Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Using Teachers’ Knowledge of Bloom’s Taxonomy in Determining the Quality of Classroom Assessment in Secondary Schools

The Taxonomy of Educational Objectives provides the basis for curriculum and test development. A sound knowledge and the internalization of the Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives is paramount for any item writer to be able to construct fair and high-quality test items and other assessment tools in the classroom. Based on the syllabus, a specified number of questions are constructed depending on the weight accorded each topic area within the table of specification, which must span all the six levels of the instructional objectives. A test as an assessment technique is a tool or device that is used to obtain information about achievement, aptitude or intelligence level of learners. Teachers in schools who write test items and the professional item writers employed by both private and government schools must, as a matter of necessity, be versed in this aspect for them to measure accurately what they aim to measure so as to lend credence to the testing exercise. This study focused on the competence of secondary school teachers in assessing their students by finding out whether they are guided by Bloom’s levels of cognitive objectives. The purpose of the study was to find out how adequate the teachers spread their test items to cover the six levels of cognitive objectives that Bloom (1956) identified and were later revised by Anderson and Krathwohl (2001). The study aimed to determine how adequately the test items developed by the teachers cover the lower and higher levels of thinking in regard to the action verbs used in the test items. Three important questions were formulated to guide the study. The first one was; How satisfactory are teachers’ test items reflect the six levels of objectives? Secondly; to what extend do teachers test items measure thinking at lower and higher levels? Thirdly; how satisfactorily do teachers employ the use of action verbs in constructing test items? Two instruments were used to collect data; one was documentary review that is using past papers from two selected secondary schools in Makongo Ward. The second was structured questionnaire for 40 teachers. The data was analyzed qualitatively using content analysis. The findings revealed that secondary school teachers do not adequately employ the Bloom’s cognitive levels objectives in classroom assessment. Furthermore, the results from both documentary review and from the questionnaires indicated that most teachers were not sure whether they had the skills and competences for designing tests in their subjects using Bloom’s Taxonomy. Only few experienced teachers indicated that they had the skills and competences of test construction using both levels of Bloom’s cognitive objectives. From this study, it is concluded that classroom assessment is an area that requires more emphasis because most teachers are not trained in test construction skills.
Modulation of the chicken immune cell function by dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) possess a wide range of biological properties, including immunomodulation. The amount, type, and ratio of dietary PUFA determine the types of fatty acids that are incorporated into immune cell membranes. Consequently, the physiological properties of immune cells and their potential to produce communication molecules, such as eicosanoids, can be modulated. This thesis aims to describe the (interaction) effects of n-3 and n-6 PUFA after challenge with antigens of various nature, and thereby to identify PUFA requirements for optimal immune responses in chickens. Antibody responses to model antigens known to induce T helper-1 and T helper-2 type responses in mice were increased or decreased by n-6, and increased or not affected by n-3 PUFA, depending on the antigen, and levels of other PUFA. Cutaneous hypersensitivity, an index for in vivo T cell reactivity, was increased by n-3 and decreased by n-6 PUFA or not affected. In vitro T cell reactivity was increased in chickens fed n-3 PUFA enriched diet. Evidence that vitamin E interacts with PUFA effects on immune cell function, particularly at high PUFA levels, was not found. Cytokine mRNA levels early after LPS challenge were increased by long-chain n-3 PUFA or not affected by dietary PUFA. The present thesis indicates that dietary PUFA have the potential to modulate chicken immune cell function, but that most effects are the contrary of what is usually found in mammals. The differences are possibly due to differences in chickens and mammals with regard to the metabolism and effector functions of PGE 2 , and the effects of dietary n-3 on cytokine production. It is hypothesized that inclusion of 1-2 % of n-3 and inclusion of no more than 3-4 % of n-6 in the diet, is optimal for Ab responsiveness, enhances T cell reactivity, and possibly improves chicken's disease
Family ties and residential locations

In this paper, and in the Special Issue it introduces, the focus is on the role of family ties in residential location choice and, conversely, the role of residential locations in maintaining family ties. Not only do events in the nuclear family trigger residential relocations, but nearby family members living outside the household prevent some people from moving away, whereas family members living far away trigger moves towards them. Furthermore, the current locations of family members are important to the frequency of contact and the exchange of support. The papers in this special issue all contribute to a growing appreciation of the inter-relationships between the nuclear and extended families and residential relocation, and will contribute to a better understanding of both.
The Effect of Body Mass Index Changes between Two Consecutive Pregnancies on the Recurrence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus in Japan

Aim: To identify the effect of interpregnancy pre-pregnancy body mass index changes (ΔBMI) on the recurrence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Method: A cross sectional study was conducted comprising 183 cases diagnosed with GDM at least once in two consecutive pregnancies. Study cases were divided into three groups based on two consecutive glucose tolerance profiles that comprised normal glucose tolerance (NGT); GDM/GDM (n=45), GDM/NGT (n=33), and NGT/GDM (n=105). We compared ΔBMI among the groups. Study cases were then divided into subgroups on the basis of being below or above the median pre-pregnancy BMI at index pregnancy and ΔBMI was compared based on glucose tolerance profiles. Results: The NGT/GDM group had the highest ΔBMI (1.01±2.06) among the 3 groups. The GDM/GDM group had a higher ΔBMI (0.52±1.59) compared with the GDM/NGT group (-0.41±1.50, p<0.01). The median pre-pregnancy BMI at index pregnancies was 21.2. In the GDM/NGT group, there was no difference in ΔBMI below or above the pre-pregnancy BMI of 21.2 (p=0.66). In the GDM/GDM group, there was no difference in ΔBMI below or above the pre-pregnancy BMI of 21.2 (p=0.97). In cases that fell below the pre-pregnancy BMI of 21.2, the GDM/NGT group was associated with a lower ΔBMI (-0.28±1.13) compared with the GDM/GDM group (0.51±1.23, p<0.05). In cases above the pre-pregnancy BMI of 21.2, there was no difference in ΔBMI between GDM/NGT (-0.64±2.04) and GDM/GDM groups (0.52±1.82, p=0.11). Conclusion: Subtle changes in ΔBMI are associated with GDM recurrence, and reduced ΔBMI suppresses GDM recurrence in Japanese lean women.
Evaluation of new candidate sugarcane varieties for some qualitative and quantitative traits under Thatta agro-climatic conditions.

During 2001-02, 2002-03 and 2003-04 crop seasons performance of eleven promising candidate sugarcane varieties obtained from different Sugarcane Research Institutes of Pakistan along with local check Thatta-10 was tested in plant and ratoon crops at National Sugar Crops Research Institute, Farm Thatta. It was observed that none of the varieties in the trial could succeed the check variety in terms of cane yield and commercial cane sugar percentage. The average results of the plant crop for 2001-02 and 2002-03 crop seasons revealed that variety Thatta-10 showed superiority over rest of the varieties by giving maximum average cane yield of 116.77 t ha. The results further revealed that the check variety Thatta-10 remained high sugar content variety with average CCS 12.74%. The cane yield data for succeeding ratoon crop during 2003-04 revealed that check variety Thatta-10 maintained its superiority by producing maximum average cane yield of 110.33 t ha and CCS 12.93%.
Weather-Linked Bonds Calum G. Turvey and Sommarat Chantarat Agricultural and Rural Finance Markets in Transition

The increased interest in weather-based risk management tools in developed and developing nations gives rise to examining a new set of risk-contingent structured financial products. This paper examines a variety of models applicable to agriculture and the sovereign debt of developing agrarian nations including from the corporate side, weather-linked bonds, and from the producer side weather-linked loans and weather linked mortgages. These weather risk management tools are targeted towards mitigating both business and financial risk by reducing the contractual obligation of debt (principal and/or interest) depending on the intrinsic value of an attached weather option (e.g. excess heat or precipitation) which pays off if a specific weather event occurs. The paper also discusses the structure of a famine bond, which provides funds in advance of a high probability famine event brought about by a specific weather event such as drought. The models presented have broad application to agricultural economies that suffer from weather induced volumetric (production) risk. We thank participants at the NC-1014 annual meeting, USDA, October 2-3, 2006 and the IFPRI research seminar for helpful comments. Any remaining errors are ours alone. © Copyright 2006 by Calum G. Turvey and Sommarat Chantarat. All rights reserved. Readers may make verbatim copies of this document for non-commercial purposes by any means, provided that this copyright notice appears on all such copies. * W.I. Myers Professor and Ph.D. student, Cornell University.
Managing Functional Basic Education for Sustainable Leadership in Nigeria

Abstract : Purpose of the study is to identify the correlation between vocational education, basic science and technology, cultural and creative arts education and sustainable leadership in public junior secondary schools. Three hypotheses were formulated and tested. Quantitative research design was used for the study. A self-constructed questionnaire was used for data collection. The population of this study consists of 6,472 teachers in public junior secondary schools. Sample of 364 teachers were carefully chosen with the use of Research advisor table of determining the sample size of known population. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select teachers from sampled schools. The data collected were analyzed using Pearson product moment correlation coefficient statistic. The findings revealed that there was a positive and significant relationship between vocational education, basic science and technology, cultural and creative arts education and sustainable leadership. Key Words : managing, functional education, sustainable leadership Abstrak : Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengidentifikasi korelasi antara pendidikan kejuruan, ilmu pengetahuan dan teknologi dasar, pendidikan seni budaya dan kreatif dan kepemimpinan berkelanjutan di sekolah menengah pertama negeri. Tiga hipotesis dirumuskan dan diuji. Desain penelitian kuantitatif digunakan untuk penelitian ini. Kuesioner digunakan untuk pengumpulan data. Populasi penelitian terdiri dari 6.472 guru di sekolah menengah pertama negeri. Sampel dari 364 guru dipilih menggunakan tabel Research advisor untuk menentukan ukuran sampel populasi yang diketahui. Teknik stratified random sampling digunakan untuk memilih guru dari sekolah sampel. Data dikumpulkan kemudian dianalisis dengan statistik koefisien korelasi product moment Pearson. Temuan penelitian adalah ada hubungan positif dan signifikan antara pendidikan kejuruan, ilmu pengetahuan dan teknologi dasar, pendidikan seni budaya dan kreatif dan kepemimpinan berkelanjutan. Kata kunci : mengelola, pendidikan fungsional, kepemimpinan berkelanjutan
The study of physical, chemical properties, and apparent metabolizable energy of glycerol in broiler.

: The study of physical properties, chemical elements, and apparent metabolizable energy (AME) of glycerol was conducted in two experiments. Experiment 1 was a survey of physical properties and chemical content of glycerol produced by 4 industrial and 5 community biodiesel factories operating in Thailand. Representative samples of refined and crude glycerol (1 liter) from each factory was collected and evaluated for color, viscosity, impurity, glycerol content, moisture content, and methanol content. Representative samples of crude glycerol from community biodiesel factories contain highly variable glycerol content (28.63 – 45.01%) and methanol content (3.86 – 20.18%), depending on the quality of raw materials and efficacy of methanol recovery. Glycerol content in crude glycerol is relatively low because of high contamination with matter organic non-glycerin (29.76 – 59.89%) and methanol content (3.86 – 20.18%). Representative samples of refined glycerol from the four industrial factories were consistent in terms of glycerol (>99%) and methanol content (< 0.01%). Experiment 2 measured the AME of refined glycerol for broiler chickens. The AME of a representative sample of refined glycerol was determined by using a substitution method. A total of 128 male Ross308 broilers 15 days old were assigned to two dietary treatments: (1) corn-soy basal diet and (2) 90% corn-soy basal diet plus 10% refined glycerol. Celite TM at a level of 1.5% was added to both diets as an indigestible marker. Experimental diets were offered to the birds for a total of 7 days. Excreta were collected for 3 consecutive days to evaluate the AME . The result show that the AME of refined glycerol for broiler chicken was 3,712 kcal/kg, which is similar to that of corn and approximately half of the AME for soybean oil. Therefore, refined glycerol can be used as an energy source in broiler chicken diets.
Social, ecological and genetic structures of bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, in the Normano-Breton gulf and in the North-East Atlantic

Complex interactions between environmental factors and behavioral traits may shape the fine and large scale structuring patterns of animal species. The objectives of this dissertation were to describe and understand i) the fine-scale social, ecological and genetic structures of bottlenose dolphins in the Normano-Breton (NB) gulf and ii) the population structure of the species at the scale of the North-East Atlantic (NEA) by combining social, genetic, stable isotope and morphometric approaches. Coastal bottlenose dolphins in the NB gulf form a single genetic population subdivided in three social and ecological clusters. Ecology but not kinship may influence association patterns. In the NEA, bottlenose dolphin genetic structure is hierarchical. They form two ecotypes, i.e. coastal and pelagic, each of them being further divided in two populations. This genetic structure was likely triggered by past changes in the environment (i.e. deglaciation) that created ecological opportunities for diversification. Ecological specializations and social behavior may maintain genetic divergence. In turn, the pelagic origin of bottlenose dolphins in the NB gulf may explain some of their social structure traits. Thus, an interaction between social and ecological behaviors, current and past environmental conditions, and evolutionary history may drive the fine and large scale structuring patterns of this top predator. The absence of strong differences in morphology between the two ecotypes may be explained by their relatively recent divergence or by low contrasts between the pelagic and coastal habitats in the NEA. This work highlights the power of combining approaches at different temporal and spatial scales for assessing the social and population structures of highly mobile and difficult to access species. The results have also major conservation implications especially for the designation of management units.
Morphological and biochemical changes in cultured cells induced by venom from the endoparasitoid, Pimpla turionellae.

The mode of action of venom from the endoparasitic wasp, Pimpla turionellae, was studied using in vitro assays and fluorescent microscopy. Crude venom was found to be cytotoxic to an embryonic cell line (BTI-TN-5B1-4) derived from the cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni. Susceptible cells displayed progressive morphological changes, such as retraction of cytoplasmic extensions, followed by Correspondence/Reprint request: Dr. David B. Rivers, Department of Biology, Loyola College in Maryland Baltimore MD, USA. E-mail: drivers@loyola.edu Bridget Keenan et al. 2 rounding, swelling, and eventual vacuolization of the cytoplasm, all within 6 h of venom treatment. Cell death, however, did not occur for an additional 6-10 h at 27C. Pre-treatment of cell monolayers with the osmotic protectants raffinose and sucrose afforded limited protection from the effects of venom: the presence of either saccharide yielded a time and dose-dependent delay in the induction of cell rounding and swelling. The protection was not permanent as all pre-treated cells eventually died by 24-36 h following incubation with crude venom. Venom-induced changes in cell morphology were preceded by elevations in intracellular Ca as evidenced by labeling of cytosolic Ca with the fluorescent probe fluo-4 AM. Such changes in calcium homeostasis suggested involvement of calcium release channels on the endoplasmic reticulum. However, when array of potent calcium channel modulators (heparin, verapamil, caffeine, and xestospongin c) were tested, none were capable of preventing a rise in intracellular Ca or the venom-associated morphological changes. Likewise, inhibitors of calcium channels typical of insect plasma membranes and use of culture media lacking calcium did not prevent increases in [Ca]i following venom exposure. Assessment of mitochondrial membrane potential (∆Ψm) using rhodamine 123 revealed no significant qualitative changes due to wasp venom, and thus arguing that unregulated efflux of calcium into the cytosol did not account for the rise in [Ca]i.
Effects of different silage additives on the microbial population and aerobic stability of maize silage

The effects of bacterial or chemical additives on the microbial population and aerobic stability of silage were examined. Whole-plant maize silages were made: MO, control group without additives; MB, with bacterial inoculant; MBC, with bacterial inoculant and chemical additive; and MC, with chemical additive. The microbial population was determined in silages after opening the silo and exposing the contents to air for 7 days. It was found that the MBC bacterial-chemical additive considerably inhibited the development of mold fungi after air exposition and improved the aerobic stability of maize silage.
Arbuscular Mycorrhizae and Grassland Ecosystems

Grasslands are one of the most widespread vegetation types in the world covering one-fifth of the earth’s land surface (Leith 1975). From the pampas and prairies in America to the savannahs and steppes in Africa and Eurasia, grasslands have enormous yet invisible belowground networks of hyphae (Miller 1987). Symbiotic partnerships between plant roots and mycorrhizal fungi are essential components of grasslands. Virtually all perennial plants in natural grasslands form arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbioses, but the degree to which they depend on the relationship varies among plant taxa, soil fertility, and season. Mycorrhizae are structural relationships consisting of both the fungus and its host root system; they are considered nutritional symbioses, but can function as protection symbioses (Linderman 2000; Graham 2001). Arbuscular mycorrhizae are an integral part of temperate and tropical grassland ecosystems but they are rare or nonexistent in the grasses and grass-like plants found in cold high-latitude environments (Miller et al. 1999). The fungal partners in these symbioses are members of the Glomeromycota, an ancient monophyletic group of asexual fungi that arose between 350 and 460 million years ago (mya; Selosse and Le Tacon 1998; Schusler et al. 2001). These fungi may form arbuscules, vesicles, and hyphae in the cortex of plant roots and extensive networks of extraradical hyphae that extend from the roots into the soil matrix (Figure 3.1). Mycorrhizal fungi transport mineral nutrients absorbed by their hyphae to the arbuscules where they receive photosynthate (Fitter 2006; Parniske 2008). The amount of biomass accounted for by Glomeromycotan fungal hyphae in soils can be substantial (Miller et al. 1995; Olsson et al. 1999). In addition to their importance in plant nutrition, these fungi play a critical role in grasslands as carbon sinks and in structuring soils (Miller and Jastrow 2000; Zhu and Miller 2003; Wilson et al. 2009). Few grassland ecosystems remain that are not impacted by human activities; mesic grasslands have been converted to production agriculture, and semiarid and arid grasslands are used for grazing domestic animals. Despite anthropogenic disturbances, AM fungi remain and form symbioses with crops and pasture plants, although the biomass and species composition of
Production of biofertilizers using baker's yeast effluent and their application to wheat and barley grown in north Sinai deserts

Abstract Effluent from the baker's yeast industry was experimented on as a culture medium for the growth and biomass production of diazotrophs. The effluent supported good growth of Azotobacter chroococcum, Enterobacter agglomerans and Klebsiella pneuomoniae, Azospirillum brasilense, Bacillus polymyxa and Pseudomonas putida and strongly proposed for biofertilizers production of associative diazotrophs. Slurry preparations containing natural polymers, e.g. Arabic gum (5%), pero-dextrin (20%), starch granules (10%) or gelatine (20%) were impregnated with cells of tested diazotrophs. With storage, entrapped cells of B. polymyxa were viable up to 160 days, while gradual decreases in Azospirillum numbers were recorded. Pero-dextrin, a by-product of the starch industry, was selected as the appropriate biocarrier accommodating diazotroph cells and maintaining prolonged survival rates and nitrogenase activity. Cell cultures of A. brasilense, A. chroococcum, B. polymyxa, E. agglomerans and P. putida were equally mixed and entrapped into pero-dextrin slurry biofertilizer formulation named as “BIOGRAMINA”. Tested diazotrophs successfully survived (ca. 108 cfu ml−1) in such formulation up to 6 months at both ambient and cold temperatures. The response of wheat and barley to “BIOGRAMINA” in the presence or absence of N fertilizers was evaluated in greenhouse and field trials. Highest total biological yields were recorded for inoculated plants simultaneously supplemented with rational N fertilizer dose.