What's Happening

By Karin Coyle, PhD

ETR's research team is testing some exciting new programs that ask middle and high school students to consider the ways romantic relationships influence their sexual choices and risks. We call this “contextualizing” sexual and reproductive health education—that is, using the context of relationships to build health-promoting information, attitudes and behaviors.

By ETR

Take a look at some of the videos we've watched and liked this month. Can video games make you smarter? How can you show unconditional love? And don't you want to know more about ETR's award-winning pamphlet "Birth Control Facts"?

By Stephanie Guinosso, MPH

This year I had the pleasure of developing a new workshop on a topic near and dear to my heart—fostering resiliency among vulnerable populations of youth. For this workshop to deliver a powerful impact, I had to tap into these experiences, guide participants to acknowledge and question their subtle assumptions, and reinvigorate their attitudes toward the topic. To do that, I had to gain their trust. Only then could they draw from their internal motivation to make use of the research and best practice.

By Eloy Ortiz, MURP | August 15, 2014
Research Associate, ETR

ETR’s Science Department has conducted many longitudinal studies, on topics ranging from health behaviors to computer science interests. We’ve usually surveyed students in class or online, and often our biggest challenge is just getting a consent form signed and returned by the parents. Once we have consent, we work with the students, gather and analyze data, and write up the results.

The Math Pathways project is different because it involves gathering detailed information from mothers and students, as well as teachers. The goal of the study is to gather information that can be used to increase mathematics achievement among Latino students. We needed to meet individually with both the mother and the student outside of class. This created some challenges that helped us learn a lot more about the lives of these students and their families.

By ETR

We are happy to welcome new staffers Tamara Kuhn and Annika Shore. We are also pleased to announce the publication of a special issue of the international peer-reivewed journal Sex Education celebrating Doug Kirby's contributions to the field of adolescent sexual and reproductive health.

By Debra Christopher, MSM

New research is giving us some powerful and creative ways to understand what our brains are doing (along with the brains of our students, trainees, clients, patients and colleagues). The principles of neuroscience can help us make a healthy difference in people’s lives.

Here are some of the books we’re reading right now that contribute to better understanding of how brains work. Highly recommended!

By ETR

Developmental neuroscience is a fast-moving field relevant to health behaviors, health education and learning. Find out about the Annenberg Learner online course for K-12 teachers, Neuroscience & the Classroom: Making Connections.

By John Henry Ledwith

Physical activity and good nutrition benefit student learning and academic success. The start of the school year is an ideal time to think about how your school supports healthy nutrition and physical activity. A number of programs are helping schools build healthier kids and more successful students.

By Debra Christopher, MSM

Breaking a full participant group into small groups to work collectively on a learning activity is a savvy (and brain-friendly) strategy for increasing participant learning. Here are some clever grouping ideas that can make your trainings and presentations more dynamic and engaging.

By ETR | July 17, 2014

ETR is delighted to announce the hiring of Tamara J. Kuhn in the role of Director of Innovative Program Technology. Ms. Kuhn brings along an impressive history of work drawing from the intersection of social science and technology.

Ms. Kuhn has served as Principal Investigator of several large-scale research studies and led technology development for more than 30 federally funded projects. Her formal training, at Stanford University, was in the field of experimental social psychology, with a focus on social status and behavior. 

Leslie Kantor, MPH

If you work in sexual and reproductive health, you know that the world today is different from the world of only a few years ago. Changes in social media and the digital environment affect norms, risks and behaviors among young people. I’m Vice President of Education for Planned Parenthood, and our organization has some promising new tools that combine what’s known about effective sex education with what young people like to do online. They provide a model that can be helpful across a range of health issues.

By ETR | June 24, 2014

Brittany Chambers, MPH, one of ETR’s Kirby Summer Interns for 2014, brings with her a powerful combination of personal experience, educational achievement and commitment to the field. Our researchers are looking forward to working with her over the next few months.

Brittany met recently with Newsletter Editor Marcia Quackenbush to talk about her background, her vision and what she hopes to accomplish both in her internship this summer, and in her professional career. Here’s a report on their conversation.

By ETR

Does Physical Education help with academics? What's the world of vaping really like? And just how important is social media? Sit back, kick up your feet and take a look at a few of our favorites among the videos that have run across our monitors this month.

By ETR | June 23, 2014

Our latest Quarterly Review is now posted and available for viewing if you’d like to see some of the work we’ve been doing over the past few months.

ETR’s incredible research and professional development groups have recently been awarded some exciting grants for projects that can help us understand and implement the best strategies for promoting healthy, fulfilling lives.

By Gina Lepore, MEd

Few people realize how little education doctors and other health care providers typically receive about sexual and reproductive health. Because such training is spotty at best, there’s enormous variety in health care providers’ comfort with and knowledge of sexual health and sexual practices. Unfortunately, patients often suffer when provider knowledge and comfort concerning human sexuality are poor.

By ETR

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated many of its resources, including several slide sets on epidemiology and the 2014 PrEP Guidelines on pre-exposure prophylaxis. One of our favorites is this page, which breaks HIV transmission risks into numerical calculations. Find out the best estimate for the risk of HIV transmission through needle sticks, vaginal intercourse, blood transfusions and more.

By Erin Cassidy-Eagle PhD | June 20, 2014
Previous Director of Research, ETR

While healthy sleep is important at all ages, it’s especially vital during the vulnerable time of adolescence. The challenges adolescents face at baseline, simply through the normal process of human development, are in many cases exactly those exacerbated by poor sleep. It's possible that helping young people achieve better sleep might ameliorate a whole range of other problems and challenges.

By Narinder Dhaliwal, MA

Have you ever heard, “You can’t work with Native Americans unless you are a Native American”? Not true! Yet we hear it over and over again from those who appoint themselves as the “gatekeepers” of Tribal Nations. California’s Clean Air Project (CCAP) at ETR has been building relationships and providing education and research to Tribal Nations in California since 2006. What we’ve found is that respect is the key.