Transcribing the "Estoria de Espanna" using crowdsourcing: Strategies and aspirations

This paper examines the specific strategies for recruitment and retention of volunteer transcribers in use in two collaborative transcription projects: Transcribe Bentham (University College, London) and the Estoria de Espanna Digital Project (University of Birmingham). The aim of the paper is to review the strategies used by Transcribe Bentham, a more mature crowdsourced electronic transcription project, with a view to informing the strategies put into place in the Estoria project, which has started transcribing using crowdsourcing more recently. The paper discusses the difficulties faced by crowdsourced electronic transcription projects and how these have been and are being resolved in these two projects. The difficulties discussed include the complexity of the palaeography involved, the necessity of tagging transcriptions using XML, the requirement to moderate and carry out quality-control of volunteer-produced transcriptions, and the creation of an atmosphere of camaraderie amongst staff-members and crowdsourcers, many of whom have never, and will never meet face-to-face. The findings may be useful for other collaborative electronic transcription projects and will inform and shape the way the Estoria project continues to use strategies to raise levels of recruitment and retention of crowdsourced transcribers

A Study of Late Registration at Four Community Colleges

At the community college level, a debated policy is whether to keep the option for late registration. Most colleges define late registration as registration that occurs any time after the first day of the semester (O’Banion, 2012). Some community colleges have opted to eliminate late registration, believing, based on previous studies, that late registration is a barrier to students and their success (Bolt, 2013; Hale & Bray, 2011; Jones, 2015; Smith, Street, & Olivarez, 2002; Weiss, 1999). Others assert late registration remain an option maintaining that the open access designation associated with the community college demands that students not be deterred from attending when that decision to attend is made (Fain, 2014; O’Banion, 2012). After years of debate, there is no consensus on what is most beneficial for students and colleges. This study contributes to the knowledge on late registration and more specifically focuses on perceptions of what happens once a late registration policy is eliminated. This qualitative study, utilizing the phenomenological approach, explored the implications of eliminating late registration at four community colleges located in four states across the United States; each institution eliminated the late registration option within the last five years (2012-2017). The study allowed college leaders (presidents, vice presidents, deans, department chairs, and registrars) and instructional staff (faculty and advisors) to provide up-to-date perspectives on the impact of the policy elimination. After data collection and explication, several themes emerged and were organized by research question. Generally speaking, for the four colleges included in this study, the elimination of the late registration option has not been identified as a major agent for change. College leaders and instructional staff were unable to isolate data that showed student success being positively impacted by the elimination of the late registration option. In fact, three of the four colleges included, according to interview participants, had not looked at the data since the change in policy. Instructional staff were unable to describe any positive, significant changes in their positions as a result of this policy

The Spoken British National Corpus 2014:design, compilation and analysis

The ESRC-funded Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science at Lancaster University (CASS) and the English Language Teaching group at Cambridge University Press (CUP) have compiled a new, publicly-accessible corpus of spoken British English from the 2010s, known as the Spoken British National Corpus 2014 (Spoken BNC2014). The 11.5 million-word corpus, gathered solely in informal contexts, is the first freely-accessible corpus of its kind since the spoken component of the original British National Corpus (the Spoken BNC1994), which, despite its age, is still used as a proxy for present-day English in research today. This thesis presents a detailed account of each stage of the Spoken BNC2014’s construction, including its conception, design, transcription, processing and dissemination. It also demonstrates the research potential of the corpus, by presenting a diachronic analysis of ‘bad language’ in spoken British English, comparing the 1990s to the 2010s. The thesis shows how the research team struck a delicate balance between backwards compatibility with the Spoken BNC1994 and optimal practice in the context of compiling a new corpus. Although comparable with its predecessor, the Spoken BNC2014 is shown to represent innovation in approaches to the compilation of spoken corpora. This thesis makes several useful contributions to the linguistic research community. The Spoken BNC2014 itself should be of use to many researchers, educators and students in the corpus linguistics and English language communities and beyond. In addition, the thesis represents an example of good practice with regards to academic collaboration with a commercial stakeholder. Thirdly, although not a ‘user guide’, the methodological discussions and analysis presented in this thesis are intended to help the Spoken BNC2014 to be as useful to as many people, and for as many purposes, as possible

Tuition Policy Setting: The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 1960 - 2000

The purpose of this study was to describe tuition policy setting at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 1960-2000. A case study method was employed that involved interviews with current and former chancellors, campus business officers, presidents, system business officers, THEC officials, and a member of the board of trustees. A variety of documentary evidence was also reviewed to assist in triangulation of the data. Four significant themes emerged during the study. These four themes include: (1) there is no formal tuition policy at the University of Tennessee, (2) there is significant input in the decision making process, (3) there is minimal formal communication regarding decisions, and (4) the proliferation of special fees is a recent phenomenon. The overwhelming evidence confirmed there were no formal policies guiding tuition setting at the University of Tennessee, although the palpable long standing philosophy was “keep tuition low.” This low tuition approach was adopted as an informal policy dating back to at least the 1950s and held throughout most of the 40 year period of this study. There were considerable discussions every year during the budget process regarding the needs of the university, the likely state funding, and the share of expenses expected to come from students. The reality was tuition paid by students became the balance wheel, for the most part, in the budget planning process. The interviewees discussed many factors that influenced the tuition discussion including “what will the traffic bear”, peer comparisons regarding both tuition and faculty salaries, inflation, the state budget situation, enrollment, and the need for new programs and facilities. There was an overwhelming desire to remain competitive in the SREB region as it relates to tuition, but this desire continually competes with the desire for improved quality and expanded programs. The budget process was fairly consistent throughout the 40-year history. Keeping tuition low and shifting a portion of the expenses to fees is perceived to put the university in a more competitive position rather than combining these additional costs with the general tuition. This trend is expected to continue not only at the University of Tennessee, but also throughout higher education. Overall, the research participants were extremely committed to the purpose of higher education, fervent in their support for state funding for higher education, firmly convinced that students should pay a “fair share” of their own education, and skeptical of an improved state funding situation. In fact, only one of the twelve participants believed tuition should continue to rise, but all twelve believed it would continue to do so. In addition, none of them believed the state funding situation would significantly improve, at least not in the short-run. There must be a public policy debate in Tennessee regarding the significance of higher education to the state and why increased funding for higher education is important. We must develop a policy that recognizes the cumulative consequences of our decisions before they cause irreparable harm to some students by forcing them out of the higher education syste

Published: A Grounded Theory of Successful Publication for Midcareer Scholars

How do some scholars publish successfully while others perish from professional pressure? Literature has demonstrated the challenges of professional advancement through scholarship, yet has yet to explore how scholars manage these challenges successfully. The problem to be addressed in this grounded study was the lack of knowledge regarding the nature of success in peer-reviewed publication for midcareer scholars. Midcareer was defined as (a) employed professors with 5-15 years of doctoral level teaching experience, (b) having mentored at least one doctoral student to completion, and (c) successfully published in a peer-reviewed journal within the last academic year. A purposive sample of 16 midcareer scholars participated in one, 60-90 minute semi-structured interviews. 278 pages of transcript were coded open, axial and selective sequence using constant comparison. Analysis revealed that midcareer scholars who self-identify as lifelong learners with an intrinsic sense of responsibility to advancing scholarship engaged in problem solving strategies that facilitated successful peer-reviewed publication

The effect of continuing professional development from the perspective of nurses and midwives who participated in continuing education programs offered by Global Health Alliance Western Australia: A mixed-method study

Continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities for nurses and midwives are central to improving knowledge, broadening skills and maintaining competencies to provide best practice and clinical care. This is gained through participating in continuing education (CE). CPD is readily accessible and a mandatory requirement for nurses and midwives in developed nations, such as Australia. However, in developing countries, such as Tanzania, while CPD is promoted, it has limited availability. As such, the Global Health Alliance Western Australia (GHAWA), an international health development program, seeks to provide further sustainable CPD opportunities for nurses and midwives in Tanzania. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the CE programs provided by GHAWA. The review explores perceptions of the effectiveness of CPD from previous nursing and midwifery participants’ of the GHAWA program, and describes the factors contributing to the sustainability of CPD in Tanzania by identifying whether the sharing of knowledge among the Tanzanian nurses and midwives occurred beyond attending GHAWA’s programs. This evaluative study employed quantitative and qualitative designs through a mixed-method approach. Data were collected in two phases. Phase one involved a review of the number of education opportunities and programs provided in 2013 by GHAWA in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Phase two was undertaken in two stages, through focus group and one-on-one interviews with two cohorts: the Western Australian nurses and midwives who served as educators delivering GHAWA programs in Tanzania (stage one), and the Tanzanian nurses and midwives who were attendees (stage two). This evaluative strategy clarified the experience and effect of CE, and identified common themes about CPD for Tanzanian nurses and midwives. Barriers such as environmental and educational concerns, revealed that reflective practice as a process of continuous learning, enabled nurses and midwives to create positive changes in the workplace. The significant outcome was a perceived reduced mortality across maternal and neonatal care. Findings from this study provided a deeper insight into the possibility of sustaining CPD for nurses and midwives in developing countries. Recommendations are offered which may assist to strengthen the opportunities for CPD for nursing and midwifery workforce in developing countries that could ultimately influence quality care and patient outcomes

An Exploration of Moral Injury as Experienced by Combat Veterans

War-zone stressors among Service members can lead to adverse psychological consequences that fall outside the scope of post-traumatic stress disorder. Combat stressors can also result in moral injury. Moral injury is an emerging psychological construct. One proposed definition of moral injury is the perpetration of, failure to prevent, bearing witness to, or learning about acts that transgress deeply held moral beliefs and expectations. The current study used this proposed definition to conduct a qualitative phenomenological investigation of the lived experience of moral injury among combat Veterans of the wars in Iraq and/or Afghanistan. Eight male combat Veterans who self-identified as having the experience of moral injury as put forth in the proposed definition, were individually interviewed. Qualitative analysis was utilized to uncover themes related to morally injurious events and psychological sequela. The findings revealed support for the proposed definition of moral injury as well as six themes describing morally injurious experiences: shame, guilt, and feeling unforgivable connected to the involvement of children in war; shame, guilt, and anger for taking part in killing others; shame, guilt, anger, and feeling unforgivable when they did not speak-out regarding morally injurious events they were a part of as a group; no longer holding the same religious/spiritual beliefs; a loss of meaning in life after viewing death and a sense that they deserved to be disgraced after the way they handled the human remains of the enemy and witnessing others disgrace human remains of the enemy; and difficulty reconnecting emotionally with loved ones after their morally injurious experiences in combat. The most endorsed theme by the Veterans related to morally injurious experiences with children in war. Results suggest an important area for future research could help to define ways to prepare Service members for encountering child soldiers as well as potential ways to manage witnessing the suffering of children in war. The electronic version of the dissertation is accessible at the Ohiolink ETD center http://www.ohiolink.edu/etd

Obstetric Nurses’ Perceived Barriers to Immediate Skin to Skin Contact after Cesarean Birth

Despite the strong evidence supporting immediate skin to skin contact (SSC) after birth, research suggests that patients who undergo cesarean births do not have the same opportunities for SSC as patients who undergo vaginal births. There are limited studies regarding provider attitudes surrounding the practice of immediate SSC after cesarean birth. The aim of this research was to understand obstetric nurses’ perceived barriers to immediate SSC after cesarean section. An exploratory qualitative design was used for the project. The semi-structured, open-ended interviews were conducted via video conferencing. Conventional content analysis methods were used to analyze the data, which yielded the primary overarching theme of “performing safe and effective skin to skin contact after cesarean birth”. The participants identified both barriers and facilitators to SSC after cesarean. It was evident from the interviews that nurses strongly believe in the benefits of SSC after cesarean and try to implement it as often as possible, but various factors prevented SSC in the OR from occurring on a regular basis. This research can be used as a starting point for refining the practice of SSC after cesarean births

Understanding interactions in interpreted triadic medical consultations in primary care

Communication is one of the core clinical skills and has been taught at medical schools in many countries for some 30 years. However, the use of ad hoc and professional interpreters in medical consultations has imposed new challenges on the medical professionals’ communication skills and medical education. Traditional communication models have not provided guidance for working with different types of interpreters. Researchers and educators have been striving to develop new communication models to guide education and practice. However, these models are limited in many ways. This research points out that more research is needed to provide a better understanding of interpreted medical consultations, especially of people’s verbal behaviour in talk-in-interaction. Based on this, a more effective communication model can be developed to remedy the limitations the current models have. Therefore, the research has two goals: namely, to develop a better understanding of the interpreted medical consultation and to develop communication skills for work with interpreters. Using conversation analysis (CA) the research investigated 7 naturally recorded GP consultations involving either ad hoc or professional interpreters. Three languages, Slovak, Mirpuri Punjabi and Urdu, were included. GP interviews and focus groups were conducted for member checking and enhancing the validity of the research results. The research has investigated the turn-taking and turn-design of the interpreted medical consultations and established two theoretical frameworks which provide a generic understanding of the participants’ verbal behaviour in the interaction. Based on the frameworks this research has developed 12 communication strategies orienting to behavioural change of the doctor so as to improve the overall communication. The strategies are useful not only for the training of GPs but also other medical professionals and professional interpreters

An Exploration of Teachers’ and Mental Health First Aiders’ Constructs of Mental Health in Secondary Schools

The socio-political and educational context in which this current research is situated supports a neoliberal agenda and therefore contributes to the complex discourse around mental health (MH) in the UK. However, as MH has become a higher-profile priority for the UK government, over the last decade, initiatives have begun to focus on promoting mental health in educational contexts. As a result, schools have been recognised as having the potential to embed universal approaches for positive MH development. One such school-based MH initiative was announced in 2017 with the introduction of Youth Mental Health First Aid training (MHFA) for every secondary school in England. However, with the exception of an evaluative piece of research into the Youth MHFA programme, there is limited research into the views of secondary school practitioners’ interpretation of the term ‘mental health’ and perceived emotional availability to promote the MH of their students. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the ways in which a small group of Mental Health First Aiders and teachers working in mainstream schools constructed the term ‘mental health’. Data was gathered using semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis. Themes were explored and identified in relation to the practitioner’s understanding of the term ‘mental health’ and how available they feel, to promote their students’ mental health in school. Numerous themes were identified in relation to the practitioners’ conceptualisation of MH, and alongside referring to a biomedical model, there was reflection upon the complex interaction between psychological and social factors related to the development of MH difficulties. Further, the significance of the relationships between school staff and their students, parents and colleagues within the context of supporting CYP’s mental health emerged from the analysis. Findings also highlighted the ways in which school staff are available to promote their students’ MH, as well as the barriers which exist within this. For example, the impact of working in this field on school staffs’ wellbeing, which illustrates the importance of professional support, such as supervision, which it can be argued EPs are well placed to provide. In light of the current mental health challenges in the UK, the present study suggests that the introduction of specific interventions such as MHFA Champions need to be complemented by a wider whole-school systemic focus on MH and wellbeing which aims to connect CYP with their broader social and cultural worlds