Social Support in Collegiate Athletics: An Evaluation of the Efficacy of Perceived Social Support Among Injured College Athletes and its Effect Upon Well-being Throughout the Rehabilitation Process

Athletic injuries are increasingly common at the collegiate level. These injuries not only produce physical detriments, but often elicit emotional responses as well. As a result, injured athletes are often facing increased stress and are in dire need of social support throughout the rehabilitation process. This study seeks to add to the amassing literature on the stress-buffer hypothesis and evaluates social support provided by athletic trainers, coaches, teammates, and professors and instructors for injured collegiate athletes. Qualitative findings revealed the most commonly expressed type of social support was emotional support from coaches, teammates, and professors, while tangible support was the most commonly reported type of support from athletic trainers. Overall, athletes reported disappointment and frustration to sit out from competitive competition, but generally felt support from all providers studied whose support instilled intrinsic motivation to sustain the rehabilitation process

Radiobioassay intercomparison studies of U-nat, Pu-238, Pu-239 and Am-241

Radiobioassay laboratories analyze urine samples from personnel at nuclear facilities to ensure that no accidental intakes/uptakes have occurred and to provide radiation dose estimates in the event of an emergency. Quality control programs have, until this study, consisted of the analyses of test samples created within the facility itself or have been recognized test samples in a synthetic urine matrix from an external organization.The Intercomparison Studies Program at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Is the first and largest International provider of radiobioassay quality control samples in a natural urine matrix on a monthly basis.This dissertation presents the results of radiobioassay intercomparison studies of selected alpha emitters (natural U, PU-238, Pu-239, and Am-241) that have been in progress over a period of six years. Because the laboratories involved in the study were unaware, in many cases, of the presence of test samples, this study gives a more accurate representation of the state of day-to-day operations in the participating radiobioassay facilities.It has been discovered that several participating laboratories have significantly improved over the course of this study. Increases in accuracy, as well as decreases in the number of severely biased samples, have been observed.It is shown that the analysis of natural uranium in urine by participating laboratories using Kinetic Phosphorescence Analysis (KPA) contains a significant source of negative bias, most likely the result of inhomogeneous sampling. The Analysis of Am-241 seems to contain a greater source of negative bias than that of the other actinide nuclides studied, possibly the result of spectral overlap of Am-243and Am-241.This work has shown, for the first time, that many radiobioassay laboratories intermittently produce results that are consistent with switching a routine (blank)sample with a QA/QC (non-blank) sample. The radiobioassay community is now realizing that this is possible, and that CWQC samples may be incorporated into the process at any time.This work describes a method of data treatment which gives participating laboratories an estimate of their analytical accuracy, while removing the effects of the so-called outliers. The outlier-free results appear reasonably Gaussian,indicating that the underlying processes are sound, although marred by severe,intermittent biases

E-GOVERNANCE IN THE DIGITAL ECONOMY ERA

This paper presents a view over the way in which governments adapt to the changes in the social and economic environment related to the digitalization of various aspects of the society as well as trends in policy making and public opinion that challenge traditional governing methods. Three distinct e-governance infrastructure are tackled: Government to Client, Government to Businesses and Government to Government solutions that can use tools and technologies, each with financial implications and relevance from a tax policy stand point. The most significant functional, technical operational implications are briefly explored then the paper then analyses the development of possible E-governance applications for each function of the government in the economy. All such developments manifest both deterrent forces and incentives, but a well-executed system has all prerequisites for good e-governance

Las tareas escolares. Estudio de las actitudes de los alumnos en una sección bilingüe

En este trabajo se aborda uno de los temas más controvertidos en el mundo de la educación: las tareas para casa o deberes escolares en Primaria. Se accede al estado del debate a favor y en contra, y a las diferentes posiciones, tanto en el contexto nacional y regional como internacional. Focalizando la atención en las actitudes de los escolares ante este tipo de prácticas, se describe el estudio de observación realizado, en un grupo de 45 alumnos de 4º curso de Primaria con sección bilingüe de Ciencias Naturales y Francés como lengua extranjera. Se analizan cualitativamente las manifestaciones de diverso orden registradas en tres momentos significativos del proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje, adoptando una mirada comparativa entre las actividades realizadas tanto dentro como fuera del aula. Se concluye con un conjunto de precisiones al servicio de los docentes que han de decidir sobre su realización.Dans ce travail, on envisage l´un des sujets les plus controversés dans le monde de l’éducation: les devoirs à la maison au Primaire. On accède à l´état du débat pour et contre, et aux différents positionnements concernant les contextes nationaux, régionaux et internationaux. Centrant l´attention sur les attitudes des écoliers lors de la réalisation de ce type de pratiques, on décrit l´étude d´observation menée avec un groupe de 45 élèves de 4eme année du Primaire, en section bilingue de Sciences Naturelles et français comme langue étrangère. On analyse qualitativement les manifestations de divers ordre, enregistrées au cours de trois moments significatifs du processus, jetant un regard comparatif entre les activités réalisées dans la salle de classe et à la maison. On conclut avec un ensemble de précisions destinées aux enseignants décideurs de leur réalisation.Grado en Educación Primari

Principal leadership : enhancing academic success for students in high-poverty elementary schools

The role of the principal has evolved over the past few decades from a managerial role to an instructional leader. The type of setting, environment or conditions of the school may impact the everyday practices of the elementary principal as a result the day to day tasks can vary depending on their school environment and context. Schools faced with issues of high-poverty, high-minority demographics, high mobility and low student achievement may be conflicted on prioritizing their daily practices. Depending on the school contexts in which they work, principals face very different sets of challenges. Thus, there is a need to continue to examine instructional leadership particularly in schools that serve a high number of economically disadvantage students. The study followed a qualitative approach with grounded theory. Participants included three principals, three teachers and three instructional leadership members, purposefully selected in each of the three schools focus of the study. Data was collected through individual interviews, observations and a document review. The findings revealed that principals in these high-poverty schools used the following instructional practices; creating an instructional plan with expectations, building a system of collaboration and support, implementing a support system for students and designing a system to monitor students and teachers. Furthermore, the study found the following contextual challenges, poverty, high mobility, how parent involvement, student mental health, parent concerns, high number of English Language Learners and Refugee students and community affairs. The contexts resulted in a variation of practices from each school. The practices were not all instructional but also social emotional learning practices that demonstrated a great focus on the whole child. Based on these practices, a set of strategies was revealed. These five strategies were frequently used in all three schools. They included allocating funds for additional support positions, building collaboration and accountability, creating systems and developing community outreach and partnershipsEducational Leadership and Polic

Teaching approaches to learn theoretical contents in Physical Education: A study about contour lines

Producción CientíficaPurpose: Fostering student’s map reading skills, specifically understanding contour lines, is a challenging area of the Physical Education curriculum. Method: 238 students in their first year of secondary education (Mage = 13.1) were randomly assigned to one of these experimental conditions in physical education classes: (a) Teaching intervention 1 (TI-1): integrating the concept of contour lines into practical sessions of acrobatic gymnastics; (b) TI-2: theoretical sessions regarding contour lines; (c) Active control (AC): reading an introductory text about topographic maps; and two passive controls (PC) without any intervention, (d) PC-1 and (e) PC-2. Results: All students, except for PC-2, improved their knowledge of contour lines. Nevertheless, performing corporal figures (in TI-1) and employing pointing and tracing gestures (in TI-2) helped students to correctly resolve a broader range of tasks. Conclusions: The results highlighted the benefits of teaching proposals that favor movement and the experience of the body

NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND INFRASTRUCTURES OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

This paper presents a view over recent developments in the underlying infrastructure of the financial system, more specifically electronic trading and how computers have taken over classic trading mechanisms. While some of the benefits are easy to agree upon, evidence shows that technical discrepancies have made the order book unequal fighting ground for traders. The findings of the paper suggests that in practice, high frequency trading is actually detrimental to order book health and degrades liquidity and overall quality of execution of regular trades

THE ECONOMICS AND IMPLICATIONS OF AN INTIAL PUBLIC OFFERING

This paper aims at providing insight into the mechanics of an initial public offering, for both companies prospecting the choice of financing themselves on the market as well as investors looking to build their portfolio. The study shows that for certain applications, getting finance through an IPO is a very compelling and flexible option for companies as well as provide valid opportunities for investors. For emerging market IPOs should be a tool for development aside from classic debt instruments, however potential investors need to be aware of risks and drawbacks associated with the decision to participate or underwrite in an IPO