Multivariate Measures of Concordance for Copulas and their Marginals

Building upon earlier work in which axioms were formulated for multivariate measures of concordance, we examine properties of such measures. In particular, we examine the relations between the measure of concordance of an $n$-copula and the measures of concordance of the copula's marginals

Hamlet without the Prince: whatever happened to capital in 'Working Capital'?

This is one of a number of papers in the same issue of CITY on the theme "How should we write about London?" This paper is a critical discussion of Working Capital: Life and Labour in Contemporary London, by Nick Buck, Ian Gordon, Peter Hall, Mike Harloe and Mark Kleinman (with Belinda Brown, Karen O’Reilly, Gareth Potts, Laura Smethurst and Jo Sparkes). Routledge, London, 2002. It expresses great admiration for the book but criticises it for being somewhat trapped within orthodox approaches and it suggests both missing topics and missing interpretations, evident when the book is read from a marxist point of view

Quality assessment by science teachers: Five focus areas

In order to teach science well, science teachers need to know what to focus on in order to ensure their assessment of student learning is meaningful and useful for the students’ on going learning and development. The diversity and range of content and skills within the subject of science mean that the assessment capabilities required by science teachers are wide ranging and complex, requiring specialist knowledge and skills in the assessment of science learning as part of the teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Based on a review of the literature this paper proposes a framework for quality assessment in science which focuses on five areas: teaching, students, evidence of learning, future decision-making and impact. This paper advocates a concurrent consideration of all five areas of the framework to provide a substantial, rich, broad, rigorous quality assessment approach on which teachers and students can base teaching and learning

Measuring Perceived Social Support in Mexican American Youth: Psychometric Properties of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support

The utility of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) (Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet, & Farley, 1988) was investigated within a sample of 290 Mexican American adolescents. Results suggested that the three-subscale structure (Family, Friends, and Significant Other) of the MSPSS was confirmed, and adequate internal reliability for the three scales was demonstrated as well. Support for construct validity was found by evaluating correlations from a perceived family support subscale as well as a satisfaction with family measure. It appears that the MSPSS is a useful measure for assessing perceived social support in Latino youth and as such can be used to further our understanding about social support from different sources in Latino adolescents

Federal Aid to the States: Historical Cause of Government Growth and Bureaucracy

In recent years, members of Congress have inserted thousands of pork-barrel spending projects into bills to reward interests in their home states. But such parochial pork is only a small part of a broader problem of rising federal spending on traditionally state and local activities. Federal spending on aid to the states increased from $286 billion in fiscal 2000 to an estimated$449 billion in fiscal 2007 and is the third-largest item in the federal budget after Social Security and national defense. The number of different aid programs for the states soared from 463 in 1990, to 653 in 2000, to 814 by 2006. The theory behind aid to the states is that federal policymakers can design and operate programs in the national interest to efficiently solve local problems. In practice, most federal politicians are not inclined to pursue broad, national goals; they are consumed by the competitive scramble to secure subsidies for their states. At the same time, federal aid stimulates overspending by the states, requires large bureaucracies to administer, and comes with a web of complex regulations that limit state flexibility. At all levels of the aid system, the focus is on spending and regulations, not on delivering quality services. And by involving all levels of government in just about every policy area, the aid system creates a lack of accountability. When every government is responsible for an activity, no government is responsible, as was evident in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The failings of federal aid have long been recognized, but reforms and cuts have not been pursued for years. Aid has spawned a web of interlocking interests that block reform, including elected officials at three levels of government, armies of government employees, and thousands of trade associations representing the recipients of aid. Yet the system desperately needs to be scaled back, not least because the rising costs of federal programs for the elderly are putting a squeeze on the federal budget. To help spur reform, this study examines the historical growth of the aid system and describes its failings. Congress should reconsider the need for aid and begin terminating activities that could be better performed by state and local governments and the private sector

All Change: Preventing Trafficking in the UK.

This document is part of a digital collection provided by the Martin P. Catherwood Library, ILR School, Cornell University, pertaining to the effects of globalization on the workplace worldwide. Special emphasis is placed on labor rights, working conditions, labor market changes, and union organizing.ASI_2012_HT_UK_All_Change.pdf: 187 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020.0-ASI_2012_HT_UK_All Change Summary.pdf: 16 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

Embedding reflective thinking on approaches to learning - moving from pilot study to developing institutional good practice

Aim Asking undergraduates to reflect on their approaches to learning involves the individuals in effort and activity they may well consider to be an unwanted addition to their normal studies: unless the activity has clear links in their minds with their chosen subject. The same reaction is sometimes found in teaching academics, as supporting a reflective strand requires additional effort which they may be happy to give as long as it relates to their research, or is a one off pilot. There are therefore issues that very quickly arise when attempting, as this study does, to embed metacognitive thinking about approaches to learning and style into the everyday good practice of teaching staff in universities and in the routine thinking of students. Methodology This paper describes the progress of a study facilitating the embedding of one framework for developing an individual's approaches to learning into the everyday good practice of university teaching staff and the everyday learning experience of undergraduates. It is an interim report that sets out the five strands of this activity: introduction to the model for staff; first steps at putting into practice; collection of examples of activity; building a community of practice; assessing the effectives of interventions. It also describes some of the issues and challenges that arise when moving from pilot study to developing good practice within a large organisation. The basis of the initial stages is a consultative and collaborative approach to develop effective materials for informing colleagues and developing their understanding of the model whilst laying the foundations for a community of practice and empowering individuals to develop activities for embedding these ideas into their teaching and to share these along with commentary on the success of these interventions – not just within the group but also for their contemporaries to access. Finding It has previously been demonstrated that the Effective Lifelong Learning Inventory, ELLI, can be an effective tool for teachers and learners, providing a framework to think and talk with students about learning and about how to grow as learners within both their formal education and informal learning. However, this is a reasonably complex model with seven dimensions of learning, and it has been developed primarily for the school context. Whilst the model has been shown to be of value within universities, the higher education context offers several challenges to the approach and these are explored. The issues relating to colleagues being persuaded to embed these ideas into their everyday practice will be discussed along with the measures required for institutional support, including the demonstration of positive outcomes to interventions. Relevance This paper is relevant to anyone considering ways in which their understandings and experience of metacognitive thinking about approaches to learning and style may benefit the student body, the teaching of their colleagues and their institutio