Search

The research reported on in this paper addresses the problem of preparing Massachusetts middle school mathematics, science, and computer teachers to teach engineering. The results presented here are part of a larger dissertation study investigating six urban public school teachers and their subject matter and pedagogical content knowledge teachers know and develop as they taught an engineering unit. The results discussed in this paper focused on the teachers' instruction and knowledge of the central aspects of the engineering design process (EDP)--the purpose of the EDP, that the EDP is a cyclical, iterative process, and that the EDP fosters communication. The analysis of the videotaped classroom observation data revealed that the teachers as a group covered the central ideas regarding 1. "Purpose of the EDP" and 2. "EDP as a cyclical process" quite well. Every teacher touched upon at least one of the sub-ideas for these two central ideas. The teachers did not cover 3. "EDP for fostering communication" well. Only Frieda and Monica conveyed anything regarding this idea to their students. This paper explores each central idea and the teachers' understandings of them as expressed through their explanations in the classroom observations and follow-up interviews.

Mathematics and science knowledge/skills are most commonly associated with engineering's pre-requisite knowledge. Our goals in this paper are to argue for a more systematic inclusion of social science and humanities knowledge in the introduction of engineering to K-12 students. As part of this argument, we present a construct for framing the humanistic side of engineering with illustrative examples of what appealing to the humanistic side of engineering can look like in a classroom setting, and opportunities for research that examines the dynamics that the humanistic side of engineering introduces into engineering learning and teaching. The illustrative examples are drawn from interactions among student-teams from elementary classrooms engaged in engineering activities that appeal to the humanistic side of engineering. Referencing these examples as well as other established engineering education programs, we will discuss opportunities for research in the education of K-16 students. These opportunities span understanding how students' attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions shift, particularly among traditionally underrepresented populations, to how students' engineering knowledge and practices develop in the context of a humanistic approach to engineering.

This paper reports on research investigating six middle school teachers without engineering degrees as they taught an engineering unit on the engineering design process. Videotaped classroom sessions and teacher interviews were analyzed to understand the subject matter and pedagogical content knowledge the teachers used and developed as they introduced the eight steps of the engineering design process (from content standards for the state of Massachusetts, USA). The teachers demonstrated wide-ranging knowledge of the engineering design process, and this paper describes two of the steps the teachers showed a more sophisticated understanding--constructing a prototype and redesigning. Examples from the teachers illustrate strengths that can be built upon as well as some areas for further development.

The German cockroach is the most common pest of urban, low-income housing in the United States and is associated with high pesticide use by residents. Cockroach allergen is implicated in asthma exacerbation and initiation and in the growing social and medical aspects of the disease. A safe and secure home environment is an environmental justice issue, and environmentally sound and effective models of cockroach control are needed in public and low-income multifamily housing. One model that offers potential is the integrated pest management (IPM) peer educator model (IPM Educator) in public housing as a component of IPM. A pre-post-analysis of an IPM Educator pilot programme in Boston public housing was undertaken. Thirty-four moderate- to high-infested units received baseline assessment and three applications of gel baits and IPM treatment by a pest control operator. Before the first pest control application, residents received written notice to prepare their units for treatment, a standard procedure. Before the second and third pest control treatments, an IPM Educator instructed residents in basic pest biology and habits, preparation for treatment, and the role of sanitation in pest control. Results showed a significant improvement in rate of preparation for pest control treatment after the IPM Educator intervention when compared with the preparation rate before the education intervention, and a significant reduction in cockroach populations by the third visit in units that were prepared and had improved sanitation, when compared with unprepared units and unclean units. The IPM peer educator is a promising, low-cost model of educating and engaging residents of urban, low-income, multifamily housing in environmentally sound pest control, thereby giving them some power and control over their living environment. It is also a potential source of professional training and jobs for public housing and other low-income housing residents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research outlined in this paper looks at a teacher professional development program designed designed to prepare middle school teachers to teach an after school engineering/technology LEGO™ robotics unit. Thirteen Massachusetts public middle-school teachers participated in a summer professional development programme during the first two weeks of August 2005. Many of these teachers had not had any formal training in teaching engineering/technology. This paper looks at aspects of the professional development course that worked and those that did not by considering confidence surveys, researcher observations and teacher interviews. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Children in urban public housing are at high risk for asthma, given elevated environmental and social exposures and suboptimal medical care. For a multifactorial disease like asthma, design of intervention studies can be influenced by the relative prevalence of key risk factors. To better understand risk factors for asthma morbidity in the context of an environmental intervention study, we conducted a detailed baseline evaluation of 78 children (aged 4-17 years) from three public housing developments in Boston. Methods: Asthmatic children and their caregivers were recruited between April 2002 and January 2003. We conducted intake interviews that captured a detailed family and medical history, including questions regarding asthma symptom severity, access to health care, medication usage, and psychological stress. Quality of life was evaluated for both the child and caregiver with an asthma-specific scale. Pulmonary function was measured with a portable spirometer, and allergy testing for common indoor and outdoor allergens was conducted with skin testing using the prick puncture method. Exploratory linear and logistic regression models evaluating predictors of respiratory symptoms, quality of life, and pulmonary function were conducted using SAS. Results: We found high rates of obesity (56%) and allergies to indoor contaminants such as cockroaches (59%) and dust mites (59%). Only 36% of children with persistent asthma reported being prescribed any daily controller medication, and most did not have an asthma action plan or a peak flow meter. One-time lung function measures were poorly correlated with respiratory symptoms or quality of life, which were significantly correlated with each other. In multivariate regression models, household size, body mass index, and environmental tobacco smoke exposure were positively associated with respiratory symptom severity (p < 0.10). Symptom severity was negatively associated with asthma-related quality of life for the child and the caregiver, with caregiver (but not child) quality of life significantly influenced by caregiver stress and whether the child was in the intensive care unit at birth. Conclusion: Given the elevated prevalence of multiple risk factors, coordinated improvements in the social environment, the built environment, and in medical management would likely yield the greatest health benefits in this high-risk population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Documents the public-health status of public housing and of the residents of Boston, Massachusetts. Rise in asthma incidence, particularly in inner-city neighborhoods; Struggle with environmental issues and social crises; Questions about nexus of health and housing conditions; Public housing as a locus of action and intervention.

This article presents the author's views related to lesbians in science. In the year 1979, four women, lesbians in science, had formed a study group. They were students in geology, environmental engineering, forestry, and general science at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Science students are notoriously short on time for everything except labs, research reports, and unsolved problems. A unique, microscopic subset of women, lesbians in science is the only class of feminists who will reject a women's studies course for yet another science course and who will pass up a once-a-year women's event to do problem no. 6, one of thirty assigned that semester. The intense preoccupation with itself which science fosters is double-edged. The workload and demands on time require almost a fealty of students, and one must jealously guard the time for feminist reading, lectures, and cultural events. On the other hand, science is a context of learning in which discipline and the ability to focus and organize work, of necessity, and quickly learned.

Mercy Otis Warren's dramatic sketch, "The Defeat," portrays some of the heroes and villians in the movement for colonial independence. "The Defeat" capitalized on widely held values, beliefs, and attitudes in the Massachusetts colony and established Warren as an effective propagandist early in the 1770's. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the outcomes of cataract surgery in children with chronic uveitis. Setting: Massachusetts Eye Research and Surgery Institution, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Methods: This retrospective chart review was of patients younger than 17 years with a history of uveitis who had cataract surgery before June 2004. Results: Thirty-four children (41 eyes) were identified. The mean age of the 10 boys and 24 girls was 9.8 years (range 4 to 17 years) and the mean total follow-up, 4.1 years (range 0.3 to 15.7 years). Twenty-one children had juvenile idiopathic arthritis–associated uveitis, 7 had pars planitis, and 6 had other conditions. Sixteen patients had concomitant posterior segment pathology, 25 received perioperative immunomodulatory therapy, and 13 had intraocular lens (IOL) implantation. The postoperative best corrected visual acuity improved in 35 of 41 eyes; 31 eyes had an improvement of 3.6 lines at 1 year. Most patients (92%) improved after IOL implantation. Most patients (88%) who received immunomodulatory therapy attained better vision, but this was not statistically significant compared with those who did not (P = .47). Similarly, there was no statistically significant difference between those with posterior pathology and those without. At the end of the analysis (1 year), the cumulative probability of improvement in visual acuity in 41 eyes reached 0.91. Conclusion: In most cases, and with optimum control of intraocular inflammation, cataract surgery improved the visual outcome in children with chronic uveitis. Intraocular lens implantation was well tolerated in most cases, which may result in optimal vision. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article reports on the integrated pest management (IPM) program offered by the Boston Housing Authority (BHA) in Massachusetts. It relates that the IPM is an environmentally-sensitive approach that uses a comprehensive information on the life cycles of pests and their interaction with the environment. It outlines the results of two years of IPM in eleven housing developments, comprising 5,191 residential units. It describers the standard operating procedures (SOPs) that the BHA has put in place to institutionalize a reliable IPM program in all of their developments. Moreover, the basic principles of IPM are also highlighted.

Abstract: The Boston lead safe yards low cost lead in soil treatment, demonstration, and evaluation was developed to explore the viability and effectiveness of low-cost soil interventions to reduce exposure to soil lead hazards. Buildings that had been abated for lead to Massachusetts''s deleading standards in the previous 5yrs and met other program requirements were recruited for the evaluation. Following individual property assessments, yards were treated with application of ground coverings and ground barriers in 2000–2001 and followed up at 1yr. The treatment cost ranged from $1095 to $5643 with an average of $2798. Soil lead levels at the building dripline, measured with a field-portable X-ray fluorescence analyzer (Niton Model 702 Spectrum Analyzer), dropped from 2021PPM at baseline to 206PPM at 1-yr follow-up. Most of the barrier treatments continued to block access to the lead-contaminated soil at 1yr. At the follow-up, few properties with grass treatment had areas that were completely bare, but 28% had more than a small amount of treated areas bare. Treatments were effective in reducing entryway dust lead in the rear of the building if the residents reported they had maintained the yard treatments. Each additional yard work activity reported was predicted to lower 1-yr floor dust lead loading at the rear common/main and dwelling unit entries by about 20%. Each additional 100ft2 of yard treated was predicted to lower 1-yr floor dust loading at the rear dwelling unit entry by 19%. Treatments did not show a dust lead effect at 1yr in the front entryway of the building, but the investigators believe that this may be due to the effect of resident cleaning overshadowing the treatment effect. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]