When asked to explain their solutions to a problem, children often gesture and, at times, these gestures convey information that is different from the information conveyed in speech. Children who produce these gesture-speech mismatches on a particular task have been found to profit from instruction on that task. We have recently found that some children produce gesture-speech mismatches when identifying numbers at the cusp of their knowledge, for example, a child incorrectly labels a set of two objects with the word three and simultaneously holds up two fingers. These mismatches differ from previously studied mismatches (where the information conveyed in gesture has the potential to be integrated with the information conveyed in speech) in that the gestured response contradicts the spoken response. Here, we ask whether these contradictory number mismatches predict which learners will profit from number-word instruction. We used the Give-a-Number task to measure number knowledge in 47 children (M-age = 4.1 years, SD = 0.58), and used the What's on this Card task to assess whether children produced gesture-speech mismatches above their knower level. Children who were early in their number learning trajectories (one-knowers and two-knowers) were then randomly assigned, within knower level, to one of two training conditions: a Counting condition in which children practiced counting objects; or an Enriched Number Talk condition containing counting, labeling set sizes, spatial alignment of neighboring sets, and comparison of these sets. Controlling for counting ability, we found that children were more likely to learn the meaning of new number words in the Enriched Number Talk condition than in the Counting condition, but only if they had produced gesture-speech mismatches at pretest. The findings suggest that numerical gesture-speech mismatches are a reliable signal that a child is ready to profit from rich number instruction and provide evidence, for the first time, that cardinal number gestures have a role to play in number-learning.

How does improving children's ability to label set sizes without counting affect the development of understanding of the cardinality principle? It may accelerate development by facilitating subsequent alignment and comparison of the cardinal label for a given set and the last word counted when counting that set (Mix et al., 2012). Alternatively, it may delay development by decreasing the need for a comprehensive abstract principle to understand and label exact numerosities (Piantadosi et al., 2012). In this study, preschoolers (N = 106, M-age( )= 4;8) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (a) count-and-label, wherein children spent 6 weeks both counting and labeling sets arranged in canonical patterns like pips on a die; (b) label-first,wherein children spent the first 3 weeks learning to label the set sizes without counting before spending 3 weeks identical to the count-and-label condition; (c) print referencing control. Both counting conditions improved understanding of cardinality through increases in children's ability to label set sizes without counting. In addition to this indirect effect, there was a direct effect of the count-and-label condition on progress toward understanding of cardinality. Results highlight the roles of set labeling and equifinality in the development of children's understanding of number concepts.

This paper uses transaction-based data to provide new insights into the link between the geographic proximity of businesses and associated economic activity. It develops two new measures of, and a set of stylized facts about, the distances between observed transactions between customers and vendors for a research intensive sector. Spending on research inputs is more likely with businesses physically closer to universities than those further away. Firms supplying a university project in one year are more likely to subsequently open an establishment near that university. Vendors who have supplied a project, are subsequently more likely to be a vendor on the same or related project.

Young children have better math abilities when their parents engage in more math-related conversations with them. Yet, previous studies have found that math talk occurs only very infrequently in everyday interactions. In the present study, we sought to promote adult-child conversations about math in a naturalistic context using minimal instructions. We observed 179 adult-child dyads while they shopped in grocery stores with signs prompting them to engage in math-related conversations (math condition), signs prompting them to talk about other topics (general language condition), or without any signs (baseline condition). In the math condition, more adults talked about math compared to the general language or the baseline condition, and this finding could not be explained by demographic characteristics of the dyad or the overall amount of conversations. This study demonstrates that cost-effective signs placed in everyday contexts can promote math-related conversations and potentially provide math learning opportunities for children.

Children show signs of intergroup biases from early in development, and evidence suggests that these biases increase through middle childhood. Here we critically review and synthesize the literature on the different types of childhood experiences that have been associated with increases or decreases in childhood intergroup bias. Based on the review, one type of childhood experience stands out as being reliably associated with increased intergroup bias over multiple studies-specific overt messages communicating intergroup conflict with, or negativity from, other groups. Three types of childhood experiences were found to be reliably associated with reduced intergroup bias: (a) structured intergroup contact, (b) explicit education about prejudice, and (c) imagined contact with members of other groups. We highlight the social and policy implications of this work and delineate specific experiences and interventions that might be helpful in ameliorating childhood intergroup biases. We also highlight developmental issues concerning the ways that interventions need to vary to be maximally effective at different ages. Finally, recommendations are offered on key factors to incorporate in childhood intergroup bias interventions, as well as what to avoid when attempting to design such programs due to negative (unintended) consequences. This review attempts to integrate state-of-the-art findings from developmental psychology with principles and theories in social psychology that derive from work with adults.

Every person has abilities across a multidimensional spectrum; abilities can vary within a person across these dimensions as well as between people along the same dimensions. This paper introduces a preliminary framework for conceptualizing dimensions of ability which we call ability profiles. Our purpose in developing this framework is not to categorize other people, but rather to support research into existing structures that privilege those with strengths in particular dimensions or create a barrier for those with limitations in certain dimensions. Such an analysis is useful for developing inclusive and accessible curricular materials and practices. Through literature reviews, we have developed a framework that describes large-grain dimensions of ability: physical, visual, hearing, cognitive, health, and emotional-behavioral. This paper will introduce ability profiles and the dimensions of ability, describe the relationship between the framework and specific diagnoses, and demonstrate utility of the framework for the physics classroom.

As part of a larger study of how problem-solving, communication, and teamwork are integrated into STEM education, we examined how industrial work experience impacts faculty teaching practices around those same competencies. We conducted semi-structured individual interviews with 92 educators in four broad fields, including energy, healthcare, computing, and advanced manufacturing. Educators' industrial experience ranged from no prior experience to a decade or more of industrial experience, which largely depends on STEM field. This paper will report findings from preliminary analysis with six educator interviews in energy and advanced manufacturing. Industry work experience greatly influenced educators' perceptions of the competencies as well as teaching strategies. Instructors with rich industry experience often include more descriptive examples of industrial applications when defining those skills, use industrial-specific tasks to inspire the design of classroom activities, and utilize their industry work experience to help formulate course structure.

Problem-solving is emphasized in introductory physics courses to equip students with tools that hopefully transfer to their future lives and careers. The EMPOWER project interviewed undergraduate STEM majors from computing, manufacturing, nursing, energy, and physics about their perspectives on problem-solving. Sixty-nine student focus groups were conducted, totaling 239 students. All students emphasized the importance of problem-solving in their discipline of study, but no single practice of problem-solving was applicable for all students. Most problem-solving perspectives were unique to each discipline (e.g., perseverance was emphasized in physics, empathy in nursing), while some perspectives were emphasized across several STEM fields (e.g., teamwork). Transferable problem-solving practices were often used alongside specialized practices to handle the unique challenges of each discipline. Findings suggest shifting away from framing problem-solving as a solitary transferable skill and toward framing problem-solving as an integrated set of context-dependent practices.

Every person has abilities across a multidimensional spectrum; however, previous research has indicated that postsecondary faculty are unaware of how to support students with a broad range of abilities in their courses and receive little training about inclusive teaching strategies. On average, STEM faculty have demonstrated more negative views toward students with disabilities than instructors from other disciplines. As such, we want to better understand physics instructors' beliefs about people with disabilities and their inclusive teaching practices. The Inclusive Teaching Strategies Inventory (ITSI) was developed to measure postsecondary instructors' beliefs and practices related to disability and supporting people with disabilities across disciplines. Through a pilot administration of this survey, we found that STEM faculty experienced difficulties in responding to the survey. Thus, we modified the ITSI for use with STEM faculty. We present our modification process, describe specific modifications made to the ITSI, and discuss preliminary interview and survey data.

Math modeling is an iterative process where students use their observations and reasoning abilities to create and refine predictions or explanations about a single referent system (e.g., a lab apparatus). However, modeling may be complicated by the presence of multiple problem representations in an activity (e.g., both a word problem and a video demo), in which case students have multiple referents to consider. To study students' modeling behavior in these situations, we conducted think-aloud interviews with pairs of students around a kinematics activity. While creating process maps of students' modeling, we found that tracking students' system focus was critical to interpreting their reasoning and decisions. The model referent is no longer seen as a static object; instead, it is a dynamic object that changes in response to both structured prompts and spontaneous events. This concept gives rise to practical insights into activity design and implementation.