Assessing the relevance of higher education courses

The establishment of the European Higher Education Area has involved specifying lists of professional competencies that programs are expected to develop, and with this the need for procedures to measure how every course within a higher education program is aligned with the program's competencies. We propose an instrument for characterizing this alignment, a process that we call assessing the relevance of a course. Using information from the course syllabus (objectives, contents and assessment scheme), our instrument produces indicators for characterizing the syllabus in terms of a competence list and for assessing its coherence. Because assessment involves quality, the results obtained can also be used to revise and improve the course syllabus. We illustrate this process with an example of a methods course from a mathematics teacher education program at a Spanish university.     

Semi-structured interview protocol for constructing logic models

This paper details a semi-structured interview protocol that evaluators can use to develop a logic model of a program's services and outcomes. The protocol presents a series of questions, which evaluators can ask of specific program informants, that are designed to: (1) identify key informants basic background and contextual information, (2) generate logic model elements, (3) model program inputs, activities, outputs, and outcomes, (4) build a rational theory, (5) develop a program theory, (6) prioritize logic model elements, and (7) build a graphical or tabular logic model. The paper will also provide an example of how this approach was used to develop a logic model for a youth mentoring program. It is our hope and belief that with this interview protocol, novice evaluators will be able to generate comprehensive logic models like seasoned professional evaluators.     

Fatigue management by truck drivers in real life situations: some suggestions to improve training

Truck driver fatigue is a major safety issue for truck drivers and the public in general. Although training prepares drivers to effectively operate a truck, it tends to minimize the importance of working constraints faced daily on-the-job and thus reduces its impact on safety and effectiveness. With experience, drivers develop skills to combat fatigue. Documenting these skills can contribute to improved training of apprentices. An ethnographic approach was used to better understand the real-life fatigue management skills of truck drivers. Participant observation was used to analyze the activity of apprentices in training and the activity of truck drivers at work. Observations indicated that training focused on time management and regulations, but did not prepare trainees to manage real-life constraints. Experienced drivers were not merely managing time; rather they were managing working constraints (including time) as a whole. To do so, they used two strategies: managing psycho-physical transformations and dynamic work planning. By integrating psycho-physical preoccupations into all aspects of work and by preparing future drivers to face real-life constraints, we could better train and prepare apprentices. Drivers do develop effective skills to combat fatigue which can improve training and better prepare future drivers to face daily constraints. These improvements can have a significant impact on fatigue and safety in the transportation industry.     

Gender differences in the relationship between intimate partner violence victimization and the perception of dating situations among college students

Although the prevalence and severity of dating violence among college students is well known, the relationship between past victimization and perceptions of future dating situations has not been examined. Using both qualitative and quantitative research methods, this study investigated gender differences in the relationship between intimate partner violence victimization and the perceptions of dating situations. The study found that the more psychological, physical, or sexual violence that was experienced by females, the more likely they perceived dating situations as inappropriate. Males, on the other hand, were more likely to report aggressive behaviors in dating situations only if victimized by sexual violence. Implications for professionals working with college students or community prevention programs are discussed.     

Barrios and burbs: residential context and health-risk behaviors among Angeleno adolescents

The increasing size of the Latino immigrant population in the United States underscores the need for a more complete understanding of the role that social context plays in influencing the health of immigrants and their children. This analysis explores the possibility that residential location influences the health-risk behaviors of Latino youth in Los Angeles County, California. The data come from the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey. We apply multivariate, multilevel Rasch models to two scales of adolescent health-risk behaviors (substance use and delinquency). The findings suggest that residence in Census tracts characterized by above-county-average levels of Latinos and above-county-average levels of poverty is associated with increased odds of health-risk behaviors for Latino adolescents, particularly for those born in the United States. The findings lend support to the contention, put forth in the segmented assimilation literature, that disadvantaged urban contexts increase the risk that U.S.-born children of immigrants will experience downward assimilation.     

How Satisfied are Spouses with their Leisure Time? Evidence from Europe

This paper first identifies the determinants of spouses’ satisfaction levels within the household with respect to their leisure time and, secondly, characterizes whether their preferences have some degree of altruistic or egoistic character in regard to this particular satisfaction. To that end, it formulates a theoretical framework from the collective family model whose stochastic formulations are estimated for 14 EU countries. The general empirical results first reveal that the presence of children has a significantly negative impact on the leisure satisfaction of both spouses. Then, increases in individual incomes lead to lower own leisure satisfaction levels. Both husbands and wives show egoistic behavior with respect to the labor and non-labor incomes (wage rate) of their respective spouses’ satisfaction levels.

Four criteria to evaluate providers' service-delivery response to new contraceptive introduction

This article presents an evaluation framework developed to assess the first-level effects of introducing the Standard Days Method (SDM) in Peru Ministry of Health clinics. Four questions are asked: 1) To what extent do providers routinely achieve SDM service delivery standards? 2) Is the time invested in SDM delivery consistent with program norms? 3) How does SDM delivery compare with delivery of established methods? and 4) How does SDM introduction affect delivery of established methods? A study at 62 clinics demonstrated the framework's usefulness. The Standard Days Method introduction had positive overall effects on the quality of care but provider training needed adjustments.