Search

This study aims to compare teachers' self-efficacy across Turkish and American in-service middle-school mathematics teachers. The samples consist of 379 Turkish and 245 American in-service middle-school mathematics teachers. The self-efficacy questionnaire of the Middle-school Mathematics and the Institutional Setting of Teaching (MIST) scale was used in the study. The exploratory factor analysis revealed two dimensions of the self-efficacy measures across the American and Turkish teachers, such as classroom management and student support strategies. The measurement invariance property of the scale was evaluated before comparing the means of the groups. Despite the differences between the education systems, teachers' efficacy beliefs function quite similarly across the countries. The statistically significant mean differences in the subscale scores of efficacy measures between Turkish and American samples have no practical value. In both countries, teachers reported high level of confidence in efficacy beliefs in classroom management and student support strategies.

Our purpose in this article is to propose a comprehensive, empirically grounded theory of action for improving the quality of mathematics teaching at scale. In doing so, we summarise current research findings that can inform efforts to improve the quality of mathematics instruction on a large scale, and identify questions that are yet to be addressed. We draw on an ongoing collaboration with mathematics teachers, school leaders, and district leaders in four urban school districts in the US. The provisional theory of action that we report encompasses a coherent system of supports for ambitious instruction that includes both formal and job-embedded teacher professional development, teacher networks, mathematics coaches' practices in providing job-embedded support for teachers' learning, school leaders' practices as instructional leaders in mathematics, and district leaders' practices in supporting the development of school-level capacity for instructional improvement. (Contains 1 footnote.)

A review of the software Just Another Gibbs Sampler (JAGS) is provided. We cover aspects related to history and development and the elements a user needs to know to get started with the program, including (a) definition of the data, (b) definition of the model, (c) compilation of the model, and (d) initialization of the model. An example using a latent class model with large-scale education data is provided to illustrate how easily JAGS can be implemented in R. We also cover details surrounding the many programs implementing JAGS. We conclude with a discussion of the newest features and upcoming developments. JAGS is constantly evolving and is developing into a flexible, user-friendly program with many benefits for Bayesian inference.

If parental involvement in a child's education is generally viewed in positive terms, then it is important to understand what sorts of barriers might hinder it. This article reviews literature on culturally and linguistically diverse parental involvement in special education in the United States and Canada. In analyzing 20 articles published in eight prominent journals between 2000 and 2010, the author considers what research has to say about what influences culturally and linguistically diverse parental involvement. Applying the lens of social-cultural capital led the author to examine three core themes in the literature, namely perceptions, people, and systems. Because these three themes interlock so tightly, the author devised the overarching metaphor of critical entanglement, which is vital to the process of recognizing and addressing barriers that culturally and linguistically diverse parents potentially face. Implications for research are discussed in the recommendation and conclusion segments of this article.

This study utilized a qualitative, interpretative, analytic technique based on image-based research. This descriptive study was designed to investigate children's perceptions of "good readers" as portrayed in their representational drawings. Children in grades kindergarten through 6, 156 total, in 14 schools in a small, rural school district in the southwestern United States were interviewed using a picture protocol format. The participants included high-, middle-, and low-reading ability students. As the drawings and the children's descriptions of their drawings were viewed across the grades from kindergarten through 6th grade, discernible trends were evident from the categories of people, artifacts, settings, and affective issues in the images. Additionally, the children's verbal descriptions of their "good reader" while drawing yielded five major categories of data: (1) decoding; (2) comprehension, remembering facts and details or strategy use; (3) looking at pictures; (4) neatness, attention to treatment of books; and (5) reading behavior. (Contains 8 figures and 6 tables.)

This article discusses the History in Perspective Project (HIP), a collaborative project between the University of New Hampshire (UNH), its Supervisory Administration Unit #56 (SAU #56), and 13 other school districts. The authors' three-pronged plan was simple, straightforward, and, in some ways, experimental. From observation and experience, they knew that teachers had the desire but usually not the time to search out and keep abreast of current research and debate in the field of American history. Using a questionnaire, they asked area teachers what events, issues, and topics in United States history they would like to explore in greater depth. The project then brought middle school and high school social studies teachers to the University of New Hampshire to participate in seminar-style discussions on American history with their peers and UNH history professors. To help solve the problem of distance and to better equip teachers in an electronic age, they included a strong technology component, providing instruction, hands-on experience, and support in using the Internet and e-mail. To speed the transfer of history understanding and classroom activities into middle and high schools, they provided time and assistance in developing and sharing lessons. To eliminate barriers to attending the seminars, they provided funding for books, substitute teachers, modest per diems for participants, free parking, and, of course, lunch. To take part, twenty teachers per seminar committed to reading about, thinking about, and discussing recent scholarship on a given topic in United States history. As a culminating activity, each teacher would develop and share a lesson activity that would engage students and challenge them to manipulate and interpret primary and secondary source materials. Before leaving, participants would give feedback on each session and offer suggestions for the future. (Contains 7 figures.)

"E-cigarettes" are a class of consumer devices designed to deliver drugs, primarily nicotine or marijuana oils, to the lung by vaporization. Regulation of the devices in the United States is relatively minimal, and research on both epidemiology and potential toxicity has focused on nicotine devices. In 2019, an outbreak of an acute respiratory illness in the United States was traced back to the contamination of e-cigarette fluids with vitamin E acetate, which had been used to disguise the dilution of marijuana oils. The outbreak, termed "e-cigarette or vaping associated lung injury" by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, was characterized by pulmonary infiltrates and hypoxia, which usually required hospitalization and, often, admission to ICUs. The syndrome sickened >2,600 people, mostly young men, and killed >50 people before it began to abate 6 months later. No current regulations exist to prevent a similar event with the same or different chemical contaminants. Absent such regulation, respiratory practitioners should be prepared to evaluate, identify, and treat future cases of acute lung toxicity from e-cigarettes. Key words: e-cigarettes; nicotine; marijuana; acute respiratory failure; EVALI; vitamin E. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dust samples were collected from four indoor environments, including childcare facilities, houses, hair salons, and a research facility from the USA and were analyzed for brominated compounds using full scan liquid chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry. A total of 240 brominated compounds were detected in these dust samples, and elemental formulas were predicted for 120 more abundant ions. In addition to commonly detected brominated flame retardants (BFRs), nitrogen-containing brominated azo dyes (BADs) were among the most frequently detected and abundant. Specifically, greater abundances of BADs were detected in indoor dusts from daycares and salons compared to houses and the research facility. Using authentic standards, a quantitative method was established for two BADs (DB373: Disperse Blue 373 and DV93: Disperse Violet 93) and 2-bromo-4,6-dinitroaniline, a commonly used precursor in azo dye production, in indoor dust. Generally, greater concentrations of DB373 (≤3850 ng/g) and DV93 (≤1190 ng/g) were observed in indoor dust from daycares highlighting children as a susceptible population to potential health risk from exposure to BADs. These data are important because, to date, targeted analysis of brominated compounds in indoor environments has focused mainly on BFRs and appears to underestimate the total amount of brominated compounds. Image 1 • Brominated azo dyes (BADs) were detected at relatively greater abundances than brominated fire retardants in indoor dusts from across USA. • BAD concentrations were determined, for the first time, in indoor dusts with maximum concentration of Disperse Blue, 3850 ng/g. • BAD concentrations in indoor dust from childcare were greater than in indoor dusts from houses, salons and a research facility. • Estimated BADs ingestion via dust was as much as 10-fold greater for infants compared to other age groups. Brominated azo dyes were detected at biologically significant concentrations in indoor dust using liquid chromatography ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses several reports published within issue on topics include premodern civil procedure, legal education and review of the R.H. Helmholz's book "Natural Law in Court: A History of Legal Theory in Practice."

Over the recent years, the Department of Defense has shifted toward a more rapid and responsive acquisition strategy to address current threats that face our nation. Global threats have made it imperative to test and train for a greater variety of adversaries and mission threats. With continual enhancements being made in the Live-Virtual-Constructive (LVC) community, there has been an expanded role for incorporating these capabilities into testing and training. As LVC comes to the forefront, there are disconnects across the test and training communities as individual organizations incorporate various LVC environments, technologies, architectures, and standards. Such disconnects include non-interoperability and non-standardization across the Services. The heavy investment in old simulations and the cost of conversion will result in disconnectsfor many years, but the pathforward with modem solutions holds a promisingfuture. This article evaluates the current state of LVC capabilities within the test and training communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the status exchange hypothesis for Australia and the United States, two Anglophone nations with long immigration traditions whose admission regimes place different emphases on skills. Using log-linear methods, we demonstrate that foreign-born spouses trade educational credentials via marriage with natives in both Australian and U.S. marriage markets and, moreover, that nativity is a more salient marriage barrier for men than for women. With some exceptions, immigrant spouses in mixed nativity couptes are better educated than native spouses in same nativity couples, but status exchange is more prevalent among the less-educated spouses in both countries, Support for the status exchange hypothesis is somewhat weaker in Australia partly because of lower average levels of education compared with the United States and partly because of the less sharply detined educational hierarchy at the postsccondsry level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To support the U.S. Air Force's global reach concept, a Common Aero Vehicle is being designed to support the global strike mission. Waypoints are specified for reconnaissance or multiple payload deployments and no-fly zones are specified for geopolitical restrictions or threat avoidance. Because of time critical targets and multiple scenario analysis, an autonomous solution is preferred over a time-intensive, manually iterative one. Thus, a real-time or near real-time autonomous trajectory optimization technique is presented to minimize the flight time, satisfy terminal and intermediate constraints, and remain within the specified vehicle heating and control limitations. This research uses the hypersonic cruise vehicle as a simplified two-dimensional platform to compute an optimal analytical solution. An up-and-coming numerical technique is a direct solution method involving discretization and then dualization, with pseudospectral methods and nonlinear programming used to converge to the optimal solution. This numerical technique is first compared to the previously derived 2-D hypersonic cruise vehicle analytical results to demonstrate convergence to the optimal solution. Then, the numerical approach is applied to the 3-D Common Aero Vehicle as the test platform for the flat Earth three-dimensional reentry trajectory optimization problem. The culmination of this research is the verification of the optimality of this proposed numerical technique, as shown for both the two-dimensional and three-dimensional models. Additionally, user implementation strategies are presented to improve accuracy, enhance solution convergence, and facilitate autonomous implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article highlights the American Institute of Chemical Engineers' (AIChE) Sustainability Index (SI). According to the authors, the SI uses publicly available data to assess the sustainability performance of representative companies in the chemical industry with respect to strategic commitment, sustainability innovation, environmental performance, safety performance, product stewardship, social responsibility and value chain management. The authors also discuss the seven factors that make up the AIChE SI.

Abstract: We quantified the effect of water and nutrient availability on aboveground biomass and nitrogen accumulation and partitioning in four species from the southeastern United States, loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), slash pine (Pinus elliottii), sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua), and sycamore (Platanus occidentalis). The 6-year-old stands received five levels of resource input (control, irrigation with 3.05cmwaterweek−1, irrigation+57kgNha−1 year−1, irrigation+85kgNha−1 year−1, and irrigation+114kgNha−1 year−1). Irrigation significantly increased foliage, stem, and branch biomass for sweetgum and sycamore, culminating in 103% and 238% increases in total aboveground biomass. Fertilization significantly increased aboveground components for all species resulting in 49, 58, 281, and 132% increases in total aboveground biomass for loblolly pine, slash pine, sweetgum, and sycamore, respectively. Standing total aboveground biomass of the fertilized treatments reached 79, 59, 48, and 54Mgha−1 for loblolly pine, slash pine, sweetgum, and sycamore, respectively. Fertilization increased foliar nitrogen concentration for loblolly pine, sweetgum, and sycamore foliage. Irrigation increased total stand nitrogen content by 6, 14, 93, and 161% for loblolly pine, slash pine, sweetgum, and sycamore, respectively. Fertilization increased total nitrogen content by 62, 53, 172, and 69% with maximum nitrogen contents of 267, 212, 237, and 203kgha−1 for loblolly pine, slash pine, sweetgum, and sycamore, respectively. Growth efficiency (stem growth per unit of leaf biomass) and nitrogen use efficiency (stem growth per unit of foliar nitrogen content) increased for the sycamore and sweetgum, but not the loblolly or slash pine. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article provides information on the nature of the changes occurring in the international relation strategy between Australia, China, and the U.S. According to the author, Australia is caught between its historic alliances and trading partners and he argues that the country must modify good relationships with all the major trading partners, in order to maneuver a secure path between competing great powers. Meanwhile the relationship between the U.S. and Australia is under challenge, despite of its direct investment in the country. On the other hand, China is more concerned with its energy security and the country will find its way to supplicate its energy to the energy-supplying countries, particularly Australia.

The article focuses on the American Institute of Chemical Engineers' Sustainability Index (SI). Unlike other sustainability indices, the SI accounts for key factors that are fundamental to the chemical process industries. These factors include a company's operations, engineering, and research. The article explains the development of the SI and its expected vital value to the industry.

The article examines whether the undergraduate chemical engineering curriculum in the U.S. is keeping pace with diversification, globalization and emerging technologies in industries. The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying, National Academy of Engineering and Council for Chemical Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and industry-academia collaborations have been working to transform the curriculum.

The essay presents a profile and exploration into the literary influence and accomplishments of Comanche political activist and writer LaDonna Harris. The author describes the imbalanced focus of academic Native American rhetorical studies on the 19th century corpus confronting colonialism and suggests that more energy should be devoted to similar literary confrontation of more contemporary issues. Harris is described as an effective case in point.

The article provides updates on the activities conducted by the National Association for Retarded Children (NARC) in the U.S. After eight years since its conception in 1950, the number of member units has grown to almost 600 from the mere 20 associations. Religious Education classes have been the primary project of its division in cooperation with various religious groups. Its forthcoming conventions will be held in Philadelphia in October 8-11 and in Cincinnati on October 21-24, 1959 respectively.

The Internet is a viable channel to deliver evidence-based smoking cessation treatment that has the potential to make a large population impact on reducing smoking prevalence. There is high demand for smoking cessation information and support on the Internet. Approximately 7% (10.2 million) of adult American Internet users have searched for information on quitting smoking. Little is known about these individuals, their smoking status, what type of cessation services they are seeking on the Internet, or how frequently these searches for cessation information are conducted. Objective: The primary goal of this study was to characterize individuals who search for smoking cessation information on the Internet to determine appropriate triage and treatment strategies. The secondary goal was to estimate the incidence of searches for cessation information using publicly available search engine data. Methods: We recruited individuals who clicked on a link to a leading smoking cessation website (QuitNet) from within the results of a search engine query. Individuals were "intercepted" before seeing the QuitNet home page and were invited to participate in the study. Those accepting the invitation were routed to an online survey about demographics, smoking characteristics, preferences for specific cessation services, and Internet search patterns. To determine the generalizability of our sample, national datasets on search engine usage patterns, market share, and keyword rankings were examined. These datasets were then used to estimate the number of queries for smoking cessation information each year. Results: During the 10-day study period, 2265 individuals were recruited and 29% (N = 655) responded. Of these, 59% were female and overall tended to be younger than the previously characterized general Internet population. Most (76%) respondents were current smokers; 17% had quit within the last 7 days, and 7% had quit more than 7 days ago. Slightly more than half of active smokers (53%) indicated that they were planning to quit in the next 30 days. Smokers were more likely to seek information on how to quit and on medications; former smokers were more interested in how to cope with withdrawal. All participants rated withdrawal information and individually tailored information as being more useful, while displaying little interest in telephone counseling, expert support, or peer support. Publicly available data from large search engines suggest that 4 million Americans search for resources on smoking cessation each year. Conclusions: This study adds to the limited data available on individuals who search for smoking cessation information on the Internet, supports the prior estimates of the size of the population, and indicates that these individuals are in appropriate stages for both active cessation interventions and aggressive relapse prevention efforts. Continued development and evaluation of online interventions is warranted, and organizations seeking to promote cessation should carefully evaluate the Internet as a possible modality for treatment and as a gateway to other traditional programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sex Transm Dis 2001;28(8):444–7 To determine whether observed condom carrying by adolescent females was associated with self-reported condom use, self-reported history of sexually transmitted diseases, and prevalence of biologically confirmed sexually transmitted diseases, researchers from Emory University in Atlanta studied 522 sexually active African-American adolescent females recruited from low-income neighborhoods in Birmingham, Alabama. Measures of self-reported condom use, STD history, and condom carrying were collected. Adolescents were also tested for three prevalent sexually transmitted diseases. At the time of assessment, 8% of the adolescents were observed to have a condom with them. Condom carrying was not found to be significantly associated with condom use and prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases. Condom carrying by females may not be an important factor for sexually transmitted disease/HIV prevention. Comment: “The best laid schemes o' mice and men gang aft a-gley.” Robert Burns, To A Mouse , 1785. Or, “You can lead a horse to water, but ...” (TMJ). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]