Working with Mexican ESL Teachers: Description of a Teacher Training Experience

The following paper is a description and analysis of a four-day teacher training workshop which took place in February and March of 1081 in Zacatecas, Mexico. It was designed to provide English teachers with the opportunity to experience various techniques that are currently used in teaching ESL. The design and implementation of the workshop are presented in detail. Several major issues which were brought out during the workshop process and became a significant part of the discussions will also be explored. These include the applicability of certain ESL techniques to the Mexican classroom, cross-cultural communication and its role in teacher training, the current realities of language teaching in Mexico, and finally, humanistic classrooms: their implications for educational planning and teacher training within the Mexican school system

"Canadian Ways": An Introduction to Comparative Studies of Housework, Stoves, and Diet in Great Britain and Canada

This paper compares cooking stoves, diet, and housework in Britain and Canada, focusing on evidence in Department of Immigration files on the training of British domestics in "Canadian ways" during the 1920s. Other comparisons are drawn from some late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century printed and pictorial sources. The paper questions common assumptions of essentially similar domestic material culture and work patterns in Britain and Canada and calls for systematic comparative research in this field. Résumé En s'appuyant sur des dossiers du ministère de l'Immigration relatifs à la formation des domestiques britanniques à la vie canadienne, au cours des années 20, cet article établit une comparaison entre les fourneaux de cuisine, l'alimentation et les travaux ménagers tels qu'on les connaissait en Grande-Bretagne et au Canada. Il établit aussi d'autres comparaisons au moyen de documents et d'illustrations datant de la fin du XIX' siècle et du début du XX'. Enfin, il remet en question l'idée communément admise selon laquelle la culture matérielle domestique et le comportement face au travail domestique aient été essentiellement les mêmes au Canada et en Grande-Bretagne et insiste sur la nécessité de recherches comparatives systématiques en la matière

Training, Restraining and Sustaining: Infant and Child Care in the Late Nineteenth Century

This paper addresses the implications of and some of the factors behind some training, restraining and sustaining devices for babies and small children, up to about two years old. The devices include cribs, baby walkers, safety belts and gates, and long-tube nursing bottles, along with other artifacts designed to ease the burden of child care. These material objects are connected to historical attitudes towards infancy and childhood. The discussion is not limited to the late nineteenth century, though the period provides a focal point. Résumé Cette étude examine certains facteurs qui ont exercé une influence déterminante sur les appareils d'apprentissage, de retenue et de support des nourrissons et petits enfants de moins de deux ans. Parmi ces appareils conçus pour faciliter la tâche de ceux qui prennent soin des enfants, on retrouve notamment les berceaux, les trotte-bébé, les ceintures et les barrières de sécurité, et les biberons à longue tétine. En outre, l'étude tire des conclusions sur les attitudes historiques à l'égard de la petite enfance et de l'enfance qui sont étroitement liées aux objets étudiés. Elle ne se limite pas au XIX' siècle, bien que cette période en soit le point de mire

Imperfection sensitivity of pyramidal core sandwich structures

AbstractLightweight metallic truss structures are currently being investigated for use within sandwich panel construction. These new material systems have demonstrated superior mechanical performance and are able to perform additional functions, such as thermal management and energy amelioration. The subject of this paper is an examination of the mechanical response of these structures. In particular, the retention of their stiffness and load capacity in the presence of imperfections is a central consideration, especially if they are to be used for a wide range of structural applications. To address this issue, sandwich panels with pyramidal truss cores have been tested in compression and shear, following the introduction of imperfections. These imperfections take the form of unbound nodes between the core and face sheets—a potential flaw that can occur during the fabrication process of these sandwich panels. Initial testing of small scale samples in compression provided insight into the influence of the number of unbound nodes but more importantly highlighted the impact of the spatial configuration of these imperfect nodes. Large scale samples, where bulk properties are observed and edge effects minimized, have been tested. The stiffness response has been compared with finite element simulations for a variety of unbound node configurations. Results for fully bound cores have also been compared to existing analytical predictions. Experimentally determined collapse strengths are also reported. Due to the influence of the spatial configuration of unbound nodes, upper and lower limits on stiffness and strength have been determined for compression and shear. Results show that pyramidal core sandwich structures are robust under compressive loading. However, the introduction of these imperfections causes rapid degradation of core shear properties

Information for pregnant women about caesarean birth

BACKGROUND: Information is routinely given to pregnant women, but information about caesarean birth may be inadequate. OBJECTIVES: To examine the effectiveness of information about caesarean birth. SEARCH METHODS: We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth register, CENTRAL (26 November 2002), MEDLINE [online via PubMed 1966-] and the Web of Science citation database [1995-] (20 September 2002), and reference lists of relevant articles. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised controlled trials, non-randomised clinical trials and controlled before-and-after studies of information given to pregnant women about caesarean birth. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors independently assessed trial quality and extracted data. Missing and further data were sought from trial authors unsuccessfully. Analyses were based on 'intention to treat'. Relative risk and confidence intervals were calculated and reported. Consumer reviewers commented on adequacy of information reported in each study. MAIN RESULTS: Two randomised controlled trials involving 1451 women met the inclusion criteria. Both studies aimed to reduce caesarean births by encouraging women to attempt vaginal delivery. One used a program of prenatal education and support, and the other cognitive therapy to reduce fear. Results were not combined because of differences in the study populations. Non-clinical outcomes were ascertained in both studies through questionnaires, but were subject to rates of loss to follow-up exceeding 10%. A number of important outcomes cannot be reported: knowledge or understanding; decisional conflict; and women's perceptions: of their ability to discuss care with clinicians or family/friends, of whether information needs were met, and of satisfaction with decision-making. Neither study assessed women's perception of participation in decision-making about caesarean birth, but Fraser 1997, who examined the effect of study participation on decision making, found that women in the intervention group were more likely to consider that attempting vaginal birth was easier (51% compared to 28% in control group), or more difficult (10% compared to 6%). These results could be affected by the attrition rate of 11%, and are possibly subject to bias. Neither intervention used in these trials made any difference to clinical outcomes. About 70% or more women attempted vaginal delivery in both trials, yet caesarean delivery rates exceeded 40%, at least 10% higher than was hoped. There was no significant difference between control and intervention groups for any of the outcomes measured: vaginal birth, elective/scheduled caesarean, and attempted vaginal delivery. Outcome data, although similar for both groups, were not sufficient to compare maternal and neonatal morbidity or neonatal mortality. There was no difference in the psychological outcomes for the intervention and control groups reported by either of the included trials. Consumer reviewers said information for women considering a vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) should include: risks of VBAC and elective caesarean; warning signs in labour; philosophy and policies of hospital and staff; strategies to improve chances of success; and information about probability of success with specific care givers. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: Research has focussed on encouraging women to attempt vaginal delivery. Trials of interventions to encourage women to attempt vaginal birth showed no effect, but shortcomings in study design mean that the evidence is inconclusive. Further research on this topic is urgently needed

It\u27s Not the Digital Divide - It\u27s the Socio-Techno Divide!

This paper aims at contributing to the debate about the digital divide. We first focus on what to us constitutes the root problem: the typical approaches to the development of people through and by the use of information and communication technologies (ICT). In contrast to governmental, political and technological attempts that focus almost exclusively on providing access to digital communication technologies, and expect “development” naturally to flow from that, we argue for a focus on “development” which is based on our notion of sustainable socio-economic development. We refer to “technocentric approaches” when the approaches propose and pursue technological interventions and show little regard for the actual needs of the people involved. At the other end of the scale, where the focus is on people and their developmental needs, we will speak of “sociocentric approaches”. This presents us with a different divide, which we will refer to as the “socio-techno divide”. We argue that it is this divide that has to be addressed – not the digital divide – and then present an analysis of the socio-techno divide. This illuminates the issues that need our attention and indicates an agenda for constructive engagement about the use of ICT for development in the Third and Fourth worlds