pH-Responsive and Buffering Macromolecule Aqueous Absorbent and Mathematic Model-Based Feasibility Evaluation for SO2 Capture

An organic macromolecule, poly(1-vinylimidazole), with an appropriate polymerization degree was proposed and mixed with water to form a novel aqueous absorbent for SO_2 capture. This aqueous solution absorbent has the advantages of simple preparation, good physicochemical properties, environment-friendliness, high ability in deep removal of SO_2, and excellent reusability. Moreover, pH-responsive behavior, pH buffering absorption mechanism, and their synergistic effect on absorption performance were revealed. The solubilities of SO_2 in the absorbent were measured in detail, and the results demonstrated excellent absorption capacity and recyclability. Then, mathematic models that describe SO_2 absorption equilibrium were established, and the corresponding parameters were estimated. More importantly, on the basis of model and experimental data, the absorption and desorption could maintain high efficiency within a wide operating region. In summary, this work provided a low-cost, efficient, and unique absorbent for SO_2 capture and verified its technical feasibility in industrial application.     

The efficiency of simulation games in science education: An empirical study

The use of simulation games in science education has been widely recommended for several years now, but this has not been supported by empirical proofs of their efficiency. Therefore, a study was undertaken to test the efficiency of lottery games for simulating chemical kinetics empirically in practical lessons. About 800 pupils and 37 teachers, chiefly from the upper secondary level of grammar schools, participated in the study. It could be shown that the games are most efficient for pupils taking advanced courses, that their efficiency was stable for a considerable time and that active playing with games yielded better results than the demonstration alone. The games were valued by the teachers as well as by the pupils as effective, interesting and comprehensible.     

“Totally different standards”: consumer orientation in study abroad contexts

The paper takes an interest in consumer behavior in international higher education (HE). It takes qualitative narratives of international student experience as a point of departure for a discussion of the degree to which students conceive of their experience in consumer terms when they evaluate their stays abroad. Intentionally, the group of informants consists of culturally diverse subjects (Danish and Chinese students). While the size of the sample does not allow for any wide-ranging conclusions on the connection between cultural background and adoption of consumer identity, it enables the researchers to evaluate whether cultural background seems to pertain to the propensity of students to think and act in a consumer-oriented manner in their experience of the different material and academic standards they were faced with in their study abroad environment. Based on an interest in the role of the student in the era of academic capitalism, the study investigates whether the fact that universities increasingly operate on market and market-like conditions influences students’ way of conceiving of their study abroad experience. To what extent do students perceive themselves as consumers investing in services and products?     

Reliability and agreement of student ratings of the classroom environment: A reanalysis of TIMSS data

In educational research, characteristics of the learning environment are generally assessed by asking students to evaluate features of their lessons. The student ratings produced by this simple and efficient research strategy can be analysed from two different perspectives. At the individual level, they represent the individual student’s perception of the learning environment. Scores aggregated to the classroom level reflect perceptions of the shared learning environment, corrected for individual idiosyncrasies. This second approach is often pursued in studies on teaching quality and effectiveness, where student-level ratings are aggregated to the class level to obtain general information about the learning environment. Although this strategy is widely applied in educational research, neither the reliability of aggregated student ratings nor the within-group agreement between the students in a class has been subject to much investigation. The present study introduces and discusses different procedures that have been proposed in the field of organisational psychology to assess the reliability and agreement of students’ ratings of their instruction. The application of the proposed indexes is demonstrated by a reanalysis of student ratings of mathematics instruction obtained in the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (N = 2,064 students in 100 classes).

Inclusive vocational schools in Canada and Germany. A comparison of vocational pre-service teachers′ attitudes,self-efficacy and experiences towards inclusive education

Both Canada’s and Germany’s school systems are transitioning into inclusive education systems. This transition is also happening in vocational schools. This paper addresses the new demands that vocational teachers face, due to the introduction of inclusive education in Germany and Canada, by examining Canadian and German pre-service vocational teachers’ attitudes, self-efficacy and experiences related to inclusive education. The study identifies significantly more positive ratings in the Canadian sample across all the three scales. We conclude that the different ratings relate to different school systems, experiences with inclusion and the teacher education systems. Based on these research findings, recommendations for teacher education are discussed.     

Which Multiculturalism?

This paper discusses the debates around multiculturalism both as a politics of recognition and as a proposed epistemic position in the context of science education. It concludes that there are neither uncontroversial ethical and political grounds, nor tenable epistemic reasons, for linking a multiculturalist approach to science education with a non-universalist approach to science, nor for a refusal to make evaluative comparisons between different sorts of knowledge claims originating in different cultures.     

Stability performance of buckling-restrained brace with brace joints

The stability and ductility of four buckling-restrained braces （BRBs） with brace joints were studied. The load-carrying element of BRB was fabricated with steel （Chinese Q235）, and a layer of colloidal silica sheet （0.5 mm in thickness） or four layers of plastic film （0.2 mm in thickness） were used as unbonding materials to provide space to prevent the buckling of inner core in higher modes and facilitate its lateral expansion in case of compression. Based on the equation of BRBs with brace joints of different restrained stiffnesses, the buckling load is calculated considering the initial geometric imperfections and residual stress, and the theoretical values agree well with the experiment re- sults. It is concluded that the buckling load and ductility of BRBs are influenced greatly by the restrained stiffness of brace joints. If the restrained stiffness is deficient, the unstrained segment of BRBs with less stiffness will buckle firstly. As a result, the ultimate load of BRBs decreases, and the maximum compression load is reduced to about 65% of the maximum tension load; the stiffness also degenerates, and there is a long decreasing stage on the back-bone curve in compression phase; the ductility decreases, i.e., the ultimate tension ductility and ultimate compression ductil- ity are approximately 15 and 1.3 respectively, and the cumulative plastic ductility is only approximately 200. If the restrained stiffness of joint is large enough, the stability will be improved as follows： the yielding strength and ultimate strength of BRBs are nearly the same, and there is an obvious strain intensification in both tension and compression phases; the ductility of brace also increases obviously, i.e., the ultimate tension ductility and ultimate compression ductility are both approximately 14, and the cumulative plastic ductility reaches 782.     

Rethinking teachers’ goal orientations: Conceptual and methodological enhancements

The article provides a theoretical extension of the goal orientation approach for teaching by proposing three different competence facets of learning goals and four types of addressees for performance approach and avoidance goals. On the basis of responses from 495 teacher trainees and 224 in-service teachers, the development and validation of an advanced goal orientation measure is presented. Internal consistencies of the goal dimensions were good, and confirmatory factor analyses verified the postulated model for teacher trainees and in-service teachers. In both groups, learning goal orientation positively predicted self-efficacy for teaching and perceived benefits of help-seeking. Performance approach goals positively predicted self-efficacy for teaching and performance avoidance goals negatively predicted self-efficacy for teaching and positively predicted perceived threats of help-seeking. The use of goal orientation facets provided a more thorough analysis of the predictions regarding perceptions of help-seeking. Results supported the convergent and divergent validity of the new measure.