From Controlling to Constructive: Youth unemployment policy in Australia and The Netherlands

Youth unemployment is an issue that has increasingly troubledwestern countries since the 1970s. This paper provides data on youth unemployment in Australia and the Netherlands, and discusses government policy in both countries. The rate of youth unemployment was similar in both countries in the mid 1980s, but since then it has declined dramatically in the Netherlands, while changing little in Australia. Youth unemployment policy in Australia has been driven by the concept of obligation, while in the Netherlands youth unemployment policy has been organised around the principle of a guarantee for youth. The Dutch labour market programme offers more continuity and coherence than the rather ad hoc Australian programmes.However, the paper argues that youth labour market policy in both countries is of a controlling nature, and does not serve marginalised youth. Moreover, policy in neither country meets OECD criteria for effective labour market programs. The paper concludes with the description of a Dutch program which, to a large extent, does meet the OECD criteria, and demonstrates that a more constructive approach to youth unemployment is possible

Learning from Reciprocal Peer Observation: A Collaborative Self-study

Engaging in a self-study is a multi-faceted activity that involves not only autobiography and theory, but also students and colleagues. Learning from and with colleagues can take many forms. This article discusses the authors' experience with reciprocal classroom observation in a teacher education context. Peer observation supported our learning about our own teaching by providing suggestions for change and mutual reassurance. In this study we make connections between learning from each other, ourselves, our students and theories of teaching and learning. Specifically, we address what we learned about pedagogy in relation to missed opportunities, teacher-directedness and articulating purpose; about curriculum, in relation to balance and standards; about our students, in relation to their backgrounds as well as social tensions; and about ourselves as teachers and learners in relation to rapport, role modeling and collegiality. We demonstrate how peer observation can be a valuable component of ongoing professional development for tertiary teachers

A head-to-head comparison of speckle tracking echocardiography and feature tracking cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging in right ventricular deformation

Aims: Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) and feature tracking cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (FT-CMR) are advanced imaging techniques which are both used for quantification of global and regional myocardial strain. Direct comparisons of STE and FT-CMR regarding right ventricular (RV) strain analysis are limited. We aimed to study clinical performance, correlation and agreement of RV strain by these techniques, using arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) as a model for RV disease. // Methods and results: We enrolled 110 subjects, including 34 patients with definite ARVC, 30 preclinical relatives of ARVC patients, and 46 healthy control subjects. Global and regional RV longitudinal peak strain (PS) were measured by STE and FT-CMR. Both modalities showed reduced strain values in ARVC patients compared to ARVC relatives (STE global PS: P < 0.001; FT-CMR global PS: P < 0.001) and reduced strain values in ARVC relatives compared to healthy control subjects (STE global PS: P = 0.042; FT-CMR global PS: P = 0.084). There was a moderate, albeit significant correlation between RV strain values obtained by STE and FT-CMR [global PS r = 0.578 (95% confidence interval 0.427–0.697), P < 0.001]. Agreement between the techniques was weak (limits of agreement for global PS: ±11.8%). Correlation and agreement both deteriorated when regional strain was studied. // Conclusion: RV STE and FT-CMR show a similar trend within the spectrum of ARVC and have significant correlation, but inter-modality agreement is weak. STE and FT-CMR may therefore both individually have added value for assessment of RV function, but RV PS values obtained by these techniques currently cannot be used interchangeably in clinical practice

Relationship between chest radiographic characteristics, sputum bacterial load, and treatment outcomes in patients with extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis

BACKGROUND: Data about the relationship between chest radiographs and sputum bacillary load, with treatment outcomes, in patients with extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) from HIV/TB endemic settings are limited. METHODS: Available chest radiographs from 97 South African XDR-TB patients, at the time of diagnosis, were evaluated by two independent readers using a validated scoring system. Chest radiograph findings were correlated with baseline sputum bacillary load (smear-grade and culture time-to-positive in MGIT), and prospectively ascertained clinical outcomes (culture conversion and all-cause mortality). RESULTS: Radiographic bilateral lung disease was present in 75/97 (77%). In the multivariate analysis only a higher total radiographic score (95% CI) was associated with higher likelihood of death [1.16 (1.05-1.28) p=0.003], and failure to culture convert [0.85 (0.74-0.97) p=0.02]. However, when restricting analyses to HIV-infected patients, disease extent, cavitation, and total radiographic scores were not associated with mortality or culture-conversion. Finally, cavitary, disease extent, and total radiographic scores all positively correlated with bacterial load (culture time-to-positive). CONCLUSIONS: In endemic settings, XDR-TB radiological disease extent scores are associated with adverse clinical outcomes, including mortality, in HIV uninfected persons. These data may have implications for clinical and programmatic decision-making and for evaluation of new regimens in clinical trials

Distance travelled : Outcomes and evidence in flexible learning options

Flexible learning options (FLOs) provide individualised learning pathways for disengaged young people with strong emphasis on inclusivity and wellbeing support. Amidst a rapid expansion of Australia’s flexible learning sector, service providers are under increasing pressure to substantiate participant outcomes. This paper stems from a national study of the value of FLOs to young people and the broader Australian community. The study enumerates the outcomes valued by flexible learning practitioners, as well as the various evidence forms they cite to substantiate participant outcomes. Framing success as ‘distance travelled’ (i.e. an individual’s progress relative to his or her own starting point), practitioners demonstrate critical awareness of the social and structural mechanisms by which young people are marginalised from mainstream schooling. Holistic assessment practices also reveal practitioners’ efforts to expand the terms of reference by which educational outcomes may be validated in alternative education settings

Amicable pairs and aliquot cycles for elliptic curves

An amicable pair for an elliptic curve E/Q is a pair of primes (p,q) of good reduction for E satisfying #E(F_p) = q and #E(F_q) = p. In this paper we study elliptic amicable pairs and analogously defined longer elliptic aliquot cycles. We show that there exist elliptic curves with arbitrarily long aliqout cycles, but that CM elliptic curves (with j not 0) have no aliqout cycles of length greater than two. We give conjectural formulas for the frequency of amicable pairs. For CM curves, the derivation of precise conjectural formulas involves a detailed analysis of the values of the Grossencharacter evaluated at a prime ideal P in End(E) having the property that #E(F_P) is prime. This is especially intricate for the family of curves with j = 0.Comment: 53 page

Risk stratification and subclinical phenotyping of dilated and/or arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy mutation-positive relatives: CVON eDETECT consortium

In relatives of index patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy, early detection of disease onset is essential to prevent sudden cardiac death and facilitate early treatment of heart failure. However, the optimal screening interval and combination of diagnostic techniques are unknown. The clinical course of disease in index patients and their relatives is variable due to incomplete and age-dependent penetrance. Several biomarkers, electrocardiographic and imaging (echocardiographic deformation imaging and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging) techniques are promising non-invasive methods for detection of subclinical cardiomyopathy. However, these techniques need optimisation and integration into clinical practice. Furthermore, determining the optimal interval and intensity of cascade screening may require a personalised approach. To address this, the CVON-eDETECT (early detection of disease in cardiomyopathy mutation carriers) consortium aims to integrate electronic health record data from long-term follow-up, diagnostic data sets, tissue and plasma samples in a multidisciplinary biobank environment to provide personalised risk stratification for heart failure and sudden cardiac death. Adequate risk stratification may lead to personalised screening, treatment and optimal timing of implantable cardioverter defibrillator implantation. In this article, we describe non-invasive diagnostic techniques used for detection of subclinical disease in relatives of index patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy