A Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Professional Development on Teachers' Knowledge, Skill, and Self-Efficacy in Data-Based Decision-Making.

The purpose of this review was to synthesize research on the effect of professional development (PD) targeting data-based decision-making processes on teachers' knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy related to curriculum-based measurement (CBM) and data-based decision-making (DBDM). To be eligible for this review, studies had to (a) be published in English, (b) include in-service or pre-service K-12 teachers as participants, (c) use an empirical group design, and (d) include sufficient data to calculate an effect size for teacher outcome variables. The mean effect of DBDM PD on teacher outcomes was g = 0.57 (p < .001). This effect was not moderated by study quality. These results must be viewed through the lens of significant heterogeneity in effects across included studies, which could not be explained by follow-up sensitivity analyses. In addition, the experimental studies included in this review occurred under ideal, researcher-supported conditions, which impacts the generalizability of the effects of DBDM PD in practice. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

An enhanced functional ability questionnaire (faVIQ) to measure the impact of rehabilitation services on the visually impaired.

AIM: To develop a short, enhanced functional ability Quality of Vision (faVIQ) instrument based on previous questionnaires employing comprehensive modern statistical techniques to ensure the use of an appropriate response scale, items and scoring of the visual related difficulties experienced by patients with visual impairment. METHODS: Items in current quality-of-life questionnaires for the visually impaired were refined by a multi-professional group and visually impaired focus groups. The resulting 76 items were completed by 293 visually impaired patients with stable vision on two occasions separated by a month. The faVIQ scores of 75 patients with no ocular pathology were compared to 75 age and gender matched patients with visual impairment. RESULTS: Rasch analysis reduced the faVIQ items to 27. Correlation to standard visual metrics was moderate (r=0.32-0.46) and to the NEI-VFQ was 0.48. The faVIQ was able to clearly discriminate between age and gender matched populations with no ocular pathology and visual impairment with an index of 0.983 and 95% sensitivity and 95% specificity using a cut off of 29. CONCLUSION: The faVIQ allows sensitive assessment of quality-of-life in the visually impaired and should support studies which evaluate the effectiveness of low vision rehabilitation services.

Glaucoma blind registration in Fife (2000-2009) - a retrospective cohort study.

PURPOSE: To collate information on patients registered blind secondary to glaucoma between 2000 and 2009 and compare findings to an identical study completed a decade earlier between 1990 and 1999. METHODS: The records of all people registered as blind via the Fife Society for the Blind between 2000 and 2009 were retrospectively examined and those with glaucoma as the primary cause were studied in detail. We compared these results with the results of our previous study, in which we examined the same documents for the preceding decade, 1990-1999. RESULTS: The glaucoma blind registration rate was reduced by 31% in the current study compared to the previous one (60 vs 87 patients, p = 0.013). At the same time, there was a 6% increase in blindness registrations due to all causes (881 vs 938, p = 0.62). Patients were referred with significantly fewer visual symptoms (33% vs 60%, p = 0.002) and glaucoma surgery rates increased from 44% to 62% in the current study (p = 0.013). In the later decade, more patients were offered partial sight registration before blind registration (37% vs 10%, p < 0.0001) and sustained independent living at the time of blind registration in this study (66% vs 33%, p < 0.0001). Nearly one-third of patients in the study group had cognitive impairment and/or hearing loss and this was similar to the first study. CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrates a downward trend in the rates of blind registration due to glaucoma, compared to stable rates of registration for all diseases. Over the time period of the two studies there were refinements in the way glaucoma is managed medically by the hospital eye service and in the community, with a high level of input maintained from the local low vision service.

Extracranial meningioma presenting as a neck mass in a patient with underlying ankylosing spondylitis.

Extracranial meningiomas are rare. They account for only 2% of meningiomas compared to the much more common intracranial site. We describe a rare case of extracranial meningioma presenting as a neck lump in a patient with preexisting neck disease due to ankylosing spondylitis. Extracranial meningioma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of atypical neck lumps. Investigations including magnetic resonance imaging and histopathology are discussed, as well as the results of a literature review on extracranial meningiomas.