Keratinophilic fungi of school playgrounds in the Nablus area,West Bank of Jordan

The distribution of keratinophilic fungi in the soil of 57 school playgrounds in the Nablus area was studied with relation to human presence. A total number of 73 species was recovered. Thirteen of these species were dermatophytes and closely related fungi. The most common and frequent species of the latter fungi were: Arthroderma cuniculi (found in 32.1% of school playgrounds), Chrysosporium keratinophilum (32.1%), Microsporum gypseum (10.7%), T. terrestre (7.1%), and C. asperatum (7.1%). Twenty eight of the isolated species had been reported to be pathogenic; these comprised 64.3% of the keratinophilic mycoflora of school playgrounds.     

Learning about the Environment

In this article, the authors describe an integrated science and literacy instructional model in which students build background knowledge by engaging in free-choice learning options during an investigation of school yard habitats. Students interact with their peers while inquiring, discussing findings, and using print resources to enhance learning.     

The Pleasures and the Pitfalls of Plant Science Activities

The topic of wetlands provides a rich context for curriculum integration. This unit contains seven activities that integrate environmental science with math, technology, social studies, language arts, and other disciplines. In this series, students will identify plants and animals found in wetlands, understand the function of wetlands through the use of models, learn some of the effects of human behavior on wetland preservation, and use problem-solving skills to develop solutions to wetland loss.     

一起农村小学甲型H3N2流感暴发流行的调查分析

目的了解甲型H3N2流感暴发流行特征,为制定预防措施提供依据。方法对和温村小学239名学生流感发病及流感疫苗接种情况进行调查,对发病者逐一个案调查登记,采集患者咽拭子标本送百色市疾病预防控制中心实验室检测确诊。结果该校学生流感发病33例,发病率为13.81%,学前班及1~6年级共7个班均有病例发生,发病班级为100%。发病者中,男性18例,女性15例,男女性别比为1.2∶1,男女发病率分别为14.52%(18/124)、13.04%(15/115),(χ2=0.11,P0.05),男女发病率差异无统计学意义。患者咽拭子标本5人份,经实验室检测甲型H3N2流感病毒核酸阳性率为100%。结论该校学生无流感疫苗免疫接种史,易感人群积累,是本次甲型H3N2流感暴发流行的根本原因。应在每年秋冬流感流行季节前一个月,加强中小学校学生流感疫苗接种,提高易感人群免疫力,防止甲型H3N2流感扩散蔓延。     

医学遗传学与遗传病例授课的整合

通过对医学遗传学知识和遗传病病例授课的整合,采取多种教学方法,让学生从不同角度的知识面学习掌握病例。如通过理论病例、实验病例、讨论病例、见习病例、作业病例、考试病例等。做到因知识施教,因专业施教,真正发挥教师教书育人的职能作用,使学生真正认识到科学思维严谨之重要性。     

Associations of adiposity with measured and self-reported academic performance in early adolescence

Objective: To examine the associations of adiposity with measured and self‐reported academic performance independently of demographics and physical activity among U.S. adolescents. Research Methods and Procedures: We surveyed 666 students 11 to 14 years old from seven middle schools in Los Angeles, CA. Weight and height were measured. Actual grade point average was obtained from school records. Self‐reported school grades and physical activity time were measured by questionnaire. Adiposity measures included BMI, BMI percentile (≥85th percentile defined as at‐risk‐of‐overweight), and percentage body fat (bioimpedance). Results: After adjusting for gender, ethnicity, age, and physical activity time, overweight at‐risk status, BMI, and percentage body fat were negatively related to only self‐reported (p < 0.01) but not measured grades. Level of moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity time was negatively related to measured and self‐reported grades, independently of adiposity (p < 0.01). Discussion: To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine both body mass and body fat in relation to measured and self‐reported school grades. Adiposity did not relate to actual academic performance in a sample of predominantly Latino and Asian‐American adolescents. The use of measured vs. self‐reported academic outcomes may represent different constructs and influence study conclusions. Cultural factors may also play a role in our findings, but this requires further study.     

Doing Something about the Weather

Mealworms, yum yum! Insects are an exciting way for middle school students to acquire science process skills. A teacher eating a mealworm will certainly capture the attention of students, and explaining the common practice of insect eating among people in other countries is a great way to include culture in a science lesson. This article provides the teacher with basic information on: (a) how to set up and maintain a mealworm colony, (b) instructions on setting up an observational journal as well as a sample organizational template, and (c) a number of explorations and activities to do with mealworms.     

Ethnic school context and the national and sub-national identifications of pupils

In various European countries, policy-makers strive for educational desegregation to enhance pupils' national identifications. Since little empirical evidence supports such a policy and social identity theorists emphasize the importance of context, this article examines the impact of ethnic school composition – measured by the proportion of non-natives and ethnic heterogeneity – on the national (Belgian) and sub-national (Flemish) identifications of pupils. Multi-level data analyses from the surveying of 2,845 pupils (aged 10–12) in sixty-eight Flemish primary schools reveal differential effects for natives and non-natives. While the proportion of non-natives at school is negatively associated with non-native pupils' identifications, it is positively related to native pupils' identifications. In general, the ethnic heterogeneity of the school is negatively associated with pupils' national and sub-national identifications. Our findings indicate that the relation between ethnic school composition and pupils' identifications is mediated by the latter's inter-ethnic friendships. The consequences of these findings for educational policy are discussed.     

News and Views

We surveyed the sleep‐wake patterns and lifestyle habits in a sample of Japanese first to third year junior high school children (n=638, age 12 to 15 yrs), of whom 29.3% were evening type, 64.1% intermediate type, and 6.6% morning type in preference. The morningness‐eveningness (M‐E) score was lower (more evening typed), 16.1 vs. 15.4 in first compared to third year students. There were significant gender differences, with girls showing a greater evening preference. Evening preference was associated with longer sleep latency, shortened sleep duration during schooldays and weekends, bad morning feeling, and episodes of daytime sleepiness. In contrast, morning preference was associated with higher sleep drive and better sleep‐wake parameters and lifestyle habits. Our results suggest the morning preference should be promoted among junior high school children to increase the likelihood of more regular sleep‐wake patterns and lifestyle habits.     

Sleep Patterns of Day-Working,Evening High-Schooled Adolescents of São Paulo,Brazil

Children who grow up in developing countries of the world must work to help financially support their families, and they must also attend school. We investigated the impact of work on the sleep of working vs. nonworking high school students. Twenty-seven São Paulo, Brazil, public high school students (eight male and eight female working students plus six nonworking female and five nonworking male students) 14–18 yrs of age who attended school Monday–Friday between 19:00 to 22:30 h participated. A comprehensive questionnaire about work and living conditions, health status, and diseases and their symptoms was also answered. The activity level and rest pattern (sleep at night and napping during the day) were continuously assessed by wrist actigraphy (Ambulatory Monitoring, USA). The main variables were analyzed by a two-factor ANOVA with application of the Tukey HSD test for multiple comparisons, and the length of sleep during weekdays vs. weekends was compared by Student t-test. Working students went to sleep earlier weekends [F_(1,23) = 6.1; p = 0.02] and woke up earlier work days than nonworking students [F_(1,23) = 17.3; p = 0.001]. The length of nighttime sleep during weekdays was shorter among all the working [F_(1,23) = 16.7; p < 0.001] than all the nonworking students. The sleep duration of boys was shorter than of girls during weekends [F_(1,23) = 10.8; p < 0.001]. During weekdays, the duration of napping by working and nonworking male students was shorter than nonworking female students. During weekdays, working girls took the shortest naps [F_(1,23) = 5.6; p = 0.03]. The most commonly reported sleep complaint during weekdays was difficulty waking up in the morning [F_(1,23) = 6.5; p = 0.02]. During weekdays, the self-perceived sleep quality of working students was worse than nonworking students [F_(1,23) = 6.2; p = 0.02]. The findings of this study show that work has negative effects on the sleep of adolescents, with the possible build-up of a chronic sleep debt with potential consequent impact on quality of life and school learning.