Public education in the dynamic city: lessons from New York City

This article was presented at a conference organized by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in April 2005, "Urban Dynamics in New York City." The goal of the conference was threefold: to examine the historical transformations of the engine-of-growth industries in New York and distill the main determinants of the city's historical dominance as well as the challenges to its continued success; to study the nature and evolution of immigration flows into New York; and to analyze recent trends in a range of socioeconomic outcomes, both for the general population and recent immigrants more specifically.Education - New York (N.Y.) ; Immigrants - New York (N.Y.) ; Federal Reserve District, 2nd

The Impact of U.S. national and state level policy on the nature and scope of K-12 virtual schooling

During the past five years, virtual schools in the United States have gained popularity and acceptance as viable alternatives to the traditional school system through provisions for charter schools under Title V, Part B, Subpart 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. This paper describes the existing federal policies that are driving the online virtual school movement, and how one state, Nevada, has set forth and interpreted specific policies regarding online distance education. In addition, this paper identifies the beliefs acting as the driving forces behind such policies in the United States and discusses implications for other countries also seeking to set forth guidelines for K-12 online distance education programs

Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) Reproductive Advertisement Behavior And The Effects Of Vessel Noise

Harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) are a widely distributed pinniped species that mate underwater. Similar to other aquatically mating pinnipeds, male harbor seals produce vocalizations during the breeding season that function in male-male interactions and possibly as an attractant for females. I investigated multiple aspects of these reproductive advertisement displays in a population of harbor seals in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska. First, I looked at vocal production as a function of environmental variables, including season, daylight, and tidal state. Vocalizations were highly seasonal and detection of these vocalizations peaked in June and July, which correspond with the estimated time of breeding. Vocalizations also varied with light, with the lowest probability of detection during the day and the highest probability of detection at night. The high probability of detection corresponded to when females are known to forage. These results are similar to the vocal behavior of previously studied populations. However, unlike previously studied populations, the detection of harbor seal breeding vocalizations did not vary with tidal state. This is likely due to the location of the hydrophone, as it was not near the haul out and depth was therefore not significantly influenced by changes in tidal height. I also investigated the source levels and call parameters of vocalizations, as well as call rate and territoriality. The average source level of harbor seal breeding vocalizations was 144 dB re 1 μPa at 1 m and measurements ranged from 129 to 149 dB re 1 μPa. Analysis of call parameters indicated that vocalizations of harbor seals in Glacier Bay were similar in duration to other populations, but were much lower in frequency. During the breeding season, there were two discrete calling areas that likely represent two individual males; the average call rate in these display areas was approximately 1 call per minute. The harbor seal breeding season also overlaps with peak tourism in Glacier Bay, and the majority of tourists visit the park on a motorized vessel. Because of this overlap, I investigated the impacts of vessel noise on the vocal behavior of individual males. In the presence of vessel noise, male harbor seals increase the amplitude of their vocalizations, decrease the duration, and increase the minimum frequency. These vocal shifts are similar to studies of noise impacts on other species across taxa, but it is unknown how this could impact the reproductive success of male harbor seals. Finally, I looked at the role of female preference for male vocalizations. Using playbacks of male vocalizations to captive female harbor seals, I found that females have a higher response to vocalizations that correspond to dominant males. Females were less responsive to subordinate male vocalizations, which had a shorter duration and a higher frequency. Given that male harbor seals decrease the duration and increase the frequency of vocalizations in the presence of noise, it is possible that these vocalizations become less attractive in noise

Investigating Auditory-Based Spatial Reorientation Abilities in Individuals with Dyslexia

Dyslexia, a common learning disorder, is currently understood to affect the processing of visual and auditory information. The ability to efficiently process the environment to reorient in space is an integral part of navigating the world, but possible impairments in dyslexia have not been fully addressed. In this study, the ability of individuals both with and without dyslexia to use auditory information in a spatial reorientation task was examined to further explore the processing deficits involved in dyslexia. Participants with and without dyslexia did not perform significantly differently when learning (training trials) and during probe test trials. Additionally, individuals found to have auditory processing disorder did not perform at a significantly lower level of accuracy. Results are discussed based on limitations of the study and potential clinical implications for our understanding of dyslexia

Performance consequences of encoding belief-incongruent editorials

Performance and message consequences of encoding belief incongruent editorials were examined in this study. Twenty-six students enrolled in News Editing completed a student option survey, containing scales for both direction and intensity of belief. Approximately two weeks later they were asked to write editorials on two propositions determined to be strongly-held beliefs. Each subject was required to write one editorial congruent with personal belief and one belief-incongruent editorial. Subjects were assigned at random so that 14 did the belief-congruent encoding first and 12 did the belief-incongruent first. The research hypotheses -- that when encoding belief-incongruent editorial subjects would make more spelling and punctuation errors, take longer to write, produce fewer words per minute, and write less readable messages than when encoding belief-congruent editorials – were rejected. However, time, rate and readability for the second editorial improved significantly over the first editorial. These results suggest that students’ writing apprehension decreases and performance improves from a first to second encoding, regardless of whether they are writing belief-congruent or belief-incongruent editorials. The author suggests a need to incorporate order effect as variable into future studies on belief-congruent vs. belief-incongruent message encoding

Deaf or [insert ethnicity here]? The impact of South African Sign Language and Deaf community membership on the ethnic identities of three Deaf students in Cape Town

South African Sign Language (SASL) is the language used by most members of the Deaf community in South Africa. SASL, much like other signed languages, has a long history of development, acceptance, and non-acceptance. The history of SASL is undeniably intertwined and affected by the political history of South Africa. This article examines the relationship between ethnicity, language, and identity in the context of South African Sign Language and the Deaf community. It seeks to understand how the use of South African Sign Language as one’s main language affects one’s identity and their identification with their racial group. The article looks at the perspectives and stories of individual members of the Deaf community in Cape Town to come to a conclusion about the initial question: Does regular use of South African Sign Language and membership in the Deaf community affect one’s identity with a racial or ethnic group

Deconstructing Gender: Realizing the Possibilities

Education is calling for approaches to improve adolescent males’ success in language and literacy related classes; however, the reasons for this lack of achievement are complex. There is no sustainable immediate solution. Through poetic representations created by the researcher, this research study reports on the voice of an adolescent male student who examined gender roles and expectations in a Grade 10 English class. The findings reveal his growing insight into the complexities that co–construct his role and expectations as a gendered being. These findings can inform educators towards helping students realize their potential as literacy students and guide their understanding of gender roles