Distributed framework for yard planning in container terminals

This study discusses a yard planning system,which considers various resources such as storage space,yard cranes,and traffic areas in container terminals.The system is based on the function for estimating resource requirements of yard plans.For a given yard plan,the proposed system allows planners to check the feasibility of the plan which requires a certain amount of workload of resources in related blocks during a planning horizon.The yard planning system in this study is aimed at balancing workloads among the blocks and providing the ability to modify current yard plans by detecting blocks and periods with overloaded workloads.The system implements its planning function in a distributed manner in which planners construct yard plans under their individual control and send and receive only limited necessary information for the negotiation.     

Social information processing and coping strategies of shy/withdrawn and aggressive children: does friendship matter?

The primary objectives of this investigation were to examine the attributions, emotional reactions, and coping strategies of shy/withdrawn and aggressive girls and boys and to examine whether such social cognitions differ within the relationship context of friendship. Drawn from a sample of fifth and sixth graders (M age = 10.79 years; SD = .77), 78 shy/withdrawn, 76 aggressive, and 85 control children were presented with hypothetical social situations that first involved unfamiliar peers, and then a mutual good friend. Results revealed group and gender differences and similarities, depending on the relationship context. From our findings emerges a central message: friends' involvement during interpersonal challenges or stressors mitigates children's attributions, emotions, and coping responses.     

A System of Student Feedback: Considerations of Academic Staff Taken into Account

As a consequence of the suspension of a system of yearly evaluations of individual courses with student questionnaires, the University of Leuven organised a broad consultation of the academic community focussing on what they expect from a system based on student feedback. The study revealed that this community attaches great importance to a clear definition of the goals of student feedback, improvement and accountability, and a logical translation of these goals into a concrete approach. The study also confirmed the need of academic staff for a concrete response to the importance they give to quality improvement and enhancement besides accountability.     

A Three-State Study of English Learner Progress

In this three-state study, the authors estimate the magnitudes of achievement gaps between English learner (EL) students and their non-EL peers, while avoiding typical caveats in cross-sectional studies. The authors further compare the observed achievement gaps across three distinct dimensions (content areas, grades, and states) and report patterns of EL–non-EL achievement gaps within and across states. The study findings suggest that linguistic barriers and long-term EL designation may contribute to the observed achievement gaps. The findings further suggest that the differences in the stringency of state reclassification criteria may influence the reported size of the EL and non-EL achievement gaps between states.     

FROM PERSUASION TO ACCOMMODATION IN PUBLIC TWO-YEAR COLLEGE DEVELOPMENT

This was the first of a series of papers presented February 20, 2001 at a national conference sponsored by North Texas State University held in the Omni Hotel Dallas, TX. The author relates the 1950 status of two-year college development, numbers and locations of university professors specializing in the field, and the need to persuade citizens they should have a public two-year college in their midst. Events are traced which led up to the overwhelming demand by the public in the late 1960s and early 1970s to have their own two-year college. This condition precipitated the untiring work of university faculty specialized in this field to accommodate the need for assistance at both the state level planning and for local college establishment. The citizens participatory comprehensive study involvement developed initially as a way of overcoming resistance and persuading citizens they needed a college is a viable approach today for periodically evaluating and future planning to meet changing societal manpower needs. The author urges continued use of action research tools to accommodate evolving local area educational needs.     

A STUDY OF JUNIOR AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE HISTORY INSTRUCTORS IN THE SOUTH

Instructors in community and junior colleges within the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools’ accrediting region were the focus of this study to determine characteristics and activities of those teaching history. A questionnaire was mailed to each history instructor in 88 of the 285 institutions in the region. A total of 230 instructors responded. After data were compiled and analyzed, it was determined that the typical history instructor in the region is a married, middle‐aged male who is Southern born and bred, and holds at least a master's degree in history. He has been in his present position for at least 10 years, coming to the present position from the high school ranks. The lecture method is used in teaching the 13‐to 15‐credit‐hour average load. Teaching is the primary activity of history instructors, with research and service not a part of usual expectations.     

Exploring the Underlying Factor Structure of the Parent Reading Belief Inventory (PRBI): Some Caveats

Although mainstream preschool programs have been in existence since the 1970s, little is known about the ways in which typical children attempt to understand what it means for a peer to have a disability. In this study, 4-year-old children without disabilities who were enrolled in a mainstream preschool class explained their peers' disabilities by referring to concepts of immaturity, accident, or adaptive equipment to account for the behavioral differences that they observed. The implications of these cognitions for children's developing attitudes and behaviors toward peers with disabilities are discussed.     

Impact of a Statewide Collaborative on Strengthening Families Through Early Care and Education

Research Findings: Research suggests that early care and education programs are most effective when they include strong components of family involvement. The Center for the Study of Social Policy recommended that early care and education programs build family-centered practices to strengthen families and reduce the incidence of child abuse and neglect. This article summarizes a statewide effort to implement this strategy, called Strengthening Families through Early Care and Education. We analyzed program self-assessments submitted by 186 early care and education programs. Analyses revealed that Head Start programs had better support systems in place for families than did “mainstream” (non–Head Start, non-accredited) early care and education programs. Results also showed that a small amount of state and local funding provided enough incentive for programs to improve their family-strengthening practices. Commitment and collaboration at the state level led to a sustainable impact by infusing “strengthening families” concepts into the early care and education field statewide.     

Improving teachers’ assessment literacy through professional development

This study examined the effects of professional development on teachers’ assessment literacy between two groups of teachers: (1) teachers who were involved in ongoing and sustained professional development in designing authentic classroom assessment and rubrics; and (2) teachers who were given only short-term, one-shot professional development workshops in authentic assessment. The participating teachers taught Year 4 and 5 English, science, and mathematics. The findings showed that the assessment literacy of teachers who were involved in ongoing, sustained professional development had increased significantly during the second year of study. These teachers had also gained a better understanding of authentic assessment.