“Problem”

The use of the word “problem” in itself can elicit negative responses and put people on the defensive. When people are defensive, it can be difficult to engage in open dialogue and creative problem solving. Instead of using the word “problem,” Stella recommends using creative solutions to frame the issue to facilitate discussion. For example, Stella suggests using the word “challenge,” as in, “Participants identified some challenges in receiving quality health care…”

“Larger Population”

Joseph highlighted the overuse of questions about a “larger population,” as in, “how do our results compare to the larger population?” In general, evaluation results are obtained from a specific population within a specific context. Even results from “larger populations” are obtained from specific, albeit larger, populations within a specific context (e.g., Minnesotan 3rd through 8th grade students), and not from some generic “larger population.” In order to make valid comparisons, it’s important that evaluators always classify both their population of interest (e.g., South Minneapolis teens, between the ages of 13 and 17, from households with incomes of $25K or less) and the comparison group (e.g., a sample of Minneapolis teens from households with a variety of income levels). As often as possible, evaluators should not use generic “larger populations,” but should be as specific as possible about their comparison groups to enhance the validity and accuracy of their comparisons.

Describing the “Other” Category

Dan pointed out that, when analyzing qualitative data, there might be 5 common themes, but also an “other” theme for comments from a small number of people. When summarizing the results of the qualitative analysis it is important to talk about all of the themes, including describing what “other” indicates. Without describing what “other” indicates, the reader may have no idea as to what the writer is referring and may have to guess what “other” indicates. It is important that evaluators be as clear as possible when writing to ensure that the reader has a clear understanding of the data.

Pronouns

Kirsten’s pet peeve is overuse or abuse of pronouns. Pronoun overuse can detract from the clarity of writing and the overall readability of the document. From a grammatical standpoint, a pronoun always refers to the last used noun; if the last used noun isn’t what the writer intends to refer to, then a pronoun is inappropriate and the writing will not be as clear as the writer intended.

As a rule of thumb, Kirsten alternates noun-pronoun-noun-pronoun. She acknowledges that her method doesn’t always produce highly engaging prose, but it is clear!

Do you have any writing “pet peeves”? If so, please share in the comments below!

ACET Staff

1. Don’t start a sentence with an actual number (e.g., “50 respondents said…”). Instead, restate this as “A total of 50 respondents…” or at a minimum spell out 50 if starting a sentence with a number is critical. This is the correct method per APA style and it helps to reduce confusion for readers.

2. Avoid the use of the word “it” to describe an action or a finding (e.g., “It was described as…”). Be as specific as possible so that the “it” being discussed at any given point is clearly delineated (e.g., “Participants described the program as…”).

3. Reserve the use of “I” or “we” to describe the process used in analyzing data (e.g., “I reviewed all the quotes and highlighted the corresponding themes…”). Instead, restructure the sentence as “All quotes were reviewed and corresponding themes highlighted,” for example. This makes for a more professional tone, and keeps the focus of the evaluation summary where it belongs, on what is being evaluated.

Stella

Know your audience. In your preparations, make sure that you understand what your audience requires of your speech structurally (for example, 15 minutes plus a question and answer period, or a self-introduction followed by 10 minutes) and their knowledge level (that is, how much of your topic needs explanation). Before you are to give your remarks, take the time to meet with some of the people who will be in your audience. This will strengthen their bond to you, increasing their interest in what you have to say.

Work from an outline, rather than writing down or memorizing an entire speech. Sure, people can and do give speeches that involve reading or speaking directly from a pre-written statement but, at best, this approach can feel unnatural and, at worse, it can distance or cut you off from the people with whom you are trying to communicate. Note your key points and use them as signposts to expand from naturally. This will in turn make your delivery more natural. If you happen to miss or skip a point along the way, that’s okay.

Give your speech a personal touch. You’ve likely heard the saying, “it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.” Just as it’s good to be cognizant of the structure of your presentation, it’s also important to choose the best tone or mood for your audience. Sharing a related story can help to establish a connection with your audience, helping them to become more engaged, and help you make an easy segue between introducing yourself and your data.

Practice, Practice, Practice. Whether you record your voice, speak in front of a video camera, or rehearse for family, friends, or coworkers, you can gain a lot of strength and confidence from just practicing your remarks and then sitting down with the recording or your audience to review. No matter the format you choose, practicing can help you to refine your abilities.

Relax. Know that it is very natural and human to be nervous when addressing a large group of people, but you can use the jitters that you feel to propel yourself to excellence. Remember to breathe as you speak, and allow yourself to be comfortable with brief silences as you do so, as it can help you combat the use of fillers (“um”, “ah”, “you know”, etc.). Cold liquids are said to constrict the vocal chords, so consider sipping on lukewarm water or hot tea before you speak, and save the caffeine for later.

With these tips and some careful preparation, public speaking does not have to be a daunting experience.

Information was sourced from Forbes, Psychology Today, Monster, Entrenpreneur, timesunion.com, and the University of Leicester for this article.

Mary

In the study, 14 schools across the United States partnered with Playworks, an Oakland, California non-profit devoted to providing low-income schools with physical activity options and other play events such as game times. Playworks provided schools with trained coaches and, in some cases, junior coach programs where students were recruited to monitor recess times alongside adults. Students, teachers, principals, and coaches were interviewed and surveyed about their experiences with the program and what changes, positive and negative, they saw in student relationships, academic outcomes, and classroom behaviors. Students and teachers reported feeling engaged by Playworks’ coaches’ programs and their use of positive messaging and conflict resolution strategies (for example, using a game of rock-paper-scissors to solve a dispute) as they pertained to playground interactions, though students did not report a decrease in student aggression or perception of aggression. Teachers with Playworks programs in their schools reported faster transition times between recess and learning than schools that did not have Playworks programs. Principals from all schools that received Playworks services reported a need for the organization’s presence in their schools for the coming year.

According to an advisor from the study’s sponsor, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, “These new findings… tell us that kids better relate with one another, resolve conflicts constructively, get plenty of physical activity on the playground, and return to class focused and ready to learn. Increasingly, health and education leaders are recognizing that recess and play are effective ways to strengthen schools and foster children’s social, emotional, and physical development.”

You can read more from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation press release here or view the report here [opens as PDF].

Mary

5. Tii Cup: Twin Cities bubble tea aficionados probably think of TeaGarden first for the satisfaction of their tapioca pearl fix, but this little Richfield café (about 32 blocks away from ACET!) offers some items that you can’t get at the better-known chain. Try the popping boba, the slightly smaller and flavored version of the tapioca pearl that bursts with flavor in your mouth, or consider a carefully brewed coffee beverage, for those friends of yours who can’t get over the weirdness of your salted plum slushy (hi Mom). Follow them on Facebook or at tii-cup.com.

4. Zen Box Izakaya: There are a lot of Japanese places all over the Twin Cities, and as the cuisine is a personal favorite of mine, I make a point of trying out as many as I can. Fans of the Zen Box lunch location in the downtown Minneapolis skyway will be happy to learn that the gastropub version has the same reliably good, authentic food, and the price point isn’t that much higher! Come in for the friendly service, then walk a couple of blocks up to the light rail station and head off into the sunset. Read more at zenboxizakaya.com.

3. Farmer’s Markets: If you live in the Twin Cities and have never been to a farmer’s market, you are missing out. Farmer’s markets are not only places to acquire fresh, organic ingredients, but also to eat some of those ingredients cooked in unique ways by cooks who have no other cart, truck or storefront. A few of my favorite neighborhood restaurants sell their food at farmer’s markets, sometimes with special market-only additions. Interfacing with cooks and farmers like this makes for a great learning, shopping and eating experience for the whole family. Find your local farmer’s market at www.mda.state.mn.us.

2. Lu’s Sandwiches: The newest discovery on this list, Lu’s has a simple menu of Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches, French baguettes filled with great flavors including grilled pork, fried tofu and pickled vegetables. There are a lot of places to get banh mi in the Twin Cities, but Lu’s makes this list because of its good value and the fact that they deliver (by bicycle!) within 2.5 miles of their location. Brilliant! Check them out at lusandwiches.com.

1. Sebastian Joe’s: Summer is coming – in the Twin Cities, we’ve already had a taste of it – and on a warm afternoon or evening, there’s nothing quite like enjoying an ice cream cone outside. Sebastian Joe’s has dozens and dozens of rotating flavors to choose from at its two locations, in addition to sorbets, shakes, and baked goods. The people-watching is just as choice as the ice cream, and both locations are just blocks away from two of our famous lakes. Visit sebastianjoesicecream.com for more information.

Mary

Misra et al. studied the effectiveness of using normed-based appeals to increase survey response rates. At a conference to promote interdisciplinary research all participants were asked to complete a survey immediately after the conference ended and then again three months later. Half of the participants received a generic message inviting them to complete the survey and half received a norm-based appeal in which the behavior of other people was described. The norm-based appeal given to half of the participants read, “Most years, over 75% of conference participants complete the survey. Please join your fellow participants in improving the quality of future conferences by filling out the survey.” At the three month follow-up participants were invited to complete another survey and half received the generic message and half received the norm-based appeal. In all, there were four groups in the study:

Misra et al. found that participants who received the norm-based appeal immediately after the conference (Groups 3 and 4) were more likely to complete the survey than those who received the generic message (Groups 1 and 2). Also, participants who received the norm-based appeal at both time points (Group 4) were more likely to complete the second online survey than those who received generic messages at both time points (Group 1). And participants who received both the generic message and the norm-based appeal (Groups 2 and 3) fell somewhere in between Groups 1 and 4. In summary, the results here suggest that norm-based appeals may be an effective technique to improve survey response rates.

For more information, please see:

Misra, S., Stokols, D., & Heberger Marino, A. (2012). Using norm–based appeals to increase response rates in evaluation research: A field experiment. American Journal of Evaluation, 33, 88-98. doi: 10.1177/1098214011414862

Do you have any methods you use to increase response rates with your online surveys? If so, please share!

Dan

Kirsten

To learn more about the Art, Culture + Design in Schools application process, please visit: http://sites.target.com/site/en/company/page.jsp?contentId=WCMP04-031819

Kirsten

This much is obvious, but what isn’t obvious is that our brain is highly “trainable.” Stress is your brain saying, “hey, you have a need, do something about it dummy.” Well, my brain takes the time to insult me and includes “dummy,” but not all brains do. Just as when you are hungry, soon you will get a headache and you will not be able to focus on anything but the stress. The pains are similar to hunger pains, and so are the solutions. What we use to deal with the stress teaches our brain that that is what we need to satisfy the stress need.

Returning to the hunger example, when we are hungry and we habitually reach for chocolate, our brain learns that chocolate = satisfying the hunger need, and it rewards us with releasing chemicals that make us feel happy and satisfied for fulfilling this need. And the next time you feel hungry the desire for chocolate will be greater because your brain thinks that is what it needs, and it will reward you when you indulge. Luckily we can teach the brain that X=satisfying the hunger need, “X” being any number of things (juice, pretzels, nuts, a good meal).

The key to healthy stress management is to practice ways of dealing with stress that are good for you and, with time, your brain will learn to reward these activities and increase your desire for them when facing stress. Try these habits when feeling stressed instead:

Short term strategies:

Take a walk

Work on a crossword

Stand up and stretch

Write down one (and only one) thing to accomplish next on a sticky note

Eat a fruit or vegetable

Longer term strategies:

Regularly exercise

Increase fresh fruit and vegetable intake

Get a pet

Volunteer

Start blogging

What are some things you are doing to train your brain in healthy stress management?

Joseph

Eligible agencies must be based in Minnesota and serve Minnesotans. Up to 20 grants of $20,000 each will be awarded and one agency will receive up to $100,000. All agencies that submit a grant application by April 27, 2012 will be eligible to win a free two-minute video of their organization shot and edited by a professional videographer.

For more information about the Connect for Health program and how to enter, please visit: http://www.incommons.org/ConnectforHealth

Good luck!

Kirsten