A Quantitative Investigation of Language Policy in International Schools in East Asia

Many international schools develop a formal written language policy to address language learning and use.  Additionally, schools often develop a language policy as part of an authorization and or accreditation process.  Although a school may have a formal written language policy, sometimes teachers are unaware the policy exists.  The purpose of this study was to examine teacher knowledge of language policy in English-medium international schools in East Asia. Additionally, the researchers explored whether there were differences in teacher knowledge of language policy between schools that have an affiliation with CIS, IB, and ACS WASC and schools with no affiliation. Further, the researchers examined how often teachers followed the language policy and if the policy defined the roles of teachers. This quantitative survey-based study had 544 participants, of whom 387 were teachers. The main finding revealed that a sizeable percentage of teachers reported that their school does not have a formal written language policy or were unsure if one exists.  Additional findings revealed similarities in language policy knowledge between CIS and IB schools and schools with no affiliation.  Further, less than half of the teachers follow the language policy consistently, and many policies do not specify teacher roles

Matters of fact: reading nonfiction over the edge

(print) x, 224 p. ; 23 cmAcknowledgments -- 1. Nonfictional narrative and the problem of truth. p.1 -- 2. Writing inside out: the nonfiction narrator in scripted and conscripted history. p.40 -- 3. Writing outside in: implicating the author in the narratives of Tom Wolfe and John Reed. p.76 -- 4. Reading inside out: rupture and control in the construction of reader. p.115 -- 5. Reading outside in: over the edge of genre in the case of Private O'Brien. p.164 -- Notes. p.195 -- Works cited. p.205 -- Index. p.21

INTROGRESSION OF COYOTE MITOCHONDRIAL DNA INTO SYMPATRIC NORTH AMERICAN GRAY WOLF POPULATIONS

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genotypes of gray wolves and coyotes from localities throughout North America were determined using restriction fragment length polymorphisms. Of the 13 genotypes found among the wolves, 7 are clearly of coyote origin, indicating that genetic transfer of coyote mtDNA into wolf populations has occurred through hybridization. The transfer of mtDNA appears unidirectional from coyotes into wolves because no coyotes sampled have a wolf-derived mtDNA genotype. Wolves possessing coyote-derived genotypes are confined to a contiguous geographic region in Minnesota, Ontario, and Quebec, and the frequency of coyote- type mtDNA in these wolf populations is high (\u3e 500%). The ecological history of the hybrid zone suggests that hybridization is taking place in regions where coyotes have only recently become abundant following conversion of forests to farmlands. Dispersing male wolves unable to find conspecific mates may be pairing with female coyotes in deforested areas bordering wolf territories. Our results demonstrate that closely related species of mobile terrestrial vertebrates have the potential for extensive genetic exchange when ecological conditions change suddenly

Effects of a strategy to improve offender assessment practices: Staff perceptions of implementation outcomes

Background: This implementation study examined the impact of an organizational process improvement intervention (OPII) on a continuum of evidence based practices related to assessment and community reentry of drug-involved offenders: Measurement/Instrumentation, Case Plan Integration, Conveyance/Utility, and Service Activation/Delivery. Methods: To assess implementation outcomes (staff perceptions of evidence-based assessment practices), a survey was administered to correctional and treatment staff (n = 1509) at 21 sites randomly assigned to an Early- or Delayed-Start condition. Hierarchical linear models with repeated measures were used to examine changes in evidence-based assessment practices over time, and organizational characteristics were examined as covariates to control for differences across the 21 research sites. Results: Results demonstrated significant intervention and sustainability effects for three of the four assessment domains examined, although stronger effects were obtained for intra- than inter-agency outcomes. No significant effects were found for Conveyance/Utility. Conclusions: Implementation interventions such as the OPII represent an important tool to enhance the use of evidence-based assessment practices in large and diverse correctional systems. Intra-agency assessment activities that were more directly under the control of correctional agencies were implemented most effectively. Activities in domains that required cross-systems collaboration were not as successfully implemented, although longer follow-up periods might afford detection of stronger effects

UA3/3/1 Analysis of the Demand for Married Student Housing at WKU, 1966-1967

The purpose of this study is to bring forth relevant information needed to determine the feasibility of an investment project for a married student housing complex on the campus of Western Kentucky University. Only the demand side of the market is analyzed; a potential investor will have the construction and land costs for such an enterprise at his disposal. With the information presented in this study it is hoped that a decision to construct a housing complex will be forthcoming. The study group attempted to present information that will allow a potential investor to make an intelligent decision as to the profitability of the investment. It is hoped that the critical questions concerning the investment have been answered by this study. The time period in which the study was carried out was January, 1967 to June, 1967, i.e., the second semester of the 1966-67 school year. The information presented was obtained from a single sample of the married population. Seventy married family units (8.4 percent of the population) were stratified according to class standing (Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior, and Graduate) and then picked randomly within the class stratifications. A more desirable method would have been a sequential sampling method, but the time and expense of the method did not allow its use. Future studies can be carried out in order to substantiate the data presented at this time. The estimated size of the investment would seem to warrant at least one more comprehensive examination of the market in order that a more exact market character can be determined. The study group contacted state institutions that have married housing units in order to see if any useful information could be obtained from their experience in the determination of market character and size of their married students. None of the schools contacted had conducted a market study prior to the construction of such a housing unit. Discovering this factor did not disturb the study group. It was assumed that the market character at the various educational institutions would be significantly different with reference to income, rent, family size, etc., that no useful comparison could be made. The reason for this assumption rests on the fact that the educational institutions differ in such things as type and size of the graduate program and community size and industrial development. These factors have a direct influence on the family unit\u27s income, numbers, and the rate of growth of the married student body. The purpose of contacting the various institutions was to examine the methodology used in the study of the market for married student housing

Unraveling the mysteries of dog evolution

The increased battery of molecular markers, derived from comparative genomics, is aiding our understanding of the genetics of domestication. The recent BMC Biology article pertaining to the evolution of small size in dogs is an example of how such methods can be used to study the origin and diversification of the domestic dog. We are still challenged, however, to appreciate the genetic mechanisms responsible for the phenotypic diversity seen in 'our best friend'

Стилистический эффект разговорной речи и его составляющие

В обучении русскому языку как иностранному на современном этапе большое внимание уделяется особенностям русской разговорной речи. Это обусловлено целым рядом причин, среди которых, на наш взгляд, можно выделить следующие: во-первых, разговорная речь всегда отличается активностью проникновения во все сферы жизнедеятельности людей и функционирует как в повседневном общении, так и в различных сферах (литературе, кино, политике и т.д.). Во-вторых, разговорная речь носит многожанровый характер, что зачастую затрудняет ее понимание иностранными студентами. В-третьих, в разговорную речь помимо слов нейтрального стиля все активнее стала проникать арготическая лексика. Именно в связи с этим особый интерес у нас вызывает разговорный стиль речи в преломлении на инофонную аудиторию

Influence of HAART on Alternative Reading Frame Immune Responses over the Course of HIV-1 Infection

Background: Translational errors can result in bypassing of the main viral protein reading frames and the production of alternate reading frame (ARF) or cryptic peptides. Within HIV, there are many such ARFs in both sense and the antisense directions of transcription. These ARFs have the potential to generate immunogenic peptides called cryptic epitopes (CE). Both antiretroviral drug therapy and the immune system exert a mutational pressure on HIV-1. Immune pressure exerted by ARF CD8(+) T cells on the virus has already been observed in vitro. HAART has also been described to select HIV-1 variants for drug escape mutations. Since the mutational pressure exerted on one location of the HIV-1 genome can potentially affect the 3 reading frames, we hypothesized that ARF responses would be affected by this drug pressure in vivo. Methodology/Principal findings: In this study we identified new ARFs derived from sense and antisense transcription of HIV-1. Many of these ARFs are detectable in circulating viral proteins. They are predominantly found in the HIV-1 env nucleotide region. We measured T cell responses to 199 HIV-1 CE encoded within 13 sense and 34 antisense HIV-1 ARFs. We were able to observe that these ARF responses are more frequent and of greater magnitude in chronically infected individuals compared to acutely infected patients, and in patients on HAART, the breadth of ARF responses increased. Conclusions/Significance: These results have implications for vaccine design and unveil the existence of potential new epitopes that could be included as vaccine targets.International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead