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Identifying, controlling selection bias in tests of differential item functioning

Marc Goodrich and Natalie Koziol are exploring ways to identify and combat selection bias in differential item functioning.
Marc Goodrich and Natalie Koziol are exploring ways to identify and control selection bias in evaluations of differential item functioning. Learn more in the CYFS Research Network.

As demand increases for employees with expertise in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, representation of Latinos in STEM fields continues to lag.

As of 2011, Latinos represented only 7 percent of the American STEM workforce, despite accounting for more than 16 percent of the U.S. population. Full Article

NAECR Networking presentation highlights global child development

Dr. Hiro Yoshikawa leads the first NAECR Networking event of the fall Sept. 26 at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.
Dr. Hiro Yoshikawa, community and developmental psychologist and professor at New York University Steinhardt, discusses global child development issues Sept. 26 at UNMC.

The first NAECR Networking event of the fall semester was Sept. 26 at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. More than 40 attended in person and via Zoom video conferencing to hear a presentation about global child development by Dr. Hiro Yoshikawa. Full Article

Closing the preschool skill gap for disadvantaged children

Rachel Schumacher, fifth-year doctoral student in school psychology, is examining children’s responses to their transitions into school.
Rachel Schumacher, fifth-year doctoral student in school psychology, is examining children’s responses to their transitions into school.

Many children growing up in disadvantage enter school without the requisite social, emotional and behavioral skills to be successful. When those children start off behind, they have a difficult time catching up to more successful students.

Because a child’s early school experiences are predictive of their long-term educational trajectory, starting school socially and behaviorally ready is crucial. Otherwise, long-term detrimental outcomes and widening gaps in academic and social success may follow. Full Article

McBride to explore future of university-based child development laboratory schools

Dr. Brent McBride, professor of human development and director of the Child Development Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Brent McBride, professor of human development and director of the Child Development Laboratory at the University of Illinois

The Nebraska Academy for Early Childhood Research welcomes Brent McBride, professor of human development and director of the Child Development Laboratory at the University of Illinois, to Lincoln for a March 11 presentation.

The event will be from 1:30 to 3 p.m. at Louise Pound Hall 141, and is open to the public. It is co-hosted by NAECR and the Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies. Full Article

Adding up factors of how children learn mathematics

Carrie Clark, assistant professor of educational psychology, is using functional MRI technology to capture brain activity while children learn mathematics.
Carrie Clark, assistant professor of educational psychology, is using functional MRI technology to capture brain activity while children learn mathematics.

What is 72 multiplied by 12? While fourth-graders will focus on arriving at the correct answer, Nebraska researcher Carrie Clark wants to know what happens in the brain as they learn to solve the problem.

Clark, assistant professor of educational psychology, is using functional MRI technology to capture brain activity while children learn mathematics. Funded by the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Office of Research and Economic Development and housed at CYFS, she is exploring the relationship between children’s mathematics learning and executive function — the ability to maintain focus and behave in a goal-oriented way. Full Article

Bass receives funding for study focused on improving outcomes for rural adolescents

Henry Bass, fourth-year doctoral student in school psychology
Henry Bass, fourth-year doctoral student in school psychology

Henry Bass, a fourth-year doctoral student in school psychology, has a passion for helping youth navigate one of life’s most challenging periods: adolescence.

Bass recently received news that the Society for the Study of School Psychology will award funding for his dissertation project, which focuses on identifying the extent to which family-school partnerships improve long-term outcomes for children as they become adolescents. Full Article

Research examines outdoor effects on children with autism

A participant takes an outdoor walk.
A participant takes an outdoor walk with researchers.

Birds sing and a cool breeze rustles through the leaves as a pair of squirrels scurry through the tall, green grass and up a tree — all under blue skies and sunshine.

Such scenes are typical during a leisurely, summer walk through a park — relaxing and uplifting for most people. For a team of University of Nebraska researchers, however, those elements may prove to be even more significant. Full Article

Research aims to battle adolescent bullying, peer threat

Meredith Martin, assistant professor of educational psychology, is conducting research on factors contributing to peer threat to understand how children cope in different ways.
Meredith Martin, assistant professor of educational psychology, is researching children’s individual responses to bullying and peer threat to help tailor effective solutions.

Take a moment to recall a particularly overwhelming day.

Morning comes way too early after a restless, worry-fueled night of tossing and turning. A knotted, roiling stomach makes eating breakfast difficult. Deadlines loom, with too much to do in too little time. Full Article