Citizenship Education for Adult Immigrants: Changes Over the Last Ten Years

During the past few years Citizenship and Immigration Canada has significantly changed the citizenship process by modifying the application procedure, eliminating many citizenship judge positions, introducing a multiple-choice test, and restructuring the citizenship ceremony itself. In order to assess the impact of these changes on citizenship education, we located and contacted citizenship programs across the country. For comparison purposes we followed much the same procedure used in a study conducted for the Secretary of State 10 years ago. The current study identified far fewer programs available to adult immigrants than in the past. Furthermore, since the last study the scope of the content in citizenship education programs has remained essentially unchanged in some instances or has been reduced in others. Recommendations are made for policy-makers.Depuis quelques années, Citoyenneté et Immigration Canada a modifié considérablement le processus d'obtention de la citoyenneté en apportant des changements à la procédure de demande, en éliminant plusieurs postes de juges de la citoyenneté, en y ajoutant une évaluation à choix multiples et en restructurant la cérémonie de remise des certificats de citoyenneté. Dans le but d'évaluer l'impact de ces changements sur l'éducation civique, nous avons identifié des programmes de la citoyenneté de par le pays et en avons contacté les responsables. Four faciliter la comparaison, nous avons suivi de près la même procédure qui a été employée lors d'une étude entreprise pour le Secrétaire d'État il y a 10 ans. Notre étude a noté que le nombre de programmes mis à la disposition des immigrants adultes a beaucoup diminué. De plus, depuis la dernière étude à ce sujet, l'envergure du contenu des programmes d'éducation civique a demeuré essentiellement inchangée dans certains cas, et a diminué dans d'autres. Nous offrons des recommandations aux initiateurs de programme

A qualitative assessment of using lay trainers with type 2 diabetes in an intervention programme for people at risk of type 2 diabetes

Objective: More knowledge is needed on the impact of expert patients within health intervention programmes. The University of East Anglia Impaired Fasting Glucose (UEA-IFG) feasibility programme was a structured dietary and exercise intervention to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in susceptible individuals. Lay volunteers with T2DM (T2 trainers) were recruited to support participants in adopting healthier lifestyles. This study aimed to explore the acceptability, perceived effectiveness and sustainability of lay trainers within the programme. Design: A qualitative focus group study. Setting: A clinical research unit in Norwich, United Kingdom (UK). Method: Focus groups were conducted with: (1) T2 trainers (n = 15); (2) programme participants who had received their support (n = 11); and (3) salaried staff facilitators who had worked alongside the T2 trainers (n = 3). Framework analysis was applied to identify the different experiences of the lay trainer role. Results: All groups perceived advantages for peer support, particularly in sharing the day-to-day experiences of living with T2DM. However, staff facilitators raised the importance of role boundaries, emphasizing that T2 trainers should not provide medical advice. Acceptability of T2 trainers was enhanced by contacting participants at a convenient time and before substantial lifestyle changes had been made. Conclusion: Lay trainers were seen as a complementary method to motivate individuals to reduce their risks of T2DM. A less prescriptive approach needs to be adopted to enable full integration of lay trainers, allowing them a greater level of contribution. To sustain effective use of lay trainers, health professionals need to work alongside volunteers and be trained to encourage peer involvement

There\u27s A Million Girlies Lonesome To-night (And Still I\u27m All Alone)

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-vp/6462/thumbnail.jp

Impact of Guidance and Multitasking on Manual Dexterity Skills in Dentistry

Funding: This study was funded by the Australian Dental Research Foundation (grant ID: 9-2014); Australian Society of Endodontology (grant: ASE2014).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Estimating the prevalence and incidence of type 2 diabetes using population level pharmacy claims data: A cross-sectional study

Objective: To estimate the prevalence and incidence of type 2 diabetes using a national pharmacy claims database. Research design and methods: We used data from the Health Service Executive-Primary Care Reimbursement Service database in Ireland for this cross-sectional study. Prevalent cases of type 2 diabetes were individuals using an oral hypoglycemic agent, irrespective of insulin use, in 2012. Incident cases were individuals using an oral hypoglycemic agent in 2012 who had not used one in the past. Population level estimates were calculated and stratified by age and sex. Results: In 2012, there were 114 957 prevalent cases of type 2 diabetes giving a population prevalence of 2.51% (95% CI 2.49% to 2.52%). Among adults (≥15yrs), this was 3.16% (95% CI 3.15% to 3.18%). The highest prevalence was in those aged 70+ years (12.1%). 21 574 people developed type 2 diabetes in 2012 giving an overall incidence of 0.48% (95% CI 0.48% to 0.49%). In adults, this was 0.60% (95% CI 0.60% to 0.61%). Incidence rose with age to a maximum of 2.08% (95% CI 2.02% to 2.15%) in people aged 65-69 years. Men had a higher prevalence (2.96% vs 2.04%) and incidence (0.54% vs 0.41%) of type 2 diabetes than women. Conclusions: Pharmacy claims data allow estimates of objectively defined type 2 diabetes at the population level using up-to-date data. These estimates can be generated quickly to inform health service planning or to evaluate the impact of population level interventions

Bostonia: v. 64, no. 1

Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs

Hyperspectral darkfield microscopy of single hollow gold nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Hyperspectral microscopy is a versatile method for simultaneous spatial and spectroscopic characterization of nonfluorescent samples. Here we present a hyperspectral darkfield imaging system for spectral imaging of single nanoparticles over an area of 150 × 150 µm2 and at illumination intensities compatible with live cell imaging. The capabilities of the system are demonstrated using correlated transmission electron microscopy and single-particle optical studies of colloidal hollow gold nanoparticles. The potential of the system for characterizing the interactions between nanoparticles and cells has also been demonstrated. In this case, the spectral information proves a useful improvement to standard darkfield imaging as it enables differentiation between light scattered from nanoparticles and light scattered from other sources in the cellular environment. The combination of low illumination power and fast integration times makes the system highly suitable for nanoparticle tracking and spectroscopy in live-cell experiments

Electrical and network neuronal properties are preferentially disrupted in dorsal, but not ventral, medial entorhinal cortex in a mouse model of Tauopathy

The entorhinal cortex (EC) is one of the first areas to be disrupted in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia. The responsiveness of individual neurons to electrical and environmental stimuli varies along the dorsal-ventral axis of the medial EC (mEC) in a manner that suggests this topographical organization plays a key role in neural encoding of geometric space. We examined the cellular properties of layer II mEC stellate neurons (mEC-SCs) in rTg4510 mice, a rodent model of neurodegeneration. Dorsoventral gradients in certain intrinsic membrane properties, such as membrane capacitance and afterhyperpolarizations, were flattened in rTg4510 mEC-SCs, while other cellular gradients [e.g., input resistance (Ri), action potential properties] remained intact. Specifically, the intrinsic properties of rTg4510 mEC-SCs in dorsal aspects of the mEC were preferentially affected, such that action potential firing patterns in dorsal mEC-SCs were altered, while those in ventral mEC-SCs were unaffected. We also found that neuronal oscillations in the gamma frequency band (30-80 Hz) were preferentially disrupted in the dorsal mEC of rTg4510 slices, while those in ventral regions were comparatively preserved. These alterations corresponded to a flattened dorsoventral gradient in theta-gamma cross-frequency coupling of local field potentials recorded from the mEC of freely moving rTg4510 mice. These differences were not paralleled by changes to the dorsoventral gradient in parvalbumin staining or neurodegeneration. We propose that the selective disruption to dorsal mECs, and the resultant flattening of certain dorsoventral gradients, may contribute to disturbances in spatial information processing observed in this model of dementia. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: The medial entorhinal cortex (mEC) plays a key role in spatial memory and is one of the first areas to express the pathological features of dementia. Neurons of the mEC are anatomically arranged to express functional dorsoventral gradients in a variety of neuronal properties, including grid cell firing field spacing, which is thought to encode geometric scale. We have investigated the effects of tau pathology on functional dorsoventral gradients in the mEC. Using electrophysiological approaches, we have shown that, in a transgenic mouse model of dementia, the functional properties of the dorsal mEC are preferentially disrupted, resulting in a flattening of some dorsoventral gradients. Our data suggest that neural signals arising in the mEC will have a reduced spatial content in dementia