Interrogating Practice or Show and Tell?: Using a Digital Portfolio to Anchor a Professional Learning Community of Science Teachers
JOURNAL OF SCIENCE TEACHER EDUCATION
Authors: Kloser, Matthew; Edelman, Amanda; Floyd, Catherine; Martinez, Jose Felipe; Stecher, Brian; Srinivasan, Jayashri; Lavin, Erin
Abstract
Teachers continuously engage in the relational work of sensemaking with students, but they generally do so isolated from colleagues, making individual decisions about their classrooms. Professional learning communities (PLCs), provide opportunities for collaborative professional reflection and development among peers centered on the analysis of teaching practice. However, PLCs can be difficult to implement in ways that reflect theories of adult learning and are manageable in light of the responsibilities of a teacher. We conducted a year-long case study of a PLC that engaged a group of middle school science teachers using artifacts from a digital portfolio and a framework for high-quality science teaching to explore their teaching practice. The PLC was divided into sessions facilitated externally by a member of the research team and sessions facilitated internally by the teachers themselves. Videos of all PLC sessions and baseline and final interviews indicated that unlike some PLCs described in the literature, participants focused their conversation and interactions on the content of science teaching regardless of who facilitated the session. The discussion was mediated by the digital portfolio tool, its artifacts and an introduced analytical framework. However, externally facilitated sessions revealed far more analysis of practice, compared to extensive reporting on portfolio artifacts when facilitated internally. The findings suggest that digital portfolios, when combined with analytical frameworks of practice can be important tools for teacher reflection, but attention must be paid to PLC structures and norms that move teachers past 'show and tell' and toward more in-depth conversations about practice.
Perceived dietary salt intake and the risk of primary liver cancer: a population-based prospective study
JOURNAL OF HUMAN NUTRITION AND DIETETICS
Authors: Sun, M.; Cui, H.; Liang, M.; Wang, W.; Wang, Y.; Liu, X.; Liu, S.; Cao, L.
Abstract
Background Although a high-salt diet is associated with high risk of chronic diseases such as hypertension, stroke and cardiovascular disease, little is known about the relationship between a high-salt diet and the risk of primary liver cancer (PLC). Consequently, we prospectively assessed the association of high perceived salt intake with the risk of PLC in the Kailuan Study. Methods In total, 97 006 participants who were healthy adults or free living adults at the baseline (2006) were included in the present study. The data of perceived salt intake were collected via questionnaire and classified into three categories: <6 g day(-1)for low salt intake, 6-10 g day(-1)for intermediate salt intake, >10 g day(-1)for high-salt intake. PLC including hepatocellular carcinoma and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (excluding liver metastasis), and was confirmed by review of medical records. We used a Cox proportional hazards model to analyse the association between high perceived salt diet and the risk of PLC after adjusting for possible confounders, including age, gender, body mass index, high sensitivity-C-reactive protein, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, total cholesterol, triglycerides, alanine aminotransferase, HbsAg positive, cirrhosis, fatty liver, hypertension, diabetes, drinking status, smoking status and physical exercise. Results During the follow-up period of 1 113 816 person-years, 397 PLC events were diagnosed. After adjusting for most potential confounders, subjects in intermediate salt intake and high salt intake had a multivariable hazard ratio and 95% confidence interval of 1.49 (0.97-2.29) and 1.98 (1.22-3.22) (Pfor trend = 0.0042), respectively, compared to low salt intake. Conclusions A higher perceived salt intake was associated with a higher risk of PLC.