Fire play: ICCARUS—Intelligent command and control,acquisition and review using simulation*

Is it possible to educate a fire officer to deal intelligently with the command and control of a major fire event he will never have experienced? The authors of this paper believe there is, and present here just one solution to this training challenge. It involves the development of an intelligent simulation based upon computer managed interactive media. The expertise and content underpinning this educational development was provided by the West Midlands Fire Service. Their brief for this training programme was unambiguous and to the point:

• 1 Do not present the trainee with a model answer, because there are no generic fires. Each incident is novel, complex, and often ‘wicked’ in that it changes obstructively as it progresses. Thus firefighting demands that Commanders impose their individual intelligence on each problem to solve it.
• 2 A suitable Educational Simulator should stand alone; operate in real time; emulate as nearly as possible the ‘feel’ of the fireground; present realistic fire progress; incorporate the vast majority of those resources normally present at a real incident; bombard the trainee with information from those sources; provide as few system‐prompts as possible.
• 3 There should also be an interrogable visual debrief which can be used after the exercise to give the trainees a firm understanding of the effects of their actions. This allows them to draw their own conclusions of their command effectiveness. Additionally, such a record of command and control will be an ideal initiator of tutorial discussion.
• 4 The simulation should be realisable on a hardware/software platform of £10 000.
• 5 The overriding importance is that the simulation should ‘emulate as nearly as possible the feelings and stresses of the command role’.

     

The morning after the millennium: building the long-haul learning university

Lifelong learning remains a powerful and valid concept important for the evolution of higher education and the university in the changing context of globalization, 30 years after its first popularization around 1970. Like the related concept of the learning society, it suffers trivializing fashion and reductionism. As we move into a phase of universal tertiary education, it is all the more necessary to understand how to enable universities to become learning organizations playing a distinct role in a fast-changing world. Enterprise is an essential associated characteristic, rather than a betrayal of the essentially academic. Universities need to function as open systems, building partnerships and sharing networks in and beyond their localities, and playing leading roles in the creation of learning regions and in new modes of knowledge protection. A grasp of these issues points the way for universities to survive as valued and unique social institutions adapted to and playing an active part in the making of knowledge societies.     

Work‐experience and schools: factors influencing the participation of industry

The growth of work‐experience as part of the school curriculum in such schemes as TVEI, has led to a growing body of literature concerned with the educational, social and political consequences of this trend. However, one aspect of analysis has been neglected by those working in this area. There has been a marked lack of investigation into factors which affect the supply of work placements to schools. Behind this lies an assumption that the participation of industry with schools is a straightforward and easy to accomplish process.

By focusing on some of the approaches exhibited by firms towards the provison of work‐experience, this paper seeks to make problematic the supply of work placements by industry in a market economy. I shall suggest that eductionalists and policy makers may have cause to be concerned not only with the quantity of placements which might be available to them in the future, but with the educational quality of these placements.     

Postpartum depression, marital dysfunction, and infant outcome: a longitudinal study

This longitudinal study explores the relationship of postpartum depression (PPD) and marital dysfunction on infant outcomes from birth to 2 1/2 years of age among middle-class, postpartum women. Participants were recruited during the prenatal period. Twelve mothers completed the study throughout a 2 1/2-year period. Questionnaires, semistructured interviews, and observations were used to collect data. Content analysis of the interviews (Morse & Field, 1995) was conducted and thematic patterns were identified. Clinical PPD and marital dysfunction (defined as little or no support or closeness, or verbal, emotional or physical abuse) characterized nearly one in three mothers. Four themes describing the women's postpartum progression were identified: stress, isolation, resentment, and eventual adjustment by creating a new normal. No major developmental delays or behavioral problems were found among the infants. Eight of the 12 mothers who were initially identified as breastfeeding nursed their infants for 6-18 months. Regardless of financial and educational advantages, mothers in the study experienced depression and marital dysfunction. These findings support other studies that confirm the lack of association of PPD with social class or marital status. Childbirth educators and other health care professionals are encouraged to continue providing expectant families with anticipatory education and community resources in order to increase awareness of mental health and marital risks during the postpartum transition.     

Authentic school partnerships for enabling inclusive education in Hong Kong

Education reform towards a whole school approach to catering for diversity within Hong Kong government schools has seen the initiation of several strategies to support mainstream schools in this transition. One of these approaches is the use of a resource school model. Special and mainstream schools in Hong Kong are being invited to establish themselves as resource support hubs for partner mainstream schools. This paper investigates how this model is being implemented by considering one of each type of resource school. Three broad themes have emerged that relate to the type of support being offered and sought: the school ethos and culture of the partner schools; and management issues. The effectiveness of a resource model is evaluated for its use in Hong Kong.     

Predicting individual differences in reading comprehension: a twin study

We examined the Simple View of reading from a behavioral genetic perspective. Two aspects of word decoding (phonological decoding and word recognition), two aspects of oral language skill (listening comprehension and vocabulary), and reading comprehension were assessed in a twin sample at age 9. Using latent factor models, we found that overlap among phonological decoding, word recognition, listening comprehension, vocabulary, and reading comprehension was primarily due to genetic influences. Shared environmental influences accounted for associations among word recognition, listening comprehension, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. Independent of phonological decoding and word recognition, there was a separate genetic link between listening comprehension, vocabulary, and reading comprehension and a specific shared environmental link between vocabulary and reading comprehension. There were no residual genetic or environmental influences on reading comprehension. The findings provide evidence for a genetic basis to the “Simple View” of reading.