Best practice in conducting RCTs: Lessons learnt from an independent evaluation of the Response-to-Intervention programme

This paper presents the findings of the first independent UK evaluation of a large-scale randomised controlled trial of Response-to-Intervention, used as a catch-up literacy intervention. A total of 385 pupils in their final year of primary school (Year 6) were involved in the study (181 treatment and 204 control). These were identified as those at-risk of not achieving the threshold Level 4 in English at Key Stage 2. The pupils came from 49 schools across England. Twenty-seven schools were randomised to receive treatment immediately and 22 schools, which formed the control, were randomised to receive the intervention later. RTI was delivered in the summer term in preparation for pupil transfer to secondary school. The overall impact based on the standardised New Group Reading Test (NGRT) showed an ‘effect’ size of +0.19, and of +0.48 when considering only free school meal eligible pupils. However, these results must be viewed with considerable caution given the high attrition (over 25%) especially from the control group, and unclear identification of pupils eligible for the intervention. The fact that the evaluators did not have direct contact with schools when trying to identify eligible pupils, and that the developers wanted to use the pre-test to identify eligible pupils, led to this being a weak trial. The significance of the work therefore lies at least as much in the lessons learnt as in the headline figures. We learnt that ideally no more than two parties should be involved in communicating with schools, so that relevant instructions are passed quickly and acted upon promptly. This helps minimise the risk of misunderstanding and dropout post-allocation. Prior training on the technicalities of trials and research in general is necessary for both developers and any staff delivering the intervention so that all parties involved understand their commitment and the need to provide accurate and complete data. In future trials of RTI, it would be better for individual eligible pupils to be randomised rather than schools. RTI should ideally be given a whole year to allow the full cycle to be implemented, and it should be delivered daily for at least 30 minutes.     

《国家学生体质健康标准》与《学生体质健康标准(试行方案)》的比较研究

通过对6 517名大学生的身高标准体重、肺活量、坐位体前屈、台阶试验、立定跳远等测试项目进行<学生体质健康标准(试行方案)>(简称<老标准>)与<国家学生体质健康标准>(简称<新标准>)的评价比较,探讨了<新标准>在测试项目、权重系数、评价等级、评分标准等方面的合理性与科学性.结果表明,<新标准>中测试内容更加丰富,但选测项目仍然分类不清;权重系数的分配更加合理;评价等级的调整幅度较小,但评分标准大幅提高,学生的体质健康测试数据反映出新老标准间的各等级通过率存在非常显著的差异,采用<新标准>评价的不及格比例明显增大,从原来的0.3%提高到23.9%,而优良比例却由原来的60.2%降低到27.5%.因此,建议对<新标准>中部分项目的评分标准进行进一步的完善和优化.     

Effect of Weight Training with Pelvic Floor Muscle Training in Elderly Women with Urinary Incontinence

Purpose: To determine if weight training combined with pelvic floor muscle training is more efficient than pelvic floor muscle training alone for the treatment of urinary incontinence (UI) symptoms in elderly women. Method: This was a two-arm, parallel, randomized controlled trial. Twenty-six women with stress UI participated in the study. The intervention group (IG) underwent training with moderate intensity weights combined with pelvic floor muscle training, whereas the control group (CG) only underwent pelvic floor muscle training. Intervention occurred twice a week over 12 weeks. The International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire–Short Form was used as the main measure. Scores of zero defined the absence of symptoms. The absence of symptoms was evaluated at 4 weeks, 12 weeks, and 1 month after the end of treatment. Moreover, activities related to UI and the use and change of daily protection were investigated. Results: The rate of absence of symptoms was significantly higher in IG after 4 weeks (58.3%) compared to CG (14.8%). The relative risk was 4.1 (95% confidence interval [CI] [1.08, 16.06]). Although no intention-to-treat analysis was performed, there was no difference in the evaluations after the interventions. Conclusion: Compared to pelvic floor muscle training alone, the combination of weight training and pelvic floor muscle training provided earlier improvement of UI in elderly women.     

构建新的刑事诉讼简易程序之必要性分析

在我国刑事审判中,简易程序与普通程序简化审都是以提高司法效率为出发点的审判模式,却都遭遇司法实践的壁垒,不但不利于当事人合法权益的保护,而且难以真正发挥简易程序高效、速决的优势.因此合并以上两种程序,构建新的简易程序,是刑事简易程序改革的必然选择.     

教育评估中的试评估实践探析

试评估是评估活动的一个重要手段。试评估不是目的,开展试评估的目的是为了促进评估相关方更好地改进工作。文章指出通过试评估不仅能优化评估流程,形成一个完善的评估方案,而且能建立一个良好的工作机制,指导以评促建,使评估工作能够顺利实施。文章对试评估开展的原则和案例进行了全面分析,并阐述了试评估在教育评估中的作用,以期对教育评估的实践提供较好的依据和借鉴。     

受迫和阻尼振动微分方程解法探究

“振动”是普通物理力学中一个基本而且重要的内容,研究振动时,运动方程的求解问题较为复杂,是教学的一个难董,一般教科书都没有给出求解过程,直接给出方程的解来进行讨论．该文用复数法和试探法求出受迫振动微分方程的解．对理解“振动”的有关概念和规律有很大帮助,为“振动”方程求解提供了简明的方法．     

中国近代独立审判制度建构述论

中国近代就司法审判制度的革新而言,通过移植西方的政治法律制度,在司法改革中遵循分权原则,致力于司法权与行政权的分离,实践司法独立是司法改革的最大亮点。由于清末司法与行政的分立依旧以皇权为终极根据,决定了司法独立虽然在法律层面上得到体现,但在实践方面只能处于"能言不能行之"的状态;北洋政府时期和南京国民政府时期,独立审判制度的建构有了很大的发展,但司法独立的实现程度是相当有限的,有些司法独立制度规则的存在也仅具有象征意义。     

UHF RFID技术在图书馆中应用的试验与探讨

阐述了RFID (Radio Frequency Identification)技术在图书馆中的应用现状,分析了UHF(Ultra High Frequency)和HF(High frequency)这两种工作频率对RFID应用在读写速度、读写距离、系统价格、环境适应性等方面所产生的影响.叙述了汕头大学图书馆进行"UHF RFID图书馆应用试验"的内客及过程,并在此实验的基础上分析研究了UHF RFID技术应用于图书馆的优势及特点.     

Evaluating Family Group Conferencing: Towards a meaningful research methodology

There is discussion on the most appropriate research methodology to examine the efficacy of Family Group Conferencing (FGC). Randomised controlled trials (RCTs), despite their pitfalls, are considered by many to be the ‘golden standard’, but the argument is not compelling. In this paper, the theory on programme evaluation is discussed which offers an alternative methodology to study FGC. It is argued that reaching a comprehensive image of truth in the social sciences is never within reach. A RCT is an abstraction of reality, it only provides a partial image of the complex reality of families and the impact that FGC has on safety issues and the quality of their lives. Moreover, the rigour of a study depends heavily on the researcher’s interpretative skills. In studying the efficacy of a complex intervention, such as FGC, it is a challenge to provide a valid and reliable picture of its impact. The context of such a conference, where the lifeworld of families constantly interacts with the system world of professionals, is characterised by multiplicity, polyvalence and interference. The methodology used to examine the efficacy of FGC should meet this ‘interplexitiy’.