Changes in teaching and learning: what counts, who to, and how is it counted?

This paper builds on and contributes to the evidence that links teacher development programmes and educational technology programmes in low-to-middle income countries, to improvements in quality. Recent reviews, funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) have examined the characteristics of teacher education programmes (Westbrook et al., 2013) and educational technology programmes (Tom Power, Gater, Grant, & Winters, 2014), that show evidence of impact on teaching practice or learning outcomes. In both cases evidential problems arise in relation to reporting change. Power & McCormick (2014) observe that where reviewed studies present outcomes, these are often based in an educational economist tradition; the teacher development theory of change is often disregarded (Tatto, 2013). This paper examines the research approaches and findings of a large-scale programme of teacher development incorporating Educational Technology in Bangladesh, that has tried to develop a more holistic or ecological understanding of educational change at the classroom level. We argue that whilst such research stands out as one of only a small number of studies that evidence change in teaching and learning holistically at large scale, further methodological development is required. How can such large-scale programmes meet the evidence requirements of donors and policy makers, typically framed in human capital terms, whilst giving voice to teachers and students, about the experience of change and the development of capabilities (Tikly & Barrett, 2011) they have reason to value

How are English language teachers supported to develop professional knowledge and practice, within their schools? Qualitative Study

This was a small-scale, qualitative study into the experiences of ‘support in school for improving knowledge and practice of ELT’ amongst teachers participating in a large- scale, quantitative, quasi-experimental (QE) study (EIA, 2017). The purpose of the study was to identify the nature of ‘support in school’ for the introduction of improved classroom practices, as experienced by teachers. The study sought to explore aspects deliberately incorporated in the EIA School- Based Teacher Development (SBTD) programme (the treatment in the QE study) but which could also occur through other mechanisms (in control schools) such as: * Teachers purposefully introducing communicative language teaching activities that were previously unfamiliar to themselves or their students. * Teachers individually or collaboratively studying, planning, practicing or reflecting upon activities to improve their own English language proficiency, or that of their students * The attitudes and actions of those in positions of authority in schools, such as head teachers and education officers. The study addressed the following research questions: 1. In the setting of the school1, how are English Language Teachers supported to develop their subject or pedagogic knowledge and their classroom practice? 2. How do contextual factors affect English Language Teachers experiences of support in the setting of their schools? 3. Are there identifiable relationships between English Language Teachers’ qualitative experiences of support in the setting of their schools, and the findings of quantitative studies of classroom practices or student learning outcomes

English Speaking and Listening Assessment Project - Baseline. Bangladesh

This study seeks to understand the current practices of English Language Teaching (ELT) and assessment at the secondary school level in Bangladesh, with specific focus on speaking and listening skills. The study draws upon prior research on general ELT practices, English language proficiencies and exploration of assessment practices, in Bangladesh. The study aims to provide some baseline evidence about the way speaking and listening are taught currently, whether these skills are assessed informally, and if so, how this is done. The study addresses two research questions: 1. How ready are English Language Teachers in government-funded secondary schools in Bangladesh to implement continuous assessment of speaking and listening skills? 2. Are there identifiable contextual factors that promote or inhibit the development of effective assessment of listening and speaking in English? These were assessed with a mixed-methods design, drawing upon prior quantitative research and new qualitative fieldwork in 22 secondary schools across three divisions (Dhaka, Sylhet and Chittagong). At the suggestion of DESHE, the sample also included 2 of the ‘highest performing’ schools from Dhaka city. There are some signs of readiness for effective school-based assessment of speaking and listening skills: teachers, students and community members alike are enthusiastic for a greater emphasis on speaking and listening skills, which are highly valued. Teachers and students are now speaking mostly in English and most teachers also attempt to organise some student talk in pairs or groups, at least briefly. Yet several factors limit students’ opportunities to develop skills at the level of CEFR A1 or A2. Firstly, teachers generally do not yet have sufficient confidence, understanding or competence to introduce effective teaching or assessment practices at CEFR A1-A2. In English lessons, students generally make short, predictable utterances or recite texts. No lessons were observed in which students had an opportunity to develop or demonstrate language functions at CEFR A1-A2. Secondly, teachers acknowledge a washback effect from final examinations, agreeing that inclusion of marks for speaking and listening would ensure teachers and students took these skills more seriously during lesson time. Thirdly, almost two thirds of secondary students achieve no CEFR level, suggesting many enter and some leave secondary education with limited communicative English language skills. One possible contributor to this may be that almost half (43%) of the ELT population are only at the target level for students (CEFR A2) themselves, whilst approximately one in ten teachers (12%) do not achieve the student target (being at A1 or below). Fourthly, the Bangladesh curriculum student competency statements are generic and broad, providing little support to the development of teaching or assessment practices. The introduction and development of effective teaching and assessment strategies at CEFR A1-A2 requires a profound shift in teachers’ understanding and practice. We recommend that: 1. Future sector wide programmes provide sustained support to the develop teachers' competence in teaching and assessment of speaking and listening skills at CEFR A1-A2 2. Options are explored for introducing assessment of these skills in terminal examinations 3. Mechanisms are identified for improving teachers own speaking and listening skills 4. Student competency statements within the Bangladesh curriculum are revised to provide more guidance to teachers and students

Estudio prospectivo de intervención sobre comorbilidades, interacciones farmacológicas y su manejo en pacientes con cáncer

Introduction: Drug-Drug interactions (DDI) may cause considerable adverse drug reactions and potentially lead to an increased or decreased clinical effect of a given drug and increases the cost of management. Cancer patients are at high risk of such DDIs because they commonly receive a high number of drugs concomitantly, including other cytotoxic agents, hormonal agents, targeted agents, and supportive care agents among medication prescribed to treat comorbidities, especially for elderly patients. The objective of this study is to evaluate the incidence of comorbidities and the role of clinical pharmacist in preventing DDIs in a group of cancer patients. Materials and Methods: A prospective – observational study was conducted in a multispecialty hospital for a period of 8 months among 100 cancer inpatients of oncology department. DDIs were analyzed using Medscape Drug Interaction checker. Results: In this study, 65 DDIs were identified from 100 patients. Of all DDIs, 33.85% were major, 60% were moderate, and 6.15% were minor DDIs. Clinically significant (55.38 %) DDIs were reported and 69.44% of those were accepted and modified accordingly. Furthermore, we observed 50.77% of DDIs between co administered drugs. Elderly people (48%) have more co-morbidity such as diabetes (30%) and hypertension (17.81%). Conclusion: This study concluded that DDIs are very common in cancer patients, particularly people with more co morbidities and using multiple medicines. Clinical pharmacist and physicians must work together to extend the practice of preventing DDIs on individual patient management to improve their quality of life.Introducción: Las interacciones medicamentosas (DDI) pueden causar reacciones adversas considerables a los medicamentos y, potencialmente, pueden provocar un aumento o disminución del efecto clínico de un medicamento dado y aumentan los costos de administración. Los pacientes con cáncer tienen un alto riesgo de tales interacciones porque comúnmente reciben una gran cantidad de medicamentos concomitantes, incluidos otros agentes citotóxicos, agentes hormonales, agentes dirigidos y agentes de atención de apoyo entre los medicamentos prescritos para tratar las comorbilidades, especialmente en pacientes ancianos. El objetivo de este estudio es evaluar la incidencia de comorbilidades y el papel del farmacéutico clínico en la prevención de interacciones entre medicamentos en un grupo de pacientes con cáncer. Materiales y métodos: se realizó un estudio prospectivo - observacional en un hospital de múltiples especialidades durante un período de 8 meses entre 100 pacientes hospitalizados con cáncer del departamento de oncología. Las interacciones de fármaco y fármaco se analizaron utilizando el comprobador de interacción de medicamentos de Medscape. Resultados: En este estudio, se identificaron 65 interacciones de 100 pacientes. De todas las interacciones entre medicamentos, 33,85% fueron mayores, 60% fueron moderadas y 6,15% fueron interacciones menores. Se informaron interacciones clínicamente significativas (55,38%) y el 69,44% de ellas se aceptaron y modificaron en consecuencia. Además, observamos el 50,77% de las interacciones entre los fármacos coadministrados. Las personas mayores (48%) tienen más comorbilidad, como diabetes (30%) e hipertensión (17,81%). Conclusión: este estudio concluyó que las interacciones entre medicamentos son muy comunes en pacientes con cáncer, especialmente en personas con más comorbilidades y que usan múltiples medicamentos. El farmacéutico clínico y los médicos deben trabajar juntos para ampliar la práctica de prevención de interacciones entre medicamentos en el manejo individual del paciente para mejorar su calidad de vida

Study on the adoption and integration of OER materials in selfInstructional course development

In spite of a few studies on reusability of open educational content in different contexts, there is insufficient information and understanding about the processes involved in Open Educational Resources (OER) integration and contextualisation. This study investigates the processes involved in reusing online OER for developing an entire course in an e-Learning environment as part of OER implementation in the Wawasan Open University. Study results relate to three variables: findability, reusability and cost-time efficiency, of adoption and integration of OER materials for course development

Oyster depuration display unit for high-end restaurants

Considerable interest has been generated recently on consumption of live oysters in high-end restaurants in cities such as Kochi. A major lacuna in this lucrative and emerging enterprise is the lack of consumer confidence on quality of live oysters, particularly purity of oysters with respect to microorganisms. In a meeting with a large number of chefs of star hotels in Kochi at David Hall on 9th June 2010 organized by the CGH Earth group, scientists of CMFRI gave an exposition on farming of oysters and methods of its purification. A consensus that emerged during the meeting was that oyster purification should be done in a manner which is visible to the restaurant clients. Accordingly the CMFRI is proposing a model ULTRA-PURE DEPURATION DIPLAY UNIT (DDU) the details of which are presented in this manual

A phase II trial of an alternative schedule of palbociclib and embedded serum TK1 analysis

Palbociclib 3-weeks-on/1-week-off, combined with hormonal therapy, is approved for hormone receptor positive (HR+)/HER2-negative (HER2-) advanced/metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Neutropenia is the most frequent adverse event (AE). We aim to determine whether an alternative 5-days-on/2-days-off weekly schedule reduces grade 3 and above neutropenia (G3 + ANC) incidence. In this single-arm phase II trial, patients with HR+/HER2- MBC received palbociclib 125 mg, 5-days-on/2-days-off, plus letrozole or fulvestrant per physician, on a 28-day cycle (C), as their first- or second-line treatment. The primary endpoint was G3 + ANC in the first 29 days (C1). Secondary endpoints included AEs, efficacy, and serum thymidine kinase 1 (sTK1) activity. At data-cutoff, fifty-four patients received a median of 13 cycles (range 2.6-43.5). The rate of G3 + ANC was 21.3% (95% CI: 11.2-36.1%) without G4 in C1, and 40.7% (95% CI: 27.9-54.9%), including 38.9% G3 and 1.8% G4, in all cycles. The clinical benefit rate was 80.4% (95% CI: 66.5-89.7%). The median progression-free survival (mPFS) (95% CI) was 19.75 (12.11-34.89), 33.5 (17.25-not reached [NR]), and 11.96 (10.43-NR) months, in the overall, endocrine sensitive or resistant population, respectively. High sTK1 at baseline, C1 day 15 (C1D15), and C2D1 were independently prognostic for shorter PFS (p = 9.91 × 1

Dual effect of thiol addition on fluorescent polymeric micelles: ON-to-OFF emissive switch and morphology transition

YesThe morphology transition from micelles to vesicles of a solution-state self-assembled block copolymer, containing a fluorescent dye at the core–shell interface, has been induced by an addition–elimination reaction using a thiol, and has been shown to be coupled to a simultaneous ON-to-OFF switch in particle fluorescence.EPSRC and the IAS at the University of Warwic

Antiinflammatory Therapy with Canakinumab for Atherosclerotic Disease

Background: Experimental and clinical data suggest that reducing inflammation without affecting lipid levels may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Yet, the inflammatory hypothesis of atherothrombosis has remained unproved. Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind trial of canakinumab, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1β, involving 10,061 patients with previous myocardial infarction and a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level of 2 mg or more per liter. The trial compared three doses of canakinumab (50 mg, 150 mg, and 300 mg, administered subcutaneously every 3 months) with placebo. The primary efficacy end point was nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular death. RESULTS: At 48 months, the median reduction from baseline in the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level was 26 percentage points greater in the group that received the 50-mg dose of canakinumab, 37 percentage points greater in the 150-mg group, and 41 percentage points greater in the 300-mg group than in the placebo group. Canakinumab did not reduce lipid levels from baseline. At a median follow-up of 3.7 years, the incidence rate for the primary end point was 4.50 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group, 4.11 events per 100 person-years in the 50-mg group, 3.86 events per 100 person-years in the 150-mg group, and 3.90 events per 100 person-years in the 300-mg group. The hazard ratios as compared with placebo were as follows: in the 50-mg group, 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 1.07; P = 0.30); in the 150-mg group, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.74 to 0.98; P = 0.021); and in the 300-mg group, 0.86 (95% CI, 0.75 to 0.99; P = 0.031). The 150-mg dose, but not the other doses, met the prespecified multiplicity-adjusted threshold for statistical significance for the primary end point and the secondary end point that additionally included hospitalization for unstable angina that led to urgent revascularization (hazard ratio vs. placebo, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.95; P = 0.005). Canakinumab was associated with a higher incidence of fatal infection than was placebo. There was no significant difference in all-cause mortality (hazard ratio for all canakinumab doses vs. placebo, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.83 to 1.06; P = 0.31). Conclusions: Antiinflammatory therapy targeting the interleukin-1β innate immunity pathway with canakinumab at a dose of 150 mg every 3 months led to a significantly lower rate of recurrent cardiovascular events than placebo, independent of lipid-level lowering. (Funded by Novartis; CANTOS ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01327846.

Impact of infection on proteome-wide glycosylation revealed by distinct signatures for bacterial and viral pathogens

Mechanisms of infection and pathogenesis have predominantly been studied based on differential gene or protein expression. Less is known about posttranslational modifications, which are essential for protein functional diversity. We applied an innovative glycoproteomics method to study the systemic proteome-wide glycosylation in response to infection. The protein site-specific glycosylation was characterized in plasma derived from well-defined controls and patients. We found 3862 unique features, of which we identified 463 distinct intact glycopeptides, that could be mapped to more than 30 different proteins. Statistical analyses were used to derive a glycopeptide signature that enabled significant differentiation between patients with a bacterial or viral infection. Furthermore, supported by a machine learning algorithm, we demonstrated the ability to identify the causative pathogens based on the distinctive host blood plasma glycopeptide signatures. These results illustrate that glycoproteomics holds enormous potential as an innovative approach to improve the interpretation of relevant biological changes in response to infection