Search

Background: Applied Calculus courses serve hundreds of thousands of undergraduates as quantitative preparation and gatekeepers across diverse fields of study. The current study investigated how motivational factors are associated with students' learning outcomes in Applied Calculus courses from the perspective of self-determination theory--a sound comprehensive motivation theory that has been supported by considerable research in psychology and education. In order to have a nuanced understanding of students' motivation and learning in Applied Calculus courses, we used three different types of learning measures to investigate students' mathematics achievement, including course grades, a standardized knowledge exam, and students' perceived knowledge transferability. Results: We tested the relationships between motivational factors and learning outcomes with a multi-semester sample of 3226 undergraduates from 188 Applied Calculus classrooms. To increase the precision of our analysis, we controlled for three demographic variables that are suggested to be relevant to mathematics achievement: gender, minority group status, and socioeconomic status. With a series of multilevel modeling analyses, the results reveal that: (1) competence satisfaction predicts college students' mathematics achievement over and above the satisfaction of needs for autonomy and relatedness; and (2) autonomous motivation is a more powerful predictor of college students' mathematics achievement than controlled motivation and amotivation. These findings are consistent across different types of learning outcomes. Conclusions: Self-determination theory provides an effective framework for understanding college students' motivation and learning in Applied Calculus courses. This study extends self-determination theory in the field of mathematics education and contributes to the dialogue on advancing undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education by providing evidence to understand how motivational factors are associated with students' learning outcomes in undergraduate mathematics courses.

Often, educational and psychological theories stand independently of one another, focusing on particular, discreet components of learning or motivation. However, there are many similarities between invitational educational theory, which examines motivation and education, and self-determination theory, a theory of motivation and personality. Both theories, when applied to educational settings, value respectful relationships between teachers and students. They encourage practitioners to incorporate choice into their plans and recognize the importance of a person's perception to that person's related behavior. Invitational education theory and self-determination theory were developed separately by different researchers. However, the two theories emerged during the early 1970s, at a time when educators and psychologists were rejecting behaviorism and, instead, beginning to value a human-centered approach. This paper aims to introduce invitational education and self-determination theory, describe their origins from a similar place and time via humanistic psychology, and highlight key similarities in their beliefs with the ultimate goal of enhancing knowledge in order to continue to improve classrooms world-wide.

PurposeSocial determinants may influence health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among women with ovarian cancer, potentially creating disparities in clinical outcomes. We investigated the relationship between HRQOL and social determinants of health, including travel distance to access cancer care and health insurance type, among women participating in a randomized trial of primary adjuvant treatment for advanced ovarian cancer.MethodsThe Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Ovarian (FACT-O) questionnaire captured HRQOL (physical well-being, functional well-being, ovarian-specific, and trial outcome index [TOI]) prior to chemotherapy (baseline), during the trial, and 84 weeks after initiation of chemotherapy for women with advanced epithelial ovarian, primary peritoneal, or fallopian tube cancer. We constructed bivariate and multivariable linear mixed effects models examining the associations of social determinants of health (individual-level and contextual factors) with HRQOL scores at 84 weeks, clustering participants (n = 993) within treatment centers, and Census regions and controlling for baseline HRQOL.ResultsMost individual-level (race, age, cancer stage, adverse events) and contextual (travel distance to treatment center, community socioeconomic status) factors were not statistically significantly associated with HRQOL. Compared to participants with private health insurance, other participants had lower mean HRQOL (physical well-being: public insurance, - 1.00 (standard error[SE] = 0.49) points, uninsured, - 1.93 (SE = 0.63) points; functional well-being: public, - 1.29 (SE = 0.59), uninsured, - 1.98 (SE = 0.76); ovarian cancer-specific: public, - 1.60 (SE = 0.59), uninsured, - 1.66 (SE = 0.75); TOI: public, - 3.81 (SE = 1.46), uninsured, - 5.51 (SE = 1.86); all p

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has drastically altered the ways in which people are able to communicate effectively. The addition of the face mask as a distracting stimulus interrupts the holistic process that people use to interpret facial expressions. The present study seeks to investigate the impact of face masking and gaze direction on emotion recognition in students with autism. We predicted that students with autism (n = 14), who characteristically experience difficulties when appraising emotions, would struggle to assess the emotions of people wearing face masks. We did not find a significant three-way interaction of emotion, mask, and gaze on classification accuracy. We did, however, find that face masks reduced participants' ability to emotionally appraise sad faces. Further, participants showed better accuracy appraising faces with a direct gaze. Exploring how face masks impact autistic individuals' emotion recognition will benefit special educators as they adapt to teaching during the pandemic, as well as the general population that seeks to improve communication with neurodiverse persons. Future studies should examine emotional appraisal ability and additional emotions as well as different kinds of emotional stimuli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corybas carsei is one of New Zealand's most endangered orchids, with a single remaining population in the Whangamarino Wetland (North Island). Although orchid mycorrhizae have proved a critical aspect of orchid conservation globally, until now mycorrhizal fungi of C. carsei have not been identified or utilised for conservation. This study investigated fungal associates of C. carsei using three culture-based approaches: fungi grown directly from fragments of root tissue, from pelotons isolated from root-collars, and directly from macerated protocorm tissue. Fungi were cultured and identified as a diverse array of fungi through Sanger sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer region. This included the fungus Pleurotus purpureo-olivaceus (Basidiomycota; Agaricales), which belongs to a genus containing putative orchid mycorrhizal fungi, and the ericoid mycorrhizal fungus Oidiodendron eucalypti (Ascomycota; Leotiomycetes incertae sedis). No Rhizoctonia-like fungi, typical of orchid mycorrhizae, were found through any approach and fungi cultured in the present study likely represent endophytes, rather than mycorrhizal fungi. The potential of C. carsei having unculturable mycorrhizal associations, and the challenge this presents to conservation efforts, is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the perceived effectiveness of an open educational reading programme for primary school pupils with specific learning difficulties (SpLD) such as dyslexia. The programme, implemented by experienced teaching assistants (TAs), encompassed multiple aspects of reading, including phonics, sight word reading, reading fluency, vocabulary development and comprehension strategies, addressing the diverse needs of students with SpLD. Past observational studies have shown a disconnect between recommended reading practices and actual teaching approaches, often leading to a neglect of crucial skills like vocabulary, reading fluency and reading comprehension instruction for this student population. The current study aimed to bridge this research‐to‐practice gap, involving educators in programme development to ensure its effectiveness and practicality. Findings from interviews with five TAs indicate a strong need for comprehensive programmes that integrate various reading skills. The open educational reading programme received positive feedback from TAs, highlighting its role in engaging students and supporting active participation. This research underscores the significance of translating scientific insights into practical, transformative educational resources, emphasising the critical role of public engagement in advancing reading education. Additionally, this study emphasises the imperative of developing educator‐oriented programmes that are research‐based and easily accessible, thereby enhancing the practical application of scientific knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Promoting students' ability to transfer or apply their knowledge and skills to real-life situations is critical in higher education. The current study was designed to test the likelihood that the constructs based on self-determination theory (SDT) framework help understand college students' perceived knowledge transferability. A total of 3783 undergraduates from 301 classes participated in this study. The results of a series of multilevel modeling analyses indicated that (a) competence satisfaction and identification were the most salient factors influencing students' perceived knowledge transferability; (b) the SDT-related variables together explained 64.2% of the between-student variance in perceived knowledge transferability; (c) after controlling for student-level covariates and SDT-related variables, 7.9% of the variance in perceived knowledge transferability was caused by between-class differences, and 19.6% of it could be explained by course fields and course levels. Our results, which provide evidence of multilevel factors influencing college students' perceived knowledge transferability, have implications for promoting transfer in higher education.

Using the open-ended question from the FIT-Choice scale, this study presents an examination of why college students choose teaching as a career, in their own words. Over 100 responses were analyzed with two coding systems: thematic coding from the text and a coding system generated from the FIT-Choice survey questions. Two raters reliably coded independently. Across the two coding systems, students reported choosing teaching as a career because they want to teach and want to help children. They were motivated by the ability to make a difference in the world through teaching. The coding system based on FIT-Choice provided similar results to the students' responses to the quantitative FIT-Choice measure, with social utility value and intrinsic career value being ranked highest. Open-ended responses support the survey responses and suggest that these pre-service teachers are choosing teaching for altruistic reasons.

Preventive behaviors established during adolescence can reduce cancer throughout the life span. Understanding the combinations of multiple behaviors, and how these behaviors vary across states, is important for identifying where additional interventions are needed. Using data on 2011-2015 vaccination, energy balance, and substance use from national surveys, we created state-level composite scores for adolescent cancer prevention. Hierarchical Bayesian linear mixed models were used to predict estimates for states with no data on select behaviors. We used a Monte Carlo procedure with 100,000 simulations to generate states' ranks and 95% confidence intervals. Across states, hepatitis B vaccination was 84.3% to 97.1%, and human papillomavirus vaccination was 41.8% to 78.0% for girls and 19.0% to 59.3% for boys. For energy balance, 20.2% to 34.6% of adolescents met guidelines for physical activity, 4.1% to 15.8% for fruit and vegetable consumption, and 66.4% to 82.0% for healthy weight. For substance use, 82.5% to 93.5% reported abstaining from binge alcohol use, 84.3% to 95.4% from cigarette smoking, and 62.9% to 92.8% from marijuana use. (1) Rhode Island, (2) Colorado, (4) Hawaii and New Hampshire (tied), and (5) Vermont performed the best for adolescent cancer prevention, and (47) Missouri, (48) Arkansas, Mississippi, and South Carolina (tied), and (51) Kentucky performed the worst. However, 95% CIs around ranks often overlapped, indicating lack of statistical differences. Adolescent cancer prevention behaviors clustered into a composite index. States varied on their performance on this index, especially for states at the high and low extremes, but most states did not differ statistically. These findings can inform decision makers about where and how to intervene to improve cancer prevention among adolescents.