Interface vulnerability and knowledge of the subjunctive/indicative distinction with negated epistemic predicates in L2 Spanish.

Much recent research in SLA is guided by the hypothesis of L2 interface vulnerability (see Sorace 2005). This study contributes to this general project by examining the acquisition of two classes of subjunctive complement clauses in L2 Spanish: subjunctive complements of volitional predicates (purely syntactic) and subjunctive vs. indicative complements with negated epistemic matrix predicates, where the mood distinction is discourse dependent (thus involving the syntax-discourse interface). We provide an analysis of the volitional subjunctive in English and Spanish, suggesting that English learners of L2 Spanish need to access the functional projection Mood P and an uninterpretable modal feature on the Force head available to them from their formal English register grammar, and simultaneously must unacquire the structure of English for-to clauses. For negated epistemic predicates, our analysis maintains that they need to revalue the modal feature on the Force head from uninterpretable to interpretable, within the L2 grammar.With others (e.g. Borgonovo & Prévost 2003; Borgonovo, Bruhn de Garavito & Prévost 2005) and in line with Sorace's (2000, 2003, 2005) notion of interface vulnerability, we maintain that the latter case is more difficult for L2 learners, which is borne out in the data we present. However, the data also show that the indicative/subjunctive distinction with negated epistemics can be acquired by advanced stages of acquisition, questioning the notion of obligatory residual optionality for all properties which require the integration of syntactic and discourse information.

The knowledge of healthcare professionals regarding elderly persons' oral care

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare the knowledge and views of nursing staff on both acute elderly care and rehabilitation wards regarding elderly persons' oral care with that of carers in nursing homes. SUBJECTS: One hundred nurses working on acute, sub-acute and rehabilitation wards for elderly people (Group 1) and 75 carers in nursing homes (Group 2) were surveyed. DESIGN: A semi-structured questionnaire. RESULTS: Similar percentages of each group of nurses were registered with a dentist (86% and 88% respectively), although more hospital-based nurses were anxious about dental treatment compared with the nursing home group (40% and 28% respectively). More carers in nursing homes gave regular advice about oral care than the hospital-based nurses (54% and 43% respectively). Eighteen per cent of each group thought that edentulous individuals did not require regular oral care. Eighty-five per cent of hospital-based nurses and 95% of nursing home carers incorrectly thought that dentures were 'free' on the NHS. Although trends were observed between the two groups, no comparisons were statistically significant (Chi-square; level p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Deficiencies exist in the knowledge of health care workers both in hospital and in the community setting, although the latter were less knowledgeable but more likely to give advice to older people.

Knowledge of basic concepts in deaf/hard of hearing children

Basic concept knowledge of children who were deaf/hard of hearing was tested using the Bracken Basic Concept Scale: 3rd Edition. These children were given both the receptive and expressive portions of the test. Results indicate delays in overall basic concept knowledge in children who are deaf compared to their normal-hearing peers.

Tapping into Floor Staff: Using the knowledge of floor staff to conduct formative evaluations of exhibits in a Canadian science centre

Most science centres in Canada employ science-educated floor staff to motivate visitorsto have fun while enhancing the educational reach of the exhibits. Although bright andsensitive to visitors’ needs, floor staff are rarely consulted in the planning,implementation, and modification phases of an exhibit. Instead, many developmentteams rely on costly third-party evaluations or skip the front-end and formativeevaluations all together, leading to costly errors that could have been avoided. This studywill seek to reveal a correlation between floor staff’s perception of visitors’ interactionswith an exhibit and visitors’ actual experiences. If a correlation exists, a recommendationcould be made to encourage planning teams to include floor staff in the formative andsummative evaluations of an exhibit. This is especially relevant to science centres withlimited budgets and for whom a divide exists between floor staff and management.In this study, a formative evaluation of one exhibit was conducted, measuring both floorstaff’s perceptions of the visitor experience and visitors’ own perceptions of the exhibit.Floor staff were then trained on visitor evaluation methods. A week later, floor staff andvisitors were surveyed a second time on a different exhibit to determine whether anincrease in accuracy existed.The training session increased the specificity of the motivation and comprehensionresponses and the enthusiasm of the staff, but not their ability to predict observedbehaviours with respect to ergonomics, learning indicators, holding power, and successrates. The results revealed that although floor staff underestimated visitors’ success ratesat the exhibits, staff accurately predicted visitors’ behaviours with respect to holdingpower, ergonomics, learning indicators, motivation and comprehension, both before andafter the staff training.

The hand of God is over their hands (Q. 48:10) : on the notion of covenant in al-Ṭabarī’s account of Karbalāʾ

This article is an analysis of the story of the killing of Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī at Karbalāʾ in 61/680, as it is presented by Abū Jaʿfar Muḥammad b. Jarīr al-Ṭabarī (d. 310/923). The main argument is that the notion of the divine covenant, which permeates the Qur’an, constitutes a framework through which al-Ṭabarī views this event. The Qur’anic idea of the covenant is read in structural/thematic continuity with the Hebrew Bible account of the covenant between Yahweh and the Hebrew people, which has, in turn, been traced back in its basic form to Late Bronze Era treaties between rulers and their vassals.   The present study focusses on four speeches ascribed to Ḥusayn during the encounter he and his group had with the vanguard of the Kūfan army led by al-Ḥurr. These are analysed in accordance with their use of Qur’anic covenant vocabulary. They are also categorised within the broader framework of the eight standard characteristics of Ancient West Asian and Biblical covenants, as presented by George Mendenhall and Gary Herion, which have recently been developed in a Qur’anic context by Rosalind Ward Gwynne. This article argues that al-Ṭabarī’s Karbalāʾ narrative presents the pact of loyalty to Ḥusayn as a clear extension of the divine covenant.

Effect of a self-directed learning package on emergency nurses` knowledge of assessment of oxygenation and use of supplemental oxygen

Abstract Emergency nurses frequently and independently make decisions regarding supplemental oxygen. The importance of these decisions for patients is highlighted by the well documented association between respiratory dysfunction and adverse events. This study aimed to: (i) examine the effect of educational preparation on emergency nurses' knowledge of assessment of oxygenation, and the use of supplemental oxygen; (ii) explore the impact of existing knowledge on decisions related to the implementation of supplemental oxygen; and (iii) explore nurses' characteristics that were associated with effectiveness of the educational preparation. A pretest/post-test, controlled, quasi-experimental design was used in this study. Educational preparation was effective in increasing emergency nurses' knowledge. Baseline level of knowledge was predictive of reports of independent decisions regarding the implementation of oxygen. There was a significant positive relationship between postgraduate qualification in emergency nursing and the effect of education, and significant negative relationships between effect of education and baseline level of knowledge and daily decisions to implement supplemental oxygen.

Development, reliability and validity of an instrument measuring the attitudes and knowledge of emergency department staff regarding the emergency nurse practitioner role

Introduction: The Emergency Department (ED) at The Northern Hospital is currently participating in the Victorian Department of Human Services funded Emergency Nurse Practitioner Project. This project aims to develop, implement and evaluate the Emergency Nurse Practitioner role in Victorian EDs. This led to a need to develop a specific data collection tool called The Northern Emergency Nurse Practitioner Staff Survey to examine the knowledge and attitudes of ED medical and nursing staff. This paper describes the development of The Northern Emergency Nurse Practitioner Staff Survey and presents the results of reliability and validity studies. Method: Twenty-five items were developed and piloted on a sample of 58 ED medical and nursing staff. Content and face validity were established by expert panel review. Reliability was established by tests of unidimensionality, exploratory factor analysis and internal consistency. Results: Four items were discarded because of low item to total correlation. Exploratory factor analysis of the remaining items revealed five factors with eigenvalues >1 and acceptable correlation coefficients that explained 76.7% of the variance. Cronbach’s coefficent α for these items was 0.926 indicating a high degree of internal consistency. The factors were titled to reflect the content domain of the items in each factor and the factors arranged in a logical sequence to form the final version of The Northern Emergency Nurse Practitioner Survey.

Mathematical knowledge of some entrants to a pre-service education course

Standards for teaching emphasise the need for teachers to have deep content knowledge. To assess the mathematical knowledge of students enrolling in its B.Ed. program, the University of New England has introduced a mathematics diagnostic test. This work is the first stage of an ongoing research project into the numeracy needs of students entering the B.Ed. program. The test is a pen-andpaper test that replaces previous on-line, multiple-choice tests. This paper reports on the test results, discusses some common errors made by students and outlines the future direction of the research.

Current knowledge of the environmental influences on Australian cashmere production and quality

Goat fibre production is affected to a similar extent by genetic and environmental influences. Environmental influences include bio-geophysical factors (photoperiod, climate-herbage system and soil-plant trace nutrient composition), country of origin, nutrition factors (live weight, growth patterns) and management factors (farm, herd age and sex structure). Nutrition and management influences discussed include rate of stocking, energy nutrition, live weight change, parturition and management during shearing. The nutritional variation within and among years is the most important climatic factor influencing cashmere production, fibre diameter and fibre curvature (crimp). With productive cashmere goats, large responses to energy supplementation have been measured with optimum nutritional management. The effects and importance of management and hygiene during fibre harvesting (shearing) in producing quality fibre are emphasised.