Education Service Center Region 13

Many schools around the world are looking for various approaches to continue the delivery of teaching and learning delivery despite the threat and challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Educational institutions considered the idea of mixing and matching the different teaching and learning approaches to address the learning needs and conditions of the students in this time of global health crisis. In the Philippines, the problem of uncontrolled surge of COVID-19 cases put face-to-face classes still on hold, thus, resulting for colleges and universities to engage in emergency remote education. This phenomenon paved the way for courses like National Service Training Program or NSTP, which is a community-based immersion course, to resort to asynchronous online learning delivery. Interestingly, there were three themes or types of learning engagements that were revealed in a study using a phenomenological research design to ten purposively selected NSTP 2 students. These themes are student-content, student-teacher, and student-student engagements. It was found out that the theme student-content engagement is highly present in an asynchronous online learning environment while the other two forms of engagement can be described as limited or lacking. This scenario suggests the need for policy makers and curriculum developers to rethink and revisit the course design and delivery of NSTP 2 to address the challenges experienced by the students in this type of online learning approach.

The Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) degree prepares individuals in research and professional practice in education. In the case of Doctor of Education programs that have a focus on leadership, candidates are expected to act as agents of educational and social change. This chapter turns a critical lens to educational leadership programs in two states, Connecticut and Ohio, in order to better understand the current state of qualitative research and social justice within Doctor of Education programs. Additionally, mission, visions, and educational websites were examined to assess the range of experiences around social justice offered in educational leadership programs. This work also explores the literature on qualitative research methods as a form of inquiry and the history and evolution of qualitative methods that makes this research paradigm a good fit for social justice research and activities within educational leadership programs. Lastly, it illustrates practical approaches to embedding social justice in qualitative research courses.

Raising the minimum legal age (MLA) of tobacco sales from 18 to 21 (Tobacco 21 [T21]) has recently been implemented nationwide as a method to reduce tobacco use, but empirical data on youth knowledge of T21 policies and related pathways to tobacco use are limited. Data were collected from the 2018 Kansas Communities That Care Student Survey. Knowledge of the MLA was compared between T21 and non-T21 regions using a quasi-experimental design. Logistic regression and mediation analysis were conducted to assess the association between knowledge of the MLA, influencing factors, and intention to use tobacco. Of 16 949 students (aged between 11 and 18) completing the T21 survey, fewer students responded correctly about the MLA in T21 than in non-T21 regions (37.4% vs. 46.3% responded correctly, 27.6% vs. 24.2% responded incorrectly, respectively). In T21 regions, Hispanics and students who support T21 were more likely to respond correctly about the MLA. Among current non-tobacco users in T21 regions, students who responded correctly about the MLA were less likely to report intention to use tobacco (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.7, 95% confidence interval [CI]: [0.6-0.8]) than those who responded incorrectly. The pathway from knowledge of the MLA to intention to use tobacco was significantly mediated by increased support for T21 (p = .002), perceived difficulty in accessing cigarettes (p = .042), and reduced susceptibility to peer influence (p = .027). Knowledge of the MLA was inversely associated with intention to use tobacco among youth. Educational campaigns to raise awareness and support for T21 among youth may improve the impact of T21 policies. This study examined youth knowledge of the MLA to purchase tobacco products, and whether knowledge of the MLA was associated with reduced intention to use tobacco. It also examined other influencing factors (eg, perceived support for T21) and potential mediation pathways linking knowledge of the MLA with intention to use tobacco. Given the nationwide adoption of T21, educational campaigns to promote knowledge of the policy may improve its impact.

This study analyzed and proved the unpredictability of language and the lack of unified meaning in the novel written by John Green, The Fault in Our Stars, which was analyzed using Jacques Derrida’s Deconstruction Theory. This employed qualitative research design. Thirty adopted guide questions were used in the literary analysis. Deconstruction was divided into first and second readings. The initial reading highlighted elements, binary oppositions, and hierarchy of terms present in the novel. The hierarchical oppositions include: life/death, old/young, health/sickness, masculine/feminine, optimism/pessimism, active/passive, and fiction/reality. In this stage, the text appeared to be a unified whole. However, the unprivileged terms became equal to their respective opposites in the second reading. This destroyed the notion of hierarchy altogether. The reversal of the oppositions dismantled the intended meanings with the observed irreconcilable details. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that Deconstruction has been useful in examining the unavoidable contradictions and irresolvable ambiguities present in the text. Thus, absolute interpretation is impossible. Therefore, it is recommended that teachers should be careful in giving students fixed interpretations. Teachers should be able to discuss comprehensively the grammatical, functional, literal, and figurative meanings of a literary work and the different characteristics of language including its flaws, inconsistencies, and ambiguities.

The present study evaluated the feasibility of the PEAK Relational Training System's Generalization Module (Dixon, 2014b) to teach and establish generalization of autoclitic mands, distorted tacts, and creative path finding in three children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Using a multiple-baseline design across behaviors, each participant was provided with differential reinforcement and a least-to-most prompting hierarchy for correct responses to a subset of stimuli, and responses to other similar stimulus sets were probed for emergent generalization. Following training, each participant successfully acquired the directly trained behaviors and demonstrated generalization to the nonreinforced test exemplars. These data support the utility of Skinner's (1957) analysis to teach complex forms of verbal operants, and suggest that a manualized curriculum such as PEAK may have utility for promoting skill development and generalization for front line staff and caregivers of children with autism.

Early identification and referral have been shown to improve long-term outcomes for children with disabilities. However, the number of children enrolled in early intervention services continues to be lower than the number of children confirmed to be developmentally delayed later in life. This study investigated the pattern of developmental surveillance and referral practices of pediatricians in a traditionally medically underserved border community. An online survey was created by members of a community/academic partnership. Emails were followed up with a personal contact to doctor's offices to increase the response rate. Response rate for the survey was 26.7 %. Most respondents reported using a combination of formal screening tools and parent interviews to complete developmental screenings in their practice with the Modified Checklist of Autism in Toddlers being the most commonly used tool. Although most respondents reported referring children for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part C services, gaps were identified in available services and in the referral process that need to be addressed. Additionally, future studies need to evaluate the efficacy of a referral and feedback system to improve earlier access to intervention services for children with disabilities.

As the world becomes more digital and more connected, teachers must keep pace with the changing spaces of the workplace and processes of community and civic engagement. These changes are not going away. It is the responsibility of educators to help students navigate, create and problem-solve within these spaces. This chapter investigates one of the processes undertaken by four teachers, elementary through university, as they worked towards creating a vibrant digital classroom. Specifically, it addresses the challenges, systems and successes of facilitating meaningful online peer response within the context of writer's workshop. Ultimately, these educators found that authentic audience and thoughtful peer response improved student writing.

This article describes and analyzes the design dynamics of a school principal self-assessment process, provided through a three-day, state-approved Leadership Assessment Academy, which allows principals to experience and reflect on important self-assessment data that leads to a personal professional growth plan. Designing and implementing such an academy is complex and requires careful consideration of all aspects of the principalship and the requirements set forth by the state regarding principal assessment and professional growth plans. A primary challenge of this leadership academy is in providing principals with a self-assessment experience that is meaningful and accurate using carefully designed assessment techniques and technology, and that can serve as a viable alternative to the traditional paper and pencil assessment tools that require very little personal involvement in defining and producing the principal's professional growth plan.