Early self-regulation predicts school readiness, academic success, and quality of life in adulthood. Its development in the preschool years is rapid and also malleable. Thus, preschool curricula that promote the development of self-regulation may help set children on a more positive developmental trajectory. We conducted a cluster-randomized controlled trial of the Tools of the Mind preschool curriculum, a program that targets self-regulation through imaginative play and self-regulatory language (Tools; clinical trials identifier NCT02462733). Previous research with Tools is limited, with mixed evidence of its effectiveness. Moreover, it is unclear whether it would benefit all preschoolers or primarily those with poorly developed cognitive capacities (e.g., language, executive function, attention). The study goals were to ascertain whether the Tools program leads to greater gains in self-regulation compared to Playing to Learn (YMCA PTL), another play based program that does not target self-regulation specifically, and whether the effects were moderated by children’s initial language and hyperactivity/inattention. Two hundred and sixty 3- to 4-year-olds attending 20 largely urban daycares were randomly assigned, at the site level, to receive either Tools or YMCA PTL (the business-as-usual curriculum) for 15 months. We assessed self-regulation at pre-, mid and post intervention, using two executive function tasks, and two questionnaires regarding behavior at home and at school, to capture development in cognitive as well as socio-emotional aspects of self-regulation. Fidelity data showed that only the teachers at the Tools sites implemented Tools, and did so with reasonable success. We found that children who received Tools made greater gains on a behavioral measure of executive function than their YMCA PTL peers, but the difference was significant only for those children whose parents rated them high in hyperactivity/inattention initially. The effect of Tools did not vary with children’s initial language skills. We suggest that, as both programs promote quality play and that the two groups fared similarly well overall, Tools and YMCA PTL may be effective curricula choices for a diverse preschool classroom. However, Tools may be advantageous in classrooms with children experiencing greater challenges with self-regulation, at no apparent cost to those less challenged in this regard.

Allen P.S., Meyer S.E., Beckstead J. (2013): A predictive model for soil seed bank outcomes in the Pyre-nophora semeniperda-Bromus tectorum pathosystem. Plant Protect. Sci., 49 (Special Issue): S21-S24. Pyrenophora semeniperda is abundant in soil seed banks of Bromus tectorum, where it kills a fraction of seeds throughout the year. The pathogen engages in a race with host seeds for endosperm resources; the pathogen success is negatively correlated with seed germination speed. We developed a deterministic model to predict pathosystem outcomes (seed death versus seed escape), using seed bank data from 80 sites collected over a 13-year period. The response variable (killed seeds in the spring seed bank) was regressed on multiple predictor variables (pathogen and host densities at seed dispersal, amount and timing of precipitation). Increased mortality was associated with high seed rain, high pathogen density, and low autumn precipitation. On xeric sites, a positive feedback loop between pathogen and host is created by a large carryover seed bank containing secondarily dormant seeds vulnerable to fungal attack and results in higher inoculum loads at seed dispersal the following year.

The purpose of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of an evidence-based, emergency department (ED) fall risk assessment tool as a sensitive predictor for falls in the ED population. The overarching goal of the project was to improve patient safety and eliminate patient falls resulting in serious injury in the ED. An ED-specific tool was designed on the basis of the risk factors consistently identified in the literature: prior fall history, impaired mobility, altered mental status, altered elimination, and the use of sedative medication. The Memorial ED Fall Risk Assessment Tool was validated in two EDs (North campus and Central campus) located within a large urban health care system in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The two EDs have a combined 140,000 annual patient visits. The Memorial ED Fall Risk Assessment Tool appears to be a valid tool for this two-ED hospital system.

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