Reading Scores Research Articles

Hubungan Kemampuan Membaca Kritis Dengan Kemampuan Menulis Teks Eksposisi Siswa Kelas X SMAN 3 Solok Selatan

he purpose of this study was to describe the relationship between critical reading ability and the ability to write expository texts for class X students of SMA N 3 Solok Selatan. This type of research is quantitative research using correlational methods. The sampling technique for this research was purposive sampling technique. Sampling is done based on the class that has the lowest standard deviation. The research sample is one class, namely class X-2, totaling 32 people. Research instruments in the form of questionnaires and performance tests. The questionnaire was used to collect students' critical reading scores while the performance test was used to collect exposition text writing skills scores. Based on the research results, the following conclusions can be drawn: First, the critical reading ability of class X students of SMA Negeri 3 Solok Selatan obtained an average score of 75.84 in the range of 76-85% on a scale of 10, with a Good qualification (B). Second, the ability to write expository texts for class X students of SMA Negeri 3 Solok Selatan obtained an average score of 78.33 in the range of 76-85% on a scale of 10, with a Good qualification (B). Third, there is a significant relationship between vocabulary mastery and the ability to write exposition texts of class X students of SMA Negeri 3 Solok Selatan. This shows that critical reading skills affect students in writing expository texts. This can be seen from the test results which prove that tcount > from ttable, namely 4,86 > 1.70.

Survey of the quality and origins of websites on penile low-intensity shockwave therapy in Canada.

The aim of this study was to establish the quality of patient-facing websites advertising low-intensity shockwave therapy (LISWT) for erectile dysfunction (ED) and Peyronie's disease (PD) patients in Canada. Canadian websites offering LIWST for ED or PD were identified using online web searches. The characteristics of these websites were reviewed, along with examining the presence of HONCode certification, assigning a brief DISCERN score (a tool designed to evaluate health information online) and readability scores. We also examined the LIWST technology advertised, as well as benefits of LIWST cited by the websites. Twenty-five unique websites linked to 46 clinics were identified and reviewed. Twenty-four percent of websites were run by a urologist. Other specialties offering LISWT included general practitioners, anesthesiologists, naturopaths, nurse practitioners, physiotherapists, and registered massage therapists. Twenty-four percent of the websites advertised the use of a focused shockwave generator. Forty percent of the websites had peer-reviewed references. The average brief DISCERN score was 14 (standard deviation 3.4). There was no association between the physician-or non-physician-led websites and the use of peer-reviewed references, readability scores, the number of clinic locations, or higher brief discern scores. LISWT is readily advertised online for ED and PD patients in Canada; however, only a minority use a focused shockwave generator. There is a wide diversity of practitioners offering LISWT. Websites offering LISWT are generally of poor quality and do not provide adequate information for patients to make educated treatment decisions.

School performances in children with cataract: results from a population-based cohort study

ObjectivesChildhood cataract is a chronic condition that may interfere with the child’s learning capacities. We aimed to investigate whether childhood cataract influences academic development by comparing school performance in reading...

Artificial intelligence-supported screen reading versus standard double reading in the Mammography Screening with Artificial Intelligence trial (MASAI): a clinical safety analysis of a randomised, controlled, non-inferiority, single-blinded, screening accuracy study

Retrospective studies have shown promising results using artificial intelligence (AI) to improve mammography screening accuracy and reduce screen-reading workload; however, to our knowledge, a randomised trial has not yet been conducted. We aimed to assess the clinical safety of an AI-supported screen-reading protocol compared with standard screen reading by radiologists following mammography. In this randomised, controlled, population-based trial, women aged 40-80 years eligible for mammography screening (including general screening with 1·5-2-year intervals and annual screening for those with moderate hereditary risk of breast cancer or a history of breast cancer) at four screening sites in Sweden were informed about the study as part of the screening invitation. Those who did not opt out were randomly allocated (1:1) to AI-supported screening (intervention group) or standard double reading without AI (control group). Screening examinations were automatically randomised by the Picture Archive and Communications System with a pseudo-random number generator after image acquisition. The participants and the radiographers acquiring the screening examinations, but not the radiologists reading the screening examinations, were masked to study group allocation. The AI system (Transpara version 1.7.0) provided an examination-based malignancy risk score on a 10-level scale that was used to triage screening examinations to single reading (score 1-9) or double reading (score 10), with AI risk scores (for all examinations) and computer-aided detection marks (for examinations with risk score 8-10) available to the radiologists doing the screen reading. Here we report the prespecified clinical safety analysis, to be done after 80 000 women were enrolled, to assess the secondary outcome measures of early screening performance (cancer detection rate, recall rate, false positive rate, positive predictive value [PPV] of recall, and type of cancer detected [invasive or in situ]) and screen-reading workload. Analyses were done in the modified intention-to-treat population (ie, all women randomly assigned to a group with one complete screening examination, excluding women recalled due to enlarged lymph nodes diagnosed with lymphoma). The lowest acceptable limit for safety in the intervention group was a cancer detection rate of more than 3 per 1000 participants screened. The trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04838756, and is closed to accrual; follow-up is ongoing to assess the primary endpoint of the trial, interval cancer rate. Between April 12, 2021, and July 28, 2022, 80 033 women were randomly assigned to AI-supported screening (n=40 003) or double reading without AI (n=40 030). 13 women were excluded from the analysis. The median age was 54·0 years (IQR 46·7-63·9). Race and ethnicity data were not collected. AI-supported screening among 39 996 participants resulted in 244 screen-detected cancers, 861 recalls, and a total of 46 345 screen readings. Standard screening among 40 024 participants resulted in 203 screen-detected cancers, 817 recalls, and a total of 83 231 screen readings. Cancer detection rates were 6·1 (95% CI 5·4-6·9) per 1000 screened participants in the intervention group, above the lowest acceptable limit for safety, and 5·1 (4·4-5·8) per 1000 in the control group-a ratio of 1·2 (95% CI 1·0-1·5; p=0·052). Recall rates were 2·2% (95% CI 2·0-2·3) in the intervention group and 2·0% (1·9-2·2) in the control group. The false positive rate was 1·5% (95% CI 1·4-1·7) in both groups. The PPV of recall was 28·3% (95% CI 25·3-31·5) in the intervention group and 24·8% (21·9-28·0) in the control group. In the intervention group, 184 (75%) of 244 cancers detected were invasive and 60 (25%) were in situ; in the control group, 165 (81%) of 203 cancers were invasive and 38 (19%) were in situ. The screen-reading workload was reduced by 44·3% using AI. AI-supported mammography screening resulted in a similar cancer detection rate compared with standard double reading, with a substantially lower screen-reading workload, indicating that the use of AI in mammography screening is safe. The trial was thus not halted and the primary endpoint of interval cancer rate will be assessed in 100 000 enrolled participants after 2-years of follow up. Swedish Cancer Society, Confederation of Regional Cancer Centres, and the Swedish governmental funding for clinical research (ALF).

Readability of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association Patient Education Tool.

Online educational materials have become a fundamental resource for orthopaedic surgery patients; however, they are frequently written at a high level of reading ability and are too complicated for some patients to understand. The aim of this study was to appraise the readability of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA) patient education materials. All forty-one articles on the OTA patient education website (https://ota.org/for-patients) were analyzed for readability. Readability scores were calculated by two independent reviewers using the (1) Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and the (2) Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) algorithms. Mean readability scores were compared across anatomic categories. One-sample t-test was done to compare mean FKGL with the recommended 6th-grade readability level and the average American adult reading level. The average (SD) FKGL of the 41 OTA articles was 8.15 (1.14). The average (SD) FRE for the OTA patient education materials was 65.5 (6.60). Four (11%) of the articles were at or below a 6th-grade reading level. The average readability of the OTA articles was significantly higher than the recommended 6th-grade level (p < 0.001, 95% CI [7.79 - 8.51]). The average readability of the OTA articles was not significantly different from the average 8th-grade reading skill level of U.S. adults (p = 0.41, 95% CI [7.79 - 8.51]). Our findings suggest that despite the majority of the OTA patient education materials having readability levels suitable for the average US adult, these reading materials are still above the recommended 6th-grade level and may be too difficult for patient comprehension.

The impact of lexical and phonological distance on reading acquisition: The diglossic context of Arabic

BackgroundArabic is recognised as diglossic; one manifestation of diglossia is the co‐existence of two varieties of the language used in different social settings: standard (or literary) Arabic (StA) and spoken Arabic (SpA).The study investigated the impact of lexical–phonological distance in Arabic (identical, cognate, unique, which are different types of words) on reading accuracy and fluency across grade levels.MethodsThe participants were 180 native Arabic‐speaking children first and second graders. Participants were asked to read three‐word lists comprising words of three different lexical distance from spoken Arabic (identical, cognates and unique) and three text selections representing similar lexical distance (mostly identical, mostly cognates and mostly unique).ResultsThe findings showed a main effect of the word and text lexical distance fluency and accuracy reading scores. There was also a main effect of grade level on both scores. In addition, a significant interaction between the word and type words text lexical distance and grade level was found. The results revealed a more significant gap between the identical and the other two lexical distance categories (cognates and unique) in the second grade than in the first grade. Similarly, a more significant disparity was observed between the mostly identical type words and mostly cognate type word texts compared to unique type word texts in the second grade than in the first grade.ConclusionsThe results highlight the importance of StA knowledge and the centrality of diglossia lexical–phonological distance categories in reading, especially the contribution of reading StA words to text reading. The higher performance levels when reading identical compared to unique and cognate words and texts are discussed in light of the theoretical approaches to diglossic lexical–phonological distance. The results point to the centrality of diglossia lexical–phonological distance categories in reading.

Association Between Gestational Age and Academic Achievement of Children Born at Term

Differences in academic achievement by gestational age of children born at term, especially at 39 to 41 weeks, are not well understood. To examine differences in academic achievement among children born between 37 and 41 weeks' gestational age. This retrospective cohort study linked birth certificates of children born in Iowa from 1989 to 2009 with school test scores for grades 2 to 11 from 2017 to 2018. Statistical analysis was performed from January to March 2023. Gestational age at 37, 38, 39, and 41 weeks vs 40 weeks from clinical or obstetric and calendar measures. Outcomes were scores in national percentile rankings (NPRs) on standardized school tests in math and reading. Covariates included demographic and prenatal risk factors. The sample included 536 996 children (50.7% male children and 49.3% female children) with math scores (3 576 045 child-grade observations; 6.6%, 15.7%, 28.6%, 35.5%, and 13.7% born at 37, 38, 39, 40, and 41 weeks, respectively) and 537 078 children with reading scores (3 590 408 child-grade observations). Score differences for those born at 39 vs 40 weeks were -0.028 NPRs (95% CI, -0.18 to 0.12 NPRs) for math and 0.085 NPRs (95% CI, -0.067 to 0.24 NPRs) for reading using the clinical or obstetric measure and 0.03 NPRs (95% CI, -0.14 to 0.20 NPRs) for math and 0.13 NPRs (95% CI, -0.042 to 0.31 NPRs) for reading using the calendar measure. With the clinical or obstetric measure, score differences between those born at 41 and 40 weeks were 0.19 NPRs (95% CI, -0.0052 to 0.38 NPRs) for math and 0.098 NPRs (95% CI, -0.096 to 0.29 NPRs) for reading. With the calendar measure, score differences for those born at 41 weeks were -0.22 NPRs (95% CI, -0.43 to -0.013 NPRs) for math and -0.28 NPRs (95% CI, -0.49 to -0.074 NPRs) for reading. With the clinical or obstetric measure, score differences between those born at 37 and 38 weeks vs 40 weeks were -0.59 NPRs (95% CI, -0.84 to -0.33 NPRs) and -0.44 NPRs (95% CI, -0.62 to -0.26 NPRs), respectively, for math, and -0.066 NPRs (95% CI, -0.32 to 0.19 NPRs) and -0.19 NPRs (95% CI, -0.37 to 0.0038 NPRs), respectively, for reading. This study suggests that there is no evidence of a difference in math and reading scores over grades 2 to 11 among children born between 39 and 40 weeks' gestation, and overall no evidence of better scores among those born at 41 weeks' gestation compared with 40 weeks' gestation. The results can further inform decisions on delivery timing at term birth by offering insights into long-term associations of delivery timing with cognitive development and school achievement.

Effectiveness of a Mixed Methods-Based Literacy Program in Improving Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary Mastery, and Reading Fluency Skills of Early Grade Students

Many young children still experience reading difficulties when they enter school age. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of a mixed methods-based reading literacy program (computer-assisted reading, independent tiered reading, and group-based reading teaching) to improve reading comprehension skills, vocabulary mastery, and reading fluency among early grade students. The study used a quantitative approach with experimental research methods. A quasi-experimental design was used to achieve the research objectives by involving 350 elementary school students who were in the fourth to sixth grade range of elementary school. The sample selection in this study involved the purposive sampling technique using several criteria. The teachers involved in this study totaled 150 teachers from 8 schools who acted as program implementers at school. The reading literacy program was implemented for two semesters for five days each week. The research findings show that the mixed methods-based reading literacy program had a significant effect on all competencies (word reading efficiency, reading comprehension ability, and reading fluency) in Grade 3 students, but this increase in ability was not seen in grades 5 and 6 students. More specifically, the effect size of the intervention on oral reading fluency in Grade 3 students was greater than the effect size in Grade 5 students. Furthermore, the effect size in Grade 4 was greater than the effect size in grades 5 and 6. This is because the treatment of reading difficulties in younger students is easier and more effective than in older students. In addition, based on the results of the correlation analysis, the number of words read during reading activities using a computer had a positive relationship with word reading scores and visual word reading efficiency in the post-test phase. Therefore, mixed methods-based literacy programs have a significant impact on reading fluency, and on vocabulary mastery and reading comprehension competence and reading fluency. This research has implications in that improving reading ability in the early grades is better done by using a combination of methods, such as computer-assisted reading, independent tiered reading, and group-based reading teaching. In this way, the improvement of students’ reading skills is more optimal.

Assessing the Readability of Online Patient Education Resources Related to Neophallus Reconstruction

IntroductionOnline patient education materials (PEMs) often exceed the recommended 6th grade reading level. This can negatively affect transmasculine patients’ understanding of treatment plans, increasing barriers to care and worsening health outcomes and patient satisfaction. This study assessed the readability of online English and Spanish PEMs regarding phalloplasty and urethroplasty. MethodsThe English and Spanish terms for phalloplasty and urethroplasty were queried on Google. The first fifty results were grouped into institutional (government, medical school, teaching hospital), noninstitutional (private practice, news channel, blog, etc.), and academic (journal articles, book chapters) categories. Readability scores were generated using the Simple Measure of Gobbledygook and Spanish Simple Measure of Gobbledygook scales. ResultsAll PEMs exceeded recommended reading levels. For both procedures, English PEMs had an average reading level approximately of a university sophomore and Spanish PEMs had an average reading level approximately of a high school junior. For both procedures, English PEMs were harder to read than Spanish PEMs overall (P < 0.001) and when compared across the three categories between the two languages (P < 0.001). For Spanish urethroplasty PEMs, noninstitutional PEMs were more difficult to read than institutional PEMs (P < 0.05). ConclusionsOnline information for phalloplasty and urethroplasty should be revised and/or standardized materials should be created by trans-affirming health-care providers and national organizations in order to more fully educate the public and prospective patients prior to intervention. A well-informed patient population will improve patient decision-making and surgeon-patient communication, ultimately leading to better health outcomes.

Neural pathways of attitudes toward foreign languages predict academic performance.

Learning attitude is thought to impact students' academic achievement and success, but the underlying neurocognitive mechanisms of learning attitudes remain unclear. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the neural markers linked to attitudes toward foreign languages and how they contribute to foreign-language performance. Forty-one Chinese speakers who hold differentiated foreign language (English) attitudes were asked to complete an English semantic judgment task during a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiment. Multimethod brain imaging analyses showed that, compared with the positive attitude group (PAG), the negative attitude group (NAG) showed increased brain activation in the left STG and functional connectivity between the left STG and the right precentral gyrus (PCG), as well as changed functional segregation and integration of brain networks under the English reading task, after controlling for English reading scores. Mediation analysis further revealed that left STG activity and STG-PCG connectivity mediated the relationships between English attitudes and English reading performance. Taken together, these findings suggest that objective neural markers related to subjective foreign language attitudes (FLAs) exist and that attitude-related neural pathways play important roles in determining students' academic performance. Our findings provide new insights into the neurobiological mechanisms by which attitudes regulate academic performance.

ChatGPT vs Google for Queries Related to Dementia and Other Cognitive Decline: Comparison of Results.

People living with dementia or other cognitive decline and their caregivers (PLWD) increasingly rely on the web to find information about their condition and available resources and services. The recent advancements in large language models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT, provide a new alternative to the more traditional web search engines, such as Google. This study compared the quality of the results of ChatGPT and Google for a collection of PLWD-related queries. A set of 30 informational and 30 service delivery (transactional) PLWD-related queries were selected and submitted to both Google and ChatGPT. Three domain experts assessed the results for their currency of information, reliability of the source, objectivity, relevance to the query, and similarity of their response. The readability of the results was also analyzed. Interrater reliability coefficients were calculated for all outcomes. Google had superior currency and higher reliability. ChatGPT results were evaluated as more objective. ChatGPT had a significantly higher response relevance, while Google often drew upon sources that were referral services for dementia care or service providers themselves. The readability was low for both platforms, especially for ChatGPT (mean grade level 12.17, SD 1.94) compared to Google (mean grade level 9.86, SD 3.47). The similarity between the content of ChatGPT and Google responses was rated as high for 13 (21.7%) responses, medium for 16 (26.7%) responses, and low for 31 (51.6%) responses. Both Google and ChatGPT have strengths and weaknesses. ChatGPT rarely includes the source of a result. Google more often provides a date for and a known reliable source of the response compared to ChatGPT, whereas ChatGPT supplies more relevant responses to queries. The results of ChatGPT may be out of date and often do not specify a validity time stamp. Google sometimes returns results based on commercial entities. The readability scores for both indicate that responses are often not appropriate for persons with low health literacy skills. In the future, the addition of both the source and the date of health-related information and availability in other languages may increase the value of these platforms for both nonmedical and medical professionals.

The Readability Analysis of Online Education Materials for Kidney Transplantation

Introduction: The growing use of online information influences people's healthcare decision making in terms of treatment or consulting a doctor. The readability of a website is a factor that influences the correct understanding of its content. Regarding that there is little information about the readability as well as the credibility of health websites in the field of kidney transplantation, the present study assesses the readability and trustworthiness of websites in this topic.Material and Methods: Google, Yahoo, and Bing search engines were used to search for "Kidney Transplantation" and "Renal Transplantation.". Four readability scales were applied to assess the readability of the first 30 results of each search engine. The HONcode toolbar was applied to recognize credible websites. The relationship between HONcode verification and website position on the search results pages was explored. Furthermore, the difference between the readability scores and website position on the search results pages was tested. The readability difference between search result pages was also examined.Results: According to the results, the assessed websites are suitable for students or high school graduates. Furthermore, the association between the average readability of websites and website position on the search results pages was significant (p-value&lt;0.05). A significant association between HONcode-verified sites and website position on the search results pages was also revealed (p-value=0.011).Conclusion: The readability of kidney transplantation websites is far above the recommended level. Therefore, health organizations must consider readability while designing their websites.

Psikiyatride Yaygın Olarak Kullanılan Antidepresan İlaç Prospektüslerinin Okunabilirliğinin Değerlendirilmesi

The understanding of a written text is directly related to the readability level of that text. Readability can be measured objectively using specific formulas. In this study, we aimed to determine the readability level of the drug package inserts of antidepressant drugs. A total of 51 drug package inserts were grouped according to antidepressant types. Title and drug license information was removed from the texts for standardization. These were evaluated using the Ateşman, Bezirci–Yılmaz and Çetinkaya–Uzun readability formulas, applicable to Turkish texts. The average Ateşman readability score was determined as 71.4. Accordingly, it was seen that the drug package inserts require a grade 7-8 of education for readability. The readability level of the Bezirci-Yılmaz formula was, similarly, of grade 7-8 (primary education) level. The Çetinkaya-Uzun readability score was calculated as 45.4 and an 8-9th grade level was determined. It was ascertained that the drug package inserts were readable at the secondary education (7th-9th grade) level on average. Considering the average education level in Turkey, it was established that the readability level was therefore high. We believe that writing the drug package inserts based on the average education level will increase readability and therefore intelligibility.

Construct validation of NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery premorbid cognitive functioning scores in Black and White older Americans with and without mild cognitive impairment.

Valid estimates of premorbid cognitive functioning (PMIQ) are crucial for the assessment of older adults at risk for Alzheimer's disease. We investigated the relationship between the NIH Toolbox-Cognition Battery's (NIHTB-CB) Oral Reading Recognition (ORR) subtest and Wechsler Test of Adult Reading scores (WTAR, convergent validity). We also compared ORR to NIHTB-CB Flanker scores, where null relationships were expected (discriminant validity). The WTAR and NIHTB-CB were administered to 130 cognitively normal (CN) and 113 participants with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Participants were community-dwelling, older Black and White adults, ages 55-88 years. Data analysis used uncorrected standard scores and Bayesian bivariate correlations. Supplemental materials include intraclass correlations. ORR and WTAR scores were strongly positively associated, while ORR and Flanker scores were unrelated. This pattern held when restricting analyses to the two cognitive status groups, the two racial groups, and the four race-by-diagnosis subgroups. The findings demonstrate convergent and discriminant validity and support NIHTB-CB ORR scores as valid estimates of scores on a PMIQ measure in older Black and White adults with and without MCI.

Readability of spine-related patient education materials: a standard method for improvement.

Orthopaedic patient education materials (PEMs) have repeatedly been shown to be well above the recommended reading level by the National Institute of Health and American Medical Association. The purpose of this study is to create a standardized method to improve the readability of PEMs describing spine-related conditions and injuries. It is hypothesized that reducing the usage of complex words (≥ 3 syllables) and reducing sentence length to < 15 words per sentence improves readability of PEMs as measured by all seven readability formulas used. OrthoInfo.org was queried for spine-related PEMs. The objective readability of PEMs was evaluated using seven unique readability formulas before and after applying a standardized method to improve readability while preserving critical content. This method involved reducing the use of > 3 syllable words and ensuring sentence length is < 15 words. Paired samples t-tests were conducted to assess relationships with the cut-off for statistical significance set at p < 0.05. A total of 20 spine-related PEM articles were used in this study. When comparing original PEMs to edited PEMs, significant differences were seen among all seven readability scores and all six numerical descriptive statistics used. Per the Flesch Kincaid Grade level readability formula, one original PEM (5%) versus 15 edited PEMs (75%) met recommendations of a sixth-grade reading level. The current study shows that using this standardized method significantly improves the readability of spine-related PEMs and significantly increased the likelihood that PEMs will meet recommendations for being at or below the sixth-grade reading level.

Health literacy in rotator cuff repair: a quantitative assessment of the understandability of online patient education material

The American Medical Association and National Institutes of Health recommend online health information be written at a 6th grade or lower reading level for clear understanding. While syntax reading grade level has previously been utilized, those analyses do not determine whether readers are processing key information (understandability) or identifying available actions to take (actionability). The Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT-P) is a method to measure the understandability and actionability of online patient education materials. The purpose of this study was to evaluate online resources regarding rotator cuff repair utilizing measures of readability, understandability, and actionability. The search term "rotator cuff surgery" was used in two independent online searches to obtain the top 50 search results. The readability of included resources was quantified using valid objective algorithms: Flesch-Kincaid Grade-Level, Simple Measure of Gobbledygook grade, Coleman-Liau Index, and Gunning Fog Index. The PEMAT-P form was used to assess actionability and understandability. A total of 49 unique websites were identified to meet our inclusion criteria and were included in our analysis. The mean Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level graded materials at a 10.6 (approximately a 10th grade reading level), with only two websites offering materials at a 6th grade reading level or below. The remaining readability studies graded the mean reading level at high school or greater, with the Gunning Fog Index scoring at a collegiate reading level. Mean understandability and actionability scores were 64.6% and 29.5%, respectively, falling below the 70% PEMAT score threshold for both scales. Fourteen (28.6%) websites were above the threshold for understandability, while no website (0%) scored above the 70% threshold for actionability. When comparing source categories, commercial health publishers provided websites that scored higher in understandability (P<.05), while private practice materials scored higher in actionability (P<.05). Resources published by academic institutions or organizations scored lower in both understandability and actionability than private practice and commercial health publishers (P<.05). No readability, understandability, or actionability score was significantly associated with search result rank. Overall, online patient education materials related to rotator cuff surgery scored poorly with respect to readability, understandability, and actionability. Only two (4.1%) of the patient education websites scored at the American Medical Association and National Institutes of Health recommended reading level. Fourteen (28.6%) scored above the 70% PEMAT score for understandability; however, no website met the threshold for actionability.

A readability analysis of patient education materials about chronic venous disease provided by professional vascular societies.

Professional vascular societies and forums have disseminated patient information on education materials about chronic venous disease (CVD) via their official websites. While online patient education material is readily available with an Internet connection, its practical utility may be limited for patients with low health literacy. Six readability measures were used to evaluate the patient education materials regarding CVD published by 12 professional medical societies. Patient education materials on CVD vary considerably in length among medical societies, and their comprehensibility points toward a difficult level. The mean readability score was 11.20, prominently above the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and American Medical Association (AMA) recommendations. Our analysis of patient education materials produced by 12 professional vascular societies and forums found that all materials exceeded the recommended readability levels. The innovative section "Information for patients'' in the ESVS CVD guidelines also exceeded these levels. Improving the readability of patient education materials is essential to meet patient health literacy standards and might improve patient outcomes in managing CVD.

Study on effectiveness analysis of multi-media combined with PBL teaching in breast surgery.

To explore the effectiveness of multi-media combined with PBL teaching in breast surgery. 56 interns who came to our hospital for breast surgery from January 2019 to December 2020 were randomly divided into two groups: traditional teaching control group (n = 28) and multi-media PBL teaching observation group (n = 28). Two groups' theoretical knowledge, skill operation, teaching quality, student's evaluation and satisfaction with the teaching model were compared before ending the internship. The total scores of breast examination, differential diagnosis, imaging reading, diagnosis and treatment scheme and total scores of the students in the observation group were higher than those of the students in the control group, and the total scores of body position, surgical site selection, disinfection and local anesthesia, surgical operation, postoperative treatment and clinical operation skills were also higher than those of the students in the control group (P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference between the two groups in medical history collection, professional knowledge and preoperative preparation (P > 0.05). The teaching quality of the students in the observation group was also significantly higher than that in the control group (P < 0.05). In addition, the students' satisfaction with the teaching method, the teaching effect and the overall satisfaction in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Multi-media combined with PBL teaching can effectively improve students' professional knowledge theory level, operation skills, enhance students' enthusiasm and initiative, develop good clinical thinking habits, and have high teaching satisfaction. It is worthy of being popularized in the clinical teaching of breast surgery.

Using fluency and comprehension instruction with struggling readers to improve student reading outcomes in English elementary schools

This study reports results from a randomized controlled trial of a reading intervention program in English elementary schools implemented during Covid19. Trained staff delivered targeted reading fluency and comprehension instruction to small groups of eligible children aged 7–9 for at least 12-weeks. Twelve schools from four English districts with high socio-economic disadvantage participated, with a sample of 186 children. Positive effect sizes of +0.26 on overall reading scores were observed, on an independently designed standardised reading test. A process evaluation assessed implementation fidelity. This intervention shows excellent promise as a technique to improve overall reading (mainly through enhancing sentence level reading comprehension).

Spanking and parental verbal aggression during early childhood: Association with later academic achievement and the mediating role of executive function

AbstractSpanking and parental verbal aggression are potentially toxic stressors that can negatively affect children's academic achievement by disrupting mental skills like executive function. Yet little empirical evidence has been provided for this mediating pathway. This study used data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Kindergarten Cohort of 2010–2011 (n = 11,421) to examine the associations between early childhood exposure to spanking and parental verbal aggression and subsequent academic achievement. We also investigated the mechanism for these associations by exploring the mediating role of executive function within those associations. Findings revealed that spanking and parental verbal aggression in kindergarten and first grade were negatively associated with reading and math scores in fifth grade, controlling for demographics and initial academic performance. Executive function (i.e., inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility and working memory) accounted for more than half (50%–57%) and more than one fourth (24%–31%) of the total effects of spanking and verbal aggression on academic achievement, respectively. Findings provide important evidence for early intervention programs aiming to promote children's academic achievement and executive function by interfering or preventing harsh discipline.Highlights We examined the pathway from spanking and verbal aggression in early childhood to academic achievement in later school years through executive function. Path analysis results show executive function was a significant mediator in the negative associations between academic achievement in fifth grade and early exposure to spanking and aggression. Besides avoiding harsh parenting, intervention programs to support child academic achievement could also target promoting executive function development.