Equitable Access Policy
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/29475
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Item Breaking Barriers: Arab Women and Social Media Activism(2020-12-14) Merrill, Madeline; Sheth, Roma; Huffman, BenjaminThis paper explores how social media facilitates activism, specifically among Arab women in Egypt, Tunisia, and Saudi Arabia. This research builds off previous examinations of social media usage during the Arab Spring uprisings, as well as findings pertaining to female activity on these platforms. This research takes a complete qualitative approach by analyzing different case studies and academic journals. The collective evidence of the findings is assessed by identifying common trends and themes that point towards how Arab women are utilizing social media to engage in activism. Findings showcase how specific social media facets reduce cultural and social barriers to activism participation. A primary finding is that the online option of anonymity allows women to participate in activism safely without using their real names or facing real-world backlash. Further identifiable trends are that social media helps Arab women escape government censorship, spread information, educate themselves and others, and organize protests. Arab women tend to use social media platforms less than Arab men but show higher levels of organizing and community-building. The findings—based on a comprehensive literature review—demonstrate that Arab women in all three focus countries were beneficiaries of social media during the Arab Spring. This research can serve as the basis for encouraging other regions of the world to expand their access to this technology in order to further development on a global scale.Item Chemical Characterization of Urban Stormwater: Traditional and Emerging Contaminants(Elsevier, 2022-03) Pamuru, Sai Thejaswini; Forgione, Erica; Croft, Kristen; Kjellerup, Birthe V.; Davis, Allen P.Increases in urbanization have led to increased stormwater runoff and mobilization of pollutants from urban watersheds. Discharge of these pollutants often leads to contamination of receiving water bodies. Chemical characterization of urban stormwater is necessary to gain deeper insights into the ecological impacts of urban runoff and to evaluate parameters that influence possible treatment technologies. This study assessed stormwater event mean concentrations and particle size fractions from field studies reported in national/international stormwater quality databases (The National Stormwater Quality and The Best Management Practices databases) and peer-reviewed literature. This characterization of urban stormwater includes statistical evaluation of probability distribution, consideration of dissolved and particulate-bound pollutants and focuses on partitioning and speciation behavior. Solids, nutrients, metals, organic pollutants, and bacterial pathogen indicators were evaluated. A significant fraction of stormwater phosphorus, metals and organic pollutants are particle-bound. Results from the speciation of metals demonstrated that metals are predominantly present as either inner-sphere or electrostatic complexes with dissolved organic matter. This study provides a comprehensive overview of the myriad pollutants found in urban stormwater and provides a starting point for addressing ubiquitous and emerging contaminants. Finally, research needs for further detailed stormwater characterization were identified.Item Swing State Survey: Majorities Favor Path to Citizenship over Mass Deportation, While Strengthening the Border(2024-10-10) Kull, Steven; Fehsenfeld, Evan; Lewitus, Evan CharlesAs the issue of immigration figures prominently in campaigns across the country, a new survey by the Program for Public Consultation (PPC) in six swing states and nationally finds numerous policies on which majorities of Americans agree, including, in most cases, majorities of both Republicans and Democrats. To deal with the millions of undocumented immigrants who have been living in the US, a majority in every swing state and nationally prefer offering them a path to citizenship, provided they meet several requirements, over mass deportation. To deter illegal border crossings, swing state and national majorities favor strengthening the border and making it harder for illegal immigrants to get employment by requiring that employers use the E-Verify system. At the same time, majorities favor increasing the number of work visas to meet the demand for workers through legal channels. Director of the Program for Public Consultation, Steven Kull, comments, “Majorities favor reforms that would reduce the number of undocumented immigrants, not via mass deportation, but by creating more legal pathways for people who want to live and work here, and by strengthening the border to make it more difficult for people to enter the country illegally.”Item Language and Policy: Preservation of Minority Languages in China(2025-04-10) Senturia, Margaret; Kuske, Rowan; Jordan, Alexandra; Stojkovic, Milenko; Phillips, Aidyn; Chau, Ashley; Huffman, BenjaminThis paper explores the effectiveness of language preservation initiatives in China, a nation rich in linguistic diversity and home to 128 spoken languages, 107 of which are minority languages or facing endangerment. Language loss threatens cultural diversity, educational quality, social mobility, and social identity. Prior research discusses the importance of language preservation, the advantages of language policy, as well as how language policy has developed over time. Building upon that research, this research examines ineffective language policy, considering what factors may contribute to its decreased impact. This research was conducted using content analysis performed on existing literature, as well as narrative analysis on two interviews conducted with members of the affected groups. It concludes that language policy is ineffective due to the failure to account for the social and economic circumstances of the affected groups, reinforcing the necessity of inclusive language policy and preservation efforts to support cultural inclusion, identity, mobility, and education.Item How “Race” Is Used in U.S. Peer-Reviewed Studies of Cardiovascular Health and Cardiorespiratory Fitness: A Scoping Review(Kinesiology Review, 2025-03-04) Justin, Tori; Shannon, Jette; Tchangalova, NedelinaIn this scoping review, we examine whether and how race is used to explain differences in cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and/or cardiovascular health (CVH) among racial/ethnic populations living in the United States in peer-reviewed research. Searching eight databases from their inception, and informed by the Population, Concept, and Context framework, our search yielded 232 studies (N = 232) published in English. Seventy-eight percent of included studies (n = 181) did not define race; 45% (n = 105) positioned White participants as the standard for CVH and CRF metrics, and only 7% (n = 17) of the studies used sociocultural explanations to discuss possible mechanisms of racial differences in CRF and CVH outcomes. Findings are interpreted as an indication of how “white logic” informs research pertaining to CRF and CVH. A series of recommendations are provided to help kinesiological scholars avoid reductionist characterizations of “race” through their research, thus better aligning with the National Academy of Kinesiology’s social justice mission.Item Exploring Acculturative Joy in English Language Education(2024-04) Siebold, Connie; Fagan, DrewEnglish language education has frequently centered the voices of educators rather than those of the students we seek to serve. Driven by institutional demands, the learner experience is often flattened into easily quantifiable measures that strip learners of their agency and ownership of the educational process. Rather than positioning students as vessels to be filled and measured, a student-centric narrative approach to research can illuminate critical sociocultural aspects to student success. Using the lens of Acculturative Joy, this study interviews 20 English language learners to understand their experiences of joy in the English language classroom. With an emic understanding of learner needs, we can then critically examine pedagogical practice and shift our focus to improvement of resources, thoughtful student-centric pedagogy, and equitable harm reduction in the English language classroom.Item Connecting Spaces: Gender, Video Games and Computing in the Early Teens(Sage, 2023-04) Ashlock, Jennifer; Stojnic, Miodrag; Tufekci, ZeynepInformed by evidence that computing attitudes may be uniquely constructed in informal contexts and that the early teens are a key period for academic decision-making, we investigate lines of practice that connect computing skills, attitudes, and videogames. We compare the relationship between computer skill, computer efficacy, and activities associated with gaming using a data set of 3,868 children in middle school. The time that children spend gaming has very modest association with skill and efficacy. Accounting for the frequency with which children modify games, engage in social gaming activities, and the salience of gamer identity explains the gender gap in computer skill and significantly narrows the gender gap in computer efficacy. We find support for the argument that computer skill and efficacy are dependent on children connecting often isolated social contexts, a socially embedded characteristic of the digital divide.Item Maryland Biology Expectations Survey (MBEX) for characterizing student epistemology in biology courses(2024) Hall, Kristi L.; Chatzikyriakidou, Kyriaki; Redish, Edward F.; Cooke, Todd J.The Maryland Biology Expectations Survey (MBEX) is a pre-post survey instrument that was designed by Hall (2013) to evaluate the changes of student epistemology occurring in an introductory biology course (Cooke et al., 2023). The MBEX addresses four epistemic themes: principles vs. facts, independence vs. authority, interdisciplinary reasoning vs. siloed thinking, and connection (= relevance) vs. isolation (Hall, 2013). The major difference between MBEX-1 statements and MBEX-2 statements resides in the interdisciplinary reasoning cluster. MBEX-1 incorporates more chemistry-related statements, whereas MBEX-2 focuses almost exclusively on math and physics. It turns out that biology students showed very favorable attitudes toward chemistry in their pre-course MBEX-1 responses, which reduced the ability of that survey to reveal any post-course changes in student attitudes toward interdisciplinary reasoning. This website includes the following files: • MBEX-1 survey • MBEX-2 survey • Cluster assignments, polarization, and correspondence of MBEX-1 and MBEX-2 statements. For further information, email either Kyriaki Chatzikyriakidou (kchatzikyriak@gmail.com) or Todd Cooke (tjcooke@umd.edu). References Cooke, T. J., Jensen, J. S., Carleton, K. L., Hall, K. L., Jardine, H. E., Kent, B. W., Redish, E.F., and Shultz, J. W. (2023). Group active engagements for facilitating principles-based learning in introductory organismal biology. American Biology Teacher 85 (6): 317–326. https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2023.85.6.317 Hall, K. L. (2013). Examining the effects of students’ classroom expectations on undergraduate biology course reform. Ph.D. Dissertation in Digital Resources at the University of Maryland. https://drum.lib.umd.edu/items/91d250d1-0890-4adc-a040-6b9c9b5eff40Item Floral traits and their connection with pollinators and climate(Oxford Academic, 2024-03-19) Basnett, Shweta; Krpan, Julia; Espindola, AnahiFloral characteristics vary significantly among plant species, and multiple underlying factors govern this diversity. Although it is widely known that spatial variation in pollinator groups can exert selection on floral traits, the relative contribution of pollinators and climate to the variation of floral traits across large geographical areas remains a little-studied area. Besides furthering our conceptual understanding of these processes, gaining insight into the topic is also of conservation relevance: understanding how climate might drive variation in floral traits can serve to protect plant–pollinator interactions in globally change conditions. We used Rhododendron as a model system and collected floral traits (corolla length, nectar volume and concentrations), floral visitors and climatic data on 21 Rhododendron species across two continents (North America, Appalachians and Asia, Himalaya). Based on this, we quantified the influence of climate and pollinators on floral traits using phylogeny-informed analyses. Our results indicate that there is substantial variation in pollinators and morphological traits across Rhododendron species and continents. We came across four pollinator groups: birds, bees, butterflies and flies. Asian species were commonly visited by birds, bees and flies, whereas bees and butterflies were the most common visitors of North American species. The visitor identity explained nectar trait variation, with flowers visited by birds presenting higher volumes of dilute nectar and those visited by insects producing concentrated nectar. Nectar concentration and corolla length exhibited a strong phylogenetic signal across the analysed set of species. We also found that nectar trait variation in the Himalayas could also be explained by climate, which presented significant interactions with pollinator identity. Our results indicate that both pollinators and climate contribute and interact to drive nectar trait variation, suggesting that both can affect pollination interactions and floral (and plant) evolution individually and in interaction with each other.Item Hello World! Building Computational Models to Represent Social and Organizational Theory(2024) Grand, James A.; Braun, Michael T.; Kuljanin, GoranComputational modeling holds significant promise as a tool for improving how theory is developed, expressed, and used to inform empirical research and evaluation efforts. However, the knowledge and skillsets needed to build computational models are rarely developed in the training received by social and organizational scientists. The purpose of this manuscript is to provide an accessible introduction to and reference for building computational models to represent theory. We first discuss important principles and recommendations for “thinking about” theory and developing explanatory accounts in ways that facilitate translating their core assumptions, specifications, and ideas into a computational model. Next, we address some frequently asked questions related to building computational models that introduce several fundamental tasks/concepts involved in building models to represent theory and demonstrate how they can be implemented in the R programming language to produce executable model code. The accompanying supplemental materials describes additional considerations relevant to building and using computational models, provides multiple examples of complete computational model code written in R, and an interactive application offering guided practice on key model-building tasks/concepts in R.