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Open Access Publications from the University of California

The UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Studies (GSE&IS) includes two departments--the Department of Education and the Department of Information Studies. Together, the two departments embody the school's commitment to understand and improve educational practice, information policy, and information systems in a diverse society. Research and doctoral training programs bring together faculties committed to expanding the range of knowledge in education, information science, and associated disciplines. The professional training programs seek to develop librarians, teachers, and administrators within the enriched context of a research university.

Cover page of False promise and new hope: dead perpetrators, imagined documents and emergent archival evidence

False promise and new hope: dead perpetrators, imagined documents and emergent archival evidence

(2023)

When those accused of being high-level perpetrators of human rights abuse die before publicly yielding their secrets in legal and archival arenas, victims may simultaneously express relief about the perpetrator’s demise and grief that, along with it, possible crucial information about the past is lost forever. Although the accused do not usually directly admit their actions and the teasing out of what actually happened is dependent upon the complex processes of cross-examination of their testimony and of records and other forms of evidence, victims project such moments of revelation onto the public act of holding accused perpetrators to account. In their deaths, the accused become forever from-now-on unavailable and thus unassailable evidence – in essence; they are transformed into imagined documents that can never be cross-examined. In this construction, the would-be testimony of perpetrators is given epistemological validity over that of victims, offering up the false and unfulfillable promise of establishing a singular truth. Complicating this scenario, however, is the increasingly open-ended hope offered to victims, judicial processes and historians alike by the application of new forensic methods, for example, in the examination of gravesides and human remains, and by satellite footage, that are generating additional categories of evidence. Using the juridical and archival legacies of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia and the Yugoslav Wars as case studies, this article argues that when perpetrators die before giving legal testimony, survivors and victims’ families construct them as unavailable documents with imaginary agency to settle competing versions of history. Such imagined documents enter into a complex landscape of human rights archives that has heretofore been exclusively focused on tangible evidence. First, this article frames the case of Khmer Rouge leader Ieng Sary, charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes, who died before giving his testimony in a hybrid tribunal. In the face of diverse archival documentary evidence capable of presenting a more complete and complex picture of atrocities, it contemplates why survivors and victims’ family members placed high hopes on his potential testimony, essentially constructing him as a now-dead living document. Second, it explores a parallel case, that of the death of Slobodan Milošević while being tried by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), and argues that the notion of a dead perpetrator as imagined document has less sway when the public has the opportunity to hear the perpetrator defend himself, regardless of the perpetrator’s own admission (or denial) of culpability. Third, it proposes the notion of imaginary documents. It argues that such imaginary documents challenge dominant conceptions of the evidentiary qualities of tangible records and the archival legacies of trauma by insisting on a more dynamic and holistic view of records that takes the affect of survivors and victims’ family members into account.

Measurement of muon pairs produced via γγ scattering in nonultraperipheral Pb+Pb collisions at sNN=5.02 TeV with the ATLAS detector

(2023)
Cover page of Transition to Kindergarten for Children on the Autism Spectrum: Perspectives of Korean-American Parents.

Transition to Kindergarten for Children on the Autism Spectrum: Perspectives of Korean-American Parents.

(2023)

This study explores Korean-American parents' perceptions on successful transition to kindergarten (TTK) for their child on the autism spectrum. It further examines challenges experienced during this process, and possible predictors for their challenges. Findings from an online survey (N = 212) indicate that participants consider their child's behavioral readiness and cooperation with teachers as the most important school readiness skills for successful TTK. They further consider building positive relationships with teachers and providing support at home as the most important support parents could provide during this process. Moreover, the child being a vocal communicator, higher income and parent's educational level were found to buffer against their reported challenges, while first-generation immigrant status and restrictive school placement were found to predict more challenges.

Cover page of An eighteen-year longitudinal examination of school victimization and weapon use in California secondary schools.

An eighteen-year longitudinal examination of school victimization and weapon use in California secondary schools.

(2023)

Background

School safety has been a major public health issue in the United States and internationally for more than three decades. Many policies and programs have been developed and implemented to prevent school violence, improve the school climate, and increase safety. There are only a few peer-reviewed studies of changes in school violence over time. The study examined changes over time in school victimization, weapon involvement and school climate, comparing change trajectories by gender and race and different change trajectories among schools.

Methods

A longitudinal study of the biennial California Healthy Kids Survey in secondary schools from 2001 to 2019. The representative sample included 6,219,166 students in grades 7, 9, and 11 (48.8% male) from 3253 schools (66% high schools).

Results

All victimization and weapon involvement items had significant and substantial linear reductions. The largest reduction involved being in a physical fight (from 25.4% to 11.0%). There were reductions in weapon involvement (d = 0.46) and victimization (d = 0.38). Biased-based victimization only declined slightly (d = -0.05). School belongingness and safety increased (d = 0.27), adult support increased a small amount (d = 0.05), and student participation declined (d = -0.10). Changes were smallest among White students. Ninety-five percent of the schools showed the same pattern of reductions.

Conclusions

The findings are in contrast to the public's concerns that school violence is a growing problem. Reductions in school violence may result from social investment in school safety. A distinction should be made between school shootings and other forms of school violence.

Cover page of Sex differences in friendships and loneliness in autistic and non-autistic children across development.

Sex differences in friendships and loneliness in autistic and non-autistic children across development.

(2023)

Background

Autistic children have been shown to have less complete definitions of friendships and higher levels of loneliness than their non-autistic peers. However, no known studies have explored sex differences in autistic children's understanding of friendships and reported loneliness across development. Autistic girls demonstrate higher levels of social motivation than autistic boys and appear to "fit in" with their peers, but they often have difficulty recognizing reciprocal friendships during middle childhood. As autistic girls develop a more complex understanding of friendship during adolescence, they may begin to redefine their friendships and experience heightened loneliness. Here, we explored how autistic and non-autistic boys and girls define the meaning of friendship and report feelings of loneliness across development. We also examined their perceptions of friendships and loneliness.

Methods

This mixed-methods study analyzed the transcribed clinical evaluations of 58 autistic children (29 girls) matched to 42 non-autistic children (21 girls) on age and IQ. Transcripts were coded for four categories that children used to define friendships-personality, companionship, dependability, and intimacy-and for reported loneliness. We then compared these codes across diagnosis, sex, and age. Content analyses were further implemented to gain a more holistic understanding of children's perceptions of friendships and loneliness.

Results

Girls, regardless of diagnosis, were more likely than boys to refer to personality when defining the meaning of friendship, and the likelihood of referring to dependability and intimacy increased with age. Most children reported having at least one friend, though some autistic adolescents reported not having friends or were uncertain whether they had friends. While autistic and non-autistic boys and girls were equally likely to report feeling lonely at times, several autistic girls and boys reported being frequently lonely.

Limitations

This study was a secondary data analysis. The standardized set of questions on the ADOS limited the amount of information that children provided about their friendships and perceptions of loneliness.

Conclusion

As with non-autistic children, autistic children acquire a more complex understanding of friendship throughout development. However, as children begin to prioritize dependability and intimacy in friendships, autistic adolescents may have difficulty developing friendships characterized by these constructs. Furthermore, the quantity and/or quality of autistic children's friendships may not be sufficient to alleviate loneliness.

Cover page of A STEM Penalty from Affirmative Action Bans?

A STEM Penalty from Affirmative Action Bans?

(2023)

Abstract: The study investigates a tension between affirmative action scholars who hypothesize that affirmative action bans would increase underrepresented minority students’ STEM college completions and scholars who have empirically estimated declines. It also questions results that that find no existence of a STEM penalty (compared to non-STEM) caused by affirmative action bans and finds that a STEM penalty is likely, but varies from a very modest effect (using the Department of Homeland Security taxonomy) to a more substantial impact (using the National Science Foundation taxonomy). This study finds that many of the tensions between affirmative action scholars studying STEM are likely the product of model specification. It illustrates how the following have impacted the estimates: the period studied, the inclusion and exclusion of certain ban states, the measure of institutional selectivity, and most importantly, the taxonomy of STEM. Furthermore, this study builds upon prior studies by analyzing private schools and the shorter-term and longer-term impacts of the bans.

Cover page of Social engagement and loneliness in school-age autistic girls and boys.

Social engagement and loneliness in school-age autistic girls and boys.

(2023)

Objectives

This study examines the relationship between social engagement and loneliness in female and male autistic children and adolescents in school-based social settings. Secondary aims sought to explore the emergence of loneliness across different age groups and differences in social engagement and loneliness between genders.

Methods

This study conducted an analysis of previously collected data from two multi-site randomized control trials. This study included 58 autistic students (29 females, 29 males) between the ages 6 through 18 years. Female and male participants were matched on age and intelligence quotient. Concurrent mixed methods were used to examine participants' social engagement and loneliness.

Results

Findings revealed a significant relationship between joint engagement and loneliness, such that autistic students reported more loneliness when they were mutually engaged with social groups than when they were isolated or alone. Positive correlations between joint engage and loneliness were identified in elementary-age girls and secondary-age boys, suggesting that being mutually engaged with peers leads to increased loneliness. Negative correlations between parallel and loneliness identified in secondary-age boys suggested that boys in close proximity to peers felt less lonely than boys who were mutually engaged with peers. Qualitative analysis of social behaviors indicated that elementary girls and secondary boys were more likely to be mutually engaged or in close proximity to activities, but they had difficulty sustaining this engagement throughout the entire social period. Secondary girls and elementary boys, on the other hand, were more likely to be solitary and less likely to engage with peer groups.

Conclusion

Study findings highlight the relationship between social engagement and loneliness in school-based autistic populations, and that more engagement itself can lead to more loneliness for younger girls and older boys. The influence of age and gender on engagement and loneliness highlights a need to tailor social interventions to leverage existing social strengths.

English Learners’ Performance on a Measure of Dyslexia Risk

(2023)

Many schools now screen students for dyslexia in early grades. However, there are valid concerns that these screeners may be biased or ineffective at screening students who are not yet proficient in English (i.e., English Learners; ELs). The present study examined the performance of 54 first graders on a dyslexia screener. Results showed that students who were ELs performed similarly to their peers who were proficient in English on many literacy subskills. Additionally, we found that EL students were not significantly more likely to be “flagged” as at risk for dyslexia. These findings have practical implications for using universal screeners to identify students, including students who are designated ELs, as being at risk for learning disabilities, including dyslexia.