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Knowledge tracing algorithms such as Bayesian Knowledge Tracing (BKT) can provide students and teachers with helpful information about their progress towards learning objectives. Despite the popularity of BKT in the research community, the algorithm is not widely adopted in educational practice. This may be due to skepticism from users and uncertainty over how to explain BKT to them to foster trust. We conducted a pre-registered 2x2 survey experiment (n=170) to investigate attitudes towards BKT and how they are affected by verbal and visual explanations of the algorithm. We find that ostensible learners prefer BKT over a simpler algorithm, rating BKT as more trustworthy, accurate, and sophisticated. Providing verbal and visual explanations of BKT improved confidence in the learning application, trust in BKT and its perceived accuracy. Findings suggest that people's acceptance of BKT may be higher than anticipated, especially when explanations are provided. [For the full proceedings, see ED615472.]

When text datasets are very large, manually coding line by line becomes impractical. As a result, researchers sometimes try to use machine learning algorithms to automatically code text data. One of the most popular algorithms is topic modeling. For a given text dataset, a topic model provides probability distributions of words for a set of "topics" in the data, which researchers then use to interpret meaning of the topics. A topic model also gives each document in the dataset a score for each topic, which can be used as a non-binary coding for what proportion of a topic is in the document. Unfortunately, it is often difficult to interpret what the topics mean in a defensible way, or to validate document topic proportion scores as meaningful codes. In this study, we examine how keywords from codes developed by human experts were distributed in topics generated from topic modeling. The results show that (1) top keywords of a single topic often contain words from multiple human-generated codes; and conversely, (2) words from human-generated codes appear as high-probability keywords in multiple topic. These results explain why directly using topics from topic models as codes is problematic. However, they also imply that topic modeling makes it possible for researchers to discover codes from short word lists. [This paper was published in: "ICQE 2021," edited by A. R. Ruis and S. B. Lee, Springer Nature Switzerland AG, 2021, pp. 18-31.]

Coding is a process of assigning meaning to a given piece of evidence. Evidence may be found in a variety of data types, including documents, research interviews, posts from social media, conversations from learning platforms, or any source of data that may provide insights for the questions under qualitative study. In this study, we focus on text data and consider coding as a process of identifying words or phrases and categorizing them into codes to facilitate data analysis. There are a number of different approaches to generating qualitative codes, such as grounded coding, a priori coding, or using both in an iterative process. However, both qualitative and quantitative analysts face the same coding problem: when the data size is large, manually coding becomes impractical. nCoder is a tool that helps researchers to discover and code key concepts in text data with minimum human judgements. Once reliability and validity are established, nCoder automatically applies the coding scheme to the dataset. However, for concepts that occur infrequently, even with an acceptable reliability, the classifier may still result in too many false negatives. This paper explores these problems within the current nCoder and proposes adding a semantic component to the nCoder. A tool called "nCoder+" is presented with real data to demonstrate the usefulness of the semantic component. The possible ways of integrating this component and other natural language processing techniques into nCoder are discussed. [This paper was published in: "ICQE 2019," CCIS 1112, edited by B. Eagen et al., Springer, 2019, pp. 41-54.]

Few digital tools are designed to support identity exploration around careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) that may help close existing representation gaps in STEM fields. The aim of this project is to inform the design of games that facilitate learning as identity change as defined by the Projective Reflection theoretical framework. Projective Reflection is the process by which a person who is engaging in digital gameplay or a virtual environment constructs and/or enacts an identity that has the potential to modify the person's possible/future self and lead to a new sense of identity in a domain (Foster, 2014). This paper reports on "Philadelphia Land Science," an educational web-based game that allows players to explore roles related to urban planning and environmental science careers as they connect to a Philadelphia context. We describe game design and iterative changes as backed by theory and existing research. The game iteration is detailed in terms of the embedded content, the pedagogical approaches used, and the technological features that support the learning goals. [For the complete proceedings, see ED579395.]

This paper focuses on innovation and the change triggered by the introduction of new approaches to planned change in professional practice. It presents a range of ideas and theories about innovation and change and speculates about how new approaches get introduced and become accepted into professional practice. The paper concludes by focusing on the nature and characteristics of change (need, clarity, complexity, adaptability) and some theories that might provide for better understanding and management of change, both within the context of individual libraries and across university libraries generally. While somewhat theoretical, the ideas presented come directly from educational theories that are being applied to case-study research underway in Australian university libraries. (Contains 19 references.) (AEF)

Education and teaching have changed in significant ways over the last decade. Since the late 1980s the Commonwealth of Australia has encouraged the development of "multi-skilled workers"; however, Alvin Toffler (1990) points out that changes in technology would create a deskilled work force with overly specialized, noninterchangeable skills. This paper presents findings of two studies that examined the effects of recent changes in Australian education on teachers' work lives. The first study was conducted in 87 primary and secondary schools in the state education systems of Tasmania and South Australia. A total of 100 teachers participated in a combination of interviews and a survey: 27 took part in interviews and the survey, 11 were interviewed, and 62 completed only the survey. Teachers reported that the educational reforms had resulted in increased paperwork; they had difficulty in dealing with externally imposed change and many simultaneous demands from varied sources; and they experienced time constraints. The second study involved case studies of 14 government schools/colleges identified as being innovative in the areas of pedagogy, curriculum, and/or staff development. Teachers were reflective about the process; willing to take risks; saw themselves as facilitators of active learning; and used student-centered, "hands-on" approaches. The schools focused on the key curriculum areas of mathematics, science, and technology. Three tables are included. (Contains 19 references.) (LMI)

This paper reports on a study of the impact of educational change on teachers' work in two Australian state education systems. The study was conducted in 1994 with a sample of 89 teachers and 87 school principals working in state schools in South Australia and Tasmania. Data were gathered through a semi-structured interview schedule and "teacher" and "principal" versions of a questionnaire. Teacher respondents identified 79 different changes in education which had significantly affected their work over the previous 5 years. The changes related to four major areas: students learning, teachers classroom teaching, the work of teachers as members of their school staff, and the work of teachers as employees of a statewide education system. Generally teachers on whom the "systemic" changes had the greatest impact reported more negative feelings about that particular change, about education changes in general, and about possible future educational changes than did teachers who felt more affected by changes from the other three areas. Teachers felt that the majority of changes originated in the central offices of their state system and that the changes served the interests of systems management. Only one-third of the teachers believed that the main purpose of the cited change was to improve teachers' teaching or students' learning. Lack of time was reported as the main impediment to effective implementation of change; teachers felt that the change had added to their workload and increased the pressures associated with their work. When the views of school principals were sought, there was strong congruence between the self-reports of teachers and the reports of principals as key observers of teachers work. (Author/ND)

Individuals from a spread of stakeholder groups (i.e., teachers, parents, peers, employers, carers and agency professionals, administrators, and taxpayers) responded to six paragraph-length portraits describing schooling experiences of students with mild intellectual disabilities (MID). Supplementary interviews and surveys were also carried out. Research questions focused on the needs of MID students, concurrence in the perceptions of stakeholders with regard to such needs, and the curriculum available to MID students and discrepancy between needed and undertaken curricula. Results indicated that: (1) non-academic skill and content domains were clearly favored over the traditional academic curriculum domains; (2) teachers felt frustration at not knowing what occurred at earlier or later levels of schooling, not knowing how workplaces operate, and being unable to have enough of their eligible students participate in alternative programs; (3) employers favored a more significant proportion of academic skills involvement than did other stakeholders; (4) at least 3 years of vocational preparation was required for students with MID; and (5) students developed a more personal locus of control following engagement in workplace programs. Implications for classroom teachers and implications for teacher educators and teacher professional development are listed. Copies of questionnaires, including the six portraits describing students' schooling experiences, are appended. (Contains 18 references.) (JDD)

This paper addresses the continuing failure of racial and ethnic minorities, specifically Mexican Americans and American Indians, to gain full representation in doctoral graduating classes and college faculties. The demographics of minorities in doctoral programs is reviewed with particular emphasis on the Southwestern United States and the two minority groups under consideration. The qualitative data for the study consist of 139 responses to a free-response question presented at the end of a lengthy questionnaire completed by 176 Mexican American and 38 American Indian doctoral students. The broad themes for discussion are financial obstacles and institutional barriers; the departmental environment, including academic and social integration and alienation and discrimination; and faculty and student interaction, which includes ethnic role models, relationships with mentors and advisors, and academic self-concept. Representative verbatim statements are given in each category. Mentor relationships were highly significant in the satisfaction of doctoral students, and same-gender and same-ethnicity pairing of doctoral mentors and students significantly affected the academic satisfaction of these minority doctoral students. Contains 52 references. (RAH)

This study examines the involvement of 462 teachers in school-linked service efforts (such as provision of medical care, parenting education, and counseling at the school site) in 77 schools throughout California. The survey found that the teachers participated in an average of 2.7 types of training activities concerning school-linked services. Teachers most frequently participated in information sessions about the services or in training on ways to identify students for referral to school-linked services. Fifty-nine percent of the teachers reported feeling very or somewhat well-informed about school-linked services. Forty-seven percent felt very or somewhat involved in activities related to school-linked services. Teachers reported increases in involvement in meetings concerning students' noneducational needs, frequency of communication with service agency staff and students' family members, and frequency of referring students to noneducational services. Teachers perceived that services available to students had improved a little. They felt slightly more positive about their abilities to help students. Teachers who participated in more training activities were more likely to report feeling more informed about and involved in school-linked services than those who participated in fewer training sessions. Implications for incorporating teacher involvement into design of school-linked service programs are noted. (JDD)

This report analyzes information gathered by a task force, appointed by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), to investigate the current status of emergency or substandard certification measures used by state agencies and school districts. In an overview, the task force defines the role of teacher certification and chronicles briefly the historical evolution of teacher licensure and certification concepts. The second part of the report examines relevant research studies to document the empirical basis for the claim that fully certified teachers are more effective as teachers and more satisfied as professionals than those with substandard qualifications. The third part of the report identifies questionable practices which raise qualitative issues: (1) assigning certified personnel to teach out-of-field; (2) issuing emergency certificates to unqualified persons; and (3) seeking alternative routes to certification which weaken or eliminate pedagogical competency. A comparative analysis is made of temporary procedures used by other professions. Eleven recommendations are suggested as alternatives to granting emergency teaching certificates to unqualified personnel. Appendices include: (1) summary of professional organizations' positions on emergency certification; (2) questionnaires sent to state directors of teacher certification and state AACTE presidents; and (3) the AACTE resolution on emergency certificates for teachers. (JD)

Since concepts are the mental divisions man makes among the concrete and abstract phenomena of his environment so he may generate, maneuver, and control their relationships in a manner ot satisfy his physical, emotional, social, and aesthetic needs, concepts should be the vortex of intelligence. Too often students are taught as if they lack a concept when all they really lack is a vocabulary item for the standard or learned language environment. Teaching strategies should direct the development of the ability to express concepts appropriately for any language setting. The following conceptual relationships form a hierarchical seriatim which may be followed in directing the development of conceptual clarity for any concept: concurrence, distinctness, appurtenance, dimensional, self-activity, equivalence, reaction, association, and functional dependence. Using these conceptual relations in conjunction with vocabulary appropriate for the learned, formal, and informal language environments, a demonstration is presented of how a person may be able to express a concept using one set of vocabulary items, but not another set. The concepts can be taught without focusing on prestige or standard formal vocabulary. The syntax of thought is universal; the syntax of language is specific to a speech community. (TO)

This paper addresses the role of science education in today's society and the objectives of instruction in science. Observing that science cannot solve all of the problems of the world, and that science education has had little effect on the willingness of the general public to accept superstitions, the author argues that instructional approaches to the testing of hypotheses must be re-examined. After briefly reviewing the development of general educational goals during the past century, the author turns to the objectives of science education. He discusses knowledge objectives and identifies four issues related to propositional knowledge. Turning to the debate over emphasis on mastery of conceptual schemes vs. understanding of scientific processes, he discusses normative and cognitive objectives. In conclusion, he raises the question of when the objectives of science education should be stated in behavioral terms or formulated more generally. (SD)

Most college vocabulary books lack the sophistication of a complex. Rather, they reflect the characteristics of congeries or disparate objects grouped together without any logical basis. Vocabulary study in college should focus on the process of concept formation in all its complexity, with emphasis on the relationship between the specific and general, concrete and abstract range of meanings. Effective exercises will require the use of synonym guides, dictionaries, and thesauri. A structural analysis of words through the use of templates can assist students in developing precision in word meanings and conceptual clarity. (KS)

The convergence theory asserts that industrial nations are becoming increasingly alike due to their economic and technological development. Most interpretations of the convergence theory either state or imply that political factors are unimportant in shaping the common welfare state toward which all industrial nations are converging. Using data on 39 countries, the authors present evidence indicating that, contrary to expectation, egalitarian political movements (socialist parties and labor unions) have a substantial impact on a nation's social welfare effort. The effect of egalitarian political movements is, however, substantially less than that of economic development when the appropriate models are specified. The authors conclude that one way in which egalitarian political movements affect a nation's social welfare effort is through their impact on the development of a social welfare bureaucracy. On the basis of this study, the authors propose that the relevance of political factors in the convergence theory be reconsidered. (Author/DRS)

The status of honorary degree programs among major state universities was studied. From a list of public institutions known to have awarded honorary degrees in the recent past, several were selected for interviews relative to their policies and practices in selection and award. The list and a summary of interviews with representatives of 15 major universities are appended. In a followup survey, senior academic officers of honorary degree-granting institutions were asked their perceptions of the value of their programs. No pattern related to type or prestige of the institution was found for institutions having an honorary degree program. Among those having such a program, honorary degrees awarded by faculty for scholarly excellence were well regarded, while nonacademic honorary degrees were viewed often as being more trouble than their worth to the institution. Information is presented on the results of telephone surveys with the following institutions: Michigan State University, Louisiana State University, North Carolina State University, University of Maryland, University of Georgia, University of Florida, Purdue University, University of Missouri, University of Arizona, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, and the University of Virginia. At the University of Virginia, tradition is that honorary degrees are not awarded. The University of Georgia system awards honorary degrees only to a U.S. President who has attended one of the colleges or universities of the system. The other schools do award honorary degrees, although the frequency and criteria for awards differ. (SW)

The work content of eight midwestern college and university presidents is defined and described through direct observation of daily activities. This was done as a critical first step in a line of research which can eventually propose effective presidential work behaviors. Besides discovering how time is used, the study finds that due to the volume of input and requests, presidents cannot personally meet most demands and also accomplish organizational success. Concepts identified from the structured and unstructured data led to the development of the Williamson Wall Model of Presidential Work, a framework for future testing of hypotheses about presidential effectiveness. One week of data collection was spent with each of the eight presidents in the final sample. (These eight represent a consent rate of 33% of the potential respondents whose colleges met the study criteria). One of the key outcomes was the conclusion that there is a great deal of work directed to the president that cannot, should not, and must not be done by the president personally, if at all. Proper presidential work should be defined in part as fulfilling the needs that only the president can meet for the organization, with priorities and goals focusing the work. The four themes (or building blocks for presidential work leading to organizational success) resulting from this study are: (1) antecedents (preexisting resources at the school or within the president's personality), (2) aura (power of the presidency), (3) actions (consciously chosen goals), and (4) advancements. Tables are included. Contains 15 references. (Author/SM)

In this research, some alternative high schools were evaluated in terms of both students' perceptions of classroom environment and teachers' perceptions of school environment. A sample of 742 students in 62 classes in alternative and conventional schools responded to the College and University Classroom Environment Inventory's seven scales (Personalization, Involvement, Student Cohesiveness, Satisfaction, Task Orientation, Innovation and Individualization), whereas a sample 106 alternative school teachers and 34 control teachers responded to eight scales (Affiliation, Professional Interest, Achievement Orientation, Formalization, Centralization, Innovativeness, Resource Adequacy and Work Pressure in a modified version of the School-Level Environment Questionnaire. Generally analyses of data based on both student perceptions of classroom environment and teacher perceptions of school environment suggested that the alternative high schools had been successful in fostering an environment or ethos which was more favourable than that prevalent in regular high schools. A copy of the questionnaire used in the study and a five-page list of references are attached. (Author/JAZ)

Study skills are not specific to reading and cannot be developed by reading and more reading. A study skill is a mental technique to use when accomplishing a specific task or solving a given problem and is one element in a process essential for efficient and effective reading. Students who lack basic study skills can be taught to think if situations are developed which require thinking. One way to stimulate thinking is through the use of cognitive centers, a provocative setting generated by activities and/or materials presented in a manner to stimulate a small number of students to engage in the exchange of opinions for the purpose of developing proficiency in prestated study skills. Examples are given of using the cognitive center approach to provide students with the study skill abilities to discover the basic structure in a system, to see relationships, and to evaluate situations or information. (TO)

A study was conducted to determine if students could learn to monitor and evaluate their own reading performance. Five fourth and fifth grade students having a reading score indicating achievement within one year below grade level participated in the study for six weeks. Subjects spent one hour per school day learning how to monitor their reading behavior by using four informal diagnostic techniques: Veath's rule of thumb, the Informal Reading Inventory, the Cloze technique, and the cassette recorder as a means of applying the synthesized concepts of the other techniques. By compiling a list of the questions used by the subjects in the order that they mastered them and by noting the week in the study and the percent of mastery, it was concluded that students can learn to monitor and evaluate their reading performance and that this can encourage the development of their syntactic and semantic systems expressed through their language. (TS)

A study identified correlates of selected beliefs about drugs, personal drug use, and expected drug use among kindergarten children. As part of a state-wide drug education project, 112 kindergarten children from 5 elementary schools were individually interviewed. Analysis of the data indicated significant relationships between personal use of drugs and race, living arrangement, beliefs about drugs, and expected use of drugs. Significant relationships also existed between expected use of drugs and drug knowledge, beliefs about drugs, and personal use of drugs. Most children exhibited much misinformation about drugs. Early drug education programs should help children develop a correct concept of what drugs are and provide correct information regarding the safe and acceptable use of drugs. Five tables of study data are appended. (Author/JD)

The Soviet position on vocabulary and the relationships among intelligence, language, and culture holds that thoughts and words have different developmental roots and that there are more differences than likenesses between them. In this United States study, 105 students grouped by their having parents in three different employment categories were asked to respond to pictures in the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT). Results suggest that vocabulary and not concept acquisition is the key to receiving a high IQ score on the PPVT. Subjects whose parents held professional jobs were more apt to have in their memories the stimulus words in the PPVT. Analysis of concepts known (as opposed to vocabulary words known) by students taking the test indicates that differences between"advantaged" and "disadvantaged" students are not nearly as serious as IQ scores suggest. School vocabulary magnifies the problem. The study concludes that the use of prestige vocabulary in the PPVT to determine intellectual potential is fraught with bigotry and is used to deny children due process in American education. (DS)

A survey was conducted during 1979 to determine the interest in women's sports of Virginia Polytechnic Institute undergraduate students. The questionnaire contained three main parts. The first part, designed to be answered by both males and females, inquired about attending women's sporting events. Students were asked to check which women's sports they would be most and least likely to watch. In part two, females were asked to identify the sports in which they would be most and least likely to participate. The third part asked female students to check the competitive sports in which they had participated during high school or college. The most popular spectator sport identified by both men and women, was gymnastics. Women were most interested in participating in volleyball. Softball was the leading competitive sport in which the women had actually participated. A copy of the questionnaire is appended. (JD)

This is a collection of conference papers given by graduate students enrolled in a seminar course in Comparative Librarianship. Topics focused on library education and library development programs in foreign countries and Southwest Wisconsin. Professor Philip Altbach opened the conference with a summary version of his paper entitled "Publishing and the Intellectual Systems." The full text of his paper is included along with the following student papers: "Bibliographical Controls and Some Other Indicators of the Status of Librarianship in Ceylon and Pakistan"; "Development of Library Education Programs in the Two Germanies since 1945"; "Comparative Studies: Onions? or the Emperor's New Clothes?" (comments about the characteristics of comparative librarianship); "Indicators of Library Development: Counties of Southwest Wisconsin"; "Indicators of Library Development: Latin America"; and "A Comparison of Jamaican and Puerto Rican Library Development." Figures and statistical data are included in some of the papers. (JPF)

The learning assistance counselor at the college level should facilitate learning for students who have not developed their cognitive and literacy skills. To enrich the process of discovery in student learning, the counselor can direct students in the following textbook activities: practicing basic syllabifying skills on technical and scientific terms in a biology book; verifying work by referring to a dictionary; using glossaries and indexes to improve the recognition of units of meaning in words; examining the full meanings of words in dictionaries--their prefixes, roots, and suffixes; helping students identify the concept categories of their experience through reading; identifying basic concepts in textbooks; and developing outlining skills through the recognition of general and specific ideas. (MAI)

A survey was conducted to examine the relationship between instructor degree status (regular faculty versus graduate teaching assistants) and students' final course grades in basic public speaking courses. Analysis of data obtained from speech communication departmental records at Wichita State University revealed that during the six semester period (fall 1981 through spring 1984) 2,341 students were enrolled in 81 sections of basic public speaking taught by 24 instructors (7 regular faculty and 17 graduate teaching assistants). Results showed that graduate teaching assistants gave more B and incomplete grades while faculty gave more C and D grades. No significant differences were found for the overall grade point averages or for assignment of A, F, Audit, Withdraw, and Pass grades. These results indicated that teaching assistants may be more inclined to give students the benefit of the doubt due to lack of experience, lower standards, or more sympathy for students. The most frequent grade assigned by all instructors was a B although the C is defined by most grading systems as average. Such frequency suggests that the grading standards for a B are either too low or the application of the standards too lenient. The results suggest that basic course directors should analyze grade point averages and grade distribution patterns as well as work with teaching assistants to achieve desirable grading practices. (DF)

Credential portfolios as a selection tool in the hiring of new teachers is not a new idea. Their importance has been stressed in the professional literature. For the purpose of this study, we developed a portfolio checklist of items to be included in the beginning teacher's professional portfolio. After a pilot study was conducted, 400 surveys were sent to hiring officials in all of the districts in south Georgia. Data were analyzed using the Tukey HSD test. The major conclusion drawn was that there is a significant difference in the way various groups of administrators view items in the professional portfolio, especially middle school principals. New teachers should tailor their portfolios to a particular group of hiring officials. Additional research is needed to determine why these administrators view portfolio items differently. (Author)

In examining the role of Corax and Tisias in the development of rhetoric should be considered: (1) the recently-discovered transition from orality to literacy in the ancient Greek world, suggesting that rhetoric became a formal discipline at their hands through the medium of writing and that rhetoric existed in some form in the earlier oral culture; and (2) the religious crisis that occurred when the Syracusan tyrant Hieron was unable to exercise the religious authority required to rule, lending support to the view that Corax was a religious figure and that rhetoric existed in the earlier religious world. The gradual displacement of the old world of primary orality by the emerging world of literacy necessitated that traditional rhetoric as practiced in the oral culture be conceptualized according to new thought processes made possible by the new literacy and be expressed in the written form that literacy required for dissemination to the public. This transition implies that rhetoric existed in some form in the old oral world long before it became a "techne" (art of rhetoric). That form was probably religious in nature, as indicated by the evidence of Corax's religious role, i.e. religio-political advisor to the tyrant Hieron and logographer/etymologist (along with Tisias) engaged in divining the meaning of words. This suggests that the roots of rhetoric will be discovered in the religious world of oracular divination and of political life. (Thirty-four references are appended.) (MS)

Background. As a number of U.S. states are actively campaigning for the legalization of medical aid in dying (MAiD), questions regarding how to improve the existing legislation and develop improved legislative models have become of central concern. Discussions of whether and how to expand access to MAiD often ignore a number of important, but contentious issues. Objective. To draw upon evidence from a variety of jurisdictions, including those in the United States as well as other countries where MAiD is legal, to help better inform debates and to foster new more efficacious legislation that could be replicated, with minor modifications, across the United States and abroad. Methods. We draw upon evidence, both quantitative and qualitative, including the relevant legislation in various states, countries, and other relevant jurisdictions (e.g., D.C. in the United States, Quebec in Canada, etc.), quantitative empirical medical studies, and newspaper articles in addition to 22 semi-structured interviews some in-person and others via Skype or phone with 10 healthcare professionals who have direct experience providing MAiD, 7 representing organizations supporting or in opposition to MAiD, 4 bio-ethicists, and 1 lawyer specialized in end-of-life law. Our participants were located in the U.S. (Colorado, California, Oregon), the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada (various jurisdictions, including Quebec), Colombia, and Victoria, Australia. Results. We find evidence suggesting that expanding MAiD legislation in the United States to include individuals with some degenerative diseases, some forms of mental illness, and possibly even to mature minors, would be of benefit to many of those seeking MAiD. Additionally, the legalization of advance requests would expand access to individuals with dementia, while the legalization of physician-administered MAiD would improve access for those who are unable to orally self-administer medication. The evidence suggests that for the foreseeable future the expansion of MAiD programs in the United States is most likely to proceed on a state-by-state basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few digital tools are designed to support identity exploration around careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) that may help close existing representation gaps in STEM fields. The aim of this project is to inform the design of games that facilitate learning as identity change as defined by the Projective Reflection theoretical framework. Projective Reflection is the process by which a person who is engaging in digital gameplay or a virtual environment constructs and/or enacts an identity that has the potential to modify the person's possible/future self and lead to a new sense of identity in a domain (Foster, 2014). This paper reports on Philadelphia Land Science, an educational web-based game that allows players to explore roles related to urban planning and environmental science careers as they connect to a Philadelphia context. We describe game design and iterative changes as backed by theory and existing research. The game iteration is detailed in terms of the embedded content, the pedagogical approaches used, and the technological features that support the learning goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the conference sub-theme of preparing the workforce and skills development, this paper identifies and discusses some key human resource (HR) drivers for the academic library workforce of the 21st century. The value of strategic workforce planning is identified, and strategies around learning and development, appreciation and celebration, relationship building and collaboration, and conversation and communication are discussed. Case experiences from the University Library at the University of Saskatchewan (U of S) provide practical examples for the consideration of dean/directors and other library leaders charged with the responsibility of preparing the workforce and skills development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the results of a research study on the role of student clubs in the formation of experiential learning in entrepreneurship. Topics cited include the impact of experiential learning on students' level of confidence and motivation to become entrepreneurs, common features of learning through experience, and relationship between student learning and club activity.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of women die during pregnancy or immediately after birth due to reasons related to maternity. The vast majority of them live in developing countries. Since the late 1980s this issue has garnered a significant amount of attention, but the debate, at least for policymakers has been limited to the availability of data and the possibility of medical and healthcare policy interventions. While these are undoubtedly important items and have achieved considerable success, they limit the discussion on maternal mortality significantly. In this paper, we draw on a strong literature on maternal mortality research, as well as research more broadly relating to mortality and public health to argue that broader issues of income and inequality, but most importantly democratization, women's status and ethnic fractionalization need to be considered. Using cross-sectional analysis and path-analysis, we show that these predictors have significant impacts on maternal mortality ratios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous prior studies have sought to come up with important macro political, social and economic structural factors that help account for cross-national variation in infant mortality rates. Democracy has been suggested as one such factor due to its potential direct and indirect effects on infant mortality. However, a debate has developed in the literature as to just how strong and robust various proposed measures of democracy really are. Our analysis is based in part on a worldwide sample of 158 countries and in part on subsamples that vary with respect to level of development. It is very much an exploration of the complexity of the relationship between level of democracy and infant mortality. We theorize and then find evidence pointing to a possible quadratic relationship between democracy and infant mortality, with infant mortality lowest in either autocracies or democracies and highest for those countries in the transition period between the two. Additionally, we find that both ethnic fractionalization and level of economic development moderate the relationship between democracy and infant mortality in interesting ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]