Improving State Evaluation of Principal Preparation Programs

Intended for state officials involved in the assessment and approval of university and other programs to train future school principals, this report describes five design principles for effective program evaluation. "While states will undoubtedly want and need to develop systems unique to their context, they could benefit from having guideposts to organize what can be complex work," says the report, which was written jointly by representatives from New Leaders, which helps train school leaders and designs leadership policies and practices for school systems, and the University Council for Educational Administration, a consortium of universities that seeks to promote high-quality education leadership preparation and research. The principles, which emerged from a New Leaders/University Council project to develop a model evaluation system and accompanying of tools, are:Structure the review process in a way that is conducive to continuous program improvement.Create appropriate systems to hold programs accountable for effective practices and outcomes.Provide key stakeholders with accurate and useful information.Take a sophisticated and nuanced approach to data collection and use.Adhere to characteristics of high-quality program evaluation.The report also describes how two states, Illinois and Delaware, have approached evaluation, and provides a tool from its model-development work, an assessment that states can use to determine their degree of "readiness" for building a stronger system to evaluate principal preparation programs

Development of the International Space Station Fine Water Mist Portable Fire Extinguisher

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is developing a Fine Water Mist (FWM) Portable Fire Extinguisher (PFE) for use on the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS presently uses two different types of fire extinguishers: a water foam extinguisher in the Russian Segments, and a carbon dioxide extinguisher in the United States Orbital Segments, which include Columbus and Kibo pressurized elements. Currently, there are operational and compatibility concerns with the emergency breathing equipment and the carbon dioxide extinguisher. ISS emergency response breathing equipment does not filter carbon dioxide; therefore, crew members are required to have an oxygen supply present during a fire event since the carbon dioxide PFE creates an unsafe breathing environment. The ISS program recommended a nontoxic fire extinguisher to mitigate this operational risk. The FWM PFE can extinguish a fire without creating a hazardous breathing environment for crewmembers. This paper will discuss the unique functional and performance requirements that have been levied on the FWM PFE, identify unique microgravity design considerations for liquid and gas systems, and discuss the NASA ISS specific fire standards that were developed to establish an acceptable portable fire extinguisher s performance

The effects of service quality of university sport facilities on students’ affective and behavioral outcomes

Supportive sport facilities in universities are necessary to encourage students to be actively involved in sport. The purpose of this study was to investigate students’ perceived and expected service quality of sport facilities in universities and test the relations to satisfaction and subsequent behavioral intention. Results from the study revealed that while satisfaction played as partial mediators in the relationships between tangibles/reliability and intention, satisfaction was a full mediator in the relationship between assurance/empathy and intention

Plasticity, plasticity, plasticity . . . and the rigid problem of sex

Why is popular understanding of female-male differences still based on rigid models of development, even though contemporary developmental sciences emphasize plasticity? Is it because the science of sex differences still works from the same rigid models

Recommendations for sex/gender neuroimaging research:key principles and implications for research design, analysis and interpretation

Neuroimaging (NI) technologies are having increasing impact in the study of complex cognitive and social processes. In this emerging field of social cognitive neuroscience, a central goal should be to increase the understanding of the interaction between the neurobiology of the individual and the environment in which humans develop and function. The study of sex/gender is often a focus for NI research, and may be motivated by a desire to better understand general developmental principles, mental health problems that show female-male disparities, and gendered differences in society. In order to ensure the maximum possible contribution of NI research to these goals, we draw attention to four key principles—overlap, mosaicism, contingency and entanglement—that have emerged from sex/gender research and that should inform NI research design, analysis and interpretation. We discuss the implications of these principles in the form of constructive guidelines and suggestions for researchers, editors, reviewers and science communicators

Development of the International Space Station (ISS) Fine Water Mist (FWM) Portable Fire Extinguisher

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is developing a Fine Water Mist (FWM) Portable Fire Extinguisher (PFE) for use on the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS presently uses two different types of fire extinguishers: a water foam extinguisher in the Russian Segment, and a carbon dioxide extinguisher in the United States Orbital Segments, which include Columbus and Kibo pressurized elements. Currently, there are operational concerns with the emergency breathing equipment and the carbon dioxide extinguisher. The toxicity of the carbon dioxide requires the crew members to have an oxygen supply present during a fire event, therefore inherently creating an unsafe environment. The FWM PFE extinguishes a fire without creating a hazardous breathing environment for crew members. The following paper will discuss the unique functional and performance requirements that have been levied on the FWM PFE, identify unique microgravity design considerations for liquid and gas systems, as well as discuss the NASA ISS specific fire standards that were developed to establish an acceptable portable fire extinguisher s performance

Development of the International Space Station (ISS) Fine Water Mist (FWM) Portable Fire Extinguisher ICES Abstract

NASA is developing a Fine Water Mist (FWM) Portable Fire Extinguisher (PFE) for use on the International Space Station. The International Space Station presently uses two different types of fire extinguishers: a water foam extinguisher in the Russian Segment, and a carbon dioxide extinguisher in the US Segment and Columbus and Kibo pressurized elements. Changes in emergency breathing equipment make Fine Water Mist operationally preferable. Supplied oxygen breathing systems allow for safe discharge of a carbon dioxide fire extinguisher, without concerns of the crew inhaling unsafe levels of carbon dioxide. But the Portable Breathing Apparatus (PBA) offers no more than 15 minutes of capability, and continued use of hose based supplied oxygen system increases the oxygen content in a fire situation. NASA has developed a filtering respirator cartridge for use in a fire environment. It is qualified to provide up to 90 minutes of capability, and because it is a filtering respirator it does not add oxygen to the environment. The fire response respirator cartridge does not filter carbon dioxide (CO2), so a crew member discharging a CO2 fire extinguisher while wearing this filtering respirator would be at risk of inhaling unsafe levels of CO2. FWM extinguishes a fire without creating a large volume of air with reduced oxygen and elevated CO2. The following paper will discuss the unique functional and performance requirements that have been levied on the FWM PFE. In addition, the NASA ISS specific fire standards will be described which were developed to establish acceptable extinguisher performance. The paper will also discuss the flight hardware design. The fin e water mist fire extinguisher has two major elements: (1) the nozzle and crew interface, and (2) the tank. The nozzle and crew interface have been under development for several years. They have gone through several design iterations, and have been part of more than 400 fire challenge and spray characterizations. The crew and vehicle interface aspects of the design will use the heritage of the CO2 based Portable Fire Extinguisher, to minimize the disruption to the crew and integration impacts to the ISS. The microgravity use environment of the system poses a set of unique design requirements specifically for the tank. The nozzle requirements drive a tank pressure that is 2-5 times higher than any commercially available water mist systems. Microgravity requires deliberate separation of gas and water, facilitated by a bladder, a diaphragm, a piston, or separate tanks. This paper will describe status of the project to date, the design details of the tank and the nozzle, and discuss the trade studies that informed the decisions to select the tank and nozzle configuration

The Acute and Chronic Effect of Korea Ginseng Supplement on Exercise Performance, Cognitive Function, and Fatigue Recovery

The purpose of this study was to determine the acute and chronic effects of Korean ginseng supplements on exercise performance, cognitive function, and fatigue recovery. The study used double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design. Twelve healthy adult males (age = 31 ± 6.86 yrs) were randomly assigned to either KGD or placebo trials. All subjects conducted the exercise consisted with 30 minutes cycling at 70-75% of VO2 max followed by 16 km time trial with 30 minutes resting periods. All subjects were tested for muscular power, strength, endurance, cognitive function, and fatigue. The subjects took KGD (280 ml containing 5.88 mg of ginsenosides) or placebo 90 mins before exercise trials and following 7 days. The blood sample was drawn for IL-6, myoglobin, and total antioxidant capacity immediately after time trial, as well as 2, 24, 48, and 72 hours. After 2 weeks of wash-out period, the subjects were crossed over into the opposite trial and performed the same test. Repeated measures ANOVAs were used to examine the effect of acute and chronic intake of ginseng on exercise performance and blood variables. An alpha of .05 was used, and the Greenhouse-Geisser (G-G) adjusted F and degrees of freedom were reported. In a placebo trial, peak power and mean power levels were significantly decreased across time, F (1.47, 13.24) = 4.63, G-G p = .039, h2p = .340 and F (1.46, 13.13) = 5.31, G-G p = .028, h2p = .371 while no differences were found in a ginseng trial. In a placebo trial, average reaction time (ART) was significantly increased across time, F (1.29, 11.63) = 10.81, G-G p = .005, h2p = .546, but in a ginseng trial, no difference in ART was found across time, F (1.54, 13.86) = 4.02, G-G p = .051, h2p = .309. There was a significant increase in TAC across time in a ginseng trial, F (1.42, 11.37) = 5.07, G-G p = .035, h2p = .388 while no difference was found in a placebo trial. No significant differences were found in other variables from placebo and ginseng trails. The 7 days of KRG supplementation significantly reduced the serum myoglobin concentration across time in the KGD trial, F (1.88, 13.17) = 5.18, G-G p = .023, while no difference was found in the placebo trial, F (2.21, 17.66) = .88, G-G p = .443. No significant differences were observed in serum total antioxidant activity and IL-6 between KGD and placebo trials. The study shows that Korean ginseng supplement before stating the exercise improve anaerobic capacity, cognitive function in particular psychomotor vigilance task, and fatigue recovery during cycling exercise. And 7 days of Korean ginseng supplement reduces muscle damage and fatigue after cycling exercise

Improving Parental Engagement for Latino Youths\u27 Educational Success: Lessons from Juntos Oregon

Research has shown that more efforts are needed to increase high school completion and postsecondary enrollment among Latino youths. However, little is known regarding efforts that engage both Latino youths and their parents. To address this gap, we surveyed Juntos Oregon participants to examine the school and community context Latino youths and their families face in the educational journey and identify effects of the Juntos program. Results showed that in a context of persistent discrimination and unfair treatment, Juntos workshops increased the sense of school and community connectedness among Latino parents. Increases in academic planning and motivation occurred as well. Extension may increase its educational impact by strengthening connections and promoting engagement between schools and Latino families