A Program Evaluation of a Beginning Teacher Support Program in a Small Rural School District in North Carolina

As beginning teachers face challenges and seek support, many never receive the guidance needed to help them become effective teachers. Lack of support can build obstacles that lead to job dissatisfaction and failure to retain teachers. Nationwide, states have adopted legislation to require induction programs for new teachers to improve teacher retention and student achievement. This study evaluated the components of a beginning teacher support program in a small rural school district and the perceptions of beginning teacher participants, mentors, and school administrators. In addition, this program evaluation aimed to identifying areas of strength and weaknesses. The analysis of the quantitative and qualitative data collected reveals three main themes: addressing the needs of BTs, lead mentors, and administrators; curriculum and instructional support; and resources to assist BTs with licensure requirements and relevant professional learning opportunities. Based on the analysis of the data collected, recommendations for future research are included. Both the quantitative and qualitative data collected reveal that the beginning teacher support program is practical and beneficial, but there is a need to enhance professional development opportunities for all stakeholders and a need for adequate resources and support throughout a professional development model

A Universal Multiphase Mission Execution Automaton (MEA) with Prolog Implementation for Unmanned Untethered Vehicles", Proceedings of 17th International Symposium on Unmanned Untethered Submersible Technology, Portsmouth, NH, August 2011.

Proceedings of the 17th International Symposium on Unmanned Untethered Submersible Technology, Portsmouth, NH, August, 2011

A simulation study of an autonomous steering system for on-road operation of automotive vehicles

The study of human driving of automotive vehicles is an important aid to the development of viable autonomous vehicle navigation techniques. Observation of human behavior during driving suggests that this activity involves two distinct levels, the conscious and the unconscious. Conscious actions relate to the logical behavior of a driver such as stopping the vehicle when a traffic light is red, slowing down the vehicle when it turns a bend, etc. Such behavior can be described using natural human language. The unconscious actions of a driver are much less obvious. There are many such activities occurring while we are driving a vehicle to a particular destination. One of the important unconscious efforts involves the selection of successive points on the road to steer the vehicle towards in order to achieve the desired road-following behavior. This research work attempts to mimic this unconscious behavior through the use of a computer simulation model. Keywords: Robotics; Artificial intelligence; Mobile; Mathematical models. (Author)Prepared for: Chief of Naval Researchhttp://archive.org/details/simulationstudyo00mcghsupported by Contract from the United States Army Combat Developments Experimentation Cente

A Hawaiian Heroine’s Journey: The Early Life and Career of Dancer Jean Erdman Campbell

This biographical study covers the early life and career of dancer, choreographer, and avant-garde theatre artist, Jean Erdman Campbell (1916-2020). Based on extensive research of historical literature and archival materials, the manuscript traces Erdman’s ancestry and follows the subject through age 32, when she became established as a star of modern dance and prepared for a world tour. The guiding question for this study was what influences shaped the life course, identity and artistry of Erdman, and how might the subject be presented as biography? The researcher examined the influences on Erdman as related to various dance traditions, especially Hawaiian hula, modern training with the pioneers of American dance, the historical and sociological frameworks, plus studies in the fields of mythology, psychology, spiritual and religious traditions, and feminism. Most noteworthy was the close relationship and shared interests of Erdman with her husband, Joseph Campbell, scholar of world religions and comparative mythology. Together, these influences led Erdman to develop an original approach to dance training, choreography, and performance. Erdman’s choreographic themes and aesthetic were grounded in myth, the inner nature of women, spiritual traditions, dream states, and transcendent journeys. The narrative biography includes Erdman’s ancestral history, early schooling, dance training, and first experiments with choreography. Erdman danced in the Martha Graham troupe from 1938 to 1943 and then launched her own company. This biography concludes with the first phase of her artistic work in 1948. Erdman’s career extended into the late 1980s

Characterization of the C. elegans erlin homologue

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Erlins are highly conserved proteins associated with lipid rafts within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Biochemical studies in mammalian cell lines have shown that erlins are required for ER associated protein degradation (ERAD) of activated inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3Rs), implying that erlin proteins might negatively regulate IP3R signalling. In humans, loss of erlin function appears to cause progressive intellectual disability, motor dysfunction and joint contractures. However, it is unknown if defects in IP3R ERAD are the underlying cause of this disease phenotype, whether ERAD of activated IP3Rs is the only function of erlin proteins, and what role ERAD plays in regulating IP3R-dependent processes in the context of an intact animal or embryo. In this study, we characterize the erlin homologue of the nematode <it>Caenorhabditis elegans </it>and examine erlin function <it>in vivo</it>. We specifically set out to test whether <it>C. elegans </it>erlin modulates IP3R-dependent processes, such as egg laying, embryonic development and defecation rates. We also explore the possibility that erlin might play a more general role in the ERAD pathway of <it>C. elegans</it>.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We first show that the <it>C. elegans </it>erlin homologue, ERL-1, is highly similar to mammalian erlins with respect to amino acid sequence, domain structure, biochemical properties and subcellular location. ERL-1 is present throughout the <it>C. elegans </it>embryo; in adult worms, ERL-1 appears restricted to the germline. The expression pattern of ERL-1 thus only partially overlaps with that of ITR-1, eliminating the possibility of ERL-1 being a ubiquitous and necessary regulator of ITR-1. We show that loss of ERL-1 does not affect overall phenotype, or alter brood size, embryonic development or defecation cycle length in either wild type or sensitized <it>itr-1 </it>mutant animals. Moreover we show that ERL-1 deficient worms respond normally to ER stress conditions, suggesting that ERL-1 is not an essential component of the general ERAD pathway.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Although loss of erlin function apparently causes a strong phenotype in humans, no such effect is seen in <it>C. elegans</it>. <it>C. elegans </it>erlin does not appear to be a ubiquitous major modulator of IP3 receptor activity nor does erlin appear to play a major role in ERAD.</p

Inertial and Magnetic Posture Tracking for Inserting Humans Into Networked Virtual Environments

Proceedings of ACM Symposium on Virtual Reality Software & Technology (VRST 2001), Banff, Alberta, Canada, 15 - 17 November 2001, pp.9-16.Accepted/Published Conference Pape

Three-dimensional visualization of mission planning and control for the NPS autonomous underwater vehicle

The article of record may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/48.107150Oceanic Engineering, IEEE Journal ofThe Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is constructing a small autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) with an onboard mission control computer. The mission controller software for this vehicle is a knowledge-based artificial intelligence (AI) system requiring thorough analysis and testing before the AUV is operational. The manner in which rapid prototyping of this software has been demonstrated by developing a controller code on a LISP machine and using an Ethernet link with a graphics workstation to simulate the controller's environment is discussed. The development of a testing simulator using a knowledge engineering environment (KEE) expert system shell that examines AUV controller subsystems and vehicle models before integrating them with the full AUV for its test environment missions is discussed. This AUV simulator utilizes an interactive mission planning control console and is fully autonomous once initial parameters are selecte

Pedometry and 'peer support' in older Chinese adults: a 12-month cluster randomised controlled trial

Session - Exercise/RehabilitationResearch Dissemination ReportsThere is a need to increase physical activity to attenuate age-related morbidity. This 12-month factorial design cluster trial randomized 399 volunteers from 24 centres to buddy peer support, pedometry, or control group. Data were anaysed using last-observation carried-forward and intention-to-treat methods. Compared to the controls, participants in the pedometry group increased their levels of physical activity energy expenditure significantly, as did those in the buddy group. As recorded by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire [IPAQ], the respective increases amounted to 1820 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1360-2290) and 1260 (95% CI, 780-17 460) metabolic equivalent of task (MET).min.wk-1. The buddy group also had significantly improved aerobic fitness after adjustment for body weight (12%; 95% CI, 4-21%), but this did not attain significance in the pedometry group (7%; 95% CI, -1 to 15%). Our results suggest that recourse to pedometers and the buddy peer support system is simple means of increasing physical activity in older subjects.published_or_final_versio

‘Ethnic group’, the state and the politics of representation

The assertion, even if only by implication, that ‘ethnic group’ categories represent ‘real’ tangible entities, indeed identities, is commonplace not only in the realms of political and policy discourse but also amongst contemporary social scientists. This paper, following Brubaker (2002), questions this position in a number of key respects: of these three issues will dominate the discussion that follows. First, there is an interrogation of the proposition that those to whom the categories/labels refer constitute sociologically meaningful ‘groups’ as distinct from (mere) human collectivities. Secondly, there is the question of how these categories emerge, i.e. exactly what series of events, negotiations and contestations lie behind their construction and social acceptance. Thirdly, and as a corollary to the latter point, we explore the process of reification that leads to these categories being seen to represent ‘real things in the world’ (ibid.)