382 research outputs found
Comparative assessment of young learners' foreign language competence in three Eastern European countries
This paper concerns teacher practices in, and beliefs about, the assessment of young learners' progress in English in three Eastern European countries (Slovenia, Croatia, and the Czech Republic). The central part of the paper focuses on an international project involving empirical research into assessment of young learners' foreign language competence in Slovenia, Croatia and the Czech Republic. With the help of an adapted questionnaire, we collected data from a non-random sample of primary and foreign language teachers who teach foreign languages at the primary level in these countries. The research shows that English as a foreign language is taught mostly by young teachers either primary specialists or foreign language teachers. These teachers most frequently use oral assessment/interviews or self-developed tests. Other more authentic types of assessment, such as language portfolios, are rarely used. The teachers most frequently assess speaking and listening skills, and they use assessment involving vocabulary the most frequently of all. However, there are significant differences in practice among the three countries
Passive parametric macromodeling by using Sylvester state-space realizations
A judicious choice of the state-space realization is required in order to account for the assumed smoothness of the state-space matrices with respect to the design parameters. The direct parameterization of poles and residues may be not appropriate, due to their possible non-smooth behavior with respect to design parameters. This is avoided in the proposed technique, by converting the pole-residue description to a Sylvester description which is computed for each root macromodel. This technique is used in combination with suitable parameterizing schemes for interpolating a set of state-space matrices, and hence the poles and residues indirectly, in order to build accurate parametric macromodels. The key features of the present approach are first the choice of a proper pivot matrix and second, finding a well-conditioned solution of a Sylvester equation. Stability and passivity are guaranteed by construction over the design space of interest. Pertinent numerical examples validate the proposed Sylvester technique for parametric macromodeling
Dichotomous Hamiltonians with Unbounded Entries and Solutions of Riccati Equations
An operator Riccati equation from systems theory is considered in the case
that all entries of the associated Hamiltonian are unbounded. Using a certain
dichotomy property of the Hamiltonian and its symmetry with respect to two
different indefinite inner products, we prove the existence of nonnegative and
nonpositive solutions of the Riccati equation. Moreover, conditions for the
boundedness and uniqueness of these solutions are established.Comment: 31 pages, 3 figures; proof of uniqueness of solutions added; to
appear in Journal of Evolution Equation
A representation of all solutions of the control algebraic Riccati equation for infinite-dimensional systems
Determinants of Length of Stay Following Total Anterior Circulatory Stroke
Identification of factors that determine length of stay (LOS) in total anterior circulatory stroke (TACS) has potential for targeted intervention to reduce the associated health care burden. This study aimed to determine which factors predict LOS following either ischaemic or haemorrhagic TACS. The study sample population was drawn from the Norfolk and Norwich Stroke and Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA) Register (1996 â 2012), a prospective registry. 2965 patients admitted with TACS verified by a stroke specialist team were included. Primary analysis identified predictors of length of stay (LOS) in either haemorrhagic or ischaemic TACS. Secondary analyses identified predictors of LOS in patients who were discharged alive or who died during admission separately. Moderate (p=0.014) to severe disability (p=0.015) and history of congestive heart failure (p=0.027) in the primary analysis and pre-stroke residence in a care facility among patients who survived to discharge (p=0.013) were associated with a shorter length of stay. Factors associated with increased length of stay included presence of neurological lateralisation in the primary analysis (p=0.004) and amongst patients who died (p=0.003 and p=0.014 for ischaemic and haemorrhagic stroke, respectively). Patients with advanced age (â„85 years) with haemorrhagic stroke had longer LOS regardless of mortality outcome. Patients with low pre-morbid disability (modified Rankin score â€2 who died following haemorrhagic TACS also had longer LOS. Our study found predictors of LOS following TACS include neurological lateralisation, pre-stroke disability status, congestive heart failure, pre-morbid residence and age. The identification of such factors would assist in resource allocation and discharge planning
Searching for the Nuclear Liquid-Gas Phase Transition in Au + Au Collisions at 35 MeV/nucleon
Within the framework of Classical Molecular Dynamics, we study the collision
Au + Au at an incident energy of 35 MeV/nucleon. It is found that the system
shows a critical behaviour at peripheral impact parameters, revealed through
the analysis of conditional moments of charge distributions, Campi Scatter
Plot, and the occurrence of large fluctuations in the region of the Campi plot
where this critical behaviour is expected. When applying the experimental
filters of the MULTICS-MINIBALL apparatus, it is found that criticality signals
can be hidden due to the inefficiency of the experimental apparatus. The
signals are then recovered by identifying semi-peripheral and peripheral
collisions looking to the velocity distribution of the largest fragment, then
by selecting the most complete events.Comment: RevTex file, 21 pages + 19 figures available upon request from
[email protected]
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Language support for immigrant children: a study of state schools in the UK and US
In recent decades, immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers have sought a new way of life in large numbers, often leaving their countries of origin behind in search of places that offer a better way of life. The purpose of this study was to investigate how elementary and middle school students in state schools in Reading, England (primarily speakers of Asian languages), and Richmond, Virginia (primarily speakers of Spanish), were supported academically, when most childrenâs first language was not English. The authors were interested in exploring whether or not there were cultural or structural differences in the way each country helped or hindered these students as they progressed through the school systems. Three UK schools in a district of approximately 100,000 and three US schools in a district of approximately 250,000 were the focus of this exploration from 2000 to 2003. Findings indicated that there were cultural and legislative differences and similarities. Teachers and administrators in both countries attempted to provide services with limited and sometimes diminishing resources. Community support varied based on resources, attitudes toward various ethnic groups, and the coping strategies adopted by these groups in their new environments. Marked differences appeared with regard to the manner in which assessments took place and how the results were made available to the public
Circumstantial Evidence for a Critical Behavior in Peripheral Au + Au Collisions at 35 MeV/nucleon
The fragmentation resulting from peripheral Au + Au collisions at an incident
energy of E = 35 MeV/nucleon is investigated. A power-law charge distribution,
with , and an intermittency signal are observed
for events selected in the region of the Campi scatter plot where "critical"
behavior is expected.Comment: 11 pages, RevTex file, 4 postscript figures available upon request
from [email protected]
On Polynomial Stability of Coupled Partial Differential Equations in 1D
We study the well-posedness and asymptotic behaviour of selected PDE-PDE and
PDE-ODE systems on one-dimensional spatial domains, namely a boundary coupled
wave-heat system and a wave equation with a dynamic boundary condition. We
prove well-posedness of the models and derive rational decay rates for the
energy using an approach where the coupled systems are formulated as feedback
interconnections of impedance passive regular linear systems.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figure, accepted for publication in the Proceedings of
"Semigroups of Operators: Theory and Applications", Kazimierz Dolny, Poland,
October 201
A comparative thematic review of vocational leadership literature from the USA, Great Britain and Australia
Vocational education and its leadership is an important sphere of economic activity worldwide and is being impacted by several trends including: the increasing significance and centrality of skills development in todayâs economies; economic trends associated with globalisation (internationalisation of education and emergence of global labour markets); and demographic trends resulting in ageing populations and workforces. Leadership in vocational education contexts is crucial to the economic success of this sector. The aim of this paper is to provide a comparative thematic review of the research and literature on leadership in vocational education between the USA, Great Britain and Australia posed by the research question, âWhat are the key leadership issues facing vocational education and training sectors in the USA, Great Britain and Australia?â This study contributes to the research and literature by identifying key impact factors for vocational education leadership in these nations over the last 13 years. Results from the comparative review established the following three key issues: a concern over equity and diversity; the importance of change management; and leadership skills and their development. Although leadership competencies are the subject of some debate there appears to be a broad consensus that leaders are developed not only by formal courses, but more importantly by on-the-job experiential learning. The future development of leaders within vocational education is discussed in relation to the implications for policy and practice, and suggestions for future research are provided
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