Rigorous Course Research Articles

Advanced Placement World History: A Rigorous but Manageable Course for High School Teachers

To PREFACE MY REMARKS on the manageability of an advanced placement course in world history, I need to explain part of the process which led us here today. To test the interest and feasibility of pursuing the idea of this course, the Educational Testing Service sent out a questionnaire in April 1995 to 400 secondary schools that taught Advanced Placement courses at that time. They received 190 responses to the questionnaire. The following is just a portion of the survey questions and results, with comments about the related situation in Texas.

The Art of Juggling: Preparing Preservice Teachers for Urban Schools

Urban teaching, like juggling, requires specific attributes, and both preservice teachers and teacher educators must become skilled in the habits of mind and heart that help teachers juggle the realities of the urban educational context. This article describes a university-school partnership that prepares teachers for and in this context, delineating its philosophical foundations, candidate selection criteria, and program components. It details the program's intentionally constructivist emphasis, which is aimed at a singular, vital yield: strong urban teachers who are expert jugglers, who simultaneously demonstrate effective practice, resist burnout, and dramatically influence urban students' achievement while contributing to educational reform. The juggler is both skillful and artful, performing feats that, although they look effortless, are difficult for most people. Juggling demands a repertoire of knowledge and skills. It also demands something less tangible: consistent focus and vision. Teaching, like juggling, requires these same attributes, and both preservice teachers and the teacher educators who prepare them must demonstrate these attributes. However, teaching in urban schools requires a special set of skills and attitudes because there are apt to be more balls to keep in the air and more contingencies to consider. Teacher education programs that prepare urban teachers must therefore be especially mindful of and deliberate about addressing these additional complexities. Several features in common define the trajectory of the urban secondary school juggling act: (a) higher percentages of youth placed at risk for school failure due to the low expectations held of urban secondary school students and weak pedagogical practice in these schools (Haberman, 1995b; Howey, 1998); (b) higher percentages of youth placed at risk because these youths' own loci of control frequently vacillate and their attributions about what they can or cannot control in their lives are skewed toward luck or fate rather than effort (Weiner, 1994); (c) multiple forays into school reform that have produced limited successes (Heneg, Hula, Orr, & Pedescleaux, 1999); (d) a climate that is often counterproductive to student learning (Bowman, 1994); (e) economic contingencies that negatively affect the services that can be provided to the urban secondary student population as well as to teachers (e.g., salary, staffing, and infrastructure support; Quality Counts, 1998); and (f) an increasing awareness of the so-called digital divide, which causes urban teachers and students to fall woefully behind their more affluent suburban peers in the acquisition of technological skills (Benton Foundation, 2000; U.S. Department of Commerce, 1999). Added to these concerns, high levels of teacher attrition and retirements are causing shortages of teachers in all types of school settings, but special education and urban contexts are the areas most dramatically affected.1 It is within this milieu of macro- and micro-issues that teaching and learning must improve and that the teacher, like the juggler, must become knowledgeable, skillful, and committed to the vision that this complex feat is possible. More than ever, urban teachers need to be able to handle yet another decidedly sensitive ball, that of advocating for social justice and, concurrently, for teacher preparation programs that intentionally address issues of equity with regard to race, class, gender, and ability. Given that good teachers typically and actively engage in ongoing collaboration and reflective working relationships with their colleagues and other educational stakeholders, teacher educators should develop and support multifaceted preparation programs that include rigorous courses of study and meaningful intensive internships for the teachers who will serve in our nation's urban school systems. The goal of such programs should be to help urban teachers develop and maintain a provocative vision of their own teaching-along a continuum from its ultimate purpose to its immediate objectives-- despite any obstacles that may come their way and despite the complex and sometimes debilitating context of urban schools. …

What Principals and Students Should Know About College Admissions

College-bound high school students devour multitudes of college recruitment materials, and agonize over the required applications and essays. Parents encourage visits to college campuses, while guidance counselors confirm enrollment in rigorous high school courses. Teachers are asked to write letters of recommendation. But high school administrators must ask themselves if any of these tactics really contribute to college admission for their students.

Ichnogenus treptichnus in eocene flysch, carpathians, Poland: Taxonomy and preservation

A meandering, predepositional trace fossil is described as Treptichnus meandrinus isp. nov. The new form resembles Treptichnus bifurcus Miller but is distinguished by the rigorous meandering course of the new trace fossil.

Research Evidence regarding the Validity and Effects of Talent Search Educational Programs

In this paper we review evidence regarding the validity of educational programs based on the talent search identification protocol and their effects on students. Research shows that talent search scores are valid indicators of students who can succeed in courses that are accelerated in terms of content and learning pace. SAT scores at the junior high level predict achievement in high school and college and are valid indicators of individual differences within the gifted and talented population. Talent search students who partake of special summer or accelerated school programs are more likely to take a more rigorous course of study in high school and attend more selective colleges. Effects may be especially potent for academically talented females who pursue mathematics in summer programs.

A collaborative program for advanced practice in trauma/critical care nursing

The students and faculty enrolled in the first TNP class have set a standard for future TNPs: a rigorous course of education with advanced practice and scholarship within an advanced practice collaborative model. Because of the increasingly number of trauma victims and the highly specialized care they require, nurses must come forward and provide quality care. The TNPs and their faculty must promote further recognition of the TNP role, become leaders in the field of acute care, and continue to develop and maintain collaborative relationship with physicians in support of advanced practice nursing in many areas of tertiary care. The first three graduates of the trauma/critical care practitioner class are now employed in advanced practice roles and are applying their education within trauma/critical care settings. Two of the students are trauma nurse practitioners in a community hospital, and one is a critical care nurse practitioner in a university hospital. Currently, there is an acute care nurse practitioner certification examination that is appropriate for nurses in the field of trauma/critical care. Co-sponsored by the AACN Certification Corporation and the American Nurses Credentialing Center, this examination is offered twice a year, in June and October. AACN is active in supporting and promoting the TNP role and, in conjunction with the American Nurses Association, has developed new standards of care and scope of practice to include this expanded role for the advanced practice nurse. The future for this exciting and demanding role looks bright for the advanced practice nurse interested in the care of the acutely ill patient. The time is right for this collaboration between nurses and physicians.

The influence of high post-mortem temperature and differing ultimate pH on the course of rigor and ageing in pig Longissimus dorsi muscle

This study was performed in order to assess the effect of temperature and differing ultimate pH (pH u, 24 h post mortem) on the development of rigor mortis in pig Longissimus dorsi muscle. The rigor development (isometric tension and shortening) was measured continuously during the first 24 h post mortem, using an apparatus wherein muscle strips were held at constant temperatures of 12 or 35°C. pH u was manipulated by adrenaline injections preslaughter. The rates of pH fall, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and creatine phosphate (CP) breakdown were markedly increased at 35°C compared to 12°C. For both temperatures, no delay phase was observed with regard to the development of shortening. Rigor resulted in higher maximum isometric tension and shortening and in shorter time needed to reach maximum values at 35°C than at 12°C. The results are discussed in connection with pH, ATP and CP data. The extent of ageing from 2 to 4 days post mortem, estimated through myofibrillar length determinations, was higher for 12°C than for 35°C. pH u affected significantly most of the traits under study, but its effect depended in some cases upon the rigor temperature. At 12°C, the traits related to the kinetics of rigor development were significantly affected by pH u, but this was not the case at 35°C. Maximum isometric tension was significantly related to pH u at 35°C ( r = 0·86, P < 0·001), but such a relationship was not found at 12°C. Myofibrillar lengths were significantly affected by pH u, but in an opposite manner from one temperature to another. A positive relationship was found at 12°C and a negative one at 35°C. These results illustrate the importance of the interaction between the extent of pH fall and temperature with regard to post-mortem changes in pig muscle.

The influence of high temperature, type of muscle and electrical stimulation on the course of rigor, ageing and tenderness of beef muscles

The course of rigor mortis (rigor), ageing and tenderness has been evaluated for three beef muscles; M. biceps femoris (BF), M. semimembranosus (SM) and M. semitendinosus (ST), when entering rigor at constant temperatures of 15 and 37°C respectively, with and without electrical stimulation (ES/NS) (85 V, 14 Hz and 32 s). The course of post-mortem changes has been registered by isometric tension, by shortening of unrestrained muscle strips and by following the pH decline and the changes in metabolites, such as ATP and CP. Ageing at +4°C was recorded by measuring Warner-Bratzler (W-B) shear values 2, 8 and 15 days post mortem. On the last occasion, the sensory properties of the cooked meat were also evaluated. Maximum shortening and isometric tension were higher at 37°C as compared to 15°C, whereas ES did not reduce rigor shortening. A high correlation between maximum shortening and the ATP-level at the onset of the shortening rapid phase was found ( r = 0·77 ∗∗∗), which could explain the greater shortening obtained at 37°C compared to 15°C. Rigor shortening is an important phenomenon governing meat tenderness as tenderness is highly affected by rigor temperature but not by ES. This was the case for muscles SM and ST but not for BF muscle. Even though tenderness was measured after ageing (15 days post mortem), shortening during rigor seems to be more important for toughness when rigor mortis occurs at 37°C than any suggested tenderizing effect due to increased proteolysis in this temperature region.

IDENTIFICATION OF MATHEMATICAL TALENT AND PROGRAMMATIC EFFORTS TO FACILITATE DEVELOPMENT OF TALENT

The Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth (CTY) identifies students who reason well mathematically and/or verbally and offers summer and academic year programs of rigorous academic course work. Gender differences in test performance, even though not as large as previously reported, are noticeable, particularly among the highest test scores. The majority of students benefit from summer program participation, and have increased access to more advanced course work. No differences were found between 1982 and 1991 male and female populations in class ranking, liking of mathematics, or perception of support from peers, family members, and teachers. However, the lack of support from the peer group underscores the academic isolation of this group of students.

Secondary School and University Results as Predictors of Success in Law

Selection of students for university places has become an important public issue. Generally, issues of access and equity in admission to higher education have been high on the agenda of the federal government in the 1980s, and continue to be so. They have been the subject of numerous reports. Most of the attention has been focused upon finding alternatives to traditional routes to matriculation, as well as raising awareness among high school students of the possibilities of tertiary education. Schemes have been developed to allow applicants without traditional HSC or equivalent qualifications to gain admission to university. Thus programmes have been developed for mature-age students, aboriginals and others without traditional qualifications to take bridging courses to enable them to cope with tertiary study more successfully. Programmes have been developed to allow secondary schools to develop less academically rigorous courses than the HSC to enable students to study practical subjects while keeping open the possibility of tertiary study. Universities have accepted these qualifications where appropriate as a basis for matriculation but not as equivalent to the HSC for admission to high demand faculties. Important as this work is, it addresses a different issue to that faced by high-demand faculties such as Law. The problem is not so much how to develop alternative minimum standards for matriculation and to encourage wider consideration of tertiary education in the community. The problem which we face is how to select from among the large number of suitably qualified candidates those who should be offered admission to Law. This issue has been addressed much less by the literature in recent years. In a higher demand faculty such as Law, a key issue which has to be addressed is whether the criteria which are adopted for admission are the fairest means of achieving the goals for which they are designed. Those goals should not be taken for granted. At present, in Australian law schools, the main criterion for selection is academic merit according to the results achieved either in the HSC or its equivalent, or tertiary performance. It is not obvious that this should be the basis for selection. Given that the majority of applicants to law schools could, if suitably motivated, succeed in passing a Law course, and that academic ability at Law is only one aspect of what makes a good professional lawyer, selection might be based on other criteria, such as aptitude and motivation for legal practice, or even by ballot from among a qualified group of applicants. Law schools could also consciously endeavour to address social, economic and racial inequalities through selection procedures. It is important however to distinguish between the mainstream methods of entry and alternative methods which might apply to disadvantaged groups or for other reasons. The choice of academic merit as the criterion for mainstream admissions does not preclude having other criteria for entry, or supplementing it by interviews or other aptitude tests. On the other hand, there are important limitations on the capacity of law schools in devising admissions policy. The University of Sydney, for example, attracts a very large number of applications. Taking only first preferences into account, 1900 applications were made for Combined Law or Graduate Law in 1991. With this volume of applications, the Faculty must have objective and easily applicable criteria which at least reduce significantly the potential pool for selection. While random ballots or queues would be objective means of selection which are not labour intensive, it seems to be fundamental to the work of a university that academic ability should be a basis for selection, even if it is only used to reduce the pool from which the candidates are ultimately selected. It is also a basis for selection which is widely accepted in the community. In general, the debate on admissions policy has not been on whether academic criteria should be used, but whether the scores which are used validly and fairly reflect academic merit. In this context, there is considerable debate about the HSC. One possible alternative is post-first year entry to law.

Trading Places: Teaching with Students in the Center and Professors on the Periphery of the Principles Course

After 14 years' experience in teaching Principles of Sociology (four sections of 30 to 40 students each per year) as a required course to nonmajor students, I was not satisfied with results, despite good to excellent evaluations from students. Further, although I was known as a good, but hard professor, my attempts to teach a rigorous course did not mean that students retained any more knowledge than they might otherwise. Indeed, research on learning retention after a typical course has ended shows fairly dismal results (McKeachie 1986). I was not only dissatisfied but bored, although I frequently tinkered with course by changing textbooks, tests, and paper assignments. At various times I had also tried simulation games, movies, guest speakers, and like. Although they worked for individual class sessions, they did not solve of course itself. It seemed to me that I still didn't have very happy students. On many days I dreaded going into classroom to try to entertain them, knowing that sooner or later I would see glazed look in their eyes that told me I was boring them. Still, there simply wasn't time to prepare involving and scintillating lectures for all classes on a four-course, three-preparation teaching schedule per semester, as well as fitting in time for research, publishing, and service work. When I had a few moments to discuss the problem of teaching Principles with colleagues, we all agreed how terrible it was that students had changed so much since our day and were no longer interested in learning. We swapped favorite war stories about classroom and went back to our posts, blaming TV generation for their unrealistic expectations to be entertained.

Points of uniqueness of differentials

We consider the problem of finding those points of a certain subset A of Rn for which a real function defined on A cannot have two different differentials. Our approach is elementary and can be part of a rigorous course in advanced calculus, thus helping the understanding of the concept of the differential at a point.

Beyond ?front door? access: Attaining the bachelor's degree

Among students with similar characteristics who entered either a two- or four-year institution after high school graduation, factors that appear related to achieving the B.A. among those who begin at a two-year college are (1) clear goals and direction, (2) high motivation to achieve the B.A., (3) early contact with the four-year transfer institution, and (4) rigorous high school course preparation. Quantitative data were used to identify the empirical reality of attaining the bachelor's degree while qualitative data were employed to understand the meaning behind the outcomes. While most research on B.A. attainment measures quantitative outcomes in a causal manner, this study focuses on understanding the human meaning behind the numbers. The authors call for more qualitative research focused on the nature of the community college experience for particular student subgroups and for a multifaceted, all-out effort to change the potency of the community college experience for those planning to transfer.

A Procedure for Measuring Excised Muscle Contraction

ABSTRACTA procedure was developed to accurately measure the contraction of excised Pectoralis major muscles (along the longitudinal axis) from broilers during the development of rigor. A linear variable differential transformer (LVDT) and computer equipment were used to continuously monitor contraction through the course of rigor. A holding tank was designed and constructed and in conjunction with the LVDT allowed cooling of the muscle while contraction was being monitored over a predetermined time period. Applying the procedure to broiler Pectoralis major muscles, the results indicated much less variation using the LVDT in comparison with a technique of manual measurement; however, mean values were not significantly different.

Kentucky's Governors, 1792-1985 (review)

BOOK REVIEWS187 desire". . . to advance the doctrine of state rights . . ." (p. 9). He did admit a desire to enter the U.S. Senate, but always "my principle being that my first allegiance was to the state of which I was a citizen" (p. 52; see also pp. 138 and 148). As a state righter, naturally Davis was a strict constructionist, and he enunciated this often. James Buchanan once commented upon it, opining in a humorous story that Davis truly was the quintessential strict constructionist (p. 34 n. 49) . Davis stood firmly in support of slavery. Indeed he insisted that "no man who assails the institution" should be appointed to any federal office (p. 22). He was interested in publications that defended the institution , and personally endorsed one book that did so (pp. 85-86). Too, he favored the free expansion of slavery into the territories (p. 30), and he believed "the country on the Pacific is in many respects adapted to slave labor" (p. 142). He genuinely was concerned with promoting sound education, and was profoundly involved with upgrading the quality of instruction at West Point. He urged requirements in foreign languages and other rigorous courses (p. 82). Under his direction the military academy extended the study to a five-year program (although only three classes graduated under that plan). Davis sternly rejected requests by certain cadets that they be allowed to grow beards, and their hair long (pp. 104-6). A number of Davis's significant involvements in furthering the adoption of technological innovation are touched upon. Perhaps none is so intriguing as the army's implementation of a corrugated iron boatwagon, an early precursor of the amphibious vehicle (pp. 106-7). Some of the personal tidbits are amusing. Davis wrote his spouse referring to her as "my dear Waafe" (p. 44). One shudders at the "Cork treatment," that he suggested for their daughter's diarrhoea (p. 46). He wrote to his brother, late in September 1855, that "my health is as good as usual [but] I find my sight failingrapidly under the labors of my present station, and the position has been found as I anticipated [—] neither pleasant nor remunerative" (p. 123). One suspects that he was momentarily weary of public life. Herman Hattaway University of Missouri-Kansas City Kentucky'sGovernors, 1792-1985. Edited by Lowell H. Harrison. (Lexington : University Press of Kentucky, 1986. Pp. xxi, 197. $22.00.) This book is one of the best of its kind. It is hard to resist a slim volume that delivers what its title promises. For the person wanting to find out more about Kentucky's governors, this is the book to consult. Kentucky has had fifty-two governors since its admission to the Union in 1792, including George W. Johnson and Richard Hawes, the gover- 188CIVIL WAR HISTORY nors of Confederate Kentucky. The sketches are written by scholars with special knowledge of the governors and their times. Of the thirtythree contributors, twenty-three are professors of history and the others hold archival or editorial positions. Individually and collectively they have handled their difficult assignments well. The sketches average about 1,200 words each. There is generally a paragraph or two on family background, education, and early experiences ; one or two on the campaign and election; and one or two on the term as governor. As good historians are trained to do, the authors develop the causes and consequences of gubernatorial decisions and give consideration to significant national developments. The book begins with an overview of the governorship by Thomas D. Clark. Although the Bluegrass State has had four constitutions, the powers of the governor have remained basically the same since 1792. He or she serves a single four-year term; a second term can be sought after a four-year hiatus. Clark traces the constitutional and political evolution of the office and ably describes its joys and sorrows. Particularly pithy is the comment of an old ex-govemor who told a group of Kentucky politicians that the two things in his life he never wanted to have again were "gonorrhea and the governorship of Kentucky." A few of the governors have been of national stature—Isaac Shelby, John J...

On a Novel Concept of Continuing Education

A continuing education program PROFICIENCE is described, which is the collaborative effort of 14 Professional Institutions in Bangalore and the Indian Institute of Science, to give full-term rigorous courses of topical interest. The novel aspect is that the professional institutions are coming together to evolve the academic needs that are met by the Indian Institute of Science. More than 4000 participants have benefited since its inception in August 1980.

Supravital excitability of skeletal muscle of rats and bullfrogs to electrical stimuli.

Supravital excitability to electrical stimuli (for convenience, supravital electrocontractility (S.Ec) of the gastrocnemius muscle of rats and bullfrogs was examined after "somatic death" and the time during which S.Ec could be detected (S.Ec duration) was measured. S.Ec of the gastrocnemius muscle of rats and bullfrogs depended on temperature. The maximum S.Ec duration of the muscle of rats and bullfrogs were 110 min and 96 hr, respectively, at a low temperature (5 degrees), and 60 min and 9 hr, respectively, at a high temperature (30 degrees). The time course of rigor mortis at 5 degrees was slow and it was rapid at 30 degrees. In rats, the S.Ec disappeared completely before the onset of rigor mortis, and in bullfrogs, S.Ec existed at progressive stages of rigor mortis and it disappeared completely when rigor mortis reached about the maximum.

Computer science

There is a wide divergence of opinion as to the appropriate content for an introductory computer science course. Approaches to teaching the subject range from “computer appreciation” presentations to rigorous courses for computer science majors. This paper presents the thesis that computer science has reached a level of maturity which allows it to be presented in a stimulating and intellectually honest manner to liberal arts students regardless of their majors, and that such a course is an important, almost essential, part of the curriculum for such students. A rationale for this view will be presented, and a course conforming to the rationale will be described. In many liberal arts institutions, including mine, any subject which may be related to technology is regarded with suspicion; and zealous efforts are made to avoid contamination of the curriculum with unsuitable courses having a technological base. Because the rationale for the course seems to satisfy my colleagues in the more humanistic subjects, it is presented in some detail here for its possible value in other institutions.

Independence and Normal Variables

In teaching a rigorous course on regression and analysis of variance, one is soon faced with the problem of proving that certain statistics, particularly quadratic forms, are statistically independent: the main difficulty appears to arise from tne fact that pairwise independence of random variables does not necessarily imply mutual independence. Several approaches to this subject are possible, and they are all essentially based on the properties of the multivariate normal distribution. For example Hogg and Craig [1970: Chapter 121 make using of the following theorem:

RESPONSE TO ELECTRICAL STIMULATION AND POST‐MORTEM CHANGES IN TURKEY PECTORALIS MAJOR MUSCLE

SUMMARY– Muscle samples were obtained from 20 turkey hens 5 min postexsanguination for the determination of sarcomere length, response to electrical stimulation, and time‐course of rigor mortis. Additional samples were obtained from the opposite (undisturbed) pectoralis major muscle at 1, 2, 6 and 24 hr post‐mortem for the determination of sarcomere length. Birds were divided into three groups based on the time to complete rigor mortis: (1) slow, &gt; 125 min; (2) fast, &lt;50 min; and (3) intermediate, 50–125 min. Birds that displayed a long time course of rigor mortis had a low threshold of response (9v) and a long duration of response (106 seel to electrical stimulation. Conversely, muscles which become inextensible within 50 min displayed a high threshold (123v) and low duration (8 sec). Muscles with intermediate rates of rigor had intermediate threshold (58v) and duration (50 sec). Increase in sarcomere length occurred within 1 hr post‐mortem in the fast‐rigor group, 2 hr in the intermediate‐rigor group and 6 hr in slow‐rigor birds. A similar experiment conducted on 24 toms indicated that postexsanguination struggling resulted in a decreased time course of rigor, elevated threshold and shortened duration of response to electrical stimulation. Strugglers displayed a more rapid (P&lt;.01) post‐mortem increase in sarcomere length than non‐strugglers. The results suggested that in some presently‐used commercial turkey processes, some of the carcasses are frozen with muscles in a prerigor, short‐sarcomere state.