Applied Research

Traditionally regarded as the Cinderella sector, further education (FE) is not yet recognized for its research potential and, if researched at all, tends to be 'researched on' rather than proactively enabled to carry out research itself. Although Britain's Learning and Skills Council's FE and Post-16 sector encompasses around six million learners, four thousand providers and £7.3 billion worth of provision, little research in the sector uses the extensive data-rich client base it serves. Few, if any, in-house research findings inform its professional practice. The Learning and Skills Development Agency Research Network and LSC Research Centre have begun to address this gap, mapping out a new blueprint for research developments in the sector, and raising a new capacity for in-house FE-focused research. These exciting national developments form the foundation for this book, which builds on the key importance of research to strengthen the role of further education as the main bridging sector between school and higher education at a time of Britain's increased national investment in raising achievements. This groundbreaking core text in a new field identifies and constructs a new theoretical framework for a specialist FE research culture, recognizing the unique contribution to research of FE practitioner-researchers. The book identifies good practice in this field through a series of in-depth case studies linked to appropriate and innovative research methods. The theoretical framework outlined links the concept of the critical reflective practitioner with the development of knowledge management techniques specific to Further Education research. This book will enable its readers to: 1. Recognize the value of undertaking research in their sector 2. Draw upon their current practice to develop research questions 3. Identify appropriate research questions and design appropriate research techniques accordingly 4. Interrogate other research, from associated fields 5. Undertake literature searches and derive information for a variety of sources 6. Use research -- their own or others' -- to inform their professional practice 7. Have the confidence to create, use and evaluate their sector specific research.

More details
Empowering Researchers in Further Education
By Yvonne Hillier and Jill Jameson
Contributor: Introductory Chapter by Andrew Morris
Published by Trentham Books, 2003
ISBN 1858562856, 9781858562858
194 pages

... Urban channels, Erodibility, Allen et al. (2002). Urban channels, Spatial management in relation to hazards, Chin and Gregory (2005). Plunge pools, Act as energy dissipators to increase flow resistance and enhance channel stability, Allan and Estes (2005). Channelization. ...

Ziel dieses Artikels ist es zum einen, mit dem Begriff der diskursiven Exklusion eine Konzeptualisierung von Exklusion zu unterbreiten, welche den theoretischen Anforderungen an einen soziologisch-analytischen Begriff gewachsen ist und zum anderen, methodische Hinweise zur Erforschung von Exklusionsprozessen zu bieten. Ich werde hierzu die drei emergenten Forschungsperspektiven der Diskursanalyse "nach dem Strukturalismus", der Dispositivanalyse, und der wissenssoziologischen Diskursanalyse vorstellen und jeweils danach fragen, welches Analysepotenzial von ihnen ausgeht, um soziale Exklusion soziologisch zu fassen. Dabei wird sich zeigen, dass jede dieser Perspektiven bestimmte Aspekte in den Vordergrund ruckt, dabei aber wiederum andere vernachlassigt. Am Ende des Artikels werden Moglichkeiten einer Kombination der Ansatze diskutiert. URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1302199

Der vorliegende Beitrag befasst sich mit der Minderheitenpolitik in Estland unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Kultur. Dabei wird der Nationale Aktionsplan ausgewertet und der Einfluss der Kulturpolitik auf die Inklusion ethnischer Minderheiten untersucht. Die Studie legt einen Schwerpunkt auf die Bereiche Bildung, Medien und Partizipation. Die Studie kommt zu dem Ergebnis, dass ethnische Minderheiten in weiten Bereichen unterrepräsentiert sind, und gibt Handlungsoptionen zur Verbesserung der Situation. (ICD

With the depletion of conventional crude oil reserves in the world, heavy oil and bitumen resources have great potential to meet the future demand for petroleum products. However, oil recovery from heavy oil and bitumen reservoirs is much more difficult than that from conventional oil reservoirs. This is mainly because heavy oil or bitumen is partially or completely immobile under reservoir conditions due to its extremely high viscosity, which creates special production challenges. In order to overcome these challenges significant efforts were devoted by Applied Research Center (ARC) at Florida International University and The Center for Energy Economics (CEE) at the University of Texas. A simplified model was developed to assess the density of the upgraded crude depending on the ratio of solvent mass to crude oil mass, temperature, pressure and the properties of the crude oil. The simplified model incorporated the interaction dynamics into a homogeneous, porous heavy oil reservoir ...

While technological developments have enabled global distribution of software development teams, and wage differentials have stimulated offshore software services export industries such as India’s, the overriding factor in the growth of globalization in this industry is the search for talented software people. The best software talent is in increasing demand as the software industry itself grows, and as software systems become a competitive tool in many other industries. Unfortunately, global supplies of the best talent are already tapped and there are no significant new sources readily available in the near future. The implications for US trade and public policy are far-reaching.

Stressful events that disrupt the assumptive world can force people to make cognitive changes to accommodate these highly stressful experiences. As fundamental assumptions are reestablished, many people report changes and experiences that reflect posttraumatic growth (PTG). The present research describes the development of the Core Beliefs Inventory (CBI), a brief measure of disruption of the assumptive world developed for use in applied research and clinical settings. Three studies, two using college samples (Study 1, n=181 and Study 2, n=297 time 1; 85 time 2) and the third using leukemia patients (Study 3, n=70 time 1; 43 time 2), assessed the utility of the CBI to predict PTG in both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs. Relationships between the CBI and measures of self-reported PTG and well-being indicate that the CBI has construct validity, acceptable test-retest reliability, and very good internal consistency. The CBI may be a useful tool in investigating predictions about the effects of stressful experiences on an individual's assumptive world, PTG, and successful adaptation.

The scientific publication process has been so far only marginally affected by the possibilities of the Internet. This may be attributed to a lack of sound business models and pilots to demonstrate the ultimate benefits of free scientific publication. A team of universities, Internet publishers and applied research institutes proposes in the framework of the SciX-project (open, self-organizing repository for scientific information exchange) to demonstrate these benefits and reengineer parts of the scientific publication process. This contribution focuses on the findings from investigations into the identification and acquisition of content sources such as conference papers, theses and journal papers related to the field of CAAD. Special attention has been paid to the different types of available information, such as bibliographical data, summaries, full texts, etc. In this paper, an overall estimation concerning the expected scientific output in the field of CAAD (within a midterm p...

Participant observation is employed in any academic discipline or professional field requiring in-depth studies of everyday life. The article describes the key processes of undertaking participant observation involving joining members of a social group, learning how to participate, and undertake fieldwork. Methodological issues such as validity, generalisation and representations are discussed in relation to the collection and analysis of data. Participant observation whether open or covert is seen to involve a continuous reflection on ethical issues and contributes to the inclusion of the voices of those who are marginalised or rendered invisible in public debates.

Assessing the learning style preferences of adult workers (consumers) with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities and accommodating the consumer's learning style preference during the job training process is a critical feature of quality supported employment services and an under-explored area of applied research. However, before evaluating the effects of learning style preferences on job training outcomes, consumers must first demonstrate the skills to express learning preferences. This research sought to demonstrate a method of assessing the learning style preference of consumers with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities and to investigate which of two instructional interventions, when matched with the consumers preferred learning style, would have the greatest impact on consumer job performance. Three independent variables were included in this study: (1) the consumer's learning style preference, (2) auditory instructional cues, and (3) visual instructional cues. The dependent variable was the accuracy of job task performance for each consumer under the alternating instructional interventions. ^ Four participants participated in the exploratory phase (phase I) of the study and three participants participated in the empirical phase (phase II) of the study. Phase I involved a descriptive analysis. Consumer learning style was assessed utilizing the Learning Style Inventory-Primary (Perrin, 1991), which was modified for use with the participant group. Phase II involved single-subject research design principles. Specifically, an alternating treatment withdrawal design was utilized to determine which instructional strategy (auditory or visual cues) when matched with the consumer's preferred learning style, had the greatest impact on the dependent variable. An Independent t-Test and a Helmert Contrast were used to determine statistical significance between conditions. An alpha level of .05 was set for determining significance. ^ Results indicate that learning style preferences for consumers with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities can be reliably assessed. Analysis of the data indicated that there was a significant difference in the effect of the two instructional interventions on consumer job performance. When the instructional intervention was congruent with the consumer's learning style, the greater the improvement in job performance. When the intervention was incongruent to the consumer's preferred learning style, a lesser degree of improved job performance would result. ^

This paper presents an application of high resolution satellite remote sensing data for mapping water quality in the Goldon Horn, Istanbul. It is an applied research emphasizing the present water quality conditions in this region for water quality parameters; secchi disc depth (SDD), chlorophyl-a (chl-a) and total suspended sediment (TSS) concentration. The study also examines the retrievals of these parameters through high resolution IKONOS multispectral data supported by in situ measurements. Image processing procedure involving radiometric correction is carried out for conversion from digital numbers (DNs) to spectral radiance to correlate water quality parameters and satellite data by using multiple regression technique. The retrieved and verified results show that the measured and estimated values of water quality parameters in good agreement (R 2 > 0.97). The spatial distribution maps are developed by using multiple regression algorithm belonging to water quality parameters. These maps present apparent spatial variations of selected parameters and inform the decision makers of water quality variations in a large water region in the Istanbul metropolitan area.

There is a growing trend to involve young people in a range of advisory roles. As a research institution focused on healthy adolescent development, the Johns Hopkins Center for Adolescent Health recognizes its need for youth input on applied research activities as well as its ability to contribute to the positive development of the young people who serve in this capacity. Due to the lack of a tested theoretical model for establishing and maintaining a youth advisory committee, the Center’s Youth Advisory Committee is examined through the lens of a youth development framework that includes opportunities and supports for adult-youth relationships, youth participation, youth as resources, and program flexibility. Challenges and facilitating factors in the development and maintenance of a youth advisory committee are also discussed.

The paper introduces and explores the Plans to Pedagogy research programme, a three-year project focused on teacher capacity-building within schools. Plans to Pedagogy engages practitioner-researchers in the development of their and their colleagues’ spatial learning skills as they move into and attempt to take advantage of innovative learning environments. The programme involves teachers from eight schools across Australia and New Zealand. Still in progress, each three-year project addresses the individual school’s needs, while being supported by a more extensive university-situated “umbrella” research programme. This paper presents emerging findings from Plans to Pedagogy and discusses what is being learned about applied research in schools and how a research-focused approach to professional learning can enhance teacher learning and practice.

Literature on Unified Modeling Language (UML) and aspect-orientation often focus on improving the software development process [2]. This paper presents a systems engineering perspective that motivates an aspect-oriented software architectural analysis approach using ...

... Darrell Norman Burrell* Virginia International University, USA and Marylhurst University, USA E-mail: darrell.burrell@yahoo.com *Corresponding author Gigi Smith ... 4, No. 2, pp.132–145. Biographical notes: Darrell Norman Burrell is a doctoral student at AT Still University, USA. ...

In recent years design and design research shifted from isolated tasks to tackling complex problems such as sustainable development and integrated innovation. These challenges cross the borders of established academic disciplines and exceed the expertise of specialists; rather, they require knowledge, methods, and approaches from several academic fields as well as from scholars and from practitioners. Proceeding from the definition of the terms 1.) multi-disciplinarity, 2.) pluridisciplinarity 3.) cross-disciplinarity, 4.) interdisciplinarity, and 5.) transdisciplinarity, including Michael Gibbons' concept of "Mode 1" and "Mode 2"-science, the paper continues with scrutinizing the controversially discussed question of whether design is a discipline or an 'undisciplinable' profession. On that basis the paper presents the program and measures taken at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Switzerland, to encourage researchers to engage in inter-and transdisciplinary research projects. Furthermore, it presents two case examples of inter-and a transdisciplinary research projects, conducted by researchers from the School of Art & Design/Competence Centre Design & Management, in collaboration with colleagues from the School of Social Work and School of Business. Finally, the paper concludes by pointing out the specific requirements of conducting inter-and transdisciplinary research projects.

Permission marketing suggests an evolution of direct marketing, particularly used with e-mail. It combines databases of customers who agree to receive marketing messages with low-cost, customized e-mails that attempt to slice through advertising clutter, attract increased customer support, and change behavior.This applied research examined implementing permission marketing, relevant literature, and permission marketing's effectiveness influencing consumer interest and behavior. A case study tested the propositions resulting from the literature review and evaluated responses to a permission marketing campaign that used traditional and new media. This study found that relevance—personalization, brand equity, and previous relationships—influenced response rates. This article adds to the growing body of research on permission marketing's role in marketing theory, as well as its applied effectiveness in the marketplace.

This paper investigates theoretical and empirical links between jobtenure and short-term mobility wage gains. Standard theoretical approaches examining this subject (search theory, job-matching and on-the-job training models) predict a negative correlation between these variables. Furthermore, this result has been confirmed in different applied researches for US. However, European labour market institutions appear to be quite different from US ones, especially for employment protection and turnover costs. Taking this feature into account we develop a theoretical model, evaluated through analytical and simulation procedures, where optimal switching conditions determine a positive correlation between jobtenure and short-term mobility wage gains. The main proposition derived from our model is confirmed for the Italian case. Using a panel database and different econometric specifications -in order to control for individual observable and non-observable effects, firm attributes and endog...