Localizing the Relativistic Electron

A causally well-behaved solution of the localization problem for the free electron is given, with natural space-time transformation properties, in terms of Dirac's position operator. It is shown that, although this operator does not represent an observable in the usual sense, and has no positive-energy (generalized) eigenstates, the associated 4-vector density is observable, and can be localized arbitrarily precisely about any point in space, at any instant of time, using only positive-energy states. A suitable spin operator can be diagonalized at the same time.Comment: 19 pages including 1 figure (1 LatTex2e file, 1 postscript file). Uses package amssymb. Typos correcte

Preparing Educational Leaders for 21st Century Inclusive School Communities: Transforming University Preparation Programs

University educational leadership preparation programs whose mission is to prepare Transitional Kindergarten through 12th grade (TK-12) school administrators need to transform their curriculum so that all leaders (not just special education leaders) have the knowledge and skills to create inclusive school communities that truly include all students. Evidence suggests that even though there are policies, laws, recommendations and an empirical base that supports inclusive education for students with disabilities, equity, achievement and opportunity gaps remain in our nation’s public schools. The purpose of this conceptual study is to provide a look at redesigned preparation programs built on professional standards changes, evidencebased practices, and practice-based evidence correlated with inclusive school communities. Transformed preparation programs prepare educational leaders who lead inclusive school communities in closing the gaps for students with disabilities, considering that 100% of the students spend 80% or more of their day in general education classrooms. The impact for students with disabilities is that they experience equity, social justice and their civil rights for education in inclusive school communities where all benefit

A Dynamic Analysis of Growth via Acquisition

Firms have a choice: grow through internal investment, or grow through acquisition. While internal growth takes time, an acquisition provides cash flows immediately, as the acquirer benefits from the investments of previous owners. The opportunity to grow internally affects the price of an acquisition as it is a fall-back option for the acquirer should negotiations break down. Thus, internal growth opportunities speed up acquisitions when integration costs are significant or synergies not too great. Because investors do not have full information about the time a firm requires to grow internally, acquirers earn positive returns before announcement of an acquisition, and there are negative stock price reactions to acquisition announcements for a wide range of parameter values. This research provides novel predictions about how pre-announcement price run-up and negative announcement returns relate to high integration costs and low synergies from acquisition, without requiring learning about these variables. The model also predicts that buyer-initiated acquisitions result in more pronounced negative acquirer announcement returns than seller-initiated acquisitions.Corporate Investment, Acquisitions

Administrator Support for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders in Inclusive School Environments: A Literature Review

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (SEBD) are among the most marginalized group of students in today’s schools (U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, 2016). Marginalization stems in part from the fact that the majority of school administrators are not well prepared to address the needs of SEBD related to their challenging behavior. Purpose of the Study: The purpose of the study was to identify evidence based practices that school administrators need to know and be able to do to support SEBD in inclusive school environments. Research Methodology: A literature search was conducted through comprehensive electronic databases including ERIC and Education Source. Search terms included “emotional and behavioral disability” and/or “challenging behavior” and “inclusion”. Search criteria were set to include only peer-reviewed journal articles published between 2008 and 2018. The original search yielded over 100 articles. Following the searches, the titles and abstracts of the articles were reviewed for the following criteria: administration and inclusion of students with EBD. As a result, the final search and review, yielded a total of 9 articles. Research conclusions: The presenters share the findings from the literature review and provide recommendations for implementing evidence-based practices that positively support SEBD in inclusive school environments. These practices include effective collaboration with all those involved with students’ education, providing professional development opportunities for teachers in high leverage practices for inclusive schools, and administrator support for the effective implementation of those practices

Gender Differences in Written Expression at the Elementary Level

The use of Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM) in schools is increasing, as it is a useful indicator of students’ basic academic skills. CBM measures are often used for identifying students at-risk, monitoring their progress during interventions, and even making special education eligibility determinations. Much of the research has focused on CBM in the area of reading. Relatively few studies have examined the area of CBM-Written Expression. A couple of studies indicated there are gender differences on CBM-Written Expression measures. This study sought to determine if gender differences exist at the elementary level and, if so, at what grade level such differences appear. This study investigated the differences between boys and girls on three CBM-Written Expression production-dependent scores (i.e., Total Words Written, Words Spelled Correctly, and Correct Word Sequence) across first through fifth grade levels. Statistically significant differences were found beginning in the first grade. However, effect sizes suggest practical differences do not occur until the second or third grade. The results indicate that schools using CBM-Written Expression data should develop genderspecific norms

Reflections about my second year of teaching reading

On the second day of school, I realized that four students had entered my first grade classroom – reading. As that school day concluded, at the beginning of my second year of teaching, I remember sitting down at my desk, and thinking to myself, Now what? These were not the students I was expecting. In this paper I explain how I adapted my reading beliefs and teaching practices to meet the challenge the four students posed to me. I describe each student, and their reading behaviors. Next, I discuss perspectives about early literacy, in order to examine my beliefs in more detail. Then, I explore alternative teaching practices for reading instruction. I conclude by explaining how the students and my reading about the perspectives and alternative teaching practices affected me as a teacher

No turning,a Mouse Mutation Causing Left–Right and Axial Patterning Defects

AbstractPatterning along the left/right axes helps establish the orientation of visceral organ asymmetries, a process which is of fundamental importance to the viability of an organism. A linkage between left/right and axial patterning is indicated by the finding that a number of genes involved in left/right patterning also play a role in anteroposterior and dorsoventral patterning. We have recovered a spontaneous mouse mutation causing left/right patterning defects together with defects in anteroposterior and dorsoventral patterning. This mutation is recessive lethal and was namedno turning (nt)because the mutant embryos fail to undergo embryonic turning.ntembryos exhibit cranial neural tube closure defects and malformed somites and are caudally truncated. Development of the heart arrests at the looped heart tube stage, with cardiovascular defects indicated by ballooning of the pericardial sac and the pooling of blood in various regions of the embryo. Interestingly, inntembryos, the direction of heart looping was randomized.Nodalandlefty,two genes that are normally expressed only in the left lateral plate mesoderm, show expression in the right and left lateral plate mesoderm.Lefty,which is normally also expressed in the floorplate, is not found in the prospective floorplate ofntembryos. This suggests the possibility of notochordal defects. This was confirmed by histological analysis and the examination ofsonic hedgehog, Brachyury,andHNF-3βgene expression. These studies showed that the notochord is present in the earlyntembryo, but degenerates as development progresses. Overall, these findings support the hypothesis that the notochord plays an active role in left/right patterning. Our results suggest thatntmay participate in this process by modulating the notochordal expression ofHNF-3β