Understanding Of Key Concepts Research Articles

Clinical Anesthesia Fundamentals

Clinical Anesthesia Fundamentals

Educational interventions to improve people's understanding of key concepts in assessing the effects of health interventions: a systematic review protocol.

BackgroundHealth information has become readily accessible through mass media, and people are playing a more active and autonomous role in their health. Much of the health information that was previously only available to health professionals is now directly accessible to the public. Consequently, people often navigate vast amounts of health information on their own, typically with little knowledge about how to evaluate it or the need to do so.Health information remains essentially unregulated, and widespread problems and concerns with the quality of health information have been noted. In addition to the variable quality of health information, inconsistent and/or inappropriate use of related terminology (e.g. ‘evidence-based’ and ‘clinically proven’) can be confusing to the public, who are ill-prepared to critically examine claims.The general public are not trained in the fundamentals of health research and do not typically possess the knowledge and skills to evaluate the accuracy and completeness of information about health interventions. Without this, the public are vulnerable to acting on inaccurate or incomplete health information and making ill-informed health decisions. With this review, we intend to identify and assess educational interventions which have been designed to improve people’s ability to understand key concepts relevant to evaluating claims about the effects of health interventions.Methods/designThis systematic review of the literature will use a search strategy that has been developed in conjunction with a Health Sciences Librarian who has expertise in systematic review searching to identify relevant studies. Databases to be searched include the following: the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and ERIC. Attempts to identify unpublished studies and ongoing trials will also be made. Two review authors will independently screen search results and assess studies for eligibility. Studies which aim to improve participants’ understanding of the key concepts relevant to evaluating the effects (or the interpretation of results) of health interventions will be included. Randomised trials, non-randomised trials, controlled before and after studies, controlled studies with only post-test measures, and interrupted time series studies will be eligible for inclusion. We will contact study authors to clarify any missing details/data. Due to the nature of the systematic review question and the expectation of heterogeneity in study design, interventions, and outcomes, we intend to take a narrative approach to data synthesis.Systematic review registrationPROSPEROCRD42016033103

3. Clinical Trials Knowledge in Oncology Patients: a Comparison of Actual Knowledge versus Trialists’ Priorities

Background: Advancements in oncology depend on clinical trials, yet recruitment to trials remains poor. Previous efforts to increase enrolment by providing educational materialsto patients have improved patient understanding of trials, but not recruitment. To understand the clinical trials knowledge gaps among oncology patients, surveys of patients and trialists were conducted and compared. Methods: Patients completed a questionnaire measuring their understanding of key concepts in clinical trials. Twenty-two “true/false/do not know” knowledge questions, two 5-point Likert opinion questions, one free-text space and demographics were collected. Trialists (nurses and physicians) completed 13 five-point Likert scale questions plus freetext space to measure the importance they placed on patient knowledge of specific topics. The relationship between what trialists valued and actual patient knowledge was compared. Results: Patients thought they had a good understanding of clinical trials (50%) however this apparent understanding of clinical trials was not reflected in the scoring as only 58.3% (SD 23.5) of questions were answered correctly. There were positive associations shown between education level, personal belief of understanding and willingness to join a clinical trial with percentage of correct responses (p=0.006, p<0.001, p=0.002 respectively). For topics given high knowledge priority by trialists, patients gave correct answers for lessthan 50%. Conclusion: Among patients with cancer, there is a poor knowledge of clinical trials and a gap between what trialists think patients ought to know and actual patientunderstanding. These results support the development of educational materials on clinical trials for oncology.

Community Food Literacies: An Introduction

Community Food Literacies: An Introduction Michael Pennell, Special Guest Editor Because food sovereignty and food justice are some of the most important issues of our time, issues that tie to topics of ecological collapse, peak oil, racism, poverty, corporate capitalism, overpopulation, disease, and hunger, service-learning practitioners are well-positioned to help launch initiatives in colleges and universities across the country, in partnership with our local communities, to address community-centered food literacy (4). Veronica House This special issue of the Community Literacy Journal, focused on community food literacies, presents six responses to and extensions of Veronica House’s call for service-learning practitioners and, more generally, literacy workers across communities and educational institutions. This journal provides an ideal venue within which to grapple with the overlapping and intertwined relationship between food and literacy, especially as it relates to communities. Both food and literacy find themselves in equally “revolutionary” stages of their development. While the literacy revolution may be found in discussions of a rise in social media, mobile communication devices, and ubiquitous network technologies, the food revolution is witnessed in a re-localization of food systems, including farmers markets, community-supported agriculture, and community gardens. Moreover, both “revolutionary” moments present challenges, concerns, and inequalities, captured in discussions of digital divides, cyber-security, labor, food deserts, hunger, and sustainability. The recent local food movements are tied to and reflective of local communities. In particular, these local communities represent the people, places, and literacies behind our food system. Furthermore, they occupy a key context for investigating and exploring the intertwining of food and community literacy. The growing overlaps and complicated relationships between food and literacy warrant a special issue devoted to these expanding relationships. The following articles present a variety of perspectives on community food literacies, ranging from inside and outside educational institutions. All of the authors echo House’s call for investigating and acting on community food literacies, as well as highlight her positioning of service-learning, rhetoric and composition instructors, and literacy workers in general, as key allies and advocates for such a focus on community food literacies. Ideally, this collection will strengthen and/or encourage fellow literacy workers to unpack and explore the complicated pairing of food and literacy in our communities, workplaces, and classrooms. In literacy and food discussions, how we label and define practices and products is a key window into the evolving food movement. For example, discussions surround such questions as: What is “local”? What is the difference between organic and [End Page 1] natural? What does it mean for an animal to be “cage free”? Erin Trauth, in her article, “Nutritional Noise: Community Literacies and the Movement Against Foods Labeled as ‘Natural’," explores the ubiquity of “natural” as a label for food and food production practices. She examines how the label is deployed in an expanding market of “natural foods,” along with a growing grassroots movement challenging the use of “natural.” Trauth supplements her discussion by presenting survey data capturing participants’ understandings of “natural” and natural foods. Moving into the spaces within which we connect food and literacy education, Lucia Dura, Consuelo Salas, William Medina-Jerez, and Virginia Hill offer an overview of an interdisciplinary, inter-institutional, after-school literacy partnership on the U.S.-Mexico border. Their article, “De aquí y de allá: Changing Perceptions of Literacy through Food Pedagogy, Asset-Based Narratives, and Hybrid Spaces,” shares how the Escuelita Program uses food pedagogy to tap into funds of knowledge, bridging “home” and “school” literacies. Similarly investigating the spaces within which community food literacies develop and impact our lives, Christina Santana, Stacey Kuznetsov, Sheri Schmeckpeper, Linda Curry, Elenore Long, Lauren Davis, Heidi Koerner, and Kimberly McQuarrie, show how “mindful persistence” is central to a team of scholars’ and community members’ exposure to and interest in fermentation-based food projects. As the article, “Mindful Persistence: Literacies for Taking up and Sustaining Fermented-Food Projects,” highlights, an interest in fermentation does not require or assume identical understandings of the science of fermentation or similar positions in the probiotic debate surrounding contemporary fermentation practices. In continuing to explore our understanding of key concepts in the development of community food literacies, Marcy Galbreath examines oral histories and...

From the Editor

From the Editor Seth Whidden We are delighted to announce some new features in Nineteenth-Century French Studies. The current issue includes the first of a series of invited essays. The inaugural piece is Kevin Newmark’s “Now You See It, Now You Don’t: Baudelaire’s Modernité,” a study that explores how readings of the Petits Poèmes en prose have shaped our understanding of key concepts in the field. In the next issue (spring–summer 2016), we will launch Incipit: a dialogic format in which two colleagues debate a matter of primary concern to our field. The first instance will focus on the state of nineteenth-century French studies, the directions in which it is moving, and what is likely to be meaningful to scholars in the coming years. It is our hope that these textual exchanges will spark broader conversations, both within and beyond the pages of the journal. Readers will of course continue to enjoy our regular submissions in each issue, where they can be sure to find important, even foundational work: in the present issue, such work can be seen in Corry Cropper’s udon noodles, Edward Nye’s myth of Deburau, Anthony Glinoer’s réfractaires, Susanna Lee’s jurors, Raisa Rexer’s take on Flaubert’s Orient, Antoine Monnier’s griffes (presented by Judd Hubert), and Erin Edgington’s fêtes galantes. Another project reaches beyond the journal’s traditional front and back covers: starting this fall, we will publish an annual sourcebook for each year’s agrégation title in the form of an e-book compiled from selected ncfs content. Please visit our website for more information about this year’s sourcebook on La Fortune des Rougon: http://www.ncfs-journal.org/?q=Agregation. While these initiatives vary in scope, tone, and format, they share the principles of thoughtful exploration that have guided Nineteenth-Century French Studies since its inception. Thus, the present volume—in formats old and new—reaffirms our sustained focus on rigor, insight, and passion for the finest inquiry into nineteenth-century French studies and related fields. SW [End Page xi] Copyright © 2015 University of Nebraska Press

Toward a standard lexicon for ecosystem services.

The complex, widely dispersed, and cumulative environmental challenges currently facing society require holistic, transdisciplinary approaches to resolve. The concept of ecosystem services (ES) has become more widely accepted as a framework that fosters a broader systems perspective of sustainability and can make science more responsive to the needs of decision makers and the public. Successful transdisciplinary approaches require a common language and understanding of key concepts. Our primary objective is to encourage the ES research and policy communities to standardize terminology and definitions, to facilitate mutual understanding by multidisciplinary researchers and policy makers. As an important step toward standardization, we present a lexicon developed to inform ES research conducted by the US Environmental Protection Agency and its partners. We describe a straightforward conceptualization of the relationships among environmental decisions, their effects on ecological systems and the services they provide, and human well-being. This provides a framework for common understanding and use of ES terminology. We encourage challenges to these definitions and attempts to advance standardization of a lexicon in ways that might be more meaningful to our ultimate objective: informing environmental decisions in ways that promote the sustainability of the environment upon which we all depend.

A Method for Using Adjacency Matrices to Analyze the Connections Students Make Within and Between Concepts: The Case of Linear Algebra

The central goals of most introductory linear algebra courses are to develop students' proficiency with matrix techniques, to promote their understanding of key concepts, and to increase their ability to make connections between concepts. In this article, we present an innovative method using adjacency matrices to analyze students' interpretation of and connections between concepts. Three cases provide examples that illustrate the usefulness of this approach for comparing differences in the structure of the connections, as exhibited in what we refer to as dense, sparse, and hub adjacency matrices. We also make use of mathematical constructs from digraph theory, such as walks and being strongly connected, to indicate possible chains of connections and flexibility in making connections within and between concepts. We posit that this method is useful for characterizing student connections in other content areas and grade levels.

Wiki Technology Enhanced Group Project to Promote Active Learning in a Neuroscience Course for First-Year Medical Students: An Exploratory Study

A wiki group project was integrated into a neuroscience course for first-year medical students. The project was developed as a self-directed, collaborative learning task to help medical students review course content and make clinically important connections. The goals of the project were to enhance students’ understanding of key concepts in neuroscience, promote active learning, and reinforce their information literacy skills. The objective of the exploratory study was to provide a formative evaluation of the wiki group project and to examine how wiki technology was utilized to enhance active and collaborative learning of first-year medical students in the course and to reinforce information literacy skills.

Speak Fast, Use Jargon, and Don’t Repeat Yourself: A Randomized Trial Assessing the Effectiveness of Online Videos to Supplement Emergency Department Discharge Instructions

BackgroundEmergency department discharge instructions are variably understood by patients, and in the setting of emergency department crowding, innovations are needed to counteract shortened interaction times with the physician. We evaluated the effect of viewing an online video of diagnosis-specific discharge instructions on patient comprehension and recall of instructions.MethodsIn this prospective, single-center, randomized controlled trial conducted between November 2011 and January 2012, we randomized emergency department patients who were discharged with one of 38 diagnoses to either view (after they left the emergency department) a vetted online video of diagnosis-specific discharge instructions, or to usual care. Patients were subsequently contacted by telephone and asked three standardized questions about their discharge instructions; one point was awarded for each correct answer. Using an intention-to-treat analysis, differences between groups were assessed using univariate testing, and with logistic regression that accounted for clustering on managing physician. A secondary outcome measure was patient satisfaction with the videos, on a 10-point scale.ResultsAmong 133 patients enrolled, mean age was 46.1 (s.d.D. 21.5) and 55% were female. Patients in the video group had 19% higher mean scores (2.5, s.d. 0.7) than patients in the control group (2.1, s.d. 0.8) (p=0.002). After adjustment for patient age, sex, first language, triage acuity score, and clustering, the odds of achieving a fully correct score (3 out of 3) were 3.5 (95% CI, 1.7 to 7.2) times higher in the video group, compared to the control group. Among those who viewed the videos, median rating of the videos was 10 (IQR 8 to 10).ConclusionsIn this single-center trial, patients who viewed an online video of their discharge instructions scored higher on their understanding of key concepts around their diagnosis and subsequent care. Those who viewed the videos found them to be a helpful addition to standard care.Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01361932 http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01361932?term=nct01361932&rank=1

What is care coordination about: towards a theoretical framework for the study of care coordination

Purpose: Strategies to improve care coordination between primary and hospital care do not always have the desired result partly due to incomplete understanding of key concepts of care coordination. The aim of this study is to explore key concepts of care coordination and the relationships between them. Methods: We performed an in-depth analysis of existing theoretical frameworks, interviewed twenty-two patients and organised six focus groups with healthcare professionals. Findings: Fourteen key concepts were identified in existing theoretical frameworks. Two new concepts revealed in patient perceived care coordination. Preliminary results confirm the 16 previously identified key concepts in healthcare professionals perceived care coordination. Core key concept of care coordination include defining and knowing each other “roles”, the “quality of relationships” promoting mutual respect and collaboration, “information exchange” between healthcare professionals and defining and sharing common “goals”. These core key concepts are influenced by “external factors”, “task characteristics”, “cultural factors”, “knowledge and technology”, “need for coordination”, “administrative operational processes” and “patient characteristics” leading to a certain outcome. Discussion: It is important to improve “roles”, “quality of relationships” between healthcare professionals and with the patient, “information exchange” and “goals” to ensure care coordination between primary and hospital care certainly when unexpected events occur.

Intercultural awareness and the global economy: Chinese students and academic literacy – a lesson larger than just paraphrasing

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to evaluate a suite of academic literacy multimedia materials for Chinese students and reflect on educational approaches for the workplace.Design/methodology/approachThe literature review informed the initial resources which were trialled with volunteer groups of Chinese students in both Australia and China. A series of focus groups, follow up interviews and a workshop formed the basis of this qualitative studyFindingsAcademic literacy is one of the graduate attributes which students should obtain through their studies. Another area which demands student and employer attention in a globalised world is intercultural skills. It was found that students' engagement with interdisciplinary generic skills is lacking, sometimes due to the mostly textual way universities attempt to communicate with students about these skills. The multilayered, multimedia approach was successful; it is inclusive and sustainable for higher education and the workplace. A cross‐cultural understanding of academic literacy should enhance graduates' employability.Practical implicationsThe resources developed and assessed can be employed to enhance the transition of non‐Western students into the western higher education classroom and workplace.Originality/valueThe project advances existing national and international knowledge particularly with regards to teaching academic literacy to international students in Australia and the use of multimedia tools to assist understanding of key concepts and adoption of appropriate behaviours. Therefore, the use of a similar approach is suggested for business settings particularly for new graduate employees' learning of intercultural skills.

Community understanding of respondent-driven sampling in a medical research setting in Uganda: importance for the use of RDS for public health research

Respondent-driven sampling (RDS) is a widely-used variant of snowball sampling. Respondents are selected not from a sampling frame, but from a social network of existing members of the sample. Incentives are provided for participation and for the recruitment of others. Ethical and methodological criticisms have been raised about RDS. In this study RDS was used to recruit male household heads in rural Uganda. We investigated community members' understanding and experience of the method, and explored how these may have affected the quality of the RDS survey data. Our findings suggest that because participants recruit participants, the use of RDS in medical research may result in increased difficulties in gaining informed consent, and data collected using RDS may be particularly susceptible to bias due to differences in the understanding of key concepts between researchers and members of the community.

Local Wound Care for Orthopedic Surgeons

Open wounds represent the final common pathway for a variety of disease processes. The basic principles of local wound care, including appropriate evaluation, treatment, and consideration for adjunctive therapies are foundational to wound care for surgeons of any specialty. Orthopedic surgeons encounter wounds through a variety of mechanisms, and a fundamental understanding of key concepts will help ensure a higher quality of treatment, an improved clinical outcome, and better patient care.

Apollinian Scientia Sexualis and Dionysian Ars Erotica?: On the Relation Between Michel Foucault's History of Sexuality and Friedrich Nietzsche's Birth of Tragedy

Abstract This article explores how a nonreductionist account of Nietzsche's influence on Michel Foucault can enrich our understanding of key concepts in singular works of both philosophers. I assess this exegetical strategy by looking at the two dichotomies Apollinian/Dionysian and ars erotica/scientia sexualis in The Birth of Tragedy and volume 1 of The History of Sexuality, respectively. After exploring the relation between these two dichotomies, I link the science of sexuality to the Apollinian art instinct via the existence of Socratic culture and argue against the “pleasure of analysis” as a sublated form of (Dionysian) ars erotica. These considerations lead to the notions of history in Nietzsche's and Foucault's philosophies that result in situating the polyvalent Ursprung of Greek tragedy and the descent of ars erotica and scientia sexualis in an antimetaphysical and nonteleological picture of historical development.

Team-based learning: a novel approach to medical student education in family planning

BackgroundMedical schools are increasingly using team-based learning (TBL). We compared medical student satisfaction and understanding of key concepts in family planning following TBL and traditional lectures. Study DesignDuring the OB/GYN clinical rotation orientation, third year medical students completed a pretest in family planning. Students in the odd-numbered clerkships participated in TBL, and students in the even-numbered clerkships participated in lectures. Both groups of students completed a posttest and satisfaction survey. ResultsA total of 130 students participated in this study. Sixty-nine students were in the TBL group, and 61 students were in the lecture group. The TBL group reported higher scores when asked if the learning style was a valuable experience (p=.045), helped them learn the course material (p=.01) and improved problem-solving skills (p=.04). Both groups gained significant amount of knowledge (p<.001) as calculated by the Student's paired t test. The change in scores was not significantly different between the groups (p=.73), as calculated using the Student's unpaired t test. ConclusionAs a learning strategy for family planning, TBL resulted in high student satisfaction. This is the first study to evaluate this innovative teaching style for medical student education in family planning.

Using Active Learning Strategies to Promote Deep Learning in the Undergraduate Paleontology Classroom

In the most effective learning environments, undergraduates go beyond memorization to become more deeply engaged with the material. Active learning approaches, in which students participate in activities that result in improved learning, promote this sort of deep experience. Educational theories such as constructivism and recent research in cognitive and learning sciences demonstrate the importance of allowing students opportunities to confront misconceptions, reason out solutions, work collaboratively, and construct their own understandings of key concepts. Numerous studies have documented improved learning in classes using active learning approaches when compared to traditional class formats. Various obstacles to implementing active learning strategies exist, such as student and faculty resistance to such practices and the academic reward structure, which penalizes faculty who invest time in innovative teaching. These obstacles, however, are not insurmountable—effective communication of the benefits of active learning for improving student learning outcomes and the recruitment and retention of STEM majors can help. Paleontology instructors have a wide variety of active learning techniques to choose from, including some that make use of our field's uniquely visual and temporal characteristics (e.g., concept sketches, timelines), current research areas (e.g., textual analysis, case studies, guided inquiry), and classic controversies (e.g., role-playing, debates, and panel discussions). New technologies, such as classroom response devices and Web 2.0 tools, can facilitate many of these activities both in and out of the classroom. Incorporating active learning approaches into paleontology courses can help instructors clarify their course goals and learning outcomes while empowering students to succeed.

Lawmaking and Law Interpreting in the Land of Oz: Using Simulations to Draw Back the Curtains of the American Legislative and Judicial Processes

Proponents of active learning recognize the value of using simulations to engage students with course material and enhance student understanding of key concepts. A related but often overlooked benefit is how simulations help students appreciate the complexities of group decision-making endeavors. Regardless of their value, instructors may be hesitant to include simulations in their courses because of concerns about “taking time away” from covering other important course material or even the preparatory time associated with planning and overseeing simulations. This paper considers how targeted, short-term simulations (a two session legislative simulation and mini-moot court) enhance student understanding of decision-making processes and outcomes in each institution without significantly adding to the course preparatory burden for instructors. I evaluate my own experiences with targeted simulations in two upper level undergraduate courses, Congress, and, the Federal Judiciary, and offer suggestions for easily adapting and incorporating simulation exercises into courses without such activities.

An interactive modeling lesson increases students' understanding of ploidy during meiosis

Chromosome structure is confusing to students at all levels, and chromosome behavior during meiosis is a notoriously difficult topic. Undergraduate biology majors are exposed to the process of meiosis numerous times during their presecondary and postsecondary education, yet understanding of key concepts, such as the point at which haploidy is established, does not improve substantially with repeated exposure. Based on student's drawings, 96% of intermediate-level biology majors have unclear or incorrect ideas about meiosis. Students have difficulty diagramming the process of meiosis starting with three unreplicated pairs of chromosomes, and even when they can produce an accurate diagram, they are unclear how to assign the terms "haploid" and "diploid." We designed an interactive lesson based on constructivist theory to address these issues in a large lecture class. Pretest and posttest scores showed a significant improvement in students' understanding of ploidy compared to a parallel class taught in the traditional way (e.g. using the textbook diagrams). In interviews afterward, those students whose scores improved on exams specifically pointed to the features of the in-class modeling that were deliberately incorporated for that purpose.

Models for products

This paper explores how models can support productive thinking. For us a model is a thing, a tool to help make sense of something. We restrict attention to specific models for whole-number multiplication, hence the wording of the title. They support evolving thinking in large measure through the ways their users redesign them. They assume new forms, come to be seen and understood in different ways. We show how work that learners do with models can help them to transform, not simply their understanding of key concepts, but also how they come to view themselves as thinkers and learners, as collaborators in a social process that their work and thinking help to constitute. We draw on recent research on core knowledge, especially by Carey, Spelke, and Tomasello, to clarify how models, as we view them here, can underpin specific actions that support emerging understanding.

Investigating and improving the models of programming concepts held by novice programmers

The teaching of introductory computer programming seems far from successful, with many first-year students performing more poorly than expected. One possible reason for this is that novices hold ‘non-viable’ mental models (internal explanations of how something works) of key programming concepts which then cause misconceptions and difficulties. An initial study investigated the apparent viability of novices' models of fundamental programming concepts, focusing on value and reference assignment. This revealed that many students appeared to hold ‘non-viable’ mental models of these key concepts and that those students who appeared to hold viable mental models performed significantly better in programming tasks than those with non-viable models. To address this, a teaching model integrating cognitive conflict and program visualisation is proposed. A series of studies found that this teaching model is potentially effective in enhancing engagement with learning materials and may therefore help novice programmers develop a better understanding of key concepts.