What Are We Doing to Middle School English Learners? Findings and Recommendations for Change from a Study of California EL Programs

What Are We Doing to Middle School English Learners: Research ReportEXECUTIVE SUMMARYMiddle school students who are English Learners (ELs) quickly run out of time to develop the academic uses of English and the critical skills that will enable them to succeed in the 21st century. What are schools doing during these crucial years to promote ELs' accelerated access to academic language and grade-level, standards-based instruction? How will these students catch up and be able to compete in high school, in college, and on the job market? This study concludes that middle school programs for English Learners in California are failing students and limiting their futures in profound ways. Conducted by researchers in the Quality Teaching for English Learners program at WestEd, the study was funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Interviews with 13 school districts with the highest concentration of English Learners in the state and 64 middle schools in those districts found incoherent EL programs across districts and from school to school within districts. The use of below-grade-level materials was found to be widespread in English Learner programs, remediation rather than acceleration was common, and some schools purposely decelerated students' progress through already below-grade-level materials. On California's five-level assessment of English Learners, the California English Language Development Test (CELDT), most students (56 percent) do not progress a single level in a year's time and some even regress (California Department of Education, 2008). School districts in the study identified inadequate teacher preparation for working with English Learners as the primary challenge to these students' academic success. Yet most districts did not provide professional development that would even begin to address teachers' needs. The study also found that schools did not have mechanisms for addressing challenges that they identified. Schools identified teachers of ELs' and EL students' lack of motivation as primary challenges, yet, only six schools reported a focus on student engagement as a support they offered; none reported having a focus on teacher engagement and motivation. Similarly, lack of parental involvement was identified as a major challenge by school interviewees, but only two schools reported having a focus on involving parents. Case studies were developed from classroom observations and interviews in five middle schools that were selected by triangulation of student data (substantially higher than average EL performance on standardized measures), survey responses, and district nominations. These case studies contextualize the study findings— the major challenges schools still face and the promising practices that were found. Practices in one school especially were notable, a small, autonomous district school organized with a focus on targeted grade-level support for students, concerted outreach to parents, and ongoing collegial professional development for teachers

Genetic risk of Parkinson disease and progression:: An analysis of 13 longitudinal cohorts.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if any association between previously identified alleles that confer risk for Parkinson disease and variables measuring disease progression. METHODS: We evaluated the association between 31 risk variants and variables measuring disease progression. A total of 23,423 visits by 4,307 patients of European ancestry from 13 longitudinal cohorts in Europe, North America, and Australia were analyzed. RESULTS: We confirmed the importance of GBA on phenotypes. GBA variants were associated with the development of daytime sleepiness (p.N370S: hazard ratio [HR] 3.28 [1.69-6.34]) and possible REM sleep behavior (p.T408M: odds ratio 6.48 [2.04-20.60]). We also replicated previously reported associations of GBA variants with motor/cognitive declines. The other genotype-phenotype associations include an intergenic variant near LRRK2 and the faster development of motor symptom (Hoehn and Yahr scale 3.0 HR 1.33 [1.16-1.52] for the C allele of rs76904798) and an intronic variant in PMVK and the development of wearing-off effects (HR 1.66 [1.19-2.31] for the C allele of rs114138760). Age at onset was associated with TMEM175 variant p.M393T (-0.72 [-1.21 to -0.23] in years), the C allele of rs199347 (intronic region of GPNMB, 0.70 [0.27-1.14]), and G allele of rs1106180 (intronic region of CCDC62, 0.62 [0.21-1.03]). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that alleles associated with Parkinson disease risk, in particular GBA variants, also contribute to the heterogeneity of multiple motor and nonmotor aspects. Accounting for genetic variability will be a useful factor in understanding disease course and in minimizing heterogeneity in clinical trials.The Intramural Research Program the National Institute on Aging (NIA, Z01-AG000949-02), Biogen Idec, and the Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Researc

Differences in the Presentation and Progression of Parkinson's Disease by Sex.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies reported various symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD) associated with sex. Some were conflicting or confirmed in only one study. OBJECTIVES: We examined sex associations to PD phenotypes cross-sectionally and longitudinally in large-scale data. METHODS: We tested 40 clinical phenotypes, using longitudinal, clinic-based patient cohorts, consisting of 5946 patients, with a median follow-up of 3.1 years. For continuous outcomes, we used linear regressions at baseline to test sex-associated differences in presentation, and linear mixed-effects models to test sex-associated differences in progression. For binomial outcomes, we used logistic regression models at baseline and Cox regression models for survival analyses. We adjusted for age, disease duration, and medication use. In the secondary analyses, data from 17 719 PD patients and 7588 non-PD participants from an online-only, self-assessment PD cohort were cross-sectionally evaluated to determine whether the sex-associated differences identified in the primary analyses were consistent and unique to PD. RESULTS: Female PD patients had a higher risk of developing dyskinesia early during the follow-up period, with a slower progression in activities of daily living difficulties, and a lower risk of developing cognitive impairments compared with male patients. The findings in the longitudinal, clinic-based cohorts were mostly consistent with the results of the online-only cohort. CONCLUSIONS: We observed sex-associated contributions to PD heterogeneity. These results highlight the necessity of future research to determine the underlying mechanisms and importance of personalized clinical management. © 2020 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.This study was supported by the Intramural Research Program the National Institute on Aging (NIA, Z01-AG000949-02), Biogen Idec, and the Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research

Machine learning uncovers the most robust self-report predictors of relationship quality across 43 longitudinal couples studies

Given the powerful implications of relationship quality for health and well-being, a central mission of relationship science is explaining why some romantic relationships thrive more than others. This large-scale project used machine learning (i.e., Random Forests) to 1) quantify the extent to which relationship quality is predictable and 2) identify which constructs reliably predict relationship quality. Across 43 dyadic longitudinal datasets from 29 laboratories, the top relationship-specific predictors of relationship quality were perceived-partner commitment, appreciation, sexual satisfaction, perceived-partner satisfaction, and conflict. The top individual-difference predictors were life satisfaction, negative affect, depression, attachment avoidance, and attachment anxiety. Overall, relationship-specific variables predicted up to 45% of variance at baseline, and up to 18% of variance at the end of each study. Individual differences also performed well (21% and 12%, respectively). Actor-reported variables (i.e., own relationship-specific and individual-difference variables) predicted two to four times more variance than partner-reported variables (i.e., the partner’s ratings on those variables). Importantly, individual differences and partner reports had no predictive effects beyond actor-reported relationship-specific variables alone. These findings imply that the sum of all individual differences and partner experiences exert their influence on relationship quality via a person’s own relationship-specific experiences, and effects due to moderation by individual differences and moderation by partner-reports may be quite small. Finally, relationship-quality change (i.e., increases or decreases in relationship quality over the course of a study) was largely unpredictable from any combination of self-report variables. This collective effort should guide future models of relationships

Genetic code expansion for multiprotein complex engineering

We present a baculovirus-based protein engineering method that enables site-specific introduction of unique functionalities in a eukaryotic protein complex recombinantly produced in insect cells. We demonstrate the versatility of this efficient and robust protein production platform, \u2018MultiBacTATAG\u2019, (i) for the fluorescent labeling of target proteins and biologics using click chemistries, (ii) for glycoengineering of antibodies, and (iii) for structure\u2013function studies of novel eukaryotic complexes using single-molecule F\uf6rster resonance energy transfer as well as site-specific crosslinking strategies

Large meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies identifies five loci for lean body mass

Lean body mass, consisting mostly of skeletal muscle, is important for healthy aging. We performed a genome-wide association study for whole body (20 cohorts of European ancestry with n = 38,292) and appendicular (arms and legs) lean body mass (n = 28,330) measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry or bioelectrical impedance analysis, adjusted for sex, age, height, and fat mass. Twenty-one single-nucleotide polymorphisms were significantly associated with lean body mass either genome wide (p < 5 x 10(-8)) or suggestively genome wide (p < 2.3 x 10(-6)). Replication in 63,475 (47,227 of European ancestry) individuals from 33 cohorts for whole body lean body mass and in 45,090 (42,360 of European ancestry) subjects from 25 cohorts for appendicular lean body mass was successful for five single-nucleotide polymorphisms in/ near HSD17B11, VCAN, ADAMTSL3, IRS1, and FTO for total lean body mass and for three single-nucleotide polymorphisms in/ near VCAN, ADAMTSL3, and IRS1 for appendicular lean body mass. Our findings provide new insight into the genetics of lean body mass

Making English Learner Reclassification to Fluent English Proficient Attainable or Elusive: When Meeting Criteria Is and Is Not Enough

Employing longitudinal, multi-site comparative mixed methods, we describe patterns of reclassifying and not reclassifying eligible English learner students to fluent English proficient, and we identify factors impeding and facilitating reclassification. Analyses of administrative data for 7 cohrts of students in 2 districts revealed a considerable number of students meeting all criteria, and a subset meeting at least standardized-test criteria, were not reclassified, implicating this practice in the production of long-term EL status. The rate of not reclassifying was more than 2 to 5 times higher in one district than the other. Analyses of policy documents, reclassification decision forms, staff interviews, and surveys, revealed that undergirding these differences were distinct reclassification policies and practices. We discuss policy, practice, and research implications.

Making English Learner Reclassification to Fluent English Proficient Attainable or Elusive: When Meeting Criteria Is and Is Not Enough

Employing longitudinal, multi-site comparative mixed methods, we describe patterns of reclassifying and not reclassifying eligible English learner students to fluent English proficient, and we identify factors impeding and facilitating reclassification. Analyses of administrative data for 7 cohrts of students in 2 districts revealed a considerable number of students meeting all criteria, and a subset meeting at least standardized-test criteria, were not reclassified, implicating this practice in the production of long-term EL status. The rate of not reclassifying was more than 2 to 5 times higher in one district than the other. Analyses of policy documents, reclassification decision forms, staff interviews, and surveys, revealed that undergirding these differences were distinct reclassification policies and practices. We discuss policy, practice, and research implications.

Desarrollo de Aplicacion Móvil Ave María "AM" para Teléfonos Inteligentes

La tecnología en el Ecuador ha sufrido una gran transformación, y esta ha sido a favor de sus habitantes, en parte por el apoyo recibido en este gobierno, como para citar algo; valor de 782 millones de dólares destinado para la inversión en Ciencias, Tecnologías y por otra parte el potencial que poseen sus habitantes y que poco a poco empiezan a convencerse de que vale la pena demostrar sus habilidades y destrazas en su País de origen.GuayaquilMagíster en Administración de Empresa