Mathematical performance of students with special needs in secondary schools. An exploratory study of the fifth to the ninth grade in Munich special schools

In der vorliegenden Studie wurden die Mathematikschulleistungen von 124 Schülerinnen und Schüler der 5. bis 9. Klasse aus drei Münchner Förderzentren untersucht. Ziel der Studie war es, das mathematische Leistungsspektrum der Schülerinnen und Schüler mit sonderpädagogischem Förderbedarf in der Sekundarstufe zu ermitteln. Das Spektrum der Schülerinnen und Schüler einer Klasse war dabei sehr heterogen. Generell festzustellen ist, dass die mathematischen Basiskompetenzen, also die Mengen-Zahlen-Kompetenzen und das Konventions- und Regelwissen, bei diesen Schülerinnen und Schüler der Sekundarstufe nicht ausreichend gesichert waren. Erwartungsgemäß waren die mathematischen Kompetenzen in den höheren Klassen weiter entwickelt als in den niedrigeren Jahrgangsstufen. Jedoch geben neben der Klassenstufe auch die Einschätzungen der Lehrerinnen und Lehrer bezüglich des Bedarfs nach individueller Unterstützung der Schülerinnen und Schüler sowie des Stands nach dem Regellehrplan der Schülerinnen und Schüler eine signifikante Varianzaufklärung auf die Schulleistung in Mathematik. Dies stellt eine heterogene Schülerschaft in der Sekundarstufe der Förderschulen dar und zeigt, dass eine Klassenbildung nach Schuljahren nicht zu leistungshomogenen Gruppen führt. (DIPF/Orig.)The major goal of the Test was to determine mathematical skills of students with special educational needs (SEN) from fifth to ninth grade. Based on a sample of 124 students with special educational needs (SEN) of three special schools in Munich it is shown, that the skills are within a very heterogeneous range. As a general rule basic mathematical skills, such as quantity-number competencies and knowledge of mathematical conventions and rules, were not applied properly by most of the students. Although in average the math skills improve in higher grades, school performance by grade level and age were no significant in the regression models. There is a significant connection between "necessary support" and the "state after the regular curriculum" mathematics performance. (DIPF/Orig.

Apparent phonon side band modes in pi-conjugated systems: polymers, oligomers and crystals

The emission spectra of many pi-conjugated polymers and oligomers contain side-band replicas with apparent frequencies that do not match the Raman active mode frequencies. Using a time dependent model we show that in such many mode systems, the increased damping of the time dependent transition dipole moment correlation function results in an effective elimination of the vibrational modes from the emission spectrum; subsequently causing the appearance of a regularly spaced progression at a new apparent frequency. We use this damping dependent vibrational reshaping to quantitatively account for the vibronic structure in the emission spectra of pi-conjugated systems in the form of films, dilute solutions and single crystals. In particular, we show that by using the experimentally measured Raman spectrum we can account in detail for the apparent progression frequencies and their relative intensities in the emission spectrum.Comment: Presented in "Optical Probes 2005", Bangalore, Indi

Das mathematische Leistungsspektrum bei Schülerinnen und Schülern mit sonderpädagogischem Förderbedarft in der Sekundarstufe. Ein explorativer Querschnitt der fünften bis neunten Klassenstufe in Münchner Förderschulen

In der vorliegenden Studie wurden die Mathematikschulleistungen von 124 Schülerinnen und Schüler der 5. bis 9. Klasse aus drei Münchner Förderzentren untersucht. Ziel der Studie war es, das mathematische Leistungsspektrum der Schülerinnen und Schüler mit sonderpädagogischem Förderbedarf in der Sekundarstufe zu ermitteln. Das Spektrum der Schülerinnen und Schüler einer Klasse war dabei sehr heterogen. Generell festzustellen ist, dass die mathematischen Basiskompetenzen, also die Mengen-Zahlen-Kompetenzen und das Konventions- und Regelwissen, bei diesen Schülerinnen und Schüler der Sekundarstufe nicht ausreichend gesichert waren. Erwartungsgemäß waren die mathematischen Kompetenzen in den höheren Klassen weiter entwickelt als in den niedrigeren Jahrgangsstufen. Jedoch geben neben der Klassenstufe auch die Einschätzungen der Lehrerinnen und Lehrer bezüglich des Bedarfs nach individueller Unterstützung der Schülerinnen und Schüler sowie des Stands nach dem Regellehrplan der Schülerinnen und Schüler eine signifikante Varianzaufklärung auf die Schulleistung in Mathematik. Dies stellt eine heterogene Schülerschaft in der Sekundarstufe der Förderschulen dar und zeigt, dass eine Klassenbildung nach Schuljahren nicht zu leistungshomogenen Gruppen führt

IgY antibodies: The promising potential to overcome antibiotic resistance

Antibiotic resistant bacteria are a growing threat to global health security. Whilst the emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a natural phenomenon, it is also driven by antibiotic exposure in health care, agriculture, and the environment. Antibiotic pressure and inappropriate use of antibiotics are important factors which drive resistance. Apart from their use to treat bacterial infections in humans, antibiotics also play an important role in animal husbandry. With limited antibiotic options, alternate strategies are required to overcome AMR. Passive immunization through oral, nasal and topical administration of egg yolk-derived IgY antibodies from immunized chickens were recently shown to be effective for treating bacterial infections in animals and humans. Immunization of chickens with specific antigens offers the possibility of creating specific antibodies targeting a wide range of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In this review, we describe the growing global problem of antimicrobial resistance and highlight the promising potential of the use of egg yolk IgY antibodies for the treatment of bacterial infections, particularly those listed in the World Health Organization priority list

Activation energies of photoinduced unimolecular, bimolecular and termolecular processes on silica gel surfaces

This article was published in the journal, Photochemical and Photobiological Sciences [© Royal Society of Chemistry and Owner Societies]. The definitive version is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/c0pp00256aActivation energies for energy and electron transfer have been measured in various systems on silica gel. In the case of ion-electron recombination, a facile technique involving fluorescence recovery is described which complements diffuse reflectance spectroscopy in the study of these systems. In bimolecular anthracene/azulene systems, activation energies have been shown to be independent of pre-treatment temperature in the range 25–210 °C, demonstrating that physisorbed water plays little role in determining diffusion rates on silica gel. In a ternary anthracene/azulene/perylene system, we have for the first time presented comparative activation energies for the diffusion of azulene and its radical cation, and have shown a greater activation energy for diffusion of the latter species

Probing the interplay between factors determining reaction rates on silica gel using termolecular systems

This article was published in the journal, Photochemical and Photobiological Sciences [© Royal Society of Chemistry and Owner Societies]. The definitive version is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/c2pp25171jIn this study we have compared energy and electron transfer reactions in termolecular systems using a nanosecond diffuse reflectance laser flash photolysis technique. We have previously investigated these processes on silica gel surfaces for bimolecular systems and electron transfer in termolecular systems. The latter systems involved electron transfer between three arene molecules with azulene acting as a molecular shuttle. In this study we present an alternative electron transfer system using trans β-carotene as an electron donor in order to effectively immobilise all species except the shuttle, providing the first unambiguous evidence for radical ion mobility. In the energy transfer system we use naphthalene, a structural isomer of azulene, as the shuttle, facilitating energy transfer from a selectively excited benzophenone sensitiser to 9-cyanoanthracene. Bimolecular rate constants for all of these processes have been measured and new insights into the factors determining the rates of these reactions on silica gel have been obtained

The size of electron-hole pairs in pi conjugated systems

We have performed momentum dependent electron energy-loss studies of the electronic excitations in sexithiophene and compared the results to those from parent oligomers. Our experiment probes the dynamic structure factor S(q,omega)and we show that the momentum dependent intensity variation of the excitations observed can be used to extract the size of the electron-hole pair created in the excitation process. The extension of the electron-hole pairs along the molecules is comparable to the length of the molecules and thus maybe only limited by structural constraints. Consequently, the primary intramolecular electron-hole pairs are relatively weakly bound. We find no evidence for the formation of excitations localized on single thiophene units.Comment: RevTex, 3 figures, to appear in Physical Review Letter

Thyroid-Hormone-Induced Browning of White Adipose Tissue Does Not Contribute to Thermogenesis and Glucose Consumption.

Regulation of body temperature critically depends on thyroid hormone (TH). Recent studies revealed that TH induces browning of white adipose tissue, possibly contributing to the observed hyperthermia in hyperthyroid patients and potentially providing metabolic benefits. Here, we show that browning by TH requires TH-receptor β and occurs independently of the sympathetic nervous system. The beige fat, however, lacks sufficient adrenergic stimulation and is not metabolically activated despite high levels of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1). Studies at different environmental temperatures reveal that TH instead causes hyperthermia by actions in skeletal muscle combined with a central body temperature set-point elevation. Consequently, the metabolic and thermogenic effects of systemic hyperthyroidism were maintained in UCP1 knockout mice, demonstrating that neither beige nor brown fat contributes to the TH-induced hyperthermia and elevated glucose consumption, and underlining that the mere presence of UCP1 is insufficient to draw conclusions on the therapeutic potential of browning agents