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An association between genetic variants in the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene and epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) was previously reported in women of African ancestry (AA). We sought to examine associations between genetic variants in VDR and additional genes from vitamin D biosynthesis and pathway targets (EGFR, UGT1A, UGT2A1/2, UGT2B, CYP3A4/5, CYP2R1, CYP27B1, CYP24A1, CYP11A1, and GC). Genotyping was performed using the custom-designed 533,631 SNP Illumina OncoArray with imputation to the 1,000 Genomes Phase 3 v5 reference set in 755 EOC cases, including 537 high-grade serous (HGSOC), and 1,235 controls. All subjects are of African ancestry (AA). Logistic regression was performed to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). We further evaluated statistical significance of selected SNPs using the Bayesian False Discovery Probability (BFDP). A significant association with EOC was identified in the UGT2A1/2 region for the SNP rs10017134 (per allele OR = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.2-1.7, P = 1.2 × 10-6 , BFDP = 0.02); and an association with HGSOC was identified in the EGFR region for the SNP rs114972508 (per allele OR = 2.3, 95% CI = 1.6-3.4, P = 1.6 × 10-5 , BFDP = 0.29) and in the UGT2A1/2 region again for rs1017134 (per allele OR = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.2-1.7, P = 2.3 × 10-5 , BFDP = 0.23). Genetic variants in the EGFR and UGT2A1/2 may increase susceptibility of EOC in AA women. Future studies to validate these findings are warranted. Alterations in EGFR and UGT2A1/2 could perturb enzyme efficacy, proliferation in ovaries, impact and mark susceptibility to EOC.

Mathematics teachers' identities profoundly influence how they interact with and position their students to learn mathematics. In this paper, we examine how a year-long teacher learning intervention supportive of student engagement in mathematics helped shift teachers' mathematics-related identities. We use an implied identity perspective as a theoretical lens to explore changes in what teachers perceive as legitimate ways of being as a result of their participation in the intervention. Data from pre- and post-intervention concept maps and focus groups with 15 grade 5-7 teachers of mathematics were integrated for this purpose. Teachers reported shifts in their identities, describing themselves as "facilitators," "learners" and "co-creators" of knowledge. We argue that such shifts in the mathematics-related identities of teachers can have practical consequences in terms of improving students' engagement, and in particular, their autonomy for learning mathematics.

There exists a substantial body of research evidence that embodied learning modes can enhance children's mathematics learning, yet implementation of the research findings in classrooms has so far been limited. This paper argues the need for translational research to bridge the gap between psychological, neuroscientific, and narrow-focused educational research and teaching practice in schools. As a foundation for such research, and with a focus on early year mathematics education (4 to 8 years), we derive a set of 12 principles of embodied learning from the research literature by applying an integrative literature review method. Based on the findings from the literature, we offer some advice on how these principles might be put into practice with young students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An 84-year-old woman with metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the nasopharynx and no history of diabetes was started on the antiprogrammed cell death ligand-1 (anti-PD-L1) antibody durvalumab. Four months later, she presented in diabetic ketoacidosis with glucose 488 mg/dL, anion gap 16, positive serum ketones and A1C9.1%. Antiglutamic acid decarboxylase 65 (GAD) antibody was 13 U/mL (normal,

Using growth modeling, this study examined trajectories of 'switching on' (aspirations) and 'switching off' (disengagement) in mathematics across middle school and high school. In addition, guided by principles under expectancy-value theory, the study sought to determine the extent to which patterns of growth differed by motivation (self-efficacy and valuing) and socio-educational attributes (gender, language background, and achievement). The sample comprised 194 students from four schools who participated in three rounds of data collection across five academic years of their schooling, spanning middle school and high school. In the main, mathematics aspirations declined over time while mathematics disengagement increased. However, initial levels of aspirations and disengagement and their rates of change over time were impacted by motivational and socio-educational factors. Salient findings and their implications for educational assessment and practice are discussed.

Over the past decade, there has been unprecedented regulation of initial teacher education (ITE). The objective of this study was to generate an in-depth understanding of the structural challenges faced by tertiary educators as they responded to a federal policy and a related state government policy in teacher education. The policies imposed on ITE reach through tertiary education providers and into school classrooms. To capture the three spaces of (1) policy makers, (2) tertiary education providers and (3) teacher education graduates, this study adopts a socio-spatial approach as both a conceptual organiser and an analytical stance. One specific case is detailed, namely one metropolitan university's establishment of a pathway enabling pre-service primary teachers to specialise in mathematics teaching. The study then follows two graduates into their first two years of teaching. The findings generated are potentially transferable to other contexts. We conclude that to reap the benefits of ITE policies, tertiary education providers and all employers of teachers need common expectations for their role in implementing these policies. Also, support for graduates needs to be sustained through liaising between tertiary education providers and employers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We started with a classic research question ("How do teachers motivate and engage middle year students in mathematics?") that is solidly underpinned and guided by an integration of two theoretical and multidimensional models. In particular, the current study illustrates how theory is important for guiding qualitative analytical approaches to motivation and engagement in mathematics. With little research on how teachers of mathematics are able to maintain high levels of student motivation and engagement, we focused on developing a qualitative framework that highlights the influence of teacher-student interactions. Participants were six teachers (upper primary and secondary) that taught students with higher-than-average levels of motivation and engagement in mathematics. Data sources included one video-recorded lesson and associated transcripts from pre- and post-lesson interviews with each teacher. Overall, effective classroom organisation stood out as a priority when promoting motivation and engagement in mathematics. Results on classroom organisation revealed four key indicators within teacher-student interactions deemed important for motivation and engagement in mathematics--confidence, climate, contact, and connection. Since much of the effect of teachers on student learning relies on interactions, and given the universal trend of declining mathematical performance during the middle years of schooling, future research and intervention studies might be assisted by our qualitative framework.

What teachers' think about student engagement influences the teaching practices they adopt, their responses to students and the efforts they make in the classroom. Interviews were conducted with 31 mathematics teachers from ten high schools to investigate their perceptions and beliefs about student engagement in mathematics. Teachers also reported the practices they used to engage their students during mathematics lessons. Teacher perceptions of student engagement were categorised according to recognised "types" (behavioural, emotional and cognitive) and "levels" (ranging from disengaged to engaged). The teachers' reports emphasised immediate attention being paid to students' behaviours and overt emotions towards mathematics with fewer and less extensive reports made about students' cognitive engagement. Teachers' abilities to implement practices considered supportive of student engagement were linked to a number of elements, including their self-efficacy. Perceptions of being powerless to engage their students resulted in many teachers limiting their efforts to attempt some form of intervention.

This study explored the beliefs about student engagement in mathematics of three Year 5 and 6 teachers, focusing on the shifts that occurred during a 10-week intervention. Data obtained from teacher surveys, interviews, video-recorded workshop observations and artefacts from teachers' classrooms reveal variations in their reactions to the professional learning experiences. Teacher responses were mediated by personal and contextual elements including teacher efficacy beliefs, teacher confidence in mathematics and their conceptions of student engagement. Theories of teacher conceptual change are used to account for variations to teacher beliefs.

This study of 1,601 students in the middle years of schooling (Grades 5-8, each student measured twice, 1 year apart) from 200 classrooms in 44 schools sought to identify factors explaining gains and declines in mathematics engagement at key transition points. In multilevel regression modeling, findings showed that compared with Grade 6 students (upper elementary; the reference category), students in Grades 7 (typically the first secondary school year) and 8 have significantly declined in mathematics engagement from their previous year. Notably, in further analyses, these declines were found to be related to student (particularly mathematics self-efficacy and valuing), home (parent valuing of mathematics and availability of a computer for mathematics), classroom (class-average achievement and perceived climate), and school (socio-economic status and ethnic composition) factors. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

This study investigates primary school students' perceptions of interactive whiteboard technology and its influence on their learning during mathematics instruction. Using Bubble Dialogue templates, group interviews and lesson observations to gather data on student views and the classroom context, a theme-based description of student perceptions was developed. Student reactions were predominately positive and mostly related to the ways in which the multimedia affordances supported their learning. However, the majority of their comments related to engagement factors rather than deep learning and understanding, and the lesson observations revealed teacher-centred approaches, with limited strategies to promote student interaction and higher-order thinking. The findings highlight the need for supporting the professional learning of teachers even though they may have been using an IWB for several years, and particularly in relation to the increased emphasis on using technologies in the new Australian mathematics curriculum. (Contains 1 figure.)

Prompted by international concerns about school and postschool participation in mathematics, the authors of the present study sought to investigate factors predicting "switching on" and "switching off" in mathematics, operationalized through measures of future intent and disengagement, respectively. They drew from Bronfenbrenner's ecological model to explore an educational ecology comprising student, home, classroom, school, and time factors in predicting future intent and disengagement. These models were conducted within a multilevel context, thereby also assessing variation at student, classroom, and school levels. Based on data from 1,601 Australian middle school students from 200 classrooms in 44 schools, variance components models showed the bulk of variance (greater than 85%) in future intent and disengagement resided at the student (and residual) level, with 10%-12% variance explained at classroom and school levels. Multilevel hierarchical regression analyses revealed that student, home, and classroom factors explained most variance in dependent measures. For future intent and disengagement, mathematics self-efficacy, valuing, enjoyment, perceived classroom enjoyment, and parent interest were significant predictors. For disengagement, additional predictors were mathematics anxiety, perceived classroom disengagement, school ethnic composition, and school socioeconomic status. Modeling indicated all predictive effects generalized across classrooms and schools. Findings hold implications for the breadth and depth of efforts in mathematics aimed at reducing disengagement, increasing participation, and promoting more positive future orientations through school and beyond. (Contains 2 tables, 5 footnotes, and 2 figures.)