holistic and personalized care; and (f) community participation and citizenship. The CCU appeared to be on a journey of transformation toward personal recovery. However, clinicians were grappling with an identified tension among personal recovery and clinical recovery. The tension among personal recovery and clinical recovery may be attributed to the psychosocial rehabilitation model of care, which was previously systemic in Victorian CCUs.

An Exploratory Study to Measure Excessive Involvement in Multitasking Interaction with Smart Devices.

PubMed

Zhang, Yubo; Rau, Pei-Luen Patrick

2016-06-01

This study developed a scale measuring excessive involvement in multitasking interaction with smart devices. An online questionnaire was designed and surveyed in a sample of 380 respondents. The sample was split into two groups for exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, respectively. A four-factor structure was identified with an acceptable goodness of fit. The first two factors, "Obsession and neglect" and "Problematic control," described the obsessive feelings, neglect behaviors, and behavior control problems accompanied by excessive multitasking interaction with smart devices. The latter two factors, "Multitasking preference" and "Polychronic orientation," referred to multitaskers' preference of engaging in multiple media use or interaction tasks rather than a single task from the time orientation perspective. The four-factor structure indicates that excessive involvement in multitasking interaction with smart devices shares some similarities with other behavioral addiction types, but demonstrates uniqueness compared with excessive engagement in single media use.

Middle ear abnormalities in Van Maldergem syndrome.

PubMed

Verheij, Emmy; Thomeer, Henricus G X M; Pameijer, Frank A; Topsakal, Vedat

2017-01-01

Van Maldergem syndrome (VMS) is a very rare syndrome that was first described in 1992. The main features of this syndrome comprise intellectual disability, blepharo-naso-facial malformation, and hand anomalies. Almost all nine described patients have been shown to be affected by conductive hearing impairment attributed to microtia, and atresia of the outer ear canal. Here, we present a VMS patient with congenital malformations of the middle ear as the main reason for severe conductive bilateral hearing impairment. To our knowledge, this is the first report to describe middle ear abnormalities in VMS. These malformations were seen on high resolution Computed Tomography scanning and during an exploratory tympanotomy. Due to the severity of the middle ear abnormalities and the risk for facial nerve damage, the patient was not offered an ossicular chain reconstruction but a bone conduction device after this exploratory tympanotomy. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Advanced life support (ALS) instructors experience of ALS education in Western Australia: a qualitative exploratory research study.

PubMed

Taplin, John; McConigley, Ruth

2015-04-01

When cardiac arrest occurs, timely competent advanced life support (ALS) interventions by nursing staff can influence patient outcomes. Ongoing ALS education influences maintenance of competency and avoids skill decay. To explore the methods of ALS education delivery for nurses in the workplace; describe the issues relating to maintaining ALS competency; explore ALS competency decay for nurses and develop recommendations for the provision of continuing ALS education. A qualitative exploratory design was used to study ALS education provision in the workplace. Data were collected from ALS nurse experts in Western Australia by face-to-face and phone interviews. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and organised around a set of predetermined questions. Two major themes were identified; the first theme Demand and Supply describes the increasing demand for ALS education for nurses and the challenges with providing timely cost effective traditional face-to-face ALS education. The second theme, Choosing The Best Education Options describes new ways to provide ALS education using emerging technologies. The study suggested that using e-learning methods would assist with educating the maximum amount of nurses in a timely manner and e-learning and teleconferencing offer opportunities to reach nurses in distant locations. Delivering ALS education more frequently than annually would increase skills maintenance and lessen skill decay. Further research is required to explore which blended e-learning model is best suited to ALS education. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A preliminary evaluation of synthetic cannabinoid use among adolescent cannabis users: Characteristics and treatment outcomes.

PubMed

Blevins, Claire E; Banes, Kelsey E; Stephens, Robert S; Walker, Denise D; Roffman, Roger A

2016-12-01

Little is known regarding the use of synthetic cannabinoids (SC), particularly use among adolescent substance users who may be at higher risk. The present exploratory study seeks to describe SC use and subjective effects among cannabis-using adolescents as well as compare the characteristics of cannabis users who do and do not use SC. Exploratory analyses evaluated cannabis treatment outcomes among SC users and non-users. Participants enrolled in a randomized, controlled intervention for cannabis-using high school students aged 14-19 (N=252) completed questionnaires regarding their use of SC and other substances. Those who used SC in the past 60days reported subjective effects of SC, consequences, and SC use disorder symptoms. Baseline characteristics, alcohol and other drug use, and treatment outcomes of SC users were compared to participants who never tried SC. Within this sample 29% had tried SC, and 6% used SC recently. Although most reported use at a relatively low rate, 43% of recent SC users reported SC use-disorder symptoms. Positive and negative subjective effects of SC were endorsed, with positive subjective effects reported more often. SC use was associated with more cannabis use, but not more alcohol or other (non-SC and non-cannabis) drug use. SC users did not differ from non-users on cannabis treatment outcomes. This exploratory study described SC use, and compared characteristics and treatment outcomes among SC users and non-users. Negative subjective effects of SC were reported as occurring less often, but SC use was associated with use disorder psychopathology. SC use was associated with more problematic cannabis use at baseline, but was not associated with use of other substances or differences in treatment outcome. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Harassment of adults by immatures in bonobos (Pan paniscus): testing the Exploratory Aggression and Rank Improvement hypotheses.

PubMed

Boose, Klaree; White, Frances

2017-10-01

The immatures of many primate species frequently pester adult group members with aggressive behaviors referred to as a type of harassment. Although these behaviors are characteristic of immatures as they develop from infancy through adolescence, there have been few studies that specifically address the adaptive significance of harassment. Two functional hypotheses have been generated from observations of the behavior in chimpanzees. The Exploratory Aggression hypothesis describes harassment as a mechanism used by immatures to learn about the parameters of aggression and dominance behavior and to acquire information about novel, complex, or unpredictable relationships. The Rank Improvement hypothesis describes harassment as a mechanism of dominance acquisition used by immatures to outrank adults. This study investigated harassment of adults by immatures in a group of bonobos housed at the Columbus Zoo and compared the results to the predictions outlined by the Exploratory Aggression and Rank Improvement hypotheses. Although all immature bonobos in this group harassed adults, adolescents performed the behavior more frequently than did infants or juveniles and low-ranking adults were targeted more frequently than high-ranking. Targets responded more with agonistic behaviors than with neutral behaviors and the amount of harassment an individual received was significantly correlated with the amount of agonistic responses given. Furthermore, bouts of harassment were found to continue significantly more frequently when responses were agonistic than when they were neutral. Adolescents elicited mostly agonistic responses from targets whereas infants and juveniles received mostly neutral responses. These results support predictions from each hypothesis where harassment functions both as a mechanism of social exploration and as a tool to establish dominance rank.

Teaching mindfulness meditation to adults with severe speech and physical impairments: An exploratory study.

PubMed

Goodrich, Elena; Wahbeh, Helané; Mooney, Aimee; Miller, Meghan; Oken, Barry S

2015-01-01

People with severe speech and physical impairments may benefit from mindfulness meditation training because it has the potential to enhance their ability to cope with anxiety, depression and pain and improve their attentional capacity to use brain-computer interface systems. Seven adults with severe speech and physical impairments (SSPI) - defined as speech that is understood less than 25% of the time and/or severely reduced hand function for writing/typing - participated in this exploratory, uncontrolled intervention study. The objectives were to describe the development and implementation of a six-week mindfulness meditation intervention and to identify feasible outcome measures in this population. The weekly intervention was delivered by an instructor in the participant's home, and participants were encouraged to practise daily using audio recordings. The objective adherence to home practice was 10.2 minutes per day. Exploratory outcome measures were an n-back working memory task, the Attention Process Training-II Attention Questionnaire, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, the Perceived Stress Scale, the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, and a qualitative feedback survey. There were no statistically significant pre-post results in this small sample, yet administration of the measures proved feasible, and qualitative reports were overall positive. Obstacles to teaching mindfulness meditation to persons with SSPI are reported, and solutions are proposed.

The Zone of Inertia: Absorptive Capacity and Organizational Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Godkin, Lynn

2010-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe how interruptions in organizational learning effect institutional absorptive capacity and contribute to organizational inertia. Design/methodology/approach: An exploratory model is presented as a heuristic to describe how interruptions in organizational learning affect absorptive capacity.…

"I No Like Get Caught Using Drugs": Explanations for Refusal as a Drug-Resistance Strategy for Rural Native Hawaiian Youths

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Okamoto, Scott K.; Helm, Susana; Giroux, Danielle; Kaliades, Alexis

2011-01-01

This exploratory study examines the use of explanations for refusal as a drug-resistance strategy for rural Native Hawaiian youths. Fourteen gender-specific focus groups were conducted within seven middle or intermediate schools on the Island of Hawai'i (N = 64). Participants were asked to describe drug-resistance strategies in response to 15…

"I'm on a Journey I Never Thought I'd Be On": Using Process Drama Pedagogy for the Literacy Programme

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wells, Trish; Sandretto, Susan

2017-01-01

This paper argues that process drama is a productive pedagogy with multiple affordances for multiliteracies. We describe an exploratory study in which two teachers from a rural New Zealand primary school used process drama pedagogy in the literacy programme. Analysis of the initial and exit teacher interviews, lesson transcripts and transcripts of…

Exploratory Study of the Role and Activities of "Centres of Excellence" in the Textile Industry in Four EEC Member States.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, Berlin (West Germany).

The nine centers of excellence described in this document are institutions and geographic areas in the European Economic Community (EEC) that, in addition to providing training and maintaining their links with the labor market, carry out research and disseminate technology with individual firms, groups of firms, and the textile industry as a…

The reduction of intoxication and disorder in premises licensed to serve alcohol: an exploratory randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Moore, Simon C; Brennan, Iain R; Murphy, Simon; Byrne, Ellie; Moore, Susan N; Shepherd, Jonathan P; Moore, Laurence

2010-10-14

Licensed premises offer a valuable point of intervention to reduce alcohol-related harm. To describe the research design for an exploratory trial examining the feasibility and acceptability of a premises-level intervention designed to reduce severe intoxication and related disorder. The study also aims to assess the feasibility of a potential future large scale effectiveness trial and provide information on key trial design parameters including inclusion criteria, premises recruitment methods, strategies to implement the intervention and trial design, outcome measures, data collection methods and intra-cluster correlations. A randomised controlled trial in licensed premises that had experienced at least one assault in the year preceding the intervention, documented in police or hospital Emergency Department (ED) records. Premises were recruited from four study areas by piloting four recruitment strategies of varying intensity. Thirty two licensed premises were grouped into matched pairs to reduce potential bias and randomly allocated to the control or intervention condition. The study included a nested process evaluation to provide information on intervention acceptability and implementation. Outcome measures included police-recorded violent incidents, assault-related attendances at each premises' local ED and patron Breath Alcohol Concentration assessed on exiting and entering study premises. The most successful recruitment method involved local police licensing officers and yielded a 100% success rate. Police-records of violence provided the most appropriate source of data about disorder at the premises level. The methodology of an exploratory trial is presented and despite challenges presented by the study environment it is argued an exploratory trial is warranted. Initial investigations in recruitment methods suggest that study premises should be recruited with the assistance of police officers. Police data were of sufficient quality to identify disorder and street surveys are a feasible method for measuring intoxication at the individual level. UKCRN 7090; ISRCTN: 80875696. Medical Research Council (G0701758) to Simon Moore, Simon Murphy, Laurence Moore and Jonathan Shepherd.

The reduction of intoxication and disorder in premises licensed to serve alcohol: An exploratory randomised controlled trial

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Licensed premises offer a valuable point of intervention to reduce alcohol-related harm. Objective To describe the research design for an exploratory trial examining the feasibility and acceptability of a premises-level intervention designed to reduce severe intoxication and related disorder. The study also aims to assess the feasibility of a potential future large scale effectiveness trial and provide information on key trial design parameters including inclusion criteria, premises recruitment methods, strategies to implement the intervention and trial design, outcome measures, data collection methods and intra-cluster correlations. Design A randomised controlled trial in licensed premises that had experienced at least one assault in the year preceding the intervention, documented in police or hospital Emergency Department (ED) records. Premises were recruited from four study areas by piloting four recruitment strategies of varying intensity. Thirty two licensed premises were grouped into matched pairs to reduce potential bias and randomly allocated to the control or intervention condition. The study included a nested process evaluation to provide information on intervention acceptability and implementation. Outcome measures included police-recorded violent incidents, assault-related attendances at each premises' local ED and patron Breath Alcohol Concentration assessed on exiting and entering study premises. Results The most successful recruitment method involved local police licensing officers and yielded a 100% success rate. Police-records of violence provided the most appropriate source of data about disorder at the premises level. Conclusion The methodology of an exploratory trial is presented and despite challenges presented by the study environment it is argued an exploratory trial is warranted. Initial investigations in recruitment methods suggest that study premises should be recruited with the assistance of police officers. Police data were of sufficient quality to identify disorder and street surveys are a feasible method for measuring intoxication at the individual level. Trial registration UKCRN 7090; ISRCTN: 80875696 Funding Medical Research Council (G0701758) to Simon Moore, Simon Murphy, Laurence Moore and Jonathan Shepherd PMID:20946634

Describing the Situational Contexts of Sweetened Product Consumption in a Middle Eastern Canadian Community: Application of a Mixed Method Design

PubMed Central

Moubarac, Jean-Claude; Cargo, Margaret; Receveur, Olivier; Daniel, Mark

2012-01-01

Little is known about the situational contexts in which individuals consume processed sources of dietary sugars. This study aimed to describe the situational contexts associated with the consumption of sweetened food and drink products in a Catholic Middle Eastern Canadian community. A two-stage exploratory sequential mixed-method design was employed with a rationale of triangulation. In stage 1 (n = 62), items and themes describing the situational contexts of sweetened food and drink product consumption were identified from semi-structured interviews and were used to develop the content for the Situational Context Instrument for Sweetened Product Consumption (SCISPC). Face validity, readability and cultural relevance of the instrument were assessed. In stage 2 (n = 192), a cross-sectional study was conducted and exploratory factor analysis was used to examine the structure of themes that emerged from the qualitative analysis as a means of furthering construct validation. The SCISPC reliability and predictive validity on the daily consumption of sweetened products were also assessed. In stage 1, six themes and 40-items describing the situational contexts of sweetened product consumption emerged from the qualitative analysis and were used to construct the first draft of the SCISPC. In stage 2, factor analysis enabled the clarification and/or expansion of the instrument's initial thematic structure. The revised SCISPC has seven factors and 31 items describing the situational contexts of sweetened product consumption. Initial validation of the instrument indicated it has excellent internal consistency and adequate test-retest reliability. Two factors of the SCISPC had predictive validity for the daily consumption of total sugar from sweetened products (Snacking and Energy demands) while the other factors (Socialization, Indulgence, Constraints, Visual Stimuli and Emotional needs) were rather associated to occasional consumption of these products. PMID:23028597

Long-term Behavioral Tracking of Freely Swimming Weakly Electric Fish

PubMed Central

Jun, James J.; Longtin, André; Maler, Leonard

2014-01-01

Long-term behavioral tracking can capture and quantify natural animal behaviors, including those occurring infrequently. Behaviors such as exploration and social interactions can be best studied by observing unrestrained, freely behaving animals. Weakly electric fish (WEF) display readily observable exploratory and social behaviors by emitting electric organ discharge (EOD). Here, we describe three effective techniques to synchronously measure the EOD, body position, and posture of a free-swimming WEF for an extended period of time. First, we describe the construction of an experimental tank inside of an isolation chamber designed to block external sources of sensory stimuli such as light, sound, and vibration. The aquarium was partitioned to accommodate four test specimens, and automated gates remotely control the animals' access to the central arena. Second, we describe a precise and reliable real-time EOD timing measurement method from freely swimming WEF. Signal distortions caused by the animal's body movements are corrected by spatial averaging and temporal processing stages. Third, we describe an underwater near-infrared imaging setup to observe unperturbed nocturnal animal behaviors. Infrared light pulses were used to synchronize the timing between the video and the physiological signal over a long recording duration. Our automated tracking software measures the animal's body position and posture reliably in an aquatic scene. In combination, these techniques enable long term observation of spontaneous behavior of freely swimming weakly electric fish in a reliable and precise manner. We believe our method can be similarly applied to the study of other aquatic animals by relating their physiological signals with exploratory or social behaviors. PMID:24637642

Effects of Type of Exploratory Strategy and Prior Knowledge on Middle School Students' Learning of Chemical Formulas from a 3D Role-Playing Game

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Ming-Puu; Wong, Yu-Ting; Wang, Li-Chun

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the type of exploratory strategy and level of prior knowledge on middle school students' performance and motivation in learning chemical formulas via a 3D role-playing game (RPG). Two types of exploratory strategies-RPG exploratory with worked-example and RPG exploratory without…

An Examination of Black Male First-Generation College Students' Reports of the Social Supports that Have Buffering Effects on Their School-Related Stress and Help Them Achieve Academic Success in College

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harrington, Anthony C.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory, case study of Black male first-generation college students at Carthen College was three-fold. First, it was designed to elicit participants' descriptions of the stress they experienced related to school and being a student. Second, the study aimed to describe and then rate how important that source of support was…

Effects of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on employees’ mental health: A systematic review

PubMed Central

Heerkens, Yvonne; Kuijer, Wietske; van der Heijden, Beatrice; Engels, Josephine

2018-01-01

Objectives The purpose of this exploratory study was to obtain greater insight into the effects of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) on the mental health of employees. Methods Using PsycINFO, PubMed, and CINAHL, we performed a systematic review in October 2015 of studies investigating the effects of MBSR and MBCT on various aspects of employees’ mental health. Studies with a pre-post design (i.e. without a control group) were excluded. Results 24 articles were identified, describing 23 studies: 22 on the effects of MBSR and 1 on the effects of MBSR in combination with some aspects of MBCT. Since no study focused exclusively on MBCT, its effects are not described in this systematic review. Of the 23 studies, 2 were of high methodological quality, 15 were of medium quality and 6 were of low quality. A meta-analysis was not performed due to the emergent and relatively uncharted nature of the topic of investigation, the exploratory character of this study, and the diversity of outcomes in the studies reviewed. Based on our analysis, the strongest outcomes were reduced levels of emotional exhaustion (a dimension of burnout), stress, psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and occupational stress. Improvements were found in terms of mindfulness, personal accomplishment (a dimension of burnout), (occupational) self-compassion, quality of sleep, and relaxation. Conclusion The results of this systematic review suggest that MBSR may help to improve psychological functioning in employees. PMID:29364935

Integrative Exploratory Analysis of Two or More Genomic Datasets.

PubMed

Meng, Chen; Culhane, Aedin

2016-01-01

Exploratory analysis is an essential step in the analysis of high throughput data. Multivariate approaches such as correspondence analysis (CA), principal component analysis, and multidimensional scaling are widely used in the exploratory analysis of single dataset. Modern biological studies often assay multiple types of biological molecules (e.g., mRNA, protein, phosphoproteins) on a same set of biological samples, thereby creating multiple different types of omics data or multiassay data. Integrative exploratory analysis of these multiple omics data is required to leverage the potential of multiple omics studies. In this chapter, we describe the application of co-inertia analysis (CIA; for analyzing two datasets) and multiple co-inertia analysis (MCIA; for three or more datasets) to address this problem. These methods are powerful yet simple multivariate approaches that represent samples using a lower number of variables, allowing a more easily identification of the correlated structure in and between multiple high dimensional datasets. Graphical representations can be employed to this purpose. In addition, the methods simultaneously project samples and variables (genes, proteins) onto the same lower dimensional space, so the most variant variables from each dataset can be selected and associated with samples, which can be further used to facilitate biological interpretation and pathway analysis. We applied CIA to explore the concordance between mRNA and protein expression in a panel of 60 tumor cell lines from the National Cancer Institute. In the same 60 cell lines, we used MCIA to perform a cross-platform comparison of mRNA gene expression profiles obtained on four different microarray platforms. Last, as an example of integrative analysis of multiassay or multi-omics data we analyzed transcriptomic, proteomic, and phosphoproteomic data from pluripotent (iPS) and embryonic stem (ES) cell lines.

Deficits in novelty exploration after controlled cortical impact.

PubMed

Wagner, Amy K; Postal, Brett A; Darrah, Shaun D; Chen, Xiangbai; Khan, Amina S

2007-08-01

Experimental models of traumatic brain injury (TBI) have been utilized to characterize the behavioral derangements associated with brain trauma. Several studies exist characterizing motor function in the controlled cortical impact (CCI) injury model of TBI, but less research has focused on how CCI affects exploratory behavior. The goal of this study was to characterize deficits in three novelty exploration tasks after the CCI. Under anesthesia, 37 adult male Sprague Dawley rats received CCI (2.7 mm and 2.9 mm; 4 m/sec) over the right parietal cortex or sham surgery. For days 1-6 post-surgery, the beam balance and beam walking tasks were used to assess motor deficits. The Open Field, Y-Maze, and Free Choice Novelty (FCN) tasks were used to measure exploratory deficits from days 7-14 post-surgery. Injured rats displayed a significant, but transient, deficit on each motor task (p < 0.0001). Open Field results showed that injured rats had lower activity levels than shams (p < 0.0001), displayed less habituation to the task, and had more anxiety related behaviors (thigmotaxis) across days (p < 0.0001). Y-maze results suggest that injured rats spent less time in the novel arm versus the familiar arms when compared to shams (p < 0.0001). For FCN, injured rats were less active (p < 0.05) and spent less time and had fewer interactions with objects in the novel environment compared to shams (p < 0.05). These results suggest that several ethological factors contribute to exploratory deficits after CCI and can be effectively characterized with the behavioral tasks described. Future work will utilize these tasks to evaluate the neural substrates underlying exploratory deficits after TBI.

Creative Endeavors: Inspiring Creativity in a First Grade Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cress, Susan W.; Holm, Daniel T.

2016-01-01

With an emphasis on high-stakes testing and a focused curriculum, it would seem at times, the joy of creativity is missing from the classroom. This article describes a curricular approach the children named "Creative Endeavors", as implemented by a first grade teacher. The approach is described in three phases. In the exploratory stage…

Navigation study for low-altitude Earth satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pastor, P. R.; Fang, B. T.; Yee, C. P.

1985-01-01

This document describes several navigation studies for low-altitude Earth satellites. The use of Global Positioning System Navigation Package data for LANDSAT-5 orbit determination is evaluated. In addition, a navigation analysis for the proposed Tracking and Data Aquisition System is presented. This analysis, based on simulations employing one-way Doppler data, is used to determine the agreement between the Research and Development Goddard Trajectory Determination System and the Sequential Error Analysis Program results. Properties of several geopotential error models are studied and an exploratory study of orbit smoother process noise is presented.

A Study in Sexual Health Applying the Principles of Community-Based Participatory Research

PubMed Central

Reece, Michael; Dodge, Brian

2012-01-01

The principles of community-based participatory research were applied to an exploratory sexual health study that examined “cruising for sex” among men on a college campus. In the context of a study seeking a broad interpretation of the health implications of cruising, and when faced with methodological challenges, the researchers found these principles to provide invaluable guidance. A review of the research process is offered and the manner in which the principles of community-based participatory research were operationalized for this study is described. PMID:15129042

Validation of the Work-Life Balance Culture Scale (WLBCS).

PubMed

Nitzsche, Anika; Jung, Julia; Kowalski, Christoph; Pfaff, Holger

2014-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to describe the theoretical development and initial validation of the newly developed Work-Life Balance Culture Scale (WLBCS), an instrument for measuring an organizational culture that promotes the work-life balance of employees. In Study 1 (N=498), the scale was developed and its factorial validity tested through exploratory factor analyses. In Study 2 (N=513), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to examine model fit and retest the dimensional structure of the instrument. To assess construct validity, a priori hypotheses were formulated and subsequently tested using correlation analyses. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed a one-factor model. Results of the bivariate correlation analyses may be interpreted as preliminary evidence of the scale's construct validity. The five-item WLBCS is a new and efficient instrument with good overall quality. Its conciseness makes it particularly suitable for use in employee surveys to gain initial insight into a company's perceived work-life balance culture.

The Power of a Question: A Case Study of Two Organizational Knowledge Capture Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cooper, Lynn P.

2003-01-01

This document represents a presentation regarding organizational knowledge capture systems which was delivered at the HICSS-36 conference held from January 6-9, 2003. An exploratory case study of two knowledge resources is offered. Then, two organizational knowledge capture systems are briefly described: knowledge transfer from practitioner and the use of questions to represent knowledge. Finally, the creation of a database of peer review questions is suggested as a method of promoting organizational discussions and knowledge representation and exchange.

Living With Dementia: An Exploratory Study of Caregiving in a Chinese Family Context.

PubMed

Wong, Oi Ling; Kwong, Ping Sum; Ho, Candis Ka Yan; Chow, Susanna Miu Yee; Kwok, Timothy; Wong, Bel; Ho, Vennus; Lau, Andrew; Ho, Florence

2015-01-01

This qualitative study explored themes that described families taking care of elderly relatives with dementia in Chinese society. Ten families were invited for two in-depth family interviews involving spousal caregivers, child caregivers, and care recipients. Five themes resulted: positive affection as coping strategies, power and control in the caregiving relationship, adult children's involvement in caregiving, sibling rivalry, and intergenerational conflicts. The ways these themes functioned and helped in dementia care, the research implications, and limitations are discussed.

The methodological quality of nurse-sensitive indicators in Dutch hospitals: A descriptive exploratory research study.

PubMed

Kieft, R A M M; Stalpers, D; Jansen, A P M; Francke, A L; Delnoij, D M J

2018-06-01

Nurse-sensitive indicators (NSIs) are increasingly being developed and used to establish quality of nursing care in Western countries. The objective was to gain insights into the methodological quality of mandatory NSIs in Dutch hospitals, including indicators for pain, wound care, malnutrition and delirium. A descriptive exploratory design was used, starting with desk research into publicly available documents and reports describing the development of the NSIs included in this study. We used the validated Appraisal of Indicators through Research and Evaluation (AIRE) instrument to evaluate the methodological quality. Although the purpose and relevance of each individual NSI have been described, no detailed information about the criteria for selecting these topics is available. It is not clear which specific stakeholders participated and how their input was used. We found no information about the process of collecting and compiling scientific evidence. It is unclear whether and to what extent the usability of NSIs has been tested. The methodological quality of NSIs used in Dutch hospitals is less than optimal in various ways and it is therefore questionable if the indicators are accurate enough to identify changes or improve nursing practice. Our study also provides an example of how the methodological quality of NSIs can be assessed systematically, which is relevant considering the increasing use of NSIs in various countries. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Applying the Theory of Work Adjustment to Latino Immigrant Workers: An Exploratory Study.

PubMed

Eggerth, Donald E; Flynn, Michael A

2012-02-01

Blustein mapped career decision making onto Maslow's model of motivation and personality and concluded that most models of career development assume opportunities and decision-making latitude that do not exist for many individuals from low income or otherwise disadvantaged backgrounds. Consequently, Blustein argued that these models may be of limited utility for such individuals. Blustein challenged researchers to reevaluate current career development approaches, particularly those assuming a static world of work, from a perspective allowing for changing circumstances and recognizing career choice can be limited by access to opportunities, personal obligations, and social barriers. This article represents an exploratory effort to determine if the theory of work adjustment (TWA) might meaningfully be used to describe the work experiences of Latino immigrant workers, a group living with severe constraints and having very limited employment opportunities. It is argued that there is significant conceptual convergence between Maslow's hierarchy of needs and the work reinforcers of TWA. The results of an exploratory, qualitative study with a sample of 10 Latino immigrants are also presented. These immigrants participated in key informant interviews concerning their work experiences both in the United States and in their home countries. The findings support Blustein's contention that such workers will be most focused on basic survival needs and suggest that TWA reinforcers are descriptive of important aspects of how Latino immigrant workers conceptualize their jobs.

Dissociated active and passive tactile shape recognition: a case study of pure tactile apraxia.

PubMed

Valenza, N; Ptak, R; Zimine, I; Badan, M; Lazeyras, F; Schnider, A

2001-11-01

Disorders of tactile object recognition (TOR) may result from primary motor or sensory deficits or higher cognitive impairment of tactile shape representations or semantic memory. Studies with healthy participants suggest the existence of exploratory motor procedures directly linked to the extraction of specific properties of objects. A pure deficit of these procedures without concomitant gnostic disorders has never been described in a brain-damaged patient. Here, we present a patient with a right hemispheric infarction who, in spite of intact sensorimotor functions, had impaired TOR with the left hand. Recognition of 2D shapes and objects was severely deficient under the condition of spontaneous exploration. Tactile exploration of shapes was disorganized and exploratory procedures, such as the contour-following strategy, which is necessary to identify the precise shape of an object, were severely disturbed. However, recognition of 2D shapes under manually or verbally guided exploration and the recognition of shapes traced on the skin were intact, indicating a dissociation in shape recognition between active and passive touch. Functional MRI during sensory stimulation of the left hand showed preserved activation of the spared primary sensory cortex in the right hemisphere. We interpret the deficit of our patient as a pure tactile apraxia without tactile agnosia, i.e. a specific inability to use tactile feedback to generate the exploratory procedures necessary for tactile shape recognition.

Applying the Theory of Work Adjustment to Latino Immigrant Workers: An Exploratory Study

PubMed Central

Eggerth, Donald E.; Flynn, Michael A.

2015-01-01

Blustein mapped career decision making onto Maslow’s model of motivation and personality and concluded that most models of career development assume opportunities and decision-making latitude that do not exist for many individuals from low income or otherwise disadvantaged backgrounds. Consequently, Blustein argued that these models may be of limited utility for such individuals. Blustein challenged researchers to reevaluate current career development approaches, particularly those assuming a static world of work, from a perspective allowing for changing circumstances and recognizing career choice can be limited by access to opportunities, personal obligations, and social barriers. This article represents an exploratory effort to determine if the theory of work adjustment (TWA) might meaningfully be used to describe the work experiences of Latino immigrant workers, a group living with severe constraints and having very limited employment opportunities. It is argued that there is significant conceptual convergence between Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and the work reinforcers of TWA. The results of an exploratory, qualitative study with a sample of 10 Latino immigrants are also presented. These immigrants participated in key informant interviews concerning their work experiences both in the United States and in their home countries. The findings support Blustein’s contention that such workers will be most focused on basic survival needs and suggest that TWA reinforcers are descriptive of important aspects of how Latino immigrant workers conceptualize their jobs. PMID:26345693

How Information Affects Intrinsic Motivation: Two Exploratory Pilot Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Small, Ruth V.; Samijo

Research on the motivational aspects of multimedia games may provide ways to design more engaging user information systems which increase users' exploratory and information-seeking behaviors. Two small-scale exploratory studies examined the effects of introducing information on the intrinsic motivation of users of a CD-ROM game. Results of the…

Evaluation Study of the Exploratory Visit: An Innovative Outreach Activity of the ILGWU's Friendly Visiting Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Holly; And Others

1977-01-01

The exploratory visit to recent retirees, an outreach component of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union Friendly Visiting Program, was evaluated. A post-test only control group effect study revealed exploratory visits were effective in establishing a link between the program and the retiree. (Author)

Communal Learning versus Individual Learning: An Exploratory Convergent Parallel Mixed-Method Study to Describe How Young African American Novice Programmers Learn Computational Thinking Skills in an Informal Learning Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hatley, Leshell April Denise

2016-01-01

Today, most young people in the United States (U.S.) live technology-saturated lives. Their educational, entertainment, and career options originate from and demand incredible technological innovations. However, this extensive ownership of and access to technology does not indicate that today's youth know how technology works or how to control and…

Prospects of oil field development in Tomsk region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Il'ina, M. N.; Il'ina, G. F.

2017-12-01

The article describes the geologic structure of the formation located not far from Strezhevoy, Tomsk Oblast. The formation has been poorly studied by seismic methods. The reserves categories C1 and C2 as well as hydrocarbon potential are presented. 4 exploratory and 39 production wells are designed to be drilled depending on geologic knowledge and formation conditions. The article deals with the investment plan including development, oil export expenditures and implementing cost calculation.

Recruitment of College-Bound Youth through use of the ACT Assessment File

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-07-01

approach coupled with a personalized approach to information dissemination. _--+Two exploratory studies were conducted to examine the utility of telephone...programs at the DLI. L. It was reasoned that such a personalized approach in providing information might generate more intere3t than an impersonal mass... personalized form of contact), 2) an information sheet describing the DLI and educational assistance for veterans, and 3) a business reply card for

Constructions of provider role identity among African American men: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Diemer, Matthew A

2002-02-01

This exploratory study examined the identity constructions of African American men using a qualitative research methodology. Seven African American men, ranging in age from 20 to 47 years and whose education levels ranged from a 1st-year university student to a PhD, were interviewed for this study. Central to how all of these men defined themselves was the breadwinner or provider role. Participants emphasized education as "insurance" against discrimination and an awareness of educational and occupational opportunities. For these participants, education was a means of ensuring opportunity, which afforded fulfillment of the provider role. This study supports the work of N. Cazenave (1979, 1981), who demonstrated the salience of the provider role among African American men. The implications of the provider role among African American men for research are also discussed. The data also suggested diversity within the African American male experience. As 1 participant described African American men. "We come like flowers, you know. Some in bouquets, and some wild." By providing constructions of identity that diverge from existing negative stereotypes of African American men, this study attempted to deconstruct those stereotypes. Finally, this study provided a voice to an underrepresented group in the research literature.

Healthy Eating Exploratory Program for the Elderly: Low Salt Intake in Congregate Meal Service.

PubMed

Seo, S; Kim, O Y; Ahn, J

2016-03-01

This study reported on an exploratory program to help the low income elderly improve healthy eating behavior, specifically by reducing salt intake. We conducted an exploratory program for 4 weeks for this study. The exploratory program involved offering menus with reduced salt and providing education on healthy eating. After the exploratory program, a survey of the elderly and in-depth interviews allowed us to evaluate the program for foodservice providers (dietitian, social workers, and volunteer workers). This study included both foodservice workers and elderly who actually used the foodservice in a congregate meal service system. This is a unique approach. A congregate meal service center in Seoul, Korea. Seventy four elderly in a congregate meal service center. Demographics were collected, and the healthy eating program and healthy eating education for elderly respondents were evaluated. The elderly showed high satisfaction with the exploratory program for healthy eating. We found no significant differences in satisfaction with the program between the elderly who attended education sessions and those who did not, but more of the elderly from the education sessions showed positive behavioral change intentions. The exploratory program influenced to reduce the salt intake of the elderly in congregate meal service. This study suggests cooperation of foodservice providers and the support of administrators is critical to the success of such programs.

Analysis of Fluctuating Friction Version in Sheet Metallic Designing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ambarayil Joy, Jithin; Jung, Dong Won

2018-02-01

Conservative Coulomb method indicates steady constant of rub in thin metal panel making that appears or feels close to the real thing. It contributes to describing attainable future event too high shear pressure in making ahead in the position of high R-value steel (AHRS). The study is conducted by pretend the making and spring back of a specific panel to understand the characteristic of the stamping procedure. Corresponding of the describe probable future results with (i) physical force-dependent changeable rub method, (ii) perpetual rub method, and the conclusion of exploratory facts point out a significant upgrading of spring back forecast with the prospective method.

Exploratory Climate Data Visualization and Analysis Using DV3D and UVCDAT

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maxwell, Thomas

2012-01-01

Earth system scientists are being inundated by an explosion of data generated by ever-increasing resolution in both global models and remote sensors. Advanced tools for accessing, analyzing, and visualizing very large and complex climate data are required to maintain rapid progress in Earth system research. To meet this need, NASA, in collaboration with the Ultra-scale Visualization Climate Data Analysis Tools (UVCOAT) consortium, is developing exploratory climate data analysis and visualization tools which provide data analysis capabilities for the Earth System Grid (ESG). This paper describes DV3D, a UV-COAT package that enables exploratory analysis of climate simulation and observation datasets. OV3D provides user-friendly interfaces for visualization and analysis of climate data at a level appropriate for scientists. It features workflow inte rfaces, interactive 40 data exploration, hyperwall and stereo visualization, automated provenance generation, and parallel task execution. DV30's integration with CDAT's climate data management system (COMS) and other climate data analysis tools provides a wide range of high performance climate data analysis operations. DV3D expands the scientists' toolbox by incorporating a suite of rich new exploratory visualization and analysis methods for addressing the complexity of climate datasets.

AgRISTARS: Foreign commodity production forecasting. The 1980 US corn and soybeans exploratory experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malin, J. T.; Carnes, J. G. (Principal Investigator)

1981-01-01

The U.S. corn and soybeans exploratory experiment is described which consisted of evaluations of two technology components of a production forecasting system: classification procedures (crop labeling and proportion estimation at the level of a sampling unit) and sampling and aggregation procedures. The results from the labeling evaluations indicate that the corn and soybeans labeling procedure works very well in the U.S. corn belt with full season (after tasseling) LANDSAT data. The procedure should be readily adaptable to corn and soybeans labeling required for subsequent exploratory experiments or pilot tests. The machine classification procedures evaluated in this experiment were not effective in improving the proportion estimates. The corn proportions produced by the machine procedures had a large bias when the bias correction was not performed. This bias was caused by the manner in which the machine procedures handled spectrally impure pixels. The simulation test indicated that the weighted aggregation procedure performed quite well. Although further work can be done to improve both the simulation tests and the aggregation procedure, the results of this test show that the procedure should serve as a useful baseline procedure in future exploratory experiments and pilot tests.

PAQ: Partition Analysis of Quasispecies.

PubMed

Baccam, P; Thompson, R J; Fedrigo, O; Carpenter, S; Cornette, J L

2001-01-01

The complexities of genetic data may not be accurately described by any single analytical tool. Phylogenetic analysis is often used to study the genetic relationship among different sequences. Evolutionary models and assumptions are invoked to reconstruct trees that describe the phylogenetic relationship among sequences. Genetic databases are rapidly accumulating large amounts of sequences. Newly acquired sequences, which have not yet been characterized, may require preliminary genetic exploration in order to build models describing the evolutionary relationship among sequences. There are clustering techniques that rely less on models of evolution, and thus may provide nice exploratory tools for identifying genetic similarities. Some of the more commonly used clustering methods perform better when data can be grouped into mutually exclusive groups. Genetic data from viral quasispecies, which consist of closely related variants that differ by small changes, however, may best be partitioned by overlapping groups. We have developed an intuitive exploratory program, Partition Analysis of Quasispecies (PAQ), which utilizes a non-hierarchical technique to partition sequences that are genetically similar. PAQ was used to analyze a data set of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) envelope sequences isolated from different regions of the brain and another data set consisting of the equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) regulatory gene rev. Analysis of the HIV-1 data set by PAQ was consistent with phylogenetic analysis of the same data, and the EIAV rev variants were partitioned into two overlapping groups. PAQ provides an additional tool which can be used to glean information from genetic data and can be used in conjunction with other tools to study genetic similarities and genetic evolution of viral quasispecies.

Evaluating the Similarity of Complex Drinking-Water Disinfection By-Product Mixtures: Overview of the Issues

EPA Science Inventory

The Presentation describes the advantages and challenges of working with Whole Mixtures, discusses an exploratory approach for evaluating sufficient similarity, and challenges of applying such approaches to other environmental mixtures.

Alternative perspectives of safety in home delivered health care: a sequential exploratory mixed method study.

PubMed

Jones, Sarahjane

2016-10-01

The aim of this study was to discover and describe how patients, carers and case management nurses define safety and compare it to the traditional risk reduction and harm avoidance definition of safety. Care services are increasingly being delivered in the home for patients with complex long-term conditions. However, the concept of safety remains largely unexplored. A sequential, exploratory mixed method design. A qualitative case study of the UK National Health Service case management programme in the English UK National Health Service was deployed during 2012. Thirteen interviews were conducted with patients (n = 9) and carers (n = 6) and three focus groups with nurses (n = 17) from three community care providers. The qualitative element explored the definition of safety. Data were subjected to framework analysis and themes were identified by participant group. Sequentially, a cross-sectional survey was conducted during 2013 in a fourth community care provider (patient n = 35, carer n = 19, nurse n = 26) as a form of triangulation. Patients and carers describe safety differently to case management nurses, choosing to focus on meeting needs. They use more positive language and recognize the role they have in safety in home-delivered health care. In comparison, case management nurses described safety similarly to the definitions found in the literature. However, when offered the patient and carer definition of safety, they preferentially selected this definition to their own or the literature definition. Patients and carers offer an alternative perspective on patient safety in home-delivered health care that identifies their role in ensuring safety and is more closely aligned with the empowerment philosophy of case management. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

"I Don't Like Hearing Angel and Not Seeing Her! Why Did We Do That?" An Exploration of Students' Media Literacy Development through Production

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luchs, Michele; Emery, Winston

2004-01-01

In this exploratory case study we look at student media production to find out what students know and have learned about the media through production work. We used a media education conceptual framework developed by Dick as a means of describing the day to day media learning of a group of ten students, four girls and six boys, producing a video…

Estuarine Habitat Assessment for Construction of a Submarine Transmission Line

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamouda, Amr Z.; Abdel-Salam, Khaled M.

2010-07-01

The present paper describes a submarine survey using the acoustic discrimination system QTC VIEW (Series V) as an exploratory tool to adjust final route alignment of a new pipeline. By using acoustic sound survey as an exploratory tool described in this paper to adjust final route alignment of a new pipeline to minimize the environmental impact caused and ultimately to avoid any mitigation measures. The transmission pipeline extended from the shore line of Abu-Qir Bay, on the Mediterranean Sea in Egypt, out to 70 nautical miles at sea (60 m water depth). Four main surface sediment types were defined in the study area, namely fine sand, silty sand, silt and clay. Results of the acoustic classification revealed four acoustic classes. The first acoustic class corresponded to fine sand, absence of shell debris and very poor habitats characteristics. The second acoustic class is predominant in the study area and corresponds to the region occupied by silt. It is also characterized by intermediate diversity of macrobenthic invertebrate community which is mainly characterized by polychaeta. The third acoustic class is characterized by silt to silty clay. It is characterized by a high diversity of macrobenthic invertebrate community which is mainly polychaeta with an intermediate diversity of gastropoda and bivalvia. The final acoustic class is characterized by clay and high occurrence of shell debris of gastropoda, bivalvia and polychaeta.

Cross-species assessments of motor and exploratory behavior related to bipolar disorder.

PubMed

Henry, Brook L; Minassian, Arpi; Young, Jared W; Paulus, Martin P; Geyer, Mark A; Perry, William

2010-07-01

Alterations in exploratory behavior are a fundamental feature of bipolar mania, typically characterized as motor hyperactivity and increased goal-directed behavior in response to environmental cues. In contrast, abnormal exploration associated with schizophrenia and depression can manifest as prominent withdrawal, limited motor activity, and inattention to the environment. While motor abnormalities are cited frequently as clinical manifestations of these disorders, relatively few empirical studies have quantified human exploratory behavior. This article reviews the literature characterizing motor and exploratory behavior associated with bipolar disorder and genetic and pharmacological animal models of the illness. Despite sophisticated assessment of exploratory behavior in rodents, objective quantification of human motor activity has been limited primarily to actigraphy studies with poor cross-species translational value. Furthermore, symptoms that reflect the cardinal features of bipolar disorder have proven difficult to establish in putative animal models of this illness. Recently, however, novel tools such as the human behavioral pattern monitor provide multivariate translational measures of motor and exploratory activity, enabling improved understanding of the neurobiology underlying psychiatric disorders.

The Emotional Experience of Motherhood in Planned Lesbian Families in the South African Context: "… Look How Good a Job I'm Doing, Look How Amazing We Are".

PubMed

Van Ewyk, Jacquetta; Kruger, Lou-Marié

2017-01-01

This article focuses on lesbian mothers' emotional experience of motherhood. It forms part of a larger qualitative and exploratory study with 10 lesbian couples in South Africa on their lived experience of planned motherhood. The study is located in a feminist phenomenological framework. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and interview transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. Participants described many different emotions associated with new motherhood: hope, joy, love, anxiety, helplessness, exhaustion, and feeling companionship and togetherness as well as feeling compromised and deprived. Mothers described these emotions but also focused on the development of a new identity, that of being a mother.

Exploratory factor analysis of pathway copy number data with an application towards the integration with gene expression data.

PubMed

van Wieringen, Wessel N; van de Wiel, Mark A

2011-05-01

Realizing that genes often operate together, studies into the molecular biology of cancer shift focus from individual genes to pathways. In order to understand the regulatory mechanisms of a pathway, one must study its genes at all molecular levels. To facilitate such study at the genomic level, we developed exploratory factor analysis for the characterization of the variability of a pathway's copy number data. A latent variable model that describes the call probability data of a pathway is introduced and fitted with an EM algorithm. In two breast cancer data sets, it is shown that the first two latent variables of GO nodes, which inherit a clear interpretation from the call probabilities, are often related to the proportion of aberrations and a contrast of the probabilities of a loss and of a gain. Linking the latent variables to the node's gene expression data suggests that they capture the "global" effect of genomic aberrations on these transcript levels. In all, the proposed method provides an possibly insightful characterization of pathway copy number data, which may be fruitfully exploited to study the interaction between the pathway's DNA copy number aberrations and data from other molecular levels like gene expression.

Adult Response to Children's Exploratory Behaviours: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chak, Amy

2010-01-01

Children's interest in exploration is the hallmark of their curiosity. As people who are significant in organising children's environment, how teachers and parents respond to children's exploratory behaviours may promote or hinder the child's desire for further investigation. With reference to Kurt Lewin's concept of "total situation",…

Exploratory visualization of astronomical data on ultra-high-resolution wall displays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pietriga, Emmanuel; del Campo, Fernando; Ibsen, Amanda; Primet, Romain; Appert, Caroline; Chapuis, Olivier; Hempel, Maren; Muñoz, Roberto; Eyheramendy, Susana; Jordan, Andres; Dole, Hervé

2016-07-01

Ultra-high-resolution wall displays feature a very high pixel density over a large physical surface, which makes them well-suited to the collaborative, exploratory visualization of large datasets. We introduce FITS-OW, an application designed for such wall displays, that enables astronomers to navigate in large collections of FITS images, query astronomical databases, and display detailed, complementary data and documents about multiple sources simultaneously. We describe how astronomers interact with their data using both the wall's touchsensitive surface and handheld devices. We also report on the technical challenges we addressed in terms of distributed graphics rendering and data sharing over the computer clusters that drive wall displays.

'I count myself as being in a different world': African gay and bisexual men living with HIV in London. An exploratory study.

PubMed

Paparini, Sara; Doyal, Lesley; Anderson, Jane

2008-05-01

The experiences of men from African backgrounds living with HIV who are gay/bisexual have so far been overlooked in the research on HIV in the UK. Little is known about the ways that HIV impacts on this population. We report on an exploratory qualitative study with 8 gay/bisexual men from 7 different African countries living with HIV in London, based on in depth semi structured interviews and a thematic analysis. HIV testing and diagnosis, disclosure to others, social and sexual networks, sexual relationships and practices, use of health services and coping mechanisms emerged as key themes. Men with insecure residency status in the UK and those without work had additional challenges to meet. Men described the constant juggling required to balance the complex and sometimes contradictory realities of life as a gay/bisexual man, an African and an HIV positive person. Actual and perceived stigma was a key barrier to accessing appropriate practical and emotional support from families, social network or religious organisations.

Evaluating Individual Students' Perceptions of Instructional Quality: An Investigation of their Factor Structure, Measurement Invariance, and Relations to Educational Outcomes.

PubMed

Scherer, Ronny; Nilsen, Trude; Jansen, Malte

2016-01-01

Students' perceptions of instructional quality are among the most important criteria for evaluating teaching effectiveness. The present study evaluates different latent variable modeling approaches (confirmatory factor analysis, exploratory structural equation modeling, and bifactor modeling), which are used to describe these individual perceptions with respect to their factor structure, measurement invariance, and the relations to selected educational outcomes (achievement, self-concept, and motivation in mathematics). On the basis of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012 large-scale data sets of Australia, Canada, and the USA (N = 26,746 students), we find support for the distinction between three factors of individual students' perceptions and full measurement invariance across countries for all modeling approaches. In this regard, bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling outperformed alternative approaches with respect to model fit. Our findings reveal significant relations to the educational outcomes. This study synthesizes different modeling approaches of individual students' perceptions of instructional quality and provides insights into the nature of these perceptions from an individual differences perspective. Implications for the measurement and modeling of individually perceived instructional quality are discussed.

The child's perspective on discomfort during medical research procedures: a descriptive study.

PubMed

Staphorst, Mira S; Benninga, Marc A; Bisschoff, Margriet; Bon, Irma; Busschbach, Jan J V; Diederen, Kay; van Goudoever, Johannes B; Haarman, Eric G; Hunfeld, Joke A M; Jaddoe, Vincent V W; de Jong, Karin J M; de Jongste, Johan C; Kindermann, Angelika; Königs, Marsh; Oosterlaan, Jaap; Passchier, Jan; Pijnenburg, Mariëlle W; Reneman, Liesbeth; Ridder, Lissy de; Tamminga, Hyke G; Tiemeier, Henning W; Timman, Reinier; van de Vathorst, Suzanne

2017-08-01

The evaluation of discomfort in paediatric research is scarcely evidence-based. In this study, we make a start in describing children's self-reported discomfort during common medical research procedures and compare this with discomfort during dental check-ups which can be considered as a reference level of a 'minimal discomfort' medical procedure. We exploratory study whether there are associations between age, anxiety-proneness, gender, medical condition, previous experiences and discomfort. We also describe children's suggestions for reducing discomfort. Cross-sectional descriptive study. Paediatric research at three academic hospitals. 357 children with and without illnesses (8-18 years, mean=10.6 years) were enrolled: 307 from paediatric research studies and 50 from dental care. We measured various generic forms of discomfort (nervousness, annoyance, pain, fright, boredom, tiredness) due to six common research procedures: buccal swabs, MRI scans, pulmonary function tests, skin prick tests, ultrasound imaging and venepunctures. Most children reported limited discomfort during the research procedures (means: 1-2.6 on a scale from 1 to 5). Compared with dental check-ups, buccal swab tests, skin prick tests and ultrasound imaging were less discomforting, while MRI scans, venepunctures and pulmonary function tests caused a similar degree of discomfort. 60.3% of the children suggested providing distraction by showing movies to reduce discomfort. The exploratory analyses suggested a positive association between anxiety-proneness and discomfort. The findings of this study support the acceptability of participation of children in the studied research procedures, which stimulates evidence-based research practice. Furthermore, the present study can be considered as a first step in providing benchmarks for discomfort of procedures in paediatric research. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

The child's perspective on discomfort during medical research procedures: a descriptive study

PubMed Central

Staphorst, Mira S; Benninga, Marc A; Bisschoff, Margriet; Bon, Irma; Busschbach, Jan J V; Diederen, Kay; van Goudoever, Johannes B; Haarman, Eric G; Hunfeld, Joke A M; Jaddoe, Vincent V W; de Jong, Karin J M; de Jongste, Johan C; Kindermann, Angelika; Königs, Marsh; Oosterlaan, Jaap; Passchier, Jan; Pijnenburg, Mariëlle W; Reneman, Liesbeth; de Ridder, Lissy; Tamminga, Hyke G; Tiemeier, Henning W; Timman, Reinier; van de Vathorst, Suzanne

2017-01-01

Objective The evaluation of discomfort in paediatric research is scarcely evidence-based. In this study, we make a start in describing children's self-reported discomfort during common medical research procedures and compare this with discomfort during dental check-ups which can be considered as a reference level of a ‘minimal discomfort’ medical procedure. We exploratory study whether there are associations between age, anxiety-proneness, gender, medical condition, previous experiences and discomfort. We also describe children's suggestions for reducing discomfort. Design Cross-sectional descriptive study. Setting Paediatric research at three academic hospitals. Patients 357 children with and without illnesses (8–18 years, mean=10.6 years) were enrolled: 307 from paediatric research studies and 50 from dental care. Main outcome measures We measured various generic forms of discomfort (nervousness, annoyance, pain, fright, boredom, tiredness) due to six common research procedures: buccal swabs, MRI scans, pulmonary function tests, skin prick tests, ultrasound imaging and venepunctures. Results Most children reported limited discomfort during the research procedures (means: 1–2.6 on a scale from 1 to 5). Compared with dental check-ups, buccal swab tests, skin prick tests and ultrasound imaging were less discomforting, while MRI scans, venepunctures and pulmonary function tests caused a similar degree of discomfort. 60.3% of the children suggested providing distraction by showing movies to reduce discomfort. The exploratory analyses suggested a positive association between anxiety-proneness and discomfort. Conclusions The findings of this study support the acceptability of participation of children in the studied research procedures, which stimulates evidence-based research practice. Furthermore, the present study can be considered as a first step in providing benchmarks for discomfort of procedures in paediatric research. PMID:28765130

New Submerged-Robot Control Optical Fiber Cable With Small-Diameter, High-Strength Frp Covered Optical Fiber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fuse, K.; Shirasaka, Y.; Yanagawa, H.

1984-10-01

Of natural resources on the earth, the utilization of the oceans has the oldest history, and the development of them has been delayed most. However, hot expectation is being placed on the development of the oceans. The element that obstructs the acceleration of such development is the sea itself. From a technical viewpoint, the means to explore the oceans have not been developed sufficiently, and equipment such as special large vehicles and ships has been bulky, requiring a very large sum of money to prepare them. These have been part of the reasons why the development of the oceans has been delayed. For this reason, a large number of exploratory systems will be studied as the ocean development becomes active in the near future. A single optical fiber cable has been considered as a cable for control of an ocean exploratory robot, which weighs approximately 30 to 40 kg at most in air requiring no power feeding to the drive section inside the vehicle and running by self on a built-in battery, as well as for data transfer. This cable is believed most suitable in terms of high speed mobility, transmission characteristics, and system cost. The mode (system) of pay off of the cable paid off by the ship loading such a cable becomes very important in the design of optical fiber cables for control of ocean exploratory robots. This paper introduces a new FRP covered optical fiber cable developed as an optical fiber cable for control of ocean exploratory robots with a small diameter and rotating motion. This cable is considered most suitable for the pay off-system which is simple and offers the highest space utility. The paper describes a basic study made prior to an actual performance test in the sea, as well as its design and characteristics.

A Search for X-ray Emission in Isolated Compact Triplets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brown, Beth A.; Williams, Barbara

2006-01-01

We describe preliminary results of an exploratory search for diffuse X-ray emission in a sample of the poorest galaxy groups, i.e., isolated compact triplets of galaxies. These systems represent the simplest forms of galaxy clustering while manifesting all the complexities inherent in other groups. We have selected 20 compact triplets for this initial study. The component galaxies are expected to interact with each other and with the group's intergalactic medium, if present, in complex ways that trigger high-energy processes.

An Exploratory Study of Pre-Admission Predictors of Hardiness and Retention for United States Military Academy Cadets Using Regression Modeling

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-06-01

Character in Sports Index CV Cross Validation FAS Faculty Appraisal Score FFM Five-Factor Model, also known as the “Big Five” GAM... FFM ). USMA does not allow personality testing as a selection tool. However, perhaps we may discover whether pre-admission information can predict...characteristic, and personality factors as described by the Five Factor Model ( FFM ) to determine their effect on one’s academic performance at USMA (Clark

Prayer practices among young adults.

PubMed

Nance, Jennifer G; Quinn Griffin, Mary T; McNulty, Sister Rita; Fitzpatrick, Joyce J

2010-01-01

Prayer is the most common complementary and alternative intervention used by most Americans. Yet, little is known about the prayer practices of young adults. In this exploratory study, 4 types of prayer practices of 62 young adults (21-30 years old) are described. The 4 different categories of prayer were: contemplative-meditative, ritualistic, petitionary, and colloquial. Participants most often used colloquial prayer practice, that is, asking God to provide guidance or talking to God in their own words. Recommendations for future research are included.

Exploratory studies of the cruise performance of upper surface blown configuration: Experimental program, high-speed force tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Braden, J. A.; Hancock, J. P.; Burdges, K. P.; Hackett, J. E.

1979-01-01

The work to develop a wing-nacelle arrangement to accommodate a wide range of upper surface blown configuration is reported. Pertinent model and installation details are described. Data of the effects of a wide range of nozzle geometric variations are presented. Nozzle aspect ratio, boattail angle, and chordwise position are among the parameters investigated. Straight and swept wing configurations were tested across a range of nozzle pressure ratios, lift coefficients, and Mach numbers.

Synthesis and P1' SAR exploration of potent macrocyclic tissue factor-factor VIIa inhibitors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ladziata, Vladimir; Glunz, Peter W.; Zou, Yan

Selective tissue factor-factor VIIa complex (TF-FVIIa) inhibitors are viewed as promising compounds for treating thrombotic disease. In this contribution, we describe multifaceted exploratory SAR studies of S1'-binding moieties within a macrocyclic chemotype aimed at replacing cyclopropyl sulfone P1' group. Over the course of the optimization efforts, the 1-(1H-tetrazol-5-yl)cyclopropane P1' substituent emerged as an improved alternative, offering increased metabolic stability and lower clearance, while maintaining excellent potency and selectivity.

Exploratory Programing in Georgia's Middle Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warren, Louis L.; Allen, Michael G.

This study surveyed the nature and extent of exploratory programming in intermediate schools. A 22-item questionnaire was sent to all 285 of the state's middle and junior high schools. Of the 163 respondents, 160 indicated that they had some form of exploratory programming. The latter number included: (1) 155 schools with traditional exploratory…

The Effects of Feedback during Exploratory Mathematics Problem Solving: Prior Knowledge Matters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fyfe, Emily R.; Rittle-Johnson, Bethany; DeCaro, Marci S.

2012-01-01

Providing exploratory activities prior to explicit instruction can facilitate learning. However, the level of guidance provided during the exploration has largely gone unstudied. In this study, we examined the effects of 1 form of guidance, feedback, during exploratory mathematics problem solving for children with varying levels of prior domain…

Cross-species assessments of Motor and Exploratory Behavior related to Bipolar Disorder

PubMed Central

Henry, Brook L.; Minassian, Arpi; Young, Jared W.; Paulus, Martin P.; Geyer, Mark A.; Perry, William

2010-01-01

Alterations in exploratory behavior are a fundamental feature of bipolar mania, typically characterized as motor hyperactivity and increased goal-directed behavior in response to environmental cues. In contrast, abnormal exploration associated with schizophrenia and depression can manifest as prominent withdrawal, limited motor activity, and inattention to the environment. While motor abnormalities are cited frequently as clinical manifestations of these disorders, relatively few empirical studies have quantified human exploratory behavior. This article reviews the literature characterizing motor and exploratory behavior associated with bipolar disorder and genetic and pharmacological animal models of the illness. Despite sophisticated assessment of exploratory behavior in rodents, objective quantification of human motor activity has been limited primarily to actigraphy studies with poor cross-species translational value. Furthermore, symptoms that reflect the cardinal features of bipolar disorder have proven difficult to establish in putative animal models of this illness. Recently, however, novel tools such as the Human Behavioral Pattern Monitor provide multivariate translational measures of motor and exploratory activity, enabling improved understanding of the neurobiology underlying psychiatric disorders. PMID:20398694

Using exploratory data analysis to identify and predict patterns of human Lyme disease case clustering within a multistate region, 2010-2014.

PubMed

Hendricks, Brian; Mark-Carew, Miguella

2017-02-01

Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vectorborne disease in the United States. The objective of our study was to identify patterns of Lyme disease reporting after multistate inclusion to mitigate potential border effects. County-level human Lyme disease surveillance data were obtained from Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia state health departments. Rate smoothing and Local Moran's I was performed to identify clusters of reporting activity and identify spatial outliers. A logistic generalized estimating equation was performed to identify significant associations in disease clustering over time. Resulting analyses identified statistically significant (P=0.05) clusters of high reporting activity and trends over time. High reporting activity aggregated near border counties in high incidence states, while low reporting aggregated near shared county borders in non-high incidence states. Findings highlight the need for exploratory surveillance approaches to describe the extent to which state level reporting affects accurate estimation of Lyme disease progression. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An exploratory study of selected female registered nurses: meaning and expression of nurturance.

PubMed

Geissler, E M

1990-05-01

The words 'nurse' and 'nursing' originate in the word 'nurture' which dates back to the 14th century. 'Nurturance' appeared for the first time in the 1976 Supplement to the Oxford English Dictionary and in a United States dictionary in 1983. Etymologically and semantically bound to nursing, little is known about the term nurturance. An exploratory design using phenomenological analysis was applied to understand the female registered nurses' experience of nurturing patients throughout the life-span and to uncover behaviours commonly believed nurturant. Interviews with 14 RNs practising in diverse settings revealed 39 nurturant behaviours that were intuited into four themes describing the subjects' perceived structure of nurturance as: (1) enabling maximum potential; (2) providing physical and emotional protection; (3) engaging in a supportive interaction; and (4) conveying shared humanity. Data were formulated into an exhaustive description of the phenomenon nurturance. Additionally, the results support Greenberg-Edelstein's theoretical model of the positive reciprocity of nurturance between nurse and patient.

Medial septal GABAergic projection neurons promote object exploration behavior and type 2 theta rhythm

PubMed Central

Gangadharan, Gireesh; Shin, Jonghan; Kim, Seong-Wook; Kim, Angela; Paydar, Afshin; Kim, Duk-Soo; Miyazaki, Taisuke; Watanabe, Masahiko; Yanagawa, Yuchio; Kim, Jinhyun; Kim, Yeon-Soo; Kim, Daesoo; Shin, Hee-Sup

2016-01-01

Exploratory drive is one of the most fundamental emotions, of all organisms, that are evoked by novelty stimulation. Exploratory behavior plays a fundamental role in motivation, learning, and well-being of organisms. Diverse exploratory behaviors have been described, although their heterogeneity is not certain because of the lack of solid experimental evidence for their distinction. Here we present results demonstrating that different neural mechanisms underlie different exploratory behaviors. Localized Cav3.1 knockdown in the medial septum (MS) selectively enhanced object exploration, whereas the null mutant (KO) mice showed enhanced-object exploration as well as open-field exploration. In MS knockdown mice, only type 2 hippocampal theta rhythm was enhanced, whereas both type 1 and type 2 theta rhythm were enhanced in KO mice. This selective effect was accompanied by markedly increased excitability of septo-hippocampal GABAergic projection neurons in the MS lacking T-type Ca2+ channels. Furthermore, optogenetic activation of the septo-hippocampal GABAergic pathway in WT mice also selectively enhanced object exploration behavior and type 2 theta rhythm, whereas inhibition of the same pathway decreased the behavior and the rhythm. These findings define object exploration distinguished from open-field exploration and reveal a critical role of T-type Ca2+ channels in the medial septal GABAergic projection neurons in this behavior. PMID:27208094

Perceptions and dietary intake of self-described healthy and unhealthy eaters with severe mental illness.

PubMed

Carson, Nancy E; Blake, Christine E; Saunders, Ruth

2015-04-01

The aim of this exploratory study was to examine how community-dwelling adults with severe mental illness describe themselves as eaters and how these eating identities relate to dietary intake. Twenty participants completed one in-depth qualitative interview and three 24-h dietary recalls. Two distinct groups were identified; self-described healthy eaters (n = 10) and self-described unhealthy eaters (n = 10). Healthy eaters emphasized fruits and vegetables, limiting sweets, three meals a day, overcoming cost concerns, and benefits of healthy eating. Unhealthy eaters emphasized junk foods, fried foods, few fruits and vegetables, cost and household barriers to healthy eating, and concerns about consequences of unhealthy eating. Self-described healthy eaters consumed significantly more vegetables and less kilocalories, carbohydrates, fat, and saturated fat than self-described unhealthy eaters. Understanding how eating identities relate to dietary intake provides important insights for development of more effective approaches to promote healthy eating in this high risk population.

Design and installation of a subsea multiwell drilling template at Garden Banks Block 189

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Domangue, R.J.

1991-09-01

This paper describes the economics, design, and installation of a simple drilling template that was used to retain or save subsea exploratory and delineation wells in Garden Banks Block 189 (GB 189) in the Gulf of Mexico.

An exploratory case study of the impact of ambient biographical displays on identity in a patient with Alzheimer's disease.

PubMed

Massimi, Michael; Berry, Emma; Browne, Georgina; Smyth, Gavin; Watson, Peter; Baecker, Ronald M

2008-01-01

One of the most troubling symptoms of Alzheimer's disease is the loss of the patient's sense of identity. This loss complicates relationships, increases apathy, and generally impedes quality of life for the patient. We describe a novel in-home ambient display called Biography Theatre that cycles through music, photographs, movies, and narratives drawn from the patient's past and current life. We conducted an exploratory case study with an 84-year-old male with moderate-stage Alzheimer's disease (Mr H). The study consisted of three phases: a baseline phase, a phase wherein autobiographical materials were collected and discussed, and a phase wherein the display was deployed in the home. The patient demonstrated improvement on standardised tests of apathy and positive self-identity, but did not improve on tests of autobiographical memory, anxiety, depression, and general cognition. We also report on caregiver reactions to the intervention and how the display helped them cope with and reinterpret their loved one's condition. This work suggests that interdisciplinary work involving "off the desktop" computing technologies may be a fruitful way to provide rehabilitative benefit for individuals with Alzheimer's disease.

Outcomes of corporate greed.

PubMed

Mohr, W K

1997-01-01

This study is the context portion of a larger study that described the experience of 30 nurses in Texas, USA who worked in for-profit psychiatric hospitals during a documented period of corporate deviance. The objective of the contextual portion was to describe the major findings in 1991-1992 of investigating agencies that probed the scandal. Exploratory descriptive. Over 1,240 pages and 40 hours of corporate records obtained under subpoena, and written and oral testimony before the USA House Select Committee on Children, Youth, and Families. Content analysis, triangulating sources, and comparing as well as cross-checking themes. Four themes: insurance games, dumping patients, patient abuse, and playing with language. Organizational deviance may become more widespread in profit-driven systems of care. Lobbying for whistleblower protection, collective advocacy, and creative educational reforms are used.

Envisioning Competence: Learning, Problem Solving, and Children at Work in the Exploratory Bicycle Shop

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hammond, Charles Florian

2010-01-01

This study examines the conceptual learning and cognitive development processes of schoolchildren engaged in problem solving activities in a non-school, workplace setting known as the exploratory bicycle shop. The exploratory bike shop is a commercial bicycle shop: a) that has been adapted for combined retail and educational purposes and b) where…

An economic and financial exploratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cincotti, S.; Sornette, D.; Treleaven, P.; Battiston, S.; Caldarelli, G.; Hommes, C.; Kirman, A.

2012-11-01

This paper describes the vision of a European Exploratory for economics and finance using an interdisciplinary consortium of economists, natural scientists, computer scientists and engineers, who will combine their expertise to address the enormous challenges of the 21st century. This Academic Public facility is intended for economic modelling, investigating all aspects of risk and stability, improving financial technology, and evaluating proposed regulatory and taxation changes. The European Exploratory for economics and finance will be constituted as a network of infrastructure, observatories, data repositories, services and facilities and will foster the creation of a new cross-disciplinary research community of social scientists, complexity scientists and computing (ICT) scientists to collaborate in investigating major issues in economics and finance. It is also considered a cradle for training and collaboration with the private sector to spur spin-offs and job creations in Europe in the finance and economic sectors. The Exploratory will allow Social Scientists and Regulators as well as Policy Makers and the private sector to conduct realistic investigations with real economic, financial and social data. The Exploratory will (i) continuously monitor and evaluate the status of the economies of countries in their various components, (ii) use, extend and develop a large variety of methods including data mining, process mining, computational and artificial intelligence and every other computer and complex science techniques coupled with economic theory and econometric, and (iii) provide the framework and infrastructure to perform what-if analysis, scenario evaluations and computational, laboratory, field and web experiments to inform decision makers and help develop innovative policy, market and regulation designs.

Independent Research and Independent Exploratory Development

DTIC Science & Technology

1974-09-01

finish on the back. Some of inhomogeneities is described. Although the results the samples were coated with a wet thermal oxide presented are for...1974 Penitin 73 LB . Stotts and W. M. Coton Improved Bire fringent Optical Coupler An optical coupler for waveguides employing the biref ringence

Development of scales to assess patients' perception of physicians' cultural competence in health care interactions.

PubMed

Ahmed, Rukhsana; Bates, Benjamin R

2012-07-01

This study describes the development of scales to measure patients' perception of physicians' cultural competence in health care interactions and thus contributes to promoting awareness of physician-patient intercultural interaction processes. Surveys were administrated to a total of 682 participants. Exploratory factor analyses were employed to assess emergent scales and subscales to develop reliable instruments. The first two phases were devoted to formative research and pilot study. The third phase was devoted to scale development, which resulted in a five-factor solution to measure patient perception of physicians' cultural competence for patient satisfaction.

Challenges in covering health disparities in local news media: an exploratory analysis assessing views of journalists.

PubMed

Wallington, Sherrie Flynt; Blake, Kelly D; Taylor-Clark, Kalahn; Viswanath, K

2010-10-01

News coverage of health topics influences knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors at the individual level, and agendas and actions at the institutional and policy levels. Because disparities in health often are the result of social inequalities that require community-level or policy-level solutions, news stories employing a health disparities news frame may contribute to agenda-setting among opinion leaders and policymakers and lead to policy efforts aimed at reducing health disparities. This study objective was to conduct an exploratory analysis to qualitatively describe barriers that health journalists face when covering health disparities in local media. Between June and October 2007, 18 journalists from television, print, and radio in Boston, Lawrence, and Worcester, Massachusetts, were recruited using a purposive sampling technique. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted by telephone, and the crystallization/immersion method was used to conduct a qualitative analysis of interview transcripts. Our results revealed that journalists said that they consider several angles when developing health stories, including public impact and personal behavior change. Challenges to employing a health disparities frame included inability to translate how research findings may impact different socioeconomic groups, and difficulty understanding how findings may translate across racial/ethnic groups. Several journalists reported that disparities-focused stories are "less palatable" for some audiences. This exploratory study offers insights into the challenges that local news media face in using health disparities news frames in their routine coverage of health news. Public health practitioners may use these findings to inform communication efforts with local media in order to advance the public dialogue about health disparities.

Characterizing the EEG correlates of exploratory behavior.

PubMed

Bourdaud, Nicolas; Chavarriaga, Ricardo; Galan, Ferran; Millan, José Del R

2008-12-01

This study aims to characterize the electroencephalography (EEG) correlates of exploratory behavior. Decision making in an uncertain environment raises a conflict between two opposing needs: gathering information about the environment and exploiting this knowledge in order to optimize the decision. Exploratory behavior has already been studied using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Based on a usual paradigm in reinforcement learning, this study has shown bilateral activation in the frontal and parietal cortex. To our knowledge, no previous study has been done on it using EEG. The study of the exploratory behavior using EEG signals raises two difficulties. First, the labels of trial as exploitation or exploration cannot be directly derived from the subject action. In order to access this information, a model of how the subject makes his decision must be built. The exploration related information can be then derived from it. Second, because of the complexity of the task, its EEG correlates are not necessarily time locked with the action. So the EEG processing methods used should be designed in order to handle signals that shift in time across trials. Using the same experimental protocol as the fMRI study, results show that the bilateral frontal and parietal areas are also the most discriminant. This strongly suggests that the EEG signal also conveys information about the exploratory behavior.

Changes in the pattern of exploratory behavior are associated with the emergence of social dominance relationships in male rats.

PubMed

Arakawa, Hiroyuki

2006-01-01

This study examined the effect of the establishment of dominance relationships and subordination on exploratory behavior for both postpubertal and adult male rats. Prior to an open field test, subjects were housed either in isolation (IS) or in littermate pairs (PS) with mild dominance relationships without overt victory or defeat, or in pairs with clear hierarchical relationships as dominants (DOM) or subordinates (SUB). Stretch-attend postures and entries into the center area of the open-field were measured as an index of passive and active exploratory behavior, respectively, and crossings in the peripheral area were counted as activity. SUB rats, both postpubertal and adult, displayed less activity and lower levels of active exploratory behavior, whereas adult IS rats showed higher levels of active exploratory behavior compared to the other groups. Furthermore, both DOM and PS rats exhibited a more passive pattern of exploratory behavior in adulthood than in postpuberty. Thus the results show that an increase in the active exploratory pattern is inhibited by the establishment of social relationships among adult rats, while a decrease in activity is a primarily effect of subordination. The capacity to change exploratory patterns following subordination is found even in the postpubertal stage when adultlike social relationships have not yet appeared. Copyright 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Saturday Morning Music: A Preservice Elementary Workshop.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palmer, Mary

1986-01-01

An exploratory music program, scheduled for a month of Saturday mornings for children in kindergarten, is described. The program is intended to provide preservice teaching experiences for college music education students. Classes are action-oriented and include varied experiences in singing, playing instruments, moving to music, listening, and…

HRD in France: The Corporate Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weil, Amandine; Woodall, Jean

2005-01-01

Purpose: To explore and describe the roles, activities and strategies of French human resource development professionals. Design/methodology/approach: This paper is based primarily on exploratory and descriptive research. A range of secondary sources on European and French human resource development is critically reviewed to generate a number of…

Industry-University Collaborations in Canada, Japan, the UK and USA – With Emphasis on Publication Freedom and Managing the Intellectual Property Lock-Up Problem

PubMed Central

Kneller, Robert; Mongeon, Marcel; Cope, Jeff; Garner, Cathy; Ternouth, Philip

2014-01-01

As industry-university collaborations are promoted to commercialize university research and foster economic growth, it is important to understand how companies benefit from these collaborations, and to ensure that resulting academic discoveries are developed for the benefit of all stakeholders: companies, universities and public. Lock up of inventions, and censoring of academic publications, should be avoided if feasible. This case-study analysis of interviews with 90 companies in Canada, Japan, the UK and USA assesses the scope of this challenge and suggests possible resolutions. The participating companies were asked to describe an important interaction with universities, and most described collaborative research. The most frequently cited tensions concerned intellectual property management and publication freedom. IP disagreements were most frequent in the context of narrowly-focused collaborations with American universities. However, in the case of exploratory research, companies accepted the IP management practices of US universities. It might make sense to let companies have an automatic exclusive license to IP from narrowly defined collaborations, but to encourage universities to manage inventions from exploratory collaborations to ensure development incentives. Although Canada, the UK and US have strong publication freedom guarantees, tensions over this issue arose frequently in focused collaborations, though were rare in exploratory collaborations. The UK Lambert Agreements give sponsors the option to control publications in return for paying the full economic cost of a project. This may offer a model for the other three countries. Uniquely among the four countries, Japan enables companies to control exclusively most collaborative inventions and to censor academic publications. Despite this high degree of control, the interviews suggest many companies do not develop university discoveries to their full potential. The steps suggested above may rebalance the situation in Japan. Overall, the interviews reveal the complexity of these issues and the need for flexibility on the part of universities and companies. PMID:24632805

Electronics and Sensor Cooling with a Stirling Cycle for Venus Surface Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mellott, Ken

2004-01-01

The inhospitable ambient surface conditions of Venus, with a 450 C temperature and 92 bar pressure, may likely require any extended-duration surface exploratory mission to incorporate some type of cooling for probe electronics and sensor devices. A multiple-region Venus mission study was completed at NASA GRC in December of 2003 that resulted in the preliminary design of a kinematically-driven, helium charged, Stirling cooling cycle with an estimated over-all COP of 0.376 to lift 100 watts of heat from a 200 C cold sink temperature and reject it at a hot sink temperature of 500 C. This paper briefly describes the design process and also describes and summarizes key features of the kinematic, Stirling cooler preliminary design concept.

Interactive modeling activities in the classroom—rotational motion and smartphone gyroscopes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pörn, Ray; Braskén, Mats

2016-11-01

The wide-spread availability of smartphones makes them a valuable addition to the measurement equipment in both the physics classroom and the instructional laboratory, encouraging an active interaction between measurements and modeling activities. In this paper we illustrate this interaction by making use of the internal gyroscope of a smartphone to study and measure the rotational dynamics of objects rotating about a fixed axis. The workflow described in this paper has been tested in a classroom setting and found to encourage an exploratory approach to both data collecting and modeling.

AutoCNet: A Python library for sparse multi-image correspondence identification for planetary data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laura, Jason; Rodriguez, Kelvin; Paquette, Adam C.; Dunn, Evin

2018-01-01

In this work we describe the AutoCNet library, written in Python, to support the application of computer vision techniques for n-image correspondence identification in remotely sensed planetary images and subsequent bundle adjustment. The library is designed to support exploratory data analysis, algorithm and processing pipeline development, and application at scale in High Performance Computing (HPC) environments for processing large data sets and generating foundational data products. We also present a brief case study illustrating high level usage for the Apollo 15 Metric camera.

Satellite Power Systems (SPS) concept definition study exhibit C. Volume 3: Experimental verification definition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1979-01-01

An environmentally oriented microwave technology exploratory research program aimed at reducing the uncertainty associated with microwave power system critical technical issues is described. Topics discussed include: (1) Solar Power Satellite System (SPS) development plan elements; (2) critical technology issues related to the SPS preliminary reference configuration; (3) pilot plant to demonstrate commercial viability of the SPS system; and (4) research areas required to demonstrate feasibility of the SPS system. Progress in the development of advanced GaAs solar cells is reported along with a power distribution subsystem.

University Students with Dyslexia: A Qualitative Exploratory Study of Learning Practices, Challenges and Strategies.

PubMed

MacCullagh, Lois; Bosanquet, Agnes; Badcock, Nicholas A

2017-02-01

People with dyslexia are vastly under-represented in universities (Katusic et al., , Richardson & Wydell, ; Stampoltzis & Polychronopoulou, ). This situation is of concern for modern societies that value social justice. This study was designed to explore learning experiences of university students with dyslexia and factors that could contribute to their success. Thirteen students with dyslexia and 20 non-dyslexic peers were interviewed about their university learning experiences using a semi-structured qualitative approach. Students with dyslexia described engaging in learning activities intensively, frequently and strategically. They reported challenges and strengths relating to study skills, lectures, assessments, technology and support services. They also described helpful strategies including self-directed adaptive techniques, provisions from lecturers and assistance from the university. These findings suggest that students with dyslexia experience broad challenges at university, but helpful strategies may be available. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Connectivism in Postsecondary Online Courses: An Exploratory Factor Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hogg, Nanette; Lomicky, Carol S.

2012-01-01

This study explores 465 postsecondary students' experiences in online classes through the lens of connectivism. Downes' 4 properties of connectivism (diversity, autonomy, interactivity, and openness) were used as the study design. An exploratory factor analysis was performed. This study found a 4-factor solution. Subjects indicated that autonomy…

Influencers on quality of life as reported by people living with dementia in long-term care: a descriptive exploratory approach.

PubMed

Moyle, Wendy; Fetherstonhaugh, Deirdre; Greben, Melissa; Beattie, Elizabeth

2015-04-23

Over half of the residents in long-term care have a diagnosis of dementia. Maintaining quality of life is important, as there is no cure for dementia. Quality of life may be used as a benchmark for caregiving, and can help to enhance respect for the person with dementia and to improve care provision. The purpose of this study was to describe quality of life as reported by people living with dementia in long-term care in terms of the influencers of, as well as the strategies needed, to improve quality of life. A descriptive exploratory approach. A subsample of twelve residents across two Australian states from a national quantitative study on quality of life was interviewed. Data were analysed thematically from a realist perspective. The approach to the thematic analysis was inductive and data-driven. Three themes emerged in relation to influencers and strategies related to quality of life: (a) maintaining independence, (b) having something to do, and (c) the importance of social interaction. The findings highlight the importance of understanding individual resident needs and consideration of the complexity of living in large group living situations, in particular in regard to resident decision-making.

Exploratory spatial analysis of pilot fatality rates in general aviation crashes using geographic information systems.

PubMed

Grabowski, Jurek G; Curriero, Frank C; Baker, Susan P; Li, Guohua

2002-03-01

Geographic information systems and exploratory spatial analysis were used to describe the geographic characteristics of pilot fatality rates in 1983-1998 general aviation crashes within the continental United States. The authors plotted crash sites on a digital map; rates were computed at regular grid intersections and then interpolated by using geographic information systems. A test for significance was performed by using Monte Carlo simulations. Further analysis compared low-, medium-, and high-rate areas in relation to pilot characteristics, aircraft type, and crash circumstance. Of the 14,051 general aviation crashes studied, 31% were fatal. Seventy-four geographic areas were categorized as having low fatality rates and 53 as having high fatality rates. High-fatality-rate areas tended to be mountainous, such as the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian region, whereas low-rate areas were relatively flat, such as the Great Plains. Further analysis comparing low-, medium-, and high-fatality-rate areas revealed that crashes in high-fatality-rate areas were more likely than crashes in other areas to have occurred under instrument meteorologic conditions and to involve aircraft fire. This study demonstrates that geographic information systems are a valuable tool for injury prevention and aviation safety research.

African-American Fathers' Perspectives on Their Children's Health Education: A Qualitative, Exploratory Study.

PubMed

Odum, Mary; Smith, Matthew Lee; McKyer, E Lisako J

2014-01-01

To investigate African-American fathers' (AAF) perceptions regarding the applicability and need for their involvement as a health connection for their children and describe how participating fathers' behavior was affected by their attitudes, knowledge, and perceptions of their influence on their children's health. This exploratory study gathered data via semi-structured focus groups (n = 3) and thematically analyzed it utilizing a grounded theory approach. Participants included AAF (n = 20) with a mean age of 37 years (SD 11.79), with at least one child between 6 and 18 years old. Four major themes were revealed: (1) appropriate health education for participants' children (should first and foremost be delivered by parents); (2) participants' paternal health-related guidance approach (reactive, rather than proactive); (3) participants' perceived influences on health-related communication with their children (gender roles, efficacy constraints); and (4) paternal definitions of health (most often associated with diet). Understanding AAFs' perceived and desired role in their children's health edification can inform initiatives that actively engage these men, and nurture their level of involvement, to promote positive health behaviors among their children; this is necessary to realize their potential to actively improve the health of their children, families, and communities.

Shopping versus Nature? An Exploratory Study of Everyday Experiences.

PubMed

Craig, Tony P; Fischer, Anke; Lorenzo-Arribas, Altea

2018-01-01

Although a growing volume of empirical research shows that being in nature is important for human wellbeing, the definition of what constitutes an 'experience in nature,' and how this is different from other types of experiences, is very often left implied. In this paper we contrast everyday experiences involving nature with a category of everyday experience in which most people regularly partake. We present an exploratory study in which people ( N = 357) were explicitly asked to describe a memory they had of an everyday 'experience which involved nature,' as well as an everyday 'experience which involved shopping.' The open-ended responses to these questions were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Nature experiences were generally found to be more positive than shopping experiences, and they were more likely to be rated as 'peaceful' and 'active' compared to shopping experiences. Follow-up analyses indicate a significant interaction between experience category (nature or shopping), and the relationship between connectedness to nature and the amount of pleasure associated with that experience: The more strongly connected to nature a respondent was, the larger the disparity between the pleasantness of the shopping experience and that of the experience in nature tended to be.

Evaluating Individual Students' Perceptions of Instructional Quality: An Investigation of their Factor Structure, Measurement Invariance, and Relations to Educational Outcomes

PubMed Central

Scherer, Ronny; Nilsen, Trude; Jansen, Malte

2016-01-01

Students' perceptions of instructional quality are among the most important criteria for evaluating teaching effectiveness. The present study evaluates different latent variable modeling approaches (confirmatory factor analysis, exploratory structural equation modeling, and bifactor modeling), which are used to describe these individual perceptions with respect to their factor structure, measurement invariance, and the relations to selected educational outcomes (achievement, self-concept, and motivation in mathematics). On the basis of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012 large-scale data sets of Australia, Canada, and the USA (N = 26,746 students), we find support for the distinction between three factors of individual students' perceptions and full measurement invariance across countries for all modeling approaches. In this regard, bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling outperformed alternative approaches with respect to model fit. Our findings reveal significant relations to the educational outcomes. This study synthesizes different modeling approaches of individual students' perceptions of instructional quality and provides insights into the nature of these perceptions from an individual differences perspective. Implications for the measurement and modeling of individually perceived instructional quality are discussed. PMID:26903917

Patient Participation in Decision Making During Nursing Care in Greece--A Comparative Study.

PubMed

Kolovos, Petros; Kaitelidou, Daphne; Lemonidou, Chrysoula; Sachlas, Athanasios; Sourtzi, Panayota

2015-01-01

To describe patient participation in decision making during nursing care from patients' and nursing staff' perspectives. The sample consisted of medical and surgical patients (n = 300) and the nursing staff (n = 118) working in the respective wards in three general hospitals. A questionnaire was used for the study; data were collected from April 2009 to September 2010. Data were analyzed by an exploratory factor analysis. Patient participation was recorded at a medium level during nursing care, although it was rated as important from both patients and nursing staff. Exploratory factor analysis revealed the factor structure for the planning and implementation of the nursing care. Providers and receivers of nursing care perceived participation in a similar way. Interpersonal interaction was supported from older and less educated patients, as well as from university-educated nurses. Patient participation was greater in practical aspects of care and limited in technical medical issues and supportive services. Patient participation, although moderate, was evident during nursing care in hospital settings. Paternalism in the decision-making process was the dominant trend, whereas interpersonal interaction between the parties was recognized as a prerequisite for planning nursing care. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Exploratory Study of Basement Moisture During Operation of Active Soil Depressurization Radon Control Systems

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

As part of an exploratory study, three houses were monitored for moisture indicators, radon levels, building operations, and other environmental parameters while ASD systems were cycled on and off. December 6, 2007, Revised 3/10/08.

Seeking Resilience and Sustainability: Outdoor Education in Singapore

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Peter; Ho, Susanna

2009-01-01

Outdoor education is not a universal value. Rather, outdoor education's contributions need to be grounded in time, place and culture. In this paper we describe the historical and cultural milieu that has enabled the emergence of outdoor education in Singapore and report on exploratory survey research into Singaporean teachers' conceptions of…

Teacher Perspectives on Career-Relevant Curriculum in Middle School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akos, Patrick; Charles, Pajarita; Orthner, Dennis; Cooley, Valerie

2011-01-01

Relevant, challenging, integrative, and exploratory all describe the curriculum desirable in middle school (National Middle School Association, 2010). Career-relevant curriculum is one prominent strategy used since the 1970s to achieve these goals. Systematic, integrated, and contemporary efforts at career education often engage core teachers who…

ADVANCED COMBUSTION SYSTEMS FOR STATIONARY GAS TURBINE ENGINES: VOLUME I. REVIEW AND PRELIMINARY EVALUATION

EPA Science Inventory

The reports describe an exploratory development program to identify, evaluate, and demonstrate dry techniques for significantly reducing NOx from thermal and fuel-bound sources in stationary gas turbine engines. Volume 1 covers Phase I of the four-phase effort. In Phase I, duty c...

DEVELOPMENT AND APPLICATION OF POPULATION MODELS TO SUPPORT EPA'S ECOLOGICAL RISK ASSESSMENT PROCESSES FOR PESTICIDES

EPA Science Inventory

As part of a broader exploratory effort to develop ecological risk assessment approaches to estimate potential chemical effects on non-target populations, we describe an approach for developing simple population models to estimate the extent to which acute effects on individual...

Compare and Contrast Inductive and Deductive Research Approaches

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Soiferman, L. Karen

2010-01-01

This discussion paper compares and contrasts "inductive" and "deductive" research approaches as described by Trochim (2006) and Plano Clark and Creswell (2007). It also examines the "exploratory" and "confirmatory" approaches by Onwueghuzie and Leech (2005) with respect to the assumption each holds about the nature of knowledge. The paper starts…

Internships: Experienced-Based Education and the Liberal Arts Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raiola, Ed; Sugerman, Debbie

The use of undergraduate-level internships at Unity College in Maine is described. This small college emphasizes natural resource management and outdoor education. The college's Cooperative Education and Internship Program allows students to take up to 14 credit hours of internships. Freshman-level internships are of an exploratory nature designed…

Gender, Acculturation, Food Patterns, and Overweight in Korean Immigrants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jasti, Sunitha; Lee, Chang Hyun; Doak, Colleen

2011-01-01

Objective: To describe acculturation, food patterns, overweight, and gender differences among Korean immigrants in the United States. Methods: A cross-sectional exploratory survey assessed acculturation, food frequencies, and weight status of 195 Korean immigrants. Results: Acculturated Korean immigrants (score greater than or equal to] 2.5) were…

On-Line Computer Testing: Implementation and Endorsement.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gwinn, John F.; Beal, Loretta F.

1988-01-01

Describes an interactive computer-testing and record-keeping system that was implemented for a self-paced anatomy and physiology course. Results of exploratory research are reported that focus on student preference for online testing, test anxiety, attitude, and achievement; and suggestions are given for integrating a computer-testing program into…

Development and Validation of an Instrument for Assessing Mathematics Classroom Environment in Tertiary Institutions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yin, Hongbiao; Lu, Genshu

2014-01-01

This report describes the development and validation of an instrument, the University Mathematics Classroom Environment Questionnaire (UMCEQ), for assessing the mathematics classroom environment in tertiary institutions in China. Through the use of multiple methods, including exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, on two independent samples…

Text Signals Influence Team Artifacts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clariana, Roy B.; Rysavy, Monica D.; Taricani, Ellen

2015-01-01

This exploratory quasi-experimental investigation describes the influence of text signals on team visual map artifacts. In two course sections, four-member teams were given one of two print-based text passage versions on the course-related topic "Social influence in groups" downloaded from Wikipedia; this text had two paragraphs, each…

Social-Emotional Characteristics and Special Educational Needs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meijer, Joost; Fossen, Miriam W. E. B.; van Putten, Cornelis M.; van der Leij, Aryan

2006-01-01

The aim of the research described in this article was the development of an instrument to measure social emotional characteristics and special educational and pedagogical needs of students in the last grade of primary education. Questionnaires were developed for teachers as well as for students. Exploratory factor analyses showed that the factors…

An Overview of Software for Conducting Dimensionality Assessment in Multidimensional Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Svetina, Dubravka; Levy, Roy

2012-01-01

An overview of popular software packages for conducting dimensionality assessment in multidimensional models is presented. Specifically, five popular software packages are described in terms of their capabilities to conduct dimensionality assessment with respect to the nature of analysis (exploratory or confirmatory), types of data (dichotomous,…

Sleep assessment by patients and nurses in the intensive care: An exploratory descriptive study.

PubMed

Aitken, Leanne M; Elliott, Rosalind; Mitchell, Marion; Davis, Chelsea; Macfarlane, Bonnie; Ullman, Amanda; Wetzig, Krista; Datt, Ashika; McKinley, Sharon

2017-03-01

Sleep disruption is common in intensive care unit (ICU) patients, with reports indicating reduced quality and quantity of sleep in many patients. There is growing evidence that sleep in this setting may be improved. To describe ICU patients' self-report assessment of sleep, examine the relationship between patients' self-reported sleep and their reported sleep by the bedside nurse, and describe the strategies suggested by patients to promote sleep. An exploratory descriptive study was undertaken with communicative adult patients consecutively recruited in 2014-2015. Patients reported sleep using the Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire (score range 0-100mm; higher score indicates better sleep quality), with nursing assessment of sleep documented across a five level ordinal variable. Patients were asked daily to describe strategies that helped or hindered their sleep. Ethical approval for the study was gained. Descriptive statistical analysis was performed [median (interquartile range)]; relationships were tested using Spearman's rank correlation and differences assessed using the Kruskal-Wallis test; p<0.05 was considered significant. Participants (n=151) were recruited [age: 60 (46-71) years; ICU length of stay 4 (2-9) days] with 356 self-reports of sleep. Median perceived sleep quality was 46 (26-65) mm. A moderate relationship existed between patients' self-assessment and nurses' assessment of sleep (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient 0.39-0.50; p<0.001). Strategies identified by patients to improve sleep included adequate pain relief and sedative medication, a peaceful and comfortable environment and physical interventions, e.g. clustering care, ear plugs. Patients reported on their sleep a median of 2 (1-3) days during their ICU stay, suggesting that routine use of self-report was feasible. These reports revealed low sleep quality. Patients reported multiple facilitators and barriers for sleep, with environmental and patient comfort factors being most common. Interventions that target these factors to improve patient sleep should be implemented. Copyright © 2016 Australian College of Critical Care Nurses Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Continuing fascination of exploration in natural substances from microorganisms.

PubMed

Takahashi, Yoko

2017-01-01

In the search for novel organic compounds, I think it is of paramount importance not to overlook the pursuit of microorganism diversity and the abilities those microorganisms hold as a resource. In commemoration of Professor Satoshi Ōmura's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, I will briefly describe the microorganism that produces avermectin and then discuss how innovating isolation methods and pioneering isolation sources have opened the door to numerous new microorganism resources. Furthermore, as exploratory research of substances views the world from many different angles-from biological activity to a compound's physiochemical properties-it is possible to discover a novel compound from a well-known microorganism. Based on this, I will discuss the future prospects of exploratory research.

Three steps to writing adaptive study protocols in the early phase clinical development of new medicines

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

This article attempts to define terminology and to describe a process for writing adaptive, early phase study protocols which are transparent, self-intuitive and uniform. It provides a step by step guide, giving templates from projects which received regulatory authorisation and were successfully performed in the UK. During adaptive studies evolving data is used to modify the trial design and conduct within the protocol-defined remit. Adaptations within that remit are documented using non-substantial protocol amendments which do not require regulatory or ethical review. This concept is efficient in gathering relevant data in exploratory early phase studies, ethical and time- and cost-effective. PMID:24980283

Application of Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling to Evaluate the Academic Motivation Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guay, Frédéric; Morin, Alexandre J. S.; Litalien, David; Valois, Pierre; Vallerand, Robert J.

2015-01-01

In this research, the authors examined the construct validity of scores of the Academic Motivation Scale using exploratory structural equation modeling. Study 1 and Study 2 involved 1,416 college students and 4,498 high school students, respectively. First, results of both studies indicated that the factor structure tested with exploratory…

An Exploratory Study of Intrinsic & Extrinsic Motivators and Student Performance in an Auditing Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mo, Songtao

2011-01-01

The objective of this study is to investigate the association of intrinsic and extrinsic motivators and student performance. This study performs an exploratory analysis and presents evidence to demonstrate that intrinsic motivators affect the connection between external motivators and student performance. The empirical tests follow the framework…

An Exploratory Multiple Case Study about Using Game-Based Learning in STEM Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vu, Phu; Feinstein, Sheryl

2017-01-01

This exploratory multiple case study attempted to examine whether game-based learning activities had any impacts on students' academic performances and behaviors, and what perceptions the teachers had toward implementing games into their classrooms. Data used in this study included 101 students' pre and post-test scores, and four structured…

Technical Communications in Aeronautics: Results of an Exploratory Study. NASA Technical Memorandum 101534, Parts 1 and 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pinelli, Thomas E.; And Others

An exploratory study investigated technical communications in aeronautics by surveying aeronautical engineers and scientists. The study had five specific objectives: to solicit the opinions of aeronautical engineers and scientists regarding the importance of technical communications to their profession; to determine their use and production of…

Situated Analysis of Team Handball Players' Decisions: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lenzen, Benoit; Theunissen, Catherine; Cloes, Marc

2009-01-01

This exploratory study aimed to investigate elements involved in decision making in team handball live situations and to provide coaches and educators with teaching recommendations. The study was positioned within the framework of the situated-action paradigm of which two aspects were of particular interest for this project: (a) the relationship…

Giving Voice to Reluctant Learners: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pringle, Mark T.

2010-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory study is to hear from reluctant learners about their perceptions of their experiences in middle school and the meanings they make from these. This study will give voice to students, a stakeholder group that has been traditionally silent in the literature on K-12 learning and achievement. Capturing the perceptions…

Authentic Reading, Writing, and Discussion: An Exploratory Study of a Pen Pal Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gambrell, Linda B.; Hughes, Elizabeth M.; Calvert, Leah; Malloy, Jacquelynn A.; Igo, Brent

2011-01-01

In this exploratory study, reading, writing, and discussion were examined within the context of a pen pal intervention focusing on authentic literacy tasks. The study employed a mixed-method design with a triangulation-convergence model to explore the relationship between authentic literacy tasks and the literacy motivation of elementary students…

Consumer Rights and Accountability in Postsecondary Vocational-Technical Education: An Exploratory Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fitzgerald, Brian; Harmon, Lisa

Beginning in October 1987, Pelavin Associates conducted an exploratory study of consumer rights and accountability in postsecondary vocational-technical (PVT) programs for the U.S. Department of Education. The study focused on how effectively the governance structure--accreditation and federal and state regulation--ensures that consumer rights are…

Comprehension and Recall of Television's Computerized Image: An Exploratory Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Metallinos, Nikos; Chartrand, Sylvie

This exploratory study of the effects of the new visual communications media imagery (e.g., video games, digital television, and computer graphics) on the visual perception process is designed to provide a theoretical framework for research, introduce appropriate research instruments for such study, and experiment with the application of biometric…

Kinetics of conjugative gene transfer on surfaces in granular porous media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Massoudieh, A.; Crain, C.; Lambertini, E.; Nelson, K. E.; Barkouki, T.; L'Amoreaux, P.; Loge, F. J.; Ginn, T. R.

2010-03-01

The transfer of genetic material among bacteria in the environment can occur both in the planktonic and attached state. Given the propensity of organisms to exist in sessile microbial communities in oligotrophic subsurface conditions, and that such conditions typify the subsurface, this study focuses on exploratory modeling of horizontal gene transfer among surface-associated Escherichiacoli in the subsurface. The mathematics so far used to describe the kinetics of conjugation in biofilms are developed largely from experimental observations of planktonic gene transfer, and are absent of lags or plasmid stability that appear experimentally. We develop a model and experimental system to quantify bacterial filtration and gene transfer in the attached state, on granular porous media. We include attachment kinetics described in Nelson et al. (2007) using the filtration theory approach of Nelson and Ginn (2001, 2005) with motility of E. coli described according to Biondi et al. (1998).

Linkage between Free Exploratory Movements and Subjective Tactile Ratings.

PubMed

Yokosaka, Takumi; Kuroki, Scinob; Watanabe, Junji; Nishida, Shinya

2017-01-01

We actively move our hands and eyes when exploring the external world and gaining information about object's attributes. Previous studies showing that how we touch might be related to how we felt led us to consider whether we could decode observers' subjective tactile experiences only by analyzing their exploratory movements without explicitly asking how they perceived. However, in those studies, explicit judgment tasks were performed about specific tactile attributes that were prearranged by experimenters. Here, we systematically investigated whether exploratory movements can explain tactile ratings even when participants do not need to judge any tactile attributes. While measuring both hand and eye movements, we asked participants to touch materials freely without judging any specific tactile attributes (free-touch task) or to evaluate one of four tactile attributes (roughness, hardness, slipperiness, and temperature). We found that tactile ratings in the judgment tasks correlated with exploratory movements even in the free-touch task and that eye movements as well as hand movements correlated with tactile ratings. These results might open up the possibility of decoding tactile experiences by exploratory movements.

Impairment of exploratory behavior and spatial memory in adolescent rats in lithium-pilocarpine model of temporal lobe epilepsy.

PubMed

Kalemenev, S V; Zubareva, O E; Frolova, E V; Sizov, V V; Lavrentyeva, V V; Lukomskaya, N Ya; Kim, K Kh; Zaitsev, A V; Magazanik, L G

2015-01-01

Cognitive impairment in six-week -old rats has been studied in the lithium-pilocarpine model of adolescent temporal lobe epilepsy in humans. The pilocarpine-treated rats (n =21) exhibited (a) a decreased exploratory activity in comparison with control rats (n = 20) in the open field (OP) test and (b) a slower extinction of exploratory behavior in repeated OP tests. The Morris Water Maze (MWM) test showed that the effect of training was less pronounced in the pilocarpine-treated rats, which demonstrated disruption of predominantly short-term memory. Therefore, our study has shown that lithium-pilocarpine seizures induce substantial changes in exploratory behavior and spatial memory in adolescent rats. OP and MWM tests can be used in the search of drugs reducing cognitive impairments associated with temporal lobe epilepsy.

Compendium of NASA data base for the Global Tropospheric Experiment's Pacific Exploratory Mission West-A (PEM West-A)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gregory, G. L.; Scott, A. D., Jr.

1995-01-01

This compendium describes aircraft data that are available from NASA's Pacific Exploratory Mission West-A (PEM West-A). PEM West is a component of the International Global Atmospheric Chemistry's (IGAC) East Asia/North Pacific Regional Study (APARE) project. The PEM- West program encompassed two expeditions to study contrasting meteorological regimes in the Pacific. Objectives of PEM West are to investigate the atmospheric chemistry of ozone over the northwest Pacific -- natural budgets and the impact of anthropogenic sources; and to investigate sulfur chemistry -- continental versus marine sulfur sources. PEM West-A was conducted in September 1991 during which the predominance of tropospheric air is from the mid-Pacific (marine) regions, but (at times) is modified/mixed with Asian continental outflow. PEM West-B was conducted during February 1994, a period characterized by maximum continental outflow. PEM-B data (not included) will become public domain during the Summer of 1995. PEM West-A flight experiments were based at Japan, Hong Kong, and Guam. This document provides a representation of NASA DC-8 aircraft data that are available from NASA Langley's Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC), which include numerous data such as meteorological observations, modeling products, results from surface studies, satellite observations, and sonde releases.

Description of dynamic shared knowledge: an exploratory study during a competitive team sports interaction.

PubMed

Bourbousson, J; Poizat, G; Saury, J; Seve, C

2011-02-01

This exploratory case study describes the sharedness of knowledge within a basketball team (nine players) and how it changes during an official match. To determine how knowledge is mobilised in an actual game situation, the data were collected and processed following course-of-action theory (Theureau 2003). The results were used to characterise the contents of the shared knowledge (i.e. regarding teammate characteristics, team functioning, opponent characteristics, opposing team functioning and game conditions) and to identify the characteristic types of change: (a) the reinforcement of a previous element of shared knowledge; (b) the invalidation of an element of shared knowledge; (c) fragmentation of an element of shared knowledge; (d) the creation of a new element of shared knowledge. The discussion deals with the diverse types of change in shared knowledge and the heterogeneous and dynamic nature of common ground within the team. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: The present case study focused on how the cognitions of individual members of a team coordinate to produce a team performance (e.g. surgical teams in hospitals, military teams) and how the shared knowledge changes during team activity. Traditional methods to increase knowledge sharedness can be enhanced by making use of 'opportunities for coordination' to optimise team adaptiveness.

Nettle sting of Urtica dioica for joint pain--an exploratory study of this complementary therapy.

PubMed

Randall, C; Meethan, K; Randall, H; Dobbs, F

1999-09-01

This exploratory study aims to explore the present use of the common stinging nettle to treat joint pain. Eighteen self-selected patients using the nettle sting of Urtica dioica were interviewed. Information regarding patients' use of nettle therapy was elicited, in particular mode of application, dosage and effects. All except one respondent were sure that netles had been very helpful and several considered themselves cured. No observed side effects were reported, except a transient urticarial rash. This exploratory study suggests nettle sting is a useful, safe and cheap therapy which needs further study. A randomized controlled trial is planned in collaboration with a rheumatology specialist.

At-Risk Learner Preference in Engineering/Technical Graphics: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ernst, Jeremy V.

2011-01-01

This exploratory study investigated learner preferences of secondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) Engineering/Technical Graphics students using the VARK Questionnaire. The VARK Questionnaire is an instrument that assists in determining students' dominant preferred learning styles, whether visual, aural, reading, or kinesthetic. This study…

Bearing witness through medicine: an exploratory study of attitudes to service among Australian evangelical Christian doctors.

PubMed

Jensen, Sarah B; Phillips, Christine B

2013-12-01

This study explores the attitudes of Australian evangelical Christian doctors to healing, suffering and good practice, using in-depth interviews. Doctors described an intellectualised faith, in which medical care was conceived in itself as a way of bearing witness. The alleviation of suffering, for these doctors, included supporting patients to rediscover purpose and meaning in their lives. There was diversity of opinion about evangelising, with many feeling that this was a contingent activity best conducted outside the consultation. This cohort of doctors, mostly non-denominational, had consciously engaged in work with the poor and marginalised as an expression of their faith.

Network analysis of exploratory behaviors of mice in a spatial learning and memory task

PubMed Central

Suzuki, Yusuke

2017-01-01

The Barnes maze is one of the main behavioral tasks used to study spatial learning and memory. The Barnes maze is a task conducted on “dry land” in which animals try to escape from a brightly lit exposed circular open arena to a small dark escape box located under one of several holes at the periphery of the arena. In comparison with another classical spatial learning and memory task, the Morris water maze, the negative reinforcements that motivate animals in the Barnes maze are less severe and less stressful. Furthermore, the Barnes maze is more compatible with recently developed cutting-edge techniques in neural circuit research, such as the miniature brain endoscope or optogenetics. For this study, we developed a lift-type task start system and equipped the Barnes maze with it. The subject mouse is raised up by the lift and released into the maze automatically so that it can start navigating the maze smoothly from exactly the same start position across repeated trials. We believe that a Barnes maze test with a lift-type task start system may be useful for behavioral experiments when combined with head-mounted or wire-connected devices for online imaging and intervention in neural circuits. Furthermore, we introduced a network analysis method for the analysis of the Barnes maze data. Each animal’s exploratory behavior in the maze was visualized as a network of nodes and their links, and spatial learning in the maze is described by systematic changes in network structures of search behavior. Network analysis was capable of visualizing and quantitatively analyzing subtle but significant differences in an animal’s exploratory behavior in the maze. PMID:28700627

Qualitative data analysis for an exploratory sensory study of Grechetto wine.

PubMed

Esti, Marco; González Airola, Ricardo L; Moneta, Elisabetta; Paperaio, Marina; Sinesio, Fiorella

2010-02-15

Grechetto is a traditional white-grape vine, widespread in Umbria and Lazio regions in central Italy. Despite the wine commercial diffusion, little literature on its sensory characteristics is available. The present study is an exploratory research conducted with the aim of identifying the sensory markers of Grechetto wine and of evaluating the effect of clone, geographical area, vintage and producer on sensory attributes. A qualitative sensory study was conducted on 16 wines, differing for vintage, Typical Geographic Indication, and clone, collected from 7 wineries, using a trained panel in isolation who referred to a glossary of 133 white wine descriptors. Sixty-five attributes identified by a minimum of 50% of the respondents were submitted to a correspondence analysis to link wine samples to the sensory attributes. Seventeen terms identified as common to all samples are considered as characteristics of Grechetto wine, 10 of which olfactory: fruity, apple, acacia flower, pineapple, banana, floral, herbaceous, honey, apricot and peach. In order to interpret the relationship between design variables and sensory attributes data on 2005 and 2006 wines, the 28 most discriminating descriptors were projected in a principal component analysis. The first principal component was best described by olfactory terms and the second by gustative attributes. Good reproducibility of results was obtained for the two vintages. For one winery, vintage effect (2002-2006) was described in a new principal component analysis model applied on 39 most discriminating descriptors, which globally explained about 84% of the variance. In the young wines the notes of sulphur, yeast, dried fruit, butter, combined with herbaceous fresh and tropical fruity notes (melon, grapefruit) were dominant. During wine aging, sweeter notes, like honey, caramel, jam, become more dominant as well as some mineral notes, such as tuff and flint. Copyright 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An Exploratory Study of Thai University Students' Understanding of World Englishes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saengboon, Saksit

2015-01-01

This exploratory study investigated the perceptions of Thai university students towards World Englishes (WEs). One hundred and ninety-eight students from three universities in Bangkok were administered a questionnaire inquiring about definitions of WEs, the Kachruvian concentric circles, the concepts of standard and ownership of English, Thai…

Parent Involvement in Children's Education: An Exploratory Study of Urban, Chinese Immigrant Families

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ji, Cheng Shuang; Koblinsky, Sally A.

2009-01-01

This exploratory study examined the involvement of Chinese immigrant parents in children's elementary and secondary education. Participants were 29 low-income, urban parents of public school children working primarily in the hospitality sector. Parents were interviewed about their academic expectations, knowledge of school performance, parent…

Competent Communication in the First College Year: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morreale, Sherwyn; Staley, Constance; Campbell, Tajshen

2015-01-01

First-year students' communication abilities are critical to succeeding in college and interacting professionally with faculty, student affairs staff, and administrators. The purpose of this exploratory study is to better understand how introductory-level college students, particularly those born since 1990, define competent communication in the…

An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin Exposure in Ceramic Art Studios (Final Report, 2008)

EPA Science Inventory

EPA announced the availability of the final report, An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin Exposure in Ceramic Art Studios. This report investigates the potential dioxin exposure to artists/hobbyists who use ball clay to make pottery and related products. Derm...

Existential Measurement: A Factor Analytic Study of Some Current Psychometric Instruments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thauberger, Patrick C.; And Others

1982-01-01

Research in existentialism and ontology has given rise to several psychometric instruments. Used both exploratory and confirmatory principal-factor analyses to study relationships among 16 existential scales. Exploratory factor analysis provided some support of the theory that the avoidance of existential confrontation is a central function of…

Investigating Crickets: Observing Animal Exploratory Behavior

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowen, G. M.

2008-01-01

For curriculum content-related reasons, inquiry activities can be difficult in classrooms unless the activities are approached in a manner that makes variations among student group findings understandable in the context of the study. Studies of individual animals and plant reactions to stimuli, such as insect exploratory behavior, allow the…

Sustaining Latina Student Organizations: An Exploratory Instrumental Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Castellanos, Michelle

2016-01-01

Utilizing the exploratory case study methodology, the author examines the conditions that support and limit a Latina-based student organization at a predominately White institution of higher education. Seven organizational structures were found to influence the organization's ability to advance its aims, from interviews, documents, observations,…

Disaster Preparedness Information Needs of Individuals Attending an Adult Literacy Center: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friedman, Daniela; Tanwar, Manju; Yoho, Deborah W.; Richter, Jane V. E.

2009-01-01

Being prepared with accurate, credible, and timely information during a disaster can help individuals make informed decisions about taking appropriate actions. Unfortunately, many people have difficulty understanding health and risk-related resources. This exploratory, mixed methods study assessed disaster information seeking behaviors and…

Brief Report: An Exploratory Study of the Diagnostic Reliability for Autism Spectrum Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, Lauren J.; Eapen, Valsamma; Maybery, Murray; Midford, Sue; Paynter, Jessica; Quarmby, Lyndsay; Smith, Timothy; Williams, Katrina; Whitehouse, Andrew J.

2017-01-01

Previous research shows inconsistency in clinician-assigned diagnoses of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). We conducted an exploratory study that examined the concordance of diagnoses between a multidisciplinary assessment team and a range of independent clinicians throughout Australia. Nine video-taped Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS)…

An Exploratory Study of Student Satisfaction with University Web Page Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gundersen, David E.; Ballenger, Joe K.; Crocker, Robert M.; Scifres, Elton L.; Strader, Robert

2013-01-01

This exploratory study evaluates the satisfaction of students with a web-based information system at a medium-sized regional university. The analysis provides a process for simplifying data interpretation in captured student user feedback. Findings indicate that student classifications, as measured by demographic and other factors, determine…

Organic Chemistry Educators' Perspectives on Fundamental Concepts and Misconceptions: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duis, Jennifer M.

2011-01-01

An exploratory study was conducted with 23 organic chemistry educators to discover what general chemistry concepts they typically review, the concepts they believe are fundamental to introductory organic chemistry, the topics students find most difficult in the subject, and the misconceptions they observe in undergraduate organic chemistry…

District Capacity and the Implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blakely, Allison Wright

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between "district capacity" as measured by the District Capacity Assessment (DCA) and the "initial, depth, scale," and "sustained" implementation of an evidence-based practice (EBP), Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). This exploratory analysis…

The Temporal Properties of E-Learning: An Exploratory Study of Academics' Conceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martins, Jorge; Nunes, Miguel Baptista

2016-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present the results of an exploratory study that investigates Portuguese academics' conceptions concerning the temporal properties of e-learning, in the context of traditional Higher Education Institutions. Design/methodology/approach: Grounded Theory methodology was used to systematically analyse data…

Vowel Intelligibility in Children with and without Dysarthria: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levy, Erika S.; Leone, Dorothy; Moya-Gale, Gemma; Hsu, Sih-Chiao; Chen, Wenli; Ramig, Lorraine O.

2016-01-01

Children with dysarthria due to cerebral palsy (CP) present with decreased vowel space area and reduced word intelligibility. Although a robust relationship exists between vowel space and word intelligibility, little is known about the intelligibility of vowels in this population. This exploratory study investigated the intelligibility of American…

Teaching Social Skills in a Virtual Environment: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Jason; Parks-Savage, Agatha; Rehfuss, Mark

2009-01-01

This article reports on an exploratory study which examines the use of virtual environment technology as a tool to teach elementary school children social skills. Small group interventions were assessed to determine how the participants were measurably different on 7 different dependent variables: problem behaviors, academic competence,…

An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin Exposure in Ceramic Art Studios (External Review Draft)

EPA Science Inventory

EPA has released an external review draft entitled, An Exploratory Study: Assessment of Modeled Dioxin Exposure in Ceramic Art Studios(External Review Draft). The public comment period and the external peer-review workshop are separate processes that provide opportunities ...

An Exploratory Comparative Case Study of Employee Engagement in Christian Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daniels, Jessica R.

2016-01-01

Numerous studies have identified a positive correlation between employee engagement and overall organizational performance. However, research on employee engagement specifically within higher education is limited, and even less attention has been focused on engagement within the context of Christian higher education. An exploratory comparative…

Teaching Writing in the Shadow of Standardized Writing Assessment: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brimi, Hunter

2012-01-01

This exploratory study results from interviews with five high school English teachers regarding their writing instruction. The researcher sought to answer these questions: (1) How had the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program's (TCAP) Writing Assessment affected their teaching as gauged by the teachers' statements regarding the assessment,…

Native Transformations in the Pacific Northwest: A strength-based model of protection against substance use disorder.

PubMed

Rasmus, Stacy; Allen, James; Connor, William; Freeman, William; Skewes, Monica

2016-01-01

This paper presents findings from the Native Transformations Project, an exploratory community-based participatory research study that aims to identify sources of strength and protection against substance use disorder in three tribal communities in the coastal Pacific Northwest. Preliminary results from the study describe the specific settings, acts, and behaviors that build strengths and provide protection at the family, community, individual, and spiritual levels within coastal Pacific Northwest local tribal cultures. Findings from this study give voice to stated community preferences for grassroots Native intervention programs based in local cultural knowledge, worldviews, values, and theories of change, that operate at the local level on their own terms.

NATIVE TRANSFORMATIONS IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST: A STRENGTH-BASED MODEL OF PROTECTION AGAINST SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER

PubMed Central

Rasmus, Stacy; Allen, James; Connor, William; Freeman, William; Skewes, Monica

2016-01-01

This paper presents findings from the Native Transformations Project, an exploratory community-based participatory research study that aims to identify sources of strength and protection against substance use disorder in three tribal communities in the coastal Pacific Northwest. Preliminary results from the study describe the specific settings, acts, and behaviors that build strengths and provide protection at the family, community, individual, and spiritual levels within coastal Pacific Northwest local tribal cultures. Findings from this study give voice to stated community preferences for grassroots Native intervention programs based in local cultural knowledge, worldviews, values, and theories of change, that operate at the local level on their own terms. PMID:27383091

A Look at Early Childhood Programming in Museums

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowers, Betsy

2012-01-01

Based on data from an exploratory, online survey, this article reveals that a surprisingly high number of art and history museums currently offer programs for very young children. The author describes the kinds of challenges that survey respondents faced when planning and conducting programs, and calls for more research and more collective action.…

Perceptions of Early Adolescent Setswana-Speaking Learners of Respect in the Educator-Learner Relationship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Zena; Jacobs, Susanne; van Schalkwyk, Izanette

2018-01-01

This exploratory research focused on describing Setswana-speaking early adolescents' perceptions of respect in educator-learner relationships in the South African context. A lack of mutual respect obstructs adolescents' freedom to pursue personal goals in South Africa's school communities. Adding to this incongruity is the isolating of relational…

Bayesian Finite Mixtures for Nonlinear Modeling of Educational Data.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tirri, Henry; And Others

A Bayesian approach for finding latent classes in data is discussed. The approach uses finite mixture models to describe the underlying structure in the data and demonstrate that the possibility of using full joint probability models raises interesting new prospects for exploratory data analysis. The concepts and methods discussed are illustrated…

Institutional research and development, FY 1987

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Struble, G.L.; Lawler, G.M.; Crawford, R.B.

The Institutional Research and Development program at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory fosters exploratory work to advance science and technology, disciplinary research to develop innovative solutions to problems in various scientific fields, and long-term interdisciplinary research in support of defense and energy missions. This annual report describes research funded under this program for FY87. (DWL)

Quality Perception within Corporate E-Learning Providers in Catalonia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sangra, Albert; Fernandez-Michels, Pedro

2011-01-01

Purpose: The paper seeks to describe the Catalan corporate e-learning providers from the perspective of quality perception, quality assessment and quality control. Design/methodology/approach: A literature review reveals key aspects of the definition of quality in e-learning. The results of the review constitute the basis for exploratory research…

Exploring Classroom Interaction with Dynamic Social Network Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bokhove, Christian

2018-01-01

This article reports on an exploratory project in which technology and dynamic social network analysis (SNA) are used for modelling classroom interaction. SNA focuses on the links between social actors, draws on graphic imagery to reveal and display the patterning of those links, and develops mathematical and computational models to describe and…

Using Copy Change with Trade Books to Teach Earth Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bintz, William P.; Wright, Pam; Sheffer, Julie

2010-01-01

Developing and implementing relevant, challenging, integrative, and exploratory curriculum is critical at all levels of schooling. This article describes one attempt to develop and implement an instance of interdisciplinary curriculum by using copy change with trade books to teach earth science. Specifically, it introduces trade books as a way to…

Establishing a Common Language: The Meaning of Research-Based and Evidence-Based Programming (in the Human Sciences)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sellers, Debra M.; Schainker, Lisa M.; Lockhart, Peggy; Yeh, Hsiu Chen

2017-01-01

This article describes the development, implementation, and exploratory evaluation of a professional development series that addressed educators' knowledge and use of the terms "research-based" and "evidence-based" within Human Sciences Extension and Outreach at one university. Respondents to a follow-up survey were more likely…

Perceived Experiences of Anti-Bisexual Prejudice: Instrument Development and Evaluation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brewster, Melanie E.; Moradi, Bonnie

2010-01-01

This research describes the development and psychometric evaluation of the Anti-Bisexual Experiences Scale (ABES). Items were developed on the basis of prior literature, revised on the basis of expert feedback, and submitted to psychometric evaluation. Exploratory factor analysis of data from 350 bisexual participants yielded 3 factors of reported…

Perceptions of Childhood Obesity among Rural Parents, Teachers, and School Administrators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tripp, Paula J.; Choi, Jin Young

2015-01-01

The purposes of this exploratory qualitative research were to describe perceptions related to childhood obesity of rural parents, teachers, and school administrators and to examine how their perceptions shape their choices and behaviors for children's eating and physical exercise. The results showed that the perceptions of childhood obesity in the…

Venturing into the Unknown: Blogs as a Means of Advancing Leadership Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kodish, Slavica

2017-01-01

The author describes a theoretically eclectic exploratory assignment that helped students in a managerial communication class practice and advance a comprehensive range of leadership skills. Specifically, the author combined E. M. Eisenberg, L. H. Goodall, and A. Tretheway's (2014) model of leadership with pertinent concepts from the theory of…

Model Career Exploratory Program. Junction City Jr. High School. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Anthony

The report describes a career education demonstration project conducted in Junction City, Oregon, a city of 2,535 people with a high concentration of low-income families. Major limitations encountered were resistance to change and lack of funds. Procedures included four inservice sessions for instructional and guidance staff and four visitations…

Structural Analysis of Correlated Factors: Lessons from the Verbal-Performance Dichotomy of the Wechsler Scales.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Macmann, Gregg M.; Barnett, David W.

1994-01-01

Describes exploratory and confirmatory analyses of verbal-performance procedures to illustrate concepts and procedures for analysis of correlated factors. Argues that, based on convergent and discriminant validity criteria, factors should have higher correlations with variables that they purport to measure than with other variables. Discusses…

Development of the Behavioral Evaluation of Disorders of Sleep Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schreck, Kimberly A.; Mulick, James A.; Rojahn, Johannes

2003-01-01

We describe the development, preliminary psychometric properties, and cross-validation of the Behavioral Evaluation of Disorders of Sleep (BEDS: Schreck 1997/1998). Parental reports of problem sleep behavior in elementary school aged children 5 years to 12 years were collected for two samples. With the first sample, an exploratory factor analysis…

Psychology of Learning Spaces: Impact on Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Granito, Vincent J.; Santana, Mary E.

2016-01-01

New research is emerging that focuses on the role the physical classroom space plays in the teaching-learning dynamic. The purpose of this exploratory research is to describe the students' and instructors' perspectives of how the classroom space and environment impact teaching and learning. Focus groups were utilized with data points coming from…

Interactive Technology in the Classroom: An Exploratory Look at Its Use and Effectiveness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eastman, Jacqueline K.; Iyer, Rajesh; Eastman, Kevin L.

2009-01-01

This paper proposes that Interactive Technology can help professors enhance communication, attitudes, and interest in the classroom. This paper describes Interactive Technology, how professors can use it, and preliminary findings of its effectiveness. These findings suggest that the use of Interactive Technology can enhance students' attitudes.…

Validation of a Tool to Assess and Track Undergraduate Attitudes toward Those Living in Poverty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blair, Kevin D.; Brown, Marlo; Schoepflin, Todd; Taylor, David B.

2014-01-01

Purpose: This article describes the development and validation of the Undergraduate Perceptions of Poverty Tracking Survey (UPPTS). Method: Data were collected from 301 undergraduates at a small university in the Northeast and analyzed using exploratory factor analysis augmented by random qualitative validation. Results: The resulting survey…

Prospective Elementary Science Teachers and Biomythographies: An Exploratory Approach to Autobiographical Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nichols, Sharon E.; Tippins, Deborah J.

2000-01-01

Explores an approach to autobiographical research based on a notion of "outlaw genre" autobiography, referred to as "biomythography". Describes the use of photo essays to learn about prospective elementary teachers' stories of science and science education. Calls for an examination of hegemonies extending from students' personal histories as…

Enabling Advanced Wind-Tunnel Research Methods Using the NASA Langley 12-Foot Low Speed Tunnel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Busan, Ronald C.; Rothhaar, Paul M.; Croom, Mark A.; Murphy, Patrick C.; Grafton, Sue B.; O-Neal, Anthony W.

2014-01-01

Design of Experiment (DOE) testing methods were used to gather wind tunnel data characterizing the aerodynamic and propulsion forces and moments acting on a complex vehicle configuration with 10 motor-driven propellers, 9 control surfaces, a tilt wing, and a tilt tail. This paper describes the potential benefits and practical implications of using DOE methods for wind tunnel testing - with an emphasis on describing how it can affect model hardware, facility hardware, and software for control and data acquisition. With up to 23 independent variables (19 model and 2 tunnel) for some vehicle configurations, this recent test also provides an excellent example of using DOE methods to assess critical coupling effects in a reasonable timeframe for complex vehicle configurations. Results for an exploratory test using conventional angle of attack sweeps to assess aerodynamic hysteresis is summarized, and DOE results are presented for an exploratory test used to set the data sampling time for the overall test. DOE results are also shown for one production test characterizing normal force in the Cruise mode for the vehicle.

Life in the Middle: An Exploratory Study of California Community College Instructional Deans

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sill, Nancy

2014-01-01

This two-phase sequential mixed methods exploratory study examined the perceived skill deficits of instructional deans at California community colleges to better understand the training and development needs that are necessary to support dean success and to prepare them for advancement in a timelier manner. This study is grounded in the…

Gender-Related Quality of Parent-Child Interactions and Early Adolescent Problem Behaviors: Exploratory Study with Midwestern Samples

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spoth, Richard; Neppl, Tricia; Goldberg-Lillehoj, Catherine; Jung, Tony; Ramisetty-Mikler, Suhasini

2006-01-01

This article reports two exploratory studies testing a model guided by a social interactional perspective, positing an inverse relation between the quality of parent-child interactions and adolescent problem behaviors. It addresses mixed findings in the literature related to gender differences. Study 1 uses cross-sectional survey data from…

Selective Attention in Web Forms: An Exploratory Case Study with Older People

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sayago, Sergio; Guijarro, Jose-Maria; Blat, Josep

2012-01-01

This article reports on an exploratory study aimed to identify which ways of marking required and optional fields help older people fill in web forms correctly. Drawing on a pilot study and selective attention research in ageing, modified versions of widely used forms were created, in which standard asterisks were replaced with one of three…

High School Teachers' Perspectives on the English Language Arts Common Core State Standards: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ajayi, Lasisi

2016-01-01

This was an exploratory study that examined high school teachers' perspectives about their early experiences with the English language arts Common Core State Standards. The sources of data for the study included a survey and structured interviews. Twenty-three high school ELA teachers from one unified school district in Southern California…

Caregiver Involvement in the Education of Youth in Foster Care: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beisse, Kay; Tyre, Ashli

2013-01-01

This study was an exploratory investigation of caregiver involvement in the education of youth in foster care. In this study, foster caregivers reported that they are involved in the education of children in their care and participate in at-home involvement activities more often than at-school involvement activities. Caregivers in this study…

Characteristics of Effective Pedagogy of Third Grade English Learners in Language Arts: An Exploratory Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Merwin, Gregory J.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify pedagogical and non-pedagogical factors that affect the academic achievement of English Learner (EL) students in the area of language arts at Dr. Albert Schweitzer Elementary School in Anaheim, California. The researcher conducted an exploratory multiple case study to develop a comprehensive, contextual…

Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses of the WISC-IV with Gifted Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rowe, Ellen W.; Dandridge, Jessica; Pawlush, Alexandra; Thompson, Dawna F.; Ferrier, David E.

2014-01-01

These 2 studies investigated the factor structure of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-4th edition (WISC-IV; Wechsler, 2003a) with exploratory factor analysis (EFA; Study 1) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA; Study 2) among 2 independent samples of gifted students. The EFA sample consisted of 225 children who were referred for a…

School Self-Evaluations and School Inspections in Europe: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Janssens, Frans J. G.; van Amelsvoort, Gonnie H. W. C. H.

2008-01-01

This article presents the results of an exploratory study into the effects of School Self-Evaluation (SSE) used by eight Education Inspectorates in seven European countries. This study reveals that in the countries where SSE is strongly incorporated into the school inspection system, there is a rather substantial degree of steering by the…

Toward a Theory of Student Satisfaction: An Exploratory Study of the "Quality of Student Life."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Benjamin, Michael; Hollings, Ann E.

1995-01-01

The "Quality of Student Life" approach to studies of student satisfaction moves toward a coherent theory of satisfaction, based on an ecological perspective. Exploratory study (n=266) of senior undergraduate students demonstrated viability of this approach and the utility of the instrument developed to measure its dependent outcomes.…

An Exploratory Study of the Knowledge of Personal Safety Skills among Children with Developmental Disabilities and Their Parents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Hannah L.; Pavlik, Kathryn M.; Kim, Min Ah; Rogers, Karen C.

2017-01-01

Background: This study assessed the knowledge of personal safety skills among children with developmental disabilities and their parents' perceptions of children's knowledge. Method: This exploratory study examined the mental health records of 37 children with developmental disabilities referred for an abuse risk reduction group in a community…

Developing Students' Scientific Writing and Presentation Skills through Argument Driven Inquiry: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

C¸etin, Pinar Seda; Eymur, Gülüzar

2017-01-01

In this study, we employed a new instructional model that helps students develop scientific writing and presentation skills. Argument-driven inquiry (ADI) is one of the most novel instructional models that emphasizes the role of argumentation and inquiry in science education equally. This is an exploratory study where five ADI lab activities take…

An exploratory investigation of cumulative shock fatigue.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simonson, D.; Byrne, J. G.

1972-01-01

A simple device for producing cumulative shock loading in solids is described. The device uses a ballistic-impact-driven projectile to introduce high-stress waves into a solid. The impact time and load amplitude can be varied to produce fracture in one or several impacts in PMMA rods. The wavefront approached a square wave shape. Materials other than PMMA were loaded to failure to demonstrate the versatility of the device. Fracture morphologies observed with optical and scanning-electron microscopy are described.

Methodological guidelines for developing accident modification functions.

PubMed

Elvik, Rune

2015-07-01

This paper proposes methodological guidelines for developing accident modification functions. An accident modification function is a mathematical function describing systematic variation in the effects of road safety measures. The paper describes ten guidelines. An example is given of how to use the guidelines. The importance of exploratory analysis and an iterative approach in developing accident modification functions is stressed. The example shows that strict compliance with all the guidelines may be difficult, but represents a level of stringency that should be strived for. Currently the main limitations in developing accident modification functions are the small number of good evaluation studies and the often huge variation in estimates of effect. It is therefore still not possible to develop accident modification functions for very many road safety measures. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Exploratory procedures of tactile images in visually impaired and blindfolded sighted children: how they relate to their consequent performance in drawing.

PubMed

Vinter, Annie; Fernandes, Viviane; Orlandi, Oriana; Morgan, Pascal

2012-01-01

The aim of the present study was to compare the types of exploratory procedures employed by children when exploring bidimensional tactile patterns and correlate the use of these procedures with the children's shape drawing performance. 18 early blind children, 20 children with low vision and 24 age-matched blindfolded sighted children aged approximately 7 or 11 years were included in the study. The children with a visual handicap outperformed the sighted children in terms of haptic exploration and did not produce less recognizable drawings than their sighted counterparts. Close relationships were identified between the types of exploratory procedures employed by the children and their subsequent drawing performance, regardless of visual status. This close link between action and perception in the haptic modality indicates the importance of training blind children in exploratory procedures at an early age. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Neural correlates of the natural observation of an emotionally loaded video

PubMed Central

Gonzalez-Santos, Leopoldo

2018-01-01

Studies based on a paradigm of free or natural viewing have revealed characteristics that allow us to know how the brain processes stimuli within a natural environment. This method has been little used to study brain function. With a connectivity approach, we examine the processing of emotions using an exploratory method to analyze functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data. This research describes our approach to modeling stress paradigms suitable for neuroimaging environments. We showed a short film (4.54 minutes) with high negative emotional valence and high arousal content to 24 healthy male subjects (36.42 years old; SD = 12.14) during fMRI. Independent component analysis (ICA) was used to identify networks based on spatial statistical independence. Through this analysis we identified the sensorimotor system and its influence on the dorsal attention and default-mode networks, which in turn have reciprocal activity and modulate networks described as emotional. PMID:29883494

Comparing mental health literacy and physical health literacy: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Wickstead, Robert; Furnham, Adrian

2017-10-01

This study compared mental health and physical health literacy using five health problems from each area. The aim was to determine whether the same group had better physical than mental health literacy Method: A sample of 263 participants completed an online questionnaire requiring them to name a problem/illness described in 10 vignettes and suggest treatment options. Five vignettes described mental health problems (anxiety, bipolar-disorder, depression, OCPD and schizophrenia) and five physical problems (angina, COPD, diabetes, a heart attack, and sinusitis). Participants were also asked to rate their sympathy and estimates of prevalence for each disorder. Recognition of the mental health disorders was superior compared recognition of the physical disorders. Analysis of treatment beliefs, sympathy and prevalence ratings also showed significant differences between disorders. Results highlight the importance of education and the lack of public knowledge regarding major physical health conditions.

Critical thinking skills of basic baccalaureate and Accelerated second-degree nursing students.

PubMed

Newton, Sarah E; Moore, Gary

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to describe the critical thinking (CT) skills of basic baccalaureate (basic-BSN) and accelerated second-degree (ASD) nursing students at nursing program entry. Many authors propose that CT in nursing should be viewed as a developmental process that increases as students' experiences with it change. However, there is a dearth of literature that describes basic-BSN and ASD students' CT skills from an evolutionary perspective. The study design was exploratory descriptive. The results indicated thatASD students had higher CT scores on a quantitative critical thinking assessment at program entry than basic-BSN students. CT data are needed across the nursing curriculum from basic-BSN and ASD students in order for nurse educators to develop cohort-specific pedagogical approaches that facilitate critical thinking in nursing and produce nurses with good CT skills for the future.

An exploratory cluster randomised trial of a university halls of residence based social norms intervention in Wales, UK

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Excessive alcohol consumption amongst university students has received increasing attention. A social norms approach to reducing drinking behaviours has met with some success in the USA. Such an approach is based on the assumption that student's perceptions of the norms of their peers are highly influential, but that these perceptions are often incorrect. Social norms interventions therefore aim to correct these inaccurate perceptions, and in turn, to change behaviours. However, UK studies are scarce and it is increasingly recognised that social norm interventions need to be supported by socio ecological approaches that address the wider determinants of behaviour. Objectives To describe the research design for an exploratory trial examining the acceptability, hypothesised process of change and implementation of a social norm marketing campaign designed to correct misperceptions of normative alcohol use and reduce levels of misuse, implemented alongside a university wide alcohol harm reduction toolkit. It also assesses the feasibility of a potential large scale effectiveness trial by providing key trial design parameters including randomisation, recruitment and retention, contamination, data collection methods, outcome measures and intracluster correlations. Methods/design The study adopts an exploratory cluster randomised controlled trial design with halls of residence as the unit of allocation, and a nested mixed methods process evaluation. Four Welsh (UK) universities participated in the study, with residence hall managers consenting to implementation of the trial in 50 university owned campus based halls of residence. Consenting halls were randomised to either a phased multi channel social norm marketing campaign addressing normative discrepancies (n = 25 intervention) or normal practice (n = 25 control). The primary outcome is alcohol consumption (units per week) measured using the Daily Drinking Questionnaire. Secondary outcomes assess frequency of alcohol consumption, higher risk drinking, alcohol related problems and change in perceptions of alcohol-related descriptive and injunctive norms. Data will be collected for all 50 halls at 4 months follow up through a cross-sectional on line and postal survey of approximately 4000 first year students. The process evaluation will explore the acceptability and implementation of the social norms intervention and toolkit and hypothesised process of change including awareness, receptivity and normative changes. Discussion Exploratory trials such as this are essential to inform future definitive trials by providing crucial methodological parameters and guidance on designing and implementing optimum interventions. Trial registration number ISRCTN: ISRCTN48556384 PMID:22414293

Exploratory Study of Factors Related to Educational Scores of First Preclinical Year Medical Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sitticharoon, Chantacha; Srisuma, Sorachai; Kanavitoon, Sawita; Summachiwakij, Sarawut

2014-01-01

The relationships among the scores of major subjects taught in the first preclinical year of a Thai medical school, previous academic achievements, and daily life activities are rarely explored. We therefore performed an exploratory study identifying various factors possibly related to the educational scores of these medical students.…

International Comparisons of Teachers' Salaries: An Exploratory Study. Survey Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barro, Steven M.; Suter, Larry

This paper, the final product of a study, "International Comparison of Teachers' Salaries," on an exploratory effort to compare salaries of elementary and secondary school teachers in the United States with those in other economically advanced countries. Data was obtained from Canada, Denmark, Federal Republic of Germany, France, Italy, Japan,…

An Exploratory Study of Sustainable Development at Italian Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vagnoni, Emidia; Cavicchi, Caterina

2015-01-01

Purpose: This paper aims to outline the current status of the implementation of sustainability practices in the context of Italian public universities, highlighting the strengths and gaps. Design/methodology/approach: Based on a qualitative approach, an exploratory study design has been outlined using the model of Glavic and Lukman (2007) focusing…

Comparing Fathers' Physical and Toy Play and Links to Child Behaviour: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

St George, Jennifer; Fletcher, Richard; Palazzi, Kerrin

2017-01-01

Increasing amounts of research show that fathers' involvement in children's lives contributes to the child's social, emotional and cognitive development; however, much of the evidence comes from fathers' caregiving and object play. This exploratory study compared the characteristics of 24 Australian fathers' play in two contexts--toy play and…

Why Organizations Continue to Create Patient Information Leaflets with Readability and Usability Problems: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gal, Iddo; Prigat, Ayelet

2005-01-01

Readability and usability problems with patient information leaflets continue to be reported despite long-standing recognition of their existence and the availability of guidelines for developing health education materials. This exploratory study examined possible causes for such problems, based on interviews with professionals who developed…

The Effects of Training on a Young Child with Cortical Visual Impairment: An Exploratory Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lueck, Amanda Hall; Dornbusch, Helen; Hart, Jeri

1999-01-01

This exploratory study investigated the effects of the components of visual environmental management, visual skills training, and visually dependent task training on the performance of visual behaviors of a toddler with multiple disabilities including cortical visual impairment. Training components were implemented by the mother during daily…

An Exploratory Study of Mothers' Perceptions of Acculturation within the Preschool Context. Working Paper. WR-523

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lara-Cinisomo, Sandraluz; Thomas, Audrey Alforque

2007-01-01

This exploratory study examines the mother's perceptions of her preschooler's acculturation process, using qualitative methods to collect data from six Latino immigrant mothers about their own acculturation and that of their preschool child. Three patterns emerged: parallel dyadic acculturation, vertex dyadic acculturation, and intersegmented…

Dyslexia and Psycho-Social Functioning: An Exploratory Study of the Role of Self-Esteem and Understanding

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Terras, Melody M.; Thompson, Lucy C.; Minnis, Helen

2009-01-01

Individuals with dyslexia may have lower self-esteem and exhibit more emotional and behavioural difficulties than those without reading problems. However, the nature of any relationship between self-esteem and psychopathology remains unknown. This exploratory study assessed levels of self-esteem using the "Self-Perception Profile for…

Chinese Students' Perceptions of the Teaching in an Australian Accounting Programme--An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Grace; Cooper, Barry J.; Dellaportas, Steven

2015-01-01

This exploratory study is designed to elicit and understand the views of Mainland Chinese students concerning their learning experience in an Australian accounting education programme. The article contributes to the literature by investigating the issues and implications associated with international students' perceptions of teaching, as little…

Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment Systems Braille Reading Assessment: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Posey, Virginia K.; Henderson, Barbara W.

2012-01-01

Introduction: This exploratory study determined whether transcribing selected test items on an adult life and work skills reading test into braille could maintain the same approximate scale-score range and maintain fitness within the item response theory model as used by the Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment Systems (CASAS) for developing…

An Exploratory Study of Video Browsing User Interface Designs and Research Methodologies: Effectiveness in Information Seeking Tasks.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tse, Tony; Vegh, Sandor; Shneiderman, Ben; Marchionini, Gary

1999-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory study was to develop research methods to compare the effectiveness of two video browsing interface designs, or surrogates--one static (storyboard) and one dynamic (slide show)--on two distinct information seeking tasks (gist determination and object recognition). (AEF)

The Nature of Professional Learning Communities in New Zealand Early Childhood Education: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cherrington, Sue; Thornton, Kate

2015-01-01

Professional learning communities are receiving increasing attention within the schooling sector but empirical research into their development and use within early childhood education contexts is rare. This paper reports initial findings of an exploratory study into the development of professional learning communities in New Zealand's early…

Self-Regulatory Efficacy and Mindset of At-Risk Students: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matheson, Ian A.

2015-01-01

There is a limited body of research examining how students' beliefs about intelligence and about their abilities relate to different learning environments. As reported here, I examined secondary school students' beliefs, goals, and expectations guided by Zimmerman's (2000) model of self-regulated learning. In this exploratory study, 230 secondary…

An Exploratory Study of Problem Gambling on Casino versus Non-Casino Electronic Gaming Machines

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clarke, Dave; Pulford, Justin; Bellringer, Maria; Abbott, Max; Hodgins, David C.

2012-01-01

Electronic gaming machines (EGMs) have been frequently associated with problem gambling. Little research has compared the relative contribution of casino EGMs versus non-casino EGMs on current problem gambling, after controlling for demographic factors and gambling behaviour. Our exploratory study obtained data from questionnaires administered to…

Urban Service Providers' Perspectives on School Responses to Gay, Lesbian, and Questioning Students: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Varjas, Kris; Graybill, Emily; Mahan, Will; Meyers, Joel; Dew, Brian; Marshall, Megan; Singh, Anneliese; Birckbichler, Lamar

2007-01-01

Perspectives regarding bullying of gay, lesbian, and questioning (GLQ) students were obtained from 16 school and community service providers in this exploratory study. Insights were gained regarding in-school responses to homophobic bullying threats beyond traditional punishments (e.g., suspension). Barriers to developing safe schools for GLQ…

Why Integrating Technology Has Been Unsuccessful in Kuwait? An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alfelaij, Bader

2016-01-01

In Kuwait, unsuccessful attempts to use and integrate technology into classrooms and lecture halls are currently being witnessed in schools and higher education institutions. Such failure is believed to be the consequence of various challenges, such as cultural, technical and contextual challenges. In this exploratory study, the researcher has…

An Exploratory Study of the Impact of College Student Leadership Programs upon the Construct of Mindfulness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Horowitz, Rich

2012-01-01

Mindfulness is a key skill that produces the greater psychological awareness identified by most leadership scholars as being essential to effective leadership. This study conducted an exploratory assessment of the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cocurricular collegiate leadership programs through pre- and post-participation application of the…

Problematic Students of NASP-Approved Programs: An Exploratory Study of Graduate Student Views

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trimble, Leasha D.; Stroebel, Sandra S.; Krieg, Fred Jay; Rubenstein, Robert L.

2012-01-01

This study reports the findings of an electronic exploratory survey of National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) Student Representatives. The purpose of the survey was to gather information about the perspective of graduate students concerning problematic peers and their experiences with them in school psychology training programs.…

Supporting the Development of Risk-Taking Behaviours in the Early Years: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waters, Jane; Begley, Sharon

2007-01-01

Children's opportunities for independent play in natural outdoor spaces, and the associated opportunities to take and negotiate risk, are being eroded despite potential links between such play and the development of positive learning dispositions. This paper reports the findings of an exploratory study that documented the risk-taking behaviours…

Academic and Personal Development through Group Work: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steen, Sam

2011-01-01

This exploratory study linked academic and personal development within a group counseling intervention. A pre-test post-test research design compared social skills, learning behaviors, and achievement with a convenience sample and control group of students from three elementary schools. For the treatment group, grade point average in Language Arts…

Music Educators' Self-Perceptions of Interpersonal Skills: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howard, Sandra A.; Seaver, Karen J.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory study was to measure music educators' ("N" = 9) self-perceptions of their use of interpersonal skills. Participants rated themselves on 32 statements included on the "My Use of Interpersonal Skills Inventory" in pre- and posttest formats. Participants participated in a 4-week period of weekly…

What Do GCSE Examiners Think of "Thinking Aloud"? Findings from an Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greatorex, Jackie; Suto, Irenka W. M.

2008-01-01

Background: "Thinking aloud" is a well-established method of data collection in education, assessment, and other fields of research. However, while many researchers have reported their views on its usage, the first-hand experiences of research participants have received less attention. Purpose: The aim of this exploratory study was to…

Bullying and Victimisation Dynamics in High School: An Exploratory Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lekunze, Lucy M. George; Strom, B. Ivan

2017-01-01

Bullying is a worldwide concern and erroneous perceptions of the phenomenon could underscore unsustainable interventions. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study was to examine, in-depth, how some high school teachers from two schools in New Jersey perceived student bullying. The primary research question was: What perceptions do…

An Exploratory Study of Emotional Affordance of a Massive Open Online Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheng, Jeremy C. Y.

2014-01-01

This exploratory study examines emotional affordance of a massive open online course (MOOC). Postings in a discussion forum of a MOOC in computer science are analysed following a research design informed by virtual ethnography. Emotional affordance is investigated, focusing on non-achievement emotions which are not directly linked to achievement…

Applying Threshold Concepts Theory to an Unsettled Field: An Exploratory Study in Criminal Justice Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wimshurst, Kerry

2011-01-01

Criminal justice education is a relatively new program in higher education in many countries, and its curriculum and parameters remain unsettled. An exploratory study investigated whether threshold concepts theory provided a useful lens by which to explore student understandings of this multidisciplinary field. Eight high-performing final-year…

An Exploratory Study of the Curricular Integration of Ethics in Executive MBA Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franco, Jaime M.

2011-01-01

An Exploratory Study of the Curricular Integration of Ethics in Executive MBA Programs News headlines of corporate scandals have unleashed a contentious debate of whether or not graduate management education has contributed to corporate collapses and the resultant financial crisis. In particular, questions abound as to the willingness of…

Mission Attachment and Job Satisfaction among Emergency Shelter and Transitional Housing Service Professionals: An Exploratory Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fermin, Caroline P.

2017-01-01

This research study was an exploratory analysis to determine if a relationship existed between mission attachment and job satisfaction of emergency nonprofit domestic violence shelter/transitional housing workers. The study examined if the perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes were different between entry-level, middle-level, and senior-level…

An Exploratory Investigation of the Factor Structure of the Reynolds Intellectual Assessment Scales (RIAS)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dombrowski, Stefan C.; Watkins, Marley W.; Brogan, Michael J.

2009-01-01

This study investigated the factor structure of the Reynolds Intellectual Assessment Scales (RIAS) using rigorous exploratory factor analytic and factor extraction procedures. The results of this study indicate that the RIAS is a single factor test. Despite these results, higher order factor analysis using the Schmid-Leiman procedure indicates…

Hip Hop Therapy: An Exploratory Study of a Rap Music Intervention with At-Risk and Delinquent Youth.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tyson, Edgar H.

2002-01-01

Presents an exploratory study of the therapeutic potential of "Hip-Hop" therapy, an "innovative synergy of rap music, bibliotherapy, and music therapy." Finds that the quantitative and qualitative results partially supported the hypothesis that under a specific set of conditions rap music would improve the therapeutic…

An Exploratory Study of Animal-Assisted Interventions Utilized by Mental Health Professionals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Callaghan, Dana M.; Chandler, Cynthia K.

2011-01-01

This study implemented an exploratory analysis to examine how a sample of mental health professionals incorporates specific animal-assisted techniques into the therapeutic process. An extensive review of literature related to animal-assisted therapy (AAT) resulted in the identification of 18 techniques and 10 intentions for the practice of AAT in…

Contingency Management for Adolescent Smokers: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tevyaw, Tracy O'Leary; Gwaltney, Chad; Tidey, Jennifer W.; Colby, Suzanne M.; Kahler, Christopher W.; Miranda, Robert; Barnett, Nancy P.; Rohsenow, Damaris J.; Monti, Peter M.

2007-01-01

This exploratory study investigated the efficacy and feasibility of a contingency management (CM) protocol for adolescent smokers that included use of a reduction phase. Using a within-participants design, 19 adolescents completed three 7-day phases: (1) reinforcement for attendance and provision of breath samples (RA) phase, (2) a washout phase,…

An Exploratory Case Study of PBIS Implementation Using Social Network Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whitcomb, Sara A.; Woodland, Rebecca H.; Barry, Shannon K.

2017-01-01

An exploratory case study is presented in which social network analysis (SNA) was used to explore how school teaming structures influence the implementation of School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). The authors theorized that PBIS leadership teams that include members with connections to all other information-sharing…

Introducing Case Management to Students in a Virtual World: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levine, Joanne; Adams, Ruifang Hope

2013-01-01

This paper discusses a small, exploratory study introducing students to case management using role-plays conducted in a virtual world. Data from pre- and posttest questionnaires (to assess self-efficacy regarding a range of case management tasks) suggest students felt more confident in their abilities after virtual role-play participation. Also…

Personal Epistemologies of Statisticians in Academia: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diamond, Aurel H.; Stylianides, Andreas J.

2017-01-01

In this exploratory study, we investigated the personal epistemologies of statisticians in academia with the aim of offering some insight into what might be an availing epistemology for learning statistics. Findings from in-depth, semi-structured interviews with six academics in the UK currently researching within the field of statistics showed…

How Safe Is a School? An Exploratory Study Comparing Measures and Perceptions of Safety

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hernandez, Diley; Floden, Lysbeth; Bosworth, Kris

2010-01-01

This exploratory study investigates the relation between incident reports to local law enforcement, and students' and teachers' perceptions of school safety. Using a combination of grounded theory and statistics, we compared quantitative data collected from law enforcement agencies with qualitative data provided by students and teachers during…

Exploratory investigation of the incipient spinning characteristics of a typical light general aviation airplane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ranaudo, R. J.

1977-01-01

The incipient spinning characteristics of general aviation airplanes were studied. Angular rates in pitch, yaw, and roll were measured through the stall during the incipient spin and throughout the recovery along with control positions, angle of attack, and angle of sideslip. The characteristic incipient spinning motion was determined from a given set of entry conditions. The sequence of recovery controls were varied at two distinct points during the incipient spin, and the effect on recovery characteristics was examined. Aerodynamic phenomena associated with flow over the aft portion of the fuselage, vertical stabilizer, and rubber are described.

Exploratory development and services for preparing and examining ultrathin polished sections of lunar rocks and particulates, part 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Beauchamp, R. H.; Williford, J. F.; Gafford, E. L.

1972-01-01

Development of improved procedures is reported for three classes of lunar materials: dense rocks, breccias, and particulates. High quality ultrathin sections of these materials are obtained. Lists of equipment and supplies, procedures, photomicrographic documentation, and training are provided. Advantages of ultrathin polished sections for conventional and unconventional optical microscopy methods are described. Recommendations are provided for use of ultrathin sections in lunar rock studies, for further refinement of ultrathinning procedures, and for additional training efforts to establish a capability at the Manned Space Center. For Part 2, See N72-50754.

Stress-tension reduction in the treatment of sexually tortured women--an exploratory study.

PubMed

Larsen, H; Pagaduan-Lopez, J

1987-01-01

Three women who had been tortured and sexually abused during imprisonment as political prisoners during the dictatorship in the Philippines were treated with a nonverbal, manual stress-tension reduction therapy (STRT). All women had difficulty in sexual and social relationships and a series of unspecific complaints such as headache, dizziness, irritability, aggressiveness toward their own children, etc. The therapy is described. A series of four sessions was given each woman, followed by group training. A remarkable improvement was noted, and it is suggested that STRT may be use in other sexological disorders.

Characteristics of effective interventions supporting quality pain management in Australian emergency departments: an exploratory study.

PubMed

Shaban, Ramon Z; Holzhauser, Kerri; Gillespie, Kerri; Huckson, Sue; Bennetts, Scott

2012-02-01

It is well established that pain is the most common presenting complaint in Emergency Departments. Despite great improvements in available pain management strategies, patients are left waiting for longer than 60min for pain relief on arrival to the emergency department. The aim of this study was to describe interventions that lead to successful implementation of the National Health and Medical Research Council approved guidelines Acute Pain Management: Scientific Evidence (2nd Edition) that include specific recommendations for best practice pain management. A two-phased, mixed-method, exploratory study of all 52 Australian hospital emergency departments participating in the National Emergency Care Pain Management Initiative incorporating interview and document analysis was undertaken. Interventions used by clinicians to improve pain management included nurse initiated analgesia, intranasal fentanyl for paediatric patients and lignocaine, and facio illiaca block. Education formed a major part of the intervention and the development of a working group of key stakeholders was critical in the successful implementation of change. Staff perceptions of patients' pain level and attitudes toward pain assessment and pain management were identified as barriers. This study highlighted how an effective framework to plan and implement practice change and tailored interventions, including education and training systems and products using the best available evidence, best equipped clinicians to manage pain in the ED. Copyright © 2011 College of Emergency Nursing Australasia Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Constructivist Approach? I Have Heard about It but I Have Never Seen It: "An Example of Exploratory Sequential Mixed Design Study"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Polat, Ahmet; Dogan, Soner; Demir, Selçuk Besir

2016-01-01

The present study was undertaken to investigate the quality of education based on the views of the students attending social studies education departments at the Faculties of Education and to determine the existing problems and present suggestions for their solutions. The study was conducted according to exploratory sequential mixed method. In…

The Constructivist Approach? I Have Heard about It but I Have Never Seen It "An Example of Exploratory Sequential Mixed Design Study"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Polat, Ahmet; Dogan, Soner; Demir, Selçuk Besir

2016-01-01

The present study was undertaken to investigate the quality of education based on the views of the students attending social studies education departments at the Faculties of Education and to determine the existing problems and present suggestions for their solutions. The study was conducted according to exploratory sequential mixed method. In…

An Exploratory Study of Self-Regulated Learning Strategies in a Design Project by Students in Grades 9-12

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawanto, Oenardi; Butler, Deborah; Cartier, Sylvie; Santoso, Harry; Lawanto, Kevin; Clark, David

2013-01-01

This exploratory study evaluated self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies of 27 students in grades 9-12 during an engineering design project. The specific focus of the study was on student task interpretation and its relation to planning and cognitive strategies in design activities. Two research questions guided the study: (1) To what degree was…

"My Purpose Was to Help Them with Accounting, Not English": An Exploratory Study of Languages Other than English in Peer Assisted Study Sessions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Supple, Briony J.; Best, Gill; Pearce, Amanda

2016-01-01

This paper considers when and for what purposes Peer Assisted Study Session (PASS) Leaders at an English medium university use their first language (when that language is not the dominant language of instruction) to facilitate PASS sessions in an English speaking university. This small qualitative exploratory study examines the experiences of…

To Flip or Not to Flip? An Exploratory Study Comparing Student Performance in Calculus I

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schroeder, Larissa B.; McGivney-Burelle, Jean; Xue, Fei

2015-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory, mixed-methods study was to compare student performance in flipped and non-flipped sections of Calculus I. The study also examined students' perceptions of the flipping pedagogy. Students in the flipped courses reported spending, on average, an additional 1-2 hours per week outside of class on course content.…

Using Relevance Prompts: An Exploratory Study to Promote Eighth Graders' Comprehension and Retelling of Narrative Text

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fogarty, Melissa S.; Davis, John L.; Anderson, Leah L.; Myint, Ahmarlay

2017-01-01

This exploratory study investigated the effects of modifying eighth grade students' purposes for reading through a prompt designed to increase engagement with the text. The current study was conducted using a randomized between-subjects design, with a relevance prompt as the between-subjects factor and reader proficiency as a covariate. A sample…

Reciprocal Learning in Partnership Practice: An Exploratory Study of a Home Visiting Program for Mothers with Depression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fowler, Cathrine; Dunston, Roger; Lee, Alison; Rossiter, Chris; McKenzie, Jo

2012-01-01

This paper reports on a small exploratory study that investigates the place and role of reciprocal learning within a partnership-based home visiting program for mothers experiencing depression. The study is one important example of an increased focus on reciprocal learning within practice that has significant implications for the development of…

An Exploratory Study of Young Students' Core Virtues of e-Character Education: The Taiwanese Teachers' Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Chih-Ming; Chou, Chien

2015-01-01

The e-character education (e-CE) approach refers to systems of ethics education that pertain specifically to cyberspace. This exploratory study used a survey to collect 2495 teachers' responses regarding virtues important to e-CE. Furthermore, in order to identify the teaching concerns associated with these most important virtues, this study used…

The Use of Message Framing to Promote Sexual Risk Reduction in Young Adolescents: A Pilot Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Camenga, Deepa R.; Hieftje, Kimberly D.; Fiellin, Lynn E.; Edelman, E. Jennifer; Rosenthal, Marjorie S.; Duncan, Lindsay R.

2014-01-01

Few studies have explored the application of message framing to promote health behaviors in adolescents. In this exploratory study, we examined young adolescents' selection of gain- versus loss-framed images and messages when designing an HIV-prevention intervention to promote delayed sexual initiation. Twenty-six adolescents (aged 10-14 years)…

Educators in Industry: An Exploratory Study to Determine How Teacher Externships Influence K-12 Classroom Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowen, Bradley; Shume, Teresa

2018-01-01

This exploratory study investigates the impacts of industry-based externships for K-12 teachers, and reports teachers' perspectives on how these experiences influenced K-12 classroom practices. The program of focus in this research study is the Educators in Industry: K-12 Externship Program. For four weeks in the summer, teacher-participants are…

Digital Badges for Teacher Mastery: An Exploratory Study of a Competency-Based Professional Development Badge System. CCT Reports

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diamond, James; Gonzalez, Pilar Carmina

2014-01-01

This study contributes knowledge about how a digital badge system integrated into an online, subject-matter-specific, and competency-based professional development (PD) program affected teachers' experiences with and perceptions of the program activities. The report presents findings from a one-year exploratory study of an online PD program, and…

An Exploratory Study of the Relationship between Collaboration and Mathematics and Game Outcomes. CRESST Report 797

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buschang, Rebecca E.; Chung, Gregory K. W. K.; Kim, Jinok

2011-01-01

This study is an exploratory study of the relationship between collaboration and mathematics and game outcomes in a video game aimed at teaching concepts related to rational numbers. The sample included 243 middle school students who played the video game either with one partner or individually for 40 minutes. Results suggest that participants…

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL BUILDING DESIGN AND STUDENT LEARNING. FINAL REPORT.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MARX, BARBARA S.; MYRICK, RICHARD

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY WAS MADE OF THE INFLUENCE OF HIGH SCHOOL BUILDING DESIGN UPON THE QUALITY AND QUANTITY AT STUDENT INFORMAL INTERACTIONS, AND THE NATURE AND CONTENT OF SUCH INTERACTIONS. THREE HIGH SCHOOLS WERE STUDIED, AND QUESTIONNAIRES AND INTERVIEWS WERE USED WITH THE 1631 STUDENTS IN THE TOP TWO GRADES. CONCEPTS WHICH WERE IDENTIFIED…

Is Counseling Going to the Dogs? An Exploratory Study Related to the Inclusion of an Animal in Group Counseling with Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lange, Amber M.; Cox, Jane A.; Bernert, Donna J.; Jenkins, Christie D.

2007-01-01

Research has demonstrated that the use of animals in counseling provides beneficial effects to clients. This article presents literature on Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT), and details an exploratory study that applied AAT in an adolescent anger management group. Consistent with other research, beneficial effects noted in this study included a…

Virtual Trust in US-India Global Outsource Teams: A Qualitative Exploratory Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gugliotti, Domenic

2017-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study was to identify and analyze, trust behaviors used by members of an outsourced virtual team in an on and offshore engagement. The inability to build trust in outsourced engagements can cause serious damage to the collaboration within the virtual team causing it to fail. This study provides…

An Exploratory Study on K-12 Teachers' Use of Technology and Multimedia in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Florence; Carr, Marsha L.

2015-01-01

21st century has seen new technology and multimedia made available for integration in K-12 classrooms. This exploratory study examines K-12 teachers' use of technology and multimedia in the classroom in two southern counties in the Southeastern United States. The purpose of the study was to answer the following five research questions: 1) What…

Analysis of E-Mail Produced by Middle School Students with Disabilities Using Accessible Interfaces: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sohlberg, McKay Moore; Todis, Bonnie; Fickas, Stephen; Ehlhardt, Laurie

2011-01-01

The goal of this exploratory study was to investigate electronic communication as a potential method to enhance social communication in a range of students with disabilities. This study investigated the usability of an adapted e-mail interface, TeenMail, for 11 middle school students with significant learning and communication impairments who…

University Faculty Members' Perceptions of the Factors That Facilitate Technology Integration into Their Instruction: An Exploratory Case Study in Qatar

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karkouti, Ibrahim Mohamad

2016-01-01

This qualitative, exploratory case study was designed to elicit faculty members' perceptions of the factors that facilitate technology integration into their instruction. The study was conducted at a midsized higher education institution in Qatar. Davis's (1986) technology acceptance model (TAM) is the conceptual framework that guided this study…

Geographic variation in the association between exploratory behavior and physiology in rufous-collared sparrows.

PubMed

Maldonado, Karin; van Dongen, Wouter F D; Vásquez, Rodrigo A; Sabat, Pablo

2012-01-01

Increasing research has attempted to clarify the links between animal personality and physiology. However, the mechanisms driving this association remain largely unknown, and knowledge of how ecological factors may affect its direction and strength is scant. In this study, we quantified variation in the association between exploratory behavior, basal metabolic rate (BMR), and total evaporative water loss (TEWL) in rufous-collared sparrows (Zonotrichia capensis) inhabiting desert, Mediterranean, and cold-temperate climates. We found that the exploratory behavior score was highest in birds from the cold-temperate site, which was characterized by a moderate level of ecological variability (seasonality). Moreover, the association between exploratory behavior and physiological variables differed among localities. Only birds from the Mediterranean site showed a positive correlation between exploratory behavior and BMR. We found no association between exploration and TEWL at any study site. Our findings suggest that differences in the ecological conditions experienced by each sparrow population result in a particular combination of behavioral and physiological traits. An understanding of this intraspecific variation along ecological gradients provides unique insights into how specific ecological conditions affect the coupling of behavioral and physiological traits and the mechanisms underlying that relationship.

Issues Related to the Frequency of Exploratory Analyses by Evidence Review Groups in the NICE Single Technology Appraisal Process.

PubMed

Kaltenthaler, Eva; Carroll, Christopher; Hill-McManus, Daniel; Scope, Alison; Holmes, Michael; Rice, Stephen; Rose, Micah; Tappenden, Paul; Woolacott, Nerys

2017-06-01

Evidence Review Groups (ERGs) critically appraise company submissions as part of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Single Technology Appraisal (STA) process. As part of their critique of the evidence submitted by companies, the ERGs undertake exploratory analyses to explore uncertainties in the company's model. The aim of this study was to explore pre-defined factors that might influence or predict the extent of ERG exploratory analyses. The aim of this study was to explore predefined factors that might influence or predict the extent of ERG exploratory analyses. We undertook content analysis of over 400 documents, including ERG reports and related documentation for the 100 most recent STAs (2009-2014) for which guidance has been published. Relevant data were extracted from the documents and narrative synthesis was used to summarise the extracted data. All data were extracted and checked by two researchers. Forty different companies submitted documents as part of the NICE STA process. The most common disease area covered by the STAs was cancer (44%), and most ERG reports (n = 93) contained at least one exploratory analysis. The incidence and frequency of ERG exploratory analyses does not appear to be related to any developments in the appraisal process, the disease area covered by the STA, or the company's base-case incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). However, there does appear to be a pattern in the mean number of analyses conducted by particular ERGs, but the reasons for this are unclear and potentially complex. No clear patterns were identified regarding the presence or frequency of exploratory analyses, apart from the mean number conducted by individual ERGs. More research is needed to understand this relationship.

Effects of subchronic inhalation of vaporized plastic cement on exploratory behavior and Purkinje cell differentiation in the rat.

PubMed

Pascual, R; Salgado, C; Viancos, L; Figueroa, H R

1996-12-06

In the present study, the effects of preweaning cement vapor inhalation on exploratory behavior and cerebellar Purkinje cell differentiation were assessed. Sprague-Dawley albino rats were daily exposed to glue vapors between postnatal d 2 and 21. At postnatal d 22, all animals were submitted to the open-field test in order to evaluate their exploratory behavior. Then they were sacrificed, their brains dissected out, and cerebella stained according to the Golgi-Cox-Sholl procedure. Purkinje cells sampled from parasagittal sections of the cerebellar vermis were drawn under camera lucida and their dendritic domain was determined. The collected data indicate that glue solvent inhalation impairs both Purkinje cell differentiation and locomotor exploratory behavior.

An investigation into the prevalence of exploratory behavior in captive cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus).

PubMed

Quirke, Thomas; O'Riordan, Ruth

2015-01-01

Exploratory behavior in the wild is fundamentally linked to an animal's survival and natural life history. The ability to gather information about their environment, establish territories, assert dominance, communicate information regarding reproductive status and locate mates are closely associated with a range of exploratory behaviors. Understanding how these behaviors are performed within the captive setting is crucial in order to create a captive environment in which these behaviors can be expressed, and their function conserved. The objective of this research was to highlight the factors of captive husbandry and management that influence the occurrence of exploratory behaviour of cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) in captivity. One hundred and twelve cheetahs in 88 enclosures across nine zoological institutions in five countries were the subjects of this study. The presence of raised areas, number of movements between enclosures, group composition, sex and an interaction between group composition and the ability to view cheetahs in adjacent enclosures, all significantly influenced the prevalence of exploratory behavior in captive cheetahs. The presence of raised areas and an increasing number of movements between enclosures significantly increased the probability of observing exploratory behaviour, while this probability was significantly decreased for female cheetahs, when cheetahs were able to view conspecifics in adjacent enclosures, and were maintained in groups. A number of recommendations are discussed in relation to promoting exploratory behavior in captive cheetahs. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Use of Telecommunication to Deliver Services to Rural and Urban Vocational Rehabilitation Clients

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ipsen, Catherine; Rigles, Bethany; Arnold, Nancy; Seekins, Tom

2012-01-01

Telecommunication offers a cost-saving alternative to face-to-face vocational rehabilitation (VR) service delivery, yet little is known about the current use. This article describes findings from an exploratory survey of 1,187 counselors, representing 13 VR agencies across the United States. The online survey explored agency, counselor, and client…

Concerns of Asian Indians: An Exploratory Thematic Content Analysis of Unobtrusive Documentary Data for Asian American Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mohapatra, Manindra Kumar

This paper investigates the priority of social and political issues in America's Asian Indian subcommunity and, secondarily, proposes content analysis for investigations of Asian American sub-cultures. The data sources and methodology are described first: letters to the editor published between September 1, 1983 and June 30, 1984, were selected…

Seeking to Engage "Hard-to-Reach" Families: Towards a Transferable Model of Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evangelou, Maria; Coxon, Kate; Sylva, Kathy; Smith, Sally; Chan, Lydia L. S.

2013-01-01

This paper describes an exploratory evaluation of the Peers Early Education Partnership "Room to Play", an innovative and experimental "drop-in" service seeking to attract and engage "hard-to-reach" families in one of the most deprived areas of a Midlands city. Located in a shop unit of a busy community shopping…

An Exploratory Mixed Method Assessment of Low Income, Pregnant Hispanic Women's Understanding of Gestational Diabetes and Dietary Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rhoads-Baeza, Maria Elena; Reis, Janet

2012-01-01

Objective: To describe and assess low income, healthy, pregnant Hispanic women's understanding of gestational diabetes (GDM) and willingness to change aspects of their diet. Design: One-on-one, in-person interviews conducted in Spanish with 94 women (primarily Mexican). Setting: Federal Qualified Community Health Center's prenatal clinic. Method:…

Intertextual Trips: Teaching the Essay in the Composition Class.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kline, Nancy

1989-01-01

Cites essays by Joan Didion, John Berryman, and Martin Luther King in arguing that the essay, no matter how serious, can be considered as a fiction and a playful, exploratory and deeply interesting rhetorical game. Describes how these works were used to teach students that the essay is a living document calling for interaction. (SG)

Factors Influencing the Demand and Supply of Public School Teachers in Indiana: An Exploratory Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Debertin, David L.; Huie, John M.

1975-01-01

Describes a conceptual model representing the demand and supply of public school teachers and the relationship between the assessed valuation of property within a school district and the training, experience, and salary levels of teachers in the district, based on an analysis of data from 269 Indiana school districts. (Author/JG)

Seeing Disadvantage in Schools: Exploring Student Teachers' Perceptions of Poverty and Disadvantage Using Visual Pedagogy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, M. L.; Murray, Jean

2016-01-01

This paper describes exploratory research into the development of innovative visual pedagogies for investigating how pre-service student-teachers articulate their views about the effects of poverty on educational attainment. Social class emerges as the strongest factor in poverty and educational disadvantage in the UK. The resulting issues are…

Development and Initial Validation of an Instrument for Human Capital Planning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zula, Kenneth J.; Chermack, Thomas J.

2008-01-01

This article reports on development and validation of an instrument for use in human capital approaches for organizational planning. The article describes use of a team of subject matter experts in developing a measure of human capital planning, and use of exploratory factor analysis techniques to validate the resulting instrument. These data were…

Increasing Mission Impact Through Exploratory Target Shots

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mathisen, D.

Through the prototype’s use, the concept’s potential was proven. Use of the prototype also provided insight to the prototypical shortcomings. This document describes the efforts related to addressing the needs of all stakeholders and developing the “Gatling 1.0” prototype capability into a mature product referred to as “Gatling 2.0.”

The Need for European Union Information amongst Women in the United Kingdom: Results of a Survey.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marcella, Rita

2001-01-01

Describes the results of an exploratory survey by questionnaire distributed through a variety of information agencies, designed to investigate United Kingdom women's information needs and patterns of information-seeking behavior in relation to the European Union. Results explore women's attitudes to information and its value in a variety of life…

Gay, Mostly Gay, or Bisexual Leaning Gay? An Exploratory Study Distinguishing Gay Sexual Orientations Among Young Men.

PubMed

Savin-Williams, Ritch C; Cash, Brian M; McCormack, Mark; Rieger, Gerulf

2017-01-01

This exploratory study assessed physiological, behavioral, and self-report measures of sexual and romantic indicators of sexual orientation identities among young men (mean age = 21.9 years) with predominant same-sex sexual and romantic interests: those who described themselves as bisexual leaning gay (n = 11), mostly gay (n = 17), and gay (n = 47). Although they were not significantly distinguishable based on physiological (pupil dilation) responses to nude stimuli, on behavioral and self-report measures a descending linear trend toward the less preferred sex (female) was significant regarding sexual attraction, fantasy, genital contact, infatuation, romantic relationship, sex appeal, and gazing time to the porn stimuli. Results supported a continuum of sexuality with distinct subgroups only for the self-report measure of sexual attraction. The other behavioral and self-report measures followed the same trend but did not significantly differ between the bisexual leaning gay and mostly gay groups, likely the result of small sample size. Results suggest that romantic indicators are as good as sexual measures in assessing sexual orientation and that a succession of logically following groups from bisexual leaning gay, mostly gay, to gay. Whether these three groups are discrete or overlapping needs further research.

Compendium of NASA data base for the global tropospheric experiment's Pacific Exploratory Mission West-B (PEM West-B)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gregory, Gerald L.; Scott, A. Donald, Jr.

1995-01-01

This compendium describes aircraft data that are available from NASA's Pacific Exploratory Mission West-B (PEM West-B). PEM West is a component of the International Global Atmospheric Chemistry's (IGAC) East Asia/North Pacific Regional Study (APARE) project. Objectives of PEM West are to investigate the atmospheric chemistry of ozone over the northwest Pacific -- natural budgets and the impact of anthropogenic/continental sources; and to investigate sulfur chemistry -- continental and marine sulfur sources. The PEM West program encompassed two expeditions. PEM West-A was conducted in September 1991 during which the predominance of tropospheric air was from mid-Pacific (marine) regions, but (at times) was modified by Asian outflow. PEM West-B was conducted during February 1994, a period characterized by maximum Asian outflow. Results from PEM West-A and B are public domain. PEM West-A data are summarized in NASA TM 109177 (published February 1995). Flight experiments were based at Guam, Hong Kong, and Japan. This document provides a representation of NASA DC-8 aircraft data that are available from NASA Langley's Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC). The DAAC includes numerous other data such as meteorological and modeling products, results from surface studies, satellite observations, and sonde releases.

African-American Fathers’ Perspectives on Their Children’s Health Education: A Qualitative, Exploratory Study

PubMed Central

Odum, Mary; Smith, Matthew Lee; McKyer, E. Lisako J.

2014-01-01

Purpose: To investigate African-American fathers’ (AAF) perceptions regarding the applicability and need for their involvement as a health connection for their children and describe how participating fathers’ behavior was affected by their attitudes, knowledge, and perceptions of their influence on their children’s health. Methods: This exploratory study gathered data via semi-structured focus groups (n = 3) and thematically analyzed it utilizing a grounded theory approach. Participants included AAF (n = 20) with a mean age of 37 years (SD 11.79), with at least one child between 6 and 18 years old. Results: Four major themes were revealed: (1) appropriate health education for participants’ children (should first and foremost be delivered by parents); (2) participants’ paternal health-related guidance approach (reactive, rather than proactive); (3) participants’ perceived influences on health-related communication with their children (gender roles, efficacy constraints); and (4) paternal definitions of health (most often associated with diet). Conclusion: Understanding AAFs’ perceived and desired role in their children’s health edification can inform initiatives that actively engage these men, and nurture their level of involvement, to promote positive health behaviors among their children; this is necessary to realize their potential to actively improve the health of their children, families, and communities. PMID:25538938

An exploratory study of Muslim adolescents' views on sexuality: Implications for sex education and prevention

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background This paper describes the results of an exploratory qualitative study on Muslim adolescents' views on sexuality in the Netherlands. Methods Data were gathered from an Internet forum on which 44 Muslim and 33 non-Muslim adolescents discussed sexuality as it relates to Islam. These discussions were subsequently analyzed for content using Nvivo 2.0. Results Our analysis revealed several issues that are relevant for the design of future sex education programs targeting Muslim youth. Apart from some expected outcomes regarding, for example, taboos on sexuality, sex outside marriage, abortion, homosexuality and conservative gender roles, our analyses showed that in cases of disputes 1) discussions were polarized, 2) opponents used the same Qur'anic passages to support their views, and 3) the authority of an Imam was questioned when his interpretation of Qur'anic passages was not in line with the views of participants. Conclusions Our findings show that current approaches to sex education among Muslim youth are likely to be unsuccessful given the rigidity of sexual norms in Muslim society. In addition, we also identified new barriers to sex education among Muslim youth (e.g. lack of respect for an Imam who opposes a youth's views on sexuality). PMID:20815921

Shopping versus Nature? An Exploratory Study of Everyday Experiences

PubMed Central

Craig, Tony P.; Fischer, Anke; Lorenzo-Arribas, Altea

2018-01-01

Although a growing volume of empirical research shows that being in nature is important for human wellbeing, the definition of what constitutes an ‘experience in nature,’ and how this is different from other types of experiences, is very often left implied. In this paper we contrast everyday experiences involving nature with a category of everyday experience in which most people regularly partake. We present an exploratory study in which people (N = 357) were explicitly asked to describe a memory they had of an everyday ‘experience which involved nature,’ as well as an everyday ‘experience which involved shopping.’ The open-ended responses to these questions were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Nature experiences were generally found to be more positive than shopping experiences, and they were more likely to be rated as ‘peaceful’ and ‘active’ compared to shopping experiences. Follow-up analyses indicate a significant interaction between experience category (nature or shopping), and the relationship between connectedness to nature and the amount of pleasure associated with that experience: The more strongly connected to nature a respondent was, the larger the disparity between the pleasantness of the shopping experience and that of the experience in nature tended to be. PMID:29410642

Exploratory Case Study: On School Counselors' Perceived Influence on Low Socioeconomic Students' College Enrollment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deslonde, Vernell L.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study was to examine the high school counselors' perception of their ability to influence low socioeconomic students' postsecondary enrollment decisions in seven Title I high schools in southern California. Perna and Thomas' Student Success model and the Delivery System of the American School…

Enrollment Management Professionals in Community Colleges: An Exploratory Study of Their Influence on Student Recruitment and Retention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Tracy A.

2010-01-01

Community college leaders rely on enrollment management professionals (EMPs) to recruit and retain students, but research does not report the attributes these professionals should possess to contribute to student recruitment and retention. The purpose of this exploratory study was to determine if characteristics exist among EMPs that contribute to…

Evolution of Unit Fraction Conceptions in Two Fifth-Graders with a Learning Disability: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hunt, Jessica Heather; Tzur, Ron; Westenskow, Arla

2016-01-01

The literature seems limited in what is known about conceptual processes that underlie evolution of students with learning disabilities (SLD) conceptions of fractions. This exploratory study examines how a foundational scheme of unit fractions (1/n) may evolve through the mathematical activity of two fifth grade girls. We analyze data segments…

An Exploratory Study of Universal Design for Teaching Chemistry to Students with and without Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King-Sears, Margaret E.; Johnson, Todd M.; Berkeley, Sheri; Weiss, Margaret P.; Peters-Burton, Erin E.; Evmenova, Anya S.; Menditto, Anna; Hursh, Jennifer C.

2015-01-01

In this exploratory study, students in four co-taught high school chemistry classes were randomly assigned to a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) treatment or a comparison condition. Each co-teaching team taught one comparison and treatment class. UDL principles were operationalized for treatment: (a) a self-management strategy (using a…

An Exploratory Study of Indian University Students' Use of Social Networking Web Sites: Implications for the Workplace

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Agarwal, Shailja; Mital, Monika

2009-01-01

Social networking Web sites (SNWs) are online tools that have transformed the virtual encounters of the past that were technical and impersonal to today's virtual socialization that is truly nontechnical, social, and interpersonal. This article presents an exploratory study of Indian University students' use of SNWs. The results indicated that…

Development and Validation of the Personal Strengths Inventory Using Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liau, Albert Kienfie; Chow, Daryl; Tan, Teck Kiang; Senf, Konrad

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to establish the reliability and validity of the scores on a brief strengths-based assessment, the 22-item Personal Strengths Inventory (PSI). In Study 1, findings from exploratory factor analysis of 410 adolescents provided evidence for a five-factor solution--social competence (four items), emotional awareness (five…

Awareness of Number In Children With Severe And Profound Learning Difficulties: Three Exploratory Case Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Porter, Jill

2005-01-01

This paper reports on exploratory work investigating how children with severe and profound learning difficulties register an awareness of small quantities and how they might use this information to inform their understanding. It draws on studies of typically developing children and investigates their application to pupils whose response to…

Violence Exposure and Early Adolescent Alcohol Use: An Exploratory Study of Family Risk and Protective Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, Kelli W.; Kliewer, Wendy

2006-01-01

In this short-term longitudinal exploratory interview study, the relations between exposure to community violence and subsequent alcohol use were examined, with a focus on caregiver and family variables as moderators. Maternal caregivers and their children (N = 101 families; 98% African American; M child age = 11.2 yrs) were interviewed separately…

Four-Quarter School Year. Results of an Exploratory Study of the Four-Quarter School Year in Metropolitan Atlanta.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bentley, Ernest L; And Others

Six Atlanta, Georgia, school systems initiated a four-quarter school year program in 1968-69. An exploratory study was conducted to develop procedures and instruments for a comprehensive examination of the plan. Strong support exists in all groups interviewed -- superintendents and steering committee members, students, parents, teachers,…

Technical Communications in Aeronautics: Results of an Exploratory Study. An Analysis of Managers' and Nonmanagers' Responses. NASA Technical Memorandum 101625.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pinelli, Thomas E.; And Others

Data collected from an exploratory study concerned with the technical communications practices of aerospace engineers and scientists were analyzed to test the primary assumption that aerospace managers and nonmanagers have different technical communications practices. Five secondary assumptions were established for the analysis: (1) that the…

An Exploratory Study into Work/Family Balance within the Australian Higher Education Sector

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pillay, Soma; Kluvers, Ron; Abhayawansa, Subhash; Vranic, Vedran

2013-01-01

The higher education landscape is undergoing major transformation, with a significant impact on the work and family practices of academics and professional staff. The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine the extent to which (1) time-related, (2) strain-related and (3) demographical variables impact on the work/family balance of academic…

Improving Skill Development: An Exploratory Study Comparing a Philosophical and an Applied Ethical Analysis Technique

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Saggaf, Yeslam; Burmeister, Oliver K.

2012-01-01

This exploratory study compares and contrasts two types of critical thinking techniques; one is a philosophical and the other an applied ethical analysis technique. The two techniques analyse an ethically challenging situation involving ICT that a recent media article raised to demonstrate their ability to develop the ethical analysis skills of…

Group Time in Early Childhood Centers: An Exploratory Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McAfee, Oralie

To investigate the current status of group time in early childhood centers, a small-scale exploratory study was designed and executed. Results of interviews with 35 teachers and observations in five classrooms serving children ages 2 1/2 through kindergarten revealed that all classrooms had at least one group time or circle time, usually in the…

Parent Explanation and Preschoolers' Exploratory Behavior and Learning in a Shadow Exhibition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Schijndel, Tessa J. P.; Raijmakers, Maartje E. J.

2016-01-01

The present study fills a gap in existing visitor research by focusing on the preschool age group. The study explores relationships between parent explanation, children's exploratory behavior, and their domain-specific learning in a shadow exhibition. In addition, the effect of a preceding theater show on child and parent behaviors is examined. In…

Youthful fire-setters ... an exploratory study in personality and background.

Treesearch

Ellen Y. Siegelman; William S. Folkman

1971-01-01

In an exploratory study of personality and background, children who, according to California Division of Forestry files, had set two or more fires were compared with children who had set only one fire. Multiple-fire setters were characterized by several associated problems, such as excessive activity, aggression, and psychosomatic difficulties as well as family and...

What about Writing? A National Exploratory Study of Writing Instruction in Teacher Preparation Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Myers, Joy; Scales, Roya Q.; Grisham, Dana L.; Wolsey, Thomas DeVere; Dismuke, Sherry; Smetana, Linda; Yoder, Karen Kreider; Ikpeze, Chinwe; Ganske, Kathy; Martin, Susan

2016-01-01

This small scale, exploratory study reveals how writing instruction is taught to preservice teachers across the United States in university-based preservice teacher education programs based on online survey results from 63 teacher educators in literacy from 50 institutions. Despite the growing writing demands and high stakes writing sample testing…

What School Leaders Are Doing to Support a Culture of Character: An Exploratory Study with Preschools in Singapore

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carter, Margaret-Anne; Dasson, Merilyn

2017-01-01

This article discusses an exploratory study, reporting the practices of five principals leading character development in early childhood centers in Singapore. Acknowledging variations in leadership style, the pooled focus group findings show the common denominator is the principals' paradigm of authentic leadership informing a service-oriented…

An Exploratory Study of Undergraduates' Attitudes toward Affirmative Action Policies for Asian Americans in College

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hartlep, Nicholas Daniel; Lowinger, Robert Jay

2014-01-01

This exploratory study examined white undergraduate students' (a) racial attitudes towards Asian Americans, (b) principled policy attitudes toward affirmative action, and (c) self-interest in relation to their support for college-based affirmative action policies for Asian Americans at a Midwestern university. A sample (n = 264, 28% male, 72%…

Music Education in Montessori Schools: An Exploratory Study of School Directors' Perceptions in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rajan, Rekha S.

2017-01-01

This exploratory study examined the changing role of music education and the availability of musical experiences for students attending Montessori schools in the Midwestern United States. On a survey instrument designed by the researcher, Montessori school directors (N = 36) from eight states shared descriptions of the current role of music at…

The Impact of Leadership Involvement in Enhancing High School Climate and Reducing Bullying: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bosworth, Kris; Garcia, Rafael; Judkins, Maryann; Saliba, Mark

2018-01-01

Bullying in secondary schools is a serious concern for educators and parents. The relationship between bullying and school climate has been identified and strategies to improve school climate are available. The importance of leadership in shaping school climate has been well documented. This exploratory study explores the role of leadership in…

Emotional and Narrative Responses of Students to Targeted Educational Experiences: An Exploratory Study Employing the Use of Emotional Measurement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mudge, Suzanne D.; Grinnan, Cullen T.; Priesmeyer, H. Richard

2006-01-01

Current educational research suggests that emotions can either enhance or inhibit the ability to learn, with social and cultural influences causing changes in behavior and altering biological processes. In this exploratory study researchers utilized a qualitative design to seek insight into student emotions associated with school attitude and…

Evaluation of First-Year Faculty Learning Communities on Teaching Effectiveness and Scholarship: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bhavsar, Grishma P.; Grote, Kandice; Galvan, Melisa C.; Tyutina, Svetlana V.; Guan, Shu-Sha Angie; Stapleton, Lissa D.; Knotts, Gregory

2018-01-01

Faculty in their early careers discover unique and unanticipated concerns in navigating academia and attempting to create life balance. These needs must be addressed to ensure retention and success in the tenure process. This exploratory study found the creation of first-year faculty learning communities (FLCs) provides needed, integral, and…

An Exploratory Study of the Elements to Develop a Coaching Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Gwendolyn

2010-01-01

This exploratory study examined the elements of a coaching model based on the best practices that first focus on providing managers with the ability to develop workers and increase productivity, before using existing models that only support the process of managing workers, when it becomes apparent that the worker is not meeting expected…

Policy and Persistence: An Exploratory Mixed Methods Case Study of "Last Mile" Students at Portland State University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wubbold, Joseph Mark

2012-01-01

In an extension of educational attainment research, this exploratory mixed- methods case study examines the influence of institutional policies on the behavior of five cohorts (n = 925) of traditional first time, full time (FTFT) freshmen--called "Last Mile" students--at one urban research university located in the Pacific Northwest.…

College Student Textbook Acquisition: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGowan, Matthew K.; Stephens, Paul R.

2015-01-01

The past ten years have seen an increase in the number of ways students can acquire textbooks. The traditional purchase of printed textbooks from the campus bookstore still exists, but now students can purchase e-books, buy online, or rent from either the campus bookstore or from an online provider. This research is an exploratory study of college…

Horizontal Structure in Public Relations: An Exploratory Study of Departmental Differentiation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grunig, Larissa Schneider

An exploratory study of horizontal organizational structure investigated how the tasks in a public relations department are apportioned and why the structure is as it is. J. E. Grunig and T. Hunt's taxonomy of horizontal structures, which served as the framework for the research, suggests that the following structures are typical: by public, by…

Predictors of Enrolling in Online Courses: An Exploratory Study of Students in Undergraduate Marketing Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fontenot, Renée J.; Mathisen, Richard E.; Carley, Susan S.; Stuart, Randy S.

2015-01-01

An exploratory study of undergraduate students enrolled in marketing courses at a Southeastern regional university was conducted to determine the motivations and characteristics of marketing students who plan to be online learners and examined for differences between those who have taken and those who have not taken online classes. An online…

The Chinese Input Challenges for Chinese as Second Language Learners in Computer-Mediated Writing: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Lung-Hsiang; Chai, Ching-Sing; Gao, Ping

2011-01-01

This paper reports an exploratory study on Singapore secondary and primary school students' perceptions and behaviors on using a variety of Chinese input methods for Chinese composition writing. Significant behavioral patterns were uncovered and mapped into a cognitive process, which are potentially critical to the training of students in…

An Exploratory Analysis of Job and Life Satisfaction among Entrepreneurs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lyons, Paul R.; DeCarlo, James F.

An exploratory study examined the job and life satisfaction of a sample of 32 female entrepreneurs residing in the tri-state area of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. To compare the entrepreneurs' concepts of life and job satisfaction to those of women in more traditional occupations, researchers also studied a sample of 32 female nursing…

Prior Knowledge Influence on Self-Explanation Effectiveness when Solving Problems: An Exploratory Study in Science Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ionas, Ioan Gelu; Cernusca, Dan; Collier, Harvest L.

2012-01-01

This exploratory study presents the outcomes of using self-explanation to improve learners' performance in solving basic chemistry problems. The results of the randomized experiment show the existence of a moderation effect between prior knowledge and the level of support self-explanation provides to learners, suggestive of a synergistic effect…