scholarly journals Improving college students’ fact-checking strategies through lateral reading instruction in a general education civics course

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica E. Brodsky ◽  
Patricia J. Brooks ◽  
Donna Scimeca ◽  
Ralitsa Todorova ◽  
Peter Galati ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
General Education ◽  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Knowledge Use ◽  
Original Source ◽  
Literacy Knowledge ◽  
Fact Checking ◽  
Online Assignments ◽  
Business As Usual

AbstractCollege students lack fact-checking skills, which may lead them to accept information at face value. We report findings from an institution participating in the Digital Polarization Initiative (DPI), a national effort to teach students lateral reading strategies used by expert fact-checkers to verify online information. Lateral reading requires users to leave the information (website) to find out whether someone has already fact-checked the claim, identify the original source, or learn more about the individuals or organizations making the claim. Instructor-matched sections of a general education civics course implemented the DPI curriculum (N = 136 students) or provided business-as-usual civics instruction (N = 94 students). At posttest, students in DPI sections were more likely to use lateral reading to fact-check and correctly evaluate the trustworthiness of information than controls. Aligning with the DPI’s emphasis on using Wikipedia to investigate sources, students in DPI sections reported greater use of Wikipedia at posttest than controls, but did not differ significantly in their trust of Wikipedia. In DPI sections, students who failed to read laterally at posttest reported higher trust of Wikipedia at pretest than students who read at least one problem laterally. Responsiveness to the curriculum was also linked to numbers of online assignments attempted, but unrelated to pretest media literacy knowledge, use of lateral reading, or self-reported use of lateral reading. Further research is needed to determine whether improvements in lateral reading are maintained over time and to explore other factors that might distinguish students whose skills improved after instruction from non-responders.

scholarly journals Associations Between Online Instruction in Lateral Reading Strategies and Fact-Checking COVID-19 News Among College Students

AERA Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 233285842110389
Author(s):  
Jessica E. Brodsky ◽  
Patricia J. Brooks ◽  
Donna Scimeca ◽  
Peter Galati ◽  
Ralitsa Todorova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
General Education ◽  
Test Scores ◽  
Reading Strategies ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Online Curriculum ◽  
Fact Checking ◽  
False News ◽  
Perceived Helpfulness

College students, and adults in general, may find it hard to identify trustworthy information amid the proliferation of false news and misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic. In Fall 2020, college students (N = 221) in an online general education civics course were taught through asynchronous assignments how to use lateral reading strategies to fact-check online information. Students improved from pretest to posttest in the use of lateral reading to fact-check information; lateral reading was predicted by the number of assignments completed and students’ reading comprehension test scores. Students reported greater use, endorsement, and knowledge of Wikipedia at posttest, aligning with the curriculum’s emphasis on using Wikipedia to investigate information sources. Students also reported increased confidence in their ability to fact-check COVID-19 news. While confidence was related to perceived helpfulness of the assignments, it was only weakly associated with lateral reading. Findings support the effectiveness of the online curriculum for improving fact-checking.

Multicomponent Reading Interventions for Students With Intellectual Disability

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 229-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kemal Afacan ◽  
Kimber L. Wilkerson ◽  
Andrea L. Ruppar
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
General Education ◽  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Reading Skills ◽  
Word Reading ◽  
Reading Interventions ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sight Word ◽  
The Impact

Reading instruction for students with intellectual disability (ID) has traditionally focused on single skill instruction such as sight word reading. Given that multicomponent reading interventions have been linked to improved reading skills across multiple reading components for students in general education, it is logical to examine the impact of multicomponent reading interventions for students with ID. The purpose of this literature review was to examine characteristics, outcomes, and quality of multicomponent reading interventions for students with ID. In this review, seven empirical articles fit the inclusionary criteria. Findings indicate that students with ID who were exposed to multicomponent reading programs significantly improved their reading skills compared to their peers with ID who received traditional sight word instruction or to their previous reading performance. This literature review highlights effective strategies used to provide multicomponent reading instruction to students with ID. Implications for reading instruction for students with ID are provided, along with implications for future research.

Teaching Mathematics to College Students with Mathematics-Related Learning Disabilities: Report from the Classroom

2005 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 205-220 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary M. Sullivan
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Action Research ◽  
General Education ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Teaching Mathematics ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Primary Focus ◽  
Mathematics Course

This article reports on action research that took place in one section of a college general education mathematics course in which all three students who were enrolled had diagnosed learning disabilities related to mathematics. The project emerged in response to a question about performance in a mathematics course in which making sense of mathematics would be a primary focus, explaining one's work would be expected, and discourse among members would be a routine occurrence. Implications for teaching similar courses to students who have a mathematics-related learning disability are discussed.

Effective Practices for Teaching Content Area Reading

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Stevens ◽  
Sharon Vaughn
Keyword(s):  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Social Studies ◽  
General Education ◽  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Reading Skills ◽  
Content Area Reading ◽  
Content Area ◽  
Grade Levels ◽  
Content Acquisition ◽  
Social Studies Instruction

Adequate reading skills are necessary for college and career readiness and success in the work force, but many students do not have sufficient reading skills. The 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress demonstrated that fourth- and eighth-grade students had made little to no progress in reading since the previous report in 2017. Elementary level students often receive dedicated English language arts instruction during the day, but this is not always true for secondary level students . One way that educators can support students across the grade levels is by providing evidence-based reading instruction within content areas (i.e., science and social studies instruction). Researchers have investigated ways for teachers to provide high-quality content area reading instruction to support the reading comprehension and content acquisition of students in general education settings. Previous research suggests that paraphrasing and text structure instruction support readers’ identification of key ideas and the integration of those ideas across paragraphs and passages when reading content area texts. These practices align with reading comprehension theory in support of conscious text processing while reading. Teaching readers to generate main ideas during reading may improve the reading outcomes and content acquisition outcomes not only for typical readers but also for struggling readers and those identified for special education. Educators’ implementation of such practices within science and social studies instruction may improve students’ reading performance and content learning across grade levels.

Self-esteem among college students: the intersectionality of psychological distress, discrimination and gender

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Monideepa B. Becerra ◽  
Devin Arias ◽  
Leah Cha ◽  
Benjamin J. Becerra
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
General Education ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Outcome Variable ◽  
Positive Health ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of low self-esteem among college students and how exogenous and endogenous factors, such as experiences of discrimination and psychological distress, respectively, impact such an outcome. Design/methodology/approach General education courses were used to conduct a quantitative cross-sectional study among undergraduate college students. The primary outcome variable of interest in this study was self-esteem, which was measured using the Rosenburg’s self-esteem scale. Primary independent variable was psychological distress (measured using Kessler 6 scale). Discrimination experiences were measured using the Everyday Discrimination Scale (EDS). Descriptive, bivariate and multiple linear regressions were conducted to find associations among such variables. Findings Among 308 young adults in this study, psychological distress was significantly related to low self-esteem (ß = −6.50, p < 0.001). In addition, increasing EDS score (ß = −0.37, p = 0.019) and women gender (ß = −1.29, p = 0.038) were also associated with low self-esteem. Research limitations/implications The study was cross-sectional and thus cannot provide causal relationship. The self-reported data is susceptible to recall bias. College students continue to face negative social experiences that impact their self-esteem, and discrimination plays a substantial role. Practical implications Gender-specific self-esteem coaching is needed among college students with psychological distress and among those with experiences of discrimination. Social implications The results of the current study provide information for understanding the role of discrimination and psychological well-being on self-esteem of college students, and thus further address the importance of social determinants of health and well-being. Originality/value This study provides a unique insight into the disparities faced by college students. Understanding self-esteem at the individualistic and collectivistic levels will allow for the planning and implementation of comprehensive interventions that address gender differences and psychological distress that will increase the positive health outcomes and decrease the negative health outcomes.

scholarly journals Financial Literacy and Behavioral Biases among Traditional Age College Students

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Ohaness Paskelian ◽  
Kevin Jones ◽  
Stephen Bell ◽  
Robert Kao
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Financial Literacy ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Retirement Plans ◽  
Private Companies ◽  
Financial Decisions ◽  
Personal Finances ◽  
The Status ◽  
Literacy Knowledge ◽  
Short Run

Financial literacy and planning are crucial for everyone. This is especially true for college students who as the decisions they make in this stage of their lives can haunt them throughout their income earning years and beyond. In this paper, we examine several financial literacy issues facing college students. We identify college students’ perceptions about their own financial situation, assess student financial literacy knowledge, as well as evaluate their awareness about the status of their savings and retirement positions. We find that basic financial literacy is not the only factor in making sound financial decisions. Our results show the majority of the college students surveyed are financially literate and have the ability to make informed decisions about their personal finances in the short-run. While our respondents appear confident in making short-run financial decisions, their behavior tends to suggest that their confidence is somewhat misguided. In addition, a large number of the students surveyed feel they do not have the requisite knowledge to make wise retirement planning choices. Furthermore, several respondents report a distrust of retirement plans offer by private companies, which may lead to suboptimal retirement savings.

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