Separate special classes in order to teach the Italian language to newly-arrived migrant students? The issues at stake and the proposal of a Randomized Controlled Test Design

In Italy there has been a long debate whether to introduce in schools separate classes for newly-arrived immigrant students, in order to teach them Italian. Single schools are entitled to decide about policies for second language teaching, with little empirical support and in lack of a central normative regulation, resultig in a wide range of local practices. This article traces a viable path that may offer an empirical basis to schools’ and policy makers’ decisions on this issue. The first step, based on the direct experience of teachers who took part in the Interculture Project, is the identification of points of consensus and doubts regarding the effects of intensive second language teaching on newly-arrived students. The second step is the consequent proposal of a randomized controlled trial that seeks to assess the effects on three essential aspects: language abilities, socialization with peers and disciplinary competences.In Italy there has been a long debate whether to introduce in schools separate classes for newly-arrived immigrant students, in order to teach them Italian. Single schools are entitled to decide about policies for second language teaching, with little empirical support and in lack of a central normative regulation, resultig in a wide range of local practices. This article traces a viable path that may offer an empirical basis to schools’ and policy makers’ decisions on this issue. The first step, based on the direct experience of teachers who took part in the Interculture Project, is the identification of points of consensus and doubts regarding the effects of intensive second language teaching on newly-arrived students. The second step is the consequent proposal of a randomized controlled trial that seeks to assess the effects on three essential aspects: language abilities, socialization with peers and disciplinary competences

Dual-use trade figures and how they combine

Dual-use items are goods and technologies with civil and military uses. In several countries, including the EU Member States, the export of dual-use goods is controlled by national licensing processes as a measure of non-proliferation. Dual-use items relate to a variety of generally high-tech goods falling in diverse categories: nuclear materials, facilities and equipment; special materials and related equipment; materials processing; electronics; computers; telecommunications and information security; sensors and lasers; navigation and avionics; marine; aerospace and propulsion. In connection to the ongoing review of the EU export control policy, currently based on Regulation 428/2009 and amendments, it is of relevance to know the size of the EU dual-use sector and have a method to assess, in a quantitative way, the impact of export controls on trade. Because the dual-use trade draws from a range of industrial sectors, no single trade statistics exists today to portrait this cross-cutting sector ‘as a whole’. In this report we estimate the total intra- and extra-EU Dual-Use Export Value (DUEV). DUEV is meant to be an indicator of the relevance of the dual-use sector to the EU economy. To estimate DUEV, lower and upper bound values are first derived based on license data provided by EU Member States and on COMEXT export data available from Eurostat. The bounds are then combined in a single estimate to DUEV. As a result, DUEV is estimated to be at most 3.3% of the total intra- and extra-EU export in 2013, equivalent to about 150 Billion of Euros. The report explains the method used to derive these figures by qualitative reasoning on quantitative data.JRC.E.8-Nuclear securit

VideoZoom: Summarizing surveillance images for safeguards video reviews

This report presents VideoZoom, a prototype review tool that builds automatic summaries out of sequences of surveillance images taken by cameras with a fixed point of view. These summary images are then visualised in a zooming user interface allowing the discovery and annotation of images of interest. The prototype system was used for detection of safeguards-relevant events in image sequences acquired in nuclear facilities. A first evaluation of the prototype system with inspectors from DG-ENER was performed. Results indicate that the system allows accurate reviews, can save effort and is easy to learn and use. In addition the system allows detection of unexpected events which would be missed by standard review tools.JRC.E.8-Nuclear securit

Estimation of trade flows related to export-controlled dual-use items. Data sources, methodology and tools

Dual-use items are goods and technologies that have both civil and military uses. In the European Union their export is controlled and governed by an EC regulation since the year 2000. Its implementation, in terms of legislation, export authorisations and customs controls, remains the responsibility of each of the 27 Member States. For reasons linked to the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, competition in trade and free market rules, it is ‘desirable to achieve a uniform and consistent application of controls throughout the EU in order to promote EU and international security and to provide a level playing field for EU exporters’ – as stated in the regulation. How far is the goal? Hard to say since no official data about the trade of dual-use items are shared among Member States, nor with the European Commission, Directorate General Trade, in charge of the dual-use regulation. This report presents sources of generic, statistical trade data and a methodology to create an approximate picture of extra-EU trade flows of dual-use items. The data stem from goods’ declarations made by exporters to customs authorities as part of the normal export process for any commodity. The data are collected at national level, aggregated by categories of goods, and made public in web data services on trade. The data are referred to a commodity classification system, the Combined Nomenclature (CN), in use for customs controls in the EU. However the CN is only indirectly related to dual-use items. Correspondence tables exist that map dual-use items to CN descriptors, but they introduce approximations in the description of the items traded. For this reason the CN trade data provide, in the general case, upper bounds to the real trade volume of dual-use items. Notwithstanding this limitation, the CN trade data may prove useful for a number of issues and assessments needed for export controls. One example is presented in this report. It concerns the estimation of extra-EU trade flows for dual-use chemicals under consideration for inclusion in a Union General Export Authorisation (EU GEA). EU GEAs define a framework valid in all EU Members States whereby the export of selected categories of dual-use items to specific destination countries with a low-risk of diversion is automatically authorised. An analysis of the volume of exports based on CN trade data allows estimating the impact expected for EU exporters by including given dual-use chemicals in an EU GEA. To facilitate the estimation of extra-EU trade flows, it is proposed to develop a dedicated Information Technology tool merging lists of export-controlled items with correspondence tables of CN items’ descriptors and export data. Such a tool can become a design and evaluation instrument to assess the economic impact of alternative policy options to regulate the European dual-use trade.JRC.E.8-Nuclear securit

Catalogue of WEB Data Services on Global Trade

This document is a catalogue of WEB services providing data on global trade. It updates to March 2010 the first edition published in 2007. Each service is described in the catalogue according to a form specifying data fields, geographical coverage, temporal span, search criteria and reporting facilities on data records. The information has been derived from WEB sites, email contacts with service providers, trial runs, and interviews with users. Services listed herein offer data on imports and exports on all types of commodities over the last decade. The use of the data is generic: they can support studies related to trade in diverse domains and applications. Trade data described in this catalogue have a regulatory origin because they stem from declarations made by importers and exporters to customs authorities. The data are collected at national level, processed, and released for public access under formats respecting national provisions on data confidentiality. Trade data are released in transactional or statistical format and may have a national or multi-national scope. Services on trade transactions are run by companies and are accessible after the payment of subscription fees. Services on statistical data (obtained by aggregating transactions) often have a multi-national scope and are provided for free access by international and governmental organizations, and statistical offices, or as pay services by companies. This catalogue has been compiled as part of the activities on nuclear trade information analysis within the action IANUS (Information Analysis for Nuclear Security, action nr. 53104 of JRC IPSC FP7).JRC.DG.G.8-Nuclear securit

La oferta académica "virtual" de las universidades nacionales argentinas y su expansión territorial: un estudio de casos de "campus virtuales”

Desde ines de la década de 1990 en Argentina las universidades comienzan a incorporar las tecnologías de la información y la comunicación no sólo para la gestión administrativa de sus actividades, sino también para brindar propuestas educativas “virtuales”. El artículo describe la actual oferta académica “virtual” e indaga las implicancias que tiene dicha oferta en relación a su alcance en el territorio nacional. Se presenta la oferta virtual generada desde los rectorados de la totalidad de universidades nacionales según sea de pregrado, grado, posgrado o extensión al año 2008. Se estudian en particular los casos de las universidades del Litoral, del Nordeste y de Tres de Febrero. Asimismo, se indaga el caso de la Universidad de Quilmes por ser la primera universidad que desarrolla formación virtual en el país.From ends of the decade of 1990 in Argentina the universities begin to incorporate the technologies of the information and the communication not only for the administrative management of their activities, but also to offer educational "virtual" offers. The article describes the current academic "virtual" offer of the public Argentine higher education institutions and investigates the implications that the above mentioned offer has in relation to its scope in the national territory. It is presented the virtual offer generated from the presidencies of the totality of national universities as be of pregrado, degree, posgrado or extension by 2008. There are studied especially the cases of the universities of the Litoral, Nordeste and Tres de Febrero which belong to different Consejos de Planificación Regional de la Educación Superior. Likewise, the case of the University of Quilmes is investigated for being the first university that develops virtual formation in the country.Fil: Guido, Luciana Monica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Saavedra 15. Centro de Estudios Urbanos y Regionales; ArgentinaFil: Versino, Mariana Selva. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educacion; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Oficina de Coordinacion Administrativa Saavedra 15. Centro de Estudios Urbanos y Regionales; Argentin

Particle Size Distribution Effect on Cassava Starch and Cassava Bagasse Biocomposites

Regarding the growing interest in the development of biodegradable films from renewable sources, this work is focused on the utilization of cassava roots bagasse as a natural filler of cassava starch films. Homogenous films could be obtained by casting molding from gelatinized cassava starch suspensions, plasticized with glycerol and containing 1.5% w/w bagasse. In order to study the particle size effect on films properties, three different fibrous residue fractions (particles sized between 500-250, 250-53, and particles <53 μm) were used and compared to films reinforced with bagasse particles sized under 500 μm. Chemical composition and particle size distribution of cassava bagasse helped to explain the starch films morphology and mechanical and barrier properties modifications. SEM micrographs evidenced that the filler was structurally incorporated in the matrix, reinforcing cassava-starch matrices regardless of bagasse particle size. The filler increased the UV-barrier capacity and opacity of the materials, though water vapor permeability increased with solids content and filler particle size. Moreover, the developed biocomposite materials can be heat-sealed, indicating their suitability for flexible packaging manufacture. Even though starch-based materials are essentially biodegradable, the biodegradation kinetics of the reinforced biocomposites was studied showing the slowest degradation process for materials with larger filler particles.Fil: Versino, Florencia. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; ArgentinaFil: Garcia, Maria Alejandra. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentin

Understanding nuclear trade: data sources and tools

Over the last few years, a growing concern developed around the trade of equipment designed for nuclear use and nuclear-related dual-use items that may be diverted to non-peaceful uses. Trade data sources and tools presented hereafter can enhance understanding of nuclear related trade from different perspectives. One perspective is nuclear safeguards. Since 2007, the Joint Research Centre has been supporting the IAEA in finding and evaluating collections of open source data on trade. We identified, and documented in a catalogue of trade data, sources stemming from declarations made by importers and exporters to customs authorities. Customs data are collected nationally, processed and published in transactional or aggregated formats by decision of individual States. Bringing these data together results in a large collection that creates a global geographical view on trade, covers all commodities, and reports trade in quantitative form over several years. The data are retrieved by Harmonised System (HS) codes, the taxonomy of goods designed and maintained by the World Customs Organization. HS codes introduce approximations in the description of the trade making the data of no immediate use to safeguards. Their use requires first mapping items of interest to safeguards verifications to HS codes. To this goal, correspondence tables have been developed by trade analysts and experts of the Harmonised System. To make these tables easy-to-use, we have designed and developed a software tool named The Big Table (TBT) which supports: (a) searching a collection of reference documents relevant to nuclear trade (legal documents and handbooks); (b) selecting items of interest to specific safeguards verifications; (c) mapping items to HS codes by means of correspondence tables. These steps are preliminary to data retrieval from sources on trade described above. These data sources and TBT are currently in use at IAEA¿s Trade and Technology Analysis Unit, for safeguards purposes. Other perspective uses of trade data pertain to the area of export controls. Potential uses include the estimation of trade flows of controlled items to inform the design of export control policies, as well as verifications on compliance with export controls regulations. In this paper we present firstly a collection of data sources on global trade. The paper will then tackle in some detail the first perspective, i.e. the use of trade data to support safeguards with a focus on the TBT software tool for nuclear trade analysis. Other perspectives on the use of trade data will then be briefly outlined.JRC.E.9-Nuclear security (Ispra