Language for Specific Purposes Testing: A Historical Review

Language for specific purposes (LSP) has a long history in the language testing literature. An outgrowth of the communicative language movement of the 1970s, LSP testing arose out of the practical need to assess individuals’ abilities to perform specific tasks in academic and professional settings. This historical review traces the evolution of LSP testing in the language testing literature, focusing specifically on theory and research in two key areas: (a) authenticity and (b) the interaction between language knowledge and background knowledge. The review then turns to how Douglas (2000), in the most comprehensive treatment of LSP testing to date, incorporates insights from these two lines of work into his conceptualization. Throughout the review, tensions and debates emerging from the literature are discussed. The final section addresses the uncertain future of LSP in the language testing landscape

The Importance of REST for Development and Function of Beta Cells.

Beta cells are defined by the genes they express, many of which are specific to this cell type, and ensure a specific set of functions. Beta cells are also defined by a set of genes they should not express (in order to function properly), and these genes have been called forbidden genes. Among these, the transcriptional repressor RE-1 Silencing Transcription factor (REST) is expressed in most cells of the body, excluding most populations of neurons, as well as pancreatic beta and alpha cells. In the cell types where it is expressed, REST represses the expression of hundreds of genes that are crucial for both neuronal and pancreatic endocrine function, through the recruitment of multiple transcriptional and epigenetic co-regulators. REST targets include genes encoding transcription factors, proteins involved in exocytosis, synaptic transmission or ion channeling, and non-coding RNAs. REST is expressed in the progenitors of both neurons and beta cells during development, but it is down-regulated as the cells differentiate. Although REST mutations and deregulation have yet to be connected to diabetes in humans, REST activation during both development and in adult beta cells leads to diabetes in mice

A Multilevel Framework for Recruiting and Supporting Graduate Students from Culturally Diverse Backgrounds in School Psychology Programs

The lack of cultural diversity among practitioners and trainers in the field of school psychology has been recognized as a longstanding problem. In particular, individuals from racial, ethnic, and linguistic minority and international backgrounds often encounter a range of barriers to pursuing graduate study in school psychology. Given the urgent need to increase diversity among school psychologists, faculty and institutions must take proactive measures to deconstruct these barriers and to support the success of all students. This article outlines a multilevel framework for recruiting and supporting graduate students from culturally diverse backgrounds in school psychology programs. Within this framework, research-based strategies are presented at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels of support. Moreover, considerations for assessing program and student outcomes are discussed, and applications to school psychology programs internationally are considered

Étude de la validité de dispositifs d’évaluation et conception d’un modèle d’analyse multidimensionnelle des connaissances numériques des élèves de fin d’école.

If mathematical large scale assessments increase actually, their content and the interpretation of their results are not often studied, principally on the didactics of mathematics. In this work, we approach the question of assessment with two points of view : studying validity of external assessments and elaborating a multidimensional analysis model of numerical knowledge for designing a diagnostic assessment. Our research is about numerical knowledge of primary school pupil, especially place value and base-ten numeration, multi-digit algorithms, arithmetic relations between numbers, mental calculation, and arithmetic problems solving. Our questions are introduced by a review of didactical researches about external large scale assessments and diagnostic tools for mathematical assessment. In the numerical domain considered, relatively to an anthropological framework, we define an epistemological reference, which allows us to study the content of a test and to interpret the results.The first area of the thesis aims to develop a methodology for analyzing the validity of mathematical assessments, encompassing didactical, epistemological and cognitive approaches but also psychometrical approaches, in the specific case of external large scale assessments. We use this methodology for studying content (relatively to numerical domain) and results of a French large scale assessment (called CEDRE) which took place in 2008 and 2014.In a second area, we define a multidimensional analysis model of numerical pupil’s knowledge ; this model is based on technological modes and provide the description of different pupil profiles. Finally, we test this model by designing a diagnostic assessment for pupils at the end of primary school ; we study the validity of the test and interpret the results relatively to the model, but we plan to use it for developing an automatic diagnostic allowing the implementation of differentiated learning routes.Alors que les évaluations externes à grande échelle en mathématiques se développent de plus en plus, l’analyse de leur contenu en lien avec l’interprétation de leurs résultats est peu souvent étudiée, notamment en didactique des mathématiques. La thèse aborde la question de l’évaluation sous deux angles : l’étude de la validité des évaluations externes et le développement d’un modèle d’analyse multidimensionnelle des connaissances numériques des élèves en vue de la conception d’une évaluation diagnostique. Nous avons choisi de centrer notre travail sur l’évaluation des connaissances des élèves en fin d’école primaire dans le domaine numérique, plus précisément sur les nombres entiers à travers la numération décimale, les relations arithmétiques entre les nombres, le calcul et les problèmes numériques.Un bilan des travaux existant en didactique des mathématiques sur l’évaluation, en particulier sur les dispositifs d’évaluations externes bilan à grande échelle et sur les évaluations diagnostiques introduit notre problématique. Nous nous situons dans une approche anthropologique et cognitive afin de définir, sur le domaine étudié, un référent épistémologique à partir duquel il est possible d’analyser le contenu des évaluations et d’interpréter les résultats des élèves.Un premier axe de la thèse vise à développer une méthodologie d’analyse de la validité de dispositifs d’évaluation, en particulier externes, articulant des approches didactique, épistémologique, cognitive en complément d’approches psychométriques, spécifiques aux évaluations à grande échelle. Cette méthodologie est ensuite exploitée pour étudier les évaluations externes CEDRE fin d’école en 2008 et 2014 du point de vue de leur contenu (sur le domaine étudié) et de l’interprétation des résultats qui en est faite.Le second axe conduit à la définition d’un modèle d’analyse multidimensionnelle des connaissances numériques des élèves à partir de modes technologiques aboutissant à la définition de profils d’élèves. Dans la thèse, nous mettons ce modèle à l’épreuve à travers la conception et l’analyse des résultats d’une évaluation diagnostique menée en fin de cycle 3, mais nous le destinons, à terme, à sous-tendre un diagnostic automatique permettant la mise en œuvre de parcours d’enseignement différencié

Concise reviews: in vitro-produced pancreas organogenesis models in three dimensions: self-organization from few stem cells or progenitors.

Three-dimensional models of organ biogenesis have recently flourished. They promote a balance between stem/progenitor cell expansion and differentiation without the constraints of flat tissue culture vessels, allowing for autonomous self-organization of cells. Such models allow the formation of miniature organs in a dish and are emerging for the pancreas, starting from embryonic progenitors and adult cells. This review focuses on the currently available systems and how these allow new types of questions to be addressed. We discuss the expected advancements including their potential to study human pancreas development and function as well as to develop diabetes models and therapeutic cells

Endoderm specification

In this chapter I focus on the emergence of endoderm, the origin of these cells and their organization in space. I also discuss the molecular events that lead to endoderm formation and how endoderm can be molecularly defined. Although the molecular control of endoderm formation has initially been deciphered using Xenopus, Zebrafish, sea urchin and several other species many molecular switches have been confirmed in mice. This article preferentially cites references in the mouse model system but data from other model organisms are used when they provide important information missing in mice. Extensive references to other species can be found in Grapin-Botton; Constam, 2007 and Stainier, 2002. This article presents endoderm engineering from ES cells and provides molecular triggers and landmarks that may be used for optimized engineering based on normal development. Due to the similarity of markers between definitive and extraembryonic endoderm and the recent discovery that visceral endoderm can contribute to the digestrive tract, the generation of these lineages is also discussed (Kwon et al., 2008). Although endoderm stem cells, that is stem cells endowed with the ability to give rise to all endodermal derivatives but not ectoderm or mesoderm, have not been reported yet, there are stem cells in specific endodermal organs which will be discussed in the following chapters

Retinoic Acid Signaling Organizes Endodermal Organ Specification along the Entire Antero-Posterior Axis

Background: Endoderm organ primordia become specified between gastrulation and gut tube folding in Amniotes. Although the requirement for RA signaling for the development of a few individual endoderm organs has been established a systematic assessment of its activity along the entire antero-posterior axis has not been performed in this germ layer. Methodology/Principal Findings: RA is synthesized from gastrulation to somitogenesis in the mesoderm that is close to the developing gut tube. In the branchial arch region specific levels of RA signaling control organ boundaries. The most anterior endoderm forming the thyroid gland is specified in the absence of RA signaling. Increasing RA in anterior branchial arches results in thyroid primordium repression and the induction of more posterior markers such as branchial arch Hox genes. Conversely reducing RA signaling shifts Hox genes posteriorly in endoderm. These results imply that RA acts as a caudalizing factor in a graded manner in pharyngeal endoderm. Posterior foregut and midgut organ primordia also require RA, but exposing endoderm to additional RA is not sufficient to expand these primordia anteriorly. We show that in chick, in contrast to non-Amniotes, RA signaling is not only necessary during gastrulation, but also throughout gut tube folding during somitogenesis. Our results show that the induction of CdxA, a midgut marker, and pancreas induction require direct RA signaling in endoderm. Moreover, communication between CdxA + cells is necessary to maintain CdxA expression, therefore synchronizing the cells of the midgut primordium. We further show that the RA pathway acts synergistically wit

REST represses a subset of the pancreatic endocrine differentiation program.

To contribute to devise successful beta-cell differentiation strategies for the cure of Type 1 diabetes we sought to uncover barriers that restrict endocrine fate acquisition by studying the role of the transcriptional repressor REST in the developing pancreas. Rest expression is prevented in neurons and in endocrine cells, which is necessary for their normal function. During development, REST represses a subset of genes in the neuronal differentiation program and Rest is down-regulated as neurons differentiate. Here, we investigate the role of REST in the differentiation of pancreatic endocrine cells, which are molecularly close to neurons. We show that Rest is widely expressed in pancreas progenitors and that it is down-regulated in differentiated endocrine cells. Sustained expression of REST in Pdx1(+) progenitors impairs the differentiation of endocrine-committed Neurog3(+) progenitors, decreases beta and alpha cell mass by E18.5, and triggers diabetes in adulthood. Conditional inactivation of Rest in Pdx1(+) progenitors is not sufficient to trigger endocrine differentiation but up-regulates a subset of differentiation genes. Our results show that the transcriptional repressor REST is active in pancreas progenitors where it gates the activation of part of the beta cell differentiation program