Video in the English curriculum of an Indian secondary school

This case study explores the potential of video in helping teachers and pupils to break out of entrenched but arguably unfruitful methods of English language teaching in Indian secondary schools, provides evidence that it can have a substantial impact, and analyses the conditions in which this is possible. The study could be described as action research drawing on ethnographic methods. I introduced a 'package' of video-based English lessons to the Core English Curriculum of an Indian Central School, and observed the consequences. The package was prepared by me, but taught by the students' regular teachers. First I observed for a month the nonnal, textbook-based teaching in the English classroom. Then the teacher was trained to use the video package, which was based on the contents of one of the chapters in the text-book they used. Finally, I observed the introduction of this package in the classroom. My data came from audio-recordings of the classes, diaries kept for me by the students, interviews and informal discussions with teachers and students, and my own observations of the classes and the school generally. In addition, I was able to draw on my own experiences of having been a student and a teacher in India. Chapter 1 outlines the background It discusses the unique position of English in India - its history and current social status - and describes schooling in India, placing Central Schools and their Core English Curriculum in context. It sets my research agenda as the study of the introduction of video in a 'real life' setting, as opposed to the 'artificial' experimental or quasi-experimental situations of much previous work. Chapter 2 surveys the literature I draw upon. As there is very little previous research bearing directly on this topic, I have had to refer to a wider body of partially relevant literature on: (i) use of television for education in India; (ii) second language classroom studies with an emphasis on the development of communicative competence; (iii) classroom studies with special reference to group work; (iv) bilingualism. Chapter 3 explains the advantages of a case study based on ethnographic methods, and considers some of the potential problems and limitations, notably the risks in generalising from one study. Chapter 4 deals with theoretical issues and practical methods in developing teaching materials for the project. I discuss research into the use of video in second language teaching, and explain how I drew on it to develop the video material itself, task sheets for students to work on in groups after watching video extracts, and a teacher-training package. Group work is not essential in introducing video, but I argue that it is the best way of using the medium. The next three chapters deal with the introduction of the video package, and the context in which it was introduced. Chapter 5 describes the school. Chapter 6 is a chronology of the various stages in the introduction of video into the English classroom. Chapter 7 then analyses this introduction in terms of the various participants involved - the problems faced by each, and the conflicts that arose between them. Chapters 8 and 9 concentrate on the classroom. Chapter 8 examines the traditional English classes, analysing the teacher-fronted, transmission mode of teaching that prevails, and identifying twin roots of this pedagogy. First, there is the indigenous Harikatha tradition (in which the written word is treated as a sacred text for reverent, uncritical commentary); and secondly, there is the imperial tradition, arising directly from the introduction of En~lish as the medium of educational instruction in India. The manner in which these traditions affect classroom pedagogy today is critically evaluated. Chapter 9 analyses the classes after the video package had been introduced. It focuses on talk, now the students' rather than the teacher's language, for with the introduction of video in the classroom, the students had to learn to work in groups on the task-sheets. The television screen did not inspire the same uncritical reverence as the written word. The chapter reveals how the ritualised routine of the transmission mode broke down with the introduction of video; and how it encouraged the students to take more control of their own learning environment. Chapter 10 discusses what the research can claim to have discovered.. Video does seem to have considerable potential in helping teachers and students to break out of the traditional methods of language teaching in Indian schools, moving the students further on the path of developing communicative competence in English. But more research is needed, and I make concrete suggestions for such studies. With due caution because of the dangers of generalising from one case-study, I draw implications for teachers, schools and government if best use is to be made of the potential of video in English teaching

Evaluation of antidepressant activity of tramadol in albino mice using forced swim model

Background: The fact that tramadol can be used as an antidepressant, has been already proved by some animal studies. The objective of the present study was to evaluate antidepressant activity of tramadol in albino mice using forced swim model.Methods: Forced swimming test (FST) model was used to evaluate the antidepressant effect. Mice in the group "I" were given normal saline. Mice in the group II were given imipramine. Mice in the group III were given tramadol 10mg/kg. Mice in the group IV were given tramadol 20mg/kg. Mice in the group V were given tramadol 40mg/kg. All doses in all groups were given by intra peritoneum route.Results: The average values of immobility in group I were higher significantly compared to group III, IV and V. The values of group I and group II were found to be comparable. It was found that the baseline mean value was 196.33 which reduced to 5.16 with the effect of imipramine where imipramine was given to those mice. But in tramadol 10mg group, it was highest, and it came down to 40.66 and as the dose of tramadol was increased, the immobility time reduced from 40.66 at 10mg dose to 31.33 at 20mg dose and finally to 13.33mg at 40mg dose.Conclusions: Considering the results of two different animal models of depression it can be concluded that Tramadol has antidepressant activity at 10mg, 20mg, 40mg which was almost similar to Imipramine

Case report on necrotizing fasciitis following episiotomy

Necrotising fasciitis (NF) is an extremely rare but near fatal bacterial soft tissue infection, complicating the operative wounds. Here is a case report of Necrotising fasciitis in episiotomy wound in low socioeconomic, poorly nourished and anaemic women. A 39 years old, second gravida, delivered normally with medio-lateral episiotomy under local anaesthesia. On postnatal day four, patient developed high grade fever and on examination episiotomy was found to be unhealthy and gaped. She was started on broad spectrum antibiotics empirically but the cellulitis rapidly progressed to vulva, then to the bilateral thighs and extended till knees. Bilateral lower limb Doppler ultrasonography was done to rule out deep vein thrombosis which showed no abnormality. USG abdomen revealed huge pus collection in the lower abdomen. Under anaesthesia, surgical exploration was done, pus was drained followed by wound debridement and pus sent for culture and sensitivity. Pus and blood culture showed growth of Klebsiella pneumoniae, so started on appropriate antibiotics. Patient started recovering, when the wound was healthy, secondary suturing of episiotomy wound done. She was discharged on post-natal day 27 after full recovery. Early diagnosis and aggressive timely management are the corner stone to avoid morbidity and mortality of NF

Efavirinz induced gynecomastia: a case report

Gynecomastia is swelling of the breast tissue in men, caused by an imbalance of the hormones, estrogen and testosterone. Drugs commonly implicated are spironolactone, cimetidine, ketoconazole, hGH, estrogens, hCG, anti-androgens, GnRH analogues and 5-α reductase inhibitors. Medications probably associated with gynecomastia include risperidone, verapamil, nifedipine, omeprazole, alkylating agents, HIV medications (efavirenz), anabolic steroids, alcohol and opioids. HIV infected patients who are treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) can develop breast enlargement due to benign and malignant mammary diseases. We report here a case of gynecomastia due to efavirinz

Serum βHCG as a Predictor of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension

BACKGROUND AND AIMS : Hypertensive disorders occur in 6 %- 8% of pregnancies and contribute significantly to stillbirths and neonatal morbidity and mortality. They are one of the leading cause of maternal mortality- accounting for almost 15% of such deaths. Worldwide, over half a million women die each year because of pregnancy-related causes, and 99% of these deaths occur in the developing world. A variety of biochemical and biophysical markers, have been proposed for the purpose of predicting the development of preeclampsia in pregnancy. Screening for these factors in the second trimester of pregnancy will help in early detection of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, thus enabling 1. Early identification of patients at risk of developing preeclampsia and eclampsia. 2. Prophylactic medication to prevent hypertension or to reduce its severity. 3. Prophylactic proper antenatal care. METHODS : A prospective study was done to determine the role of βhcg in 100 pregnant women in their second trimester (13-20) weeks, attending TVMCH OPD. Routine antenatal investigations were done. 5 ml of venous blood sample was collected and tests were carried out. Estimation of serum beta hcg level was done by enzyme linked fluorescence immunoassay. In antenatal clinic, the patients were followed up. Their frequency of visits are once in a month till 28 weeks, once in 15 days upto 34 weeks and weekly till delivery. RESULTS : From the study it was found, women who have elevated βHCG values in 13-20 weeks are at increased risk of developing PIH. For any test to be used as a screening tests it should have good sensitivity, specificity and positive predictive value. In this study β hcg had Sensitivity – 71.4% , Specificity-87.1%. CONCLUSION : While comparing patients with normal BP and pre eclampsia - βHCG values are elevated in patients with pre eclampsia. The sensitivity and specificity of βHCG are very low to be useful as a mass screening marker on its own and therefore it should be combined with other serum markers and ultrasound parameters like Doppler study of uterine vessels, which will help in improving its role as a screening tool

Microstructural and high-temperature impedance spectroscopy study of Ba6MNb9O30 (M=Ga, Sc, In) relaxor dielectric ceramics with tetragonal tungsten bronze structure

The authors would like to thank to the following funding organisations: the Royal Society for providing a research fellowship (F.D.M.), EPSRC for providing the PhD student grant (A.R.) and Roberto Rocca Education Program for providing an additional fellowship (A.R.).This work reports on the microstructural and high-temperature impedance spectroscopy study of a family of dielectric ceramics Ba6MNb9O30 (M=Ga, Sc, In) of tetragonal tungsten bronze (TTB) structure with relaxor properties. For Ba6GaNb9O30 and Ba6InNb9O30 pellets, the SEM images have revealed good, dense internal microstructures, with well-bonded grains and only discrete porosity; in contrast Ba6ScNb9O30 pellets had a poorer microstructure, with many small and poorly-bonded grains gathered in agglomerates, resulting in significant continuous porosity and poorly defined grain boundary regions. The electroactive regions were characterised by the bulk and grain boundaries capacitances and resistances, while their contribution to the electrical conduction process was estimated by determining activation energies from the temperature (Arrhenius) dependence of both electric conductivities and time constants. For Ga and In analogues the electronic conductivity are dominated by the bulk response, while for Sc analogue, the poorly defined grain boundaries give a bulk-like response, mixing with the main bulk contribution.PostprintPeer reviewe

Power smoothing method of PMSG based grid integrated wind energy conversion system using BESS/DSTATCOM

The output of the PMSG based wind energy conversion system (WECS) is fluctuating in nature due to intermittency of wind speed. The distribution static synchronous compensator (DSTATCOM) incorporated with the battery energy storage system (BESS) is used to smooth the power produced from wind generator system. The control strategy of BESS/DSTATCOM and its integration to mitigate the power fluctuations of grid connected WECS is presented. Three-leg three-phase voltage source converter (VSC) based DSTATCOM is used and the battery current is controlled to smooth the net power injected to the utility grid from wind power generation system. The control strategy implemented has the capability of supplying the required amount of power to the utility with help of batteries. The PQ control strategy is employed to control the three-phase inverter for managing power exchange with the utility grid. The real time wind speed data is considered for the simulation study of the system. The effectiveness of the control strategy of the system is validated through the simulation results in MATLAB/Simulink environment

Critical adsorption on curved objects

A systematic fieldtheoretic description of critical adsorption on curved objects such as spherical or rodlike colloidal particles immersed in a fluid near criticality is presented. The temperature dependence of the corresponding order parameter profiles and of the excess adsorption are calculated explicitly. Critical adsorption on elongated rods is substantially more pronounced than on spherical particles. It turns out that, within the context of critical phenomena in confined geometries, critical adsorption on a microscopically thin `needle' represents a distinct universality class of its own. Under favorable conditions the results are relevant for the flocculation of colloidal particles.Comment: 52 pages, 10 figure

Developments in the Ni–Nb–Zr amorphous alloy membranes

Most of the global H2 production is derived from hydrocarbon-based fuels, and efficient H2/CO2 separation is necessary to deliver a high-purity H2 product. Hydrogen-selective alloy membranes are emerging as a viable alternative to traditional pressure swing adsorption processes as a means for H2/CO2 separation. These membranes can be formed from a wide range of alloys, and those based on Pd are the closest to commercial deployment. The high cost of Pd (USD *31,000 kg-1) is driving the development of less-expensive alternatives, including inexpensive amorphous (Ni60Nb40)100-xZrx alloys. Amorphous alloy membranes can be fabricated directly from the molten state into continuous ribbons via melt spinning and depending on the composition can exhibit relatively high hydrogen permeability between 473 and 673 K. Here we review recent developments in these low-cost membrane materials, especially with respect to permeation behavior, electrical transport properties, and understanding of local atomic order. To further understand the nature of these solids, atom probe tomography has been performed, revealing amorphous Nb-rich and Zr-rich clusters embedded in majority Ni matrix whose compositions deviated from the nominal overall composition of the membrane

Analysis of rank-based latency aware fog scheduling using validating internet of things at large scales

With the increase in internet of things (IoT) applications' range and scale, it is essential to test the applications before deploying them in the real world. Most common approaches utilize simulations and testbeds; however, these methods lack real-time failure scenarios and the capability to scale, respectively. A virtual environment is a suitable approach that overcomes these drawbacks further, IoT applications using cloud computing have evolved to shift some computing and storage capabilities to the edge networks for ensuring adherence to strict latency constraints for real-time applications. This led to the emergence of fog computing which provides lower latency and better security, among other advantages. As for any processing tasks, scheduling becomes a critical concern for matching the tasks with the devices having appropriate resources. This paper analyzes a hybridized fog scheduling algorithm based on a ranking approach considering latency as the main parameter. It builds a software layer for scheduling on top of the validating internet of things at large scales (VIoLET) infrastructure. The results are compared with the round-robin scheduling algorithm, and it is found that the hybridized algorithm provides closer actual latency values to the expected