scholarly journals Autonomous Schools and Strategic Pupil Exclusion

2019 ◽  
Vol 130 (625) ◽  
pp. 125-159
Author(s):  
Stephen Machin ◽  
Matteo Sandi
Keyword(s):  
School Improvement ◽  
Test Score ◽  
Improvement Programme ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Autonomous Schools ◽  
Performance Gains

Abstract This article studies whether pupil performance gains in autonomous schools in England can be attributed to the strategic exclusion of poorly performing pupils. England has had two phases of academy school introduction—the first, in the 2000s, being a school improvement programme for poorly performing schools and the second a mass academisation programme from 2010 for better-performing schools. Overall, exclusion rates are higher in academies, with the earlier programme featuring much higher rates of exclusion. However, rather than functioning as a means of test score manipulation, the higher exclusion rate reflects the rigorous discipline enforced by the pre-2010 academies.

scholarly journals From Entrepreneurship to Entrepreneurial Education in Lower Secondary School: Pedagogising by Means of the Pedagogic Device

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 36
Author(s):  
Monika Diehl
Keyword(s):  
School Improvement ◽  
Secondary School ◽  
Secondary Schools ◽  
Capitalist Society ◽  
Entrepreneurial Education ◽  
Lower Secondary School ◽  
School Cultures ◽  
Pedagogic Discourse ◽  
Improvement Programme ◽  
Pedagogic Device

<p>This study is part of a school improvement programme on entrepreneurial education and investigates teachers’ understanding and transmission of entrepreneurial education in two Swedish lower secondary schools, through interviews and observations. Entrepreneurship is a well-established concept within capitalist society, but the interest here is to investigate the transmission of it into pedagogic discourse and communication. Bernstein’s concept of the pedagogic device is used to reason on the process of what happens, and why, when the concept of entrepreneurship is transformed into entrepreneurial education. The results indicate different understandings and connotations on a deeper level, and also show that transmission to colleagues and pupils faces a series of challenges. In practise, the findings show different approaches to entrepreneurial education among individual teachers, but also between schools. This can be explained by gaps in the transmitting process, but also by different school cultures and diverse forms of collegial collaboration, which may affect transmission among colleagues and thus the transmission to pupils. Pupils’ backgrounds may also have an impact on the differences. <strong></strong></p>

scholarly journals A mixed-methods study of challenges experienced by clinical teams in measuring improvement

2019 ◽  
pp. bmjqs-2018-009048 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Woodcock ◽  
Elisa G Liberati ◽  
Mary Dixon-Woods
Keyword(s):  
Professional Community ◽  
Multidisciplinary Teams ◽  
Expert Review ◽  
Arduous Task ◽  
Independent Evaluation ◽  
Local Selection ◽  
Improvement Programme ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Analytical Approaches ◽  
Selection Of

ObjectiveMeasurement is an indispensable element of most quality improvement (QI) projects, but it is undertaken to variable standards. We aimed to characterise challenges faced by clinical teams in undertaking measurement in the context of a safety QI programme that encouraged local selection of measures.MethodsDrawing on an independent evaluation of a multisite improvement programme (Safer Clinical Systems), we combined a qualitative study of participating teams’ experiences and perceptions of measurement with expert review of measurement plans and analysis of data collected for the programme. Multidisciplinary teams of frontline clinicians at nine UK NHS sites took part across the two phases of the programme between 2011 and 2016.ResultsDeveloping and implementing a measurement plan against which to assess their improvement goals was an arduous task for participating sites. The operational definitions of the measures that they selected were often imprecise or missed important details. Some measures used by the teams were not logically linked to the improvement actions they implemented. Regardless of the specific type of data used (routinely collected or selected ex novo), the burdensome nature of data collection was underestimated. Problems also emerged in identifying and using suitable analytical approaches.ConclusionMeasurement is a highly technical task requiring a degree of expertise. Simply leveraging individual clinicians’ motivation is unlikely to defeat the persistent difficulties experienced by clinical teams when attempting to measure their improvement efforts. We suggest that more structural initiatives and broader capability-building programmes should be pursued by the professional community. Improving access to, and ability to use repositories of validated measures, and increasing transparency in reporting measurement attempts, is likely to be helpful.

scholarly journals A reinforcement learning-based computing offloading and resource allocation scheme in F-RAN

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fan Jiang ◽  
Rongxin Ma ◽  
Youjun Gao ◽  
Zesheng Gu
Keyword(s):  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Reinforcement Learning ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Computational Resource ◽  
Multiple User ◽  
Radio Access ◽  
Wireless Environment ◽  
Resource Allocation Scheme ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Performance Gains

AbstractThis paper investigates a computing offloading policy and the allocation of computational resource for multiple user equipments (UEs) in device-to-device (D2D)-aided fog radio access networks (F-RANs). Concerning the dynamically changing wireless environment where the channel state information (CSI) is difficult to predict and know exactly, we formulate the problem of task offloading and resource optimization as a mixed-integer nonlinear programming problem to maximize the total utility of all UEs. Concerning the non-convex property of the formulated problem, we decouple the original problem into two phases to solve. Firstly, a centralized deep reinforcement learning (DRL) algorithm called dueling deep Q-network (DDQN) is utilized to obtain the most suitable offloading mode for each UE. Particularly, to reduce the complexity of the proposed offloading scheme-based DDQN algorithm, a pre-processing procedure is adopted. Then, a distributed deep Q-network (DQN) algorithm based on the training result of the DDQN algorithm is further proposed to allocate the appropriate computational resource for each UE. Combining these two phases, the optimal offloading policy and resource allocation for each UE are finally achieved. Simulation results demonstrate the performance gains of the proposed scheme compared with other existing baseline schemes.

Excellence in English Cities: Gifted and Talented Education and the National Training Programme for ‘Gifted and Talented Co-ordinators’

2003 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 120-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hilary Lowe
Keyword(s):  
School Improvement ◽  
Gifted And Talented ◽  
Continuing Professional Development ◽  
Training Programme ◽  
Research Centre ◽  
Gifted And Talented Education ◽  
Educational Challenges ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Improvement Programme ◽  
National Training

This article traces recent developments in a national strategy for the education of highly able pupils in England, focusing on the government's Excellence in Cities school improvement programme. This programme seeks to ensure that ‘gifted and talented’ pupils in designated state schools, many of which present particular educational challenges, are identified and provided with opportunities to fulfil their potential. The author describes the unique national programme of continuing professional development, designed and delivered by the Research Centre for Able Pupils at Oxford Brookes University, which underpins the Gifted and Talented Strand of Excellence in Cities.

scholarly journals A Reinforcement Learning based Computing Offloading and Resource Allocation Scheme in F-RAN

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fan Jiang ◽  
Rongxin Ma ◽  
Youjun Gao ◽  
Zesheng Gu
Keyword(s):  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Reinforcement Learning ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Computational Resource ◽  
Multiple User ◽  
Radio Access ◽  
Wireless Environment ◽  
Resource Allocation Scheme ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Performance Gains

Abstract This paper investigates a computing offloading policy and the allocation of computational resource for multiple user equipments (UEs) in Device-to-Device (D2D) aided fog radio access networks (F-RANs). Concerning the dynamically changing wireless environment where the channel state information (CSI) is difficult to predict and know exactly, we formulate the problem of task offloading and resource optimization as a mixed-integer nonlinear programming problem to maximize the total utility of all UEs. Concerning the non-convex property of the formulated problem, we decouple the original problem into two phases to solve. Firstly, a centralized deep reinforcement learning (DRL) algorithm called Dueling Deep Q-Network (DDQN) is utilized to obtain the most suitable offloading mode for each UE. Particularly, to reduce the complexity of the proposed offloading scheme based DDQN algorithm, a pre-processing procedure is adopted. Then a distributed Deep Q-Network (DQN)algorithm based on the training result of the DDQN algorithm is further proposed to allocate the appropriate computational resource for each UE. Combining these two phases, the optimal offloading policy and resource allocation for each UE are finally achieved. Simulation results demonstrate the performance gains of the proposed scheme compared with other existing baseline schemes.

Microstructure Researches of Metallic Composite Foams Based on AlMg Alloys

2014 ◽  
Vol 1036 ◽  
pp. 106-110
Author(s):  
Oana Bălţătescu ◽  
Catalina Nuţescu ◽  
Ioan Rusu ◽  
Costel Roman ◽  
Ioan Carcea
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Management ◽  
Acoustic Properties ◽  
Multiphase Materials ◽  
Sic Particles ◽  
Acoustic Control ◽  
Composite Foams ◽  
Significant Performance ◽  
New Material ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Performance Gains

Composite materials are the most advanced class of materials invented and produced by humans in modern times as well as a challenge for the future in the field of scientific and technological performance. They are made up of at least two phases of different nature which are so combined to form a new material with a superior combination of properties. They are generally materials with unusual performances on the relationship between properties and specific gravity. Composites are multiphase materials with distinct and well-defined interface between the constituent phases ensuring a transfer of property but can lead to obtaining a product with exceptional performance from the starting material. In this paper we have focused research on Al-Mg alloys with magnesium and silicon carbide (SiC). Stabilized Aluminium Foams (SAF) are new class of materials with low densities and novel physical, mechanical, thermal, electrical and acoustic properties. They offer potential for lightweight structures, for energy absorption, and for thermal management; and some of them, at least, are cheap. Metal foams offer significant performance gains in light, stiff structures, for the efficient absorption of energy, for thermal management and perhaps for acoustic control and other, more specialized, applications. They are recyclable and nontoxic. They hold particular promise for market penetration in applications in which several of these features are exploited simultaneously. The paper presents some results related to the research of metallic foams based on AlMg10 metallic alloy obtained by melt bubbled C4H10 addition of SiC particles. Microsrtucture of these foams is analyzed by using (SEM) Scanning Electron Microscope, laying out the network of pores imbued into each others developed around SiC particles and other issues microstructural characteristics.

Precipitation of NiHfsi phase in NiAl single crystals containing Hf

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 532-533
Author(s):  
A. Garg ◽  
R. D. Noebe ◽  
R. Darolia
Keyword(s):  
High Temperature ◽  
Single Crystals ◽  
High Temperature Strength ◽  
Bridgman Technique ◽  
Shell Mold ◽  
Third Phase ◽  
Unknown Phase ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Nial Matrix

Small additions of Hf to NiAl produce a significant increase in the high-temperature strength of single crystals. Hf has a very limited solubility in NiAl and in the presence of Si, results in a high density of G-phase (Ni16Hf6Si7) cuboidal precipitates and some G-platelets in a NiAl matrix. These precipitates have a F.C.C structure and nucleate on {100}NiAl planes with almost perfect coherency and a cube-on-cube orientation-relationship (O.R.). However, G-phase is metastable and after prolonged aging at high temperature dissolves at the expense of a more stable Heusler (β'-Ni2AlHf) phase. In addition to these two phases, a third phase was shown to be present in a NiAl-0.3at. % Hf alloy, but was not previously identified (Fig. 4 of ref. 2 ). In this work, we report the morphology, crystal-structure, O.R., and stability of this unknown phase, which were determined using conventional and analytical transmission electron microscopy (TEM).Single crystals of NiAl containing 0.5at. % Hf were grown by a Bridgman technique. Chemical analysis indicated that these crystals also contained Si, which was not an intentional alloying addition but was picked up from the shell mold during directional solidification.

Imaging of Al-Li-Cu alloys with a Scanning Ion Microprobe

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 314-315
Author(s):  
K.K. Soni ◽  
D.B. Williams ◽  
J.M. Chabala ◽  
R. Levi-Setti ◽  
D.E. Newbury
Keyword(s):  
Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Equilibrium Phase ◽  
Icosahedral Symmetry ◽  
Ion Microprobe ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Cu Alloys ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
The University ◽  
Secondary Ion

In contrast to the inability of x-ray microanalysis to detect Li, secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) generates a very strong Li+ signal. The latter’s potential was recently exploited by Williams et al. in the study of binary Al-Li alloys. The present study of Al-Li-Cu was done using the high resolution scanning ion microprobe (SIM) at the University of Chicago (UC). The UC SIM employs a 40 keV, ∼70 nm diameter Ga+ probe extracted from a liquid Ga source, which is scanned over areas smaller than 160×160 μm2 using a 512×512 raster. During this experiment, the sample was held at 2 × 10-8 torr.In the Al-Li-Cu system, two phases of major importance are T1 and T2, with nominal compositions of Al2LiCu and Al6Li3Cu respectively. In commercial alloys, T1 develops a plate-like structure with a thickness <∼2 nm and is therefore inaccessible to conventional microanalytical techniques. T2 is the equilibrium phase with apparent icosahedral symmetry and its presence is undesirable in industrial alloys.

Defect structures of Nb1+αS2 sulfidation scales

1992 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-39
Author(s):  
Chuxin Zhou ◽  
L. W. Hobbs
Keyword(s):  
Stacking Faults ◽  
Rhombohedral Structure ◽  
Stacking Sequence ◽  
Defect Structures ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Plane Normal ◽  
Lower Case ◽  
Sulfur Layer ◽  
Two Phases

One of the major purposes in the present work is to study the high temperature sulfidation properties of Nb in severe sulfidizing environments. Kinetically, the sulfidation rate of Nb is satisfactorily slow, but the microstructures and non-stoichiometry of Nb1+αS2 challenge conventional oxidation/sulfidation theory and defect models of non-stoichiometric compounds. This challenge reflects our limited knowledge of the dependence of kinetics and atomic migration processes in solid state materials on their defect structures.Figure 1 shows a high resolution image of a platelet from the middle portion of the Nb1+αS2 scale. A thin lamellar heterogeneity (about 5nm) is observed. From X-ray diffraction results, we have shown that Nb1+αS2 scale is principally rhombohedral structure, but 2H-NbS2 can result locally due to stacking faults, because the only difference between these 2H and 3R phases is variation in the stacking sequence along the c axis. Following an ABC notation, we use capital letters A, B and C to represent the sulfur layer, and lower case letters a, b and c to refer to Nb layers. For example, the stacking sequence of 2H phase is AbACbCA, which is a ∼12Å period along the c axis; the stacking sequence of 3R phase is AbABcBCaCA to form an ∼18Å period along the c axis. Intergrowth of these two phases can take place at stacking faults or by a shear in the basal plane normal to the c axis.

Convergent-bceam diffraction studies on lead zirconate titanate Ceramics

1986 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 482-483
Author(s):  
M.L.A. Dass ◽  
T.A. Bielicki ◽  
G. Thomas ◽  
T. Yamamoto ◽  
K. Okazaki
Keyword(s):  
Lead Zirconate Titanate ◽  
Direct Proof ◽  
Lead Zirconate ◽  
Subsolidus Phase ◽  
Pzt Ceramics ◽  
Subsolidus Phase Diagram ◽  
Zirconate Titanate ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Cbd Method ◽  
Titanate Ceramics

Lead zirconate titanate, Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT), ceramics are ferroelectrics formed as solid solutions between ferroelectric PbTiO3 and ant iferroelectric PbZrO3. The subsolidus phase diagram is shown in figure 1. PZT transforms between the Ti-rich tetragonal (T) and the Zr-rich rhombohedral (R) phases at a composition which is nearly independent of temperature. This phenomenon is called morphotropism, and the boundary between the two phases is known as the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB). The excellent piezoelectric and dielectric properties occurring at this composition are believed to.be due to the coexistence of T and R phases, which results in easy poling (i.e. orientation of individual grain polarizations in the direction of an applied electric field). However, there is little direct proof of the coexistence of the two phases at the MPB, possibly because of the difficulty of distinguishing between them. In this investigation a CBD method was found which would successfully differentiate between the phases, and this was applied to confirm the coexistence of the two phases.

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