Good Practice

Respiratory infections cause significant mortality in developing countries but are frequently undiagnosed. Reasons for this are unclear. We observed 1,081 outpatient consultations with patients less than five years of age in Tanzania. In 554 patients with cough or difficulty breathing, the absolute percentages examined were 5% for respiratory rate counted, 14% chest exposed, and 25% stethoscope used. Decisions to conduct particular examinations did appear to follow clinical logic, with odds ratios of 4.28 for counting respiratory rate (95% confidence interval [CI]=1.75-10.47), 2.57 for exposing the chest (95% CI=1.67-3.95), and 18.91 for using a stethoscope (95% CI=9.52-37.57) in patients with cough or difficulty breathing. Non-clinical variables, including salary level, were also associated with examinations, and history taking was more common among clinicians originating outside the hospital area. Although respiratory examinations are relatively more common in those with cough or ...

This paper explores the question “how is good practice for managing the transition of students into university institutionalised in a large university? ” by describing the implementation of two elements of our Blueprint for transition success. These elements are a staff-focused teamwork resource which asks “can a teamwork protocol for academic staff improve the design of teamwork units and improve the learning experience for first year students?”; and a project to implement good practice for monitoring student engagement which asks “how do we prevent, identify and manage students who are at risk of disengagement, to improve opportunities for student persistence and to minimise unexplained attrition?”. Because we know that the mere existence of these resources or conduct of the projects alone will not improve practice or the outcomes for students, these projects have been selected as vehicles for the Blueprint’s implementation because they engender high levels of staff participation ...

Abstract: Over the last three decades many models explain the processes involved in the adoption and use of ICT in education. Based on this literature, a three-tiered framework and associated instruments were developed to use with Western Australian teachers to measure and ...

This project proposes a study of the educational policies applied in different Autonomous Communities of Spain and its consequences about pedagogical innovation when is supported by the utilization of information and communication technologies (ICT) in the teaching institutions of Primary and Secondary in Spanish educational model. As consequence of this analysis we pretend to identify a real level out of

This paper is based on work carried out as part of a research study into the professional practices of secondary design and technology teachers in England. It focused on fostering creativity or teaching for creativity as defined by the Robinson Report (1999, All our futures: creativity, culture and education. London: Department for Education and Employment (DfEE)) for pupils aged 11–14 years. The overall research question that drove this study was “to what extent can teachers influence the creativity of pupils aged 11–14 years in design and technology lessons?” The paper provides the basis used to generate a unique theoretical three-feature model or framework that can be used to explore creativity within an educational context. The findings of three investigations in the study are presented in this paper. The first and second investigations looked at what could be learnt from the professional practices of art and design and design and technology teachers and the views of four ‘expert’ teachers known for their ability to develop the creative potential of their pupils. The data is discussed under emerging themes and it is used to inform specific criteria in the evolving theoretical three-feature model for creativity. The model is then used to analyse the data from the third classroom based investigation and the findings are discussed under the emerging themes to help identify the issues related to fostering creativity within the design and technology classroom. This paper discusses the implications of the research for classroom practice and suggests that, as creativity is a complex, multi-faceted concept and process, the theoretical three-feature model and related criteria evolved in the study provides a sound framework to explore creativity within an educational context. As a tool it helps identify examples of good practice and highlight areas that require further attention by teachers aiming to foster their pupils’ creativity. It is suggested that design and technology teachers have lessons to learn from the practices of their art and design colleagues and ‘expert’ design and technology teachers. It is concluded that there is a need for greater understanding by teachers of their implicit theories regarding teaching, learning and creativity. A wider use could be made of the breadth of strategies outlined by the ‘expert’ teachers. This would help address the weakness identified in the school based study and strengthen classroom practice when teaching for creativity.

The purpose of this paper is to support the development of so-called good practice guidelines for the estimation of methane (CH4) emissions from solid waste (SW) disposal for national greenhouse gas inventories. The paper reviews and discusses the emission estimation methods given in the IPCC 1996 Revised Guidelines (IPCC Guidelines), and uncertainty and quality management issues related to the emission estimation. At solid waste disposal sites (SWDS) the degradable organic carbon in waste is decomposed by bacteria under anaerobic conditions into methane (CH4) and other compounds. The CH4 emissions from SWDS are important contributors of global anthropogenic CH4 emissions. The IPCC Guidelines give two methods for estimation CH4 emissions from solid waste disposal. The IPCC default method is a simple mass balance calculation which estimates the amount of CH4 emitted from the SWDS assuming that all CH4 is released the same year the waste is disposed of. The other method outlined in th...

The transition to primary school is one of the greatest challenges of early childhood. Handled well, it can set children into a virtuous cycle of learning. But how can transitions be made more effective? Based on a background paper for UNESCO's Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2007, this paper assesses the literature and draws lessons about ways of forging links between primary schools, children's home environments and early childhood programmes.

The aim of this paper is to provide guidelines for developing high-quality, well-written GNSS software receivers. The systematic application of software design patterns and programming methodologies speeds up the development process by providing tested, proven development paradigms, and improved code readability for coders, receiver architects, and users. This includes unit testing of all the modules, and the use of a code programming style stressing readability and language-specific conventions. All these good practices result in fewer bugs, reduce reinvention-of-the-wheel, and cut long-term maintenance costs. The paper provides an analysis of design patters, good coding practices, and methodologies for the design and implementation of GNSS software receivers, describing a working implementation released under the GNU General Public License.