Ethical considerations in selection and streaming in education

Under this rather forbidding title I want to dig below the immediately practical questions to do with selection and streaming in schools and look at certain of the fundamental moral and social value questions that pervade debates on these topics. In doing this I am not seeking to evade the directly practical issues that arise. It is rather that, in an area where much of the empirical evidence on what happens under different practical arrangements is inconclusive and raises such sharp controversy, there is a danger that we lose sight of what is really at stake. The analytical exercise of the kind I shall undertake therefore seeks to bring to the fore just those basic issues of principle on which any organisation of schooling inevitably takes some stand. After all what we really want is a system that as far as possible embodies the principles we really espouse rather than one locked into principles we have inadequately examined. The basic question I am therefore addressing is: what are the principles of selection and streaming we think the educational system should reflect and what can we say about the practical organisation of the system simply on these grounds.peer-reviewe

Value Creation or Destruction: The Role of Private label in UK Grocery Category Management Decisions

Category management is a collaborative approach between food manufacturers and retailers to manage product categories rather than individual brands. It operates at both strategic and operational levels and seeks to create value ultimately for the consumer. The paper contributes to the literature and practice. It uses a qualitative interview study of twenty five senior practitioners and explores the role of private label products within UK grocery categories as consumers continue to switch due to lower prices and comparable quality to the traditional brands. The research also examines how private label manufacturers can create value within the category management relationship and how they can aspire to category captainship if they generate retailer specific and differentiated category strategies. The paper accepts its limitations and explains how further research in this important field of retailing is necessary to update the literature and help practitioners navigate their way through turbulent sector change

A neural network based spatial light scattering instrument for hazardous airborne fiber detection

This paper was published in Applied Optics and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. One print or electronic copy may be made for personal use only. Systematic or multiple reproduction, distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means, duplication of any material in this paper for a fee or for commercial purposes, or modification of the content of the paper are prohibited. Copyright OSA (www.osa.org/pubs/osajournals.org)A laser light scattering instrument has been designed to facilitate the real-time detection of potentially hazardous respirable fibers, such as asbestos, within an ambient environment. The instrument captures data relating to the spatial distribution of light scattered by individual particles in flow using a dedicated multi-element photodiode detector array. These data are subsequently processed using an artificial neural network which has previously been trained to recognise those features or patterns within the light scattering distribution which may be characteristic of the specific particle types being sought, such as for example, crocidolite or chrysotile asbestos fibers. Each particle is thus classified into one of a limited set of classes based upon its light scattering properties, and from the accumulated data a particle concentration figure for each class may be produced and updated at regular intervals. Particle analysis rates in excess of 103 per second within a sample volume flow-rate of 1 litre per minute are achievable, offering the possibility of detecting fiber concentrations at the recommended maximum exposure limit of 0.1 fibers/ml within a sampling period of a few seconds.Peer reviewe

Genetic diversity of Dothistroma pini in New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Molecular Genetics at Massey University

Dothistroma pini is an important pathogen of Pinus radiata, New Zealand's major exotic forest species. This study was undertaken to elucidate the genetic background of New Zealand's D. pini population as part of a research program which aims to reduce its overall effect. Two major sampling strategies were devised and undertaken. The first involved collection from within an NZFRI field trial in which five year old host clones were available that had been scored for resistance to D. pini over a period of three years. This collection was designed to test the hypothesis that genetic differences would be seen between "resistant" and "susceptible" hosts. The second collection tested the hypothesis that polymorphisms would be observed between samples from geographically isolated regions, and that more variability would be seen between these regions than within any of them. For this study, samples were collected in a "hierarchy of populations" approach from three New Zealand forests: Kinleith, Kaiangaroa and Golden Downs. Additional samples for analysis included four D. pini samples which were isolated during the 1960's, and DNA obtained from a Guatemalan isolate of the teleomorphic form, Mycosphaerella pini. PCR amplification using 32 RAPD and 5 RAMS primers revealed no polymorphisms within two sets of five D. pini samples designed to be representative of the New Zealand population. Amplification was repeated with a larger number of D. pini samples using five RAPD and two RAMS primers, again showing no differences between any of the isolates and proving that the two sets of five samples were indeed representative of the population. However, differences were seen between D. pini and the isolate of M. pini with all primers used. RFLP analysis of the ribosomal DNA showed no differences among five D. pini isolates, but revealed polymorphism between M. pini and D. pini. RFLP analysis of tthe miochondrial DNA produced a universal hybridisation pattern in all isolates. Growth studies supported the molecular data, showing no differences between the isolates of D. pini. Morphological differences between D. pini laboratory cultures were observed, but these do not appear to correlate with any permanent genetic rearrangement. As a result of these studies, it was concluded that the genetic diversity of D. pini in New Zealand is very low and that all isolates examined appear to be of a single strain

A light scattering instrument for investigating cloud ice microcrystal morphology

We describe an optical scattering instrument designed to assess the shapes and sizes of microscopic atmospheric cloud particles, especially the smallest ice crystals that can profoundly affect cloud processes and radiative properties yet cannot be seen clearly using in situ cloud particle imaging probes. The new instrument captures high-resolution spatial light scattering patterns from individual particles down to ~1 μm in size passing through a laser beam. Its significance lies in the ability of these patterns to provide morphological data for particle sizes well below the optical resolution limits of current probes

The changing role of the Category Captain in UK grocery retail market

Category management is a collaborative approach to product selection and management between manufacturers (suppliers) and retailers to enable the effective management of product categories rather than individual brands. This paper reports emerging findings from research that explores the category management function and its role in value creation in the UK grocery retail market. Value creation within category management relationships is reported within the research as value co-creation, value no-creation and value co-destruction. Using practice-based research, qualitative interviews of twenty five senior grocery category managers and retail buyers reveal the evolving nature and influence of the Category Captain role in a changing retail marketspace. The UK market is undergoing unprecedented change as discount retailers capture market share from established incumbents, and consumers become increasingly price sensitive and switch from branded products to private label. In this context, the role is being elevated and negotiated with a need to develop stronger, more meaningful and valuable relationships between the supplier and retailer. It is perceived that by strengthening the relationship between the retailer and the suppliers' involved in category decisions will enable a more consumer-centric approach to category development and value creation. Adopting the lens of a resource based view of value creation, findings from this research reveal that Category Captain selection and recruitment is no longer solely determined by economic resource and market power, rather market knowledge and insight is seen as the key determinant of a successful category relationship. The role of Category Captain is changing, and the new role referred to by the suppliers and retailers as the 'preferred supplier' requires a greater emphasis to become a trusted category adviser. It is no longer a 'seat at the table' bought through financial support, but one that has long-term sustainability from joint responsibility and bringing innovative and differentiated insight into the category. In conclusion the research suggests the future role needs to be impartial of the commercial function using a more 'open' and honest approach in a collaborative relationship led by the supplier. This marks a significant change in decision making related to this function and presents significant opportunities for private label suppliers and small suppliers to play key roles in category decision making and value creation. While present knowledge suggests that category managers' act impartially, this research also reveals that the role potentially brings further value to the preferred suppliers. This offers significant challenge to the role of trust and loyalty in category management relationships

A Service Eco-System View of HDA's in UK Higher Education: Emerging insights into value co-creation

This scoping paper is developed in response to Akaka, Vargo & Lusch's (2013) call for more contextualised studies of value creation that deeply explore how value is derived and determined across varied institutional arrangements. The conceptual mapping undertaken herein, positions UK Higher Degree Apprenticeships (HDA's) in relation to an emerging theoretical framework in the SDL tradition (Service Dominant Logic); namely the Service Eco-System View (Vargo, Akaka and Vaughan, 2017; Akaka and Vargo, 2015). As such this research project aims to offer insight into value creation in this particular context, as well as cast light on the complexity and contingencies involved in delivering new forms of Higher Education in the UK