Editorial

[Para. 1] Scholars disagree on how comics should be defined in relation to other media. Some, such as Barbara Postema, assert that comics are representative of a medium featuring unique formatting and iconography that sits outside the traditional considerations of art and literature. The counter-point, as proposed by individuals such as Thierry Groensteen, is that comics are a hybrid or mixed medium, representing the combination of the written word and fine art working in conjunction to convey different perspectives within a single narrative. Historically, comics have been rejected by both fine art and literary communities due to their failure to conform to the standards presented in either discipline. However, due in large part to the narrative elements of the prose present in a comic text, comics settled primarily in the domain of literary consideration, albeit with some negative critique initially directed at the content and marketing that popularized the medium. Once considered rudimentary writing supported by gimmicky illustrations, the ongoing discourse concerning their status as either a unique medium or hybrid media has coincided with comics gaining academic merit in recent years. One of the issues that complicates this debate is whether the text and image in comics to be given equal consideration when determining the function of a comic narrative, as “one of the significant consequences of the literary turn in the study of comics has been the tendency to drive attention away from comics as a form of visual culture” (Beaty, Comics vs. Art 18). Compounding this tendency is the suggestion that narrative is exclusive to the domain of literary prose. Comics’ inclusion of sequential art challenges literary tradition through the levels of signification applied to formatting, such as “the image, the layout, the sequence, word-image combination, and finally narrative” (Postema 105). Historically, the use of image in comics has been condemned for lowering the literary quality of the narrative through claims made by critics such as Fredric Wertham that will be explored at length throughout this paper. The assertion that image in comics had no narrative value was compiled with the art actively rejected by the “fine” art community as failing to attain the level of “high” art. This has led to the devaluing of the image and its influence on narrative in comics, as “comic[s], [as] many critics will tell you, are not art” (Beaty, Comics vs. Art 18). Instead, comics have stood in opposition to art: “largely ignored by critics and art historians, and consequently disdainful of the interests of those groups, comics have long levelled in their lowbrow, badboy image” (Beaty, Comics vs. Art 19). Without the support of the artistic community to help establish a standard of critical approach, the comics industry evolved to place more emphasis on the literary element, as seen in the rise of the 'graphic novel' as a legitimating label for rebranding of the medium. Although scholars and critics such as Barbara Postema, Bart Beaty, and Scott McCloud recognize the importance of the image when critiquing narrative, the tendency to emphasize the writer over the artist as primary contributor of narrative value to a comics work has put the image and text of comics in separate categories, causing one to rise at the expense of the other.

Myths of the Prefix Lutz Koepnick In 2011, the Modern Language Association created an Office of Scholarly Communications, in order to respond to fundamental changes in academic research and exchange during the past decade. Its point was to move our attention away from the traditional product of scholarly activity—the monograph, the peer-reviewed essay, the self-contained thesis—to the process of gathering, producing, and sharing knowledge in an increasingly networked and digital world. Tenure and promotion committees will surely be as slow to catch up with the full impact of these changes as dissertation advisers or editorial boards of university presses. But to stress the act of communication over that of publication as the principal task of scholarly activity is to deemphasize the historical centrality of the single academic author, and instead to redefine him or her as a switchboard of open-ended conversations, arguments, and interpretations. It is to explore the productivity and immediacy of blogs, tweets, and crowd reviews; to endorse the ease of disseminating thought electronically and of inviting others to enrich and reshape it; to favor sharing over accumulating, a spirit of collaboration over the aura of originality, generosity over competitiveness; and in doing so, to radically question customary notions of academic work, relevance, progress, and prestige. Though certainly idealistic in nature, the MLA’s accent on scholarly communications is promising and important. It asks scholarly communities, including that of German Studies, to rethink how we do and share our research, and how we build our curricula and careers around our scholarly exchanges. For decades scholars have been eager to debunk the concept of the literary author, the self-contained text, and the unity of aesthetic expressions. They have been far less willing, however, to apply such critical perspectives to their own academic practice, rightly fearful that more collaborative and fluid models of scholarly work might cost us institutional approval and support. The MLA’s move toward scholarly communications signals an important step toward generating conditions under which we can truly relax the concept of the sovereign academic author and explore the full spectrum of collaborative tools available today and in the future. Needless to say, it will require the concerted effort of university administrators and scholars of all ranks to attune academic research to the [End Page 501] true potential of our digital universe and to produce the kind of pressure necessary to change current paradigms of evaluation and progress. The development of German Studies in the United States since the 1970s situates us well to participate, and in fact take a lead role, in these transformations. German Studies, as we know it and as it shows itself at work in the annual convention of the GSA, can be described neither as a unified field of study nor as a homogeneous academic discipline. The concept of the network, with all its implications regarding fluidity of exchange, nodal connectivity, and malleable structure, is much more appropriate to describe the interactions of literary scholars, historians, art historians, musicologists, political scientists, film and media experts, and language pedagogues when discussing the dynamics of German-speaking cultures and sharing various perspectives on their research. And yet, German Studies should develop greater caution with regard to what I consider the recent adoration of inter-, trans-, or cross-disciplinary work as the sole good object of academic practice. While viable academic work today cannot ignore how digital culture fosters collaborative practice across different areas of specialization, there is no reason to believe that all future work will need to carry some kind of prefix in order to be of quality and make a difference. Let me make this case in some more detail. Ours is a time of the in-between, of at once denying and fearing what may come in the singular, that which wants to stick to its limits and boundaries or does not question the very grounds of its identity. There are many good reasons for this, both historical and intellectual, yet it has led to academic conditions that often showcase its prefixes more proudly and energetically than what these prefixes are meant to qualify. Whether we profess to look at things from a transnational perspective...

In one of the most comprehensive analyses ever written on the subject, Michael Tymkiw reassesses the relationship between Nazi exhibition design and modernism. While National Socialist exhibitions are widely understood as platforms for attacking modern art, they also served as sites of surprising formal experimentation among artists, architects, and others, who often drew upon and reconfigured the practices and principles of modernism when designing exhibition spaces and the objects within. In this book, Tymkiw reveals that a central motivation behind such experimentation was the interest in provoking what he calls engaged spectatorship—attempts to elicit experiences among exhibition-goers that would pique their desire to become involved in wider processes of social and political change. For historians of art, architecture, performance, and other forms of visual culture, Nazi Exhibition Design and Modernism unravels long-held assumptions, particularly concerning the ideological stakes of participation.

This first volume of Contemporary School Psychology marks yet another important milestone in the efforts of the California Association of School Psychologists (CASP) to provide its members and the profession with timely and practical scholarship. As we celebrate this accomplishment, it is important to acknowledge that this inaugural issue builds on the significant accomplishments of The California School Psychologist and the work of past editors and associate editors Shane Jimerson, Michael Furlong, Brent Duncan, Stephen Brock, Kristin Powers and Marilyn Wilson. Their efforts have provided the foundation on which this inaugural issue of Contemporary School Psychology builds. In June of 2010, the current editorial team, Kelly Kennedy, Brian Leung and I, proposed that CASP change the name of The California School Psychologist to Contemporary School Psychology. The goal was to give the journal a name that would both reflect its breadth of scholarship - many authors outside of California have often contributed articles - and enhance the ability of the journal to attract high quality scholarship from a wider pool of authors. Ultimately, this is in service of the journal's prime goal of continuing to be, as Shane Jimerson put it in his introduction to the 2009 issue of the California School Psychologist, an "...invaluable resource for faculty, students, and practitioners in school psychology across the state of California." (Jimerson, 2009, p.3). Our new name communicates our commitment to continue this tradition and our aspiration to become a valuable resource for faculty, students, and practitioners nationwide. Contemporary School Psychology is devoted to current issues in school psychology with the goal of publishing high-quality articles that make explicit the connection between theory and practice. The journal seeks to provide a venue for articles that: (1) critically review research on topics of general interest to school psychologists nationwide, (2) report research relevant to practicing school psychologists, (3) present promising practices or programs that address the needs of children and youth, and (4) critically reflect on the profession of school psychology and the challenges faced by the profession. As before, the intent of the journal is to highlight the diversity of viewpoints in the field and of the students, parents, and communities we serve. This first issue of Contemporary School Psychology begins with a special topic section that includes five articles that address innovative applications of a public health approach to school psychology practice. These innovations include how directors of special education view Response to Intervention (RtI) at the secondary level, applications of RtI to promoting mental health and positive behavior, prevention and treatment of selective mutism, and applications of a problem-solving model to struggling readers who need intense interventions. …

The artist Raphael Sanzio is one of the most renowned artists in the history of art, praised of his ideal of perfection, beauty, and harmony that prompted the Italian High Renaissance to its very peak. Conventionally, investigation on Raphael’s influence as a master would center around his major art creations during the High Renaissance. This essay would also explore Raphael’s main achievements in the artistic sphere (including education, techniques, compositions, and aesthetic theories) and his social life during the High Renaissance as his present but would at the same time discuss the connection of his present to the past and future of the art community. In terms of the past during the Early Renaissance, this essay would elaborate on how past events of commercialization of economy triggers the dignified status of artists, compared to the status of craftsmen during the Middle Ages. Moreover, in terms of the future, this essay would depict Raphael’s influence and contribution to artistic movements surrounding the Academia and the modernists during the Early Modern period.

There is a rich heritage of visual art education research, which inquires into how visual art enriches and gives aesthetic meaning to peoples’ private and public lives and experiences. Researchers explore the studio art-making process; examine how people teach and learn within the related disciplines of aesthetics, art criticism, and art history; and grapple with a variety of theoretical and practical issues that are related, for example, to child development, visual perception, diversity, culture, multiculturalism, social perspectives, gender (including sexual orientation), controversial issues, and technology. They conduct their research using philosophical, quantitative, and qualitative forms of inquiry that are often derived from related disciplines such as sociology, history, anthropology, psychology, and curriculum theory. Essentially, researchers in visual art education confront the exciting challenges-new and old-that visual art provides artists, teachers, and learners within a postmodern world. The content for this chapter is based on an analysis of research findings in visual art education. Research was examined from the following sources: important research published in journals during the last 20 years (for example, Journal of Aesthetic Education; Journal of Multicultural and Cross-Cultural Studies in Art Education; Studies in Art Education; Visual Arts Research); the Dissertation Abstracts database; selected doctoral dissertations; existing research analyses (Allison, 1986; Burton, 1991, 1998; Da­ vis, 1977; Hamblen, 1989; Jones & McPhee, 1986; La Pierre & Zimmerman, 1997; La Pierre, Stokrocki, & Zimmerman, 2000); and significant monographs, books, and reports (for example, Smith, 2000). Other sources included the various publications of the National Art Education Association’s (NAEA) Research Commission (National Arts Education Association [NAEA], 1994, 1996, 1998). In addition, international journals were examined (for example, Canadian Review of Art Education; and the United Kingdom’s Journal of Art and Design Education), given that visual art education research has a long history in other parts of the world.

Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs

Anxiety about the possibility of non-accidental child deaths has had a major influence on childcare policy and practice over the last 40 years in the UK and elsewhere. Formal inquiries into, and media coverage of, these rare events have served to maintain the perception that such incidents happen far too often and could have been prevented. This focus on individual events tends to distort a clear view of the actual probability of non-accidental child deaths. It reinforces the notions that potentially all childcare cases are risky, and that social workers face a high probability of being involved with a fatal incident. In consequence, work with children has become highly risk averse. However, in statistical terms, the probability of non-accidental child deaths is very low, and far less than that of a child being killed on the roads. This article examines the way in which perceptions of the ‘high’ probability of child deaths are sustained despite their very low statistical probability. The analysis draws on thinking from behavioural psychology, particularly the work of Kahneman and Tversky, to consider some of the biases in probabilistic reasoning which affect risk perceptions in a child protection context. The article explores the way in which inquiry reports into single past events reconfirm risk perceptions. It will be argued that recognition of the essentially unpredictable nature of future individual non-accidental child deaths would free up childcare professionals to work in a more positive and less risk-averse manner.

Providing skilful predictions of high‐impact weather up to 2 weeks ahead is on the agenda of international weather centers. Evaluating the capabilities of current numerical systems in predicting past events can bring extremely valuable contributions to the assessment of the information content available today with operational models. In the framework of the activities for the fiftieth anniversary of the extreme precipitation event that occurred in Italy in November 1966, this paper investigates its predictability using state‐of‐the‐art global and regional ensemble simulations. The first goal is to assess if and how many days in advance, this event can be predicted by current European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) global ensembles. A second goal is to evaluate the potential added value of running nested higher‐resolution and convection‐permitting ensembles. It is shown that ECMWF ensembles are able to provide valuable information up to 3 days before the event. Within this forecast range, convection‐permitting simulations can provide more accurate estimations of precipitation maxima. However, the results indicate also a strong underestimation of rainfall amounts with both global and regional models even at short forecast range. To partially explain this shortcoming, we discuss how the scarcity of observations available in 1966 for the analysis process limits the quality of the ensemble initial conditions and we adopt a method to obtain more reliable ensemble forecasts. The paper concludes with a comparison with previous similar works; results indicate a gain in predictability of up to 12 hr with respect to numerical revisitations performed to mark the fortieth anniversary of the event.