Letting Students Control Their Own Learning: Using Games,Role-Plays,and Simulations in Middle School U.S. History Classrooms

The purpose of this article is to synthesize research on the benefits and use of games, role-plays, and simulations, whilst providing examples practicing teachers may wish to use in their classroom. Therefore, the article presents a discussion of key previous research on the use of games, role-plays, and simulations in secondary history classrooms. It also presents a discussion of the benefits games, role-plays, and simulations can have on student learning. This includes discussion of how such student-centered teaching and learning opportunities can improve students' critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaborative skills. Finally, it presents examples of these types of student-centered, inquiry-based, hands-on learning experiences, drawn from the author's previous 16 years of secondary classroom experiences.     

The contemporary U.S. women's movement: An empirical example of competition theory

We use competition and resource mobilization perspectives to explain the rise of the contemporary U.S. women's movement. Our competition framework proposes that economic and sociodemographic changes since World War II increased competition between women and men in the marketplace. This increased competition provided motivation for the women's movement. We find support for this framework with national quantitative time-series data.     

Mapping the Elder Mistreatment Iceberg: U.S. Hospitalizations With Elder Abuse and Neglect Diagnoses

Purpose: This study describes U.S. hospitalizations with diagnostic codes indicating elder mistreatment (EM). Method: Using the 2003 Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) of the Healthcare Costs and Utilization Project (HCUP), inpatient stays coded with diagnoses of adult abuse and/or neglect are compared with stays of other hospitalized adults age 60 and older. Results: Few hospitalizations (< 0.02%) were coded with EM diagnoses in 2003. Compared to other hospitalizations of older adults, patients with EM codes were twice as likely to be women (OR = 2.12, 95% CI = 1.63–2.75), significantly more likely to be emergency department admissions (78.0% vs. 56.8%, p < .0001), and, on average, more likely to have longer stays (7.0 vs. 5.6 days, p = 0.01). Patients with EM codes were also three to four times more likely to be discharged to a facility such as a nursing home rather than “routinely” discharged (i.e., to home or self-care) (OR = 3.66, 95% CI = 2.92–4.59). Elder mistreatment–coded hospitalizations compared to all other hospitalizations had on average lower total charges ($21,479 vs. $25,127, p < .001), with neglect cases having the highest charges in 2003 ($29,389). Implications: Knowledge about EM is often likened to the “tip of the iceberg.” Our study contributes to “mapping the EM iceberg”; however, findings based on diagnostic codes are limited and should not be used to minimize the problem of EM. With the so-called graying of America, training is needed in recognizing EM along with research to improve our nation's response to the mistreatment of our elderly population.     

An Analysis of Labor Union Participation in U.S. Congressional Hearings

Using both a new data set of labor union appearances in congressional hearings and archival data on union organizational resources, this article analyzes factors that determine whether a labor union will be represented in congressional hearing testimony in a given year. Consistent with the expectations of resource mobilization theory, organizational resources are important predictors of participation in congressional hearings. For example, membership is an important predictor of testimony in hearings, as is the number of lobbyists on staff and the character of a union's primary industry. However, membership in the AFL‐CIO federation is negatively related to hearing participation, and some of the benefits of having a large membership base may be diminishing over time. Implications for the study of interest group politics and organizational political strategies are discussed.     

Elementary Social Studies Content Integration in CCLS: An Analysis of Content Integration

While the primary focus of the Common Core Learning Standards is in improving literacy and math, elements of Social Studies topics and skills are emphasized. Primary source analysis and understanding multiple perspectives are just two examples. This article is grounded in a qualitative analysis of integrated instruction in two elementary classrooms. Through content analysis of curriculum and policy documents, I argue that current policy has made gains in elementary Social Studies instruction, but significantly more work must be done to elevate the subject to a true core content area. Data sources for this study were classroom observations, teacher interviews, and document analysis. Classrooms involved in this study utilized resources, as determined by the classroom teacher, to integrate literacy instruction with Social Studies concepts and skills. The purpose of this study was to identify progress made in recent policy toward practical application of Social Studies instruction. I also identify next steps in increasing and improving elementary Social Studies instruction. This study sought to guide the evolution of policy.     

Understanding Bullying in an Affluent,Academically Rigorous U.S. High School: A Grounded Theory Analysis

Students and staff members from a U.S. high school were asked to discuss their understanding of bullying within the context of their school social environment. Findings from the grounded theory analysis suggest that understandings of bullying are socially constructed and that how bullying is understood is influenced by context and by the negotiation of identity within that context. Furthermore, subjects focused on drama, a form of social interaction considered far more common than bullying. Findings suggest that research on bullying may benefit from shifting its emphasis on defining bullying and establishing prevalence, to exploring youths' contextual and developmental perspectives.     

State of the art in U.S. multicultural social work practice: Client expectations and provider challenges

ABSTRACT

To obtain a comprehensive view of the level of knowledge and development achieved in multicultural social work practice, I conducted a scoping review of U.S. empirical literature for the 10-year period from 2007 through 2016. The review revealed that across the board racial and ethnic minority clients continue to experience marginalization and report low satisfaction with services. Conversely, providers are subject to some tensions and biases toward multicultural practice exacerbated by employers’ lack of emphasis on cultural competence. The problematic findings from the review suggest that our current approaches to cultural competence may need to be reexamined.     

Altering the Curriculum of the Home: Learning Environments for Korean and U.S. Students

ABSTRACT

The family and home environment are considered the most significant influences on children's development and learning. These factors directly influence student ability, motivation, and interest in learning. This study focuses on alterable factors in the home environment (i.e., homework time, attitudes, expectations, reading). A multiple-factor model provides a framework to discuss the family influences that appear to explain achievement differences. To gain perspective from international comparative studies, statistical findings highlight family practices in Korea and the United States. The implications from this article discuss altering the curriculum of the home, providing supportive family conditions, early intervention, and family–school collaborations. Altering constructive factors in the home environment in any culture may strongly influence children's learning and development.     

Teaching international public relations: An examination of individual and institutional attributes of public relations educators in the U.S.

The study reported here provides an examination of the attributes of selected public relation educators and their institutions in relation to the teaching of international public relations as a course or as a part of a course.     

Culturally Competent Social Work Practice with Veterans: An Overview of the U.S. Military

Despite social work's longstanding history of serving veterans, few resources support culturally competent practice with this population. If social workers are to serve veterans effectively and efficiently, a basic understanding of the U.S. military is essential. This article presents a basic overview of U.S. military including its structure and history, the propensity to enlist in the armed forces, culture, and training methods and objectives. With an understanding of these aspects of military service and continued effort to learn about their client's military experience, social workers will be prepared to provide culturally competent services consistent with the profession's values and ethics.     

Good management,sound finances,and social responsibility: Two decades of U.S. corporate insider perspectives on reputation and the bottom line

This research sought to expand practitioner and scholarly understanding of the relationship between corporate reputation and the bottom line. An analysis of 706 firms over a 21-year timeframe revealed three attributes of reputation – management quality, financial soundness, and social responsibility – made consistently positive contributions to several measures of firm financial performance. Perceptions of corporate reputation were gathered exclusively from U.S. executives, directors, and financial analysts, referred to herein as corporate insiders.     

An American Wordless Picturebook in Italian Classrooms: Inspiring Global Connections of People,Places, and Environments

What happens when five teacher candidates and their professor bring a wordless picturebook into Italian classrooms? This article presents a grounded discussion of our immersive experiences from the United States and the minilessons they taught stemming from a piece of children's literature through our study abroad program in Italy. The opening of Italian classroom doors provided reflective observations of the critical and creative thinking processes of more than 200 Italian students (ages 7–16). We (one professor and five early childhood and special education teacher candidates) taught minilessons in five Italian schools during a monthlong study abroad program offered by our university (further described in Author 1, 2017). Although this project was conducted in Italy, we have since used this minilesson successfully in our own classes, and we invite you to adapt our use to fit your teaching.     

Conceptual Tools for Research on Race and Social Problems: An Overview of Dynamic Theory and Model Development

Although interpersonal, group processes and inter-group relationships are dynamic phenomena, researchers have studied these phenomena in a static manner. This article provides an overview of system dynamic modeling to bring greater attention to the importance of dynamic theoretical formulations and presents important concepts and tools that can facilitate movement in this direction. Important concepts for theory development are delineated, and various reasons why the field has a penchant for static theoretical formulations are explored. A set of tools and concepts from system dynamics is presented to guide dynamic thinking and future theory building.     

The Structure of Social Cohesion: An Analysis of Its Levels and Dimensions in Mexico City1

This article aims to conceptualize and assess social cohesion in Mexico, taking into account their multilevel and multidimensional nature. To measure social cohesion levels and dimensions, we used the Social Welfare Survey (N = 2871) for the 16 municipalities in Mexico City. Then, we employed the distance method to construct a social cohesion index. In addition, we define social cohesion degrees (very high, high, medium, and low) to explore the relevance of each indicator. The findings suggest that the objective and subjective indicators at the meso‐level has the highest contribution, regardless of the territory or degrees of cohesion. This finding suggests that neighborhoods are well organized for solving everyday problems. Meanwhile, the willingness to help both friends and members of one’s network was not a priority, which can be explained by the suspicion toward other people and the prevalent economic conditions.     

Industrial shifts,occupational recomposition,and the changing sexual division of labor in the five largest U.S. cities: 1910–1930

Using data from the 1910 and 1930 Censuses of Population, this paper examines how patterns of industrial change in American's five largest cities conditioned occupational opportunities for men and women. Theoretically, cities are conceptualized as independent dimensions of the nation's stratification system. Men and women in the early part of this century, then, confronted widely varying sets of occupational possibilities depending upon where they were located with respect to the spatial division of labor in the country. Results from a shift-share analysis show that the sexual division of labor in the United States was a function of, among other things, the territorial division of labor in the country.     

Suicide,Religion, and Latinos: A Macrolevel Study of U.S. Latino Suicide Rates

Since the publication of Durkheim's Suicide more than a century ago, researchers have been examining the relationship between religion and suicide, and race/ethnicity and suicide. However, no study has examined how religion influences U.S. Latino suicide rates. This study fills a gap in the literature by applying three competing theses to the study of Latino suicide. Results show that (1) religious contextual variables significantly affect Latino suicide rates, (2) U.S.‐born Latinos benefit from religious communities, regardless of denomination or measurement used, and (3) foreign‐born Latinos only benefit from Catholic adherents and homogeneity.     

Civil Society in an Age of Environmental Accountability: How Local Environmental Nongovernmental Organizations Reduce U.S. Power Plants’ Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Institutional scholars have argued that in the absence of legislation on the issue of climate change, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) can help reduce the amount of anthropogenic greenhouse gases being emitted to the environment by disseminating environmental norms. Consistent with this reasoning, they have shown that from the middle of the last century up through the mid‐1990s, nations with more memberships in NGOs have tended to have lower carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions in the aggregate. Doubts remain, however, about whether NGOs have reduced emissions in the time since and at the level of individual power plants where the lion's share of carbon pollution is emitted. Using plant‐specific information on CO₂ emissions recently collected by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under its Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, we investigate the effects of local environmental NGOs (ENGOs) on plants’ environmental performance. Consistent with our expectations, we find that local ENGOs not only directly reduce plants’ emissions but indirectly do so by enhancing the effectiveness of subnational climate policies that encourage energy efficiency. We discuss the implications of our findings for research on the decoupling of normative systems, social movements, environmental sociology, and the EPA's proposed Clean Power Plan.