Language acquisition during a stay abroad period following formal instruction: temporal effects on oral fluency development

This study investigates the development of fluency in 30 advanced L2 learners of English over a period of 15 months. In order to measure fluency, several temporal variables and hesitation phenomena are analyzed and compared. Oral competence is assessed by means of an oral interview carried out by the learners. Data collection takes place at three different times: before (T1) and after (T2) a six-month period of FI (80 hours) in the home university, and after a three-month SA term (T3). The data is analyzed quantitatively. Developmental gains in fluency are measured for the whole period, adopting a view of complementarity between the two learning contexts. From these results, a group of high fluency speakers is identified. Correlations between fluency gains and individual and contextual variables are executed and a more qualitative analysis is performed for high fluency speakers' performance and behavior. Results show an overall development of students' oral fluency during a period of 15 months favored by the combination of a period of FI at home followed by a 3-months SA.

Do Spanish informal caregivers come to the rescue of dependent people with formal care unmet needs?

This paper analyses the effect of unmet formal care needs on informal caregiving hours in Spain using the two wavesof the Informal Support Survey (1994, 2004). Testing for double sample selection from formal care receipt and theemergence of unmet needs provides evidence that the omission of either variable would causes underestimation of thenumber of informal caregiving hours. After controlling for these two factors the number of hours of care increaseswith both the degree of dependency and unmet needs. More importantly, in the presence of unmet needs, the numberof informal caregiving hours increases when some formal care is received. This result refutes the substitution modeland supports complementarity or task specificity between both types of care. For a given combination of formal careand unmet needs, informal caregiving hours increased between 1994 and 2004. Finally, in the model for 2004, theselection term associated with the unmet needs equation is larger than that of the formal care equation, suggestingthat using the number of formal care recipients as a quality indicator may be confounding, if we do not complete thisinformation with other quality indicators.

Trade-off between formal and informal care in Spain

The remarkable growth of older population has moved long term care to the front ranks of the social policy agenda. Understanding the factors that determine the type and amount of formal care is important for predicting use in the future and developing long-term policy. In this context we jointly analyze the choice of care (formal, informal, both together or none) as well as the number of hours of care received. Given that the number of hours of care is not independent of the type of care received, we estimate, for the first time in this area of research, a sample selection model with the particularity that the first step is a multinomial logit model. With regard to the debate about complementarity or substitutability between formal and informal care, our results indicate that formal care acts as a reinforcement of the family care in certain cases: for very old care receivers, in those cases in which the individual has multiple disabilities, when many care hours are provided, and in case of mental illness and/or dementia. There exist substantial differences in long term care addressed to younger and older dependent people and dependent women are in risk of becoming more vulnerable to the shortage of informal caregivers in the future. Finally, we have documented that there are great disparities in the availability of public social care across regions.

Learning in Digital Media: the legacy of McLuhan and his Impact on Formal Education

This paper describes a bibliographic analysis of the vision of Marshal McLuhan and the vision adopted by diverse current authors regarding the use of new interactive learning technologies. The paper also analyzes the transformation that will have to take place in the formal surroundings of education in order to improve their social function. The main points of view and contributions made by diverse authors are discussed. It is important that all actors involved in the educational process take in consideration these contributions in order to be ready for future changes.

Estudi sobre el perfil de persones grans amb dependència del servei d'ajuda a domicili del Consell Comarcal d'Osona i el tipus de suport formal i informal

The aim of this study is to determine the profile of dependent elderly people users of the home care services (SAD) of the regional council in Osona (Consell Comarcal d´Osona) , and the characteristics of formal and informal types of support they use. Methodology. An observational study of a transversal format has been carried out, with retrospective and descriptive purposes. The target population is 63 people (26 men and 37 women) included in the program of the regional SAD They have a recognized dependence grade approved by the law 39 /2006, December 14th , promoting the individual autonomy and care of elderly people in a dependent situation. The data were collected by social workers of basic social services, first with a home visit and followed by handed out questionnaires, specifically designed for this study, in order to obtain information on socio-demographic characteristics, and the type of support formal and informal. The obtained results on the SAD users are women in a 58.7% and a 41.3 % are men. The 84% of the total sampling are 80 years old and more, being the average age of 85.2 years old. 45% of them are married, 41% are widows and widowers and 14% are single. 54% are rated with severe dependence (grade II), 42.8% with high dependence (grade III). 86% live accompanied. 100% have an informal caregiver and a 95% of the times, the caregiver is a relative who in 73% of the cases the dedication time is permanent. The coverage of the SAD has an average of 4.27 hours per week and per user. The formal services most used are the technical (62%), also the assessment of an occupational therapist at home (57%) and the telecare service in a (56%). Conclusions. The SAD is used primarily for women in an advanced age and severe dependence. The informal assistance structures have an informal caregiver, being a member of the family mostly, living with the dependent, and mainly in a permanent dedication basis. The SAD has a varied intensity in each case. The formal support services complementary to the SAD, are largely used in all cases.

El lenguaje de la interrogación: una gramática formal para la recuperación de la información

El conocimiento del lenguaje de interrogación es una herramienta imprescindible para la recuperación de información. En este artículo se ofrece una gramática formal (sintaxis y semántica) para ese tipo de lenguaje. Esta gramática nos permite, por un lado, conocer el lenguaje de interrogación desde un plano sistemático y conceptual y, por otro lado, nos permite obtener ciertos beneficios prácticos de tipo sintáctico y de tipo semántico relacionados con los procesos de recuperación de información.

Disseny, les investigacions sobre la comunicació i la proposada teoria dels signes

L'àmbit de formació universitària és idoni per recuperar de forma més modesta i autocrítica les tesis de la semiòtica i les teories de la comunicació en la seva relació amb els processos del disseny.

Density matrix functional theory that includes pairing correlations

The extension of density functional theory (DFT) to include pairing correlations without formal violation of the particle-number conservation condition is described. This version of the theory can be considered as a foundation of the application of existing DFT plus pairing approaches to atoms, molecules, ultracooled and magnetically trapped atomic Fermi gases, and atomic nuclei where the number of particles is conserved exactly. The connection with Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov (HFB) theory is discussed, and the method of quasilocal reduction of the nonlocal theory is also described. This quasilocal reduction allows equations of motion to be obtained which are much simpler for numerical solution than the equations corresponding to the nonlocal case. Our theory is applied to the study of some even Sn isotopes, and the results are compared with those obtained in the standard HFB theory and with the experimental ones.

La investigació-acció, la formació i el desenvolupament professional del professorat. Superar l'hiatus entre la teoria i la pràctica

Si analitzem, tant históricament com actualment, els processos d'investigació en la formació del professorat, trobem diverses concepcions sobre qué és investigar en aquest camp, basades fonamentalment en la distinció entre una investigació sobre la formació del professorat i la investigació en la formació del professorat.

Hermenéutica del deseo y género sexual

"La que mis palabras esconden, mi cuerpo lo revela". El interés de esta cita de Roland Barthes1 para una reflexión formal sobre la distinción de género entte 10 femenino y 10 masculino radica en el supuesto de la diferencia hermeneutica entte las palabras y el cuerpo, que se oponen conceptualmente a partir de su función, respectivamente, ocultadora y reveladora en relación con el deseo.

Non-formal education, overeducation and wages

Why do overeducated workers participate in non-formal education activities? Do not they suffer from an excess of education? Using microdata from the Spanish sample of the 2007 Adult Education Survey, we have found that overeducated workers participate more than the rest in non-formal education and that they earn higher wages than overeducated workers who did not participate. This result can be interpreted as evidence that non-formal education allows overeducated workers to acquire new abilities that improve their competence at the job they perform. From this point of view, our results support the European Commission"s view on the need to reinforce lifelong learning among adult population.

Els set sabers traslladats al cinema formatiu. "Explorando la máquina de los sueños". El cine y la infancia en contextos de educación no formal

Podeu consultar el document complet de la "XVI Setmana de Cinema Formatiu" a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/22523

Enantioselective formal synthesis of ent-rhynchophylline and ent-isorhynchophylline

Starting from (S)-tryptophanol, a formal synthesis of ent-rhyncho-phylline and ent-isorhynchophylline, involving stereoselective cyclocondensation, spirocyclization, and alkylation reactions, and the final adjustment of the oxidation level at the oxindole and piperidine moieties, is reported.

Construcción de modelos en psicología

Es en extremo importante la función que tienen asignada 10s modelos en Psicologia, donde no es posible elaborar sistemas formales mediante la experimentación. La construcción apropiada de un modelo debe tener como principio orientador el establecimiento de sistemas formales de relaciones verificables, y, aunque no es posible fijar reglas para determinar su desarrollo, su construcción responde a ciertos prerrequisitos; el más importante, quizá, es un conocimiento amplio de 10s fenómenos a 1os cuales se ha de destinar, sin que el signifique que el primer paso deba ser el registro de un elevado número de observaciones, porque no contribuye significativamente al descubrimiento, ni un establecimiento formal de mediciones, ya que dicha hiperformalización seria prematura. El uso consciente de un principio racional destinado a la construcción de modelos puede descansar sobre tres bases: analógica, iconistica y simbólica, que significan, respectivamente, tomar prestado un mecanismo de otra aplicación, aprehender un mecanismo de 10s datos, y crear el mecanismo para el modelo relacionando 1os propios conceptos. Al concluir este proceso, la tarea esta cumplida a medias. Se ha construido un modelo, y ahora es necesario derivar la teoria; de todos modos, es un éxito para el modelo el que nos haya llevado (como diria Toulmin, 1953, p. 38) ccmás alla de 10s fenómenos de 10s cuales partimos.