Some Aspects of Modality in Analytical Mechanics

This paper discusses some of the modal involvements of analytical mechanics. I first review the elementary aspects of the Lagrangian, Hamiltonian and Hamilton-Jacobi approaches. I then discuss two modal involvements; both are related to David Lewis' work on modality, especially on counterfactuals. The first is the way Hamilton-Jacobi theory uses ensembles, i.e. sets of possible initial conditions. The structure of this set of ensembles remains to be explored by philosophers. The second is the way the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian approaches' variational principles state the law of motion by mentioning contralegal dynamical evolutions. This threatens to contravene the principle that any actual truth, in particular an actual law, is made true by actual facts. Though this threat can be avoided, at least for simple mechanical systems, it repays scrutiny; not least because it leads to some open questions.Comment: 36 pages, no figures. Delivered at a Philosophy of Science Association Symposium in memory of the distinguished philosopher David Lewis, Milwaukee, November 2002. This version includes significant additions to Section 5.1. This version is forthcoming in `Formal Teleology and Causality', ed. M. Stoeltzner, P. Weingartner, Paderborn, Germany: Mentis. A precis of the first half of the paper is forthcoming in the journal Philosophy of Scienc

The effect of dual vocational education and training on grades and graduation in Catalonia, Spain

Dual vocational education and training (VET) has recently been introduced in Catalonia, as in the whole of Spain, and it should be the only VET system in the near future. However, Dual VET still coexists with traditional VET. The former has much more on-the-job training, companies are more involved in curricula design and training management, and trainees receive a salary or a scholarship. This study analysed the effect of Dual VET on students' grades and degree completion. We use the whole population of Catalan students during four academic years (from 2015-2016 to 2018-2019) that completed their degree. We employ an instrumental variable approach to explain grades at completion. Results show that Dual VET had a positive effect on grades irrespective of the method and outcome used (standardised or non-standardised grades). In fact, our instrumental variables estimation showed a greater impact than the ordinary least squares results. In addition, Dual VET also increased the probability of graduation. Thus, the transformation of the Catalan VET into a Dual VET may have positive effects, since the latter improves course completion and grades

To Teach Modal Logic: An Opinionated Survey

I aim to promote an alternative agenda for teaching modal logic chiefly inspired by the relationships between modal logic and philosophy. The guiding idea for this proposal is a reappraisal of the interest of modal logic in philosophy, which do not stem mainly from mathematical issues, but which is motivated by central problems of philosophy and language. I will point out some themes to start elaborating a guide for a more comprehensive approach to teach modal logic, and consider the contributions of dual-process theories in cognitive science, in order to explore a pedagogical framework for the proposed point of view.Comment: Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Tools for Teaching Logic (TTL2015), Rennes, France, June 9-12, 2015. Editors: M. Antonia Huertas, Jo\~ao Marcos, Mar\'ia Manzano, Sophie Pinchinat, Fran\c{c}ois Schwarzentrube

Do On-Line Labor Market Intermediaries Matter? The Impact of AlmaLaurea on the University-to-Work Transition

This paper evaluates the impact of the availability of electronic labor markets on university-to-work transition. In particular, we analyze the effect of the intermediation activity carried on by the interuniversity consortium AlmaLaurea on graduates' labor market outcomes. Different timing of universities' enrolment in AlmaLaurea produces counterfactuals that allow us to overcome the problems faced by previous empirical investigations. The evaluation is performed applying the difference-in-differences method to a repeated cross section data set. It is shown that, if the usual assumption concerning parallel outcomes holds, AlmaLaurea reduces individual unemployment probability and improves matching quality. Interestingly, it is also found that on-line intermediaries foster graduates' geographical mobility.Labor Markets Intermediaries, Job Search, Electronic Markets

Inferring school district learning modalities during the COVID-19 pandemic with a hidden Markov model

In this study, learning modalities offered by public schools across the United States were investigated to track changes in the proportion of schools offering fully in-person, hybrid and fully remote learning over time. Learning modalities from 14,688 unique school districts from September 2020 to June 2021 were reported by Burbio, MCH Strategic Data, the American Enterprise Institute's Return to Learn Tracker and individual state dashboards. A model was needed to combine and deconflict these data to provide a more complete description of modalities nationwide. A hidden Markov model (HMM) was used to infer the most likely learning modality for each district on a weekly basis. This method yielded higher spatiotemporal coverage than any individual data source and higher agreement with three of the four data sources than any other single source. The model output revealed that the percentage of districts offering fully in-person learning rose from 40.3% in September 2020 to 54.7% in June of 2021 with increases across 45 states and in both urban and rural districts. This type of probabilistic model can serve as a tool for fusion of incomplete and contradictory data sources in support of public health surveillance and research efforts.Comment: 25 pages, 4 figure

A systematic review of whole class, subject based, pedagogies with reported outcomes for the academic and social inclusion of pupils with special educational needs in mainstream classrooms

Schools across the world have responded to international and national initiatives designed to further the development of inclusive education. In England, there is a statutory requirement for all schools to provide effective learning opportunities for all pupils (QCA, 2000) and children with special educational needs (SEN) are positioned as having a right to be within mainstream classrooms accessing an appropriate curriculum (SENDA, 2001). Previous reviews which have sought to identify classroom practices that support the inclusion of children with SEN have been technically non-systematic and hence a need for a systematic review within this area has been identified (Nind et al., 2004; Rix et al., 2006). This systematic literature review is the last in a series of three

Between Laws and Models: Some Philosophical Morals of Lagrangian Mechanics

I extract some philosophical morals from some aspects of Lagrangian mechanics. (A companion paper will present similar morals from Hamiltonian mechanics and Hamilton-Jacobi theory.) One main moral concerns methodology: Lagrangian mechanics provides a level of description of phenomena which has been largely ignored by philosophers, since it falls between their accustomed levels--``laws of nature'' and ``models''. Another main moral concerns ontology: the ontology of Lagrangian mechanics is both more subtle and more problematic than philosophers often realize. The treatment of Lagrangian mechanics provides an introduction to the subject for philosophers, and is technically elementary. In particular, it is confined to systems with a finite number of degrees of freedom, and for the most part eschews modern geometry. But it includes a presentation of Routhian reduction and of Noether's ``first theorem''.Comment: 106 pages, no figure

Does Cash for School Influence Young Women's Behavior in the Longer Term? Evidence from Pakistan

The Punjab Female School Stipend Program, a female-targeted conditional cash transfer program in Pakistan, was implemented in response to gender gaps in education. An early evaluation of the program shows that the enrollment of eligible girls in middle-school increased in the short term by nearly 9 percentage points. This paper uses regression discontinuity and difference-in-difference analyses to show that five years into the program implementation positive impacts do persist. Beneficiary adolescent girls are more likely to progress through and complete middle school and work less. There is suggestive evidence that participating girls delay their marriage and have fewer births by the time they are 19 years old. Also, girls who are exposed to the program later-on, and eligible for the benefits given in high school, increase their rates of matriculating into and completing high school. The persistence of impacts can potentially translate into gains in future productivity, consumption, inter-generational human capital accumulation and desired fertility. Lastly, there is no evidence that the program has negative spillover effects on educational outcomes of male siblings.conditional cash transfers, female education, female labor participation, fertility, Pakistan

Does cash for school influence young women's behavior in the longer term ? evidence from Pakistan

The Punjab Female School Stipend Program, a female-targeted conditional cash transfer program in Pakistan, was implemented in response to gender gaps in education. An early evaluation of the program shows that the enrollment of eligible girls in middle school increased in the short term by nearly 9 percentage points. This paper uses regression discontinuity and difference-in-difference analyses to show that five years into the program implementation positive impacts do persist. Beneficiary adolescent girls are more likely to progress through and complete middle school and work less. There is suggestive evidence that participating girls delay their marriage and have fewer births by the time they are 19 years old. Girls who are exposed to the program later, and who are eligible for the benefits given in high school, increase their rates of matriculating into and completing high school. The persistence of impacts can potentially translate into gains in future productivity, consumption, inter-generational human capital accumulation and desired fertility. Lastly, there is no evidence that the program has negative spillover effects on educational outcomes of male siblings.Education For All,Primary Education,Tertiary Education,Gender and Education,Disability