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Landau-Zener tunneling, which describes the transition in a two-level system during a sweep through an anti-crossing, is a model applicable to a wide range of physical phenomena. Realistic quantum systems are affected by dissipation due to coupling to their environments. An important aspect of understanding such open quantum systems is the relative energy scales of the system itself and the system-environment coupling, which distinguishes the weak- and strong-coupling regimes. Using a tunable superconducting flux qubit, we observe the crossover from weak to strong coupling to the environment in Landau-Zener tunneling. Our results confirm previous theoretical studies of dissipative Landau-Zener tunneling in the weak and strong coupling limits. We devise a spin bath model that effectively captures the crossover regime. This work is relevant for understanding the role of dissipation in quantum annealing, where the system is expected to go through a cascade of Landau-Zener transitions before reaching the target state. Landau-Zener transitions near an avoided level crossing are a broadly relevant concept in quantum systems. Here the authors use a superconducting flux qubit to shed new light on the role of the environment in Landau-Zener tunneling by observing a crossover between weak and strong coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calls for schools to pay heed to children's social and emotional learning have proliferated in recent years. Is the current enthusiasm for educating the "whole learner" a much-needed correction to the narrow concentration on academic skills in the modern reform era? Or is it a misguided retreat from academic rigor and an attempt to sidestep demands to hold schools accountable? In this forum, Robert Balfanz, research professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Education, argues that learning science favors an approach to schooling that addresses all aspects of development--social, emotional, and academic. In the companion essay, Grover "Russ" Whitehurst, nonresident fellow at the Urban Institute and professor emeritus of psychology and pediatrics at Stony Brook University, maintains that the current approach to social and emotional learning is misguided, and that the evidence does not support the claims. [For "An Integrated Approach Fosters Student Success. Forum: Should Schools Embrace Social and Emotional Learning?," see EJ1217943. And for "A Prevalence of 'Policy-Based Evidence-Making.' Forum: Should Schools Embrace Social and Emotional Learning?," see EJ1217947.]

Does the current drive to incorporate social and emotional learning (SEL) into the K-12 curriculum represent a positive reform that will lead schools to educate the "whole student" and ultimately boost young people's academic success? Or is it a distracting fad that comes with high opportunity costs? Common sense and considerable evidence tell us that many of the abilities that fall under the rubric of social and emotional learning--including individual effort, task-related social skills that enhance group productivity, and self-management abilities such as anger control--contribute to personal effectiveness, whether in school or elsewhere. But should schools try to teach this kind of competency, or stick to the academic domain? Can they even succeed at teaching social and emotional skills? The author maintains that the current approach to social and emotional learning is misguided, and that the evidence does not support the claims. [For "An Integrated Approach Fosters Student Success. Forum: Should Schools Embrace Social and Emotional Learning?," see EJ1217943.]

Raffinose and stachyose (raffinose family oligosaccharides [RFOs]) in soybeans [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] are anti‐nutritional carbohydrate components. Previous studies identified mutant alleles of raffinose synthase (rs) 2 and 3 and d‐myo‐inositol‐3‐phosphate synthase 1 (mips1) to increase sucrose and reduce RFOs content. Although earlier studies investigated the effects of rs2 and rs3 mutations, a mips1 mutation has not been tested yet. The objectives of this study were (1) to investigate the genetic effects and environmental stabilities of rs2, rs3, and mips1 mutations across 18 environments and (2) to evaluate germination rates of genotypes carrying these mutations. Sucrose was significantly affected by all environmental factors (year, location, and planting dates). However, raffinose was not affected by planting dates, and stachyose was only affected by location. The rs2 mutant allele (rs2W331‐) and mips1 showed the highest environmental stability for sucrose and raffinose, respectively. For stachyose, the wild‐type check showed the highest environmental stability. The lines with mips1 mutation showed significantly higher sucrose (11.1%) and lower raffinose (0.5%) and stachyose (0.6%) content than other genotypes across environments. The lines tested in field emergence tests showed no significant difference from the check. Lines with mips1 and rs2W331‐, respectively, showed significantly higher germination rates than the check in the accelerated aging test. In contrast, a line with mips1 showed a significantly higher germination rate than the check in the standard germination test. Desirable carbohydrate allele combinations will facilitate the development of new cultivars with modified carbohydrate profiles that are beneficial to human food and animal feed. Core Ideas: High sucrose and reduced raffinose family oligosaccharides are the desirable soybean seed profiles for animal feed application.Soybean lines with d‐myo‐inositol‐3‐phosphate synthase (mips1) mutation showed the most desirable soluble carbohydrate profiles.The additive main effect and multiplicative interaction biplot was utilized to demonstrate environmental stability of soluble carbohydrates.No difference in field emergence rates of soybean lines with wild type and rs and mips1 mutations was found. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School districts are a focus of education reform efforts in the United States, but there is very little existing research about how important they are to student achievement. We fill this gap in the literature using 10 years of student-level, statewide data on fourth- and fifth-grade students in Florida and North Carolina. A variance decomposition analysis based on hierarchical linear models indicates that districts account for only a small share (1 to 2 percent) of the total variation in student achievement. Nevertheless, the differences between lower- and higher-performing districts are large enough to be of practical and policy significance, with a one standard deviation difference in district effectiveness corresponding to about 0.11 standard deviations in student achievement (about nine weeks of schooling). District performance is generally stable over time, but there are examples of districts that have shown significant increases or decreases in performance.

Washington is at a crossroads on K-12 education policy. Policymakers can (1) continue down the path of top-down accountability; (2) devolve power to states and districts, thereby returning to the status quo of the mid-1990s; or (3) rethink the fundamentals, do something different, and empower parental choice. This article discusses how the federal government can achieve equity. The author believes that the best interests of the nation require something other than either a return to the happy days of local school governance or evolutionary improvements to the type of top-down accountability found in No Child Left Behind. He suggests that a fundamentally new approach is needed. He proposes to reform the nation's schools on the basis of two principles that have served the nation exceedingly well throughout its history: (1) federalism; and (2) choice. This approach places the federal government in a central role in providing information and compensatory funding and in promoting a competitive and information-rich marketplace for education services. (Contains 1 table.)

One of the major story lines of the growth of civilization is the advance of the experiment. From the food we eat to the diseases we conquer to our understanding of how we think and behave, we have profited enormously from an approach that marries our models of the world with tests of their validity through systematic variation to determine cause and effect. These same tools of thought and action are no less critical to the advance of education than to medicine, agriculture, psychology, or transportation. There has been impressive growth in the use of experimental methods in education over the past decade. As a result, much more is known today about what works and what does not. Future progress will be enhanced by research that better explicates process: linking trials to administrative data; serving the interest of local and state officials in examining the impact of their policies and practices; better preservice training for education practitioners in the logic and value of rigorous research; and more generous federal funding for the research enterprise.

This longitudinal study of children from preschool through fourth grade examined code-related and oral language precursors to reading. Findings indicated that the relationship between code-related precursors and oral language is strong during preschool. During early elementary school, reading ability is predominately determined by kindergarten print knowledge and phonological awareness. In later elementary school, reading accuracy and comprehension appear to be influenced by different skill sets. (Author/KB)

Tested a model of individual differences in the development of emergent literacy. Focused on home environment contributions to children's emerging literacy skills and on processes relating family environment and two domains of emergent literacy (outside-in and inside-out). Found that early connections between home, language, and emergent literacy have significant influence on later reading achievement. (DLH)

Evaluated the effects of a six-week interactive shared-reading intervention with 3- to 4-year olds from low-income families who attended subsidized child care. The intervention involved teacher-reading at school, parents-reading at home, both-reading, or a no-treatment control. Found that significant gains on measures of oral language and language samples were largest for children in conditions involving home reading. (Author/KB)

Workshop evaluation has become more complex as adult learners diversify, their needs evolve, and additional stakeholders require evaluative data. The evaluation process should be integrated into program planning. (SK)

Teachers encouraged children in an intervention group of Mexican two year olds to talk about picture books and provided feedback for children's language use. A control group received arts and crafts instruction. Differences favoring the intervention group were found on standardized language posttests and some measures of language production. (BC)

Twenty-seven toddlers identified as showing specific expressive language delay (ELD) were studied and followed through the preschool period. Findings indicated that home-based intervention accelerated vocabulary skills, but did not decrease the likelihood of later phonological problems. ELD was also seen as a self-correcting condition. (PB)

This study assessed the family history of speech, language, and school problems in 62 young children (mean age 28 months) with developmental expressive language delay (ELD). Comparison with normally developing children indicated no strong familial component of ELD. (Author/DB)

A natural language sample of babble and words was obtained for 47 2-year-old children and compared with expressive language scores 5 months later. More than 50 percent of the variance in language outcome test scores was accounted for by rate of word use, rate of vowel babble, and behavior problems. (Author/DB)

Macrochelys (alligator snapping turtles), the largest freshwater turtles in North America, were recently proposed for threatened status under the US Endangered Species Act. Many previous surveys have focused on catching these large turtles in large river systems, but few surveys have focused on targeting hatchlings and juveniles, particularly in smaller rivers and creeks. I trapped extensively within the Pascagoula River drainage using small, baited crayfish traps, and a considerable focus of the study was in small rivers and streams. Juvenile Macrochelys temminckii (Alligator Snapping Turtle; 42.2–192 mm) were detected in small streams and large rivers (30.4 km2–22,000 km2), and the small traps were effective at capturing young alligator snapping turtles. Smaller streams are logistically harder to trap from a boat, but small streams should not be overlooked when sampling for this species, as these streams may have served as refugia during commercial harvest over the past century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]