Health and social inequalities in English adolescents: Exploring the importance of school, family and neighbourhood

The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study was established 22 years ago. It is cross-national research conducted by an international network of teams in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe. Its aim is to gain new insight into young people۪s health, wellbeing and health behaviour, including links with their social context. Researchers from three countries started the HBSC study in 1982 and since then, a growing number of countries and regions have joined the study. This report presents findings from the 2001/2 English part of the study, which was carried out on behalf of the Health Development Agency by BMRB Social Research. This is the third time the survey has been carried out in England; previous surveys took place in 1995 and 1997.

Conceptions of mathematics teacher education : thoughts among teacher educators in Tanzania

This study addresses the question of teacher educators’ conceptions of mathematics teacher education (MTE) in teacher colleges in Tanzania, and their thoughts on how to further develop it. The tension between exponents of content as opposed to pedagogy has continued to cause challenging conceptual differences, which also influences what teacher educators conceive as desirable in the development of this domain. This tension is connected to the dissatisfaction of parents and teachers with the failure of school mathematics. From this point of view, the overall aim was to identify and describe teacher educators’ various conceptions of MTE. Inspired by the debate among teacher educators about what the balance should be between subject matter and pedagogical knowledge, it was important to look at the theoretical faces of MTE. The theoretical background involved the review of what is visible in MTE, what is yet to be known and the challenges within the practice. This task revealed meanings, perspectives in MTE, professional development and assessment. To do this, two questions were asked, to which no clear solutions satisfactorily existed. The questions to guide the investigation were, firstly, what are teacher educators’ conceptions of MTE, and secondly, what are teacher educators’ thoughts on the development of MTE? The two questions led to the choice of phenomenography as the methodological approach. Against the guiding questions, 27 mathematics teacher educators were interviewed in relation to the first question, while 32 responded to an open-ended questionnaire regarding question two. The interview statements as well as the questionnaire responses were coded and analysed (classified). The process of classification generated patterns of qualitatively different ways of seeing MTE. The results indicate that MTE is conceived as a process of learning through investigation, fostering inspiration, an approach to learning with an emphasis on problem solving, and a focus on pedagogical knowledge and skills in the process of teaching and learning. In addition, the teaching and learning of mathematics is seen as subject didactics with a focus on subject matter and as an organized integration of subject matter, pedagogical knowledge and some school practice; and also as academic content knowledge in which assessment is inherent. The respondents also saw the need to build learner-educator relationships. Finally, they emphasized taking advantage of teacher educators’ neighbourhood learning groups, networking and collaboration as sustainable knowledge and skills sharing strategies in professional development. Regarding desirable development, teacher educators’ thoughts emphasised enhancing pedagogical knowledge and subject matter, and to be determined by them as opposed to conventional top-down seminars and workshops. This study has revealed various conceptions and thoughts about MTE based on teacher educators´ diverse history of professional development in mathematics. It has been reasonably substantiated that some teacher educators teach school mathematics in the name of MTE, hardly distinguishing between the role and purpose of the two in developing a mathematics teacher. What teacher educators conceive as MTE and what they do regarding the education of teachers of mathematics revealed variations in terms of seeing the phenomenon of interest. Within limits, desirable thoughts shed light on solutions to phobias, and in the same way low self-esteem and stigmatization call for the building of teacher educator-student teacher relationships.

Genetic variability of hepatitis A virus isolates in Rio de Janeiro: implications for the vaccination of school children

The epidemiology of hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection is shifting from high to intermediate endemicity in Brazil, resulting in increased numbers of susceptible individuals and a greater potential for the emergence of outbreaks. Universal vaccination against HAV has been recommended for children, but updated sero-epidemiological data are necessary to analyze the level of natural immunity and to identify candidates for preventive measures. In addition, more molecular studies are necessary to characterize the genotypes involved in HAV infections and outbreaks. Sera from 299 school children (5-15 years old) and 25 school staff members, collected during an outbreak of HAV at a rural public school in June 2000, were tested for IgM and total anti-HAV antibodies (ELISA). Viral RNA was amplified by RT-PCR from anti-HAV IgM-positive sera and from 19 fecal samples. Direct nucleotide sequencing of the VP1/2A region was carried out on 18 PCR-positive samples. Acute HAV infection was detected by anti-HAV IgM in 93/299 children and in 3/25 adult staff members. The prevalence of total anti-HAV antibodies in IgM-negative children under 5 years of age was only 10.5%. HAV-RNA was detected in 46% IgM-positive serum samples and in 16% stool samples. Sequence analysis showed that half the isolates belonged to subgenotype IA and the other half to IB. On the basis of these data, mass vaccination against HAV is recommended without prevaccination screening, especially for children before they enter school, since nearly 90% of the children under 5 years were susceptible. Molecular characterization indicated the endemic circulation of specific HAV strains belonging to subgenotypes IA and IB.

How Immigrant Mothers Contribute to Their Children’s Learning Inside and Outside of School

Abstract The main focus of this qualitative research was to explore how parents from different national backgrounds see their role in their children’s education inside and outside of school. Although greater recruitment was described and sought after, this qualitative research gathered data from two immigrant female parents from a community parents’ group located in Ontario, Canada. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with each participant using open-ended questions asking about the different ways these mothers, along with their spouses, were involved in their children’s education. Moreover, questions were designed to find out what alternatives parents use to support their children’s learning. The main question driving this research was “How are immigrant families currently involved with their children’s education inside and outside of school?” NVivo, 10 was used to code the transcripts giving rise to themes which could then be utilized to explain and explore the research question. The findings of this research are congruent with past research and demonstrate that immigrant mothers are more involved than the fathers are in their children’s education (Grolnick & Slowiaczek 1994; Peters, Seeds, Goldstein, & Coleman, 2008). A specifically important finding in this research is that schools are perceived by the immigrant mothers in this study as not doing enough to actively engage immigrant parents in their children’s education. On the other hand, findings also show that parents are eager to find different avenues to get involved and help their children succeed.

The Educational Experience of Students of Chinese Origin in a French-Speaking Context : the role of school, family, and community

Cette recherche vise à documenter l’expérience scolaire des élèves québécois d’origine chinoise à l’école secondaire de langue française et à examiner les dynamiques qui influencent la réussite scolaire de ces élèves. Elle s’intéresse plus précisément aux impacts des facteurs relatifs à l’école, à la famille immigrante, et à ceux de la communauté ethnique sur l’intégration de ces jeunes dans un contexte francophone. Les données ont été principalement recueillies à travers des entretiens semi-structurés approfondis auprès d’élèves d’origine chinoise et de différents acteurs du paradigme éducatif (parents, acteurs scolaires et intervenants communautaires). D’autres instruments, tels que l’analyse du contenu de documents et de médias, ont également été utilisés afin de fournir des informations contextuelles et d’enrichir les données d’entrevues. Les données ont été analysées selon un cadre théorique ouvert et inclusif où la réussite scolaire des élèves issus de l’immigration est mesurée en mettant l’accent sur l’influence de la maîtrise de la langue d’enseignement, du capital culturel et social de la famille et de la communauté immigrante, ainsi que des facteurs systémiques au niveau de l’école. Les résultats de cette étude dans trois écoles cibles montrent qu’en général les élèves d’origine chinoise connaissent une expérience positive, surtout en ce qui concerne leur performance scolaire en mathématiques et sciences. Cependant, les nouveaux arrivants ont tendance à éprouver des difficultés dans l’apprentissage du français et pour leur intégration sociale. En effet, le processus d’intégration socioscolaire des jeunes chinois est sous l’influence des différents milieux qu’ils fréquentent. À propos de l’influence des dynamiques scolaires, les résultats de la recherche indiquent qu’une relation maître-élève positive joue un rôle important dans la réussite éducative de ces élèves. Toutefois, l’insuffisance du soutien à l’apprentissage défavorise l’intégration linguistique et sociale des élèves nouvellement arrivés. Les données de cette étude soulignent notamment le rôle de la famille immigrante et de la communauté ethnique dans l’expérience scolaire de ces jeunes. D’une part, sous l’impact des dynamiques familiales, notamment ce qui à trait au projet migratoire, à la culture chinoise et à l’expérience pré- et post-migratoire, les parents immigrants chinois s’impliquent activement dans les études de leurs enfants, malgré des barrières linguistiques et culturelles. D’autre part, afin de surmonter les effets négatifs des faibles liens entretenus avec l’école de langue française, les parents chinois ont largement recours aux ressources au sein de la communauté ethnique, tels que les médias de langue chinoise, les organismes ethnospécifiques de services aux immigrants, l’école du samedi et les institutions religieuses ethniques. Ces institutions sociales ethniques contribuent à soutenir les valeurs culturelles, échanger des informations, établir des modèles pour les jeunes et à fournir des services appropriés en matière culturelle et linguistique.

OPTIMAL UTILIZATION OF SERVICE FACILITY FOR A k-OUT-OF-n SYSTEM WITH REPAIR BY EXTENDING SERVICE TO EXTERNAL CUSTOMERS IN A RETRIAL QUEUE

In this paper, we study a k-out-of-n system with single server who provides service to external customers also. The system consists of two parts:(i) a main queue consisting of customers (failed components of the k-out-of-n system) and (ii) a pool (of finite capacity M) of external customers together with an orbit for external customers who find the pool full. An external customer who finds the pool full on arrival, joins the orbit with probability and with probability 1− leaves the system forever. An orbital customer, who finds the pool full, at an epoch of repeated attempt, returns to orbit with probability (< 1) and with probability 1 − leaves the system forever. We compute the steady state system size probability. Several performance measures are computed, numerical illustrations are provided.

Out-of-town shopping and its induced CO2-emissions

Planning policies in several European countries have aimed at hindering the expansion of out-of-town shopping centers. One argument for this is concern for the increase in transport and a resulting increase in environmental externalities such as CO2-emissions. This concern is weakly founded in science as few studies have attempted to measure CO2-emissions of shopping trips as a function of the location of the shopping centers. In this paper we conduct a counter-factual analysis comparing downtown, edge-of-town and out-of-town shopping. In this comparison we use GPS to track 250 consumers over a time-span of two months in a Swedish region. The GPS-data enters the Oguchi’s formula to obtain shopping trip-specific CO2-emissions. We find that consumers’ out-of-town shopping would generate an excess of 60 per cent CO2-emissions whereas downtown and edge-of-town shopping centers are comparable.

Microeconomic instability and children's human capital accumulation: the effects of idiosyncratic shocks to father's income on child labor, school drop-outs and repetition rates in Brazil

This paper evaluates the long-run effects of economic instability. In particular, we study the impact of idiosyncratic shocks to father’s income on children’s human capital accumulation variables such as school drop-outs, repetition rates and domestic and non-domestic labor. Although, the problem of child labor in Brazil has declined greatly during the last decade, the number of children working is still substantial. The low levels of educational attainment in Brazil are also a main cause for concern. The large rotating panel data set used allows for the estimation of the impacts of changes in occupational and income status of fathers on changes in his child’s time allocation circumstances. The empirical analysis is restricted to families with fathers, mothers and at least one child between 10 and 15 years of age in the main Brazilian metropolitan areas during the 1982-1999 period. We perform logistic regressions controlling for child characteristics (gender, age, if he/she is behind in school for age), parents characteristics (grade attainment and income) and time and location variables. The main variables analyzed are dynamic proxies of impulses and responses, namely: shocks to household head’s income and unemployment status, on the one hand and child’s probability of dropping out of school, of repeating a grade and of start working, on the other. The findings suggest that father’s income has a significant positive correlation with child’s dropping out of school and of repeating a grade. The findings do not suggest a significant relationship between a father’s becoming unemployed and a child entering the non-domestic labor market. However, the results demonstrate a significant positive relationship between a father becoming unemployed and a child beginning to work in domestic labor. There was also a positive correlation between father becoming unemployed and a child dropping out and repeating a grade. Both gender and age were highly significant with boys and older children being more likely to work, drop-out and repeat grades.

Review of Native Americans in the School System: Family, Community, and Academic Achievement by Carol J. Ward

The title of this volume promises more than the content delivers. The heart of the book is information from Ward's 1992 University of Chicago doctoral dissertation, which focused on the social and cultural reasons leading to students dropping out of school. Her first two chapters provide a good review of research on dropouts and Indian education; the following six focus on the results of her 1987-1989 study of 698 Northern Cheyenne, Crow, and white high school students attending the Colstrip Public, St. Labre Catholic, and Busby Tribal Schools in Montana. Fifty-two percent of the students in this study were Indian, with a dropout rate of 45% .

Calculators in a Middle School Mathematics Classroom: Helpful or Harmful?

In this action research study of my classroom of eighth grade mathematics, I investigated the use of calculators. Specifically, I wanted to know the answer to three questions. I wanted to know more about what would happen to my students’ ability to recall basic math facts, their ability to communicate mathematically during problem solving, and their attitude when my students were or were not permitted to use their calculator. I discovered that in my research, I did not find enough evidence to either support or reject my initial hypotheses, that calculators largely influenced my students’ behavior, and also that my students’ ability to recall basic math facts would change when using a calculator. As a result of this research, I plan to continue my research within my classroom. I plan to further investigate the use of calculators within my classroom.

Motivating Middle School Mathematics Students

In this action research study I examined the relationship between the teacher, the students and the types of motivation used in mathematics. I specifically studied the mathematic teachers at my school and my seventh grade mathematics students. Motivating middle school students is difficult and the types of motivation can be as numerous as the number of students studied. I discovered that the teachers used multiple motivating tactics from praise, to extra time spent with a student, to extra fun activities for the class. I also discovered that in many instances, the students’ perception of mathematics was predetermined or predetermined by parental perceptions of mathematics. The social environment of the student and a sense of belonging also plays a role in how motivated a student stays. As a result of this research, I plan to notify the mathematics teachers at my school of the most effective types of motivation so we can become a more effective mathematics department.

Cooperative Learning Groups in the Middle School Mathematics Classroom

In this action research study of my classroom of 8th grade mathematics, I investigated the inclusion of cooperative learning groups. Data was collected to see how cooperative learning groups affected oral and written communication, math scores, and attitudes toward mathematics. On the one hand, I discovered that many students enjoyed the opportunity to work within a group. On the other hand, there continues to be a handful of students who would rather work alone. The benefits outweigh the demands. Overall, students benefitted from the inclusion of cooperative learning groups. Oral explanations of solutions and methods improved during the study. Written expression also improved over this time period. As a result of this research, I plan to continue with the incorporation of cooperative learning groups in the middle school math classroom.

Impact of educational posters on the lay knowledge of school teachers regarding emergency management of dental injuries

The purpose of this study was to investigate the knowledge of school teachers about the emergency management of dental trauma, after an educational poster campaign. A total of 1000 questionnaires were sent to 100 schools in the area where the poster had been distributed. This was compared to another 100 schools (1000 questionnaires) in an area, Where the poster had not been distributed. The questionnaire surveyed demographic data, basic knowledge of emergency management of tooth fracture, luxation and avulsion injuries. A total of 511 questionnaires were returned (25.5%) and analyzed. Results showed differences between the two assessed areas. Teachers, who worked in the area with poster distribution, had better knowledge in handling tooth injuries. For the management of tooth fractures the portion of teachers, who knew the correct handling procedure, was 78.9% (area with poster campaign) vs 72.1% (area with no poster campaign), for the management of tooth luxation it was 87% vs 84% and for the management of tooth avulsion it was 71% vs 54%. In the area with the poster campaign 49% (n = 90 out of 185) of the teachers stated to have gained some knowledge about this topic beforehand. Out of these, 75 teachers (75/90 = 83%), had gained their information from the educational poster. Out of the 75 teachers, who had seen a poster on this topic, 68 (68/75 = 91%) would have managed such an emergency correctly. The present study shows the positive effect of educational poster campaigns. It therefore should encourage professionals in this field to embark on similar projects.

When language of instruction and language of application differ: Cognitive costs of bilingual mathematics learning

Bilingual education programs implicitly assume that the acquired knowledge is represented in a language-independent way. This assumption, however, stands in strong contrast to research findings showing that information may be represented in a way closely tied to the specific language of instruction and learning. The present study aims to examine whether and to which extent cognitive costs appear during arithmetic learning when language of instruction and language of retrieving differ. Thirty-nine high school students participating in a bilingual education program underwent a four-day training on multiplication and subtraction problems in one language (German or French), followed by a test session in which they had to solve trained as well as untrained problems in both languages. We found that cognitive costs related to language switching appeared for both arithmetic operations. Implications of our findings are discussed with respect to bilingual education as well as to cognitive mechanisms underlying different arithmetic operations.