Présentation du projet MOSAIC au sein de l\u27Open University

Intervention à la 4e journée FORMIST qui s\u27est déroulée le 8 juin 2004 à Bibliothèque municipale de la Part-Dieu à Lyon

How do young people (in the region) form their views on future learning and career options?

The research informed the activities of the Regional Employment and Skills Partnership, and more specifically to “inform the future development of labour market intelligence (LMI) to support the provision of employment related information advice and guidance (IAG) to support young people”. This report provides the 14 – 19 Commission with a literature review which: • highlights the core principles of young people’s decision-making processes; • takes into consideration research which discusses the cognitive changes that young people undergo between the ages of 14 -19; • focuses on structural issues, which affect young peoples views on future work and learning options; • Investigates the significance of place and locale in the formation of young people’s views and decision making in a manner that is mindful of the identity of the North East region

Immune- and nonimmune-compartment-specific interferon responses are critical determinants of herpes simplex virus-induced generalized infections and acute liver failure

The interferon (IFN) response to viral pathogens is critical for host survival. In humans and mouse models, defects in IFN responses can result in lethal herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) infections, usually from encephalitis. Although rare, HSV-1 can also cause fulminant hepatic failure, which is often fatal. Although herpes simplex encephalitis has been extensively studied, HSV-1 generalized infections and subsequent acute liver failure are less well understood. We previously demonstrated that IFN-αβγR-/- mice are exquisitely susceptible to liver infection following corneal infection with HSV-1. In this study, we used bone marrow chimeras of IFN-αβγR-/- (AG129) and wild-type (WT; 129SvEv) mice to probe the underlying IFN-dependent mechanisms that control HSV-1 pathogenesis. After infection, WT mice with either IFN-αβγR-/- or WT marrow exhibited comparable survival, while IFN-αβγR-/- mice with WT marrow had a significant survival advantage over their counterparts with IFN-αβγR-/- marrow. Furthermore, using bioluminescent imaging to maximize data acquisition, we showed that the transfer of IFN-competent hematopoietic cells controlled HSV-1 replication and damage in the livers of IFN-αβγR-/- mice. Consistent with this, the inability of IFN-αβγR-/- immune cells to control liver infection in IFN-αβγR-/- mice manifested as profoundly elevated aspartate transaminase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT) levels, indicative of severe liver damage. In contrast, IFN-αβγR-/-mice receiving WT marrow exhibited only modest elevations of AST and ALT levels. These studies indicate that IFN responsiveness of the immune system is a major determinant of viral tropism and damage during visceral HSV infections

Is a standalone IL course useful?

Most Higher Education institutions are involved in the creation of online materials to support their students' information literacy skills development – which is labour intensive, and inevitably results in a great deal of duplication of effort across the sector. A recent project, run jointly by SCONUL's Advisory Committee on Information Literacy and The Open University, addressed whether it is possible to create a generic information literacy course that can be delivered anywhere. The OU's standalone module, MOSAIC, which has been running for the last three years with positive feedback from students, provided an ideal starting point for the investigation

Strategies to improve the quality of initial teacher education for teachers in the education and training sector (further education and skills)

This report details the Inquiring Teachers, Inquiring Learners project which was developed to support partner institutions to develop and apply a culture of action research within their organisation. The underlying principle of the project was professionalism and in particular the promotion and development of teachers’ professional identities and attitudes as the key to the enhancement of student learning, above all, a vision of the ‘inquiring teacher’. Inquiring teachers it is felt are more likely to develop inquiring learners. Teachers are best placed to know about their subjects and their learners’ needs within their local contexts. The project aimed to support partners of the School of Education to develop the skills and knowledge to define and undertake an action research project that would contribute to improving ITE within their context.Education and Training Foundatio

Enhancing health care non-technical skills: the TINSELS programme

Background and Context: Training in ‘non-technical skills’, social (communication and team work) and cognitive (analytical and personal behaviour) skills, in healthcare have been of great interest over the last decade. Whilst the majority of publications focus on ‘whether’ such education can be successful, they overlook the question of ‘how’ they enhance skills. We designed and piloted an original, theoretically robust and replicable teaching package that addresses non-technical skills in the context of medicines safety through simulation-based inter professional learning: the TINSELS (Training In Non-technical Skills to Enhance Levels of Medicines Safety) Programme. Innovation: A modified Delphi process was completed to identify learning outcomes, and recruitment of multi-professional teams was through local publicity. The faculty developed a three-session simulation based intervention: session one was a simulated ward encounter with multiple medicine related activities; session two was an extended debrief and facilitated discussion; and session three a ‘chamber of horrors’ where inter professional teams identified potential sources of error. Each session was completed in the simulation suite with 6 – 9 participants, lasted approximately 90m minutes, and took place over 2 weeks. Full details of the course will be presented to facilitate dissemination. Implications: Likert scale feedback was collected after the course (1 strongly disagree-5 strongly agree). Mean scores were all greater than 4, with qualitative feedback noting the fidelity of the authentic inter professional learner groups. A previously validated safety attitudes questionnaire found changes in attitudes towards handover of care and perceptions of safety levels in the workplace post intervention. An original, simulation based, multi-professional training programme has been developed with learning and assessment materials available for widespread replication

Psychological predictors of health anxiety and pain in ambulatory presentations in a hospital emergency department

Abstract Background: Health anxiety in attendees of out-patient medical clinics is well established; however, there has been a lack of research into health anxiety within emergency settings. Aims: This study explored the prevalence of health anxiety in ambulatory presentations in a tertiary emergency department (ED) as well as the factors associated with pain and health anxiety in this setting. Method: A cross-sectional questionnaire design was used to gather data from adult ED ambulatory attendees across a 4-day sampling period to assess psychological and physical health variables. Number of attendances to ED over the previous 12 months was accessed through healthcare records. Results: Of the final sample (n = 106), 77%were white British, 54%were male, and 14%presented with severe health anxiety as measured by the Short Health Anxiety Inventory (≥18). Participants with pre-existing health conditions had significantly higher levels of health anxiety (M = 12.36, SE = 1.59) compared with those without (M = 7.79, SE = 0.66). Stepwise multiple regression analyses identified anxiety sensitivity and pain catastrophizing as significant independent predictors of health anxiety, explaining 51%of the variance in health anxiety. Pain catastrophizing was also a significant independent predictor of pain level, accounting for 20%of the variance. Conclusion: This study provides insight into the prevalence of health anxiety in ED ambulatory presentations and key psychological predictors of health anxiety and pain. This has implications for treatment in an ED setting whereby patients may benefit from referral to medical psychology or mental health services.</p

Fractal Image Editing with PhotoFrac

In this paper, we describe the development and use of PhotoFrac, an application that allows artists and designers to turn digital images into fractal patterns interactively. Fractal equations are a rich source of procedural texture and detail, but controlling the patterns and incorporating traditional media has been difficult. Additionally, the iterative nature of fractal calculations makes implementation of interactive techniques on mobile devices and web apps challenging. We overcome these problems by using an image coordinate based orbit trapping technique that permits a user-selected image to be embedded into the fractal. Performance challenges are addressed by exploiting the processing power of graphic processing unit (GPU) and precomputing some intermediate results for use on mobile devices. This paper presents results and qualitative analyses of the tool by four artists (the authors) who used the PhotoFrac application to create new artworks from original digital images. The final results demonstrate a fusion of traditional media with algorithmic art

Tackling Ageing Continence through Theory, Tools & Technology

Originally presented at ‘Aging and Society: An Interdisciplinary Conference’, University of California, Berkeley (2011), this article was double-blind peer reviewed, receiving scores of 96% and 73%. It outlines the interdisciplinary research of the cross-Research-Council-funded New Dynamics of Ageing Tackling Ageing Continence through Theory Tools & Technology (TACT3) project (2008–12), which brought together designers, social scientists, bio-engineers, chemists and care-management services to understand the challenges faced by an ageing population in the management of continence. Bichard’s Work Package, ‘Challenging Environmental Barriers to Continence’, explored the need for public toilet provision as essential for quality of life, health and well-being. It developed a life-course methodology that considered ageing from birth through to advanced age (0–101 years), and involved inclusive design research with members of the public and providers of facilities to assess public expectations and provider limitations in service provision. As co-investigator on TACT3, this research built on Bichard’s previous work for the VivaCity2020 consortium (Bichard REF Output 2). Whereas the VivaCity2020 work focused on architectural barriers in toilet provision, the TACT3 project examined the problem in service provision, and how, through inclusive design research, service-design solutions might be explored and implemented. Bichard’s contribution to the TACT3 project produced The Great British Public Toilet Map (http://greatbritishpublictoiletmap.rca.ac.uk/), a public participation website that provides information and locations of public toilets, encouraging members of the public to contact relevant local authorities that have not released information in the format of Open Data. Secondary analysis of TACT3 data for references to issues of personal safety and community initiative in toilet provision was used for the ESRC-funded Robust Accessible Toilets (RATs) project (2011) and produced Publicly Accessible Toilets: An Inclusive Design Guide (2011). Related published conference papers include those in ‘Cumulus 2010’ (China) and ‘Include 2011’ (UK)