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The literature concerning pre-service training in music education for generalist primary or elementary school teachers reveals a long-standing problem for teacher educators: low or poor self-efficacy concerning the teaching of classroom music. Concurrently, a critical examination of training programmes has less often featured, with only limited discussion of digital approaches to classroom music-making constituting the focus of empirical research. Through a focused case study in one Australian university, 136 pre-service teachers participated in a face-to-face module of interactive music education which culminated in a peer-directed collaborative digital music-making project. Pre- and post-surveys were implemented with shifts in pre-service teachers' self-efficacy measured according to Bandura's self-efficacy scales. Legitimation Code Theory from the sociology of education then served as an overarching theoretical lens through which to appraise the findings. Despite an enduring self-concept as 'non-musicians', the results highlight positive shifts in self-efficacy through the utilisation of peer-directed digital music-making tasks, with implications for teacher training programmes more broadly situated.

Despite the significant growth of online education worldwide, the online educational experiences of students living with disabilites (SWDs) have been largely overlooked. This research presents an analysis of themes that emerged from in-depth interviews related to the authentic experiences of SWDs. Derived from the experience territory matrix three types of educational experiences that students encounter in their online journey (enchantment, re-enchantment, and disenchantment) were contextualised using the psycho-emotional model of disability. The study identified varying degrees of both enabling and disabling factors (i.e., perceived student-customer orientation, respect, experience quality, structural barriers, and internalised oppression). These factors contribute to the education experiences of SWDs that go beyond the curriculum with implications for institutional guidelines and the design of specific interventions targeting the needs of SWDs. Findings revealed how educational experiences can be improved for SWDs when addressing structural barriers, social interactions, internalised oppressions, and by enhancing student-customer orientation dimensions, and respect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first 1000 days (conception to 2 years postnatal) are crucial for parent and infant health. Visual art-based interventions are used to promote positive parental mental health, but currently, there are no comprehensive insights into how these interventions can support new parents during this critical perinatal period. To synthesise research on visual art-based interventions designed to promote parents' mental well-being during the first 1000 days to understand if and how these interventions made a difference and to identify any barriers or facilitators to parents' engagement. A keyword search of five databases (CINAHL, Embase, Medline, PsychInfo and Scopus), searches via Google Scholar and backward and forward chaining were undertaken. Quality appraisal was conducted using design appropriate tools, and a narrative thematic approach was used. 4417 hits were identified, and 10 studies met eligibility criteria and were included. Interventions were classified as art therapy (n = 8) or creative arts (n = 2), and overall, a lack of robust evidence was highlighted. Six themes were constructed that describe the psychosocial impacts and experiences of the interventions and relational and contextual factors that influenced parents' engagement. While both types of interventions had benefits, art therapy had the most profound impacts. Challenges regarding sustainability of impacts and facilitator skills were noted for creative arts, rather than art therapy interventions. While art therapy interventions promote positive parental mental health and well-being, high-quality evidence is needed. More robust evaluation designs to identify mechanisms of effectiveness in art therapy interventions are needed. In this study, we aimed to combine and summarise all available published research on visual art-based interventions (such as art therapy and creative arts) that had been designed to improve parents' mental health and well-being during pregnancy or up to two years after birth. We wanted to find out if and how these interventions made a difference to parents, and what helped or did not help parents to take part. We found 10 relevant studies that involved different art-based interventions – eight were art therapy interventions delivered by a trained art therapist and two interventions were creative arts interventions delivered by other professionals (e.g. specialist health visitor, arts officer). Most studies (80%) were undertaken in high-income countries, used different study designs, and often only included a small number of participants. Overall, there were benefits of both types of interventions for parents, but the most lasting and significant impacts were for art therapy. Parents in arts therapy studies felt the intervention had helped to increase awareness of their mental health issues, improved their confidence and self-esteem, helped them to build positive parent-baby connections and encouraged them to seek out further help. Group-based art therapy also helped parents to form connections and friendships and to reduce social isolation and loneliness. Some factors that influenced parent participation were positive relationships with the therapist and being provided with clear information. Barriers to engagement were generally reported in creative arts, rather than art therapy interventions. Overall, the evidence suggests that art therapy could be an important intervention for parents who have poor mental health. However, more research is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature concerning pre-service training in music education for generalist primary or elementary school teachers reveals a long-standing problem for teacher educators: low or poor self-efficacy concerning the teaching of classroom music. Concurrently, a critical examination of training programmes has less often featured, with only limited discussion of digital approaches to classroom music-making constituting the focus of empirical research. Through a focused case study in one Australian university, 136 pre-service teachers participated in a face-to-face module of interactive music education which culminated in a peer-directed collaborative digital music-making project. Pre- and post-surveys were implemented with shifts in pre-service teachers' self-efficacy measured according to Bandura's self-efficacy scales. Legitimation Code Theory from the sociology of education then served as an overarching theoretical lens through which to appraise the findings. Despite an enduring self-concept as 'non-musicians', the results highlight positive shifts in self-efficacy through the utilisation of peer-directed digital music-making tasks, with implications for teacher training programmes more broadly situated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uncertainty is a common and increasingly acknowledged problem in clinical practice. Current single best answer (SBA) style assessments test areas where there is one correct answer, and as the approach to assessment impacts on the approach to learning, these exams may poorly prepare our future doctors to handle uncertainty. We therefore, need to modify our approach to assessment to emphasize reasoning and introduce the possibility of more than one 'correct' answer. We have developed clinical prioritization questions (CPQs), a novel formative assessment tool in which students prioritize possible responses in order of likelihood. This assessment format was piloted with a group of medical students and evaluated in comparison with the more traditional SBA question format in a team-based learning setting. Students reported that they felt ongoing use would help improve their tolerance of uncertainty (p < 0.01). Furthermore, over 80% of students felt that CPQs were more reflective of real-life clinical practice. Group based discussions were significantly longer when answering CPQs (p < 0.01), suggesting they may promote richer discourse. CPQs may have a role in formative assessment to help equip students with the skills to cope with ambiguity and strengthen clinical reasoning and decision-making. Institutions may find them more practical to implement compared with other clinical reasoning assessment tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction In Australia and internationally, postpartum screening rates for women with Gestational Diabetes (GDM) are low. There is a need to identify strategies to improve screening for preventing progression to type 2 diabetes (T2D). Aims The aim of the study is to explore postnatal diabetes screening rates and health outcomes in women with a history of GDM in one regional NSW local health district. Methods A prospective observational study utilising a questionnaire to explore women’s Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) screening rates and health information at 3, 18 and 36 months postpartum. It is anticipated that approximately 370 participants will complete the study. Discussion Low postpartum screening rates signify a lost opportunity to implement health promotion activities to prevent T2D and related complications. The results of this study will support our understanding of predictors of postpartum OGTT rates and health outcomes in women diagnosed with GDM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]