Promote Problem Solving Research Articles

The effects of premarital relationship enrichment programs on marriage strength: A narrative review article

Background and Purpose: Strengthening marriage relationship includes a body of programs focusing on boosting the couples' common understanding, honesty, trust, empathy and coordination. Premarital consultation along with the couples' relationship enrichment can result in their improved relationship. The current study aims to analyze the studies conducted on consultation programs for marriage relationship enrichment and marriage strength. Methods: The current study is a narrative review performed using key words related to advanced search in database like Pubmed, Google Scholar, Web of Sciences, Magiran, Iran Medex and SID in the past 20 years. After recovering 57 papers, 10 Persian ones along with 25 English papers directly related to this issue and cited by famous authors many times have been given in the paper's results. Results: The findings show that premarital consultation through promoting life skills, familiarity with spouse selection criteria and paving the ground for accepting gender role in marriage can be considered as one of the critical components of strengthening marriage. Conclusion: Premarital consultation helps human beings to improve their relationship by knowing themselves and their would-be partner, clarifying their expectations from each other, promoting problem solving and getting aware of compatible and incompatible characteristics before marriage. By considering the population policy of Iran and in order to meeting favorite relationship between newly wedding couples, it's suggested to provide suitable premarital counseling packages according to Iranian socio-cultural context.

Improving Preceptor Behavior Through Formative Feedback in Preceptor Training

Context Clinical instructor educators (CIEs) prepare athletic trainers (ATs) to serve as preceptors. Structured performance observation and supervisory conferencing is a well-established method to improve teaching practice that may prove effective for training preceptors. Objective To explore the impact of a systematic preceptor training program on preceptor behaviors. Design Mixed-methods, quasi-experimental, pre-post design using a systematic observational tool for measuring preceptor behaviors, postintervention survey, and focus group interview. Setting Two collegiate athletic training facilities. Patients or Other Participants Three ATs serving as preceptors (2 men, 1 woman) with 5.7 ± 5.5 years supervising students. Intervention(s) Preceptor training including a CIE-preceptor planning conference, video-recorded observation session that was coded using an Observational Record of Clinical Educator Behavior (ORCEB) coding form, and CIE-preceptor feedback conference conducted over a 4-week period. Main Outcome Measure(s) We used the ORCEB to count the frequency of 4 categories of preceptor behaviors demonstrated every 5 seconds during a 30-minute clinical education session. Frequency counts for each category of behavior and percentage of change preintervention to postintervention were calculated. A postintervention survey and focus group interview evaluated perceptions of intervention effectiveness. Results Aggregate mean frequency counts for the giving information category increased by 272.8% preintervention (41.7 ± 27.5) to postintervention (155.3 ± 62), evaluating students increased 185.7% preintervention (4.7 ± 8.1) to postintervention (13.3 ± 11.1), and behaviors that promote problem solving increased 257.9% preintervention (6.3 ± 2.3) to postintervention (22.7 ± 13.4). Behaviors that do not promote student engagement decreased 45.1% preintervention (307.3 ± 33.3) to postintervention (168.7 ± 55.8). The survey (4.0–4.7 ± 0.0–0.6) and focus group results support a positive perception on impact of the intervention on the role as preceptor. Conclusions Our study supports a systematic training program as a favorable method for increasing effective preceptor behaviors. Limitations of our study include a small sample size and inclusion of only 1 athletic training education program.

The Effects of Self-efficacy Beliefs and Metacognition on Academic Performance: A Mixed Method Study

This study investigated the effect of Self-efficacy Beliefs and Metacognition on Academic Performance among high school students using a mixed method approach. A total of 2,138 form four (12 th grade) students participated in the study. The mixed-method study consisted of a quasi-experimental approach and in-depth interviews. Quantitative data were collected from self efficacy questionnaire (SEQ), biology ability test (BAT), genetics problem solving test (GPST) and metacognitive prompting questionnaire (MPQ). Qualitative data were collected using in-depth interviews. Quantitative data were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics (hierarchical linear regression and factorial ANOVA). Qualitative data were coded, categorized and reported thematically. Regression analysis indicated that self-efficacy was a strong predictor of academic performance. ANOVA analysis displayed statistically significant differences in metacognition in form of metacognitive prompts between groups. Gender effects were also noted with female students outperforming male students on the genetics problem solving test. Subsequent qualitative data suggested that highly efficacious students did better on the tests than less efficacious students. The metacognitive prompting experience provides a rich environment for the development of metacognitive strategies that can promote problem solving skills among high school students.

Video telehealth for weight maintenance of African-American women

Summary We evaluated the effect of home telehealth on weight maintenance after a group-based weight loss programme. The home telehealth intervention comprised telephone counselling and home Internet-enabled digital video recorders (DVRs) with three channels of video programmes. The video content provided reinforcement and support to promote problem solving, prevent relapse and sustain motivation. Eighty-eight obese or overweight African-American women were randomized to receive monthly telephone counselling (control) or the home telehealth intervention. The weight change during maintenance was not significant in either group (0.6 kg in the intervention group, 0.0 kg in the control group), and there was no significant difference between them. Changes in diet, physical activity, social support and self-efficacy during the maintenance period did not differ significantly between groups. DVR use was low: during the intervention, the number of valid DVR viewings ranged from zero to 42 per person. DVR use was positively associated with previous attendance at the weight loss classes. Home video-based telehealth is a new method of delivering a weight loss maintenance intervention to African-American women. It had no effect on weight maintenance in the present study.

Roles and Strategies of Diabetes Support Group Facilitators

The purpose of the study was to explore the roles and strategies implemented by diabetes support group facilitators. A descriptive exploratory design that included 2 in-depth interviews and 1 group interview of 6 diabetes support group facilitators was implemented over a 2-month period. The participants described the role of facilitator as involving 4 major aspects: (1) a philosophy of shared authority and group ownership; (2) a conception of diabetes as a highly complex disease interconnected with all aspects of one's life; (3) a focus on quality of life; and (4) recognition of perfectionism as neither possible nor desirable in self-management. These role aspects formed the context for facilitator strategies in working with support groups. Four strategies were identified based on the individual and group interviews: (1) connecting, (2) exchanging information, (3) managing group dynamics, and (4) promoting problem solving. A facilitator support group model was developed from the study results. A clear need exists to develop and teach best practices for support group facilitation. Education in this area should occur systematically at the baccalaureate and master's levels as the role of health providers increasingly expands to include populations living with chronic diseases. Health care providers who are functioning in this role need continuing education to provide proficient care in this area of practice.

More Than Just Fun and Games: The Longitudinal Relationships Between Strategic Video Games, Self-Reported Problem Solving Skills, and Academic Grades

Some researchers have proposed that video games possess good learning principles and may promote problem solving skills. Empirical research regarding this relationship, however, is limited. The goal of the presented study was to examine whether strategic video game play (i.e., role playing and strategy games) predicted self-reported problem solving skills among a sample of 1,492 adolescents (50.8% female), over the four high school years. The results showed that more strategic video game play predicted higher self-reported problem solving skills over time than less strategic video game play. In addition, the results showed support for an indirect association between strategic video game play and academic grades, in that strategic video game play predicted higher self-reported problem solving skills, and, in turn, higher self-reported problem solving skills predicted higher academic grades. The novel findings that strategic video games promote self-reported problem solving skills and indirectly predict academic grades are important considering that millions of adolescents play video games every day.

A Mathematically Creative Four-Year-Old—What Do We Learn from Him?

A 4-year-old child, who is very interested and precocious in mathematics, was interviewed doing mathematical tasks in order to find out how advanced can a 4-year-old child be? His mathematical knowledge and ability are very high. Danny was able to count objects and add them, memorizing many of the addition facts. He was able to check if numbers are even or odd. He solved a variety of challenging addition, subtraction and multiplication problems. He could read and write large numbers in hundreds and thousands and could add large numbers. Analysis was done on the kind of problems the child was able to solve, their level of difficulty and the solution strategies the child used in light of what children usually do to solve these problems in ages 5-8 (Carpenter et al., 1999). Danny also showed creativity, including inventing problems for himself to solve and finding mathematical situations in his environment to attend to. An analysis was done on the creative components of his solutions and problem posing using the literature on creativity and creativity in mathematics learning (Leikin & Pitta-Pantazi, 2013). Interview with his mother showed that she supports Danny’s mathematical development by being responsive to his initiations and allowing him to explore his ideas autonomously. Her support was discussed in light of different support patterns of parents and what kind of support is especially beneficial to the child and encourages creativity (Leder, 1992). I discuss implications for education with an emphasis on what kindergarten and school can do to promote problem solving and creativity in mathematics.

A normal psychology of everyday pain

Proposed is a psychology of pain that focusses on normal psychological reactions to pain. A normal psychology of pain seeks to explain what normal people (those who would not meet any criteria for any psychological disorder) do when faced with pain. Herein, we focus on everyday pain defined as pain that is clinically unimportant that arises from normal everyday activity. Pain functions to interrupt current concerns and promote problem solving typically in the form of escape, pain management, or request for assistance. A model of analgesic problem solving is described. Focussing on pain as an interruption leads us to think about the purpose of analgesics in repairing attention and returning function. New endpoints for analgesic performance are offered. Similarly, a focus on pain as a motivation for analgesia demands that we understand how people self-medicate its relative success, and what influences patterns of self-medication. Finally, the problem of pain in children and adolescents, including self-medication in youth, is discussed. Although there is limited small-scale research on young people and their knowledge about analgesics, very little is known about their beliefs, attitudes to analgesics and their self-medication behaviour. Adolescents in most societies are left largely unguided. There is little child-specific communication about how to manage pain. Most children rely on parental knowledge, although increasingly the internet is becoming a source of advice for young people learning about analgesics.

Fall festival fun

Wonderful opportunities to engage students in enjoying the beauty and products of the season, autumn celebrations are also ripe with themes for various mathematics problems and activities: pumpkins, hay rides, apples, scarecrows, and the changing colors of the leaves. To promote problem solving and critical thinking, the October problems are situated in the context of an elementary school's fall festival.

Firefighters to the rescue

These problems are situated in the context of firefighting to promote problem solving and critical thinking.

Integrating QSEN and ACES:An NLN Simulation Leader Project

CARING FOR THE SPECIAL NEEDS OF THE AGING ADULT IS AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT FOCUS IN NURSING EDUCATION. Knowledge continues to evolve, creating exciting learning opportunities for nursing students and challenges for nurse educators. one such challenge is to use simulation to operationalize knowledge around safe care of the aging adult. the 2010-2011 national League for nursing (nLn) Simulation Leader Curriculum integration team - nurse educators selected to participate in a yearlong simulation leadership development program - examined key issues in the design, development, use, and integration of simulation in nursing education. the group noted that resources to guide faculty on how to tailor simulation to incorporate competencies around quality and safety in care of the aging are not easily accessible. this article provides an overview of the resources developed by the team for SirC, the nLn Simulation innovation resource Center. it is intended as a guide to incorporate concepts of quality and safety education for nurses into an unfolding simulation focused on care of the aging adult. Background Quality and Safety Education for nurses (QSEn) addresses the nursing competencies needed to assure the quality and safety of patient care. adapted from the institute of Medicine (ioM) competencies for nursing (2003), QSEn outlines essential features of competent nursing practice (nursing competencies) to improve patient safety and quality in health care settings. the six QSEn competencies are: patient-Centered Care, teamwork and Collaboration, Evidence-Based practice, Quality improvement, Safety, and informatics (Cronenwett et al., 2007). Subsets of each QSEn competency include knowledge, skills, and attitudes achievable during the educational process. results of the QSEn national delphi Study (Barton, armstrong, preheim, Gelmon, & andrus, 2009) led to the leveling of QSEn competencies into beginner, intermediate, and advanced learning objectives for integration across a nursing curriculum. The use of an unfolding case study correlates well with a leveled approach in the teaching of quality and safety for care of the older adult. unfolding case studies expose students to multiple aspects of a clinical situation and promote problem solving using an experiential learning method (page, Kowlowitz, & alden, 2010). the curriculum integration team determined that a scenario that unfolded over time would be an ideal simulation exemplar to demonstrate the integration of beginner, intermediate, and advance level QSEn competencies in care of the aging adult client. The NLN, in partnership with the Community College of philadelphia and with funding from the John a. Hartford Foundation, Laerdal Medical, and the independence Foundation, developed the aCES (advancing Care Excellence for Seniors) project to teach nursing students how to care for the older adults. the aCES project features four cases that unfold over time, take place in a variety of health care settings, and require complex decisionmaking. the team determined that blending QSEn with aCES was a natural choice for the focus of the project. Millie Larsen (reese, 2010), one of four aCES cases, includes a web-based text document with links to audio files and other supportive information. aCES provides teaching tools, evidence-based resources, and, importantly, a framework for incorporating the complexities of caring for the aging adult. permission was granted by the nLn to utilize the aCES scenario featuring Millie for inclusion in the curriculum integration project. Millie Larsen's case unfolds in three scenarios, with settings in an outpatient clinic and in an acute care hospital. it concludes with conflict regarding discharge from the inpatient setting. the scenarios reveal a compelling story illustrating the interaction of the multiple factors that affect a geriatric client's health. table 1 illustrates how the simulation leader project integrated the QSEn competencies by level into Millie's unfolding health care encounters. …

'Education . . . Education . . . Education'.

'Education . . . Education . . . Education'.

Measuring

Our reviewers take a peek at a new-look Ladybird book, a book promoting problem solving, and an old favourite re-launched.

‘Growing’ education in difficult environments promoting problem solving: a case from Palestine

This paper presents a collaborative educational experiment ‘The Death of the Dead Sea: A Problem Based Learning’ that was applied in two governmental high schools in Ramallah, Palestine in the school year 2006–2007. The students' role was to raise awareness to the phenomenon of the saltiest lake that shrinks towards extinction. In spite of the enormous challenges in Palestine, the project was achieved successfully. Students learned cooperatively to fully understand the problem, its causes, consequences and possible solutions. The learning process oriented learners toward meaning‐making over fact‐collecting. They expressed their own views and opinions in creative modes and outcomes and celebrated their work in an exhibition that illustrated the problem to other students, teachers and to the local community.

Histology Challenge: an interactive program for 1st year students

Our students come from diverse backgrounds. They need flexibility in their learning, and opportunities to review aspects of curriculum they are less confident with. An online teaching and learning programme called the Histology Challenge has been developed to supplement learning experiences offered in several first year anatomy and anatomy&physiology units at QUT. The programme is designed to be integrated with the existing Blackboard sites.The Histology Challenge emphasises the foundation concept that a complex system, such as the human body, can be better understood by examining its simpler components. The tutorial allows students to examine the cells and tissues which ultimately determine structural and functional properties of body organs. The program is interactive, asking students to make decisions and choices, demonstrating an integrated understanding of systemic and cellular aspects. It provides users with the ability to progress at their own pace and to test their understanding and knowledge. For the developer the learning activity can be easily controlled and modified via the use of text files.There are several key elements of this programme, designed to promote specific aspects of student learning. Minimum text is used, instead there is a strong emphasis on instructive artwork and original, high quality histology images presented within a framework that reinforces learning and promotes problem solving skills.

Dispelling Fear and Loathing: Engaging Mathematically Challenged Students to Learn Statistics

Although accreditation standards require that programs must teach quantitative research methodology, students are not always eager to learn statistics. This article describes several techniques to aid the social work instructor in engaging students who are uncomfortable facing statistical information. In one small BSW program a social work professor has collaborated with a mathematics professor in developing ideas to engage students who arrive with fear and loathing at the very word statistics. By promoting problem solving, improving student attitudes, and quelling fears regarding learning statistics, these techniques can be adapted in the social work classroom.

Enhancing Efficiency of the Medical Director

Enhancing Efficiency of the Medical Director

What Can Video Games Teach Us About Teaching Reading?

James Gee has suggested that video games can teach us important lessons about learning and that we can learn about teaching from these games. Reading research and the words of the author's daughter are the basis of an exploration of the learning principles Gee identifies. He explains that video games are successful in engaging children and teaching them the strategies they need to be successful and that high‐quality reading instruction should do the same.In this article, eight of the learning principles identified by Gee are applied to the teaching of reading. The first two explore insights about learners and the conditions that foster learning. The next three principles address general understandings about how learning occurs. The final three principles have direct implications for teaching.The article raises important questions about learning, engagement, and identity, as well as promoting problem solving and strategic activity in reading.

Instruction in Mastery Goal Orientation: Developing Problem Solving and Persistence for Clinical Settings

Individuals with a mastery orientation are more motivated to persist and increase their competence. Although studies have demonstrated the usefulness of explicitly teaching mastery goal orientation, no interventions have been used in nursing education. The purpose of this study was to determine whether mastery goal orientation could be rapidly acquired by nursing students via a short-term educational intervention. Nursing students from five programs participated in a 3-week intervention. Participants were matched by demographic profile and pretest goal orientation scores before being randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Goal orientation was measured before and after the intervention. Students in the experimental group increased their mastery orientation significantly, while reducing their performance orientation somewhat. They persisted to solve problems, while students in the control group gave up more easily when faced with a difficult task. Early development of mastery goal orientation that promotes problem solving and persistence for clinical settings can be a powerful adjunct to undergraduate nursing education.

Discovering the Errant Incident Report

Discovering the Errant Incident Report