Equipping Language Educators at Scale: Open Educational Resources and Institutional Collaboration for Professional Development and Practice

In much of South Asia (e.g. India, Bangladesh, Sri-Lanka) there had been a post-colonial emphasis on the use of mother tongue. For instance, in Bangladesh, a nation almost solely founded on the basis of the language movement (Bhasa Andolon) of 1952. About 98% of the country’s population speak Bangla . Bangla was the medium of education at all levels except in a small number of schools (Hossain and Tollefson, in Power and Shrestha, 2009). However, in an increasingly globablised world, English Language is now re-emerging as a significant factor in economic development. It is widely perceived that many graduates fail to gain employment because their English skills or qualifications fall below the required level of functional literacy. (British Council, 2009). It has therefore become paramount to develop effective skills in the use of spoken and written English and some governments have been taking measures to address this need. For instance, the Bangladeshi government in collaboration with the Department for International Development (DFID) of the UK government jointly funded the English Language Teaching Improvement Project (ELTIP). (Power and Shrestha, 2009, p.2). But research evidence (Power and Shrestha, 2009, p.2) show that, despite the huge investments since the early 2000s, the quality of English remains low. This indicates that more needs to be done, or it needs to be done differently. There is therefore a need to train or upskill large numbers of English Language Teachers (ELTs), both in relation to their own level of English Language proficiency, and in relation to their teaching skills and practices. The situation calls for responses that are effective, imaginative, and capable of operating scale. It may possible for such responses to transcend national boundaries, whilst recognizing local teacher identities and contexts

The Ellison Unitary Model in Conflict Resolution Training

The Ellison Model Executive Mentoring Inclusive Community Building Model (The Ellison Model) is used in training people to initiate and implement inclusive community building (ICB) projects using executives and professionals from a variety of fields and industries to mentor university and pre-college students, all serving as mentors at each succeeding level of function. The model promotes ethical values and inclusion in community development. Participants at ICB conferences receive conflict resolution, relationship management and cultural sensitivity/diversity training through interactive and dramatic techniques. This essay examines the theoretical premises upon which The Model bases its philosophies. Theories examining the nexus between culture and conflict are also explored. Conflict resolution as a unitary process (from the individual perspective) is also discussed within the context of relationship management

Gendered Violence, HIV Acquisition, and Clinical/Behavioral Research

HIV incidence and prevalence rates for US women continue to increase, especially among Black and Latina women. In addition, the link between violence and HIV acquisition has been well documented. However, the interaction between violence, HIV risk, and HIV acquisition remains an under-addressed issue in current clinical and behavioral HIV research designs. Because violence against women plays an important role in HIV acquisition and transmission, it is imperative for clinical research to address violence in trial design and implementation. In this article, we discuss the prevalence of violence in women’s lives; the role violence plays in HIV acquisition; and the absence of violence in clinical research designs. We conclude with recommendations for integrating concerns about HIV and violence against women into sponsor- and investigator-driven HIV research priorities and clinical trial design

The Importance of Shared Language in Rural Behavioral Health Interventions: An Exploratory Linguistic Analysis

A focus on the use of shared language to enhance congruence in interventionist-client dialogue is missing from traditional research on evidence-based practices and rural behavioral health. This study incorporates qualitative interactional sociolinguistics, which includes discourse analysis (typically written or audio recordings of face-to-face encounters with 11 clients and a study interventionist), to describe those speech patterns in a broad sense (dialect), as well as more specific use of communicative strategies to increase parity in the interaction between a rural interventionist delivering an evidence-based practice in the context of a research study with rural women opioid users in a non-therapeutic context. Study findings indicated that in the context of delivering the intervention, use of a shared language, language pattern congruence, and communication styles can greatly augment the intent of the approach with vulnerable populations. In addition, other communicative strategies connected with traditional Appalachian values – such as religion, home, and family – were also important. This study makes an important contribution to behavioral health research and practice by understanding critical factors that may influence evidence-based practice delivery, particularly in real-world settings with vulnerable populations. These findings have important implications for the utilization of creative approaches to understand critical components of the clinical interaction as indicators of fidelity

Oral Delivery Of Double-stranded Rnas Induces Mortality In Nymphs And Adults Of The Asian Citrus Psyllid, Diaphorina Citri

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, is one of the most important citrus pests. ACP is the vector of the phloem-limited bacteria Candidatus Liberibacter americanus and Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, the causal agents of the devastating citrus disease huanglongbing (HLB). The management of HLB is based on the use of healthy young plants, eradication of infected plants and chemical control of the vector. RNA interference (RNAi) has proven to be a promising tool to control pests and explore gene functions. Recently, studies have reported that target mRNA knockdown in many insects can be induced through feeding with double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). In the current study, we targeted the cathepsin D, chitin synthase and inhibitor of apoptosis genes of adult and nymph ACP by feeding artificial diets mixed with dsRNAs and Murraya paniculata leaves placed in dsRNAs solutions, respectively. Adult ACP mortality was positively correlated with the amount of dsRNA used. Both nymphs and adult ACP fed dsRNAs exhibited significantly increased mortality over time compared with that of the controls. Moreover, qRT-PCR analysis confirmed the dsRNA-mediated RNAi effects on target mRNAs. These results showed that RNAi can be a powerful tool for gene function studies in ACP and perhaps for HLB control.123Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo [2013/02138-0, 2014/03925-8, 2008/57909-2]CNPq [573848/08-4]Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

General practice palliative care: Patient and carer expectations, advance care plans and place of death-a systematic review

Background: With an increasing ageing population in most countries, the role of general practitioners (GPs) and general practice nurses (GPNs) in providing optimal end of life (EoL) care is increasingly important. Objective: To explore: (1) patient and carer expectations of the role of GPs and GPNs at EoL; (2) GPs’ and GPNs’ contribution to advance care planning (ACP) and (3) if primary care involvement allows people to die in the place of preference. Method: Systematic literature review. Data sources: Papers from 2000 to 2017 were sought from Medline, Psychinfo, Embase, Joanna Briggs Institute and Cochrane databases. Results: From 6209 journal articles, 51 papers were relevant. Patients and carers expect their GPs to be competent in all aspects of palliative care. They valued easy access to their GP, a multidisciplinary approach to care and well-coordinated and informed care. They also wanted their care team to communicate openly, honestly and empathically, particularly as the patient deteriorated. ACP and the involvement of GPs were important factors which contributed to patients being cared for and dying in their preferred place. There was no reference to GPNs in any paper identified. Conclusions: Patients and carers prefer a holistic approach to care. This review shows that GPs have an important role in ACP and that their involvement facilitates dying in the place of preference. Proactive identification of people approaching EoL is likely to improve all aspects of care, including planning and communicating about EoL. More work outlining the role of GPNs in end of life care is required