Comfortable Teaching Research Articles

Exploration of digital health literacy in the deep south.

385 Background: As technological advances are implemented in healthcare, cancer patients with low digital health literacy are at risk for inequities. Understanding the community’s comfort with using and teaching technology skills can be foundational for the application of digital healthcare tools. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered prior to community conversations about digital health literacy to understand community comfort with technology. Surveys measured self-reported personal comfort performing, personal comfort teaching, and perceived county-comfort completing technology-based tasks. Participants rated their comfort level on a 5-point Likert scale (1= not at all, 2 = slightly, 3 = somewhat, 4 = moderately, 5 = completely). Mean scores were calculated and mean comfort levels were compared across healthcare providers, lay navigators, community health advisors (CHAs), and community members using one-way ANOVA tests. Tukey's HSD post-hoc tests were used to explore group differences. Results: Between 8/2023-4/2024, 164 participants across Alabama and Mississippi completed the pre-survey, including 32 healthcare providers, 17 lay navigators, 31 community health advisors (CHAs), and 84 community members. The sample was primarily female (90%), Black (74%), and from Alabama (84%). ANOVA tests revealed significant group differences between personal comfort levels (p<0.001) comfort teaching (p<0.001), and perception of county-level comfort in technology-based tasks (p=0.043) with lay navigators and healthcare providers reporting higher personal comfort and comfort teaching others technology-based tasks compared to community members (post-hoc Tukey’s HSD). Conclusions: Digital health literacy gaps remain, with lay and clinical providers potentially overestimating comfort with technology. Baseline technology skills must be addressed as healthcare increases reliance on technology. Personal Comfort p-value Comfort Teaching Others p-value Perception of County Comfort p-value Using Search Engines 3.61 4.72 4.76 4.23 <.0001 2.95 4.19 4.88 3.48 <.0001 2.52 3.16 3.82 3.13 0.043 Searching Online for Health-Related Information 3.49 4.66 4.71 4.06 2.90 4.03 4.71 3.35 2.46 2.69 3.29 2.97 Scanning QR codes 2.80 4.47 4.65 3.77 2.55 3.84 4.76 3.13 2.38 2.44 2.71 2.81 Logging into their Patient Portal 3.27 4.44 4.59 3.87 2.75 3.94 4.76 3.03 2.44 2.59 3.00 2.65 Sending their Care-Team a Message 3.05 4.38 4.65 3.74 2.63 3.91 4.82 3.03 2.37 2.44 2.71 2.58 Personal comfort, comfort teaching, perception of community comfort with technology; 7/17 tasks shown; C = community, H = hospital, L = lay navigator, CHAs = community health advisors.

Impact of school gardens on secondary schools' agricultural science education in east Berbice Corentyne, Guyana

This study aimed to investigate gender disparities among Agricultural Science teachers in Region 6, East Berbice Corentyne, Guyana, focusing on their perceptions of school gardens and their influence on the pedagogy of agricultural science in secondary schools. Data were collected via electronic questionnaires from 30 teachers across 17 secondary schools to examine the integration of school gardens and their impact on teaching agricultural science. The results revealed that students participating in school gardening activities showed a greater propensity towards considering agriculture as a potential career and demonstrated an enhanced understanding of its practical aspects. Furthermore, incorporating school gardens facilitated interdisciplinary learning, bridging agricultural science with subjects such as social studies, language arts, and mathematics. This interdisciplinary approach promoted a deeper understanding of real-world applications across various disciplines. The findings emphasised the significance of creating conducive learning environments to support effective agricultural science instruction. Providing teachers and students with comfortable teaching and learning spaces fosters engagement and enhances pedagogical efficacy. This study contributes to the expanding body of literature advocating for integrating school gardens into educational curricula, particularly in agricultural science instruction. By recognising the multifaceted benefits of school gardens, educators and policymakers can better support the development of holistic and engaging learning experiences for secondary school students.

A survey of educator perspectives toward teaching harm reduction cannabis education.

Substance use is common among youth which can adversely affect youth health. Despite the legalization of cannabis in Canada and much of the United States, there is a lack of harm reduction cannabis education in schools. In addition, educators may not feel prepared to teach students about cannabis. A cross-sectional survey explored educator perceptions toward teaching harm reduction substance use education to students in grades 4-12. Data analysis included descriptive statistics to evaluate demographic variables, ANOVAs to identify subgroup differences, and inductive thematic analysis to establish themes from open-ended responses. From the sample of 170 educators, the majority were female (77%) and worked as classroom teachers (59%). Ninety-two percent of educators felt harm reduction was an effective approach to substance use education, and 84% stated that they would feel comfortable teaching cannabis harm reduction education to students. While 68% of educators believed they would be able to recognize if a student was under the influence of cannabis, only 39% felt certain about how to respond to student cannabis use, and just 8% felt that their current teacher training allowed them to intervene and prevent cannabis-related harms. Most educators (89%) expressed interest in harm reduction training, particularly interactive training (70%) and instructor-led lessons (51%). Online curriculum resources were preferred by 57%. Responses differed by gender and age group, with females of any age and educators under 40 reporting greater support of harm reduction approaches and more interest in training. Educators expressed considerable support for harm reduction substance use education, but many felt unprepared to address this topic with students. The findings identified a need for educator training on harm reduction substance use education, so that educators can help students make informed choices around substance use, thereby promoting youth health and safety.

Analysis of needs for development of animated video learning media arina expressions based on local wisdom Kediri SDN Burengan II Kediri

This research aims to (1) describe the obstacles in developing learning media for animated videos of Arina's expressions based on Kediri local wisdom; (2) describe the need for developing Indonesian language learning media for class II; (3) describe the supporting capacity for developing learning media for animated videos of Arina's expressions based on Kediri local wisdom. The method used in the research was descriptive qualitative with the research subjects being class II students at SDN Burengan 2 with a total of 60 students and 2 teachers at SDN Burengan 2. Data collection techniques used interviews, questionnaires and observation. The analysis technique used is the data triangulation analysis technique (Mills and Huberman) with the stages of data collection  data reduction  data presentation  drawing conclusions. The research results show that 1) There are several obstacles in implementing animated video media, namely teachers prefer textual learning (relying only on textbooks), teachers are not very proficient in operating IT, teachers are more comfortable teaching without using learning media, and teachers still have difficulties in finding suitable media for students. 2) The development of animated video learning media is really needed by class II students at SDN Burengan 2. 3) The supporting capacity in implementing IT-based media is that the principal has facilitated computers and LCDs in implementing IT-based media, the principal provides facilities to help teachers be creative in making media learning, and school principals facilitate workshops/training in making IT-based media such as animated videos. From the results of this research, it is necessary to continue with further research in the form of developing animated video media for Arina's expressions based on Kediri local wisdom at SDN Burengan II Kediri.

Building capacity for ATLS trauma education: role of nurse practitioners and physician assistants

ObjectivesAdvanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) focuses on care of injured patients in the first hour of resuscitation. Expanded demand for courses has led to a concurrent need for new instructors....

Seeking the masculine with the feminine: P-6 pre-service teachers’ views on teaching about the 2020 US presidential election

As democracies have deteriorated worldwide, understanding preservice teachers’ perceptions regarding teaching about the 2020 US presidential election helps teacher educators better guide them to make informed and intentional pedagogical decisions for democratic education. Through a survey study, we found that early childhood and elementary preservice social studies teachers did not express a strong degree of comfort teaching about the presidential election and were most comfortable teaching about matters of literacy and of political agreement.

Effect of preschool teacher's math anxiety on teaching efficacy and classroom engagement in math

AbstractIncreasing number of studies have revealed that teacher's math anxiety is related to the use of less effective pedagogical practices, which can lead to reduced math achievement among elementary school students. Children's math experience begins before formal schooling. However, there is limited information about the effect of preschool teachers' math anxiety on math‐related activities. In the current study, 209 in‐service preschool teachers were recruited to explore the relationship between math anxiety and their involvement in math activities within the classroom. Our findings showed that preschool teachers with high levels of math anxiety reported feeling less comfortable teaching math, leading to reduced engagement in math‐related activities and decreased interactions with their students. Building upon these insights, potential strategies are proposed to mitigate adverse effects of math anxiety among preschool teachers and cultivate a more positive learning environment for children.

Identifying Barriers to Precepting Health Professions Learners During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic worsened the shortage of clinical training opportunities for health professions learners. During the pandemic, additional barriers to precepting health professions learners emerged. Understanding preceptors' perceptions of barriers is a first step to providing learners with the best clinical learning opportunities. In February 2021, the Emory Primary Care Consortium surveyed primary care providers eligible to precept health professions learners to determine their current precepting status and associated barriers encountered during and since COVID-19. A total of 61 physicians and 11 nurse practitioners (NPs) or physician assistants (PAs) completed the survey. Of the 41 current preceptors, 29 precepted only MD students, 2 MD and PA students, 7 NP students only, and 3 PA students only. Of the 31 respondents who were not precepting, most (21) had precepted before March 2020 and not since. Pandemic-related precepting challenges included low patient volume (12), lack of comfort teaching in a telehealth setting (7), increased external pressure (eg, children at home; 8), and other reasons (12). Overall, 20 respondents were interested in training on incorporating students into the telehealth clinical workflow and 13 in training on teaching and providing feedback remotely. The COVID-19 pandemic placed additional burdens on preceptors in primary care. Preceptors could benefit from training on incorporating students into telehealth visits. Increased understanding of preceptor needs could lead to new resource offerings and improved future medical education.

Elementary General Music: Perceptions and Aspirations of Preservice Music Teachers

The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of preservice music educators’ perceptions of elementary general music (EGM), pedagogical competencies, and specialization preference. Preservice music teachers responded to a survey about perceptions of personal experiences with EGM, preparation and comfort related to EGM, and confidence in the ability to teach content and skills common in EGM curricula. Participants ( n = 203) also answered questions about their preferred specialization and about factors that would influence their choice of job in the future. Most participants remembered having positive personal experiences with general music in elementary school and believe it is important for future musical success. Confidence in content and skills common in teaching EGM increases as they progress through their degree program. Most identify ensemble teaching and middle and high school grades as their future aspirations. Significant predictors of future career choice included undergraduate major and comfort teaching.

Effects of SGM Education for Undergraduate Medical Students in a Canadian Context

Medical schools have been striving to equip students with the tools and skills needed to serve patients from the LGBTQ + community, also called the Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM) community. This study aims to assess student comfort with providing care, and faculty knowledge and preparedness in delivering SGM-centered education at our home institution. We conducted two mixed-methods surveys, one geared towards medical students across four years of study and one towards medicine faculty. Each survey collected first demographic information about participants, then used a validated tool to assess knowledge of the SGM community. The qualitative component of both surveys then consisted of a needs assessment to determine what students felt should be changed about their curriculum, and what faculty felt should change about their training to deliver this curriculum. We received 26 student responses from all 4 years of study and 35 faculty responses from a variety of medical specialties. Difference in knowledge assessment scores was not statistically significant across both cohorts. Most students felt overall comfortable providing care for sexual minority individuals, and faculty similarly felt comfortable teaching, but data showcases that perceived comfort is higher among the student cohort. We propose that students are acquiring knowledge and comfort with providing for SGM individuals from sources outside their curriculum, and that additional training of faculty is vital to ensure students not doing this independent learning do not fall through the cracks.

A cross-sectional study to assess faculty and student knowledge of climate change and health: Readiness for curricular integration.

To examine the perceived knowledge, attitudes and beliefs regarding climate change and health of academic faculty and students in programmes for health professionals and to identify barriers/facilitators to and resources required for curriculum integration. Cross-sectional survey eliciting quantitative and open-ended responses. A 22-question survey to assess climate-health knowledge/attitudes/beliefs was distributed to all students and faculty (n = 224) at one academic institution in the United States. Open-ended questions addressed barriers, facilitators and required resources. Descriptive statistics are reported, and thematic analysis was used to identify themes from open-ended responses. Response rate was 15%. Most respondents (76%) were between 20 and 34 years old. The majority were from nursing (39%), occupational therapy (13%) and communication speech disorders (12.5%). Most respondents perceived climate change as relevant to direct patient care (78%) and believed that it is impacting the health of individuals (86%) and should be integrated into curricula (89%). Yet, most (60%) reported modest to no knowledge about the health impacts. Faculty reported little to no comfort teaching climate change and health concepts (76%). Open-ended responses identified student/faculty receptivity and professional/clinical relevance as important facilitators of successful integration. Barriers included intensity of programmes; time and competing curricular priorities; and a lack of faculty expertise, resources, institutional and professional commitment. Most health professions students and faculty indicated that educating future health professionals about climate change and health is important, but existing barriers must be addressed. This study addressed student and faculty perceptions of integrating climate change and health into health professions curricula. Discipline-specific and interprofessional educational approaches are necessary to optimize future health professionals' efforts to prevent and mitigate climate change impacts for at-risk patients, communities and populations.

Assessing blended and online-only delivery formats for teacher professional development in Kenya

The present study compared the learning and experiences of Kenyan teachers randomly assigned to either an online or a blended 12-week intensive teacher professional development program (TPD). The TPD addressed the fundamentals of early literacy development as well as how to use early literacy software to support students learning. TPD outcomes were assessed through surveys, course performance and discussion elements. Teachers demonstrated pre- to post-test gains in domain knowledge, lesson plan construction and comfort teaching early literacy skills. Few differences were observed between the online versus blended formats. However, teachers endorsed a blended instructional format over online-only or in-person formats. Challenges regarding resources and infrastructure were identified as barriers to technology integration within the classroom. Some cultural challenges were identified as potential barriers for young learners using software developed in Western countries. Overall, both online and blended formats appear to be effective TPD delivery systems for Kenyan teachers, however, findings highlighted challenges that need to be addressed to optimize learning when using technology. Future research recommendations include broadening the teacher sample to assess potential differences due to regionalism, associated differences in access to resources, and further examination of teaching experience on learning in the two types of online formats.

Where Do We Go from here? Post-pandemic Planning and the Future of Graduate Medical Education.

As the pandemic wanes, there is an opportunity to reevaluate resultant changes in graduate medical education (GME), particularly from the viewpoints of those affected most. We aimed to assess both trainee and faculty perceptions on the educational changes and innovations resulting from the pandemic to inform future educational planning. We surveyed trainees and core education faculty at three New York City children's hospitals. Surveys assessed perceived changes to educational activities, skills, scholarship, effectiveness of virtual teaching, future desirability, and qualitative themes. The survey was completed by 194 participants, including 88 (45.4%) faculty and 106 (54.6%) trainees. Trainees were more likely to report a negative impact of the pandemic compared with faculty (75.5% vs. 50%, p < 0.01). Most respondents reported a decrease in formal educational activities (69.8%), inpatient (77.7%) and outpatient (77.8%) clinical teaching. Despite this, most perceived clinical and teaching skills to have stayed the same. Most (93.4%) participated in virtual education; however, only 36.5% of faculty taught virtually. Only 4.2% of faculty had extensive training in virtual teaching and 28.9% felt very comfortable teaching virtually. In the future, most (87.5%) prefer a hybrid approach, particularly virtual didactic conferences and virtual grand rounds. Faculty themes included challenges to workflows and increased empathy for trainees, while trainee themes included increased work/life balance and support, but increased burnout. Many changes and innovations resulted from the pandemic. Hospital systems and GME programs should consider this data and incorporate viewpoints from trainees and faculty when adapting educational strategies in the future. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-023-01737-8.

Implementation of the Lora System for Temperature and Humidity Monitoring in POLBAN Classrooms

The need for temperature and humidity monitoring in classrooms, is very important for the purpose of comfortable teaching and learning processes, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic conditions. At Politeknik Negeri Bandung (POLBAN), there are more than a hundred classrooms. The rooms are spread over several buildings; therefore, the process of monitoring temperature and humidity will be difficult if it is done using a cable (wireline). In this study, a temperature and humidity monitoring system for classrooms at POLBAN will be made using LoRa wireless architecture. In several classrooms, temperature and humidity sensors will be installed combined with a LoRa sending system. There are conditioned room and unconditioned room. On the monitoring center, a LoRa receiver system is also installed. Data from each classroom, will wirelessly be sent to the monitoring center, for further processing. In the implementation stage, one gateway, 4 endnotes with DHT11 sensor are used. Testing process is carried out by verifying and monitoring performance in 4 classrooms and in open spaces. Results of verifying show a difference of 2℃ and 1% of the RH value with a reference measuring instrument. There is no difference in temperature and RH values at the endnode and gateway.

Faculty perspectives of teaching and facilitating learning transfer in Veteran Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs.

• Gaps exist related to teaching student veterans and maximizing learning transfer. • Prior military experience prepared and increased comfort teaching student veterans. • Knowledge of military culture influenced support and teaching of student veterans. • Creating safe environments and knowing each veteran facilitated learning transfer.

Teachers' perspective of English learning models amidst pandemic: Online and offline learning

The purpose of this study is to find out the teacher's perspective on online learning and offline learning. With the advancement of technology, a new trend in the classroom has developed primarily during the Pandemic. This qualitative descriptive study investigates teachers’ perspectives regarding online and offline learning; Two ninth-grade English teachers from SMPN 3 Cisauk, Banten, were involved in this study. The researchers used direct observation and interviews with two English teachers to obtain the data. The result showed that English teachers are more comfortable teaching students offline than online. Besides that, English teachers feel the maximum capacity to deliver the material chosen directly in the classroom. Meanwhile, in carrying out online learning, which is different from face-to-face learning, teachers must implement appropriate methods and media according to student needs. Finally, four recommendations are provided. Those are related to teachers’ efforts to improve the quality and suitability of the learning materials, institutional support (e.g., internet stipend), teachers’ readiness for Information and Technology, and attention to students’ difficulties in learning.

Faculty Development in Proficiency and Application of Point-Of-Care Ultrasound

Introduction: Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) continues to be integrated into medical school and residency curriculums with objectives to increase proficiency and utilization in practice. Implementation of a targeted curriculum with faculty can increase proficiency of ultrasound. Methods: We created a POCUS pilot program at a small academic center to assess faculty members’ knowledges and perception about ultrasound in surgical settings. We conducted an observational cross-sectional study to test the hypothesis and hypothesized members would have increased confidence in their proficiency. Participants attended a 2-hour session with expert faculty. Our session consisted of a pre-test assessment survey, one-hour of didactic lecture, hands-on workshop with an ultrasound simulation machine and live standardized patient, and a post-test assessment survey. Faculty were given the option to return for further self-directed learning with ultrasound simulation machine after the pilot program if desired. Results: There was a statistically significant difference in pre- and post-survey questions that addressed comfort using ultrasound in clinical setting and critical care setting, comfort in using ultrasound at bedside rounds, comfort teaching medical student and residents, comfort performing FAST (Focused Abdominal Sonogram for Trauma) exam and comfort in doing basic bedside echocardiography. Faculty indicated time, availability of ultrasound equipment to faculty and house staff, and cost of equipment as important barriers to utilization of ultrasound in the clinical setting. Discussion: Our pilot POCUS course showed improved confidence in ultrasound skills among faculty members. It is important to address barriers such as limited availability of equipment and adequate time preparation for future POCUS curriculums.

The importance of affective learning goals: lessons learned from the design and evolution of a geoscience course for preservice primary teachers

The challenges of teaching science to preservice elementary teachers include an overall negative attitude about science that translates to future teachers who do not teach science confidently and/or teach it superficially and hurriedly compared to other subjects. College-level science courses for preservice teachers have an opportunity to reverse this trend and help create teachers who are knowledgeable about science and enjoy teaching it. In this paper, we discuss the hybrid model of an online course and a hands-on, inquiry-based lab that was developed, implemented, and evolved over eight years. The lab activities, in particular, were developed to address both content and affective goals. These goals were to provide students with a solid foundation in Earth and Space Science content and to make them comfortable teaching science. An assessment of these goals shows that this course increased preservice teachers’ level of confidence to teach these topics, and students generally found the course to be enjoyable and the content to be useful to their future careers. More work needs to be done to assess the content knowledge of this group of students, highlighting the need for developing a validated instrument that covers the breadth of Earth and Space Science content included in the NGSS for elementary grades.

Nonstring Music Teachers’ Comfort Teaching String Ensembles

This study was designed to explore nonstring specialists’ comfort teaching students in string ensembles. Comfort was defined as an individual’s ease when teaching the subject matter. Data were gathered, using a 7-point Likert-type scale related to 15 string topics administered through a researcher-developed study. Participants ( N = 180), who were identified through the National Association for Music Education membership list, were contacted via email. Responses were analyzed using descriptive and parametric statistics. Results revealed that band specialists felt significantly more comfortable in string teaching situations than choir and elementary general music specialists. Participants who took a string methods course, as compared with those who did not, felt more comfortable teaching seven specific string topics. Participants who were currently teaching string ensembles felt more comfortable teaching all string topics, except for vibrato technique. Participants who had taught strings in the past were significantly more comfortable teaching string ensembles than those who had never taught strings. The findings of this study could help higher education string methods instructors select instructional activities and course topics that were revealed to provide the most beneficial experiences.

Investigating evolutionary relationships through cluster analysis: A teaching science with big data workshop session

Biochemistry is a data-heavy discipline, yet teaching students to work with large datasets is absent from many undergraduate Biochemistry programs. Ensuring that future generations of students arevbv confident in tackling problems using big data first requires that educators become comfortable teaching big data skills. The activity described herein introduces educators to working with big data and a framework for generating sequence similarity networks using JupyterLab and Python. This article reports a session from the virtual international 2021 IUBMB/ASBMB workshop, "Teaching Science with Big Data."