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.NET Gadgeteer Workshop
(2013)
A comparison of current trends within computer science teaching in school in Germany and the UK
(2013)
In the last two years, CS as a school subject has gained a lot of attention worldwide, although different countries have differing approaches to and experiences of introducing CS in schools. This paper reports on a study comparing current trends in CS at school, with a major focus on two countries, Germany and UK. A survey was carried out of a number of teaching professionals and experts from the UK and Germany with regard to the content and delivery of CS in school. An analysis of the quantitative data reveals a difference in foci in the two countries; putting this into the context of curricular developments we are able to offer interpretations of these trends and suggest ways in which curricula in CS at school should be moving forward.
Older adults with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) who in addition to their memory deficits also suffer from frontal-executive dysfunctions have a higher risk of developing dementia later in their lives than older adults with aMCI without executive deficits and older adults with non-amnestic MCI (naMCI). Handgrip strength (HGS) is also correlated with the risk of cognitive decline in the elderly. Hence, the current study aimed to investigate the associations between HGS and executive functioning in individuals with aMCI, naMCI and healthy controls. Older, right-handed adults with amnestic MCI (aMCI), non-amnestic MCI (naMCI), and healthy controls (HC) conducted a handgrip strength measurement via a handheld dynamometer. Executive functions were assessed with the Trail Making Test (TMT A&B). Normalized handgrip strength (nHGS, normalized to Body Mass Index (BMI)) was calculated and its associations with executive functions (operationalized through z-scores of TMT B/A ratio) were investigated through partial correlation analyses (i.e., accounting for age, sex, and severity of depressive symptoms). A positive and low-to-moderate correlation between right nHGS (rp (22) = 0.364; p = 0.063) and left nHGS (rp (22) = 0.420; p = 0.037) and executive functioning in older adults with aMCI but not in naMCI or HC was observed. Our results suggest that higher levels of nHGS are linked to better executive functioning in aMCI but not naMCI and HC. This relationship is perhaps driven by alterations in the integrity of the hippocampal-prefrontal network occurring in older adults with aMCI. Further research is needed to provide empirical evidence for this assumption.
Informatics as a school subject has been virtually absent from bilingual education programs in German secondary schools. Most bilingual programs in German secondary education started out by focusing on subjects from the field of social sciences. Teachers and bilingual curriculum experts alike have been regarding those as the most suitable subjects for bilingual instruction – largely due to the intercultural perspective that a bilingual approach provides. And though one cannot deny the gain that ensues from an intercultural perspective on subjects such as history or geography, this benefit is certainly not limited to social science subjects. In consequence, bilingual curriculum designers have already begun to include other subjects such as physics or chemistry in bilingual school programs. It only seems a small step to extend this to informatics. This paper will start out by addressing potential benefits of adding informatics to the range of subjects taught as part of English-language bilingual programs in German secondary education. In a second step it will sketch out a methodological (= didactical) model for teaching informatics to German learners through English. It will then provide two items of hands-on and tested teaching material in accordance with this model. The discussion will conclude with a brief outlook on the chances and prerequisites of firmly establishing informatics as part of bilingual school curricula in Germany.
In this paper, we investigate the continuous version of modified iterative Runge–Kutta-type methods for nonlinear inverse ill-posed problems proposed in a previous work. The convergence analysis is proved under the tangential cone condition, a modified discrepancy principle, i.e., the stopping time T is a solution of ∥𝐹(𝑥𝛿(𝑇))−𝑦𝛿∥=𝜏𝛿+ for some 𝛿+>𝛿, and an appropriate source condition. We yield the optimal rate of convergence.
Objective
The Caribbean is an important global biodiversity hotspot. Adaptive radiations there lead to many speciation events within a limited period and hence are particularly prominent biodiversity generators. A prime example are freshwater fish of the genus Limia, endemic to the Greater Antilles. Within Hispaniola, nine species have been described from a single isolated site, Lake Miragoâne, pointing towards extraordinary sympatric speciation. This study examines the evolutionary history of the Limia species in Lake Miragoâne, relative to their congeners throughout the Caribbean.
Results
For 12 Limia species, we obtained almost complete sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene, a well-established marker for lower-level taxonomic relationships. We included sequences of six further Limia species from GenBank (total N = 18 species). Our phylogenies are in concordance with other published phylogenies of Limia. There is strong support that the species found in Lake Miragoâne in Haiti are monophyletic, confirming a recent local radiation. Within Lake Miragoâne, speciation is likely extremely recent, leading to incomplete lineage sorting in the mtDNA. Future studies using multiple unlinked genetic markers are needed to disentangle the relationships within the Lake Miragoâne clade.
Background
Relatively little is known about protective factors and the emergence and maintenance of positive outcomes in the field of adolescents with chronic conditions. Therefore, the primary aim of the study is to acquire a deeper understanding of the dynamic process of resilience factors, coping strategies and psychosocial adjustment of adolescents living with chronic conditions.
Methods/design
We plan to consecutively recruit N = 450 adolescents (12–21 years) from three German patient registries for chronic conditions (type 1 diabetes, cystic fibrosis, or juvenile idiopathic arthritis). Based on screening for anxiety and depression, adolescents are assigned to two parallel groups – “inconspicuous” (PHQ-9 and GAD-7 < 7) vs. “conspicuous” (PHQ-9 or GAD-7 ≥ 7) – participating in a prospective online survey at baseline and 12-month follow-up. At two time points (T1, T2), we assess (1) intra- and interpersonal resiliency factors, (2) coping strategies, and (3) health-related quality of life, well-being, satisfaction with life, anxiety and depression. Using a cross-lagged panel design, we will examine the bidirectional longitudinal relations between resiliency factors and coping strategies, psychological adaptation, and psychosocial adjustment. To monitor Covid-19 pandemic effects, participants are also invited to take part in an intermediate online survey.
Discussion
The study will provide a deeper understanding of adaptive, potentially modifiable processes and will therefore help to develop novel, tailored interventions supporting a positive adaptation in youths with a chronic condition. These strategies should not only support those at risk but also promote the maintenance of a successful adaptation.
Trial registration
German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS), no. DRKS00025125. Registered on May 17, 2021.
A Secular Tradition
(2021)
This article focuses on the social philosopher Horace Kallen and the revisions he made to the concept of cultural pluralism that he first developed in the early 20th century, applying it to postwar America and the young State of Israel. It shows how he opposed the assumption that the United States’ social order was based on a “Judeo-Christian tradition.” By constructing pluralism as a civil religion and carving out space for secular self-understandings in midcentury America, Kallen attempted to preserve the integrity of his earlier political visions, developed during World War I, of pluralist societies in the United States and Palestine within an internationalist global order. While his perspective on the State of Israel was largely shaped by his American experiences, he revised his approach to politically functionalizing religious traditions as he tested his American understanding of a secular, pluralist society against the political theology effective in the State of Israel. The trajectory of Kallen’s thought points to fundamental questions about the compatibility of American and Israeli understandings of religion’s function in society and its relation to political belonging, especially in light of their transnational connection through American Jewish support for the recently established state.
This study examines the access to healthcare for children and adolescents with three common chronic diseases (type-1 diabetes (T1D), obesity, or juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)) within the 4th (Delta), 5th (Omicron), and beginning of the 6th (Omicron) wave (June 2021 until July 2022) of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany in a cross-sectional study using three national patient registries. A paper-and-pencil questionnaire was given to parents of pediatric patients (<21 years) during the routine check-ups. The questionnaire contains self-constructed items assessing the frequency of healthcare appointments and cancellations, remote healthcare, and satisfaction with healthcare. In total, 905 parents participated in the T1D-sample, 175 in the obesity-sample, and 786 in the JIA-sample. In general, satisfaction with healthcare (scale: 0–10; 10 reflecting the highest satisfaction) was quite high (median values: T1D 10, JIA 10, obesity 8.5). The proportion of children and adolescents with canceled appointments was relatively small (T1D 14.1%, JIA 11.1%, obesity 20%), with a median of 1 missed appointment, respectively. Only a few parents (T1D 8.6%; obesity 13.1%; JIA 5%) reported obstacles regarding health services during the pandemic. To conclude, it seems that access to healthcare was largely preserved for children and adolescents with chronic health conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany.
This paper investigates the predictions of the Derivational Complexity Hypothesis by studying the acquisition of wh-questions in 4- and 5-year-old Akan-speaking children in an experimental approach using an elicited production and an elicited imitation task. Akan has two types of wh-question structures (wh-in-situ and wh-ex-situ questions), which allows an investigation of children’s acquisition of these two question structures and their preferences for one or the other. Our results show that adults prefer to use wh-ex-situ questions over wh-in-situ questions. The results from the children show that both age groups have the two question structures in their linguistic repertoire. However, they differ in their preferences in usage in the elicited production task: while the 5-year-olds preferred the wh-in-situ structure over the wh-ex-situ structure, the 4-year-olds showed a selective preference for the wh-in-situ structure in who-questions. These findings suggest a developmental change in wh-question preferences in Akan-learning children between 4 and 5 years of age with a so far unobserved u-shaped developmental pattern. In the elicited imitation task, all groups showed a strong tendency to maintain the structure of in-situ and ex-situ questions in repeating grammatical questions. When repairing ungrammatical ex-situ questions, structural changes to grammatical in-situ questions were hardly observed but the insertion of missing morphemes while keeping the ex-situ structure. Together, our findings provide only partial support for the Derivational Complexity Hypothesis.