A market analysis of parental decision -making in the selection of a private kindergarten in Taiwan

In view of the scarcity of educational marketing/public relations studies in Taiwan, particularly at the kindergarten level and the need to recruit and retain students in a highly competitive environment, this research was conducted among a sample of parents whose children attend a large private kindergarten in one of the major cities in Taiwan. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to collect data for this study. The objectives of the study were to find out the demographic profile of the parents whose children enrolled at the kindergarten, their information seeking patterns regarding kindergarten education, factors affecting their choice of kindergartens, and their opinion about the services of the kindergarten where their children are enrolled in the areas of curriculum, faculty, and administrative services. The research revealed that parents of the kindergarten students studied are judicious shoppers for their children\u27s education; they shopped extensively for a kindergarten which offered the highest cost-benefit ratio. For their children, they want a kindergarten which has a kind, warm, dedicated, and highly qualified faculty. They prefer a kindergarten which not only offers a balanced bilingual curriculum but also helps their students make a smooth transition into elementary schools. The study suggests that the parents are overwhelmingly satisfied with the curriculum, the faculty, and the administration of the kindergarten where their children are enrolled

A market analysis of parental decision -making in the selection of a private kindergarten in Taiwan

In view of the scarcity of educational marketing/public relations studies in Taiwan, particularly at the kindergarten level and the need to recruit and retain students in a highly competitive environment, this research was conducted among a sample of parents whose children attend a large private kindergarten in one of the major cities in Taiwan. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to collect data for this study. The objectives of the study were to find out the demographic profile of the parents whose children enrolled at the kindergarten, their information seeking patterns regarding kindergarten education, factors affecting their choice of kindergartens, and their opinion about the services of the kindergarten where their children are enrolled in the areas of curriculum, faculty, and administrative services. The research revealed that parents of the kindergarten students studied are judicious shoppers for their children\u27s education; they shopped extensively for a kindergarten which offered the highest cost-benefit ratio. For their children, they want a kindergarten which has a kind, warm, dedicated, and highly qualified faculty. They prefer a kindergarten which not only offers a balanced bilingual curriculum but also helps their students make a smooth transition into elementary schools. The study suggests that the parents are overwhelmingly satisfied with the curriculum, the faculty, and the administration of the kindergarten where their children are enrolled

Math-related career aspirations and choices within Eccles et al.'s expectancy-value theory of achievement-related behaviors

Which occupation to pursue is one of the more consequential decisions people make and represents a key developmental task. Yet the underlying developmental processes associated with either individual or group differences in occupational choices are still not well understood. This study contributes toward filling this gap, focusing in particular on the math domain. We examined two aspects of Eccles et al.’s (1983) expectancy–value theory of achievement-related behaviors: (a) the reciprocal associations between adolescents’ expectancy and subjective task value beliefs and adolescents’ career plans and (b) the multiplicative association between expectancies and values in predicting occupational outcomes in the math domain. Our analyses indicate that adolescents’ expectancy and subjective task value beliefs about math and their math- or science-related career plans reported at the beginning and end of high school predict each other over time, with the exception of intrinsic interest in math. Furthermore, multiplicative associations between adolescents’ expectancy and subjective task value beliefs about math predict math-related career attainment approximately 15 years after graduation from high school. Gender differences emerged regarding career-related beliefs and career attainment, with male students being more likely than female to both pursue and attain math-related careers. These gender differences could not be explained by differences in beliefs about math as an academic subject. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved

Gigapixel Computational Imaging

Today, consumer cameras produce photographs with tens of millions of pixels. The recent trend in image sensor resolution seems to suggest that we will soon have cameras with billions of pixels. However, the resolution of any camera is fundamentally limited by geometric aberrations. We derive a scaling law that shows that, by using computations to correct for aberrations, we can create cameras with unprecedented resolution that have low lens complexity and compact form factor. In this paper, we present an architecture for gigapixel imaging that is compact and utilizes a simple optical design. The architecture consists of a ball lens shared by several small planar sensors, and a post-capture image processing stage. Several variants of this architecture are shown for capturing a contiguous hemispherical field of view as well as a complete spherical field of view. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our architecture by showing example images captured with two proof-of-concept gigapixel cameras. 1

Sexual orientation, psychological well-being, and mental health : A longitudinal analysis from adolescence to young adulthood

In the past, mainly cross-sectional research has shown that nonheterosexuals report lower levels of psychological well-being and functioning than heterosexuals. Drawing on minority stress theory (Meyer, 2003), life span theory, and identity formation theory (Erikson, 1968), the present study analyzed developmental trajectories in psychological functioning from adolescence to young adulthood in nonheterosexual and heterosexual populations. Based on data from the Michigan Study of Adolescent and Adult Life Transitions (MSALT), nonheterosexual adolescents and young adults were compared with their heterosexual peers regarding their psychological development from the ages of 16 to 28. Overall levels of depressive affect, suicidal ideation, alcohol consumption, and social alienation were elevated for nonheterosexual young adolescents. For depressive affect and social alienation as well as suicidal ideation, the 2 groups grew apart during their high-school years but converged after leaving high school. For alcohol consumption, a divergent trend emerged after high school. No differences were found for self-esteem. None of the interactions between sexual orientation and gender reached statistical significance. The results point toward a higher degree of complexity in developmental patterns compared with results of previous studies. The study underscores the nonstatic nature of mental health disparities and highlights the potential and the need to prevent psychological maladjustment for nonheterosexual populations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved