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It is expected that all students in the United States learn to read English well. This task is more complex for emergent bilinguals (EBs), the majority of whom speak Spanish, who are simultaneously developing their English language proficiency. Although several syntheses have documented the positive effects of shared book reading (SBR) in school settings on students' language growth, the majority of these have either not included EBs or addressed their participants' language learner status. In this review, we sought to identify all peer-reviewed experimental study reports examining the effects of SBR on language-related outcomes for Spanish-speaking EBs. We identified 17 relevant studies, 11 of which we determined met What Works Clearinghouse™ (WWC) quality standards with or without reservations. Of these, 10 also demonstrated statistically significant effects on at least one language-related outcome. Included studies primarily examined vocabulary outcomes, with mostly medium to large effect sizes found on researcher-designed (RD) measures. We reported on components found across different SBR interventions, and made recommendations for practice and future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this systematic review with metaanalyses was to examine interventions that aimed to improve narrative language outcomes for preschool and elementary school-age children in the United States. Our goal was to examine peer-reviewed publications to describe the characteristics of these interventions and synthesize their overall effectiveness on narrative comprehension and production via meta-analysis. Method: We searched electronic databases, examined previously published reviews, and consulted experts in the field to identify published studies that employed robust experimental and quasi-experimental designs. We included randomized controlled trials, studies with nonrandomized comparison groups, and single-case design (SCD) studies. We completed a qualitative synthesis of study factors for all identified studies and calculated meta-analyses for the studies that had sufficient data. All included studies were analyzed for risk of bias. Results: Our systematic search yielded 40 studies that included one or more narrative language outcomes as part of their assessment battery. Twenty-four of the included studies were group design studies, including randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental designs, and the other 16 were SCD studies. Effect sizes were analyzed based on narrative production and comprehension outcomes. The meta-analyses of 26 studies indicated overall positive effects of the interventions, with effect sizes of d = 0.51 and 0.54 in the group design studies and d = 1.24 in the SCD studies. Conclusions: A variety of effective interventions were found that improve narrative production and comprehension outcomes in children with diverse learner characteristics. Some common characteristics across these interventions include manualized curricula, opportunities to produce narrative language, verbal and visual supports, direct instruction of story grammar, and use of authentic children's literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has declared the decline in preventable diseases through vaccination to be 1 of the 10 great public health achievements in the past decade in the United States. Still, influenza epidemics occur every year in the United States and are associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. A substantial portion of the US population chooses not to get vaccinated against influenza despite the illness and death associated with the disease. Low rates of vaccination are of particular concern in high-risk patients. The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has broadened its influenza vaccine recommendations to include all individuals older than 6 months. Education of patients about the value of influenza vaccination will help to increase vaccination rates.