Evaluating the impact of early years educational reform in Wales to age seven: the potential use of the UK Millennium Cohort Study

Early years education has received considerable attention in recent years, particularly as a result of longitudinal studies that demonstrate the importance of the first few years in a child’s development and educational experience. In 2004, a new approach to early years education, the Foundation Phase, was introduced in Wales. This is a major flagship policy of the recently devolved Welsh Government, and marks a radical departure from the more assessment-driven competency-based approaches to early childhood education that existed prior to the Foundation Phase. Studying approximately 2000 children in Wales who are part of the UK Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), all born in 2000–2001 we investigate the potential impact of the Foundation Phase pilot on a range of key academic and well-being outcome measures. Compared with other children, those attending a Foundation Phase pilot school tended to have lower scores in a number of academic assessments at age seven and lower subjective well-being, in terms of their attitudes to learning and well-being at school. We consider these surprising, yet concerning, results in the context of the methodological limitations to this analysis and propose how the MCS can be further used to substantiate these findings.     

Effect of vitamin E supplementation on oxidative stress in hemodialysis patients

Hemodialysis represents a chronic stress status for its recipients. Many hypotheses state that this may be associated with oxidative stress. Thus, there may be deficiency of antioxidants like erythrocytic superoxide dismutase, catalase, vitamin E or increased generation of free radicals like superoxide anions. A study was carried out to investigate oxidant and antioxidant status in chronic renal failure patients undergoing hemodialysis and effect of vitamin E supplementation on these two status. Blood samples were collected from patients before and after hemodialysis and from controls. The samples were analyzed for quantitation of MDA as index of lipid peroxide, nitric oxide, vitamin E, vitamin C and enzymatic antioxidants namely erythrocyte SOD and catalase. As compared to controls, the levels of serum MDA were significantly increased and activities of erythrocyte SOD and catalase, levels of serum nitric oxide, serum vitamin E and plasma vitamin C were significantly decreased both before and after hemodialysis. The efficiency of vitamin E therapy in hemodialysis patients was assessed by re-evaluating oxidant and antioxidant status of same patients after supplementation of vitamin E. Vitamin E supplementation caused decrease in serum MDA and increase in levels of serum nitric oxide, vitamin E, vitamin C and activities of erythrocytic SOD and catalase. Our results suggest the presence of oxidative stress and the possible preventive role of vitamin E therapy in hemodialysis patients.     

Hollywood studio filmmaking in the age of Netflix: a tale of two institutional logics

Journal of Cultural Economics - Online streaming services are challenging long-standing decision-making processes in the traditional motion picture industry, thus placing Hollywood major studios at...     

Decoding and sight-word naming: Are they independent components of word recognition skill?

Word recognition skill is the foundation of the reading process. Word recognition could be accomplished by two major strategies: phonological decoding and sight-word reading, the latter being a marker for proficient reading. There is, however, a controversy regarding the relationship between decoding and sight-word reading, whether the two are independent or the latter is built on the foundations of the former. A related controversy about instructional strategy could be whether to use whole-word method to improve word recognition skills, or to first build decoding skills and then introduce sight words. Five goals were set up to address these issues: (a) developing a criterion that can be used easily by classroom teachers to assess sight-word reading ability, (b) examining this relationship between decoding and sight-word reading, (c) identifying the mechanism that can explain the relationship, (d) examining factors that facilitate sight-word reading, and (e) discussing potential instructional implications of these findings. In order to accomplish these goals, naming time and word-naming accuracy of three groups of subjects (elementary school children, children identified as having reading disability, and college students) were studied by using a variety of verbal materials. The over-all conclusions are that the difference in naming time of letters and words can be used as a metric for assessing sight-word reading skill. Sight-word reading appears to be intimately related to decoding. Sight-word reading is accomplished by parallel processing of constituent letters of words and is influenced also by the semantic nature of words. It is conjectured that sight-word reading instruction is likely to be successful if decoding skills are firmly established first.     

International trends in health science librarianship part 12: South Asia (India,Pakistan and Sri Lanka)

This is the 12th in a series of articles exploring international trends in health science librarianship. This issue describes developments in health science librarianship in the first decade of the 21st century in South Asia. The three contributors report on challenges facing health science librarians in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. There is consensus as to the need for education, training and professional development. Starting in the next issue, the focus will turn to Africa, starting with countries in southern Africa. JM