Factors Affecting the Use of MIS as a Tool for Informing and Evaluating Teaching and Learning in Schools

This study looks at the way in which Management Information Systems (MISs) are being used in Primary Schools in Birmingham. Analysis was from data collected through a questionnaire, to a 50% sample of schools in May 1999 and semi structured interviews with a cross section of staff at 20 schools, conducted during the period September 1999 until September 2001. The findings indicate that despite an overwhelming acceptance of the value of such systems, they are generally being used to provide specific statutory returns and administrative type functions. This is as opposed to use as a constant monitoring tool for self-evaluation, performance management, alerting and feedback, which is then used to inform the teaching and learning process. The paper goes on to propose a hypothesis as to why this is occurring and makes suggestions as to how the situation may be remedied. The research and its findings are part of the LEAs continuous evaluation of the use of ICT in its schools and the remedies which follow are part of its planning for the future.     

Associative aspects of conditioned analgesia evoked by a discrete CS

Learning & Behavior - Four experiments with rat subjects assessed conditioned analgesia evoked by a discrete visual CS repeatedly paired with a shock US. In Experiment 1, rats that received...     

The effects of requiring different response strategies following caching in Clark’s nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana)

Clark’s nutcrackers use spatial memory to recover stored food in the field and have performed very well in laboratory tests of spatial memory. During the present experiment, two groups of nutcrackers cached seeds every 4 days. Following each cache session, the stay group was tested with seeds in their caches; the shift group found seeds in novel sites. The stay group performed accurately throughout the experiment, but the shift group gave no indication of being able to learn to avoid sites where they had stored seeds. These results suggest that although nutcrackers can learn to shift away from remembered locations during some memory experiments, they cannot learn to shift away from cache sites. This raises interesting questions about the relationship between task characteristics, response strategies, and memory.     

The effects of fantasy football participation on NFL consumption: A qualitative analysis

The growth of fantasy sports into a multi-billion dollar industry has made it an important component of the sports industry. Sport leagues must acknowledge the impact fantasy sports have on the way its participants consume their sport. This study examines the impact of fantasy football on the consumption of NFL-related products and services using an adapted version of the attitude/behavior model developed [Fazio, R. H., Powell, M. C., & Herr, P. M. (1983). Toward a process model of the attitude–behavior relation: Accessing one's attitude upon mere observation of the attitude object. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44(4), 723–735]. Using qualitative methods, the data indicate that fantasy football participants utilized various media sources, specifically the Internet, television, cellular telephones, and a variety of print media, at much higher levels as a result of their interest and participation in fantasy football. Further, contrary to previous literature on fan loyalty, team and player outcomes were found to alter perceptions towards a favorite team or a fantasy team.     

Behaviour Problems in the Siblings of Children With Down Syndrome: associations with family responsibilities and parental stress

Forty‐five families with a child with Down syndrome and 88 comparison families provided information about their children's behaviour problems and their involvement in household tasks. In addition, parental stress was measured using the Parenting domain of the Parenting Stress Index (Abidin, 1990). There were no differences between the siblings of a child with Down syndrome and comparison children on mothers’ or fathers’ reports of problem behaviour. Siblings of a child with Down syndrome also did not differ in their contribution to family tasks, however, for the brothers of a child with Down syndrome there were significant negative correlations between household tasks and behaviour problems on fathers’ report. Parents of a child with Down syndrome reported more stress than comparison parents and stress was related to reports of problem behaviour for some parent groups.     

析出硬化粉末冶金不锈钢

高硬度不锈钢的使用需求在快速增长.尽管析出硬化不锈钢具有高强度,但在粉末冶金(PM)中使用的并不多.可通过加入在时效过程形成金属问沉淀的成份如铜、铌对这些合金进行强化.析出硬化级不锈钢的耐腐蚀性能可与铬镍级(300系列)相媲美.本文提出了两种析出硬化不锈钢粉末的物理性质和微观结构:17-4PH,一种高铬马氏体析出硬化不锈钢,优化条件后应用于粉末冶金中;另一种是在析出反应中使用铜的新型低铬(12w/o)合金.这种新型合金(410LCu)被视为满足高强度和中等耐腐蚀性的要求的低成本选择.