Reducing the cultural divide among U.S. and Mexican students through application of the contact hypothesis

Mexico and the U.S. are closely associated by commerce, culture and family ties. Despite the geographical proximity and the long-standing socio-political history between the two countries, there is limited understanding of cultural differences and similarities. A unique study abroad programme for U.S. and Mexican students was developed based on the contact hypothesis for reducing prejudice and creating stronger intergroup relationships. Students were recruited from a Mexican and a U.S. university for this project. Based on key principles inherent in intercultural education, students were provided with lectures, group projects and opportunities for shared living. They were merged for cultural experiences both in the U.S. and Mexico, including a three-week service learning project in two impoverished Mexican communities. Participants gained practical language skills and a more comprehensive understanding of Mexican migration. The programme also helped reduce cultural stereotypes and demonstrated the benefits of working toward collective goals. Shared experiences for students from diverse cultures hold promise for creating meaningful social integration and fostering international partnerships opportunities for higher education institutions.     

Defending Motherhood: Morality,Responsibility, and Double Binds in Feeding Children

The ideology of intensive mothering sets a high bar and is framed against the specter of the “bad” mother. Poor mothers and mothers of color are especially at risk of being labeled bad mothers. Drawing on 138 in‐depth interviews and ethnographic observations, this study analyzes the discursive and interpersonal strategies poor mothers use to make sense of and defend their feeding and children's body sizes. Food beliefs and practices reflect and reinforce social inequalities and thus represent an exemplary case in which to examine intensive mothering, its ties to growing inequality, and how individuals are called to account for it. Findings demonstrate intersecting inequalities, meanings, and contradictions in mothers' accounts of meeting intensive mothering expectations around feeding, health, and weight. In light of moral framings around feeding and weight, mothers' experiences of surveillance, and the double binds they encounter in feeding children, mothers practice what the authors term defensive mothering.     

KNOWLEDGE GAPS AMONG SCHOOL STAFF AND THE ROLE OF HIGH QUALITY ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENTS IN SCHOOLS

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the current study was to examine the practice validity of a new ecological assessment instrument for 3(rd) through 5(th) graders in terms of whether it provided school staff with new knowledge about students. METHOD: Pre-assessment knowledge of school staff was compared to data obtained from 21 children and their parents on 29 measures. Data were collected using the Elementary School Success Profile (ESSP). School staff pre-assessment knowledge was compared to obtained data across seven domains of children's lives (neighborhood, school, family, peers, parent educational involvement, well-being, and home behavior), data sources (child and parent), and grade level of students. RESULTS: Pre-assessment knowledge was not highly correlated with obtained data; pre-assessment expectations matched obtained data only about 41% of the time; and knowledge varied by domain, source, and grade level. CONCLUSIONS: Ecological assessments can address gaps in school staff's knowledge of targetable factors that influence the success of students.     

The Hungry‐for‐Attention Metaphor: Integrating Narrative and Behavioural Therapy for Families With Attention Seeking Children

Many families come to treatment with concerns about attention‐seeking children. This paper examines the dominant socio‐cultural and biological influences on individual parent and child narratives about attention‐seeking behaviour and explores the misalignment between the two. A case study illustrates the reconstruction of the dominant problem‐saturated story through the hungry‐for‐attention metaphor. Finally, the author proposes an integrative approach to combining narrative practices with behavioural interventions for families and professional caregivers.     

Low effect sizes of evidence-based programs in school settings

School practitioners working from an evidence-based practice framework are expected to implement interventions that are effective with students. In the current study, the authors explore the feasibility of that expectation in light of the availability of critical effect size information necessary for making informed intervention decisions. Effect sizes for 51 school-based programs endorsed as effective by authoritative sources were reviewed. Effect size analyses reveal that the programs were not, on average, highly effective. Difficulties finding effect size information and programs with high effect sizes are discussed. Recent advances in evidence-based programs and suggestions for increasing the feasibility of evidence-based programs in schools are offered.     

论社会制度的创新与社会公共组织发展

本文从经济的发展与社会制度的转型和创新相脱节而导致的矛盾的分析入手,论述了市场经济不可能实现效率与公平的均衡,政府的职能不在于主导经济的增长和发展,而在于为经济的发展和人的全面发展创造公平竞争的环境和提供制度保障;创建现代公共管理政府,除了实现从权力型政府向公共服务型政府的职能转变外,还必须大力培育和发展各种类型的社会公共服务与管理组织,创建新的社会公共管理制度和社会公共服务与管理体制。     

生命周期理论与旅游目的地轮耕——以云南旅游为例

在改变生命周期理论的约束条件下,可以获得两个修正性的旅游目的地生命周期理论:基于纯客源因素的生命周期理论和人为干预下的生命周期理论。根据这两个理论、农业轮耕理论和云南旅游实践,旅游目的地轮耕既是可行的又是必要的。旅游目的地轮耕是区域旅游对其所属旅游目的地进行有计划的轮流开发经营的一种旅游目的地生态开发理念和可持续发展模式。旅游目的地轮耕的边界可以由旅游容量饱和值和游客边际利润的零点来决定其起点时刻,具有一定可操作性。