Addressing institutional potential loss of records and knowledge in Africa: The case of the ECA institutional repository – A knowledge base on African socio-economic development

In its 50 years of existence, the United Nations Economic Commission of Africa (UNECA) has created and holds a vast quantity of information and knowledge in a variety of formats, including printed and electronic. These represent the corporate memory, providing historical evidence of its actions and decisions. The information resources include published materials such as flagship publications, journal articles, conference proceedings, technical reports, mission reports, annual reports, working papers, policy briefs, speeches and other grey literature, all which outline important research or decisions that have been made on the economic and social development in Africa. In 2009 the Library was awarded seed funding to implement the ECA Institutional Repository (IR). This paper discusses the various activities that have been undertaken to realize the project including; highly customized Dspace installation to support the MARC21 metadata, digitization, migration of metadata from the Library Integrated Management System (HORIZON) and, customization of the Dspace workflow to enable review of imported records. The paper also highlights lessons learnt, challenges and some of the best practices developed throughout the implementation and roll out of the ECA IR project. The Institutional Repository at http://repository.uneca.org/ is the first of its kind within the United Nations Secretariat and offers unique knowledge and information not available elsewhere pertaining to regional programmes, decisions and resolutions promoting social and economic development of Africa.     

Does HCV Patients Who Have BCL2 43Ala Genotype and Normal GH1 Levels Can Achieve Response to IFN Based Therapy?

The main objective of the current study is to examine the role of the statistical relation between BCL2 gene (Ala43Thr) single nucleotide polymorphism and growth hormone (GH1) levels in Egyptian HCV genotype-4 patients before and after treatment with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin. Eighty patients with HCV genotype-4 and 40 healthy volunteers as controls were enrolled in the prospective study. Gene polymorphism of BCL2 (Ala43Thr) using PCR-RFLP technique and GH1 concentrations using ELISA procedure were measured for all patients and controls. The present study resulted that Responder HCV genotype-4 Patients, with BCL2 43Ala genotype, have high significant increase in pre-treatment GH1 levels (>1 ng/ml); which represent normal levels, as compared to non-responders pre-treatment GH1 levels (<1 ng/ml); which represent low concentrations. We concluded that HCV genotype-4 patients who have normal GH1 concentrations and BCL-2 43Ala genotype can successfully achieve response to interferon based therapy.     

Evolving through tensions: preservice teachers’ conceptions of social justice teaching

ABSTRACT

This study utilized cultural historical activity theory to explore the evolution of nine preservice teachers’ (PSTs’) conceptions of social justice teaching while enrolled in a social justice-oriented teacher education program. From three interviews conducted over one year, findings show that tensions PSTs encountered while student teaching in high-poverty schools predominantly shaped their thinking. PSTs’ conceptions of social justice teaching evolved to include navigating inequitable systems, loving students critically, and viewing social justice teaching as uniquely personal. Implications include the importance of teacher educators leveraging inevitable student-teaching tensions as learning opportunities to further PSTs’ commitment to social justice teaching.     

利用残留冗余量的联合信源信道解码在EVRC语音解码器中的应用

宽带扩频系统的语音服务采用增强型的可变比率编码器，该标准已在IS－95和J－STC－008个人移动通信系统得到应用。本致力于利用增强可变比率编码器中内在残留冗余信息的信道解码器。由于残留冗余信息可以用一阶产夫模型表示，同时相关频率的变化可以用熵率来表示，从而，信道解码器可利用这种残留冗余量。仿真结果表明，和没有利用这种信息量的解码器相比，由于编码增益，系统性能有明显改善，其中，信道编码采用了卷积码、Turbo码两种方式。     

Redefining ‘community’ through collaboration and co-teaching: a case study of an ESOL specialist,a literacy specialist,and a fifth-grade teacher

This article explores the development of a professional learning community through a case study of three teachers – an ESOL specialist, a literacy specialist, and a fifth-grade teacher – who engaged in co-teaching and collaboration. The emerging community of practice offered these teachers a space to learn and problem-solve by utilizing their specialized disciplinary knowledge of students and expanding the application of reading strategies during language arts. Concurrently, opportunities for revising curriculum and instruction remained unrealized, as teachers struggled to negotiate roles and responsibilities within the top-down administratively initiated collaboration that required redefining their professional community. Implications and recommendations are discussed.     

News media,movies, and anti-Muslim prejudice: investigating the role of social contact

This study examines the relationship between Indian non-Muslim adolescents’ Western and Indian news media use, exposure to Hollywood and Bollywood movies, and their prejudice against Muslim minorities. Based on contact hypothesis, the moderating roles of out-group contact were tested within this framework. Multivariate analyses revealed that Western news media use and exposure to Hollywood movies were significant predictors of anti-Muslim prejudice, while frequent, enriched contact with Muslims reduced out-group prejudice. The relationship between Indian news media use and prejudice was statistically insignificant. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Health sciences libraries and information services in Bangladesh

Basic problems relating to the status of health sciences libraries and information centers in Bangladesh are highlighted and discussed; strategies for improving the country's health sciences information services are suggested. A survey of libraries is reported, the country's national science and technology information policy is defined, and recommendations for action are proposed.     

Introduction Universal primary education in South Asia: A right that remains elusive

South Asia, with a quarter of the world’s population, has at least a quarter of the world’s children who should be in primary school but are not. As a region, South Asia will almost certainly fall short of achieving the second EFA goal by 2015: full access to, and completion of, primary education. What can be done now to improve the prospects of achieving the goal as soon after 2015 as possible and to lay a solid foundation for doing so?     

Values—— A study of teacher and student perceptions in four countries

The study aimed to assess and compare the values prevalent among the students and teachers of Universities in Bangladesh, Japan, USA and Germany. The sample consisted of 480 students and 236 teachers. The sample included 120 undergraduate students Japan; 120 undergraduate students from Bangladesh; 120 undergraduate students from USA, and 120 undergraduate students from Germany. The faculty sample included 60 teachers from Japan, 60 teachers from Bangladesh; 60 teachers from USA, and 56 teachers from Germany. To identify the value preferences of the individuals a list of 10 values, pro-social, achievement, power over others, security, self direction, otherworldliness, fatalism, narcissism, inner directed, and conservative, based on previous values studies by Singh and Parek were prepared. The first five values were identified in previous studies as functional （Singh, 1975） and other five were identified as dysfunctional （Parek, 1988） in the context of national development of Asian cultures. The results revealed that Bangladeshi students held stronger preferences for values identified as functional values than for those identified as dysfunctional. Japanese students indicated stronger preferences for the values identified as functional values except narcissism. The American students indicated a preference for three of the five values identified as functional but also ranked narcissism and other worldliness as third and fifth preferred values respectively. German student showed a preference for functional values, except narcissism which they also ranked as third. Bangladeshi teachers＇ preferences for functional values were higher than dysfunctional values. Japanese teachers indicated a preference for functional values except narcissism. American teachers preferred functional values except other worldliness. German teachers＇ value preferences were also functional, except for narcissism which they ranked as fifth. Students and teachers in the four countries sampled indicate preferences for values identified as functional with few exceptions. This research suggests that value preferences among university students and teachers are more similar than different, suggesting a homogenizing effect （Boli, 2005） on human values.