Language support for immigrant children: a study of state schools in the UK and US

In recent decades, immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers have sought a new way of life in large numbers, often leaving their countries of origin behind in search of places that offer a better way of life. The purpose of this study was to investigate how elementary and middle school students in state schools in Reading, England (primarily speakers of Asian languages), and Richmond, Virginia (primarily speakers of Spanish), were supported academically, when most children’s first language was not English. The authors were interested in exploring whether or not there were cultural or structural differences in the way each country helped or hindered these students as they progressed through the school systems. Three UK schools in a district of approximately 100,000 and three US schools in a district of approximately 250,000 were the focus of this exploration from 2000 to 2003. Findings indicated that there were cultural and legislative differences and similarities. Teachers and administrators in both countries attempted to provide services with limited and sometimes diminishing resources. Community support varied based on resources, attitudes toward various ethnic groups, and the coping strategies adopted by these groups in their new environments. Marked differences appeared with regard to the manner in which assessments took place and how the results were made available to the public

Immortalized, premalignant epithelial cell populations contain long-lived, label-retaining cells that asymmetrically divide and retain their template DNA

Abstract Introduction During selective segregation of DNA, a cell asymmetrically divides and retains its template DNA. Asymmetric division yields daughter cells whose genome reflects that of the parents, simultaneously protecting the parental cell from genetic errors that may occur during DNA replication. We hypothesized that long-lived epithelial cells are present in immortal, premalignant cell populations, undergo asymmetric division, retain their template DNA strands, and cycle both during allometric growth and during pregnancy. Methods The glands of 3-week-old immune-competent Balb/C female mice were used intact or cleared of host epithelium and implanted with ductal-limited, lobule-limited, or alveolar-ductal progenitor cells derived from COMMA-D1 pre-malignant epithelial cells. 5-Bromo-2-deoxyuridine (5-BrdU) was administered to identify those cells that retain their template DNA. Nulliparous mice were then either injected with [3H]-thymidine (3H-TdR) to distinguish 5-BrdU label-retaining cells that enter the cell cycle and euthanized, or mated, injected with 3H-TdR, and euthanized at various days after coitus. Sections were stained for estrogen receptor-α (ER-α) or progesterone receptor (PR) with immunohistochemistry. Cells labeled with both 5-BrdU and 3H-TdR were indicative of label-retaining epithelial cells (LRECs). Results Cells that retained a 5-BrdU label and cells labeled with [3H]-thymidine were found in all mice and were typically detected along the branching epithelium of mature mouse mammary glands. Cells containing double-labeled nuclei (LRECs) were found in the intact mammary glands of both pregnant and nulliparous mice, and in mammary glands implanted with premalignant cells. Double-labeled cells (3H-TdR/5-BrdU) represent a small portion of cells in the mammary gland that cycle and retain their template DNA (5-BrdU). Some label-retaining cells were also ER-α or PR positive. LRECs distributed their second label (3H-TdR) to daughter cells, and this effect persisted during pregnancy. LRECs, and small focal hyperplasia, were found in all immortalized premalignant mammary-implant groups. Conclusions The results indicate that a subpopulation of long-lived, label-retaining epithelial cells (LRECs) is present in immortal premalignant cell populations. These LRECs persist during pregnancy, retain their original DNA, and a small percentage express ER-α and PR. We speculate that LRECs in premalignant hyperplasia represent the long-lived (memory) cells that maintain these populations indefinitely.Peer Reviewe

Construction and validation of an developmental profile assessment tool for children with autistic spectrum disorder

Nos últimos anos a investigação tem dado particular relevância às alterações do Processamento Sensorial nas crianças com perturbações do espectro do autismo (PEA) e a literatura refere que entre 42% a 88% das crianças com PEA apresentam este tipo de disfunção. Nesta linha foi definido um projeto de investigação centrado na construção de uma escala que avalie a tradicional tríade que caracteriza as crianças com PEA (Interação, Comunicação e Comportamento e interesses repetitivos e estereotipados), enriquecida pela inclusão de um novo domínio: o Processamento Sensorial. Com a construção e validação desta escala pretendemos que pais e profissionais utilizem colaborativamente um instrumento de avaliação da intervenção que lhes permita monitorizar o processo de apoio e adequar as suas práticas. Neste artigo descrevemos os procedimentos e os resultados das sucessivas fases de construção do instrumento, desde as análises iniciais mais qualitativas até aos estudos centrados na análise quantitativa dos itens.During the last few years, research has focused on changes in Sensory Processing in children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). As a result, literature has shown that between 42% and 88% of children with ASD present this type of disorder. Based on these findings, a research project was designed centring on the construction of a tool to assess the traditional triad that characterizes children with ASD (Interaction, Communication and Behaviour and Repetitive and Stereotyped Interests), to which was added a new domain: Sensory Processing. By constructing and validating this assessment tool, the intention is for parents and professionals to collaboratively apply this intervention assessment instrument in order to monitor the support process and adapt their practices. In this paper, we describe procedures and results of the successive stages entailed in constructing this instrument, from the first primarily qualitative analyses up to the studies centred on the quantitative item analysis.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT)ABPEE - Associação Brasileira de Pesquisadores em Educação EspecialConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)CAPESMinistério da Educação - BrasilMinistério da Ciência e da Tecnologia - BrasilGoverno Federal - Brasi

Comparison of the Disease Activity Score Using Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate and C-reactive Protein in African Americans with Rheumatoid Arthritis

The Disease Activity Score based on 28 joints (DAS28) has been increasingly used in clinical practice and research studies of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Studies have reported discordance between DAS28 based on erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) versus C-reactive protein (CRP) in RA patients. However such comparison is lacking in African-Americans with RA

Vitamin D Status and Its Associations with Disease Activity and Severity in African Americans with Recent-onset Rheumatoid Arthritis

To examine the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency and the associations of vitamin D concentration with disease status in African Americans with rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Multiple agency perspective, family control, and private information abuse in an emerging economy

Using a comprehensive sample of listed companies in Hong Kong this paper investigates how family control affects private information abuses and firm performance in emerging economies. We combine research on stock market microstructure with more recent studies of multiple agency perspectives and argue that family ownership and control over the board increases the risk of private information abuse. This, in turn, has a negative impact on stock market performance. Family control is associated with an incentive to distort information disclosure to minority shareholders and obtain private benefits of control. However, the multiple agency roles of controlling families may have different governance properties in terms of investors’ perceptions of private information abuse. These findings contribute to our understanding of the conflicting evidence on the governance role of family control within a multiple agency perspectiv

Science and Ideology in Economic, Political, and Social Thought

This paper has two sources: One is my own research in three broad areas: business cycles, economic measurement and social choice. In all of these fields I attempted to apply the basic precepts of the scientific method as it is understood in the natural sciences. I found that my effort at using natural science methods in economics was met with little understanding and often considerable hostility. I found economics to be driven less by common sense and empirical evidence, then by various ideologies that exhibited either a political or a methodological bias, or both. This brings me to the second source: Several books have appeared recently that describe in historical terms the ideological forces that have shaped either the direct areas in which I worked, or a broader background. These books taught me that the ideological forces in the social sciences are even stronger than I imagined on the basis of my own experiences. The scientific method is the antipode to ideology. I feel that the scientific work that I have done on specific, long standing and fundamental problems in economics and political science have given me additional insights into the destructive role of ideology beyond the history of thought orientation of the works I will be discussing

Cigarette smoking, disease severity and autoantibody expression in African Americans with recent-onset rheumatoid arthritis

To examine the association of smoking with clinical and serologic features in African Americans with recent-onset rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to explore whether this association is dependent on the presence of the HLA-DRB1 shared epitope (SE)

Older adults' beliefs about physician-estimated life expectancy: a cross-sectional survey

BACKGROUND: Estimates of life expectancy assist physicians and patients in medical decision-making. The time-delayed benefits for many medical treatments make an older adult's life expectancy estimate particularly important for physicians. The purpose of this study is to assess older adults' beliefs about physician-estimated life expectancy. METHODS: We performed a mixed qualitative-quantitative cross-sectional study in which 116 healthy adults aged 70+ were recruited from two local retirement communities. We interviewed them regarding their beliefs about physician-estimated life expectancy in the context of a larger study on cancer screening beliefs. Semi-structured interviews of 80 minutes average duration were performed in private locations convenient to participants. Demographic characteristics as well as cancer screening beliefs and beliefs about life expectancy were measured. Two independent researchers reviewed the open-ended responses and recorded the most common themes. The research team resolved disagreements by consensus. RESULTS: This article reports the life-expectancy results portion of the larger study. The study group (n = 116) was comprised of healthy, well-educated older adults, with almost a third over 85 years old, and none meeting criteria for dementia. Sixty-four percent (n = 73) felt that their physicians could not correctly estimate their life expectancy. Sixty-six percent (n = 75) wanted their physicians to talk with them about their life expectancy. The themes that emerged from our study indicate that discussions of life expectancy could help older adults plan for the future, maintain open communication with their physicians, and provide them knowledge about their medical conditions. CONCLUSION: The majority of the healthy older adults in this study were open to discussions about life expectancy in the context of discussing cancer screening tests, despite awareness that their physicians' estimates could be inaccurate. Since about a third of participants perceived these discussions as not useful or even harmful, physicians should first ascertain patients' preferences before discussing their life expectancies

Characteristics of Sexual Abuse in Childhood and Adolescence Influence Sexual Risk Behavior in Adulthood

Childhood and adolescent sexual abuse has been associated with subsequent (adult) sexual risk behavior, but the effects of force and type of sexual abuse on sexual behavior outcomes have been less well-studied. The present study investigated the associations between sexual abuse characteristics and later sexual risk behavior, and explored whether gender of the child/adolescent moderated these relations. Patients attending an STD clinic completed a computerized survey that assessed history of sexual abuse as well as lifetime and current sexual behavior. Participants were considered sexually abused if they reported a sexual experience (1) before age 13 with someone 5 or more years older, (2) between the ages of 13 and 16 with someone 10 or more years older, or (3) before the age of 17 involving force or coercion. Participants who were sexually abused were further categorized based on two abuse characteristics, namely, use of penetration and force. Analyses included 1177 participants (n=534 women; n=643 men). Those who reported sexual abuse involving penetration and/or force reported more adult sexual risk behavior, including the number of lifetime partners and number of previous STD diagnoses, than those who were not sexually abused and those who were abused without force or penetration. There were no significant differences in sexual risk behavior between nonabused participants and those who reported sexual abuse without force and without penetration. Gender of the child/adolescent moderated the association between sexual abuse characteristics and adult sexual risk behavior; for men, sexual abuse with force and penetration was associated with the greatest number of episodes of sex trading, whereas for women, those who were abused with penetration, regardless of whether the abuse involved force, reported the most episodes of sex trading. These findings indicate that more severe sexual abuse is associated with riskier adult sexual behavior