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Educating young learners to reason with data is increasingly important given our data-saturated society; yet teachers need support in recognizing and facilitating apt epistemic performance (which involves the beliefs and practices necessary to successfully establish, critique, and use data and knowledge within a domain) regarding data literacy with elementary students. In this exploratory study, we aimed to understand (a) what apt epistemic processes within data literacy look like in practice with children, and (b) to what extent a curriculum built on a simulation-based data analysis intervention (where students engage in experimentation and data analyses through the use of simulations) promotes the epistemic processes of data literacy. We used the Apt-AIR framework, which expounds on the components needed for successful epistemic education, as a tool to identify students' apt epistemic processes. The results illustrate that elementary students were able to activate cognitive, emotional, and--to a lesser extent--metacognitive and collaborative epistemic processes related to data literacy skills in this context. Additionally, the design features embedded in the experimentation lesson were more successful in engaging students in apt epistemic processes; yet the data analysis lesson, while engaging students in fewer processes overall, was successful in promoting students' ability to make accurate inferences using an aggregate view of data. We discuss the trends in the apt epistemic processes related to data literacy that emerged and their implications for instruction and learning.

Recent research on what students know about complex systems shows that they typically have challenges in understanding particular system ideas such as nonlinearity, complex causality, and decentralized control. Yet this research has yet to adopt a systematic approach to learning about complex systems in an ordered way in line with the Next Generation Science Standards' call for learning pathways that guide teaching and learning along a developmental continuum. In this paper, we propose that learning progressions research can provide a conceptual framework for identifying a learning pathway to complex systems understanding competence. As a first step in developing a progression, we articulate a sequence of complex systems ideas, from the least to most difficult, by analyzing students' written responses using an item response theory model. Results show that the easiest ideas to comprehend are those that relate to levels or scales within systems and the interconnected nature of systems. The most difficult ideas to grasp are those related to the decentralized organization of the system and the unpredictable or nondeterministic nature of effects. We discuss implications for this research in terms of developing curricular content that can guide learning experiences in grades 8-12 science education.

In pediatric emergency rooms (ERs), social workers must navigate diverse responsibilities including acting as advocates and liaisons between families and multidisciplinary treatment teams, providing compassionate support to families in crisis, and assessing for and reporting any suspicions of child abuse or neglect. These potentially contrasting roles can place social workers at the center of dealing with ethical dilemmas and advocating against ethical violations, such as bias and discrimination toward families. This qualitative study seeks to gain insight into ethical issues commonly encountered in pediatric ERs by exploring the perspectives of 23 social workers at Level 1 trauma centers in the United States. Thematic analysis was used to develop major themes and subthemes related to ethical violations, dilemmas, and best practices in pediatric ERs. Major themes emerged related to unfair treatment of families (with subthemes of bias, discrimination, and compassion fatigue), ethical dilemmas (with subthemes of cultural issues, safety and system issues), and promoting ethical practices (with subthemes of self-awareness, advocacy, and efforts to change the system). This study provides important insights into ethical issues in pediatric ERs as experienced by social workers and can inform efforts to improve the quality and equity of care for all families in pediatric ERs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary aim of this study was to examine gender and racial differences in the association between system involvement types (i.e., child protective services [CPS] only, juvenile justice system only, and dual involvement) and academic outcomes (i.e., grade failure, chronic absenteeism). This study used records from a linked database of public youth-serving institutional records within a county's youth court, law enforcement agencies, and CPS. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed. The impact of systems involvement on academic outcomes was most salient among Black males, while none of the system involvement types were associated with chronic absenteeism or grade failure among White males. Findings highlight the need for the development of intervention strategies to address educational needs of youth involved in the CPS and juvenile justice systems, with a heightened attention to Black and male youth, to improve their attendance and academic performance.

This research investigates a design and development approach to improving science teachers' access to effective professional development (PD) in a fully online, asynchronous environment. Working with a small number of teachers, this study explores how a design combining social capital mechanisms with essential teacher learning and PD characteristics supported teachers' abilities to participate in the online course and collaboratively build knowledge. Teachers' perceptions of their experiences both in surveys and interviews demonstrated high satisfaction with the quality and usability of the PD, including positive beliefs related to the social capital elements of tie quality, depth of interaction, and access to expertise. Further transactivity analyses of their interactions in course discussions showed higher levels of collaborative discourse resulting from prompts that specifically targeted the exchange of information over those that asked teachers to reflect about their content understanding or their classroom practice. Implications for this design for asynchronous online PD approaches to reach more teachers are discussed.

Online professional development (PD) can support broader accessibility than traditional face-to-face PD. However online delivery presents challenges for characteristics of high-quality PD, such as collaborative knowledge building and community development, that have proven positive outcomes in face-to-face modes. A few comparative studies have demonstrated equivalent outcomes when PD activities have been translated from a successful face-to-face implementation to an online format. This study investigates whether an online version of PD for high school biology teachers on using computer-supported complex systems curriculum and instruction can achieve the same high impact as the face-to-face version. We describe changes in design decisions to accommodate the online mode and measure impact on teachers' perceptions of their experiences and student outcomes. The results show positive teacher perceptions in both PD formats and roughly equal student outcomes. However, teachers articulated other benefits to online activities that indicate opportunities for improved access to high-quality PD.

Purpose: The overarching goal of the research is to understand strategies that can support utility and access to high-quality teacher professional development (PD). This study aims to examine the design and delivery of an online asynchronous course for science teachers using the edX massively online open course (MOOC) platform. The conceptual framework considers three areas of research: high-quality PD characteristics for K12 teachers, the development of social capital and known challenges in MOOC and computer-supported collaborative learning and participation. Design/methodology/approach: This is an empirical mixed-methods study that details the design of the PD course and implementation strategies that instantiate the conceptual framework. The authors collected three data sources from 41 teachers who completed the course. These included post course satisfaction surveys, teacher semi structured interviews and discussion board contributions. Findings: Survey findings revealed high satisfaction among teachers in the areas of overall course design, module construction and delivery and usability of materials in teaching. Interview findings showed positive perceptions of the social capital framing in developing tie quality, trust, depth of interactions and access to expertise. Analyses of discussion board contributions also demonstrated high degrees of information exchange resulting from prompts intentionally constructed to foster collaboration. Practical implications: This study offers a set of strategies to build networked teacher PD communities in asynchronous online PD platforms and shows promising evidence of addressing quality and access issues. Social implications: Designing experiences to build teachers' social capital shows promising potential to support high quality PD that may, in turn, raise the quality of science education for students and classrooms both locally in the US and globally. Originality/value: The conceptual framework provides a novel approach to theorizing and operationalizing best practices for teacher PD and online participation.

In this study, we build on an emerging trend in socioscientific issues (SSI) education to support action through the use of personally relevant digital tools. We investigate the design of curriculum that integrates SSIs with the design and programming of mobile apps using a design-based research methodology. Through the series of design iterations, we highlight important tradeoffs in design choices that can potentially impact the depth of students' learning of SSIs and how students take action. These considerations include the sequencing of programming versus SSI instruction, enabling or restricting student choice of SSI topics, mandating collaboration on app development, and emphases on packaged computational components versus computational concepts. We conclude with several design suggestions to maximize efforts to promote scientific action through app construction and SSI education.

SYNOPSISObjective. Fathers who are impacted by the child welfare system are often examined through a deficit lens. This cross-sectional study aims to assess paternal warmth as a positive dimension of non-offending, primary caregiving men’s fathering and examine the links between paternal warmth and children’s socioemotional development among families impacted by the U.S. child welfare system. Design. Data came from a subsample (N = 192) included in the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being-Second Cohort. Primary caregiving fathers were from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, with biological fathers making up the largest group followed by foster fathers and grandfathers. Children’s internalizing symptoms, externalizing symptoms, and social competence were regressed on paternal warmth assessed using the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment-Short Form. Results. Paternal warmth did not differ by father type. Greater paternal warmth was associated with lower levels of children’s externalizing symptoms and higher levels of children’s social competence. Conclusions. Non-offending, primary caregiving fathers engage in positive fathering—in the form of paternal warmth—despite the multiple disadvantages they face, and such fathering is associated with beneficial socioemotional outcomes for their children. Family and child welfare practitioners should provide father-inclusive services to support fathering, especially within the often complex system of child welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]