Search

Even though it is widely held that the theory of evolution is one of the pillars of the biological sciences, as we begin the third decade of the twenty-first century, it is alarming how little we know about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors and non-STEM majors' misconceptions about evolution in countries such as Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Greece, to name a few. The situation is even more complicated if we acknowledge that contemporary educational approaches (e.g., student-centered learning) mean that students' misconceptions are one of the multiple aspects that influence the construction of meaningful learning. Here, we present a picture of Colombian STEM/non-STEM majors' misconceptions about evolution. Participants were 547 students from different STEM/non-STEM majors (278 females and 269 males, 16-24 years old). During 5 years (10 academic semesters), data were collected from students' responses to an 11-item questionnaire administered in a Colombian university. We hypothesized that the academic semester within these 5 years in which each student completed the instrument as well as respondents' age, gender, and/or major may influence their misconceptions about evolution. Results reveal that participants had a moderate understanding of evolution. Also, we found a limited understanding of microevolution among participants. Furthermore, cross-sectional analyses of differences in undergraduates' responses across demographic variables showed that despite apparent differences, these were not reliable since the differences were not statistically significant. Implications for evolution education are discussed.

Preschool picturebook read-alouds have the power to capture the attention of young students by providing an immersive experience that stimulates imagination while addressing learning objectives. The instructional strategies or practices that teachers use during picturebook read-alouds impact student engagement with the story and narrative comprehension. Too little is known about teacher practices during read-alouds, particularly their use of drama-based instructional practices while reading narrative picturebooks. To examine the frequency and quality of teacher read-aloud practices, we developed the Teachers' Use of Strategies for Storytime Drama rubric, an observational tool that captures shared reading, drama-based, and expressive read-aloud practices preschool teachers may use during read-alouds. In general, teachers rarely used commonly recommended read-aloud practices, and when used, quality was often low. Read-aloud practices varied by picturebook type. Books that incorporated a true narrative alongside sequenced events were associated with more frequent strategy use. Drama-based strategies during read-alouds in particular supported children's retelling of the picturebook story. These outcomes align with our hypotheses and with research-based recommendations that teachers carefully choose picturebooks to have increased opportunities for dialogic and dramatic strategies that support students' language skills. Implications for practice are discussed as they relate to preschool teachers' incorporation of drama-based strategies during read-alouds.

Oropouche virus (OROV; Orthobunyavirus oropoucheense) is a reemerging arbovirus belonging to the family Peribunyaviridae. The large (L), medium (M), and small (S) single-stranded, negative-sense RNA segments of the OROV genome [...]

The system of second person singular forms of address (2PS) in Medellín, Colombia is tripartite consisting of "tú, vos," and "usted," while also including the existence of a dual "usted." The current study compares usage of the intimate "usted" versus the distant "usted" with data from an oral discourse completion task (DCT) while also investigating listeners' implicit language attitudes toward the usage of "usted" utilizing the matched guise technique. A sample of speakers from Medellín (N=72) stratified by age, sex, and education level completed an oral DCT, and a subset (N=38) also completed a matched guise task. For usage, it was found that intimate "usted" occurred 36.7% of the time with distant "usted" occurring 63.3% of the time. A multivariate mixed effects regression selected all fixed effects as significant. Specifically, intimate "usted" was favored by commands, statements, indirect commands, male interlocutors, same age interlocutors, male speakers, younger speakers, and speakers with high school education. These findings show that although the default "usted" usage is with distant interlocutors, the intimate "usted" is extremely vital, especially between men and with younger speakers. The current study also demonstrates the importance of comparing usage data and attitudinal data.

Abstract Background Despite suicide’s public health significance and global mental health awareness, current suicide prevention efforts show limited impact, posing a challenge for low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to develop a dynamic simulation model that could be used to examine the potential effectiveness of alternative interventions for reducing youth mental health problems and suicidal behavior in Bogotá, Colombia. Methods A system dynamics model was designed using a participatory approach involving three workshops conducted in 2021 and 2022. These workshops engaged 78 stakeholders from various health and social sectors to map key mental health outcomes and influential factors affecting them. A model was subsequently developed, tested, and presented to the participants for interactive feedback, guided by a moderator. Simulation analyses were conducted to compare projected mental health outcomes for a range of intervention scenarios with projections for a reference scenario corresponding to business-as-usual. Results A total of 6670 suicide attempts and 347 suicides are projected among 7 − 17-year-olds from January 1, 2023, to early 2031 under the business-as-usual scenario. Mental health issues among 12 − 17-year-olds are projected to increase from 18.9% (2023) to 27.8% (2031), and substance use issues from 2.29 to 2.49% over the same period. School-based suicide prevention and gatekeeper training are the most effective strategies, reducing total numbers of suicide attempts and suicides by more than 20% (i.e., compared to business-as-usual). However, discontinuous funding significantly hinders these effective suicide prevention efforts. Conclusions Systems modelling is an important tool for understanding where the best strategic financial and political investments lie for improving youth mental health in resource-constrained settings.