The promotion of moral ideals in schools; what the state may or may not demand

The content and boundaries of moral education the state may require schools to offer is a matter of contention. This article investigates whether the state may obligate schools to promote the pursuit of moral ideals. Moral ideals refer to (a cluster of) characteristics of a person as well as to situations or states that are believed to be morally excellent or perfect and that are not yet realised. Having an ideal typically means that the person is dedicated to realising the type of situation or person to which the ideal refers. Therefore generating student enthusiasm for moral ideals may be an effective way to realise a morally excellent society. This article defends the position that schools may be required to promote the recognition of ideals that all reasonable citizens endorse. Reasonable citizens will not, however, accept that the state obligates schools to promote the pursuit of moral ideals.     

Measuring the ROI of a coaching intervention,Part 2

This article, the second of a two‐part series, describes a case study application of the ROI Methodology™. In this case, a structured coaching program was implemented as part of a comprehensive performance improvement solution designed to improve efficiency, customer satisfaction, and revenue growth for Nations Hotel Corporation. This case study provides critical insights into how a project was systemically designed, delivered, and measured to create performance value, including a return on investment.     

A theoretical assessment of regional development effects on the demand for general education

This study addresses a prospective aspect of general education: through general education, people obtain information about returns to their future specific education, thereby enabling them to choose fields in which they excel. According to that property of education, this paper presents a theoretical framework as a basis for understanding effects of regional development on the demand for general education. Results suggest that the demand for general education depends on the variety of specific skills in the regional labor market.     

Measuring the ROI on Knowledge Management Systems

Illustrating the return‐on‐investment (ROI) for a portal solution or knowledge management (KM) system has proven an elusive target. This paper will demonstrate that ROI can be found for portals and KM systems in measuring the ROI on improved processes and increased economic value of employee performance. Thus, rather than employing traditional notions of value and assets as noted in standard accounting practices, KM solutions are tools managers should use to support opportunities for process improvement and redesign. ROI that measures value from this perspective creates new areas of value from an organization's existing, undervalued assets. A well‐developed measurement methodology for implementing a KM system may illustrate ROI, justify expenditures for implementing the system, and provide a format to ensure that process improvement occurs. A well‐thought‐out KM system has the capability of becoming the “digital nervous system” of an organization, tying all areas to the strategic goals of an organization.     

A nonlinear dynamic macro-element for demand assessment of bridge substructures subjected to ship collision

For the dynamic demand assessment of bridge structures under ship impact loading, it may be prudent to adopt analytical models which permit rapid analysis with reasonable accuracy. Herein, a nonlinear dynamic macro-element is proposed and implemented to quantify the demand of bridge substructures subjected to ship collisions. In the proposed nonlinear macro-element, a combination of an elastic-plastic spring and a dashpot in parallel is employed to describe the mechanical behavior of ship-bows with strain rate effects. Based on the analytical model using the proposed macro-element, a typical substructure under 5000 deadweight tonnage (DWT) ship collision is discussed. Our analyses indicate that the responses of the structure using the nonlinear macro-element agree with the results from the high resolution model, but the efficiency and feasibility of the proposed method increase significantly in practical applications. Furthermore, comparisons between some current design codes (AASHTO, JTGD60-2004, and TB10002.1-2005) and the developed dynamic analysis method suggest that these design codes may be improved, at least to consider the effect of dynamic amplification on structural demand.     

国民旅游需求刺激计划的绩效与评价体系研究

国民旅游需求刺激计划不仅是金融危机背景下,我国政府拉动旅游消费,促进经济增长的方式之一。同时,也是政府旅游营销的重要组成部分。针对当前政府旅游营销绩效评价缺乏关注的现状,将平衡记分卡引入政府旅游营销绩效评价,建立了基于平衡记分卡的政府旅游需求刺激计划评估体系,并将其运用于2009浙江旅游消费券的绩效评估,研究结论为政府部门制定相关旅游营销策略提供参考意见。     

混合编码图像感兴趣区域无损压缩算法研究

针对包含重要局部信息图像的高压缩比压缩问题,文章对基于改进EZW和Huffman混合编码的感兴趣区无损压缩算法进行了研究,该算法可以保证感兴趣区无损解码还原,并得到整幅图像的高压缩比压缩。相对其它压缩方法,该算法同时较好的解决了压缩比低与重要信息损失的问题。文章采用Lena女孩图像进行实验,在保持其眼睛信息不损失情况下对整体图像进行高压缩比压缩,最后给出了算法实现的流程图,不同码率情况下的压缩比、压缩解压时间以及峰值信噪比PSNR的比较。实验结果显示,编码和解码时间效率高,压缩效果理想。     

Measuring the demand for agricultural information

Abstract

Networked learning aims to foster students’ knowledge construction processes as well as the quality of knowledge construction. In this respect, it is crucial to be able to analyse both aspects of networked learning. Based on theories on networked learning and the empirical work of relevant authors in this domain, two coding schemes are presented to analyse the nature of learning processes and the quality of knowledge construction in networked learning. The coding schemes were used to analyse the learning processes and learning results of students in an MSc course on land use planning at Wageningen University in which networked learning played an important role. The inter-rater reliability of both instruments appeared to be satisfactory. The relation between the two coding schemes is discussed and recommendations for future research and educational practice are formulated.     

Using ROI to demonstrate performance value in the public sector

The demand for accountability through measurement continues to increase. Although much progress has been made, it remains an issue that challenges even the most sophisticated and progressive performance improvement function. This article provides an overview of best practices in the return‐on‐investment process and describes how applying these measurement practices can have a positive impact on organizational performance and the credibility of performance improvement professionals in the public sector.     

美国博士生教育质量评估的效力诉求

并非所有的评估都是有效的.评估的效力取决于评估目标与教育质量的适切性、评估方法的合理性、评估结果的影响力.美国博士生教育质量评估的效力在现实的挑战与评估有限作用的矛盾冲突中遭到质疑.质疑催生了评估效力判断与效力提升的路径,在学术研究与实践改革的互动中,美国博士生教育质量评估通过强调以评促建的目的,提高评估方法的专业化水平,增强评估的影响力等路径,在反思与改进中促进教育质量提升的能力逐渐增强.     

Tuition fees and the demand for university places

Estimating the effect of tuition fee increases on demand for a university education is complicated by the potential endogeneity of tuition fees. The relative homogeneity of university tuition fees within Canadian provinces and the role of provincial governments in university funding and policies, provides an opportunity to use changes in the political party in power to identify plausibly exogenous changes in tuition fees. System estimates that take into account endogeneity of fees show large effects relative to single equation estimates, and to previous Canadian studies – a C$1000 increase in university tuition fees is estimated to reduce the enrolment rate by between 2.5 and 5 percentage points.     

Deadline-aware network coding for video on demand service over P2P networks

INTRODUCTION With the widespread deployment of broadband access, Video-on-Demand (VoD) streaming on the Internet has received increasing attention recently. In VoD service, video streams are delivered to asyn- chronous users with low delay and VCR-like opera- tion support (e.g., pause, fast-forward, and rewind). However, streaming to a large population of clients is very challenging due to the limited server capacity and little deployment of IP multicast in today’s Internet (Quinn a…     

Validation ROI: An HPT case study from the medical device industry

Validation is both a process and a function within Company ABC. Using the human performance technology (HPT) process, interventions were prescribed to address identified performance gaps. Forecasting an annual return on investment (ROI) based on goals yielded a ROI of 168%. Data collected for the first quarter of 2009 yielded a calculated ROI of 326%. This study discusses the HPT process and what was done to achieve the results.     

Determining the ROI of an online English as a second language program

This article examines the methodology used to determine the return on investment (ROI) of an online English as a Second Language (ESL) program. The online ESL program was implemented in over 20 countries, and the scope of the analysis includes data from all participating countries. A form of ROI analysis had been conducted annually prior to the addition of the Phillips methodology in 2008. The latest analysis follows the Phillips approach step by step and has provided greater credibility as a result.     

An econometric estimate of the demand for MBA enrollment

A demand equation for MBA enrollment was estimated to test the theory of human capital as an explanation of enrollment decisions in higher education. Three of four variables associated with a human capital interpretation were found to be significant. The functional form of the demand equation (log-reciprocal) was of importance in establishing these results. Although the failure of the interest rate to be significant might suggest imperfections in access to capital for potential students, we could not find support for the alternative view that students relied on subsidization by family. Several elasticities proved to be large enough to imply that feasible changes in the rates of change of underlying economic variables could produce noticeable changes in MBA enrollment.     

成人的教育需求分析与成人教育应对策略研究

针对目前我国有关成人个体学习状况研究较少的现状,以上海的成人学习者为调研对象,分五大职业群体进行问卷调查。调查结果显示,目前成人参与教育学习的意识和动机都非常鲜明,在教育方式、方法以及结果评价上都有自己的不同需求,成人教育的效果还有待进一步提高。