bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Recurrent Generalized Seizures with Postictal Todd’s Paralysis Caused by Medication-Associated Severe Hypomagnesemia: A Case Report
Authors: Khalil Abdalla , Choyi Jithesh , Hossenbux Khalil , Taha Ahmed
Published: November 2021

Hypomagnesemia is one of the electrolyte disturbances that can cause seizures. It is common in the hospitalized patients and can be induced by long-term usage of many medications. A 68-year-old male known to have hypertension and gastroesophageal reflux presented to the Emergency Department with an unprovoked first seizure at home followed by a temporary right-sided hemiparesis, dysphasia, and facial asymmetry. The hemiparesis, dysphasia, and facial asymmetry resolved within less than an hour after the seizure. His serum potassium was low with prolonged QT interval in the electrocardiogram (serum magnesium was not checked in the Emergency Department). He received intravenous IV potassium chloride infusion, and his serum potassium level was corrected, but he had a recurrent seizure after 10 h. At that time, his serum magnesium was found to be very low, he received IV magnesium sulfate infusion, and his indapamide, omeprazole, and metformin medications were stopped. He had no further seizures, the rest of his blood tests were normal, and his CT brain was unremarkable. He was treated for aspiration pneumonia, and his outpatient MRI brain and EEG came to be normal too.
Bell’s Palsy Caused by SARS-CoV-2
Authors: Al-Kaisy Maythem , Eid Mustafa Mahmood
Published: November 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has led to major healthcare and everyday life challenges. Every day, new disease associations and systemic manifestations are being explored and reported. Peripheral facial nerve paralysis or Bell’s palsy has been reported to be caused mainly by viral infections. This case represents a COVID-19-positive patient with Bell’s palsy making SARS-CoV-2 as the most likely culprit of his condition.
Vitreous and Optic Nerve Infiltration of an Adrenal B Lymphoma
Authors: Galletero Pandelo Lucía , Rodríguez Vidal Cristina , Artaraz Joseba , Martínez-Alday Nerea , Fonollosa Alex
Published: November 2021

Aim: This study aimed to report a case of vitreous and optic nerve infiltration of a primary adrenal B lymphoma. Case Report: An 81-year-old patient consulted for decrease in vision in the left eye and pain with ocular movements during the last week. The patient was being treated with chemotherapy for an adrenal gland diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. On examination, vitritis was seen in both eyes and optic disc edema in his left eye. After an extensive study based on orbital and brain magnetic resonance imaging and vitreous cytology, an ocular infiltration by systemic B lymphoma was confirmed. A treatment based on intravitreal methotrexate was carried out, achieving the regression of the vitreous infiltration and resolution of the optic disc edema. Systemic B lymphoma metastasizing ocular structures is extremely infrequent. The manifestations may mimic an inflammatory disease. Ophthalmologists should be aware of these manifestations and consider among the masquerade syndromes.
Visual Development of Healthy Full-Term Infants under 24 Months of Age Using the Preverbal Visual Assessment Questionnaire
Authors: Kim Eunhee , Lee JungSoo , Park Hae-Yeon , Lee Jungjae , Kim Mee-Gang , Park Joo Hyun
Published: November 2021

As visual perception development proceeds rapidly after birth, early detection of developmental maturity is required. Healthy infants do not have many opportunities for visual perception evaluation, so a reliable evaluation method is necessary. This retrospective study included 276 healthy full-term infants <24 months of age using the Preverbal Visual Assessment (PreViAs) questionnaire, which measures scores of subdivided age-groups for the global scores and 4 domains: visual attention (VA), visual communication (VC), visual-motor coordination (VMC), and visual processing (VP). Through this study, reference values and cutoff scores of the PreViAs questionnaire were presented, reliability was secured, and potential influencing factors of the PreViAs scores were analyzed. Using Cronbach’s α coefficient, the global scores were 0.938, 0.781 for VA, 0.660 for VC, 0.874 for VMC, and 0.942 for VP. The internal consistency of the questionnaire was high in the global scores and 3 domains (VA, VMC, and VP). In infants under 12 months, the global scores and the VA, VMC, and VP domains showed positive association with gestational age, whereas the VC domain correlated with sex: which was found to be greater for females (p < 0.05). In those 12 month and above, no clinical factors were significantly associated with the PreViAs scores in all domains. The PreViAs questionnaire is a useful tool for visual assessment of healthy full-term infants under 24 months of age, suggesting reference values and cutoff scores according to age, and estimating the maturation age for visual perception development of each domain.
Evaluating Outcome Prediction Models in Endovascular Stroke Treatment Using Baseline, Treatment, and Posttreatment Variables
Authors: Ospel Johanna M. , Ganesh Aravind , Kappelhof Manon , McDonough Rosalie , Menon Bijoy K. , Almekhlafi Mohammed , Demchuk Andrew M. , McTaggart Ryan A. , Field Thalia S. , Dowlatshahi Dar , Nogueira Raul G. , Tarpley Jason W. , Puetz Volker , Nagel Simon , Tymianski Michael , Hill Michael D. , Goyal Mayank ,   the ESCAPE‐NA1 Investigators
Published: November 2021

Background

Statistical models to predict outcomes after endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke often incorporate baseline (pretreatment) variables only. We assessed the performance of stroke outcome prediction models for endovascular therapy in stroke in an iterative fashion using baseline, treatment‐related, and posttreatment variables.

Methods

Data from the ESCAPE‐NA1 (Safety and Efficacy of Nerinetide [NA‐1] in Subjects Undergoing Endovascular Thrombectomy for Stroke) trial were used to build 4 outcome prediction models using multivariable logistic regression: model 1 included baseline variables available before treatment decision making, model 2 included additional treatment‐related variables, model 3 additional posttreatment variables that become available early (within 24–48 hours), and model 4 later (beyond 48 hours) after endovascular therapy. The primary outcome was functional independence (90‐day Modified Rankin Scale score 0–2). Model performance was compared using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). Shapley values were used to determine marginal contributions of variables to outcome variance in the regression models.

Results

Among 1105 patients, functional independence was achieved by 666 (60.3%). When using baseline variables only (model 1), the AUC was 0.74 (95% CI, 0.71–0.77); this iteratively improved when treatment and posttreatment variables were added to the models (model 2: AUC, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.74–0.80; model 3: AUC, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.77–0.83; model 4: AUC, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.79–0.85). With baseline variables alone, 26% of patients who achieved functional independence were erroneously classified as not achieving functional independence. Even with the most comprehensive model, 19.8% of patients were misclassified as such. Patient age contributed most to outcome variance (Shapley value, 0.28), followed by severe adverse events including pneumonia (0.16) and intracranial hemorrhage at 24‐hours imaging (0.13).

Conclusions

A substantial contribution to outcomes after endovascular therapy comes from factors unrelated to currently collected baseline patient variables. One‐fifth of patients achieving functional independence were misclassified as not achieving independence, even with the most comprehensive model. Our findings suggest that the achievable accuracy of current outcome prediction models is limited, and caution should be used when applying them in clinical practice.
Standardized Reporting of Workflow Metrics in Acute Ischemic Stroke Treatment: Why and How?
Authors: Goyal Mayank , Saver Jeffrey L. , Ganesh Aravind , McDonough Rosalie V. , Roos Yvo B.W.E.M. , Boulouis Grégoire , Kurz Martin , Psychogios Marios‐Nikos , Holmin Staffan , Majoie Charles B.L.M. , Bourcier Romain , Chandra Ronil , Yoshimura Shinichi , Yavagal Dileep , Gory Benjamin , Taschner Christian , Buck Brian , Jadhav Ashutosh , Hill Michael D. , Ospel Johanna Maria
Published: November 2021

The benefit of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) treatment is highly time dependent. Although studies on workflow improvement in AIS are increasingly gaining attention, there is a lack of consensus and consistency regarding the definition, measurement, and reporting of AIS workflow times. We discuss the challenges related to defining and measuring workflow times in AIS and propose a basic set of time intervals that should be reported in AIS workflow studies. We particularly focus on patients undergoing mechanical thrombectomy. Importantly, endovascular treatment workflow times should always be reported in conjunction with reperfusion quality because one is not informative without the other. We further suggest standardized reporting of workflow times that includes the 90th percentile in addition to medians and interquartile ranges, means, and SDs. The proposed methodology serves as a framework for AIS studies and aids further discussion on workflow‐related AIS research.
Who Are Protected by the Fundamental Guarantees under International Humanitarian Law? Part 1: Breaking with the Status Requirement in Light of the icc Case Law
Authors: van Steenberghe Raphaël
Published: November 2021

International humanitarian law provides for fundamental guarantees, the content of which is similar irrespective of the nature of the armed conflict, and which are applicable to individuals even if they do not fall into the categories of specifically protected persons under the 1949 Geneva Conventions. Those guarantees, all of which derive from the general requirement of human treatment, include prohibitions of specific types of conduct against persons, such as murder, cruel treatment, torture and sexual violence, or against property, such as pillaging. However, it is traditionally held that entitlement to those guarantees depends upon two requirements: the ‘status requirement’, which basically means that the concerned persons must not or must no longer take a direct part in hostilities, and the ‘control requirement’, which basically means that the concerned persons or properties must be under the control of a party to the armed conflict. This study argues in favour of breaking with these two requirements, in light of the existing ICC case law. The study is divided into two parts, with each part devoted to one requirement and made the object of a specific paper. The two papers follow the same structure. They start with general observations on the requirement concerned, examine the relevant ICC case law and put forward several arguments in favour of an extensive approach to the personal scope of the fundamental guarantees. The first paper, which is published in this issue, deals with the status requirement. It especially delves into the ICC decisions in the Ntaganda case with respect to the issue of protection against intra-party violence. It advocates for the applicability of the fundamental guarantees in such a context by rejecting the requirement of a legal status, on the basis of several arguments. Those arguments rely on IHL provisions protecting specific persons, on the potential for humanizing IHL on the matter and on the approach making the status requirement relevant only when the fundamental guarantees apply in the conduct of hostilities. The second paper, which will be published in a coming issue, deals with the control requirement. It examines several ICC cases in detail, including the Katanga and Ntaganda cases, in relation to the issue of the applicability of the fundamental guarantees in the conduct of hostilities. It is argued that the entitlement to those guarantees is not dependent upon any general control requirement, and that, as a result, some of these guarantees (mainly those whose application or constitutive elements do not imply any physical control over the concerned persons or properties) may apply in the conduct of hostilities.
Navigating the Tensions: Women’s Rights, Religion and Freedom of Religion or Belief
Authors: Ghanea Nazila
Published: November 2021

Despite the normative integration between freedom of religion or belief (FORB) and women’s equality, these synergies are difficult to discern and there is a common misperception that women’s rights to equality and FORB are clashing rights. This is compounded by the extensive religiously phrased reservations by states upon ratification of international treaties that amplify this misperception that FORB serves to restrict women’s rights to equality. The advocacy groups supporting these rights, and also their normative sources in international human rights law instruments, are largely distinct. However, general non-discrimination provisions do address both, and General Comment no. 28 captures both rights holistically. The correctives to these misperceptions lie in reflecting upon the universality, indivisibility, interdependence, and interrelatedness of all human rights norms. They also lie in the realization that FORB is a right like any other. FORB is neither a right of “religion” as such nor an instrument for support of religiously phrased reservations and limitations on women’s rights to equality. This is particularly the case with harmful practices, as elaborated in the joint general recommendation/General Comment no. 31 of the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and no. 18 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child however, the core principles also extend to other infringements of women’s rights to equality. It is essential to (re)vitalize the synergies between FORB and women’s equality in order to advance each of these rights, to be able to address overlapping rights concerns, and to adequately acknowledge intersectional claims. Furthermore, the relevant advocacy groups and human rights mechanisms need to give further attention to this as a priority matter.
The Spinning Silkworm: Benedetto Croce’s History as the Story of Liberty
Authors: Peters Rik
Published: November 2021

This article explores the abiding relevance of Croce’s last book in the philosophy of history, which, due its publication during the war has always been neglected. After discussing the context of Croce’s antagonism to the anti-historicist tendencies of his own times, the book is interpreted as theoretical underpinning of Croce’s ‘ethico-political’ histories by which he sought to close the gap between historical thinking and action. This he does on the basis of a sophisticated realist ontology, which is still relevant for contemporary philosophy of history.
What’s Forgotten About The Structure of Scientific Revolutions?
Authors: Kuukkanen Jouni-Matti
Published: November 2021

Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is a classic, and it is certainly not forgotten. However, an essential aspect about it has been neglected. That is, Kuhn’s Structure is a book in philosophy of history in the sense that Structure attempts gives an account of historical events, focuses on the whole of the history of science and stipulates a structure of the history of science to explain historical events. Kuhn’s book and its contribution to the debates about the progress of science and the contingency and inevitability of the history of science shows why and how philosophy of history is relevant for the history and philosophy of science. Its successful integration of historical and philosophical aspects in one account makes it worthwhile reading also for philosophers of history in the twentieth-first century. In particular, it raises the question whether the historical record can justify philosophical views and comprehensive syntheses of the past.
From India to Egypt: Note on a Mamluk Ewer Dating Back to 698/1298–99
Authors: Bernardini Michele
Published: November 2021

This note aims to open up a discussion regarding a particular group of Islamic metalwork. It is the case of some particular ewers attested by three objects produced in Mamluk Egypt dating back from the end of the 13th century. Later specimens are evidence of a broad Indian production and exportation of this type of objects. The note poses some issues on the first production of this group of objects in India and its likely diffusion towards Egypt.
Biotectonics of Sulawesi: Principles, methodology, and area relationships
Authors: MICHAUX BERNARD , UNG VISOTHEARY
Published: November 2021

Biotectonics is an approach to historical biogeography based on the analysis of independently derived biological and tectonic data, which we demonstrate using the island of Sulawesi as an example. We describe the tectonic development of Sulawesi and discuss the relationship between tectonic models and phylogenetic hypotheses. We outline the problem of interpreting areagrams based on single phylogenies and stress the importance of combining all available data into a general areagram. We analysed the distributions of Sulawesi area of endemism endemics (AEEs) using 30 published phylogenies, which were converted into paralogy-free taxon-area cladograms using the programme LisBeth (Zaragüeta-Bagalis et al. 2012) from which Adam’s consensus trees were constructed using PAUP (Swofford 2002). The results of our analyses show that the relationship between the areas of endemism is congruent with the terrane history of the island. A further 79 phylogenies of Sulawesi species with extralimital distributions were analysed to determine area relationships of Sulawesi within the broader Indo-Pacific region. We demonstrate the utility of data partitioning when dealing with areas that are geologically and biologically composite by showing that analysing Asian and Australasian elements of the Sulawesi biota separately produced general areagrams that avoid artifice and are interpretable in the light of current tectonic models.
Cripto-1/Glucose-Regulated Protein 78 Affects Proliferation, Migration and Apoptosis of Ovarian Carcinoma Cells
Authors: Song Chunhong , Zhen Juan , Gong Aihua , Zhang Longying
Published: November 2021

Background: The Cripto-1 (CR-1)/glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) complex was involved in enhancing survival in different types of cells. CR-1 presented increased levels in ovarian carcinoma tissue. However, the potential mechanism of CR-1/GRP78 was unclear in ovarian cancer.
Thus, the study aimed to analyze the role of CR-1/GRP78 in ovarian carcinoma cells. Methods and materials: The CR-1 and GRP78 expression in different ovarian cancer cell lines were detected by RT-qPCR and Western blot (WB). Immunoprecipitation assay was performed to analyze whether
Cripto-1 interacted with GRP78. The CR-1 interfering plasmids or GRP-78 overexpressing plasmids transfected into cells were used to decrease endogenous CR-1 levels and increase GRP-78 levels. Cell clonogenicity and proliferation capabilities were separately evaluated by clone growth assay,
along with the detection of cell migration and invasion abilities by transwell and wound healing assay. In addition, Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMPs) levels were detected by WB. The cell apoptosis was analyzed by Flow Cytometer and the detection of apoptosis-related proteins. Results:
The results showed that CR-1 and GRP78 levels were higher in SKOV3 than other cell lines. Furthermore, CR-1 interacted with GRP78 in cells, which formed protein complex. CR-1 silence significantly decreased GRP-78 levels. Moreover, GRP78 overexpression blocked the anti-survival effects caused
by CR-1 knockdown. Conclusion: CR-1 silence inhibited cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis via GRP78. It replied that GRP-78 overexpression might enhance the biological functions of CR-1/GRP78 complex ameliorated by CR-1 silence. Thus, CR-1/GRP78 could be a potential target for
treating ovarian carcinoma.
Exosomal MicroRNA-204 Derived from Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells (BMSCs) Inhibits Cell Proliferation and Induces Apoptosis Through NF-κB Signaling Pathway in Breast Cancer
Authors: Jiang Daqing , Xie Xianxin , Wang Cong , Li Weijie , He Jianjun
Published: November 2021

Our study intends to assess the relationship between exosomes derived from bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSC-exo) and breast cancer. BMSC-exo were isolated and characterized by transmission electron microscopy. After transfection of BMSCs with miR-204 inhibitor, breast cancer
cells were incubated with BMSC-exo followed by analysis of cell proliferation by CCK-8 assay, cell apoptosis by flow cytometry, and expression of apoptosis-related protein and NF-κB signaling by western blot. The co-culture of BMSC-exo with breast cancer cells enhanced miR-204
transcription, inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis. Further, BMSC-exo accelerated apoptosis as demonstrated by the increased level of Bax and casepase-3 and decreased Bcl-2 expression, as well as reduced NF-κB signaling activity. But knockdown of miR-204 abolished
the effect of BMSC-exo on apoptosis and proliferation with NF-κB signaling activation. In conclusion, miR-204 from BMSC-exo restrains growth of breast cancer cell and might be a novel target for treating breast cancer.
microRNA-133b Regulates Cell Proliferation and Cell Cycle Progression via Targeting HuR in Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Zhang Xiaoyan , Zhu Wei , Lu Junjie
Published: November 2021

MicroRNAs (miRNAs/miRs) have been identified to serve a key role in the development of tumors. However, the role of miR-133b in colorectal cancer (CRC) remains largely unclear. This study will investigate the role and mechanism of miR-133b in CRC. Reverse transcription-quantitative
polymerase chain reaction analysis was performed to detect the level of miR-133b in CRC cell lines. Bioinformatics software TargetScan predicted the potential target genes of miR-133b, and a dual luciferase reporter assay was used to confirm this. To investigate the role of miR-133b in CRC
cells, miR-133b was upregulated or downregulated in CRC cell lines (SW620 and HT-29) by transfecting with a miR-133b mimic or inhibitor, respectively. Subsequently, cell viability was analyzed using MTT assay, whereas cell apoptosis and the cell cycle distribution were analyzed by flow cytometry.
In addition, the associated protein levels were detected using western blot analysis. The results demonstrated that miR-133b was significantly downregulated in CRC cell lines when compared with the normal colonic epithelial NCM-460 cell line. Human antigen R (HuR; also termed ELAVL1) was demonstrated
to be a direct target of miR-133b and was negatively regulated by miR-133b. HuR was also notably upregulated in the CRC cell lines when compared with the normal control. Transfection of SW620 and HT-29 cells with the miR-133b mimic significantly inhibited cell viability, and induced cell apoptosis
and G1 phase arrest, while upregulation of HuR demonstrated the opposite effects. Furthermore, the present data demonstrated that the miR-133b mimic significantly enhanced the protein levels of p21 and p27, and downregulated cyclin D1 and cyclin A levels in SW620 and HT-29 cells;
the opposite effects were observed following treatment with the miR-133b inhibitor. In conclusion, the data indicate that miR-133b suppressed CRC cell growth by targeting HuR.
IL-33 Enhances the Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Secretion of Inflammatory Cytokines and Ameliorates Lipopolysaccharide Desensitization in Macrophages
Authors: Guo Dong-Yang , Yang Zhou-Xin , Cai Guo-Long , Shen Ling-Zhi , Yue Ying-Xing , Yan Jing
Published: November 2021

Background: Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) desensitization, which is characterized by hyporesponsiveness and a form of immunosuppression, is important in the negative regulation of responses to LPS and inflammatory disease such as sepsis. However, effect of IL-33 in the desensitization
to LPS remains unclear. Methods: We used RNA-sequencing technology to analyze changes in mRNA in bone-marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) stimulated with LPS. Changes in expression and secretion of inflammatory cytokines were detected by qPCR and ELISA, respectively. Mechanisms were
further studied through p65 phosphorylation detection. Results: IL-33 expression was significantly increased in LPS-treated macrophages, indicating its involvement in LPS-induced inflammation. Exogenous IL-33 increased the inflammatory response and ameliorated LPS desensitization by
increasing the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines. It also activated p65 phosphorylation in resistant cells. Conclusion: IL-33 can enhance the inflammatory response induced by LPS and ameliorate LPS desensitization possibly by activating the NF-κB pathway in mouse macrophages.
The African Participation and Experiences in the First and Second World Wars in Northern Rhodesia: A Historical Perspective 1914–1948
Authors: Phiri Bizeck Jube
Published: November 2021

Unlike existing studies that examined each of the two World Wars and Africans separately, this study explores African participation and experiences in the First and Second World Wars in Northern Rhodesia (colonial Zambia) together during the period, 1914–1948. A lot has been written on the history of the World Wars in colonial Africa. However, there is not much literature that focuses on African participation and experiences during the two world wars. This study is focused on the core theme, that is, the role played by Africans in both World Wars. This is the main theme that informs the study. The core theme is sub-divided into the following three sub-themes: the making of the Northern Rhodesia Police under the British South African Company, BSACo, a Chartered Company that prohibited by law from housing a standing; recruitment of personnel for the Northern Rhodesia Regiment; the role played by traditional authorities in the recruitment of ‘Askari’ – the Foot Soldiers and the ‘Tenga-Tenga’ War Carriers and the role of government propaganda while bringing to the fore African agency during both Wars. Also discussed in the study is the demobilisation process in which African servicemen – the Foot Soldiers and the ‘Tenga-Tenga’ War Carriers – felt cheated by an Empire-wide system of racial discrimination and hierarchy. Although an expanded government propaganda machinery contributed to the growth of an African political voice in Northern Rhodesia during the period, 1914–1948, that political voice neither included nor translated to much debate or discussion about the concerns of African ex-servicemen and their personal affairs. The study equally examines how their state of affairs affected the relationship between the ex-servicemen and their traditional leaders who were active in the recruitment process that brought them into the Wars in the first place. The study concludes with the re-examination of the older arguments that African servicemen did not play an active role in nationalist politics after the World Wars, and submits otherwise, that is, that they actually did.
Political Gold: The Australian Sports Grants Scandal
Authors: Leigh Andrew , McAllister Ian
Published: November 2021

The partisan allocation of public funds has a long history in Australian politics. Using a unique dataset, which allows us to distinguish the merit-based component of the funding decision from the politically based component, we examine the 2018–2019 Australian sports grants scandal. We find that local funding allocations for sports infrastructure were directed disproportionately to win marginal electorates and to reward loyal supporters. However, contrary to our expectations, we find virtually no electoral impact of the grants: those electorates that received more sporting grant funding were no more likely to swing in favour of the government in the 2019 election than electorates that received no funding. A straw poll of members of the House of Representatives suggests one possible explanation as to why pork-barrelling persists: parliamentarians tend to overestimate its electoral impact.
County-Level Social Determinants of Health and COVID-19 in Nursing Homes, United States, June 1, 2020–January 31, 2021
Authors: Hege Adam , Lane Sandi , Spaulding Trent , Sugg Margaret , Iyer Lakshmi S.
Published: November 2021

Objectives:

Nursing homes are a primary setting of COVID-19 transmission and death, but research has primarily focused only on factors within nursing homes. We investigated the relationship between US nursing home–associated COVID-19 infection rates and county-level and nursing home attributes.

Methods:

We constructed panel data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) minimum dataset, CMS nursing home data, 2010 US Census data, 5-year (2012-2016) American Community Survey estimates, and county COVID-19 infection rates. We analyzed COVID-19 data from June 1, 2020, through January 31, 2021, during 7 five-week periods. We used a maximum likelihood estimator, including an autoregressive term, to estimate effects and changes over time. We performed 3 model forms (basic, partial, and full) for analysis.

Results:

Nursing homes with nursing (0.005) and staff (0.002) shortages had high COVID-19 infection rates, and locally owned (−0.007) or state-owned (−0.025) and nonprofit (–0.011) agencies had lower COVID-19 infection rates than privately owned agencies. County-level COVID-19 infection rates corresponded with COVID-19 infection rates in nursing homes. Racial and ethnic minority groups had high nursing home–associated COVID-19 infection rates early in the study. High median annual personal income (−0.002) at the county level correlated with lower nursing home–associated COVID-19 infection rates.

Conclusions:

Communities with low rates of nursing home infections had access to more resources (eg, financial resources, staffing) and likely had better mitigation efforts in place earlier in the pandemic than nursing homes that had access to few resources and poor mitigation efforts. Future research should address the social and structural determinants of health that are leaving racial and ethnic minority populations and institutions such as nursing homes vulnerable during times of crises.
Hope and Creative Work in Conflict Zones: Theoretical Insights from Israel
Authors: Jamal Amal , Lavie Noa
Published: November 2021

This article contributes to the theorization of hope in the cultural industries in conflict zones. Although the merits of hope in explicating the behavior of creative workers in cultural production in western countries has won some attention, the literature has fallen short of addressing the impact of conflict on the meaning of hope for minority creative workers in this field. To fill this lacuna, we explore the experience of Palestinian creative workers in Israeli cultural industries, which are very functional in national identity making and branding. Our evidence is helpful in illuminating the temporal dimension of hope, as a resource and a form of passive action that takes place in the present in order to keep the horizon open for a better future, also when this future does not entail a clear referent. It also sheds light on the affinity of hope with ethical agency claiming in the cultural industries.
reading with Simpson and Lindberg: re-membering kinshipties, layered bodies and visitation (w)rites
Authors: Gamache Mylène Yannick
Published: November 2021

This article reads with Michi Saagiig Nishnaabe writer and independent scholar Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, and Nêhiyaw legal scholar and novelist Tracey Lindberg. The practice of reading with involves heeding textual instructions and prioritising narrative terms of engagement. Indigenous bodies layered with resurgent potential in Lindberg’s and Simpson’s fictions refuse to re-centre the legacy of white settler coloniality. Attending to the process of reading with, as a relational undertaking, involves re-apprising cross-generational legacies and re-membering collective responsibilities.
Preparing Sustainability-Literate Teachers
Authors: Nolet Victor
Published: November 2021

Background/Context

This article explores sustainability as an emerging paradigm for pre-service preparation of teachers. Sustainability education, which is rooted in Deweyan ideas about the fundamental social purposes of schooling, attends to the tensions created by the interconnectedness of environmental, economic, and social equity systems. Sustainability education extends but does not replace environmental education or education for sustainable development, although the latter is considered a problematic idea.

Purpose/ Focus of Study

Nine themes that occur frequently in the sustainability discourse are explored as the basis for sustainability literacy, a complex construct validated through collection of multiple sources of evidence. Specific strategies for integrating sustainability education into the preservice preparation of teachers are linked to a framework for teacher learning that addresses curricular vision, understandings about teaching, dispositions, and professional practices.

Research Design

The article is an analytic essay that examines existing literature in the area of sustainability education and maps this work onto current research pertaining to the preparation of beginning teachers.

Conclusions

Sustainability education represents a new paradigm for the preparation of teachers. It can help new teachers develop a curricular vision that addresses the fundamental social purposes of education in the context of an uncertain 21st century. Sustainability education also can stimulate a conversation about the role of teacher education in the creation and solution of global environmental and social justice challenges.
Constrained Professionalism: Dilemmas of Teaching in the Face of Test-Based Accountability
Authors: Wills John S. , Sandholtz Judith Haymore
Published: November 2021

Background/Context

In response to state-level test-based accountability and the federal No Child Left Behind Act, school administrators increasingly view centralized curriculum and prescribed instructional strategies as the most direct means of increasing student performance. This movement toward standardization reduces teachers’ autonomy and control over their classroom practices. The consequences of test-based accountability on teacher practice are often conceptualized as a tension between teacher professionalism and standardization.

Focus of Study

This case study investigates the classroom instruction of an experienced teacher in an elementary school where the principal supported teachers’ autonomy and authority over curriculum and instruction. Examining her instructional practice in social studies, a subject not included in state testing, we demonstrate how specific teaching dilemmas that arose in response to state testing led to a new type of professionalism that we call constrained professionalism.

Setting

This qualitative case study focuses on social studies instruction in a fifth-grade classroom at a rural elementary school in southern California serving a low-income, diverse student population with a large percentage of English language learners. The school was selected for two reasons: (1) as a low-performing but improving elementary school as measured by state testing, the school was under pressure to continue to raise student test scores, and (2) social studies continued to be part of the elementary curriculum.

Data Collection/Analysis

Data collection extended over a 10-month period and included observation and videotaping of social studies lessons, interviews with the teacher and principal, and document collection. Observation and videotaping covered virtually all the social lessons during the school year in the teacher's classroom, a total of 66 lessons.

Findings/Results

As state-mandated testing was instituted, administrative support of teacher autonomy continued, but constraints on this teacher's decisions emerged as instructional time and resources shifted to language arts and mathematics. Although able to make independent decisions, this qualified teacher did not teach social studies in the way she believed would best serve her students’ needs and interests.

Conclusions

This case study demonstrates how teachers’ professional discretion is being minimized in subtle yet consequential ways amid high-stakes testing, even in subject areas not tested by the state. Constrained professionalism represents a new situation in which teachers retain autonomy in classroom practices, but their decisions are significantly circumscribed by contextual pressures and time demands that devalue their professional experience, judgment, and expertise.
The Right (Write) Start: African American Language and the Discourse of Sounding Right
Authors: Dyson Anne Haas , Smitherman Geneva
Published: November 2021

Background

Both academic research and educational policy have focused on the diverse language resources of young schoolchildren. African American Language (AAL) in particular has a rich history of scholarship that both documents its historical evolution and sociolinguistic complexity and reveals the persistent lack of knowledge about AAL in our schools and the continuing negative stereotypes about its speakers. Currently, federal funds for early schooling target the literacy learning of low-income children, who are disproportionately children of color; these programs, though, assume, as a literacy “basic,” a singular correct way of using language. The stage is set, then, for communicative disconnects between teachers and children during literacy instruction.

Purpose

In early literacy studies, such communicative disconnects between teachers and children have been discussed primarily in relation to reading. Our focus is on teacher-student interactions about children's writing, that is, about their efforts to make a voice visible on paper. Writing is a rich context for studying how AAL figures into early literacy teaching and learning. Teachers urge children to listen to how their words sound in order to compose their message. But what sounds “right” to young children will vary for developmental, situational, and, as emphasized herein, sociocultural reasons. We illustrate how, in the course of teacher-student interaction, young children's major resources for learning to write—their very voices—may become a source of problems.

Research Design

The article draws on data collected in an ethnographic project on child writing in a test-monitored and basics-focused elementary school in a midsized urban school district. Most of the school's children were from low-income homes of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. One important pedagogical site for teaching basic literacy skills in the observed first grade was teacher-led editing conferences, in which the classroom teacher focused on written conventions, including standardized usage. These conferences (and all afternoon activities) were documented over the course of an academic year primarily through observation accompanied by audiotaping and collection of children's products. This article features the writing experiences of one focal child, Tionna.

Recommendations

We conclude with a consideration of the goals of language arts programs in contemporary times. Certainly, assisting children in extending their communicative repertoire to include the Language of Wider Communication (LWC) is a worthy curricular goal for the school years. At the same time, we question U.S. monolingualism and monodialectalism in a multilingual world demanding communicative flexibility.
Does Research-Based Professional Development Make a Difference? A Longitudinal Investigation of Teacher Learning in Technology Integration
Authors: Mouza Chrystalla
Published: November 2021

Background/Context

Although there is a growing body of literature on the characteristics of effective professional development, there is little direct evidence on the extent to which these characteristics influence teacher learning and practice. In particular, few studies exist to date that demonstrate the impact of technology-focused professional development on teacher learning and practice. Even fewer studies have examined teacher learning for more than a year to understand the sustainability and growth of professional development gains.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the long-term impact of research-based professional development on teacher learning and practice with respect to technology. Analysis is based on data collected from 7 urban teachers 2 years after their participation in a yearlong, technology-focused professional development program. Follow-up data are compared with data collected by the author during the teachers’ participation in professional development to (1) investigate the sustainability and growth of teachers’ learning, (2) identify the conditions that facilitated or hindered teachers’ capacity to further develop their thinking, knowledge, and practice with regard to technology, and (3) map the trajectory of teachers’ learning over a 3-year period.

Research Design

The study employed a qualitative multiple case study design. Data were collected from multiple sources that included teacher interviews, surveys, classroom observations, and collection of artifacts. Two outcomes were defined as critical measures of long-term learning: sustainability and growth.

Findings/Results

Results indicated that participation in research-based professional development fostered sustained changes in teachers’ educational technology knowledge, ability to design and implement technology-supported experiences for students, and beliefs toward teaching and learning with technology. In two cases, these changes became the basis for continual learning and led to ongoing professional growth. Further, findings revealed three factors that influenced teacher learning over time: (1) student characteristics, (2) access to resources, and (3) social support and opportunities for collaboration with peers.

Conclusions/Recommendations

Findings of the study suggest that participation in professional development that is grounded in the currently accepted best practices can impact teacher learning and practice. They also offer insights into the process by which teachers modify their knowledge, practices, and beliefs and the conditions that influence learning over time. Further, they provide new lenses for analyzing teacher learning that suggest looking more closely into the interactive relationship between practices and beliefs, as well as the ways in which classroom experience influences continual learning and change.
Professional Development of Teachers for Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning: A Knowledge-Building Approach
Authors: Chai Ching-Sing , Tan Seng-Chee
Published: November 2021

Background

This study was situated in Singapore, which aims to achieve engaged learning in P–12 schools with the use of educational technology. One of the foci of study among Singaporean educational researchers on a computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environment that emphasizes collaboration among learners for the co-construction of knowledge. Although there is some evidence that CSCL enhances students’ learning, an identified gap in the field of CSCL is documented accounts of how knowledge building happens. Knowledge of how to facilitate sustained and in-depth knowledge-building discourse among teachers has also been identified as a gap in understanding in teacher education.

Purpose

This case study aims to gain insights into how negotiation and co-construction of knowledge occurs among eachers during their participation in a knowledge-building community.

Participants

It involves 7 Singaporean teachers who enrolled in an 18-month Advanced Diploma program.

Intervention

Three consecutive modules were conducted to develop the participants’ competencies in and dispositions toward facilitating student-centered learning in a computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environment. The modules engaged the teachers as coc-onstructors of knowledge in a knowledge-building community.

Research Design

This is a case study in which the first author, as a participant observer, acted as the facilitator for the modules.

Data Analysis

The main source of data was the teachers’ notes in Knowledge Forum, a CSCL environment. The teachers’ patterns of online interactions were analyzed through social network analysis and the interaction analysis model (IAM).

Findings

Our findings indicate that the teachers formed a socially cohesive community and participated rather actively, writing an average of 3.7 notes and 425 words per week. Further analysis of the notes using IAM shows a healthy distribution of notes at various phases of knowledge construction.

Conclusion

We conclude that the teacher knowledge-building community was successful in engaging the teachers in collaborative knowledge building, leading to a deep understanding among them about learning in a CSCL environment. We suggest the following factors as contributors to this advancement: (1) having a group of committed teachers as participants, (2) engaging the teachers to work on authentic problems faced in schools, (3) empowering the teachers with the agency to solve problems and reflect on their learning, (4) allocating adequate time for teachers to link theories to practice and to reflect on their implementation, and (5) having a facilitator who is experienced in facilitating this form of learning and in using a pedagogical model that is built on appropriate learning theories.
School Reform: The Flatworm in a Flat World: From Entropy to Renewal through Indigenous Invention
Authors: Heckman Paul E. , Montera Viki L.
Published: November 2021

Background/Context

Current research on learning, organizational change, and the context of the 21st century yields insight into the needed fundamental reforms in our educational learning environments. Despite these new insights, schooling and school reform in the 21st century continue to be grounded in ideas based on the industrial model of the 20th century. Reform efforts in today's No Child Left Behind environment reify static ideas about schooling, resulting in organizational entropy.

Purpose

In this article, we compare current schooling practices and reform efforts to the mechanistic industrial model and illustrate why this paradigm is no longer sufficient in this “flat world.” Schooling and school reform in the 21st century continue to be approached as if these are a flatworm capable replicating itself. We argue that a new paradigm is needed— one that builds on current knowledge and human resources, one that is created by those who work and live in a school or community—which we have called Indigenous Invention.

Research Design

Indigenous Invention grows from new conceptions of learning, cognition, and development, and our work in schools and communities during the past 16 years. Examples of Indigenous Invention presented here come from a much larger case study and long-term action research project in five urban schools and communities.

Conclusion/Recommendations

Three areas are presented. First, we examine ideas that currently guide schooling practices and explore why these ideas have resulted in a decline of educational organizational vitality and are no longer sufficient for our in-school, after-school, and preschool programs. We suggest using new knowledge about human learning, cognition, and development to bring organizational energy and renewal to educational institutions. Second, the power of this new knowledge will not be realized with conventional school change models that urge fidelity in implementing packages and procedures developed far away from the school and its neighborhood. Replication may work for the flatworm. It does not work in complex systems like educational institutions. Third, we present the process of Indigenous Invention as one that holds promise in moving our schools from entropy to renewal.