The customer is always right? Assessing the value of Patron Driven Acquisition at the University of Huddersfield

This article discusses a small scale Patron Driven Acquisition (PDA) study at the University of Huddersfield. The authors briefly describe the background to PDA at Huddersfield before discussing data from the 2014 PDA pilot with the e-book supplier EBL. The pilot produced two sets of data, usage reports using COUNTER statistics and a short questionnaire designed by the library. These results led to a major alteration to the collection management and development policy where PDA is now embedded into the library bookfund

Assessing the association between pre-course metrics of student preparation and student performance in introductory statistics: Results from early data on simulation-based inference vs. nonsimulation based inference

The recent simulation-based inference (SBI) movement in algebra-based introductory statistics courses (Stat 101) has provided preliminary evidence of improved student conceptual understanding and retention. However, little is known about whether these positive effects are preferentially distributed across types of students entering the course. We consider how two metrics of Stat 101 student preparation (pre-course performance on concept inventory and math ACT score) may or may not be associated with end of course student performance on conceptual inventories. Students across all preparation levels tended to show improvement in Stat 101, but more improvement was observed across all student preparation levels in early versions of a SBI course. Furthermore, students' gains tended to be similar regardless of whether students entered the course with more preparation or less. Recent data on a sample of students using a current version of an SBI course showed similar results, though direct comparison with non-SBI students was not possible. Overall, our analysis provides additional evidence that SBI curricula are effective at improving students' conceptual understanding of statistical ideas post-course regardless student preparation. Further work is needed to better understand nuances of student improvement based on other student demographics, prior coursework, as well as instructor and institutional variables.Comment: 16 page

Renovations and how ADA updates were addressed at an academic institution

After a three-year renovation of the Chester Fritz Library, the presenters were tasked with reviewing the building for updates done and how they addressed needs within the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This presentation covers pre-renovation concerns, what changes were made, the process used to determine the criteria if an issue had been resolved, and what their next steps are going forward.https://commons.und.edu/cfl-lpp/1017/thumbnail.jp

The Implementation of edTPA in Special Education Teacher Training Programs: Putting Teacher Development Over Passing Scores

Since edTPA\u27s nationwide availability in 2013, it has been adopted by almost 900 education preparation programs in over 40 states. A few states, including the authors\u27, have required a passing score for teacher licensure. While the edTPA has been heralded as a means to improve teacher education programs and the teachers those programs produce, it has also faced criticism for detracting from programs’ ability to train its students, as well as the student teachers’ experiences during their preparation in general, and student teaching in particular. The field of special education shares the implementation challenges faced by other areas of teacher licensure, but the unique nature of IEP delivery across various points on the continuum of placements, the frequent mismatch between student teaching placements and environments conducive to high edTPA scores, and the requirement for passing scores in this era of special education teacher shortages have all placed additional stresses on training programs. When the authors\u27 state was an early adopter of a cutoff score for licensure, its training program focused overtly and extensively on helping its students achieve passing scores, arguably at the expense of career preparation. More recently, it found ways to return teacher development to the fore while still maintaining a high edTPA pass rate for its students, thereby helping them get past the hurdle of licensure while being properly prepared for their careers

Large Eddy Simulation of Turbulent Channel Flows by the Rational LES Model

The rational large eddy simulation (RLES) model is applied to turbulent channel flows. This approximate deconvolution model is based on a rational (subdiagonal Pade') approximation of the Fourier transform of the Gaussian filter and is proposed as an alternative to the gradient (also known as the nonlinear or tensor-diffusivity) model. We used a spectral element code to perform large eddy simulations of incompressible channel flows at Reynolds numbers based on the friction velocity and the channel half-width Re{sub tau} = 180 and Re{sub tau} = 395. We compared the RLES model with the gradient model. The RLES results showed a clear improvement over those corresponding to the gradient model, comparing well with the fine direct numerical simulation. For comparison, we also present results corresponding to a classical subgrid-scale eddy-viscosity model such as the standard Smagorinsky model.Comment: 31 pages including 15 figure

Computation of Light Scattering in Young Stellar Objects

A Monte Carlo light scattering code incorporating aligned non-spherical particles is described. The major effects on the flux distribution, linear polarisation and circular polarisation are presented, with emphasis on the application to Young Stellar Objects (YSOs). The need for models with non-spherical particles in order to successfully model polarisation data is reviewed. The ability of this type of model to map magnetic field structure in embedded YSOs is described. The possible application to the question of the origin of biomolecular homochirality via UV circular polarisation in star forming regions is also briefly discussed.Comment: Accepted by The Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer. Replaced version corrects an error in the definition of the sense of Cpol in the published version and other minor errors found at the proof stag

AlH3 between 65-110 GPa: implications of electronic band and phonon structures

A first-principles density-functional-theory method has been used to reinvestigate the mechanical and dynamical stability of the metallic phase of AlH3 between 65-110 GPa. The electronic properties and phonon dynamics as a function of pressure are also explored. We find electron-phonon superconductivity in the cubic Pm-3n structure with critical temperature Tc = 37 K at 70 GPa which decreases rapidly with the increase of pressure. Further unlike a previously calculated Tc value of 24 K at 110 GPa, we do not find any superconductivity of significance at this pressure which is consistent with experimental observation.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures Keywords: AlH3, Electronic structure, Phonon dynamics, Superconductivity PACS number(s): 62.50.-p, 63.20.kd, 74.10.+v, 74.20.P

A framework to analyze argumentative knowledge construction in computer-supported collaborative learning

Computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) is often based on written argumentative discourse of learners, who discuss their perspectives on a problem with the goal to acquire knowledge. Lately, CSCL research focuses on the facilitation of specific processes of argumentative knowledge construction, e.g., with computer-supported collaboration scripts. In order to refine process-oriented instructional support, such as scripts, we need to measure the influence of scripts on specific processes of argumentative knowledge construction. In this article, we propose a multi-dimensional approach to analyze argumentative knowledge construction in CSCL from sampling and segmentation of the discourse corpora to the analysis of four process dimensions (participation, epistemic, argumentative, social mode)

The CMF as provenance of the stellar IMF ?

In the present work we examined the hypothesis that, a core mass function (CMF), such as the one deduced for cores in the Orion molecular cloud (OMC), could possibly be the primogenitor of the stellar initial mass function (IMF). Using the rate of accretion of a protostar from its natal core as a free parameter, we demonstrate its quintessential role in determining the shape of the IMF. By varying the rate of accretion, we show that a stellar mass distribution similar to the universal IMF could possibly be generated starting from either a typical CMF such as the one for the OMC, or a uniform distribution of prestellar core masses which leads us to suggest, the apparent similarity in shapes of the CMF and the IMF is perhaps, only incidental. The apodosis of the argument being, complex physical processes leading to stellar birth are crucial in determining the final stellar masses, and consequently, the shape of stellar mass distribution. This work entails partial Monte-Carlo treatment of the problem, and starting with a randomly picked sample of cores, and on the basis of classical arguments which include protostellar feedback and cooling due to emission from warm dust, a theoretical distribution of stellar masses is derived for five realisations of the problem; the magnetic field, though, has been left out of this exercise.Comment: 26 pages, 6 figures; To appear in New Astronom