Information within a system of the basic categories of a planetary analysis

At the turn of the 21st century a methodological analysis of the planetary development of civilization became a topical issue in world science. Such an analysis is based on a framework of categorical concepts adopted for active use in globalistics, namely, the biosphere, sociosphere, technosphere, noosphere, and infosphere. The given context provides a new perspective on the phenomenon of information and informatics, with the latter having experienced increasing demands as a popular scientific discipline in the field of information. In the contemporary setting, these phenomena can be adequately evaluated only in connection with the above concepts.     

The Effect of a National Initiative on Exam Results

ABSTRACT

This paper considers the examination results of TVEI and non TVEI pupils in the database established at the University of Newcastle in 1985‐87. The pupils took national exams in the summer of 1987, when they were about 16 years old. Their average grades (Exam Means) and their accumulated grades (Exam Totals) were considered separately.

The Exam Mean and Exam Total scores were generally worse for TVEI than non TVEI pupils, even when pupils with the same ability test scores and aspirational scores were compared. However, it is possible that non TVEI factors caused the discrepancy in results and it is these factors which are the subjects of this paper.

The paper considers firstly whether the differences are an artefact of regression analysis. Secondly, the data are considered using various multilevel models. Both analyses suggest that there was no TVEI effect on the Exam Mean score and a negative TVEI effect on the Exam Total. Various explanations for these findings, concerning internal school allocational and curriculum policies, are considered and discussed.     

Les conditions préliminaires à l'intégration pédagogique des moyens audiovisuels

L'usage des moyens audiovisuels exige l'intégration dans la classe de moyens puissants, coûteux, impliquant des techniques variées. Il importe de réviser complètement nos idées en matiére d'éducation. Jusqu'ici, trop souvent, les moyens audiovisuels ont été utilisés comme des auxiliaires mineurs de l'enseignement sur lequel, trop souvent, ils ont eu, comme l'on dit, le même effet qu'un cautère sur une jambe de bois. En fait, un tout petit remède qui n'a que très peu d'effet par rapport à l'efficacité potentielle de tous ces moyens.     

Barriers to older people’s participation in local governance: The impact of diversity

Creating opportunities for inclusive participation by older people in local governance is made more complex by their diversity, which can shape who participates, in what ways, and how effectively. The existing research, however, largely focuses on the impact of socio-demographic characteristics or of individual barriers on participation, without considering how interactions between these may shape pathways to participation among older people. This quantitative study explored the relationships between participation by older people, barriers to participation, and socio-demographic characteristics. The results indicate that socio-demographic diversity impacts on the importance attributed to barriers as well as the strength and direction of their relationships with participation. The findings problematize the dominant approaches to understanding barriers to and patterns in participation. A more sophisticated understanding of inclusive governance in ageing communities needs to consider the iterative and interactional nature of pathways to participation in the context of the complexity of the “older population.”     

Cooperative cataloging: History and the current state

This paper considers the history of the emergence and development of cooperative cataloging in Russia and abroad and presents the first projects and programs in the field of cooperative cataloging: CONSER, NACO, BIBCO, and PCC. It elucidates the activity of the OCLC Center and Consortium of European Scientific Libraries, which are the first-rate international cooperative associations, as well as the ARBIKON Association and LIBNET centers which are Russian centers of cooperative cataloging.     

Open access to scientific knowledge: Its state,problems, and prospects of development

The concept of “open access” to scientific and teaching information has become one of the specific forms of the worldwide trend towards the formation of global interactive knowledge. This paper presents the basic information on open access (OA) to scientific and teaching information, its current status, financing options, problems and prospects of development, and the participation of Russia in this process.