Head and Heart and Hands: Necessary Elements of Inclusive Praxis

When David called for the physically disabled grandson of Saul, Mephibosheth, to dine at the king’s table, he was demonstrating an extraordinary level of inclusion. This paper reports data gathered as part of a programme of inquiry into the efficacy of the Full Inclusion model of special education; discusses how educators might progress from a mere head-knowledge of what is right, to a heart conviction of what should be done; and then explores a hands-on approach of how educators might more effectively do the right thing. Additional phenomenological data are reported from practicing teachers regarding their experience with the inclusion of students with special needs

Beratungen zu Nachhaltigkeit als ein Instrument zur Minderung von Risiken im globalen Rohstoffeinkauf deutscher Industrieunternehmen

Die Abhängigkeit von Rohstoffimporten stellt für die deutsche Industrie eine stetig wachsende Herausforderung dar. Andererseits haben sich deutsche Industrieunternehmen eine große Expertise in Nachhaltigkeit erarbeitet. Diese Ausarbeitung beschreibt die Idee, die Risiken der Rohstoffabhängigkeit durch den Wettbewerbsvorteil betreffs Wissens über nachhaltiges Handeln zu reduzieren, indem kritischen Lieferanten Nachhaltigkeitsberatungen gegen garantierte Rohstofflieferungen angeboten werden

Non-contact, Label-free Monitoring of Cells and Extracellular Matrix using Raman Spectroscopy

Non-destructive, non-contact and label-free technologies to monitor cell and tissue cultures are needed in the field of biomedical research.1-5 However, currently available routine methods require processing steps and alter sample integrity. Raman spectroscopy is a fast method that enables the measurement of biological samples without the need for further processing steps. This laser-based technology detects the inelastic scattering of monochromatic light.6 As every chemical vibration is assigned to a specific Raman band (wavenumber in cm-1), each biological sample features a typical spectral pattern due to their inherent biochemical composition.7-9 Within Raman spectra, the peak intensities correlate with the amount of the present molecular bonds.1 Similarities and differences of the spectral data sets can be detected by employing a multivariate analysis (e.g. principal component analysis (PCA)).10 Here, we perform Raman spectroscopy of living cells and native tissues. Cells are either seeded on glass bottom dishes or kept in suspension under normal cell culture conditions (37 °C, 5% CO2) before measurement. Native tissues are dissected and stored in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) at 4 °C prior measurements. Depending on our experimental set up, we then either focused on the cell nucleus or extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins such as elastin and collagen. For all studies, a minimum of 30 cells or 30 random points of interest within the ECM are measured. Data processing steps included background subtraction and normalization

Fostering Joy : Playscapes of Urban Teens

Teenagers are often merely tolerated in public spaces rather than celebrated. Playgrounds, places they were once recently welcome, become spaces where adults steal suspecting glances at them, thinking the worst is about to happen. While teenagers do sometimes cause problems, this is not reason enough to ignore their needs and desires. Outdoor public spaces are crucial for the physical and social development of our youth as they learn to navigate the world on their own. Additionally, as more children and youth grow up in apartment towers, parks and other green spaces are becoming increasingly important in maintaining a connection with nature. This report examines research on what teenagers need and want in outdoor public spaces for mental and physical development. Burnaby Mountain Secondary School is explored as a site for designing interventions for teenagers, teachers, staff, and the neighbouring community to play, hangout, and explore. A connection with nature and the outdoor environment through curriculum and student clubs is emphasized.Applied Science, Faculty ofArchitecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA), School ofUnreviewedGraduat

Unimodal and multimodal communication with hearing impaired students

The purpose of this study was to gather data on hearing impaired students' reception of language presented through each of five communication modes: oral (speechreading), aural (audition), manual (signs), oral-aural (speechreading plus audition), and simultaneous (speechreading plus audition plus signs). The 106 subjects (53 females, 53 males) had a mean age of 17 5.4 months and mean hearing threshold level (HTL) of 97.7dB. Other personal and demographic data are reported. The procedure utilized a within-subjects design, and four lists of stimulus sentences which were constructed so as to control for vocabulary level and visemic content of lexical items, phrase and syntactic structure, and length. To ensure consistency across trials, sentence lists were video taped. Each subject received twelve sentences through each of the five modes. After each sentence, subjects were alloted 30 seconds in which to write it in the appropriate blanks in an answer booklet . One mark was awarded for each correct word in the appropria blank, for a possible maximum score of 57 for each mode. The highest scores were obtained under simultaneous (X = 33.2) and manual (X = 31.5) which were greater (p < .01) than other modes. The score for oral-aural (X = 7.3) was higher (p < .05) than oral (X = 3.8) or aural (X = 3.1). None of the other differences were significant. Separate analyses were performed to determine the effect of a number of personal and demographic variables on subjects' performance under each mode. Results of the multiple stepwise regression procedure indicated that subjects' syntactic ability accounted for a large proportion of the variance in all but the aural mode. Effects of independent variables varied between modes, emphasizing the difficulties inherent in matched sample best-method studies. Results are discussed in light of various theories of cognitive processing and selective attention. Implications and suggestions for further study are presented.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat

An analysis of syntactic errors in the language of hearing impaired students

This study examined student responses to those items from the Test of Syntactic Abilities- (TSA) which assess, complementation. The students who formed the sample had hearing threshold levels (HTL) of 90 dB or greater in the better ear. They ranged in age from 8 to 19 years. Students' responses were analyzed in terms of syntactic errors rather than correct responses. The primary purpose of this study was to determine if the students' responses indicated any consistent syntactic deviancies. The results proved inconclusive. Limitations and implications of this research are discussed.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat