An 8.4-GHz dual-maser front-end system for Parkes reimplementation

An 8.4-GHz front-end system consisting of a feedhorn, a waveguide feed assembly, dual masers, and downconverters was reimplemented at Parkes as part of the Parkes Canberra Telemetry Array for the Voyager Neptune encounter. The front-end system was originally assembled by the European Space Agency and installed on the Parkes antenna for the Giotto project. It was also used on a time-sharing basis by the Deep Space Network as part of the Parkes Canberra Telemetry Array to enhance the data return from the Voyager Uranus encounter. At the conclusion of these projects in 1986, part of the system was then shipped to JPL on loan for reimplementation at Parkes for the Voyager Neptune encounter. New design and implementation required to make the system operable at Parkes included new microwave front-end control cabinets, closed-cycle refrigeration monitor system, noise-adding radiometer system, front-end controller assembly, X81 local oscillator multiplier, and refurbishment of the original dual 8.4-GHz traveling-wave masers and waveguide feed system. The front-end system met all requirements during the encounter and was disassembled in October 1989 and returned to JPL

Correlation between Attitudes, Concerns, Self-Efficacy and Teaching Intentions in Inclusive Education. Evidence from German pre-service teachers using international scales

The inclusion of pupils with special educational needs (SEN ) in schools is an ongoing challenge – it demands the development of an adapted teaching and learning environment, which, in turn, requires a corresponding teacher education programme. Studies indicate that personal characteristics of the respective teachers are one of the main influencing factors on the classroom environment. This article reports on a study of the role of teacher‐related factors, attitudes, concerns and efficacy in inclusion by testing existing survey instruments of 909 pre‐service teachers in Germany. A confirmatory factor analysis was applied to new German translations of four instruments: Attitudes Towards Inclusion Scale , Intention to Teach in Inclusive Classroom Scale , Concerns about Inclusive Education Scale , and the Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices . With minor modifications, models demonstrated good fit measures and partial measurement invariance between special school pre‐service teachers and general pre‐service teachers. A combined model of all four scales confirmed that lower concerns were related to attitudes that are more positive, greater self‐efficacy and stronger intentions to teaching inclusively. Implications for teacher‐training and comparisons to other international samples are discussed

Looking in the mirror: Reflecting on 25 years of Inclusive Education in Australia

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Taylor & Francis (Routledge) via the DOI in this record.Australia was an early signatory to the Salamanca Statement, and it espouses inclusive education (IE) as the overarching philosophy of education for all. A 2015 critique of IE in Australia (Anderson and Boyle 2015) found that while some gains had been made, particularly in the recognition of the needs of some of the nation’s minority groups, the lack of a nationally accepted understanding of IE meant that it was transpiring in fundamentally distinctive ways across the eight education jurisdictions, with different outcomes for different groups of students. This paper reflects upon why Australia has struggled to enact the recommendations outlined in the Salamanca Statement a quarter of a century ago. The impacts of current education reforms, including the current model of educational provision, the understanding of disability and educational need, and the neo-liberal concepts of standardisation, measurement, and choice are explored. It challenges the idea that IE is the work of schools, and instead argues the need for a national approach to IE. Governments must acknowledge the barriers that their current policies and structures erect and shift towards a more inclusive model of educational delivery – for the benefit of all children and young people in Australia

Inclusive education in the academy: pedagogical and political imperatives in a master’s course

Many universities offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses in inclusive education. There has been much research into the impact of these courses, but little is written about their design. This article focuses on a master’s course in inclusive education in a South African university. The course positions inclusive education as a critical education project and is designed around the four propositions presented by Slee in The Irregular School (2011. Milton Park: Routledge). Using Bernsteinian ideas about pedagogising knowledge, this article accounts for the pedagogical choices made in content selection and course design. The focal questions in the course are described, together with an indication of the range of additional texts that students read. Given that Slee asserts that inclusive education is a political project, and that Allan (2010. “The Inclusive Teacher Educator: Spaces for Civic Engagement.” Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education 31 (4): 411–422) urges inclusive teacher educators to reorientate themselves towards civic duty, I argue that producing a pedagogic discourse of inclusive education is a political task that should result in both the teacher educator and the students being oriented towards a critique of existing exclusionary arrangements and an activism that leads to change

Developing disability-inclusive indicators in the Pacific Islands

The Pacific Island nations are in the process of transforming education to support all learners through the application of more inclusive approaches. In order to measure progress, they are working collaboratively to develop a set of local and contextually applicable indicators for inclusive education. This article reports the initial step in this process. A detailed review of literature about the Pacific Islands highlights 10 themes that are highly pertinent to the monitoring of inclusive education (IE) in the region. The article reviews these themes across the continuum of input, process, and outcomes for IE, at 3 levels of implementation: micro, meso, and macro. While disability-inclusive indicators for measuring IE within the Pacific Islands are very limited at present, the article also identifies strategies, good practices, government recommendations, and outcomes from across the region that educators may use to inform the development of inclusive practices

Development and validation of a short form of the Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices Scale (TEIP-SF)

High self-efficacy is a marker of successful teaching and is, therefore, a subject of great interest to research on inclusive education. One of the most frequently used instruments to assess such beliefs is the Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practice (TEIP) scale. Although used widely, some studies did not precisely replicate the original factor structure, and no short form of the TEIP scale currently exists, although this could enhance measurement efficiency. This study (1) systematically assessed the TEIP scale's factor structure and psychometric properties, (2) identified potentially problematic items and developed a more concise short form of the scale, and (3) evaluated its dimensionality and criterion and convergent validities using three validation samples of teachers in three different countries (486 in Switzerland, 189 in Australia and 276 in Canada). Compared to the full-length TEIP scale, the TEIP-SF uses half the items, demonstrates better model fit and reveals a clearer distinction of domain-specific factors. In conclusion, the TEIP-SF represents a concise, efficient means of assessing teachers' self-efficacy about teaching in inclusive classrooms.</p