The evolution of motivation to learn in the context of the transition to secondary school: Developmental trajectories and relational determinants

Abstract : This article examines fluctuations in motivation to learn over the primary to secondary school transition. Students (N = 323) in Quebec, Canada were surveyed at the end of their final year of primary school and at the beginning and end of their first year of secondary school regarding their expectancies for success and the value they placed on learning. The objectives were: 1) to measure general changes, using a conventional approach, 2) to distinguish different trajectories, using a group-based semi-parametric approach, and 3) to examine the link between relational dimensions and these trajectories. The results show that on average, expectancies and value declined. More specifically, three developmental trajectories were identified for both expectancies and value. Positive relationships with peers and the teacher before the transition were associated with relatively positive trajectories of expectancies and value. Thus, social relationships may serve as a protective factor during this transition, at least for motivation to learn

A DGTD method for the numerical modeling of the interaction of light with nanometer scale metallic structures taking into account non-local dispersion effects

The interaction of light with metallic nanostructures is of increasing interest for various fields of research. When metallic structures have sub-wavelength sizes and the illuminating frequencies are in the regime of metal's plasma frequency, electron interaction with the exciting fields have to be taken into account. Due to these interactions, plasmonic surface waves can be excited and cause extreme local field enhancements (e.g. surface plasmon polariton electromagnetic waves). Exploiting such field enhancements in applications of interest requires a detailed knowledge about the occurring fields which can generally not be obtained analytically. For the latter mentioned reason, numerical tools as well as a deeper understanding of the underlying physics, are absolutely necessary. For the numerical modeling of light/structure interaction on the nanoscale, the choice of an appropriate material model is a crucial point. Approaches that are adopted in a first instance are based on local (i.e. with no interaction between electrons) dispersive models e.g. Drude or Drude-Lorentz models. From the mathematical point of view, when a time-domain modeling is considered, these models lead to an additional system of ordinary differential equation which is coupled to Maxwell's equations. When it comes to very small structures in a regime of 2~nm to 25~nm, non-local effects due to electron collisions have to be taken into account. Non-locality leads to additional, in general non-linear, system of partial differential equations and is significantly more difficult to treat, though. Nevertheless, dealing with a linear non-local dispersion model is already a setting that opens the route to numerous practical applications of plasmonics. In this work, we present a Discontinuous Galerkin Time-Domain (DGTD) method able to solve the system of Maxwell equations coupled to a linearized non-local dispersion model relevant to plasmonics. While the method is presented in the general 3d case, numerical results are given for 2d simulation settings only

Demonstrating an absolute quantum advantage in direct absorption measurement

Engineering apparatus that harness quantum theory promises to offer practical advantages over current technology. A fundamentally more powerful prospect is that such quantum technologies could out-perform any future iteration of their classical counterparts, no matter how well the attributes of those classical strategies can be improved. Here, for optical direct absorption measurement, we experimentally demonstrate such an instance of an absolute advantage per photon probe that is exposed to the absorbative sample. We use correlated intensity measurements of spontaneous parametric downconversion using a commercially available air-cooled CCD, a new estimator for data analysis and a high heralding efficiency photon-pair source. We show this enables improvement in the precision of measurement, per photon probe, beyond what is achievable with an ideal coherent state (a perfect laser) detected with 100% efficient and noiseless detection. We see this absolute improvement for up to 50% absorption, with a maximum observed factor of improvement of 1.46. This equates to around 32% reduction in the total number of photons traversing an optical sample, compared to any future direct optical absorption measurement using classical light

La « nation » dans le programme québécois d’Histoire et éducation à la citoyenneté : une analyse lexicométrique

This paper presents the results of a lexicometrical analysis of the content of the History and Citizenship Education program implemented in Quebec from 2006 until 2017, in order to shed light on the heated debates that went on during these years. Various actors strongly criticized this program for its avoidance of conflictual social and national events that have characterized the historical trajectory of Quebecois society. However,other actors underlined the visibility given to minority groups such as native people and English settlers who contributed to Quebec’s history. Some authors also pointed out the importance of history education in the formation of critical citizens. Our purpose is to identify the prominent components of this program through its structural features. Those components indicate some allusions to conflictual events of a political nature, but also an instrumental conception of the competence-based approach. The results allow us to put  the criticisms of this educational program into perspective, and measure their validity in light of the lexical structure of the program.Cet article présente le résultat d’une analyse lexicométrique du contenu du programme d’Histoire et éducation à la citoyenneté en vigueur au Québec entre 2006 et 2017. Il jette un regard critique sur les débats qui ont entouré ses composantes et visées. Certains acteurs ont dénoncé vertement l’évacuation d’événements conflictuels à caractère politique et national ayant caractérisé le parcours historique de la société québécoise, tandis que d’autres ont salué à cet égard la place accrue accordée à différents groupesminoritaires, comme les autochtones et les colonies anglaises, qui ont contribué à l’histoire du Québec. En outre, plusieurs ont souligné l’importance de l’enseignement de l’histoire dans la formation de citoyens critiques. Notre objectif est de recenser les composantes les plus importantes de ce programme d’études par l’identification de ses traits structuraux spécifiques. Ces composantes indiquent la référence à certains événements conflictuels à caractère politique, mais également la présence de principes pédagogiques révélateurs d’une conception instrumentale de l’approche par compétences. Les résultats autorisent une mise en perspective des critiques adressées à ce programme d’études

Examining high school students’ personality traits of extraversion and emotional stability in relation to their academic expectation and value appraisals

Abstract : Both personality and motivational characteristics can be considered to estimate individuals’ potential for adjustment and development. That said, these characteristics are rarely studied in conjunction. In this study, we examine how personality and motivational characteristics relate one to the other and influence how students approach learning. More precisely, we analyzed the additive and interactive effects of two intimately related traits (extraversion and emotional stability) from the Big Five model of personality on five motivational dimensions reflecting academic expectations (sense of competence) and values (interest, utility, and mastery and performance goal orientations). Data was collected from a sample of 303 students in tenth and eleventh grade (108 boys and 195 girls; Mage = 16.275 years, SD = 1.149) in a French-Canadian public high school in the greater Quebec City area. Primary analyses included both bivariate correlation and hierarchical regression analyses. Correlations indicated that emotionally stable students were more interested in learning. Hierarchical regression showed that emotionally stable students were more likely to exhibit a performance goal orientation, especially when they were extroverted. These analyses also revealed that emotionally stable students were more interested in learning, especially when they had a strong sense of competence. Results are discussed in light of the limited but relevant existing literature

Resources Annotation, Retrieval and Presentation: a semantic annotation management system

International audienceThis paper addresses the problem of the management of resources metadata. A variety of responses are discussed, and we describe one possible way forward, which uses a semantic annotation management tool. The term 'semantic' describes the ability to create, retrieve, query and navigate knowledgeably about things identified by a Web URI. The support for this semantic tool is RDF, through the integration of Jena, an open-source RDF API provided by HP laboratory. Thanks to RDF capabilities, this tool offers new search features such as hierarchical browsing based on the structure of RDF vocabularies and faceted-browsing using properties lists defined by the end-user. The navigation inside annotations uses intuitive modes such as left/right and backward/forward movements. Presentation is controlled by the user using a subset of the Fresnel language to specify how RDF graphs are presented. This work is ongoing; certain open issues are raised

Thou shalt not tweet unprofessionally: an appreciative inquiry into the professional use of social media

Background: Social media may blur the line between socialisation and professional use. Traditional views on medical professionalism focus on limiting motives and behaviours to avoid situations that may compromise care. It is not surprising that social media are perceived as a threat to professionalism. Objective: To develop evidence for the professional use of social media in medicine. Methods: A qualitative framework was used based on an appreciative inquiry approach to gather perceptions and experiences of 31 participants at the 2014 Social Media Summit. Results: The main benefits of social media were the widening of networks, access to expertise from peers and other health professionals, the provision of emotional support and the ability to combat feelings of isolation. Conclusions: Appreciative inquiry is a tool that can develop the positive practices of organisations and individuals. Our results provide evidence for the professional use of social media that may contribute to guidelines to help individuals realise benefits and avoid harms

Calculer le bilan Carbone de votre parc informatique avec EcoDiag, un service EcoInfo

International audienceYou hear a lot about environmental issues, you may have initiated positive personal attitudes, you have a group will in your unit, and you are wondering about the environmental impact of digital technology in your professional environment...EcoDiag is here for you!The CNRS EcoInfo GDS has found that assessing the environmental impacts of digital technology is complex and can discourage the best will, which is why we offer you a simple and effective method to estimate the carbon footprint of your fleet through this new service based on our experience. We chose an indicator that everyone could understand: CO2e emissions (CO2e equivalent). Based on an inventory of the digital services used and the unit's computer equipment, our methodology and expertise will allow you to establish a global estimate of GHG emissions. This evaluation will be accompanied by recommendations and resources (sheets, guide, material) to integrate this work into a Hcéres-type report or use them as part of a more global carbon assessment for your structure. The provision of advice will allow you to post a policy to reduce GHG emissions generated by digital technology in the following years!Meet us in front of the poster to discover and leave with our tool for assessing the environmental impacts of your unit's digital activities. You will have the tools and a recommendation guide to control and reduce these impacts in a continuous improvement process. Concrete examples from two units will illustrate our approach and demonstrate the ease of use of the EcoDiag service.Vous entendez beaucoup parler des problématiques environnementales, vous avez peut-être initié des attitudes positives personnelles, vous avez une volonté de groupe dans votre unité, et vous vous interrogez sur l'impact environnemental du numérique de votre milieu professionnel...EcoDiag est là pour vous !Le GDS EcoInfo du CNRS a fait le constat que l'évaluation des impacts environnementaux du numérique est complexe et peut décourager les meilleures volontés, c'est pourquoi nous vous proposons une méthode simple et efficace pour estimer le bilan carbone de votre parc au travers de ce nouveau service basé sur notre expérience. Nous avons choisi un indicateur compréhensible par tous : les émissions de CO2e (Équivalent CO2). À partir d'un inventaire des services numériques utilisés et des matériels informatiques de l'unité, notre méthodologie et notre expertise vous permettront d'établir une estimation globale des émissions de GES. Cette évaluation sera accompagnée de préconisations et de ressources (fiches, guide, matériel) pour intégrer ce travail dans un rapport type Hcéres ou les utiliser dans le cadre d'un bilan carbone plus global à votre structure. L'apport de conseils vous permettra d'afficher une politique de réduction des GES générés par le numérique dans les années suivantes !Retrouvez nous devant le poster pour découvrir et repartir avec notre outil d'évaluation des impacts environnementaux des activités numériques de votre unité. Vous aurez les ficelles et un guide de préconisation pour maîtriser et diminuer ces impacts dans une démarche d'amélioration continue. Des exemples concrets réalisés dans deux unités illustreront notre démarche et vous démontreront la facilité d'utilisation du service EcoDiag

Suitability versus fidelity for rating single-photon guns

The creation of specified quantum states is important for most, if not all, applications in quantum computation and communication. The quality of the state preparation is therefore an essential ingredient in any assessment of a quantum-state gun. We show that the fidelity, under the standard definitions is not sufficient to assess quantum sources, and we propose a new measure of suitability that necessarily depends on the application for the source. We consider the performance of single-photon guns in the context of quantum key distribution (QKD) and linear optical quantum computation. Single-photon sources for QKD need radically different properties than sources for quantum computing. Furthermore, the suitability for single-photon guns is discussed explicitly in terms of experimentally accessible criteria.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures Revised per referee suggestion

Practical quantum repeaters with linear optics and double-photon guns

We show how to create practical, efficient, quantum repeaters, employing double-photon guns, for long-distance optical quantum communication. The guns create polarization-entangled photon pairs on demand. One such source might be a semiconducter quantum dot, which has the distinct advantage over parametric down-conversion that the probability of creating a photon pair is close to one, while the probability of creating multiple pairs vanishes. The swapping and purifying components are implemented by polarizing beam splitters and probabilistic optical CNOT gates.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures ReVTe