Using the Big Mac index for comparing construction costs internationally

This paper explores the use of purchasing power parity (PPP) in the comparison of construction costs between different countries, and whether the development of construction-specific indices will improve reliability.

The approach adopted is to compare the construction cost of a typical five star international hotel per square metre in each of ten major cities using a range of PPP methods and to comment on their variability. In particular, this paper looks at whether an index based on the price of a McDonalds Big Mac3 hamburger is a viable alternative when compared against the mainstream methods. The recent publication of construction-specific indices as part of the Eurostat-OECD joint PPP program is also compared against generic indices and the discrepancy is calculated.

The paper concludes with reflections about which approach is preferable when attempting to assess global construction relativities and what further research is needed.

Big change questions : can we create a form of public education that delivers high standards for all students in the emerging knowledge society?

Within many Anglophone nation states there is significant debate about
the future of public education and its ongoing capacity to provide quality
education. The new knowledge economy not only challenges the position
of educators as the primary producers, disseminators and authorizers of
what is valued knowledge, but also requires them to prepare students for
new ways of working with that knowledge. In the service economies of
post-industrial Western nations, 'knowledge work' is critical to national
productivity and international competitiveness. At the same time, the
globalization logic suggests that the nation state is under threat, and therefore its role as provider of universal services such as education is also threatened.

What are we looking at, and how big is it?

Some of the most important outcomes of physical therapy treatment have to do with behaviour and quality of life. This article involves examining what it is we are measuring in physical therapy research and what those measurements mean. In looking at differences between groups (e.g. placebo-control) or strength of association between variables (e.g. correlation, regression) the practitioner/researcher must consider what are meaningful magnitudes of effects. Depending on the variable that one measures, a medium effect size (e.g. Cohen's d=0.50) may, in the real world, be insignificant, or in the case of elite athletic performance such an effect size might be gigantic. A major problem in the sports sciences is the confusion of p values and significance testing with the results of interest, the magnitudes of effects. Also, the prevalence of possible Type II errors in the sports sciences and medicine may be quite high in light of the small sample sizes and the paucity of power analyses for non-significant results. We make an appeal for determining a priori minimal meaningful differences (or associations) to use as the primary metrics in discussing results.

Who's afraid of the big bad fish? Rethinking what the law wishes to have

This article aims to re-evaluate the contribution of Stanley Fish to legal studies. In  "The Law  Wishes to Have a Formal existence", Fish accused the law of maintaining a formal,  positivistic self-image as principled; an activity rhat rises above processes of interpretation and of moral judgement. For this `antiformalist‘ Fish there is thus a false sense of self-sufficent closure to the law's discourse. More recently however: in discussing the practice of another profession (namely literary criticism) Fish demonstrates that the basis of aclivity per se is internal intelligibility - that is intelligibility  within a defined community. These apparent  inconsistencies are explored. Re-reading `The Law Wishes to Have a Formal Existence' one can discern errors in Fish's account of a key case and one can also find support for the  professionalism position that he subsequently articulates. It is therefore argued that  Fish's account of the general characteristics of professional practice, including legal, are of value. The implications of his account of professionalism in the law are, however, incompatible with the usual understanding of his more combative statements about the role of formal language and principle-based argument of the law.

The power of rhythm and words : from little things big things grow

Primary literacy teacher educators need to re-conceptualise the ways in which they work together to model effective interdisciplinary practice. This paper reports on such practice in a team teaching unit for postgraduate students undertaking the Bachelor of Teaching (Primary/Secondary) at Deakin University, Melbourne. The interdisciplinary (Social Education, Language and Music) unit, a first in the Faculty of Education was conceptualised to challenge both lecturer and student (local and international) to 'rethink' their understandings of pedagogy, multi-literacies and teacher preparedness. For the purpose of this paper, the authors reflect on a particular team teaching experience whereby a text (song) was used to teach both the elements of music and literacy pedagogy. It opened up new possibilities for students to engage and participate with each discipline as well as how one area can inform and further deepen the understanding for learners of the other. For example, musical notation and score was used to explain and use the 4 resource model (Luke and Freebody, 1990). The authors contend that crossdisciplinary work cannot be reduced to simple cooperation among disciplines but that primary literacy teacher educators need to develop new conceptual frameworks for learning that will enhance their understandings of pedagogy and assist in preparing teachers in a challenging world.

Purchase commitments : Big business bias or solution to the 'neglected diseases' dilemma?

Miniscule research resources are allocated to researching the diseases of developing countries such as malaria, tuberculosis (TB), dengue fever, river blindness, Chagas disease and leishmaniasis, and the strains of HIV prevalent in Africa. Plainly, the patent system and the commercial model of drug research fail to respond to the needs of the poor for the simple reason that the poor exercise little purchasing power. But pressures are mounting on governments and corporations to tackle the ‘neglected diseases’ calamity. An important argument in an intense global debate is that corporations would respond to the needs of developing countries if the diseases of the poor could be made profitable. This is the idea developed by Kremer and Glennerster in a crisply written book, Strong Medicine: Creating Incentives for Pharmaceutical Research on Neglected Diseases.

From little things, big things grow

Claire Jennings and Karen Stagnitti report on an early intervention project that provides the opportunity for children from vulnerable families in country Victoria to learn the essential skills of listening, concentration and curiosity.

Little big boys: a study of peers, power and pedagogy

In this paper we will argue that the dominant discourse on young males 'at risk' focuses too narrowly on the adolescent and young adult years. There is a tendency to individualise, both practically and theoretically, behaviours that are thought to substantiate the application of this category. Against this backdrop, we report on a study undertaken with a group of 6-8 year old boys in a primary school setting. The research was compiled around the interactions of an 'affinity group' of five young males across a six-month period. Prominent in our discussion of this data will be, the contextual nature of behaviour and identity, the influential role of the peer group, and the desire to 'other' in defining the self. We conclude by considering some of the implications this work has for the way mainstream schooling is structured and practiced.