No description available.

No description available.

This parallel qualitative case study explored a potential outcome of California CTC Teacher Induction Program Standards (California Commission on Teacher Credentialing [California CTC], 2020) as one that develops a beginning teacher’s disposition of courage in addressing numerous inequities in education. This study employed qualitative interviewing techniques to elicit new teachers’ ability to identify induction standards and related experiences to develop an understanding of equity in education and the ability to advocate for student needs. The research design engaged three teachers and one mentor in year two of the induction program offered through the University of California Los Angeles’ extension program as well as two teachers in year one and one coordinator from an induction program offered through the New Teacher Center at the University of California Santa Cruz.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

McMaster University MASTER OF SCIENCE (2020) Hamilton, Ontario (Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences) TITLE: Identifying new compounds capable of inducing model phages AUTHOR: Anisha Nandy SUPERVISOR: Dr. Alexander P. Hynes NUMBER OF PAGES: xi, 80 / Prophages are the genomes of bacteriophages (phages, bacterial viruses) that integrate into the chromosome of their host upon infection, lying dormant until conditions favour their reactivation. A cell harbouring a prophage is called a lysogen, as, upon exposure to certain signals, the prophage will initiate a replicative cycle ending in lysis of the host bacterium and release of phages. This process is known as induction. Canonically, induction occurs through activation of the bacterial SOS-response, a DNA repair cascade initiated by detection of DNA damage. Studies of prophage induction have almost exclusively relied on challenges with compounds that result in the initiation of the host SOS response. Recent studies have identified some signals that affect prophage induction independently of the SOS response, but these approaches have not been systematic. To identify non-canonical triggers of prophage induction, I screened 3,936 compounds against two model lysogens. The first, carrying phage HK97, is a model for induction. The second, carrying phage Mu—a prophage thought to be uninducible—serves as a control. Any compound which inhibited bacterial growth in only our HK97 lysogen was considered to have resulted in a phage-mediated response. The 171 compounds identified in this screen were then used to re-challenge the lysogen at a range of concentrations and monitor the resulting release of free phages associated with induction. Increases in phage counts were seen for 86 compounds. While 38 of these were known SOS activators, 49 were novel, ‘non-canonical’ inducers. Unexpectedly, the screening also revealed seven unique chemical inducers for the supposedly un-inducible model prophage, Mu. The 56 new phage-inducers identified by this work include compounds likely to be driving phage induction through non-canonical pathways. As prophages are thought to respond to bacterial stress, these may reflect stressors acting through new mechanisms. Using these compounds as tools opens up an avenue to probe other stress pathways in bacteria, and, as evidenced by induction of Mu, potentially help discover new phages that don’t respond to canonical inducers. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / Bacterial viruses (phages) can lie dormant as prophages in their host bacterium until a signal triggers their activation, production of viruses, and rapid killing of the host. This switch from dormant prophage to active phage called induction. Almost all molecules that result in prophage inductions belong to a limited set of compounds which elicit a specific stress response in bacteria. Screening 3936 compounds for their ability to inhibit the growth of bacteria carrying known prophages resulted in the identification of a small subset associated with increased phage production. For one Escherichia coli prophage—HK97, a model of induction—we found 49 compounds not previously known as inducers. For another model prophage—Mu, a prophage thought to be chemically uninducible—we identified seven such compounds. These compounds will serve as tools to determine what signals prophages can respond to, and potentially identify new stress pathways of interest in bacteria.

The purpose of this study was to determine the value, if any, of a mentoring program for beginning U.S. Army Reserve Forces School instructors, specifically: how mentored and unmentored beginning instructors differ in their perception of a mentorship program, how do mentors improve, if at all, the beginner's instructional practice, how mentors assist the beginner's understanding of the school's operating procedures, and how formally and informally mentored instructors differ in their perception of a mentorship program. Army Reserve instructors teaching the Command and General Staff Course (CGSOC) and the Combined Arms Services Staff Course (CAS3), were the subjects for this study. The total population of 267 instructors was surveyed by questionnaire, 217 (81.3%) usable responses were received. ANOVA and t-test statistic calculations showed a significant difference between the mean responses of instructors with a formal mentor and those with an informal or no mentor. Instructors with formal mentors strongly agree that mentorship is beneficial to beginners and should be part of an induction program. Formal mentors helped improve practice through observation, feedback, counseling, and direct assistance. Instructors with formal mentors state they were provided an orientation into administrative, logistical, and standard operating procedures. Finally, the formally mentored group report they were helped to become better instructors, guided in professional development, given a formal assessment of their instructional abilities, and provided materials to improve practice and maintain competence. The data appear to suggest that a formal mentorship program produces a more prepared beginning instructor. / Ed. D.

According to the U. S. Department of Education (National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, 1996), U.S. public schools will hire an estimated two million teachers within the decade. The experience of the beginning teacher is a stressful one with more than 40% of new teachers choosing to leave the profession during the first three years. One promising practice to address this problem is mentoring, an expert teacher helping the beginner one-on-one. The heart of mentoring is the mentor/mentee relationship. This study investigated the nature of the beginning teacher/mentor relationship and the forces that affected that relationship. The methodology was a cross-case analysis of three pairs of mentor/mentees at the elementary level. The data were collected from focus groups, teacher interviews, observations, email responses, and document review. Data were analyzed using a constant comparative method examining emerging themes across all three cases. Trustworthiness of the research was fostered through multiple sources of data, practice interviews, oversight by peers and committee, participant review, and description of themes in the participants' own words. The data revealed that the mentor/mentee pairs developed very strong relationships grounded on reassurance, collaboration, reciprocity, friendship, problem solving, multi-layered support, and informal structures for getting together. Positive forces affecting the relationships included personality of the participants, perception of mentor role, closeness of age, proximity of classrooms, and common teaching assignment. Time constraints acted as a negative force that presented many challenges addressed by mentors and their mentees in very unique ways. / Ph. D.