In recent years, there has been an increase in paraeducator supports, in large part because students with low incidence disabilities are being included more frequently in general education settings. As a result, special education teachers have been given additional supervisory responsibilities related to directing the work of paraeducators in special and general education settings. Many teachers, however, feel unprepared for this supervisory role. Therefore, to gain a better understanding of current practices in paraeducator supervision, the authors interviewed 13 special education teachers who were nominated by district special education administrators as exemplary supervisors of paraeducators. From the interviews, three themes emerged: creating effective teams, ensuring appropriate training and evaluation, and recommendations for the field. Practices for paraeducators working with students with low incidence disabilities in general education settings are noted in the first two themes. Implications for policy, practice, teacher preparation, and future research are also discussed.

The urban heat island (UHI) is a widely observed phenomenon whereby urban environments have higher temperatures and different relative humidities than surrounding suburban and rural areas. Temperature (T) and relative humidity (RH) strongly affect the partitioning of semivolatile species found in the atmosphere, such as nitric acid, ammonia, and water. These species are inherently tied to aerosol pH, which is a key parameter driving some atmospheric chemical processes and environmental effects of aerosols. In this study, we characterized the effect of the UHI on aerosol pH in Baltimore, MD, and Chicago, IL. The T and RH differences that define the UHI lead to substantial differences in aerosol liquid water (ALW) content. The ALW differences produce urban aerosol pH that is systematically lower (more acidic) than rural aerosol pH for identical atmospheric composition. The UHI in Baltimore and Chicago are most intense during the summer and at night, with urban-rural aerosol pH differences in excess of 0.8 and 0.65 pH units, respectively. The UHI has been observed in cities of all sizes: the similarity of our results for cities with different climatologies and aerosol compositions suggests that these results have broad implications for chemistry occurring in and around urban atmospheres globally.

Background: Medical schools differ, particularly in their teaching, but it is unclear whether such differences matter, although influential claims are often made. The Medical School Differences (MedDifs) study brings together a wide range of measures of UK medical schools, including postgraduate performance, fitness to practise issues, specialty choice, preparedness, satisfaction, teaching styles, entry criteria and institutional factors. Method: Aggregated data were collected for 50 measures across 29 UK medical schools. Data include institutional history (e.g. rate of production of hospital and GP specialists in the past), curricular influences (e.g.

A chief concern over the first months of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic was the capacity to provide care for acutely ill patients in hospitals and intensive care units (ICUs). The variability in outcomes of patients with COVID-19 internationally has been striking, with some reports describing ICU mortality in ranges between 40 and 90%. 1-3 Systematic reviews including Characteristics and outcomes of patients with COVID-19 admitted to hospital and intensive care in the first phase of the pandemic in Canada: a national cohort study

Paraeducators are frequent communication partners for young children with complex communication needs (CCN) in early childhood settings. This study examined the impact of instruction to paraeducators in two communication interaction strategies (IPLAN [Identify activities for communication, Provide means for communication, Locate and provide vocabulary, Arrange environment, use iNteraction strategies] and MORE [Model AAC, Offer opportunities for communication, Respond to communication, Extend communication]) on the number of communication opportunities provided by paraeducators during play activities with young children with CCN. Results of the study provide evidence that after 2 hr of one-on-one training, paraeducators increased the number of communication opportunities they provided for children with CCN, and children with CCN took an increased number of communication turns. In addition, paraeducators reported that they found the training beneficial, and the supervising teachers noted improvements in the communication support provided by the paraeducators. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.