Conceptual design study of 1985 commercial tilt rotor transports. Volume 1: VTOL design summary

Aircraft were synthesized in the 21-, 45-, and 100- passenger categories. Technological factors were considered and the 45-passenger point design, designated the D312, was selected. Variants of the D312 having sideline noise levels in hover of + or - 5 PNdB were also studied. All three 45-passenger aircraft were analyzed for performance, weights, economics, handling qualities, noise footprints, aeroelastic stability and ride comfort. Results are presented

Providing Feedback on the Lexical Use of ESP Students’ Academic Presentations: Teacher Training Considerations

This chapter offers a description of a methodology for providing training to pre-service English for Academic and Specific Purposes (EAP/ESP) teacher trainees in giving evidence-based feedback on the lexical composition of ESP students’ academic presentations. It also discusses a study based on the analysis of the mock feedback provided by the EAP/ESP teacher trainees (n=20) to ESP students’ presentations with a focus on the effects of training. The results revealed that the training was successful in areas such as raising the teacher trainees’ awareness of how to evaluate various lexical categories in an ESP presentation, how to incorporate their evaluation into the feedback they give to the students, how to highlight relevant lexical deviations in an evidence-based manner, etc. There were, however, a couple of areas that needed to be emphasised more in the training process. The results confirmed that providing training on evidence-driven feedback to teacher trainees planning to teach in an EAP/ESP context is a necessary component of ESP teacher education

Assessment innovation and student experience: a new assessment challenge and call for a multi-perspective approach to assessment research

The impact of innovative assessment on student experience in higher education is a neglected research topic. This represents an important gap in the literature given debate around the marketization of higher education, international focus on student satisfaction measurement tools and political calls to put students at the heart of higher education in the UK. This paper reports on qualitative findings from a research project examining the impact of assessment preferences and familiarity on student attainment and experience. It argues that innovation is defined by the student, shaped by diverse assessment experiences and preferences and therefore its impact is difficult to predict. It proposes that future innovations must explore assessment choice mechanisms which allow students to shape their own assessments. Cultural change and staff development will be required to achieve this. To be accepted, assessment for student experience must be viewed as a complementary layer within a complex multi perspective model of assessment which also embraces assessment of learning, assessment for learning and assessment for life long learning. Further research is required to build a meta theory of assessment to enhance the synergies between these alternative approaches and to minimise tensions between them

Innovation in assessment: building student confidence in preparation for unfamiliar assessment methods

Innovative assessment methods in which students are active participants promote deeper learning. A group debate and a webfolio were implemented as methods of assessment in the 2015 undergraduate midwifery curriculum, with the assessment tools being evaluated by students. Thematic analysis of the evaluations showed students enjoyed undertaking innovative methods of assessment, they developed confidence and engaged meaningfully with the content to be assessed. Students also commented they developed multiple skills required for future professional practice as a midwife. Thorough preparation of students to undertake an innovative method of assessment however is vital in fostering student confidence

Embedding employability and enterprise skills in sport degrees through a focused work - based project; a student and employer viewpoint

With graduate employability being high on many universities’ agendas, it becomes vital that a curriculum delivers not only subject knowledge but also the opportunity for students to develop and enhance industry-specific skills. This paper is concerned with how a work-based project can support skill development and considers the views of students and employers as to the application of these skills in the context of a sports undergraduate programme in a UK university. Using a mixed-method approach to data collection, 30 students and 5 project hosts took part in the study. The research findings reported a mismatch between the students’ and hosts’ viewpoints on whether skills were developed as a result of the project. Students appeared to have a lack of understanding how to apply the skills in the context of a sports organisation and were viewed by the employers as having an inflated opinion of their ability

Profitable portfolios: capital that counts in higher education

Under-representation in UK higher education of students from less privileged social backgrounds is an enduring problem. While there are examples of productive participation, the pattern of collective trajectories of this group differs sharply from that of traditional entrants (Reay 2006). The onus falls largely to students to adapt to established practices which remain strongly oriented towards traditional white middle-class populations (Read et al. 2003, Burke 2005).Bourdieu’s theory of practice informed the analysis of data emerging from a longitudinal case study and empirical insights are offered into how students with non-traditional academic backgrounds experienced and negotiated the demands of studying in one of the UK’s research-intensive universities. A new conceptual framework identifies academic, linguistic, social and professionally-oriented capital as underpinning the logic of practice of this sub-field of higher education, and their influence on the positional tendencies and trajectories of the students operating within it are highlighted

An agenda for rethinking mid-career master programs in public administration

The pace of societal change and the development of societal challenges have speeded up considerably during the last couple of decades, with substantial impact on different levels, i.e. ranging from global to local, or from business to government. When focusing on the public domain, these changes and challenges have had a major impact on public professionals, who face different and frequently changing questions. Mid-career programs in Public Administration (MPA) have the mission to support enrolled professionals in dealing with these changes and challenges. This article is about the development of such MPAs. Both substantive and didactic development is needed. To counter institutional inertia it seems vital to institutionalize a regular rethinking and adaptation of curricula and didactic strategies. This article identified some important points of attention and some options to deal with these in order to continuously improve the contribution of MPA programs to relevant and effective professional development and ongoing professional learning

The Effect of Universal Influenza Immunization on Mortality and Health Care Use

Comparing influenza-related mortality and health care use between Ontario and other Canadian provinces, Jeffrey Kwong and colleagues find evidence that Ontario's universal vaccination program has reduced the burden of influenza

The Conundrum of Low Achievement and Feedback for Learning

The literature on improving student engagement with assessment and feedback has a tendency to treat all students as if they are the same. Students with lower levels of attainment are generally underrepresented within empirical studies and their feedback behaviours are less well understood. The recent drive to improve student assessment and feedback literacy and the move from ‘feedback’ being information about a task to being a process of understanding and using performance information is a larger conceptual leap for some students than others. In this paper, we consider issues surrounding the transition to new modes of feedback, focusing on what is needed for those who find study difficult and persistently are disappointed by their levels of attainment, to benefit from and take advantage of our feedback pedagogies. We examine literature advocating strategies such as increasing agency, using praise, developing feedback literacy and cultivating a growth mind-set. We argue that students who underachieve may benefit from strong relationships with educators and peers; exposure to feedback rich, low stakes environments, which permit repeated integrations of practice and feedback and building feedback literacy through peer assessment activities