Occupational therapy students' attitudes towards inclusion education in Australia, United Kingdom, United States and Taiwan

This international, cross-cultural study investigated the attitudes of occupational therapy students from Australia, United Kingdom, United States and Taiwan towards inclusive education for students with disabilities. The possible impact of professional education on students' attitudes was also explored. A total of 485 students from 11 entry level occupational therapy education programmes from Australia, the United Kingdom, the United Sates and Taiwan participated in the study. Among them, 264 were freshmen (first-year students) and 221 were seniors (final-year students). Data collected from a custom-designed questionnaire were analysed both quantitatively and qualitatively.

In general, the occupational therapy students reported having positive attitudes towards inclusion. Considerable differences, however, existed among the student groups from the four countries. Professional education appeared to have a significant impact on students' attitudes towards inclusion from first year to senior year. Although students were in favour of inclusion, they also cautioned that their support for inclusive practices depended on various factors such as adequate preparation, support and assistance to students with disabilities.

Limitations of the study included the small, convenience sample and different degree structures of the participating programmes. Future research studies need to compare occupational therapy students' attitudes with students from other health care professions. A longitudinal study on the impact of the professional education programme on students' attitudes towards inclusive education is warranted.

Music, in early childhood education : teachers' levels of confidence and happiness

This paper presents the results of a study which investigates early childhood teachers’ levels of confi dence
and happiness in conducting music activities with young children. A sample of 284 in-service and preservice
early childhood teachers in Hong Kong participated in the study. Two new research instruments
entitled Teachers Music Confi dence Scale (TMCS) and Teachers Happiness Scale (THS) were designed for
data collection to answer the research questions. Results showed that early childhood teachers have the
highest and the lowest level of confi dence in singing and composing/improvising respectively. In-service
teachers showed higher confi dence and happiness levels in conducting several musical activities with
young children than pre-service teachers. There was also a statistically signifi cant relationship between
these two variables. Implications for engagement in music are discussed in the paper.

Exposing young children to music through the production and presentation of music-appreciation television programs

This paper reports on a research study of the effectiveness of a series of music-appreciation activities for young children in Hong Kong. These activities were designed using world music and were presented as part of a local early childhood television program for community interest. One-undred-and-sixty-eight local preschool children (mean age 4.25) and their classroom teachers, from 16 childcare centres or kindergartens, participated in this study. Qualitative data was collected using individual structured interviews with both children and teachers. The data showed that these music-appreciation activities enriched children's musical experiences and teachers' musical repertoires in early childhood settings. Teachers also showed positive preferences to learn the activities using multimedia tools. Implications for the curriculum planning and teacher training of early childhood music education are discussed.

A Rasch analysis of the teachers music confidence scale

This article presents a new measure of teachers’ confidence to conduct musical activities with young children; Teachers Music Confidence Scale (TMCS). The TMCS was developed using a sample of 284 in-service and pre-service early childhood teachers in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The TMCS consisted of 10 musical activities. Teachers rated their confidence levels to conduct each activity on a scale from 1 (Not confident at all) to 5 (Very confident). An exploratory factor analysis retained a 10-item single factor that was replicated using confirmatory factor analysis procedures. All items of the TMCS fitted the Rasch model adequately. In-service teachers showed higher confidence levels to conduct several musical activities with young children than pre-service teachers. Implications of these findings for measuring teachers’ confidence to conduct musical activities with young children were discussed.

A study of the effectiveness of music appreciation TV programs for young children in Hong Kong

This paper provides a preliminary report of a small-scale research examining the effectiveness of a series of Music Appreciation segments of “Pre-school: Learn to Fly”—a locally designed and produced early childhood TV program in Hong Kong. Four aspects of young children’s musical development were studied: 1) musical exposure; 2) attention span; 3) response to music; and 4) musical memory. The findings enrich local understanding of early childhood music education and media, and provide more information for the production of the next series from late 2004.

Music teaching is more than telling : attitudes and beliefs of Australian pre-service teachers

Pre-service teachers’ views are often confronted at tertiary level in regards to theories of teaching and learning which can through discussion and reflection change their perceptions and their understanding of classroom practice. Tertiary educators are challenged to develop positive attitudes and beliefs about education to their pre-service students if music education is to be valued in all educational settings. Drawing on educational perspectives on teaching, this article investigates the myriad of influences that shape pre-service teachers’ attitudes and beliefs about music teaching and learning. Between 2005-2009 final year music teacher education students from Deakin University and Monash University (Melbourne, Australia) participated in a research project entitled Intercultural attitudes of pre-service music education students. This article draws on the 2008 cohort interpersonal and affective attributes regarding what they thought makes a good teacher and how they would see themselves as future music teachers. Whilst the findings provide important insights into Australian pre-service teachers they also hold similar significance for teacher education in general. I contend that continued research with our students can only help us as tertiary educators to prepare our students to be effective teachers.

Motivating offenders to change in therapy: an organizing framework

Objectives. Motivating offenders to change in therapy is an important aspect of effective offender treatment, yet despite this, offenders' motivation to change has received little close attention in the academic and professional literature. This situation is a result of an over-emphasis on the risk management model of rehabilitation, and a consequent failure to construe motivation within an overarching theory of offender rehabilitation.

Method. We present a social cognitive model of offender motivation — the Good Lives Model (GLM) — that provides a framework for incorporating factors that have been shown to be of importance in enhancing offender motivation. This is based upon the notion that all humans strive to achieve primary goods that are intrinsically rewarding and essential to well-being. Where offenders are concerned, criminogenic problems relate, not to the goods offenders seek, but to the way they seek them. Any treatment approach should take this into account and focus positively on equipping people with the skills required to achieve goals rather than simply look to manage risk. The motivational construct that we use here is that of goals. In the GLM, goals are the less abstract depictions of primary human goods and it is with these that people are typically engaged in their day-to-day activities and lives. Looking at therapeutic goal-setting, methods and styles of therapy, and therapist approaches, we derive theoretically-based key issues in motivating offenders to change in therapy.

Conclusion. In conclusion, we present a summary of 12 strategies and techniques that will not only help practitioners enhance their therapeutic effectiveness, but hopefully also act as a catalyst in the development of research on offenders' motivation to change.

Self-reported empathy levels in undergraduate occupational therapy students.

Relevence to exploring Occupational therapy role transitions and processes: The skill of establishing an empathetic therapeutic relationship in collaboration with one’s clients is a valued professional competency. To prepare occupational therapy students for professional practice, aspects of empathy awareness should be explored early in their undergraduate education. Raising students’ awareness of empathy and transforming this into professional competency for building empathetic relationships requires time. Occupational therapy undergraduates should explore aspects of empathy, both theoretically and in practice at all levels, to ensure these developing professionals can build empathic therapeutic relationships in practice. 
Aim: This research was undertaken to determine if students in four different years of study in occupational therapy at an Australian university differed in self-reported levels of empathy.

Pilot Study of clinician attitudes to insulin pump therapy: international differences and the need for a greater understanding of the patient perspective

OBJECTIVES: To identify and survey health care professionals (HCPs) attitudes to insulin pump therapy (CSII).

METHODS: Eight specialists were interviewed to explore the attitudes and beliefs about CSII. Responses were analysed thematically and used to inform the design of a new 22-item questionnaire: the Attitudes to Pump Therapy (APT) Survey. The APT was pilottested among 95 HCPs (54% male; 75.5% diabetologists/DSNs, 13.8% general practitioners) at the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) conference, 2006. Results were analysed using non-parametric statistics with bonferroni correction.

RESULTS: Analyses of interview data identified 9 themes: biomedical, perceived control of care/diabetes, technology, quality of life, financial resources, training, education & support, suitability, and evidence-base. Items were designed to reflect these themes with responses scored on a 5-point Likert scale (strongly agree—strongly disagree). No statistically significant differences
were found by gender, HCP speciality, country (and continent) of origin or proportion of patients using CSII. Most notable differences were found in relation to gross domestic product (GDP) and the potential for pump therapy to achieve tight blood glucose control (lower GDP = more agreement: p = 0.001), and result in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) (lower GDP = less agreement: p < 0.005). Ranked mean scores showed a split between biomedical/clinical items (N = 11) and items concerned with patient experience (N = 11). Attitudes about biomedical/clinical issues were generally clear (i.e. for 7/11 items, the mean score was “agree”) but less decisive about patient experience (i.e. for 8/11 items, the mean score was “neither agree nor disagree”).

CONCLUSION: Few subgroup differences existed, but those that did may be explained by lack of access to treatment (directly corresponding to GDP). Clinicians’ were generally clear in their attitudes regarding biomedical aspects but less so regarding patient experience. Research focusing on patient-reported outcomes is likely to offer clinicians a greater understanding of the patients’ perspective of insulin pump therapy.

Gold nanoparticle-enhanced cancer photothermal therapy

In this paper, progress on the gold-nanoparticleenhanced photothermal therapy is reviewed. Size- and shapedependent optical absorption of gold nanoparticles, the effects of various parameters on the therapeutic efficiency, and the mechanisms of gold-nanoparticle-assisted cancer therapy are discussed. Future research directions of gold-nanoparticle-assisted cancer photothermal therapy are also suggested.

Early childhood teachers' professional development in music : a cross-cultural study

This paper deals with professional teacher development. It specifically focuses on a research study of early childhood teachers' views and involvement in teaching music to young children. It presents findings from a comparative study of 38 teachers in three childcare centres in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and 24 teachers in four childcare centres in South Australia. Two research questions are discussed and answered: (1) What are early childhood teachers' levels of involvement in professional development in music? (2) Are there any significant relationships, that is differences and commonalities, in the findings between teachers' levels of involvement in these two cultural contexts? A unique research tool entitled Teachers' Music Development Scale was devised to collect data and measure teachers' involvement in music development. Specific findings and their implications are presented in the paper.

Dance therapy collections : number three

This collection of articles by keynote speakers, Australian and overseas practitioners, developed out of presentations at the third Australian Dance Movement Therapy conference, ‘Weaving The Threads’, held in Melbourne in 2007. This volume includes 22 articles from Australian and international dance movement therapists and colleagues on a wide range of topics, from dance therapy's origins and directions, research and evaluation in dance-movement therapy to therapeutic applications and skill development for therapists.

Clostridial spores for cancer therapy : targeting solid tumour microenvironment

Solid tumour accounts for 90% of all cancers. The current treatment approach for most solid tumours is surgery, however it is limited to early stage tumours. Other treatment options such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy are non-selective, thus causing damage to both healthy and cancerous tissue. Past research has focused on understanding tumour cells themselves, and conventional wisdom has aimed at targeting these cells directly. Recent research has shifted towards understanding the tumour microenvironment and it’s differences from that of healthy cells/tissues in the body and then to exploit these differences for treatmeat of the tumour. One such approach is utilizing anaerobic bacteria. Several strains of bacteria have been shown to selectively colonize in solid tumours, making them valuable tools for selective tumour targeting and destruction. Amongst them, the anaerobic Clostridium has shown great potential in penetration and colonization of the hypoxic and necrotic areas of the tumour microenvironment, causing significant oncolysis as well as enabling the delivery of therapeutics directly to the tumour in situ. Various strategies utilizing Clostridium are currently being investigated, and represent a novel area of emerging cancer therapy. This review provides an update review of tumour microenvironment as well as summary of the progresses and current status of Clostridial spore-based cancer therapies.

The science and practice of lithium therapy

Introduction: Despite more that 60 years of clinical experience, the effective use of lithium for the treatment of mood disorder, in particular bipolarity, is in danger of becoming obsolete. In part, this is because of exaggerated fears surrounding lithium toxicity, acute and long-term tolerability and the encumbrance of life-long plasma monitoring. Recent research has once again positioned lithium centre stage and amplified the importance of understanding its science and how this translates to clinical practice.

Objective: The aim of this paper is to provide a sound knowledge base as regards the science and practice of lithium therapy.

Method: A comprehensive literature search using electronic databases was conducted along with a detailed review of articles known to the authors pertaining to the use of lithium. Studies were limited to English publications and those dealing with the management of psychiatric disorders in humans. The literature was synthesized and organized according to relevance to clinical practice and understanding.

Results: Lithium has simple pharmacokinetics that require regular dosing and monitoring. Its mechanisms of action are complex and its effects are multi-faceted, extending beyond mood stability to neuroprotective and anti-suicidal properties. Its use in bipolar disorder is under-appreciated, particularly as it has the best evidence for prophylaxis, qualifying it perhaps as the only true mood stabilizer currently available. In practice, its risks and tolerability are exaggerated and can be readily minimized with knowledge of its clinical profile and judicious application.

Conclusion: Lithium is a safe and effective agent that should, whenever indicated, be used first-line for the treatment of bipolar disorder. A better understanding of its science alongside strategic management of its plasma levels will ensure both wider utility and improved outcomes.