teacher shortage as a local phenomenon: district leader sensemaking, responses, and implications for policy

While the teacher shortage is a national crisis, the manifestations of the shortage are felt most acutely at the local district level. The diversity of these micro-contexts often leads to disparities in the ways local school systems are served by large-scale initiatives. District leaders provide an important lens for understanding the localized manifestation of teacher shortages. This research contributes to the existing macro-level literature on teacher shortages through investigation of the ways in which district leaders in West Virginia make sense of and respond to the teacher shortage. As part of a broader study, we share analyses of interviews with seven district leaders across five county school districts and highlight the ways in which leaders made sense of the phenomenon in paradoxical ways, both in terms of the most salient causes as well as the perceived locus of control in addressing the teacher shortage. Findings also highlight the way district leader sensemaking led to action, with responses differing based on relative affordances of metropolitan versus rural contexts. We conclude with implications for policy and research to further understand the local nature of teacher shortages and to address the problem, particularly in rural contexts underserved by current research and policy

Falta de professores como um fenômeno local: Sensemaking do líder distrital, respostas e implicações para políticas

While the teacher shortage is a national crisis, the manifestations of the shortage are felt most acutely at the local district level. The diversity of these micro-contexts often leads to disparities in the ways local school systems are served by large-scale initiatives. District leaders provide an important lens for understanding the localized manifestation of teacher shortages. This research contributes to the existing macro-level literature on teacher shortages through investigation of the ways in which district leaders in West Virginia make sense of and respond to the teacher shortage. As part of a broader study, we share analyses of interviews with seven district leaders across five county school districts and highlight the ways in which leaders made sense of the phenomenon in paradoxical ways, both in terms of the most salient causes as well as the perceived locus of control in addressing the teacher shortage. Findings also highlight the way district leader sensemaking led to action, with responses differing based on relative affordances of metropolitan versus rural contexts. We conclude with implications for policy and research to further understand the local nature of teacher shortages and to address the problem, particularly in rural contexts underserved by current research and policy. Si bien la escasez de docentes es una crisis nacional, las manifestaciones de escasez se sienten con mayor intensidad a nivel de distrito local. La diversidad de estos microconceptos a menudo conduce a disparidades en la forma en que los sistemas escolares locales son atendidos por iniciativas a gran escala. Los líderes del distrito proporcionan una lente importante para comprender la manifestación localizada de la escasez de maestros. Esta investigación contribuye a la literatura existente sobre la escasez de maestros al investigar las formas en que los líderes del distrito en West Virginia entienden y responden a la escasez de maestros. Como parte de un estudio más amplio, compartimos el análisis de entrevistas con siete líderes de distrito en cinco distritos escolares del condado y destacamos formas en que los líderes entendieron el fenómeno paradójicamente, en términos de las causas más destacadas, así como el lugar percibido. de control para abordar la escasez de docentes. Los hallazgos también resaltan cómo la sensemakingdel líder del distrito condujo a la acción, con respuestas diferentes en función de las posibilidades relativas de los contextos metropolitanos versus rurales. Concluimos con implicaciones de política e investigación para una mejor comprensión de la naturaleza local de la escasez de docentes y para abordar el problema, particularmente en contextos rurales no cubiertos por la investigación y la política actual.Embora a escassez de professores seja uma crise nacional, as manifestações da escassez são sentidas mais intensamente no nível do distrito local. A diversidade desses microconceitos freqüentemente leva a disparidades na forma como os sistemas escolares locais são atendidos por iniciativas de larga escala. Os líderes distritais fornecem uma lente importante para entender a manifestação localizada da falta de professores. Esta pesquisa contribui para a literatura existente sobre a escassez de professores através da investigação das maneiras pelas quais os líderes distritais em West Virginia compreendem e respondem à escassez de professores. Como parte de um estudo mais amplo, compartilhamos análises de entrevistas com sete líderes distritais em cinco distritos escolares do condado e destacamos as maneiras pelas quais os líderes entenderam o fenômeno de maneira paradoxal, em termos das causas mais salientes e do lócus percebido. de controle na abordagem da escassez de professores. Os resultados também destacam a forma como o sensemaking do líder distrital levou à ação, com as respostas diferindo com base nas affordances relativas dos contextos metropolitanos versus rurais. Concluímos com implicações para a política e a pesquisa para entender melhor a natureza local da escassez de professores e para abordar o problema, particularmente em contextos rurais não atendidos pela pesquisa e pela política atuais

The biomechanics of sensory organs

Studies of mechanosensory systems have largely focused on the filter characteristics of their neural components in relation to their ultimate function. Less attention has focused on the role of the physical structure of the sensory organ which also acts as a mechanical filter of the sensory input. This biomechanical filtering is readily apparent in the case of several mechanosensory systems that transduce information about the deformations of the sensory organs in response to external forces. Because these deformations critically depend on the geometry and material properties of the mechanosensory organs, it is necessary to conduct focused studies on the biomechanical characteristics of these organs when studying the encoding properties of the mechanosensory system. Modern experimental tools such as Laser Doppler Vibrometry and computational tools such as Computational Fluid Dynamics and Finite Element Analysis provide the means for determining the sensory pre-filtering properties of small-scale mechanosensory structures. In all the cases covered in this review, the physical properties of the sensory organs play a central role in determining the signals received by the nervous system

Risk factors for respiratory failure following operative stabilization of thoracic and lumbar spine fractures

Journal ArticleBackground: Respiratory failure is a serious complication that can adversely affect the hospital course and survival of multiply injured patients. Some studies have suggested that delayed surgical stabilization of spine fractures may increase the incidence of respiratory complications. However, the authors of these studies analyzed small sets of patients and did not assess the independent effects of multiple risk factors. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a regional level-I trauma center to identify risk factors for respiratory failure in patients with surgically treated thoracic and lumbar spine fractures. Demographic, diagnostic, and procedural variables were identified. The incidence of respiratory failure was determined in an adult respiratory distress syndrome registry maintained concurrently at the same institution. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to determine independent risk factors for respiratory failure. An algorithm was formulated to predict respiratory failure. Results: Respiratory failure developed in 140 of the 1032 patients in the study cohort. Patients with respiratory failure were older; had a higher mean Injury Severity Score (ISS) and Charlson Comorbidity Index Score; had greater incidences of pneumothorax, pulmonary contusion, and thoracic level injury; had a lower mean Glasgow Coma Score (GCS); were more likely to have had a posterior surgical approach; and had a longer mean time from admission to surgical stabilization than the patients without respiratory failure (p 25 points, a GCS of ≤12 points, blunt chest injury, and surgical stabilization performed more than two days after admission. An algorithm was created to determine, on the basis of the number of preoperative predictors present, the relative risk of respiratory failure when surgery was delayed for more than two days. Conclusions: Independent risk factors for respiratory failure were identified in an analysis of a large cohort of patients who had undergone operative stabilization of thoracic and lumbar spine fractures. Early operative stabilization of these fractures, the only risk factor that can be controlled by the physician, may decrease the risk of respiratory failure in multiply injured patients. Level of Evidence: Prognostic Level II. See Instructions to Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence

The Effects Of Medicare Payment Changes On Nursing Home Staffing

In light of persistent shortcomings in nursing home care quality and evidence that lower nurse staffing levels could be harmful to residents, we examine whether staffing levels are affected by changes in Medicare reimbursement rates. We exploit a 2006 change in Medicare’s methodology for adjusting provider payments for geographic differences in costs, a change that generated plausibly exogenous variation in nursing facility reimbursement rates. Our method compares facilities with higher and lower shares of Medicare resident days, which were differentially exposed to the payment changes we examine. Using panel data on US nursing homes from 2003 through 2009, we find that higher Medicare payments increased nurse staffing hours per resident day. Additional results suggest that changes in Medicare payments did not affect other measures of quality

Why Do Electricity Policy and Competitive Markets Fail to Use Advanced PV Systems to Improve Distribution Power Quality?

The increasing pressure for network operators to meet distribution network power quality standards with increasing peak loads, renewable energy targets, and advances in automated distributed power electronics and communications is forcing policy-makers to understand new means to distribute costs and benefits within electricity markets. Discussions surrounding how distributed generation (DG) exhibits active voltage regulation and power factor/reactive power control and other power quality capabilities are complicated by uncertainties of baseline local distribution network power quality and to whom and how costs and benefits of improved electricity infrastructure will be allocated. DG providing ancillary services that dynamically respond to the network characteristics could lead to major network improvements. With proper market structures renewable energy systems could greatly improve power quality on distribution systems with nearly no additional cost to the grid operators. Renewable DG does have variability challenges, though this issue can be overcome with energy storage, forecasting, and advanced inverter functionality. This paper presents real data from a large-scale grid-connected PV array with large-scale storage and explores effective mitigation measures for PV system variability. We discuss useful inverter technical knowledge for policy-makers to mitigate ongoing inflation of electricity network tariff components by new DG interconnection requirements or electricity markets which value power quality and control

Tropical Crops and Resilience to Climate Change

It is anticipated that agricultural output will have to increase by 70% to feed a global population of more than 9 billion by the year 2050 (Benkeblia 2012). The capacity of global high-intensity farming systems to continue to guarantee productive returns while maintaining system stability will eventually decline, and thus new opportunities for agriculture are being realized in tropical environments. As population growth is greatest in tropical regions, and commensurate with rapid industrialization and change in traditional land use practices, it is presumed that equatorial production systems will be some of the most vulnerable to climate change

High temperature x ray diffraction determination of the body-centered-cubic-face-centered-cubic transformation temperature in (Fe 70Ni 30) 88Zr 7B 4Cu 1 nanocomposites

In situ high-temperature x ray diffraction and magnetization measurements were performed on a melt-spun (Fe70Ni30)88Zr7B4Cu1 amorphous alloy to follow its structural evolution. At 728 K, a bcc-FeNi phase was observed as the primary crystallization product followed by transformation to an fcc phase rv773 K. During cooling to room temperature, the fcc-to-bcc transformation was not observed, and the metastable fcc-NiFe phase was retained at room temperature

Balanced Nutrition and Crop Production Practices for Closing Grain Sorghum Yield Gaps

A field experiment was conducted at the North Central Kansas Experiment Field near Scandia, KS, in the summer of 2014 to evaluate diverse cropping systems approaches to closing sorghum yield gaps. Yield gaps can be understood as the difference between maximum and attainable on-farm yields. The approach taken in this project is system wide, rather than focusing on one factor and its interaction. The factors that were tested include narrow row spacing; plant population; balanced nutrition practices, including various timings of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) and micronutrient applications; crop protection with fungicide and insecticide applications; plant growth regulator effects; and the use of precision ag technology for maximizing yields, including a GreenSeeker meter (Trimble Navigation, Westminster, CO) for more precisely determining fertilizer nitrogen needs of sorghum. Grain sorghum yields ranged from 95 to 125 bu/a in Scandia under dryland conditions. One of the lowest yields was obtained when common practices were implemented (treatment 10), with an average 103 bu/a, whereas maximum yield was registered with the “kitchen sink (all inputs are applied)” treatment (treatment 1), with an average 115 bu/a. Notwithstanding the lack of treatment difference, the grain sorghum yield gap from a common practice to “kitchen sink” was 12 bu/a