The Role of Student Leadership In International Service Learning: A Literature Review

In the field of international service learning (ISL), there is much debate about the quality of the academic component of alternative break programs, a popular concept in the world of student programming in higher education today. Alternative break programs allow students to travel, both domestically and internationally, and serve during their university breaks as well as participate in classes meant to expand their understanding of the culture, history, and social problems of the area they are working in. Some institutions offer course credit for international alternative break programs. To increase the transformative power of these programs, institutions will often allow student leaders to take control of planning, including designing and teaching classes. This project aims to raise the question: what effects, both positive and negative, does student leadership have on these programs? I conduct a literature review of publications in the realm of ISL, explore models from the alternative break movement, and also use my personal experience with leadership of international alternative break programs to illustrate the lessons learned related to student leadership. Additional queries raised include: Is the goal to give students ownership of their learning and create collaboration between peers reached at the cost of a quality academic understanding of the experience as a whole? How does student leadership affect the role of reflection? Further research opportunities are also discussed

Theory of computation and computing machines

At the turn of the century, David Hilbert, a famous mathematician and leader of the formalist school, was convinced of the existence of an algorithm for establishing the consistency or inconsistency of any mathematical system. Kurt Gödel [2] showed in 1931 that the consistency of any system which included the natural numbers could not be established. This result was a corollary to his more startling "incompleteness theorem" which states that if any formal system which contains the natural numbers is consistent, then that system is necessarily incomplete. More directly, there is a statement P in the system such that neither P nor not-P is a theorem of the system. Since either P or not-P must be true, then there is a true statement in the theory which is not provable. Thus the algorithm which Hilbert believed existed, in fact did not exist. The formal notion of algorithm - or "effective" procedure as it is often called - had concerned mathematicians before the result of Godel. How was an algorithm to be defined? When an algorithm was constructed, could it be determined whether or not it was meaningful? These and other questions now appeared more ominous than ever. Logicians turned their efforts toward establishing some type of approach which would enable them to categorize those procedures which were meaningful as opposed to those which were not

A study of science leadership and science standards in exemplary standards-based science programs

The purpose for conducting this qualitative study was to explore best practices of exemplary standards-based science programs and instructional leadership practices in a charter high school and in a traditional high school. The focus of this study included how twelve participants aligned practices to National Science Education Standards to describe their science programs and science instructional practices. This study used a multi-site case study qualitative design. Data were obtained through a review of literature, interviews, observations, review of educational documents, and researcher's notes collected in a field log. The methodology used was a multi-site case study because of the potential, through cross analysis, for providing greater explanation of the findings in the study (Merriam, 1988). This study discovered six characteristics about the two high school's science programs that enhance the literature found in the National Science Education Standards; (a) Culture of expectations for learning-In exemplary science programs teachers are familiar with a wide range of curricula. They have the ability to examine critically and select activities to use with their students to promote the understanding of science; (b) Culture of varied experiences-In exemplary science programs students are provided different paths to learning, which help students, take in information and make sense of concepts and skills that are set forth by the standards; (c) Culture of continuous feedback-In exemplary science programs teachers and students work together to engage students in ongoing assessments of their work and that of others as prescribed in the standards; (d) Culture of Observations-In exemplary science programs students, teachers, and principals reflect on classroom instructional practices; teachers receive ongoing evaluations about their teaching and apply feedback towards improving practices as outlined in the standards; (e) Culture of continuous learning-In exemplary science programs teachers value continuous personal development, teachers are provided on-going science professional development opportunities to improve instructional practices, teachers reflect and share professional practices, and teachers establish professional learning communities within their classrooms; and (f) Culture of shared leadership-In exemplary science programs instructional leadership purposes and values are consistently shared among all stakeholders which are outlined in the standards. These results are potentially useful for understanding exemplary standards-based science programs and science instructional leadership practices as a model for science programs trying to improve science education so that all students can have a true scientific learning experience

The rhetoric of advocacy in American nature writing

In this study, I examine how nature writers invest the non-human world with language in an effort to empower nature, and how, in the process. they subvert the prevailing views of humanism and scientific rationalism. I am most interested in the role of those I call "nature advocates," a group of writers who purport to represent nature's interests within the human political sphere. Some of the authors under consideration here include James Fenimore Cooper, Henry David Thoreau, Aldo Leopold, John Muir, Edward Abbey, Ursula Le Guin, Rachel Carson, and Annie Dillard, just to name a few. Most of this study is devoted towards examining how language affects the dynamics of power within the relationship between the advocate, nature, and the public. The advocate plays an intermediary role between nature (which is non-linguistic) and humanity (which defines itself as quintessential linguistic), interpreting a variety of non-linguistic "meanings" in natural phenomenon which he or she then translates into language, often with didactic overtones. This intuitive and experiential perspective of the material world is markedly different than the "objective" approach privileged within the dominant culture. The advocate rejects the strict dichotomy between objective and subjective ways of knowing, suggesting instead that knowledge is transactional

Holding her own : a novel

This creative thesis comprises the first three chapters of Holding Her Own, a novel whichexplores the career of a young warrant officer who trains on the AH-64 Apache helicopter twoyears after the United States Army lifts the ban on women in combat aviation. Seventeen-yearoldJean Pennegarde leaves her hometown in the foothills of the Rocky mountains after the towngossip spots her outside Planned Parenthood where she is trying to obtain contraception for heryounger sister, Rena. Saving her sister’s reputation is the first in a series of heroic acts that donot earn Jean the inner satisfaction she craves, and even as she proves herself competent amongan elite group of pilots, she finds that the better she gets at war, the further she drifts from peace.When Tripp Trombetta gets her pregnant on the flight out of Somalia, she faces a personal crisisthat rivals any humanitarian disaster she has yet to encounter--caring for her infant daughter.With her estranged sister refusing to disappear into her past, a man she considers a sperm donordemanding to marry her, and an insatiable baby screaming at her all through the night, Jean isgoing to have to find that which is harder than strength--forgiveness. She will either learn to livewith her mistakes and embrace her limitations or she will destroy the life and love she hascreated

Understanding diaper need in under-resourced communities: a Durham County, North Carolina case study

For millions of Americans the choice between food for their family or allowing their young child to sit in a dirty diaper is a daily struggle. Across the United States, 9.1 million American families are living in poverty. For low-income families with young children, the cost of diapers is a significant expense for which there is no federal assistance. Families experience diaper need when they are forced to make decisions to reduce the allocation of household finances towards basic needs such as housing, utilities, food, or soap, to instead purchase diapers. The consequences of diaper need affect families economically, socially, physically, and emotionally. Diaper banks work to address diaper need by providing low-income parents and caregivers with the basic need of diapers so that they may change their children’s diapers as often as needed to achieve and maintain health and well-being. The peer-reviewed literature about diaper need and diaper banks is limited in quantity and scope. Headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, the Diaper Bank of North Carolina provides local families in need with a supplemental supply of free, disposal diapers. Using a case study approach, this dissertation will examine the work of the Diaper Bank of North Carolina to meet diaper need in a community, assess the unmet needs of recipients and offer insights/recommendations to inform the work of diaper banks in other locations. This dissertation documented a case study of diaper need in Durham County, North Carolina by triangulating qualitative and quantitative findings from a variety of data sources. Community-based organization staff members (n=9) and diaper recipient families (n=15) participated in face-to-face interviews. Diaper recipient families (n=396) completed paper surveys at the time they received diapers. It was estimated that 10,415 children under the age of four in Durham County were at risk for the experience of diaper need given their families’ annual household incomes. Of these children, 982 were served by the diaper bank. Findings revealed that more than 60% of diaper recipients incorrectly reported that the Diaper Bank of North Carolina was sponsored by the government and/or diaper manufacturers rather than existing as a volunteer-run organization relying on community donations. Of diaper recipient families, 40% felt the quantity of diapers received was “not enough” whereas 60% of families felt the number was “just right.” Families whose youngest child was older than 1 year of age or who did not experience diaper need after receiving a monthly supplemental supply of 50 diapers, were statistically significantly more likely to report the number of diapers received met their needs. Most families (77%), needed additional diapers beyond the supply provided, reporting a median of 13 additional diapers per child per month. Findings are relevant for communities looking to institute or modify services to address diaper need

Identification and Developmental Expression of the Zebrafish ZGC:154061 Gene, a Conserved Yet Uncharacterized Maternally Expressed MEIS2 Linked Gene

We have identified a novel and previously undescribed gene, zgc:154061, located directly downstream of the zebrafish meis2.2 gene. We have identified putative orthologs of this gene in all animals that we have been able to examine. The zgc:154061 gene and its vertebrate orthologs are organized in a convergently transcribed manner with respect to the Meis2 gene in all species we have examined (meis2.2 in teleosts). It appears that the homologs of Meis and zgc:154061 are also linked in amphioxus and sea urchins but that this linkage is not present in urochordates, nor in protostomes. During zebrafish development, transcripts of zgc:154061 are observed in every cell of the embryo from the earliest stage through the shield stage indicating this gene is a maternal transcript since its expression precedes the activation of the zygotic genome at the midblastula transition. Expression of zgc:154061 gradually decreases from its peak value at 0 hpf until 8 hpf and then is observed to be activated again at 12 hpf throughout the neural tube before becoming restricted to the retina and tectum opticum by 48 hpf

Narrative Storytelling In VR Through Gaming

Gaming has consistently been acknowledged as a storytelling medium for its signature ability to provide user interaction. As virtual reality becomes a more prominent gaming environment, it will be expected to carry on the tradition of storytelling. Currently, virtual reality is in a state of infancy, where products offer little sophistication and serve as amusements rather than storytellers. As this changeover takes effect, there are certain discrepancies which will hinder a transition from flat screen gaming to virtual reality gaming. In order to create a successful narrative driven virtual reality game, these discrepancies must be addressed in a meaningful way. This thesis will also experiment with the aforementioned differences by developing a virtual reality game in Unreal Engine 4

Tea in Appalachia

In this video the author looks at the history and culture of tea in Appalachia, and its importance in the regio

Ethno-epidemiological research challenges: Networks of long-haul truckers in the inner city

Long-haul truck drivers and members of their social networks in urban locales constitute a hard-to-reach population at risk for acquiring and disseminating STIs/HIV. This paper focuses on the unique logistical, methodological, and ethical challenges faced by population health scientists while studying long-haul truck drivers and members of their sexual networks in inner-city neighborhoods of a major US metropolitan center and the innovative strategies developed to overcome the challenges. Formative research and focus groups with several trucker-centered populations (N?=?28) led to in-depth interviews and serologies with 60 truck drivers and 24 sexworkers. Various difficulties encountered by the research team are discussed, followed by strategies devised to overcome them