Rewarding Merit in Judicial Appointments?: A research project undertaken by the School of Law, Queen’s University Belfast for the Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission

This research involved carrying out an online survey using a number of vignettes/scenarios to explore understandings and attitudes to judicial appointments. This sort of survey is relatively novel in this context and provided a useful way of understanding how a range of factors such as merit and seniority, career paths and connections, as well as gender and visibility, are perceived as operating within the appointments system. The research also involved a series of focus group interviews with a number of individuals with various professional backgrounds and at different levels of seniority. These, and a limited number of individual interviews, afforded an opportunity to explore more closely some of the themes arising from the scenarios as well as a chance to look in some depth at some of the views and concerns of a range of members of the legal professions.

Building upon the previous research project, this work was less concerned with revisiting earlier themes and more interested in exploring how the idea of “merit” as a governing factor in judicial appointment is seen as working in practice, and whether it is perceived as being most likely to be found within particular career profiles. We also investigated issues such as the possible development of formal and informal pathways to a judicial career and practical problems such as how an applicant might become known to the senior judiciary, and the importance of this. Overall our interest was primarily in developing an understanding of how gender is perceived to operate in the appointments process and how any barriers to recruiting women, particularly to the senior judiciary, could be further broken down.

A longitudinal analysis of estimation, counting skills, and mathematical ability across the first school year

In response to claims that the quality (and in particular linearity) of children's mental representation of number acts as a constraint on number development, we carried out a longitudinal assessment of the relationships between number line estimation, counting, and mathematical abilities. Ninety-nine 5-year-olds were tested on 4 occasions at 3 monthly intervals. Correlations between the 3 types of ability were evident, but while the quality of children's estimations changed over time and performance on the mathematical tasks improved over the same period, changes in one were not associated with changes in the other. In contrast to the earlier claims that the linearity of number representation is potentially a unique contributor to children's mathematical development, the data suggest that this variable is not significantly privileged in its impact over and above simple procedural number skills. We propose that both early arithmetic success and estimating skill are bound closely to developments in counting ability.

Aflatoxin Exposure May Contribute to Chronic Hepatomegaly in Kenyan School Children

BACKGROUND: Presentation with a firm type of chronic hepatomegaly of multifactorial etiology is common among school-age children in sub-Saharan Africa.

OBJECTIVE: Aflatoxin is a liver toxin and carcinogen contaminating staple maize food. In this study we examined its role in chronic hepatomegaly.

METHODS: Plasma samples collected in 2002 and again in 2004 from 218 children attending two schools in neighboring villages were assayed for aflatoxin exposure using the aflatoxin-albumin adduct (AF-alb) biomarker. Data were previously examined for associations among hepatomegaly, malaria, and schistosomiasis.

RESULTS: AF-alb levels were high in children from both schools, but the geometric mean (95% confidence interval) in year 2002 was significantly higher in Matangini [206.5 (175.5, 243.0) pg/mg albumin] than in Yumbuni [73.2 (61.6, 87.0) pg/mg; p < 0.001]. AF-alb levels also were higher in children with firm hepatomegaly [176.6 (129.6, 240.7) pg/mg] than in normal children [79.9 (49.6, 128.7) pg/mg; p = 0.029]. After adjusting for Schistosoma mansoni and Plasmodium infection, we estimated a significant 43% increase in the prevalence of hepatomegaly/hepatosplenomegaly for every natural-log-unit increase in AF-alb. In 2004, AF-alb levels were markedly higher than in 2002 [539.7 (463.3, 628.7) vs. 114.5 (99.7, 131.4) pg/mg; p < 0.001] but with no significant difference between the villages or between hepatomegaly and normal groups [539.7 (436.7, 666.9) vs. 512.6 (297.3, 883.8) pg/mg], possibly because acute exposures during an aflatoxicosis outbreak in 2004 may have masked any potential underlying relationship.

CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to aflatoxin was associated with childhood chronic hepatomegaly in 2002. These preliminary data suggest an additional health risk that may be related to aflatoxin exposure in children, a hypothesis that merits further testing.

Aldo goes to Primary School: Experiencing school through the lens of the autistic spectrum.

The document draws largely on the results of research carried out by Hugh McNally and Dominic Morris of McNally Morris Architects and Keith McAllister of Queen’s University Belfast between 2012 and 2013. The objective of the study was to obtain a greater understanding of the impact that architecture and the built environment can have on people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The investigation into the subject centred on parents of young children with ASD in the belief that they are most likely to have an intimate knowledge of the issues that affect their children and are relatively well positioned to communicate those issues.

The study comprised a number of components.

- Focus Group Discussions with parents of children with ASD
- A Postal Questionnaire completed by parents of children with ASD
- A Comprehensive Desktop study of contemporary research into the relationship between ASD and aspects of the built environment.

Social stories are then used to help illustrate the world of a child with ASD to the reader and identify a series of potential difficulties for the pupil with ASD in a primary school setting. Design considerations and mitigating measures are then proposed for each difficulty.

The intention is that the document will raise awareness of some of the issues affecting primary school children with ASD and generate discourse among those whose task it is to provide an appropriate learning environment for all children. This includes teachers, health professionals, architects, parents, carers, school boards, government bodies and those with ASD themselves.

While this document uses the primary school as a lens through which to view some of the issues associated with ASD, it is the authors’ contention that the school can be seen as a “microcosm” for the wider world and that lessons taken from the learning environment can be applied elsewhere. The authors therefore hope that the document will help raise awareness of the myriad of issues for those with ASD that are embedded in the vast landscape of urban configurations and building types making up the spatial framework of our society.

School entry age outcomes for infants with birth weight ≤ 800 grams

To evaluate the mortality and long-term morbidity rates of extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants admitted to neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).

Predicting IQ of biologically "at risk" children from age 3 to school entry:sensitivity and specificity of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale IV

Predictive validity of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Fourth Edition (S-B IV) from age 3 years to ages 4-5 years was evaluated with biologically "at risk" children without major sensory or motor impairments (n = 236). Using the standard scoring, children with full scale IQ <or = 84 on the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence at age 4-5 years were poorly identified (sensitivity 54%) from the composite S-B IV score at age 3. However, sensitivity improved greatly to 78% by including as a predictor the number of subtests the child was actually able to perform at age 3 years. Measures from the Home Screening Questionnaire and ratings of mother-child interaction further improved sensitivity to 83%. The standard method for calculating the composite score on the S-B IV excludes subtests with a raw score of 0, which overestimates cognitive functioning in young biologically high risk children. Accuracy of early identification was improved significantly by considering the number of subtests the child did not perform at age 3 years.

Efficacy of a powered wheelchair simulator for school aged children: A randomised controlled trial.

Purpose: To determine the efficacy of a custom made wheelchair simulation in training children to use a powered wheelchair (PWC). Design: Randomised controlled trial employing the 4C/ID-model of learning. Twenty-eight typically developing children (13M, 15F; mean age 6 years, SD 6 months) were assessed on their operation of a PWC using a functional evaluation rating scale. Participants were randomly assigned to intervention (8x 30minute training sessions using a joystick operated wheelchair simulation) or control conditions (no task), and were re-assessed on their PWC use following the intervention phase. Additional data from the simulation on completion times, errors and total scores were recorded for the intervention group. Results: Analysis of variance showed a main effect of time, with planned comparisons revealing a statistically significant change in PWC use for the intervention (p = 0.022) but not the control condition. Whilst the intervention group showed greater improvement than the controls this did not reach statistical significance. Multiple regression analyses showed that gender was predictive of pre-test (p = 0.005) functional ability. Implications: A simulated wheelchair task appears to be effective in helping children learn to operate a PWC. Greater attention should be given to female learners who underperformed when compared to their male counterparts. This low cost intervention could be easily employed at home to reduce PWC training times in children with motor disorders.

Improving attainment across a whole district: school reform through peer tutoring in a randomized controlled trial

Districts are an important unit for administrative purposes, but they vary little in their impact on students’ attainment, at least in the UK. Further, government attempts to raise attainment are often disappointing. The project described in this article aimed to engage schools in reform to change students’ attainment and attitudes in schools across a whole district. The intervention, peer tutoring, has a good research pedigree in small-scale studies, but scaling it up to district-level implementation has not been rigorously evaluated. Over 2 years, 129 elementary schools in 1 Scottish district were randomly assigned to different interventions. The implementation was not perfect, but the results were positive with respect to cross-age tutoring, which had effect sizes of about 0.2. Despite limitations, the study demonstrates that it is possible to carry out a clustered randomized controlled trial (RCT) on a large scale working with districts and suggests that peer tutoring has promise when scaled up.

Corporate Governance as a School of Social Reform

In this paper, I present a vision of the corporation as a moral person. I point to “the separation of ownership and control” as a moment when the corporation broke away from the moral lives of ownermanagers. I then draw out the manner in which we can speak of the company as a moral person. Finally, through a discussion of social reporting in two British banks, I point to a shift in how this moral personhood is articulated, with the rise of corporate governance—or doing business well—as its own foundation of corporate responsibility. I propose a view of corporate responsibility as a “transmission mechanism” for the company’s role in moral life, situated in the broader social conception of “moral economy.” This viewpoint sets out landscapes of legitimation and justification through which the ties that underpin economic life are founded

The Temporal Focus Scale:Factor structure and association with alcohol use in a sample of Northern Irish school children

The Temporal Focus Scale (TFS) is a 12-item self-report measure of cognitive engagement with the temporal domains of past, present and future. Developed in college student samples, a three-factor structure with adequate reliability and validity was documented in a series of independent studies. We tested the factor structure of the scale in a sample of Northern Irish adolescents and found that our data supported a three factor structure, although there were problems with item 10. Because time perspective measures have been found to relate differentially to various health behaviours, we tested the relations between scores on the TFS and self-reported alcohol use. Results showed that scores on the TFS were not consistent statistical predictors of drinking category in a logistic regression. Results are discussed in terms of scale development, future scale use and the assessment of health-compromising behaviours such as adolescent alcohol consumption. © 2012 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents.

A sibling-controlled, prospective study of outcomes at home and school in children with severe congenital heart disease

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to compare behaviour problems and competencies, at home and school, in 7-year-old children with congenital heart disease with a sibling control group, to examine the prospective determinants of outcome from infancy, and to explore whether any gains were maintained in our sub-group of children who had participated in a previous trial of psychological interventions in infancy.
Methods: A total of 40 children who had undergone surgery to correct or palliate a significant congenital heart defect in infancy were compared (Child Behavior Checklist) with a nearest-age sibling control group (18 participants). Comparisons were made between sub-groups of children and families who had and had not participated in an early intervention trial.
Results: Problems with attention, thought and social problems, and limitations in activity and school competencies, were found in comparison with siblings. Teacher reports were consistent with parents, although problems were of a lower magnitude. Disease, surgical, and neurodevelopmental functioning in infancy were related to competence outcomes but not behaviour problems. The latter were mediated by family and maternal mental health profiles from infancy. Limited, but encouraging, gains were maintained in the sub-group that had participated in the early intervention programme.
Conclusions: The present study is strengthened by its longitudinal design, use of teacher informants, and sibling control group. The patterns of problems and limitations discerned, and differential determinants thereof, have clear implications for interventions. We consider these in the light of our previously reported intervention trial with this sample and current outcomes at the 7-year follow-up.

A Randomized Controlled Trial of Interventions to Promote Adjustment in Children With Congenital Heart Disease Entering School and Their Families

Objective: To report on a randomized controlled trial of psychological interventions to promote adjustment in children with congenital heart disease and their families.
Method: Following baseline assessment, 90 children (aged 4–5 years) and their families were randomly assigned to an Intervention or Control group before entering school. 68 (76%) were retained at 10-month follow-up.
Results: Gains were observed on measures of maternal mental health and family functioning. Although no differences were found on measures of child behavior at home or school, children in the intervention group were perceived as “sick” less often by their mother and missed fewer days from school. A regression model, using baseline measures as predictors, highlighted the importance of maternal mental health, worry and child neurodevelopmental functioning for child behavioral outcomes almost a year later.
Conclusions: The intervention promoted clinically significant gains for the child and family. The program is of generalizable significance.

Life-Cycle Energy Analysis of a Modular/Off-Site Building School

This paper is concerned with assessing the building’s the energy efficiency and qualities of a modular design for the education industry, in order assess the long economic benefits. The research includes a life-cycle energy and cost analysis of the school building design, predicting the impact on the operational cost of the building as a result of the addition of photovoltaic panels. The paper also includes a comparative study between the ECO Modular Solutions building, and a current standard prefabricated school building, quantifying the savings in CO2 emissions and savings in cost.

School-based counseling using systematic feedback: A cohort study evaluating outcomes and predictors of change

The outcomes of school-based counseling incorporating the Partners for Change Outcome Monitoring System (PCOMS) were evaluated using a cohort design, with multilevel modeling to identify predictors of change. Participants were 288 7-11 year olds experiencing social, emotional or behavioral difficulties. The intervention was associated with significant reductions in psychological distress, with a pre-post effect size (d) of 1.49 on the primary outcome measure and 88.7% clinical improvement. Greater improvements were found for disabled children, older children, and where CBT methods were used. The findings provide support for the use of systematic feedback in therapy with children.