Optimizing a Law School’s Course Schedule

[Excerpt] “Just like other educational institutions, law schools must schedule courses by taking into consideration student needs, faculty resources, and logistical support such as classroom size and equipment needs. Course scheduling is an administrative function, typically handled by an Assistant Dean or an Associate Dean, who works with the faculty and the registrar to balance these considerations in advance of the registration process. Usually, the entire academic year is scheduled in advance, although the spring semester may be labeled tentative until registration begins for that semester. It’s hard to imagine, but some schools even publish a two-year schedule of upper-division courses so that students can plan their entire law school career in advance. In order to give assistance to those academics involved for the first time in the scheduling process, this article discusses the law school scheduling process and how a scheduling software package has worked to successfully automate what has been seen as one of the most abysmal administrative tasks of an Associate Dean. We first provide a background to course scheduling at a typical law school. We then present a review of the tools for, and literature on, course scheduling, followed by a discussion of how technology can be applied to course scheduling in general, and our outcomes of applying this technology in a law school environment. We close with a brief summary.

News about nanotechnology: a longitudinal framing analysis of newspaper reporting on nanotechnology.

Governments and businesses around the world have invested billions of pounds in nanotechnology research and development, and more than a thousand consumer products which manufacturers claim to involve nanotechnology are currently on the market. As such, the applications from this emerging field of science and technology have the potential for great impact on individuals and society, making it a recurring subject of news reporting worldwide. Scholars say mainstream news media are the primary places in which citizens learn about science and technology, therefore creating opportunities for democratic debate about these topics. This thesis explores the ways in which nanotechnology is reported in order to understand how journalists strive to make sense of it for their audiences. It analyses 759 articles from two opinion-leading newspapers – The Guardian and The New York Times – in order to address the following research questions: How do journalists frame nanotechnology for their audiences? How do the characteristic features of the framing processes change over time? And to what extent does the reporting open opportunities for meaningful, democratic discussion around nanotechnology? To answer these questions, the research evaluates literature around the reporting of science and technology, in particular nanotechnology. Using quantitative and qualitative approaches to framing, this thesis finds the coverage is overwhelmingly positive in its treatment of nanotechnology, suggesting it closely aligns with the business and government interests. Additionally, claims about the potential benefits of nanotechnology are prioritised over risk claims in news articles, with the most common risk and benefit claims being those that are more likely to materialise decades into the future, if ever. Altogether, in failing to discuss applications and potential risks of nanotechnology without drawing on popular culture references limits the opportunity for meaningful, democratic discussion and debate

LIBERAL AGRICULTURAL TRADE AS A PUBLIC GOOD: FREE TRADE VERSUS FREE RIDING UNDER GATT

International Relations/Trade,

Tuning out or Tuned Out? A Critical Discourse Analysis of Youth Political Participation in Britain

Young people do not vote in the same numbers as older generations, which causes considerable concern within British democratic life. They are seen as detached and disengaged, however, the focus on voting and other traditional forms of political participation is arguably a narrow way of assessing this generation’s political engagement. This paper discusses a critical discourse analysis of recent media texts on youth political participation and argues that media coverage of young people’s political participation furthers the misconception that the youth of Britain today are not interested in politics and political issues. It is argued that notions of youth political participation must extend beyond traditional political engagement, namely voting

Introduction to the Special Issue on Voice and Representation of Marginal Groups

Advertising, Marketing, Public Relations and contemporary News: in these potentially powerful forms of cultural communication whose voices do we hear and which of these voices command most attention? This special edition of the Journal of Promotional Communication offers some tentative answers to these important societal questions. Thus in this issue the subject of voice and both its re-presentation and representation are addressed and rightly afforded critical importance within the realms of media communication and culture. As Couldry (2010) argues, voice is fundamental as a process by which individuals can give their accounts, but vitally, he also refers to the idea of voice as a value too. That is to say we can understand much about broader societal values through nuanced appreciations of types of voices heard and the levels of being heard. In this special issue we are most interested and concerned with the voices we do not hear and those we hear framed in a manner that reduces their authority

Tracking changes in everyday experiences of disability and disability sport within the context of the 2012 London Paralympics

The 2012 Paralympics was the biggest ever, the most accessible and best attended in its 64-year history. The Paralympics and ideas of disability associated with the Games provide significant opportunity for reflection on how far societal opinions, attitudes and behaviour have changed regarding disability. In 2012 – the first ever “legacy games” – an explicit aim of the Paralympics was to “transform the perception of disabled people in society”, (Channel 4), and use sport to contribute to “a better world for all people with a disability” (IPC 2011). The 2012 Games therefore came with a social agenda: to challenge the current perceptions many people have about disability and disability sport. Within this report – commissioned by the UK’s Paralympic broadcaster, Channel 4 – we consider everyday experiences of disability and disability sport within the context of the London 2012 Paralympics and televised coverage of the Games. The analysis is based 140 in-depth interviews that took place in the UK over a period of eighteen months, during the lead up to, and immediately after, the Games: between January 2011 and September 2012. Embedded in the lifeworld of our participants, we ask whether the 2012 Paralympics was successful in changing perceptions of disability

Optimizing a Law School\u27s Course Schedule

If you have ever attempted to prepare a law school class schedule—juggling curricular needs, classroom sizes, professorial whims—you will know how hard a task is involved. If you bother the person in charge of the schedule too much, he or she might unleash the powers of the scheduler upon you. Next year you may find yourself teaching “Legal Spelling” on Saturday mornings at 8:00 A.M

'The straw that broke the camel's back': an evaluation of the practice of cumulative effects assessment at six local authorities

Cumulative effects are incrementally additive effects which become significant at a certain point. Cumulative effects assessment (CEA) is the process of assessing the cumulative effects of a project or policy. Such cumulative effects currently form a major environmental issue in New Zealand, as does the process of CEA. The literature surrounding CEA shows in explicit detail that it is a very challenging process, fraught with difficulties. Cumulative effects are inherent within the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) and are required to be addressed by local authorities when; developing plans, assessing resource consent applications, and undertaking other tasks in order to prevent the cumulative degradation of our country’s resources. This research undertaken in this dissertation investigates the different approaches that six local authorities have taken towards addressing cumulative effects and explores the constraints that each of those local authorities face. A multiple case study approach was adopted that involved semi-structured interviews with both a policy planner and a consent planner from each of the following case study local authorities: Environment Canterbury, Otago Regional Council, Christchurch City Council, Dunedin City Council, Waimakariri District Council and Queenstown-Lakes District Council. These interviews provided a valuable insight into the practice of CEA at the local authority level, despite the limited generalisability of the case study approach. Literature surrounding the CEA process was reviewed throughout the research aspect of this dissertation, and the common themes and constraints of CEA practice were compared to form an evaluative framework that presented the findings. The findings showed that the primary approach adopted is the strategic setting of qualitative and quantitative standards through plans (both regional and district). There is a clear difference between the local authorities in the level of consideration that each gives to cumulative effects within their own various plans. From primary consideration at the plan development stage, down to the inclusion of specific rules and assessment matters and project level CEA. The lower the level of consideration within a plan the more likely it is that project level CEA is carried out hence more specific, detailed CEA is promoted. Throughout the local authorities studied, a range of methods for regulating adverse cumulative effects were adopted. A major weakness of practice is the lack of thresholds (or means) for determining when an increment will become significant and be ‘the straw that broke the camel’s back’. This determination of cumulative significance forms the crux of the difficulties surrounding CEA. The ‘case by case’ approach adopted by judicial determinations stemming from the RMA makes assessing individual applications for their contribution to cumulative effects a major challenge. Proving any cause-effect linkages of a significant cumulative effect is also difficult when dealing with small scale increments. The interpretation of the precedent effect and permitted baseline issues provide other factors that add to the complexity of CEA practice. The consideration of cumulative effects in plans down to the low policy level should be emphasised as a practical means of enhancing CEA by both applicants and local authorities when assessing applications. The use of checklists, specific to cumulative effects, should be promoted and adopted to ensure that sufficient consideration is being given to cumulative effects. Planning practitioners need guidance on the most effective approaches to adopt. As a result of this dissertation, it was concluded that the RMA should be amended in order to place a stronger emphasis on cumulative effects in both district and regional plans and assessments of environmental effects (AEEs). Research should be undertaken into the practical effectiveness of strategic tendering for resources susceptible to cumulative degradation, and also into the outcomes of the various approaches to CEA examined in this dissertation. CEA is a practice that needs to be constantly developed and reviewed in order to promote effective outcomes