bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The influence of medication beliefs and other psychosocial factors on early discontinuation of disease‐modifying anti‐rheumatic drugs
Authors: Wong M. , Mulherin D.
Published: June 2007

Objective: Although drug survival time might be a better measure of clinical effectiveness than drug adherence, there is little research literature in this area, in particular about the influence of medication beliefs and psychosocial factors. This study aimed to investigate the above relationships using patients who were newly diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: Sixty‐eight RA patients starting their first disease‐modifying anti‐rheumatic drug (DMARD) were interviewed shortly after initiating therapy, and then one year later. Before each meeting, patients were asked to complete a set of questionnaires, including Beliefs about Medication, Spielberger State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory – Short Form, the modified Stanford Health Assessment Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory‐1 and the Significant Others Scale. Relevant sociodemographic background, disease activity and drug history were obtained. Clinical measures such as grip strength and joint count were assessed.

Results: A stepwise logistic regression analysis was applied to two patient groups: those who continued taking their DMARD one year later, and those who did not. No significant difference between the groups for levels of disability and disease activity were found. Only age and anxiety emerged as significant predictors of drug discontinuation at 52 weeks.

Conclusions: Contrary to expectation, this study demonstrated that older and less anxious patients were more likely to discontinue taking their initial DMARD within the first year. The study may have implications for counselling older and less anxious patients prior to DMARD therapy. However, there are limitations in generalizing the results because of the small population sample. It also did not take into account drug intolerance as a pertinent factor for early drug discontinuation. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
First‐trimester ultrasound examination and the outcome of monochorionic twin pregnancies
Authors: El Kateb A. , Nasr B. , Nassar M. , Bernard J. P. , Ville Y.
Published: June 2007

Objective

To refine the incidence of abnormal first‐trimester ultrasound measurements and their correlation with the outcome of monochorionic diamniotic pregnancies.

Methods

First‐trimester crown–rump length (CRL) and nuchal translucency thickness (NT) measurements were studied in three subgroups of a total of 200 monochorionic twin gestations referred to our center between June 2002 and February 2006. Intertwin CRL discordance was defined as > 10% and the 95th percentile of NT thickness for gestational age was used.

The first group of 103 consecutive unselected monochorionic diamniotic twin pregnancies was prospectively followed up from 11–14 weeks onwards, throughout the pregnancy. The second group of 136 nonconsecutive monochorionic diamniotic twin pregnancies including 64 that developed TTTS was studied retrospectively. The third group of 100 consecutive cases of TTTS studied retrospectively for the correlation between first trimester measurements and staging and timing of occurrence of TTTS.

Results

In group 1, the incidence of TTTS was 5 in 103 (5%, 95CI [0.7–9]). Large intertwin CRL discordance and increased NT were correlated with perinatal death. In group 2, no significant association was found between first‐trimester parameters and the development of TTTS but discordance in early second trimester biometry and Doppler were. In group three, a positive correlation was found between the intertwin discordance in CRL and early occurrence of TTTS before 20 weeks of gestation (p = 0.02).

Conclusion

Monochorionic twin gestations who ultimately develop TTTS may exhibit intertwin difference in growth as early as 11–14 weeks of gestation. The earlier the discordance the earlier the development of the disease. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Iodine‐Promoted Synthesis of Structurally Ordered AlPd5
Authors: Wannek C. , Harbrecht B.
Published: June 2007

The boundary conditions and scope of catalytically stimulated synthesis of ordered intermetallics from solid metals are elucidated. The method is applied to the preparation of AlPd5. Its crystal structure has been determined by means of x‐ray powder diffractometry. AlPd5 forms a structurally unmatched ordered variant of the cubic close‐packing of spheres. Above 900 K AlPd5 is merged in the fcc boundary solid solution AlxPd1−x by a first order phase transition. The particular arrangement of the minority component Al and the associated structural distortions are analysed with regard to chemical bonding against the background of the enthalpy‐driven disorder‐order transition.
Short hairpin ribonucleic acid targeting the telomerase catalytic unit of messenger ribonucleic acid significantly limits the growth of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma in nude mice
Authors: Zhou Xu-Hong , Chen Shi-Ming , Liu Dan , Wang Yan , Xiao Bo-Kui , Tao Ze-Zhang
Published: June 2007

Objective:

Telomerase is an attractive molecular target because it is active in most malignant cells but undetectable in most normal somatic cells. Small, interfering ribonucleic acid segments have been shown to be effective tools for inhibiting the expression of a given gene within human cells. In the present study, we examined the effects of short hairpin ribonucleic acid expression vectors on the growth of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma in nude mice, and we assessed potential side effects in these animals.

Methods:

Short hairpin ribonucleic acid expression vectors targeting the messenger ribonucleic acid of the telomerase catalytic unit were constructed and transfected into Hep-2 human laryngeal squamous cells carcinoma in nude mice. Apoptosis and telomerase catalytic unit expression within tumour cells were evaluated after treating with short hairpin ribonucleic acid. Peripheral blood was collected for haematological and biochemical analysis.

Results:

The findings demonstrated that short hairpin ribonucleic acid plasmids could inhibit tumour cell growth by 76.5 per cent, and that many tumour cells underwent necrotic or apoptotic cell death. There were no significant side effects of short hairpin ribonucleic acid on the heart, liver, kidney, spleen or blood system in this experimental model.

Conclusion:

These results indicated that the short hairpin ribonucleic acid expression vector targeted at the telomerase catalytic unit of messenger ribonucleic acid significantly inhibited the growth of laryngeal carcinoma in nude mice, with no significant side effects on the experimental animals.
Climate change, urbanization, and optimal long‐term floodplain protection
Authors: Zhu Tingju , Lund Jay R. , Jenkins Marion W. , Marques Guilherme F. , Ritzema Randall S.
Published: June 2007

This paper examines levee‐protected floodplains and economic aspects of adaptation to increasing long‐term flood risk due to urbanization and climate change. The lower American River floodplain in the Sacramento, California, metropolitan area is used as an illustration to explore the course of optimal floodplain protection decisions over long periods. A dynamic programming model is developed and suggests economically desirable adaptations for floodplain levee systems given simultaneous changes in flood climate and urban land values. Economic engineering optimization analyses of several climate change and urbanization scenarios are made. Sensitivity analyses consider assumptions about future values of floodplain land and damageable property along with the discount rate. Methodological insights and policy lessons are drawn from modeling results, reflecting the joint effects and relationships that climate, economic costs, and regional economic growth can have on floodplain levee planning decisions.
Regional tectonics of the Coso geothermal area along the intracontinental plate boundary in central eastern California: Three‐dimensional Vp and Vp/Vs models, spatial‐temporal seismicity patterns, and seismogenic deformation
Authors: Hauksson Egill , Unruh Jeffrey
Published: June 2007

We synthesize the tectonics of the southern Walker Lane belt and Coso Range in central eastern California using regional earthquake data. First, we invert for three‐dimensional models of the Vp and Vp/Vs structure of the upper and middle crust. Using these models, we also determine three‐dimensional Vs and Poisson’s ratio models. The changes in seismic velocities across the region are small, except for low velocities in sedimentary basins and a ∼2‐km positive elevation of the basement velocities (Vp > 6 km/s) beneath the southern Sierra Nevada. Localized low‐Vp and low‐Vs zones beneath the central Coso Range image a geothermal reservoir at 0‐ to 3‐km depth, as well as distinct low‐velocity anomalies in the depth range of ∼8 to ∼12 km. Because the Vp/Vs has average crustal values within this broader zone, we interpret the anomaly to indicate a zone of few percent geothermal brines extending from 8‐ to 12‐km depth. In addition, an embedded highly localized poorly resolved zone (possibly as small as 1 km3) of slightly above average Vp/Vs and higher Poisson’s ratio is a tentative suggestion of a small volume percent of magma present at depth of ∼10 km. Second, we relocated the seismicity in the region using absolute traveltimes and differential traveltimes determined from waveform cross correlation. The relocated seismicity forms several spatially clustered lineaments along the southeast side of the Sierra Nevada and in the Indian Wells Valley and vicinity of the Coso geothermal field, which coincide with mapped late Quaternary faults in the region. The base of seismicity shallows from a regional depth of about ∼11 to ∼5 km beneath the central Coso Range, which we interpret as evidence for shallowing of the brittle‐ductile transition zone beneath the geothermal field. In addition to abundant background seismicity, two large earthquake swarms, located 5 to 8 km to the west of Coso, occurred in April to May 1992 and May to June 2001. Two dual main shock‐aftershock sequences also occurred as follows: the 1994 sequence near Ridgecrest and the later Coso earthquake sequence from late 1996 to early 1998, with the pairs of main shocks spaced 47 days and 16 months apart, respectively. Kinematic analysis of the focal mechanisms indicates that the crustal stress loading process varies across the region. The low‐Vp anomaly, abundant seismicity, and crustal thinning provide quantitative evidence for the Coso region being an extensional releasing step over between two northwest‐striking dextral faults: The Little Lake and Airport Lake fault zones to the south, and the Owens Valley fault to the north.
The lipoxygenase inhibitor, baicalein, modulates cell adhesion and migration by up‐regulation of integrins and vinculin in rat heart endothelial cells
Authors: Hsieh Y‐C S , Hsieh S‐J , Chang Y‐S , Hsueh C‐M , Hsu S‐L
Published: June 2007

Background and purpose:

Endothelial cell proliferation, migration and adhesion are necessary for the formation of new blood vessels. We reported previously that baicalein strongly inhibited proliferation of rat heart endothelial cells and here we assess effects on migration and adhesion of these cells.

Experimental approach:

Effects of baicalein on endothelial migration and adhesion were determined by in vitro wound assays and in modified Boyden chambers. Protein expression and subcellular distribution in rat heart endothelial cells were analysed by immunoblots and immunofluorescence staining.

Results:

Pretreatment with baicalein for 48 h resulted in a concentration‐dependent inhibition of endothelial migration, with an IC50 of approximately 20 μM. Adhesion assays revealed that baicalein stimulated endothelial cell adhesion to fibronectin and vitronectin, effects blocked by the synthetic peptide Arg‐Gly‐Asp (RGD). Moreover, treatment with a blocking antibody against integrin α5β1 drastically attenuated baicalein‐mediated endothelial adhesion to fibronectin, but not to vitronectin. Furthermore, baicalein‐mediated anti‐migration effect and adhesion promotion could be partially reversed by the addition of 12(S)‐hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12(S)‐HETE). Western blot analysis indicated that baicalein increased expression levels of integrin‐α5β1, ‐αvβ3 and vinculin proteins. Immunofluorescence staining showed that baicalein induced a marked reorganization of actin stress fibres and the recruitment of vinculin and integrins to focal adhesion plaques, with consequently increased formation of focal adhesion contacts.

Conclusions and implications:

Baicalein markedly inhibited the migration and enhanced the adhesion of rat heart endothelial cells, possibly by up‐regulation of the integrins (α5β1 and αvβ3) and vinculin and by promotion of actin reorganization and focal adhesion contact formation.

British Journal of Pharmacology (2007) 151, 1235–1245; doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0707345
Molecular-beam epitaxy of InSb/GaSb quantum dots
Authors: Deguffroy N. , Tasco V. , Baranov A. N. , Tournié E. , Satpati B. , Trampert A. , Dunaevskii M. S. , Titkov A. , Ramonda M.
Published: June 2007

We have investigated the molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) of InSb nanostructures on (100) GaSb substrates. We show that MBE leads to a low density (∼1−3×109 cm−2) of large islands even when varying the growth conditions on a wide range (substrate temperature ∼370−450 °C, growth rate ∼0.3−1.2 ML∕s). Plastic relaxation takes place from the onset of island formation, regardless of the amount of InSb deposited after the two-dimensional to three-dimensional transition. These results show that In adatoms have a very long diffusion length on a Sb-terminated surface and that the energy for dislocation generation in InSb is low. This can be attributed to the low enthalpy of formation and low melting point of InSb. To circumvent this problem we have developed a MBE growth procedure based on the deposition of an amorphous InSb layer at low temperature followed by an annealing step to allow for reorganization to take place. This dramatic change of the growth conditions leads to the formation of small InSb quantum dots with a density in excess of 7×1010 cm−2. Uncapped quantum dots, however, are relaxed. In contrast, buried quantum dots are fully strained and emit near 3.5 μm at room temperature. Our results show that although formerly similar the InSb/GaSb materials system behaves completely differently from the InAs/GaAs case study system.
Major Depression and its Associated Morbidity and Quality of Life in a Random, Representative Australian Community Sample
Authors: Goldney Robert D. , Fisher Laura J. , Wilson David H. , Cheok Frida
Published: June 2007

Objective: The objective of this study is to describe health services utilisation and morbidity, including health-related quality of life, in those with major depression in a random and representative sample of the population.

Method: Data were gathered in a Health Omnibus Survey of the South Australian population. Major depression was delineated on the basis of responses to the Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders. Information about use of health services and absence from usual functioning was collated, and two measures of health-related quality of life, the Short-form Health Status Questionnaire and the Assessment of Quality of Life were also administered. Results of those with major depression were compared with those who had other depressive syndromes and those who had no depression.

Results: Those with major depression reported significantly greater use of all health services and poorer functioning in terms of carrying out their normal duties. Similarly, their health-related quality of life was significantly poorer than those with other depressive syndromes, which in turn was significantly poorer than those who were not depressed. Only one-fifth of those with major depression were currently taking antidepressants.

Conclusions: These results are consistent with international studies. In addition to the potential for alleviating the depressive symptomatology of individuals, it is evident that even a modest improvement in functioning with appropriate treatment would have the potential to benefit the Australian community by one billion dollars a year.
Subject Preferences, Sex Differences and Comparability of Standards
Authors: Newbould Charles A.
Published: June 2007

This paper reports research into the relationship between the apparent variety of standards applied to different GCE Ordindary level subjects and school‐children's avowed preferences for subjects. The ordering of subjects by grades awarded agrees closely with those derived in similar research in England and elsewhere and is shown to be comparatively stable across time. This ranking is also shown to agree closely with expressed preferences of subjects by 14‐year‐olds, and reasonably closely with those of 16‐year‐olds.
Full‐time Mature Students in Higher Education: a survey of their characteristics, experiences and expectations
Authors: Phillips C. J.
Published: June 2007

A questionnaire was sent to full‐time mature students studying within higher education so as to identify their characteristics and examine their expectations and experiences. The results showed that sixty‐five per cent of respondents entered higher education for career purposes, although the percentage was lower for females and declined with age. All mature students anticipated encountering more problems adapting to higher education and of an academic nature prior to their studies than were actually experienced whilst females anticipated more problems than males but actually experienced fewer. Further all students received greater benefits than they had anticipated and this was especially true of females. Only seven per cent of respondents indicated that successful completion of their course of study would not lead to employment whilst only fifteen per cent stated that they would definitely not return to undertake further qualifications should they not find employment.
Hearing Beginning Readers Read: problems of relating practice to theory in interpretation and evaluation
Authors: Francis Hazel
Published: June 2007

Research reports of the involvement of parents in hearing children read show equivocal results in terms of improvement in reading scores or progress through school books. Analysing the practices of both parents and teachers as reported in the literature this paper demonstrates that the phenomenon is not a simple, fixed treatment meriting assessment on limited dependent variables. It shows that in current evaluations there is insufficient analysis of the social and intentional nature of the practice, and of associated educational and theoretical rationales, to do justice to possible effects and to help interpret various findings.
A Longitudinal Study of Religious‐moral Values in Late Adolescence
Authors: Sutherland Peter
Published: June 2007

The same cohort of B.Ed, students were studied during their four years at college by means of value priority and Likert attitude scales and interviews. Personal activities were increasingly more highly rated than religious or moral; only ‘core’ religious activities resisted this trend. Mean religious attitudes were negative only in Year 3. However mean moral attitudes became increasingly more negative in Years 3 and 4 than in previous years. Interview data pointed to the fifth and sixth forms as being more crucial than the college years for value formation, with the peer group as the key influence.
Basic Skills and Macro‐ and Micro‐analysis of Mathematics Achievement of Grade Ten Students as a Function of Gender and Locale
Authors: Randhawa Bikkar S.
Published: June 2007

A large and representative 10% sample of classrooms consisting of 1587 students from a mid‐western province in Canada was administered a standardised achievement test battery. This battery consists of four tests, reading, mathematics, written expression, and using sources of information. Gender and rural‐urban differences in achievement and macro‐ and micro‐skills in mathematics were examined. Females, as expected, were superior to males in all except the mathematics test, in which males were better than females. Though Manova results suggested rural‐urban differences in achievement, the corresponding Anovas for the four tests confirmed the null hypothesis.

An analysis of the mathematics items when grouped into three mental‐process or macro‐skill categories showed that males were better than females on only the problem solving component. However, males and females from rural classrooms were similar on computation but in the urban classrooms males were better than females. Students from rural classrooms achieved better on concepts than those from urban classrooms. Similarly, an analysis of eight math components, comprising content‐specific mental processes, produced sex differences on three components and locale differences on two. These findings are interpreted in relation to contemporary theory and research.
How do the A‐level Science Grades of Integrated Science Pupils Compare with those of Pupils who take All Three Separate Sciences?
Authors: Skinner R. R. , Fairbrother R. W.
Published: June 2007

The A‐level science grades of pupils who took the Schools Council Integrated Science Project (SCISP) examination at O‐level are compared with those of pupils who took three separate sciences at O‐level. The main result indicates that only in A‐level chemistry is there any significant differences with the non‐SCISP pupils doing slightly better.

However, performance in a subject at A‐level is influenced by more than just the subjects taken at O‐level, and there are strong indications that the right subject combination at A‐level is equally important.
School Climate and the Psychological State of the Individual Teacher as Factors Affecting the Utilisation of Educational Ideas Following an Inservice Course
Authors: Evans Marilyn , Hopkins David
Published: June 2007

In the research dealing with innovation, little attention has been given to the social and psychological characteristics of the receiving system and their effect on the process of utilisation. With the factors of school climate and the psychological state of the individual teacher in mind a local authority's inservice aesthetics course was selected as the focus of an investigation of the use made of the ideas introduced by the participating teachers in their schools. The study investigated three main areas: school climate; the psychological state of the individual teachers; and levels of use regarding the individual teacher's utilisation of educational ideas. The results imply that variance in curriculum utilisation can be accounted for by the prevailing school climate and the nature of the individual teacher. It was found that teachers operating in a more open democratic school climate, and at a higher psychological level, utilised the greatest number of educational ideas.
Longitudinal and Historical Change in Young People's Attitude to YTS
Authors: Raffe David
Published: June 2007

This paper updates and extends an earlier analysis of young people's attitudes to the Youth Training Scheme (YTS) (Raffe & Smith, 1987). Among members of the second year group to be eligible for YTS, attitudes ‘improved’ slightly over a 12‐month period. They improved most among those who entered YTS for the first time during the period, but deteriorated among those who left YTS for unemployment. A comparison of the second and fourth year groups eligible for YTS, at comparable points in their careers, also shows a slight improvement, principally among YTS trainees.
The Performance and Subsequent Employment Status of PGCE Students: academic and attitudinal predictors
Authors: Parkes Katharine R.
Published: June 2007

Although much research has been carried out into factors which predict the academic performance of undergraduates, less attention has been given to predictors of success in postgraduate training. In the present study, the extent to which demographic, academic and attitudinal factors predicted the teaching practice and coursework performance of Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) students was examined. Factual information was obtained from student records, and self‐report data were collected during the first week of the course. The number of students participating was 126 (a 93% response rate). Regression analyses demonstrated that the predictor variables jointly accounted for substantial proportions of the variance in PGCE performance. Degree class, previous teaching experience, professional commitment, high motivation toward teaching, and the interaction between subject area and A level scores were significant predictors of overall performance, but the detailed pattern of results was different for the teaching practice and coursework components. In particular, for teaching practice ratings, the significant predictors included gender (female students received higher ratings than males), marital status (single students received higher ratings than those who were married) and subject area (languages students received lower ratings than students in other areas). Six months after completing the course, 72% of the students had accepted teaching posts and, in a further analysis, factors which predicted employment status were examined. High motivation and good teaching practice marks most clearly discriminated those who entered the teaching profession from those who did not.
The National Curriculum: an agenda for research
Authors: McNamara David
Published: June 2007

Educational researchers have not been involved in the establishment of the National Curriculum and their views have not been attended to by policy makers. It is argued that this is understandable because, unfortunately, researchers have failed to address the subject matter, i.e. content, of lessons as a substantial theme for research. Recent developments in American educational research are referred to so as to demonstrate the ways in which the subject matter of lessons is being investigated by researchers and future possibilities are illustrated by reference to the National Curriculum consultation document for mathematics.
The Effects of Pupil Self‐recording of On‐task Behaviour on Primary School Children
Authors: Wheldall Kevin , Panagopoulou‐Stamatelatou Anthi
Published: June 2007

Two studies are reported on the effects of pupil self‐recording of on‐task behaviour in primary school classes. In the first (pilot) study an ABA design was employed with a third year junior class in self‐recording their on‐task behaviour. In the second study, a multiple baseline design was employed with second, third and fourth year junior classes. In both studies there was clear evidence for the effectiveness of self‐recording in improving on‐task behaviour levels. In the second study positive effects of self‐recording on primary pupils' academic productivity were also demonstrated.
Evaluating Self Reports of Action Research in Changing Educational Institutions: a response to Hugh Busher
Authors: Williams Ralph
Published: June 2007

In British Educational Research Journal, Vol. 15, No. 1, 1989 Hugh Busher relates his experience as a low status member of a department successfully operating as a change agent/catalyst in launching a journal. The account gives a rare opportunity for such a piece of research to be tested against the perceptions of participants other than the researcher. The following paper examines Busher's account in the light of these perceptions. Questions are raised about his descriptions of the structure and politics of the department and his analysis of the process of the launch of the journal. A main point of the paper is to raise questions about how the validity of such personal accounts can be assessed by the research community or by those seeking practical guidance for action in educational institutions.
A Model of Professionalism and its Implications for Teacher Education
Authors: Elliott John
Published: June 2007

Policy discussions about the future of initial teacher training tend to focus on organisational scenarios. This paper in contrast attempts to outline a curriculum theory for initial teacher education. In its light the author argues for a partnership between higher education and schools, and critiques the trend towards locating initial training entirely in the school system.
National Curriculum Assessment: a research agenda*
Authors: Gipps Caroline V.
Published: June 2007

The National Curriculum development programme has been a major area for research and development funding over the last 3 years. This paper argues that much of the money has been wasted and little has been learnt from the exercise. The paper outlines an agenda for research around the National Curriculum and its assessment focusing on the areas of criterion‐referenced assessment, performance assessment, organisation and pedagogy, learning hierarchies, the use of results and equal opportunities. It urges researchers to reverse the neglect of fundamental research.
Teacher Receptivity to System‐wide Change in the Implementation Stage
Authors: Waugh Russell , Godfrey John
Published: June 2007

This study is concerned with the receptivity of Western Australian secondary school teachers towards a system‐wide educational change, the Unit Curriculum system. In any system‐wide educational change that involves the classroom, teachers' receptivity towards the change is an important determinant of its successful implementation. It is important for educational decision‐makers to know what variables affect receptivity so that new proposals can be tailored to achieve the best chance of successful implementation. It is proposed that there are fundamental variables common to all system‐wide changes and these are included in a model of receptivity developed from previous research. This paper reports the results of an empirical study using data from 480 teachers where 56% of the variance in attitudes towards the Unit Curriculum system is predicted from four fundamental variables, when they are adapted to apply to the Unit Curriculum. These variables are non‐monetary cost benefit to the teachers, perceived participation in the change decisions relating to the school and the classroom, perceived support for the change from principals and senior teachers, and feelings towards the previous educational system.
Teaching the Language of Learning: towards a metacognitive approach to pupil empowerment
Authors: Quicke John , Winter Christine
Published: June 2007

This is an exploratory study of a metacognitive approach to teaching low achieving pupils in a first year (Year 8) class in a secondary school. In working with a small group both inside and outside the classroom the research team hoped to illuminate the process whereby the social framework for a genuine dialogue about learning processes was established. The method involved the development and evaluation of an aide‐memoire of learning strategies which was used as a starting point for building a vocabulary of learning and highlighting elements of a learning discourse. All the pupils showed that they were able to focus on learning as a topic of conversation and to participate in a ‘good quality’ reflective discussion about their own and their peers' learning.
Five Easy Pieces: the deconstruction of illuminatory data in research writing
Authors: Sanger J.
Published: June 2007

Recently, the author completed a paper which examined possible creative strategies in the overall activity of data analysis, some of which were suggested by readings in post‐structuralism (1994, British Educational Research Journal,20, pp. 175–185). The present paper focuses on the nature of support material in writing about and reporting qualitative research. The application of techniques of deconstruction to the use of such material are employed to see whether this might produce a useful discourse. To achieve this end, alternative or contradictory interpretations are elicited from the data used by researchers in Journal articles to illustrate their propositions. It is suggested that the examples researchers employ to illustrate the logic within their articles often undermine their basic propositions, owing to their ambiguous nature. The assumption underlying this paper is that by freeing ourselves from trying to achieve unitary and plausible accounts of social interactions, we may thus prevent certain underlying conservative forces from prejudicing the interpretations we made in our research writing.
Helping Children Manage Stress
Authors: Robson Maggie , Cook Peter , Gilliland Jack
Published: June 2007

This article describes some of the interventions that are offered to enhance coping and stress management in children and adolescents. It is intended as a sample of interventions, rather than a complete range. It is argued that the model of stress upon which the intervention is based dictates the intervention. The article focuses upon the models of the stress process that underpin some of these interventions and assesses their usefulness in establishing a rationale for intervention. The implications are discussed of the acceptance of an extended Lazarus/Folkman model for interventions in schools.
Prospective Mentors' Views on Partnership in Secondary Teacher Training
Authors: Saunders Sam , Pettinger Kate , Tomlinson Peter
Published: June 2007

In the context of a wholesale shift to a school‐based partnership arrangement for the initial training of teachers in the UK, 32 prospective teacher mentors were interviewed using the technique of hierarchical focusing. Twenty‐nine taped transcripts were codified and analysed to reveal aspects of espoused theory in relation to school teacher involvement in the professional training of student teachers. Four general themes are identified from qualitative analysis: enthusiasm for the change; an assumption of learning by immersion in schools; a concern with the constraint of time; and a tendency to general rather than specific thinking. Cluster analysis of 29 transcript profiles on 27 categories of mentoring functions suggested a loose typology of four potential orientations: the hands‐off facilitator, the progressively collaborative mentor, the professional friend and the classical mentor. Respondents' recognition of these orientations in their own thinking and implications for further research and training applications are discussed.
The Relationship between Social Deprivation, as Measured by Individual Free School Meal Eligibility, and Educational Attainment at GCSE in Northern Ireland: a preliminary investigation
Authors: Shuttleworth Ian
Published: June 2007

The paper analyses the impact of socio‐economic status (SES) on academic attainment at the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) in Northern Ireland and evaluates the effectiveness of administrative use of free school meal variables at pupil and school level as an indicator of social deprivation. The results of the analysis show that free school meal eligibility at the pupil level is an adequate indicator of deprivation. They also point to a significant school SES contextual effect as measured by the percentage of pupils per school in receipt of free school meals. In the absence of data on prior attainment, the analysis shows that grammar school pupils on average have higher GCSE scores than secondary school pupils and suggests, personal/ family background and type of last school attended being equal, that Catholic pupils perform as well as those of other denominations.
Touchy Subjects: a risky inquiry into pedagogical pleasure
Authors: McWilliam Erica
Published: June 2007

This paper provides an analysis of pedagogy as an erotic field. The complexity of pedagogy work is addressed in terms of what the notion of an ambiguous and duplicitous ‘erotics of pedagogy’ can contribute to our understanding of teaching and learning. I note the ambivalence of feminist and other progressive educators about desire and pleasure in pedagogy, and attempt to make a case for reclaiming the notions of pedagogical ‘erotics’ and ‘seduction’ away from the ‘merely malevolent’. I draw on literary criticism to provide new conceptualisations and some historical exemplars of pedagogical events. This analysis is then brought to bear on a terrain of current educational discourse. In this sense, the paper is attempting to introduce into educational scholarship ways of theorising pedagogical events that have been developing for some time in the humanities.
Support and Challenge in Teacher Education
Authors: Cameron‐Jones Margot , O'Hara Paul
Published: June 2007

The study described in this paper reports findings in line with previous studies that discern more support than challenge in the area of teacher education concerned with mentoring of student teachers by teachers. Thus, the teachers say that support was their main emphasis, and challenge a lesser emphasis when they worked with the student teachers. Their students, however, seem unaware even of the amount of challenge which the teachers thought they offered. The paper discusses these findings and puts forward an interpretation based on a comparison drawn from the field of colour perception. The paper's conclusion, in drawing attention to the effects which support and challenge might have on one another when they are in combination, endorses the view that it is important not only to study the nature of challenge and support in themselves but also to study the relationship between them.
Taking Stock of Gender Reform Policies for Australian Schools: past, present and future
Authors: Kenway Jane
Published: June 2007

This paper begins with a brief narrative of the past 20 years of gender reform for Australian schools and of recent developments — including the attention paid to boys’ education. This narrative points to the implications of changing Commonwealth federal state relations for gender reform. The second section offers an account of the micro‐politics of macro‐reforms. This draws from research on the reception of gender reform policies in schools and discusses the practices and processes of schools’ gender reform work, indicating some of the limitations and strengths of gender reform policies. The third section identifies the current contexts of gender reform, which include the more extended fields of educational policy and politics, the broader politics of the state itself and more widely still, major economic and cultural shifts. Here the paper will offer an interpretation of the ongoing process of centralised and decentralised restructuring in education and of its implications for feminist work for change in schools. It concludes by briefly mentioning some bigger cultural shifts which are affecting and effecting gender construction and gender relations as globalisation has an increasing impact on our lives.
Racism and Reform: new ethnicities/old inequalities?
Authors: Gillborn David
Published: June 2007

Racism lies at the heart of the Thatcherite project. This article explores how issues of ‘race’, racism and ethnicity are positioned within the education reforms that have reshaped the British schooling system. Education policy has adopted a largely deracialised discourse such that a concern with ethnic inequalities of achievement and opportunity has been effectively removed from the policy agenda. Simultaneously, most reforms have had a particular (usually negative) impact upon children of minority ethnic background. The article explores the development of this strand of education policy and exposes the new racist constructions of ‘the nation’ and its ‘common culture’ that find expression through the marketisation of schooling and a willed ignorance about the extent and nature of racism within the system.
Setting, Social Class and Survival of the Quickest
Authors: Boaler Jo
Published: June 2007

The question of whether students should be grouped and taught in classes according to their perceived ‘ability’ during their school careers is one of the most controversial issues in education. This is partly because the issues that surround setting, streaming and mixed ability teaching are relative, both to ideology and personal values. Decisions about student grouping are also of immense importance to the education of students and this importance extends beyond the development of subject understanding. In the UK moves from streaming to setting to mixed ability teaching and back again to setting can be related directly to developments in research, educational theory and the political agenda of the time. In this article I will present a brief overview of the theoretical and historical developments which surround student grouping. I will then aim to extend theoretical positions further by examining the way in which setting and mixed‐ability teaching influenced the motivations, perceptions and eventual attainment of students in two schools.
Monitoring Reading Standards in Year 6: a 7‐year cross‐sectional study
Authors: Davies Julie , Brember Ivy
Published: June 2007

This article assesses the value of looking closely at reading scores of cohorts of children in order to pinpoint where, within the groups, attainment is rising, falling or static. This article analyses the reading standards of seven cohorts of Year 6 children from five randomly selected primary schools within one local education authority (LEA) (n = 1293). The results of this cross‐sectional study of a sample of Year 6 children are presented. Examination of the means of the standardised comprehension scores for each cohort reveals a significant fall in attainment between Cohorts 1 (1989) and 6 (1994) and between Cohorts 1 and 7 (1995). This drop was not due to a general fall in standards. The cause was the result of a growth of the percentage of children who scored less than 85 at the lower end and to the decrease in the percentage of children who scored more than 115 at the top end. This paper re‐emphasises the need to look critically at reading standards data if best use is to be made of educational resources in the attempt to raise the nation's reading standards.
Validity in Image‐based Research: an elaborated illustration of the issues
Authors: Simco Neil , Warin Jo
Published: June 2007

This article is concerned with the trustworthiness of products of research which are derived from image‐based data. Fundamentally it asks whether validity represents an appropriate measure of the quality of research which uses such data. Two examples of image‐based research are taken from recent work undertaken by the authors. A comparison of these examples provides a well‐grounded illustration of the issues confronted by the researchers in their attempt to consider the validity of their findings. The resulting discussion develops the argument that the concept of validity is particularly problematic in its application to image‐based research. We present a tentative strategy for ensuring trustworthiness that is based on five key criteria: completeness, adequacy of interpretation, transparency, self‐reflection and the aggregation of conflicting interpretations.
The Knowledge Bases of the Expert Teacher
Authors: Turner‐Bisset Rosie
Published: June 2007

In the late twentieth century, accountability and value for money are two of the major themes influencing developments in education. Reflecting these themes, recent government legislation has produced a set of teaching competences, later revised as standards, for use in initial teacher education and assessment of teaching performance. They are used as criteria for teacher training, in some cases forming the theoretical underpinning of courses. This article argues that that model of knowledge essential for teaching presented by the 10197 standards is impoverished. Instead there will be presented a comprehensive model of knowledge bases for teaching, which can inform our understanding of teaching and provide a more sophisticated theoretical underpinning than that imposed by government legislation. The model was developed through a recent doctoral study of subject knowledge and teaching competences. The model is illustrated by an example of teaching in history, which shows how it can act as a theoretical underpinning both for experienced and beginning teachers.
Children's Talk and the Development of Reasoning in the Classroom
Authors: Mercer Neil , Wegerif Rupert , Dawes Lyn
Published: June 2007

Sixty British primary school children aged 9‐10 and their teachers took part in an experimental teaching programme, designed to improve the quality of children's reasoning and collaborative activity by developing their awareness of language use and promoting certain ‘ground rules’ for talking together. Children's subsequent use of language when carrying out collaborative activities in the classroom was observed and analysed, and effects on their performance on Raven's Progressive Matrices test of non‐verbal reasoning were also investigated. Comparative data were gathered from children in matched control classes. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of discourse showed a marked shift in target children's use of language in accord with the aims of the teaching programme, and demonstrated that adherence to the ground rules helped groups solve the reasoning test problems. Children's individual scores on the Raven's test also improved. These findings support a sociocultural view of intellectual development and confirm the value of explicitly teaching children how to use language to reason.
Chinese Acquisition of the Spratly Archipelago and Its Implications for the Future
Authors: Senese Paul D.
Published: June 2007

In this study, I first examine the place of the Spratly Islands dispute at the heart of interstate relations between China and its regional neighbors around the South China Sea. In doing so, I trace the varied historical claims and periodic disputes over the archipelago, along with the current state of affairs, which is increasingly dominated by the need for more and cheaper sources of oil and natural gas. This background lays the groundwork for the core of this study, which is a simulation analysis looking at the potential ramifications of a more aggressive Chinese position in the South China Sea. Using computer simulation techniques, I compare the desirability of two scenarios related to Chinese policy in the area. The findings suggest that a more aggressive Chinese policy on the Spratlys would be beneficial in some ways, especially in the areas of energy production and imports over the following forty years. At the same time, there are several potential drawbacks as well, including increased environmental degradation and renewed energy supply problems in the second half of the century. I conclude by examining the implications of both conflictual and peaceful Chinese approaches to policy in the South China Sea, in light of China's obvious ascension as the leading state in East and Southeast Asia, as well as its rapidly improving global position.