Dataset Information

Clarifying the Social Roots of the Disproportionate Classification of Racial Minorities and Males with Learning Disabilities.

ABSTRACT: The disproportionate placement of racial minorities and males into special education for learning disabilities (LDs) raises concerns that classifications occur inaccurately or inequitably. This study uses data from the Education Longitudinal Survey of 2002 to investigate the social etiology of LD classifications that persist into adolescence. Findings suggest the overclassification of racial minorities is largely consistent with (clinically relevant) differences in educational performance. Classifications may occur inconsistently or subjectively, with clinically irrelevant qualities like school characteristics and linguistic- immigration history independently predictive of disability classification. Finally, classifications may be partially biased, with male overclassification largely unexplained by this study's measures and racial minorities' risk of classification increased in schools with fewer minorities (the latter not statistically significant).

SUBMITTER: Shifrer D

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6402355 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Clarifying the Social Roots of the Disproportionate Classification of Racial Minorities and Males with Learning Disabilities.

Shifrer Dara D

The Sociological quarterly 20180727 3

The disproportionate placement of racial minorities and males into special education for learning disabilities (LDs) raises concerns that classifications occur inaccurately or inequitably. This study uses data from the Education Longitudinal Survey of 2002 to investigate the social etiology of LD classifications that persist into adolescence. Findings suggest the overclassification of racial minorities is largely consistent with (clinically relevant) differences in educational performance. Class ...[more]

PMID: 30853723

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Project description:Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has had an unprecedented effect, especially among under-resourced minority communities. Surveillance of those at high risk is critical for preventing and controlling the pandemic. We must better understand the relationships between COVID-19-related cases or deaths and characteristics in our most vulnerable population that put them at risk to target COVID-19 prevention and management efforts. Population characteristics strongly related to United States (US) county-level data on COVID-19 cases and deaths during all stages of the pandemic were identified from the onset of the epidemic and included county-level socio-demographic and comorbidities data, as well as daily meteorological modeled observation data from the North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR), and the NARR high spatial resolution model to assess the environment. Advanced machine learning (ML) approaches were used to identify outbreaks (geographic clusters of COVID-19) and included spatiotemporal risk factors and COVID-19 vaccination efforts, especially among vulnerable and underserved communities. COVID-19 outcomes were found to be negatively associated with the number of people vaccinated and positively associated with age, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and the minority population. There was also a strong positive correlation between unauthorized immigrants and the prevalence of COVID-19 cases and deaths. Meteorological variables were also investigated, but correlations with COVID-19 were relatively weak. Our findings suggest that COVID-19 has had a disproportionate impact across the US population among vulnerable and minority communities. Findings also emphasize the importance of vaccinations and tailored public health initiatives (e.g., mask mandates, vaccination) to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and the number of COVID-19 related deaths across all populations.

Project description:We are searching for common gene expression alteration in the hippocampus of animal models of learning disabilities and in post-mortem human tissues derived from patients with cognitive deficits. Our study has three phases. In phase I, we want to investigate the changes in gene expression in a transgenic mouse line that shows impairments in hippocampal-dependent learning. These animals are overexpressing the RNA-binding protein HuD in the forebrain under the control of the alpha CAMKinII promoter. For phase II, we plan to characterize the hippocampus of another animal model of learning disabilities: fetal alcohol exposed (FAE) rats. Last, for phase III, we would like to examine gene expression changes in the hippocampus and other tissues from patients with schizophrenia. To test our hypothesis, in phase 2 of our project, we propose to compare the pattern of gene expression in our mouse model with that in the hippocampus of rats prenatally exposed to alcohol (FAE model). Our hypothesis is that learning disabilities have common neural substrates regardless of the origin of the disability being genetic, environmental of a combination of these two. To test this hypothesis, we plan to examine the pattern of gene expression in the hippocampus of animals and humans with cognitive deficits and use bioinformatics tools to identify common changes in gene expression in three of such conditions: a genetic model (HuD transgenic mice), an environmental model (FAE rats) and a model for combined environmental and genetic effects (patients with schizophrenia). All the animals are adult male Sprague-Dawley rats (age 90-100 days). Animals were divided in three diet groups and three experimental treatment conditions (9 conditions altogether). Three groups of pregnant rat dams were placed on different diet regimens: a liquid diet containing 5% alcohol (A) groups, a control group fed an isocaloric liquid diet without alcohol (B) and a group of rats fed lab chow ad libitum (C). Offspring from each of these groups were allowed to grow until adulthood and placed into each of three training groups: a contextual fear conditioned group (1), a non-learning stress control group (2) and a naive/unhandled group (3). Hippocampi were dissected and used to isolate total RNA from each rat diet and training condition. Initially, we will submit 18 samples as follows: 10 samples from training group 1 and 8 samples from training group 3 (training group 2 will be analyzed at a later date). The diet assignment for the 18 samples is: 8 samples from group A, 6 samples of group B and 4 samples of group C. Please note that I was able to enter only the first 8 samples, as the sample list does not hold 18 samples altogether. Keywords: dose response

Project description:Ethnic/racial minorities are under-represented in blood donor populations in most developed countries. This is of particular concern where minorities differ from a country's majority population in terms of blood or tissue typing, especially where type matching is required for effective management of rare disorders such as sickle-cell disease that require multiple transfusions. This systematic review assessed the effectiveness of interventions to increase blood donation among ethnic/racial minority populations in developed countries. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and ProQuest on 20 March 2017 with no date restrictions and supplemented this with searches on Google Scholar, blood collection agency websites, reference lists of included studies, and a forward search of citations of included studies. We included intervention studies designed to increase recruitment and/or retention of adult, ethnic/racial minority blood donors in developed countries. The review identified eight studies reported in nine publications. Six were conducted in the USA with African Americans. Four studies reported on multifaceted, community-based interventions; three reported on one-off information and educational video interventions, presented face-to-face, or delivered via post or e-mail. The level of evidence for efficacy was low, and the majority of studies were assessed as having some risk of bias related to one or more methodological issues. All eight studies reported positive outcomes in blood donation and/or intention to donate. Seven trials found that the intervention increased presentation for donation, and three found an increase in the percentage of new donors from the ethnic minority targeted. The review findings demonstrate that it is possible to design and implement effective interventions to motivate individuals from ethnic/racial minority groups to donate blood. One-off interventions may be as effective as multifaceted, community-based interventions. There was insufficient evidence to recommend particular interventions, and future research should empirically assess alternative interventions using robust study designs.

Dataset Information

Clarifying the Social Roots of the Disproportionate Classification of Racial Minorities and Males with Learning Disabilities.

Publications

Clarifying the Social Roots of the Disproportionate Classification of Racial Minorities and Males with Learning Disabilities.

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