Vom Input zum Output

Infolge der durch die internationalen Schulvergleichstests eingeleiteten empirischen Wende in der Erziehungswissenschaft hat sich die Aufmerksamkeit vom Input schulischen Lehrens und Lernens zunehmend auf die Ergebnisse (Output) bzw. Wirkungen (Outcomes) verlagert. Die Kernfrage lautet nun: Was kommt am Ende in der Schule bzw. im Unterricht eigentlich heraus? Grundlegende Voraussetzung ergebnisorienterter Steuerung schulischen Unterrichts ist die Formulierung von Bildungsstandards. Wie Bildungsstandards mit Kompetenzmodellen und konkreten Aufgabenstellungen im Unterricht des Faches "Politik & Wirtschaft" verknüpft werden können, wird in diesem Beitrag einer genaueren Analyse unterzogen. Vor dem Hintergrund bildungstheoretischer Vorstellungen im Anschluss an Immanuel Kant kommen dabei das Literacy-Konzept der Pisa-Studie sowie die "Dokumentarische Methode" nach Karl Mannheim zur Anwendung.

Evaluation of Auditory Displays Supporting Aircraft Approach and Landing

Abstract: The paper describes an auditory interface using directional sound as a possible support for pilots during approach in an instrument landing scenario. Several ways of producing directional sounds are illustrated. One using speaker pairs and controlling power distribution between speakers is evaluated experimentally. Results show, that power alone is insufficient for positioning single isolated sound events, although discrimination in the horizontal plane performs better than in the vertical. Additional sound parameters to compensate for this are proposed.

Resource use pattern and agroecosystem functioning in Rawanganga micro-watershed in Garhwal Himalaya, India

Agro-ecological resource use pattern in a traditional hill agricultural watershed in Garhwal Himalaya was analysed along an altitudinal transect. Thirty one food crops were found, although only 0.5% agriculture land is under irrigation in the area. Fifteen different tree species within agroforestry systems were located and their density varied from 30-90 trees/ha. Grain yield, fodder from agroforest trees and crop residue were observed to be highest between 1200 and 1600 m a.s.l. Also the annual energy input- output ratio per hectare was highest between 1200 and 1600 m a.s.l. (1.46). This higher input- output ratio between 1200-1600 m a.s.l. was attributed to the fact that green fodder, obtained from agroforestry trees, was considered as farm produce. The energy budget across altitudinal zones revealed 95% contribution of the farmyard manure and the maximum output was in terms of either crop residue (35%) or fodder (55%) from the agroforestry component. Presently on average 23%, 29% and 41% cattle were dependent on stall feeding in villages located at higher, lower and middle altitudes respectively. Similarly, fuel wood consumption was greatly influenced by altitude and family size. The efficiency and sustainability of the hill agroecosystem can be restored by strengthening of the agroforestry component. The approach will be appreciated by the local communities and will readily find their acceptance and can ensure their effective participation in the programme.

Relations and Transductions Realized by Restarting Automata

Gegenstand der vorliegenden Arbeit ist die Analyse verschiedener Formalismen zur Berechnung binärer Wortrelationen. Dabei ist die Grundlage aller hier ausgeführten Betrachtungen das Modell der Restart-Automaten, welches 1995 von Jancar et. al. eingeführt wurde. Zum einen wird das bereits für Restart-Automaten bekannte Konzept der input/output- und proper-Relationen weiterführend untersucht, sowie auf Systeme von zwei parallel arbeitenden und miteinander kommunizierenden Restart-Automaten (PC-Systeme) erweitert. Zum anderen wird eine Variante der Restart-Automaten eingeführt, die sich an klassischen Automatenmodellen zur Berechnung von Relationen orientiert. Mit Hilfe dieser Mechanismen kann gezeigt werden, dass einige Klassen, die durch input/output- und proper-Relationen von Restart Automaten definiert werden, mit den traditionellen Relationsklassen der Rationalen Relationen und der Pushdown-Relationen übereinstimmen. Weiterhin stellt sich heraus, dass das Konzept der parallel kommunizierenden Automaten äußerst mächtig ist, da bereits die Klasse der proper-Relationen von monotonen PC-Systemen alle berechenbaren Relationen umfasst. Der Haupteil der Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit den so genannten Restart-Transducern, welche um eine Ausgabefunktion erweiterte Restart-Automaten sind. Es zeigt sich, dass sich insbesondere dieses Modell mit seinen verschiedenen Erweiterungen und Einschränkungen dazu eignet, eine umfassende Hierarchie von Relationsklassen zu etablieren. In erster Linie seien hier die verschiedenen Typen von monotonen Restart-Transducern erwähnt, mit deren Hilfe viele interessante neue und bekannte Relationsklassen innerhalb der längenbeschränkten Pushdown-Relationen charakterisiert werden. Abschließend wird, im Kontrast zu den vorhergehenden Modellen, das nicht auf Restart-Automaten basierende Konzept des Übersetzens durch Beobachtung ("Transducing by Observing") zur Relationsberechnung eingeführt. Dieser, den Restart-Transducern nicht unähnliche Mechanismus, wird im weitesten Sinne dazu genutzt, einen anderen Blickwinkel auf die von Restart-Transducern definierten Relationen einzunehmen, sowie eine obere Schranke für die Berechnungskraft der Restart-Transducer zu gewinnen.

Individual Decision-Making and Inflation Persistence

The traditional task of a central bank is to preserve price stability and, in doing so, not to impair the real economy more than necessary. To meet this challenge, it is of great relevance whether inflation is only driven by inflation expectations and the current output gap or whether it is, in addition, influenced by past inflation. In the former case, as described by the New Keynesian Phillips curve, the central bank can immediately and simultaneously achieve price stability and equilibrium output, the so-called ‘divine coincidence’ (Blanchard and Galí 2007). In the latter case, the achievement of price stability is costly in terms of output and will be pursued over several periods. Similarly, it is important to distinguish this latter case, which describes ‘intrinsic’ inflation persistence, from that of ‘extrinsic’ inflation persistence, where the sluggishness of inflation is not a ‘structural’ feature of the economy but merely ‘inherited’ from the sluggishness of the other driving forces, inflation expectations and output. ‘Extrinsic’ inflation persistence is usually considered to be the less challenging case, as policy-makers are supposed to fight against the persistence in the driving forces, especially to reduce the stickiness of inflation expectations by a credible monetary policy, in order to reestablish the ‘divine coincidence’. The scope of this dissertation is to contribute to the vast literature and ongoing discussion on inflation persistence: Chapter 1 describes the policy consequences of inflation persistence and summarizes the empirical and theoretical literature. Chapter 2 compares two models of staggered price setting, one with a fixed two-period duration and the other with a stochastic duration of prices. I show that in an economy with a timeless optimizing central bank the model with the two-period alternating price-setting (for most parameter values) leads to more persistent inflation than the model with stochastic price duration. This result amends earlier work by Kiley (2002) who found that the model with stochastic price duration generates more persistent inflation in response to an exogenous monetary shock. Chapter 3 extends the two-period alternating price-setting model to the case of 3- and 4-period price durations. This results in a more complex Phillips curve with a negative impact of past inflation on current inflation. As simulations show, this multi-period Phillips curve generates a too low degree of autocorrelation and too early turnings points of inflation and is outperformed by a simple Hybrid Phillips curve. Chapter 4 starts from the critique of Driscoll and Holden (2003) on the relative real-wage model of Fuhrer and Moore (1995). While taking the critique seriously that Fuhrer and Moore’s model will collapse to a much simpler one without intrinsic inflation persistence if one takes their arguments literally, I extend the model by a term for inequality aversion. This model extension is not only in line with experimental evidence but results in a Hybrid Phillips curve with inflation persistence that is observably equivalent to that presented by Fuhrer and Moore (1995). In chapter 5, I present a model that especially allows to study the relationship between fairness attitudes and time preference (impatience). In the model, two individuals take decisions in two subsequent periods. In period 1, both individuals are endowed with resources and are able to donate a share of their resources to the other individual. In period 2, the two individuals might join in a common production after having bargained on the split of its output. The size of the production output depends on the relative share of resources at the end of period 1 as the human capital of the individuals, which is built by means of their resources, cannot fully be substituted one against each other. Therefore, it might be rational for a well-endowed individual in period 1 to act in a seemingly ‘fair’ manner and to donate own resources to its poorer counterpart. This decision also depends on the individuals’ impatience which is induced by the small but positive probability that production is not possible in period 2. As a general result, the individuals in the model economy are more likely to behave in a ‘fair’ manner, i.e., to donate resources to the other individual, the lower their own impatience and the higher the productivity of the other individual. As the (seemingly) ‘fair’ behavior is modelled as an endogenous outcome and as it is related to the aspect of time preference, the presented framework might help to further integrate behavioral economics and macroeconomics.