University of Central Florida 1985 self study Southern Association of Colleges and Schools : Department of Statistics self study report

University of Central Florida College of Arts and Sciences Department of Statistics 1985 Self Study for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The study covers philosophy of the university and the college, organizational structure, educational program, financial resources, faculty, library, student development services, physical facilities, special activities, graduate programs, research, summer terms, computers, and The Brevard, Daytona and South Orlando Centers

Construction statistics review for Kenya

Construction is a strategic industry in the developing economies like Kenya. In order for construction to ably perform this role, there is need to provide information on its various economic aspects including raw materials, products, processes, finance, and labour. Construction statistics of Kenya have been evaluated in order to ascertain their adequacy in terms of scope, portrait, reliability and responsiveness in their coverage of the construction industry. Official statistics published in the annual Statistical Abstract were reviewed according to these adequacy criteria. The findings are that: the scope of construction statistics is narrowly defined making the statistical portrait of the sector to be incomplete; the statistics are also unreliable in terms of quality and unresponsive to economical challenges of inflation, structural adjustment policies and the decline of public sector's role in the construction industry. A participatory statistical governance framework is recommended in order to improve the scope of statistics and alleviate the attendant problems like incomplete portrait that come with the narrow scope

Implementing Elements of The Physics Suite at a Large Metropolitan Research University

A key question in physics education is the effectiveness of the teaching methods. A curriculum that has been investigated at the University of Central Florida (UCF) over a period of two years is the use of particular elements of The Physics Suite. Select sections of the introductory physics classes at UCF have made use of Interactive Lecture Demonstrations as part of the lecture component of the class. The lab component of the class has implemented the RealTime Physics curriculum, again in select sections. The remaining sections have continued with the teaching methods traditionally used. Using pre- and post-semester concept inventory tests, a student survey, student interviews, and a standard for successful completion of the course, the data indicates improved student learning

Systems of education governance and cultures of justice in Ireland, Scotland and Pakistan

This chapter compares the issue of cultures of justice in the systems of education governance in three education systems: Ireland, Scotland and Pakistan. The focus for the comparison are the current policies which shape the regulation of education. These policies were reviewed to identify key issues relating to social justice and equality, decision-making and accountability. From the analysis of each system, three central issues were identified: firstly, the improvement of a state education system; secondly, the degree of decentralisation and centralisation in governance structures and thirdly, the expectations placed on school leaders. The chapter concludes by discussing the tensions between the drive for system improvement and opportunities for school leaders to build strategies to address issues of inequality in schools

Keeping up with revolutions: evolution of higher education in Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan's higher education system has undergone some dramatic changes in the past century, evolving from largely traditional religious colleges to fully state-funded communist-atheist institutions. Since the end of the communist administration and subsequent market-oriented reforms, the institutions of higher education (IHE) in Uzbekistan have had to reinvent and reform themselves again, as the demand for different kind of education increased. This paper puts the current changes and trends in IHEs into an historical perspective and highlights some important effects of the market reforms on the educational scene

Household out-of-pocket medical expenditures and national health insurance in Taiwan: income and regional inequality

BACKGROUND: Unequal geographical distribution of medical care resources and insufficient healthcare coverage have been two long-standing problems with Taiwan's public health system. The implementation of National Health Insurance (NHI) attempted to mitigate the inequality in health care use. This study examines the degree to which Taiwan's National Health Insurance (NHI) has reduced out-of-pocket medical expenditures in households in different regions and varying levels of income. METHODS: Data used in this study were drawn from the 1994 and 1996 Surveys of Family Income and Expenditure. We pooled the data from 1994 and 1996 and included a year dummy variable (NHI), equal to 1 if the household data came from 1996 in order to assess the impact of NHI on household out-of-pocket medical care expenditures shortly after its implementation in 1995. RESULTS: An individual who was older, female, married, unemployed, better educated, richer, head of a larger family household, or living in the central and eastern areas was more likely to have greater household out-of-pocket medical expenditures. NHI was found to have effectively reduced household out-of-pocket medical expenditures by 23.08%, particularly for more affluent households. With the implementation of NHI, lower and middle income quintiles had smaller decreases in out-of-pocket medical expenditure. NHI was also found to have reduced household out-of-pocket medical expenditures more for households in eastern Taiwan. CONCLUSION: Although NHI was established to create free medical care for all, further effort is needed to reduce the medical costs for certain disadvantaged groups, particularly the poor and aborigines, if equality is to be achieved

The state of construction training and employment in the local economy of Jersey

There is a crisis in the training and skills provision of the Channel Island of Jersey's construction industry that has similarities with the situation in Britain. The main problems relate to the unavailability, inappropriateness and narrow focus of skills, the demand-driven and task- or job-specific nature of training, the Jersey-born and male focus of recruitment, and the uncoordinated, traditional and short-term approach of the local construction firms towards promotion and financing of training provision. It is argued that a structured training policy incorporating the needs of both education and industry and holding a long-term vision should enable the construction industry of Jersey to reverse the downward spiral

The Success Story of the Eurozone Crisis? Ireland's Austerity Measures

This paper examines the response of the Irish government to the Eurozone fiscal crisis. This paper discusses the external financial assistance programme sought and implemented, economic recovery to date, and the impacts of austerity in Ireland. As Ireland nears the end of the Programme of Support' from Europe the contention that Ireland is a success story is explored. The paper reveals the primacy of financial cutbacks in the Irish response and the limited efforts at public management reforms

Predicting collective behaviour at the Hajj: place, space, and the process of cooperation

Around 2 million pilgrims attend the annual Hajj to Mecca and the holy places, which are subject to dense crowding. Both architecture and psychology can be part of disaster risk reduction in relation to crowding, since both can affect the nature of collective behaviour – particularly cooperation – among pilgrims. To date, collective behaviour at the Hajj has not been systematically investigated from a psychological perspective. We examined determinants of cooperation in the Grand Mosque and plaza during the pilgrimage. A questionnaire survey of 1194 pilgrims found that the Mosque was perceived by pilgrims as one of the most crowded ritual locations. Being in the plaza (compared to the Mosque) predicted the extent of cooperation, though crowd density did not. Shared social identity with the crowd explained more of the variance than both location and density. We examined some of the process underlying cooperation. The link between shared social identity and giving support to others was stronger in the plaza than in the Mosque, and suggests the role of place and space in modulating processes of cooperation in crowds. These findings have implications for disaster risk reduction and for applications such as computer simulations of crowds in pilgrimage locations