Teaching Professional Communication in a Global Context: Using a Three-Phase Approach of Theory Exploration, Self-Assessment, and Virtual Simulation

In today\u27s globally diverse society, standard theoretical instruction is not able to expose our students to the realities of international communication, multicultural collaboration, and dispersed global work. Abstract text-based cases are limited in delivering a realistic view of the challenges of working virtually and globally within international teams. In addition to cases, we believe that hands-on experiential, collaborative exercises – combined with the metacognitive exercise of reflective practice – offer greater learning potential. While international collaboration and exercises may take extra time, effort, and cost, the benefits to students can be substantial

Teaching professional communication in a global context: Using a three-phase approach of theory exploration, self-assessment, and virtual simulation

In today&#39;s globally diverse society, standard theoretical instruction is not able to expose our students to the realities of international communication, multicultural collaboration, and dispersed global work. Abstract text-based cases are limited in delivering a realistic view of the challenges of working virtually and globally within international teams. In addition to cases, we believe that hands-on experiential, collaborative exercises &ndash; combined with the metacognitive exercise of reflective practice &ndash; offer greater learning potential. While international collaboration and exercises may take extra time, effort, and cost, the benefits to students can be substantial. This paper discusses a recent teaching endeavor across three universities in the USA, Finland, and Austria. The authors of this paper collaborated on a project to link business students via a virtual team simulation, called Virtual Teams in International Business (VIBu - http://www.vibu.fi). By examining this pedagogical approach we demonstrate best practices for virtual and dispersed student learning of professional communication as students develop awareness of the challenges of international business, communication across cultures, and&nbsp;dispersed global work. We posit that exposing business students to the authentic complexity and ambiguity of modern virtual and dispersed work results in relevant learning and deeper understanding of the applicable topics. This case-learning environment requires that the instructor relinquish full control within the learning situation and give the responsibility to the students to act, organize and learn, but the learning that results from this empowerment may be considerable.</p

Clinical phenotype of adolescent and adult patients with extracranial vascular malformation.

BACKGROUND In recent years, genotypic characterization of congenital vascular malformations (CVM) has gained attention; however, the spectrum of clinical phenotype remains difficult to attribute to a genetic cause and is rarely described in the adult population. AIM The aim of this study is to describe a consecutive series of adolescent and adult patients in a tertiary center, where a multimodal phenotypic approach was used for diagnosis. METHODS We analyzed clinical findings, imaging, and laboratory results at initial presentation, and set a diagnosis according to the International Society for the Study of Vascular Anomalies (ISSVA) classification for all consecutively registered patients older than 14 years of age who were referred to the Center for Vascular Malformations at the University Hospital of Bern between 2008 and 2021. RESULTS 457 patients were included for analysis (mean age 35 years; females 56%). Simple CVMs were the most common (n=361, 79 %), followed by CVM associated with other anomalies (n=70, 15%), and combined CVM (n=26, 6%). Venous malformations (n=238) were the most common CVM overall (52%), and the most common simple CVM (66%). Pain was the most frequently reported symptom in all patients (simple, combined and vascular malformation with other anomalies). Pain intensity was more pronounced in simple venous and arteriovenous malformation. Clinical problems were related to the type of CVM diagnosed, with bleeding and skin ulceration in arteriovenous malformations, localized intravascular coagulopathy in venous malformations and infectious complications in lymphatic malformations. Limb length difference occurred more often in patients with CVM associated with other anomalies as compared to simple or combined CVM (22.9 vs 2.3%, p< 0.001). Soft tissue overgrowth was seen in one quarter of all patients independent of the ISSVA group. CONCLUSIONS In our adult and adolescent population with peripheral vascular malformations, simple venous malformations predominated, with pain as the most common clinical symptom. In a quarter of cases, patients with vascular malformations presented with associated anomalies on tissue growth. The differentiation of clinical presentation with or without accompanying growth abnormalities need to be added to the ISSVA classification. Phenotypic characterization considering vascular and non-vascular features remains the cornerstone of diagnosis in adult-as well as pediatric patients

Parkes Weber Syndrome: Contribution of the Genotype to the Diagnosis

Objectives: Parkes Weber syndrome (PWS) is a rare disorder that combines overgrowth, capillary malformations, and arteriovenous malformations (AVM)/arteriovenous fistulas, for which underlying activating mutations in the ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular-signal-regulated kinase signaling pathway have been described. The clinical overlap with Klippel-Trenauny syndrome, associated with mutations in PIK3CA, is significant. This case series aimed to elaborate on the phenotypic description of PWS, to underline its clinical overlap with Klippel-Trenauny syndrome and nonsyndromic AVM, and to evaluate the contribution of genotypic characterization to the diagnosis. Methods: All patients diagnosed with PWS upon enrollment in the Bernese VAScular COngenital Malformations (VASCOM) cohort were included. The diagnostic criteria of PWS were retrospectively reviewed. A next-generation sequencing (NGS) gene panel (TSO500, Illumina) was used on tissue biopsy samples. Results: Overall, 10/559 patients of the VAScular COngenital Malformations cohort were initially diagnosed with PWS. Three patients were reclassified as nonsyndromic AVM (Kristen Rat Sarcoma Viral oncogene homolog [KRAS], KRAS+tumor protein p53, and protein tyrosine phosphatase non-receptor type 11). Finally, 7 patients fulfilled all clinical diagnostic criteria of PWS. Genetic testing was available in 5 PWS patients. Only 1 patient had the classic RASA1 mutation; another patient had mutations in G protein subunit alpha q (GNAQ) and phosphatase and tensin homolog. In a third case, a PIK3CA mutation was detected. In 2 patients, no mutations were identified. Conclusion: Overgrowth syndromes with vascular malformations are rare and their clinical overlap hampers the classification of individual phenotypes under specific syndrome labels, sometimes even despite genetic testing. To provide optimal patient care, an accurate phenotypic description combined with the identification of molecular targets for precision medicine may be more meaningful than the syndrome classification itself

The Penny’s Dropped: Renegotiating the contemporary coin deposit

This is the Accepted Manuscript of the following article: Ceri Houlbrook, “The penny’s dropped: Renegotiating the contemporary coin deposit”, Journal of Material Culture, Vol. 20(2): 173-189, March 2015. The final published version is available at: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1359183515577120#articleCitationDownloadContainer © 2015, © SAGE Publications.This article examines the status of coins as contemporary deposits in the British Isles. With a focus on both historical and contemporary sites, from the Neolithic long barrow of Wayland’s Smithy, Oxfordshire, to the plethora of wishing-wells and coin-trees distributed across the British Isles, it demonstrates the popularity of coins as ritual deposits. The author considers how they are perceived and treated by site custodians, and concludes with a case study of an archaeological excavation, the 2013 Ardmaddy Wishing-Tree Project, which recovered a large amount of contemporary coin deposits. This article does not aim to locate itself within the debates of site custodianship and accessibility, nor does it propose to address the broader dilemmas of a site’s ritual continuity or resurgence. Instead, its aim is to encourage archaeologists to consider the contemporary deposit as an integral part of the ritual narrative of a site, rather than as disposable ‘ritual litter’.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Mathematics in Medical Diagnostics - 2022 Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Trauma Surgery Technology

The 4th event of the Giessen International Conference Series on Trauma Surgery Technology took place on April, the 23rd 2022 in Warsaw, Poland. It aims to bring together practical application research, with a focus on medical imaging, and the TDA experts from Warsaw. This publication contains details of our presentations and discussions

“To speak or not to speak - that is the question”. Oral communication skills in a broader profile of literacy: A high school teacher\u27s quest for communicative competence in his chemistry classroom

The goal of any school is to help its students become literate. Broadly speaking, to be literate means to be well informed and educated. More specifically, literacy—or the ability to read and write—is encouraged through the language arts, which is usually characterized by activities that focus primarily on reading and writing skills. While reading and writing are absolutely essential to the academic success of any student, the aspect of speaking skills—or effective communication skills—is often considered ancillary instruction, something to do “if there is enough time,” since speaking is assumed to be an innate skill. This research focused on the place of oral communication skills in a broader profile for literacy and its place in every course across the curriculum. The research for this study took place over a nine month period and focused on documenting what one high school science teacher called, “reading, writing, research and recitation” in his 10th and 11 th grade chemistry class. His objective was to teach his chemistry students about the significance of developing oral communication competencies (specifically presentation skills), in the content course of chemistry. Through a descriptive, interpretive, and naturalistic study, I sought to better understand three questions. First, how did this particular teacher integrate oral communication skills into the content area of science? Second, how did the students react to this process and what did they learn from it. Third, what happened when an intervention took place whereby an experienced instructor in the field of communication education partnered with this science teacher in order to help integrate oral communication competencies into the curriculum? The focus of this research was to understand the process that this teacher went through as he attempted to integrate oral speech skills into the curriculum, as well as what the students did with this information while they developed their oral presentations. This study has provided a rich description for understanding the process of integrating oral communication skills into one high school science teacher\u27s chemistry course. It has also looked at the issues of professional development, curriculum, and assessment, which were related concerns regarding this integration. This study may provide a much needed example for bringing together both secondary and higher education professionals who are concerned about what and how to teach oral communication skills in a broader profile of literacy in grades 9–12

“To speak or not to speak - that is the question”. Oral communication skills in a broader profile of literacy: A high school teacher\u27s quest for communicative competence in his chemistry classroom

The goal of any school is to help its students become literate. Broadly speaking, to be literate means to be well informed and educated. More specifically, literacy—or the ability to read and write—is encouraged through the language arts, which is usually characterized by activities that focus primarily on reading and writing skills. While reading and writing are absolutely essential to the academic success of any student, the aspect of speaking skills—or effective communication skills—is often considered ancillary instruction, something to do “if there is enough time,” since speaking is assumed to be an innate skill. This research focused on the place of oral communication skills in a broader profile for literacy and its place in every course across the curriculum. The research for this study took place over a nine month period and focused on documenting what one high school science teacher called, “reading, writing, research and recitation” in his 10th and 11 th grade chemistry class. His objective was to teach his chemistry students about the significance of developing oral communication competencies (specifically presentation skills), in the content course of chemistry. Through a descriptive, interpretive, and naturalistic study, I sought to better understand three questions. First, how did this particular teacher integrate oral communication skills into the content area of science? Second, how did the students react to this process and what did they learn from it. Third, what happened when an intervention took place whereby an experienced instructor in the field of communication education partnered with this science teacher in order to help integrate oral communication competencies into the curriculum? The focus of this research was to understand the process that this teacher went through as he attempted to integrate oral speech skills into the curriculum, as well as what the students did with this information while they developed their oral presentations. This study has provided a rich description for understanding the process of integrating oral communication skills into one high school science teacher\u27s chemistry course. It has also looked at the issues of professional development, curriculum, and assessment, which were related concerns regarding this integration. This study may provide a much needed example for bringing together both secondary and higher education professionals who are concerned about what and how to teach oral communication skills in a broader profile of literacy in grades 9–12

What is in it for me ? ::middle manager behavioral integrity and performance

We propose that middle managers’ perceived organizational support enhances their performance through the sequential mediation of their behavioral integrity and follower organizational citizenship behaviors. We test our model with data collected from middle managers, their direct subordinates, and their direct superiors at 18 hotel properties in China. The current study’s findings contribute to the existing literature on perceived organizational support and behavioral integrity. They also add a practical self-interest argument for middle managers’ efforts to maintain their word-action alignment by demonstrating that middle manager behavioral integrity positively affects middle managers’ own task performance ratings, both directly and via its positive effect on subordinates’ organizational citizenship behaviors

Milk and milk product preferences of secondary school [gymnasium] children in the province of Malopolska

Celem pracy była ocena preferencji w zakresie mleka i produktów mlecznych wśród młodzieży w wieku 13-15 lat. Badania ankietowe przeprowadzono z udziałem 263 uczniów (127 dziewcząt i 136 chłopców) z terenu województwa małopolskiego. Do oceny preferencji spożycia mleka i wybranych produktów mlecznych wykorzystano skalę 5-stopniową: „bardzo lubię” (5 punktów), „lubię” (4 punkty), „ani lubię ani nie lubię” (3 punkty), „nie lubię” (2 punkty), „bardzo nie lubię” (1 punkt). Wyniki badań wykazały, że do produktów najbardziej preferowanych przez uczniów należały lody, natomiast do najmniej lubianych kefir oraz maślanka. Preferencje spożycia mleka i produktów mlecznych nie zależały statystycznie istotnie od miejsca zamieszkania oraz płci.The objective of the study was to evaluate the milk and milk product preferences of the children aged 13 to 15. The questionnaire survey covered 263 school children (127 girls and 136 boys) in the Province of Małopolska. In the survey, a 5-point rating scale was applied to evaluate the milk and milk product preferences of the polled: “I like it very much” (5 points); “I like it” (4 points); “I neither like it nor dislike it” (3 points); “I do not like it” (2 points); “I dislike it very much” (1 point). The results of the survey proved that the ice-cream was the most preferred milk product by the school children polled, whereas the kefir and the buttermilk were the least preferred milk products. The milk and milk product preferences did not depend statistically significantly on the place of residence, nor on the sex of the respondents